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Sunday, July 5, 2015

The Cellular DAS: The Basics

By Edna Booker


There are many situations where some spots have poor cellular network coverage. In some cases, the network is not available at all. This is common in high rise buildings, underground transportation systems and the highly populated areas like shopping malls, hospitals, college campuses, and stop arenas where the existing network system is overwhelmed by the demand such as many places in Raleigh city. The distributed antenna system, also known as the cellular DAS is the technology that boosts network coverage in areas with poor connectivity by installing a network of small antennas in the area that serve as repeaters.

The antennas are physically connected using a coaxial cable or the fiber to a central controller. This central controller is in turn connected to some wireless carrier network base station. The system increases the signal reliability and the power consumption is also less. Since the distributed antenna systems operate on RF spectrum that is licensed to a wireless carrier, it is not possible for an enterprise to undertake the deployment of DAS without one or more carriers.

The additional antennas mean better network coverage. The additional antennas are able to increase the line-of-sight channel that is responsible for a better network coverage. In normal systems, the provision of the cellular signals can be very power consuming since the system has to overcome the shadowing effect and penetration problems all which lead to the loss of signal.

The DAS antenna node are very compact. As such, they can be deployed indoors and even outside. In addition to this, they are smaller in size and require less power allowing them to be installed in the areas where the zoning restriction don't allow the cell towers to be placed. In fact, it can be tied to a given wireless carrier such as Verizon or AT&T. The best option, however, is the use of a neutral-host provider that has a multiple carriers.

In any DAS project, the deployment stage is the most expensive. This is mainly due to the labor intensive process of antenna installation and stinging the coaxial cable or the fiber optic in between the antenna modules and the controller.

In most cases, the cost of the equipment, installation cost, maintenance cost, and upgrading of the system are all borne by the carrier. This means that a carrier is likely to accept to bear the cost if the deployment fits within its network plan and is able to cover a large number of the subscribers. In most cases, the DAS system is shared with multiple carriers to keep the cost down.

The distributed antenna systems are transparent to the mobile devices. It provides the voice services as well as data services to the mobile devices. It offers the most appropriate solution to the densely populated spaces such as the university campuses, shopping malls, sport arenas, the medical centers and the tall buildings.

With the DAS system, it is easy to offer the voice and data services through the mobile devices to the users in the densely populated areas where the typical system is overwhelmed by the demand. The system is also suitable for the remote locations that have poor network coverage or those with no coverage at all. Today, it is widely used in the city of Raleigh. It comes with the advantages of easing the zoning and antenna placement, no need for site development, and consumes lower power.




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