LG U+ announced that it has signed a business agreement with Nokia to strengthen their R&D cooperation in 5G Advanced and 6G research.
Through this agreement, the two companies will cooperate closely to develop 5G Advanced, the evolutionary stage of 5G, and 'network structure extension/frequency extension/service space extension technology', which will be fully employed in 6G.
In 6G networks, new technologies are required to implement interworking between equipments of different manufacturers and to separate the hardware and software of wireless communication equipment such as the base station, constituting the mobile communication radio access network (RAN).
To this end, the two companies plan to conduct joint research on key technologies related to open LAN, such as open fronthaul, cloud RAN, and wireless access network intelligent controller (RIC). If such open LAN technology can be commercialized in the future, telecommunication companies can attain flexibility in network construction and create opportunities for technological innovation.
As part of the research into 6G technologies, the 'Energy Harvesting' technology is one that reuses wasted energy and is being jointly studied by the two companies in order to gauge its technical effectiveness and its utilization of a 'liquid cooling base station'.
In order to secure 6G frequency extension technology, joint research on 'Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface (RIS)', a next-generation antenna technology, is also planned. The two companies have conducted field tests and are planning to jointly study the terahertz wave RIS technology that is emerging as a 6G frequency.
In addition to this, the two companies plan to jointly conduct research on 'Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN)' in order to secure 6G service space expansion technology. The non-terrestrial network is a technology that provides a network with a quality similar to that of a general cellular network even in the sea, remote islands, or airspace. LG Uplus and the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) have conducted a network optimization study for low-orbit satellites through quantum computer D-wave.
Junhyeok Kwon (Executive Vice President) of LG U+ Network Division
With the advancement of the 5G network, thorough preparation for the 6G network is necessary to secure a quality level that satisfies customers. Through this agreement with Nokia, LTE We have been able to further solidify our partnership with Nokia, which we have been working closely with in the 5G network, etc.
Ahn Tae-ho, CEO of Nokia Korea
The technological cooperation that the two companies have shown in 4G and 5G over the past decade is expected to further solidify in 5G Advanced and 6G. In the future, cooperation between the two companies in Open LAN and Cloud RAN, the core technologies of 6G, will help verify the structure of future wireless technology and further contribute to technology development that accelerates commercialization.
