Intel has generated a lot of publicity for its mobile processors of late, but mobile connectivity chipsets are also a major focus for the world’s largest chipmaker. The company says its communications systems have already shipped inside more than a billion mobile phones. It purchased Infineon Wireless in 2011, and this summer it bought Fujitsu Semiconductor Wireless Products, the successor to Motorola’s former semiconductor group and maker of a multimode LTE transceiver.
Perhaps the most striking evidence of Intel’s commitment to wireless connectivity is its $30 million investment in its own wireless certification lab at its campus near Portland, Oregon. The lab performs conformance testing for wireless modems, after the initial testing conducted by device makers and before carrier interoperability testing.
“It’s a huge strategic advantage,” said Asha Keddy, Intel’s general manager for standards and advanced technology. She said that once manufacturers complete pre-certification testing at their own labs, there is no need to go to a third party for certification if their device is using an Intel modem. “When they are getting closer to the final product and final certification and the stamp that the Global Certification Forum provides, that’s when we act like an independent lab,” she explained. “Previously we used to go to outside test houses to do this, but now we have the capability in house which makes us much more self-sufficient.”
The lab certifies solutions running on 4G/LTE, 3G and 2G networks, and tests both stand-alone and on-board modems. The facility includes commercial-grade 4G/LTE and 3G radio access networks, and layers of shielded chambers to isolate frequencies. Keddy said LTE-A testing capability is coming next.
Keddy estimates that Intel is shaving 4 to 8 weeks off the time-to-market by performing its own certification testing. She says that taking care of Global Certification Forum testing in-house gives Intel a big advantage with carrier and OEM customers. “GCF is pretty much the baseline because it certifies that the terminal works to certain standards,” she said. “From that point of view, when we engage a carrier or OEM customer, this lab helps us debug problems and helps us speed the time to market.”
“We decided to invest in this last October, we finished equipment ordering in February, construction in May, and before we knew it we got ISO certification and GCF certification,” said Keddy. She is particularly proud of the human capital at the certification lab.
“We actually got people who had experience from Tier 1 infrastructure vendors from throughout the country,” she said. Some existing Intel employees also came to work at the lab.
“We invested in the people aspect of this to make the whole thing happen,” said Keddy. “Because the complexity is increasing, everyone has to step up on their own to overcome the complexity. At the end of the day testing is the way to make sure things work and to make sure that the complexity actually translates into simplicity for the end user.”
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