U.S. operator AT&T and Badger Technologies, a division of U.S.-based Jabil Inc., are working together to spread retail automation by means of autonomous robots with 5G wireless networks.
Badger Technologies’ robots empower retailers to improve operational efficiencies and customer experiences by identifying out-of-stock, mispriced or misplaced inventory, as well as hazards within stores. These advanced mobile-data collection systems can fill major gaps in the collection and sharing of in-store data and images, but can also tax a store’s existing Wi-Fi network.
To better enable seamless, uninterrupted network connectivity, AT&T is testing 5G connectivity with Badger Technologies’ robots in a multi-access edge computing (MEC) environment. The goal is to demonstrate the ways in which 5G—using millimeter wave spectrum and edge computing—could provide Badger Technologies as well as retailers with the low latency and high throughput required to process and share vast amounts of data while running concurrently with other in-store network applications.
AT&T’s multi-access edge computing products could also help Badger Technologies increase hyper-local data processing by providing a more private network connection than typically associated with in-store Wi-Fi.
While 5G’s speed advantages for consumer smartphones remain to seen as networks are rolled out, it is incontrovertible that the next-generation network can deliver great improvements in data transmission for IoT and related automation applications. The use of robotics in retail stores is a relatively new technology that, while its kinks are still being ironed out, is clearly going to be important in the near future and can deliver many kinds of benefits, for example, in stocking, inventory management, in-store safety and cleanup. Controlling and communicating with these robots via 5G instead of in-store Wi-Fi is desirable in terms of speed and cybersecurity.
AT&T, by providing 5G network service to retailers and working with an appropriate technology partner, will be injecting itself into this sector in a way that promises growth in revenue and in business opportunities. While ultimately, AT&T—as well as other MNOs—will be able to provide 5G in automated environments to a variety of systems without necessarily partnering with all the robotics technology providers that are involved, partnering with Badger Technologies now is an excellent idea in that it allows the operator to demonstrate its 5G capabilities and thereby promote future business of this type.
5G in combination with edge computing allows for improved response times because the data is brought into closer physical proximity to the locations where it is used. Sharing greater and greater amounts of data between robots and control centers, without interfering with other in-store network-based tasks is very desirable to retailers, and achieving this would do much to sell the product. In addition, the fact that this 5G network would likely have more privacy protection than the relatively permeable in-store Wi-Fi adds to the appeal.
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