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Atoll SPM (Standard Propagation Model) Calibration Guide: January 2004
Atoll SPM (Standard Propagation Model) Calibration Guide: January 2004
January 2004
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1 Introduction
To find an accurate model for propagation losses is a leading issue when planning a
mobile radio network. Two strategies for predicting propagation losses are in use these
days; one is to derive an empirical propagation model from measurement data, and the
other is to use a deterministic propagation model. Atoll proposes a macrocell propagation
model, the Standard Propagation Model (SPM), based on empirical formulas and a set
of parameters.
When Atoll is installed, the SPM parameters are set to their default values. However, they
can be adjusted to tune the propagation model according to actual propagation
conditions. This calibration process of the Standard Propagation Model facilitates
improving the prediction reliability.
This document is a guide describing the method and the steps to calibrate SPM. The
ensuing tuned model is an additional model directly usable in Atoll.
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2 Guidelines for CW measurement surveys
The CW measurement survey part is very important in the calibration process. Inaccurate
measurements lead to an inaccurate calibration and, hence, to an inaccurate model. The
measurement provider must abide by the following rules:
• The area under test must be scanned before performing the drive test to ensure
no interference exists.
• The transmit frequency must have a clearance of 400kHz from radio interference
(i.e. 1 GSM channel on either side of the transmit channel must not be in
operation). This can be verified by checking if the reception level is at zero when
the transmitter is off.
• Only one frequency must be measured.
• The GPS of the CW measurement equipment should be configured to that of the
mapping data.
• All maps used must be have the same projection as that of the Atoll mapping
data.
• A minimum of about 8 stations should be measured for each model calibrated (the
exact number is terrain dependent i.e. what route length can be traversed).
• Stations should be chosen to meet the following conditions:
Good RF clearance (no nearby obstructions).
Prefer an omnidirectional antenna on stations without surrounding obstacles.
Use a sectored antenna if obstructions are present in the neighbourhood to
decrease the reflections from the backside.
Varied antenna height (20m to 50m).
Varied terrain around each station (flat, hilly) - within a 10km radius.
Varied clutter around the station (open, urban, suburban, dense urban etc.)
within a 10km radius from the station. Clutter categories should all be
represented roughly equally with a minimum of 300 measurement bins in each
category.
Sufficient roads/motorways available to perform measurements.
• Panoramic photographs should be taken from each station (rooftop) starting from
north in a clockwise direction. The photographs should show the surroundings in
each direction. Orientations and station number should be written on the back of
each photograph.
• A rooftop sketch must be provided. The sketch must indicate the locations of:
• The transmitting antenna
• Any rooftop obstacles (precise location, distance from transmitter, height)
• Any nearby obstacles (other buildings) within 400m of the transmitter (precise
location, distance from transmitter, height, width)
• 2 measurements per mapping data pixel should be taken (defined by the mapping
data resolution e.g. 25m, 100m or 200m as appropriate).
• Measurement surveys should be obtained for distances up to 10km (or until the
noise floor of the receiver has been reached).
• Measurement routes must be targeted to have an equal number of samples near
as well as far from the transmitter.
• Stored measurements should be averaged between samples and the mean signal
level (50th percentile) must be stored.
• Antenna patterns (tilt and orientation) must be supplied in Atoll format.
• CW measurement surveys should be well documented with a ‘Station
Measurement Form’ (position, antenna height, transmit power, gains and losses)
and ‘Path Measurement Form’ (1 form completed per measurement file).
• Maps should accompany each drive test that should indicate the route surveyed.
The map should be annotated to indicate:
The location of the test transmitter
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Locations of any spurious measurements
Where the physical clutter data does not coincide with the mapping data
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3 Calibration procedure
3.1 Objective
The overall objective is to minimize the error between the propagation model predictions
and the CW survey data. The metrics used to quantify the error are the mean and the
standard deviation of the error.
The aim during the calibration process is to reach a null mean error and a low standard
deviation for all the measurement data taken as a whole and to minimize these two
criteria for each single measurement path. A common target value for standard deviation
is 8.
The Atoll Standard Propagation model (SPM) has a large number of parameters and
options, which may be selected or calibrated by the user in order to obtain a close
representation of measured propagation data.
Lmod el = K 1 + K 2 log(d ) + K 3 log(HTxeff ) + K 4 × Diffraction loss + K 5 log(d ) × log(HTxeff ) + K 6 (H Rxeff ) + K clutter f (clutter )
with,
3.2.2.1 Visibility and distance between the transmitter and the receiver
For each calculation bin, Atoll determines:
- the distance between the transmitter and the receiver.
If the distance Tx-Rx is lower than the maximum user-defined distance (break
distance), receiver is considered to be near the transmitter. Atoll will use the
set of values marked “Near transmitter”.
If the distance Tx-Rx is greater than the maximum distance, receiver is
considered to be far from the transmitter. Atoll will use the set of values
marked “Far from transmitter”.
- whether the receiver is in the transmitter line of sight or not.
If the receiver is in the transmitter line of sight, Atoll will take into account the
set (K1,K2)LOS.
If the receiver is not in the transmitter line of sight, Atoll will use the set
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(K1,K2)NLOS.
Note: If the profile is not located between the transmitter and the receiver, HTxeff equals
HTx.
Notes:
1. If HTxeff < 20m then, Atoll uses 20m in calculations.
2. If HTxeff > 200m then, Atoll takes 200m.
• Spot Ht
If H 0Tx > H 0 Rx then, HTxeff = HTx + (H 0Tx H 0 Rx )
If H 0Tx H 0 Rx then, HTxeff = HTx
• Abs Spot Ht
HTxeff = HTx + H 0Tx H 0Rx
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LOS HRx
line 30m
HTxeff R
H0
+
•
H0Tx
d
regression
terrain line
profile
Let x-axis and y-axis respectively represent positions and heights. We assume that x-axis
is oriented from transmitter (origin) to receiver.
1st step: Atoll determines line of sight between transmitter and receiver.
3rd step: Hills and mountains are already taken into account in diffraction calculations.
Therefore, in order for them not to unduly influence the regression line calculation, Atoll
filters the terrain profile.
Atoll calculates two filtered terrain profiles, one established from transmitter and another
from receiver. It determines filtered height of every profile point. Profile points are evenly
spaced on the basis of profile resolution. To determine filtered terrain height at a point,
Atoll evaluates ground slope between two points and compares it with a threshold set to
0.05; three cases are possible.
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Then, H filt Tx (i ) = H filt Tx (i (
1) + H orig (i ) H orig (i 1) )
H orig (i ) H orig (i 1)
2nd case: If H orig (i ) > H orig (i 1) and > 0.05
Re s
Then, H filt Tx (i ) = H filt Tx (i 1)
3 rd
case: If H orig (i ) H orig (i + 1)
Then, H filt Rx (i ) = H filt Rx (i + 1)
If H filt (i ) > H orig (i ) additionally
Then, H filt Rx (i ) = H orig (i )
Then, for every point of profile, Atoll compares the two filtered heights and chooses the
greater one.
H filt (i ) = max (H filt Tx (i ), H filt Rx (i )) H filt (i ) = max (H filt Tx (i ), H filt Rx (i ))
4th step: Atoll determines the influence area, R. It corresponds to the distance from
receiver at which the original terrain profile + 30m intersects LOS line for the first time
(when beginning from transmitter).
The influence area must satisfy additional conditions:
R 3000 m ,
R 0.01 d ,
R must contain at least three bins.
Notes:
1. When several influence areas are possible, Atoll chooses the highest one.
2. If d < 3000m, R = d.
5th step: Atoll performs a linear regression on the filtered profile within R in order to
determine a regression line.
where,
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1
Hm = H filt (i )
n i
i is the point index. Only points within R are taken into account.
R
dm = d
2
d(i) is the distance between i and transmitter (m).
Then, Atoll extends the regression line to the transmitter location. Its equation is:
regr (i ) = a (i Re s ) + b
6th step: Atoll calculates effective transmitter antenna height, HTxeff (m).
H 0Tx + HTx b
H Txeff =
1 + a2
If HTxeff is lower than 20m, Atoll recalculates it with a new influence area, which begins at
transmitter.
Notes:
1. In case HTxeff > 1000m , 1000m will be used in calculations.
2. If HTxeff is still lower than 20m, an additional correction is taken into account (7th step).
7th step: If HTxeff is still lower than 20m (even negative), Atoll evaluates path loss using
HTxeff = 20m and applies a correction factor.
Note: The calculation of effective antenna heights ( H Rxeff and HTxeff ) is based on extracted
DTM profiles. They are not properly performed if you have not imported heights (DTM
file) beforehand.
Therefore, if receiver is in transmitter line of sight and the Hilly terrain correction option
is active, we have:
Lmod el = K 1,LOS + K 2,LOS log(d ) + K 3 log(HTxeff ) + K 5 log(HTxeff )log(d ) + K 6 H Rx + K clutter f (clutter ) + K hill ,LOS
When transmitter and receiver are not in line of sight, the path loss formula is:
Lmod el = K 1,NLOS + K 2,NLOS log(d ) + K 3 log(H Txeff ) + K 4 Diffraction + K 5 log(H Txeff )log(d ) + K 6 H Rx + K clutter f (clutter )
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K hill,LOS is determined in three steps. Influence area, R, and regression line are considered
available.
1st step: For every profile point within influence area, Atoll calculates height deviation
between the original terrain profile (with Earth curvature correction) and regression line.
Then, it sorts points according to the deviation and draws two lines (parallel to the
regression line), one which is exceeded by 10% of the profile points and the other one by
90%.
2nd step: Atoll evaluates the terrain roughness, h; it is the distance between the two
lines.
If 0 < h 20m , K h = 0
Else K h = 7.73 log2 ( h ) 15.29 log( h ) + 6.746
3.2.2.5 Diffraction
Four methods are available to calculate diffraction loss over the transmitter-receiver
profile. They are not detailed here.
• Deygout
• Epstein-Peterson
• Deygout with correction
• Millington
You may take the following into account along the transmitter-receiver profile :
Either ground altitude or clutter height
In this case, Atoll takes clutter height information in clutter heights file if available
in .atl document. Otherwise, it considers average clutter height specified for each
clutter class in the clutter classes file description.
Or only ground altitude
where,
L: loss due to clutter user-defined in the Clutter tab (dB).
w: weight determined using the weighting function.
n: number of points taken into account over the profile. Points are evenly spaced
depending on the profile resolution.
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di
• Triangular weighting function: w i = n
dj
j =1
di = D d i' , where d’i is the distance between the receiver and the ith point, and D is the
maximum distance (user-defined).
di
+1 log
D
• Logarithmic weighting function: w i = n
dj
log +1
j =1 D
di
eD 1
• Exponential weighting function: w i = dj
n
eD 1
j =1
3.2.2.7 Precautions
Be careful that the clutter influence may be taken into account in two terms, Diffraction
loss and f(clutter). To avoid this, we advise:
1. Not to take into account clutter heights to evaluate diffraction loss over
the transmitter-receiver profile if you specify losses per clutter class.
2. Not to define any loss per clutter class if you consider clutter heights in
the diffraction loss.
In this case, f(clutter)=0. Losses due to clutter are only taken into account in the
Diffraction loss term evaluated.
Tx
clutter
clearance
Rx
DEM
Tx-Rx profile. Ground altitude and clutter height (here, average height specified for each clutter class in the
clutter classes map description) are taken into account along the profile.
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information such as clearance. Here, losses due to clutter are taken into account in the
Diffraction loss term evaluated.
If some pictures from the station neighbourhood are available, you can check that no
close obstacle disturbs the propagation. If an obstacle is present in one direction, it is
possible to filter the measurement data according to the orientation by fixing a negative
and a positive angle for which the data will be taken into account.
Generally, signals above –40dBm are filtered out as they would be inaccurate due to
receiver overload. For the minimum signal filtering, the sensitivity of the receiver and the
tolerance have to be considered. So, signals below ‘receiver sensitivity + target standard
deviation’ have to be filtered out to avoid the effect of noise saturation in the statistical
results.
For example, in the following case, the water class can be filtered out. This class would
influence the prediction only in areas with large surfaces of water.
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3.3.5 Other filters
Some points can also be filtered out in different clutter classes because of a huge
diffraction effect which would not be representative of the propagation in the whole area.
For example, several peaks in the profile between the station and some measurement
points can introduce errors because of the nature of signal received there and may
influence the calibration in a wrong way.
- For calibration, you have to choose the paths that cover the whole area so that all the
area characteristics be taken into account during the calibration process.
- For verification, you have to choose several paths (the number depends on the total
number of available paths) that are inside the covered area, and not at the extremity, so
that these paths have no limitations in comparison to paths used for calibration.
If enough measurement paths are not available, all of them have to be used for the
calibration process. The verification is then performed individually with the same
measurement paths.
For hilly area, it is advised to use the “Enhanced slope at receiver” method and to
activate the “hilly terrain correction” .
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Whereas for a plain, it is advised to use the “Height above average profile” method and
to deactivate the “hilly terrain correction”.
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3.4.4 Calibration steps
Now your model has the initial parameters necessary to start the calibration. It is advised
to duplicate this modified model as it is rare to get a good calibration in the first attempt.
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3.4.4.1 Step 1
Set the filters in the measurement path properties window.
The filters about the field and the distance are defined and applied in the measurement
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and in the model properties at the same time. Remember, when using filters in the
measurement properties window, that these filters will be applied during calibration even
if the corresponding filters in the model properties are modified.
In the calibration tab, select the calibration paths, set the filters and check the LOS (Line
Of Site) and NLOS (Non Line Of Site) boxes.
3.4.4.2 Step 2
Press the calibrate button and find the variable having the highest correlation with error.
You can see the regression line when you select this variable.
Press Identify, so that Atoll calculates the necessary correction to apply to its related
constant thus decreasing the correlation of this variable with error.
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3.4.4.3 Step 3
If the most correlated variable is log(D), then you have to calibrate K1 and K2 separately
in case of LOS or NLOS. For that, press Cancel and successively calibrate these constants
in LOS and NLOS by selecting only the log(D) variable in the calibration window and
pressing Identify then press OK after having checked Step 4.
After that, check LOS and NLOS boxes again to calibrate the other variables.
3.4.4.4 Step 4
Check that the calculated correction does not make the related constant cross the
physical limits given below (recommended values).
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Constant min typical max
K2 20 44.9 70
K3 -20 5.83 20
K4 0 0.5 0.8
K5 -10 -6.55 0
K6 -1 0 0
If the constant with the suggested correction respects the given limits, press OK. If the
constant with the suggested correction doesn’t respect the given limits, manually set the
constant to the limit after pressing Cancel.
3.4.4.5 Step 5
Repeat the process from Step 2. The correction should have made the statistics better.
When the statistics are stabilizing, calibrate the Clutter variable so that the losses per
clutter class are calculated. Then you can try again to calibrate the other variables.
When the statistics are stabilizing, the calibration has finished. If the results do not
achieve the aim you can start again from the initial model by changing parameters such
as the effective antenna height method or the using of zones near the transmitter and far
from the transmitter, etc.
3.4.4.6 Step 6
When the calibration has finished, you have to check its quality with the verification
paths.
In the Calibration tab, select the corresponding paths and press Statistics.
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You can study the statistics report to check the model accuracy.
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