Moving symmetrical multi-gigabit internet speeds closer to reality for DOCSIS 3.1-powered cable networks, CableLabs has released the specifications for its Full Duplex DOCSIS standard.
Full Duplex (FDX) is an offshoot of the Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS). it’s designed to deliver simultaneous upstream and downstream internet speeds of up to 10 Gbps over hybrid fiber cable networks.
“Current DOCSIS networks have to juggle available upstream and downstream traffic. Full Duplex DOCSIS technology supports multi-gigabit symmetric services by enabling concurrent transmissions in the same spectrum, providing the ability to increase the upstream capacity without sacrificing downstream capacity,” said Belal Hamzeh, VP of research and development of wireless technologies for CableLabs, blogging about the new specs. “This has the potential to greatly improve network efficiency and, in turn, customer experience.”
CableLabs said Full Duplex eliminates the need for cable operators to expensively upgrade their networks to fiber-to-the-home capability.
“Using a combination of Passive HFC and the self-interference cancellation and intelligent scheduling of DOCSIS 3.1 technology, CableLabs has built a solution that proves the viability of full duplex communication,” Hamzeh added. “Its approach significantly increases upstream data capacity in order to enable symmetric multi-gigabit broadband data services for consumers and the enterprise. These developments are expected to yield DOCSIS 3.1 network performance of up to 10 Gbps symmetrical on 1 GHz HFC networks, with the potential for even higher performance by utilizing spectrum that is currently available for future expansion above 1 GHz.
RELATED: CableLabs begins spec writing for Full Duplex DOCSIS 3.1
The completion of the PHY piece of Full Duplex DOCSIS comes a year after CableLabs started writing specs for the standard.
Since that time, the top operators in the U.S. cable industry, Comcast and Charter, have committed to Full Duplex, while the third largest publicly traded U.S. operator, Altice USA has gone down the FTTH route.