Anritsu Collaborates with Qualcomm to Achieve World-First GCF Certification for 5G RF mmWave Demodulation/CSI Conformance Test

Luton, United Kingdom, February 3^rd, 2021 – Anritsu Corporation in collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. is pleased to announce that it’s 5G RF Conformance Test System ME7873NR has achieved the world’s first approval from GCF for the mmWave (FR2) 3GPP TS38.521-4 Demodulation/CSI Conformance Testing (Performance test hereafter), required for 5G NR RF Conformance tests.

GCF certified Anritsu’s ME7873NR Performance test for 5G NR FR2 non-standalone (NSA) mode tests implemented in collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies at the January 2021 CAG meeting. Prior to this GCF certification, Anritsu has been a key player at 3GPP RAN5 meetings, the body responsible for formulating RF Conformance test standards.

This certification facilitates confirmation of 5G mmWave throughput per unit time in a fading environment, helping assure terminal performance under near-to-live usage test conditions, and driving widespread rollout of commercial 5G services.  Additionally, 5G NR device developers can also use the ME7873NR for other non-Performance tests to validate device design compliance with 3GPP standards and test performance. Anritsu expects the ME7873NR to play a key role in commercial 5G mobile network services by promoting the 5G terminal market launch.

Anritsu’s General Manager of Anritsu’s Mobile Solutions Division, Mr. Shinya Ajiro, commented, “Anritsu’s collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies from the earliest testing stage has helped promote GCF certification for FR2.  For the future, we plan to lead in mobile certifications to help grow the 5G ecosystem.”

Product Outline – New Radio RF Conformance Test System ME7873NR

The ME7873NR is an automated test system for 3GPP TS 38.521/TS 38.533 5G NR RF and RRM tests. It supports both 5G NR standalone (SA) and non-standalone (NSA) modes.  Moreover, combination with the CATR Anechoic Chamber MA8172A for 5G OTA tests covers the frequency bands used not only by 3GPP FR1 (Sub-6 GHz) but also by FR2 (mmWave).  The easy-to-configure system can be tailored to match each customer’s measurement conditions.

Customers already owning the predecessor LTE-Advanced RF Conformance Test System ME7873LA can upgrade easily to the ME7873NR to obtain the latest RF test system at high cost-performance efficiency.