Keysight Technologies, Inc has enabled Foxconn Industrial Internet (Fii) to become the first manufacturer to obtain a Certificate of Conformance for an outdoor Open Radio Unit (O-RU) through the O-RAN ALLIANCE's Certification and Badging program. Fii's O-RU was validated with the Keysight Open RAN Studio solution.

By separating software from hardware through open interfaces and virtualization, Open RAN network architectures offer mobile operators increased flexibility and agility while reducing costs and enhancing security. To ensure interoperability among Open RAN equipment, the O-RAN ALLIANCE established its Certification and Badging program allowing manufacturers to verify products are compliant with O-RAN specifications by using O-RAN conformance test specifications covering the control, user, synchronization and management planes.

The Keysight Open RAN Studio enabled Fii to verify its O-RU conformance by supporting emulation and analysis of all four planes, from fronthaul Ethernet to the RF air interface. In the case of the synchronization plane (S-Plane), the solution allowed Fii to test devices under ideal time resources and apply simulated network noise, which is essential for conducting S-Plane conformance testing and certifying RAN equipment under realistic network conditions.

Fii verified their Outdoor O-RU using Keysight's:

• U5040BSCB Open RAN Studio to combine features on various test equipment into a single test solution, supporting high-performance Open Distributed Unit (O-DU) emulation for MIMO and massive MIMO O-RU testing and validation.
• Time Sync Analyzer, integrated with Open RAN Studio, to emulate the O-DU for synchronization testing by generating Precision Time Protocol, Synchronous Ethernet and digital clocks with built-in impairment for realistic testing while analyzing clock quality.
• The Keysight Open RAN Studio, integrated with Keysight's newly launched Time Sync Analyzer, simplifies testing by combining O-DU emulation with S-Plane impairment into a single solution. Designed for 5G O-RU testing, the solution meets the specifications set by O-RAN ALLIANCE and provides powerful and user-friendly capabilities for O-RU testing. Open RAN Studio is a part of the comprehensive Keysight Open RAN Architect portfolio.

Kevin Liu, vice president for Fii, said, "We are delighted to be the first in the world to receive the O-RU Certificate of Conformance for an Outdoor Radio Unit. Keysight's test solution has enabled us to take a significant step toward the commercial deployment of U-RUs."

Peng Cao, vice president and general manager for Keysight Wireless Test Group, said, "As a member of the O-RAN Alliance, Keysight will continue to work at the forefront of O-RAN technology adoption and commercial deployment. We are excited to enable milestones like Fii's Outfoor O-RU Certificate of Conformance."