A Key to More Cost-effective Backhaul and Fronthaul Networks – The Case for vRAN

Virtualized Radio Access Network (vRAN) Background

Fronthaul using CPRI evolved from the need of mobile operators to reduce their carbon footprint, obtain gains by pooling processing resources, and deploy advanced network features like Carrier Aggregation (CA) and Coordinated Multipoint (CoMP). The disadvantage of this type of Fronthaul is that it needs ‘Ideal Transport’ (Defined by 3GPP as 2.5 µs latency and throughput up to 10 Gbps). Continue reading

V-RAN Technology: A Promising Alternative for C-RAN with More Flexible Backhaul Options

Virtualized RAN (vRAN) enables operators to run Base Band Unit (BBU) functions on off the shelf hardware as virtualized network functions (VNFs). This can provide operators with the ability to avoid proprietary vendor lock-in as generic core and base station hardware can replace proprietary hardware. Currently Centralized RAN (C-RAN) uses a fixed Fronthaul split that requires a high capacity and low latency proprietary optical CPRI interface. Continue reading

Case Study: Can Extra High Power reduce need for Space Diversity?

Q:  Can Extra High Power (EHP) Radios Reduce Need for Space Diversity (SD) in Microwave Networks?

A: Yes.

  • EHP radios can reduce need for SD in some microwave networks by providing an optimum level of system gain, which will reduce fading—the problem SD was intended to mitigate
  • Non-reflective paths will benefit the most from EHP
  • Benefits include decreased numbers of antennas and lower capex
  • For example, in a recent project using EHP radios, Aviat reduced the number of required antennas by 9.27 percent and capex by 5 percent

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