Smart Repeaters, Mesh, and Relays will Signal the Next Wave of …

1508 of 1500 words

Client: Movandi / Green Flash on Clearvoice

In this era, people demand that data speeds be more suAicient than their immediate needs. After all, people are downloading just about anything at all times of the day and that requires diAerent types of speed levels. Also, having the right hardware can make it perform flawlessly without any major interruptions as well. This is why we are witnessing a constant desire for striving to achieve networks with data speeds of more than 10 Gbps. With that type of speed, we can enable new data programs, applications, and digital products that can be generated for immediate purposes that can serve the masses and achieve greater potential. With that said, 5G networks are witnessing Massive MIMO systems being utilized to simultaneously serve users in multiple ways.

In addition, Millimeter-Wave, also known as mmWave technology is also receiving a great deal of attention in the 5G mobile communications world because it oAers the capability of providing a multi-gigabit transmission rate. It also can address the major challenges that need viable solutions to deal with the reality of 5G requiring to provide 1,000-times greater capacity, as well as supporting 100-times more smart devices than the current 4G setup. In addition, mmWave technology is starting to show great promise in this particular area as it oAers endless opportunities for utilizing its bandwidth and hardware choices.

After all, the first phase of 5G was very confusing since several companies like Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile implemented various types of radical strategies that were not in sync with each other. However, we are currently in the second phase of 5G, which is witnessing what most in the industry consider being the “goldilocks” solution, which is mid-band spectrum that has become the medium for 5G growth. This makes it a lot easier to progress and reach benchmark success in this phase of 5G.

This is why there are at least three primary reasons that make mmWave bands more attractive and available to operators worldwide. The first being that mmWave oAers higher bandwidth rates than the lower frequency bands. This alone increases the transmission rate of earlier generations from 1G to 4G coverage by 10-20 times. The second reason is

that mmWave bands are cheaper to buy and support higher data rates to help operators increase their subscriber levels for a lot lower cost. Also, it oAers the cost per Hz of bandwidth per user than sub-1 GHz bands and is significantly better as well. Lastly, the third reason is that the commercial availability of mmWave technology is abundant and primed for greater usage. This availability makes it more cost-eAective to create in abundancewhile addressing the signal fading issues that other types of transmissions experience. As a result, mmWaves tend to have less blockage and less diAraction, reflection, and scattering as well.

However, mmWaves can suAer path loss, especially if the line of sight (LOS) paths has been blocked by something like a tree or a building. This creates path loss and the mmWave ends up experiencing 1,000 times more path loss than higher frequency signals. The good news is this can be easily fixable by addressing it with adding antennas to the networks. The antennas can amplify the signal that has longer distances by enforcing its strength to maximize line of sight (LOS) capabilities. In addition, it also helps to place the antennas in areas without obstacles that would either diAract, scatter, or reflect signal strength. This will increase the strength and the signal distance as well.

Operators can use these antennas to control both the beam width and its directivity by assessing the number of antennas needed as well as their spacing. This allows them to control the signal strength of mmWaves with smaller antennas, which cancels out any severe blocking of a location. This makes it somewhat cost eAective with numerous smaller antennas. However, it remains diAicult to create good quality mmWave network coverage with financial challenges tied to it. For instance, there would need to be more base stations (gNB Stations) required to ensure the mmWave coverage and they are very expensive for operators to purchase and deploy. Other costs that would go beyond the operator’s capacities would also be tied to the fact that the antennas require additional supporting technology like beamformers and amplifiers. This alone would force any operator to reconsider the idea of setting this up as it would essentially be too costly to produce on a wider scale.

However, this is where it really depends on whether an mmWave network is thoughtfully designed while utilizing technology that saves the operator from incurring these extra costs that are not really feasible for mega 5G expansion. However, there is a very aAordable solution through the use of outdoor and indoor relays to an mmWave network. Both of these types of relays can help boost between base stations that can extend the mmWave network in any given location. Whether the relay is inside or outside, the operator can choose and plan accordingly at a more cost-eAective price.

This makes 5G expansion more realistic as the relays can help boost network coverage well over the average 1 kilometer of travel distance. If a relay is outdoors and the users are within antenna coverage, it can also move the signal downstream as it would be captured from a gNB, then amplified and transmitted to the next relay. Relays can be organized like a mesh network that forms an interconnection between devices or relays (nodes) rather than just utilizing one. A Mesh network is a way for the devices to communicate on an unblocked path as it talks to other relay stations as well. This even includes signals that may even be temporarily blocked, such as a vehicle blocking the frequency. However, the mesh enables the relay to still maintain network coverage and signal strength for continuity.

Smart relays in a 5G world would have to be updated as well to incorporate the advanced nature of the cellular transmission. After all, 5G cellular transmission incorporates both a data and control channel, which means that a simple relay would not be suAicient for processing. Smart relays are the answer to this upgrade of what is a very common piece of technology. They would help decode the control and data channels of 5G transmissions that are sent by a gNBas as well as the associated core network. A regular relay is great if the line of sight (LOS) is always clear and never covered. However, that is not always the most realistic scenario, and therefore smart relays are the better option in the world of 5G networks with complexed mesh networks.

It’s interesting to note that Movandi’s indoor relays function a lot like outdoor relays, except that they can interface with outdoor relays in multiple ways, whether it’s by coax, fiber, or wireless. They can be mounted on either a wall or a ceiling too. Also, their beam patterns can be programmed to cover the largest serving area in the network as well. Overall, it oAers a lot of options and its new BeamX repeater mesh software can make it possible to be utilized for both indoor and outdoor networks.

This will revolutionize the way 5G is established on a massive scale as it will also streamline deployment. As a result, it will lead toward a powerful and cost-eAective solution with the use of a cloud-enabled repeater mesh. Whether it is outdoor or indoor, the repeater mesh around a collection of 5G small cells or gNBs will enable this experience and expand mmWave coverage. In addition, it will also ensure excellent signal quality and eAective utilization of cloud AI software to choose the best propagation routes that are dynamically possible. Also, Movandi’s repeaters are also TDD-aware and allows up to four being cascaded without any degradation of noise floor, which makes it a fault-tolerant mesh.

In conclusion, smart repeaters with relay meshes are the best answer for streamlining 5G deployment in this second phase. It will be even more essential for cost- eAective technologies like Movandi’s as a way to plan out a mesh that meets 21st century needs. We have seen many approaches to tackling 5G and to date has not reached its full potential. However, Movandi’s smart repeaters and BeamX repeater mesh software has made it more possible to connect both indoor and outdoor networks with the full implementation of artificial intelligence (A.I.) capabilities that more eAectively utilizes the cloud-based structure.

Relays are getting smarter and that will enable us to spearhead the next phase of 5G deployment more eAectively. After all, this is the future of consumer mobility and access to immediate data, programs, and new software creations. Movandi is planning for it to make great contributions to this playing field as well as taking it to the next level for society to keep on growing and evolving.