The simulations of VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland prove the performance and scalability of the new global IoT standard DECT-2020 New Radio (NR) for massive machine type of communication. The technology, already on its way to be included in the 5G standard, exceeds the 5G requirements defined by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Wirepas, a key contributor to the new standard with its connectivity software, see these results pave the way for the global expansion of the technology. 

The ITU requirements for 5G technology are strict. To be adopted, a technology needs to undergo thorough test simulations. To test the DECT-2020 NR technology, VTT built an extensive simulation platform and conducted an independent analysis of the functionality and performance in very high device densities. 

The simulations provided undisputable data on the DECT-2020 NR performance, confirming the technology met all the 5G requirements for massive machine-type communications. 

Juho Pirskanen, Principal System Engineer at Wirepas, explains that there were also other findings: “The extremely detailed simulations suggested that DECT-2020 NR has good power consumption and coverage properties. It also works well in varying user node densities, providing much needed flexibility in supported applications and system deployments. The use of mesh network topology is key to achieve these benefits.” 

- Pushing the simulation boundaries 

The 5G standard requires at least a million user nodes per square kilometer and the transmission of one packet in two hours per device. A wireless simulation scenario with one million users per square kilometre is enormous for detailed system simulation and required VTT to push the boundaries of their simulation software and hardware platforms. 

“We used the NS-3 simulation tool for this project. We developed a simulator where the simulation scenario could be split into several stages to minimize run time and computer memory consumption, which were both extremely high. We then ran various parallel simulations with high-performance computers. The simulation platform enabled testing performance of a very complicated network in a reasonable time: the biggest scenario where we analysed four million user nodes in a time period of two hours took only 24 hours in real time,” says Mika Lasanen, Senior Scientist and Project Manager at VTT.  

- More collaboration 

VTT has profound experience of wireless systems and network simulations. Wirepas has previously collaborated with VTT in different radio research projects.   

“We have great trust and experience in VTT’s radio experts for third-party technology validation. We are very pleased on VTT dedication on simulation details and results reliability showing that the DECT-2020 NR technology exceeds the ITU requirements. It is an important step in this standardization journey continuation. It offers completely new levels of performance for enterprises who can now independently manage their IoT solutions including networks and data”, says Jussi Numminen, Director of radio strategy and IPR at Wirepas.  

To provide first-hand performance estimates, Wirepas is planning on analysing more practical local network deployment scenarios. 

Tuomas Korpela, Solution Sales Lead from VTT, states that VTT is more than willing to continue the successful cooperation: “DECT-2020 NR has true potential to become widely used globally in areas such as smart buildings and factories, the energy sector and asset tracking. Further analyses on user requirements, resource allocation and performance measurements could be interesting next steps.” 

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