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Lessons Learned from Early 5G Private Network Pilots

Prof. Dimitra Simeonidou FREng, FIEEE

Director Smart Internet Lab, Co-Director Bristol Digital Futures Institute

University of Bristol, UK

bristol.ac.uk/smart

• 100+ academics and researchers @ University of Bristol

• Combined expertise across optical, wireless, IoT and cloud technologies

• Research across:

• Enabling technologies, Systems and Networks, Services and Applications

• Holistic approach to end-to-end network design and optimisation

• Extensive expertise on hardware, software and co-design

• Real world deployments and large-scale experimentation including

5G&Open-RAN private test-networks

Smart Internet Lab@Bristol: Who are we?

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Driving Private Networks Pilots Since 2018

Smart Internet Lab, University of Bristol

Harbourside (Centre), Bristol

Science Park (High Value Manufacturing)

M4/M5 & Avonmouth (Highways and Ports)

Cathedral square, BathKCL (London)

Digital Catapult (London)

• Smart City• Freeport Zones• Transport• Logistics• Manufacturing• Security • Assisted Living• Robotics

• Smart tourism• Digital Media• Music & Sports• Public safety• Connected

Homes

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First Private 5G Test-Network the the UK-2018

Nokia Wi-Fi

Ruckus Wi-Fi

26GHz Mesh Network (CCS)

Nokia 5G NR & Nokia LTE-A Micro-RRH

Edgecore SDN Switch

LiFi visible-spectrum AP

Private 5G Bristol Fibre

5G room

IT room

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Urban 5G Private Network Coverage

University of Bristol5G Access Points

V U- Smart Internet Lab.S- Millennium Sq.V- VR LabW- Watershed M- M-shedB- Roman Bath

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U

S

MU

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Fibre Footprint Across Bristol

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Mobile Network Coverage

NR (5G)

LTE (4G+)

Queens building ➔ Covering area for IoT Research & Experimentation

MShed & M.Sq. ➔ Covering area for the user experience and technology evaluations

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Private Network Features

Orchestration of Networks

Transport

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irtualisatio

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sServices & Business Solutions

Access

Core

Open SW/HW• (OSM) Open Source (MANO) Orchestration• (SDN) Software Defined Networks• (MEC) Mobile Edge Computing • Network Monitoring and Analytics• AI/ML tools• Programmable Edge (FPGAs)

Complying with standards• Access Network • LTE-A / 5GNR (Macro / Micro /Pico)• WiFi 6 • Fibre access (WDM PONs)

• Transport & Core Network• Fibre• EPC over vMEC• NSA 5G systems / SA core

• Supporting Platforms • vMEC• Open RAN 4G/5G

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• Multi-site

• Multi-vendor hosting capability

• Heterogenous infrastructure

• Support for white box & Open SW platforms

• Multiple mobile packet cores (EPC, vEPC, NSA & SA…)

• Licensed and unlicensed spectrum bands

• Urban and enterprise IoT and Data

• Engaged users (industry, researchers, local government, vertical sectors, public)

• Measuring user experience

• Co-creation with users/sectors

Network Capabilities

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The 5G-ENCODE projectENabling COnnectivity for Digital Engineering

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• £ 9 m Project funded partly by DCMS’ “Industrial 5G Testbeds and Trial: Manufacturing and Logistics”

• Aims to develop c lear business ca ses a nd v a lue propositions for 5 G a pplication in manufacturing industry

• Also to deliver a private 5G Testbed within NCC• New business models

• New 5G technologies: Network slicing and splicing

• Three manufacturing use cases:• AR/VR to support design, manufacturing and training

• Monitoring and tracking of time sensitive assets

• Wireless real-time in-process monitoring and analytics

• Lead Partner: Z eetta Networks

5G-ENCODE: Project Overview

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Closed loop manufacturing in Liquid Resin Infusion (LRI)

Business Objective: Improve efficiency and

productivity in LRI composite manufacturing using5G and digital technologies

TARGET: 40% better yield (£1.5m/annum)

In-factory and in-transit asset tracking

Business Objective: Improve productivity and reduce costs

by providing accurate and live location and conditioninformation of tracked assets

TARGET: 5% productivity improvement (£0.9m/annum)

Virtual 360 video training

Business Objective: Improve efficiency and

trainee satisfaction of in-house training usingimmersive and interactive VR 360° platform overa 5G mobile network

TARGET: 20% costs reduction (£1.0m/annum)

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Slicing & Splicing

NetSplicer® - A Multi-Domain Orchestrator by Zeetta Networks

Use Case 1 Use Case 3Use Case 2

NCC FILTON

MEC

5G CORE

RAN

L2 SwitchNetwork

SlicingNetOS SDN

Controller

NCC HQ

MEC

5G CORE

RAN

L2 SwitchNetwork

SlicingNetOS SDN

Controller

Millennium Square

L2 SwitchNetwork Slicing

NetOS SDN Controller

MEC

5G CORE

RANTelefonica5G public network

mmWave network

Fibre network

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• 4G network operational since Oct 2020

• 5G SA network physical build complete

• Commissioning in Aug 2021

• Use case demos in Oct 2021

• Ecosystem of partners

• Diversified supplied chain

• OpenRAN

• Lessons learned so far

• Interoperability, skill sets, spectrum license, 5G device availiability…

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• Duration: January 2021 – March 2022

• DCMS funding: £3,009,828

• Total project value: £ 5,212,293

• Location: South West, Bristol

• Partners: 12

• Lead: West of England Combined Authority (WECA)

• Demonstrate how 5G private network capabilities can offer efficiency and productivity improvements to the logistics sector (and more widely)

• Show the potential of highly accurate and real-time location tracking of containers and individual items in a freeport-freezone scenario

• Improve road traffic management and improve air quality

• Replace manually-intensive processes with 5G enabled autonomous systems

• Bring SMEs, universities and public bodies together to make strides towards the digital infrastructure of the future

5G Logistics

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Freeport

Smart junctions

Autonomous port police drones

• Security• Traceability and tracking of goods within

and across extendable virtual boundaries and…

• Between private and public networks

Freezone

5G Logistics- Use Cases

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Bristol Port - 5G Private RAN, MEC & Core(Primary Zone)

Gravity - 5G Private RAN & MEC(Test Zone 3)

Smart Junction(Test Zone 2)

5 G IoT Router

VP N GW

AD VAOp en-RAN

Ed ge site GWw ith:

- Optical switching - Time/phase synch

- MEC for DU

CellnexCa pacitiveMEC Host

SD N enabledOptical Switch

5 G-RU

VP N GW5 G-RU

5 G-RU

5 G-RU

CellnexMEC Host

SD N enabledOptical Switch

5 G-RU

5 G-RUF ibre-MH

ADVAOpen-RAN

Edge Site GW( as for Primary Zone)

5G

M(a/i)cro Cell

5G

M(a/i)cro Cell

F ibre-FHF i bre-MH F ibre-FH

5 G IoT Router

Geolocation Open Database

Geolocation Services

Highways England

Vans / Trucks

Local Authorities

5 G-RU

5 G-RU

Services

5G Logistics: System Architecture

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5G LOGISTICS - Key Areas of Technological Innovation

IoT TransportThe project is creating digital

models of blind spots in transport of goods.

Utilizing the geolocation and geofencing capabilities of 5G

creates limitless industrial transport optimization

opportunities

AI on PremiseThe project develops the

bedrock for exploiting value from secure real

time AI MEC deployment

5G Location TrackingThe project capitalises on 5G location tracking centimeter accuracy extracting novel-

additional value for the logistics industry

Eco Aware Tech

The project monitors continually transport

Targeting smart traffic management

Resulting to less carbon footprint

World Leader

The project transforms a port to a Freeport utilizing 5G.

Demonstrating such an integration that never

happened before

Digital Market

The project gives birth to a digital financial

microcosm.

Enabling the Idea of IoT and BlockChain markets

Ultimate Network SecurityThe project testbed allows port operations and

services to run entirely on MEC premises.

Empowering the ability to choose or not choose when to communicate valuable data to cloud.

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Future Private Networks Key Ingredients

#1–Multi-access Convergence (Radio + Fibre) & Mobile Edge Computing

Integration of MEC and network edge

AI and processing at the edge

#2 Wireless & Fibre

High performance, elastic, high bandwidth backhaul

#3 – Network Slicing & Service Orchestration

Dynamic network slices, multitenancy, protection and prioritisation of services

End-to-end intelligent service orchestration-multi-technology & multidomain

#4 – User Needs

Use cases relevant to the industry and public

Co-creation: Users Involved in the innovation Cycle

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Thank you

dimitra.simeonidou@bristol.ac.uk