ADVANTAGE User Reference Guide

8/12/2019 ADVANTAGE User Reference Guide

1/178

ADVANTAGEUser Reference Guide

Software Version 6.0

Reference Guide Edition 2


2/178


3/178

Copyright 2007 AIRCOM InternationalAll rights reserved

ADVANTAGE, ASSET, CONNECT, DATASAFE, ENTERPRISE, NEPTUNE,ARRAYWIZARD, OPTIMA, OSSEXPERT, and WEBWIZARD are recognisedtrademarks of AIRCOM International. Other product names are trademarks of theirrespective companies.

Microsoft Excel , .NET, Microsoft Office, Outlook , Visual Basic Windows,Windows XP, Windows Vista and Word are trademarks of the MicrosoftCorporation.

This documentation is protected by copyright and contains proprietary andconfidential information. No part of the contents of this documentation may bedisclosed, used or reproduced in any form, or by any means, without the priorwritten consent of AIRCOM International.

Although AIRCOM International has collated this documentation to reflect thefeatures and capabilities supported in the software products, the company makes nowarranty or representation, either expressed or implied, about this documentation, itsquality or fitness for particular customer purpose. Users are solely responsible for theproper use of ENTERPRISE software and the application of the results obtained.

An electronic version of this document exists.

This User Reference Guide finalised on 15 October 2007.

Refer to the Online Help for more information.

This User Reference Guide prepared by:

AIRCOM International LtdCassini CourtRandalls Research ParkRandalls WayLeatherheadSurreyKT22 7TW

Telephone: +44 (0) 1932 442000Support Hotline: +44 (0) 1932 442345Fax: +44 (0) 1932 442005

Web: www.aircominternational.com


4/178


5/178

ADVANTAGE User Reference Guide Page 5Version 6.0

Contents

Chapter 1 Introduction 9About ADVANTAGE 10About the ADVANTAGE Operational Environment 11About the ADVANTAGE Optimisation Framework 12What are the Benefits of Using ADVANTAGE? 12Obtaining User Assistance 13

Who is This User Reference Guide For? 14About the ENTERPRISE User Reference Guides 14Can You Improve Our User Assistance? 15Obtaining Support 16Obtaining Further Information and Services 17

Chapter 2 Getting Started Using ADVANTAGE 19About the Main Features of ADVANTAGE 19

About Measurement Data 20About Analysis 20About Network Optimisation 21

About the ADVANTAGE User Interface 21About the File Menu 22About the Configuration Menu 22About the Arrays Menu 23About the Tools Menu 24About the Reports Menu 25About the Optimiser Menu 25

About the Optimiser Workflow 26The ADVANTAGE Process Flow 27

Chapter 3 Setting Action-Constraints in ADVANTAGE 29About Actions-Constraints 29

Action-Constraints Exclusive to the Site Database 30About the Action-Constraints Available 31

Configuring BTS Equipment and Mast Constraints 31Configuring Property Antenna Constraints 32Configuring Property Grid Constraints 34Configuring GSM Site Installation Constraints 36Configuring GSM Site Grid Constraints 36Configuring GSM Cell Antenna Constraints 38Configuring GSM Subcell Antenna/TRX Constraints 39Configuring Node Resource Constraints 39Configuring Node Antenna Constraints 40Configuring Node Grid Constraints 41Configuring UMTS Cell Params Constraints 42


6/178

Page 6 ADVANTAGE User Reference GuideVersion 6.0

Configuring UMTS Cell Load and Power Ctrl Constraints 42Configuring Constraints in the Site Database Global Editor 43

Chapter 4 Using the Optimiser Workflow 45Using the Plan Manager 46

About the Concept of Plans in ADVANTAGE 47Viewing and Using Plans in the Plan Manager 48Creating a New Plan for Optimisation 49Setting Up and Activating the Details for the Plan 51Using the Context Menu 54Viewing Plans in the Map View Window 55Using the Action-Constraints Dialog Box 59

About Actions-Constraints Templates 66Assigning Action-Constraints Templates to Objects by using Filters 78Prerequisites for an Optimisation 81Starting an Optimisation 82Running an Optimisation 83

About the Statistics Analysis 89Deleting a Plan 96

Applying a Plan Temporarily to the Database 97Applying a Plan to the Database 98Key Differences between Temp Apply and DB Apply 99

Setting Clutter/Vector Parameters 100Specifying Clutter Parameters 100Specifying Vector Parameters 102

Setting Performance Metrics/Targets 104Setting Performance Targets for Signal Strength Metrics 104Setting Performance Targets for Simulator Metrics 108

Specifying Costs/Risks/Limits 112Setting Maximum Limits for Objects or Actions 112Defining Combinations of Actions 114Defining Costs and Risks for Objects and Actions 115Specifying Maximum Costs and Risks 118

Setting the Strategy 119Selecting the Metrics and Weights 119Rejecting Plans based on Metric Degradation 121Defining the Cost Conversion Coefficients and Synthesis 123

Specifying the Settings 125Configuring General Options and Settings 125Loading Cached Traffic Arrays 127

Chapter 5 Identifying Problematic Areas and Cells in your Network 129Configuring Problem Area Thresholds 130

Example of Problem Area Thresholds 131Configuring Problem Cell Thresholds 132Identifying Problem Areas and Cells 134

About the Information Shown in a Problem Area Report 135About the Information Shown in a Problem Cell Report 137

Configuring Problem Cell Weights 138


7/178


Chapter 6 Using Measurement Data 141About Intelligent Spreading of Network Data 142How ADVANTAGE Spreads Traffic Data 144About the Spreading Mechanisms in ADVANTAGE 145Configuring the Format for Importing Network Data 146

Configuring the Format for Additional Data 147Examples of the ADVANTAGE Import Format 148

About Spreading Network Data 149Spreading Network Data 150Displaying Spread Data on the Map View 151Displaying Spread Data in the Data Values Pixel Analyser 152Re-Spreading Network Data 154

About Cached Traffic Arrays 154Performing Network Data Array Operations 154

Scaling Network Data Arrays 155Combining Network Data Arrays 155Managing Network Data Arrays 156

About Drive Test or other Area and Cell-Specific Data 157Converting TEMS Data to Signia Data 157Loading and Viewing CW Measurement Data 158

About Using Measurement-Based Pathloss Files 163Generating Measurement-Based Pathloss Files 164Using Drive Test Data to Influence Predictions 164

Appendix A Technical Reference 169About the Optimisation-Based Spreading Algorithms 169About the Network Optimisation Domain 170About the Network Optimisation Cost Function 170About Efficient Network Optimisation 172About the Voronoi Diagrams 173About Optimisation Problem Definitions 174About Adaptive Simulated Annealing 175

Index 177


8/178



9/178


Introduction

ADVANTAGE is an automatic network planning and optimisation tool. It providesan advanced, integrated framework that is composed of:

Network modelling and fine tuning

Network analysis and problem identification

Consideration of design issues and constraints

Automatic cell planning and optimisation

ADVANTAGE is part of AIRCOM International's ENTERPRISE suite. ENTERPRISEis the fully integrated, PC-based, network engineering solution for network operators,cellular equipment manufacturers and system integrators.

In This Section

About ADVANTAGE 10

About the ADVANTAGE Operational Environment 11About the ADVANTAGE Optimisation Framework 12What are the Benefits of Using ADVANTAGE? 12Obtaining User Assistance 13

C H A P T E R 1


10/178


About ADVANTAGE

ADVANTAGE is an automatic planning/optimisation platform that:

Enables the automatic optimisation of:

The number of sites required to meet the coverage and service objectivesduring regional network rollout

The physical network configuration to maximise capacity for the desired rangeof services and traffic demands

Various design parameter settings (antenna, power, sitelocation/configuration) to meet the network performance objectives

ARFCN allocation and associated parameters, including baseband and RFhopping

Provides a more efficient and economic solution to network planning andoptimisation than the manual 'trial and error' approach that usually involvessignificant drive testing and re-rigging activity

Offers high level of integration between interacting optimisation mechanisms

Utilises a wide range of survey measurement and network statistics data to tunethe modelled network and facilitate area performance optimisation

Improves the efficiency of the cyclical process of ongoing planning andoptimisation, and frees up time for planning/optimisation engineers to focus onother tasks

Supports real-world performance targets and network configuration constraints

Facilitates the joint consideration of a wide range of data (such as pathlosspredictions, OSS performance statistics and drive test measurements) to make themodelled network as realistic as possible

Supports multi-technology network planning and optimisation

Uses a series of intelligent analysis algorithms to identify and alleviate areas/cellsof poor performance

Integrates efficiently with planning and optimisation tools to avoid dataintegration and interfacing issues

Benefits from the ENTERPRISE graphical interface and database architecture


11/178


About the ADVANTAGE Operational Environment

ADVANTAGE is designed to interact seamlessly with the other products of theENTERPRISE tool suite, so that you can make full use of the ENTERPRISE modelling

and analysis functionality, and apply the identified optimisation solutions into theplanning and operational network environment.

ADVANTAGE is:

Based on the same user interface as the rest of the ENTERPRISE products

Built to operate on top of the ENTERPRISE planning database, which uses arobust Oracle platform to achieve both speed and data consistency

Alternatively, you can use ADVANTAGE in a standalone capacity, based on a seriesof interfaces through which information can be exchanged between ADVANTAGEand any third party or operator tools.

This picture shows the optimisation life cycle using ADVANTAGE:

The optimisation life cycle using ADVANTAGE


12/178


About the ADVANTAGE Optimisation Framework

The ADVANTAGE framework enables you to optimise an extensive number ofphysical design and network parameter settings, according to your specific

requirements. The optimisation process offers a choice of cost mechanisms, each withits own set of metrics. There are two cost mechanisms:

Static

Simulation-based

As an example, in order to maximise the signal coverage/quality in your network,you might use a Static optimisation that considers antenna azimuth changes andpower changes. Or, in order to maximise the mean number of served UMTS users inyour network, you might use a Simulation-based optimisation that considers antennaelectrical tilt changes. You can also choose to use a combination of both approaches.

The changes considered in the optimisation can be evaluated in terms of threecomponents or indicators:

Indicator Represents

Budget The monetary cost of a network plan.

Manpower The actual resource level required to implement a network plan.

Performance The network plan performance in terms of the targets specified by the user.

An overall optimisation cost value can be generated from all these components, basedon scenario-specific relative degrees of importance.

In summary, the optimisation depends on:

A series of actions that can be considered in order to improve a network, includingthe monetary and manpower cost associated with each of these actions

A set of constraints that restrict which/how specific network parameters can bealtered during optimisation

A set of radio parameters and targets that characterise the expected performancefor the metrics that can be affected by the optimisation

An analysis engine that estimates the cost values for the metrics used in theoptimisation every time a network plan is evaluated

A sophisticated, proprietary algorithm that can identify the best solution in anefficient manner

What are the Benefits of Using ADVANTAGE?

A large number of customer and trial optimisation scenarios have confirmed thatADVANTAGE can enhance the efficiency of the network planning/optimisationprocess, and thus provide significant commercial benefits:

Reduce CapEx (Capital Expenditure), by decreasing the site count required toachieve the prescribed performance levels during the nominal planning phase.


13/178


Reduce OpEx (Operational Expenditure), by enabling engineers to focus on othertasks while it produces the best network plans, and by ultimately minimising theneed for drive testing or antenna re-rigging.

Increase traffic revenue, by leading to significant capacity gains, even in mature 2gnetworks where it has been possible to improve the Quality of Service andmaximise the generated revenue from the same or higher bit rate services.

Obtaining User Assistance

Using Online Help

ENTERPRISE products come with a complete system of online Help which you canaccess in three ways:

From the Help menu, click Help Contents. Scroll through the table of contents andchoose a relevant topic to display.

To search for something particular, from the Help menu, click Help Contents andusing the Index tab or Search tab, type in a letter or word to start searching forrelevant topics.

Press F1 in a dialog box to view context-sensitive help (available for most dialogboxes).

Important :If you are using ENTERPRISE within a CITRIX environment, to ensure thatthe Help graphics are displayed, you should ensure that your visualisation settingsare configured to display greater than 256 colours.

Using ENTERPRISE User Reference Guides

If you prefer to read printed content, we also provide User Reference Guides. To viewor print these as PDFs (Adobe Acrobat portable document format):

1 Make sure you have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your PC. If you do nothave this, you can install it from the ENTERPRISE CD, or get it from the Adobewebsite.

Note :Adobe and Acrobat are trademarks of Adobe Systems, Incorporated.

2 Click Start on the taskbar, point to Programs, then AIRCOM International, thenENTERPRISE, then Docs.

- or -

Navigate to the Docs folder in the location where you installed the product.

Note :If neither of these exist, please contact your administrator.

3 Double-click the PDF file that you want to view.

Tip : If you have a customer web account, you can also download the latest UserReference Guides from our website.


14/178


Checking Release Notes

Each release of the ENTERPRISE software is accompanied by Release Notes, givingimportant information on system requirements, installation, known issues, upgrades

and so on. These notes are included in the ENTERPRISE CD, or you can downloadthem from our website.

For any further documentation, such as application notes and extra referenceinformation, please email the support team at the address described in ObtainingSupport on page16.

Who is This User Reference Guide For?

The ENTERPRISE User Reference Guides are intended for different audiences,depending on the particular product. Typical prerequisites include a good

understanding of the following:The appropriate telecoms technologies and the associated network planningmethods (for planning software)

Relational database management, and in particular Oracle database creation andadministration procedures (for administrative software)

The various parameters utilised for monitoring and optimising networks (for OSSsoftware)

Irrespective of the particular product, the following basic knowledge is required:

Microsoft Windows concepts

The functions of the Microsoft Office suite of tools, in particular Excel

About the ENTERPRISE User Reference Guides

This table describes our range of User Reference Guides:

This Guide Contains Information On

What's New The main difference between the latest versions of the ENTERPRISEsuite.

ENTERPRISE Installation and Administration Installing and configuring ENTERPRISE, your network, and Oracledatabases. Using Administrator to create users and groups, and set

permissions.

Also contains information on software licensing.

ENTERPRISE Database Reference The relationships between tables in the database and the contents of eachtable.

ENTERPRISE User Reference Functionality that is common to most of the products in the ENTERPRISEsuite, including how to access, view, edit and store data.

ENTERPRISE Technical Reference File formats, as well as antenna and diffraction calculations.

ADVANTAGE User Reference Using ADVANTAGE to plan and optimise networks automatically, considermeasured data in analysis/optimisation, analyse network performance,identify problematic areas/cells, and more.

ARRAYWIZARD User Reference Using ARRAYWIZARD to automatically generate coverage predictions and

best server arrays, which gives you instantaneous display of coverage andinterference information for pre-selected filters when loaded into ASSET.


15/178


This Guide Contains Information On

ASSET User Reference Using ASSET, the network planning and analysis tool, to design a range ofcellular networks.

Includes information on hierarchical network planning, propagationmodelling, service and bearer definition, coverage analysis, traffic planning,neighbour planning, frequency planning, CW data analysis, detailedreporting, analysis arrays and simulation of network performance.

ASSET Technical Reference Array descriptions and information on some of the algorithms used inASSET.

CONNECT User Reference Using CONNECT, the network transmission and microwave link planningsoftware for full network physical link design and logical link design.

Also contains CONNECT-specific reference information.

DATASAFE User Reference Using DATASAFE, our network configuration tool to implement both smalland large scale changes to networks

DIRECT User Reference Using DIRECT to design telecommunications networks of different networklayers. Explains how to plan cellular, PSTN and data networks at a both

general and strategic level.

Also contains DIRECT-specific reference information.

NEPTUNE User Reference Using NEPTUNE to collect, import and analyse testmobile data and usingthe optional module, PROBE for additional analysis.

Also contains reference information on NEPTUNE file formats.

OPTIMA User Reference Using OPTIMA to view performance data and statistics both withENTERPRISE and standalone using OPTIMA Lite.

OSSEXPERT User Reference Using OSSEXPERT to manage optimisation tasks in wireless networks.

RANOPT User Reference Using RANOPT to efficiently find faults in your network, optimise andvalidate its performance prior to commercial launch.

WEBWIZARD User Reference Using WEBWIZARD to display GIS and report information of network data,including creating layers, regions, nodes, layer types, administering andconfiguring the system and using the GIS view, explorer and reportviewers.

Can You Improve Our User Assistance?

We are always trying to improve the online Help and User Reference Guides.

If you cannot find the Help you were looking for, need more information, or have anysuggestions for improvements, we would be grateful for your feedback.

Also, if you are generally satisfied with these resources, we would appreciate anypositive feedback.

Online Questionnaire

You can help us by completing our brief online questionnaire(http://tinyurl.com/y47rqn).

Alternatively, you can contact us directly at [email protected].


16/178


Obtaining Support

If you have a difficulty you cannot resolve yourself using the online Help orReference Guides, or you have found a possible fault in the software, you can log asupport request as described below. You may also wish to contact us if you want to:

Register for a customer web account to access the Support area

Obtain further documentation, such as application notes and extra referenceinformation

Logging Support Requests Online

To log a support request online:

1 Go to the AIRCOM website, at www.aircominternational.com.

2 Click the link to Support.

3 Log in, using your customer web account username and password.

4 In the Technical Support pane, click Online Helpdesk System.

5 Click Log New.

6 Enter the details of your request, and then click Log.

Contacting us via Telephone or Email

If you wish to contact us directly, here are the contact details of our regional offices:

Location Regional Office Contact Details

Europe United Kingdom Tel : +44 (0) 01932 442345Fax :+44 (0) 01932 442005

[email protected]

Sweden [email protected]

France [email protected]

Italy [email protected]

Germany [email protected]

Belgium [email protected]

Middle East, Africa and Central Asia United Arab Emirates Tel : +971 4 391 2642Fax :+971 4 391 8660

[email protected]

South Africa Tel : +27 11 3243600Fax : +27 11 7848027

[email protected]

Americas Mexico [email protected]

USA Tel : +1 866 207 8083Fax : +1 214 360 7241

[email protected]


17/178


Location Regional Office Contact Details

Brazil Tel : +55 12 3941-2199Fax : +55 12 3911-3727

[email protected]

Asia and Oceania Australia [email protected]

Singapore [email protected]

China [email protected]

Taiwan [email protected]

India [email protected]

When contacting us with a support query, it would help us if you:

Give us as much information as possible about the problem and the context inwhich it occurred

State the version and build you are using

Have all the details of your query to hand

Are logged into the ENTERPRISE application

Can send extracts of your data sets if we need them to reproduce your problem

Obtaining Further Information and Services

As well as comprehensive online Help and User Reference Guides and dedicatedProduct Support, AIRCOM additionally provides:

Online Knowledgebase of Articles

If you register for a customer web account, you can view our searchable technicaldatabase in the Product Support section of the AIRCOM website. ThisKnowledgebase contains articles created by our support professionals who haveresolved issues for our customers, and is constantly updated, expanded, and refinedto ensure that you have access to the very latest information.

Online Technical Forum

You can obtain useful information from our online problem-solving technical forum.

The URL address is: http://www2.aircom.co.uk/techforum

If you would like permission to access to this resource, please email the support teamat the address described in Obtaining Support on page16.

Power Tools

If you register for a customer web account, you can download from a selection ofuseful power tools, such as file conversion utilities.


18/178


Latest Copies of the User Reference Guides

If you register for a customer web account, you can download the latest UserReference Guides (PDFs) from our website. If you do this, please check the back of the

reference guides for any additions or corrections.

Consultancy Services

AIRCOM also provide full radio consultancy services in Network Audits, BusinessPlanning Support, Licence Applications, Radio Network Planning,Telecommunications Research and System Modelling and Propagation Analysis andModelling.

Training

There is a wide variety of courses run by AIRCOM. These courses range from tooltraining to technology training. For details, contact Competence DevelopmentSolutions ([email protected]).


19/178


Getting Started UsingADVANTAGE

Before you begin to use ADVANTAGE, you should ensure you understand the basicconcepts described in this section.

Note :You must have the appropriate user permissions (these are specified inENTERPRISE Administrator) in order to use ADVANTAGE-specific functionality orto change ADVANTAGE settings. For more information, see the Installation andAdministration User Reference Guide.

In This Section

About the Main Features of ADVANTAGE 19About the ADVANTAGE User Interface 21About the Optimiser Workflow 26

The ADVANTAGE Process Flow 27

About the Main Features of ADVANTAGE

The main features of ADVANTAGE are:

Measurement Data Usage - you can use area and/or cell-specific (measured orexperimental) data

Network Statistics Analysis - you can evaluate any number of network plans

Network Optimisation - you can optimise a network automatically

Important : The ADVANTAGE User Reference Guide describes all the steps andprocesses in the tool. However, some of these steps, in particular the ones related tothe radio environment setup, will not be required for the general user provided theadministrator (or super-user) has already completed them. This is also true foroptimisation scenarios that have been set up by one user that can be shared with otherusers who access the same project.

You should always make sure that the ENTERPRISE project setup is up-to-date andcomplete before proceeding. For more information, see the ENTERPRISE and ASSETUser Reference Guides.

C H A P T E R 2


20/178


About Measurement Data

There are two aspects to the use of measurement data in ADVANTAGE. You can:

Import and spread network data, for example performance engineering data ortraffic data. This cell-specific information is imported into ADVANTAGE andspread intelligently in the area of interest. The created arrays can describe thenetwork performance and may highlight problematic areas/cells. They can also beused directly (in the case of traffic arrays) or indirectly in the statistics analysis oroptimisation.

ADVANTAGE also enables you to use the standard ENTERPRISE trafficfunctionality to create/load/modify a traffic array, using either live traffic orspecified traffic.

Load and use area-specific and/or cell-specific data (for example, drive test

measurements) to check the network modelling/performance; tune a propagationmodel; generate measurement-based pathloss files in order to influence thepathloss predictions (and predicted network performance); run a focused statisticsanalysis or optimisation (based, for example, on drive test routes).

For more information, see Using Measurement Data on page141.

About Analysis

There are several ways of performing network analysis in ADVANTAGE. Insummary, you can:

Run a statistics analysis

Identify problem areas and cells

Use ENTERPRISE and ASSET analysis functionality

Statistics Analysis

The statistics analysis functionality in ADVANTAGE enables you to:

Analyse and evaluate a current Plan configuration or an optimised Delta Planconfiguration

Compare any two plan configurations, whether current or optimisedYou can evaluate a single plan, or compare two plans, in terms of their performance(with respect to measurements and optimisation metrics). The performance achievedfor each configuration is compared with the user-specified performance targets andpresented (in terms of absolute and/or relative values) on a traffic and area basis.

The statistics report generated can include:

Actions

Statistics

Costs

You can use the produced reports and/or graphical information to determine howgood a plan is, or the number/cost of the required optimisation actions.


21/178


For more information, see About the Statistics Analysis on page89.

Problem Area and Problem Cell Identification

ADVANTAGE also enables you to quickly identify the areas and cells of poorperformance, based on user-specified targets. You can use the produced reportsand/or graphical information to determine which areas or cells should be optimised.You can also use problem cell weighting to prioritise actions (changes) to cells thathave shown poor performance, based on the analysis output and/or networkmeasurements.

For more information, see Identifying Problematic Areas and Cells in your Networkon page129.

About Network Optimisation

The principal feature of ADVANTAGE is the automatic Optimiser, which canconsider an extensive number of physical design and network parameter settings thataffect the performance of the radio network.

You can set up and start the automatic optimisation of a network configurationaccording to various targets, costs, actions and constraints, using any or all of thefollowing planning mechanisms:

Antenna

Power

Grid (site location/selection/configuration)

For more information, see Using the Plan Manager on page46 and Prerequisites foran Optimisation on page81.

About the ADVANTAGE User Interface

As part of the ENTERPRISE Suite, ADVANTAGE not only benefits from the commonSite Database and Map View windows, but also adds specialised functionality for thepurpose of automatic network planning and optimisation.

This section briefly describes some of the user interface features that ADVANTAGE

shares with or adds to the core ENTERPRISE user interface.There is one menu which is exclusive to ADVANTAGE:

Optimiser

The common menus (some of which also contain ADVANTAGE-specific features*)are:

File*, View , Database, Equipment, Configuration, Arrays*, Tools*, Reports,Windows, Help

For more information about the common user interface, see either the ENTERPRISEUser Reference Guide, or the ASSET User Reference Guide.

Note :If ADVANTAGE is installed as a standalone product, then some options will beunavailable.


22/178


About the File Menu

ENTERPRISE enables you to import XML files into a project or export XML files froma project. You can do this using the File Menu, which gives access to the XML Importand Export dialog boxes.

When you have ADVANTAGE installed, these dialog boxes contain an additional tab,enabling you to import or export ADVANTAGE-specific plans, targets, parameters,costs and thresholds.

This picture shows an example:

For more information on importing and exporting XML data, see the ENTERPRISEUser Reference Guide.

About the Configuration Menu

The following table briefly describes the options available on the Configuration menu,which ADVANTAGE shares with ASSET:

This Menu Item Enables You To

Propagation Models Define propagation models.

Propagation models are mathematical attempts to model the real radio environment asclosely as possible.

Terminal Types Specify the different terminal types and properties needed for subscribers of yournetwork.

Assign the terminal types to different network layers or to multiple layers, and describetheir geographical distribution in relation to the mapping data.


23/178



Carriers:

GSM and GPRS

Frequency Bands

UMTS Carriers

Define carriers.

Most radio network systems divide up spectrum into pairs for uplink and downlinkcommunication. Rather than refer to the two absolute frequencies in terms of MHz, it isconvenient to refer to a carrier number, which abstracts the absolute frequency from thedescription of the carriers.

Layers:

Carrier Layers

Cell Layers

Define GSM carrier layers, which are sub-sets of the total list of carriers, groupedtogether under a common name.

Define GSM cell layers, which are logical groups of transceivers on a cell. By using celllayers, you can distinguish between micro cells and macro cells or between carriers ofdifferent frequency bands.

Bearers Define UMTS and HSDPA bearers that transport voice and data between cells andterminal types.

Services Define UMTS and HSDPA services, and then allocate the services to terminal types, toaccount for the different services offered to the subscriber.

For example, services might have different data rates and other requirements such as

quality of service.

Lookup Tables and Curves Define Frequency Hopping Diversity Gain, C/I BER Conversion, Channel to TRX Mapsand HSDPA Coding Rates.

GSM Coverage Schemas Define your own colours for GSM coverage schemas.

UMTS Resources Configure up to 6 default resources for your UMTS and HSDPA elements, includingChannels.

For more information on any of these menu items, see the ASSET User ReferenceGuide.

About the Arrays MenuThe following table briefly describes the options on the Arrays menu:


Array Manager* View any non-ADVANTAGE-specific array information currently in memory, as well asload, delete and save arrays.

Traffic:

Traffic Array Wizard* Create traffic arrays.

Scale Traffic* Scale traffic arrays (projected to increase in system load over time).

Load Live Traffic* Create traffic arrays using imported live traffic.

Network Data:

Data Array Wizard Import and spread live network data onto the region associated with the selected Plan. Forexample, you can create an ADVANTAGE traffic array.

Data Pixel Analyser View detailed information about the data you have spread, as values per pixel, dependingon the chosen area and network, the data spread and the resolution selected forspreading.

Data Array Operations Scale, combine and manage data arrays.

Re-Spread Data Spread data based on the originally spread data and an optimised network configuration.

Coverage/Interference* Create GSM coverage/interference arrays.

Signal Coverage - GSM Best Server

Wizard*

Create signal coverage arrays for GSM networks.


24/178



Signal Coverage - UMTS Pilotcoverage Wizard*

Create signal coverage arrays for UMTS networks.

Array Settings* Define the parameters for all arrays and prediction creation/loading.

For more information on the items marked *, see the ASSET User Reference Guide.

For more information on the four items listed under Network Data, see UsingMeasurement Data on page141.

About the Tools Menu

The following table briefly describes the options on the Tools menu:


Pathloss Prediction Generator

Tip :There is also a shortcut button on themain ADVANTAGE toolbar.

Create prediction files for multiple sites.

CW Measurements Import drive test measurements, perform CW analysis, auto-tune thepropagation model parameters and create measurement-based pathlossfiles (based on the imported data).

TEMS Utility (GSM and UMTS) Convert TEMS FMT file data to Signia file format and perform dataloading.

Interference Tables:

Interference Weights

Interference Table Wizard

Load Interference Table

Save Interference TableView Interference Table

Create Interference Tables, which accumulate the interference that wouldresult if all cells in the network were allocated the same or adjacentcarriers. In this way, it provides values that can be used to objectivelyminimise the interference within any plan it generates during the

frequency planning process (see below).

Frequency Planning:

Frequency Hopping Process Selector

ILSA Frequency Planner

MA List Planner

MALID Planner

MALID Checker

MAIO Planner

HSN Planner

BSIC Planner

Frequency Plan Reporter

Use a range of automatic frequency planning options designed to helpoptimise your network, and produce reports based on the current orprojected frequency plans.

Problem Identification:

Problem Area Thresholds

GSM

UMTS

Configure technology-specific thresholds for problematic areas. Thesedefine the minimum clutter-specific values that are acceptable for thepurpose of the analysis.

Problem Cell Thresholds Configure technology-specific thresholds for problematic cells.

You can configure problem cell thresholds to define the criteria used toclassify problem cells (both GSM and UMTS) in your network. When youlater identify problem cells, any cells that do not meet these thresholdswill be classified as problematic.

Problem Area and Cell Identification Identify area problems (such as low coverage, low quality) and/or cellproblems (such as large number of dropped calls, large number ofhandovers).

Assign problem cell weights, in order to prioritise actions (changes) tocells that have shown poor performance.


25/178


For more information on the Pathloss Prediction Generator, Interference Tables andFrequency Planning, see the ASSET User Reference Guide.

About the Reports Menu

The following table describes the reporting options that ADVANTAGE shares withASSET:


Site/Node report Generate a report that includes any selected contents of the Site Database, based on anyfilter.

GSM Cell Information report Generate a report containing all cells which use a certain carrier, or range of carriers,according to the criteria.

FCC report Generate a report that displays all the data required for FCC form 600. The FCC (FederalCommunications Commission) is the statutory regulatory body for mobile communicationin the U.S.A.

About the Optimiser Menu

The following table briefly describes the two options on the Optimiser menu:

Optimiser Workflow

ADVANTAGE Wastebasket


Workflow


The Optimiser Workflow enables you to perform the vast majority of taskswithin ADVANTAGE from a single dialog box. This incorporates the setting

up of parameters, costs, constraints and targets, and generation ofoptimisation Plans.

It comprises a number of main options:

Plan Manager

Clutter/Vector Parameters

Performance Metrics/Targets

Costs /Risks/Limits

Strategy

Settings

For more information, see About the Optimiser Workflow on page26.

ADVANTAGE Wastebasket


Delete ADVANTAGE-specific items from the database.

Note : You cannot create a new item with the same name as an item in the

ADVANTAGE Wastebasket, even if the items were placed in theWastebasket by another user. Therefore, to keep these problems to aminimum you may want to delete an item permanently.

Warning : Do not remove anything from the ADVANTAGE Wastebasketthat another user might need as these items cannot be recovered.


26/178


About the Optimiser Workflow

The Optimiser Workflow helps you to access most of the ADVANTAGE-specificfunctionality from a single dialog box.

Click the button on the ADVANTAGE toolbar menu to open the OptimiserWorkflow.

The following dialog box is displayed:

The Optimiser Workflow dialog box

The following table describes the options in the Optimiser Workflow dialog box:

Option Brief Description

Plan Manager Enables you to perform Plan-related operations, includingrunning optimisations and statistics analysis.

Clutter/Vector Parameters Enables you to specify the required RF performance for youroptimisations, and define parameters that characterise the radiointerface and the environment.

Performance Metrics/targets Enables you to define performance design targets for youroptimisations, based on the appropriate metrics.

Costs/Risks/Limits For actions and action costs, enables you to set maximum limits,combinations, and costs/risks in terms ofbudget/manpower/performance.

Strategy Enables you to define major factors that will influenceoptimisations, such as which metrics will be optimised, and howthose metrics are weighted.

Settings Enables you to set additional parameters and options related tooptimisations, statistics and spreading network data.

For complete information about this dialog box, see Using the Optimiser Workflow onpage45.


27/178


The ADVANTAGE Process Flow

This section outlines the complete ADVANTAGE process flow, which should behelpful if you are using the tool for the first time. Note that parts of this process may

not be relevant to the general user, depending on user permissions. This is especiallythe case if another user (for example, the administrator) has already specified andcommitted the setup.

Tip :The Optimiser Workflow dialog box (the main user interface in ADVANTAGE)has been specially designed to help you use the tool.

This diagram summarises the ADVANTAGE process:

The ADVANTAGE process flow

Setup

During this phase, you must follow these steps (where applicable):

Import/use planning environment data.

Define the traffic-related configuration parameters (such as terminal types,services), if applicable.

Create a new Plan or Plans for optimisation.

Specify the Plan Details, such as vectors, drive test routes, terminal types.

Configure the Action-Constraints for the optimisation.

Define the Clutter and/or Vector Parameters.

Specify the Performance Targets.

Define the Strategy for the optimisation, which includes the selection of whichMetrics are to be used.

Define the Settings, that is, key additional parameters and options.

Create/load traffic arrays, if applicable.

Optionally, you can also follow these steps:

Specify constraints in the Site Database.

Define the Object/Action Costs and other cost-associated options (includingBudget and/or Manpower)

Import and use area-specific/cell-specific measurements (CW data, network data,and so on) if applicable.


28/178


Specify the Problem Area and/or Cell Thresholds.

Analysis

During this phase, you can optionally perform these steps:Review the configuration of any Plan or Delta Plan, by vhecking the Plan reports(Initial, Delta, Final) and the Actions-Constraints.

Check the measurement-based network performance (CW measurements), ifapplicable.

Display and review the spread network data, if applicable.

Analyse the performance statistics of a network plan or compare two plans, ifapplicable (Statistics reports).

Identify problematic areas and/or problematic cells.

Re-spread network data, if applicable.

Apply a plan to the Site Database, using either the Temp Apply/Unapply or theDB Apply.

If applicable, use the analysis functionality in ASSET.

Optimisation

During this phase, you can use the Plan Manager in the Optimiser Workflow toperform a number of Plan-related operations, including the starting/running of theOptimiser. You can check the feedback from the Optimiser in terms of:

Cost Details and Graphs - information about the costs related to the optimisation.

Statistics Details and Graphs - information about the statistics(metrics/thresholds) related to the optimisation.

Optimisation Report - comprehensive details of the generated optimisation plans.

Overall cost improvement; time taken; accepted iterations.

Action

During this phase, you can optionally perform these steps:

Apply a plan to the Site Database, using either the Temp Apply/Unapply or theDB Apply.

Start a new optimisation with same plan (with different action-constraints, costs,and so on).

Create a new plan and and a new optimisation.

Start a (new) optimisation from a Delta Plan.


29/178


Setting Action-Constraintsin ADVANTAGE

The purpose of action-constraints in ADVANTAGE is to allow certain networkparameter changes to be considered in a network optimisation, but at the same timeimpose meaningful limitations and restrictions on those changes, in order toaccurately represent the real-world environment.

An example of an 'action' may be to allow the azimuth of the antennas of a group ofcells to be changed, but, at the same time, specify a 'constraint' for one of those cells,which might be a forbidden azimuth range due to to a nearby school.

The ADVANTAGE tool focuses on automatic optimisation of Plans, and the action-constraints play a crucialpart in this process. It is important that you read the relevantsections in the Optimiser Workflow chapter in particular About the Action-

Constraints Dialog Box on page71.

In This Section

About Actions-Constraints 29About the Action-Constraints Available 31

About Actions-Constraints

In ADVANTAGE, there are two separate 'sources' of action-constraints:

Action-constraints that you can set up and edit within the Optimiser WorkflowAction-constraints that you can set for specific network elements directly withinthe Site Database

In both cases, these action-constraints can be configured on an object-by-object basis,or to groups of objects through the use of filters.

The action-constraints that you can specify are mainly common, whichever sourceyou use. This is because, in general terms, there is nothing you can set up in the SiteDatabase that you cannot also set up in the Action-Constraints dialog box. However,there are a few exceptions, listed in the table in Action-Constraints Exclusive to theSite Database on page30.

C H A P T E R 3


30/178


Important :Action-constraints that are set in the Site Database are always auto-populated into the Actions-Constraints dialog box when you create a Plan. You thenhave the freedom to modify those action-constraints at that stage, if required. Whenyou run an optimisation, the Optimiser reads the action-constraints exclusivelyfrom

the Actions-Constraints dialog box, regardless of their original 'source'.When you run an optimisation, there are three planning mechanisms you can use:

Antenna

Power

Grid (site location/selection/configuration)

ADVANTAGE provides the flexibility to run optimisations based on any singlemechanism, or any combination of them.

This flexibility enables you to, for example:

1 Set specific action-constraints in the Site Database.

2 Edit these action-constraints (if required) and set up further action-constraints (ifrequired) in the Actions-Constraints dialog box.

- or -

Set up action-constraints exclusively in the Actions-Constraints dialog box.

3 Select one or more of the planning mechanisms, according to your optimisationstrategy.

Note : The action-constraints of any Plans which already have DeltaPlans are alwaysin Read-Only format.

For more detailed information about the action-constraints within the OptimiserWorkflow, see About the Action-Constraints Dialog Box on page71 and Using theActions-Constraints Dialog Box.

Action-Constraints Exclusive to the Site Database

In general terms, there is nothing you can set up in the Site Database that you cannotalso set up in the Action-Constraints dialog box. However, there are some exceptions,listed in the table below.

This table lists the action-constraints that you can onlyset in the Site Database:

Tab name Object Action-Constraint

Grid Constraints Property Define potential Property locations as valid optimisationoptions, in terms of co-ordinates or Candidate Properties.

Grid Constraints Property Define the optimisation status of a Property as Nominal orCandidate.

Grid Constraints Site or Node Define sector configurations (combinations).

If you do set any of the above action-constraints in the Site Database, when you nextcreate a plan, you will be able to view them in the Action-Constraints dialog box, in aread-only state. Whether they are used in an optimisation depends on whether you

choose to use the Grid planning mechanism.


31/178


About the Action-Constraints Available

This section describes the various action-constraints that can be specified inADVANTAGE. They are summarised in this table, listed against the specific network

elements to which they relate.Note :Although these action-constraints are described here specifically in terms ofsetting them in the Site Database, the concept of the action-constraints is the same ifyou set them within the Optimiser Workflow. If you are setting them within theOptimiser Workflow, you should also refer to About the Action-Constraints DialogBox on page71.

Network Element Constraints

Equipment BTS Type, Mast

Property Antenna, Grid

GSM Site Installation, Grid

GSM Cell Antenna

GSM Subcell Antenna/TRX

UMTS Node Resource, Antenna, Grid

UMTS Cell Cell Parameter, Load and Power Ctrl

You can also edit a number of constraints in the Site Database simultaneously, asdescribed in Configuring Constraints in the Site Database Global Editor on page43.

Configuring BTS Equipment and Mast Constraints

You can specify constraints for BTS equipment and masts, so that the constraints areused when these objects are assigned to a network element in the Site Database. BTStypes can be used to constrain the output power of GSM subcells, and masts can beused to constrain the antenna heights of Properties.

To configure equipment-specific constraints for BTS types:

1 From the Equipment menu, select BTS Equipment.

2 In the dialog box that appears, select the BTS type that you want to constrain.

3 Click the Parameters tab, and in the PA Output Power pane, select a cell layer andenter the minimum and maximum PA Output power values that the BTS can

provide. This picture shows an example:


32/178


4 Click Apply to save the change(s) locally, or Commit (or Commit All) to save thechange(s) for use by other users.

To configure equipment-specific constraints for masts:

1 From the Equipment menu, select Masts.2 In the dialog box that appears, select the mast that you want to constrain.

3 Click the Dimensions tab, and:

Specify the structure height

Select the required mount option - if you select Rooftop, the building height ofthe Property will be added to the mast height to give the antenna height.

4 Click the Constraints tab, and specify the mast heights that you want to makeavailable:

In the Available Masts Height pane, type in a height value and click Add

To change a value, select it and enter a new value in the box and click Update

To remove a value, select it and click Remove

5 Click Apply to save the changes, and Commit if appropriate.

Note :These constraints are only used if these equipment types are assigned to therelevant elements in the Site Database, for example, BTS equipment types areassigned to sites and masts are assigned to Properties. See the ENTERPRISE User

Reference Guide for information about how to do this.

Configuring Property Antenna Constraints

Property antenna constraints are related to the antenna optimisation, and enable youto restrict the available options that can be used to optimise the antennas located onthe Property.

To configure Property Antenna Constraints:

1 From the Database menu, click Sites.


33/178


2 Select a Property, and click the Antenna Constraints tab. This picture shows anexample:

3 In the Antenna Height Rules pane, enter the minimum and maximum heightvalues that you wish to use as a basis for the antenna constraints defined on thistab.

To manually define a series of allowable antenna height values within theminimum-maximum range:

Select the Manual option, and then select the Constrain checkbox.

In the value box above the Add button, type the first value in metres.

Click Add.

Add further values as required - to delete a value, select it and click Remove.To edit a value, select it, change the value and then click Update.

To define a series of allowable antenna height values within the minimum-maximum range based on the mast associated with the Property (which is definedon the General tab of a Property in the Site Database):

Select the Mast option, and then select the Constrain checkbox.

The constraint values that you have defined for this mast appear. For moreinformation on this, see Configuring BTS Equipment and Mast Constraints onpage31.


34/178


To define a series of allowable antenna height values within the minimum-maximum range based on a particular step size:

Select the Step option, and then type a value in metres for the step.

Select the Constrain checkbox. A series of allowable antenna height values appear, starting with the defined

minimum height, then moving upwards in steps (according to the size youdefined) to the defined maximum height.

For example, the allowable height values for a minimum height of 20m and amaximum of 30m with a step size of 2m would be 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, and 30m.

4 In the Height Variation pane, you can determine whether the heights forindividual antennas may differ at a specific Property (this option is cell layer-specific for GSM). To do this, select the Allowed checkbox.

Note :If this is not selected, all antennas on the same cell layer (GSM) or on allcarriers (UMTS) at this Property must be at the same height. However, GSM cells

for different cell layers, or cells of different technologies (for example, GSM andUMTS) can still have antennas with heights different from each other.

5 In the Antennas at Same Height pane, you can specify a minimum azimuthdifference. This is the minimum separation (in degrees) that you are willing toaccept between antennas of the same height on this Property. To do this, select theConstrain checkbox and type a value.

6 In the Antenna Co-location pane, if you want to enable two or more co-locatedcells of the same or different technology (for example, GSM or UMTS) to share a

common antenna device, select the Enable Co-location checkbox.Important :

If Antenna Co-location is enabled for a Property, and the antenna locations (i.e.co-ordinates, height and orientation) for two or more Property sectors areidentical, the respectively specified mechanical downtilts must also beidentical. Otherwise, this will be treated as a constraint violation and theOptimiser will fail to start.

If Antenna Co-location is not enabled for a Property, no antenna sharingconfiguration can be accepted as a valid starting configuration or examined asa potential optimisation solution by the Optimiser. For more information

about shared antennas, see How an Optimisation Deals with Shared Antennas.7 Click Apply to save the changes, and Commit if appropriate.

Configuring Property Grid Constraints

Property grid constraints can be used in conjunction with the grid planningoptimisation actions and the optimisation status to specify how a Property will beconsidered in an optimisation, for example, its grid and/or candidate Propertylocations.

To configure Property grid constraints:



35/178


2 Select a Property and click on the Grid Constraints tab.

3 Select the required Optimisation Status:

Select To

Nominal Define locations in terms of co-ordinates or candidate Properties as valid optimisation options(this means that the Property can be moved to those locations).

Candidate Define the Property as a candidate only.

4 If you have selected Nominal, specify a possible candidate location by either:

Clicking in the Name field and typing the name of another Property alreadydefined in the Site Database. The Optimisation Status on the candidatesProperty Grid Constraints tab is updated to Candidate.

Clicking in the appropriate column and typing new values (in GRID, DLL, orLL as appropriate).

Note : Invalid co-ordinates will not be saved.

5 Select from the following options for each Property as appropriate:

Select To

Location Fixed Constrain the Optimiser to consider only the current position of the Property whether candidatelocations are available or not.

Note :Selecting Location Fixed also selects Always Consider for this Property automatically.

Always Consider Use either this Property, or any of its candidates, in every solution the Optimiser generates.


This picture shows an example, where three possible candidate locations have beendefined:

Defining candidate locations


36/178


Configuring GSM Site Installation Constraints

GSM site installation constraints can be configured to restrict the GSM cell siteinstallation options that can be used during GSM cell power optimisation.

To configure GSM site installation constraints:


2 Select a GSM site, and click on the Installation tab.

3 In the Cabin/Installation pane, select the Fixed checkbox if you want the specifiedBTS equipment type to stay unchanged during a GSM power optimisation.


Configuring GSM Site Grid Constraints

The Grid Constraints tab of a GSM site is where you can define varying siteconfigurations to use in the grid planning optimisation - in particular, how youchoose which sectors the site is going to use during optimisation (the SiteConfiguration Optimisation option).

If you want to prevent the site sector configuration from changing duringoptimisation, select the Fixed Site DB Sector Configuration checkbox.

Important :Site configuration changes may not be considered by the Optimiser,depending on the other grid planning constraints.

To generate a configuration automatically:


2 Select a GSM site and click on the Grid Constraints tab.

3 In the Min. Sectors and Max. Sectors fields, type the required number of sectors.

4 Click Generate.


37/178


This picture shows an example with two configurations:


To add a configuration manually:

1 Click the Add button.

2 Select the checkboxes for the required sectors.


To delete a configuration, select it and click Remove. To delete all configurations, click

Remove All.


38/178


Configuring GSM Cell Antenna Constraints

GSM cell antenna constraints are configured per antenna, as opposed to constraints

configured per Property, which relate to all antennas on the Property. For informationon how to configure these, see Configuring Property Antenna Constraints on page32.

To configure GSM cell antenna constraints:


2 Select a cell, and click the Antenna Constraints tab.

3 If you want to change the antenna for which you are configuring constraints,select the required slot from the Antenna Configuration pane:

4 In the Wall or Other Bearing Constraints pane, select to use a Forbidden AzimuthRange. This enables you to define an orientation region (or range) which theautomatic optimisation cannot consider for azimuth changes.

5 To set the range, type a clockwise wall bearing angle (in other words, the startingazimuth for the forbidden range) and an anti-clockwise wall bearing angle (inother words, the final azimuth for the forbidden range).

This picture shows an example for an original antenna azimuth of 100 degrees.The clockwise bearing angle is set to 120 degrees and the anti-clockwise bearingangle to 80 degrees, meaning that, depending on the considered antennaactions/constraints, the antenna may be able to move plus or minus 20 degreesduring the optimisation:

6 In the Misc Constraints pane, you can set the following constraints per antennaslot:

Select this checkbox To

Antenna Device Fixed Prevent changes to the antenna device during optimisation.

Antenna Pattern Fixed Prevent changes to the antenna pattern during optimisation.

Note :If you select this, Antenna Device Fixed will be selected automatically.

Mechanical Downtilt Fixed Prevent changes to the mechanical downtilt during optimisation.

Azimuth Fixed Prevent changes to the azimuth during optimisation.

Height Fixed Prevent changes to the antenna height during optimisation.


39/178


Select this checkbox To

Constrain Max Main Lobe Tilt Prevent changes to the electrical and/or mechanical downtilt that violate thisconstraint during optimisation


Configuring GSM Subcell Antenna/TRX Constraints

GSM subcell antenna/TRX constraints can be configured to fix the PA output duringthe GSM cell power optimisation.

To configure GSM subcell antenna/TRX constraints:


2 Select a GSM subcell, and click the Antenna/TRX tab.

3 In the Transmitter pane, to prevent changes to the PA output by the Optimiser

during optimisation, select the Fixed PA Output checkbox.


Configuring Node Resource Constraints

Node constraints can be configured to restrict the node to a particular type during anode power optimisation.

To configure node resource constraints:


2 Select a node and click the Resource tab.

3 Select the Fixed checkbox if you want the specified Node type to stay unchangedduring a power optimisation.



40/178


Configuring Node Antenna Constraints

Node antenna constraints are related to the antenna optimisation, and enable you torestrict the available options that can be used to optimise the antennas associated witha node cell.

To configure node antenna constraints:


2 Select a node and click the Antenna Constraints tab.

3 If you want to change the antenna for which you are configuring constraints,select the required slot from the Antenna Configuration pane:

4 In the Wall or Other Bearing Constraints pane, select to use a Forbidden AzimuthRange. This enables you to define an orientation region (or range) which theautomatic optimisation cannot consider for antenna azimuth changes.

5 To set the range, type a clockwise wall bearing angle (in other words, the startingazimuth for the forbidden range) and an anti-clockwise wall bearing angle (inother words, the final azimuth for the forbidden range).

This picture shows an example for an azimuth of 100 degrees. The clockwisebearing angle is set to 120 degrees and the anti-clockwise bearing angle to 80degrees, meaning that the antenna is able to move plus or minus 20 degreesduring the optimisation:

6 In the Misc Constraints pane, you can set the following constraints per cell:Select this checkbox To

Antenna Device Fixed Prevent changes to the antenna device during optimisation.

Antenna Pattern Fixed Prevent changes to the antenna pattern during optimisation.

Note : If you select this, Antenna Device Fixed will be selected automatically.

Mechanical Downtilt Fixed Prevent changes to the mechanical downtilit during optimisation.

Azimuth Fixed Prevent changes to the azimuth during optimisation.

Height Fixed Prevent changes to the antenna height during optimisation.

Constrain Max Main Lobe Tilt Prevent changes to the electrical and/or mechanical downtilt that violate this

constraint during optimisation


41/178



Configuring Node Grid Constraints

The Grid Constraints tab of a node is where you can define varying configurations foruse in the grid planning optimisation - in particular, how you choose which sectorsthe site is going to use (the Site Configuration Optimisation option).

If you want to prevent the site sector configuration from changing duringoptimisation, select the Fixed Site DB Sector Configuration checkbox.

Important :Site configuration changes may not be considered by the Optimiser,depending on the other grid planning constraints.

To generate a configuration automatically:


2 Select a node and click on the Grid Constraints tab.

3 In the Min. Sectors and Max. Sectors fields, type the required number of sectors.

4 Click Generate.

This picture shows an example of six possible configurations:



42/178


To add a configuration manually:

1 Click the Add button.

2 Select the checkboxes for the required sectors.


To delete a configuration, select it and click Remove. To delete all configurations, clickRemove All.

Configuring UMTS Cell Params Constraints

UMTS cell parameter constraints can be set to restrict the power settings options thatcan be used to optimise the UMTS cell.

To configure UMTS cell parameter constraints:

1 From the Database menu, click Sites.2 Select a UMTS cell, and click the Cell Params tab.

3 In the UMTS Parameters pane:

Set Fixed Max TX Power to True to prevent changes to the maximum totalpower during optimisation

Set Fixed UMTS Channel Power to True to prevent changes to the power thatis dedicated to the Pilot, Control, Synchronisation and Indicator channels

Set Fixed HSDPA Link Power to True to prevent changes to the HSDPA linkpower during optimisation


Configuring UMTS Cell Load and Power Ctrl Constraints

UMTS cell load and power control constraints can be configured to restrict themaximum downlink power per connection that can be used to optimise the UMTScell.

To do this:

1 From the Site Database, click Sites.

2 Select a UMTS cell, and click the Load&Power Ctrl tab.3 In the TX Power Limits pane, select the Fixed checkbox.



43/178


Configuring Constraints in the Site Database Global Editor

Changing information for a large number of Properties, sites and cells can be a verylengthy process when performed manually. To avoid this, you can use the GlobalEditor to define constraints for objects identified by a filter.

Note : The Global Editor is used on a per filter basis - you cannot specify a differentfilter for different tabs.

To use the Global Editor:


2 In the Site Database window, click Global Edit.

3 Select the appropriate filter.

4 Select the items that you want to change for the network elements in this filter. For

a list of the ADVANTAGE-specific constraints, see ADVANTAGE-specificConstraints in the Global Editor.

Here is an example of the constraints in the Global Editor:

Important :Where appropriate, select both checkboxes to set the relevant constraint.If you just select the first checkbox, the constraint will be disabled.



44/178


ADVANTAGE-specific Constraints in the Global Editor

This table describes the ADVANTAGE-specific constraints:

On this tab You can set these constraintsAntenna Constraints Antenna Device Fixed

Antenna Pattern Fixed

Mechanical Downtilt Fixed

Azimuth Fixed

Height Fixed

Constrain Max Main Lobe Tilt

Property Constraints Antennas:

Allow Co-location

Allow Height Variation

Same Height Min Azimuth DiffAntenna Height Rules:

Manual, Mast or Step Height

Min Height

Max Height

Grid Constraints:

Optimisation Status

Location Fixed

Always Consider

Heights Used

Grid Constraints Fixed Site DB Sector Configuration

Site Configuration Generator:Min Sectors

Max Sectors

Generate Configurations

Remove All Configurations

Installation (GSM) Fixed Site/BTS Equipment

Cell Layer (GSM) Fixed PA Output

Node Config Fixed Node Type

Cell Params Fixed Max TX Power

Fixed UMTS Channels Power

Fixed HSDPA Link Power

Cell Load & Power Fixed Max DL Power per Connection


45/178


Using the OptimiserWorkflow

The Optimiser Workflow enables you to perform the vast majority of tasks withinADVANTAGE from a single dialog box. This incorporates the setting up ofparameters, costs, constraints and targets, and generation of optimisation Plans.

Example of the Optimiser Workflow dialog box in ADVANTAGE

The Optimiser Workflow comprises a number of main options in the left hand pane,and each of these enables you to access a range of specific options that are displayedin the right-hand pane.

To start the Optimiser Workflow:

From the Optimiser menu, click Workflow

- or -

Click the button on the main ADVANTAGE toolbar

C H A P T E R 4


46/178


In This Section

Using the Plan Manager 46Setting Clutter/Vector Parameters 100

Setting Performance Metrics/Targets 104Specifying Costs/Risks/Limits 112Setting the Strategy 119Specifying the Settings 125

Using the Plan Manager

The Plan Manager in the Optimiser Workflow enables you to perform a number ofPlan-related operations:

View and use existing Plans

Create new Plans

Set up and activate the Plan Details

View and Edit Actions-Constraints

Start/Run Optimisations

Delete Plans

Temp Apply/UnapplyDB Apply

Tip : There is also a context menu, which you can access by right-clicking on theicon of the appropriate Plan. This provides quick access to the same options as mostof the main buttons, but also provides extra options. For more information, see Usingthe Context Menu on page54.

Important : When you are using the Optimiser Workflow for the first time, you need toset up the general parameters, strategy, settings, and so on, before you run anyoptimisations. These may include:

Clutter/Vector Parameters

Performance Metrics/Targets

Costs/Risks/Limits

Strategy

Settings

However, this depends whether you have the appropriate user permissions. Parts ofthis process may not be relevant to the general user. Depending on the situation, it ispossible that the above options and parameters are centrally specified and committed

within the user's organisation.


47/178


About the Concept of Plans in ADVANTAGE

There are two 'categories' of Plan in ADVANTAGE:

PlanDelta Plan

However, in essence, the two types of plan, once created, can be considered to be thesame. This is because, in general terms, you can perform similar operations using aPlan of either category, and you can choose to Apply any of these Plans to thedatabase.

Here are some basic principles:

Before you can start an optimisation, you must have at least one Plan created. Formore information, see Creating a New Plan for Optimisation on page49.

Plans are created by way of a 'snapshot' from the current Site Database (this is theonly way to create a 'new' plan). During that process, you can restrict the scope ofthe plan in terms of the region and the sites/nodes/cells, by using the Map Viewregion and the filters. At the end of that process, the Plan appears within the PlanManager list.

A set of Details (specific vectors, drive test routes, terminal types, array-basedoptions) must be active, in order to optimise a plan.

Plans and Delta Plans are listed in the Plan Manager section of the OptimiserWorkflow dialog box.

Delta Plans can only emanate from a Plan, and they must always be 'parented' to aPlan, since they represent changes to the starting Plan.

When you run an optimisation for the Plan, the Delta Plans appear as 'children' ofthe parent Plan.

Plans are categorised by the icon. Delta Plans are categorised by the icon.

The following picture illustrates this:

Example of Plans and Delta Plans listed in the Plan Manager


48/178


Viewing and Using Plans in the Plan Manager

When you are viewing Plans, there are three viewing options:

Used

Created By Me

All Plans

These options are visual 'filters' that help you to distinguish which Plan(s) you areworking with.

The 'Created By Me' option always lists the Plans that you (the logged in User ID)have created.

The 'All Plans' option always lists allexisting Plans, regardless of who created them.

The 'Used' option requires a more detailed description:

The concept behind the 'Used' option is that, generally speaking, only one individualwould be working with a particular Plan at any one time. This would avoid 'multi-user' problems if you are intending to work iteratively with a Plan, makingprogressive changes toward a new Plan which has the potential to improve thequality of your network.

Nevertheless, it is possible, if required, that a Plan is 'Used' by more than oneindividual. However, in this situation, it is notpossible to delete the Plan, noris it

possible to edit the Action-Constraints for the Plan (but they are viewable in read-only form).

When you create a Plan, it automatically becomes 'Used' by you. However, it ispossible to turn this status on/off, using the Toggle option in the context menu. In asimilar way, any user who did not create the Plan, can use the Toggle option toactivate his/her 'Used' status for that Plan. The option can therefore be used to handover the 'use' of the Plan to a different single user, or (if explicitly required) it can beused to share the 'use' of the Plan amongst multiple users.

In situations where you may want multiple users to work on the same Plan, but havethe freedom to edit the Actions-Constraints for that Plan, you can utilise the Duplicate

option. This enables different users to 'branch off' from the same original Plan intopotentially different proposed network Plans.

For more information on the context menu, including the Toggle and Duplicateoptions, see Using the Context Menu on page54.


49/178


Creating a New Plan for Optimisation

To create a new Plan for optimisation:

1 Ensure you have at least one Map View window open.

Note :The above step is essential, because the region must always be an inherentcharacteristic of any Plan.

2 Open the Optimiser Workflow by clicking the shortcut button on the mainADVANTAGE toolbar.

3 In the left-hand pane, select Plan Manager.

4

Click the New Plan button.5 In the Plan Wizard that appears, type a name for the Plan.

If required, you can select an existing Plan as a template. For information on this,see the following section.

6 Click Next.

7 If you have more than one Map View open, and you require a different view fromthe one displayed in the wizard, select a different view using the button.Alternatively, you can choose to enter the coordinates instead.

8 Select one or more filters to determine which sites/nodes and cells are to beconsidered in the Plan.

9 Click the Finish button.

Tip :There is also a button on the main ADVANTAGE toolbar which enables you tomake a '2D View Plan', enabling you to short-cut some of the processes. For moreinformation on this, see Creating a New Plan Directly from a Map View on page50.


50/178


Select an Existing Plan as a Template for a New Plan

When you are creating a new Plan for optimisation, you can choose to select anexisting Plan as a template for the new Plan.

If you do this, the cells to be included in the new plan are still determined by theregion and filters that you select within the Plan wizard, but the key difference is thatall the action-constraints for cells that exist both in the original 'template' plan and inthe new Plan are 'copied' into the new Plan. In effect, it copies the action-constraintsfor such cells into the Action-Constraints dialog box, but takes a fresh snapshot of theparameters in the Site Database. This option may therefore be useful if you have madechanges in the Site Database since creating the original Plan, and want to bring thosechanges into a new Plan.

Note :Any cells that were in the original 'template' plan, but not captured by theregion/filters for the new Plan, are always excluded from the new Plan. Conversely, if

there are cells in the new Plan that were not in the original 'template' plan, they wouldneed their action-constraints to be edited in the Action-Constraints dialog box (in theusual way).

Creating a New Plan Directly from a Map View

There is a short-cut button on the main ADVANTAGE toolbar which enables you tocreate a Plan from a currently opened Map View.

New Plan button

This option works in a similar way to the normal way of creating a plan, except that itshort-cuts some of the processes.

To use this option:

1 Ensure you have the appropriate Map View open, which is displaying the filtersthat include the cells you want to include.

2 Click the 'Create New Plan' button.

3 Click on your Map View (as prompted).

In the Optimiser Workflow dialog box, you can now view the new plan in the PlanManager list, with an incremented name, which you can rename by right-clickingon it, if required.

4 By default, the Action-Constraints dialog box appears, so that you can edit thevalues for the new plan.

In effect, this short-cut method simplifies the process within the Plan Wizard, andrelies on the fact that, beforehand, you set up the Map View with the correct filters forthe sites/nodes and cells.


51/178


Setting Up and Activating the Details for the Plan

Given that the area and cells have already been determined at the Plan creation stage,the Plan Details enable you to set up the optimisation to use specific vectors, uselocation information (from drive test routes), select terminal types, and set the array-based options and parameters.

Important :If you choose to set up more than one set of details, you can only have oneset activated at any time. In this situation, always ensure you have the required setactivated.

To set up the Details:

1 Open the Optimiser Workflow by clicking the shortcut button on the mainADVANTAGE toolbar.

2 In the left-hand pane, select Plan Manager.

3 Expand the Plan Manager option, and then click on Details.

4 Click Add. The Detail Wizard appears.

5

Type a name for the Detail. If appropriate, you can initially base the new Detail onan existing one. Click Next.

6 Select the Use Vectors checkbox if you want to constrain the optimisationcalculations (and the network data spreading, statistics, problem area and cellidentification) to the particular vectors that you may now specify.


52/178


7 Select the Use Location Information in Pathloss Corrections checkbox if you wantto use the location information stored in the matching pathloss correction files.Ensure that the pathloss correction files are of the same resolution as the one youwant to use in the Plan Details. This will focus your calculations on drive test

routes, which are implicitly considered based on their respective measurements.For more information about this, see About Using Measurement-Based PathlossFiles on page163.

Note :The main advantage of constraining optimisation calculations to vectors,and/or using location information, is that it makes calculations faster and morefocused. If you select both options, the Optimiser will improve both the area(s)within the vector(s) and the drive test route areas.

Click Next.

8 Select the required terminal type(s) from the list displayed, and then click Next.

Note :This is not required for network data spreading or area-basedanalysis/optimisation.

9 Select a resolution, and then choose the array-based parameters and options forthe appropriate technology, either GSM or UMTS or both, as described in the

following sections.10 Any added or edited Details are 'auto-applied'. If you want to commit changes,

click Commit. Alternatively, if required, you can click Restore to revert to thepreviously (if any) committed state. If you have made many changes, the CommitAll and Restore All buttons may be useful.

11 Click Finish.

Important :If you choose to set up more than one set of details, you can only have oneset activated at any time. If you want this set of Details to be active, ensure that youselect it.

All changes that you have just made in the Detail Wizard dialog box are automaticallyApplied (that is, saved to the database).

At this point, the changes on this page are in the Applied state and will persist even ifyou close the Optimiser Workflow dialog box.

However, if appropriate, you can carry out one of the following actions:

If you want to restore specific options on this page to the previous committed state(if such a state exists), click Restore

If you want to share specific changes on this page with all other users of theproject, click Commit

Tip :The Commit All and Restore All buttons may be useful if you have added oredited several sets of Details.


53/178


About the GSM Parameters

This table describes the array-based parameters for GSM, when you are setting up theDetails for a Plan:

Parameter Comments

Maximum number of servers The number of GSM cells that are considered as covering cells and interferers.

Note :If you are only interested in the Best Server and Best C/I (Average Connection) arrays,this value should be set to 1.

Minimum signal strength (dBm) Network data will only spread to areas where the signal strength is above this threshold.

Note :This is only used for data spreading.

About the UMTS Parameters

This table describes the array-based parameters for UMTS, when you are setting upthe Details for a Plan:

Parameter Comments

Number of covering cells The number of cells that are considered as primary covering cells, handover cells and interferers.

Minimum signal strength (dBm) Network data will only spread to areas where the signal strength is above this threshold.

Note :This is only used for data spreading.

Number of Snapshots A snapshot represents an individual component within the simulation process. For eachsnapshot, specified densities of user terminals are positioned in s

Date post:	03-Jun-2018
Category:	Documents
Upload:	ramiz-rzaoglu
View:	233 times
Download:	0 times

ADVANTAGE User Reference Guide

Documents