802.11 Market Deployment Business Plan -  The model characterized deployment and operating costs for a mid-sized city (which we could extrapolate to a regional or national deployment). The model included a flexible approach to adding or deleting elements of subscription revenue  national roaming and billing aggregator's costs, implementation costs, and operating costs. Our model helped determine the viability of hot-spots in various business models, and assumed entities in the value chain, including the amenities model, the subscription model, the revenue-share model, and the nation service organization model / local independent operator model. We conceptualized as assumptions innovative traffic, backhaul, service quality, global mobility, merchant applications and business services  to support discussions around the various ways of deploying the business, and therefore the various outcomes attainable by the business model.

Nationwide Broadband Wireless Deployment -  For a major operator, we completed a business model, RFI, and an architecture for a nationwide rollout. For this well known national carrier, we performed due-diligence on their business model for rolling out a broadband wireless network across the country. We developed overall RF and network system architecture, requirements and capabilities, and provided recommendations on system features.  We generated an RFI and evaluated key vendors’ responses.  PBM described guidelines for RF planning, backhaul aggregation, VoIP and network management.  We provided support on spectrum selection, bandwidth recommendations and frequency planning.  We deepened and extended their business model to accurately reflect capital and operating costs for the deployment. We provided RF Engineering and Data Networking Engineering architecture alternatives to use as a basis for scenario planning.  The RFI we developed was issued to over one dozen top broadband wireless vendors to respond to the nationwide deployment plan, and we performed due-diligence on those vendor responses for this client.  Both our, and the vendor's, up-to-the-minute knowledge of current and planned broadband wireless technologies and other key and current broadband wireless deployment techniques aided the client in refining the plan for senior executive action.

An Enterprise Rollout of 802.11 Nationwide - We provided strategy, modeling and RF propagation prediction leadership (trialing Wireless Valley, Ekahau and EDX)  to this Fortune 100 multi-national to allow general purpose wireless LANs in their plants and divisional headquarters nationwide. This enterprise has over 900 locations across the country and had a need for designing wireless LANs in these locations, but with the proper security,  intrusion detection, network management, coverage quality, and cost efficient implementation. An innovative, cost effective deployment plan was conceived that enabled field personnel to conduct field survey's and the national IT group to conduct computer simulated coverage and capacity prediction of coverage within large multi-story offices, sprawling factories and plants, warehouses and distribution centers. Custom indoor coverage was provided that delivered high quality signal strength within the premises, little to no signal beyond the premises, and a VLAN / SSID  segmentation that enabled multiple levels of access and security for various user groups.

MMDS Guidance (Requirements) Document - We provided a document that gave guidance to MMDS RF vendors during their development of next generation systems from the perspective of a global carrier. The guidance document included requirements in the areas of the CPE, the base station configuration and scalability, the air interface and channel model, the antenna and antenna system, the layer-2 and layer-3 services to offer, the required frequency reuse and frequency planning, TMN/FCAPS network management, SLA/QoS requirements, security, standardization, transmission and topology LAN/WAN needs, reliability, RF range and capacity in link and area terms, characterization of the degree of "non-line-of-sightedness"  (k-factor), spectral efficiency in challenging spectrum (with flexible use in adjacent channels), portability, WLAN interoperability, fourth generation hierarchical architectures. We presented this guidance, on behalf of the principal, to over one dozen of the industry's top vendors' CEO's, CTO's, and senior executives. The guidance influenced vendor technology roadmaps, development plans, and feature set.

Wireless Network Capacity -  We developed mathematical and statistical models to predict the future network growth and circuit capacity for a large (over one dozen cities)  wireless broadband network for a large carrier. The models estimated the minimum capacity requirements in each component of the network system in order to establish and maintain a customer Service Level Agreement. The components were inbound and outbound frequencies, sectors, channels, routers, circuits and network monitoring devices. There were several different service level agreements offered to customers. There were different vendor wireless terminal tools with each vendor using distinct scheduling methods. The mathematical capacity model considered all the variables in determining the network resource usage. Based on the network usage model, a future network growth model was developed.

Bandwidth Capacity Analysis - Based on real-time raw utilization data, we analyzed and reported network traffic bandwidth utilizations statistics. We provided graphical representations  for both customer and equipment usage. Both RF and DS3 traffic backhaul statistics were examined and a matrix comparison created over time. Reported over-utilization problems to the network operations center for re-provisioning. Developed and published to the web daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly executive level traffic bandwidth utilization reports.

Wi-Fi RF Channel Congestion, Interference & Co-existence -  For a major carrier, we analyzed the nature of interference and coexistence of 802.11b users in the 2.4 GHz ISM band. While there are 11 channels in the band, only three can be used in a non-overlapping manner. The small number of channels is a  challenge to RF reuse planning and design for hot zone coverage. This project evaluated the WiFi system’s performance in an emitter rich, interference environment as the number of access points and users are increased. This understanding will helped the user to design a system with minimal interference, the system throughput was maximized, and coexistence between un-coordinated access points was realized.

MMDS Second Generation Carrier Services  – For a major carrier, we provided network architecture designs that extended carrier services beyond simple ISP services.  The design leveraged the second generation MMDS capabilities coupled with the existing core network infrastructure (IP, ATM, FR, and voice) to extend core services such as private network, managed / unmanaged VPN, and VoIP to customers.

MMDS RF Vendor to Core Network Selection Guide  - The core network elements usually dictate the services that the operator can provide to its customer.  We provided a major operator with a strategy  that matched MMDS elements (from the top MMDS RF access link vendors) with various core network element vendor's switching / routers to provide state of the are service delivery capabilities.  In addition, we provided guidance on network/service planning, based on the compatibility of the protocol stacks of the RF access link vendors and the core network switching router vendors. This enabled executives with a what-if matrix to view what services worked with which combination of leading core and access vendor's offerings.

Broadband Wireless Standards Latest Development - We created a white paper detailing the latest developments of wireless standards.  Focus was on the IEEE wireless standards bodies. We researched the latest sub-committee activities including the 802.11a/b/g (Wi-Fi and multi-band equipment), 802.15 (Bluetooth), 802.16 (WiMAX), and 802.20 groups. We created a Mobility Matrix to clearly identify the differences between the standards. An executive level presentation modeled after this white paper was published.

MMDS RF/TDD Equipment Vendor Field Trials – Executed field trials with four major RF/TDD equipment vendors employing competing technologies in the 2.5-2.7 GHz (MMDS/ITFS) band.  Time Division Duplexing (TDD) uses a single frequency channel for both uplink and downlink communications, thus allowing operators with limited spectrum to enter a market rapidly.  Trials were executed at the same market area and test point locations for all vendors.  Vendors were subjected to a comprehensive test plan and thoroughly evaluated on ease of installation, provisioning, network management, RF propagation (indoor and outdoor), cell radius, data throughput, and MAC layer efficiency.

3GPP TD-CDMA Network Market Trial - Designed and deployed a 4 hub (12 sector) W-CDMA network for a major WISP in a large metropolitan market.  Performed Appendix D studies leading to FCC licensing and participated in all project phases from initial cellular system design to actual build out, turn up, testing and validation.  Also performed frequency planning, interference analysis, RF network optimization, and operations support for 300+ commercial subscribers.

Broadband Wireless Regional RF and Demographic Design - We provided an innovative entrepreneur with advanced demographic analysis support (MapInfo) and demonstrations of RF planning tools (CelPlan and EDX) that allowed this entrepreneur to garner the information necessary to complete a fund raising business plan. The RF engineering tools enabled the entrepreneur to visualize service coverage and subscriber density using graphical maps that allowed for the accurate planning of service rollout. The principal consultants of PBMnetworks and Associates are experienced with most major wireless RF design tools including some industry classics (Planet, CellCAD and other RF design tools). After proper spreadsheet modeling, using operations research constrained optimization techniques, a deep design tool can provide the last level of detail before an RFI, RFP or RFQ process. Then after vendor selection, a deep design tool will establish a very accurate and cost effective implementation blueprint for deployment and installation.

MVNO Services and Features- For a nationally recognized Brand entering the MVNO Services marketplace we defined and addressed their key requirements including Services, Features, Network Management, Installation, Distribution channels, and Customer Support for a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) strategy. By segregating the architecture into core elements and gateways to their access network partner, we were able to assist this operator achieve an awareness of the physical and virtual elements of their MVNO business. 

Wireless Projects