News

Rikei Corporation (Headquarters: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo; President & CEO: Satoru Isaka; hereinafter “Rikei”) is pleased to announce that it has signed a new distribution agreement with Ubiik, Inc. (Headquarters: Taiwan; Founder and CEO: TH Peng; hereinafter “Ubiik”) and has started to sell “freeRAN”, a compact wireless base station that enables easy construction of a private network environment without a license.

New Product Overview

Ubiik’s “freeRAN” is a wireless device for building private LTE (*1) environment supporting 1.9GHz band sXGP (*2) that has been launched as the successor to PHS, whose service is about to end. Since sXGP can use smartphones as terminals, and voice and data communication is also possible, it can be used not only as a replacement for on-premises PHS used as an internal telephone in hospitals, but also as a data communication application for IoT in factories, etc. “freeRAN” is compact enough to be installed in small spaces, making it easy to build a highly secure, closed network environment.

(*1) Private LTE: A dedicated network environment using LTE, mobile phone communication standard, that can be used only within a limited area, such as companies and local governments.
(*2) sXGP: A communication method using the 1.9GHz frequency band for PHS. It will be used as a successor after the termination of the on-premises PHS service.

Features

• Covering wide-area at low cost
  “freeRAN” supports LTE-M and NB-IoT (*3) communication in the sXGP band using a dedicated SIM card. These standards cover a wider area than existing Wi-Fi, etc. while consuming less power. In addition, it is a wireless device dedicated to LTE-M/NB-IoT, making it easy to install and keeps the cost of building a private LTE environment low.
• Secure environment without license
  sXGP does not require a license. A secure communication environment can be easily constructed.
• Easy all-in-one installation
  The built-in EPC (* 4) eliminates the need for a separate server, and a private LTE network can be easily constructed since the product is all-in-one.

(*3) LTE-M/NB-IoT: Both are one of the communication standards for IoT.
(*4) EPC: Evolved Packet Core

Background of the Market

Since all PHS services including those for corporate customers are scheduled to be terminated at the end of March 2023, the demand for replacing services is expected to increase from companies and municipalities that have used PHS for internal calls.
In addition, building a private LTE network to realize an IoT society, such as smart factories utilizing AI and IoT technologies is now getting attention. Factories that currently use wired networks will also be able to wirelessly transmit data at 1.9 GHz by using private LTE.
“freeRAN” that supports sXGP that is expected to be a successor to PHS as well as Rikei’s experience and knowledge of IoT will meet these needs.

Future Development

Rikei will propose “freeRAN” to the manufacturing industry, universities, and municipalities that require a secure communication environment, as well as to the agricultural, pisciculture, and forestry industries for network construction in the areas where mobile phone signals do not reach.
“freeRAN” is scheduled to be exhibited at the exhibition “Wireless Japan 2023” to be held from May 24th (Wednesday) to 26th (Friday), 2023.

About shipment

Scheduled to be started from September 2023

About Ubiik, Inc.

Founded in 2016, Ubiik is a Taiwanese startup, that develops and sells IoT-related technologies and products. Its strength is research, development, and implementation of cellular and LPWAN communication systems. Ubiik is also the world’s leading manufacturer of Weightless™ LPWAN devices, an open standard for industrial and large-scale long-range IoT solutions. Ubiik creates a smarter and more sustainable world through communication technology and infrastructure construction in the energy and other industrial sectors.

About Rikei Corporation

Since its establishment in 1957 as a solution vendor in the IT and electronics industries, Rikei Corporation has provided a variety of solutions ranging from systems to networks, VR/AR contents, electronic materials and electronic devices.

Rikei proposes solutions that utilize cutting-edge technologies and advanced products from Japan and overseas, and contributes to business development such as improving efficiency of operations and profits of customers.

*Product and company names mentioned herein are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.