Wireless Backhaul Solutions for Small Cells - Ceragon Networks Ltd.

SOLUTION BRIEFInstallation and commissioning – new station deployment should be quick and costeffective.Operation, administration and maintenance – similar to that of macrocellsScalability – traffic demand will double every year, but the exact locations of theincreases may not be known in advance. Backhaul solutions need to be scalable andflexible, in order to keep up with rapid traffic growth rates.Packet based – for 4G and LTE-ready supportSummary of Small Cell Backhaul RequirementsThe following table provides a brief summary of small cell backhauling requirements:BackhaulRequirementCostCapacityScalabilityLatencyAvailabilitySize & WeightAccess toBackhaulInstallation &CommissioningCompared toMacrocellsCheaperTraffic load is lighter butburstierMore scalableMore delay tolerant“Five Nines” not neededSmaller and lighterstationsMore difficultFaster, simpler, cheaperNotesCost per link should be lower.Cost per bit may be similar.Small cells generate less backhaul traffic thanmulti-cell/mode/band macrocells, but the trafficis much burstier.Faster growth requires rapid deployment despiteshorter lead times.Delay sensitivity depends on service levelexpectations. Femtocells are designed to copewith lower quality connections. Femtocellhandover is less important.Small cells will form an offload underlay to ahigher-availability macrocell.Small cells require deployment in locations withlimited space availability. Compact backhaulingsolution is essential.Small cells are close to users – on the street andindoors, relatively far from backhaul sites. Thesesites are harder to reach than tower-basedmacrocells.Consumer femtocells are plug-and-play.Femtocell backhauling should also work this way.Table 3: Summary of Small Cell Requirements (Source NGMN)SOLUTION BRIEF | Wireless Backhaul Solutions for Small Cells6