5G specs finalised, here’s what to expect
Finally, the specifications of the much awaited generation mobile networks (5G technology) for IMT-2020 were revealed in a draft report by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). However, the final specification set will be decided by November 2017.
ITU is the UN agency, which coordinates telecommunication operations and services throughout the world.
Zhao said: “IMT-2020 will be the global cornerstone for all activities related to broadband communications and the Internet of Things for the future – enriching lives in ways yet to be imagined.
“The draft report, describing key requirements related to the minimum technical performance of IMT-2020 candidate radio interface technologies, including data rate, bandwidth, latency, area traffic capacity, energy efficiency and reliability, is expected to be approved at the ITU Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R) 5G meeting in November”.
The expected minimum peak data rate for downloads is 20GB/sec, with uplink peak data rate of 10GB/sec via a single mobile base station. Of course, that’s not what a single user would receive, as it will be divided up among all the customers in the area. 5G will also be able to support at least one million users per square kilometer.
5G users can expect downloads of 100MB/sec and uploads of 50MB/sec. Other key features of the 5G specs include a maximum latency of 4ms, a fifth of current standards. In the meantime, the ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC) will have latency of just 1ms.
To ensure high quality of connectivity when the user is in mobile, the 5G specification calls for base stations that can support travel speeds all the way up to 500km/h, states the ITU’s report. The report further states that different cell setups will need to be maintained for different locations – both rural and urban.
5G interfaces should be energy efficient when under load, and when idle should consume less power, also states the report. This should be made possible by reducing the control plane latency to below 10ms, meaning that the switch between battery-efficient and full-speed states should be done within the aforementioned time slice.
Several organisations are already testing 5G delivery methods. Recently, Samsung announced its 5G RF Integrated Circuit (RFIC) for “commercial readiness”. Also, Intel has launched its Atom chips in an effort to make future devices 5G compatible.
