There are a lot of reasons to love Open RAN. Opportunities for smaller manufacturers, bespoke networks for enterprises, and lower equipment costs. Add to that sustainability.
The Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) and Pegatron Corp., both based in Taiwan, have jointly developed the 5G Energy-Saving O-RAN System, which has won a Small Cell Forum Small Cell Award 2022 in London for outstanding software and services technology for small cells in commercial use. The system features high deployment efficiency, energy savings, and smart modulation.
The 5G Energy-Saving O-RAN System uses artificial intelligence to allow idle base stations to hibernate, which reduces energy use. Another feature, network base station simulations assist in the planning of a private network. Smart Modularization enables flexible private network deployment in 5G vertical applications, automatically performing optimization, monitoring, management, and repairs, which reduces overall maintenance and operating costs.
ITRI has developed a 5G Network Management System that consists of the O-RAN Based 5G RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) and the Element Management System. The RIC includes Non-Real Time (Non-RT) and Near-Real Time RIC. Non-RT RIC collects the RAN information and predicts network behavior through machine learning.
Vodafone Demos Energy Saving O-RAN System
Additionally, Vodafone and several other companies recently demonstrated energy saving techniques in a multi-vendor Open RAN environment, during the O-RAN Alliance Global PlugFest Spring 2022. With Wind River, Intel, Keysight Technologies and Radisys, the MNO tested a ‘green’ Open RAN network that showed a 9-12 percent reduction in energy consumption in the POWDER laboratory at the University of Utah.
“Optimizing power consumption is critical to making networks environmentally sustainable. This demonstration highlights the importance of energy-efficient silicon and cross-industry collaboration in achieving this industry goal,” Sindhu Xirasagar, Senior Director of RAN Software Solutions, Wireless Access Network Division at Intel.
Keysight is working with a number of vendors and operators to accelerate commercial-scale deployments to increase energy efficiency, according to Giampaolo Tardioli, vice president and general manager of Keysight’s Network and Operators group. “Energy efficiency is a key sustainability goal for companies around the world,” he added.
By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor
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