The breakthrough at UTS Tech Lab is a game changer for 5G rollouts worldwide and demonstrates for the first time how telco cell towers can run 5G via lasercomms instead of fiber cables or RF
28 NOV 2022, SYDNEY/SINGAPORE: Transcelestial, has proven that it is possible to deliver 5G connectivity wirelessly using laser technology at a 10Gbps capacity. The technology showcase took place at a new demonstration site at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS Tech Lab).
“Solutions to the global Internet distribution challenge have been limited by infrastructure and hardware – today we’ve broken that ceiling. Until now, most telecom and internet service providers could only rely on physical fibre connectivity as a solution to deliver 5G, everywhere. Transcelestial’s lasercomms technology gives us a viable alternative to connect our digital future and meet civilisation’s long-term communication needs,” said Mohammad Danesh, Co-Founder and CTO of Transcelestial.
Transcelestial launched the new public 5G demonstration facility in collaboration with UTS Tech Lab, along with partners – Mavenir, a leading global Open-RAN vendor, and ALLDAS Solutions, an Australian wireless technical consultancy group, specialising in next generation in-building coverage solutions and use cases.
The demonstration took place at UTS Tech Lab, which has one of Australia’s largest near-field antenna anechoic chamber, and conducts cross-layer research into 5G/6G technologies and systems. These facilities allowed the demonstration to model and analyse next generation technologies via reliable, high capacity, low latent and highly secure communications. The demonstration captured a 5G signal on site A, and via two of Transcelestial’s CENTAURI devices mounted on rooftops sent it to site B using CPRI protocol which housed a Mavenir multi carrier, multi band Remote Radio Unit, delivering 5G signals to multiple devices.
“UTS Tech Lab is proud to partner with Transcelestial to launch this public demonstration site and to support
the team as they make a significant breakthrough in global connectivity innovation. We are committed to
fostering university and industry collaboration to deliver real-world solutions,” said Dr Ray Kirby, Professor and UTS Tech Lab Centre Director.
The global Internet distribution challenge impacts billions around the world today who still do not have access to quality Internet connectivity, with many being just within 10km of the nearest fiber optic cable[1].
The main deterrent to ubiquitous internet delivery in cities is the cost and delays associated with rolling out fibre cables and spectrum or bandwidth challenges associated with RF (radio frequency) technology. 5G requires nearly 10 times densification of cell tower infrastructure. Traditionally each additional tower needs to be connected to a fiber optic cable which can be expensive and slow to deliver given right of way challenges. Transcelestial’s lasercomms solution provides a highly reliable, secure and easily scalable replacement to fibre optic cables, and a more robust connectivity option for both indoor and outdoor DAS Hotel and Small Cell applications. .
Internet connectivity demands have put extreme pressure on what’s expected of telecom and internet service providers. Delivering 5G connectivity from source to users demands a highly robust interface (e-CPRI minimum 10Gbps capacity) between the fronthaul infrastructure for cellular networks (otherwise known as the connectivity between a Remote Radio Unit and a Baseband Unit), forcing most carriers to rely on physical fiber cables as the only viable solution.
“The launch of this new demonstration site provides an alternative Transmission Solution for a new way to connect our digital future. As operators upgrade their infrastructure to cater to growing demand, wireless lasers provide a much needed alternative to both fronthaul and backhaul transmission. Mavenir is proud to join Transcelestial in achieving this milestone,” said Dereck Quinlan, Managing Director at Mavenir.
“Running this demonstration through the conditions at UTS Tech Lab’s site showcases how our technology translates to real world applications. We chose to work with our collective partners on this demonstrator, as like us, they are innovators in their own domains when it comes to delivering 5G. Trancelestial’s lasers are here to stay and we’re excited to be in conversation with telecom first-movers to explore opportunities to pioneer our technology locally and beyond,” said Chantra Hang, Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Country Manager for Transcelestial.
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About Transcelestial:
Transcelestial has mass-produced a solution for superfast global Internet distribution that leverages its proprietary wireless laser communication technology to create a wireless distribution network between buildings, traditional cell towers, street-level poles and other physical infrastructure – with a much lower total operating cost for Mobile Network Operators, Internet Service Providers and enterprises.
In the longer-term, Transcelestial aims to develop a constellation of small satellites positioned in Low Earth Orbit, allowing their laser network to not only beam across cities but upwards to connect continents globally too.
Transcelestial has won numerous industry and global awards such as SPIFFY San Andreas Award for Most Disruptive Technology by Telecom Council, Forbes 30 Under 30 to our CTO Dr. Mohammad Danesh, Edge 35 Under 35 to our CEO Rohit Jha, The Most Ambitious Start-Up in Photonics Award by The Optical Society (OSA), etc. Founded in Dec 2016, the Transcelestial team is located in Singapore and is backed by major investors such as Wavemaker Partners, EDBI, Airbus Ventures, Kickstart Ventures, Cap Vista, SEEDS Capital (Enterprise SG), Entrepreneur First, Partech Ventures, 500 Startups, AirTree Ventures, Tekton Ventures, SGInnovate, SparkLabs Global Ventures, Michael Seibel (CEO of Y-Combinator, Founder of Twitch.tv), Charles Songhurst (Microsoft’s former Head of Corporate Strategy) and others.
[1] International Telecommunication Union, The Last-mile Internet Connectivity Solutions Guide: Sustainable connectivity options for unconnected sites 2020