Rohde & Schwarz, a leading name in test and measurement, has added 3GPP NTN test capabilities to verify the world’s first 5G satellite-to-mobile messaging smartphone from Bullitt, a leading manufacturer of rugged phones.
Bullitt and fabless semiconductor company MediaTek have collaborated and added direct-to-satellite communications to the next generation of Bullitt-designed rugged 5G smartphones, making Bullitt the first company to integrate the MediaTek 3GPP NTN Rel.17 chipset in its device.
Rohde & Schwarz says it has extended its market-leading NB-IoT solution with 3GPP Release 17 NTN features to provide an ecosystem with R&D, production and conformance testing functions.
Non-terrestrial networks became a major topic in the wireless industry with the publication of 3GPP Release 17. The primary use case is network coverage via satellite for emergencies in remote rural or offshore areas as well as for global tracking and positioning. The R&S CMW500 wideband radio communication tester from Rohde & Schwarz now supports Rel-17 NB-NTN and simulates a satellite base station by using an R&S SMBV100B to generate GNSS signals.
What is described as a groundbreaking test solution from Rohde & Schwarz verifies that SOS messaging and two-way messaging work reliably in no-coverage scenarios via non-terrestrial networks (NTN) in line with 3GPP.
At MWC 2023, a test setup has been showcased at the Rohde & Schwarz booth featuring the Bullitt smartphone with integrated MediaTek 3GPP NTN Rel.17 chipset.
