Sequans Communications is collaborating with Rohde & Schwarz (R&S), one of the leaders in wireless communications test and measurement, to enable WiMAX large scale deployments, by taking manufacturing test of Sequans Wave 2 chipsets to the next stage.

"Rohde & Schwarz's expertise and long years of experience in radio production testing in combination with the company's worldwide proven support structure ensure that Mobile WiMAX products based on our chips meet the most stringent demands for quality," says Bernard Aboussouan, VP of Marketing and Business Development, Sequans.

Originally, RF alignment and verification procedures of mobile WiMAX end-user devices were developed for initial low-volume production, thus leaving a huge potential for speed optimization. The unique all-in-one concept of Rohde & Schwarz's R&S CMW270 WiMAX Communication Tester now enables volume manufacturers to exactly adapt their test strategy to the individual quality requirements of their product. The range may span from simplified RF alignment to complete signaling link verification.

Test time optimization is heavily considered within the R&S CMW270's platform architecture. Multi evaluation list mode and parallel TX/RX test algorithms significantly reduce chipset configuration and handling times. Internal switching between RF channels improves RF calibration of multi antenna devices (MIMO) even more by eliminating external adaptation.

Special WiMAX demodulation measurement algorithms are able to reduce measurement times by a factor of 10, compared to standard equipment. In combination with the general purpose RF (GPRF) functionality, the R&S CMW270 is also ready for transmit power and receive signal strength indication (RSSI) calibration of complementary technologies like WLAN or Bluetooth.

A live demonstration featuring Rohde & Schwarz's R&S CMW270 WiMAX Communication Tester in combination with Sequans Mobile WiMAX chip reference designs will be presented at the WiMAX Expo in Taipei this week, June 2 to 6.

"Sequans mobile WiMAX chips are in demand by many leading WiMAX equipment vendors. With the R&S CMW270, they now have the chance to benefit from the most flexible and optimized production test approach," says Gerhard Sonnde, Director of Subdivision T&M Central Marketing, Rohde & Schwarz.

Sequans SQN1130 chip for Mobile WiMAX mobile stations features industry leading high throughput and low power consumption. The Wave 2 MIMO chip delivers more than 30Mbps throughput while drawing less than 280mW of power in active mode and less than 10mW in idle mode.