Enabling 5G and the Future of Robotics : Mouser

#News(IoTStack) [ via IoTGroup ]
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The fifth generation of wireless technology will pave the way for a new generation of robots, some free to roam controlled via wireless rather than wired communications links and exploiting the vast computing and data storage resources of the cloud. Armed with these capabilities, robots can be precisely controlled dynamically in near real time, and be connected to people and machines locally and globally. In short, 5G will fully enable applications such as the “factory of the future” and many, many others that were previously beyond the capabilities of both cellular and robotics technologies.
Current 4G Long-Term Evolution (LTE) cellular networks have round-trip latency of about 50ms but to enable applications like robotics the 5G standard recognizes that <1ms will be required, a colossal technical challenge. Other promised benefits of 5G, such as cloud computing and increasing data rates, are relatively “simple” when compared to reducing latency to such a minute level, as it faces the immutable laws of physics.

To understand this, consider that the speed of electromagnetic radiation in a vacuum is 3 x 108m/s. As the Earth's atmosphere is not a vacuum this top speed is reduced ever so slightly due to atmospheric air. However, its propagation speed is dramatically reduced by further considerations including the optical fibers, terrestrial and satellite communication links, and the electronics and interconnects through which a signal must pass. The upshot is that the shorter the physical distance between Point A and Point B, the lower latency time can be. This this is how 5G intends to accomplish its goal of reducing this metric to <1ms.

5G will require the number of data centers that collectively form the cloud to be dramatically expanded geographically, as a data center in one location is likely to be too far away from most other locations to reduce latency time to acceptable levels. This expansion, combined with data rates greater than 1Gb/s and the use of new cellular frequencies—an order of magnitude higher than those presently employed—will be essential ingredients that allow distances ranging from 1–100km to be covered with <1ms latency.

The Factory, Reimagined
5G will play a crucial role in creating the factory of the future, another application in which <1ms latency is essential. In combination with the almost limitless processing and data storage available in the cloud, 5G communications will allow robots in next-generation manufacturing environments to do far more than they can today. Robots will be able to exchange large amounts of information between themselves and the factory workforce, revolutionizing the “shop floor” along with other 5G enabled devices such as wearables and technologies like augmented reality (AR).

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