07 Feb 2008

Agilent Technologies and Comsys Communications to Speed Mobile WiMAX(tm) Handset Production

Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE: A) and Comsys Communications and Signal Processing Ltd. today announced that Agilent’s Wireless Networking test set will be used to help roll out Mobile WiMAX-compliant chip sets.

The two companies will collaborate on the speed-optimization of RF power-calibration and production-test systems for Mobile WiMAX modules. With Agilent’s support of Comsys chipsets, modules based on Comsys ICs can be calibrated and tested with the greatest speed and efficiency.

The Agilent N8300A is a wireless networking test set and OFDMA measurement application software, forming a complete one-box transmitter and receiver test solution for Mobile WiMAX devices. With its superior specifications and fast manufacturing test time, this solution effectively meets the needs of cell phone, ODM and CM manufacturing engineers testing WiMAX mobile subscriber devices or modules that use IEEE 802.16e-2005.

Comsys Communications is a leading supplier of multimode baseband chipsets for the IEEE 802.16e-2005 standard, on which WiMAX Forum(r)’s mobile profiles are based, as well as for the fixed WiMAX(tm) IEEE 802.16-2004 standard. Comsys has recently launched two reference design platforms, enabling companies to rapidly develop converged cellular and Mobile WiMAX terminals.
“We are committed to helping customers find new ways to speed Mobile WiMAX test with the N8300A,” said Niels Faché, vice president and general manager of Agilent’s Mobile Broadband Division. “By pre-calibrating our test sets to work with handsets incorporating Comsys devices, we can enable faster calibration time which provides considerable savings in both time and cost during handset production.”

 Comsys Communications’ ComMAX CM1100 and CM1125 are flexible multimode OFDMA baseband processors that enable service continuity between cellular and Mobile WiMAX networks. ComMAX provides terminal manufacturers with a comprehensive and flexible broadband solution fully compliant with WiMAX Forum Wave 2 requirements, offering MIMO capability, which can operate over multiple bands. 

 “Agilent’s industry-leading expertise in manufacturing and conformance solutions will benefit our customers greatly in testing and verifying designs,” said Avi Sharon, product manager at Comsys. “We are delighted to welcome Agilent to the ComMAX Ecosystem, which is working to make it easier for terminal manufacturers to integrate WiMAX into their products.”

 The ComMAX Ecosystem is a network of partners dedicated to providing ready-to-use system solutions for converged cellular/Mobile WiMAX terminals.

 More information about the Agilent Wireless Networking Test Set is available at www.agilent.com/find/N8300A. A photo of the Wireless Networking Test Set is available at www.agilent.com/find/WNTS_images.

 Agilent in WiMAX Forum

 A principal member of the WiMAX Forum (www.wimaxforum.org), Agilent is an active participant in the development of WiMAX Radio Conformance Test (RCT) documents and procedures. Agilent was the first to provide standard-compliant 802.16 physical layer (PHY) design and test tools for fixed and mobile WiMAX applications including WiBro, allowing users to efficiently simulate, troubleshoot and verify designs.

 Agilent has extended its expertise into manufacturing to help customers get designs to market faster and more efficiently, and will continue to provide comprehensive test tools as the lifecycle progresses into installation and maintenance.

 Information about Agilent’s WiMAX test solutions is available at www.agilent.com/find/wimax.