LOUISVILLE, Colo – CableLabs issued its DOCSIS 3.1 PHY (physical layer) and MULPI (MAC and Upper Layer Protocol) specifications on Wednesday, technology that it says will enable a new generation of cable services and help operators continue to meet consumer demand for high speed connections and sophisticated applications.
DOCSIS 3.1 technology provides significant new value for cable operators and consumers of broadband services including:
– Speed: defines support for up to 10 Gbps downstream and up to 1 Gbps upstream network capabilities;
– Quality of Experience: utilizes Active Queue Management to significantly reduce network delay as data traffic grows in the home network, dramatically improving responsiveness for applications such as online gaming;
– Higher Capacity: enables a significant increase in network capacity with the ability to transmit up to 50 percent more data over the same spectrum, on existing HFC networks;
– Energy Efficiency: enhancements to the DOCSIS protocols will increase cable modem energy efficiency;
– Flexible Migration Strategy: DOCSIS 3.1 modems are designed to co-exist with older versions enabling incremental deployment based on market demand.
In developing the DOCSIS 3.1 technology, CableLabs streamlined its specification development process to allow both silicon and product vendors to accelerate development and testing. As soon as prototypes are available, CableLabs will facilitate interoperability testing of products at its labs to help equipment manufacturers prepare for certification and qualification.
The full specifications are available for download here.
