Pivotal Commware has begun commercial shipments of its 28 GHz Echo 5G™ subscriber repeater to a first tier mobile network operator in the U.S., according to the company. The Echo 5G is a repeater using what Pivotal calls “Holographic Beam Forming®” (HBF) to improve mmWave signal coverage inside a home or office.

The Echo 5G is installed on a window by the user and acts as a wireless portal, retransmitting the outdoor signal indoors. It is designed to counteract the penetration, reflection and structural shadowing losses impairing mmWave signal propagation. Intended for 5G and other fixed wireless access services used by consumers and businesses, the Echo 5G supports Gbps speeds.

Pivotal says its patented HBF technology achieves cost, size, weight and power consumption significantly lower than phased array beamformer systems: an order of magnitude less cost, less than half the weight and less than one third the power consumption.

Brian Deutsch, CEO of Pivotal Commware, said, “Echo 5G has solved the mmWave indoor penetration challenge. Now, mmWave license holders worldwide can boost their service to its full potential.”

Pivotal’s next product will be an outdoor network repeater, called Pivot 5G™. It is being developed to improve mmWave coverage outside, by capturing and redirecting mmWave signals from a 5G base station around obstacles, such as buildings. Pivotal says the Pivot 5G can reduce an operator’s capital investment in base stations, the time to deploy networks and ongoing operating costs. Pivotal plans to introduce the Pivot 5G during the first half of this year.