Insight for the Inside

Though you would be hard-pressed to find areas on wireless carriers' network maps that aren't covered by a cell site, it's simply a matter of walking into any large complex of office buildings — or even a home located somewhere off the beaten path — to realize that there is covered, and then there is COVERED.

The issue for many carriers has been the financial and operational challenges of covering indoor areas. Thanks to the ever-increasing penetration of wireless devices, in tandem with carriers' intense desires to capture enterprise accounts, the financial barriers are falling fast. But operational issues — such as who is charge of maintenance — still loom. So Spotwave Wireless, a 2-year-old company based in Ottawa, Ontario, is touting what can only be described as a truly hands-off approach to the problem.

Designed for installation in indoor areas where coverage is lacking, the company's SpotCell output optimization system takes advantage of what Spotwave calls “adaptive algorithms” to continually transmit, receive and adjust signal power based on a variety of factors, including the signal strength from the macrocell that it's feeding off. The SpotCell system employs two devices — a donor unit that acts as a controller, and a coverage unit — to generate consistent signal power in areas that were previously impossible to cover. And then, it's left alone — the Macaulay Culkin of wireless coverage, if you will.

“We come at it from the perspective that it would be great if the carriers didn't have to be involved at all,” said Steve Adams, Spotwave's vice president of marketing and product management. The SpotCell units, which are about the size of paperback novels and plug into any wall outlet, essentially take care of themselves. “They basically sit there and look for the best signal to use,” Adams said.

Look for signal consistency to grow in importance as more data is added to the mix. “Data is a little less forgiving in terms of its signal,” said Mike Irizarry, chief technology officer with U.S. Cellular, one of Spotwave's customers. “So if you want to maintain the same throughput when you're in the building, you need to have the same signal strength.” And everyone knows there's nothing more annoying than mixed signals.