So-called Heterogeneous Networks are seen as primary driver for this transition supporting the increasing data traffic demand. LTE-Advanced relays, as standardized in 3GPP Release 10, are an integral part of such network evolution providing coverage and capacity enhancements.
Earlier this year, Nomor Research completed the protocol stack implementation of an LTE-A capable Relay Node and a Relay Node enabled Base Station, called Donor eNB. This end-to-end software implementation supports a multi-node, multi-user deployment, and offers a multitude of in-band and out-band resource allocation strategies for the satisfaction of heterogeneous Quality of Service constraints of the users.
As part of the Artist4G project, Nomor has now aligned this LTE-A relay implementation with other leading industry partners. The alignment in terms of RSRP and geometry factor has been achieved for both the selected test scenarios (3GPP-Case1 with 4 RNs and 3GPP-Case3 with 10 RNs) having either Line of Sight or Non-LoS propagation model. This simulator calibration proves the validity of the Nomor LTE-A relay implementation, and also provides a trust-worthy platform to the external partners who wish to develop and evaluate the performance of various relay-related LTE-A algorithms.
The fully calibrated system-level simulation environment for LTE-Advanced relays, an outcome of cutting edge research project, is now available for Nomor’s R&D service offering.