RedCap is a 5G/5.5G lightweight massive IoT technology newly defined in 3GPP Release17 targeting for medium- and high-speed application scenarios.
China Unicom Guangdong Branch and Huawei have recently completed the 5G/5.5G RedCap technology verification in China Southern Power Grid. As part of the “U-Joy Cities” program, this verification covered RedCap capabilities in terms of network coverage, mobility management, service performance, etc., laying the solid foundation for large scale commercial deployment of RedCap technology in digital electric power grid application scenarios.
RedCap is a 5G/5.5G lightweight massive IoT technology newly defined in 3GPP Release17 targeting for medium- and high-speed application scenarios. Redcap technology has not only inherited the low latency and high reliability features of traditional 5G NR technologies, but also has the advantages of less power consumption, less complexity and lower cost, which is more propitious in the large-scale commercial application of massive IoT scenarios.
Since the freezing of 3GPP R17 international standards in June 2022, RedCap technology has aroused the attention of global industry widely because it is designed and optimized in hardware capabilities and software functions to achieve a better cost-effective performance. The success of the RedCap technology verification in China Southern Power Grid will accelerate the ripening of RedCap technology commercial application in the digital power grid field.
Unicom Guangdong, Huawei, and China Southern Power Grid jointly developed the RedCap technical solution for this verification in Shenzhen, Guangdong. In the 5G commercial network environment, the verification focused on multiple KPIs of RedCap technology, such as cell access and camping, coverage capability, throughput, uplink and downlink peak rates and E2E delay for the scheduling, control and data collection services on the power distribution network.
The test results show that the RedCap technical solution fully complies with the 3GPP R17 protocol procedures and expected performance specifications. The RedCap solution can provide excellent network performance to meet the requirements of digital power grid applications such as power distribution automation, distributed power control, and 720p/1080p/4K video surveillance of power transmission line. In addition, RedCap users can coexist with common users on the same 5G network.
China Unicom Guangdong and Huawei have jointly launched the “U-Joy Cities” program, which is designed to adapt to the economic, social and livelihood characteristics of the cities in Guangdong and the Greater Bay area. It also aims to develop innovative 5G/5.5G products, explore new application scenarios for 5G/5.5G and build a 5G/5.5G operation ecosystem with leading partners to further drive industry digitalization.
In the future, China Unicom Guangdong and Huawei will continue to work with partners such as China Southern Power Grid to build various pan-terminal products dedicated for the electric power industry with RedCap chips or modules and to explore more application scenarios facilitating the design and deployment of advanced digital power grid systems.
Originally published at Mobile World Live