AttoCore’s EPC used in Chalke Valley’s local 4G network

The deep winding valley’s rural location and small, dispersed population makes it difficult for the large telecommunications companies to deliver mobile broadband and fixed wireline services. To address this, the local community created a Community Interest Company called CH4LKE Mobile, which is run by telecom industry veterans, to build and operate a local 4G network. The company determined that the best way to provide coverage was to deploy a multi-operator neutral host (MONeH) 4G access network mounted on buildings in each difficult to reach community with poor mobile coverage. CH4LKE Mobile decided to embed the local switching and management elements of its network within the edge mounted radio assets, thereby increasing performance and reliability while reducing backhaul requirements.

The company opted for AttoCore evolved packet core (EPC) software – AttoEPC – which, the supplier claims has a very small footprint, an attractive price, a history of successful deployment, and the ability to cost-effectively provide EPC services that can scale down to the requirement of the smallest rural communities. It can be download from an internet server and supports a flexible licensing model. This, so AttoCore says, makes it easy to embed it in small cells or other local network elements, enabling services to be deployed at the network edge. AttoEPC is 4G only, lacking any 2G, 3G or circuit-switched functionality, simplifying maintenance and improving reliability.