Radio Network Planning

Strategy

Patrik Persson
Senior Specialist
WCDMA RAN System Management
Outline

 Basic cell planning principles

– Securing coverage
– Achieving confined cells
– Selecting strategic sites
– Code planning
– Power planning
– Neighbour planning
 Combining GSM and WCDMA
– Using IRAT to enhance service area
 HSDPA scenarios
 Micro cells and indoor solutions
 Deploying 2nd carrier
– Strategies for 1900/1900, 850/1900 with fallback to GSM
 Capacity paths

Commercial in confidence 2 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Cell planning principles
Securing Coverage

 High gain antennas (20-22

dBi)
 Use TMA 18 dBi 23 dBi
– With Enhanced Uplink
this will be even more
important
 Avoid long feeder runs and
complex antenna installations  Path loss  Range   Path  Range 
– 10-20% of installations [dB] [%] Coverage
[%]
loss
[dB]
[%] Coverage
[%]
are incorrect +1 +7 +14 –1 –6 -12

 Plan for network load +3 +22 +48 –3 –18 -32

Higher antenna gain Longer feederloss

 Consider service coverage

Commercial in confidence 3 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Cell planning principles
Securing Coverage - using modular high gain antennas

 Modular
– Standard sector antennas
stacked vertically
– Custom mounting frame
for easy and accurate
assembly
– Scalable to suit different
MHGA compared to standard antenna
propagation
environments
 Radiation Performance
– High gain
– Improved link budget
within main beam
– Null-filling for coverage
below the horizon

Ideal for suburban and rural applications

Commercial in confidence 4 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27
Cell planning principles
Achieving confined cells (1/2) Ideal capacity when –3 dB
point at cell border

 Electrical Antenna tilt

 Use RET
– For efficient capacity
tuning
 High Gain antennas (small
vertical BW)
– To achieve maximum
20%
benefit of tilt 18%
16%
 Separate antenna systems 14%

Capacity gain
recommended 12%
10%

– GSM and WCDMA 8%

6%
requires different tilt 4%
2%
0%

Recommended tilt: one beamwidth at 0 1 2 3

Tilt
4 5 6 7

cell border, more in city areas

Example of capacity gain vs tilt
Commercial in confidence 5 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27
Cell planning principles
Achieving Confined cells (2/2)

 Narrow horisontal beam

antennas
 In areas with high capacity
needs reducing the cell
overlap is essential
 City environment: <65
degrees
 Rural environment: <90
degrees

Commercial in confidence 6 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Cell planning principles
Selecting strategic sites

 Avoid high sites

– Harder to confine coverage
– Generate interference far
away from service area
High sites generate interference
outside the planned coverage area

 Place sites close to traffic

– Ensures high air interface
capacity
Placing sites close to traffic ensures
high capacity
 Don’t be afraid to remove sectors
– Fast deployment can
sometime require sector
removal

Commercial in confidence 7 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

 Cell planning principles
Code Planning

Monitored set B1 C1
B3 C3
B2 C2
A1 13
G3
G2

B1
B3
B2
A1 Same code must not appear in
G3 the same monitred set
G2
13
Call will/may be dropped
Code planning is important and (UE dependent)
must not be neglected
Commercial in confidence 8 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27
Cell planning principles
Power planning
1200

 Power = Capacity 20% capacity 20W_10%

1000

– gain close to site 20W_5%

Correct initial values are 30W_10%

30W_5%

of essence
800

Throughput [kbps]

600

Common channel power

should be balanced towards
400

speech
200

– Ensures efficient power

0
-4 -5 -6 -8 -12 -17 -23

usage
Ec/No (unloaded)

Example of Capacity benefits of tuning CPICH

 Individual cell tuning should
be avoided
– Ripple effects difficult to
foresee

Commercial in confidence 9 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Cell planning principles
Neighbour planning B1 C1
B3 C3
 A good neighbour plan is B2 C2
essential for a well functioning A1
radio network G3
– 20 - 50% of dropped calls G2
occur due to missing
neighbours
 The challenge with WCDMA is
that you have to consider soft
handover.
– A relation should be present
for cells that are 3-5 dB Cell A
weaker than target cell
 More relations needed compared
to GSM (for intra frequency) Cell B
– Neighbours neighbour is
required

Add cell B Delete cell B

Commercial in confidence 10 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Combining WCDMA and GSM
Allowing IRAT everywhere
GSM network
 Good for initial deployment
– Allows immediate service
coverage
 Potential ”cost” of
compressed mode
manageable
WCDMA

WCDMA gsmpref gsmpref

GSM

Commercial in confidence 11 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Combining WCDMA and GSM
Selected areas with IRAT
GSM network
 When 3G network has
contiguous coverage
WCDMA
 IRAT handover allowed only
in border areas or selected
sites
 Ensures efficient compressed IRAT allowed only in
mode usage border areas

– Increase capacity

WCDMA gsmpref none gsmpref

GSM

Commercial in confidence 12 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Combining WCDMA and GSM
Terminating calls in GSM – Camping on 3G where possible

 If GSM has better coverage it

can be advantageous to
terminate the call (speech) in
GSM
– In order to minimize
handover
 This can be achieved by:
– Not allowing GSMUMTS
– Only allow handover when
there is significant load in
GSM
 Strategy only possible for CS WCDMA
services gsmpref
– PS services use cell
reselection mechanism  GSMUMTS only if GSM under load
moves to 3G where possible
GSM

Commercial in confidence 13 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Combing WCDMA and GSM
Considerations with WCDMA 850

 With WCDMA 850Mhz widely

deployed coverage will be
better than GSM
– Less likely to do IRAT
handover to GSM
 Same strategy shall apply
– GSM handover shall only
be allowed where
necessary (in case GSM
will be better)
gsmpref WCDMA 850

GSM 850

Commercial in confidence 14 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

HSDPA Scenarios Max R99 user rate
HS Bitrate

Single carrier 1,0

0,9

0,8

 Two reasons to deploy HSDPA 0,7

0,6

C.D.F.
1. Provide high bitrate services 0,5

 Configure high 0,4

0,3

profile areas with 0,2

HSDPA in an initial 0,1

0,0
phase 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000

2. Enhance packet capacity HS Bitrate [kbps]

 To get largest Example of user throughput distribution with HSDPA

benefit install
2000
HSDPA on cluster

Cell average throughput [kbps]

1800

base (10-12 sites) 1600

1400

where traffic 1200

1000 High capacity potential
demand is high 800
600
with many packet users

 Significant amount 400

200
of packet users are 0

required 130 135 140

Lsa [dB]
145 150

8.7 W 12.5 W 22.3 W

DCH 8.7 W DCH 12.5W DCH 22.3 W

Example of capacity benefit compared to R99 with

100% packet users
Commercial in confidence 15 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27
HSDPA Scenarios
Islands of HSDPA vs network wide deployment

 Island coverage
– HSDPA only where
needed (high profile
areas with high capacity Ideal for indoor solutions
need)
– Instances of data flow
with little mobility
reductions during
HSR99
 Network wide
– High bitrate services
available in wider area
– Reduce the effect of data
flow reduction (fewer
border areas

Commercial in confidence 16 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Micro cells and indoor solutions
Planning considerations for micro cells

 Primary application for micro Higher interference limits

is outdoor hotspot areas coverage area close to site

– Essential to place site

close to traffic
 Micro cell coverage area
depends on distance to
macro base station Smaller coverage area
close to site
Large coverage area

Commercial in confidence 17 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Micro cells and indoor solutions
Indoor solutions

 Good for high traffic density

areas and corporate users
with high
 Indoor signal level must be
strong to avoid interaction
with outside macro network Use indoor systems in these locations

 Use embedded indoor cells

initially a
Close to macro site
upper floors c Close to cell border
upper floors

 Keep same IRAT strategies b Close to macro site

lower floors
d Close to cell border
lower floors
Macro site
Macro cell coverage

Signal strength frommacro cell

Signal strength frommacro cell

Commercial in confidence 18 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

 Deploying Second Carrier
WCDMA in same frequency band

Cell edge for 1st and 2nd carrier

- gsmpref on both carriers

2nd carrier gsmpref none IFHOpref

IFHO Load sharing enabled

1st carrier gsmpref none none gsmpref

GSM

Commercial in confidence 19 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Deploying second carrier
Different frequency bands

 With WCDMA 850 coverage WCDMA 1900MHz IFHOpref IFHOpref IFHOpref

will be better than GSM IFHO Load sharing enabled
 IRAT handover should only WCDMA 850 MHz gsmpref none gsmpref
be allowed at network edges
 IFHO on higher frequency GSM
layer
 With a good cell plan cell
confinement (outdoor) can be
the same for 1900 and 850
– CPICH planning and
neighbour planning
should be the same for
both bands

Commercial in confidence 20 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

 Deploying second carrier
HSDPA alternatives
HSDPA UE
HSDPA on
both carriers

2nd carrier R99 + HS R99 + HS

1st carrier R99 +HS R99 +HS

HSDPA on 2nd
carrier only R99 traffic can be
pushed to 1st carrier
2nd carrier R99 + HS R99 + HS by
load sharing or
idle mode offsets
1st carrier R99 R99
Commercial in confidence 21 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27
Capacity paths
3 sector
PS data capacity 10 - 15 MHz 6 sector*
 Single carrier scenario 14 000
6x2*

1. Macro cell deployment 12 000

3x3

2. HSDPA

Mbps/sector area (in 3 sector sites)

10 000
Carrier
expansion
3. Cell split
8 000
3x2
Terminal 6x1*
6 000
4. Micro cells and indoor
dependen
t
- Antenna tilt
4 000
solution - 80% 3x1 3x1
admission
2 000

 Multi carrier scenario 0

1. Selected sites with 2

PS R99 Tuning HSDPA Grake / RX div 6-sector 2nd carrier 3rd carrier
nd (Ue)
* throughput (Mbps) per 2 sectors
carrier
2. Wide second carrier Also to keep in mind:
deployment *Advanced receivers (GRAKE)
3. HSDPA on both carriers *Narrowband AMR (speech
4. Cell split capacity)
*Advanced HS terminals (more
codes, EUL)

Commercial in confidence 22 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Summary

 Cell planning
– Use high gain antennas and avoid long feeder runs to
secure good coverage
– Keeping cells confined is the key to high cap networks
– Code planning, power planning, neighbour planning is
essential for a well working system
 Use fallback to GSM to enhance the service coverage
– Terminate CS calls in GSM
 Use HSDPA to provide high bit rate services and
enhance packet capacity
 2nd carrier deployment can lead to enhanced coverage
and capacity
– Be sure to use 850 and 1900 MHz spectrum

Commercial in confidence 23 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27

Commercial in confidence 24 Radio Network Planning Strategy 2005-09-27