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*This article is from the 14th issue of Banyuetan in 2024

Friends who are in the world's largest 5G network, have you noticed the recent news? Yes, it is "my country has successfully built the world's first 6G field test network integrating intelligence and communications."

5G is being used very happily, so is 6G about to be planned?

Well, in fact, the global competition for 6G technology has been in full swing for some time. As you can see above, the performance of China's communications industry is still very impressive! Next, let's talk about what is so wonderful about 6G, and why it is more than 5G "+1"?

More than just “fast”

From 1G to 5G, and then to the emerging 6G, each iteration is more than just a digital “+1”, but an all-round transformation from technology to application.

The most obvious upgrade of 6G is probably the qualitative leap in data transmission rate. "In theory, 6G can increase the data transmission rate to more than 100 times that of 5G, reaching tens of GB or even TB per second." Liu Guangyi, chief expert of China Mobile Research Institute, said that it takes at least 3 seconds to download a 1GB movie in a 5G network environment. In the 6G era, this time will be compressed to less than 1 second, or even 0.03 seconds.

Lower network latency is also one of the key advances of 6G. "The standard latency of 5G is in the millisecond level, while the transmission latency of 6G network is expected to reach the microsecond level, which is one thousandth of the time it takes to blink your eyes." Liu Guangyi said that the leapfrog improvement in latency will greatly improve the performance of many real-time applications.

What is even more exciting is probably the incredible power of 6G's integration - 6G will provide three types of integration, the integration of communication and perception, the integration of communication and artificial intelligence, and the integration of heaven and earth.

Compared with 5G, the number of connected nodes in 6G networks has greatly expanded, and the number of connected terminal devices will also increase exponentially. "In the future, 6G will connect not only people, but also ubiquitous intelligent entities, robots, etc." Liu Guangyi further explained that with its ultra-high connection density, 6G networks can connect hundreds of devices per square meter, thus achieving deep interaction between the physical world and the virtual world.

Semantic Unmanned Vehicle Communication Platform

6G, where is the “6”

Do you remember that when 4G came on the scene, the rapid popularization of mobile communications and smartphones brought about countless mobile applications such as mobile navigation, mobile games, mobile shopping, and mobile payments, which changed the way we connect with the world in many dimensions?

All is past! The first generation of mobile communications was shaped by bulky "big brothers" that were expensive and of poor quality. The second generation of mobile communications solved the problem of voice calls. The introduction of SIM cards made mobile phones smaller and cheaper, and text messages also appeared at this time. The 3G era embraced the Internet, and mobile phones could transmit images and audio. With the advent of 4G, people used smartphones to open the door to the mobile Internet world.

5G, which is faster than 4G, has changed not only the consumer Internet, but also the industrial Internet. It has cultivated a new industrial ecology and business model, and accelerated the digital transformation of society. As of the first half of this year, 5G has covered 74 of the 97 major categories of the national economy, with an industry penetration rate of over 76%. In the five years since the commercial use of 5G, the total economic output has directly driven about 5.6 trillion yuan, and the total output has indirectly driven about 14 trillion yuan.

If 4G changes life and 5G changes industry, what will 6G change?

"In the 6G era, we will witness an unprecedented, anytime, anywhere connection reshaping our world, which we call 'Intelligent Connection of All Things'. With the help of this kind of connection, human society is expected to move towards 'digital twins' and 'ubiquitous intelligence', and usher in the interactive integration of the physical and virtual worlds," said Liu Guangyi.

It can also be said that the first Internet wave connected computers, the second Internet wave connected people, and the new generation of Internet wave will connect everything more intelligently.

The premise of the intelligent connection of all things is ubiquitous connectivity. "Ubiquitous connectivity has always been the core direction of the evolution of information and communication networks. We look forward to making communication networks accessible to everyone in the 6G era, making it a core social infrastructure comparable to hydropower," said Liu Guangyi.

How to become the "water" and "electricity" of the future society? Liu Guangyi further explained that 6G will integrate ground communication networks, satellite communication networks, and deep-sea and ocean networks to build a full-space three-dimensional communication network covering land-based, air-based, space-based, and sea-based networks.

The intelligent connection of all things brought about by ubiquitous connectivity will realize holographic interaction, synesthesia, and intelligent interaction, and shape the intelligence of production, the universalization of public services, and the refinement of social governance.

To put it more intuitively, the interaction mode between people and external objects and even the environment will be greatly improved. "Now, we can wake up the smart assistant in electronic devices through voice interaction. In the future, we will not only have visual interaction such as air gesture interaction, but also physical interaction such as eye movement, and even emotional interaction, brain-computer interaction... 6G technology can make all our five senses the starting point of interaction." Liu Guangyi said.

Such a magical "synaesthesia Internet" will not only make the immersive experience as natural as breathing, but will also change our daily lives, from small to big: sitting at home, you can also feel the sea breeze of the Maldives and touch the sand on the beach; doctors in Beijing can perform surgery on patients in Africa...

Speed ​​up the refresh of the "progress bar"

Since 6G is so "amazing", when will it be integrated into our lives?

"Use one generation, build one generation, and research and develop one generation" is the consensus of the communications industry. When 5G is put into large-scale commercial use, it is also the time for countries to plan 6G research and development.

As Liu Guangyi said, the key technologies of 6G mainly include network architecture, wireless communication, and wireless networking: "In terms of architecture, there must be not only a new network architecture that can realize endogenous intelligence and computing power, but also a digital twin network that can meet low-cost trial and error, intelligent decision-making, and high-efficiency innovation; in terms of communication, breakthroughs are needed in many aspects such as ultra-large-scale antenna technology and new wireless transmission technology; in terms of networking, multi-band fusion networking, heterogeneous fusion networking, new passive Internet of Things, and networked interawareness technology must all be realized."

To achieve ubiquitous connectivity covering all land, sea and air, the construction and deployment of satellite-to-ground networks is particularly important for 6G. "First, satellites and ground stations must be able to achieve stable and efficient transmission; second, optimize signal reception and processing capabilities, and strengthen ground segment reception technology to meet the challenges of high-frequency band communications; third, develop advanced satellite computing technology and enhance intersatellite link technology to make efficient data transmission and collaboration between satellites possible; third, use artificial intelligence technology to empower network self-organization and ensure the intelligence of satellite-to-ground networks." Zhou Xin, deputy general manager of satellite manufacturing company Micro-Nano Star, summarized it this way.

To build such an integrated network of space, air and land, security must be the primary concern. "Satellite Internet has been applied to a variety of scenarios such as intelligent driving, space-ground measurement and control, and the Internet of Things, which brings with it a variety of potential threats including signal interference and blocking, supply chain attacks, and cryptographic security attacks." Quan Xiaowen, chairman of Shengbang Security, said frankly that only in this way can the core encryption technology be conquered, which is the top priority for 6G networking. Only by building a strong security breakwater can 6G lead us to a new intelligent blue ocean full of futuristic sense.

Original title: Is 6G just 5G “+1”?

Banyuetan reporter: Zhang Manzi/participating writer: Cui Enhui

Editor: Fan Zhongxiu

Editor: Zhang Ziqing / Proofreader: Qin Daixin