The technological knowledge in 5G, in addition to the technologies that advance Industry 4.0, have already allowed INESC TEC to carry out half of the pilots planned by NOS’ TestBed 5G – which will support, by the end of 2025, the development of products and services resorting to this new generation network.
INESC TEC coordinates the Industry pillar in the PRR TestBeds Agenda – NOS’ TestBed 5G and Transformação Digital da NOS – and has already carried out six of the 12 pilots. INESC TEC’s Industry and Innovation Laboratory (iiLab) has been the “home” to said demonstrations.
António Almeida and Pedro Senna, INESC TEC researchers, are the coordinators of the aforementioned Pillar and pilots. The demonstrations have been promoting the skills and technical-scientific structure of iiLab, a mobilising space adapted to industrial testing scenarios.
“It’s an important opportunity to promote a zero-cost testing environment, financed by the PRR, so that industrial solutions with Portuguese DNA are prepared to make the best use of 5G communication networks with a direct impact on production processes, leading to competitive advantages in the national and European market – where these solutions can compete with products and services developed by multinational companies,” said Pedro Senna.
The project will support 165 pilots to facilitate the transformation of technologies into solutions that can be commercialised. Recently, INESC TEC attended the Aveiro Tech Week to present the institution’s work. During this international event, promoted by Ubiware, António Almeida, Pedro Senna and Hélder Fontes demonstrated two pilots: Digital Twin solution, from Infinite Foundry, and AMR with 5G immersive remote driving, from Flowbotic.
“We were also able to verify the solutions and advances of the other TestBed projects – Test Before Invest – included in the national network. The INESC TEC researchers participated in matchmaking events with companies interested in the solutions, as well as with partners from the other TestBeds, fostering collaboration in future projects, services and activities in the post-PRR period,” emphasised Pedro Senna.
With an investment of €8M, the TestBed 5G will help companies develop products and services resorting to 5G in major areas of the national economy: Industry, Retail, Healthcare, Smart Cities and Sustainability.
When launching the project, António Almeida indicated that INESC TEC would be a facilitator and “monitor the development of a set of software and equipment pilots in a quasi-industrial context”.
The TestBed 5G consortium features NOS, Sonae MC, and Wells, as well as CEIIA, INESC TEC and Ericsson – covering six locations nationwide, in Lisbon, Porto, Maia and Matosinhos.
The researchers mentioned in this news piece are associated with INESC TEC.
This article was first published on 29 October by INESC TEC.
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