Cel-Fi QUATRA In-Building Enterprise Cellular System

Cel-Fi QUATRA In-Building Enterprise Cellular System Usage and Configurations: Off-Air and Supercell By Joe Schmelzer, Senior Director of Products at Nextivity With the continued increase in enterprise demand for cellular data and voice for mission-critical and day-to-day operations, mobile operators are supplementing network capacity and coverage using small cell platforms or indoor DAS (idas), or through the use of smart signal boosters that have been approved for use on their networks. Similarly, businesses that increasingly rely on cellular service often take it upon themselves to search for solutions they hope will cost-effectively solve their cellular connectivity problems. Yet, in many environments, available indoor coverage options are either too complex or too costly for enterprises or service providers to consider. Nextivity worked directly with global operators to create the Cel-Fi QUATRA In-Building Enterprise Cellular System, an addition to the Cel-Fi family of products that is designed to resolve the in-building densification challenges of the middleprise (i.e., venues up to 200,000 sq. ft.). QUATRA is an active DAS hybrid that combines the best of active DAS and the Cel-Fi technologies that have been widely adopted by operators and enterprises around the world. The system is scalable for future company expansion, and can be deployed in a matter of days by a certified installer at a compelling price. At the date of this white paper, Cel-Fi QUATRA has been approved by the FCC and ETSI (CE), and is available for use on 22 global operator networks, including the top three in the United States. Purpose and Intended Audience This paper provides an in-depth look at the Cel-Fi QUATRA In-Building Enterprise Cellular System for commercial in-building cellular coverage, including how it works, and different use-case configurations. The paper is intended for mobile operators, integrators, installers, and interested business or IT professionals that want to better understand this hybrid solution to solve in-building cellular coverage problems for the underserved middleprise market. 1

A New Smart Approach to Coverage In developing Cel-Fi QUATRA, Nextivity leveraged its proprietary processor technology and digital architecture that powers its family of Cel-Fi cellular coverage solutions. The digital architecture that underlies these proven solutions provides both the intelligence and scalability required to deliver and optimize indoor cellular coverage for the middleprise. Smart refers to the intelligent architecture that self-configures and self-optimizes, making the qualified installer s job easier. The system intelligently adjusts and adapts to changes in the environment or network, eliminating interference and always maximizing performance once installed. This reduces maintenance costs and alleviates the typical demands on staff to maintain a traditional active or passive DAS. The smart digital architecture includes many features such as: automatic gain control to maximize system power, uplink power control to the macro network, advanced digital echo-cancellation and feedback control, uplink gating, and signal qualification (channels are individually qualified for boosting, so noise or very poor signals won t be amplified and won t degrade the network). These smart systems have been designed in conjunction with operators to improve indoor coverage without the network interference problems and installation complexity associated with other types of systems, like common bi-directional amplifiers (BDA), repeaters, or traditional DAS. Cel-Fi QUATRA is proven to be unconditionally network safe, which ensures there is no network interference, and can be deployed confidently. In off-air mode, Cel-Fi QUATRA delivers up to 100dB gain, which is up to 1000x greater than competitive systems. More power means a bigger coverage footprint with fewer components. COVER A DESK -90 dbm + 60 db Gain yields: -30 dbm Booster Power coverage: COVER 1 2 ROOMS -90 dbm + 70 db Gain yields: -20 dbm Booster Power coverage : FULL COVERAGE -90 dbm + 100 db Gain yields: +10 dbm Booster Power coverage: A typical Off-Air Gain per-channel power example. 2

Cel-Fi QUATRA In-Building Enterprise Cellular System Cel-Fi QUATRA is an active DAS hybrid. A single system which provides coverage up to 50,000 sq. ft. is comprised of one Network Unit (NU), which is the head end or hub of the system; and up to four remote units that distribute and rebroadcast the donor signal, called Coverage Units (). The s are powered antennas (thus the active in active DAS hybrid), and have full transmit power available without suffering from coaxial distribution power loss. This provides a stronger cellular signal for end users to carry out mission critical and day-to-day business operations from their cellular devices. If the area to be covered is larger than 50K sq. ft., multiple Cel-Fi QUATRA systems can be installed. QUATRA can be deployed within larger venues by installing up to four NUs, each connected to up to four s. In this scenario, by synchronizing the outputs from multiple s, the coverage area of each is stitched together to form one large cell that can provide coverage across an entire building of up to 200,000 sq. ft. Cel-Fi QUATRA may use either an (a) off-air or (b) small cell donor input, depending on the specific coverage and capacity needs at the site. A certified installer can use the Cel-Fi QUATRA Planner Tool prior to a site survey for automated configuration and output of suggested network elements. This portal-based tool eliminates time-consuming manual calculations that integrators generally need to do when initially designing an in-building solution. Instead, an estimate can be built from data supplied over the phone or via email, before the site survey, to develop a preliminary bill of materials (BOM). While a site survey is recommended, highly sophisticated and costly legacy design tools, like ibwave, are not required. The integrator installs and maintains the system using the Cel-Fi WAVE platform, a cloud-based management interface with an easy-to-use dashboard for system optimization, alerts and alarms, and software updates. Nextivity provides the QMT (QUATRA Management Tool) smartphone app that enables Cel-Fi QUATRA systems to connect to the cloud through the phone s data connection, and Bluetooth, if an Ethernet LAN connection isn t accessible. Once the system is mounted appropriately, standard Cat 5e (or better) cable is used to connect the NU with each, eliminating the need for costly fiber installation (many commercial buildings are already wired with this cabling, further reducing installation costs). When powered on, all network and system optimizations are performed automatically. The built-in intelligence of the system, coupled with the QMT, means that Cel-Fi QUATRA can be installed in a matter of days considerably faster than other enterprise solutions on the market. SMALL CELL Donor Options MIMO EXA MIMO EXA NETWORK UNIT 1 NETWORK UNIT 2 SCIF MIMO MIMO MAIN MAIN NU = Network Unit = Coverage Unit NU P S U 200 meter max with Extender 100m 100m Cat 5e or better 100m 100m Cel-Fi QUATRA Elements COVERAGE UNITS () Up to four (4) per NU Power over Ethernet Built-in or external antennas Horizontal ceiling or vertical wall mountable Mounting Kit included NETWORK UNIT (NU) Built-in or external donor antennas Accepts Small Cell donor inputs (to one or more QUATRA systems) Powers entire system Self-configuring Mounting Kit included Enterprise management 3

Why an Active DAS Hybrid Solution is Better The combined capabilities of active DAS and the digital architecture of Nextivity s smart, operator-class, indoor coverage solutions eliminate problems associated with existing indoor cellular coverage technologies, offering the following advantages: Much higher gain in off-air mode without overloading the network with amplified noise (capacity-killing interference) Larger coverage footprint per server antenna While building surveys are always recommended, expensive and cumbersome RF tools are not required for planning or installation Dynamically tunes to operator network frequencies Makes the network more efficient (a better signal means the same amount of data may be transmitted in less time with less energy, freeing up network resources for other users) System management options available for enterprises that want to implement alarms and alerts Scalable for future expansion without the need to re-engineer Driving Down Cost and Complexity for the Middleprise A large enterprise may be able to support the ROI and associated costs of a traditional DAS solution that requires extensive planning, RF design, engineering, and costly maintenance, as well as extensive budget and contract negotiations with multiple vendors, integrators, and the operators themselves. But the cost of a traditional DAS solution typically puts them out of range of most middleprise venues. Simpler solutions such as femtocells and Wi-Fi calling are available but do not have the reliability, quality of service, or management capabilities that a business requires. Venues that range in size from 10,000 to 200,000 sq. ft. are particularly challenged with the price/performance gap, because they are too large for affordable consumer-grade solutions and too small for high-performance DAS. Cel-Fi QUATRA addresses this gap by often eliminating the need for over-costly RF engineering tools, using Cat 5e (or better) cabling to connect the NU with the s, and powering the entire system via Ethernet (PoE) from a single power supply at the NU. This also means the s can be easily mounted just about anywhere, from wall to ceiling, wherever coverage is needed. Nextivity chose to standardize on dedicated Cat 5e cabling to simplify IT requirements. (Higher grade cable can be used, but is not required.) The NU and may be separated by as much as 200 meters when the optional QUATRA Range Extender (QRE) is placed inline. The QRE is also powered by the NU, and doesn t require additional power. Cel-Fi QUATRA includes support for MIMO, and provides up to 75 MHz of combined channel bandwidth across four independent cellular bands. This provides flexibility for supporting mixed 3G and 4G networks on location. All of this translates into an exceptional Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) for the middleprise, and faster deployment times. 4

INPUT Cel-Fi QUATRA In-Building Enterprise Cellular System Configurations Cel-Fi QUATRA is flexible and scalable to support a company s future growth. The optimum donor signal configuration is determined by applying some basic use-case principles. Off-Air Configurations Off-Air configurations use capacity from the operator s existing macro network, extending it indoors where it is needed. This can be the fastest and easiest way to provide indoor coverage, not requiring any fixed backhaul (small cell or femto), contracts, or lengthy permit processes. This system can take advantage of the NU s internal antennas, or it can be connected to an external antenna. (Nextivity offers a Wideband MIMO Antenna that is the perfect donor source for this.) Using a high-gain external directional donor antenna can be a good way to improve signal quality. The certified installer attaches the antenna and runs through the setup procedure. Nextivity also offers mounting solutions, an outdoor pole mount, and an indoor/outdoor wall mount. Guided by Nextivity s Antenna Positioning software, in minutes the antenna can be mounted, positioned, and aimed properly for best donor signal input. Quality of the donor signal provided to the system is perhaps the most important factor in the installation outcome for an off-air configuration. Another advantage of the off-air configuration is that s only need to be placed where coverage problems exist in the building. In this configuration, the existing macro signal is only being boosted where it is lacking, and a handset that migrates between Cel-Fi QUATRA and macro-covered areas is simply seeing a better macro signal everywhere. (PoE Cat5e) Coverage Unit Coverage Unit (Up to 200m) Coverage Unit (PoE Cat5e) (PoE Cat5e) COVERAGE UNIT Network Unit COVERAGE UNIT Small Cell Network Unit MIMO Panel Antenna Coverage Unit COVERAGE UNIT (PoE Cat5e) Supercell CONFIGURATION COVERAGE UNIT Off Air CONFIGURATION Quatra Off-Air or Supercell Configuration Supercell Configuration In the Supercell configuration, a small cell is used as the donor for Cel-Fi QUATRA. (Any small cell can be used with QUATRA, as long as the supported bands of the small cell match the bands supported by QUATRA. There are several QUATRA band variations available.) The Supercell created by the small cell/active DAS hybrid provides uniform access to the capacity introduced by the small cell. Supercells are inherently uncomplicated from a planning and deployment point of view, and are far more resilient to the potential of interference. Larger or more densely populated installation sites can often benefit from the signal capacity delivered by a dedicated small cell donor. 5

This configuration facilitates a uniform signal distribution throughout a larger area. Additional Cel-Fi QUATRA systems may be used to expand coverage up to 200,000 sq. ft. per (typical) small cell. Optionally, while waiting for a small cell to be delivered, the integrator can install Cel-Fi QUATRA off-air for immediate extension of cellular coverage. When the small cell is installed, the external donor antennas are disconnected and the small cell is connected to the NU. Supercell Advantages The Supercell configuration i.e., Cel-Fi QUATRA connected to a small cell has three key advantages over a small cell installed alone. These are: 1. Small cell dominance 2. Elimination of problems related to multiple small cell interference 3. Reduced small cell overhead and OPEX resource requirements (fewer small cells are required for the space). Advantage 1: Supercell Dominance Larger or more densely populated installation sites can often benefit from the network capacity delivered by a dedicated small cell. This means three things to the operator (and the enterprise): 1. The installation should provide enough signal dominance (power) over the outside macro network so in-building calls stay in-building on the small cell where they belong. 2. The local small cell off-loads traffic from the macro network, freeing up capacity for other macro network subscribers. 3. If the site suffers from network interference problems, such as pilot pollution in a high-rise building where too many cell sites are visible and interfering with each other, small cell dominance must be able to overcome the interference signal energy that is present. In the typical example below, the building suffers from a lack of signal at its interior, while the perimeter areas of the building are being adequately served by competing macro cells. Lack of signal in building interior Small Cell needs to dominate over the Macro network signal at building perimeter. Small Cell competes with the Macro network. 6

If a small cell is installed in the center of the building, its signal power falls off as callers get closer to the perimeter. This results in service being handed-off to the outdoor network, which defeats the purpose of adding small cell capacity. WEAKER Small Cell Signals at Perimeter LEGEND -60 dbm Service Blind Spots -80 dbm SC Centrally Located Small Cell -100 dbm -120 dbm WEAKER Small Cell signal at perimeter. Now consider the Supercell case which distributes local capacity in a more uniform fashion. The result is that more areas are covered, and power density (small cell dominance) is improved at the building perimeter. 1 STRONGER Small Cell Signals at Perimeter 2 LEGEND -60 dbm -80 dbm Cel-Fi QUATRA tethered to a small cell -100 dbm 4 3-120 dbm STRONGER Small Cell signal at perimeter. In this case, the result is a 14dB improvement for the perimeter offices, plus better coverage overall throughout the venue. This helps to ensure that local cell phones will be properly served by the local system, and that the macro network will be properly off-loaded as the operator intends.. Advantage 2: Potential Interference from Multiple Small Cells Similar to macro network cells, small cells may interfere with each other where they overlap, causing reduced performance. The Supercell configuration resolves this problem by creating a large single composite cell and eliminating handoff regions between multiple small cells. The Supercell Advantage Small Cell Interference Zones Supercell Seamless Service 7

Advantage 3: Small Cell Overhead and Opex Each small cell must have its own high bandwidth backhaul that connects it to the operator s gateway/core network. Therefore, additional small cells result in an increase in cumulative backhaul requirements and OPEX that must be considered. Some enterprises will have plenty of overhead bandwidth and can draw from that with small cells, but some will need to increase bandwidth, which comes at a cost. Each small cell comes with guidance on the bandwidth consumption, so the enterprise can easily determine if current bandwidth is sufficient. Internet Small Cells require backhaul. Quatra and IoT LTE-based cellular IoT solutions are new on the market, with the first commercial deployments taking place over the last six months. Cat M1 LTE is gaining a lot of momentum in IoT. These technologies are subject to similar inbuilding penetration challenges and resulting coverage problems as cellular. For example, many reviews of Apple s new LTE-based iwatch product cited LTE coverage as an important metric in the usability of the product, impacting its performance and customer-satisfaction. In an LTE-based IoT infrastructure, Cel-Fi QUATRA offers several advantages: 1. It is transparent to the network. There is no additional latency or setup required. A device could be installed in a concrete bunker, yet the device would appear on the network as if it was sitting in a wide-open coverage area without any structural obstacles. For mission-critical business solutions that rely on real-time communications, this is an important option. 2. Unlike mesh networks, connected devices that are inside the coverage bubble of a Cel-Fi QUATRA system are not required to do any additional networking, so they can be much lighter weight in terms of capability, and power consumption. They can operate as intended, waking only when prompted, or on a timer. This delivers the 10-year battery life desired by the IoT industry. 3. Buildings with IoT solutions being serviced by Cel-Fi QUATRA have a lot of flexibility, since nodes can be added or subtracted without any special setup or configuration. Connected devices can be fully mobile and not reliant on tethering from a cable or network connection. Unlike other options (e.g., simply adding an antenna to the IoT router), using Cel-Fi QUATRA will not only connect the IoT node connected in a high-speed low latency connection, all LTE services, like voice calling, will be improved. 8

MIMO Antenna NU Cel-Fi QUATRA IoT Solution Conclusion The industry has struggled to provide affordable indoor cellular coverage solutions for middleprise venues under 200,000 sq. ft. until now. Existing consumer-grade solutions have been limited in performance, while active DAS has been too complex and costly. The Cel-Fi QUATRA In-Building Enterprise Cellular Solution is the first to meaningfully address the obstacles to indoor densification for the middleprise, so that massive and rapid deployment can occur to resolve black holes, dropped calls, and poor cellular quality that plague most companies in this space. Cel-Fi QUATRA builds on the digital architecture of Nextivity s proven operator-class indoor coverage solutions to improve indoor cellular service in the middleprise with the best TCO of any solution available on the market. Configurations are flexible and can be scaled to the unique needs of each venue, future-proofing the system for company growth. Off-air configurations are designed to quickly bring outdoor coverage indoors. Supercell configurations are designed to improve the effectiveness of local small cell capacity, while providing better coverage for larger or more densely populated facilities and effectively offloading the macro network. With Cel-Fi QUATRA intelligence and toolsets, installations are highly optimized. CAT 5e cabling, Power over Ethernet, and RF over Ethernet all help to make the certified installer s job easier, and keep the CAPEX and OPEX of the system at an affordable level for most middleprise budgets. Cel Fi QUATRA is available through distributors around the globe. For more information, visit www.cel-fi.com/quatra. To become a certified partner, visit www.cel-fi.com/partnership. About the Author Joe Schmelzer is Senior Director of Products at Nextivity. He has developed a variety of products and industrial devices for chipset vendors, OEMs, and service providers, including products for Sony, Qualcomm, Google, Verizon Wireless, AT&T, Dell and HP. He enjoys speaking opportunities and writing. wp_quatra_17-0925 U.S. Headquarters: Nextivity Inc. 16550 West Bernardo Drive, Bldg 5, Suite 550, San Diego, CA 92127, USA +1 858.485.9442 tel +1 858.485.9445 fax cel-fi.com 9