Ericsson and Telcaria unlock new approaches for 5G Energy Efficiency optimization

May 28th, 2024. Ericsson is collaborating with Telcaria, a Spanish SME specialized in the research and development of new telecommunication solutions and official collaborator of 5TONIC, for identifying innovative solutions for enhancing energy efficiency of end-to-end vertical applications relying on 5G Advanced technologies and its evolution towards 6G.

This collaboration has been forged in the framework of 6G DAWN project coordinated by CTTC, a research and innovation project running since 2022 until end of 2024, being funded by the Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan of the Spanish Government via the UNICO I+D 5G programme.

Ericsson and Telcaria are jointly researching novel mechanisms for evaluating, recommending, and enforcing alternative configurations of Private 5G Advanced Networks that may enhance energy efficiency indicators. The intent of this initiative is, on the one hand, securing the minimum energy consumption levels of Private 5G Advanced Networks without impacting other network performance parameters, and, on the other hand, assessing and optimizing network energy consumption for delivering traffic at speeds up to 1 Gbps over 5G mid-range bands.

The strategy followed entails adopting a PNI-NPN (Public-Network Integrated Non-Public Networks) approach for offloading and reducing the energy consumption of the Control Plane and improving the predictability of both network performance and end-user service patterns in the actual field for further reducing the energy consumption of the RAN.

The exposure of energy consumption information can help CSPs and enterprises understanding where and when energy is consumed, and which factors are influencing this consumption. That, together with the inclusion of enhanced mechanisms to optimize the network configuration, both statically and dynamically, can help companies operating and leveraging private cellular networks in manufacturing, logistics and transportation industries, among others, to reduce their operational expenses and their carbon footprint.

For enabling the experimentation and validation activities in this context, advanced technologies like Network Digital Twin and Network Exposure have been integrated at 5TONIC lab, and an Ericsson Private 5G Networks solution has been deployed at the EXTREME Testbed of CTTC.

Maria Felisa Sedano, CEO at Telcaria, says «This collaboration represents a great opportunity for us to explore new challenges in energy efficiency within the future of cellular networks, ultimately unlocking new possibilities and strengthening our cooperation with Ericsson».

“Ericsson and Telcaria have opened new avenues for enhancing 5G network energy efficiency, enabled by the application of instrumental technologies such as PNI-NPN, Network Digital Twin and Exposure for Private Network capabilities”, says Manuel Lorenzo, Head of Technology & Innovation at Ericsson Spain.