1 © Nokia 2017

The Evolution of R-PHYFrom Gen R-PHY to Gen FDX

SCTE Cable-Tec Expo: R-PHY Technical SessionDavid Eckard, CTO, Fixed NetworksOctober 17, 2017

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2 © Nokia 20172

What is next for DAA and R-PHY?R-PHY node trends result from two distinct areas of innovation

Let’s look at one innovation coming from each of these areas.

Virtualization

NFV

SDN

Virtualization

DAAWork flows

EPON

DPoE vCMTSService Chaining

vCCAP

• Virtual Network Functions• Work Flows• Service Chaining

Physical Node

• FDX• Silicon Advances• Flexibility

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3 © Nokia 2017

vCMTS on the R-PHY nodeVirtualization : Key Component of Node Evolution

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• Work flows automate deployment and configuration.

• Additional functionality easily added by adding new VNFs

• Operators demand vendor choice• vCMTS/service density challenges create

conversation around moving functions from headend to node (e.g., BPI+)

Remote-PHY+Onboard vCMTS

Service group

vCMTS

RPD

Remote-PHY

Service groupvCMTS

RPD

• Scale for power, size, space in the node and the cloud

• VNF-based vCMTS can be ANYWHERE, even on the R-PHY node itself

• Reduce the bandwidth requirements for aggregation (e.g. PON and cascaded Ethernet)

CCAP

4 © Nokia 2017

R-PHY Device in a Virtualized WorldIn the Node

RPD

Controller

OSP

Hub

Data

Cen

ter

Head

end

Routing

Switching

In the OSP

RPD

Controller

OSP

Hub

Data

Cen

ter

Head

end

Routing

Switching

In the Hub

RPD

Controller

OSP

Hub

Data

Cen

ter

Head

end

Routing

Switching

In the Headend

RPD

Controller

OSP

Hub

Data

Cen

ter

Head

end

Routing

Switching

In the Data Center

RPD

Controller

OSP

Hub

Data

Cen

ter

Head

end

Routing

Switching

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5 © Nokia 20175

What is next for DAA and R-PHY?R-PHY node trends result from two distinct areas of innovation

Virtualization

NFV

SDN

Virtualization

DAAWork flows

EPON

DPoE vCMTSService Chaining

vCCAP

• Virtual Network Functions• Work Flows• Service Chaining

Physical Node

• FDX• Silicon Advances• Flexibility

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6 © Nokia 2017

Coax plant spectrum optionsThe Next Generation Node

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• Expected MAC data rates for FDX: 4-5 Gb/s US, 9-10 Gb/s DS• Management of transmission groups adds complexity

FDX BandMUST:108-684 MHzSHOULD:108-876 MHz

7 © Nokia 2017

What is FDX?The Next Generation Node

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• Full Duplex D3.1 uses full duplex at the node and FDD at the FDX CM

• Each FDX CM uses FDX sub-bands in either DS or US (never both simultaneously)

• Additional power needed at node for FDX• Process requires extensive communication

between the PHY and upper layers of DOCSIS stack

• Full Duplex (FDX) in cable means Full Duplex over an N+0 cable plant (P2MP)

8 © Nokia 2017

Combining full duplex with frequency division duplexing, how does that work?The Next Generation Node - Full Duplex (FDX)

The network node aggregates US and DS signals from all modems,and operates in “real” Full Duplexing mode

Each individual modem always operates in Frequency Division Duplexing mode

FDXNode

Modem 1 Modem 2

INTF<<

Low interference: CMs can have different FDD configuration

fDSUS

DSUS

f

USDS

fDS

US

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9 © Nokia 2017

FDX CM Interference ManagementThe Next Generation Node - Full Duplex (FDX)

The network node aggregates US and DS signals from all modems,and operates in “real” Full Duplexing mode

Each individual modem always operates in Frequency Division Duplexing mode

Node

Modem 1 Modem 3Modem 2 INTF>>

High interference: CMs must use same FDD configuration

fDSUS

DSUS

f

USDS

fDS

US

fDS

US

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10 © Nokia 2017

Interference GroupsThe Next Generation Node - Full Duplex (FDX)

• Cable modems that heavily interfere are clustered in “interference groups”• All modems within one interference group have identical US and DS frequency bands• This avoids any US-to-DS full duplex interference for modems within the same interference group• Additional local functionality is needed in the scheduling process to take into account these interference groups.

fDSUS

DSUS

Node

INTF>>

f

USDS

fDS

US

INTF<<

Interference group 1 Interference group 2

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11 © Nokia 2017

10 GE

Fiber

FDX Design Considerations

Service group

Coax

Switch FDX R-PHY Node

Headend OSP

CCAP-core functionality

CPE

• Hardware upgrade (interface cards at a minimum) required for traditional CCAP.

• Software upgrade required for CCAP-core and vCMTS

• Requires N + 0 architecture• Requires new node (new RF and

electronics at a minimum)• FDX-Ready Nodes will likely be

deployed ahead of FDX CPE• Node must support FDX, all

versions of DOCSIS, and QAM video

• FDX CPE will likely follow FDX nodes by 12-18 months

• Network will have to support existing CPE

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12 © Nokia 2017

Virtualized Unified Architecture for Cable Access

With virtualization, MSOs can deploy the right technology for any situation.

Access Controller

Common controller Common routing and switching Any service, any medium

Edge Router

All-IP fiber R-PHY+Onboard vCMTSAccess node

vCMTS

PONAccess node

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R-PHYAccess node

vCMTSorCCAP-core

FDXAccess node

FDX vCMTS*

13 © Nokia 2017

The R-PHY DAA journey has only just begun.

• DAA extends useful life of HFC far beyond what was originally anticipated.• Virtualization eliminates difficult decisions and provides incredible flexibility.• Move complexity where is makes economical and operational sense.• Silicon advancements will greatly improve density and efficiency.• FDX opens dramatic capacity in the access network for new use cases.• A lot of exciting developments happening now. A lot more to come.

13 © Nokia 2017 Public

14 © Nokia 2017Public