Evaluating an Evolving OAI Testbed : Overview of Options, Building tips, and Current Performance

Mobile connectivity has become a must in both developed and developing countries. The ability to work with new technologies, and localise them requires appropriate testbeds. This work offers a brief overview of the field and describes a testbed being built at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa for experimental work on mobile networks. The testbed uses an Open Air Interface (OAI) Radio Access Network (RAN), Fraunhofer core network and a USRP X310 equivalent software defined radio. Some installation hints and current performance results (e.g. measured download/upload speed and latency between different parts of the system) are provided.