Chinese Miners Are Using 5G to Drive Vehicles During ‘Work From Home’

August 27, 2020

While many office employees were able to easily transition into a work-from-home set up due to the pandemic, the same cannot be said for the majority of those who do manual labor jobs.

But for some construction workers and miners in China, 5G is now allowing them to do their work in the comfort and safety of their homes or similarly isolated sites, CCTV reported.

Workers at the Sandaozhuang Mine in Henan Province have been handling remotes using 5G technology to control vehicles and machinery. Due to the faster internet speed, the workers maintain precise controls and experience low latency despite working from a long distance, according to Mothership.

Some machines used for mining are operated remotely, while others are fully automated. Both types can be monitored by human workers in real-time.

Images of this worker remotely operating an unmanned excavator make it appear that he is playing a video game while working hard in controlling and monitoring the site.

Different corporations, including Huawei, Sany’s Large Excavator Research Institute, Henan Yuexin Intelligent Machinery, among others, have joined forces to effectively run the unmanned systems.

The “Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication” 5G network reportedly improves the mines in terms of speed, efficiency and control. Aside from protection from the virus, the technology is important in lowering the risk of working conditions in mining and construction by avoiding the need to be on-site physically.

Feature Image via CCTV

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