Background
A large automated factory is committed to enhancing production efficiency and achieving a smart manufacturing transformation. Numerous devices within the factory require real-time data transmission and coordinated control, including industrial robots, sensors, AGVs (Automated Guided Vehicles), and surveillance systems. However, traditional wired networks and Wi-Fi solutions have limitations in flexibility, stability, and bandwidth, failing to meet the factory’s demands for low latency, high uplink bandwidth, and high reliability.
Requirement Analysis
- Low-latency Data Transmission: Industrial robots and AGVs need real-time control command transmissions with latency controlled within milliseconds to ensure precision and safety in production processes.
- High Uplink Bandwidth: A vast number of sensors and cameras need to upload HD videos and data simultaneously, demanding extremely high uplink bandwidth.
- High Reliability: The network must be highly stable to prevent production accidents or efficiency losses caused by network interruptions.
- Flexible Deployment: Given the complex environment and frequent equipment movement in the factory, the network needs to support flexible deployment and dynamic adjustment.
Solution
Our company deployed a 5G private network solution for this factory, which includes:
- 5G Core Network (vk5GC): Adopting a lightweight, low-latency 5G core network architecture supporting Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) ensures data processing near end devices, further reducing latency.
- 5G Base Stations: Deploying multiple micro 5G base stations within the factory to achieve full coverage and high-density connections, ensuring signal stability.
- Uplink Bandwidth Optimization: Utilizing 5G network uplink enhancement technologies (such as SUL and Carrier Aggregation) to meet the demands of simultaneous data uploads from numerous devices.
- Network Slicing Technology: Allocating dedicated network slices for different services to ensure priority and resource guarantees for critical operations like robot control.
- Disaster Recovery Backup: Implementing redundant network equipment and links to ensure high network availability and avoid single points of failure.
Implementation Results
- Low Latency: End-to-end network latency was reduced to less than 10 milliseconds, meeting the real-time control requirements of industrial robots and AGVs, significantly improving production efficiency and safety.
- High Uplink Bandwidth: Uplink bandwidth increased to Gbps levels, supporting hundreds of devices and sensors uploading data simultaneously, ensuring real-time data collection and monitoring.
- High Reliability: Network stability reached 99.99%, with no production interruptions due to network issues, making factory operations smoother.
- Flexible Deployment: The 5G private network supports flexible device access and mobility, adapting to the factory’s complex environment and dynamic needs.
Future Collaboration
The factory expressed high satisfaction with the 5G private network solution and plans to expand network coverage and introduce more intelligent applications such as AI quality inspection, digital twins, and predictive maintenance. Additionally, the factory intends to collaborate further with our company to optimize network performance and explore more innovative 5G applications in industrial scenarios.
Conclusion
The application of a 5G private network in an automated factory not only addresses core needs such as low latency, high uplink bandwidth, and high reliability but also provides a solid technological foundation for the factory’s digital transformation and intelligent upgrade. This case study vividly demonstrates the enormous potential and value of 5G private networks in the industrial sector.