The trials will run in Brazil, Germany, Spain and the UK this year and involve Altiostar, Gigatera Communications, Intel, Supermicro and Xilinx.
Telefónica said this is part of its continued efforts to lead network transformation towards 5G and that the collaboration would progress the design, development, optimisation, testing and industrialisation of Open RAN technologies across its footprint this year.
The collaboration focuses on the distributed units (DUs) and remote radio units (RRUs).
The DUs implement part of the baseband radio functions using the FlexRAN software reference platform and servers based on the Intel Xeon processor. The RRUs connect through open interfaces, based on O-RAN Alliance’s fronthaul specification, and software that manages the connectivity in an open cloud RAN architecture.
The premise is that Open RAN will be cheaper as it encourages more suppliers into the market, especially in terms of the baseband hardware where economies of scale from using standard IT can be deployed.
A cloudified open radio access architecture can also enable faster software innovation and advanced features like network automation, self-optimisation of radio resources and coordination of radio access nodes.
It also supports exposure to third-party, multi-access edge computing (MEC) applications through open Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), and integration with the virtualisation activities in the core and transport networks. Open interfaces also mean that operators can upgrade specific parts of the network without impacting others.
Telefónica describes this openness to third-party MEC applications as “the cornerstone” to bringing added-value to the customers by enabling a variety of rich 5G services, like virtual and augmented reality, online gaming, connected car, the industrial internet of things (IoT) and more.
Edge-computing applications running in the telco cloud can benefit from the strong capillarity of the access network, so services can be tailored instantly to match the users’ needs and the status of the live network.
The main goal of the trial is to define precisely the hardware and software components in 4G and 5G to guarantee seamless interoperability.
This includes:
• testing the complete solution in the lab and in the field,
• integrating the Open RAN model as part of the end-to-end virtualisation program (UNICA Next),
• maturing the operational model, and
• demonstrating new services and automation capabilities as offered by the Open RAN model.
The DUs and RRUs are designed with 5G-ready capabilities and so can work in 4G or 5G mode by means of a remote software upgrade.
Enrique Blanco (pictured), Telefónica’s CTIO, said, “Once again, Telefónica is leading the transformation towards having the best-in-class networks in our Operations with our customers as key pillars. Open RAN is a fundamental piece for that purpose while widening the ecosystem”.
Source: https://www.mobileeurope.co.uk/press-wire/telefonica-partners-to-launch-4g-and-5g-open-ran-trials