CINCINNATI—GatesAir has announced that it will soon be shipping a new timing and signal reference solution for broadcast and telecom facilities that speaks to modern navigation technologies used in second-generation Global Navigation Satellite Systems.
GatesAir will be demonstrating the new solution, the Maxiva GNSS-PTP, at the 2022 NAB Show between April 23 to 26 at Las Vegas Convention Center, Booth W7426.
“GatesAir has strong experience in the area of timing and synchronization for video, audio and telecom networks, and the Maxiva GNSS-PTP represents a major step forward in timing reliability, network redundancy and cost reduction,” said Keyur Parikh, vice president of engineering, GatesAir. “Our Intraplex SynchroCast solutions have long provided timing and frequency reference generation to synchronize SFN networks, and the GNSS-PTP product builds upon that capability to provide precision timing to broadcast and telecom networks. Our customers can rest assured that they have a proven solution that will work in any broadcast studio, RF plant and telco facility worldwide with the rock-solid reliability they expect from GatesAir.”
The new Maxiva GNSS-PTP is a standalone 1RU solution with a sophisticated switching algorithm that assures high-precision 10MHz and 1 PPS reference signals to mission-critical components in the signal chain, including transmitters, networking, and studio equipment, the company said.
Each GNSS-PTP device feeds up to twelve 10 MHz and 1 PPS references in the technology infrastructure, removing the need to integrate a standalone timing source in each component. This substantially reduces equipment costs and installation timelines while providing a single, yet highly redundant, point of failure for engineers, the company reported.
Precise timing and frequency generation is assured because of the product’s high level of redundancy. The product design includes redundant AC power supplies with built-in battery back-up for “always-on” protection, and diverse timing sources including redundant GNSS receivers. The GNSS receivers include OCXO temperature control to prevent frequency changes, and support all major global satellite constellations (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS). Timing sources also include a hardware-based PTP module and an external 10 MHz and 1 PPS reference. Built-in switching control logic ensures reliability and flexibility for selecting the highest priority source as a reference at all times, the company said.
Support for the Precision Time Protocol v2 (PTP) adds further reliability and flexibility for customers. Available as a modular option, users can prioritize PTP as a facility’s primary source, or configure PTP as a backup to one of the GNSS receivers. The PTP module can function as a master or slave and, same as the unit’s GNSS receivers, provide reliable timing and frequency reference to 12 external devices.
GatesAir has further simplified the user experience with an integrated web interface that allows users to easily and flexibly select frequency bands for each GNSS system and configure timing source selection in automatic and manual modes. The user interface also offers useful visual aids, including detailed tracking maps and tables, satellite status and signal quality.
