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Symena - LTE Network Design Using Capesso LTE - A
Symena - LTE Network Design Using Capesso LTE - A
1.
Executive Summary
2.
3.
2.1.
2.2.
4.
4.2.
4.2.1.
4.2.2.
4.2.3.
4.2.4.
MIMO
4.2.5.
Channel bandwidth
4.2.6.
4.2.7.
Channel overhead
4.2.8.
Traffic growth
4.2.9.
Coverage requirements
4.2.10.
Inter-system interference
4.3.
5.
6.
Glossary
1.
Executive Summary
From the point of view of network design LTE is, perhaps, an order of magnitude more
complex than 3G. In particular this complexity applies at the business case consideration
stage. Some of the significant choices include:
Carrier frequency with 15 different FDD bands ranging from 700MHz to 2.6GHz;
Deployment strategies.
Capesso LTE provides a fast and efficient solution for automatic LTE network design and
business case analysis. What if questions for various considerations can be answered
quickly and efficiently. This enables identification of the best model for LTE deployment.
Because Capesso is integrated with Atoll, data that is already in Atoll can be used as the
basis for the investigation. This is a major boost in efficiency compared to using an
independent tool.
A range of different LTE deployment scenarios are examined in this paper. These were
originally conducted for a Tier 1 operator using Capesso LTE and Atoll. Each case
isolates one important aspect of LTE while consistently treating all of the others. This is
critical due to the impact of network design (antenna locations, azimuth tilt etc.) on LTE
system performance. This level of consistency is not feasible with manual design
approaches.
Capesso allows detailed LTE analysis based on the existing 2G or 3G network data. Key
advantages include:
Capesso LTE provides a full range of LTE key parameters, including MIMO,
frequency domain scheduling gain, adaptive modulation and coding and others;
Capesso LTE is in use by Tier 1 operators and vendors for LTE business case analysis
and was released in March 2008.
The key benefits of Capesso LTE can be summarized:
Capesso LTE enables the effective LTE business case analysis, design and
planning
Capesso LTE enables fast and efficient what if analysis for LTE business cases.
Capesso LTE reduces investment costs for LTE deployment through better
understanding and therefore better radio designs.
Capesso is the ideal tool to investigate the LTE options. A full understanding of the impact
of each choice can be developed quickly and efficiently. Then choices can be made for the
best LTE deployment strategy.
Capesso LTE = faster, better, cheaper LTE network design
Peak download rates of 326.4 Mbit/s for 4x4 antennas and 172.8 Mbit/s for 2x2
antennas and peak upload rates of 86.4 Mbit/s for every 20 MHz of spectrum
allocated 2.
Five terminal classes have been defined from a voice-centric class up to a high-end
terminal that supports the peak data rates. All terminals will be able to process 20
MHz bandwidth.
Support for at least 200 active users in every 5 MHz cell. That is >200 active data
clients.
Increased spectrum flexibility, with spectrum slices as small as 1.4 MHz and as large
as 20 MHz supported.
Co-existence with legacy standards so that users can start a call (voice or data) in
using an LTE standard, and continue the call transparently using an earlier standard
such as UMTS, CDMA2000 or even GSM.
Supports MBSFN (Multicast Broadcast Single Frequency Network). This feature can
deliver services such as Mobile TV using the LTE infrastructure.
Support of advanced antenna and signal technologies such as MIMO (Mulitple Input
Multiple Output) antenna systems.
Figure 1: Evolution of radio access technologies from FDMA, TDMA, CDMA to OFDMA.
While OFDMA is used in the downlink, providing high resistance to multipath interference
and flexible support for a wide range of frequency bandwidths by changing the number of
subcarriers, the uplink uses single-carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA).
This technology has the advantage of low power consumption by decreasing the peak-toaverage power ratio (PAPR) of user equipment (UE) and reducing interference from other
users by maintaining orthogonality in the frequency domain3.
Carrier frequency: A wide range of spectrum options is defined for both frequency
division duplex (FDD) and time division duplex (TDD) bands for LTE. The standard
considers 15 different FDD and 8 different TDD frequency bands for LTE operations,
ranging from 700MHz up to 2.6GHz bands.
Flexible bandwidth options: LTE can operate with bandwidths as small 1.4MHz up
to as much as 20MHz. Based on the available bandwidth, key technologies such as
the frequency domain scheduling have different efficiencies4.
Adaptive modulation and coding: LTE supports QPSK, 16QAM and 64QAM
modulation formats in the downlink, as well as QPSK and 16QAM in the uplink.
Turbo coding is applied for both links. Hence, depending on the actual network
conditions, such as the signal energy per symbol to noise power spectrum density
(Es/No), different throughputs and peak data rates can be achieved maximizing total
throughput for the given radio conditions.
Channel overhead: The channel overhead directly influences the efficiency of the
LTE system. This depends on the vendor specific implementation as well as the
available bandwidth for the LTE transmission.
Traffic growth: All radio systems need to be built for a specific traffic demand. This
traffic demand will change and grow significantly, particularly with the greater use of
the mobile phone network for wireless broadband. On introduction LTE will be about
more than signal coverage. To accommodate the traffic the right level of the right
resources will be required in the right place.
Figure 2: Capesso LTE to investigate the various LTE deployment and business case options. The
source data is directly extracted from the existing 2G or 3G networks, which is available in Atoll.
Capesso can automatically answer a wide range of What if LTE deployment questions.
Figure 3: Target cluster for the LTE business case analysis using Capesso.
The source data for this case study is a cluster of an existing 2G/3G radio network of a Tier 1
operator. It is not possible to provide more details. The area of interest is shown in Figure 3.
Within this target area, 72 existing 2G/3G sites are candidates for the LTE deployment.
Furthermore, the area of interest has a wide range of clutters, traffic and conditions.
4.2. What if LTE business case analysis with Capesso
4.2.1. Number of sites needed
A key question is the number of sites to achieve a specific LTE performance level (land
coverage, population coverage, peak data rate and service grade, system capacity, etc.).
This was investigated using existing sites as candidates.
Situation: As shown in Figure 3, 72 sites are available for LTE deployment.
density map as shown in the upper left side in Figure 4 is available.
A traffic
Challenge: Plan the most effective LTE deployment to maximize captured traffic at minimum
deployment cost and thereby maximize early LTE revenue.
Solution:
Capesso was used to identify the best sites to capture the offered traffic.
Value:
Figure 4: Capesso LTE used for automatic site selection and parameter optimization
to determine most cost effective sites based on serving offered traffic.
Capesso was used to investigate the impact of frequency on the coverage for
LTE. The propagation predictions were performed for the respective bands in
Atoll using appropriately tuned models. To make a fair comparison, the same
number of sites was assumed deployed in all three cases.
While more than 72% of the target area is covered with 10 sites in the
frequency band below 1GHz, only 32% of the area is covered at the same level
with the same number of sites for the band above 2GHz. This confirms the
expected coverage impact of the considered spectrum options for LTE. The
results are shown in Figure 5.
Capesso can be used to find the best trade-off between frequency band and
cost. While its well know that lower frequency means fewer base stations for
ubiquitous coverage Capesso can be used to quickly determine the cost of the
tradeoff and therefore the value to be ascribed to bandwidth based on
frequency.
4.2.3. Adaptive Modulation and Coding Scheme (AMC)
Adaptive modulation and coding schemes deliver many of the benefits of LTE by adapting
the maximum data rates used to the actual propagation channel and interference conditions.
However this is considerably more difficult to model than radio technologies that use a single
or only a couple of AMCs.
Situation: This analysis is now being done with
a fixed frequency band. Adaptive
modulation and coding schemes vary
with
vendor
implementations.
Results from trials such as from NTT
DoCoMo shown in Figure 6 show
also
some
deviation
between
simulation
and
measured
performance. Hence, it is of high
interest to investigate the impact of
the AMC mapping variations onto the
system performance. Details of the
AMC mapping values cannot be
disclosed for confidentiality reasons.
Capesso can accommodate a wide
range of AMC mappings in the same
format as they are described by the
Figure 6:
Automatic Modulation and
Coding values from trials of NTT DoCoMo,
comparing simulated and measured
mapping curves.
vendors.
Challenge: Analyze the impact of the different AMC values on system (downlink)
throughputs and thereby maximize throughputs in the LTE network5.
Solution:
Note: since the peak data rates depend heavily on the interference situation, the
network configuration (tilts and azimuth, etc.) is critical in this analysis.
Capesso jointly considers and optimizes these settings for the different AMC
mappings to ensure the best possible business case comparison.
Value:
Multiple Input/Multiple output (MIMO) can significantly enhance the system capacity of LTE.
MIMO systems come with several options, such as 1x2, 2x2, 4x2 or 4x4, which can have
massive cost effects on the associated antenna systems. Hence, it is important to
understand what the potential benefits against those costs in an operating network.
Situation: MIMO antenna systems are standardized for LTE networks. The performance
of the MIMO system depends on the actual channel characteristic, which is
described by the channel quality indicators (CQI). Based on the CQI, the
eNodeB selects the MIMO mode used. The rules for this selection are vendor
specific.
Challenge: Cut through the vendor marketing hype and realistically compare the
performance of 2x2 versus 4x2 or 4x4 MIMO so that the right MIMO choice is
made.
Figure 8: Comparison of the peak downlink throughput with No MIMO and 2x2
MIMO. The same colour codes are used. The statistics show that the peak data rate
can be boosted dramatically in some areas. However a significant proportion of the
target area does not see major data rate improvements.
Solution:
Value:
Symena has a deep understanding and long history in the analysis of MIMO and
other advanced antenna techniques. Capesso can be used to isolate the
effects of MIMO on the system so that the right techniques can be used in the
right places while vendor hype is eliminated.
4.2.5. Channel bandwidth
LTE is the first radio standard that allows flexibility in channel bandwidth with deployments in
the range from 1.4MHz to 20MHz. This significantly increases the range of deployment
options. Since the maximum system throughput is a direct function of the channel bandwidth
it is important to understand the effects on the maximum system capacity and peak data
rates.
Situation: Understanding the effects of the different channel bandwidth options is essential
to understanding LTE business cases. For example the impact of new spectrum
can be compared to squeezing LTE into shared spectrum with GSM can be
examined.
Challenge: Analyze the impact of the available LTE channel bandwidths and optimize the
network configuration to ensure best performance for each.
Solution:
Figure 9: Comparison of the peak downlink data rate as a function of the available
channel bandwidth for LTE. Having only a small proportion of the channel bandwidth
(right hand side), the peak data rates are reduced significantly, as expected.
Note:
Depending on the different channel bandwidth, the interference
distribution will be different in LTE. Hence, Capesso automatically also
optimizes the network configuration for each of the considered cases. This
makes sure that the maximum performance for each investigated case can be
achieved.
Value:
The key effect of the frequency domain scheduling in LTE is that the packets are assigned to
the user that has instantaneously the best fading characteristics (see also Figure 10). This
results in significantly better, instantaneous signal quality. That delivers a higher spectrum
efficiency for LTE. Frequency domain scheduling is a unique capability of LTE delivered by
OFDMA technology.6
The actual gain of the frequency domain scheduling depends on the fading characteristics,
i.e. coherence bandwidth of the propagation
channel and the actual channel bandwidth of
LTE. For example, no gain can be achieved by
frequency domain scheduling if the propagation
channel is flat fading within the channel
bandwidth.7
According to analysis conducted by the leading
vendors involved in the LTE standardization,
frequency domain scheduling can increase the
spectrum efficiency by up to 40% compared to
previous technologies.
Therefore, the utilization of the resources and
hence the impact of the frequency domain
scheduling has to be considered depending on
the associated channel bandwidth.
Higher
spectrum efficiency will lead to a significantly
Figure 11: Expected traffic growth for the investigated LTE business cases.
It can be seen that the very high flexibility of LTE deployment significantly increases the
complexity for the business case investigations. This makes it extremely time consuming
and difficult to manually investigate the different options particularly when system
performance depends so strongly on network design.
By the use of advanced mathematical techniques Capesso LTE can radically reduce the
time it takes to analyze the large number of options and business cases for LTE, as indicated
in Figure 12.
Figure 12: Capesso to compute individual options and wide range of business cases for LTE
deployments.
Finding the number of sites required to support a particular LTE overlay deployment
using existing sites as candidates;
Examining the impact of vendor specific adaptive modulation and coding (AMC)
schemes;
Appropriate modelling of the impact and benefits of different MIMO approaches; and
With each major choice offered by the standard comes a new batch of business cases. For
example to examine three potential channel bandwidths and three potential bands requires
nine business cases. Add one MIMO option (no MIMO or 2x2) and there are now 18 cases!
Manuel planning for multiple business cases is difficult and time consuming. There are
virtually no economies of scale. The 18th plan will take as long as the 5th. Most manual
planning processes result in a single plan.
With Capesso each plan for each business case can be produced simply by varying the
appropriate parameter and rerunning the software. The computer does the heavy lifting.
By using Capesso each plan is better and more consistent than manual plans. Capesso
has been shown to generate plans that deliver more with fewer resources than any manual
plan. For example, when Capesso was used on a well optimized but manually designed
network, Capesso delivered an increase in capacity of about 20%. The result was verified
by measurement. There is every indication that the gain will be similar or better for LTE.
There is consistency because the plans are generated mathematically rather than by rule-ofthumb.
Capesso lets you isolate all of the major choices for LTE planning so that the impact of
each parameter can be understood quickly and comprehensively. In essence Capesso
LTE takes a very difficult planning problem and makes it simple.
Capesso LTE has been in use by Tier 1 operators and vendors for LTE business case
analysis since March 2008.
Capesso LTE = faster, better, cheaper LTE network design and deployment
6. Glossary
rd
3GPP
AMC
CDMA2000
CQI
eNodeB
Es/No
FDD
FDMA
GSM
IP
Internet Protocol
LTE
MBSFN
MIMO
OFDMA
PAPR
QAM
QPSK
RB
Resource Block
SC-FDMA
TCO
TDD
TDMA
UE
User Equipment
UMTS
UTRAN
WCDMA
rd
Generation Mobile
About Symena
Symena is the leading supplier of Automatic Cell Planning (ACP). Capesso is the proven,
fully-featured, tightly integrated ACP tool. Capesso delivers measurably better results
faster. This is proven in extensive, daily operational use by Tier 1 operators and OEMs.
Capesso is routinely recognised as the smart solution for ACP. Greenfield is the verified,
super fast, radio network dimensioning/design tool. Its ideal where information is scarce and
time tight.
Capesso and Greenfield are widely used for planning LTE networks.
Symenas ACP tools are available for all major radio standards including GSM, CDMA,
UMTS/HSPA, WiMAX and LTE.
Symena. Smart Up Your Network!
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