In the three years since 5G was commercialized, my country has built the world's largest 5G network. 5G is playing an enabling effect in many fields such as industry, medical care, education, and transportation. Especially in the industrial field, 5G applications have achieved initial results, helping enterprises to achieve Flexible production, improve circulation efficiency in production areas, improve product quality of enterprises, and help enterprises reduce costs and increase efficiency. However, it should also be noted that industrial enterprises face obstacles such as large investment, few references, and many hidden worries when promoting 5G applications. In this regard, the next step is to promote the in-depth integration of industrial 5G applications from four aspects: improving the supply capacity of 5G networks in the industrial field, actively establishing industry application benchmarks, promoting 5G equipment to reduce costs and improve quality, and improve the level of 5G security applications, thereby accelerating industrial information. transformation and upgrading process.

5G-enabled industry sees initial results

With the continuous acceleration of 5G construction, my country has more than 20,000 5G application projects, covering more than 20 major industries such as industry, energy, medical care, cultural tourism, etc., covering 31 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in China Wait.

In the manufacturing process, it helps enterprises to achieve production flexibility. Enterprises connect various production equipment to the 5G network to realize wireless connection of equipment, which can not only reduce the cost of cables between machines, but also support enterprises to adjust and layout the production line in real time according to the actual order production needs, greatly reducing the re-layout time of the production line. At the same time, using enterprise resource planning (ERP), manufacturing execution system (MES) and other software to combine production line equipment information, real-time production information and other data with order information, it can meet the flexible production needs of small batches and multiple varieties. For example, the Haier washing machine interconnected factory has accelerated the transformation and upgrading of informatization and digitalization, actively explored the application of 5G industry, and adopted 5G and other related technical means to keep the process consistent. Wheel, drum washing machine.

In the logistics link, improve the circulation efficiency of the production area. By connecting the automation equipment in the factory area, mining area, storage center, production center and other areas to the 5G network, using the intelligent logistics scheduling system, combined with edge computing and high-precision positioning technology, the logistics terminals in the area are dispatched and managed to realize transportation, distribution and management. The automation and intelligence of picking, distribution and other operations. At the same time, it is combined with the order demand and production link data, integrated into the process and process, to ensure the production rhythm and improve the logistics and production efficiency of the enterprise. For example, ZTE has cooperated with China Telecom Chengdu Logistics Center to apply its own experience in 5G research to logistics. Taking advantage of the wide range of 5G network connections and the large number of connections, ZTE has integrated the complicated logistics business, making the entire warehousing and distribution more efficient. increased by 50%.

In the quality inspection link, improve the quality of enterprise products. Industrial product quality inspection is currently one of the most widely used 5G application scenarios in factories. "5G + machine vision" replaces labor with machines and is engaged in operations such as product defect inspection, size inspection, and disorderly grasping by robots, turning sampling inspection into full-scale inspection. Detection has the advantages of "more accurate, faster and easier"; and based on deep learning technology, it continuously improves the accuracy and efficiency of detection, thereby improving product quality and yield. "5G + machine vision" not only solves the problems of low accuracy, low accuracy, and low efficiency of manual detection, but also indirectly relieves the realistic pressure of "difficulty in recruiting workers" by liberating the labor force and reduces the labor cost of enterprises. At present, the steel industry uses the "5G+8K surface inspection system" to improve the detection rate of steel defects by more than 90% and the defect recognition rate to more than 85% through full product inspection.

In the management link, it helps enterprises to reduce costs and increase efficiency. 5G can provide network support for various types of monitoring equipment, and combine other technologies to provide early warning and processing of abnormal behaviors in energy management and equipment operation and maintenance. For example, "5G + energy monitoring" is to use 5G network to connect various sensors in production equipment, and combine edge computing, cloud platform and other technologies to monitor in real time the operating parameters of production, energy media, and key energy-consuming equipment, and find problems in time. Optimize and improve. At the same time, 5G combines artificial intelligence technologies such as fault prediction mechanism modeling to monitor the health parameters of production equipment in real time, analyze equipment operation trends, formulate equipment operation and maintenance plans in a timely manner, realize equipment safety prediction and production auxiliary decision-making, reduce equipment operation and maintenance costs, and prolong the operation and maintenance of equipment. Service life, to ensure continuous, safe and efficient production process.

Three pain points restrict industrial transformation and upgrading

However, the application and development of 5G in the industrial field still face various difficulties and obstacles, mainly in the following three aspects.

Business investment is high. High equipment renovation, application development and operating costs are the "stumbling blocks" faced by enterprises in promoting 5G applications. The design of 5G terminal chips and modules is extremely complex, the R&D threshold is extremely high, and the investment is huge. The price of mass-produced 5G terminals in the early stage of industrial development is naturally high. At present, the price of a 5G module is hundreds or even thousands of yuan. Compared with the tens of yuan of existing 4G modules, the cost gap is huge. At the same time, the number of modules required by industrial enterprises to carry out 5G applications is hundreds to thousands, which means that industrial enterprises face higher equipment renovation costs in the process of transformation and upgrading. At the same time, since the 5G industry application is still in the early stage of development, the platform needs to be re-developed for different scenarios in various industries, and the application research and development costs are high. In addition, long-term operating costs are also a problem faced by industrial enterprises. Not only is the cost of customizing the industry private network high, but also the cost of 5G energy consumption and traffic.

Enterprise applications have few references. my country is a country with all 41 major industrial categories, 207 medium industrial categories, and 666 small industrial categories in the United Nations Industrial Classification. The attributes and characteristics of different industries and enterprises are different, and the application scenarios are also very different. For example, industrial automation requires low network latency, but low transmission bandwidth; video monitoring and detection applications require high bandwidth, but low network latency. At present, the application of 5G industry is still in the early stage of development. There are not many "model rooms" that can show application effects to enterprises in various industries, and there is a lack of "universal templates" that can be used immediately. Therefore, it is difficult to achieve large-scale applications in the industry in the short term.

Enterprise upgrading has many worries. At this stage, industrial enterprises attach great importance to the transformation and upgrading of informatization, and have accelerated Internet access and cloud access. However, the demand for high-quality wireless communication such as high speed and low latency is still limited, and the high investment and the uncertainty of the benefits after 5G application , which will affect the demand of enterprises for "5G + Industrial Internet". At the same time, the industrial manufacturing field has higher security requirements for 5G network construction and management, especially in data collection, video surveillance, production scheduling and other links. Industrial enterprises are more worried about network equipment system security and terminal security. As more and more 5G devices are connected to the industrial Internet, a large number of intelligent terminals and the heterogeneity of technical architecture will lead to increasing difficulty and complexity of network security management. In addition, the application of new technologies such as software-defined networking (SDN), network function virtualization, edge computing, and cloud computing will also lead to an increase in the cyber attack surface, and the widespread use of open source code will further exacerbate cyber security risks.

Four suggestions to promote the transformation and upgrading of industrial informatization

In view of the problems and obstacles faced by industrial enterprises in the upgrade of 5G applications, it is suggested that the next step will be to promote the application of 5G in the industrial field and promote the informatization of industrial enterprises from four aspects: network supply, establishment of industry benchmarks, equipment cost reduction and quality improvement, and network security. Upgrade.

The first is to adhere to a moderate advance and continue to improve the 5G network supply capacity in the industrial field. Further improve the 5G network coverage and coverage in key areas such as industrial parks, enterprise plants, ports, and mines, and build a 5G network with wide coverage, high quality and strong technology as soon as possible; on this basis, continuously optimize and upgrade the end-to-end network Key technologies such as slicing, 5G industry virtual private network, and high-precision indoor positioning. Strengthen the guarantee capability of 5G frequency resources, speed up the migration process of 700MHz, promote the deployment of 5G networks in this frequency band, and play the role of high-quality frequency bands as soon as possible. Strengthen research on the application of 5G millimeter-wave frequency bands, explore the use of market-based means such as auctions and tenders to allocate millimeter-wave frequency use rights, accelerate research on 5G industry-specific frequency use licensing models and management rules, and issue relevant regulations in a timely manner to regulate frequency use .

The second is to establish industry benchmarks and promote industrial enterprises to speed up informatization and digital transformation and upgrading. Encourage network operators such as China Mobile, China Unicom, China Telecom, and industrial Internet platform operators to focus on the rigid needs and pain points of industrial enterprises, and establish 5G application benchmarks in industries such as steel, coal mining, automobile manufacturing, home appliance manufacturing, and electronics manufacturing, and give full play to The leading role of leading enterprises; at the same time, the government will take the lead and jointly build an "industry-university-research" integrated platform with leading enterprises in various industries, universities, scientific research institutions, communication operators, and financial institutions, and carry out 5G application solution research and development and integration services for small and medium-sized enterprises . On this basis, leading enterprises and operators actively drive the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain to deeply explore industry needs and application scenarios, and create characteristic application scenarios and high-level demonstration projects in the industry; Promote the deepened application of 5G in quality inspection, operation and maintenance and other fields, actively build benchmarking enterprises and projects, strengthen the role of demonstration and leadership, form a mature model and actively replicate and promote it in the upstream and downstream of the industry and industrial chain.

The third is to promote the cost reduction and quality improvement of 5G equipment, and to accelerate the realization of the Internet of Everything in the industrial field. The industrial production environment is relatively harsh, and there are many and complex special application scenarios such as high temperature, high humidity, and high pressure. Therefore, it is necessary to further guide equipment manufacturers to develop dedicated network base stations and terminal equipment for industry needs. Vigorously promote the large-scale commercial use of 5G modules, encourage terminal enterprises to speed up the lightweight upgrade of products, realize the customizable production of equipment, build a module classification and classification industrialization system, guide manufacturers to carry out precise product development according to the needs of different scenarios, and continuously improve the 5G model It can improve the environmental adaptability of the group, and promote large-scale applications, thereby reducing the research and development and production costs of equipment such as base stations. Guide equipment manufacturers to continuously enrich the form of terminal products based on the actual needs of enterprises, so as to facilitate the sinking of 5G terminals to production lines, enterprise workshops, industrial parks, logistics parks, etc. Encourage terminal equipment enterprises and high-end equipment manufacturing enterprises to strengthen cooperation in research and development, and preset 5G capabilities and open interfaces in high-end equipment.

The fourth is to ensure network security and reduce the worries of industrial transformation and upgrading. Accelerate the establishment of a full-process and full-cycle security management mechanism for 5G applications, and guide operators, small and medium-sized enterprises, and platform enterprises to establish a 5G application risk assessment mechanism and apply it in the process of R&D and promotion. Increase the supervision and inspection of 5G applications and related infrastructure, and continue to improve the security level of the 5G application ecosystem; promote the use of commercial passwords in 5G applications, and do a good job in password application security assessments; strengthen 5G network security threat information discovery, sharing and sharing. Collaborative disposal; encourage local governments, related enterprises, scientific research institutions, and universities to jointly build a 5G application security innovation research center, and form a package of 5G application security solutions with a high degree of standardization, strong duplication, and easy promotion as soon as possible; Actively carry out pilot demonstrations of security technology applications Promote and promote best practices in leading enterprises in key industries such as mining and steel.