With the low latencies which 5G brings, use cases like virtual reality, gaming, autonomous driving and real-time data analytics need not be limited by the device capability. They can utilise cloud computing at the edge.
From the 5G perspective, there is a need to deliver more performance, low latency and better quality of service from an end-to-end perspective. There is also a need for more cloud-native implementations with a lot of flexibility.
Wipro Will deliver engineering services along with Intel
Wipro will partner with Intel to provide engineering services support needed for commercialisation of solutions developed on OpenNESS toolkit globally. Open Network Edge Services Software (OpenNESS) is a multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) software toolkit that was developed by Intel. OpenNESS can help companies create their applications at the edge. It is a software platform for building and deploying edge services where it provides that easy button that really helps grow the developer ecosystem and build innovative applications at the network edge. This can also bring in new capabilities for deep learning and inference solutions for AI.
Using open-source APIs, it helps developers by abstracting away the complexity of the network infrastructure so they can build and deploy Edge applications in 5G and next-generation networks with ease. OpenNESS can help developers build and deploy apps which can run any place in the cloud, on any edge location and any cloud framework of choice for edge devices, such as AWS Greengrass or Microsoft Azure IoT Edge.
Wipro says it is committed to being the top 5G solutions and implementations partner for its clients by providing them with strategic advice and consulting on the technology and unlocking its potential to produce new revenue streams. Wipro’s deep engineering and product design capabilities can help partners (like Intel) to achieve their 5G objectives in three aspects — software engineering, intelligence and monetisation. On top of 5G lifecycle services, Wipro’s expertise in enterprise transformation services can help companies realise business value in their digital transformation journeys.
Wipro’s Capabilities In Combination with Intel FlexRAN
The engineering services for OpenNESS expand upon an ongoing partnership between Wipro and Intel on 5G and edge solutions that use Intel’s FlexRAN software reference architecture along with OpenNESS. Here, Wipro will utilise its rich legacy of engineering services to assure a robust deployment of business solutions based on the OpenNESS platform. With the progression of decoupled RAN architecture, the Edge node is growing to be a shared host for both RAN and application workloads. Wipro’s capabilities in working with FlexRAN in combination with a cloud-native platform like OpenNESS will support Wipro to onboard both RAN and application workloads on a common and optimised edge platform which is available for deployment from clients.
FlexRAN is expected to play a critical role within the wireless industry. The next-gen 5G network will have to handle big volumes of data produced from billions of connected devices. To support these next-generation services, operators will have to quickly evolve their mobile network architectures to process high bandwidth real-time data. One approach that telco operators are looking to streamline the network is by virtualising the Radio Access Network or vRAN.
vRAN is an important step into 5G as it makes the deployment of new features and algorithms easier by streamlining resource utilisation. Intel has opened up FlexRAN APIs for developers to use. There are many examples of Intel’s FlexRAN reference implementations around the world and companies are utilising FlexRAN to build innovative virtualised cloud-ready networks for edge applications.
How does Wipro Fit Into This?
What’s happening at 5G is edge computing, and edge is simply bringing the cloud closer to where the data sources and the applications are. And so they look at the ability to run 5G applications on-premise and at the edge. Here the role of developers is the key. Open-source communities and developers play a crucial role in advancing the rate of innovation in 5G. Here, it’s not just about technology, but it is also actually about the business model innovation that comes with an open ecosystem.
“Our partnership with Intel will help develop 5G solutions powered by edge computing for industry applications, fulfil superior experiences and drive business efficiencies. Business intelligence closer to the source of data will help us re-imagine industry applications, and we are excited to give commercial support services globally for OpenNESS,” said K.R. Sanjiv, CTO of Wipro.
With Open source, you can have optimised frameworks that the whole ecosystem can gather around. It lets partners collaborate and compete at the same time, which is very important. “Successful commercialisation of open source innovation needs partners who can expertly integrate technology components and also provide engineering services which result in a complete solution. “Wipro’s partnership with Intel on OpenNESS and many other Intel technologies makes them a valuable partner for accelerating service provider and business edge deployments,” said Renu Navale, Vice President and General Manager, Edge Computing and Ecosystem Enabling at Intel.
