"Densely Covering 5G Networks from Old Downtown to Deep Mountains" SKT Introduces Wireless Print Hall Equipment

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Cho] SK Telecom is set to actively advance the enhancement of fronthaul, regarded as the "capillaries" of the 5G mobile communication network. The company aims to provide high-quality 5G even in areas where laying optical cables is difficult.

On the 15th, SK Telecom announced that it has introduced 5G wireless fronthaul equipment that can connect wirelessly without linking optical cables, enabling smooth 5G service. Earlier this month, the company installed this equipment for the first time in Korea on the commercial 5G network in Jinju, Gyeongnam, and is currently applying it in old urban areas where optical cable construction is challenging. Plans are in place to expand this to island regions and inland mountainous areas in the future.

“Fronthaul” refers to the wired section based on optical cables that transmit data signals collected from base station antennas to distributed units. However, in old urban areas or island and mountainous regions, laying optical cables underground is difficult, limiting equipment deployment.

Through the newly introduced 5G wireless fronthaul equipment, SK Telecom expects to build a more detailed 5G network even in areas where optical cable installation is challenging, such as old urban areas tangled with complex networks of water and gas pipes, islands without roads connecting to the mainland, and deep mountainous regions.

The 5G wireless fronthaul equipment can connect base stations located several kilometers apart wirelessly instead of via wired networks when installed on both the antenna device of the base station and the distributed unit managing the base station's data capacity, enabling 5G communication. Additionally, its lightweight and compact size allow for easy and rapid installation.

SK Telecom has precisely analyzed the installation height and angle of the 5G wireless fronthaul equipment based on 3D maps to ensure accurate signal transmission. Furthermore, by adopting automatic wireless communication modulation technology, the equipment minimizes the impact of adverse weather conditions such as snow or rain, providing stable quality.

The equipment adopts the 5G fronthaul interface standard eCPRI (Ethernet-based Common Public Radio Interface), which can increase traffic capacity by more than four times compared to existing systems, thereby maximizing network operation efficiency, the company added.

Heo Geun-man, head of SK Telecom Infra Eng. Group, stated, “We will continuously strive to provide SKT’s uniquely differentiated, top-level mobile communication quality through ongoing 5G network enhancement.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.