Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries 9811650810, 9789811650819

Table of contents :
Editorial Board
Editor-in-Chief
Editorial Director
Expert Committee (in alphabetical order)
Secretary of Editorial Board
Writing Team (in alphabetical order)
Leaders
Deputy Leaders
Members
Foreword by John Hoffman
Foreword by Ping Zhang
Foreword by Peter Nolan
Background
Computer Software and Services
Technology Hardware
Challenges
Foreword by Weigang Yu
Foreword by David Wang
Acknowledgements
Contents
Abbreviations
List of Figures
List of Tables
Part I Multi-domain Collaboration for 5GtoB Success
1 Background and Value of Industry Digitalization
1.1 Global Economic Growth Faces Both Challenges and Opportunities
1.1.1 Global Economy Continues to Struggle Amid Continued Slowdown
1.1.2 The Pandemic Further Hampers the Global Economy
1.1.3 New Technologies Are the Engine for Global Economic Growth
1.2 Digital Economy Becomes a New Engine of Economic Growth
1.2.1 Digital Economy is a New Form of Economy in the Information Age
1.2.2 The Benefits of a Rapidly Growing Digital Economy Are Growing
1.2.3 National Policies Promote Digital Economy
1.3 Industry Digitalization is Key to Developing the Digital Economy
1.3.1 Information Technology Drives Digital Transformation
1.3.2 Industry Digitalization Accelerates with a Growing Market Space
1.3.3 Industry Digitalization Injects New Life into Industrial Development
1.3.4 The Pandemic is a Catalyst for Digital Transformation
References
2 ICT Infrastructure Required for Digital Transformation
2.1 5G for Digital Transformation
2.2 Multi-Domain Collaboration: New Paradigm of ICT Architecture
2.2.1 Cloud-Network-Device: Smart Networks in the Mobile Internet Era
2.2.2 Device-Edge-Cloud-Network: ICT Architecture in the 5G Era
2.2.3 5GtoB Target Service Architecture Based on Multi-domain Collaboration
3 5GtoB Market Space and Opportunities
3.1 5GtoB Market Creates a New Industry Support System
3.2 Industry Chipsets, Modules, and Terminals
3.3 Industry Private Networks
3.4 Industry Cloud
3.5 Edge Computing
3.6 Big Data Analytics
3.7 System Integrators
Part II 5GtoB Brings New Value to Industries
4 5GtoB Enables Enterprise Production
4.1 Smart Factory [1]
4.1.1 Automatic Control
4.1.2 Flexible Production
4.1.3 Assisted Assembly
4.1.4 Quality Inspection with Machine Vision
4.1.5 Online Device O&M
4.1.6 Transparent Factory
4.1.7 Cloud-Based AGVs
4.1.8 Safe Factory
4.2 Smart Electricity
4.2.1 Comprehensive Inspection
4.2.2 Power Distribution Protection and Control
4.2.3 Smart Power Consumption
4.3 Smart Mining
4.3.1 Unstaffed Excavation
4.3.2 Unstaffed Transportation
4.3.3 Underground Positioning
4.3.4 Security Monitoring
4.4 Smart Port
4.4.1 Remote Crane Control
4.4.2 Intelligent Tallying
4.4.3 Unstaffed Driving
4.4.4 Unattended Inspection
Reference
5 5GtoB Improves Social Development and Living Standards
5.1 Healthcare [1]
5.1.1 Telemedicine
5.1.2 Emergency Rescue
5.1.3 Remote Ultrasonography
5.1.4 Remote Care
5.1.5 Remote Demonstration and Teaching
5.1.6 Remote Ward Round
5.1.7 Remote Pathological Diagnosis
5.2 Smart Education [2]
5.2.1 Interactive Teaching
5.2.2 Distance Education
5.2.3 Immersive Teaching
5.2.4 Secure Campus
5.3 Media Convergence
5.3.1 Onsite Production and Broadcasting
5.3.2 New Media
5.4 Smart Culture and Tourism
5.4.1 Immersive Sightseeing
5.4.2 Intelligent Scenic Spot Management
5.4.3 Smart Commercial Area
5.5 City Governance
5.5.1 Refined Management
5.5.2 Remote Government Administration
5.5.3 Smart Environmental Protection
5.6 Smart Security
5.6.1 Intelligent Security Network
5.6.2 Emergency Management
References
Part III Construction and Analysis of 5GtoB’s Success Factors
6 Construction of the 5GtoB Success Factor System
6.1 5GtoB Success Factor System
6.2 Scenario Definition
6.2.1 Digital Transformation List (T Table)
6.2.2 Scenario List (S Table)
6.3 Role Definition and Responsibility
6.4 Capability Planning
6.4.1 Capability System
6.4.2 Performance Capability
6.4.3 Efficiency Capability
6.4.4 Ecosystem Capability
6.4.5 Business Capability
Reference
7 5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Performance Capability
7.1 Evolution of 5G Technical Standards
7.2 Three Major Application Scenarios of 5G
7.3 Key Enabling Technologies for 5GtoB
7.3.1 5G Deterministic Networking
7.3.2 Private 5G Virtualized Network for Industries
7.3.3 Edge Computing
7.3.4 Slicing Technology
7.3.5 5G Uplink Enhancement Solution
7.3.6 URLLC Technologies
7.3.7 5G MmWave System
7.3.8 5G NR Base Station Positioning Technology
7.3.9 PNI-NPN Kite-Like Solution
8 5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Efficiency Capability
8.1 Building Efficient Operation Capabilities
8.2 Building Efficient O&M Capabilities
8.3 Building Self-service Capabilities for Enterprises
8.3.1 Integrated E2E 5GtoB Telecom Solution Management
8.3.2 Rights- and Domain-Based Management of Multiple Tenants
9 5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Ecosystem Capability
9.1 Developing Common Core Capabilities
9.2 Filling the 5G Module Gap
9.3 Providing Integrated Cloud-Network-Industry Application Solutions
9.4 Building a Comprehensive Application Ecosystem
9.5 Transformation of Organizations and Talent [1]
9.5.1 Systematic, Industrial, and Societal Characteristics of 5G
9.5.2 Decentralized Operation Mode
9.5.3 Dual-Track Mode and New Roles
9.5.4 Flexible Organizations that Strive Beyond
9.5.5 Pan-Industry Requires Talent with Hybrid Skills
9.6 Building Unified Industry Specifications and Standards
9.6.1 5GtoB Starts with Standardization
9.6.2 Establishing User Experience-Based SLA Standards
9.6.3 Standardization Helps 5G to Enable Vertical Industries
9.7 National Policies Support 5GtoB Development
9.7.1 Developing 5G Oriented to the Future
9.7.2 Innovating Regulations and Cross-Industry Coordination
9.7.3 Building Robust 5G Application Security Systems
9.7.4 Increasing Support with New Financial Products
Reference
10 5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Business Capability
10.1 Five Key Roles in the Business Ecosystem of 5GtoB
10.2 Aiming for Mutual Benefits for Industry Customers and Carriers
10.3 Multiple Forms of Business Models [1]
10.4 Dynamically-Changing 5GtoB Business Models
Reference
Part IV 5GtoB Enables Industries
11 Heavy Industry
11.1 Hunan Valin Xiangtan Iron and Steel
11.1.1 Case Overview
11.1.2 Solutions and Benefits
11.1.3 Success Factor Analysis
11.1.4 Summary and Prospect
11.2 Conch Cement
11.2.1 Case Overview
11.2.2 Solutions and Benefits
11.2.3 Success Factor Analysis
11.2.4 Summary and Prospect
12 Computers, Communications and Consumer Electronics (3C) Manufacturing
12.1 Midea Group
12.1.1 Case Overview
12.1.2 Solutions and Benefits
12.1.3 Success Factor Analysis
12.1.4 Summary and Prospect
12.2 Gree Group
12.2.1 Case Overview
12.2.2 Solutions and Benefits
12.2.3 Success Factor Analysis
12.2.4 Summary and Prospect
12.3 Huawei Southern Factory
12.3.1 Case Overview
12.3.2 Solutions and Benefits
12.3.3 Success Factor Analysis
12.3.4 Summary and Prospect
13 Electric Power and Public Transportation
13.1 China Southern Grid
13.1.1 Case Overview
13.1.2 Solutions and Benefits
13.1.3 Success Factor Analysis
13.1.4 Summary and Prospect
13.2 Xiamen Public Transportation
13.2.1 Case Overview
13.2.2 Solutions and Benefits
13.2.3 Success Factor Analysis
13.2.4 Summary and Prospect
14 Mining and Petrochemical
14.1 Huayang New Material Technology Group
14.1.1 Case Overview
14.1.2 Solutions and Benefits
14.1.3 Success Factor Analysis
14.1.4 Summary and Prospect
14.2 Jiangxi Xinghuo Organic Silicone Plant
14.2.1 Case Overview
14.2.2 Solutions and Benefits
14.2.3 Success Factor Analysis
14.2.4 Summary and Prospect
15 Smart Port
15.1 Mawan Port of China Merchants Group
15.1.1 Case Overview
15.1.2 Solutions and Benefits
15.1.3 Success Factor Analysis
15.1.4 Summary and Prospect
15.2 Zhoushan Port
15.2.1 Case Overview
15.2.2 Solutions and Benefits
15.2.3 Success Factor Analysis
15.2.4 Summary and Prospect
16 Media, Education, and Healthcare
16.1 China Media Group
16.1.1 Case Overview
16.1.2 Solutions and Benefits
16.1.3 Success Factor Analysis
16.1.4 Summary and Prospect
16.2 Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications
16.2.1 Case Overview
16.2.2 Solutions and Benefits
16.2.3 Success Factor Analysis
16.2.4 Summary and Prospect
16.3 Siriraj 5G Smart Hospital
16.3.1 Case Overview
16.3.2 Solutions and Benefits
16.3.3 Summary and Prospect
Part V 5GtoB Continues to Evolve
17 5GtoB Evolution Path
17.1 5G Accelerates the Expansion of New Information Technologies
17.2 Next Two to Three Years Are Key to 5G Service Development
17.3 Internal and External Driving Forces for 5GtoB Development
17.4 5GtoB Development Will Be a Phase-Based Process
17.5 5GtoB Applications Are Expanding to Core Industrial Segments
18 Evolution to 5.5G and 6G and Key Applications
18.1 5.5G Prospects
18.1.1 Uplink Centric Broadband Communication (UCBC)
18.1.2 Real-Time Broadband Communication (RTBC)
18.1.3 Harmonized Communication and Sensing (HCS)
18.1.4 Summary
18.2 6G Technologies and Application Prospects
18.2.1 Network Performance Requirements
18.2.2 Architecture and Technology Prospects
18.2.3 Typical Industrial Application Scenarios
18.2.4 Summary
References

Citation preview

Pengfei Sun

Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries

Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries

Pengfei Sun

Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries

Pengfei Sun G Area Huawei Industrial Base, Bantian Shenzhen, China

ISBN 978-981-16-5081-9 ISBN 978-981-16-5082-6 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6 Jointly published with Posts & Telecom Press. The print edition is not for sale in China (Mainland). Customers from China (Mainland) please order the print book from: Posts & Telecom Press. © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publishers, the authors, and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publishers nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publishers remain neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. The registered company address is: 152 Beach Road, #21-01/04 Gateway East, Singapore 189721, Singapore

Editorial Board

Editor-in-Chief Pengfei Sun, Director of Huawei’s 5G-2B Solutions Department

Editorial Director Wangcheng Jiang, President of Huawei ICT Solutions

Expert Committee (in alphabetical order) Adrian Scrase, Head of 3GPP Mobile Competence Centre and CTO of ETSI Chengzhi Yu, Deputy General Manager of China Mobile Government and Enterprise Business Department Hongbing Ma, General Manager of China Unicom Technology Innovation Department Jian Sun, President of China Telecom Industry Business Department 1 Kang Cai, Vice President of China Telecom Research Institute Sihan Bo Chen, Head of GSMA Greater China Yuhong Huang, General Secretary of GTI and Vice President of China Mobile Research Institute Zemin Yang, Secretary General of China Communications Standards Association Zhiqin Wang, Vice President of China Academy of Information and Communications Technology v

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Secretary of Editorial Board Li Lin

Writing Team (in alphabetical order) Leaders Dan Chen Feng Pan Hua Tan Jie Chang Li Lin Shanpeng Xiao Xiaoqi Wang Xueli Zhang

Deputy Leaders Guixin Pan Hao Zhang Jiang Yu Li Chen Maokuan Zheng Peter Jarich Shan Li Wei Deng Xiaofan Li Yu Xiao

Members Bin Wei Chao Ling Chenhui Du Chunming Zhang Dewu Yang Dong Wang

Editorial Board

Editorial Board

Gan Guo Haitao Zhang Hongbin Ma Hu Yang Huan Shu Jia Dong Jialing Guan Jiamin Li Jian Li Jian Wang Jiawei Liu Jiayue Li Jing Liu Jingjing Hao Jinglei Liu Jun Li Junkai Yang Ke Liu Lei Shi Lei Wang Ling Xiang Lingfei Ni Liping Wu Liurong Wei Long Cheng Long Zhang Meihua Zhong Ming Jin Ming Wan Qinghe Guan Rong Wang Rui Wang Shu Xu Shuai Wang Shuang Guo Shugui Li Tao Wen Wen Feng Wen’an Lyu Xiang Hu Xiaofeng Shen Xiaodong Xu Xiaoyi Man Xinhua Yang Xinjie Yang

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Yajian Liu Yan Zhao Yonghui Wang Yongming Liang Yu Kong Yu Liu Yun Zuo Zejie Li Zhe Si Zhen Zhao Zhenning Huang

Editorial Board

Foreword by John Hoffman

It is widely recognized that the digital economy has never been so critical for people and societies as it is today, after the large-scale challenges of 2020 and the resultant forced acceleration of digitization. The enabling effects of mobile technologies have been both immense, across whole industries and economies, and personal, to each of our lives. Over the next 10 years, we confidently anticipate the continuation of accelerated transformation across all industries, through the power of 5G. Further transformation will usher in an era of greater efficiency and productivity, and will also boost muchneeded efforts towards the achievement of the 2030 Agenda, as we advance through the United Nations Decade of Action. In China, the mobile industry has had its greatest impact on SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure). Between 2015 and 2019, the biggest improvement in the industry’s impact has been on SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), and SDG 4 (Quality Education). At the GSMA, we prioritize and contribute in multiple ways to enabling the growth of 5G which is empowering industries and verticals. As we embark on 2021, we recognize that it is a well-timed moment for the mobile industry to ask how we can best prepare for the critical growth of the coming years and how we can best unleash the full potential of 5G. GSMA Intelligence forecasts that 5G will account for almost half of China’s mobile connections by 2025, representing an adoption rate on a par with other leading 5G markets. The mobile industry in China will invest ¥1.36 trillion in mobile CAPEX between 2020 and 2025, 90% of which will be on 5G. In parallel to investment and the roll-out of 5G networks, alongside increased consumer and enterprise enthusiasm, the mobile industry in China has been actively initiating efforts to work closely with vertical industries, trying new business models and unearthing ways of solving everyday challenges, large and small. As a result, mobile operators in China are accumulating invaluable experience and best practice knowledge on the real-world impact of 5G, which will in turn benefit these industries around the globe.

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Foreword by John Hoffman

For this timely book, we have examined leading use cases for mining, shipping and transport, power grids, autonomous driving, and industrial production for steel. In reviewing and distilling these best examples, some common elements stand out—standardization, cooperation, and innovation. More specifically, it has become evident that appropriate and fitting industrial standards and specifications will be the critical foundation for the economies of scale that are possible across each industry. Cooperation and truly working hand-in-hand with our industrial clients will be a key to the discovery of practical solutions to their most business pressing needs, thus enabling a continual evolving of dynamic solutions. And, as expected, innovation is paramount and therefore must be embedded by design and by mindset in every aspect of solution development, to ensure maximum value. We have been honoured to form part of this project and to work with all industry partners—mobile operators, vendors such as Huawei, vertical stakeholders, academia, and research institutes—which has culminated in this book of pioneer thinking and best practices. We are confident that this publication will serve as an important reference for our ongoing collective efforts towards 5G success and Industry 4.0 transformation. John Hoffman CEO and Director, GSMA Ltd. Atlanta, US

Foreword by Ping Zhang

It is no secret that since 1G was first simulated during the 1980s, a new generation of mobile communication has been proposed almost every decade, each one immensely changing our lives. For instance, 2G accelerated the information flow through SMS, while 3G multimedia communication set the stage for Web portals and smartphones. Subsequently, 4G arrived on the scene and led to the popularization of social multimedia and mobile HD video services, which brought our social interactions closer together and transformed life as we know it. Taking it a step further, 5G’s standout features include high bandwidth, low latency, and wide connectivity, which in our everyday lives translate to faster-loading Web pages and smoother movies. That said, the core application of 5G will be ‘5G + all industries’, which is also the key to 5G innovation and essential to increased prosperity. Put differently, the real promise of 5G is how it will change the world we live in and put information within reach. We have already gone through three industrial revolutions, and the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0) is underway. It is based on achieving the physical information system, with enablers driven by new ICTs such as 5G, cloud computing, and AI. For this reason, we can also view Industry 4.0 as a deep integration of new ICTs and various physical industries in the ‘Internet+’ era. Among all these ICTs, 5G integration with physical industries is both the focal and pain points due to the unclear roles and requirements, excessive coordination links, as well as lack of policies, regulations, and standardization, among other issues. This is an entirely new subject matter, and as such, we require joint innovation across the industry’s ecosystem to explore new requirements, research new theories and technologies, develop new services, and research new business forms and models. Governments around the world have therefore elevated the development of 5G technologies to a highly competitive level. Case in point is the Chinese government, which has incorporated this topic into the national strategy for scientific and technological innovation to keep up with and even direct the trend. With this goal in mind, the Chinese government proposed the ‘new infrastructure’ concept in a report submitted by the National Development and Reform Commission in April 2020. The concept is divided into three categories to differentiate it from ‘old infrastructure’ (railways, highways, and other fundamental facilities): xi

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• Information infrastructure includes 5G, IoT, industrial Internet, satellite Internet, and other enabling technologies. AI, cloud computing, and blockchain are developed based on these new technologies, while intelligent computing centres and data centres are developed based on computing power. • Integrated infrastructure promotes industry transformation and supports the upgrade and transformation of traditional infrastructure. • Innovation infrastructure refers to infrastructure with public benefits, which support scientific research, technological development, and product development. Moving in the right direction, China has already comprehensively deployed 5G in terms of the macroenvironment, standards and patents, market advantages, and key links in the industry chain, becoming a frontrunner. The next step involves a top-level design and comprehensive planning as the country develops the 5G-centric ‘new infrastructure’. Within this context, robust 5G infrastructure will help us achieve ubiquitous connectivity across the entire system, process, industry chain, and life cycle. On top of that, it will serve as the engine that accelerates the development of various industries, spawning more new services and vertical industry applications. The perfect example of this is the industrial Internet, which meets the development requirements of industrial intelligence and is a new industry form and application mode formed by the deep integration of new ICTs and modern industries. Taking all this into account, this book provides a detailed description of the relationship between new ICTs—typified by 5G—and the digital transformation of physical industries. It summarizes the main success stories from the performance, efficiency, ecosystem, and business perspectives through both theoretical and practical methods. This book also includes an in-depth analysis of the 5GtoB development status across typical industries and rational suggestions on the 5GtoB evolution path. Carriers and industry partners, as well as numerous industries in and of themselves, can benefit from this book as they face the information-based transformation trend and seek to ignite new sparks. Looking back at 2020, we experienced a global crisis, with the pandemic immensely affecting both production and our lives. But as Winston Churchill once stated: ‘Never let a good crisis go to waste’. This means that even in the face of danger, we can discover opportunities. In other words, the pandemic has not only led to the emergence of numerous requirements for services such as remote learning, health care, and operations, but also promoted the convergence of ‘Internet+’ and new ICTs. We believe that in the near future, new ICTs—such as 5G, cloud computing, and AI— will be the leading trends, become the pillars for ‘new infrastructure’ construction, and accelerate Industry 4.0. Ping Zhang Academician, Chinese Academy of Engineering Professor, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications Beijing, China

Foreword by Peter Nolan1

The roll-out of 5G across the world will have a tremendous impact on economy, society, and government. The chapters collected in this book make a deep scholarly contribution to understanding the technologies involved and the way in which they have been applied in practice. The 5G revolution involves an extended ecosystem that has been labelled the ‘Internet of Things’. This foreword presents some thoughts about the structure of that far-reaching ecosystem and the challenges that presents for firms in this sector from developing countries.

Background Since the 1980s, a revolution has taken place in information and communication technology (ICT). The revolution has penetrated every sector of the economy and society. It has transformed the way in which governments function. It has transformed financial services. It has transformed every part of non-financial services, including telecommunications, retail, travel and tourism, entertainment, mass media, professional services, health care, and education. It has transformed every part of the world’s manufacturing system, including aerospace, automobiles, beverages, and biomedical products. The revolution has transformed the internal operations of global companies, enabling them to overcome managerial diseconomies of scale. It has transformed also the nature of the R&D process, the nature of their products, as well as the relationship of the systems integrator firms with their supply chain and with their customers. The pace of the ICT revolution is accelerating with the advent of cloud computing, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and the Internet of Things. The ICT sector has been the leading edge of innovation in the recent era, and it will be even more important in the years ahead. It is the sector in which by far the greatest amount is spent on R&D, amounting to over two-fifths of total R&D spending by

1 The data in this foreword are from P. Nolan, China and the West: Crossroads of Innovation, Routledge, 2022 (forthcoming). xiii

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the world’s top 2500 companies.1 The ICT industry has been characterized by a high level of mergers and acquisitions, which has contributed to a high level of industrial concentration in the industry. It is a heavily research-intensive industry. In 2018/9, R&D spending in the ICT hardware and equipment sector amounted to 8.4% of net sales revenue and in the computer software and services sector it amounted to 10.8% of sales revenue. The ICT sector has evolved at tremendous speed. The innovations achieved by scientists and engineers in the firms within this broad sector have transformed the modern world, driven by high levels of R&D spending and ferocious oligopolistic competition from top to bottom of the ICT value chain. Since the introduction of the semiconductor and the PC, a wide array of new sectors emerged within the ICT industry, but within each sector oligopoly has developed at high speed.

Computer Software and Services In the G2500 list, there are 321 firms in the computer software and services sector, within which the top 20 firms account for 67% of R&D spending and 70% of sales revenue. Microsoft has maintained its early dominant position in PC operating systems. In the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) sector, the top five firms account for around one-half of the global market. Outside China, Google established a dominant position in search engines and Facebook established a dominant position in social media, which they have maintained since then. Google and Facebook account for over one-half of global digital advertising revenue. Google (Android) has around three quarters of the global market for smartphone operating systems. Cloud computing has grown rapidly in the past five years. It is the foundation of the Internet of Things. Three super-large firms—Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet’ Google—have leveraged their dominant position in other parts of the digital world to establish an early lead in cloud computing software and services. The three behemoths account for 38% of the total R&D spending and 34% of the net sales revenue for the 321 firms in the G2500 ICT software and services sector. Collectively, they account for almost 60% of global revenue from software services for the public cloud. The customers for the giant cloud companies’ services are drawn from a wide array of sectors, including financial services, automobiles, energy systems, pharmaceuticals, health care, media and entertainment, retail, hospitality, manufacturing, and government. The three behemoths perform on-demand data storage, data analysis, and machine learning for a wide array of sectors. They offer their customers on-demand cloud services, which means that they can avoid investing in their own ‘private cloud’, which may operate at less than full capacity. Their customers benefit from state-of-the-art network infrastructure purchased by the giant cloud computing 1

The G2500 companies are the world’s 2500 largest companies in terms of R&D spending (EU, 2019, The 2019 EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard, Brussels: EU). They account for around 90% of total corporate spending on R&D.

Foreword by Peter Nolan

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companies. The vast size of their network means that they can acquire equipment, which includes servers, routers, and switches, more cheaply than small-scale private cloud systems. They play a vital role within the ‘Internet of Things’ that connects embedded semiconductors across a wide array of machines. They also invest heavily in data security, including the security advantage of their closed-loop global fibre networks. They require a network of routers and switches to link the centres together and need huge amounts of electricity to keep the server farms cool. It is estimated that 50% of the electricity used by data centres is devoted to keeping them cool.

Technology Hardware There are 477 firms in the G2500 data set from the technology hardware sector, within which the top 20 firms account for 51% of R&D spending and 66% of sales revenue. Two firms (Samsung and Apple) account for three-fifths of the global market for smartphones (by revenue). Servers are the workhorses of the whole ICT system, including the private and public cloud. Half a dozen firms, led by HPE and Dell, dominate the global server market. In advanced TVs, a single firm, Samsung, accounts for over one-half of the global market (by sales revenue). In telecoms equipment, the top five firms account for two-thirds. The value chain of these industries is also highly consolidated. One firm (Cisco) accounts for around one-half of the global market for telecoms routers and switches. The semiconductor sector also is highly concentrated. Five firms account for about one-half of the whole market, but levels of industrial concentration are even higher in most sub-sectors of the chip industry. Intel accounts for around three quarters of the global market for PC microprocessors. Two firms (Qualcomm and Apple) account for three-fifths of smartphone processors. One firm (Samsung) accounts for almost one-half of the global market for DRAM chips and a third of the market for NAND chips. Five firms account for around threefifths of the global market for Wi-Fi chips. Five firms account for one-half of auto semiconductors. Moreover, four firms account for two-thirds of the global market for semiconductor equipment, which is a vital part of the innovation process in the semiconductor industry. The technology hardware sector embraces a wide range of sub-sectors in terms of their R&D intensity. PCs, printers, and servers typically involve relatively low R&D intensity. Leading technology hardware companies from the first generation of the ICT revolution, such as IBM and HP, have divested their PC and low-end server divisions in order to focus on other parts of the ICT industry, which have higher margins and profitability. Smartphones and tablets involve medium intensity of R&D spending. However, they require high innovation skills in terms of product design and customer understanding. They require also sophisticated systems integration capability. The manufacture of their products involves complex value chains across the world, involving a wide array of sub-systems and components, including software, semiconductors, screens, batteries, and camera lenses. In addition, they involve large expenditure on marketing and branding. Telecoms equipment typically

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involves a high R&D intensity. Telecoms equipment is typically customer-specific. Innovation needs to closely integrate design, manufacturing, and customer understanding. The telecoms equipment company’s brand and reputation are affected critically by the level and quality of support provided to customers once they start using their equipment. Within the ICT hardware industry, the semiconductor sector stands out for the very high degree of research intensity. Among the top thirty ICT hardware firms, one-half are specialist semiconductor manufacturers. However, as well as making complex electronic and telecoms equipment, Samsung, Apple, and Huawei also are significant semiconductor producers. In 2018, Samsung’s revenues from semiconductors were over US$60 billion, making it the world’s second-largest chip-maker. A significant share of its huge R&D spending of EUR 15 billion (2018) on R&D is devoted to advancing its technological capabilities in DRAM and NAND chips. In 2018, Samsung’s semiconductor division accounted for over three quarters of its total profits. If the semiconductor equipment sector is included, then 22 out of the top thirty ICT hardware companies ranked by R&D spending are in the semiconductor sector, as either pure-play chip-makers or companies with large semiconductor subdivisions. Semiconductors are a crucial part of the whole ICT industry. The sector sits at the centre of the transformation of the modern world since the 1980s, and it will become even more important in the transition to the Internet of Things, machine learning, and artificial intelligence. The foundation of this ‘connected world’ will be ‘hundreds of billions’ of sensors and smart devices. There will be a huge increase in the amount of data that will be generated, transmitted, stored, processed, and analysed.

Challenges Each segment of the vast architecture of the IoT has become highly consolidated, with a few companies, almost all from the high-income countries. The IoT is a comprehensive ICT architecture. It includes a huge network of base stations. It includes also a global network of fibre, a widely distributed global network of data centres full of servers, a cloud computing software system, a global array of billions of smartphones, semiconductors and software within the smartphones, and hundreds of billions of semiconductors embedded within ‘connected devices’. Global security in the IoT needs to be considered not in relation to a single part of the architecture, such as telecoms equipment, but rather in relation to the whole structure of global data transmission, storage and analysis, and the surrounding value chain. As the world sets out on the journey of 5G, this is a formidable competitive challenge for firms from developing countries. Peter Nolan Founding Director, Centre of Development Studies Professor, University of Cambridge Cambridge, UK

Foreword by Weigang Yu

China’s steel industry has transcended into one of the world’s largest manufacturers. It now boasts a complete industrial system and strong production capabilities. According to the latest report from the World Steel Association, China’s proportion of crude steel output to the world’s total volume increases with years. In 2019, the proportion grew to 53.3%, with 996.3 million out of the total 1.8699 billion tons of crude steel produced by China. Founded in 1958, Hunan Valin Xiangtan Iron and Steel (Xiangtan Steel) is located in Xiangtan, Hunan, which is a landlocked province in South Central China. Xiangtan Steel benefits from its prime location in one of China’s major economic reform zones while also being nearby to several of China’s major north–south major trunk railway lines, as well as the Xiang and Yangtze Rivers. It boasts an annual fine steel production capacity of 16 million tons and strong technological advantages ensured by advanced equipment and technologies that help streamline production. After a four-year initiative for upgrade, manufacturing automation has been achieved in its main production lines. On top of this achievement, it has embarked on a new journey to further enhance its wireless networks. This will ensure sufficient bandwidth or real-time data transmission in its factories where complex environment and weak signal coverage pose considerable risks to intelligent production that is key to further improving production and energy efficiency. In its goal to become a comprehensive, world-class provider of iron and steel services, Xiangtan Iron and Steel has proposed several guiding principles to enhance productivity, achieve high energy efficiency, and create better work environments: ‘let devices talk to each other, let machines run autonomously, and let workers work with more dignity and make business more efficient’. It has been cooperating with China Mobile and Huawei since 2019 to leverage 5G’s high bandwidth, massive connectivity, low latency, and high reliability to develop smart applications for steel production, including unmanned and remote bridge cranes, AR-assisted remote assembly, AI steel spinning, online device monitoring, and preventive device maintenance. These applications are key to making production more digital and intelligent while also improving the production environment and efficiency. 5G further pushes the limitation of incumbent mobile networks to expand digital transformation in the steel industry. The collaboration among industries has shown early benefits in 5G smart xvii

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steel, boosting the confidence in and urgency for joint development of applications for typical scenarios and cultivation of a digital ecosystem around 5G. This book explores the typical applications and scenarios of 5G in various industries in terms of digital transformation and summarizes the new value of new ICTs represented by 5G for vertical industries. The application of 5G in the steel industry is detailed as well. Driven by digitalization, 5G applications will be increasingly adopted in new scenarios across industries. Looking ahead, Xiangtan Steel will continue to tap into the full potential of 5G, intelligence, big data, cloud computing, and other new ICTs to integrate production processes across its business domains and develop industrial Internet platforms, with the aim of achieving high-quality, smart, and green development. Digital and intelligent transformation will drive the remodelling of business organizations, processes, and partnerships across enterprises. Xiangtan Steel will also continue to increase collaboration with carriers, Huawei, and other partners to set up new benchmarks for 5G smart steel applications to cement its leading position in the industry. Weigang Yu Executive Vice General Manager, Hunan Valin Xiangtan Iron and Steel Xiangtan, China

Foreword by David Wang

Looking back, every upgrade to connectivity has led to a qualitative leap forward in the development of society. In the agrarian era, post-stations served as a bridge for communications between two distant cities. The Silk Road, a connection based on the post-station system, promoted material circulation and information interaction between the East and the West. In the industrial age, telegrams and telephones broke the limits of distance and enabled people to quickly contact each other. In the information era, mobile, optical fibre, and data communications boost the popularity of the Internet and enable the global economy to develop rapidly. Over the past 30 years, the development of 2G, 3G, and 4G has shown that each generation of mobile communications technologies must continuously evolve to unleash strong vitality and sustainably develop the industry. A decade marks one generation of technological evolution of mobile communications industry. 5G will be the most important mobile communications technology before 2030 and will continue to provide services until 2040. The arrival of 5G technologies brings higher bandwidth, enhanced connections, reliability, and shorter latency. Compared with 4G networks, 5G will build on its predecessor to deliver 100 times more powerful connections that are faster and denser, opening the door for innovative production modes that will radically transform industries. 2020 was an extraordinary year for the entire world that saw massive disruption to businesses and our normal way of life. Despite that, 5G has never stopped progressing. I am impressed by several typical cases: • In February 2020, Wuhan took a record-breaking 10 days to build the Leishenshan Hospital and the Huoshenshan Hospital (two large makeshift hospitals built to handle the pressures caused by the epidemic). Huawei, along with a number of partners, successfully set up 5G networks for the two hospitals within just 72 h. Such quick deployment would not be possible if fixed network solutions were adopted. • In a coal mine located in Shanxi, Central China, 5G networks were deployed 534 m underground, becoming the deepest place in the world to be covered by 5G. 5G networks provided all-new services to the coal mine that would not otherwise have xix

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been possible, such as carrying HD audio and video calls, providing concurrent transfer of multichannel HD videos, and remote intelligent device operation that delivers the same performance as it would achieve on ground. Now, with 5G to provide sufficient bandwidth, engineers are able to monitor hundreds of sensors in real time, simultaneously. • In a steel factory in Hunan, South Central China, with the assistance of 5G networks, operators are able to remotely operate bridge cranes in central operation rooms to move the scrap steel to target areas. This greatly improves the working conditions and production efficiency. These cases are just the tip of the iceberg in the big ocean of 5G applications. For example, in China alone, more than 5000 5G-based innovation projects are being implemented, while a number of 5G applications have already completed trials and are on the way to preliminary commercialization. This only highlights the importance and urgency of industry-wide cooperation to ensure 5GtoB success, particularly in the following areas: First, application scenarios must be identified by surveying and understanding industry requirements. We need to understand the urgency of 5G in industries, the benefits that 5G will bring to them, and whether 5G can fulfil the cost and SLA requirements. We must also ensure that the market space is enough to promote scaled replication of the applications, which is a vital factor for success. Second, all project participants must go after clear roles and deliverables. There are five key roles in the 5GtoB business cycle: industry customers, system integrators, industry application developers (ISVs/IHVs), industry cloud service providers, and carriers. As end users, industry customers are the real practitioners of industry digitalization, who are responsible for identifying industry needs and raising requirements. System integrators are expected to develop industry expertise and provide consultation, design, and delivery of industry solutions by pooling resources, consolidating the ecosystem, and verifying service integration. They also need to ensure SLA compliance of enterprise services. Industry application developers develop scenario-based 5G industry application software and hardware. Lastly, cloud service providers are also important for industry digitalization, as industry applications will later become cloud services. Aside from providing industry cloud IaaS and PaaS, industry cloud service providers need to come up with enabling platforms for operations and the ecosystem in order to facilitate agile development of 5G applications and create thriving businesses. Network carriers need to provide connection capabilities for industrial purposes and network SLA assurance. Many carriers are undergoing extensive transformation, but they are only network carriers when they focus on connection capabilities. But with cloud capabilities, they also assume the role of cloud service providers. In some industries, carriers can even serve as industry system integrators, which is evidence that anything is possible. Just how big a role they can play depends on how far its capabilities can extend. Third, the business model must be mature to achieve rational distribution of value and benefits. Business closure in the 5GtoB sector is a tricky thing due to the complex industry chain and the multilateral transaction mode. This calls for a simplified and

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efficient business model, which can be achieved with the capability of normalizing cloud services, application ecosystem, and 5G networks. Additionally, benefit distribution in the value chain must be done on the premise of responsibility fulfilment. The 5GtoB sector must pull for ‘value-based pricing’ as a way of driving innovation. After 5G is incorporated into enterprises’ production systems, its effects must be based on the financial value it gives to its customers. This will steer the business ecosystem forward and thereby attract more participants. Fourth, horizontal expansion is a driver for digital transformation, of which connection technologies are just one factor for achieving digitalization. Intelligence, cloud, computing, and industry applications are just as important. These domains should be developed in conjunction with each other to develop all-round digital infrastructure and build intelligent twins for various industry scenarios, creating opportunities for industry development. 5G, as a new connection technology, will catalyse the development of these five domains. Fifth, build a prosperous industry ecosystem. 5G industry applications embrace the integration of CT, IT, and OT technologies, as well as the convergence of innovations in 5G, cloud, intelligence, intelligent devices, and industry applications. A prosperous ecosystem requires cultivation, as its maturity is low and the business model is complex. The 5GtoB industry chain is long, with many participants. To enable thousands of industries, an ecosystem aggregation platform needs to be built to facilitate product subscription, provisioning, operation, maintenance, and secondary development, so that enterprises can quickly replicate the experience. And finally, improve technical standards and industry norms continuously, as well as promote the implementation of industry policies. From 3GPP Release 16 to Release 17 and then to 5.5G, we are promoting the standard definition of 5G network capabilities for 5GtoB and developing standards and specifications for 5G target network construction in different industry scenarios to unify the requirements for basic network construction. Industry policies must keep up with technological advances, and a strategic layout must be made for industries in advance. Establishing a favourable legal and policy environment is crucial to high-quality 5GtoB development. The 5G industry fund, intellectual property protection policies, and a composite talent development system will be influential to the large-scale development of 5GtoB. In the short term, 5G capabilities will be further enhanced and expanded based on the three standard scenarios—eMBB, mMTC, and URLLC—as defined by ITU-T. Based on these standard 5G scenarios, three new scenarios will be developed—Uplink Centric Broadband Communication (UCBC), Real-Time Broadband Communication (RTBC), and Harmonized Communication and Sensing (HCS). More device types, enhanced network reliability, and improved communication sensing will benefit the digital transformation of various industries. Huawei is committed to bringing digital to every person, home, and organization, to create a fully connected world. To promote the 5G industry development, Huawei sticks to three key initiatives: continuously invest in basic research and the system engineering capability to build leading products and solutions; work with the entire industry to face the challenges of deglobalization and maintain a unified global

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standard for the connectivity industry; and collaborate with partners to continuously improve solutions based on industry scenarios. With regard to the development of ICTs, any assumptions may be too conservative. The best way to predict the future is to create the future. We call on the entire society to work together to usher in the era of intelligent connectivity. David Wang Executive Director of the Board, Huawei Shenzhen, China

Acknowledgements

This book is a result of collective efforts across multiple industries and disciplines. We thank all contributors for their work and support, including our partners from Huawei, China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT), Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA), Global TD-LTE Initiative (GTI), 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), China Communications Standards Association (CCSA), China Mobile, China Telecom, China Unicom, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Southeast University, and Ningbo University. Without their contributions, this book would not have been possible. Our heartfelt appreciation also goes to the companies and peer colleagues working on the frontline of the 5GtoB industry, who provided much knowledge and suggestions during the writing of this book. We are also grateful to the translators and editors who have exhibited a high level of professionalism in translating this book into English, including Qiangqiang Feng, Xiangjia Ji, Qiang Han, Shupeng Qiu, Maolin Zeng, Yang Xu, Yasheng Li, Xiao Huang, Yong Liu, Samuel Luke Winfield D’Arcy, Hannah O’Callaghan, Anna Vichnevetskaia, George Fahy, Kyle Melieste, Michael Chapman, Paul Barresi, Rene Okech, Xiaojuan Zhu, and Ge Li. Keywords 5GtoB · Digital economy · Information communication technology · Digital technology · Artificial intelligence · Big data · Digital industrialization · Ubiquitous connection · High bandwidth · Low latency · Massive connectivity · High reliability · Industrial application · Vertical industry · Digital connection · Digital platform · Real-time data · Industry chain · Digital transformation · Network capability · System integrator · Application developer · Network carrier · Cloud service provider · Industry customer · Ecosystem · Multi-domain collaboration · Industry private network · Automatic control · Cloud-based AGV · Machine vision · Success factor system · Scenario · Slicing · Uplink · Standards

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Part I 1

Multi-domain Collaboration for 5GtoB Success

Background and Value of Industry Digitalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1 Global Economic Growth Faces Both Challenges and Opportunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1.1 Global Economy Continues to Struggle Amid Continued Slowdown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1.2 The Pandemic Further Hampers the Global Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1.3 New Technologies Are the Engine for Global Economic Growth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2 Digital Economy Becomes a New Engine of Economic Growth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.1 Digital Economy is a New Form of Economy in the Information Age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.2 The Benefits of a Rapidly Growing Digital Economy Are Growing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.3 National Policies Promote Digital Economy . . . . . . . . . . 1.3 Industry Digitalization is Key to Developing the Digital Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.1 Information Technology Drives Digital Transformation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.2 Industry Digitalization Accelerates with a Growing Market Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.3 Industry Digitalization Injects New Life into Industrial Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.4 The Pandemic is a Catalyst for Digital Transformation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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ICT Infrastructure Required for Digital Transformation . . . . . . . . . . 2.1 5G for Digital Transformation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2 Multi-Domain Collaboration: New Paradigm of ICT Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.1 Cloud-Network-Device: Smart Networks in the Mobile Internet Era . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.2 Device-Edge-Cloud-Network: ICT Architecture in the 5G Era . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.3 5GtoB Target Service Architecture Based on Multi-domain Collaboration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5GtoB Market Space and Opportunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1 5GtoB Market Creates a New Industry Support System . . . . . . . . 3.2 Industry Chipsets, Modules, and Terminals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3 Industry Private Networks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4 Industry Cloud . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.5 Edge Computing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.6 Big Data Analytics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.7 System Integrators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Part II 4

13 13 17 17 19 23 29 29 30 31 32 33 34 36

5GtoB Brings New Value to Industries

5GtoB Enables Enterprise Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1 Smart Factory [1] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.1 Automatic Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.2 Flexible Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.3 Assisted Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.4 Quality Inspection with Machine Vision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.5 Online Device O&M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.6 Transparent Factory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.7 Cloud-Based AGVs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.8 Safe Factory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2 Smart Electricity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.1 Comprehensive Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.2 Power Distribution Protection and Control . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.3 Smart Power Consumption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3 Smart Mining . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.1 Unstaffed Excavation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.2 Unstaffed Transportation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.3 Underground Positioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.4 Security Monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4 Smart Port . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.1 Remote Crane Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.2 Intelligent Tallying . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.3 Unstaffed Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.4 Unattended Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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5GtoB Improves Social Development and Living Standards . . . . . . . 5.1 Healthcare [1] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1.1 Telemedicine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1.2 Emergency Rescue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1.3 Remote Ultrasonography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1.4 Remote Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1.5 Remote Demonstration and Teaching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1.6 Remote Ward Round . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1.7 Remote Pathological Diagnosis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2 Smart Education [2] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.1 Interactive Teaching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.2 Distance Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.3 Immersive Teaching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.4 Secure Campus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3 Media Convergence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.1 Onsite Production and Broadcasting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.2 New Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4 Smart Culture and Tourism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.1 Immersive Sightseeing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.2 Intelligent Scenic Spot Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.3 Smart Commercial Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5 City Governance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.1 Refined Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.2 Remote Government Administration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.3 Smart Environmental Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.6 Smart Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.6.1 Intelligent Security Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.6.2 Emergency Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Part III Construction and Analysis of 5GtoB’s Success Factors 6

Construction of the 5GtoB Success Factor System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 6.1 5GtoB Success Factor System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 6.2 Scenario Definition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 6.2.1 Digital Transformation List (T Table) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 6.2.2 Scenario List (S Table) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 6.3 Role Definition and Responsibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 6.4 Capability Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 6.4.1 Capability System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 6.4.2 Performance Capability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 6.4.3 Efficiency Capability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 6.4.4 Ecosystem Capability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 6.4.5 Business Capability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

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5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Performance Capability . . . . . . . . . 7.1 Evolution of 5G Technical Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2 Three Major Application Scenarios of 5G . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3 Key Enabling Technologies for 5GtoB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3.1 5G Deterministic Networking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3.2 Private 5G Virtualized Network for Industries . . . . . . . . . 7.3.3 Edge Computing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3.4 Slicing Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3.5 5G Uplink Enhancement Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3.6 URLLC Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3.7 5G MmWave System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3.8 5G NR Base Station Positioning Technology . . . . . . . . . . 7.3.9 PNI-NPN Kite-Like Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

101 101 101 102 102 102 104 104 106 108 109 110 111

8

5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Efficiency Capability . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.1 Building Efficient Operation Capabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2 Building Efficient O&M Capabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3 Building Self-service Capabilities for Enterprises . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3.1 Integrated E2E 5GtoB Telecom Solution Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3.2 Rights- and Domain-Based Management of Multiple Tenants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

115 115 119 122

5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Ecosystem Capability . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1 Developing Common Core Capabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.2 Filling the 5G Module Gap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.3 Providing Integrated Cloud-Network-Industry Application Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4 Building a Comprehensive Application Ecosystem . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.5 Transformation of Organizations and Talent [1] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.5.1 Systematic, Industrial, and Societal Characteristics of 5G . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.5.2 Decentralized Operation Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.5.3 Dual-Track Mode and New Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.5.4 Flexible Organizations that Strive Beyond . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.5.5 Pan-Industry Requires Talent with Hybrid Skills . . . . . . 9.6 Building Unified Industry Specifications and Standards . . . . . . . . 9.6.1 5GtoB Starts with Standardization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.6.2 Establishing User Experience-Based SLA Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.6.3 Standardization Helps 5G to Enable Vertical Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.7 National Policies Support 5GtoB Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.7.1 Developing 5G Oriented to the Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.7.2 Innovating Regulations and Cross-Industry Coordination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

127 127 129

9

124 126

130 131 133 133 134 136 137 144 149 149 150 152 154 154 155

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9.7.3 Building Robust 5G Application Security Systems . . . . . 156 9.7.4 Increasing Support with New Financial Products . . . . . . 156 Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 10 5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Business Capability . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.1 Five Key Roles in the Business Ecosystem of 5GtoB . . . . . . . . . . 10.2 Aiming for Mutual Benefits for Industry Customers and Carriers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.3 Multiple Forms of Business Models [1] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.4 Dynamically-Changing 5GtoB Business Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

159 159 160 161 162 163

Part IV 5GtoB Enables Industries 11 Heavy Industry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.1 Hunan Valin Xiangtan Iron and Steel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.1.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.1.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.1.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.1.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.2 Conch Cement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.2.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.2.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.2.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.2.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

167 167 167 168 171 173 173 173 175 177 177

12 Computers, Communications and Consumer Electronics (3C) Manufacturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.1 Midea Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.1.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.1.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.1.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.1.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.2 Gree Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.2.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.2.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.2.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.2.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.3 Huawei Southern Factory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.3.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.3.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.3.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.3.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

179 179 179 182 191 193 193 193 196 198 200 200 201 201 204 205

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Contents

13 Electric Power and Public Transportation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.1 China Southern Grid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.1.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.1.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.1.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.1.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.2 Xiamen Public Transportation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.2.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.2.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.2.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.2.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

207 207 207 208 213 215 216 216 217 219 219

14 Mining and Petrochemical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14.1 Huayang New Material Technology Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14.1.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14.1.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14.1.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14.1.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14.2 Jiangxi Xinghuo Organic Silicone Plant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14.2.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14.2.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14.2.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14.2.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

221 221 221 222 224 227 227 227 228 234 235

15 Smart Port . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.1 Mawan Port of China Merchants Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.1.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.1.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.1.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.1.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.2 Zhoushan Port . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.2.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.2.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.2.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.2.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

237 237 237 240 243 244 245 245 245 248 250

16 Media, Education, and Healthcare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.1 China Media Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.1.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.1.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.1.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.1.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.2 Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications . . . . . . . . . . 16.2.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.2.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.2.3 Success Factor Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

251 251 251 252 255 256 256 257 257 261

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16.2.4 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.3 Siriraj 5G Smart Hospital . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.3.1 Case Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.3.2 Solutions and Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.3.3 Summary and Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Part V

261 262 262 263 269

5GtoB Continues to Evolve

17 5GtoB Evolution Path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17.1 5G Accelerates the Expansion of New Information Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17.2 Next Two to Three Years Are Key to 5G Service Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17.3 Internal and External Driving Forces for 5GtoB Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17.4 5GtoB Development Will Be a Phase-Based Process . . . . . . . . . . 17.5 5GtoB Applications Are Expanding to Core Industrial Segments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Evolution to 5.5G and 6G and Key Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18.1 5.5G Prospects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18.1.1 Uplink Centric Broadband Communication (UCBC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18.1.2 Real-Time Broadband Communication (RTBC) . . . . . . . 18.1.3 Harmonized Communication and Sensing (HCS) . . . . . . 18.1.4 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18.2 6G Technologies and Application Prospects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18.2.1 Network Performance Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18.2.2 Architecture and Technology Prospects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18.2.3 Typical Industrial Application Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18.2.4 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

273 273 274 276 277 278 281 281 281 282 283 283 283 284 284 286 286 287

Abbreviations

3C 3GPP 5G-ACIA 5GC 5GDN 5QI 6G ABS AF AGV AI AICDE AII AIoT AMF AoA API APP AP-SRS AR AR ASEAN ASN BBU BLOS BOSS BRT BSS BUPT CA CAGR CCSA

Computers, Communications and Consumer Electronics 3rd Generation Partnership Project 5G Alliance for Connected Industries and Automation 5G Core Network 5G Deterministic Network 5G QoS Identifier Sixth Generation Asset-Backed Security Application Function Automated Guided Vehicle Artificial Intelligence AI, IoT, Cloud Computing, Big Data, and Edge Computing Alliance of Industrial Internet Artificial Intelligence of Things Access and Mobility Management Function Angle of Arrival Application Programming Interface Application Access Point-Sounding Reference Signal Access Router Augmented Reality Association of Southeast Asian Nations Abstract Syntax Notation Baseband Unit Beyond Line Of Sight Business and Operation Support System Bus Rapid Transit Business Support System Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications Carrier Aggregation Compound Annual Growth Rate China Communications Standards Association xxxiii

xxxiv

CEO CIO CMG CMOS CORE COVID-19 CPE CPU CQI CSG CSI CSMF CT CT CUII CUSC C-V2X D2D DC DCI DCI DCS DDA DIA DIS DL DLT DMS DR DRAM DSL DSM DSRC DT DV E2E EDAV EDI eMBB EMR eMTC ERP ETSI FCC FDD

Abbreviations

Chief Executive Officer Chief Information Officer China Merchants Group Complementary Metal–Oxide–Semiconductor Cloud, Core, Real-Time Operation, and Edge/Enterprise Coronavirus Disease 2019 Customer Premise Equipment Central Processing Unit Channel Quality Indicator China Southern Power Grid Channel State Information Communication Service Management Function Communication Technology Computerized Tomography China Unicom Industrial Internet China Unicom Smart Connection Cellular V2X Device-To-Device Dual Connectivity Data Center Interconnect Downlink Control Information Distributed Control System Dedicated Data Access Dedicated Internet Access Digital Indoor System Downlink Distributed Ledger Technology Distributed Manufacturing System Disaster Recovery Dynamic Random Access Memory Digital Subscriber Line Dynamic Spectrum Management Dedicated Short-Range Communications Data Technology Digital Video End-To-End Ericsson Device and Application Verification Electronic Data Interchange Enhanced Mobile Broadband Electronic Medical Record Enhanced Machine Type Communication Enterprise Resource Planning European Telecommunications Standards Institute Federal Communications Commission Frequency Division Duplex

Abbreviations

FPS FR1 FR2 FRP FTTx FWA GDP GIS GNSS GSA HCS HD HHS HSPA HVAC I/O IaaS ICT IDC IEEE IHV IIoT IMF IMT IoE IoT IPR IPTV ISO ISV IT ITU ITU-T KPI KQI LAN LBO LED LOS LTE CAT4 LTE LTE-U M2M MAN

xxxv

Frames Per Second Frequency Range 1 Frequency Range 2 Facial Recognition Payment Fibre To The X Fixed Wireless Access Gross Domestic Product Geographic Information System Global Navigation Satellite System Global Mobile Suppliers Association Harmonized Communication and Sensing High Definition Health and Human Services High-Speed Packet Access Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioner Input/Output Infrastructure as a Service Information and Communications Technology International Data Corporation Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Independent Hardware Vendor Industrial Internet of Things International Monetary Fund International Mobile Telephony Internet of Everything Internet of Things Intellectual Property Rights Internet Protocol Television International Organization for Standardization Independent Software Vendor Information Technology International Telecommunication Union International Telecommunication Union-Telecommunication Standardization Sector Key Performance Indicator Key Quality Indicator Local Area Network Local Breakout Light-Emitting Diode Line Of Sight LTE Category4 Long-Term Evolution LTE-Unlicensed Machine-To-Machine Metropolitan Area Network

xxxvi

MBB MCS MEC MES MIIT MIMO MMS mMTC mmWave MP2MP MR MRI MTP Multi-RTT Multi-TRP NaaS NAND NB-IoT NCD NDRC NE NFC NFV NG-CDN NLP NMS NOE NR NSA NSMF NSSMF O&M OCR ODM OECD OEM OFC OPD OT OTDOA OTT P2P PaaS PC PDA

Abbreviations

Mobile Broadband Modulation and Coding Scheme Multi-access Edge Computing Manufacturing Execution System Ministry of Industry and Information Technology Multiple-Input and Multiple-Output Multimedia Messaging Service Massive Machine Type Communication Millimeter Wave Multipoint-To-Multipoint Mixed Reality Magnetic Resonance Imaging Motion-To-Photon Multi-point Round-Trip Time Multiple Transmission/Reception Point Network as a Service Not AND Narrowband IoT Non-Communicable Disease National Development and Reform Commission Network Element Near-Field Communication Network Function Virtualization Next-Generation Content Delivery Network Natural Language Processing Network Management System Network Operation Enabling New Radio Non-Standalone Network Slice Management Function Network Slice Subnet Management Function Operation and Maintenance Optical Character Recognition Original Design Manufacturer Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Original Equipment Manufacturer Order Fulfillment Center Outpatient Department Operational Technology Observed Time Difference Of Arrival Over-The-Top Peer-To-Peer Platform as a Service Personal Computer Personal Digital Assistant

Abbreviations

PDCP PDSCH PLC PMU PNI-NPN PTZ PUSCH PV R&D RAN RB RFID RMG ROW RSRP RSU RTBC SA SaaS SCADA SDK SDN SD-WAN SI SIM SIP SLA SME SMF SMS SPN SR SR SS7 SSA SSB SSID STB SUL TDD TEU TFP ToB ToC TOPS

xxxvii

Packet Data Convergence Protocol Physical Data Shared Channel Programmable Logic Controller Phasor Measurement Unit Public Network Integrated Non-Public Network Pan–Tilt–Zoom Physical Uplink Shared Channel Photovoltaic Research and Development Radio Access Network Resource Block Radio Frequency Identification Rail-Mounted Gantry Right Of Way Reference Signal Received Power Roadside Unit Real-Time Broadband Communication Standalone Software as a Service Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition Software Development Kit Software-Defined Networking Software-Defined Wide Area Network System Integrator Subscriber Identity Module Strategic Innovation Promotion Service-Level Agreement Small- and Medium-sized Enterprise Session Management Function Short Message Service Slicing Packet Network Scheduling Request Symbiotic Radio Signalling System No. 7 Security Situational Awareness Synchronization Signal Based Service Set Identifier Set-Top Box Supplementary Uplink Time-Division Duplexing Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit Total Factor Productivity To Business To Consumer Trillion Operation Per Second

xxxviii

TTC UAV UCBC UCI UHD UL UN UNCTAD UPF URLLC V2I V2V V2X VDSL2 VLAN VLC VPN VR WAN WESP WLF WRC-19 XISC XR ZPMC

Abbreviations

Time To Collision Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Uplink Centric Broadband Communication Uplink Control Information Ultra-High Definition Uplink United Nations United Nations Conference on Trade and Development User Plane Function Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication Vehicle-To-Infrastructure Vehicle-To-Vehicle Vehicle-To-Everything Very-High-Speed Digital Subscriber Line 2 Virtual Local Area Network Visible Light Communication Virtual Private Network Virtual Reality Wide Area Network World Economic Situation and Prospects World Laureates Forum World Radiocommunication Conference 2019 Hunan Valin Xiangtan Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. Extended Reality Zhenhua Port Machinery Company

List of Figures

Fig. 1.1 Fig. 2.1 Fig. 2.2 Fig. 2.3 Fig. 2.4 Fig. 2.5 Fig. 2.6 Fig. 2.7 Fig. 3.1 Fig. 4.1 Fig. 6.1 Fig. 6.2 Fig. 6.3 Fig. 6.4 Fig. 6.5 Fig. 6.6 Fig. 6.7 Fig. 6.8 Fig. 7.1 Fig. 7.2 Fig. 7.3 Fig. 8.1 Fig. 8.2 Fig. 8.3 Fig. 8.4 Fig. 9.1 Fig. 9.2 Fig. 9.3

Global GDP growth trends (2009–2019) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cloud-network-device structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Comparison between Amazon and Walmart in service operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Comparison between cloud service providers and Amazon in service operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Three core capabilities of the ICT architecture in the 5G era . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5GtoB target service architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NaaS capability center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NOE and CSMF platforms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Industry support system of 5G-converged applications . . . . . . . Remote O&M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Framework of the 5GtoB success factor system . . . . . . . . . . . . . Roles and hierarchy of 5GtoB practitioners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Key capability system in four domains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5GtoB operation and maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5GtoB policy system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Organization and talent that drive 5GtoB development . . . . . . . Aspects of business capability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Comparison of business models (key activities) . . . . . . . . . . . . . E2E architecture of 5G network slicing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PNI-NPN kite-like solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Diagram of the integrated cabinet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Four phases of online and cloud-based transformation of 5G networks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mapping between scenarios and solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Target 5GtoB operation mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Purpose of efficient O&M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Six general-purpose devices and capabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5G operation and talent change trend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5G pan-industry Internet ecosystem structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

4 17 21 22 23 24 25 25 30 46 84 87 89 92 95 96 98 98 105 112 112 117 118 119 123 128 134 135 xxxix

xl

Fig. 9.4 Fig. 9.5 Fig. 9.6 Fig. 9.7 Fig. 9.8 Fig. 9.9 Fig. 9.10 Fig. 9.11 Fig. 9.12 Fig. 9.13 Fig. 12.1 Fig. 12.2 Fig. 12.3 Fig. 12.4 Fig. 12.5 Fig. 12.6 Fig. 12.7 Fig. 12.8 Fig. 12.9 Fig. 12.10 Fig. 12.11 Fig. 12.12 Fig. 12.13 Fig. 13.1 Fig. 13.2 Fig. 13.3 Fig. 13.4 Fig. 13.5 Fig. 14.1 Fig. 14.2 Fig. 14.3 Fig. 14.4 Fig. 14.5 Fig. 14.6 Fig. 14.7 Fig. 15.1 Fig. 15.2 Fig. 15.3 Fig. 15.4 Fig. 15.5

List of Figures

Differences between the new and traditional service modes . . . Pan-industry 5G and emerging digital innovation operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Main processes and roles for 5G+ industry service value creation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Main objectives and responsibilities of the four roles . . . . . . . . Hierarchical view of diversity in organizational structures . . . . Pan-industry 5G and digital business development and organizational capability improvement path . . . . . . . . . . . . Evolution of pan-industry talent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Requirements of diverse capabilities in the pan-industry ecosystem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Breaking down, reorganizing, and expanding roles . . . . . . . . . . Ecosystem capability overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Overall solution for 5G smart factory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Midea’s 11 application scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5G campus applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cloud-based control of KUKA robots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cloud-based PLC control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Industrial AR assistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5G-based machine vision for intelligent quality inspection . . . . 5G network deployment and management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5G-converged applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Overall network architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5G private network slicing solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Paperless first inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Production line behavior inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Composition of a power system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Challenges to the digital transformation of CSG . . . . . . . . . . . . World’s first power slice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Slice platform architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Industry’s first 5G timing-capable CPE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Architecture of 5G intelligent applications in a chemical factory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Architecture of 5G MEC enterprise private networks . . . . . . . . Platform for 5G intelligent chemical applications . . . . . . . . . . . Operation personnel monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Online device monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Inspection and inspection submission based on UAVs . . . . . . . . Inspection based on 5G robots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Aerial render of Mawan Port . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mawan Port smart upgrade milestones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5G unmanned container truck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5G remote crane control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mawan Port’s intelligent tallying solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

136 137 138 139 141 143 144 146 147 148 180 181 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 195 195 196 196 209 210 212 213 215 229 230 231 231 232 232 233 238 238 239 239 242

List of Figures

Fig. 15.6 Fig. 15.7 Fig. 16.1 Fig. 16.2 Fig. 16.3 Fig. 16.4 Fig. 16.5 Fig. 16.6 Fig. 16.7 Fig. 16.8 Fig. 16.9 Fig. 17.1 Fig. 18.1

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Analog simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Overall solution of the Zhoushan Port project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . UHD production and broadcasting system of CMG . . . . . . . . . . 5G holographic remote interactive teaching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Overall development arrangement of China Unicom . . . . . . . . . Solution of 5G smart classroom applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5G smart cloud data center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5G unmanned vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MEC-based 5G private network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Siriraj hybrid cloud . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Multi-APN data classification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Driving forces for 5GtoB development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5G applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

243 247 253 256 258 259 260 266 267 267 268 276 282

List of Tables

Table 2.1 Table 3.1 Table 3.2 Table 4.1 Table 5.1 Table 6.1 Table 6.2 Table 6.3 Table 6.4 Table 7.1 Table 7.2 Table 8.1 Table 17.1

Comparison of business process elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Factors that must be considered for developing edge computing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Development of edge computing in major regions and leading enterprises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5G compared to previous technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Comparison between traditional and 5G remote ultrasonography technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Digital transformation list (T table) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Common scenario list . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Capabilities of key roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Examples of key 5GtoB technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Latency levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reliability levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Responsibilities of each party according to the SLA . . . . . . . . . Self-organizing driving forces at different stages . . . . . . . . . . . .

22 34 35 42 62 86 87 89 90 113 113 122 279

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Part I

Multi-domain Collaboration for 5GtoB Success

Chapter 1

Background and Value of Industry Digitalization

What is industry digitalization? What is the current economic situation globally? What impact does the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have on the global economy, and what can be done to speed up economic growth? What is digital economy, and where is industry digitalization heading? What benefits can multidomain collaboration bring? The answers to all of these questions and the mystery behind industry digitalization will be unveiled in this chapter. Before exploring what industry digitalization is, let’s look at the challenges facing the global economy.

1.1 Global Economic Growth Faces Both Challenges and Opportunities 1.1.1 Global Economy Continues to Struggle Amid Continued Slowdown The global economy follows a cycle of growth characterized by globalization and the applications of information technologies. Since the financial crisis in 2008, the global economy has been recovering at a slow pace. Even now, it is still struggling to recover to the levels it reached prior to the crisis. After a 1.73% contraction in 2009, the global economy grew by 4.31% in 2010, but then remained stuck between 2.5 and 3.15% from 2011 to 2018. In 2019, the world’s GDP growth rate dropped to 2.3%, a record low since the 2008 crisis. These growth rates were low compared with the 4.1–5% growth from 1996 to 2000 as well as, after a short slow period in 2001 and 2002, the 3.8% to 3.9% gains from 2003 to 2007. Based on the current situation, this trend of slow recovery is expected to continue, and there is still a long way to go for the global economy to recover to its previous levels. Figure 1.1 provides the global GDP growth trends in 2009 to 2019. © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_1

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Global GDP growth from 2009 to 2019 5.00% 4.00% 3.00% 2.00% 1.00% 0.00% -1.00% -2.00% -3.00%

Fig. 1.1 Global GDP growth trends (2009–2019)

1.1.2 The Pandemic Further Hampers the Global Economy The COVID-19 has further aggravated the dire state of the world’s economy. The outbreak has seriously weakened the world’s real economies. The border control and travel restrictions imposed following the outbreak of the pandemic heavily restricted the retail and logistics industries, putting the economy under even greater downturn pressure. The rapid spread of the pandemic undermines the efforts to restart the economy. Delayed resumption of production, stagnated sales, import, and export, and insufficient labor as well as raptured supply chain are further frustrating the manufacturing industry. In the World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) mid-2020 report [1], the United Nations (UN) estimated that the global economy would contract sharply in 2020—by 3.2%—because of the devastating pandemic. In particular, developed and developing countries are projected to suffer a 5% and 0.7% contraction, respectively. The report goes on to forecast that the global economic output in 2020 and 2021 will experience losses of US$8.5 trillion, wiping out nearly all gains of the previous four years. World trade is estimated to shrink by nearly 15% in 2020 following sharp drops in global demand and disruptions to global supply chains. A report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates that the developed economies will contract by 5.8% in 2020, while developing economies and emerging markets will see output shrink by 3.3%. The outbreak has subsequently triggered an extensive backlash in both the monetary and financial markets, and the IMF estimated that it

1.1 Global Economic Growth Faces Both Challenges and Opportunities

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would cause a worldwide contraction in 2020 that could be as damaging as the ones created by the 1929 Great Depression and 2008 global financial crisis.

1.1.3 New Technologies Are the Engine for Global Economic Growth The global economy is in the downturn phase of the fifth long-wave cycle. Both supply and demand are obviously suppressed as a result of demographic, technological, and policy restrictions, further extending the period of continued economic slowdown. Since the Industrial Revolution, the world economy has experienced blips of highspeed development and slow growth and even stagnation. This phenomenon is known as Kondratiev waves, courtesy of the Soviet economist Nikolai Kondratiev. Based on this economics theory, each cycle of development consists of an upside (prosperity) and a downturn (recession and depression). Currently, the global economy is in the downturn phase of the fifth long-wave cycle. According to the Conference Board, a member-driven non-profit business think tank, the global total factor productivity (TFP) grew at an annual rate of −0.4% in 2008 to 2016, marking a stark difference from the average growth of 0.9% in 1999 to 2007. In 2015 and 2016, TFP registered a successive negative growth, which was −0.7% and −0.5%, respectively. In line with the long-wave cycle theory, new technological innovation is now desperately needed to pull the global economy out of the downturn phase into a sixth upside phase. The implementation and evolution of new technologies are the new engines to drive the global economy. New technologies not only improve existing production methods, but also stimulate new ones to promote economic growth. The broad applications of information technologies have enabled traditional industries to increase efficiency and realize digital and automated transformation while also expanding their business scope. Currently, information technologies are entering a new wave of transformation that features system innovation, intelligence, and in-depth integration with 5G, cloud, artificial intelligence (AI), big data, the Internet of Things (IoT), and other new technologies in fields spanning manufacturing, transportation, and energy. This will give new momentum to business efficiency and opportunities [2].

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1.2 Digital Economy Becomes a New Engine of Economic Growth 1.2.1 Digital Economy is a New Form of Economy in the Information Age Based on the G20 Digital Economy Development and Cooperation Initiative [3] proposed in the G20 Hangzhou summit in 2016, the digital economy “refers to a broad range of economic activities that include using digitized information and knowledge as the key factor of production, modern information networks as an important activity space, and the effective use of information and communication technology (ICT) as an important driver of productivity growth and economic structural optimization.” As the digital economy evolves, its connotation and extension are constantly expanding. It is now generally regarded that the digital economy touches upon digital industrialization, industry digitalization, and governance digitalization. Digital industrialization focuses on the production and application of information, involving the innovation of information technologies and the output and supply of information products and services, as well as new models and paradigms of information technology services. Industry digitalization is the adoption of information technologies across traditional industries, reflected by the increase in output and improvement on both the quality and efficiency enabled by the use of digital technologies in these industries. The increased output is an important part of the aggregate volume of digital economy. Governance digitalization involves applying digital technologies to public services and social governance. It focuses on improving governance systems, nurturing new governance models, optimizing services and governance processes, and improving comprehensive governance efficiency and capabilities. Data resources are a key factor of production in the digital economy. All information is digitally presented, transferred, and stored, making data the most critical factor of production and the most valuable new asset type [4]. Cloud, network, and device are the core infrastructure of the digital economy. This is achieved by transforming the traditional physical infrastructure made from “bricks and mortar” to the digital one powered by “optics and chipsets”, so as to realize the epoch-making shift from the industrial economy to the digital economy. Knowledge and intelligence are the distinct features of the digital economy. The innovation and applications of digital network technologies promote the further intellectualization of the global industry structure. Emerging production factors, including data, intelligence, knowledge, and information replace capital and labor to become the key determiners of industry competitiveness. The proportion of value created by knowledge and data is steadily increasing, creating a knowledge-based and intelligent economy.

1.2 Digital Economy Becomes a New Engine of Economic Growth

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1.2.2 The Benefits of a Rapidly Growing Digital Economy Are Growing The digital economy is pushing the global economy into a new era of advancement. The global digital economy has expanded from US$30.2 trillion in 2018 to US$31.8 trillion in 2019, and has increased the world’s economic output by 1.2% from 40.3% in 2018 to 41.5% in 2019. In 2019, the average nominal growth of the global digital economy was 5.4%, 3.1% higher than that of the global GDP in the same period. By pursuing a digital economy, we can overturn the downward spiral of the economy. The digital economy upgrades traditional industries and promotes the development of new ones. The digital economy is a huge upset to the agricultural and industrial economies, and it is also regarded as the key to unlocking the door to the fourth industrial revolution. Digital technologies fundamentally transform and empower traditional industries, and revolutionary technologies are deeply converged with the primary, secondary, and tertiary industries. This has brought numerous digital, networked, and intelligent components to traditional industries to enable reconstruction in their industry, supply, and value chains, taking the development to the middle and high levels. The digital economy improves daily life and public services. High-quality development highlights the importance of ensuring balanced development. The digital economy breaks the restrictions of time and space and penetrates through a full scope of public services, making better public services more available. Many digital services, including e-commerce, digital catering, smart travel, smart healthcare, Internet finance, online catering, online registration, scan-and-pay payment, and facial-recognition payment (FRP), are emerging as a result of the service industry adopting more digital technologies. These services consequently bring greater convenience to people’s lives. A recent survey conducted by the World Economic Forum in the member countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) shows that a 10% increase in digitalization will lead to a 1.3% increase in happiness index in these countries.

1.2.3 National Policies Promote Digital Economy Countries have put the digital economy to the forefront of their economic recovery plans. The U.S. released A National Machine Intelligence Strategy for the United States in 2018, taking further action in 2019 to initiate the Artificial Intelligence for the American People initiative and update the National Artificial Intelligence Research and Development Strategic Plan. The UK released the UK Digital Strategy in 2017, while Germany released the Digital Strategy 2025 in 2016 as well as the High-Tech Strategy 2025 and the Artificial Intelligence Strategy in 2018, with further plans to invest e3 billion before 2025 to implement such strategies. In 2018, Japan released the Cross-Ministerial Strategic Innovation Promotion Program (SIP) Phase

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2 to facilitate the development of the digital economy in various fields, including smart manufacturing and talent cultivation. China highly values the development of the digital economy. In his letter to the first Smart China Expo on August 23, 2018, China’s President Xi Jinping said: “Countries face the common task of integrating the digital economy with the real economy, speeding up the shift to new growth drivers, and cultivating new industries and new forms of business [5].

1.3 Industry Digitalization is Key to Developing the Digital Economy The digital economy is growing rapidly, creating new opportunities for traditional industries. Digital transformation has entered the phase of all-round development.

1.3.1 Information Technology Drives Digital Transformation Information technologies have undergone three global waves of rapid development and large-scale application. The first wave came shortly after the advent of PCs in 1980s, mainly driven by PCs and standalone software. In the 1990s, with the rise of the Internet came the second wave. These two waves brought about two rounds of digital transformation to the world. Now, as new information technologies, including the mobile Internet, big data, AI, IoT, cloud computing, and blockchain, are rapidly developing, the world is embracing a third wave of transformation which is symbolized by digitalization. The first round of digital transformation was characterized by electronic and automated office, largely driven by the global adoption of office software, such as Microsoft Office and PCs, boosting the office management of individuals and enterprises. In the second round, e-commerce, e-government, and social networks played an essential role due to the growing availability of basic telecom networks, including local, metropolitan, and wide-area networks, to both enterprises and individuals. Self-operated enterprise data centers and Internet expansion have also enhanced the efficiency of individuals and enterprises in some domains. Now, the world is going through the third round of transformation that is characterized by the applications of the mobile Internet, big data, AI, IoT, cloud computing, and blockchain in enterprises, daily lives, and social governance to promote digitalization. Governments, enterprises, and individuals are provided with new opportunities to improve efficiency based on innovative organizational models. With commercial deployment across the globe, 5G is enabling an intelligent era of ubiquitous connections and in-depth human-machine interaction by tapping into the full potential of its advantages in high bandwidth, low latency, massive connectivity, and high reliability. As a basic technology to provide mobile connections, 5G

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can collaborate with cloud, intelligence, computing, and industrial applications to transform businesses across vertical industries, taking global economic development into a new height.

1.3.2 Industry Digitalization Accelerates with a Growing Market Space With the mobile Internet, cloud computing, AI, big data, and IoT playing an increasingly greater role in social and economic activities, industry digitalization has become a dominant force in the global economic development. Industry digitalization has contributed heavily to the digital economy. Globally, digital industries accounted for 15.7% of the digital economy and 6.5% of the global GDP in 2019. Industry digitalization accounted for 84.3% of the digital economy and 35.0% of the global GDP. From all countries, industry digitalization accounted for more than 50% of the digital economy, exceeding the proportion of digital industries. In 2019, industry digitalization was highly developed in Germany, with the proportion topping 90.3%. This is followed by 15 other countries, including the UK, the U.S., Russia, Japan, South Africa, Brazil, and Norway, where industry digitalization contributed to over 80%. Also, this proportion stood between 60% and 80% in 26 countries, including New Zealand, Italy, South Korea, India, Singapore, the Netherlands, and Malaysia. In China, industry digitalization accounted for 80.2% of the digital economy in 2019. Now, industry digitalization is accelerating as the main engine for the strong development of the digital economy.

1.3.3 Industry Digitalization Injects New Life into Industrial Development Industry digitalization drives the improvement of industrial efficiency. Data, as a key production factor, helps optimize the allocation of traditional production factors to improve the total factor productivity. In a survey on more than 100 European and American enterprises, Boston Consulting Group found that digital transformation helped them improve the efficiency of procedural services, such as operation processes, decision-making and approval, and business communication, by 50% to 350%, in 2002 to 2016. This means that digital transformation indeed improves the production efficiency for enterprises, correspondingly bringing the overall industrial efficiency to a new height. Accenture’s research also shows that, in the past three years, leading enterprises that have undergone digital transformation have made tangible achievements, with a revenue compound growth rate of up to 14.3%, which far exceeded the 2.6% growth achieved by their counterparts with no digital transformation.

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Industry digitalization promotes cross-industry convergence. In the digital economy, digital connections help enterprises with reduced transaction costs, realtime data sharing, seamless service coordination, and improved responsiveness, becoming a new engine to facilitate development. According to Boston Consulting Group, digital partnerships between enterprises increased by nearly 60% in the past four years, and this number is still rising. Digital partnerships can be established not only between upstream and downstream enterprises, but also between enterprises from different industries. By encouraging enterprises to share data, digital connections break down traditional boundaries that limit enterprise development. This will further encourage cross-industry convergence and digital ecosystem formation. Industry digitalization redefines competition models. Competitiveness is the core power of market economies. The virtual connection among enterprises breaks the physical constraints for enterprise development, creating new opportunities for crossindustry development. Digital transformation will redefine competition models of industry organizations to provide a new driving force for high-quality industrial development. Through cross-industry partnerships, various Internet enterprises have acted strategically to establish cross-industry business ecosystem and expand businesses into new areas, adversely affecting traditional enterprises. Traditional enterprises can only choose to embrace digital transformation and enhance value-supply chains to consolidate their market positions [6].

1.3.4 The Pandemic is a Catalyst for Digital Transformation The outbreak of the pandemic further highlights the advantages that a digital economy can bring and accelerates the industry digitalization. At the 3rd World Laureates Forum (WLF) Economic Summit, Christopher A. Pissarides, winner of the 2010 Nobel Prize in Economics noted that the pandemic has amplified the digital features in production and accelerated digitalization. Rick Villars, Vice President at International Data Corporation (IDC), also suggested that, despite the disruptions caused by the pandemic in 2020, the global economy remains on its way to its “digital destiny” as most products and services are based on a digital delivery model or require digital augmentation to remain competitive. In fact, 65% of global GDP will be digitally driven by 2022, driving US$6.8 trillion of IT spending from 2020 to 2023. In most cases, the pandemic has left countries with no choice but to develop the digital economy. The pandemic promotes the digital transformation of national governance. Governments at all levels scrambled to set up digital platforms to facilitate research and enforce scientific and targeted prevention and control measures. New information technologies increase governance efficiency, contactless digital technologies improve service capabilities, and new media improves government publicity. More than 28 countries have launched track-and-trace apps for COVID-19 patients and 11 other countries are currently producing such apps. Countries have begun to reevaluate the relationships between regulating and adopting the digital economy. For example,

1.3 Industry Digitalization is Key to Developing the Digital Economy

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the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) decided to temporarily relax the privacy regulations on remote diagnosis, allowing medical institutions and doctors to offer remote diagnosis over FaceTime, Facebook, Messenger, Google Hangouts and Skype. This move helped the country neutralize the growing demand for online diagnosis and treatment during the ongoing pandemic. The pandemic leads to an increase in people’s digital life. New communications technologies have altered the way people work and socialize, and this is even more evident during the pandemic. Zoom has long seen its user base hovering around 10 million, but this number soared to 200 million just three months after the outbreak. In March 2020, online education, live streaming, payment, video, and shopping grew by 81.9%, 29.2%, 21.3%, 12.1%, and 11.2%, respectively, compared with that by the end of 2019. The pandemic promotes enterprise digital transformation. Enterprises are under increasing pressure to digitally manage demand and supply and maintain smooth supply and industry chains. In February 2020 alone, more than 240 new industrial apps were launched based on the industrial Internet platforms, helping a number of companies resume production in a safe manner. Many new digital production models that are based on the industrial Internet rapidly developed as well. According to iiMedia Group, from January to February 2020, more than 18 million enterprises turned to online office, with more than 300 million people working from their homes. In the long run, remote office will increase the business flexibility of enterprises and accelerate their digitalization strategies. Generally, digital transformation is accelerating as a result of the outbreak of the pandemic. To ease the impact on economic development, countries have all introduced policies to support digital transformation concerning the pandemic prevention and control. In March 2020, the U.S. unveiled a special fiscal stimulus plan of US$500 million to upgrade digital medical equipment. In its 2021 budget plan, the EU has prioritized e1.34 billion to its cyberspace defense and Digital Europe Programme to accelerate the digitalization of healthcare in Europe. Additionally, countries are working actively to consolidate the foundation, make up for weaknesses, and improve digital soft power in the long run. The EU has released a seven-year (2021–2027) budget proposal of e1.1 trillion and a European recovery plan of e750 billion, both focusing on digital transformation and green development to comprehensively improve the bloc’s resilience to various crises. South Korea has disclosed a US$62 billion mid- and long-term stimulus plan to accelerate digital transformation, with 5G and AI as top priorities. In May 2020, the United Arab Emirates launched its phase 2 long-term stimulus plan to encourage investment in the digital economy, focusing on the development of cutting-edge technologies, such as 5G, AI, biotech, and green economy, as part of efforts to promote national economic transformation and gradual recovery [7]. Looking ahead, industry digitalization will also be mandatory for economic development. It is imperative to leverage emerging technologies to develop solid infrastructure required for industry digitalization so as to fully unleash the value of industry digitalization.

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References 1. United Nations. (2020). World Economic Situation and Prospects As Of Mid-2020 [Z]. 2. Yin, D. S. (2020). Regionalization and digitalization: The global industry chain will not shrink after the pandemic. Exploration and Contention, 8, 27–30. 3. G20. (2020). Digital Economy Development and Cooperation Initiative [Z]. 4. Zhang, H., & Shi, L. (2019). Digital economy: A new driver in the new era. Journal of Beijing Jiaotong University (Social Science Edition), 18(2), 10–22. 5. Wu, Y. N., Wu, X. H., Zhu, C. K., et al. (2020). Study of Xi Jinping’s digital economy thought. Journal of Changji University, 4, 1–6. 6. Xiao, X., & Qi, Y. D. (2019). Value dimensions and theoretical logic of industry digital transformation. Reform, 8, 61–70. 7. Zhang, W. D., & Wang, C. X. (2020). Global trends and measures of digital economy. China’s National Strength, 10, 22–24.

Chapter 2

ICT Infrastructure Required for Digital Transformation

As information and communications technology (ICT) continues to evolve, changing the incumbent business models and industry ecosystems, the digital economy is transforming the way we live and work. For example, remote control of heavy machinery in the industrial field ensures worker safety, while high-definition (HD) videos in the healthcare field enable remote consultation and the sharing of medical resources. Another example is in the electric power industry, where new services such as comprehensive inspection, power distribution protection and control, and smart power consumption enhance management capabilities and drive the construction and digital transformation of smart grid. As enterprises look toward digital transformation, further convergence of information technology (IT) applications and communication technology (CT) infrastructure is needed. During the digital transformation process, more and more enterprises are realizing that a robust ICT infrastructure is required. They are also converging ICT into every service in order to gain a competitive edge. It is therefore clear that ICT infrastructure is the key enabler for innovation in this quest for digital transformation.

2.1 5G for Digital Transformation To enable the interaction between enterprise services and technologies, digital transformation encompasses an array of measures based on ICT including information communication, cloud, intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT), and big data. In terms of services, it aims to achieve transformation, innovation, and revenue growth from the following aspects: • Transformation—The digits in traditional information technologies carry on the digitalization of next-generation information technologies, achieving the upgrade of applications.

© Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_2

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• Convergence—Physical-to-virtual transformation in information systems makes it possible to transmit and share data in real time across all directions, processes, and fields, thereby achieving the convergence of IT and service management. • Reconstruction—Precise digital operation in the Internet and intelligence era requires the reconstruction of conventional fields such as design, R&D, production, operation and maintenance (O&M), and business. The global economy has been advancing at a slow pace on an extended path of deep correction since the financial turbulence in 2008. On top of this, the economy took a further hit throughout 2020 due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, affecting social development and exerting greater downward pressure on the economy. Despite this, however, the digital economy has become a new driving force, contributing more than ever to the economic growth. Digital transformation, hailed as the optimal solution to economic growth, has also become a trendsetter for numerous traditional industries. In 2020, mass deployment of 5G together has advanced the network capabilities of telecom carriers around the world thanks to its enhanced capabilities such as high bandwidth, low latency, Super Uplink, and high security and reliability. 5G will become the key driving force for digital transformation in various industries. Based on the insight into the initial innovation practices in the 5G industry, including remote control, image recognition, and unmanned machines, it is industry applications integrated with 5G that essentially facilitate the digital transformation and intelligent upgrade of the industry. 5G alone is insufficient, as it only provides the networks needed for ubiquitous connectivity. To fully leverage the benefits of 5G and realize the potential of the digital economy, universal or intelligent computing capabilities are required and must work with industry information systems. The convergence of 5G and new ICT will give rise to innovative applications and service models of the digital economy, and the in-depth convergence of 5G with cloud, artificial intelligence (AI), and computing will profoundly change the production, organization, management, and service modes of the digital economy while also making resource allocation much more efficient. Furthermore, physical entities and digital counterparts will be mapped together for one-to-one interaction. This all means that fields such as smart city, smart home, vehicle-to-everything (V2X), and industrial Internet will witness explosive growth. To achieve digital transformation of various industries, multi-domain collaboration is essential, namely, collaboration across the connectivity (enabled by 5G), cloud, intelligence, computing, and industry application domains. Connectivity, cloud, intelligence, and computing are like electricity over 100 years ago, whereas industry applications are like household appliances and industrial electrification—they enable each other and one cannot function without the other. 5G provides the ubiquitous connectivity needed to enable industry digitalization of traditional enterprises, while cloud and computing serve as the bedrock of the digital world, delivering powerful computing capabilities. In addition, AI drives the intelligentization of enterprises by

2.1 5G for Digital Transformation

15

combining AI algorithms and models with demands for intelligence, helping reduce costs, enhance quality, and improve efficiency. Connectivity: End-To-End (E2E) All-Domain Connection The commercial rollout of 5G facilitates the seamless coverage and connectivity of everything by delivering high-speed and low-latency networks. 5G-enabled connectivity—one of the key elements in achieving industry transformation and upgrade— aims to deliver intelligent connections with ubiquitous gigabit services, deterministic experience, and hyper-automation. 5G carries next-generation information technologies and collaborates with technologies such as cloud, intelligence, and big data to provide connectivity assurance for industry applications. Cloud: Building Core ToB Competitiveness 5G will be a major driving force for the development of cloud computing. The higher network speeds and massive connections enabled by 5G have given rise to a significant increase in the amount of data generated, necessitating powerful computing and storage capabilities. This, in turn, has changed the entire software architecture and promoted many enterprises to use cloud. Cloud applications enable enterprises to build edge networks through 5G, reducing transmission latency, jitter, and security risks. Such application also changes carriers’ traditional ToB business models based on connections. In the 4G era, carriers relied heavily on private lines and networks to attract government and enterprise customers. In the 5G era, the combination of 5G and cloud enables carriers to build networks on demand and deliver cloud services in areas with wide 5G coverage. 5G slicing is used to implement high-speed industryoriented networks, and multi-access edge computing (MEC) is used to carry multilevel industry services. In order to build an industry-oriented high-assurance delivery system, it will be necessary to combine 5G slicing with MEC. Cloud computing has evolved from providing common cloud services to now providing highly converged cloud services, which rely on a modern and intelligent network foundation. This foundation also serves to enable the in-depth development of cloud computing, which in turn promotes the development of 5G networks. With cloud computing, it can better empower applications in various industries. As the construction of 5G continues to accelerate, cloud computing will empower enterprise innovation, and 5G-related applications will promote the development of cloud computing. Computing and Storage: Heterogeneous Openness and Data Convergence The large bandwidth and low latency offered by 5G will help enrich 5G-based intelligent computing applications as increasing requirements on computing power gradually shift from devices and cloud to the edge. For example, operation analysis and management require universal computing capabilities, video and image processing requires graphics computing capabilities, and intelligent government and enterprise applications require high intelligent computing capabilities. Similarly, massive amounts of data in the 5G era pose diversified requirements on storage. To

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2 ICT Infrastructure Required for Digital Transformation

meet these requirements, AI is needed to accelerate intelligent computing, collaborated cloud services are needed to facilitate data storage, and MEC is needed to improve data analysis, processing, and storage capabilities at the edge. Intelligence: Inclusive Intelligence Facilitates Industry Upgrade Breakthroughs in intelligent technologies have taken intelligence to a new height. By combining massive data, computing power, and industry knowledge, intelligence creates new service experience, industry applications, and industry layout. In the future, intelligence will coordinate and associate connections and computing. Intelligent connections provide data to the computing side, while the computing side provides computing support for intelligent connections. The convergence of cloud, intelligence, and 5G will lead to the explosive growth of intelligent mobile applications. For example, cloud-based intelligent computing overcomes the limited capabilities available on devices, making it possible to meet increasing intelligent requirements such as instant photo beautification. Industry Applications: Enabling Various Industries 4G has changed people’s lives, while 5G will revolutionize society as a whole. 5G applications follow the widely accepted 80/20 rule, whereby communication between things accounts for 80% and communication between people makes up the remaining 20%, meaning that 5G will focus more on empowering vertical industries. The deep convergence of 5G into economic and social development will be a systematic project. In order to advance the convergence of 5G and vertical industries, application innovation and exploration need to be strengthened. Converging 5G with various economic and social fields will accelerate the development of people-to-people, people-tothings, and things-to-things connections. It will also extend ICT from the consumer field to the production field and from the virtual economy to the physical economy, opening up a new era where everything is connected while also stimulating the digital economy. Over the last few decades, cloud, AI, and big data have gained substantial development. As a bridge between these new technologies and industry applications, 5G will help build a new 5GtoB industry ecosystem and implement scenario-based applications in various industries, including smart manufacturing, smart mining, smart grid, smart logistics, smart port, and smart healthcare. The major upshot of this is that it will create new horizons for the digital economy.

2.2 Multi-Domain Collaboration: New Paradigm of ICT Architecture

17

2.2 Multi-Domain Collaboration: New Paradigm of ICT Architecture 2.2.1 Cloud-Network-Device: Smart Networks in the Mobile Internet Era With the rapid development of broadband networks and the convergence of telecom and Internet services since 2009, telecom carriers entered a key stage of transformation to information services in the 3G era. This brought a series of profound changes in the telecom field and posed a number of challenges for the telecom network architecture: how could carriers quickly deploy over 100,000 new services each year? And how could they manage the interconnection of 50 billion machine-to-machine (M2M) devices resulting from the social intelligence managed, especially as the scale of telecom industry was being exceeded? From 2009 to 2019, network data traffic increased by 70–100 times. Despite this, revenue increased by only 5% to 10% each year. The key challenges centered on how to implement the processing, storage, and transmission of massive data, and alleviate investment pressure by reducing the cost per-unit of traffic by 90% or even 99%. The legacy closed IT architecture, modes, and software platforms cannot adapt to interconnected data centers that support multiple service types. Interconnection between public and private clouds based on data centers—as well as between public clouds—is therefore essential. This means that it is necessary to transform the siloed

MES

Cloud OS

Network

SCM

ERP

Big data platform

SDN

+

Intelligent gateway

Device Fig. 2.1 Cloud-network-device structure

PLM

PaaS platform

Mobility

Collaboration

Cloud

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ICT infrastructure into a cloud-network-device architecture (see Fig. 2.1) for information services, featuring on-cloud services, IP-based networks, and intelligent devices. “Cloud” refers to IT-based services that raise problems in processing massive data. The key to this, therefore, is the next-generation data center and service platform. The cloud platform—regarded as the core of the future information service architecture—brings new business models for individuals and enterprises to obtain service capabilities, giving rise to two major changes. One of these changes it that voice services based on Signaling System No. 7 (SS7) will be replaced by webbased data services. Because web-based information technologies are dominant in telecom services, this change will implement IT-based services. The other change is that the distributed computing will replace the single-node computing and become a new computing and storage mode. This new mode uses distribution and virtualization technologies to decouple software from services, allowing software to run on multiple servers and share all computing and storage resources. The key advantage of this is that it enables cloud-based data centers and services. Cloud-based data centers form an independent and ultra-large cloud computing data center, which runs cloudbased services evolving to distributed computing. Some examples of such services include communication, short message service (SMS), multimedia messaging service (MMS), Internet Protocol television (IPTV), Application store, network management system (NMS), and business and operation support system (BOSS). The cloud platform supersedes the conventional siloed service system through virtualization and resource sharing, thereby considerably improving resource utilization, elasticity, and efficiency in both service deployment and processing. “Network” refers to IP-based networks that raise problems in transmitting massive data. Therefore, based on the all-IP technology, carriers need to build a nextgeneration network infrastructure by using High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA)/Long Term Evolution (LTE), fiber to the x (FTTx), IP+Optical, and next-generation content delivery network (NG-CDN). Driven by HD and 3D videos, fixed access develops towards ultra-broadband, and FTTx becomes the main development trend. Because optical fibers and copper cables will coexist for a long time throughout the construction process, it remains important to optimize the bandwidth of copper cables. For instance, by combining dynamic spectrum management (DSM) and very-high-speed digital subscriber line 2 (VDSL2) vectoring, crosstalk-free DSL performance can be achieved, which helps improve the performance of copper cables. Over the next few years, mobile broadband will become the biggest development trend, presenting a new feature—unbalanced traffic. Due to most traffic being concentrated in certain hotspot areas, the network needs to be constructed in a hybrid networking mode of “continuous cloud” and “high-speed cloud.” Miniaturization of base stations, multi-network coordination and convergence, and self-organizing O&M are the most important technologies. Network evolution toward all-IP has become consensus in the industry and witnessed significant progress. IP, which is a service-agnostic technology, facilitates the access network, metropolitan area network (MAN), and backbone network. It will become the core of next-generation access, metropolitan,

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and backbone networks, as its openness and highly efficient statistical multiplexing significantly reduce network costs. “Device” refers to intelligent devices that raise problems in presenting multimedia information. Only diversified devices can support massive multimedia and industry applications, and only the new architecture of cloud-network-device for information services can implement operation transformation. Fast central process units (CPUs) and open operating systems form the basis for intelligent devices that can run a wide range of applications and allow access to cloud services. The development of devices will follow two directions: comprehensiveness and specialization. Comprehensiveness refers to personal handheld devices such as mobile phones, digital cameras, music players, e-books, and personal digital assistants (PDAs). These devices support various functions and are the digital equivalent of a Swiss Army Knife. Specialization refers to various industry devices and digital devices with specialized functions (for example, e-books). All of these pose higher requirements on the intelligence of devices, such as low cost, high efficiency, and consistent information and services. In short, the cloud, device, and network refer to cloud services, intelligent devices, and networks that connect the cloud and device, respectively. In the 3G and 4G eras, the ICT architecture centered on cloud computing and cloud-network-device synergy, enabling effective connection and seamless collaboration between cloud applications and devices while also supporting new applications, industries, and business models.

2.2.2 Device-Edge-Cloud-Network: ICT Architecture in the 5G Era With the deepening of digital transformation and the rapid development of 5G technologies, the cloud and network are increasingly connected. In the 3G and 4G eras, services were implemented in three layers: cloud, network, and device. However, new applications pose higher requirements on network bandwidth. The conventional architecture cannot meet the requirements on computing capabilities, transmission performance, security assurance, and energy saving. This means that there is added impetus to accelerate the deployment of 5G networks. Leveraging intelligence to process big data on the cloud has also become the development direction of digital transformation for all industries. In the 5G era, applications featuring high bandwidth, low latency, and massive connectivity are driving the development of new ICT infrastructure from cloud-network-device to device-edge-cloud-network based on multi-domain collaboration. “Edge” refers to edge computing. It creates an open platform that integrates the capabilities of networks, computing, storage, and applications close to the data source to provide services for nearby users. Edge computing application services are initiated at the edge with faster response for network services, meeting the basic requirements of real-time services, intelligent applications, security, and privacy protection.

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In the 5G era, edge computing will collaborate with cloud computing to meet differentiated service requirements of users. Edge computing processes some data collected by devices in real time, transmits the data to the cloud for in-depth computing and analysis, and sends the analysis result to the edge. In this process, cloud computing is responsible for global, non-real-time, long-period, and complex big data processing and analysis, while edge computing is responsible for real-time processing and analysis of local, real-time, and short-period data based on specific requirements. They collaborate with each other and form a complete system that meets diversified and differentiated service requirements of users. This means that edge computing and cloud computing will be inseparable in the future, and the wide application of cloud computing will drive the advancement of edge computing. Edge computing and AI implement edge intelligence. Edge computing enables “the last mile” for AI. According to a survey conducted by McKinsey, an industrial site installed tens of thousands of sensors but used only 1% of the data for analysis and decision-making, resulting in significant waste. Edge intelligence can realize the full value of such data. The proximity between the edge device and data processing end reduces the cost, which can be further cut by implementing AI to the edge node. Edge intelligence combines edge computing with users and services, paving the way for the next phase of edge computing. For example, Alibaba Future Hotel manages, schedules, and applies various devices and systems at the edge to build an integrated intelligent hotel system based on edge intelligence, while Hikvision intelligent cameras can implement efficient image comparison and facial recognition at the front end. In addition, the network layer in the 5G era has been transformed compared with that in the 3G and 4G era. The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) defines 5G local area network (LAN) in Release 16 because fields such as smart manufacturing and smart grid require higher network isolation and cross-region virtual LANs (VLANs). Many enterprises have also launched 5G LAN-based business solutions, which enable customers to isolate 5G VLAN subnets, customize network segments, and perform self-operation. In addition, cross-region collaboration between different workshops and factories can be implemented based on the N19 interface defined in Release 16 to form a wide-area private network. The 5G LAN solution supports both Layer 3 and Layer 2 networking. The collaboration between 5G, cloud, intelligence, computing, and industry applications brings new opportunities and challenges for 5GtoB services. In the past, carriers typically provided services on the enterprise extranet; however, 5GtoB services require carriers to provide higher-level services on the enterprise intranet. For example: • Product services have shifted from selling SIM cards and private lines to providing 5G private networks, industry solutions, and integration services. • Delivery and O&M have shifted from pure CT delivery and network assurance to ICT integration delivery, network service level agreement (SLA) assurance, and enterprise-oriented network self-management and self-O&M capabilities.

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• Service extension leads to higher-level customers, from junior- and mid-level managers in IT departments to chief information officers (CIOs) and chief executive officers (CEOs) in core production departments. • Competition and cooperation in the market also extends from traditional carriers to influential ICT vendors and Internet companies. Faced with these challenges, carriers need to raise their capabilities to a new level, consolidate industry resources, and develop new business models to build new ICT infrastructure in the 5G era, facilitating digital transformation and unleashing 5G value. In the 5G era, with new opportunities from 5GtoB services, building new ICT architecture also requires the transformation of service operation system capabilities to support different business processes. The following analyzes the differences between traditional vendors, Internet enterprises, and 5GtoB cloud service providers in service operation systems. We can see that Amazon, an Internet company, innovates its business model by reconstructing the end-to-end (E2E) operation process. Compared with the traditional chain enterprise Walmart that provides brick-and-mortar stores (B&M stores), distribution centers, and logistics distribution centers, Amazon has more advantages with its e-commerce platform, Order Fulfillment Center (OFC), and logistics distribution. Amazon not only digitalizes information flows during the release and subscription of products and offerings, but also adjusts capital flows and logistics based on the characteristics of e-commerce. Taken together, this has redefined the E2E process of the e-commerce industry. Figure 2.2 illustrates the differences between Amazon and Walmart in their service operations. As such, Amazon has improved the overall efficiency of e-commerce, growing to be the online retailer with the most variety of products and the leading Internet enterprise in the world. In addition, cloud service providers are also tapping into the 5GtoB field, with their service systems evolving. Compared with Amazon, cloud service providers are collaborating with telecom carriers to build capabilities that are required in the industry market, OFC, and integrated delivery, all of which demonstrate their (1) Information flow (2) Capital flow (3) Logistics e-Commerce platform

Amazon

Logistics distribution Customer

Walmart

Order Fulfillment Center

(1) Logistics (2) Capital flow (3) Information flow

B&M store

Distribution center

Logistics distribution center

Fig. 2.2 Comparison between Amazon and Walmart in service operations

Product

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2 ICT Infrastructure Required for Digital Transformation

service advantages. They not only digitalize information flows during the release and subscription of 5G network products and offerings, but also provide third-party applications that meet the requirements of various industries where 5G can be an enabling factor. With the introduction of integrated delivery oriented to industry applications, they also adjust capital flows and logistics, and redefine the E2E process of cloud service providers. Integrated delivery is a complex management process of integrated development, including contract signing, design, development, testing, acceptance, and release. Similar to logistics, integrated delivery flow has its own special standard platforms and access requirements under the support of the DevOps process for software development. Figure 2.3 illustrates the differences between cloud service providers and Amazon in their service operations. Table 2.1 compares traditional vendors, Internet enterprises, and 5GtoB cloud service providers in terms of the three business process elements. By 2025, connections are projected to reach hundreds of billions, and vertical applications to reach hundreds of millions. This highlights the importance of vendors collaborating with each other to offer differentiated application services for all industries. While endeavoring to continuously provide new products that meet the needs of the ToC market, cloud service providers must learn how to harness the power of the ecosystem. They must also learn to converge and cultivate numerous developers by opening the device-edge-cloud-network architecture and interfaces to integrate ICT solutions across industries to promote ecologically coordinated innovations. (1) Information flow (2) Capital flow (3) Integrated delivery flow Industry market (order management)

Cloud service provider

Integrated delivery (DevCloud, developer platform, and ISV process)

Customer

Order Fulfillment Center (product/offering)

(1) Information flow (2) Capital flow (3) Logistics

Product

e-Commerce platform

Amazon Logistics distribution

Order Fulfillment Center

Fig. 2.3 Comparison between cloud service providers and Amazon in service operations

Table 2.1 Comparison of business process elements Item

Traditional business process

ToC business process

ToB business process

Representative

Walmart

Amazon

Cloud service providers

Three elements

(1) Logistics

(1) Information flow

(1) Information flow

(2) Capital flow

(2) Capital flow

(2) Capital flow

(3) Information flow

(3) Logistics

(3) Integrated delivery flow

2.2 Multi-Domain Collaboration: New Paradigm of ICT Architecture

23

Digital Economy

Industry applications, connectivity, cloud, AI, and computing Network capability center

Five-Domain Engine

Application enablement center

Industry market

Fig. 2.4 Three core capabilities of the ICT architecture in the 5G era

Cloud service providers can enable various industries—by building 5GtoB markets (information and capital flows), network capability centers (information flows, monetizing carriers’ network capabilities), and application enablement centers (integrated delivery)—and promote industry success. In conclusion, ICT architecture in the 5G era needs to support the digital economy oriented to industry applications. The following three capabilities are required for 5GtoB services: industry market, network capability center, and application enablement center, as illustrated in Fig. 2.4.

2.2.3 5GtoB Target Service Architecture Based on Multi-domain Collaboration In the 5G era, the digital transformation and intelligent upgrade of industries cannot truly be implemented with 5G connectivity alone. Rather, a universal 5GtoB ICT architecture (see Fig. 2.5) based on connectivity, cloud, computing, intelligence, and industry applications is required. Carriers, industry cloud service providers, system integrators, application developers, and industry customers must collaborate to improve O&M efficiency, explore new business models, and expand the industry market space, fully utilizing the value that 5G can provide to various industries. For fragmented markets, a unified 5G ICT infrastructure that features deviceedge-cloud-network design is proposed. The network layer provides 5G connectivity, standardizes network capabilities, and offers application programming interfaces (APIs) for industry partners. Vertical industries are exploring solutions that integrate 5G technologies to accelerate their

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2 ICT Infrastructure Required for Digital Transformation

Industry market

Application enablement center Application

Data

Development

Application release Testing

AI 5G product / offering

IaaS / PaaS / SaaS

Industry solution

Integrated development enabling

Cloud

AI

Network capability openness Service support system Resource management system

NaaS capability center

Private network, private line, slicing, MEC…

Network O&M management

Transport network

Network RAN

Core network

Smart edge

Device

Device

Edge

Fig. 2.5 5GtoB target service architecture

digital transformation. However, there are challenges associated with transforming legacy industries. For carriers, manual operations rather than automatic tools dominate pre-sales, sales, and post-sales processes as well as the development and design of 5GtoB products and offerings. A unified management platform is missing between phases and departments for close cooperation and communication. Sales channels are dependent on customer visits or onsite communication. Given that each industry has different requirements for 5G, inefficient services will severely restrict the innovation of 5G industry applications. Industry customers need convenient channels to obtain 5G-related solutions. 5G applications are especially important in the production process, which require network connections and corresponding O&M capabilities, and enable industry customers with service self-management. However, due to insufficient background knowledge of the indicators in the communications industry, industry customers cannot flexibly and intuitively subscribe to required network capabilities. Therefore, simple and convenient subscription solutions need to be developed to bridge vertical industries with the communications industry. To cope with the preceding challenges, a network as a service (NaaS) capability center (see Fig. 2.6) can be built to streamline 5GtoB service and network operations through the Communication Service Management Function (CSMF) and network operation enabling (NOE) platforms, and to develop a complete digital operation solution based on user experience. The NOE platform orchestrates the 5G physical network into network capabilities such as bandwidth, latency, and slicing for the upper layer to invoke. The CSMF platform designs and develops different products and offerings based on network capabilities provided by the NOE and the requirements of various industries, and releases them to self-owned sales channels or mainstream public clouds. After an

2.2 Multi-Domain Collaboration: New Paradigm of ICT Architecture

Enterprise

Perception

Subscription

On-demand subscription and automatic order generation

Product solution and service viewing

25

Usage

Order tracking and query

Change

Service status and performance monitoring

Service change

Carrier

NaaS capability center

Order obtaining and fulfillment

Agile and flexible product/offering design

Product design & development

Automatic service provisioning & cross-region order fulfillment

Sales

Fulfillment

SLA assurance for service experience

Customer service

Service change & customer retention

Customer relationship maintenance & retention

Fig. 2.6 NaaS capability center

enterprise purchases a 5GtoB product from a carrier, the CSMF platform generates an order and delivers the order to the NOE platform. The NOE platform converts the network capability corresponding to the offering into a command script and delivers it to network elements (NEs) in each domain for network service provisioning. See Fig. 2.7. This way, with the help of the NaaS capability center, industry cloud service providers can easily acquire network capabilities. Dual Platform Decoupling Enables Network Capability Monetization for Carriers

5G robotic inspection

CSMF

5G smart transit Easy innovation

Fast rollout

20+ industry templates for daily product/offering release

20+ APIs, 30+ industry scenarios, and 1000+ billing factors

Multi-service

Local and cloud-based deployment with slicing, cloud, and X

5G private line

5G smart port 5G smart mining

5G security

NaaS Capability Center

NOE

Slicing, private line / network, cloud network

Various scenarios

Fine granularity

Tenant / Service level

Bandwidth

Slicing

Isolation

RAN

Fig. 2.7 NOE and CSMF platforms

Latency

Availability

Transport network

Positioning

Core network

5GC

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2 ICT Infrastructure Required for Digital Transformation

The cloud service layer is essential for digital transformations. In addition to the infrastructure as a service (IaaS) computing power, platform as a service (PaaS) platform, and AI capabilities, it also provides an application enablement center for industry application developers and an industry application market for industry customers and system integrators. As the innovation center of 5G applications, the application enablement center streamlines the entire process from carriers’ 5G network capabilities and asset development and operation, to application development, which accelerates the agile construction and scaled commercialization of 5G applications and enables larger value for industries. Additionally, carriers are also actively implementing a cloud-based transformation of organizations, capabilities, and services. Currently, industry customers need to subscribe to a plurality of cloud services in combination for a specific network capability. This usually requires some professional communications knowledge for users to understand the relationship between network indicators. To simplify this process and facilitate configuration for industry customers, the 5GtoB industry market can be built to integrate scattered cloud capabilities to form a universal industry solution. Industry customers can flexibly subscribe to packaged solution portfolios in the industry market based on their service requirements. The industry market converges industry solutions and 5GtoB products and offerings and collaborates with the public cloud, industry cloud, and edge cloud to simplify the transaction mode, implement one-stop provisioning of 5G and cloud services, and enable large-scale replications of 5GtoB solutions. At the edge layer, tens of billions of IoT devices access the network, while many intelligent connection applications require low-latency processing, which promotes the development of edge computing. Edge computing moves computing capability from the cloud to the edge to meet the application requirements needed for low latency, high bandwidth, and high reliability. It has become an important supplement and a direction that cloud computing is evolving towards. Currently, edge nodes for edge computing can be implemented in the following forms: (1) (2) (3) (4)

Servers: smart home and smart city Communication base stations: smart transportation (such as autonomous driving) Gateways: smart building and smart retail Terminal devices: smart retail and smart transportation

Take virtual reality (VR) live broadcast as an example. Multiple channels of multiview videos must be uploaded to the cloud or edge for composition and rendering, before being distributed to VR devices. The entire process requires not only 5G’s large bandwidth and low latency for both uplink and downlink, but also cloud-edge synergy. In addition, cloud-edge synergy can move the processing capabilities of some devices to the edge, creating a business model for thin clients and making 5G applications more popular. Cloud-edge synergy will further enhance flattened network architecture and Data Center Interconnect (DCI) network construction, which improves edgecloud and edge-edge interconnection capabilities. Edge computing can be deployed

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in data centers at all levels. To improve interconnection between data centers, basic network architecture is evolving towards decentralization. In the 5G era, device-edge-cloud-network ICT architecture based on connectivity, cloud, computing, intelligence, and industry applications will be used to flexibly provide differentiated services for various industries, enabling diversified industry applications and creating larger value for carriers and industries. In addition, collaborated 5GtoB service architecture can effectively integrate resources from all parties, converge the industry ecosystem, accelerate 5G enablement for various industries, and truly exert the value of 5G.

Chapter 3

5GtoB Market Space and Opportunities

3.1 5GtoB Market Creates a New Industry Support System The convergence of 5G with artificial intelligence (AI), big data, cloud computing, and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies to transform industries will create a variety of innovative industry applications. As 5GtoB continues to develop, ICT capabilities, including connections, storage, computing, analysis, and applications, must be provided to industry customers on a large scale. This further requires 5GtoB to be more deeply integrated and coupled with industry systems, which will create even more growth opportunities. To accommodate long-term development, industry systems must encompass converged devices, industry-purpose chipsets and modules, converged networks, platforms, applications, software, and security. 5G and industry converged devices will be key for 5G to enable digital transformation across industries. Industrial 5G networks will be important elements of 5G industry applications. Industry application platforms will provide common capabilities to industry applications by leveraging cloud computing, edge computing, big data, and AI. 5G industry solutions will be an important part of converged applications to provide end-to-end (E2E) ICT capabilities for industry customers. Software and security will be an essential support for the industry systems. In the 5G era, the components of the industry systems will gain new development opportunities and have a huge market space, as illustrated in Figure 3.1. According to International Data Corporation (IDC), the global investment in digital transformation will reach US$6.81 trillion by 2020 to 2023. A large portion of this investment will be poured into the 5GtoB market, indicating that 5GtoB will play an important role in digital transformation.

© Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_3

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Big data

Edge computing Industry Industry small cell mmWave base station Edge cloud 5G Small core network network Lightweight UPF Edge computing gateway

Industry 5G chip/module /line board

New 5G device

Design

Industry smart equipment

Material

Device

Intelligent product

Sensor device

Manufacturing Closed beta

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EDA design software

Industry 5G networks Network planning

AI

Open-source platform

Network construction

Crossindustry platform

Data processing tool

Cloud computing

5G and industry converged device Converged device

Crossdomain platform

General system

Enterpriselevel platform

Embedded system

Converged network

Industry application platform Common capability platform

General system

Platform

Software

Supply-demand management public service platform

Network operation

5G industry application solutions

Application

Industry 5G security

3 5GtoB Market Space and Opportunities

Industry 5G converged security system

30

Fig. 3.1 Industry support system of 5G-converged applications

3.2 Industry Chipsets, Modules, and Terminals The deep convergence of 5G with industry applications drives the diversification and exponential growth of ubiquitous smart devices. Encouraged by a gradually matured and completed 5G network infrastructure, 5G terminal applications are being increasingly used in various industries. Augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), robotics, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and other new 5G terminals are being actualized, facilitating the development of new 5G ecosystems in all scenarios. While coping with the pandemic, a rapidly growing number of industries become more aware of 5G’s competitive edges. In healthcare, cloud robots, medical wearables, remote consultation systems, and ambulances all based on 5G are implemented to facilitate video and communication connections for wards, ambulances, and experts, significantly increasing the efficiency of medical services. In the environmental protection field, 5G is increasingly utilized to facilitate environment monitoring on a large scale. 5G also plays an extended role with the broad implementation of smart farm facilities, unmanned tractors, and automated spraying machines. Online museums, exhibitions, and other emerging services, as well as many new devices, such as VR/AR terminals, ultra-high-definition (UHD) live backpacks, and 5G 8K set-top boxes (STBs), drive the media and exhibition industries to pursue digital transformation. The global IoT terminal market is projected to be worth US$1.1 trillion by 2023 and the number of IoT terminals to reach 24.9 billion by 2025. Industry modules will play a crucial role in diverse 5G applications. To date, more than 20 suppliers have launched over 60 types of 5G modules globally. The collaborative work of carriers and module vendors significantly advances the maturity of industry modules. For example, China Mobile, Sprint, and other telecom carriers

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launched the GTI 5G S-Module Initiative through collaboration with industry partners. China Telecom has been extensively engaged in module standardization and serialization by, for example, developing mobile devices that comply with both the standalone (SA) and non-standalone (NSA) architectures and introducing a plugin framework for module interfaces. Module vendors significantly contribute to the maturity of industry modules. For example, Fibocom and UNISOC jointly released a 5G module, FG650, powered by IVYV510, with the aim to increase the adoption of 5G in IoT applications. Based on moderate development trends, the shipment of 5G modules will reach a magnitude of tens of thousands by the end of 2020 and a magnitude of millions by 2021. As the module diversifies in types, its price also continues to drop.

3.3 Industry Private Networks Industry private networks are 5G-based solutions specially developed for enterprises to improve localized service capabilities and meet the application and management requirements for specific scenarios. To accommodate 5G, vertical industries pose new requirements on networks. First, the incumbent industry private networks have intrinsic limitations in working with 5G. In a majority of traditional private networks, narrowband IoT or Wi-Fi networks are used as the infrastructure. With narrowband IoT enabling only limited mobility and Wi-Fi unable to ensure sufficient stability and security, vertical industry applications cannot be fully supported. Some private networks may also use specifications other than those specified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), causing multifold restrictions on adoption and quick technological upgrades. Second, production campuses and services pose higher requirements than public networks in coverage quality, latency, uplink bandwidth, and data confidentiality. Industry applications must be applicable to various coverage scenarios and require on-premises deployment, NE resource customization, configurable network performance, and network O&M controllability. This emphasizes the necessity of 5G industry private networks that greatly improve performance comprehensively and increase flexibility to enable customization and supplement public network capabilities. Third, 5G private networks provide precise support for digital transformation in vertical industries. 5G technologies are expected to be widely used across vertical industries, including manufacturing, engineering, and public security, to fully support data sensing, production decision-making, and operation execution while increasingly digitalizing factors in production. Industry networks can be local private networks and wide-area private networks, depending on the coverage of their services. Local private networks can be used in certain geographical areas to ensure service-loop closure and deliver core services, mainly in areas such as manufacturing, steel, petrochemicals, and ports. Wide-area private networks are service slices provided by carriers based on E2E public network resources in the fields of transportation, electric power, and vehicle-to-everything (V2X), as well as where services are scattered or wide coverage is needed.

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Carriers are all striving to build industry private networks and provide services oriented to industries. China Unicom provides comprehensive private network services centered on 5G for customers from various industries, such as manufacturing, energy, mining, transportation, logistics, and ports, based on its own spectrum resources and leading business operations. China Mobile launched an ambitious “5G+” initiative in 2019, which focuses on developing flexible network capabilities required to meet the application requirements of industry customers. China Telecom 5G private network solutions realize the deep integration of connections with computing and intelligence, enabling industry customers to flexibly and cost-effectively build private networks based on their requirements. 5G private networks will be widely applied across vertical industries. According to Nokia’s data report released in 2019, nearly 15 million enterprises and places across nine vertical industries globally have potential requirements for 4G and 5G private networks. Industrial manufacturing has the largest proportion of businesses for such requirements, exceeding 10 million. According to ABI Research, a market research company, 5G private networks will surpass 5G public networks by expenditure by 2036. In the future, 5G private networks will be neck and neck with public networks in terms of applications.

3.4 Industry Cloud Fueled by strong demand from enterprises to migrate to the cloud, the global industry cloud market is growing rapidly year by year. Cloud computing is currently mainly applied in the financial, healthcare, and manufacturing industries. At the same time, an increasing number of public domains also begin to turn to cloud computing every year. 5G facilitates the services convergence between cloud and networks, with cloud platforms that provide virtualized basic resources gradually involving to the industry cloud that hosts common industry applications. This promotes 5G-enabled networks and services to be deeply converged with physical economic fields, typically in education, security, energy, and industry, injecting new momentum into economic development. Currently, the global industry cloud market falls into three camps: Internet, IT, and carriers, all scrambling to develop new solutions in line with specific industrial characteristics. The Internet camp mainly focuses on small enterprises and entrylevel customer groups, but is also attempting to enter the virtual private cloud and e-Government cloud markets in partnership with large enterprises. The main vendors in this camp include Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Alibaba, and IBM. The IT camp is mainly focused on industry customers, who are both service providers and users. This camp mainly includes mainstream IT, software, network equipment, and system service providers. The carrier camp provides public and private cloud hosting as well as customization services for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), governments, and industry customers. Carriers have huge advantages in networks, data centers, scaled reliability, operation capabilities, and customer resources, enabling

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them to provide such services by optimizing and reconstructing the original service architecture by using cloud platforms. Industry cloud is developing rapidly in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. In the U.S., with increasing mergers and acquisitions and accelerating expansion to the global market, cloud computing is becoming a future-oriented mainstream business model. In Europe, the major cloud computing service enterprises are telecom carriers. Despite having their own cloud computing products and industry solutions, the market is still dominated by its American counterparts. In Asia, Japan has built e-Government, medical, education, and agricultural clouds, making it one of the leading countries for cloud computing applications. In China, the industry cloud market is still seeing rapid development, and the e-Government, financial, manufacturing, and logistics clouds are relatively matured. Large vendors mainly choose the hybrid cloud model, while small and emerging enterprises prefer the public cloud model. According to IDC, even in its initial phase, the global industry cloud market is developing at a rapid pace, with an expected double-digit growth in the next 5 to 10 years. The industry cloud market is one of the greatest opportunities for both technology and specialized service providers prior to 2025. The financial, manufacturing, and healthcare industries are predicted to create an industry cloud market of US$12.3 billion, US$15 billion, and US$17.4 billion, respectively, in 2021, still being the focus of global cloud computing vendors.

3.5 Edge Computing According to the definition provided by European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), edge computing provides an IT service environment and cloudcomputing capabilities at the edge of a mobile network, within a Radio Access Network (RAN), and in close proximity to mobile users. It enables a broad array of access technologies, including fixed networks, to be leveraged. Edge computing is favored to meet industry requirements. Edge computing enables local and distributed computing to reduce latency, save network bandwidth, and ensure the security of data. All this will better support vertical industries, including smart manufacturing, smart city, live gaming, and V2X. The rapid progress of 5G and industrial Internet makes edge computing a pressing requirement in terms of latency, bandwidth, and security. Ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC) requires edge computing to ensure its ultra-high reliability and low latency. Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) depends on the use of edge computing to ensure high bandwidth. Massive Machine-Type Communications (mMTC) needs it to support massive connectivity. Essentially, edge computing will be indispensable in the 5G era and also one of the major directions of 5G network development. To enable the comprehensive development of edge computing, the following factors in Table 3.1 must be taken into account: To date, edge computing is still in its infancy. Pilot projects and small-scale deployments have been implemented in Europe, as well as in the U.S., China, and other

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Table 3.1 Factors that must be considered for developing edge computing Factor

Requirements

Bandwidth

Data generated by an enormous number of connected devices will be transferred to centralized clouds. This requires ultra-large bandwidth and backhaul capacity. Edge computing and local data processing help reduce the amount of data to be transferred

Latency

Although difficult, low latency must be ensured in long-reach and multi-hop networks

Security

Commercially, sensitive data is expected to stay on premises or on self-operated servers, and national laws governing data privacy must also be taken into account

Resilience

Edge computing enables more communication paths than centralized computing, strengthening the resilience of data communications

Cost

Transmitting enormous data across long distances is costly. A large portion of data may be irrelevant to services and therefore does not need to be transmitted to central servers

Analysis

To translate data into real-time (or quasi-real-time) analysis and operation capabilities, the processing and computing capabilities must be deployed in close proximity to the devices generating or applying the data

Asia Pacific countries. Companies in the mobile and cloud industries are exploring basic edge computing (see Table 3.2). At the same time, telecom carriers are piloting edge computing or promoting commercial edge computing products and solutions. As the deployment of 5G accelerates, 5G’s network capabilities will enhance edge computing technologies, helping distributed computing maximize its potential. Edge computing is a promising prospect and has tremendous potential for continuous high-speed growth. In 2019, the global edge computing market was worth US$1.3 million. North America accounted for more than 45% of the revenue, and Asia Pacific also gained a considerable proportion.

3.6 Big Data Analytics 5G will advance the digital economy and the storage, transmission, and processing of massive amounts of data in the big data industry. 5G will lead to a soar in data amount. IoT networks are a main source of data, and the data on these networks will continue to increase significantly as a result of 5G urging for things-to-things connections. According to IDC, IoT will generate more than 600 ZB of data a year, further growing the demand for big data analytics services. Additionally, data types will be further diversified. With the rollout of 5G, data will be collected through an even higher number of channels. 5G-powered smart manufacturing, smart energy, and UAV services will create new dimensions of data sources, and the proportion of unstructured data created by AR/VR and video services will continue to increase. Furthermore, 5G will continue to enable the development of AI. With data volumes

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Table 3.2 Development of edge computing in major regions and leading enterprises Business Domain

Region/Enterprise Edge Computing Configuration

Telecom

U.S

AT&T provides a commercial multi-access edge computing (MEC) platform for enterprise customers, which will be utilized in multiple industries. Verizon has deployed its own MEC platform mainly in cities and industrial zones based on both self-operated and third-party data centers. CenturyLink plans to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in edge computing networks

Europe

BT plans to launch a “network cloud” project, aiming to expand the cloud platform to hundreds of regions across the UK. This project will reduce network latency and enable new services. Its nearly 1,200 local offices can be used as the first aggregation nodes. Telefonica regards MEC as an important part of its overall network evolution strategy, and it is currently working hard to introduce virtualized data centers and edge capabilities to its networks

Asia Pacific

Telstra is testing E2E banking solutions and exploring applications and capabilities of financial edge computing over 5G networks in partnership with Ericsson and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. South Korean carrier KT has deployed edge computing in eight major cities, with plans to build MEC centers to implement autonomous driving, smart factory, and AR/VR services. Rakuten, a leading Japanese e-commerce company, is planning to implement large-scale edge computing deployment, with its initial focus on core mobile services

Cloud service enterprises AWS

Microsoft

AWS launched AWS Wavelength based on Verizon 5G networks to provide AWS API, toolkits and functions required to deploy applications that require an ultra-low latency at 5G network edges. This service has been officially available to users in Boston and San Francisco Microsoft’s Azure Edge Zone with Carrier enables customers to achieve a transmission latency of below 10 ms by deploying applications that have high computing power and transmission latency requirements at the edges of 5G networks. This solution is provided with multiple versions, one of which is Private Edge Zones that provides built-in LTE and 5G modules required for building dedicated wireless networks

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and types continuously increasing, collection and storage of data will become more technologically challenging. With the expansion of big data analytics, stronger computing power, real-time engines, and data processing engines are required to improve considerably. AI, cloud computing, and other technologies will continue to drive the growth of the global big data market. Statista, a German business specializing in market and consumer data, released a report in August 2019, which concluded that the revenue of the global big data market experienced an annual growth of approximately US$7 billion from 2018 to 2020, with a compound annual growth rate of nearly 15.33%. In 2020, the global big data market is projected to generate a revenue of US$56 billion in 2020, of which US$15 billion, US$20 billion, and US$21 billion are generated by the hardware, software, and service segments, respectively. As the market continues to mature and emerging technologies continue to be integrated, the big data market will increase steadily by approximately 14%.

3.7 System Integrators 5G enables high bandwidth and reliability with low latency and supports massive connectivity, showing its promising prospect in industry applications. The deep convergence of 5G with cloud computing, big data, and AI technologies will transform the R&D design, production, market services, and business operations of traditional industries. This will lead to the rise of an integrated industry solution market, providing carriers with new opportunities to pursue transformation. Enterprises require E2E customized integration solutions that include custom 5G network slicing, enterprise information management, streamlined production, operation, and management, remote control, application platform setup, data storage, and intelligent analytics of big data. To promote digital transformation, carriers must embrace specialization operations and work with industry partners to build new core competitiveness and provide integrated solutions. In addition, system integration has a broad space of development. The ultimate goal of 5G is to drive 5GtoB development. Achieving this goal requires 5G to lead the development of an entire array of communications technologies, including cellular technologies. Despite strong demands created by large-scale digital transformation among enterprises, an IT infrastructure that enables enterprises, including carriers and equipment vendors, to integrate solution has still not been established. Therefore, to drive 5GtoB development, integrators are required to leverage connection capabilities to build industry-specific solutions. These service capabilities will form the largest proportion of added value that 5G will bring to the real economy, apart from the investment arising from the new 5G infrastructure. In 2020, 5G has entered a phase of primary commercial implementation. Reports of Global Mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) revealed that more than 100 5G networks had been deployed globally by mid-September 2020. According to IDC, the global investment in digital transformation will reach US$6.81 trillion from 2020

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to 2023. A large portion will be poured into the 5GtoB market, showing that 5GtoB will play an important role in digital transformation. Recent years have seen a sharp growth of investment and financing toward enablement industries. According to IHS Markit’s research, 5G will create an economic output of US$13.2 trillion by 2035. 5G will bring vast investment opportunities to a great number of industries, including transportation, manufacturing, video entertainment, education, and healthcare.

Part II

5GtoB Brings New Value to Industries

Chapter 4

5GtoB Enables Enterprise Production

To reconstruct services for vertical industries, 5G enables digital, network-based, and intelligent transformation for traditional industries. Although some industries have achieved information-based transmission through optical fiber, wired (copper) networks, Wi-Fi, and 4G, 5G surpasses all of these technologies with its higher bandwidth, lower latency, and lower costs (see Table 4.1). To compare these technologies, optical fiber provides a higher theoretical bandwidth and lower latency. However, it offers low production flexibility and makes deploying at scale difficult as it can be easily damaged through wear and tear. Wired (copper) networks are cheaper to deploy and maintain, but offer a lower transmission rate and longer latency than 5G networks, making them difficult to deploy in areas such as underground mines. As for the final two technologies, Wi-Fi and 4G networks are not suitable when high reliability is required, such as for remote control and automated guided vehicle (AGV) transportation. In terms of enterprise production, 5G can be applied in R&D, production, and management, facilitating upgrades to production systems.

4.1 Smart Factory [1] The manufacturing field is facing various challenges, including the low data rate of device connections, inflexible production line deployment, and high costs of manual operations. Integrating 5G with edge computing promotes the convergence of heterogeneous industrial Internet, services, and data, in addition to data security and privacy protection, enabling wireless technologies to be utilized in real-time data collection, control, remote maintenance and dispatching, and intelligent image processing of industrial devices. In smart factories, 5G predominantly drives the following three evolutions in the manufacturing industry. First, 5G enables the convergence and conversion of the physical and digital worlds, in which large-scale data collection and online

© Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_4

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Table 4.1 5G compared to previous technologies Technology

Theoretical Bandwidth

Latency

Cost

Optical fiber

Tbps

Approx. 200 µs

Expensive to deploy and maintain; cables are easily worn and torn

Wired (copper) network

Approx. 1 Gbps

1–30 ms

Expensive to deploy and difficult site acquisition in special working environments

Wi-Fi

150 Mbps

Approx. 30 ms E2E Insufficient mobility, no handover mechanism, and long latency for reselection and reconnection between APs

Low costs, lack of real-time access

4G

Approx. 100 Mbps (TD-LTE)

Approx. 50 ms, air interface

Low deployment costs

5G

10 Gbps (peak)

≤ 1 ms (air interface, URLLC) Maximum mobility speed: 500 km/h

NSA: low costs (reusing 4G resources) SA: expensive to deploy and maintain

O&M are realized. 5G also enables unmanned flexible production with remote automatic control, machine vision, and cloud-based automated guided vehicles (AGVs), evolving industries from labor-intensive to supervised or completely unmanned. Furthermore, 5G enables intelligent monitoring facilities to ensure safety in factory areas. 5G, machine vision, and remote control are key in the application of smart devices, industrial Internet platforms, and industry applications in specific fields. This meets manufacturing enterprises’ requirements for transformation and upgrade, cost reduction, and improvement of efficiency during production and operation.

4.1.1 Automatic Control Closed-loop control systems at the core are one of the most fundamental applications for smart manufacturing plants. In a closed-loop control cycle, each sensor continuously obtains measurements and sends them to controllers, which use them to set an actuator. Typically, a closed-loop control cycle is as short as a few milliseconds, requiring the latency of networks to be just as low, if not lower, while ensuring precise control and the critical high reliability. 4G’s huge latency, however, may delay execution of control instructions and cause transmission errors, which interrupt production and result in a considerable loss.

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In large-scale production, automatic control is applied in many processes, and a large number of controllers, sensors, and actuators need to be connected wirelessly. The number of sensors and the level of control cycle latency and bandwidth vary across applications of the closed-loop control system. 5G sliced networks can lower latency and ensure ultra-high reliability and massive connectivity, enabling closedloop control applications to be implemented through wireless networks. Such a high level of performance can more than meet the requirements of cloud-based robotics on latency and reliability and implement high-precision time synchronization. Industrial real-time control includes automatic control and real-time remote control. Automatic control mainly involves end-to-end (E2E) communications. With 5G multi-access edge computing (MEC) technology, servers are deployed downstream at the edge of wireless networks to enable one-hop interaction between a terminal and a server, greatly reducing the latency end to end. In terms of remote control in real time, when cameras and sensors are integrated into industrial devices, information obtained from monitoring the environment of production sites can be uploaded to the remote control platform in real time over the 5G network. Once on the platform, operators or artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms then analyze the information and issue the relevant instructions in real time. In a word, the 5G network enables remote and precise control of industrial device operations. Currently, remote precise point welding and intelligent transportation of materials and finished products can be implemented only within factories.

4.1.2 Flexible Production Flexibility in the production line enables flexible adjustment of production, making it more diversified and customized. Although traditional networks can enable such production lines, their physical constraints on network deployment hinder the development of mixed-line production in manufacturing enterprises. In smart manufacturing, self-organized and collaborative robots will be extensively used to implement flexible production, which poses high requirements on the flexibility and differentiated service processing of machines. Cloud-based robotics need to be able to migrate computing and storage functions to the cloud to reduce hardware costs and power consumption. Moreover, robots need to be able to move freely. The number of devices connected with 5G networks increases by 10–100 times with 99.999% reliability. 5G sliced networks can also provide E2E and customized support for cloud-based robotics. Therefore, 5G will promote flexible deployment of production lines. Fast and flexible re-deployment and low reconstruction and upgrade costs are important for future manufacturing with flexible production. Devices in the production line can connect to the cloud platform through 5G, facilitating quick upgrade and expansion. In addition, devices can be rearranged to flexibly and quickly reconstruct production lines. On top of that, 5G will also support elastic network deployment. 5G works perfectly with software-defined networking (SDN), network functions virtualization

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(NFV), and network slicing to enable enterprises to flexibly orchestrate network architectures based on service requirements, build dedicated transmission networks on demand, and allocate network resources based on transmission requirements. Moreover, flexible bandwidth and priority configuration ensure networks can meet different control and performance requirements in different phases. Therefore, as the processes in the flexible production line vary with raw materials and orders, the networking and communications among devices can be flexibly changed accordingly.

4.1.3 Assisted Assembly Although assembly in factories is traditionally performed manually on site with help from rigid automation, it is prone to errors. The operation can be complex, verification for the construction process and result leaves much to be desired, and querying assembly sequence and process parameters is inconvenient, hindering the development of these factories. This is where intelligent assisted assembly comes in. However, to utilize this intelligence in the assembly line, the data transmission latency must be extremely low so that transmitted video footage of the assembling process is smooth and free of frame freezing. 4G’s limited bandwidth and transmission speed is insufficient to make this possible. With 5G networks, augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) will greatly help innovate production. Devices with collection functions—such as AR/VR glasses, mobile phones, and tablets—can transmit onsite image and voice data to the computing unit through the 5G network in real time. The computing unit analyzes and processes the data based on the customized intelligent analysis system and transmits assisted information, such as enhanced image overlaying of operation steps and visualized display of the assembly process to help onsite personnel perform standard assembly of complex or refined devices, over the 5G network. 5G’s low latency, large bandwidth, and high reliability can allow multiple intelligent assembly platforms to be collaboratively operated. 5G, AI, and AR will be highly integrated to create a comprehensive intelligent solution that will evolve the assembly process, which will massively reduce errors, and in turn, unnecessary operations. Experts can provide guidance for the entire process to ensure high assembly quality. In addition, assembly operations can be simulated to provide more information about the entire process. This information can then be utilized to provide assembly line personnel with detailed precautions and operation instructions. Integrating AR will enable 3D models of the assembly line environment and interaction information. These models and information display and change with actions performed in the real world in real time and can be transmitted to experts. This allows the experts to directly guide assembly personnel.

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4.1.4 Quality Inspection with Machine Vision In the manufacturing industry, traditional quality inspection in industrial enterprises relies on manual operations, which are not standardized and can therefore be subjective, resulting in low efficiency, low accuracy, and high labor costs. Not only this, it is difficult to keep traceable data records to improve processes in the production line. Despite high automation being implemented in some large-scale enterprises with surveillance image comparison and manual recheck, their wired connections may not meet the high requirements of machine vision on network bandwidth and real-time performance, increasing the difficulty of implementing automatic quality inspection based on real-time feedback. Utilizing 5G’s large bandwidth and low latency, factories collect high-definition (HD) images of products captured by visual inspection devices such as industrial cameras and transmit them to the cloud platform in real time for intelligent analysis and model training. The trained model is then delivered to the local or edge server, which uses the image collection system for secondary recognition. After secondary recognition is complete, the images and recognition results stored on the local or edge server are periodically uploaded to the AI platform. The model is continuously iterated and optimized to improve its accuracy, reducing errors and manual rechecking. Applying 5G-based quality inspection with machine vision can replace manual inspection for automated component quality control. AI training can also be performed on accumulated massive data to build a model for fault prediction. This enables quick and comprehensive inspection in the factory.

4.1.5 Online Device O&M Devices in large enterprises need to be maintained across factories and regions. In addition, onsite maintenance racks up high labor costs and management expenses. To resolve these issues, remote fault locating is highly beneficial. With 5G’s large bandwidth, massive connectivity, and flexible networking deployment, a massive number of sensors can be deployed to collect information about the environment (such as the temperature and humidity) and device running parameters. The collected data is transmitted to the cloud computing platform to perform the following functions: mechanical failure analysis, fault locating, deterioration analysis, and residual service life prediction. In addition, maintenance suggestions are provided based on devices’ running status. Not only this, as massive monitoring data is continuously uploaded by factory sensors every day, big data analytics will inevitably become a trend. 5G networks providing massive connectivity and low latency can interconnect a huge number of production devices and key components in a factory to improve AI awareness and data collection in real time, which, in turn, optimizes production and energy consumption.

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5G has millions of terminals that can be connected to the Internet of Things (IoT). Pressure and rotational speed sensors are installed on mechanical equipment, tools, instruments, and security devices. The data collected by the sensors will be sent to the cloud end to end through 5G IoT communication modules instead of wired transmission. The 5G transmission of sensor signals is of low latency, high reliability, and wide coverage without interference. The sensors directly transfer collected data to the cloud for big data analytics. The product development trend will then be analyzed based on technologies such as edge computing, cloud computing, data analytics, device exception models, expert knowledge models, and device mechanism models. Finally, a product check report will be generated to provide predictive suggestions for maintaining and repairing devices. As an addition, edge computing, cloud computing, and knowledge base resources are integrated to create analytic models and generate prediction reports, improving operational efficiency, prolonging service life, and establishing standards for maintenance and repair, as illustrated in Figure 4.1. 5G will enable real-time and remote monitoring of devices throughout the lifecycle, achieving remote fault diagnosis and repair across factories and regions. Applications to implement device status analysis will also be deployed on the cloud. In addition, data can be uploaded to the remote cloud of a device to enable preventive maintenance and perform professional O&M in real time. Furthermore, 5G will provide the high bandwidth needed to render 3D models in real time. 5G VR is applied to fault detection in industrial production to improve security. 5G’s highspeed computing can help detect abnormal data and compare it with the fault characteristics in the expert system to form a 5G-based fault diagnosis system. Finally, the online real-time status monitoring system can enable predictive maintenance; predict faults on devices; prevent sudden shutdowns; ensure long-term, full-load, System fault detection

Troubleshooting

Management support system

Fault information

Recording O&M operator Alarm email

Automatic O&M system

O&M operator Content analysis

O&M personnel

O&M manager Email server

Intelligent Fault report analysis

O&M personnel

Fault analysis report

Fault

Direct matching Monitoring object

Querying

Troubleshooting

Fig. 4.1 Remote O&M

Automatic Periodical report O&M system

Written report

O&M operator

O&M manager

4.1 Smart Factory

47

secure, and reliable running of devices; reduce the maintenance and overhaul time and interval; and decrease the costs of maintenance and production.

4.1.6 Transparent Factory A smart factory enables autonomous judgment and decision-making during the process of logistics, material feeding, and warehousing. As such, data collection and workshop status monitoring are essential for not only decision-making but also scheduling and O&M. However, it is difficult to build a complete database by using 4G with its limited transmission rate, coverage, latency, reliability, and security. 5G can provide an all-cloud platform for smart factories. A large number of sensors use 5G to quickly upload industrial data or statuses for precision sensing, forming a large database. The cloud’s supercomputing capacity enables industrial robots to learn autonomously and generate accurate judgments to provide the optimal solution, realizing transparent and visualized management. In certain scenarios, 5G deviceto-device (D2D) technology supports direct communications between devices for lower E2E latency, more agile offloading, quicker manufacturing, better solutions, and higher efficiency. In addition, 5G’s high throughput and bandwidth enable a plethora of operations such as facial recognition, behavior identification, and security warnings. Multiple cameras in different positions detect and distinguish each person, generating the working track of one or more persons in a specific area and time. Deep learning and data analysis are used in quality inspection, behavior identification, and tracing in production control, optimizing the allocation of resources and improving operation and efficiency. On top of this, 5G also enables comprehensive and reliable monitoring of the whole production, using intelligent algorithms to predict and warn against potential incidents.

4.1.7 Cloud-Based AGVs Fueled by radio frequency identification (RFID), electronic data interchange (EDI), and other technologies, intelligent logistics has almost completely alleviated the issues that arose from traditional warehousing and logistics. Currently, AGVs have been widely adopted in large factories to replace manual material distribution and sorting of finished products. Wi-Fi is used to dispatch AGVs, which is prone to interference with insufficient handover and coverage capabilities. Not only this, 4G has hindered the digitalization of smart logistics. Therefore, fast coordination of various stages in the logistics supply chain through data is critical for the manufacturing industry to reduce costs and improve efficiency. 5G features high bandwidth, which facilitates parameter estimation and supports high-precision ranging for accurate positioning. The low latency of 5G networks

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enables data to be collected quickly, intuitively, and accurately in various situations. Data about transportation and commodity loading and packing can also be quickly transmitted to the user, management, and operation ends. With high concurrency, 5G allows more AGVs to work together simultaneously in the same area. AGVs are integrated with 5G modules or devices, and, by leveraging 5G and edge cloud, AGV modules that require complex computing capabilities—such as positioning, navigation, obstacle avoidance, image recognition, and environment awareness—are moved to the 5G edge server, and modules with high real-time requirements such as motion control remain in the AGVs to ensure safety. 5G works with edge cloud to provide support for the large-scale scheduling network of AGVs, greatly reducing the per-unit cost of AGVs. It uses technologies such as real-time lossless HD video transmission, working condition data comparison, visual navigation, and unified platform scheduling to interconnect with the automatic management system. The AGV logistics line will connect to personnel, production lines, and auxiliary production devices to enable real-time collaboration between automated logistics and industrial manufacturing, greatly reducing labor costs, improving operation efficiency, and shortening the logistics period. 5G-based smart logistics focuses on self-decision-making, self-management, and self-planning to allocate resources on demand. To sum up, 5G enables D2D communications in real time with low latency and supports resource allocation with high efficiency and low energy consumption through network slicing, implementing intelligent dispatching and multi-device collaboration for AGVs in smart factories. In this way, information related to material transference can be rapidly sent to the device, production, and management ends for seamless E2E connections.

4.1.8 Safe Factory Traditional security video systems require a large number of videos to be checked manually, which is not only time-consuming and labor-intensive, but outdated. Using this system, some video footage may be missed or even viewed unintentionally. As a result, incidents cannot be prevented and can only be detected after they have occurred. By deploying 5G networks and monitoring devices with machine vision, big data, and other technologies, the new system can use the intelligent algorithm module to identify incidents, obtain details for intelligent analysis, and automatically generate the identification result. This way, the enterprise production environment can be monitored and the system will notify managerial personnel when it detects the occurrence of an incident, such as staff violating the work dress code and code of conduct, potential hazards, boundary crossing, a fire, and a geofencing alarm. This helps supervisors prevent and handle safety risks in production quickly, greatly reducing labor costs and errors caused by manual operations, and improving overall safety management. In the smart factory field, 5G is more of a supplement and enhancement for wired networks and Wi-Fi in special cases. Even though the 5G ultra-reliable low-latency

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communication (URLLC) standard, which is crucial to the industrial field, was frozen in July 2020, the implementation of products lags behind the standard. With the maturity of 5G technologies and the transformation of the industrial system, smart factory applications will gradually penetrate into core production links and expand to more vertical industries with the support of multiple application types, featuring low latency and massive connectivity.

4.2 Smart Electricity A power system comprises power generation, transmission, transformation, distribution, and consumption. After years of construction, power grids rated 35 kV or above have complete all-optical networks as well as reliable and efficient data networks for backbone communications. All power plants and stations with a voltage higher than 35 kV and business offices use optical fibers. However, on the communications network for power distribution, a large number of devices need to be monitored or controlled in real time, leading to information being shared frequently. In addition, the high cost of incumbent optical fiber deployment, difficult O&M, and insufficient bearer capability of the public network make it difficult to achieve observable, measurable, and controllable devices on the power distribution network. The rapid development of services such as large-scale automated power distribution, advanced metering, distributed energy access, and bidirectional interaction leads to an explosive increase in the communications requirements of various power grid devices, power devices, and power consumption customers. As such, there is an urgent need for a secure and reliable radio access network (RAN) for power distribution providing flexible access and bidirectional real-time interaction. Stable and efficient emerging 5G communications technologies are also required. 5G can be applied to all phases in a smart power system. It enhances the power system’s management capability through new comprehensive inspection methods, such as mobile inspection, video surveillance, and environment monitoring in power generation, transmission, and transformation. 5G will also facilitate the automation of power distribution. The digitalized, networked, and intelligent power distribution devices are optimized to advance manageable and controllable network devices with more refined control. In addition to all this, 5G implements ubiquitous access and intelligent management of distributed energy resources, ensuring stable networks for power distribution. Moreover, 5G enables intelligent development based on services for power consumption. For example, services such as tiered or time-of-use charging can accurately predict requirements in power consumption for better collaboration between supply and demand.

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4.2.1 Comprehensive Inspection Comprehensive inspection includes mobile inspection, video surveillance, and environment monitoring. 5G’s high speed, low latency, and massive connectivity advance inspection devices’ remote control and data collection functions, real-time HD video transfer, and remote operation. In addition, multiple types of inspection devices, such as 5G unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and robots, are used to provide multichannel HD videos and images and multiple types of sensor information, such as infrared, temperature, humidity, and radiation, effectively expanding the inspection areas and implementing intelligent inspection. In 5G standalone (SA) networking, slicing is used to intelligently allocate data bandwidths. Unstaffed inspection devices transmit a large amount of data and videos collected onsite to MEC platforms for fast processing and analysis. In the event of an emergency, the MEC platform can be quickly invoked with the firefighting, airing, and dehumidification systems. AI-based warning and prediction can detect line security risks in time, better preventing cable channels from being damaged by external factors and improving the firefighting capability of the power pipe corridor. Personnel at the command center can remotely view the status of devices in multiple substations via uploaded videos. If the problem is too complex to resolve remotely, onsite maintenance personnel can use the 5G intelligent inspection helmet to enable remote technical experts to view onsite images transferred by the helmet and provide guidance in real time, greatly improving work efficiency.

4.2.2 Power Distribution Protection and Control 5G supports low latency, high reliability, and slicing technologies, enabling the industry to build a new control system for power distribution protection operations, such as differential protection, intelligent distributed power distribution automation, and phasor measurement units (PMUs). It can provide millisecond-level response control measures for massive new energy, energy storage facilities, and interruptible loads, and perform intelligent analysis, remote control, fault locating and isolation, and power supply recovery, reducing the time and scope of power interruption and improving the reliability of the power supply. Power grids have advanced from singlepower to multi-power grids, forming grid connections of multiple distributed energy resources. The number of communications connections will increase exponentially with distributed photovoltaic (PV) modules, distributed energy storage, electric vehicle charging plants, and wind farms newly overlaid on the power distribution network. In this scenario, users are both power consumers and generators. Although distributed energy can be used as a backup power supply in case of emergencies, it increases the complexity of power distribution network operations, which makes ensuring stable operation of power grids more challenging. The incumbent information communications modes struggle to accommodate a large quantity of distributed

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energy resources. 5G slicing offers a solution to overcome this issue in electric power. Based on the 5G network, data can be exchanged in real time between modules—such as adjustment capability evaluation of distributed energy storage, power generation prediction, and field station operation analysis—improving real-time scheduling and ensuring stable control of power grids.

4.2.3 Smart Power Consumption Smart power consumption is mainly used for two purposes. One is precise load control, which improves the management of end load units in terms of preciseness in the instance of burst power grid overload. It does this by leveraging the millisecondlevel latency of the 5G network and the service level agreement (SLA) of network slicing. With data collection and advanced metering of power supplies, power grids, and loads, it improves the precise control of important loads such as factories and electric vehicles as well as real-time scheduling and stable control of power grids. The second is advanced metering. Collection of power consumption data does not only involve smart meters, but also charging piles, distributed power supplies, and household smart appliances to deepen interaction and enhance the sharing of power consumption information with customers. In general, even though the application of 5G in the electric power field is still in the exploration phase, its service scope is growing from collection and monitoring services to real-time control services. Mobile inspection services based on 5G’s large bandwidth are now relatively mature, and, in the future, new O&M services such as UAV and robot inspection will integrate intelligence, visualization, and HD video to enhance the monitoring, operations, and security protection in the energy field. Control services with higher security and reliability requirements are also in the exploration phase but are expected to develop rapidly following the maturity of the network security architecture, devices, and modules. Applications based on 5G’s massive connectivity, such as device information collection, will open up new opportunities for development as the related standards are released.

4.3 Smart Mining Safety is critical for the mining industry, making least-staffed and even unstaffed mining the rigid demand of the industry. Coal mining is implemented either above or under the ground. Underground coal mines require converged network coverage, and focus on developing applications such as 5G HD video and unstaffed mining. At the same time, open-pit mines are focusing on unstaffed loading and transportation. A traditional underground mine involves coal mining, tunneling, ventilation, transportation, drainage, and electromechanical systems. At present, most mining systems have isolated optical fiber communications, resulting in repeated network investment.

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In addition, dust and vibration in underground mines cause severe optical attenuation, which deteriorates communication quality and increases the cost of maintenance. Wired connections provided by optical fibers cannot meet the requirements of the mining working face, fully mechanized mining face, or mobile scenarios. 5G can replace optical fibers and combine the six operation systems to enable access for the 500 meters underground not previously covered by existing networks. This helps coal mines build one integrated underground network. In addition, 5G works for mobile scenarios, such as mining working face and fully mechanized mining face. The networks are explosion-proof, addressing possible safety issues. On the other hand, open-pit mines require unstaffed operations. Mines have a difficult time recruiting personnel, due to the harsh working environment in traditional open-pit mines. At the same time, existing personnel is rapidly aging out of the jobs. In response, 5G offers low latency and high bandwidth, which together enable the remote control of mining device clusters along with automated and collaborative operations. This is achieved through the combination of 5G and high-precision positioning, intelligent operations, bidirectional autonomous driving systems, and central control algorithms. This solution facilitates unstaffed operations throughout the entire mining process, including shoveling, loading, and transportation. 4G coal mining technologies have advanced rapidly, significantly improving the production efficiency and management level of coal mines. However, they still face several challenges. For example, some existing wireless communications systems in mines cannot guarantee industrial control. The current latency and reliability are insufficient for precise remote control, and for autonomous control communication of unstaffed mining vehicles, UAV inspection, and robot inspection. Compared with other wireless solutions, 5G has larger coverage, higher reliability, and stronger security. These features are critical for data sharing between machines and devices in mining areas. Combined with edge computing, the low-latency and high-reliability 5G network can meet industrial control requirements. At the same time, existing wireless communication systems offer limited bandwidth. For example, 4G cannot deliver desired bandwidths for 4K HD video transmission. However, 5G’s high bandwidth can support multi-channel HD video transmission on the mining working face. Furthermore, the existing communications systems cannot support the connections between various systems, devices, and the mines. To this end, 5G can support a density of up to 1 million connections per square kilometer, ensuring that all devices in a mine can simultaneously connect to the system. Another technology that is critical for smart mines is edge computing, which provides real-time and intelligent analysis of massive underground HD videos. It is also a necessity for ultra-low latency and automatic control. MEC servers and related software services are deployed to implement the application of 5G, MEC, and Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) for smart mining.

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Edge computing integrates mobile network and Internet services to improve user experience and save bandwidth resources. In addition, MEC moves computing capability to the network edge, creating a service innovation space for third-party applications and an entrance to the mobile edge. Mining is one of the highest risk industries, threatening miners’ lives due to potential water penetration, gas explosions, and collapses. Cloud-edge-device synergy builds an integrated management and control platform for mining security situational awareness (SSA) and information sharing. The integrated platform provides intelligent monitoring for design, implementation, and evaluation. It also delivers multi-dimensional analysis models for operations, such as visual, voice, and optical character recognition (OCR) models, and provides a mechanism for different departments to execute and handle exceptions in coordination. Ultimately, this makes the production environment of mines more secure. To sum up, 5G offers several benefits when it comes to the construction of intelligent systems, including high bandwidth, low latency, and massive connectivity. This information sharing among different scenarios meets the high transmission requirements of big data, edge computing, AI, VR, production management and control, and hardware communications.

4.3.1 Unstaffed Excavation Mine workers face many disadvantages, including harsh production environments (high temperature, heavy dust, humidity, ores falling, etc.), remote work places, intensive schedules, and repetitive operations. Their immediate safety may also be compromised, for example of overlapping mined-out areas collapse, landslides occur, or other safety accidents take place, such as gas explosions, roof falls, or percussive ground pressure. In response, 5G offers the high bandwidth and low latency necessary to propel the shift toward unstaffed mining, which increases production efficiency, reduces the need for onsite operations, and advances security. Operators can view information on a remote console, which is transferred in real time by HD panoramic cameras deployed at the operation site, remote control systems installed on engineering machinery, auxiliary control sensors, and video surveillance devices. At the same time, operators remotely control mining devices, such as drillers, excavators, and crushers, with low latency through the 5G network. Mining devices then perform operations according to the received instructions. This type of precise, remote control achieves safer unstaffed operations.

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4.3.2 Unstaffed Transportation An automated and unstaffed mining transportation system requires full coordination among transport vehicles and equipment, dispatching equipment, automated transshipment equipment, and related objects. 5G works with technologies such as vehicleto-everything (V2X) and edge computing to reconstruct mining trucks with allelectric sensing of directions, throttles, and braking. In addition, the high-precision positioning system helps build real-time communications networks between vehicles and between vehicles and the scheduling center. Edge computing is used to interconnect with the mine’s unstaffed scheduling system in real time, achieving precise parking, automated loading and unloading, and parking avoidance for heavy mining trucks. This effectively improves the operation efficiency of mining trucks in special environments and reduces the number of operators in hazardous areas for safer production. In addition, the system can obtain the status of vehicles and transportation for mining truck maintenance reminders, vehicle status check, fault alarm, and fleet management. This improves the operation efficiency and reduces costs and accidents.

4.3.3 Underground Positioning 5G also provides real-time positioning for underground mining. The location of connected personnel and devices can be uploaded in real time to generate a clear 3D map of the underground area. The current technology can transmit over 30 channels of 4K surveillance images simultaneously, making the fully mechanized mining face visible and manageable. In addition, real-time surveillance through HD videos can immediately detect and respond to any incidents in hazardous areas. The 5Gbased information interaction platform enables the information and positioning of underground devices and personnel to be exchanged in real time. This is achieved by integrating positioning enabled by 5G base station and Near Field Communication (NFC) in a device’s client. With this feature, a device’s client system automatically performs positioning based on the rules configured on backend (including the positioning date, time segment, frequency, and personnel), and uploads the positioning result to the management server. The detailed information can be displayed on a digital map, which the management personnel can use to find the current position of a specified person in real time through a computer or mobile phone. 5G also leverages Massive MIMO and high-frequency band communications to achieve underground positioning.

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4.3.4 Security Monitoring A large number of sensors are required in the operation areas and mining devices. 5G’s massive connectivity meets the requirements for monitoring security and collecting information in mining areas, and implements interconnection and linkage of sensing, monitoring, alarm, and operation data. For example, underground devices can automatically obtain and upload data such as gas concentration, carbon dioxide, temperature, humidity, and dust density, to the remote cloud service platform through the 5G network. The platform then automatically calculates the received data and obtains the security index. In some mines, 5G inspection robots are deployed along the ore conveyor belt. These robots collect and transfer information such as the sound, temperature, and HD videos of devices along the belt in real time, implementing abnormal sound detection, high temperature warning, and remote image monitoring. In this way, device faults can be detected and eliminated quickly. Not only this, the high maintenance costs of corridors due to untimely repairing and maintenance can be reduced, while the operation reliability of devices can be improved. In general, the special production environments and complex geographical conditions of mines increase the demand for 5G communications. Additionally, heavy support loads, fast signal attenuation, and high anti-explosion requirements require higher transmit power from 5G base stations and devices. Currently, 5G is being widely used in areas such as unstaffed transportation, video surveillance, and security monitoring for a great number of benefits, including greatly shortening network latency, providing wider coverage and faster transmissions, improving the productivity of smart unstaffed mines, enhancing security, and reducing operation costs, thereby achieving automated, digitalized, and unstaffed mining.

4.4 Smart Port Information and technology are inspiring a transition from manual to technologydriven port operations around the world. To implement digitalized and automated production, the industry’s strategic focus is shifting from resource control and internal process optimization to elaborate resource management, management digitalization, and unstaffed operations. The port system for production and operations is integrated with multiple information technologies, such as container yard automatic control and intelligent gate systems, replacing manual labor. This process is essential for the industry to build next-generation smart ports. Ports are key in global logistics and supply chain, playing a key role in the promotion of global trade, development, and information exchanges. Currently, there are two main types of ports—automated and manual ones, the latter making up the majority of ports in the industry with low automation coverage and high labor costs. This highlights the urgency to implement unstaffed port management based on remote control technologies, thereby lowering labor costs. The existing automated ports

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are highly information-based, and use wired networks to remotely control primary services. However, wired connections limit mobility, and therefore are not suitable for many types of scenarios. That’s why ports urgently need to build wireless networks, which will lead to improved bandwidth and reduced latency. To this end, 5G facilitates intelligent upgrade and reconstruction, and supports comprehensive and visualized monitoring, significantly improving the efficiency of ports. Port operations consist of six major processes, namely, vessel entry and exit (container vessels transport containers to the port), cargo loading and unloading (containers are loaded or unloaded using quay cranes and transported to horizontal transportation areas), container truck transportation (transportation from quay crane areas to container yard areas), container yard management and optimization (container stacking), container truck entry and exit (transportation of containers), and handover to/from land transportation (ports are linked with other transportation systems). 5G technologies facilitate smart port upgrades through the remote control of large cranes, intelligent tallying and optimization of container yard management, and self-driving horizontal transportation tools.

4.4.1 Remote Crane Control A gantry crane is a type of heavy machinery common in ports. Operating gantry cranes poses high safety risks, given the harsh environment, including high temperature, high humidity, and a dense salt mist. For example, to operate a 30-meter-tall gantry crane in the container yard, the operator needs to climb up to the top, leading to many risks. At the same time, three operators are needed to operate one gantry crane for 24 hours. This means that a port would need hundreds of operators just for gantry cranes. 5G changes this by introducing 5G HD video transfer technology that enables remote control. Operators can run gantry cranes remotely from a central control room by relying on real-time HD videos, achieving high precision through the ultra-low latency of 5G networks. One operator can control multiple gantry cranes. All this translates into lower requirements on labor, reduced safety risks and costs, as well as higher efficiency.

4.4.2 Intelligent Tallying Loading and unloading at ports entail accountability transfer. As such, the port needs to collect data such as container status, direction, integrity, coating, and number. This prevents mistakes and ensures that containers are sent to the desired section, be it to a port, transfer through yard cranes, container yards, or hoisted by quay cranes. Conventional ports still rely on manual tallying during loading and unloading, which exposes the crew to risks and may result in identification errors due to fatigue, environment, or other factors. With 5G, multiple channels of HD videos and images

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can be transferred in real time during container loading and unloading. Backed by intelligent computing, the MEC cloud analyzes these images to check the container information (such as status, direction, number, type, size, recipient, customs declaration, and presence of hazardous items), as well as any exceptions (such as damage or paint issues). It then automatically plans the arrangement and transportation of containers. The intelligent tallying system also helps with the customs process, by strengthening the surveillance of international containers and providing technical support for 24/7 customs clearance.

4.4.3 Unstaffed Driving Before, a person had to drive container trucks along fixed routes, but modern ports now support unstaffed horizontal transportation. 5G-based AGVs automate scheduling and task execution, as well as coordinating with loading and unloading devices, such as quay cranes and rail-mounted gantry (RMG) cranes. Data can be transmitted over 5G networks at a low latency, validating scheduling instructions in real time. In addition, the data collected by sensors on AGVs is sent to the MEC edge cloud platform where intelligent algorithms automatically identify the status and location of AGVs, and immediately send the analysis or calculation results to AGVs and the cloud control center. With 5G and MEC, AGVs can respond in less than 50 ms, increasing transportation efficiency by more than 30%. In the event of exceptions or emergencies, the low-latency 5G network and HD videos on AGVs enable remote control of target AGVs and steer them clear of working areas to ensure production safety.

4.4.4 Unattended Inspection Ports can build a comprehensive unattended inspection system thanks to the high bandwidth provided by 5G. They can use various static surveillance devices for different purposes, such as networked dome cameras for road and public area surveillance, HD infrared cameras for the general inspection of container goods and customs declaration, and HD pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras for precise mooring instructions and positioning of crane movements and vessels. These ultra-high-definition (UHD) video surveillance devices collect information in real time and send the collected data to the surveillance center. In addition, UAVs and wireless robots can provide 24/7 real-time inspection along the port’s perimeter and in other key areas. The data monitoring center can capitalize on the large bandwidth offered by 5G to simultaneously display video signals from multiple channels. The data center will then intelligently analyze the videos uploaded in real time to identify exceptions and suspicious circumstances. For example, it can

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detect vessels or vehicles suspected of parking violations. The system will then automatically send notifications to port management personnel, optimizing the process of handling exceptions. The monitoring center can also automatically check the collected information about people, vehicles, and objects in the port against public security records, thereby quickly identifying at-risk persons or vehicles, as well as tracking their locations in real time for early intervention. 5G is integrated with AI, IoT, cloud computing, big data, and edge computing (AICDE), and 5G smart ports leverage low latency, high bandwidth, and massive connectivity to advance the industry’s use of technologies and further cross-layer integration. Technologies such as IoT, big data, cloud computing and Internet+ facilitate the construction of smart ports, helping enterprises meet the strict requirements on production, operation, and management. The next-generation smart port will also be deeply integrated with comprehensive logistics systems. In general, the smart port system applies information and automation technologies, typically 5G, to port logistics, transportation, and management through network connections. Comprehensive information sensing and interconnection enable smart distribution and transportation systems, production operations, warehouse management, logistics tracking, and customs supervision. This then leads to the seamless connection and collaboration among functional systems of vehicles, vessels, people, objects, and ports, and ultimately achieves intelligent self-sensing, self-adaptation, and self-optimization. The feasibility of 5G smart port has been verified in terms of remote crane control, intelligent tallying, unstaffed driving, and unstaffed inspection. It is also important to highlight that the relative physical isolation of ports allows smart port systems to scale quickly at an early stage. This indicates that 5G can facilitate smart ports leading to more secure, efficient, convenient, eco-friendly, and sustainable development.

Reference 1. Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, East China Branch of China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT). 5G+ Smart Manufacturing White Paper [Z] (2019)

Chapter 5

5GtoB Improves Social Development and Living Standards

While promoting the upgrade of production systems and creating infinite new spaces for the digital transformation of society, 5G is expanding its horizon of application in our lives and work to inspire new experiences. The role of 5G digital governance has been fully demonstrated, especially during the pandemic. Public opinion perception, ecosystem protection, and public services will rely on 5G infrastructure to comprehensively modernize national governance systems and capabilities.

5.1 Healthcare [1] Healthcare systems assume great responsibilities in ensuring the healthcare of the general public and hold an important position in the national economy. In conventional healthcare systems, distribution of medical resources is unbalanced. Globally, high-quality medical institutions are concentrated in developed regions and big cities. In China, the gap in medical resources is noticeable between the easterly coastal regions and the hinterlands of the west. There is an urgent need to use efficient and flexible wireless communications methods to push the boundaries of time and space between grassroots and upper-level hospitals. The disproportion of doctors to patients is also growing. With an aging global population and a worsening environment, the doctor-patient ratio is decreasing, posing significant challenges to healthcare. Therefore, there is an urgent need for additional unattended medical devices to help alleviate population challenges. Supporting facilities are insufficiently equipped with the necessary medical equipment. Challenges such as obstacles in promoting hierarchical diagnosis and treatment, simplifying medical procedures, and improving medical management mechanisms desperately require IT approaches to reform the medical and health systems and advance the healthcare industry. 5G’s ultra-high speed, ultra-low latency, connectivity of everything, and high adaptability to mobile environments, enable the real-time transmission of massive data and precise remote control. This ensures the stability, reliability, and security © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_5

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of smart healthcare applications, including telemedicine, remote surgery, emergency rescue, smart hospitals, smart wearables, and medical robots. Furthermore, this level of network performance enables telemedicine and mobile medical services to tap into their full potential, promoting the online flow of medical resources without time and space constraints. This improves efficiency and drives wireless, remote, and intelligent developments.

5.1.1 Telemedicine Teleconsultation enables medical professionals to diagnose and provide related information and services to patients by using communications, computer, and Internet technologies. In 1988, the United States proposed the widely-known concept of an open and distributed telemedicine system. The system was built to facilitate medical access for specific populations with the help of computer and communications techniques. Telemedicine enables senior specialists to guide primary care physicians through examining and diagnosing patients in real time with video communications. Although 4G networks can support transfer of high-definition (HD) videos up to 1080p between doctors and patients, they are constrained in terms of real-time performance and video definition and smoothness. 5G however enables fast and synchronous remote transmission of 4K/8K HD videos, virtual reality (VR)/augmented reality (AR) consultation data, and medical image data. This is possible due to 5G’s high speed and low latency, which meet the reliability requirements of healthcare. 5G also enables online consultation, increasing diagnosis accuracy and efficiency and expanding the access to high-quality resources to more patients. Experts use videos to instruct grassroots doctors on the inspection and diagnosis of patients in real time. The makeshift hospitals built in Wuhan City of China to combat the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) used 5G private networks to share local medical data (including CT images and inspection indicators) with experts from other areas to treat severe and critically ill COVID-19 patients. This alleviated overworked frontline medical personnel in Wuhan, while reduced risks to medical experts traveling to Wuhan. With the advent of mobile cordless medical devices such as hand-held ultrasound and mobile digital X-ray photography systems, an increasing number of inspections are performed in wards. This promotes remote real-time consultation near patients’ beds, effectively improving medical service capabilities. This successfully eliminates lengthy periods needed for fiber construction and high costs required by medical services in remote areas, as well as maximizing doctors’ needs and time required by telemedicine services. This also improves diagnosis and treatment service capabilities and management efficiency. Furthermore, with 5G, these services breed new applications including remote ultrasonic inspection and remote surgery.

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5.1.2 Emergency Rescue Emergency medicine is a multi-disciplinary and comprehensive area of science that deals with and studies various acute diseases and traumas. Based on this, measures are formulated and carried out in cases of an immediate and critical illness or disease. Emergency medicine is predominantly focused on providing first aid in critical situations. This area of science studies and simulates various issues that could arise in field rescue, transit, and communication. An important part of the process is pre-hospital treatment (or first aid). With the absence of specialists or general practitioners at the scene, first aiders can send patients’ vital sign data and other information over a wireless network to specialists in a different location for remote guidance, which is crucial to saving lives. Additionally, remote monitoring enables hospitals to quickly understand patients’ conditions, formulate first aid measures, and prepare the required resources. In this way, pre-hospital first aid and in-hospital treatment are seamlessly aligned. Emergency rescue includes a range of first aid services provided by first aiders, ambulances, emergency command centers, and hospitals through multi-party communication and collaboration. First aid response to diseases and natural disasters entails efficient operations by medical workers, including checking the status of the sick or injured, sending results to emergency command centers or hospitals, and requesting remote guidance over mobile terminals for complicated cases. In ambulance transit, medical personnel can leverage mobile terminals to view patients’ electronic medical records (EMRs), vehicle-mounted mobile devices to monitor patients’ vital signs, and vehicle-mounted cameras to remotely collaborate with experts in diagnosis and treatment. 5G is utilized to construct emergency rescue networks covering ambulances, emergency command centers, and hospitals. This ensures a smooth upload of HD video images and physiological data without frame freezing from ambulances on their way back. This way, emergency rescue networks are linked with hospital departments and systems, enabling hospital staff to remotely make correct guidance and rescue plans before patients arrive at hospitals. Intelligent ambulances, speeding to save patients, pose high requirements on the stability, latency, and transmission rate of communications networks. 5G’s uplink data transmission rate of over 100 Mbps enables 4K HD video surveillance devices installed on ambulances to send HD videos, audios, and patients’ vital signs to command centers in real time. This facilitates quick and comprehensive communication regarding transit details and patients’ conditions between surveillance and ambulance attendants. If necessary, command centers can also initiate 5G remote video consultation with medical staff on ambulances and hospital experts for seamless interconnection between pre-hospital first aid and in-hospital treatment. Ambulances enabled by 5G and 4K videos can effectively implement videobased mobile working, data-intuitive vital signs, and real-time instruction delivery, improving treatment efficiency and effect.

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Table 5.1 Comparison between traditional and 5G remote ultrasonography technologies Feature

Traditional remote ultrasonography

5G remote ultrasonography

Transmission

Asynchronous

Synchronous

Signal delay

200–500 ms, with packet loss

1–20 ms, no packet loss

Bandwidth

100 Mbps

10 Gbps

Transmission distance

Short

Long (remote diagnosis and treatment over 3000 km)

Image quality

Poor, not up to diagnosis standards

High, meets diagnosis standards

Treatment

Patients’ medical records are not Doctors can communicate with directly obtained and diagnosis patients face to face and diagnose is based on medical images patients through remote control of robotic arms

Need for an ultrasonic specialist

Needed (The image quality and No need (Doctors perform diagnosis accuracy are subject to operations in real time) doctors’ skills)

5.1.3 Remote Ultrasonography Remote ultrasonography is a medical service that uses remote control of robotic arms and ultrasound probes on a communications network. This service enables ultrasonic specialists to communicate in real time with doctors and patients in the hospitals in need over an HD audio and video system and remotely control robotic arms to perform ultrasonic examinations. The development and application of 5G technologies enable better equipped hospitals to provide remote ultrasonic examinations by using 5G’s ultra-low latency. Conventional solutions such as private lines and 4G networks are sometimes insufficient. For example, it can be difficult and costly to deploy private lines in remote areas (such as basic-level hospitals) and the networks themselves could be insecure and slow to respond. 5G networks, however, effectively supplement grassroots medical institutions and enable fairer distribution of medical resources (Table 5.1).

5.1.4 Remote Care Remote care is a technical means of transmitting physiological information and medical signals from a remote location to the monitoring center over the communications network for analysis and diagnosis. A remote care system generally comprises a monitoring center, a remote monitoring device, and a communications network that connects the two. 5G networks speed up and increase the accuracy of remote care of patients through their high-speed and low-latency connections.

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5G works with dedicated monitoring devices to transmit vital signs to management platforms in real time, and intelligently issue alarms to facilitate efficient nursing and post-discharge management. Currently, wireless monitoring is urgently needed for two types of patients: those who have just been through operations and those suffering from sudden illness such as heart attacks. For the former type, off-bed activities can help them recover while preventing multiple postoperative complications. However, postoperative conditions always have a high risk of complications, requiring medical personnel to actively monitor patients’ vital signs. The second type of patients also requires vital sign monitoring even for normal activities. For these two types of patients, hospitals can equip wireless wearables to monitor patients without restricting their activities. Some hospitals have carried out 5G vital sign monitoring tests, in which they applied 5G networks to monitor vital sign data between wearables and systems. Smart watches can be used to monitor daily exercise volume, vital signs, dietary calories, and other patient data. This data is directly connected to diagnosis and treatment systems and is automatically compared with doctors’ exercise and diet plans. If the vital sign data goes beyond the standard range, these watches will send a reminder while transmitting the data to doctors. With realtime health monitoring devices, patients can enjoy health self-management, while doctors can effectively perform health management and follow-up work.

5.1.5 Remote Demonstration and Teaching Medical education trains practitioners in the medical care and public health fields, including medical specialists, nursing staff, and medical technicians. Remote demonstration and teaching involves three types of products—the teaching platform based on the audio and video conferencing system, the teaching platform based on application scenarios, and the virtual teaching platform using VR/AR devices. The teaching platform based on the audio and video conferencing system is mainly used for case discussion, medical record sharing, and other purposes. Its basic functions are audio and video conferencing and document sharing. As for the teaching platform based on application scenarios, in addition to audio and video devices, it needs to connect to medical equipment to meet the specific requirements for different types of demonstrations, such as cardiac catheter surgery, neurosurgery, and type-B ultrasonic demonstrations. The virtual teaching platform provides immersive experience and interactive content through AR/VR devices and 3D digital models at lower costs. 5G surgery demonstration and teaching takes the form of live broadcasting and recording of surgical cases in hospitals. It is mainly intended for medical and technical workers in surgery-related departments such as general surgery, anesthesia, cardiac surgery, and neurosurgery to improve their experience and skills. A 5G surgery demonstration and teaching system provides core functions such as surgical image collection, surgery broadcasting, surgical guidance, and mobile applications. The 5G medical demonstration and teaching system applies to multiple

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services in operating rooms, such as real-time surgery observation in demonstration rooms, surgical guidance in directors’ offices, surgery observation in partner hospitals, surgery rebroadcast at academic events, and remote surgery guidance on mobile terminals.

5.1.6 Remote Ward Round Remote ward round uses traditional video communications, image recognition, and tracking and positioning technologies to improve efficiency in ward rounds as well as related guidance and teaching. The remote ward round system enables onsite medical attendants or learners to send related data in real time through AR devices to specialists or management in a different location who can then provide guidance through voice, texts, or images. Such guidance will then be presented through AR devices for ward round staff. The remote assistance platform provides multi-thread connections. 5G’s low latency, high bandwidth, and massive connectivity enable specialists and management in different locations to provide remote guidance and teaching simultaneously or observe fieldwork in real time from the backend. The entire process is recorded in video formats. This improves both the work and teaching efficiency. Backed by AR technology, the remote ward round platform integrates AR smart glasses, phones, and tablets with the network and software. With this platform, medical practitioners obtain on-site images and virtual information in real time and send them to specialists at remote ends so that the specialists can provide precise guidance without needing to be on site, facilitating remote teaching at the same time. The video optical see-through AR system on the platform allows doctors or specialists to easily obtain patients’ information during remote ward rounds. Such information includes medical records, medical imaging materials such as computerized tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) films, and even 3D models. Such rapid information sharing significantly improves the accuracy of remote diagnosis. With these support measures, specialists at remote ends can provide guidance and teaching without needing to be physically present. Backend devices reduce the need for personnel to travel to the site and enable them to focus on other pressing tasks. In cases when voice communication is insufficient, specialists can obtain and share virtual information about patients such as EMRs and medical images at any time through the platform.

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5.1.7 Remote Pathological Diagnosis Pathological diagnosis is the standard for diagnosing diseases and a critical benchmark to check against for formulating treatment plans and prognosis. While remote consultation greatly improves the quality and efficiency of pathological diagnosis in grassroots hospitals, the digital pathology sections generate masses of data. For example, if a standard section (15 mm × 15 mm) is scanned by a 40X objective lens (that is, magnified by 400 times), the generated image can be as large as billions of pixels. Even after compression, the size of a single digital section can be as high as 2–3 GB. In addition, transmission over wired broadband or 4G is slow, greatly hindering the development of remote pathological consultation. Pathological diagnosis of frozen sections must be fast to enable clinicians to formulate further surgical plans. A pathological diagnosis report must be generated within 30 minutes after the receipt of the specimens. This greatly increases the requirements on specimen collection capabilities, imaging quality, and diagnostic skills in grassroots hospitals. However, conducting intra-operative diagnosis of frozen sections quickly is a huge challenge for such hospitals. This is where remote support comes in. To provide remote support, the communications network must be fast at responding and reliable. Specialists at remote ends need to communicate with grassroots hospitals in real time over an ultra-high-definition (UHD) audio and video system to guide material collection and imaging. In addition, doctors must be able to view digital sections in real time. Traditional networks often cannot prevent frame freezing or support audio and video communications in real time. Moreover, it takes a long time to upload digital sections, which severely slows down diagnosis. 5G networks’ ultra-high uplink and downlink bandwidth and ultra-low latency help specialists accurately and efficiently guide grassroots pathologists or technicians through general examination and material collection and enable digital sections to be uploaded in near real time. In this way, the efficiency and quality of diagnosis of frozen sections during remote surgery guidance are greatly improved. In recent years, pathological artificial intelligence (AI) has developed rapidly. Deep learning algorithms can be used to automatically identify the lesions from digital sections and give qualitative or quantitative assessment results so that pathologists can make quick, accurate, and standardized diagnosis. Digital sections generate a huge amount of data, which takes a long time to upload. As a result, doctors cannot provide guidance during real-time intelligent diagnosis, which restricts the applications of pathological AI products and hinders doctors. 5G technology can enable real-time upload of digital sections to implement quasi-real-time AI-assisted diagnosis. This greatly improves the users’ experience of AI products and promotes the rapid development and application of pathological AI. In general, though still in its infancy, medical applications such as 5G wireless data collection and monitoring, as well as image and video interaction, have been positively recognized in terms of their effect and social welfare. As 5G networks mature and medical and health systems improve, doctors will be working on the

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cloud, and medical devices will predominantly become portable. The result is that we will move from solely hospital-based devices connected by wires, to remotely accessing a small number of devices, and then finally to accessing all medical devices totally wirelessly. According to the empirical data of incumbent 5G applications in China, remote diagnosis and treatment will soon become a mainstay. However, this type of emergency rescue will happen only after 5G networks are wide enough to cover the entire city, and it is estimated that wireless monitoring will be possible in two to three years. In the future, even with scenario requirements defined, more efforts will be needed to widen the range of applications for industrialization. Remote control applications, such as 5G remote surgery, are still in the early stages of research and need to be further promoted in terms of policies, regulations, technical standards, device R&D, and testing and verification.

5.2 Smart Education [2] Education is the cornerstone of social progress. The development of today’s education should be based not only on transferring human knowledge and skills, but also on current economic and social needs, and more importantly, on the development trends of society. In the future, education will be more open, diversified, personalized, and sustainable. It will break through limitations of time, space, economic status, and previous education experience, while putting more emphasis on the personalized and diversified needs of students. It will also focus more on the mind and happiness of students, ensuring high-quality education resources for everyone. Education targets and the environment are undergoing enormous changes. Our current learning models are transforming towards network-based, digital, and personalized learning models. Intelligent learning environments and autonomous learning activities will become new ways to deliver education in the future. Education development and transformation pose new challenges to informatization and the intelligence of education and teaching. In conventional network and technical environments, learning and education resources are not personalized. It is difficult to break through the limitation of time, space, content, and media as well as achieve data aggregation and cross-space transmission. The seamless transmission of education information is also difficult to implement due to the lack of flexibility of education services. Over the years, tackling uneven distribution of education resources has always been the top priority in the field. An insufficient number of teachers and incomplete courses and resources in rural areas are barriers that need to be broken for a fair education. The converged application of 5G and smart education will significantly improve education informatization and intelligence and promote education modernization. Increasingly improved 5G coverage and an orderly promotion of converged applications will bring great opportunities for smart education. The converged application of 5G, AR/VR, and cloud computing in education productively eliminates outdated

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teaching resources and methods, comprehensively improves teaching informatization, and promotes balanced education quality among regions. Currently, positive progress has been made with regards to interactive teaching, distance education, education cloud, and smart campuses.

5.2.1 Interactive Teaching Interactive teaching is implemented in smart classrooms equipped with intelligent terminals such as interactive screens, tablets, and answer feedback devices. It enables intelligent interaction of teaching information such as distribution and submission of class exercises. It is also an important means to promote digital, networked, and intelligent classroom teaching. Smart classrooms entail intelligent applications such as a paper and pen interactive class. The interactive teaching in smart classrooms is centered on smart blackboards, which connect to mobile terminals such as tablets, mobile phones, and answer feedback devices as well as devices such as cameras, lights, and air conditioners. One teacher can interact with multiple students simultaneously using the smart devices, and the classroom environment can be intelligently sensed and controlled. During class, multi-screen group-based collaborative learning can be implemented, and teaching data can be automatically collected using intelligent recording devices and terminals. During the interactive teaching in smart classrooms, teachers can synchronously send learning content and questions to students’ intelligent terminals such as tablets, and the students can send their answers back to the teachers in real time. The system automatically reviews the answers based on image recognition and big data analytics. This reduces the teachers’ workload and increases the teaching efficiency. In addition, all classroom Q&A data is collected to serve as important input for subsequent intelligent analysis and evaluation. Currently, smart classrooms and interactive teaching are predominantly implemented using wired networks or local wireless networks such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Zigbee. The application of 5G will facilitate interactive teaching with its high bandwidth and low latency. Although 5G does not fundamentally change the existing structure of the smart classroom and interactive teaching, it can significantly optimize their effect with improved network capabilities, thereby further improving the quality of teaching. 5G-based interactive teaching will further improve the data transmission efficiency and space flexibility, extend the scope of mobile teaching, and support realtime transmission of HD videos and AR/VR-based teaching content. For example, teachers can invoke teaching applications on the 5G edge cloud platform at any time to send diversified content over the 5G network to tablets of different groups of students. In addition, regular recording and live broadcast of interactive teaching are supported. Also, 5G can integrate distance teaching to expand the scope of interactive teaching, which, in turn, expands the accessibility of high-quality teaching resources and achieve what was once difficult with traditional teaching.

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Compared with traditional teaching practices, 5G-based interactive teaching utilizes 5G-based terminals and 5G’s inherent technical and service advantages to eliminate the issues of previous systems such as high costs, poor flexibility, and instability, ensuring students have a faster, better, and more stable user experience. It will further increase the efficiency of data transmission and improve the space flexibility, supporting broader mobile teaching. 5G integrates VR/AR, holographic projection, and other new technologies to implement scenario-specific interactive teaching, and to construct 5G immersive smart classrooms, making knowledge more comprehensible and learning a happier experience. This enables teachers to vividly explain subjects that were once difficult to teach from texts, improving learning efficiency. For example, China Telecom has built a 5G-based VR/AR integrated training facility at a technicians college in the city of Hangzhou, and Beijing has implemented the city’s first 5G VR teaching service education solution in a primary school. As the construction of 5G networks accelerates and 5G coverage expands, 5G will become an important support for smart classroom and interactive teaching and greatly improve the teaching quality.

5.2.2 Distance Education Online education is regarded as a vital supplement to classroom education in schools to facilitate learning anytime and anywhere. The large-scale commercial deployment of 5G networks will greatly improve the environment of online education. It can help provide online education across long distances and on the go, which is referred to as distance education. Additionally, the combination of 5G and AI technologies can provide real-time analytics to help teachers quickly understand their students’ learning progress and provide them with personalized guidance. Also, 5G’s high speed and low latency can support applications that require high bandwidth such as audio and video streams and extended reality (XR), which will diversify classroom content and enable smooth communications between teachers and students. 5G distance education enables high-quality education resources to be shared among several regions. To cope with the uneven distribution of education resources in different regions, 5G distance education relies on the ultra-low-latency transmission of massive data and real-time image processing and rendering. No matter if it is teaching a group of students, private tutoring, or multiple teachers instructing many students, all types of live learning scenarios and interactions can be achieved. Online joint education is already being carried out by famous teachers and schools, and digital campuses are being constructed and utilized to achieve fair and quality education based on the Internet. The result is a balanced distribution of high-quality education resources. The final goal is to promote precise support in education based on 5G networks by breaking through the limitation of time, space, content, and media. For example, students in mountainous areas can attend the same class with students

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from key model schools through 5G distance education. In the near future, as 5G network coverage gets enhanced in remote mountainous areas, holographic distance classrooms will bring a more immersive teaching experience. Based on 5G’s high bandwidth and low latency, schools will construct a synchronous 5G classroom cloud platform using new technologies such as 4K/8K UHD videos and intelligent cloud-based media platforms. This platform can integrate applications such as interactive teaching, live broadcast and recording, course sharing, online training, online teaching and research, and video conferencing to build a bridge between 5G virtual private networks for education and the Internet, achieving full connectivity. In summary, the synchronous 5G classroom cloud platform facilitates resource sharing and improves the professional quality of teachers. This also contributes to improving teaching efficiency in classrooms and helps build smart education applications. The dual-teacher classroom is an important application of distance teaching, spanning education levels from kindergarten through twelfth grade (K-12) education in primary and secondary schools to university education, vocational education, and skill training. It generally adopts the lecturer + assistant and online + field teaching mode. The lecturer delivers the course content by using live broadcasting, while the teaching assistant works with the lecturer to support teaching and encourage interaction. Students still need to be physically present in classrooms to view the course content and interact with the lecturer by using devices such as answer feedback devices. The high-speed and low-latency features of 5G enable flexible class availability anytime and anywhere as well as 4K/8K HD video transmission and lowlatency interaction, effectively improving the learning experience and facilitating the promotion and application of dual-teacher classrooms. Additionally, holographic technology can be used to project a rendered image of the teacher as well as course content and teaching tools for students in remote classrooms. In this way, real-time interaction can be implemented to create an immersive environment for students, greatly improving the experience of distance education. However, real-time holographic projection requires high bandwidth, which traditional solutions such as Wi-Fi cannot provide. 5G enables transmission speeds of Mbps or higher, 10 times that of 4G, and approximately 10 ms end-to-end latency. These features can effectively support applications that require high bandwidth and low latency, such as holography and XR, bringing a more immersive experience to distance education. Furthermore, as an important form of 5G distance education, 5G-based holographic classroom can further break space and time barriers and enables teachers and students from different regions and schools to come together in a virtual shared classroom for real-time interaction and communication.

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5.2.3 Immersive Teaching XR technologies, such as AR, VR, and mixed reality (MR), can be applied in various teaching applications to overlay a virtual setting in a real-life environment for students to learn abstract content in a visualized manner. Such technologies lift restrictions on time and space, going beyond our daily reality to help students experience uncommon scenarios and activities, and ultimately make teaching more efficient and learning more interesting. Despite their advantages, high-quality XR applications require higher bandwidth and shorter latency to ensure excellent image quality, fast interaction, and fully immersive experience. Take VR as an example. To deliver high image quality, some immersive scenarios require Mbps bandwidth, which is impossible with 4G. 5G, on the other hand, can support Mbps or even Gbps transmission rate, which is more than 10 times that of 4G. To avoid motion sickness during interaction, it should only take 20 ms at most from the time a user moves their head to see the corresponding image. If all this relies on local processing by devices, device configuration and usage will be made complex and the cost is high. Performing visual computing on the cloud will reduce the complexity for devices but result in a longer network transmission latency. In contrast to dozens of milliseconds of air interface latency in 4G, the 5G air interface latency is controlled within 10 ms, which meets the interaction response latency requirement. 5G facilitates the use of XR devices, typified by VR devices. The balance between user experience and device cost is a key issue that affects the application of XR technologies. For 5G cloud VR, content processing and computing of VR applications are implemented on the cloud, which significantly reduces the cost of procuring devices and simplifies configuration. This ensures smooth, immersive, and wireless VR services, thereby accelerating the scaled rollout of VR applications. XR teaching allows abstract concepts and theories to be presented in intuitive and vivid ways, helping students internalize content. 5G + cloud XR interactive teaching can improve the quality of learning by engaging the students’ senses and targeting visual and auditory learning. 5G’s high bandwidth, short latency, and massive connectivity enables cloud storage of XR teaching content. Cloud computing implements XR application running, rendering, presentation, and control, as well as encoding of XR images and sound into audio and video streams which are transmitted to devices in real time through the 5G network. The XR cloud platform can carry XR cloud applications, including virtual experiments and science education. Students can experience learning in a more immersive manner and can interact with digital content. When it comes to teaching, cost is a big deterrent in widely using equipment for experiments and training. XR technologies, however, can empower cloud-based virtual labs where learners can visit and operate virtual equipment in an immersive manner. The operation results will be pushed to learners so they could proceed or make adjustments. Such virtual labs save the need for physical equipment procurement, allow repeated operations, and are free from space restrictions.

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In addition, XR virtual experiments are not subject to safety accidents arising from operational errors. This is in stark contrast to risk-prone trainings in areas like chemistry, physics, and machinery, which require real experiments and handson operations. For example, some experiments may involve radioactive or toxic substances. Using XR technologies to carry out virtual science experiments can effectively solve the contradiction between experiment conditions and its effects, avoiding potential safety risks while yielding the same results.

5.2.4 Secure Campus Video surveillance is an integral part of campus security. Currently, conventional video surveillance systems are used across most campuses, but they are merely a reactive form of defense. Although cameras deployed in a campus transmit video footage to the surveillance center, manual intervention is needed, which slows down the collection of key information from huge amounts of videos. The intelligent security system automatically and dynamically reports alarms in case of exceptions and risks through facial recognition, cross-border tracking, and image and behavior identification. Based on integrated videos and images, the intelligent security system can predict incidents in advance to eliminate potential risks, greatly enhancing security and efficiency. 5G not only supports HD video surveillance and intelligent identification of video streams, but also provides wide coverage for monitoring a whole campus in real time. This way, a unified platform for centralized access, storage, analysis, and sharing of various IoT sensors can be built, integrating campus videos and IoT surveillance resources to support various security applications. Alongside this, integrated application of technologies including 5G network slicing, Internet of Things (IoT), cloud computing, edge computing, AI, satellite positioning, and geographic information system (GIS) delivers comprehensive analysis on routine monitoring and campus environment data, ensuring security in key areas, campus borders, teaching buildings, dormitories, canteens, and libraries. For example, HD video cameras installed on school buses can monitor the surrounding environment, passengers, and the bus in real time, and send massive data to the school management center for remote monitoring and management. This is attributable to the high speed and low latency of 5G. Moreover, the system can also generate alarms for potentially dangerous events, such as theft, speeding, and route diversion. This way, event response and driving safety are improved. For example, riders will not be neglectfully locked in school buses, student location can be tracked in real time, driver status can be monitored (whether the driver is suspected of dangerous driving or fatigue), and irregular behaviors such as overloading can be avoided. In addition, with the 5G education private network, video surveillance data is transmitted within the campus to integrate and process security data. This facilitates information query and enables unified management as well as prevention and control,

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so that the security department can effectively respond to campus emergencies. Security data can be analyzed to identify crowd flows and risk areas and formulate more robust security plans, further strengthening campus security surveillance. Some universities exert 5G communications devices to build surveillance systems for campus security. 5G’s massive connectivity and high bandwidth enable 360° video surveillance on campuses. Inspection robots have been deployed to collect video surveillance data of people, vehicles, and devices on campuses, and analyze and process the data in real time, for identification of personnel identities, vehicle information, and device operation status. Networked sharing with public security departments enables automatic alarm reporting in case of emergencies, as well as intelligent campus surveillance and management. Higher requirements are posed on health and safety, especially as schools have reopened following the pandemic. As such, 5G technologies will be used to greatly improve the security management level and capabilities of smart campuses. Campuses tend to be enclosed in a physical perimeter and visitors need to be strictly controlled. Such control requires the help of technology, such as facial recognition scanners that verify and permit people onto the campus. This method of control relies on a facial recognition system that comprises facial registration management, facial scanners, and facial verification services. Facial scanners can be deployed at entrances and exits to constantly collect and record images, which are transmitted back to the system’s server. The server then pre-processes the collected images, extracts certain image features, compares the features of these images with records on its database, and then transmits the results back to the facial scanner. On top of this, the server must be able to store and update the facial feature library locally. The facial recognition server can be deployed in the back end as an independent device to process facial images or video streams from multiple cameras simultaneously. Dormitory security is equally important, and a similar system to that of campus security management can be implemented. With intelligent sign-in and aisle attendance management, the facial recognition dormitory management system can enable students to enter or exit dormitories simply by scanning their faces, while also integrating student information, and setting permissions. The facial recognition dormitory management system may specifically include an intelligent sign-in system, an aisle attendance system, and a floor sign-in system. It can upload and report real-time information, such as when students enter or exit the dormitories, to the monitoring center, as well as the status of system alarms. With the support of the 5G network, the facial recognition server can be deployed on the cloud with edge computing to improve the data processing capability and efficiency. This will result in faster campus entry and exit for personnel. As such, the attendance management system is simplified and identity recognition and real-time monitoring are standardized to be user-friendly. In general, 5G smart education is in its initial phase of application, predominantly in teaching. In the next two years, distance education will develop from the pilot phase to a standard operation phase in regional areas. Interactive and immersive teaching will embrace a rapid development period with a gradual improvement of

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teaching terminals and enrichment of education content within two years. Secure campus construction has long been the process of continuous iterations and updates. With the in-depth convergence of 5G and the education industry, real-time perception, collection, monitoring, and utilization of data in teaching, teaching research, and teaching management will promote information exchanges and integration collaboration across the entire value chain of the smart education industry. 5G smart education will gradually evolve from developing 5G education standards to maturing 5G education networks, thereby imposing significant and profound impacts on the development of people’s livelihood and health globally. With the help of 5G and other information technologies, education systems in different countries will integrate with each other, achieving fair education and creating a society of continual education.

5.3 Media Convergence In recent years, with the progress of the global economy and improved living standards, the new media industry has developed rapidly, while new media forms and communication modes have constantly emerged. The rapid development of the new media industry poses new requirements on communications technologies, as does the explosive growth of data to network transmission. The commercial use of 5G technologies holds great promise for innovations in the media industry. The convergence of 5G and media covers cloud computing, big data, AI, blockchain, UHD videos, and AR/VR, enabling mainstream and network media. The convergence of 5G and media forms high-speed interconnected automatic collection, remote interview, machine script writing, intelligent editing, UHD live broadcast, virtual display, precise matching, and intelligent approval in various processes such as information collection, news topic selection, content production, communication and distribution, review and tracking, and self-media participation. This plays an important role in precise, immersive, intelligent, and efficient media production, and will eventually change the media production mechanism and the media ecosystem.

5.3.1 Onsite Production and Broadcasting 5G improves overall work efficiency of the mainstream media. Conventional media sectors such as print media and broadcast television are evolving towards omnimedia. Omnimedia refers to when media channels and platforms constitute a large content distributing and delivering system. Multiple organizations use 5G’s highperformance channels to improve content transmission efficiency, including UHD and VR videos. The integration of 5G and UHD live broadcasts have been widely adopted in major events to enhance the media’s live broadcast capabilities. 5G’s high-speed interconnection is combined with AI to greatly improve onsite news collection efficiency and conventional onsite interviews. Some media organizations

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are already employing 5G with holographic imaging to implement 5G holographic remote same-screen interviews. Intelligent collection and editing devices based on 5G and intelligence are used by multiple media organizations to implement real-time editing, such as real-time identification of onsite targets, real-time material collection, voice recognition, and translation, through cloud-device collaboration. In the future, priorities will be given to improving overall production efficiency, deepening integration of 5G, intelligence, big data, and cloud computing with media operations, and promoting comprehensive enhancement of intelligent production, editing, broadcasting, and collection, with the final goal of achieving in-depth convergence of the mainstream media.

5.3.2 New Media 5G promotes the development of new network media in multiple industries. The full potential is still being explored, however, a new trend which focuses on high speed, intelligence, and ubiquitous connections has emerged. The exponential growth of new applications is expected to come out in two to three years following network construction. 5G’s high-speed interconnection and extensive connections will enhance the aggregation of social information resources on the network media platform and extend from digital social life to internal information flowing of various industries. Real-time and precise control of user requirements and in-depth influence of thoughts will be greatly improved, transforming the platform to a social information hub that connects life and production. It can also be expected that a series of culture and data security issues will emerge. For example, personalized requirements on media content will make previous platform-centric regulatory systems unable to function properly. In general, 5G will promote revolutionary changes in the media field, and is expected to deepen its convergence with the mainstream media in the next two years. In addition, 5G will open up new development paths in terms of network media intelligence and high-speed connectivity. The development of 5G on-site production and broadcasting will be carried out step by step. Transmission acceleration will first be carried out in 5G-based UHD live broadcast and online news collection. It is estimated that 5G will enter the mature phase within one to two years. Then, the combination of 5G with AI technologies will be gradually deepened to develop enhanced applications in automatic topic selection and intelligent production. In the end, 5G will penetrate deeper levels including full-process control, precise user matching, and ecosystem organization to eventually reshape the media landscape.

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5.4 Smart Culture and Tourism In the tourism industry, travelers are no longer just satisfied with the basic travel services that agencies and attractions still provide. Travelers now want to visit places that they can be fully immersed in, and this is an area that technologies such as 5G, VR, and AR can play a major role in achieving. 5G acts as the foundation for delivering VR technologies thanks to its high speed and low latency. It can be pivotal in creating a platform for attractions to deliver interactive applications that enrich the immersive experience for travelers. 5G smart tourism has become achievable, and currently, a number of 5G applications have been piloted in the tourism sector, including smart scenic-spot management, VR museums, and smart commercial areas.

5.4.1 Immersive Sightseeing 5G will deliver new experience to travel and exhibition industries. 5G terminals open up new doors for entertainment services and have the potential to showcase the full beauty and culture of attractions and culturally-rich areas. The maturity of 4K/8K displays and VR headsets can fully immerse tourists into the true beauty of scenic spots like they have never experienced before. The scenic area of China’s Huangshan mountain leverages 5G and 360° remote VR to deliver a panoramic and immersive experience of the mountain’s pristine beauty for tourists in real time. In Beijing’s Imperial Palace, 5G and VR digital museums relive the history behind cultural relics. For many visitors it is difficult to relive the story and grasp the culture of national and cultural relics simply by viewing them from a distance. Visitors can visually watch and relive the stories behind a 1.86 million piece collection with the help of 5G and XR technology. This method showcases a new manner of promoting traditional Chinese culture and art.

5.4.2 Intelligent Scenic Spot Management 5G can play a crucial part in achieving smart management of scenic spots and enhance the experience for their visitors. To begin with, 5G-driven unmanned shuttle buses will help visitors conveniently get around attractions. Safe and smart autonomous transportation is made possible thanks to 5G, and beyond helping visitors move around between places, buses will also be equipped with VR/AR technology to deliver state-of-the-art advertising. Such buses will not only help cut workforce costs and management expenses, but also increase the convenience of transport for visitors and potentially help limit overcrowding. Another benefit of 5G is that it facilitates greater interaction between visitors and the attractions, by sharing their knowledge

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and experiences, as well as providing a platform for offering feedback. Last but not least, 5G can achieve comprehensive management of scenic spots. It does this by delivering massive connectivity that covers people, things, and processes. This enables management to collect information regarding visitor numbers and manage the flow of people and resources more precisely.

5.4.3 Smart Commercial Area Smart commercial areas are powered by 5G to boost commercial revenue. For customers, 5G and XR help them navigate around commercial areas and retailers, while also enhancing their shopping experience. For retailers, they can develop a stronger online presence as well as manage and replenish stock. In China, some shopping malls use AR for playing treasure hunts, giving out lucky red packets, sightseeing, and smart sharing, while VR allows customers to visit shops virtually without going in person. The smart tourism industry is still in the exploration phase. Immersive tourism and digital museums are expected to mature in the next one to two years. Smart scenic spot management and smart commercial areas require over two years to reach maturity. As 5G continues to grow within the tourism industry, 5G applications will gradually cover the entire tourism process, delivering richer experience for tourists.

5.5 City Governance As the world moves towards digital, networked, and intelligent cities, city administrators and the public have increasing requirements for the refined perception of city operations. A next-generation IT approach is urgently needed to integrate key information of cities’ core operation systems. This approach emphasizes comprehensive perception of city information and implements intelligent decision-making and processing of city life to achieve efficient and collaborative city economy and social organization, as well as universal and user-friendly city services. 5G technologies offer new opportunities for transformation of social governance and public services. This enables government governance to shift from experiencedriven to data-driven, and from post-event decision-making to predictive decisionmaking, reaping huge benefits for comprehensive city governance.

5.5.1 Refined Management 5G enables city management to enter a new stage of refined and precise management. It does this by converging with IoT, AI, big data, and other technologies to generate

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new industry applications including city management, lighting, meter reading, parking, public safety, and emergency response. It also facilitates the construction of precise and intelligent city management systems, securing leading applications in intelligent city perception, city operation management, and community management. 1. 2.

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Intelligent city perception: 5G-based smart city management system can connect to more devices and collect massive data, enhancing city management. City operation management: 5G enables quantitative analysis, prediction, warning, and intuitive city-wide display that covers people, places, events, objects, public opinions, and organizations, providing one-stop decision-making support for city management. For example, 5G unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are leveraged for emergency handling, forest fire prevention, traffic management, major activity assurance, environment monitoring, and remote inspections including river inspection during the flood season. Command centers do this by obtaining essential operation data to assist administrators with dispatching and commanding city-wide maintenance. Community management: 5G equips communities with functions such as intelligent access control, suspicious person tracking, manhole monitoring, and anti-theft electric vehicle. For example, HD video capturing of access control systems are integrated with intelligent big data analytics to automatically identify residents and non-residents entering communities. By accurately capturing suspicious persons and analyzing their movement, such systems help security identification and handle potential risks.

5.5.2 Remote Government Administration 5G enhances efficiency of government administrative approvals. In government administrative approvals, 5G plays a critical role in approval handling and remote services, particularly under a pandemic, whereby remote approvals help maintain a sense of normality. However, government administrative approvals often involve identity verification, information filling, and data uploading and downloading, posing requirements on video image collection and network access performance. However, quick and precise facial recognition for filling onsite information and uploading data improves convenience and approval efficiency. In addition, 5G UHD video is expected to connect more families and personal smart terminals, enabling online service handling anytime and anywhere, as well as government administrative approval at your fingertips.

5.5.3 Smart Environmental Protection 5G enables cities to carry out all-round environment protection. In smart water management, ecological protection, and urban sanitation, 5G plays a pivotal role. For

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example, 5G-powered unmanned ships can automatically collect water area information, upload HD videos in real time, issue real-time alarms when the water quality drops, and quickly and accurately locate sources of pollution. New equipment such as unmanned ships can monitor water quality in complex environments, enabling water ecosystem monitoring without blind spots. In terms of environment monitoring, 5G smart terminals are installed on facilities to implement comprehensive and intelligent perception of various resource elements and pollution sources. 5G UAVs and VR technologies are used to intuitively monitor pollution, facilitating quick handling. In areas such as Fujian and Xinjiang Tarim River, 5G UAVs are deployed to inspect river channels and detect or sample water quality. For urban sanitation, large-scale deployment of 5G sensors helps improve the recycling efficiency of urban sanitation systems. In most cases, 5G smart city applications have been deployed in key cities on a small scale. It is estimated that remote government administration will be promoted and applied in one to two years. Smart environmental protection and refined city management will be gradually promoted, with maturity and fast growth expected in three years. The gradual completion of privacy protection policies will see 5G accelerate the construction and development of smart cities and widespread connectivity in cities. Intelligent products will be widely used in city management and daily lives, significantly improving the happiness of urban residents.

5.6 Smart Security Smart security requirements have shifted from visible to clear, all-round, and comprehensible. HD, 3D, and intelligent security video surveillance and terminals are now a major industry trend, posing an urgent need for flexible, diversified, and controllable security arrangements. 5G’s high bandwidth, low latency, and high reliability are utilized to facilitate deployment of wireless HD video surveillance in areas with complex cabling conditions, long construction period, and high cabling costs, or areas requiring intactness of existing environment and assurance of emergency security. Furthermore, 5G drives collaborative applications of various intelligent terminals. By leveraging the high speed of 5G networks, HD video surveillance, UAV inspection, VR/AR monitoring instruments, and intelligent inspection robots can be connected to networks as intelligent security terminals to complement each other and establish an important hub for transmission, analysis, and utilization of security data, significantly improving the handling of emergencies and comprehensively improving smart security capabilities.

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5.6.1 Intelligent Security Network 5G enables construction of intelligent security networks. The gradual progress of several surveillance projects has seen city security systems achieve encryption from multiple dimensions, providing strong assurance for stable economic and social development. The Shenzhen 5G Smart Policing project leverages the low latency, high bandwidth, flexible networking, and fast deployment of 5G to construct a 5G intelligent sensor network. This sensor network includes 5G-based aerial inspection, air-ground collaboration, unmanned ground inspection commanding, individual ground inspection, and water surface/underwater inspection. The enhanced intelligent capabilities of front-end cameras and video cloud platforms see the establishment of a ubiquitous sensor network to automatically identify, acutely sense, predict, and prevent a number of risks. Guangzhou Tianhe Public Security Bureau promotes 5G smart security applications and combines AI analysis with HD video surveillance systems including AR law enforcement recorders, high-altitude cameras, UAVs, and police cars/robots, to form a three-dimensional security system.

5.6.2 Emergency Management 5G provides basic assurance for public security. In public security and emergency response, 5G will be integrated with UHD video surveillance to facilitate development of various intelligent terminals for inspection and provide communications and transmission assurance for smart security. In UHD video security surveillance, 5G networks enable wide adoption of 4K/8K high-resolution video surveillance. With 5G’s high-speed data transmission, HD video data collection, transmission, storage, and real-time uploading are now possible. Smart security commanding cloud platforms, big data, AI, and other technologies are integrated to accurately identify faces, behaviors, special objects, and vehicles, delivering risk prediction and efficient emergency handling. Emergency management is expected to be first applied in one year, whereas all-scenario intelligent protection networks require two to three years for cultivation. As 5G networks become more and more widespread, the deployment of wireless video surveillance will become easier and usher in greater opportunities, with outstanding advantages in scenarios such as mobility, dangerous environments, and cases where wired deployment is not available. The security surveillance market is growing year by year, enhancing regional security and driving development of related industries. Currently, the security surveillance industry is in the final phase of HD networks and transitioning to the intelligent phase, presenting even greater development opportunities.

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References 1. Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization. (2019). In 5G+ Smart Healthcare White Paper. East China Branch of China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT) 2. Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization. (2020). In 5G+ Smart Education White Paper. East China Branch of China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT)

Part III

Construction and Analysis of 5GtoB’s Success Factors

Chapter 6

Construction of the 5GtoB Success Factor System

6.1 5GtoB Success Factor System As a next-generation mobile communications technology, 5G brings higher rates, shorter latency, and more connections than 4G. It not only significantly improves the capabilities of mobile Internet services, but also taps into the Internet of Things (IoT) field to enable people-to-people, people-to-things, and things-to-things communications, creating a new era of the connectivity of everything. Focusing on three application scenarios—enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC), and Massive Machine-Type Communications (mMTC)— 5G will provide a 20 Gbps access rate, millisecond-level latency, and hundreds of billions of connections, ultra-high traffic and connection density, and 100-fold improvement in network energy efficiency. 5G can flexibly meet service requirements in multiple scenarios while adhering to globally unified standards. The opportunities brought by 5G technologies will massively exceed those brought by 3G and 4G, and the opportunities will create huge economic benefits for various industries. Currently, in the early stage of 5G commercial deployment, eMBB applications such as high-definition (HD) videos, immersive content, augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), wearables, and online games will be implemented first, and applications in various industries, such as unmanned driving, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), telemedicine, smart robots, and smart cities, will follow in the near future. The vitality of 5G lies in its innovative applications featuring massive connectivity. There is huge potential in 5G applications. Currently, carriers in multiple countries and regions are actively promoting the construction of 5G networks. With the deployment of 5G commercial networks, more innovative applications will emerge. The continuous exploration and practice of market entities such as telecom carriers and leading enterprises in smart manufacturing, smart healthcare, and smart education around the world has created a large number of excellent 5G industry application cases. However, due to the lack of research and analysis on success factors,

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development rules, and driving mechanisms of 5GtoB, there is no systematic and widely-accepted model and path for business transformation in the industry. Therefore, based on the challenges faced by 5GtoB, it is necessary to conduct in-depth research and empirical analysis on success factors that affect the development of 5GtoB services to draw systematic and quantifiable conclusions, which helps enhance related theories and provide the practical reference value for related enterprises. Taking scenario application requirements, practitioner resource supply, and capability delivery into account, the 5GtoB success factor system is derived as illustrated in Fig. 6.1. The logical framework is built based on three elements: scenario (S), role (R), and capability (C). The required capabilities of each role in different scenarios vary. 1.

Scenario definition

The challenges and key requirements of vertical industries—such as smart manufacturing, smart healthcare, and distance education—are analyzed and further identified and addressed through 5G technologies. Additionally, typical 5GtoB applications—such as HD videos, remote control, and AR/VR—are summarized to guide the construction of comprehensive integrated solutions.

Capability

Role R5: Industry customer

R4: System integrator R3: Industry application developer R2: Industry cloud service provider R1: Carrier

S1: Video surveillance

S2: Remote control

S3: AI machine S4: AR remote assistance vision

Deliverable: industry consulting, solution integration, and solution O&M services

S: AI machine vision R: System integrator

Business capability: industry solution design

Ecosystem capability: ecosystem integration of industry applications and devices

Performance capability: SLA design and responsibility matrix

Efficiency capability: industry solution system design and integrated delivery

Capability analysis

Fig. 6.1 Framework of the 5GtoB success factor system

Scenario

6.1 5GtoB Success Factor System

2.

85

Role definition and responsibility

An analysis of the 5GtoB industry chain is needed to identify the key roles and participants, including industry customers, system integrators, industry application developers, industry cloud service providers, and carriers. Ultimately, this will help build a closed-loop 5GtoB value chain based on the coordination relationship of ecological niches. 3.

Capability planning

Based on the technical challenges faced in the 5G application scenarios and responsibilities of different roles, the capabilities required by each role can be analyzed. Put differently, the capabilities are determined by scenarios and roles, which can be expressed as C = f (S, R). These capabilities include performance, efficiency, ecosystem, and business. Within this context, the key to 5GtoB success involves sorting out the connotation and logical relationship of different capability elements and determining the function and positioning of each element.

6.2 Scenario Definition Empowering economic, production and life, as well as city management activities, 5GtoB predominantly serves industry customers in vertical industries, including manufacturing, healthcare, education, electric power, finance, and commerce. This section describes the 5GtoB transformation requirements and main application scenarios using two tables.

6.2.1 Digital Transformation List (T Table) Based on insight into service requirements and the pain points in vertical industries, next-generation information technologies such as 5G, intelligence, and cloud computing can be integrated to advance the innovation, modernization, and new market landscape in vertical industries. For details, see Table 6.1.

6.2.2 Scenario List (S Table) Referencing the T table of different industries, the list of common 5GtoB application scenarios has been developed based on the three basic scenarios of 5G—eMBB, URLLC, and mMTC. For details, see Table 6.2.

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Table 6.1 Digital transformation list (T table) No. Transformation type

Example (Home appliance manufacturing)

1

Efficiency improvement (1) Retrofitted enterprise intranet and extranet and intelligent upgrade of devices enable interconnection across devices and information systems (2) 5G cloud-powered machines are leveraged to replace manual operations or intelligent technologies are leveraged to regulate the production rate (3) Flexible tooling or intelligent fixture facilitates mold change (4) Device automation and intelligent reconstruction improve the energy efficiency of production

2

Cost reduction

(1) Machines replace workers in important work stations to save labor costs (2) Big data analysis optimizes material consumption (3) Artificial intelligence (AI) enables fault diagnosis and pre-warning (4) The industry chain or production line data linkage and automatic warehouse improve the inventory turnover rate

3

Quality improvement

(1) 5G, intelligence, and automation are used to implement thorough inspection (2) 5G, intelligent sensing, and big data are used to upgrade inspection methods with intelligence (3) Identifier parsing and blockchain are used to deliver full-lifecycle quality tracing

4

Safety improvement

(1) 5G and IoT sensing are used to monitor the production environment online (2) Machine substitution or assistance reduces labor intensity (3) Machines are used to reduce labor input in harsh environments

5

Value adding

(1) Software is continuously updated based on the product platform to enhance customer interaction and experience (2) Users can be provided with value-added services such as diet guidance and audio content through smart refrigerators and smart loudspeakers, respectively (3) Home appliances such as refrigerators and air conditioners can be customized

6

Other transformations

…

6.3 Role Definition and Responsibility Based on insight into the typical 5GtoB industry ecosystem, it goes without saying that the next-generation information technologies such as 5G, intelligence, and cloud computing can serve as powerful tools that improve core service capabilities and advance the transformation, upgrade, and innovation taking place across vertical industries. With this in mind, we can place practitioners in these industries into five categories: industry customers, system integrators, industry application developers, industry cloud service providers, and carriers (see Fig. 6.2).

6.3 Role Definition and Responsibility

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Table 6.2 Common scenario list No. Scenario

5G Feature and Application Example

1

Remote control

URLLC: robotics and remote control of unmanned devices

2

Intelligent identification eMBB and URLLC: obstacle detection for unmanned driving, as well as precision analysis and quality inspection of large mechanical parts

3

Precise positioning

mMTC: positioning of workers in factories and high-precision positioning of unmanned vehicles

4

Ubiquitous IoT

mMTC: metropolitan IoT devices such as smart water meters, lamp poles, manhole covers, smoke sensors, and access control devices

5

HD video

eMBB: 4K/8K HD videos, live streaming, and surveillance

6

Immersive experience

eMBB and URLLC: AR/VR

7

Others

…

… Industry customer

Smart manufacturing

Smart education

Smart healthcare

Digital government

Smart transportation

Smart port

Integration service Application integration

System integrator

Procurement

Integration

Development

Delivery

Product ordering

Industry cloud service provider

5G products and offerings

…

Testing

Release

Industry application developer

Application development

Application release

Application

Transaction platform

Data

Development

Testing

Integrated development enabling

Network capability openness Service support system Carrier

Private network, private line, slicing, MEC…

Resource management system

RAN

Network O&M management

Transport network

Core network

IHV

Fig. 6.2 Roles and hierarchy of 5GtoB practitioners

1.

Industry customers refer to enterprises that introduce 5GtoB solutions into vertical industries. They include core and ecosystem enterprises in the industry chain as well as customer affiliates, and are responsible for feasibility research, project initiation and bidding, contract conclusion, implementation, joint commissioning, acceptance, and operation and maintenance (O&M). Their scope of responsibility also includes corresponding documents such as feasibility, investment, and project initiation reports; system integration construction solutions; and enterprise or industry regulations.

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2.

System integrators (SIs) refer to the liability subjects that deliver complete 5GtoB solutions to industry customers. They provide services such as service consulting, top-level designs, and construction consulting, as well as overall solution designs, service level agreement (SLA) responsibility matrix, system pre-integration testing, and integrated delivery. Their key delivery scope includes industry solutions, system integration and O&M services, as well as systematic standard deliverables such as system integration acceptance solutions and standards. Industry application developers refer to independent software vendors (ISVs) and independent hardware vendors (IHVs). They provide industry customers with product-oriented or customized industry applications, including software and hardware design, development, and manufacturing. The main deliverables include industry application software and hardware devices, and documents such as the definition of industry application scenarios, application system functions and interface descriptions, device descriptions and services, and industry device certification or test specifications. Industry cloud service providers provide cloud-based products and services required by the running of industry application software for industry customers and SIs, and a complete development pipeline of industry applications on the cloud for industry application developers. They also deliver scenariobased market aggregation solutions, which enables a user-friendly transaction interface for industry customers and SIs. Carriers provide 5G network services for industry solutions. These services include network product and offering designs and network O&M assurance. The main deliverables are network products and offerings, network planning and design, network O&M assurance services, and network devices.

3.

4.

5.

The five roles of 5GtoB practitioners need to build capability systems that match with their responsibilities. Table 6.3 lists their required key capabilities. The key capabilities of the five roles can be categorized into performance, efficiency, ecosystem, and business based on their features.

6.4 Capability Planning 6.4.1 Capability System As illustrated in Fig. 6.3, the core success factors of sustainable 5GtoB development include performance, efficiency, ecosystem, and business. The performance capability focuses on the design and implementation of the SLA, which is the foundation of 5GtoB success and other success factors. The efficiency capability focuses on the scaled replication of industry solutions. It is the key capability for 5GtoB expansion into industries and sustainable development and batch replication. The ecosystem capability focuses on the integration of industry

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Table 6.3 Capabilities of key roles Key role

Key 5GtoB capability

Industry customer

Selection of 5GtoB application scenarios

SI

• 5GtoB industry application consulting • SLA design and breakdown • Pre-integration of industry devices, network connections, and applications • Business design for industry solutions

Carrier

• Design for 5G network as a service (NaaS) products and offerings • Reliability • Network slicing • Enterprise self-service capability • Network SLA assurance

Industry cloud service provider • Industry market building • Application development enablement • Edge-cloud synergy ISV/IHV

• Development assistance for 5G industry devices • Ecosystem construction for chipsets, modules, and devices

5GtoB Business Success

Efficiency

Ecosystem

Industry market building

Development assistance for 5G industry devices

Network SLA assurance

Application development enablement

Ecosystem construction for chipsets, modules, and devices

5G NaaS

Pre-integration of industry solutions

5GtoB industry application consulting

Performance

Network slicing

Reliability

Edge-cloud synergy

Enterprise self-service

Business

Business design for industry solutions

SLA design and breakdown

Fig. 6.3 Key capability system in four domains

applications and device ecosystems. A robust industry ecosystem formed by 5GtoB practitioners facilitates the overall stable development of the industry. The business capability focuses on the business model design of the industry and the responsibilities and benefit distribution of the 5GtoB industry chain. This is the key to a prosperous 5GtoB ecosystem.

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6.4.2 Performance Capability Factor Description The performance capability is the foundation of 5GtoB success. It is the prerequisite for 5GtoB to create new value for the industry and the core driving force for 5GtoB evolution and development. The key 5GtoB technologies can be combined with 5G to solve the technical pain points of the industry, improve the operational efficiency of enterprises, and meet various application requirements. They are the core driving force for industry development enabled by 5G integration and innovation. Key 5GtoB technologies include IT, CT, and DT (see Table 6.4), and cover chipsets, operating systems, databases, sensors, IoT, AI, big data, edge computing, cloud computing, and blockchain. Industry-specific technologies are unique to application fields, such as ultrasound and immunodetection in the medical field and gas preparation techniques, quality optimization models, and logistics scheduling algorithms in the chemical field. Specifically, network slicing, edge computing, millimeter wave (mmWave), uplink enhancement, base station positioning, and low power consumption technologies are common enablers that highly impact 5GtoB development. Function in 5GtoB New technologies are used to not only meet the industry’s existing requirements, but also create new requirements for the market, thereby creating the potential market value of 5GtoB. To meet the industry’s existing requirements, pain points in different scenarios need to be explored and solved through 5G integration with other specific technologies. For example, in the education industry, 5G and extended reality (XR) can provide an immersive teaching environment, where abstract theories and concepts are visually explained and natural phenomena or changing processes that are difficult to observe in everyday life can be displayed. Additionally, in vocational technical training, 5G and XR can be used to build a virtual training environment or overlay virtual information for guidance on real operating devices, which in turn improves Table 6.4 Examples of key 5GtoB technologies Technology type

Example

Information technology (IT)

Technologies—such as chip integrated circuits, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), and Manufacturing Execution System (MES)—for developing software and hardware information systems

Communication technology (CT)

Network communications technologies, such as Narrow Band Internet of Things (NB-IoT), network slicing, edge computing, and low power consumption technologies

Data technology (DT)

Technologies—such as intelligence, big data, edge computing, and cloud computing—for data analysis, processing, and application

6.4 Capability Planning

91

both efficiency and safety. The convergence of 5G and XR not only facilitates XR content storage on the cloud and low-latency transmission, but also extends XR teaching to remote scenarios, enabling diversified distance education. The market needs to be reevaluated to create new requirements with new technologies, which in turn will create new opportunities and lead to further industry development. 5G brings ubiquitous IoT and large-scale collaboration between robots and UAVs within the realm of possibilities, generating various innovative applications based on the IoT, robots, and UAVs. This will not only create numerous industries for 5G devices, but also bring new service-oriented industries. To put it into perspective, 5G-based vehicle-to-everything (V2X) development will be accompanied by new issues concerning road traffic safety (in addition to the existing ones), as well as communications and data security issues, and as such, new market requirements in the fields of device inspection and secure O&M services will inevitably be posed. In light of this, the 5GtoB performance capability provides the industry with new productivity, while also delivering basic support for other capabilities and creating new techniques, products, services, business forms, models, and industries. Specifically, for new industries brought by the performance capability, this manifests the value of technological innovation. 3G and 4G development was accompanied by a series of new industries, such as smart phones, mobile payment, mobile social networking, and mobile games. Although 5G development has not yet resulted in new industries, digital industrialization and industry digitalization have become inevitable trends that show promise for new industries in the 5G era.

6.4.3 Efficiency Capability Factor Description Information and communications technology (ICT) services are still the core of 5GtoB services. Given this, the completion of project construction only represents half the success, with operation and maintenance efficiency accounting for the rest. Put differently, operation and maintenance are key indicators of application orientation, and they reflect the business model in the operation and maintenance phases of the 5GtoB project. 5GtoB operation includes two processes: 5GtoB solution operations and ecosystem cooperation operations. For carriers, the former refers to the continuous construction of network capabilities, service capabilities, and scenariobased solution competitiveness, while the latter refers to the in-depth cooperation system with system integrators, service providers, and device vendors. 5GtoB maintenance includes planning and design, integrated delivery, maintenance assurance, and continuous optimization (see Fig. 6.4). For carriers, the key is the network O&M capability.

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5GtoB operation

Ecosystem cooperation

Solution • Network capability + service capability, ongoing competitiveness development for scenario-based solutions

5GtoB maintenance

Planning and design

Integrated delivery

• In-depth collaboration of industry integrators, service providers, and device vendors Maintenance assurance

• Target network • Network • Network planning and design construction, assurance, fault based on SLAs, and service recovery, spare considering industry integration, and part service, and requirements secure solution key service delivery assurance/ enterprise selfservice

Continuous optimization • Network performance assurance, SLA assurance, and ondemand optimization to adapt to service changes

Fig. 6.4 5GtoB operation and maintenance

Function in 5GtoB Operation and maintenance are crucial to the formation of a complete closed loop for 5GtoB services. From the carrier perspective, improving operation and maintenance capabilities not only ensures service quality, but also helps eliminate network limitations. For service integration providers and industry application developers, the strengthening of investment in operation and maintenance goes a long way in improving customer relationships and enhancing competitiveness. Based on the overall development of 5GtoB services, the operation and maintenance mode determines overall business model’s efficiency and benefits, as well as its success. On top of that, it serves as a crucial channel for continuously exploring business opportunities in different scenarios and introducing new technologies and capabilities. Furthermore, operation and maintenance and integrated delivery processes need to be standardized and modularized to quickly organize and match the corresponding resources and capabilities needed to implement 5GtoB engineering projects. As such, quick replication and promotion can be achieved.

6.4.4 Ecosystem Capability 6.4.4.1

Industry Ecosystem

Factor Description Industry ecosystem is the summation of the inter-enterprise relationships formed by enterprise transactions in the industry, supply, innovation, and value chains under political, economic, cultural, and technological influence. It is also viewed as the external environment for enterprise development. As such, the industry ecosystem

6.4 Capability Planning

93

is the internal production of competition and cooperation between enterprises under the specific macro-background, and it also affects the development of each enterprise in the ecosystem in terms of competition environments, industry standards, and transaction mechanisms. For 5GtoB, the industry ecosystem consists of device and application subecosystems. The former is centered on the 5G device industry chain, including devices, modules, components, chipsets, and inspection instruments and meters; whereas the latter includes telecom carriers, industry cloud service providers, SIs, ISVs/IHVs, and industry customers. In addition, innovative R&D institutions such as universities and industry alliances will also take part in the industry ecosystem, while external factors such as industry specifications and national policies are separately analyzed as additional success factors. Function in 5GtoB The industry ecosystem is the most fundamental external environment faced by 5GtoB practitioners, and is the direct source of both opportunities and challenges. Given this, a robust industry ecosystem is crucial for 5GtoB development and contributes to the stable development of the entire industry. For individual enterprises, the industry ecosystem serves as the source of resources and market for selling products and services. It is therefore safe to say that a robust ecosystem can fully enable competition that drives stable development across the entire industry. A complete industry ecosystem enables enterprises in different 5GtoB service domains to maximize their own advantages, forming a positive cycle of mutual promotion between individual enterprises and the industry ecosystem. The prerequisite for establishing an industry ecosystem is industry expansion and labor division in the market (which refers to specialization). As such, as the industry ecosystem matures, an increasing number of professional service providers will emerge, lowering the threshold for entering the industry while also attracting more enterprises to join the 5GtoB industry ecosystem.

6.4.4.2

Industry Specifications

Factor Description Standard-oriented industry specifications have become the foundation of ICT development and are a strategic task related to the direction of industry development. As the prerequisite for interconnected 5GtoB networks, products, and applications, unified industry standards will accelerate the rapid and orderly development and maturity of 5GtoB services. Industry specifications contain multiple types of standards. In hierarchical order, they include enterprise, industry, local, national, and international standards. In terms of service functions, they include device, network, data, and security standards. Given that 5GtoB involves various industry fields and service scenarios, the construction of the corresponding system for standards will be a long-term and complex process.

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As a next-generation mobile communications technology, 5G requires unified international standards. Currently, the formulation of 5G technical standards under the unified leadership of the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is continuously evolving. Specifically, Release 16 (frozen in July 2020) focuses on industry applications such as manufacturing and transportation. This further enhances the service capabilities of 5G in scenarios requiring low latency and high reliability. For 5GtoB industry applications, the most essential factor is enterprise and industry standards led by enterprises that are frontrunners across the industry chain. For example, the following items need to be considered for the development of 5G-based V2X: key vehicle-mounted systems, high-precision maps, basic cloud control platforms, security protection, intelligent infrastructure, wireless communication technology standards and device interface specifications for vehicles; product certification, operation safety tests, man-machine control conversion, vehicle-road interaction, vehiclevehicle interaction, post-accident investigation of vehicle defects; and technical standards and specifications for simulation scenarios, closed sites, semi-open sites, and public road tests. Function in 5GtoB Industry specifications offer unified standards for 5GtoB development, laying a foundation for open development and fair competition and advancing the creation of a robust industry ecosystem. The leading enterprises in ICT and vertical industries need to collaborate to form industry standards, and they must engage with governments and international organizations, actively participate in international communication and standard formulation, as well as strive to take the initiative and lead throughout the process. Specifically, industry specifications bring the following three advantages: interconnection and compatibility between technologies and products; standardized guidance for technological innovation; and a trust mechanism to reduce transaction costs and improve development efficiency. For example, 5G-based V2X development involves multiple aspects such as technologies, products, applications, and infrastructure, covering multiple industries and departments such as communications, automobile, transportation, and management. This creates an urgent need for a standardized system across industries and domains, which is the only way to achieve real interconnection.

6.4.4.3

National Policy

Factor Description National policies are one of the most important macro-environment factors that affect industry development, and are driving forces for 5GtoB success. Broadly speaking, they consist of policies, laws, and regulations. Specifically, they include national strategies and laws and regulations; ministerial policies and regulations; and local policies and laws and regulations. Figure 6.5 illustrates the 5GtoB policy system.

6.4 Capability Planning

National policy High-level design of 5GtoB development, providing support for industries such as frequency resource allocation.

95

National policy

Local policy Industry policy 5GtoB is restricted by cross-industry policies, regulations, and rules, such as 5G-based telemedicine.

Industry policy

Local policy 5GtoB also needs the support of local policies, especially in site selection, electricity cost subsidies, piloting, and cooperation.

Fig. 6.5 5GtoB policy system

Spectrum allocation and authorization are the most important policy factors that affect the development of 5GtoB and even 5G technologies. Mobile communications technologies that include 5G essentially use radio waves to transmit information, and as such, radio spectrum resources are the basis for 5G development and application. These strategic resources are scarce and owned by countries, and therefore need authorization to be utilized. Currently, China’s radio management authority has allocated 680 MHz spectrum resources for 5G public networks. In addition, the properties of radio spectrum resources in different frequency bands vary, which fundamentally affects the development of technologies and industry applications. For example, as mobile communications technologies evolve from 1G to 5G, they use higher frequency bands. This is due to the fact that the spectrum resources of low and medium frequency bands have been authorized to other applications, and it is only possible to obtain contiguous spectrum resources in higher frequency bands with larger bandwidths. However, higher frequency bands usually have a shorter transmission distance, smaller coverage area, and lower diffraction capability of radio waves. To support 5G development, China has reallocated the spectrum resources of the 700 MHz “golden frequency band” to 5G, a band originally used for broadcasting and television. This highlights the strong support of national policies for 5G development. While spectrum policies have a significant impact on 5GtoB, industry-specific policies and regulations also play an important role. This means that 5G telemedicine, 5G V2X, and 5G smart education must comply with policies and regulations in the mobile communications field as well as healthcare, transportation, and education, respectively. These include access and supervision policies for using related devices and providing relevant services. The development of 5GtoB is impossible without the support of local policies. These are particularly important for site coordination, electricity cost subsidy, promotion of industry pilots, and in-depth cooperation between applications across industries. Function in 5GtoB National policies act as a catalyst for 5GtoB development, as well as guiding and accelerating the development of industries. However, enterprises must lead the longterm development of the 5G industry with market forces taking center stage.

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It is important to highlight that national policies can have both positive and negative impact on industry development. They may encourage next-generation information technologies such as 5G to enable various industries, thereby promoting digital infrastructure and overall digital transformation. However, laws and regulations, while essential, may also slow down the development of specific industry applications. This is often true for data privacy protection, site selection, power and frequency control, and industry-specific regulations, such as those in transportation and healthcare industries.

6.4.4.4

Organization and Talent

Factor Description Organizations and people are the most fundamental elements for 5GtoB development, as they are the ones who develop and utilize key technologies and business models. The organizational structure of an enterprise needs to adapt to new business models and tends to determine the way an enterprise makes decisions and operates. It also influences human resources, which include management, technical development, marketing, services, and various functional personnel. 5GtoB is a new service model that requires cross-industry and cross-domain collaborative innovation and flexible adaptability. In this context, a more agile organizational structure and more complex talent teams become essential. Figure 6.6 illustrates the organization and talent that drive 5GtoB development. Function in 5GtoB As mentioned earlier, organizational structure and talent are fundamental for 5GtoB, as they are the ones to implement key strategies. They also possess the creativity necessary to coordinate key technologies, business models, industry ecosystems, Service transformation 5GtoB delivers cross-domain integration services to users. Enterprise innovation Organizations change and grow their talent to enhance enterprise innovation in technology, processes, and management.

Organizational changes Organizations need to be more agile to support new services, coordinated innovation, and fast adaptation.

Talent development Develop more comprehensive talent, who are able to learn new technologies quickly. Cultivate better management skills.

Fig. 6.6 Organization and talent that drive 5GtoB development

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operation and maintenance, industry specifications, and national policies, promoting the development and evolution of 5GtoB services. Organizations and talent guide the development of 5GtoB services along a planned path. They develop and apply key technologies, implement and efficiently operate business models, grow the industry ecosystem, guide operations and O&M, as well as formulate and implement industry specifications and national policies. Ultimately, however, organizations and people are responsible for their own transformation and development, which makes them the owners of other success factors.

6.4.5 Business Capability Factor Description 5GtoB must adapt to multiple industries, services, and customers. The sheer variety of service requirements indicates the need for customization and diverse applications. As such, efficiency, precision, and mutual value-add are key to achieving sustainable development and replicability. As part of the business model, business capability indicates the interaction, behavior model, and benefit distribution mechanisms between stakeholders in business activities. According to the Business Model Canvas proposed in Business Model You: A One-Page Method for Reinventing Your Career [1], a business model consists of nine key areas: customer segments, customer relationships, sales channels, value proposition, key activities, core resources, key partners, revenue streams, and cost structure (see Fig. 6.7). Within this context, enterprises, not entire industries, typically reflect business capabilities. In the case of 5GtoB services, there is a variety of enterprises from a wide range of industries that employ different business models. Let’s see what this might look like in practice, taking key activities as an example. The key activities of organizations working at the middle end (or the digital enablement layer) include device Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM)/Original Design Manufacturer (ODM), software as a service (SaaS), data supply and governance, and intelligent model development. In the meantime, back-end enterprises (those at the resource support layer) focus on selling data center or network hardware devices, as well as providing cloud and network resource O&M. With such different key activities, their customer segments, customer relationships, and sales channels will also vary significantly. Figure 6.8 compares the three entity business models in light of key activities. At the same time, these business models do not exist in a vacuum. Rather, they constantly change and evolve, spurred on by competition and new models of cooperation within the ecosystem. This means that the 5GtoB industry is continuously changing, with each specific field having its own logic, pattern, and top players. Currently, 5GtoB business models are led by carriers, system integrators, and industry customers. (For details, see Sect. 10.3 “Multiple Forms of Business Models”.)

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Customer segments Customer relationships

Cost structure

Value proposition

Revenue streams

Key partners

Sales channels

Key activities Core resources

Fig. 6.7 Aspects of business capability

Front end

Middle end Business Model

Back end

No.

Business Model

No.

1

5G device sales

1

Device OEM/ODM

1

2

5G SaaS

Data center/network hardware sales

Slicing services for 5G private networks

2

2

Cloud resource O&M

3

Entrusted development and revenue sharing of SaaS

3

Network resource O&M

Data supply and governance

…

…

4

AI capability services

3

5

Edge/cloud computing services

4

AI model development

6

System integration

…

…

…

…

No.

Business Model

Fig. 6.8 Comparison of business models (key activities)

For instance, in the carrier-led model, network as a service (NaaS) is an important new model for 5GtoB services, which is based on network slicing and softwaredefined networking (SDN). Before 5G, mobile communications networks targeted customers and served only as physical carriers. With 5G, networks are more closely related to industry applications. In this sense, NaaS will generate more value for both carriers and industry customers. Through NaaS, carriers can standardize network

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capabilities and streamline the entire process of 5G network applications. And stakeholders, such as system integrators, developers, and industry customers, can apply network capabilities to their own development or applications through open application programming interfaces (APIs) provided by carriers. This makes services more convenient and better to support application development and customization. Function in 5GtoB Business models offer the economic rationality and business logic of 5GtoB services, providing enterprises with a complete path to turn 5GtoB services into reality. Peter Drucker, the founder of modern management, once said that the competition between enterprises today is not competition between products, but between business models. Existing enterprises need efficient and effective business models to survive and develop; it is also a prerequisite for new businesses to enter the market. Ultimately, the maturity of business models and key technologies will determine how 5GtoB develops. In general, enterprises use business models to determine what to sell (key services), who to sell it to (target market), and how to do so (strategic approach to customer relationships and sales channels). For instance, carriers have two core business models. They may sell network services or sell services along with service integration. Each model presents carriers with different value and benefits, but also requires different levels of investment and capabilities. In addition, industry customers in different fields, such as manufacturing, transportation, and healthcare, have varied requirements on networks, computing, cloud, and applications. Therefore, carriers need to explore different service scenarios. To determine the ideal business model, carriers need to analyze their own resources, capabilities, and objectives, finally determining the what, who, and how of their business model. For example, they may sell products indirectly through integration service providers; or act as the integration service provider and sell products directly. As discussed above in this chapter, success of 5GtoB is a combined effect of performance, efficiency, ecosystem, and business capabilities. 1.

2. 3.

Performance capability: 5G technical standards are continuously evolving to enhance 5G capabilities and applications in the three application scenarios of 5G defined by International Telecommunication Union (ITU): eMBB, URLLC, and mMTC. 5G standardization, end-to-end (E2E) network slicing, mmWave technology, and 5G virtual private networks (VPNs) for industries have progressed in phases. Enhancements in low latency, determinism, and ultra-reliability provide basic performance capabilities for vertical industries. Efficiency capability: The key is to build an industry and application enablement center, and develop efficient O&M and self-service capabilities for enterprises. Ecosystem capability: 5GtoB needs to rebuild traditional modes with new industry, technology, and application ecosystems to develop common core capabilities and support large-scale deployment of devices and modules. In addition, 5GtoB should take advantage of national policies and promote the integration

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6 Construction of the 5GtoB Success Factor System

of communications standards and industry standards in order to drive the digital transformation of various industries. Business capability: Carriers are shifting away from supply-centered, traffic monetizing network construction modes and instead turning toward demandand value-driven practices. 5GtoB field has witnessed multiple business models led by carriers, industry customers, and SIs. As business models change, more possibilities will appear in the future.

In the following four chapters, this book will further elaborate on the four core capabilities of 5GtoB business success.

Reference 1. Clarke, T., Ostwald, A., Pinea, Y. (trans.). (2012). BI C Y. Business model you: A one-page method for reinventing your career. Beijing: China Machine Press.

Chapter 7

5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Performance Capability

7.1 Evolution of 5G Technical Standards In 2016, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), an international communications standards organization, started formulating the global 5G technical standards. By January 2021, 3GPP had promulgated three 5G technical standard releases: Release 15, Release 16, and Release 17. The first of these arrived in June 2018, when 3GPP finalized Release 15. Release 15 supports not only eMBB technologies, but also standalone (SA) and non-standalone (NSA) according to global requirements. In July 2020, 3GPP Release 16 was frozen. This release is an enhancement to Release 15, and evolves the defined capabilities from usable to easy-to-use. In addition to enhancing eMBB service capabilities, Release 16 focuses on low-latency and highreliability application scenarios such as vehicle-to-everything (V2X) and industrial Internet. Before Release 16 was frozen, 3GPP had already begun to prepare for the formulation of Release 17 in Q4 2019. Finalization of Release 17 is expected to be in June 2022.

7.2 Three Major Application Scenarios of 5G The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) officially defined three 5G application scenarios in September 2015: enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC), and massive machine-type communications (mMTC). eMBB is a traditional mobile Internet scenario, which can be further divided into continuous wide-area coverage and high capacity at hotspots. Continuous wide-area coverage ensures mobility and service continuity for users. High capacity at hotspots provides high-speed data transmission. 4G networks can support basic services such as audio, video, and image. However, as users continuously pursue high-quality service experience, higher requirements are imposed on the data transmission rate © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_7

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and latency, which the existing 4G networks cannot meet. According to the key performance indicators (KPIs) of 5G defined by the ITU, the peak rate of 5G cells will be over 10 times higher than that of 4G cells. 5G can support immersive applications such as high-definition (HD) video, 3D video, and virtual reality (VR)/augmented reality (AR), dramatically improving user experience. URLLC is another important application scenario of 5G. It focuses on meeting the special application requirements for low latency and high reliability in industry applications, such as V2X, smart grid, and industrial control. mMTC applications are mainly oriented to Internet of Things (IoT) services. As a new scenario introduced by 5G, mMTC applications focus on massive IoT connections that are not sufficiently supported by traditional mobile communications.

7.3 Key Enabling Technologies for 5GtoB 7.3.1 5G Deterministic Networking 5G deterministic networking (5GDN) uses 5G network resources to build mobile private deterministic networks that can be predicted, planned, and verified, thereby providing a differentiated and deterministic service experience. 5G deterministic networks offer significant integration prospects for industry and the energy, multimedia, healthcare, and V2X sectors. For example, the primary 5G and industrial Internet integration scenarios include machine vision, HD video surveillance, and AR collaboration, all of which pose strict requirements on latency, bandwidth, and reliability, which 4G and Wi-Fi networks cannot satisfy. Consequently, the 5G deterministic network was developed. The planning and construction of 5G deterministic networks focus on the following CORE characteristics: cloud native (C), one core (O), real-time operation (R), and edge/enterprise (E). 5G deterministic networks meet the requirements of industry digitalization on 5G networks across three aspects: differentiated network with orchestration capabilities, private network with guaranteed data security, and DIY network with support for self-management and self-service.

7.3.2 Private 5G Virtualized Network for Industries A private 5G virtualized network for industries is a high-quality network—based on the 5G public network—designed to meet the service and security requirements of industry users. It is the core element that provides differentiated and partially selfoperated network services for industry users. The private 5G virtualized network for industries defines two application scenarios for services: local-area deployment and wide-area deployment.

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Local-area deployment is applicable to campus and factory enterprises to ensure that core services are not transmitted outside the premises and implement services using the local 5G network. Two solutions have been developed for local-area deployment based on the location of the core network elements. The first is to deploy the user plane functions (UPFs) of the core network at the network edge, that is, deploy the UPFs to the enterprise network, so that services are not transmitted outside the campus network. This reduces network construction and maintenance costs and applies to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). UPFs are responsible for splitting traffic of the public network and local industry services, and simultaneously carry public network and industry services. The second is to deploy all core network elements at the network edge to ensure that the control instructions and service data do not go out of the campus. Although all core network elements are deployed closer to users to provide better data and service isolation, the network construction and O&M costs are high. Therefore, this solution applies to large enterprises. In both solutions, a local self-service management platform can be established to interconnect with external capability openness platforms of carriers to enable self-service monitoring, management, and configuration. In addition, three solutions have been developed based on the utilization of wireless network frequencies and base stations. The first is that industry and public network users share frequencies and base stations for fast deployment and low costs. Quality of service (QoS) and slicing technologies can be used to preferentially guarantee resources for VIP users. The second is that frequencies are dedicated but base stations are shared, which provides high security and isolation but at high costs. This can be implemented by using technologies such as access control. The third is that both frequencies and base stations are dedicated, which provides ultra-high isolation and security but at even higher costs. As such, the wireless network is completely dedicated, similar to a physical private network. Wide-area deployment is applicable to cross-domain enterprises for secure transmission of different services in different industries. There are also two solutions developed for wide-area deployment. The first is network resource sharing. That is, industry users use 5G public network resources of carriers, and implement service priority guarantee and service aggregation through virtual private network (VPN) slices. VPN slices are cost-efficient and combine the radio access network (RAN), transport, and core network slices to meet the requirements of different industries. This solution is more suitable for SMEs. The second is to exclusively use physical resources. That is, industry enterprises have physically exclusive core network resources. Service assurance and physical security isolation are implemented through physical dedicated slices. This solution applies to enterprises that have strong requirements on security isolation, as the cost of physical dedicated slices is high.

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7.3.3 Edge Computing As 5G technologies continue to develop, the computing mode oriented to 5G industry applications has shifted from centralized to distributed, from peer-to-peer computing to cloud computing, and from device-cloud synergy to device-edge-cloud synergy. This trend requires computing capabilities at edge nodes in order to meet the requirements for processing a massive number of device nodes in the IoT era, hence the term “edge computing”. The goal of edge computing is to perform computing in close proximity to data sources and to users. In industry applications, computing should be performed on devices instead of only on the cloud. Edge computing aims to provide computing, storage, and connections as basic capabilities, thereby enabling digital, networked, and intelligent industries. While meeting industry requirements, 5G also drives new edge computing business models. First, applications are localized. Data looping is completed within campuses and enterprises to ensure data security. Second, content is distributed. Higher bandwidth content is distributed from the center to regions, and large volumes of data from connected vehicles or smart driving is distributed to the multi-access edge computing (MEC) cloud for real-time analysis and collaboration, avoiding bandwidth management on the core network. Finally, computing is performed on the edge. The requirements of new ultra-low latency services can only be met at the edge, as MEC apps are deployed close to users in order to reduce the time for data to be transmitted to the central cloud. Edge computing architecture also undergoes changes. The simple single-point connections between the edge cloud, edge gateway, edge controller, and application platform are now replaced by collaborative processing between each edge node and the cloud platform, and will eventually evolve into an edge intelligent platform equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) technologies.

7.3.4 Slicing Technology 5G network slicing is defined in 3GPP TS 23.501.1 By dividing a physical network into multiple logical networks, 5G network slicing enables carriers to build multiple private, virtual, isolated, and on-demand logical networks on one physical network, thereby meeting the network capability requirements of different industry users (such as latency, bandwidth, and connections).

1

According to 3GPP TS 23.501, a 5G slice is defined as follows: Network Slice: A logical network that provides specific network capabilities and network characteristics. Network Slice instance: A set of Network Function instances and the required resources (for example: compute, storage and networking resources) which form a deployed Network Slice.

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From the perspective of the ToB business model, industry customers have strict requirements for customized development and features. 5G network slicing, a key factor for 5G industry penetration, can provide customized network services that run independently and are isolated from each other. As end-to-end (E2E) logical networks are customized on demand, a 5G network slice involves the RAN, transport network, core network, and management domains. In 3GPP Release 16, which was finalized in July 2020, 5G network slicing has preliminarily achieved the functions and procedures for basic eMBB and URLLC services. This has laid a solid foundation for the first wave of 5G deployment and the commercial use of network slicing services. At the same time, 5G SA networks have been put into commercial use, which is essential for applying E2E network slicing technologies. 5G slicing is characterized by E2E service level agreement (SLA) assurance, service isolation, on-demand network function customization, and automation. 1.

E2E SLA assurance: 5G network slicing consists of multiple sub-domains, such as the core network, RAN, and transport network, and the SLA of network slices is composed of multiple functional parts which guarantee the networking capability of E2E devices. The implementation of a network slice requires collaboration between multiple domains, including network requirement breakdown, SLA breakdown, deployment, and networking collaboration. Figure 7.1 illustrates the E2E architecture of 5G network slicing.

The E2E slice management architecture consists of three key components: Communication Service Management Function (CSMF), Network Slice Management Function (NSMF), and Network Slice Subnet Management Function (NSSMF). CSMF is the entering point of slice design. It maps the requirements of the service system onto E2E network slicing requirements to support slice design on the NSMF. The CSMF is generally reconstructed from a carrier’s existing business support system (BSS).

BSS layer

CSMF Slice service management

OSS layer

NSMF E2E slice management

NSSMF Subnet slice management

NSSMF Subnet slice management

NSSMF Subnet slice management

NMS

NMS

NMS

NE

NE

NE

Fig. 7.1 E2E architecture of 5G network slicing

Management and Orchestration

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7 5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Performance Capability

NSMF implements E2E slice management and design. Based on E2E network slice requirements, the NSMF generates a slice instance, decomposes and combines the capabilities of each sub-domain or subnet, and transfers the sub-domain or subnet deployment requirements to the NSMF. The NSMF is generally provided by the cross-domain slice manager. NSSMF manages and designs slices within each sub-domain or subnet. The core network, transport network, and RAN each have their own NSSMFs. 2.

3.

4.

Security isolation: Network slicing constructs different network entities for different applications. These logically isolated private networks ensure that the services of each slice do not interfere with one another. On-demand network function customization: Based on the service-oriented architecture, the software architecture can be reconstructed as a service, which is the network orchestration capability. As a result, the 5G network provides different network capabilities specific to an application. In addition, the distributed architecture of 5G networks allows flexible selection of deployment locations based on the service’s bandwidth and latency requirements. Automation: Unlike the traditional approach of implementing all services over one network, 5G uses slicing technology to split one network into several. However, as this will inevitably complicate O&M, automation is a mandatory feature of 5G networks. At present, automation is mainly implemented by allowing the operations in each phase of the network slice lifecycle to be manually, semi-automatically, or automatically processed. Network planning capabilities, as well as network flattening and simplification, continue to develop, and will eventually result in full automation.

The boundary separating public cloud, private cloud, and edge computing has become increasingly blurred in recent years. In ToB services, 5G network slicing is also increasingly integrated with the cloud, edge, and devices. This integration can meet the customization requirements of most industries and enterprises for network assurance and application experience. Network slicing features E2E SLA assurance, efficient on-demand network capacity expansion, and security isolation at various levels. Public and private cloud suppliers can enable enterprises to deploy dedicated gateways and edge platforms. By combining network slicing and cloud services, network traffic can be steered to either edge nodes or centralized nodes based on specific requirements without being transmitted out of a campus, achieving E2E low latency. Additionally, network slicing creates new operation modes whereby traffic-based charging can be replaced by slice-based charging.

7.3.5 5G Uplink Enhancement Solution With the increased application of 5G into various industries such as steel, mining, port, and manufacturing, 5G video surveillance, 5G remote control, and 5G machine vision require real-time transmission of multiple channels of HD video, posing higher

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requirements on uplink capabilities. While the downlink peak rate of 5G networks has reached Gbps, the growing demand for higher uplink rates for ToB services shows that improvements are still required in this area. The industry is exploring additional methods to improve 5G uplink capabilities, including flexible frame structure, supplementary uplink (SUL), uplink carrier aggregation, and multi-band coordinated networking. 1.

Flexible frame structure 1D3U

Public network users predominantly require downlink resources. The mainstream 5G time division duplex (TDD) slot configurations are 8D2U and 7D3U, which allocate more downlink than uplink resources. In local-area scenarios with high uplink requirements, more resources can be allocated to the uplink by adjusting the slot configuration. The typical slot configuration is 1D3U, providing three times more uplink timeslots than 8D2U. Its peak rate of a single user approximates 750 Mbps, twice that of 8D2U. To meet the requirements of both high uplink (ToC) and high downlink (ToB), enabling the coexistence of and eliminating interference between two frame structures in the TDD system are the main challenges. To overcome these challenges, frame structures can be flexibly adjusted based on service requirements in scenarios without interference such as underground mines. As for semi-closed scenarios, the deployment distance between two types of base stations can be extended or interference mitigation methods can be used to enable different frame structures to co-exist. 2.

SUL

The SUL solution has been developed to improve uplink coverage. When a mobile phone is predominantly served by the TDD mid-band, the frequency division duplex (FDD) low band is also leveraged to increase the uplink bandwidth. For example, when uplink data is transmitted in the TDD mid-band, no uplink data is transmitted in the FDD low band. As such, the uplink throughput is increased due to the naturally high TDD bandwidth and because two transmit channels are open for a device. Alternatively, when downlink data is transmitted in the TDD band, uplink data is transmitted in the FDD band, alternating between the FDD and TDD timeslots so that uplink data is transmitted in all timeslots. 3.

Uplink carrier aggregation

Carrier aggregation (CA) is a technology that bundles two or more component carriers to aggregate scattered spectrums into a larger bandwidth, thereby providing higher network rates and spectral efficiency. Based on this principle, uplink CA aggregates the uplink frequency bands of different component carriers to improve the uplink capability. However, uplink CA requires binding of corresponding downlink component carriers. If an uplink resource of a component carrier is aggregated in the uplink, a downlink resource of the component carrier must also be aggregated in the downlink. As a result, the usage of downlink carrier resources must be considered in real network deployments.

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Multi-band coordinated networking

As 5G networks develop, the refarming of 2G and 3G low bands and commercial millimeter wave (mmWave) has become inevitable. In the future, multi-band networking of low bands, mid-bands, and mmWave can be used to improve uplink capacity and coverage. For example, low bands such as 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, and 1800 MHz are used to provide coverage, mid-bands such as 2.6 GHz, 3.5 GHz, and 4.9 GHz are used to guarantee capacity, and a 26 GHz or 28 GHz mmWave is used to provide large-bandwidth capacity. To summarize, for 5G to enable digital transformation of ToB services, flexible slot configuration, SUL, uplink CA, and new networking solutions are urgently required. These will enable 5G networks to evolve from gigabit for individuals to gigabit for everyone, and from gigabit in the downlink only to gigabit in both the uplink and downlink, accelerating the digital development of society.

7.3.6 URLLC Technologies Another typical service in the industry is the URLLC service for small packet control. Typical scenarios include collaborative automated control between machines and wireless input/output (I/O) modules in robots in smart manufacturing as well as differential protection in smart grids. URLLC services have small data packets and low bandwidth requirements, but require low latency and high reliability. To enable URLLC services in the industry, the latency, reliability, and network capability that can be achieved need to be analyzed based on various combinations of URLLC technologies. 1.

Hierarchical latency

The E2E latency of a 5G network consists of air interface and transmission latency, which can be reduced by introducing enhanced technologies such as flexible frame structures and traffic distribution at base stations, respectively. The requirement on latency in the industry ranges from 5 to 30 ms. These enhanced technologies can be used together to provide hierarchical latency, meeting the ultralow latency requirements of industry applications such as industrial control. Based on the network capability and diversified service requirements, the network round-trip time (RTT) latency can be classified into the following four levels. 2.

Hierarchical reliability

To meet the high industry’s reliability requirement, redundancy transmission technologies such as repeat transmission and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) packet replication and technologies that reduce coding efficiency such as light-load downlink control information (DCI) formats and low channel quality indicator (CQI)

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109

or modulation and coding scheme (MCS) tables can be used together to provide hierarchical reliability for industry customers. Based on the network capability and diversified service requirements, network reliability can be classified into the following four levels. 3.

Technologies enabling ultra-low latency

3GPP Release 15 and Release 16 have defined key URLLC technologies, such as mini-slot, scheduling-free, enhanced device capabilities, and URLLC service preemption. In addition, algorithm parameters of the frame structure and scheduling request (SR) period can be flexibly configured with function switches based on service requirements to utilize hierarchical air interface latency capabilities.

7.3.7 5G MmWave System Compared with 4G, the rate and capacity of 5G networks are 10-fold higher. Extending the working bandwidth is the most direct and efficient method to meet the requirements of ToB industries for high bandwidth and low latency. Currently, there is no suitable sub-6 GHz working spectrum for large bandwidths of 5G, while mmWave supports higher bandwidths in higher frequency bands. Therefore, using an mmWave system to support 5G communications has become a direction for the industry. 5G mmWave has six advantages, which are ultra-high bandwidth (peak > 2 Gbps), easy combination with beamforming, ultra-low latency (air interface latency lowest to 0.125 ms), support for dense cell deployment, high-precision positioning, and high device integration. The World Radiocommunication Conference 2019 (WRC-19) of ITU determined that mmWave bands between 24 GHz and 86 GHz will be used for international mobile telephony (IMT), among which the 24.25–27.5, 37–43.5 GHz, and 66– 71 GHz frequency bands are IMT spectrums that will be used globally. By August 2020, 22 carriers worldwide have deployed mmWave 5G systems, of which AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon in the U.S., NTT DOCOMO in Japan, and SKT in South Korea have begun providing commercial services using mmWave. The U.S. is also considering 26 GHz, which is already used in Europe, in addition to 28 GHz and 24 GHz. In China, mmWave is also an important direction for promoting the steady commercial rollout of 5G. Early in July 2017, the Chinese government approved the research and testing of 5G technologies in the mmWave frequency ranges of 24.75–27.5 GHz and 37–42.5 GHz. More recently in March 2020, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) released the Notice Concerning Promoting the Accelerated Development of 5G, proposing mmWave device and performance tests based on the country’s frequency planning progress to prepare for the commercial use of 5G mmWave technologies and release 5G mmWave frequency band usage plans in due time. In June 2020, China developed the complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) mmWave fully integrated four-tunnel phased-array chipset, and completed the chipset encapsulation and testing.

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3GPP Release 15 has incorporated mmWave, formulating the standards for sub6 GHz low bands and standardizing the working frequency bands of above-6 GHz including mmWave. Research on mmWave modeling is also carried out, and a model that supports up to 100 GHz is set up, covering mmWave devices that are being developed in the industry. In 3GPP Release 16, the basic New Radio (NR) functions (including mmWave) of Release 15 are enhanced, and the focus is on improving the efficiency of the mmWave system and reducing communications latency. For example, by introducing some default configurations, information such as Antenna Port-Sounding Reference Signal (AP-SRS) space correlation can be quickly obtained to simplify configuration and enhance performance. 3GPP Release 17 will introduce more 5G NR enhanced features that support mmWave for medium- and high-speed mobility scenarios.

7.3.8 5G NR Base Station Positioning Technology 3GPP Release 16 focuses on supporting vertical industry applications, whereby 5G NR base station positioning technology is one of the key technologies. In 3GPP Release 15, 5G chipsets are unable to achieve precise positioning without the help of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, whereas in 3GPP Release 16, 5G chipsets can preliminarily reach a positioning accuracy of 3 m indoors, 80% of the time. 3GPP Release 17 is expected to build on that success, with aims of achieving a submeter-level positioning accuracy within 0.2 m according to the positioning requirements of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) defined in 3GPP TS 22.804. 5G NR base stations can now support multiple positioning technologies, such as multi-point round-trip time (RTT), angle of arrival (AoA), and observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA), by leveraging the large bandwidth and multi-beam features of 5G networks. Precise positioning technologies are crucial to promoting and developing vertical applications, such as public security and indoor navigation. Positioning based on cellular technologies and existing global navigation satellite systems (GNSSs) can also complement each other. Through leveraging the key enabling technologies of 5G, map service providers have accomplished data collaboration on the cloud, and by sharing mutually-obtained data and accelerating locating algorithms between each other, operation costs can be reduced. While 5G base stations are deployed indoors, other sensors or transmitters can be deployed on these base stations, slashing the deployment costs of other positioning technologies. 5G NR positioning technologies now support two forms of applications. The first is security management, which focuses on real-time positioning of indoor personnel, devices, and assets to ensure indoor areas are secure. The second is operation big data analytics, which focuses on places that have a heavy customer flow, such as shopping malls, and analyzes customer volume and consumption habits by utilizing 5G positioning technologies.

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7.3.9 PNI-NPN Kite-Like Solution The public network integrated non-public network (PNI-NPN) kite-like solution supports using a 5GtoB public network for private use and provides high-performance and high-reliability 5G networks for industry customers. It accelerates the development of the 5GtoB industry, helps realize the business value of 5G, and unleashes new momentum for the digital economy. It has been an industry consensus that 5G enables various industries. In addition to the high expectations on 5GtoB, challenges have arisen as industry users have far higher requirements on network capabilities than common consumers. For example, the production system of an enterprise needs to run as normal even if the connection to the public network is interrupted. This makes high network reliability and privacy protection mandatory to construct networks for enterprises. For example, core production services must always be running in scenarios such as remote centralized control of fully-mechanized coal mining, unmanned driving of rack track cars, remote control of port gantry cranes, AI-assisted visual quality inspection for computer, communication, and consumer electronics (3C) manufacturing, programmable logic controller (PLC) devices, and intelligent distributed power distribution automation of power grids. Industry customers’ requirements for 5G networks are also much higher than those for ToC communications. Despite its small size, an industry private network has high requirements on network capacity and reliability to ensure that faults on the network do not affect the normal running of the production system. Therefore, improving network reliability and availability is the key to the success of 5GtoB public networks for private use. It is essential to develop a secure, reliable, and efficient solution to enable a public network for private use so as to facilitate the steady development and maturity of 5GtoB industry. The innovative PNI-NPN kite-like solution can ensure the normal running of the enterprise production system when the connection to the public network is interrupted. When the control plane of the enterprise’s on-premises private network is disconnected from the central network, the control plane for disaster recovery can automatically take over. This enables seamless switchover with the local network, while ensuring services are not interrupted. Figure 7.2 illustrates how the PNI-NPN kite-like solution is implemented. An enterprise’s on-premises private network can be compared to a kite and the network connection between it and the carrier’s 5G public network to the string. The public network guides the on-premises network to synchronize data and perform network O&M in real time through the string. If the string is cut, the emergency control plane of the on-premises private network takes over campus services to ensure key production services run as normal. In this way, disaster redundancy is possible based on the public network to cope when connections to the central network are unavailable. This significantly improves

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5GC Central

Metropolitan

App

Edge

MEC

Emergency control plane

Enterprise premises Even if the network connection is interrupted, the emergency control plane can take over campus services, ensuring services run as normal.

Fig. 7.2 PNI-NPN kite-like solution

the reliability of the 5G private network and ensures the high availability of the enterprise production system, offering additional guarantee for enterprise users whose on-premises networks are based on public networks. If this solution is implemented using the traditional ToC-oriented delivery models, the network scale will be huge, resulting in large footprint, high power consumption, and low delivery efficiency. Also, the cost, reliability, and O&M capability cannot meet the requirements of 5GtoB industry private networks. Therefore, the industry is exploring the integrated solution for enterprise private networks. This solution uses one cabinet to integrate devices such as the miniaturized UPF/MEC nodes, wireless baseband units (BBUs), routers and switches, firewalls, and edge applications, as illustrated in Fig. 7.3. It simplifies the networking and overall configuration quotation and supports fast delivery, achieving easy sales and delivery at low cost.

Server (UPF/MEC)

Rack

Disk array

Router / Switch

Firewall

Fig. 7.3 Diagram of the integrated cabinet

BBU

RRU

7.3 Key Enabling Technologies for 5GtoB Table 7.1 Latency levels

Table 7.2 Reliability levels

113

Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Level 4

>25 ms

15–25 ms

5–15 ms

≤5 ms

Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Level 4

≤90%

90–99%

99–99.999%

≥99.9999%

In addition, this integrated cabinet solution supports centralized maintenance and management (such as work order dispatching and fault recovery) of the 5GtoB private network and provides enterprises with self-service capabilities to implement quick response, SLA visualization, and quick fault demarcation. With the integrated cabinet, the industry private network can better support cloud-edge collaboration, introduce the industry application ecosystem, share abundant applications, and expand the computing capability. To sum up, the PNI-NPN kite-like solution based on the integrated cabinet enables easy delivery at low costs, provides high-performance and high-reliability 5GtoB private networks, enhances the digital transformation of industrial manufacturing enterprises, and improves the value of the digital economy. It also includes the following features: • High reliability with service continuity: The emergency control plane is deployed on premises and synchronizes data with the central network in real time. If the connection to the central network is interrupted, the local network can seamlessly take over services to ensure the key production systems run as normal. • High efficiency without increasing manpower: The edge integrated delivery mode is used with plug-and-play and one-click deployment, considerably improving the delivery efficiency. • High security for data transmission: MEC is deployed in enterprise premises and data is transmitted within the campus, ensuring the security of data for enterprises.

Chapter 8

5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Efficiency Capability

8.1 Building Efficient Operation Capabilities 5G is ushering in a new era of the Internet of Everything (IoE), where industry applications are expected to outnumber consumer applications, signaling a major turning point for mobile Internet. Despite the large-scale deployment of 5G networks by carriers, there is a lack of innovative 5G industry applications, and this represents a significant area for growth. Most consumer applications are standardized, whereas industry applications have varying features and network requirements. Therefore, delivering a diverse range of 5G applications is only achievable if all industry parties come together and leverage each other’s technical expertise. Also, a new operation and business model needs to be explored during the development of 5G applications to achieve collaboration and sustainable development among equipment vendors, carriers, developers, platform providers, integrators, and enterprises, to create a thriving industry. The crucial thing is to provide a platform for developers to directly subscribe to encapsulated application programming interfaces (APIs) for capabilities such as 5G network slicing and complete all-cloud online development using only a few additional codes. On this platform, the carrier capability openness center can expose 5G network capabilities in the form of APIs. Asset developers encapsulate APIs into standardized and reusable digital assets and then release them. Application developers can subscribe to and install required assets on the platform and use development components to integrate the subscribed assets for fast application development in a way that is similar to building blocks. To achieve this, the platform must have the following features: First, it needs to provide an application development process that streamlines the R&D, operation, and O&M processes, as well as a series of enablement services such as identity authentication and blockchain, allowing enterprise applications to automatically acquire cloud native capabilities. This simplifies development and slashes costs, while also improving the efficiency of development. The platform should at © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_8

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least provide development modes such as full-code, light-code, and codeless, for the flexibility of different developers. An all-cloud lightweight application orchestration development tool should be provided to support inexperienced account assistants develop services by combining basic blocks, making 5G application development easy and convenient. In this way, developers can focus on innovating services to boost the growth of 5G. Second, the platform needs to introduce digital assets and a transaction operation system to provide a one-stop business development ecosystem for asset accumulation, sharing, and monetization. It should be able to implement full-lifecycle governance, such as digital asset application, review, release, rollout, subscription, measurement, and installation. Typical digital assets that can be accumulated include: • Integration of all basic 5G network assets, such as 5G slicing • Service assets, such as ICT capabilities including IoT, intelligence, and geographic information system (GIS), and development capabilities of common page components including charts and maps • Various application assets, such as large screens and demo applications, supporting quick development and customization • Data assets. As assets accumulate and application development and business development support each other, the entire ecosystem will become increasingly strong, and individual parties and the ecosystem will work and prosper together. Through end-to-end (E2E) application development and a one-stop business ecosystem, the whole process from 5G network capabilities, asset development and operation to application development can be conveniently streamlined, accelerating the agile construction and large-scale commercialization of 5G applications and enabling industries to create new value. Although rich 5G industry applications will power ToB applications, 5G must go through an ultra-long industry chain and a complex transaction chain in actual ToB applications. In most cases, the success of a 5GtoB project involves five resource types, namely, industry applications, cloud resources such as software as a service (SaaS), platform as a service (PaaS), and infrastructure as a service (IaaS), traditional IT devices (servers, storage, and OS), 5G network, and devices, and seven roles (industry application providers, cloud service providers, traditional IT device vendors, 5G carriers, 5G network equipment vendors, device vendors, and system integrators). These resources and roles are aggregated through various transaction paths. For example, industry applications and cloud resources are directly purchased by enterprises, whereas traditional IT devices, 5G networks, services, and devices are usually purchased by integrators. In fact, 5G networks are purchased by carriers from equipment vendors, and then integrators integrate these resources and services from end to end. As a result, four transaction models are involved, which are complex and severely affect the rapid popularization and application of 5GtoB.

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→

Network capabilities →

capabilities

products

Network resources

Abstract modeling of core capabilities

Network products

Value →

→ standardized

Product/offering definition of core capabilities

maximized

Product and offering orchestration/release

Industry customers

Network resources

Inside-Out: Orchestratable network resources and operation capabilities enable business success.

Scenario-specific solution

Outside-In: New services and business models raise new requirements for resource capabilities.

Fig. 8.1 Four phases of online and cloud-based transformation of 5G networks

Offline mode is not suitable for tackling these problems, so in order to solve the large-scale application of 5G in industry digital transformation, online and cloudbased transformation, which is also the trend and direction of industry digital transformation, is required. Shortening the industry chain is a challenge, and therefore the only solution is to optimize the transaction chain and improve efficiency. To shorten the transaction chain, a platform is required as the unified portal. This portal needs to have the preceding two characteristics, which are naturally provided if it is built on the cloud. This raises the question—is it possible that the five resource types required by 5GtoB can be integrated into this portal? Usually, the public cloud and industry cloud have application enablement and aggregation platforms, while cloud services are also inherited. Firstly, the 5G networks and devices of carriers must be migrated to the cloud, and then other traditional IT devices will be migrated to cloud services over time. The online and cloud-based transformation of 5G networks is the biggest challenge, which requires the following four phases (see Fig. 8.1). First, 5G network resources need to be abstracted and modeled to form fixed core capabilities, such as large bandwidth, low latency, and high-precision positioning. These core capabilities reflect the characteristics of 5G networks and embody the requirements of industry customers. Second, the abstracted core capabilities need to be defined as products, marked with prices and measurement methods, and then become tradable commodities. Third, to sell and promote more diverse offerings, the problem of using different systems in different countries must be resolved, formulating unified functions, performance, and interface standards, and regulating the upstream and downstream parties. Advanced product and offering orchestration technologies and tools can then be used. In this way, 5G network products and offerings that adhere to a unified standard can be formed, enabling automatic and agile provisioning.

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5G smart campus 3D security solution

Panoramic VR live broadcast service

Virtual human anatomy teaching

AR enterprise service

AR remote collaboration

Industry solutions

5G slicing service (carrier)

Campus security application (partners)

Cloud/AI service (HUAWEI CLOUD)

5G Security Protection - Basic

Campus IOC basic service

Intelligent EdgeFabric (IEF)

5G Security Protection - Premium

Campus overall situation analysis

Face Recognition Service (FRS)

5G Security Protection - Ultimate

Security robot

IaaS

Fig. 8.2 Mapping between scenarios and solutions

Finally, these products and offerings are modified into cloud services and brought online to the public cloud and industry cloud, becoming 5G network cloud services that can be subscribed to, enabled, and maintained online. The online and cloud-based transformation of the five resource types is only the first step to simplifying the transaction chain. The online products are still service products that are listed one by one. The next step is to solve how these products are selected and used by industry customers. Generally, the design solutions of industries are based on scenarios, and then a number of solution components are selected and integrated together. With this in mind, forming scenario-specific solutions based on the five resource types to match the requirements of industry customers is an important step to streamlining the transaction chain. Figure 8.2 illustrates an example. The incubation of industry solutions starts from the in-depth analysis of industry requirements and characteristics, and such solutions are explored in projects on a oneby-one basis, based on sub-scenarios to form baseline solutions. The five resource types are effectively integrated and accumulated to form a variety of solution assets. The final step to simplifying the transaction chain is to implement one-stop subscription and provisioning at the solution level after industry solutions are formed, which signals a major challenge. The key is whether the solutions can be standardized and whether standardized solutions can meet the differentiated requirements of industry customers. Industries and scenarios that are easy to standardize, such as the clothing industry and video surveillance, are good starting points for forming stepby-step industry standards and driving the improvement of peripheral technologies, tools, and devices, gradually transitioning to deep water zones. Figure 8.3 illustrates the ToB operation mode of 5G. The transaction mode of industry customers is streamlined through a unified portal, the deployment mode

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Industry customers

SaaS PaaS and IaaS

Industry solution SIs

Industry application ISVs

5G network capability subscription/invocation

Carrier (NaaS) Equipment + installation

5G network capability opening up and made available

Flow of funds Technology integration

Device procurement

2. Platform leasing

Industry application ecosystem

1. Service subscription

Applications

Cloud service providers

Communications network providers Industry device suppliers

Fig. 8.3 Target 5GtoB operation mode

of enterprise systems is simplified through cloud-based and online operations, and the offline integration by industry solution system integrators (SIs) can supplement online operation mode.

8.2 Building Efficient O&M Capabilities 5G networks are crucial to an industry production system and are expected to provide deterministic service level agreements (SLAs) (high bandwidth, low latency, and high reliability) for ensuring production security and improving efficiency. However, ToB industries vary tremendously, so do their services. Therefore, customized modeling is required for specific scenarios. When 5G networks are used for production, carriers provide SLA commitments. Therefore, better real-time performance is required for quick fault demarcation and responsibility clarification. Providing deterministic SLAs is the major selling point of 5G networks for ToB customers. However, traditional O&M methods cannot meet the SLA requirements as they lack the following monitoring and management capabilities: • E2E real-time monitoring for ToB services

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ToB customers require E2E precise monitoring within seconds or minutes. • Quick fault demarcation of ToB service issues Quick fault demarcation is required to support fast troubleshooting on devices, radio access networks (RANs), transport and core networks. • O&M capabilities The traditional multi-level O&M process is lengthy, cross-domain collaboration is difficult, and troubleshooting efficiency is low. Traditional O&M organizations are oriented to ToC services on large networks rather than dedicated to ToB services. • Local processing and lightweight platform for service experience data The traditional O&M and monitoring architecture is based on a large volume of data and cannot meet the requirements of in-campus information security and lightweight platform for ToB services. Furthermore, industry customers have a different way of understanding the SLA, which is based on user experience, while the ICT industry offers an SLA based on network connection indicators. Network connection indicators in the ICT industry usually refer to bandwidth and latency. However, from the perspective of service experience, industry customers are more concerned about image clarity and smoothness, artifacts, dizziness, operation responsiveness, and service continuity. Therefore, scenario-specific mapping between the two SLAs must be determined to develop a simple, standardized, and replicable SLA system based on user experience. Service modeling is mainly based on actual ToB service experience, such as subjective experience scoring (similar to key quality indicator, or KQI), objective statistics comparison, quantified image clarity definition, artifact-free duration, service interruption-free duration, and operation response duration. Then, network connection indicators, such as the I-frame interval, P-frame rate, number of frames per second (FPS), frame collision, bit rate, control precision, application-layer heartbeat, escape delay, and read period, are calculated using values from actual devices and applications. On this basis, 5GtoB SLA planning, construction, maintenance, and optimization capabilities are built through standardization and instrumentalization to achieve precise planning, fast provisioning, SLA visualization, fast demarcation and locating, and SLA assurance. First, network planning and SLA assurance need to be implemented based on ToB service SLA requirements. By abstracting the core applications of ToB services and finding SLA requirements based on scenarios, experience modeling can be developed. By identifying the relationships between the rate, latency, coverage, and capacity through big data analytics, network construction standards can be formed. RAN, transport network, and core network multi-access edge computing (MEC) systems are planned based on application requirements of ToB users and live network resources. Generally, there are four phases: planning, construction, maintenance, and optimization. These are as follows: • Planning focuses on experience modeling, network construction standards, and precise planning, including experience modeling, ToB service metrics system,

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experience standards, network construction standards, 3D coverage planning, campus capacity design, uplink and downlink rate simulation, and MEC deployment evaluation and planning. • Construction means to implement agile cross-domain and cross-vendor provisioning through open and standardized interfaces, including interface openness, interface standardization, service configuration automation, and card issuing and account registration automation. • Maintenance refers to network-, slice-, service-, and tenant-level visualization and management, real-time SLA visualization, and quick fault demarcation and locating. This includes network-level visualization, slice-level visualization, service-level visualization, and tenant-level visualization, alarm performance management, E2E rate and latency fault demarcation, and E2E rate and latency fault locating. • Optimization refers to special optimization of SLA assurance (such as rate or latency assurance), including downlink rate assurance, uplink rate assurance, latency assurance, and resource reservation optimization. The implementation of 5GtoB network planning consists of two layers. The first layer is the network construction standards, ToB user requirements, and live network resources, while the second layer is the network planning mapped to the RANs, transport networks, and core networks. There are two phases for formulating network construction standards: service scenario sorting and experience modeling, of which the service scenarios include ToB private line and ToB campus. ToB private line can be divided into dedicated data access (DDA) for data transmission, dedicated Internet access (DIA) for video web browsing, and police car or unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) inspection. ToB campus can be divided into video uploading and remote control. Experience modeling maps service scenarios to industry service quality, such as uplink rate, downlink rate, packet loss rate, latency, motion-to-photon (MTP), jitter, round-trip time (RTT), and frame freezing. This further affects specific network construction standard indicators, such as Synchronization Signal Based Reference Signal Received Power (SSB RSRP), SSB Signal to Interference Plus Noise Ratio (SSB SINR), number of sites, spectrum resources, Channel State Information (CSI) RSRP, CSI SINR, slot configuration, and cell load. The distribution heat map and campus application must be clarified for ToB users, with the specified coverage, load, capacity, and topology of live network resources. The second layer includes: coverage planning, capacity planning, accurate rate simulation, rate assurance based on assurance features, and latency planning on the RAN side; topology restoration, capacity planning, rate assurance based on quality of service (QoS), and latency planning when the load is less than 50% on the transport network side; MEC local deployment planning based on services and latency and MEC design on the core network side. The planning and design are implemented using tools. In short, precise network construction is implemented based on the heat map of ToB resources, marketing efficiency is improved by embedding the heat map of ToB user distribution into the customer decision-making and production systems,

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Table 8.1 Responsibilities of each party according to the SLA Service scenario

Customer

SI

Carrier

ISV

Industry cloud service provider

AR remote collaborative assembly

A steel company

A telecom carrier

A telecom carrier

An AR application ISV

A telecom carrier

Factory monitoring

A power grid company

An SI

A telecom carrier

A video surveillance ISV

A telecom carrier

and SLA assurance is implemented through network planning based on ToB service experience. Second, real-time service experience monitoring and quick fault demarcation capabilities must be provided. Service rates can be collected on the user plane ingress of the access router (AR) or customer-premises equipment (CPE) and 5G core (5GC), while service latency and availability data is collected on the device and cloud through software development kit (SDK) implantation (restricted to applications). Intermediate network devices need to support rate or latency dotting and data reporting, and demarcation can be performed based on SDK data. This ensures that service quality (private line service traffic, latency, and service availability) can be perceived in real time. For exceptions in traffic, rate, latency, or service availability for private lines, it can be quickly determined whether the exceptions are caused by enterprises or carriers. If they are caused by carriers, it can be further determined whether the exception occurs on the RAN, transport network, or core network quickly. Additionally, 5GtoB SLA assurance is complex and involves 5G networks, industry applications, and services. An SI should be responsible for the overall assurance and assign tasks to carriers, cloud service providers, independent software vendors (ISVs) or independent hardware vendors (IHVs) for industry applications according to the responsibility matrix, and then coordinate each party to fulfill its responsibilities according to the SLA. Table 8.1 lists two examples. The purpose of efficient O&M is to implement streamlined and agile processes for planning, construction, maintenance, optimization, and marketing (see Fig. 8.4). Such an architecture is based on the general O&M middle-end and integrates dedicated plug-ins for various industries. On top of this, AI-powered intelligent and automated tools are used to improve work efficiency and support cloud-based centralized O&M or localized O&M in enterprises.

8.3 Building Self-service Capabilities for Enterprises Once 5G networks are extensively integrated in enterprises’ production process, network stability and reliability will be even more important. Large enterprises have strong O&M capabilities and are eager to take over network O&M to ensure that the

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Pipelined Planning - Construction Maintenance - Optimization - Marketing

Process reshaping

Architecture definition

Dedicated plug-ins Satisfying requirements of various industries

Business requirement loop-closing

Agility Introduction of advanced O&M concepts

Common middle-end Data sharing of common issues

Full autonomy Intelligence Introduction of training/inference capabilities Technical means

Tools Introduction of automation tools

Deployment mode

Centralization and cloudification Unified view & cost effectiveness Localization Security, isolation, and responsiveness

Fig. 8.4 Purpose of efficient O&M

network quality is sufficiently aligned with the production process and faults can be detected and resolved dynamically to minimize their impacts. From this perspective, self-service systems are becoming necessary for large enterprises. For small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the onsite services provided by carriers are costly. However, some simple and common operations can be performed by enterprises themselves to reduce costs. Therefore, these SMEs require telecom carriers to provide cost-efficient and shared self-service portals. In general, enterprise self-service systems are being developed to achieve the following three goals: • Integrated management of devices, RANs, transport networks, and core networks Build one portal to manage the full lifecycle of a 5G telecom network end-to-end. • Right- and domain-based management of multiple tenants and deployment on public and private clouds Allow different sectors within an enterprise or different SMEs to manage their own networks using the same device, ensuring security isolation. • Unified management of 5G and Wi-Fi In an enterprise campus, there are both 5G devices and their traditional counterparts such as Wi-Fi. Using one system to manage these devices simultaneously can further reduces costs.

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8.3.1 Integrated E2E 5GtoB Telecom Solution Management As mentioned in Sect. 8.2 “Building Efficient O&M Capabilities”, enterprise selfservice also needs to implement full-lifecycle management covering planning, construction, maintenance, and optimization. Planning Planning and construction of the enterprise network must be based on concrete service requirements. Due to their limited knowledge of 5G networks, enterprises may not raise feasible requirements for network planning. Therefore, self-service systems must allow enterprises to plan their networks with simple inputs, that is, service requirements. These simple service requirements are referred to as intents. After inputting these intents, the enterprise self-service system can intelligently interpret them to seamlessly meet the SLA requirements of carriers for industry network construction. This is challenging because the incumbent network planning tools are mainly designed to meet the requirements of ToC public networks, and they evaluate requirements predominantly based on coverage and capacity. But for ToB services, other requirements are also necessary to meet, such as low latency and high packet reliability, and indoor scenarios must also be considered. Enterprises may also expect flexible production, meaning the network requirements must adapt to changing production requirements. In addition, 5G application in enterprises initially extends in smaller scales, such as by one campus or factory at a time. Therefore, enterprises need to frequently plan small-scale networks. In the future, network planning needs to evolve from manual to tool-assisted and eventually to automated, integrated tools. This will shorten the time required to around 10 hours. Construction The enterprise self-service system streamlines the planning, design, and deployment processes and integrates scenario-based configuration baselines to deploy sites with ultra-simple parameter configurations. In this self-service system, the planning result is sent to the site design process as inputs. Then, during site design, the configuration parameter baselines for different service scenarios (such as gantry cranes at ports and automated guided vehicles) provided by default can be used to generate site configuration information, which is then sent to the network devices. In this way, quick streamlined operations are realized. After the deployment is complete, acceptance including an automatic scenariobased baseline parameter check, automatic device commissioning, and device load simulation will be conducted on individual sites and the network as a whole. Industry customers are also more concerned about fulfilling service requirements. As such, simulated dialing tests using CPEs are required for acceptance integrating rates and latency. Essentially, automation must be achieved wherever possible to reduce the workload of industry customers and integrators and implement on-demand simplified provisioning.

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Maintenance For enterprise 5G networks, functions such as campus topology visualization, SLA monitoring, fault management and demarcation, and self-service (adding, deleting, modifying, and querying) of campus services and devices must be provided for maintenance. E2E topology visualization is the first step. Many enterprises do not have the capability to manually modify the network in the early stage of 5G deployment. However, they need to monitor the network performance and alarms generated in real time online. Therefore, the following capabilities must be provided: • E2E slice topology visualization • Visualization of devices and enterprise services associated with slices • Visualization of topology-related alarms to facilitate fault demarcation. To effectively monitor SLAs, the SLA of each application scenario must meet the production standard and support fine-grained monitoring management. • Device-level SLA visualization: including incident alarm generation and statistics from experience indicators • Service flow path restoration: restoration of service flow paths that go through network elements (NEs), including devices, ARs, CPEs, gNodeBs, user-plane functions (UPFs), and servers • Real-time experience tracing: minute-level tracing of service experience indicators in real time • One-click demarcation: quick demarcation of faults in network entities based on the current alarm or incident • Real-time test: invocation of routers and CPEs to perform pinging, speed tests, and user-defined dialing tests in real time; collection of indicators; and display of test results. Network device monitoring has the following features: • Network panorama: overview of the campus network quality • Factory-region hierarchical display of the campus network resources and topology • Campus self-monitoring and self-O&M: – Detects device, network, and service problems on the campus network and quickly demarcates the problems to the enterprise or carrier side. – Proactively monitors the running status of the network in the campus, reducing potential risks. – Reports faults to carriers online, ensuring SLA quality of services. Device self-service allows enterprises to manage SIM card numbers (including enabling SIM card number resources) without the help of carriers, saving time and costs.

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Optimization Optimization includes basic parameter checks, problem identification, gap analysis, optimization and adjustment, and service verification. Multiple operations are performed to improve the handover success rate and optimize the coverage and performance (such as the user-perceived rates).

8.3.2 Rights- and Domain-Based Management of Multiple Tenants The enterprise self-service system also needs to provide hierarchical management and rights for industry customer groups. This way, different departments (such as headquarter and workshop O&M) can view different networks, and different personnel are granted different operation permissions (read-only, modification, and global modification), meeting security compliance requirements. Purchasing an independent self-service system is costly for SMEs. To reduce costs, they prefer to share a management device with other SMEs. As such, the enterprise self-service system must have the multi-tenant capability, with each tenant being an SME. Tenants are isolated from each other, and each tenant can manage only their own network equipment and devices. As the number of managed devices increases, the self-service system needs to support gradual capacity expansion to protect investments. To follow the going-cloud trend and support centralized operation, the self-service system can be deployed on the public cloud and provide services in SaaS mode. The advantages of this include short deployment periods, minute-level provisioning, optimal costs, elastic capacity, O&M-free, and continuous software version updates. However, this mode does not enable data to be stored locally. Therefore, it is the cost-effective choice for SMEs that do not require high security.

Chapter 9

5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Ecosystem Capability

9.1 Developing Common Core Capabilities 5G is applied to various vertical industries with different device and application requirements. As 5G integrated applications develop, the common requirements for 5G devices and applications posed by key industries are becoming clear. Essentially, there are six general-purpose devices and capabilities: common devices include 4K/8K video and virtual reality (VR)/augmented reality (AR) devices, robots, unmanned devices (vehicles, ships, aerial vehicles, and large machinery), industry gateways, and sensors; common capabilities include live broadcasting and monitoring, intelligent identification, remote control, precise positioning, provision of an immersive experience, and ubiquitous Internet of Things (IoT) (see Fig. 9.1). In terms of devices, the deep integration of 5G and industry applications has enabled the development of various types of smart devices. New 5G devices, such as AR/VR devices, robots, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), will reshape the traditional smartphone-dominated mobile device market. 4K/8K is becoming a standard resolution for ultra-high-resolution (UHD) live broadcasting in the 5G era, and 4K/8K devices are being widely used in UHD live broadcasts of sports events, UHD real-time video surveillance, remote UHD video consultation in healthcare, and intelligent monitoring of industrial production environments such as steel and mining. VR, AR, and mixed reality (MR) smart glasses are increasingly popular among game users and in VR exhibition halls, AR-assisted assembly, and remote workshops. Amid the 2020 pandemic, 5G medical robots are widely adopted to perform ultrasound examinations, temperature measurements, sterilization and cleaning, and medicine and meal distribution. Mobile inspection robots are also being used in smart mining for detection and inspection of underground locations. Unmanned equipment includes unmanned vehicles used for material transportation or handling of goods in factory campuses and mining areas; unmanned ships used for river inspection and water quality monitoring; and 5G connected UAVs used for daily inspection, disinfection, power line inspection, and freight logistics. Industry gateways function as the unified entrance and exit for traffic of all devices in a specified area, such as factory © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_9

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Industry digitalization Smart mining

Smart factory

Smart port Smart grid Smart transportation Smart agriculture Unmanned device

5G

4K/8K

Sensors

Smart education AR/VR

Ubiquitous IoT

Smart culture & tourism

Smart city

Robots Smart government affairs

Smart healthcare

Smart security

Smart environmental protection

Digital governance

Fig. 9.1 Six general-purpose devices and capabilities

workshops, hospital wards, and sports venues, and implement remote monitoring and control of onsite devices. These gateways are expected to become the management and control center of all devices. Sensors are built in production devices, public facilities, household appliances, and wearables. Real-time collection and management of data and big data analysis may foster intelligent devices that are capable of predictive maintenance, status monitoring, and health monitoring. In terms of the development trend, the high bandwidth and low latency of 5G reduces the weight of devices. The deployment of 5G and multi-access edge computing (MEC) drives cloud-based device control. Devices can achieve collaborative learning and dynamic organization optimization through intelligent enhancement of self-maintenance, self-awareness, and self-adaptiveness and interconnection among devices. In terms of general-purpose capabilities, a summary and analysis of the requirements imposed on 5G applications by key industries, such as factories, mines, ports,

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healthcare, transportation, and power grids, and the practices in recent years show the following: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

UHD video has become an important application in the early stage of 5G. UHD video-based live broadcasting and surveillance enables various typical applications in scenarios such as live broadcasting, news reporting, smart policing, and campus surveillance. Intelligent identification includes highly precise monitoring of product manufacturing in real time. 5G and machine vision technologies are used for product identification and online monitoring, real-time analysis, and real-time control in automated production lines, providing support for refined monitoring and management of factories. Remote control is implemented with 5G, improving loading efficiency and working environments, particularly in hazardous areas, such as underground coal mines and production workshops. An immersive experience mainly involves VR training and AR-assisted operations. In the education and training industries, especially in sports, scientific experiments, and factory assembly where motion learning is required, scenario-based learning is made possible with 5G. 5G high-precision positioning is mainly for vertical industries that require high (centimeter- to decimeter-level) precision positioning. These industries’ applications are mainly in indoor scenarios. However, the traditional satellite navigation positioning technology is ineffective in this type of scenarios. With the improved deployment of indoor distributed networks and small cells, the positioning requirements of these industries will gradually be met. Ubiquitous IoT integrates 5G with artificial intelligence (AI) and big data technologies to create new applications in industries such as city management, lighting, meter reading, parking, and healthcare. This drives the evolution of decision-making from experience-based to data-based and from post-decisionmaking to pre-prediction, bringing new opportunities for refined and smart development.

These six general-purpose devices and capabilities are common requirements of vertical industries. They are key to the replication and promotion of 5G integrated applications and are worth in-depth investment. All parties in the industries must work together to explore and overcome the technical, standard, industry, and policy difficulties and develop new industries and services in preparation for large-scale replication and promotion of 5G.

9.2 Filling the 5G Module Gap 5G industry devices and modules still hinder the large-scale application of 5G in industries. This is due to various reasons: First, the price of 5G modules cannot be reduced to as low as that of 4G or narrowband modules in the foreseeable future.

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The price of modules is greatly affected by the cost of chipsets, which accounts for over half of the total cost. 5G module products mainly use Qualcomm, HiSilicon, MTK, and UNISOC chipsets, the price of which is around CNY1000, far higher than that of LTE CAT4 modules (less than CNY100). Second, the investment in R&D required for 5G modules is huge and cannot be reduced in the near future. Therefore, key application scenarios that can soon be replicated on a large scale (such as HD video transmission scenarios) need to be identified to reduce the module price by applying 5G modules on a large scale. It is predicted that the price can be reduced to CNY700 with 100,000 modules delivered, to CNY500 with 1,000,000 delivered, and to CNY300 with 10,000,000 delivered. Third, the module types are limited. Many types of chipsets, modules, and devices, such as those featuring low power consumption, positioning, and IoT, are not yet fully developed. Currently, 5G module vendors have conducted module R&D and production for scenarios that require high-bandwidth such as 4K/8K UHD videos, industrial machine vision, vehicle-toeverything (V2X), and remote consultation. All 5G modules in the market support high bandwidth. For industries requiring only low latency or massive connectivity, no cost-effective modules are currently available. Fourth, at the early stage of 5G development, subsidies for modules are necessary. Carriers and module enterprises generally hope to be subsidized for modules in key application scenarios to promote development on a large scale. However, the current policy is not clear, which is not conducive to module R&D and production in the market startup phase. To expand the scale of 5G modules, collaboration among industry parties is highly needed. Firstly, large-scale deployment of 5G modules in key fields must be realized to reduce prices by also having a large scale of applications. Adjusting the device subsidy policies in the industry will facilitate device procurement, subsidy, and other promotion measures in key projects. In addition, module vendors are encouraged to develop various types of products with low-end, mid-range, and high-end modules. Vendors of 5G modules are also encouraged to accelerate the development, verification, and commercial implementation of modules for large-scale production and cost reduction. Chipset or module vendors are encouraged to develop cost-effective chipsets or modules and provide a variety of modules to meet different application requirements in various industries. Last but not least, cross-industry certification and test mechanisms and public service platforms should be established to provide technical, testing, solution, and verification environments and capabilities for industry modules and devices, accelerating the interconnection between the communications industry and various industries in security certification.

9.3 Providing Integrated Cloud-Network-Industry Application Solutions To build a comprehensive solution, 5G applications need to integrate cloud, network, and industry application. 5G applications not only deliver 5G connections and

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devices, but also upload massive data to the cloud through 5G networks. Big data, cloud computing, and AI produce data assets, which become key production elements, circulate in each production phase, and are an important basis for sales and decision-making. 5G will also accelerate the spread of next-generation information technologies, including AI, big data, and cloud computing. 5G applications provide solutions by integrating ICT technologies. With the popularization of 5G applications, the application of these technologies in various industries will be further accelerated. There are four measures that can be taken to implement the integrated cloudnetwork-industry application solution. First, use carriers’ network capabilities to streamline 5G network as a service (NaaS) products and offerings and standardize network capabilities, including offering design, rollout, subscription, service provisioning, enterprise self-service, and service level agreement (SLA) monitoring, thereby providing application programming interfaces (APIs). Second, use carriers’ self-developed public cloud, jointly-operated cloud, or third-party public cloud (such as HUAWEI CLOUD and Alibaba Cloud) as the infrastructure base of the 5GtoB platform to attract users and aggregate an industry ecosystem. Third, develop the asset operation capability of the developer platform, establish 5GtoB zones, accumulate 5G network API services and development assets, and enable capabilities for industry application development, accelerating the incubation of 5G industry applications. Fourth, build a ToB industry market that offers a cloud-network-industry application one-stop shopping experience of 5GtoB products and offerings, namely, an enterprise-oriented industry mall. In general, the future development of the industry ecosystem starts with selecting key industries and aggregating applications and services of the 5G industry based on project verification. Through aggregation of the industry cloud market, an application enablement center can be built to accumulate industry assets.

9.4 Building a Comprehensive Application Ecosystem In terms of industry cooperation, an ecosystem for the 5G industry has yet to be established, and there is a lack of mechanisms for interconnection and cooperation. These two issues factor into the following two aspects: 1.

There is a lack of channels and platforms for communication and cooperation between the communications industry and vertical industries. To integrate 5G into vertical industries, communications and equipment enterprises and industry users need to be provided with better communication capabilities. Currently, the communications industry is still the main driving force promoting the integration of 5G applications. The communications industry has yet to fully explore the requirements of various industries, which have a limited touch upon 5G technologies. Therefore, a breakthrough in combining industry pain points and 5G must be found, a mechanism for industry interconnection and cooperation

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must be established, and cooperation solutions must be improved to stimulate enterprises’ interest in cross-industry cooperation. According to some module vendors, it is difficult to find leading enterprises in the industrial gateway field due to the lack of mechanisms and channels for interconnection and cooperation and to establish a goal and direction for future R&D. Barriers in the vertical industry are prominent. Data, interfaces, and platforms are not streamlined in some industries, and no industry collaboration has been set up in terms of industry direction. Take the V2X industry as an example. Currently, the national V2X industry data platform is not streamlined. The standards of different V2X vendors vary, large-scale operation is difficult, and the mechanism for cross-industry supervision is not unified. As a result, various parties in the industry chain cannot spontaneously form unified industry standards. Another example is the healthcare industry. Service organizations, medical equipment vendors, software developers, network carriers, and equipment integrators have differing opinions on policies and regulations, product types, service content, and future profit margins. In addition, unclear investment directions and overall industry plans are also prominent issues.

To address these issues, industry organizations and leading enterprises need to collaborate to promote industry chain cooperation, scenario openness, and demonstration effects; establish an industry interconnection and cooperation mechanism; and stimulate enterprises’ interest in cross-industry cooperation. For example, in the 5G VR/AR industry chain of LG U+ in South Korea, Huawei is the equipment provider and helps China’s VR cloud platform vendor Cyber Cloud and device provider Pico become a part of the VR/AR industry chain in South Korea. Industry organizations should establish mechanisms for cooperation across industries, promote extensive industry collaboration and interconnection between alliances and industry associations, and jointly boost the R&D of 5G integrated application products. Leading enterprises should be supported and drive upstream and downstream enterprises to build a complete industry ecosystem, a diversified supply chain, and a full-process value chain. The construction of 5G application technology innovation centers and open labs should be encouraged, and function and performance tests on devices, particularly system devices as well as platforms and edge computing products need to be conducted in environments that simulate the actual environments that they will be used in. Vertical industry application providers, 5G operation enterprises, 5G-related manufacturing enterprises, application development enterprises, and scientific research institutions should be urged to cultivate a batch of excellent industry application system integrators and build a cross-industry collaborative 5G application ecosystem. For example, the smart mining field in China has gathered many system integrators of intelligent mining solutions, such as Tage, WAYTOUS, and YiKong Zhijia.

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9.5 Transformation of Organizations and Talent [1] 5G is the foundation of the next-generation digital infrastructure. It organically combines data technology (DT), information technology (IT), and communication technology (CT) with pan-industry operational technology (OT), speeding up industry upgrade. 5G changes the way carriers and industries connect and operate, drives the transformation of organizational capabilities, and shapes or reshapes the value creation structure of organizations. Ultimately, 5G creates value. 5G Internet of Everything (IoE) enables organizations to operate across borders and domains, and also integrates enterprise ecosystems. This means that industries are starting to rethink the way they set up work, and what technology means for their operations, particularly in terms of optimizing service value streams. On the talent side, 5G and emerging digital technologies will increase the market demand for interdisciplinary talent with expertise in both services and technologies. Competition for this type of talent will increase, encouraging organizations to seek a set of innovative talent management models and training methods.

9.5.1 Systematic, Industrial, and Societal Characteristics of 5G 5G: Industry Catalyst, Industry Facilitator, and New Technology Integrator The formulation of 5G standards responds to the trend of upgrading technologies in various industries. In the meanwhile, we are witnessing as 5G completely changes our society through its direct impact on the production modes of industries, which are the economic foundation of society. In this context, 5G affects industry ecosystems, requirements, and operations (see Fig. 9.2). From the industry ecosystem perspective, 5G supports a powerful pan-industry digital ecosystem by enabling the construction of a decentralized platform that encompasses all industries. This changes the way different industries work together, and reflects the role of 5G in facilitating collaboration across industries, thereby changing the production relations of various industries. In terms of requirements, it is the first time that technology standards are systematically considering the scenarios and requirements for industry upgrades. They are also encompassing more than just 5G, but including other emerging IT, CT, and OT technologies, such as cloud computing, big data, AI, IoT, blockchain, robots, sensors, wearables, HD video, and AR/VR. These digital technologies are or will be part of industry transformation and the shift towards intelligence. However, for this to happen, new networks will need to connect a massive number of digital and smart devices and applications. Customized 5G networks have the capability to support this process by delivering secure, reliable, and stable on-demand data transmission with guaranteed performance. As such we can consider 5G as the technological foundation for advancements such as Industry 4.0 and New Infrastructure.

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5G Operations and Talent Trends

Societal 5G Characteristics

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5G as industry upgrade catalyst, accelerating the focus of national strategies and policies, enabling digital transformation of industries

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Societal: Digital infrastructure foundation, enabling various ICT technology combinations

5G as the facilitator between carriers and industries, greatly changing the way industries connect Industrial: Deep penetration of industry scenarios, enabling industry chain maturity and bringing value

5G as new technology integrator, generating enterprise enthusiasm to embrace new technologies and driving organizational capability transformation Systematic: Operations transformation & becoming intelligent, integration of industry players' capabilities

5G as driving force for creating new jobs, intensifying competition for 5G talent, increasing the urgency for new talent management models and development methods

Fig. 9.2 5G operation and talent change trend

When it comes to operations, 5G networks will be deeply integrated in the production process of enterprises. This will accelerate structural changes and upgrades, as well as facilitating platform-based operations. Currently, industries are eager to initiate digital transformation projects and adjust structures through emerging digital technologies. For example, in 2013, Germany proposed Industry 4.0 to expand the intelligence of the manufacturing industry. In 2015, China proposed the Made in China 2025 strategy to comprehensively implement the manufacturing power strategy. These state-level strategies are also key drivers for the digital and Internetbased transformation of industries, as well as the structural transformation of enterprise operations. In this sense, 5G acts as a catalyst in upgrading the structures of industries.

9.5.2 Decentralized Operation Mode New network technologies are key for driving innovation, particularly when it comes to complex production environments, the mobility of facilities, and the real-time, stable, and reliable control of environments. As discussed earlier, 5G networks are becoming more intertwined with production, and enterprises are further connected through 5G. This signals a new form of interconnected production network, which we call 5G pan-industry Internet. 5G Pan-Industry Internet Blueprint: Decentralized Platform as a Service Currently, the leading industries are implementing 5G construction projects where the pan-industry and carriers will have their own platforms (which can be selfbuilt or public clouds) in the future. However, they are interconnected through 5G networks. Similarly, the public carrier networks naturally connect industries through

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Fig. 9.3 5G pan-industry Internet ecosystem structure

pan-industry Internet, forming an ecosystem of pan-industry decentralized platforms. As a result, the pan-industry can interact directly on the decentralized platforms to create technologies, applications, products, or services (see Fig. 9.3). And unlike consumer Internet, pan-industry Internet has quite a long value chain. Ecosystem entities and partners need to co-exist, co-create, and share. There is no one central entity that has control. Instead, organizations cooperate with each other, leading to the creation of decentralized platforms as a service. This concept will have profound changes on the social and industrial management and operations, signaling new key activities and functional roles. The 5G pan-industry Internet connects enterprise production and operation platforms. With unique edge computing and network slicing technologies, 5G allows enterprises to link up internal digital production facilities and connect them to external networks on demand. This forms a decentralized platform ecosystem, which can transform the way enterprises operate. In turn, this ecosystem enables new ways to deliver services. 5G Pan-Industry Internet: From Product Operation to Solution Operation Decentralized platform as a service means that two or more participants or groups have their own platforms. They then use 5G network interconnection and interaction to form new value-creating networks, providing new technologies, products, or services. Participants interact at many levels; first, when they go through technical transformation of production and operations, and then, during subsequent operations and maintenance. 5G pan-industry Internet begins to take shape as more parties get involved. In the meanwhile, enterprises from different industries collect a large volume of data through production and introduce technologies, such as big data and AI, to build on intelligence in production. As 5G pan-industry Internet develops, the ecosystem based on decentralized platforms will provide more types of services.

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Fig. 9.4 Differences between the new and traditional service modes

Figure 9.4 illustrates the differences between the traditional service mode and the new one enabled by 5G. The former is based on making and delivering products, with the enterprise at the center of fixed-alliance cooperation. The latter shifts from products to solutions with higher-value services. Its ecosystem cooperation retains traditional alliances while seeking new types of partners for joint value creation. These relationships are often more informal and adaptable.

9.5.3 Dual-Track Mode and New Roles Large enterprises are rapidly adopting the 5G+ pan-industry Internet model. They need to work faster, more flexibly, and more collaboratively to take advantage of emerging technologies in new fields. They can also develop new solutions or tailor existing ones in response to customers’ needs. As a result, enterprises must strike a balance between process control and innovation changes in enterprise service operations. New Operational Model Relies on Dual Tracks and Emerging Roles Carriers, equipment vendors, ecosystem partners, and customers usually adopt the dual-track mode in 5G+ industry Internet projects, the two tracks being agile innovation and ecosystem orchestration (see Fig. 9.5). • Agile innovation: At the early stages of 5G+ pan-industry Internet development, carriers, equipment vendors, and industries form cooperation groups. Carriers and equipment vendors provide ICT technologies, while industries provide operation technologies. New cases (agile innovation) are developed through vertical industry solutions. • Ecosystem orchestration: In the middle and late stages of development, cases are generalized into templates to reduce the cost of similar projects. Based on

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In 5G Era, OT + DICT Convergence and Hierarchical 5G Enable Decentralized Platform, Bringing Solution Action Dual-Track Mode Decentralized Platform Solution Dual-Track Operations Mode

Incubation

Ideas/Concepts

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Products/Services

Lucidity

Agile innovation mode

AIOps

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Continuous improvement Ecosystem orchestration mode

Fig. 9.5 Pan-industry 5G and emerging digital innovation operation

the templates, more ecosystem partners can carry out micro-innovations, as well as building and optimizing more new cases (ecosystem orchestration) through replication and orchestration. This new operational model defines four functional roles: Innovation Incubator, DevOps Leader, AIOps Initiator, and Ecosystem Orchestrator. These roles respectively correspond to the four main phases of 5G+ industry service value creation, which are innovation design, development and implementation, O&M, and market presence. They will be responsible for pushing the boundaries of what organizations thought was possible, cooperating across organizations, and jointly promoting industry development. Participants in the 5G+ pan-industry ecosystem mainly include carriers, equipment and service providers, pan-industry organizations, and ecosystem partners. They play different roles at different phases, working together to enrich the innovations of 5G+ pan-industry applications based on intent-driven scenarios. This, in turn, accelerates the development of the 5G+ industry. Figure 9.6 illustrates the main processes and participants of the four roles. Figure 9.7 illustrates the main objectives and responsibilities of the four functional roles.

9.5.4 Flexible Organizations that Strive Beyond 9.5.4.1

Organizational Challenges Related to 5G and Digital Transformation

Currently, most organizations have a centralized and functional structure that focuses on internal expertise and capability to drive innovation. However, this structure often

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OT Supplier

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5G NW Service Provider 5G Component Supplier

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Intelligent, Automated Platform-based

Micro-Orchestration and Service Provision

Fig. 9.6 Main processes and roles for 5G+ industry service value creation

prevents organizations from innovating across departments and organizations, as we will discuss in more detail in the following sections. Department Silos and Strict Organizational Structures Most organizations are structurally divided into functional departments, creating silos. Specific departments are uniquely responsible for implementing 5G and other emerging digital technologies. These rigid structures hinder interaction and collaboration between departments, and ultimately prevent 5G and other emerging technologies from penetrating the organization. This also slows down service innovation and process optimization inside and outside the organization. Fixed Positions Unable to Adapt to Flexible Work Models The traditional work model relies on one position performing one role. However, 5G and emerging technologies drive organizations to shift from product manufacturing to solution and service provisioning. As such, organizations need to transform the traditional working model into new agile ones. This means that they need to collaborate more within agile cross-functional teams and with external partners, thereby shifting from focusing too much on individual and departmental performance to ensuring the performance of the team as a whole. Data Silos and Lack of Autonomy in Decision-Making Decision-making in organizations tends to emphasize reporting hierarchy, with a top-down approach and subsequent level-by-level implementation. This means that lower-level organizations lack autonomy. However, as 5G and emerging digital technologies drive the digital transformation of organizations, they involve several different departments or units. As such, management needs to transition from control to the evaluation of responsibilities, making decision at the implementation level. At

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Tailor resources and services to meet specific demands. Seek and add partners' solutions and services. Propose internal and external development requirements from the customer's perspective. Build specialized skills related to specific industries. Cultivate the customer-partner relationship.

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Build a self-organized team with different professional backgrounds and technical experiences, covering all required skills of the project. Manage the team's work, including allocation, reallocation, estimation, delivery, and correction. Continuously improve skills and provide innovative ideas and improvement suggestions for the team. Communicate with stakeholders in an agile manner to promptly know external expectations and demonstrate the ability to present good results. Establish agile processes and rules across organizations; carry out collaboration and compliance checks.

Key activities

Fig. 9.7 Main objectives and responsibilities of the four roles

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Deliver excellent customer experience. Embed automation into all processes of the company. Expand DevOps to business operation and external collaboration; use AI to augment the automation. Use big data and intelligent orchestration solutions to quickly go to market and achieve the desired result. Build an adaptive ecosystem cyber security system through AI.

Key activities

Based on digital service operation requirements, provide competitive differentiated value for enterprises and co-tenants through customercentricity, digital insight, and intelligent autonomous ecosystems.

Main objective

Based on the shared goal, pool people with different skills from R&D, O&M, Business Operation, or External Communication to work with partners' DevOps teams.

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For certain cases, design and promote competitive solutions with price advantages.

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For the development and adoption of unique and innovative solutions enabled by 5G, create new interactive value in a larger scope through orchestration in the decentralized platform ecosystem.

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Focus on the company's and partners' product and service openness capabilities to achieve continuous innovation. Leverage different expertise and complementary products/offerings to meet the requirements of different industries and customer groups. Detect the relevance between different partners and encourage them to work together. Encourage ecosystem-based collaboration, and create a climate of sharing knowledge, resources, and interoperability

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the same time, the lack of data sharing between departments can also hinder innovation. Therefore, enterprises need to be more open in sharing data. For example, they can form a centralized data center so that big data and advanced analytics can be used for decision-making. Lack of Consistent Digital Capabilities 5G is a catalyst that promotes the universal digital transformation of organizations, which is reflected in enterprise strategies, operations, platforms and facilities, and culture. This means that all aspects of the organization need to go digital. However, current organizational capabilities cannot meet requirements of digital transformation, becoming a key bottleneck for many organizations. Therefore, enterprises need to build their current employees’ digital skills, build a talent pool for 5G and emerging technologies, and develop a talent cultivation mechanism. For example, as traditional telecom carriers continue to increase the adoption of 5G in various industrial solutions, targeted training, talent reserves, and capability frameworks are required for both frontline operations and at-home service support. Training facilities for 5G, cloud, and AI will help staff learn about 5G and other new technologies and understand the pain points of customers, which will further facilitate the improvement of solutions. Services may vary across industries to the extent where it is difficult for enterprises to know all the skills required. Therefore, partnerships are necessary to enhance capabilities, requiring enterprises to open up to external ecosystem partners and leverage the external expertise and investment in items such as cloud infrastructure or analytics engines.

9.5.4.2

Pan-Industry Digital Transformation Requires Organizational Restructuring

The 5G+ pan-industry decentralized platform service model requires organizations to get out of their comfort zone, needing increasingly seamless communication and collaboration between departments. This means that organizations should be capable of knowledge transfer and enablement. In this, organizational structure plays a key role, where sensitivity and flexibility will determine how an organization adapts to cross-functional interactions both internally and externally, as illustrated in Fig. 9.8. 5G and various emerging ICT technologies based on it are stimulating the transformation to the industrial Internet. These industries are leveraging 5G to optimize engagement with customers, upgrade or transform digital operation platforms, and leverage big data to improve intelligence as they look to redefine the roles and responsibilities required to adapt to the decentralized industrial Internet ecosystem. To adapt to this trend, enterprises and organizations must seamlessly connect to the decentralized industrial Internet ecosystem. However, this cannot be achieved without 5G-based digital platforms that guarantee both the flexibility and responsiveness in new competitive environments. New business models require organizational adjustment and optimization to interconnect branches over networks and ensure the agility and flexibility of teams.

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Fig. 9.8 Hierarchical view of diversity in organizational structures

The shift from tentative to mechanism-based innovation will help create a proactive atmosphere in favor of research. The Internet-based branch interconnections, knowledge sharing, and teamwork within organizations help achieve coordination and mutual support, which, in turn, help establish new forms of organizations that break down current boundaries while being ecosystem attached, as well as guarantee the flexibility in teams and knowledge openness while functioning smoothly and intelligently. Today, new infrastructure based on 5G is becoming the driving force behind panindustry development. And some organizational departments already have forwardlooking innovations in place. At the same time, organizations recognize that innovation should be a standard management practice feeding into the overall capability of the organization to innovate. Therefore, it is necessary to optimize organizational structures based on the reality of each enterprise. That said, there are four main levels at which organizations can implement structural changes to become more flexible: industry environment, organization, department, and team. The following are some characteristics for an organization to be flexible. Based on decentralized platforms, the common belief is that systems need to adapt to the organization and its form, reflecting its communication structure. However, technologies and technical systems are increasingly more important for enterprise operations, blurring the boundary between services and technologies and integrating them. This is particularly common in Internet companies, which are based on a large platform. 5G is only a catalyst that accelerates the organization’s transformation towards operations on a decentralized platform. Therefore, digital platforms should guide organizational structure transformation, considering their quick enablement capabilities. This includes building a mechanism that allows organizations to quickly set up and split teams in order to adapt to rapidly changing business environments. Organizations also need to strike a balance between internal and external structures, as the 5G+ pan-industry Internet requires organizations to shift their focus towards the external environment. This is due to the rapid pace of technological

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development, which forces the external environment to change quickly, impacting enterprises. As 5G enables organizations to connect to the pan-industry ecosystem, organizations need to transfer more resources, especially human resources, to the frontline, supporting business performance and facilitate business expansion. Stability should also be taken into account. Even businesses need to find harmony, which act as the two major pillars for high-performing organizations. On the one hand, an organization should be able to quickly act and respond. It should be flexible, capable of agile change. For example, an organization can be divided into small accounting units, creating many small startup teams that compete in a healthy way. The bottom line then is based on value creation and customer needs. On the other hand, the organizational structure needs to be stable, especially for medium and large enterprises. Stability does not mean stagnant employee flow, or rigid organizational structures or processes. Instead, it means that the organization has built a relatively stable platform (middle and back ends) that can control the overall situation, reduce operational risks, and enable other teams to continuously improve capabilities as the organization grows in size.

9.5.4.3

Organizational Structures Need to Support External Cross-Enablement

As the 5G+ digital economy develops, business environments will shift closer to 5G+ pan-industry ecosystems, blurring traditional organizational boundaries. Internal departments and external organizations will become more interrelated and interdependent. For this, organizations need dynamic teams to adapt to scenarios with fragmented issues, diverse solutions, numerous participants, unclear initial solutions, changing project requirements, and close collaboration with end users. In this kind of multilateral cooperation environment, organizations need to align their knowledge and skills, supporting cross-enablement with external parties. As 5G and these emerging ICT technologies it powers are new to many staff members, new approaches will be mandatory to smooth their applications in various projects. For example, the suppliers of these technologies provide the required training, or enablement training programs are mutually provided between partners to improve collaboration. Alternatively, service providers are offered the required enablement solutions to help them integrate digital services into their own service packages. From a broader scope of the ecosystem, enterprises can incorporate the services of various lower-level service providers into their own products and service offerings only when they are adequately trained to do so. In addition, providing solutions to customers (users) is no longer a one-way business. Rather, it must be built on a comprehensive understanding of customer scenarios and technological incorporation into the systems customers are operating on. Continued service provisioning also requires connections to platforms from customer applications. As such, enablement becomes a two-way process between enterprises and their customers. In the favor of multilateral partnerships, it is essential

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Fig. 9.9 Pan-industry 5G and digital business development and organizational capability improvement path

to share both knowledge and skills among enterprises. This requires organizational structures to adapt to external enablement. It is important to highlight that 5G and other digital technologies pose new challenges and it may be difficult to master them. As such, each organization needs to develop a unique model that best suits its realities. In this context, there are three typical models organizations can apply: independent model, semi-integrated matrix model, and full integration model. Each model represents the degree to which 5G and digital transformation capabilities are distributed across the organizing, as illustrated in Fig. 9.9. The independent model generally applies to the early stages of 5G and other digital applications. Enterprises set up independent 5G and digital units, which are crossfunctional teams. They provide end-to-end (E2E) solutions for 5G and emerging digital products, services, and applications, and directly report to executives. The semi-integrated matrix model applies to companies that offer very different traditional services versus those driven by 5G and digital technologies. In this case, they cannot assign digital services to existing business departments, because they cannot respond quickly enough. Instead, they can use a matrix organizational structure. The model places the 5G+ digital competence center at the core, while other business units in the mixed team take on a proportion of responsibilities depending on the maturity of 5G and digital skills, as well as the openness of the company culture. In the meanwhile, the actual projects can be used to enable the organization and reserve 5G+ digital talent. Last but not least, there is the full integration model. It makes sense for most companies to keep their focus by adopting a single or semi-integrated digital unit early on. In the long run, the two models will ultimately evolve into the full integration model. A good digital team may even eventually be unnecessary, since once they are finished implementing, the organizational structure may soon change. As such, all departments need to take on 5G+ digital responsibilities. In this way, the entire enterprise will integrate 5G+ digitalization into its business activities. It is key to remember that no single structure can best suit all companies. Before committing to a model, organizations need to measure the degree to which

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5G and digitalization will impact their services, the current stage of their digital transformation, and the openness of organizational culture to transformation.

9.5.5 Pan-Industry Requires Talent with Hybrid Skills Technologies tend to have rapid and strong impact, forcing enterprises to adjust their human resources very quickly. In a tight labor market, the competition for 5G digital talent is fierce and will only continue to intensify. However, traditional human resource development approaches, such as talent inventory and training are insufficient. Companies need new learning and development approaches to reshape 5G+ digital talent along with corresponding goals and plans. Characteristics of 5G+ Pan-Industry Talent Starting with the first computer, and to date in the digital era, technologies have rapidly become integral in our work, study, and life. As organizations further digitalize, technologies will have more and more impact on their outputs. Figure 9.10 illustrates the evolution of pan-industry talent. • Stage 1 (Substitution): Technical tools and applications reduce manual workload and replace simple and repetitive work, allowing organizations to reduce costs and improve efficiency by building the individual technical capacity of their personnel. • Stage 2 (Enhancement): Technical platforms are used to enhance the automation and digitalization of production. Higher levels of digital transformation improve individuals’ professional capabilities, create more value and opportunities, lower costs, and increase efficiency.

Assistance by technology

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Integration of technology & platforms: automated production & centralized control and ecosystem

Platform as a service operation: intelligent production and panindustry ecosystem cooperation system Service

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Fig. 9.10 Evolution of pan-industry talent

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• Stage 3 (Collaboration): Emerging technologies are used to synergize enterprise data assets, and 5G technologies are used to enable dynamic connection and collaboration of software and hardware facilities. This not only achieves intelligent automation of enterprise production, but also expands team collaboration from within an enterprise to between enterprises. Teams with complementary capabilities deliver output that is more meaningful to organizations and their customers, and promote more balanced costs, efficiency, and value, thereby enabling enterprises to realize sustainable earnings. As society steps into the era of 5G+ pan-industry Internet, there will be great changes in capability requirements. The capabilities to analyze, innovate, and execute as well as intelligent skills will be further prioritized. Autonomous team building and matrix-modeled working modes in enterprises will also be favored to adapt to both internal and external collaboration. Talent with Hybrid Skills Is Key: Integration of Technology and Business As machines replace humans for routine work, jobs are evolving to require new combinations of human skills and capabilities. To keep pace, organizations need to redesign jobs as well as their business and work processes. Expansion of Hybrid Jobs Hybrid jobs are defined as roles that perform work using a combination of technical and soft skills. Similar to other standard jobs, organizations define fixed, stable roles, specify the responsibilities, and designate to whom the roles report. When the automation and intelligence of technical platforms are enhanced and some jobs are automated by machines, humans will be left with work that is generally more interpretive and service-oriented. Such work includes problem solving, data interpretation, customer service, communication, and collaboration. Although these jobs are not as fixed as traditional ones, they are more flexible and likely to be scenariospecific. Consequently, organizations need to define jobs and roles that are more flexible (see Fig. 9.11). These new types of jobs are an extension of traditional composite positions, enabling organizations to shift from product production and sales to smart solutions. Hybrid jobs require extensive business, technical, and soft skills, while some traditional jobs need to be integrated into a general role. The technical platform and pan-industry ecosystem can be used to quickly carry out business innovation, development, delivery, operation, and ecosystem orchestration, significantly improving the productivity, efficiency, and earnings of organizations. From Designing Work to Attaching New Significance to Work Facing the transformation of 5G+ pan-industry Internet, roles such as project managers, planning designers, analysts, and architects are evolving into hybrid roles. In other words, these roles need to be broken down, reorganized, and extended, effectively becoming new roles. Hybrid jobs require organizations to take a new approach in analyzing and designing the work, and to reinterpret the work from a

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Fig. 9.11 Requirements of diverse capabilities in the pan-industry ecosystem

broad perspective. When redesigning the work and jobs, it is essential to carefully consider the relationship between machines, platforms, and the human workforce in order to combine each of their specific strengths. In addition to this, organizations need to go beyond work design—they need to give new meaning to work and create new roles that enhance customer service and organizational output. Traditional jobs are designed with defined roles—with their skills, activities, missions, and expectations determined from a narrow perspective, resulting in excessively elaborate and lengthy position descriptions that are increasing with each passing day. The design of hybrid jobs requires new methods different from those used for traditional jobs. It is necessary to redefine tasks, activities, skills, and expectations from a broader perspective and to review the implications and significance of the work. Only in this way will it be possible to form a new work portfolio that gives full play to people’s initiative and that leverages the capabilities of machines and platforms. The following factors must also be considered: • Let machines and platforms handle fixed activities and tasks. • Let employees resolve complex issues and focus on organizational outputs. • Encourage innovation and work automation, and leverage technology and tools to enhance employees’ abilities. • Create a favorable atmosphere and encourage employees to voluntarily join the team. • Integrate development, learning, knowledge, and experience into routine work.

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Fig. 9.12 Breaking down, reorganizing, and expanding roles

The new operation mode brings three major changes to 5G talent cultivation in positions, roles, skill requirements, and talent types. 1.

Change in positions and roles: New skills correspond to new positions, breaking down, reorganizing, expanding, and supplementing traditional roles to create hybrid roles.

Due to the implications of 5G+ pan-industry Internet, industrial production procedures will be driven by data and the production will be digitalized, promoting the establishment and intelligent operation of the pan-industry ecosystem. Hybrid positions require new approaches to considering and designing their capability matrices and interpreting their tasks and missions. As such, when jobs and positions are redefined, it is vital to consider the integration of the expertise of workers with machines and platforms, as illustrated in Fig. 9.12. 2.

3.

Change in skill requirements: 5G is a catalyst for many other emerging technologies, raising the demand for convergent skills. Hybrid talent refers to new, cross-functional, and cross-organizational skills in all areas of expertise and tasks, as well as skills in digitalized industrial and operational technologies. Change in talent types: New technologies highlight three new types of hybrid talent: • Enablement talent: They are responsible for internal and external communication, coordination, promotion, and organization. • Authoritative user-oriented talent: They are skilled in leveraging the capabilities and assets of platforms to implement service design and development, integration and deployment, and assembly and commissioning. • Expert talent: They excel at systematically integrating services and technological capabilities to consolidate new tasks into procedures, thereby developing the new platform capabilities required to resolve issues in service and production and create new value.

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Fig. 9.13 Ecosystem capability overview

Big Picture of Individual, Leader, Team, Organization, and Ecosystem Capabilities The 5G+ talent capability architecture needs a comprehensive review of capability elements in terms of environment, strategy, structure, and operations. To quickly adapt to the environment, the individual-centered capability view must be extended to include leader, team, organization, and ecosystem capabilities (see Fig. 9.13). • Individual: The roles of hybrid talent are flexible and require diversified skills. The focus is on people rather than job titles. Traditional role-based job descriptions are based on relatively fixed organizations and tasks, making it difficult to keep pace with business changes in the 5G+ pan-industry Internet era. Roles can be divided into basic roles, and then combined with corresponding skills to meet the changing requirements of the organization. In this context, individuals must be able to assume as many basic roles as possible while focusing on “soft capabilities”— typically including innovation, problem-solving, adaptation, and leadership. • Leader: As 5G drives organizations’ digital transformation, it is vital for them to innovate and adapt. Identifying, developing, and retaining strong leadership is integral to any organization’s success. Organization and team leaders must constantly respond to changes and uncertainties, posing new requirements on leaders’ competence and capabilities. Leaders are now more like an orchestrator who empowers every member of the team. They must have a vision, maintain good relationships with external parties, communicate clearly with internal personnel, accept failure and encourage exploration, and build a safe environment for idea sharing and diversity of thought.

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• Team: The economy as a whole is currently shifting from products to services with a greater focus on customer experience. In the product-centered era, highperforming individuals are assumed to deliver organizational performance. In the service-centered era, however, adaptable organizations place greater emphasis on the team and unlock individual performance through team composition and new ways of working. Therefore, the intrinsic relationship must be taken into full consideration when capabilities are analyzed. The viewpoints, diverse skills, and extensive experiences of team members must be given full play. Learning from each other in a team will be good for the development of individual members. • Organization: In a fast-changing era, the traditional organization mode of functionbased commanding and scheduling cannot keep pace. Organizations achieve an effective balance by using functional and cross-functional, centralized and decentralized teams. Organizations must uncover how teams naturally interact with each other and with customers, and then build multi-disciplinary teams, communities, reporting relationships, and communication channels that support these human interactions. This means that organizations must be enablers. • Ecosystem: In unpredictable times, organizations exist within a broader external ecosystem, united by a specific, customer-centric purpose that is constantly evolving to remain relevant. Organizations need to iterate continuously so that they can adapt to the ecosystem. In the ecosystem, organizational capabilities need to be shared and absorbed, that is, organizations need to leverage external communities, partnerships, and alliances. Each team should pay attention to the requirements of customers and stakeholders.

9.6 Building Unified Industry Specifications and Standards 9.6.1 5GtoB Starts with Standardization Standardization constitutes a core part of 5G development, drawing much attention from major countries, regions, and leading enterprises. 5G incorporates extensive innovations in both the architecture and key technologies to meet diversified requirements in a wide scope of applications. As a result of collaboration and discussion among industry players all over the world, a broad consensus has been reached on developing a global unified standard for 5G. The evolution of global 5G standards is heading in two major directions. • Direction one: enhancement of existing mobile broadband technologies in 5G. Typically, current large-scale antenna, device energy-saving, multi-carrier connection and aggregation, and coverage technologies are significantly enhanced. • Direction two: industry standardization to support 5G’s expansion into vertical industries. 5G was built to realize a fully connected world. This ambitious vision

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requires 5G to provide enhanced support and capabilities to various vertical industries. The standards for applying high frequency bands to 5G networks are also developing. The operating carrier frequencies of 5G networks are expected to reach 100 GHz, but the urgency and applications of 5G networks operating on carriers of above 50 GHz still need to be understood. Industry standards are an essential reflector of technological factors, and have been steadily increasing. The revision and improvement of 5G’s standards are necessary for both promoting the convergence of 5G with industry applications and maintaining the stable development of vertical industries. Industry standardization streamlines industry chains to promote collaboration among industries. 5GtoB applications require comprehensive solutions. Considering the breadth and depth of the industries and industry chains involved, interconnection will become extremely challenging to implement if vendors adopt variant data formats and procedures. This can be only avoided by observing standards in order to streamline industry chains and ensure smooth, efficient, and productive collaboration. Industry standardization enhances safety. In the V2X applications, a high level of safety standards must be ensured. Without unified specifications for signal communications between vehicles of different brands, the vehicles cannot recognize each other’s signals. For example, a vehicle of one band may not be able to correctly interpret the route states, moving speeds, and relative distances of the surrounding vehicles of a different brand and will therefore fail to provide effective prompts to the driver. This would create a huge source of safety risks. With the LTE-V2X and 5G-V2X standards introduced to the automobile industry, vehicle platooning, semiautomatic driving, epitaxial sensors, and remote driving can be implemented with a high guarantee of safety.

9.6.2 Establishing User Experience-Based SLA Standards 5G standards continue to advance. On July 3, 2020, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) announced that Release 16 was finalized, marking the completion of the first version of 5G standards. 3GPP Release 16 enhances 5G functions by enabling 5G to further penetrate various industries and form a new digital ecosystem. It also includes a number of updates to balance costs, efficiency, and effectiveness, maximizing the role of the communication infrastructure and facilitating digital transformation. Evolving from availability of basic functions, 3GPP Release 16 advances 5G to a new height where high performance is delivered. This new release enables 5G to enhance support and efficiency for industries by introducing new capabilities, unleashing the full potential of existing ones, and making operation and maintenance more efficient and cost-effective. For example, to better support industrial Internet applications, new technologies are adopted to achieve a synchronization precision of

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1 ms, 99.9999% reliability, and flexible management of device groups. As a result, an E2E latency of below 10 ms as well as a higher reliability can be achieved for industrial applications that are sensitive to latency. In V2X, direct vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications are supported and multicast and broadcast modes are supplemented. In addition, perception, scheduling, retransmission, and V2V connection quality control are all optimized. These enhancements will help create new V2X services with a number of new services, such as vehicle platooning, semi-automatic driving, epitaxial sensors, and remote driving. Multiple 5G air-interface positioning technologies are also introduced to improve positioning precision by more than 10 times to reach the meter level. 3GPP Release 16 also includes a number of upgrades to Release 15’s basic functions to improve cell-edge spectral efficiency and handover performance as well as device power saving. The above evolution directions and objectives of 5G standards demonstrate that the availability, reliability, and satisfaction of industry application SLAs are essential for 5G to promote digital transformation across industries. This highlights the importance of defining and classifying SLAs for 5G capabilities among telecom carriers, individual consumers, and industry users. Currently, different dimensions are used to define 5G SLAs between the ICT and non-ICT industries. With more focus on bandwidth, latency, isolation, and other technological elements, the ICT industry has developed an SLA system oriented to connections. Instead of focusing on network capabilities, non-ICT industries set their standards based on service experiences, including the clarity and smoothness of images, responsiveness to operations, and service continuity. As SLA systems follow different criteria, telecom carriers cannot accurately map the requirements of industry applications onto their own indicators, preventing them from conducting high-quality network deployment and maintenance. With this in mind, all parties should work hard to develop SLA systems—based on industry user experience—that are understandable to and recognized by both the ICT industry and its vertical industries. The SLA systems involve a variety of highly specialized industry applications. Therefore, the ICT industry and its vertical partners must jointly carry out extensive research and explorations to create standardized and replicable SLA systems. Taking HD video applications for example, the most prioritized indicators include image clarity, playback smoothness, and operation responsiveness. Based on key requirements for 5GtoB experience, industry users perform modeling to provide quantitative indicators to its ICT partners. In accordance with the results and the industry devices and applications used, the ICT industry roughly calculates the indicators of network connections and maps them onto communication indicators, such as the number of frames per second (FPS), bit rate, I-frame interval, and P-frame rate. The ICT industry then translates these indicators into network indicators, converting the experiences of industry users into communication parameters to guide replicable network construction and maintenance. In addition, 5G networks and platforms are still not yet mature, which could lead to poor network and platform performance and weak robustness for improper user configuration. As a result, enterprise self-service (including SLA visualization) will be inevitable and the SLAs will likely fall below the committed criteria before the

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networks and platforms are mature. This highlights the necessity for further attention from the ICT industry and its vertical customers to defining clear responsibility matrices for such issues.

9.6.3 Standardization Helps 5G to Enable Vertical Industries The scope of 5G vertical standardization activities depends on the influence of the organizations working on the standardization. Standardization organizations may differ in working domains and contributing participants as well as the influence scope of their standards. Standardization activities may take place globally, regionally, or even within a nation or a nation’s areas or industry groups and associations. Based on the scope of standardization activities, standards can be categorized into five types: global, regional, national, local, and industry association and group standards. Global, regional, and national standards as well as these formed by global associations are publicly available and kept up to date with the latest technological trends. As such, they have been acknowledged as global specifications. Standards developed by heavyweight associations and groups, despite not being globally recognized, may also have considerable influence in certain areas and industries. Currently, standardization is being implemented in multiple 5G vertical industries, including 5G-V2X, smart healthcare, and industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). 3GPP has already incorporated a large number of vertical enterprises to participate in 5G standardization. Examples are BMW Group and Mercedes-Benz in the automobile industry, Google, Facebook, Tencent, and Alibaba in the Internet industry, and many satellite companies. For example, China Communications Standards Association (CCSA) established a dedicated work group to develop the standards for applying 5G technologies in the healthcare industry. This work group focuses on addressing the major challenges facing the healthcare industry to empower smart healthcare. Currently, much technological research and many standardization activities have been completed based on 5G solutions with open, strategic, future-oriented, and initiative approaches. As a result, 5G networks are becoming the next-generation network infrastructure of healthcare systems in China. One of this work group’s focuses in 2020 was to further clarify the definition and criteria of smart hospitals and specify hierarchical management for smart healthcare services. This helps ensure the safety and quality of these services. Telemedicine requires transmission of a huge amount of data and has high requirements for network reliability and transmission latency, highlighting the urgency of implementing high-quality 5G indoor coverage. The standardization for the healthcare industry will help networks to fulfill the requirements of healthcare applications, thereby creating a solid basis to scale up smart healthcare applications. 3GPP has released 27 LTE-V2X and 25 5G-V2X application standards in 3GPP TR 22.885 and 3GPP TR 22.886, respectively. 3GPP TR 22.885 mainly focuses on applications related to assisted driving, including active safety assurance (such as collision warning and emergence braking), transportation efficiency (such as speed

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guidance), and information services. 3GPP TR 22.886 however focuses on automated driving, including advanced driving, platooning, offline driving, and extended sensor transmission. As assisted driving is being upgraded to automated driving in the automobile industry, the specifications and requirements will become more stringent. As 5G scales up, its application will expand to more vertical industries. This will attract an increasing number of vertical industry enterprises to join standardization organizations, such as 3GPP and CCSA, to develop 5G industry standards, making 5G more open and capable in enabling vertical industries. However, 5G industry standardization still faces a number of challenges: 1.

2.

3.

4.

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National top-down designs and overall planning are not adequate. 5GtoB applications involve a variety of domains, but are yet to see no clear and definite paths, directions, and priorities for future developments. This calls for imperative bids for national top-down designs and plans as guidelines in key fields to coordinate the integration of 5G with industry development. 5GtoB applications are still not a part of many industries’ development plans. Globally, 5GtoB applications are still in their infancies, highlighting the necessity of industry policy and capital support as well as industry plans and clear goals for driving new progress in key fields. Current regulations need amelioration. 5G industry applications are not aligned with existing laws and regulations. For example, the laws and regulations governing the positioning, map services, and autonomous driving in the transportation industry are still incomplete. No definite responsibility matrices have been introduced for remote surgery and autonomous driving, and the charging criteria for 5G smart healthcare services have still not been specified. This greatly hinders scaled commercial use of 5G converged applications. Data interchange is challenging. For example, in some countries, standard protocols and data formats either have not been formulated, are falling behind the development trends, or overlap between segmented fields for 5G applications in the energy industry. This hinders data interchange between regions, enterprises, and energy categories, which, in turn, hinders interconnection and cooperation across industries. Research into regulation models is insufficient. 5G applications across industries will create new business models and drive regulation coordination among departments. Without coordination, the management mechanisms of communication equipment and safety certification will be unclear for V2X applications, creating uncertain factors in vehicle safety and discouraging other segments in the industry chain to participate. Original network monitoring needs to be remodeled. Deployment of the 5G core network in close proximity to end users will fragment network monitoring, requiring new network monitoring models to ensure smooth network operation. 5G accelerates data flows in healthcare, calling for new monitoring approaches to ensure service quality, protect data security, and drive 5G-based healthcare applications.

To support robust 5G industry standardization, development plans for 5GtoB applications should first be formulated, followed by coordinative actions taken toward

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the solution design, execution, investment, and phase-based effect evaluation of major issues. Top-down design coordination should also be implemented within industries to help incorporate 5G into industry development plans and build capabilities to support the convergence of 5G with industries. Much work is advised to develop resolutions to common technological issues, accelerate the maturity of network slicing and edge computing, and increase the convergence of 5G with new technologies. Joint research teams as well as cross-domain and cross-industry technical and standard committees are recommended to promote the standardization of 5G convergence with industries. In addition, definite standardization paths should be laid out. Given that no standardization can be finished once for all, we should prioritize common requirements first, followed by specific industries; starting from simple use cases and then moving on to difficult ones, and it should be completed first in associations and groups and then industry and country levels.

9.7 National Policies Support 5GtoB Development Countries around the world are all pushing hard for 5G development. China has proposed to expand 5G applications and accelerate the development of a new 5Gled infrastructure. A number of support policies have been announced, including national top-down plans to build five common platforms that serve 10 key industries and at least 20 typical industrial scenarios while consolidating its leadership in the construction, applications, technological evolution, and security assurance of 5G networks. In the U.S., 5G applications focus on fixed wireless access (FWA) services. It has also launched a broad set of plans to accelerate 5G development, including licensing more spectrum to the market, renewing its policies for infrastructure construction, and modifying laws and regulations to support 5G. The EU considers 5G FWA applications as a vital supplement to developing fiber broadband and sees 5G industry applications as crucial, with Horizon 2020 launched to support research into the expansion of 5G into vertical industries. South Korea has been a leader in developing 5G applications in HD video and VR services and leveraging 5G to drive the development of other industries. It also uses extended reality (XR) services to simulate the development of 5G industry applications, with US$13.6 million invested in the promotion of applications in public domains, industry, and science and technology in 2020.

9.7.1 Developing 5G Oriented to the Future 5G networks are the foundation for industry applications. Given the frequency resources used by 5G, many more 5G base stations are required to provide the same level of coverage that 4G networks are currently delivering. This highlights the urgency for greater, consistent support from governments for 5G deployment.

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Public utilities must be more accessible to 5G base stations. In public places with a heavy footprint (such as bus stations, railway stations, airport terminals, and metro stations), space should be reserved for 5G base stations and other communications facilities. In addition, 5G energy consumption should be prioritized, and preferential policies and subsidies for communications networks’ electric power use should be introduced to reduce the costs of the power consumption of 5G base stations.

9.7.2 Innovating Regulations and Cross-Industry Coordination Globally, industry management is jurisdiction-based and implements industryspecific separate regulation and responses. With 5G anticipated to be deeply integrated with industries and transform the way both the economy and society develop, it is imperative to develop joint mechanisms and innovative models, based on which cross-industry regulations are supported to facilitate long-term industry development. 1.

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Adhere to inclusive and prudent regulation toward new businesses and industries. Balanced approaches should be adopted with a plurality of market entities fully taken into account to build a competitive digital transformation framework and refrain from over-regulation. The “regulatory sandbox” mechanism is suggested to provide a safe space for trial and error for enterprises and research institutes in the early stages of innovation. This will help administrative bodies reduce the risks arising from innovations to an acceptable extent and enable laws and regulations to keep up with the trends of industry development. Promote coordinated regulations across departments and industries. A complete system must be built to support effective planning and consultation between the departments responsible for managing the information communication industry and its vertical industries. This will help develop an orderly, standardized, and efficient mechanism to encourage cross-industry collaboration and promote the convergence of 5G with industries. Innovate regulations. Limitations on market access should be lifted appropriately through negative list approach. For industries, sectors, and businesses that are not classified as restricted or prohibited on negative lists, free access will be available to all market entities equally. Strengthen intellectual property rights (IPR) protection. To fully protect the achievements and R&D interests of enterprises, compensation mechanisms should be established and continuously improved, and IPR review quality and efficiency should also be enhanced.

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9.7.3 Building Robust 5G Application Security Systems 5G security is essential for network security. 5G security capabilities must be enhanced, particularly in the following areas: 1.

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Establish holistic security systems. Countries must take comprehensive measures to overcome the challenges of 5G security and set up a complete network security framework for the security of devices, systems, networks, resources, data, and converged applications. Establish multi-dimensional, collaborative, and clear security responsibility matrices. This will enable network carriers and industry cloud service providers, system integrators, equipment vendors, and industry application developers to perform their respective responsibilities. Standardize data usage to protect data security. Legislation on data security must be strengthened to keep data development, collection, sorting, storage, use, maintenance, update, and destruction under control. Data must be collected in the principle of minimization, managed in compliance with laws and regulations, and protected with strict but effective measures. Strengthen 5G security risk assessment. The statuses of 5G vertical industries must be considered when researching 5G industry application security standards and assessing cross-industry 5G security risks.

9.7.4 Increasing Support with New Financial Products Countries should increase financial support, tax incentives, subsidies, and procurement, and encourage the financial market to explore new products to increase capital injection to 5G industry applications. 1.

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Financial support and tax incentives. Subsidies and tax incentives are two common policies in increasing value-added rates and optimizing the internal structures of high-tech industries. With respect to 5GtoB applications, governments should introduce targeted tax reduction or exemption measures based on enterprise scales for industry applications, specific measures including wavering a fixed proportion of corporate income taxes and deducting the R&D expenses from the amount of taxes to be paid. This will help unleash the potential of high-tech practitioners. Increased government procurement and capital input. Governments should take the lead to prioritize 5G industry applications when making procurement plans while establishing special funds and risk compensation mechanisms to increase support for the exploration into new 5G industry business models. Promote financial markets to explore and develop products and offerings that support the expansion of 5G industry applications. The banking industry should be encouraged to increase targeted loans for 5G development. The insurance industry should explore new insurance services to support 5G R&D. Also, in

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the securities, qualified enterprises should be allowed to issue corporate credit bonds and conduct securities financing to help the 5G industry lower financing costs.

Reference 1. China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT). (2020). 5G Application Industry Array (5GAIA), IMT-2020 (5G) promotion team. White Paper on 5G application innovation and development—Insights of the 3rd “Zhan Fang Cup” 5G application competition (Z).

Chapter 10

5GtoB Success Factor Analysis—Business Capability

10.1 Five Key Roles in the Business Ecosystem of 5GtoB To realize the vision of 5G enabling industrial transformation requires construction of new capability bases, reconstruction of operations platform and service processes, and transformation of 5G industry services into a new growth engine for carriers. Against this backdrop, 5G service capabilities are gradually transforming from connections to platform integration, application, and service modes. In addition to network carriers and equipment vendors, cloud platform providers, system integrators, industry customers, and application developers will be involved, requiring a new operation and business model to be explored. This is necessary to achieve maximum business collaboration and sustainable development among all roles. A complete 5GtoB business cycle includes five key roles: network carriers, industry cloud service providers, system integrators, industry application developers, and industry customers. • Network carriers: Provide basic network capabilities, such as bandwidth, latency, positioning, and security, as well as network operation, maintenance, and management capabilities of different quality levels at tiered pricing to match different requirements and budgets of customers. Diverse network technologies are introduced to ensure that carriers can provide differentiated capabilities in terms of network and performance. These technologies are used to provide network services for industry customers either directly or by being integrated by system integrators. • Industry cloud service providers: Industry applications will be provided as cloud services. This requires industry cloud service providers to provide not only industry cloud platforms, but also application enablement centers for industry application developers as well as industry application markets for industry users and system integrators. • Industry application developers: Ecosystem partners that provide industry software and hardware. They also need to provide products and services for industry customers together with industry cloud service providers as an ecosystem. © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_10

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Industry application developers are partners of network carriers, industry cloud service providers, and system integrators, and cooperate with them to achieve mutual benefits. • System integrators: Have a strong understanding of the industry and provide consulting, design, and delivery of industry solutions by integrating resources. In addition, they are responsible for ecosystem aggregation and service integration verification to form a complete solution. Given that system integrators have extensive customer service experience in the industry, they are essential for streamlining networks, cloud, software development, and other systems. • Industry customers: End users and project owners. Industry customers have a clear understanding of industry requirements and extensive experience in industry solution application. They raise requirements to system integrators and may set up their own development and operation teams to form complete solutions.

10.2 Aiming for Mutual Benefits for Industry Customers and Carriers Achieving a win-win situation for industry customers and carriers is the biggest challenge for 5G to enable large-scale digital transformation of industries. Scaled 5G deployment has become the key to realizing the full value of 5G in industry markets. The biggest challenge lies in business models. With the development of 5G and increasing demands in the Internet of Things (IoT) market, accelerating digital transformation has become the development path for various industries and enterprises. Although industrial digitalization brings new opportunities for carriers, it also poses greater challenges to their networks and service capabilities. In order to enable industries, 5G must improve quality and efficiency while also reducing costs. To meet industrial requirements, carriers must upgrade technologies, open capabilities, and achieve business success in 5G applications, thereby achieving strategic transformation. Therefore, the key to enabling large-scale digital transformation of industries using 5G is to ensure win-win outcomes for industry users and carriers. 5G can provide differentiated capability solutions and bridge the cloud and devices. To this end, flexible combinations of standardized products are required to meet fragmented industry requirements and the need for customized networking. Carriers play a dominant role in the business model of 5G industry private networks. This means that they must provide customized network capabilities and value-added service portfolios to meet industry users’ requirements in terms of coverage, latency, isolation, service level agreement (SLA), and O&M assurance. 5G introduces the multi-dimension business model to build differentiated services. In terms of private networks, carriers provide the construction solution and service mode to industry customers to meet their diversified requirements and add value. The 5G business model must gradually shift from providing traditional network connections to supporting platform integration, applications, and services. Close

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engagement with partners is required to explore new 5G business models and expand mutual benefits. To achieve this goal, three issues need to be addressed. First, 5G industry devices are the biggest weakness in 5G large-scale digital transformation. 5G industry devices face challenges such as price, diversity, and various industry requirements. It is therefore necessary to focus on R&D and tailor appropriate module chipsets in order to achieve breakthroughs that will drive the market scale of modules. Second, the 5GtoB operation system needs to be improved to enable large-scale digital transformation of industries. This system involves industry users, carriers, and developers, and requires multi-dimensional construction of network openness capabilities, cloud service platforms, and edge service capabilities. Third, it is important to optimize solutions and combine standardization and customization. 5G networks that are available, reliable, and meet industry SLA requirements are the prerequisites for large-scale digital transformation of industries. The industry chain, capital chain, and innovation chain also need to be streamlined. First, improve the industry chain ecosystem. Based on a public service platform, build a cross-industry 5G convergent application ecosystem, encourage interconnection and collaboration among vertical industry application parties, 5G operation enterprises, 5G-related manufacturing enterprises, application development enterprises, and research institutions, and cultivate excellent industry application system integrators. This will help build an all-encompassing ecosystem for cross-industry collaboration. Second, improve the supply of technologies for the innovative chain. Focus on the key missing links and core technologies in the industry’s upstream and downstream directions to deploy a technological innovation chain, guide innovative resources (such as venture capital projects of startups and leading enterprises) to center on the industry chain, tackle common technology R&D difficulties, and drive the in-depth integration of 5G and next-generation ICT technologies.

10.3 Multiple Forms of Business Models [1] The 5G application industry chain is complex. Enterprises enter the 5G convergent application market from different fields based on their own advantages, resulting in different business models. Currently, the carrier-led business model is the mainstream. More business models will come along in the future, such as those participated or led by industry customers, system integrators, and cloud service providers. Each model has relevant cases. • Led by network carriers: Leveraging network resources, carriers can capitalize on their networks by providing differentiated services, including basic network, slicing, edge computing, and virtual private network (VPN) services, to industry users. Furthermore, given their strong comprehensive capabilities, carriers can work with cloud service providers and industry application developers to provide comprehensive industry solutions. China Telecom, China Mobile, and China Unicom are proactively cooperating with various industries to build 5G VPNs to

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launch 5G private network solutions and explore development paths. In Zhejiang province seated in eastern China, China Mobile provides customized 5G network services in its 5G mall based on the network requirements (such as latency, uplink and downlink rates, and number of connections) of industry users so that they can flexibly purchase network services. The 5G mall model is a prototype still under research. In the 5G + AR remote assembly project of Hunan Valin Xiangtan Iron and Steel, the carrier functions as a general system integrator and provides all capabilities such as 5G applications, connections, devices, and services. Third-party companies are independent software vendors (ISVs) and independent hardware vendors (IHVs) that provide software and hardware services for the carrier. As a provider of 5G network and cloud computing devices, Huawei provides network capabilities for the carrier and cloud computing capabilities for third-party ISVs and IHVs. • Led by industry system integrators: As the leader of professional solutions, industry system integrators lease network services from carriers to develop industry project solutions through integration with cloud services and applications. They then sell the solutions directly to industry customers. Industry system integrators have extensive experience in long-term cooperation with industry customers and industry application development. This enables them to provide services such as customized devices and universal industry platform solutions based on the requirements of industry users. For example, Shanghai Zhenhua Port Machinery Company (ZPMC), a Chinese manufacturer of port machinery, took the lead in working with carriers, equipment vendors, and Port Shanghai to implement the 5G smart port solution in Shanghai Yangshan Deep Water Port. This was subsequently promoted and replicated in other ports such as Ningbo Port. • Led by industry customers: Industry customers set up their own R&D and operation teams to form a full set of solutions that are relatively mature. This approach is first promoted and replicated within an enterprise and then gradually expanded to related industry markets. Industry customers not only raise requirements, but also seek ways to meet these requirements. This is common when it comes to leading enterprises in an industry. Platform capabilities will be the core, and 5G will be one of the core elements to form a complete set of solutions, which will be promoted in the industry on a large scale. For example, Haier Group built an edge computing application cloud platform based on 5G and multi-access edge computing (MEC). As the platform operator, Haier provides a complete set of solutions including MEC and industrial application services for industry users.

10.4 Dynamically-Changing 5GtoB Business Models In the port industry, the cooperation mode involves industry solution providers integrating large-scale projects, while carriers integrate small-scale projects. To expand into vertical industries, 5G needs the assistance from key partners, particularly

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leading enterprises. For example, ZPMC has extensive project resources, but its branches are not as widespread as those of carriers across the country. By cooperating with ZPMC, carriers can share resources to expand 5G to the port industry. For projects related to large ports, ZPMC acts as the general integrator, and carriers are integrated. For projects related to small wharfs, carriers act as the general integrator. In mining, three prototypes of business models are being developed. Mining enterprises have a strong willingness to embrace 5G autonomous driving to minimize accidents and production interruption. The business models of autonomous driving in mining are classified into three types: (1) A truck supplier integrates autonomous driving solutions into its products and sells them to mining enterprises, such as SANY Heavy Industry, which sells trucks capable of autonomous driving. The autonomous driving solution provider can also upgrade existing trucks to realize autonomous driving; (2) An autonomous driving solution provider enters into a joint venture with a large stripping team to set up a new intelligent stripping team that can undertake outsourced stripping projects at lower costs by taking advantage of autonomous driving solutions; (3) A smart mining solution provider provides mining enterprises with a smart mining solution that includes autonomous driving applications. Leading smart mining solution providers in China, such as Tage, WAYTOUS, and YiKong Zhijia, have participated in project tests or demo operations in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and Henan province in northern China. However, smart mining projects are still limited to small-scale operation, and no large-scale commercial use has been developed. Currently, no fixed cooperation mode is available. Carrier-led business models are still the mainstream in the 5G converged application business model. System integrators that understand both 5G and the industry are urgently needed. As industry positioning and cooperation modes change dynamically, the business models of 5G industry applications will continue to evolve. In this context, carriers, industry service providers, and industry customers may incubate or evolve into new 5G converged application system integrators. This will not only enrich the industry ecosystem, but also clarify business models.

Reference 1. Huawei, China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT). 2020. White Paper of new thoughts on 5G talent development.

Part IV

5GtoB Enables Industries

Chapter 11

Heavy Industry

11.1 Hunan Valin Xiangtan Iron and Steel 11.1.1 Case Overview 11.1.1.1

Smart Manufacturing

The traditional steel industry is widely known for its harsh working environments and intensive labor. In contrast, with state-of-the-art technologies, its modern counterpart has moved on from conventional production and is pursuing digitalization, intelligence, and automation. Hunan Valin Xiangtan Iron and Steel Company (XISC) is an active pioneer in leveraging new digital technologies including 5G, artificial intelligence (AI), and cloud computing to advance the smart steel industry. Founded in 1958, XISC has an annual capacity of 16 million tons of steel, buttressing over 400 varieties of quatro plates, wires, and bars. Currently, it is the largest state-owned enterprise in Hunan province and also a key manufacturing base of high-quality steel in southern China. Since 2008, XISC went through a period of rapid scale-up, until its city-central location became a constraint, including with respect to efficiency, when XISC decided to pursue intelligent manufacturing. At the beginning of 2016, XISC set four goals to comprehensively promote the integration of intelligence: • • • •

Development of intelligent devices Automated machine operation Better environment for workers Higher production efficiency.

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Laying an Inclusively Connected Foundation with 5G and MEC

Conventional wired communications lead to fragmented networks and data silos, hindering corporate operations. In 2019, Huawei, XISC, and China Mobile jointly launched the 5G Smart Factory project with the goal to build three smart platforms for XISC. This initiative will lay an interconnected foundation for the smart steel factory to integrate 5G capabilities, including: • Ultra-high speed: 1.2 Gbps in the downlink and 750 Mbps in the uplink to achieve simultaneous ultra-high-definition (UHD) videos on multiple channels • Ultra-low latency: one-way network latency of around 10 ms to achieve real-time instruction delivery and information feedback for remote control of bridge cranes • High stability and reliability: ultra-high interference resistance and stability to achieve network access anytime and anywhere with optimal coverage. In 2019, in the initial phase of the project, full 5G coverage was achieved in the outdoor and indoor converter main control buildings and steel-making scrap and slag areas in the 5 m plate factory. Transmission of HD videos from cameras and control data across programmable logic controllers (PLCs) has enabled typical applications, including remote centralized control of bridge cranes, unmanned bridge cranes, remote robotic arm control, and HD video surveillance in high-risk areas. In June 2020, Huawei, XISC, and China Mobile Hunan jointly set out to explore industry applications in multi-dimensional data collection, augmented reality (AR) assisted remote assembly, and artificial intelligence (AI) machine vision. In terms of network readiness, a 5G private network has been deployed at the XISC campus, including macro base stations, digital indoor systems (DISs), customerpremises equipment (CPEs), industrial gateways (eCube), and access routers (ARs). Devices such as PLCs, laser rangefinders, HD panoramic cameras, and sensors in the factory are connected to 5G private network base stations through ARs, CPEs, and eCube. These devices are connected to the multi-access edge computing (MEC) facility deployed at the campus over the slicing packet network (SPN) to keep service data within premises. This ensures data security and reliability as well as smooth communications among application systems.

11.1.2 Solutions and Benefits 11.1.2.1

Intelligent Spot Checks to Enable Intelligent Devices

XISC has a total of 28,434 production devices. To trace device status, XISC has deployed a system to monitor these devices in real time. This system collects device data every 5 s and sends the data to the backend at a rate of over Gbps in real time. At the backend, the device status can be predicted for quick repair of devices through big data analytics and processing. A mobile app is also included in the package,

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enabling real-time data and historical trends to be viewed anytime and anywhere, production lines to be monitored through videos, and warnings to be issued in real time. Currently, the system monitors over 1700 devices through over 10,000 check points, enabling manageable, controllable, and visualized tracking of device status. To ensure business sustainability, stability, and reliability, various types of sensors are deployed on key devices in steel factories to monitor critical data, including vibration, temperature, humidity as well as gas and liquid levels in real time. This helps quickly detect and resolve faults. These sensors however use different industrial protocols, network transmission patterns, and network architectures. Therefore, it has been a challenge to centrally manage collected data. In addition, these sensors upload data predominantly over optical fibers, posing another challenge for network construction or operation and maintenance by the network carrier. To overcome these challenges, new edge computing gateways are introduced to support multiple interfaces and protocols. This enables convergence of data closer to devices and integration of a strong computing power to support data requiring edge computing and processing, including conversion of protocols and apps. This also facilitates preventive maintenance and reverse control services.

11.1.2.2

Intelligent Slag-Adding Robots to Empower Automated Machine Operation

Slag adding is a key step of continuous casting. This step involves skillfully adding mold powder (trace elements) to molten steel to prevent adhesion to the boiler and avoid oxidation to improve the quality of slabs. It was manually performed with tools to control the adding speed and element ratio, requiring much experience and high skills from personnel. During this process, workers have to experience a high temperature of up to 60–80 °C as a result of heat radiation from the molten steel of as hot as up to 1400 °C. This makes manual operation often prone to errors. To address this issue, XISC introduces an intelligent slag-adding robot to replace manual operations. This new approach is powered by 5G and only requires workers to remotely power up the robots with a few simple steps and provide a little auxiliary support. This helps greatly reduce labor intensity while ensuring 24/7 slag adding in high-temperature environments. In addition, slags are added more evenly, further improving the quality and consistency of steel slabs. With such intelligent robots, production workers can focus on continuous casting, notably increasing efficiency and quality.

11.1.2.3

5G-Based Smart Bridge Cranes to Achieve Automated Machine Operation

Used for loading, unloading, hauling, and transport, bridge cranes are pivotal to steel production and efficient operation of steel factories. In the past, bridge cranes

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were operated inside factories by operators in narrow crane cabs at great heights, which was both inefficient and hazardous as high temperatures, noise, and dust are unavoidable during steel production. 5G-based remote bridge crane control systems improve efficiency and eliminate operation risks. Remote control and unmanned bridge crane systems must be urgently built. However, to implement remote control of unmanned bridge cranes in XISC’s factories, multi-channel and multi-view ultra-high-definition (UHD) videos captured from 11 HD cameras need to be transmitted to the server in real time, and remote driving requires ultra-low latency for quick responses. This poses extremely high network requirements, such as a latency of 20 ms and a transmission rate of 1 Gbps. 4G and Wi-Fi are insufficient to meet such high requirements. For example, Wi-Fi is inadequate in terms of coverage, interference resistance, and stability. As such, 5G is naturally the optimal choice for its ultra-high speed, ultra-low latency, and ultra-strong stability. The 5G smart bridge cranes at XISC’s 5 m plate factory are equipped with sensors and radars as well as laser 3D contour scanning to obtain information and images of surrounding objects and vehicles, vehicle head heights, and unloading positions. The data is transmitted to the server in real time over 5G networks for data processing and 3D modeling of the site. Then, an action instruction set is generated and sent to the cranes for execution. This way, automated device operation is achieved.

11.1.2.4

5G and AR for Remote Guidance to Improve Efficiency

In 2020, XISC planned to launch a new production line to manufacture premium small- and mid-size steel bars. However, the recent global health crisis prevented German and Austrian engineers from assembling and commissioning devices onsite. To avoid delaying construction and resume production as soon as possible, engineers in China and Europe used 5G and AR technologies for onsite communication. AR smart binocular glasses and four variable-zoom 5G pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) dome cameras were adopted to send the footage of onsite operation environments and the first-person views of onsite technicians to experts in Germany and Austria over 5G and software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) international leased lines. With real-time marking, anchor marking, static marking, and desktop sharing enabled by AR, the German and Austrian engineers guided the assembly and commissioning of equipment as though they were onsite themselves. This ensured that the production line was on schedule. The AR services could be used on multiple types of devices, such as PCs, tablets, and mobile phones, adding extra flexibility in remote guidance. In addition, 5G and AR greatly reduced the assembly and commissioning time as well as the labor costs of foreign expert services. On the basis of this case, AR-based remote maintenance, assembly guidance, and expert support will play an important role in smart factories for years to come.

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11.1.2.5

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5G-, AI-, and MEC-Based Automated Slab Rotation to Improve Efficiency

Rolling is one of the main processes in steel making, during which slabs are rolled four to seven times both length- and width-wise to the required thickness. Rolling a slab requires two to four rotations. This is done by controlling the directions and speed of the cone roller table on the rotating roller way to rotate the slab 90°. The rotation is crucial to ensure the desired thickness in all directions. This process is currently performed manually through 24/7 shift work, with its speed and efficiency relying heavily on the skills and proficiency of technicians. AI-based automated slab rotation is introduced to resolve this issue. In this solution, 5G cameras are deployed to record video footage of the rotating roller ways and steel slabs in real time. The video footage is then sent to MEC servers connected to 5G networks. With dedicated on-cloud models trained and deployed on the MEC servers, the algorithm automatically traces slabs and identifies the rollers’ directions and speeds. Based on the identification results, the PLC connected to the rolling system adjusts the directions and speeds of the roller ways automatically to implement 90° rotation. As a result, less labor is required and the efficiency of rolling is increased. The AI-based automated slab rotation system consists of 5G cameras, 5G networks, MEC nodes, a visual identification and angle calculation system, an oncloud AI training platform, and a rolling PLC control system. 5G provides an optimal solution to eliminate cable deployment in the rolling workshops, enabling services to be quickly launched. With MEC nodes deployed downstream at the campuses, the latency of video signal transmission is greatly reduced to an average of lower than 10 ms, and the rotation angles can be accurately calculated in real time and provided to the rolling PLC control system. This case shows that combining 5G, MEC, AI, and cloud improves the automation and efficiency of the rolling production lines and can help inspire the application of 5G and machine vision in other use cases.

11.1.3 Success Factor Analysis 11.1.3.1

Exploration of Service Requirements

This project explicitly reflects the enterprise’s strong demands for safe production, larger capacity, lower energy consumption, and better working environments as well as its eagerness for device and system upgrades. To implement smart steel factories and unmanned operations, a deep understanding of applications and translation of application requirements into specific network architectures and indicators is required.

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During communication about new services, enterprise customers or system integrators usually describe only the application scenarios, without explaining the relationship between service and specific communications network requirements. Alternatively, they raise excessively high requirements on bandwidth and latency based on the indicators of fixed connections such as optical fibers. However, due to the large deviation from actual demands, these requirements cannot be used as the basis for planning and designing the 5GtoB private network. In this case, multiple parties need to jointly plan and build models based on service requirements to support project implementation. To do this, drawing the attention of enterprise executives to the project and resources allocation are the key to implementing and achieving successful results in the project. Once the project is underway, the four strategic goals of the enterprise are used to propose requirements one by one to find a solution for further development. The functions and products that have been accepted will be solidified and become a part of the production process.

11.1.3.2

Project Role Positioning

For enterprises, there are multiple modes of project implementation based on different project requirements. Different service requirements correspond to specific project implementation and integrated delivery modes. XISC leads the remote bridge crane project, with a third-party company being responsible for the reconstruction and integration of bridge cranes, China Mobile for the backhaul network, and Huawei as solution designer for support. In AR-assisted remote assembly, China Mobile is responsible for the general integration of standard products and services, with its partners providing AR devices and cloud services. Project delivery and acceptance are controlled by the general integrator. The basic network is invested in by enterprises, and the benefits are evaluated based on the annual input-output ratio of each project.

11.1.3.3

Project Implications

The foundation network is the base of enterprise production and interconnection, and also a component of enterprise production and operation. Network planning, construction, operation, and maintenance as well as network upgrade and expansion will evolve with the development of enterprise services. Service-Based Network Migration Project data indicates that enterprises also need campus management capabilities to provide precise fault locating and quick recovery for campus devices, including AR glasses, CPEs, and cameras, and even a certain degree of freedom and flexibility in card registration. Considering the possible uplink interference caused by the

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increase in the number of devices, the overall network planning of the campus and the immediate response of network adjustments to new enterprise services, including fast service provisioning, dynamic adjustment of network resources, and maintenance and operation services, are the capabilities required of carriers for enterprise-oriented flexible management and O&M in addition to network construction. Introduction of Innovative Solutions 5G technologies will create innovative solutions. Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are often the trail blazers in polishing solutions for industry sectors. For new use cases, most enterprise customers will adopt the try-and-buy model with a long project duration. This commercialization process normally lasts 6–12 months, putting small-sized enterprises that offer the innovative solutions under a lot of pressure. Therefore, carriers, as well as enterprises in various industries who are willing to invest in integration solutions, need to invest and complete overall planning in advance to successfully introduce, incubate, and commercialize these solutions.

11.1.4 Summary and Prospect Looking ahead, the deputy general manager of XISC said that XISC plans to implement 5G-enabled collaborative design, automatic control, flexible production, assisted assembly, quality control, remote O&M, transparent factory, warehousing management, logistics supply, and training and guidance based on 5G converged private networks. XISC also aims to build the production command, device energy, and enterprise resource planning (ERP) data centers to enable visualization, management, and control of its 5G private networks and applications. This will help XISC fundamentally change its processes and models in operation decision-making, production management, and manufacturing execution to implement transformation and upgrades for high-quality development.

11.2 Conch Cement 11.2.1 Case Overview 11.2.1.1

Project Background

Cement is an indispensable construction material in the development of the national economy. China is a major consumer and producer of cement: its capacity accounts for 60% of worldwide cement production. In recent years, China’s cement output has remained stable at around 2.3 to 2.4 billion tons per year. In 2019, the main business income of China’s cement industry was CNY1.01 trillion, achieving a yearon-year increase of 12.5%. Playing an important economic role, the cement industry

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has become a significant symbol of the social development level and comprehensive strength of the national economy. Conch Cement is one of the largest cement manufacturers in China with an annual output of 353 million tons. Ranked 38th among China’s top 500 manufacturers, Conch Cement actively leverages 5G technologies to transform conventional industries. It cooperates with China Telecom Anhui and Huawei to carry out 5G network and application practices across its mines, factories, and ports, and to explore secure, remote, and AI-based services.

11.2.1.2

Industry Requirements

Cement industry is a typical process manufacturing industry that includes mining, manufacturing, and port logistics. Industry enterprises intend to use new technologies such as 5G, cloud, and AI to improve the calcining process, reduce energy consumption and pollution, and continuously promote an automated, digitalized, and intelligent cement process. • Safety: The cement industry prioritizes production safety above all else. Limestone mining typically takes place in an open pit and involves prominent safety issues during blasting and transportation. Industry enterprises have explicit requirements on unmanned mining operations and remote control. • Efficiency: Due to the characteristics of cement manufacturing, the operation and revenue of enterprises will be severely affected if work and production are suspended by issues such as blockage at the material stack ports and dump valves, ash pollution, and distorted or damaged conveyor belts. • Experience: Transporting raw meal and clinker by ship requires port logistics personnel to manually monitor the position of the ship and the loading status in a timely manner. A number of problems currently exist, including poor outdoor environments for port operators working at heights, low communication efficiency, high dependence on work experience, and difficult recruitment. 11.2.1.3

Smart Factory 2.0

The project was initiated with a service survey in April 2019, involving multiple production processes across several of Conch Cement’s factories. In operation scenarios such as mine blasting, truck transportation, and factory video surveillance, application verifications are carried out for 5G-based virtual reality (VR) campus visits and device diagnosis, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) inspection in mining areas (AI warning in blasting areas), unmanned driving, and 5G video surveillance (with factory surveillance devices upgraded to 4K). Such verifications are also performed for AI analysis and detection of material stack port blockage (dump valve, personnel behavior, and conveyor belt management), remote control of water pumps, and industrial data collection. 5G networks and AI algorithms help improve the operation efficiency of cement mining, transportation, production, and other processes

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to meet customer requirements for secure, remote, and AI-based services. They also lay the foundation for upgrading to Smart Factory 2.0.

11.2.2 Solutions and Benefits 11.2.2.1

UAV AI-Assisted Blasting Inspection and Terrain Data Collection

Before blasting can proceed, a warning perimeter needs to be established in order to prevent unauthorized access. However, this is inefficient, and access may still occur during manual inspection. Conch Cement was the first in the industry to realize UAV-based blasting inspection and terrain update analysis in mining areas. This innovative application—first used in ground mine fields—is suited to blasting in not only non-metallic but also other ground mine fields. UAVs transmit HD videos of the monitored mine over 5G to the e-Cloud AI platform for analysis. If the AI system detects a person or device within the blasting range, it issues an alarm through the integrated AI platform. After the blasting is complete, UAVs can also collect geographic information system (GIS) terrain changes and update the 3D model to guide subsequent blasting and mining operations. In this application, 5G Super Uplink is used to ensure the 5G coverage and bandwidth across variable terrains, expanding the AI identification range from 500 m to 2 km. In addition, large-scale surveillance free of blind spots reduces the number of blasting guards, ensures personnel safety, and improves the efficiency of postblasting terrain data collection, marking a key step for the integrated management of unmanned mines.

11.2.2.2

Intelligent Process Flow Monitoring

Cameras are required to monitor the real-time operating status of multiple process nodes in factories, including the detection of indoor and outdoor fly ash, conveyor belt damage, and blockage at key discharge outlets such as hoppers and dump valves. The conventional end-to-end (E2E) wired deployment is slow, costly, and difficult to maintain, whereas 5G wireless technology is relatively simple to deploy and makes it possible to monitor all factory processes without blind spots. Surveillance videos are transmitted over 5G to the MEC platform, which integrates AI algorithms to analyze and identify exceptions and issue alarms in real time. This helps factories meet their requirements on daily production scheduling and handling of safety incidents and emergencies. For unsafe behaviors at the campus, AI security detection provides real-time monitoring to detect whether drivers in the shipment area operate in accordance

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with regulations. It also issues alarms for personnel who do not dress or perform inspections in accordance with regulations. 5G and intelligence improve production efficiency, reduce at least five people for manual inspections on the production line, increase the inspection and monitoring efficiency by three to four times, and avoid extra losses caused by human-related incidents (operations against rules and mechanical faults account for 95%).

11.2.2.3

Remote Control and Data Collection of Pumps and Ship Loaders

For ship loading scenarios, four cameras are deployed on each ship loader to upload videos and AI algorithms are used to identify key information, such as the ship status and locations of chute and stacked materials. Such information is used to assist remote manual operations, effectively implementing remote operations on the operation platform. This also eliminates the problem of harsh working conditions at heights and improves the working environment of workers. AI-assisted monitoring and warning replace the reliance on workers’ experience for manual adjustment, thereby improving the port work efficiency and safety in addition to reducing the operation difficulty. Labor costs are significantly reduced when operations at heights are changed to unified control and supervision at the ground operation room. In the past, each ship loader required four people to work in shifts on a 24/7 basis. Now, four people working shifts can monitor two or three ship loaders simultaneously. This reduces the required workload and labor by at least 50%. In addition, by collecting the data of water pumps located up to 10 km away, the distributed control systems (DCSs) of the control and management center can obtain PLC control information, on-site videos, water pump revolution, water flow, and other data in order to remotely shut down and control water pumps. This saves the cost of deploying two employees for long-term on-site maintenance of water pumps.

11.2.2.4

Remote VR Visit

Conch Cement’s mining areas regularly attract groups of visitors. To prevent interference to normal production and unnecessary security incidents, remote VR visits are implemented. The central control room, workshop duty room, and mine duty room are each equipped with one 360° camera. These cameras broadcast images of the two duty rooms and the voices of onsite commentators. Visitors can watch the images remotely by wearing VR glasses located in the central control room.

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11.2.3 Success Factor Analysis 11.2.3.1

Business Model

In this project, the network carrier serves as the general integrator. The integrator works with partners to build a solution based on 5G, AI, and cloud, and provide 5G networks, 5G device integration, and cloud and AI application services in a unified manner. Typically, cement enterprises adopt the group-subsidiary model. The mining, manufacturing, and logistics processes are highly standardized, and the application scenarios and business challenges are consistent. This makes it possible to easily replicate the scenario-based application solutions formed in this project. In the fourth quarter of 2020, the industry white paper 5G Smart Cement, jointly written by Conch Cement, China Telecom, Huawei, LiuGong, and ChannelSoft, was officially released.

11.2.3.2

Technical Advantages of 5G

In mining areas or ports of cement enterprises, where wired networks are unreachable, 5G networks offer inherent coverage advantages. Generally, in mining areas, UAVs are required to fly 40 to 100 m above the ground, and macro base stations are used to provide 5G wireless network coverage. In factories, 5G wireless networks (macro base stations and DISs) are used to provide high-bandwidth, low-latency, and widely connected network environments without requiring reconstruction of existing cables. The network deployment is efficient, agile, and fast. The application of the Super Uplink technology is a highlight in Conch Cement’s 5G deployment. This technology increases the uplink rate by 20–60% in areas closer to base stations and up to 300% in weak coverage areas at the cell edge. By combining this technology and AI, it is possible to ensure real-time video definition and precise recognition, enabling the blasting warning range in mines to be extended from 500 m to 2 km. Super Uplink is pending a joint patent and is being promoted to become a global 5G technical standard.

11.2.4 Summary and Prospect In this project, multiple parties have come together to carry out joint innovation and application research based on smart factories, specific production scenarios (such as mines, manufacturing, and ports), E2E data flows, and network interconnection. Working together, they have overcome common key technical bottlenecks related to multiple industrial technology applications. A standard AI platform is built based on the standard application of 5G, AI, and cloud in the industry.

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The application of 5G industrial Internet in the cement industry is still in the early stage of exploration. However, the typical use cases described earlier have been preliminarily formed. As 5G technologies mature, the control and optimization of production processes and techniques will be further explored for process manufacturing enterprises. In the future, 5G industrial Internet will become the main driving force and an essential approach for the digital transformation of the cement industry.

Chapter 12

Computers, Communications and Consumer Electronics (3C) Manufacturing

12.1 Midea Group 12.1.1 Case Overview Midea is a global home appliance enterprise that provides a wide range of products and services, covering heating, ventilation, and air conditioner (HVAC), robotics and automation systems, and digital services. It employs approximately 150,000 people across 200 subsidiaries, 28 R&D centers, and 34 main production bases around the world, providing products and services for over 400 million users each year. In March 2019, China Telecom, Midea Group, and Huawei signed a three-party agreement to establish an innovation center for 5G smart manufacturing, and to develop solutions for various applications based on 5G. In July 2020, the center released 11 typical application scenarios relating to the 5G-based industrial Internet. China Telecom provides a comprehensive solution based on 5G to help Midea build a 5G smart factory (see Fig. 12.1) and develop a 5G smart manufacturing benchmark in the Greater Bay Area. Using 5G macro base stations, digital indoor systems (DISs), multi-access edge computing (MEC), control slicing, and collection slicing, the solution ensures that all campuses and production line labs are 5G-covered for unified and standardized wireless access, high-reliability and high-performance data transmission, data offloading, and local breakout (LBO) of data. Planning for 5G scenarios: Based on Midea’s production processes and pain points, while also taking into account current 5G network capabilities, the 11 application scenarios encompass all phases of the industrial discrete manufacturing process, as well as the innovative applications of information and communications technology (ICT) and operational technology (OT) networks (see Fig. 12.2). (1)

5G campus video surveillance, 5G smart dashboard, and 5G Manufacturing Execution System (MES) code scanning: The security monitoring, display, and production scanning devices, as well as the MES dashboard in the factory, are connected to China Telecom’s 5G network. The collected information is

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Control slicing

In-transit inventory management

Warehousing

Real-time control

Production

…

Injection molding

AR industrial assistance

5G / Network

Service

Energy mgmt.

…

MEC

Smart logistics

CtoM flexible manufacturing

Collection slicing

Robotic data upload

Finished product

Others

Resource mgmt.

Smart dashboard

Final assembly

Magnetron

MES data collection

Device mgmt.

Electronics

User / Product

Production

Application Logistics

5G macro base station + distributed indoor system

Smart logistics

Sheet metal

Procurement

AGV dispatching

Production mgmt.

Supplier

Fig. 12.1 Overall solution for 5G smart factory

Edge layer

IaaS layer

PaaS layer

SaaS layer

Plan

5G + Smart Factory

Application Cloud Network Device

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sheet metal

5G campus

surveillance

A2 sheet metal workshop

5G AGV

Scenario 3:

Fig. 12.2 Midea’s 11 application scenarios

Microwave avenue

Scenario 2:

5G AI inspection for

Scenario 1: Scenario 4:

A1 injection molding workshop

B2 electronic workshop

collection

Scenario 5:

PLC

5G cloud-based

Scenario 6:

C1 finished product warehouse

5G KUKA robot

Scenario 7:

for AI inspection

5G machine vision

Magnetron workshop

5G empowers full digitalization and intelligence

B2 assembly workshop 3

5G production data

Scenario 8:

and positioning

5G forklift dispatching

Scenario 11:

remote O&M

5G AR

Scenario 10:

management

5G scanner

Scenario 9:

dashboard

5G MES production

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(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

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channeled to the MEC, with internal data sent to Midea’s data center and external data to the 5G core network through 5G base stations (see Fig. 12.3). Cloud-based control of KUKA robots: The operator can collect the production process data of robots through 5G and the MEC cloud to facilitate predictive maintenance, as well as load their control process models to adjust robot movements (see Fig. 12.4). Cloud-based programmable logic controller (PLC): MEC deployment in close proximity to enterprise campuses reduces 5G transmission latency to about 15 ms. In addition, with access router (AR) dual fed and selective receiving, the project innovatively utilizes the cloud-based PLC to enable 5G to expand into the industrial control intranet (see Fig. 12.5). Industrial augmented reality (AR) assistance: China Telecom’s 5G uplink enhancement technology provides a high uplink bandwidth network for AR cameras to replace Wi-Fi and cable connections. The MEC system provides centralized computing for artificial intelligence (AI) video processing to guide frontline personnel (see Fig. 12.6). 5G-based machine vision for intelligent quality inspection: China Telecom’s 5G uplink enhancement technology provides high bandwidth for quality inspection. The customer-premises equipment (CPE) is used for uplink big data transmission and the MEC for fast local inference, thereby locating quality problems and facilitating association with MES to reduce the defective product yield (see Fig. 12.7).

12.1.2 Solutions and Benefits Midea operates 29 production bases, approximately 34 factories, and 260 logistics warehouses worldwide. The company is committed to integrating information, intelligence, and equipment manufacturing technologies to build a fully connected and transparent 5G industrial Internet platform. In addition, a brand-new smart factory featuring smart manufacturing and flexible production will be built through wireless Internet of Things (IoT) for production lines, materials, and finished products. Currently, intelligent services such as remote monitoring and control of production devices, intelligent inspection, intelligent automated guided vehicle (AGV), AR assistance, flexible production, and digital twin smart factory are being gradually implemented. These intelligent services pose the following high requirements on networks and security: • Transmission rate: Remote video upload, remote assistance based on virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR), and AI applications for machine vision require Gbps high-bandwidth transmission. • Latency: Wireless networks are essential for cloud-based PLC control, cloudbased control of KUKA robots, collaboration, collision-free operations, and realtime data exchange between AGVs, and communications between AGVs and

CPE

5G security inspection

Fig. 12.3 5G campus applications

CPE

Video surveillance

Smart dashboard

CPE

Workshop monitoring

MEC

5G security inspection

5GC

5G

Video surveillance

CPE

MES data collection

5G

Midea data center

MES code scanning

anywhere; comprehensive intelligent security platform

5G inspection robot: 360 inspection anytime and

Robotic inspection

MES code scanning success rate: 99.999%

No cabling for new or adjusted production lines

MES code scanning

Information display and real-time update of workshop data

Simplified deployment without cabling

Smart dashboard

4K HD image upload

No cabling, less deployment costs, and 360 views

Video surveillance

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12 Computers, Communications and Consumer Electronics (3C) Manufacturing Working condition data

MEC

Real-time control Collaborative dispatching User management

CPU data computing

Resource allocation

Cloud-edge synergy

KUKA cloud

5G base station Phase 1: 5G industrial CPE or USB dongle to connect KUKA robotic arms

5G industrial CPE

5G USB dongle

Phase 2: 5G modules gradually integrated into KUKA robotic arms

5G industrial module

Fig. 12.4 Cloud-based control of KUKA robots

• • • •

peripheral devices. Consequently, millisecond-level or lower latency must be ensured to provide precise automatic control of intelligent manufacturing. Connections: Tens of thousands of sensors and actuators are deployed in the production area of the factory, which require massive connectivity of communication networks. Reliability: Control and collection applications require precise positioning and data, meaning that network reliability must reach 99.99% and above. Mobility: Flexible networks do not require the re-installation of pipes, troughs, and cables. Information security: Two-way authentication must be used for data transmission, and production service data cannot be transmitted outside the campus.

However, as the existing siloed networks of Midea involve wired, Wi-Fi, and small wireless networks (470 and 430 MHz) with various standards, they are unable to alleviate current service pain points and meet the requirements of intelligent services. Wired networks are difficult to deploy and involve high O&M costs and poor mobility, Wi-Fi is vulnerable to interference with insufficient capabilities for handover and coverage, and large interference renders small wireless networks difficult to manage and maintain. In addition, a lack of powerful data protection mechanisms results in poor information security. Current pain points include: • Remote monitoring: Complex production environments and a wide range of mobile logistics devices make it difficult and costly to deploy cables for data transfer. • Flexible production: Small batches and multiple types of production tasks require frequent adjustment of the system. However, wired networks are too complex to be constructed within a short timeframe. • Cloud-based remote control: The robotic arm control server is connected to the arm itself through a wired network. The local robotic arm is controlled through the PLC, which is insufficient for flexible networking and centralized control.

Fig. 12.5 Cloud-based PLC control

I/O

PLC

SCADA

MES

ERP

Five-layer pyramid for automated control Core: PLC

Traditional PLC Positioning machine Executing mechanism Integrated I/O

Industrial computer SCADA

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15% Higher efficiency

17%

Wireless production lines for lower cabling costs and higher flexibility Cloud-based data collection for lower SCADA development and maintenance costs Cloud-based PLC for better utilization and simpler service collaboration

(Data source: Value assessment of Midea)

Lower costs

Positioning machine Executing mechanism

5G network

Cloud-based PLC

Separated I/O

Average latency: 14 ms Insensitive to network jitter

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Fig. 12.6 Industrial AR assistance

Voice playing

AR overlay

Frontline operation personnel

Video annotation

Equipment model

5G base station

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Operation detection

Voice notification

Model adaptation

Application scheduling

CPU data computing

Resource allocation

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Top: one 4K line-scan camera Scrap bucket

C1 C3 Material direction 1.3s/material

Optical Four 16 MP area sensor G1 scan cameras

Connected to PLCs

Discharging

C4

C2 C5

Optical sensor G2

Optical sensor G3

Discharge motor

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Camera data sent to local PC

Midea AI cloud

Thin PC (w/o GPU) GPU cluster

5G CPE / Dongle

5G base station

MEC

Fig. 12.7 5G-based machine vision for intelligent quality inspection

• AGV remote control: When factory AGVs are connected through Wi-Fi, the number of supported devices is limited with a significant offline rate, resulting in high costs for network construction and O&M. Guangdong Midea Kitchen Appliance Manufacturing has successfully implemented 5G reconstruction for industrial Internet and construction of promotion and service platforms oriented to the smart factory of home appliance manufacturing. Macro base stations, DISs, and MEC systems are all covered by 5G networks. The enterprise’s 5G network deployment architecture can simultaneously meet the requirements of control, video, and information collection services. In addition, the reconstruction also enables the converged deployment of 10 applications. Over the next two to three years, the production efficiency and quality of flexible smart manufacturing, such as AGVs, AR assistance, and KUKA robots, will be improved by 10% and 30% respectively, with a CNY300 million increase of profit. The application of 5G in Midea can be regarded as guidance for the scaled promotion of 5G smart manufacturing. (1)

Establish 5G Network Deployment and Management Models for Home Appliance Manufacturing Enterprises

High-quality and internal 5G networks are built to support the integration of 5G and the industrial Internet, forming 5G network deployment architectures and new models for network construction, O&M, and management that can be promoted

and computing

global innovation lab

Fig. 12.8 5G network deployment and management

Midea MEC

Local traffic offloading

Midea MEC

Indoor distributed coverage for typical production lines

5G production line

Coverage for Midea's

5G lab

Three macro base stations for full coverage in the outdoor areas of a Midea campus

5G campus

Video surveillance, UAVs, and AR/VR applications

Data interaction

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Network slicing mgmt. (China Telecom)

Regional DC (Foshan, Guangdong)

Regional DC (Foshan, Guangdong)

Regional DC (Foshan, Guangdong)

Central DC

Central DC

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Communication mgmt. & support platform (Midea)

5G industrial Internet slicing

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within the industry (see Fig. 12.8). The solutions for the new models (verified) are listed as follows: • 5G radio access network (RAN) coverage solution: Three macro base stations, 432 DISs, and two MEC nodes (primary and standby) are all covered by 5G networks, which are capable of meeting the R&D and application requirements of industrial applications, and enable the construction of a 5G virtual private network for industrial manufacturing. • 5G network slicing solution: Network slicing is indispensable for a 5G network capable of simultaneously meeting the requirements of industrial control, video transfer, and information collection. This solution includes solution design, deployment, and lifecycle management. • 5G MEC solution: 5G MEC technology is deployed on the edge, and third-party apps are deployed on MEC nodes through the gateway (forwarding plane of the core network), to implement local traffic processing and logical calculation, thereby ensuring data security (data is not sent out), stable and ultra-low latency, and network reliability of industrial interconnection services such as smart factory. • 5G network management solution: The enterprise’s 5G network supports remote O&M management and network quality monitoring. (2)

Explore 5G Converged Applications for Home Appliance Manufacturing Enterprises

5G smart factory applications involve data collection, management and control, and information interaction. These services have different requirements on the performance of 5G networks. High-density access and low power consumption are critical for collection services, control services require networks with low latency, high reliability, and high synchronization precision, and the network used for interactive services must support a high transmission rate. The primary 5G-converged applications of this project are as follows (also see Fig. 12.9):

Collection Services

Control Services

Interactive Services

Source tracing

SCADA

AI machine vision

Smart dashboard

Cloud-based PLC

Cloud-based AGV

Smart video

KUKA robot

AR/VR

Fig. 12.9 5G-converged applications

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• Collection services, such as 5G-based intelligent source tracing, production information dashboard, and video services, require high-density access and high energy efficiency. • Control services, such as 5G supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA), 5G cloud-based PLC, and 5G KUKA robots, require millisecond-level latency (50 ms to 1 s) with 99.999% reliability and security. • Interactive services, such as 5G-based intelligent machine vision, 5G cloudbased AGV, and 5G-based AR/VR, require fast responses (5–10 ms) without any interruptions and massive data transmission (bandwidth: 100 Mbps to 1 Gbps). (3)

Provide 5G Public Services for the Home Appliance Manufacturing Industry

In order to integrate 5G with industrial Internet, the network test environment needs to be set up to verify the overall solutions, modules, and devices, which will become the incubation base for cross-industry converged applications. According to the test environment, Midea established a 5G-based public service platform for scaled promotion. The platform includes the 5G and industrial Internet converged application solution library, network construction pattern knowledge base, and 5G training center, providing technical consulting and training services for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to develop 5G applications through the use of the following: • A network lab and field test environment for the 5G and industrial Internet converged application solution library are established to deliver overall solution evaluation and device and module testing. A 5G network environment to facilitate the R&D and incubation of overall solutions, devices, and modules for 5G and industrial Internet converged applications is provided to incubate and test converged applications. In addition, product test services are provided for enterprises. • A 5G networked promotion service platform is built for the industry, including the application solution library, network construction pattern knowledge base, and 5G training center, to provide consulting and training services relating to the 5G network and applications for SMEs. (4)

Develop the Smart Factory Standard for the Home Appliance Manufacturing Industry

At the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao-Bay Area Summit Forum held in Guangzhou, Midea, China Telecom, and Huawei jointly released the 5G+ Smart Factory Network and Application White Paper (2019). This white paper represents a joint effort by all three parties to deeply integrate 5G core technologies with industrial Internet applications and facilitate the implementation of research and projects in the 5Gbased industrial Internet field. Based on earlier research and the prospect of the future industrial Internet, the three parties aim to build this project into a model for 5G solutions and typical applications, paving the way for the application of 5G, MEC, and slicing in smart factories, and advancing overall industry development. Following the debut of the New Infrastructure policy in 2020, Midea, China Telecom, and Huawei officially released 11 typical 5G-based industrial Internet

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applications in July. In addition, the industry application standards for 5G-based industrial Internet in the discrete manufacturing industry have been drafted, and the three parties are also working with universities and standards organizations to promote the formulation of industry standards.

12.1.3 Success Factor Analysis Since kick-off in 2019, Midea’s smart manufacturing project has been widely applied in 11 scenarios, including 5G network reconstruction in a number of factories. In addition, Midea has proposed smart factory standards for the home appliance industry, and built test environments and promotion platforms to serve SMEs, catalyzing the development of the 5G industrial Internet industry. (1)

(2)

(3)

Strategic Objectives According to the development of main businesses, industrial enterprises fall into stable, saturated, and weak capacities with different objectives and digitalization strategies. The high penetration rate of home appliances and decreasing demand for renewal and replacement have led to an increasingly saturated market. Today’s top home appliance enterprises possess advanced information technologies and information exchange capabilities, and hope to maintain a solid presence in the new digital economy. Meiyun Zhishu, a subsidiary of Midea, has been established to achieve business transformation. The company uses 5G technology as the underlying communications architecture to build an ICT platform, providing standard smart factory models and solutions for third-party SMEs. Active Exploration of Business Models As the current 5GtoB business model is not yet mature, Midea, China Telecom, and Huawei cooperate with each other to initiate and promote the project with national funds, and explore new business models. Midea, as the project’s independent software vendor (ISV) and independent hardware vendor (IHV) (developer), raises overall requirements and is responsible for business scenario planning and IT application implementation. As the general service provider, China Telecom provides basic capabilities for network and cloud services, while also playing the role of system integrator (SI) for the overall project design, procurement, and implementation. As the device vendor, Huawei undertakes certain specific tasks for the carrier (network device and design support) and SI (engineering implementation and commissioning). National Policies China has issued a series of policies to support the development of key 5G technologies and the 5G-based industrial Internet. In May 2019, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) launched a public bidding for the Industrial Internet Innovation and Development Project, covering 40 projects in terms of industrial Internet networks, platforms, security, and identifier parsing.

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Midea Kitchen Appliance Division and China Telecom Guangdong jointly won the bid for the 5G network reconstruction and construction of promotion and service platform project. Industry Standards and Specifications The home appliance industry belongs to the electronic device manufacturing sector, and its main businesses include the manufacturing of such home appliances as audio-visual devices and consumer devices. The rapid development of smart home appliances is encouraging the leading enterprises in the sector to build industrial Internet platforms for home appliance segments, and to establish industry standards for smart home appliances. Midea Kitchen Appliance Division plans to build a smart factory over the next three years which encompasses the following six dimensions: smart planning and scheduling, smart production collaboration, smart device interconnection, smart production resource control, smart quality process control, and smart decision-making support. The production process is similar to that for smart home appliance factories, and Midea has invested a large amount of R&D resources in smart home appliances, while also establishing the digitalization standards and specifications of segmented industries for scaled promotion. Industry Ecosystem Cooperation Midea, China Telecom, and Huawei signed a 5G cooperation agreement in March 2019, and jointly announced the establishment of the 5G Smart Manufacturing Innovation Center in July 2020. Overall solutions have been provided to cover 11 typical application scenarios in the discrete manufacturing industry. Relying on the national enterprise technology center and Postdoctoral Workstation, Midea cooperates with nearly 20 research institutes and colleges, such as the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, South China University of Technology, and Chinese Academy of Sciences. In addition, the abundant industry ecosystem resources also facilitate the implementation of the project. Essential Requirements for Specific Services Midea Group’s KUKA robots can provide various industrial robot models with different load capabilities and work scopes to replace manual or traditional fiveaxis robotic arms. Dedicated robotic grippers are used for automatic hanging, pick-up, and processing on the powder coating line, and automatic material feeding and installation of core components such as fans on the assembly line. KUKA robots upload data in real time based on the PC development system and communication compatibility. 5G communications technologies are then adopted to achieve high-speed real-time processing on the cloud and more adaptive mobile high-speed interconnection scenarios. In addition, Midea also aims for the implementation of real-time data collection, predictive maintenance, and process model loading through the built-in 5G module of KUKA robots, enabling Midea to create an innovative business model designed to lease robots, rather than sell them.

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12.1.4 Summary and Prospect Based on China’s strategies and industry requirements, Midea, China Telecom, and Huawei will continue to carry out cooperation, research, testing, and deployment of 5G technologies and industry applications to meet the requirements of the industrial Internet for network-based collaboration, intelligent production, customized services, and service extension. The common goal of all three entities is to advance a mature 5G industry chain, build a cooperative, innovative, and win-win 5G ecosystem, transform 5G production networks, and enable the industrial Internet.

12.2 Gree Group 12.2.1 Case Overview Gree Electric Appliances (Gree) was founded in 1991 in Zhuhai, Guangdong, and it was listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in November 1996. Now it has grown into a diversified technological global industrial group that has expanded its business to home appliances and industrial equipment. Gree’s products are widely sold to more than 160 countries and regions. The company now has a workforce of 90,000 employees, including 14,000 R&D personnel and over 30,000 technical workers. It has established 14 production bases and 5 renewable resources bases around the world, covering the entire industrial chain from production to recovery of waste products, for green, recyclable and sustainable development. The company has 15 research institutes, 96 research institutions, 929 laboratories, one academician workstation, one national key laboratory, one national engineering research center, one national industrial design center, one national recognized enterprise technology center, and one robotics engineering technology research center.1 Although Gree’s production devices are highly automated, most of them are managed and controlled separately and data cannot be shared. This is due to the complex production environment, limited space, lack of cabling ducts, difficult construction, and short time window. Consequently, it is difficult to meet the requirements for large-scale device management and system interactions. 5G is the ideal solution for Gree to meet these requirements, as it offers ultra-large bandwidth, massive connectivity, ultra-high reliability, and ultra-low latency. With 5G technologies, Gree plans to not only integrate and reconstruct existing resources, but also build industrial Internet and smart manufacturing networks that interconnect production devices, instruments, meters, sensors, control systems, and management systems. 1

http://global.gree.com/ywb/aboutgree/companyintroduction/companyprofile/index.shtml.

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In 2019, Gree collaborated with China Unicom to carry out 5G reconstruction of its intranet and construction of application promotion and service platforms, focusing on its home appliance manufacturing sector. This project plans to implement full 5G coverage in Gree’s Zhuhai factory with related core network and transmission resources. Gree’s 5G intranet uses network slicing for core, transport, and RAN networks, and interconnects with MEC-based virtualization platforms. Device control signals, production line monitoring and detection signals, and production data are transmitted and processed over the 5G network in various scenarios such as raw material processing, component processing, and product testing and assembly. Gree also plans to implement visual inspection of compressor lines, systems, and printed materials; video surveillance of production lines; integrated management of 5G production lines; automated electrical safety of outdoor units; paperless first inspection; dynamic operation guidance; equipment monitoring; and big data platform application. Furthermore, 5G reconstruction and construction of application promotion and service platforms are also planned to be carried out. To meet Gree’s network and smart manufacturing requirements, the project developed a holistic private network solution that combines 5G, MEC cloud, and standalone (SA) slicing. It uses 5G SA networking, with the control plane of the core network sharing China Unicom Guangdong’s 5GC commercial network. The userplane function (UPF) is deployed in Gree’s campuses for exclusive use, diverting the internal data on the private network to the data center (see Figs. 12.10 and 12.11). By the end of 2020, the RAN, core network, transport networks, and auxiliary facilities have been constructed and end-to-end (E2E) slicing verification has been performed. In addition, applications such as paperless first inspection, 5G video surveillance, AGVs, and key data collection have been launched. For paperless first inspection, each handheld device can obtain a bandwidth of up to 800 Mbps, enabling files to be opened in just 1–2 s, facilitating inspection. The traditional paper-based inspection requires six paper files, and materials are prone to be mistakenly deleted. This may cause batch quality issues and makes it difficult to search for archived files. Due to the high transmission latency and low downlink rate of 4G, opening archived files for initial inspection takes a long time. In contrast, the paperless solution based on 5G private networks reduces the number of paper files and significantly improves efficiency (see Fig. 12.12). Based on the high uplink bandwidth provided by 5G, video surveillance images of the production lines can be uploaded to Gree’s servers in real time. And to enhance product quality control during production, AI-based process behavior identification is performed (see Fig. 12.13). In addition, 5G effectively improves the flexibility of production line deployment and addresses the fiber and bandwidth shortages.

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Core network (operator's public network) 5GC (public network)

Internet

Gree's campus

Applications

Local

MEC (UPF)

5G base station

Common slice

Campus slice Private network users

Common network users

Fig. 12.10 Overall network architecture

PDA 5G CPE 1

Camera Common user

5G CPE 2

Slice 1

FlexE1: Gree's services

UPF 1

MEC node

FlexE2: Common users' services

Transport network

Service data flow (private users) Service data flow (common users) Signaling flow (control plane)

App Selfdeveloped platform

Campus equipment room

China Unicom Guangdong SA core network

Fig. 12.11 5G private network slicing solution

Production data from machines and devices can be sent to the MEC platform and diverted to the local industrial cloud platform through the 5G network and MEC cloud. Because MEC makes it unnecessary to bypass the core networks, it is possible to ensure high reliability, high security, low latency, and large bandwidth to support local data processing and reports.

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Fig. 12.12 Paperless first inspection

Fig. 12.13 Production line behavior inspection

12.2.2 Solutions and Benefits (1)

Wired Networks and Wi-Fi Are Insufficient for New Intelligent Applications

In scenarios such as paperless first inspection and production line behavior analysis, Gree has launched multiple intelligent applications on production lines for higher production efficiency, innovation, and transformation, but the traditional optical fiber solution entails high construction costs, long construction period, complex cabling, and difficult maintenance. As such, this deployment mode cannot meet requirements

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for dynamic adjustment of production lines. In addition, Wi-Fi lacks adequate antiinterference capabilities and cannot deliver stable and continuous coverage to some applications (such as AGVs) that have high bandwidth requirements. The 5G SA network resolves the service transmission problems caused by insufficient optical fiber and bandwidth resources in the factory, eliminating cabling connections for a smooth and simplified production environment. In addition, 4G and 5G networks provide carrier-class reliability and security for services. (2)

Stability of Key Services Should Be Ensured When Multiple Services Run Concurrently over the Same Wireless Network

The existing wireless networks are insufficient for multi-service concurrency in the same production line because they cannot ensure the high level of stability and reliability required by some key services, such as paperless first inspection. Logically isolated network slices are established to support different applications, replace the original virtual local area network (VLAN), and integrate fragmented functions into one network. On April 14, 2020, Gree launched the first MEC cloudbased E2E SA slice for smart manufacturing. Verification shows that the average latency of intranets is 8.33 ms, and that of public networks is 20.89 ms. Moreover, the bandwidth of critical applications is stable. (3)

Transmission Efficiency and Security Assurance for Production Line Data

In smart manufacturing, the entire manufacturing process—production, warehousing, and logistics—needs to be streamlined to implement real-time interaction. The production data and device data in these areas require real-time monitoring, tracing, and security protection. There is a large amount of data at industrial sites, much of which has no value. This poses a huge demand on bandwidth resources. For example, a 2-megapixel camera requires a bandwidth of 2–4 Mbps and produces 10–40 GB data every day. It is estimated that there are over 15,000 cameras in Gree’s headquarter and its industrial campuses across China. To upload the video footage captured by these cameras, a traffic bandwidth of 30 to 60 Gbps and a storage capacity of 158 to 631 PB every month are required. In addition, some confidential data is transmitted over the Internet, which does not meet the enterprise’s requirements for internal data security management. To address these issues, the MEC networking solution is introduced to adjust carrier networks based on the 5G network architecture. The data plane core network and service applications are deployed at the network edge to reduce the pressure of bandwidth on the core network, fully meeting the ultra-low latency requirements for some onsite command services. The edge computing technology is leveraged to filter and pre-process the collected data, reducing the pressure on data transmission and computing. The AI function is also deployed on the edge cloud to automatically analyze surveillance videos, identify risks, and handle alarms. This not only improves the efficiency of surveillance but also reduces the investment in resources. Take machine vision in a single workshop as an example, the labor cost can be reduced by CNY1.6 million per year.

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12.2.3 Success Factor Analysis 12.2.3.1

Different Roles and Their Responsibilities

This project involves three roles: enterprise, integrator, and carrier. • Enterprise: As an enterprise, Gree has extensive experience in production and a deep understanding of network challenges. Innovation strategies and fierce market competition urge Gree to develop its smart production to a higher level. Through communication with carriers, Gree raises clear requirements for network deployment and performance indicators, purchases resources based on network solutions, provides power supply and equipment rooms, and assists multiple integrators and the carrier in implementing and verifying services. • Enterprises need to think innovatively and have clear innovation and development directions, in-depth analysis and understanding of production challenges, and the willingness and capabilities to implement innovative solutions. • Integrators: As the main system integrator, Gree works with multiple application integrators to provide the consulting, design, and delivery of application solutions based on service requirements. In addition, verifications are required for the innovative integration of applications with 5G networks and edge clouds. • Integrators need to have an understanding of the industry and provide consulting, design, and delivery of application solutions by integrating resources. They also need to be able to implement 5G ecosystem aggregation and service integration verification as 5G evolves. • Carrier: China Unicom Guangdong is in charge of the network implementation and operation of this project. Based on network challenges and production requirements, it implements wireless coverage for Gree’s production lines. It also constructs the core network and provides O&M and upgrade services for Gree’s private network. Moreover, it cooperates with integrators to integrate and test applications on 5G networks and edge clouds, as well as continuously improves network coverage and uses technologies such as slicing to ensure the network quality for services. • Carriers need to have a deep understanding of challenges facing enterprises and their requirements and the capabilities of efficient network construction and maintenance. They also need to open up network capabilities to enable customers’ production applications based on their production requirements. 12.2.3.2

Rigid Industry Demands and Enterprise Requirements

Currently, China’s industrial manufacturing is typically in the low-end and mid-range of the manufacturing industry chain. Gree strives for innovation-driven development and proposes an R&D investment model that features on-demand investment and no upper limits to maintain competitiveness and meet its urgent requirements for intelligent transformation. In 2018, Gree invested up to CNY7.2 billion in R&D.

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According to the data from China National Intellectual Property Administration, Gree ranked sixth for the number of patent applications, ranking first in China’s home appliance sector. In addition, Gree strives for transformation and upgrade, implementing structural reform on the supply side while adjusting and optimizing the industry layout to actively promote the upgrade of smart manufacturing, and is set on high-quality development. Its business now has been expanded from air conditioners to a diversified range of high-end technologies. Currently, Gree’s intelligent equipment is being widely used to automate the production of not only its own businesses, but also home appliances, foods, automobiles, building materials, and sanitary wares, as well as computers, communications, and consumer electronics. Gree’s excellent thinking and clear direction with respect to innovation are key contributors to the success of this project.

12.2.3.3

National Policies

MIIT has already formulated concrete initiatives for integrating 5G with the industrial Internet, aiming to achieve breakthroughs in key 5G-based solutions for the industrial Internet by 2022. These initiatives include building five common industry service platforms to support innovation and improve public services, accelerating the introductory adoption of 5G and industry Internet applications in 10 major industries, and developing benchmark intranet projects based on 5G and the industrial Internet across at least 20 typical scenarios. By taking such strategic measures, China has shown clear signs of its support for developing integrated applications of 5G and the industry Internet and promoting digital, networked, and intelligent transformation throughout the manufacturing industry, ultimately providing fresh momentum to high-quality economic development over a long term. These policies give enterprises strong stimulus to implement 5G private networks and industrial applications. In this project, Gree and China Unicom Guangdong are also the beneficiaries of such policies.

12.2.3.4

Business and O&M Models

• Business models: In the initial phase, investment from carriers and national subsidies is essential to helping enterprises reduce costs when applying new technologies in production. This also provides them with the time and room for trials and service verification. After the industry chain has matured and scaled up, investment in networks and applications will be greatly reduced. Business models must be adjusted to enable the experience obtained from previous implementation to be quickly replicated for upstream and downstream enterprises. • O&M models: Traditionally, enterprises take major responsibility for maintaining industrial production networks. With 5G-powered enterprise intranets to support

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production, this responsibility will be transferred to carriers who have abundant O&M experience and specialized teams. This shift will enable enterprises to greatly cut the expenditure on network O&M and related talent development, making more resources available for network construction and application introduction.

12.2.4 Summary and Prospect Based on 5G private networks, Gree has verified the first paperless inspection and video surveillance on production lines. 5G is adopted to replace wired networks to increase the flexibility in the deployment of production lines, alleviate fiber and bandwidth shortages, and facilitate construction in factories. 5G private networks will also be further verified in other production line applications. The public network, intranet office, and production services (such as machine vision, AGV, and robotic control) will be gradually migrated to 5G networks, with the ultimate goal of building intelligent, simplified, and committable industrial private network services. With the MEC cloud platform, Gree will continue to deploy more AI capabilities and explore edge-cloud collaborated applications with enterprise industrial Internet platforms. The commercial verification of 5G private networks for smart manufacturing in Gree marks an important milestone for China Unicom Guangdong, Gree, and Huawei in joint innovation of 5G vertical industry applications. It also lays solid foundation for them to open up a wider industry space for 5G. Gree will continue to work with China Unicom and Huawei on rebuilding networks based on 5G technologies for cross-regional collaboration during air conditioner production, with the aim to streamline internal production and logistics, build smart factories, and explore 5G private network deployment, construction, and O&M models that can be used as an example for scaled expansion into other enterprises.

12.3 Huawei Southern Factory Huawei’s 5G smart factory project is set to become a global showcase for 5G-enabled high-end manufacturing. Southern Factory is not only one of Huawei’s manufacturing bases, but also a significant platform for the company to explore manufacturing services. Huawei is committed to building Southern Factory into a comprehensive platform featuring fast responses, high quality, quick delivery, optimal engineering service, and enhanced cost effectiveness. As a major player in the 5G communications industry, China Mobile provides 5G industrial private network services for Southern Factory, helping the factory to continuously innovate, explore, and deploy 5G applications.

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12.3.1 Case Overview Huawei, in collaboration with China Mobile, has built the world’s first large-scale 5G smart manufacturing factory in Dongguan, Guangdong. This effort aims to tap into new models for products, solutions, and O&M which will be incubated here based on top-notch innovative technologies, thereby facilitating the exploration of 5G applications in vertical industries and helping to build an industry ecosystem capable of implementing 5G-enabled smart manufacturing. The project involves the construction of 5G service scenarios for Southern Factory, the development of E2E 5G smart factory solutions, including industry standards, 5G network planning, construction, and O&M, and industry device ecosystem, and the creation of 5G smart manufacturing benchmarks. The first phase of both indoor and macro base station coverage in surrounding campuses was launched in 2020. Based on the services provided by Huawei’s smart manufacturing factory, a private transport network with high bandwidth and low latency has been built. The synergy of 5G devices, cloud, networks, and edges enables the network to be applied to some of the more typical industry scenarios, such as flexible manufacturing, intelligent detection, and AR assistance. In this way, device and data security can be controlled and managed, with flexible, customized, and intelligent production capable of meeting the requirements of ever-growing markets.

12.3.2 Solutions and Benefits 12.3.2.1

Industry Challenges

Flexible production poses high requirements for the digitalization and interconnection of manufacturing devices. Insufficient networked nodes in the manufacturing industry will affect the observation of production status, the evaluation of production efficiency, and device data statistics. Most incumbent production lines rely on wired transmission which is constrained in expansion and adjustment and prolongs the development of smart manufacturing. As the industry further develops, flexible production lines pose high requirements on network bandwidth, real-time performance, cabling, transmission distance, and routine maintenance. Secure and reliable networks are required to ensure the mobility of key production devices. Many workshops still use wireless networks such as Wi-Fi to provide mobile services. However, the communications bandwidth requirements of Wi-Fi may cause inherent interference, deteriorating network performance. In addition, continuous Wi-Fi coverage may cause handover failures, high latency, and network access failures (network congestion) in densely populated areas. There is a shortage of skilled machine and device operators, and developing highend technicians requires a significant amount of time. High staff turnover also adds

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to the complexity of talent cultivation. Despite the attention paid to smart manufacturing professionals, their associated costs and time efficiency run counter to the rapid development of enterprises. As a result, robotics have become an increasingly important option for most enterprises seeking to reduce labor input and quality risks while also improving efficiency.

12.3.2.2

Solutions

The most typical scenarios of the electronic manufacturing industry, including flexible manufacturing, intelligent inspection, and AR assistance are applied in Southern Factory. 2.6 GHz and 4.9 GHz industrial private networks are deployed at Southern Factory, with 5G networks achieving both indoor and outdoor coverage. Meanwhile, dedicated edge computing nodes are deployed in campus equipment rooms to isolate the enterprise private network from the carrier’s public network for transmission. The MEC cloud management platform is provided to ensure the security and privacy of enterprise data. In addition, MEC is deployed in enterprise equipment rooms to ensure local data breakout. E2E disaster recovery ensures the highest level of security and innovates on the existing O&M management mode and support system of the 5G private network. Opening capabilities to the operations support system (OSS) and business support system (BSS) and building self-service platforms for 5G private networks enable self-operation services and self-O&M networks for the enterprise on its own service management platforms. Production devices are connected through 5G networks, which help operators monitor the running status in real time, remotely access workshop data, and obtain such information as the quality of raw materials, yield rates, and device O&M statuses. This achieves remote and centralized O&M, management, and control of production devices with lower service costs. The 5G E2E smart factory solution includes the following service scenarios and applications: (1)

(2)

Wireless replacement of devices: Factory devices are connected to 5G networks to facilitate flexible manufacturing and quick update and replacement of factory production lines. Wireless replacement is suitable in scenarios such as data collection, PLC, industrial control, label, and AGVs. This reduces deployment costs as well as cabling and adjustment time for production lines. 5G indoor positioning: Based on the positioning objects, 5G indoor positioning can be classified as either resource, material, or personnel positioning. • Resource positioning: assets judgment for printers, scanners, and handheld devices, allocation of expensive test instruments, and scheduling for key production auxiliary resources; • Material positioning: clear and visible materials, as well as rapid manual material search and quality isolation; • Personnel positioning: electronic fence skill fool-proofing for frontline personnel, and rapid exception closure by the nearest engineering personnel.

12.3 Huawei Southern Factory

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

(7)

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Intelligent edge application: Based on powerful hardware platforms, intelligent algorithms and rules for edge deployment are used for factory identification and defect detection, which includes detection of printing, incoming materials, assembly, and packaging defects. Detection precision can be improved as a result, and feature extraction and classification can be achieved without manual operations, shortening the application development period. The synergy of 5G, MEC, and intelligence implements local intelligent services and cloud-based centralized training, management, and scheduling. In addition, computing power can be reused to reduce O&M workloads, and to avoid missing and incorrect detection caused by insufficient computing power. 5G automation test: This is a common automatic testing scenario in the electronic assembly industry, and is applicable to the testing of 5G networks, transport network microwave, routers, and devices at Huawei’s Southern Factory. 5G PLC: This scenario is applicable to the interconnection between 5G and mainstream industrial PLCs, in order to adapt to common industrial protocols. Devices are connected to the 5G network without any service interruptions, implementing cloud-based and wireless PLCs with low E2E latency. Production lines are easily adjusted based on service requirements for higher efficiency, solving such problems as difficult device deployment and inconvenient O&M. In addition, the manufacturing process flexibility of the PLCs is improved to meet customized requirements. AGV cloud-based dispatching: This scenario refers to 5G cloud-based dispatching of mobile AGVs (such as omnidirectional unmanned forklifts) for higher transmission stability and security on the RAN side. It also facilitates the development of map loading, centimeter-level navigation, and trunk dispatching. In the future, the intelligent dispatching algorithm will be deployed at the network edge to reduce device costs. AR factory: Remote support, online intelligent diagnosis, maintenance assistance, and training guidance can be implemented through AR factories. • Remote support: The manufacturing command center provides remote control in real time for quick positioning and troubleshooting of anomalies. • Online intelligent diagnosis: Based on the digital twins and knowledge base, AR glasses can achieve intelligent online diagnoses. • Maintenance assistance: AR is used in the maintenance section to enable quick fault locating and troubleshooting. • Training guidance: Professional training and guidance are provided to new employees and technicians in real time, offering a quick start to new hires.

12.3.2.3

Solution Benefits

Based on smart manufacturing service characteristics, the solution deeply integrates 5G technologies, such as SA networking, edge computing, network slicing, and service level agreement (SLA) assurance, to advance the significant upgrade of the

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industry. The solution achieves the highest positioning precision of indoor cellular networks, the highest security level of SLA assurance systems, and the highest uplink traffic density in ultra-dense networking, forming the most comprehensive 5G showcase. In the 5G smart factory project, Huawei cooperates with both upstream and downstream industry partners, including more than 10 chipset module and device vendors, as well as over 20 production line device vendors, to achieve interworking with 8 industrial communications protocols. In the first phase, 12 applications were released and more than 100 5G devices were connected to verify precise indoor positioning. The results show that the indoor cellular network provides the highest positioning precision, meeting the requirements of most applications. The independent core capabilities of requirement insight, solution configuration, construction and delivery, and O&M assurance are critical for industrial manufacturing enterprises to implement technical solutions such as 5G-based high-end smart manufacturing.

12.3.3 Success Factor Analysis Huawei’s Southern Factory at Songshan Lake is a leading high-tech campus focusing on the R&D, manufacturing, sales, and technical services of communications products. It is also the production center for various Huawei devices and communications equipment. The collaboration between Huawei and China Mobile will be of great significance to the development of 5G smart high-end electronic manufacturing in China. Southern Factory is currently focused on innovating 5G smart manufacturing applications in the context of industrial campuses. China Mobile’s industrial private network solution is an important enabler for Southern Factory to design the 5G E2E smart factory solution for both traditional manufacturing applications and new production scenarios. In addition, Huawei’s internal (private) cloud solutions also enables the factory to build smart manufacturing applications. Typically, large manufacturing enterprises are not only industry customers, but also system integrators, industry cloud service providers, and industry application developers. As such, China Mobile provides both 5G industrial private network and O&M services. In addition, industry demands, technical support, and policy support are essential for the implementation of 5G smart industries. The digital transformation of smart manufacturing occupies a significant portion of the market. In 2019, the market scale of the industrial Internet industry in China reached CNY608 billion, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.32%. By 2023, this figure is expected to surpass CNY1 trillion, 10% to 45% of which will be contributed by digital technologies. New smart manufacturing applications, such as AR/VR production, intelligent quality inspection, and AGV applications, require high network bandwidth and ultra-low network latency, which 5G networks are able to satisfy. Technologies such as edge computing, cloud, and AI enable industrial manufacturing applications to use wireless connections to replace the wired originals. Devices are connected to

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5G private networks to build a 5G device ecosystem for simplified deployment and O&M, implementing the significant upgrade of smart manufacturing. National policy support for smart manufacturing is also important. In this regard, China has introduced a number of initiatives to support 5G-based industrial Internet development, based on its findings that 80% of 5G applications will be driven by the industrial Internet. Based on Made in China 2025 initiative, it is estimated that key fields in the manufacturing industry will become fully intelligent by 2025, reducing operation costs, product production period, and defective product rates by 50%. 5G, edge computing, cloud, and AI will promote high-end electronic manufacturing to improve production and operation efficiency, while also increasing enterprise revenues. In addition, the solution can be rapidly scaled up within the manufacturing industry to realize network-based, digital, and intelligent transformation, achieving the Made in China 2025 targets.

12.3.4 Summary and Prospect As noted by Wangcheng Jiang, President of Huawei’s ICT Product Portfolio Mgmt & Solutions Dept, with the development of information technologies such as 5G, edge computing, cloud, and intelligence, mobile communications technologies are being applied in various fields of social production and life. This enables communication not only between people, but also between people and things and between things, and facilitates the upgrade and transformation of the manufacturing industry. Huawei’s Southern Factory—its first 5G smart manufacturing factory for large-scale commercial applications—has verified the feasibility of using 5G networks in upgrading the entire manufacturing process. In addition to bringing significant value to the manufacturing industry, the transformation will also create a new blue ocean market space.

Chapter 13

Electric Power and Public Transportation

13.1 China Southern Grid 13.1.1 Case Overview Founded on December 29, 2002, China Southern Power Grid (CSG) supplies power to five provinces across China (Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Hainan), and connects to the power grids of other countries such as Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos. It provides power to 254 million people—18.2% of China’s total population—across more than 1 million km2 . As electric power services develop, four significant changes have occurred: new energy and services are being accessed on a large scale; control has expanded from partial to all domains; response from the power transmission network has extended to the power distribution network; and there has been an explosive growth in the collection of information. To adapt to the development trend of power systems, CSG is pursuing the digital transformation strategy. In 2017, CSG, China Mobile, and Huawei started to jointly research applications and innovations in 5G smart grid. Since then, they have achieved certain breakthroughs from formulating a top-level design to industry standards and from conducting pilots to large-scale promotion. They have defined the standards for 5G applications, network architectures, security, and business models based on 53 scenarios in the five major electric power services: power generation, transmission, transformation, distribution, and consumption. In addition, CSG improves the efficiency of automation and inspection, reduces construction costs, increases industry revenue for the carrier, and builds a sound industry ecosystem. Currently, the three parties have started large-scale deployment in Shenzhen and Guangzhou (over 3000 devices in 2021) and plan to achieve fullscale deployments in China’s five southern provinces between 2021 and 2025. 5G provides secure, flexible, and efficient virtual private network (VPN) slicing for the smart grid and offers useful references for the carrier’ private wide-area slicing service. © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_13

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13.1.2 Solutions and Benefits 13.1.2.1

Scenario-Specific Solutions to Facilitate Digital Transformation

Electric power services cover five major processes: power generation, transmission, transformation, distribution, and consumption (see Fig. 13.1). China’s power generation services are provided by nine companies, while power transmission, transformation, distribution, and consumption services, collectively referred to as power grids, are provided by CSG and State Grid Corporation of China. Control and management of such power grids require a large amount of peopleto-device and device-to-device information exchange, in which communications systems play an indispensable role. The power grid communications network consists of the power transmission and power distribution networks, and the former is equipped with a relatively complete optical fiber communications network. CSG’s optical cables have reached a total length of 250,000 km. However, the power distribution network mainly depends on wireless public networks for communications—over 89% for distribution automation and over 99% for metering automation—due to the high costs and difficult O&M of optical cables. As the digital transformation of CSG moves forward, power grid management gradually extends to power distribution and consumption, posing higher requirements on work efficiency. However, conventional communications solutions require new technical approaches to overcome the difficulties in adapting to these changes. For example, power distribution services are deployed in a wide range of areas with high requirements for communications security, but fibers can be costly and timeconsuming to deploy and their O&M is difficult. However, 5G can provide wide wireless coverage and high security and bandwidth with low latency (see Fig. 13.2). (1)

Power distribution faces the most prominent challenges when the development of smart grids requires massive connectivity, high security and efficiency, and extension to power distribution networks.

Due to high costs, it is difficult for enterprises to implement full fiber coverage— such coverage has so far been implemented on only the power transmission network. However, the power distribution network is in the “blind adjustment” state (experience-based management). Due to the large number of power distribution networks, achieving full fiber coverage is difficult, expensive, and slow, and involves complex maintenance (CNY150,000 per km). CSG has 300,000 power distribution rooms whose sensing capabilities and control levels are largely restricted by communications methods. In particular, it is difficult to achieve real-time control. CSG has taken significant steps, such as implementing phasor measurement units (PMUs) and differential protection. However, these technologies have high requirements on communications, such as 1 µs precise timing for PMUs that 4G networks cannot provide. To implement these services, Huawei

HV transmission network

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Fig. 13.1 Composition of a power system

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Step-up/Step-down substation

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5G Advantages

Multiple nodes and wide coverage

Wide coverage

High cost, long duration, and difficult O&M of optical fibers

Wireless access

High communications requirements that 4G cannot meet

High security, low latency, high bandwidth

Fig. 13.2 Challenges to the digital transformation of CSG

proposed a solution using the 5G air interface and device timing and included the standards into 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) specifications. The base stations and devices for air interface timing have been developed and applied on live networks in Shenzhen and Guangzhou. The results of tests show that 5G technologies can be used to meet the high communications requirements. The measured precision of timing can reach 400 ns. Currently, service personnel of the power distribution network can easily leverage 5G to quickly roll out differential protection and PMU services. This way, the fault scope can be minimized, and the power supply can be quickly restored, significantly improving the reliability of power supply and reducing the cost of network construction. (2)

Power transformation involves hundreds of substations in each city. Each substation, especially the 500 kV inspection center, requires a large amount of detection data to ensure normal operation. Take the 500 kV PC substation as an example. Manually inspecting 1330 items takes 3 days and is hazardous due to its operations being beside high-voltage power grids.

5G-based intelligent robots however can complete the inspection within one hour and quickly generate analysis reports, significantly improving inspection efficiency and reducing security risks. In addition, there is a large amount of monitoring and control data in substations. Typically, adding new cameras or monitoring devices requires optical fibers to be rerouted. With 5G, cameras or monitoring devices can be quickly deployed. (3)

Power transmission network has a wide coverage area, covering underground cables and high-voltage lines. The biggest issue in power transmission is that the devices and lines are scattered, making it difficult to monitor faults. In the past, faults were manually monitored, which was inefficient. For example, CSG’s entire network is composed of more than 300,000 km of lines and 110,000 towers. Over the years, CSG has tried to use advanced technologies to resolve long-standing O&M difficulties.

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Using technologies such as infrared ray to implement unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) inspection requires data to be uploaded with a communications approach. The transmission efficiency can be significantly improved if wireless high-speed transmission can be implemented. The emergence of 5G helps support the use of UAVs and AI algorithms to upload the collected data in real time. The data is then analyzed on the edge cloud AI platform to identify faults. This not only improves the accuracy of fault identification, but also increases the O&M efficiency of enterprises.

13.1.2.2

Secure and Flexible Wide-Area Private Network Solution

In power distribution, 5G provides high-precision timing and low latency to implement differential protection for power distribution networks, halving network construction costs. In power transmission and transformation, 5G and intelligence achieve intelligent inspection, improving the work efficiency by 80 times. All these services are based on 5G, which can provide secure, flexible, and intelligent VPN services for power grids. The biggest advantage 5G has over 4G in the electric power industry is its security isolation and flexible scheduling functions which are also the main product and offering that carriers sell to the power grid industry. (1)

Security Isolation

The National Energy Administration of China implements the following four security principles: secure partitioning, private network, horizontal isolation, and vertical authentication. They are the basis of isolation in the electric power industry. In accordance to the importance of a service, electric power services are divided into two large areas and four subareas: production area I, production area II, management area III, and management area IV. In conventional power grid communications, production and management areas must be strictly separated and use different optical fibers and servers. If 5G wireless communications is used, services in these areas also need to be distinguished in an orderly manner. CSG uses hard isolation for production and management areas and soft isolation for subareas to implement network isolation across the radio access network (RAN), transport network, and core network. In terms of technology, the core network solution is easy to implement. The user plane functions (UPFs) are independently deployed for production and management, achieving natural isolation. UPFs use the multi-tenant soft isolation mode. The transport network uses flexible Ethernet (FlexE) as the hard pipe, and VPN or FlexE as the soft pipe. The difficult part is the RAN. If frequency band isolation is used, the cost is high. Therefore, resource blocks (RBs) are used to implement hard isolation and 5G QoS Identifiers (5QIs) are used to implement soft isolation. The end-to-end (E2E) slicing solution was initiated at the beginning of 2019. E2E network slicing was first streamlined during MWC Shanghai 2019. According to the test results on the live network, services do not affect each other when hard isolation is implemented (see Fig. 13.3). The general principles for designing CSG’s slicing network architecture comply with the basic principles for dividing four slices in four areas. Currently, the principles

5G base station

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Fig. 13.3 World’s first power slice

Transformation

Transmission

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production slice UPF

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Slice-based private use of 5G public networks

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World's First Power Slice Application: Best Practice in 5G Private WAN

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CSMF: Slice Operation Platform Applicable to Other Industries Product launch

Order mgmt.

Billing

Service monitoring

NSMF: Cross-Domain E2E Network Slice Mgmt. Template mgmt.

Template design

5G CPE

Resource mgmt.

5G RAN

Orchestration

SPN transport network

E2E monitoring

E2E O&M

5G core network

Fig. 13.4 Slice platform architecture

have been promoted in China’s five southern provinces and can be used as a reference for slice division in other industries. (2)

Flexible Scheduling

If a slice provided by a carrier is only a SIM card that can be used on industrial devices, customer may not recognize that it’s a slice and therefore cannot perform self-operation or self-management. Therefore, the carrier should open power grid slice capabilities. At the beginning of 2019, CSG planned the network slice management function (NSMF), communication service management function (CSMF), and power application management architecture, and proposed the architecture to 3GPP. In December the same year, CSG streamlined the power application management, carrier CSMF, and NSMF experimental networks. On the power grid application management interface, the customer can view the running status of the purchased slices, including the latency and bandwidth. This proves that carriers’ slice networks can be managed and operated (see Fig. 13.4).

13.1.3 Success Factor Analysis • Business model: Power grid is a ubiquitous network. It is a key 5G application scenario and requires carriers to provide a wide-area virtual private network. This project defines the standards for the carrier’s wide-area slicing services. Currently, CSG, China Mobile, and Huawei have completed the top-level architecture design of slicing services in five provinces in southern China, and designed dedicated and common slice charging modes based on different service levels. The design can be replicated and promoted to other industries. • Industry standards: CSG has essentially formed enterprise standards and obtained the security standard certification CERT in 2021. The company works with

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State Grid of China to promote industry standards, which can be replicated and promoted on a large scale. • Service modes: CSG’s smart grid project has spanned three years, with increasingly clear roles. The carrier provides communications technology (CT) integration or direct slicing services. It also needs to maintain good relationships with customers and provide consulting and delivery capabilities. In areas where less customer interaction is required, power grids are major integrators. Power grids essentially need the carrier to provide a VPN slice and are willing to pay for the slice service. A process is required to offer slice products and offerings, for which Huawei provides technical support to CSG and China Mobile. After the carrier offers products and offerings, Huawei provides the carrier with consulting, planning, construction, maintenance, and optimization services for 5G sliced private networks. • Open ecosystem: After the carrier’s slicing services become mature, large-scale applications are promoted by independent software vendors (ISVs), independent hardware vendors (IHVs), and integrators. As a key project in China’s new infrastructure construction, the joint innovation project has achieved impressive results. Among the success factors of CSG’s 5G smart grid project, innovation, standard formulation, and business models play an important role. • Application standards: The 5G Smart Grid White Paper and 5G Smart Grid Requirement White Paper were released. • Slicing standards: The 5G Smart Grid Top-Level Architecture was released to realize the transformation from technologies to services and commercial use of power slices on the live network. In terms of networks, the slice model is standardized based on the security partitioning of power grid services. For operations, China Mobile Guangdong releases NSMF+ and CSMF+, and CSG implements self-O&M on the power slice management platform. • Industry technical standards: Over 20 proposals regarding 5G power grids were submitted to 3GPP and technical standards were determined for timing and slicing. Power grids require that the timing precision of the air interface be 1 µs. CSG, China Mobile, and Huawei performed R&D on networks and devices. According to the field test, the average latency was 10 ms. The clock source was extracted from base stations to devices, enabling a timing precision of 300 ns over the air interface on the live network. • Security standards: A multidimensional security protection system is built for 5G smart grids, which includes slicing, multi-access edge computing (MEC), device security chipset, and situation awareness, and the 5G Cyber Security White Paper was released. • Business model: The business model framework for wide-area sliced private networks has been initiated for the first time.

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Fig. 13.5 Industry’s first 5G timing-capable CPE

• Industry’s first 5G timing-capable customer-premises equipment (CPE): The CPE was applied on a small scale in Guangzhou and Shenzhen to meet the timing requirements of the electric power industry (see Fig. 13.5). • Launch of the full-service demonstration zone: On August 17, 2020, the fullservice demonstration area for the power grid in Shenzhen was launched. Later this year on December 22, the commercial use of Shenzhen power grid was launched.

13.1.4 Summary and Prospect 5G is a key technology for CSG’s digital transformation strategy. After nearly three years of exploration, the joint project team has conducted in-depth research on each application and specified the support of networks and parameters for service scenarios. In particular, the team has specified the support of resource allocation and performance of network slices for power grid services in a commercial environment. The current small-scale pilot projects in power transmission, transformation, distribution, and consumption show that 5G networks can better meet the security, reliability, and flexibility requirements of power grid services to improve production efficiency and reduce O&M costs. To date, the 5G smart grid project has been put into small-scale commercial use in Guangzhou and Shenzhen. Junquan Yang, Deputy General Manager of CSG Power Dispatch and Control Center, noted, “To adapt to the development trend of power systems, CSG is pursuing a strategy of digital transformation and digital grid construction. 5G is a key technology for CSG’s digital transformation. The current

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small-scale pilot projects in power transmission, transformation, distribution, and consumption show that 5G networks can better meet the security, reliability, and flexibility requirements of power grid services to improve production efficiency and reduce O&M costs. As of 2020, the joint innovation of 5G and smart grids has spanned three years. In 2021, CSG will promote applications in five of China’s southern provinces to advance industry standardization.”

13.2 Xiamen Public Transportation 13.2.1 Case Overview 13.2.1.1

About the Project

Xiamen is one of the initial four special economic zones to open up China to the world, and was dubbed a major innovation pioneer in 2009. Xiamen has gradually contributed to China’s ICT industry over the years, and has done so by launching some of China’s first trials and pilots such as the TD-SCDMA and TD-LTE pilots. Vehicle-to-everything (V2X) realizes proactive and safe driving on the strength of autonomous environment awareness and networked information services, leveraging independent vehicle intelligence and 5G’s low latency and high reliability. V2X is gradually becoming more widespread in the transport industry, given its strengths in reducing traffic congestion, accidents, and air pollution. Buses are like the veins of a city, transporting residents around all corners of the island. For Xiamen Public Transportation, over half of complaints are about the efficiency of the city’s buses, while another major issue is that the fuel accounts for over 15% of the operation costs, and also contributes to heavy pollution. The city’s bus rapid transit (BRT) system (which is a bus that runs on an elevated road spanning the island) also has safety risks, as passengers have been known to fall between the platform and bus while boarding and alighting the buses. The BRT system is ideal for V2X applications, as it runs on an elevated road that is dedicated only for BRT buses, meaning other vehicles will not interfere with the network. In 2018, Xiamen Public Transportation cooperated with Datang Mobile, Xiamen Transport Bureau, and China Unicom to launch the 5G BRT intelligent networked vehicle-road synergy project.

13.2.1.2

From Trial to Commercial Use

The project utilizes cellular V2X (C-V2X), 5G, and MEC technologies to realize real-time vehicle-vehicle, vehicle-road, and vehicle-cloud communications for BRT buses, following a substantial upgrade to 5G networks. Laser radars, high-definition (HD) cameras, roadside units (RSUs), and 5G MEC servers are leveraged to build

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smart intersections. Thanks to the low latency and high bandwidth of 5G, four service applications have been rolled out, which are: beyond line of sight (BLOS) collision prevention, real-time vehicle-road synergy, intelligent vehicle speed policy, and safe and precise parking. By August 2020, five traffic control intersections and 50 BRT buses were refurbished, and later in the month, the project was concluded, marking China’s first intelligent networked vehicle-road synergy project. The equipment, technical services, and 5G network construction for the project were provided by two major project partners—China Unicom Smart Connection (CUSC) and China Unicom Industrial Internet (CUII).

13.2.2 Solutions and Benefits 13.2.2.1

V2X Converging Three Networks

By integrating 5G, C-V2X, and MEC with independent vehicle intelligence technology, this project implements intelligent network connections, which converges the following networks into one V2X system to enable various services at different layers: (1) (2)

(3)

In-vehicle network: Smart in-vehicle devices and sensors collaborate to support a convergent sensing algorithm, safeguarding vehicles from network lag. Vehicle-vehicle network: The vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-toinfrastructure (V2I) technologies realize interaction between vehicles, and between vehicles and road infrastructure (including traffic lights). Vehicle-cloud network: Vehicles can interact with 5G public networks, while the MEC platform is deployed close to users, enabling applications such as route planning, energy policies, and regional high-precision map.

For this solution to work, the BRT buses as well as social intersections must be upgraded to intelligent management. Given right of way (ROW) and construction barriers, wired communications was readily ruled out. As a solution to this, 5G is able to deliver the desired bandwidth and latency for the sensing devices at intersections to communicate with the MEC platform. Bandwidth that exceeds 32 Mbps uplink is needed to collect videos from multiple channels (for example, 4 channels, 1080p, 30 fps), while a maximum E2E latency of 100 ms or below is paramount for safety and security, as stated by 3GPP and European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI). In reality, the latency has to be even lower, at least around 30 ms, as video collection and encoding/decoding already require 60 ms or higher.

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Real-Time Vehicle–Road Synergy

Vehicle-road synergy facilitates 360-degree detection of blind spots at intersections. The MEC platform gathers and mixes the detection data recorded by sensors to detect obstacles such as pedestrians and vehicles and predict their behaviors. The 5G network sends MEC-processed data to vehicles in reach and this could include real-time safety prompts or comprehensive and multi-dimensional information about the road. This data allows smart vehicles to preempt and react to dangers. Green wave traffic is also realized. Vehicles can learn the traffic light status of the next intersections through vehicle-road communications, and calculate the recommended speed based on their speed and location. The system can adjust and control traffic lights to allow approaching buses proceed through intersections smoothly, cutting journey times by at least 15%.

13.2.2.3

Intelligent Vehicle Speed Policy

In this application, vehicles dynamically share and report driving data, road conditions, and area data to the MEC platform, which calculates and notifies vehicles of the optimal speeds for specific locations, over the 5G network. This not only streamlines vehicle speeds and journey times, but also cuts down on excessive emission caused by heavy acceleration and sudden braking. The trial period showed savings of nearly CNY20,000 on fuel as a result of this technology.

13.2.2.4

Safe and Precise Parking

In this scenario, the 5G MEC platform sends policies such as high-precision map, convergent perception algorithm, and route planning to vehicles in real time over the 5G network. Based on this data, buses are able to accurately park 10 cm away from the platform, ensuring passenger safety.

13.2.2.5

BLOS Collision Prevention

Buses communicate with each other and exchange information about their distance, speed, and location through real-time V2V communications, implementing time to collision (TTC) technology. TTC ensures that self-driving vehicles slow down as they approach other vehicles or intersections, thereby preventing collisions. Not subject to the line of sight (LOS) impact of bad weathers (such as fog, haze, and rain), it can greatly increase the vehicle perception range to a maximum of 450 m, which is conductive to reducing traffic accidents and costs while improving the travel safety.

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13.2.3 Success Factor Analysis The project was long and complex, lasting two years, and included important milestones such as the initial demonstration, strategic agreement, and service application demonstration and release to the scaled implementation and strict pressure testing, before the expected results were achieved. The project’s success can be split into: • Advanced technologies: 5G C-V2X features multi-mode operability, high rate, low latency, uplink/downlink decoupling, and high spectral efficiency. It can work in multiple network modes and support vehicle-vehicle and vehicle-RSU communications, outperforming dedicated short-range communications (DSRC) in terms of reliability and evolution. On top of this, vehicle–road synergy is superior to independent vehicle intelligence thanks to its wide coverage, low cost, and resistance to factors such as weather. This technology is indispensable to autonomous driving. • Policy support for smart transportation: In February 2020, 11 ministries of the Chinese government including National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), Cyberspace Administration, Ministry of Science and Technology, and Ministry of Public Security, released the policy paper Innovative Development Strategy in Intelligent Vehicles, encouraging coordinated construction of 5G and V2X based on 5G commercial use and LTE-V2X in key areas by 2025. These and other incentives brought forth multiple V2X demonstration and pilot projects across the country. This resulted in the government of Xiamen setting up an exclusive office to explore the smart and digital development of its transportation industry. The 5G BRT intelligent networked vehicle–road synergy system is a milestone project of this vision. • Real benefits for the industry and public: The project not only improves the service quality that BRT offers, but also brings faster and safer travel for both drivers and passengers. Furthermore, it lays the foundations for establishing, testing, operating, and managing municipal laws and regulations on smart driving, and sets the benchmark for building the local V2X industry ecosystem, consolidating industry resources, and accelerating industry upgrade.

13.2.4 Summary and Prospect The 5G BRT intelligent networked vehicle-road synergy system adds value to the safety, efficiency, and environment of the transportation industry. It reduces fuel consumption and emissions, which translates into reduced operation costs. The safe and precise parking of buses by the platforms boosts passenger safety, while 360degree blind spot detection significantly ensures buses to pass through intersections safely, improving traffic flow.

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As for the future, targeted services will be developed based on user requirements and the performance metrics of the latest 5G technologies. This project has already been put into operation in other cities such as Hangzhou, with the expectation of providing diversified intelligent networked services for all kinds of vehicles, creating a support system for smart transportation.

Chapter 14

Mining and Petrochemical

14.1 Huayang New Material Technology Group 14.1.1 Case Overview 14.1.1.1

Intelligent Development of the Coal Industry

The traditional coal mining industry has a long history and often reminds us of a dirty underground working environment. But such working conditions are no longer the case. The coal industry today is passing the era of mechanized and automated operations and going intelligent. As pointed out in China’s Energy Technology Revolution and Innovation Action Plan (2016–2030), by 2050, a brand-new coal mining technology system will be built to achieve a safe, eco-friendly, efficient, and intelligent production. Green and intelligent mining is not only a global pursuit, but also a major challenge facing China. It is a path mining enterprises must take to promote digitalization, improve safety and production efficiency, and increase core competitiveness through smart mines. Digitalization in the coal industry is a key enabler for the automation and digitalized management of mines. As noted by Hong Zhai, Chairman of Huayang New Material Technology Group (Huayang New Material), “We need to improve the mining environment to alter people’s impression of coal workers.” Since the early development of 5G, Huayang New Material has leveraged 5G applications to intelligentize the coal industry in its pursuit of improving production efficiency and capabilities. It also aims to become an industry benchmark in its push for industry-wide equipment upgrade and reconstruction. On May 25, 2019, Huayang New Material and China Coal Industry Association kicked off a project to apply 5G technologies in underground mines, holding a workshop to explore its possibilities. The project reached a major milestone a few months later when, on September 5, 2019, Huayang New Material, China Mobile, and Huawei jointly set up the 5G Coal Industry Application Innovation Alliance. That same year, on November 18, China’s first test of using a 5G base station in an © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_14

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underground mine was conducted, showing that a single base station could provide coverage of 400 m underground. Huayang New Material, China Mobile Shanxi, Sany Electronics, and Huawei jointly acquired China’s first certification for coal mining safety of 5G base stations in Changzhou, Jiangsu on April 29, 2020, and the 5G Smart Mine Alliance was established shortly after on June 18, 2020. Wu Lin, the governor of Shanxi Province, announced that China’s first 5G coal mine was officially completed in Xinyuan subsidiary of Huayang New Material.

14.1.1.2

China’s First 5G Coal Mine

Most coal mining operations are performed underground, where the environment can be both complex and challenging. It often involves many production devices and systems, including wind, water, electricity, transportation, gas, and communications systems. This is why the coal industry is such a valuable proving ground for the effectiveness of 5G networks. Xinyuan subsidiary of Huayang New Material has an annual production capacity of 2.7 million tons and a coal reserve of 713 million tons. In the 5G Smart Mine project jointly launched by Xinyuan Coal, China Mobile Shanxi, and Huawei, customized 5G devices for underground operations are designed to link ground dispatching rooms with underground production areas such as underground electromechanical chambers, transportation roadways, coal conveyor belts, fully mechanized mining faces, and digging faces.

14.1.2 Solutions and Benefits 14.1.2.1

Industry Challenges

• Safe production: Coal enterprises prioritize safe production above all else. The risks involved in underground mining, coupled with a heavy workload (3 shifts within 24 h), pose a major challenge in using mobile communications technologies to improve the working environment. • Complex production monitoring: Due to bandwidth constraints inherent with industrial ring networks in underground mines, conventional underground monitoring systems can upload only a small number of videos over wired networks. This makes it impossible to achieve unmanned uploading of a massive number of videos from underground mines. In addition, due to the non-stop operation of coal cutters, electric hydraulic supporters, and scraper transporters at fullymechanized mining faces, optical fibers are frequently broken, posing significant challenges in implementing video surveillance. • Labor-intensive routine inspection: To monitor pressure changes in roadways, a large number of pressure sensors are deployed in coal mines. Currently, the

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majority of meter readings are taken manually, which is both inefficient and lagprone. However, achieving automatic meter reading poses a significant challenge. In addition, multiple sensors are deployed on each mechanical device in coal mines, ranging from several to a dozen per device. Data transmission therefore has high network requirements. • Siloed networks: In the past, multiple types of networks were constructed for different production systems. Nowadays, it is a challenge for one 5G network to carry different services while also addressing security for on-premises data processing. 14.1.2.2

5G Network Requirements and Application Scenarios

Based on the service process and working environment of Xinyuan Coal, the basic requirements for the 5G network in mining operations are as follows: • Wider coverage, larger capacity, and higher bandwidth, rate, and reliability: full coverage in mining areas; high bandwidth and low latency for large uplink services such as high-definition (HD) videos; high network reliability; and disaster recovery (DR) for ensuring service continuity if device faults occur • Higher security and isolation: prevention of unauthorized access to private networks; on-premises processing of key service data; and resistance to explosion, radiation, and interference for devices in special operating environments • Lower latency and implementation of edge computing capabilities: network support, computing platform support, and real-time service assurance for unmanned driving, location computing, and remote control in mining areas • Simultaneous connections of devices and services: support for massive access to sensors and devices in mining areas. Based on a unified 5G network, this project predominantly explores the following four 5G applications: • 5G inspection: Data, videos, and audio signals of inspection robots in underground chambers are transmitted over 5G networks to the ground monitoring and command center, thereby achieving unattended inspection of underground substations at Xinyuan Coal. • Unattended fully-mechanized mining faces: Massive 4 K HD videos are uploaded through 60 channels using a high uplink bandwidth of over Gbps. • Unattended digging faces: Underground devices are remotely controlled through 5G, which offers high reliability, large bandwidth, and low latency, to reduce labor input for digging operations. • Data collection: The mining Narrow Band Internet of Things (NB-IoT) network is used to implement wireless uploading of collected information, such as hydrology and gas, simplifying the construction and maintenance of transport networks.

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Focusing on the Development of Key Solutions

Due to stringent safety requirements in the production environment, the project team has focused its efforts on the following three solutions: • Customized 5G base stations for mining: To meet requirements of preventing explosions in underground coal mines, joint efforts have been made with industry partners to build the world’s first 5G base station for mining, which has passed the coal mine safety certification. • Gigabit uplink solution: There is a noticeable demand for uploading a massive number of videos in underground coal mines. Unlike conventional mobile communications services that require high downlink rates, underground mines require high uplink rates. This is why the project team has innovatively developed the 1:3 (DL:UL) slot configuration, which achieves an uplink rate of over Gbps. A high uplink rate has become essential for 5G coal mines and will be included in the standard package of 5G smart coal mines. In addition, separated core networks have been introduced to isolate public and private networks from each other, meeting the independent networking requirements of mining enterprises. • 5G devices for mining: Joint efforts have been made with industry partners to launch 5G-powered underground 4 K cameras, mobile phones, explosion-proof customer-premises equipment (CPEs), 5G universal modules, edge gateways, and sensors.

14.1.3 Success Factor Analysis 14.1.3.1

Key Success Factors

Based on experience obtained over the past two years of the project, the success of the 5G private network in the mining industry depends on the following key factors: First, top-level focus and support are essential. The enterprise desires to transform and upgrade to new technologies. Underground devices must be certified safe and explosion-proof to operate in the harsh and complex underground environments. Second, it is important to address weak digitalization and information silos. During the initial phase of 5G network planning, the enterprise addressed this by planning to build a network that can carry all enterprise services. In terms of application development, both inspection and remote control require high uplink rates on 5G networks for video services. In addition, only specialized staff members are allowed to work underground in the mining industry. Responsibility needs to be clearly divided in the future to facilitate visualized remote network O&M and give the enterprise more flexibility in self-management.

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14.1.3.2

225

Division of Labor in the Industry

The in-depth application of 5G technologies in mining requires cooperation among mining enterprises, system integrators, telecom carriers, industry cloud service providers, mining device vendors, and research institutions. • Mining enterprises play an important role in promoting the commercial application of 5G in mining. • System integrators focus on end-to-end (E2E) integration of ICT vendors to improve the availability and applicability of mining-specific 5G systems. • Industry applications will eventually be provided as cloud services. Industry cloud service providers will provide the computing power for infrastructure as a service (IaaS) and the platform as a service (PaaS). They will also provide an application enablement center for application developers in the mining industry and an industry application store for coal industry enterprises and system integrators. • Telecom carriers are responsible for secure, reliable, visualized, and stable 5G network services based on requirements. They are also responsible for network isolation and security assurance as well as integrated planning, construction, optimization, and O&M. • Network device vendors should continuously develop 5G network products suitable for mining. Mining device manufacturers should focus more on R&D and provide various 5G-capable mining devices. • Stronger basic research on 5G and mining intelligence is needed to provide the technical driving force for the industry. Industry organizations should speed up the research on mining standards and promote the standardization of mining technologies and solutions. 14.1.3.3

Innovation Experience

• Standards: Risks in the industry were uncertain and high, as there were no 5G underground standards. Huayang New Material, together with China Coal Industry Association and Huawei, actively promotes the industry standards for 5G mining. On June 9, 2020, Huayang New Material held a workshop on 5G coal mining standards and signed an agreement with China Coal Industry Association. At the PT Expo China held in Beijing on October 14, 2020, 5G Smart Coal Mine White Paper was jointly released by multiple parties. • Partners: 5G smart mining requires cooperation between institutions and enterprises across the manufacturing, academic, and research sectors to form a system and establish standards. To discuss and tackle technical difficulties, over 100 workshops have been held by a joint project team comprised of Huayang New Material, Huawei, China Coal Technology and Engineering Group, Sany Electronics, Tianjin Huaning Electronics, Beijing Tiandi-Macro Electro-Hydraulic Control System, China University of Mining, and Taiyuan University of Technology, as well as other enterprises and institutions and over 1000 experts.

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• Industry chain: Chipsets, modules, industrial CPEs, industrial routers, industrial gateways, mobile phones, wearables, and machine vision are pooled together to develop specialized devices for the mining industry. • Experience: To quickly address the coal industry’s lack of service experience and key partners, the Innovation Cooperation Alliance and a 5G joint innovation lab were set up. • Certification: Existing 5G devices do not have explosion-proof and coal safety certification. Multiple rounds of communication with the security standard industry have helped establish a real 5G test environment where such certification can be completed within five months. • Innovation: To address the challenges involved in network construction, planning, and optimization, as well as in simulating the harsh underground environment, a total of 20 onsite surveys and tests were conducted involving 200 person-times. The results were used to help solve problems associated with dust-proof, moistureproof, waterproof, and heat dissipation, and to continuously improve product and network performance. It took two months to build a 5G network that meets the requirements of the special underground environment. • R&D: To meet the uplink bandwidth requirement for uploading 4 K HD videos of over 50 channels on existing networks, the project chose to deploy the Gbps uplink solution, which was implemented within two months. 14.1.3.4

Continuous Optimization

• Devices: Currently, batteries used in mobile devices such as inspection robots provide only 5–6 h of charge; however, the charging pile solution requires coal safety certification. Excavation produces a thick layer of oil and dust that covers cameras. As self-cleaning is currently not available, manual cleaning of cameras is still unavoidable. Coal cutters and roadheaders that contain a large number of metal modules need to be redesigned with integrated 5G modules. • Networks: Uneven roadways pose a challenge to the optimization of 5G networks and coverage. • Cloud/Application: The enterprise requires an elastic on-premises application platform to accelerate the introduction of new 5G applications when data is not transferred within the premises. • O&M: The enterprise has clear requirements on self-O&M, especially for underground devices, due to production safety and underground personnel management requirements. Self-service devices must be visualized and gradually evolve to manageable devices in the future.

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14.1.4 Summary and Prospect The implementation of the first 5G mining project strengthens the application of 5G to accelerate comprehensive energy transformation. It also enhances the confidence in 5G applications both in and outside the telecom and mining industries. Beijian Yu, Huayang New Material’s deputy general manager, summed it up: “With 5G used in underground mines, safety production data and environment videos can be accurately, comprehensively, and clearly obtained, laying a solid foundation to reduce the number of workers in mines and improve the production efficiency and safety.” This typical application helps change the operating mode of the mining industry, significantly improving the working environment by enabling ground operation centers to conduct remote control and operations. Looking ahead, 5G—combined with the advantages of cloud computing, intelligence, and industry applications—will continue to facilitate unmanned driving, augmented reality (AR) O&M, and precise positioning in a growing number of operation scenarios, including coal washing, sorting, and transport. This will help eventually establish a standard system based on 5G for the mining industry and further drive the development of intelligent mining.

14.2 Jiangxi Xinghuo Organic Silicone Plant Jiangxi Xinghuo Organic Silicone Plant is a leading chemical enterprise that produces organic silicone monomers, organic silicone-related downstream products, and caustic soda. Leveraging the secure and reliable connections of 5G industrial private networks, it has developed a 5G intelligent chemical platform that integrates visualization functions such as digital twin visualization, operation management visualization, and service management visualization. This platform enables the enterprise to tap into the full potential of artificial intelligence (AI), big data, and virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) to improve smart processing and achieve safe and cost-effective production while improving product quality. In May 2020, this leading chemical producer started cooperation with China Telecom to build a 5G smart plant based on edge cloud.

14.2.1 Case Overview Affiliated with ChemChina headquartered in Beijing, the Plant is one of China’s first enterprises to be involved in the production of organic silicone. Now, it has the world’s largest base for upstream-downstream integrated organic silicon chemical production. In 2020, it set up a joint innovation chemical lab with the local China Telecom branch to bring together multiple partners to jointly explore development that is green, refined, intelligent, global, and sustainable.

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The Plant’s smart factory project was shortlisted as one of China’s major science and technology smart manufacturing demonstration projects. With this project, the chemical enterprise was selected as one of the first batches of 5G industrial Internet application demonstration enterprises in Jiangxi Province. This enterprise’s integration of 5G with chemical production promotes 5G’s applications in the chemical industry. This project fully utilizes 5G, AI, cloud, and big data to develop 10 applications, including 5G operation personnel monitoring, online device monitoring, 5G inspection unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and 5G inspection robots. The application of these technologies promotes the digitalization and intelligence of the chemical enterprise and improves personal safety, quality control, and production efficiency, while reducing labor intensity and costs.

14.2.2 Solutions and Benefits 14.2.2.1

Industry Challenges

Driven by a strong push for global expansion, global chemical enterprises are moving toward clean, integrated, and smart development that follows the principles of safety, health, eco-friendliness, and circular economy. At the same time, they are facing a broad category of pressing challenges, such as cost increase, demand fluctuation, growing sensitivity to price changes, contradictions between improved efficiency and stable and safe production, increasingly complex business environments and business links as a result of global economic integration, and supply chain barriers. In particular, environmental protection and emission reduction have become the major challenges for refineries in the low-carbon era.

14.2.2.2

Solutions

This project leverages 5G and multi-access edge computing (MEC) technologies to establish secure and reliable connections for the enterprise’s industrial intranet and extranet, thereby building a 5G campus private network to achieve 5G industrial Internet connections in full scenarios. 5G industrial gateways, smart bands, 5G cameras, and 5G UAVs collect data of people, machines, and things in the factory. Based on the collected data, big data applications are implemented to develop brandnew all-element digital twin factories, where visualized equipment management and maintenance, real-time monitoring and control for safe production, and smart applications for production operations are supported. 5G operation personnel monitoring, online device monitoring, inspection UAVs, and inspection robots can also be implemented (see Fig. 14.1).

14.2 Jiangxi Xinghuo Organic Silicone Plant

Application

Platform

Personnel monitoring

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Online device monitoring

c5G inspection UAV

5G intelligent platform Digital twin platform Inspection platform Module big data platform

5G inspection robot

Security platform

Data convergence Data cleaning Data modeling

Enterprise campus network

Network 4G/5G cellular network

c

IoT private network

Industrial Internet

Device Fig. 14.1 Architecture of 5G intelligent applications in a chemical factory

(1)

5GCampus Network

5G networks are the key communications infrastructure of campus networks in the chemical industry, playing an essential role in achieving the intelligent transformation based on information technologies. Using public 5G networks to ensure high bandwidth, low latency, and massive connectivity required for specialized applications offers chemical enterprises an efficient and convenient approach for building private campus networks. 5G end-to-end (E2E) slicing is an important part of the 5G private campus network. As a key feature of 5G networks, slicing enables some resources of public 5G networks to be exclusively provided to enterprises to ensure deterministic experience based on scenario-specific differentiated requirements. A 5G E2E slicing system generally consists of a radio access network (RAN) segment, transport network segment, 5G core network slice management segment, and O&M segment. Six 5G macro and two distributed indoor sites are constructed in the factory to build a multi-technology converged wireless enterprise private network. With MEC in close proximity to users, transmission latency is greatly reduced and on-premises content and computing capabilities are realized, facilitating local data splitting and content buffering required for low-latency applications. By moving user-plane functions (UPFs) to downstream nodes, the telecom network is converged with the enterprise private network to ensure data processing within the factory, enhancing data security (see Fig. 14.2). (2)

Modular Big Data Platform

The temperature, pressure, and flow levels of valves, tanks, compressors, and pipelines as well as the data related to other sets of equipment and workers are collected, aggregated, and summarized based on 4G, 5G, and industrial buses to establish an enterprise production data center. All data is transferred to the production data platform and used as the input for the big data models and algorithms

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Management plane 5GC control plane

Integrated applications

MEC

Central node

Edge node

UPF Cloud-based software platform Hardware platform

Application 1 Application 2 Application N Campus server

RAN

Fig. 14.2 Architecture of 5G MEC enterprise private networks

designed for comprehensive analysis of production data to accurately determine the running status of chemical production devices. All analysis results are then sent to the digital twin platform in real time. With digital twin solutions, production data and analysis results are accurately mapped onto the 3D simulation maps of the factory to digitalize the overview of facilities and devices in the factory. This improves the status monitoring of facilities, production, and operations required to achieve visualized production, management, and operations in the chemical factory. (3)

Platform for 5G Intelligent Chemical Applications

The platform for 5G intelligent chemical applications consists of a digital twin unit, an inspection unit, and a safety assurance unit (see Fig. 14.3). Based on the platform, multi-dimensional analysis is performed upon production data in real time to facilitate the status monitoring of production, security, and operations. The systems of production control, security, and enterprise resource management are associated with the algorithm to form a visualized online application platform. A variety of data generated by the hydrolysis, synthesis, and thermally conductive oil units is comprehensively analyzed to provide a running trend chart, condensing the large number of parameters related to device operations into a single chart. The platform for 5G intelligent chemical applications replaces manual labor in factory production with robotic automation. With the platform, visualized production, management, and operations are realized to improve the speed and accuracy of fault locating, and health trend analysis is supported to enhance predictive maintenance, helping ensure the secure and stable operations of production devices. In addition, all production and operation links are associated to enable integrated statistical analysis and real-time collaboration, streamlining data collection, aggregation, and analysis of both management and production factors.

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231 Big data analysis

Alarms

5G UAV

5G UAV

UAV monitoring statistics

Device monitoring Status

Monitoring

Alarm overview

Fig. 14.3 Platform for 5G intelligent chemical applications

(4)

Applications in Key Scenarios

The platform for 5G intelligent chemical applications facilitates visualized production, management, and operations in different scenarios. Operation personnel monitoring based on 5G: Smart bands are used to locate operation personnel in the working areas and monitor their vital signs (such as heart rate and blood pressure) of these in hazardous areas in real time to ensure safety. The bands meet the anti-explosion specifications for use in chemical factories and support indoor and outdoor high-precision positioning, monitoring of vital signs, and one-button SOS. More than 1600 smart bands will be planned in the production factory. Currently, small-scale verification has been completed (see Fig. 14.4). Online device monitoring: Equipment monitoring based on NB-IoT helps obtain production data related to device running statuses, processing parameters, and energy

Location tracking GPS/Beidou positioning

UWB positioning

Locating and healthcare services Smart band

5G base station

Fig. 14.4 Operation personnel monitoring

MEC

Health monitoring

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Cloud platform

Operation analysis

Device management

Connection management

5G network

NB-IoT network

Network layer

Edge computing management

5G

5G

One-hop communication

Two-hop communication

Three-hop communication

Data gateway

Edge access layer

NB-IoT

Data gateway

RS485, TCP/IP

LoRa, BLE, Zigbee, Wi-Fi PLC

Server RS485, TCP/IP

Device layer NB-IoT meter

NB-IoT meter

Collection device

Bus instrument

Other smart meters, Bluetooth devices, sensors, active devices...

Temperature Humidity Pressure sensor sensor sensor

Gas sensor

Fig. 14.5 Online device monitoring

consumption in real time. Big data analysis is performed on the data to quickly understand the running statuses of all devices in the factory. As a result, predictive maintenance is improved and the loss caused by device downtime and maintenance is minimized. In addition, online device monitoring reduces manual inspection, improving efficiency. 5G can also be used to provide transmission links to, for example, infrared cameras and optical spectrum analyzers to the 5G industrial gateway, during online device monitoring (see Fig. 14.5). Inspection and inspection submission based on 5G UAVs: The UAV platform enables operation personnel to transfer chemical products to inspection areas in just a few simple steps. This will shorten the intervals of inspection submission. For pipeline corridors, reactors, and other areas inaccessible to inspection personnel, UAVs and AI analysis are used to perform automated inspection for liquid leakage and other working statuses, reducing safety risks to the inspection personnel and improving efficiency. With this application, two submission flights can be completed a day, and multiple samples can be submitted in a single flight. In addition, inspection can be performed during the flight based on the planned route (see Fig. 14.6). Inspection based on 5G robots: With 5G robots, inspection can be performed according to daily plans. With built-in high-precision collection devices, such as

5G base station UAV-based inspection submission Reaction tower

UAV-transferred samples Quality analysis center

High-frequency sampling device MEC

Fig. 14.6 Inspection and inspection submission based on UAVs

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Instrument

Water pump

Explosion-proof inspection robot

5G base station

MEC

Operation and safety monitoring center

Equipment

Fig. 14.7 Inspection based on 5G robots

infrared HD cameras, thermal imaging devices, and sensors for measuring temperature, humidity, and gas levels, robots facilitate mobile surveillance, meter readings, as well as switch and indicator status monitoring in the whole factory. Based on these data, reports can be created to guide routine inspection. With this application, inspection can be performed for more than 600 sites in the factory twice a day, with only two to three hours required each time (see Fig. 14.7).

14.2.2.3

Solution Benefits

5G facilitates high-precision positioning, industrial data collection and reverse control, and robot applications, which accelerates the integration of automation and intelligence in chemical production, reduces manual operations and safety risks, and improves efficiency. 5G also enhances machine vision for real-time monitoring, helping strengthen quality control during the entire production to minimize defective products. 5G technologies further enable the enterprise to construct high-quality internal and external networks to streamline data chains between downstream and upstream industry chains and explore industrial Internet applications while pursuing digital transformation. Since the implementation of 5G intelligent factory project in the Plant, the efficiency of safety prevention is improved by 80% and the cost of production management is reduced by 20%. Additionally, the inspection submission efficiency is increased by 75% and violations are reduced by 78%.

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14.2.3 Success Factor Analysis 5G delivers ultra-high bandwidth, ultra-low latency, and massive connectivity, which facilitates connections for both people and things. This enables all-scenario and all-element connections meeting varied requirements for bandwidth and latency in factories. Cloud computing provides computing capabilities for the enterprise that are stable, reliable, secure, and evolvable. With edge cloud, computing capabilities are introduced to IoT devices in close proximity to nodes where the data resides, reducing transmission latency and ensuring reliable offline operations for long periods of time. This facilitates big data analysis and computing capabilities, while achieving onpremises data processing for the enterprise with high requirements on data security. The industrial Internet platform facilitates effective management of production lines, facilities, and environments, improving business efficiency. In addition, advanced information technologies, such as converged Internet, cloud computing, and AI, are also integrated to transform production and create new production modes. In this project, China Telecom was the general system integrator to deliver all intelligent applications in the chemical production campus and provide cloud services. Huawei was responsible for deploying 5G networks required to ensure E2E network services. Several partners also participated in as independent software vendors (ISVs), independent hardware vendors (IHVs), and sub-system integrators for explosion-proof smart band verification, modular big data modules, and robot inspection. With the use of the digital twin platforms, 5G UAVs, and online device monitoring units, data aggregation and intelligent safety monitoring were implemented. The access to the campus networks is ensured not only for traditional devices, but also for 5G industrial gateways and mobile cameras. Developing the chemical industry is essential for national economic development. Developments that are green, refined, intelligent, global, and sustainable are the core of high-quality development and transformation in chemical enterprises. 5G enables chemical enterprises to manage production safety in real time. AI and big data facilitate digital production management, promoting automated and intelligent chemical production. Efficient and intelligent management is vital to improve efficiency in production and operations while reducing costs. 5G promotes convergence with intelligence, cloud, big data, and VR/AR and will profoundly change the chemical industry. In recent years, production technologies and raw material processing are constantly improving and chemical products are significantly diversifying. This provides chemical industries with new opportunities to expand market presence. China has introduced a series of stimulus policies to further boost the converged innovation of 5G in the chemical industry, helping chemical enterprises to leverage 5G and other new technologies to improve competitiveness in the global market. The applications of 5G in the chemical industry enhance the traditional application modes such as enterprise safety, environmental protection, and emergency response. It also transforms the modes of employment and production organization of enterprises. This will enable enterprises to build digital production environments and

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leverage intelligent equipment to achieve visualized production, quality and process management, network-based information exchange, and intelligent decision-making on management. With a growing maturity and deeper convergence with chemical production, 5G technologies will promote chemical enterprises to achieve safe, green, and intelligent production.

14.2.4 Summary and Prospect As Xiaosong Du, Information Technology Director of Jiangxi Xinghuo Organic Silicone Plant’s Asia Pacific Branch pointed out, 5G intelligent applications make production and management safer, more efficient, and more cost-effective, while promoting green, sustainable, and digital transformation. 5G has changed the traditional application modes of industrial manufacturing. The Plant sets an example of integrating 5G with chemical production based on edge cloud to global chemical enterprises pursuing high-quality and sustainable development.

Chapter 15

Smart Port

15.1 Mawan Port of China Merchants Group China Merchants Group (CMG), which runs 50 ports in 26 countries and regions across six continents, boasts the world’s largest cargo throughput and has been hailed as an industry paragon. Mawan Port, CMG’s first pilot within China, aims to retrofit a historically bulk cargo terminal into a 5G-powered smart port. Figure 15.1 provides a bird’s-eye view of Mawan Port. Given its size, the port is expected to generate a return value of over CNY10 billion through rapid proliferation globally.

15.1.1 Case Overview Founded in 1986, Mawan Port is rooted in the western area of Shenzhen Port. Given such close proximity to two major free trade zones (Qianhai and Shekou) and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the port is strategically important. In September 2017, CMG kicked off the smart port project, intending to upgrade the Haixing Port area from a traditional bulk cargo terminal through automation. In June 2019, encouraged by the municipal government and in collaboration with top industry players such as China Mobile and Huawei, CMG embarked on the 5G smart port initiative on the strength of the 5G smart port innovation lab. In July 2020, CMG began applying and testing such applications as remote control of cranes, unmanned container trucks, intelligent security and tallying, and unattended inspection. In August 2020, the No. 3 smart berth at Mawan Port was successfully delivered and accepted. Figure 15.2 illustrates the milestones in the smart upgrade process of Mawan Port. In the context of smart port construction, this project harnesses the advanced allscenario operation system for which China has the independent intellectual property rights. Technologies such as digital twin and high-precision positioning are leveraged to build an analog simulation system to buttress port production and management. © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_15

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Fig. 15.1 Aerial render of Mawan Port Sept. 1986

Sept. 2017

Jun. 2019

Mawan Port founded

Mawan Smart Port project initiated

5G Smart Port initiated

Jul. 2020

5G application testing

Aug. 2020

No. 3 berth completed and accepted

Fig. 15.2 Mawan Port smart upgrade milestones

In addition, 5G private networks enable high security, reliability, efficiency, and intelligence, representing the industry’s state of the art. In light of the port’s inherent conditions and production scenarios as well as 5G standalone (SA) network features, CMG has fostered a number of 5G mobile applications, including remote crane control, unattended inspection, 5G unmanned container truck, and 5G intelligent tallying and security. With 5G, cloud, artificial intelligence (AI), and edge computing integrated into the package, port operations have become unattended, automated, and intelligent. Unattended inspection through AI identification and networked unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) simplifies security patrol, while unmanned container trucks backed by 5G and edge computing break new ground for automated guided vehicles (AGVs). Intelligent tallying is realized by deploying vision AI at the edge cloud, analog simulation allows the port to emulate massive access of Internet of Things (IoT) and surveillance devices, and intelligent security provides assistance for port production and management with the help of the edge cloud platform.

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Main application scenarios: • Unmanned container truck: With 5G, AGVs can run stably and in parallel while also being continuously monitored, meeting the requirements of unmanned transportation for network performance, positioning precision, and path flexibility (see Fig. 15.3). • Remote crane control: 5G-based high-definition (HD) video transmission ensures operator awareness of environment dynamics and achieves unmanned remote dispatching (see Fig. 15.4). • Intelligent tallying: The port achieves unmanned logistics by phase to improve efficiency and service level, as well as automatic identification of the number, damage, and position of containers. • UAV inspection: 5G-based UAV intelligent inspection reduces fiber and labor input.

Fig. 15.3 5G unmanned container truck

Fig. 15.4 5G remote crane control

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• Intelligent security: This allows for security protection, operation management, intelligent post-event analysis, and intelligent O&M, facilitating port production and operation. • Analog simulation: Port production can be rehearsed, practiced, and reviewed for optimal effects.

15.1.2 Solutions and Benefits In the Mawan Smart Port project, the network carrier decided on the 5G SA architecture and built a 5G private network using slicing technology. Other ICT technologies such as edge computing and AI are also leveraged to elevate the port’s automation and intelligence level.

15.1.2.1

Industry Challenges

Today, the port industry faces a number of pressing challenges. Work processes are complex. Port operations entail a range of complex processes, such as ferrying cargo ships into the terminal, hoisting containers into the yard, and moving containers via terminal trucks. Multiple parties must work together to efficiently lift containers into the yard, including command staff, container yard crew, and the crane operators who work high up in the air. In order to move containers into and out of the port via terminal trucks, drivers must shuttle along fixed routes for extended periods in a relatively harsh environment. All this adds to the complexity and workload of port processes. Consequently, new technologies such as remote control, autonomous driving, and intelligent recognition are required to improve the level of process automation and digitalization. Security protection calls for intelligent upgrade. Ports require fool-proof security control. Conventional security mechanisms involving static cameras offer a limited surveillance range, and it can be tricky to access and analyze video footage, let alone facilitating the manual intervention required for routine surveillance. To realize intelligent security protection at ports, technologies such as 5G-based UAV inspection and video/image AI processing are required, which will add flexibility and intelligence to the security system.

15.1.2.2

Solutions

In this use case, the port applied 5G SA architecture and deployed a 5G private network using slicing technology, with different technologies leveraged on the radio access network (RAN), transport network, and core network. On the RAN, public and private networks are integrated using 2.6 and 4.9 GHz spectrum, while the transport network utilizes Flexible Ethernet (FlexE) hard channels. On the core network,

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user plane functions (UPFs) are deployed in closer proximity to end points, which allows for on-premises data processing and delivers security isolation. To ensure network latency, rate, and isolation, the project also exploits technologies such as resource block (RB) reservation, 5G QoS Identifier (5QI) priority-based scheduling, uplink and downlink carrier aggregation (CA), and supplementary uplink (SUL), providing Service Level Agreement (SLA) suggestions for various scenarios. The port also tested the high bandwidth and low latency requirements in varying application scenarios, aiming to develop 5G network solutions for typical industry scenarios and one-package industry solutions inclusive of devices, networks, cloud, and AI. (1)

Remote Crane Control: Keep Workers Safe

HD cameras are installed on port machinery such as quay cranes and yard cranes, sending data to the central control room over the 5G network. 5G’s high bandwidth enables the upload of multi-angle HD videos from rubber-tyred gantry (RTG) cranes so that operators in the central control room can learn about the field environment in real time. With 5G’s low latency, the multi-access edge computing (MEC) system enables real-time control of RTG cranes from the remote console, thereby implementing unmanned remote dispatching and operation control in port areas. Taking conventional gantry cranes in the container yard as an example, one terminal generally needs over a hundred crane operators capable of working at heights of 30 m, which translates into harsh environments and safety risks. Although some digitalized ports have resorted to LTE-Unlicensed (LTE-U) for video-based crane control, the outcome of video transmission with this solution is still undesirable due to bandwidth, latency, and reliability restrictions. 5G-based HD video solution, in contrast, allows crane operators to act precisely based on multi-channel videos sent to the central control room in real time. A single operator can now control up to six gantry cranes, thereby reducing labor costs, improving the working environment, and enhancing operation security and reliability. (2)

Unmanned Container Truck: Make Transportation Efficient

The 5G-based edge computing solution provides campus-wide complete coverage, while 5G’s low latency enables stable and even parallel running and monitoring of AGVs, achieving unified dispatching for container transportation. In addition, with 5G edge computing, low latency, high reliability, high-precision positioning, and vehicle-road synergy, new progress has been made to phase out single-vehicle intelligence and magnetic means. The desired network performance, positioning precision, and path flexibility can be delivered for container transportation with unmanned trucks. (3)

Intelligent Tallying: Improve Service Quality

HD dome cameras installed on quay cranes enable the real-time upload of multiple channels of HD videos thanks to 5G’s large bandwidth. For container cranes, the intelligent container operation identification system acquires real-time videos from HD cameras located on the cranes, and processes the videos using edge cloud

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Container info 5G video upload

No. Position Damage

Front-end solution design sketch

Fig. 15.5 Mawan Port’s intelligent tallying solution

and vision AI technologies. This mechanism enables automatic identification of container numbers, damage, and positions, which is in stark contrast to the conventional approach which entails heavy workloads and inefficient collection of container information. Step by step, unattended logistics is becoming a reality, bringing ubiquitous intelligence to the port and further improving port efficiency and service levels. Figure 15.5 illustrates the intelligent tallying solution of Mawan Port. (4)

UAV Inspection: Give All-Round Real-Time Surveillance

Owning to 5G’s large bandwidth and low-altitude coverage capabilities, UAVmounted 5G communications devices enable 5G-networked operation of UAVs to provide fixed-point cruise and real-time posture control. With the additional support of AI, the videos and images uploaded from UAVs, including those of personnel detection, are processed to achieve intelligent UAV inspection. 5G’s high bandwidth effectively contributes to real-time HD video transmission from UAVs for dynamic surveillance at terminal borders and key nodes, reducing fiber and labor investments. The cloud AI algorithm performs intelligent identification, while the service scheduling platform also collaborates to safeguard port security. (5)

Intelligent Security: Provide Visualized Management

Backed by AI and other technical capabilities, operation data and inspection images are sent over the 5G network to the edge cloud platform in real time, facilitating port production and operation management. Applications include security protection, operation management, and intelligent post-event analysis and monitoring. License plate recognition and real-time crowd density analysis improve campus operation efficiency by 60%, and automatic diagnosis of image quality reduces manual work. Behavior retrieval and post-event intelligent analysis of videos improve labor and time efficiency. As a result, visualized management spanning networks, devices, platforms, and applications is realized. (6)

Analog Simulation: Simulate Past, Now, and Future

An analog simulation system for port production management is developed by trying out digital twin and high-precision positioning technologies for the first time in the industry to enable massive access of IoT and surveillance devices on the 5G private network. The production elements and operations, such as equipment, vehicles, and

15.1 Mawan Port of China Merchants Group

243

Fig. 15.6 Analog simulation

cargo, are all simulated to enable production rehearsals, practices, and reviews for the purposes of optimization (see Fig. 15.6).

15.1.2.3

Solution Benefits

The 5G private network solution realizes wireless, automated, and intelligent port operation. 5G outperforms traditional communications technologies in terms of meeting enterprise requirements for large uplink bandwidth and low latency. Network maintenance by the carrier also spares the enterprise extra investment which can otherwise be directed to production activities, while UAV inspection and unmanned container trucks will become essential applications to empower port automation. In the smart port solution, real-time information regarding service operations, cargo management, security management, and port inspection is pooled into a monitoring center to centrally monitor, manage, and present port dynamics in real time. The 5G smart port project will further steer 5G products and solutions, including customer-premises equipment (CPE), access routers (ARs), UAVs, inspection robotics, and remote control toward maturity. For the port industry, 5G private networks introduce smart ports to higher levels of automation and intelligence. In this regard, relevant hard data includes the following: stowage is shortened to 6 min from 2 h, port operation efficiency is improved by 30%, field labor input is reduced by 80%, and security risks are reduced by 60%.

15.1.3 Success Factor Analysis In light of the pivotal role of ports within the context of global logistics and supply chains, smart transformation is key to upgrading the industry, developing top-notch ports, improving business operations, and optimizing the business environment. Thanks to the economic prospects as well as an advantageous position in the industry, the project is set to establish a dominant business model trend for industry

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customers. CMG, as an industry customer, invests in capital and resources in order to promote ICT transformation across the smart port industry. With its business operating in 26 countries and regions, CMG will apply the smart port solution to its own affiliated ports. At the same time, China Mobile provides the smart port solution to assist with service integration for CMG’s Mawan Port, and also acts as the network carrier and cloud service provider for the industry customer. Smart upgrade is becoming standard practice within the port industry. While automated terminals backed by 4G private lines have improved working conditions, high reconstruction costs and poor automation are still pain points. Revamping the 4Gbased solution with 5G, AI, and edge computing is part of the smart upgrade, and 5G smart port applications have now crossed the initial stage. Technically mature 5G modules are already available, and technologies such as UPF close-to-end deployment, edge computing node deployment, and network slicing are also beginning to mature, thereby accelerating the overall maturity of various related industries. China has introduced new policies to encourage the development of smart transportation. In November 2019, nine ministries led by the Ministry of Transport jointly issued the Guiding Opinions on Building World-class Ports, envisioning critical headways in this world-class port initiative by 2025. In August 2020, the Ministry of Transport issued the Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Construction of New Infrastructure in the Transport Sector, which proposes the construction of a converged and efficient smart transportation infrastructure in China. As China strives to become the world’s leading trade and shipping center, the traditional terminal operation modes typically adopted by container ports are giving way to automation, intelligence, and digitalization. Conventional 4G and fiber communications can no longer support flexible port operations and satisfy the low-latency and high-bandwidth expectations. Inefficient and expensive manual work as well as service system isolation are also long-standing challenges that ports have to contend with. As a result, it is clear that port businesses are in dire need of technical enablers such as 5G, cloud, edge computing, and AI to implement automation and all-encompassing, visualized supervision.

15.1.4 Summary and Prospect Mawan Smart Port represents a major benchmark for CMG in its pursuit of innovation, and looks set to become a 5G application prototype encompassing 5G, chipsets, ePort, smart port, blockchain, automation, high-precision positioning, AI, and green operations. The company’s global port presence and operation capabilities will allow this solution to be replicated to other ports and by other port enterprises, both within China and overseas, with a vision to develop a home-grown solution for smart ports capable of empowering the port industry with 5G.

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15.2 Zhoushan Port 15.2.1 Case Overview 15.2.1.1

About the Port

Zhoushan Port is a historically renowned and currently the world’s largest port, located in the world-famous city of Ningbo. Ports are a substantial part of regional and global development. Maritime transportation bears approximately 90% of global trade, of which ports are an essential link. As a pivotal maritime transportation hub in China, Zhoushan Port has topped the world in cargo throughput for 11 years consecutively and ranks third in the world for container throughput. In 2019 alone, the cargo throughput nearly reached 1.2 billion tons and the container throughput exceeded 27.53 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). It is an important sea trunk port for China and also China’s largest port for transshipment of iron ore and crude oil.

15.2.1.2

Green and Efficient Operation

Zhoushan Port is seeking green and efficient development through smart transformation enabled by digital technologies such as 5G, intelligence, and cloud with minimum production suspension. Improving efficiency and reducing costs are crucial. The port pays a daily vessel rent of several hundreds of thousands of U.S. dollars. Even one extra hour of operation results in a huge loss. Additionally, the port needs to protect the safety of its workers and improve their skills in handling complex machinery. Furthermore, container trucks and cranes constantly operating for 24 h every day will worsen the light and environmental pollution, which cannot be overlooked. In May 2020, Zhejiang Seaport, China Mobile, Zhenhua Heavy Industries, and Huawei reached a strategic agreement to build Zhoushan Port into a global 5G smart port paragon and a world-class shipping hub.

15.2.2 Solutions and Benefits 15.2.2.1

Solution Architecture

China Mobile provides a complete solution for the Zhoushan Smart Port project that encompasses several core operations. The solution constituents include:

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(1)

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One 5G Private Network for Multiple Services

To support remote control of port machinery and real-time transmission of multichannel HD videos, this project applies the 5G private network and edge computing technologies, enabling local data processing and ultra-low latency capabilities. For other scenarios that have high requirements for access control, network security, and isolation, exclusive base stations are built to provide wireless coverage for the port. (2)

One 5G Smart Port Integrated Service Management Platform

The platform provides intelligent management based on digital twins, integrating the data of machinery, container trucks, containers, and cameras into a 3D highprecision geographic information system (GIS) map. The platform also utilizes data of the original service operation system to provide a 3D digital view of production and operations, such as port operations, security video surveillance, geo-fencing monitoring, in-field transportation, and vessel loading and unloading. (3)

Three Application Scenarios

Container loading and unloading is an important operation. 5G applications in this regard are focused on three scenarios: • Intelligent tallying: The quay crane control system captures container videos or images and uploads them in real time for AI analysis, enabling collection of container information. • Unmanned horizontal transportation: Control instructions and status information of AGVs are transmitted in real time, simplifying the process and reducing labor input. • Remote control of port machinery: Control instructions of container machinery and videos recorded by cameras on gantry cranes are transmitted in real time to implement remote control. The solution architecture is divided into four layers (see Fig. 15.7): the device layer, which includes devices such as gantry cranes, container trucks, and UAVs; the network layer, which includes the customized 5G and MEC networks; the platform layer, which implements electronic label management for critical field management services and devices based on the GIS to display all basic and dynamic data; and the application layer, which implements 5G applications such as remote control of port machinery, autonomous driving of container trucks, and emergency response based on UAVs.

15.2.2.2

Intelligent Tallying

Containers must be inspected for damage before they are loaded onto vessels. Traditional tallying is performed manually, which is both expensive and time-consuming, impairing the efficiency of container terminals.

15.2 Zhoushan Port

247 Intelligent trunking dispatch system

Application Layer

Platform Layer

Refrigeration container remote monitoring

Planning & construction

Port machinery remote control

Intelligent tally

Panoramic HD video surveillance

Port machinery intelligent diagnosis

Internal container autonomous driving

UAV emergency response

Operation

Safety management

Logistics

...

GIS platform

Network Layer

gNodeB

5G network

4G assistance

MEC

Device Layer Communication Surveillance & device security

Quay crane

Yard crane

AGV

UAV

Fig. 15.7 Overall solution of the Zhoushan Port project

In the 5G smart port project, the intelligent tallying system automatically recognizes data from videos sent over 5G from HD cameras installed on quay cranes, including the number and type of TEUs, the operation number of container trucks, the reshuffle position of single small containers, and the lane number. The recognition has precision of over 95%, and can recognize one container as quick as one second without affecting its loading and unloading. To accommodate real-time video upload of 15 channels from each quay crane, the 5G network must provide an uplink bandwidth of 30–50 Mbps. Intelligent tallying greatly reduces manual operations and enables workers to focus on remote control in comfortable working environments. Efficiency also is improved, with one operator overseeing multiple cranes. Additionally, HD images and AI-based machine vision together achieve high recognition precision.

15.2.2.3

Unmanned Horizontal Transportation

The traditional manual operation of container trucks requires constant close attention, posing safety risks due to fatigue and errors. The shortage of skilled and professional drivers for container trucks is also a major challenge. Though magnetic means can be applied to transport containers using unmanned AGVs, navigation aids such as magnetic markers and guides must be deployed in advance, which is time-consuming and costly both to build and maintain. Against this backdrop, a growing number of ports are trying unmanned container trucks, which are further facilitated by the mature autonomous driving technologies and affordable intelligent sensing devices. At Zhoushan Port, unmanned container trucks have been put into use, which can capture real-time videos and send them to the backend for further instructions. Other information such as the location, direction, speed, and environment of other heavy machinery can also be collected. These container trucks are intelligentized by 5G

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and intelligence. After a container is laid on the correct truck, the truck automatically starts and drives itself. It recognizes surrounding objects such as containers, machinery, and lighthouses and makes decisions in the event of an emergency such as deceleration, braking, turning, detouring, and parking. It also drives along the optimal path and accurately reaches the specified position where an RTG crane will handle the container. This way, production safety and management efficiency are greatly improved. At least four HD cameras are required to remotely control unmanned container trucks. This poses high requirements on the 5G network, specifically 20–30 Mbps uplink bandwidths and low latency consistently below 20 ms. When container trucks encounter faults in transit, the operator can scan the environment via cameras, identify faults, and remotely steer the truck.

15.2.2.4

Remote Control of Port Machinery

Vertical transportation at ports relies on large machinery, such as RTG and quay cranes which traditionally operate at up to 30–100 m. The working environment is unfavorable, and operators have to be constantly careful, which means high safety risks and labor costs. With the recent development of remote control technologies, fibers and waveguides are widely used in the industry to enable remote control of port machinery. But the fiber solution has constraints, such as high complexity and cost and fiber durability. In contrast, 5G wireless networks are free from such drawbacks and can effectively support industrial-level control. 5G-enabled RTG cranes have been used for regular production at Zhoushan Port. Operators can remotely control cranes from the central control room based on multiple channels of videos uploaded in real time over the 5G network. Most operations have been automated, except for crane hoisting which requires manual intervention. One operator can manage multiple cranes simultaneously, greatly improving efficiency. After more than one year of tests on low latency reliability, durability, and multicrane simultaneous operation, Zhoushan Port has verified the world’s first mass commercial adoption of 5G-based remote control of RTG cranes. The port also is the first in the industry to use this technology for regular production. It has also completed the reconstruction and simultaneous operation testing of six RTG cranes. The 5G network is capable of 8–10 ms average end-to-end (E2E) latency and 99.999% PLC control reliability.

15.2.3 Success Factor Analysis Zhoushan Port has applied autonomous driving on container trucks after upgrading conventional terminals. From the perspective of the port’s No. 1 global container

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throughput, this project proves to be difficult but also valuable for similar undertakings to be replicated. Over the past two years, Zhoushan Smart Port has made an early start and took shape very quickly, and its prospect is promising.

15.2.3.1

Early Start

Traditional gantry cranes use fibers, which become a constraint, particularly for largespan mobility of crane operations. 5G outperforms fiber and Wi-Fi with its ultra-high bandwidth, ultra-low latency, and massive connectivity. It saves the need for fiber work when the working environment changes, and eliminates service risks such as insufficient upload bandwidth, handover, and interference common with Wi-Fi. Since 2018, Zhoushan Port has been implementing pilots of 5G coverage and application. In September that year, China Mobile and Zhejiang Seaport concluded a strategic agreement on 5G smart ports, aiming to build China’s first 5G port base station at Zhoushan Port. In April 2019, before China’s 5G license was officially issued, the port successfully conducted pilots of innovative wireless applications such as remote operation management of gantry cranes and video transmission through the mobile 5G network, marking China’s first port to implement 5G applications.

15.2.3.2

Fast Development

Now, Zhoushan Port has put these pilot applications into actual use, improving port efficiency and reducing the O&M costs of communications systems. The port has achieved three industry breakthroughs in terms of 5G application: (1)

(2)

(3)

Industry’s first to test the remote control of 5G-based RTG cranes and use them for regular production: It has completed the reconstruction of six 5Gbased RTG cranes and verified that 5G can apply its high uplink bandwidth and stable low latency required for remote control of multiple RTG cranes. Industry’s first port to use 5G network slicing: Network slicing provides SLA assurance of critical port services. In this project, E2E network slices such as 5G RAN, transport network, core network, industrial CPE Ins 2.0, Communication Service Management Function (CSMF), and Network Slice Management Function (NSMF) are deployed and the first 5G mall is set up to enable 5G smart ports. Industry’s first port to support E2E 5G uplink enhancement: This solution meets the high uplink requirements of services such as RTG cranes, container trucks, video surveillance, and bridge cranes. Zhoushan Port is where the first test of the 5G uplink enhancement solution was conducted, flexibly utilizing 2.6 GHz TDD and 1.8 GHz SUL spectrum to improve the uplink capability of commercial 5G networks. The test showed an uplink peak rate of over 310 Mbps for a single user. Within network coverage, the uplink rate is improved by 30–100% overall and suffices for nine RTG cranes, fully meeting the port’s

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service requirements. At cell edges, in particular, the uplink rate increase is oneto three-fold, meaning uplink performance is improved. Given the significance of uplink video transmission for the port, further exploration and optimization can be foreseen.

15.2.4 Summary and Prospect At the beginning of 2020, China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) jointly released the Notice on Organizing and Implementing the New Infrastructure Project (Broadband Network and 5G) in 2020. The document included 5G smart port construction as part of the 5G innovative application improvement project. It proposed to use 5G to retrofit the IT systems of ports to implement smart transformation and upgrade of the horizontal/vertical transportation and vessel entrance and exit systems. Currently, Zhoushan Port has put 5G remote control of RTG cranes into mass and regular production. “5G has revolutionized the way gantry cranes are operated. Operators can remotely control the cranes from the comfort of a control room, the loading and unloading efficiency is improved by 20%, and the overall labor cost is reduced by more than half. The port reached a higher level of unmanned and safe operation,” Ken Hu, Deputy Chairman of Huawei, said in his keynote speech at the Global Mobile Broadband Forum 2020. Next, Zhoushan Port will adopt 5G applications such as unmanned container trucks, intelligent tallying, and video Al services into regular production, and introduce new technologies such as uplink enhancement to advance the commercial practice of 5G smart ports. Many ports in China, including Tianjin Port, Qingdao Port, Shanghai Yangshan Port, and Xiamen Yuanhai Port, are also actively exploring 5G applications. The case of Zhoushan Port will provide a reference for the industry to their pursuit for automated and intelligent development.

Chapter 16

Media, Education, and Healthcare

16.1 China Media Group China Media Group (CMG for short, one of China’s major media outlets) has launched the 5G 4K and 8K Content Production and Broadcasting project. By developing a media platform that integrates cloud, networks, and devices, this project plays an important role in improving 4K and 8K video services and enhancing CMG’s presence in the media industry. The mid-term goal is to have an annual ultra-highdefinition (UHD) content production capacity of 4000 h. This will then be further increased to exceed 10,000 h after the project is completed.

16.1.1 Case Overview With a focus on 5G 4K and 8K extended reality (XR) production and broadcasting, this project represents a part of CMG’s 5G 4K and 8K artificial intelligence (AI) strategy to maximize the use of 5G technologies in media communication. Consequently, 5G networks will be constructed at both the company headquarters in Beijing and its Shanghai branch to serve as the necessary infrastructure. On top of the 5G networks, 4K and 8K content production and broadcasting systems will be deployed, and a portable 5G-capable 4K and 8K encoding and transmission system will be developed, with the aim to improve 5G UHD transmission networks and promote scaled rollout of 5G UHD devices. UHD content production, broadcasting, and distribution capabilities will also be enhanced to meet program requirements and establish media application systems based on 5G smart campuses. CMG plans to build 5G-based 4K and 8K production and broadcasting systems capable of supporting broadcasting, recording, editing, transmission, dispatching, and distribution in Beijing and Shanghai. 5G technologies will be extensively used for signal collection, content production, and broadcasting to support UHD, grid-based, and intelligent media communication. The project will set a benchmark helping to © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_16

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upgrade the media industry by converging 5G with cloud as well as information, communications, and data technologies. By pooling the advantages of 5G, cloud computing, and big data technologies, this project will serve as a prototype for 5G industry applications improving 5G UHD video services and enhancing the efficiency, reliability, and security of media communication. With 5G-based edge computing, cloud computing and storage capabilities can be relocated to local devices in close proximity to users to significantly reduce end-to-end (E2E) latency, enabling real-time editing, storage, and transmission. This will facilitate uninterrupted distribution of UHD content to global audiences and new media users. Meanwhile, content production efficiency and capabilities will be further improved to promote the high-quality development of the content industry.

16.1.2 Solutions and Benefits 16.1.2.1

Industry Challenges

Rapidly developing information and communication technologies are guiding the entire media industry through a profound transformation that leads to a number of significant challenges in audience rating, operation, and content. Thanks to an audience shift toward Internet-based content, television broadcasting has experienced a sharp drop in average reach and viewing durations, and new media has attracted an increasing proportion of audience flows from television advertising. In 2014, the Internet overtook television in terms of advertising revenue, and the gap continues to widen. The media industry risks production separation from broadcasting as a result of the loss of existing core talent and the lack of new media talent in the Internet+ era.

16.1.2.2

Solutions

5G Network Construction In 5G network construction, edge computing nodes and air interfaces are closely folded into CMG’s infrastructure network systems in order to meet access requirements for mobile service applications across different scenarios both inside and outside of the headquarters and branch campuses. Bandwidth is not lower than 1 Gbps for connections with core networks, with at least 10 Gbps for connections with edge computing nodes and 1 Gbps for air interface links. To facilitate future IPv6 deployment, all network equipment will support IPv6 and segment routing, and E2E slicing based on 5G will also be implemented. The 5G slicing system provides network slices for core networks, transport networks, radio access networks (RANs), and devices, while also managing these network slices. The RAN, transport, and core network slices serve as a foundation

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support and implement slicing instances of these networks. By using network slice identifiers and access technologies, a network slice instance is mapped onto a device’s service type and the device that is registered with specified network instances. E2E slice management is responsible for E2E orchestration and management of network slices. E2E slice service level agreement (SLA) assurance collects and processes the performance indicators of each network domain in real time and sends the indicator requirements to each domain for execution. Edge computing platforms are deployed in close proximity to data sources and end users to provide basic services, such as computing and storage, and cloud services and IT environments for edge applications. Compared with centralized cloud computing, edge computing ensures reduced latency and larger capacity for traffic aggregation, providing better support for time-critical and bandwidth-demanding services. 5G user plane functions (UPFs) are flexibly deployed on the network edges to achieve local traffic offloading. UPFs are managed by the control plane of 5G core networks, and their offloading policies are also configured by the 5G core networks. Three service and session continuity modes are introduced for 5G to support edge computing, making it possible to implement dynamic traffic splitting policies. Project Application Scenarios (1)

CMG 4K and 8K VR/AR Production and Broadcasting System— Improving Comprehensive Content Production

CMG’s production and broadcasting system for 4K and 8K virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) content implements intelligent centralized management of new-media content and data and combines multiple media technologies to support the production and broadcasting of UHD converged media. It consists of a 4K and 8K video subsystem, a 4K and 8K multi-channel virtual synthesis subsystem, an immersive audio production subsystem, and a hybrid island’s post- and convergent production subsystem. Figure 16.1 illustrates the overall system. The 4K and 8K video subsystem uses UHD signal transmission, and is tightly coupled with the network production and broadcasting system to support 5G 4K and 8K UHD broadcasting. It also performs intelligent centralized management and

TV users

New-media users

AVS2.0 or AVS3.0

SRT or other streaming protocols

SMPTE-2110

UHD shooting cameras

4K/8K UHD video production

Immersive audio production

4K/8K UHD multi-channel virtual synthesis

Fig. 16.1 UHD production and broadcasting system of CMG

Hybrid island's post- and convergent production

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control over new-media data and materials, and is integrated with a number of newmedia interaction technologies to implement the production and broadcasting of convergent media content in UHD studios. The 4K and 8K multi-channel virtual synthesis subsystem is responsible for 8K multi-channel collection, 8K signal virtual synthesis, and 8K output monitoring, and supports concurrent recording and migration. Meanwhile, the immersive audio production subsystem is upgraded with new 4K audio and video devices. The hybrid island’s post- and convergent production subsystem includes a UHD camera unit, a UHD production switching unit, and a core IP switching unit, and supports access of multiple external signals. A UHD highlight editor, UHD imaging and texting packager, robotic system, large-screen rendering server, and virtual placement and tactical analysis systems are configured to meet the diverse requirements of sporting events and sports news content. In addition, IP-based peripheral video systems are configured to ensure system scalability. (2)

Portable 5G-Capable 4K and 8K Encoding and Transmission System— Making Content Production More Flexible

This system supports 4K and 8K signal encoding and transferring in real time on 5G networks. This function enables 4K and 8K signals provided by mobile cameras to be locally encoded, encrypted, and uploaded over 5G links, eliminating the inconvenience of fixed cameras and increasing content production flexibility. 4K portal digital video (DV) and 8K portal cameras are also integrated to implement lightweight and portal signal collection for mobile 4K and 8K broadcasting, thereby enabling 5G-based wireless transmission to maximize its mobile broadcasting potential.

16.1.2.3

Solution Benefits

4K and 8K production and broadcasting involves shooting, production, editing, broadcasting, distribution, and IT infrastructure. As such, this project empowers the media industry to standardize and promote the production of UHD content, while also increasing the supply of high-quality media content. The 4K and 8K industry chains will develop at an accelerated pace, promoting the development of the broadcasting and television industry. In addition, this project is expected to stimulate innovation and facilitate the converged development between culture and technologies. As a result of the UHD production and broadcasting platform, CMG will significantly increase its content production efficiency and capabilities and greatly improve content quality and user experience. A 5G-based new service model integrating cloud, networks, and devices will be implemented for the first time to ensure an annual UHD content production capacity of 10,000 hours. 4K and 8K broadcasting and on-demand viewing will be also realized with an enhanced user experience.

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16.1.3 Success Factor Analysis The project aims to develop 4K and 8K XR production and broadcasting platforms based on 5G, and will play an important role in standardizing and promoting the production of UHD content with increased high-quality supply. In addition, it will further accelerate the maturity of 4K and 8K industry chains while also the broadcasting and television industry. In the project, CMG was the industry customer initiating promoting the converged development of the media industry. China Mobile was responsible for building 5G private networks for CMG in its headquarters and branch and constructing the edge computing and network slicing platforms. China Mobile also served as the cloud service provider to set up the edge computing system based on OpenSigma, its own edge computing platform. Specialized technical integrators provided 4K and 8K VR/AR production and broadcasting systems as well as portable 5G-capable 4K and 8K encoding and transmission applications. Huawei served as an industry application developer to provide devices and technical support for system integrators and the cloud service provider. The high bit rates of UHD services entail high transmission costs. However, these advanced 5G 4K and 8K production and broadcasting systems will enable UHD content collection, production, transmission, distribution, and supply to be implemented on a large scale, helping optimize content supply. 4G networks provide limited bandwidth and have high latency, and are unable to effectively meet UHD content requirements. 5G 4K and 8K production and broadcasting platforms leverage 5G’s high bandwidth, low latency, and massive connectivity to collect, transmit, produce, and broadcast UHD content while upgrading service flows and improving the efficiency of collection, editing, and broadcasting. National top-down promotion is also key, and China has definitely determined to build new communications systems based on ground-breaking technologies, such as 5G, big data, cloud computing, and AI. Production and broadcasting systems, in addition to 5G transport networks, will improve the capabilities, efficiency, and transmission of UHD content production and broadcasting. This will trigger a new chain of technological innovation and industry businesses related to 5G 4K and 8K applications. The further development of 5G and an array of encouraging policies will accelerate the arrival of an "HD" era where content supply will be greatly optimized to improve viewing experiences and promote the growth of the information and electronics industries.

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16.1.4 Summary and Prospect As Jin Xu, Convener of CMG’s Technology Department pointed out, leveraging high bandwidth, low latency, and massive connectivity enabled by 5G, CMG conveniently and efficiently achieves the stable collection, production, and transmission of high-quality UHD content. This will enable CMG to build UHD, mobile, and intelligent technology systems to transform the production, supply, and broadcasting of media content, and showcases CMG’s ability to replace traditional technologies with strategies powered by 5G and AI to deliver 4K and 8K services.

16.2 Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications (BUPT for short) is one of China’s top engineering universities, distinguished by academic prowess in communications, computing, and electronic engineering. In 2019, BUPT signed a strategic package with China Unicom, one of China’s leading telecom service providers, to build a 5G industry-academia-research integrated platform and to implement the Smart Shahe Campus project. A joint lab was then constructed and successfully shortlisted in the first batch of Alliance of Industrial Internet (AII) labs. The Smart Shahe Campus project helped promote the collaborated growth of cloud, networks, edges, and devices and implement smart education based on 5G, multi-access edge computing (MEC), and Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT), setting an example for schools and universities to develop new education applications that integrate cloud and networks. Figure 16.2 illustrates the practice of 5G holographic remote interactive teaching.

Fig. 16.2 5G holographic remote interactive teaching

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16.2.1 Case Overview BUPT signed a strategic package with China Unicom in 2019 to create a 5G integrated platform that partners both industry and research for building 5G 4K holographic interactive classrooms, 5G AR classrooms, and 5G smart cloud platforms. By the end of 2019, 5G coverage had been achieved indoors and outdoors, and 5G 4K holographic interactive classrooms, 5G AR classrooms, and 5G HD video surveillance systems (including 5G security robots and a 5G smart security command center) had also been put into operation. In 2020, BUPT began working with China Unicom on building 5G cloud computer rooms and launching private cloud programs to accelerate its cloud migration. It established a 5G application lab and formulated plans to conduct 5G and 6G network pilots in partnership with China Unicom. BUPT’s Smart Shahe Campus project in partnership with China Unicom marked the first implementation of 5G applications in university campuses, creating a new model for the leveraging of cloud and networks to promote education. BUPT and China Unicom jointly carried out the “Cloud-based Smart BUPT” project, which became an entry of Beijing’s top-notch project reserve pool in March 2020. BUPT built a joint lab with China Unicom, which was shortlisted in the first batch of AII labs on June 30, 2020. This project was implemented in phases with full consideration for China Unicom’s strategies that touched upon cloud, networks, edge computing, devices, and industry applications as well as the special requirements of universities. 5G, edge computing, and AI were heavily exploited to enable smart education in a manner that ensured the coordinated development of 5G, MEC, and AIoT in smart campus projects. Thanks to this project, remote interactive teaching, teaching quality evaluation and monitoring, and teacher-student interaction were ensured throughout the pandemic, offering good examples of expanding 5G holographic smart education applications. BUPT’s software as a service (SaaS) platform became the foundation for building cloud computer rooms through collaboration, with an overall goal of building 100 5G smart classrooms in BUPT to explore new products and service models capable of facilitating the expansion of 5G smart education in campuses. Figure 16.3 illustrates the overall development arrangement of China Unicom.

16.2.2 Solutions and Benefits 16.2.2.1

Industry Challenges

Uneven distribution of education resources: Educational equity is essential for social equity, where the level of education in rural areas often lags behind that of cities, particularly in regard to information technology applications, support resources, and faculties.

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Service

5G slicing Smart operation Network Intelligent IoT

Ubiquitous interconnection Customization

Flexible deployment, cloud-network private lines

Device

On-cloud device capabilities

Edge

Cloud

Public cloud Private cloud Hybrid cloud

Local processing Real-time exchange Security isolation

Fig. 16.3 Overall development arrangement of China Unicom

Stereotyped teaching methods: In traditional classrooms, the teacher stands between the students and the knowledge. This model is simple and stereotyped, and falls behind modern requirements for developing the abilities of students and encouraging creative thinking. With learning-oriented smart classrooms, the use of intelligent hardware and software facilities is maximized to offer a diversified range of learning resources capable of further developing the creativity of students.

16.2.2.2

Solutions

5G Network Construction 5G standalone (SA) networks are planned to cover the indoor areas of BUPT’s campuses, such as research buildings, primary teaching buildings, and libraries, with all these deployment projects expected to be completed before March 2021. Edge computing platforms will be constructed to support network slice management, intelligent O&M, and software-defined networking (SDN) in various scenarios, such as 5G smart classrooms, intelligent security services, VR/AR applications, and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) research. Cloud-based data centers will be deployed in partnership with China Unicom, with BUPT providing infrastructure investment and forming expert teams working on big data, AI, wireless communications, and future networks. China Unicom will focus on cloud and research resources to ensure required infrastructure services and cloud services, including management cloud, teaching cloud, research cloud, backup cloud, and edge cloud. The 5G data centers will be configured with network automation management platforms and support the

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5G CPE

5G base station

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5G CPE Holographic decoding server

Holographic encoding server

5G CPE

Classroom A

Holographic projection server Classroom B

Fig. 16.4 Solution of 5G smart classroom applications

direct connection of 12-core fibers between BUPT’s campuses to facilitate research into quantum encryption and quantum communications. Project Application Scenarios (1)

Holographic Smart Classroom—Diversifying Teaching Mode

The holographic smart classroom combines 5G with holography to provide holographic and interactive teaching services for students in different locations (see Fig. 16.4). The holographic live broadcast suite is the core software platform for holographic interaction, and its functions mainly include broadcasting guidance, active/standby stream switching, and image overlay, thereby maintaining the interaction between teachers and students. (2)

5G Smart Cloud Data Center—Teaching and Research Anytime, Anywhere

The 5G smart cloud data center meets the overall requirements of the management, teaching, research, and backup clouds (see Fig. 16.5). Currently, active-active remote data disaster recovery is implemented between the data centers in BUPT’s two campuses, providing comprehensive support for the key research projects of major universities and exploring new models of integrated construction, maintenance, use, and management via collaboration. In addition, BUPT and China Unicom jointly formulated the interconnection criteria for 5G edge cloud and university hybrid cloud, aiming to formulate common standards for interconnections in such scenarios. 5G slicing and MEC meet the high bandwidth and low latency requirements for BUPT to implement 5G teaching and research anytime and anywhere. (3)

5G Cloud Classroom—Innovating Teaching Mode

The 5G cloud classroom and education management platform integrates 5G edge clouds and data centers to enable teaching and research dedicated to the communications and information industries. Integrating clouds, networks, edge nodes, devices,

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Management cloud

Research cloud

Teaching cloud

Backup cloud

Fig. 16.5 5G smart cloud data center

and services, this platform enables both students and teachers to access education, teaching, and research resources in BUPT campuses over 5G devices at any time. Based on interactive and live teaching methods, such as 5G, holography, and VR, smart classrooms are replacing their traditional alternatives to meet the teaching requirements of the new era.

16.2.2.3 (1)

Solution Benefits

An Innovation System for 5G/6G Industry, Academia, and Research

Joint R&D teams and labs are established with BUPT based on China Unicom’s R&D system to support the research, experiments, and achievement transfers in intelligent management and O&M, smart security, 5G/6G edge intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT), smart education, AI, next-generation networks, and cyber security of smart campus data centers. This will help develop a 5G industry innovation model based on universities and leading enterprises. (2)

A New Mode for Education Industry

Exploring a new mode of collaboration among industry, academia, and research, this project covers solutions for the entire industry chain from infrastructure to applications involved in university education. The combination of 5G with cloud, networks, and other technologies goes beyond traditional offline face-to-face teaching modes. In addition, a new data center project is built for BUPT based on 5G new infrastructure. By exploring a new model for converging 5G private networks and education metropolitan area networks (MANs), the technological and application standards of 5G education private networks will be improved to promote the deep convergence of 5G with the education industry. 5G education private networks will promote the development of the education industry. High-quality services similar to those provided by private networks will be accessible to both teachers and students at very competitive prices.

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16.2.3 Success Factor Analysis Digital transformation in the education industry provides important opportunities to implement the “cloud, network, and application” strategy, and promote industry customers to transition from self-built cloud computer rooms to a new mode of jointly building computer rooms, networks, and clouds. Cloud migration of 5G holographic content takes priority during the early stage, while the joint development of standards for connecting 5G with edge cloud, private cloud, and hybrid cloud will be the focus in the later stage. BUPT assigned budgets and resources for working with China Unicom to create a new mode in the education industry, while China Unicom provided BUPT with network infrastructure and set up joint R&D teams and labs to implement smart education based on 5G, MEC, and AIoT. 5G education network operation will be a crucial revenue source for network carriers in the 5G era. With this in mind, BUPT and China Unicom drew clear responsibility matrices, with China Unicom focusing on the cloud construction for teaching, research, management, and data backup. BUPT and China Unicom jointly developed the standards for interconnection between 5G edge clouds and university hybrid clouds. By integrating 5G edge cloud and BUPT’s data center cloud, China Unicom also developed holographic smart classrooms, 5G smart cloud data centers, 5G cloud classrooms, and other applications for the education industry based on cloud classrooms and education management platforms. The vertical application of 5G in the education field improves education efficiency, reduces education investment costs, and transforms the traditional teaching methods to further develop the creative thinking and capabilities of students. New technologies, including 5G, edge computing, AI, and cloud, will be increasingly used in the education field to enable digital, intelligent, and automated educational services. Since 2018, China has introduced a package of medium- and long-term policies designed to support digital transformation in the education industry. These policies promote the development of infrastructure required to facilitate the application of related information technologies. In the next stage, 5G, big data, AI, and other emerging technologies will be gradually adopted to elevate smart education to new heights. China has also planned the construction of an Internet-education integration platform by 2022 to promote the sharing of education resources and the shift from converged applications to innovative development. The goal is to develop new talent development modes and explore new education services by tapping into the full potential of the Internet+.

16.2.4 Summary and Prospect As Baojun Liang, Deputy General Manager of China Unicom, pointed out at the “5G + Education” conference in China in 2020, “it takes ten years to grow trees, but a hundred years to rear people”. This motto reflects the essential role of education

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in national development. 5G improves data transmission with high bandwidth and low latency, and China Unicom combines 5G with cloud computing, VR, and AI to innovate applications for the education industry, such as remote interactive teaching, VR teaching, AI teaching, and intelligent campus management. Multiple showcase projects have been completed, which will promote the exploration into smart education applications. The BUPT project has set a benchmark in leveraging 5G, MEC, and AIoT to build smart campuses and promote the high-quality development of smart education services based on new information technologies in the 5G era.

16.3 Siriraj 5G Smart Hospital With a capacity of more than 2000 beds and treating more than three million patients a year, Siriraj Hospital is the largest public hospital in Thailand and one of the largest hospitals in Southeast Asia. The hospital prioritizes fully utilizing digital technology to holistically increase the efficiency of medical services and operations. In the Siriraj 5G Smart Hospital project, Huawei built an MEC-based 5G private network, hybrid cloud, and 5G + Wi-Fi solution to help the hospital explore new 5G medical applications and thereby provide better services.

16.3.1 Case Overview Siriraj Hospital has been the largest and main government medical institute in Thailand for over 132 years. The hospital is the national hub that focuses on fighting the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) while carrying out routine medical services for other patients. There is a significant demand to introduce new technologies in order to improve hospital operations in many aspects, such as managing the volume of patients, reducing patient waiting time, supporting limited medical personnel and resources, and reducing the risk of infection. At the beginning of 2020, Siriraj Hospital adopted the AI-assisted COVID-19 diagnosis solution. The cloud and AI technologies, including computer vision and medical image analysis, enable the system to automatically analyze patient’s CT scan results by comparing them with historical examples and thereby determine the patient’s risk of being infected with COVID-19. With 5G network’s high speed and accuracy, the process takes only 25 s per case, demonstrating that using the network is quicker at responding and more cost-effective than traditional methods. The network also greatly reduces the risk of infection among patients and medical staff. Another use case is to introduce 5G autonomous vehicles and pioneer the use of unmanned vehicles for the first time in Thailand. The self-driving delivery vehicle leverages 5G technology to enable contactless delivery of medical supplies. 5G enhances the hospital’s medical services by ensuring high-speed connections, high reliability, and low latency. The deployment of the 5G private network and

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hybrid cloud in the hospital area enables Siriraj Hospital to guarantee the security of patients’ health data and verify new 5G medical applications, such as AI pathology, 5G ambulance, and smart emergency room. In ConnecTech Asia 2020, a leading information communication media and technology event in Asia, the Most Innovative 5G Trial in APAC award was awarded to the Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital of Thailand for their implementation of 5G to build a secure, reliable, and smart 5G hospital in Thailand.

16.3.2 Solutions and Benefits 16.3.2.1

Industry Challenges

In recent years, increasingly strict requirements on quality, services, and access to care has been posed on Siriraj Hospital from patients across Thailand. Congestion: Congestion can occur when accessing high-end tertiary medical services due to uneven distribution of medical resources between city and rural hospitals in Thailand. A large number of patients from rural areas are willing to travel long distances to visit provincial hospitals for medical treatment, increasing the risk of infection. Therefore, telemedicine solutions and wearable medical devices are necessary to reduce the risk of infection and safely provide healthcare services to patients. These technologies enable medical staff to take care of and obtain sufficient information from patients remotely from the safety and comfort of their own homes. Access disparities: Access to medical services to treat complex diseases varies across different types of hospitals. For example, community hospitals cannot provide professional treatment for tumors. Big data and AI capabilities are needed to help analyze genetic changes in cancerous cells. Logistic: Opportunities to develop logistics and the supply chain need to be seized. The hospital must upgrade its current pharmacy inventory system to adapt to the requirements of the new digital age. Internally, unmanned medicine delivery is promoted and can be integrated into the pharmacy management system to increase maintenance efficiency and reduce labor costs and risk of infection. Externally, post office facilities and express delivery systems are used to send medication to patients’ homes. In addition, Siriraj Hospital is facing challenges in human resources and budget support in the long term. For example, the aging population will increase to 25% in the next 15 years, and healthcare costs have increased threefold in the past 15 years, while the number of newborns has dropped to 700,000 per year and the number of undergraduates have steadily declined. As such, the transformation of ICT lead by 5G technology is necessary to improve management and working efficiency in the hospital.

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16.3.2.2

Solutions

With the goal to become the first 5G-powered smart hospital in Thailand, Siriraj Hospital has worked with Huawei as a strategic partner to design a comprehensive 5-year framework to transform into a smart hospital driven by 5G and cloud technologies. Several solutions have been quickly and successfully introduced to help the country during the pandemic, including the 5G and cloud analytic platform for analyzing CT scans and 5G unmanned vehicles for medicine logistics and delivery. By the end of 2020, Siriraj Hospital has started the construction of an MEC-based 5G private network as a significant infrastructure investment to enable more services in the next 5 years. The hospital has deployed eight innovative smart medical applications based on the 5G private network and hybrid cloud. The 5G + Wi-Fi solution was also deployed to provide quick network coverage in the outpatient department (OPD) for both medical staff and patients. The eight medical applications are as follows. (1)

Permission-Based Block Chain for Electronic Health Records

Centralized management of medical records with block chain technology guarantees the security of patients’ confidential data. To implement this, the hospital must carry out the following measures: • Digitalize and standardize electronic health records from fragmented hospital information systems into FHR format. • Implement Open Library to accelerate the development of the HealthTech ecosystem in Thailand. • Create a new smart “Siriraj HealthTAG” card, which contains a key to easily and securely access personal health records. • Develop a website where all digitized and standardized personal health records are visualized, which can be accessed through mobile phones or the 5G private network. (2)

5G AI Virtual NCD Clinic

Wearable medical devices are used for patients suffering from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and AI is used to help take care of and treat them. The NCD solution includes: • A body tracker to monitor patients’ health The latest IoT devices can send regular interval data, such as patient’s blood sugar level and heart rate, through 5G to be stored on the cloud server. • Data collection and organization to monitor patients Applications supported by the iOS and Android operating systems are developed, which are easy to use. This enables patients to record food intake, view their current blood pressure and sugar levels, and see recommended meals or exercises provided by AI technology.

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• A real-time and highly secure chatbot Chatbots are used to automatically warn patients when anomalies are detected in their behaviors or sugar levels. A compliant and secure communications channel is used to ensure security and patients’ privacy. • Dashboard for medical staff to gain deep insights Patients’ body and behavior data can be analyzed to provide the medical staff with insights into how patients are responding to their treatment and give visualized updates on patients’ historical and current health status. (3)

5G Intelligent EMS

5G smart ambulance solution improves emergency treatment. It quickly sends the status of patients in critical condition through 5G to medical staff in the emergency room to help them prepare the treatment in advance. (4)

5G Intelligent Smart Hospital Emergency Systemc

• Intelligent triage AI with cloud computing can help medical staff screen diseases, which is important to increase the accuracy and completeness of screening patients in the emergency department. • Virtual consultation 5G AR glasses allow emergency physicians and specialists to provide a realistic view of patients and accurate information. • IoT service 5G enables a large amount of IoT and patient data to be linked to enable comprehensive monitoring of symptoms in the emergency room and provide care for patients in real time. (5)

Smart Logistics with 5G Unmanned Vehicles

In this project, six unmanned vehicles powered by 5G were deployed to transport and distribute medical resources from the hospital pharmacy to different department buildings. A remote control center and platform is to be deployed for online management and remote control of the vehicles. This solution will achieve the digitalization of medical resource transportation and distribution within the hospital, reduce labor costs, and improve the management efficiency as well as minimize the spread of COVID-19 (Fig. 16.6). (6)

5G Intelligent Pharmacy Inventory Optimization

AI can predict the usage of medicinal drugs for hospital drug depot management, and the hospital will develop intelligent systems for forecasting the usage of these drugs and an inventory management system including each product type and management model. This solution will increase inventory management and efficiency, which will thereby reduce storage costs and shortages.

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Fig. 16.6 5G unmanned vehicle

(7)

5G Intelligent Pathological Diagnosis

The AI-assisted pathological diagnosis system focuses on eye diseases and cancers. (8)

Homecare Telemedicine

This service includes the telemedicine system for home visits and wearable devices and IoT for tracing human movement during daily activities in home usage for tele-rehabilitation. MEC-based 5G private network is the foundation of smart applications. Traditional 4G networks cannot meet the requirements of the new medical system as they cannot provide the adequate latency and security for accessing confidential local data over the Internet. The new 5G SA network technology and MEC solution for local data breakout is therefore required. Confidential data must be transferred within the hospital’s local network and must not pass through the public Internet. 5G SA and MEC improve service experience in terms of both latency and data privacy compared to traditional solutions such as private APNs in 4G (Fig. 16.7). To improve the hospital’s unmanned vehicle service, 5G SA and MEC are required. The control and monitoring system application of unmanned vehicles needs to be integrated with 5G MEC to provide local data breakout. This will significantly improve the latency and service experience of remote control. Confidential data such as hospital internal location and video will be stored only in the hospital’s intranet without passing the Internet. The unmanned vehicle control application is also to be deployed together within the MEC platform for seamless integration of services. With 5G SA and MEC integrated with Wi-Fi access points, the hospital’s Wi-Fi network for the medical staff can be improved in both speed and access to the Internet or hospital intranet over a single connection. Hybrid cloud fully utilizes technologies such as cloud computing and big data to build the Siriraj hybrid cloud platform in the architecture of private and public cloud collaboration, incorporating efficiency, openness, security and reliability, and on-demand services.

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Fig. 16.7 MEC-based 5G private network

The hybrid cloud solution is a common infrastructure and an integrated information system for all departments of Siriraj Hospital, enabling data resource sharing and efficient collaboration between different applications (Fig. 16.8).

Fig. 16.8 Siriraj hybrid cloud

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The hybrid cloud architecture will provide strong support for enterprise management and public services, improving people-centric services and enhancing users’ modern governance capabilities. By providing a secure and reliable resource platform for Siriraj Hospital, the hybrid cloud will reduce repeated investments on the basis of the IT environment, improving utilization of the infrastructure. For example, the information infrastructure resources for the hospital will achieve unified planning and development, on-demand allocation, ease of use, and effective sharing. With high-quality planning and fast iteration, this project provides intensive construction, information sharing, and standard cloud services and satisfies the different application requirements of IT infrastructure for users and departments in Siriraj Hospital, laying a solid foundation for the future development of 5G, cloud, AI and big data in the hospital. 5G + Wi-Fi 6 system is a highly effective solution that combines the advantages of 5G and Wi-Fi 6 technologies. Users will be able to easily access the system through Wi-Fi 6 as more devices are compatible with Wi-Fi 6 than 5G. After connecting to Wi-Fi 6, data will be transmitted through 5G backhaul, which will benefit the users with a high-bandwidth and low-latency network. It is worth noting that the Wi-Fi 6 system will first operate in the 5 GHz radio frequency as the interference of the 2.4 GHz frequency in the OPD building is too high. After MEC is deployed on the hospital premises, the NCE campus (with Wi-Fi access controller and AP/AR management) will be on-board on the MEC platform. The MEC platform can ensure user data security and low latency as well as send other social data to the 5GC and Internet simultaneously. Patients’ medical information will be safely transmitted through the MEC platform and directly forwarded to the internal server without bypassing the public network. Data classification ensures all internal medical data remains in the hospital campus. Two user groups are defined by different service set identifiers (SSIDs) and authentication methods. The hospital staff group can access both internal and Internet services through 802.1x authentication, while the patient group can access only the Internet after authentication through the portal (Fig. 16.9).

Fig. 16.9 Multi-APN data classification

16.3 Siriraj 5G Smart Hospital

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Success Factor Analysis

Siriraj Hospital is one of most successful use cases of 5G hospital outside of China and the first hybrid cloud project in the healthcare industry overseas. Thailand has a huge healthcare market. The country has 67 JCI-certificated hospitals (No.1 in ASEAN, No.4 in the world), and 1.1 million tourists receive its medical services each year. In 2018, five of the main public hospitals in Thailand received a total budget of 11,956 million Baht (approximately US$400 million). The private hospital market has grown by 11.5% with a market value of 219,138 million Baht (approximately US$7 billion) in 2018, an increase from 196,954 million Baht (approximately US$6 billion) in 2017. Applications, robotics, and cloud are key technologies used by the hospitals. The Thailand government sees 5G as an engine to support the “Thailand 4.0” strategy of digital transformation. As such, the 5G committee was established to promote 5G-related services in all the main industries in Thailand. The 5G committee also plans to provide dedicated budgets for 5G smart healthcare projects, predicting that by 2022, more than 500 community hospitals will need to provide 5G medical services and at least 300,000 patients will use the 5G telemedicine service and, by 2027, more than 7800 community hospitals will need to provide 5G medical services. In this sense, 5G healthcare services will have a huge potential and boom in the Thailand market in the next 5 years. Private data security, service provisioning on cloud, and quick network deployment are general requirements of almost all large hospitals in Thailand. In this project, Huawei served as a cloud service provider and 5G network equipment supplier, deploying a dedicated 5G + Cloud ICT system to help the hospital promote and verify more secure, high-performance, and easy-to-use smart medical applications. Siriraj Hospital has partnered with local medical service developers and integrators, which are highly specialized in the medical industry and have been cooperating with Siriraj Hospital for a long time. Huawei helped them finalize 5G integration and verification in Thailand’s 5G open lab. In the near future, Huawei plans to introduce these partners and their mature 5G medical applications to other hospitals in Thailand to replicate Siriraj Hospital’s success.

16.3.3 Summary and Prospect The Siriraj Hospital project exemplifies the accelerated digitalization of Thailand’s medical services as 5G + Cloud will play a key role in the next generation of healthcare. 5G’s applications in the public health domain could also inspire businesses in other sectors to leverage 5G’s popularity and explore new applications of the technology. Most significantly, 5G technology will be the key driving force to recover the Thai economy and drive new economic and societal growth for the country in every aspect. This will advance Thailand’s medical industry into the 5G era and support its goal of becoming the leading medical hub in Southeast Asia.

Part V

5GtoB Continues to Evolve

Chapter 17

5GtoB Evolution Path

17.1 5G Accelerates the Expansion of New Information Technologies 5G has evolved into a key enabler for digital transformation in China. 5G is already used to improve ultra-high-definition (UHD) video and immersive services and build new social networks to change the way people communicate. And 5G supports massive machine-to-machine connections, enabling hundreds of billions of devices to be connected to 5G networks. With ultra-high reliability and ultra-low latency, 5G is also expected to bring profound changes to vertical industries, including manufacturing, healthcare, and transportation. 5G provides a massive data source for big data analysis. 5G empowers connections and devices, enabling a massive amount of data to be collected. The data is processed using cloud computing, big data, and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, turning the data into valuable assets and key production factors. Together with cloud computing, big data, and AI, 5G lays the foundation for the unified management of data assets, accelerating the circulation of data assets during production, and providing an important basis for enterprise production, sales, and decision-making, as well as digital governance in society. 5G stimulates investment in cloud computing and data centers. 5G’s superior connection and transmission capabilities will revamp device access and data transfer to create a surge in data volumes and processing frequencies. This will further lead to a growing demand for cloud computing transformation and data center construction from enterprises. Telecom carriers and leading Internet enterprises have taken optimistic views on cloud computing and data center investments. This trend is already evident in China. For example, China Mobile has taken active steps to combine cloud with networks, AI, edge, and big data to build network cloud resource pools. China Telecom is also piecing cloud and networks together to pursue multi-tiered construction and management spanning from bases, regions, and provinces to edge nodes. Meanwhile, China Unicom is developing an innovation platform featuring the integration of cloud with big data, AI, Internet of Things (IoT), and safe city. © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_17

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Alibaba, a Hangzhou-based multinational Internet enterprise, has unveiled a threeyear investment plan of CNY200 billion for research into cloud operating systems, servers, chipsets, and networks and the construction of future-oriented data centers. Elsewhere, Shenzhen-based Tencent has planned to invest CNY500 billion over the next five years, in cloud computing, blockchain, servers, supercomputing centers, and large data centers. Similarly, China’s search giant Baidu is reported to have plans to deploy more than 5 million intelligent cloud servers by 2030. 5G promotes the exploration of AI development. 5G opens up a new era of connections. To automatically recognize learning modes and rules from massive data, powerful AI capabilities are required to explore the potential value. As 5G continues to develop, companies are all accelerating the development of AI infrastructure to provide the necessary support for intelligent industry upgrades. Baidu, for example, has upgraded its AI infrastructure, Baidu Brain 6.0, which incorporates both software and hardware. The project has yielded more than 270 AI capabilities by 2020 to help build open-source platforms for autonomous, controllable deep learning in various customized industrial scenarios. Fellow tech giant, Xiaomi is building open AI platforms focusing on smart homes, aiming to provide users, software and hardware vendors, and individual developers with intelligent scenarios and software and hardware ecosystem services. Meanwhile, Huawei has launched the Intelligent Twins project as part of its quest to create open 3D full-domain ecosystems based on cloud and AI solutions that benefit from the cloud-network-edge-device synergy. The goal of the project is to consistently improve AI accuracy for city governance, enterprise production, and daily services. 5G has shown early success on propelling the development of the ICT industry, and a majority of 5G applications have been integrated with various ICT technologies. The entire industry is focusing on the development of 5G enabler platforms that can provide common capabilities for cloud computing, edge computing, big data, and AI. The platforms enable data processing, mining, and analysis—requirements that are common for positioning, rendering, speech and semantic recognition, and image recognition—to be performed to better accommodate the unique needs of various industry applications. As 5G adoption continues apace and information technologies are constantly improved, 5G will drive AI, cloud computing, big data, and other technologies to fulfill their potential, thus injecting new vitality to sustainable global economic growth.

17.2 Next Two to Three Years Are Key to 5G Service Development 5GtoB, like many product and technological developments, will follow four stages of development—introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. The introduction stage is the first stage of 5GtoB industry and application development. Here, preliminary explorations into industry applications are undertaken,

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and this is done under a number of challenges, including resource scarcity, lack of standard support, sporadic and tentative basic network construction, and the absence of capability systems among stakeholders. Generally, it is a heavy-spending period with no guarantee of success. In the growth stage, 5GtoB industry and applications develop rapidly. This results in rapidly increasing applications being adopted and greater 5GtoB business off the back of standardized support, better basic networks, mature capability systems, and abundant resource supply. In the maturity stage, 5GtoB industry and applications experience slow and stable growth, achieving scaled industry and applications while core technologies become more mature. This stage also sees a fully developed basic infrastructure and diversification of the ecosystem and stakeholder networks. This enables the industry scale and applications to reach their maximum potential in creating dividends to these enterprises undergoing digital transformation. In the decline stage, following scaled development, 5GtoB industry and applications fall out of favor for both ToB and ToC customers. Challenges, such as 6G, blockchain, and brain-like AI, as well as new industry standards, mean that the market space for 5GtoB industry begins to contract, contributing to their demise. Now, the world is ramping up its efforts to deploy 5G networks and promote their adoption. However, 5G applications are still in the introduction stage, which means it will take time for new business models to gain traction and be applied on a large scale. Like any other new technology, 5G will abide by the laws of technological and product development. As such, expectations for the maturity of 5G need to be managed. A case review in the Chinese market has shown that, at least three years are required for a new communications technology to bring significant changes to the economy and society as a whole. In the ToC segment, 3G brought the number of daily active WeChat users to 100 million in 2012—three years after 3G’s commercial launch in 2009. 4G, following its license issuance in December 2014, did not have any killer short-video application—which began to be a public focus since 2016— until three and a half years later in the mid-2018 when Douyin’s user base surpassed 150 million users. The ToB segment followed a similar trajectory: It took three years for Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) to reach the milestone of 100 million connections in 2020 since its commercial launch in 2017. In short, for a new communications technology, the two to three years after launch is a critical period to realize scaled development. New business models ushered in by mobile communications will not take root until network capabilities are fully in place. While 5G holds enormous potential to disrupt the status quo, it is still unclear what killer 5G applications would be created. 3G and 4G were introduced to mainly serve the ToC market. It took three years before services with mass appeal emerged. 5G requires deep integration with industries to tap into its full potential. Given the variety of customization requirements and complex coordination in the ToB market, 5G will inevitably have a longer introductory period. 5G is also applicable to a wider range of scenarios, adding to the time it takes to achieve the integrated innovation with various vertical industries. Therefore, the

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laws of technology evolution and market development must be fully considered looking at 5G’s development. Only by being forward-looking and concentrating efforts to enhance common capabilities and devices while accelerating 5G application innovation, can the full value of 5G be realized to drive economic development.

17.3 Internal and External Driving Forces for 5GtoB Development 5GtoB development is primarily a product of systematic integration and interaction of internal and external stakeholders. Developing a 5GtoB ecosystem is a complex task, one that requires constant driving forces from both within and outside the 5GtoB industry. There are three driving forces behind 5GtoB growth: self-organizing forces that enable 5GtoB systems to maintain normal development at a certain stage; transforming forces that enable 5GtoB systems to transition to a new stage; and reacting forces (see Fig. 17.1). The presence of reacting forces does not guarantee that all 5GtoB systems will succeed, but rather, some may even end up falling into decline or being eliminated from the market because of restrictive factors. The gradual development of 5GtoB systems at a certain stage requires certain driving forces, which are known as self-organizing driving forces. A key characteristic of these driving forces is that they differ based on the different stages of development. For example, in the introduction stage, the driving forces mainly include technologies, investment, and policy support. After 5GtoB enters the growth and maturity stages, the value, markets, and requirements will then become major driving forces.

Self-organizing force Market demand Capital input Value creation ...

Transformation mode Production forms Service content Business model revolution Stakeholder changes ...

Transforming force New requirements Technological update Business remodeling Infrastructure maturity ...

Stage X+1 Reaction force Weak demand Wrong technological direction Business model failure ...

Stage X Decline & elimination

Fig. 17.1 Driving forces for 5GtoB development

17.3 Internal and External Driving Forces for 5GtoB Development

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The development of 5GtoB may gradually follow linear or nonlinear patterns at different stages. The driving forces for this gradual development include requirement adjustments, technical revolution, business model innovation, and policy updates. These transforming forces may drive 5GtoB development to the next stage of the life cycle due to changes to products, services, business models, and stakeholders. In each stage, 5GtoB systems will undergo self-organizing “metabolism” or transformational “alternation”. It is also important to point out that these transforming forces can be a doubleedged sword, having the potential to cause 5GtoB systems to transition to the next stage of the life cycle, or contribute to their demise. This can be manifested by, for example, the impact of ever-changing market demands on the established product service systems; the discontinuation of previous technologies and standards due to the adoption of new technologies or standards; and government policies detriment to product sales and business development.

17.4 5GtoB Development Will Be a Phase-Based Process The path to 5GtoB development is becoming clear, with six common scenarios projected to be commercially implemented in phases. As summed up in the previous chapters, the six most common 5G devices are 4K/8K screens, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) gadgets, robots, unmanned devices (vehicles, ships, and machines, as well as large machinery), industry gateways, and sensors. The six common capabilities include live broadcasting and monitoring, intelligent identification, remote control, precise positioning, immersive experience, and ubiquitous IoT. UHD live broadcasting and monitoring as well as ubiquitous IoT applications are widely expected to be commercially implemented in phase one. Examples include 4K/8K UHD live broadcasting in the media industry, 5G remote real-time consultation in the smart healthcare industry, data collection and mobile law enforcement in the smart city industry, and HD video analysis in a range of industries. These applications already have a solid foundation—with proven technologies or device industry chains—and can be easily overlaid onto the 5G industry, eliminating the need for extra adaptation and facilitating their adoption. All this means they will be the first to be commercially available and reach maturity, achieving large-scale rollout within just one to two years. In addition, with relatively fixed service scenarios and limited space for operations, smart mining and smart port industries will likely be the first to see large-scale adoption of some common applications, such as automated guided vehicles (AGVs). The industry applications to be implemented in phase two will be immersive experience and intelligent recognition based on cloud-edge synergy. Examples include AR-assisted assembly, cloud-based robotics, VR simulated driving, UHD/VR cloud game rendering, and immersive VR classroom. As mentioned in the previous chapters, these applications are still in the preparation phase. With 5G standalone (SA)

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networks continuing to develop, the cloud-network-edge-device synergy will be vastly improved to give fresh momentum into 5G’s new expansion. Immersive experience and intelligent recognition applications are expected to mature in the next two to five years. The applications to be implemented in phase three will be remote control services empowered by 5G’s precise positioning, low latency, and high reliability. As 5G base stations become increasingly common in both indoor and outdoor places, 5G will be able to ensure more precise positioning required for industry applications. As the 5G standards are further enhanced, low latency and high reliability will also be significantly improved to enable new applications, including device-device remote control and programmable logic controller (PLC) services.

17.5 5GtoB Applications Are Expanding to Core Industrial Segments The process of 5G transforming industries is essentially the gradual integration of a new information technology into an existing economic system. Take the case of an unmanned smart port for example. In essence, 5G technology is used to build a new technological system that offers precise remote control for large equipment in ports. This is also the case when it comes to 5G being applied to social and public services. As it takes time for the existing economic system to accept and adapt to a new technology, applications on a large scale or in key segments will not occur immediately. This means that a new technology will first be implemented in peripheral segments of an industry before finding its way into the key segments. 5G will also follow this rule as it expands into vertical industries, with the first applications emerging in non-core domains. Providing only minor upgrades to existing functions, such early applications allow 5G to gain recognition in the industry before it can gradually transition into the core segments. In China, 5G adoption is highest in the industrial IoT field. Initially, it was implemented primarily in the security assurance domain to support automated inspection and monitoring through the use of HD cameras and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Since then, 5G has found its way to the core segments, including collaborative manufacturing, with a number of innovative services gradually put into operation. An example is 5G-assisted assembly, where AR/VR glasses, mobile phones, and tablets collect onsite image and audio information, which is sent to computing units through 5G. The computing units then perform specialized intelligent analysis to enhance the images and visualize the assembly process before sending the auxiliary information to onsite engineers via 5G. Using this information, the engineers can complete the complex process of assembly. Currently, 5G applications have also made progress in other industries, including ports, mining, industrial manufacturing, healthcare, and education, but there are still many industries without 5G applications. It is recommended that industry application developers and system integrators start

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Table 17.1 Self-organizing driving forces at different stages Stage

Self-organizing driving forces

Example

Introduction Technologies, investment, and policies Current 5G network construction relies primarily on carrier and government led investment. However, traditional services are still needed to ensure 5G technologies can create applications Growth

Markets, policies, and requirements

Market requirements are explored, and stable supply systems are developed for both 5G products and solutions, leading 5GtoB development into small-scale virtuous cycles

Maturity

Markets, value, and capital

Supply ecosystems are matured for 5G products, services, and solutions to meet new requirements and be mutually beneficial

the expansion into a new vertical industry in non-core segments first. This will help build consensus within a vertical enterprise about the introduction of 5G and clear the technological obstacles through small-scale trials and continuous iterations, thereby accelerating the adoption in the vertical industry (Table 17.1).

Chapter 18

Evolution to 5.5G and 6G and Key Applications

18.1 5.5G Prospects Connectivity and computing are crucial to building an intelligent world. 5G will be the backbone for mobile communications technology from now right through to 2030, and is expected to remain in use all the way until 2040. As for the future landscape of connectivity, Internet of Things (IoT) networks are projected to carry more than 100 billion connections, most of which will be carried over 5G. By 2020, there have been over 1.3 billion cellular IoT connections, which highlights the need for 5G to continue evolving to meet growing and diversified IoT requirements. 5G was originally intended to serve enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Massive Machine-Type Communications (mMTC), and ultra-reliable lowlatency communication (URLLC) applications (see Fig. 18.1), but the gradual evolution towards 5.5G will see a further three new use cases added to the existing three just mentioned to improve data rates, expand network coverage, enhance system intelligence, and expand applications. The three new use cases are as follows.

18.1.1 Uplink Centric Broadband Communication (UCBC) As smart manufacturing and unstaffed factories become more widespread, machine vision will play a greater role in manufacturing. This in turn will see flexible device deployment and reconstruction, as well as abundant wireless connections given priority, but will put greater pressure on wireless campus networks. Take the inspection of auxiliary felting and stitching for airplane production as an example. Conventional manual inspection methods are time-consuming and error-prone, which in turn would sometimes double the workload. With high-definition (HD) industrial cameras, machine vision is able to implement automatic detection, which speeds up inspections by 80% while also ensuring consistency and accuracy. However, this can © Posts & Telecom Press 2021 P. Sun, Unleashing the Power of 5GtoB in Industries, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5082-6_18

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eMBB Mobile video FWA

UCBC HD video uploading Machine Vision

RTBC AI

XR-pro Holographic

Spectrum (< 100 GHz)

mMTC

URLLC

REDCAP NB-IoT

Reliable latency llot-Adv

HCS Positioning V2X

Fig. 18.1 5.5G applications

only be achieved when the wireless campus networks have strong uplink capabilities. Industrial cameras will take and upload more than 60 HD photos per second to the platform, meaning that the uplink bandwidth must be between 350 and 600 Mbps. UCBC ensures uplink ultra-broadband experience by increasing uplink bandwidth by 10 times over 5G’s baseline. Such high level of performance can easily meet the demands of machine vision and massive access of broadband IoT services, accelerating intelligent industrial transformation. With ultra-high uplink capabilities, higher bandwidth is provided to support high-speed connections, thereby highlighting the necessity for the flexible use of the sub-100 GHz spectrum resources. In addition, multi-band uplink carrier aggregation, uplink ultra-large antenna arrays, and device coordination must be supported to remarkably improve uplink capacity and in-depth coverage.

18.1.2 Real-Time Broadband Communication (RTBC) 5G has opened up doors for people to interact with virtual worlds and realize massive connectivity. 5.5G will further improve the technologies of virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and extended reality (XR) Pro to deliver an even greater immersive experience for users. However, this requires cellular networks to provide higher data rates from 120 Mbps (4K video) to 2 Gbps (16K video) and a transmission latency that is slashed from 20 to 5 ms. This puts huge demands on 5G development.

18.1 5.5G Prospects

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RTBC supports low-latency transmission while ensuring high bandwidth, and is expected to increase bandwidth by 10 times, delivering an even more immersive experience. With generalized carriers used to quickly increase wireless network capabilities, end-to-end (E2E) cross-layer XR experience can be guaranteed to enable real-time high-bandwidth interaction.

18.1.3 Harmonized Communication and Sensing (HCS) Sensing will be a core capability of a fully connected world, and this will include quantity, location, and shape sensing. Cellular networks will, with the support of highprecision positioning and communication sensing technologies, become an engine for realizing a fully connected world based on cloud- and AI-powered identification, detection, recognition, and imaging. HCS will mainly serve vehicle-to-everything (V2X) and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) applications, with a particular focus on autonomous driving. Both V2X and UAV applications require cellular networks to provide sensing and communications. By applying beam scanning for cellular massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) to the sensing field, HCS will be able to meet both communications and sensing requirements, as well as positioning services in indoor areas.

18.1.4 Summary As wireless network applications continue to develop and expand, 5G will face a number of new challenges concerning the real-time interaction between people and the virtual world and higher demands for more diverse and complex connections. 5.5G is the next era of wireless communications, which will be compatible with all 5G devices and improve the original three standard use cases as defined by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU): eMBB, mMTC, and URLLC. Moreover, 5.5G will define three new use cases, including UCBC (that focuses on uplink ultra-broadband), RTBC (that prioritizes real-time broadband interaction), and HCS (that tackles communications-sensing convergence). By increasing 5G’s three use cases to six, massive high-quality connections become a reality, signaling a big step to realizing a fully connected, intelligent world.

18.2 6G Technologies and Application Prospects From its first generation to its current generation, mobile communications has undergone radical changes regarding its service types, users, network architecture, and transport resources. In the post-Moore era, the sixth generation (6G) is

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expected to arrive, and the industry must break through the current architecture of mobile networks to improve ubiquity, intelligence, reliability, and broadband while achieving sustainable development, while ensuring green development. This will help build intelligent, simplified wireless networks to improve mobile communications capabilities required for industry applications [1].

18.2.1 Network Performance Requirements 6G networks will see profound changes in communication scenarios. Multipointto-multipoint (MP2MP), people-to-machine, and machine-to-machine (M2M) will become mainstream. These developments require networks to be task-driven and support diverse services across a wide variety of scenarios, posing even higher requirements on reliability, determinism, and intelligence. In terms of performance, 6G provides even higher rates of connectivity than 5G. Based on current studies, the peak rate of 6G will reach 1 Tbps, the user-perceived rate will exceed 10–100 Gbps, and air interface latency will be shorter than 0.1 ms. Meanwhile, connection density will top 10 million per cubic kilometer, while reliability will exceed 99.99999%. This generation will also see the arrival of new performance indicators. For example, the positioning precision of 1–10 cm for indoor users and 50 cm for outdoor users will become mandatory requirements, and delay jitter will drop to ±0.1 ns. Network coverage performance is also expected to improve. And finally, 6G networks will be highly intelligent with AI and big data support, allowing networks to be tailored to users’ needs [2].

18.2.2 Architecture and Technology Prospects An all-new generation of mobile communications standard, which is 6G, will be born in 2030. 6G networks will be set out to transform mobile communications with four new paradigms: full coverage, full spectrum, full distribution, and full application. 6G networks will extend coverage from terrestrial areas to broader spaces, including aerial and marine environments, while satellite, UAV, and maritime communications will significantly expand the coverage scope of wireless networks. Each 6G technology will leverage their own advantages in coverage distance, transmission latency, throughput, and reliability to realize all-encompassing coverage. For example, satellites can be an excellent supplement to ground networks in areas where terrestrial communications is limited or absent (such as remote areas, disaster sites, and the sea). Networks based on UAVs and balloons will be ideal in diverting ground network traffic, particularly in areas that already have a heavy footprint, thanks to their intrinsic superiority in mobility. Together, these technologies will contribute ubiquitous connections in all scenarios [3].

18.2 6G Technologies and Application Prospects

285

6G networks will also provide higher data rates by exploring all available spectrums, including sub-6 GHz, millimeter wave (mmWave), terahertz (THz), and optical bands. The THz band refers to electromagnetic waves with frequencies between 0.1 and 10 THz. It is widely regarded as a key component to fulfilling the real-time traffic demand of mobile heterogeneous networks as it has the strengths in both microwave and optical communications. Its potential to overcome current spectrum and capacity bottlenecks puts it in prime position to becoming the next major technological breakthrough. THz communications is advantageous in Tbps data rates, is largely resistant to weather, has robust security, and supports multi-point connections [4]. Visible light communication (VLC) is a prospective supplement to current radio communications technologies, and can effectively alleviate the spectrum shortage of current mobile networks. It employs lighting-purposed light emitting diodes (LEDs) to realize high-speed data transmission. VLC also boasts multiple advantages over radio communications. One such advantage is its potential THz-level bandwidth, which does not require a license from regulators. Data transmission does not produce electromagnetic radiation and therefore will not be subject to external electromagnetic interference, making it an ideal option for interference-sensitive applications or in scenarios where interference must not exist, such as hospitals, aircrafts, gas stations, and chemical plants. Stronger security can be guaranteed, since the transmission vehicle, which is visible light, cannot travel through hard obstacles, such as walls. The line of sight (LOS) transmission confines data links to the interior of buildings, thereby preventing information from being intercepted. Network deployment is more efficient and flexible, reducing operation and maintenance costs [5]. 6G networks are projected to extend wireless communications from terrestrial spaces to aerial and marine scenarios in order to fulfill a diverse range of service requirements. This vision cannot be achieved with a centralized network architecture, as it requires networks to evolve from a centralized structure to a distributed structure. Deploying network functions, such as authentication and authorization, to network edges requires distributed homogeneous small cloud units of different function levels. Each small cloud unit is self-contained and supports a complete set of control and data forwarding functions. Multiple small cloud units form an autonomous micro network to provide services based on requirements, scenarios, user scales, and geographical environments. This distributed network design will be based on blockchain to ensure trusted network services and elastic scaling. As a distributed ledger technology (DLT) in peer-to-peer (P2P) networks, blockchain has clear advantages in ensuring decentralization, tampering resistance, traceability, anonymity, and transparency. Decentralization is key to providing secure and trusted blockchain connections on distributed homogeneous small cloud units in the 6G era. The mobile Internet and IoT are two driver industries of 6G, which will set the ground for the realization of holographic and higher-precision communications technologies. This requires networks to process massive data in real time with a high throughput and low latency.

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18.2.3 Typical Industrial Application Scenarios Super IoT In the 6G era, IoT will be more deeply integrated with cellular technologies to form a digital twin virtual world. The people-people, people-things, and things-things connections in the physical world can relay information and intelligence through the digital world. This creates a twin virtual world that simulates and predicts the physical world. Industrial Automation Control Closed-loop control systems at the core are one of the most fundamental applications for smart manufacturing plants. In a closed-loop control cycle, each sensor continuously performs measurements, which are sent to controllers and used to set an actuator. A typical closed-loop control cycle remains live for only a few milliseconds, so networks must cut latency to milliseconds or below to ensure control accuracy that is very reliable. A potential high latency or transmission error may interrupt production, generating a considerable loss. Compared with 5G, 6G ensures a lower latency of 10 µs with ultra-high reliability, making it possible to implement closed-loop control applications through wireless networks [6]. Robot Control Factories of the future will be smarter than ever and filled with smart mobile robots that operate wirelessly. As a result, a distributed intelligent network with TB-level computing capabilities will be needed. Robots must be able to respond to changes in conditions and operations quickly, and this highlights the necessity for immense computing power that can process tens of trillions of data, as well as robot-robot connections that are comparable to parallel buses of supercomputers. Such huge capacity will lead to an ultra-high data density and require ultra-low latency below 10 µs [6].

18.2.4 Summary Our society will be information-driven, and will be characterized by highly digitalized, intelligent, and global data carried over almost instantaneous and unlimited wireless connections. 6G will be a key driving force for achieving this blueprint, with its ability to extend mobile connections to everything anywhere, anytime, and integrate a broad category of functions, including sensing, communications, computing, buffering, control, positioning, radaring, navigation, and imaging, for all vertical applications [7].

References

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