It’s no secret that 5G is going to make augmented reality (AR) work better, but Ericsson, Telia and Intel set out to demonstrate just how great AR can work when using a 5G connection.
The trial took place at a large Telia customer event in Stockholm, Sweden, where they hooked up the AR headsets with the Intel mobile 5G trial platform, Ericsson and Telia. The demo actually superimposed images, letting users “see” what’s inside a wall, showing that 5G-enabled AR can deliver new views for workers who might need more information, like knowing what’s behind a wall.
The low latency of 5G is really what makes AR so suitable. If the latency is not low enough, people end up getting nauseated when trying to do AR.
“5G use cases are moving from the realms of the imagination to the realms of reality. Service providers, enterprises, and society all stand to gain from 5G use cases, and we are seeing a lot of engagement on this,” said Per Narvinger, head of Ericsson Northern and Central Europe. “This is another important step in our continued 5G collaboration with Telia.”
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These same companies were involved in a live 5G network in Estonia last year where demonstrations marked an important milestone for Telia, moving its customers closer to the goal of having 5G live in both Tallinn and Stockholm in 2018, said to be two of the most digitalized cities in the world.
Specifically, they showcased a high-speed 5G connection to a commercial passenger cruise ship delivering internet connectivity to the ship and its passengers while in port. Separately, they highlighted an industrial business case featuring a construction excavator remotely controlled via a live 5G network.
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Ericsson noted in a recent report that trials of 5G use cases will start this year, after which activities will ramp up quickly, with more than 70% of companies aiming to have use cases in production by 2021. Manufacturing, energy/utilities and public transport are among the industries most likely to have 5G use cases in production by 2020.
RELATED: Nokia, Ericsson, Huawei score 5G wins, but too early to call winners: analysts
While analysts at Raymond James have said it’s too early to call winners, Ericsson, Huawei and Nokia clearly dominate the wireless infrastructure market and are sure to benefit in 5G. It’s just not clear how many deals they’re each going to clinch or how big they'll be. Nokia has announced 50 5G trials, and Ericsson had signed 39 operator agreements at last count.
Huawei has announced 13 operator engagements (two in Canada, three in Japan/Korea, three in China and five in Europe), but it's pretty much shut out of the U.S., where Samsung is starting to gain steam in the infrastructure department.