How 6G Can Transform The World and Technology
By Advancing Extended Reality,
Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Digital Twinning, and
more, 6G Shows Potential to Optimize Communications,
Interoperability, and Sustainability.
Highlights
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Research and development around 6G are on the rise. 6G will
significantly improve download speeds, eliminate latency, and
reduce congestion on mobile networks.
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In development for 2030, 6G will support advancements in
technology, such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR),
metaverse, and artificial intelligence (AI).
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The industry is in need of standardized frameworks, guidelines,
and solutions to deliver optimal user experiences to
consumers, IEEE SA is working to support the development of 6G
technology on multiple fronts.
Technological advances are growing exponentially. New capabilities
make everyday tasks easier or in some cases completely eliminate old
ways of doing things.
We’re at the beginning of the rollout of 5G, offering greater speed
and capacity than ever before. From smart homes and telehealth to
immersive games, new and emerging features powered by 5G have
elevated our experiences.
While we have yet to experience the full potential of 5G technology,
we’re already hearing murmurs of 6G technology. What is 6G, when is
6G coming, and how will it impact us?
What is “G”?
“G” refers to “Generation”. 1G was introduced in 1979 in Tokyo. This
first generation of wireless cellular technology was born and by
1984, the entire country of Japan had 1G. 1G was approved in the
United States in 1983 with Canada and the United Kingdom following a
few years later.
How Do Cell Phones Work?
All wireless devices like cell phones and tablets are connected to
phone and Internet services by radio waves through an antenna in a
cell tower. Carriers pay to use this “cell” along with others in a
geographical area. These successive cells create a spectrum band so
users stay connected when moving from one cell to another.
Carriers rely on subscription fees to cover the costs of creating
these cell networks whether they are building, maintaining, and
upgrading the towers or leasing the bands.
The Path to 5G: How Did Cellular Technology Evolve?
1G facilitated the introduction of the mobile phone to consumers.
However, because of the exorbitant cost, it was mostly used by
business executives and seen as a status symbol. It was time to make
the product and service affordable for greater consumption and
address cellular technology inefficiencies. With 1G analog mobile
communications standards:
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Coverage was poor.
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Sound quality was subpar.
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There was no compatibility between systems or providers.
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Because an analog wave comes through exactly as it is created,
calls between people could be overheard via radio scanners,
making for a lack of privacy.
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Maximum speed was 2.4 Kbps.
2G was created on a digital cellular network standard. Because
digital converts analog to numbers, 2G offered encrypted calling
with better sound quality, text messaging, and picture or multimedia
file messages. Enabling these alternative communication types was
possible because 2G offered a theoretical maximum transfer speed of
40 Kbps. 2G saw larger-scale construction of cell towers and
considerable buy-in from the public as phones and service plans
became more affordable.
Demand for better accessibility drove the creation of 3G in 2001. It
brought global interoperability. Now, users could access data
anywhere in the world via greater web connectivity. Its faster speed
added new communications options like video conferencing, streaming,
and voice over IP (VoIP). 3G standards were required to provide peak
data rates of at least 144 Kbps with a maximum of 14 Mbps.
Now that human-to-human communication was settled, it was time to
tackle the need to handle large quantities of data. Reduced latency,
the amount of time that information takes to travel from its source
to its destination, and then come back to its source, is a major
benefit of 4G.
4G offered faster web access and added cloud, gaming, High
Definition (HD) videos, and 3D TV to the growing list of amenities
devices that it could handle. 4G standards set minimum requirements
at 10 Mbps and peak speed at 100 Mbps. However, the quicker data
exchange and new features made it necessary to purchase 4G-enabled
devices.
Even 4G was not going to be fast enough to advance technology and
accommodate the potential of the Internet of Things (IoT) to control
thermostats, connected vehicles, smart cities, and more or enable
healthcare possibilities with wearables, telehealth, image transfer,
and more.
The 5G technology standard for broadband cellular networks to
provide connectivity for cellphones began deploying worldwide in
2019. 5G technology increased bandwidth, the capacity on the radio
spectrum, to connect more devices in an area and boasts eventual
download speeds of 10 Gbps. 5G can operate in 3 frequencies,
including low-band (600-900 MHz with download speeds of 30-250
Mbps), mid-band (1.7-4.7 GHz with download speeds of 100-900 Mbps),
or, the new addition, high-band millimeter wave (mmW) (24-47 GHz
with download speeds of Gbps).
5G vs. Wi-Fi: How are They Related?
Wi-Fi is a local area network (LAN) and cellular networks like 5G
are wide area networks (WAN). Wi-Fi was developed about 30 years
ago.
Wi-Fi is based on the IEEE 802.11 family of
standards where 802.11ac is for Wi-Fi 5 and 802.11ax is for Wi-Fi 6,
also referred to as High-Efficiency WLAN. These rely on an
unlicensed spectrum that is free to use but has a relatively weak
signal. An internet service provider (ISP) delivers Internet to our
house and the router fills our house with Wi-Fi. The two frequencies
that Wi-Fi uses are 2.4 GHz with lower top speed but longer range
and 5 GHz which can deliver faster speeds but doesn’t penetrate
walls easily.
Most of us rely on a Wi-Fi network at home, in the office, or in
coffee shops and cellular networks when we move out of range of a
router. 5G and Wi-Fi complement one another. Phones and
Internet-connected devices automatically switch between the two to
provide a good connection at all times.
Both cellular networks and Wi-Fi will see performance improvements
in the future. Development of Wi-Fi 7 is ongoing and IEEE
P802.11be can bring enhancements for Extremely High Throughput (EHT)
which will provide device manufacturers with design specifications
to govern interoperability and performance. For cellular networks,
research and development around 6G are on the rise.
What is 6G?
The 6G technology standard for cellular networks will still most
likely still be broadband – data transmission over a wide band of
frequencies. The service area will most likely remain divided into
cells. 6G will continue where 5G left off by improving download
speeds, eliminating latency, reducing congestion on mobile networks,
and supporting advancements in technology.
Frequencies from 100 GHz to 3 THz are promising bands for the next
generation of wireless communication systems because of the wide
swaths of unused and unexplored spectrum, according to a paper
published on IEEE.
These upgrades bring about new quests. Phones that can accommodate
6G will need to be developed. Connectivity needs to be delivered
more efficiently and effectively to more devices. Burgeoning
technologies like smart cities, interconnected cars, wearable
devices, and robots will need to share bandwidth. This could mean
building more cellular networks or finding new ways to deliver
millimeter waves.
We’ll begin to experience and envision the potential of 6G with
5G-Advanced in 2024, which will further increase data transfer
speeds. 5G-Advanced will enable immersive technologies like AR, VR,
and mixed reality (MR) will open new opportunities for how we
conduct business, run factories, and protect the environment.
When is 6G Coming?
6G holds the promise to transform how the human, physical, and
digital worlds interact. In development for 2030, 6G will likely
support virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), metaverse,
and artificial intelligence (AI).
How we experience everyday life and operate within it will
dramatically change based on the enhanced information that will be
able to be delivered to us in real-time from sensors, AI, machine
learning (ML), and digital twins.
How Will 6G Improve Communications?
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Because 6G will be able to provide even more data transfer from
IoT, we can be more productive at work and at home.
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Phones may be further developed into our keys and money.
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Typing may be replaced with voice or movement.
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Implanted sensors, telesurgery, and wearables could transform
healthcare.
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Holographic meetings might succeed online conference calls.
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Connected vehicles will have the ability to intercede a car
crash.
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Network signals can sense where we are, what is around us, and
when combined with AI, ML, and digital twinning, will be able to
provide radio frequency (RF) sensing.
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6G may finally deliver worldwide connectivity by reaching remote
locations currently with no Internet access via satellites that
may reduce the need to construct cell towers.
How Will 6G Boost Interoperability?
6G could go beyond our current network of cell towers to include new
connectivity methods. Backward compatible with current and earlier
“G”s and embracing these new ways to connect, 6G can optimize
connectivity thereby enabling greater data transfer. This faster
data exchange can open up many new possibilities for:
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Interoperability between humans, earth, space, and sea via
sensing.
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Human communication with robots, IoT devices, and wearables.
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Robots performing dangerous jobs in place of humans, for
example, in mines, and transmitting data easily.
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Education being further reaching and more immersive.
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Robots and drones to supplement the hospital and delivery
service industries.
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Radio frequency sensing of where devices are to offer new
cybersecurity options.
How Will 6G Affect the Environment and Sustainability?
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IoT will control appliances and reduce electricity usage
as well as contribute to optimization for automated
manufacturing, connected vehicles, drone agriculture, and more.
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6G would enable smart transportation where connected
electric vehicles, cameras, and roads communicate to optimize
traffic flow.
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Connected machines and robots will more efficiently
manage supply chains to reduce energy and water usage and carbon
emissions.
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Smart agriculture can use sensors to control water,
monitor livestock, and provide accurate pesticide use to reduce
carbon emissions.
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6G could assist with the move to renewable energy and
smart grids could optimize energy distribution.
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The 6G network will be more efficient than 5G and consume less
power. Through digitization, 6G can power future applications
and help to achieve energy efficiency.
Purva Rajkotia - IEEE Standards Association (IEEE SA
How 6G Can Transform The World and Technology - IEEE SA
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TACS is a leading top consultancy in the field of information, communication
and energy technologies (ICET).
The heart of our consulting spectrum comprises strategic,
organizational, and technology-intensive tasks that arise from the use of new
information, communication and energy technologies. The major emphasis in our work is found in innovative consulting and
implementation solutions which result from the use of modern information,
communication and energy technologies.
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