Singapore – Singapore’s Senior Minister of State for Communications and Information Janil Puthucheary on February 28 told the country’s parliament that new applications of 5G technology will be used this year in its three projects on electric vehicle manufacturing, river cleaning and security surveillance.

A 5G-enabled electric unmanned surface vessel for river cleaning and inspection. (Photo source: Weston Robot)

Puthucheary said that measurements by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) confirmed that Singapore's first two 5G standalone networks have reached 95 per cent nationwide outdoor coverage, ahead of a 2025 target for nationwide coverage.

Thus, Singaporean Ministry of Communications and Information (MIC) will focus on supporting the industry to tap on 5G's capabilities to enhance their operations and service offerings.

Specially, more than a hundred 5G-enabled robots are being deployed to transport materials to vehicle manufacturing cells at a factory of the Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Centre in Singapore

The 5G technology will allow for real-time data transmission between the automated control system and the robots. It will reduce labour-intensive activity, enhance workers' safety and allow them to take on higher-value roles, Puthucheary said.

According to MIC, the partnership between IMDA and Hyundai is considered as "the world's first 5G-enabled built-to-order electric vehicle factory".

In another new project, 5G-enabled electric unmanned surface vessels will be used for river cleaning and inspection in a partnership between IMDA and Weston Robot.

Currently, river cleaning is done manually from petrol-fuelled boats. Each boat produces as much as 20 tonnes of carbon a year and costs 6,000-12,000 SGD (4.450-8.900 USD) a year to maintain.

The electric vessels can run autonomously and use video analytics to detect and clear rubbish outside of the pre-programmed paths. They will also reduce carbon emissions by 80% compared to the gasoline boats.

The MCI said the electric unmanned vessels will improve workplace safety and reduce the need to work for long hours under the sun. A single operator at a command centre will also be able to pilot multiple electric vessels.

The other project is that developed by IMDA and Mind PointEye, in which 5G artificial intelligence-enabled sentry robots and patrolling vehicles are used for security surveillance. Security guards will be able to monitor locations remotely using video analytics that provide real-time push notifications of threats.

IMDA launched the 5G Innovation Programme with an investment of 30 million SGD in 2021 to accelerate adoption and commercialisation of enterprise 5G solutions. Seven 5G projects have received grants under the programme, including the latest three.