The award recognizes individuals who have made significant technical contributions to the continuing innovations in mobile broadband technology and is presented by 3GPP, a global initiative formed to develop technical specifications for the latest mobile broadband standards such as LTE and 5G. An estimated 2,000 researchers are part of 3GPP working groups, and the Excellence Awards are given to up to four individuals each year.

Basavaraj Pattan was recognized for his contributions in the field of mission-critical communications technology and 5G service API platform. Mission-critical communication networks are systems built and designed to guarantee robust, fail-safe and secure communications for use by first responders in case of public emergencies.

Basavaraj Pattan, engineer at Samsung R&D Institute India and recipient of the 2018 3GPP Excellence Award

The impact of Basavaraj Pattan’s expertise is recognized as significant in developing the optimal technical specifications in system networks and devices used in public emergencies, enabling communications through voice calls, texts, videos as well as live broadcasts during events such as natural disasters. His contributions have had positive impacts on Samsung’s ability to deliver mission-critical communication devices to agencies in the U.S. and the U.K.

“It is an honor to receive this coveted award; it demonstrates the excellence of Samsung’s contributions to 3GPP standards”, said Basavaraj Pattan.

This is the fifth time a Samsung employee has received this prestigious award. Past awardees from Samsung include Gert-Jan van Lieshout (2013, SRUK), Himke van der Velde (2014, SRUK), Ricky Kaura (2015, SRUK) and Aris Papasakellariou (2017, SRA).

“Samsung employee receiving this recognition reflects our journey towards Advanced R&D, and our company’s commitment to broadband mission-critical services and a robust platform for 5G services” said Dr. Aloknath De, CTO in SRI-B.

This photo was taken at the 3GPP Excellence Award ceremony following a SA (Service and System Aspects) 6 Working Group meeting in India. From left to right: Suresh Chitturi, Chairman of 3GPP SA 6 Working Group, Basavaraj Pattan (Awardee), David Chater-Lea (SA6 Vice-Chairman), and Alan Soloway (SA6 Vice-Chairman)

A recent vote, held at the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) in Sophia Antipolis, France, saw Suresh Chitturi (front row, fifth from right) elected as the new Chairman of the 3GPP SA6 Working Group.

Mr. Suresh Chitturi, Director for Standards at the Samsung Research Institute in Bangalore, was recently elected as new Chairman of the 3^rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Service and System Aspect 6 (SA6) Working Group by acclamation in Sophia Antipolis, France.

The 3GPP is a collaborative project aimed at developing global standards for acceptable specifications of telecommunications networks. The project is comprised of three Technical Specification Groups (TSGs), under which 16 Working Groups oversee specifications for each sector. In addition to Mr. Chitturi, new Chairman of SA6, other Samsung officials currently serving in elected roles on the 3GPP include one TSG Chairman, two Chairman of Working Groups, and two Vice-Chairman. For his part, Mr. Chitturi will lead the SA6 Working Group for the next two years.

For its part, the SA6 is a key working group responsible for the development of application layer standards. Since its inception in 2014, SA6 has played a significant role in the development of Mission Critical Applications Standards across Long-Term Evolution (LTE), a global standard widely adopted by public safety agencies and other critical communication industry verticals. The Standards enable the use of push-to-talk voice, video and data communications for public protection and disaster relief (PPDR) operations over broadband networks.

“Providing leadership to 3GPP SA6 Working Group, especially in this era of new mobile communications, is a unique opportunity. We at Samsung value the importance of the activity of 3GPP and SA6 in creating a robust platform for future 5G services, leading up to the era of 5G commercialization,” said Mr. Chitturi.

Mr. Chitturi currently serves as the Director for Standards at the Samsung Research Institute in Bangalore, India.

While there is a significant industry effort to develop the new 5G standard, which is scheduled to be ready by June this year, the focus on 5G services will be far more critical to the applications of 5G technology. Mission Critical Application Standards, which apply to the essential systems critical to the survival of a business or organization, will remain a key responsibility of SA6 Working Group particularly in the move towards diverse applications of 5G. For instance, Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X), smart factories, as well as 5G service application programming interface (API) frameworks will allow 3^rd party verticals to leverage the rich capabilities of the 5G core network and new radio.

Prior to being elected Chairman, Mr. Chitturi served as Vice-Chairman of SA6 Working Group, providing key contribution to the timely completion of Mission Critical Standards to meet the needs of the Critical Communications industry. Mr. Chitturi also represents Samsung on the Governing Council of TSDSI, the India Telecom Standards Development Organization (SDO), and has previously held leadership positions in several other SDOs such as World Wide Web (W3C), Open Mobile Alliance (OMA), Java Community Process (JCP), and the GSM Association (GSMA).

In addition to the appointment of Mr. Chitturi, Mr. Aris Papasakellariou, Senior Director of Standards at Samsung Research America, received the 2017 3GPP Excellence Award earlier this month for his outstanding contributions in the field of radio access technology for 5G.

Samsung continues its significant contribution and progress in making 5G a reality, with advancements including introduction of the world’s first 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) commercial solutions at MWC 2018, as well as being selected as supplier by many of the world’s leading carrier companies.

This is the fourth time an employee of Samsung received the prestigious award. On this occasion, it was presented to Aris Papasakellariou, a Senior Director of Standards at Samsung Research America, in recognition of his contributions in the field of radio access technology for 5G.

Each year, the award is presented to four individuals who have made outstanding technical contributions to the development of next generation mobile broadband standards in 3GPP. An estimated 1,500 researchers are participating in the 3GPP working group.

“Beyond an individual recognition, this is a validation of the proactive participation taken by Samsung in bringing about future network standards,” said Aris Papasakellariou. “Samsung’s team of engineers will continue its contribution to mobile broadband standardizations and help provide the platform for 3GPP NR (New Radio) and 5G connectivity.”

Samsung has made big strides to making 5G a reality, unveiling the world’s first 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) commercial solutions at MWC 2018 while announcing its collaboration with global network providers. Samsung was selected to supply Verizon with commercial 5G FWA network solutions. The two companies will begin by launching commercial 5G services in Sacramento, California in the second half of 2018. Samsung is collaborating with Charter Communications on 5G trials in the U.S. while Sprint announced that it would deploy Samsung’s 5G solutions to increase Gigabit speeds and capacity.