The Globtel AIR Fixed Wireless System - How is it done?

The main reasons, why the Globtel AIR System stands out in the fixed wireless are its capacities in regard to throughput, range and users connected.

 COMPONENTS

The Globtel AIR System has three components:

• The outdoor base station multipoint sector
• The indoor base station unit with power supply for the sector antenna
• The Controlled Power Supply (CPS)
• The Globtel AIR Transceiver

RANGE

 Range, as with any other solution, depends on the frequency that is being utilized. One of the important factors when considering the spectrum is that the Globtel AIR System is not limited to any frequency range but can be tailored to virtually any frequency that a client or partner owns or can obtain.

To put things in perspective, in the chart below can be seen what the actual range of a base station is in three example frequency bands.

CAPACITIES

The system utilizes a wideband transmitter which allows for industry leading RF bandwidth capacity of 500Mhz.

Depending on the standard which is being used in the deployment and the modulation, the result of the high channel width is unprecedented throughput which can be as high as 10Gbps per sector antenna.

In DOCSIS 3.1, modulation as high as 4096QAM is supported which allows for 83Mbps of throughput per single downstream channel (8Mhz) and 61Mbps per single upstream channel (6.4Mhz).

One of the key advantages of the system is that it is not a broadband system only but also supports TV and VoIP and thus can serve clients with full triple play services.

Should triple play be utilized, the full RF bandwidth needs to be divided between the internet part and TV part as in an example showed below.

Example capacity calculation - theoretical case

Note: example was done on Docsis 3.1 pre-requirement so each sector can utilize the same DS frequency; opposite sector is typically the same polarization because of front to back discrimination of sector antennas.

Capacities can be upgraded at any point by either utilizing a different frequency set or mounting additional sector antennas. The RF bandwidth can be doubled (1000Mhz) and thus reach a combined throughput of 10Gbps per sector antenna.

Theoretical throughput of the system 

Note: distributed modulation profiles refer to having several modulations in the system according to end user signal parameters.

For IP transmission LTE or Docsis 3.0/3.1 can be used. For TV distribution variety of DVB standards (DVB T, DVB-T2, DVB-C,…) or ATSC standard can be used, there are also no limitations to use IPTV.

Number of connected broadband users is limited only by available throughput, while number of TV users using DVB or ATSC TV services is unlimited.

TV CONTENT DELIVERY 

The AIR system is primary meant for transportation of TV and IP signals over microwaves. Most commonly used and recommended standards for this are DVB-T, DVB-T2 or DVB-C. In each case the IP traffic is carried over with Docsis/EuroDocsis, LTE or 5G standard access platform. For TV the natural selection would be DVB-T or DVB-T2 because it is the main stream standard for transporting TV content over air. Nevertheless there is no need to use the DVB-T/T2 standard and make additional investments in central site equipment. Existing DVB-C equipment for TV transport or IPTV multicast can also be used in the system and therefore making the system a suitable investment non-intensive solution for existing operator to expand their area of coverage.

TELEPHONY SERVICE DELIVERY

The soft switch is providing interconnection to International PSTN networks and also mobile network operators and is connected to the CMTS via Ethernet interface, send voice through IP wireless data network in both directions (down and upstream).

INTEGRATION

 The systems design allows for very easy integration into existing cable plants but it is also a very cost effective solution for wireless providers that are currently utilizing either WiFi or LTE solutions.

 The system uses standard DOCSIS components at both the user premises (cable modem) and in the headend (CMTS).

Existing provisioning, inventory or billing software can be used and little to no training to staff is needed. This makes the integration literally seamless and the modems itself will be seen in the network as if they were connected to the existing cable plant.

It is the same at the user premises. The cable modem is connected to the Globtel AIR transceiver and the coaxial cable which leads from the transceiver to the cable modem can be treated almost as it is connected directly to the existing cable plant.

To sum it up, the Globtel Air System is a unique solution which provides an existing provider or a greenfield operation with the means to serve areas where standard wireline solutions are not feasible while still offering equal quality of service to the end customer.

It is future proof and right now outplays most if not all other fixed wireless solutions in regard to throughput, range and number of users that can be served.