Chapter 3 - Radio Transmission Theory

Radio Transmission Theory Confidential
Chapter 3 Radio Transmission Theory
3.1 Rationale of Radio Transmission

Mobile telecommunications network planning and building, from band
determination, frequency assignment, coverage area, telecommunication
probability calculation, and electromagnetic interference to the final confirmation
of radio equipment parameters, depend on the study and strength forecast of the
characteristics of radio transmission. Radio transmission theory is the foundation
of system project design and subjects such as spectrum utilization and
electromagnetic compatibility.
3.1.1 Radio Transmission Modes
As we know, radio waves can be transmitted from transmitter antenna to receiver

antenna through different modes such as line-of-sight transmission, ground wave
transmission, troposphere scattering transmission and ionosphere transmission.
See III. For electric wave, the easiest transmission from transmitter to receiver is
free space transmission. Free space is an isotropic (same attribute in each axial
direction) and homogeneous (symmetrical structure) space.
I. Line-of-Sight Transmission
Line-of-sight transmission is a transmission under conditions in accordance with

line-of-sight formula (3-14). It usually consists of perpendicular incidence waves
and ground reflected waves, and also includes diffraction waves and scattering
waves when there are obstructions and scattering objects.
II. Ground Wave Transmission
Ground wave transmission consists of space waves and land surface waves.
Land surface waves transmit along the surface of the land. There are only
ground waves in places far away from transmitters.
Troposphere scattering transmission is based on the asymmetric scattering of
troposphere.
III. Ionosphere Transmission
In ionosphere transmission, the waves reflected from ionosphere may have one
or several leaps. See III(e). This kind of transmission is used in shortwave
remote telecommunications. Because of the asymmetric refractive indexes,
2009-10-24 All Right Reserved Page 1 of 29

scattering also occurs in ionosphere; besides, the meteor track left in ionosphere
also leads to scattering waves.
Radio transmission in cellular system is a multipath transmission. It belongs to
line-of-sight transmission.
(a) Direct wave (b) Application of (c) Ground wave transmission

transmitting in straight Line-of-sight
line communications
(d) Irregular scattering of radio waves by (e) Radio wave reflected by
troposphere ionosphere
Figure 1.1 Different transmission modes
3.1.2 Reasons for Transmission Study
There are two reasons for transmission study in cellular system design:
 It provides necessary tools to calculate the strength covering different cells.
The coverage area is usually from hundreds of meters to scores of
kilometers and line-of-sight transmission is applicable in such conditions.
 It can calculate adjacent channel and co-channel interference.
3.1.3 Signal Strength Forecast Methods
There are three ways to forecast signal strength:

 The first one is pure theoretical way which is applicable for separated
objects, such as mountains and other solid objects. But this way overlooks
the irregularity of earth.

 The second way is based on the test in various environments, including

irregular terrains and man-made obstructions, especially the high frequency
and low mobile station antenna.
 The third way combines the above two together and makes certain
improvement. It is based on measurement and the consideration of
mountains and other obstructions.
3.2 Radio Transmission Environment

3.2.1 Frequency Band Allocation
The frequency range of radio waves is from 3Hz to 3000GHz, divided into 12
bands. See the following table. The frequency in different band has different
transmission characteristics. Mobile telecommunications just concern UHF band.
Table 1.1 Radio frequency category
Band Frequency range Wavelength

range
Extremely long wave 3 Hz–30 Hz 105 km–104 km
(extremely low frequency, ELF)
Specially long wave (specially 30 Hz–300 Hz 104 km–103 km
low frequency, SLF)
Ultra long wave (ultra low 300 Hz -3000 Hz 103 km–102 km
frequency, ULF)
Very long wave (very low 3 kHz -30 kHz 102 km–10 km
frequency, VLF)
Long wave(low frequency, LF) 30 kHz -300 kHz 10 km–1 km
Medium wave(medium 300 kHz -3000 kHz 103 km–102 m

frequency, MF)
Shortwave(high frequency, HF) 3 MHz -30 MHz 102 km–10 m
Very short wave(very high 30 MHz-300 MHz 10 km–1 m

frequency, VHF)
micro Decimeter wave 300 MHz-3000 102 km–10 cm
wave (ultrahigh frequency, MHz
UHF)
Centimeter wave 3 GHz-30 GHz 10 km–1 cm
(specially high
frequency, SHF)
Millimeter wave 30 GHz-300 GHz 10 km–1 mm
(extremely high
frequency, EHF)
Submillimeter(ultrahigh 300 GHz-3000 GHz 1 km -0.1 mm
high frequency)

Note: The table above is excepted from “Electromagnetic Wave, Antenna and
Electric Wave Propagation” written by Pan Zhongying.
3.2.2 Fast Fading and Slow Fading
As described above, in a typical cellular mobile telecommunications

environment, the line of sight path is always obstructed by buildings and other
objects; therefore, the communications between cellular base station and mobile
station is usually carried out through many other paths. In UHF band, the main
transmission mode of electromagnetic waves from transmitter to receiver is
reflection of buildings or diffraction of natural objects. See 3.2.2.
① Building reflected wave ② Diffraction wave ③ Line of sight wave ④ Ground

reflected wave
Figure 1.2 Multipath transmission models
I. Fast Fading
1) What is Fast Fading

All signal components combine together and produce an interference wave. Its
strength changes according to each component. The synthesized strength
reduces by 20–30dB across several bodyworks. The distance between the
places where the maximum strength occurs and the minimum strength occurs is
about one fourth wavelength.
A large number of transmission paths results in the so called multipath
phenomenon. The amplitude and phase of the synthesized wave changes a lot
as the mobile station moves, which is usually called multipath fading or fast
fading. See II. Multipath fading occurs very fast, which leads to time dispersion.
Deep fading points appear in every other half wavelength spatially (17 cm for
900 MHz, 8 cm for 1900 MHz). If the antenna of mobile station happens to be at
deep fading point (when a mobile station subscriber in a car stops at this point
because of the red light), certain skills such as frequency hopping can solve the
problem of rather low voice quality.
Research shows that if a mobile unit receives wave components with random
amplitudes and phases, the probability distribution functions of phase θ and
amplitude r of the synthesized signal are as follows:
1
p() = 2 0≤≤2 (3-1)
r2
p(r) = r
2 e (− 2 2 ) r≥0 (3-2)
In the formulae above, σ2 is standard deviation. Phase distributes uniformly
from 0 to 2 and the probability distribution function of amplitude follows
Rayleigh distribution; therefore, multipath fading is also called Rayleigh Fading.

2) How to Deal With Fast Fading
The primary measures to deal with fast fading include time diversity, frequency
diversity and space diversity (or polarization diversity):
 Time diversity mainly depends on symbol interleaving, error detecting code
and error correcting code. Different code has different anti-fading properties.
It is also the leading subject in today’s mobile telecommunications study.
GSM air channel coding scheme, see the related section in chapter 2.
 Frequency diversity theory is based on bandwidth, which means when the
difference between two frequencies exceeds certain value, they are
regarded as two independent band classes. Sufficient data shows 200 kHz
or above difference between two frequencies demonstrates this
independency. Frequency diversity mainly takes spread spectrum
measures. GSM simply takes frequency hopping to obtain frequency

hopping gain, while CDMA itself is a kind of spread spectrum

communications with each channel in a relatively broad band class
(narrowband CDMA is 1.25 MHz).
 Space diversity uses main diversity antenna receiving to solve the problem
of fast fading. The base station receiver diversifies and consolidates the
signals received through main and diversity channels with maximum
likelihood sequence estimation equalizer (MLSE). This main and diversity
receiving quality is ensured by the independency of main and diversity
receiving antennas. The so called independency means the signals
received by main antenna and diversity antenna fade at different time. In
space diversity, the distance between main antenna and diversity antenna
exceeds ten times of the wavelength of the radio signal. Polarization
diversity can also ensure the independency of the main and diversity
antennas. For mobile station, because it has only one antenna, it has no
such space diversity function. The equalization of base station receiver to
different delayed signals in certain time window is also a kind of space
diversity. During the soft handoff in CDMA, mobile station contacts several
cell stations at the same time and choose the best signal to send to the
switch, which is also a kind of space diversity.
II. Slow Fading
Lots of researches show that the median of received signal strength, except the
Rayleigh Fading of transient value, changes slowly with the shift of locations.
This kind of phenomenon is called slow fading. See II. Slow fading is caused by
shadow effect, so it is also called shadow fading. When the transmission is
obstructed by high buildings, forests, fluctuant terrain, electromagnetic shadow
occurs. If this happens to the mobile station, the median of the receiving
electromagnetic field strength changes. The degree of changes depends on the
obstruction and frequency; the change rate depends on both obstruction and
speed of vehicles.
Study of this slow fading shows that the change of value follows logarithm
logarithmic normal distribution.
The reflection coefficient of electric waves changes because of the change of
weather with time and the slow change of vertical slope of air dielectric constant,
which results in the slow fading of the median of signal strength with time in the
same place.
Statistics shows that the median value follows logarithmic normal distribution in a
large scale as time or place changes; therefore, the synthesized value also
follows logarithmic normal distribution. In land mobile communications, the
degree of median value affected by time is much less than that affected by place,

so the influence of time in slow fading can be ignored. But in designated

communications, the time factor should be considered in slow fading.
Figure 1.3 Fast fading and slow fading
Received power (dBm)
-
20 Fast fading
Slow fading
-40
-60
Distance (
m)
10 20 30
Generally speaking, two factors influence the cellular system:

The first one is multipath. Signals reflected or diffracted from buildings or other
objects show slow fading and move scores of meters. The second one is the
slow change of main received signal strength in line of sight path, that is, the
long term signal strength change. Which means, signal transmission follows
Rayleigh distribution of fast fading and logarithmic normal distribution of slow
fading
3.2.3 Transmission Loss
The signal power level received by the receiver is a main characteristic in

telecommunications. The decrease of transmission signal due to the influences
of transmission path and terrain is called transmission loss.
I. Transmission Loss in Free Space
In electric wave transmission study, the primary task is to research the

characteristics of two antennas in free space (Isotropic symmetrical medium with
dielectric constant being one and no absorption). Take the ideal omni-directional
antenna as example, the path loss in free space is as follows:
L p = 32.4 + 20 lg(f MHz ) + 20 lg(d km ) (3-3)
In the formula, f is frequency, d is distance. This formula is inversely proportional
to d. when d increases by one time, path loss increases by 6 dB. When

wavelength λ decreases, that is, frequency f increases, the path loss increases.
The loss can be compensated by radiation increase and receiver antenna gain.
When the working frequency is known, the formula above can be rewritten as
follows:
L p = L 0 + 10lg
lg(d km ) (3-4)
In the formula, = 2;  is path loss gradient. In the actual cellular system, the
range of  is between 3 and 5 according to measurement.
II. Transmission Loss in Flat Terrain
With path loss formula, the study of actual transmission between two antennas in
flat but not ideal surface is possible. Suppose the surface of the entire
transmission path is absolutely flat. The heights of base station antenna and
mobile station antenna are h c and h m respectively. See II.
(a)
(b)
A
B
A' (c)
(a) Multi reflection (b) Single reflection (c) Imaging to find the difference between
line-of-sight and land reflection
Figure 1.4 Transmission upon flat surface

Compared with the path loss of free space, the path loss of flat ground is as
follows:
L p = L 0 + 10 lg d − 20 lg h c − 20 lg h m (3-5)
In the formula,= 4. It shows the increase of the antenna height by one time can
compensate 6 dB’s loss. The receive power of mobile station changes with the
fourth power of the distance d, which means if d increases by one time, the
received power decreases by 12 dB.
III. Transmission Loss in Complex Terrain
Since terrains and clutters differ greatly, their influences on the loss of electric
wave transmission are also complicated. There is no absolutely flat terrain in real
life. Complex terrain is usually divided into two types: quasi-flat terrain and
irregular terrain.
Quasi-flat terrain is the terrain with mildly fluctuant surface. Its fluctuation height
is equal to or less than 20 meters without too much height difference. Okumura
defines fluctuation range as the height difference between ten percent height
curve and ninety percent height curve within ten square meters in front of mobile
station antenna along the transmission direction. CCIR defines it as the height
differences between more than ten percent height curve and more than ninety
percent height curve within 10–50 square meters in front of the receiver. Ten
percent height curve is a horizontal line; the height of ten percent segments in
terrain section exceeds this line. Ninety percent height curve has the similar
meaning. The rest is irregular terrain that can be divided into highland, isolated
mountains, slopes and terraqueous terrain.
IV. Transmission Loss in Urban and Surrounded Areas
As for the transmission loss in urban and surrounded areas, the terrain can be
divided into open area, dense city, medium sized city, and suburb according to
density of the geographical area.
Diffraction is another factor of transmission loss in mountainous areas or cities
with dense skyscrapers. Diffraction loss is a measurement of the height of
obstructions and antennas. Compare the height of obstruction with wavelength.
The same height of obstructions results in less loss to long wavelength than to
short wavelength. In path loss forecast, these obstructions are called sharp
obstructions, or “blade shape”. The loss can be calculated with common ways in
physical optics. There are two kinds of obstructions in IV. In the first case, no
obstruction for line-of-sight path at H. in the second case, the obstruction is in
transmission path. Suppose the height of obstruction is negative in the first case
and positive in the second case. Diffraction loss F can be calculated with
diffraction parameter. V is given in the following formula:

v = −H 2/(1/d 1 + 1/d 2 ) (3-6)
The approximation of different diffraction loss is as follows:
F=0 v 1
= 20 lg
lg(0.5 + 0.62v) 0v<1
= lg(0.5e 0.45v )
20 lg − 1 v 0 (3-7)
= 20 lg
lg(0.4 − 0.12 − (0.1v + 0.38) 2 ) − 2.4 v < −1
= 20 lg
lg(−0.225/v) v < −2.4
(a) Negative height (b) Positive height
Figure 1.5 Radio transmission through blade
3.3 Radio Transmission Model

Transmission model is the basis of mobile transmission network cell planning.
Model can guarantee the accuracy and save manpower, costs and time. It is very
important to choose independent cell bases in coverage area before cellular
system planning in certain area. The only way besides forecast is attempt,
through actual measurement. Measure the coverage area of cellular stations and
choose the best addressing scheme. This way requires lots of costs and
manpower. Take high precision forecast and computing, and then compare and
evaluate all the schemes from computer to choose the best one. So the precision
of transmission model is of vital importance to the soundness of cell planning
and the fact that whether the operator satisfies subscribers with rational
investment.
Since China has a vast territory, the transmission environment varies alot in
different provinces and cities. For example, cities in highland and plain differ
greatly in transmission environment and their transmission models also have
great differences. Ignorance of different parameters such as terrains and
buildings will definitely results in problems in coverage and quality of network, or
the over density of base stations, which is a waste of resources. With the rapid
development of mobile network in China, operators pay more and more attention
to the match of transmission model and geographical environment.

A good mobile transmission model should be adjustable according to different

terrains (plain, highland, valley etc) or different man-made environment (open
area, suburb, city etc). These factors concerns lots of important variables. So a
good transmission model is very hard to achieve. Model optimization requires
lots of statistic data and rectification. For details of model rectification, see 3.4.
A good model should be simple and usable with clear description, leaving no
room for subjective judgment and explanation that always result in different
forecasts in the same area. A good model should possess high recognition and
acceptability. Since different models may lead to different results, a high
recognition is very important.
Most models forecast the path loss of radio wave transmission. Transmission
environment plays a key role in model building. The main factors affecting the
transmission environment in a certain area are as follows:
 Natural terrain (mountain, highland, plain, water area etc)
 Number, height, distribution and materials of buildings
 Vegetation
 Climate
 Natural and man-made electromagnetic noise
The system working frequency and the motion condition of mobile station also
affect the transmission model. In the same area, different working frequency
results in different signal fading. The transmission environment of still mobile
station also varies a lot from that of mobile station with high translational speed.
Transmission models are usually classified as outdoor transmission model and
indoor transmission model.
Table 5.1 Several common transmission models
Name Application
Okumura-Hata 150-1000 MHz macro cell forecast
Cost231-Hata 1500-2000 MHz macro cell forecast
Cost231 Walfish-Ikegami 900 MHz and 1800 MHz micro
forecast
Keenan-Motley 900 MHz and 1800 MHz indoor
environment forecast
ASSET(used in ASSET planning 900 MHz and1800MHz macro cell
software) forecast
3.3.1 Macro Cell Model
Okumura-Hata Model and Cost231-Hata Model are built on the data measured in
Japan. The median path loss in cities is shown as follows:

L p = 69.55 + 26.16 lg f − 13.82 lg h b

(Okumura-Hata) (3-8-1)
+ (44.9 − 6.55 lg h b ) lg d − A Okumurah m
L p = 46.3 + 33.9 lg f − 13.82 lg h b

(Cost231-Hata) (3-8-2)
+ (44.9 − 6.55 lg h b ) lg d − A Cost231h m + C m
L p — path loss from base station to mobile station, unit: dB
f — frequency of carrier, unit: MHz
h b — height of base station, unit: m
h m — height of mobile station antenna, I m to 10 m，average value: 1.5 m, unit: m
d — distance between base station and mobile station, unit: km
C m — modify in big cities, 0 dB in medium sized cities or suburbs with medium

density of trees, 3 dB in big cities
A Okumurahm — modified height of mobile station, (1.1 lgf – 0.7) hm – (1.56 lgf – 0.8)
log(11.75h m )) 2 − 4.97 in big cities ( frequency over than
in medium sized cities, 3.2(log
log
400 MHz)
A Cost231hm ＝（1.1 lg f − 0.7）h m − (1.56 lg f − 0.8 )；
In suburbs, the model is revised as follows:
L ps = Lp ( ci t y) − 2[ lg(f /28) ] 2 − 5.4 (3-9)
In open areas, the model is revised as follows:
L po = L p ( ci t y)− 4.78(lg
lgf ) 2 + 18.33 lg
lgf − 40.94 (3-10)
In real transmission environment, terrain and clutter should also be considered.

The model of ASSET planning software fully considers all kinds of terrains and
clutters and improves the accuracy of coverage forecast.
The model expression is as follows:
L p = K 1 + K 2 lg d + K 3 (h m ) + K 4 lg h m + K 5 lg(H b )
(3-11)
+ K 6 lg(H b ) lg d + K 7 diffn + K clutter
The following analysis is applied to macro cells:

K 1 — frequency constant
Medium sized cities:

K1=69.55+(26.16+1.56lg(Fc))-0.8 {Fc=150-1000MHz}
K1=46.3+(33.9+1.56)lg(Fc)-0.8 {Fc=1500-2000MHz}
Big cities：
K1=69.55+26.16lg(Fc) {Fc=150-1000MHz}
K1=46.3+Cm+(33.9+1.56)lg(Fc)-0.8 {Fc=1500-2000MHz}
Suburbs:
K1=69.55+(26.16+1.56lg(Fc))-0.8 -2(log(Fc/28))2 - 5.4{Fc=150-1000MHz}
K1=46.3+(33.9+1.56)lg(Fc)-0.8 -2(log(Fc/28))2 - 5.4{Fc=1500-2000MHz}
Open areas:
K1=69.55+(26.16+1.56lg(Fc))-0.8-4.78(log(Fc))2+18.33log(Fc)-40.94 {Fc=150-
1000MHz}
K1=46.3+(33.9+1.56)lg(Fc)-0.8-4.78[log(Fc)]2+18.33log(Fc)-40.94 {Fc=1500-
2000MHz}
K 2 — distance attenuation constant
K 3 、K 4 — correction coefficient of height of mobile station antenna

K 5 、K 6 — correction coefficient of height of base station antenna
K 7 — diffraction correction coefficient
K clutter — correction coefficient of clutter attenuation, the signal strength of a
given point is modified according to the clutter class at this point and is irrelevant
to the clutter class in the transmission path. All losses in the transmission path
are included in the median loss.
d — distance between base station and mobile station, unit：km
h m 、h b — effective height of antenna in mobile station and base station

respectively, unit: m
In radio transmissions, the value of K varies according to terrains, features and
environment of cities. 3.3.1 is a list of values of K and attenuation values of some
clutters once used for radio transmission analysis in medium sized cities.
Table 5.2 K parameters
K parameter Value
K1 150/900 MHz Urban ,160/1800 MHz Urban
146/900 MHz Large city,163/1800 MHz Large
city
K2 44.90
K3 -2.54/900 MHz Urban,-2.88/1800 MHz Urban

0/900 MHz Large city,-2.88/1800 MHz Large city
K4 0.00
K5 -13.82
K6 -6.55
K7 -0.8
Clutter attenuation value

Inland Water -3.00
Wetland -3.00
Open Areas -2.00
Rangeland -1.00
Forest 13.00
Industrial & Commercial Areas 5.00
Village -2.90
Parallel_Low_Buildings -2.50
Suburban -2.50
Urban 0
Dense urban 5
High building 16
Calculate the median loss with these K parameters and modify them according
to the complex environment. Building loss should also be considered in indoor
cellular mobile system. Building loss is a function of wall structure (steel, glass,
brick etc), building height, relative position of buildings to base station,
percentage of window areas etc. Because of the complex of variables, building
loss can only be forecasted according to the surrounded environment. The
following are some conclusions:
 Mean building penetration loss in urban areas is greater than that in
suburbs and remote areas.
 Loss in areas with windows is less than that without windows.
 Loss in indoor wide area is less than that at indoor wall area with corridor.
 Loss at street wall with aluminum bracket is greater than that at street wall
without aluminum bracket.
 Loss in building with interlayer at ceiling is less than that in building with
interlayer both at ceiling and indoor wall.
 GSM has two frequency bands: 900 MHz and 1800 MHz. Each band has
different transmission characteristics. Long wavelength comes with little
diffraction loss and short wavelength comes with little building penetration

loss. Indoor wave component is the superimposition of penetration

component and diffraction component. Diffraction component constitutes
most of the wave component, and therefore, the indoor and outdoor level
difference of 1800 MHz is greater than that of 900 MHz. Because of the
issues such as complex transmission environment and the direction of
incident waves, quantify indoor and outdoor level difference is not very
practical. The best way is to carry out level difference test in special
environment for planning optimization.
The mean building penetration loss is a function of the height of the building.
According to record, the gradient of loss line is -1.9 dB/floor. The mean building
penetration loss of the first floor is about 18 dB in urban area and 13 dB in rural
area. Tests show that the indoor loss has the characteristics of loss waveguide
with attenuation. For example, when the wave transmits along the corridor
direction vertical to outdoor window, the loss is about 0.4dB/m.
For the transmission loss in tunnels, the tunnel can be regarded as a waveguide
with attenuation. Experiments show that the transmission loss decreases as
frequency increases within special distance. The loss curve shows an
exponential decrease with working frequency that is less than 2 GHz. For GSM
frequency band, the transmission loss shows the fourth power inverse
exponential change with distance, that is to say, when the distance between two
antennas increases by one time, the transmission loss increases by 12 dB.
In UHF frequency band, tree leaves should also be taken into consideration.
Research shows that the transmission loss in summer is usually 10 dB more
than that in winter because of the flourishing leaves in summer. In cellular mobile
system, vertical polarization is better than horizontal polarization.
3.3.2 COST231 Walfish Ikegami Model
For the network planning in dense cities, the cell radius is much smaller than
before, so a micro cell model is necessary, whereas 3G system that is based on
CDMA also requires precise RF design to guarantee the result. Most RF designs
of this system need a micro cell model in a digital map with building information
in it for RF design and emulation.
The preferable city micro cell models at present are COST231 Walfish Ikegami,
Volcano and WaveSight. COST231 Walfish Ikegami model includes all the
factors that micro cell model generally considers. The following is a brief
introduction to this classic model:
Frequency f: 800 MHz-2000 MHz
Height of antenna Hb: 4 m- 50 m
Height of mobile station Hm: 1 m-3 m

Coverage distance d：0.02 km-5 km

Other parameters
Height of building: Hroof (m)
Width of road: w (m)
Distance between buildings: b (m)
Angle between road direction and perpendicular incidence path：Phi (°)
(1) No perpendicular incidence path between base station and mobile

station (small cells)
Lb = L0 + Lrts + Lmsd (or Lb = L0 for Lrts + Lmsd <= 0) (3-12)

In the formula above：
L0 is free space loss：
L0 = 32.4 + 20*log (d) + 20*log (f)
Lrts is diffraction loss and dispersion loss between roofs and streets (slow
fading)：
Lrts = -16.9 - 10*log (w) + 10 log(f) + 20*log(Hroof - Hm) + Lcri
Lcri = -10 + 0.354*Phi for 0<= Phi < 35°
= 2.5 + 0.075*(Phi-35) for 35<= Phi < 55°
= 4.0 - 0.114*(Phi-55) for 55<= Phi <90 °
Lmsd is multi path loss (fast fading)：
Lmsd = Lbsh + ka + kd*log(d) + kf*log(f) - 9*log(b)
Lbsh = -18*log (1 +Hb - Hroof) for Hb > Hroof
=0 for Hb <= Hroof
ka = 54 for Hb > Hroof
= 54 - 0.8*(Hb - Hroof) for d>= 0.5 and Hb <=Hroof
= 54- 0.8*(Hb-Hroof)*(d/0.5) for d<0.5 and Hb<=Hroof
kd = 18 for Hb > Hroof
= 18 - 15*(Hb - Hroof)/Hroof for Hb <= Hroof
kf = -4 + 0.7*(f/925 - 1) for medium sized cities
= -4 + 1.5*(f/925 - 1) for big cities
(2) With perpendicular incidence path between base station and mobile
station (for example, in the street canyon)

Micro cell (antenna lower than roof), path loss model as follows:
Lb = 42.6 + 26*log(d) + 20*log(f) for d >= 0.020 km (3-13)
3.3.3 Globe Curvature Effect
In broad coverage, such as see area, the globe curvature and refration may
influence the transmission loss because of the long distance of perpendicular
incidence. Suppose globe radius is  (given that equals the radius of equator,
unit: m), h m 、h b are the effective heights of antennas in mobile station and base
station respectively, unit: m. According to spherics, line-of-sight distance is:
d = 2   h b + 2   h m (m)
Since air pressure, temperature and humidity change with altitude, dielectric
constant ξr decreases accordingly and tends to 0 as air attenuates, and
therefore, the transmission track of electric wave in troposphere is a curve along
globe curvature direction instead of a straight line. Which means, wave refraction
occurs in troposphere, refraction coefficient n= (ξr)1/2.
This kind of refraction equals the increase of globe radius, so multiply globe
radius by a coefficient k. For standard air pressure refraction, k = 4/3, the
modified formula is shown in (3-14) and the unit of h m 、h b is still m.
d 0 = 4.12( hb + hm ) (km) (3-14)
The mobile station beyond the distance calculated from the above formula is
considered in the shadow area.
3.4 Transmission Model Rectification

3.4.1 CW Test Theory
Model rectification should be carried out in order to build a radio transmission

model in line with local condition and improve the accuracy of coverage forecast
for network planning. Continuous wave (CW) test is a necessary step for model
rectification. Model rectification data is obtained through CW test and digital map.
The longitude and latitude information and received level form the source of
model rectification.
According to random theory, the transmission in mobile communications can be
represented as the following formula:
r(x ) = m(x )r 0 (x ) (3-
15)

In the formula, x is distance, r(x) is received signal, r0(x) is Rayleigh fading, m(x)
is local mean value, the synthesis of long term fading and space transmission
loss, which is shown as follows:
x+L
m(x ) = 1
2L  r(y )dy (3-16)
x−L
2L is the average length of sampling intervals, also called intrinsic length.

CW test tries to obtain the local mean value of the geographical position of each
point in a certain area and minimize the difference between r(x) and m(x);
therefore, local mean value requires removal of the influence of Rayleigh fading.
When integrate a group of r(x), if intrinsic length 2L is too short, the influence of
Rayleigh fading still exists; if 2L is too long, the shadow fading may also be
integrated. The value 2L decides the accordance of data measured and the
actual local mean value and the accuracy of the forecast of transmission model
rectified by CW test. The famous telecommunication expert Li Jianye proved that
in GSM, the difference between measured data and actual mean value is less
than 1 dB when the sampling number is 50 and the intrinsic length is 40 times of
the wavelength (ignore the error of test equipment and digital map).
3.4.2 CW Test Method
I. Addressing
Decide the address and number of base station before CW test. Generally, in big
cities with dense population, the number of test stations should be not less than
five; while in small and medium sized cities, one test station is enough. The
number of test stations depends on the height of antenna in test station and
effective isotropically radiated power (EIRP). The principle of addressing is to
cover sufficient clutter classes (from digital map).
In real test, the following criteria help to decide whether the addressing is proper
or not:
1) The height of antenna is over 20 meters.
2) Antenna exceeds the nearest obstruction by over 5 meters
5m
Figure 1.6 Schematic drawing of addressing criteria

The obstruction here mainly refers to the highest building over the roof where
antenna locates. The height of the building used as base station should be
higher than the average height of surrounding buildings.
II. CW Test Preperation
CW test requires a test station to transmit RF signal, with or without frequency

modulation, and then drive test with CW test equipment. Base station system
includes transmitter antenna, feeder, high power and high frequency signal. Test
system includes test receiver, GPS receiver, range finder, goniometer, test
software and portable computer. Test receiver should have a sampling speed as
high as possible.
Having installed the test base equipments in the selected place, measure the
transmission power and reflection power with power meter and calculate EIRP
according to the following formula:
E IR P= 1 0lg [P _ fo rw a rd
(m W) − P _ re fle c(mt W) + T x_ A n te n n_aG a in] (3-
17)
P_forward is forward transmission power; P_reflected is reflection power;
Tx_Antenna_Gain is test station transmitter antenna gain (dBi).
Record the antenna gain of test receiver Rx_Antenna_Gain (dBi) and the feeder
loss of test receiver Rx_Feeder_Loss for later use.
After Installation and debugging, record the EIRP of the base station. Measure
the latitude and longitude of base station with global positioning system (GPS)
and the height of building with triangulation method and the tilt angle of antenna
with goniometer. The height of antenna is the building height plus mast height
and half length of antenna. Sweep frequency with portable tester to make sure
normal operation of the equipments and no interfering signal around.
III. CW Test
There are three ways of sampling with professional CW test equipments:

samplings according to time, impulse and distance. General test equipment can
only do sampling according to time. Sampling according to distance has high
accuracy and can fully meet the requirement of Li Jianye’s theory about 36 to 50
samplings within 40 wavelengths. Distance sampling does not have strict limit on
driving speed, but specifies a maximum speed (Vmax). Vmax is relative to the
maximum sampling period (Tsample):
V max = 0.8/T sample (3-18)
Choose the paths with various kinds of clutters to do random drive test. When
the mobile station is within three kilometers away from test base station, the
received signal is greatly affected by the surrounding buildings and the height of

antenna. The difference of signal strength between the signal parallel to signal
transmission path and the signal vertical to the transmission path is about 10 dB;
therefore, when do tests in the streets within this area, take same number of
samples in longitudinal streets and lateral streets to remove this influence. Do
not choose express highway or broad and flat street but narrow street as test
path. For each test base station, take as many data as possible. Test for four
hours or above for each station and stop recording at red light.
As the terrain and clutter are relatively fixed during a period of time, the local
mean value is definite for a base station in a certain place. This mean value is
what the CW test tries to get and also the closest to the forecast.
3.4.3 Transmission Model Rectification with Examples
Model rectification requires a digital map containing terrain height, ground type
and other geographical information that influences mobile radio wave
transmission. This information is important basic data for planning software to do
model rectification, coverage forecast, interference analysis and frequency
planning.
Most transmission models used for computer aided analysis from different
software developers are based on Okumura model and also provide rectification
parameters. The following introduces model rectification method in details on the
basis of the planning software ASSET mentioned above. Please note that if the
model parameters of a city with similar terrain and clutters are provided, use it
directly in planning forecast without the need for CW test and model rectification.
The parameters from K1 to K7 in ASSET model are decided by transmission
environment. K(clutter) is the correction coefficient decided y different clutters.
These parameters can be fitted from the data in CW test by K parameter testing
method or minimum variance method. Most planning software take default model
for forecast at first, and then compare the forecast value with drive test data and
use their difference to modify model parameters. Keep on doing iterative
rectification until the root-mean-square error (RMS Error) of forecast value and
drive test data reaches minimum. The parameter values under this circumstance
are the required rectification values.
Of all the K parameters, different parameters have different influence on the
model. According to analysis, K1 and K(clutter) are constant and irrelevant to
transmission distance, antenna height and other factors. K3 and K4 are modifying
factors. As the height of mobile station does not change a lot (about 1.5 m), K3
and K4 are regarded as a micro-adjustment in final stage. The adjustment of
K2 、K5 and K6 depends on test data and test path. K2 rectification usually comes
first, and then comes K(clutter) rectification.

I. K2 Rectification:
1) As Lp = [K1 +K3(Hms) + K4 log(Hms) + K5 log(Hb) + K7 diffn]+[K2+K6log(Hb) ]

log(d) + K(clutter) , [K1 +K3(Hms) + K4 log(Hms) + K5 log(Hb) + K7 diffn ] can be
regarded as constant. K(clutter) is 0, and Ploss is linearly proportional to log
(d).
2) Build a coordinate system with the logarithm of distance as x-axis and signal
strength as y-axis.
3) Distribute test data into this coordinate system
4) Do linear fitting, and the gradient of the obtained line is K2+K6log(Hb).
5) Subtract K6log(Hb) from gradient and the difference is K2.
Planning software does not provide the value of K2 but forecast according to
model and obtain the difference between forecast value and test value of each
point, and then do linear fitting of the difference. The gradient of the fitted line is
the deviation of K2+K6log(Hb). Suppose K6log(Hb) is already a reasonable value,
this deviation is the deviation of K2. See VI.
II. K1 Rectification:
If Gradient is 0, it means K2 has already been adjusted and the intercept in the
coordinate system is the deviation of K1 (Actually, the intercept is the deviation of
[K1 +K3(Hms) + K4 log(Hms) + K5 log(Hb) + K7 diffn]. Suppose [K3(Hms) + K4
log(Hms) + K5 log(Hb) + K7 diffn] is constant, and the intercept can be regarded
as the deviation of K1). Original K1 plus the intercept is the corrected value of K1.
See VI.
III. K3 and K4 Rectification
K3 and K4 are relative to the antenna height in mobile station and, because the
adjustment is rather tiny, no correction is needed and their changes are made up
by K1.
IV. K5 and K6 Rectification
K5 and K6 are relative to the antenna height in base station. If their changes are
small and the terrain fluctuation is mild, the changes of K5 and K6 can be
replaced by the changes of K1 and K2 and no correction is needed.
V. K7 Rectification
K7 is diffraction parameter and is only effective beyond line-of-sight transmission

range. As the current digital map lacks accurate information about building
height, K7 is usually not adjusted. Keep its default parameter setting.

VI. K(clutter) Rectification
K(clutter) adjustment is a little complicated. Forecast the transmission loss of a point

according to the clutter class and the K(clutter) value of this point. K(clutter) value is the
deviation between a particular mean difference (the mean difference between
the forecast value and the test value of a point in a particular class of clutter) and
the overall mean difference. If the overall mean difference is 0, the mean
difference between the forecast value and the test value of each point in a
particular class of clutter is the recommended value of K(clutter). Adjustment is an
iteration process. Adjusting K(clutter) affects K2 ; readjusting K2 affects K1; adjusting
K1 affects K(clutter) . This kind of cyclic iteration is convergent.
Figure 1.7 K2 correction schematic drawing

Figure 1.8 K1 correction schematic drawing
Analyze the accuracy of the model after correction. The accuracy here refers to
the accordance of the corrected model to the real test environment. Accuracy is
usually evaluated by RMS Error. RMS Error less than 8 dB generally
demonstrates the accordance, that is to say, the correction is accurate and can
be used in the following planning as reference. RMS Error above 8 shows the
corrected model has great difference with the real situation and has no reference
meaning. There are four main reasons:
 Error occurs in correcting process, such as inaccurate antenna drawing,
wrong import of antenna information, no adjustment of map and improper
clutter filter setting.
 Poor subsequent data processing leads to the filtering of effective data and
unfiltering of non-effective data.
 Digital map is inaccurate.
 Improper design of CW test leads to non-effective test data. When RMS
Error>8 dB, check and do re-rectification according to the four reasons
above.
If RMS Error>8 dB and no problem is found having checked the four reasons
above. It might be because this model is not applicable or because the
transmission environment is too complex and the transmission condition is too
volatile in this area. Under such circumstances, it is necessary to take field
investigation.

3.5 Doppler Effect and Switchover

3.5.1 Doppler Effect and Frequency Change
In GSM, the relationship between Doppler Effect and frequency change can be
seen in the following formula:
 Base station is the frequency source f, and the received frequency fˊof
mobile station is:
fˊ=f(1±V/c) (3-19)
In the formula, v is the translational speed of mobile station; c is the transmission
speed of electric waves (3X108 m/s).
Take “+” when mobile station moves to base station and “-” when mobile station
moves away from base station.
 Mobile station is the frequency source f, and the received frequency fˊof
base station is:
fˊ=f/ (1±U/c) (3-20)
In the formula, u is the translational speed of mobile station; c is the transmission
speed of signals in the air (3X108 m/s).
Take “+” when mobile station moves to base station and “-” when mobile station
moves away from base station.
3.5.2 Discussions in Different situations
Discussions in different situations are as follows:
I. MS Moves to BTS
Mobile station moves to base transceiver station (BTS) at a speed of v. See

figure 3-9
f 1
f 3
f 2
V ( k m / h )
Figure 1.9 MS moves to BTS
The signal frequency of BTS is f1. Through FCCH channel in BCH channel, BTS
controls mobile station to synchronize the frequency. Because of Doppler Effect,

the signal frequency that mobile station receives is f2, and then mobile station
transmits f2 signal to base station. Because of Doppler Effect, the frequency that
BTS receives is f3. According to the formula above, the values of f1, f2 and f3
are as follows:
f2=f1 (1+v/c)
f3=f2/ (1-v/c)
f3=f1 (1+v/c)/(1-v/c)=f1(c+v)/(c-v)
The fractional frequency deviation is：(f3-f1)/f1=2v/(c-v) (3-21)
II. MS Moves Away from BTS
Mobile station moves away from BTS at a speed of v. see II.
f 3
f 1
f 2
V ( k m / h )
Figure 1.10 Mobile station moves away from BTS
The signal frequency of BTS is f1. Through FCCH channel in BCH channel, BTS
controls mobile station to synchronize the frequency. Because of Doppler Effect,
the signal frequency that mobile station receives is f2, and then mobile station
transmits f2 signal to base station. Because of Doppler Effect, the frequency that
BTS receives is f3. According to the formula above, the values of f1, f2 and f3
are as follows:
f2=f1 (1-v/c)
f3=f2/ (1+v/c)
f3=f1 (1-v/c)/(1+v/c)=f1(c-v)/(c+v)
The fractional frequency deviation is (f3-f1)/f1=-2v/(c+v) (3-22)
Since the translational speed of mobile station is much lower than the
transmission speed of signal, the relative frequencies in the two situations above
are pretty much the same but with opposite directions. In the first situation, the
frequency increases; in the second situation, the frequency decreases.
The relation between fractional frequency deviation and translational speed of
mobile station is shown in II:

Figure 1.11 Relationship between fractional frequency deviation and

translational speed of mobile station
In the figure above, when the translational speed of mobile station is 100 km/h,
the fractional frequency deviation is 0.19ppm. The frequency deviations are 171
Hz for 900 MHz and 342 Hz for 1800 MHz.
III. MS Moves Within Two BTSs
Mobile station moves within two base stations at a speed of v as shown in III.
The switchover superimposes the two situations above. Mobile station acquires
information about neighboring cell BCCH through BA list. Adjust the frequency of
mobile station and add several kHz to monitor the level of neighboring cell.
Doppler Effect may interferer the normal reception of signals from neighboring
cell. For example, in III, mobile station monitors the level of BTS1. The signal
f2ˊmobile station receives may appear between the adjusted frequencies of two
mobile stations and the mobile station cannot detect the signal level of BTS1.
On the other hand, the Rxlev information reported in SACCH should be sent in
every 30s, and such long time may also lead to abnormal monitoring of
neighboring cell level and unsuccessful switchover.
The frequency change by Doppler Effect leads to the fact that the base station
receives signals with the frequency of f1(c+v)/(c-v) while receives the data
according to the sampling clock of f1; therefore, base station receives the wrong
data, which also affects the switchover.

f 3 '
f 3
f 1 '
f 1
f 2 ' f 2
V ( k m / h )
B T S 1 M S B T S 2
Figure 1.12 Mobile station moves within two BTSs
3.6 Fresnel Region

There are perpendicular incidence wave and reflected wave in the transmission
path from transmitter to receiver. When the angel between reflected wave and
ground tends to 0°, the direction of the electric field of reflected wave is opposite
to the original direction with the phase difference of 180°. The path difference
2h t h r
between perpendicular incidence wave and reflected wave is d and the
4h t h r
phase difference = d ; ht and hr represent the heights of transmitter
antenna and receiver antenna respectively; d is the horizon distance between
transmitter antenna and receiver antenna. See 3.6.
Figure 1.13 Schematic drawing of perpendicular incidence and reflection
Ignore part signals from transmitter to receiver through ground wave (these
signals can be ignored in ultrahigh frequency and very high frequency), the
square of the ratio of total received field strength to free space field strength
(V/m)is as follows:
2
 E rec  2 ∆ 2 2πht hr
  ≈ 4 sin ( ) = 4 sin ( ) (3-23)
 E free  2 λd

In the formula above, n is natural number, when  equals（2n－1） , the signal
frequency gain is 6 dB; when equals 2n, the two kinds of waves offset each
other. The change of angle may be induced by the height of antenna, the change of
4h t h r   4h t h r  
transmission distance, or both. When d <  , 2 > 2 ; when d>  ，2 < 2.
In real transmission environment, Fresnel region defines the transmission space

of radio wave. In one Fresnel region, the ray path difference is less than half
wavelength as shown in 3.6. The first Fresnel region is the main transmission
region. If no obstruction occurs in this region, the diffraction loss is minimal. The
radius of Fresnel region of a point (d t away from transmitter, dr away from
receiver) in a path with the length d is as follows:
d t d r d tkm d rkm
h 0 (m) = d = 548 d km f MHz (3-
24)
Figure 1.14 Radius of first Fresnel region
For example: There is a point in the transmission path of a typical urban base
station with coverage of 2 km. Suppose this point is 100 m away from transmitter
antenna. For 900 MHz frequency, the radium of the first Fresnel region of this
point is h 0  5m.
On the basis of the first Fresnel region, the transmission path in the nth Fresnel
region is half wavelength longer than that in the (n-1)th Fresnel region. The radius
of the nth Fresnel region is as follows:
nd t d r nd tkm d rkm

h n (m) = d = 548 d km f MHz (3-25)

If line of sight path skip the fluctuant terrain and buildings, reflected wave shows
active effect to perpendicular incidence wave; otherwise, it may become a multi-
path interference and its destructive effect increases with frequency. Actually, in
the line of sight microwave link design, if 55% Fresnel region is unblocked, the
rest area will not affect diffraction loss.
L po = L p ( ci t y)− 4.78( lg
lgf )2 + 18.33 lg
lgf − 40.94

Chapter 3 - Radio Transmission Theory

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Chapter 3 - Radio Transmission Theory

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Radio Transmission Theory Confidential

Chapter 3 Radio Transmission Theory

3.1 Rationale of Radio Transmission

3.1.1 Radio Transmission Modes

As we know, radio waves can be transmitted from transmitter antenna to receiver

Line-of-sight transmission is a transmission under conditions in accordance with

II. Ground Wave Transmission

III. Ionosphere Transmission

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(a) Direct wave (b) Application of (c) Ground wave transmission

Figure 1.1 Different transmission modes

3.1.2 Reasons for Transmission Study

3.1.3 Signal Strength Forecast Methods

There are three ways to forecast signal strength:

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 The second way is based on the test in various environments, including

3.2 Radio Transmission Environment

Table 1.1 Radio frequency category

Band Frequency range Wavelength

Medium wave(medium 300 kHz -3000 kHz 103 km–102 m

Very short wave(very high 30 MHz-300 MHz 10 km–1 m

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3.2.2 Fast Fading and Slow Fading

As described above, in a typical cellular mobile telecommunications

① Building reflected wave ② Diffraction wave ③ Line of sight wave ④ Ground

Figure 1.2 Multipath transmission models

1) What is Fast Fading

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In the formulae above, σ2 is standard deviation. Phase distributes uniformly

from 0 to 2 and the probability distribution function of amplitude follows

Rayleigh distribution; therefore, multipath fading is also called Rayleigh Fading.

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hopping gain, while CDMA itself is a kind of spread spectrum

II. Slow Fading

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so the influence of time in slow fading can be ignored. But in designated

Received power (dBm)

Generally speaking, two factors influence the cellular system:

3.2.3 Transmission Loss

The signal power level received by the receiver is a main characteristic in

I. Transmission Loss in Free Space

In electric wave transmission study, the primary task is to research the

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range of  is between 3 and 5 according to measurement.

II. Transmission Loss in Flat Terrain

mobile station antenna are h c and h m respectively. See II.

Figure 1.4 Transmission upon flat surface

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III. Transmission Loss in Complex Terrain

IV. Transmission Loss in Urban and Surrounded Areas

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v = −H 2/(1/d 1 + 1/d 2 ) (3-6)

The approximation of different diffraction loss is as follows:

(a) Negative height (b) Positive height

Figure 1.5 Radio transmission through blade

3.3 Radio Transmission Model

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A good mobile transmission model should be adjustable according to different

Table 5.1 Several common transmission models

3.3.1 Macro Cell Model

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L p = 69.55 + 26.16 lg f − 13.82 lg h b