CBRS covers the shared spectrum from 3.55 MHz to 3.7 MHz in the United States and according to Qualcomm, applying this combination of 5G NR over CBRS will “support the growth of private networks propelling the Industry 4.0 evolution”. Long term evolution (LTE) based CBRS network deployments enable use cases such as Fixed Wireless Access (FWA), mobile network densification, and private cellular networks within many sectors. 

The field trial, which took place at Ericsson’s North America headquarters in Texas, combined the company’s 5G Distributed Innovation Network with a test device powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888 5G Mobile Platform and X60 5G Modem-RF System.

According to the companies, the standalone 5G network configuration with rooftop radios enabled them to carry out “various real-life test scenarios” including intra- and inter-band mobility and carrier aggregation as well as mobility between n48, 4G and 5G low-band. Coordination of CBRS and licensed spectrum will also allow advanced applications including mobile robotics and augmented reality industrial manufacturing in the future 

Paul Challoner, vice president of network product solutions at Ericsson North America, said: “The promise of 5G NR in the CBRS band offers nearly unlimited potential for enterprise applications and industries, and we are excited to once again collaborate with Qualcomm Technologies in this industry first achievement. “

The field trial is the second major industry-first completed by Qualcomm in the past month, who recently announced the launch of what it claimed was the world’s first autonomous drone platform with both 5G and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities.

Francesco Grilli, vice president of product management at Qualcomm, added: “This 5G NR call over CBRS spectrum is a significant milestone with Ericsson in enabling the full potential of 5G and will help address the increasing data demand and evolving use cases for wireless connectivity among consumers, enterprises, governments and other organizations [sic].”