Sony and Mitsui have jointly started system feasibility testing of the DSA technology for wide-area deployment of local 5G network on urban expressways

Japanese companies Sony Group Corporation and Mitsui announced the launch of a joint research project to analyze the use of Dynamic Spectrum Access (DSA) technology for wide-area local 5G deployment on expressways in urban areas.

The companies said that this study was commissioned by Metropolitan Expressway Co.

“Local 5G is a new structure of 5G spectrum regulatory framework in Japan, that allows various enterprises to own dedicated spectrum and build up 5G networks independently in their own buildings or premises. While this system is expected to satisfy a variety of needs in different industries, there are challenges in network coordination between neighboring local 5G networksavoid potential harmful radio interference in the same operational frequency band,” the companies said.

They also said that limited availability of spectrum resources is also becoming a pressing social issue, due to growing wireless network usage.

“This project is the world’s first attempt to apply Dynamic Spectrum Access (DSA) technology for local 5G networks to achieve automated coordination of wireless spectrum to avoid harmful radio interference issues, and thus is expected to contribute to promoting cooperative use of local 5G networks in Japan,” the firms added.

Sony and Mitsui, together with Metropolitan Expressway, have jointly started system feasibility testing of DSA technology for wide-area deployment of local 5G networks on urban expressways, simulating co-existing local 5G networks on the Metropolitan Expressway and its adjacent premises.

“Urban expressways feature stretched land areas, so interference with networks in adjacent areas are expected to be an issue in local 5G deployment. Introduction of the DSA system will automate the allocation of wireless spectrum to avoid harmful radio interference between local 5G networks, enabling smoother operations between the users,” the pair said.

“These technical demonstrations will aim to identify technical issues and verify the practicality of the system with the goal of automating spectrum management and radio interference handling between adjacent local 5G networks. The results of the trials are to be leveraged to allow for more efficient use of limited spectrum resources, while accommodating various data traffic and specific use cases, such as transmitting video data of road damages from inspection cars, in a stable communication environment,” the partners added.

Under this project, Sony will be in charge of overseeing the overall project management, system deployment and installation of DSA technology systems, while Mitsui will oversee local 5G network installation, neighboring network area coordination and liaison affairs.

The research will be conducted from May 2023 through March 2024 and consists of two stages namely construction of experiment environment and requirement verification.

The two companies said they will build on the knowledge gained in these field tests to expand the commercial use of the technology while working with various partners promoting local/private 5G.