Evaluation Engineering - 4

According to the latest mobile network forecasts by
global tech market advisory
firm ABI Research, 5G is
expected to have 12 million
connections worldwide by
the end of 2019. The number
of connections will then skyrocket to 205 million worldwide at the end of 2020, thus
starting the golden age of 5G.
The new generation is expected to grow much faster
than anticipated, and 5G connections are set to overtake
4G connections in 2025. ABI
Research expects approximately 3 billion 5G connections
in 2025 with 4G declining from
its current 3.9 billion to 2.2 billion at the end of the same year.
"Despite the challenges faced
by early adopters and the relatively high prices of 5G-capable
smartphones in 2019, ABI
Research expects 5G to reach the
mass market mid-2020, by which
time China will start to dominate
in terms of connections, and as a
result, market interest and technology expertise," said Dimitris
Mavrakis, research director at
ABI Research. "The infrastructure value chain is maturing,
handset vendors are manufacturing mid-tier 5G handsets, and consumers are now
discovering higher speeds, better user experiences, and new
services, including cloud gaming and AR/VR applications.
All of these will contribute to
the explosion of consumer 5G
in 2020."
A BI Research expects
China to dominate 5G deployment after all mobile
service providers launched
in November 2019 have deployed 5G in 50 cities before
launching.

Sandia mission addresses
satellite security

ID 120983882 © Tzogia Kappatou | Dreamstime.com

China will dominate
5G deployment despite
early lead by the USA
and South Korea

Electronics industry shudders
under impact of tariffs
An October report by IPC says that nearly 90% of U.S. electronics
manufacturers are feeling the sting from import tariffs levied
by the United States and China, and that some are investing
less in the U.S. and are hiring fewer workers. The IPC findings
were based on a survey of its U.S. members between Sept. 25
and Oct. 2. Some factoids emerging from the survey:
The average of companies responding said that they have
counted tariff hikes on 31% of the dollar value of the products
they import.
Almost 70% of companies reported lower profit margins.
More than a third of responding companies said they could
not raise their prices to make up the revenue losses, due to
various factors.
Just over 50% of respondents said they are now sourcing
from companies other than China because of tariffs on Chinese
imports.
"Our industry has longstanding concerns about some of
China's industrial policies, including government subsidies
and intellectual property violations," said IPC president and
CEO John Mitchell. "But addressing unfair trade practices by
ratcheting up tariffs is like using a sledgehammer to make
orange juice. In both cases, it's the wrong tool and makes a
mess of the job."
"We call on the governments of the United States and China to
de-escalate the tariffs, focus on results at the negotiating table,
and conclude agreements that address long-standing issues of
concern to both sides," Mitchell added.
"We also call on all members of the World Trade Organization
to restore that body's ability to play its role as arbiter of international trade disputes, so that nations won't feel a need to resort
to tariffs to resolve trade disputes," Mitchell said.

EVALUATION ENGINEERING DECEMBER 2019

Satellites are useful pieces
of equipment, but they have
shortcomings: they cannot
defend themselves.
However, resea rchers are making progress.
Researchers at Sandia National
Laboratories have launched
a 7-year mission to develop
the technology needed for
autonomous satellite protection systems. The campaign,
called STA RCS (Science
and Technology Advancing
Resilience for Contested
Space), will fund dozens of
Laboratory Directed Research
and Development projects that
focus on three critical areas:
* threat-defended hardware, which protects
satellite processors, circuits, and systems from
attacks;
* cognitive analytics, or
software algorithms that
can rapidly and independently detect, adapt to,
and defeat threats; and
* sensor protection that
shields sensors from
harm.

Sandia National Laboratories' Drew
Woodbury works on a flat-sat assembly designed to prove that software
and cyber defense algorithms work
before deploying them on orbiting
satellites.
Meagan Brace

http://www.Dreamstime.com

Evaluation Engineering

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