Introduction to Digital Microwave System Equipment Classification

Microwave is electromagnetic wave with frequency from 300MHz to 300GHz and it is a finite frequency band of the entire electromagnetic wave spectrum. This post will introduce to microwave equipment classification.

Also read Concepts of Digital Microwave in Wireless Communication

Microwave Equipment

Based on different classification methods, the digital microwave equipment can be classified based on the following modes:

Microwave equipment classification

Currently, common classification method is, based on structure, to classify the microwave equipment into split microwave, all-indoor microwave and all-outdoor microwave.

Also read  Microwave Frequency Band Choice and RF Channel Arrangements

What are ODU (Outdoor Unit) functions in Digital Microwave Link?

1. Split microwave Split microwave equipment consists of ODU and IDU. The antenna and ODU are connected by waveguide pipe, and the IDU and ODU are connected by IF cable. IF cable is used to transmit the IF service signals between IDU and ODU and the IDU/ODU communication control signals and provides power to the ODU. Split microwave equipment has a low capacity and is easy to install and maintain and available in quickly building networks. It is the most widely used microwave equipment for the present.
2. All-indoor microwave is commonly called big microwave.  Its RF unit (RFU), signal processing unit (SPU) and multiplexer reside indoor, only the antenna is outdoor. It has a high transmission capacity and is suitable to backbone line transmission, but its cost is high.
3. All the units of all-outdoor microwave reside outdoor.  All-outdoor microwave is easy to install and saves equipment room space. For it is outdoor, it is easily damaged.

Split microwave

All-indoor microwave

All-outdoor microwave