The physical limits of the electromagnetic spectrum used for telecommunications and the spectrum of light available in fibre-optic cables limit the available bandwidth and can lead to increased latency of communication networks, as more devices are added to networks that compete for the available bandwidth. This can hobble user experience in information and technology communication (ICT) services.

However, specific architectural design of telecommunications networks that combine the use of fixed and mobile network-based transmission capacity can help to overcome these physical limitations and enable fast, high-bandwidth experiences for users, said a panel of experts from Japan-based international ICT firm NEC and African networking company XON, earlier this month.

These networks would enable the reuse of various bands of spectrum within narrow areas, called small cells. This small-cell network architecture would mostly be applied to dense urban areas, where the physical limits of telecommunications technologies were most profound, said NEC global business chief engineer Shinya Kukita.

NEC proposed a network designed around small areas of connectivity, with the data backhauled from these small cells by fibre optic, radio and microwave connections to nodes for routing.

Further, small-cell architecture would reuse existing infrastructure to provide small areas of high-bandwidth connectivity by placing the small-cell nodes on lamp posts and other regularly spaced infrastructure, says NEC Africa carrier networks business development manager Willem Wentzel.

These small-cell nodes would actively monitor the electromagnetic spectrum in use and adapt their transmission behaviour to avoid interference and provide superior wireless connectivity for users within their footprint. Advanced interference coordination enables small cells to use spectrum bands efficiently to provide high-speed and -quality user connectivity, said Adva Optical Networking technical marketing and analyst relations VP Michael Ritter.

This architecture would also improve the experience of users connected to macro cells, as there would be less traffic load on the traditional macro-layer, since many users’ data would be managed within these small-cell systems.

There was no end in sight to the increasing wireless demand; however, the physical limits of wireless telecommunications would result in users’ experience decaying as new users were added to the current networks, representing a significant threat to the growth of telecommunications providers’ capacity to add clients and meet demand, said Juniper Networks vertical marketing senior director Paul Gainham.

Interference coordination and traffic management would also reduce the common occurrence of overprovisioning by network providers. This helps to lower infrastructure costs for network development and consequently to lower costs for mobile users, added Ritter.

Kukita noted that NEC’s main role in the roll-out of these microcell technology networks would be the orchestration of the various elements to ensure that the whole network delivered the intended high-speed and high-throughput to benefit customer experiences.

The small-cell architecture also pro- vided ample opportunity for various network and service providers to play their roles in providing services, which, subsequently, also allowed smaller service providers to compete effectively against larger ones without favouring any sized business, added Gainham.

“The small-cell architecture paradigm also means that network, Internet and other service providers can co-exist and be rewarded for their services. “Innovative network architecture is required to reduce latency and improve performance, while increasingly auto-nomous traffic management is also necessary to enable the underlying network to provide the end-to-end quality of experience required by end- users, as well as network and Internet service providers,” he concluded.