Telecom network vendor Ericsson today said it already has live indoor and outdoor 5G test networks in Sweden and the US.
Ericsson invited telecom industry stakeholders to see Ericsson’s 5G test networks, including both 5G mobile devices and 5G radio base stations, running live at the company’s premises in Plano Texas and in Stockholm.
The development is despite the fact 5G is expected to be commercially available around 2020 in select global markets.
Ericsson’s latest 5G technology initiative provides a way to deliver drop-free, higher capacity mobile connections for both people and things.
A 5G mobile device connects to several 5G cells at the same time, providing the resiliency to ensure that the device maintains a high-quality connection with the 5G network as it moves between cells. It also enables the transmission of several different sets of data signals (Multiple Input Multiple Output, or MIMO, streams) to the mobile device over the same radio frequency channel.
Hakan Andersson, 5G Strategic Product Manager, Business Unit Radio, Ericsson, said: “To be ready for commercial networks in 2020, 5G research and development has to come out of the labs and into live test networks. Multipoint Connectivity with Distributed MIMO, supported on Ericsson’s 5G air interface, is the latest example of 5G initiatives moving into live test network implementation.”
5G will include new air interfaces including signaling, modulation schemes and other software-driven innovations between the device and the network. Ericsson’s 5G air interface initiative, labeled NX, includes this new Multipoint Connectivity with Distributed MIMO capability.
