The development of a new mobile phone standard usually takes ten years. The current 5G standard will therefore most likely remain the primary technology of global mobile networks until at least 2030. According to the Chinese network supplier Huawei several evolutionary steps are necessary within a generation to be able to exploit the full potential of a mobile radio standard.
During the in-house exhibition Mobile Broadband Forum (MBBF), Huaweis Executive Director David Wang has published initial information on the planned 5.5G evolutionary stage. This is an intermediate step that complements the 5G standard. Currently, 5G mainly covers eMBB (enhanced mobile broadband), mMTC (massive machine type communications) and URLLC (ultra reliable and low latency communications). Of particular relevance to consumers is the enhanced data channel eMBB, which enables mobile speeds of up to 1 Gbit/s.
Higher upload for industrial applications
According to Huawei, the new 5.5G standard in the mobile network must above all enable higher uploads. This is to be achieved using UCBC (Uplink Centric Broadband Communication) technology, whose uplink bandwidth exceeds 5G by a factor of ten. Huawei sees possible application scenarios in the professional environment, for example in machine vision and Internet of Things (IoT). However, end users with ordinary smartphones should also benefit.
In addition, RTBC (Real Time Broadband Communication) technology is expected to increase the already high download rates by a factor of ten and at the same time improve the guaranteed reliability. Under optimal conditions, mobile download speeds of 10 Gbit/s would thus be possible.
The new HCS (Harmonized Communication and Sensing) technology in combination with massive MIMO antennas beam-scanning should enable an exact localization of objects. According to Huawei, the feature can be used for indoor navigation as well as in drones and autonomous vehicles.
Average speed of 2 Gbit/s
Currently, the average speed in the 5G mobile network is 120 Mbit/s. According to the Huawei presentation, 5.5G should reach at least 2 Gbit/s on average, in order to be able to handle demanding usage scenarios such as streaming in 16K as well as AR and VR applications, which, thanks to faster Server can be offered more and more frequently to make mobile use possible.
Framework concept for 5.5G standard
Before the proposals conceived by Huawei can be translated into a concrete technology, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) must develop a framework concept. However, to accelerate the digital transformation, Huawei is already appealing to companies and consumers to switch more applications to 5G.
