Capgemini, a global leader in business and technology transformation, Thales, a global leader in advanced technologies for the Defense, Aerospace and Cyber & Digital sectors, and Thales Alenia Space, a joint company between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), have been selected by the French Space Agency (CNES) as part of a government-backed call for projects under the France 2030 program to lead an innovative demonstration of 5G direct-to-device (D2D) connectivity.
The project named U DESERVE 5G will demonstrate the feasibility of direct communications between satellites and mobile devices or fixed terminals (5G direct to device, or D2D). A demonstrator satellite will be placed in low-Earth orbit to test interoperability between terrestrial and nonterrestrial 5G networks. The project will use a set of scenarios to evaluate how smoothly devices can switch between satellite and terrestrial 5G coverage, which is a crucial step toward truly global, seamless and uninterrupted connectivity.
At the heart of the project is an innovative 5G satellite payload with an active antenna. It will enable voice calls and data transmission directly between the satellite and a test mobile device, without routing via a ground station. The demonstrator will include all components of the chain: test satellite, payload, NTN* ground segment and test mobile devices. It will be compatible with Release 17 of the 3GPP 5G standard and will provide an end-to-end test platform to evaluate the performance of the 5G NTN/TN system and trial use cases, especially involving the Internet of Things (IoT).
“This pioneering 5G-by-satellite project represents a major breakthrough for Thales and the telecommunications industry,” said Alexandre Bottero, VP Networks and Infrastructure Systems for Thales.
“This project perfectly emphasizes Capgemini’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of connectivity. Thanks to our unique expertise in integrating terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks, in addition to our mastery of radio access solutions and 4G/5G core networks, Capgemini is playing a key role in demonstrating 5G via satellite,” said Angélique Lallouet, Executive Director of Capgemini Engineering in France.
