ONF releases SD-RAN v1.0 for Open RAN

The ONF released SD-RAN v1.0, the first software release for its cloud-native exemplar platform for software-defined RAN that is consistent with the O-RAN architecture.  

The ONF’s first release of the SD-RAN project implements a minimal O-RAN consistent end-to-end mobile RAN stack intended as a development environment for building xApps for the emerging Open RAN ecosystem. It includes µONOS-RIC (ONF’s nRT-RIC based on µONOS) which interacts with RAN hardware (RU/DU/CU) via O-RAN consistent interfaces (E2AP), encodings (ASN.1), transport-protocols (SCTP) and Service Models (SMs). The release also includes a white-box based RU/DU/CU solution, leveraging OAI software, that has been enhanced to expose O-RAN consistent interfaces and protocols. To integrate with µONOS-RIC, the CU-CP RAN component has been enhanced with an E2 Agent that exposes the KPM-SM information-elements to xApps that connect to the nRT-RIC and subscribe to the KPM service. image png

Secondly, an end-to-end solution is provided. The RAN components interact with Samsung Android handsets as well as OAI User Element (UE) emulation software. For mobile core (EPC) integration, the RAN components interact with ONF’s OMEC mobile core. 

This release also includes the beginnings of an app-SDK which can ease the process of creating xApps that are portable across different nRT-RIC platforms.  As part of ONF’s commitment to supporting the O-RAN Alliance, this SDK is being shared with the O-RAN Software Community to support and promote availability of interoperable xApps and rApps that can work with a selection of nRT-RIC implementations. 

Finally, the solution can be instantiated in two distinct forms to create nimble development environments.  SD-RAN can run on reference white-box hardware, and it can also be instantiated entirely in a virtualized form (in a VM or server) in a distribution package called RiaB (sdRan-in-a-Box). The entire distribution including xApp, µONOS-RIC components, CU/DU, UE and OMEC can be instantiated within RiaB with just a few simple commands.

https://opennetworking.org/news-and-events/press-releases/onf-announces-first-release-of-sd-ran-v1-0-software-platform-for-open-ran/

ONF launches 5G SD-RAN Project

Tuesday, August 25, 2020  #Open, 5G, O-RAN, ONF  

The Open Networking Foundation (ONF) has launched an SD-RAN project with the aim of building an open source Near Real-Time RAN Intelligent Controller (nRT-RIC) compatible with the O-RAN architecture as well ONF’s existing base cloud-native solutions leveraging disaggregation and whitebox hardware.

ONF said its goal is to foster open source software platforms and multi-vendor solutions for mobile 4G and 5G RAN deployments.

Central to the project is the development of an open source near-real time RIC called µONOS-RIC (pronounced “micro-ONOS-RIC”).

µONOS is a microservices-based SDN controller created by the refactoring and enhancement of ONOS, the leading SDN controller for operators in production tier-1 networks worldwide.  µONOS-RIC is built on µONOS, and hence features a cloud-native design supporting active-active clustering for scalability, performance and high availability along with the real-time capabilities needed for intelligent RAN control. The O-RAN ALLIANCE E2 interface is used to interface between µONOS-RIC and vendor supplied RAN RU/DU/CU RAN components.

Carriers would be able to run new "xApps" on top of the µONOS-RIC.  These open xApps could provide functionality that traditionally has been implemented in vendor-proprietary implementations, including providing visibility and control over the RAN.

Significantly, the ONF's SD-RAN project is backed by AT&T, China Mobile, China Unicom, Deutsche Telekom, Facebook, Google, Intel, NTT, Radisys and Sercomm.

A working skeleton prototype of the µONOS-RIC controller is already running above a RAN emulation platform through the E2 interface.  ONF has demonstrated handover and load balancing at scale, supporting over 100 base stations and 100,000 user devices with less than 50ms handover latency (less than 10ms latency for 99% of all handovers). Field trials are expected by early 2021.

Read More

South Korea's LG U+ deploys 600G on a single wavelength with Ciena

LG U+ has deployed a newly constructed and dedicated nationwide ROADM backbone network leveraging Ciena’s WaveLogic 5 Extreme and WaveLogic Ai coherent optical solutions and becoming the first carrier in Korea to deploy 600G on a single wavelength for long haul distances.

LG U+ is applying OTDR (Optical Time Domain Reflectometer) technology to all sections of the backbone network for real-time line condition monitoring. In addition, Ciena’s 6500 ROADM equipment will provide disaster recovery line services to public government, financial institutions and compute centers of large enterprises through third party interworking certification. LG U+ can also provide a dedicated line service with enhanced security through optical transport encryption.

LGU+ will be using Ciena’s Manage, Control and Plan (MCP) SDN controller to be able to automate service delivery via next-generation OPEN APIs to improve customer experience and increase operational efficiencies.

Sung-cheol Koo who’s in charge of LG U+’s wired business said, “Amid the expansion of cloud services such as telecommuting, video conferencing and remote classes, we are building a new backbone network that can accommodate the needs of various corporate customers. With a flexible and stable transmission network, we expect that companies can provide a higher level of service."

Read More

NEC delivers submarine cable seismic and tsunami observation system

NEC has delivered a submarine cable seismic and tsunami observation system to Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau (CWB) under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications. The new system is mainly intended for observation of earthquakes and tsunami in the area ranging from the offshore coast of Yilan in eastern Taiwan to Fangshan in Pingtung County. 

The submarine cable measures 620 kilometers and reaches a depth of 5,800 meters. All products, including optical submarine cables, submarine observation units, and optical submarine repeaters, which constitute the system, were manufactured and assembled at NEC factories in Japan.

According to the CWB, when an earthquake occurs in the eastern sea area of Taiwan this new system can provide an emergency warning more than 10 seconds before the actual tremor is felt on land. Moreover, a warning can be issued 20 to 30 minutes before a tsunami reaches the coastal area. As a result, this system will contribute to the enhancement of disaster prevention and mitigation capabilities. For example, public transportation systems, including MRTs (Mass Rapid Transit) and HSRs (High Speed Rail) can quickly decelerate in the event of an earthquake.

Atsushi Kuwahara, General Manager, Submarine Network Division, NEC Corporation, said, "It is a great honor that the NEC Group can use its many years of experience in optical submarine cable communication technology and submarine observation technology to help prevent disasters and ensure safety for the residents and government of Taiwan. Going forward, we will continue to provide technology and solutions that contribute to the well-being of our communities."

https://www.nec.com/en/press/202101/global_20210126_01.html

Read More

NASA's Psyche spacecraft to test Deep Space laser communications

 NASA's upcoming Psyche mission, which will explore the origin of planetary cores by studying the metallic asteroid 16 Psyche, will use a Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) package that is designed to transmit data in photon packets from the asteroid belt back to earth, a distance of nearly 200 million miles. The Psyche mission is scheduled to launch in August 2022.

The laser communications will be able to transmit data over long distances at rates up to 100 times faster than traditional radio frequency systems. 

In November 2020, CACI delivered an engineering model of the laser communication transmitter to JPL, having passed space qualification testing. To pass space qualification testing, CACI engineers demonstrated the transmitter could withstand both space launch and flight.

CACI said is currently designing laser communications systems for five space hardware programs, including NASA’s Orion EM-2 Optical Communications (O2O) project, which will enable broadband data communications to and from the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle designed to take humans into lunar orbit, and the NASA Integrated LCRD Low-Earth Orbit User Modem and Amplifier Terminal (ILLUMA-T) program, which will deploy laser communications technology on the International Space Station.

John Mengucci, CACI President and Chief Executive Officer, said, “The successful operation by NASA of a CACI-developed laser communications transmitter demonstrates the advanced mission technology this company designs for our country. CACI is excited to support this NASA deep space mission with fast and reliable communications, and is ready to deliver advanced laser-based technologies to other space, aerial and terrestrial missions to come.”

www.caci.com

Read More

NTT Research and Caltech to develop coherent ising machine

NTT Research has signed a collaboration agreement with Caltech to develop a high-speed Coherent Ising Machine (CIM). 

A CIM is a network of optical parametric oscillators (OPOs) programmed to solve problems that have been mapped to an Ising model, which is a mathematical abstraction of magnetic systems composed of competitively interacting spins, or angular momentums of fundamental particles. The CIM is particularly suited to combinatorial optimization problems that are beyond the capabilities of current computer processors to solve. NTT Research and Caltech will jointly develop a high-speed, miniature CIM, consisting of an on-chip 100 GHz pulsed pump laser source and on-chip parametric oscillator device.

The principal investigator at Caltech for this four-and-a-half-year joint project is Kerry Vahala, the Jenkins Professor of Information Science and Technology and Applied Physics and Executive Officer for the department of Applied Physics and Materials Science. Professor Vahala has pioneered the use of nonlinear optics in high-Q optical micro-resonators. Leading this effort at NTT Research is PHI Lab Research Scientist, Dr. Myoung-Gyun Suh, an expert in on-chip optical sources and their application to precision measurements.

“We are delighted at the prospect of working with Professor Vahala to develop an extremely small and high-speed CIM,” said NTT Research PHI Lab Director, Yoshihisa Yamamoto. “This work will advance our understanding of the CIM’s capabilities, map well with ongoing and related work with other institutions, provide new demonstrations of this awesomely powerful new information system and, we hope, set standards for the CIM’s speed and size.”

To date, the NTT Research PHI Lab has established ten joint research projects as part of its long-range goal to radically redesign artificial computers, both classical and quantum. To advance that goal, the PHI Lab has established joint research agreements with seven universities, one government agency and quantum computing software company. This is the second joint research agreement with Caltech. The other institutions of higher education are Cornell University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Stanford University, Swinburne University of Technology, the University of Michigan and the University of Notre Dame. 

NTT Tackles Artificial Spin for Photonic Computation

Friday, April 22, 2016  Japan, NTT, Quantum  

Researchers at NTT and and Osaka University announced an important step toward photonic computation by developing a large-scale artificial spin network based on photonics technologies. The development targets a fundamental component for the coherent Ising machine (CIM), which utilizes interacting artificial spins realized with optical parametric oscillators (OPO) for computation of combinatorial optimization problems.

The researchers generated more than 10,000 time-multiplexed OPOs using an optical fiber cavity as long as 1 km.

The OPOs can be used as artificial spins for a large-scale CIM to solve combinatorial optimization problems in the real world. The research was published in the UK science journal “Nature Photonics” on April 18, 2006.

http://www.ntt.co.jp/news2016/1604e/160418a.html

Read More

Oranges brings in investors to back rural fiber rollout

Orange will establish a new ownership structure and funding vehicle supporting its rollout of fiber connection in rural France.

Orange has entered into an exclusivity agreement with La Banque des Territoires (Caisse des Dépôts), CNP Assurances, and EDF Invest for the sale of a 50% equity interest and co-control of Orange Concessions, which will be France’s leading fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) operator of networks rolled out and operated on behalf of 23, local public authorities representing over 4.5 million built or to-be-built plugs.

This transaction values Orange Concessions at 2.675 billion euros, which highlights the value and the relevance of Orange’s investments in fibre.

The networks operated by Orange Concessions on behalf of local public authorities are open to all operators. Fibre roll-out and maintenance will continue to be performed by Orange who holds an efficient and proven industrial tool. On a local level, the teams working in partnership with local authorities with maintain the same level of mobilisation and commitment.

Commenting on this partnership, Stéphane Richard, Chairman & CEO of Orange stated: “I am delighted that Orange, Europe’s leader in fibre roll-out, is now set to establish this partnership in its domestic market with recognized investors who share our vision of digital communication infrastructure development.

Through this partnership, Orange holds the means to pursue the development of fibre in rural areas, by winning new public initiative networks or by participating in market consolidation. This is a key milestone in the delivery of our Engage 2025 strategic plan.

As to its financial merits, the achieved valuation reveals the value of Orange’s investments in fibre as well as the relevance of such strategic move.”

Read More

MACOM inks GaN-on-SiC pact with U.S. Air Force Research Lab

MACOM signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with the United States Air Force Research Laboratory (“AFRL”) regarding Gallium Nitride-on-Silicon Carbide (GaN-on-SiC) technology. Specifically, AFRL and MACOM will work together to transfer AFRL’s production ready 0.14 micron GaN-on-SiC semiconductor process to MACOM’s Massachusetts-based U.S. Trusted Foundry. Semiconductor experts from both parties will collaborate to support a rapid process transfer to MACOM.

MACOM said the AFRL GaN-on-SiC process is suitable for monolithic microwave integrated circuit (“MMIC”) products and is capable of achieving industry leading frequency and power density performance. Once the process is transferred, MACOM anticipates that it will expand its standard and custom MMIC product offerings.

“This semiconductor process will enable us to enter the microwave and millimeter wave GaN MMIC market with high-performance products,” said Stephen G. Daly, MACOM’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “Our wafer fabrication facility is already well equipped to support GaN, including installed electron beam lithography capability, so we can bring the process online with minimal capital investment. We intend to service a wide range of commercial and U.S. defense opportunities, including satellite communication systems, as well as land-, air- and sea-based radar systems.”

“We look forward to MACOM supporting critical U.S. Air Force and Department of Defense requirements with an industrialized and best in class GaN semiconductor process,” said Dr. Robert Fitch of AFRL Sensors Directorate. “Expanding domestic advanced semiconductor manufacturing is a national priority.”

Read More

F5 completes acquisition of Volterra

 F5 Networks completed its previously announced acquisition of Volterra, which offers a universal edge-as-a-service platform. 

“I am incredibly excited to welcome Volterra to the F5 family and get to work bringing Edge 2.0—a key part of our Adaptive Applications vision—to customers,” said François Locoh-Donou, F5 President and CEO. “Joining forces, we will deliver the enterprise-grade features, including world-class security and scale, that have been missing from the edge until now.”

“Current edge approaches were not designed with enterprises in mind,” said Ankur Singla, founder of Volterra. “When Harshad and I started Volterra, we knew the edge would need to be delivered with the scale of public clouds, but with management and security integrated with the data centers where so many enterprise apps still live. Given F5’s leadership in Adaptive Applications and their vast enterprise customer base, I could not imagine a better partner to empower customers’ business transformation through modern apps.”

F5 to acquire Volterra for its open edge platform

Thursday, January 07, 2021  F5, Volterra  

 F5 Networks agreed to acquire Volterra, a start-up developing a universal edge-as-a-service platform, for approximately $440 million in cash and approximately $60 million in deferred consideration and assumed unvested incentive compensation to founders and employees. 

F5 said the addition of Volterra will give it an edge platform built for enterprises and service providers that will be security-first and app-driven with unlimited scale.

Volterra, which is based in Santa Clara, California, offers a distributed cloud service for deploying and managing applications at the edge. The cloud-native environment can be deployed across multiple public clouds and edge sites.

• Volterra is headed by Ankur Singla, Founder & CEO, who previously was the founder and CEO of Contrail Systems, a pioneer in telco NFV and SDN technologies that was acquired by Juniper Networks in 2012. Prior to Contrail, Ankur was the CTO and VP Engineering at Aruba Networks, a global leader in wireless solutions. 

Volterra unveils distributed cloud platform for apps

Monday, November 04, 2019  Start-Ups  

Volterra​, a start-up based in Santa Clara, California, emerged from stealth to unveil its distributed cloud platform for deploying and managing applications. The SaaS-based offering integrates a broad range of services that have normally been siloed across many point products and network or cloud providers.

Volterra has raised over $50 million in funding to date from Khosla Ventures, Mayfield and M12 (Microsoft’s venture fund), as well as a growing set of strategic investors/partners including Itochu Technology Ventures and Samsung NEXT. Volterra said it now has 100+ engineers and 30+ global customers.

The cloud-native environment can be deployed across multiple public clouds and edge sites. Key capabilities include:

• Fleet-wide management of distributed applications and data across heterogeneous infrastructure
• Globally distributed control plane with Kubernetes APIs for application orchestration and multi-layer security for workloads and data
• Comprehensive compute, storage, networking and security for distributed edge locations
• Secure, high-performance global connectivity across edge sites, private clouds and multi-cloud

Key elements of the offering are:

• VoltStack deploys and manages distributed applications across multiple clouds or edge sites using industry standard Kubernetes APIs
• VoltMesh delivers high performance networking and zero-trust security between multiple clouds and edge sites
• Volterra Console​ is a management console for deploying and operating distributed applications at a global scale with centralized control and observability

http://www.volterra.io​

Read More