Samsung announced the development and commercialisation of its 5G solution to improve performance and streamline management of next generation networks.
The South Korean conglomerate’s fully-virtualised 5G Radio Access Network (vRAN) solution comprises of a virtualized Central Unit (vCU), a virtualized Distributed Unit (vDU), along with a broad array of radio units.
The approach here is to make changes to the conventional RAN architecture by substituting the dedicated baseband hardware with software elements.
Samsung will make this available for commercial use in this quarter.
A typical RAN setup would consist of three elements - baseband, radio and antennas. Wireless communication is possible when the baseband runs an array of computational signal processing functions.
This software-based solution can function on standard and readily available computing platforms like COTS (commercial off-the-shelf) x86-based platform. These platforms are used by operators for an array of IT requirements.
Samsung claims its solution will cut maintenance costs by shifting to COTS x86-based servers.
“Samsung’s 5G vRAN validates a software-based alternative to vendor-specific hardware, while offering high performance, flexibility, and stability,” Jaeho Jeon, VP and Head of R&D, Networks Business at Samsung Electronics, said in a statement.
In April 2019, Samsung commercialised 5G vCU, which is presently used by mobile carriers in Japan, Korea, and the US.
The addition of vDU completes the 5G vRAN. The new solution, when combined with Samsung’s virtualized 4G/5G Core, will help operators employ an end-to-end software-based radio and core network running on COTS x86 servers.
Samsung is looking to expand into Canada and New Zealand, after successfully commercialising the technology in Japan, Korea and the US.
“Now, more than ever, mobile operators recognize the need for quality-driven, flexible, scalable, and cost-efficient network architectures while planning for 5G network success,” Peter Jarich, Head of GSMA Intelligence, said in a statement.
