5G Testing in Ambulances and Buses

Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Conventry to carry out 5G tests in ambulances and buses.

19:07 10 September 2018

The UK government has been very aggressive in exploring the benefits that 5G can offer. It has recently announced that three cities in the Midlands are now all set to develop 5G pilots funded by local authorities and the Department for Culture Media and Sport (DCMS).

 

The trial aims to use 5G to improve buses, hospitals and emergency services by allowing personnel to get information to customers and patients faster and more efficiently. The trials will be run by DCMS and the West Midlands Combined Authorities, a bureaucratic body of 18 local authorities overseen by the Mayor of the West Midlands.

 

Mischa Dohler, from King's College London's Centre for Telecommunications Research said: "The underlying technology has been standardised since mid-June 2018, so we're going from pre-trials to real commercial deployment. Chips are being manufactured and we're assembling technology,"

 

There are now plans to allow some hospital outpatient appointments and emergency consultations to be carried out by video link. It is hoped that 5G can be used to ensure that the calls will be less likely to lose connection. With this technology, 5G ambulances could have crew video conference with specialist medical staff and send back real-time patient data to hospitals so they are prepared for their arrival.