5GSWARM2: Technical report WP3 activities

5G SWARM2 (5G Swarm Manufacturing 2023) is a research project developed by ITI (Instituto Tecnológico de Informática), funded by the Instituto Valenciano de Competitividad Empresarial (IVACE) and the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). The primary objective of the project is to drive the disruption of traditional plant automation architecture by transitioning to a non-linear and fully decentralized scenario enabled by 5G technology. These advancements allow for greater flexibility and reconfiguration in the production process as production modules are decoupled, becoming independent and self-contained. This production model facilitates increased customization and optimizes cost and resource efficiency for the industrial sector in the Valencian Community. This document focuses on the analysis of alternative wireless technologies to 5G to support the quality-of-service requirements for industrial communications. To this end, it reviews the latest updates in WiFi standards, including the draft of WiFi 7, as well as its key parameters, tools, and technologies of interest to meet these objectives. Subsequently, various communication prototypes are developed and tested in different types of environments, with their performance ultimately compared against real-world 5G trials. The document concludes with a basic guide and considerations for implementing these technologies in industrial environments.