Over-the-air 5G/LTE gNB/eNB testbeds were developed using multiple USRP software-defined radio platforms including the N310, B210, and X410 running full eNB and gNB functionality in both SISO and MIMO configurations, across two open-source cellular software ecosystems: OpenAirInterface (OAI) and srsRAN. Each testbed was completed end-to-end, pairing the radio access network with a core network either Open5GS or the stack’s own built-in core and connecting to commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) user equipment, including standard smartphones and Quectel 5G modem modules. The testbeds provided a practical comparison of how open-source 4G/5G stacks perform against real hardware and commercial devices, in both single- and multi-antenna operation, rather than in simulation.
