Digital Home Total Solution

Home multimedia communication, education and entertainment have become the focus of the broadband access market and the center of attention from global fixed network operators. ZTE Corporation, responding to the trend, launches the "Digital Home Total Solution".

    The Solution supports interconnection of the home network and various extranets, such as the IP TV network, Softswitch network, GSM/CDMA networks and Internet. It supports communication of home appliances with both other home appliances and external terminals. Therefore, the solution can sufficiently meet the demands of home users and the remote management of operators.

1 Network Structure of Digital Home Total Solution
Figure 1 illustrates the network structure of the Digital Home Total Solution. The Solution consists of three basic elements:

• Integrated access equipment for home networks—Home Gateway (HGW)
• Home network peripheral equiment Set Top Box(STB), PC, Video Phone, Bluetooth mobile phone, etc.
• Equipment Management System (EMS)
  

    The HGW is a very important part of the Solution. It is the integrated access gateway for home users. As the core of the home network, the HGW controls and coordinates all home equipment. It also provides users with a uniform and convenient user interface. ZTE´s HGW H100 has multi-purpose interfaces. Through the upload interface, it can connect to diversified networks, such as the Softswitch network, IP TV network, GSM/CDMA networks and Internet. Through the download interface, it can connect to home peripheral terminal equipment. The HGW H100 acts as a connecting link between upstream and downstream resources, connecting home appliances to other home appliances and to various external networks. It improves the scope and entertainment level of application of the home network.

    In the Solution the home network peripherals are the commonly used home devices, such as the analog telephone, fax machine, printer, MP3 player, USB drive, STB, video phone, PC, Bluetooth mobile phone and wireless network adapter. (PC connects to the Internet through the wireless network adapter).

    The EMS can manage Customer Premise Equipment (CPE) via the home network. With it, operators can monitor operation status and perform troubleshooting. The EMS has the following functions:

    (1) Gateway Management
    It configures the gateway, offers services, manages software, hardware and graphics, monitors status
and performance, and diagnoses malfunctions.

    (2) Equipment Management
    It completes troubleshooting and configuration changes for the remote access equipment.

2 Strengths of Digital Home Total Solution
    (1) Integrity
    It is an advanced integrated solution for the connection between home equipment and remote equipment management system. The Solution has been commercialized and is directly adaptable by operators and home users.

    (2) Diversity
    The Solution provides access to various networks and home terminal equipment, and offers convenience for users via diversified forms of terminal communications.

    (3) Reliability
    The Solution guarantees both IP QoS and ATM QoS. It also ensures the highest possible transmission quality.

    (4) Rationality
    The Solution uses "logical" equipment management system, enabling operators to directly manage terminals. This makes management and maintenance easy for the operators.

    (5) Entertainment
    The Solution offers diversified services, which greatly promote the joy of home entertainment.

3 Applications of Digital Home Total Solution
The Solution is applicable to the following four sorts of services:

    (1) Triple Play Service
    A Triple Play Service as a value added one includes data, voice and video services. Laptop, PC, Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), and wireless phone or handset, as part of a fixed home network can establish wireless connection with the home gateway through Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth. It is maximizing accesses to wireless broadband data, voice and video resources. An MP3 player can access the home gateway through a USB interface, allowing users to enjoy online music of any type, for any occasion, and for as long as they wish. An IP STB and video phone can access the home gateway through the Local Area Network (LAN), providing users with Internet browsing, Video on Demand (VoD), IP TV video multicasting, online interactive gaming, and online learning via TV. In addition, face-to-face contacts with families and friends thousands of miles away will be also available.

    (2) Unified Memory Architecture (UMA) Service
    In the Solution, users may implement communication with a GSM/PHS/CDMA network via the HGW. A home
dual-mode handset can realize communication between the HGW and the GSM/PHS/CDMA base station.

    (3) Integration Service
    This service includes communication services among home equipment as well as communication services between home and external equipment. For example, STB can stream an MP3 file using a USB drive, while displaying a digital camera´s image. An HGW can transfer MP3 and picture files to an Internet server for storage. These files can be browsed using STB or PC, when needed in the future.

    (4) Home Control Service
    The solution helps users remotely monitor their home environment from their office or any remote location. For example, they are able to remotely power home equipment on or off.

    ZTE´s Digital Home Total Solution will continue to offer new value-added services with both system and HGW upgrades in the future.

Manuscript received: 2005-10-08