Mobile Private Networks Offer Critical Capability

Mobile Private Networks (MPN) are dedicated local networks that enable businesses to connect things using 4G or 5G technology. MPNs offer high quality and reliable security and control, covering a specific location while also addressing capacity and critical communication needs.  MPNs use WIFI, LTE or 5G technology and can be tailored to your requirements. But not all Mobile Private Networks are created equal, so before you decide which one is right for your business, it’s important to understand the differences.  

A Mobile Private Network, unlike public networks, offers private reserved coverage where, among other things, critical functions can be prioritized and security enhanced. But while the rise of 5G has caused a flurry of excitement around the topic of MPNs, private LTE and WIFI-based private networks are not new. They may not yet be widespread but, like 5G, they have their role to play in this space. 

WIFI 

WIFI-based private networks are ideal for things like document management, automated ticketing, gas sensors, and other applications that don’t carry a heavy load or where you don’t need to be 100% accurate. It will be reliable and cost effective within certain perimeters. That said, the more the load increases the more WIFI’s reliability goes down – and after a certain latency it is almost impossible to provide services.  

This means that you cannot provide low latency connectivity service for autonomous vehicles, for example, as they require almost 1 millisecond latency to be able to operate perfectly. Lower latencies are not possible and even normal latencies are not reliable, which is why WIFI is perfect for things like environmental sensing or behavioral analysis or other non-real time monitoring, but not so great for intruder detection.  

LTE 

With LTE, reliability increased with the load, so it is reliable up to certain latency. Once you reach that threshold – about 100 milliseconds – the reliability goes down and while it doesn’t decrease as quickly as with WIFI, it’s not possible to provide super-low latency and won’t have the reliability some businesses might require.   

This is also where you can have cable replacement. In transitional coverage on campuses you have cables and certain type of machinery that require high bandwidth and reliability. Because this doesn’t exist in WIFI, many use cables. With LTE you can start to replace those cables for many applications. This means cost cutting, because cables are expensive, and laying fiber cables is even more expensive because they are glass and you cannot even bend them. Cables also lock you in; imagine that you’ve laid out your cables and then your business starts to boom, and you need to scale. It will be a logistical nightmare to put in another line of production or switch the layout of your manufacturing plant if you’re relying on cables. LTE solves this problem  

5G 

When it comes to Mobile Private Networks, 5G has the most reliability, even with high loads. It’s also possible to have reliable and super low latency connectivity in the widest area possible. So, you can have control loops with guaranteed latency. This means there is a control loop mechanism guaranteeing latency everywhere in the plant, allowing things like autonomous vehicles to operate everywhere with super high precision, such as screwing things in or feeding production lines. And while 5G can cover the needs of WIFI and LTE, only 5G will be suitable for things alarm prediction, certain e-health applications, or evacuation assistance.  

With augmentation where workers on-site or in the field are augmented with high bandwidth devices with video sharing capabilities to be able to tap into remote centers of expertise in real-time, consult online databases, and interrogate connected equipment with AR status information overlay. This can be interpreted as AR/VR/XR devices and high bandwidth video cameras will become much more important on 5G mobile private networks.  

If you would like to learn more about how Tele2 IoT can enable your business, please get in touch.