Technology

Wireless Point to Point connections from WIN are used as an alternative to renting expensive leased lines or digging and laying fibre between locations, to provide fast, secure connectivity for data, voice and video.

The term Point-to-Point refers to the need to extend a network from one location to one other single location. This is quite different to a Point to Multi-Point connection

A Point to Point wireless connection can present a variety of interfaces to the network at each end of the link and so be used to connect data, voice or video.

Technologies used in our wireless Point to Point wireless solutions include:

Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS). 2.4GHz

• Provides a low-cost point to point solution where clear line of sight between the base station and subscribers and there is minimal use of the 2.4GHz band in the area.
• Ideal for use in rural areas or towns where a network is extended to a remote network. Antennas are the omni-directional type, typically a narrow beam width
• Data rates which are half-duplex are typically 11/5.5Mb to 54/22Mb (Gross data rate / Net useable data rate)
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Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM). 5.4 / 5.8GHz

• Ideal for higher data rate applications or where there is no clear line of sight between the two locations to be connected
• Ideal in urban and rural areas where the 2.4GHz frequency band may be congested. Antennas are the directional type, typically a narrow beam width
• OFDM must comply with Ofcom’s IR2007 regulation when used in the UK
• Data rates which are half-duplex are typically 14/7Mb to 72/48Mb (Gross data rate / Net useable data rate)

Microwave.  7 – 380GHz

• Microwave radios converge high-speed data, voice and video traffic across the link. They are low cost, high performance systems with ATM capabilities
• Licensed frequencies only – ensures no radio interference on the link and so delivers a high-quality service. An annual license is granted by the radio agency (Ofcom in the UK) to the user of the equipment
• Used for primary backbone links between locations where high availability of the connection is required (Up to 99.999% link availability per annum)
• Distances for a single link can be up to 50Km; However as this link requires clear line of sight, 20-30Kms are typically the longest link distances
• Data rates which are full duplex, range from 5Mb to 122Mb (PDH Radio type) and 155Mb (SDH radio type)
• Current technology in the this sector can now deliver IP services at data rates in excess of 1Gb

Optical Laser

• Used for short distance and high speed wireless connections for data, voice or video over short distances - typically up to 1Km where a robust all-weather link is required (Be wary of claims of longer distances with high all-weather availability!)
• Line of sight only
• Data rates which are full duplex are typically 100Mb and 1Gb

For more details on the technologies used in our wireless Point-to-Point solutions please call or contact us.