Module+5+LTE Radio Planning

MODULE A
LTE RADIO PLANNING

ii Telecoms Academy
LTE Radio Planning
Index
Telecoms Academy iii
CONTENTS
OBJECTIVES IX
SECTION 1 INTRODUCTION TO RADIO PLANNING XI
Lesson 1 Radio Planning Life Cycle 1
High Level Network Design Cycle 1
Phase 1 Detailed Procedure 2
Phase 1 Information 3
Phase 2 Detailed Procedures 4
Phase 3 Detailed Procedures 5
Phase 4 Detailed procedures 6
Phase 3 - 4 Information 6
Factors Affecting the LTE Planning Process 7
Allocated Spectrum and Channel Bandwidth 9
LTE Channel Parameters 10
Maximum Bit Rate per Channel 11
Equipment Performance 12
Coverage or Capacity 13
Service Area 14
Self Assessment Multiple Choice 17
Self Assessment Multiple Choice Answer Grid 21
Lesson 2 RF and Baseband Signal 23
The Electromagnetic Wave 23
Baseband Information 24
Lesson 3 Decibels (dB) and Noise in RF Theory 33
The Decibel and Applications for RF Practice 33
Calculating Noise in RF systems 36
Cascaded Noise 38
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Lesson 4 Modulation Schemes for LTE 45
Modulation Systems 45
Binary Phase Shift Keying (BPSK) 46
High Level Modulation Schemes, QPSK, 8PSK 47
16QAM Modulation 48
64QAM Modulation 48
The Effect of Signal to Noise Ratio in Modulation 49
Adaptive Modulation Schemes 50
Lesson 5 Multiple access Schemes 57
Multiple Access in Radio Systems 57
Frequency Division Multiple Access 57
Time Division Multiple Access 58
TDMA and FDMA Hybrid 59
Code Division Multiple Access 59
OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) 60
Orthogonal Frequency Division and Multiple Access 61
Duplex Schemes 62
End of Section 1 Questions 66
Section 1 Assignment Questions 72
SECTION 2 PROPAGATION PRINCIPLE, MODELLING AND ANTENNAS 75
Lesson 1 Propagation Basics 77
Refraction of the Radio Signal 77
Sub-Refraction 80
Super-Refraction 81
Extreme Cases, Ducting 82
Index
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Lesson 2 Mechanisms of Propagation 91
Attenuation through Penetration 93
Fresnel Clearance 94
Multipath Propagation 96
Rayleigh Environment 96
Rician Environment 97
Lesson 3 Interference and Frequency Reuse 103
Frequency Reuse Concepts 103
Frequency Reuse in LTE 105
Cell Size and Capacity 106
Cell Deployment in LTE 106
Lesson 4 Antenna Basic Theory 113
The Dipole Antenna 113
Antenna Beamwidth 117
Increasing Antenna Gain 118
Antenna Tilt 120
Antenna Diversity Confgurations 121
Lesson 5 Advanced Antenna Techniques for LTE 129
Single Input Single Output (SISO) 129
Single Input Multiple Output (SIMO) 130
Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) 130
Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) 131
Single User, Multiple User, and Co-operative MIMO 132
Single User MIMO(SU-MIMO) 132
Multiple User MIMO(MU-MIMO) 133
Beamforming 134
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LTE Downlink Multiple Antenna Schemes 135
Open-loop Tx Diversity 136
Receive Diversity 136
Spatial Multiplexing MIMO 136
Spatial Multiplexing MIMO 137
Closed Loop Spatial Multiplexing 137
Open loop spatial Multiplexing 138
Reporting of UE Feedback 139
End of Section 2 Questions 148
Self Assessment Multiple Choice Answer Grid Cont....... 156
Section 2 Assignment 157
SECTION 3 LTE LINK BUDGETS 159
Lesson 1 Defning a Link Budget Statement 161
Intro to Basic Radio System 161
Typical Link Budget Requirements 162
LTE link Budget variables 163
Lesson 2 Transmitter Power in LTE Link Budgets 169
LTE Transmit Power Capability for the UE 169
Additional Factors Affecting UE Power Output 170
Maximum Power Reduction (MPR) 170
eNodeB Power Output Characteristics 171
Typical Losses in the eNB 172
Other Losses in the transmit/receive system 172
Lesson 3 eNB and UE Antenna Performance 175
Antenna Characteristics for the UE 175
Index
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Antenna Characteristics for eNB 176
Lesson 4 Calculating Sensitivity 181
Sensitivity Calculation for the eNB and UE 181
Thermal Noise in Radio Systems 182
Type of Service and Impact on Noise Floor 183
Implementation Margin, UE, eNB 184
Receiver Noise Figure 185
Total Noise Floor 185
Cascaded Noise 186
Typical SNR for LTE Modulation and Coding Schemes 188
Duplex Gap and Duplex Distance, Effect on Receiver Sensitivity 189
Lesson 5 System Gain and Maximum Pathloss 193
Environmental Factors and Noise Rise 193
Shadow Margin (Slow Fading) 194
Building and Foliage Losses 196
Body Loss 197
Uplink and Downlink Noise Rise 198
Lesson 6 Pathloss Modelling 201
Propagation Modelling 201
Coverage from link budget 202
Comparison of models 203
The WINNER Model 205
Link Planning Exercise 210

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Objectives
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Objectives
At the end of this module you should be able to
Determine the optimum planning cycle for planning LTE radio systems
Show which elements of the LTE technology will have a major impact on the
planning processes
Understand some of the basic theories associated with information theory
Perform calculations using dB
List the modulation and coding schemes used by LTE and comment on the
required level of performance
Show how OFDMA works and explain the advantages over existing
communication systems
Discuss various propagation mechanisms and understand where extreme
propagation conditions might exist
Show how basic antenna techniques may be used to enhance the
performance of a radio link
Explain the basic theories behind the MIMO antenna technique and discuss
the improved performance
Describe in detail the elements of the LTE link budget
Perform a detailed link budget for LTE systems.
Introduction to Radio Planning
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SECTION 1
INTRODUCTION TO RADIO PLANNING
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LESSON 1 RADIO PLANNING LIFE CYCLE
High Level Network Design Cycle
Network design is a complex and time consuming affair with many steps and processes.
However from a high level it could be considered that there are 4 main steps in the
planning cycle.
The process begins with information gathering and objective setting. Information gathered
at this stage will include both marketing and technical data. The marketing information is
important so that realistic objectives can be set. Technical data will include information
about the technology to be used, spectrum related data and possibly equipment
performance data from a vendor.
Phase 1
Information Gathering
+
Initial Objective
Setting
Phase 2
Site Selection
+
Backhaul Planning
Phase 3
RF Predictions
+
Confirm Assumptions
Phase 4
Build Plan
+
Drive Test
Optimisation
Figure 1 High Level Design Life Cycle
Information gather during this frst phase is used to test the objectives and determine the
viability of the business case. Since there are no major investments at this stage it is also
a good time to analyse the risks involved using known information. The assumptions and
objectives can be tested iteratively until some initial design is decided.
The second phase used the outputs of phase one to determine the best location for the
base sites and to determine the back haul requirements. Issues of co-location and new
site builds would be addressed at this stage.
Once all the site locations have been determined the initial assumptions regarding
coverage will need to be validated. This is possible through the use of software RF
planning tools. Some design optimisations can be determined during this stage. Choice
of software tools and models will have to be made, this is often a matter of scale and
budget.
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Phase 4 is the build out of the system. Some starting point must be determined, possibly
from the demographic information from the marketing team or from site availability. At
some point during this stage drive tests should be carried out to confrm the accuracy of
the software planning models used in stage three and if necessary some redesign and
optimisations can be made. The use of additional software tools to plan the deployment
may be used at this stage.
Phase 1 Detailed Procedure
As stated above phase 1 is the information gathering and objective setting stage.
The more information that can be gathered and tested at this stage, the better the
understanding of the design and the behaviour of the system when variables are included.
Some of the additional steps that need to be considered in the early stages of planning
are;
Gather relevant technical and marketing information
Set primary objectives based in some initial assumptions, type of service,
coverage, capacity etc
Draft initial plan based on objectives and other assumptions, equipment
selection, technology selection
Determine the number of base station required, through simple modelling
techniques to fulfl the initial objectives
Test the performance of the initial design based on market assumption
variability
Test the business case based on market variability and equipment
performance
Iterate the results and make necessary changes to basic plan.
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Phase 1
Equipment Performance
- Vendor Selection
- Antenna Type/Performance
- Costs
- UE Performance
- Additional Features
- MIMO/Beamforming
Coverage Objective
- Spectrum Frequency
- Capacity
- Area Type
- Service Level
Capacity Objective
- Mbps
- Mbps/Km
2
- Rural Urban
- Quantity of Spectrum
Marketing
- Pop Density
- Demographics
- Market Penetration
- Number of Subs
- Revenues
- Services Offered
- Service level
- Service Quality
- Growth
Planning Process
- RF Model
- Capacity Models
- Spreadsheets
Figure 2 Information Required for Phase 1 Planning
Phase 1 Information
Phase 1 of planning is primarily about information gathering and initial system modelling,
the more information that can be gathered at his stage will allow for more detailed and
accurate modelling. More time spent at this at this stage understanding how the system
responds to changes in design inputs should result in more solid and reliable design in the
later stages. The basic premise of phase one design is to determine the optimum number
of base stations to meet the required objectives of coverage and capacity.
Some areas for investigation and fact fnding are;
Marketing data
Vendor equipment data
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Which allows the setting of;
Coverage objectives
Capacity objectives
A planning process can also be considered at this time taking into account what tools
are available to the designer, RF planning tools, spreadsheets used to determine system
operating criteria etc.
Phase 2 Detailed Procedures
The output of phase 1 is, amongst others, is the number of base stations required to meet
the objectives, however the location of the base stations is yet to be determined. Phase
2 is about site selection and confrming the assumptions from the frst stage holds true
against the real location of sites.
Many operators will have existing sites on which they may co-locate the new LTE
equipment., however one of the implications of mobile broadband is the number of new
sites that may have to be deployed (depending on the spectrum used). This will involved
detailed site planning and acquisition to be carried out.
In addition the backhaul requirements for both the co-located sites and new sites will have
to be calculated and planned.
Introduce real site location including existing and new sites
Test system performance using real location against initial objectives
Begin site acquisition process
Determine the optimal build out plan
Investigate and plan backhaul requirements
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Phase 2
Site Acquisition
- Planning processes
- Site Availability
- Owned or Leased
- Cost
Backhaul
- Required Capacity
- Interconnects available
- Future Growth
- FO vs microwave
Site Selection
- Site Availability
- Collocated
- New Site
- Impact on Coverage
Figure 3 Phase 2 Information Required
Phase 3 Detailed Procedures
Once the site locations have been established, software tools can be used to confrm the
coverage and capacity assumptions made in the frst stage. Changes can be made to
the initial design at this stage as well the selection of ideal locations for new sites. It is
important at this stage to develop a build out plan that will quickly establish the required
coverage and capacity in the least amount of time with the least amount of cost, there are
software tools available that can develop this plan.
Use software tools to confrm initial assumptions for coverage and capacity
Make changes to site planning
Optimise the build plan
Begin the build
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Phase 4 Detailed procedures
Before a major build is undertaken the accuracy of the software tools must be determined,
therefore it is not uncommon to run drive test against a test site, this can be used to
confrm the coverage predicted by the RF tools and if the site is fully functional some
estimate of cell capacity can also be determined. Any major discrepancy between the
RF prediction and the actual measurements can be used to tune the prediction models.
Tuning of the software models is important in order to reduce the amount of retro planning/
site building further in to the build process.
Drive test to confrm the software planning models used
Optimise radio plan if necessary
Phase 3 - 4 Information
Phase 3 and 4 are primarily about site selection and building, where the use of RF
software planning, capacity planning tools and optimisation tools are heavily used. The
selection of tools is based on the type of system that is being planned and the budget
given to the planning department. There are many different stand-alone tools that ca
be used in the process and an increasing number of integrated tools that will allow the
planner to manage the design process from start to fnish.
Typical tools required during the third and fourth stages are:
RF Planning
Capacity Planning
Drive Test
Roll out and Optimisation Planning
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Phase
3/4
Drive Test
- Tool Type
- Features
- Integration with Plan ning tool
- Interpreting Results
- Optimisation
Capacity Planning
- Tool Type
- Accuracy
- Capacity Models
Optimisation
- Tool Type
- Features
- Integration with Planning tool
Planning Tools
- Tool Type/Capability
- Cost
- Terrain/Clutter Database
- Building Database
- Planning Models
Figure 4 Phase 3 4 Information Required
Factors Affecting the LTE Planning Process
Whilst LTE technology is new and complex some of the basic rules of system planning
do not change. Much of the complexity of LTE is designed to make the best use of the
available spectrum, better spectral effciency, in other words. Achieving better effciency
means that higher data rates can be achieved in systems that are spectrum limited.
Indeed LTE is design to support a single channel reuse pattern with out resorting to tricks
like spread spectrum.
When considering capacity planning, or general system planning, these are some of the
factors that should be taken in to account.
Frequency Band
Amount of Allocated Spectrum
Channel Bandwidth
Service Area
Population Density
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Population Demographic
Population Penetration
Expected level of service
Each of the factors mentioned above will have some impact on the overall system design
and the ultimate capacity in each cell and across the system as a whole.

Frequency Band
There are many frequency bands potentially available for the deployment of LTE, the
bands listed opposite have been identifed through work done by the ITU and the WRCs.
The bands are part of the IMT spectrum and many are in use already with cellular
technologies like GSM, UMTS and WiMAX.
It is not expected for a UE to support all of the bands shown here, but is highly likely that
UE will support a sunset of the bands depending on the intended are of deployment,
allowing national and international roaming as cost effectively as possible.

Figure 5 FDD IMT Frequency Bands
The chosen spectrum will have a very large impact on the planning process since
the nominal radius of the LTE radio cell is dependant on the frequency of operation.
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Generally speaking the lower the frequency the larger the radio cell, the better the building
penetration, the less sensitive to atmospheric issues the system becomes. This is of great
interest to operators since the cost of deploying LTE networks is likely to be very high,
lower frequency allocations can save many millions of dollars in CAPEX, i.e. there will be
less eNBs to buy.
e.g. The US operator Verizon is deploying its LTE network in the 700MHz band (band 13)
whilst DoCoMo in Japan have won spectrum in the 1500MHz band. A band of interest for
many European operators is the 2.6GHz band.
Figure 6 TDD IMT Frequency Bands
Allocated Spectrum and Channel Bandwidth
The bands are regulated in terms of the allowed operating bandwidth. This is driven
largely by the amount of available spectrum in each of the bands. Some of the bands
do not allow the use of the narrow channels, whilst others prohibit the use of the larger
bandwidths.
The amount of allocated spectrum will impact the overall network capacity and the
individual sector capacity. As with many aspects of system planning more is better.
Planning a system with 1 or 2 channels is very challenging, even when the technology
provides some complex mechanisms to allow for reuse factors of 1, there will still be a
negative impact on capacity.
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In some cases the operator may have the fexibility to choose the channel bandwidth
depending on the total amount of spectrum they have. Some analysis may have to be
done on the advantages and disadvantages of a few large bandwidth channels (e.g.
2x10MHz) versus more, lower bandwidth channels (e.g. 4x5MHz)

Figure 7 Available Capacity and Channel Bandwidths for LTE
LTE Channel Parameters
Once the individual channel bandwidths are know, it is possible to work out what the likely
capacity of the channel will be. This is less straight forward in LTE for many reasons, not
least of which is the nature of the OFDM technique employed on the radio interface.
The table opposite shows the main attributes of the various channel bandwidths. It can be
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seen that the entire channel is not occupied due to the FFT sampling of the channel, this
will yield a lower than expected capacity using the Nyquist and Shannon assumptions
Figure 8 LTE Channel Parameters
Maximum Bit Rate per Channel
Based on a simple Nyquist calculation and an assumption of the overall effciency (80%)
of the radio, the table opposite shows the maximum data rates that could be expected
from the various channel bandwidths.
Figure 9 Maximum Downlink Capacity per Radio Channel
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However the actual cell capacity in LTE may vary due to considerations of serving cell
load and adjacent cell load and also the interference coordination feature of LTE.
Figure 10 Maximum Uplink Capacity per Radio Channel
System performance will be affected by many factor related to the equipment used in the
network. The fundamental aspects of the link budget rely entirely on the performance
of the equipment. In many case the vendor spec sheet will provide the majority of the
information required to perform basic ink budgets. This may be enough during the
initial phase of planning to establish a baseline for capacity and performance. Once the
basic performance parameters have been worked out and certain levels of performance
have been determined, it is then possible to include the more complex features of the
equipment to determine the additional gains possible. For example MIMO, beamforming
antennas, vendor specifc algorithms for interference management.
BS/UE Power Output
BS/UE Antenna Gains
Receiver sensitivity
Link Budget Gains and Losses
MIMO Gains
Vendor Specifc Requirements
Figure 11 Equipment Parameters Considered for Capacity
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Coverage or Capacity
Coverage limited design
Coverage limited systems are those whose performance is limited by the coverage
possible from a given set of performance attributes. The system design for coverage will
maximise the range from the base station at the expense of capacity. Coverage limited
systems will likely have a few widely spaced base stations.
Capacity Limited Design
A system that is limited by its capacity will deliver maximum capacity for a given set of
conditions. Capacity will be delivered at the expense of coverage. Systems designed for
capacity will have many closely spaced base stations.

Figure 12 Capacity Limited Design
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Figure 12 Coverage Limited Design
Service Area
Having established the performance capabilities of LTE and the vendor specifc equipment
the job of planning must then determine the capacity or coverage objectives. The
objectives will of course vary from area to area depending on the planning criteria.
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I n d u s t r i
a l

I n d u s t r i a l
Re s i d e n t
i a l
R e s i d e n t
Private
Residential
Council
Residential
Heavy Industrial
Light Industrial
Figure 13 Area to be served
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Self Assessment Multiple Choice
Radio Planning Life Cycle
Q1
which phase of the planning cycle would include site selection and backhaul planning?
a) Phase 1
b) Phase 2
c) Phase 3
d) Phase 4
Q2
which of the following processes are most likely to occur in phase 1 of the planning life
cycle?
a) network build plan
b) drive test and optimisation
c) initial objective setting
d) RF predictions
Q3
when setting coverage objectives, which if the following information is most useful?
a) Vendor selection
b) Market penetration
c) Allocated spectrum
d) Number of subscribers
Q4
completion of phase 1 planning yields what kind of information ?
a) The fnal location of the base stations.
b) The approximate number of base stations required.
c) Detailed description of subscriber services.
d) The radio channel frequency plan.
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Q5
in which phase of the planning cycle would real site locations be determined ?
a) Phase 1
b) Phase 2
c) Phase 3
d) Phase 4
Q6
drive test tools and optimisation processes are most like to occur in which phase of the
planning cycle ?
a) Phase 1
b) Phase 2
c) Phase 3
d) Phase 4
Q8
which of the following may cause potential problems for LTE deployment when
considering handset complexity and roaming ?
a) No interworking with existing 3G systems
b) The radio interface is not standardised for LTE
c) LTE can be deployed in many frequency bands
d) LTE antennas will be very large
Q9
how many FFT points will be used to decode an LTE radio channel of 10MHz bandwidth?
a) 512
b) 1000
c) 1024
d) 2048
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Q10
which of the following statements are true regarding the relationship between capacity and
coverage ?
a) Cell capacity increases with coverage
b) Cell capacity is independent of coverage
c) Increased cell coverage results in smaller cells
d) Cell coverage reduces as capacity is increased
Q11
radio systems which are designed with many radio cell with close spacing can be said to
be
a) Capacity limited
b) Capacity reduced
c) Coverage limited
d) Coverage reduced
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Self Assessment Multiple Choice Answer Grid
Transfer your answers onto the grid for easy assessment and future reference
Name...
Question set
Question a b c d
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
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LESSON 2 RF AND BASEBAND SIGNALS
The Electromagnetic Wave
Alternating electrical current passing through a conductor causes an electromagnetic
feld to be produced in the air around the conductor. This electromagnetic feld will also
alternate in turn with the current that generates it. If the frequency of the current is
suffciently high the electric and magnet felds will propagate away from the conductor at
the speed of light.
Figure 14 A Representation of Electric and Magnetic Fields
It should be noted the electric (E) and magnetic (H) felds are perpendicular to each other.
The orientation of the electric feld is used to determine the polarisation of the transmitted
energy, it is also used to describe the orientation of the antenna that transmits the signal,
a vertically oriented antenna will transmit a vertically polarised electromagnetic signal.
Figure 15 Polarisation is determined by the Angle of the Electric Field
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The radio frequency signal has that property that it will propagate away from the
transmitting element making it suitable to act as a carrier of information.
Baseband Information
Early systems of radio transmission made used of very simple information systems, simply
switching the transmitter on and off the send information, Morse code maybe the best
know example of this kind of transmission system.
However today we have much more complex signals that we wish to transmit, voice,
video, high speed broadband information, the information that represents the data that
we wish to transmit is known as the baseband information.
The diagram below shows an analogue representation of the speech band, human
speech happens to be very wide, up to 20KHz, however we choose not to transmit all
of the information since our brains are able to understand what is being said with much
less information in the signal. This is also convenient for transmission systems since
the amount of information they can typically carry is limited. In voice based transmission
systems, wired or wireless the amount of speech information that is transmitted is
normally limited to only 3.1KHz of the total amount of information.
Figure 16 A Comparison of Audio Signal Bandwidths
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The diagram below represents the speech information in the time domain, showing how
the amplitude of the information varies with time.
Figure 17 An Analogue Signal Shown in the Time Domain
This diagram shows the same information but now the amplitude is shown against the
frequency domain, it is possible to see from this kind of spectral analysis the bandwidth of
the voice signal and the nature of the individual frequency components.
Figure 18 An Analogue Signal Shown in the Frequency Domain
In todays communication systems it is more common to convert the analogue information
(shown above) into digital signals. The diagram below shows the time domain
representation of a digital signal. This signal is simply an ON/OFF wave form, real digital
systems would have much more complex waves, however it is a good starting point to
describe the way in which digital system attributes can be described.
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Figure 19 A Time Domain Representation of a Square Wave
The same information from above can be shown in the frequency domain. From the
signals shown below it is possible to see that the simple square waveform has signal
components at the fundamental frequency of the wave form and then odd harmonic
components. This is a simplifed description of a much more complex theory in
communication known as the Fourier Transform.
Figure 20 A Frequency Domain Representation of a Square Wave
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In fact Fourier stated that any complex wave form can be described by the sum of a series
of sinusoidal components. The diagram below again illustrates the principle of the simple
square wave built from sinusoidal wave forms.
Figure 21 Showing the Addition of Fundamental and Harmonic Components
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RF and Baseband Signals
Q1
the plane of polarisation of an electromagnetic (EM) wave is determined from the angle of
which EM component ?
a) The magnetic feld
b) The static feld
c) The electric feld
d) The magnestatic feld
Q2
analogue and digital data that represents information before coding and modulation is
referred to as
a) Broadband
b) Wideband
c) In-band
d) Baseband
Q3
Fourier state that any complex wave can be represented by..
a) The sum of a series of sinusoidal signals
b) The inverse of a series of sinusoidal signals
c) The sum of all its fundamental sinusoidal components
d) The sum of a series of square waves
Q4
a spectrum analyser displays information from which of the following domains ?
a) Time and space
b) Amplitude and time
c) Amplitude and frequency
d) Frequency and time
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Q5
a square wave consists of what sinusoidal components ?
a) A fundamental component only
b) A fundamental component and odd harmonics
c) A fundamental component and even harmonics
d) Harmonic components only
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Name...
Question set
Question a b c d
1
2
3
4
5
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LESSON 3 DECIBELS (dB) AND NOISE IN RF THEORY
The Decibel and Applications for RF Practice
In general it can be said that the Decibel (dB) is another way of representing factors or
absolute values, it turns out to be a very convenient way to represent very small or very
large numbers, and consider them on a reasonable scale.
To defne the decibel we should frst look at the way in we represent the numbers
associated with the logarithms
Figure 22 Defning the Base and Index of a Number
When considering the product of two number that are raised to the power of some index,
m and n in this case, the indexes can be added or subtracted as shown below.

Figure 23 Showing the Addition and Subtraction of Number Indexes
From the statement below it can be understood that the value 10 raised to the index x will
yield the value N, and that the logarithm to the base 10 of N will yield the value x.
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This can be seen in the following numerical example.
The vaules above however are simply logarithms, the decibel refers much more
specifcaly to factors and absolute values.
The example below shows the ratio of two values P1 and P2. If P1 = 10 and P2 = 5 then
the linear value would be 5 , the logartihm i.e. log
10
(P1/P2) would be 0.7.
However the answer in dB requires a mutilication by 10 there for the ratio of 10 and 2 is
7dB. The answer in this case is a simple factor, and can be used to describe the gain or
loss of amplifers, components, pathloss etc.
Figure 24 Finding the Total Gain of a System
In some case it is necessary to describe absolute values in dB therefore the value in
question must be referenced against some know value. For measurements of power the
reference value of 1mW is often used. The following expression can be used to convert
from linear Watts to dBm.
Figure 25 Converting Power in W to dBm
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In the example system shown below, each component has a value of performance
expressed as a fgure of gain in dB, to establish the total performance of the combined
components we can simply add the fgures together.
Figure 26 Gain and Loss Expressed as dB can be Added and Subtracted
It should be noted that dB values that expressed absolute level of power or ratios cannot
be added in this way, the fgures must converted back in to linear values before the
addition is made.
The table below shows some commonly used dB values and their linear conversions.
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Figure 27 Table of Typical Values and their Conversions
Calculating Noise in RF systems
Thermal noise is the wideband electromagnetic radiation that is emitted from all objects,
the cosmos, the stars, the earth and the conducting components that comprise a radio
system. Noise is something that is inevitable in radio systems and cannot be completely
eliminated. However its possible quantify the noise and to design system that will still
work satisfactorily despite the noise.
The expression below determines the amount of noise present in a radio channel of a
defned bandwidth. The constant k and temperature T are often taken together to be a
constant value of -174dBm/Hz, this amounts to -174dBm of noise power present in one
hertz of radio bandwidth, it follows therefore that the total amount of noise present will be
proportional to the to actual bandwidth of the channel. (This is covered in more detail in
Section 3)
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System components confgured in series or cascade will contribute to the overall noise
present in any radio system. The diagram below illustrates the principle. If we could
measure the signal to noise ratio (SNR) at the input and output of a system, represented
by the box in the middle, then the total noise contribution is the difference of the SNR dB
at the input and output. This fgure is often expressed as the Noise Figure (NF
dB
) of the
system.
Figure 28 Calculating Noise Figure from Signal to Noise Ratios
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LTE Radio Planning
Cascaded Noise
Where there are multiple components in the receiver system, such as feeders, flters,
amplifers, each component will contribute noise to the total NF of the system. However
the noise fgure of the total system cannot be better than the noise fgure of the frst
component. Also the gain of the frst stage will impact the noise seen in the subsequent
stages of the system, thus a cascade calculation must be carried out to determine the
total noise in the system, this concept is outlined in the diagram below and is covered in
more detail in section 3.
Figure 29 Noise in Cascaded Systems
Noise in radio systems will also be affected by the ambient noise level generated from
man made sources, such as street lighting, car ignition systems, electricity distribution. It
follows that urban areas will exhibit more noise than rural areas given the greater density
of electrical systems. This noise may need to be considered as a margin when planning
mobile radio systems, however radio systems operating above 1GHz or so are less
affected by this source of noise.
Telecoms Academy 39
Figure 30 Noise from Man Made Sources
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LTE Radio Planning
Telecoms Academy 41
Decibels (dB) and Noise in RF Theory
Q1
in the following expression X is referred to as the
X
n
a) Base
b) Index
c) Logarithm
d) Power
Q2
Convert the following from linear units of Watt to dBm
a) 10mW..dBm
b) 30W.dBm
c) 1WdBm
d) 121pW.dBm
e) 99nWdBm
Q3
Convert the following from dBm to linear units of power, Watts
a) 14dBm..W
b) 60dBm..W
c) -87dBm....W
d) -100dBm..W
e) 0dBm...W
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LTE Radio Planning
Q4
a system consists of a x1000 gain amplifer and an cable which loses half the power, what
id the total gain of the system in dB?
a) 30dB
b) 500dB
c) 15dB
d) 27dB
Q5
thermal background noise in radio systems is proportional to
a) Boltzmans constant
b) Radio frequency
c) Channel bandwidth
d) Transmitter power
Q6
in a cascaded system of three components the noise contributed by the second stage to
the overall noise fgure is primarily determined by
a) The gain of the third stage
b) The noise of the frst stage
c) The gain of the frst stage
d) The noise in the third stage
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LTE Radio Planning
Telecoms Academy 45
LESSON 4 MODULATION SCHEMES FOR LTE
Modulation Systems
As suggested earlier in this section there are two types of signal in radio systems, the
carrier and the baseband information. The process of modifying the radio frequency
carrier to represent or carry the baseband data is known as modulation.
The diagram below shows the 3 principle methods used by digital modulation schemes.
Amplitude Shift Keying (ASK) the amplitude or power of the radio carrier is varied to
represent the baseband information, in this example a low power represents a digital 0
and a high power represents a digital 1. Such systems are simple in there concept but
rather more diffcult to implement with good performance in practice, since any variation
in the radio signal during propagation will also distort the baseband information leading
errors in the receiver.
Frequency Shift Keying (FSK) systems keep the power constant and vary the transmitted
frequency to represent the baseband information. In this example a higher frequency
represents the 0 whilst a lower frequency represents the 1. This is a more practical system
and is used in mobile technologies such as GSM, it also has the advantage of being rather
power effcient since the constant envelope of the modulated signal can be amplifed
easily. It could be said that FSK systems are not as spectrally effcient since they occupy
a wide radio channel compared to the amount of data that can be sent over the channel.
Phase Shift Keying (PSK) are arguable the most spectrally effcient of modulation
schemes allowing a large amount of data to be sent relative to the amount of radio
spectrum occupied. However these systems tend to be rather complex and less power
effcient than FSK systems. The baseband information is no encoded in to the angle or
phase of the transmitted radio carrier. PSK system can be absolute, in that the angle of
the carrier directly represents the baseband information, or they can be differential where
the information is encoded in to the direction and magnitude of the phase change.
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LTE Radio Planning
Figure 31
Binary Phase Shift Keying (BPSK)
BPSK modulation is the simplest of the PSK family, the transmitted radio signal has only
two possible angle, typically 0
o
and 180
o
. the angles can represent the 1 or the 0 of the
baseband data. The diagram below shows the phase change occurring during the change
of the baseband data from a 0 to 1 or 1 to 0.
Figure 32
Telecoms Academy 47
The time domain representation of the BPSK modulated signal is sometimes a little
complex to study there fore the diagram below is a vector representation of the same
signal. In fact most PSK based modulation schemes are shown using this representation.
Figure 33
High Level Modulation Schemes, QPSK, 8PSK
Using this vector based approach it is easier to show the high order modulation schemes.
Below is the QPSK (used in LTE) modulation constellation where each point or angle can
represent 2 bits of information and 8 PSK where each angle represents 3 bit of information
(EDGE uses 8PSK)
Figure 34
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LTE Radio Planning
16QAM Modulation
When the number of angle is more than 8 the receivers become more sensitive to noise
and interference and it becomes more effcient to use the angle domain and the amplitude
domain together, these system are known as Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM)
schemes. The constellation shown below is 16QAM and each point on the constellation
now represents 4 bits of information. Such systems are highly spectrally effcient,
however there is a requirement for low noise in the radio link in order that the receiver can
correctly determine the point on the constellation. LTE also uses the 16QAM scheme.
Figure 35
64QAM Modulation
Below is the 64QAM modulation scheme, each point on the constellation now represents
6 bits of information. This is a very effcient scheme however it can only be used
successfully in the best signal areas. 64QAM is used by LTE.
Telecoms Academy 49
Figure 36
The Effect of Signal to Noise Ratio in Modulation
In the diagram below we can see the impact of noise and interference on the 16QAM
modulation system. Instead of the information being perfectly aligned with each target
point, the noise in the radio channel causes the information to arrive in a less than perfect
location, thus the information appears spread out over the angle and amplitude domains.
Some distortion is allowed in the channel however the more complex the scheme the less
distortion can be tolerated before the receiver begins to make errors.
There is more detail about the maximum distortion allowed in section 3 where we discuss
more the required SNR for each of the modulation schemes of LTE
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LTE Radio Planning
Figure 37
Adaptive Modulation Schemes
In todays advanced mobile radio systems multiple modulation and error coding schemes
are used and the link can dynamically adapt to the current radio conditions. This will
ensure that the link can trade throughput or capacity for reliability for any given UE across
the cell. What this means in practice is that many users in the radio cell will be using
different modulation and coding schemes depending on their location. The diagram below
shows the probable situation where 4 modulation and coding schemes are available.
This also means that is becomes very diffcult to dimension the raio cell for capacity since
a user communicating using the QPSK modulation scheme will use 3 times more cell
resources than a user that is situated closer to the base station using 64QAM.
In cases like this a base station function known generally as the scheduler is highly
important to the effcient use of system resources.
Telecoms Academy 51

Figure 38
52 Telecoms Academy
LTE Radio Planning
Telecoms Academy 53
Modulation Schemes for LTE
Q1
which of the following modulation schemes could be said to be more spectrally effcient
than power effcient ?
a) ASK
b) FSK
c) PSK
d) GMSK
Q2
QAM based modulation schemes use which of the following to represent the modulated
data ?
a) Time and Frequency
b) Angle and Phase
c) Amplitude and Frequency
d) Phase and Amplitude
Q3
in 16 QAM how many bit of information are represented by each symbol ?
a) 16
b) 2
c) 4
d) 6
Q4
higher order modulation schemes such as 16QAM and 64QAM generally require
a) A lower SNR
b) A higher SNR
c) Higher noise in the channel
d) Lower signal in the channel
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LTE Radio Planning
Q5
which of the following modulation schemes is NOT supported by the LTE radio interface
a) BPSK
b) QPSK
c) 16QAM
d) 64QAM
Q6
the effect of increasing noise in the transmission channel will..
a) Reduce the signal level
b) Decrease the BER
c) Increase the throughput
d) Increase the BER
Q6
in adaptive modulation systems users at the edge of the cell are more likely to use which
of the following modulation schemes?
a) QPSK
b) 16QAM
c) 64QAM
d) 8PSK
Q7
in systems that support adaptive modulation schemes the capacity of the radio cell will be
reduced when
a) Most of the users are close to the base station
b) The radio cell has fewer users
c) Most of the users are closer to the cell edge
d) The radio cell has many users
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Telecoms Academy 57
LESSON 5 MULTIPLE ACCESS SCHEMES
Multiple Access in Radio Systems
Given the limited resources of the radio spectrum it is important that these communication
systems off the highest possible capacity i.e. large number if users able to communicate
apparently simultaneously. These systems are known as Multiple Access systems. in
radio systems there is generally only two domains that can be shared to achieve multiple
access, the frequency and time domains, other systems such as those based on spread
spectrum techniques exploit information theory to allow user to communicate at the same
time.
.
Figure 39 The Multiple Access Concept
Frequency Division Multiple Access
FDMA (Frequency Division Multiple Access) schemes divide a spectrum allocation into
smaller frequency segments, allocating each signal a different frequency. Simple 1st
Generation systems used this method.
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Figure 40 Separate Radio Channels in FDMA Multiple Access
Time Division Multiple Access
TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access) allows signals to be transmitted on the same
frequencies, but not at the same time each signal is given its own time slot within
this frequency band. Note that GSM uses a combination of both of these schemes.
Network Operators are allocated a portion of spectrum which is divided into radio carrier
frequencies spaced 200kHz apart (FDMA). Each carrier frequency band is then divided
into eight separate timeslots (TDMA).
Figure 41 Individual User Time Slots in TDMA Multiple Access
Telecoms Academy 59
TDMA and FDMA Hybrid
Systems like GSM use both the time and frequency domains to create multiple sperate
radio channels each divided in the time domain into timeslots. Thus a channel allocation
will include both a frequency domain and time domain description.
Figure 42 Radio Channels and Time Slots in Hybrid TDMA/FDMA
Code Division Multiple Access
The third type of access scheme, CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), allows all
signals to share the same frequency and time domains. In order to distinguish signals at
the receiver, unique codes are attached to each signal. A common analogy which is made
between the TDMA and CDMA schemes which are the basis of 2G cellular systems is as
follows
Figure 43 User Information Spread in the Time and Frequency Domains
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Imagine a crowded room. In a TDMA system, everyone in the room is speaking the same
language. Therefore in order to hear someone speaking on the other side of the room, it is
necessary for everyone else to stop speaking. Each person could therefore be allocated
a recurring timeslot during which they could speak, with multiple conversations supported
by allocating a different timeslot to each. In CDMA, everyone in the room is speaking a
different language. Therefore even when other people in the room are speaking at the
same time, it is still possible to pick out what the person on the other side of the room is
saying, so long as they are speaking the language that you understand.
Multi Carrier Transmission (OFDM)
Multi-carrier systems split the high speed stream of serial baseband data in to lower speed
parallel streams. The lower bit rate on each sub-carrier results in a narrower radio channel
that is resistant to the frequency selective fade.
Figure 44 Single Carrier and Multiple Carrier Comparison
OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing)
However, these multi-carrier systems need to exhibit good spectral effciency, each sub
carrier must be placed close to its adjacent carrier without causing interference. The
channel spacing is 1/Ts where Ts is the symbol time of information modulated onto the
carrier. Spacing the channels in this manner ensures that the centre of each carrier
corresponds with a zero crossing point for each of the neighbouring sub-carriers. This
means that the centre of the sub-carriers can be sampled, free from interference of the
adjacent sub-carriers.
Telecoms Academy 61
Figure 45 Data is Sent in Parallel Radio Channels
Orthogonal Frequency Division and Multiple Access
Whilst the concept of multi-channel systems have many performance benefts in the multi-
path environment, there is still a requirement to allow multiple access, that is allow many
people at one time to access the services of the system.
LTE uses Orthogonal Frequncy Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) to organsise and
schedule data transmission to the users in the cell. Simple OFDM systems on exploit
the time domain to allow multiple access however OFDMA also allows multiple access
to extend to the frequency domain. This yeilds a system that is very fexible and effceint
but at the same time fairly complicated to manage, hence the importance, again, of the
scheduler funciton within the base station.
Figure 46 Time and Frequency Sharing in OFDMA
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LTE Radio Planning
Duplex Schemes
LTE supports both Time Division and Frequency Division Duplex (TDD, FDD).
In FDD the uplink and downlink communications are separated from each other in the
frequency domain, the base station and mobile device will transmit and receive on
different frequencies/
Figure 47 Frequency Division Duplexing
TDD on the other hand uses the same frequency uplink and downlink so the uplink data
and downlink data is transmitted at different times.
Figure 48 Time Division Duplexing
Most LTE deployments will make use of the FDD mode, requiring paired spectrum
allocations
Telecoms Academy 63
Multiple access Schemes
Q1
which of the following multiple access schemes use the frequency domain as the primary
means of sharing the radio channel resources?
a) FDMA
b) CDMA
c) TDMA
d) OFDM
Q2
in TDMA systems the time allocated to the users for transmission and reception is
generally know as a
a) Slot
b) Burst
c) Time slot
d) Sub channel
Q3
which of the following multiple access schemes is generally thought to be more a more
effcient use of the radio spectrum?
a) TDMA
b) FDMA
c) TDMA/FDMA Hybrid
d) CDMA
Q4
which of the following modulation schemes will perform better in a multipath environment
for mobile broadband systems ?
a) TDMA
b) WCDMA
c) OFDMA
d) FDMA
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Q5
in OFDMA systems the data is..
a) Modulated on to a single wideband carrier
b) Spilt in to parallel narrow radio channels
c) Spread with a wideband code before transmission
d) Transmitted in parallel on multiple wide band channels
Q6
in OFDMA the user information uses which of the following to enable a multiple access
scheme
a) Only the time domain
b) Only the frequency domain
c) Both frequency and time domains
d) The code domain
Q7
the individual radio channels that form the overall OFDMA radio channels are know as?
a) Radio channels
b) Sub-channels
c) Sub-carriers
d) Tones
Q8
which of the following statements is true regarding the LTE radio channel?
a) LTE is a TDD only system
b) LTE is an FDD only system
c) LTE supports both FDD and TDD but will be deployed using TDD
d) LTE supports both FDD and TDD but will be deployed using FDD
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Question a b c d
1
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4
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End of Section 1 Questions
Q1
which phase of the planning cycle would include site selection and backhaul planning?
a) Phase 1
b) Phase 2
c) Phase 3
d) Phase 4
Q2
when setting coverage objectives, which if the following information is most useful?
a) Vendor selection
b) Market penetration
c) Allocated spectrum
d) Number of subscribers
Q3
how many FFT points will be used to decode an LTE radio channel of 10MHz bandwidth?
a) 512
b) 1000
c) 1024
d) 2048
Q4
which of the following statements are true regarding the relationship between capacity and
coverage ?
a) Cell capacity increases with coverage
b) Cell capacity is independent of coverage
c) Increased cell coverage results in smaller cells
d) Cell coverage reduces as capacity is increased
Telecoms Academy 67
Q5
the plane of polarisation of an electromagnetic (EM) wave is determined from the angle of
which EM component ?
a) The magnetic feld
b) The static feld
c) The electric feld
d) The magnestatic feld
Q6
analogue and digital data that represents information before coding and modulation is
referred to as
a) Broadband
b) Wideband
c) In-band
d) Baseband
Q7
Fourier states that any complex wave can be represented by..
a) The sum of a series of sinusoidal signals
b) The inverse of a series of sinusoidal signals
c) The sum of all its fundamental sinusoidal components
d) The sum of a series of square waves
Q8
Convert the following from linear units of Watt to dBm
a) 20mW..dBm
b) 25W.dBm
c) 0.11W..dBm
d) 140pW.dBm
e) 0.004nW dBm
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Q9
Convert the following from dBm to linear units of power, Watts
a) 24dBm..W
b) -60dBm..W
c) -90dBm....W
d) -103dBm..W
e) 0dBm...W
Q10
a system consists of a x1000 gain amplifer and an cable which loses half the power, what
id the total gain of the system in dB?
a) 30dB
b) 500dB
c) 15dB
d) 27dB
Q11
QAM based modulation schemes use which of the following to represent the modulated
data ?
a) Time and Frequency
b) Angle and Phase
c) Amplitude and Frequency
d) Phase and Amplitude
Q12
in 64QAM how many bit of information are represented by each symbol ?
a) 16
b) 2
c) 4
d) 6
Telecoms Academy 69
Q13
lower order modulation schemes such as 16QAM and 64QAM generally require
a) A lower SNR
b) A higher SNR
c) Higher noise in the channel
d) Lower signal in the channel
Q14
the effect of decreasing noise in the transmission channel will..
a) Reduce the signal level
b) Decrease the BER
c) Increase the throughput
d) Increase the BER
Q15
in adaptive modulation systems users close to the cell centre are more likely to use which
of the following modulation schemes?
a) QPSK
b) 16QAM
c) 64QAM
d) 8PSK
Q16
in systems that support adaptive modulation schemes the capacity of the radio cell will be
reduced when
a) Most of the users are close to the base station
b) The radio cell has fewer users
c) Most of the users are closer to the cell edge
d) The radio cell has many users
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LTE Radio Planning
Q17
in TDMA systems the time allocated to the users for transmission and reception is
generally know as a
Slot a)
Burst b)
Time slot c)
Sub channel d)
Q18
which of the following modulation schemes will perform better in a multipath environment
for mobile broadband systems ?
a) TDMA
b) WCDMA
c) OFDMA
d) FDMA
Q19
in OFDMA systems the data is..
a) Modulated on to a single wideband carrier
b) Spilt in to parallel narrow radio channels
c) Spread with a wideband code before transmission
d) Transmitted in parallel on multiple wide band channels
Q20
which of the following statements is true regarding the LTE radio channel?
a) LTE is a TDD only system
b) LTE is an FDD only system
c) LTE supports both FDD and TDD but will be deployed using TDD
d) LTE supports both FDD and TDD but will be deployed using FDD

Telecoms Academy 71
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9
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Section 1 Assignment Questions
Q1
For your own company discover what the radio planning practices are, and comment on
the differences between your own practice and those described in lesson 1.
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Q2
Look at a typical link budget for your own system and comment on where the main
differences would be when considering an LTE link budget. Where possible include
details of the vendors you may choose for the LTE network.
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Q3
LTE supports upto 16 different modulation and coding schemes, list the schemes
supported and the SNR required for good performance.
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LTE Radio Planning
Propogation Principle, Modelling and Antennas
Telecoms Academy 75
SECTION 2
PROPAGATION PRINCIPLE,
MODELLING AND ANTENNAS
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LESSON 1 PROPAGATION BASICS
Refraction of the Radio Signal
It is generally assumed that the radio wave will travel in straight lines, however this is not
the case. The radio wave will follow a curved trajectory determined by the properties of
the medium though which it travels. This means that the radio horizon is further that the
optical or geometric horizon, the diagram below illustrates this.
Figure 49 the Geometric and Radio Horizon
The radio wave can be assumed to have a vertical dimension which increases as the
wave front travels further from the transmission source, this means that the top and
bottom of the wave front will be travelling through a transmission medium which as
different properties. The air in this case is the transmission medium, and the air has a
certain refractive index which is determined by the air pressure, temperature, and water
vapour pressure. It can be generally stated that the refractive index is less as height
increases.
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LTE Radio Planning
Figure 50 Calculation the Refractive Index
The variation in refractive index will vary the speed at which the radio wave travels,
effectively moving faster at the top of the wave front, thus causing the entire wave front to
follow the curved path.
Figure 51 Refractive Index Reduces with Altitude
The fgure below shows an alternative view where the radio wave is shown as a straight
line and the geometric line is drawn as a curved line. This is referred to as the 4/3 model,
where the relative size of the earths radius would have to be increase to 4/3s of it actual
radius to cause the radio wave to be drawn as a straight line. The 4/3 rule applies to
normal refractive and propagation conditions, however there are extreme conditions
where the 4/3 does not apply
Telecoms Academy 79
Figure 52 the 4/3s Earth
The 4/3 earth radius scan be calculated based on the following expression
Figure 53 Calculating Earth Radius
The refractive index is given the value N, which is a unitless value. Under normal
refractive conditions this value can be seen to change by 40 units for every 1000m gained
in altitude. It is normally shown in a graphical format as seen below.
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LTE Radio Planning
Figure 54 N Decreasing Under Normal Condition
There are non standard conditions that can occur where the value of N changes by more
than 40 units/1000m or less than 40 units/1000m.
Sub-Refraction
When the refractive index falls more slowly as height is increased, this is referred to as
sub-refractive condition and is illustrated in the graph below.
Figure 55 Sub-Refraction
The impact of this condition on the radio signal is that it will tend to follow a less curved
trajectory and in extreme case can lift off and fail to reach the target receiver.
Telecoms Academy 81
Figure 56 The Effect of Sub Conditions On the Radio Path
Super-Refraction
When the refractive index falls more rapidly than standard it is referred to as super-
refractive conditions and is illustrated below.
Figure 57 Super-Refraction
When this condition occurs the radio wave will follow a more curved trajectory causing it
to be bent more toward the earth than under standard conditions. The impact in this case
maybe reduced radio range.
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Figure 58 The Effect of Super Conditions On the Radio Path
Extreme Cases, Ducting
Where there are extreme variations in temperature, air pressure or water vapour pressure
a phenomenon known as ducting can occur.
In the case below the refractive index falls with altitude but then reverses and begins to
increase, this sharp change in refractive index will cause the radio wave to be refected
from the boundary and become trapped in the duct. The duct can exhibit a very low
propagation loss and the signal may travel for many miles before becoming very weak.
Ducts like this may be the cause of de-coupled point to point link an interference.
Areas around the Middle East and other regions where there is extreme temperature and
humidity, particularly in coastal areas, would tend to suffer from the ducting effects.
Figure 59 Surface Duct
The two diagrams below illustrate other forms of ducting that may occur, areas where cool
thermal layers sit over warm surface air (or vice versa) will cause these elevated ducts.
Telecoms Academy 83
Figure 60 Surface Duct Elevated Layer
Figure 61 Elevated Duct Elevated Layer
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Telecoms Academy 85
Propagation Basics
Q1
Generally speaking the radio horizon will be ____________ than the optical horizon?
a) Greater
b) Smaller
c) The same
d) Wider
Q2
which one of the following parameters will infuence the refractive behaviour of the radio
wave ?
a) Radio frequency
b) Antenna height
c) Air pressure
d) Distance
Q3
under normal refractive conditions the radio wave can be drawn as a straight line when
the earth radius is considered to be
a) 3/4
b) 4/4
c) 4/3
d) 2/3
Q4
the refractive index N will decrease by ______ units for every 1000 metres gained in
altitude.
a) 40
b) 80
c) 20
d) 1000
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Q5
sub-refractive conditions may be observed when the refractive index _______________
with altitude?
a) Decreases more rapidly
b) Increases more rapidly
c) Remains constant
d) Decreases more slowly
Q6
sub-refractive conditions may cause the radio wave to be..
a) Bent upward away from the earth
b) Bent downwards toward the earth
c) Follow a straight line
d) Be attenuated more rapidly
Q7
super-refractive conditions may be observed when the refractive index N ____________
with altitude?
c) Remains constant
Q8
super-refractive conditions may cause the radio wave to be..
a) Bent upward away from the earth
b) Bent downwards toward the earth
c) Follow a straight line
d) Be attenuated more rapidly
Telecoms Academy 87
Q9
where two layers of extreme temperature differences are observed the effect on the radio
wave is known as
a) Propagation
b) Pathloss
c) Ducting
d) Super-refractive
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Telecoms Academy 89
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Question a b c d
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
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LTE Radio Planning
Telecoms Academy 91
LESSON 2 MECHANISMS OF PROPAGATION
There are many mechanisms by which radio energy propagates around the environment,
the actual effect of these mechanisms depend largely on the wavelength of the radio
signal
Refection
Radio energy which arrives at a surface will be refected or scattered. The amount energy
refected depends on the wavelength and the nature of the material itself and the angle of
incidence. Smooth, conducting surfaces such as metal or sea water will tend to refect the
signal. A refected signal will carry most of the energy of the incident wave, some of the
energy will be absorbed or transmitted through the surface.
Figure 62 Radio Wave Refection
Scattering
Scattering of the radio wave would tend to occur when the height of the surface features
is large relative to the wave length of the signal. The incident wave would be dispersed in
multiple directions each of the new signal components having a low energy compared to
the incidence wave.
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Figure 63 Radio Wave Scattering
Diffraction
When planning macro or micro level cells diffraction of radio energy around objects
in the radio path is one of the main mechanisms that is analysed when making signal
predictions. A radio wave that strikes an object would tend to be bent around the object
yielding a soft shadow behind the object.
Figure 64 Radio Wave Diffraction
The amount of energy diffracted is dependant on the wave length an shape of the object,
basic mathematical analysis of diffraction would model spherical and knife edge objects.
The path between transmitter and receiver may of course have multiple objects therefore
more advance analysis will calculate multiple edge diffraction in order to predict the signal
strength. Software planning tools do this as a matter of course and use both terrain and
building features in their predictions.
Telecoms Academy 93
Figure 65 Modelling Radio Wave Diffraction
Through this analysis it is possible to determine curves such as the one shown below for
the amount of signal energy behind the object, the shape of the curve being defned by
the wave length, the shape of the object and the percentage of obstruction of the radio
signal.
Figure 66 The Effect of Diffraction on the Radio Wave
Attenuation through Penetration
Another major mechanism of interest when making propagation predictions is the amount
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of energy that will pass though objects, this is of particular importance when predicting
in-building coverage in macro and micro cellular systems. The radio frequency, building
material, thickness and the angle of incidence will all determine the amount of energy
transmitted thought the object. These penetration loss values are often built empirically
from tests on different types of building using different frequency bands. There is no
single reference table that can be consulted during the planning stages since local
variations play a large part in the fnal attenuation value.
Figure 67 Loss of Energy Through Penetration
Fresnel Clearance
In point to point or LOS systems it is expected the radio path can be designed largely free
from mid path objects however the defnition of path clearance must be determined with
respect to the 1
st
Fresnel zone.
Fresnel zones are described by path lengths that are , 1, 1 wavelengths longer
than a direct bore sight path between the transmitter and receiver antennas. When
determining clearance it is only the 1
st
Fresnel zone that is of interest. The 1
st
Fresnel
zone is all paths between the transmitter and receiver that are wavelength longer than
the bore sight path
The radius of this zone can be calculated using the expression shown below
Telecoms Academy 95
Figure 68 Fresnel Clearance for Radio Links
The 1
st
Fresnel zone is shown in cross section below, in point to point links about 9%
of the transmitted power is delivered in this zone, therefore clearance of the zone is
important.
Figure 69 The Fresnel Zones in Cross Section
The zone however does not need to be 100% clear. It is suffcient to have 60% of the 1
st

Fresnel zone clear for maximum power over the link. Engineers who plan these links will
establish a path profle and determine the height of the transmitting and receiving antenna
based on a 60% clearance.
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Figure 70 Calculating Fresnel Clearance
Multipath Propagation
In non line of sight system all of the above explained propagation mechanisms will be
present to ensure that there is some level of coverage in all locations in the required cell
area. The mechanisms described however create an environment where there is no
single line of sight path between the transmitter and receiver, there will be instead many
paths of radio energy, this is referred to as the multipath environment. One of the many
issues in these kind of environments is the problem of fading.
Rayleigh Environment
Where there is many radio paths and each of the radio paths has a roughly equal power
distribution the multipaths cause deep fading of the received signal. As much as 30 40
dB less than the expected mean signal. These environments are known as Rayleigh
fading.
Telecoms Academy 97
Figure 71 Calculating Fresnel Clearance
Rician Environment
Multipath can exist where one of the signal paths has a much higher energy than the other
paths, fading will still occur however the magnitude of the fading is much less than that
experienced in the Rayleigh case, fades of up to 10-20 dB less than the expected mean
can be seen.
Figure 72 The Rician Channel
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Mechanisms of Propagation
Q1
A ____________ radio wave will carry most of the energy of the incident wave ?
a) Refracted
b) Diffracted
c) Refected
d) Scattered
Q2
when a radio wave encounters a surface where the surface features are large relative to
the signal wave length the signal is more likely to be
a) Refracted
b) Diffracted
c) Refected
d) Scattered
Q3
when considering path clearance which one of the following Fresnel zones are normally
taken in to account?
a) 1st
b) 2nd
c) 3rd
d) 4th
Q4
for point to point links at least _________ of the 1st Fresnel zone must be clear from
obstruction ?
a) 100%
b) 90%
c) 60%
d) 40%
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Q5
in a Rayleigh multipath environment the radio signal would tend exhibit which of the
following properties?
a) Many radio paths each of low signal strength
b) Many radio paths each of high signal strength
c) A dominant signal path with other weaker signal paths
d) A single radio path
Q6
in a Rician multipath environment the radio signal would tend exhibit which of the following
properties?
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LESSON 3 INTERFERENCE AND FREQUENCY REUSE
Frequency Reuse Concepts
Radio systems that use large radio cells (traditional PMR) may not use very many base
stations but they are unable to offer very high capacity (number of simultaneous call,
Mbps). Since the 1940s it has been known that using smaller radio cells and reusing the
same bock of frequencies over and over again will yield much higher network capacities.
However the regulatory regime and the technology were unavailable at that time to allow
such systems to be built.
The diagram below illustrates the main concept of frequency reuse, where cell A though
G will use the same radio channel or set of radio channels. The trick in these types of
systems is to manage the amount of co-channel interference across the system. The
more capacity require the greater the number of time the same radio channel will be used
over the same area, unfortunately this also means that the level of interference will also
be higher. It is a fne balance in designing high capacity networks.
Figure 73 Typical View of Frequency Reuse
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The parameter that affects the amount of interference is the distance between the cell
centres of the reuse cells, this is illustrated in the diagram below. Whilst the reuse
distance is of some importance, the ratio of cell radius to reuse distance has more of an
impact on the amount of interference.
Figure 74 Calculating the Re-Use Distance
The expression above for the reuse distance can be transposed to ;
D/R = 3N
Where N is the number of cells in the reuse pattern. A value of N = 7 will yield a
particular capacity and interference value, where N=4 the capacity will be higher and the
interference will also be higher.
The diagram below describes the interference concept. At the cell edge the mobile device
will receive a wanted signal C but will also receive unwanted power from the interferer
I. The amount interference is expressed as a ratio of these two values, C/I. C/I is also
a factor when calculating the total SNR experience by the device and will determine the
capacity available to the user in that location. This is particularly important in systems like
LTE since the selection of modulation and coding scheme is driven largely by the SNR.
Figure 75 The Co-Channel to Interference Ratio
Frequency Reuse in LTE
For LTE networks the challenge of frequency reuse is very high since it is very unlikely
that operators will have more than 3-6 channels. Verizon in the USA, for example has
deployed the frst phase of its LTE system using only a single 10MHz radio channel. This
means that every radio cell will be using the same radio channel, potentially leading to
very high co-channel interference.
LTE uses a mechanism called interference coordination where each base station is
network to its neighbour cells and will negotiate the use of time and frequency resources.
In some cases where there will be very high use of the radio channel a base station can
announce what amounts to an interference warning to all the adjacent sites, thus allowing
them to avoid resource collisions and therefore high interference. This coordination
mechanism is crucial to the successful operation of LTE networks.
LTE Radio Planning
Cell Size and Capacity
Practically, a network will not have cells of only one size, the cell sizes will depend
on factors such as the type of area to be covered and the capacity required in those
locations. The diagram below show the progressive splitting of cells to meet the local
capacity requirements of an urban area.
Figure 76 Cell Splitting of Capacity Increase
Cell Deployment in LTE
LTE is designed to work using radio cells from just a few meters wide to 100Km.
Depending on the frequency band used it seems that the initial deployments will be micro-
cells and smaller, certainly in Europe and the Middle East where the most likely frequency
band to become available will be the 2.6GHz band. The fgure below shows the basic
concept and names given to radio cells of different sizes.
Figure 77 Typical Cell Sizes for Cellular Systems
Systems that support mobility often have multiple layers of cells to increase network
reliability and capacity. It is possible in these systems to services mobiles with different
levels of mobility i.e. speed, with the different layers of radio cell. Smaller radio cells
can be overlaid on the larger macro cells and will have antenna heights of lower altitude.
Of course these days it is very common to have base stations inside public buildings to
increase the reliability of the network.
Large buildings such as shopping centres and airports may use distributed antenna
systems and remote radio heads to provide coverage in a cost effective manner.
LTE Radio Planning
Figure 78 Layering of Different Cell Sizes
Interference and Frequency Reuse
Q1
a radio systems that employs a high radio frequency reuse factor will tend to exhibit which
of the following characteristics.
a) Low capacity and low interference
b) Low capacity and high interference
c) High capacity and high interference
d) High capacity and low interference

Q2
in a simplifed frequency reuse system the amount of interference is governed primarily
by..
a) The reuse distance
b) The cell radius
c) the number of cells in the reuse pattern
d) the frequency of the radio channels
Q3
if the frequency reuse factor N is reduced from 7 to 4 the capacity of the systems will.
a) Stay the same
b) Be increased
c) Be reduced
d) Be reduced but interference will lower
Q4
as well as increasing the frequency reuse factor, operators may also increase network
capacity in specifc areas by..
a) Cell splitting
b) Introducing more large radio cells
c) Increasing the transmitted power of base stations
d) Using a lower reuse factor
LTE Radio Planning
Q5
radio frequencies in the 2.6GHz range are more suitable for which type of radio cell
deployment?
a) Macro cell
b) Micro cell
c) Nano cell
d) Overlay cells
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LTE Radio Planning
LESSON 4 ANTENNA BASIC THEORY
All antenna theory stems from the basic concept of the isotropic radiator. The isotropic
radiator is a theoretical point source of energy that radiates equally in all directions. The
concept is show in the diagram below. From this concept the gain of real antennas can be
defned as well as the basics of radio propagation and pathloss.
Figure 79 The Isotropic Radiator
The Dipole Antenna
The simplest antenna that can be practically constructed is the wave dipole. A have
wave dipole is a self resonating antenna which is normally fed from the centre. The
vertical dimension of the antenna is determined from the wavelength of the radio signal
that is being transmitted, maximum power transfer is achieved if the antenna is the
wavelength and the feeder in impedance match to the antenna.
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Figure 80 A Simple Self Resonations Wave Diploe
The radiation pattern of the half wave dipole is shown below. Since there is no radiation
from the ends of the dipole the radiation is more concentrated perpendicular to the
antenna orientation.
Figure 81 The Radiation Patterns for a Dipole Antenna
When compared to the radiation from the isotopic antenna the dipole effectively focus the
energy in a more specifc direction. In the diagram below the edges of the radiation felds
are effectively equal power contours, therefore the dipole appears to push the energy feld
further from the point of radiation. This can be described as the gain of the antenna.
Figure 82 Dipole Radiation Compared to the Isotropic
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To determine the gain of the antenna if the power could be measured at the same physical
point from both the isotropic and dipole antennas the formula below would allow us to
determine the actual gain of the dipole over the isotropic. When the isotropic is used as
the reference antenna is turns out the gain of the dipole is 2.15dB.
The isotropic antenna is normally used as the reference to describe the gain of practical
antennas. The diagram below show the isotropic, the dipole and a practical directional
antenna in comparison. It can be deduced that the gain of the practical antenna has
a signifcant performance increase over the isotropic in a specifc direction, this gain is
described with reference to the isotropic and expressed in dBi.
The gain of the antenna is an important factor when performing link budgets in radio
planning, having a positive impact (generally) on the performance of the radio link. The
radiation patterns are not considered for link budgeting purposes but are important when
predicting coverage when using software planning tools. The software tool will take the
vertical and horizontal radiation feld and predict the shape of the radiated energy from the
site, this is particularly important when predicting the behaviour of the radio system when
performing antenna tilting.
Figure 83 Practical Antenna Radation Compared to
the Isotropic and Dipole References
It is common to use phrases such as the radiation pattern when describing antenna
performance and the gain of the antenna is normally attributed to the radiation
performance of the antenna, however the gain in the forward direction (transmitting) can
be assumed to be the same in the reverse (receiving) direction. This is referred to as
reciprocity.
Antenna Beamwidth
One of the other important antenna performance attributes considered when planning
is the horizontal and vertical beamwidth of the antennas. The beamwidth is normally
determined from a point at the edges of the radiated feld where the power is 3dB below
the bore sight (main lobe). Antennas used in sectored sites would normally use antennas
whos beamwidth was between 90
o
and 60
o
for a geometric 120
o
sector.
LTE Radio Planning
Figure 84 Determining the Antenna Beamwidth
Other important antenna attributes include the Front to Back ratio, and the Cross Polar
Discrimination performance.
Front to Back ratio is a measure of how well the antenna discriminates between signals
entering the front lobe (bore sight) and the rear of the antenna and is an important factor
in reducing interference.
Antennas are arranged such that they operate in one plane of polarisation either vertically
or horizontally, this is particularly useful when mitigating co-channel interference in
cellular frequency reuse systems. Thus the ability of the antenna to discriminate between
horizontal and vertical signals is important for interference reduction.
Increasing Antenna Gain
When considering an omni-directional dipole the gain of the antenna may be increased
by increasing the number of radiating elements in the antenna. The individual dipole
elements are normally placed in a vertical array with a phasing coil connecting each
element together, the radiated energy from each element will interfere with the others to
change the shape of the total radiated feld. And increase in gain is typically associated
with a lower vertical or horizontal beamwidth depending on the mechanism used.
The diagram below shows the typical arrangement of stacked antennas and their
respective beamwidth and radiation pattern along with the theoretical gain. These patterns
show the vertical radiation pattern from an omni-directional antenna system, further gains
can be obtained by placing a refector behind the array increasing the gain in a specifc
direction.
Figure 85 Increasing Antenna Gain by Stacking Elements
LTE Radio Planning
Antenna Tilt
Antenna tilt is an important tool in the design and optimisation of mobile networks. Tilt can
be achieved through a mechanical process where the antenna is physically tilted manually
by and engineer, or the antenna may have the capability to be tilted electrically by remote
control.
The diagram below shows the various options available with mechanical and electrical tilt
and combinations of both.
Figure 86 Mechanical and Electrical Antenna Tilt
Tilt is used to limit the range of the radiated signal there by reducing cell range and
interference where required.
Antenna Diversity Confgurations
It is very common to use multiple antennas in a diversity confguration to mitigate the
effects of the multipath fading environment. When spatial diversity is used, arrangements
must be made to coordinate the transmit and receive functions of the antenna array.
In diagram below a separate antenna is used for the transmit, this necessitates the use of
3 antenna panels but eliminates the need for a duplex flter. The two receive antenna are
arranged in a spatial array and feed the received signals to a diversity combiner.
Figure 87 Spatial Diversity with Separate Transmit
The arrangement shown below makes use of a duplex flter which allows a single antenna
panel to be used for both transmit and receive functions.
LTE Radio Planning
Figure 88 Spatial Diversity with Combined Tx/Rx
The arrangement shown below make use of a separate transmit antenna and the receiver
diversity is implemented using a single polarised antenna panel.
Figure 89 Polarisation Diversity with Separate Transmit
Antenna Basic Theory
Q1
the theoretical antenna which can be used to determine the performance of real antennas
is known as
a) The dipole antenna
b) The reference antenna
c) The isotropic antenna
d) The electronic antenna
Q2
the simplest practical antenna that can be constructed is the
a) Isotropic antenna
b) Collinear antenna
c) Bipolar antenna
d) Dipole antenna

Q3
the ability of the antenna to focus energy in a specifc direction is referred to as the
antenna.
a) Gain
b) Beamwidth
c) Front to back ratio
d) polarisation
Q4
the gain of a dipole antenna is _________ greater than the isotropic radiator?
a) 1.25dB
b) 2.15dB
c) 3dB
d) 0dB
LTE Radio Planning
Q5
a practical antenna whose gain fgure is quoted as dBi is referenced to
a) A reference dipole
b) The isotropic antenna
c) Itself
d) A collinear antenna
Q6
the term used to describe the equal gain of the transmit and receive performance of the
antenna is
a) Reciprocity
b) Beamwidth
d) 3dB gain
Q7
the gain of the antenna system can be increases by
a) Increasing the power fed to the antenna
b) Increasing the height of the antenna
c) Increasing the number of radiating elements
d) Increasing the beamwidth of the antenna
Q8
varying the properties of the phasing coil connect multiple radiating elements within the
antenna will cause
a) An electrical tilt to occur
b) A mechanical tilt to occur
c) Increase the gain of the antenna
d) Decrease the gain of the antenna
Q9
diversity in antenna systems is used to .
a) Reduce the gain of the antenna system
b) Mitigate the fading effects of multipath
c) Eliminate radio path fading
d) Reduce the pathloss
Q10
in cellular radio networks which of the following is more commonly used
a) Time diversity
b) Space and polarisation diversity
c) Frequency diversity
d) Time and frequency diversity
LTE Radio Planning
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LTE Radio Planning
LESSON 5 ADVANCED ANTENNA TECHNIQUES FOR LTE
Single Input Single Output (SISO)
This is the traditional method of accessing the radio channel. Each transmitter has a
single antenna, as does each receiver. This method is used as the baseline against which
the performance of all multiple antenna techniques is compared.
Figure 90 Single In Single Out
Multiple Input Single Output (MISO) Transmit Diversity
MISO is also known as transmit diversity. Each transmit antenna transmits essentially
the same stream of data. The multipath environment impacts upon the transmitted
signal resulting in the arrival of time displaced replicas of the same signal at the receiver.
This is used to improve the signal to noise ratio at the receiver and thus the reliability
of data transmission. It is usual to apply antenna-specifc coding to the signals prior to
transmission to increase the diversity effect. Transmit diversity does not increase data
rates as such, but rather supports the same data rates using less power or, allows
a higher order modulation scheme to be used if suffcient improvement in SNR is
experienced at the receiver. The performance of transmit diversity can be enhanced if the
receiver is able to feedback parameters to be used by the transmitter to adjust the balance
of phase and power used for each antenna.
LTE Radio Planning
Figure 91 Multiple In Single Out, or Transmit Diversity
Single Input Multiple Output (SIMO)
SIMO uses one transmitter and two or more receivers and is usually referred to as receive
diversity. It is particularly well suited for low SNR conditions. There is no improvement
in the data rate as only one data stream is transmitted, but coverage at the cell edge is
improved due to the lowering of the usable SNR.
Figure 92 Single In Multiple Out, or Receive Diversity
Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO)
MIMO requires two or more transmitters and two or more receivers. Multiple data streams
are transmitted simultaneously in the same frequency and time, taking full advantage of
the multiple paths in the radio channel. For a system to be described as MIMO, it must
have at least as many receivers as there are transmit streams.
Figure 93 Multiple In Multiple Out, Spatial Multiplexing
Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO)
Adding receive diversity (SIMO) to Tx diversity (MISO) does not create MIMO, even
though there are now two Tx and two Rx antennas involved. If N data streams are
transmitted from fewer than N antennas, the data cannot be fully descrambled by any
number of receivers since overlapping streams results in interference. However, by
spatially separating N streams across at least N antennas, N receivers will be able to fully
reconstruct the original data streams provided the crosstalk and noise in the radio channel
are low enough. One other crucial factor for MIMO operation is that the transmissions
from each antenna must be uniquely identifable so that each receiver can determine what
combination of transmissions has been received. This identifcation is usually done with
pilot or reference signals.
The spatial diversity of the radio channel means that MIMO has the potential to increase
the data rate. The fgure below shows a simplifed illustration of spatial multiplexing. In
this example, each transmit antenna transmits a different data stream. One data stream
is uniquely assigned to one antenna. The multipath characteristics of the channel should
ensure that each receiver antenna sees a combination of each stream. The receivers
decode the received signals by analyzing the patterns that uniquely identify each
transmitter and then determine what combination of each transmit stream is present. The
application of an inverse flter and summing of the received streams recreates the original
data.
LTE Radio Planning
Figure 94 Spatial Multiplexing Requires a Mutlipath Environment
A more advanced form of MIMO includes special pre-coding which results in each
stream being spread across more than one transmit antenna. For this technique to work
effectively the transmitter must have knowledge of the channel conditions and, in the case
of FDD, these conditions must be provided in real time by feedback from the UE. Such
optimization signifcantly complicates the system but can also provide higher performance.
Pre-coding for TDD systems do not require receiver feedback as the transmitter can
independently determine the channel conditions by analyzing the received signals that are
on the same frequency.
Single User, Multiple User, and Co-operative MIMO
Single User MIMO (SU-MIMO)
This is the most common form of MIMO and can be applied in the uplink or downlink.
The primary purpose of SU-MIMO is to increase the data rate to a single user. There is
also a corresponding increase in the capacity of the cell. Figure 15 shows the downlink
form of 2x2 SU-MIMO in which two data streams are allocated to a single UE. The two
data streams (red and blue) are pre-coded in such a way that each stream is represented
at a different power and phase on each antenna. The two mixed data streams are then
transmitted from each antenna. The transmitted signals are further mixed by the channel.
The purpose of the precoding is to optimize the transmissions to the characteristics of the
radio channel so that when the signals are received, they can be more easily separated
back into the original data streams.
Figure 95 Single User MIMO
Multiple User MIMO (MU-MIMO)
MU-MIMO is used only in the uplink. MU-MIMO does not increase an individual users
data rate but does offer cell capacity gains. In the fgure, the two data streams originate
from different UE. The two transmitters are much further apart than in the single user
case, and the lack of physical connection means there is no opportunity to optimize
the coding by mixing the two data streams. However, the extra spatial separation does
increase the chance of the eNB picking up pairs of UE which have uncorrelated paths.
This maximizes the potential capacity gain. This contrasts to the pre-coded SU-MIMO
case in which the closeness of the antennas could be problematic, especially at
frequencies less than 1 GHz. MU-MIMO has an additional important advantage: the UE
does not require the expense and power drain of two transmitters, yet the cell still benefts
from increased capacity.
Figure 96 Multi-User MIMO
LTE Radio Planning
Co-operative MIMO (Co-MIMO).
The essential element of Co-MIMO is that two separate entities are involved at the
transmission end. The example in Figure 16 shows two eNB collaborating by sharing
data streams to pre-code the spatially separate antennas for optimal communication with
at least one UE. When this technique is applied in the downlink it is sometimes called
network MIMO. The most advantageous use of downlink Co-MIMO occurs when the UE is
at the cell edge. Here the SNR will be at its worst but the radio paths will be uncorrelated,
which offers signifcant potential for increased performance. Co-MIMO is also possible in
the uplink but is fundamentally more diffcult to implement as no physical connection exists
between the UE to share the data streams. Uplink Co-MIMO is also known as virtual
MIMO. Co-MIMO is not currently part of the Release 8 LTE specifcations but is being
studied as a possible enhancement to LTE in Release 9 or Release 10 to meet the goals
of the ITUs IMT 4G initiative.
Figure 97 Cooperative MIMO
Beamforming
Beamforming uses the same signal processing and antenna techniques as MIMO but
rather than exploit de-correlation in the radio path, beamforming aims to exploit correlation
so that the radiation pattern from the transmitter is directed towards the receiver. This
is done by applying small time delays to a calibrated phase array of antennas. The
effectiveness of beamforming varies with the number of antennas. With just two antennas
little gain is seen, but with four antennas the gains are more useful. Obtaining the initial
antenna timing calibration and maintaining it in the feld are challenges. Turning a MIMO
system into a beamforming system is simply a matter of changing the pre-coding matrices.
In practical systems, however, antenna design has to be taken into account and things
are not so simple. It is possible to design antennas to be correlated or uncorrelated;
for example, by changing the polarization. However, switching between correlated and
uncorrelated patterns can be problematic if the physical design of the antennas has been
optimized for one or the other.
Since beamforming is related to the physical position of the UE, the required update rate
for the antenna phasing is much lower than the rates needed to support MIMO pre-coding.
Thus beamforming has a lower signalling overhead than MIMO.
Figure 98 Beamforming Operation
LTE Downlink Multiple Antenna Schemes
The following multiple antenna schemes previously described are supported in the LTE
downlink: Single-Antenna transmission, no MIMO Transmit diversity Open-loop spatial
LTE Radio Planning
multiplexing, no UE feedback required Closed-loop spatial multiplexing, UE feedback
required Multi-user MIMO (more than one UE is assigned to the same resource block)
Beamforming
Open-loop Tx Diversity
This is the simplest downlink LTE multiple antenna scheme. LTE supports either two or
four antennas for Tx diversity. Figure 17 shows a two Tx example in which a single stream
of data is assigned to the different layers and coded using space-frequency block coding
(SFBC). Since this form of Tx diversity has no data rate gain, the code words CW0 and
CW1 are the same. SFBC achieves robustness through frequency diversity by using
different subcarriers for the repeated data on each antenna.
Receive Diversity
RX diversity is mandatory for the UE. It is the baseline receiver capability for which
performance requirements will be defned. A typical use of Rx diversity is maximum ratio
combining of the received streams to improve the SNR in poor conditions. Rx diversity
provides little gain in good conditions.
Spatial Multiplexing MIMO
MIMO is supported for two and four antenna confgurations. Assuming a two-channel
UE receiver, this scheme allows for 2x2 or 4x2 MIMO. A four-channel UE receiver, which
is required for a 4x4 confguration, has been defned but is not likely to be implemented
in the near future. The most common confguration will be 2x2 SU-MIMO. In this case
the payload data will be divided into the two code-word streams CW0 and CW1 and
processed according to the steps in the fgure below.
Figure 99 Coding Processes for LTE MIMO
Spatial Multiplexing MIMO
Depending on the pre-coding used, each code word is represented at different powers
and phases on both antennas. In addition, each antenna is uniquely identifed by the
position of the reference signals within the frame structure, as illustrated in Figure 18. The
UE must obtain accurate picture of channel conditions for each antenna. Therefore, when
a reference signal is transmitted from one antenna port, the other antenna ports in the cell
are idle.
Closed Loop Spatial Multiplexing
As the streams must be pre-coded, the transmitter must have knowledge of the channel.
The UE estimates the radio channel and selects the optimum pre-coding matrix. This
channel information is provided by the UE on the uplink control channel. The channel
feedback uses a codebook approach to provide an index into a predetermined set of
pre-coding matrices. Since the channel is continually changing, this information will be
provided for multiple points across the channel bandwidth, at regular intervals, up to
several hundred times a second. The exact details are still to be specifed. However,
the UE that can best estimate the channel conditions and then signal the best coding to
use will get the best performance out of the channel. Although the use of a codebook for
pre-coding limits the best ft to the channel, it signifcantly simplifes the channel estimation
process by the UE and the amount of uplink signalling needed to convey the desired pre-
coding.
LTE Radio Planning
Open loop spatial Multiplexing
If the UE is moving at a high velocity, the quality of the feedback may deteriorate. Thus,
an open loop spatial multiplexing mode is also supported which is based on predefned
settings for spatial multiplexing and pre-coding. The eNodeB will select the optimum
MIMO mode and pre-coding confguration. The information is conveyed to the UE as part
of the downlink control information (DCI) on PDCCH.
Cyclic Delay Diversity (CDD)
This technique adds antenna-specifc cyclic time shifts to artifcially create multi-path on
the received signal and prevents signal cancellation caused by the close spacing of the
transmit antennas. Normally multipath would be considered undesirable, but by creating
artifcial multipath in an otherwise fat channel, the eNB UE scheduler can choose to
transmit on those RBs that have favourable propagation conditions. The CDD system
works by adding the delay only to the data subcarriers while leaving the RS subcarriers
alone. The UE uses the fat RS subcarriers to report the received channel fatness and the
eNB schedules the UE to use the RB that it knows will beneft from the artifcially induced
multipath. By not applying the CDD to the RS, the eNB can choose to apply the CDD on
a per-UE basis.
Figure 100 MIMO Antenna Reference Signals
Reporting of UE Feedback
In order for MIMO schemes to work properly, each UE has to report information about the
mobile radio channel to the base station. A lot of different reporting modes and formats
are available which are selected according to the MIMO mode of operation and network
choice.
The reporting may consist of the following elements:
CQI (Channel Quality Indicator) is an indication of the downlink mobile radio channel
quality as experienced by this UE. Essentially, the UE is proposing to the eNodeB an
optimum modulation scheme and coding rate to use for a given radio link quality, so
that the resulting transport block error rate would not exceed 10%. 16 combinations of
LTE Radio Planning
modulation scheme and coding rate are specifed as possible CQI values. The UE may
report different types of CQI.
A so-called wideband CQI refers to the complete system bandwidth. Alternatively, the
UE may evaluate a sub-band CQI value per sub-band of a certain number of resource
blocks which is confgured by higher layers. The full set of sub-bands would cover the
entire system bandwidth. In case of spatial multiplexing, a CQI per code word needs to be
reported.
PMI (Pre-coding Matrix Indicator) is an indication of the optimum pre-coding matrix to be
used in the base station for a given radio condition. The PMI value refers to the codebook
table. The network confgures the number of resource blocks that are represented by a
PMI report. Thus to cover the full bandwidth, multiple PMI reports may be needed. PMI
reports are needed for closed loop spatial multiplexing, multi-user MIMO and closed-loop
rank 1 precoding MIMO modes.
RI (Rank Indication) is the number of useful transmission layers when spatial multiplexing
is used. For transmit diversity the rank is equal to 1. The reporting may be periodic or
aperiodic and is confgured by the radio network. Aperiodic reporting is triggered by a
CQI request contained in the uplink scheduling grant. The UE would send the report on
PUSCH. In the case of periodic reporting, PUCCH is used if no PUSCH is available.
Figure 101 LTE Reporting for the MIMO Channel
LTE Radio Planning
Advanced Antenna Techniques for LTE
Q1
antenna systems that have a single receive antenna and multiple transmit antennas are
known as.
a) SISO
b) MISO
c) SIMO
d) MIMO
Q2
receive diversity could also be referred to as
a) SISO
b) MISO
c) SIMO
d) MIMO
Q3
the term Spatial Multiplexing is associated with which of the following?
a) SISO
b) MISO
c) SIMO
d) MIMO
Q4
the primary beneft of spatial multiplexing MIMO is
a) Increasing the gain of the antennas
b) Improving the signal to noise ratio of the channel
c) Increasing the capacity of the radio channel
d) Less power transmitted from the UE
LTE Radio Planning
Q5
spatial multiplexing MIMO improves radio link capacity
a) In the uplink direction only
b) In the downlink direction only
c) In both the uplink and downlink directions
d) Mostly on the uplink but some improvement on the downlink
Q6
Multi user MIMO
a) Improve the link capacity on the downlink
b) Increase the number of users on the uplink
c) Increases the capacity for users on the uplink
d) Increases the number of users on the downlink
Q7
when downlink MIMO information is distributed between 2 or more eNB, this is called
a) SU-MIMO
b) MU-MIMO
c) Co-MIMO
d) CU-MIMO
Q8
beamforming in LTE networks will provide which of the following performance
improvement?
a) Directly increases downlink capacity
b) Directly increases uplink capacity
c) Reduces the SNR on the link
d) Improves the SNR on the link
Q9
a code book technique used in MIMO that requires reporting of channel conditions several
hundred time per second is called?
a) Open loop MIMO
b) Closed loop MIMO
c) Beamforming
d) Cyclic Delay Diversity
Q10
downlink reference information used to assess the MIMO channel is transmitted
a) orthogonally from each antenna port
b) interleaved across all antenna ports
c) simultaneously from all antenna ports
d) only from the master antenna port
LTE Radio Planning
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LTE Radio Planning
Section 2 Questions
Q1
Generally speaking the optical horizon will be ____________ than the radio horizon?
a) Greater
b) Smaller
c) The same
d) Wider
Q2
the refractive index N will decrease by ______ units for every 1000 metres gained in
altitude.
a) 40
b) 80
c) 20
d) 1000
Q3
sub-refractive conditions may be observed when the refractive index _______________
with altitude?
c) Remains constant
Q4
super-refractive conditions may be observed when the refractive index N ____________
with altitude?
c) Remains constant
Q5
where two layers of extreme temperature differences are observed the effect on the radio
wave is known as
a) Propagation
b) Pathloss
c) Ducting
d) Super-refractive
Q6
when a radio wave encounters a surface where the surface features are large relative to
the signal wave length the signal is more likely to be
a) Refracted
b) Diffracted
c) Refected
d) Scattered
Q7
for point to point links at least _________ of the 1st Fresnel zone must be clear from
obstruction ?
a) 100%
b) 90%
c) 60%
d) 40%
Q8
in a Rayleigh multipath environment the radio signal would tend exhibit which of the
following properties?
LTE Radio Planning
Q9
a radio systems that employs a high radio frequency reuse factor will tend to exhibit which
of the following characteristics.
a) Low capacity and low interference
b) Low capacity and high interference
c) High capacity and high interference
d) High capacity and low interference

Q10
in a simplifed frequency reuse system the amount of interference is governed primarily
by..
a) The reuse distance
b) The cell radius
c) the number of cells in the reuse pattern
d) the frequency of the radio channels
Q11
if the frequency reuse factor N is increased from 4 to 7 the capacity of the systems will.
a) Stay the same
b) Be increased
c) Be reduced
d) Be reduced but interference will lower
Q12
radio frequencies in the 2.6GHz range are more suitable for which type of radio cell
deployment?
a) Macro cell
b) Micro cell
c) Nano cell
d) Overlay cells
Q13
the theoretical antenna which can be used to determine the performance of real antennas
is known as
a) The dipole antenna
b) The reference antenna
c) The isotropic antenna
d) The electronic antenna
Q14
the ability of the antenna to focus energy in a specifc direction is referred to as the
antenna.
a) Gain
b) Beamwidth
d) polarisation
Q15
the gain of a dipole antenna is _________ greater than the isotropic radiator?
a) 1.25dB
b) 2.15dB
c) 2,15dBi
d) 0dB
Q16
the gain of the antenna system can be increases by
a) Increasing the power fed to the antenna
b) Increasing the height of the antenna
c) Increasing the number of radiating elements
d) Increasing the beamwidth of the antenna
LTE Radio Planning
Q17
varying the properties of the phasing coil connecting multiple radiating elements within the
antenna will cause
a) An electrical tilt to occur
b) A mechanical tilt to occur
c) Increase the gain of the antenna
d) Decrease the gain of the antenna
Q18
diversity in antenna systems is used to .
a) Reduce the gain of the antenna system
b) Mitigate the fading effects of multipath
c) Eliminate radio path fading
d) Reduce the pathloss
Q19
antenna systems that have a single receive antenna and multiple transmit antennas are
known as.
a) SISO
b) MISO
c) SIMO
d) MIMO
Q20
the term transmit diversity is associated with which of the following?
a) SISO
b) MISO
c) SIMO
d) MIMO
Q21
the primary beneft of spatial multiplexing MIMO is
a) Increasing the gain of the antennas
b) Improving the signal to noise ratio of the channel
c) Increasing the capacity of the radio channel
d) Less power transmitted from the UE
Q22
spatial multiplexing MIMO improves radio link capacity
a) In the uplink direction only
b) In the downlink direction only
c) In both the uplink and downlink directions
d) Mostly on the uplink but some improvement on the downlink
Q23
Multi user MIMO
a) Improves the link capacity on the downlink
b) Increases the number of users on the uplink
c) Increases the capacity for users on the uplink
d) Increases the number of users on the downlink
Q24
when downlink MIMO information is distributed between 2 or more eNB, this is called
a) SU-MIMO
b) MU-MIMO
c) Co-MIMO
d) CU-MIMO
Q25
a code book technique used in MIMO that requires reporting of channel conditions several
hundred time per second is called?
a) Open loop MIMO
b) Closed loop MIMO
c) Beamforming
d) Cyclic Delay Diversity
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LTE Radio Planning
Self Assessment Multiple Choice Answer Grid Cont.......
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24
25
Section 2 Assignment
Q1
Super refraction, sub refraction and ducting are examples of extreme propagation
conditions, research what causes these conditions and give examples of where these
might occur. Also, determine what might be done to mitigate these effects when planning
radio systems.
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Q2
Building attenuation is one of the most common factors when performing link budgets and
it is generally said that building penetration increases with frequency. Do some research
and build a table of typical attenuation values for different building materials and frequency
bands.
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LTE Radio Planning
Q3
LTE supports many different frequency bands and it is likely that operators will choose
different band depending on local availability and regulatory conditions. Do some
research and fnd out what frequency bands are being proposed in different parts of the
world, give examples of operators and which bands that are proposing to use. Comment
on some of the issues regarding the diversity of bands.
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Q4
MIMO is an antenna technique that will be widely deployed by LTE operators. Do some
research and fn out which vendors are supporting the MIMO technology, which operators
are planning to use it and where possible include the results of any trails that have taken
place and comment on the performance increases.
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LTE Link Budgets
SECTION 3
LTE LINK BUDGETS
LTE Radio Planning
LTE Link Budgets
LESSON 1 DEFINING A LINK BUDGET STATEMENT
Intro to Basic Radio System
Every radio system is a series of components and links, from the transmitter to the
receiver. Each element of the system will exhibit some attribute of performance that
affects the overall performance of the end to end system. A typical link budget exercise
will need to quantify each of these performance attributes and understand the impact it
may have on the system performance, i.e. the capacity and coverage.
Many factors can be determined from manufacturers data sheets, thing such as the Tx
power, feeder losses, antenna gains etc..However some parts of the system, the radio
interface, must be modelled in order to determine a satisfactory plan.
Figure 102 Typical Arrangement of Radio System Components and Variables
The diagram above shows the typical arrangement of components in a radio system, each
of the performance values shown, operating frequency, feeder loss, antenna gain and
noise fgures etc., must be understood and quantifed in order to successfully plan a radio
system, this module will help to understand some of those values and the impact it has on
link planning
LTE Radio Planning
Typical Link Budget Requirements
One of the main aims of calculating a link budget is to determine the maximum path loss
allowed across the radio link for a given performance objective. The link loss will be due
in part to the performance of the transmitter and receiver components as well as the
impact of the environment through which the signal will propagate.
The goal of link planning is to determine the parameter MAPL (Maximum Allowable Path
Loss)
MAPL = System Gain Margin
(fade, body, building, trees)
System Gain is a function of the radiated power from the transmitter system and the
minimum signal power that can be presented to the face of the receiving antenna. The
value of System gain is an indication of the maximum and minimum values in the link
budget.
Link Margins are subtracted from the System Gain to determine the maximum path loss
for a given set of assumptions for the transmitting and receiving system. This MAPL
can subsequently converted in to a nominal cell range using an appropriate propagation
model.
System gain is determined by subtracting the maximum transmit power from the minimum
receive power.
System Gain = EiRP IRL
min
Where EiRP and IRLmin are given by;
EiRP = Tx_PWR Ltx + Gtx
IRL
min
= Rx_SENS + Lrx Grx
LTE Link Budgets
The values of feeder and connector (and any other) losses can be determined from
manufacturer data sheets as can the Tx_PWR of the eNB and UE. It is likely that the
Rx-SENS will also be quoted by the vendor for the eNB and UE however the calculation is
rather complex and can involve many parameters that will ultimately have a great impact
on the overall system performance, it is worth therefore, a closer examination.
LTE link Budget variables
The basic expression from above can be formulated to include aspects of the LTE link
budget. The expressions on the opposite page show how the MAPL for the uplink and
downlink may be calculated. It is assumed in these cases that the UE will have no losses
due to cables or connectors.
Since most cellular systems are limited by the performance of the uplink it is common
to being the link budgeting process with the uplink and look for a link balance with the
downlink.
MAPL
UL
= (Tx_PWR
UE
+ G
tx_UE
) (Rx_SENS
eNB
+ L
rx_eNB
- G
rx_eNB
) - Margins
(fade, body, building,
trees)
MAPL
DL
= (Tx_PWR
eNB
L
tx_eNB
+ G
tx_eNB
) (Rx_SENS
UE
G
rx_UE
) - Margins
(fade, body, building,
trees)
LTE Radio Planning
LTE Link Budgets
Defning a Link Budget Statement
Q1
EiRP IRLmin, Which link budget parameter can be calculate from this expression ?
a) EiRP
b) MAPL
c) System Gain
d) IRL
Q2
IRLmin can be calculated from which of the following expressions ?
a) Tx_PWR Ltx + Gtx
b) Rx_SENS + Lrx Grx
c) Tx_PWR+ Lrx
d) EiRP IRLmin
Q3
which one of the following would not typically be considered as a Margin ?
a) Building Penetration
b) Body Loss
c) Foliage Loss
d) Feeder Loss
LTE Radio Planning
LTE Link Budgets
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LTE Radio Planning
LTE Link Budgets
LESSON 2 TRANSMITTER POWER IN LTE LINK BUDGETS
LTE Transmit Power Capability for the UE
The power output of the UE is pretty straight forward since at the present time only a
single maximum power output is specifed. However it could be possible in future to have
different power outputs depending on the power class of the UE in each of the different
specifed bands.
The following maximum output powers can be assumed:
23 dBm for the UE, -
Figure 103 Table of Equipment Classes and Power Outputs
LTE Radio Planning
Additional Factors Affecting UE Power Output
The maximum power output of an LTE UE is specifed to be 23dBm, however there are
other factors that might result in a reduced power out put, this frst is;
Maximum Power Reduction (MPR)
Maximum Power Reduction (MPR) is a reduction in the power output of the UE due to
a high order modulation scheme being used, this reduction in power eases some of the
problems that occur with high peak values in the power amplifer, it is thought that the
disadvantages of reduction in power is out-weighed by reduced complexity in the power
amplifer stages of the transmitter.
Figure 104 Power Reduction for LTE Modulation Schemes
Additional-Maximum Power Reduction (A-MPR)
It is possible for the network to signal additional power reductions in specifc deployments
where there are tighter requirements of Adjacent Channel Leakage Ration (ACLR) and
other spectrum emission requirements.
LTE Link Budgets
Figure 105 Additional Power Reduction Factors
eNodeB Power Output Characteristics
According to the 3GPP specifcations there are 3 classes of base station.
Wide Area Base Stations are characterised by requirements derived from Macro Cell
scenarios with a BS to UE minimum coupling loss equal to 70 dB. No upper limit for
power output is specifed by 3GPP for this class of base station (some regional limits
apply, in addition there are CEPT band limits that should also be considered)
Local Area Base Stations are characterised by requirements derived from Pico Cell
scenarios with a BS to UE minimum coupling loss equal to 45 dB. The limitations on
power output depend on the number of antenna ports used and are shown in the table
opposite
Home Base Stations are characterised by requirements derived from Femto Cell
scenarios. The limitations on power output depend on the number of antenna ports used
and are shown in the table opposite
For link budgets the typical eNB power outputs for macro cell deployments would however
be in the range 20 60W (43 48dBm) depending on channel bandwidth.
LTE Radio Planning
Typical power outputs may depend on the bandwidth being used;
46dBm (10Mhz) -
43 dBm (5 Mhz, 1.25 MHz) -
Figure 106 Additional Power Reduction Factors
Typical Losses in the eNB
Within the eNB system there will be many components that insert loss in to the transmitted
and received signals. It is a general rule that losses should be kept to a minimum. The
total amount of loss will determine the radiated power (EiRP) and the received signal.
Additionally the losses in the receive path will also add noise which change the SINR
requirement on the link.
Other Losses in the transmit/receive system
There are other components in the transmitter and receiver chains that will incur additional
insertion losses. Ideally these will be kept to a minimum by choosing high quality
components, or keeping feeder runs to a minimum length.
LTE Link Budgets
Defning a Link Budget Statement
Exercise
Complete the following table by researching vendor spec sheets for the components listed
in the table.

LTE Radio Planning
LTE Link Budgets
LESSON 3 ENB AND UE ANTENNA PERFORMANCE
Antenna Characteristics for the UE
There is much which is yet unknown about the LTE UE antenna systems, given that MIMO
is likely to be present in the devices, this places a great deal of challenge in the design
and implementation of the UE antenna. However for basic link budgeting purposes it is
acceptable to assume a low gain fgure for the antenna, typically 0dBi. This of course will
depend on the type of LTE device, USB dongles, handheld smartphone devices and even
cameras and other consumer devices are likely to have differing antenna performances. It
will be largely up to the vendors of the devices to provide the relevant fgures.
LG Handheld Device Samsung LTE USB Dongle
Figure 107 Typical LTE Mobiles an Devices
Antenna Gains for UE
LTE Radio Planning
Antenna Characteristics for eNB
The eNB in most cases can make use of the familiar cellular antennas that have been
used for other mobile broadband systems such as WiMAX and UMTS/HSPA. A typical
example of LTE antenna specifcations is shown on the page opposite.
It is possible of course that the operator will implement spatial multiplexing or transmit
diversity, this will have an impact on the link budget calculations. It is expected that the
vendors of these systems will provide the appropriate fgures of gain to be included in any
calculations.
Figure 108 Antenna PerformanceSelf Assessment Multiple Choice
LTE Link Budgets
eNB and UE Antenna Performance
Q1
What is a typical gain fgure for a mobile antenna ?
a) 0dB
b) 0dBd
c) 0dBi
d) 3dBi
Q2
Which of the following base station antenna properties would be used when calculation
link budgets?
a) Front to back ratio
b) Beamwidth
c) Gain
d) Tilt angle
Q3
Which is the most likely antenna beamwidth to be used in a 120
o
sector ?
a) 120
o
b) 90
o
c) 65
o
d) 45
o
LTE Radio Planning
LTE Link Budgets
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LTE Radio Planning
LTE Link Budgets
LESSON 4 CALCULATING SENSITIVITY
Sensitivity Calculation for the eNB and UE
In calculating the required or minimum IRL it is necessary to determine the sensitivity of
the receiver. It is highly probable that the vendor of the eNB and mobile devices will quote
the sensitivity in the spec sheets for their product. However it is important to be able to
derive the sensitivity of the receivers for all cases of modulation/coding schemes and
resource block usage.
The expression below shows the calculation and all the parameters required to make the
calculation. The following pages will explain each parameter.
RX
sens_eNB
= -174dBm/Hz + 10log(N
rb
x 180KHz) + NF
eNB
+ SNR + IM
RX
sens_UE
rb
x 180KHz) + NF
UE
+ SNR + IM 3dB - D
FB
Where;
-174dBm/Hz is - k x T (Boltzmann Constant x Temperature)
N -
rb
is the Number of Radio Blocks Allocated
180KHz is the bandwidth of 1 RB -
NF -
eNB
is the total noise fgure of the eNB system
SNR is the Signal to Noise Ratio required i.e. for the modulation scheme in -
use
IM is an Implementation Margin depends Modulation and Coding used -
-3dB is the multiple antenna gain for the UE -
D -
FB
is a frequency band specifc relaxation factor for the UE
LTE Radio Planning
Thermal Noise in Radio Systems
Thermal noise is present in all things, it is a measure of the amount of noise power
present due to the random motion of the atoms and molecules excited by temperature. In
electronic and radio systems the noise is always present and there is little to be done to
eliminate the noise completely.
In radio systems the noise is present in two forms;
Thermal background noise
Noise present in the system components
The thermal background noise is present as a result of the big bang (cosmic background
radiation), the galaxies, the stars, our own sun and natural radiation from the surface of
the earth and the objects upon it. There is no way that we can prevent this kind of noise
entering the radio system but there is a way to quantify the amount of noise present. The
expression;
N
t
= kTB
Where k is Boltzmanns Constant 1.38 x 10
-23
T is temperature (normally 290K)
B is the Bandwidth of the Channel in Hz
shows that noise is proportional to the bandwidth of the radio systems and temperature.
The bandwidth of the radio system under investigation is really the only variable since
temperature is taken to be that of the warm earth or 290K.
The graph below shows the rise of noise with radio channel bandwidth and the range of
LTE radio channel bandwidths plotted for comparison.
Where k is Boltzmanns Constant 1.38 x 10
-23
T is temperature (normally 290K)
B is the Bandwidth of the Channel in Hz
LTE Link Budgets

N
t
= kTB
Figure 109 Bandwidth and the Impact on Background Noise
Type of Service and Impact on Noise Floor
LTE is very fexible, not only in terms of the system bandwidth, but also the amount of
bandwidth or Resource Blocks that can be allocated to a singe mobile device. This
variable allocation can be demonstrated in the following example.
A typical voice call in LTE may require 64Kbps, for example, given that call reliability will
be important across the whole radio cell, robust modulation schemes may be allocated for
the voice call events, QPSK 1/3 for example, in this case only two RBs will be required, a
total allocated bandwidth of 2x180KHz or 360KHz, this fgure can be used to work out the
thermal noise foor.
In contrast a device that is attempting to receive 1Mbps will have to be allocated between
2 and 13 RBs, depending on the selected modulation and coding scheme. Thus the noise
foor could rise up to 10dB (or more) for high capacity allocations.
The graph below shows the potential noise foor rise for RB allocation between 1 and 25
RB (25 RB corresponds to a channel bandwidth of 5MHz)
LTE Radio Planning
Voice service at 64Kbps 2 RB Required (QPSK)
Data Service at 1Mbps depends on modulation scheme
But typically 13 RB for QPSK 1/3
2 RB for 64QAM 2/3
N
t/RB
= -174dBm/Hz + (N
RB
x 180KHz)
Figure 110 Resource Block Allocation Effect on the Noise Floor
Use the spread sheet to examine the effect of the number of radio blocks on the sensitivity
of the receiver. You should use the sensitivity tab on the spread sheet, the link budgets
tab will be examined later.
Implementation Margin, UE, eNB
Included in the sensitivity calculation is a margin due to the implementation of the
modulation scheme. It is not possible for the receiver to be 100% accurate particularly for
the higher order schemes therefore an implementation margin is added. Typical values
are given below.
LTE Link Budgets
Typical Values
QPSK 2.5dB
16QAM 3dB
64QAM 4dB
The margin accounts for the difference in the theoretical SINR values and the practical
implementation actually possible.
Receiver Noise Figure
Noise will also be present in the receiver it self. The noise performance of the receiver is
normally quoted as the NF (Noise Figure). How much noise is present is largely down
to the design of the receiver by the vendor of that component however is expected that
the noise will be no more then the example fgures given below for a typical eNB and UE
receiver.
Typical eNB NF 5dB*
Typical UE NF 9dB* (same as WCDMA)
The noise fgure (NF) will have an impact on cell range. The LTE documents specify a
fgure similar to those for WCDMA devices and it is felt that the fgure
is a compromise between reasonable cell range and practical receiver
design performance. It is range of values also allow some scope for
the vendors to improve the performance of the device receivers and
therefore improve the sensitivity of the devices, this is also a key differentiator in the
device market.
Total Noise Floor
The overall system noise foor is the sum of the external noise present and the total
component noise. This is illustrated in the fgure opposite.
Where there are multiple components (active and passive) in the receiver system, the total
noise can be calculated using the cascade method.
LTE Radio Planning

Total NF
System Noise Floor
Thermal Noise
Floor
Figure 111 Total Noise in the System
Cascaded Noise
When using the Cascade formula, the noise fgure reference point can be assigned at any
point before the frst active (amplifer) component. The frst system component will have
the greatest infuence, meaning that the system NF
dB
cant be better than the NF
dB
of the
frst component, on the system NF
dB
. Stages after an amplifer have progressively less
impact on total system NF
dB
.
The performance of a cascaded system of components is based on the confguration
and performance parameters of the individual components. The above two systems use
the same components in different confgurations. The key to performance of these two
systems is the placement and performance of the Low Noise Amplifers (LNA). The frst
stage in a cascade of stages limits the receiver system NF
dB
it can never be better than
the NF
db
of the frst component! The purpose of the LNA is to increase the noise foor
high enough to reduce the impact of loss from successive stages while having a minimum
effect of the C/N. A high gain LNA with a low NF
dB
can provide beneft even if it is after a
coax loss. Without suffcient gain, beneft is minimum. Too much gain can overdrive the
receiver in the presence of a strong receive signal.

LTE Link Budgets
System 1: A signifcant loss in front of the LNA limits the receiver system NF
dB
. A high
gain in the LNA can help minimize the post-LNA losses. This confguration (indoor-
mounted LNA) can be benefcial if the coax loss to the LNA is reasonably low and the
LNA has suffcient gain relative to the post-LNA losses. A low gain LNA offers little
performance beneft in this, or any deployment. An LNA with too much gain reduces the
dynamic range of the receiver and could overload the receiver, causing other problems.
Figure 112 Calculating Total Noise in Cascaded Systems
System 2: Theoretically, this can provide the best performance. If there is a signifcant
amount of gain in the LNA, the post-LNA losses have little impact on the system NF
dB
.
If a small amount of gain is used, the LNA provides little or no beneft. In cellular
deployments, this is referred to as a TTA (Tower-Top Amplifer). Since LNAs are typically
rated for their operating NF
dB
at 23 C ambient temperature, there can be a degradation of
performance when the ambient temperature increases above this value. Remember, an
LNA with too much gain reduces the dynamic range of the receiver and could overload
the receiver, causing other problems.

LTE Radio Planning
Exercise
Convert the values from dB to linear terms and use the cascade formula to determine the
total noise contribution from the confguration shown above.
You can attempt this with a calculator or use the provided
spreadsheet
Typical SNR for LTE Modulation and Coding Schemes
Given that there are different modulation and coding schemes in use for the LTE radio
interface the SINR for each must be determined, this is largely down to the design of the
receive and the effciency of the error coding schemes used, the table below shows the
expected values of SINR and the respective IM, however the actual number may vary
between vendors.
LTE Link Budgets
Figure 113 Typical SNR Requirements for LTE Modulation and Coding Schemes
Duplex Gap and Duplex Distance, Effect on Receiver Sensitivity
The calculation for UE sensitivity includes an extra parameter which is a margin due to
the separation between the uplink and downlink radio channels. Where the channel
bandwidth is very large and the duplex separation between them is relatively small
this causes the UE receiver to fall directly into the shoulders of the transmitter spectral
output. This will require better fltering in the UE, flters with the characteristics required to
eliminate any signifcant receiver desensing have a higher insertion loss which therefore
contributes to a higher receiver NF. For the bands affected by this problem a relaxation
factor is taken into account when calculating the sensitivity of the receiver, D
FB
.
LTE Radio Planning
Figure 114 Duplex Distance and Duplex Gap
Typical Figures for the D
FB
margin appear in the table below.
Figure 115 D
FB
Factor for Channel Bandwidths in Certain Frequency Bands
LTE Link Budgets
It should be noted that this margin only applies to full duplex devices, the margin is not
required for TDD or FDD-HD devices.
LTE Radio Planning
LTE Link Budgets
LESSON 5 SYSTEM GAIN AND MAXIMUM PATHLOSS
Calculating System Gain
Once all the equipment operating parameters have been determined the EiRP and
Sensitivity can be calculated. From this the System Gain can be determined. System
Gain is a measure of the maximum drop of power from the transmit antenna to the receive
antenna, but does not take in to account any additional margin from radio interface effects
such as fading and penetration losses.
Figure 116 Typical Link Budget Profle
Environmental Factors and Noise Rise
Having worked out the System gain it is now possible to determine the MAPL. The
Maximum Allowable Path Loss is the system gain less any environmental margins.
Typical margins include;
MAPL = System Gain Margin
LTE Radio Planning
Typical Margins;
Shadow (fading) Margin
Building loss
Foliage loss
Clutter margin
Body loss
Noise rise margin
Shadow Margin (Slow Fading)
When deploying NLOS implementations, shadow fading (due to path obstructions) must
be considered. Measurements have shown that for any distance from a base station, the
path loss at different locations is random and has a log-normal distribution. Over a large
number of measurement locations having the same distance between subscriber unit and
base station, the random shadowing effects are described by a log-normal distribution.
This is often referred to as Log-normal Shadowing (or fading).A common approach is to
calculate the lognormal probability of adequate signal strength in a coverage area.
The probability is a function of the path loss exponent and the standard deviation of signal
values for a given environment. The amount of margin determined from the environmental
values is based on coverage objectives for a given implementation. Mobile radio (cellular)
prioritizes the area service objective, while fxed wireless services may consider margin
for area or edge coverage.

eNB
s
Propagation Index n
Signal at UE
X
o
Min Signal Threshold
Figure 117 Calculating Shadow (Fading) Margins
LTE Link Budgets
The propagation constant (n), also called the path loss exponent, accounts for the
distance dependent mean of the signal level based on the propagation environment.
Figure 118 Typical Path Loss Exponent Values
The standard deviation () statistically describes the path loss variability for arbitrary
locations with the same distance between subscriber unit and cell site. The ratio of /n is
used to determine the amount of margin required to satisfy an area reliability objective
Figure 119 Typical Values for Standard Deviation
The following expression can be used to work the percentage of useful service area
(assuming a circular cell) where the factors listed below are known. It is more usual to
specify the area reliability fgure (e.g. 90% area reliability) and then work out what margin
is required in the link budget to achieve the required availability.
LTE Radio Planning
Exercise
Using the provided spreadsheet (you should fnd the spreadsheet
on the Distance Learning Adobe platform) determine the following.
What margin is required for an area reliability of 95% if the radio
environment is assumed to be urban (n=3.5) and the standard
deviation is 12dB, assume a threshold value of -80dBm.
Building and Foliage Losses
Many studies provide penetration loss data based on frequency, but without other key
information, the values provided can only provide a general idea of what can be expected.
Key information:
Angle of incidence
Material composition
Material thickness
Material texture
LTE Link Budgets
Foliage loss is a function of absorption and scattering. Building loss is primarily absorption
loss.
Wet surfaces will generally increase the amount of energy refected rather than
transmitted thus increasing overall penetration loss.
In both foliage and building loss, it is important to establish local parameters to be used
during planning processes.
Figure 120 Building and Foliage Penetrations Losses
Body Loss
In mobile cellular systems, handheld devices will incur an additional loss due to absorption
by the human body. The actual fgure will depend on the use of the device i.e. held near
the head, away from the body holding angle of the device. UE antenna radiation patterns
may also affect the amount of energy lost.
The fgure normally assumed for radio planning purposes is 3dB.
LTE Radio Planning
Figure 121 Typical Body Loss 3dB
Uplink and Downlink Noise Rise
Noise rise occurs in TDMA/FDMA systems when the same frequency and time resources
are used simultaneously in neighbouring cells. This will be a key factor for implementing
LTE networks, the eNBs will communicate across the X2 interface regarding resource
allocation either warning of potential noise or simply indicating what resources are
currently being used. In lightly loaded systems the noise rise should be kept to a
minimum by the interference coordination between the base stations, however when the
system becomes loaded the noise rise is likely to have a greater impact on overall system
performance.
Factors affecting Noise Rise include:
UL and DL system load
Number of RB used by victim UE
Number of RBs used by aggressor systems
Average pathloss between aggressor and victim BS
LTE Link Budgets
Figure 122 Noise Rise in LTE Sytemes
LTE Radio Planning
LTE Link Budgets
LESSON 6 PATHLOSS MODELLING
Propagation Modelling
Propagation modelling or prediction is the science of predicting the pathloss of a particular
radio frequency when some of the system attributes are know, typically the radio
frequency, tower and UE heights and distance are the information required, however more
complex models can use the average height of buildings or terrain, relative angle of roads,
antenna tilts etc to produce more accurate results.
The model shown opposite is at the heart of this science. This models the theoretical
wave front from an isotropic radiator and predicts the feld strength at a given distance.
Figure 123 Isotropic Radiation and Spreading Loss
If a value for the receive antenna attributes is included it is possible to derive the Free
Space Pathloss model. In the free space pathloss model energy radiated from the source
decays in proportion to the square of the distance - a doubling of distance will increase the
path loss by a factor of 4.
LTE Radio Planning
Figure 124 Converting Spreading Loss into Free Space Loss
Coverage from link budget
Having calculated the MAPL above it is now possible to convert the pathloss into a
nominal cell range using an appropriate propagation model. The results will vary
according to the model used. There are many different kinds of model, the classical
empirical models such as Okamura-Hata , Walfsch-Ikegami and those used by RF
planning models. It is important to select the correct model and some model tuning is
required to obtain theoretical results that refect the actual loss or distance likely to be
experienced in the feld.
The following is a list of empirical models can be used in the preliminary stages of
planning.
LTE Link Budgets
Empirical models Physical models
Power law Free space
Okumura Hata Free space + RMD
Lee TIREM
COST 231 Hata Longley-Rice
Walfsh Ikagami Anderson 2D
IEEE 802.16 (SUI)
Typical Propagation Loss Models
Comparison of models
There are of course many different models that can be used under different
circumstances, the choice of model will depend on system design parameters such as the
frequency band used, LOS or NLOS systems, antennas above or below rooftop height
etc.
The table on the page opposite shows some of the standard models in common use and
the range of frequencies over which the model will return sensible results.
Some of the models are empirical models which means that they are also dependant on
the circumstances under which they were developed. In many cases different models will
return different pathloss results for the same set of inputs (frequency, tower height, link
distance etc) therefore several models may need to be test to see which model returns the
most accurate results for the are being designed.
Many RF planning tools will allow you to select different propagation models in order that
comparisons can be made, in addition the RF software development companies will offer
their own models that use a combination of empirical and physical models to predicate the
pathloss.
LTE Radio Planning
Figure 126 Some Common Propagation Models and Frequency Ranges
Figure 127 - Comparison of Pathloss Models
LTE Link Budgets
COST 231 Propagation Model
The model shown below is the COST 231 model which is an adaptation of the well known
Okamura-Hata model. The COST 231 is an empirical model designed to model NLOS
radio systems in the frequency range 1.5GHz to 2GHz making it suitable for cellular
systems such as GSM1800, UMTS and even Mobile WiMAX technologies.
This is a baseline model which can be used to make comparisons of other empirical and
custom designed models.
Figure 128 COST 231 Propagation Model
The WINNER Model
The WINNER model had been developed by Information Society Technologies (IST) for
predication for indoor and outdoor systems.
The novel features of the WINNER models are its parameterisation, using of the same
modelling approach for both indoor and outdoor environments, new scenarios like
outdoor-to-indoor and indoor-to outdoor, elevation in indoor scenarios, smooth time (and
LTE Radio Planning
space) evolution of large-scale and small-scale channel parameters (including cross-
correlations), and scenario-dependent polarisation modelling. The models are scalable
from a single single-input-single-output (SISO) or multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)
link to a multi-link MIMO scenario including polarisation among other radio channel
dimensions.
WINNER II channel models can be used in link level and system level performance
evaluation of wireless systems, as well as comparison of different algorithms, technologies
and products. The models can be applied not only to WINNER II system, but also any
other wireless system operating in 2 6 GHz frequency range with up to 100 MHz RF
bandwidth. The models supports multi-antenna technologies, polarisation, multi-user,
multi-cell, and multi-hop networks.
Figure 129 The Winner Model
LTE Link Budgets
Figure 130 WINNER Model Parameters
LTE Radio Planning
Figure 131 WINNER Model Parameters Cont.
Cell Range Calculations from MAPL
The link budgets calculations done previously can now be used with the propagation
models to determine the nominal cell range based on the equipment performance
assumptions. The pathloss models require some transposition to derive distance rather
than pathloss, this is best done by modelling within spreadsheets or other software
models.
LTE Link Budgets
Figure 132 Cell Range Calculations
Exercise
Use this spreadsheet to examine the impact of MAPL on the link distance,
note the varying distances according to the terrain classifcation.
LTE Radio Planning
Link Planning Exercise:
Given the following information calculate the uplink and downlink System Gain
Sys Gain
UL
= (Tx_PWR
UE
+ G
tx_UE
) (Rx_SENS
eNB
+ L
rx_eNB
- G
rx_eNB
)
Sys Gain
DL
= (Tx_PWR
eNB
L
tx_eNB
+ G
tx_eNB
) (Rx_SENS
UE
G
rx_UE
)

UE_________________ eNB________________
TXpwr 23dBm TXpwr 36dBm
Antenna Gain 0dBi Losses 3dB
Antenna Gain 15dBi
SINR
QPSK
5.5dB SINR
QPSK
5.5dB
IM 2dB IM 2dB
RX NF 9dB RX NF 4dB
Div Gain 3dB Div Gain 3dB
5MHz Channel 25 RB 5MHz Channel 25 RB

Step 1
Determine the EiRP
EiRP
UE
= Tx_PWR
UE
+ Ga
UE
EiRP
eNB
= Tx_PWR
eNB
- L
f
+ Ga
eNB
EiRP
UE
__________________________________________
EiRP
eNB
_________________________________________

LTE Link Budgets
Step 2
Determine the IRL
req
(but frst calculate Rx_Sens for both the UE and eNB)
The following expressions may be used to calculate the RX_SENS of the UE and eNB
RX
sens_eNB
rb
x 180KHz) + NF
eNB
+ SNR + IM
RX
sens_UE
rb
x 180KHz) + NF
UE
+ SNR + IM 3dB
RX
sens_eNB
____________________________________________
RX
sens_UE
_____________________________________________
The Answer above may now be used to fnd the IRLreq
IRL
req_eNB
= Rx_SENS
eNB
+ L
rx_eNB
- G
rx_eNB
IRL
req_UE
= Rx_SENS
UE
G
rx_UE
IRLreq_eNB ____________________________________________
IRLreq_UE ____________________________________________
Step 3
Determine System Gain
Sys Gain
UL
= EiRP
UE
- IRL
req_eNB
Sys Gain
DL
= EiRP
eNB
- IRL
req_UE
Sys Gain
UL
____________________________________________
Sys Gain
DL
____________________________________________
LTE Radio Planning
Exercise: MAPL
Based on the above results and the additional data stated below, determine the MAPL for
the uplink and downlink.
Shadow (fading) Margin _____ (90% area availability in Urban)
Building loss 10dB
Foliage loss 5dB
Body loss 0dB
Noise rise margin 4dB
Total Margin
MAPL
DL
= System Gain
DL
Margin
MAPL
UL
= System Gain
UL
Margin
MAPL
DL
__________________________
MAPL
UL
__________________________

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MODULE A

LTE RADIO PLANNING

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