Edge IoT and 5G – can WebRTC help? by Tim Panton is CTO at |pipe| We face a puzzle: More and more IoT devices are putting AI the on device. Latency is critical to many applications (think warehouses, farms etc) The user with their BYOD smartphone is often geographically very close Devices need to collaborate locally (collision avoidance etc) BUT the 5G model has all the traffic traversing the telco core – even when it could have remained in the same cell, adding costs and latency. WebRTC’s TURN/ICE protocols potentially offer a way to keep local traffic local, without minimal changes to the network/endpoints. We’ll describe how the pieces might fit together. Having both Werner and Tim present next to each other grave a great opportunity for a following discussion about the viability of Tim’s idea.

1. Edge IoT and 5G – can
WebRTC help?
Tim@pi.pe

2. Start a discussion
• I'm genuinely asking a question here. I admit almost complete ignorance.
I'd love feedback either at the end of the session
or afterwards in the bar, or email tim@pi.pe

3. WHO AM I?
• Tim Panton ( @steely-glint)
• CTO @ |pipe|
• |pipe| provides WebRTC toolkit for edge cameras etc
• With decentralised auth/security + E2E encryption + NAT traversal
• Typical use-case is a Baby Monitor - users are typically in same building

4. 5G Problem
• 5G touted as WiFi replacement
• Many 5g use cases require low latency
• Many require BYOD
• Many are geographically local
• But area too big to cover easily with WiFi
• This contrasts with most video confs etc
DJI’s farming package

5. Let’s do an experiment
(Signal permitting - QR)

8. Results of experiment
• WebRTC latency test
• Between two 4g devices
• In the same cell on the same carrier
• >100ms latency between them
• vs < 10ms on wifi

9. Diagram of WebRTC in 4g *
Telco core network Internet
TURN
SERVER
Farmer
BYOD
iPhone
Smart Agriculture
Desired Path
Actual Path
*on same carrier network. X-network calls can often bypass TURN

10. Why?
Billing Legal Intercept Spectrum
Policy
3gpp
standards
https://davidmassonart.artstation.com
The four horsemen of the tele apocalypse

11. No,
5G/SDN won't help
If you think it will -
Ask yourself how the farmer's BYOD iPhone will get to be a temporary
part of an SDN layer just for this action and not for her email/e-commerce

12. What if....
Telco core network Internet
TURN server
server in the cell
Farmer
BYOD
iPhone
Smart Agriculture
Desired Path
Actual Path
Billing
Cloned
traffic for LI

13. TURN request contains
• Credentials (one off or long-term both supported)
• Target IP address
• Source IP address
• Cell knows the 'terminal' involved
This should be sufficient info

14. How might it work?
• App adds extra cell-TURN to WebRTC config
• Apps send TURN requests
• Cell-TURN pairs up requests
• Creates temp path between IP:port <-> IP:port
• Or does something funky with the Network (firewall/NAT/SDN rule?)

15. Benefits
• Low latency
• Works with BYOD on 2.5 Billion smartphones
• Zero install
• ‘Pipe’ ends in application layer not at the OS - minimise misuse
• IETF/w3c standard with known cryptography
• Auto fallback to existing situation if no cell-TURN possible

16. It will never happen
• See Horsemen
• Probably true
• Except perhaps for 'private' 5g

17. Private 5g
• Cell service on own Land
• Warehouses
• Farms
• Village not-spots
• Islands
• Temp sites (festivals, camping etc)
4 Horsemen may be excluded or weakened.

18. Side benefits
• Reduces backhaul
• Works during cloud outage
• Opens new billing models (hectares covered?)
• Proprietary (meta)Data doesn't leave own land
• GDPR compliance is easier

19. The Ask
If anyone wants to try building this is in their 4/5g solution
we'd love to collaborate.

20. Discussion