Autonomous frequency planning for GSM networks

Niklas Jalden and Sarah Kate Wilson Division of Signal Processing Royal Institute of Technology SE 100-44 Stockholm SWEDEN Niklas.jalden@swipnet.se and Katie.Wilson@s3.kth.se
Abstract Frequency planning is one of the more expensive aspects of deploying a network. If a set of base stations can be deployed with minimal service and planning, the cost of both deploying and maintaining the network will decrease. This paper presents a decentralized algorithm for base stations to determine their own parameters by listening to key information from other base stations. The synchronization information is sent via a lowpower spread-spectrum signal.

I. I NTRODUCTION Frequency planning can be costly and time-consuming. If an operator can deploy a turn-key base station that can determine its own frequency assignment based on information received from its neighboring base-stations, the cost of deployment and maintenance could be minimized. We propose an algorithm that allows base stations to choose their own frequency assignments based on information received from their neighbors. This paper includes a description of the algorithm as well as an analysis of how much information needs to be shared between base stations and how often the training should take place. The paper is organized as follows. First we describe the network scenario. Then we introduce the decentralized selfsynchronization algorithm. Simulations are presented to evaluate the performance of the network. Finally we present some conclusions and ideas for future research. II. S YSTEM SCENARIO For the algorithm proposed in this paper we will consider a Time and Frequency Division Duplexing system with a limited number of bands that requires different frequency allocations for each base station to mitigate intercell interference. The simulated network used in the evaluation and testing is similar to the three-sectored GSM network. The goal of this project is to design an algorithm that determines the appropriate frequency band for a base station based on its reception of other base stations. Because most network system are not designed for BS-to-BS communications, we insert periodic training times when base stations can communicate with each other. The frequency assignment and discussion are preferably made between late night and early morning when the trafc is normally low in the networks. In this way the normal users of the network services will be aware of the frequency assignment in the background.

To test the proposed algorithm we used two cases for simulating the environment: an ideal hexagonal grid and a semi-random grid. The ideal hexagonal grid has a base station centered in each hexagon. The semi-random grid placed base stations in random locations within hexagonal grids. The semi-random grid is used to simulate the cases where it is not possible to position the base station in the center of the cell due to physical, political and economic factors. The base stations were assigned a location within the hexagon that had an offset of x% of the cell radius. This keeps the base stations scattered within the network but maintains some regularity. To model the path loss between each cell, we used the propagation model proposed in [1] and included a random antenna height distribution for the base stations. A. Outage scenarios When simulating BS locations where the BS has a random offset from the center, some difculties can arise. The most common problem is the the BSs may be positioned too close to each other and may therefore create interference larger than that can be handled at the BSs and MSs. Also there maybe large areas without base stations and this will lead to low received power and lack of coverage for the MSs used there. Even though these difculties and problems may normally not be seen in real deployed networks, these scenarios are useful for showing when the proposed algorithm may fail. B. Network setup For this paper we assumed a 3 sectored-cell GSM network setup with 7-frequency reuse. When using a perfect hexagonal grid, 7 frequencies can be used to separate the sectors with minimal interference. This is a text-book case [6], [5], [7] and is shown in Figure 1. The shaded cells in Figure 1 use the same set of frequencies. These sets are best from the network point of view in that of minimizing interference to other sets. These sets will be called Perfect Grid Sets and will be used as a back bone in the frequency assignment algorithm. III. S IMULATOR The network simulator developed to test the proposed algorithm of frequency planning, is kept as simple as possible. All the base stations are assumed to be transmitting

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A. Obtaining information In GSM systems the base stations are designed for BS to MS communication and not BS to BS. To overcome this obstacle we propose overlaying our GSM-like system with CDMA transmission as in [4]. By transmitting small amounts of data using CDMA at times when the trafc in GSM is generally low, for example between midnight and early morning, the frequency assignment algorithm can be extended to GSM networks with minimal interference. While the authors in [4] propose a full CDMA communication overlay on top of GSM, this paper proposes sending only small amounts of data. Short, bursty informational data messages will render much less interference than full communication. B. Key points of the algorithms This section describes some key information to help understand the algorithm. 1) CGI-number 2) Sub-CGI number 3) Hop distance 4) Designated Base station 5) Designated distance (DD) 6) Reliability of information 1) CGI number: In every GSM net each cell has a unique identication number called the Cell Global Identication (CGI) number [2]. In the proposed algorithm the CGI number will be transmitted within each data packet to specify sender, just as a regular postal or IP address is used in data networking. 2) Sub-CGI number: This number is not an existing number within a regular GSM net. The sub-CGI number is used for specifying the number of the transmitting antenna on the base station. This numbering ranges from 1 to 3 within a 3 sectored cell. For example, if the antenna with CGI number 5 transmits on antenna 2, the sender address will be 5.2. 3) Hop distance: The hop distance is a term borrowed from some routing protocols, such as RIP or OSPF see [3], and has the same function as in those protocols. A hop is dened as a transmission between two base stations. This means that a transmission of information from A to B with hop distance of 5 will pass 4 stations before getting to the receiver. Hop distance is used in two ways in this algorithm. The rst is to specify the distance to the designated stations, and in this case it serves as a level of trust of the data saved. The second use is for the network operator to be able to specify the amount of information they want each station to have. Every base stations grade its data according to the number of hops is needed to reach it see section IV-B.6. 4) Designated Base station: The designated base station (DBS) is the master station within the area of interest. The DBS will be the station that chooses frequency rst and thereafter will act as the xed point for all the other BSs in the net. The title of DBS will not come with extra work or responsibilities. It only means that other BSs pay more attention to data that comes from the DBS than other BS. By choosing one BS to be the DBS, the frequency adaptation will

Fig. 1.

Frequency reuse of 7 in a 3 sectored hexagonal grid setup

at the same power. The simulator uses a simple model for transmission. When transmitting messages, the received power is calculated from the transmitting antenna to the receiving antenna. If the received signal-to-interference (SINR) level is above a specied threshold needed for reception the data is assumed received. The message is received at the antenna with strongest received power, but if the received power is above the threshold for message reception at any other antenna this information is assumed to be available to the BS. A. Simplifying simulator assumptions At the creation of each base station, a list if all possible receivers to that station is calculated. This list contains only the antennas in a vicinity of the BS considered. In the simulations presented here we have only considered possible receivers to be within a hop distance of two from the transmitter. The reason for this choice is that the possibility that a signal will propagate as far as 3 cells away and still be detectable as a received message is very small. In reality, there is a small but non-zero possibility that an environment exists where propagation allows stations at far ends of the net to communicate. IV. A LGORITHM E XPLAINED The automatic frequency assignment is divided into two parts. The rst is the location update section, which is the phase when the base stations send information about themselves and their physical position. The second part is the frequency update section, which is the phase when the base stations, depending on what they know of their surroundings choose frequencies and tells the other stations of what they know, and their choice of frequency. The reason for using two different phases is that for the frequency assignment to work the BSs need certain knowledge of their surroundings. By dividing the data discussion into two parts the total amount of transmitted messages needed for convergence will decrease. By knowing more about the surroundings, the BSs make better choices of frequency. Because the BSs make better choices, the number iterations for settlement in discussions decreases. Hence the total amount of transmitted data will decrease.

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Flowchart of phase 1. Location information and brieng

The CGI and sub-CGI numbers they have heard of. The main reason for using this section is to let the BSs get to know their surroundings and to get to know the areas DBS. Frequency decision and brieng: CGI number Sub-CGI number Frequency Designated BS Designated Distance The CGI and sub-CGI numbers they have heard of. The algorithm can be structured as follows:

D. Description of the algorithm The algorithms two parts are explained separately. First the algorithm ow is given followed by the criterions used for deciding if the the BS should transmit the information, see section IV-D.2, and the information that will results in a possible change of frequency, see section IV-D.1. When the rst phase has nished, the second will start. The owchart for phase 1, location information and brieng, can be seen in Figure 2. Phase 1: Location information brieng: 1) Transmit your CGI, sub-CGI number and your location. 2) Save received data, and if you get information with a hop distance within that youre obligated to tell about, pass that data on to your neighbors. The owchart for phase 2, location information and brieng, can be seen in Figure 3. Phase 2: Frequency decision and brieng: 1) Each base stations decides who they think the designated base station in the net is. 2) If the BS is the DBS, it chooses a frequency set that it will use. This set is always a PGS. Then go to point 4. 3) If the BS receives information that collides with its own choice of frequency it calculates a new best choice of frequency set. This choice can either be a PGS or a LIFS, depending on the information in the database at the BS. If the choice of frequency is a choice that it should tell its surrounding station about go to point 4. The new calculated choice can be the same as the set it had before. 4) Transmit the information. This information can either be information that has been heard about from other

C. Information needed The task of autonomous frequency requires a BS to have certain knowledge about the surrounding base stations for it to choose a frequency that doesnt interfere with others. The knowledge needed for a base station to choose frequency are: 1) What are the allowed frequencies 2) What base stations can be heard 3) What frequencies does these base stations use. This leads to the following discussion. The BS needs to know what frequencies it is allowed to use so it does not interfere with other operators spectrum. Secondly, it needs to know what other BSs are in its vicinity and let them know that it exists. This is because the surrounding base stations will be the most probable interferers to the BS, as it will be to them. This knowledge is gained by listening to the messages broadcast by the other stations. The information is broadcast in two separate phases, the location update and the frequency decision and brieng. Location information brieng: In this phase the base stations transmit small amounts of data to let the other BSs know they exist. These packages contains: CGI number Sub-CGI number Location Designated BS Designated Distance

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spread like a drop of water in a tank. The choice of DBS is the station with the lowest CGI-number. The DBS is a feature inuenced by the designated router in routing protocols such as RIP and OSPF, see [3]. 5) Designated Distance: The designated distance is a value that species the number of hops (transmissions between base stations) to reach the designated base station, see section IVB.3. 6) Reliability of information: During the frequency assignment phase, much data is transmitted back and forth in the network. This requires the base stations to grade the reliability of the information they receive. The BSs will grade this information reliability depending on the number of hops to the originator of the information. Hearing information directly from the originator will be graded 1:st order, and information from 2 hops away is graded as 2:nd order and so on, see section IV-B.3. The reliability of the information is also graded on the hop-distance to the DBS. BSs closer to the DBS will have higher probability of having the correct frequency assignment, and is therefore valued higher. Another feature in the algorithm is that the base stations treat the PGS as being more reliable than the LIFS. When a base station picks a set and the chosen set is a PGS, this data is transmitted as the frequency choice. If a station chooses an LIFS it holds the transmission for a while. If a station should choose a LIFS and it is the same set as it chose the last time, this information is assumed reliable and therefore transmitted. This is done to keep the data ow as low as possible, and only transmit reliable information.

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Fig. 3.

Flowchart of phase 2. Frequency decision and brieng

stations and that should be passed on, or its own choice of frequency. 5) If the BS hears of frequency changes from a base station, it will update is database to the new knowledge. If the change is within the hop distance that the BS obligated to tell about, go to point 4. 6) If the BS receives information of a lower CGI than its assumed DBS, it means that it has had the wrong information of the DBS. It will immediately update the information of DBS to the new CGI it heard of. Then it makes a new calculation of its frequency choice. If the new frequency set is the different from the set it had the BS should transmit this information. If its is not a new set, the BS will only transmit the information about the DBS. Go to point 4 1 1) Information that triggers a possible change of frequency: Many different kinds of messages can trigger a change in frequency. To ensure that frequency change is made only when necessary the base station only transmits what it believes to be reliable information, see section IV-B.6. The base station also categorizes the other stations in its vicinity in terms of reliability. The more reliable the base station information, the more likely they are to trigger a change in frequency assignment. More on how these stations are prioritized is explained in section IV-B.6. The information that triggers change at a BS is: The BS hears information about another cell using the same set of frequencies as it does. Change is only considered if the frequency information is fully reliable, i.e. (1st ) order.
1 It is not important to know the correct designated base station when the algorithm begins. In every message that is transmitted the knowledge of the DBS is included. Should a BS start with incorrect knowledge of the DBS it will correct that information as the wave of correct frequency assignment reaches it. When the knowledge of the new DBS is received it immediately drops earlier knowledge it has and adapts itself to the new data

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Fig. 4.

Frequency calculation example. Network from BS:1s point of view

A frequency collision occurs. This means that the transmitting sector at the sending base station uses the same frequency as the receiving sector. The BS receives 1:st order information about frequency use at another base station, and the receiving BS has not made a choice yet. This happens when the assignment has started and the BS waits for information form the DBS. 2) When to transmit the data: When a frequency update message from anyone of a BSs neighbors is received, there are three ways that this message will trigger a response message from the receiving base station. These three are: The BS receives a message that makes it consider a change of frequency and the result is that it does change, the BS will send a message, if and only if it has chosen a PGS. The BS receives a message that triggers a change in frequency and it chooses a set that is not a PGS, but it is the best choice and the same choice you made the last time. Remember the discussion in IV-B.6 You receive a message about a change in frequency at another base station, and that base station is within a hop distance that makes you obligated to forward the change.

E. How the best frequency set is calculated When choosing carrier frequencies, the base stations calculate three vectors (one for each antenna) containing the interference powers for each frequency available. The frequencies the BS knows are used at a station, in its surrounding, but cannot hear directly are weighted at 1% of the received power from the antenna that sent the information. Furthermore the BSs that has a lower distance to the DBS than the BS-ofinterest has a multiplicative weight of 2. The reason for using this weight is that BSs closer to the DBS are more likely to have the correct choice of frequency. This ensures that BSs close to the DBS have a greater inuence on the frequency selection. This helps ensure that the decisions spread out from the DBS like a drop of water in a tank. An example of this is shown in Figure 4. The data base for antenna 1 on BS:1 is shown in Table I. The received power in the table is based on the signal (in dB) heard by the BS-of-interest. It is used to help determining the frequency choice that interferes the least. A frequency that has not been

Number of messages transmitted per base station

Stations heard Frequency used Sub-CGI Received power LIFS

BS 2 356 3 9 TABLE I

BS 3 725 2, 3 5, 6

BS 4 617 2 7 BS1 1

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CALCULATION EXAMPLE DATABASE FOR

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heard of is given the value 0, and should not be seen as a received signal power of 0 dB. With this data the interference vector for antenna 1 will be: S1BS1 = [ 7 5 9 2 1% 0 6 + 9 2 1% ...

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... 9 2 + 7 1% 7 1% + 6 1% ] Then it generates a matrix containing all the possible sets to choose. If we have n available frequencies the number of possible sets will be n . This will give a matrix of possible 3 sets as follows: 1 1 2 ... ... n N = 2 3 1 ... ... n 1 3 2 3 ... ... n 2 The sets in the matrix are structures so that row number 1 contains the frequency choices for antenna 1, row 2 for antenna 2, and so on. Using the interference vector as indexes to the matrix, a matrix containing the interference powers for all possible choices is made. Summing the rows together and taking the minimum of this vector will give us the index to the least interfering frequency set (LIFS).
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Frequency messages per BS

V. S IMULATION AND RESULTS To test the frequency assignment, a large number of MSs was randomly positioned in the network. For each of these MS the Signal-to-Interference-Noise Ratio (SINR) was calculated in the following way. For every MS the received power from every antenna on all BSs was calculated. The strongest received power was assumed to be from the serving BS, and all the other received powers using the same frequency carrier was assumed to be noise. A SINR value above 5 dB was assumed sufcient, and all values below this threshold were reported a failure from the MS point of view. A. Amount of information needed In addition to knowing how well the algorithm works in terms of coverage, it is also important to understand how quickly the algorithm converges. The longer the convergence time, the longer the BS will need to transmit information messages and generate possible interference. The simulations of the amount of data transmitted for convergence of the algorithm is made by counting the average number of transmissions per network. In Figure 5 the number of Data messages per BS is plotted and in Figure 6 the same type of plot is made for the number of are two plots of the number of frequency messages per BS sent for convergence. These two plots are made in simulation environments where the antennas were allowed a offset of about 40%. The networks were square shaped and 20 different network setups for each network size was analyzed. As we can see in FigureS 5 and 6, the number of messages (in small networks, 0-50 stations) increases as the number

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j = min(Sitot ) LIF S = N (:, j) F. Making the frequency choice When the BSs are no longer centered in the middle of the cell and signal propagation is not uniform the PGS and the LIFS will not always coincide. Both types of frequency allocations sets have advantages and disadvantages summarized below. LIFS + Best in the BS point of view - Computational heavy - Selsh way of choosing PGS + Best in the networks point of view + Easy to choose - Not optimal for the base stations As said in section IV-B.6, the PGS have higher reliability than the LIFS. Therefore the BS preferably uses a PGS over an LIFS.

average precentage of MS with SINR < 5dB (%)

Number of stations Available frequencies in the net Threshold for message reception Center offset Base station heights Cell size Maximum transmit power at BS Spreading Gain TABLE II

28 8 5 dB 40% of the cell radius Random 0-50m Micro cells 700m radius 20 W 5 dB

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cell radius, because higher values would probably only make the stations swap positions, and no operator would consider positioning the base station in this manner. VI. C ONCLUSIONS
0 0 0.5 % MS with to low SINR 1 1.5

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PDF of simulation success

of cells in the network increases. As the network increases the average number of messages per base station will reach a threshold value. The shape of the curve can be described as follows. Smaller networks will have a larger percentage of border cells (cells lying at the border of the network area). Border cell base station have fewer neighboring stations, hence it will not receive as many messages that could make it change frequency. As the network grows larger the percentage of border cells will decrease and the number of messages per base-station levels out. B. Algorithm reliability By making a large number of simulations in different networks, where the antennas were allowed a center offset up to 40% of the cell radius, we evaluated the number of networks with a certain percentage of MS outage. The input parameters for the simulation are shown in Table II. A total of 1000 different network setups was analyzed. For each network setup the SINR for 10 000 MS was measured. This plot can be seen in Figure 7. It is also interesting to note the percentage of outages of the MS as a function of the allowed center offset for the BSs. This can be seen in Figure 8. The input for this simulation is the same as in Table II, with the difference that the BS center offset started at 0% and was increased by 10% up to 100%. For each value of the center offset 25 different network setups was analyzed and accounted for. As we can see in Figure 8 the percentage of outage stays moderate when the base stations are allowed to vary with up to 50% of the cell radius. By letting the center offset go above 60% we will encounter larger areas of deadspots that will lead to higher outage in the net due to the larger areas where there is no serving base station. The plot only goes up to 100% of the

In this paper we have developed and examined an algorithm for autonomous frequency planning for base stations. The task was to design the algorithm so that it could be implemented in an existing network with little change to the existing units. For the development and evaluation of the proposed algorithm GSM was used as an example network. By having the base stations transmit small amounts of information using CDMA we have proposed a way for the base stations to nd out about their surroundings and choose a frequency set that mitigates the intercell interference. The training times should take place at times when the trafc is normally low in the networks, for example late night/early morning. This will affect the existing communication in the network less, and therefore most of the mobile users will be unaware of that the frequency planning is taking place. The algorithm has been tested in two types of network environments, a perfect hexagonal- and a semi-random grid setup. These two network setup types have their limitations as explained in the paper, but are sufcient for the testing needed to prove the advantages of this algorithm. The algorithm proposed for the frequency assignment works satisfactorily in environments with moderate scattering of the positions of the base stations. R EFERENCES
[1] [2] [3] [4] Umts 30.03 v3.2.0 tr 101 112, 1998-4. Appendix B. Etsi ts 148 071, v5.1.0, (2003-07). U. Black. IP routing protocols. Prentice-Hall, Inc, 2000. P. Koorevaar and J. Ruprecht. Frequency overlay of GSM and cellular B-CDMA. 48(3), 1999. [5] M. Mouly and M-B. Pautet. The GSM System for mobile communications. 1992. [6] J G. Proakis and M Salehi. Communication systems engineering. PrenticeHall, Inc, 2:nd edition, 2002. [7] S. M. Redl, M. K. Webster, and M. W. Oliphant. An Introduction to GSM. Artech House Publishers, 1995.