5G Will be Transformative for Unmanned Vehicle Systems

- Financialnewsmedia.com News Commentary

PALM BEACH, Florida, June 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), the world's largest nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of unmanned systems and robotics, has compiled a list of "wow-worthy" examples of the vision that the fifth generation of wireless technology (5G) is inspiring for the use of connected drones. It says that 5G can: bring data-throughput speeds of up to 10 gigabytes per second, enabling real-time sharing of aerial video and other sensor data; enable devices to stay connected while traveling hundreds of miles per hour, allowing for remote deployment of AI-enabled, ultra-responsive autonomous fleets; and it could support up to a million connected devices per square kilometer — enough capacity to absorb an explosion in the Internet of Things alongside increasingly sophisticated mobile applications, on the ground and aloft.  "5G is going to be transformative," says Tom Sawanobori, chief technology officer for CTIA (Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association). He cited a 2017 study by Accenture which estimated 5G would bring 3 million new jobs, $275 billion in new investment and a $500 billion boost to the U.S. gross domestic product.  Active tech companies in the markets this week include FLIR Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: FLIR), Plymouth Rock Technologies Inc. (CSE: PRT) (OTCQB: PLRTF), Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ), Raytheon Technologies Corporation (NYSE: RTX), QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM).

The article  added: "But even though telecom providers are steadily building out 5G networks, challenges with spectrum availability in the United States and ongoing regulatory reluctance to allow more unmanned flight outside the line of sight remind us that the future is not here yet. And as we chase it, there are pitfalls to avoid. The CTIA's Sawanobori shares his industry colleagues' enthusiasm for 5G. But like many, he notes the United States is behind other countries in accessing the "sweet spot" of the spectrum for speed, capacity and propagation — mid-band wavelengths — to unleash the full potential of 5G. He also notes that 5G deployments are well under way in the U.S. AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile,U.S. Cellular and Verizon have live 5G networks in a total of more than 250 cities and towns to date. So far, however, U.S. networks rely primarily on low-band and high-band radio waves, Sawanobori says. The industry is struggling to catch up with other nations that are making more use of mid-band frequencies. In the U.S., much of that portion of the spectrum is currently unavailable for 5G because it is already occupied by commercial satellite and content providers, such as television networks, and by federal defense agencies."