5G will deliver high-speed, low-latency broadband connectivity that will open the door to a new generation of applications, according to the GNSS Market Report from the European GNSS Agency ( GSA ), published earlier this month.

The market reports predicts that several mobile 5G commercial launches will take place over the next three years in North America, Asia-Pacific and Europe, with 1.2 billion 5G connections expected in 2025 according to the GSM Association (GSMA). In anticipation of this 5G growth, receiver manufacturers are developing and launching hardware that can meet the increased requirements of the future networks. One such launch is the new GNM181 receiver module from Meinberg, which hit the market at the start of October this year.

Stringent timing requirements

With nanosecond-level timing accuracy, the new Meinberg GNM181 multi-band GNSS receiver module not only meets the most stringent 5G timing requirements, it provides a differential timing mode for highly accurate local timing and built-in security for highest robustness against malicious attacks.

This robustness is particularly relevant for 5G, as the 5G timing and synchronisation function may require more precision and more robustness than 4G, and will face more deployment challenges, such as a large number of sites in difficult locations. Thanks to its multi-constellation capacity (Galileo, GPS , BeiDou, and GLONASS ), the receiver is ideal for global deployments and is unaffected by ionospheric errors, with automatic ionospheric correction.

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The variety of inputs and outputs means that the combined GNSS receiver is suitable for a broad range of applications, including time and frequency synchronisation tasks and the measurement of asynchronous time events.

“The strength of Galileo’s signal and its advanced code modulations mean that Galileo is better at mitigating multipath effects. This will be critical for urban 5G networks. The latest offering from Meinberg shows that the industry understands Galileo’s benefits, such as high accuracy timing, and is eager to pass them on to customers,” said GSA Head of Market Development Fiammetta Diani.

Robust dual frequency

According to the GNSS Market Report, the availability of accurate, cost effective and robust, dual-frequency GNSS systems, in particular Galileo, will be critical in providing business opportunities within the 5G market. The GNM181 receiver ticks this box also, offering dual frequency support for GPS ( L1 , L2 ), Galileo (E1, E5), GLONASS (L1OF, L2OF) and Beidou (B1l, B2l) with a new multi-band antenna.

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The module is fully compatible with Meinberg’s Intelligent Modular Synchronisation (IMS) product family, which means that the GNM181 clock module can be installed in any clock slot on all IMS systems. Users can easily add the GNM181 as a second, redundant clock module to their already deployed IMS systems or field-replace their current IMS clock modules with the new GNM181 multiband receiver board.

The modular approach of the IMS platform allows field replacement and hot-swap capabilities for modules and power supplies. This concept makes the platforms future-proof and expandable by making it possible to add or replace modules when new technologies or interfaces are required.

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