It's always been in the works but we just didn't know when. A WiMAX vendor says that a profile for mobile WiMAX that uses paired frequency division duplex (FDD) signaling with separate channels for the uplink and downlink will be available within about six months. The technology's inability to operate in the FDD mode limited its global prospects as much of the spectrum for 3G and 4G networks calls for FDD signaling. WiMAX only uses TDD, or time division duplex, signaling, which assigns time slots for both the uplink and downlink signals.
"The WiMAX forum will have an FDD profile for mobile WiMAX inside six months. We've been working on it for the last 12 months," Paul Senior, chief technology officer of WiMAX vendor Airspan told telecoms.com.
Last year, the International Telecommunication Union declared mobile WiMAX a 3G standard, amid a number of objections. The technology's deployment, however, was expected to be limited to a smaller portion of spectrum designated for TDD technologies.
To read more about The WiMAX Forum's plan for an FDD profile:
- check out this article from TechWorld
- take a look at this article from telecoms.com