Epiq Solutions built its business and technology focused on the low size, weight, and power (SwaP) needs in the defense and aerospace markets, specifically to apply commercially-available software-defined radio (SDR) technology to high-performance RF. In 2009, three senior engineers — John Orlando, Aaron Madsen, and Mike Shogren — saw a need for developing small solutions for RF applications and left a global telecommunications company to start this new venture out of their own homes.
Now, 12 years later, Epiq Solutions has 60 employees in a 20,000-square-foot facility and over 500 customers in government, commercial, and defense industries. The company’s industry-leading SDR technology can be found in handheld communications on battlefields, in satellites orbiting the earth, and inside sensitive compartmentalized information facilities (SCIFs). Once just an idea, Epiq Solutions now has product lines such as the Sidekiq™ family of production-ready solutions for rapid RF development and the Matchstiq™ SDR platforms.
In recent years, the company’s solutions have grown to include RF sensing products, like Flying Fox® Enterprise for mobile device detection and PRiSM™, a pocket-sized spectrum analyzer and scanner, which the company will be demonstrating at its booth at WIA’s Connectivity Expo (Booth 809) this year.
“PRiSM can bridge the gap between the limited test data from just a smartphone app and network benchmark. It can troubleshoot data previously only available in large tools that can be expensive and complex to operate,” commented Gary Schluckbier, Director of RF Sensing Solutions
For example, Wireless Internet Service Provider (WISP) operators use PRiSM to ensure coverage for their remote customers, and Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) operators use PRiSM to understand the presence and configuration of neighboring networks to minimize interference.
“We have operators that use PRiSM to verify the coverage of LTE anchor cells when deploying 5G non-standalone networks to ensure their customers get the 5G coverage they’re paying for,” Schluckbier noted. “We found that as carriers push to deliver new services, such as C-Band and mmWave together with Fixed Wireless Access, there is ever more stress on-field teams to deploy and troubleshoot equipment and coverage.” In-building network testers also need highly portable gear that is simple to use, he added.
PRiSM has a scanner, usually called a PCI scanner, that can blind scan any nearby 4G or 5G network. This allows a technician to scan his home network and other networks without having to know the channel numbers ahead of time. It also means that new cells and possible interferers can be discovered with a simple scan and without the need for multiple SIM cards.
“Once the product finds networks, it provides a decoded output of the network and cell configuration as well as the power and quality metrics needed to evaluate coverage,” Schluckbier explained. “A technician can take a step further with the spectrum analyzer feature in PRiSM to characterize and track down possible interference sources that aren’t 4G and 5G cells.”
PRiSM is based on hardware and software technology that Epiq Solutions developed for defense applications, so it’s designed to be not only small and easy to carry but also highly reliable. It is a powerful tool to decode the surrounding networks, providing real-time results.
This video provides an overview of Epiq’s Skylight survey solution which uses PRiSM handheld analyzer for data capture.
Epiq’s personnel have expertise across engineering disciplines, with a focus on RF sensing and detection. Its 12-year track record of providing RF solutions to DoD prime contractors and integrators has set it up to serve the commercial wireless marketplace in RF sensing and monitoring, whether it is mobile device detection, network configuration survey or RF spectrum analysis. Epiq brings an undivided focus on RF development, with well-documented, field-proven products.
For more information or to contact Epiq, visit their website, Linkedin, e-mail [email protected], or see them at their Connect (X) booth #809.
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