3GPP Release-16 for Industrial Internet of Things and Mission Critical Communications

This paper reviews the provisions of 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Release 16 as it affects Industrial Internet of Things and mission critical communications with a view to see the implementation possibilities and challenges. The goal is to give a useful insight into the expectations of beyond 5G or 6G system with respect to IIoT. 3GPP completed the Release 16 version of its specifications in July 2020 a little behind the target of March 2020. The reality is that the growth of the Internet-of Things (IoT) has resulted in an explosion in the use of IoT devices leading to the prediction that IoT devices will exceed 25 billion in 2020 and may exceed 75 billion in 2025. This explosion has placed the direction of Release 16 on new features for eURLLC (enhanced Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communication) and Industrial Internet of Things, including Time Sensitive Networks, enhanced location services and support for non public networks. The paper adopted short review of major works available on ieee Xplore between 1993-2020. The result of the research showed that the following are open research issues: Security for industrial IoT beyond 5G, Supporting technologies for industrial IoT beyond 5G, and the need for more testbed research for industrial IoT beyond 5G.