Fraunhofer Institute for Open Communication Systems
Fraunhofer Institute for Open Communication Systems

xG Playground

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The xG Playground is a living implementation of our xG Testbeds development. It is designed to enable us and our partners to do innovative product prototyping, fast integration and testing including calibration, benchmarking and interoperability tests between new prototypes and products. Designed with more than the 5G network itself in mind, the playgournd offers a fully integrated environment from basic infrastructure like network switching up a multi-vendor RAN integration.

  • The unique combination of FOKUS developed components with marked leading tooling from different vendors and projects enables a zero-preparation test environment where all KPIs are constantly monitored, stored and visualized.
  • End-to-end-tests as well as single component evaluation are made easy and quick. Fast switching of components e. g. RAN, UPF, Core allows verification of interoperability in no time.
  • From bare metal over solid virtualization environments to scalable cloud environments, every deployment flavour is available.
  • Multi-tenant network and compute separation allows a quick and clean switch between projects and measurements.
  • The lab extended from the main lab room, over our data center, our underground parking lot to metro cells on our roof to mimic different HF environments. The playground extends even further to an outdoor test site at an active air field close to Berlin for all the experiments that need more space than a traditional lab can offer.
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Our Offer

An overview of the components of the xG Playground

Fraunhofer FOKUS offers using the xG Playground for joint research & development projects. For example, FOKUS to partners:

  • the evaluation of innovative 5G network components and services in an indoor and outdoor environment
  • Optimization of products, i. e. performance assessments and interoperability tests
  • Proof-of-concept studies
  • Evaluation of 5G to 6G migration scenarios
  • Courses on 5G technologies and roadmap planning and support for migration scenarios
  • Planning and installation support of remote testbeds at your premises

Local Trials in Berlin

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The infrastructure in Berlin is open for local trials. Small or medium size companies can enter into the xG Playground as technology providers, as use case owners or as both.

For the use case owners, xG Playground offers the possibility to:

  • To integrate the specific use case devices and applications into a reference 5G environment
  • Execute friendly trials and pilots on an already established infrastructure
  • To validate the use case from a technology perspective
  • To make demonstrations towards the decision factors using a comprehensive environment.

Privacy warning

With the click on the play button an external video from www.youtube.com is loaded and started. Your data is possible transferred and stored to third party. Do not start the video if you disagree. Find more about the youtube privacy statement under the following link: https://policies.google.com/privacy

For the technology providers, xG Playground offers the possibility to:

  • Integrate the products into an already running environment, where interoperability tests and performance evaluations can be executed from the first day
  • Visibility and being part of an independent end-to-end environment including the most innovative technologies
  • Testing of the software components within a system including third party hardware and external components.

Remote Trials

Fraunhofer FOKUS is offering technology and support for trials at the use case premises, covering all the steps necessary to execute a trial at the use case location while using the xG Playground central node in Berlin. This includes:

  • The configuration of the local network at the use case premises including devices, base stations and the portable 5G edge
  • Interworking of the portable 5G edge with the xG Playground in Berlin including the deployment of end-to-end slices across the edge and the central location
  • Remote OAM of the portable 5G edge
  • Data acquisition, automatic processing and presentation to the use case owners

Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communication

Use Case Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communication
© Fraunhofer FOKUS

The factory shop-floor communication is meant to test the feasibility for 5G to replace existing wireless and wired private networks with 5G communication. For this, the embedding of the 5G in the existing processes is essential.

The shop-floor demonstration includes:

  • Integration of software PLCs with test factory appliances
  • Establishment of reliable low-latency communication
  • Support for IP and non-IP data exchange with re

Automotive Testbed

5G Playground: Use Case Automotive Testbed
© Fraunhofer FOKUS

The xG Playground automotive deployment concentrates on the limit connectivity use cases, specifically towards areas of high interest for the automotive industry such as private grounds and indoor parking places.

The automotive testbed island is enabling remote communication from and to the cars for:

  • Multimedia delivery to the car
  • Data acquisition aggregation and transmission (video included)
  • Low delay critical information (e.g. for remote steering)

The automotive island was deployed in the underground parking place of Fraunhofer FOKUS building in April 2019 and includes:

  • Coverage of the underground parking lot with 5G NSA base stations
  • A single edge computing node connecting the base stations
  • A multi-slice core network optimized for video data acquisition and dissemination as well as for low delay, ultra-reliable communication

Heterogeneous Outdoor / Indoor Island

5G Playground, Use Case wireless environment Heterogeneous Outdoor / Indoor Island
© Fraunhofer FOKUS

The outdoor deployment is designed to enable enhanced mobile broadband with high capacity 5G gNBs and mmWave backhauling and wide area connectivity for IoT overlays.

The indoor deployment is designed to enable an enterprise network, covering a continuous area of the Fraunhofer FOKUS offices.

A seamless outdoor-indoor environment is adding to the two environments a means to test a local deployment which covers some indoor area as well as some outdoor premises (such as the outdoor premises of a use case).

The indoor deployment (available since Nov 2017) is currently based on LTE access networks connected to the Open5GCore through using the building infrastructure. Through this, a dedicated network was created supplying connectivity to specific devices.

The outdoor deployment (available since Nov 2018) includes 2 small LTE cells interconnected with 60Ghz wireless backhaul between them as well as to the building site, where the same core network as for the indoor deployment is used.

Extensions of the outdoor deployment with a wide area gNB as well as with a set of small cell gNBs and eNBs were set up in April 2019.