Liverpool City Region HDD project tests low carbon credentials of Open RAN technology at Act 1.5 event

At the start of December, the Liverpool City Region High Demand Density (LCR HDD) project, which LJMU is a key partner of, conducted a further trial of new Open RAN technology to find out if it can contribute to lowering carbon emissions at large scale events.

The Liverpool City Region HDD project is investigating if Open RAN technology improves digital connectivity in high density settings such as music venues.

Lowering carbon emissions

The technology was trialled at the Act 1.5 event held at Liverpool's M&S Bank Arena which aimed to demonstrate how live music events can be Paris 1.5 compatible.

Act 1.5 involved live music sets from Massive Attack, IDLES and Nile Rodgers with each gig aiming to significantly reduce carbon emissions and air pollution levels. It was staged to mark the announcement at UN Headquarters in New York that Liverpool is the world's first ‘UN Accelerator City’ for climate action.

The Liverpool City Region HDD project

Supported by the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), the Liverpool City Region HDD consortium is an ambitious and innovative digital infrastructure project.

The purpose of this latest trial was to evaluate how the new Open RAN HDD 5G network contributes to reducing carbon emission as well as testing its performance as a digital connectivity solution in high user high density environment.

The data collected over the series of events will be used to develop an xApp. An xApp is a software tool that runs on a Radio Access Network (RAN) Intelligent Controller (RIC) to manage network functions in near-real time. Partners in the consortium are developing an xApp to optimise the energy efficiency of the network.  

The trail also tested the resilience of the 5G Stand Alone Open RAN network in a real-world HDD setting. For the first time, eSIMS - which are virtual version of Sim cards - were introduced at the arena. These are considered greener than physical SIM cards as they reduce the use of plastic, energy, and transportation emission. The project is hoping that audiences will start to look for mobile devices and service plans that make switching to eSIMS an easy process so they can be more sustainable.

This latest trial follows on from the project’s first successful trial at the Salt and Tar Music Festival in August and its second trial at Comic Con Liverpool which took place at the ACC Liverpool campus earlier this month.

Professor Joe Spencer, from the University of Liverpool’s Department of Electrical Engineering & Electronics, who is leading the Liverpool City Region HDD project, said: “This is the project’s third trial which as well as testing the technology in a real-life setting we also took the opportunity to explore how the technology lowers carbon emissions.

“With every trial we conduct, we generate new knowledge and data about Open RAN, 5G private networks, and small cells so we can assess how this technology performs against current and traditional technology solutions. We are putting all the trial information together and will be in apposition to report back from all the trial outcomes and results early next year. I’d like to thank all our project partners for their support."

The project is looking at how the Open Ran networks in HDD settings can help reduce the carbon emissions in telecoms and the Act 1.5 event gave us the opportunity to trial this approach. The baseline data we have gained from our network will be used to develop an xApp that will reduce the energy required by the network.

We tested the network over the events to assess the performance and were particularly pleased with the development of economically sustainable syncing timers across different types of radios within a setting without an external GPS. This is another key component needed for Open RAN network. 

Ann Williams Programme Director for Liverpool 5G

Project partners

The Liverpool City Region HDD consortium is led by the University of Liverpool in collaboration with the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA) and ITS Technology Group.

Partners include Liverpool John Moores University, Aro, CGA Simulation, the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) Hartree Centre, Attocore, Weaver Labs, Telet, Radisys and Qualcomm.

Next trial

One further trial of the technology will take place at an event in the region in 2025.

The Liverpool High Demand Density (Liverpool City Region HDD) is supported with £9 million investment by the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).

It was funded through DSIT’s Open Networks Ecosystem (ONE) competition which aims to demonstrate the feasibility and reliability of technology.