Driving the 5G Revolution
UK Aims for Nationwide 5G Coverage by 2030
The University of Surrey's Centre for Communication Systems Research (CCSR) has received a £35 million funding boost to build an Innovation Centre focused on 5G networking. The funding, which comes from the UK government and corporate sponsors including Huawei, Samsung, and Telefonica, will be used to construct a purpose-built research centre and purchase research equipment for experimental simulative research and mathematical analysis.
The CCSR, the largest academic research centre for mobile communications in the UK, is home to 130 researchers and around 90 PhD students. With the new funding, the research centre will focus on 5G networking, aiming to contribute to the development of the next generation mobile network.
The demand for 5G is expected to become apparent in around three years due to potential congestion and lack of capacity in mobile networks. Mobile data traffic is expected to double every year, and it is anticipated that around 20 times more capacity per meter squared will be needed compared to current levels. To meet this demand, the research centre will explore the use of milimetric bands of 60GHz all the way through to 90GHz, due to the large amount of bandwidth available in that frequency band.
The UK government aims for full national 5G coverage by 2030, including rural areas, as part of its manifesto commitments. The rollout is tied to broader digital infrastructure goals, including upgrading 4G rural masts and expanding gigabit-capable broadband, which supports 5G networks. Key objectives and timeline include hitting a target of 95% 4G coverage from at least one operator by 2024, the continued rollout of 5G radio access networks (RAN) and 5G core network infrastructure investment from 2025-2027, and achieving full gigabit and 5G national coverage across the UK by 2030.
In addition to the £35 million funding, the UK government has allocated £184 million to upgrade Extended Area Service masts, enhancing mobile network coverage from all operators, currently only covered by EE, to improve ubiquity.
The research centre will accommodate the university's own researchers as well as businesses that want to collaborate on 5G research. The CCSR has contributed to the 2G, 3G, and 4G standards and is now leading research on the next generation mobile network, 5G. Work on Release 12 of the 3GPP standard, the first iteration of the mobile networking standard since 4G, has already started.
The main objective in developing 5G is to increase network capacity due to the expected rapid growth of mobile data traffic. Research is being conducted on the characteristics of propagation in these frequencies to determine their suitability for a mobile radio. A test bed on campus will be deployed, covering an area of four kilometers squared, consisting of a number of base stations and mobile terminals for demonstrations and proofs-of-concept.
The spectrum being considered for 5G includes all of the spectrum below 5 GHz, including 4G, 3G, and 2G spectrum, as well as some of the broadcasting spectrum which is 700MHz. The commercial availability of 5G in the UK began several years ago and is progressing toward nationwide coverage with a government commitment to full 5G availability by 2030, supported by complementary broadband initiatives to ensure reliable, fast digital connectivity for all regions, including rural.
In summary, the UK’s 5G commercial availability began several years ago and is progressing toward nationwide coverage with a government commitment to full 5G availability by 2030, supported by complementary broadband initiatives to ensure reliable, fast digital connectivity for all regions, including rural. The CCSR at the University of Surrey is leading the research on this next generation mobile network, aiming to improve energy efficiency of networks to reduce the cost of energy and environmental implications as mobile data traffic increases.
Technology and data-and-cloud-computing will play significant roles in the UK's goal of achieving nationwide 5G coverage by 2030, as the University of Surrey's Centre for Communication Systems Research (CCSR) will use the £35 million funding to focus on researching the next generation mobile network, 5G. This research will involve exploring the use of high-frequency bands for increased network capacity, promoting energy efficiency to reduce cost and environmental impact, and developing proof-of-concept test beds for demonstrations and collaborative projects with businesses.
