1

RF Network Design

Network Planning

2

Introduction

• The high level life cycle of the RF network planning process can be summarised as follows :-

• To help the operator to identify their RF design requirement

• Optional

• Discuss and agree RF design parameters, assumptions and objectives with the customer

• Coverage requirement• Traffic requirement• Various level of design (ROM to detail RF design)

• Issuing of search ring• Cand. assessment• Site survey, design, approval

• Drive test (optional)

• Frequency plan• Neighbour list• RF OMC data• Optimisation

Comparative Analysis

RF Design requirement

RF Design

Site Realisation

RF Design

Implementation

3

Comparative Analysis

• This is an optional step

• This is intended to :-

• Help an existing operator in building/expanding their network

• Help a new operator in identifying their RF network requirement, e.g.

where their network should be built

• For the comparative analysis, we would need to :-

• Identify all network that are competitors to the customer

• Design drive routes that take in the high density traffic areas of interest

• Include areas where the customer has no or poor service and the

competitors have service

4

Comparative Analysis

• The result of the analysis should include :-

• For an existing operator

• All problems encountered in the customer’s network

• All areas where the customer has no service and a competitor does

• Recommendations for solving any coverage and quality problems

• For a new operator

• Strengths and weaknesses in the competitors network

• Problem encountered in the competitors network

5

RF Network Design Inputs

• The RF design inputs can be divided into :-

• Coverage requirements

• Target coverage areas

• Service types for the target coverage areas. These should be

marked geographically

• Coverage area probability

• Penetration Loss of buildings and in-cars

• Capacity requirements

• Erlang per subscriber during the busy hour

• Quality of service for the air interface, in terms GoS

• Network capacity

6

RF Network Design Inputs

• Available spectrum and frequency usage restriction, if any

• List of available, existing and/or friendly sites that should be included in

the RF design

• Limitation of the quantity of sites and radios, if any

• Quality of Network (C/I values)

• Related network features (FH, DTX, etc.)

7

Coverage Design Inputs by BSNL

• Coverage Thresholds

• Indoor Coverage : Signal Level measured at street better than –65 dBm.

Indoor coverage to be provided in commercial complexes,

hotels,technology parks etc.

• In Car Coverage: Signal Level measured at street better than –75 dBm. In

Car coverage to be provided in residential areas, highways, tourist spots

etc.

• Outdoor Coverage : Signal level measured at street better than –85 dBm.

All remaining areas to be covered with Outdoor coverage.

• These are general guidelines for planning , specific areas not provided.

8

Capacity Design Inputs by BSNL

• Frequency spectrum available 6.2 MHz (31 channels).

• Average traffic per sub for RF design : 50 mErlang.

• Synthesizer frequency hopping can be used.

• GOS: 2%

• Existing network Database

• Total No. of sites with configuration

• Site details eg location(Lat-Long), Antenna height ,azimuth, etc.

9

RF Network Design

• There are 2 parts to the RF network design to meet the :-

• Capacity requirement

• Coverage requirement

• For the RF Coverage Design

RF

Coverage

Design

Link

BudgetPropagation

Model

Digitised

DatabasesCW Drive

Testing

Customer

Requirements

10

CW Drive Testing

• CW drive test can be used for the following purposes :-

• Propagation model tuning

• Assessment of the suitability of candidate sites, from both coverage and interference aspect

• CW drive test process can be broken down to :-

Test

Preparation

Propagation

Test

Data

Processing

• Equipment required

• BTS antenna selection

• Channel selection

• Power setting

• Drive route planning

• Test site selection

• Transmitter setup

• Receiver setup

• Drive test

• Transmitter dismantle

• Measurement averaging

• Report generation

11

CW Drive Testing - Test Preparation

• The test equipment required for the CW drive testing :-

• Receiver with fast scanner

• Example : HP7475A, EXP2000 (LCC) etc.

• The receiver scanner rate should conform to the Lee Criteria of 36

to 50 sample per 40 wavelength

• CW Transmitter

• Example : Gator Transmitter (BVS), LMW Series Transmitter

(CHASE), TX-1500 (LCC) etc.

• Base Station test antenna

• DB806Y (Decibel-GSM900), 7640 (Jaybeam-GSM1800) etc.

• Accessories

• Including flexible coaxial cable/jumper, Power meter, extended

power cord, GPS, compass, altimeter

12

CW Drive Testing - Test Preparation

• Base Station Antenna Selection

• The selection depends on the purpose of the test

• For propagation model tuning, an omni-directional antenna is preferred

• For candidate site testing or verification, the choice of antenna depends

on the type of BTS site that the test is trying to simulate.

• For Omni BTS :

• Omni antennas with similar vertical beamwidth

• For sectorised BTS

• Utilising the same type of antenna is preferred

• Omni antenna can also be used, together with the special

feature in the post processing software like CMA (LCC)

where different antenna pattern can be masked on over the

measurement data from an omni antenna

13

CW Drive Testing - Test Preparation

• Test Site Selection

• For propagation model tuning, the test sites should be selected so that

:-

• They are distributed within the clutter under study

• The height of the test site should be representative or typical for the

specific clutter

• Preferably not in hilly areas

• For candidate site testing/verification, the actual candidate site

configuration (height, location) should be used.

• For proposed greenfield sites, a “cherry-picker” will be used.

14

CW Drive Testing - Test Preparation

• Frequency Channel Selection

• The necessary number of channels need to be identified from the

channels available

• With input from the customer

• The channels used should be free from occupation

• From the guard bands

• Other free channels according to the up-to-date frequency plan

• The channels selected will need to be verified by conducting a pre-test

drive

• It should always precede the actual CW drive test to verify the

exact free frequency to be used

• It should cover the same route of the actual propagation test

• A field strength plot is generated on the collected data to confirm

the channel suitability

15

CW Drive Testing - Test Preparation

• Transmit Power Setting

• For propagation model tuning, the maximum transmit power is

used

• For candidate site testing, the transmit power of the test

transmitter is determined using the actual BTS link budget to

simulate the coverage

• On sites with existing antenna system, it is recommended that the

transmit power to be reduced to avoid interference or inter-

modulation to other networks.

• The amount of reduction is subject to the possibility if separating

the test antenna from the existing antennas

16

CW Drive Testing - Test Preparation

• Drive Route Determination

• The drive route of the data collection is planned prior to the drive test using a

detail road map

• Eliminate duplicate route to reduce the testing time

• For propagation model tuning, each clutter is tested individually and the drive

route for each test site is planned to map the clutter under-study for the

respective sites.

• It is important to collect a statistically significant amount of data, typically a

minimum of 300 to 400 data points are required for each clutter category

• The data should be evenly distributed with respect to distance from the

transmitter

• In practice, the actual drive route will be modified according to the latest

development which was not shown on the map. The actual drive route taken

should be marked on a map for record purposes.

17

• Transmitter Equipment Setup

• Test antenna location

• Free from any nearby obstacle, to ensure free propagation in both horizontal

and vertical dimension

• For sites with existing antennas, precaution should be taken to avoid possible

interference and/or inter-modulation

• Transmitter installation

• A complete set of 360º photographs of the test location (at the test height) and the

antenna setup should be taken for record

CW Drive Testing - Propagation Test

18

CW Drive Testing - Propagation Test

• Scanning Receiver Setup - HP 7475A Receiver Example

HP 7475A Receiver

19

CW Drive Testing - Propagation Test

• Scanning Receiver Setup

• The scanning rate of the receiver should always be set to allow at least 36

sample per 40 wavelength to average out the Rayleigh Fading effect.

• For example: scanning rate = 100 sample/s

• test frequency = 1800 MHz

• therefore, to achieve 36 sample/40 wavelength, the max. speed is =

•

• It is recommended that :-

• Beside scanning the test channel, the neighbouring cells is also monitored.

This information can be used to check the coverage overlap and potential

interference

• Check the field strength reading close to the test antenna before starting

the test, it should approach the scanning receiver saturation

hkmsm36/100

0.166740/67.66/52.18

20

CW Drive Testing - Propagation Test

• Drive Test

• Initiate a file to record the measurement with an agreed naming

convention

• Maintain the drive test vehicle speed according to the pre-set scanning

rate

• Follow the pre-plan drive route as closely as possible

• Insert marker wherever necessary during the test to indicate special

locations such as perceived hot spot, potential interferer etc.

• Monitor the GPS signal and field strength level throughout the test, any

extraordinary reading should be inspected before resuming the test.

• Dismantling Equipment

• It is recommended to re-confirm the transmit power (as the pre-set

value) before dismantling the transmitter setup

21

Measurement Data Processing

• Data Averaging

• This can be done during the drive testing or during the data processing

stage, depending on the scanner receiver and the associated post-

processing software

• The bin size of the distance averaging depends on the size of the

human made structure in the test environment

• Report Generation

• For propagation model tuning, the measurement data is exported into

the planning tool (e.g. Asset)

• Plots can also be generated using the processing tool or using MapInfo

• During the export of the measurement data, it is important to take care

of the coordinate system used, a conversion is necessary if different

coordinate systems are used.

22

Propagation Model• Standard Macrocell Model for Asset

• Lp (dB) = K1 + K2 log(d) + K3 Hm + K4 log(Hm) + K5 log(Heff)

• + K6 log(Heff) log(d) + K7 Diffraction + Clutter factor

• where Lp, Diffraction, Clutter factor are in dB

• d, Hm, Heff are in m

• It is based on the Okumura-Hata empirical model, with a number of additional

features to enhance its flexibility

• Known to be valid for frequencies from 150MHz to 2GHz

• Applies in condition :-

• Base station height : 30 - 200 m

• Mobile height : 1 - 10 m

• Distance : 1 - 20 km

• An optional second intercept and slope (K1, K2) for the creation of a two-piece

model with the slope changing at the specified breakpoint distance.

23

Morphology Class

Morphology Classification Definition

Dense Urban A mixture of 8-15 storey commercial bldgs/residential

apartments/shopping complexes and 15-25 storey skyscrapers. Bldgs are

densely packed. Major roads are at least 4 lanes wide and minor roads are 2

lanes wide. There is very little or no trees.

Urban A mixture of 4-6 storey shophouses densely packed and 6-15 storey

commercial bldgs/residential apartments/shopping complexes. Compared

to dense urban, the bldgs are not as tall or as densely packed. Major roads

are at least 4 lanes wide and minor roads are 2 lanes wide. There is very

little or no trees.

Dense Suburban Typically 4 storey shophouses densely packed. There are occasional 6 to

12 storey bldgs. Usually a busy town in between cities. Roads are 2 to 4

lanes wide. Light foliage.

Light Suburban Typically less than 4 storey shophouses lined along highway/main road.

The shophouses form 1 or 2 tier from the road and the houses are not

densely packed. Usually at the outer fringe of a town. Light to moderate

foliage.

Rural Along highway where there are isolated houses or open ground.

24

Link Budget

Link Budget Element of a GSM Network

BTS Antenna Gain Max. Path Loss Fade Margin

LNA

(optional)

Feeder Loss

Diversity

Gain

BTS Receiver

Sensitivity

ACE

Loss

BTS Transmit

Power

Penetration Loss

MS Antenna Gain,

Body and Cable Loss

Mobile Transmit

Power

Mobile Receiver

Sensitivity

25

Link Budget

• BTS Transmit Power

• Maximum transmit power

• GSM900 and 1800 networks use radios with 46dBm maximum transmit power

• ACE Loss

• Includes all diplexers, combiners and connectors.

• Depends on the ACE configuration

• The ACE configuration depends on the number of TRXs and combiners used

No ofTRXs

Network ACE Configuration Downlink ACELoss (dB)

1 or 2 GSM900 2 antennas per cell, diplexer 1.0

1 or 2 GSM1800 2 antennas per cell, diplexer 1.2

3 or 4 GSM900 2 antennas per cell, diplexer + hybrid combiner 4.4

3 or 4 GSM1800 2 antennas per cell, diplexer + hybrid combiner 4.4

26

Link Budget

• Mobile Transmit Power

• GSM900 : Typical mobile class 4 (2W)

• GSM1800 : Typical mobile class 1 (1W)

• Mobile Receiver Sensitivity

• The sensitivity of GSM900 and GSM1800 mobile = -102 dBm

Class GSM 900 (Watt/dBm) GSM 1800 (Watt/dBm)1 - 1 / 302 8 / 39 0.25 / 24

3 5 / 37 4 / 36

4 2 / 33 -

5 0.8 / 29 -

27

Link Budget• Diversity Gain

• Two common techniques used :-

• Space

• Polarisation

• Reduce the effect of multipath fading on the uplink

• Common value of 3 to 4.5 dB being used

• BTS Receiver Sensitivity

• Depends on the type of propagation environment model used, most

commonly used TU50 model

• BTS :-

• Receiver Sensitivity for GSM900 = -107 dBm

28

Link Budget

• Feeder Loss

• Depends on the feeder type and feeder length

• The selection of the feeder type would depends on the feeder length,

I.e. to try to limit to feeder loss to 3 -4dB.

• BTS Antenna Gain

• Antenna gain has a direct relationship to the cell size

• The selection of the antenna type depends on :-

• The morphology classes of the targeted area and coverage

requirements

• Zoning and Local authority regulations/limitations

• Common antenna types used :-

• 65º, 90º, omni-directional antennas with different gains

29

Link Budget• Slow Fading Margin

• To reserve extra signal power to overcome potential slow fading.

• Depends on the requirement of coverage probability and the standard deviation of the fading

• A design can take into consideration :-

• both outdoor and in-building coverage, which utilises a combined standard deviation for indoor and outdoor (Default value = 9dB)

• Only outdoor coverage (Default value = 7dB)

• Pathloss slope used, 45dB/dec (Dense Urban), 42dB/dec (Urban), 38dB/dec (Suburban) and 33dB/dec (Rural)

Combined (outdoor &indoor) slow fade margin

(dB)

Outdoor slow fade margin(dB)

Cell AreaCoverageProbability(%) DU U SU RU DU U SU RU

85 2 3 3 4 1 1 2 2

90 5 6 6 6 3 3 4 4

95 9 9 9 10 6 6 7 7

30

Link Budget

• Penetration Loss

• Penetration loss depends on the building structure and material

• Penetration loss is included for in-building link budget

• Typical value used for Asia-Pacific environment (if country specific information is not available) :-

• Dense Urban : 20 dB• Urban : 18 dB• Suburban : 15 dB• Rural : 9 dB

• Body Loss

• Typical value of 3dB body loss is used

• MS Antenna Gain

• A typical mobile antenna gain of 2.2 dBi is used

31

Link Budget

• Link Budget Example (GSM900)

UPLINK DOWNLINKMS Transmit Power 33 dBm BTS Transmit Power 46 dBm

Cable Loss 0 dB ACE Loss ZMS Antenna Gain 2.2 dBi Feeder Loss 2 dB

Body Loss 2 dB LNA Gain 0 dB

Penetration Loss W BTS Antenna Gain 18 dBi

Slow Fade Margin X Max. Path Loss YMax. Path Loss Y Slow Fade Margin XBTS Antenna Gain 18 dBi Penetration Loss WLNA Gain 0 dB Body Loss 2 dB

Feeder Loss 2 dB MS Antenna Gain 2.2 dBi

ACE Loss 0 dB Cable Loss 0 dB

Diversity Gain 4 dB Diversity Gain 0 dB

BTS Receiver Sensitivity -107 dBm MS Receiver Sensitivity -102 dBm

32

Antenna

• Antenna Selection

• Gain

• Beamwidths in horizontal and vertical radiated planes

• VSWR

• Frequency range

• Nominal impedance

• Radiated pattern (beamshape) in horizontal and vertical planes

• Downtilt available (electrical, mechanical)

• Polarisation

• Connector types (DIN, N)

• Height, weight, windload and physical dimensions

33

Antenna

• The antenna selection process

• Identify system specifications such as polarisation, impedance and

bandwidth

• Select the azimuth or horizontal plane pattern to obtain the needed

coverage

• Select the elevation or vertical plane pattern to be as narrow as

possible, consistent with practical limitations of size, weight and cost

• Check other parameters such as cost, power rating, size, weight,

mounting capabilities, wind loading, connector types, aesthetics and

reliability to ensure that they meet system requirements

34

Antenna

• System Specification

• Impedance and frequency bandwidth is normally associated with the

communication system used

• The polarisation would depends on if polarisation diversity is used

• Horizontal Plane Pattern

• Three categories for the horizontal plane pattern :-

• Omnidirectional

• Sectored (directional)

• Narrow beam (highly directional)

• Elevation Plane Pattern

• Choosing the antenna with the smallest elevation plane beamwidth will give

maximum gain. However, beamwidth and size are inversely related

• Electrical down tilt

• Null filling

35

Nominal RF Design

Link Budget

Maximum

path loss

Propagation

model

Typical site

configuration

Site radius

Nominal RF

Design

(coverage)

Coverage

requirements

Nominal site

count

Coverage site

count

• Transmit Power

• Antenna configuration

(type, height, azimuth)

• Site type (sector, omni)

Traffic

requirements

• Standard hexagon site

layout

• Friendly, candidate sites

• Initial site survey inputs

Traffic site

count

Traffic > Cov.

Cov. > Traffic

• Recalculate the site

radius using the

number of sites from

the traffic requirement

• Repeat the nominal

RF design

Traffic

requirements

36

Nominal RF Design

• Calculation of cell radius

• A typical cell radius is calculated for each clutter environment

• This cell radius is used as a guide for the site distance in the respective

clutter environment

• The actual site distance could varies due to local terrain

• Inputs for the cell radius calculation :-

• Maximum pathloss (from the link budget)

• Typical site configuration (for each clutter environment)

• Propagation model

37

Nominal RF Design

• There are different level of nominal RF design :-

• Only using the cell radius/site distance calculated and placing ideal

hexagon cell layout

• Using the combination of the calculated cell radius and the

existing/friendly sites from the customer

The site distance also depends on the required capacity

•In most mobile network, the traffic density is highest within the CBD area and major routes/intersections

•The cell radius would need to be reduce in this area to meet the traffic requirements

•BASED ON THE SITE DISTANCE & THE COVERAGE REQUIREMENTS CELL COUNT BASED ON COVERAGE IS CALCULATED.

38

Nominal RF Design

• Cell count based on traffic is derived based on capacity inputs:-

• Capacity requirements

• GOS

• Spectrum availability

• Freq. Hopping techniques

• If the total sites for the traffic requirement is more than the sites required for coverage, the nominal RF design is repeated using the number of sites from the traffic requirement

• Recalculating the cell radius for the high traffic density areas

• The calculation steps are :-

• Calculate the area to be covered per site

• Calculate the maximum cell radius

• Calculate the site distance

39

Site Realisation

• After completion of Nominal design based on cell count ( coverage & capacity requirements) , search rings for each cell site issued.

• Nominal design is done , with the existing network in place(existing BTS). Existing site location remain unchanged , azimuth , tilts as per the new design requirements.

• Based on the search ring form physical site survey is undertaken.

40

Site Realisation

Search Ring Form

• Site ID

• Site Name

• Latitude/Longitude

• Project name

• Issue Number and date

• Ground height

• Clutter environment

• Preliminary configuration

• Number of sector

• Azimuth

• Antenna type

• Antenna height

• Location Map & SR radius

• Search ring objective

• Approvals

Spheroid:

Coordinates: (GPS)

o ' ''N

o ' ''E

Site AGL (m): 30 Antenna Type: 65 deg Vertical polarised

Antenna Orientation(Deg)

Coverage Objectives:

Revision No. : R1.1

Name & signature of RF Coordinator

Comments

Krishna Nagar, Jotiba Nagar, Shambaji Nagar, Yamuna Nagar

BSNL Circle:Haryana

Krishna Nagar

City / SSA:

Search Radius:50 m

350 120

Sector1 Sector2 Sector3

sec

18 39

240

Search Ring Form

Site Name: Site Id:

Morphology Type: Quasi Open , Industrial

47 36.7

WGS-84

Issue Date:

Longitude: 73

Latitude: 49.3

deg min

41

Site Realisation

Release of

Search Ring

Suitable

Candidates?Candidates

Approved?

Arranged

Caravan

All parties

agreed at

Caravan

Produce

Final RF

Design

Caravan next

candidate

Exhausted

candidates

Additional sites

required

Cell split

required

Candidate

approved?

Driveby, RF

suggest possible

alternative

Next

candidateProblem

identifying

candidate

Discuss

alternative with

customer

Issue design

change

Exhausted

candidates

Y

N

Y Y

Y

Y

YY

NN

N

N

NN

YN

42

Site Realisation

• Candidate Assessment Report-Site Survey Forms

• Site survey Forms for all suitable candidates for the search ring

• For each candidates :-

• Location (latitude/longitude)

• Location map showing the relative location of the candidates and

also the search ring

• Candidate information (height, owner etc)

• Photographs (360º set, rooftop, access, building)

• Possible antenna orientations

• Possible base station equipment location

• Information for any existing antennas

• Planning reports/comments (restrictions, possibilities of approval

etc.)

43

Site Realisation-Site Survey Form

• Final RF Configuration Form

• Base Station configuration

• Azimuth

• Antenna height

• Antenna type

• Down tilt

• Antenna location

• Feeder type and length

• BTS type

• Transmit power

• Transceiver

configuration

Date

BSNL Circle

CITY / SSA

Site ID

Site Name

Owner Name

Address & Contact No.

Construction

Tower Type Bldg. Hgt

Tower Hgt Antenna Ht

Coordinate LAT N LONG E

GSM ANTENNA :

AZ M-TILT

SECTOR 1 85° +1.9 Spheroid:

SECTOR 2 185° +0.7

SECTOR 3 307° +1.3

Candidate No.

Assess: Priority

Morphology/Clutter

Site Blockage if Any

Remark

Name: Name:

Signature: Signature:

BSNL/ NBSNL

20 m.

GBT / Rooftop 10 m.

6 m.

AP909014-2

BSNL Survey Team Representative Nokia Representative

Accept/ Reject

TECHNICAL SITE SURVEY FORM

June 12, 2004

BHPAT-09

Bihar

AP909014-2

AP909014-2

Patna 09

Container/Room

85° 48 ' 31.2"26° 21' 25.9"

TYPE

44

Traffic Engineering

Spectrum

AvailableReuse factor

Maximum number

of TRX per cell

No of TCH

availableTraffic offered

Traffic

Requirement

Subscriber

supported

Channel

loading

45

Traffic Engineering

• Traffic Requirement

• The Erlang per subscriber

• Grade of Service (GoS)

• GoS is expressed as the percentage of call attempts that are blocked

during peak traffic

• Most cellular systems are designed to a blocking rate of 1% to 5%

during busy hour

46

Traffic Engineering• Frequency Reuse

• In designing a frequency reuse plan, it is necessary to develop a

regular pattern on which to assign frequencies

• The hexagon is chosen because it most closely approximated the

coverage produced by an omni or sector site

• Common reuse factor : 4/12, 7/21

47

Traffic Engineering

• Channel Loading

• As the number of TRX increases, the control channels required

increases accordingly

• The following channel loading is used for conventional GSM network

• For services such as cell broadcast, additional control channels might

be required

Number of TRX Control Channels Number of TCH

1 Combined BCCH/SDCCH 7

2 1 BCCH, 1 SDCCH 14

3 1 BCCH, 2 SDCCH 21

4 1 BCCH, 2 SDCCH 29

5 1 BCCH, 3 SDCCH 36

6 1 BCCH, 3 SDCCH 44

7 1 BCCH, 3 SDCCH 52

8 1 BCCH, 3 SDCCH 60

48

Traffic Engineering

• After determining the number of TCH available and the traffic requirements, the traffic offered is calculated using the Erlang B table

• For example, for a 2% GoS and 3 TRX configuration, the traffic offered is 14

Erlang

• If the traffic per subscriber is 50mE/subscriber, then the total subscribers

supported per sector = 280

• For a uniform traffic distribution network, the number of sites required for the traffic requirement is :-

siteper supportedSubscriber

rs subscribeTotal sitesTotal

49

Traffic Engineering

• Erlang B Table

N 1% 1.20% 1.50% 2% 3% 5% 7% 10% 15% 20% 30% 40% 50%

1 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.02 0.03 0.05 0.1 0.11 0.18 0.25 0.43 0.67 1

2 0.15 0.17 0.19 0.22 0.28 0.38 0.5 0.6 0.8 1 1.45 2 2.73

3 0.46 0.49 0.54 0.6 0.72 0.9 1.1 1.27 1.6 1.93 2.63 3.48 4.59

4 0.87 0.92 0.99 1.09 1.26 1.52 1.8 2.05 2.5 2.95 3.89 5.02 6.5

5 1.36 1.43 1.52 1.66 1.88 2.22 2.5 2.88 3.45 4.01 5.19 6.6 8.44

6 1.91 2 2.11 2.28 2.54 2.96 3.3 3.76 4.44 5.11 6.51 8.19 10.4

7 2.5 2.6 2.74 2.94 3.25 3.74 4.1 4.67 5.46 6.23 7.86 9.8 12.4

8 3.13 3.25 3.4 3.63 3.99 4.54 5 5.6 6.5 7.37 9.21 11.4 14.3

9 3.78 3.92 4.09 4.34 4.75 5.37 5.9 6.55 7.55 8.52 10.6 13 16.3

10 4.46 4.61 4.81 5.08 5.53 6.22 6.8 7.51 8.62 9.68 12 14.7 18.3

11 5.16 5.32 5.54 5.84 6.33 7.08 7.7 8.49 9.69 10.9 13.3 16.3 20.3

12 5.88 6.05 6.29 6.61 7.14 7.95 8.6 9.47 10.8 12 14.7 18 22.2

13 6.61 6.8 7.05 7.4 7.97 8.83 9.5 10.5 11.9 13.2 16.1 19.6 24.2

14 7.35 7.56 7.82 8.2 8.8 9.73 10.5 11.5 13 14.4 17.5 21.2 26.2

15 8.11 8.33 8.61 9.01 9.65 10.6 11.4 12.5 14.1 15.6 18.9 22.9 28.2

16 8.88 9.11 9.41 9.83 10.5 11.5 12.4 13.5 15.2 16.8 20.3 24.5 30.2

17 9.65 9.89 10.2 10.7 11.4 12.5 13.4 14.5 16.3 18 21.7 26.2 32.2

18 10.4 10.7 11 11.5 12.2 13.4 14.3 15.5 17.4 19.2 23.1 27.8 34.2

19 11.2 11.5 11.8 12.3 13.1 14.3 15.3 16.6 18.5 20.4 24.5 29.5 36.2

20 12 12.3 12.7 13.2 14.0 15.2 16.3 17.6 19.6 21.6 25.9 31.2 38.2

21 12.8 13.1 13.5 14 14.9 16.2 17.3 18.7 20.8 22.8 27.3 32.8 40.2

22 13.7 14 14.3 14.9 15.8 17.1 18.2 19.7 21.9 24.1 28.7 34.5 42.1

23 14.5 14.8 15.2 15.8 16.7 18.1 19.2 20.7 23 25.3 30.1 36.1 44.1

50

Traffic Engineering

• If a traffic map is provided, the traffic engineering is done together with the coverage design

• After the individual sites are located, the estimated number of subscribers in each sector is calculated by :-

• Calculating the physical area covered by each sector

• Multiply it by the average subscriber density per unit area in that region

• The overlap areas between the sectors should be included in each sector

because either sector is theoretically capable of serving the area

• The number of channels required is then determined by :-

• Calculating the total Erlangs by multiplying the area covered by the average

load generated per subscriber during busy hour

• Determine the required number of TCH and then the required number of TRXs

• If the number of TRXs required exceeded the number of TRXs supported by the

available spectrum, additional sites will be required

51

SWAP PLAN

• Why do we need a swap plan?

To reduce mix of different vendor BTS within a large city/ area

• Reduce Inter MSC HO.

• Better maintenance efficiency

Swap Strategy

• No. of existing BTS sites with configuration known

• No. of new sites with configuration known.

52

For Example BSNL UP(W) Circle

53

UP(W) Circle Network Diagram

Nokia BTS

Ericcsson BTS

All DHQ on Nokia

Muzaffarnagar

Mathura

Agra

Noida

Etah

Ghaziabad

Bijnor

Pilbhit

Mainpuri

Budaun

Bulandshahr

Moradabad

Bareilly

Delhi

NCR

Uttaranchal

Haryana

Haryana

Rajasthan

UP(E)

Nepal

54

UP(W) Circle Network Distribution

Major Cities /SSA’s to be deployed on Nokia BTS DHQ of all SSA’s Meerut Agra Mathura Noida Ghaziabad Muzaffarnagar Aligarh Bulandshahar

SSA’s except DHQ’s deployed on Ericsson BTS Bijnor Bareilly Moradabad Etah Etawah Rampur Pilbhit Badaun Mainpuri Saharanpur

55

Agra

Mathura

Mainpuri

Meerut

Muzaffarnagar

Saharanpur

Moradabad

Bulandshahar

BadaunPilbhit

Bareilly

Etawah

Aligarh

Bijnor

Rampur

Ghaziabad

NoidaDelhi

Etah

69 Ericsson HW Site

56 Nokia HW Site

National HW

Railways

State Highway

District Border

Uttaranchal

Haryana

Haryana

Rajasthan

UP(E)

HW & Rly Plan for UPW

NH-58

NH-91

NH-24

NH-02

NH-03

Nepal

56

SWAP SUMMARYSl

NO

SSA PH-IV PLANNED

NOKIA

SWAP

NOKIA

WITH

ERICSSON

EXISTING

ERICSSON

SWAP

ERICSSON

WITH NOKIA

TOTAL

NOKIA

TOTAL

ERICSS

ON

Highways

Nokia

GRAND

TOTAL

A B C D E F G H

(A+D-B) (C-D+B) (E+F+G)

1 Agra 74 2 43 37 109 8 8 125

2 Aligarh 40 4 27 19 55 12 1 68

3 Badaun 16 10 11 3 9 18 1 28

4 Bareilly 45 11 27 17 51 21 2 74

5 Bijnor 39 32 16 3 10 45 0 55

6 Bulandshahar 27 3 17 12 36 8 1 45

7 Etah 17 12 10 3 8 19 3 30

8 Etawah 29 21 16 4 12 33 0 45

9 Ghaziabad 27 1 15 9 35 7 0 42

10 Mainpuri 22 17 12 2 7 27 0 34

11 Mathura 34 1 22 17 50 6 7 63

12 Meerut 68 5 30 26 89 9 11 109

13 Moradabad 73 35 33 16 54 52 9 115

14 Muzaffarnagar 48 10 17 13 51 14 3 68

15 Noida 12 0 8 6 18 2 0 20

16 Pilbhit 11 6 6 2 7 10 5 22

17 Rampur 20 13 11 3 10 21 0 31

18 Saharanpur 31 18 16 9 22 25 5 52

Total 633 201 337 201 633 337 56 1026

57

• Before Swap 24volt’s (40) BTS status

• Agra – 9• Aligarh – 2• Bareilly – 5 • Mathura – 2• Meerut – 3 • Moradabad – 6 • Saharanpur – 4• Bijnor – 2• Bulandshahar – 2• Etah – 1• Etawah – 3• Pilibhit – 1

Out of 40 sites 31 have been swapped to Bijnor – 16 Moradabad – 15

Out of 40 sites 9 left as it is (No Swap) Agra - 1 Moradabad – 1 Saharanpur – 1 Bijnor – 1 Bulandshahr – 1 Etah – 1 Etawah – 3

After Swap 24volt’s (40) BTS status Agra – 1 Moradabad – 16 Saharanpur – 1 Bijnor – 17 Etah – 1 Etawah – 3 Bulandshahr – 1

UP(W) Circle 24volt BTS Distribution

58

Advanced Network Planning Steps

59

Parameter Planning

• Parameter planning means creating a default set of BSS parameters.

• The most important parameters to plan for:• frequencies• BSIC• LAC• handover control parameters• adjacent cell definitions.

60

BSS Parameter

• Relevant BSS parameter for NW planning

• frequency allocation plan

• transmit power

• definition of neighbouring cells

• definition of location areas

• handover parameters

• power control parameters

• cell selection parameters

61

Handover Types

• Intracell same cell, other carrier or timeslot

• Intercell between cells (normal case)

• Inter-BSC between BSC areas

• Inter-MSC between MSC areas

• Inter- PLMN e.g. between AMPS and GSM systems

intracell

intercell

inter-BSC

62

Handover Criteria

1. Interference, UL and DL

2. Bad C/I ratio

3. Uplink Quality

4. Downlink Quality

5. Uplink Level

6. Downlink Level

7. Distance

8. Rapid Field Drop

9. MS Speed

10. Better Cell, i.e. periodic check (Power Budget, Umbrella Handovers)

11. Good C/I ratio

12. PC: Lower quality/level thresholds (DL/UL)

13. PC; Upper quality/level thresholds (DL/UL)

63

Location Area Design 1/2

• Location updating affects all mobiles in

network

• LocUp in idle mode

• LocUp after call completion

• Location updating causes signalling

and processing load within the network

(international LocUpdate !)

• Avoid oscillating LocUpdate

• Trade-off between Paging load

and Location Update signalling Location area 1

Location area 2

major road

64

Location Area Design 2/2

• Different MSC can not use the same LAC.

• Location areas are important input for transmission planners • should be planned as early as possible.

• Never define location area borders along major roads!

• Dual band or microcellular networks require more attention on LAC planning

• co-located DCS and GSM cells are defined to the same LAC • same MSC to avoid too much location updates which would cause

very high SDCCH blockings

65

Network Optimisation

66

What is network optimisation?

67

• Improving network quality from a subscribers point of view.

• Improving network quality from an operators point of view.

Network Optimisation is:

68

What is network quality?

69

O

P

E

R

A

T

O

R

C

U

S

T

O

M

E

R

NETWORK

SERVICES

MOBILE

COST

• Mail Box, Data, Fax, etc.

• Customer Care

• Faulty H/W or S/W• Mobile Quality• Misuse of Equipment

• H/W Failure• Network Configuration• Network Traffic• Spectrum Efficiency

• Coverage yes/no• Service Probability• Quality• Call Set Up Time• Call Success Rate• Call Completion Rate

H/W CostsSubscription/Airtime costsAdditional Services Costs

Network Equipment CostsMaintenance CostsSite Leasing CostsTransmission Link Costs

Overall Network Quality

70

Cell Planning Tools

• Prediction

• Simulation

Network Measurement Tools

• Propagation

• Drive test

Network Management System

• Network configuration

• BSS parameter data

• Network performance

Tools for Optimisation

71

Performance Feedback

• Network is under permanent change

• ==> detect problems and symptoms early!

OMC

field tests

customer

complaints

It´s far too late

when customers

complain!

72

Optimize compared to what?

73

Key Performance Indicators, KPI

• KPIs are figures used to evaluate Network performance. • post processing of NMS data or • drive test measurements data

• Usually one short term target and one long term target. • check the network evolution and which targets are

achieved

• KPIs calculated with NMS data• network performance on the operator side.

• KPIs from drive test • performance on the subscribers side

• Usually turn key projects are evaluated according to some predefined KPIs figures like drop call rate

74

Network Performance Evaluation with NMS

• The most reliable KPIs to evaluate the network performance with NMS are:

• SDCCH and TCH congestion• Blocking percentage [%]• Drop call rate [%]• Handover failure and/or success rate• Call setup success rate • Average quality DL and UL

• The targets are always defined by the customer but the following figures can be considered as satisfactory results:

• Item limit Target Lowest acceptable• Dropped calls: <2 % 4 % • Handover success >98 % 96 %• Good Qual samples (0..5) >98 % 95 %

75

Drive Test Measurements

• Evaluate network performance from the subscriber point of view

• KPIs information: • DL quality, call success rate, handover success rate, DL signal level• not statistically as reliable as NMS information

• Added value of drive test measurement :• find out the geographical position of problems like bad DL quality to

look for a possible interference source in the area• compare the performance of different networks • display the signal level on the digital maps to individuate areas with

lack of coverage eventually improve the propagation model • verify the neighbour list parameter plan

76

Optimisation Process

• There are not strict processes for optimization because the activity is driven by the network evolution.

77

Optimisation Process: Young Network Case

• In a young network the primary target is normally the coverage.

• In this phase usually there is a massive use of drive test measurement • check the signal and • the performance of the competitors

GPS

NMSX

MMAC

78

Optimisation Process: Mature Network Case

• In a mature network the primary targets are quality indicators• drop call rate, average quality, handover failures.

• Important use the information from NMS• a general view of the network performance.

• Drive test measurements are still used • but not in a massive way• in areas where new sites are on air• where interference and similar problems are pointed out by NMS data

analysis.

Drop Call Rate (%)

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed

Call Bids / 10000

Average

Busy Hour