Where is the future of 5G private networks?

The 4G and 5G networks that you usually use to make calls, watch videos, and play games are generally called "public networks." The word "public" here means open and public.

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In other words, this network can be used not only by you, but also by Zhang San next door, and by the brother of Zhang San’s fellow villager, comrade-in-arms, sister-in-law and classmate’s brother.

The opposite of the public network is the private network. This private network can be completely customized to keep out people you don't want to access.

For example, you use Wi-Fi to build a local area network at home, which contains devices such as TVs, home servers, smart speakers, and sweeping robots, and only family members can access it.

Expanding this concept, we will find that all industries have their own private networks that serve their own internal systems, and we call them "private networks."

For example, on the railway, an internal network based on private network technology such as GSM-R has been used since the 2G era, which is specifically used for communication between trains and dispatching centers.

This private network technology silently protects the operation of the railway system behind the scenes and is almost unknown to people except those in the industry.

In the public network, if you freeze a few times while watching a video, there is no big loss except the poor experience. But private networks are generally used for production activities. The network is like the circulatory system of our body. If there is a blockage in a blood vessel or an abnormal heartbeat, it may cause the system to crash, which may cause economic losses or even safety accidents.

Therefore, when building a private network, there are extremely high requirements for network performance, reliability and security. It can be said that the network is a major event in the industry, a place of life and death, and a way of survival and destruction, and it must be carefully considered.

As a result, the spotlight of the times has been cast on 5G.

Why do we need 5G private network?

In the 5G era, three major scenarios have been proposed: eMBB (enhanced mobile broadband), mMTC (massive machine type communication) and uRLLC (ultra-reliable and low-latency communication).

It can be seen that, except for eMBB, the other two categories are generally not used by ordinary people.

So why does 5G go to so much trouble to develop so many features that the general public won't use?

That’s right, it’s for private network applications. The network needs of ordinary consumers are just the tip of the iceberg, and most of them are always undercurrents.

As early as 2019, which was called the "first year of 5G", the Minister of Industry and Information Technology proposed: "80% of the real application scenarios of 5G should be used in the field of industrial Internet. I think this is the field that 5G is most looking forward to."

According to estimates by consulting firm OMDIA, the economic contribution of 5G industry applications worldwide will reach 13.2 trillion US dollars, with the most significant contribution to the manufacturing industry.

Global 5G industry application releases (data source: OMDIA, as of March 2020)

Therefore, deploying 5G private networks is an indispensable means for vertical industries to promote 5G innovative applications, expand production efficiency, and accelerate digital transformation.

In March 2020, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued the "Notice on Promoting the Accelerated Development of 5G", proposing to organize research and pilot projects on 5G industry virtual private networks.

In July 2021, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, together with nine other departments, issued the "5G Application "Sailing" Action Plan (2021-2023)", which set clear goals for the construction of 5G private networks.

At the same time, the "Bloom Cup" 5G application collection competition, also led by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, has been held for four consecutive sessions, aiming to discover typical 5G applications and explore mature business models.

All of this points to an irrefutable fact: industry-specific networks are the future of 5G.

Ways to build a 5G private network

According to the 3GPP R16 standard definition, 5G private networks are divided into independent deployment mode (SNPN, Stand-alone Non-Public Network) and public network integration mode (PNI-NPN, Public Network Integrated Non-Public Network).

Independent deployment mode refers to the use of dedicated spectrum to build a completely dedicated network, which is not shared with anyone. This method generally requires the allocation of dedicated frequency bands to enterprises, and the enterprises independently carry out network construction and operation and maintenance.

The public network integration model can be divided into two categories, depending on the degree of sharing with the public network: "partial sharing with the public network (sharing RAN or sharing RAN and core network control plane)" and "end-to-end sharing with the public network". Operators need to deploy 5G private networks, and this approach has the advantages of flexibility and speed.

In Europe, Japan and other countries, the governments have opened dedicated frequency bands for enterprises, and enterprises can build independent 5G private networks after obtaining licenses.

In 2019, the German government opened up 100M bandwidth and opened up ten-year usage rights for corporate users, mainly for Industry 4.0, agriculture and forestry. Currently, 33 companies including Bosch, BMW, Volkswagen, BASF and Lufthansa have applied for 5G private network frequency bands.

In the same year, Japan also opened up dedicated spectrum for enterprises, including the 4.5GHz and 28GHz frequency bands, with a total bandwidth of 1.1G, and called it "Local 5G". Fujitsu, NEC, Akita Cable, the University of Tokyo and many other companies have submitted applications.

In 2020, Fujitsu announced that its self-built Local 5G was officially put into commercial use. The network covers an area of ​​28,000 square meters, and the initial deployment application is smart security, which uploads ultra-high-definition video streams collected by multiple cameras through the 5G network and uses AI analysis to detect suspicious behaviors to ensure campus safety.

In China, since all spectrum is allocated to operators, companies that want to build 5G private networks have no choice but to cooperate with operators.

Professionals do professional things. Operators have more than just spectrum. They also have funds, technology, experience, manpower, and platforms. They are overwhelmingly professional in network construction.

Therefore, enterprises only need to pay money and leave the complicated matters to the operators, and focus on deploying applications to improve efficiency. This is the most worry-free and win-win move.

5G private network solutions of China's three major operators

As a result, the three major operators took the lead and launched their own private network construction plans, and set different service levels according to the diverse needs of thousands of industries.

As can be seen from the above figure, the three major operators have launched three 5G private network deployment modes: "full sharing with the public network", "partial sharing with the public network", and "independent deployment".

From the naming point of view, China Unicom is the most simple and straightforward, calling the three modes "5G virtual private network", "5G hybrid private network", and "5G independent private network" respectively.

Telecom's models are more elegant, and are called "Zhiyuan Model", "Bilin Model" and "Ruyi Model" respectively.

China Mobile has highlighted the belief that the more money you spend, the more prestigious you are, and has named the three modes "Premium Mode", "Exclusive Mode" and "Premium Mode" respectively.

Next, let’s take China Unicom as an example to see how to build a 5G private network.

5G Virtual Private Network:

In this mode, 5G base stations and core networks (including user plane network elements UPF and other network elements) are shared with public network users.

So how do we differentiate between public and private network users and provide differentiated service guarantees? This requires the use of 5G's killer feature: end-to-end network slicing.

Through 5G slicing technology, multiple logically isolated exclusive pipelines can be realized, and the business of private network users and public users can be isolated without affecting each other, thus ensuring the security of user business.

This 5G virtual private network built by software has the characteristics of a wide service range, high flexibility, low cost and short construction period. It is used in various applications with wide coverage, non-fixed access terminals in time and space, and certain service quality requirements and a certain degree of data isolation requirements, such as smart cities, smart scenic spots, new media, high-end communities and offices, intelligent transportation and other scenarios.

5G hybrid private network:

In this mode, 5G base stations are still shared by public network users and private network users, but the user plane function (UPF) of the core network is already dedicated and can also be deployed on the edge computing (MEC) node within the enterprise campus.

Unlike a virtual private network, an enterprise's internal data no longer needs to go through the public network UPF. Instead, it is directly transmitted to the enterprise intranet through a dedicated UPF within the enterprise park. The transmission path is shorter, the data does not leave the park, and security is higher.

Due to the short transmission path, the end-to-end latency of the network can be effectively reduced to less than 15 milliseconds, and the latency in some scenarios can be less than 10 milliseconds. The ultra-low latency allows 5G applications to penetrate into the core links of enterprise production control.

In addition, since MEC and UPF are deployed within the campus, the enterprise's control over the network is enhanced, and various flexible self-services can be performed, such as autonomous management, autonomous configuration, alarm reminders, etc.

Therefore, 5G hybrid private networks are suitable for various local open parks, including transportation and logistics, ports and terminals, high-end scenic spots, urban security, industrial manufacturing, etc.

5G independent private network:

As the name suggests, this is a completely independent 5G private network, dedicated to terminals, base stations, and core networks, with refined point-to-point planning and design, and completely isolated from the public network, so that they do not interfere with each other.

This highly customized network can maximize the performance of 5G networks, achieving coverage without blind spots, data not leaving the campus, uninterrupted production, optimized uplink and downlink bandwidth, ultra-low latency, and ultra-high reliability.

Therefore, 5G independent private networks are suitable for local closed areas, including mines, oil fields, nuclear power, high-precision manufacturing and other scenarios. For example, unmanned dispatching, remote operations, system control and communication in mines and oil fields; intelligent manufacturing, monitoring and other applications in high-precision manufacturing plants.

The network architecture of China Telecom's Zhiyuan, Bilin and Ruyi models is basically the same as China Unicom's virtual private network, hybrid private network and independent private network.

Telecommunications: The “Zhiyuan” Model

Telecommunications: The “Neighborhood” Model

Telecommunications: The “Ruyi” model

Telecom proposed that 5G private network service is not only a communication network, but also a comprehensive solution that is fully customized with integrated network, cloud computing, edge computing and application platform.

Therefore, China Telecom's 5G private network emphasizes a high degree of customization: "network customization, edge intelligence, cloud collaboration, and X on demand". The goal is to create integrated customized and integrated services for industry customers and achieve "cloud-network integration and on-demand customization."

China Mobile's three modes of 5G private networks, namely premium, exclusive and premium, are built using the approach of "independent deployment of the core network, main wireless sharing for dedicated use on demand, and isolation of shared transmission resources on demand".

Based on these three modes of 5G private networks, China Mobile has built a system and platform for artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, cloud computing, big data and edge computing capabilities to support a variety of industry applications.

It can be seen that the 5G private network architecture of the three major operators is basically the same. They have all built wireless communication infrastructure with complete functions and precise services, which can flexibly meet the differentiated demands of industry customers.

However, the construction of infrastructure is only the first step in a long journey.

The wave of digital transformation is surging. For traditional enterprises, the only way to gain a foothold in the new era is to be friends with time and promote digital transformation every day.

This endogenous driving force of the enterprise for digitalization, networking and intelligent transformation is the ultimate energy that determines how fast and how far 5G private networks can go.

While changing the industry, 5G private networks will also penetrate into our lives silently.