Importing cell site data using the Network

Explorer
The Network Explorer allows you to import network element data,
creating a cell plan file called cellrefs.txt. It also lets you browse and
edit this network information once it has been loaded. The Automatic
Import feature provides an automated method of updating cell site
information as changes are made to the network.

This section describes how to import delimited data, and how to

configure the Automatic Import tool.

Importing Network Data

The important thing to remember about the network data import
process is that the process requires two files:

1 A delimited text file that contains unformatted data arranged in

tabular form, with one row for each individual sector in a network.

2 A blank file, containing only Actix header information, to be

populated with formatted data.

Obtaining Site Data in tabular format

In order to import cell site data from your own network, you will need
to obtain a delimited text file containing the data listed in the table
below. To maximize the benefit your Actix Software can bring to UMTS
network analysis, the parameters listed in bold in the table on the
following page are REQUIRED for cell data to function with logged data
in the main workspace. All other parameters are optional.

The data may come from a network database or a planning tool

configuration file. As long as the data is in a tabular format with one
row for each sector, you will be able to import the data.

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 UMTS Cell Site Parameters for Import:

Parameter Actix Group Actix Name Purpose

Site Name WCDMA_Site SiteName Text description of the site for

display on map.

Site WCDMA_Site SiteID Numeric identifier for the site.

Number

Latitude WCDMA_Site Latitude Locates site icons on map.

Longitude WCDMA_Site Longitude Locates site icons on map.

Sector WCDMA_Cell Sector ID Sector-specific information

Number useful for display on maps
(can be alpha or numeric)

Azimuth WCDMA_Cell Azimuth Orients the sector icons on

the map.

Beamwidth WCDMA_Cell Beamwidth Governs the shape of the

sector wedge icon to reflect
the beamwidth of antenna
deployed at the site.

Scrambling WCDMA_Cell SC Used for cell site identification

Code and to calculate lines to cells.

EIRP WCDMA_Cell EIRP Equivalent Isotropic Radiated

Power for informational
purposes only
Mobile WCDMA_Cell MCC Mobile Country Code for
Country informational purposes only
Code
Mobile WCDMA_Cell MNC National Domain Code for
Network informational purposes only
Code
Location WCDMA_Cell LAC Location Area Code for
Area Code informational purposes only
Cell Identity WCDMA_Cell WCDMA_CI Cell Identity for informational
purposes only
BSIC WCDMA_Cell BSIC Legacy parameter unused
Neighbor WCDMA_Cell WCDMANeighborList Used to define a pre-defined
List neighbor list for each cell. Used
during neighbor list
recommendations analysis.

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 The figure below is an example of a delimited UMTS file that could be
used to import a site list. Though the columns can be in any order for
import, the figure shows all of the REQUIRED fields. Additionally, the
Excel spreadsheet must be saved as a TEXT file for import.

Figure 88 - UMTS Cell Site Data Spreadsheet

Guidelines for formatting tabular data

Although cell-site data fields do not need to be listed in a particular
order, following these guidelines will provide the best results:

1 The Site ID field must contain a unique value for each site location.
Beware of non-unique Site IDs - that is, entries that have multiple
sets of latitudes and longitudes for the same Site ID. Non-unique
Site IDs will result in site markers appearing on the map without
sector wedges. Site Names need not be unique - they are used for
labeling purposes only.

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 2 Position information must be accurate to display sites in the correct
location on the map. Longitudes that have a 'West' notation should
be represented as a negative decimal, as should latitudes with a
'South' notation. Sites will appear skewed on the map if the latitude
and longitude fields are transposed.

Obtaining the file to be populated with formatted data

Before importing new cells, ensure that your Actix Software is pointing
to a valid cell site database.

A valid cell site database is a text file in which the first line
contains the text below:

; #NetworkData datafile

Every installation comes with a clean file called cellrefs.txt

located in the folder:

C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application

Data\Actix\Analyzer\Bin\Cellrefs

The file to be populated need not be named cellrefs.txt . We

recommend renaming this file with a meaningful name in order
to prevent the file from being overwritten during reinstallation.

To point your Actix Software to the file that you wish to populate with
the new cell site data, use the File Location line in the Tools
Preferences dialog. See the section on Loading Cell Site Data for
more details.

Importing the data

Once you have obtained your cell site database in delimited format
and have referenced a valid cellrefs file, you are ready to open the
Network Explorer and import the site information.

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1 To access the Network Explorer, select Tools Network
Explorer.

Figure 89- Network Explorer Window

The Network Explorer display consists of two panels. The left panel
contains a tree view of the network element data. The right panel
shows details about relevant parameters for the current selection.
If you have referenced a cellrefs file containing only header
information, you will not see any cell site data at this time.

2 From the toolbar, select Import Import From New Template

to open the Import dialog.

3 Select the appropriate network data file and click Open to display
the Import Settings dialog.

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 Figure 90- Import Settings Dialog (Step 1 of 2)

4 Give the Template a meaningful Template Name.

5 Check the appropriate Delimiter.

6 In most cases, the default information under the General Settings

and Coordinate Information headers will apply. Adjust these
settings if necessary.

7 Click Next.

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 Figure 91 - Settings (Step 2 of 2) Assign WCDMA_Site Data

8 Expand the WCDMA_Site data node. Click in the Column field

next to the Site_Name parameter. Select the parameter name
from your site database that corresponds to the Site_Name
parameter. Repeat for each of the required fields in the
WCDMA_Site data node, based on the table below:

Field Mapping required for proper operation?

Site_Name Optional, but this field is frequently used for the site label.

SiteID Required, and this field must be unique for each site in the
database.
Latitude Required

Longitude Required

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 Figure 92 - Column Settings (Step 2 of 2) Assign WCDMA_Cell Data

9 Expand the WCDMA_Cell data node. Click in the Column field

next to the Sector_ID parameter. Select the parameter name
from your site database that corresponds to the Sector_ID
parameter. Repeat for each of the required fields in the
WCDMA_Cell data node, based on the table below:

Field Required for proper operation?

Sector_ID Required

Azimuth Required

Beamwidth Required

EIRP Optional

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 Field Required for proper operation?

SC Required

MCC Optional

MNC Optional

LAC Optional

WCDMA_CI Optional

BSIC Unused

WCDMANeighborList Optional

10 Click Finish when all the columns have been assigned. If the
current workspace contains existing site data, you will be asked
whether you want to remove existing data before importing new
data. Select Yes to overwrite existing data. Select No to append to
existing data.

11 If any errors occur during the import, a pop-up message will

indicate that an error log has been created. The error log specifies
the cause of each error encountered and can be found in:

C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application

Data\Actix\Analyzer\Bin\Cellrefs\ImportErrors.log

12 Inspect the cell data in the Network Explorer by expanding the

All_WCDMA_Site_Elements folder in the left-hand pane of the
Network Explorer.

13 Double-click on any site name in the right hand pane. The Name,
Location and ID of the site will appear, as well as a folder
containing WCDMA Cell Elements. Drill into the WCDMA Cell
Elements folder and examine the values corresponding to each
sector.

14 To save the formatted site information, select the Save button.

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15 Close the Network Explorer by clicking the X in the top right hand
corner.

16 After closing the Network Explorer, view a new map by selecting

View Display New Map.

Figure 93 - Use Zoom to Layer to Locate Cells on Map

17 If cell icons do not appear on the map, right click on the

WCDMA_Cell layer in the map legend at the left hand side of the
map window. Select Zoom to Layer to zoom the map to the
appropriate location. Be sure to close the map with the X at the
upper right hand corner to save all changes to the map view.

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Updating Cell Site Data
There are two convenient ways to update cell plan information:

Minor cell plan changes (a few azimuths, SCs, etc.) can be

modified directly from the Network Explorer. Simply browse to
find the site and sector of interest and double click on a single
parameter to activate the text. Be sure to save the
modifications before exiting the Network Explorer!

If the cellplan file is updated (multiple sites added, complete

frequency retune), use the Automatic Import feature to detect
changes to an existing cell plan and import the updated cell site
file. Instructions for using the Automatic Import feature follow.

Automatic import of Cell Site Data

The Automatic Import feature detects changes to cell plan data and
updates the configured site data every time you open your Actix
Software.

To use the Automatic Import feature

1 From the main menu, select Tools Preferences.

2 Expand the Automatic Import option under Cellrefs and select

the Enable Automatic Import option.

3 Select the Automatic Import Input File. This text file contains
your delimited site data.

4 Select the Automatic Import Template. Once a template has

been created, a new workspace must be started in order for that
template to appear in this list. To use a template created on
another computer, copy the template of interest from this folder:

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 C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application
Data\Actix\Analyzer\Bin\Cellrefs\Templates

to the same directory on your machine.

5 Click OK to exit the Change Preferences dialog. A message will

appear that Automatic Import has been enabled and that your
currently loaded cellrefs will be overwritten the next time you
restart your Actix Software.

Figure 94 - Automatic Import Setup

Once Automatic Import is configured, any changes to the Automatic

Import Input File will be detected, and will be changed accordingly in
your cell site file each time you start your Actix Software.

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