Shenzhen Power Supply Bureau Applies the World’s First 5G CPE for Time Service

Shenzhen - The first 5G CPE for time service across the world, co-developed by China Southern Power Grid and Huawei has recently been successfully applied to the differential protection scenario of distribution network in Shenzhen Power Supply Bureau, with its timing precision, channel delay and current differential relay all up to expectations, laying a firm foundation for the extensive utilization of 5G smart grids in CSG and the further commercialization of 5G CPE for time service.
In the future, 5G is expected to be the used extensively in power distribution where differential protection plays a key role in shortening power outage time and troubleshooting problems effectively.
Differential protection demands a high quality of communication, including precise time service and ultra-low latency, which could not be met by solely using 4G technology. Optical fiber is one possible solution, but if it is to be the alternative for the whole network, the cost of development and maintenance will be too high to sustain.
5G CPE for time service is a key technology for differential protection of distribution network, which has to be adapted to the 5G protection device’s Layer 3 protocol for data transmission.
According to the senior staff of the Shenzhen Power Supply Bureau, the new CPE can meet the high demands of differential protection, offering a time service with an accuracy of 0.001 ms and latency within 15 ms.
It is estimated that the new CPE could slash the cost of development and maintenance for communication by 80%, a real solution to the expansion of 5G technology in the differential protection scenario.
Since Year 2019, supported and guided by China Southern Power Grid, the Shenzhen Power Supply Bureau, through its cooperation with China Mobile and Huawei, has made meaningful achievements on the creative application of 5G and evaluated the performance of 5G in power distribution and transformation.
It is estimated that by the end of Year 2022, there will be more than 4,400 5G power service terminals available for use for Shenzhen power grids.