Ericsson presents new small cells targeting 5G and IoT use cases

Ericsson small cell for telecomsEricsson will display its new small cell solutions at Mobile World Congress Americas from September 12 to 14, 2017 – targeting 5G and IoT use cases.

The Sweden-based telecom equipment maker said its new small cells which can be used by mobile operators for enhancing outdoor coverage – especially in-building coverage — will be commercially available in 2018.

XL Axiata and small cells

Earlier, Ericsson said Indonesia telecom operator XL Axiata is targeting to improve its wireless customers’ experience by selecting a 4G LTE and 3G/WCDMA indoor small cell solution based on the Ericsson Radio Dot System (RDS).

XL Axiata and Ericsson selected Jakarta Airport to improve experience of 3G and 4G customers by deploying the small cell solution. XL Axiata faced challenges because the existing distributed antenna system was based on 2G technology. 3G and LTE network users faced poor performance due to old technology. XL Axiata faced high Opex as it was paying a large rental fee on the antenna ports.

The company installed 43 antenna points for RDS and 8 mRRU spots in the arrivals area, as well as 53 antenna points and 14 mRRU spots in departures – connecting to the existing baseband.

XL Axiata achieved up to 300 percent increase in data and voice traffic throughout the terminal, highlighting a great improvement in users’ indoor connectivity experience. The solution also reduced the overall rental cost to XL Axiata by 30 percent.

Nokia and small cells

Nokia has reported a significant uptick in small cell shipments. At a recent Nokia analyst event in Vietnam, Nokia reported that Taiwanese mobile telecoms had purchased thousands of small cells. A number of the China based mobile telecoms are purchasing Nokia’s small cell solutions.

Though Chinese mobile telecoms have deployed 2.5 million macrocells to help boost 4G and, to a lesser extent, 3G coverage, they are now switching a proportion of their investments to small cell. In 2016, small cell investments accounted for 5 percent of radio access network (RAN) capital expenditure (CAPEX).

It is estimated that 20 percent of China Mobile’s annual cell-site upgrades / deployments in 2017 will be small cells, which is equivalent to 100,000 units.

Ericsson’s new small cell solutions

Ericsson has presented three new small cell solutions to expand the small cell market and meet the demand for better mobile coverage and capacity while preparing networks for 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT) applications.

Ericsson is introducing the Multi-Operator Dot and the Multi-Dot Enclosure for indoor deployments; and the Strand-Mount Unit for outdoor micro radios.

The Multi-Operator Dot solution delivers a set of Radio Dots that can be shared between multiple operators, with one operator managing the system while others provide radio frequency signals – similar to an active distributed antenna system (DAS).

This new architecture allows up to four operators to broadcast over a single Dot solution; combining the multi-operator benefits of an active DAS solution with the performance, agility and cost-effective design of the Radio Dot System.

Ericsson said the Multi-Dot Enclosure combines multiple Dots in a single enclosure. The enclosure has a minimal impact on building aesthetics, is useful for multi-operator deployments, and presents a cost-savings option in buildings that charge per box deployed.

The Strand-Mount Unit for outdoor micro radios makes it easier to install the radios on the existing grid, hung on aerial coax, fiber, or electricity cables. Aerial-strand deployments are critical for scaling outdoor small cells and can be deployed for both single and multi-operator usage.

Ericsson’s new Strand-Mount Unit can support up to four micro radios, enabling multiple operators to utilize the same mount for cost-efficient deployments. The Strand-Mount Unit delivers superior outdoor coverage with zero footprint.

“We have developed scalable small cell models to meet the current demands of our customers while also preparing for requirements that will be imposed by 5G and the IoT,” said Nishant Batra, head of Product Area Network Infrastructure at Ericsson.

Customers can enhance the in-building user experience with connectivity for both smartphones and IoT devices by deploying the Multi-Operator Dot and the Multi-Dot Enclosure.

The Strand-Mount Unit for outdoor micro radios facilitates the dense deployments that will be required for 5G – enabling operators to deploy small cells in areas where they may not have been able to do so previously.

The Multi-Operator Dot and the Multi-Dot Enclosure will enable service providers to offer customers a multi-operator solution, extending coverage and capacity indoors using LTE/5G tight interworking.

The Strand-Mount Unit creates new opportunities for outdoor deployments for customers such as telecom operators, cable operators and tower companies.

Baburajan K