RACOM microwave links can be found in places you wouldn’t expect. One example is the ski resort of Tignes in French Alps and the Grande Motte Glacier cable car at 3,500 m above sea level.

Nowadays, of course, a cable car operator needs to have a good and reliable IP network to communicate with the top station of the cable car including a high-speed internet connection. In addition to HD camera images, status data from the cable car sensors, meteorological data and much more needs to be transmitted. It appeared that providing such a link is not easy at all…

The original connection did not work well, so when looking for a replacement, the choice turned to RAy microwave link from RACOM. At first RAy2 at 24 GHz was used on part of the link and when it proved to be successful, it was decided to implement the whole link on RACOM microwaves in the 80 GHz band.

The original connection did not work well, so when looking for a replacement, the choice turned to RACOM’s RAy microwave links. Initially RAy2 at 24 GHz was used on part of the link and when it proved to be successful, it was decided to implement the whole link on RACOM microwaves in the 80 GHz band.

Our partner Seirel invited RACOM’s technical support to help so that the installation and commissioning be carried out quickly and without complications. Although the installation took place in the summer in late August and early September, it was not easy at these altitudes. Due to the strong winds, the cable car could only travel at 1.5 m/s instead of the standard 10 m/s. On the second day it even snowed and about 700 kg of snow had to be removed from the roof of the cable car in order to climb from the cabin to the mast about halfway along the route where the repeater is located.

The connection between the top and bottom stations is realized by three RAy3-80 links. There is one link between the top station and the repeater, between the repeater and the bottom station the communication is fully backed up and there are two lines in parallel.

Despite adverse weather conditions, everything was installed and up and running within two days and all links are running reliably at 2 Gbps.

Highlights

• RAy
• Backhaul and Last Mile
• Systems Integrator / ISP
• Corporates and private
• Resistance to Interference
• High reliability

CloudNet IT-Solutions Ltd is a System Integrator / Wireless Internet Service Provider. Its networks are specifically designed to meet the needs of a broad spectrum of customers. It delivers interconnectivity to problematic and hard to reach areas in the Northern and Western Isles of Scotland providing domestic ISP services as part of the UK Government National Broadband strategy to provide 30 Mb into every home. It also provides onshore windfarms with a connection to Scottish and Southern Energy plc (SSE).

CloudNet even provided the broadband network that underpinned transmission of rural 5G traffic in the  ‘5G rural first’ project, delivering backhaul connectivity for testbeds and trials to exploit 5G benefits for rural communities and industries like agriculture, broadcasting and utilities.

The biggest issues in the Northern and Western Isles of Scotland are always weather, the topography and the robustness and reliability of microwave links used. Historically, most links didn’t last more than three months without serious corrosion and the need for frequent, costly maintenance. That is, until RACOM’s RAy3 microwave link was trialled!

Thanks to its industrial hardened design and use of heavy-duty industrial components, RAy3 has withstood everything the North Atlantic could throw at it through rain or shine. Apart from some early ‘tweaking’ of the set up to change parameter settings, the radios have continued operating maintenance free. The first link was installed in the Spring of 2018 and is still on site without the need for any hardware maintenance!

Many RACOM links are across bodies of open water connecting island communities. Thanks to RAy’s exceptional robustness against noise and interference, there have been no reflection issues with the signal and CloudNet have maintained the high levels of service and availability they have built their reputation on.

RAy3, with its higher specifications and 1 Gbps speed capability is now a firm part of the network covering the Northern and Western Isles of Scotland and provides stable and maintenance free connection in environmentally challenging conditions.

Highlights

• RAy, 17, 18 & 24 GHz
• Service provider in Ireland
• Backhaul & Last mile
• Corporates & Private
• 100 links by 2017
• Easy configuration
• Resistance to disturbances

Ripplecom operates the largest fixed wireless network in Ireland. It is a Limerick-based technology solutions provider, delivering broadband, voice and other IT services to business and private customers. Ripplecom combines industry expertise with their leading network technologies to provide complete and tailored business solutions for connectivity, voice, security and data backup that help drive business growth. In 2017 Ripplecom’s network is providing services to 2,000 business and 4,000 private households with customer numbers growing continuously.

Ripplecom uses RAy microwave links as part of its product portfolio since 2015 and by end 2017 had about 100 links installed. The links are mainly used for Backhaul of Fixed Wireless Access Sectors, facilitating the delivery of dedicated synchronous bandwidth to corporate customers. Renowned for its exceptional system gain and resistance to disturbances, RAy provides a perfect solution for this type of application. In some instances the links are also used for high speed last mile connections.

RAy microwave units excel in their technical parameters, professional design, exceptional reliability and quality. However, Ripplecom’s field engineers like working with this unit because of another feature of the product. They really like RACOM RAy microwave units because they are so easy to configure and set up compared with other products in the Microwave space.

They are quoted as saying “RAy was clearly designed with engineers in mind which makes it much easier and faster to roll out.”

Highlights

• RAy, 24 GHz
• WISP in Hungary
• Long-haul links
• Full speed even over 10 km
• Exceptional system gain
• 68 cm antennas
• Full outdoor

ACE Telecom, a 100% Hungarian-owned company was founded in 1997 with the aim of offering alternative Internet technologies including high quality Internet services to business partners in previous blind spots. Since then, ACE has expanded its portfolio with additional Internet based solutions and has, as a result, enjoyed continuous growth. This has only been possible because of the strong trust they place in their IT infrastructure.

In their never ending search to continue offering improved reliability and levels of service, ACE Telecom became one of the first ISP’s in Hungary to start building links using RAy24 microwave units. RAy24 was chosen for its exceptional system gain and resistance to disturbances but has since showcased its excellent technical parameters, and exceptional reliability and build quality.

Despite having a link distance of 10.2 Km, one such link has been operating at full capacity of 360Mb since installation. Attila Farmosi, Managing Director of ACE is very satisfied with the data transfer capability of his new infrastructure.

It will not be long before RAy24 microwave units become an integral component of ACE Telecom’s infrastructure!

Highlights

• RAy, 24 GHz
• Biggest WISP in Hungary
• Migration from 5 GHz to 24 GHz
• Link length up to 10 km
• Low consumption
• Easy setup & management
• Long warranty

Established in 2002, ZNET Telekom is now the biggest WISP in Hungary. Their core business has traditionally been to provide connectivity to the residential market. However, they are now finding their B2B involvement expanding rapidly. The commercial sector naturally places higher demands on improved SLA’s; an issue forcing ZNET to rethink their operating strategy.

Fast becoming a common problem in many territories, saturation of the 5 GHz band has been causing issues with capacity, stability and latency. Crucially, these factors are affecting acceptable levels of service to some customers.

Having fully assessed a number of microwave units in the market against key parameters, RAy 24 GHz has been selected as the optimal solution by ZNET for migration and new links based on: low consumption, resilience, best-in-market management software, long warranty period and crucially, the same hardware for both upper and lower units. Cost performance ratios also proved to be an important factor in the final decision.

ZNET are currently installing RAy 24 GHz license free links over distances up to 5 km using 68 cm antennas and 10 km using 90 cm antennas. There have been no issues with either implementation or commissioning of these links.

Indeed, ZNET’s roadmap now includes deployment of further RAy 24 GHz links and the introduction of RAy licensed products within their networks.

ZNET acknowledge that RAy solutions have become part of ZNET’s success and are providing excellent value to their customers on a daily basis.

Highlights

• RAy, 10 & 24 GHz
• Traffic flow monitoring
• Videos from routes to control room
• Repeaters on the way
• Resistance to interference
• 60 links in Prague
• Case study

Smooth traffic flow is vital for any city to function efficiently and Prague is no exception; in recent years the amount of traffic using the city’s roads has increased dramatically! It became apparent some level of management system was required. Kapsch TrafficCom Construction & Realization and CAMEA were awarded a project to provide a solution by Prague Technical Maintenance Communication Centre; installed and implemented in 2015.

Partially funded by the EU, this application provides telemetry data and video from seven arterial routes in Prague; visual detection is provided on each route and data to support traffic flow monitoring and route timing calculations. The large amounts of data to be transferred to the control centre meant Microwave radios would be required, using repeaters along each route; strategically placed sensors and cameras add data flow to the overall capacity requirement at each hop.

After exhaustive appraisal, CAMEA chose to use RAy. In order to make best use of existing infrastructure and reduce disruption during implementation, the FOD design, size and low power consumption of RAy units enabled them to be mounted on existing street lights, operating from existing power supplies and batteries. In addition, the high levels of resistance to interference, a trademark quality on all RAy units, allowed the use of smaller antennas, offering further savings.

CAMEA was grateful for the levels of support received from RACOM who provided full path analyses appraisal during the early stages of link design, recommending optimal frequency of microwave based on potential radio issues on each route. They were also delighted by the ease with which links were connected and managed.

Jan Sedláček, Head of CAMEA IT Department comments: “The reliability of the RAy units was a key factor for us. A problem with any MW radio would affect data being sent from further along the communication path and it would be costly and disruptive to gain physical access to any one site. One and a half years into this project, our choice is vindicated. There have been no stability issues since day One of the project.”

Highlights

• RAy, 10, 17 & 24 GHz
• Global Telco operator
• Corporate last-mile solution
• Hundreds of links
• Exceptional reliability
• Remote diagnostics and monitoring
• => No maintenance cost

RACOM is pleased to announce yet another success story for RAy2, latest microwave point-to-point link. Worldwide telecommunication company selected RAy2 as a standard network solution.

RAy2, the state-of-the-art, full outdoor radio met all the requirements to be listed as the standard license-free solution for the 10, 17 and 24 GHz links of major Telco operator in the Czech Republic. Links are deployed in cooperation with partner companies NHK Solutions and SUPTel — DISK.

To date, hundreds of links have been installed on dozens of sites within the Czech Republic; the network is continuously growing. Commissioning confirms customer’s expectations: RAy2 provides excellent reliability and is also appreciated for its remote diagnostic and monitoring system, allowing an immediate overview of network status.

The customer is one of the world’s largest telecommunication companies providing a wide range of services including voice, messaging, data and fixed broadband. It has some 450 millions mobile and fixed customers across the globe. Company business is split across two geographic regions – Europe, and Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific (AMAP)

Highlights

• RAy, 10, 17 & 24 GHz
• Infrastructe for Telco operators
• Used in O2 and T-mobile networks
• Corporate last-mile solution
• Backhaul for DSLAM connections
• Approx. 4000 links
• Press release

RAy has been chosen by competitive tender as the standard solution for mobile operator O2 Czech Republic (Telefonica O2 at time of the tender).

Subsequent to O2 restructuring, the network is now owned and operated by CETIN, the largest data provider in the Czech Republic. 99.6% of the Czech population is covered by CETIN’s mix of mobile GSM, UMTS, LTE and CDMA technologies using almost 6.000 base stations, as well as fixed SDH, WDM, Ethernet and IP technologies.

With the 2014 tender valid for 3 years and for more than 700 links, it was essential to select future proofed and reliable Microwave links for 10, 17 and 24 GHz, all required for the project. After demanding testing, RAy was chosen ahead of almost all world-renowned producers who were also being considered for the contract.

The reasons for RAy being selected were summarized by Martin Králík, Director of NHK Solutions, RACOM’s partner for this project:

“The excellent RAy performance in terms of unique sensitivity and resistance to interference, extraordinary reliability and advanced diagnostics were further complemented by additional features in the new RAy including optical and metallic user interfaces, jumbo frame support, an IP-TV optimized modem and broad range of DC power options. These are all features that make for a perfect fit, to meet the extensive demands of a customer of CETIN’s caliber.”

In this application RAy is used for last mile connection to corporates and as a backhaul for forward DSLAM connections. ADSL (VDSL) connectivity is provided from DSLAM to the end users.

Resulting from complete satisfaction with RAy, the contract with RACOM and NHK Solutions was extended by CETIN in 2017 for three years and then indefinitely in 2020.

RAy links in Cetin network are nowadays used by O2, T-mobile and other Tier 1 operators in Czech republic.