SKT Demonstrates AI Media Quality Improvement Solution
LGU+ Monitors Factories from 10,000km Away
KT Introduces 5G Network Standards for Enterprises

MWC19, held in Barcelona, Spain from February 25th to 28th, was abuzz with interest in 5G.

4G, which focused on faster transmission of large amounts of data than previous generations, transformed the global media landscape. 5G, on the other hand, boasts ultra-high speeds, ultra-low latency, and hyper-connectivity that will transform the landscape not only in media but across all sectors. In particular, it can help businesses achieve their eternal goal of increased productivity.

When Korea's three major mobile carriers launched their first commercial 5G services on December 1st, they chose industrial sectors as their first customers. SK Telecom welcomed Myunghwa Industrial Co., Ltd. in Ansan's Banwol Industrial Complex, LG Uplus LS Mtron, and KT welcomed the AI robot Lota as its first 5G customer. These efforts aim to increase customer productivity and expand their own business areas.

The three companies unveiled smart factory solutions utilizing 5G one after another at MWC19, laying the groundwork for the full-fledged convergence of 5G and smart factories.


SK Telecom's AI-based media quality improvement solution, Supernova
Supernova, unveiled by SK Telecom at MWC19, improves the quality of video and audio, enhancing service quality and dramatically reducing processing time. This is because SR (Super Resolution) technology based on deep learning algorithms that process image, video, and audio data was applied.
Supernova can analyze a variety of data, including camera-captured footage, existing media files, and images detected by industrial equipment sensors. Therefore, it can be applied to both industrial settings and individual customer services, including content platforms, intelligent security services, and e-commerce.

Its usefulness has already been proven.

Last October, SK Telecom piloted Supernova in SK Hynix's semiconductor quality assessment (QA) process and has since been continuously improving its performance to enhance productivity. After implementing Supernova, SK Hynix achieved a dramatic reduction in the time required to inspect wafer images.

The QA process for assessing semiconductor wafer defects requires high-quality semiconductor images. Conventional semiconductor processes involve repeatedly photographing wafers and synthesizing the images. However, with Supernova's deep learning algorithm, which uses AI to analyze the images, the number of images taken and processing time has been drastically reduced. SK Telecom plans to further enhance the technological level of Supernova so that it can be applied to a wider range of fields.

SK Telecom Media Labs Director Jeon Jin-soo said, “AI-based high-speed media improvement technology can be applied not only to various industries, but also widely applied to B2B and B2C services.” He added, “Based on our advanced technology, SK Telecom will build a service ecosystem utilizing Supernova and continue to provide services that keep pace with the advancement of 5G.”


LG U+ Connects Barcelona and Pyeongtaek, 10,000km Away, with 5G
At MWC19, LG Uplus, in partnership with LG Electronics and LG CNS, unveiled and demonstrated a 5G-based smart factory service. The demonstration connected the MWC19 venue in Barcelona, Spain, to the Mold Technology Center at the LG Electronics Materials/Production Technology Institute in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, in real time.
The Mobile Manipulator Specification (Mobile Manipulator Specification) controls the movements of autonomous logistics robots and provides path images, enabling the robots to load and unload processed parts onto shelves using the most efficient paths. It can also automatically change its path if obstacles are encountered. Users can monitor the battery operation status and location of logistics robots in real time inside and outside the factory through the production management system.

In places like precision machining plants, where maintaining ambient conditions like temperature and humidity is crucial, factory environment monitoring is also useful. Various sensors mounted on logistics robots allow them to detect the entire factory's working environment as they move. LG CNS's IoT integrated platform, "Infiot," allows remote monitoring of gas and plumbing conditions within the factory. Unmanned, automated factories can also be remotely monitored via CCTV, and 5G cameras mounted on logistics robots can be used to inspect areas requiring more detailed inspection.

Another key feature is "AI Vision Inspection," which performs image-based quality checks. By training equipment with AI technology to assess quality through inspection images, the intelligent inspection and judgment capabilities are expected to improve quality. LG U+ anticipates that this technology will reduce unnecessary time and effort spent on re-inspections in the future.

LG Uplus Corporate Division Vice President Choi Joo-sik said, “Once 5G services are fully commercialized, the number of solutions dedicated to smart factories will increase significantly,” and added, “We plan to focus on securing an early lead in the market by discovering various killer services centered on remote and unmanned areas with high potential.”


KT Introduces Network Standards for Enterprise 5G
KT has introduced the 'O-RAN (Open Radio Access Network) Alliance' standard, an open 5G network standard. 26 domestic and international mobile carriers and telecommunications equipment manufacturers, including KT, NTT Docomo, Samsung Electronics, and Cisco, participated in this introduction.

The O-RAN standard provides specifications for interoperability between digital equipment (O-DU) and radio equipment (O-RU) manufactured by different base station manufacturers. This enables telecommunications operators to deploy the optimal base station equipment combination for each 5G network deployment scenario.
In the 5G era, a global ecosystem leveraging the O-RAN fronthaul standard will accelerate innovation in wireless networks and provide 5G enterprise solutions tailored to the needs of various companies.

Telecommunications operators participating in the O-RAN Alliance plan to introduce O-RAN-based base stations for commercial 5G network deployments. 5G equipment developers have also begun developing and testing O-RAN-based base stations.

To enhance the global competitiveness of domestic SMEs and strengthen the foundation for 5G cooperation, KT developed radio equipment compliant with O-RAN fronthaul interworking standards with Solid, a domestic SME. Building on this development, KT successfully completed initial fronthaul interworking tests with Fujitsu's digital equipment in early February.

Additionally, KT announced that it has developed a '5G Smart Factory' service that allows small and medium-sized businesses to pay only for what they use. 5G smart factories will revolutionize small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through innovative solutions such as machine vision and enterprise-specific 5G.

Machine vision enhances the productivity of small and medium-sized businesses by empowering robots to perform a variety of tasks. KT's industry-first private 5G enterprise network, offering network slicing, provides SMEs with the same benefits as building a dedicated enterprise network.

KT Convergence Technology Research Center Vice President Jeon Hong-beom said, “KT will strengthen win-win cooperation with domestic small and medium-sized enterprises in the 5G field, while working with global operators and network manufacturers to activate 5G at an early stage.”