Oscilloquartz, a company of
ADVA Optical Networking
ADVA Optical Networking SE is a European telecommunications vendor that provides network equipment for data, storage, voice and video services. ADVA has a global workforce of over 1,900 employees and its FSP 3000 has been deployed in more than 2 ...
, is a manufacturer of frequency sources, such as
GPS
The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a Radionavigation-satellite service, satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of t ...
&
GLONASS
GLONASS (russian: ГЛОНАСС, label=none, ; rus, links=no, Глобальная навигационная спутниковая система, r=Global'naya Navigatsionnaya Sputnikovaya Sistema, t=Global Navigation Satellite System) is ...
receivers or
caesium
Caesium (IUPAC spelling) (or cesium in American English) is a chemical element with the symbol Cs and atomic number 55. It is a soft, silvery-golden alkali metal with a melting point of , which makes it one of only five elemental metals that a ...
clock
A clock or a timepiece is a device used to measure and indicate time. The clock is one of the oldest human inventions, meeting the need to measure intervals of time shorter than the natural units such as the day, the lunar month and the ...
s for telecommunications applications and has been producing similar products for about 60 years. It also providers synchronization solutions for turnkey synchronization projects in e.g.
PDH,
SDH SDH may refer to:
Science, medicine and technology
* Serine dehydratase, an enzyme
* L-sorbose 1-dehydrogenase, an enzyme
* Succinate dehydrogenase, an enzyme
* Shubnikov–de Haas effect
* Social Determinants of Health, economic and social condi ...
,
SONET
Synchronous optical networking (SONET) and synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) are standardized protocols that transfer multiple digital bit streams synchronously over optical fiber using lasers or highly coherent light from light-emitting diode ...
and all kind of mobile telecom networks e.g.
GSM
The Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) is a standard developed by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) to describe the protocols for second-generation ( 2G) digital cellular networks used by mobile devices such ...
, X-CDMA,
TETRA
Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA; formerly known as Trans-European Trunked Radio), a European standard for a trunked radio system, is a professional mobile radio and two-way transceiver specification. TETRA was specifically designed for use by ...
, 2.xG,
3G,
4G,
UMTS
The Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) is a third generation mobile cellular system for networks based on the GSM standard. Developed and maintained by the 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project), UMTS is a component of the Inte ...
,
WiMAX
Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) is a family of wireless broadband communication standards based on the IEEE 802.16 set of standards, which provide physical layer (PHY) and media access control (MAC) options.
The WiMAX ...
.
It also offers a wide range of technology, including its proprietary SyncView management
software
Software is a set of computer programs and associated documentation and data. This is in contrast to hardware, from which the system is built and which actually performs the work.
At the lowest programming level, executable code consists ...
and including, as SyncView agents or embedded solutions, Q3,
SNMP
Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) is an Internet Standard protocol for collecting and organizing information about managed devices on IP networks and for modifying that information to change device behaviour. Devices that typically ...
,
TL1
Transaction Language 1 (TL1) is a widely used management protocol in telecommunications. It is a cross-vendor, cross-technology MML (language), man-machine language, and is widely used to manage optical (SONET) and broadband access infrastructure i ...
interfaces.
It also manufactures a range of products including single oven and double oven oscillators, targeted at the synchronisation of mobile base stations and other telecommunication equipment.
The company headquarters is in
Saint-Blaise, Switzerland.
History
* Oscilloquartz began its operations as a department of Ebauches SA in 1949, during the pioneering days of time and frequency measurement.
* In 1950, Oscilloquartz equipped the
Observatory of Neuchâtel where the first quartz clocks were installed. Further quartz clocks were delivered to the
Observatory of Paris
The Paris Observatory (french: Observatoire de Paris ), a research institution of the Paris Sciences et Lettres University, is the foremost astronomical observatory of France, and one of the largest astronomical centers in the world. Its histor ...
in 1955.
* In 1958, Oscilloquartz began their activity in atomic frequency standards. An ammoniac
maser
A maser (, an acronym for microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation) is a device that produces coherent electromagnetic waves through amplification by stimulated emission. The first maser was built by Charles H. Townes, Ja ...
designed by the LSRH, was built and shown at the Universal Exhibition of Brussels. Subsequently a
hydrogen
Hydrogen is the chemical element with the symbol H and atomic number 1. Hydrogen is the lightest element. At standard conditions hydrogen is a gas of diatomic molecules having the formula . It is colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, an ...
maser
A maser (, an acronym for microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation) is a device that produces coherent electromagnetic waves through amplification by stimulated emission. The first maser was built by Charles H. Townes, Ja ...
was developed and, until 1988, nine units were manufactured and delivered to several observatories and institutes worldwide.
* In 1962, it developed of a complete redundant frequency generating system for
Swisscom (formerly named Swiss PTT) of which more than 50 were delivered in the 1960s and 1970s.
* In 1964, it focussed on the field of caesium frequency standards and in 1966 delivered its first commercial
atomic clock
An atomic clock is a clock that measures time by monitoring the resonant frequency of atoms. It is based on atoms having different energy levels. Electron states in an atom are associated with different energy levels, and in transitions betwee ...
to the
ESRO
The European Space Research Organisation (ESRO) was an international organisation founded by 10 European nations with the intention of jointly pursuing scientific research in space. It was founded in 1964. As an organisation ESRO was based on a ...
, the predecessor of the European Space Agency (
ESA
, owners =
, headquarters = Paris, Île-de-France, France
, coordinates =
, spaceport = Guiana Space Centre
, seal = File:ESA emblem seal.png
, seal_size = 130px
, image = Views in the Main Control Room (120 ...
).
* In 1967, The Swiss atomic clock "OSCILLATOM" was shown at
Expo 67
The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...
,
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
. During that same year, transport and transfer of precise time was carried out in the United States, Canada, Far East and South America.
* In 1971, Oscilloquartz SA was officially registered as a corporation.
* In 1978,
Swisscom (formerly Swiss PTT) commissioned Oscilloquartz to supply a new generation of plesiochronous and synchronous equipment for hierarchy levels I and II of their digital communications network. Over thirty similar synchronization systems were subsequently installed worldwide.
* In 1988, In a joint venture with SERCEL, France, Oscilloquartz developed the new European Digital Caesium Standard,
EUDICS, with fully digital control loops and remote capabilities via
RS-232
In telecommunications, RS-232 or Recommended Standard 232 is a standard originally introduced in 1960 for serial communication transmission of data. It formally defines signals connecting between a ''DTE'' (''data terminal equipment'') such a ...
interface.
* In 2014,
ADVA Optical Networking
ADVA Optical Networking SE is a European telecommunications vendor that provides network equipment for data, storage, voice and video services. ADVA has a global workforce of over 1,900 employees and its FSP 3000 has been deployed in more than 2 ...
acquired Oscilloquartz SA from the Swatch Group.
References
{{Reflist
Manufacturing companies of Switzerland