Microwave towards 2020 presentation

Microwave Towards

2020

September 2015

Microwave Towards 2020 presentation | Commercial in confidence | © Ericsson AB 2015 | 2015-09-18 | Page 2

› Todays capacity in microwave networks is below 100 Mbps

› In 2020 high capacity base stations will require backhaul in the 1 Gbps range

› Very limited numbers of sites need capacity > 5 Gbps

BackHaul Capacity

Microwave is able to handle 100% of all radio access sites in 2020


Backhaul media distribution

Note: Data exclude China, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan

› Networks continue to be modernized using a combination of wireless and wired backhaul

› In 2020, 65 percent of all cell sites will be connected with microwave solutions

› The uptake of fiber is expected to continue globally, albeit at a slower pace towards 2020

The choice between fiber and microwave in backhaul networks will not be about capacity, it will be about

fiber presence and TCO


› Large regional differences - 5% in China vs. 85% in India

› Microwave in North America growing with LTE› Large differences also within regions

– Telecom Infrastructure maturity– Governmental fiber initiatives– Urban vs rural areas– Incumbent or competitive

Regional differences in deployed microwave backhaul

› In emerging mobile broadband countries today absolute majority of sites connected with Microwave

› High microwave usage in both Urban and Rural areas for mature mobile broadband countries also in 2020.


Microwave spectrum

› Total spectrum for microwave backhaul covers around 40 GHz

› New and higher spectrum will be required to enable radio access and cater for greater capacities and emerging applications in a 5G context


› Large regional and national variances– Climate– Inter-site distances and– National spectrum regulations

› The spectrum utilization varies across frequencies and regions. It can be improved with more harmonized spectrum regulations

› 15-23 GHz the most widely used bands globally today and will continue to be so

› 28-42 GHz have room for better utilization and offer wider channels, such as 56 MHz and 112 MHz

Spectrum usage

Note: Usage relative to 15 GHz, which is the world’s most deployed band


E-band› The E-band has been opened in many

countries and additional countries are rapidly being added

› The advantages of the E-band are its wide spectrum and channels that enable very high capacities

› Many countries use a light licensing regime and/or low spectrum fees

E-band spectrum is key to cater for the capacity increase for backhaul

as well as fronthaul


E-bandMicrowave spectrum towards 2020


› Technology shift from TDM to Ethernet continues

› The transport network must often support legacy equipment and at the same time be future-proof – use of hybrid microwave solutions

› Increasing demand for bandwidth drives the upgrade of microwave networks

› Microwave technology provides reliable network

Microwave Beyond Mobile operators


› Modern packet networks, combined with millimeter wave (mmW) bands, open up a paradigm shift in planning

› By focusing on capacity instead of availability – up to 7 times the minimum traffic (>1 Gbps) for more than 364 days per year

› With traditional planning, only 30 percent of this traffic would be possible

Paradigm shift in Microwave planning

Microwave planning optimized on:


Boost capacity with multiband

Availability of capacity; traditional frequency band plus E-band


E-band for fiber extension

Availability of capacity; 2km, 0.6m antenna, 2+0 E-band 1,000 MHz channel


› Using 250–1,000 MHz channels in E-Band allows for capacities of 1–10 Gbps

› Enables dense access points without interference

– narrow beam antenna lobes – broad spectrum

› Up to 15–30 access points per square kilometer

E-band for fiber extension


› A network node offers high node capacity, compact and modular building practice and advanced packet functionality

› Network node approach is almost three times more efficient in terms of utilizing indoor space → Reduced site costs

› Number of network elements is reduced by a factor three with the network node approach → Reduced OAM costs

Network node approach

Network node is 3 times more efficient


› The case study showed that the node approach was the most efficient and least expensive way to add capacity and new functionality step-by-step.

› Sharing hardware resources like Switch, Fan, Power Supply, Processor etc. in the network node approach reduces power consumption and equipment cost when expanding existing sites.

Network node approach

A total of 40 percent savings can be achieved after five years


Backhaul vs Fronthaul


CPRI› Common Public Radio Interface

(CPRI ) - is a standardized internal interface of radio base stations where parts are vendor specific

› 2.5 Gbps CPRI› One-cell LTE with 20 MHz FDD

or Tri-cell WCDMA 5 MHz FDD


› Wireless fronthaul is a great complement to fiber

– Quick and easy deployment› E-band is the most suitable

spectrum› Macro and small cell use cases in

one sector deployments

Wireless Use cases


MICROWAVETOWARDS2020

Delivering high-capacity and cost-efficient backhaul for broadband

networks today and in the futureSeptember 2015

MAJOR GROWTH IN E-BAND –UP TO 20% IN 2020

CONNECT BEYOND 10 GBPS

65% OF BACKHAUL 2020*

*excluding China, Taiwan, Korea, Japan