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Questions and Answers

                                 
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Q&A for 60GHz links

General Information

Product Information

Installation Information

Why Gigabit Ethernet (GigE)?

LANs are rapidly converging on GigE as the basic server backbone speed. In order to extend LAN backbones between buildings, GigE links are required in order to prevent the inter-building connection from becoming the performance bottleneck for the entire client base located in the building that is remote from the physical servers. Not only are the backbone connections converging on GigE, but also GigE is quickly becoming the interface of choice for client PCs.

Why 60 GHz?

60GHz is license-free spectrum with most of the benefits of licensed spectrum. While anyone can deploy a 60GHz link without permits, paperwork, public notices nor license fees, narrow antenna beamwidths and oxygen absorption phenomena minimize the potential for interference between users.

What about security?

The GE60 naturally provides a high degree of physical link security. Oxygen absorption prevents reception of signals beyond one kilometer of a transmitter. The very narrow antenna beamwidth and very low antenna side lobes prevent eavesdropping without locating a receiver directly in the path of a link. Any attempt to introduce another GE60 radio into an existing link path will almost certainly result in a link outage, preventing interception of data and allowing network management personnel to detect the intrusion attempt.

What about rain?

60 GHz signals are strongly attenuated by heavy rainfall. Based on the geographic area of deployment and application availability requirements, it is simple to determine the maximum link distance that can be supported. See the distance chart to determine how far a GE60 link can operate in your area.

What about snow and fog?

Neither snow nor fog has any significant impact on GE60 links.

Where can I buy a GE60 link? Just click here for a QuickQuote>>

Where does BridgeWave design and manufacture its products?

All BridgeWave products are designed and manufactured at BridgeWave's headquarters in the Santa Clara, CA.

What components make up the system?

A GE60 link consists of:

  • 2 ea. GE60 Radios (1 Low band with Red Marker on Front & 1 High band with Blue Marker on Front)
  • 2 ea. Wall Mount Kits
  • 2 ea. AC-DC power adapters & power cords
  • 2 ea. Pole Mount Kits (required only when mounting the radio onto a pole)
  • Visual alignment tool or VAT for course alignment
  • 2 ea. Test cable for a volt meter for final alignment (volt meter not included; 1 provided per GE60 for new shipments from BridgeWave after 3/1/05)
  • 1 ea. CD-ROM containing Installation Manual (1 provided per pair of radios)
  • 2 ea. Power cables with DC power connectors attached for use with outdoor radio
  • 8 ea. DC power connectors

How many models are available?

Bridgewave now offers 12 different link models including the new E-Band 80GHz licensed links.

What are the licensing requirements?

The GE60 operates in the 60 GHz unlicensed FCC Part 15.255 band (57-64 GHz). The system has obtained FCC type approval by the manufacturer (FCC # RWM-GE60). The end user needs no additional permission to install and operate a link. The new E-Band links are FCC licensed under a special provision that allows for quick 2-day turnaround in most cases.

Is the link full or half duplex?

The system is a full duplex system, with separate frequencies for transmit and receive. The GE60 uses the same integrated antenna for transmit and receive.

What speed does the link operate at?

The GE60 only operates at full GigE data rates. The GigE standard specifies a physical layer data rate of 1.25 Gbps full duplex, where 1 Gbps is available for Ethernet frame data and 0.25 Gbps is for data encoding (8b/10b) of the Ethernet frame data.

What is the range of the GE60?

Click here to request an availability estimate for your specific location.

What if I want to go farther?

Just go to the FCC licensed E-Band models.

Do I need Line of Sight (LOS) between antennas?

Yes. A one-meter clearance on all sides around the radio path is sufficient.

What is the network interface?

The LAN interface is a pair of multi-mode fiber optic interface with LC style connectors on the radio side. This interface needs to connect to a 1000Base-SX gigabit interface port on your switch or router using connectors to match your interface port.

Does the system need to be grounded?

Yes, although the radio includes excellent lightning protection, it should be grounded to a quality ground. As there is good grounding between the radio and the mounting bracket, the mounting bracket (or pole or mast it is connected to) should be grounded according to local electrical codes. A #10 ground wire or larger connected to the tower or buildings common ground is recommended.

How should the LAN interface on my switch or router be configured?

The gigabit port on your switch or router should ideally be configured as follows:
 

  • Auto-negotiate Gigabit Ethernet port

  • Port should not enter "error disable" state due to link up/down transitions

How can I monitor the link?

Complete SNMP compliant in band or out-of-band management is standard.

How many systems can I install on one roof or tower?

The GE60 has a very narrow beam antenna (1.4 degrees). The antenna can also be installed in vertical or horizontal polarity. You could easily install 10 or 12 links (or more) depending on the specifics of the deployment.

What is the latency of the GE60?

The GE60 latency is on the order of a high performance Ethernet switch. Latency across the link is less than 50 microseconds - including the speed-of-light delays for the radio transmission!

Is the link safe to operate around people?

GE60 radios are low power and meet FCC general population RF exposure limits at all distances from the radio.

What product warranties are offered?

BridgeWave's GE60 comes with a standard 12-month warranty. Extended Warranty, Next Business Day Maintenance, and 24x7 RapidRespond on-site support agreements are available for your mission-critical applications.

What other parts are needed to install a system?

  • 2 power cables from the indoor power supplies (within 250 meters) to the GE60 outdoor radios to provide 24VDC; recommend 2 wire12 gauge AWG (2/12) wire rated for outdoor use (for the outdoor portion of the cable run

  • 2 two-strand multi-mode fiber optic cables with LC connectors (on the radio unit ends) to be inserted into the GE60 (one strand is transmit the other is receive); recommend 62.5/125 (micron) to connect within 270 meters of GE60 or 50/125 (micron) to connect within 500 meters of GE60

  • 2 grounding cables; recommend using #10 AWG or larger wire size based on using the recommended 12 AWG power cable

  • 2 building-entrance surge suppressors; recommend Polyphaser, model # IS-PSP-24

  • System Support Solutions Bridgewave Installation Kit includes the above plus rooftop fiber junction boxes with fiber bulkheads.

 

What tools are needed to install a system?

The following tools, not provided by BridgeWave, should be used for installing the radio:
 

  • Screwdriver, Phillips (required if changing polarity of the antennas)

  • Open-end wrench 9/16 (14mm) to assemble the pole mount

  • Ratchet with 6 inch (15cm) extension and 9/16 inch (14mm) deep socket

  • 11/32 open-end wrench (or small crescent wrench) for the back cover nut

  • Wire stripper/cutter/crimp tool (10-16 gauge)

  • Electrical tape

  • Fish tape for pulling cable

  • Cable tie wraps

  • Hand-held VOM (voltmeter) with standard banana plug receptacles

 

What equipment is needed to perform a Site Survey?

The survey team will typically need the following equipment:

  • Binoculars

  • GPS Navigation Device

  • Tape Measure

  • Digital Camera

  • Pad of Paper

  • Pencil

  • Flashlight

  • Signaling mirror (survival mirror with a hole in it to direct the reflection to the other location for locating link path)

  • Computer and mapping software (can use GPS coordinates to locate a point on a map)

  • Site Survey Report Form

 

How is the radio mounted?

A very flexible mount is supplied with the integrated radio. This allows the radio to be mounted to a wall or a pipe mast. The mast can be from 2" up to 4.5" in diameter.

System Support Solutions can provide suitable Rohn HD Non-Penetrating mount kits with heavy half inch thick pad kits to protect roof membrane material.

What kind of cabling is used to connect the GE60 radio?

A power cable and a fiber cable connect to each GE60. The fiber cable is six strand multi-mode fiber optic cable (four strands are for redundancy in the event a fiber strand is damaged) with SC connectors to be inserted into the six-strand SC bulkhead in the fiber junction box. Then a 2m duplex SC/LC fiber cable is run from the junction box to the GE60. It is recommended to use either six strand 62.5/125-micron fiber to connect within 270 meters of GE60 or 50/125 micron fiber to connect within 500 meters of the GE60. Fiber with a combination indoor/outdoor rated jacket is the simplest option, although other installation options are available.

The power cable is a low-voltage, two-wire cable that supplies the 24 VDC power from the power adapter (indoor unit that plugs into a power outlet) to the GE60. The installer supplies the 12-gauge, 2-wire (12-2) cable up to 250 meters from the indoor power adapter to the GE60. The power cable should be rated for outdoor use (such as "SO" cable available from local hardware stores) for the outdoor portion of the installation, and must meet local standards for indoor wiring for the indoor portion of the cable run. It is important to protect the power adapter by installing a surge suppressor on each power cable. It is recommended to use a Polyphaser, model # IS-PSP-24 surge suppressor. The power cable is terminated with the connectors provided with the GE60. This end of the power cable is inserted into the into the power cable with the DC connector that connects to the GE60 and is provided with the GE60.

The GE60 should be properly ground by using the grounding wire the installer provides that usually connects to a bolt on the bottom of the radio and to a building grounding cable or other grounding option. It is recommended to use a #10 AWG size wire or larger wire size if using a #12 AWG power cable.

It is important that all power and fiber cables are inserted into the bottom of the GE60 (black connectors facing down) and that there is a curve in the wire below the GE60 and the location of where the cables go into the conduit in order to reduce the amount of water intrusion. Refer to the installation manual; the power and fibers should be inserted into the black connectors and looped around the internal, rectangular components section before connected thus providing a stress relief for the cables.

What is the best location for mounting a GE60?

There are many considerations for locating the optimum location for the GE60, however, the following should be considered. The mounting location should provide for ease of installing and aiming the antenna, as well as a clear Line-of-Site (LOS) to the other site within the range specifications of the GE60. The following factors should be taken into account:

  • Type of mounting-wall or pole

  • Location where the fiber and DC power wiring will enter/exit the building

  • Length of cable runs (power must be within 250 meters of the GE60, fiber can be within 270 or 500 meters depending on which type is used)

  • Grounding connection points

  • Obstructions (seasonal: foliage; temporary: human traffic, cranes, elevators, vehicles, trains, ships; permanent: walls, buildings poles, cables)

  • Accessibility (for installation and to perform any future maintenance)

How do I align the antennas?

A GE60 system comes with a Visual Alignment Tool (VAT) to help quickly perform coarse alignment. The use of this tool virtually guarantees that the radio link is aligned within the main antenna beam, and it is highly recommended that this tool be used, regardless of the experience level of the installer. After completing course alignment, a voltmeter can be used to maximize the Received Signal Level (RSL) to fine-tune the alignment. The antennas have a 1.4-degree beam width; while this is much narrower than typically found on lower frequency radio units, it is well within the capabilities of even non-expert installers.

What else do I need to know?

Practice setting up the GE60 in a controlled environment before taking it to the rooftop or up a tower. A few minutes practicing with the Visual Alignment Tool and mounting hardware will save hours in the elements.