Towards URLLC with srsRAN

[aygong]

Hey everyone!

We’re excited to share a recent project where we pushed the boundaries of low-latency performance using the srsRAN Project. Our paper, "Towards URLLC with Open-Source 5G Software," and the accompanying code are now publicly available.

What we explored

Most work on URLLC relies on theoretical models or simulations. Instead, we took a system-level approach: tracing the sources of latency in both the 5G specifications and the srsRAN software stack, and identifying how different layers interact to create bottlenecks.

What we achieved

With a series of modifications, we were able to achieve:

• 39% reduction in downlink latency
• 55% reduction in uplink latency
• Round-trip latency improvement from 11 ms to 5.5 ms

We validated these results across multiple commercial 5G modules and phones, and the improvements were consistent and reproducible. We hope this work helps others experimenting with URLLC or latency-sensitive applications on srsRAN.

We also had the opportunity to present our findings at the srsRAN Project Fall Workshop 2024:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o88ti2lHDuY

If you try out the code, run into issues, or have ideas for further improvements, we'd love to hear your feedback!