Point to multipoint wireless backhaul systems for cost-effective small cell deployment

Mobile data consumption has had a phenomenal rise over the last few years and is set to continue for many to come. Cell densification will play a central role in meeting this demand, allowing the same spectrum to be further reused to increase overall network capacity. In such a scenario, backhaul technologies can be expensive in terms of both CAPEX and OPEX, and none of the traditional solutions provide the necessary combination of capacity and cost-efficiency. This paper defines a Q-band point to multipoint backhaul architecture with the key nodes comprising the network that provides multi-gigabit capacity in a cost-effective manner. The small-scale field-trial of the network platform providing up to 100-Mbit/s throughput per site is also described.