5G networks are the evolution we needed to enjoy a better and faster mobile connection. And, for this very reason, the different operators in our country have been working to offer the best service. Among them, Vodafone, which now has set up a portable 5G network and, above all, cheap, with a Raspberry Pi.
In this way, it has managed to combine the power of 5G technology with the small size of a Raspeberry Pi computer. For what has been achieved have a 5G network that we can take anywhere. A concept, ‘a pioneer in the sector’, which will allow small businesses and households to expand the coverage of this fifth generation mobile network.
Raspberry Pi with 5G
Vodafone has taken a step forward in terms of the advancement of fifth generation networks. And it is that, on this occasion, it has presented a pilot project with which it has managed to set up a 5G network that it is portable and affordable on a Raspberry Pi. In this way, it will be possible to expand the mobile coverage of this network and increase the capacity according to the needs of households and small businesses in Spain. More than anything, because a private 5G network can be set up in a more economical way, which can be easily moved.
In fact, this combination, between Vodafone’s 5G network and the versatility offered by these devices, will be able to make mobile private networks (MPNs) 5G-based networks more accessible to the 22 million small and medium-sized businesses across Europe. And not only this, but it will also be able to favor the expansion of the coverage of this mobile network in homes.
In addition, with this pilot project it is expected to provide an additional broadband connection so that, when necessary, the connection of homes can be improved, especially when several people or residents are going to be connected to the network simultaneously.
Vodafone’s new system
This new system from Vodafone combines a Raspberry Pi 4 with a small embeddable software-defined radio (SDR) circuit board and 5G compatible. Furthermore, it has been manufactured by the UK-based specialist, Lime Microsystems. With this, it has been achieved that the SDR board can convert any computing platform into a miniature 5G base station.
Thanks to this, it has been possible to set up a system that can be used as part of a private network, an extension of a larger MPN or connected to the Vodafone public network like any other base station. In addition, another point in its favor that we find in this operator’s project is that the board design is completely compatible with Open Radio Access Network standards (RAN). This leads us to the fact that it can be used ‘with any computing machine capable of running Open RAN compliant software‘, as the operator has made clear. Although, for the moment, we are only facing a prototype of the project that Vodafone has on its hands.