Press Release

[26 June 2019, Hong Kong] As Hong Kong and the rest of the world step into the 5G era, Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute (ASTRI) is developing a series of 5G-enabling hardware and software solutions in partnership with its ecosystem partners. At its booth (N1.D130) in the Mobile World Congress (MWC) Shanghai 2019, ASTRI is showcasing a series of its latest 5G innovations from 26 to 28 June 2019. In addition, ASTRI is jointly performing various technology demonstrations at its partners’ booths. From 5G Centralised RAN (C-RAN) base stations to standalone 200 Gbps 5G core network solution, Internet of Things (IoT) solutions to smart mobility, ASTRI’s tools, platforms and applications help develop world-class smart cities. ASTRI’s innovations have been developed in partnership with leading industry players such as Intel, HKT, QCT, China Mobile Research Institute (CMRI), and China Mobile Hong Kong (CMHK)。

ASTRI is showcasing the following technologies and solution at MWC Shanghai 2019:

	Technology Demo	Partner	Booth
1	5G end-to-end system (5G C-RAN base station and 5G Core)
2	5G standalone Core Network at 200Gbps	Intel
3	Edge Computing and Artificial Intelligence (AI) for road safety
4	Cellular Vehicle-to-Everything (C-V2X) and smart mobility technologies	HKT	ASTRI booth: N1.D130
5	NB-IoT Chip	Keysight
6	Biometric Optical See Through (OST) Head Mount Display (HMD)
7	Virtual Mobile Core Network auto scaling with ONAP DataLake	QCT and CMRI	CMCC booth: N3.E20
8	Intelligent Blockchain-based IoT Platform	CMHK and GSMA	GSMA Innovation City area in N5

1. 5G end-to-end system (5G C-RAN base station and 5G Core)

ASTRI will demonstrate live 5G connection on a commercial 5G-enabled smartphone, using its end-to-end 5G C-RAN and Mobile Core system. Using Intel Xeon processors, ASTRI’s network design supports up to 2 Gbps throughput with four spatial layers in sub-6GHz spectrum. The solution has been adopted by a series of 5G network equipment manufacturers based in the Mainland and overseas. The solution also enables public and private network builders to introduce 5G-powered Smart City applications for smart living, smart manufacturing and smart mobility.

2. 5G standalone Core Network at 200Gbps (jointly with Intel)

This joint demonstration will showcase the compelling performance of 5G core network, processing over 200Gbps throughput on standard servers featuring two scalable Intel Xeon processors.

3. Edge Computing and AI for road safety (jointly with Intel)

This joint demonstration will showcase a smart roadside infrastructure with artificial intelligence and visual sensing capabilities. ASTRI’s C-V2X Edge Software, deployed on Intel’s Smart Roadside Computing Unit, can recognise vehicles, people and objects in real time. By issuing real time alerts, this solution will minimise accidents and greatly improve road safety.

4. Smart mobility technologies (jointly with HKT)

ASTRI’s smart mobility technologies covers a wide range of usage scenarios, on Cellular Vehicle-to-Everything (C-V2X), Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) and other Intelligent Transport System (ITS) services.  ASTRI and HKT are working closely on realising the Smart Mobility Technologies in Hong Kong.

5. Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) Chip (jointly with Keysight)

This demonstration showcases the latest low-cost, low-power NB-IoT chip solutions for a wide range of 3GPP-compliant low-cost and low-power IoT services. ASTRI’s NB-IoT chip adopts a unique polar transmitter architecture and integrates on-chip high efficiency CMOS power amplifier, power management unit and digitally controlled crystal oscillator.

6. Biometric Optical See Through (OST) Head Mount Display (HMD)

ASTRI’s Biometric OST HMD is the world’s first turnkey solution to integrate extremely high image quality, smooth human machine interaction and security identification features. Its see-through feature plus high display image quality provides vivid visual experience; iris recognition feature performs high security biometric authentication, and eye-gazing tracking capability provides accurate focus point detection and high user flexibility.

7. Virtual Mobile Core Network auto scaling with ONAP DataLake (jointly with QCT and CMRI)

ASTRI’s Virtual Mobile Core Network is integrated and deployed on top of QCT’s Next Generation Central Office (NGCO) virtualized infrastructure with telemetry running on a x86 server, with OpenStack services, VNF-ASTRI EPC, and ONAP information injected into the ONAP DataLake.  This architecture enables auto scaling by using the ONAP DataLake with analytics, which can provide intelligent scale-in and scale-out mechanisms for virtual mobile core network operations.

8. Intelligent Blockchain-based IoT Platform (jointly with CMHK at GSMA Innovation City)

As Hong Kong largest R&D institute, ASTRI collaborates with China Mobile Hong Kong (CMHK) to bring the Blockchain IoT to the live network with CMHK’s latest IoT management system – OneNET. The platform uses secured data exchange for data provider to share IoT data with integrity. Through connecting the data providers and consumers, the platform can monetise and strategically exploit the potentially enormous value of the vast amount of IoT data.  The key issue in transforming IoT data to business value is addressed. The platform can help companies and individuals to unleash huge business potential by acting as a trusted intermediary to offer data exchange with integrity among third parties.

About MWC Shanghai

MWC Shanghai is one of the largest telecommunication industry expos in the world, bringing together the latest innovations and leading-edge technology from more than 550 leading companies, witnessed by a whopping 60,000-strong business-to-business audience.

Recommender System, Predictive Maintenance, and Augmented Operation Initiative: Three new AI-based R&D initiatives to enhance CITIC Telecom CPC’s customer experience

[HONG KONG, 3 June 2019] CITIC Telecom International CPC Limited (CITIC Telecom CPC), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CITIC Telecom International Holdings Limited (SEHK: 1883) and the Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute Company Limited (ASTRI) today announced plans to join forces on research and development for next-generation operations and maintenance technologies using Augmented Reality (AR) glasses. At the same time, CITIC Telecom CPC unveiled three major R&D initiatives to accelerate business expansion and enhance the customer experience by using Artificial Intelligence (AI), in line with the company’s corporate mission – “Innovation Never Stops”.

For decades, CITIC Telecom CPC has built a comprehensive portfolio of innovative Information and Communication Technology (ICT) services. Today, the company operates globally to deliver a ‘Global-Local’ value proposition, giving customers access to its carrier-class global infrastructure and world-class expertise. An important part of this ‘Global-Local’ value proposition is CITIC Telecom CPC’s local presence – offering professional services and support conversant with local language and culture.

Established by the Hong Kong SAR Government in 2000, ASTRI’s mission is to carry out applied research to enhance the competitiveness of Hong Kong’s technology-based industries. ASTRI’s R&D endeavours focus on Smart City, Financial Technologies, Intelligent Manufacturing, Health Technologies, and Application Specific Integrated Circuits.

With a shared vision to spur innovation and enhance customer experience, the collaboration with ASTRI not only creates new opportunities for CITIC Telecom CPC, but also benefits a wide spectrum of vertical industries.

“We are excited to announce this strategic partnership with ASTRI to develop next-generation operations and maintenance technologies using AR glasses,” said Mr Stephen Ho, CEO of CITIC Telecom CPC. “Bringing together the strong technical capabilities and innovative strengths of the two groups, CITIC Telecom CPC hopes that the resulting innovation will disrupt the game rules of operations and maintenance, enhance productivity and create value for our customers for years to come.”

“ASTRI supports Hong Kong’s industries and the community with advanced, innovative solutions. With technologies like AR, Machine Vision, Robotics and AI, we enable industries to deliver better customer experience and pursue innovation-led growth,” said Mr Hugh Chow, CEO of ASTRI. “This cooperation with CITIC Telecom CPC represents our firm commitment to a stronger, smarter Hong Kong powered by technology,” he added.

Based on the agreement, ASTRI will contribute with its world-class software development capabilities while CITIC Telecom CPC will leverage its deep knowledge and experience gained from serving various industries, to provide an array of complex scenarios based on real-life customer requirements, on-site conditions and technical considerations.

Previously, field engineers, like those from CITIC Telecom CPC, relied on several computing devices like smartphones and laptops for installation, maintenance and troubleshooting. This typically consumed significant time and efforts to simultaneously manage and use multiple devices. By introducing AR glasses in their fieldwork, real-time intelligence, troubleshooting log, graphics and encrypted data from back-end systems can be streamed and made accessible onsite to engineers anytime, anywhere.

In the case of complex installations or troubleshooting operations, back-end engineers in other offices or even other regions can view the streamed real-time images transmitted from the AR glasses used by onsite field engineers through the AR operation console. This instant consultation capability significantly improves operational speed and quality. Its powerful video conferencing feature will provide engineers with immediate maintenance support and foster off-site collaboration between global operations and maintenance teams.

In addition to enhancing customer experience, this collaboration is expected to improve the overall quality of operations and maintenance, and boost productivity by 40 to 50%. When mature, the solution is expected to be launched to different vertical industries such as architecture and construction, aiming to boost their field work efficiency and effectiveness, as well as making more innovative uses of the solution.

Three New AI R&D Initiatives to Bring In More Customer Benefits

In addition to the partnership with ASTRI, CITIC Telecom CPC also announced three major new AI-enabled R&D initiatives to accelerate customers’ digital transformation through Recommender System, AI-powered Predictive Maintenance, and an Augmented Operation Initiative designed to enhance operational efficiency.

Recommender System: To identify new growth paths for customers, CITIC Telecom CPC is developing a Recommender System, a new AI-enabled capability to offer customers consultative recommendations on ICT investment and digital transformation. Through machine learning, research findings of emerging trends and information from different industries are gathered and mapped against industry challenges, maturity cycle, technical requirements, and compliance considerations of the company’s vast global customer base for analysis. The AI recommender will provide customers with guidance, helping them formulate a future-proof blueprint for digital transformation and business expansion, ensuring they will enjoy the best service experience.

Predictive Maintenance: Fault detection in the early stages of an issue is critical to reduce costly unscheduled downtime, maintenance costs and sustain customer confidence. With CITIC Telecom CPC’s new predictive maintenance initiative, data collected from customers’ IoT devices and servers, from applications to infrastructure levels, can be carefully monitored and analysed 24×7 based on machine learning for the use status and abnormalities. This allows prompt alert and immediate corrective measures or repair to be applied to mitigate potential issues like depleted resources or abnormal operating conditions before they emerge to ensure business continuity.

Augmented Operation Initiative: CITIC Telecom CPC is also developing a machine learning strategy to optimise operating efficiency for their customer services. The initiative aims to connect front-line customer services staff into the digital fabric of the company and delivers augmented instructions which give the staff insights to take appropriate actions. It results in achieving a high level of productivity and quality, while from a customer experience perspective, they can enjoy promptly and favourable responses.

“Through the partnership project with ASTRI as well as other new R&D initiatives, we endeavour to bring CITIC Telecom CPC to new heights – delivering a new level of benefits for our customers and society. We believe that technologies can lead to enhancements in various aspects, and smart use of technologies can create a better future,” concluded Mr Daniel Kwong, Chief Information and Innovation Officer of CITIC Telecom CPC.

[Hong Kong, 18 April 2019] Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute (ASTRI) organised the ‘Cybersecurity Forum: The Next-Gen Defence against Cyber-Threats on the second day of the Internet Economy Summit 2019.

Cybersecurity is a key concern in the digital era – that is the inevitable way of life for individuals and businesses alike. The forum explored tools and strategies for better preparedness in that context – including regulatory and compliance issues, professional approach to cybersecurity, securing cloud and other trusted services, and safeguarding businesses against increasingly sophisticated cyber-crimes.

In his welcome remark, Dr Martin Szeto, Chief Operating Officer of ASTRI, said, “As a major global economic hub, Hong Kong must safeguard its financial activities and assets, to drive future growth and prosperity. We can secure our valuable information, processes and systems by building a strong pipeline of cybersecurity research, applications and talents.”

Dr Lucas Hui, ASTRI’s Senior Director of Security and Data Sciences presented an overview of Cyberscecurity – followed by four eminent experts from Hong Kong, Mainland and overseas – and shared views and insights on the all-encompassing cybersecurity landscape and ecosystem. The other speakers were: Mr Stefan Eigler, Practice Leader Mastering Risk & Compliance of TÜV Rheinland; Ms Samantha Alexander, Principal Accreditor of the global cybersecurity certification body CREST; Dr Qingni Shen, Professor and Vice Director of the Department of Cybersecurity in Peking University, and Dr Frank Law, Senior Superintendent of the Cybersecurity and Technology Crime Bureau of the Hong Kong Police Force.

The speakers later took part in a panel discussion – joined by Mr Teddy Ko, Managing Director of Singapore Telecom Hong Kong; Mr Frankie Li, Security Analyst of Dragon Advance Tech Consulting; and Mr Wilson Wong, Chief Executive Officer of Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation. The panellists had an interactive sharing with the audience, discussing tactics for businesses to embrace modern cybersecurity challenges.

Well over 200 tech experts, public and private sector representatives, aspiring entrepreneurs and investors participated in the forum. Hosted by ASTRI, it was one of the thematic forums during the Internet Economy Summit 2019, which was organised by the Hong Kong SAR Government and Cyberport.

 

About ASTRI

ASTRI was set up by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in 2000 with the mission of enhancing Hong Kong’s competitiveness in technology-based industries through applied research. ASTRI’s core R&D competence in various areas is organised under seven Technology Divisions, namely Advanced Digital Systems, Communications Technologies, Electronics Components, Mixed Signal Systems IC, Intelligent Sensing Technology System, Intelligent Software and Systems, and Security and Data Sciences. Our R&D strategic focus covers five areas of applications: Smart City, Financial Technologies, Intelligent Manufacturing, Health Technologies, and Application Specific Integrated Circuits through our mandate as the Hong Kong branch of the Chinese National Engineering Research Centre (CNERC).

 

[13 April 2019, Hong Kong] The Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute (ASTRI) continued its streak of success at the International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva. This year, in the 47th edition of this event, ASTRI won 21 awards including four Gold Medals with Congratulations of the Jury, seven Gold medals, nine Silver medals and one Bronze medal.

The four ASTRI projects winning Gold Medals with Congratulations of the Jury are: Enhanced Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) with International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) Acquisition; Separator Coated with Self Shutdown Layer of High Porosity for Lithium Ion Battery; Compact Spectrometer Having Reflective Wedge Structure; and Medical Image Data Analytics Platform.

ASTRI’s accolades are among the awards won by the Hong Kong delegation of around 42 institutions and universities. This is a remarkable feat given that it is only the second time ASTRI has participated in this global event.

Mr Hugh Chow, CEO of ASTRI, said, “ASTRI is honoured and delighted to stand out among many world-class inventors and institutions with 21 prestigious awards. This recognition of ASTRI’s innovative endeavours once again demonstrates our R&D expertise and capability. While the city has increasingly embraced innovation and technology development in recent years, ASTRI continues to leverage its technical know-how to develop more applied solutions that benefit the public and the industries.”

The awards won by ASTRI are:

Gold Medal with Congratulations of the Jury

1. Enhanced Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) with International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) Acquisition
2. Separator Coated with Self Shutdown Layer of High Porosity for Lithium Ion Battery
3. Compact Spectrometer Having Reflective Wedge Structure
4. Medical Image Data Analytics Platform

Gold Medal

5. High accuracy low power time and frequency synchronisation methods for Bluetooth Low Energy wireless communication system
6. Nomadic Mobile Base Station for Emergency Service
7. Three Dimensional Fully Molded Power Electronics Module for High Power Applications and the Method Thereof
8. Intelligent industry robot: 3D vision & cognition
9. Integrated Bi-sensing Optical Structure for Head Mounted Display
10. Efficient and Robust Human Detection/Tracking Method and System with Video Input
11. Mobile Biometrics Authentication Technology

Silver Medal

12. Sampling frequency offset tracking based on decision feedback channel estimation
13. Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) Network, Security and Positioning
14. Cellular Vehicle-to-Everything (C-V2X) System for Road Safety and Smart Mobility Applications
15. 3D Power Device Packages for High Frequency Power Conversion
16. Micro-nano Structured Nano-size Aggregate Encapsulated in Micro-size Conglomerate for Conductivity Electrode
17. Method for Error Correction for a Multicast Message
18. Multi-location Learning Activity State Management for Distance Education
19. Machine Learning Artificial Character Generation
20. Efficient and Accurate Named Entity Recognition Method and System

Bronze Medal

21. Modified Pseudo-Cylindrical Mapping of Spherical Video Using Linear Interpolation of Empty Areas for Compression of Streamed Images

The International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva is organised annually jointly by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), the Swiss Federal Government, the State, and the City of Geneva. It is acknowledged as the most prestigious and coveted event for inventors around the world. This year, around 1,000 new inventions and products have been showcased by more than 800 exhibitors from 40 countries and territories. Well over 31,000 visitors from all five continents made this the single largest innovation expo in the world.