5G in the Movement of Goods

Sunderland City Council, the North East Automotive Alliance, Perform Green and Streetdrone collaborated in the 5G CAL project to deliver 5G-connected, autonomous 40-tonne trucks to distribute parts, linking to many local SMEs in the automotive supply chain. This was about driving operational efficiencies and improving productivity, having developed a globally unique centre of excellence and operational test facility for Connected Automated Logistics at the Nissan Sunderland site. Similarly, Ericsson teamed up with Einride and Telia5 to produce a sustainable, reliable and safe transport system through their autonomous, 5G-powered trucks. Dubbed the “T-pod”, the fully-electric driverless truck has been introduced into a logistics facility in Jönköping, Sweden, as part of an intelligent transport ecosystem.

The 5G MK project integrated CAV services with smart parking at locations across the Stadium MK area, improving access and increasing site efficiency. Autonomous pods transported hotel guest luggage and deliveries around the site. Remote technology then guided the vehicles back to their starting position, ready to pick up the next delivery.  These services can free up employee time and increase site efficiency. Similarly, Brussels airport is deploying 5G for autonomous ground support equipment. It is hoped this will speed up the time it takes to turn around planes, ensuring freight reaches its destination on time.

Automation can be broadly deployed and enhanced with 5G. The 5G Ports project based in the Port of Felixstowe used 5G to improve the performance of remote control yard cranes. This increased efficiency — cranes could operate 24/7 — and safety. Read their end of project report. What’s more, the Port of Tianjin and the Port of Qingdao in China have installed automated ship-to-shore cranes that lift containers over a 5G connection, operated from a control centre. The crane at Qingdao has over 30 high definition videos, providing far greater data input to guide activity than a human would be able to process — promising greater accuracy in the loading and unloading of goods. These operations require millisecond-level latency control signals, as well as stable, remote and real-time control requirements that only key 5G technologies can deliver. The Port of Busan in South Korea has fully automated its fleet of cranes, which are remotely controlled over 5G. The Busan Port Authority expects to increase yard productivity by 40% as a result.

In the Port of Singapore, remotely-controlled equipment is being coupled with automated guided vehicles to enable full automation of the loading and unloading process. 5G allows reliable ship-to-shore communication because it can deal with large volumes of data that allows for more precise control of the crane spreaders and loads. The technology uses mathematically correct algorithms and aligned sensor systems: the end result is an increase in the number of crane lifts per day, meaning a greater number of goods can move through the port, boosting productivity.

The Ports of Rotterdam and Livorno are also exploring 5G’s value in relation to autonomous or unmanned ground vehicles. In Livorno, they are demonstrating the potential for more extensive use of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) for loading and unloading operations in the port area. It is expected that the UGVs — remotely controlled by a human operator — will cooperate by working in swarms, exploiting the technology of cloud and distributed computing. Their deployment is anticipated to lower vessel completion time, improve personnel safety and improve overall operational efficiencies. 

“5G enables prompt communication and does not distinguish between vehicles, humans and implanted sensors, as they share the same access technology”, explains Dr. Paolo Pagano. A connected port brings more vessels, more trade and an increase in sustainable development, which will open up ports to many new opportunities.

The Port of Antwerp summarises the potential in ports: “Sensors, smart cameras, remote-controlled ships, autonomous vehicles and drones are all technological innovations with added value for the larger port area, which need a reliable network, preferably based on 5G.”

Moving to public roads, Ericsson has worked with Scania to develop a testbed for autonomous buses and freight lorries in urban environments. The initiative allows a human operator to remotely control a vehicle via V2N communication using a cloud-based application. This would not be possible without 5G. The network supports downlink data rates of up to 1 Mbps and uplink data rates of up to 25 Mbps; holds ultra-high reliability of 99.999 percent, and facilitates end-to-end latency of 5 ms between the vehicle and the V2X application server.  (You can watch this in action below.) 

Plymouth Sound, a bustling bay forming part of the UK’s historic south-western seaboard, is now equipped with a 5G mobile private network (MPN). The 5G MPN’s fast speeds and low latency can enable a number of use cases, including autonomous boats. This is also being explored by the 5G BLUEPRINT project, which is looking at whether 5G-powered teleoperations can benefit from the exchange of real-time data to and from vehicles or vessels between terminals, vehicles and offices. 

Airbus has teamed up with M1 — a Singaporean operator — to determine whether 5G makes it possible to safely deploy autonomous aircraft in areas intended for drones. The Asian operator and Airbus will use telecom networks to simplify the geolocated positioning of the aircraft during aerial tests on the Singapore coast. Drones, meanwhile, can play an important role in helping to quickly navigate vast spaces and locate items in places such as warehouses or ports.

Rail freight will also benefit from automation, with 5G. The world’s first standalone 5G system for automatic train operation was deployed in Hamburg as part of DB’s highly automated S-Bahn operation project. The proof-of-concept will test whether 5G technology is mature enough to be used as the connectivity layer for future, digitalised rail operations. As part of the Digital S-Bahn Hamburg project, automatic train operation (with train drivers onboard who maintain responsibility for safety) is expected to be operational by the end of 2021. Part of the demonstration will include fully driverless shunting of empty trains in an area near Bergedorf station, based on the transmission of train control information over the 5G network.

At the Port of Le Havre, 5G means tenant companies can benefit from real-time data transmission that enables connected robotics, AR maintenance solutions and autonomous vehicles. The availability of 5G to enhance operations and reduce costs makes the port more attractive to potential new tenants.

As sensors become increasingly complex, requiring a high-bandwidth, 5G will be essential. For example, AutoL, a South Korean startup, develops LiDAR sensors that can detect objects around 300 metres during the daytime, providing a long-range and wide field of vision. Another startup, Omnitron Sensors, advances Micro-Electromechanical Systems (MEMS) sensing technology, which combines novel silicon photonics and laser scanning to produce optical MEMS sensors 1 . 

In June 2019, SoftBank announced it had conducted a truck platooning trial using 5G technology on the Shin-Tomei Expressway. The trial using 5G technology was the first in the world to succeed in Cooperative Adaptive Cruise Control (CACC), where the inter-vehicle distance is automatically controlled. It was confirmed that platooning over 5G could shorten end-to-end arrival times by about 50 milliseconds compared to 4G/LTE.

Closer to home, Highways England — on sections of the A2 and M2 — has similarly tested platooning trucks. Figures produced by the European Automobile Manufacturers projected that platooning could reduce the CO2 emissions of trailing vehicles by up to 16 percent and of lead convoy vehicles by 8 percent. There are safety benefits too: a team of drivers paying attention to the road is better than one.

The SARTRE (Safe Road Trains for the Environment) project, involving seven European partners, emphasised the potential for implementing road trains of both larger trucks and smaller vehicles on conventional highways.

The tested train included a manually driven lead truck, followed by one truck and three Volvo cars (S60, V60 and XC60). All the following vehicles were driven autonomously at speeds of up to 90 km/h, in most cases with no more than a four-metre gap between the vehicles. This was facilitated by a Human-Machine Interface including a touch screen for displaying vital information and carrying out requests, and a vehicle-to-vehicle communication unit that allows all vehicles within the platoon to communicate with each other.

At the 5GENESIS trial facility located in Surrey, 5G is being used by vehicles to receive a continuous data stream from the lead vehicle for carrying out platoon operations. This information allows the time headway between vehicles to become extremely small, even less than a second. The following vehicles in a platoon can drive more or less automatically, creating economic, environmental and safety benefits while increasing driving comfort by freeing up drivers to perform other tasks (for passenger cars), and reducing the need for professional drivers (for commercial vehicles).

Erik Coelingh, SARTRE Project, said:

"The basic principle is that the following vehicles repeat the motion of the lead vehicle. To achieve this we have extended the camera, radar and laser technology used in present safety and support systems such as Adaptive Cruise Control, City Safety, Lane Keeping Aid, Blind Spot Information System and Park Assist Pilot."

The 5G CAL project deployed a private 5G core network for their connected and automated logistics tests and trials. The team implemented a 5G-enabled ‘drive-by wire’ autonomous test platform based on a medium-sized utility vehicle, on the Nissan Motors UK test track.  5G was used to provide high bandwidth, low latency and highly reliable bi-directional communications with the vehicle to demonstrate the ability of 5G to enable the safe and secure remote operation of the CAV. You can see the results of the project's recent testing of teleoperation of a connected vehicle via the 5G internet connection installed around the Nissan site in Sunderland. And read their project insights here.

Ericsson is testing the teleoperation of lorries in urban and controlled environments in collaboration with Scania. Remote driving allows a human operator or remote driver to remotely control a vehicle via Vehicle-to-Network communication using a cloud-based application (for example, an autonomous vehicle that has encountered an unusual situation and is unable to proceed). This would not be possible without 5G. It requires support for downlink data rates of up to 1 Mbps and uplink data rates of up to 25 Mbps; ultra-high reliability of 99.999 percent; end-to-end latency of 5 ms between the vehicle and the V2X application server; and message exchange between the vehicle and V2X application server for an absolute speed of up to 250 km/h. 

In ports across the world from the Port of Felixstowe as part of the 5G Ports project to the ports of Tianjin and Singapore, 5G is being used to remotely control and operate cranes. Aside from the increased productivity the automation brings, a remote operation provides the opportunity for centralisation of control which could reduce costs and improve efficiency. 

In Italy, the Port of Livorno is working with Ericsson to demonstrate automated remote control of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) for loading and unloading operations in the port area. It is expected that the UGVs — remotely controlled by a human operator — will cooperate by working in swarms, exploiting the technology of cloud and distributed computing. Their deployment is anticipated to lower vessel completion time, improve personnel safety and improve overall operational efficiencies. 

What’s more, the Horizon 2020 Project 5G BLUEPRINT has looked into using 5G for cross-border remote operation of road and maritime transport and logistics: asking, how could 5G benefit seamless marine logistics, and how long is the road to get there?

"You need high throughput and also low latency,” explains Imec business developer Bart Lannoo. “This means that you have a real-time view that is not delayed so that when the operator sees the image and takes action based on it, that action has to happen in real-time on the ship and the action is not delayed by a few seconds.”

Similarly, on a little-used stretch of track in eastern Germany, engineering firm Thales remotely controlled a train from a distance using a 5G network.

The Smart Junctions 5G project used a private 5G network to enhance the Vivacity Labs’ Smart Junction Project — an AI-based traffic signal optimisation system, deployed in Manchester. This was shown to cut waiting times at traffic signals significantly, prioritise traffic by class, and respond dynamically in emerging situations. For freight this could include the ability for lorries to be prioritised through road junctions, ensuring deliveries can be made on time. The project recorded a 1% journey time improvement over the junctions they controlled. With 16m journeys across those junctions happening each year with an average journey time across the junction time 100 seconds, this equates to a 1 second improvement per journey and for one urban four-arm junction, and a £45k yearly total road user cost saving. Read key learnings from the project. 

The NordicWay project is exploring a wide range of intelligent transport systems (for example, the ability for freight lorries to dynamically request access to bus lanes, which could help to improve the flow of freight through urban areas).

Similarly, WM5G partnered with Transport for West Midlands to deploy the UK's first 5G connected Road Sensor Network. Using sensors deployed on lamp posts, highly granular - yet fully anonymised - data is collected on all road users and vehicle types.  These insights open up possibilities to identify and solve congestion problems across all traffic settings, from hyperlocal to region-wide. This will help the flow of goods through the region and make it far easier for freight to deploy cameras and emissions sensors across the key route networks in the West Midlands. 

5G connectivity to ships at sea will be enabled by the integration of satellite networks into 5G: something digital advancements are making a realistic prospect. Several satellite providers have launched constellations of hundreds of low-earth orbit (LEO) satellites that operate in coordinated groups and are moveable. 5G’s speedy exchange of data in large volumes could reduce ship collisions, particularly in narrow channels or near shores. This boosts safety and more importantly, keeps freight moving: with maritime accounting for 95% of international freight arriving in the UK, any disruption through key shipping channels can very quickly impact the availability of products on shelves. 

A pilot scheme in Barcelona is pairing ​​5G with Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) to manage the flow of boats and ships: accurately locating each vessel in real-time, through a mix of image data and motion sensors. Operators can analyse live footage from cameras dotted around the port, accessing instant information about each ship’s bow, stern and motion. This facilitates remote navigation assistance and gives the port pilot the information needed to manage ship entry and dock operations, making everything safer, more sustainable and ensuring the fluid movement of goods.

State-of-the-art communications technologies — such as 5G, cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X) and mobile edge computing — help to better protect all road users. For freight lorries, safer roads provide a number of benefits: safer conditions for drivers, less disruption on the road network meaning the frictionless movement of goods — and through virtue of being involved in fewer accidents themselves, reduced insurance premiums. 

On the Sichuan Highway in Shanghai, 5G connected smart motorways have been introduced to identify accidents and hazards, enabling real-time responses. The Colorado Department of Transport is strategically deploying V2X capabilities on a 90 mile stretch of mountain highway, where sharp bends, steep gradients and extreme weather conditions have made it an accident hotspot. Closer to home, a high-tech ‘corridor’ was created on the A2/M2 in Kent to let specially-equipped vehicles interact with roadside infrastructure in a move that promises safer journeys. The project used a 5G wireless network to transmit information about road conditions, road works and time left for traffic lights to change to green, all designed to boost road safety. 

Highways England Head of Intelligent Transport Systems Group, Jo White, said:

"Connecting vehicles to each other and the road around can improve journeys, make them safer and give drivers reliable, real time personalised information; it could also help us manage traffic and respond to incidents."

Fleet telemetry solutions can provide real-time data to fleet managers and provide opportunities for logistics firms to dynamically re-route lorries and optimise fuel consumption and vehicle usage. This is being put to the test in Greece’s Piraeus port, where the installation of a 5G telematics device on trucks connected to various on-truck sensors is optimising efficiency. The aggregated telemetry data from the fleet of 5G connected trucks can be used for container jobs, predictive maintenance and coordination with external trucks.

Container terminal operator Eurogate Terminals has recruited Deutsche Telekom to build private 5G networks at port terminals in Hamburg, Bremerhaven, and Wilhelmshaven in Germany. The €6.6 million project, funded in part by the German government, will see networks running at each site by the spring of next year (2024). At the Port of Antwerp, Orange has worked with the port to deliver a 5G standalone campus network. 5G’s faster speeds and lower latency have enabled new use cases including connected tugboats, computer vision and AI to help detect faults in high-voltage cables around the port. Software-defined networking (SDN) and network slicing mean tenant companies have their own bandwidth and latency tailored to their requirements. 

The West Midlands was the first region in the UK to trial the concept of 5G-enabled identification of live kerbside parking availability. With the support of technology provider AppyWay, WM5G undertook a series of trials on Stratford Road in Birmingham. The demonstration saw a live HD street scan being captured from a vehicle travelling an agreed section of roadway. The footage was transmitted and processed via a 5G SIM and AI to confirm parking availability in real-time to the AppyParking app. By unlocking real-time availability parking data to drivers journey times, the flow of traffic and emissions levels can be improved. 

Around 520,000 UK van drivers typically spend over 20 minutes looking for a parking space for each delivery they make, with the average delivery driver spending a total of 1 hour and 40 minutes searching for parking every day. The potential impact of this is significant with the lack of parking for commercial vehicles estimated to cost the UK economy £76.2 billion per year, so the ability to dynamically assess kerbside parking availability has huge financial implications for logistics companies. 

Irish-based Manna is using 5G-enabled drones to deliver directly from restaurants and centralised kitchens to consumers’ homes. 5G’s reliable connection ensures that devices remain connected, enabling operators and customers to track deliveries, identify potential problems and know exactly when food has been delivered. Manna’s technology flies at an altitude of 80 metres and a speed of over 80kph, delivering within a 2km radius in less than 3 minutes. The company has tested its technology at a facility in Pontypool in Wales, with plans to launch into three regions in Ireland, and one in England. 

In 2022 Project XCelerate conducted flight trials along an 8km-long corridor, and aims to demonstrate how drones can operate safely in the same airspace as manned aviation. Key use cases include the use of drones to assist the emergency services, carry out 3D mapping, aid the police force, undergo safety inspections, and make deliveries. “As drone numbers continue to rise, there is an urgent need to safely integrate commercial drones into global airspace alongside manned aviation,” said Gerry McQuade, CEO of BT’s enterprise unit. “5G networks will ensure commercial drones remain connected for greater situational awareness, accurate positioning and to avoid collisions - ensuring they can be operated safely and responsibly across UK skies.”

UPS Flight Forward is using drones for the last hundred yards of delivery, where the delivery vehicle acts as a mobile final distribution point: 5G’s low latency and reliability ensure location awareness. The EU also plans to deploy 5G enabled autonomous commercial drones powered use cases in France, Finland and Greece. Unmanned Life’s 5G standardised architecture and software technology will act as the default architecture, with 5G-enabling video streaming from the drone and an AI-assisted person detection system. 

Taking this one step further, Vodafone and Sapcord — a global navigation company — have successfully trialled new precision positioning technology to remotely track a vehicle to within just 10 centimetres of its location for drone deliveries to moving targets. To achieve this, Vodafone used Precise Point Positioning-Real Time Kinematics (PPP-RTK) technology — which is the latest generation of GNSS correction services — and tracked the exact lane that vehicles were travelling in during a 100km journey. Such functionality could enable a far more dynamic delivery capability.

The West of England Combined Authority’s 5G Logistics project developed 5G products and services to support operations at Bristol Port and Gravity Smart Campus, demonstrating a smart and dynamic port environment. The project focused on security, traceability, and tracking of goods within and across extendable virtual boundaries – and between public and private networks. Automated drone flights for port police demonstrate how efficiency could be improved by event-triggered surveillance and multi-robot integration. 

Irish-based Manna is using 5G-enabled drones to deliver directly from restaurants and centralised kitchens to consumers’ homes. The network’s reliable connection ensures that devices remain connected, enabling operators and customers to track deliveries, identify potential problems and know exactly when food has been delivered. Manna’s technology flies at an altitude of 80 metres and a speed of over 80kph, delivering within a 2km radius in less than 3 minutes. The company has tested its technology at a facility in Pontypool in Wales, with plans to launch into three regions in Ireland, and one in England. 

In 2022 Project XCelerate conducted flight trials along an 8km-long corridor, demonstrating how drones can operate safely in the same airspace as manned aviation. Key use cases include the use of drones to assist the emergency services, carry out 3D mapping, aid the police force, undergo safety inspections, and make deliveries. “As drone numbers continue to rise, there is an urgent need to safely integrate commercial drones into global airspace alongside manned aviation,” said Gerry McQuade, CEO of BT’s enterprise unit. “In showing how drones can deliver improved, potentially life-saving services to the public, we’re aiming to accelerate the adoption of fully automated drones in unrestricted UK airspace in a safe and responsible way.”

Taking this one step further, Vodafone and Sapcord — a global navigation company — have successfully trialled new precision positioning technology to remotely track a vehicle to within just 10 centimetres of its location for drone deliveries to moving targets. To achieve this, Vodafone used Precise Point Positioning-Real Time Kinematics (PPP-RTK) technology — which is the latest generation of GNSS correction services — and tracked the exact lane that vehicles were travelling in during a 100km journey. Such functionality could enable a far more dynamic delivery capability.

The 5G Logistics project connected Bristol port to 5G, enabling full traceability of products through geo-fencing and continuous monitoring of the movement of goods and materials. Tracking at a container, pallet and individual items level not only improves visibility but boosts efficiency, as real-time automated monitoring and recognition replaces existing manual scanned barcode identification. For logistics firms (and their customers), this means reassurance that goods are where they’re supposed to be and can move through ports quickly and seamlessly.

High precision indoor tracking is being rolled out at the Ericsson 5G Factories in Sweden and Estonia; low-power tags on pallets, equipment and materials are transmitting real-time location data to the cloud, providing decision-makers with complete visibility of goods. This enables true digital twins for traceability of inventory, reducing loss of assets and ultimately improving end-to-end efficiency.  Ericsson estimates 25% efficiency gains compared to manual asset tracking which logistics firms could hope to recreate at their warehouses and depots.

Back in the UK, the 5G Factory of the Future project deployed a 5G enabled Chain of Custody system to increase visibility across the supply chain network through all tiers for assets and products. Smart monitoring of assets in transit enabled a Certificate of Conformity to be created, ensuring the product is in acceptable standards when it arrives. Sensors attached to goods and containers record environmental factors such as temperature, events such as shock, and location. Through this real-time condition monitoring, the project estimated 30% reduction in lost and damaged assets and improved scheduling accuracy. Read the end of project report.

The Port of Livorno is using 5G to transform into a digitally connected harbour with cameras, sensors and devices that can connect to network infrastructure. Critically, this can enable process automation where containers can communicate directly with both the target destination as well as all machines and humans along the supply chain.  At Rotterdam’s 5G-powered port, they are conducting a blockchain trial to allow all parties involved in the shipment of a container to access data on the shipment. In this way, hauliers or rail freight providers, port operators, customs houses and carriers will upload data on the container's progress as it completes each stage of its journey.

A fully connected airport likewise allows for visual tracking of freight. Chengdu Tianfu International Airport has delivered the first gigabit 5G airport and is using HD cameras to track the movement of goods through the airport. AI-assisted computer vision can also help to identify issues such as missing pallets.   

Equally, Nokia and mobile operator Citymesh have implemented a 5G private network at Brussels Airport to improve operational excellence and reliability driven by technologies: autonomous GSE, track-and-trace system, and an increase of IoT capacity.“By deploying a private wireless network over 5G the airport can operate a cable-free, autonomous network environment with its devices and third-party clients operating on a separate frequency from the public mobile networks,” Fai Lam, transportation marketing director for Nokia, told Avionics.

Project INGENIOUS is using 5G-enabled IoT and satellite technology to provide end-to-end connectivity to facilitate intermodal asset tracking: enabling enhanced real-time monitoring of products (both inbound and outbound, including those in shipping containers sailing across oceans without connectivity). Smart IoT gateways will also be installed allowing interoperability between heterogeneous IoT tracking devices, offering more control and lower overall costs. 

Danish shipping giant Maersk is undertaking a transformation that provides a prime example of the power of computing at the edge. Gavin Laybourne, global CIO of Maersk’s APM Terminals business, is embracing cutting-edge technologies to accelerate and fortify the global supply chain, working with technology giants to implement edge computing, private 5G networks, and thousands of IoT devices at its terminals to elevate the efficiency, quality, and visibility of the container ships Maersk uses to transport cargo across the oceans. Laybourne, who is based in The Hague, Netherlands, oversees 67 terminals, which collectively handle roughly 15 million containers shipped from thousands of ports. He joined Maersk three years ago from the oil and gas industry and since then has been overseeing public and private clouds, applying data analytics to all processes, and preparing for what he calls the next-generation “smartport” based on a switch to edge computing in real-time processing. 

“Edge provides processing of real-time computation — computer vision and real-time computation of algorithms for decision making,” Laybourne says. “I send data back to the cloud where I can afford a 5-10 millisecond delay of processing.”

The 5G Factory of the Future project deployed a 5G enabled Chain of Custody system to increase visibility across the supply chain network through all tiers for assets and products. Smart monitoring of assets in transit enabled a Certificate of Conformity to be created, ensuring the product is in acceptable standards when it arrives. Sensors attached to goods and containers record environmental factors such as temperature, events such as shock, and location. Through this real-time condition monitoring, the project estimated a 30% reduction in lost and damaged assets and improved scheduling accuracy. Read the end of project report.

To DHL Supply Chain, 5G is a critical piece of technology that enables better services for their customers and more efficient supply chain operations. Using private networks and IoT sensors to track, trace and record the position and status of packages, the internationally-renowned company utilises innovations — such as the Thermonet network, which is able to record temperature of sensitive life sciences shipments through international transport lanes — meaning that DHL’s customers are able to optimise their packaging requirements and DHL can provide assurance of end-to-end trackability of environmental conditions.

Maersk Line uses a 5G-facilitated GPS that is attached to each container to share data with support teams and customers via satellite transmitters on its vessels. This allows the company to accurately monitor container location and temperature, which is vital to ensure perishable goods arrive at their destination in the right condition. The impressive use-case has been designed to work whether on a truck, a quayside or in the depths of a vessel. “Remote Condition Monitoring (RCM) has the capabilities that our customers have wanted from us for a very long time. It is going to insert an unprecedented level of visibility and reliability into their supply chains that will make their business better,” said Vincent Clerc, chief commercial officer for Maersk Line.

Vincent Clerc, COO, Maersk Line, said:

"The old days of waiting, hoping and reacting are over. Our customers can now monitor and make decisions about their supply chain as their cargo moves, as well as use the data to study and improve their entire supply chain. Particularly for our customers with very sensitive, higher value refrigerated cargo, Remote Condition Monitoring significantly raises the total value proposition of refrigerated container trade."

Orange Business Services is already demonstrating container tracking for a shipping company that delivers goods on an eight-day voyage along the Yenisei River from Krasnoyarsk to Dudinka in Russia. The container's temperature is tracked via sensors. If there is a malfunction with any of the containers, an alert is sent so that preemptive measures can be quickly carried out to avoid losing perishable goods.

The 5G-LOGGINOV project is deploying 5G IoT devices and Machine Learning at the Ports of Piraeus in Greece and Koper in Slovenia to detect the presence or absence of container seals or structure damage during the unloading and unloading process of vessels. This enables problems to be identified more promptly and rectified as appropriate.  

The 5G-LOGGINOV project is deploying 5G across the Piraeus port in Greece, Port of Hamburg in Germany and the Port of Koper in Slovenia. In Piraeus, they are using 5G IoT devices to perform video analytic tasks that boost safety and security at the port premises. AI-assisted computer vision is focused on detecting the human presence in restricted and hazardous areas such as at railways or in an area with increased crane manoeuvres. Upon detection, an alert is triggered, enabling action to be taken before an accident occurs.

Similarly, a 5G network at the smart port in Tianjin (100Mbps uplink and 20ms latency) is powering video surveillance and AI to identify dangerous working conditions and most significantly, predictors of dangers. For instance, with Machine Learning, video feeds can monitor human crane drivers and machine operators to detect potential signs of fatigue that could lead to life-threatening mistakes being made. This early identification enables remedial steps to be taken, ensuring the safety of workers is maintained and the movement of goods is uninterrupted.

But it’s not just machinery that can pose a risk to workers in the sector. Delivery drivers were in unprecedented demand during the height of the pandemic and according to data from the Office for National Statistics, were at high risk of catching Covid-19 whilst at work — especially those in the medical sector. To address this, the Siriraj Piyamaharajkarun Hospital in Thailand started using 5G powered autonomous vehicles to deliver medical supplies around the site. 

The 5G Logistics project explored how 5G can empower the use of automated port police drones for boundary inspections, ad-hoc and event-triggered surveillance. Bristol port — with 500 acres of car compounds alone — makes surveillance a challenge. With the ability to quickly deploy drones to cover large areas in a short time, the security of the area is greatly enhanced.

The 5G-LOGGINOV project is deploying 5G at ports in Slovenia, Greece and Germany to increase security at port premises. Video analytics will focus on detecting the human presence in restricted areas and trigger respective alerts in the case of human detected incidents. Video analytics are also being used to detect broken or missing container seals at the point of locking and unlocking. Such measures enable potential security breaches to be identified more promptly — and rectified as appropriate. The technology could also be used to enable AI for facial recognition, as well as number plate recognition.

The West of England Combined Authority’s 5G Logistics project developed 5G products and services to support operations at Bristol Port and Gravity Smart Campus, demonstrating a smart and dynamic port environment. Among other things, the project targeted border control — creating 5G-enabled digitally geofenced zones and corridors. They demonstrated the potential to improve port estate management and the efficiency of logistics; enabling real-time monitoring of goods for customs and security purposes in a potential freeport multiple zone scenarios, and providing traceability and continuous geolocation and monitoring of goods and materials to allow coordination of movements between freeport and linked free zones. Read their end of project report.

The 5G-LOGGINOV project is deploying 5G at quayside cranes to optimise border control at port premises. Video analytics will be used to enable AI for facial recognition, as well as number plate recognition — ensuring people and goods are where they’re supposed to be at all times. Along the cross-border corridor in France, Germany and Luxembourg, 5GCroCo is similarly trialling 5G technologies to explore the technology and business models required for a real 5G cross-border solution that will enable true end-to-end monitoring and customs management of goods.

A 5G network at the smart port of Tianjin (100Mbps uplink and 20ms latency) has replaced fibre connections (latency around 60ms) to enable surveillance data and digitised records. Customs inspection and quarantine services at the port require the use of wireless networks, and workers’ tablets can distribute customs data (such as video surveillance and inspection records) to the Customs network through 5G MEC.

This shows that resiliency and stability can give transport businesses the confidence to migrate to wireless connectivity methods and enable a raft of agility and flexibility. The port remarked that 5G “improved data security and reduced latency compared to the public 4G network”. The port's traditional private network services are now to be gradually switched over to the 5G network to validate and optimise their stability, reliability and security as well as new business models under 5G.

The West of England Combined Authority’s 5G Logistics project developed 5G products and services to support operations at Bristol Port and Gravity Smart Campus and demonstrate a smart and dynamic port environment. The project used 5G to upgrade an existing smart junction automation setup, supporting functionality for extracting data to the cloud — departing from previous self-contained systems​​ — and enabling high-precision positioning of vehicles. Read their end of project report.

The 5G Maritime Project will help the Port of Barcelona manage its flow of boats and ships better by accurately locating each vessel in real-time, through a mix of image data and motion sensors. Operators can analyse live footage from cameras dotted around the port, accessing instant information about each ship’s bow, stern and motion. This will help to coordinate the movement of vessels and avoid blockages or delays in docking: such functionality could be particularly valuable for the UK, where maritime accounts for 95% of international freight arriving on our shore, with 419.1 million tonnes of goods handled in 2020-21. 

Hamburg is the third-largest container port in Europe and in 17th place on the list of the world’s largest container ports: 5G MoNArch has introduced connected traffic lights along the port’s central road by way of a 5G dedicated network slice. The Hamburg Port Authority expects this installation to have a significant impact on efficient port operations. Their smart port philosophy combines modern IT-supported transport and communications systems which help to accelerate traffic and trade flows in the port and coordinate them more efficiently. 5G-technology will further fuel this vision.

Building further on this, 5G-LOGGINOV’s Hamburg Living Lab will demonstrate the potential of leveraging positive environmental impact by using 5G for traffic management, in particular outside the port and the hinterland. It will develop and implement a methodology to capture the effect of the traffic infrastructure on regional emissions, making them comparable (standardised) by quantifying such influences under defined TMS congestion and other relevant factors (such as driver profile, vehicle profile and loading). The project will capture floating truck and emission data; use traffic light signalling to allow optimised trajectory planned for automated vehicle maneuvering across intersections, and enable emission data to trigger traffic management strategies in traffic control.