100 Times Faster Data Transmission on the Subway

ETRI has developed Mobile Hotspot Network(MHN) wireless backhaul technology to enable giga-speed Internet service on the subway.
On a national highway near Daejeon on June 30, the research team demonstrated the MHN technology
for data transmission 100 times faster than the existing WiBro-based wireless system of 10 Mbps.
Researchers at ETRI have now enabled giga-scale data rate by providing
mobile wireless backhaul with millimeter(mm) wave for the first time in the world.
Therefore, this technology can be effectively utilized in the sectors for subway trains or KTX, Korea’s high-speed railway,
where a large number of users collectively move at a speed as high as 300km/h will significantly benefit from this latest achievement.
In the demonstration, the researchers successfully transmitted HD videos
and 500 Mbps video data from one moving vehicle to another, which were used as a base station and terminal, respectively.

Subway and KTX Become Small Mobile Base Stations

The demonstration conducted in late June with two test vehicles was a preliminary test to apply the new technology
to road conditions, in preparation for the subway demonstration scheduled for the end of this year.
In the demonstration, the researchers succeeded in transmitting 500 Mbps data including HD video from a moving vehicle used
as a base station to a terminal vehicle without any disruption for a distance of more than one kilometer.
This demonstration on the road involved only one base-station vehicle
and one terminal vehicle, but the test to be conducted in Seoul later this year will enable communication at both the front
and rear ends of the train in some sections of the route of Line # 8, allowing each train to transmit 1 Gbps of data.
MHN technology can replace the WiBro-based wireless backhaul, currently in use for WiFi connection on subway trains,
and as a result provide giga-speed data service in form of wireless backhaul.

World’s First Technology using millimeter waves with Mobile Wireless Backhaul

This newly developed technology uses the 30 GHz band, a millimeter high-frequency band
that remains an unexplored frequency, and has bandwidth of 250 MHz.
This means the technology can be utilized for the 5G mobile communication standard technology.
Taking advantage of the wide bandwidth, the MHN is capable of providing HD video streaming services
at a speed of tens of megabytes per user, even when hundreds of people use the service at the same time.
Developed in the MHN wireless backhaul technology development project supported by the Ministry of Science,
ICT and Future Planning as part of the government’s 5G integrated projects, the new technology is being led by ETRI,
which is conducting joint research with six other institutions.
It is also being considered for international standards by the international standardization group
of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers(IEEE).
“When commercialized in early 2016, this technology will considerably benefit relevant
small and medium-sized enterprises,” said Dr. Ilkyu Kim, Head of the Giga Communication System Research Section 2.
“And we are expecting that the technology will also enter the global markets
when it is selected as an international standard as a result of current efforts.”
The MHN technology is also projected to be applied not only to subway and KTX, but also to buses and ships in the future.