[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 181 (Wednesday, September 22, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52675-52678]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-20138]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[ET Docket No. 19-257; FCC 21-92; FRS 47677]


FCC Announces Two New Innovation Zones and Amends One Existing 
Innovation Zone for Program Experimental Licenses

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal Communications Commission 
(Commission) creates two new Innovation Zones for Program Experimental 
Licenses in designated areas in and nearby the campuses of North 
Carolina State University (NC State Innovation Zone) in Raleigh, NC and 
Northeastern University (Northeastern Innovation Zone) in Boston, MA 
and expands the geographical boundary of the previously established 
Innovation Zone in New York City.

ADDRESSES: Federal Communications Commission, 45 L Street NE, 
Washington, DC 20554.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anthony Serafini, Office of 
Engineering and Technology, (202) 418-2456, [email protected] or 
Ira Keltz, Office of Engineering and Technology, at (202) 418-0616, or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's 
document, Public Notice, FCC 21-92, ET Docket No. 19-257, adopted on 
August 5, 2021 and released August 6, 2021. The full text of this 
document is available for public inspection and can be downloaded at: 
https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-established-two-new-innovation-zones-boston-and-raleigh-0 or by using the search function for ET Docket No. 
19-257 on the Commission's ECFS web page at www.fcc.gov/ecfs.

Synopsis

    1. The two new zones the Commission establishes herein are based on 
detailed proposals from the PAWR program. This program for new 
technology experimentation is funded by the National Science Foundation 
along with a consortium consisting of over thirty technology and 
telecommunications companies. According to PAWR, this program ``. . . 
will enable experimental exploration of robust new wireless devices, 
communication techniques, networks, systems, and services that will 
revolutionize the nation's wireless ecosystem, thereby enhancing 
broadband connectivity, leveraging the emerging Internet of Things 
(IoT), and sustaining US leadership and economic competitiveness for 
decades to come.'' The Commission anticipates that the experimentation 
done at these zones may also materially improve understanding of 
opportunities for, and capabilities of, open, standards-based wireless 
networks. PAWR program testbeds are equipped for Open radio access 
networks (Open RAN) research and testing, and PAWR teams are actively 
engaged with the Open RAN development community.
    2. These Innovation Zones will provide new capabilities and 
complement the existing Innovation Zones in Salt Lake City and New York 
City. More specifically, in Raleigh, North Carolina, PAWR is initiating 
AERPAW--Aerial Experimentation and Research Platform for Advanced 
Wireless. This project will create a city-scale platform to focus on 
new use cases for advanced wireless technologies that are emerging for 
unmanned aerial systems. AERPAW will focus on how cellular networks and 
advanced wireless technologies can enable beyond visual line-of-sight 
unmanned aerial

[[Page 52676]]

systems to accelerate development, verification, and testing of 
transformative advances and breakthroughs in telecommunications, 
transportation, infrastructure monitoring, agriculture, and public 
safety. Notably, the AERPAW testbed will be the first platform to allow 
testing at scale of open 5G-and-beyond solutions in unmanned aerial 
system verticals.
    3. At Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, PAWR will 
be supporting the transition of the Defense Advanced Research Projects 
Agency's (DARPA) Colosseum network emulator to a shared platform that 
is usable by the research community. Colosseum, the world's largest 
wireless network emulator, was originally designed to support DARPA's 
Spectrum Collaboration Challenge. With the conclusion of that 
challenge, the larger research community will now be able to take 
advantage of Colosseum's unique capabilities, including the ability to 
emulate full-stack communications, and to support artificial 
intelligence and machine learning algorithms and hardware in the loop. 
This project is expected to bring academia, government, and industry 
researchers together to accelerate advancements in wireless networked 
systems including Open RAN.
    4. Under a Program License, qualified institutions may conduct 
testing for multiple non-related experiments under a single 
authorization within a defined geographic area under control of the 
licensee and where the licensee has institutional processes to manage 
and oversee experiments. The Innovation Zone takes this concept a step 
further by effectively providing an extension of a Program License's 
authorized area of operation. Such licensees are permitted to operate 
within an Innovation Zone, under the parameters set for that particular 
Zone, without having to modify their licenses to cover the new 
location.
    5. The Commission is using the Office of Engineering and 
Technology's (OET) Experimental Licensing System web page to post the 
Innovation Zone designations and detail the guidelines the Commission 
has established for each particular zone--including the specific 
geographic area(s) the Commission has designated and applicable 
technical parameters, such as frequency bands and power limits. Those 
wishing to test in an Innovation Zone must meet the Program License 
eligibility requirements, hold an existing Program License and operate 
in accordance with the geographic areas and technical limits 
established for the Innovation Zone. Prior to operating in an 
Innovation Zone, details for each Program Licensee experiment will be 
posted to the FCC web page as described below. This posting will 
implement the Program License rules procedures that require 
notification of intended operations so that all nearby licensees and 
federal users have full knowledge of operations in an area. Program 
licensees must still meet the timing requirements prescribed by the 
Commission's rules and agreements with other Federal agencies. 
Specifically, program licensees are required to wait 10-days prior to 
beginning tests on spectrum allocated exclusively for non-federal use 
and 15-days when using spectrum allocated for federal use including 
shared non-federal/federal use. Finally, as detailed below, the PAWR 
Project Office will serve as a frequency coordinator for these 
Innovation Zones; operation may not commence without prior coordinating 
through that office.

Innovation Zone Term

    6. Both the NC State and Northeastern Innovation Zones are 
established for a period of five years from the release date of this 
public notice. The term may be renewed upon request at the end of this 
term.

Program License Registration Within Innovation Zones

    7. A program licensee will be required to indicate its call sign 
and identify the Innovation Zone(s) in which it intends to operate. A 
program licensee must operate within the parameters established for the 
Innovation Zone within which it intends to operate. It will provide 
specific technical data, a description of the experiment, and a stop 
buzzer contact person for posting on the appropriate Innovation Zone 
web page(s). Parties will use OET's Experimental Licensing System web 
page to submit this information.
    8. Program licensees must register on OET's Experimental Licensing 
System web page under the respective Innovation Zone web page at: 
https://www.fcc.gov/els prior to operation. The online registration 
process will provide a record of Program Licensees that indicate an 
intent to operate in each Innovation Zone. This registration process 
along with the required coordination process through the PAWR program 
office will provide an opportunity for incumbent licensees and federal 
spectrum users to be an integral part of any necessary compatibility 
evaluation. The website will further be useful to alert other program 
licensees and experimental licensees of nearby operations.

Innovation Zone Frequency Coordination

    9. In addition to requesting to operate in an Innovation Zone, a 
Program Licensee must also coordinate its operations prior to 
commencing its tests. The PAWR Project Office will serve as the 
frequency/operations coordinator for the Innovation Zones established 
and/or modified herein (as well as the Salt Lake City Innovation Zone). 
In this role, the PAWR Project Office will offer non-discriminatory 
service to all interested Program Licensees to coordinate specific 
times and locations for each Program Licensee's operations to avoid 
interference to other spectrum users and between Program Licensees' 
tests. The frequency coordinator may act as a central clearinghouse to 
obtain consent from other potentially affected Commission licensees 
and/or federal spectrum users for Innovation Zone operations. 
Alternatively, Program Licensees may coordinate their own arrangements 
with these authorized spectrum users. In such cases, Program Licensees 
must still coordinate specific operations through the PAWR Project 
Office. Note that designating PAWR as the Innovation Zone frequency 
coordinator does not confer operating authority on PAWR nor does it 
confer sole authority for PAWR to permit operations as Program 
Licensees must also register on OET's Innovation Zone Registration web 
page. Additionally, current Commission rules do not allow airborne use 
in certain bands including active as well as passive receive-only bands 
(e.g., 2495-2690 MHz and 3450-4000 MHz); therefore, Program Licensees 
that plan to engage in experimental operations involving airborne 
transmissions in any Innovation Zone must take extra care to coordinate 
such operations (potentially over distances much greater than that 
necessary for terrestrial experimental operations) to ensure that 
authorized users will not experience harmful interference.
    10. Interested Program Licensees may contact Mari Silbey, PAWR 
Program Director, at ignite.org">mari.silbey@us-ignite.org.

North Carolina State University Innovation Zone

Location

    11. The NC State Innovation Zone will encompass two separate areas 
and program licensees will be permitted to use either or both areas.
    12. The first area encompasses approximately 10.5 square miles for 
testing over the NC State University campus, a suburban residential 
area and

[[Page 52677]]

a rural research farm. This area is defined as the area roughly between 
the Western Boulevard at the northern boundary, south of the Lake 
Wheeler Agricultural Research Station at the southern boundary, Gorman 
Street on the western boundary and South Saunders Street on the eastern 
boundary. The boundary for this area is within the polygon defined by 
the following coordinates:

35[deg]46'23.4'' N, 78[deg]39'12.7'' W
35[deg]47'06.3'' N, 78[deg]41'13.0'' W
35[deg]45'03.3'' N, 78[deg]42'42.2'' W
35[deg]43'21.1'' N, 78[deg]42'11.9'' W
35[deg]42'59.5'' N, 78[deg]41'16.8'' W
35[deg]43'01.5'' N, 78[deg]40'08.1'' W

    13. To minimize the risk of harmful interference to incumbent 
operations and avoid areas where airborne operations may be restricted, 
PAWR states that their primary area for airborne transmissions within 
the larger Innovation Zone will be over approximately 3 square miles in 
the Lake Wheeler area in the southern portion of the Innovation Zone. 
This area is defined by the following coordinates:

35[deg]44'29.9'' N, 78[deg]40'20.0'' W
35[deg]44'38.7'' N, 78[deg]41'32.3'' W
35[deg]43'58.3'' N, 78[deg]42'22.0'' W
35[deg]43'23.5'' N, 78[deg]42'12.3'' W
35[deg]42'59.5'' N, 78[deg]41'16.8'' W
35[deg]43'01.5'' N, 78[deg]40'08.1'' W

    14. The second area of NC State Innovation Zone will extend into 
the Town of Cary, North Carolina and cover approximately 3 square 
miles. This area is anticipated to support four fixed towers with 
permanent wireless transceivers. The tower locations are yet to be 
determined, but will be restricted to ensure all testing is confined 
within the Innovation Zone as defined by the following coordinates:

35[deg]48'32.49'' N, 78[deg]47'39.64'' W
35[deg]48'30.14'' N, 78[deg]45'53.70'' W
35[deg]46'16.16'' N, 78[deg]45'51.17'' W
35[deg]46'19.55'' N, 78[deg]47'47.80'' W

                                      Technical Limits and Band Information
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                                                                              Fixed station      Mobile station
         Frequency band            Type of operation        Allocation         maximum EIRP       maximum EIRP
                                                                                  (dBm)              (dBm)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
617-634.5 MHz (DL)..............  Fixed..............  Non-federal........                 65  .................
663-698 MHz (UL)................  Mobile.............  Non-federal........  .................                 20
907.5-912.5 MHz.................  Fixed & Mobile.....  Shared.............                 65                 20
1755-1760 MHz (UL)..............  Mobile.............  Shared.............  .................                 20
2155-2160 MHz (DL)..............  Fixed..............  Non-federal........                 65  .................
2390-2483.5 MHz.................  Fixed & Mobile.....  Shared.............                 65                 20
2500-2690 MHz \1\ \2\...........  Fixed & Mobile.....  Non-federal........                 65                 20
3550-3700 MHz \1\ \2\ \3\.......  Fixed & Mobile.....  Shared.............                 65                 20
3700-3980 MHz \1\ \2\...........  Mobile.............  Non-federal........  .................                 20
5850-5925 MHz...................  Fixed & Mobile.....  Shared.............                 65                 20
5925-7125 MHz \2\...............  Fixed & Mobile.....  Non-Federal........                 65                 20
27.5-28.35 GHz..................  Fixed & Mobile.....  Non-federal........                 65                 20
38.6-40.0 GHz...................  Fixed & Mobile.....  Non-federal........                 65                 20
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\1\ Commission rules do not permit airborne use on all or portions of these bands.
\2\ Any experimental use must be coordinated with authorized users and registered receive-only fixed satellite
  earth stations.
\3\ Operations must be coordinated with a spectrum access system administrator.

Northeastern University Innovation Zone

Location

    15. The Northeastern University Innovation Zone will encompass two 
separate areas and program licensees will be permitted to use either or 
both areas.
    16. The first area is on Northeastern University's main campus in 
Boston, MA and will cover a triangular tract of approximately 0.8 
square miles. This area is defined as the area roughly between 361 
Huntington Avenue as the northern vertex, Carter Playground as the 
eastern vertex, and 860 Columbus avenue as the southern boundary. The 
coordinates for this area are:

Northwest: 42[deg]20'24.00'' N, 71[deg]05'25.00'' W
Southwest: 42[deg]20'12.12'' N, 71[deg]05'16.22'' W
Northeast: 42[deg]20'20.33'' N, 71[deg]05'2.90'' W

    17. The second area of the Northeastern University Innovation Zone 
is on Northeastern University's satellite campus in Burlington, MA and 
will cover a polygon of approximately 0.9 square miles. This area is 
defined as the area west of Cambridge Street in Burlington MA and 
bordering Mary Cummings Park. The coordinates for this area are:

Northwest: 42[deg]28'44.54'' N, 71[deg]11'37.43'' W
Northeast: 42[deg]28'45.59'' N, 71[deg]11'20.62'' W
Northeast: 42[deg]28'41.88'' N, 71[deg]11'22.2'' W
South: 42[deg]28'37.67'' N, 71[deg]11'32.64'' W
Southwest: 42[deg]28'38.89'' N, 71[deg]11'38.83'' W

                                      Technical Limits and Band Information
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                     Type of                        Fixed station maximum      Mobile station
        Frequency band              operation        Allocation          EIRP  (dBm)        maximum EIRP  (dBm)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
746-787 MHz...................  Fixed and Mobile  Non-federal.....  10 W.................  100mW.
880-960 MHz 1 2...............  Fixed and Mobile  Non-federal.....  10 W.................  100mW.
1920-2170 MHz.................  Fixed and Mobile  Non-federal.....  10 W.................  100mW.
2305-2360 MHz 1 2 4...........  Mobile..........  Non-federal.....  .....................  100mW.
2500-2690 MHz 1 2.............  Fixed and Mobile  Non-federal.....  10 W.................  100mW.
3000-3100 MHz.................  Fixed and Mobile  Shared..........  10 W.................  100mW.
3300-3600 MHz 1 2 3 4.........  Fixed and Mobile  Federal.........  10 W.................  100mW.
3700-3980 MHz 1 2.............  Fixed and Mobile  Non-federal.....  1 W..................  100mW.

[[Page 52678]]

 
4620-4990 MHz 1 2 4...........  Fixed and Mobile  Shared..........  1 W..................  100mW.
27-30 GHz.....................  Fixed and Mobile  Non-federal.....  10 W.................  100mW.
37-40 GHz 1 2 5...............  Fixed and Mobile  Shared..........  10 W.................  100mW.
71-86 GHz 4 5.................  Fixed and Mobile  Shared..........  10 W.................  100mW.
122.5-140 GHz 4...............  Fixed and Mobile  Shared..........  1 W..................  100mW.
209-225 GHz 4.................  Fixed and Mobile  Shared..........  1 W..................  100mW.
232-235 GHz...................  Fixed and Mobile  Shared..........  1 W..................  100mW.
238-250 GHz 4.................  Fixed and Mobile  Shared..........  1 W..................  100mW.
1-1.05 THz....................  Fixed...........  Shared..........  100 mW...............
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1 Commission rules do not permit airborne use on all or portions of these bands.
2 Any experimental use must be coordinated with authorized users and registered receive-only fixed satellite
  earth stations.
3 Operations in the 3550-3600 MHz band must be coordinated with a spectrum access system administrator.
4 Note that this band includes frequency ranges covered by footnote US342; all practicable steps should be taken
  to protect radio astronomy operation, including sites near the Innovation Zone.
5 Operations in the 37-40 GHz band and in the 80-86 GHz band must be coordinated with the Haystack Observatory
  in Westford, MA.

New York City Innovation Zone

Location

    18. The New York City Innovation Zone is being modified to cover 
the three Columbia University and City College of New York campus areas 
and will be defined as the area contained within:
     W 116 St from the Hudson River to Morningside Avenue 
(Through Riverside and Morningside Parks and The Columbia University 
Campus).
     Morningside Ave from W 116 St to W 124 St.
     W 124 from Morningside Ave to St Nicholas Ave.
     St Nicholas Ave from W 124 St to W 138 St.
     W 138 from St. Nicholas Ave to Broadway (through St. 
Nicholas park and the CCNY campus).
     Broadway from W 138 St to W 133 St.
     W 133 St from Broadway to the Hudson River (through the 
park).
     Hudson River from W 133 to W 116.

                                      Technical Limits and Band Information
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                                                                                                   Maximum EIRP
             Frequency band                    Type of operation              Allocation               (dBm)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2500-2690 MHz...........................  Fixed.....................  Non-federal...............              20
3700-4200 MHz 1.........................  Mobile....................  Non-federal...............              20
5850-5925 MHz...........................  Mobile....................  Shared....................              20
5925-7125 MHz...........................  Fixed & Mobile............  Non-federal...............              20
27.5-28.35 GHz..........................  Fixed.....................  Non-federal...............            2 40
38.6-40.0 GHz...........................  Fixed.....................  Non-federal...............            2 40
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 1 Commission rules do not permit airborne use in this band. Any experimental use must be coordinated with
  authorized users and registered receive-only fixed satellite earth stations.
 2 These power limits are an increase from the previously permitted 20 dBm limit.


(Authority: 47 U.S.C. 301-303; 47 CFR 5.1.)

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-20138 Filed 9-21-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P