Transmode Launches Industry’s First Optical Multi-Service Mobile Backhaul Solution
September 3, 2009 – Transmode, a leading provider of optical networking solutions, today announced the launch of its Multi-Service Mobile Backhaul Solution. This unique WDM over fiber solution provides “hybrid” native support of both TDM and Ethernet traffic and supports multiple synchronization streams per wavelength. It therefore enables a smooth migration to Ethernet or all-IP backhaul networks and cost effective support of 3G and LTE multimedia service roll outs.
The new Multi-Service Mobile Backhaul Solution provides a fiber-based backhaul that offers a unique and valuable form of differentiation that will help carriers overcome synchronization and bandwidth problems so that they can more quickly and confidently roll out new 3G, LTE-based and 4G services. The ability to maintain multiple synchronization signals to the cell sites in a mobile network allows the operator to simultaneously support a mix of 2G (TDM), 3G (ATM/Ethernet) and LTE/4G (Ethernet) radio base station equipment and legacy E1/T1, FE/GE and STM-1/OC-3 for one or more mobile operators. The multi-service characteristic enables a gradual migration and the possibility to do selected capacity upgrades in dense areas without affecting the core network architecture. It also makes it equally well suited to support migration to all-IP also in the fixed network.
The Multi-Service Mobile Backhaul Solution is part of Transmode’s popular Intelligent WDM (iWDM™) based TM-Series. The solution comprises of three main components:
1) Access
- a. Collects E1/T1 and Ethernet signals in up to 8 synchronization groups, on a single wavelength from Mobile cell sites and co-located DSLAMs
- b. Consists of different 1u Access nodes that can support varying capacity demands
- c. Supports up to 16x E1/T1 + 4x Fast Ethernet/Gigabit Ethernet (linerate) per 1u unit, with cascade facility for very high capacity nodes
2) Hub
- a. Aggregates E1/T1 traffic from Access nodes into STM-1/OC-3 signals
- b. Hand-off of collected Fast Ethernet and GbE signals for further transport
3) Backhaul
WDM-based Layer 1 and Layer 2 transport solution for SDH/SONET and Ethernet traffic to appropriate control points and switching centers
“Transmode is helping mobile operators achieve an effective LTE migration strategy by offering both the deterministic performance required for effective synchronization and the ability to support multiple synchronization streams on a single wavelength,” said David Dunphy, Managing Partner of Telecom Strategy Partners. “This solution lets operators migrate to the Ethernet and IP fiber-based backhaul networks cost effectively in support of 3G and 4G mobile broadband services while eliminating the need to keep costly E1/T1 circuits in place for reliable synchronization.”
Most operators deploying 3G and planning deployment of LTE plan to do so gradually and will therefore need to support 2G, 3G, LTE, and eventually also 4G, at the same cell site. This creates challenges in having to efficiently and cost effectively support the varying backhaul requirements of for instance multiple generations of NodeBs and eNodeBs, often for multiple operators at the same cell site. Transmode’s solution natively supports both legacy TDM and new Ethernet backhaul traffic over a single wavelength, while supporting up to 8 synchronization streams that can be either physical layer TDM synchronization, Synchronous Ethernet or packet synchronization. This simplifies making a gradual migration to 4G and the all-IP network and cost effectively scales to meet the fast growing traffic requirements of mobile data and multimedia traffic while providing operators with simplified OAM&P procedures. As a result, the operator gets a flexible, economic solution that resembles the Hybrid approach used by many of the microwave vendors. Therefore also providing the advantage of using a similar approach in both microwave and fiber based mobile access, leading to a more simplified access network and lower operational costs.
Dave Dunphy added “Achieving a business case that supports the profitable roll out of multimedia-intensive mobile broadband services for 3G and LTE requires migration from TDM toward the optimization of an all-IP network. Transmode’s solution offers a way to do that cleanly without sacrificing network performance or call quality.”
Sten Nordell, Transmode’s Chief Technology Officer, commented “This is an exciting development from Transmode and our initial discussions with mobile/fixed operators and network operators that offer wholesale services to mobile operators have been very encouraging. Pushing WDM technology right out to the cell site is the logical extension of our Multi-Service technology. By using our iWDM approach we are able to offer a unique solution that addresses the multiple synchronization domains issue that other solutions just can’t address”.
The Multi-Service Mobile Backhaul solution will be introduced in Q4 2009. For further details on this solution please see Transmode’s “Multi-Service Mobile Backhaul in 3 minutes” video, download the Application Note and White Paper.
