The eastern coastal city of Qingdao, Shandong province has been promoting the integrated development of "5G + industrial internet" applications in recent years, local media reported.

A demonstration base of "5G + industrial internet" applications in Qingdao [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

As one of the first batch of 5G pilot cities in China, Qingdao has built 13,856 5G base stations and the quality of its 5G network leads the country.

As a concept combining industry and internet, industrial internet can connect people, data, and machines, closely connecting and integrating equipment, production lines, factories, suppliers, products, as well as customers to serve as a key link for massive data transmission and collection, said an industry expert.

5G is said to be the "core component" of the industrial internet, which has been key to promoting the digital transformation of the manufacturing industry. 5G provides the industrial internet with high reliability, low delay, and anti-interference characteristics, enabling the transformation from traditional industrial manufacturing to smart industrial manufacturing.

The application scenarios of the 5G industrial internet include collaborative R&D and design in the early stage of industrial production, equipment fault diagnosis in the process of industrial manufacturing, production site monitoring, as well as flexible manufacturing with mass customization.

For example, AR remote maintenance guidance has been applied in five industries, including electronic equipment manufacturing, equipment manufacturing, as well as the steel industry, mining industry, and power industry.

Qingdao's 5G development has empowered smart manufacturing, smart ports, smart medical treatment, smart finance, smart city management, 5G + VR panoramic live broadcasting, and many other projects. All of them have been completed and put into operation.

"5G + industrial internet is like a window, which shows us the infinite possibility of industrial production in the future," said an industry insider.