Company News
VIAVI drives O-RAN innovation in global benchmarking
Viavi Solutions Inc. shared the company’s role in the Fall 2023 O-RAN PlugFest organized by the O-RAN ALLIANCE and hosted by industry leaders. VIAVI delivered industry-leading benchmarking and validation for RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) testing and training for AI-enabled applications including energy efficiency; security testing; and conformance and end-to-end testing of new products. The company also improved testing efficiency with real-time analysis and automation.
Global Plug Fest
In October and November, VIAVI participated in testing in 11 labs across eight countries: the United States; United Kingdom; Germany; France; Italy; Spain; Japan; and Korea. Major outcomes included:
RIC testing for AI-enabled applications. When the conformance and performance of a RIC is verified, vendors can implement xApps or rApps to unlock RAN intelligence and deliver cutting-edge use cases such as energy savings and enhanced QoS.
| USE CASE | SYSTEM UNDER TEST | LOCATION |
|---|---|---|
| RIC Test | VMware | i14y Lab (Berlin) |
| Near-RT RIC, Traffic Steering | Nokia, Red Hat, Capgemini | i14y Lab (Berlin) |
| RIC Test | Fujitsu, DISH | COSMOS (New Brunswick) |
| RIC Test | Capgemini | CableLabs (Louisville) |
| Near-RT RIC, Traffic Steering | Nokia | Orange SA (Paris) |
| RIC Traffic Steering, QoS | TIM | TIM (Torino) |
| RIC Energy Saving | Capgemini | LGU+ (Seoul) |
| Non-RT RIC | Rakuten Symphony | Rakuten Mobile (Yokosuka) |
- Security testing. Network security must be protected in an open, multi-vendor environment.
| USE CASE | SYSTEM UNDER TEST | LOCATION |
|---|---|---|
| Security Test with Automation | Capgemini (O-DU, O-CU) | SONIC Labs (London) |
| Security Test with Automation | NEC (O-RU), Rakuten Symphony (O-DU, O-CU) | Rakuten Mobile (Yokosuka) |
- Conformance and end-to-end testing. Vendors offering new O-RAN products can present them to validate operation according to the applicable specifications. In addition to individual network elements such as O-RU, O-DU, O-CU and RIC, companies also demonstrated end-to-end operation and interoperability across a complete O-RAN.
| USE CASE | SYSTEM UNDER TEST | LOCATION |
|---|---|---|
| O-RU Conformance | Analog Devices | i14y Lab (Berlin) |
| O-RU Conformance with Automation | NEC | Rakuten Mobile (Yokosuka) |
| End-to-End | VIAVI (O-RU Emulator), Capgemini (O-DU, O-CU, RIC), VIAVI (Core Emulator) | SONIC Labs (London) |
| End-to-End | NEC (O-RU, O-DU, O-CU), Red Hat, Qualcomm, HP | DOCOMO (Yokosuka) |
| End-to-End | NEC (O-RU), Fujitsu (O-DU, O-CU), Wind River, NVIDIA, DELL Technologies | DOCOMO (Yokosuka) |
| End-to-End | Samsung’s Open RAN compliant solutions (vDU, vCU, RU, Core) | SK Telecom (Seongnam City) |
| End-to-End | Effnet (O-DU, O-CU, Core), VIAVI (O-RU Emulator) | CableLabs (Louisville) |
| End-to-End | Effnet (O-DU, O-CU, Core), Red Hat OpenShift, VIAVI (O-RU Emulator), VIAVI (FrontHaul Analyzer) | CableLabs (Louisville) |
- Real-time analysis. To date, lab testing has relied on tools that require lengthy waiting periods for capture, post-processing and visualization. Together with CableLabs, VIAVI demonstrated real-time analysis to accelerate interoperability and end-to-end testing and troubleshooting.
- Test automation. Facing skills shortages, service providers and vendors are seeking efficiencies in the lab. In several demonstrations, VIAVI delivered AI-driven capability to develop test cases, write scripts, filter logs and find faults.
CT Bureau
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