Industry giants trial ‘digital twin’ technology to perform site upgrades

The duo claim the use of what they refer to as ‘digital twin’ representations of the physical environment will “virtualise” both the network planning and deployment process, as well as site upgrades, to ensure they are “safer and more accurate”.

Network construction currently requires a large number of onsite personnel, including structural engineers, radio and transmission planners, acquisition agents, and site designers.

During the trial, Ericsson’s ‘Intelligent Site Engineering’ technology will be used by a single on-site engineer. Drone and Lidar technology will be used to collect information on structural conditions and line-of-sight measurements.

All captured data will then be accessible via the cloud as a digital twin model, allowing for ‘virtual site meetings’. Vodafone and Ericsson are planning to capture data from 70 different sites due to be upgraded during the initial phase of the trial.

Andrea Dona, chief network officer at Vodafone UK, said: "The introduction of new technology to improve our processes has significant benefits for our own operational efficiencies and reducing our carbon footprint, but it also allows us to deliver on our promise to customers faster."