Telia, Ericsson and Intel showcase live 5G in Estonia

Ericsson, Intel and Telia 5G
Intel vice president Asha Keddy (right) observes Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven remotely controlling an industrial excavator over a live 5G network as part of the first public live 5G trial in Europe with Ericsson, Intel and Telia. (Image credit: Intel Corporation)

Telia is deploying the first public 5G live network use cases in Europe in collaboration with Ericsson and Intel, including a high-speed 5G connection to a commercial passenger cruise ship delivering internet connectivity to the ship and its passengers while in port, and an industrial use case featuring a construction excavator remotely controlled with a live 5G network.

The “real life” 5G environment for Tallink was created at the Port of Tallinn, Estonia, to test and explore how the new mobile technology can provide higher data connection speeds and improved quality. During the test in September 2017, 5G technology was deployed for the whole ship while it was in harbor. The technology enabled Wi-Fi usage for 2,000 passengers and the ship’s own information and communications technology systems.

Ericsson supplied the 5G base station for the demo, while Intel supplied its 5G Mobile Trial Platform.

Telia said the demo is one example of many use cases that 5G will provide for transportation situations.

The industrial excavator demo – staged at the EU Digital Summit in Tallinn on Friday – have a unique opportunity to experience what it feels like to remotely control machinery – enabled summit delegates to operate the excavator via augmented reality over an ultrafast live 5G link with very low latency.

Telia said the demo shows how a machine operator can work with 5G remote controlled excavators in hazardous environments from the comfort and safety of an office.

The demos mark the latest signpost in Telia’s 5G roadmap as the operator races to launch commercial 5G services sometime next year in Tallinn and Stockholm, said Gabriela Styf Sjöman, global head of networks for Telia.

“We want to be early with 5G,” she said. “It’s not only about building a new network but it’s also about building a new way of thinking and perceiving what a mobile network can be and can do. High speed, low latency, guaranteed capacity and truly mobile [are] going to push the boundaries of digitalization and we want to be there pushing it together with our partners.”

Also, deploying early 5G solutions in real-world settings is vital for the industry to learn how the various technologies integrate into different types of businesses, in what types of environments it performs best, and the interoperability between systems across the network, cloud and devices.

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