At MWC 2024, Antevia is announcing a brand-new approach to 5G Private Networks,
which it calls 5G SHIFT.
5G SHIFT provides all of the superior coverage, cost-efficiency, seamless mobility, and security
that 5G offers the enterprise, while also SHIFTing up a gear or two on all of these key 5G
differentiators.
That’s quite some claim! To discover how this is made possible, let’s unpack the 5G SHIFT
acronym:
5G SHIFT = SHared-cell architecture
“Shared Cell” architecture is key to unlocking the unique advantages of 5G SHIFT. Unlike in a 5G private network using conventional “Small Cells”, where each of the radio units is a
discrete/discreet cell operating on its own separate allocated frequency, in a “Shared Cell” network all of the radio units within a venue operate on the same frequency.
By utilizing Shared Cell mode of operation, 5G SHIFT eliminates internal interference and
handovers - so typical of enterprise WiFi and conventional 5G small cell networks - that can cause
significant connectivity and mobility issues.
A number of “Shared Cells” can be created, as illustrated in Figure 1 – each one for a different
use case within the enterprise. These Shared Cells can overlap in terms of the radio units (O-RUs)
that they include.
5G SHIFT = Intelligent automation
Radio capacity can be steered intelligently around inside the network based on the logical configuration of the Shared Cells – which is somewhat abstracted from the physical layout. As illustrated in Figure 2, this new capacity steering intelligence is implemented within the 5G SHIFT Service Management and Orchestration (SMO) function, which in turn can be augmented by a range of use-case-specific applications running on a RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC).
Collectively, these automation tools allow the Shared Cell network to become programmable -and therefore highly reconfigurable - without resorting to any physical moves and changes. This reconfiguration can in turn be automated to respond to daily traffic patterns and changes in demand. For example, capacity can be steered to the board room in the morning and then reallocated to the auditorium in the afternoon. With the application of AI the control of SharedCell networks can respond dynamically to people movements and IoT device activity within a venue.
5G SHIFT = Fronthaul Technology
Focusing on the very latest innovations emerging from the O-RAN Alliance, with 5G SHIFT, Antevia is contributing to the Open RAN ecosystem with an enterprise-class implementation of the Fronthaul Multiplexer (FHM) and Open Radio Unit (O-RU) defined in the O-RAN standards.
The FHM is a new O-RAN network element that provides the “Shared Cell” functionality. In a 5G SHIFT network, the FHM steers radio signals to the correct O-RUs and it performs a “copy” function on radio signals in the downlink direction, ensuring that all of the O-RU’s in a Shared Cell receive a copy of the same signal. In the uplink direction, the FHM performs a “combine” function on radio signals received by the O-RUs in a Shared Cell.
These “copy and combine” functions produce a radically different approach to conventional
“Small Cells” and mean that the O-RUs in a 5G SHIFT Shared Cell behave collectively like a single cell from the user equipment’s perspective – thereby eliminating interference and handovers and increasing availability and robustness, especially for mission-critical enterprise applications.
In a future paper we’ll go on to describe in more detail Antevia’s 5G SHIFT hardware and software products which implement the FHM and O-RU functions, together with the vital Service Management and Orchestration (SMO) functions that are specific to Shared Cell mode of operation. For now, we’ll touch on just one of the key features of 5G SHIFT: a distributed FHM architecture. Rather than requiring a completely new optical fiber install to all the O-RUs, this novel implementation of the O-RAN FHM function employs a two-layer hierarchical fronthaul topology that enables 5G SHIFT to distribute O-RUs very efficiently within the enterprise LAN, leveraging existing electrical Cat/6/7/8 structured cabling.
BENEFITS OF 5G SHIFT FOR THE ENTERPRISE
In a future paper, we’ll explore some of the exciting new enterprise use cases that 5G SHIFT can enable for the enterprise.
Come meet us at MWC in Barcelona: Hall 7, 7A15, Feb 26-29
Download White Paper
Contact us for more information on 5G SHIFT