Tidal-Like Concept Drift in RIS-Covered Buildings: When Programmable Wireless Environments Meet Human Behaviors

Indoor mobile networks handle the majority of data traffic, with their performance limited by building materials and structures. However, building designs have historically not prioritized wireless performance. Prior to the advent of reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS), the industry passively adapted to wireless propagation challenges within buildings. Inspired by RIS’s successes in outdoor networks, we propose embedding RIS into building structures to manipulate and enhance building wireless performance comprehensively. Nonetheless, the ubiquitous mobility of users introduces complex dynamics to the channels of RIS-covered buildings. A deep understanding of indoor human behavior patterns is essential for achieving wireless-friendly building design. This article is the first to systematically examine the tidal evolution phenomena emerging in the channels of RIS-covered buildings driven by complex human behaviors. We demonstrate that a universal channel model is unattainable and focus on analyzing the challenges faced by advanced deep learning-based prediction and control strategies, including high-order Markov dependencies, concept drift, and generalization issues caused by human-induced disturbances. Possible solutions for orchestrating the coexistence of RIS-covered buildings and crowd mobility are also laid out.