In order to be successful in international industrial competition, it is essential to continuously increase productivity and the flexibility of processes and production sequences. A key lever for this is the increased digitalization of all processes. Digitalization enables and supports numerous innovations that can be directly experienced by customers and users as service and product features.

A particularly important basic technology for digitalization is communication and, in particular, wireless data transmission. The use of wireless communication promises significant improvement potential for process and production sequences, greater flexibility and easier retrofitting of existing systems and equipment. Siemens has therefore had wireless solutions for industrial requirements with Industrial Wireless LAN in its portfolio for more than 20 years and has thus made a significant contribution to establishing wireless communication in industry. Examples of products on the market are SCALANCE W – Industrial Wireless LAN (wireless communication for industrial environments) and SIMATIC Ident (identification system for logistics).

Mobile communication has been the biggest driver of innovation in communication technology for some years now. Over the years, the interaction between component manufacturers (semiconductors, …)device manufacturers, system operators and users have developed cross-industry and cross-national standardizations. However, the use of radio not only requires a standard for hardware and software, but the availability of frequencies or frequency ranges is at least as important.

Beginning of a new era of radio communication

In a radio transmission, a signal, an electromagnetic wave to be precise, is sent out in a specific frequency range with a defined bandwidth and transmission power for a defined time. The advantage of this technology is that a data connection can be established very easily within radio range to stationary or mobile subscribers. To ensure interference-free use of radio, it is important and necessary to regulate who may use certain frequencies, when, where and with what power.

Well-known wireless standards such as Bluetooth or WLAN use unlicensed frequency bands. Mobile networks, on the other hand, use licensed frequency bands for which a fee is charged. On the basis of a license, only the licensees have the right to use a specific frequency range.

It is crucial for industrial applications that the advantages of licensed frequencies and standardized hardware and software are also made available for this area – particularly triggered by the use of 5G in industry. Licensing allows the exclusive use of a frequency or the dedicated allocation of capacities via a 5G provider using network slicing. This is the only way to achieve reliable availability and defined latency (deterministics) for radio data transmission.

Automation applications in particular require deterministic communication in order to function reliably. This is the case in the field of communication with robots, for example, where commands have to reach the robot arm in real time. In addition to the technical features, the availability of cost-effective solutions consisting of components from different providers, which is only made possible by standardized interfaces and protocols such as 5G, is also important. Siemens was and is active in various committees and working groups on the subject of frequency licensing and standardization in order to represent the interests of the industry. These include, for example, requirements such as high availability of communication, local independent campus networks and high data security.

Local licenses for campus networks and industrial use

Furthermore, legislators have recognized that, in addition to nationwide coverage with mobile communications, local licenses for campus networks and industrial use are economically sensible and necessary. In the meantime, many countries have already reserved frequency bands for local wireless network licenses – in Austria this is currently the frequency range from 24.3 to 24.9 GHz. In contrast to Austria, Germany and some other large industrialized countries in Europe have already reserved frequencies in the range below 4.2 GHz for campus networks. An EU requirement is expected to bring mandatory regulation for the 3.8-4.2 GHz frequency range from the beginning of 2026, within which local networks in the area of industrial and non-industrial applications must be possible throughout the EU. The possibility of local licenses in the sub-4.2 GHz range will usher in a new era of radio communication for industry in Europe.

The Electronics for Communication and Radio Frequency Technology research group of the Siemens Austria Technology Department has been working for many years on all areas of the application and use of radio technology for the various Siemens product areas – such as 5G and future radio standards.

“The need to transmit ever larger volumes of data means that more and more bandwidth is required and the frequencies currently in use are almost fully occupied. Therefore, a particular focus of research is the utilization of new, higher frequency ranges,” explains Martin Schiefer, the head of the research group mentioned above. Very large bandwidths are available in this spectrum and therefore very high data rates and particularly short latencies are possible. In addition, smaller radio cells are easy to implement in this area and there are currently no users.

“Der Bedarf an Übertragungrnvon immer größeren Datenmengen führt dazu, dassrnimmer mehr und mehrrnBandbreite notwendigrnist. Daher ist ein besondererrnForschungsschwerpunktrndie Nutzbarmachung neuer, höherer Frequenzbereiche.“

Martin Schiefer, Leiter Forschungsgruppe Electronics for Communication and Radio Frequency Technology, Siemens Österreich

“One challenge is the current high dependence on manufacturer-specific and highly integrated semiconductors for this frequency range and this type of wave propagation due to the shorter wavelength compared to the frequency range below 4.2 GHz,” says Schiefer. Similar to sound waves, the diffraction of electromagnetic waves by obstacles depends on the wavelength. Frequencies with long wavelengths, e.g. low tones or radio at frequencies in the MHz range and below, are much better able to be heard or received throughout the room. The higher the frequencies, the greater the shadowing and dead spots.

In order to solve these challenges for customers, the AIT (Austrian Institute of Technology), as head of the FFG-funded research project RISILIENT (RIS enabled reliable and efficient wireless communication), is working together with Siemens Austria on future cost-effective technologies such as intelligent reflectors and electrically pivoting antennas to enable energy-efficient and reliable wireless communication and reduce dependence on manufacturer-specific components. Together, the partners are researching and testing the use of so-called RIS (reconfigurable intelligent surfaces) as smart reflectors and as part of an active antenna.

AIT and Siemens are jointly testing the use of so-called RIS (reconfigurable intelligent surfaces – pictured) as smart reflectors and as part of an active antenna.

A RIS is a cost-effective, adaptable, thin composite panel with many sub-wavelength antenna elements. Each RIS element is low-power and does not require special highly integrated microchips, but uses discrete components such as PIN diodes, capacitors or transistors. A direction-dependent amplification effect is achieved by the configurable superimposition of the reflection properties of each individual antenna element. This should make it easy to optimize wireless coverage even in heavily shaded areas, for example within a production hall. The research project was launched in January 2025 and will run for a research period of three years.

Siemens offers 5G products with the best availability, guaranteed latencies and maximum data rates.

Siemens has been offering 5G products on the market since 2023 that offer the best availability, guaranteed latency and maximum data rates. Both the industrial 5G infrastructure and the SCALANCE MUM 5G mobile routers from Siemens have been specially developed for industry with its individual requirements. These solutions are industry-proven and tailor-made for applications in areas such as manufacturing, process industries and intralogistics. The licensed frequency protects data and company assets and prevents interference and thus disruption. “With our currently available systems for industrial communication, we can offer decisive added value for companies. In Austria, for example, the telecommunications provider A1 offers our solutions for industrial customers. We are also committed to the further development of these technologies through intensive research,” says Benjamin Schrunner-Pfeiffer, digital connectivity expert at Siemens Austria.

“Mit unseren aktuell verfügbarenrnSystemen für die industrielle Kommunikation können wirrneinen entscheidenden Mehrwert für Unternehmen bieten. Daneben committen wir uns durch intensive Forschung zurrnWeiterentwicklung dieserrnTechnologien.“

Benjamin Schrunner-Pfeiffer, Digital- Connectivity-Experte bei Siemens Österreich