China Mobile Shanghai has launched a 5G network in Shanghai’s Hongqiao Railway Station, making it the first railway station to have a 5G digital indoor system (DIS). The deployment aims to achieve deep indoor 5G coverage within the whole station by the end of 2019 providing easy access to fast 5G network services for all passengers.
The railway station’s 5G network is seen as a key milestone in Shanghai’s commercial 5G deployment laying a solid foundation for Shanghai as a Dual-Gigaband city, with Gigabit network speeds on both mobile and fixed networks.
“Hongqiao Railway Station is leading the 5G commercial deployment in Shanghai,” said Zhang Jianming, Vice Chairman of Shanghai’s Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology. “The 5G digital indoor system will deliver a new travel experience. Passengers will feel they are getting more out of their journey. The railway station will show how 5G applications can improve the user experience and offer real benefits to the public. It will help speed up digital transformation for all sectors across the digital economy.”
Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station is one of Asia's biggest traffic hubs in terms of passenger throughput, and a showcase for China's railway system. It handles over 60 million passengers every year, with over 330,000 people passing through each day during peak seasons.
As the 5G era approaches, one of the key concerns for telecom operators will be how they can use 5G networks to meet the needs of high-density areas with thousands of people simultaneously using the network to make phone calls, access the Internet, and make mobile payments.
5G offers high bandwidth, low latency, and massive connections. However, it uses high frequencies, which means network signals will lose a lot when penetrating buildings. This makes it difficult to provide full 5G coverage in any indoor environment. A huge building like Hongqiao Railway Station, with a large number of passengers generating vast data flows, increases the challenge.
China Mobile Shanghai selected Huawei's 5G DIS, which is currently the industry's only commercially-available solution for 5G indoor coverage. The product was developed in Shanghai and is now ready for mass delivery. Most 5G base stations are currently being deployed outdoors. The 5G DIS will ensure that 5G network coverage extends into every scenario in every corner of the city.
At the launch event, China Mobile Shanghai and Huawei demonstrated the 1.2Gbps peak rate enabled by the 5G DIS. This will mean that after logging on to a network supported by the system, passengers will be able to download a 2GB high-definition film in less than 20 seconds. They will be able to enjoy a seamless entertainment experience as they wait, board, and ride their train. And 5G will reshape people's lives by creating interactive services such as robot navigation and takeaway delivery.
With the application of the 5G digital indoor system in more diverse scenarios, the 5G railway stations of the future will meet passenger demand for high-speed connectivity and mobile payments anytime, anywhere. They will also support services including 4K HD video calling and multi-way ultra-HD video uploading. These new services will create a better travel experience for passengers.
According to Peter Zhou, CMO of Huawei’s Wireless Solution, “5G will also provide a big boost to cloud services. The railway stations of the future may be more intelligent than we can possibly imagine.”
5G is now: Inspired user experiences
5G railway stations are just one of many ways in which 5G will be applied. 5G means faster network speeds and larger capacity and is the foundation for the Internet of Things (IoT). With 5G, a range of new services, such as virtual reality (VR), IoT, artificial intelligence (AI), smart city, and ultra-HD video, will see wider application.
Huawei’s Chief 5G Scientist, NAME believes, “5G will open a new era for mobile Internet, underpinned by digital transformation. 5G networks will connect 1 billion places, 5 billion people, and 50 billion objects, and bring digital to every person, home, and organization for a fully connected, intelligent world.”
As the first 5G networks are rolled out, Huawei has several 5G DIS projects underway. “The 5G DIS was built using Huawei chips, integrated designs, and high-performance antennas, and so on. It leads the industry in terms of performance, specification, and technologies,” said Peter Zhou. “The 5G DIS technology will deliver ubiquitous connectivity for AR, VR, and accurate positioning and navigation. It will enable intelligent digital platforms for areas such as store management, distribution management, and targeted advertising.”
The future of advanced 5G technology: 4G changed lives, 5G will change the world
As 5G industrialization accelerates, Huawei is working with partners in many industries to develop the indoor 5G industry, and enable smart buildings, remote healthcare, and smart railways. The whole world is becoming more intelligent.
Within the 5G world, the functions of mobile Internet, big data, cloud computing, and smart devices are constantly integrating and transforming. 5G is more than a next-generation technology. It is key infrastructure for the future digital world. Just as 2G transformed voice services and 4G transformed mobile Internet, 5G is the engine that will transform the world.
This vision of the future led Huawei to invest consistently in 5G R&D from 2009 onwards, paving the way for its leadership of the industry today. Huawei's technological leadership has made it the technology supplier of choice for more and more customers. As of mid-January 2019, Huawei has signed 30 5G contracts and has shipped more than 25,000 5G base stations. Huawei possesses 2,570 patents on 5G.
“Shanghai is committed to building a Dual-Gigaband City,” said Zhang Jianming, Vice Chairman of Shanghai’s Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology. “We are now planning field tests and pre-commercial trials of the technology. Ultimately, we will deploy 5G base stations across the whole city, and lead 5G commercial use in China. With Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Huawei, we have set up platforms to bring together the industry, academia, and research institutes. Through more investment in new infrastructure including AI, industrial Internet, and IoT, we will revitalize this city and build a hi-tech, intelligent Shanghai.”
Guests at the launch event included: Zhang Jianming, Vice Chairman of Shanghai’s Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology; Wang Guannan, Deputy Division Chief of the Shanghai Municipal Transportation Commission; Bai Zhengguo, Station Master of the Shanghai Railway Station; Li Xuecheng, Deputy General Manager of China Mobile Shanghai; Peter Zhou, Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of Huawei’s Wireless Solution; Zang Binyu, Dean of the School of Software at Shanghai Jiao Tong University; and Xiao Yuhuo, General Manager of China Mobile Tietong Shanghai.
