The China Unicom Group together with Huawei completed the filed verification of the industry's first Frequency Division Duplex based Massive Massive Multiple Input, Multiple Output technology.
They achieved this by using the existing two-antenna receiving terminal on the 20MHz spectrum to achieve a peak network rate of 697.3Mbps. This is 4.8 times higher compared to traditional FDD LTE.
Current network technology available faces a huge challenge in capacity with the rapid development of mobile Internet applications, such as online games and high-definition media.
MIMO technology will be able to help operators on greatly enhancing the wireless network capacity. This is done by maximizing existing sites and spectrum resources.
Massive MIMO technology, one of the key solutions for Huawei's 4.5G Evolution, is said to be the best technology to boost the spectrum efficiency. Its characteristics are Active Antenna Unit (AAU) hardware form, 3d user-level beamforming and multi-user MIMO
The massive MIMO technology faces an extreme challenge when it comes to engineering feasibility and system reliability, as the RF transceiver channels and antenna array elements used are separated.
The AAU is an integrated active antenna solution developed by Huawei, which integrates both the RF and antenna elements to ensure the reliability and greatly enhance the feasibility of the project
The technology will also use large-scale antennas in order for it to provide precise control of the beam angle and width for both vertical and horizontal directions. This enables 3d user-level beamforming, which reduces overall network interference, thus improving network coverage.
Massive MIMO will also allow multiple terminals to simultaneously reuse the same spectrum resources, thus further enhancing the network capacity. This is based on the accurate 3d user beamforming, channel estimation and user algorithms.
“Our goal is to bring considerable commercial value to operators through innovative technology,” said the president of Huawei’s FDD Product Line, Cao Ming.
"This successful field verification between Huawei and China Unicom, once again demonstrated the innovative capability of Huawei’s 4.5G Evolution technology. Huawei's Massive MIMO product has the ability to evolve to 5G to protect the operator's investment in the coming 5G era."