Infovista announced support for 5G RedCap network planning with the launch of the latest version of its AI-powered RF planning solution, Infovista Planet.
For the first time, operators’ network planning teams can now include 3GPP-compliant 5G RedCap devices as part of their analysis and simulation of 5G Standalone networks. Operators are currently in the early network planning stages of 5G RedCap, with the GSA recently reporting that of the 126 mobile operators investing in 5G Standalone today, 17 are in the process of investing in 5G RedCap for emerging use cases and applications.
Infovista Planet is also enhanced with market-leading capabilities for planning 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) coverage and capacity, and can now perform Monte Carlo simulations on both standalone FWA networks and mixed traffic consisting of FWA CPEs, mobile UEs and RedCap devices. Leveraging Infovista’s expertise in line-of-sight (LOS) modeling from its microwave backhaul modeling tool Ellipse, Planet now also includes full site-to-FWA subscriber analysis for one-to-many and many-to-many scenarios.
The latest release of Planet AIM, Infovista’s flagship AI-powered RF propagation model, adds further enhancements to the Planet RF planning capabilities, including rooftop propagation and the ability to model the coverage on all rooftops in the same layer. These new capabilities enable operators’ network engineers to determine which sites an FWA subscriber has line of sight to and identify FWA CPE rooftop mounting options, significantly improving the speed, accuracy and, ultimately, the profitability of FWA service rollout.
Building on Planet’s existing capabilities for Open RAN planning, the solution now includes new network views, with its map view and site explorer now able to display O-RAN nodes and their logical relationships. New best server layer options visualize 5G architectures including Best DU, Best CU/BBU and Best MEC, enabling network planners to quickly and accurately identify service areas.
Regis Lerbour, VP Product, RAN Engineering and Testing, at Infovista
The success of any mobile network starts with the integrity and accuracy of its radio access network design. However, with new technologies such as 5G RedCap and new coverage models such as FWA, the 5G network planning challenge is becoming ever more complex. The ability to model the RF parameters, simulate the full range of devices and services, and visualize network KPIs create a complexity that only an AI-powered RF planning solution can deliver. The release of Planet 7.10 is a significant milestone for the industry as it moves from investment into deployment of new 5G standalone networks.
