Cable-Tec Expo: Arris, Cisco Forge Remote PHY Ties

Like it is today with DOCSIS modems and network gear, interoperability between products from multiple vendors will again be a major focus for Remote PHY, an emerging access architecture that will push the electronics deeper into the network.

Read More: Complete coverage of Cable-Tec Expo 2017

Tied into that interop effort, Kyrio, a unit of CableLabs, opened up official qualification testing on October 1. Speaking at a seminar dedicated to Remote PHY in Denver at the SCTE/ISBE Cable-Tec Expo, Jorge Salinger, Comcast’s vice president, access architecture, stressed that interoperability between vendors will be a critical requirement for the MSO as it moves ahead with trials and, eventually, with deployments.

RELATED: Ramping Up for Remote PHY

Arris and Cisco Systems, two major cable suppliers, claimed this week that they have made progress on the interop front for Remote PHY and distributed access architectures that aim to help cable operators reduce power and space requirements at hub and headend sites, while also boosting the capacities of their HFC networks.

Remote PHY allows for a reduction of power, cooling and hub site sizing, providing significant total cost of ownership (TCO) benefits to cable operators. Silicon manufacturers, technology vendors and global cable operators have endorsed the Remote PHY architecture and are working toward a common goal for the distributed access architecture (DAA).

Here at the show, Arris and Cisco are demonstrating interoperability of their respective Remote PHY products, including core CCAP technology and PHY nodes.

More specifically, Arris is showing its E6000 Core working with a Cisco Smart PHY Node, and Cisco is demoing the cBR-8 CCAP Core supporting the Arris RPHY Node.