Stuck in the Middle with You Part 1

Small cells are versatile. They can be used indoors and out of doors, for coverage
extension and capacity enhancements, in the same frequency as surrounding cells or
on different frequencies. If an LTE operator has an RF issue, chances are pretty good
that a small cell can solve the problem. Thats not to say that deploying a small cell is
necessarily the best choice in all cases, or that the operator can just plop the small cell
down without considering the potential side effects to the surrounding cells and the
nearby subscribers.
Take the case of an intra-frequency outdoor small cell intended to address a capacity
hot-spot within the normal macrocell coverage area, such as a park or a nightclub area
where a lot of people congregate. The macrocell signal in these areas may be perfectly
fine, but the sheer number of users may overwhelm the capacity of the macrocell. A
well-positioned small cell can offload some of that traffic, freeing up capacity on the
macrocell for other users and providing a better experience for nearby subscribers.
This scheme only works if the small cell can pull in enough users to justify the effort and
expense of deploying the cell, but not so many that the small cell itself becomes
overloaded. The tricky part for the engineers is that, in many cases, the macrocells RF
signal may still be significantly stronger than the small cells. If the operator does not
compensate for this, the UEs will just lock on to the macrocell and never move to the
small cell. What needs to be done to encourage UEs to move to the small cell instead?

Clowns to the Left of Me

The process starts when the UE powers up or otherwise appears in the LTE network. In
idle mode cell selection, the UE determines which LTE cell it should camp on, based on
its RSRP measurements of the surrounding cells and the selection criteria it reads from
the System Information Blocks (SIBs) broadcast over the air. The UE evaluates the cell
it is currently on, and then determines if it should actually move somewhere else. The
UE makes two basic checks when selecting or reselecting a cell: is the cell good
enough, and is it the best cell?
Good enough is determined by seeing if the measured RSRP value of the cell is
greater than the minimum criteria for that cell. In other words, does the cell meet Srxlev
= (RSRP (Qrxlevmin + Qrxlevminoffset) Pcompensation) > 0, where RSRP is the
cells measured Reference Signal Received Power and Qrxlevmin is the cells
configured minimum acceptable RSRP value. Qrxlevminoffset is used to steer UEs
based on the supported networks in the cell, while Pcompensation adjusts the
calculation according to the UEs maximum power level; both of these values are
typically set to 0 dB.
In the example illustrated below, both the macrocell and the small cell are configured
with a Qrxlevmin value of -120 dBm. Since the UE measures the macrocell at -92 dBm

and the small cell at -103 dBm, both cells meet the minimum criteria, and are therefore
suitable for use.
Jokers to the Right
So which one will the UE actually choose? That depends on their relative rank.
The rank of the cell the UE is currently on (the serving cell) is calculated as Rs =
RSRPs + Qhysts, where RSRPs is the serving cells RSRP value and Qhysts is the
serving cells configured hysteresis value. In this example, Rs = -92 dBm + 2 dB = -90
dBm. Conversely, the rank of a neighboring cell is calculated as Rn = RSRPn
Qoffsetn, where RSRPn is the neighbors RSRP value and Qoffsetn is the configured
offset value for that neighbor. In effect, the current cell is made to look better than it
really is, while the neighbors look worse than they really are, so that when the UE finally
decides to switch cells, it tends to stay there for a while.
Note that offsets may be different for each neighbor, and can be positive or negative
values. (Hysteresis values must be greater than or equal to 0 dB.) In this example, Rn =
-103 dBm (-15 dB) = -88 dBm. Whichever cell has the highest rank will be selected.
Here, the small cell wins, even though the macrocells signal strength is actually 11 dB
higher.

By selecting appropriate values for Qhyst and Qoffset, the operator can steer idle UEs
into the underlying small cell, without having to play games with the actual radio signal.
As long as the small cells rank remains higher than the macrocells, the UE will remain
camped on the small cell, and will use the small cell to request connections in order to
deliver the users services.
In the next segment of this discussion, well look at the corresponding calculations that
take place when the UE is connected. What has to be done to move an active UE
between a small cell and a macrocell? Stay tuned

Stuck in the Middle with You Part 2

One of the roles for small cells in an LTE network is to provide additional capacity in
localized hot-spots. In intra-frequency outdoor scenarios, however, the RF signal from
the overlying macrocell can easily overwhelm the small cell, preventing it from pulling in
enough traffic. In the previous discussion (Stuck in the Middle with You Part 1), we
talked about how key RF configuration parameters can be used to steer idle UEs in and
out of small cells.
What happens with the UE is connected, rather than idle? The problem is essentially
the same: without making the appropriate adjustments, UEs served by the small cell
see the macrocell as a much stronger (and therefore better) signal, and will request to
be handed over, even though they are still well within range of the small cell.
Fortunately, the solution is also the same: change the definition of better, so that the
UE stays on the small cell until the user leaves the small cells coverage area.

Trying to Make some Sense of it All

Connected UEs are configured by the serving cell with one or more sets of
measurement criteria, identifying what the UE should measure and when it should
report the results. In intra-frequency handover scenarios, the UE is typically set up to
report A3 events, which occur when the UE detects a neighbor which is some number
of dB stronger than the serving cell.
Take the case of a UE currently on a small cell underneath a more powerful macrocell.
In the illustration below, for example, UE A is well within the small cells coverage area,
but the macrocell has the stronger signal (an RSRP value of -95 dBm, versus the small
cells RSRP of -101 dBm). The hysteresis and offset values typically used for A3 events
only require the neighbor cell to be 2 to 5 dB stronger than the serving cell before the
event is reported. In this situation, UE A would report the A3 event and would be
immediately handed over to the macrocell. The small cell would be emptied of traffic
within a few seconds.

Instead, the trick is to make the small cell look more attractive (or, conversely, make the
neighboring macrocell look less attractive) so that the handover isnt triggered until the
UE reaches the edge of the small cell. In this example, the hysteresis value for the small
cell (Qhyst) is set to 10 dB, while the offset for the macrocell (Qoffset) is set to 2 dB.
Note that these hysteresis and offset values are separate from the ones used for idle
cell selection and reselection, although they have the same meaning and use.
Lets look at the results. UE A takes the small cells RSRP value and adds Qhyst to it (101 dBm + 10 dB = -91 dBm), and takes the macrocells RSRP and subtracts Qoffset
from it (-95 dBm 2 dB = -97 dBm). Since the adjusted value for the macrocell is less
than the adjusted value for the small cell (-97 dBm < -91 dBm), the A3 event is not
triggered, the UE does not send a Measurement Report to the small cell, and no
handover occurs. UE A remains on the small cell, precisely the desired behavior.

UE B at the edge of the small cell does exactly the same thing, but its results are
different. The small cells adjusted measurement is -104 dBm + 10 dB = -94 dBm, while
the macrocells adjusted measurement is -91 dBm 2 dB = -93 dBm. Since the
macrocell is now perceived to be stronger than the small cell, event A3 is triggered, UE
B sends a Measurement Report to the small cell identifying the macrocell as a handover
target, and the UE is handed over to the macrocell. Again, we have achieved the
desired result. Despite the macrocells stronger signal levels, UEs are able to remain on
the small cell until they move out of the intended coverage area.
Similar results are achieved in the other direction (from the macrocell to the small cell)
by choosing appropriate Qhyst and Qoffset values for the macrocell. In this case, Qhyst

would be relatively small (say 2 dB), while Qoffset would be a larger negative value
(such as -10 dB), in order to make the small cell more attractive at the proper time and
place.

Here I Am
LTE provides the tools the operator needs to steer traffic in and out of small cells, even
when the macrocells signal dominates the coverage. The challenge for the operator is
to determine what the appropriate settings for each cell must be, in order to move
enough users into the small cell and keep them there, without exceeding the capacity of
the small cell.