Inside a Cellular Base Station Antenna

Most people will have seen the familiar white rectangular antenna panels mounted on telecom towers, rooftops and other structures. They are a visible part of the mobile network, but what is actually inside one of these panels is rarely seen.

In a recent Wireless Future video, Prof. Emil Björnson carries out a teardown of a cellular base station antenna that was discovered in a box when his research division moved offices. The antenna operates in the 3.5 GHz band, which is widely associated with 5G deployments, but it is important to understand that this is not specifically a ‘5G antenna’.

It is a passive sector antenna. It can be used with either 4G or 5G, depending on the radio signal connected to it.

The antenna is designed to cover a 60-degree sector and would be installed vertically using mounting points at the top and bottom. A conventional macro site may use multiple sector antennas pointing in different directions to provide coverage around the site.

At the bottom of the antenna is a radio frequency connector through which the transmitted and received signals pass. The antenna does not create or process the radio signal itself. The signal is generated by an external radio unit and carried to the antenna through a feeder cable.

There is also a small drain hole at the bottom of the enclosure. Although antenna panels are designed to operate outdoors, condensation or small amounts of water may still enter the enclosure. The drain allows this moisture to escape rather than accumulating inside.

After removing the enclosure, the internal antenna structure becomes visible. The antenna contains eight radiating elements arranged vertically. Each of these elements is a dipole antenna.

The radio signal enters through the connector and is distributed through a feed network to all eight elements. The elements transmit the same signal coherently. Their individual radio waves combine through constructive interference to produce a stronger and more directional radiation pattern.

The physical dimensions of the antenna are closely related to the wavelength of the radio signal. At around 3.5 GHz, one wavelength is approximately 8.5 centimetres. Each dipole is therefore around half a wavelength long, or approximately four centimetres.

Behind the dipoles is a metal reflector positioned approximately a quarter of a wavelength away, which is around two centimetres at this frequency. The reflector reduces radiation behind the antenna and helps direct more of the energy forwards.

Metal structures along the sides of the antenna further shape the horizontal radiation pattern, limiting the main coverage area to approximately 60 degrees. Instead of transmitting energy equally in every direction, the antenna concentrates it towards the geographical area that the sector is intended to serve.

The eight dipole elements are separated vertically by approximately eight centimetres, which is roughly one wavelength. Arranging the elements in a vertical column produces a narrow beam in the vertical, or elevation, plane.

This is useful because a base station normally needs to transmit signals across the surrounding area rather than towards the sky or directly into the ground. The horizontal beam provides coverage across the 60-degree sector, while the narrow vertical beam concentrates the radio energy towards users within the intended coverage area.

According to the antenna specifications shown in the video, it has a gain of 17.5 dBi. This corresponds to a peak power density roughly 56 times greater than that of an ideal isotropic antenna transmitting the same total power.

The antenna is not amplifying or creating additional power. Antenna gain is achieved by concentrating the available radio energy in particular directions while reducing the energy transmitted in others. This improves coverage and signal strength within the sector.

The maximum input power shown in the specifications is 150 watts. The data sheet also includes horizontal and vertical radiation patterns, mounting instructions and information about wind loading. These mechanical considerations are important because antennas must remain safely mounted and correctly aligned while exposed to wind, rain and changing temperatures.

The antenna was manufactured by the Italian company Sira Sistemi Radio. Its relatively simple internal construction demonstrates how passive base station antennas have traditionally worked. One radio signal is distributed across several antenna elements to create a fixed directional radiation pattern.

The same antenna could carry a 4G or 5G signal because the antenna itself does not understand the mobile technology being used. Provided that the radio frequency falls within its supported operating range, it simply converts electrical RF signals into electromagnetic waves and performs the reverse process when receiving signals.

This is different from many modern 5G Massive MIMO antenna systems.

In the passive antenna shown in the video, the eight radiating elements collectively behave as one large directional antenna. They receive the same input signal and produce a largely fixed beam.

An active Massive MIMO antenna has many individually controlled antenna elements or subarrays, together with multiple radio frequency chains. By adjusting the phase and amplitude of the signals supplied to different elements, the system can electronically form and steer beams, serve several users simultaneously and adapt the radiation pattern as network conditions change.

Modern active antenna units may also integrate the radio electronics into the antenna enclosure. This reduces feeder losses and allows closer coordination between the radio and antenna functions, although it also makes the equipment more complex than the passive panel examined in the teardown.

The video provides a useful reminder that an antenna is not simply an empty white box. Its dimensions, element spacing, reflector, feed network and surrounding metal structures all contribute to how radio energy is transmitted into the coverage area.

It also illustrates the progression of cellular infrastructure. Traditional passive sector antennas use carefully designed physical structures to create a fixed coverage pattern. Modern active antenna systems build on the same electromagnetic principles but add multiple radios, digital signal processing and dynamic beamforming.

The complete teardown and explanation from Prof. Emil Björnson can be viewed in the video below.

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Nokia and Citymesh Bring Drones-in-a-Box to Life Across Belgium

Belgium is emerging as a true pioneer in aviation, public safety and telecom convergence, thanks to the nationwide Drones-in-a-Box network delivered through the partnership between Nokia and Citymesh. What began as small-scale trials in ports and industrial zones has now grown into one of the most ambitious drone grid deployments in the world. It blends 5G connectivity, automated drone operations and remote command capabilities to support emergency response and critical infrastructure monitoring.

Citymesh, now well established as Belgium’s newest mobile operator and a European leader in private networks, has been championing the idea of safety drones for several years. The company has already proved the concept in locations such as Brussels Airport, the Port of Antwerp Bruges, Kortrijk and Genk. These pilots demonstrated how much time is lost in the first moments of an incident when responders are unsure of what they will face. A drone that can be airborne in seconds and provide live video, thermal analysis and AI-assisted insights significantly improves situational awareness.

Nokia’s Drone Networks platform is central to the national rollout. The agreement covers 70 Drone in a Box units which are positioned across 35 emergency zones. When integrated with Nokia’s 4G and 5G connectivity, the drones can be remotely launched from one of Citymesh’s Remote Operations Centres. These centres operate around the clock and ensure that flights remain compliant with aviation rules while delivering reliable coverage during both planned and unplanned missions.

The platform is engineered for demanding environments. Each drone carries high definition and thermal cameras capable of identifying smoke, fire boundaries and people. Twin 4G and 5G modems maintain real time links, and the Nokia MX Industrial Edge keeps sensitive data processed and stored locally. A presentation by Citymesh at Portcomms 2025 highlights additional elements such as certified parachutes, environmental control in each docking station and a robust API framework that allows further integration with port systems, security platforms or smart city tools.

Operationally, the SENSE network is already proving its value. In the first years of service the drones have supported more than a thousand beyond visual line of sight flights and hundreds of flight hours. The system has been validated across busy urban environments, coastal zones and industrial complexes. With three Remote Operations Centres and certified pilots, Citymesh has created a repeatable operational model that blends telecom expertise with aviation-grade processes.

The impact goes beyond emergency response. Ports and industrial plants are using drones for inspections, environmental monitoring, perimeter detection and asset management. The presentation shared at PortComms 2025 outlines how ports benefit from fast inspection of quays, cranes, buoys and fumigation zones, as well as pollution detection and situational awareness for safety teams. Similar gains are emerging across utilities, transport operators, municipalities and even defence, where civil and security use cases can share the same network.

The legislative environment in Belgium currently restricts nationwide beyond visual line of sight operations to emergency services, but future expansion into commercial use cases is expected. As demand grows for automated inspections, border surveillance and environmental assessment, the Drone-in-a-Box network provides a ready-made foundation for new services.

For Nokia, the project reinforces its role in mission critical communication systems and industrial digitalisation. For Citymesh, it marks the evolution from smart city experimentation to a smart country approach where aerial intelligence becomes a first line tool for public services.

Belgium’s nationwide drone network is an example of how telecom infrastructure continues to evolve. Private 5G, edge computing and automated platforms are increasingly central to public safety and industrial operations. The Nokia and Citymesh partnership shows what is possible when connectivity, aviation technology and real operational requirements come together with a clear purpose. 

Transforming Stadium Connectivity with SOLiD’s GENESIS DAS at Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park

SOLiD is a global leader in innovative RF Amplifier, RF Radio and Optical Transport solutions that support some of the world’s most demanding wireless environments. The company’s Distributed Antenna Systems (DAS) power reliable cellular coverage and capacity in hospitals, sports and entertainment venues, airports, metro systems, government and corporate buildings, and other high-profile locations. From early 2G systems to 5G-ready and cloud-based solutions, SOLiD has a track record of delivering robust, scalable infrastructure that meets the growing demands of mobile users while reducing complexity, risk and energy consumption.

Signal Iduna Park in Dortmund, home of Borussia Dortmund and the iconic Yellow Wall of supporters, has become the first stadium in the world to feature a fully operational Open Radio Access Network (O-RAN) solution. In partnership with 1&1 and Rakuten, SOLiD has delivered a state-of-the-art Distributed Antenna System (DAS) that combines cutting-edge 4G and 5G capabilities with the benefits of open standards and advanced radio technology.

With a capacity of more than 81,000, the stadium is the largest in Germany and one of the most famous in European football. It is celebrated for its atmosphere, high attendance figures and the vast standing terrace on the south bank that can hold more than 24,000 fans. The venue has hosted matches during the 1974 and 2006 FIFA World Cups, the 2001 UEFA Cup Final, and was part of the 2024 European Championships. A stadium of such scale and reputation demands a mobile connectivity solution capable of delivering a seamless experience to tens of thousands of users simultaneously.

Large sports venues present unique challenges for mobile coverage. The system must deliver consistent connectivity across vast seating areas, indoor hospitality and operational zones, and high-traffic access points, all while managing peak usage during major events. The solution at Signal Iduna Park meets these demands through 30 network sectors in the stands, four more in indoor areas, and two covering the north and west entrances and parking zones.

The deployment includes 48 radio units and 128 antennas in the stands, complemented by 60 radio units and 21 antennas indoors. More than 10 kilometres of fibre optic cable and 30 kilometres of additional cabling underpin the network’s performance. This infrastructure ensures that not only 1&1 customers, but also those on other German mobile networks, benefit from the improved coverage and capacity.

At the heart of the project is SOLiD’s GENESIS DAS, a fully digital system that supports simultaneous transmission from all major mobile operators. More than 150 slimline, low power radio units are strategically placed throughout the stadium to deliver robust 4G and 5G coverage. By integrating O-RAN technology, the system enables hardware and software from different vendors to work seamlessly together while reducing power consumption and minimising physical space requirements.

This landmark project, completed ahead of the stadium’s 50th anniversary in 2024, is an example of how next-generation network solutions can transform the fan experience. For SOLiD, it is further proof of their role in advancing wireless densification in high-profile venues around the world. By bringing together O-RAN, mMIMO and advanced DAS capabilities, the Signal Iduna Park installation sets a benchmark for stadium connectivity and points towards the future of mobile infrastructure in large-scale sporting and entertainment environments.

Related Posts: 

• Connectivity Technology Blog: Understanding Distributed Antenna Systems (DAS) for Seamless Indoor Connectivity 

FDD Tri-Band Massive MIMO: Unlocking Sub-3 GHz Potential for 5G Evolution

Huawei has begun commercial deployments of its FDD Tri-Band Massive MIMO solution, focusing on sub-3 GHz spectrum across Africa and several other global markets. Countries such as Nigeria, Angola, and Côte d'Ivoire are among the first to benefit, with deployments also expected across Asia Pacific, Central Asia, and Latin America.

This new technology is being positioned to solve two key challenges for mobile operators. First, it tackles the persistent increase in 4G traffic, which continues to grow year on year. Second, it enhances the user experience for 5G services without demanding vast new spectrum allocations. Huawei claims the solution delivers significant performance improvements over the conventional 4T4R setup, including handling almost twice as much 4G traffic during peak times, tripling user-perceived speeds, and halving the use of physical resource blocks.

Underpinning these benefits are innovations like Real Wide Bandwidth and Compact Dipole technologies. These allow multiple FDD bands such as 1.8 GHz, 2.1 GHz, and 2.6 GHz to be processed using a shared filter, antenna array, and power amplifier. This not only enables efficient spectrum use but also simplifies site deployments. Huawei reports that 5G network capacity can be boosted up to sevenfold with uplink coverage extended by 8 dB, both of which are especially important as mobile AI services increase the demand for higher uplink bandwidth and wider coverage.

#Huawei's tri-band FDD Massive MIMO solution is the first of its kind, packed with cutting-edge technologies like GigaBand Beamforming and "0 Bit 0 Watt", which empowers diversified 5.5G experience while minimizing power consumption. 🚀 #MWC24 #5GAdvanced pic.twitter.com/3vD3p8qXmc

— Huawei Wireless (@HuaweiWireless) February 20, 2024

The market conditions in Africa illustrate why this approach is timely. Rapid urbanisation and a large population base have created surging demand for mobile data, leading to congestion and degraded user experience. Many sites already host conventional Massive MIMO technology, but with traffic increasing by 50 percent annually, a more efficient capacity solution is urgently needed.

The broader role of sub-3 GHz FDD spectrum in 5G development is also coming into sharper focus. While early 5G investment emphasised the upper mid-band due to its wide contiguous spectrum, the sub-3 GHz FDD bands now represent a crucial part of the coverage and capacity equation. These bands collectively offer around 100 MHz of paired spectrum and are essential for extending 5G services beyond dense urban centres into suburban and rural areas. Their propagation characteristics provide better in-building penetration and a stronger uplink experience.

Operators have traditionally used these bands to complement mid-band deployments, but case studies suggest they can form the backbone of high-performance networks when optimised correctly. In the Netherlands, for example, delays in mid-band spectrum availability led operators to rely heavily on FDD spectrum. Despite these constraints, they achieved strong data rate and latency performance by tightly integrating 4G and 5G technologies.

One persistent issue is the fragmentation of spectrum across multiple bands, which can complicate radio access network design. Physical site constraints and antenna complexity remain challenges, particularly as physical cell site growth slows. This has led to a push for site simplification through wideband and multiband radio solutions. Many equipment vendors now offer radios that can support three FDD bands within a single unit, often using a shared power amplifier and filter. This not only reduces size and weight but also lowers power consumption and speeds up deployment.

Although Massive MIMO is generally seen as more effective with TDD, Huawei believes its latest advancements in intelligent beamforming and multi-band serving cell configurations can change that narrative. By treating multiple FDD bands as a single carrier and applying advanced beamforming, spectral efficiency can be dramatically improved. According to Huawei, this combination can deliver a tenfold gain in throughput and a 10 dB improvement in coverage compared to standard 4T4R systems.

With the shift toward 5G Advanced on the horizon, operators must get the most out of their existing spectrum assets. Sub-3 GHz FDD spectrum may not be new, but with the right technology, it can provide the performance needed to meet modern data demands and support the next wave of mobile services.

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Upcoming “Line 15 South” Metro Line of the Grand Paris Express gets 4G/5G Mobile Infrastructure

TOTEM is Orange’s European TowerCo subsidiary. Operating in France and Spain as of November 1, 2021, TOTEM manages over 27,300 tower sites, flat roofs and other sites in these two countries. A neutral player, TOTEM provides solutions enabling operators to provide connectivity wherever pooling between operators is possible.

TOTEM began installing the 1,000 pieces of 5G equipment that will connect the 16 stations and 33 km of the future “Line 15 South” of the new Parisian metro system. The teams at Société des grands projets, the developer of the Grand Paris Express, incorporated this major industrial project into the design of the future 100% connected metro line.

Deploying a 5G mobile network in the tunnels of a metro is a real technical challenge: it's an indoor space with a high density of people, movements, and very thick (and therefore wave-impermeable) walls. TOTEM is deploying this pooled 5G network for all operators, working within the technical constraints of the tunnels and meeting the specific mobile coverage needs of all operators. 

A growing need for indoor connectivity: With 80% of connectivity used indoors, TOTEM has positioned itself as the leading TowerCo in this market, connecting underground transport, stadiums, concert halls, and shopping malls.

The following video is from the press visit to the construction site of Line 15 of the Grand Paris Express at Noisy-le-Grand in April 2024:

Related Posts: 

• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Bringing Connectivity to Underground Rail Network
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• Connectivity Technology Blog: China Unicom Brings 5G Connectivity to Nanjing Metro
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Mobile Infrastructure from Hajj 2024 (1445 H)

Hajj, the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca/Makkah in Saudi Arabia is a fantastic example of how to handle huge amounts of people and data. With over 1.8 million pilgrims this year, many of whom go to the holy mosque every day (generally more than once) during the Hajj days, providing reliable connectivity and reasonable data rates is a huge challenge. 

The press release post Hajj, provided some more details on the number of sites and data usage:

CST Governor stated that the unlimited support from the leadership resulted in the recording of exceptional network performance levels across more than (6200) telecom towers, with 5G towers surpassing 4,000 towers, reflecting an impressive 37% increase compared to 2023, while the Wi-Fi points exceeded 10500 points in Makkah Al-Mukarramah and Al-Madina Al-Munawarah and the Holy Sites.

الفرق الميدانية بـ #هيئة_الاتصالات_والفضاء_والتقنية تتابع جاهزية البنية التحتية لقطاع الاتصالات والتقنية خلال موسم #حج1445 #يسر_وطمأنينة#CST field teams are checking the readiness of the ICT infrastructure during #HajjSeason2024 pic.twitter.com/KapzfTPqVh

— هيئة الاتصالات والفضاء والتقنية (@CST_KSA) June 12, 2024

H.E. the Governor also added that the total data consumption reached 65.47 thousand TB, equivalent to watching 26.82millionhours of 1080p HD video clips, with internet download speeds exceeded 341.6 Mbit/s, while the voice calls total exceeded 337 million calls with a success increase of 99%, as a result of the developed network infrastructure and the availability of WiFi networks. 

Here are some high resolutions pictures that show how much infrastructure is needed. Most of these sites in the Haram provided coverage for something like 100 metres as there were other similar sites nearby, some shared for all operators while others were specific to one operator.

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Helsinki Metro’s Cellular Network Pilot

Helsiki's radio network currently in use in the metro is being renewed in order to support the future train traffic control system. A cellular network pilot was carried out in 2022/23 with results published in April last year. Based on that it was decided that the new radio network will be implemented with mobile network technology, as it was seen as best suited to the needs of the new train traffic control system and the metro.

Quoting from the article:

The metro is still using many original (dating back over 40 years) systems that are nearing the end of their life-cycle. The current traffic control system, in particular, needs to be updated to ensure the reliable and safe operation of the metro in the future as well. Parts of the system that are now being updated include the train control system and track circuits.

The updating of the train control system will make it possible to increase the number of passengers of the metro by enabling shorter headways between trains than are currently possible. Shortening the headway between trains and other capacity-increasing measures are important, as transport forecasts indicate that the metro’s number of passengers will continue to increase. The current capacity of the metro is simply not enough to meet the increasing demand.

Metro systems have long service lives and their updates have far-reaching impacts. The updates to be implemented now will make it possible to operate the metro safely for another 40 years.

The results and observations from the 'Cellular Network Pilot' is available here. Quoting from that:

This innovative pilot demonstrated that a cellular based communication subsystem is suitable for train control as well as other metro systems applications. The pilot outcomes provided insights into the deployment of such systems and also confirmed the expectation that in order to meet the strict radio communication availability requirements necessary to support safety critical applications, at least two radio network layers should be present. These layers can be presented via implementation combinations of private and public networks including 5G SA slicing, depending on the current and future user requirements.

Ability to support signalling: The pilot test results showed that both the private network (4G or 5G) and the public network are suitable to support ATC performance requirements. In high public network load scenarios, it is advised that QoS is implemented to ensure the reliability of any safety critical streams.

Ability to support current systems: The pilot tests showed that the public network is suitable to support metro’s onboard existing systems. It was observed that when the public network was capacity stressed, with all applications present, the Wi-Fi stream could not reach its maximum intended capacity of 250Mbps. This was due to bandwidth limitations experienced during the Pilot tests and is re-lated to end-to-end connectivity restrictions and by the number of hops between end devices and the Mobile Network Operator’s core. Troubleshooting during the tests revealed that a considerable increase in capacity could be realistically achieved by addressing these limitations. 

Ability to support future systems: The pilot tests showed that the private network could not reliably service the critical CCTV stream due to the bandwidth limit of that network and the fact that the CCTV stream was duplicated over the two private routers. At the same time the VoIP stream could be reliably serviced indicating that if there was more capacity the issue with CCTV could be resolved. 

Private network deployment observations: In normal operation mode, the band used (2300 MHz) and the density of the radio units was demonstrated to fulfil the requirements for ATC and critical voice communication. For the private network, there was degradation of latency in the coverage area of three out of the four radio positions when these were offline. Most of the service degradation was affecting the Uplink and it was observed in areas were changes in radiating cable topology (changing positions/heights etc.) were occurring. Due to the private nature of the network, lack of external interference caused the system to perform better than expected in low signal situations. The two rooftop macro sites were able to provide good coverage and good handovers to the open track area when the radiating cable radio units in the same area were off. In the 5G SA mode all failures noted for the individual routers occur in areas where the radiating cable is on the opposite side of the respective router’s antennas.

Public network deployment observations: Signal quality and signal levels were good to excellent throughout the tunnel during all degraded mode scenarios. At the same time there were a few occurrences of longer than average delays in a certain handover area within the tunnel. This could be attributed to the geometry of the track, the size of the tunnel and the relevant positions of the directional anten-nas providing the coverage in this area which are lower than antennas on the roof of the train. These observations reveal that the radio design within the tunnel could be rationalised (less density but better located cells). Other results showed that the radio design needs to also consider that sufficient coverage is provided to allow handovers between tunnel and macro layers. An overarching observation was that for maximum redundancy the radio design should avoid designing private network cell edge areas at the same location as public network cell edge areas. By overlapping the network design, the reliability of the dual layer network can be maximised. A final observation is that routers/mobile gateways working in high availability mode and/or application devices that can manage packet duplication via multiple routers are recommended in order to increase data communication reliability.

You can read the whitepaper here.

WSP UK Transport & Infrastructure worked with Metropolitan Area Transport Ltd and its suppliers, providing technical leadership and assurance in the deployment of a pioneering 4G and 5G pilot in a brownfield metro environment. Digital connectivity and rail systems experts at WSP developed testing procedures and carried out an assessment of the most suitable technology and network layer combination using a range of key decision indicators. 

You can read more about their contribution here.

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Huawei's RuralLink Solution Proposes to 'Connect the Unconnected'

It's been five years since we first wrote about Huawei's rural network solution. RuralStar was all rage back in 2018 and then the updated RuralStar 3.0 in 2020. Since then, Huawei has been working on updated architecture of RuralLink.

At MWC 2023, RuralLink won GSMA's 'Best Mobile Innovation for Emerging Markets' GLOMO Award. The press release at the RuralLink launch at the Global Mobile Broadband Forum 2022 (MBBF2022) provided some insights into the solution. The following is from the press release: 

Huawei's RuralLink solution uses unique innovative technologies to solve the difficulties associated with communications. In the areas where fiber is difficult and costly to deploy, thanks to unique microwave fronthaul capabilities, RuralLink uses microwave to replace optical fibers to extend RRUs far away, which reduces network construction costs. By co-using BBU with existing macro site, RuralLink does not require a BBU to be deployed, which helps reduce site power consumption. By allowing a site to operate with just four to five solar panels, RuralLink is also easily adaptable to the areas that lack stable mains supplies. The solution features a simplified design that enables all devices to be mounted on to a pole, and its site deployment does not require fencing or concrete construction. As such, site construction is so easy in fact that it be completed in just three days. RuralLink supports 2G to 5G services, laying the foundation for network experience upgrade.

RuralLink has already been deployed by China Unicom Inner Mongolia in rural areas. This operator has seen significant improvement in the proportion of areas with good coverage and notable increase in area traffic and average user-perceived speeds. While fulfilling the communication needs of the local people, the RuralLink site deployment also lays a solid foundation for the development of local e-commerce, tourism, and smart agriculture.

Huawei's #RuralLink are simplified sites powered by only a few #solarpanels to bring connectivity for 60M people in remote areas of 70+ countries 😲 pic.twitter.com/NBrIuYKufo

— HuaweiUK (@HuaweiUK) April 4, 2022

A recent press release highlighted that RuralLink is being used to boost rural network coverage and promote digital inclusion in Brazil.

Huawei supported Brazil’s leading telecommunications operator, to successfully complete the commercial use of the RuralLink solution. This solution utilizes a “1 RRU + 1 antenna” to form three LTE sectors, simplifying site deployment with the aim of improving wireless network coverage in rural areas and providing broader internet access.

RuralLink utilizes innovative three-sector shaping technology, requiring only one antenna and one RRU to form three sectors. Compared to traditional three-sector macro site solutions, this solution reduces 60% of devices on the tower, 50% of power consumption, and 50% of supporting devices, resulting in a 60% cost saving from end to end. Additionally, the simplified architecture enables faster TTM (time to market) and allows one person to complete site deployment and activation in one day, achieving good signal coverage within a range of 3.5 km.

The following video explains the RuralLink solution and deployment scenario:

I am looking forward to seeing an updated solution at MWC 2024.

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Details on India's First Neutral Shared RAN Solution

Back in August, RailTel and CloudExtel partnered to launch India's first Shared RAN solution for congested locations with the objective to enhance the telecom user experience. A press release said:

RailTel and CloudExtel carried out the successful pilot of this project in partnership with Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea, Nokia, and the Telecom Infra Project's NaaS Solutions Group, with vital support from the Railways, in one of the most network stressed locations, Mumbai Central railway station. The outcomes have been impressive with 5 times increase in average user speed (from 3Mbps to 15Mbps) for both Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea, while the data consumption jumped up by 20%.

At Telecom Infra Project's Fyuz 2022 conference, Kunal Bajaj, CEO & Co-Founder, CloudExtel provided details on this in a breakout session dedicated to Neutral Host Network-as-a-service (NaaS) business model. His part of talk is embedded below and you can also check out his presentation from the main stage here. 

In an interview with Economic Times earlier this year, Kunal pointed out:

How many small cell sites are there in the country at present?

Small cells are not just for 5G rollout. There is a substantial 4G component of it today. As per industry standards, there are over about 30,000 odd small cell sites that have already been rolled out. Of that, about one-third to one-half of those sites have been rolled out by Reliance Jio. The balance have been rolled out by Airtel and Vodafone, and of that we have the largest market share. We have done over 4,000 sites for these two telcos, and there are all primarily 4G sites.

What’s the demand like for 4G small cells?

Even in the 4G space, month on month, year on year, data consumption has continued to grow pretty substantially. We are at 19 gigs per user, per month today, and if I remember correctly, we were at 12 gigs just a year ago, and much lower than that before. And this is all coming from 4G. 5G is not there yet, and what that really demonstrates is the reliance that users have on wireless connectivity. We have don’t much fixed line infrastructure today in India to really speak of. 25 million fixed line broadband users is nothing compared to the over 500 million 4G subscriptions. This growth in 4G data densification, even with 5G auctions coming up, will continue for the next two years.

Going forward, will these 4G sites be converted to 5G, or that will be part of a separate infrastructure?

If you see what has happened historically, when we went from 2G to 3G, and more relevantly, when we went to 3G to 4G, the 4G sites came up wherever you have very high capacity usage on 3G. 3G was not taken away, but those sites were upgraded to dual technology, by upgrading the equipment and adding an additional 4G radio to bring up 4G traffic from those sites. And I think that’s exactly what we are going to see in the 5G environment. The good thing is a lot of telecom operators learned from the 3G to 4G transition, and started investing very early in hardware that would be upgradeable to 5G.

Obviously the radio band is different, and there’s nothing really you can do in software to make the same radio to radiate multiple bands. So there will be investment. That happens in radio ugprades, but the core base station technology, the back haul, switches and things like that, a lot of that is now software upgradeable, and therefore it is going to be hopefully a much easier transition from 4G to 5G.

So what’s your projection of the number of small cells that will come up with the 5G rollout from August?

Some of the industry projections that we see from a lot of analysts and consulting companies is that India needs somewhere around 2,50000 small cell sites in the next five years across all three of the major operators. What that basically means is over 5-6 lakh unique small cells to be deployed. So that’s a tremendous amount of growth that we are going to see. The first one or two years from now is primarily going to be 4G, but then after that, the huge acceleration, the hockey stick curve is going to come from 5G deployment.

What is the kind of investments you are looking at in the next five years to cater to this demand?

We are talking of hundred of crores, just for us. We are looking at our base growing from 4000 small cells to 40000 small cell sites in the next five years. That’s a conservative projection, obviously, we believe and hope that we can do a lot more than that, but that will require well over 400-500 crores for us to really pull that off, and that’s where the opportunity to scale and build a substantial network. Today, when you compare us to the mainline tower companies, we are still a startup and in the beginning of our first innings, so we have a long way to go.

There certainly is a bright future for Neutral Host Network-as-a-service (NaaS), especially in country like India, with a large population of young people.

Related Posts: 

• Connectivity Technology Blog: Shared Neutral Host RAN Solution in India to Unlock 5x QoE Improvement
• The 3G4G Blog: Quick tutorial on Mobile Network Sharing Options
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Passive and Active Infrastructure Sharing
• The 3G4G Blog: How MOCN RAN-Sharing Works
• The 3G4G Blog: Mobile Network Infrastructure Sharing in Japan over Electric Power Infrastructure
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Rakuten Mobile and TEPCO Power Grid establish 'Rakuten Mobile Infra Solution'
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: London Underground Mobile Network Infrastructure
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Crown Castle bringing more Small Cells to the USA
• The 3G4G Blog: The Journey from Communications Service Provider (CSP) to Digital Service Provider (DSP) 

London Underground Mobile Network Infrastructure

Earlier we made a tutorial on Infrastructure required for bringing connectivity to underground rail network. So it was good to see Nick Hudson, Director of Global Partners & Programmes at BAI Communications share some pictures of Mobile Network Infrastructure on London Underground network on his LinkedIn post.

Back in June 2021, BAI Communications (BAI) was awarded a 20-year concession by Transport for London (TfL) to deliver high-speed mobile connectivity across the capital in the most advanced and largest infrastructure project of its type in the world. The press release said:

BAI’s partnership with TfL will establish a long-awaited backbone of connectivity with a city-wide integrated communications network delivering multi-carrier cellular, Wi-Fi, and fibre connectivity services. The 4G-enabled and 5G-ready communications network that BAI will build and operate as a neutral host for fixed and mobile operators will fast-track London’s evolution as a smart city. BAI will also help to create a safer, smarter London by building and operating critical communications infrastructure that will support police, fire, and ambulance services.

The first phase of the project will see the rollout of modern multi-carrier infrastructure. This will allow fixed and mobile operators to immediately provide continuous 4G coverage to their customers across the London Underground stations and tunnels. The new wireless infrastructure will also be 5G ready. Work on the project will begin immediately, with all stations and tunnels due to have mobile coverage in four years.

Additionally, a new high-capacity fibre network running throughout the London Underground will enable fibre service providers to provide full fibre connectivity to premises across the city. The network will connect to buildings and street assets housing small cells to leverage the power of 5G and the IoT, and deliver improvements in areas like traffic congestion, public safety, and city planning.

Uses leaky feeder / DAS system to link base station hotels on the Tube

Not Open RAN - this is more old school, it seems

Can do 3.5GHz in stations but tunnels are all <2.1GHz pic.twitter.com/EPN91vdgRP

— Dean Bubley (@disruptivedean) November 16, 2021

Through this concession, BAI will help the transport authority support London’s post-covid recovery as travel resumes, delivering seamless 5G ready connectivity that will enable people to move around the city more efficiently, safely, and securely. More specifically, this project will enable TfL to reduce overcrowding and manage station flow, while improving safety with real-time information and reliable ‘from anywhere’ communications.

BAI was awarded the concession after a competitive tender process. The company has proven experience deploying mission critical communications networks in highly dense urban environments, including the underground rail networks in New York, Toronto, and Hong Kong. This project supports BAI’s strategic intent to sustainably accelerate growth globally. This is achieved through our work deploying outdoor neutral host infrastructure and developing 5G-driven offerings that introduce and scale connectivity solutions for emerging services and fresh revenue opportunities. Ultimately, our work supports our customers by delivering better connectivity and enhanced customer experiences. BAI’s ambitious plans include expanding its wireless infrastructure business across the public transport sector and growing its private network services portfolio.

Last month, BAI announced that they have completed the first milestone of its rollout of high-speed mobile coverage across the London Underground as it launches a permanent 4G service on the eastern section of the Jubilee Line. The press release said:

Customers of Three and EE are the first to be confirmed to have permanent access to 4G and 5G-ready communications between Westminster and Canning Town. The connectivity has been available as part of a pilot service since March 2020. This follows agreements made last year by both mobile operators to join BAI’s network, making them the first to cement their commitment to providing coverage to London Underground passengers.

Whilst on this section of the Jubilee Line, customers will continue to be able to check the latest travel information, keep on top of their emails, catch up on social media, live stream videos wherever they are on the Underground.

Cities all over the world are improving connectivity for subways and metros. With London already a centre of mobile connectivity, it's surprising that getting coverage in the Tube took so long.

Related Posts: 

• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Bringing Connectivity to Underground Rail Network
• Connectivity Technology Blog: Deutsche Bahn to get Seamless Mobile Network Along all Tracks
• Connectivity Technology Blog: China Unicom Brings 5G Connectivity to Nanjing Metro
• Connectivity Technology Blog: Paris Metro is now 100% covered with LTE
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Underground Small Cells
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Small Cells on the Train - A 2 hop solution 

Vodafone Explains Mobile Phone Mast

Questions related to what does a mobile phone mast consist of keeps popping up time and again. I looked at it some years back but it doesn't stop people asking additional questions. 

The 3G4G Blog: Mobile Network Cell Tower Site Construction https://t.co/IO5ZidDRGi

Nice reminder of the basics. However, the problem is that there are so many permutations in terms of where specific components could be sited. Right?

— Peter Jarich (@pnjarich) July 31, 2019

When the UK MNOs started their Shared Rural Network journey, Vodafone put together a nice primer on what does a mobile network mast consist of. Here is an extract from the article:

What do all the bits of a mast actually do?

1. Antenna: Antennas send calls, texts and internet data to your smartphone using radio waves and in turn receive radio waves from it. The higher up an antenna is, the more likely it is that you’ll get a strong and reliable mobile signal from it. Most masts will have at least three antennas to provide coverage in every direction. Masts that need to serve more people, because they’re located in more heavily populated areas, will have more antennas.
2. Radio unit: The radio unit generates the radio waves transmitted by the antennas. Traditionally, the radio unit was installed at ground level. Nowadays, they’re more likely to be installed higher up the mast closer to the antenna to help improve performance.
3. Transmission/backhaul: Cables, traditionally copper but now far more likely to be fibre optic, are used to connect the mast with other masts and the rest of the Vodafone network in the UK. These are usually buried in the ground. In a few cases, a microwave dish is used instead.
4. Cabin/cabinets: Located at ground level, these contain computers which communicate with other masts in the network. Additional equipment, such as a battery backup in case of power failure and connectors for the transmission/backhaul, are also stored here.
5. Power: Most masts will draw their power from the National Grid; some will have their own renewable power source on-site. In a handful of cases, such as with temporary masts, power will instead be provided by a diesel generator.
6. Microwave dish: In some locations, such as remote rural areas, a microwave satellite dish is used instead of fibre optic cables to act as transmission/backhaul, connecting the mast to the rest of Vodafone’s network. To do so, the dish must be within line of sight of a dish on another mast.

Why can’t you build it somewhere else?

Not all sites are suitable. To provide the strongest mobile signal to as wide an area as possible, there can’t be too many neighbouring buildings, trees or other geographical features in the way. These tend to block the mast’s signal.

Masts also need their own power and what’s known as “backhaul” – data connections to the rest of the network. To meet soaring demand for faster speeds, that backhaul often consists of fibre optic cables under the ground – it’s a common misconception that most of Vodafone UK’s masts communicate wirelessly with the rest of the network.

And to run these power and data lines to a mast, we have to negotiate with the owners of the land, and quite often, with the owners of land adjacent to it. Those negotiations aren’t just about how much rent we will pay, but how easily we can access those sites for construction, maintenance and repairs.

These so-called “wayleave” negotiations can take time – and sometimes break down completely – setting back mast construction by several months.

Sometimes bigger IS better.📶⚡

The bigger the mast, the better the mobile coverage and the more people it can connect. 🗺

We welcome the @DCMS review of current mast restrictions. 🤝💡

👇 All you need to know about masts:https://t.co/KSp1cqKelQ pic.twitter.com/QjQzm67ZnH

— Vodafone UK News Centre (@vodafoneuknews) April 20, 2021

Why can’t you just build a shorter, less conspicuous mast?

The taller the mast, the wider the area it can cover and the more people it can provide with a fast and reliable mobile signal. Under current rules, most UK masts are around 25m (82ft) tall. But in fact 50m masts would provide a better, more far-reaching signal in many areas.

Update April 2021 – the UK Government has proposed rule changes that would allow new and existing masts to be up to five metres taller and two metres wider than they currently can be. This would not only help increase the range of their wireless signal, it would also make it easier for masts to be potentially shared with other mobile network operators, as more equipment can be fitted onto taller masts.

Who decides where masts are built?

Our engineers pick sites that best meet the technical, logistical and economic requirements for hosting a mast, but the local council has to grant planning permission for the building works to go ahead. So councils hold public consultations before making their decision and residents can have their say.

You can read the complete article here.

The old video of cell tower construction site is worth a watch and is embedded below:

Related Posts: 

• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Vodafone UK's 5G Infrastructure
• Operator Watch Blog: Vodafone UK Bares Its Vision and European Strategy
• Connectivity Technology Blog: Vodafone and Deutsche Telekom Briefly Starts Drone War
• The 3G4G Blog: Mobile Network Cell Tower Site Construction
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Cell-Site Construction And Evolution Strategies
• The 3G4G Blog: What is meant by Infrastructure in a Telecoms Network?
• The 3G4G Blog: Quick tutorial on Mobile Network Sharing Options
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Passive and Active Infrastructure Sharing
• The 3G4G Blog: Mobile Network Infrastructure Sharing in Japan over Electric Power Infrastructure
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Vodafone UK improving coverage with Phone Boxes, Mini-masts & Manhole Covers
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: UK will make Street Furniture accessible for Telecoms Infrastructure
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Multi-sectorised sites and Small Cells help O2 UK handle Capacity in Busy Areas
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Three UK's Gigabit 5G Poles Explained
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Transition to Infrastructure 2.0
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: NTT Docomo's 5G RAN Infrastructure
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Small Cells in BT Phone Boxes
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Verizon's got Balls and Small Cells
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Sprint's Small Cells in the stadium
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Ericsson's Invisible Sites: Urban Case Studies
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Small Cells in the Bus Stop
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Small Cells in the Lamp posts 

Comba Telecom Helps Bring Open RAN to New Markets

Comba Telecom is a global leading wireless solutions provider with their own R&D facilities, manufacturing base, and sales and service teams. The company offers a comprehensive suite of products and services including wireless access, wireless enhancement, antenna and subsystems and wireless transmission to its global customers. Comba's core product portfolio includes antennas and subsystems and network products (DAS, Small Cells, Repeater, RRU, etc.), offering turnkey solutions for indoor and outdoor 2G/3G/4G/Wifi/5G to their global customers.

Last year, Comba announced the launch of the industry's first Open RAN multi-RAT, multi-band Remote Radio Unit (“RRU”) that supports 1800MHz and 2100MHz, promoting widespread adoption of emerging open standards in the globe. The announcement says:

The RRU is designed to minimize the total cost of ownership (“TCO”) for operators and neutral hosts in macro deployments through fast and easy deployment, energy savings, improved coverage and throughput, smaller footprint and easy maintenance. Engineered for efficient high power (320W) operation, the multi-RAT multi-band 4T4R RRU minimizes the environmental footprint and reduces the energy spend for the operator. 

As a first in the Open RAN industry the GSM/UMTS/LTE/5G NR multi-mode operation makes it ideal for simple upgrades of legacy sites without compromises. The 4T4R radio supports two LTE/5G NR carriers per band and Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (“DSS”). This enables operators to serve arising 5G traffic demand without additional spectrum or removing LTE service.

Comba has a long-standing collaboration with major industry partners and alliances and has participated in the initial Open RAN trials and lab projects in different regions. With all in-house expertise in interoperability and optimizing radio designs for market specific criteria, Comba enables mobile operators to accelerate time to market, and mitigate the overall technology risk when adopting to Open RAN strategy in their next generation of RAN. 

A recent video looks at these Open RAN Multi-band RRUs

While most Open RAN RUs are focused on 4G & 5G, Comba's radios work on 2G & 3G as well. This has allowed them to bring Open RAN solutions to many different parts of the world that may not be ready for 5G yet. Some of these include announcements with their software partner Parallel Wireless in Latin America and Indonesia. Another recent standalone announcement included one with Turkcell in Turkey.

Telefonica also listed them as one of the partners in a presentation at MWC

Operator Watch Blog: Telefonica's Vision of Open RAN from MWC 2022 - https://t.co/iTYJDGx1MQ via Maite Aparicio, Head of Open RAN-Global CTIO#3G4G5G #OperatorWatch #4G #5G #Telefonica #OpenRAN #ORAN #ORANalliance #NEC #Altiostar #Intel #Comba #Airspan #SuperMicro #Dell #RedHat pic.twitter.com/pE4OpsRTmD

— 3G4G (@3g4gUK) April 6, 2022

Telecom Infra Project's TIP Exchange features quite a few radios from Comba which you can see here.

If you are interested in learning more, what the Comba keynote and Panel Discussion on Maturity of Open RAN Adoption at MWC22 Open RAN Summit below:

Related Posts:

• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Vodafone Portugal's “streetlamp”
• Operator Watch Blog: Telefonica's Vision of Open RAN from MWC 2022
• The 3G4G Blog: Open RAN Terminology and Players
• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Open RAN (O-RAN) RRU (O-RU) and DU (O-DU) Design
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• The 3G4G Blog: From traditional RAN to Open RAN - O-RAN: Goals and Challenges
• 3G4G: Open RAN, OpenRAN and O-RAN