Alcatel-Lucent Shrinks Cell Tower - Tech Europe - WSJ

http://blogs.wsj.com/tech-europe/2011/02/07/alcatel-lucent-shrinks-cell...

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By Ben Rooney

French mobile telephone infrastructure manufacturer Alcatel-Lucent today unveiled technology that shrinks a cell tower to a box the size of a Rubiks cube, potentially changing the structure of the cellular network, reducing greenhouse emissions and bringing mobile broadband into new areas. Called lightRadio, the technology was displayed in London supported by partners Freescale and HP.
Alcatel-Lucents Wim Sweldens displays the new device. It replaces the cabinet behind him.

According to Wim Sweldens, president of wireless activities for Alcatel-Lucent, by reducing the technology from something the size of a filing cabinet, networks would reduce the total cost of ownership by half, as well as halving the global CO2 emissions from the mobile industry currently equivalent of 15 million cars a year. Mr. Sweldens said the company has applied for more than 200 patents to protect the intellectual property. The company has set an ambitious timetable, launching an alpha product this year and going into full production in 2012. He committed the company to a rolling timetable of six-monthly upgrades into 2014. Mr. Sweldens said that five mobile network operators had signed up, although only three were named: Orange, Verizon and China Mobile. lightRadio represents a new architecture where the base station, typically located at the base of each cell site tower, is broken into its components elements and then distributed into both the antenna and throughout a cloud-like network. Additionally todays clutter of antennas serving 2G, 3G, and LTE systems are combined and shrunk into a single multifrequency, multistandard Wide-band Active Array Antenna that can be mounted on poles, sides of buildings or anywhere else there is power and a broadband connection. 30x more wireless data traffic by 2015 Multiple units can be combined to provide the equivalent capacity of a typical cell in use today, or smaller cells can be constructed using just one or two units, with the traffic being carried over existing broadband connections. Breaking large cells up also helps preserve battery life on existing mobile phones, as they can use lower-power radio transmissions to talk to the tower. Small cells also allow greater spectrum efficiency. Other manufacturers have previously offered what are known as micro, femto or pico cell devices, which typically are used to take cellular traffic off congested 3G networks and delivered over broadband connections. Alcatel-Lucent claims their offering differs in that existing devices are mainly used to supplement existing cell towers in areas of high demand, such as railway stations and sports events, rather than replace them.

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2/10/2011 11:36 AM

Alcatel-Lucent Shrinks Cell Tower - Tech Europe - WSJ

http://blogs.wsj.com/tech-europe/2011/02/07/alcatel-lucent-shrinks-cell...

The new technology could help operators adjust to surging growth in data traffic. AlacatelLucent forecasts an 18-fold increase in smartphone devices and a 30x more wireless data traffic by 2015. But in addition to surging smartphone usage, machine-to-machine communications, the so-called internet of things with IP-connected sensors in just about everything from electricity meters to cars, will see an explosion in data demands. Operators will have to look at dramatic ways to cut costs, you cannot increase investment 30-fold, Mr. Sweldens said. The move is part of an overall trend in shifting intelligence in networks away from the center and out into the network itself. Intelligent base-stations that can be dynamically configured according to user-demand has the potential to increase user experiences, while reducing the cost of ownership. lightRadio units are compatible with 2G,3G and future LTE networks.
Alacatel-Lucent

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2/10/2011 11:36 AM