The trial used a single mobile 5G terminal on a moving vehicle, said the company, which was running the experiment with Mitsubishi Electric.
Data speeds were 27Gbps and 25Gbps maximum “via one mobile terminal over communication distances of 10m and 100m, respectively, using the 28GHz radio frequency”, DoCoMo and Mitsubishi reported. This compares with under 1Mbps for 4G technology.
The Kamakura trial is believed to have shown the fastest speeds yet recorded for early 5G mobile telecoms trials. “Base-station antennas installed on the wall of a building directed beams to mobile-terminal antennas installed on the rooftop of a vehicle,” the companies added.
The 16 controlled beams had bandwidth of 500MHz, using a technology called massive-element antenna systems. The proof of concept was carried out in association with Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
Spatial multiplexing with 16 beams has been unachievable with 4G, they said. The maximum speed at 4G using similar technology – MIMO, for multiple input, multiple output – has been 988Mbps.
