Telco Solutions
5G – Highspeed Mobile
Communication Technology
of the Near Future
5G is changing the rules of the digital age, but it poses
many new challenges to mobile network operators as well
as network equipment suppliers.
TEXT: Ingo Bauer PICTURES: © jamesteohart / Shutterstock.com
5G is the next stage of development
for mobile communication technolo-
gy. The new standard differs, howe-
ver, from previous network techno-
logy in that it is the ticket to a totally
networked world. Two of the biggest
worldwide mobile telecommunication
providers have trusted the expertise
and experience of Micronova in this
field for years. They use the Common
Planning & Configuration Manager
(CPCM), for atomize their provisio-
026 // 01-18 // InNOVAtion
ning, optimization and rollout process
for Radio-Basestations, -Services and
-Features. And for the next step in the
evolution after LTE, they can, along
with other companies, profit from this
know-how. Because, in addition to the
original application of mobile com-
munication technology, the potential
fields of application make 5G very in-
teresting.
While the previous technologies
were driven by the demand of band-
width hungry customers and apps, 5G
opens up new applications for a con-
nected society. From industry to the
public health sector to traffic control
and city planning to digitalization its-
elf, the digital revolution is affecting
almost all areas of daily life.
Along with its great bandwidth of
up to 10 gigabits per second, the key
factors in 5G technology are, above all,
the extremely low network latency, low
electricity consumption, and reliable
data transfer. These allow new eco-
nomic concepts and social models to
be realized, including for example, the
so-called Industry 4.0. Other oft-men-
tioned fields of application include the
buzzwords of our era: self-driving ve-
hicles, telemedicine, and smart cities
(please see graphic 1).
Application Domain of 5G Network
1 © German Government
German government pro-
motes commercial use of 5G
In the last few years, the govern-
ment has wasted valuable time when
it comes to building a future-proof
network. This failure must now be rec-
tified. In a detailed policy paper, the
German Federal Ministry of Transport
and Digital Infrastructure elaborated
on its plans for 5G:
The coming mobile communication
technology 5G is seen by the public as
a key technology for the realization of
the digital transformation, and it will
be a central component of the gigabit
network of the future. Germany should
become a leading market for the ap-
plication of 5G technology.
Telco Solutions
In this document, five measures were
specifically suggested:
»» promotion of a network rollout
»» provision of appropriate
frequencies
»» encouragement of cooperation
between telecommunication
companies and user industries
»» coordinated and focused research
»» early implementation of 5G in
cities and municipalities
Tests of 5G technology have been
carried out for several years now. The
website of the German Federal Mi-
nistry of Transport and Digital Infra-
structure gives an overview of current
research activity in Germany (http://
www.bmvi.de).
The ongoing introduction of the so-
called Narrowband Internet of Things
InNOVAtion // 01-18 // 027
Telco Solutions
The Three Central Fields of Application for 5G: emBB, mMTC,
3 URLLC © German Government, adapted from „Ofcom 2017:
Update on 5G spectrum in the UK“
(NB IoT) gives us a preview of 5G ser-
vices (please see innovation 02-17,
S.030ff). While NB IoT was still based
on the 4G mobile communication
standard, the worldwide introduction
of 5G is drawing closer and closer. At
the Olympic Winter Games in South
Korea, several 5G services were offered
for commercial use.
If the development continues at this
pace, the first commercial 5G networks
will be in place in 2019. And starting
in 2020, they will be available for users
in several cities. At the end of 2017,
Huawei and Intel, among others, suc-
cessfully carried out interoperability
tests of 5G-NR (New Radio) within a
commercial network. At the Mobile
World Congress (MWC) in Barcelo-
na, the world’s largest mobile com-
munications fair, Huawei presented
the first 5G chip, along with 5G radio
equipment. Intel has also announced
its own mobile phone chip for 2019.
This means that the first smartphones
Challenges on the Way to 5G
2 equipped with this technology will be
available foreseeably by the end of
2019.
028 // 01-18 // InNOVAtion
5G presents new challenges
for mobile network operators
and manufacturers
Given the rapid increase in the num-
ber of networked devices with ever-
higher capacity, (e.g., smartphones
with 4K cameras), there will be a cor-
respondingly drastic increase in data
volume that must be carried throug-
hout the network. Thus, 5G places
significantly greater demands on the
network and core systems in terms of
flexibility and scalability. This will re-
quire heavy investment in infrastruc-
ture and network architecture projects
on the part of network operators in the
coming years.
Despite all its advantages, the imple-
mentation of 5G technology must ne-
vertheless be affordable and economi-
cally sustainable. Only in this way can
the full potential of 5G be developed
within the context of new, innovative
business models and collaborations
with its users. Infrastructure projects
alone, especially the connection of ra-
dio equipment with fiber optic cables,
will encounter huge costs. Estimates
of the investments required in Europe
alone put the cost at more than 500
billion euros.
Telco Solutions
The transformation
With all this in mind, the significance
of the actual technological transfor-
mation must not be discounted. The
operational work will be enormous.
The mind map (please see graphic 2)
shows the considerable challenges
entailed in the introduction of 5G, i.e.,
the transformation of the 4G network
into a 5G network.
There is a significant difference bet-
ween the implementation of 5G and
that of its predecessors. Up to and
including 4G, each successive gene-
ration of mobile network technology
had simply replaced the previous one.
With 5G, on the other hand, it is all
about enhancement. A set of already
existing 4G characteristics were further
developed and improved. Furthermo-
re, 5G will acquire new performance
characteristics. In this way, IoT services,
such as the recently introduced Nar-
rowband IoT within 4G, will undergo
further development through 5G. In
addition to that, totally new technolo-
gies will be introduced for 5G. This mix
betrays the complexity of the structure
of the network.
Technical Data for 5G
»» peak downlink rate: 20 Gbits/s
»» peak uplink rate: 10 Gbits/s
»» minimum speed for end user
in downlink: 100 Mbits/s
»» minimum speed for end user
in uplink: 50 Mbits/s
»» latency: max. four milliseconds
»» connection density: up to 1
million end devices per km²
»» energy consumption: decrease
to 1/10 of today’s systems
»» relative movement speed:
increase to 500km/h
InNOVAtion // 01-18 // 029
Telco Solutions
The integration of new radio equip-
ment, e.g., miniaturized multiple an-
tenna systems (Massive MIMO), is a
key aspect of the introduction of 5G.
They will be coupled to beamforming
technology for the dedicated control
of individual users within the radio cell.
Another area of focus is the conversi-
on of the network architecture into
software-defined networks. This ar-
chitecture uncouples the control pla-
ne—which is responsible for the data
routing in the network—from the data
plane—which controls the transmissi-
on of data to the point of destination.
This simplifies the network administ-
ration and enables the virtualization
of network components in which the
control plane is implemented as a
pure software application. This makes
030 // 01-18 // InNOVAtion
it possible to operate system compo-
nents independently of hardware or
platforms.
Virtualization and
Automatization
The consistent virtualization of net-
work functions (Network Function
Virtualization, NFV) along with the
reconfigurability of wireless interfaces
are typical characteristics of 5G. NFV
is a concept in which traditional net-
work functions can be performed on
standardized hardware using software.
These functions are present in various
network components, e.g., routers,
switches, and firewalls. The driver of
the introduction of NFV architecture
is, among other things, the so-called
network slicing, a core functionality of
5G standards. This allows the mobile
communication network to be subdivi-
ded into separate, virtual network seg-
ments, or slices. This subdivision opens
up individual access points for various
service requirements concerning
»» data rate – enhanced mobile
broadband (eMBB)
»» connection density – massive
machine type communication
(mMTC)
»» latency and reliability – ultra-relia-
ble and low latency communcation
(uRLLC)
SDN and NFV call for a high degree
of automation, whether that be for the
configuration, monitoring and optimi-
zation of the entire network or for the
generation and establishment of new
network functions (NFV or network sli-
ces). The overall performance capabi-
lities of 5G can only be effective if the
technology is based on interoperable,
open interfaces and standards.
For this very reason, the European
Telecommunications Standards Ins-
titute (ETSI) formed a working group
known as the “Zero Touch Network
and Service Management Industry
Specification Group” (ZSM ISG). Its
members are concerned with the 5G
end-to-end network, including the
management of network services,
e.g., network slicing management. The
goal of the working group is ideally
to completely automate all operative
Telco Solutions
processes and tasks (e.g., deployment, 5G environment— innovations that
configuration, assurance, and opti- will apply in the near future.
mization). In addition to that, various
SDN/NFV platforms are already availa-
ble, as open source or commercially.
Summary
5G will bring with it a change in exis-
ting structures and a re-evaluation of
previous business models, processes,
and systems. This is true not only for
the telecommunications sector, but
also for communication networks and
technologies across all user industries.
As mentioned in the beginning of this
article, MicroNova is involved in fin-
ding solutions for the management of
telecommunications networks as well
as the general challenges found in the
InNOVAtion // 01-18 // 031