Abstract
The blueSPACE project focuses on the study of innovative technologies to overcome the limitations of current fronthaul networks. The key technology proposed is space-division multiplexing, which makes it possible to increase the capacity available in conventional single-mode fibers, effectively encompassing this capacity to the forecasted bandwidth demands imposed by 5G mobile communications. In this paper, we present the innovative optical fronthaul infrastructure proposed in the project and the tailored extensions to the European Telecommunications Standards Institute network function virtualization management and orchestration architecture for this enhanced infrastructure together with practical implementation considerations.
Highlights
Digitized Radio over fiber (DRoF) transceivers based on Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) are used to transport the 4G fronthaul interface
BlueSPACE envisions a centralized radio access network (CRAN), where all functionality is transferred to central units (CUs) hosted at the central office (CO), which in turn enables the deployment of RRUs with minimal functionality — ideally only amplification of the RF signals — that translates to minimum cost, both for deployment and operation
This article provides an in-depth description of the challenge the 5G adoption, and details the technological means to overcome these limitations with a novel fronthaul optical infrastructure
Summary
Digitized Radio over fiber (DRoF) transceivers based on Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) are used to transport the 4G fronthaul interface (e.g., common public radio interface – CPRI). The NFV Orchestrator (NFVO) from the NFV MANO platform must be extended to be able to manage the analog BBUs and RRUs as Physical Network Functions (PNFs) to enable their dynamic configuration and implement effective resource allocation strategies at the RAN level. BLUESPACE NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE AND ORCHESTRATION CHALLENGES blueSPACE envisions a centralized radio access network (CRAN), where all functionality is transferred to central units (CUs) hosted at the central office (CO), which in turn enables the deployment of RRUs with minimal functionality — ideally only amplification of the RF signals — that translates to minimum cost, both for deployment and operation This C-RAN approach relies heavily on BBUs deployed in pools and connected to the RRUs via the fronthaul segment. The blueSPACE high-level architecture and infrastructure description in [6], together with the related orchestration challenges, are detailed in more depth in this article with a comprehensive report of the 5G fronthaul infrastructure and network slicing orchestration and control approach
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