How does our private network work?
RAN Wireless creates private wireless data networks for enterprise customers that need reliable, secure information exchange over large geographic areas. These networks are ideal for for critical data that shouldn’t depend on shared, congested public networks.
We built our network security from the ground up. The growth of IoT and wireless data solutions has driven high demand for secure, private networks. Our network—which covers over a 50-mile radius spanning from South Miami to Boca Raton, Florida—delivers higher reliability and security than shared, public networks.
Through our leadership in LTE and 5G technologies, we deliver standalone and integrated Private Networks for high reliability, high performance and secure communications, fulfilling business critical and mission critical needs. The solutions enable integration of diverse devices such as sensors, machines, vehicles and hand-held devices across a wide range of applications for industry enterprises.
We help communication service providers create scalable growth, by leveraging their existing network and spectrum assets through flexible deployment models.
They are deployed and managed separately of public cellular networks, but function in the same way. They make use of micro towers and small cells just like public networks – and, like public indoor and outdoor networks, the numbers, positions, and settings of these base stations are adjusted for each deployment.
Independent Private 5G Network
Independent private networks without dependencies on a licensed public operator or a wide-area network. Integration with the public network is possible, but optional.
We have a licensed spectrum.
We dedicate a portion of our licensed spectrum in the Miami-Dade geographical area.
It provides:
- Consistency due to the band being free from other potential interfering sources.
- Wider range because you can transmit a stronger signal with greater sensitivity because the band is free from noise or interference from other sources.
- Options for broadband or wideband channel capacity.
By using our private, licensed spectrum, you’ll know that your network is consistent, secure and controlled only by you.
Third parties are able to license their spectrum in this locale, and build or manage their networks, as required.
Private networks need spectrum. One of the major reasons enterprises do not routinely use mobile network technology is because it operates in licensed spectrum and requires either a license from the national regulator or an agreement with a license holder, typically a mobile operator. This licensed spectrum model will continue in 5G. Our licensed spectrum option will help our private network adoption scale rapidly.
Private networks can use spectrum across a range of frequencies, subject to diverse license terms. For industrial IoT, it’s important that spectrum is available, supported by a product and integrator ecosystem, and subject to stable regulations that allow for long-term planning. These are all important for industrial users seeking to make major investment into operational technologies that have long life cycles.
Minimizing time to market.
Our solutions include Managed Services, based on our industry proven portfolio. Securing full operational readiness from day one and minimizing time to market.
Flexible deployments for Private Networks.
Our flexible deployments for private networks range from network slicing to fully on-premises networks, which enables service providers to offer scalable, critical broadband solutions for industries and public safety agencies. RAN Wireless provides Managed Services for private networks, using sensor technology and automation boost quality and operational efficiency.
As the grid modernizes, devices become smarter. As modernization continues, the path that carries critical business data through the grid needs to be more reliable. This critical data—which is often used for grid stability, emergency operations and even disaster recovery—has to be delivered securely, quickly and separately from other less critical information.
As data keeps growing at the speed of Moore’s Law, managing and making use of it becomes more important than ever. This is done by sending it to a control system—more specifically, a radio frequency (RF) system. Utilities have used licensed networks for decades, but the introduction of advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) made use of mesh radios using unlicensed spectrum.
Once the field network is deployed, distribution automation (DA) devices are usually added to operate on the network. For many reasons, this isn't the best deployment strategy. The dynamics of field area networks (FAN) design and implementation gives you a new, more effective choice for which type of spectrum to build your network on.
Licensed vs. Unlicensed Networks.
Radio frequency is a finite resource regulated by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for public usage. They break the spectrum into bands, with each band designated for a specific type of use. Anyone can use unlicensed spectrum bands as long as they follow some general rules like using an FCC-approved device and keeping their transmit signal level low to not broadcast to a large area.
When using an unlicensed spectrum, you have to make a point to not interfere your broadcast transmission with other users. Utilities who do so need to recognize that they’re operating their AMI and FANs on a spectrum that anyone can access and use.
Unlicensed spectrums aren’t limited to just utility applications, however. Common household items like cordless telephones and baby monitors use them as well. These items were designed to avoid interference whenever possible. An example of this is frequency hopping, which allows a device like a baby monitor to move around small bands or retransmit when it discovers an interference on the spectrum.
The noise from other devices on the same unlicensed spectrum means your receiver signal has to be stronger to compete. This limits your communication to short distances—sometimes shorter than a neighborhood block. But if you were on a licensed spectrum, you wouldn’t have that problem.
Let’s say you’re using AMI, for example. You have many devices operating close to each other, and need to get messages from the closest radio device to the control center. More often than not, these network designs result in end-device messages being stored and forwarded many times from radio hop to radio hop. Operators end up waiting longer for states or execution of demands. Even worse, these systems can time out, which results in multiple retransmissions and adds increased and unpredictable delay and jitter to the network and to control applications.
Or how about unlicensed field area networks? These can introduce ongoing maintenance tasks and frustration to the end user because of the unpredictable nature of service interference. Interference might not happen during the first initial design, but can definitely come up over time. This forces a partial redesign to optimize the network by adding repeater locations.
Licensed spectrums, on the other hand, are reserved for a single use where the operator has exclusive use of a band across a geographic area over a set period. The FCC keeps a record of granted licensed spectrum requests and has a structured technical procedure for preventing and resolving interference between licenses.
If the FCC grants a band of spectrum for a specific application, like utility multiple address data nodes, utilities can access the spectrum by filing for a license and paying a nominal administrative fee.
For general use spectrums that face more demand than supply—like public cellular networks—the FCC auctions off pieces of the spectrum to the highest bidder.
It’s true that getting a spectrum license takes time and costs money. But when you consider the long-term operating costs, the consistency and exclusivity you get makes it worth the effort.
"The Last Mile."
Communications have always been important for power plants and transmission substations to monitor the electric grid. As both have evolved over time, utilities have been pushed to to have better methods of gathering and monitoring data from distribution networks—known as "the last mile" of the electric grid.
Utilities are putting smart devices on distribution poles and even on houses to monitor and provide control over grids as far as they’ll reach. The problem is that the distribution network and customers’ homes aren't connected to the same private networks as the power plants and transmission substations.
From "last mile" networks, it’s very expensive to build new private infrastructure to the power plant or substation. This is why unlicensed radio networks are usually used. As the amount of data needed increases in places that aren’t connected to the network, we should be considering licensed networks as the better option.
Choosing Licensed Networks.
For years, unlicensed radio communications was the choice for AMI and DA because the technical environment remained consistent and largely the same. Fast forward to now, and our networks demand more because of several factors:
- The number of devices that need to be connected has grown drastically.
- The amount of information that needs to be collected from each device has skyrocketed.
- All devices require faster communication (latency decreases).
- Growing throughput requirements.
- Security requirements have increased.
- The desire to reduce or completely remove interference has increased.
Our licensed spectrum gives utilities a solution to the changing communication dynamics in the last mile.
Our Goal
Our focus is to be the trusted, long-term technology partner for our customers, and provide solutions designed to meet current and future connectivity requirements for business and mission critical services.