VIAVI Solutions Inc. has announced the successful end-to-end over-the-air (OTA) validation of Metanoia Communications Inc.’s JURA Open Radio Unit (O-RU) at the VIAVI Automated Lab-as-a-Service (VALOR). This marks the first product validated in the lab’s newly launched RF-shielded anechoic chamber, ensuring compliance with O-RAN and 3GPP standards.
VALOR, an automated Lab-as-a-Service platform for Open RAN testing, is supported by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) through the Public Wireless Supply Chain Innovation Fund. The lab officially opened on October 7, 2024, in Chandler, Arizona, with the RF chamber and two additional customer labs added on April 3, 2025.
Metanoia’s O-RU underwent comprehensive performance validation to confirm interoperability within Open RAN networks. Testing, conducted entirely over the air in the RF chamber, utilized reference O-CU and O-DU components provided by VALOR and its partners. Key performance metrics were evaluated under realistic radio conditions. Additionally, functional and performance validation based on O-RAN TIFG-defined test cases assessed the system’s behavior across control, user, and management planes, verifying adherence to O-RAN architecture and performance standards in a multi-vendor DU/RU environment.
“The successful validation of Metanoia’s O-RU using the new anechoic chamber is an important milestone for VIAVI and the VALOR lab,” said Erik Probstfield, Senior Director, VALOR, VIAVI. “Open RAN-based systems are set to significantly increase telecoms innovation, but a network is far too complex an environment to rely on trust alone. VALOR, especially with its OTA testing, allows companies such as Metanoia to independently validate the functionality and performance of their hardware, and gives network operators assurance that it will integrate seamlessly into their existing networks.”
“Metanoia is proud to remain at the forefront of 5G innovation, building on our longstanding partnership with VIAVI’s VALOR Lab,” said Didier Boivin, Executive Vice President, Metanoia. “The state-of-the-art OTA chamber, coupled with the company’s extensive testing experience, represent an invaluable resource as we advance our leadership in the Open RAN ecosystem.”
Metanoia’s JURA O-RU is a 4T4R 24dbm 5G FR1 radio unit that supports operation in the sub-6 GHz bands using TDD duplexing. It harnesses the power of its advanced Software Defined Radio (SDR) platform to deliver a flexible, high-performance Open RAN solution for 5G deployments. By combining powerful hardware acceleration with open-source adaptability, JURA O-RU facilitates efficiency and innovation in next-generation wireless networks.
The VALOR RF chamber is the industry’s first Test-as-a-Service offering for Massive MIMO and beamforming OTA validation. It creates a controlled environment that is free from outside interference and emulates multiple real-world scenarios by sending wireless signals to understand a device’s behavior. Created in partnership with ETS-Lindgren, services offered include system-level Massive MIMO performance testing for up to 16 parallel spatial layers.
VALOR enables independent and impartial interoperability, performance, and security testing leveraging VIAVI’s industry-leading NITRO Wireless Open RAN Test Suite and the VAMOS unified framework for hybrid physical and cloud-based testing. Customers can access over 500 test cases compliant with O-RAN WG4, WG5, WG11, TIFG, and 3GPP specifications. VALOR facilitates better readiness for the certification, badging, and acceptance tests at OTICs and CSP labs. It provides services to members of the AI-RAN Alliance and customers referred to the lab by AT&T and Verizon’s ACCoRD, and is the first test service to be authorized by the Telecom Infra Project (TIP) for its system performance certification program.
