Sequans’ Compact Base Station Reference Designs

For Mobile WiMAX Base Stations

PRODUCT HIGHLIGHTS

  • For the rapid manufacture of Femto or Pico Base Stations
  • Cost effective for dense urban and suburban deployments
  • Fits indoor and outdoor deployments
  • High capacity and throughput

Suitable for multiple base station applications
SQN213x-CBS is a simple and easy-to-use base station reference design that can be used to manufacture Femto and Pico Base Stations for both high density, large scale urban deployments and lower density suburban deployments. Two versions are available: one based on the SQN2130A ASIC for Pico Base Stations (SQN2130A-CBS), and a second one based on the SQN2131A ASIC suitable for Femto Base Station applications (SQN2131A-CBS).

High capacity and throughput
SQN2130A-CBS features a highly efficient and robust 802.16E air interface protocol that provides high broadband rates up to 40 Mbps net throughput per subscriber. SQN2131A-CBS and SQN2130A-CBS support MIMO-A, MIMO-B and multiple antenna techniques. SQN2131A-CBS can support up to 20 simultaneous users and even more registered users. SQN2130A-CBS can support several hundreds of users, depending on the CPU selection and the associated SDRAM size.

Scalable and flexible solution
SQN2130A-CBS and SQN2131A-CBS include Sequans’ S3MAX software solution that is easy-to-use and flexible to allow for quick customization. S3MAX, comprises hardware drivers, MAC layer, and scheduling functions. The software is modular, with well- defined API, allowing manufacturers to reuse their existing software modules and expertise to differentiate their product offerings, while leveraging the performance and time-to-market advantages offered by Sequans’ comprehensive solution.

Power consumption
SQN2130A-CBS is designed to eliminate the need for fans or cooling systems. The power consumption of the SQN2130A and SQN2131A in MIMO mode is measured at less than 1.5 W, leading to total power consumption of less than 7.5 watts for the total SQN213x-CBS reference design (RF included).

MAC performance
Sequans’ extremely efficient MAC implementation is strategically partitioned between hardware and software to maximize throughput and minimize power consumption. Complete support for mobility is provided, in particular for handover, sleep mode and idle mode. S3MAX will support specific Femto Base Station functionalities such as cell sniffing with HW assistance as well as the compatibility with several external synchronization technics (IEEE1588V2, GPS and others)

End-to-end QoS
Advanced QoS capabilities in the 802.16E MAC include support for VLAN tags, PHS and classification functions to provide the end-to-end QOS for best effort (e.g. voice over IP) and real-time (e.g. video) services. Several QoS modes are offered, including Weighted Fair Scheduling or Priority modes
End-to-end system

SQN2130A-CBS and SQN2131A-CBS support S3MAX software that allows R6 ASN-GW connectivity.

Multiple frequencies
SQN2130A-CBS and SQN2131A-CBS integrate several RF modules that support various levels of output power in 2.5, 3.5 and 5.x GHz bandwidths. A mini-PCI connector is included to support other RF modules.

SQN2131A-CBS comprises a single motherboard, the SQN2131A ASIC with the associated SDRAM, and a cost effective CPU MPC 8313E from the PQII-PRO Freescale family. The SQN2131A is used in conjunction with a PQII-pro CPU allowing the customer to easily develop upper layer software to complement Sequans’ software solution, S3MAX. The CPU MPC8313E from Freescale’s PQII-pro family is the most cost-effective solution for this type of application.

The RF radio is connected through a MiniPCI interface, offering the flexibility to operate at any WiMAX frequency band. SQN2131A-CBS supports several RF Radio modules. The PMC-Sierra module is well suited for this type of application, providing in a single chip solution the 2 Tx required by MIMO as well as multi-band support (2.5GHz, 3.5GHz and 5.x GHz). S3MAX includes related drivers and calibration features.