On-Site Validation: finally, real-time site acceptance for operator installs

Image: Tomer Daniel, co-founder and chief technology officer, vHive

The rollout of 5G networks and fixed-wireless access (FWA) is bringing an unprecedented level of precision to communications technology. While exciting for a wide range of newly possible applications, it also presents a major new challenge that has not yet been fully appreciated by the mobile operator community.

That’s according to Tomer Daniel, co-founder and chief technology officer at digitisation software company vHive, who explains that operators lack visibility and real-time information on the rapidly densifying number of towers and the equipment they install on them. This can potentially lead to reduced coverage performance, higher opex from repeated site corrections and slower rollouts.

But the good news for mobile network operators is that innovative, state-of-the-art visualisation technology based on augmented reality can now help remedy this by providing on-site, real-time information on equipment built on towers. This means MNOs can verify installations while they’re being built and fix any mismatch on the spot instead of weeks later.

Build mismatch

Further delving into the initial issue, Daniel highlights that the lack of knowledge on base station assets stems from manual, up-to-the-minute inspection of towers being difficult, meaning different records of the latest information are held by MNOs and tower companies.

As a result, contractors hired by operators to put antennas on towers often find the reality is different when they install the equipment, leading to the antennas needing to be placed at different heights and tilts than planned. “If companies don’t know what’s on a tower, they cannot make informed decisions or be certain what they build is built correctly,” says Daniel.

With earlier generations of technology, deviations have been tolerated. However, Daniel says this will no longer be possible for mobile operators that want to stay ahead of the curve as 5G networks densify and small errors on thousands of towers multiply, leading to coverage issues and degraded performance over time. “This is not one company’s problem, but a major industry issue,” he emphasises.

Problems and solutions

Fortunately, vHive has an answer, based on the groundbreaking digital-twin technology that it has developed since the company was jointly formed by Daniel and CEO Yariv Geller in 2016, now used widely across the telecoms and renewable energy sectors.

“We’re digitising the process, from planning and 5G installation to maintenance and colocation – and with the click of a few buttons, we can show you all the information you need to know,” says Daniel. “This technology is really showing a lot of value to telco customers.”

Using vHive’s autonomous capture technology, towers can be surveyed with low-cost, off-the-shelf drones, and no need for skilled piloting.

Aided further by AI and computer-vision algorithms, MNOs can then gain a high-fidelity digital twin of the tower, providing measurements and equipment-positioning insights that support both upgrade planning and post-construction verification.

New piece of the puzzle

vHive has now added a crucial new piece of the puzzle for the 5G and FWA era: a patent-pending augmented-reality (AR) workflow that brings the as-planned model into the field. Using an AR overlay on the live drone video feed, contractors can validate that the as-built equipment just installed is aligned with the plan while still on site.

That means any deviation in antenna position or rotation can be seen instantly. Crews can then correct it on the spot, run a short re-survey and get a clear green light before they leave the site.

This On-Site Validation is designed to eliminate the after-the-fact discovery of installation errors, cut repeated truck rolls to correct issues, reduce opex, and accelerate network rollouts and time to monetisation – all while strengthening trust and transparency between MNOs, towercos and their contractors.

To the rescue

Such technology is coming to the rescue of a problem even larger than vHive originally suspected. In one customer example, 40% of antennas were installed with tilt errors beyond acceptable limits across thousands of towers surveyed.

“When their team saw this number, their jaws dropped and they realised it was essential to solve the problem,” says Daniel. And tilt was only one metric: equipment height, rotation and mount positioning showed similar patterns at scale.

On increasingly complex networks, the difference between smooth deployment and costly rework now comes down to one key thing, says Daniel: getting installation right the first time. Using On-Site Validation, that accuracy is achieved in real time, with crews able to correct deviations on the spot, re-survey within minutes and leave the site knowing everything matches the plan.

With vHive already deployed in more than 40 countries, the model is proven, global and delivers measurable results. For operators upgrading or maintaining tower infrastructure, it means moving faster, avoiding repeated visits to a site to correct issues and reducing opex at scale.

It’s the new standard for installation accuracy in the field, says Daniel, adding: “We’re here to bring unmatched clarity to tower deployments.”

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Partner content: vHive