ADVA adds miniGM to FSP 150 for radio access network synchronization

ADVA Optical Networking (FSE: ADV) says that its FSP 150 family of mobile backhaul products now includes an IEEE 1588v2 mini-Grandmaster (miniGM) clock and boundary clock functionality. The integration of the miniGM ensures precise frequency and time synchronization at the network edge and is specifically designed to support the large-scale rollout of small cells for LTE-Advanced and radio access networks operating in unpaired spectrum.

The development of the miniGM is the latest in a series of updates to the ADVA FSP 150 Syncjack timing distribution and assurance technology that is designed to simplify the migration to LTE and LTE-Advanced radio access networks.

“As mobile operators gradually introduce LTE-Advanced, they're finding network synchronization increasingly complex,” said Christoph Glingener, CTO, ADVA Optical Networking. “This is all due to the necessary rollout of interference coordination and radio spectrum control techniques. Base station clocks now need to operate in phase within tolerances of less than a microsecond. This is a considerable challenge. But by deploying the miniGM functionality at the edge of the backhaul network and introducing our Syncjack timing assurance technology, mobile operators and their mobile backhaul service providers can meet these synchronization demands while improving their customer’s quality of experience.”

Legacy mobile backhaul networks can benefit from the new functionality by combining GPS and a Precision Time Protocol (PTP) miniGM clock in a cost-effective service demarcation device. Deploying the miniGM as close as possible to the cell site enables the use of existing networks for backhaul services connecting LTE-Advanced radio access networks and supporting unpaired spectrum operation. Since GPS is not considered reliable enough when used as an exclusive clock source, the PTP fallback capability significantly enhances the stability of the synchronization architecture compared to a traditional GPS-only solution.

The ADVA FSP 150 family is an intelligent Ethernet access, backhaul, and aggregation portfolio supporting Syncjack timing distribution and assurance.

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