News | NAND Flash Storage Solutions for the Data-Driven 5G Era | ATP

Fifth-generation cellular network connection, or simply 5G, is the latest cellular technology iteration. It promises colossal improvements in speed, bandwidth, latency and spectrum over 4G/LTE. As 5G brings new capabilities and possibilities, a mobile revolution looms in the Internet horizon, allowing faster and greater connectivity that will change the way people create and consume content. Such changes will also change the way data is stored, processed and accessed in the evolving world of the Internet of Things (IoT) as well as the Industrial IoT (IIoT), where machines, sensors and devices communicate constantly.

Keys to Unlocking the 5G World

Here’s a quick look at key technology requirements to unleash the full potential of 5G:

• Latency – In networking, latency refers to delays that occur when data travels over a network. Applications that could benefit much from low latency include those that require instantaneous, time-critical communication. 5G is expected to deliver 10 ms latency, which is four to five times lower than 4G’s 40 to 50 ms.

• Connection Density – This refers to the number of devices that a network can support to deliver messages of a certain size within a certain time in a certain area. Even in areas that are densely populated, 5G can handle 10 terabytes per second per square kilometer, or 1,000 times the mobile data volume that 5G can handle. 5G is capable of supporting 1 million devices per square mile compared with 10,000 to 100,000 using 4G.

• Throughput– This refers to the amount of data that can be transferred within a given period of time. It measures the number of data packets that successfully reach the target destination per second. 5G throughput is pegged at 10 Gb/s, which is nearly 7 times better than 4G’s 1.45 Gb/s.

Aside from these, studies suggest that 5G will use 90% less energy per bit, resulting in longer battery life for mobile devices.

5G promises to be magnitudes better than 4G, and it is not just about speed. Near-negligible latency, a million devices connected per square mile, super low power consumption will certainly expand mobility in ways never before imagined and will impact every industry. Transportation, medical care, agriculture, manufacturing, aviation – all these and more will be transformed as 5G serves as catalyst for delivering new levels of performance and efficiency.

The Storage Challenge

The comparison above also shows that there will be 10x more data volume, as 5G is expected to enable billions of connected devices powering the IoT/IIoT. Clearly, 5G will deliver a major boost to IoT/IIoT applications, making this world not only more connected, but also data- rich and content-rich.

The following graph shows how much connected devices have increased over the years.

Figure 1.  The number of connected devices installed worldwide shows the continuing growth of IoT/IIoT 

Source: Security Today

According to a study by Statista, 75.44 billion devices will be connected by 2025. As devices connecting to 5G grow at exponential rates, these devices will generate massive amounts of data, with IDC estimates reaching 79.4 zettabytes by 2025.

Whether monitoring production on the factory floor, performing remote surgeries, navigating unfamiliar roads in an autonomous car, or getting updates on warehouse stocks, 5G will enable seamless, faster flows of information and speedy response times. 5G truly has the potential to unleash new possibilities in IoT/IIoT and empower artificial intelligence and machine learning. Data is at the heart of all these. And data in the 5G era will require expanded memory and storage capabilities.

Cloud storage has become a prevailing choice for many applications. However, 5G also empowers other applications that require real-time processing. IoT/IIoT devices will continually generate oceans of data that may be too huge to move, store and process from the cloud to be useful. With data surging in terms of volume, velocity and variety, 5G will require data storage closer to the source to provide timely retrieval and processing of data on demand.

ATP Electronics: Enabling the 5G Data Revolution

In this data-driven generation, 512 GB to 1 TB and up will be common storage capacities as 5G is expected to generate data at exponential rates. The following figure from Micron shows the memory and data storage requirements from 1G to 5G.

Figure 2. The Cellular Network Evolution shows the memory and storage requirements of different cellular technologies. 

Source: Micron

ATP Electronics is ready and capable of meeting the data influx with its “Industrial Only” NAND Flash memory and storage solutions.

For 5G applications requiring low latency and fast throughput, ATP offers blazing-fast removable and embedded flash storage solutions delivering near-real-time responsiveness. For example, M.2 2280 NVMe modules with 8-channel PCIe Gen3 x4 interface deliver 3,420/3,050 MB/s sequential read/write performance, and 3D TLC SD/microSD cards feature 4KB page management and SLC caching algorithm, which allows 1/2 random access time and low latency compared with traditional solutions.

With 5G capable of supporting 1 million devices per square mile, there will be a huge demand for NAND flash storage in various form factors, interfaces and capacities, as well as performance and endurance ratings and other criteria, depending on use case. ATP solutions are available in different flash types, from single-level cell (SLC), multi-level cell (MLC), triple-level cell (TLC) and pseudo SLC (pSLC). They are also available in planar (2D) and 3D NAND, with customizable endurance options for best total cost of ownership (TCO) value.

ATP’s comprehensive portfolio meets stringent international standards. Each product is designed, built and tested rigorously to withstand tough operations and harsh environments.

Figure 3. ATP’s comprehensive NAND flash storage portfolio.

5G-Tailored Customization

Not all 5G applications have the same requirements. New 5G capabilities will give birth to various use cases that will add to the already-diverse mix. Standard, off-the-shelf NAND flash storage products might seem the easiest and cost-friendly solutions, but these may not meet the endurance and workload requirements of specific use cases.

ATP Electronics is well-equipped to assess a customer’s application needs and customize configurations based on those needs to optimize TCO. Firmware, production testing tools, and even operational processes may be designed for a wider base of customers, including those with smaller volume quantities.