AT&T (NYSE: T) has demonstrated 5G network capabilities for the U.S. Navy as part of a 5G-based warehouse project backed by the Department of Defense.
The company said Tuesday its 5G network showed data throughput speeds of more than 4 gigabits per second and latency of less than 10 milliseconds on commodity mobile devices at a Richardson, Texas-based testbed facility.
Lance Spencer, client executive vice president for AT&T’s defense business, noted the network throughput at the telecommunication company’s demo exceeded data transmission rates DOD has observed during other tests.
To kick off the project’s next phase, AT&T will now transfer its equipment from the testbed facility in Texas to Naval Base Coronado in San Diego to test and deliver 5G capabilities across the installation’s 120,000-square-foot warehouse to enable transshipment, inventory tracking and other logistics operations by connecting video cameras, autonomous robots, augmented reality systems and internet of things-based devices through the 5G network.
Upon the test’s completion, the company will start integrating the network with naval platforms to facilitate smart warehouse capabilities.
In October 2020, DOD made $600 million in awards to support 5G testing and experimentation projects with companies at five U.S. military installations and AT&T was selected to serve as a 5G services provider for two test sites: Naval Base Coronado and Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas.
The project at Fort Hood, which was initially designated for Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington, will focus on deploying a 5G network to support experimentation of an augmented reality/virtual reality capability for use in operations, distributed training and mission planning.
