Satellite 5G IoT operator OQ Technology will be launching next month its first commercial satellite to a sun synchronous orbit via a launch agreement with Spaceflight.

The smallsat will lift-off on the SpaceX Transporter-2 mission, scheduled to launch no earlier than June 2021. Spaceflight is managing the procurement, mission management and integration of the spacecraft for the upcoming launch.

After completing an on-orbit technology demonstration mission in 2019, the new mission, Tiger-2, will be OQ Technology’s first commercial satellite out of a planned constellation of more than 60 satellites. With this satellite constellation, the company aims to provide the world’s first-ever global pole-to-pole 5G coverage network dedicated to massive M2M and IoT communication.

The satellites are low-cost, shoe-box sized nanosatellites, targeting an orbit of 550km. No other satellite company offers direct-to-user cellular IoT communication using the same 5G chips in mobile phones without any modification, and a low-cost infrastructure of LEO nanosatellites.

This direct approach enables mobility for users beyond cell tower coverage by having a seamless handover to OQ Technology’s satellites anywhere in the world. Currently, users outside urban areas, where no cellular coverage is available, have to buy satellite equipment and services. It is estimated that more than 24 billion devices and machines will need to be connected to the internet by 2030.

The mission represents a significant milestone for us,” said Omar Qaise, CEO of OQ Technology. “It will be the first step in extending cellular 5G coverage beyond terrestrial cell towers. What makes OQ Technology different is its combination of cellular and satellite technologies, providing coverage in poorly connected areas with a low-cost solution that can match existing but expensive M2M and VSat satellite products.”

Luxembourg-based OQ Technology recently signed a contract with NanoAvionics to build, integrate and operate a 6U nanosatellite for its Tiger-2 mission. With modularity as the fundamental principle of NanoAvionics’ architecture and serial manufacturing approach, NanoAvionics says it can provide economic viability and quicker time to orbit to a wide range of small satellite constellation-based businesses.

The Tiger-2 mission will kick-start providing global 5G IoT connectivity to customers in Africa, Middle East, Asia and the Americas using a 6U high-power nanosatellite and to secure strategic frequencies. The spacecraft will carry two telecoms payloads: the primary payload will provide commercial satellite-based IoT and M2M services using low frequencies, while the secondary payload will test the feasibility of using high frequencies for 5G radio links.

The company plans to target the cellular IoT communication market, oil and gas, maritime, Industry 4.0 and transportation segments, autonomous cars and drones, for monitoring, control and asset tracking in remote areas. Its 5G IoT constellation suits low latency applications, critical for 5G, as the satellites are in low earth orbit and provide few milliseconds latency communication.