Latest Test and Measurement News

Over-the-air (OTA) Test System upgrades to Measure 802.11ax Extended Band

28 March 2022 – ETS-Lindgren added support for sixth generation Wi-Fi, 801.11ax in the newly available 6E or extended 6 GHz band. Test systems can be equipped to measure total radiated power (TRP) and total isotropic sensitivity (TIS) in the 6E band with the addition of RF path hardware and instrument drivers for CTIA-compliant EMQuest Antenna Measurement Software. Two 802.11ax capable network emulators are supported, the CMW500 from Rohde & Schwarz and the MT8862A from Anritsu. OTA systems that are upgraded for 6E support will be backward compatible with all previous Wi-Fi generations; these upgrades will not interfere with other technologies such as 4G or 5G cellular that may also be supported.

Earlier generations of Wi-Fi utilized 20, 40, and 80 MHz channel bandwidths in the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands. 802.11ax capable transceivers can utilize channels as wide as 160 MHz under optimum conditions in the 6E band, providing substantial data throughput gains. MIMO antenna systems are also common on 802.11ax capable devices, highlighting the need to fully characterize these complex devices. ETS-Lindgren OTA systems excel at testing access point (AP) and end point (EP) devices with SISO or MIMO antenna systems present.

James Young, Sr. Director of Business Development with ETS-Lindgren stated, “We appreciate the support of Rohde & Schwarz and Anritsu engineering teams in helping us craft an upgrade path for Wi-Fi 6E that preserves the investment in instrumentation, software, and chamber systems our customers have made. Lab managers praise the instrument flexibility EMQuest offers, allowing them to select the best-fit instruments across brands and models, and add technology upgrades as the market develops. Wi-Fi 6E is a perfect example of a new technology generation that we are pleased to offer as an upgrade to present OTA systems and an enhanced capability available for new systems.” Customers in the EMQuest maintenance program can immediately benefit in utilizing this Wi-Fi 6E upgrade path for Rohde & Schwarz and Anritsu instrumentation.

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