How to unleash the power of the tactile internet through 5G networks

Today, the Internet is everything! It was created to provide interoperable communications around the world for unparalleled multimedia and data content exchange. Moreover, it has also driven technological innovations as it evolved from 2G to 3G, then from 4G to now 5G. 5G is not just a technology or wireless upgrade, but it has ushered in a world of accelerated and disruptive changes. After driving the development of the Internet of Things (IoT) and ushering in a new industrial era, and after Industry 4.0, it is now paving the way for the Tactile Internet. While the Internet of Things is driving automation through a range of Internet-enabled tools, the Tactile Internet is expected to push it to the next level.

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The term was coined by Professor Gerhard Fettweis of the Technical University of Dresden in Germany in early 2014. In August of the same year, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) defined the tactile Internet as an Internet network with low latency, extremely short transport, high availability, high reliability and high security. This will depend on the proximity of cloud computing) and virtual or augmented reality for sensory and tactile controls. Accenture said in its 2018 paper titled "Tactile Internet Supported by Ubiquitous Networks" that the tactile Internet will enable remote real-time physical interaction with real and virtual objects, creating a two-way interactive experience in which the boundary between the real world and the virtual world will become blurred.

The Tactile Internet will use 5G’s URLLC (Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication) capabilities to provide users with ultra-fast internet connections, allowing for tactile interactions with visual feedback. Visual feedback here refers to audio-visual interactions, robotic systems that can be controlled in real time, and actuated robots. As the availability of high-speed internet connections increases, its low-latency capabilities will lead to enhanced human-machine (tactile) interactions that can be transmitted in real time to the other side of the world. All formats of the tactile effect data (waveform, frequency, length, etc.) are hosted on a remote server. Since the IoT already provides connectivity, this data can be accessed online without relying on internal storage space, enabling detailed tactile effects. Advocates of this technology suggest establishing it in areas where machines can complement human capabilities rather than replace them. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) mentions that the Tactile Internet will benefit even VR by providing the low-latency communications needed to achieve a “shared tactile virtual environment”, in which multiple users are physically coupled through VR simulations to perform tasks that require fine motor skills.

Why 5G?

While 5G offers high-speed connections, faster data upload and download speeds, greater bandwidth, and more stable connections than its predecessors, it also has specific features and capabilities that can meet the premise of the tactile internet. Tactile communication must have an end-to-end latency of 1ms. According to the ITU, in order for technical systems to match human interaction with the environment, people's natural reaction time sets the target that technical specifications must meet.

Next, for critical missions to be performed, such as networked robotics, remote surgery, downtime should not increase by a single second per year. One also needs enough capacity to allow a large number of devices to communicate with each other simultaneously and automatically at an accelerated rate. Since most of the processing will occur at the edge, one needs the underlying network infrastructure that supports faster content and data transmission. Edge computing will further allow efficient processing of 3D video, audio, and tactile information captured by many devices and sensors near a large number of users due to content caching.

5G checks these boxes because it has a latency of less than 2 milliseconds and can share data faster than other existing network technologies. Therefore, it is 5G that will support the tactile internet.

Application Areas

The Tactile Internet will enable a plethora of new applications, products and services. Some of these are:

• E-commerce 4.0: High-quality tactile feedback driven by the tactile internet will revolutionize the e-commerce industry. Using tactile data, the exact texture that the customer wants to feel can be reproduced, which will be available on the website server or app, showing the clothes he wants to buy. This data will be sent to his device in real time over a 5G internet connection.
• Smart Grid: The current grid cannot ensure a stable and reliable supply of electricity when many decentralized energy suppliers inject power into the grid in an uncontrolled manner. Smart grids distribute the energy generated, avoid overcapacity, and ensure stable power supply - all activities that require low latency. Tactile Internet will help solve the low latency problem of smart grids. It will also enable dynamic activation and deactivation of local generation and consumption, and may even take into account AC phase information to minimize the generation of unavailable reactive power.
• Healthcare: The healthcare industry usually revolves around the location of doctors and hospitals. Tactile Internet will help provide healthcare services anytime and anywhere. These services include remote diagnosis, remote surgery, and remote rehabilitation. Using telerobotics, telesurgery, and telesurgery will reduce the travel expenses of surgeons. The response time of telerobotics used by surgeons is similar to that of surgeons. Even telerehabilitation treatments in the patient's home can lead to higher treatment success rates as well as greater cost-effectiveness.
• Improving the lives of people with disabilities: The tactile internet has the potential to improve the lives of people with disabilities. While telerehabilitation features artificial limbs based on robotic exoskeletons to improve the lives of people with motor impairments, supported by tactile feedback, Braille telecommunications will also be significantly improved. This could speed up innovation in Braille smartphones, where transmitters produce “bumps” that can be sensed and changed in seconds.