5G Numerologies Assessment for URLLC in Industrial Communications

The fifth-generation (5G) network is presented as one of the main options for Industry 4.0 connectivity. Ultra-Reliable and Low Latency Communications (URLLC) is the 5G service category used by critical mechanisms, with a millisecond end-to-end delay and reduced probability of failure. 5G defines new numerologies, together with mini-slots for a faster scheduling. The main challenge of this is to select the appropriate numerology according to radio conditions. This fact is very important in industrial scenarios, where the fundamental problems are interference and multipath propagation, due to the presence of concrete walls and large metallic machinery and structures. Therefore, this paper is focused on analyzing the impact of the numerology selection on the delay experienced at radio link level for a remote-control service. The study, which has been carried out in a simulated cellular factory environment, has been performed for different packet sizes and channel conditions, focusing on outliers. Evaluation results show that not always a higher numerology, with a shorter slot duration, is appropriate for this type of service, particularly under Non-Line-of-Sight (NLOS) conditions.