151 SCF Rural Remote Case Studies

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CASE STUDIES RURAL & REMOTE

151.05.01

ContentsINTRODUCTION 3EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 4CONNECTING THE COUNTRYSIDE 6COST-EFFECTIVE CONNECTIVITY FOR THE DEVELOPING WORLD 8BANDWIDTH REACHES EVEN GREATER HEIGHTS 10KEEPING ISOLATED INDUSTRIES IN TOUCH 12SMALL CELLS TO THE RESCUE 14ENSURING A QUICK RESPONSE TO A NATURAL DISASTER 16SMALL CELLS AT SEA 18IN-FLIGHT GSM TAKES OFF 20RACING CERTAINTY 22

SMALL CELL FORUM Case studies Rural & Remote

3Small cell deployment in rural and remote areas is the focus of Small Cell Forum Release Five. There are clear drivers for this. Today favorable business models, competitive advantage or simply their unique ability to meet a specific need are bringing small cells to areas that may never previously have had mobile services.

Some or all of the same advantages apply to the use of small cells in transport, remote industrial installations, disaster relief and public safety. Release Five also includes these areas of growing small cell demand. All these use cases have something else in common: examples of successful rollouts which already exist. The following case studies focus on those examples.Int

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y T aking small cells to rural or remote areas, let alone oil-rigs, planes, racing tracks, ships, and areas where disaster relief is required, was barely a consideration a few years ago. Now it is not only possible but often essential. This paper presents a number of case studies that show how small cells are helping to bring mobile communications to some of the most hard-to-reach places on earth.

Each is very different. But each has in common a clear role for small cells as a major component, or important part of enabling coverage. For the purposes of this document the case studies have been grouped under the following general headings:

Rural community Coverage for an underserved community beyond range of normal service

Remote industrial Coverage for a community of workers at a site hard to reach from existing infrastructure

Public safety Coverage for emergency services and first responders

Disaster recovery / humanitarian Rapid reinstatement of coverage after extensive damage to mobile infrastructure, and support for ongoing humanitarian efforts.

Transportation Services for passengers and operational needs on all classes of shipping, aircraft and trains

Special event Services for a temporary planned gathering

We begin with an example that encapsulates the core thinking behind Release Five: to bring communications to rural or remote areas. While the use of small cells for rural and remote coverage for the developed world is still in its early stages, their arrival in formerly underserved areas of the UK has been warmly welcomed. Vodafone has brought its Rural Open Sure Signal initiative to some of these areas. This is a small cell on similar lines to its Sure Signal residential product leveraging the same broadband based backhaul, but allowing anyone in range to connect to the Vodafone network rather than a closed group typified by residential deployments. The response from the first villages invited to enjoy this enhanced coverage has been enthusiastic. As many as 100 isolated areas of the UK could be enjoying improved connectivity by late 2015.

This potential is even being demonstrated in areas where the ROI would once have been marginal or non-existent. And yet a small cell system that connects previously isolated villages in the developing world can be made not only to work effectively, but also to pay for itself. Today over 1,000 remote communities worldwide have access to mobile communications for the first time thanks to a low-cost, low-power small-cell solution developed by Altobridge/iDirect and ip.access. Such connectivity is new to these areas but it plays the part of communications systems the world over, bringing not just better communications but social and economic benefits.

An oil rig off the Gulf of Mexico and the depths of a Swedish mine offered different challenges for 4G broadband wireless products and solutions provider Airspan. In the first of the examples discussed here,


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a wireless platform that can help to bridge the vast distances between oil platforms, not to mention ship-to-shore and rig-to-shore communications, is delivering the broadband speeds needed for bandwidth-demanding applications to offer oil giant Chevron a stable communications environment for its operations. In the second example, Sandvik, a high-technology engineering group, is able to bring remote control to mining operations in areas too dangerous to house personnel, combining higher productivity with safety underground.

Danger is an important factor in two other use cases discussed here. One is a quite everyday case but one that still requires an innovative response: communications for incident response vehicles. In this case, a small cell solution developed by Private Mobile Networks has been used for incident response vehicles such as ambulances and fire trucks. It promises to provide vital communications for first responders dealing with emergencies. It has already been installed on and used by incident response vehicles in a number of countries.

Small cells can also bring communications at very short notice to disaster-hit regions requiring humanitarian aid deployments. Thanks to a joint effort by ip.access, Private Mobile Networks and TLC Solutions, small cells are now helping to restore basic communications quickly to a number of areas to help aid and disaster relief workers find survivors, provide emergency medical help and request supplies such as medicine, food and clothing.

Less dramatic but equally impressive is the arrival of small cells on cruise ships in the Mediterranean. Connectivity during a holiday on a cruise ship is something passengers are coming to expect


5but can still be used as a competitive advantage. This use case shows how a flexible and quickly deployed small cell solution developed by Wideband Interactive Network via satellites allowed passengers of a major shipping company to enjoy access to GSM and Internet services during their voyage. However, few would have guessed that small cells could take to the air. But they have, thanks to AeroMobile Communications and ip.access. GSM calls thousands of meters above the earth have now been a possibility for some time despite the challenges of bringing together satcoms giants, mobile operators, a leading picocell provider and a growing number of airlines. There has also been the even bigger challenge of safety tests and the need for certification by aviation agencies in every country that it flies over, but once the AeroMobile service took to the skies it was quickly a hit with passengers.

Meanwhile 4G has taken to the track. Real-time telemetry has been part of elite motorsport for over a decade and bandwidth requirements in motorsport are growing. In addition, two-way real-time communications is also a requirement of participating teams at most events. Thus the integration of voice, video and telemetry is seen as a desirable evolution for on-car systems. Customized versions of its 4G radio interfaces from Airspan including modules small and rugged enough for the racetrack have been part of that evolution.

Thanks to small cells, communications evolution is taking place not just at racing tracks but in many other, once undreamed-of contexts. In all of the examples here on an oil rig, in a village, in the sky, on a vehicle or down a mine small cells can improve lives, economies, connectivity or all three. n


6 PART ONE RURAL COMMUNITY: COVERAGE FOR AN UNDERSERVED COMMUNITY BEYOND RANGE OF NORMAL SERVICE

V odafone in the UK was a pioneer of the residential femtocell market with its Sure Signal product. In late 2012 it announced plans to bring similar technology to some of the UKs so-called not-spots the two per cent of places in the UK that cannot get any mobile signal at all. Most of these are in rural and remote locations across the UK where geographical challenges such as being sited in a valley or in areas of outstanding natural beauty where masts cannot be placed have limited access to mobile communications. However, mobile coverage is becoming both a social and business necessity everywhere in the UK. Ways are therefore being sought to overcome these challenges.

The UK mobile giants response was what it initially called Open Femto technology, a small cell on similar lines to its Sure Signal residential small cell product and also using broadband based backhaul, but allowing anyone in range to connect to the Vodafone network. This means the cell is capable of being part of a town or village-wide solution for areas that otherwise could not have access to a mobile signal.

The technology was trialed in East Garston, a tiny village in the sparsely populated west of Berkshire, a county in southeast England. East Garston has a population of just over 200 people. It is also, ironically, relatively close to Vodafones HQ in Newbury. Despite this it had always been a not-spot for mobile connectivity. That is until early 2012, when Vodafones open small cells were installed around East Garstons

busiest areas: the local pub, the post offi ce, the village hall, the social club and even inside the roof of an old public phone box.

The addition of a reliable signal led to some revolutionary changes, including a boost for businesses housing the new cells.

Equally impressive, however, was the fact that over 2,000 calls were being made a month that would not have been made before. The Rural Open Sure Signal trial, as it was eventually called, saw the initial trial connection of 12 rural communities across the UK, helping consumers in those areas to enjoy mobile internet, and businesses from surgeries to mussel farmers to function more effectively.

The next step was to expand the offering. In July 2014 Vodafone UK announced the launch of a national program giving 100 rural communities across the UK the opportunity to have mobile access. For this initiative Vodafone called for communities to work together, in partnership with their local Member of Parliament (MP elected representative), to apply for the installation of Vodafones Open Sure Signal technology in their villages and hamlets. By November 2014 an exhaustive application system had selected the fi rst 30 communities to benefi t from the initiative.

As for the technology employed, each Open Sure Signal unit is a small, low-powered 3G mobile base station, a bit larger than the home broadband version.

The use of small cells for rural and remote coverage for the developed world is still in its early stages. However, as an initiative from Vodafone in the UK indicates, the potential of small cells to bring mobile communications to areas of small population or limited coverage is being taken very seriously by mobile operators.

Connecting the countryside


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MOBILE COVERAGE IS BECOMING BOTH A SOCIAL AND BUSINESS NECESSITY EVERYWHERE IN THE UK. WAYS ARE THEREFORE BEING SOUGHT TO OVERCOME THESE CHALLENGES.

It works with a local broadband connection to create a 3G signal and provides up to 500 meters of 3G coverage to any Vodafone UK customer within range. It operates at 2100MHz. Each Open Sure Signal unit is 38cm tall, 26cm wide, 6cm deep and weighs around 2kg.

A choice of colored covers ensures that each unit blends into the surroundings. Units are installed across the community to ensure even coverage.

The communities accessing the technology also play a part. Each unit needs a broadband connection of at least 4Mbps at each site location, a power source and suitable locations to house the units usually community buildings. Communities are advised that units should be placed on sites near to one another to ensure full coverage. Units should ideally be mounted up high on a chimney breast, pole or wall in a vertical position and the sites themselves should be located on higher level ground, allowing the signal to travel further.

Some needs are less easy to meet without more information. Hence a detailed questionnaire was offered to each applying community. For instance, how many Open Sure Signal units might be installed in a community depended on the shape of that community: the more dispersed it was, the more units would be needed to cover each small area or cluster of houses.

Other questions asked were about the size of the community, whether there were any small business centers in the community, the name of the local ISPs, broadband speeds, possible sites for the units (and whether permission would be needed) and the enthusiasm (or otherwise) of local residents. Tourism was also an important factor, as it could affect demand at certain times.

Each applying area was also asked to nominate a Village Champion for its community. Usually this would be a member of the local parish council. The Village Champion acts as Vodafones main point of contact for the community. He or she locates potential sites, and liaises with the local MP to gain their support.

The 30 front runners in the initiative could be offering feedback as soon as early 2015 from areas as diverse as the Isle of Luing in Argyll, Scotland, and Killeter in Co Tyrone, Northern Ireland to Spring Grove in Somerset and, of course, the village that started it all and which has already indicated its strong approval East Garston in Berkshire. n

CONNECTING THE COUNTRYSIDE



A small cell system that connects once isolated villages in the developing world. Its certainly possible, but is it economically viable?The answer comes from more than 1,000 remote communities worldwide that now have access to mobile communications for the fi rst time thanks to a low-cost, low-power small cell solution developed by Altobridge/iDirect and ip.access.

Operators are often unwilling to build networks in rural areas where the average revenue per user (ARPU) would be too low to justify the deployment costs. The innovative mobile product used in this case overcomes that hurdle.

Altobridge/iDirect integrated two IP-based small cells from ip.access into an outdoor, weather-proof unit to build a base station with a coverage range of up to 10km and capacity for up to 1,500 subscribers. Its called the lite-site a system specifi cally designed to optimize satellite bandwidth and minimize power consumption while using 50 per cent less backhaul than competing solutions.

The installation processes are streamlined too. The whole system can be put in place quite quickly:

a sectioned antenna pole is used for easier assembly and the entire installation, commissioning and user acceptance process only takes two to three days.

Power costs can be signifi cant, so the system uses solar power during the day and battery back-up power at night. Each cell site has an average power consumption of 90 watts. For backhaul, the small cell system uses satellite technology that has been optimized to minimize bandwidth use. This reduces transmission costs. The backhaul technology employs compression techniques so that a voice call uses just 4 kilobits per second.

The result is a robust solution that can cover 10km and support 1,500 subscribers and uses optimized satellite backhaul and solar power to keep costs down. Above all, it is economically viable, with a potential return on investment for operators in less than 24 months for as few as 600 subscribers where ARPUs are as low as $4 per month.

One country where these small cells are now making a difference is Ghana, which has a population of about 25 million, a little under half of which is in rural areas. K-Net, a telecommunications provider headquartered in the capital, Accra, chose the

Cost-effective connectivity for the developing worldMillions of people worldwide live in isolated communities in developing countries. Mobile communications would deliver not just social but economic benefi ts. But can this be supplied at low cost in areas of limited power supply with a guaranteed ROI for operators? An Altobridge/iDirect solution shows that it can.


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THE SYSTEM USES SOLAR POWER DURING THE DAY AND BATTERY BACK-UP POWER AT NIGHT. EACH CELL SITE HAS AN AVERAGE POWER CONSUMPTION OF 90 WATTS.

COST-EFFECTIVE CONNECTIVITY FOR THE DEVELOPING WORLD

Altobridge/iDirect and ip.access small cell solution to supply mobile communications to isolated villages as part of a national project called Managed Rural ICT Development (MRID) in 2012. The solution is now commercially operational in at least nine villages.

Kutu Krom in the Western region of Ghana is one of the communities reaping the social and economic benefits of mobile connectivity. Previously, villagers had to climb a nearby hill to make and receive phone calls. But since K-Net arrived and installed the small cell system in only two days the mobile service has created jobs and new businesses, such as mobile phone charging shops. It has also improved access to information about employment opportunities for the villagers.

On a social and organizational level it has also proved invaluable. In the event of emergencies or situations requiring the assembly of local leaders and inhabitants in one area, it is now a lot easier to bring everyone together. Where once it was necessary to send emissaries to invite people, now they can be reached by phone and everyone assembled within 20 minutes, cutting waiting time significantly.

K-Nets project in Ghana is just one example of how small cells, designed and configured with isolated communities in mind, can connect people who might never have dreamed of using a mobile phone and make it viable for operators to offer them the opportunity.

Other operators that have deployed the Altobridge/iDirect and ip.access solution include Maxis in Malaysia, Indosate in Indonesia, Orange in Niger, Mobicom in Mongolia, Asiacell in Iraq and Our Telecom in the Solomon Islands. n



service providers to offer a new generation of communications solutions. Thus, by operating over a new Ka-band, high throughput satellite (HTS), MNLA is able to offer high-bandwidth applications, such as music downloads, video streaming, and Voice over IP (VoIP) at a cost-effective price.

In 2014 MNLA extended the services provided by its Ka HTS system to include cost-effective broadband backhaul for small cells. These are backhauled via the JUPITER system from Hughes, a leading provider of satellite broadband for home and offi ce. The Hughes JUPITER system for MNLA includes two gateway stations, remote terminals, and a comprehensive network management system, enabling MNLA to supplement its DTH offerings with high-performance satellite Internet access operating over the Hispasat Amazonas 3 Ka-band satellite to consumers across its service area. Powered by a VLSI System on a Chip (SoC), the JUPITER remote terminal is a high-performance VSAT with the ability to deliver more than 100Mbps of IP throughput. The highly scalable architecture allows MNLA to cost-effectively expand as needed.

Following the certifi cation of Alcatel-Lucent small cells backhauled via the Hughes system, mobile operators can easily extend service to any area within the coverage of MNLAs Hispasat Amazonas-3 Ka-band satellite. The certifi cation was based on a satellite link with return trip time latency of

M obile phone penetration in urban centers in Latin American countries is nearing one hundred per cent. There is, however, potential for growth elsewhere, in particular for quality mobile broadband in the regions rural and hard-to-serve areas. In fact a market forecast by consulting and analyst fi rm Euroconsult suggests that most of the mobile growth in the Latin American region will come from 3G and LTE coverage extension and expansion.

And thats where Media Networks Latin America (MNLA), a B2B unit of Telefonica Digital, comes in. MNLA is Latin Americas largest wholesale distributor of Ku-band satellite internet service and direct to home (DTH) television. In 2013, it decided to add high-speed Ka-band satellite internet service to its portfolio to help commercial partners further grow their residential and other wireless access businesses. Ka band, in the 26.5-40GHz frequency range, offers more unused spectrum than the longer-established Ku and C bands and, through higher frequency re-use, multiplies the data throughput that can be achieved, notably when combined with the new generation of high throughput satellites (HTS).

HTS systems combine the exceptional spectrum effi ciency and performance of spot-beam antennas with ultra-wideband transponders to enable impressively high levels of bandwidth and throughput. In addition, the advent of HTS enables network

Bandwidth reaches evengreater heightsHow a satellite technology provider, a distributor of satellite internet services and small cells from Alcatel-Lucent came together to help meet the needs of rural and under-served areas of Latin America.


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FEATURES, SUCH AS REMOTE COMMISSIONING, HAVE ALLOWED MNLAS RESELLERS TO QUICKLY INSTALL NEW SITES AND HAND THEM OVER TO CUSTOMERS IN JUST A FEW HOURS.

BANDWIDTH REACHES EVEN GREATER HEIGHTS

approximately 600ms and Jitter of 15ms connecting to a small cell with approximate backhaul capacity of 20Mbps DL and 3Mbps UL used to provide excellent voice quality and data throughput to mobile subscribers.

Among their many capabilities, the JUPITER system gateways are designed for lights-out operation and can be fully managed from MNLAs network operations center (NOC) in Lima, Peru. No personnel are required for daily operations at the gateway sites in Laredo, Texas and Arica, Chile. These locations are ideally located to provide coverage for the required regions; in particular they experience the least amount of bad weather that could interrupt service.

Features, such as remote commissioning, have allowed MNLAs resellers to quickly install new sites and hand them over to customers in just a few hours. Another feature of the JUPITER system, known as the onsite verification tool (OVT), ensures that revisits to sites are typically not needed because the installer can validate the installation prior to leaving the site by comparing it against adjacent sites.

Most importantly of all perhaps JUPITER is designed to scale to tens of thousands of users, offering the potential for MNLA and mobile operators to extend coverage and improve mobile services using small cells to subscribers within their HTS coverage area. n

Left to right: Alcatel-Lucents pole-mounted small cell; Hughes JUPITER Gateway; and JUPITER VSAT Remote


12 PART TWO REMOTE INDUSTRIAL: COVERAGE FOR A COMMUNITY OF WORKERS AT A SITE HARD TO REACH FROM EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE

Chevron is one of the best-known names in the oil and gas industry. For years, it has played a major global role in developing energy sources. This has made it the top leaseholder in the US Gulf of Mexico for oil. The company has a large inventory of oil platforms and vessels in the Gulf. In 2010 it needed a cost-effective connectivity solution to improve communications and operations.

It also had to be wireless. This meant that any communications network would require a wireless platform that could support the vast distances between rigs while delivering the broadband speeds needed for bandwidth-demanding applications. And vast those distances certainly are up to 20 miles in some cases. The communications system would also have to endure the harsh environment of the salt water (and salty air), storms, winds and high temperatures.

The Chevron team considered a number of technologies and solutions. Satellite might seem an obvious choice but the company needed a broadband network between the oilrigs with low latency. Satellite latency was considered too high for most applications.

However, 4G broadband wireless products and solutions provider Airspans combined offering of 700MHz and 3.65GHz WiMAX solutions was the offering that best met the project and communication requirements and proved a key enabler for Chevrons business case.

Airspan offers a cost-effective and quick-to-deploy solution that easily reaches across the platform-to-platform distances, supplying Chevron with high speed Internet and VoIP. Its also robust enough to withstand the conditions in which it works.

The deployment leverages the lightly licensed 3.65GHz band for affordable spectrum, while also maximizing the 700MHz band, which has inherent propagation characteristics that lend themselves perfectly to this project. Lower frequencies, such as the 700MHz band, allow signals to travel considerably further distances than higher frequencies.

Airspans approach offers multiple frequencies supported in the same chassis. Incorporating Airspans carrier-class HiperMAX base stations, the high-speed broadband network communicates to all-outdoor receiver units which are built to withstand harsh environmental conditions as well as operate over longer ranges. Leveraging Airspans software defi ned radio technology, the base stations allow for high capacity and diversity for improved reliability.

Small cells fi tted this environment particularly well because the all-in-one compact base station was the only reasonable solution for these industrial environments. Using traditional macro cell equipment would not have been possible. In addition all the equipment has outdoor IP66/67 International Protection Ratings, indicating a high level of protection against solid objects and liquid ingress.

Wireless is a useful communications method for oil-rig-to-oil-rig communications way out at sea and a safer way to operate equipment than sending people deep underground into mines. But how is it enabled? Small cells are part of the answer for two major players in the mining and oil industries.

Keeping isolated industries in touch


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SMALL CELLS FITTED THIS ENVIRONMENT PARTICULARLY WELL BECAUSE THE ALL-IN-ONE COMPACT BASE STATION WAS THE ONLY REASONABLE SOLUTION FOR THESE INDUSTRIAL ENVIRONMENTS.

Another Airspan project that shows the usefulness of small cells to remote industrial end users involves mining. In this case mining company Sandvik in Sweden needed wireless networking for mines to enable automations systems for remote control, to improve security and surveillance (including CCTV) in the mine environment and to ensure high speed data communications in underground mines. It was also necessary to improve resource management and process control. And all of this was required in what can reasonably be described as a challenging RF environment.

The reward would be higher productivity and safety underground as drivers could, for example, remotely operate up to four vehicles at a time. Its far too dangerous to ask people to go into these locations; remote control is a perfect solution.

The Airspan response to these needs involved ViaNET and ViaNET 4G. ViaNET responds to a growing need for broadband applications for CCTV in light rail, Wi-Fi access in public transport vehicles and new wireless applications in vehicular environments. While standardized vehicular radio networks for vehicle to infrastructure and vehicle-to-vehicle communications are on the way, a reliable and high performance solution for backhaul is needed. Airspans ViaNET product line is targeted for the needs of specific industrial and public transport applications, where higher capacities and alternative radio frequencies are needed.

ViaNET-4G radio equipment is based on Airspans pioneering AirSynergy pico base station. The infrastructure utilizes software-defined radios that can run WiMAX and LTE radio features and provides dual radio transceivers that use 2x2 MIMO TX/RX operation.

The system also offers an integrated wireless backhaul option, called iBridge, which allows the network operator to run access and backhaul from one, highly integrated unit. This saves on space needed for mounting and reduces backhaul costs. The base station component of the ViaNET-4G product communicates with specially developed mobile terminals. The MRTe is designed for vehicle mounting, can operate on either LTE or WiMAX platforms and also creates a Wi-Fi hotspot to connect additional devices. The MRTe can be powered directly from the vehicle and offers flexibility to support several deployment scenarios. In addition, self-install/configuration mobile terminals are available for quick and easy deployment along the transport route. Theres also a comprehensive, integrated network management system (NMS), called Netspan.

The result of these two approaches to communications for isolated industries, out at sea and deep underground, is the enhanced productivity and cost savings that high-risk, high-investment industries like oil and mining need. n

KEEPING ISOLATED INDUSTRIES IN TOUCH


14 PART THREE PUBLIC SAFETY: COVERAGE FOR EMERGENCY SERVICES AND FIRST RESPONDERS

A n innovative small cell solution has been developed for incident response vehicles such as ambulances and fi re trucks. It provides vital communications for fi rst responders dealing with emergencies, and has already been installed on and used by incident response vehicles in a number of countries.

The challenge for emergency services during any major incident is to have a communications system that is robust, secure, reliable and able to support highly mobile personnel from many different agencies. Furthermore, a specifi c challenge for the public mobile networks that might be expected to supply such systems is that they are not reliable in a crisis because they can very quickly become congested or even taken out of service for national security reasons.

These were the challenges addressed by Private Mobile Networks (PMN), a UK-based company, focused on providing both self-contained and integrated private cellular network solutions for enterprise in a wide selection of vertical sectors including construction, outside broadcast, maritime GSM, offshore, blue light and military services.

To overcome such diffi culties PMN integrated GSM picocells from ip.access to create a mission-critical communications system that resides onboard emergency vehicles and uses satellite broadband for backhaul. The solution, which is provided and managed by Excelerate Technology under its

RapidNet brand, has been deployed in a number of countries.

Excelerate Technology is a provider of data, video, voice and internet via satellite and wireless solutions to government organizations as well as police, fi re and ambulance services. The company pioneered the concept of rapidly deployable, totally independent and resilient broadband via satellite to support a broad range of resilient applications within the fi eld of emergency incident management.

The system has quickly proved its worth. The UKs main health care provider, the National Health Service (NHS) has equipped 21 vehicles for its Hazardous Area Response Teams (HART), which are based in each regional ambulance service. The NHS Ambulance Service was the fi rst emergency service in Europe to deploy a standalone private mobile network. Among the incidents that the vehicles fi rst supported have been the fl ood-affected areas of Cumbria in 2009 (when that county was the worst affected in the UK by the wettest month across the country since records began) and a chemical leak at the Bullring shopping center in Birmingham in 2009.

Each command vehicle incorporates a variety of voice options, including UHF, VHF and Airwave for mobile two-way radio communication, satellite backhaul and with the ip.access picocell mobile GSM, which can generate a private 900-meter radius mobile network that enables personnel to maintain communications independently of existing mobile

When it comes to communications for incident response vehicles we may not immediately think of small cells. However, small cells today provide just such vital, reliable and secure communications for incident response vehicles for police, fi re and ambulance services in a number of countries.

Small cells to the rescue


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REGARDLESS OF WHERE THE VEHICLES ARE DEPLOYED, FULL PRIVATE AND SECURE MOBILE CAPABILITIES ARE ASSURED IN SITUATIONS WHERE NO MOBILE NETWORKS EXIST.

SMALL CELLS TO THE RESCUE

networks. The solution is able to provide not only additional mobile coverage but also coverage when traditional mobile networks are compromised, congested or have been switched off.

All of which means that regardless of where the vehicles are deployed, full private and secure mobile capabilities are assured in situations where no mobile networks exist. The PMN solution is fully preconfigured and can be up and running within minutes to ensure that mission-critical communications can be maintained.

Any standard handset can be used leveraging standard GSM encryption to provide additional security. To ensure that the network is secure from

unwanted parties, only handsets with registered SIMs can utilize network functionality. Voice quality is high and support for SMS and GPRS for data communications is available.

The system has successfully provided communications for emergency services in a number of other countries, including Australia. And today the network has further developed, generating its own secure, 2G, 3G or LTE private network regardless of macro network coverage but still using backhaul options such as satellite or broadband to connect the private network to the outside world. n


16 PART FOUR DISASTER RECOVERY/HUMANITARIAN: RAPID REINSTATEMENT OF COVERAGE AFTER EXTENSIVE DAMAGE TO MOBILE INFRASTRUCTURE, AND SUPPORT FOR ONGOING HUMANITARIAN EFFORTS

The services that the PEAK system supplies can be provided for much longer than 72 hours. However, the primary objective is to restore stability for people and communities in the crucial hours and days following a natural disaster and to limit the effects of panic and chaos.

Having reliable and secure communications is vital for humanitarian aid and disaster relief workers. It helps them fi nd survivors, provide emergency medical help and request supplies such as medicine, food and clothing. In addition, a robust communications link is necessary for conveying real-time information to local, national or international authorities and aid agencies.

A small cell system developed by ip.access, Private Mobile Networks (PMN) and TLC Solutions (TLC) restored vital communications in some of the worst affected areas of the Philippines. This, in turn, helped humanitarian aid workers to save lives and support survivors.

The system can establish communications within 15 to 20 minutes of the PEAK kit arriving at the scene of a natural catastrophe. This rapid set-up time is a major benefi t in fact potentially life-saving where disaster relief is being effected.

The ip.access GSM small cells are particularly suited for humanitarian aid deployments. They have low

T yphoon Haiyan hit the Philippines in November 2013. Its effect was catastrophic. More than 6,000 people died and there was widespread devastation.

Government agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) needed to respond quickly to prevent further disaster and they did, thanks to the Pre-Positioned Expeditionary Assistance Kit (PEAK) a system deployed when humanitarian aid or disaster relief are required.

The PEAK system comprises self-contained units, or kits, that are stored near areas prone to suffer from natural disasters including hurricanes, earthquakes, typhoons or fl oods. Within the 72 hours after such a catastrophe occurs, the kits are dispatched via helicopter or loaded on to planes and parachuted into the disaster zone in order to:

restore essential services

provide potable water from local sources

ensure reliable power from renewable sources

offer local, situational awareness of time-sensitive events to share with decision makers

provide voice and data communications.

Ensuring a quick response to a natural disasterIn the aftermath of a natural disaster, three of the needs that must be met quickest are drinking water, power, and reliable and secure communications. Small cells have demonstrated their usefulness in the latter case notably after the 2013 major typhoon in the Philippines.


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A ROBUST COMMUNICATIONS LINK IS NECESSARY FOR CONVEYING REAL-TIME INFORMATION TO LOCAL, NATIONAL OR INTERNATIONAL AUTHORITIES AND AID AGENCIES.

ENSURING A QUICK RESPONSE TO A NATURAL DISASTER

power requirements, which, importantly, will not be a drain on the PEAK kit. Also, the small cells are low cost, which is part of what makes PEAK an economic solution for disaster relief efforts. In addition, the small cells use optimized satellite backhaul to establish communications.

The solution created by ip.access and its partners PMN and TLC serves as a portable small cell network in the PEAK kit. Each kit contains two systems which include a laptop computer, a dual 2.4/5.8GHz Wi-Fi base station, two 900MHz GSM base stations with 10-watt amplifiers, a BGAN satellite terminal, 20 smartphone handsets, remote site battery packs, a 20 amp charger and a 10-meter mast with antennas.

Other countries where the PEAK kits have used the small cells to provide communications include Honduras, Ethiopia, Kenya and Thailand. In Honduras, two PEAK kits were deployed to the city of La Ceiba on the northern coast of the country 24 hours ahead of an expected hurricane landfall. The small cell network was launched and established wireless coverage over a two-mile radius to help provide robust assistance following the storm. A key attribute of the small cell component within the PEAK kit is its ease of use. In Honduras, it took just two days to train local disaster relief teams, first responders and humanitarian aid workers.

And the work of PMN, TLC and ip.access in the Philippines has also been recognized thousands of miles from where it helped to restore vital communications. At the Small Cell Forum 2014 Small Cell Industry Awards they received recognition as joint winners of the Social Impact category. n


18 PART FIVE TRANSPORTATION: SERVICES FOR PASSENGERS AND OPERATIONAL NEEDS ON ALL CLASSES OF SHIPPING, AIRCRAFT AND TRAINS

P assengers on sea cruises like connectivity. There is clearly a market for delivering mobile phone services and internet access on board cruise ships out at sea where there is usually no network connectivity. When optimized satellite backhaul and small cells come together in an innovative small cell system, thats what they get:, access to GSM and Internet services during their voyage.

One of the passenger and cargo ferry operators that has embraced this small cell solution is the Italian shipping company Grandi Navi Veloci (GNV). GNV serves destinations in France, Morocco, Sardinia, Sicily, Spain and Tunisia. In the peak tourist season from May to September its largest ships can carry more than 2,000 passengers.

In the past GNVs passengers could only use their mobile phones when docked at port. To provide

wireless services for its customers while at sea, GNV turned to Malta-based fi rm Wideband Interactive Network via Satellites (WINS). WINS develops mobile connectivity solutions for the maritime industry.

WINS, which is majority owned by Eutelsat, one of the worlds most experienced operators of communications satellites, teamed with ip.access to integrate small cells with optimized IP-based satellite connectivity for backhaul to create a system that provides GSM and GPRS coverage on board ships.

The ip.access small cell solution was preferred over products from other suppliers because of its effi cient use of satellite bandwidth. The system also integrates with distributed antenna systems (DAS), which can be used on board, depending on how the customer wants to deploy the small cells.

Sailing away from land need not mean abandoning connectivity, as a service in the Mediterranean shows. It combines ip.access small cells with optimized satellite backhaul to provide mobile coverage throughout vessels owned by a major cruise and ferry operator.

Small cells at sea


19

THE SMALL CELL SOLUTION IS FLEXIBLE AND CAN BE QUICKLY DEPLOYED. A TYPICAL INSTALLATION CAN TAKE A COUPLE OF WEEKS PER SHIP.

SMALL CELLS AT SEA

For example, a shipping company could install a few small cell base stations and distribute the mobile signal via DAS throughout the vessel. Alternatively, the company could install more small cells all over the ship to provide complete coverage with additional capacity. The small, attractive form factor of the ip.access small cells makes either choice a viable alternative.

For GNV, WINS deployed more than 50 small cells on its fleet of ten ships. The solution provides VPN connectivity and GSM and GPRS services for passengers and crew members. WINS has also deployed Wi-Fi access points for GNV. As a result, passengers enjoy internet access and can make and receive calls and SMS messages, while GNV is able to

offer a new revenue-generating service on board its vessels.

The small cell solution is flexible and can be quickly deployed. A typical installation can take a couple of weeks per ship. This includes installing all the base stations and cabling infrastructure as well as setting up the satellite link. In addition, the optimization of the satellite backhaul has enabled a quicker return on investment due to the lowering of bandwidth costs, which can be significant with satellite services. The approach also has benefits for both of its main customer groups: passengers enjoy connectivity, while ship owners have an opportunity to offer new revenue-generating services. n


20 PART FIVE TRANSPORTATION: SERVICES FOR PASSENGERS AND OPERATIONAL NEEDS ON ALL CLASSES OF SHIPPING, AIRCRAFT AND TRAINS

T o supply an in-fl ight GSM service may seem a tall order. To ensure that it meets the strict safety requirements of modern aviation and in particular avoids interference with aircraft communications and terrestrial networks is even more challenging.

And yet GSM calls thousands of meters above the earth have been around for some time. In fact today airline passengers can make calls and use mobile data on their own devices on hundreds of fl ights worldwide thanks to a small cell solution developed by AeroMobile Communications and ip.access.

AeroMobile Communications, based in the UK and jointly owned by the in-fl ight entertainment and communications (IFEC) solutions provider Panasonic Aviation Corp and Telenor, is an on-board GSM mobile network provider for making calls, texting and using mobile data while in fl ight. Since 2008, more than 19 million passengers have used the AeroMobile service.

In conjunction with AeroMobile majority shareholder Panasonic Aviation Corp, the partners combine GSM picocells from ip.access with Ku-band satellite links from Panasonic or L-band satellite connections from mobile satellite communications company Inmarsat, to create an in-fl ight communication service that

allows passengers to use their devices on board a plane just as if they were roaming in another country.

The system is relatively simple to describe. Two GSM picocells installed in the cabin together can support up to 24 simultaneous calls or data sessions. Also on board is a server that contains part of the base station controller (BSC), control system and the radio interference avoidance system (RIAS). Backhaul is provided by the Ku- or L-band satellite links. The voice and data traffi c is optimized to use minimal satellite bandwidth.

However, an airborne service has to deal with some complex challenges. For example a signifi cant feature of the service is that the small cell system is designed so that the picocells provide GSM service only on board the aircraft. At the same time terrestrial networks are prevented from interfering with the in-fl ight service. Importantly too, the GSM service is automatically enabled when the aircraft reaches 6,000 meters altitude and disabled during take-off and landing. This means that airline crew members do not have to be involved in the process.

But thats far from all. To get AeroMobiles service off the ground, the small cell system had to undergo numerous avionic tests and be certifi ed by aviation agencies in every country that it fl ies over. The

An in-fl ight cellular communications offering launched six years ago has proved popular with passengers and a competitive differentiator for airlines and mobile operators. But to reach that point, as partners in the service found out, it also had to pass a number of safety tests and meet many certifi cation requirements.

In-fl ight GSM takes off


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THE SERVICE IS A COMPETITIVE DIFFERENTIATOR NOT ONLY FOR THE AIRLINES, BUT ALSO FOR THE MOBILE OPERATORS THAT HAVE SIGNED ROAMING AGREEMENTS WITH AEROMOBILE.

picocells had to go through a strict regime of testing that covered vibration, RF susceptibility, RF radiation, temperature, temperature variation, shock and crack safety and many more environmental tests. It was not a short process. It took three years to get approval from the European Aviation Safety Agency, for example.

Today, more than 260 aircraft offer the AeroMobile service on board across 13 commercial airlines Emirates, Etihad Airways, KLM, Air France, Lufthansa, Qatar Airways, Transaero, SAS, Singapore Airlines, EVA Air, Virgin Atlantic, British Airways and Aer Lingus as well as VIP carriers Comlux, Dubai Air Wing and Presidential Flight. In addition, AeroMobile has over 275 roaming partners in more than 128 countries.

The service is a competitive differentiator not only for the airlines, but also for the mobile operators that have signed roaming agreements with AeroMobile. Since 2008, when the service was first commercially available, more than 19 million passengers have used the in-flight GSM networks, and as awareness has grown so has usage. Data usage in January 2013 exceeded that of the last six months of 2012.

Clearly, when passengers know theres the option to stay connected, they will use it. That is why, to meet this demand, AeroMobile and its partners are now developing a 3G in-flight solution. n

IN-FLIGHT GSM TAKES OFF


22 PART SIX SPECIAL EVENT: SERVICES FOR A TEMPORARY PLANNED GATHERING

In February 2012, Airspan Networks, a leading provider of 4G broadband wireless access networks, announced a joint product development with McLaren Electronics Systems, a provider of specialist electronic control and data systems, to provide a customized 4G connectivity solution for the motorsport and other transportation industries. The solution would enable the delivery of broadband services supporting voice, high-defi nition video and real-time telemetry to and from high-speed vehicles, including Formula One (F1) race cars.

The Airspan solution consists of 4G Radio Access Network (RAN) technology deployed trackside and an Airspan 4G module (mini PCIe) embedded directly into a ruggedized McLaren Electronics component (WMX-470), which is installed in the

I t will come as no surprise to learn that real-time telemetry has been part of elite motorsport for over a decade. In a highly competitive and high investment sport, telemetry is critical to the top teams taking part in most motorsport events.

In the same period, however, bandwidth requirements in motorsport have grown from about 19.2kbit/s to an astonishing 2Mbit/s. In addition two-way real-time communications is also a requirement of participating teams. Thus the integration of voice, video and telemetry is seen as a desirable evolution for on-car systems. Airspans development of customized versions of its 4G radio interfaces to meet the need of elite motorsport and the ecosystem that services it is therefore a signifi cant development.

4G systems that can offer reliable voice, video and telemetry to on-car systems for motorsport have come to Formula One racing with impressive results.

Racing certainty


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IN A HIGHLY COMPETITIVE AND HIGH INVESTMENT SPORT, TELEMETRY IS CRITICAL TO THE TOP TEAMS TAKING PART IN MOST MOTORSPORT EVENTS.

racing car. The solution supports multiple cars simultaneously (up to 24) and delivers broadband speeds exceeding 5Mbps per car at speeds beyond 200mph (320km/h).

Airspans viaNET4G is an enhanced member of the companys viaNET product family specifically designed to deliver 4G mobile connectivity to the transportation industry. The 4G mini PCIe module included in the solution is designed to be easily embedded in any component to enable direct connectivity from that component to AirSpans AirSynergy base station. The small form factor of the module allows flexibility and versatility for simple and quick deployment and installation.

The industrial-grade 4G modules developed for this were much tougher than consumer-centric 4G technology, which is clearly not suitable for motorsport applications. The range of terminal technology that was to be integrated into race car electronics systems would need to be able to tolerate temperature extremes from -40C to +85C

and have an enhanced tolerance of shaking and vibration.

Equally important was the ability to operate at speeds of up to 240mph, Doppler shift to 1300Hz, real-time base station-driven frequency correction and the inclusion of both WiMAX and LTE solutions. The system does all this and more, also offering up to 80 per cent capacity in the uplink, with support for uplink MIMO and seamless handover; the so-called make before break network handover infrastructure ensures no loss of data or capacity during the handover process.

The joint Airspan/McLaren Electronics unit (CBM-470) is specially developed to be easily incorporated into a wide variety of transportation vehicles and the solution can be adjusted to operate in a number of frequency bands, offering considerable capacity at extremely high travel speeds. It isnt just for motorsports, although not just F1 but also the US NASCAR racing series have enthusiastically embraced it. n

RACING CERTAINTY

Documents

151 SCF Rural Remote Case Studies