Rohde & Schwarz Collaborates with NextNav to Provide an OTA Test Solution for MBS-enabled Devices

Feb. 20, 2018

Rohde & Schwarz has collaborated with NextNav to enable the next generation of location determination capabilities in mobile devices. Rohde & Schwarz and NextNav have successfully developed and verified MBS OTA antenna performance tests. This completes a critical step towards the availability of an MBS certification test solution. This MBS technology is expected to become part of the CTIA OTA test plan during 2018.

NextNav has leveraged Rohde & Schwarz's comprehensive location based services (LBS) and over-the-air (OTA) test solutions to provide a test bed for early standardization, performance evaluation and repeatability of MBS tests for consumer mass market devices. Rohde & Schwarz's test platforms support NextNav's terrestrial positioning network and technology to ensure accurate location service, with carrier-grade reliability, into buildings and urban areas where satellite-based GPS signals cannot reach.

"This partnership ensures availability of the MBS technology as part of the Rohde & Schwarz test platform and marks an important and exciting next step in making MBS mass market capable for mobile devices," said Tom Wrappe, Vice President Ecosystem Development, NextNav. 

"Our advanced LBS and OTA test systems support the new MBS technology and all other existing relevant wireless technologies including LTE, WLAN, Bluetooth, WCDMA, GSM, CDMA, GPS, GALILEO and more. Our collaboration with NextNav demonstrates Rohde & Schwarz's commitment to offering test solutions that enable next-generation technologies," said Alexander Pabst, Vice President Systems and Projects, Rohde & Schwarz.