January 22, 2018 at 17:37New Network Generation: First 5G Specification Introduced
At the end of December, the 3GPP consortium officially announced the completion of the specification for the fifth generation of mobile networks - 5G .
However, this is only the first part of the official document that describes the 5G New Radio (NR) standard for deploying 5G networks based on the existing non-standalone LTE infrastructure. The second part of the specification for networking on stand-alone infrastructure (standalone) is expected this year.
We will describe further details about the specification and features of the standard below. / The Flickr / Japanexperterna.se / CC
Initially, the release of the specification was scheduled for March 2018, but they decided to change the date at the request of a group of operators: AT&T, Sprint, Telstra and Vodafone. On the eve of Mobile World Congress 2017, they said that the demand for mobile Internet is growing, so it is important to begin work to meet the needs of customers as quickly as possible - already in 2019.
To speed up the release of the specification, the release was “divided” into two parts - in December 2017, 5G functional requirements for non-standalone architecture were presented, and the preparation of documentation for stand-alone architecture (standalone) was postponed until the middle of the year. However, for this I had to “leave behind” the implementation of certain technical aspects.
In the December release, 3GPP refused to finalize several solutions, for example, to implement data compression in an upstream connection. This was done in order to give priority to duplex data transmission and implement a system for eliminating interference when a mobile device operates in LTE and NR networks simultaneously.
Among the deferred tasks are : Nonorthogonal Multiple Access (NOMA) and work on eV2X ( enhanced Vehicle-to-Everything ).
As noted in Ericsson, 5G-network will have 10 times more bandwidth than 4G. At the same time, it will be able to support at least a million connected devices per square kilometer. It is expected that this feature will allow further development of IoT-technologies and will be another step towards smart cities. The spectral efficiency of a 5G network will be 30 bit / s / Hz for the downlink and 15 bit / s / Hz for the upstream.
Network Stations willkeep in touch with objects moving at speeds up to 500 km / h. At the same time, the used radio interfaces will switch to low power consumption mode when idle (the declared transition time is 10 ms). As for the delay in data transfer, it will be 4 ms. For comparison, the delay in LTE is 20, and in 3G - 100 ms. The download speed of information will be 100 Mbit / s, and its transmission speed - 50 Mbit / s.
Companies from different countries have already entered the 5G race and have begun testing new generation networks.
For example, in the UK , Vodafone did this in partnership with Huawei. In SU-MIMO tests , a speed of 20 Gbit / s was achieved , and MU-MIMO - 10 Gbit / s. EE also tested it: it managed to achieve a stable data transfer rate of 2.8 Gb / s with a delay of less than 5 ms.
The UK Department of Culture, Media and Sports has even prepared a strategic plan aimed at further developing 5G technology in the country. The published document describes the necessary actions of the government, discusses the issues of equipment placement and economic aspects.
Last year, Ericsson and MTS created a prototype 5G network and successfully completed its testing, including using stationary and mobile equipment. Companies managed to achieve a peak data transfer rate of 25 Gb / s. This is made possible thanks to Multi-User and Massive MIMO, Beam Tracking and Dynamic TDD technologies .
The first large-scale tests of 5G networks in Russia are planned to be held during the World Cup.
Samsung in partnership with the Japanese operator KDDI announced the completion of testing 5G on a moving train (its speed was above 100 km / h). The data transfer rate during the experiment reached 1.7 Gbps with downstream and upstream connections.
At the Mobile World Congress 2016, Finland introduced the 5G Test Network Finland ecosystem (5GTNF), which gave operators the opportunity to test 5G before the technology officially hit the market. The network is used by IT giants Nokia, Ericsson, Huawei, as well as companies from other industries: automotive, energy, manufacturing.
For example, in September 2017, as part of 5GTNF, Nokia launched the WIVE project . His focus is on the application of next-generation networks in the media and entertainment industry.
The full version of the specification will appear in June 2018. Full implementation of large-scale 5G networks is planned for 2019. However, there are companies that want to accelerate the process of project implementation - AT&T says it will launch a new generation network in the USA in the second half of 2018, and Verizon plans to provide 5G routers and modems to American users in the same time period.
PS Other posts on the topic from our blog on Habrahabr:
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However, this is only the first part of the official document that describes the 5G New Radio (NR) standard for deploying 5G networks based on the existing non-standalone LTE infrastructure. The second part of the specification for networking on stand-alone infrastructure (standalone) is expected this year.
We will describe further details about the specification and features of the standard below. / The Flickr / Japanexperterna.se / CC
Release ahead of time
Initially, the release of the specification was scheduled for March 2018, but they decided to change the date at the request of a group of operators: AT&T, Sprint, Telstra and Vodafone. On the eve of Mobile World Congress 2017, they said that the demand for mobile Internet is growing, so it is important to begin work to meet the needs of customers as quickly as possible - already in 2019.
To speed up the release of the specification, the release was “divided” into two parts - in December 2017, 5G functional requirements for non-standalone architecture were presented, and the preparation of documentation for stand-alone architecture (standalone) was postponed until the middle of the year. However, for this I had to “leave behind” the implementation of certain technical aspects.
Deferred decisions
In the December release, 3GPP refused to finalize several solutions, for example, to implement data compression in an upstream connection. This was done in order to give priority to duplex data transmission and implement a system for eliminating interference when a mobile device operates in LTE and NR networks simultaneously.
Among the deferred tasks are : Nonorthogonal Multiple Access (NOMA) and work on eV2X ( enhanced Vehicle-to-Everything ).
5G options
As noted in Ericsson, 5G-network will have 10 times more bandwidth than 4G. At the same time, it will be able to support at least a million connected devices per square kilometer. It is expected that this feature will allow further development of IoT-technologies and will be another step towards smart cities. The spectral efficiency of a 5G network will be 30 bit / s / Hz for the downlink and 15 bit / s / Hz for the upstream.
Network Stations willkeep in touch with objects moving at speeds up to 500 km / h. At the same time, the used radio interfaces will switch to low power consumption mode when idle (the declared transition time is 10 ms). As for the delay in data transfer, it will be 4 ms. For comparison, the delay in LTE is 20, and in 3G - 100 ms. The download speed of information will be 100 Mbit / s, and its transmission speed - 50 Mbit / s.
5G network tests
Companies from different countries have already entered the 5G race and have begun testing new generation networks.
Britannia
For example, in the UK , Vodafone did this in partnership with Huawei. In SU-MIMO tests , a speed of 20 Gbit / s was achieved , and MU-MIMO - 10 Gbit / s. EE also tested it: it managed to achieve a stable data transfer rate of 2.8 Gb / s with a delay of less than 5 ms.
The UK Department of Culture, Media and Sports has even prepared a strategic plan aimed at further developing 5G technology in the country. The published document describes the necessary actions of the government, discusses the issues of equipment placement and economic aspects.
Russia
Last year, Ericsson and MTS created a prototype 5G network and successfully completed its testing, including using stationary and mobile equipment. Companies managed to achieve a peak data transfer rate of 25 Gb / s. This is made possible thanks to Multi-User and Massive MIMO, Beam Tracking and Dynamic TDD technologies .
The first large-scale tests of 5G networks in Russia are planned to be held during the World Cup.
Japan
Samsung in partnership with the Japanese operator KDDI announced the completion of testing 5G on a moving train (its speed was above 100 km / h). The data transfer rate during the experiment reached 1.7 Gbps with downstream and upstream connections.
Finland
At the Mobile World Congress 2016, Finland introduced the 5G Test Network Finland ecosystem (5GTNF), which gave operators the opportunity to test 5G before the technology officially hit the market. The network is used by IT giants Nokia, Ericsson, Huawei, as well as companies from other industries: automotive, energy, manufacturing.
For example, in September 2017, as part of 5GTNF, Nokia launched the WIVE project . His focus is on the application of next-generation networks in the media and entertainment industry.
Implementation dates
The full version of the specification will appear in June 2018. Full implementation of large-scale 5G networks is planned for 2019. However, there are companies that want to accelerate the process of project implementation - AT&T says it will launch a new generation network in the USA in the second half of 2018, and Verizon plans to provide 5G routers and modems to American users in the same time period.
PS Other posts on the topic from our blog on Habrahabr:
- How to deliver the Internet to remote corners of the planet: GCI, Google and Facebook projects
- AT&T is preparing to launch the Internet on power lines
PPS Related Content from VAS Experts Blog: