An active antenna is an antenna that contains active
electronic components.remote radio head
(RRH) or antenna-integrated radio designs place the Rf module next to the
passive antenna to reduce cable losses
Active Antenna system is developed by Nokia Siemens Network (NSN)
to reduce network cost and increase network efficiency. It’s a smart antenna
and beam is driven by software.
Active Antenna does not need to be merely passive
elements. With intelligent integration, active antenna technology transforms
traditional antenna to contribute to base station efficiency. This enables
operators to significantly increase the capacity and coverage targets set for
their network.
Active Antennas are highly flexible and can meet the
needs of many scenarios. They also support rising feature complexity including
higher-order MIMO and receiver diversity, while retaining a simple and compact
form factor.
§ Carrier-specific
tilting
§ System-specific
tilting
§ Multi-operator
network sharing
§ Boosting
performance with SON
§ Lower overall
site costs
§ Improved
network availability
§ Higher energy
efficiency and RF performance
§ Reduced network
evolution costs
The benefits to be gained include
boosted capacity and coverage, higher energy efficiency, lower site rental
fees, lower wind loading and reduced investments as new radio technologies come
on line and additional spectrum bands become available. As a result,
active antenna systems enable operators to not only cut site costs substantially, but to also more cost effectively meet the dynamic demands of their mobile customers.
active antenna systems enable operators to not only cut site costs substantially, but to also more cost effectively meet the dynamic demands of their mobile customers.
It is clear that active antenna
systems will bring about a step-change in the evolution of radio networks.
Leading the field is the Nokia Siemens Networks Flexi Multiradio Antenna
System, which is a vital part of Liquid Net. This radical new architecture
helps operators to cost-effectively address unpredictable demand by creating
networks that adapt instantly to changing customer needs, using existing
capital investments more efficiently and generating entirely new revenue
opportunities. It does this by unleashing frozen network capacity into a
reservoir of resources that can flow to fulfill demand, wherever and whenever
broadband is used.
AAS BENEFITS
The benefits of active antenna
architecture over RRH based site architecture are many. First, there is a potential
to significantly reduce the site footprint. Second, the distribution of radio functions
within the antenna results in built-in redundancy and improved thermal
performance, which can result in higher system availability (lower failure
rates). Third, distributed transceivers can support a host of advanced
electronic beam-tilt features that can enable improvements in network capacity
and coverage; hence, it has the potential to lower capital and operational
costs. Each of these features shall now be described in the following sections.
