ODC Demonstrates AI-RAN and ISAC at AERPAW
This post was originally published on LinkedIn.
On July 30, 2026, ORAN Development Company (ODC) conducted an on-site demonstration at AERPAW’s Lake Wheeler outdoor testbed, showcasing its AI-RAN platform and Integrated Sensing and Communications (ISAC) capabilities in a real-world outdoor wireless environment.
The demonstration highlighted the ability to perform wireless communications and sensing simultaneously using a single radio unit and waveform. Sensing information was derived from a pole-mounted UE using the uplink to a nearby cell tower base station. The base station maintained downlink communications to additional UEs while also receiving the sensing data. As an AERPAW drone entered the coverage area, the system successfully detected the drone using sensing information derived from the wireless network.
Reflecting on the demonstration and AERPAW’s role in supporting it, Dr. George Kailiwai, ODC Federal Advisory Board Chair, stated:
“Team AERPAW, led by Dr. Magreth Mushi, AERPAW Platform Director, was an outstanding partner in making our first demonstration a tremendous success. In just a few weeks, Team AERPAW rapidly prepared the outdoor test range to ensure we could meet all our test requirements. With Team AERPAW’s help, we were able to meet and exceed all thirty-seven Key Performance Indicators across nine complex and challenging use cases.”
ODC also demonstrated the portability and flexibility of its platform by operating it on different server configurations at the Lake Wheeler site. The demonstration environment incorporated multiple connectivity options, including fiber, cellular, and satellite backhaul, providing an opportunity to explore resilient network architectures in an outdoor testbed environment.
The demonstration represents an important example of how AERPAW enables industry partners to move emerging wireless technologies beyond the laboratory and evaluate them in realistic environments. Through access to programmable wireless infrastructure, spectrum, unmanned aerial vehicles, edge computing resources, and outdoor deployment areas, AERPAW provides a unique platform for testing new approaches to communications, sensing, AI-enabled networks, and network resilience.
The July demonstration also lays the groundwork for continued collaboration between ODC and AERPAW. Looking ahead, Dr. Kailiwai added:
“We are planning to return in October to develop more sophisticated features performed simultaneously across multiple sites at AERPAW.”
AERPAW looks forward to continuing to support ODC and other industry and research partners as they develop and evaluate technologies for the next generation of wireless networks.
