China Mobile launches world’s first 6G satellite

• China wants to be the leader in 6G.
• China Mobile launches the world’s first 6G satellite.
• Satellites are important platforms for future integrated space and ground networks.

While some countries around the world are embracing the benefits of 5G connectivity, China is wasting no time in developing 6G, the next generation of wireless technology. The technology planned to replace 5G has been in development for some time and is being worked on by multiple companies, not just in China.

Expected to be much faster than 5G, 6G will be able to support applications beyond current mobile usage scenarios. This includes ubiquitous instant communications, pervasive intelligence, and IoT. 6G networks are likely to operate at higher radio frequencies, offering more bandwidth and latency at microsecond speeds.

In Europe, the 6G research project is being driven by Ericsson and Nokia, with Ericsson acting as the technology leader and Nokia representing both companies’ efforts. The Hexa-X project has been ramping up its activities since its launch in January 2021. Although this project highlighted some advantages, it also pointed out some challenges that organizations may face in the future with their 6G networks.

Although there is no timeline for 6G deployment, technology and network experts predict that the technology will be developed and released by the end of the decade.

Why is the US losing to China in network technology?

Potential use cases for 6G include:

• Digital twin: 6G enables the creation of virtual replicas of physical objects, systems, or processes using sensor data, AI, and edge computing.
• Cobots and robot navigation: collaboration between robots and humans in areas such as manufacturing, logistics, and education.
• E-health for all: Global access to e-health, including to remote areas and disadvantaged populations, using off-ground networks and AI/ML capabilities.
• Precision healthcare: Networks support advanced healthcare scenarios such as internal devices, robotic first responders, and remote surgery.
• Smart agriculture: 6G enables data-driven and sustainable farming practices using ubiquitous sensors, drones, and digital twins.
• Earth Monitor: Enhancing sustainability and protecting the environment, this network enables the global distribution of sensors to monitor environmental indicators and support climate action.
• Multisensory Augmented Reality: An immersive, interactive experience that stimulates multiple senses, including touch, smell, and taste.
• Personalized user experience: For businesses, provide users with customized, context-aware services and content based on their preferences, needs, and emotions.

The use cases for 6G are beyond imagination. (Image generated by AI)

China and 6G

In Asia, China is leading the way in 6G development and aims to begin commercializing the technology by 2030. It is expected to establish a 6G standard by 2025.

China’s 6G efforts are driven by its ambitions to upgrade its manufacturing base, promote a more technologically advanced economy, and strengthen its global competitiveness. China’s three major carriers, China Mobile, China Telecom, and China Unicom, are each continuing to carry out 6G research and development and the deployment of his 5G networks and applications across the country.

China Mobile launched the world’s first 6G satellite into orbit. According to media reports, the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite is the first in the world to adopt his 6G design architecture. The satellite is expected to facilitate experiments in integrated communication technologies from space to the ground.

China’s 6G test satellite hosts a decentralized autonomous architecture for 6G services jointly developed by China Mobile and the Microsatellite Innovation Academy of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The system leverages indigenous software and hardware to support in-orbit software rebuilding, flexible deployment of core network functions, and automatic management, improving the efficiency and reliability of in-orbit operations of satellite core networks. I will increase it.

This experimental satellite is installed at an orbital altitude of approximately 500 kilometers, offering advantages such as lower latency and faster data transfer speeds compared to high-orbit satellites located 36,000 kilometers above the Earth’s surface.

China Mobile said 6G satellites are an important platform for future space and ground integrated networks. LEO satellites address communication signal coverage gaps in terrestrial mobile networks and provide high-bandwidth satellite Internet services around the world.

6G is expected to enable innovative and futuristic use cases that will transform the way people live and work in surprising ways. This network could also bring new opportunities and challenges to sectors such as healthcare, smart energy grids, transportation and so-called Industry 4.0.