Xiaomi Contributes to Advancing 5G Standards Together with Global Partners

Xiaomi, a consumer electronics and smart manufacturing company with smartphones and smart hardware connected by an IoT platform at its core, is proud to announce that it has been invited to participate in three research projects being convened by 3GPP, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project, a key international organization in the development of mobile communication standards. Xiaomi will be leading these three projects and working with global partners to explore innovative communication technologies.

These three projects were approved as part of 3GPP Release-18 — an agreed system to provide technology developers with a stable platform for the implementation of features — and include research on 3GPP RAN (Radio Access Network) and 3GPP SA (Service & System Aspects). Xiaomi welcomes the opportunity to collaborate with other industry leaders and partners to contribute to the development of the global mobile communication industry. Below is a brief overview of each project:

Research Project 1: The In-Device Coexistence (IDC) project for 3GPP RAN Release-18 aims to solve the problem of wireless self-interference inside the terminal equipment, which has long plagued operators and terminal manufacturers worldwide. Right now, multiple wireless communication signals coexist in a smartphone at the same time, such as 2/3/4/5G cellular networks, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and satellite positioning, which require distinct wireless transceivers in the same device. The transceivers also interfere with each other at the physical level, and for users, the interference can affect the sound quality on voice calls, and the strength of a device’s Wi-Fi connection. The 3GPP research on IDC technology will facilitate coordination between terminals and networks to avoid mutual interference of electromagnetic waves, allowing devices to use multiple wireless modules more smoothly at the same time. It will improve user experience and make future smartphones compatible for more features.

Research Project 2: The Ranging Based Services and Sidelink Positioning project of 3GPP SA Release-18 aims to enable technology to measure relative distance and angles. This has a wide range of applications including for smart homes and offices, smart cities, object tracking, content sharing, and autonomous driving. Xiaomi and its partners will study how to use this technology on licensed, unlicensed or ITS (Intelligent Transport Systems) frequency for UEs in coverage, partial coverage or out of 5G coverage with or without the assistance of operator networks. The research is expected to contribute to the wider application of this technology and to securely empower the Internet of Things.

Research Project 3: The Satellite Access Phase 2 project of 3GPP SA Rel-18 will help solve the problem of discontinuous coverage of satellite signals — a problem relating to the absence of satellite coverage. This project will ensure that after a gap in satellite coverage, the 5G core networks enable the temporary storage of uplink and downlink mobile phone data and ensure low power consuming of the phone until the phone re-enters an area with satellite coverage.

Hong Wei, Head of the 3GPP Standards and Research, Standards and New Technology Department, Technology Committee at Xiaomi Group, said: “As a world-leading smart manufacturing and consumer electronics company, Xiaomi is proud of its technological contributions in the fields of smartphones and IoT in recent years. We are honored to lead research projects for 3GPP standards, which reflects Xiaomi’s industry-leading capabilities. This is the first time that Xiaomi has led research for a 3GPP Release. We are very grateful to 3GPP and its member companies for their trust and support. We hope to continue to strengthen the cooperation and exchange with industry partners, that all enterprises work together to build an innovative, convenient, friendly and interconnected world.”

As an authoritative international standards organization in the information and communication industry, 3GPP has been developing communication industry standards for more than 20 years, and guides the research direction for future wireless technology development globally. More than 200 active global manufacturers and operators are members of 3GPP, and the organization has successfully articulated widely-adopted international communication standards including 3G, 4G and 5G.