Cell on wheels

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This COW was photographed in the parking lot of the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. It was in service for the 2005 Rose Bowl game. Notice that it has its own power generator for use when no commercial electrical power is available.

A cell on wheels, usually referred to as a COW, is a mobile cell site that consists of a cellular antenna tower and electronic radio transceiver equipment on a truck or trailer, designed to be part of a cellular network.^[1]

Expanded or emergency service

COWs are used to provide expanded cellular network coverage and/or capacity at special events such as major sporting events (Super Bowl, World Series, Rose Bowl), major conventions, or in disaster areas where cellular coverage either was never present (e.g. in a wilderness area where firefighters have set up a command center during a major forest fire) or was compromised by the disaster (e.g. in the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina). Following the 9/11 attacks on New York City, 36 cellular COWs were deployed [1] by September 14, 2001 in Lower Manhattan to support FEMA and provide critical phone service to rescue and recovery workers. Very many were put in place in Washington, D.C. for the inauguration of Barack Obama in January 2009 to handle the millions of extra people and calls in the city, especially on and near the National Mall during the ceremony.

Many telecommunications companies will also use COWs for long-term placement when financing or infrastructure considerations prevent building a permanent site at the location. For instance, a carrier may have approved the placement of a cell site for coverage reasons, but the remaining budget is inadequate to fund the construction for a fiscal quarter or even longer. An engineering team may be able to place a COW on location to provide immediate coverage with few costs other than leasing, electricity, and backhaul. The decision to use a COW for an extended period of time may also be driven by the property owner. Installations on government or military facilities may be granted only on a temporary basis, and may require the use of non-permanent facilities.

A COW may also be referred to as a site on wheels (SOW) or mobile tower unit (MTU).^{[citation needed]} Not all portable communication centers are created equally. Many are nothing more than a cargo trailer or box that has been modified to hold communication equipment and have a tower to affix antennas to. Differences from one manufacturer to another can be found in the type of tower; guyed vs. unguyed, methods of deploying the tower, whether it meets TIA/EIA specifications. Many COWs offer no protection for the sensitive equipment they hold from the effects of lightning or power surges. The backhaul to the network can be via terrestrial microwave, communication satellite, or existing wired infrastructure.

CIAB (Cell-in-a-Box)

Cell in a box (CIAB)

Related to a COW is a CIAB (cell in a box). Like COWs, CIABs provide temporary service with temporary equipment. The main difference is that a CIAB is typically placed for a longer period of time than a COW. COWs may also be known as COLTs by some companies, standing for "cell on light trailer".^{[citation needed]} These are in most respects the same as a COW but may have a taller tower that collapses in a nested fashion, tilting to ride perpendicular to the trailer.

References

External links

On a manufacturer’s site:

• CIAB, Cell In A Box;
• different types of COWs:
  • with flanged pole;
  • with self mounting pole and special two-axle trailer;
  • with a self mounting lattice tower;
  • with a shelter and a semi-trailer pulled by a truck.

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