Nokia and Sendai test drones for use in tsunamis

Testers tried to use drones to lead people out of danger in a tsunami simulation scenario

Nokia and the Japanese city of Sendai announced on Tuesday that they had successfully tested the use of drones against tsunamis and other disaster scenarios.

The trial used a drone equipped with speakers, a high-definition camera and a thermal imaging camera.

During the trials, drones were used under simulated tsunami scenarios, with testers using the drones to record and deliver real-time voice messages, such as tsunami warnings, to test evacuations in coastal areas.

Nokia claims testers are also guiding people to evacuation sites by using drones to convey directions, using drones to monitor the movements of evacuees, and conducting aerial surveillance via streaming footage from its HD and thermal cameras.

Sendai Mayor Kazuko Kohri said: "The use of these drones seems to be very effective in ensuring the safety and security of Sendai and its surrounding areas. Nokia's demonstration shows that during the incubation period of a disaster, we should be able to respond faster and provide People in hard-hit areas provide better information.”

The trial was conducted on a private LTE network near the Minami-Gamo water treatment center in Sendai and used Nokia’s plug-and-play digital automation cloud technology.

The drone was tested at the World Disaster Prevention Forum in Sendai from November 9 to 12.

Last month, the Finnish telecom equipment maker announced a 5G trial in partnership with Japanese telecom NTT DoCoMo and industrial automation company Omron. The trials aim to combine 5G and artificial intelligence to create "real-time guidance" for workers.

"Machine operators will be monitored using cameras to analyze activity trajectories and provide feedback on performance, powered by artificial intelligence," Nokia said at the time.

Optus and Ericsson5GNetwork conducted drone test

At the same time, two Australian companies, Optus and Ericsson, claimed that they successfully tested a remote-controlled drone on a 5G online network. The test is unprecedented for the country.

The flight was completed at Macquarie Park in Optus. As part of the demonstration of future use, the drone transmitted high-definition video in real time through the 5G network of 5G mobile phones.

The drones also use a processor in the cloud over a 5G connection to identify and track target groups, Optus said.

Dennis Wong, general manager of Optus, said: "Thanks to the ultra-high performance and low latency of 5G, which is crucial for technological support, network construction has developed accordingly and reached a mature level in about 18 to 24 months. We also will start to see these initiatives come to fruition”

Earlier this month, the telco announced that 138,000 households within its 5G coverage area could subscribe to fixed wireless services.

Ahead of this, telcos rallied customer interest in connectivity services.

Optus claimed at the time that it had "more than 200" customers connected to the service. The Optus Home service kicked off at the beginning of the year, with customers paying $70 a month for unlimited data, with guaranteed minimum speeds of 50 Mbps.

Currently, Optus has more than 290 5G sites using Ericsson and Nokia equipment.

Original author: Campbell Kwan

To reprint this article, please obtain authorization from this site first.