College students working together on a 5G NR beamforming project
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Cost-effective devices that save you time.

How will the BBox help with my 5G antenna research?

The BBox is a 5G mmWave beamforming development tool. This tool is designed to save you and your students the effort and time required to develop a beamforming testing system from scratch. The Developer kit was specifically designed for the needs of professors in 5G antenna research.

For antenna designers, the BBox antenna is detachable which means that you can easily dock in your own antenna to test its performance.

The BBox UI is extremely user-friendly and compatible with multiple coding languages. Easily change the beam angle by adjusting the phase and amplitude with the TMXLAB Kit UI. Your custom codebook can also be incorporated into the software.

BBox One Front Panel with 4x4 antenna attached BBox One with front panel with antenna removed
BBox One front panel with and without antenna
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How does the BBox work with a network analyzer?

Phase, Amplitude, and Gain can be modified and changed for every channel through the BBox UI. Follow the steps below to integrate your BBox with a network analyzer, a video tutorial is also provided.

  1. Remove the antenna from the BBox
  2. Adapt SMPM to a standard k-connector, using a cable
  3. Connect your device to the network analyzer
  4. Control the network analyzer within the BBox UI
BBox and network analyzer integration tutorial

What is the operating frequency of the BBox? How do I use it with sub-6 GHz instruments?

The BBox covers frequency ranges in n257, n258, n260, n261.

For sub-6 GHz instruments consider the UD Box, a mmWave broadband up/down converter, to upgrade your sub-6 GHz instrument to 5G mmWave.

UD Box frequencies: 24 to 44 GHz (RF); 0.01 to 14 GHz (IF)

NI URSP Configuration for 5G antenna research and development
USRP, 2 UD Boxes, 2 BBox One configured to phase up sub-6 GHz instrumentation.
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