NI mmWave Transceiver System with 28 GHz radio heads

NI has announced a series of 28 GHz radio heads for the mmWave Transceiver System. The combination is said to create the first commercially available full transceiver of its kind that can transmit and/or receive wide-bandwidth signals of up to 2 GHz of bandwidth in real time, covering spectrum from 27.5 to 29.5 GHz.

The transceiver system’s software-defined radio (SDR) and application-specific software offer a complete and comprehensive starting point for 5G measurement and research addressing both the 3GPP and Verizon 5G specifications. It can operate as either an access point or user device in any over-the-air testing scenario.

Users can also develop mmWave communication prototyping systems or perform channel measurements — necessary exercises for wireless researchers to understand the characteristics of a new spectrum — using the same system. The software works with the previously released radio heads for 71–76 GHz, so users can adapt their mmWave Transceiver System to 28 GHz by changing the RF radio heads.

Additionally, the system’s baseband software delivers a complete communications physical layer compatible with the proposed 3GPP and Verizon 5G specifications as source code for LabVIEW system design software. This helps expedite system development by delivering a ready-to-run system that users can modify to adapt to their specific areas of research or testing.

The radio heads include the mmRH-3642, mmRH-3652 and mmRH-3602.