5G – The Network of the Future

The Network of the Future

5G technology continues to evolve at an unprecedented rate. Estimates suggest that it is poised to exceed the 20% penetration with global businesses by 2025.

As the world wakes up to the potential of 5G, let us take a moment and understand the evolution of this digital disruptor, one that could well define the progress of human civilization in the 21st century.

By 2035, estimates suggest that the global
economic impact of 5G will be worth USD 12 trillion
(Source - WEF :The Impact of 5G report)

From G to 5G:

A 40 year journey from mechanization to digitalization,
personalization, and intelligence

1G: The First Steps

Starting in the early 1980s, 1G telecom technology started to gain popularity across the globe. The period was defined by the emergence of the first commercial cellular network, dependent on analog signals. While it marked the vital first step in the innovation journey, the 1G technology had its own unique challenges.

Devices typically had poor battery life and a drop in communication signals was the norm rather than an exception. Form factor too was a challenge due to device bulk, which accounted for significant inconvenience in owning and operating these devices.

On the industrial front, the emergence of 1G saw an increasing replacement of manual tasks by mechanical operations.

2G: Leveraging Digital Signals

2G emerged in the early 1990’s. The second generation technology replaced analog signals with digital and introduced a new wireless transmission protocol, the Global System for Mobile (GSM). Its main aim was to provide a more reliable and secure mode for facilitating communication. During this period, features like SMS, call hold, conference calls, internal roaming, and more were introduced. We also witnessed an increased data rate, with the 2G standard offering the ability to send and receive both text messages and emails.

The technology also found applications in the assembly line, driving an increased focus on streamlined mass production and electrification. A larger number of electric engines and turbines went online leveraging the communication capabilities offered by 2G.

3G: Transforming Data Consumption

By the early 2000s, 3G had arrived on the scene. This generation saw mobile devices become readily available to the masses. With 3G, tasks like internet searches, sharing photos and videos, online voice and video calls, immersive gaming, and social media interactions became widely possible. 3G, therefore, was focused on delivering improved data capacity and data transmission services while ensuring low costs and the ability to support an extensive range
of applications and use cases.

The growth of 3G resulted in the enablement of electronic networking and digital machinery.
Automation picked up, and IT-OT moved from being discussed in the realm of possibilities to implementation
on the factory floors.

4G: Unlocking High Speed Connectivity

Around 2010, 4G was announced. Through upgrades to the existing technology, LTE (Long-Term Evolution) became standard. 4G-LTE has allowed devices to deliver significantly higher rates of data, along with enhanced capabilities for executing multimedia tasks. Faster data speeds have come to define this generation, along with higher quality, improved security, and lower costs.

Automation has continued to gain further traction through leveraging the capabilities offered by 4G-LTE.
We are witnessing a significant rise in digitalization initiatives across processes and verticals, leveraging
the network ubiquity and autonomous capabilities offered by this generation.

5G: Digital Disruption

And finally, we arrive at the realm of 5G networks. This generation involves the development and deployment of new standards that support and make possible the growing Internet of Things (IoT). Technologies built on 5G are intended to speed up data transfer, while ensuring lower latency, higher capacity, and increased reliability and performance. While we are still in the early days of 5G, the technology seems poised to ensure a more unified experience across the board.

Greater digitalization, deeper personalization, and wider intelligence have emerged as the hallmark of the 5G revolution. Not only is it helping drive interconnectedness and uncover network inefficiencies, 5G is also facilitating real-time corrective actions and an untethered data access for industrial users.

Embracing Digital Disruption

5G technologies have started making their mark on the global business landscape. Within a very short period, these have achieved a 7% penetration with global market leaders, and are expected to more than treble over the next three year-period. As the impact of 5G continues to spread across various industries and diverse applications, here is a snapshot view covering manufacturing, mobility, healthcare, and energy & utilities.

Industry Trend

- Smart Factory rise enabled by IoT
- Securely connect system
- Customized & personalized products

Use Cases Activated

- Smart Factory Floor
- Digital performance management
- Human-to-robot collaboration

Transformation enabled

-Equipment availability & Throughput
-Lower operational costs
-Enhanced operational eﬃciency

Industry Trend

Patient Centric on the go well being
Improve quality, safety & data storage
Meet socio-demographic changes

Use Cases Activated

Remote patient monitoring
IoMT & remote surgery
AR/VR enabled healthcare

Transformation enabled

Equipment availability & Throughput
Lower operational costs
Enhanced operational efficiency

Industry Trend

Digital vehicle ecosystem
Telematics in autonomous and connected
Urbanization and intramodality

Use Cases Activated

High Density platooning & automation
Digital twin(Predictive Maintenance)
Remote vehicle health monitoring

Transformation enabled

Equipment availability & Throughput
Lower operational costs
Enhanced operational efficiency

Industry Trend

Electrification & Renewable energy shift
Remote peod, & Transmission assets
New decentralized business models

Use Cases Activated

Smart energy/grid management
Drone monitoring capabilities
Hazard & maintenance sensing

Transmission Enabled

Equipment availability & throughput
Lower operational costs
Enhanced operational efficiency

The Foundational Blocks of 5G:

3 Trends Driving the Future :

The Proliferation of mobile devices
Software-driven Network Transformation Journeys
The Rise of an Innovation Ecosystem

The growth of 5G networks worldwide is being driven by a combination of three key trends – the rise in the proliferation and capabilities of 5G devices, emergence of software-driven network transformation journeys, and a rapid expansion of partner ecosystems. Exponential growth is being witnessed in 5G devices, especially in the consumer segment with a robust uptrend in IoT applications. Telecom devices offering enhanced capabilities for customers are also gaining in terms of popularity and adoption amongst the broadest sections of the populace. The upward trajectory is also noticeable in the enterprises segment, with 5G-enabled devices helping realize the movement towards Industry4.0 by enabling deep intelligence and streamlined connectivity.

Software-driven network transformation, leveraging the connectivity offered by 5G technologies, is set to connect the largest segment of the global population in recorded history. It has already facilitated the availability of secured cloud infrastructure for organizations to scale their operations, delivered unprecedented flexibility for a cost effective virtualized network, and optimized network traffic management through cutting edge slicing techniques to help unlock a whole new set of relevant use cases. Industry-wide partnerships and alliances have received a boost from the emergence of 5G, resulting in significant investments in driving the innovation landscape. We are witnessing the rise of more holistic ecosystem partnerships to drive E2E network management and decision making, enablement of real-time optimization, and an expansion of edge computing facilities leveraging 5G solutions.

1.2.1: The Proliferation of mobile devices

The number of 5G device vendors stands at 140, having registered a 1.5X growth in recent years. The transition is evident when viewed in terms of the evolution in telecommunications technology – from the 1G networks that were compatible only with a few devices, to the current 5G ecosystem where every device is being engineered to be compliant with the latest network standards.

Nokia is an apt illustration of this transition. The company went from being a Networking1.0 participant, capable of digital signaling and SMS services, to becoming a provider of enhanced wireless connectivity and improved broadband access under Networking 2.0. In the current Networking 3.0 ecosystem, it is helping drive real-time analytics for connected systems under the ambit of the Industry 4.0 transition.

The effects can also be seen across consumer, telecom, and enterprise devices. Consumer device OEMs today are focusing on ensuring device reliability and efficiency through leveraging 5G network capabilities, while telecom device makers are concentrating on device productivity and flexibility.

For enterprise device manufacturers, the focus seems to be defined by the nature of the sub-segments covered, including:

For Automotive: Enhanced reliability and efficiency, as reported from the Verizon-Honda tests on how 5G can enhance safety levels for connected and autonomous vehicles
For Medical Devices: Device reliability and efficiency, as witnessed in the GE Healthcare and SK Telecom alliance for delivering digital healthcare
For Energy & Utilities: Improved productivity and device efficiency, as outlined in the Naturgy plans to deploy 5G-enabled drones for powerline monitoring, and
For Manufacturing: Enhanced productivity and efficiency, as illustrated in Ericson USA’s plans to setup a smart, 5g-enabled factory.

1.2.2: Software-driven Network Transformation Journeys

The emergence of 5G has seen a rise in the large-scale inclusion of software technologies in driving network transformation paradigms. Its impact can be summed up across three key areas:

Cloud Networking: 5G has enabled optimized network access and transfers with industry specific network capabilities. Cloud networks have now evolved from their initial role of data maintenance and recovery to enabling edge computing and cloud transfer facilities.

Open RAN (O-Ran): The emergence of 5G has accelerated the growth of intelligent, flexible, and location-agnostic solutions, besides enabling wide-scale network virtualization capabilities.

Network Slicing: Incorporation of 5G technologies have helped ensure an enhancement of network security and enabled the personalization of use case slicing and configuration to deliver end-to-end networking capabilities.

1.2.3: The Rise of an Innovation Ecosystem:

Developing Coordinated, Common, and All-inclusive 5G Roadmaps

Unlike the preceding generations, 5G makes it possible to drive large-scale alliances and partnerships across the technology landscape.
Its impact is visible across:

Hyper-scale organizations, which are leveraging 5G to accelerate the development cycles of software-defined products, streamline Edge computing, and deliver a disaggregated network infrastructure.

Market operations, with 5G emerging as the preferred vehicle for ensuring enhanced infrastructure access (enabling a reduced time-to-market), streamlining the availability of global for pooling industrial and technical knowledge, and in supporting live trials and pilots through a flexible network deployment paradigm capable of supporting infrastructure optimization and automation.

The value chain, with silicon chip manufacturers leveraging 5G to deliver next-gen chip design for meeting advanced customer specifications, and telecom OEMs turning to the technology for eliminating multi-vendor complexities and enabling new use cases. Technology providers are also looking to fulfil end-to-end industry requirements by leveraging the set of capabilities offered by 5G.