Cisco and Samsung have completed the first successful 5G fixed-wireless tests on Orange's live network in Romania. The fixed-wireless access (FWA) tests, in the 26 GHz band, have verified a number of smart city use cases,
The 5G FWA set-up in Romania has made use of Samsung's virtualised 5G radio access network, comprising a diminutive 5G access unit and multiple indoor and outdoor 5G routers. It has also used Cisco's Meraki Z3 Wi-Fi router and 'ultra gateway platform'.
By leveraging the wide bandwidth available at 26 GHz and antenna technologies like massive MIMO and beamforming, the companies were able to achieve speeds of 1Gbps in live conditions at distances of more than one kilometre from the base station, and aggregated cell downlink throughputs of 3Gbps with few users.
Samsung nodes have been installed on a streetlamp to provide wireless connectivity for temperature and humidity sensors and security cameras; sensors and cameras are connected wirelessly to the node, which is then connected to the core network via 5G. The nodes are described as "compact, high-capacity, easy-to-install and economical alternatives for places where wireline deployment is unfeasible or costly."
In another set-up, Cisco cameras have been deployed to provide video coverage and video-based analytics for various smart-city and retail scenarios, including for counting people in the camera field. Samsung said the arrangement delivered "precious information to improve disposal of products in retail environment", and to better organise spaces.
The 5G FWA trials have also demonstrated capacity to stream several ultra high-definition (UHD) videos and virtual reality (VR) sessions in parallel over the same 5G connection. All of the content is transmitted via the 5G core and 5G radio link.