New services, tech-powered devices to facilitate 2022 Winter Games

Retail minibus

Simply by waving their hands, consumers can call a 5G-enabled unmanned retail minibus. By clicking a virtual button on the vehicle's screen, consumers can buy anything they want. When the minibus is not around, consumers can also place an order on their smartphones, and the self-driving minibus will "find" them for delivery. Behind the vehicle is China Unicom's 5G-enabled intelligent vehicle networking system, deployed in the Shougang Industrial Park in Beijing's Shijingshan district.

The intelligent vehicle networking system can support four types of unmanned vehicles and enable the demonstration operation of 10 business scenarios such as unmanned ferry, unmanned retail and unmanned delivery, said Liu Qi, a senior technical expert at China Unicom's smart city research institute.

It is expected to realize the first systematic application of L4-level intelligent vehicle networking business to the Olympic scenes, China Unicom said. Level 4 autonomy means the car can drive itself in most conditions without a human behind the wheel.