On The IBC Exhibit Floor: Rohde & Schwarz

Rohde & Schwarz | Stand 7.21| www.hohde-schwarz.com

R&S TMU9evo air-cooled UHF medium-power transmitter — Rohde & Schwarz is committed to making network operators’ lives easier. Over the years, the company has incorporated innovative ideas and concepts into transmitter development, and the new R&S TMU9evo air-cooled UHF medium-power transmitter represents the next step toward minimizing operating costs. Rohde & Schwarz was able to leverage its many years of experience in Doherty technology, which is the key to the new transmitter’s top efficiency and unrivaled reliability. The result is a reduction in network operator costs and an increase of operational convenience.

Featuring high-quality RF components and designed for long life, the transmitter provides utmost reliability and signal quality. Plus, the R&S TMU9evo is the only transmitter in its power class that can be optionally equipped with an integrated exciter backup battery, enabling it to dependably bridge power interruptions of up to 10 seconds. This reduces off-air time to a minimum and eliminates the need for an uninterruptible power supply (UPS).

The R&S Efficiency Optimization feature minimizes energy costs for all types of operating scenarios. This feature proves its worth especially when adjusting output power or during channel changes. An intelligent algorithm, deployed at the press of a button or adaptively, optimizes amplifier parameters so that the transmitter achieves maximum energy efficiency at all times, resulting in the most economical system operation for every scenario.

The R&S PMU905 medium-power amplifier is the key to the excellent system efficiency. Unmatched by any other air-cooled amplifier on the market, the R&S PMU905 provides maximum efficiency, combined with the capability to operate across the entire UHF range without any modifications. This is made possible by the R&S Multiband Doherty technology, which has been even further improved by Rohde & Schwarz. This technology ensures that network operators are optimally prepared for 700 MHz spectrum clearance and reallocation.

The new transmitter carries forward all of the proven strengths of the market-leading R&S TMU9 platform. The R&S TMU9evo retains the successful and proven R&S MultiTX concept along with the R&S Tx9 generation’s intuitive GUI, which is closely aligned with user requirements and work habits. Furthermore, it is perfectly prepared for future requirements like new digital broadcast standards such as ATSC 3.0.

The R&S TMU9evo air-cooled UHF medium-power transmitter delivers output powers from 400 W to 3.0 kW for COFDM and ATSC.

The new transmitter will be available from Rohde & Schwarz as of November.

Rohde & Schwarz LTE Broadcast SFN network  — LTE Broadcast, also known as Further evolved Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (FeMBMS), was specified in 3GPP Release 14 in mid-2017. The upgraded standard defines new options for broadcasting to LTE-enabled mobile user equipment such as smartphones and tablets. It allows for the first time high power high tower (HPHT) applications in downlink only mode.

The new features make it possible to utilize the full signal bandwidth for multicast/broadcast applications. Moreover, 3GPP Release 14 defines an extended cyclic prefix (corresponding to the guard interval in DVB-T/T2) and modes to enable operation without SIM cards, which is necessary for the broadcast application.

The Rohde & Schwarz FeMBMS transmission addresses broadcast applications for video and IP data in HPHT topologies with bandwidths of 5 MHz and 10 MHz. With this breakthrough, the company emphasizes its commitment to the new technological perspectives arising from the standardization of FeMBMS, thereby demonstrating the potential held by 5G Broadcast for applications such as TV services delivered to mobile user equipment and connected cars, and for IoT applications.

Like all SFN networks, the Rohde & Schwarz LTE Broadcast SFN network requires synchronization information, which is made available to each FeMBMS transmitter via the M1 application protocol. The sync information is generated by a simple Evolved Packet Core (EPC) and completed by an incoming IP-based video data stream, which is either generated or encoded and multiplexed by a headend. SYNC timestamps are inserted into the data stream to generate the M1 user plane data. This data is routed via IP networks to the FeMBMS transmitters, which transmit the signal simultaneously. The FeMBMS signal is received by a software defined radio (SDR).

Currently, a major European 5G field trial is being established in Germany as part of the 5G TODAY Bavarian research project. Under the leadership of the Institute for Broadcast Technology (IRT), project partners Kathrein and Rohde & Schwarz are investigating large-scale TV broadcast transmissions in FeMBMS mode over 5G Broadcast networks. The project is supported by Telefónica Germany and Bayerischer Rundfunk, the Bavarian state broadcaster, who is providing two HPHT sites near Munich for this groundbreaking field trial.

Next-generation storage solution — To meet the demands of today’s media environments, storage solutions must satisfy high requirements in terms of scalability and workflow integration. In particular, it is crucial that users can access media files immediately. R&S SpycerNode solves these issues, offering an easy-to-use interface, an HPC file system, market-leading erasure coding mechanisms and many more functions that let users focus on their creative work. In addition, Rohde & Schwarz has expanded its web-based device manager for use with R&S SpycerNode to simplify system configuration and maintenance.

R&S SpycerNode features IBM Spectrum Scale. The file system has proven itself in numerous HPC applications around the world. It simplifies and optimizes storage workflows, using features such as single namespace, online scalability and information lifecycle management. The R&S SpycerNode stores files intelligently based on performance requirements. All R&S SpycerNode storage tiers are presented under a single namespace, which greatly simplifies file handling. The storage solution can be scaled as needed — even during operation. R&S SpycerNode provides scalability irrespective of the system size — starting with the smallest unit up to large systems. As a result, there is no need to exchange or replace existing units.

The combination of a declustered array and erasure coding, in the event of disk failures, drastically speeds up rebuilding compared with traditional hardware-based RAID approaches. Critical error conditions are detected and errors rectified immediately. Many conventional storage setups provide full redundancy only when multiple units are involved. In contrast, R&S SpycerNode offers full redundancy even for single units, ensuring that media files will be securely and safely stored at any time.

R&S SpycerNode exhibits no single point of failure — neither in terms of hardware nor software. It protects the customer’s business right from the start, no matter what the system size, thus protecting the customer’s investment. The storage solution is available in different configurations from 2U12 up to 5U84.

SpycerNode will be showcased at IBC with a launch event on Sept. 15 at 4.30 p.m.

Read all of TVNewsCheck’s IBC 2018 news here.