It is the Piedmontese municipality of Saluzzo, in the province of Cuneo, the first in Italy to be covered entirely by an Open RAN network with a 5G perspective. The field operational project is promoted by TIM thanks to the collaboration with JMA Wireless , supplier of XRAN, RAN virtualization software completely compliant with the specifications of the Open RAN Alliance . For the first time in Saluzzo, 17 thousand inhabitants and a vast territory between the Monviso and the Po, we move from a field trial to an Open RAN network that covers the entire municipal territory.

An entire municipality covered in Open RAN in Italy

This is a substantial leap in quality compared to the first Open RAN project created in Faenza on Tim's mobile network, with the aim of accelerating the development of 5G digital services and Edge Computing through new functions, centralized and in the cloud.

Saluzzo's is "one of the most extensive Open RAN coverages in Europe" , we read in Tim's note, which adds: "The Open RAN solution is used in a complex scenario, with live traffic and radio coverage on multiple bands frequencies transmitted from multiple sites, using TIM tools and methodologies for optimal management and control".

The other partners

This further technological milestone in Saluzzo was achieved, as mentioned, thanks to the collaboration with JMA Wireless , which created the RAN software components that virtualize the functions of the mobile access network with its own XRAN product, completely software and compliant with the Open criteria RAN Alliance. And thanks also to Microelectronics Technology (MTI) for the radio frequency equipment, with Dell Technologies for the hardware part (server) and with Cisco for the transport elements to the site (switch). Italtel operated as a system integrator.

The Open RAN deployment and the 'intelligent' components of the new radio network are also fundamental from the point of view of security and resilience, based on 'made in TIM' developments. The use of SON (Self Organizing Network) systems makes it possible to accelerate the diffusion and inclusion of Open RAN solutions in the TIM network, thus promoting coexistence between the Open RAN functions and the other components of the network.

In Saluzzo vRAN already launched in 2016

Already in 2016 Tim had started an experiment on its mobile network in Saluzzo in collaboration with the equipment supplier Altiostar, to experiment with Virtual Radio Access Network (vRAN) technology, a technological step previous to Open RAN. A system, that of Altiostar, for which Tim has evidently decided to swap with JMA Wireless' Open RAN technology. 

The development of Open RAN solutions, as Tim's note continues , “is in line with the 2021-2023 'Beyond Connectivity' plan, allowing the potential of the Edge Cloud and Artificial Intelligence to be combined. This technology allows operators to strengthen safety standards, improve network performance and optimize costs, in order to provide increasingly advanced digital services, such as those linked to new solutions for Industry 4.0, Smart City and driving autonomous".