I thought we would see a diverse set of wireless standards in 5G. But I had guessed that wifi would be part of 5G (in 2012, when I wrote an article about it that was my idea, I have since slowly toned down this). I hadn’t for a second envisioned that defunct DECT would sail into a shrimp boat and take that spot. I didn’t see that one coming.

Waking up with a new idea

Finding free spectrum for new applications takes 10s of years. The International Telecommunication Union’s Radio Section, ITU-R, is taking just that long at least to find harmonized spectrum. So imagine waking up one morning and finding that there is spectrum available. Or, well, spectrum that is not so popular. I don’t know if that’s exactly what happened, but it’s a compelling thought. To find out that the DECT spectrum is global-ish and understand that it’s pretty vacant for new guests to move in. And then to tie a new 5G standard around that, which also has firm footholds in northern Europe. Amazing.

With a background in RF, my heart beats for free frequency bands. It doesn’t get more democratic than the free spectrum is free for all. Lately, I have heard voices raised against this standard in Sweden. The reason is that larger organizations such as municipalities, hospitals and so on use DECT. But the fact is that the frequency is free. And that’s as democratic as it gets. But for anyone who thinks that the free spectrum can be used for a single application, technology or system, the democracy in the air can be a cold shower. In this case, the new standard can co-exist with the old DECT phones, but the bottom line is that the frequency band is free.

It’s about seeking and setting limits. Taking the free spectrum for granted is a significant mindset shift. You become especially vulnerable if you use it for long link hops. With 5G NR+, the basic design is spot on. The idea is short hops from device to device. I firmly believe this is the right way to use free spectrum. Because free-band uplink technologies sound charming, they need to be well structured. With 5G NR+, you’ve hit the nail on the head. So sorry, all you people who use DECT phones, you will have to make room for something additional on the bands. Those of you who think that long link hops on free bands are the thing, beware of the next cold shower; 2022 leaves all doors open.

Inlägget Up is down in 2022 dök först upp på From the world of wireless.

Things that talk

Already today, we have sensors all around us. The car sends information to the manufacturer. We have the connected dishwashers, refrigerators, not to mention all the useful things that make a difference in working life, positioning things, transmitting how a laboratory fridge is doing, for example. But we won’t be able to take advantage of this if we’re going to follow in the footsteps of failure.

From the beginning

I think a lot of the reason why the Internet of Things doesn’t always turn out the way you planned is because you give someone on staff a Raspberry Pi and say, “Here you go, now you’re going to develop our Internet of Things solution”. It’s far too big a threshold to start and it’s pleasing that there are new, easier steps to simplify your IoT journey.

How to get it right

There are three factors in particular that are useful to take on board, whether it’s the Internet of Things or whatever communications venture it may be.

1. The solution must be secure. There must be no risk of someone hacking you. And now I’m talking about both long-term and short-term security. That is, you must be able to transfer data securely. But you also have to be able to update the device in the field, because these are solutions that are going to work for many, many years.
2. Another thing we miss is scalability. This guy with the Raspberry Pi, he hasn’t been given a scalable platform. He doesn’t have a step to take forward once he’s tested his Raspberry Pi.
3. The third thing that applies to any kind of connectivity is that it must be reliable. There is a plethora of cheap components. Yes, lo and behold, now in the footsteps of the component shortage. They are not always adapted for our Swedish mobile networks. They’re not really even suited to any type of mobile network, to be honest. They have a catastrophically poor design, don’t meet basic criteria and they are designed with a focus on being cheap and being able to satisfy a need of the moment. But that’s not sustainable.

So please, is it time for IoT? Think about this failed 74 percent of the projects. There’s no point in starting if you don’t have a clear idea of what’s expected of you along the way.

Inlägget How to fail with IoT dök först upp på From the world of wireless.

I wI work a lot with connecting things, in the old days we called them connected machines, and we built private communication networks for them. Now machines have been relegated to being called things; things that need the internet – things that need clouds.

And because things are so smart today, they are things that are changing the world in many different ways. In discussions lately, I’m often met with a strong opinion around connectivity.

A loA lot of people say “we should run NB-IoT” or “we should run LoRa” and “we should run SIGFOX”. Looking at where I originally came into the industry from, via RF, private radio networks, I should of course embrace the LoRa requests with open arms and hug anyone remotely who says SIGFOX.

The televerket guy awakens

The opposite happens, I start to pull my ears back and try to approach them with the question, is LoRa really what you need? The old man from Televerket wakes up inside me. From my horizon, wireless technology should be three things above all else. Accessible, secure and scalable.

The vast majority of technologies today have a check in the box secure. But when availability and scalability come into play, I am embracing the public networks run by operators. To me, LoRa is okay for small-scale sensor data, unless it’s time-critical or mission-critical. But I still feel sceptical about the technology when scalability and availability come up.

Unregulated is not a guarantee

They are running on unregulated bands, so here I start preaching operators’ NB-IoT and LTE CAT-M1 solutions instead. For me, the problems with LoRa and SIGFOX are a couple. They don’t have nearly the same infrastructure in place as the operators. Many networks are run by a limited group of individuals who don’t have the same protocols in place to ensure the operation of the network as an operator.

The technology uses free frequency bands over large areas. This is not a scalable model. The more people that are added to the spectrum, the more crowded it gets until it is full. Then there is no plan B.

Imagine, all LoRa gateways will receive all messages sent on the 868 MHz bands and listen to if it is a LoRA data package, if it is, such a device it will wonder if the data belongs to them or not. In the meantime, the frequency is blocked from reception.

Since all LoRa devices run in the same frequency band, no sensor can establish contact with a gateway while this is going on. Many devices in the same area mean that they have to retransmit or data is dropped. If you have an application with regulatory requirements for availability, refresh rate or similar, you cannot guarantee that data will reach you. Because you have no control over the frequency. The bands are also shared with a range of other fun things you can import from China, including jammers that block the frequency. This is where I find the defence to my own telecom beliefs because I come from a different RF background, where scalability and availability are key ingredients. Where the delivery of data is more important than the use of a particular technology.

Who are you fooling?

A SIM today from the operators doesn’t cost much more than what it costs to use public LoRa networks or to build your own infrastructure. But the difference is that someone is making sure the networks are up and running, licensed frequency bands are being used and operators are guaranteeing and promising access for at least the entire 5G decade.

So if like me, you believe in embracing the core values of IoT, scalability and availability, then you’ll understand. For me, these are more important aspects than building compromises. Free frequencies in all their glory, but when you have to be sure that data gets through, the Televerket person in me wakes up.

Inlägget Embracing the old dök först upp på From the world of wireless.

Good for its time – but not now

Safe tried and tested networks that chug along, like old Volvo cars, that you can always rely on and hold on to when the wind blows. Just look at how operators react when it’s windy, when there’s a power cut, only 2G is used. Always, that’s it.

I think it was about a year ago I stuck my chin out and declared that 2G and 3G had an expiry date. Some thought I was exaggerating. Others were painting another picture, I was the Ralph Nader of the telecoms industry, sort of.

For those of you who don’t know, Nader made a name for himself in the 60s when he pointed out the lack of safety in General Motors cars, especially the Chevrolet Corvair. The Corvair, with its rear engine and swing axles, was designed in the same way as a VW Beetle, an old design that posed a risk to tip over during hard cornering or sudden moves.

Nader has done a lot of work protecting consumers, (if you are Swedish like me, I would describe him as a Sverker Olofsson with a lawyer’s title, sort of).

Now, more and more people understand that the 3G era will be over, quite soon. GSM, or 2G, will be shut down soon after.

Now a few words for those of you who realize that you need to replace large parts of your installed hardware like routers, modems, alarms, and so on, using the soon-to-be outdated technology.

First of all, I understand that the journey may be both long and complicated. But it won’t go away just because you wait.

The upside for the climate is that 5G networks are more energy efficient. Figures I found on the internet say that an LTE infrastructure needs up to 30 kWh per square kilometer. One based only on 5G can get down to a fifth, i.e. 6 kWh/sq km, plus handle more devices on that surface. In 2015, mobile networks consumed 1.15% of the total energy available in power grids and contributed to 0.53% of the total, global CO2 impact.

Another important aspect is that all the Netflixing, tick-tocking and streaming is eating data for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Today we spend about 80 EB per month, by 2024 the figure will be 150 EB (EB or EXAbyte is 10 to the power of 18 bytes). So building this with 4G alone is extremely energy-intensive.

While switching is a pain, and a lot of technology will need to be renewed, it is also important that we get the electricity used in mobile networks down.

Inlägget 2G and 3G – outdated as a Volvo 240 dök först upp på From the world of wireless.

I think this is pretty much exactly what I expect we have in front of us, but there were two aspects I didn’t think of then.

A new polarisation

The first is that with 5G we have a new polarisation in the world. On the one hand, China is not let into the networks for security reasons. On the other hand, the rest of the world will not be allowed into China if you believe in the threat from the Chinese state. This excellent power policy has not been contributed to by wireless in the past; it is clear what a power tool “big data” and wireless networks have become. China is now trying to exert all the power it can. In a press release from the embassy in Sweden, they say that 5G is a joint project for humanity. The very essence is that 5G technology, according to the embassy, was developed mainly by Ericsson, Nokia, Huawei and that the road to 6G is made more difficult by the fact that companies cannot freely cooperate.

I do not work with IT security at that level and do not know precisely why Huawei has been excluded from 5G deployment in Sweden but does this outburst from China not feel a little like we caught them with their hand in the candy jar and now trying to find a way out?

Innovative technology, stupid debate

Second, the technology is intelligent, but the debate has reached a rarely before seen low watermark. I saw a video recently about a doctor. He slept so poorly at night and could link it to the use of 5G. I find it hard to tell the difference between the truck radio, GPS satellites and 4G when I’m sleeping, but I guess he could. The solution was for him to put a jammer at home, and it was solved, then he slept better. Then he wore a copper necklace on a chain around his neck that filtered out the rest of the 5G radiation when he was on the move. The absurdness in the debate about 5G has reached a new level.

Another example was a discussion caught in the noise. One person had a device made by Huawei at home. Many telemarketers with various offers have contacted him, and he thinks it must be the Chinese who are taking his contact details. Now he needs help to find something made in Europe, so he doesn’t get any more offers.

Technology is intelligent, but much of the debate is not. It’s also becoming common to blame everything on the Chinese. Let’s help remind each other that we need to be factual and nuanced through the journey to 6G.

Inlägget It’s the Chinese fault, or…? dök först upp på From the world of wireless.

Desperate times call for desperate measures

At the beginning of the crisis, I saw a post from a desperate photographer who had all his jobs cancelled. All assignments were gone overnight. He wondered in desperation what to do next. I don’t usually comment widely, but I felt some sympathy for the photographer and also, I had an idea of how he could change his business model that I thought was good. My suggestion was simple. If you can’t go to your clients, but your clients need your help in the form of photos, let them take them themselves. It doesn’t have to be that tricky. You send off the camera, background, flashes and instructions on how to take the photos yourself. The images won’t be as good as someone else will be holding the camera. The customer may not want to pay full price either, but with a bit of luck, you can keep the business, albeit on a smaller scale. I don’t know how the story ended for the photographer. But his response was along the lines of it wasn’t something he was going to do. He also didn’t seem to have any other suggestions to consider that was good, but felt more like the attitude was that there is no way to change the direction of my business.

I may not have had the best business model in the world for him, but I think it’s better to try, try to adapt, adjust and find new ways. The “it can’t be done” model most likely did not bring him any closer to a solution.

Adjust and adopt

What I have learned from the financial crisis, from the IT crash and the telecom bubble, is to dare to act quickly and to be prepared that the situation can change rapidly. In my mindset, it’s about having the ability to adjust in time. It’s about the ability to scale up or scale down quickly when needed. And it’s about always adjusting your mouth to your food. We, Induo, the company two business partners and I run, were born in the midst of the financial crisis. We got through it, but we came out of it with lessons learned. The lesson is that a business that can adapt quickly is a good model. That’s why today we work a lot with external partners, subcontractors who can adapt rapidly. So far, it’s been a successful path through the crisis.

I look forward to the challenges after the holidays. I hope that you are also looking forward to challenging autumn, that you dare to make decisions, dare to invest and have the courage and strength to help drive Sweden forward!

Inlägget Crises are like aking teeth dök först upp på From the world of wireless.

New times for the tin-foil hats

At the same time, in these new times of new challenges when people really need networks to maintain social distance, I am incredibly surprised to hear that mobile phone masts are being burnt down around the world. People like you and me are struck by this and decide to burn a cell tower to reduce the spread of Corona. The fear of 5G is widespread, and there are those who believe that the Coronavirus and 5G are linked. You and I understand that this is not the case, but to help you understand the thinking in these groups, I’m going to dissect a post I’ve read that is supposed to be published in an anti-5G group. So speaking of what 5G is for:

“Both Bill Gates and Elon Musk have built giant bunkers, i.e. underground apartments with food, oxygen for several months. Presumably, they can also control 5G from there. If they knock out oxygen molecules simultaneously all over the earth, it will probably take a few days or weeks before all humans and animals are dead. Then I don’t know if they get the oxygen back afterwards or how they planned everything.”

Greta needs the cell towers

Hup. I don’t know what to say about that, but to me, it doesn’t feel healthy at all. If we had seen mast burning in Sweden, the consequences on damaged infrastructure could have been greater than the risk of Elon and Bill crawling into their bunker and knocking off all the oxygen. Had the infrastructure fallen, Greta, 90 years old with heart failure, could have risked that her doctor’s calls via video link would have been more jerky, that her readings might have taken longer to transfer, or in the worst case, not transferred at all for a certain period of time. You have to understand people’s concerns and that we are all different, but when we give in to infrastructure based on social media posts without any scientific grounding in the world I live in, then humanity is going backwards, I think. As I began, I hope you are well and that you have a great summer. I know we will all get through this crisis if we work together towards the same goals and with sound values. Take care!

Inlägget In a crisis, we need the networks dök först upp på From the world of wireless.

The active 5G haters

For almost ten years, I’ve been covering 5G technology. I’ve also learned that few things have drawn as much comment as dealing with 5G on the internet. Blog posts or videos, as soon as they are published, the comments are coming. Mobile networks are, according to the pundits, dangerous. The higher the number in front, the more dangerous it is. The fact that 4G and 5G initially use the same frequency band doesn’t matter. 5G is more hazardous than 4G. At first, I tried to respond politely, but the debate got so monotonous so quickly that I turned off the comment functions on these posts instead. The foil hats vs Seijmer 1 – 0.

Is Russia driving the debate?

The Swedish Energy and Digitalization Minister Anders Ygeman, on his part, accuses Russia of driving this debate by posting false propaganda, among other things, after his post commented on Facebook. Just as Cambridge Analytica is said to have influenced the outcome of both the US presidential election and Brexit (if you missed that story, it’s worth reading more about), Russia may have an advantage in fuelling the debate and creating opinion against expanding mobile networks. If the West falters, the rollout will be slower, and Russia can take a tight position itself. Truth or not, judge for yourself.

So what about the so-called tinfoil hats? Where do they fit into the model? According to Per Ödling, a professor at Lund University whose research area is mobile telephony, it could also be a foreign power that wants to cause trouble. He tells SVT that “influence operations have always targeted men. But this one is different – it targets women.

We should not leave the debate unaddressed. Instead, take it seriously and respond to the issue objectively. I should turn on the comment function on blog posts and videos, but I don’t know if the energy I would put into it would make any difference.

Inlägget Tinfoil hats and the 5G debate dök först upp på From the world of wireless.

The first ever fax in car solution

In 1994, when I started in the industry, I went to a trade fair to learn more. At that show, Ericsson showed revolutionary technology. The first car-mounted fax machine was on display—a machine for your car that could receive fax messages. Once installed in your vehicle, it would receive the fax via the mobile networks. So then you did not have to go to the office to read your faxes. 25 years ago. All this became possible with GSM technology. The GSM technology was also getting cheaper at that time, meaning young people like me could buy the first mobile phone with one of my first salaries.

It was just an accident

I got into the business by accident, but at the same time, I found it incredibly easy to relate to the technology. One of my teachers at school was a cheerful and enthusiastic radio amateur who taught us all about antenna technology and radio engineering, and I felt I was passionate about that too. My new job involved selling radio-based links and antennas, and I quickly realised I was in the right place! I still feel incredibly strongly about antenna technology and wireless transmission through enthusiastic partners and suppliers. After all, the basic technology is the same and my desire to find the best solution for the customer’s needs remains.

Over these 25 years, I have seen 3G, 4G, and now soon 5G networks predicted, standardised and rolled out. And you can expect that within 4-5 years, we will start talking about 6G. 6G will be launched in 2030 ±1 year if you are interested in my scouting for the future. Otherwise, I think the big challenge we have in the coming years is to make the communication networks more energy efficient and to take responsibility for the climate and compensate for what the networks cost in environmental impact. Has anyone heard a single operator talk about that so far?

I like to say that I still go to the same job after 25 years even though my role and the market has changed. It’s a fun evolution I want to continue to be part of! If I could make a difference, enthusiastic teachers, help an incredible amount to get interested and motivation up at an early stage, and that’s a big key to the success of future professionals.

Inlägget Time to close the books dök först upp på From the world of wireless.

Biking is good, but not for all occasions

It doesn’t have to mean that we start cycling to customer visits across Sweden for your company, although it can certainly be both relaxing and an experience. Still, we need to put in an environmental shift, even if we don’t cycle. We are encouraging customers to buy energy-efficient solutions over energy dissipating ones or encouraging customers to choose a responsibly produced product made in Europe, rather than a cheaper climate-changing Asian solution where the waste ended up in the wild. Why not propagate investing in solar cells locally to power your wireless installations (I’m interested in collaborations if anyone knows someone keen on solar cells) to reduce our carbon footprint? Invest in sustainable transport with minimal impact.

Tax on chemicals for companies

A completely different environmental factor that has surprised and pissed me off this fall is the fiddling with local tax on chemicals we have in Sweden. This is an environmental tax that applies to all the electronic components that are sold in Sweden. There are more than one occasion, where I have seen companies bending the rules, I’ve seen several examples of. All imported electronics containing various chemicals are charged a chemical tax based on the weight in Sweden. The weight is calculated on the complete package with accessories like antennas, chargers, power supplies, mounts, and so on. In one case I was in contact with, a lower tax is declared by “forgetting” to weigh the complete package and only certain parts. In another case, they simply did not know what they were doing and did not declare. In both cases, it was a question of offering a product at a lower total price and thus winning business. The fact that they were cheating on environmental taxes could be ignored. Both of the cases I mention are, of course, about companies that are not members of SKEF, but let us work together to ensure that environmental responsibility becomes a competitive factor and a competitive advantage in 2019 and that it is a responsibility that we all accept.

Many have an advantage with a local business because journeys are shortened and carried out using environmentally friendly vehicles. Our minimal impact can become a competitive advantage instead of calling in people from long distances. The more we can reduce our impact, the greater our competitive advantage.

Inlägget 2018 recap dök först upp på From the world of wireless.