The integrated unit, marketed as ‘Metnet Duo’, is designed to simplify and speed up outdoor small cell deployment by making planning approvals easier during the process of site acquisition.
Metnet Duo will integrate a Baicells LTE small cell within a single, compact design that weighs less than 8kg in total. It will make site acquisition easier where planning restricts approval to a single attachment, with size and weight limits for installations on street furniture. Metnet Duo offers a total solution for mobile operators and potential new entrants to increase capacity in outdoor hotspots or improve coverage in not-spots.
Unveiled by CCS earlier this year, Metnet Duo will integrate third-party small cells in a universal design supporting licensed or unlicensed spectrum, including LTE, LTE-U, MulteFire, WiFi and ultimately 5G variants.
It offers the same self-organising backhaul capability as CCS’ standalone product Metnet, with high capacity and low latency, flexible synchronisation, high availability and resiliency over a unique multipoint-to-multipoint architecture.
The Metnet system operates in a single frequency channel with no RF planning required. Each unit has a wide 270-degree field of view, removing the need for manual alignment, and only one is required per site. Combined with an integrated small cell, Metnet Duo is simpler and lower-cost to deploy than separate small cell and backhaul units. Each node is capable of providing GPS-derived local master synchronisation, with distributed timing recovery available in the event of GPS failures.
CEO and Co-Founder of CCS Steve Greaves commented: “We’re excited to be working with an innovative small cell vendor such as Baicells. This partnership serves to further validate our Metnet Duo concept and the need to reduce the size of small cell installations to remove the barriers to deployment.”
Wei Bai, Vice President, Marketing, Baicells commented: “This collaboration with CCS builds on our vision to ‘connect the unconnected’ by bringing together a low-cost solution for both the small cell and backhaul that is very easy to deploy. It enables us to bring our ‘IT-isation’ of the telecommunications infrastructure to a broader market.”
Baicells’ strategy is to provide easily deployed, end-to-end small cell networks built on an IT-based infrastructure to reduce the cost of core network equipment. It is the second vendor to partner with CCS in integrating its small cell into Metnet Duo. ip.access integrated its 4G small cell into Metnet Duo earlier this year.
About CCS
Cambridge, UK-based CCS (Cambridge Communication Systems) is the pioneer of Metnet, the world’s first self-organising small cell microwave backhaul system for mobile networks.
Metnet is a small cell backhaul system that meets all key requirements for high capacity and low latency, reliability, rapid deployment and low-cost operation in a small, low-impact design. Self-organising, self-healing links automatically reconfigure themselves to optimise performance across a resilient, multipoint-to-multipoint topology. It’s easy to install, with no need for radio planning or manual alignment, and delivers the lowest TCO for any small cell backhaul technology.
CCS’ Metnet system enables mobile operators to deploy small cells in a flexible, organic way as additional capacity is required, maintaining a quality of service that meets customer expectations.
About Baicells
Baicells is a privately held, high-tech company dedicated to wireless broadband access solutions. Our main products and solutions cover indoor and outdoor small cells, CPE, antenna, etc.
With the vision to connect the unconnected and provide free connection within everyone's reach, Baicells has introduced some real breakthrough technologies to the LTE system, like moving a complete LTE system to unlicensed spectrum and building it with an IT-based architecture. With Baicells turnkey end-to-end solution, it becomes much easier to provide wireless internet within everyone's reach at a very low cost.
Baicells' innovative solutions can be used by mobile operators, broadband access operators, cable operators, mobile virtual operators, governments and enterprise private network.
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