The Journal of mHealth Vol 2 Issue 1 (February 2015) | Page 37

Samsung 5G Development Could Benefit Mobile Health Applications

Samsung 5G Development Could
Benefit Mobile Health Applications
In a step toward the 5G era, Samsung
Electronics announced during 2014 that
it had successfully developed the world’s
first adaptive array transceiver technology operating in the millimeter-wave Ka
bands for cellular communications. The
new technology sits at the core of 5G
mobile communications system and will
provide data transmission up to several
hundred times faster than current 4G
networks.
Predicted to debut in 2020, the wireless
standard could be used in medical devices
that enable physicians to see high-resolution images remotely, Samsung explained
in a statement. The 5G format will also
enable real-time streaming of ultra highdefinition content "practically without
limitation."
The speed is so fast that the network
could be used to download a two hour
movie in one second.
5G mobile communications technology is the next generation of the existing 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE)
network technology. 5G will be capable
of providing a ubiquitous Gigabyte per
second (Gbps) experience to subscribers
anywhere and offers data transmission
speeds of up to several tens of Gbps per
base station.
The implementation of a high-speed 5G
cellular network requires a broad band
of frequencies; much like an increased
water flow requires a wider pipe. While it
was a recognised option, it has been long
believed that the millimeter-wave bands
had limitations in transmitting data over
long distances due to its unfavourable
propagation characteristics. However,
Samsung’s new adaptive array transceiver
technology has proved itself as a successful solution.
Supporting the 5G breakthrough is an
advance in adaptive array transceiver
technology. In tests, the millimeter-wave
band proved capable of transmitting at
speeds as high as 1.056 Gbps over distances up to two kilometres. The millimeter range has historically been difficult

to work with because of the difficulty
of transmitting the signals over distances and into buildings. In a statement,
Samsung explained that adaptive array
transceiver technology using 64 antenna
elements “can be a viable solution for
overcoming the radio propagation loss
at millimeter-wave bands, much higher
than the conventional frequency bands
ranging from several hundred MHz to
several GHz.”
Samsung plans to accelerate the research
and development of 5G mobile communication technologies, including adaptive
array transceiver at the millimeter-wave
bands, and hopes to commercialise those
technologies by 2020. Once commercialised, 5G mobile communications
technology will be capable of ultra-highspeed data transmission up to several
hundred times faster than even the 4G
LTE-Advanced technology, currently
available.
Samsung’s new technology will allow
users to transmit massive data files
including high quality digital movies
practically without limitation. As a result,
subscribers will be able to enjoy a wide
range of services such as 3D movies and
games, real-time streaming of ultra highdefinition (UHD) content, and remote
medical services.
This latest innovation is expected to
invigorate research into 5G cellular communications across the world; triggering
the creation of international alliances
and the timely commercialisation of
related mobile broadband services.

The competition for technology leadership in next-generation mobile communications development is becoming
increasingly fierce. China established
a government-led “IMT-2020 (5G)
Promotion Group” for 5G research
in February 2012, while the European
Commission has also committed large
investments designed to bring 5G services to the market by 2020.
Samsung has been gradually increasing
its presence in the medical technology
and health-tracking niches. In 2010, it
acquired Medison, a Korean maker of
ultrasonic equipment. The company
also has a presence in healthcare IT;
and health tracking applications via its
smartphone technology, which it is in the
process of trying to build into a global
healthcare business. n

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