Wi-Fi 7 requires 'exhaustive and predictive' testing: Keysight Q&A - RCR Wireless News

Wi-Fi 7 has been designed from the crushed up for cognition successful the 6 GHz band

Wi-Fi 7, which is designed from the crushed up for cognition successful the 6 GHz band, is besides known arsenic Extremely High Throughput, acknowledgment to its enactment of up to 30 Gbps throughput. The adjacent procreation of Wi-Fi besides promises higher spectrum and powerfulness efficiency, amended interference mitigation, higher-capacity density and amended outgo efficiency. 

In the beneath conversation, which has been edited for magnitude and clarity, Keysight Technologies’ Senior Application Engineer Bill Koerner discusses the authorities of 6 GHz Wi-Fi and however galore of Wi-Fi 7’s breathtaking features similar — Multi-Link Operation and Automatic Frequency Coordination — are impacting the trial and measurement industry.

As Wi-Fi 7 is starting to look arsenic the superior Wi-Fi conversation, what are your thoughts connected the authorities of 6 GHz adoption?

Koerner: Over the past year, the fig of countries adopting part, oregon each the 6 GHz set has increased. A information person adopted antithetic frequence ranges. For example, immoderate countries successful the EU person adopted 5945-6425 MHz, portion the remainder person adopted 5925-6425 MHz. This volition spot much plan constraints to instrumentality manufacturers. Some countries person adopted 5925-6425 MHz but are considering the scope of 6425-7125 MHz. This could make absorbing marketplace deployments for instrumentality manufacturers, arsenic they whitethorn request to person their archetypal products reassessed successful the aboriginal should those countries follow the higher frequencies. They whitethorn besides determine to permission their existing products with the archetypal frequence range.

In the U.S., the FCC has seen certifications for 6E products summation substantially, from an estimated 89 products successful 2020 to implicit 285 arsenic of November 2022. Most of these devices person been station, oregon lawsuit devices (such arsenic astute TVs, Wi-Fi cards for computers, etc.).

Reporting information for the EU is harder to travel by, arsenic manufacturers are not required to get their products certified earlier usage (as successful the lawsuit of the United States). Therefore, it is hard to foretell the maturation of 6E products disposable for usage successful the EU. Given the EU adopted their information of the 6 GHz spectrum successful precocious 2021, it is tenable to expect the fig of 6E products is little than the U.S.

Has 6 GHz cognition made investigating much complex? How so?

Koerner: Most trial instrumentality solutions were designed to screen up to 6 GHz. With the 6E requirements, this volition necessitate upgrades to screen up to astatine slightest 7.125 GHz.

The FCC has added a Contention Based Protocol (CBP) trial for the 6 GHz band. This is simply a comparatively caller attack for the FCC to absorption connected the receiver functionality and employment a Listen Before Talk (LBT) capability. This volition necessitate a somewhat antithetic trial set-up, and perchance caller equipment. The fig beneath shows an illustration measurement effect utilizing the Keysight XA5002A FCC Test Software. The graphic gives an illustration of a powerfulness level wherever the instrumentality failed to observe the incumbent awesome and halt transmitting.

This benignant of investigating (LBT) has been required for the EU for each frequence bands and is not caller for the 6 GHz band.  However, immoderate of the different receiver tests are much analyzable than the little frequence bands; notably the Receiver Selectivity tests volition necessitate investigating astatine much frequencies. The fig beneath shows an illustration measurement effect of receiver selectivity; the measured Packet Error Rate (PER) connected the operating transmission was little than 10% for interference signals 20 MHz beneath and supra the operating transmission utilizing the Keysight XA5001A ETSI Test Software.

The determination to Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) to usage OFDMA wrong the 5 and 6 GHz portion has brought further challenges. One caller capability, preamble oregon transmission puncturing volition let a Station instrumentality to ‘puncture’ an existing transmission utilized by different Station instrumentality to transmit its data. This represents immoderate antithetic changes to existing tests, specifically the interference-type tests.

While the 6 GHz set has been disposable for implicit 2 years successful the U.S., determination are inactive further changes to come, erstwhile the FCC announces rules for what are considered Phase 2 devices. These volition beryllium focused connected outdoor devices and volition necessitate Automatic Frequency Coordination (AFC) to operate. That introduces different regulatory test, but what and however is presently unknown.

What different challenges mightiness Wi-Fi 7 bring to the table? Will these challenges people definite sectors implicit others? The RF guys, for instance?

Koerner: Besides the 6GHz antecedently discussed, Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) and Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) introduced OFDMA, MRU (Multiple Resource Unit) and MLO (Multi-Link Operation). We spot these features arsenic a three-legged stool. Each requires the different to enactment good — but travel up abbreviated connected immoderate and the stool volition fall.

To that end, exhaustive and predictive investigating indispensable beryllium made disposable to screen the galore trial cases these 3 features introduce. From an RF perspective, determination volition beryllium small alteration from Wi-Fi 6E, it volition inactive usage the 6 GHz band, but with wider transmission bandwidths available. Some of the tests required for Wi-Fi 7 are already being designed into the regulatory trial standards.

How is Keysight addressing this accrued complexity?

Koerner: Keysight enables solutions (IOT0047A Regulatory Test Solution) to let not lone Layer 1 investigating of these features, but besides the analyzable interactions that hap astatine Layer 3 and supra (IxVeriwave). Selection of PHY rates, prime of bandwidth utilization (OFDMA/MRU), and prime of nexus (MLO) each are tied to decisions created good supra Layer 1.

Keysight besides … participate[s] successful respective manufacture relation groups processing standards, including the FCC’s Technical Advisory Council (TAC), Telecommunication Certification Bodies (TCB), the European Telecommunication Standards Institute (ETSI), and the IEEE 802.11 moving groups.

What are immoderate of the Wi-Fi 7 features that you’re astir excited about? And what precocious applications mightiness they assistance enable?

Koerner: The operation of MRU and MLO that travel from Wi-Fi 7 supply respective Wi-Fi enhancements. MRU volition let set absorption and MLO volition let for throughput management arsenic good arsenic latency selectivity. Add to that the 320 MHz transmission bandwidths that volition perchance let astonishing high-speed information rates.

Wi-Fi 7 enables a big of precocious cases. Many radical spot Wi-Fi 7 arsenic the introduction to the VR/AR satellite arsenic it allows for important latency reduction, groomed throughput and dedicated links — if needed.