OSFP MSA completes specification for 800G modules

The Octal Small Form Factor Pluggable (OSFP) Multi Source Agreement (MSA) group has published its OSFP 4.0 Specification for 800G OSFP modules. 

While the OSFP module was designed from the beginning to support 800G performance, the OSFP 4.0 specification adds support for dual 400G and octal 100G breakout modules with dual LC, dual Mini-LC, dual MPO and octal SN/MDC fiber connector options.

“At 800G, the number of use cases involving aggregation or breakouts are increasing,” said Andreas Bechtolsheim, OSFP MSA Chair. “Being able to use existing standard fiber connectors for these breakout ports is a key issue since it avoids the optical performance impact and cost of fiber adaptor cables, splitter cables or patch panels.”

“Cloud operators have deployed tens of millions of LC and MPO fiber connectors with existing optics transceivers,” said Sameh Boujelbene, Senior Director at Dell’Oro Group. “A smooth transition from single port to dual port 400G optics in the 800G form factor requires backward compatibility with this large installed base of fiber connectors.”

“The ability to do rolling networking upgrades in existing cloud data centers is essential since cloud data centers are always on,” said Alan Weckel, Founding Technology Analyst at the 650 Group. “As the Cloud grows in size, the majority of equipment installed goes into existing facilities, a very different dynamic compared to previous upgrade cycles. Being able to install new network switches without replacing millions of installed fiber connectors is one of the most important issues customers are facing as they transition to 800G optics form factor modules.”

“The OSFP 4.0 specification offers customers compatibility with existing fiber connectors and a broad choice of potential optical breakout options, which will likely become even more important with the upcoming early adoption of 800GbE data center switching starting next year,” said Seamus Crehan, President of Crehan Research.

With the 800G OSFP module specification completed, the OSFP MSA has sponsored a working group that is defining 200G/Lane electrical specifications to support 1600G OSFP modules. When this activity is completed, this development will be merged into a future OSFP 5.0 Specification.

“We have received strong interest from OSFP MSA members to start the 200G/Lane Electrical Signaling Group,” said Brian Kirk, Director of Engineering, Amphenol Corp. “Based on the work done so far, we are confident that the OSFP module will be able to support 200G electrical signaling speed per lane in a backward compatible fashion.”

“1600G-OSFP enables next-generation switch designs with up to 57.6T bandwidth per rack unit,” said Nathan Tracy, Technologist at TE Connectivity. “It is remarkable that the OSFP can support this level of bandwidth density in a pluggable form factor.”

https://www.osfpmsa.org/press-releases/pr-20210603.html

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Source Photonics announces 800G optical transceivers

Source Photonics unveiled a suite of 800G optical transceivers for data center and telecom applications. Sampling is expected to start in Q3.

Here are the highlights:

800G DR8 OSFP & QSFP-DD800

• Support 500m, 2km and 10km reaches for 800G-DR8, 800G-DR8+ and 800G-DR8++, respectively
• Support 8x100GbE and 2x400GbE breakout modes
• Compliant to IEEE P802.3ck and IEEE 802.3cu-2021 standards
• Complaint to OSFP Multi Source Agreement (MSA) and QSFP-DD800 MSA
• 800G DR8 OSFP supports
• MPO-16
• Dual MPO-12 for backward compatible to 2x400GbE DR4 breakout
• 800G DR8 QSFP-DD800 supports MPO-16

2x400G FR4 OSFP & QSFP-DD800

• Support 2km, 6km and 10km reaches for 2x400G-FR4, 2x400G-LR4-6 and 2x400G-LR4-10, respectively
• Compliant to IEEE P802.3ck, IEEE 802.3cu-2021 and 100G Lambda MSA standards
• Complaint to OSFP MSA and QSFP-DD800 MSA
• 2x400G FR4 OSFP supports
• Dual CS
• Dual LC for legacy fiber plants
• 2x400G FR4 QSFP-DD800 supports Dual CS

“Multiple 800G transceiver offerings in different form factors and optical interfaces will be available to support optical connectivity between transport, routing and switching equipment,” said Sheng Zhang, CTO at Source Photonics. “These transceivers will be available for customer samples starting Q3’21 to address the demand that has been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic.”

https://www.sourcephotonics.com/

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Turkcell validates IP Infusion's disaggregated optical transport software

 Turkcell has validated IP Infusion’s OcNOS Optical Transport Solution in a Telecom Infra Project (TIP) test on the Turkcell network. The test of IP Infusion’s disaggregated networking solution for optical networks was the first trial of open networking in Turkey and verified that the solution is able to fulfill Turkcell’s requirements for reliable and high-speed data transfer.

TIP’s Cassini Open Optical Packet Transport solution, supported by OcNOS as the network operating system and Edgecore Networks hardware, is being evaluated by various telecommunications companies around the world to confirm that the solution’s flexible, scalable and reliable infrastructure will meet the increasing fiber communications needs of the rapidly digitalizing world. The Turkcell test was carried out within their network of Gebze data centers.

“Thanks to these trials, we will be able to fulfill the reliable and high-speed data transfer needs of applications such as virtual reality, autonomous driving, remote surgery and smart cities that will become widespread with 5G,” said Gediz Sezgin, Deputy General Manager, Turkcell Network Technologies. “In order to be ready for 5G, we will continue to test and include the latest innovative solutions in our network to meet the challenges of digital requirements and the growing needs of Turkish businesses and residents.”

“This successful trial of the Cassini technology is the result of joint work developed by Turkcell and suppliers such as IP Infusion and Edgecore Networks. The test proves that open network products meet commercial use requirements and meets the growing demand for data traffic,” said Attilo Zani, Telecom Infra Project Executive Director.

“With this disaggregated networking solution, Turkcell will be able to upgrade their network to deliver capacity and high speeds for the superior user experience promised by 5G,” said Atsushi Ogata, President and CEO, IP Infusion. “The next-generation technology of this solution will pave the way for Turkcell to generate more revenue and to transform the lives of their customers by meeting their high-speed data needs.”

http://www.ipinfusion.com

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Vodafone tests multi-vendor RAN intelligent controller

Vodafone, in conjunction with Cohere Technologies, VMware, Capgemini Engineering, Intel and Telecom Infra Project (TIP), demonstrated an Open Radio Access Network (RAN) platform capable of increasing the capacity of a 5G cell site by two-fold using a programmable, Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC).

Specifically, he companies showed the first demonstration of 5G Multi-User MIMO (MU-MIMO) – providing more capacity at a single cell site – running on a RIC located at a multi-vendor Open RAN test site.  MU-MIMO apportions ample bandwidth to individual users connected to the same mobile site and is considered the pivotal technique to boost cell capacity in future 5G networks. It is a major development in supporting the insatiable demand for faster and more responsive digital connections to deliver high definition graphics, virtual reality, cloud and IT applications.

Based on the performance of Cohere’s Spectrum Multiplier MU-MIMO scheduler in the trial, when the technique is commercially deployed in a low-band (e.g. 700MHz) network, users will benefit from up to 2x the capacity achieved using traditional MIMO. This software can be extended to Massive MIMO in mid-band (e.g. 3.5GHz) networks in order to push capacity gains towards 4-5x.

https://www.vodafone.com/news/press-release/vodafone-and-partners-boost-5g-capacity

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II-VI intros optical monitoring system for transport and access

II-VI introduced an optical monitoring system (OMS) that enables service providers to obtain real-time critical information about the health or disruption of optical transport and access networks, including the integrity of fiber cables, the quality of optical connectors, and the signal strength of optical channels.

“The OMS is a modular, vertically integrated platform that leverages our industry-leading and field-proven optical monitoring modules, namely, our optical time-domain reflectometers and optical channel monitors, and our deep expertise in subsystem development to achieve a versatile, reliable, and cost-effective network-ready solution,” said Dr. Richard Smart, Sr. Vice President, ROADM Business Unit. “The OMS enables telecom, cable, and cloud service providers to obtain a comprehensive view of their optical networks, from the core to the edge, optimizing network uptime and providing differentiated quality of service.”

The OMS can be integrated seamlessly into the network by simply plugging it into the existing optical test ports, enabling service providers to overlay a universal network-level monitoring solution without any service interruption. A single OMS can cycle through up to 48 monitoring ports, thanks to an embedded optical switch designed and manufactured for high reliability by II-VI. 

https://ii-vi.com/news/ii-vi-incorporated-introduces-optical-monitoring-system-for-optical-transport-and-access-networks/

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NTIA to procure Open RAN equipment for testing

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA) Institute for Telecommunication Sciences (ITS)  issued a Broad Agency Announcement to procure prototype or commercial-off-the-shelf Open RAN equipment and software as part of an effort to test state-of-the-art Open RAN technology.

ITS is seeking equipment used in Open RAN 4G and 5G networks, as well as Virtualized RAN (vRAN) software and RAN automation software. ITS will deploy the technology in its Communications Research and Innovation Network to evaluate performance, inter-vendor interoperability, and standard maturity compared with established RAN technologies.

The equipment requested are Open RAN prototype or COTS device types as follows:

• Radio Units (RU)
• Distributed Units (DU)
• Central Units (CU)
• Combination Units (DU/CU, RU/DU/CU, etc.) o Network Control Software
• RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) Software

“The development of open interfaces and vendor diversity are a significant part of NTIA’s overall vision for building out secure 5G networks,” said Acting NTIA Administrator Evelyn Remaley. “Today’s announcement is an important step for testing the ability of these technologies to interoperate and scale, and to achieve a more secure and resilient global 5G supply chain.”

https://www.ntia.doc.gov/press-release/2021/ntia-s-institute-telecommunication-sciences-announces-plan-procure-open-ran

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NSF funds development of an Open Source 5G Standalone software stack

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is funding a consortium of 35 leading wireless companies and associations to develop an Open Source 5G Standalone software stack.

The OpenAirX-Labs (OAX) project, which is part of the NSF's Platforms for Advanced Wireless Research (PAWR) Project Office, is focused on the development, testing, and integration of the OpenAirInterface (OAI) Software Alliance's open source 5G standalone software stack. It is the newest resource in the PAWR program, a public-private partnership promoting wireless research through the development of multiple outdoor, large-scale wireless testbeds across the U.S.

Founding industry partners for OAX include Facebook, Interdigital, NI, Qualcomm, Radisys, and Xilinx – all part of the larger PAWR Industry Consortium. Federal funding for OAX activities is provided by NSF and the U.S. Department of Defense's Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering [DOD OUSD (R&E)] through awards under the PAWR program. OAX is located at the Institute for the Wireless Internet of Things at Northeastern University in Boston.

"The launch of OAX puts muscle not only behind U.S. efforts to expand the capabilities and performance of 5G networks, but also behind the technologies that will move the wireless industry beyond 5G," said PAWR Technical Program Director Abhimanyu (Manu) Gosain. "By hosting OAX as part of the PAWR program, we are also ensuring there is a clear path from software development through to testing and prototyping of new software, hardware, and wireless applications."

"A lot of thinking and hard work from the board as well as the engineering teams of EURECOM and the OpenAirInterface Software Alliance (OSA) has gone into laying the ground work for the launch of the OpenAirX-Labs," said Raymond Knopp, President of the OpenAirInterface Software Alliance and Professor at EURECOM. "The Alliance from its onset has remained fully committed to creating the conditions for openness and thus to the worldwide adoption of OAI. This has involved the laser focus of developers from EURECOM, OSA and the key partners in the community to deliver end-to-end 5G core and RAN stacks that are complete, stable, easy to deploy, and appealing for the use cases of our contributors and users. We see great opportunities ahead as OAI now expands through its U.S. home, the OAX labs in North America."

https://advancedwireless.org/

https://openairinterface.org/

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UK pilots ‘vehicle-to-everything’ road safety system

The UK Government Centre for Connected and Automated Vehicles (CCAV) and the Midlands Future Mobility (MFM) consortium has begun testing a "vehicle-to-everything" environment developed by Vodafone, Nokia and Chordan.

Vodafone’s 4G and 5G network and advanced multi-access edge computing (MEC) technology is built into the platform, allowing real time road information from Highways England to be displayed initially on users’ smartphones, and in the future, on in-car infotainment systems. 

The platform works with Convex, Chordant’s Mobility Data Exchange facility, to enable dynamic data to be exchanged with road operators and their traffic systems and is the UK’s first live implementation of Cellular Vehicle-to-Everything (C-V2X) technology. C-V2X combines the latest mobile technologies with in-vehicle computer systems to create new mobility services for improved safety and reliability as well as allowing road operators to build ‘greener’ and more sustainable transport networks.

Mike Waters, Director of Policy, Strategy and Innovation at TfWM, said: “We are now reaching the point where connected vehicle technology is genuinely able to start making a meaningful and very powerful difference to the big issues in transport like safety and energy efficiency. The work we have done with Convex and Vodafone is moving solutions forward not just for the West Midlands, but for the whole country and really exemplifies the UK’s position of global excellence in this space.”

https://www.vodafone.com/news/press-release/trial-uks-first-mobile-vehicle-everything-road-safety-system-goes-live

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Sumitomo develops AI-driven active clad alignment fusion splicer

Sumitomo Electric Industries introduced a handheld fiber splicer that uses artificial intelligence to significantly improve splicing efficiency and accuracy regardless of operational condition and user skill.

The new T-502S slicer provides accurate estimated loss by analyzing the fiber image through high-quality microscopes during splicing.

The splicer also features an industry-first fiber type detection function tha allows the unit to distinguish between MMF and SMF fiber types and ensure use of the correct splice program.

https://sumitomoelectric.com/publications/pr-news-articles/2021/06/sumitomo-electric-launches-t-502s-worlds-first-ai-programmed

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