5G is the talk of the town: ifm also takes part in promoting the next-generation mobile network

ifm is now also part of the global initiative 5G-ACIA and helps promoting the establishment of 5G together with other well-known members. The aim is to successfully establish 5G in industrial production and to design it to industrial standards right from the start.

5G is the next generation of mobile networks and thus the successor of LTE. There are some innovations which make 5G an even more stable and faster communications standard. In contrast to 3G or 4G, 5G brings about a radical change that was impossible until now: Companies will be able to buy own frequency ranges and can establish private or partially private networks.

Established in 2018 under the aegis of ZVEI (the German Electrical and Electronics Manufacturers’ Association), the global 5G Alliance for Connected Industries and Automation (5G-ACIA) has set itself the goal of successfully establishing 5G in industrial production and making it industry-compatible from the outset. Furthermore, it aims to standardise and normalise 5G with the ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute) and have it regulated. The alliance identifies and analyses possible applications and the resulting industry requirements. This involves an active exchange between ZVEI 5G-ACIA and the working group ‘Wireless Communications for Machines’ of VDMA, Germany’s association for the mechanical engineering industry.

ifm became a member in September last year and is committed to ensuring the best possible applicability of 5G for the industry, in particular for the manufacturing and process industry, together with well-known members such as Audi, Bosch, Beckhoff, Siemens, Trumpf, Festo, Sony, CISCO, Ericsson or Infineon.

Wireless communication creates added value for customers

A major reason for ifm’s commitment is the conviction that wireless communication will find its way into the industrial environment complementing existing communication solutions, and that it can create significant added value for customers as well. The advantages of wireless communication are, for example, easier upgrading of systems in the context of digitisation or real-time wireless networking of objects – even over long distances.

As a member of 5G-ACIA, ifm gains valuable insights and knowledge about this next-generation wire-less technology as well as its potential and proven applications. Based on these insights, ifm can develop its own solutions, which customers can use to expand their industrial automation practices.