Keysight Delivers Number of 5G NR Protocol Conformance Test Cases

Keysight Technologies has announced that the company’s 5G network emulation solutions deliver a leading number of 5G new radio (NR) protocol conformance test cases validated by the Global Certification Forum (GCF) and PTCRB, a certification forum consisting of leading U.S. mobile operators.

Keysight’s leadership in validated protocol test cases enables the mobile ecosystem to accelerate 5G NR device certification in compliance with specifications set by 3GPP, the global mobile communications standards organization. This early access to a comprehensive set of test cases allows device makers to speed validation of a wide range of scenarios.

Keysight’s 5G Protocol Conformance Toolset, part of Keysight’s suite of 5G network emulation solutions, offers a leading number of GCF validated 5G NR protocol test cases in non-standalone (NSA) mode across both frequency range 1 (FR1) and FR2. The toolset uniquely offers protocol test cases for standalone (SA) mode as validated by both GCF and PTCRB. The standalone mode leverages a new 3GPP core network architecture – the 5G Core (5GC) – to unlock the full potential of 5G NR, resulting in new use cases requiring ultra-low latency and higher capacity.

“By offering a leading number of RF and protocol conformance test cases validated by both GCF and PTCRB on the same platform, we’re making it possible for global mobile ecosystems to efficiently accelerate 5G device certification, bringing 5G commercial services to consumers around the world,” said Kailash Narayanan, vice president and general manager of Keysight's wireless test group. “We’re pleased to play a key role in speeding the deployment of a wide range of 5G use cases addressing enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) and ultra-low latency requirements for both consumer and vertical industry applications.”

Following the CAG#59 meeting in Malaga, Spain in July 2019, Keysight announced that the company’s 5G Conformance Toolset (Test Platform 168) offers leading coverage of GCF validated RF test cases. Also in July, Keysight announced that the company’s collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies Inc. resulted in the industry's first GCF validation of 5G NR conformance test cases for RF demodulation and radio resource management (RRM) in non-standalone (NSA) mode for FR1. Earlier this year, Keysight announced that the company was first to submit 5G NR test cases to PTCRB for radio frequency (RF) in non-standalone mode in FR2 and for protocol in SA mode in FR1.

Keysight’s 5G Protocol Conformance Toolset enables mobile operators, chipset and device manufacturers, as well as test labs, to validate new devices across the workflow, from early design to acceptance and manufacturing in both sub-6GHz (FR1) and mmWave (FR2) frequency bands. The solution suite leverages the company’s UXM 5G Wireless Platform to provide early access to a comprehensive range of test cases on a common platform.

Keysight in 5G

Keysight’s industry-first 5G end-to-end design and test solutions enable the mobile industry to accelerate 5G product design development from the physical layer to the application layer and across the entire workflow from simulation, design, and verification to manufacturing, deployment, and optimization.

Keysight offers common software and hardware platforms compliant to the latest 3GPP standards, enabling the ecosystem to quickly and accurately validate 5G chipsets, devices, base stations and networks, as well as emulate subscriber behaviour scenarios.