Network Architecture
Simple - Flexible - Efficient
The ULP system operates in a simple star topology, which has substantial advantages over mesh and other topologies when the star topology network, such as ULP, provides sufficient coverage. The star topology simplifies the networking protocol, thereby enhancing capacity in the network as more bandwidth is made available for user application throughput. In mesh networks, a substantial amount of capacity is consumed by “housekeeping” the network configuration. The star topology also helps lower costs, as less networking infrastructure is needed – again, assuming the system provides sufficient coverage.
The ULP system provides a greater than 600x coverage advantage and a 25-40x capacity advantage over competing systems, but in many deployment scenarios, the advantage is substantially larger, particularly due to ULP’s ability to be deployed in highly elevated locations. This is not the case for Carrier Sense Multiple Access (CSMA) based systems, such as 802.15.4, 802.11, and 900MHz FHSS networks. CSMA assumes that endpoints in the network have a radio link between each other to detect contention. As coverage increases, the likelihood of that being true decreases, and the multiple access scheme collapses. Additionally, due to the short range of these systems, there typically aren’t enough favorable locations to place gateways, making this approach theoretical at best.
Ultra-Link Processing is more than the innovative over-the-air wireless communication link. It is a complete end-to-end wireless solution, including:
- Wireless modules (endpoints or nodes), used for simple and standardized integration with the endpoint devices
- The ULP Access Points (APs), which are mounted on mountain tops, towers, rooftops, and other elevated sites provide the only network field installed network infrastructure.
- The ULP Gateway (GW), managing connections to the APs in a network, handover between APs and the data path to the back-end applications.
- The Security Key Management Server (KMS), responsible for providing end-to-end security features.
- A headend application that offers seamless integration into back-office systems through a suite of standard interfaces
Element Management System (EMS)
On-Ramp’s ULP Gateway and EMS provide integrated system health monitoring options that allow network operators to identify and correct network performance issues. The ULP system supports automated messaging features (email and SMS) for alerting. The network diagnostics applications allow the network operators to ensure optimal operation of the ULP network, and pro-actively identify potential problems with Access Points and endpoint devices.
Ultra-Link Processing™ System Architecture
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