GE MDS Orbit MPRS Specifications

GE Energy Connections

MDS Master Station

Exceptional Reliability for Protected
Licensed or Unlicensed Communications

Now

supporting

Orbit

Unlicensed

900MHz

1

Narrowband communication networks are deployed to monitor, control and maintain critical industrial
processes and distributed assets. Such applications require high reliability and availability especially
at the access point, thus driving demand for high duty cycle solutions with built-in redundancy that
are capable of continuous operation. The MDS Master Station is built to meet these demanding
requirements.

The MDS Master Station offers two transceivers in a 1+1 redundancy, and dual power supplies to
maximize network availability. In the event of a failure the controlling logic switches to the standby
transceiver unit. Switchover can occur based upon transceiver error codes, loss of communication over a
configurable time period or loss of power.

The MDS Master Station supports two types of transceiver modules.

• Orbit licensed or unlicensed transceiver modules enable the latest generation performance,
networking, and security of fered in the MDS Orbit platform.

• SD licensed transceiver modules enable the deployment of MDS SD Series networks. Additionally, they
allow for backward compatibility with x710/x790 legacy networks.

Key Benefits

• Maximize network availability with 1+1 transceiver protection and hot-swappable components

• Range of backward compatibility and migration options to extend or evolve legacy networks and provide

project budget flexibility

• Simple migration options with field upgradability from SD to Orbit radio modules

• The most comprehensive set of cybersecurity and networking capabilities offered by the Orbit platform

provides protection from threats and ease of integration into modern networks

• Integration with the MDS PulseNET network management system

Reliability & Modularity

• 1+1 transceiver redundancy with warm standby
and fast radio switchover

• Various AC/DC power supply options with
redundant operation

• Modular, in-service, hot-swappable components

• Operation from -30 to +60 °C

• Rated for continuous operation

• No moving parts or fans

• Battery backup option

Flexibility

• Support for GE MDS SD Series radio technology
covering the 300-512 MHz and 880-960 MHz
bands with backward compatibility to legacy
X710/X790 systems

• Support for GE MDS Orbit unlicensed 900MHz1
or licensed technology with QAM covering the
100, 200, 400, 700, and 900 MHz bands

• MDS Orbit supports up to 50kHz bandwidth in
200 and 700 MHz bands

• Optional internal duplexer, GPS, and WiFi

• Connectivity for additional notched filter

Applications

Oil & Gas

• SCADA communication for flow/
metering devices, controllers and
RTUs

• Data acquisition for well head
production data and pipeline
status

Energy

• SCADA communication for
IEDs, controllers and RTUs at
distribution substations

• Data acquisition for pole-top
transformers and capacitor banks

Water & Wastewater

• SCADA communication for lift
station controllers and monitoring
devices

• Data acquisition for tank and
reservoir levels, flow rates and
pipeline valve status

Advanced
Networking & Security

• Orbit Network Operating System with advanced
routing, switching, Quality of Service and
network management capabilities

• Cutting edge cyber security suite including
firewalling, RF Encryption, end-to-end IPSec
VPNs, X.509 certificates with key rotation,
secure boot and firmware

MDS Master Station Configured

with SD Transceivers for Backward

Compatible Serial Operation

MDS Master Station Configured

with SD Transceivers for

IP and Serial Operation

MDS Master Station Configured

with Orbit Transceivers for

Higher Speed QAM

SCADA

Serial

MDS Master Station

x710 Radio MDS Orbit ECR

SD Radio

SD Radio

Serial

Serial

MDS Master Station

MDS Master Station Overview

The MDS Master Station is built on a cutting edge hardware framework to
offer exceptional reliability for critical communications. It can be configured
as a 1+1 system with redundant power supplies and transceivers that are
hot-swappable to ensure always-on operation and maximize network
availability. Other components such as duplexers and alarm cards are also
modular and can be field replaceable for ease of maintenance.

The Master Station utilizes a variant of the GE MDS Orbit network Operating
System (Orbit OS) offering future-ready security, networking and quality of
service capabilities.

Enterprise-Class Security

The MDS Orbit OS offers a comprehensive cyber security framework to
facilitate the deployment of highly secure networks. Orbit’s firewall ensures
protection at Layer 2 to 4 to permit only valid traffic through the network. Its
RF encryption secures communication between remote and AP while its IPSec
VPN and DMVPN capabilities enable end-to-end encryption between remotes
and control center. RAD IUS enforces a centralize d authentication p rocess where
users are granted access based on pre-authorized roles and access level.

Flexible Networking and Quality of Service

MDS Orbit OS enables the Master Station to offer dynamic and static routing
services as well as full managed switch capability for maximum flexibility in
network design. In addition to 1+1 transceiver protection, Orbit OS offers
other High Availability mechanisms when used with MDS Orbit remotes such
as interface bonding, Spanning Tree, Layer 3 failover, VRRP as well as latency
and packet-loss based failover. Quality of Service enables the granular
classification and prioritization of traffic as well as the dedication of uplink
throughput on a per-application basis to minimize latency and maximize
bandwidth for critical applications.

SCADA

Ethernet

MDS Orbit ECR

SD Radio

Ethernet

and 2310/4310 remotes. The MDS Master Station has been designed to
replace MDS 2100 and x790B masters and to provide a seamless evolution
path to an all SD network. This backward compatibility allows the seamless
co-existence of legacy and SD based networks.

Furthermore, when operating in the CPFSK A modem, the Master Station
with SD radio modules can communicate with MDS Orbit remotes operating
in a legacy backward compatible mode to facilitate the migration of legacy
networks to Orbit-based technology. Once all of the legacy remotes have
been replaced with Orbit, a field conversion is possible utilizing the same
firmware already on the master station along with swapping out the SD radio
modules for Orbit radio modules.

This can allow for more flexibility and control over cost and schedule compared
to alternative forklift or higher cost full master station migration options.

MDS Orbit ECR

SCADA

Serial

Ethernet - Serial - Wi-Fi

Ethernet

MDS Master Station

MDS Orbit MCR

MDS Master Station with Orbit Licensed Modules

The MDS Master Station may be conf igured with the latest generation MDS
Orbit licensed radio modules covering the 100, 200, 400, 700, or 900 MHz
bands. Orbit radio modules enable communication with the MDS Orbit MCR/
ECR remotes using its high-performance radio technology with up to 64-QAM
of modulation and up to 50kHz of bandwidth. Its bi-directional adaptive
modulation as well as IP header and payload compression maximize upstream
and downstream throughput. Dynamic Forward Error Correction (FEC) boosts
link sensitivity to maximize distance and operation in tough terrains.

MDS Master Station with Orbit Unlicensed
900MHz Modules

The MDS Master Station may be conf igured with Orbit’s high-performance
interference avoidance and very low latency 900MHz unlicensed technology1.
Capable of supporting higher bandwidth applications by providing scalable
data rates from 125Kbps to 1.25Mbps.

MDS Master Station with SD Radio Modules

The MDS Master Station may be conf igured with SD transceiver modules in
a non-redundant or redundant mode of operation. SD transceiver modules
utilize a similar radio technology as the industry-leading MDS SD Series
radios to enable communication with MDS SD remotes, as well as MDS x710

2

geautomation.com

Network Management and User Interface

The MDS Master Station with its Orbit OS supports standards-based SNMP and
Netconf network and device management protocols for easy integration into
MDS PulseNet and 3rd party NMS software. It can be configured and managed
using Command-Line Interface (CLI) or an intuitive Graphical User Interface (GUI).