O-RAN Tests - EANTC

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The Open Radio Access Network, commonly known as ORAN, has emerged as a significant trend in the telecommunications industry.

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Due to its vast potential, networking professionals are actively exploring, testing, and implementing O-RAN solutions. The significance of O-RAN and its components, especially its fronthaul network, cannot be ignored.

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The fronthaul network is a key component of O-RAN architecture and plays a critical role in its efficiency. It requires precise and reliable Time Synchronization to ensure the system's integrity, functionality, and performance.

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=== O-RAN Fronthaul LLS-C2 (Option A) ===

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In our tests, we took the liberty of making one major change to the O-RAN Fronthaul LLS-C2 (Option A) topology: We exchanged the Open Distributed Unit (O-DU) for a Boundary Clock.

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Our setup consisted of one Grandmaster (T-GM), one Boundary Clock(T-BC ), and two separate timing paths branching from the T-BC. Each path had one Hub-Site Router (HSR) and one Cell-Site Router (CSR). Both CSRs were connected to a measurement tool to measure the relative time error between their outputs.

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All three test runs with different vendor combinations passed the requirements for the maximum absolute time error and the maximum relative time error, as defined in O-RAN.WG9.XTRP-TST.0-R004-v05.00, section 9.1.5; however, we were unable to test 1PPS.

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[[Figure 119: O-RAN Fronthaul LLS-C2 (Option A) - Setup>>image:434081707012915201_5.14.png||alt="Figure 119" width="550"]]

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=== O-RAN Fronthaul LLS-C3 Configuration with GM from Fronthaul ===

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Additionally, we executed a test to emulate an LLS-C3 scenario as per O-RAN.WG9.XTRP-SYN.0-R003-v05.00, where the GM was at the Fronthaul.

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This test was executed once, with the Keysight Time Sync Analyzer serving as the emulated O-DU, O-CU, and O-RU and the Keysight IxNetwork as the traffic generator. The Ciena 8140 took the role of the HSR, and the Juniper ACX7100-32C of the CSR.

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The maximum absolute time error was 2.344ns for the Ciena 8150 and 4.781ns for the Juniper ACX7100-32C, both incredibly low and well within the limits of ITU-T G.8273.2 Class D media converter pairs.

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[[Figure 120: O-RAN Fronthaul LLS-C3 Configuration with GM from Fronthaul - Setup>>image:434865443406610433_5.13.png||alt="Figure 120" width="550"]]

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|=T-GM-A|=HSR-1|=HSR-2|=CSR-1|=CSR-2|=Timing Test Equipment|=T-BC-1

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