The recent Next Generation Mobile Networks (NGMN) forum has demonstrated the encouraging convergence of the 5G technology, aiming to drive the industry towards a healthy 5G ecosystem
Among the many projects reported by NGMN, the 5G Trial and Testing Initiative (5G TTI) attracted attention of the participants.
Since the approval of this project by the NGMN Board in June 2016, operators, vendors and researchers have been working together in accordance with the 3GPP work schedule, to guide the technology from standard to market.
The 5G TTI focuses on facilitating the maturity of the technology and assuring an early interoperability of the products.
Given the significance of this initiative to the availability of the technology and the time-to-market, the project team has adopted a systematic approach to address the four aspects relevant to 5G.
The test of technology building blocks (TTBB) is the initiation phase and it aims to frame the scope and selection of technologies being tested by the TTI. In a joint effort, the project has defined 16 candidate technical building blocks eligible to 3GPP 5G phase 1 standard.
The proof of concept aims at an early assessment of future standard based technologies. The team have defined 13 test cases in two categories which are functional or architectural proof points, including MIMO, RAN functional split, network slicing etc and the key performance indicators (KPI) for system data rates, latencies, mobility, etc.
The pre-commercial network trial aims to demonstrate the 5G capabilities and advantages in a field trial, to better prepare the industry for a successful launch of the commercial 5G network.
The interoperability is usually evaluated by performance and interoperability. This work stream aims to test the interoperability of the early standard compatible products, so that possible problems can be identified, solutions be found and standards be improved.
Peter Meissner, CEO of NGMN Alliance, said, “The 5G Trial and Testing Initiative, as one of the NGMN flagship projects, has received unprecedented NGMN support around the globe by 19 operators and 24 vendors. It is a prominent example for the co-operative and mutually beneficial environment enabled by NGMN for the wireless industry, paving the way to an evolutionary and interoperable 5G.”
