LTE/LTE-A device test equipment
We developed the code that is being executed by LTE/LTE-A device test equipment in the TDD functionality and which is manufactured by Keysight Technologies. This equipment can be used to assess the conformance to LTE/LTE-A standard for mobile devices and was successfully commercialized by Keysight Technologies.
We conducted the project as a joint product development with AT4wireless, a Spanish tech company that was later acquired by Keysight Technologies. The main goal of the project was the development of a test platform that could assess and validate the conformance of mobile devices to the LTE/LTE-A standard. Thus, the platform that we developed needed to behave like a eNodeB (LTE/LTE-A base station) so that mobile devices could attach to it and verify that they were working as expected.
In the course of the project, we developed the physical layer of the LTE TDD standard for its Releases 8 and 9. First, a MATLAB model was developed of all the building blocks and the model was later ported to VHDL for an FPGA-based implementation.
Besides the main development, another of the major milestones achieved was the development and testing of the dual layer beamforming feature.
The main outcome of the project was the joint development of a product that was successfully commercialized by Keysight Technologies as part of their conformance testing equipment and for which CTTC received royalties.
The developed product was acquired by LTE/LTE-A mobile manufacturers to test that their mobile handhelds were working as expected. Given the high penetration market of LTE/LTE-A devices it is clear that CTTC has contributed to the overall success of the LTE/LTE-A technology.