According to SCMP , the mobile communications industry typically follows a 10-year cycle. The transition from 4G to 5G has changed the mobile Internet experience, and the industry is looking forward to the commercial application of the next generation 6G.
In the meantime, 5.5G technology, also known as 5G-Advanced, is developing in China. In 2021, the international standards organization 3GPP, responsible for issuing specifications, established technical standards for this technology.
“The update, called Release 18, outlines the technological development directions for 5.5G, which is expected to be finalized by 3GPP in the first half of 2024. This development indicates that global vendors will adapt their products to the new standards, and 2024 is expected to be the first year of commercial 5.5G deployment,” said Song Xiaodi, chief marketing officer of Huawei Carrier Business Group.
China has been rapidly developing 5G and is now preparing to enter the 5.5G phase. (Photo: SCMP)
5G technology is developing very rapidly. To date, more than 260 5G networks have been deployed worldwide, covering nearly half of the global population.
China has emerged as the global leader in both 5G deployment and commercial development. It has set up more than 3 million 5G base stations and provided 5G services to 750 million mobile users and more than 17,000 factories.
In preparation for the 5.5G phase, Chinese companies are aiming to regain their leadership in construction speed. Major telecommunications companies such as Huawei and China Unicom are rapidly implementing these technical standards to improve network speeds, facilitating the construction of smart factories and industrial upgrades.
5.5G optimizes the advantages of 5G
China's leadership in 5G technology has created many practical and useful applications in various industrial fields.
For example, 5G networks have enabled remote control of robots in hazardous environments, such as deep well operations or mining vehicles, significantly improving operational safety. High network quality improves operator control and enables real-time response to on-site conditions.
Applying 5G technology to perform dangerous work remotely. (Photo: Xinhua)
Another notable example is the Qingdao port in northern China, which has the first fully automated loading and unloading line in Asia, setting a world record for container unloading efficiency thanks to the millisecond data refresh capabilities provided by the 5G network.
China Telecom and fuel injection system provider Nanyuediankong (NYDK) have also built a 5G smart factory, where robots connected to 5G signals can precisely perform tasks such as fuel supply, processing and transportation. The efficiency achieved is remarkable, with robots capable of performing 90 turns per day.
With 5.5G technology, these applications will be further improved. Traditional 5G focuses on three factors: bandwidth, latency, and number of connected users, but not all three need to be optimized simultaneously. With dynamic spectrum allocation, 5.5G allows new base stations to proactively distribute traffic, optimize network resources for each factor, and significantly improve the user experience.
This was demonstrated at the Hangzhou Asian Games this past September, when logistics vehicles in the athletes' village used new lithium energy and used passive IoT technology supported by 5.5G to ensure safety.
Previously, manual temperature checking and reporting were necessary to ensure the safety of electric vehicle batteries, but with 5.5G, a small card module installed on the vehicle will connect to a base station more than 200m away without power, achieving 99% accuracy in improving safety and operational efficiency.
10x more bandwidth
IDC analyst Cui Kai, who specializes in 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT), said that mobile user bandwidth is expected to increase from 1Gbps to 10Gbps with 5.5G, and latency will be significantly reduced. At the same time, advances in IoT technology through spectrum optimization and other technologies will help bring high reliability and low latency to industrial production lines.
In the same vein, Huawei Carrier Business expert Song also said that advances in 5G-based IoT technology have also progressed with the advent of 5.5G networks.
The lag in industrial production in the 5G phase can be clearly seen in the 5.5G phase, especially in high-end core manufacturing processes that require fast response, such as automotive parts processing.
An automated welding robot on an automobile production line at a factory in Qingdao, China. (Photo: SCMP)
China Unicom and Huawei have partnered with EA Automation, a leading auto parts manufacturer in China, to pilot 5.5G industrial applications.
The parties tested the prototype network on an automotive welding line, marking the first application of 5.5G in core links of industrial control and technical verification of a fully wireless flexible manufacturing system.
Traditional industrial control relies heavily on wired networks to operate equipment. However, the movement and rotation of robotic arms in these structures can wear out cables, causing significant downtime. The advent of 5.5G technology promises to fundamentally solve this problem.
“With 5.5G, China is now not only catching up but also leading the technology at the application level,” said Wu Hequan, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering and chairman of the China Internet Society.
However, while widespread application of 5.5G in B2B (Business-to-Business) contexts such as smart factories and mines is popular, consumer applications are still sparse.
Cui Kai pointed out that 5.5G networks lack attractive applications and the per capita economic value conversion rate is not high.
Hua Yu (Source: SCMP)
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