Abstract
The integration of Space Information Network (SIN)
with terrestrial infrastructures has been attracting significant
attentions in the context of 5G, where satellite communications
can be leveraged as additional capabilities such as backhauling
between the core network and remote mobile edge sites. However,
simple addition of SIN capabilities to terrestrial 5G does not
automatically lead to enhanced service performance without
systematic scheduling of coexisting resources. In this article we
focus on the scenario of multi-link video streaming over both
parallel Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) satellite and terrestrial
5G backhaul links for enhancing user Quality of Experience
(QoE) and network efficiency. The distinct challenge is the
complex optimization of scheduling video segment delivery via
two parallel channels with very different characteristics while
striving to enhance the video quality and resource optimality.
We carried out systematic experiments based on a real-life 5G
testing framework with integrated GEO satellite and terrestrial
backhaul links. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness
of our proposed 5G edge computing based solution
for holistically achieving assured user experiences and optimised
network resource efficiency in terms of video traffic offloading.