Connectivity Technology Blog

Recently I blogged about Disaster Roaming in 3GPP Release-17. While this will take time to be implemented worldwide, it is already available in Japan, maybe not in the 3GPP standardised way. Similarly, back in 2011, I blogged about Earthquake and Tsunami Warning service (ETWS) from NTT Docomo's Journal, it was two days before the  2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami hit. Japan is no stranger to earthquakes, typhoons, and other natural disasters, which can have a devastating effect on infrastructure. To ensure that the mobile networks keep functioning, operators work extremely hard to ensure people remain connected one way or another. NTT Docomo has released a video detailing the countermeasures to keep everyone connected in case of emergencies. The following detail is provided with the video: DOCOMO's network is no exception, and our services could get cut off by a base station power outage, disconnected fiber-optic cable, or other malfunctions. DOCOMO established the three p...

In Nov 2022, Rakuten Mobile announced that it has obtained preliminary experimental test station licenses to conduct mobile communication tests and preliminary verification in Japan using AST SpaceMobile’s low earth orbit satellite, BlueWalker 3. We blogged about AST & Science's ambition to have SpaceMobile beam 4G/5G directly to devices here and here . Back in Nov. AST SpaceMobile announced that it had successfully completed deployment of the communications array for its test satellite, BlueWalker 3 (“BW3”), in orbit. I found the Tweet showing the unfolding very interesting. History is unfolding! We've deployed #BlueWalker3 's 693-square-foot array, which is now the largest-ever commercial communications array in low Earth orbit. Read more about this important milestone here: https://t.co/4kupfxn3vO pic.twitter.com/KnE9CeWOCT — AST SpaceMobile (@AST_SpaceMobile) November 14, 2022 Coming back to Rakuten Mobile's announcement, the press release said: In order to...