The Yangquan science and technology bureau, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, and Shanxi Duoer Jinze Coal Mine Machinery Co signed an agreement on May 25 to jointly build a laboratory for 5G technology and applications in Yangquan city in North China's Shanxi province.

The Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications has core experience and knowledge of new-generation information technology, based on its existing national and provincial research platforms specializing in information and communications.

For its part, the company based in Taiyuan city is a high-tech business engaged in manufacturing general mechanical equipment. 

Leveraging the digital economy in Yangquan, the new lab is expected to adopt new smart city and smart mining as its application scenarios. 

It will introduce information technologies including artificial intelligence, 5G communications and big data into intelligent coal mining – helping to solve existing problems and challenges in coal mining production and to promote the networked and intelligent development of coal mining machinery. 

Through the laboratory, the three parties will jointly conduct open source 5G/B5G key technology research, develop 5G/B5G white-box base stations, as well as core networks and terminal equipment for various industrial applications. 

They will also commercialize tech achievements, so as to advance the industrialization of related equipment and software systems.

In addition, they will carry out application demonstrations of open source 5G technology in Yangquan and in other cities in Shanxi, as well as pilot demonstration applications in the intelligent mining, transportation and sanitation fields.