World first achievement in pairing pre-5G technologies Massive MIMO with 3CC Carrier Aggregation in live network
Optus has announced the successful live network testing of combined Massive MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) and 3CC Carrier Aggregation technologies, 3CC Massive MIMO.
The network trial, conducted on live traffic at Macquarie Park in June 2017, attained a highest speed of 818 Mbps. It was completed with technology partner Huawei.
Both Massive MIMO and multiple Carrier Aggregation technologies are considered key to enabling 5G technologies, with Optus the first in the world to complete a successful combined live network implementation of the massive MIMO and 3CC CA technologies together in the same equipment.
Dennis Wong, Managing Director of Optus Networks, said “Earlier this year, Optus launched a 4.5G network and completed Australia’s first field trial of Massive MIMO technology.
“We’re committed to leading Australia in terms of 5G development and testing, and this recently completed world-first 3CC Massive MIMO test is further testament to our commitment and developments we have been able to achieve in this space.
Site capacity during the live testing was significantly improved by almost four times compared to that of legacy 4T4R MIMO base stations.
Massive MIMO is expected to be a key technology in 5G through the use of intelligent spatial diversity and 3D beamforming features, allowing a theoretical improved spectral efficiency up to 6 times that of a traditional antenna system.
The Massive MIMO Integrated Antenna system used in the live site was supplied by Huawei and capable to deliver 64T64R MIMO, supporting up to 80 MHz of all four carriers of Optus’ 2300 MHz TDD band.
Optus plans to rollout Massive MIMO sites in selected capital cities starting from the end of 2017. Optus’ customers will be able to directly benefit from Massive MIMO especially in high data traffic areas and should expect improved download speeds in congested areas*.