5G Rollout and How It Will Empower the Future of IoT

The mass rollout of 5G mobile networks is supposed to play a decisive role in driving the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0), digital transformation, and the expansion of IoT (Internet of Things) and IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) solutions around the world. The transition to 5G is still in its early stages as global cellular phone companies started to deploy the first fifth-generation networks just recently, in 2019.

Even though 5G has been among the most frequently mentioned technological trends of the near future for several years, this concept still needs to be discovered and is often misunderstood. That is why now is a perfect time to talk about 5G rollout in more detail.

What is 5G?

5G is the fifth generation of broadband cellular networks. This new technology standard is supposed to be a successor to 4G networks that provide connectivity to the majority of currently used mobile devices and communications. Just like with the cellular networks of previous generations, the service area in 5G is divided into small geographical areas called cells. Mobile devices connected to a 5G cell can communicate with each other by radio waves on frequency channels specifically assigned by a base station. Base stations, in turn, are connected either wirelessly or by an optical fiber. When a mobile device is moving from one 5G cell’s area coverage, it gets automatically switched to another.

5G networks to reach 4.4 bln subscriptions by 2027

5G cellular networks are expected to support up to a million devices per square kilometer. According to a recent report by Ericsson, 5G networks are forecast to account for almost half of mobile subscriptions globally by 2027, reaching a total of 4.4 billion subscriptions.

According to the survey, 5G is scaling faster than all previous mobile technology generations, as about a quarter of the world’s population currently has access to 5G coverage.

As of the second quarter of 2022, a total of 218 communications service providers have already launched commercial 5G services, and 24 have launched 5G standalone networks, Ericsson reports. Nearly 70 million new 5G subscriptions were added globally in the second quarter of 2022 alone.

Strengths and features of 5G networks

Let’s take a look at the most notable strengths and technological capabilities that distinct 5G networks from the previous generations of cellular communication technologies.

• Network reach

The signal of a 5G network node typically reaches up to around 500 meters without obstructions but degrades significantly if no clear line of sight is available. This is why the mobile service carriers will need to install small 5G cell transmitters to deliver a high-quality 5G signal across their networks.

• High speed

The connection speed for devices in 5G networks will range between 50 Mbps and 1,000 Mbps (1 Gbit/s) on average. Speeds up to 4 Gbit/s will be reachable with MIMO-based equipment (MIMO stands for multiple-input and multiple-output; it’s a method for multiplying the capacity of a radio signal) in high-frequency mmWave bands. mmWave bands (also known as FR2) are found in the range of 24GHz to 40GHz.

• Error rate

Extremely low block error rate (BLER) is one of the biggest advantages of 5G along with high connection speed. BLER is the ratio of the number of erroneous blocks to the total number of blocks transmitted on a digital circuit. Thanks to flexible adaptive MCS (Modulation Coding Scheme), the error rates in 5G networks can be kept extremely low.

• Latency

Exceptionally low latency is another highly anticipated benefit of 5G networks compared to the previous generation of cellular technology. The latency in 5G networks should be in the 8–12 milliseconds range or even lower (as low as 5 milliseconds or less). This is a significant improvement compared to 4G networks with average latency between 60 and 100 milliseconds. Naturally, the latency will be higher during handovers (or handoffs), which is the process of transferring an ongoing call or data session from one channel to another.

• Number of connected devices

Another advantage of 5G networks is the fact that each cell of a 5G network can accommodate a greater number of devices at the same time (up to over one million per each square kilometer). All devices in a 5G network will be connected to the Internet and able to exchange information with each other in real time.

5G Antenna Design Challenges

In the course of evolution of cellular networks from their first generation to the fifth, antenna technologies evolved as well. The antennas, originally external, became internal, multi-band, and multi-antenna, as well as multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO). 

The design of 5G antennas can be challenging in a number of ways. 5G antennas will be much smaller and send data at high frequencies, making the specific location where each individual antenna is placed much more important. 

For the manufacturers of 5G antennas, it means that antenna arrays will be needed both on the mobile device and on the base station. The antennas would require more complex feeding and control circuits, as well as high-quality isolation between different antenna arrays. Additionally, the cellular network operators will need to implement new hardware platforms for quick automatic identification of the best locations for antenna placement and the control over interactions of antennas with the network hosting board. 

All of this puts considerable pressure on the designers of 5G antennas and related 5G networks-supporting equipment based on embedded systems. 

5G networks and IoT

All the advantages of 5G, such as high connection speeds, low latency, and large network capacity, will serve as a great foundation for the rapidly growing number of IoT networks populated by smart devices of all kinds.

Currently, the low capacity of the third and fourth-generation cellular networks is one of the main factors restraining the development of IoT and IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) solutions. In order to maintain the functionality of large networks of interconnected smart devices, such as mobile gadgets, smart home equipment, smart vehicles, and other solutions, a cellular network needs to have high capacity and bandwidth along with lower latency.

With 5G connection, the concept of IoT networks of the future, where devices of all kinds, from smartwatches to refrigerators, are connected to the Internet and can communicate with each other simultaneously, becomes a reality.

Applications for IoT solutions with 5G connectivity

Empowered by the fifth-gen cellular network technology, professionally designed embedded systems and IoT solutions will be able to reach a new level of effectiveness, with applications across multiple fields and industries.

Here are some examples:

• Smart cities

A functional 5G network will be able to support a large-scale IoT network of smart city systems and electronic devices all connected to each other. Such as energy management systems, street lighting and traffic management solutions, emergency response, security surveillance, and many other components.

• Autonomous driving

The connection to a high-speed low-latency cellular network will enable much more effective operations of autonomous vehicles as they will be able to communicate in real time and other smart devices around, including smart city infrastructure, connected traffic equipment and other surrounding objects with smart sensors in them.

• Industrial IoT solutions

The proliferation of 5G connections will also provide a strong foundation for advanced industrial automation solutions. IIoT networks of the future will be able to provide centralized management and seamless connectivity for various kinds of industrial devices and machinery, from automated manufacturing equipment to predictive maintenance and logistics.

• Logistics and warehousing

Another major application for 5G technologies is logistics and warehousing. Fast connection to a fifth-generation cellular network makes it much easier to establish an IoT system to track product delivery, monitor storage conditions (such as temperature, humidity, etc.), coordinate the delivery across all the layers of the logistics network, minimize theft, eliminate other security risks, automate reporting and implement multiple other solutions to improve efficiency and productivity of logistics and warehousing operations.

• Smart home

5G networks will also be able to support complex and universally interconnected smart home systems of the future, with all consumer electronics, utility systems and building equipment centrally managed and orchestrated by an AI-based solution.

• Surveillance and security

Low latency and error rate, along with other strengths of 5G, will be beneficial for security-related applications of IoT devices. This includes interconnected surveillance cameras with face recognition, smart locks, theft prevention systems, and other security equipment.

5G applications beyond IoT

Of course, 5G technologies will have multiple applications beyond just IoT across many fields and economic sectors. Here are some of the most important ones.

• Broadband mobile Internet connections

5G technology will enable mobile carriers to maintain wireless networks supporting broadband mobile Internet connection at previously unreachable speeds.

• Mobile access to HD content and entertainment

With these fast 5G connections, users can access all kinds of high-resolution multimedia content, from HD TV to video games, on their phones and other mobile devices.

• VR (virtual reality) and AR (augmented reality)

5G connection speeds and low latency would also be a great technological foundation for the developers of VR and AR games, allowing them to deliver a new generation of VR/AR products, with much better gaming experience, more immersive and interactive.

• Satellite Internet connections

With 5G network connections using satellite technology, broadband Internet will be available even in the most remote rural areas with no traditional ground-based cellular network stations to provide the signal.

Summary

Besides all the advantages and benefits that come with it, the rollout of 5G networks also brings us new challenges. IoT networks and embedded systems will become more complex and difficult to manage as they will include a much larger number of nodes and higher volumes of data streamed by connected devices. This means that the demands on the architecture and maintenance of such systems will be higher as well.

The Tauro Technologies’ team of electronic engineers and designers has a proven track record of successfully designing custom hardware for various kinds of embedded systems and IoT products in multiple technology fields. Drawing on the specific needs of our clients, we select and apply various engineering methods to electronic product development and manufacturing in order to achieve the desired result. Utilizing our in-house IoT platforms assembly and debug expertise, we are able to build and evaluate your prototypes before high-volume manufacturing rapidly and cost-efficiently.

Interested to know more? Get in touch with us for details.