Designing AWi MAXNetwork 1

Designing WiMAX Networks
Part 1- WiMAX as a 4G Solution Part 2- Selected Topics in the Design of a 4G Network Part 3- Steps in the Design of a WiMAX Network
Version 1.1 - March 2008 Revised Edition www.celplan.com CelPlan Technologies, Inc. All rights reserved- Unauthorized reproduction prohibited
Contents
1 2 Introduction........................................................................................................................................ 7 Wireless Network Generations ........................................................................................................... 7
Part 1 - WiMAX as a 4G Solution................................................................................. 9

1 2 3 Introduction.......................................................................................................................................10 The WiMAX solution........................................................................................................................10 The WiMAX OFDM carrier ..............................................................................................................13 3.1 OFDM carrier in the frequency domain ......................................................................................15
3.1.1 3.1.2 Sub-carriers ............................................................................................................................ 15 Segmentation ......................................................................................................................... 16 Symbol.................................................................................................................................... 16 Symbol and Cyclic Prefix.......................................................................................................... 16 Duplexing................................................................................................................................ 17 Frame ..................................................................................................................................... 19 Zone ....................................................................................................................................... 19 Adaptive Modulation and Coding (AMC) ................................................................................. 20 OFDM Peak to Average Ratio (PAR)......................................................................................... 21 Transmit Power....................................................................................................................... 21 Power control ......................................................................................................................... 21 Power Operation Modes ......................................................................................................... 22 Connection Identifier (CID)...................................................................................................... 23 Sub-channelization ................................................................................................................. 23 Interference Avoidance........................................................................................................... 24 Interference Averaging ........................................................................................................... 24 Constant OFDM ...................................................................................................................... 25 Scalable OFDM........................................................................................................................ 25 PHY Block Diagram.................................................................................................................. 26 Data Unit ................................................................................................................................ 28 Error Correction ...................................................................................................................... 30 RF channel estimation and equalization .................................................................................. 30 OFDMA and Sub-channelization.............................................................................................. 31 Frame description................................................................................................................... 47 Zone configuring Dialogue ...................................................................................................... 50 Synchronization and Ranging .................................................................................................. 50 Resource Management ........................................................................................................... 52 Network Operation ................................................................................................................. 53
3.2
OFDM carrier in the time domain...............................................................................................16
3.2.1 3.2.2 3.2.3 3.2.4 3.2.5
3.3
OFDM carrier in the power domain ............................................................................................20
3.3.1 3.3.2 3.3.3 3.3.4 3.3.5
3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7
Multiple Access OFDMA...........................................................................................................23 WiMAX interference reduction techniques.................................................................................24 OFDM standard configurations ..................................................................................................25 WiMAX Implementation............................................................................................................26
3.4.1 3.4.2 3.5.1 3.5.2 3.6.1 3.6.2 3.7.1 3.7.2 3.7.3 3.7.4 3.7.5 3.7.6 3.7.7 3.7.8 3.7.9 3.7.10
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Antenna Systems...............................................................................................................................55 4.1 Antenna Polarization ..................................................................................................................55 4.2 Multiple antenna technologies ....................................................................................................55
4.2.1 4.2.2 4.2.3 4.2.4 4.2.5 Receive Diversity..................................................................................................................... 57 Transmit Diversity................................................................................................................... 57 Spatial Multiplexing ................................................................................................................ 59 Adaptive MIMO System (AMS)................................................................................................ 60 Uplink Collaborative MIMO..................................................................................................... 60 DOA Beamforming .................................................................................................................. 60 Eigen Beamforming................................................................................................................. 60
4.3 5 6 7
Advanced Antenna Systems .......................................................................................................60
4.3.1 4.3.2
Radio Performance............................................................................................................................61 Traffic ...............................................................................................................................................63 Performance ......................................................................................................................................64 7.1 Traffic KPI Calculation and Traffic KPI Tables..........................................................................64
7.1.1 7.1.2 7.1.3 7.1.4 Traffic Data Table.................................................................................................................... 64 Traffic Throughput KPI at 75% of Peak Rate............................................................................. 64 Traffic Throughput KPI at 50% of Peak Rate............................................................................. 65 Traffic Throughput KPI at 15% (consumer) and 25% (SME) of Peak Rate.................................. 65
Spectrum Usage and Resource Planning ............................................................................................70 8.1 Network Footprint Enhancement ................................................................................................70 8.2 Neighborhood planning ..............................................................................................................70 8.3 Handover Planning .....................................................................................................................70 8.4 Paging zone Planning .................................................................................................................70 8.5 Carrier and Code Planning .........................................................................................................71
8.5.1 Carrier and Code Reuse Patterns............................................................................................. 71
8.6 8.7 8.8
Cell Identification Planning ........................................................................................................74 Permutation Base Planning.........................................................................................................74

When to use fixed or variable DL_PermBase ........................................................................... 74 Frequency Reuse Approaches - Discussion .............................................................................. 75
8.7.1 8.7.2
Spectrum efficiency....................................................................................................................80
Part 2 Selected topics in the Design of a 4G Network ..............................................82

1 2 3 Introduction.......................................................................................................................................83 The Business Plan .............................................................................................................................84 Modeling Network Customers...........................................................................................................85 3.1 User ...........................................................................................................................................85 3.2 Customer Offered Traffic (COT) ................................................................................................86 3.3 Operator Offered Services (OOS)...............................................................................................88
3.3.1 Typical Set of Services ............................................................................................................. 90
3.4 3.5
IP Data Traffic Definition...........................................................................................................91 Customer Distribution Characterization......................................................................................92

Customer types....................................................................................................................... 92 Distribution of customers........................................................................................................ 92 Customer movement .............................................................................................................. 95 Customer Terminal ................................................................................................................. 95
3.5.1 3.5.2 3.5.3 3.5.4
3.6 3.7 3.8
Customers Distribution Layers ..................................................................................................95 Traffic Variation with Day Hours...............................................................................................96 Environment or RF Channel Characterization.............................................................................96
3.9 Customer terminal......................................................................................................................98 3.10 Design Service Classes .........................................................................................................102 4 The RF channel ...............................................................................................................................103 4.1 Frequency and Time Fading .....................................................................................................103 4.2 The ideal RF channel................................................................................................................106 4.3 Comparing technologies ...........................................................................................................107 4.4 Channel models........................................................................................................................108
4.4.1 4.4.2 4.4.3 4.4.4 3GPP empirical channel model.............................................................................................. 108 3GPP2 semi-empirical channel model ................................................................................... 108 Stanford University Interim (SUI) semi-empirical channel model ........................................... 108 Network wide channel modeling........................................................................................... 108
Propagation models .........................................................................................................................109 5.1 Traditional models ...................................................................................................................109

5.1.1 5.1.2 5.1.3 Okumura-Hata model ........................................................................................................... 110 Lee model............................................................................................................................. 111 Walfish-Ikegami model ......................................................................................................... 111 Erceg model.......................................................................................................................... 112
5.2 5.3 5.4
Reference models .....................................................................................................................112 Fractional Morphology.............................................................................................................112 Advanced models .....................................................................................................................113

Ray tracing models................................................................................................................ 113 Korowajczuk model............................................................................................................... 113
5.2.1
5.4.1 5.4.2
5.5 Measurements and Parameter Calibration.................................................................................117 RF Interference Issues .....................................................................................................................120 6.1 Signal Level Variation and Signal to Interference Ratio............................................................120 6.2 Computing Interference............................................................................................................122
6.2.1 Cell Interference Statistical Characterization......................................................................... 123 Pixel Outage.......................................................................................................................... 124 Outage Matrix....................................................................................................................... 125
6.3 7
Computing Outage ...................................................................................................................124
6.3.1 6.3.2
Network Optimization .....................................................................................................................128 7.1 Footprint Enhancement ............................................................................................................128

7.1.1 Enhancement Methodology.................................................................................................. 129 Topological neighborhood .................................................................................................... 131 Overlap neighborhood .......................................................................................................... 131
7.2
Neighborhood Planning............................................................................................................131
7.2.1 7.2.2
7.3 Handover Planning ...................................................................................................................131 7.4 Automatic Carrier Planning ......................................................................................................132 7.5 Automatic Code Planning.........................................................................................................134 8 Network Simulation ........................................................................................................................135 8.1 Traffic Snapshot.......................................................................................................................137 8.2 Traffic Report...........................................................................................................................139 9 Network Performance......................................................................................................................140 9.1 Service Area KPI .....................................................................................................................140 9.2 Traffic KPI...............................................................................................................................141
9.2.1 Traffic KPI Calculation and Traffic KPI Tables ......................................................................... 142
Part 3 - Steps in the Design of a WiMAX Network...................................................147

1 Introduction.....................................................................................................................................148
2 3
The Network ...................................................................................................................................148 The Network Design Process...........................................................................................................150 3.1 Define Area of Interest based on Marketing Plan......................................................................156 3.2 Obtain and digitize recent Satellite or Aerial Photos for the Area of Interest.............................156 3.3 Digitize topography and morphology with height information ..................................................158
3.3.1 3.3.2 Topography .......................................................................................................................... 158 Morphology .......................................................................................................................... 158
3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15
Digitize Street and Roads .........................................................................................................161 Carve Roads and Streets into the morphology...........................................................................162 Digitize area maps, satellite pictures and aerial photos as background images ..........................162 Obtain demographic information (maps and tables) ..................................................................164 Define Antennas to be used and digitize antenna patterns .........................................................165 Generate demographic regions .................................................................................................167 Define Services to be offered based on Marketing Plan.........................................................168 Perform CW and WiMAX drive tests....................................................................................170 Process measurements ..........................................................................................................170 Calibrate for different Propagation Models ...........................................................................173 Define propagation models and parameters for different site types........................................174 Define Service Classes based on Services, Demographics and Environment .........................174
Services ................................................................................................................................ 175 Terminals.............................................................................................................................. 176 Environment ......................................................................................................................... 179
3.15.1 3.15.2 3.15.3
3.16
3.16.1 3.16.2
Generate traffic grids based on demographics and morphology for each Service Class..........180
Traffic data per service class ................................................................................................. 182 Geographical Traffic Distribution per Service Class................................................................ 183
3.17 3.18 3.19

3.19.1
Define Deployment Strategy and Site and Sector Templates .................................................184 Define Installation Procedures and Link Budget Templates...................................................186 Define Base Station, Subscriber and Mobile Radio Equipment and generate Radio Templates 191
Example: 802.16e Radio........................................................................................................ 191
3.20 Define Spectrum Usage Strategy, bandwidth and resource breakdown (carriers, codes and ranges) 195 3.21 Pre-define Sector resources...................................................................................................195 3.22 Define overall design strategy and target noise rise per area..................................................196 3.23 Digitize available and candidate sites....................................................................................196 3.24 Distribute sites within Area of Interest, considering traffic density, location availability and Engineering Plan ................................................................................................................................197 3.25 Run predictions (short radius) and perform Static Traffic simulation for all sites...................198 3.26 Deploy additional sites or re-distribute sites to balance traffic load .......................................202 3.27 Perform signal level predictions with extended radius...........................................................202 3.28 Perform unconstrained Cell Enhancement to optimize coverage footprint .............................203 3.29 Calculate Neighbor list from interference matrix and combine with Natural Neighbors.........206 3.30 Calculate Handover Thresholds using Neighborhood Matrix ................................................207 3.31 Define Paging Groups and assign Sites to them.....................................................................207 3.32 Calculate Interference Matrix for Downstream and Upstream for all Classes of Services ......207
3.32.1 Interference Matrix............................................................................................................... 208
3.33 3.34 3.35
Perform Automatic Carrier Planning.....................................................................................210 Perform Automatic Code Planning (Segmentation, CellID and PermBase) ...........................212 Perform constrained Cell Enhancement to optimize footprint................................................212
3.36 3.37 3.38 3.39

3.39.1 3.39.2 3.39.3
Perform Dynamic Traffic Simulation ....................................................................................213 Traffic Snapshot ...................................................................................................................215 Traffic Report .......................................................................................................................216 Generate Key Parameter Indicators (KPI) .............................................................................217
Coverage Area KPI................................................................................................................. 217 Traffic Related Key Performance Indicators........................................................................... 218 Traffic KPI Calculation and Traffic KPI Tables ......................................................................... 218
3.40
Perform Network Performance Predictions ...........................................................................224

Topography .......................................................................................................................... 225 Morphology .......................................................................................................................... 225 Image.................................................................................................................................... 226 Roads.................................................................................................................................... 227 Composite Signal Level ......................................................................................................... 227 Composite S/N...................................................................................................................... 230 Best Server ........................................................................................................................... 231 Modulation Scheme Selection............................................................................................... 232 Payload Data Rate................................................................................................................. 233 Noise Rise ............................................................................................................................. 234 Channel (Frequency) Plan ..................................................................................................... 234
3.40.1 3.40.2 3.40.3 3.40.4 3.40.5 3.40.6 3.40.7 3.40.8 3.40.9 3.40.10 3.40.11
3.41 3.42 3.43 3.44 3.45 3.46 3.47 3.48 3.49 3.50 3.51
3.51.1
Analyze performance results, analyze impact on CAPEX, OPEX and ROI ...........................235 Define Backhaul (BH) Strategy ............................................................................................236 Define Backhaul Radio Equipment and generate radio template............................................236 Define Backhaul Antennas and digitize antenna patterns.......................................................238 Define Spectrum usage strategy, bandwidth and resource breakdown (channels) ..................238 Digitize Land Line Access Points of Presence (PoP).............................................................238 Establish BH concentration points based on terrain and traffic ..............................................239 Configure Backhaul links and Perform Backhaul Predictions................................................240 Calculate Interference matrix ................................................................................................242 Perform Automatic Channel Plan..........................................................................................242 Calculate Backhaul Links Performance.................................................................................243
Backhaul Traffic Analysis....................................................................................................... 247
3.52 Prepare Final Report .............................................................................................................247 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................247
Glossary.......................................................................................................................248 Index ............................................................................................................................253
Designing WiMAX Networks

1 Introduction The design of a WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) wireless network requires a deep knowledge of the technology, a detailed representation of the network and powerful tools that can analyze the data and provide optimized solutions. WiMAX is the only solution available today capable of providing wireless high speed data to wide areas and that was conceived to support IP data efficiently and provide improved spectrum efficiency over previous technologies. In this white paper we avoided formulas in lieu of explanations of the physical phenomenon involved. In part 1 of this paper, we give an overview of the WiMAX technology, covering aspects relevant to network design. In part 2, we cover some selected topics on important issues that have to be considered when deploying high speed, multiple service networks. New paradigms developed in WiMAX are not familiar to voice generation engineers. The design process of WiMAX networks needs to be more detailed than the one for voice based cellular networks. In part 3, we cover the network design itself, analyzing all steps involved. A solid design brings the most important reward of all, a business plan that works. Certain aspects of the WiMAX technology (e.g. security functions, roaming, IP network architecture) do not affect network design, hence are very briefly discussed (or not at all) in this white paper. It is our intention to keep this document updated in the future through new revisions. Any comments and suggestions can be sent to celplan@celplan.com. 2 Wireless Network Generations For nearly 100 years telecommunications provided mainly voice services and very low speed data (telegraph and telex). With the advent of the Internet several data services became the main stream in telecommunications to a point that voice is becoming an accessory to the IP centric data network. Today high speed data services are already part of our daily lives in the work and home environment (web surfing, e-mail, virtual private networks, VoIP, virtual meetings, chats...) and the demand for high speed data services will grow with the increase of telecommuting expected for the next years. Circuit switched voice networks experimented in the last two decades an evolution towards mobility and today users take for granted the universal availability of voice services. This demand is migrating to the data domain and this is where 4 G wireless networks became essential. Wireless networks became feasible with the advent of 1G networks (AMPS and ETACS) that provided analog voice services. With the increase in demand, more efficient technologies were required and 2G networks (TDMA, GSM, CDMA) designed for digital voice and higher spectral
efficiency were created. The explosive demand of wireless services required even more spectrum efficient networks and the need for wireless data services started to emerge. The 3G technologies developed (cdma2000, UMTS) were still extensions of old voice switched networks and provided relatively low data speeds when compared to terrestrial networks; and, when providing higher speeds, were compromised in distance reach due to multipath effects. 4G technologies (WiFi, WiMAX, and LTE) are the first ones to break the high speed limitation for large distances by using OFDM technology and, at the same time, with the advantage of being conceived as IP based from the start. This white paper analyzes the design of 4G networks with focus on the WiMAX technology. For easiness of use, this white paper is divided in three parts, each created as a separate document: o Part 1- WiMAX as a 4G Solution o Part 2- Selected Topics in the Design of a 4G Network o Part 3- Steps in the Design of a WiMAX Network
PART 1 - WIMAX AS A 4G SOLUTION
1 Introduction The need for a wireless solution that could address higher data rates became clear with the deployment of the IEEE 802.11a/g networks (OFDM based) that did provide 54 Mbps IP communications mainly in indoor environments. This technology although very successful presented limitations in terms of multipath performance (64 OFDM carriers only) and was very inefficient when multiple users were present due to its conflict based access mechanism. WiMAX was developed with this experience in mind, plus the issues already observed with the 3G and 3.5G technologies. We will describe here the main aspects of this technology that impact its understanding and the network design process. 2 The WiMAX solution WiMAX was developed within the IEEE in several phases. It was based on the work done by Project 802 (Local Network Standards Committee), since February 1980. More than 20 Groups were created to standardize different aspects. The Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) Working Group became 802.16. Work proceeds under different sub-groups of 802.16 and should culminate with IEEE Std 802.16m (WiMAX 2.0). Mobile WiMAX was also included as an IMT-2000 recognized technology. The original goal was to specify a point to point broadband technology to be used above 11 GHz. The first release of the standard was IEEE Std 802.16-2001. It was followed by several amendments like IEEE Std 802.16a (2003), IEEE Std 802.16c and the amendment project IEEE P802.16d, which were consolidated into a new revision IEEE Std 802.16-2004. This revision added the 2-11 GHz range and supported a fixed FFT of 256 for all bandwidths and an FFT of 2048 for the 20 MHz bandwidth, but it only targeted fixed subscribers. The shortcomings of this standard were corrected in IEEE Std. 802.16-2004/Cor1 (2005). In parallel another group was working since 2002 on a mobile version of the standard which amended the IEEE Std. 802.16-2004/Cor1 standard and became IEEE Std 802.16e/Cor1 amendment and corrigendum that supports fixed and mobile communications in bands below 6 GHz. The IEEE standards support multiple options and features that would lead to non compatible implementations between vendors. The WiMAX Forum took the tasks to specify sets of minimum features (profiles) that would be supported by everyone and would make the equipments inter operable. A certification program was established to certify equipments that fulfill the requirements of each profile and do inter-operate. WiMAX Forum Mobile System Profile defines the profiles of Mobile WiMAX. Certification test profiles were issued in two groups: wave 1(mainly fixed stations features) and wave 2 (mobile station features). Wave 1 certified products are already available and wave 2 certified equipments are expected soon. WiMAX Forum organizes also Plugfest events, in which equipment vendors can interconnect their equipments to perform interoperability tests. WiMAX technology major improvements over 3G technologies are: - Fully packet switched (IP based) - Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) - Time Division Duplexing (TDD) - Multi level adaptive modulation (up to 64QAM) - Stronger error correction techniques - Designed for Advanced Antenna Systems
WiMAX supports shared rates up to 70 Mbps, ranges up to 10 km and it leverages the IP protocol used today by the wired networks, so it can directly interconnect to them. The WiMAX IP centric network is very similar to traditional cellular networks as shown in the diagram below.
BS- Base Station also called Access Point (AP) SS- Subscriber Station (refers to a fixed or nomadic subscriber) MS- Mobile Station AAA- Authentication, Authorization and Accounting DHCP- Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (IETF RFC 2131) DNS- Domain Name System FA- Foreign Agent (IETF RFC3344) HA- Home Agent Mobile (IETF RFC3344) http- Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (IETF RFC2616) IP- Internet Protocol based cloud (IETF RFC791 Internet- Internet cloud RFC- Request for Comments from the IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force)
A Base Station (BS), also called Access Point (AP) corresponds to a specific location where operators radios are deployed and antennas are mounted. A set of antennas oriented towards a specific area constitutes a BS Sector. Each sector coverage area defines a cell and a BS can have a single or multiple sectors. An omni BS has a single sector with omni directional antennas. Multiple antennas in a sector are used to implement AAS (Advanced Antenna Systems) that allow the system to benefit from path diversity. In the wireless part of a BS we can define two communication directions: - Downlink- defined as the transmission from the BS to the MS - Uplink- defined as the transmission from MS to the BS The AAA, FA and DNS are under the local operator control. WiMAX was conceived to solve two main problems of a sister technology previously specified by the IEEE Std. 802.11 that has a large penetration in the indoor market and some controlled outdoor deployments. This is an OFDM technology that supports a 20 MHz bandwidth, using 64 OFDM carriers and does not have a central controller as AP and CPE have the same hierarchy, so access to the medium (airwaves) is done by trial and error (conflict management). The two issue of this technology were the low multipath tolerance at high data rates, as the 64 FFT did not reduce the data rate enough and significant throughput reduction with multiple simultaneous accesses. WiMAX solution was to increase the OFDM carriers initially to 256 and later up to 2048 and to establish the BS as the access controller. The access to the air waves was optimized and the conflict zone was reduced to a minimum greatly increasing efficiency.
The WiMAX OFDM carrier A single frequency modulated by a digital signal results in a spectral distribution around the frequency. The traditional technique is to separate adjacent frequencies so filters can eliminate mutual interference. OFDM solves the interference issue by bringing the frequencies closer. This apparently contradictory approach explores the fact that the modulation of a single frequency by a digital signal results in a very specific spectrum that has peaks and zeros with defined frequency spacing. Placing channel peaks at the zeros of adjacent channels avoids the interference between frequencies. The modulation of a single carrier by a digital signal provides a spectrum defined by the SINC function shown in the next picture. The opening of the SINC signal is directly proportional to the symbol rate of the digital signal.
An OFDM carrier uses sub-carrier frequencies that are integer multiples of the first frequency. The spectrum of an OFDM carrier with 5 frequencies is shown in the next picture, where the interference level at each sub-carrier peak (sampling moment) is zero. The same figure shows also the composite spectrum.
The same five sub-carriers are depicted in the time domain in the next picture.
With this technique it is possible to break a wideband channel into many narrowband channels without losing spectral efficiency. This allows each sub-carrier to be modulated by a lower data rate, increasing the symbol time and diminishing the signal bandwidth. This makes the detection of each sub-carrier much easier by operating in a region where the RF channel can be considered flat. The 2G and 3G technologies use a single fixed channel bandwidth. WiMAX allows the use of multiple channel bandwidths, varying from 1.25 MHz to 20 MHz and this allows adjusting the network configurations according to the services to be provided and spectrum availability. An OFDM carrier has to be defined in three domains: frequency, time and power, as illustrated below.
ne Zo a -fr ub S e am Fr e m
3.1
OFDM carrier in the frequency domain An OFDM carrier is composed of several sub-carriers, spaced at regular intervals. This interval is the inverse of the data rate that will modulate the sub-carrier. Each sub-carrier carries a fraction of the data, so each sub-carrier data rate is low but the total throughput is high. Higher the number of subcarriers better is the tolerance to multipath spread, but larger is the processing power required. As an example, let suppose that we have a bandwidth of 10 MHz and a multipath spread of 10 s, what will be the best partition of the bandwidth in sub-carriers? For now, lets ignore band guards. A 10 MHz bandwidth can accommodate 10 Msps (Millions of symbols per second). The table below shows 5 different alternatives in terms of number of subcarriers.
Alternative Sub-carrier bandwidth (MHz) Symbol Duration (s) Multipath Spread (s) Multipath Affected Symbols Throughput per sub-carrier (Msps) Number of sub-carriers in 10 MHz Total Throughput (Msps) 1 10 0.1 10 100 10 1 10 2 1 1 10 10 1 10 10 3 0.1 10 10 1 0.1 100 10 4 0.01 100 10 0.1 0.01 1000 10 5 0.001 1000 10 0.01 0.001 10000 10
For a single sub-carrier the multipath overlap would cover 100 symbols. This means that there will be signal from the previous 100 symbols all mixed up and the recovery of the signal becomes impossible. The maximum DSP (Digital Signal processor) processing power today can handle FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) of up to 1,000 frequencies, may be 2,000 maximum. This leaves us with alternatives 3 and 4 that have respectively 1 symbol and 0.1 symbol overlap. WiMAX choose alternative 4, so it would be possible to eliminate completely the multipath overlap, through a technique called cyclic prefix described later. There are other limits in the OFDM solution besides the DSP processing capabilities. Frequency inaccuracies limit the carrier separation to around 10 kHz, as a 1GHz signal with 10-6 precision will result in a 1 kHz deviation, which is 1/10 of the separation. An analog signal has to be sampled at twice the bandwidth per Nyquist-Shannon sampling theorem, which results in a 40 MSps (Millions of Samples per second) for a 20 MHz bandwidth, which is the maximum that can be processed with todays DSPs. This means also that solutions with a higher bandwidth and a higher number of subcarriers will have more performance issues than solutions with lower bandwidth and lower sub-carrier numbers. 3.1.1 Sub-carriers The figure below shows an OFDM carrier, composed of several sub-carriers. Not all sub-carriers can be used as we still have to protect adjacent channels to the OFDM carrier. About 18% of the subcarriers are left as guard bands (half at each side). Traditional technologies use from 20% to 66% of the spectrum for this purpose. The central carrier is left un-modulated to help define the carrier center. Although each sub-carrier operates over a flat channel, the same cannot be said about the set of subcarriers and due to this pilot sub-carriers are added. These pilot sub-carriers are distributed along the
bandwidth and carry known patterns. This allows for an amplitude equalization of the band, so all the sub-carriers are received with the same level. Additional pilots are added in some cases for groups of sub-carriers, so receivers can tune to a sub-set of sub-carriers. Around 11% of the carriers are pilots in the downlink and 33% in the uplink. Pilots represent an overhead, but are required to improve reception. The best trade-off between the number of pilot sub-carriers and data sub-carriers varies with the channel environment and due to this several schemes were envisaged to be applied to the different channels. These schemes allow also for the grouping of not continuous sub-carriers to minimize the impact of localized fading and average interference. They will be described later under Data Allocation Schemes.
As a result only about 60% of the sub-carriers are used for carrying data. 3.1.2 Segmentation It may be required to allocate groups of sub-carriers to different entities, as sectors or omni cells. For this purpose the sub-carriers can be grouped in segments. The WiMAX standard defines the possibility of using up to three segments per carrier.
3.2
OFDM carrier in the time domain WiMAX divides the time in continuous frames and although it allows several duplexing modes, it focused initially in TDD (Time Division Duplexing). TDD requires frame synchronization at the network level. In WiMAX Base Stations control the time access by defining the start of the downlink sub-frames. Only a small portion of the up-link sub-frame is left for autonomous access. Base Stations are synchronized between themselves using GPS or a similar system. A mechanism had to be established to synchronize the subscriber access to the up-link frames and it is called ranging (described later).
3.2.1 Symbol The smallest significant time interval in the time domain is the symbol time, which is directly related to the data rate and defines the sub-carrier spacing. For regular OFDM it varies between 8 and 128 s (depending on the bandwidth) and for scalable OFDMA it is defined as 102.86 s (for all bandwidth). 3.2.2 Symbol and Cyclic Prefix Part of the received symbol waveform is corrupted by the multipath spread of the previous symbol at the receiver. To solve this issue the transmitted symbol is extended by the duration of the maximum expected multipath spread. This is easily done by extending the IFFT duration at the transmitter, which cyclic waveform is illustrated in the next figure.
This can be done because the FFT and the transmission of the symbols in the wireless medium are two independent processes, so the duration of the transmitted symbol is larger than the symbol presented to the FFT.
Transmitted Symbol duration FFT Symbol duration
Multipath spread duration
Cyclic Prefix
At the receiver the last part of the received waveform replaces the initial part perfectly and the symbol duration is trimmed to the original symbol duration, so the FFT can be performed with the right symbol duration. In summary, the symbol duration is only increased between the transmitter and the receiver. This symbol extension is specified in the standard as , 1/8, 1/16 or 1/32 of the symbol time to provide flexibility for different environments, but the WiMAX Forum specifies as a mandatory implementation the 1/8 fraction. The maximum multipath spread distances supported for symbol duration of 102.86 s are shown in the table below.
Symbol fraction 1/4 1/8 1/16 1/32
Multipath spread distance (m) 6857.14 3428.57 1714.29 857.14
The addition of the cyclic prefix represents a loss in efficiency in time of 12.5% for the 1/8 fraction (most commonly used). 3.2.3 Duplexing There are two directions of communication that must be accommodated in a network, from the BS to the SS and MS, defined as downlink, and the other from the SS and MS to the BS, defined as uplink. In a full duplex system both direction should be available to the user simultaneously, which can be accomplished by either Frequency Division Duplexing (FDD) or Time Division Duplexing (TDD).
The IEEE Std. 802.16 e specifies only the TDD mode, although work is being performed to support FDD and H-FDD in the future. In FDD mode the BS and MS transmit at the same time in different frequencies. FDD requires a significant separation between both frequencies (45 MHz minimum separation is typical), so it is possible to isolate them at the receiver. In H-FDD (Half Duplex FDD) the BS and MS still use different frequencies but they do not transmit at the same time. This avoids the frequency separation issue but uses the frequencies 50% of the time. The remaining 50% is used at another cell. This timing is illustrated below for two cells A and B.
In TDD mode separate times are allocated for downlink and uplink transparently to the user. This is illustrated in the next figure. The allocation cycle is defined by a frame period, which is divided into a downlink sub-frame and an uplink sub-frame. These two sub-frames can have different durations to accommodate unsymmetrical traffic in the downlink (DL) and the uplink (UL). This is not so easily done with FDD, although unsymmetrical frequency bands could be considered. The ratio between the uplink sub-frame duration and the downlink sub-frame duration is defined as the TDD ratio and must be unique for the network, to avoid interference between downlink and uplink signals. A typical ratio is 60%, but it should be adjusted accordingly to the service configurations.
The split in DL and UL also adds inefficiency as it represents an average value and there will be moments that it will be under-utilized. An estimate is a loss of 5%.
3.2.4 Frame Several frame sizes are specified for the WiMAX technology: 2.0, 2.5, 4.0, 5.0, 8.0, 10.0, 12.5 and 20.0 ms. The most commonly used is 5 ms. In TDD mode, a radio switches between transmit and receive according to the moment in time. Initially it receives the DL sub-frame and then it switches to transmit mode at the appropriate moment in the UL subframe. The UL sub-frame can only start after all SS/MS receives the DL sub-frame, processes the data, switches to transmit mode and the data is received at the BS. This implies in a time gap between the DL sub-frame and the UL sub-frame defined as Transmit Transition Gap (TTG). TTG should be larger than two times the maximum network propagation delay between any BS and the most distant SS/MS plus their processing time, as illustrated in the next figure. A similar time gap exists between the UL sub-frame and the DL sub-frame and is defined as Receive Transition Gap (RTG), which should be larger than the BS processing time, as illustrated in the next figure.
It is possible to accommodate 47 symbols (102.86 s) in a 5 ms frame. Assuming a processing time of 40 s in each end, it leaves 85.58 s for the round trip propagation and a maximum distance from the BS to a SS/MS of 12.8 km. Interfering cells can be located up to 37.6 km so they do not interfere in the receive side of the .interfered BTS To achieve operation over larger distances the number of symbols has to be reduced. These gaps add another 3.3% use of resources. A WiMAX frame starts with a Preamble spread over the first symbol of the OFDM carrier. This preamble is a PN code that allows the identification of the FFT size, the frame synchronization, and the cell and segment identification. It is followed in the downlink sub-frame by a detailed map with the contents of the DL and UL sub-frames. This approach allows direct access to data in the sub-frames and eliminates the need of preambles for each data packet. The preamble and the mapping information extend for about 3 OFDMA symbols in the DL (downlink) and approximately 2 OFDMA symbols in the UL (uplink) and that represent a 10% use of resources. 3.2.5 Zone It may be necessary to differentiate between different SS/MS of a BS in terms of resource allocation (for interference averaging suppose) and for this purpose the sub-frames are further divided in time zones. A zone can be allocated to users close to the cell center, where all segments can be used, whereas users closer to the edge would be allocated to another zone and use segmentation to avoid interference with other cells. Zones
can be also used to differentiate between different sub-channelization schemes, as some are more convenient then other for different antenna system applications.
3.3
OFDM carrier in the power domain Pilot sub-carriers are modulated by pre defined sequences with boosted BPSK, which has a higher power level than data modulations. Data sub-carriers are modulated by the highest modulation scheme that can be used in each connection, through the use of adaptive modulation coding.
3.3.1 Adaptive Modulation and Coding (AMC) A modulation scheme is defined by the modulation, coding algorithm, code rate and repetition. The following modulations are supported: BPSK (not used for data), QPSK, 16-QAM and 64QAM. The following coding algorithms are supported: Convolutional and Convolutional Turbo. The following code rates are used: , 2/3, , 5/6 The following repetition rates are used: x2, x4, x6 Not all combinations of the parameters above are allowed, but the standard allows for 27 possible combinations. Some combinations are optional and will not be implemented by all vendors. The figure below shows the different modulations superimposed. The levels of each modulation scheme are such that the average power of each modulation scheme is the same.
A BPSK symbol can carry 1 bit of data, QPSK 2 bits, 16QAM 4 bits and 64QAM 6 bits. Forward Error Correction Codes add an additional overhead of between 17% (for 5/6 coding) and 50% (for coding).
3.3.2 OFDM Peak to Average Ratio (PAR) The OFDM signal is the sum of several sub-carriers that are modulated by different modulation schemes. The sum of these levels has a distribution centered on an average level with a diminishing probability of reaching very high levels. Theoretically for a 1000 sub-carriers OFDM signal the peak can be close to 30 dB above average, although with an infinitesimal probability. The use of a pseudo random code to scramble the data helps to randomize it and reduce the probability that all sub-carriers have the same symbol at the same time. Nevertheless when a high level is reached it saturates the amplifier and results in a distortion. This implies that a large back-off has to be used in the amplifier, increasing its size and cost. Besides the amplifier gain decreases for high levels even clipping the signal. The amplifier response is improved through a digital distortion of the input signal that compensates the compression caused by it (Digital Pre-Distortion). The PAR issue could be considered as impairment during network design and a performance loss added. 3.3.3 Transmit Power The transmit power is regulated by regional regulations, but it is important that it be adapted to the maximum power of the SS/MS devices to provide a balanced link. The power of a BS radio should be 10 dB higher than the SS/MS power. The SS/MS are classified by the WiMAX Forum in 4 Power Classes: 20 dBm, 23 dBm, 27 dBm and 30 dBm. The pilot and the preamble power are BPSK modulated and boosted 2.5 dB above the average value specified for other modulations. 3.3.4 Power control Power control is used in both the downstream and upstream with a dynamic range of up to 50 dB. The figure below shows the variation of transmitted power with distance, for a 20 dB/decade path loss. The distances displayed in the graph change significantly with the path loss slope.
Power Control
Transmit Power (dBm)- max 30 dBm
35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 -5 0 10000 20000 30000 40000 50000 60000 Distance (m) for 20 dB/decade path loss
3.3.5 Power Operation Modes SS/MS devices can operate in three different modes: - Normal mode: the device is constantly monitoring the downlink messages and updating its ranging values - Sleep mode: the device goes into sleep mode and periodically wakens and updates its ranging values - Idle mode: the device unregisters and goes into sleep mode. It must be paged for incoming data and re-register again for outgoing data. This mode is useful on roads to avoid excessive registrations.
3.4
Multiple Access OFDMA A 10 MHz WiMAX frame if totally filled can carry close to 20,000 data symbols every 5 ms or 3.12 Msps. The throughput ranges between 3.1 Mbps to 15.6 Mbps. This is a very large amount of data that few users would have. To maximize carrier usage it is necessary to split the resources dynamically between several users. This kind of access is called Multiple Access and exists in many technologies. The Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplex (OFDM) becomes Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA).
3.4.1 Connection Identifier (CID) In traditional wireless technologies users are assigned channels that are kept allocated during the span of a connection. In WiMAX users are assigned a set of Connection Identifiers, which are linked to the messages sent. These identifiers are kept during the whole user session. The CIDs are classified as basic connection, management and user data transport. The establishment of CIDs is kept under the control of the MAC layer. CIDs eliminate the need for channels and free the resources to be allocated dynamically. 3.4.2 Sub-channelization The smallest allocation of data is a sub-channel, which in WiMAX has always 48 bits of data. Sub-channels are grouped into Data Units in the size required by each user. This allocation is done on a sub-frame basis.
3.5 WiMAX interference reduction techniques The use of large bandwidths increases the spectral efficiency in terms of data throughput. This is totally true if we think of an isolated cell, but due to the large bandwidth of a WIMAX carrier the number of carriers available is reduced and interference becomes a major issue. The following sections describe techniques available for reducing the interference. 3.5.1 Interference Avoidance In interference avoidance the resources are split between users, so they do not interfere with each other. The WiMAX standard IEEE Std. 802.16e identifies up to three segments for each carrier. This leads to a practical increase in resources, by multiplying the number of carriers by three, but it also reduces the throughput capacity by three (if we not consider interference). Interference avoidance should be planned by optimization tools considering the segments as a resource multiplier. Segmentation improves also the carrier adjacency interference and this should be considered in the planning. 3.5.2 Interference Averaging Interference is not distributed evenly along the network or along the sub-carriers. When fixed allocation of sub-carriers is used some connections suffer severe interference while other suffer very little. This is even more noticeable at light traffic loads. In interference averaging there is a pseudo random use of resources, so interferers and interfered are cycled and the overall interference is averaged between all users. With lesser interference, error correction codes (FEC) should be more effective and restore system capacity. Interference averaging should be used with care and be assessed by strong design tools that can verify the network performance before hand, because the network can go from an acceptable performance to a disaster by just a slight increase in interference. Interference averaging can be only properly evaluated through dynamic simulation, when the interference is taken into considerations. The pseudo random distribution of sub-carriers can be achieved in many ways and to give users more flexibility several sub-carrier permutation schemes were standardized. These permutations are part of Pilot and Data Allocation Schemes. Pilot and Data Allocation Schemes define a set of pilots and data sub-carriers that will carry data and how they are mapped to sub-channels. Pilot content is known and they are used to estimate the RF channel, and then this knowledge used to extract data. Permutation schemes vary with the pilot to data sub-carriers ratio and the pseudo random distribution of subcarriers method.
Sub-carrier ratio FUSC OFUSC PUSC DL PUSC UL OPUSC UL AMC Pilot/Data 0.108 0.125 0.167 0.500 0.125 0.125
3.6
OFDM standard configurations
3.6.1 Constant OFDM IEEE Std. 802.16-2004 specifies a constant number of 256 sub-carriers for all bandwidths. IEEE Std. 802.16-2004 Bandwidth (MHz) OFDMA Parameters 1.75 3.5 7 14
28
8/7 8/7 8/7 8/7 8/7 Sampling factor 1.14 1.14 1.14 1.14 1.14 Sampling factor 2 4 8 16 32 Sampling bandwidth (MHz) 500 250 125 63 31 Sampling period (ns) 256 256 256 256 256 FFT size Sub-carrier frequency spacing (kHz) 7.813 15.63 31.25 62.5 125 128 64 32 16 8 Useful symbol time (s) 1/8 1/8 1/8 1/8 1/8 Guard ratio 16 8 4 2 1 Cycle prefix duration (s) 144 72 36 18 9 OFDM symbol time (s) The sampling bandwidth is increased in relation to the nominal bandwidth, so the anti-aliasing filter can be implemented with more ease. Sampling done for the nominal bandwidth rate would require a square (very sharp) filter. 3.6.2 Scalable OFDM The spacing between carriers is proportional to the data rate. The first specification of the technology used a fixed number of carriers independently of the bandwidth. This resulted in different performances for different spectrum bandwidths. To solve this issue IEEE Std. 802.26 e specified a scalable number of sub-carriers according to the bandwidth, keeping the spacing between sub-carriers constant. IEEE Std. 802.16e Bandwidth (MHz) OFDMA Parameters 5 10
1.25
20
28/25 28/25 28/25 28/25 Sampling factor 1.12 1.12 1.12 1.12 Sampling factor 1.4 5.6 11.2 22.4 Sampling Bandwidth MHz) 714 179 89 45 Sampling period (ns) 128 512 1024 2048 FFT size Sub-carrier frequency spacing (kHz) 10.9375 10.9375 10.9375 10.9375 Useful symbol time (s) Guard ratio Cycle prefix duration (s) OFDM symbol time (s) 91.43 1/8 11.43 102.86 91.43 1/8 11.43 102.86 91.43 1/8 11.43 102.86 91.43 1/8 11.43 102.86
We will be focusing on scalable OFDM in this paper or more specifically scalable OFDMA.
3.7 WiMAX Implementation The main aspects of the WiMAX technology were discussed in the previous items. We will now analyze how all of it comes together and give more details about the bit processing stage. 3.7.1 PHY Block Diagram The block diagram presented next shows the operations performed in the downlink and uplink. It is divided in the following functional blocks: - Bit processing - Symbol Processing - Digital IF processing - Analog/Digital Conversion - Carrier modulation The basic signal transformations are listed below: In the transmit direction: - Data is divided in blocks (multiple of 48 bits later mapped to sub-channels) - Data is combined with a pseudo random sequence to avoid long sequence of identical values (minimize PAR issues) - Data is coded using an Forward Error Correction (FEC) code - Data rate is adjusted trough repeating or puncturing - Data is interleaved (data segments are inter-exchanged in position) to improve error correction by separating blocks of data subject to prolonged fading - Data is mapped to sub-carrier symbols according to the permutation scheme and pilots are inserted - Signal is converted from the frequency domain to time domain through an IFFT (Inverse Fourier Transform ) operation - The cyclic prefix is added extending the symbol duration - Signal is up-converted - The crest factor is reduced and the signal is pre-distorted to compensate power amplifier response - Signal is converted from digital to analog - Signal modulates transmit carrier In the receive direction: - Signal is de-modulated - Signal is sampled and converted from analog to digital - Signal is down converted - Signal tail replaces the cyclic prefix - Signal is converted from time domain to frequency domain using an FFT (Fast Fourier transform) operation - Pilot is extracted and ranging operation is performed - Sub-channels are extracted - Channels estimation is made from pilots and signal is equalized - Data is extracted and symbols are de-mapped - De-interleaving is performed - FEC decoding is performed - De-randomization is performed - Data blocks are recovered from sub-channels
3.7.2 Data Unit When data is transferred from one user to another it passes through several protocol layers. These layers interconnect at SAP (Service Access Points). An SDU (Service Data Unit) is a block of data received by a protocol layer. In the transmit direction the protocol layer adds an overhead to the SDU and creates a PDU (Protocol Data Unit). The PDU becomes an SDU for the lower layer as illustrated in the figure below. In the receive direction the reverse is done and the protocol overhead is stripped, so the PDU received by a layer is exactly the same that was sent. We can say that one protocol layer ignores the existence of the lower layers. The wireless MAC is one of the layers of this stack.
3.7.2.1 MAC- PDU The wireless MAC is an overhead to the user data and has to be considered in the network dimensioning. A generic wireless Medium Access Control Protocol Data Unit (Packet Data unit) is defined below:
HT- Header type EC- Indicates if content is encrypted Type- MAC type ESF- Indicates the presence of sub-headers CI- indicates the presence of the CRC field EKS- Traffic Encryption Key Index RSV- Reserved Length- entire message length BR- Bandwidth request in bytes CID- Connection ID HCS- Header Check Sum CRC- Cyclic Redundancy Check (optional) The MAC protocol is an overhead that diminishes the data throughput and should be considered in the throughput calculations. This overhead varies with the message size, so an average number should be estimated. A correct estimation depends of the size of the packets being transmitted. Additionally we have to consider the protocol control messages that also add to the overhead. For a mix of services a 5 % overhead can be considered.
3.7.3 Error Correction According to Shannon equation the amount of information that can be transmitted through a channel depends on the SNIR. Interference and noise cause errors in the digital signal that limit the channel capacity. Assuming that the SNIR cannot be improved further the elimination of the errors then requires error correcting codes, which are added to provide redundancy to the digital signal. Through this redundancy it is possible to correct a certain amount of data. The amount of redundancy added defines one of the characteristics of the code. The total elimination of errors may require an extremely large error correction code, so when the number of errors is small it becomes more efficient to use another method to eliminate the errors. The method used is ARQ (Automatic Repeat Request) in which data is repeated under request of the receiver. Additional error detection codes are used to detect errors in the receiver. WiMAX uses two types of HARQ (Hybrid ARQ) to correct the residual errors. Eventual errors left have to be corrected by higher protocol layers. In Type I, a Chase Combining is used; the same data is resent upon request. The receiver uses all previously received versions to improve the chance of decoding. In Type 2, Incremental Redundancy is used; meaning that the code rate and the puncturing pattern are changed from one transmission to the next, increasing the chance of a successful decoding. If the maximum specified number of retransmissions is reached, the packet is dropped and a higher level has to request its retransmission. All of these additions reduce spectral efficiency, but are inevitable. Error correction presents an overhead that diminishes the data throughput and should be considered in throughput calculations. This overhead varies with the error rate, so an average number should be estimated. Our estimate is a 10 % overhead.
3.7.4 RF channel estimation and equalization Pilot sub-carrier symbols carry known information that can be used to equalize a channel. The receiver has to experiment with different equalizations until the pilot data is properly detected. This equalization setting can then be used to extract the data information. The equalization process in WiMAX is simpler than in the other technologies; as the multipath distortion was eliminated by the use of the cyclic prefix. The task left is to equalize the signal levels of the different sub-carriers. Three main types of equalizers can be used. - Linear equalizer- the signal goes through a filter that simulates the inverse of the channel. It is simple to implement but not very efficient and can even increase the noise floor. - Non linear equalizer- estimates previously decoded symbols interference and subtracts it from the signal. It is subject to error propagation. - Maximum likelihood sequence detection (MLSD) - it examines all the possible combinations for a sequence of symbols and chooses the most likely one. Its complexity increases with the constellation size and the time delay. The channel estimation method is not defined in the standards and is left to the vendor discretion.
3.7.5 OFDMA and Sub-channelization Increasing the bandwidth of the channel increases the spectrum efficiency, but only if the whole channel is used to transmit information. As this is not the case, the channel has to be split between different users. This we call sub-channelization. Ideally these sub-channels should have variable capacity that can be allocated on demand. Additionally a sub-channel sharing scheme can be used to minimize interference between adjacent sectors. Subchannelization schemes are mixed with pilot and data allocation schemes; we will call them simply subchannelization schemes. Several sub-channelization schemes are proposed so different situations can be addressed. All of them provide sub-channels with 48 sub-carriers data symbols. The variations are the depth in symbols, the permutation scheme and the number of pilots. Sub-channels are mapped to Data Burst at transmission time. The mappings standardized are listed below: - FUSC (Full Usage of Sub-Channels) was formulated for the downlink for full allocation and does not address the much smaller requirements of the uplink. - PUSC-DL (Partial Usage of Sub-Channels) was formulated for partial usage so adjacent sectors can use different sub-carriers and consequently avoid interference and it does address the uplink lower throughput requirement. PUSC can fully replace FUSC as the segmentation in PUSC is not obligatory. PUSC provides a large number of pilots for channel equalization and this reduces the throughput. - PUSC-UL was developed to support the small data units expected in the uplink direction - OPUSC (Optional Partial Usage of Sub-Channels) is an alternative to PUSC-UL that provides fewer pilots and consequently increases throughput at a performance cost. - TUSC (Tiled Usage of Sub-Channels) was developed to pair with PUSC-UL in the downlink, as FUSC and PUSC-DL do not pair with PUSC-UL. - OTUSC- (Optional Tiled Usage of Sub-Channels) pairs with OPUSC. - AMC is used to provide continuous set of sub-carriers that can be used in AAS system in both, downlink and uplink.. The general sequence below is followed to perform sub-channelization for each Sub-channelization Scheme.
FUSC Pilot Allocation sub-carrier permutation sub-carrier mapping to sub-channel grouping of sub-carriers in clusters of 14 sub-carriers cluster permutation cluster mapping to segments and pilot allocation data sub-carrier permutation to sub-channels within a segment sub-carrier permutation grouping of sub-carriers in tiles of 9 sub-carriers and pilot allocation tile mapping to slots mapping of data sub-carriers to sub-channels grouping of sub-carriers in bins of 9 sub-carriers and pilot allocation mapping bins to sub-channels
PUSC-DL
PUSC-UL
AMC
3.7.5.1 FUSC Once the null and DC sub-carriers are discounted, the remaining carriers are assigned to pilots and data sub-carriers. There are fixed position pilots that keep their position along all zones and variable position pilots, which change their position from one symbol to the next. Variable pilots move 6 sub-carriers positions from one symbol to the next. The remaining sub-carriers in each symbol are assigned to sub-channels according to a formula that includes the PermBase variable. Each sub-channel is assigned 48 sub-carriers. The duration of the subchannel is one symbol. This procedure is illustrated in the next figure. The table below gives the main FUSC permutation characteristics. DL-FUSC 5 10 43 87 43 86 86 173 1 1 426 851 18 35 17 35 3 6 3 6 41 82 384 768 1 1 48 48
Bandwidth (MHz) Lower frequency guard sub-carriers (left) Higher frequency guard sub-carriers (right) Total guard sub-carriers DC sub-carriers Number of used sub-carriers Number of variable pilots of set 0 Number of variable pilots of set 1 Number of constant pilots of set 0 Number of constant pilots of set 1 Total number of pilot sub-carriers Number of data sub-carriers Number of symbols per sub-channel Number of data sub-carriers symbols per subchannel Number of sub-channels Max DL-FUSC symbols per frame Max DL-FUSC Meg symbols per second Sub-carrier permutation
1.25 11 11 22 1 106 3 2 2 2 9 96 1 48
20 173 172 345 1 1703 71 71 12 12 166 1536 1 48
2 8 16 32 2,688 10,752 21,504 43,008 0.54 2.15 4.30 8.60 PermBase PermBase PermBase PermBase
FUSC permutation is optional and can only be used in the downlink after the first zone.
3.7.5.2 OFUSC OFUSC is a variation of FUSC in which some null sub-carriers are traded for pilot sub-carriers to improve equalization at a loss in adjacent channel interference. DL-OFUSC 5 40 39 79 1 433 48 384 1 48
Bandwidth (MHz) Lower frequency guard sub-carriers (left) Higher frequency guard sub-carriers (right) Total guard sub-carriers DC sub-carriers Number of used sub-carriers Total number of pilot sub-carriers Number of data sub-carriers Number of symbols per sub-channel Number of data sub-carriers symbols per subchannel Number of sub-channels Max DL-OFUSC symbols per frame Max DL-OFUSC Mega symbols per second Sub-carrier permutation
1.25 10 9 19 1 109 12 96 1 48
10 80 79 159 1 865 96 768 1 48
20 160 159 319 1 1729 192 1536 1 48
2 8 16 32 2,688 10,752 21,504 49,152 0.54 2.15 4.30 9.83 PermBase PermBase PermBase PermBase
The next diagram illustrates a 5 MHz FUSC/OFUSC carrier with an FFT of 512. Sub-carriers (frequency axis) are illustrated in the vertical direction and symbols (time axis) on the horizontal. The left part indicates the logical transformations that the sub-carriers undergo to form sub-channels. The objective of these transformations is to provide carrier permutation to average interference. The right part indicates the sub-frame and the data allocation procedure. The data allocation procedure allocates a Data Burst to a Data Unit, which is composed of several sub-channels. For FUSC the first step is to remove logically null (guard) sub-carriers. Then a set of constant pilots is mapped. Next variable pilots per zone are mapped according to the number of symbols in zone. Then sub-carriers are re-numbered (permutation) using an algorithm based on the PermBase variable assigned to the cell. Finally the re-numbered sub-carriers are mapped to sub-channels.
FUSC Downlink Mapping process for randomization between cells and sectors CellID and PermBase FFT 512 Subchannel index 0 F F T 5 1 2 n u l l s u b c a r r i e r s = 4 2 7 F F T 5 1 2 n u l l s u b c a r r i e r s = 4 2 7
DL sub-frame Zone 0 1 2 0 (PUSC) 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1 (FUSC) 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 2 20 21 22 23
Symbol
1 B 3 8 4 D a t a C a r r i e r s 2 B
DC carrier
F F T 5 1 2 S u b c a r r i e r s
P R E A M B L E
Modulated by PN sequence per segment (CellID) Start 36 6 RTG Remove Sub-carrier Sub-channel End UL null sub- Constant Variable mapping mapping Sub-Frame Receive Pilots per ( PermBase) Transition carriers Pilots zone mapping Gap mapping (number of symbols in zone) A B B Slot (48 data sub-carriers.symbol) Sub-channel (48 data sub-carriers.symbol) Data Unit/ Data Burst End Data allocation sequence TTG Transmit Transition Gap Start UL Sub-Frame
3.7.5.3 PUSC-DL Once the null and DC sub-carriers are discounted, every 14 sequential sub-carriers form a cluster. In every cluster two sub-carriers are designated as pilots (odd symbols use the 5th and 9th sub carriers, while even symbols use 1st and 13th). Clusters are renumbered according to a pre-defined sequence. A pair of clusters over two symbols forms a slot. Slots are allocated to six groups according to pre-defined numbers, so groups may have different sizes. Each sub-channel is assigned two slots from a group, resulting into 48 data symbols per sub-channel. Groups are then assigned to 1 to 6 segments. During the design these segments are assigned to cells or sectors. Having different group sizes gives the flexibility to provide higher capacity to some sectors in relation to others. Assigning different segments to neighbor sectors eliminates interference between them, but reduces the sector throughput. This procedure is illustrated in the next figure and the main characteristics of the permutation presented in the next table.
Bandwidth (MHz) Lower frequency guard sub-carriers (left) Higher frequency guard sub-carriers (right) Total guard sub-carriers DC sub-carriers Number of used sub-carriers Number of sub-carriers per cluster per symbol Number of pilots per cluster per symbol Number of data sub-carriers per cluster per symbol Number of clusters per symbol Number of symbols per sub-channel Number of data sub-carriers symbols per sub-channel Number of clusters per sub channel Number of sub-channels Max DL-PUSC symbols per frame Max DL-PUSC Mega symbols per second PUSC utilization factor Max DL-PUSC Mega symbols per second Sub-carrier permutation (CellID in the first zone and Perm Base in others)
1.25 22 21 43 1 85 14 2 12
DL-PUSC 5 10 46 92 45 91 91 183 1 1 421 841 14 14 2 2 12 12
20 184 183 367 1 1681 14 2 12
6 30 60 120 2 2 2 2 48 48 48 48 4 4 4 4 3 15 30 60 2,016 10,080 20,160 40,320 0.40 2.02 4.03 8.06 1/3 1/3 1/3 1/3 0.13 0.67 1.34 2.69 CellID CellID CellID CellID PermBase PermBase PermBase PermBase
PUSC is always used in the first zone in the downlink direction. This is the zone were the frame mapping information resides. It can be used also in the next zones, if they exist. The diagram below illustrates a 5 MHz PUSC carrier with an FFT of 512. Sub-carriers (frequency axis) are illustrated in the vertical direction and symbols (time axis) on the horizontal. The left part indicates the logical transformations that the sub-carriers undergo to form sub-channels. The objective of these transformations is to provide carrier permutation to average interference. The right part indicates the sub-frame and the data allocation procedure. The data allocation procedure allocates a Data Burst to a Data Unit, which is composed of several sub-channels. For PUSC-DL the first step is to remove logically null (guard) sub-carriers. Then the sub-carriers are grouped in clusters. The clusters are re-numbered (permutated) following a fixed mapping on the first zone and a PermBase mapping in the next ones. This clusters are then allocated to groups and pilot subcarriers assigned. Data sub-carriers are re-mapped within each group following an IDCell based mapping for the first zone or a PermBase mapping for the next zones. Next sub-carriers are mapped to sub-channels and those to segments. Segments are mapped to sectors. Cell ID and segment define the index of the cell.
3.7.5.4 PUSC-UL Once the null and DC carriers are discounted, every 4 sequential sub-carriers form a tile over 3 symbols. Sub-channels are formed by 6 tiles chosen according to a pre defined permutation, totaling 48 data subcarriers per sub-channel. Each tile has 4 pilots, so each sub-channel has 24 pilots. This number of pilots provides a strong basis for the data recovery. The tile mapping to sub-channels is done using Perm Base. Data units and data are allocated as illustrate din the next figure. The next table summarizes the main characteristics of the permutation.
UL-PUSC Bandwidth (MHz) 1.25 5 10 20 16 52 92 184 Lower frequency guard sub-carriers (left) 15 51 91 183 Higher frequency guard sub-carriers (right) 31 103 183 367 Total guard sub-carriers 1 1 1 1 DC sub-carriers 96 408 840 1680 Number of used sub-carriers 3 3 3 3 Number of symbols per sub-channel 4 4 4 4 Number of sub-carriers per tile 4 4 4 4 Number of pilots per tile 8 8 8 8 Number of data sub-carriers per tile 24 102 210 420 Number of tiles 48 48 48 48 Number of data sub-carriers symbols per sub-channel 6 6 6 6 Number of tiles per sub channel 4 17 35 70 Number of sub-channels 1,024 4,352 8,960 17,920 Max UL-PUSC symbols per frame 0.20 0.87 1.79 3.58 Max UL-PUSC Mega symbols per second 1/3 1/3 1/3 1/3 PUSC utilization factor 0.07 0.29 0.60 1.19 Max UL-PUSC Mega symbols per second yes yes yes yes Sub-carrier permutation
The diagram below illustrates a 5 MHz carrier with an FFT of 512. Sub-carriers (frequency axis) are illustrated in the vertical direction and symbols (time axis) on the horizontal. The left part indicates the logical transformations that the sub-carriers undergo to form sub-channels. The objective of these transformations is to provide carrier permutation to average interference. The right part indicates the sub-frame and the data allocation procedure. The data allocation procedure allocates a Data Burst to a Data Unit, which is composed of several sub-channels. For PUSC-UL the first step is to remove logically null (guard) sub-carriers. Then the sub-carriers are mapped to tile using PermBase based permutation and pilots are allocated in each tile. Tiles are mapped to slots, which define the sub-channel index.
3.7.5.5 OPUSC-UL This sub-channelization scheme provides fewer pilots and consequently a larger throughput, but the channel detection is more difficult and it should only be used with well behaved channels. The next table summarizes the main characteristics of the permutation. It follows the same Subchannelization scheme as PUSC, with the difference only in the pilot allocation.
OPUSC-UL
tile Sub-carriers
Sub-channel
UL-OPUSC Bandwidth (MHz) 1.25 5 10 20 10 40 80 160 Lower frequency guard sub-carriers (left) 9 39 79 159 Higher frequency guard sub-carriers (right) 19 79 159 319 Total guard sub-carriers 1 1 1 1 DC sub-carriers 108 432 864 1728 Number of used sub-carriers 3 3 3 3 Number of symbols per sub-channel 3 3 3 3 Number of sub-carriers per tile 1 1 1 1 Number of pilots per tile 8 8 8 8 Number of data sub-carriers per tile 36 144 288 576 Number of tiles 48 48 48 48 Number of data sub-carriers symbols per sub-channel 6 6 6 6 Number of tiles per sub channel 6 24 48 96 Number of sub-channels 1,536 6,144 12,288 24,576 Max UL-OPUSC data symbols per frame 0.31 1.23 2.46 4.92 Max UL-OPUSC data Mega symbols per second 1/3 1/3 1/3 1/3 PUSC utilization factor 0.10 0.41 0.82 1.64 Max UL-OPUSC data Mega symbols per second yes yes yes yes Sub-carrier permutation
3.7.5.6 TUSC This is a sub-channelization scheme used in the downstream in conjunction with the PUSC in the upstream. It has the same structure of the upstream PUSC, so the pilot information received can be used to beam form the return signal. 3.7.5.7 OTUSC This is a sub-channelization scheme similar to TUSC, but pairing with OPUSC.
3.7.5.8 AMC Once the null and DC carriers are discounted, the remaining sub-carriers are grouped according to one of the four NxM=6 possibilities. Each bin has 9 sub-carriers of which the middle one is a pilot. One to six contiguous bins can be joined to form a sub-channel. The number of symbols that form the slot should be such that each sub-channel has 48 data sub-carriers. This sub-channelization scheme uses continuous sub-carriers as this is required by AAS algorithms.
The next table summarizes the main characteristics of the permutation.

Bandwidth (MHz) 1.25 10 Lower frequency guard sub-carriers (left) 9 Higher frequency guard sub-carriers (right) 19 Total guard sub-carriers 1 DC sub-carriers 108 Number of used sub-carriers 8 Number of data sub-carriers per bin 1 Number of pilots per bin 6 Number of bins per slot 1 Number of symbols per slot 48 Number of symbols per sub-channel 1 Number of data sub-carriers symbols per sub-channel 2 Number of sub-channels 2,688 Max AMC DL data symbols per frame 0.54 Max AMC DL Mega data symbols per second 1,536 Max AMC UL data symbols per frame 0.31 Max AMC UL data Mega symbols per second no Sub-carrier permutation
DL/UL AMC 5 10 20 40 80 160 39 79 159 79 159 319 1 1 1 432 864 1728 8 8 8 1 1 1 6 6 6 1 1 1 48 48 48 1 1 1 8 16 32 10,752 21,504 43,008 2.15 4.30 8.60 6,144 12,288 24,576 1.23 2.46 4.92 no no no
The next figure illustrates the mapping procedures and the pilot distribution for the 2x3 subchannelization. The diagram below illustrates a 5 MHz carrier with an FFT of 512. Sub-carriers (frequency axis) are illustrated in the vertical direction and symbols (time axis) on the horizontal. The left part indicates the logical transformations that the sub-carriers undergo to form sub-channels. The objective of these transformations is to provide carrier permutation to average interference. The right part indicates the sub-frame and the data allocation procedure. The data allocation procedure allocates a Data Burst to a Data Unit, which is composed of several sub-channels. For AMC the first step is to remove logically null (guard) sub-carriers. The sub-carriers are grouped into bins (one of the four possibilities), the bins are then mapped to sub-channels using the CellID as the permutation base. AMC can be used in the downstream and upstream. We illustrate only the downstream, as the upstream is similar.
3.7.5.9 Summary The tables below show the data rates that are obtained by each sub-channelization scheme. A higher rate generally does not represent obligatorily the best solution, as it was traded by some other feature that will imply in a higher SNIR and consequently a lower rate. We consider frame duration of 5 ms, 1/8 cyclic prefix, with 28 symbols for the downlink and 16 symbols for the uplink (TDD ratio of 0.636). Summary Symbol/frame 1.25 5 10 20 2,688 10,752 21,504 43,008 2,688 10,752 21,504 49,152 2,016 10,080 20,160 40,320 2,688 10,752 21,504 43,008 1,024 4,352 8,960 17,920 1,536 6,144 12,288 24,576 1,536 6,144 12,288 24,576
Bandwidth (MHz) DL-FUSC DL-OFUSC DL-PUSC DL AMC UL-PUSC UL-OPUSC UL-AMC
Bandwidth (MHz) DL-FUSC DL-OFUSC DL-PUSC Dl-AMC UL-PUSC UL-OPUSC UL-AMC
Summary MSymbol/second 1.25 5 10 20 0.54 2.15 4.30 8.60 0.54 2.15 4.30 9.83 0.40 2.02 4.03 8.06 0.54 2.15 4.30 8.60 0.20 0.87 1.79 3.58 0.31 1.23 2.46 4.92 0.31 1.23 2.46 4.92
3.7.6 Frame description The WiMAX frame is the heart of the technology, as it optimizes the access of to the airways in an unprecedented way. IP data comes in chunks of data (packets) that varies in size from few bytes to some MB, with an average value around few KB. The traditional conflict based protocol is very inefficient as proved in the IEEE Std. 802.11 protocol deployments. The WiMAX approach is much more efficient reducing significantly the overhead for conflict and packet synchronization. This is possible due to global frame synchronization procedures throughout the network. In this way everyone knows the moment data is available or should be sent. Only minor adjustments are required at the start of each frame. BSs have a guaranteed time to send its data and SS/MSs are granted this their time by the BSs. SS/MSs adjust periodically their timing (through ranging), so the data they send will arrive in the right moment at the BS. Any minor misalignments will be absorbed by the Cyclic Prefix, so the multipath spread should be less than the Cyclic Prefix time to allow for the misalignments. An allowance of 4 s should be sufficient, which reduces the multipath spread by 1,200 m. 3.7.6.1 Downlink sub-frame The downlink sub-frame starts RTG s after the last UL sub-frame. The start of the sub-frame is further confirmed by the preamble symbol, which is a PN code spread over the first symbol sub-carriers. There are 570 unique codes (114 for each FFT size). These codes suppose 32 CellID for sectored cells with 3 sectors each (defined by segments) and 18 CellID for omni cells. In practice the codes can be applied to any configuration. After the preamble starts the first Zone, that obligatorily is a PUSC zone, so it can support segmentation. The first information to be mapped on the first two symbols of this zone is the FCH (Frame Control Header) that defines the location and size of the DL MAP and the UL MAP. The DL MAP maps all DL data bursts, while the UL MAP maps all the uplink data bursts. Data is allocated in the sequence shown in the next figure. The sub-carrier grouping in the first zone uses the CellID as permutation criteria; the following zones use the PermBase (Permutation Base) variable. The reason for this is that the receiver would not know what PermBase was used until it reads the mapping information. As the use of CellID may result in conflicts between same cell sectors, the mapping information is allocated per segment, using interference avoidance. 3.7.6.2 Uplink Sub-frame The uplink sub-frame mapping is done in the downlink sub-frame, so all SS/MS know when to send data. The uplink sub-frame starts TTG s after the downlink sub-frame. The first zone is PUSC and uses CellID as permutation base. In this zone periodically a 3 symbols wide area is allocated for ranging operations. Other areas are allocated for HARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request) and ACK (Acknowledge) messages and for CQICH (Channel Quality Indicator Channel). This procedure optimizes the sending of these small but frequent messages. Data units are allocated as shown in the next UL figure and then data is allocated in the sequence shown. Each data burst goes all the way to the zone boundary before being extended to the next symbol. Additional zones are then transmitted. The next diagrams illustrate the downstream and upstream frames.
DL sub-frame SubZone channel index Symbol 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 DL Burst 12 13 14 Modulated by PN sequence per segment (CellID) Start RTG End UL Sub-Frame Receive Transition Gap Data allocation sequence End TTG Transmit Transition Gap Start UL Sub-Frame DL Burst DL Burst DL Burst P R E A M B L E 0 (PUSC) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 1 15 16 17 18 19 2 20 21 22 23
FCH Frame Control Header
DL MAP
DL Burst
DL Burst UL MAP
DL Burst
DCD DL Channel Descriptor DL MAP UCD UL Channel Descriptor
P a d d I n g
DL Burst DL Burst
UL sub-frame Zone Sub-channel index 0 Data UL Burst 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Data UL Burst 11 12 Data UL Burst 13 14 Data UL Burst 15 16 C CQICH Channel Quality Indicator Channel Data UL Burst HARQ/ACK Hybrid Automatic Request Acknowledge Data UL Burst Ranging Initial Entry Periodic Bandwidth Request Handover Data UL Burst Data UL Burst Symbol 0 1 2 3 4 5 0 (PUSC) 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 2 18 19 20 21
Data UL Burst
Start
Start
End UL Sub-Frame
TTG Transmit Transition Gap
End Slot allocation sequence
End Data allocation sequence
Start UL RTG Receive Sub-Frame Transition Gap
3.7.7 Zone configuring Dialogue Zones are configured according to the application used and the number of frequencies available that constrain the reuse criteria. Ranging can be used with zones to limit their applications to certain areas of the cell.
3.7.8 Synchronization and Ranging A WiMAX TDD network requires frame level synchronization. Frame timing is controlled by the AP (Access Points) also called Base Stations. The downlink frames are synchronized at the Base Station by the GPS time and synchronization signals are extracted at the receiver. The table below shows, for comparison, synchronization requirements of different technologies.
Technology GSM CDMA UMTS (FDD) UMTS (TDD) WiMAX (FDD) WIMAX (H-FDD) WiMAX (TDD)
Frequency Accuracy 5x10-8 5x10-8 5x10-8 5x10-8 5x10-6 5x10-6 5x10-6
Time Accuracy not required 1 s GPS (10 s holdover) not required 2.5 s not required 1 s GPS (25 s holdover) 1 s GPS (25 s holdover)
GSM and UMTS base stations get their synchronization from TDM T1/E1 that they use for backhaul links. Todays trend of cost reduction requires the move to Ethernet/IP connections for backhaul, but those do not provide the required timing information. The solution is to use GPS which provides the Stratum 1 Primary Reference Source (PRS) with a precision of 10-12. Another alternative is to use IEEE 1588 Precision Timing Protocol which is under trial. The figure below shows the sub-frames of various Base Stations.
The received downlink frame timing is used to synchronize the uplink frame transmission at the MS as adjustment information is sent by the BS to the MS to adjust its timing. There are two synchronization functions, a timing synchronization and frequency synchronization. Timing Synchronization- is less critical than in other technologies as the symbol time is larger and the equalization is easier (the multipath spread is a fraction of a symbol time). Frequency Synchronization- is more critical than in other technologies as the sub-carriers are very close from each other.
The frame synchronization requires that the MS has knowledge of the time a signal takes to reach it and indirectly the distance between it and the BS. This is achieved through a process called ranging. Ranging is performed over one to two consecutive symbols by the BS that evaluates by how much the MS timing is skewed. This information is then sent to the MS in a message. There are four ranging procedures in WiMAX: - Initial- is requested by the MS when accessing a new cell (2 symbols duration) - Periodic- is requested periodically to maintain synchronization (1 symbol duration every 250 ms to 5 s) - Bandwidth request- performed when MS need to request UL resources.(1 symbol duration) - Handover- is requested during the handover procedure to the target cell (2 symbol duration) Ranging opportunities are presented periodically, so they do not appear in all frames.
3.7.9 Resource Management Resource management is the function in the BS that allocates resources to the transmission of data. Each active user is assigned Connection IDs (CID) to identify its sessions. Each CID is 16 bit long. The SDU (Service Data Unit) are classified in Service Flows which establish the following QoS parameters: packet error rate, latency and jitter throughput. Packet error rate is provided by the allocation of modulation schemes. Latency and jitter throughput is provided by the scheduling mechanisms described below: The scheduler classifies the data according to five QoS categories which define how PHY resources will be allocated UGS- Unsolicited Grant of Service- Scheduler allocates periodically fixed amount of data in the DL and UL rtPS- real time Polling Service- Scheduler verifies periodically the amount of data to be allocated in the DL and by unicast messaging the amount of data to be allocated in the UL. ertPS- enhanced real time Polling Service- Scheduler allocates periodically fixed amount of data in the DL and UL, but messages can be sent during this allocation to adjust the amount of data to be allocated next. nrtPS- non real time Polling Service- Scheduler verifies with low periodically the amount of data to be allocated in the DL and by less frequent unicast messaging the amount of data to be allocated in the UL, but MS can request more frequent allocations by contention based polling. BE- Best Effort- Scheduler allocates data only when no other allocation is required in amount limited to resource availability. MS can only request allocation using contention based polling Resource management variations occur when there are congestion as different course of action can be taken. Service degradation or service denial can be applied when required and vary with the complexity of the scheduler. At each frame the different queues are analyzed and assigned to the downstream and upstream subframes in data bursts. This assignment is displayed in the DL-MAP and UL-MAP. Scheduling algorithms are not specified in the WiMAX standard as its implementation is left to the vendors discretion. WiMAX schedulers have a much complex job than the ones of the previous technologies, so simpler implementations are expected at launch and should evolve during the life of the product as field experience is gathered.
3.7.10 Network Operation In WiMAX communication between the BS and the MS is done in by messages and data bursts. An MS can operate in three distinctive modes: - Normal mode- the MS registers with one of the network BS and periodically adjusts its timing with the network. It has to hand-off to the registration when it moves. Sleep mode- the MS negotiates periods of absence with the BS, so it can save power. Messages to the MS are saved and sent at specific intervals. Idle mode- the MS registers with the network when it changes paging groups and can only be found by paging. This procedure saves power and minimizes the network traffic, but data transfer has a larger delay.
BSs are constantly broadcasting network messages and MSs are listening to their messages. A BS can address a specific MS by broadcasting a message to it (paging or data burst). Even if there is no traffic the preamble of each frame is sent. The MS has to do a ranging operation to adjust its timing and power before accessing the network. Registered MSs can receive messages and send replies back in time intervals defined by the BS. When an MS wants to initiate a data exchange it has to send its intent into a specific time interval through a BW request ranging operation. The message sent is a PN code with 144 bits that is formed by a BS specific ID and the MS ID. Multiple MSs can access the same ranging opportunity and be distinguished by their unique PN codes. Several connections can be simultaneously established between a BS and an MS and they are identified by a Connection Identifier (CID). Below are identified Network operation phases. Broadcast Message- BS periodically broadcasts messages: DL Channel Descriptor (DCD), UL Channel Descriptor (UCD), DL Medium Access Protocol (DL-MAP), UL Medium Access Protocol (UL-MAP) Initial Ranging- MS sends a ranging code request at a specific interval. BS acknowledges with timing and power adjustment. Ranging is repeated periodically according to UL-MAP scheduling. Basic Capability Exchange- MS sends its basic capabilities and BS confirms its receipt. Registration message- MS registers with the BS Service Flow setup for user data- After registration BS informs MS of service flow availability to the AAA (Authentication, Authorization and Accounting) server.
Authentication and key generation- MS receives pre-provisioned service flows to connect directly to the AAA server. Key generation procedure follows. Transfer data in the DL direction- BS informs in the DL map that a data burst is being sent to a specific MS in the frame, its location and its CID identifier. MS reads DL map and fetches the data. Transfer data in the UL direction- MS makes a BW request ranging at a specific frame interval. BS sends UL map specifying the location in the frame where the UL data burst should be transmitted. BS fetches UL data burst. Paging- is done to locate an MS in idle mode that had registered in the paging zone. Paging can be only done at specific intervals. Handover- BS allocates scan intervals for the MS. During these intervals the MS does a cell scanning operation to locate handover candidates.
Antenna Systems Antennas play an important role in a wireless connection, and lately this role has been extended by digitally processing received signals. Besides the traditional use of antennas, new digital techniques allow us to explore the fact that different antennas receive different path components and can extract different information. If antennas are not correlated the information from one antenna can complement the other. There are several ways that the information can be extracted and processed, each one better applicable to a specific environment. WiMAX was designed to allow the use of these new technologies to increase spectrum efficiency at a relatively modest cost increase. Antennas interface the electrical signal with the irradiated signal. An isotropic antenna generates the signal equally in all directions of space so the total available power is equally distributed and each direction receives a small fraction of it. Antennas can be built to concentrate the available power in some directions while sending very little to other directions. An antenna that concentrates the power on a specific plane (generally parallel to ground) is called an omni antenna, while if it concentrates the power on a part of this plane is called a directional antenna. The direction (angle in relation to the true north) to which the power is concentrated is called azimuth and it can have a tilt in relation to the plane. Tilt is expressed by the angle in relation to the horizontal plane and if it is toward ground it is called down-tilt and has a positive sign, otherwise it is an up-tilt. The increase in power due to the beam concentration by the antenna is specified as a ratio in relation to the power obtained with an isotropic antenna (dBi) or a dipole antenna (dBd).
4.1
Antenna Polarization Antenna polarization defines how the magnetic and electrical fields are oriented in relation to ground and can be horizontally, vertically or variably polarized. Antennas with orthogonal polarizations should not be able to receive each other signals, although this is not achieved in practice as signals are subject to reflections and refractions which change the wave polarization, so components in opposite polarization are created along the path. This effect is minimized for highly directional antennas that have highly attenuated multipath components. Antenna polarization is mainly used to increase spectrum efficiency in point to point links. Multiple antenna technologies Previously, multipath has been shown as the villain in the quest for spectrum efficiency. Human inventiveness does not have limits and it is always possible to benefit from something that is bad. Traditionally, a wireless link has one transmit and one receive antenna. We can classify this link in relation to the wireless channel as SISO (Single-In signal and Single Out signal). In a SISO configuration multipath signals are received and the combined signal is subject to fading, which should be compensated using the techniques already described above. A SISO link is illustrated below.
4.2
SISO
TX
RX
Multiple antenna techniques rely on the existence of different paths between antennas to eliminate fading. Signal with similar fading characteristics are said to be coherent, while signals with different fading are said to be not coherent or diverse. Co-located antenna positions have to be optimized to provide the desired signal diversity, which can be obtained by adjusting positions or angles. Spacing between antennas of at least /2 and an angular shift of at least 1/8 of the antenna beam width optimizes the signal diversity. Optimizing the antennas is not sufficient to assure non coherent signals, as the amount of LOS components in relation to indirect components has a large influence on the signal coherence. LOS paths tend to be coherent, while non LOS paths tend to be non coherent. The amount of LOS present in a multipath signal is defined in a Rician distribution by the k factor. The Rician K-factor is defined as the ratio of signal power in dominant component over the (local-mean) scattered components power. - Signals have high coherence- High k factor: >10, Multipath signal will follow a Gaussian distribution - Signals have medium coherence- Medium k factor: 10<k>2, Multipath signal will follow a Rician distribution - Signals have low coherence- Low k factor: k<2, Multipath signal will follow a Rayleigh distribution The k factor can be estimated on a pixel basis from the geographical data (topography and morphology) by RF prediction tools. Assuming that the antenna locations are optimized the k factor can then be used to express the coherence between paths. The below described techniques apply to the DL and UL directions, although it is difficult to use multiple antennas in portable phones, or if implemented the antennas are not fully de-correlated.
4.2.1 Receive Diversity In Receive Diversity the receiver learns information about the channel by analyzing known transmissions, like preamble and pilots. Adding additional receive antennas creates alternative paths that will receive different multipath components and consequently be subject to different fading instances. How different the resultant signals are is defined by the coherence factor. This is called a SIMO (Single-In signal and Multiple-Out signals) configuration. The multiple output signals have to be combined, so a single signal is sent to the receiver.
SIMO
TX
SC EG MRC
RX
There are three basic techniques with which the signals can be combined: - Selection Combining- The strongest signal is always selected - Equal Gain Combining- Signal are simply added together (phase correction may be applied) - Maximal Ratio Combining- Signals are added together weighted by their SNIR (it ignores interference) Typical gains provided by these techniques are shown in the table below. Receive diversity does improve the overall SNIR linearly with the number of antennas, but for this to happen the paths should be non-coherent and the combining device optimal. In the network design the path coherence should be considered and an efficiency factor be applied to the combining device.
4.2.2 Transmit Diversity Adding additional transmit antennas creates alternative paths that will create different multipath components and consequently be subject to different fading instances. How different the resultant signals are is defined by the coherence factor. Multiple transmit antenna configurations are called MISO (Multiple-In signal and Single-Out signal). The receive antenna receives signals coming from two or more transmit antennas, so in principle it receives n times the power. This Array Gain can be positive or negative depending on the signal coherence.
4.2.2.1 Open Loop Transmit Diversity In open loop, the transmitter does not have any information about the channel. Additional transmit diversity can only be obtained by replacing sets of multiple symbols by orthogonal signals and transmitting each orthogonal symbol on a different antenna. This method is called Space Time Block Coding. Alamouti proposed an orthogonal code for two symbol blocks and which is specified for use in WiMAX. Transmit diversity does not improve overall SNR, but stabilizes it by averaging the fading over two symbols. Transmit and Receive diversity can be combined to achieve better results.
4.2.2.2 Closed Loop Transmit Diversity In closed loop transmit diversity the receiver sends Channel State Information (CSI) to the transmitter on a regular basis. The transmitter uses this information to adjust its transmissions using one of the methods below. - Transmit Channel Diversity- The transmitter evaluates periodically the antenna that gives best results and transmits on it - Linear Diversity Coding- A linear pre-coding is applied at the transmitter and a post-coder is used at the receiver, both using the CSI information
4.2.3 Spatial Multiplexing Spatial multiplexing is an improvement over the previous solution that uses simultaneously transmit and receive diversity. The use of transmit and receive diversity increases the robustness of the channel, the use of spatial multiplexing trades this robustness by capacity as explained next. In spatial multiplexing each antenna transmits different data, so each receiver receives copies of different streams of data. A matrix can be assembled that relates each transmit signal to each receive antenna and it can be shown mathematically that it is possible to decode all the data as long as the matrix has a number of unique values equal or larger to the number of transmitted streams. In principle the throughput can be multiplied by the number of transmit antennas, but this does not happen in real life, as the channels are not completely orthogonal and one does interfere with the other. The SNIR at each receive antenna is larger than if only one transmission was done and this implies in choosing a modulation scheme with a lower throughput. So, although the nominal throughput of the link is multiplied by the number of antennas, it is reduced due to a higher SNIR, by using a lower throughput modulation scheme. The final result is in between and depends largely of the channel coherence.
4.2.3.1 Open Loop Spatial Multiplexing In open loop the transmitter is unaware of the channel, but the receiver can recover some channel information using one of the methods below. - Maximum Likelihood Detection- the decoder looks for the maximum likelihood vector over several symbols. This implies in examining multiple possibilities that increase exponentially with the number of modulation levels. - Linear Detectors- the decoder applies the inverse of the channel to amplify it, trying to remove the channel influence. - Interference Cancellation (BLAST)- this technique adds another level of randomness by circulating the data through the different antennas, that provides space diversity additionally to time diversity. 4.2.3.2 Closed Loop Spatial Multiplexing - SVD (Single Value Decomposition) pre-coding and post-coding- The diagonalization done in BLAST can be done by applying the channel knowledge. - Linear pre-coding and post-coding- The channel knowledge allows to decompose the channel model in a set of parallel channels and more power is directed to the channels with more gain. The reverse operation is done at the receiver.
4.2.4 Adaptive MIMO System (AMS) AMS chooses the technique that gives the best throughput at each SNIR level. Transmit Diversity presents a higher throughput than Spatial Multiplexing at low SNIR levels and vice versa. 4.2.5 Uplink Collaborative MIMO This is a Spatial Multiplexing technique used in the upstream. As the transmissions arrive from different locations they are non coherent between themselves and this provides a better performance than obtained in the downlink spatial multiplexing, although the self interference issues continue present.
4.3
Advanced Antenna Systems Advanced antennas can be build by multiple elements which if fed with different signal phases can generate nulls and poles at certain directions. This feature is used to reinforce signals and cancel interferences.
4.3.1 DOA Beamforming Direction of Arrival beamforming is done by detecting the direction that the signal and the interferers arrive, reinforcing the first one and canceling the others. The maximum number of cancelled signal is equal to the number of antenna elements minus one. The re-enforcement is generally of the order of few dB and the canceling is not complete either. As different implementations have large variations, these parameters have to be specified at design time based on the equipment used. 4.3.2 Eigen Beamforming A mathematical calculation is performed based on the knowledge of the channel and the desired signal is reinforced while the interferers are attenuated. The maximum number of cancelled signal is equal to the number of antenna elements minus one. The re-enforcement is generally of the order of few dB and the canceling is not complete either. As different implementations have large variations, these parameters have to be specified at design time based on the equipment used.
5 Radio Performance During a design we must be able to estimate the throughput throughout the network and to do it we need to estimate the channel characteristics and the effects of each of the solutions described above to recover the transmitted signal. Next we give a step by step approach to calculate the throughput of a WiMAX connection through different types of channels. We start with the SNR required by each modulation type and the throughput provided per symbol for four different channel types. Then we consider the impairments or gains due to the techniques used in WiMAX in terms of SNR and throughput. The final result will be the sum of gains and losses of the techniques used.
Throughput Effect SNR Effect
Basic modulation
Basic modulation
Coding
Coding
Speed
Permutation
HARQ
HARQ
RX Diversity
TX Diversity
Spatial Multiplexing
Spatial Multiplexing
Final Throughput
Final SNR
There are thousands of possible combinations that will be happening simultaneously in the network. Additionally we have to account for interference signals. The only way to account for all of this is to perform traffic simulations as will be described later.
Below we illustrate a dialogue that provides the throughput and required SINR (Signal to Interference and Noise Ratio) for the modulation schemes used in WiMAX in different fading environments for different Error Rates.
Traffic Traffic is generated by the network users, which are distributed through the service area according to its demographics. These users will use the services offered by the network according to the statistical distributions of each service. Based on the statistical distributions it is possible to calculate the probability that the user of a service is occupying the network. The network traffic is then specified indirectly by the user distribution, which is expressed by several traffic grids. Each grid represents the users of a certain type at a specific height above ground. These grids have a resolution that generally varies from 10 to 100 m. A simplified way is to represent the traffic directly in terms of active users (users that are accessing the network at a certain time). The number of active users is generally specified by the over subscription factor. The offered traffic is obtained from the traffic grids as explained above. This traffic will be stored in transmit buffers at the transmitters. The resource management function analyzes in real time the offered traffic, the available resources and the requirements and a priority is established for each request and instructs the scheduler to allocate the contents of the buffers according to a specific sequence. The standards do not specify the operation of the resource management and the scheduler and this function is defined by the equipment vendors. The algorithms tend to be simple at the initial stages of a new technology and get more sophisticated with the growth in traffic demand when the technology is more mature. The simulation tool has to assume an average behavior (applicable to all vendors) that evolves with the technology. Vendor information and published literature solutions are the main guidelines in designing this part of the simulation tool. Traffic simulation can be done at different levels. - Session tracing- A single session is followed over time, and the other sessions are represented just as an average background noise. This simulation is generally used to analyze protocol messages and timers. It is limited to few sites and needs the data from a dynamic simulation as a background. - Static simulation- A series of traffic snapshots is done statistically but a pre-defined noise rise is used in each cell. This is required when resources are not yet allocated and interference cannot be calculated, but a traffic distribution is required. - Dynamic simulation- A series of traffic snapshots is done statistically and the network equilibrium is calculated through a series of iterations. This method allows for the consideration of interference and dynamic fading effects. The number of snapshots times the number of sessions should be statistically significant. The scheduler has to consider the path loss, the available power, choose the best settings (including the adaptive options) and determine the outcome of the session allocation, which can be successful or not. The exact configuration of each allocation has to be noted statistically as it will be used to demonstrate the network behavior in posterior predictions. The network performance can only be assessed after a dynamic simulation is done and some statistical parameters of each cell are obtained. More than 30 parameters are obtained in a dynamic simulation for each cell and they are expressed in terms of average and standard deviation values. According to the Central Theorem due to the large number of variables involved it is assumed that the distributions are Gaussian.
Performance The network performance has to be evaluated against the Business Plan objectives and the SLA agreements offered to customers. Network coverage can be defined as the area where the network offers each type of Service Class and it should be expressed for different maximum throughputs. As there are many Service Classes and several throughput thresholds, the output is quite complex and the best way to express it, is through a table with the covered area or the percentage of the target area covered. Additionally, plots can be made for the most representative Service Classes. Signal coverage provides a misleading idea of the served area and should not be used as criteria. A single cell can provide strong signal at a 10 km distance, but its effective radius can be 1 km, due to interference or traffic limitations. The actual throughput per cell obtained during the dynamic traffic simulation process is the strongest indicative of the network performance. This throughput is a statistical variable with an average value and a Gaussian distribution. These values are obtained at simulation and can be used to calculate the network KPIs on a per sector basis.
7.1 Traffic KPI Calculation and Traffic KPI Tables The KPI calculation is done based on statistics obtained during the snapshots of the traffic simulation. These statistics are done on a Service Class basis and are post processed to generate the KPI. The results are presented in a set of tables presented next, which are described here. 7.1.1 Traffic Data Table This table summarized for each Service Class the number of Subscribers and the Target Data Rate. The next columns present data gathered during the simulation process for the downlink and uplink in mean values over all snapshots. The number of Active Users, the Offered Throughput and the Served Throughput are presented for the Network and for the Sector. The ratio of the served to the offered traffic is then presented. This ratio represents the queued traffic in some sectors, which will have its transmission delayed. Some of this queued traffic will be passed with delay but without impacting the target data rate, while other will reduce the data rate. 7.1.2 Traffic Throughput KPI at 75% of Peak Rate This table summarizes for each Service Class the requirement of reaching 75% of the peak rate. The percentage of sessions above the target rate obtained at the simulation is listed, as well as, the pass/fail status against a value established in the SLA. Furthermore the actual rate at the target percentage of sessions is shown and it shows how far from the target the actual rate is. This is an important feedback to analyze the elasticity of the KPI. As a final check the average throughput (50% percentile) is shown.
7.1.3 Traffic Throughput KPI at 50% of Peak Rate This table summarizes for each Service Class the requirement of reaching 50% of the peak rate. The percentage of sessions above the target rate obtained at the simulation is then listed, as well as, the pass/fail status against values established in the SLA. Furthermore the actual rate at the target percentage of sessions is shown and it shows how far from the target the actual rate is. This is an important feedback to analyze the elasticity of the KPI. As a final check the average throughput (50% percentile) is shown. 7.1.4 Traffic Throughput KPI at 15% (consumer) and 25% (SME) of Peak Rate This table summarizes for each Service Class the requirement of reaching 15% (consumer) and 25% (SME) of the peak rate. The percentage of sessions above the target rate obtained at the simulation is then listed, as well as, the pass/fail status against a value established in the SLA. Furthermore the actual rate at the target percentage of sessions is shown and it shows how far from the target the actual rate is. This is an important feedback to analyze the elasticity of the KPIs. As a final check the average throughput (50% percentile) is shown. Next we present KPI tables that are representative for a 500 cells deployment. The tables were build for day traffic, so the Service Classes traffic was applied according to the multipliers of the below table.
Service Class Code c1 c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c7 c8 c9 c10 c11 c12 c13 c14 c15 c16 c17 c18 c19 c20 c21 c22 c23 c24 Traffic Factor with Day Factor 0.25 0.017 0.021 0.032 0.022 0.008 0.25 0.017 0.021 0.032 0.022 0.008 0.1 0.9 0.26 0.08 0.66 0.0075 0.005 0.0075 0.03 1 0.7 0.3
Class Name CONS-VoIP-res-6m CONS-D_64k/64k-6m CONS-D_256k/64k-6m CONS-D_512k/128k-6m CONS-D_1M/256k-6m CONS-D_2M/512k-6m CONS-VoIP-res-27m CONS-D_64k/64k-27m CONS-D_256k/64k-27m CONS-D_512k/128k-27m CONS-D_1M/256k-27m CONS-D_2M/512k-27m SME-VoIP-Pwr10-27m SME-VoIP-Basic5-27m SME-Int_512k/512K-27m SME-Int_1M/1M-27m SME-Int_2M/2M-27m SME-VPN-256k/256k-27m SME-VPN-512k/512k-27m SME-VPN-1M/1M-27m SME-VPN-2M/2M-27m NomOutdoor-BE-0.5m NomIndoor-BE-1m NomIndoor-BE-23m
Traffic Factor 1 0.17 0.21 0.32 0.22 0.08 1 0.17 0.21 0.32 0.22 0.08 0.1 0.9 0.26 0.08 0.66 0.0075 0.005 0.0075 0.03 1 0.7 0.3
Day Factor 0.25 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.25 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Night Factor 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.5 1 1
Traffic Factor with Night Factor 1 0.17 0.21 0.32 0.22 0.08 1 0.17 0.21 0.32 0.22 0.08 0.01 0.09 0.026 0.008 0.066 0.00075 0.0005 0.00075 0.003 0.5 0.7 0.3
Day Traffic Data

Mean Active Users Peak Throughput Downlink (kbps) 36 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 36 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 96 48 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 64 64 Peak Throughput Uplink (kbps) 36 64 64 128 256 512 36 64 64 128 256 512 96 48 512 1024 2048 256 512 1024 2048 32 32 32 Mean Offered Throughput (Mbps) Mean Served Throughput (Mbps) Mean Offered Throughput per Sector (Mbps) Mean Served Throughput per Sector (Mbps)
Served/Offered Throughput per Sector Ratio

DL UL
Service Class Code c1 c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c7 c8 c9 c10 c11 c12 c13 c14 c15 c16 c17 c18 c19 c20 c21 c22 c23 c24 AC
Class Name
Subscribers
DL
UL
DL
UL
DL
UL
DL
UL
DL
UL
Consumer VoIP residential at 6 m height Consumer Data 64k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 256k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 512k/128k at 6m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 6m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 6m height Consumer VoIP residential at 27 m height Consumer Data64k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data256k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data512k/128k at 27m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 27m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 27m height SME Power VoIP at 27m height SME Basic VoIP at 27m height SME Internet 512k/512K at 27m height SME Internet 1M/1M at 27m height SME Internet 2M/2M at 27m height SME VPN 256k/256k at 27m height SME VPN 512k/512k at 27m height SME VPN 1M/1M at 27m height SME VPN 2M/2M at 27m height Nomadic Outdoor at 1.5m height Nomadic Indoor at 1.5m height Nomadic Indoor at 27m height All Classes
9,890 673 831 1,266 870 316 3,143 214 264 402 277 101 687 6,185 1,787 550 4,535 52 34 52 206 7,502 1,749 750 42,336
465 14 13 29 23 9 158 3 8 11 7 3 544 2487 93 23 216 52 34 52 206 7497 1745 744 14,431
455 19 18 40 27 9 135 5 8 10 6 3 554 2489 90 25 209 52 34 52 206 7497 1745 744 14,428
21 1 4 19 30 24 7 0 3 7 9 7 67 153 61 29 565 17 22 68 540 615 143 61 2,473
23 2 2 7 10 7 7 0 1 2 2 2 76 170 66 36 610 19 25 76 601 342 80 34 2,199
21 1 4 18 27 21 7 0 2 6 7 5 60 151 39 19 299 11 13 44 297 559 128 52 1,794
23 2 1 7 9 6 7 0 1 2 2 2 66 167 33 18 225 10 10 35 210 316 72 30 1,255
0.01 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.02 0.02 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.00 0.04 0.10 0.04 0.02 0.37 0.01 0.01 0.04 0.35 0.40 0.09 0.04 1.62
0.02 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.05 0.11 0.04 0.02 0.40 0.01 0.02 0.05 0.39 0.22 0.05 0.02 1.44
0.01 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.02 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.04 0.10 0.03 0.01 0.20 0.01 0.01 0.03 0.20 0.37 0.08 0.03 1.18
0.02 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.04 0.11 0.02 0.01 0.15 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.14 0.21 0.05 0.02 0.82
1.00 1.00 0.94 0.93 0.91 0.89 1.00 1.00 0.87 0.89 0.85 0.74 0.89 0.99 0.65 0.65 0.53 0.67 0.61 0.65 0.55 0.91 0.89 0.84 0.73
1.00 0.98 0.86 0.98 0.97 0.99 1.00 0.95 0.89 0.91 0.80 0.97 0.87 0.98 0.50 0.50 0.37 0.54 0.42 0.46 0.35 0.92 0.90 0.89 0.57
Day Traffic Throughput KPI at 75% of Peak Rate

Service Class Code Class Name Peak Down (kbps) Peak Up (kbps) Target Percentage of Peak Rate Target Rate (Mbps) Target Sessions Percentage Percentage of Sessions above Target Rate DL 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 25% 25% 25% 100% 83% 89% 76% 78% 100% 70% 72% 60% 68% 39% 40% 24% 41% 35% 38% 27% 75% 72% 63% UL 98% 63% 98% 98% 100% 97% 89% 91% 57% 100% 26% 25% 9% 29% 16% 21% 8% 79% 75% 73% DL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL PASS PASS PASS Status Minimum Throughput Achieved at Target Percentage of Sessions (kbps) UL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL PASS PASS PASS DL 64 256 512 1024 2041 64 256 512 1006 1969 331 687 1085 173 310 662 1128 64 64 64 UL 64.0 64.0 128.0 256.0 512.0 63.9 64.0 128.0 256.0 511.3 255.5 509.9 754.5 138.6 213.8 471.8 715.4 32.0 32.0 32.0 Average Throughput Achieved (kbps) DL 64.0 241.1 478.0 916.0 1806.4 64.0 225.6 456.0 833.8 1714.1 331.5 687.4 1084.7 172.6 309.8 662.3 1128.1 58.2 57.2 54.4 UL 62.4 54.3 124.9 249.1 505.7 59.8 58.4 118.8 206.8 497.8 255.5 509.9 754.5 138.6 213.8 471.8 715.4 29.6 28.9 28.6
DL c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c8 c9 c10 c11 c12 c15 c16 c17 c18 c19 c20 c21 c22 c23 c24 Consumer Data 64k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 256k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 512k/128k at 6m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 6m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 6m height Consumer Data64k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data256k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data512k/128k at 27m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 27m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 27m height SME Internet 512k/512K at 27m height SME Internet 1M/1M at 27m height SME Internet 2M/2M at 27m height SME VPN 256k/256k at 27m height SME VPN 512k/512k at 27m height SME VPN 1M/1M at 27m height SME VPN 2M/2M at 27m height Nomadic Outdoor at 1.5m height Nomadic Indoor at 1.5m height Nomadic Indoor at 27m height 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 64 64 64 64 128 256 512 64 64 128 256 512 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 64 64 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 48 192 384 768 1536 48 192 384 768 1536 384 768 1536 192 384 768 1536 48 48 48
UL 48 48 96 192 384 48 48 96 192 384 384 768 1536 192 384 768 1536 48 48 48
Day Traffic Throughput KPI at 50% of Peak Rate

Service Class Code Class Name Peak Down (kbps) Peak Up (kbps) Target Percentage of Peak Rate Target Rate (Mbps) Target Sessions Percentage Percentage of Sessions above Target Rate DL 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 50% 50% 100% 99% 100% 97% 99% 100% 94% 95% 90% 97% 66% 71% 54% 69% 61% 67% 56% 96% 94% UL 100% 88% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 84% 100% 50% 50% 32% 54% 40% 46% 29% 98% 96% DL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL PASS PASS Status Minimum Throughput Achieved at Target Percentage of Sessions (kbps) UL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL PASS PASS DL 64.0 241.1 478.0 916.0 1806.4 64.0 225.6 456.0 833.8 1714.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 58.2 57.2 UL 62.4 54.3 124.9 249.1 505.7 59.8 58.4 118.8 206.8 497.8 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 29.6 28.9 Average Throughput Achieved (kbps) DL 64.0 241.1 478.0 916.0 1806.4 64.0 225.6 456.0 833.8 1714.1 331.5 687.4 1084.7 172.6 309.8 662.3 1128.1 58.2 57.2 UL 62.4 54.3 124.9 249.1 505.7 59.8 58.4 118.8 206.8 497.8 255.5 509.9 754.5 138.6 213.8 471.8 715.4 29.6 28.9
DL c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c8 c9 c10 c11 c12 c15 c16 c17 c18 c19 c20 c21 c22 c23 Consumer Data 64k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 256k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 512k/128k at 6m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 6m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 6m height Consumer Data64k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data256k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data512k/128k at 27m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 27m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 27m height SME Internet 512k/512K at 27m height SME Internet 1M/1M at 27m height SME Internet 2M/2M at 27m height SME VPN 256k/256k at 27m height SME VPN 512k/512k at 27m height SME VPN 1M/1M at 27m height SME VPN 2M/2M at 27m height Nomadic Outdoor at 1.5m height Nomadic Indoor at 1.5m height 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 64 64 64 128 256 512 64 64 128 256 512 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 64 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 32 128 256 512 1024 32 128 256 512 1024 256 512 1024 128 256 512 1024 32 32
UL 32 32 64 128 256 32 32 64 128 256 256 512 1024 128 256 512 1024 32 32
Day Traffic Throughput KPI at 15% (consumer) and 25% (SME) of Peak Rate
Service Class Code Class Name Peak Down (kbps) Peak Up (kbps) Target Percentage of Peak Rate Target Rate (Mbps) Target Sessions Percentage Percentage of Sessions above Target Rate DL 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 87% 91% 81% 89% 84% 88% 82% 100% 100% 99% UL 100% 99% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 98% 100% 74% 75% 66% 78% 69% 72% 64% 100% 100% 100% DL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL PASS FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL PASS PASS PASS Status Minimum Throughput Achieved at Target Percentage of Sessions (kbps) UL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL PASS PASS PASS DL 64.0 176.1 381.0 650.2 1360.2 64.0 144.9 301.2 505.8 1229.6 97.5 284.1 251.4 59.2 70.8 212.3 262.1 38.8 36.7 30.3 UL 53.9 29.9 106.2 214.8 482.8 51.9 47.4 97.4 104.8 472.2 5.4 26.2 0.0 12.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 20.9 19.6 19.0 Average Throughput Achieved (kbps)
DL c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c8 c9 c10 c11 c12 c15 c16 c17 c18 c19 c20 c21 c22 c23 c24 Consumer Data 64k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 256k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 512k/128k at 6m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 6m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 6m height Consumer Data64k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data256k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data512k/128k at 27m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 27m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 27m height SME Internet 512k/512K at 27m height SME Internet 1M/1M at 27m height SME Internet 2M/2M at 27m height SME VPN 256k/256k at 27m height SME VPN 512k/512k at 27m height SME VPN 1M/1M at 27m height SME VPN 2M/2M at 27m height Nomadic Outdoor at 1.5m height Nomadic Indoor at 1.5m height Nomadic Indoor at 27m height 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 64 64 64 64 128 256 512 64 64 128 256 512 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 64 64 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 15% 15% 15% 9.6 38.4 76.8 153.6 307.2 9.6 38.4 76.8 153.6 307.2 128.0 256.0 512.0 64.0 128.0 256.0 512.0 9.6 9.6 9.6
UL 9.6 9.6 19.2 38.4 76.8 9.6 9.6 19.2 38.4 76.8 128.0 256.0 512.0 64.0 128.0 256.0 512.0 9.6 9.6 9.6
DL 64.0 241.1 478.0 916.0 1806.4 64.0 225.6 456.0 833.8 1714.1 331.5 687.4 1084.7 172.6 309.8 662.3 1128.1 58.2 57.2 51.8
UL 62.4 54.3 124.9 249.1 505.7 59.8 58.4 118.8 206.8 497.8 255.5 509.9 754.5 138.6 213.8 471.8 715.4 29.6 28.9 30.3
Spectrum Usage and Resource Planning Network Resources are all items that are available in finite numbers or denominations and have to be distributed to elements in the network. Resource examples are as varied as OFDM carriers, antenna tilts, handover thresholds, power thresholds and so on. We would analyze next the optimization and planning of these resources.
8.1
Network Footprint Enhancement When designing a network, cells are located to provide traffic and area coverage, but after the desired results are obtained, the footprint of each cell should be optimized. This means that the overlap between cells should be minimized and only enough overlap should be left between adjacent (neighbor) cells to complete handovers. Each cell footprint can be adjusted through the following parameters: Antenna height Antenna type Antenna azimuth Antenna tilt Transmit power (EIRP) An initial enhancement should be done not considering the resource allocations, so the frequency and code planning can be performed. After all the resources are allocated a final enhancement should be done considering them. Enhancement optimization tools should be able to support traffic, service classes and both types of enhancements.
8.2
Neighborhood planning Neighborhood planning is important as it will determine the operational overlap between cells and the extent of the interference generated by mobiles. Ideally neighborhood planning should be based on a specific number of server cells at each pixel, as this will allow for some handover options. Neighbors can be trimmed in quantity and to do this is important to rank them by common traffic. Additionally all topological neighbors should be considered, as there are geographical situations in which the overlap between cells is small but they have to handoff to each other. Handover Planning Ideal handover thresholds are hard to visualize and only an automatic tool can calculate them properly. The calculation of these thresholds should consider the signal levels at the each cell border pair and based on them calculate the ideal thresholds. Paging zone Planning Paging zones are determined by the operator, based on overall traffic patterns. The design tool should be able to calculate the cells that should belong to each zone with an appropriate overlap.
8.3
8.4
8.5
Carrier and Code Planning OFDM carriers when used for resource planning are called, carriers, frequencies or channels. We will use the term carrier planning as the other ones may cause confusion. Frequencies and codes used for interference avoidance should be planned together, while codes used for interference averaging should be planned first.
8.5.1 Carrier and Code Reuse Patterns The Frequency Reuse Scheme (FRS) is defined by the number of BS per cluster, number of sector per BS, number of frequency channels and optionally number of segments. When the number of segments is not included it should be assumed none. Some possible configurations are listed below. FRS= 3,3,9- This is a low interference configuration FRS= 1,3,3- This is a high interference configuration in which some load sharing should be made. FRS= 1,3,1- This configuration should only be used as a last resource and implies in heavy load sharing. A sector cannot carry more than one third of the traffic, so in reality it becomes a 1,3,3 scheme. FRS=1,3,1,3- This is the same configuration as the previous one but using different segments at each sector
The next two figures illustrate a basic block for the 3,3,9 reuse and a combination of several of this blocks. These regular reuse patterns are for illustration only, as in real life BS are not distributed regularly and the carrier planning should be done with an automatic planning tool that considers all factors, including traffic.
The next figure shows a 1,3,1 reuse block. This configuration will only work for very light loads using interference averaging; otherwise segmentation has to be used as shown in the following figure.
Several strategies can be used when performing a carrier plan: - Carriers can be reserved for point to point connections - Carriers can be reserved for the cell core coverage - Carriers can be partially loaded (segmented) This approach is exemplified in the next figure. In this example three carriers are available. Carrier three is used for point to point rooftop connections. Carrier two is used for coverage close to the cell, while carrier one is used in the outskirts of the cell and to avoid interference between adjacent cells.
A carrier plan looks simple to do by hand, but its complexity is always underestimated and only an automatic design is able to take all aspects into considerations. For the automatic design to be successful it should consider the traffic of the different service classes on a pixel basis, use neighborhood and handover thresholds, consider statistical interference and all the schemes and solutions previously presented. This for sure is not an easy task. The network optimization is a long and interactive process and may take several days for a network with 1000 BS, mainly because the result of a plan can only be evaluated after the KPI analysis is done.
8.6 Cell Identification Planning Cells have to be identified during messaging so one cell does not get data destined to another. This is done through a variable called CellID. There are 32 CellID codes (numbered 0 to 31) that can be attributed to sectored cells. Each sector in these cells is identified by a segment number (3 codes numbered 0 to 2). Omni cells have 18 CellID codes grouped in 3 segments. This result in a total of 114 indexes (numbered 0 to113). The CellID index applies to the downlink and the uplink. CellID is also used for permutation in the first downlink zone (PUSC). CellID planning should distribute the CellID index so same index cells have the minimum possible interaction (signal overlap). 8.7 Permutation Base Planning Additional permutation may be required that is independent of the CellID for other zones and this is achieved using the DL_PermBase and UL_PermBase variables DL_PermBase: is a parameter that is used in the generation of the permutation sequence for both PUSC and FUSC permutations. It is an integer value that may vary from 0 to 31for sector cells and 0 to 17 for omni cells. UL_PermBase: is a parameter that is used in the generation of the permutation sequence for PUSC permutations in the uplink. It is an integer value that may vary from 0 to 69. The PermBase variable is made equal to CellID in the first downlink zone. 8.7.1 When to use fixed or variable DL_PermBase The same PermBase should be used on all sectors in the following circumstances: a. When we want to use interference avoidance (orthogonalization) among segments (i.e., different groups of sub-channels from the same carrier are assigned to different sectors), then we need to set the same PermBase parameter to all sectors. Example of application: Suppose a given WiMAX 10 MHz channel, using, PUSC permutation, where we assign Sub-channel groups 0 and 1 (with 6 and 4 sub-channels, respectively) to all sectors A, groups 2 and 3 to all sectors B and groups 4 and 5 to sectors C. This type of arrangement is sometimes referred to as segmentation and provides for an actual reuse of 1x3, where the unit being reused corresponds to a segment of 1/3 of the full channel capacity. The only way to guarantee that these groups of sub-channels will not have coincident sub-carriers at the same time is to assign to all of them the same PermBase. b. When we want to average interference by generating random conflict probability, then we should target to use different PermBase parameters. Example of application: Suppose a given WiMAX 10 MHz channel, using, PUSC permutation, where we assign all sub-channel groups from 0 to 5 to all sectors. This type of arrangement corresponds to a reuse of 1x1 (sometimes discussed as feasible in WiMAX systems). The only way for such systems to possibly work close to cell edges would be in circumstances where traffic load is low (i.e., only a fraction of the sub-channels is active at a time), and therefore interference can be averaged down proportional to this load fraction. The technique to smooth the probability of conflict among different sectors is to give them different pseudo-random permutation sequences, i.e., by configuring them with different PermBase values.
8.7.2 Frequency Reuse Approaches - Discussion For the frequency reuse and segmentation schemes (FRSS) discussed below, the following convention has been adopted: FRSS = (Nc, Ns, Nf, Ns) Where: Nc is the number of cell sites per cluster, i.e., number of BTS needed to consume all spectrum once. Ns is the number of sectors per BTS Nf is the number of frequencies being planned Ns is the number of segments each frequency is split into. 8.7.2.1 Scenario A One carrier available In this scenario, only one WiMAX frequency is available for a design. The following options could be considered for this implementation. Option 1: Reuse (1,3,1,1) with interference averaging Only under very light load circumstances is possible for this option to provide service. This would be achieved, with the sacrifice of user throughputs, by averaging interference proportional to the load fraction, through the use of different PermBase values for each cell. A resource management control mechanism could even be in place to guarantee that the load would NOT exceed a certain fraction, therefore assuring that this trade-off (throughput for performance) is respected. However, under high load circumstances we expect that SNIR values would be prohibitive for system operation.
Option 2: Reuse (1,3,1,3) with orthogonal segmentation (same PermBase) This scenario corresponds to the segmentation technique described before, where a segment with one third of the sub-channels is assigned to each sector. It can be implemented only through the use of PUSC permutation, using the resource of sub-channel groups to define each segment. The use of same PermBase values for all sectors (so segments are orthogonal) allows some sources of interference (e.g. adjacent sectors) to be reduced to zero, while other sources will have full conflict (e.g. all sectors C in all cells will be totally in synch with the same permutation sequences).
1a 1c 1a 1b 1c 1a 1b 1c 1a 1c 1b 1c 1b 2 1b 1c 1a 1b 1a 1b 1c 1a
Option 3: Reuse (1,3,1,3) with non-orthogonal segmentation (different PermBase per sector) This scenario corresponds to the same segmentation technique described above (and same illustration), where a segment with one third of the sub-channels is assigned to each sector. However, here different PermBase values are assigned to each sector. This scheme also can be implemented only through the use of PUSC permutation, with the resource of sub-channel groups to define each segment. By using different PermBase values, the interference from all sectors is averaged to 1/3 (because the probability of conflict is reduced to 1/3 of what would be with synchronized sequences. However, this 1/3 averaging occurs even for the adjacent sectors, which in some circumstances may become very restrictive, because the worst geographically located interference sources are not avoided. It can be demonstrated (only under full load assumptions) that the option of same PermBase values for all sectors (option 2) is a better choice than using different PermBase values per sector (option 3). However for lightly or medium loaded circumstances the optimized solution could be a different choice. Only simulations that rely on traffic load and distribution offered to each sector would allow such comparison and optimization.
Option 4: Fractional Frequency Reuse This option corresponds to a combination of both scenarios above, where for subscribers in a region closer to the cell the option FRSS = (1,3,1,1) is used, while in the outer areas closer to the edge of the cell, segmentation would be used FRSS = (1,3,1,3). The zoning structure would probably be implemented with a PUSC or FUSC zone for the inner area at different PermBase values, and a segmented PUSC zone for the outer areas, with same PermBase value for all sectors.
8.7.2.2 Scenario B Three carriers available In this scenario, three WiMAX frequencies are available for planning. The following options could be considered for this implementation. Option 1: Reuse (1,3,3,1) with interference averaging This option corresponds to assigning one full frequency to each sector, therefore reusing the full spectrum at each BTS. Each sector would be configured with a different PermBase value. This scenario is expected to have equivalent SNIR performance to the option 3 discussed in scenario A with FRSS = (1,3,1,3), but with 3 times more throughput, as now each resource correspond to a full 10 MHz channel.
Option 2: Reuse (3,3,3,3) with orthogonal segmentation (same PermBase) This option corresponds to assigning one third of the full carrier (one segment) to each sector, therefore reusing the full spectrum at 3-BTS cluster sizes. All sectors would be configured with the same PermBase value. This scenario is expected to have much higher SNIR performance than the option above, at the cost of reducing the channel bandwidth by one third. However, the better operating SNIR condition will allow for higher modulation schemes during link adaptation, which might be able to compensate or even exceed performance in terms of throughput. Only through simulation at different load fractions it will be possible to fully compare with the one presented above.
Option 3: Fractional Frequency Reuse This scenario corresponds to a combination of both scenarios above, where for subscribers in a region closer to the cell the option FRSS = (1,3,3,1) is used, while in the outer areas closer to the edge of the cell, segmentation would be used FRSS = (3,3,3,3). It is expected to bring the best of both worlds, with interference averaging (different PermBase) on the inner regions and orthogonal segmentation (same PermBase) on the outer regions.
8.7.2.3 Tips for PermBase resource planning On the first PUSC zone of the downlink (mandatory), the DL_PermBase is not configurable, and is by the standard set to have the same value as the parameter CellID (also used in the Preamble for cell identification). On the remaining zones, this parameter is configurable by network management, and may be set to have a common value for all sectors in the system, or to vary per sector, depending on the desired application. In the permutation formulas, the variable PermBase may generate the same permutation sequence. For instance in a 1024 FFT system using FUSC (where 16 sub-channels are available per symbol), as PermBase = 0 and PermBase = 16 will lead to the same sequence. Therefore the plan should consider the minimum value between the number of sub-channels and the PermBase.
The number of sub-channels for each permutation scheme is presented here. Permutation name DL-FUSC DL-OFUSC DL-PUSC DL-TUSC DL-TUSC2 DL-AMC-1-6 DL-AMC-2-3 DL-AMC-3-2 UL-PUSC UL-OPUSC UL-AMC-1-6 UL-AMC-2-3 UL-AMC-3-2 128 2 2 3 4 6 12 6 4 4 6 12 6 4 512 8 8 15 17 24 48 24 16 17 24 48 24 16 1024 16 16 30 35 48 96 48 32 35 48 96 48 32 2048 32 32 60 70 96 192 96 64 70 96 192 96 64
8.8 Spectrum efficiency In the first part we analyzed for each domain (frequency, time and power) how the carrier resources were used and what percentage of the resources was allocated for data and what percentage was used for assuring the data integrity, what we call carrier overhead. It is listed below.
Carrier Overhead Guard Bands Pilot DL and UL Cyclic Prefix TDD partition TDD gap OFDMA preamble and mapping total for support available for data Percentage 18% 23% 13% 5% 3% 10% 72% 28%
There is another overhead directly related to the data retrieval and we call it data overhead. It is listed below for the minimum and maximum coding overhead.
Data Overhead Coding MAC overhead HARQ total available for data Minimum Maximum 17% 50% 3% 5% 10% 15% 30% 70% 20% 8%
As we can see only 13% to 21% of the carrier is available for data and this more than the other technologies can claim. There is plenty of room for new ideas to optimize spectrum usage, so we can rest assured that in there will be new technology generations in the future. We have some ideas that may increase the availability for data by 20% to 40%, using the current WiMAX technology.
PART 2 SELECTED TOPICS IN THE DESIGN OF A 4G NETWORK
Introduction We selected several important topics to present in more detail before explaining the design process of high speed data networks, like WiMAX. Many of the issues presented can be overlooked in a traditional wireless network in which the main offering is voice, but this cannot be done in a design of a high speed data network. Several traditional concepts have to be revisited and some of them are still being understood by the community. It is important to understand that a design of large networks is a statistical affair in which huge amounts of data have to be processed in a short time period. Any simplifications made have to be carefully analyzed and its statistical validity confirmed. In a network design we are not concerned with one specific session, or the inter working of the protocols but with the overall functioning of the network and its statistics. A network design cannot be made without the use of sophisticated tools and we believe to have the most comprehensive one, CelPlanner Suite. This suite has several modules optimized for specific tasks: - CelPlanner- network configuration, region and traffic generation, RF predictions and traffic simulation - CelTools- field measurements processing and propagation model calibration - CelData- GIS database editing - CelEnhancer- automatic cell footprint enhancement - CelOptima- automatic resource optimization (neighbors, handover, codes, carriers,..) - CelPerformance- network performance evaluation - CelLink- backhaul design This design tools are living organisms and are always being improved from user comments and the constant technological evolution. These tools were developed to design a network and were not designed to evaluate protocols or specific algorithm implementations. For those cases specific tools are required that use less complex models. To cope with the design challenge we developed several models, processes and procedures that are unique in the industry. The WiMAX version of CelPlanner Suite is the most comprehensive and complete design tool available in the market. We are using the tool dialogues to illustrate many of the concepts here defined, as they summarize the main parameters involved and present them in a logical order. The topics we selected for this part of the white paper are: - Business Plan - Modeling Network Customers - RF channel - RF path loss - RF interference Issues - Network Optimization - Network Simulation - Network Performance
The Business Plan The design of a 4G wireless network starts with a Business Plan. The figure below shows the main aspects that have to be addressed in it. An operator has to get access to a reasonable amount of spectrum to be able to provide high speed data and/or voice services. Capital availability is essential to deploy and operate the network. Local regulations have to be followed and can imply in additional expenses.
The first step that has to be done is to define a Marketing Plan. In this plan the services to be offered, the targeted population and the fee structure is defined. It is a long process that requires market surveys and competition analysis. The outcome is a Service Level Agreement (SLA) and a Fee Structure (FS) that will be offered to the potential customers. The SLA should specify the expected usage from each customer category and what is the expected service performance that will be provided to them. The Engineering Plan follows the Marketing Plan and it is here that the Network Design is done. It can be started with the characterization of the RF environment, vendor and equipment selection and the analysis of site availability. The next step is to model precisely the network customers according to the Marketing Plan. Once the network customers are modeled, sites can be positioned and resources assigned to them. Finally the network performance should be evaluated by its Key Parameter Indicators (KPI) and conformance with the SLA verified. The network design requires databases and sophisticated and automated tools, like CelPlanner Suite, to provide a good design. An operator should consider investing around 8% of the CAPEX (Capital Expenditure) value in the Engineering Plan, the rest of the CAPEX represents the equipment and installation. The Operational Plan includes the network deployment and its operation. This is reflected in the OPEX (Operational Expenditure) value. Finally the Return on the Investment can be calculated and the feasibility of the operation established.
Modeling Network Customers Customers are the essence of the network and should be modeled appropriately. They should be grouped according to similar characteristics and this groups that we call Service Classes (SC) can be differentiated by: SLA, RF Environment and Terminal Type. The number of SC should be kept to a minimum, to ease the analysis, but still model correctly the actual network. The extent of each Service Class should be defined by a traffic distribution grid. User We define as a User a person that uses a mix of IP based data applications. The most typical IP based data applications are listed below: - Web surfing- exchange of data between the user terminal and remote servers. Each burst has several MB of data in one direction and few KB in the other. - E-mail- exchange of data between the user terminal and remote server. Each burst has several KB of data in one direction and few KB in the other. Occasionally a file can be transferred. - VoIP (Voice over IP) - Symmetrical exchange of data (tens of KB per second) over a period of several minutes. This is one of few services that requires a specific turn-around time. VoIP does support different voice qualities as shown in the table below. Lower the bit rate less redundancy is left and greater is the impact of errors.
ITU Codec G.711 G.726 G.728 G.729 G.723 Bit Rate (kbps) 64 32 16 8 5.3 MOS 4.5 4.2 4.2 4.2 3.6
3.1
Relative packet delays of up to 100 ms do not affect voice quality, but relative delays above 150 ms should be avoided. VPN (Virtual Private Network) - exchange of data between the user terminal and remote server. Each burst has several KB of data in one direction and few KB in the other. Occasionally a file can be transferred. FTP (File Transfer protocol)- exchange of data between the user terminal and remote server. Each burst has several MB of data in one direction and few KB in the other. Occasionally the direction can be reversed. Chat- exchange of few KB in each direction over a period of several minutes, with eventual large intervals of silence. Conference- can be divided in data and voice parts. The data part is represented by bursts of few MB in one direction and few Kb in the other. The broadcasting part is assimilated by the network.
Other services like the ones described below are becoming prominent and may become popular in the near future.
Video streaming- continuous exchange of data between the user terminal and a remote server that require a minimum guaranteed throughput. Those streams can be broadcasted or sent to a single destination. Audio streaming- continuous exchange of data between the user terminal and a remote server that require a minimum guaranteed throughput. Those streams can be broadcasted or sent to a single destination. Videophone- continuous exchange of data between users that may require a minimum guaranteed throughput. Gaming- exchange of short bursts of data
Each of these applications has a traffic distribution, and the user traffic should be represented by a mix of these distributions. 3.2 Customer Offered Traffic (COT) We define a customer as a person or entity that subscribes to the wireless network and connects to it. A customer can represent a single user or the sum of the traffic of several users (power user), as is the case of households or businesses in which more than one user is active at the same time. This combined traffic has to be characterized statistically. Traditionally voice was the only service offered and its statistics were well known. Today many new applications are available to the end user and not only had they diminished the need for voice communications as their use is surpassing voice usage. Voice statistics are traditionally defined by call duration and inter-arrival time between calls. As the medium for a voice call was allocated for the whole duration of the call, there was no need to further sub-divide the call. A session is the data equivalent of a voice call. It corresponds to the period that the user is connected to the network. During this period the customer will send and receive sporadic bursts of data. Each burst will have a variable number of packets and each packet a variable number of bytes. Sessions, burst and packets distributions are defined by the following statistics: inter-arrival, time length (duration) and number of components. Besides the traditional exponential and constant distributions, new statistical distributions have to be supported to accommodate data patterns, like the Pareto distribution that has long tails. The three dialogues below have in its left part the Customer Offered Traffic (COT) characterization. It defines the scheduling requirements, the session, burst and packet statistics.
Customer Session statistics
Customer Burst statistics
Customer Packet Statistics
3.3
Operator Offered Services (OOS) In response to a COT profile the operator offers to the customers a Service to transmit and receive their data. This offering is defined in a formal or informal Service Level Agreement (SLA). The SLA should confirm the Scheduling QoS and offer a Maximum Sustained Traffic Rate (MSTR). The scheduling of customers data for transmission may be time sensitive as certain services require that packets be delivered with regularity as they are sensitive to delay variations. This is the case of VoIP and real time MPEG services. Other services quality is not affected by delays, resulting only on faster or slower service offering to the end user. Those requirements are called the Quality of Service (QOS). WiMAX does explore this variation by polling differently the user buffers according to the QoS class specified in the MAC message. The table below specifies the QoS categories specified for WiMAX services.
QoS UGS rtPS ertPS nrtPS BE Description Unsolicited Grant Service real time Polling Service extended real time Polling Service non real time Polling Service Best Effort Polling fixed bandwidth fixed bandwidth fixed bandwidth minimum rate as available Bandwidth Adjustment no periodically fixed until requested unicast or contention unicast or contention Service T1/E1, VoIP MPEG, IPTV VoIP with silent periods ftp, VPN web, e-mail
The MSTR can be thought as a logical data pipe. Additional QoS values are specified according to scheduling requirements. The COT suffers an overhead due to the wireless MAC and this Protocol Overhead Factor (POF) has to be added to the COT. The gross COT and the MSTR define a Load Factor (LF) per customer. This factor is equivalent to the traffic unit used for voice (Erlang). The LF is a fraction of the MSTR and several customers can be multiplexed in the same pipe as illustrated in the figure below.
The inverse of the number of customers multiplexed defines the over-subscription factor (OSR). The LF*OSR and the MSTR will define the data delay distribution. The calculation of the LF and the parameters that characterize the Operator Offered Service are presented in the dialogue below.
Same operators assume a certain load and over-subscription factors to specify their Services, without entering into details. In this case a simplified dialogue is available as shown below.
Many operators assume the over-subscription factor equal to the load factor. This is not a good practice as the delay may become excessive and blocking will occur. 3.3.1 Typical Set of Services A network offers many Services that generally are charged at different rates. A possible set is listed below. VoIP (downlink/uplink) Consumer UGS 32K/32K SME UGS 64K/64K MSTR (downlink/uplink) Consumer nrtPS 64K/64K Consumer ertPS 256K/256K Consumer nrtPS 512K/128K Consumer nrtPS 1M/256K SME rtPS 512K/512K SME nrtPS 1M/256K SME nrtPS 2M/512K VPN ertPS 512K/512K VPN ertPS 1M/1M VPN ertPS 2M/2M
3.4
IP Data Traffic Definition Voice traffic is specified by the call load factor (Erlang) per customer and the number of customers. In this case the load factor is always specified in relation to one circuit. Data traffic is specified similarly with the difference that the load factor has to be specified to a reference, which in this case is the logical pipe. The number of customers subscribed to the service completes the traffic specification. As the load factor can vary for different services, we specify the traffic distribution grid in number of customers. The traffic distribution grid is a raster representation of the customers distribution. The grid resolution is defined by a pixel, typically a square with a side of 1 to 3 arc seconds (10 to 90 m). A traffic grid is illustrated in the figure below.
3.5
Customer Distribution Characterization Customers distribution over the AOI (Area of Interest) is very important and should be modeled precisely. This distribution should be layered for each service offered.
3.5.1 Customer types Customers can be divided in categories according to the number of users and their mix of applications: - Individual customers- represent a single individual, using a phone or a computer. A single individual can be using one or multiple applications and a typical service should be defined for them. - Residential customers- a residence may have more than one user and a residential service should be defined for them. - SME (Small and Medium Enterprise) customers- an enterprise is a power user, resulting from a combination of many users. Additionally SMEs can vary quite significantly in size. Large enterprises are generally excluded as they will be better served with dedicated links. 3.5.2 Distribution of customers Although the exact customer distribution is not known, the network has to be designed to accommodate them over the whole AOI. The customer base should be defined not only in quantities of users but also by its geographical distribution (horizontally, vertically and encapsulation), as illustrated in the figure below.
3.5.2.1 Customer Horizontal distribution Quantitative horizontal customer distribution is defined by regions, generally obtained from Geographic Census Bureaus (GCB). GCB specify geographical polygons (regions) and a set of attributes as population, households, SMEs and so on, contained in each. Marketing plan assumptions can be used to estimate the number of customers in each region. Customers are not uniformly distributed within a region and have to be further distributed to obtain a more precise location. Morphology data can be used to distribute customers within each region, as business customers will be in constructed areas and in-car customers will be on streets and so on. This additional distribution is very important as it concentrates traffic and impacts cell loading.
Horizontal distribution of customers (regions) 3.5.2.2 Customer Vertical Location Indoor customers can be above ground level and this has to be represented in modeling the network, as this distribution has a large impact on the network design. Generally 2 to 4 height levels are sufficient, as listed in the example below. - Ground floor (0m) - Intermediate low floor (12m) - Intermediate high floor (30m) - Top floor (60m) In-car customers can be also above ground, and this has to be represented mainly when there are long elevated highways or bridges. Vertical location of customer is a sub-set of the horizontal distribution, generally done by the intersection of building height layers with the horizontal distribution of customers. Factors are then applied to each height. Vertical location can be modeled for a few representative heights that concentrate the traffic between them.
The distribution of customers is depicted in the figure below. RF signal have to be predicted for each location and a ground level prediction does not apply to users in higher elevations. It is expected that the majority of users of a 4G network will be in elevations above ground.
3.5.2.3 Customer Encapsulation Customers can be classified according to the encapsulation of the customer antennas and the main categories are listed below. - Rooftop- customers antenna is on the rooftop of a house or a building - Outdoor- customers antenna is outside of any construction - Shallow Indoor - customers antenna is on or near the window - Deep Indoor- customers antenna is anywhere inside a house or building - Enclosed Indoor - customers antenna is indoor enclosed by RF obstructions, like an elevator - Underground- customers antenna is below ground level, as in a garage - In-car- customers antenna is inside a car. An antenna mounted on the outside of a car body is considered an outdoor antenna. The encapsulation is generally represented as a factor applicable to the horizontal and vertical distributions.
3.5.3 Customer movement Customers should be classified according to the speed of their movement in relation to the environment. - Fixed- they have a fixed location, which may allow them to use directional antennas - Nomadic- they have a fixed location while using the service, but can move between network accesses. - Mobile- they move while using the service and the speed with which they move will impact fading characteristics (Doppler Effect and fading time). Several speeds may be considered. 3.5.4 Customer Terminal Customers can use different terminal sets, as portable phones, laptops, outdoor CPEs, indoor CPEs. These terminals will have different radios and antennas that have to be characterized to model the network.
3.6
Customers Distribution Layers Customers distributions do not express traffic directly, but we call them traffic grids, as their numbers will be used to calculate the traffic for each service. Traffic grid layers have to be created according to their location and height above ground. Some examples of traffic layers are listed below. - Outdoor pedestrian - Indoor ground level - Indoor 9 m above ground - Indoor 21 m above ground - Indoor 60 m above ground - In-car - Fill in, covers all other areas where customers presence is rare, like water areas, forests, fields, deserts and so on. These layers could be sufficient for a whole city. The remaining distribution of customers can be done using multipliers on these layers, so we can give percentages for different terminal type, movement and encapsulations.
3.7
Traffic Variation with Day Hours Customer Distribution is always considered for the peak hour but it varies significantly for different hours of the day. It should be expected more activity at SMEs during the day than at night and the activity increasing at night in residential areas. This is accommodated by using multiplying factors for different hours of the day. The graph below shows an example of traffic variation for consumers and SMEs during a week day.
Relative traffic distribution at different hours
25.0%
Percentage of total traffic of the category
20.0%
15.0%
10.0%
consumer SME total
5.0%
0.0% 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 hours
A network should be designed for the different peak hours that occur during the year. Besides the regular weekdays, we should consider special events, like games, conventions, trade fairs and so on. A designer should identify this Key Hours (KH) and model them. This is achieved by applying multiplying factors to the different traffic layers for each Key Hour and giving a weight for each. The weight assumption is generally done by the marketing team or set by the operators high administration. The design is then done for a combination of traffic grids, multiplying factors and weight, in such a way that the best compromise is obtained. The design should not be done for all the traffic grids maxed out, as it may give distorted results. Finally the network performance should be evaluated for all Key Hours.
3.8
Environment or RF Channel Characterization RF path loss provides the average loss value to a location, but the actual received signal is influenced by several environmental factors that define the RF channel to this location. These factors are: - Human Body Attenuation- depending on the type of terminal and its position our body can block RF energy directed to the radio. - Penetration Attenuation- users can be at different locations indoors and the RF signal will be impacted by walls and furniture in the path. - Rain Precipitation- it impacts mainly frequencies around 10 GHz and above. - Shadow Fading- the path loss prediction is done as an average to a pixel, but there are variations inside it. Those variations can be obtained from measurements.
Multipath fading- this is the effect modeled by several channel models, but it varies by location. We use a k factor prediction that estimates the ratio of the direct signal to scattered signals according to nearby surroundings. Based on this prediction the channel is modeled as having a Rician distribution with the respective k factor. In this way a Rayleigh or a Gaussian channel are modeled for low or high k values. All those factors are statistically defined and will be used in combination as explained later. An average prediction margin and the fading severity are calculated for sanity check purposes only. The dialogue used to configure the Environmental Characteristics is presented below.
3.9
Customer terminal The customer terminal dialogue defines installation characteristics like transmit and receive losses/gains and antenna parameters. The antenna height above ground is included in this dialogue. It also defines the radio model used by the terminal. The terminal configuration dialogue is shown below.
The Radio Model has many parameters that have to be configured, as listed below and shown in the Radio Model Configuration dialogue displayed next. - Standard complied - Main standard characteristics definition - Modulation schemes supported - Permutations supported - Frame structure - RFFE (RF Front End) characteristics - Antennas Systems Dialogue - Rx Performance Dialogue
The Antenna Systems dialogue defines which MIMO options are supported by the radio, as listed below. - Rx diversity - Tx diversity - DL spatial multiplexing - Adaptive MIMO switching - UL collaborative spatial multiplexing - Beamforming support
All this options bring the issue of the Radio Link Performance, or what throughput will be achieved at what CINR (Carrier to Interference and Noise Ratio) level. Receive sensitivity can be displayed as an option. We start with the different modulation schemes (13 are supported) that have to be considered for different channel fading models (4 ranges are defined) and different BER (Bit Error Rate) requirements (5 are supported). Then the FEC (Forward Error Correction Codes) gain/loss has to be considered. The effects of mobility, HARQ and permutation have also to be accounted for. The effect of the Antenna System on throughput and CINR, according to the antenna correlation (4 ranges are considered). This table is for the designer reference purpose and sanity check only, as actual values are calculated on the fly during processing. CINR and gains and losses are given by default tables provided by the software, but can be editable by the designer, through ten tables, listed below. - Base CNIR - FEC - Mobility - Permutation - HARQ - MIMO - Rx Diversity - Tx Diversity - DL Spatial multiplexing - UL Collaborative MIMO The Radio Link Performance Dialogue is shown below.
This dialogue is also used to specify the performance of each item that affects the CINR and this is done through ten tables that come with default values and can be configured by the user. These tables are: - Base SNIR for different modulation schemes - FEC effect - Mobility effect - Symbol permutation effect - HARQ - MIMO reduction factor with fading - RX diversity gain - TX diversity gain - DL spatial multiplexing - UL collaborative MIMO
3.10 Design Service Classes All the aspects listed above have to be correlated and this is done through designer defined Service Classes. A Service Class groups customers that have similar service and RF characteristics. Each Service Class is defined by a Service, a Terminal, an Environment, a Traffic Distribution Grid and a Traffic Factor. The designer should minimize the number of Service Classes while still representing correctly the network. The dialogue below illustrates the definition of Service Classes.
The RF channel We are discussing here some important aspects of the RF channel and how they relate to the choice of the sub-carrier bandwidth and symbol duration in WiMAX. The WiMAX channel equalization mechanism can be also understood and pilots are used. Frequency and Time Fading Information is transmitted through the wireless media by RF waves that are reflected, diffracted and refracted many times until they reach their destination. A static receiver in a static environment will get a signal that is the sum of several paths of different lengths and these paths add constructively or destructively depending on the signal frequency. The multipath effect leads to a frequency selective fading, as it will occur at some frequencies only. The figures below illustrate this effect. It is interesting to note that if one multipath component obliterates the main signal, other components will still provide a recognizable signal.
4.1
Changes in receiver position or in the environment due to movement will cause a change in the multipath components and consequently a different fading pattern. Movement in the receiver or in the environment will change the fading patterns over time and we call this time selective fading. Both fading are illustrated for a wideband channel in the figure below. It can be seen that fading is similar for nearby frequencies or over short periods of time.
We can calculate a bandwidth for which the fading is very similar. We call this the coherence bandwidth and it is proportional to the multipath spread. The table below shows the 1/10 of the coherence bandwidth for a 3.5 GHz frequency. The 1/10 factor is used to assure that the variation will be very small. A multipath delay spread of 10 s (3 km path difference) has a coherence bandwidth of 10 kHz. Multipath distance spread (m) 10 100 1,000 3,000 100,000 Delay Spread (ns) 33 333 3,333 10,000 333,333 1/10 Coherence Bandwidth (kHz) 3000.0 300.0 30.0 10.0 0.3
We can calculate also the time period for which the fading is very similar. We call this the coherence time and it is proportional to the relative speed between the receiver and the environment. The table below shows the 1/10 of the coherence time for a 3.5 GHz frequency. The 1/10 factor is used to assure that the variation will be very small. At a speed of 100 km/h the coherence time is 131 s. 1/10 Coherence time (s) 130,526 13,053 1,305 131 65 54
Speed (km/h) 0.1 1 10 100 200 240
A signal received through an RF channel has to be equalized to eliminate fading distortions. This equalization is done through the help of preambles, as their carry a known content. An equalizer will try different settings maximizing the preamble decoding. These settings are then applied to the data part. The number of settings to be verified in each symbol is proportional to the modulation used. Higher the modulation more settings have to be experimented. Due to the multipath delay spread the main signal will be combined partially or completely by signals of previous symbols, and this extends the equalization to be done over two or more symbols. If equalization has to be done over several symbols the number of settings raises exponentially. The table below gives the number of setting for different modulations and number of symbols. Todays equalizers can perform around 256 settings. This means that for 16QAM it is possible to equalize over two symbols and for 64 QAM just one.
Number of overlapped symbols BPSK QPSK 16QAM 64QAM
2 4 16 64
4 16 256 4,096
16 256 65,536 2E+07
64 4,096 2E+07 7E+10
256 65,536 4.3E+09 2.8E+14
The approximate fading duration for different severities and at different speeds is shown in the next table, followed by a table showing the number of crossings in the same conditions.
fade duration (s) speed (km/h) 0.1 1 10 100 200 240 -3 703,237 70,324 7,032 703 352 293 fade intensity (dB) -6 -10 320,029 32,003 3,200 320 160 133 124,048 12,405 1,240 124 62 52 -20 12,343 1,234 123 12 6 5
level crossings/second speed (km/h) 0.1 1 10 100 200 240 -3 1 5 52 522 1,044 1,253 fade intensity (dB) -6 -10 0 0 2 1 22 8 217 82 434 164 520 196 -20 0 0 1 8 16 19
The above tables indicate that fade duration decreases with speed but the number of fades increases.
4.2
The ideal RF channel An ideal RF channel should present flat characteristics in frequency and time of the period of one symbol as this will minimize the equalization requirements and make the data retrieval more reliable. To establish the coherence bandwidth of such channel we need to know the multipath spread expected in the different environments where it will be used. The table below gives typical multipath spread ranges found in the field.
Environment RMS Delay Spread Range (ns) min 10 200 600 2,000 max 270 2,100 3,500 10,000 RMS Delay Spread Distance (m) min 3 60 180 600 max 81 630 1,050 3,000
Indoor Urban Suburban Rural
The largest RMS delay spread is 10 s that corresponds to a spread distance of 3 km. From the spread distance we can estimate the maximum cell radius between 3 and 9 km. The multipath delay spread requires that the symbol duration should be larger than 10 s for it to fit into one symbol. At the same time a speed of 100 km/h requires symbol duration of less than 131s. This means that a flat RF channels should have symbol duration between 10 and 131 s. The same multipath delay spread establishes that a flat RF channel will be achieved for a bandwidth of less than 10 KHz. This indirectly limits the size of the symbol, as to fit within this bandwidth the symbol rate should be less than 10 Ksps and the symbol duration larger than 100 s. WiMAX IEEE Std. 802.16e has the following parameters per sub-carrier. - Sub-carrier bandwidth: 9.72 kHz - Symbol duration: 102.86 s With symbol duration much larger than the multipath delay spread it is possible to eliminate the part of the multipath that comes from other symbols by extending the symbols duration for the duration of the multipath and then replacing the initial one by this extension. This operation is called cyclic prefix and was already described in part 1. As the RF channel of a single sub-carrier is considered flat there is no need of preambles and the equalization has to happen only between sub-carriers and pilots are used for this reason.
4.3
Comparing technologies The table below compares different technologies throughput and the respective multipath distance spread for one symbol duration. It can be seen that WiMAX supports high speed and large delay spread while the other technologies have to trade speed by range. The cell radius can be estimated from the distance spread by multiplying it by 3. The table values are approximate, just to give an idea of the trade-offs.
Technology Bandwidth (MHz) Symbol duration (us) Highest Modulation Maximum Theoretical Data Rate per SubCarrier (Mbps) Total Data Theoretical Rate per Carrier (Mbps) Maximum Multipath Distance Spread for 1 symbol duration (m) 1,111 78 78 234 234 1,920 3,000 3,000 3,000 3,000 3,000 3,000 Coherence Bandwidth (KHz) Coherence Time (s) 100 km/h
GSM/GPRS/EDGE UMTS HSDPA CDMA EVDO WI-FI SOFDM (sub-carrier) SOFDM 1.25 MHz SOFDM 2.5 MHz SOFDM 5 MHz SOFDM 10 MHz SOFDM 20 MHz
0.16 3.844 3.844 1.288 1.288 20 0.01 1.25 2.5 5 10 20
3.7 0.26 0.26 0.78 0.78 6.4 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00
QPSK QPSK 16QAM QPSK 16QAM 64QAM 64QAM 64QAM 64QAM 64QAM 64QAM 64QAM
0.41 6.00 14.00 1.95 3.25 1.12 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03
0.41 6.00 14.00 1.95 3.25 54 0.03 3.84 7.68 15.36 30.72 61.44
270 3,846 3,846 1,282 1,282 156 10 10 10 10 10 10
131 131 131 131 131 131 131 131 131 131 131 131
4.4
Channel models Several channel models have been developed for technology evaluation studies. The main ones are listed below.
4.4.1 3GPP empirical channel model Path loss is a function of distance, frequency, BS antenna height, MS antenna height and a factor for two environments. One to 20 delayed paths following exponential power decay. Each multipath corresponds to a cluster of M sub-paths corresponding to local scatterers. AoD (Angle of Departure) is narrow and AoA (Angle of Arrival) is uniformly distributed. The final channel is created by summing all sub-path components. 4.4.2 3GPP2 semi-empirical channel model ITU has defined several RF channels to be used in evaluation comparisons of different solutions. - Pedestrian A- flat fading model corresponding to a single Rayleigh fading at 3 km/h - Pedestrian B- four delay paths (0, 0.11, 0.19, 0.41 s and relative power of 1, 0.107, 0.012, 0.0052) at 3 km/h - Vehicular A- four delay paths (0, 0.11, 0.19, 0.41 s and relative power of 1, 0.107, 0.012, 0.0052) at 30 km/h - Vehicular B- six delay paths (0, 0.2, 0.8, 1.2, 2.3, 3.7 s and relative power of 1, 0.813, 0.324, 0.158, 0.166, 0.004) at 30 km/h 4.4.3 Stanford University Interim (SUI) semi-empirical channel model Six typical channels are specified for the USA with three multipath fading delays. 4.4.4 Network wide channel modeling All those models and many more exist in a real network. A channel model can be used for many applications like testing equalizers, but in terms of a network design its application is to define the fading behavior. The best way to achieve this is through statistical distributions and the most appropriate one is the Rician distribution. The k factor in this distribution allows the modeling from the Rayleigh distribution all the way to the log-normal (or Gaussian) distribution. We expect a Gaussian fading when we have direct Line of Sight (LOS) and Rayleigh fading for non-LOS scenarios. The Rician distribution allows us to model all the different scenarios by adjusting the k factor. We use the k factor to express the environment at each location by analyzing its surroundings. This generates a k factor prediction. The fading distribution can then be adequately modeled for each location. The importance of this distribution will be better understood when we analyze RF interference issues in item 6.
Propagation models RF propagation models are conceived to reproduce path loss between two points using just terrain data bases to calculate the results. A goal of the models is to reproduce the average value of the path loss at different points from the transmitter. All models are empirical models with parameters that need to be adjusted for each area. This adjustment is done by analyzing measurements and trying to match the results. A distinction should be made between propagation models and its parameters. Some people call a change in parameters a new model; we prefer to call by model a specific formulation that has assignable parameters. The same model can cover multiple frequency bands and terrains distinguished by a set of parameters, which define a model configuration. Another important distinction to consider is cell and sector. A sector is a sub-division of an omni cell into directional cells. So the term cell can be applied to omni cells or to directional cells. When a distinction is required we use cell and sector, while when a distinction is not required we use cell to cover both cases. Propagation models should be able to predict signals at ground level, at different building floors, outdoor and indoor, as illustrated in the figure below.
They should also be able to predict the effect of morphology changes in the path and have parameters that can be applicable to similar cells. We are comparing model performance through 2 D plots that show the predicted signal level at different distances and heights. 5.1 Traditional models Initial models goal was to predict very large cells (10 to 100 km radius), so the required precision was small. The most successful of this models was the Okumura-Hata model that underwent several adjustments along the time and is still been used today in the cellular environment. The Lee model was conceived to provide a better degree of precision and provided better resolutions for smaller cells. Several other models were created that addressed special terrain configurations (COST 231, WalfishIkegami, CRC and so on). The main traditional models are briefly explained next.
5.1.1 Okumura-Hata model This is an empirical model formulated in 1968 that considers the distance, frequency, transmit and receive antenna heights. It does not consider morphology height. More recent implementation added diffractions analysis and in some implementations the morphology height is included in the topography. The figure below shows the 2 D model prediction and as can be seen the results are totally unrealistic with height.
5.1.2 Lee model It divides the distance in two ranges, with different attenuation factor in each: 20 dB per decade attenuation up to 1 mile and a variable dB per decade attenuation above 1 mile. This is based on the sum of a direct and a reflected path. Implementations consider the morphology at the location of the receiver only and it does not consider morphology height. Diffraction models are used for non LOS paths and optionally morphology heights are added to terrain. The figure below shows the 2 D model prediction and as can be seen the results are also unrealistic with height.
5.1.3 Walfish-Ikegami model This model does consider building but only of uniform height over flat terrain. It does not perform well in other terrains.
5.2
Reference models The need to perform studies that would be applied to a variety of situations required the development of deterministic reference models. These models do not cope with the variety of scenarios found in real life, but are useful to perform theoretical studies and compare technologies. An example of these models is the Erceg Model.
5.2.1 Erceg model This model uses an initial attenuation to 1 km based on free space followed by a slope after it. Additionally a k factor is added based on season, receive antenna height and beam width and log normal shadowing. Standard parameters are defined for 3 terrain types. This model should be used for comparative studies and is not adequate for real life predictions as can be seen in the 2D plot below.
5.3
Fractional Morphology RF paths traverse segments of different morphologies; this consideration leads to an improvement on traditional and reference models, by considering different slopes for each of the traversed morphologies. The application of propagation models without the consideration of fractional morphology requires a different set of parameters for each cell in the system (unless they have very similar morphology distributions), as generally there is no correlation between the parameters in one cell and the next. Fractional morphology provides the possibility of reusing parameters from one cell to the next, even if they have different morphology distributions. We were able to improve the performance of all models by applying the concept of fractional morphology to all of them.
5.4
Advanced models The new 3G and 4G technologies require RF prediction models that can reproduce much more precisely the environment, without resorting to prohibitively expensive databases and that can perform predictions in a reasonable time. One of the requirements of these models is the ability to predict indoor and outdoor signals, as well as predict signal at different elevations over ground in order to reproduce the effect of multi story buildings. The models should be able to reproduce the 3D effect of the morphology. The figure below illustrates situations in which network users are at different heights above ground level. It is important to predict the signal level at these heights. The predictions cannot be corrected by a simple factor as an additional height can clear an important obstruction. A good prediction tool should be able to predict at different levels, generally specified in the Service Class dialogue. An important aspect of advanced models is the application of fractional morphology, in which the morphology variations along the path are considered. This yields propagation models that have great reusability of parameters between cells.
5.4.1 Ray tracing models Ray tracing models require a detailed building data bases to provide good predictions and can be only applied to small distances due to the large processing time required. The results are similar to the ones we obtain with the Korowajczuk model in a fraction of the processing time and without distance limitations, using regular databases. 5.4.2 Korowajczuk model We decided to improve our prediction results by analyzing several factors that existing models did not support and this lead to the development of our own model. The Korowajczuk model considers more detailed propagation mechanisms than the traditional models and predicts path loss for different heights, indoor and outdoor of buildings. It allows the use of regular databases, with carved streets, but requires that average morphology heights be specified. The model divides the path between the transmitter and the top of the morphology where the receiver is, in segments where the Fresnel zone touches the morphology and where it does not. There is a
propagation factor for when the path does not touch the morphology and one propagation factor for each morphology type that is touched. A diffraction model is used when terrain is an obstruction added by another diffraction factor when for the morphology obstruction. Finally, a penetration loss is applied based for each morphology type and height in which the receiver is embedded. This is illustrated in the diagram below and a 2D prediction is shown in the next figures. It can be seen that the model predicts well for different heights including indoor of buildings. Fading effects are considered additionally. It is recommended that the fading factors be applied statistically during simulations. This model requires that urban canyons, like roads and streets be present in the terrain data base. Building resolution data bases are very expensive and economically feasible in small areas only. An alternative is to use average resolution data bases and carve road and streets on them. The Korowajczuk model presents a large advantage in relation to the other models, which require a set of parameters for each cell, as its parameters have a good reusability factor and few propagation tables are enough for all cells of a city. The next set of figures presents the concepts involved in the Korowajczuk model formulation. The propagation is done by waves that are diffracted differently by terrain and morphology. The Fresnel zone obstructions are established and the path is broken in segments that touch or not the morphology. The penetration into the morphology is considered.
m1
m2 m3 m1
Radio tower
m1 m2 m3 m1
Radio tower
m1 ht
Radio tower
m2
m5
m6
m3
m5
m1
m5
hr
di dp dm df ds de
The model results in a multi-slope configuration and mimics the 3D propagation of the radio waveform, by absorbing the 3D effect through the calibration of the model parameters.
The next figures show how the model predicts the path loss along the path for different distances and heights. It can be seen that the model predicts well the path loss (signal level) behind and inside buildings. The signal is stronger in higher floor levels and weaker as the building is penetrated. Environmental losses have to be added according to its statistical distributions as explained in part1..
The main parameters of the Korowajczuk model are shown in the table below.
Typical results of the Korowajczuk model are displayed below. The average path loss is very close to zero for calibrated sites and less than 2 dB for non calibrated ones. The standard deviation varies between 5 and 9 dB, with a Gaussian distribution. Site Propagation Loss (db/decade) 28.3 28.3 31.8 29.4 Diffraction Roundness Factor 0.15 0.39 0.27 0.38 Average Error (dB) 0.00 0.00 0.03 0.00 Standard Deviation (dB) 7.0 5.6 6.5 7.6
Site 1 Site 2 Site 3 Site 4
The impact of these deviations in the network design should be evaluated. They cannot be applied to correct the predicted value as this would distort even more the results, but their impact should be evaluated in the network statistics. The average distribution should be as close to zero as possible, as a large average deviation would mean that we are under-predicting or over-predicting the path loss. The standard deviation should be absorbed by the fast and slow fading and for this to happen it should be of the same magnitude For these reasons we try to limit our average deviation to 2 dB and our standard deviation to 9 dB. 5.5 Measurements and Parameter Calibration Advanced propagation models require the definition of many propagation parameters, which have to be derived from measurements. RF channel measurements have to reflect the average path attenuation at short and large distances, so interferer signals can be predicted. This requires that the measurements be done with a narrowband channel (low noise floor) and be filtered for fast fading. A CW transmitter can be used with a bandwidth of few kHz, so the noise floor is very low. Care should be taken that no other transmission is happening at the chosen frequency and that the transmission at neighbor frequencies will not overload the receiver. A drive test without transmission should be done first to satisfy these conditions, followed by the transmission drive test. A badly done drive test will give worst results than not having it. It is always important to analyze drive test results for inconsistencies.
Measurements should be collected with an associated time and location stamp. They should then be processed to eliminate redundant measurements, integrate for fading, filter by distance, filter for antenna nulls, filter by noise floor and by locations not well represented in the data base. Measurement positioning should be adjusted (due to GPS error), so they fall in the morphologies they were actually measured. In urban areas the GPS location should be assisted by a dead reckoning system. Collected measurements should be filtered for fast fading, according to the multipath limits shown before (the usual 40 integration was developed for cellular urban applications in the 800 MHz band only and does not apply everywhere). The figure below shows a set of measurements that have been adjusted to the morphologies.
An additional filtering can be applied after the first calibration in which measurement with large prediction errors are scrapped, as this will eliminate atypical measurements, and the model is then recalibrated. The figure below shows measurement analysis screens.
The set of figures below show the measured and predicted signals, as well as result of the calibration process.
The figure below shows a calibration dialogue in which the parameters can be constrained to physical limits. Typical results are shown in it for the Korowajczuk model.
6 6.1
RF Interference Issues Signal Level Variation and Signal to Interference Ratio A received signal level at a location is varying constantly over time due to fading effects. This signal variation can be expressed by its mean value and its statistical distribution. This applies to the desired signal and also to the interfering signals, as shown in the figure below. In this figure we show the desired signal and three interferers. The last interferer shows the interference expected from the two others if sub-carrier permutation is used, as the effect of this permutation is the averaging of the interference received.
Signal reception requires a Signal to Noise and Interference Ratio (SNIR) but it is not possible to establish a single SNIR in the above figure. Using average values may lead to erroneous conclusions, as it will not express the moments that the SNR is bad. This can be remedied if we give for each SNIR value the time percentage that it is not reached. As an example we can say that a received SNIR is below 17 dB 30% of the time and below 12 dB 5% of the time. Outage values can be calculated from the signal and interference distributions. Signal level Distributions can be obtained from measurement over certain periods of time at different locations. We found that these distributions are relatively constant for a network and can be approximated by Gaussian distributions. The figure below illustrates the signal and the interference distributions. Outage is expressed as a probability that a SNIR smaller than a desired threshold will happen.
This results into a new distribution for the SNIR from which the outage can be calculated. This is shown in the figure below. The dialogue below provides a table with outages for different SNIR based on a specified standard deviation of the SNIR distribution. Typical values of the SNIR deviation are between 6 and 12 dB.
The traditional way of adding a margin to the prediction is completely misleading and cannot be used when we are analyzing the interaction between two or more signals. Simple ratios of average values may say that two cells do not interfere and this may be true for 50% of the time, but they may interfere 40% of the time and this interference should be considered. Outage is the best way to express interference. Outage can be related to traffic, by multiplying the affected traffic by the time outage, resulting in a traffic outage. Time outages can be statistically added, while traffic outages can be simply accumulated.
6.2
Computing Interference In a wireless network interference does vary over time also due to the location of the interferers. This is even more applicable in WiMAX where transmitters change every frame. In the downlink scenario illustrated below we define for analysis purposes one cell as Interfered (Ed) and another as Interferer (Er). Customers of both cells receive their respective signals, but one interferers with the other as illustrated in the figure (we show only the interference in one direction). The interfering signal varies with the position of the customer due to power control. As customers change, the level of interference changes also. This change is not so large in WiMAX due the adaptive modulation scheme used and the restricted range of the power control.
Downlink
BS
ED SS/MS
ER SS/MS
BS
Interfered Cell
Interferer Cell
In the uplink scenario the same happens, but now the level change is much larger as the path loss between the interfering customers to the interfered cell plays a role also.
When we add sub-carrier permutation to the mix, the interference can change from symbol to symbol. Additionally we have to consider traffic load when doing the analysis, as there may be moments without transmission and consequently without interference. It is the sub-carrier permutation that allows us to benefit from the silence moments, by averaging the interference. In AMC the permutation is not used and the data is allocated sequentially, so the load gain is lost.
Another important observation is that the interference in the downstream and the upstream is not symmetrical as illustrated in the figure below. The paths for the downlink and the uplink interferences may suffer different losses, as illustrated. In the figure the downlink interference is high, while the uplink is low.
6.2.1 Cell Interference Statistical Characterization There is a need to assess the average value of the transmitted signal level (TSL) from a cell. This is done as illustrated below by calculating the power to each pixel in the cell service area and doing traffic weighted sum. The dark blue area is where the cell is the preferred server (gets nearly all the traffic) and the light blue are where it is not (gets a small portion of the traffic). The light blue area represents the handover area.
There is also a need to assess the average received signal level (RSL) by a cell. This is done as illustrated below by calculating the power received from each customer position in another cell and doing traffic weighted sum.
Both calculations assume a noise rise at each cell to define the required transmit power.
6.3
Computing Outage For optimization purposes we need to establish the interference potential between every cell pair. To do this we have to calculate the outage at every pixel and populate outage matrixes.
6.3.1 Pixel Outage We will initially describe the analysis done at each pixel. Initially a reference SNIR is established. The signals received at each pixel are listed in order of strength. They are the classified as preferred server, potential server, interferer or ignore. The preferred server is the strongest server at the pixel. Potential servers are the ones with signals above the handover threshold. Interferers are the ones that due to its lower signal level are below their handover threshold and could not be servers at the pixel. Ignore signals are the ones that are well below the noise floor. The servers are then associated with a fraction of the pixel traffic. The preferred server gets the largest fraction based on a mobility factor previously defined by the designer; the remaining is split between the potential servers proportionally to their relative signal strength. The reference SNIR outage for each pair server-interferer (all servers are also interferers at this step) is calculated, traffic weighted and recorded to an outage matrix.
The downlink interference is calculated using the TSL as the signal level transmitted from the interfering cell. The uplink interference is calculated using the RSL as the average received level by the interfered cell.
6.3.2 Outage Matrix The process above described is repeated for all pixels in the network and the following matrixes are built: - Downlink matrix o Co-channel interference o First Adjacent Channel interference o Second Adjacent Channel Interference o Cross Polarization Channel Interference - Uplink matrix o Co-channel interference o First Adjacent Channel interference o Second Adjacent Channel Interference o Cross Polarization Channel Interference - Overall matrix The overall matrix combines all the above matrixes, weighted by traffic.
The interference outage matrix expresses the potential interference that the signals from (downstream) and to (upstream) one sector controller have to other sector controllers. This interference is represented by an outage in relation to a pre-specified QoS (SNIR threshold), multiplied by the traffic affected. When complete, the matrix provides a good indication of interference between any pair of sectors. This information will then used to the optimized distribution of resources for each sector. CelOptima is the tool used to calculate the interference matrix and the dialogue to configure its calculation is shown next.
CelOptima Matrix configuration screenshot
The outage matrix table is displayed below in table form and in graphical form. This type of display is unique to CelOptima.
Interference Matrix Table
The interference relationship can be visualized also graphically, as shown in the figures below. From the figure below it can be seen that there many interferes to a single cell and not just the neighbour cells. The interference is displayed in colours define din the outage table. Not always the closest cell is the strongest interferer. This stresses the importance of an automatic tool like CelOptima to calculate the interference patterns.
Interference matrix representation for a single site and detail
7 7.1
Network Optimization Footprint Enhancement
Wireless systems are implemented with overlap between cells to provide mobility from one cell to another and to avoid coverage holes; however, overlapping increases interference and, consequently, may diminish network capacity. This effect is very complex and achieving the proper amount of overlap while simultaneously minimizing interference and maintaining the coverage area is a very daunting task, but it may significantly increase capacity. CelEnhancer automatically shapes cell footprints to enhance network performance, by minimizing interference while maintaining coverage and balancing traffic distribution. This enhancement of the cell footprint is done by selecting the best antenna parameters within limits specified by the designer. The enhanced antenna parameters are: - antenna type - antenna azimuth - antenna down tilt - antenna height - transmit power The network can be enhanced for all this parameters or just for some chosen by the designer. The enhancement can be done constrained to ranges pre-defined by the user. A set of user-defined parameters determines the enhancement objective in terms of network performance. The Improvement and Deterioration table allows designers to weight the importance of coverage, traffic, and interference in the network. The weighting is divided into two categories: improvement and deterioration. The weights allow the tool to determine scores for each of the possible changes and select the best one. Those parameters are configured in the dialogue below.
7.1.1 Enhancement Methodology According to the configuration above, improvement (reduction) of interference is ten times more important than an improvement (increase) in the coverage area; whereas deterioration (increase) of interference is four times worse than deterioration (reduction) in the coverage area. The table also relates each parameter to itself; that is, avoiding deterioration in the coverage is five times more important than trying to improve the coverage. To give some flexibility for the tool, a small percentage of reduction of the total coverage area (1%) was allowed but no increase of interference was accepted. Because changes in the cell footprint affect the traffic carried by each sector, designers can also define what is the Maximum Best Server Traffic Variation and Blocking they are willing to accept for a cell. The best server traffic variation field avoids footprint changes that could drastically affect the current traffic pattern of the system, by establishing a maximum increase/decrease of the traffic currently carried by each sector. As this design considers a heavily loaded network that has its capacity limited by interference and not coverage, a variation of 100% of best server traffic variation is acceptable, meaning that cell footprints may change the best service area of the site significantly if this benefits the overall interference level of the system. The last step is to define the enhancement parameters, that is, which changes should be tested for which sectors. These parameters are stored in the CelEnhancer Parameters Table. In this table, each line represents one change to be tested for a given sector; therefore the same sector may appear multiple times in the table, to test different parameters. The tool is capable of optimizing antenna type, downtilt, azimuth, power, and height. In the example below the following parameters were selected for enhancement: Downtilt from 0 to 7 degrees (in increments of 1 degree); Azimuth a variation of up to 30 degrees of the original sector azimuth (in increments of 5 degrees).
Enhancement Parameters
While the enhancement process is running, a log window displays the scores and results obtained for each of the parameters tested. This window shows the parameter being tested, the possible values, and the score obtained in each case. Based on the score and traffic information, the tool calculates a grade for each possible value. The grade represents how much each specific change would affect the overall performance of the network; thus the current value always has grade 0. The suggested value is selected by choosing the highest grade. Some of the possible values are discarded because they violate the required enhancement objective (e.g. Interference Increment Exceeded).
Sample Log Window of Enhancement Process
The enhancement process is done before the resources are allocated in the beginning of the optimization process and then re-done after the resources are allocated. In the first case all cells are considering using the same resource and in the second the actual resource distribution is used to calculate the interference.
7.2 Neighborhood Planning Neighbourhood list is very important as it will define handover points. Neighbours are generated by two approaches. 7.2.1 Topological neighborhood Geographical neighbours are important as they define the path the user has to take to transition from one cell to the next. We calculate the topological neighbours as depicted in the figure below.
Natural Neighbours
7.2.2 Overlap neighborhood Some site may have overlap but not be topological neighbors. A matrix similar to the outage matrix is prepared to define the amount of neighborhood between cells. Through this matrix is possible to rank the neighbors by the amount of overlap. A combined neighborhood list is then prepared, mixing topological and overlap neighbors. 7.3 Handover Planning Another matrix is prepared that maps signal levels at the overlap between neighbors. This matrix is then processed by CelOptima and provides a list of optimized handover thresholds for each cell against its neighbors. An average value per cell can be also calculated.
7.4 Automatic Carrier Planning Available carriers or channels are represented in a channel table. CelOptima implements advanced algorithms that assign channels automatically, minimizing network outage. A proprietary heuristic algorithm is used to perform this assignment. This algorithm has achieved highest marks in international performance tests. The outage matrix is used as an input to the carrier planning process. The first step in the frequency planning is to establish a QoS relationship between CNIR and the traffic outage as is shown in the table below.
CelOptima frequency planning QOS dialogues
The next step is to define the channel table, including prohibited channels and adjacency relationships.
Channel table for 802.16e (fixed)
NAH- Not available in Horizontal Polarization NAV- Not available in Vertical Polarization
Next the resource allocation penalties are established as shown in the dialogue below.
Penalties associated with the resource allocation
Finally the parameters for frequency planning are defined as shown in the following dialogue.
Frequency planning parameters

The next figure depicts the actual frequency planning process, where each dot represent one iteration cycle and each plan quality is measured in terms of traffic outage.
7.5 Automatic Code Planning The Interference Outage Matrix is used as an input to the code planning process. CelOptima picks the best codes automatically. WiMAX has the following codes described in part1 that have to be planned. - CellID: 32 codes for sector cells and 18 codes for omni cells - Segments: 3 segments for sector cells - PermBase: 32 codes in the downlink and 68 codes in the uplink Segments may have to be planned with carriers as they represent partial carriers that are orthogonal to each other. This relationship has to be reflected in the channel table.
Network Simulation
The Traffic Simulation process has to reproduce what happens in a live system and this is an extremely complex endeavour. CelPlanner does a very detailed simulation through a sequence of instantaneous traffic snapshots and this process is described below. CelPlanner learns the throughput required throughout the market area based on the distribution of subscribers of each profile (Service Classes). During traffic simulation, random draws must take place to distinguish users status as Connected (subscriber equipment is on, ongoing session) and Not Connected (not in a session). Next, connected subscribers are categorized as Active Sessions (in a burst, possibly holding traffic resources, e.g., during a web access) or Dormant (in a session, but not in a burst, and possibly not using resources, e.g. as in a reading interval between two web accesses). In the third status level, subscribers in Active Session are separated in two groups: Active Burst (transmitting and generating interference) and Idle (holding channels but not generating interference). Users traffic pattern is defined for each status in the Service Configuration dialog box presented before. Examples of Idle situation could include, for VoIP applications, the silent periods in the middle of a conversation. The ratio between Active Burst and total Active Session subscribers defines the Activity Factor. Even though the terms connected/not-connected have been used, these concepts apply both to connection oriented and connectionless models. For the simulation, CelPlanner performs compatibility analysis between customer stations and base stations to determine possible servers, and SNIR analysis to define modulation scheme selection for instantaneous data rate calculation. All analyses use a weighted-fairness algorithm for sharing resources on contention. CelPlanner traffic simulation considers the frequency plan calculated previously in determining the SNIR of each connection. The compatibility analysis guarantees that service will be offered to a given customer only by sectors that have compatible radios installed on it. Because of the multiple schemes per radio and the multiple radios available per sector, link-adaptation mechanisms are also simulated, that is, sectors may use different modulation-coding schemes for users depending on the available CNIR link quality. The tool simulates resource managements algorithms based on weighted fairness principles, i.e., capacity is provided to different subscribers proportional to their service level agreement (SLA) weight. In situations of contention (demand is higher than sector capacity), this is particularly relevant as it determines the priority with which users will be served or queued. When there is contention in the traffic offered to a given sector, the tool uses the weighted-fairness algorithm in order to decide on how to share the resources. Every subscriber is initially assigned a share of the sectors usage time proportional to its Resource Allocation Weight. Based on the users data rate requirements (target data rate), some of the initially allocated sectors share may be left unused. Any unused sectors share is re-allocated among subscribers that were not completely served in their target rate. This re-allocation also follows a weighted proportionality. After the simulation is concluded, CelPlanner displays a dialog box for visualization of results. Users can configure the display using two drop-down lists to filter specific carriers and service class. Reports include the information of how much traffic has been offered, fully served, partially served (queued) or rejected, both in terms of active subscribers and throughput. Results are displayed on a per-sector, percarrier, and per-class basis, as well as any combination of those criteria for the full system.
The figure below illustrates the traffic simulation process.
Initialization: Snapshot Generation

Statistics Loop
Traffic Layer Simultaneous calls per snapshot
Downlink Allocation Uplink Allocation
Best Server selection Sensitivity + Target Noise Rise Admission control Direct retry
System Statistics
Traffic per sector Outage per sector Channels requirements
Traffic Simulation Illustration
8.1 Traffic Snapshot A traffic snapshot represents a statistical instantaneous usage of the system. CelPlanner does a Monte Carlo draw of the service classes according to their traffic distribution and allocates sessions geographically. The screen below shows one of these allocations. The legend on the right identifies Service Classes, while each dot on the map identifies according to its colour an active customer. During the channel allocation process power, data rate, load gain and sub-channelization gain are assigned and adjusted automatically by the software until stable values are obtained. The simulation time depends on the amount of traffic being simulated and the number of snapshots. The number of snapshots should be large enough, so all Service Classes are represented statistically. The figures below show the geographical distribution of sessions over all the snapshots. Each dot represents a specific Service Class according to the class colour.
Traffic simulation (each session type is represented by the legend colour)
Traffic simulation sessions detail
8.2 Traffic Report An example of a traffic report is shown below. This report shows the statistical information of offered traffic, the served traffic, the queued traffic and the blocked traffic. The information is provided for all classes or for any individual class. The average value of each parameter is displayed as well as its standard deviation. The distribution is considered Gaussian (log-normal).
Traffic simulation results (part)
9 Network Performance The network performance is evaluated by analyzing the statistical data of the traffic report. It is expressed in terms of Key Performance Indictor (KPI) parameters. They are derived from the SLA defined for each service. 9.1 Service Area KPI Area coverage specifies the percentage of the Area Of Interests (AOI) that each service is provided. This is calculated automatically by the software and the dialogue is shown below.
This is radically different from calculating signal level coverage, as in our case the effect of interference is considered. A site can provide good signal level as 10 km, while its actual service area has a 1 km radius.
9.2
Traffic KPI
Traffic KPI calculates how well the SLA proposed throughput (MSTR) is being fulfilled by the design. To provide full MSTR access to all subscribers in the network is prohibitive as it will demand a huge amount of infrastructure economically not justifiable. For this reason the SLA should have a staggering clause that specifies the percentage of customers that will be served at a certain percentage of the MSTR (peak rate). Traffic simulation has to be done for several peak hours as already explained in part 1. In the below example a day and night peak hour was selected and the traffic of each Service Classes was adjusted conveniently.
Traffic Factors for day and night busy hours
Service Class Code
c1 c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c7 c8 c9 c10 c11 c12 c13 c14 c15 c16 c17 c18 c19 c20 c21 c22 c23 c24
Class Name
Traffic Factor
Day Factor
Night Factor
Traffic Factor with Day Factor
Traffic Factor with Night Factor
CONS-VoIP-res-6m CONS-D_64k/64k-6m CONS-D_256k/64k-6m CONS-D_512k/128k-6m CONS-D_1M/256k-6m CONS-D_2M/512k-6m CONS-VoIP-res-27m CONS-D_64k/64k-27m CONS-D_256k/64k-27m CONS-D_512k/128k-27m CONS-D_1M/256k-27m CONS-D_2M/512k-27m SME-VoIP-Pwr10-27m SME-VoIP-Basic5-27m SME-Int_512k/512K-27m SME-Int_1M/1M-27m SME-Int_2M/2M-27m SME-VPN-256k/256k-27m SME-VPN-512k/512k-27m SME-VPN-1M/1M-27m SME-VPN-2M/2M-27m NomOutdoor-BE-0.5m NomIndoor-BE-1m NomIndoor-BE-23m
1 0.17 0.21 0.32 0.22 0.08 1 0.17 0.21 0.32 0.22 0.08 0.1 0.9 0.26 0.08 0.66 0.0075 0.005 0.0075 0.03 1 0.7 0.3
0.25 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.25 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.5 1 1
0.25 0.017 0.021 0.032 0.022 0.008 0.25 0.017 0.021 0.032 0.022 0.008 0.1 0.9 0.26 0.08 0.66 0.0075 0.005 0.0075 0.03 1 0.7 0.3
1 0.17 0.21 0.32 0.22 0.08 1 0.17 0.21 0.32 0.22 0.08 0.01 0.09 0.026 0.008 0.066 0.00075 0.0005 0.00075 0.003 0.5 0.7 0.3
9.2.1 Traffic KPI Calculation and Traffic KPI Tables The KPI calculation is done based on the statistics obtained during the snapshots of the traffic simulation. These statistics are done on a Service Class basis and are post processed to generate the KPIs. The results are presented in a set of tables, which are described here. The percentage of MSTR and of customers served is user configurable and the values given below are just for illustration purposes, although they can be said to be typical. 9.2.1.1 Traffic Data Table A table is presented that summarizes the offered and served traffic per service class 9.2.1.2 Traffic Throughput KPI at 75% of MSTR A table is presented with the percentage of sessions served at 75% of the peak rate. This rate has a target percentage specified in the SLA (25% for residential and 50% for SME) and for this percentage the actual achieved throughput is shown. 9.2.1.3 Traffic Throughput KPI at 50% of MSTR A table is presented with the percentage of sessions served at 50% of the peak rate. This rate has a target percentage specified in the SLA (50% for residential and 75% for SME) and for this percentage the actual achieved throughput is shown. 9.2.1.4 Traffic Throughput KPI at 15% (consumer) and 25% (SME) of MSTR A table is presented with the percentage of sessions served at 15% of the peak rate for consumers and 25% for SME. Those rates have a target percentage specified in the SLA (75% for residential and 90% for SME) and for this percentage the actual achieved throughput is shown.
The next tables give examples of KPI tables.

Traffic Data
Mean Active Users Mean Offered Throughput (Mbps) Mean Served Throughput (Mbps) Mean Offered Throughput per Sector (Mbps) Mean Served Throughput per Sector (Mbps)

DL UL
Service Class Code c1 c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c7 c8 c9 c10 c11 c12 c13 c14 c15 c16 c17 c18 c19 c20 c21 AC
Class Name
Peak Throughput Downlink (kbps) 36 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 36 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 96 48 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048
Peak Throughput Uplink (kbps) 36 64 64 128 256 512 36 64 64 128 256 512 96 48 512 1024 2048 256 512 1024 2048
Subscribers
DL
UL
DL
UL
DL
UL
DL
UL
DL
UL
Consumer VoIP residential at 6 m height Consumer Data 64k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 256k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 512k/128k at 6m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 6m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 6m height Consumer VoIP residential at 27 m height Consumer Data64k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data256k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data512k/128k at 27m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 27m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 27m height SME Power VoIP at 27m height SME Basic VoIP at 27m height SME Internet 512k/512K at 27m height SME Internet 1M/1M at 27m height SME Internet 2M/2M at 27m height SME VPN 256k/256k at 27m height SME VPN 512k/512k at 27m height SME VPN 1M/1M at 27m height SME VPN 2M/2M at 27m height All Classes
11,384 1,935 2,391 3,643 2,504 911 15,550 2,644 3,266 4,976 3,421 1,244 197 1,775 513 158 1,302 15 10 15 59 57,913
524 46 62 91 65 22 709 69 79 122 94 31 155 708 25 7 62 15 10 15 59 2,970
525 51 66 89 61 23 712 66 77 125 86 33 158 713 26 7 69 15 10 15 59 2,984
24 4 20 60 85 58 33 6 26 80 123 81 19 43 17 9 163 5 7 20 155 1,037
27 5 6 16 22 17 37 6 7 23 31 24 22 49 19 9 201 5 7 22 172 727
24 4 18 53 73 46 33 5 21 64 95 59 19 43 16 8 118 4 6 16 108 833
27 4 6 16 21 16 37 6 6 21 28 21 22 49 17 7 106 4 5 15 89 523
0.04 0.01 0.03 0.09 0.13 0.09 0.05 0.01 0.04 0.13 0.19 0.13 0.03 0.07 0.03 0.01 0.26 0.01 0.01 0.03 0.24 1.62
0.04 0.01 0.01 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.06 0.01 0.01 0.04 0.05 0.04 0.03 0.08 0.03 0.01 0.31 0.01 0.01 0.03 0.27 1.14
0.04 0.01 0.03 0.08 0.11 0.07 0.05 0.01 0.03 0.10 0.15 0.09 0.03 0.07 0.02 0.01 0.18 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.17 1.30
0.04 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.02 0.06 0.01 0.01 0.03 0.04 0.03 0.03 0.08 0.03 0.01 0.17 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.14 0.82
1.00 0.99 0.90 0.89 0.86 0.80 1.00 0.96 0.81 0.80 0.77 0.72 1.00 1.00 0.96 0.83 0.72 0.84 0.84 0.80 0.70 0.80
1.00 0.96 0.96 0.96 0.95 0.95 1.00 0.91 0.92 0.92 0.90 0.88 1.00 1.00 0.91 0.72 0.53 0.72 0.72 0.70 0.52 0.72
Traffic Throughput KPI at 75% of Peak Rate

Target Percentage of Peak Rate Percentage of Sessions above Target Rate Minimum Throughput Achieved at Target Percentage of Sessions (kbps) UL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL DL 64 256 512 1024 1995 64 256 512 1007 1883 492 852 1480 215 433 817 1432 UL 64 64 128 256 512 64 64 128 256 512 466 740 1079 183 367 719 1062 Average Throughput Achieved (kbps)
Service Class Code
Class Name
Peak Down (kbps)
Peak Up (kbps)
Target Rate (Mbps)
Target Sessions Percentage
Status
DL c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c8 c9 c10 c11 c12 c15 c16 c17 c18 c19 c20 c21 Consumer Data 64k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 256k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 512k/128k at 6m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 6m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 6m height Consumer Data64k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data256k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data512k/128k at 27m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 27m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 27m height SME Internet 512k/512K at 27m height SME Internet 1M/1M at 27m height SME Internet 2M/2M at 27m height SME VPN 256k/256k at 27m height SME VPN 512k/512k at 27m height SME VPN 1M/1M at 27m height SME VPN 2M/2M at 27m height 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 64 128 256 512 64 64 128 256 512 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 75% 48 192 384 768 1536 48 192 384 768 1536 384 768 1536 192 384 768 1536
UL 48 48 96 192 384 48 48 96 192 384 384 768 1536 192 384 768 1536 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50%
DL 100% 75% 73% 66% 57% 93% 57% 57% 53% 46% 99% 64% 46% 64% 67% 57% 43%
UL 94% 94% 93% 91% 93% 80% 83% 81% 77% 73% 81% 47% 21% 46% 45% 44% 20%
DL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL PASS PASS PASS FAIL
DL 63 230 454 876 1635 61 207 410 793 1482 492 852 1480 215 433 817 1432
UL 61 62 123 243 487 59 59 118 231 453 466 740 1079 183 367 719 1062

Service Class Code Class Name Peak Down (kbps) Peak Up (kbps) Target Percentage of Peak Rate Target Rate (Mbps) Target Sessions Percentage Percentage of Sessions above Target Rate DL 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 96% 96% 92% 87% 100% 84% 84% 81% 78% 100% 93% 78% 91% 94% 87% 75% UL 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 98% 99% 99% 97% 96% 99% 75% 54% 75% 77% 74% 53% Status Minimum Throughput Achieved at Target Percentage of Sessions (kbps) DL UL 63.0 230.1 454.3 876.4 1635.4 61.2 206.6 410.3 793.4 1482.3 258.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 61.5 61.6 122.6 243.5 486.7 58.5 59.2 117.9 231.4 452.8 17.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Average Throughput Achieved (kbps) DL 63.0 230.1 454.3 876.4 1635.4 61.2 206.6 410.3 793.4 1482.3 491.7 851.9 1480.3 214.7 432.6 816.9 1432.1 UL 61.5 61.6 122.6 243.5 486.7 58.5 59.2 117.9 231.4 452.8 466.3 740.2 1078.8 183.1 366.7 719.3 1062.1
UL 32 32 64 128 256 32 32 64 128 256 256 512 1024 128 256 512 1024
DL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL
UL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL
Traffic Throughput KPI at 15% (consumer) and 25% (SME) of Peak Rate
Service Class Code Class Name Peak Down (kbps) Peak Up (kbps) Target Percentage of Peak Rate Target Rate (Mbps) Target Sessions Percentage Percentage of Sessions above Target Rate DL 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 100% 100% 100% 100% 99% 100% 98% 99% 98% 98% 100% 99% 95% 99% 100% 98% 94% UL 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 93% 84% 93% 95% 92% 83% Status Minimum Throughput Achieved at Target Percentage of Sessions (kbps) UL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL PASS PASS PASS FAIL DL 57.4 156.6 307.2 545.1 951.7 49.9 105.6 213.6 388.4 721.8 428.8 553.9 728.9 131.4 287.0 469.8 669.5 UL 50.4 50.5 99.6 194.1 396.0 42.8 43.9 86.5 163.7 310.1 345.2 312.8 362.9 77.8 177.6 301.7 336.4 Average Throughput Achieved (kbps) DL 63.0 230.1 454.3 876.4 1635.4 61.2 206.6 410.3 793.4 1482.3 491.7 851.9 1480.3 214.7 432.6 816.9 1432.1 UL 61.5 61.6 122.6 243.5 486.7 58.5 59.2 117.9 231.4 452.8 466.3 740.2 1078.8 183.1 366.7 719.3 1062.1
DL c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c8 c9 c10 c11 c12 c15 c16 c17 c18 c19 c20 c21 Consumer Data 64k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 256k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 512k/128k at 6m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 6m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 6m height Consumer Data64k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data256k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data512k/128k at 27m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 27m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 27m height SME Internet 512k/512K at 27m height SME Internet 1M/1M at 27m height SME Internet 2M/2M at 27m height SME VPN 256k/256k at 27m height SME VPN 512k/512k at 27m height SME VPN 1M/1M at 27m height SME VPN 2M/2M at 27m height 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 64 128 256 512 64 64 128 256 512 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 9.6 38.4 76.8 153.6 307.2 9.6 38.4 76.8 153.6 307.2 128.0 256.0 512.0 64.0 128.0 256.0 512.0
UL 9.6 9.6 19.2 38.4 76.8 9.6 9.6 19.2 38.4 76.8 128.0 256.0 512.0 64.0 128.0 256.0 512.0
DL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS
PART 3 - STEPS IN THE DESIGN OF A WIMAX NETWORK
Introduction
Designing a WiMAX network may look a complex task in the beginning, but it is a multilayered approach that is performed over time. A good design is paramount for the success of the network deployment and the enterprise as a whole. Typically 8 % of the capital investment should be set aside for the network design. The selection of a design tool that can model correctly the network, plan the deployment and evaluate the outcome is essential for a good planning. 2 The Network A wireless telecommunication network has the following elements: Base Stations (also known as AP- Access Point) - are locations containing the equipment directly operated by the operator and that defines a wireless cell. The Base Stations antennas and its radios define the cell sectors, where the energy from the antennas is radiated. Each radio can transmit one or more carriers. The antennas, radios and carriers have to be specified and as they are generally common to many cells, a library of components can be used. Terminals - are elements equipped with radios and operated by the user, which have antennas that can be integrated or stand alone. Typical terminals are: o Rooftop terminals- typically multi-dwellings boxes with rooftop RFFE and antennas o Stand alone terminals- typically desktop boxes o Portable terminals- typically telephones o Device attached terminals- typically laptop Backhaul Links - the large amount of data collected by each BS should be carried to the Fixed Access Points. This can be done through wired or wireless connections. Generally a backhaul network has to be designed with capacities above 100 Mbps per link. Fixed Network Access Points Those are the points where the data is connected to the Fixed Network, generally through optical fiber links.
A network is deployed among other networks and the knowledge of all networks in the area is essential, as they may interfere with each other. Conflicting networks may have to be represented in the design software, for resource planning and interference issues. Although, not always is possible to get information about competing networks, they can be represented even if in approximated mode. The main interference issues are: - Use of adjacent frequencies and transmission of residual power in the new network band: can be simulated at design time - Intermodulation and out of band leakage: has to be detected through spectrum measurements
Power blasting and consequent saturation of receivers: very common occurrence and has to be detected with spectrum measurements, followed by appropriate filtering at the receivers. We suggest that antenna received power be measured at all receiver points before deployment.
Spectrum is a resource used by the network and its use should follow local regulatory rules. It cannot be stressed enough how important it is to do spectrum clearing before deploying a new network. Interference does not come only from other transmitters, but also from industrial units, cars and so on. The measurement of the noise floor along the network is an important step to have it design properly. In summary, a little preparatory investment up front will help significantly the operators business case in the end.
The Network Design Process The design of a 4G Network is a complex process that has to analyze many variables, but can be the difference between a mediocre network and a network that can provide the desired ROI. The design process can be divided in seven groups with a total of 50 steps that are described next. The groups are: - GIS - Project Configuration - Site Location - Optimization - Performance - Backhaul - Report Some network designs may have peculiarities that are not included in the 50 steps, which need to be addressed separately.
Design Phases
GIS Project Configuration Site Location Optimization Performance Backhaul Report
The design steps of each group are shown next and each one is described in detail after the diagrams.
Design Configuration
8. Define Antennas to be used and digitize antenna patterns 9, Generate demographic regions 10. Defined services to be offered based on marketing plan 11. Perform CW and WiMAX drive test 12. Process measurements 13. Calibrate for different Propagation Models 14. Define Propagation Models and parameters for different site types 15. Define Service Classes based on Services, Demographics and Environment 16. Generate traffic grids based on demographics and morphology for each Service Class 17. Define Deployment Strategy and generate site and sector templates 18. Define Instalation Equipment and generate Link Budget templates 19. Define Base Station, Subscriber and Mobile Radio Equipment to be used and generate radio template 20. Define spectrum usage strategy, bandwidth and resource breakdown (carriers, codes and ranges) 21. Pre define sector resources
Optimization
29. Calculate Neighbor List from interference matrix and combine with Natural Neighbors 30. Calculate Handover Threshold using Neighborhood Matrix 31. Define Paging Groups and Assign sites to them 32. Calculate Interference Matrix for Downstream and Upstream for all Service Classes 33. Perform Automatic Code Planning (Segmentation, CellID and PermBase) 34. Perform Automatic Carrier Planning 35. Perform constrained CelEnhancement to optimize footprint 36. Perform Dynamic Traffic Simulation
3.1
Define Area of Interest based on Marketing Plan The Area of Interest (AOI) is defined in by the Marketing Plan. The AOI can be discontinuous and have phases. The next figure shows a hypothetical AOI.
3.2
Obtain and digitize recent Satellite or Aerial Photos for the Area of Interest It is important that the design is done using up-to-date geographical data, mainly in areas with high recent growth. Satellite and Aerial Stereo Pairs should be used to get this information. One of the difficulties commonly found at this phase is to get Control Points to geo-reference the images, as this may require a visit to establish coordinates of reference points.
Aster Satellite image 2005-2007
Quickbird Satellite image 2006
3.3
Digitize topography and morphology with height information Once the aerial photos are geo-referenced, the relevant data can be digitized. The digitization is done averaging values inside rectangles, defined in meters or arc-seconds, and called pixels. The average dimension of the pixel defines the database resolution. It should be noted that the size of the database grows quadratically with the dimension of the pixel. It is important that all layers of the GIS data use the same datum and coordinate system. It is common that operators get parts of databases from different origins with unknown datum and coordinate systems, distorting the results and wasting all the work forward. A designer should verify these items before starting the design.
3.3.1 Topography Topography represents the terrain at ground level. A good design tool should interpolate in real time between pixels to increase the resolution. The most common resolutions are shown in the next table.
Terrain Data Base Resolution Low resolution Medium resolution High resolution Very high resolution Topography Horizontal (m) 90 30 5 1 Vertical (m) 3 2 1 1 Relative cost per km2 1 2 5 20
The next figure shows topography with 30 meter horizontal resolution and 1 meter vertical resolution. The tool interpolates the pixels to the screen resolution or to specific coordinates when required.
3.3.2 Morphology
Morphology represents all the clutter above ground, like grass, trees and constructions and is defined by: - Number of classes- Morphology classes group similar clutter. Generally commercially available morphologies use clutter classification that are not RF related and have to be processed to be used in our application. Specifically generated morphologies have the right information. Sixteen morphology classes are enough to represent the different RF impacting clutter groups. Height information type- Many available morphology data files do not have height information, as the traditional models do not use it. The most commonly used height type is the canopy, in which an average height per block is considered. The next step is to have building height morphology, in which every building contour is represented. This last type comes in vector format and has only one type of clutter (buildings). Canopy information is actually more appropriate for RF studies and provides better results than building height, as RF tends to ignore single buildings by diffracting around them. Building data is only required when very small cells are used or point to point links are considered. They are very expensive also. The drawback of the canopy data is that it does not represent the RF canyons provided by roads and streets. We have developed a process to carve roads and streets at different widths into the canopy from their vector information, obtaining very affordable morphology data bases with excellent RF performance. Horizontal and vertical resolution- Defines the size of the horizontal pixels in the morphology database and their height step. This height step is not directly connected with the actual height, mainly in canopy representations.
A set of RF related morphology classes is shown in the table below. 0 Open, Water 1 Emergent Herbaceous Wetlands 2 Bare Rock/Sand/Clay, Quarries/Strip Mines/Gravel Pit, Transitional 3 Grasslands/Herbaceous, Pasture/Hay, Row Crops, Small Grains, Fallow 4 Shrub land, Orchards/Vineyards/Other 5 Deciduous Forest 6 Evergreen Forest 7 Mixed Forest 8 Urban/Recreational Grasses 9 Airports and parking lots 10 Roads 11 Streets 12 Low Intensity Residential 13 High Intensity Residential 14 Commercial/Industrial/Transport 15 Buildings The next table lists the most common morphology types available.
Data Base Resolution Low resolution Medium resolution High resolution Very high resolution Horizontal (m) 100 30 5 1
Morphology Vertical (m) Flat Canopy Canopy with carved streets Building height Classes 6 8 12 1
Relative cost per km2 1 10 100 1000
The next figure shows a screen capture of canopy morphology with carved streets and roads.
In some occasions there is a need to correct morphology data and a morphology editor should be part of the design tool. The next figure shows CelData that is an editor that we use to correct morphology traits.
3.4
Digitize Street and Roads Roads and Streets should be digitized as vectors. This provides references when analyzing the coverage without interfering with the prediction colours.
3.5
Carve Roads and Streets into the morphology The digitization of morphology can be very expensive due to the height information required. Medium resolution canopy type morphology is affordable but does not produce good results as the RF canyons constituted by roads and streets are not represented. We developed a process of over sampling the canopy data base and then carving the roads and streets with pre-defined widths.
Some areas require better morphology data bases than other and to lower the cost it is convenient to use different quality databases for different areas. Using files with multiple resolutions does imply that some or total overlap of covered areas will happen. It is important that the prediction tools used support multiple layers of topography and morphology data and be able to automatically select the best value per pixel in real time. 3.6 Digitize area maps, satellite pictures and aerial photos as background images Area maps and aerial photos provide good reference to analyze the network performance, although its use does distort slightly the prediction colours. The next figures show a digitized map and satellite photo. Map digitalization should be approached with care, as maps are generally printed based on certain projection and coordinate system. They should undergo the same process as images, before being digitized. Many maps are pictorial only and do not have any projection embedded and in most cases should not be used, as they cannot be adjusted to the right projection. It is better have no information than a wrong one.
3.7
Obtain demographic information (maps and tables) Local Geographic, Census and Traffic Institutes provide demographic data that can be used to calculate the services demand. Typical demographic data is the distribution of population according to income levels, number of households, number of business according to number of employees and business type, traffic on roads and streets and so on. This data has to be analyzed and transformed into geographic regions that have traffic related attributes. Several of these geographic layers have to be created to provide enough information for the generation of traffic grids. Typical layers are: - Households distribution - Businesses distribution with number of employees - Multi-story dwelling with population - Vehicle density per road segment The next figures show typical geographic distribution of demographic data.
3.8
Define Antennas to be used and digitize antenna patterns The type of the antennas to be used and its vendor have to be defined. Many factor influence this decision, like technical characteristics, price, availability and support. Once the antennas were defined their patterns have to be digitized, although vendors can generally provide them in the most common formats. Antenna patterns have to be digitized with two patterns for each polarization (Azimuth and Elevation) in 1 degree increments. The prediction software must be able of generating a 3 D pattern, so the gain for any 3D angle can be calculated during predictions. The next figure shows the representation of a typical antenna and its visualization in 3D.
3.9
Generate demographic regions Based on the demographic data it is possible to generate regions with specific attributes related to the services to be deployed. Regions are closed polygons with specific attributes. The design tool should be able to work with millions of polygons and support attributes that apply to a set of not continuous polygons. In principle polygons should not overlap, although not all data comes in this form and the design tool should be able to cope with it. The final regions are result of a combination of several demographic layers that are processed in the design tool to generate demographic regions applicable to specific Service Classes. The next figure shows the number of consumers at 27 meter (between the 5th and 10th floor) height above ground. The following one shows the distribution of business employees at ground level.
3.10 Define Services to be offered based on Marketing Plan Operators generally offer multiple plans to the end customers. Terminologies like Platinum, Gold and Silver are used to label these plans, but they are in reality Service Level Agreements (SLA) between the operator and the customer. In this SLA the operator guarantees a minimum quality of service for a certain amount of network usage by the customer. Customer statistics are defined as explained in part 2 of this document The Quality of Service defines what the maximum data throughput rate (MSTR) and what percentage of this rate will be offered to what percentage of users.. The amount of usage is also defined by a load factor. These parameters are essential for the proper network design and future customer satisfaction. The interface below provides a very powerful tool to specify the user behaviour and calculate the network usage. The data to fill in the fields may look intimidating at first, but it can be easily obtain by monitoring the behaviour of some typical users with statistical tools. Next figures show the Service Configuration dialogue for packet, burst and session level. Each level can be configured for inter-arrival and length distributions, which can be of the exponential, Gaussian (log-normal) or Pareto type. Services can be defined at application level or user level. Customer traffic is a mix of several users, each using a mix of applications. Applications include VoIP, games, video conference, video clip, movie streaming, instant messaging, web browsing, ftp, e-mail, telemetry, VPN and other.
Customer Session statistics
Customer Burst statistics
Customer Packet Statistics
Initially the operator may not have such a detailed data but have an estimate of the network usage only. In this case a more simplified interface is used that applies an over subscription ratio to calculate the number of simultaneously active users. This simplified approach will give reasonable results but should not replace the detail analysis to be made for the deployment design.
The next figure shows the simplified service configuration, defined by target and minimum data rate and the over-subscription factor.
3.11 Perform CW and WiMAX drive tests The calibration of Propagation model Parameters requires a set of statistically representative path loss measurements. These measurements should be spread over the network area and measure the signal at different distances and morphologies. To be able to measure path loss at large distances a narrowband signal, like CW, should be used. It is very important to use narrowband filters at the receiver, so it is not overloaded by other signals transmitted in the vicinity. Measurements should be done in all environments were the network will be used. - Outdoor measurements - Indoor measurements at various heights and encapsulations - Rooftop measurements at various heights Additional drive tests with WiMAX equipment can be useful to analyze the behaviour of the technology in the environment, so adjustments to the sensitivity thresholds can be made. 3.12 Process measurements Measurement should be done over all morphologies, and be filtered for:
Fast fading (so values should be averaged over the coherence time, which varies with the frequency). Antenna angle (vertical and horizontal), so antenna nulls are avoided, as they can vary significantly from one antenna to the other and in relation to the specified pattern. Noise floor as it distorts the measured value and gives the same value for all measurements below it. Measurements should be filtered at 3 dB above noise floor. Special locations that are not well represented in the data base should be filtered (tunnels, elevated highways and so on). Measurements should be equally distributed along the route, so one particular segment does not distort the statistics of the distribution. As an example, repetitive measurements while a vehicle is stationary should be eliminated. Measurements that give large errors during the first round of calibration generally represent deviations between the database and the actual environment.
Measurement should be also be geographically adjusted so they coincide with the morphology where they were measured. It is common that due to GPS error measurements done at streets fall in constructed areas resulting in erroneous information. These measurements should be adjusted to fall within the street morphology. All the procedures above can be performed by CelTools. Examples of measurements and its filtering are shown in the next figures.
Measurement data before (left) and after (right) spatial filtering using a grid of 3.5 m
Raw drive test data (left) versus filtered data moved into roads and streets
3.13 Calibrate for different Propagation Models Data base quality influences the result that propagation models provide. More advanced models provide best results but require better data bases. When data bases are not very exact, less precise models can provide better results as they were conceived to work with a rough idea of terrain. Ideally the calibration should be done for several models and the one that produces the best results should be used. The models to be used may vary from an area to another or even on a site basis. Some propagation parameters cannot be obtained from measurements and have to be estimated by the designer. Here previous experience plays an important role. The next figure is a model calibration dialogue that in the case below was configured for unconstrained calibration. The parameters obtained from the calibration should be analyzed by the designer and imported into the prediction parameters dialogue. Eventual morphologies not sampled in the measurements should be estimated by the designer.
3.14 Define propagation models and parameters for different site types Propagation models perform best in certain regions and each propagation model will have several propagation parameter tables. The area of interest should be divided according to RF characteristics and the best models with associated propagation tables applied to each section. 3.15 Define Service Classes based on Services, Demographics and Environment Service Classes group a combination of characteristic that have similar RF performance, so the network offering can be properly analyzed. These characteristics are the services, the subscriber equipment (also known as CPE or terminal), the environment where the subscriber is located and the geographical distribution of these subscribers (traffic distribution). Service Classes should be specified to represent the most accurately possible the network in terms of RF behaviour. The following are typical classes used in designs.
Service Classes 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 CONS-VOIP-6m CONS-D64-64-6m CONS-D256-64-6m CONS-D512-128-6m CONS-D1-256-6m CONS-D2M-512-6m CONS-VOIP-27m CONS-D64-64-27m CONS-D256-64-27m CONS-D512-128-27m Subscriber Consumer Consumer Consumer Consumer Consumer Consumer Consumer Consumer Consumer Consumer Service Type VoIP Internet Internet Internet Internet Internet Internet Internet Internet Internet Antenna height (m) 6 6 6 6 6 6 27 27 27 27 UL/DL Rate
64K/64K 256K/256K 512K/128K 1M/256K 2M/512K 36K/36K 64K/64K 256K/256K 512K/128K
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
CONS-D1M-256-27m CONS-D2M-512-27m SME-VOIP-Pwr SME-VOIP-Basic SME-D512-512 SME-D1M-1M SME-D2M-2M SME-VPN-256 SME-VPN-512 SME-VPN-1M SME-VPN-2M NomOutdoor-0.5m NomIndoor-1m NomIndoor-23m
Consumer Consumer SME SME SME SME SME SME SME SME SME Nomadic Nomadic Nomadic
Internet Internet VoIP VoIP Internet Internet Internet VPN VPN VPN VPN Internet Internet Internet
27 27 27 27 27 27 27 27 27 27 27 0.5 1 23
1M/256K 2M/512K 96K/96K 48K/48K 512K/512K 1M/1M 2M/2M 256K/256K 512K/512K 1M/1M 2M/2M 64K/32K 64K/32K 64K/32K
The figure below displays the dialogue with the first 16 classes listed before.
3.15.1 Services The service offering was already defined previously, but as it is part of the Service Class definition, we are listing them here. Application 1 D64K/64K 2 D256K/64K 3 D512K/128K Internet Internet Internet UL/DL Resource Allocation Rate Priority (Weight) 64K/64K 2 256K/256K 2 512K/128K 4 Over Subscription Rate 0.025 0.025 0.025
4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
D1M/256K D2M/512K D512K/512K D1M/1M D2M/2M VPN256K VPN512K VPN1M VPN2M VOIP-Cons VOIP-Power SME VOIP-Basic SME Best Effort
Internet Internet Internet Internet Internet VPN VPN VPN VPN VoIP VoIP VoIP Nomadic
1M/256K 2M/512K 512K/512K 1M/1M 2M/2M 256K/256K 512K/512K 1M/1M 2M/2M 36K/36K 96K/96K 48K/48K 64K/32K
8 16 16 32 64 8 16 32 64 50 75 100 1
0.025 0.025 0.05 0.05 0.05 1 1 1 1 0.046 0.805 0.402 1
3.15.2 Terminals Terminals are provided by the vendor for subscriber use. Although they are presented here as a single unit they are composed of a radio, an RF front end and an antenna, which can be or not physically combined. The RF front end characteristics are defined in the Terminal dialogue, the Radio is selected from a library of radios and the antenna is defined by its characteristics and its height above ground level (AGL). The antenna AGL of a user terminal depends in which floor the user is located, so this is taken into consideration in the terminal dialogue. Two typical terminals are specified below. - RedMax 4C REM- Enterprise Modem o WiMAX Forum certified CW-II Profile o S-OFDMA: 512/1024 FFT o TDD o MIMO (Matrix A&B) Downlink: 2x2 MIMO (STC/SM) Uplink: Collaborative Spatial Multiplexing o Mean Output Power: 27 dBm, 14.5 dBi directional 30 o PoE compliant RedMax 4C REM- Enterprise Modem - RedMax 4C RPM- Personal Modem o WiMAX Forum certified CW-II Profile o S-OFDMA: 512/1024 FFT o TDD o MIMO (Matrix A&B) Downlink: 2x2 MIMO (STC/SM) Uplink: Collaborative Spatial Multiplexing Mean Output Power: 27 dBm, 6 dBi omni Modem
RedMAX 4C RPM- Personal
The terminal dialogue specifies a Radio Type from a selection available in the radio library. Terminal height above ground level is also specified in the terminal dialogue. Typical terminals considered in a design are listed in the table below. The next figures show the configuration dialogues.
Terminal Output Power (W) 0.251 0.251 0.251 0.251 0.251 0.251 0.251 0.251 0.251 0.251 0.251 Receiver Noise Figure (dB) 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 Antenna Aperture () 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 360 360 360 Antenna Height (m) 6 6 6 27 27 27 27 27 0.5 23 1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
REM 6m-G12.3 REM 6m-G9.3 REM 6m-G7.5 REM 27m-G12.3 REM 27m-G9.3 REM 27m-G7.5 REM 27m-G4.5 REM 27m-G1.5 REM 0.5m-G12.3 REM 23m-G12.3 REM 1m-G12.3
The terminal dialogue is shown below.
The radio model configuration is explained in the Bases Station configuration presented later, as the radios form a common library.
3.15.3 Environment Environments were explained in part 2 and are defined according to the user location and behaviour in terms of RF propagation. The environment dialogue considers the RF related impairments that are present in the environment. These impairments are human body attenuation, penetration attenuation, shadow and multipath fading. Typical environments considered in a design are listed in the table below. The next figure shows the configuration dialogue.
Human Body Attenuation and Propagation Model Adjustment(dB) 1 2 3 4 5 Outdoor Roof 6 m Outdoor Roof 27 m Outdoor Nom 0.5 m Indoor Nom 1.5 m Indoor Nom 27 m 6 0 12 12 0 Penetration Attenuation (dB) 0 0 0 15 0 Fading Severity severe medium severe severe severe Fading Margin (dB) 11.1 6.4 14.4 14.4 9.4 Prediction margin (dB) 17.5 6.4 26.4 41.4 9.4
3.16 Generate traffic grids based on demographics and morphology for each Service Class Users distribution is defined in the demographic regions defined previously. This distribution has to be transformed in traffic. Traditionally traffic is expressed in Erlang and although we associate an Erlang the voice it is really the expression of the number of users and voice is the service. In our case users still represent the traffic, with the difference that we have many services associated to it. In summary, the designer has to express the traffic in users (Erlang) for the different Service Classes. The services in the Service Class define the usage distribution. To obtain the traffic grids expressed in users, the demographic regions have to be consolidated proportionally for each Service Class. This is done by creating a raster traffic grid, defined in seconds. Typically we use 3 or 1 arc sec grids. The demographic region attributes are then distributed to the grid pattern. This distribution can be further enhanced by using morphology weights, as it is expected that there will be more users in buildings then in a park or lake within the same region. The next figure shows the dialogue with weights per morphology and the dialogue that maps the regions to the traffic grid.
Finally, several traffic grids are combined to create the traffic grids applicable to each Service Class.
The following basic Traffic Grids are typical in a network design. - Consumer at 6 meter height - Consumer at 27 meter height - SME at 27 meter height - Nomadic Outdoor at 0.5 meter height - Nomadic Indoor at 1 meter and 24 meter height A graphical representation of these traffic grids is shown below.
Consumer at 6 m traffic distribution -
SME at 27 m traffic distribution
3.16.1 Traffic data per service class The total traffic for each Service Class is then calculated based on the number of users declared in the Demographic Regions as seen in the example table below.
Service Class Code Class Name Peak Down (Kbps) Peak Up (Kbps) Subscribers Mean active users DL
c1 c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c7 c8 c9 c10 c11 c12 c13 c14 c15 c16 c17 c18 c19 c20 c21 CONS-VoIP-res-6m CONS-D_64k/64k-6m CONS-D_256k/64k-6m CONS-D_512k/128k-6m CONS-D_1M/256k-6m CONS-D_2M/512k-6m CONS-VoIP-res-27m CONS-D_64k/64k-27m CONS-D_256k/64k-27m CONS-D_512k/128k-27m CONS-D_1M/256k-27m CONS-D_2M/512k-27m SME-VoIP-Pwr10-27m SME-VoIP-Basic5-27m SME-Int_512k/512K-27m SME-Int_1M/1M-27m SME-Int_2M/2M-27m SME-VPN-256k/256k-27m SME-VPN-512k/512k-27m SME-VPN-1M/1M-27m SME-VPN-2M/2M-27m 36 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 36 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 96 48 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 36 64 64 128 256 512 36 64 64 128 256 512 96 48 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 11,384 1,935 2,391 3,643 2,504 911 15,550 2,644 3,266 4,976 3,421 1,244 197 1,775 513 158 1,302 15 10 15 59 57,913 524.2 45.7 61.6 91.3 64.9 22.2 708.6 69.4 78.8 122.3 93.8 30.9 155.2 707.9 25.2 6.9 62.3 15.0 10.0 15.0 59.0 2,970
Mean Offered Throughput (Mbps) DL

24.2 3.7 20.2 59.8 85.1 58.2 32.7 5.7 25.8 80.2 122.9 81.0 19.1 43.5 16.5 9.0 163.3 4.9 6.6 19.7 154.7 1,036.7
UL
525.2 50.5 65.7 89.2 61.3 23.0 711.6 66.1 76.9 124.7 85.9 32.8 158.1 713.2 25.6 6.5 68.8 15.0 10.0 15.0 59.0 2,984
UL
26.9 4.6 6.0 16.3 22.4 16.8 36.5 6.0 7.0 22.7 31.3 23.9 21.6 48.8 18.7 9.5 200.8 5.5 7.3 21.9 172.2 726.7
All
3.16.2 Geographical Traffic Distribution per Service Class The Basic Traffic Grids are multiplied by a Traffic Factor to represent the traffic of each Service Class. These factors are specified in the Service Class dialogues shown below.
3.17 Define Deployment Strategy and Site and Sector Templates The deployment strategy has to be defined before the Site and Sector Templates can be defined. This strategy should define the type of installations that will done, the distance between the equipment and the antenna and several other deployment related issues. The site template defines the site location, the propagation model to be used and its propagation parameters. It also defines the prediction resolution and the radius in which the predictions should be done. Each sector is also defined in terms of antenna type, height, polarization, azimuth and tilt. The Link Budget, Neighbour List and Resources are defined in separate dialogues. A site defines the geographical location where a Base Station is deployed. Each Base Station has one or more Sector Controllers and each Sector controller has one or more Carriers. A WiMAX Radio supports a single carrier and the radios available in the library were used (see Radio section). An example of Base Station equipment is shown here: - RedMAX 4C Mobile WiMAX Platform that can support up to 6 Sector Controllers. - RedMAX 4C Base Station o WiMAX Forum certified CW-II Profile o S-OFDMA: 512/1024 FFT o TDD o Up to 6 sectors per chassis o MIMO (Matrix A&B) Downlink: 2x2 MIMO (STC/SM) Uplink: Collaborative Spatial Multiplexing o Mean Output Power: 36 dBm o Antenna: SA17-60-35V 15 dBi directional 60
RedMAX 4C Base Station
A typical Site and Sector dialogue is shown below.
Site and sector template
3.18 Define Installation Procedures and Link Budget Templates The link budget is build from the Base Station Sector Controller (BSSC), Radio (R), Terminal (SS/MS), Environment Configurations (EC) and Service Configurations (SC). Each point in the target area has a different link budget. The configuration of the part of the link budget related to the Sector Controller is shown in the figure below.
Link budget for 802.16e Sector Controller
The link budget part referent to the radio, terminal, environmental and service is shown in the respective sessions. A complete link budget dialogue from a Sector Controller to a point in the area is shown below. This Link Budget was done between a Cell Site and an arbitrary point in the area of interest.
Link budget between 802.16e Sector Controller and an arbitrary point example
The above Link Budget can be exported and it is shown in its entirety for the downlink and uplink in the next tables. The downlink is shown first.
Downstream Link Budget Example
Downstream
Site Sector Latitude Longitude Altitude (m) Transmission Power (W) Transmission Power (dBm) Transmission Losses (dB) Cable Loss (dB/100m) Cable Length (m) Connection Loss (dB) Number of Connections Transmission Antenna Gain (dBd) Site Nominal ERP (W) Site Nominal ERP (dBm) Site Nominal EIRP (dBm) Site Antenna Antenna Height (m) Antenna Azimuth (TN) Antenna Inclination () Antenna Polarization Antenna Nominal Gain (dBd) Link Azimuth (TN) Antenna Azimuth Incidence () Antenna Elevation Incidence () Antenna Pattern Gain (dBd) Antenna Effective Gain (dBd) Antenna Effective Gain (dBi) Link Effective ERP (dBm) Link Effective EIRP (dBm) Site Prediction Model Site Prediction Parameters Site Prediction Adjustment Link Distance (m) Link Frequency (MHz) Link Path Loss (dB) Site Prediction Margin (dB) Environment Std Attenuation (dB/Dec) Required Coverage Probability (%) Coverage Probability Universe Shadow Fading Model Standard Deviation (dB) Multipath Fading Model K Factor (Direct/Scattered) Resulting Fading Margin (dB) Human Body Attenuation (dB) FU01 3 2515'41.5"N 5621'23.6"E 28 3.981 36 -3 50 1 0 0 15 223.9 53.501 55.641 SA17-60-35V 27 240 1 Vertical 15 185.477 305.477 -0.568 6.664 6.664 8.804 45.164 47.304 Model II Calib_Ph1 Ajt 1 2721.93 3500 127.873 0 30 90 Edge Log-Normal 8.7 Rayleigh 1.59 14.414 12
Penetration Attenuation (dB) Resulting Path Loss (dB) Subscriber Latitude Longitude Altitude (m) Antenna Height (m) Antenna Azimuth (TN) Antenna Inclination () Antenna Nominal Gain (dBd) Antenna Nominal Gain (dBi) Reception Related Losses (dB) Reception Related Gains (dB) Downstream Signal Prediction (dBm) Radio Type System Bandwidth per Carrier (MHz) Modulation Scheme Maximum Data Rate (Mbps) Coding Gain (dB) Reference Temperature (K) Receiver Noise Figure (dB) Service Threshold (dBm) Link Carrier to Noise Ratio (dB) Link Service Margin (dB)
15 154.287 Point 2514'13.74"N 5621'14.37"E 18 0.5 5.476 -17.839 15.2 17.34 12.3 7 -94.942 RedMAX-16e WiMAX (802.16-OFDMA) 5 QPSK 3/4 4.652 0.625 290 5 -99.5 7.903 4.558
The complete Link Budget for the Uplink is presented in the table below.
Upstream Link Budget Example
Upstream
Subscriber Latitude Longitude Altitude (m) Transmission Power (W) Transmission Power (dBm) Transmission Losses (dB) Antenna Height (m) Antenna Azimuth (TN) Antenna Inclination () Antenna Nominal Gain (dBd) Antenna Nominal Gain (dBi) Link Effective ERP (dBm) Link Effective EIRP (dBm) Site Prediction Model Site Prediction Parameters Site Prediction Adjustment Link Distance (m) Link Frequency (MHz) Point 2514'13.74"N 5621'14.37"E 18 0.251 23.997 0 0.5 5.476 -17.839 15.2 17.34 39.197 41.337 Model II Calib_Ph1 Ajt 1 2721.93 3500
Link Path Loss (dB) Site Prediction Margin (dB) Human Body Attenuation (dB) Penetration Attenuation (dB) Environment Std Attenuation (dB/Dec) Required Coverage Probability (%) Coverage Probability Universe Shadow Fading Model Standard Deviation (dB) Multipath Fading Model K Factor (Direct/Scattered) Resulting Fading Margin (dB) Resulting Path Loss (dB) Site Sector Latitude Longitude Altitude (m) Site Antenna Antenna Height (m) Antenna Azimuth (TN) Antenna Inclination () Antenna Polarization Antenna Nominal Gain (dBd) Link Azimuth (TN) Antenna Azimuth Incidence () Antenna Elevation Incidence () Antenna Pattern Gain (dBd) Antenna Effective Gain (dBd) Antenna Effective Gain (dBi) Reception Antenna Gain (dBd) Site Reception Gains (dB) Site Reception Losses (dB) Connection Loss (dB) Number of Connections Cable Loss (dB/100m) Cable Length (m) Upstream Signal Prediction (dBm) Radio Type System Bandwidth per Carrier (MHz) Modulation Scheme Maximum Data Rate (Mbps) Coding Gain (dB) Reference Temperature (K) Receiver Noise Figure (dB) Service Threshold (dBm) Link Carrier to Noise Ratio (dB) Link Service Margin (dB)
127.873 0 12 15 30 90 Edge Log-Normal 8.7 Rayleigh 1.59 14.414 169.287 FU01 3 2515'41.5"N 5621'23.6"E 28 SA17-60-35V 27 240 1 Vertical 15 185.477 305.477 -0.568 6.664 6.664 8.804 15 7 0 0 0 50 1 -97.646 RedMAX-16e WiMAX (802.16-OFDMA) 5 QPSK 1/2 3.102 1.505 290 5 -99.5 5.2 1.854
3.19 Define Base Station, Subscriber and Mobile Radio Equipment and generate Radio Templates The choice of the Radio equipment type depends on many factors that transcend the network design and have to be done prior to the start of the design. Frequently the vendor is not defined, so the designer has to use estimated values for the radio parameters. The Radio dialogue defines the main radio characteristics, with the exception of the RFFE (RF Front End) characteristics like TX power and RX noise figure and the antenna related characteristics, which are defined in the terminal dialogue. The Radios are specified as a library and can be used in the Base Stations and in the Terminals (CPE). The library supports up to 32 different radio types. The radio definition is very complex in WiMAX and the best way to explain it is using the actual configuration dialogues from the design tool. Due to this complexity it is important that the tool has embedded default values, that are a start point and that can be edited by the designer according to the characteristics of the equipment used. 3.19.1 Example: 802.16e Radio The relevant characteristics of a radio are defined in the dialogs displayed below. The dialogue has user entered parameters that define the radio and software calculated parameters. The main groups of characteristics are: - Radio Configuration: where the technology is configured. - Modulation Schemes: as not all modulation schemes are mandatory, the ones supported have to be configured for each radio. - Permutation: as not all permutations are mandatory, the ones supported have to be configured for each radio. - Frame structure: defines the frame. - RFFE (RF Front End) characteristics: those may vary significantly from one radio to other. -
Radio characteristics 802.16e radio
Three additional dialogues have to be configured: - Permutation zone: Configures the permutation zones characteristics and distribution in the frame. - Antenna System: Configures the antenna system configuration supported by the radio. - RX (Receive) Performance: Defines the receive sensitivity and throughput for different configurations. The receiver sensitivity is defined by 10 editable tables that provide the sensitivities, gains and losses for different configurations. The final RX sensitivity is calculated in real time during simulation for the exact network configuration for each session. The designer can exercise various scenarios and see the outcome in the bottom part of the dialogue, before committing to the configuration. These three dialogues are presented next.
Supported Antenna Systems Dialogue
Permutation zones Dialogue
Radio Performance Dialogue
3.20 Define Spectrum Usage Strategy, bandwidth and resource breakdown (carriers, codes and ranges) WiMAX allows the use of several bandwidths and the decision to choose one is very complex. Each market has different constraints and the designer may have to experiment several possibilities before deciding by one. Once the bandwidth is decided the carriers are defined. The number of carriers available will generally dictate the sectorization structure to be used, although if more than one solution is possible some experimentation may be required to define the best one. The sectorization scheme dictates the codes to be used. Below is shown a dialogue with carrier configuration.
Carrier definition At this stage power ranges, power control and other network features should be defined. 3.21 Pre-define Sector resources A sector can support multiple radios and each one has a carrier (channel) allocated. In this sub-dialogue the Number of Carriers of each Sector Controller, the Carrier Radio and Channel used are defined. The traffic data (number of simultaneously served users, data rates served and loads) are obtained from Traffic Simulations and stored here. In deployed systems traffic values can be obtained from the network and entered in lieu of the simulated vales.
Resources for 802.16e sectors
3.22 Define overall design strategy and target noise rise per area The traffic carried by a cell depends on the interference it suffers, while the interference depends on the traffic carried. This chicken or egg problem has to be solved and the way to do it is to specify initially a Noise Rise figure that should correspond to the average interference expected at each site of the network. Noise Rise values can be estimated by area. The estimation of Noise Rise may require experimentation by the designer. Closer the designer guesses the Noise Rise to the value that will be obtained from the simulations, lesser iterations will be required. 3.23 Digitize available and candidate sites All available and candidate sites should be digitized and identified as such in the project. Design tools should allow multiple identifications of sites, so they can be activated and deactivated with ease. The next dialogue depicts identifications used in a typical project.
3.24 Distribute sites within Area of Interest, considering traffic density, location availability and Engineering Plan Greenfield designs may require distribution of 1000+ sites. Those sites should provide signal and traffic coverage, follow an approximately regular distribution to minimize interference, use as much as possible available and candidate sites and choose locations in pre-defined morphologies. The Site Populate dialogue can be seen in the figure below.
3.25 Run predictions (short radius) and perform Static Traffic simulation for all sites Path loss prediction should be performed for the different user heights considered in the design. Below site predictions are displayed first just for one sector and then as a composite of three sectors for different user locations.
RSSI for a single sector at ground level outdoor
RSSI composite for all sectors at 6 m rooftop

RSSI composite for all sectors at 27 m rooftop
RSSI composite for all sectors at 0.5 m outdoor
RSSI composite for all sectors at 1 m indoor
RSSI composite for all sectors at 23 m indoor
Once the predictions are done the static simulation can be performed. This simulation is called static because it does not consider the interference between the users in the network assuming just a flat increase in the noise floor (Noise Rise). The Noise Rise can be configured on a sector basis. The simulation process has the following steps: An instantaneous snap shot is made: Network users of each Service Class have their status statistically established based on the Service description and geographically located based on the traffic distribution of the Service Class. Users are allocated to Cells and an inner loop is done, in which power is adjusted against interference. When convergence is reached, the snapshot statistics are stored. Another snapshot is done and the process is repeated (outer loop) until convergence of the snapshot statistics is reached. A report with the accumulated statistics is generated.
A more detailed description of the simulation process is given in the Dynamic Simulation item.
3.26 Deploy additional sites or re-distribute sites to balance traffic load The traffic report shows the traffic load and queued traffic for each cell. Sites should be re-distributed to balance loads, removed when the load is too light and added in congested areas. 3.27 Perform signal level predictions with extended radius Path loss predictions are repeated with a larger radius. The design tool must be able to suggest the best prediction radius. The configuring dialogue that calculates the prediction radius is shown next.
3.28 Perform unconstrained Cell Enhancement to optimize coverage footprint Wireless systems are implemented with overlap between cells to provide mobility from one cell to another and to avoid coverage holes; however, overlapping increases interference and, consequently, may diminish network capacity. This effect is very complex and achieving the proper amount of overlap while simultaneously minimizing interference and maintaining the coverage area is a very daunting task, but it may significantly increase capacity. CelEnhancer automatically shapes cell footprints to enhance network performance by minimizing interference (considering diversity effects) while maintaining coverage, and balancing traffic distribution. This enhancement of the cell footprint is done by selecting the best antenna parameters within limits specified by the designer. The antenna parameters that can be adjusted are: - antenna type - antenna azimuth - antenna down tilt - antenna height - transmit power The network can be optimized for all this parameters or just for some chosen by the designer. Perceiving that the optimization process is not limited to the physical characteristics of cell sites, the tool is designed to accommodate different optimization strategies. Enhancement should be performed twice in the network process, once before the resources are optimized and again when they are. The first step in the enhancement process is to determine the target of the optimization as shown in the dialogue below.
Service Class and Traffic configuration for Enhancement Purposes
A set of user-defined parameters determines the enhancement objective in terms of network performance. The Improvement and Deterioration Table allows designers to weight the importance of coverage, traffic, and interference in the network. The weighting is divided into two categories: improvement and deterioration. The weights allow the tool to determine scores for each of the possible changes and select the best one. The following screen shows the configuration used in this design.
Enhancement Methodology
According to this configuration, improvement (reduction) of interference is ten times more important than an improvement (increase) in the coverage area; whereas deterioration (increase) of interference is four times worse than deterioration (reduction) in the coverage area. The table also relates each parameter to itself; that is, avoiding deterioration in the coverage is five times more important than trying to improve the coverage. To give some flexibility for the tool, a small percentage of reduction of the total coverage area (1%) was allowed but no increase of interference was accepted. Because changes in the cell footprint affect the traffic carried by each sector, designers can also define what is the Maximum Best Server Traffic Variation and Blocking they are willing to accept for a sector. The best server traffic variation field avoids footprint changes that could drastically affect the current traffic pattern of the system, by establishing a maximum increase/decrease of the traffic currently carried by each sector. As this design considers a heavily loaded network that has its capacity limited by interference and not coverage, a variation of 100% of best server traffic variation is acceptable, meaning that cell footprints may change the best service area of the site significantly if this benefits the overall interference level of the system. The last step is to define the enhancement parameters, that is, which changes should be tested for which sectors. These parameters are stored in the CelEnhancer Parameters Table. In this table, each line represents one change to
be tested for a given sector; therefore the same sector may appear multiple times in the table, to test different parameters. The tool is capable of optimizing antenna type, downtilt, azimuth, power, and height. The parameters selected for optimization in the example below were: Downtilt from 0 to 7 degrees (in increments of 1 degree); Azimuth a variation of up to 30 degrees of the original sector azimuth (in increments of 5 degrees).
Enhancement Parameters
While the enhancement process is running, a log window displays the scores and results obtained for each of the parameters tested. This window shows the parameter being tested, the possible values, and the score obtained in each case. Based on the score and traffic information, the tool calculates a grade for each possible value. The grade represents how much each specific change would affect the overall performance of the network; thus the current value always has grade 0. The suggested value is selected by choosing the highest grade. Some of the possible values are discarded because they violate the required enhancement objective (e.g. Interference Increment Exceeded).
Sample Log Window of Enhancement Process
After enhancement was completed, the suggested values are transferred to the project for generation of the frequency plan and calculation of KPIs.
3.29 Calculate Neighbor list from interference matrix and combine with Natural Neighbors Neighbourhood list is very important as it will define the handover points. The neighbour list for each sector is displayed in a Cell Site sub-dialogue. This neighbour list can be obtained from a detail analysis of interfering sectors, from a topological neighbourhood or from a mix of both. The calculations are done in CelOptima.
Natural Neighbours for Abu Dhabi Sites
Neighbour List for a specific sector
Additionally overlap neighbours are calculated by CelOptima and added to the topological neighbours defined above.
3.30 Calculate Handover Thresholds using Neighborhood Matrix Handover thresholds are calculated for each sector. This calculation is done based on the signal level in the border between two cells using a special matrix generated by CelOptima. 3.31 Define Paging Groups and assign Sites to them Paging areas should be defined by the operator. The design tool will then allocate sites to the groups, with the border sites belonging to more than one group. 3.32 Calculate Interference Matrix for Downstream and Upstream for all Classes of Services Once signal level predictions are calculated for each enhanced site it is possible to calculate the interaction between sites and, based on this, optimize the frequency plan. The outage matrix was described in details in part2. The first step is to specify the service classes and associated traffic grids in CelOptima as shown in the dialogue below.
Service Class and Traffic configuration for Optimization purposes
The next step is to specify the network general parameters as show in the following screen.
General parameter configuration for the optimization process
3.32.1 Interference Matrix The interference matrix expresses the potential interference that the signals from (downstream) and to (upstream) one sector controller have to other sector controllers. This interference is represented by an outage in relation to a pre-specified QoS, multiplied by the traffic affected. This operation is repeated for all pixels in the area of interest and the values are accumulated in the matrix. The calculations are done for each service class because of their different traffic patterns. When complete, the matrix provides a good indication of interference between any pair of sectors. This information is then used in the optimized the distribution of resources for each sector. CelOptima is the tool used to calculate the interference matrix and the dialogue to configure its calculation is shown below.
CelOptima Matrix configuration screenshot
The resulting interference matrix table is displayed below.
Interference Matrix Table
The colors in the above table follow the coding scheme indicated. The traffic is expressed in mili-users. The interference relationship can be visualized also graphically, as shown in the figures below.
Interference matrix representation for a single site
3.33 Perform Automatic Carrier Planning The available channels are represented in a channel table. CelOptima implements advanced algorithms that assign channels automatically, minimizing network outage. A proprietary heuristic algorithm is used to perform this assignment. The algorithm has achieved highest marks in international performance tests. The first step in the frequency planning is to establish a QoS relationship between CNIRI and the traffic outage. This is done in the table below.
CelOptima frequency planning QOS dialogues
The next step is to define the channel table, including prohibited channels and adjacency relationships.
Channel table for phase 1 802.16e
NAH- Not available Horizontal NAV- Not available Vertical
Next the resource allocation penalties are established as shown in the dialogue below. These penalties are important as they avoid some situations that may lead to undesired handovers (handovers to wrong cells).
Penalties associated with the resource allocation
Finally the parameters for frequency planning are defined in the following screen.
Frequency planning parameters
The next figure depicts the actual frequency planning process, where each dot represent a one iteration cycle and each plan quality is measured in terms of traffic outage.
3.34 Perform Automatic Code Planning (Segmentation, CellID and PermBase) The Interference Matrix is used as an input to the code planning process. CelOptima picks the best codes automatically. WiMAX has the following codes, described before that has to be planned. - CellID: 32 codes for sector cells and 18 codes for omni cells - Segments: 3 segments for sector cells - PermBase: 32 codes in the downlink and 68 codes in the uplink 3.35 Perform constrained Cell Enhancement to optimize footprint Once the code and carrier planning is done the ell enhancement can be redone considering the constraints of those resources.
3.36 Perform Dynamic Traffic Simulation This process was described in detail in part 2 of this document. It is repeated here for completeness. The Traffic Simulation process has to reproduce what happens in a live system and this is an extremely complex endeavour. CelPlanner does a very detailed simulation through a sequence of instantaneous traffic snapshots and this process is described below. CelPlanner learns the throughput required throughout the market area based on the distribution of subscribers of each profile (Service Classes). During traffic simulation, random draws must take place to distinguish users status as Connected (subscriber equipment is on, ongoing session) and Not Connected (not in a session). Next, connected subscribers are categorized as Active Sessions (in a burst, possibly holding traffic resources, e.g., during a web access) or Dormant (in a session, but not in a burst, and possibly not using resources, e.g. as in a reading interval between two web accesses). In the third status level, subscribers in Active Session are separated in two groups: Active Burst (transmitting and generating interference) and Idle (holding channels but not generating interference). Users traffic pattern is defined for each status in the Service Configuration dialog box presented before. Examples of Idle situation could include, for VoIP applications, the silent periods in the middle of a conversation. The ratio between Active Burst and total Active Session subscribers defines the Activity Factor. Even though the terms connected/not-connected have been used, these concepts apply both to connection oriented and connectionless models. For the simulation, CelPlanner performs compatibility analysis between customer stations and base stations to determine possible servers, and SNIR analysis to define modulation scheme selection for instantaneous data rate calculation. All analyses use a weighted-fairness algorithm for sharing resources on contention. CelPlanner traffic simulation considers the frequency plan calculated previously in determining the SNIR of each connection. The compatibility analysis guarantees that service will be offered to a given customer only by sectors that have compatible radios installed on it. Because of the multiple schemes per radio and the multiple radios available per sector, link-adaptation mechanisms are also simulated, that is, sectors may use different modulation-coding schemes for users depending on the available CNIR link quality. The tool simulates resource managements algorithms based on weighted fairness principles, i.e., capacity is provided to different subscribers proportional to their service level agreement (SLA) weight. In situations of contention (demand is higher than sector capacity), this is particularly relevant as it determines the priority with which users will be served or queued. When there is contention in the traffic offered to a given sector, the tool uses the weighted-fairness algorithm in order to decide on how to share the resources. Every subscriber is initially assigned a share of the sectors usage time proportional to its Resource Allocation Weight. Based on the users data rate requirements (target data rate), some of the initially allocated sectors share may be left unused. Any unused sectors share is re-allocated among subscribers that were not completely served in their target rate. This re-allocation also follows a weighted proportionality. After the simulation is concluded, CelPlanner displays a dialog box for visualization of results. Users can configure the display using two drop-down lists to filter specific carriers and service class.
Reports include the information of how much traffic has been offered, fully served, partially served (queued) or rejected, both in terms of active subscribers and throughput. Results are displayed on a per-sector, percarrier, and per-class basis, as well as any combination of those criteria for the full system. The figure below illustrates the traffic simulation process.
Initialization: Snapshot Generation

Statistics Loop
Traffic Layer Simultaneous calls per snapshot
Downlink Allocation Uplink Allocation
Best Server selection Sensitivity + Target Noise Rise Admission control Direct retry
System Statistics
Traffic per sector Outage per sector Channels requirements
Traffic Simulation Illustration
3.37 Traffic Snapshot A traffic snapshot represents a statistical instantaneous usage of the system. CelPlanner does a Monte Carlo draw of the service classes according to their traffic distribution and allocates sessions geographically. The screen below shows one of these allocations. The legend on the right identifies Service Classes, while each dot on the map identifies according to its colour an active customer. During the channel allocation process power, data rate, load gain and sub-channelization gain are assigned and adjusted automatically by the software until stable values are obtained. The simulation time depends on the amount of traffic being simulated and the number of snapshots. The number of snapshots should be large enough, so all Service Classes are represented statistically. The figures below show the geographical distribution of sessions over all the snapshots. Each dot represents a specific Service Class according to the class colour.
Traffic simulation sessions detail
3.38 Traffic Report An example of a traffic report is shown below. This report shows the statistical information of offered traffic, the served traffic, the queued traffic and the blocked traffic. The information is provided for all classes or for any individual class. The average value of each parameter is displayed as well as its standard deviation. The distribution is considered Gaussian (log-normal).
Traffic simulation results (part)
3.39 Generate Key Parameter Indicators (KPI) The results of the traffic simulation should be analyzed and compared to the SLA. 3.39.1 Coverage Area KPI Coverage KPI specifies the minimum percentage of the area that should be covered by the different services. A region is created with the area of interest of each Service Class and the areas where service is provided are calculated as shown in the figures below.
Coverage Area calculation in CelPlanner
Coverage Area results in CelPlanner (part 1)
3.39.2 Traffic Related Key Performance Indicators This topic was presented in part2 and is repeated here for completeness. Traffic KPI calculates how well the SLA proposed throughput (MSTR) is being fulfilled by the design. To provide full MSTR access to all subscribers in the network is prohibitive as it will demand a huge amount of infrastructure economically not justifiable. For this reason the SLA should have a staggering clause that specifies the percentage of customers that will be served at a certain percentage of the MSTR (peak rate). Traffic Performance has to be calculated for at least two peak hours as SME traffic peaks around 4 pm (day peak), while the consumer traffic is around 10% of its peak at this hour. Consumer traffic peaks around 8 pm (night peak), while the SME traffic is around 10% of its peak at this hour. This is illustrated in the figure below.
Relative traffic distribution at different hours
25.0%
Percentage of total traffic of the category
20.0%
15.0%
10.0%
consumer SME total
5.0%
0.0% 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 hours
Relative traffic distribution at different hours of the day
The calculation for these two hours is done by adjusting the Traffic Factor of the Service Classes. 3.39.3 Traffic KPI Calculation and Traffic KPI Tables The KPI calculation is done based on the statistics obtained during the snapshots of the traffic simulation. These statistics are done on a Service Class basis and are post processed to generate the KPIs. The results are presented in a set of tables, which are described here. The percentage of MSTR and of customers served is user configurable and the values given below are just for illustration purposes, although they can be said to be typical. 3.39.3.1 Traffic Data Table A table is presented that summarizes the offered and served traffic per service class 3.39.3.2 Traffic Throughput KPI at 75% of MSTR
A table is presented with the percentage of sessions served at 75% of the peak rate. This rate has a target percentage specified in the SLA (25% for residential and 50% for SME) and for this percentage the actual achieved throughput is shown. 3.39.3.3 Traffic Throughput KPI at 50% of MSTR A table is presented with the percentage of sessions served at 50% of the peak rate. This rate has a target percentage specified in the SLA (50% for residential and 75% for SME) and for this percentage the actual achieved throughput is shown. 3.39.3.4 Traffic Throughput KPI at 15% (consumer) and 25% (SME) of MSTR A table is presented with the percentage of sessions served at 15% of the peak rate for consumers and 25% for SME. Those rates have a target percentage specified in the SLA (75% for residential and 90% for SME) and for this percentage the actual achieved throughput is shown.
The next tables give examples of KPI tables.
Traffic Data
Mean Active Users Mean Offered Throughput (Mbps) Mean Served Throughput (Mbps) Mean Offered Throughput per Sector (Mbps) Mean Served Throughput per Sector (Mbps)
Service Class Code c1 c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c7 c8 c9 c10 c11 c12 c13 c14 c15 c16 c17 c18 c19 c20 c21 AC
Class Name
Peak Throughput Downlink (kbps) 36 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 36 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 96 48 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048
Peak Throughput Uplink (kbps) 36 64 64 128 256 512 36 64 64 128 256 512 96 48 512 1024 2048 256 512 1024 2048
Subscribers
DL
UL
DL
UL
DL
UL
DL
UL
DL
UL
DL
UL
Consumer VoIP residential at 6 m height Consumer Data 64k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 256k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 512k/128k at 6m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 6m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 6m height Consumer VoIP residential at 27 m height Consumer Data64k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data256k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data512k/128k at 27m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 27m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 27m height SME Power VoIP at 27m height SME Basic VoIP at 27m height SME Internet 512k/512K at 27m height SME Internet 1M/1M at 27m height SME Internet 2M/2M at 27m height SME VPN 256k/256k at 27m height SME VPN 512k/512k at 27m height SME VPN 1M/1M at 27m height SME VPN 2M/2M at 27m height All Classes
11,384 1,935 2,391 3,643 2,504 911 15,550 2,644 3,266 4,976 3,421 1,244 197 1,775 513 158 1,302 15 10 15 59 57,913
524 46 62 91 65 22 709 69 79 122 94 31 155 708 25 7 62 15 10 15 59 2,970
525 51 66 89 61 23 712 66 77 125 86 33 158 713 26 7 69 15 10 15 59 2,984
24 4 20 60 85 58 33 6 26 80 123 81 19 43 17 9 163 5 7 20 155 1,037
27 5 6 16 22 17 37 6 7 23 31 24 22 49 19 9 201 5 7 22 172 727
24 4 18 53 73 46 33 5 21 64 95 59 19 43 16 8 118 4 6 16 108 833
27 4 6 16 21 16 37 6 6 21 28 21 22 49 17 7 106 4 5 15 89 523
0.04 0.01 0.03 0.09 0.13 0.09 0.05 0.01 0.04 0.13 0.19 0.13 0.03 0.07 0.03 0.01 0.26 0.01 0.01 0.03 0.24 1.62
0.04 0.01 0.01 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.06 0.01 0.01 0.04 0.05 0.04 0.03 0.08 0.03 0.01 0.31 0.01 0.01 0.03 0.27 1.14
0.04 0.01 0.03 0.08 0.11 0.07 0.05 0.01 0.03 0.10 0.15 0.09 0.03 0.07 0.02 0.01 0.18 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.17 1.30
0.04 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.02 0.06 0.01 0.01 0.03 0.04 0.03 0.03 0.08 0.03 0.01 0.17 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.14 0.82
1.00 0.99 0.90 0.89 0.86 0.80 1.00 0.96 0.81 0.80 0.77 0.72 1.00 1.00 0.96 0.83 0.72 0.84 0.84 0.80 0.70 0.80
1.00 0.96 0.96 0.96 0.95 0.95 1.00 0.91 0.92 0.92 0.90 0.88 1.00 1.00 0.91 0.72 0.53 0.72 0.72 0.70 0.52 0.72

Percentage of Sessions above Target Rate Minimum Throughput Achieved at Target Percentage of Sessions (kbps) UL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL DL 64 256 512 1024 1995 64 256 512 1007 1883 492 852 1480 215 433 817 1432 UL 64 64 128 256 512 64 64 128 256 512 466 740 1079 183 367 719 1062 Average Throughput Achieved (kbps)
Service Class Code
Class Name
Peak Down (kbps)
Peak Up (kbps)
Target Percentage of Peak Rate
Target Rate (Mbps)
Target Sessions Percentage
Status
UL 48 48 96 192 384 48 48 96 192 384 384 768 1536 192 384 768 1536 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50%
DL 100% 75% 73% 66% 57% 93% 57% 57% 53% 46% 99% 64% 46% 64% 67% 57% 43%
UL 94% 94% 93% 91% 93% 80% 83% 81% 77% 73% 81% 47% 21% 46% 45% 44% 20%
DL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL PASS PASS PASS FAIL
DL 63 230 454 876 1635 61 207 410 793 1482 492 852 1480 215 433 817 1432
UL 61 62 123 243 487 59 59 118 231 453 466 740 1079 183 367 719 1062

Service Class Code Peak Down (kbps) Peak Up (kbps) Target Percentage of Peak Rate Target Rate (Mbps) Target Sessions Percentage Percentage of Sessions above Target Rate DL 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 96% 96% 92% 87% 100% 84% 84% 81% 78% 100% 93% 78% 91% 94% 87% 75% UL 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 98% 99% 99% 97% 96% 99% 75% 54% 75% 77% 74% 53% Minimum Throughput Achieved at Target Percentage of Sessions (kbps) UL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL DL 63.0 230.1 454.3 876.4 1635.4 61.2 206.6 410.3 793.4 1482.3 258.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 UL 61.5 61.6 122.6 243.5 486.7 58.5 59.2 117.9 231.4 452.8 17.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Average Throughput Achieved (kbps)
Class Name
Status
UL 32 32 64 128 256 32 32 64 128 256 256 512 1024 128 256 512 1024
DL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL FAIL
DL 63.0 230.1 454.3 876.4 1635.4 61.2 206.6 410.3 793.4 1482.3 491.7 851.9 1480.3 214.7 432.6 816.9 1432.1
UL 61.5 61.6 122.6 243.5 486.7 58.5 59.2 117.9 231.4 452.8 466.3 740.2 1078.8 183.1 366.7 719.3 1062.1
Traffic Throughput KPI at 15% (consumer) and 25% (SME) of Peak Rate
Service Class Code Peak Down (kbps) Peak Up (kbps) Target Percentage of Peak Rate Target Rate (Mbps) Target Sessions Percentage Percentage of Sessions above Target Rate DL 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 90% 100% 100% 100% 100% 99% 100% 98% 99% 98% 98% 100% 99% 95% 99% 100% 98% 94% UL 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 93% 84% 93% 95% 92% 83% Minimum Throughput Achieved at Target Percentage of Sessions (kbps) UL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS FAIL PASS PASS PASS FAIL DL 57.4 156.6 307.2 545.1 951.7 49.9 105.6 213.6 388.4 721.8 428.8 553.9 728.9 131.4 287.0 469.8 669.5 UL 50.4 50.5 99.6 194.1 396.0 42.8 43.9 86.5 163.7 310.1 345.2 312.8 362.9 77.8 177.6 301.7 336.4 Average Throughput Achieved (kbps)
Class Name
Status
DL c2 c3 c4 c5 c6 c8 c9 c10 c11 c12 c15 c16 c17 c18 c19 c20 c21 Consumer Data 64k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 256k/64k at 6m height Consumer Data 512k/128k at 6m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 6m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 6m height Consumer Data64k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data256k/64k at 27m height Consumer Data512k/128k at 27m height Consumer Data 1M/256k at 27m height Consumer Data 2M/512k at 27m height SME Internet 512k/512K at 27m height SME Internet 1M/1M at 27m height SME Internet 2M/2M at 27m height SME VPN 256k/256k at 27m height SME VPN 512k/512k at 27m height SME VPN 1M/1M at 27m height SME VPN 2M/2M at 27m height 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 256 512 1,024 2,048 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 64 64 128 256 512 64 64 128 256 512 512 1,024 2,048 256 512 1,024 2,048 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 15% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 25% 9.6 38.4 76.8 153.6 307.2 9.6 38.4 76.8 153.6 307.2 128.0 256.0 512.0 64.0 128.0 256.0 512.0
UL 9.6 9.6 19.2 38.4 76.8 9.6 9.6 19.2 38.4 76.8 128.0 256.0 512.0 64.0 128.0 256.0 512.0
DL PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS PASS
DL 63.0 230.1 454.3 876.4 1635.4 61.2 206.6 410.3 793.4 1482.3 491.7 851.9 1480.3 214.7 432.6 816.9 1432.1
UL 61.5 61.6 122.6 243.5 486.7 58.5 59.2 117.9 231.4 452.8 466.3 740.2 1078.8 183.1 366.7 719.3 1062.1
3.40 Perform Network Performance Predictions We are presenting here some samples of the predictions as the amount of possible predictions is quite large and it is hard to present them in the format of this report. The predictions are generally printed in A1or larger format A list of the predictions is presented below and they are available for each Service Class. An example of some selected prediction is shown next.
Composite Predictions Plots
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 Topography Morphology Image Roads Region Consumer 6m Region Consumer 27m Region SME 27 m Region nomadic outdoor 1m Region nomadic indoor Region Density Consumer 6m Region Density Consumer 27m Region Density SME 27 m Region Density nomadic outdoor 1m Region Density nomadic indoor Traffic Consumer 6m Traffic Consumer 27m Traffic SME 27 m Traffic nomadic outdoor 1m Traffic nomadic indoor Traffic Simulation Composite Signal Level dBm up Composite Signal Level dBm down Composite S/N down Composite S/N up Best Server down Best Server up Modulation Scheme up Modulation Scheme down Payload Data Rate down Payload Data Rate up Noise Rise down Noise Rise up Frequency Plan Search Ring Microwave Links
3.40.1 Topography This plot displays the composition of the different resolution topography files.
Topography Plot sample
3.40.2 Morphology This plot displays the composition of the different resolution morphology files.
Morphology Plot sample
Morphology Plot Detail
3.40.3 Image This plot displays background images used in the predictions.
Image Plot sample Roads
3.40.4 Roads This plot displays the vectors representing roads and streets in the areas of interest.
Road Plot sample 3.40.5 Composite Signal Level This prediction shows for each predicted pixel the signal level received by the Consumer radio in the downstream direction and the signal level received by the Sector radio in the upstream direction.
Composite Signal Downstream Level Plot sample
Composite Signal Upstream Level Plot sample
Composite Signal Downstream Level Plot at outdoor 1m
Composite Signal Downstream Level Plot at indoor 1m
3.40.6 Composite S/N This prediction shows the expected CNIR (S/N) relative to each location in the area of interest.
Composite S/N Plot sample
Composite S/N Plot sample detail

3.40.7 Best Server This prediction shows the best server area of each site or sector. Several site and sector parameters can be displayed by the best server predictions by assigning the best server area to colours defined by parameter range values.
Best Server Plot sample
Best Server Plot detail sample
3.40.8 Modulation Scheme Selection The Modulation Scheme Selection prediction shows the coding-modulation scheme most likely selected at each location. CelPlanner only calculates this prediction at points where two-way service is available. The selected scheme applies to the downlink best server sector of the location. Out of the schemes that satisfy the sensitivity test, the one that provides maximum data rate is shown as the "selected scheme" for each pixel.
Modulation Scheme Plot sample
Modulation Scheme Plot sample greater detail
3.40.9 Payload Data Rate In the Available Data Rate prediction CelPlanner shows the maximum achievable data-rate available at each pixel, considering the class and direction (downlink or uplink) being analyzed. The tool calculates the maximum achievable data rate considering the best server of the pixel in the downlink direction. From this were able to calculate the actual payload data rate, once the maximum scheme selection data rate is computed, minus the overhead factor, and divided by the TDD ratio.
Payload Data Rate Downstream plot sample
Payload Data Rate Upstream plot sample
3.40.10 Noise Rise The Noise Rise prediction shows the ratio (I+N)/N at each pixel, considering the selected service class and analysis direction (forward/reverse link). The interference can be calculated considering the signal coming from the best server of the pixel or from all possible servers.
Noise Rise Downstream Plot sample
3.40.11 Channel (Frequency) Plan The channel plan is represented by assigning colours to channels. The plot detail below shows a channel plan with a map image as background.
Channel Plan Plot sample detail
3.41 Analyze performance results, analyze impact on CAPEX, OPEX and ROI The result of the first design iteration has to be analyzed to see if there is room to reduce or there is need to increase the number of sites. The actual noise rise is now known with a good confidence, and this makes any redesign easier to do. Once the CAPEX, OPEX and ROI figures are satisfactory the design can go to the deployment phase. In the deployment phase actual sites are sought based on Site Search Areas and actual deployment heights are defined. The design is then continuously updated as the build-up is done.
3.42 Define Backhaul (BH) Strategy The backhaul network connects the wireless network to land line PoP (Points of Presence), where the interconnection with the WAN is done. The backhaul network uses point to point connections and is generally a hierarchical structure. The most important aspect of the strategy is to define the spectrum to be used. This greatly depends on local regulations, but generally higher frequency carriers are used. Typical frequencies are in the 7 to 42 GHz range. In some cases optical connections can be used. The backhaul network starts by defining aggregation points with LOS (Line Of Sight) to each other. The first aggregation points define Layer 1. This aggregation points are then further aggregated in Layer 2 aggregation points, which then connect to the PoP. The procedure to design the backhaul network is described next. 3.43 Define Backhaul Radio Equipment and generate radio template The selection of the Radio Equipment to be used is a technical and commercial issue, which once selected defines the radio library to be used. An example for radios used in a possible deployment is listed below. Radio A- Used for Layer 1 links at 38 GHz with 16QAM modulation and 14 MHz bandwidth providing 34 Mbps capacity, which is enough for three fully loaded 10 MHz WiMAX sectors. Radio B- Used for Layer 2 short and medium links, at 18 GHz with 32QAM modulation and 28 MHz bandwidth with 82 Mbps capacity, which should be enough for 12 three 10 MHZ WiMAX sectored sites. Radio C- Used for Layer 2 long links, a t 7 GHz with 32QAM modulation and 28 MHz bandwidth with 82 Mbps capacity, which should be enough for 12 three 10 MHZ WiMAX sectored sites.
Radio parameters are shown in the CelPlanner configuration dialogues below.
38 GHz microwave link radio configuration dialogue
3.44 Define Backhaul Antennas and digitize antenna patterns Antennas have to be selected that provide enough gain for different link lengths. Typical antennas used in the microwave links are listed below. - 38 GHz antennas: 0.3 , 0.6 and 0.8 meter diameter - 18 GHz antennas : 0.3, 0.6, 0.8 and 1.2 meter diameter 7 GHz antennas: 0.6, 0.8 and 1.2 meter diameter The figure below shows typical antenna patterns for backhaul antennas.
3.45 Define Spectrum usage strategy, bandwidth and resource breakdown (channels) Once the backhaul frequencies are established, the precise channels should be chosen as resources. 3.46 Digitize Land Line Access Points of Presence (PoP) The location of PoPs should be digitized and close-by backhaul points that can interconnect to them identified.
3.47 Establish BH concentration points based on terrain and traffic In this steps BS are grouped into clusters and the aggregation point identified. LOS considerations are very important in these decisions. The figure below shows one of this backhaul networks.
Backhaul Radio Links
3.48 Configure Backhaul links and Perform Backhaul Predictions Each microwave link is then configured according to the figure below.
Microwave link configuration
Each link direction is further configured as shown in the figures below, but accounting for antenna variations.
Forward Link configuration
Reverse Link configuration
Microwave Links are designed calculating the RF performance between them. Each link profile is analyzed as shown below for the Fresnel zone and potential ground reflections.
Link Analysis profile
3.49 Calculate Interference matrix Once all the links are designed the interference matrix can be calculated. This matrix is similar to the one explained previously, but it considers the cell antenna as users. 3.50 Perform Automatic Channel Plan Once the links are defined a polarization and frequency plan is done. This plan is very similar to the one explained previously and uses the above calculated interference matrix.
3.51 Calculate Backhaul Links Performance A Link Performance report is then generated to verify compliance with the specifications, as shown in the next figures.
Link Performance Report
The Link Performance can be exported to a file for further analysis as shown below.
Site:
Type: Latitude: Longitude: Altitude (m): Transmission Site: Reception Site: Radio Type: Modulation Scheme: Bandwidth (MHz): Roll-Off Factor: Coding Gain (dB): Channel Overhead (%): Reference Temperature (K): Receiver Noise Figure (dB): Maximum Data Rate (Mbps): Symbol Rate (Ms/s): Required Bit Error Rate: Service Threshold (dBm): Carrier to Noise Ratio (dB): Cross Polarization Improvement Factor (dB): Receiver Equalization Signature Factor: Frequency Plan: Frequency Channel: Center Frequency (MHz): Channel Bandwidth (MHz): Link Polarization: Transmission Power (dBm): Transmission Losses (dB): Transmission Antenna: Transmission Antenna Height (m): Transmission Antenna Gain (dBd): Transmission Antenna Gain (dBi): Transmission Power EIRP (dBm): Reception Losses (dB): Reception Antenna: Reception Antenna Height (m): Reception Antenna Gain (dBd): Reception Antenna Gain (dBi): Link Distance (m): Azimuth - True (): Azimuth - Magnetic (): Transmission Inclination (): Reception Inclination (): Free Space Distance (m): Center Frequency (MHz): Free Space Loss (dB): Earth Radius Factor: Effective Radius (m): Diffraction:
FU03
Cell Site 2514'37.2"N 5621'35.6"E 18 Forward Link FU03 FUJ2004 ALFO7-28BW32QAM 32-QAM 28 0.35 0 20 290 5 82.963 103.704 BER 10-3 -77 17.504 20 0.1 Du 7GHz 1 Ch (1-14) Ch 1 7142 MHz 7142 28 Vertical 30 1 THP18-071S 30 34.86 37 66 1 THP18-071S 30 34.86 37 14143.659 184.043 182.691 0.008 0.008 14143.659 7142 132.528 4/3 8502056 No Diffraction
FUJ2004
Cell Site 2507'00.0"N 5621'00.0"E 16 Reverse Link FUJ2004 FU03 ALFO7-28BW32QAM 32-QAM 28 0.35 0 20 290 5 82.963 103.704 BER 10-3 -77 17.504 20 0.1 Du 7GHz 1 Ch (1-14) Ch 1' 7296 MHz 7296 28 Vertical 30 1 THP18-071S 30 34.86 37 66 1 THP18-071S 30 34.86 37 14143.659 4.038 2.708 -0.008 -0.008 14143.659 7296 132.713
BER 10-6 -90 4.504 20 0.1
BER 10-6 -90 4.504 20 0.1
7142 MHz
7296 MHz
No Diffraction
Diffraction Loss (dB): Clearance Target (%): Minimum Clearance (m): Minimum Clearance Point (m): Terrain Reflection Dispersion (): Reflection Area 1 (m): Reflection Area 2 (m): Reflection Area 3 (m): Reflection Area 4 (m): Reflection Area 5 (m): Reflection Area 6 (m): Reflection Area 7 (m): Reflection Area 8 (m): Reflection Area 9 (m): Reflection Area 10 (m): Reflection Area 11 (m): Reflection Area 12 (m): Reflection Area 13 (m): Reflection Area 14 (m): Reflection Area 15 (m): Reflection Area 16 (m): Atmospheric Pressure (hPa): Standard Temperature (C): Water Vapor Density (g/m): Atmospheric Gases Loss (dB): Total Path Loss (dB): Reception Signal Level (dBm):
0 60 9.555 311.845 0.5 593.511 653.868 694.1 - 714.2 774.582 2987.7 - 3068.1 3128.5 - 3249.2 3410.2 - 3450.4 3510.8 - 3571.1 3631.5 - 3852.8 3913.1 - 4033.9 4094.217 4154.574 4214.9 - 4235 4295.4 - 4436.2 4496.6 - 4717.9 4778.3 - 5120.3 1013 15 7.5 0.139 132.666 -30.666 BER 10-3 -77 46.334 Short Haul SDH Networks ITU Inland Link Low altitude (<400 m) Plains 20 5.92E+00 BER 10-3 1.38E-04 8.06E-06 1.46E-04 1.60E-04 3.616 0.212 3.828 4.205 ITU 22 1.469 BER 10-3 8.40E-04 265.013 BER 10-6 8.40E-04 265.013 BER 10-6 6.90E-06 8.06E-06 1.50E-05 1.28E-02 0.181 0.212 0.393 336.384 BER 10-6 -90 59.334
9.578 311.845
593.511 653.868 694.1 - 714.2 774.582 2987.7 - 3068.1 3128.5 - 3249.2 3410.2 - 3450.4 3510.8 - 3571.1 3631.5 - 3852.8 3913.1 - 4033.9 4094.217 4154.574 4214.9 - 4235 4295.4 - 4436.2 4496.6 - 4717.9 4778.3 - 5120.3 1013 15 7.5 0.141 132.854 -30.853 BER 10-3 -77 46.146 BER 10-6 -90 59.146
Service Threshold (dBm): Link Gross Margin (dB): Objective ITU Quality Grade: Multipath Model: Multipath Link Area: Multipath Terrain Type: Multipath Climate Variable: Multipath Occurrence Factor:
6.03E+00 BER 10-3 1.46E-04 8.17E-06 1.55E-04 1.60E-04 3.848 0.215 4.063 4.205 BER 10-6 7.34E-06 8.17E-06 1.55E-05 1.28E-02 0.193 0.215 0.408 336.384
Fading Outage (%): Selective Fading Outage (%): Composite Fading Outage (%): ITU Error Performance Objective (%): Fading Outage (s/Month): Selective Fading Outage (s/Month): Composite Fading Outage (s/Month): ITU Error Performance Objective (s/Month): Precipitation Model: Precipitation Rate @ 0.01% (mm/h): Rainfall Attenuation (dB):
1.564 BER 10-3 8.40E-04 265.013 BER 10-6 8.40E-04 265.013
Unavailability due to Rain (%): Unavailability due to Rain (s/Year):
Unavailability due to Fading (%): Unavailability due to Rain (%): Total Unavailability (%): ITU Unavailability Objective (%): Unavailability due to Fading (s/Year) Unavailability due to Rain (s/Year): Total Unavailability (s/Year): ITU Unavailability Objective (s/Year):
BER 10-3 1.46E-04 8.40E-04 9.86E-04 1.65E-02 45.939 265.013 310.952 5203.44 * PASS *
BER 10-6 1.50E-05 8.40E-04 8.55E-04 1.65E-02 4.717 265.013 269.73 5203.44 * PASS *
BER 10-3 1.55E-04 8.40E-04 9.95E-04 1.65E-02 48.754 265.013 313.767 5203.44 * PASS *
BER 10-6 1.55E-05 8.40E-04 8.56E-04 1.65E-02 4.892 265.013 269.905 5203.44 * PASS *
Each link can be verified if it is interfering with other links or if it is being interfered by other links. Below is a sample showing this kind of analysis.
Each link is analyzed in detail and its availability is calculated.
3.51.1 Backhaul Traffic Analysis The traffic aggregated by each link should be verified against the radio capacity. This traffic is not constant and a margin should be left for the variation, generally 25% above capacity for a single link. For aggregated links this margin is not required as traffic variations will compensate each other. A smaller margin of 10% may be sufficient. The actual margin should be given by the designer based on his understanding of possible traffic variations. 3.52 Prepare Final Report The design of a WiMAX network is very extensive and should be registered in detail, so the decisions and tradeoffs can be understood in the future, mainly when other people will be in charge of the network. It is not uncommon to have 1000 pages reports to document a network. 4 Conclusion As can be seen above a WiMAX design is complex and extensive, due to the number of services being offered and the spectrum efficiency achieved. Shortcuts may work for a while, but will cost dearly at later stages. We strongly recommend that a professional design be done before any large investment is done in a WiMAX network.
GLOSSARY
A/D AAA ACK AM AMC AMC AMR AP ARFCN ARP ARPU ARQ ASCII ATM AuC BE Ber BLER BPSK BS BSC BSS BTC BTS BW C/I CAPEX CC CD CDMA CDR CFN CGI CID CIF CINR CNR CPE CPU CQI CRC CS CS CTC D/A DAB dBm Analogy to Digital Converter Authentication, Authorization and Accounting Acknowledgement Amplitude Modulation Adaptive Modulation and Coding Advanced Advanced Multi-rate Encoding Access Point Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number Address Resolution Protocol Average Revenue Per User Automatic Repeat Request American Standard Code for Information Interchange Asynchronous Transfer Mode Authentication Canter Best Effort Bit Error Rate Block Error Rate Binary Phase Shift Keying Base Station Base Station Controller Base Station Subsystem Block Turbo Coding Base Transceiver Station Bandwidth Carrier to Interference ratio Capital Expenditure Convolutional Coding Collision Detection Code Division Multiplex Call Detail Record Connection Frame Number Cell Global Identification Connection Identifier Common Intermediate Format Carrier to Interference and Noise Ratio Carrier to Noise ratio Customer Premises Equipment Central Processing Unit Channel Quality Indicator Cyclic Redundancy Check Coding Scheme Circuit Switched Convolutional Turbo Code Digital to Analogy Converter Digital Audio Broadcasting decibel milliWatt
DCD DEMUX DIUC DL DLCI DL-MAP DMB DNS DSP DVB e2e ED EFR EIR ER ertPS Ethernet EVM Fa FDD FDMA FEC FER FFT FM FRS FTP FUSC GPS GSM GTT GW HA HARQ HB HDLC HLR HO HR HS HSDPA HSUPA HTTP IE IEEE IETF IFFT
Downlink Channel Descriptor De-Multiplexer Downlink Interval Usage Code Downlink Downlink Connection Identifier Downlink-Medium Access Protocol Digital Multimedia Broadcasting Domain Name System Digital Signal Processor Digital Video Broadcasting End to End Interfered Enhanced Full Speech Codec Equipment Identity Register Interferer extended real time Polling Service IEEE 802.3 Layer 2 Protocol for IP Error Vector Magnitude Foreign Agent Frequency Division Duplexing Frequency Division Multiple Access Forward Error Correction Frame Error Rate Fast Fourier Transform Frequency modulation Frequency Reuse Scheme File Transfer Protocol Full Usage of Sub-Channels Global Positioning System Global System for Mobile Communication Global Title Translation Gateway Home Agent Hybrid ARQ Heart Beat High Level Data Link Control Home Location Register Handover Half Rate High Speed High Speed Downlink Packet Access High Speed Uplink Packet Access Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Information Element Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers Internet Engineering Task Force Inverse Fourier Transform
IM IMEI IMSI IMT2000 IP IS ISI ISP ITU JPEG kbps kBps kHz LAN LBS LDPC LOS LSB LTE MAC MAC MAN MBS MBWA MCC MCS MHz MIB MIMO MIN MIP MISO MMDS MMDS MMS MPEG MRC MS MTP MUD MUX MVNO NAI NIC NSS NTSC OFDM OFDMA
Instant Messaging International Mobile Equipment Identity international Mobile Subscriber Identity International Mobile Telecommunications for 2000 Internet Protocol Interim Standard Inter Symbol Interference Internet Service Provider International Telecommunications Union Joint Picture Expert Group kilo bits per second kilo Bytes per second kilo Hertz Local Area Network Location Based Services Low Density Parity Check Line Of Sight Least Significant Bit Long Term Evolution Medium Access Control Message Authentication Code Metropolitan Area Network Multicast Broadcast Services Mobile Broadband Wireless Access Mobile Country Code Modulation and Coding Scheme Mega Hertz Management Information Base Multiple In Multiple Out Mobile Identity Number Mobile IP Multiple In Single Out Multipoint Microwave Distribution System Multi-channel Multi-point Distribution System Multimedia Messaging System Motion Picture Expert Group Maximum Ratio Combining Mobile Station Message Transfer Part Multi User Detection Multiplex Mobile Virtual Network Operator Network Access Identifier Network Interface Card Network Switching Subsystem National television System Committee Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access
OFUSC OMAP OMC OPEX OPUSC PAPR PCM PCN PCS PCU PDA PER PHY PLMN PN PoE PoP POP POTS PS PS PSK PSDPN PSTN PTM PTP PTT QAM QCIF QoS QPSK RADIUS RAN RAND RB RF RRC RSSSI RTG RTP RTT RX S/P SA SAP SAT SDH SF
Optional FUSC Operation & Maintenance Application Part Operation and Maintenance Centre Operational Expenditure Optional PUSC Peak to Average Power Ratio Pulse Code Modulation Personal Communications Network Personal Communications System Packet Control Unit Personal Digital Assistant Packet Error Rate Physical Layer Public Land Mobile Network Pseudo Noise Power over Internet Point of Presence Population Plain Old Telephone Service Packet Switched Physical Slot Phase Shift Keying Packet Switched Public Data Network Public Switched Telephone Network Point To Multipoint Point To Point Post, Telephone & Telegraph Quadrature Amplitude Modulation Quart Common Intermediate Format Quality of Service Quadrature Phase Shift Keying Remote Authentication Dial In User Service Radio Access Network Random Number Radio Bearer Radio Frequency Radio Resource Control Receive Signal Strength Indicator Receive transmit Transition Gap Real Time Transport Protocol Round Trip time Receiver Serial to parallel Converter Service Area Service Access Point Satellite Synchronous Digital Hierarchy Spreading Factor
SI SIP SIR SISO SLA SME SNR SOHO SP SQN SS STBC STP TDD TDM TDMA TIA TMSI TS TTG TUSC TX UA UART UCD UDP UL UL-MAP UMTS UTRA UTRAN UWB VPN VLR VoIP WAN WAP WCDMA WiFi WiMAX WLAN
Service Indicator Session Initiation Protocol Signal to Interference Ratio Single In Single Out Service Level Agreement Small Medium Enterprise Signal to Noise Ratio Small Office Home Office Signalling Point Sequence Number Subscriber Station Space Time Block Code Signal Transfer Point Time Division Duplex Time Division Multiplex Time Division Multiple Access Telecommunications Industry Association Temporary Mobile Subscriber Number Time Slot Transmit receive Transition Gap Tile Use of Sub-Channels Transmitter User Agent Universal Asynchronous Receiver and Transmitter Uplink Channel Descriptor User Datagram protocol Uplink Uplink Medium Access Protocol Universal Mobile Telecommunications System UMTS Terrestrial Access UMTS Terrestrial Access Network Ultras Wide Band Virtual Private Network Visitor Location Register Voice over IP Wide Area Network Wireless Application Protocol Wideband CDMA Wireless Fidelity Worldwide interoperability for Microwave Access Wireless Local Area Network
INDEX
16QAM, 20, 104, 105, 107, 235, 253 2G, 7, 14, 253 3G, 8, 10, 14, 113, 253 64QAM, 10, 20, 105, 107, 253 AAA, 11, 12, 53, 54, 247, 253 adaptive modulation, 10, 20, 122, 253 AP, 11, 12, 50, 148, 247, 253 BPSK, 20, 21, 105, 247, 253 BS, 11, 12, 17, 18, 19, 21, 47, 51, 52, 53, 54, 71, 73, 108, 148, 238, 247, 253 channel bandwidth, 14, 78, 253 CID, 2, 23, 29, 52, 53, 54, 247, 253 code rates, 20, 253 coding, 20, 58, 59, 80, 135, 208, 212, 231, 253 coding algorithms, 20, 253 conflict management, 12, 253 Connection ID, 29, 52, 253 CPE, 12, 174, 190, 247, 253 cyclic prefix, 15, 17, 26, 30, 46, 106, 253 Data sub-carrier, 20, 36, 253 DC sub-carrier, 32, 33, 35, 38, 41, 44, 253 DHCP, 11, 253 DNS, 11, 12, 248, 253 DSP, 15, 248, 253 duplexing, 16, 253 FA, 11, 12, 253 FFT, 10, 12, 15, 17, 19, 25, 26, 33, 36, 39, 44, 47, 79, 176, 183, 248, 253 frequency domain, 2, 15, 26, 253 guard bands, 15, 253 HA, 11, 248, 253 http, 11, 253 IEEE 802.11a/g, 10, 253 interference level, 13, 129, 203, 253 IP, 3, 7, 8, 10, 11, 47, 51, 85, 91, 248, 249, 251, 253 MS, 11, 12, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 47, 51, 52, 53, 54, 108, 185, 249, 253 Msps, 15, 23, 253 multipath, 8, 10, 12, 15, 16, 17, 30, 47, 51, 55, 56, 57, 103, 104, 106, 107, 108, 117, 178, 253 Null sub-carrier, 253 Nyquist-Shannon, 15, 253 OFDM, 2, 8, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 19, 20, 21, 23, 25, 70, 71, 249, 253 OFDMA, 2, 16, 19, 23, 25, 31, 80, 176, 183, 188, 189, 249, 253 operation mode, 253 pilot power, 253 Pilot sub-carrier, 20, 30, 253 power control, 122, 194, 253 power domain, 2, 20, 253 preamble power, 21, 253 QPSK, 20, 105, 107, 188, 189, 250, 253 ranging, 16, 22, 26, 47, 51, 53, 54, 253 repetition rates, 20, 253 RFC, 11, 253 RTG, 19, 47, 250, 254 Segmentation, 2, 5, 16, 24, 211, 254 SS, 11, 17, 19, 21, 22, 47, 185, 251, 254 sub-carrier, 13, 14, 15, 16, 21, 24, 25, 26, 30, 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 38, 39, 41, 43, 44, 47, 51, 74, 103, 106, 107, 120, 122, 254 sub-channelization, 20, 31, 41, 42, 43, 44, 46, 137, 214, 254 sub-frame, 16, 18, 19, 23, 33, 36, 39, 44, 47, 51, 52, 254 symbol time, 14, 16, 17, 25, 51, 254 TDD, 10, 16, 17, 18, 19, 46, 50, 80, 176, 183, 232, 251, 254 TTG, 19, 47, 251, 254 unsymmetrical traffic, 18, 254 WiMAX, 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 21, 23, 24, 26, 30, 47, 50, 51, 52, 53, 55, 58, 61, 62, 74, 75, 78, 81, 83, 88, 103, 106, 107, 122, 134, 147, 148, 170, 176, 183, 188, 189, 190, 194, 211, 235, 246, 251, 254, 255 zone, 3, 12, 19, 32, 33, 35, 36, 47, 54, 70, 74, 77, 79, 113, 114, 191, 240, 254
References 1- Fundamentals of WiMAX - Jeffrey G. Andrews, Arunabha Ghosh, Rias Muhamed, 2007, Prentice Hall 2- Wireless MAN- Carl Eklund, Roger B. Marks, Subbu Ponnuswamy, Kenneth L. Stanwood Nico J.M. van Waes, 2006, IEEE Press 3- WiMAX System Evaluation Methodology, WiMAX Forum, December 2007 4- Designing cdma2000 Systems- Leonhard Korowajczuk, Bruno de Souza Abreu Xavier, Arlindo Moreira Fartes Filho, Leila Zurba Ribeiro, Cristine Korowajczuk, Luiz A. DaSilva, 2004

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Designing WiMAX Networks

Part 1 - WiMAX as a 4G Solution................................................................................. 9

OFDM carrier in the time domain...............................................................................................16

3.2.1 3.2.2 3.2.3 3.2.4 3.2.5

OFDM carrier in the power domain ............................................................................................20

3.3.1 3.3.2 3.3.3 3.3.4 3.3.5

3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7

Advanced Antenna Systems .......................................................................................................60

8.6 8.7 8.8

Cell Identification Planning ........................................................................................................74 Permutation Base Planning.........................................................................................................74

Part 2 Selected topics in the Design of a 4G Network ..............................................82

IP Data Traffic Definition...........................................................................................................91 Customer Distribution Characterization......................................................................................92

3.5.1 3.5.2 3.5.3 3.5.4

3.6 3.7 3.8

Propagation models .........................................................................................................................109 5.1 Traditional models ...................................................................................................................109

5.2 5.3 5.4

Computing Outage ...................................................................................................................124

Network Optimization .....................................................................................................................128 7.1 Footprint Enhancement ............................................................................................................128

Part 3 - Steps in the Design of a WiMAX Network...................................................147

3.15.1 3.15.2 3.15.3

3.17 3.18 3.19

3.33 3.34 3.35

3.36 3.37 3.38 3.39

Perform Network Performance Predictions ...........................................................................224

3.52 Prepare Final Report .............................................................................................................247 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................247

Glossary.......................................................................................................................248 Index ............................................................................................................................253

Designing WiMAX Networks

PART 1 - WIMAX AS A 4G SOLUTION

Transmitted Symbol duration FFT Symbol duration

Multipath spread duration

Symbol fraction 1/4 1/8 1/16 1/32

Multipath spread distance (m) 6857.14 3428.57 1714.29 857.14

OFDM standard configurations

20 173 172 345 1 1703 71 71 12 12 166 1536 1 48

10 80 79 159 1 865 96 768 1 48

20 160 159 319 1 1729 192 1536 1 48

DL sub-frame Zone 0 1 2 0 (PUSC) 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1 (FUSC) 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 2 20 21 22 23

DL-PUSC 5 10 46 92 45 91 91 183 1 1 421 841 14 14 2 2 12 12

20 184 183 367 1 1681 14 2 12

The next table summarizes the main characteristics of the permutation.

Bandwidth (MHz) DL-FUSC DL-OFUSC DL-PUSC DL AMC UL-PUSC UL-OPUSC UL-AMC

Bandwidth (MHz) DL-FUSC DL-OFUSC DL-PUSC Dl-AMC UL-PUSC UL-OPUSC UL-AMC

FCH Frame Control Header

DCD DL Channel Descriptor DL MAP UCD UL Channel Descriptor

TTG Transmit Transition Gap

End Slot allocation sequence

End Data allocation sequence

Start UL RTG Receive Sub-Frame Transition Gap

Frequency Accuracy 5x10-8 5x10-8 5x10-8 5x10-8 5x10-6 5x10-6 5x10-6

Day Traffic Data

Served/Offered Throughput per Sector Ratio

21 1 4 19 30 24 7 0 3 7 9 7 67 153 61 29 565 17 22 68 540 615 143 61 2,473

23 2 2 7 10 7 7 0 1 2 2 2 76 170 66 36 610 19 25 76 601 342 80 34 2,199

21 1 4 18 27 21 7 0 2 6 7 5 60 151 39 19 299 11 13 44 297 559 128 52 1,794

23 2 1 7 9 6 7 0 1 2 2 2 66 167 33 18 225 10 10 35 210 316 72 30 1,255

Day Traffic Throughput KPI at 75% of Peak Rate

Day Traffic Throughput KPI at 50% of Peak Rate

PART 2 SELECTED TOPICS IN THE DESIGN OF A 4G NETWORK

Customer Session statistics

Customer Burst statistics

Customer Packet Statistics

Percentage of total traffic of the category

consumer SME total