Mobile provider EE has got plans to use high-flying balloons and drones to connect rural communities across the country.
EE showed how it can use mini mobile sites attached to a helium balloon – a ‘Helikite’ – to provide wide area 4G mobile coverage where permanent sites have been damaged or in areas where there is no 4G coverage
The company has described it as “vital mobile technology of the future” and said it would be invaluable for disaster recovery and emergency services.
Although the cell-based technology, which connects back to EE’s servers via satellite, is still patent pending, they expect to deliver the first balloon before the end of 2017.
'Innovation is essential'
EE CEO Marc Allera said: “Innovation is essential for us to go further than we’ve ever gone, and deliver a network that’s more reliable than ever before.
“Rural parts of the UK provide more challenges to mobile coverage than anywhere else, so we have to work harder there – developing these technologies will ultimately help our customers, even in the most hard to reach areas.
“Looking ahead, I see innovations like this revolutionising the way people connect. We're developing the concept of 'coverage on demand'. What if an event organiser could request a temporary EE capacity increase in a rural area, or a climber going up Ben Nevis could order an EE aerial coverage solution to follow them as they climb?
“We need to innovate, and we need to think differently, always using customers’ needs to drive the way we create new technologies.”
As well as aerial solutions, the firm is also launching a fleet of Rapid Response Vehicles (RRVs) to support its new Emergency Services Network, helping to ensure police, fire, and ambulance services stay online.
