PCTEL and Ranplan Streamline Next-Generation Indoor Network Planning

PCTEL, Inc., a leader in Performance Critical TELecom solutions, and Ranplan announced the integration of Ranplan Professional with PCTEL’s SeeHawk® Touch data collection software to streamline in-building wireless network design, planning, and optimization. The next generation of wireless networks will incorporate new technologies such as 5G alongside existing cellular, Wi-Fi, and public safety networks. Together, SeeHawk Touch and Ranplan Professional enable onsite engineers to measure, model, and visualize the complex interactions between these technologies.

SeeHawk Touch and Ranplan Professional allow engineers to make immediate assessments and adjustments. SeeHawk Touch software collects and analyzes real-world RF data from PCTEL’s industry-leading scanning receivers. Ranplan Professional then incorporates this data into advanced 3D visualizations and network propagation modeling. An upgrade to SeeHawk Touch will be released allowing Touch and Ranplan Professional to work together seamlessly. The combined system will support network design and planning for a wide range of wireless technologies, including 3G, 4G LTE, LTE-A, CBRS, LAA, NB-IoT, Wi-Fi, P25, and 5G New Radio.

“SeeHawk Touch and Ranplan Professional will enable network operators and building owners to prepare for a wide variety of uses, including emergency response, industrial IoT deployments, smart building automation, and even virtual reality,” said Rishi Bharadwaj, PCTEL’s COO. “PCTEL’s scanning receivers provide the complete and accurate data that engineers need to solve today’s complex RF problems," added Bharadwaj.

“SeeHawk Touch and PCTEL scanning receiver data complement Ranplan’s ability to model the complex interactions between indoor and outdoor wireless environments,” said Alastair Williamson, Ranplan’s CEO. “Ranplan’s innovative modeling incorporates key components of the HetNet, including hybrid indoor/outdoor, macro, small cell, DAS, Wi-Fi, and backhaul.”