Sprint and Ericsson Conduct First U.S. Field Tests for 2.5 GHz Massive MIMO
September 12 2017 - 1:45PM
Business Wire
- Field tests completed in Seattle and
Plano, TX, as companies prepare for commercial deployment
- Massive MIMO to power Gigabit LTE and
5G services with up to 10X capacity increase
At Mobile World Congress Americas, Sprint (NYSE: S) and Ericsson
(NASDAQ: ERIC) today unveiled results of the first U.S. 2.5 GHz
Massive MIMO (multiple input, multiple output) field tests
conducted in Seattle, Washington and Plano, Texas using Sprint’s
spectrum and Ericsson’s 64T64R (64 transmit, 64 receive) radios.
The two companies are preparing for commercial deployment next
year, with Massive MIMO radios capable of increasing Sprint’s
network capacity up to ten times.
“Massive MIMO is a game changer for adding capacity to our
network and taking LTE Plus to the next level,” said Dr. John Saw,
Sprint CTO. “This technology is a tremendous competitive advantage
for Sprint, enabling us to maximize our deep 2.5 GHz spectrum
holdings. Massive MIMO will be key to meeting our customers’
growing demand for unlimited data, as well as offering Gigabit LTE
and 5G services.”
Testing of Massive MIMO on the Sprint LTE Plus network in
downtown Seattle showed a capacity increase of approximately four
times compared to an 8T8R antenna. To showcase this capacity,
Sprint convened 100 people with Samsung Galaxy S7 phones and ran
simultaneous file downloads on a timed-test on all networks. The
testing showed a 100 percent success rate on the Massive
MIMO-powered Sprint network, which was a significantly higher
result compared to the other networks.
In Plano, Texas, Sprint and Ericsson also recently tested
Ericsson’s 64T64R Massive MIMO radios reaching peak speeds of more
than 300 Mbps using a single 20 MHz channel of 2.5 GHz
spectrum.
For both field trials, Ericsson provided the radio network
infrastructure and backhaul equipment. Sprint and Ericsson together
developed the test cases and requirements, which included a variety
of performance scenarios involving multi-user and non-stationary
testing. The Radio Network infrastructure included Ericsson’s
next-generation 5G-ready AIR6468 radio, and the backhaul equipment
utilized the MINI-LINK 6352 R2 microwave radios which can provide
up to 10 Gbps of backhaul, future proofing the network for 5G.
Massive MIMO a Competitive Advantage for Sprint in
2018
The companies will use the field trial results in preparation
for commercial deployment of Massive MIMO in the U.S. beginning in
2018. In cities across the U.S., Sprint plans to deploy 64T64R
Massive MIMO radios using its 2.5 GHz spectrum to increase capacity
up to ten times. The technology will become part of Sprint’s
extended network toolbox as it works to densify and optimize the
network, providing more capacity, better reliability, and overall
improved performance for customers. In addition Massive MIMO is
slated to power Gigabit LTE services, and it will be a key element
of Sprint’s 5G network.
Nishant Batra, Head of Network Infrastructure, Ericsson says:
“Ericsson and Sprint have been collaborating on new technologies
and continually evolving Sprint’s LTE network, laying the
foundation for 5G. Our next-generation 5G-ready TDD 64T64R Massive
MIMO radio (AIR6468) will help maximize spectral efficiency of
Sprint’s 2.5 GHz network. It will also provide a cost-efficient way
to support their customers’ growing appetite for increased capacity
and high-speed data services. This will be the industry’s first
live eCPRI installation, which allows for several deployment and
performance advantages to operators in the 5G era.”
Massive MIMO is a differentiator for Sprint because it can be
easily deployed on high-band spectrum such as Sprint’s 2.5 GHz
spectrum. Massive MIMO radios can support high-frequency bands with
a small form factor, whereas the physics of lower-frequency
spectrum bands would require radios far too large in size to
manufacture and deploy on a broad scale.
64T64R Massive MIMO radios use 128 antenna elements - many more
than what is used for 2T2R, 4T4R, or 8T8R in a typical 4G LTE
network today. These Massive MIMO antennas use advanced horizontal
and vertical beamforming technology to focus and transmit cellular
signals into targeted locations. This more efficient use of
spectrum delivers faster speeds and provides more data capacity to
customers in high-traffic locations.
By 2022, Ericsson expects video applications to drive an
eight-fold increase in mobile data traffic. Massive MIMO will be a
key technology to enable users to enjoy data-intensive services and
advanced features and applications on Sprint’s LTE Plus network.
When deployed on the network, Massive MIMO can provide all mobile
device users with performance improvements, and those with the
latest generation of devices with the most antenna elements will
see the best performance.
Sprint and Ericsson are demonstrating Massive MIMO daily at
Mobile World Congress Americas in the Sprint Booth in Hall North
Stand N.866 September 12 – 14, 2017.
Video Resources:
Showcasing the Capacity of Massive MIMO – Seattle Field
Trial:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-0lCWhW7I0
Behind the Scenes with Massive MIMO – Seattle Field
Trial:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08iAYPxcClk&feature=youtu.be
About Sprint:
Sprint (NYSE:S) is a communications services company
that creates more and better ways to connect its customers to
the things they care about most. Sprint served 53.7 million
connections as of June 30, 2017 and is widely recognized for
developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies,
including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in
the United States; leading no-contract brands including Virgin
Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national
and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1
Internet backbone. Sprint has been named to the Dow Jones
Sustainability Index (DJSI) North America for the past five years.
You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or
www.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.
About Ericsson:
Ericsson is a world leader in communications technology and
services with headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden. Our organization
consists of more than 111,000 experts who provide customers in 180
countries with innovative solutions and services. Together we are
building a more connected future where anyone and any industry is
empowered to reach their full potential. Net sales in 2016 were SEK
222.6 billion (USD 24.5 billion). The Ericsson stock is listed on
Nasdaq Stockholm and on NASDAQ in New York. Read more
on www.ericsson.com.
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170912006496/en/
SprintAdrienne Norton,
425-256-7014adrienne.norton@sprint.comorEricssonKathy EganMobile
917-362-1600kathy.egan@ericsson.com
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