First End-to-End OTA Validation Successfully Completed at VALOR lab’s new RF-shielded anechoic chamber
VIAVI Solutions has completed the first end-to-end, over-the-air (OTA) validation of an Open RAN Radio Unit (O-RU) using its fully automated Lab-as-a-Service (VALOR) platform and purpose-built RF-shielded anechoic chamber. The test, conducted on the JURA O-RU from Taiwan-based Metanoia Communications, took place at VIAVI’s Chandler, Arizona facility, launched in 2024 with support from a $21.7 million grant awarded by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Public Wireless Supply Chain Innovation Fund.
RF-shielded anechoic chambers are highly specialised test environments designed to eliminate external radio frequency (RF) interference while also preventing internal signal reflections. Constructed within a Faraday cage, the chamber is completely lined (floor, walls, and ceiling) with small, radio wave-absorbing foam pyramids, ensuring a controlled, echo-free space for accurate RF testing, similar in appearance to some high-end recording studios.
Within this isolated environment, VALOR conducted over-the-air (OTA) testing to measure critical performance metrics under realistic radio conditions. End-to-end functional and performance validation was executed in accordance with test cases defined by the O-RAN TIFG. These evaluations examined the O-RU’s behaviour across the control, user, and management planes to ensure conformance with O-RAN architecture and performance standards. The tests were conducted in an integrated multi-vendor setup, with the Distributed Unit (DU) reference implementation provided by Fujitsu.
Metanoia’s JURA O-RU, is a 4T4R, 24 dBm, 5G FR1 radio unit operating in sub-6 GHz spectrum. It supports Time Division Duplexing (TDD), where uplink and downlink transmissions share the same frequency. Supported TDD bands include N77, N78, N79, and and notably, N48, which is used for CBRS in the United States.
End-to-end validation is a critical milestone in the complex process of bringing Open RAN products to market. It reduces time, cost, and risk by ensuring that components from different vendors can be integrated reliably, securely, and efficiently into live networks. Despite industry consensus recognising the growing need to increase end-to-end testing capacity, VIAVI’s VALOR remains the first, and currently only, lab certified by the Telecom Infra Project (TIP) to conduct this type of system performance certification, building on O-RAN ALLIANCE test specifications with active input from the global operator community.
“Open RAN-based systems are set to significantly increase telecoms innovation, but a network is far too complex an environment to rely on trust alone.” said Erik Probstfield, Senior Director of VALOR at VIAVI. “VALOR, especially with its OTA testing, allows companies such as Metanoia to independently validate the functionality and performance of their hardware, and gives network operators assurance that it will integrate seamlessly into their existing networks.”
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