Communication evolutionary history
Over the past several hundred years, communications technology has undergone day become the exclusive-like development: the ancient hundreds of years ago, people by "communications war", "carrier pigeon biography book", "drumming sound," "semaphore" and other use the basic laws of nature and human basic senses (sight, hearing, etc.) communication system establish reachability.
After the middle of the 19th century, with the telegraph, telephone discovery, discovery of electromagnetic waves, a tremendous human communication field fundamental change, since then, the information may be transmitted from a conventional human visual and auditory manner, an electrical signal as a new carrier , with this brings a series of technological innovations, began a new era of human communication. Using electric and magnetic technology, to achieve the purpose of communication, it is a sign of modern communication start.
To the 1980s, with the digital transmission, use of program-controlled telephone exchange communications technology into the mobile communications and Internet communications era.
After 21 centuries, from the era of communication between people, things and objects entered the Internet, the perception of intelligent era.
The protagonist of this article, SIM cards, since the birth in 1991, are still evolving, are an integral part of communications technology.
SIM card evolutionary history
As we all know, insert a SIM card on the phone, you can connect to the operator network, phone calls and other communication functions, it is not a "bare metal", it can not access the network operator communication services. SIM card as a network operator to distinguish our identity documents, which played an important role.
SIM card (Subscriber Identity Module Subscriber Identity Module) is actually equipped with a microprocessor chip card, which is stored in this digital mobile phone customer information, an encryption key and the user's phonebook content, the client for the GSM network identity identification, voice and customer information when the call is encrypted.
It has five internal modules, and each module corresponds to a function: a microprocessor CPU (8 bits), the program memory ROM (3 ~ 8kbit), a working memory RAM (6 ~ 16kbit) data memory EEPROM (128 ~ 256kbit ) and serial communication unit. These five modules are sealed in plastic SIM card interfaces copper same manner as ordinary IC card packaging. These five modules must be integrated on a single integrated circuit, or its security would be threatened, because the connection between the chip may be an important clue to unauthorized access and theft of SIM card.
When the SIM card connected to the phone, requires a minimum of five cable: power supply (the VCC), reset (the RST), a clock (the CLK), the ground terminal (the GND), data I / O port (I / O).
About SIM card form, at the time of the birth of the first SIM card, in fact, it is the same size as a credit card and a card.
The size of this card is called the standard card. But for domestic mobile phone users, it should be more familiar with the following three sizes of cards:
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The second generation standard Mini card, domestic users commonly known as calories.
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The third generation standard Micro card, commonly known as a small card.
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The fourth generation Nano standard card.
The function of these SIM cards are the same, just as technology development, in order to adapt to the miniaturization of the device, the SIM card is also getting smaller and smaller.
Things that in the world, how is perceived between things and joins it?
Things such as the various sensors on the device temperature and humidity sensors, RFID tags and the like senses that the terminal object is identified, data collection or the like. And fixed broadband, NB-IoT, 2/3/4 / 5G including a variety of network devices to access the internet interconnection Huawei things. If the device uses 2/3/4 / 5G and NB-IoT network access, network access provider is required by the SIM card.
With the development of things, more and more device types, devices getting smaller, the adaptation of the requirements of the SIM card in the external environment increasingly high demands on the SIM card and longer life, SIM card smaller size requirements, prompting the form of plug-in SIM card from the SIM card, the SIM card and the evolution of the embedded vSIM card.
| Attributes |
Plug-in SIM card (mini / micro / nano) |
Embedded SIM card (eUICC) |
Lice |
|---|---|---|---|
| size |
Big |
small |
no |
| Adaptation temperature |
-25℃~85℃ |
-40℃~105℃ |
Unlimited |
| life |
10 years |
15 years |
Unlimited |
Nano卡虽然看起来已经很小了，但是它们还需要设备具有配套的卡槽。这个卡槽的结构和走线，对于一些智能穿戴设备（智能手环、智能眼镜等）来说还是太大了。而且插拔式SIM卡里面的用户信息固定不可更改，一张SIM卡就是一个用户与运营商之间的契约，若您想要切换运营商，必须换卡。为了解决这些问题，eSIM和vSIM诞生了。
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嵌入式SIM卡：eSIM，也称eUICC（embedded UICC），顾名思义，与传统可插拔的SIM卡不同，eSIM的概念是将SIM卡直接嵌入到设备中。eSIM的本质还是SIM卡，不过它的“卡体”是一颗直接嵌在电路板的可编程的集成电路，其大小比Nano还要小上几倍。因为其可编程特性，eSIM支持通过OTA（空中写卡）方式进行远程配置，更新运营商配置文件，实现网络切换。综上所述，因为eSIM将SIM卡功能虚拟化和设备集成化，使用eSIM时的SIM卡码号的切换也将迎来全新的用户体验： 用户不必再来回插拔SIM卡，而是直接通过与终端交互，通过APP或者云端，即可在全球范围内将终端智能设备连接到所选择的当地网络，且可动态切换，使设备可以始终处于优质网速中。通过这种方式，eSIM不但增强了整体用户体验，也为设备的管理分配带来极大便利。
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vSIM卡：即virtual-SIM，虚拟SIM卡技术。可以说，vSIM就是eSIM的进一步演进，继承了eSIM的功能，并完全消灭了卡体，直接依托通信模块自身软硬件实现通信。终端设备拥有vSIM功能的通信模块，配合为vSIM特殊定制的底层软件，实现了内置加密存储数据（IMSI、KI等）。在登陆网络、鉴权、通信时，自动处理相应的逻辑，从而实现不需要实体SIM卡也能提供稳定的通信体验。
eSIM和vSIM除了进一步缩小甚至消灭了实体卡之外，它们更重要的功能是解除了用户和运营商的直接绑定，对用户来说，切换运营商变得和切换WIFI一样简单。但对运营商来说，因为用户粘性变小了，这显然不是一件好事，但是他们却也在大力支持eSIM和vSIM，这又是为什么呢？
The reason is that we have already mentioned, is the Internet of things. Internet of Things equipment, the traditional plug-in SIM card has been unable to meet their equipment needs of the Internet. For example, if a device needs to move on a global scale, but it is on the move and need to report data throughout the network, then in charge of the equipment how to do business? We do have a global Internet-enabled SIM card? In this case it is too expensive Internet access charges. Do a local SIM card in each country or area of the device passes, each to a new place on changing the card? In this case the maintenance and operating costs would be too high. The eSIM / vSIM air card write capabilities are a perfect solution to this problem, the device before the arrival of each new area, just next update networking configuration to a new area can be used after local rates online. So, networking equipment manufacturers will be to pursue these new technologies, and the mass of things all require network equipment, this piece of cake operators will not miss. So, now vSIM various eSIM and flourishing, are trying to seize this market.
How to choose the SIM card used equipment
For devices using a SIM card access to the Internet of Things platform, especially for moveable equipment, Huawei launched the "Global SIM coupled" cloud services to support embedded SIM card and card vSIM way to provide purchasing cards, card management, device access , issued equipment capabilities. With directional flow, air cards and write remote device issuing technology to achieve the nearest access device worldwide public cloud sites, enjoy local rates, providing one-stop device connection management services to customers.
If you want to find out more, visit the " Global SIM card connection " cloud services.
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