5G is our future. It is going to see us more interconnected than ever, offering more information than we could have dreamed of. It’s estimated that 127 devices are connected to the Internet each second. By 2025, it is expected that there will be 75 billion devices in the world, all relying on a mixture of technologies including 4G, 5G, Wi-Fi and the Internet of Things (IoT).
This boom in devices, which is being further driven by the increasing promise of 5G rollouts in the near future brings with it some big challenges. AI, big data and cloud computing for centralized connectivity will bring requirements that organizations must adapt to if they want to be competitive. Additionally, the question of how to provide flexible and agile connectivity for all devices anytime, anywhere at an efficient cost, looms large.
The Need for Interoperability
As 5G marks a shift towards a connectivity landscape dominated by wireless, satellite technology will be an invaluable component in meeting the challenge of ubiquity in the 5G world. Reliability and coverage are going to be main priorities and it is also important that interoperability with the terrestrial world is both achievable and seamless.
Newtec is poised to meet these challenges and is spearheading the move into a 5G future. At the upcoming 5G Satcom Seminar to be held in Dresden, during the IEEE World Forum on 1 October, Newtec will play a crucial role in a demonstration of satellite and terrestrial integration with the ESA-funded Satis5 proof of concept testbed.
The workshop will begin at 12:25h and the Dresden showcase will run from 13:30h -13:45h. On Wednesday 2 October, there will be a workshop on Satellite and Non-Terrestrial Networks for 5G from 12:55h, followed by a pitch on the Dresden SATis5 Demo and a demo showcase from 13:30 -13:45h. A panel discussion will then take place on “Satellite Integration into 5G: Accent on the industry perspective” from 14.30h until 15.30h.
The European Space Agency (ESA)-funded “Demonstrator for Satellite-Terrestrial Integration in the 5G Context” (SATis5) project was initiated to provide a proof-of-concept for the integration of satellites into a large-scale European 5G testbed with access to over-the-air demonstration test capabilities using GEO and MEO satellites. ESA’s SATis5 testbed aims to practically demonstrate backhaul connectivity using 5G prototypes of satellite and terrestrial network elements working together to operate the satellite and terrestrial networks, seamlessly.
A Team Effort
Satis5 has been developed by various partners, including: Eurescom, Fraunhofer FOKUS, Fraunhofer IIS, SES, TU Berlin and Bundeswehr University, Munich. SATis5 tackles major technical challenges such as the distribution of Orchestration; distribution of the Control Plane, Slice Management and Service Function Chain Orchestration through the integration with Network Functions Virtualization Management and Orchestration (NFV-MANO) and Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) node. Emphasis has been placed upon IOT with a local/private 5G network using the Newtec Dialog® multiservice platform and modems for the satellite interworking.
The specific focus on IOT and private 5G networks of the current SATis5 demo completes the set of use cases tested so far by Newtec, in addition to the interworking with satellite and terrestrial. The SATis5 project is important in terms of validating Newtec’s 5G strategy and product development. The technologies utilized on this project such as Multi-access Edge Computing and Orchestration are very important components of the 5G architecture and eco-system.
We look forward to helping to enable a bold future for satellite in 5G.