Bristol is Open
Edge Networks provided key design and deployment services for the “Bristol is Open” wireless network. Bristol Is Open, a city-wide high-speed private network testbed for smart city solutions was created as a joint venture between Bristol City Council and the University of Bristol. Built on open network principles the wireless and mesh network is technology agnostic and uses gigabit fibre optical backbone. It features wireless technologies from Wi-Fi to 2G, 3G, 4G, massive MIMO (multiple-in multiple-out), LTE and even some 5G. An additional 1,500 Wi-Fi meshed network lamp posts allows transmission of data around the city without requiring fibre optic connections.
Edge Networks provided multiple services for many different components including the low frequency RF mesh (smart street lighting) and thousands of remote devices multihomed to a small number of gateway locations. Wi-Fi and Wi-Gig consumer access technologies for high speed device connectivity and 4G / LTE-A testbed nodes, all of which connected to the underlying fibre network, directly at a fibre enabled location, or using street furniture or building mounted Millimetre wave point-to-point wireless to a fibre enabled location.
The fibre network design consisted of an inner-city ring consisting of a single fibre pair, which utilised wavelength division multiplexing for efficient use of capacity and provided dedicated connectivity between primary sites equipped with terminal multiplexers and remote locations (outside-plant / street furniture) equipped with single channel OADM filters over a passive optical network.
Bristol Is Open is funded by the local, national and European governments, with academic research funding, and by the private sector. It is delivering research and development initiatives that contribute to the development of a smart city and the ‘Internet of Things’.
Click the link below to find out more about Edge Networks optical, routing and wireless networking capabilities:
