Chapter 5

WCDMA Radio Network Planning

The radio network planning includes the following steps:
- radio network dimensioning
- coverage predictions
- capacity predictions
- interference predictions
- network implementation
- network optimisation.
The whole process is depicted in figure 5.1.
Figure 5.1. WCDMA radio network planning process.
5.1. Radio network dimensioning
In the dimensioning phase information about expected number of subscribers, subscribers
behaviour and demographic data are collected. Based on those information expected traffic
amount generated by the users is calculated. Additionally the terrain topography and radio
propagation conditions are analysed.
The final output of the dimensioning phase is an approximate number of base stations sites,
base station position, base station configuration and estimation of other network elements
based on the operators requirements and the radio propagation.
The aim of dimensioning is to fulfil the requirements concerning coverage, capacity and quality
requirements. For a suggested network configuration, power budget is calculated.
Properly done network planning requires real propagation maps and planning tools, which
calculate the base station position, provide coverage, capacity and interference calculations and
select the network parameters.
When the nominal plan is ready, network implementation and measurements in real
environment take place. It is done to verify the nominal plan. When the network is in
operation, again measurements are taken to check and optimise the system performance. The
planning and optimisation processes are fully automated.
5.2. Planning requirements
The detail operators requirements that must be fulfilled in dimensioning phase are listed
below:
1. Coverage:
- coverage regions
- area type
- propagation conditions
2. Capacity:
- spectrum available
- subscriber growth predictions
- expected traffic density
3. Quality of Service:
- coverage probability
- end user throughput
- blocking rate.
5.3. Link budget

Due to asymmetric traffic in WCDMA system, the link budget must be calculated separately for
uplink and downlink. Moreover there are third generation system specific parameters that were
not included in GSM link budget. They are listed below:
- interference margin
- fast fading margin
- soft handover margin.
The interference margin
It depends on the system load. For that reason the load factor is calculated. The more loading
is allowed in the system the larger is the interference margin. Apart of the interference level,
the load factor affects coverage. If the total system load increases the smaller must be the
coverage cells. In general for coverage limited system a smaller interference margin can be
used, while in capacity limited system a larger interference margin should be used. Typical
values for the interference margin related to the system loading are 1 to 3 dB for 20-50 %
loading, 6 dB for 75% loading.
Fast fading margin.
In case of fast fading, like Rayleigh fading, when signal is seriously attenuated due to phase
shifting, fast power control is needed, to solve the problem. It often happens to slow moving
pedestrian mobiles in dense urban area. For that reason some headroom in the mobile station
transmission power is needed for maintaining adequate closed loop power control.
Typical values for fast fading margin are 2-5 dB for slow moving mobiles.
Figure 5.2. Rayleigh fading.
Soft handover gain
Another type of fading is called slow fading or more often log-normal fading. To compensate
the log-normal fading soft or hard handover is used. (Hard handover is used to change the
radio frequency band between the UE and UTRAN or to change a cell on the same frequency
when no network support of macro diversity exists). This type of fading is uncorrelated
between the base stations and handover gives the mobile station a possibility to select a better
base station. Moreover soft handover gives an additional macro diversity gain against fast
fading by reducing the required Eb/No due to the effect of macro diversity combining. The soft
handover gain differs from 2 to 3 dB.
Figure 5.3. Log-normal fading.
There is example how the link budget in WCDMA system is done.
Required data:
- UMTS service: 12.2 kbps voice service using AMR speech codec
- environment: suburban covered with macro cells
- planned uplink noise rise: 3 dB with 3 dB interference margin.
- mobile station transmitting power for speech terminal: 21 dBm
- antenna gain: 0 dBi
- body loss: 3dB
- in car loss: 8 dB
- building penetration loss: 15 dB
- fast fading margin: 0dB
- required Eb/No: 5 dB
- noise figure: 5 dB
- antenna gain for three sector site: 18 dBi
- cable loss: 2dB

- maximum MS transmitting power: 21 dBm

- EIRP: 18 dBm
- base station antenna high: 30m
- mobile station antenna high: 1.5m
- carrier frequency: 1950MHz.
In this example no reservation for fast fading is done, because in case of high mobile station
speed above 60 km/h the fast fading power control is unable to compensate for the fading
effect. Soft handover is assumed.
In the spread spectrum systems there are two important concepts: processing gain and
power density over the interference power density.
The first one, processing gain is a fundamental aspect of WCDMA system. It gives the
robustness against self-interference that is necessary in order to reuse the available 5 MHz
frequency band over geographically closed distances.
Eb/No is a required power density over the interference power density after despreading ,
where:
Eb is an energy or power density per user bit,
No is the interference and noise power density.
The Eb/No requirement depends on the bit rate, service type, multipath profile, mobile
speed, receiver algorithms, BTS antenna configuration. For low MS speed the Eb/No
requirement is low but on the other hand a fast fading margin is required. Due to this fact
low speed mobile station is seen as a limiting factor in the coverage dimensioning.
Eb/No also depends on the bit rate. The higher the bit rate the lower is Eb/No and the
lower is the processing gain.
Figure 5.4. Power budget scheme.
5.3. Coverage calculation
The coverage efficiency is defined as average coverage area per site, i.e. km2/site.
Knowing the expected traffic density, the cell range R can be defined using a propagation
model, for example Okumura-Hata or Walfish-Ikegami for urban area. The propagation
model describes the average signal propagation in the given environment and converts the
maximum allowed propagation loss to the maximum cell range.
The path loss in urban macro cell environment is described by equation:
L 137.4 35.2 log10 R

For suburban area the path loss is given by the equation:

L 129.4 35.2 log10 R

For a calculated cell range R, the site area which is also a function of the base station
sectorisation configuration can be calculated. For a hexagonal cell, covered by omni
directional antenna, the relationship between the coverage and the cell range R is 2.6 R2.
In the example above, the maximum pathloss is 154.2 dB. Assuming:
- coverage probability in suburban area: 95%
- log-normal fading margin: 7 dB
- soft handover gain: 3 dB
- the calculated allowed propagation loss for cell range is 141.9 dB.
According to equation (2) the cell range for carrier frequency of 1950 MHz is 2.3 km.

5.4. Planning tools

The third generation planning process does not differ very much from second generation
one. In third generation system the most important issues are detailed interference
calculations and capacity planning than coverage predictions typical for second generation
system.
However the fundamental role that is the selection of base station position and
configuration including antenna selection and antenna configuration in order to meet the
quality of service, capacity and service requirements at minimum cost is achieved.
The tool must have knowledge of the radio resource algorithms to perform operations and
make decisions like real network. The planning tool used in WCDMA system is a static
simulator based on average conditions like site and sector positions, information about
traffic layer and traffic information. Information about user density can be taken at the ealier
system deployment from the operators second generation networks and later from the third
generation networks. The input for the network planning tool is taken from the dynamic
simulator which includes the traffic and mobility models which are used to test the real time
radio resource management algorithms. Testing of RRM algorithms requires accurate
modelling of WCDMA link performance and therefore a time resolution of 1.5 kHz is used.
5.5.Network optimisation
Network planning is a process aimed at overall network quality improvements perceived by
subscriber. Another task of the optimisation process is to ensure that the network resources
are utilised efficiently. Optimisation includes the analysis of the network and results in
improvements in the network configuration and performance.
The network growth requires continuous cooperation of planning and optimisation tools.
The first step of the optimisation process is to define the key performance indicators. The
key performance indicators are used to analyse the performance of radio resource
management algorithms and their parameters. The definition of key performance indicators
includes field measurement data, measurements in the network management system and
collection of any information which can be used to determine the quality of service in the
network. The network quality analysis is designed to give an operator a view of network
quality and performance. When the quality of service criteria are specified, the data
collection process starts and survey report is generated.
Since in third generation system there are a variety of new services and bit rates, an
automatic optimisation process is required. Automatic adjustment provides faster response
to the changing traffic conditions in the network comparing to the manual optimisation
process.