DALLAS, Aug. 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --
What's the news? The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UT) and
AT&T* are working together to accelerate research and
develop innovative new capabilities powered by AT&T 5G using
millimeter wave spectrum (5G+) and Multi-Access Edge Computing
(MEC) technology on the UT campus. The AT&T 5G+ network is
expected to enable the university to help make an impact on society
beyond conventional engineering through potential uses in several
industries including defense, public safety, healthcare, education,
entertainment and banking.
UT is the hub of a vibrant research community that includes Oak
Ridge National Laboratory, The University of
Tennessee Research Park at Cherokee Farm, and other
University of Tennessee System campuses
and institutes. The addition of AT&T 5G+ technology can enhance
its research capabilities and create opportunities to help solve
issues that impact the university, the region, and the world.
As part of these enhancements, an expert faculty group from
multiple departments in UT's Tickle College of Engineering has been
created to collaborate on research and teaching, seek funding and
establish partnerships with industry leaders and the UT
community.
Why is this important? AT&T 5G+ and MEC will
provide a high-speed private network on campus that can bring
ultra-low latency, ultra-high speeds and better capacity. Combined
5G and edge technology can support unprecedented digital learning,
research and development opportunities for faculty, students,
administration and other researchers. Planned use cases at the UT
campus powered by AT&T 5G+ and MEC include:
- Bringing 5G to rural areas – Mobile 5G networks can
provide reliable high speed, low latency, and high capacity
connectivity to rural areas and help improve the quality of life
and equity within those communities, including access to
telehealth, education, local economies and job creation. 5G
technology can render itself to portable platforms enabling on the
move type of services for gap measures to address the digital
divide. Furthermore, the use of 5G+ sensing technology renders
itself to agricultural applications such as supporting precision
agriculture technologies by allowing for real-time monitoring of
the soil and crop health.
- Expand academic and training offers for students –
AT&T's 5G+ with MEC is expected to enable immersive learning
experiences such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR)
to render new environments for student experimentation and
learning, especially for situations that are not accessible to
students due to cost, risk or feasibility. Examples of these
virtual environments might include exploring nuclear power plants,
the depths of the ocean, or experiencing a rocket launch.
Furthermore, near real-time capabilities enables the combination of
artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technology
to gather and analyze large amounts of data using student's
biometric signatures to evaluate student performance and the amount
of time they're engaged in course material to personalize learning
experiences.
- Millimeter wave radars to see through physical
barriers – The military will explore the use of millimeter
wave radars to help warfighters to "see through" physical barriers
such as walls. This solution would include a portable
communications system that captures and shares images through a
wall, allowing soldiers with connected devices to exchange this
information with each other in near real-time to help protect and
defend against potential threats. The new 5G testbeds will
facilitate testing, refining, and validating the low latency
connectivity vital to these experiments.
When will the technology be implemented? The
testbed installation for AT&T 5G+, which uses millimeter wave
frequencies, is underway and expected to be completed by Fall
2021.
What are people saying?
Dr. Donde Plowman, Chancellor,
University of Tennessee,
Knoxville
"We are excited to bring the expertise and
talent of our faculty together with the capabilities of an industry
leader like AT&T to solve real world problems. Our
collaboration will not only provide a better network on our campus
for students, faculty, and staff, but it will also create
opportunities for innovation and collaboration that could change
the lives of Tennesseans."
Dr. Ozlem Kilic, Associate
Dean for Academic and Student Affairs, Tickle College of
Engineering, University of Tennessee,
Knoxville
"The technology behind next generation
broadband systems, 5G and beyond, is expected to impact society
perhaps even more than the internet. Customized and smart systems
will be at our fingertips connecting all devices surrounding us,
and instantly processing and optimizing information touching
everything we do as an individual, community, society, and more.
This collaboration with AT&T provides our research and
education community at UT a platform to collaborate across
disciplines to address societal needs and improve quality of life
at all fronts."
Dr. Aly Fathy, Professor, Min
H. Kao Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science,
University of Tennessee,
Knoxville
"The new 5G+ testbed will lead to a smarter
campus and enable massive machine-type communications that place UT
research in the forefront of the automation and digitization
implementation. The new resources will also complement the newly
established NSF Industry University Collaborative Research Center
for High Frequency Electronics and Circuits for Communication
Systems. Furthermore, UT's ongoing defense research at the Tickle
College of Engineering's ultra-wideband lab will greatly benefit
from the 5G technology's faster unprecedented connectivity,
ultra-notable reliability and security, superfast broadband with
lower latency and network slicing to provide almost real time data
analysis and visualization. Multitude of innovation opportunities
and training for our future generation of engineers and
entrepreneurs will be realized."
Randy McNally, Lieutenant
Governor, Tennessee
"Access
to ultra-fast 5G technology is critical to Tennessee's economic future and for business
and Tennesseans alike. This work with AT&T and the University of Tennessee is another step in setting
the groundwork for future capabilities that will help unlock new
economic development opportunities for Tennessee."
Jason Porter, President,
AT&T Public Sector and FirstNet
"Bringing AT&T 5G to
the University of Tennessee's already
robust research community opens the door for exploring new
possibilities, developing innovative solutions to real-world
problems and furthering ambitions to make a positive and productive
impact on society. The possibilities are wide open with 5G and we
look forward to delivering the capabilities that will power the
innovative solutions and applications that the students, faculty
and other researchers develop."
Joelle Phillips, President,
AT&T Tennessee
"The men and women of AT&T Tennessee
are turning billions of dollars of investments into high-speed
connections for businesses and residents across the state, and with
this announcement, the staff and students at the University of Tennessee will have access to
technology capable of unforeseen innovation. This investment is
possible thanks to the positive, pro-investment policies pursued by
Tennessee's legislative leadership
who created a regulatory environment welcoming of next generation
networks."
Go here for more information about AT&T's 5G work with
universities and here for more information about the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
*About AT&T Communications
We help family, friends and neighbors connect in meaningful ways
every day. From the first phone call 140+ years ago to mobile video
streaming, we @ATT innovate to improve lives. AT&T
Communications is part of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T). For more
information, please visit us at att.com.
About University of Tennessee,
Knoxville
The University of Tennessee,
Knoxville, is the state's flagship research university, a
campus of choice for outstanding undergraduates, and a premier
graduate institution. As a land-grant university with an enrollment
of more than 30,000, the institution fulfills its access mission
through a commitment to excellence in learning, scholarship, and
engagement. For more than 225 years, Volunteers have been lighting
the way for others, across Tennessee and throughout the world.
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SOURCE AT&T Communications