COLUMBAN COLLEGE

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING
OLONGAPO CITY

RESAERCH WORK NO. 1

DIFFERENT TYPES OF MICROWAVE RADIO EQUIPMENT

SUBMITTED BY: DATE DUE:

OCAMPO, SEAN MATTHEW L. September 15, 2020

SUBMITTED TO: DATE SUBMITTED:

ENGR. REYDIN REYES September 15, 2020
Different Types of Microwave Radio Equipment

Microwave Equipment Category

Trunk Microwave Equipment

• High cost, large transmission capacity, more stable performance, applicable to long haul and trunk
transmission

• RF, IF, signal processing, and MUX/DEMUX units are all indoor. Only the antenna system is outdoor.
All Outdoor Microwave Equipment

• All the units are outdoor.

• Installation is easy.

• The equipment room can be saved.

Split-Mount Microwave Equipment (1)

The RF unit is an outdoor unit (ODU). The IF, signal processing, and MUX/DEMUX units are integrated in
the indoor unit (IDU). The ODU and IDU are connected through an IF cable.
The ODU can either be directly mounted onto the antenna or connected to the antenna through a short
soft waveguide. Although the capacity is smaller than the trunk, due to the easy installation and
maintenance, fast network construction, it's the most widely used microwave equipment.

Split-Mount Microwave Equipment (2)

• Unit Functions

o Antenna: Focuses the RF signals transmitted by ODUs and increases the signal gain.

o ODU: RF processing, conversion of IF/RF signals.

o IF cable: Transmitting of IF signal, management signal and power supply of ODU.

o IDU: Performs access, dispatch, multiplex/demultiplex, and modulation/demodulation for services.

Split-Mount Microwave Equipment – Installation

Microwave Antenna (1)

• Antennas are used to send and receive microwave signals.

• Parabolic antennas and Cassegrainian antennas are two common types of microwave antennas.

• Microwave antenna diameters includes: 0.3m, 0.6m, 1.2m, 1.8m,2.0m, 2.4m, 3.0m, 3.2metc.
Microwave Antenna (2)

Different frequency channels in same frequency band can share one antenna.

Antenna Adjustment (1)

Antenna Adjustment (2)

• During antenna adjustment, change the direction vertically or horizontally. Meanwhile, use a
multimeter to test the RSSI at the receiving end. Usually, the voltage wave will be displayed as shown in
the lower right corner. The peak point of the voltage wave indicates the main lobe position in the
vertical or horizontal direction. Large-scope adjustment is unnecessary. Perform fine adjustment on the
antenna to the peak voltage point.

• When antennas are poorly aligned, a small voltage may be detected in one direction. In this case,
perform coarse adjustment on the antennas at both ends, so that the antennas are roughly aligned.

• The antennas at both ends that are well aligned face a little bit upward. Though 1-2 dB is lost,
reflection interference will be avoided.

Antenna Adjustment (3)

During antenna adjustment, the two wrong adjustment cases are show here. One antenna is aligned to
another antenna through the side lobe. As a result, the RSSI cannot meet the requirements.

Split-Mount Microwave Equipment — Antenna (1)

Antenna gain

Definition: Ratio of the input power of an isotropic antenna Pio to the input power of a parabolic
antenna Pi when the electric field at a point is the same for the isotropic antenna and the parabolic
antenna.

Calculating formula of antenna gain:

2
G ¿ Pio /P i=(πD/ λ) ∗η
Half-power angle

Usually, the given antenna specifications contain the gain in the largest radiation (main lobe) direction,
denoted by dBi. The half-power point, or the —3 dB point is the point which is deviated from the central
line of the main lobe and where the power is decreased by halt. The angle between the two half-power
points is called the half-power angle.

Calculating formula of half-power angle:

θ0.5 =( 65 ° 70 ° ) λ/ D

Split-Mount Microwave Equipment — Antenna (2)

Cross polarization discrimination

Suppression ratio of the antenna receiving heteropolarizing waves, usually, larger than 30 dB.

XdB = 101gPo/Px

Po: Receiving power of normal polarized wave

Px: Receiving power of abnormal polarized wave

Antenna protection ratio

Attenuation degree of the receiving capability in a direction of an antenna compared with that in the
main lobe direction. An antenna protection ratio of 180° is called front-to-back ratio.

Split-Mount Microwave Equipment —ODU (1)

Split-Mount Microwave Equipment —ODU (2)

• Specifications of Transmitter

o Working frequency band

Generally, trunk radios use 6, 7, and 8 GHz frequency bands. 11, 13 GHz and higher frequency bands are
used in the access layer (e.g. BTS access).

o Output power

The power at the output port of a transmitter. Generally, the output power is 15 to 30 dBm.

Split-Mount Microwave Equipment —ODU (3)

• Local frequency stability

If the working frequency of the transmitter is unstable, the demodulated effective signal ratio will be
decreased and the bit error ratio will be increased. The value range of the local frequency stability is 3 to
10 ppm.

• Transmit Frequency Spectrum Frame

The frequency spectrum of the transmitted signal must meet specified requirements, to avoid occupying
too much bandwidth and thus causing too much interference to adjacent channels. The limitations to
frequency spectrum are called transmit frequency spectrum frame.

Split-Mount Microwave Equipment —ODU (4)

• Specifications of Receiver

o Working frequency band

Receivers work together with transmitters. The receiving frequency on the local station is the
transmitting frequency of the same channel on the opposite station.

o Local frequency stability

The same as that of transmitters: 3 to 10 ppm

o Noise figure

The noise figure of digital microwave receivers is 2.5 dB to 5 dB.

Split-Mount Microwave Equipment —ODU (5)

• Passband To effectively suppress interference and achieve the best transmission quality, the passband
and amplitude frequency characteristics should be properly chosen. The receiver passband
characteristics depend on the IF filter.

• Selectivity
Ability of receivers of suppressing the various interferences outside the passband, especially the
interference from adjacent channels, image interference and the interference between transmitted and
received signals.

• Automatic gain control (AGC) range

Automatic control of receiver gain. With this function, input RF signals change within a certain range and
the IF signal level remains unchanged.

Split-Mount Microwave Equipment —ODU (6)

Split-Mount Microwave Equipment —IDU

DIFFERENT BRANDS OF MICROWAVE RADIO EQUIPMENTS AND THEIR

EQUIPMENTS
1. Huawei

6–42 GHz Traditional Frequency IP Microwave

The Huawei 6–42 GHz traditional frequency IP microwave has a maximum of 2 Gbit/s per carrier and 16
Gbit/s per antenna ultra-large transmission capacity, it is the industry’s first IP microwave that supports
TDM/Hybrid/Packet/Routing services on the unified platform, satisfying the requirements of large-
capacity IP service transmission and IP-based evolving of traditional PDH/SDH microwave. The solution
provides a flexible architecture that can be deployed in split, full-outdoor, or full-indoor scenarios. It
features high reliability and end-to-end unified O&M management. It is widely used in broadband
wireless transmission in vertical sectors, such as government, broadcasting, oil & gas, education, and
electric power.
2. iPASOLINK

iPASOLINK VR is a new-concept microwave and optical transporter that transcends the realms of
traditional microwave equipment.

iPASOLINK VR leads the microwave radio industry with rich features and outstanding capacities.

As a high performance device, it is capable of high capacity transport with optical and microwave, for a
true carrier-grade converged node experience. Along with NEC's SDN solution, iPASOLINK VR is ready for
the 5G era, where new service and technologies revolutionize the mobile landscape.

iPASOLINK VR10 Functions/Features

Radio Features

 Full range of frequency (6GHz-42GHz)

 QPSK-4096 QAM with AMR

 7/14/28/56/112MHz

 1+0,1+1,N+0,1+0,1+0 XPIC,1+1 XPC

 Radio Traffic Aggregation

  MIMO

Interface

 MAX. 12 modem

 10G optical

 FE/GbE (RJ45, SFP)

 PoE

 TDM (E1/ch STM-1/STM-1 RST)

 CWDM passive filter support

TDM and Packet Features

 PWE

 ERPS

 ETH OAM

 H-QoS

 L2 pass through

 SyncE

 1588v2 (TC, BC)

 MPLS-TP

 SDN

 E1 SNCP

Others

 Compatibility (with iPASOLINK)

 Universal slot modules (14slots)

 Standard protocols (for management/control)

Advanced ODU type IAG / IAP

NEC iPASOLINK™ ODUs are renowned for their reliability and are trusted to provide market leading
transmission performance in the broadest range of environmental conditions across the planet.

The new IAG and IAP Series ODUs are masterpieces of quality and performance in units much smaller,
lighter and energy efficient than ever before, featuring:
  GaAs and GaN Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuit technology for excellent transmission
performance with up to 3x the power efficiency
(on IAP GaN model)

 Smallest footprint and power consumption in their class

(IAG model features NEC’s Automatic Transmitter Power Control)

 NEC’s ultra-compact surface mount and multilayer PCB technology

 New wider modulation range

(QPSK to 4096QAM)

 More urban deployment flexibility and more environmentally friendly.

iPASOLINK BR Combiner

iPASOLINK BR Combiner is a microwave radio channel combiner and divider with low insertion loss and
high channel isolations.

One iPASOLINK BR Combiner can combine 3 or 4 iPASOLINK or PASOLINK series ODUs to an antenna

port.

iPASOLINK BR Combiner Unit can be widely used in many different applications such as access link, trunk
link and long-distance hop link.
3. AVIAT

The IRU 600 all indoor microwave radio

Highest power, ultra-high capacity radio that’s built to last!

The combination of highest power and ultra-high capacity means:

 Less tower loading: antennas represent the largest cost component of a microwave system and
tower loading and modification concerns are the largest burdens to projects. Higher power
enables the re-use of existing antennas or use of smaller antennas to alleviate both challenges.

 Longer paths: for rural applications, long links are often required. IRU 600 can enable longer
hops which means fewer sites and reduced overall expense.

 More reliability: higher power means higher path reliability especially when deploying higher
capacities. Ultra-high capacity options can now truly be effectively utilized without sacrificing
path and network reliability.

 Ultra-high capacity: Up to 3x more capacity than older generation radios. This allows you to
scale with agility as network traffic demands grow.
CTR 8740 Transport Router

Ultra-Compact Transport Router

(and Microwave IDU)

The CTR 8740 from Aviat Networks is the next generation purpose-built IP-SDN transport router. CTR
8740 drastically lowers the cost of routing for transport applications and has been specifically designed
for transport networks, either fiber, wireless or a combination of both. Native NETCONF/YANG
management and SDN automation simplify deployment and lower OPEX.

Applications:

 For Edge,

 Pre-Aggregation,

 Aggregation,

 Nodal applications, or

 Whenever more interfaces are required

CTR 8300 compact microwave switch

CTR 8300 microwave switch is an ultra-compact device for low-cost microwave edge deployments.
Applications

 Access

 Pre-aggregation

 Aggregation

ODU 600 split mount microwave radio

Ultra-high capacity split mount microwave radio

The Aviat ODU 600 is a next generation, universal outdoor unit (ODU) for split-mount applications,
incorporating latest ASIC technology to combine ultra-small size and weight with low power
consumption, and smooth evolution to ultra-high capacity by supporting up to 4096QAM and 110/112
MHz channel spacings.

ODU 600 is compatible with Aviat Eclipse and CTR indoor platforms, including backwards compatibility
with already deployed hardware and software to facilitate easy introduction to existing networks.

ODU 600 is a high capacity ODU that meets the capacity demands of the future in a compact footprint.

STR 4500

STR 4500 Trunking Solution – up to 10 Gbps Diversity Links

Aviat was a pioneer in the new category of split-mount trunking solutions with our STR 600. This gave
operators a compelling alternative and lower OPEX solution to traditional all-indoor N+1 trunking radios,
which required a costly support environment of shelters and air-conditioning, with the resulting need
for larger power systems, higher fuel costs for generators.
WTM 4800

WTM 4800 E-Band and Multi-Band Radio Platform

WTM 4800 is a unique new radio platform for E-Band and Multi-Band 5G transport applications. WTM
4800 Multi-Band is the industry’s simplest Multi-Band solution which significantly lowers total cost of
ownership (TCO) compared to alternative Multi-Band solutions that rely on two, three and even four
separate boxes.

4. Sagittar

Summary of Sagittar Microwave Radio Link Model Types

The summary table below helps customers identify the most suitable Sagittar Microwave Radio Link
product.  Models include LCS, AO or LPN.

Common requests include High Gain and High System performance SGT-LCS, SGT-AO and SGT-LPN Radio
Links.  Sagittar has other radio models that are not included in this publication.

The table below lists frequency bands, service interfaces (e.g. GbE, FE, STM-1, E1 etc.) and link capacity
(throughput speed).

The table below also summarises if the hardware topology is ‘Split-mount Indoor/Outdoor’ or ‘All
Outdoor’.

Summary Table: Sagittar Microwave Radio Solutions

Microwave        
 Radios

Service
Model Topology Link Capacities Interfaces Frequencies

Split-mount STM-1’s, n x E1,

SGT-LCS System up to 1Gbps GbE 6~38GHz

SGT-AO All Outdoor up to 350Mbps GbE 6~38GHz

SGT-LPN
Licensed Band Split-mount 2E1 up to
PDH System 32E1/68Mbps n x E1, FE 7, 8, 13, 15 GHz

SGT-LPN 58V Split-mount 2E1 up to

PDH System 32E1/68Mbps n x E1, FE 5.8 GHz

Antennas        

Model Number Topology Sizes Frequencies

High
Performance All frequency
SGT-SGU Antennas 0.3m to 3.7m bands

5. Totaltel Telecom Techniques Ltd.

Point to point microwave radios

 Totaltel installed the first TDR digital microwave
radio in 1992. Among the first customers were the
Postabank (Post bank) and the Antenna Hungaria TV
and radio broadcasting company.

Totaltel supplied hundreds of microwave links to

Motorola Hungary between 1996 and 1997. These
links were installed in the network of MATAV, the
Hungarian national telephone (POTS provider)
company (its name changed to T-com). Some of
those links were still in use in the year 2010.

Totaltel microwave radios were installed for Paks

Nuclear Power Plant, MTI - the national news
agency, Upper-Tisza Regional Environmental and
Water Managemant Directorate, Taxation
Authorities (APEH), Hungarian National Railways, the campus networks of several universities in
Budapest and for several private companies, e.g. Water Works of Budapest, Sara Lee Hungary, EGIS
Pharmaceutical Company. Totaltel supplied the microwave radios for the nation-wide network of the
Hungarian Defense Forces.

Based on the experience of the last 15 years engineers of Totaltel have developed an advanced version
of the TDR microwave radio, the TDR-F "software defined" radio family.

The TDR-F flexible SDR microwave radio family

Members of the software defined radio equipment family operate in the 5-7-8-13-
15-18-23-38 GHz frequency bands and provide the transmission of E1, E3 signals (2
or 34 Mbps, G.703) as well as link between Ethernet LANs (10/100Base-T).

The equipment TDR-F consists of an outdoor microwave unit (ODU) and an indoor
signal processing unit (IDU), interconnected by a single coaxial cable. The ODU is
only dependent on the frequency band applied, while the IDU is only determined by the transmitted
signals and some application conditions, like the protection system as well as the network management
system.

In the ODU wideband microwave circuitry is employed, the channel frequency and transmit power are
adjustable by software. Flexibly configuring the equipment by the local craft terminal and replacing the
interface units according to the actual demand, the modulation format (4QAM, 16QAM or 32QAM) and
the transmission capacity (from 4Mbps up to 100Mbps full duplex) may be varied. Hardware versions of
the IDU provide operation under various network management and protection systems: 1+1 protection
may work in hot standby, space diversity or frequency diversity modes.

Three type of interfaces are developed for the radio:

  IFE1: an interface for 8 separate E1 (2Mbps G.703) channels,

 IFET: an interface for an adjustable data rate Ethernet channel and a separate E1 channel, and

 IFE3: an interface for an E3 (34Mbps G.703) channel and a separate E1 channel.

There are 4 interface slots available in the IDU. The capacity of a link with a given interface configuration
can be modified via the management software. Interface channels can be set active according to actual
demand.

For example an IFE1 type interface can remotely configured to

transmit either 2xE1, or 4xE1 or 8xE1 channels. An equipment with
two IFE1 interfaces can also transmit 16 separate E1 channels. If an
extra IFET interface is used in one slot, seamless changeover from E1
channels to Ethernet transmission is possible.

The main parameters of the equipment comply with the relevant

ITU-T, ITU-R and ETSI recommendations.

The TDR-F-W SDR microwave radio

This family of high data rate point-to-point transmission equipment operate in the
13..38GHz communication bands. Their transmission rate may be varied between
22 and 350 Mbps. They are suitable for linking LANs as Ethernet bridges,
additionally providing the transmission of 1..17 E1 channels. Over the range
depending on the frequency band applied, they provide cost effective realization
of medium to high capacity links in public and private networks.

The excellent transmission performance, considerable flexibility, ease of handling, low power
consumption and high reliability make up the important equipment features. The indoor and outdoor
equipment parts are interconnected by a coaxial cable of length up to 300 m. The outdoor equipment
and the antenna may be integrated. The indoor part is mounted to a 19" rack of 1U height.

The outdoor part is data-rate independent, and depends only on the frequency band of operation.
Coverage of each frequency band is provided by a minimum number of outdoor equipment versions.
The channel frequency and transmit power are software configured. The indoor unit is frequency band
independent. By sharing the radio channel bandwidth among the gigabit and E1 interfaces of
appropriate numbers, the built-in multiplexer provides the simultaneous transmission of the respective
signals. Radio channel interfacing is provided by the configurable 4-256 QAM modem based on DSP,
applying forward error correction and adaptive equalization as well. The adaptive modulation mode, if
selected, adjusts the modulation scheme to correspond to the actual state of the radio channel, thus
maximizing the transmission reliability. It is possible to assign QoS functions to the signals transmitted
over the Gigabit Ethernet interfaces. Equipment and interface cQoS functions characteristics correspond
to the relevant ITU recommendations as well as to the ETSI/IEEE standards.
Beside the main interfaces (Gbit Ethernet optical and wired, E1), three type of optional interfaces are
developed for the radio:

 IFE1: an interface for 8 separate E1 (2Mbps G.703) channels,

 IFET: an interface for an additional adjustable data rate Ethernet channel and a separate E1
channel, and

 IFE3: an interface for an E3 (34Mbps G.703) channel and a separate E1 channel.

There are 2 additional interface slots available in the IDU. The capacity of a link with a given interface
configuration can be modified via the management software. Interface channels can be set active
according to actual demand.

Equipment maintenance and supervisory functions

are built in: order wire with selective call, test
loopbacks for diagnostic purposes, continuous BER
indication and registration of the transmission
performance statistics. Control of the supervisory
functions may take place by local PC or via SNMP
from the network management center.

The design and production techniques applied result in excellent equipment reliability.

The main parameters of the equipment comply with the relevant ITU-T, ITU-R and ETSI
recommendations.

The TDR-F-1P5 SDR microwave radio

This member of the TDR-F microwave software defined

radio family operates in the 1.5GHz frequency band
and transmits one E1 signal.

The radio utilizes the favorable properties of the

applied 1.5 GHz frequency band. Since low-loss cables
are available, there is no need to divide the equipment
to ODU and IDU, so all indoor unit (IDU) construction was applied. Besides the usual 23...60VDC power
input, a 230VAC version of the equipment is available.

A 1+1 protection equipment is available for this radio to provide reliable transmission in critical links, like
the modulation signal lines of broadcasting transmitters.

The radio has a fixed E1 interface and equipped with an EOW phone. The E1 signal can be transmitted in
an 0.5MHz RF bandwidth with 32QAM modulation. If more bandwidth is available, the modulation
mode can be remotely changed to 16QAM or 4QAM.

Antennas

Based on the choice of antennas offered by a partner company Totaltel supplies

parabolic antennas for all the above frequency bands of sizes between 0.3m ...
2.4m diameters. The ODU may be integrated with the antenna to eliminate the
waveguide loss and unnecessary costs. For protected applications the protection
splitter can be mounted directly onto the antenna and the two ODUs directly on
the splitter. In this way a compact and economic solution can be provided.

Network Management Systems for TDR-F equipment

SNMP

The TDR-F digital microwave radio can be supplied with standard SNMP functionality operating on its
own embedded IP network. This network consists of a group of TDR-F equipment connected together
for management purposes. Each microwave equipment has its unique IP address, each of them can be
addressed and configured remotely from the OMC. Every parameter of the radio can be configured in
this way.

This separate Ethernet network created by the management system can also be used for other
purposes: e.g. facility management. Moreover, if the microwave radio is equipped with the "external
contacts" option card, it can relay control several external equipment like power supplies, intrusion
alarm systems, air conditioner, etc.

High quality OMC software can be supplied, which is able to control thousands of SNMP objects. In less
demanding, cost-sensitive cases a proprietary network management solution can be provided.

REFERENCES:

https://www.daenotes.com/electronics/microwave-radar/digital-microwave-communication-equipment

http://sagittar.com/blog/2018/10/summary-of-sagittar-microwave-radio-solutions/

https://e.huawei.com/en/products/wireless/microwave/traditional-band

http://www.totaltel.hu/en/03products/030_products.htm

https://aviatnetworks.com/products/all-indoor-radio/iru-600/

https://www.nec.com/en/global/prod/nw/pasolink/products/iPASOLINK_BR.html