Three sites in the UK will be linked up via 5G test beds for the first time thanks to £16m investment from the Government. The funding, announced by Minister for Digital Matt Hancock today, will bring three leading universities together for the development of the world's first trials of end-to-end 5G system.

Three sites in the UK will be linked up via 5G test beds for the first time thanks to £16m investment from the Government.

The funding, announced by Minister for Digital Matt Hancock today, will bring three leading universities together for the development of the world’s first trials of end-to-end 5G system.

The investment will fund leading edge technological developments at each of the three universities, linking all three sites through cutting edge design and research, and will see all three work in partnership to keep the UK at the forefront of 5G technology development.

Bristol University will deploy 5G capability in the extensive Smart City and Smart Campus test beds in the city, targeting full 5G and fibre infrastructure convergence. Bristol will also contribute to the key Software Defined Network technologies for end-to-end 5G service delivery. Public demonstrators will be the focus of delivery, targeting media, gaming and transport applications.

King’s College London is driving the vision for ultra-low latency 5G tactile internet developments with Internet of Skills applications. Through the King’s College London 5G Tactile Internet Lab, the university is also pioneering several important 5G co-design approaches with various industries, including smart cities, smart transport, performing arts and health.

The University of Surrey’s 5G Innovation Centre (5GIC) will lead the project and develop 5G radio technologies and a fully virtualised mobile core network at 3.5GHz and 700 MHz frequency bands for enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) and Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communications (URLLC).

Minister for Digital Matt Hancock said:

“We want to be at the head of the field in 5G. This funding will support the pioneering research needed to ensure we can harness the potential of this technology to spark innovation, create new jobs and boost the economy.

“We know 5G has the potential to bring more reliable, ultrafast mobile connectivity, with quicker reaction times and larger data capabilities, and I’m thrilled to announce King’s College London and the universities of Surrey and Bristol have agreed to collaborate on this project.”

The 5G Hub will be integrated at the system level and connected across the three university sites. It will build sufficient capability and capacity for further nationwide test and trials of 5G technologies and advanced applications.

The initial end-to-end testing will be carried out early next year across the three Universities’ sites. It will be ready for connection of external test beds and applications across the UK. An important aspect of the 5G Hub will be the test bed, which will develop innovative solutions for the operation and management of 5G networks with new levels of efficiency and resilience.

Professor Dimitra Simeonidou, Director of the Smart Internet Lab at the University of Bristol and Chief Scientific Officer for Bristol Is Open, said: “University of Bristol has an international reputation for research on telecommunications and has recently demonstrated pioneering research on 5G technologies and networks. This exciting new partnership and investment will leverage the University’s plans for investment in Smart City infrastructure and the Temple Quarter Enterprise Campus, which aims to create more opportunities for the region’s businesses and citizens.”

Professor Mischa Dohler, Head of the Centre for Telecommunications Research at King’s, said: “King’s is a university within an international community that serves the world and through this alliance we will continue to research to inform and innovate as we carry out world-leading and outward-looking research focused on meeting societal need.

“We’re delighted to be part of this unique partnership, which allows us to make substantial contributions to the UK and global 5G innovation ecosystem which otherwise would not have been possible. This activity is part of a major expansion of our engineering and business activities on our Strand Campus, enabled by the acquisition of Bush House, the former headquarters of the BBC World Service.”

Professor Rahim Tafazolli, Director of the 5GIC at the University of Surrey, said: “As the Hub leader from 5GIC at the University of Surrey, it is really exciting to be collaborating with our colleagues to develop this national asset that can mobilise intense testing and trials for mobile broadband as well as other applications such as connected and autonomous cars, new games, connected health and many more applications. We already have a proven track record of developing, trialling and testing 5G technology here at the 5GIC, and this will see us grow that across the country to further develop and realise the end-to-end 5G.

“The test bed will benefit the UK’s 5G ecosystem by enabling trials of secure, interoperable technology and services, hardened against cyber-attack.”

The 5G Hub will be the foundation to create and support projects in multiple areas, such as connected cars and autonomous driving, Industry 4.0, Health and many others, addressing major socio-economic and productivity challenges.

The 5G Hub will use collaborative partnership of working between the three Universities to develop the described 5G capabilities, but ready for expansion to include other organisations from next year onwards.