GSM Cell Planning

Points
Basics
BSS Planning Process
Propagation Models
Antenna Systems
Cell Planning
Inputs To Cell Planning
Frequency Planning
Site Planning Process

Who Should Plan The Network?
Operators with Non-Telecom Background prefers
Vendors or Consultants
Vendors have the advantage of knowing their
weaknesses and undocumented features
Will Vendors focus on Operators needs?
Consultants may not be up-to-date in Knowledge of
various makes of eqpt, but they will be independent.
Good choice in initial tendering stage
Best Choice for BSNL : Plan Ourselves
Aims To Be Achieved
Operators Strategic Intentions should reflect in
Planning
First Operator : Coverage
Second Operator : Tariffs !
Third , Fourth . : Quality Of Network &
Service, Value Added services, Content
Provisions, Alternate for Landline !!
Dimensioning Philosophies to adopt
Scope of Network Planning
Basic Data For Planning
Population Data : For estimating traffic Densities and distributions
Topography
Details of Roads & Towns from Maps
Type of Buildings, Peoples Profile..
Landline data
No of Subscribers, Waiting List
Per line Revenue
Presence of Competitor, their Customer base
Inputs from Officers In Landline O&M, Dealers, Distributors

Planning Work Flow
Key Factors In planning
Coverage Based Planning
Capacity Based Planning
How much Outage can be allowed ?
Level Of Quality targeted (C/I) , to choose the
frequency re-use patterns
How much Spectrum resources we have?


Transmission Planning
Transmission Network Costs 10 to 20 % of
total cost for private operators
OFS or MW (15Ghz)? : (For NBSNL sites)
MW is reliable in Dense Urban area and attending
faults are comparatively easy
MW is feasible upto 8 to 10 Km with 1ft antenna
Road Cutting charges of OFS
Spectrum Charges applicable for MW
SACFA Clearance required for MW
Transmission Planning .
Plan Loop Protection to Maximum Extent. At least the
RSLs and minimum of traffic channels can be given
redundant paths so that in case of failure of one E1
BTS will be up thru the other direction.
Plan E1 built-ups thru existing SDH rings where ever
available
Do star, linear , Closed ring daisy chaining to suit
existing network flow so that E1 built-ups are
minimized (restrict to less than 3 per hop). Procure
extra NIU cards if necessary
Frequency Planning
Tighter Re-use = More Capacity.But also
results in increased interference issues. Trade
Off..
Plan to achieve the capacity within tolerable
interference levels
To start only when all the sites are finalized
Bring all the additional sites planned in an
existing city TOGETHER
Parameter Planning
Inputs to be given to the OMC-R team by the
RF team to design the RF Database
Frequencies (BCCH,HSN,MAIO), Base Station
Colour Codes (BCC)
Location Area Codes
Neighbour Lists for each cell
Transmitter Power for each cell
Decibel (dB) Unit
Logarithmic Scale
Relative Measurement dB=10
log(Po/Pi)
dBW is wrt to Watt
dBm is wrt to mill Watt
dBi is wrt to Isotropic value
An Increase of 3dB = Increase by
2 Times
An Increase of 7dB = Increase by
5Times
An Increase of 10dB = Increase
by 10 Times


-30 dBm 1W
-20 dBm 10W
-10 dBm 100W
-7 dBm 200W
-3 dBm 500W
0 dBm 1 mW
3 dBm 2mW
7 dBm 5mW
10 dBm 10mW
13 dBm 20mW
20 dBm 100mW
30 dBm 1W
40 dBm 10W
50 dBm 100W
Propagation Principles
Path Loss in both directions to be same
But Interference environment different at MS
1 Sec delay corresponds to 300m at speed of light
All waves coming within 16 Sec will contribute to
signal strength
Signals with more delay causes co-channel
interference
Equalizers compensates for 3Km/hr, 50 Km/hr,
100Km/hr, 250 Km/hr delay profiles at 900Mhz
Fading
Slow Fading : caused due to terrain, large
structures etc. In the order of 10s of
Wavelength.
Rayleigh Or Fast Fading : Due to Multipath
propagation. Local, fast fading dips
Rician Fading : Combination of above.
Rayleigh fading when a direct wave is available

Propagation Methods
Free Space Propagation
Signal strength reduces exponentially with distance
Reflection : Specular or Diffuse
Polarisation, phase Change, Signal loss
Absorption : heavy attenuation , 5 to 30 dB
Diffraction
Wedge, Knife Edge, Multiple Knife Edges
Actual signal suffers many of each of above before it
reaches the MS and vice versa


Propagation Mechanisms-I
Propagation Mechanisms-II
Losses in Propagation
Free Space loss is proportional to 1/d
In actual scenario signal levels decrease with
3
rd
to 5
th
power of distance depending on
terrain and other conditions
Signal attenuation is expressed as dB per
Decade or dB per Octave (10dB per Octave
means the signal reduces reduces , say, from
70dBm at 1.5 km from BTS to 80dBm at
3Km from BTS)
Losses in Propagation.
Basic Formula L=Lo + log (d) where Lo is the loss till
the reference point, say at 1 km
Clutter loss factors
Free space : 20 dB/decade
Open Country : 25 dB/decade
Suburban : 30 dB/decade
Urban : 40 dB/decade
Dense Urban : > 45 dB/decade
A rise in level may be observed when MS enters open
area after crossing , say, urban area. This is because
the receive signal depends upon the local environment
also.
Signal Attenuation
Mixed Path Loss
Plane Earth Approximation
Earth is assumed flat & smooth
Received signal is resultant of direct and one reflected
which add constructively or destructively depending on
their phases
The phases depend on their path lengths and reflection
The path loss exponent reaches 4 after certain
distance known as Path Loss Break Point
B=4 h1 X h2/ (h1 & h2 are Antenna Heights)
Serving cell can be planned within this distance
Real situations different from this model

Propagation over Plane Surface
Propagation Models
Unlike MW links LOS signal. Direct signal, is nearly
absent (NLOS)
Many reflected paths (Muti path propagation)
Time dispersion, Echoes
Limited resolution of building and terrain databases
Models use simplified assumptions but will be very
accurate, particularly in Urban environment

Okumara-Hata Model
Based on measurements and additional attenuation
factors
Best applicable for cell ranges 5 to 20Km. Very
unreliable when radius id < 1 Km as the predominant
scatter in the vicinity in such situations are not
considered
Classifies different Land usage classes (Morpho)
For use with 150 2000 Mhz
Okumara-Hata Model
Land use Classes
Urban : 40- 50 dB /decade attenuation
Forest : 3-0-40Db /Decade differs with saeson
Open : low loss
Water : Very Easy transmission (Good or Bad ??)
Mountain Faces : Strong reflections, Long Echoes

Walfish Ikegami Model
Made for Urban environment
Considers building structures
Assumes regular Manhattan Grid Model
Mean distance between buildings, Mean Height, Road
width, Road Orientation angle
Valid for 800 to 2000 Mhz
Has an NLOS formula which considers building top to
street diffraction, Scatter loss, Multi-screen reflection
etc.
XLOS
Motorola proprietary propagation calculation algorithm
Based on diffraction and line of sight algorithms
Adjusts for built-up or natural environments on top of the terrain by
adding a height to the existing terrain (VIRTUAL HEIGHT)
The composite height is used to scan any obstacles for each
mobile position
Path loss estimates are adjusted by the clutter loss factor which is
added to the normal XLOS predicted path loss (CLUTTER LOSS)
Available for >1800 & <1800Mhz Modelling


XLOS CALCULATION FLOW
Antenna Principles
Antennas convert Wire Line signals to Wire Less
Received signal best at Antenna port (lowest C/I), to be
processed carefully to make optimum use
Far Field distance : Minimum distance at whch reliable
signal measurements can be made
Coupling loss : Difference between signal at Reference
point to the power input to the Antenna port Typically
50-60 dB for a few meters.
After far field coupling loss, path loss in free space can
be used for calculation of total loss
Antenna Types
Omnidirectional : Transmits in all directions
equally (In azimuth)
Directional Antenna: Transmitted energy is
concentrated in certain directions
Dipoles, Arrays,Yagi, Parabolic Antennae
Antenna Characteristics
Radiation pattern
Horizontal pattern (H-plane) describes azimuth distribution of
radiation
Vertical pattern (E-plane) describes distribution in elevation angle
Antenna gain: Usually expressed as dBi (decibal above isotropic)
Antenna lobes: Main lobes, Side lobes
Half-power bean width: 3db bean width expressed in angles in
both azimuth and elevation
Antenna down tilt (mechanical or electrical): Down tilting reduces
coverage at larger distances. Improves interference situation and
spot coverage.

ANTENNA PATTERN
Antenna Characteristics.
Polarization: vertical and cross polarization
Bandwidth: 10% of operating frequencies
Antenna separation
Horizontal 5-10 wavelength
Vertical 1 wavelength
First fresnel (vertical) must be kept clear of near
obstacles particularly when roof mounted. This figure
increases with down tilt.
In the horizontal plane 3db beam width must be clear
within 150 Mtrs.
Vertical Decoupling is more effective

Antenna Vertical Clearance
Antenna Separation
Antenna Horizontal Clearance
FEEDER CABLES
Cable types , 7/8,
15/8
Losses approx. 10 to 4
db/100 Mtr
Connector losses approx.
1db/connection
Thick cables have a lower
losses, larger bending
radii & are very expensive


REPEATERS
Unintelligent units which receive, amplify and transmit
a signal
Requires a donor cell and hence provides no additional
capacity
Available as narrow band and wide band
Receiving and transmitting antenna to be separated
sufficiently to avoid feed back loops
Difference between direct path and path via repeater
to be ensured to be within equalizer window to avoid
interference generation

DIVERSITY METHODS
Frequency diversity: Frequency hopping
Space diversity: Through multiple antennas. Provides
a diversity gains of 4 to 5 db in terms of quality
Polarization diversity: Through cross polar antennas
with +- 45 degrees polarization in very dense urban
areas diversity in case of more than 5 db can be
achieved but in open areas not much additional gain.
Coverage improvement by diversity is obtained in
improvement of signal quality (BER) as an indirect
effect.

Link Budget
Power Budget Calculations
What is the max Path Loss?
What can be the BTS Tx Power? : To balance both links
Whether coverage is uplink limited or Downlink limited
Cell size Evaluation
Main factors : BTS & MS Powers, Sensitivity
Usage Of MHA
Slow, Fast Fade Margins, Penetration Losses

Power Combiners
Power Budget Downlink
Power Budget Uplink
Power Budget Calculation -e.g.
Cell Areas
Dominance Area : Area in which the level is at least
stronger than the best neighbour by hand over margin.
In this area this cell is supposed to be the serving cell
for all the MSs
Service Area : The level is above the planned level. At
the border of thios calls will be handed over.
Optimisation done mainly here.
Coverage Area : Connections can be made. Signal
level may be below planned level. Causes interference.
Generally this is not desirable in multisite cities
Cell Area
Interference, C/I
Signal quality = Sum of All wanted Signals/
Sum Of Unwanted Signals =
Carrier/Interference
GSM spec of C/I= 9 dB
Interference not reciprocal in both directions
RXQUAL from 0 (best) to 7 (worst) indicates
quality


Carrier to Interferer
Interference Sources
Frequency re-use
Multi path components
Spurious External Emissions
Mature GSM network limited by Interference
and not Coverage !!
Co-Channel interference
Adjacent Channel Interference (Adjacent
Channel should be lower by 9dB)



Quality Measurements
C/I Vs Quality
Containing Interference
Choose Proper Location
Avoid hilltops particularly where nearby sites are available
Choose location where geography can be the barrier at the
boundaries of required coverage
Antenna Tilt/Down,BW reduction
DTX : Switch off Tx when no speech
Frequency Hopping : Averages out the Interference effects
amongst different frequencies
Power Control : Mobile reports its Rx level every 480 ms.BSC
commands Tx power control in steps of 2 dB. No power control on
BCCH
Most Important : A GOOD FREQUENCY PLAN !!

TRAFFIC THEORY
Trunks,Trunking effect
TRAFFIC THEORY.
Erlangs
X Erlangs=(calls per Hr) X Av. Convesation Time in
sec/ 3600 Seconds
Blocking , Queuing
Erlang B table for Blocking Scenario
Grade of Service
Erlang B Table
Inputs To Planning
Coverage Map
Commercial - -75dbm
Residential - -85 dbm
Roads - - 85 dbm
Out Doors - - 95 dbm
City Capacity
Erlang Per Subscriber
A- 40 m erlg.
Others- 25m erlg.
Outage Criteria
Quality Criteria (Interference, Freq Reuse, C/I)
Inputs To Planning.
Spectrum Available
31 Spot Freq out of 124 in 900 GSM band
Netplan- The Planning Tool
Digital GIS data
Resolution of a map is the size of the pixel which
can be 2m to say 500m
100m resolution map available with BSNL for terrain
23.5m resolution for Clutter
Digital Map
Estimating capacity
Population Data : For estimating traffic Densities and distributions
Landline data
No of Subscribers, Waiting List
Per line Revenue
Presence of Competitor, their Customer base
Inputs from Officers In Landline O&M, Dealers, Distributors
Expected Traffic Per Customer ?
Which will be the Busy hour
Network to dimensioned for BH
Can we spread the traffic in Time ??
Signalling Capacity
SDCCH Planning To be done
Combined Configuration
Less PCH, AGCH, SDCCH..
Non-Combined Configuration
Planning BTSs For Capacity
Capacity Based (See table)
Freq Planning Constraints
BCCH Planning
Which re-use pattern to use?
Hopping Planning
Which hopping plan 1/1 or 1/3 ?
HSN (Hopping Sequence Number)
MAIO (Mobile Allocation Index Offset )
Fractional Loading (1:6) : Means 3 Hopping Channels if You
have 18 ARFCNs.

Frequency Chart
NO ARFCN UL DL NO ARFCN UL DL
1 63 902.6 947.6 17 82 906.4 951.4
2 64 902.8 947.8 18 87 907.4 952.4
3 66 903.2 948.2 19 88 907.6 952.6
4 67 903.4 948.4 20 111 912.2 957.2
5 68 903.6 948.6 21 112 912.4 957.4
6 69 903.8 948.8 22 113 912.6 957.6
7 70 904 949 23 115 913 958
8 71 904.2 949.2 24 116 913.2 958.2
9 73 904.6 949.6 25 117 913.4 958.4
10 74 904.8 949.8 26 118 913.6 958.6
11 75 905 950 27 119 913.8 958.8
12 76 905.2 950.2 28 120 914 959
13 77 905.4 950.4 29 122 914.4 959.4
14 78 905.6 950.6 30 123 914.6 959.6
15 80 906 951 31 124 914.8 959.8
16 81 906.2 951.2
12 BCCH 18 TCH 1 GUARD BAND
BAND:: 890-915 935-960
Frequency Reuse
Fixed reuse planning for
BCCH
Tighter re use for higher
capacity
Frequencies for BCCH
fixed reuse Plus
Frequencies for Hopping
for TCH determines
capacity per site
What is Frequency Hopping?
Frequency
Time
F
1
F
2
F
3
Call is transmitted through several
frequencies in order to
average the interference (interference diversity)
minimise the impact of fading (frequency diversity)
SFH Implementation
MSC
PSTN
BB-FH
F
1
(+ BCCH)
F
2
F
3
Dig. RF
TRX-3
TRX-1
SFH
F
1
, F
2
,

F
3
Dig. RF
TRX-1
TRX-2
BSC
TCSM
BCCH
Frequency
Time
F
1
F
2
F
3
MS does not see
any difference
BB-FH is feasible with large configurations
SFH is viable with all configurations
Benefits of Frequency Hopping
Frequency diversity; Compensates the frequency
selective fast fading
Signal
Level
Distance
MS Location
F
3
F
2
F
1
Bursts sent on frequency F2 are degraded or lost, but the initial signal may
still be reconstructed from the bursts on frequencies F1 and F3.
MAIO Limitation
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
5
5
5 6
6
6
Sector 1
Sector 2
Sector 3
1 2 3 4 ?
5 6 7 8 ?
9 10 11 ? ?
MAIO
CONCLUSION : Max Config possible is 5/5/4
BCCH (Non-
hopping)
Limitation Due To Fractional
Loading
Definition : Ratio of No of Hopping carriers to No of
Hopping Frequencies
Limit :
1:6 for 1X1 hopping ( every sector reuses all hopping
frequencies)
1:2 for 1X3 hopping( every 3 sectors (site) reuses all hopping
frequencies)
With 18 frequencies to hop 18/6 = 3 or 18/(3*2) = 3
carriers are possible in each sector in addition to non-
hopping BCCH carrier.
Conclusion Max Configuration possible is 4/4/4

25MERLG 40MERLG
1/1 5.88 235.2 147
1/1/1 8.81 352.4 220.25
2/1/1 14.1 564 352.5
2/2/1 19.3 772 482.5
2/2/2 24.6 984 615
3/2/2 31.3 1252 782.5
3/3/2 37.99 1519.6 949.75
3/3/3 44.688 1787.52 1117.2
4/3/3 50.83 2033.2 1270.75
4/4/3 56.97 2278.8 1424.25
4/4/4 63.12 2524.8 1578
5/4/4 70.33 2813.2 1758.25
5/5/4 77.55 3102 1938.75
5/5/5 84.76 3390.4 2119
6/5/5 92.11 3684.4 2302.75
6/6/5 99.47 3978.8 2486.75
6/6/6 106.82 4272.8 2670.5
Omni 2 8.2 328 205
Capacity (No of Subscribers)
Config Erlangs
Capacity Chart
BTS Planning For Coverage
Reqmnts in Bid Maps
Terrain
BSNL Site Availability
Tower Heights
Street Level Measurement
Choice of Antenna/Combiners
Highway Coverage Considerations
Coverage Planning Process
Site Selection
Good View in Main Beam Directions
No nearby Obstructions
Good Visibility
Space/Strength for RTT/GBT, antenna mount
Media (MW/OFS) Connectivity
Space for Eqpt : Shelter Vs Room etc
Commercial Power, Space for E/A
Access to the site

Site Selection
Authorised Construction? Any problems for
getting local authority permissions, Electrical
Inspectorate, SACFA Clearances ?
Is the site too expensive ?
Compare with BSNL site options
Note down all details with photographs,
diagrams, feeder length requirements etc
Site Selection Process
Indoor Coverage
Biggest Challenge In
Commercially Important
areas.
Signals from Outdoor Macro
BTSs suffer penetration
losses
Huge Differences in levels
within the Building
Deep Indoor locations can
never have good coverage
(Lifts,Toilets,UG floor etc)
Indoor Coverage.
Indoor Coverage.
Penetration loss
depends on incident
angle
Total path loss is the
sum of
Out door path loss
Penetration loss
Indoor path losses
Indoor Solutions
Downtilting, downing of antenna helps at some places
For Very good improvement in coverage and quality
at all places, BTSs must be installed inside the
building itself
More complex than outdoor n/w. requires large
number of antennae, RF hardware, Cabling etc
Different solutions use Micro BTSs,
Repeaters,Distributed Antennae (Panel, Ceiling etc),
Leaky feeders, Splitters, Couplers, & 7/8 cables etc
etc
Indoor Solution: An Overview
Repeaters
Active & Passive repeaters
Passive ones are hardly in use
because they require high donor and
can have short distribution cable
Active repeters can be
Channel selective
Band selective
Channel translating Or
Wideband
Repeaters do not add capacity,
hence use them where spare
capacity is available
Used in Places with coverage need
and not much traffic, Remote valleys,
Tunnels, Highway patches etc

Thank You