- ISAC allows smartphones to detect disconnected objects without interfering with connectivity services
- Echo-based pulses allow mobile networks to visualize their surroundings, like bats in the dark
- ISAC tests successfully detected people and objects without disrupting mobile functions
Integrated Sensing and Communication, or ISAC, is a technology that turns ordinary smartphones into radar-like sensors capable of detecting disconnected objects in real time.
Vodafone and Tiami Networks are testing ISAC to explore how smartphones could warn people about nearby dangers.
Both are also examining their potential to monitor crowded areas, detect intruders, and support tasks in industrial and environmental settings.
Vodafone and Tiami test ISAC
The new system relies on echo-based pulses, similar to those used by echolocation bats to navigate in dark environments, allowing mobile networks to visualize their surroundings without additional hardware.
In theory, users could receive alerts about crowded spaces, nearby hazards, or other dangerous situations simply through their devices, and industries and public facilities could monitor for intruders, unauthorized drones, or environmental risks.
ISAC could track natural disasters and monitor livestock, offering real-time information in areas that are difficult to observe directly, and could also create 3D maps using smart glasses, detect contaminated food and help robots understand human hand gestures.
Although ISAC is expected to play a central role in future 6G networks, which could begin operating around 2030, the technology can run on top of existing 5G infrastructure.
Vodafone and Tiami Networks conducted trials at Vodafone’s R&D facility in Malaga, Spain, using Tiami’s PolyRAN software to convert base stations into wide-area sensors.
“Our vision for PolyRAN is simple. ISAC deployment should be as seamless as enabling a software application within a 5G network without disrupting existing connectivity services,” said Amitav Mukherjee, CEO and founder of Tiami Networks.
“Trials with Vodafone allow us to evaluate realistic performance and deployment pathways with a leading operator that is deeply committed to 6G research.”
During these tests, unconnected objects and even people were successfully detected over a live 5G network without causing any interference to voice calls, messages, or internet usage.
This means that ISAC adoption does not require a complete network overhaul, making the technology more immediately applicable.
The tests also explored interoperability between hardware and software from different vendors through Open RAN compatible antennas.
This flexibility allows mobile networks to integrate new sensing capabilities through software upgrades instead of costly equipment replacements.
By transforming base stations into intelligent edge computing platforms, operators can realize advanced environmental sensing alongside traditional connectivity services.
Beyond industrial or urban control, ISAC could influence personal safety and everyday comfort.
Business phones can alert users to dangerous conditions in crowded transportation hubs or hidden maintenance problems, such as burst pipes, inside buildings.
“Our 6G compatibility test shows that your phone could soon do much more than connect you. It could be used to help keep you safe wherever you go,” said Marco Zangani, Director of Network Strategy and Architecture at Vodafone.
The technology could also support privacy-conscious public applications, for example counting visitors in a shopping mall without relying on cameras.
While the full scope of ISAC remains to be demonstrated, initial tests indicate that turning ordinary smartphones into active environmental sensors is technically feasible.
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