CommAgility announces Intra-PHY 5G handover to enable spectrum sharing

This capability allows a 5G connection to seamlessly move from one carrier frequency to another without interruption of the services. This is important in frequency bands where there is interference from Wi-Fi, radar, or other signals, such as is the case with New Radio Unlicensed (NR-U) and in the CBRS band. The Intra-PHY 5G handover capability will also enable first responders and emergency services to set up temporary 5G networks quickly and simply, while automatically avoiding occupied spectrum interference.

"CommAgility is the only independent software vendor to have developed, and demonstrated, this intra-PHY handover capability for 5G – which is available right now as part of our industry-leading 5G software stack," said Alfred Rodriguez, SVP and General Manager at CommAgility.

The handover is supported by the CommAgility SC-RF4-5Gn78, a 5G gNodeB hardware reference platform. The SC-RF4-5Gn78 includes four high quality, flexible and 100MHz bandwidth RF channels, supporting 4x4 MIMO downlink operation. This 4x4 mode enables the SC-RF4-5Gn78 to deliver seamless and uninterrupted intra-PHY handover. Depending on the capabilities of the RF front-end used with the gNodeB, the second carrier frequency can also be out-of-band, increasing the flexibility of the system.

CommAgility's comprehensive software portfolio for 5G NR small cell product development includes pre-ported and validated PHY and Stack software, a 5G core, and Physical Layer reference chains. This simplifies the development of 5G small cells and private networks, with the software's flexible architecture making integration easier with hardware accelerators and libraries with versions available for both 5G gNodeB and UE product developers. CommAgility also offers the 5G Reference gNodeB, a pre-integrated reference design, and the SC-RF4-5Gn78 5G reference platform.