Tropos Networks: Metro Wi-Fi Client Mesh Routers

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TROPOS NETWORKS

Metro-Cell Wi-Fi Mesh Router Systems
High-Performance Wi-Fi Client Connectivity
with a Built-In Carrier-Grade Backhaul Mesh

Creating a Wi-Fi HotZone for Client Connectivity

When you need to provide carrier-grade, commercial Wi-Fi connectivity for notebook computers, VoIP phones, and other 802.11b/g client devices in a geographically distributed area, the Tropos Metro-Cell Wi-Fi Mesh Router System provides the ideal solution. Each self-contained outdoor (or indoor) radio unit automatically interconnects with others to form a high-capacity backhaul mesh while, at the same time, providing HotZone connectivity for standard Wi-Fi devices.

The Tropos radios operate with over 10 TIMES MORE POWER than a standard Wi-Fi access point. To address the fact that the standard Wi-Fi devices typically operate at a significantly lower power level, the Tropos radios are more than
10 TIMES MORE SENSITIVE to received signals than most client radios. This lets the Tropos Metro-Cell unit receive the relatively weak transmissions from Wi-Fi client devices at distances, and through obstructions, that could never be received by a standard access point.

COMPARE THE DIFFERENCE:	Tropos Metro-Cell Radio	Standard Wi-Fi Access Point

Power Output (EIRP)	1 Watt (36 dBm)	30 to 100 mW (14 to 20 dBm)

Receive Sensitivity (RSSI)	-98 dBm	-85 dBm

HotZones and Tropos Mesh Routing

Wi-Fi’s explosive proliferation gives consumers, businesses and governments a vast and ever-growing range of fast, easy-to-use and low-cost Wi-Fi-enabled devices. With more than 100 million units shipped, Wi-Fi isn’t just for laptops anymore. It’s also for phones, PDAs, gaming devices, video cameras, parking meters, utility meters and sensors that detect biological, chemical and radioactive hazards. Connect802 can help when it comes to community wi-fi design consulting and any metro-scale Wi-Fi deployemnt. We've got you covered.

When coupled with metro-scale Wi-Fi mesh networks, the fastest, lowest cost and simplest way to deliver true wireless broadband (>1 Mbps, symmetrical) over large geographic areas using low-cost standard Wi-Fi clients, the new breed of Wi-Fi-enabled devices enables an almost limitless variety of applications. These include:

Residential and small business broadband Internet access – metro-scale Wi-Fi mesh networks offer the lowest capital and operating costs and fastest set-ups of any alternative for true broadband (> 1 Mbps, symmetrical) service to the home or small business.
Mobile broadband data access – whether consumers enjoying an afternoon at the park, enterprise field employees or police officers on the beat, metro-scale Wi-Fi mesh networks allow people to take their offices on the road, with wireline quality data connections anywhere in the field.
Telemetry – metro-scale Wi-Fi mesh networks provide fast and economical connectivity to monitor a wide array of Wi-Fi enabled devices including parking meters, gas, water and electric utility meters and sensors that detect intruders and biological, chemical and radioactive hazards.
Voice – Wi-Fi-enabled phones, whether hybrid Wi-Fi/cellular phones, Wi-Fi phones for conventional VoIP or Wi-Fi phones for new alternatives such as IP soft phones, are becoming increasingly common. Metro-scale Wi-Fi mesh networks are the perfect way for users to connect anywhere in the Wi-Fi coverage area with the low cost and simplicity of voice-over-IP.

Multi-use metro-scale Wi-Fi mesh networks allow many of these applications to run at the same time. Opening the networks to a wide variety of applications and users best leverages the capital investment in the network and amortizes fixed operation costs over a larger user population. Therefore, running many applications is the key to maximizing return on investment in metro-scale Wi-Fi mesh networks.

Tropos Networks’ cellular Wi-Fi solution includes indoor and outdoor Wi-Fi cells which run the Tropos Sphere network operating system, the Tropos Control element management system, a live 24/7 support program and the Connect802 Predictive Site Survey, design and deployment services. In short, our solution delivers everything you need to install and operate a metro-scale cellular Wi-Fi network.

Read About Wi-Fi Deployment in Multiple Tenant Dwellings (MTD)

Dual Function Radio Unit: Mesh Backhaul and Client Access Point

Two functions are required to allow Wi-Fi client devices (notebook computers, Wi-Fi phones, mobile user devices) to communicate in a wireless infrastructure:

You need an 802.11 Wi-Fi Access Point radio device to which client devices will associate and through which they will communicate to the Internet or other back-end network system.
You need a wireless infrastructure to allow the Access Point radio devices to send data between themselves, forming a backhaul system and passing user data back and forth between the user device and the back-end network system (perhaps to an Internet service provider network.)

The Tropos Metro-Wi-Fi radio provides both functions in a single, self-contained unit. You simply provide power (either directly or through a Power-over-Ethernet connection.)

Three Different Technologies for Wireless Backhaul Connectivity

Depending on the design requirements for a wireless distribution infrastructure (the "backhaul"), Connect802 utilizes three different options as required to meet the needs of the system being implemented. These are: Wireless Distribution System (WDS), wireless Ethernet mesh routing, and wireless HotZone mesh routing. To implement these options, products from MiLAN, FireTide, and Tropos are used respectively. Since Tropos and FireTide both market their radios using the term "mesh router" the question often arises as to just how these two products differ. Moreover, the comparison of WDS technology to mesh routing introduces yet another choice.

These alternative connectivity methods each have an appropriate place in a particular wireless network design, and Connect802 knows which one is best suited to your particular needs. Read a Detailed Comparison of WDS, Tropos mesh routing, and FireTide mesh routing for more information.

Read a Detailed Comparison
of WDS, Tropos Mesh Routing, and FireTide Mesh Routing

Tropos 5000-Series Outdoor Units

802.11b/g WLAN	Mesh Router Backhaul	Security / Management
802.11b/g to 54 Mbps Outdoor-optimized, with integrated 1W radio 7dBi Standard Antennas 12 dBi Antenna Option -98dBm Receive Sensitivity - 16 times MORE sensitive than a standard 802.11 access point IP address persistence 802.3af PoE Secure local and remote configuration via HTTPS SNMP-based element management system	Auto-discovery and auto-configuration on power-up DHCP inside the mesh Up to 32 SSIDs / VLANs Tropos Sphere NOS layer 3 intelligent path selection Continuous, real-time adjustment of optimum data paths Redundant, self-healing network architecture Interoperates with Tropos indoor units for scalable coverage	User-defined traffic filters AES encryption of wireless routing protocols 128/40 bit WEP Full VPN compatibility MAC address filtering Central management through the Tropos Control Element Management System (EMS) console

Tropos 3000-Series Indoor Units

The 3000-series indoor mesh routers are functionally identical to the 5000-series but are manufactured in a metal case designed for indoor mounting. They have detatchable antennas if alternative antenna configurations are required and support PoE for ease of installation. As with the 5000-series units, the 3000-series indoor units can be managed through the Tropos Control Element Management System software console.

Tropos Control Element Management System (EMS)

The Tropos EMS software offers a centralized network manager that provides real-time monitoring and control, allowing remote configuration and software upgrades.

Providing full visibility into the network, the system enables network operators to prevent problems before they occur through advanced diagnostics, alarm logging and email/paging notification at specified event thresholds, and visual icon changes on the system map. The Tropos element management system supports SNMP, allowing operators to monitor the wireless network alongside their wired network.

Tropos Control EMS is fully optimized for the wireless environment. Each wired Wi-Fi cell gateway acts as a proxy for the wireless nodes communicating through it, minimizing wireless network management traffic. The software runs under Windows (XP, NT, and more), Linux/Unix, and other operating systems as a Java-based application. It can be used locally or accessed remotely.

Key features:

Enhanced topological maps showing wireless link status information
Accurate geographical maps using GPS coordinates
Automatic discovery of nodes
Real-time as well as historical performance matrix
Correlated fault handling mechanism
Multi-node configuration engine
HTTPS, AES encryption
Support for SNMP, XML, CORBA interfaces
Platform independent

Tropos Networks, Inc. is the leading supplier of systems used to build metro-scale, outdoor Wi-Fi wireless mesh networks. Tropos’ unique Wi-Fi cells, along with the first element manager to control large Wi-Fi networks, enable public agencies and service providers to deliver ubiquitous, city-wide mobile broadband to users in any locale. These carrier-class IP networks are low cost and easy to install and scale. The Tropos cellular mesh architecture and use of optimized open-standard radios dramatically reduce the need for wired backhaul while eliminating expensive proprietary clients and complex software. Using the patented Predictive Wireless Routing Protocol, Tropos solutions deliver maximum bandwidth to the user regardless of conditions, at unprecedented Wi-Fi network scale. Tropos Networks is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California.

TROPOS in the News:

“Municipalities are looking for affordable, metro-area wireless broadband solutions that take just a few months to deploy, not years,” said the president and CEO of Tropos Networks. “Our joint solution has enabled the cities of Cerritos and Chaska to rapidly deploy metro-area networks without the truck rolls and time-consuming back-office setup usually involved. We anticipate that many other municipalities will unwire their cities in a similar fashion to increase productivity and enable mobility.”

The joint Pronto/Tropos metro-area Wi-Fi solution enables system integrators to quickly and cost-effectively deploy large scale Wi-Fi hot zones, enabling subscriber management, multiple service plans and authentication methods for different types of users in the hot zone. The end-to-end solution consists of Pronto’s carrier-grade Operations Support System (OSS) for broadband wireless networks, Pronto’s Hotzone Gateway, Tropos 5110 and 5120 Wi-Fi cells, and the Tropos Control element manager.

Tropos Networks announced that chaska.net, a wireless internet service provider (WISP) owned and operated by the City of Chaska, Minnesota, has gone live with it's metro-scale Wi-Fi network completely covering the 16 square mile footprint of the community. The wireless broadband network, delivering symmetric data rates of 1-3 Mbps throughout the city with unlimited mobility, has proven to be a very attractive alternative to existing cable, DSL and dial-up services for the residents of the city.

Chaska.net started marketing its service and accepting pre-subscriptions just four weeks ago. In that short timeframe, chaska.net has seen a 20% take rate, with more than 1,500 subscriptions out of 7,500 homes. By eliminating truck rolls, expensive CPE equipment and costly wired backhaul, the metro-scale Wi-Fi solution from Tropos allows chaska.net to offer enhanced broadband services at a fraction of the cost of the service plans available from the existing cable and DSL providers. The price point of $15.99 per month with unlimited mobility throughout the city has made the service economically alluring for Chaska residents.

In addition to the economic advantages of the service, subscribers stay connected to the community via a specially created chaska.net home page. This community resource highlights current city events and special promotions of local merchants and organizations.

The city-wide chaska.net network utilizes 186 Tropos 5110 Wi-Fi cells, an outdoor-optimized and ruggedized wireless mesh router based on the 802.11 standard. The Tropos 5110 quickly and economically uses the intelligent Tropos Predictive Wireless Routing Protocol (PWRP) to provide pervasive coverage over metro areas. The Tropos PWRP routes traffic wirelessly, eliminating up to 95% of the wired backhaul associated with traditional access point solutions. Tropos Wi-Fi cells form a wireless mesh, dynamically routing traffic along the highest throughput path to a wired gateway. This intelligent routing negates effects of radio frequency (RF) interference, wired backhaul failure and node failure. PWRP also scales to thousands of nodes with the lowest routing overhead in the industry. To further minimize costs, Chaska.net uses a combination of city fiber and fixed point-to-multipoint wireless technology for its backhaul connections. Network support costs are minimized via the central management capabilities of the Tropos Control Element Manager, a configuration, monitoring and maintenance tool.

Trivia buff's will want to note that at it's founding, Tropos' CEO David Hanna, is the son of William Hanna of Hanna-Barbera cartoon fame -- took official wraps off the system, a mesh network specifically for metropolitan areas that would eliminate extra backhaul needs. Each access point connect to another until signals get back to a unit hardwired to the Internet connection. Williams says the costs incurred by just adding more and more access points, each of which must connect to the Internet whether by a DSL line or T1 line, are just too high.

Tropos's customers, he says, are probably the same as those Mesh Networks and Vivato are after, but says Tropos has a slightly different approach from Mesh's self-healing networks or Vivato's single long-range beamed signal from a switch.

The key ingredient of its products is the Tropos Sphere network operating system (NOS), a Layer 3 implementation running on what Williams calls "Wi-Fi cells," the access point hardware connecting users and the other access points. The cells use what's called "predictive path optimization" -- Williams calls that technology Tropos's "key intellectual property" -- to optimize the traffic traveling to and from a wireless client, through each cell, and back to the gateway cell with the wired connection to the Internet. Each cell can automatically discover what cells are closest to it and what path is the shortest for traffic to take. Add or remove a cell, and the path is instantly reconfigured, like any good self-healing mesh network should. Capacity on the network can be upgraded as needed by adding backhaul to select gateway cells. Administrators can control the system using Tropos Control network management system.

The Wi-Fi cells are made with off the shelf components, including the 802.11 chips and using an embedded version of Linux. The hardware, in both indoor and outdoor models, is easily upgradeable by the company because of this -- though not by end users. The cell boxes are usually mounted in such as way that they're difficult, if not impossible, to access. Power hookups for the cells can be done direct to the photocells that power many traffic lights (assuming that's where the outdoor model is mounted) or direct wiring.

Upgrades to software are part of the 24x7 support Tropos offers to customers. Tropos is not in the business of running the network. The cellular Wi-Fi system is for sale to WISPs looking to provide metro-area-wide "hot zones" with a cloud of 802.11 coverage for all users inside that area. One company, CoastSide.net , already has setup service throughout the tourist town of Half Moon Bay, Calif. Eight Tropos Wi-Fi cells are hooked up there, with only two of them connected to T1s for backhaul.

"If you go into downtown with a laptop," says Williams, "you fire up a browser, you'll see the splash screen inviting you to purchase time on the CoastWave service from CoastSide.net." Introductory roaming fees go from 15 minutes for $2.95 to three hours for $14.95 when using the downtown hotzone, but CoaseSide.net offers unlimited downtown access to its regular customers for $10.00 per month on top of the regular charges for wireless access in a home or business.

Tropos equipment is also live in Boulder City, Nev., and the company's home town of San Mateo, specifically to serve public safety departments.

Williams sees that opportunities as being perhaps the biggest Tropos has -- in the short term, at least. Police running laptops in their cars these days are limited to CDPD (define), Motorola Datatac or other limited services that only are good for text messaging or dispatch. "But with high bandwidth they could download and upload images of suspects, finger prints, and get stuff from the Amber Alert system. A cop on the beat might be the last person to see a picture of a missing child... not anymore," says Williams. He says a Tropos-based hotzone could work not just for police but also everything from public works to the parks and recreation, and back to the consumer end-users who could get it as a public utility. Each department can use the same network, but run their own servers to serve users.

Connect802 is a Tropos reseller and offers metro-scale mesh routing design consulting and complete installation services for Tropos equipment.