Govt conducts successful trial of 5G connectivity by balloons; drones next

Project aims to ease communication during disasters

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has conducted a trial to provide 5G connectivity using balloons in the case of disasters or emergencies.

It is also planning to issue a request for proposal (RFP) to conduct a trial for providing 5G services using drones, sources privy to the development said on Friday.

The DoT is planning to contact at least five drone companies -- Zuppa Geo Nav Tech, Ayaan Autonomous Systems, Comrado Aerospace, Blueinfinity Innovation Labs, and Sagar Defence Engineering -- to participate in the RFP for the second pilot project.

Sai Pattabiram, managing director, Zuppa Geo Nav Tech, told Business Standard: “I don’t have any information on either this RFP or the application, nor have I been approached for it. It could be that since we are the only Indian manufacturer of cyber-secure autopilots (electronics) for drones, our name must have been included.” Other four companies did not respond to the newspaper’s queries.

The pilot project with a balloon was conducted last month by the DoT in Nurmathi village, Visakhapatnam district, Andhra Pradesh. The project demonstrated speeds of up to 10Mbps could be achieved in a radius of approximately 1 km, sources said.

In the project, a G-Node B (GNB) was placed on the balloon while the control unit was situated either in a vehicle down below or a dedicated area on the ground. The balloon went up to the height of about 100 metres, with a carrying payload capacity of 10-15 kg, which accounts for the weight of GNB and antennas, according to sources.

A GNB is a 5G base station that connects mobile devices to the 5G core network, managing data transfer and communication services.

The DoT conducted the pilot project with a balloon in collaboration with the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) and the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT).

Operational since 1969, the TIFR’s National Balloon Facility in Hyderabad conducts stratospheric balloon launches and scientific balloon studies, being the only research centre of its kind in Asia.

While C-DOT comes under the DoT, the TIFR comes under the Department of Atomic Energy. The DoT, TIFR, and C-DOT did not respond to Business Standard’s queries.

The DoT studied various similar global projects before giving the green light to the two trials -- one with balloons and one with drones. Its disaster management unit, responsible for ensuring uninterrupted communication during and after disasters, has taken the lead on the project.

Apart from establishing communication channels during such disasters, 5G signals from balloons and drones may help in early warning messages and implementing automated priority call routing, the unit says.

Google’s Project Loon, which aimed to provide internet access to remote and underserved areas using high-altitude balloons, was studied.

In 2021, Project Loon was discontinued.

French project Stratobus, which is being conducted by Thales Alenia Space, aims to deploy autonomous airships at an altitude of about 20 km to provide surveillance, communications and environmental monitoring. This project, which is still in development, was studied by the DoT too, sources said.

Airbus’s Zephyr solar-powered drones can provide surveillance and communication capabilities while flying in the stratosphere. Zephyr, which has completed a few test flights and is being experimented, was also studied by the DoT.

Sunglider, which is being developed by HAPS Mobile, is a solar-powered high-altitude platform station as an international mobile telecommunications base station (HIBS). It aims to provide connectivity in remote areas and disaster-stricken regions. Sunglider has undergone successful test flights and it was studied by the DoT.

Helios, which is being developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, is an experimental solar-powered aircraft and it reaches altitudes exceeding 29 km during test flights. Helios, which is not a commercial HIBS, was studied by the DoT too.

Facebook’s Project Aquila, which aims to provide internet access using solar-powered drones at stratospheric altitudes, has been discontinued. However, the DoT studied Project Aquila too.

Reaching for the sky

> Balloon trials in Andhra Pradesh achieved 10Mbps speeds within 1 km radius at 100 meters’ height.

> DoT collaborated with TIFR Hyderabad and C-DOT for the balloon trial

> DoT studied global projects like Google's Loon and Airbus's Zephyr before initiating trials

> Project aims for disaster communication, using 5G balloons/drones for warnings and priority call routing