PARTNER FEATURE: The world is developing towards limitless connectivity. With the evolution of wireless networks,  there are more frequency bands and systems. How to scale down the radio units and reduce the energy consumption to make a greener digital world is a long-term challenge for operators.

In the past, network modernization used to focus on “vertical integration”, including tri-band integration of sub-1GHz and dual-band of mid-band. On the basis of “vertical integration”, ZTE is further proactive in “horizontal integration”, coming out with the OmniUBR products and then the industry’s simplest multi-RAT site solution – UniSite NEO. With these innovations, ZTE can help operators to save as many as 13 radio units (a sharp drop from 15 to 2) for the modernization of a 3-sector and 5-frequency-band 4G site. Therefore, the site load is cut down greatly, particularly fitting the greenfield scenarios. Together with the new-generation high-performance 5G AAU and UBR products, the 2G/3G/4G/5G site with 3 sectors and 6 frequency bands is realized with only 5 radio modules. For the evolution from 2G to 5G, UniSite NEO is the most simplified site solution in the industry.

Not merely the reduction in quantity, UniSite NEO is also progressive in energy saving. The leading strength of the next generation chips, full circuit design optimization, PA efficiency improvement, innovative DPD algorithm and advanced heat dissipation architecture enable UniSite NEO to reduce the energy consumption by 40%. Consequently, the investment in the power supply and battery is reduced by at least 25%. All these features make UniSite NEO to stand out, definitely the best choice for constructing a green network.

The sharp decrease of radio modules and energy consumption are the result of our focus on customer needs and continuous innovations. Let’s have a close look at the considerable benefits UniSite NEO is about to bring to operators. The equipment quantity as well as the weight and volume reduction achieves up to 57% of tower space saving, which can greatly reduce the site construction and leasing costs. Besides, the power supply and auxiliary infrastructure costs can also be saved. In terms of energy consumption, taking the ETSI model as an example, UniSite NEO will help each site with 3 sectors and 6 frequency bands to save 50kWH+ per day, equivalent to 25kg of carbon emission saving per day per site, a large step towards the carbon neutrality target.

To talk about Green, ZTE has put ceaseless efforts in innovation to provide better energy efficiency in mobile networks. ZTE PowerPilot solution provides precise energy saving strategy for each cell with the big data and AI capability for traffic forecast. It introduced the industry’s first service navigation function among RATs, to find out the most suitable RAT to carry traffic based on the identified service type, further optimizing the energy efficiency. To precisely identify the co-coverage network layers and have AI-based traffic prediction of the multi-layers, the real-time service navigation and energy saving strategy is implemented. PowerPilot, an intelligent energy saving solution, besides the power saving, it works on the premise of ensuring user experience and network performance. By predicting the cell load and evaluating service requirements and the available radio resources, user experience is guaranteed. Also with KPI based parameter online optimization, network performance is ensured.

In addition, PowerPilot also aims at optimizing the power consumption of the 5G terminal, with functions like less UE state transition or less signal interaction. From field verification, over 30%+ longer battery life for 5G terminals can be ensured, the standby time of idle UE is extended from 13 hours to 5 days, and the power consumption of the typical service in 1 hour is reduced by over 25%.

As of 2021 year end, PowerPilot solution has been commercialized in more than 30 networks worldwide, involving over 900,000 sites. Scaled commercial use has proved that the overall prediction accuracy rate is above 90%, effectively reducing the energy consumption of network by over 20% per day. With the evolution of PowerPilot and more features and power saving strategies equipped in a more precise manner, the network carbon footprint will be continuously reduced.

Ceaseless innovation on hardware and software is ushering an era of simplified sites and more power saving. In the future, ZTE is committed to improving the energy efficiency while ensuring the ultimate performance and experience, helping operators maintain a greener mobile network and create a green digital world.

Shen Jianda, Vice President, ZTE Corporation
Vice General Manager of RAN Products