Wi-Fi mesh vendor Strix Systems today said it is developing a WiMAX product line and plans to incorporate both fixed and mobile WiMAX technologies as backhaul and access solutions in its comprehensive wireless mesh system.

Strix currently provides indoor and outdoor IEEE 802.11a and 802.11g mesh equipment, using dual radios to transmit an access uplink at 5 GHz and mesh backhaul at 2.4 GHz. Strix vice president of advanced development and strategy Cyrus Irani said that the vendor will incorporate WiMAX radios into its standard mesh nodes, allowing the network to use WiMAX as a distributed point-to-multipoint backhaul solution over licensed spectrum, complimenting its point-to-multipoint 802.11 abilities.

“We have deployments today that look a lot like WiMAX, so what we are doing is not entirely new,” Irani said. “Albeit WiMAX will offer us slightly better performance.”

Strix said it is currently building its own fixed WiMAX radio and customer premises equipment unit, based on the IEEE 802.16-2004 spec, which will be incorporated as RF boards into its hotspot and base station radios. It also plans to develop a Mobile WiMAX solution, based on the IEEE 802.16e standard, which it will use as both an alternate access solution as well as backhaul. Strix will be submitting both products to the WiMAX Forum for interoperability certification. While the Mobile WiMAX solution would require certification do to the multiple vendors supplying end-user CPEs for a public WiMAX service, Strix is taking the added step of certifying its fixed WiMAX solution, even though it would only be used for mesh backhaul. Irani said Strix wants to make the network as open as possible so a customer with an existing WiMAX network could easily incorporate the Strix architecture.

Irani added that Strix plans to add multiple other technologies to the mix, supporting 802.11n and 802.11j Wi-Fi technologies as they become available.