Abis Network Design

This application pack is useful for network design

validation and troubleshooting quality and interference
problems. It contains a number of reports to help
pinpoint the severity and location of poor quality
measurements.

The problem
Extensive drive-tests are typically used to check the
validity and quality of a GSM network design or
frequency plan. The advantage here lies in indicating
the precise geographical location of problems when
they occur. However, the main disadvantage of drivetests is that they give a snapshot view of the network
at a very specific point in time (while the network may
not be operating at its normal usage level), and give
no indication of the reproducibility of a problem.
Suppose the drive test shows an area with very low
coverage: is this problem significant in terms of traffic
affected, or do only one or two customers encounter
this problem? If a quality problem has been detected
while drive-testing a cell, is it because the wrong cell
was selected due to particular conditions during the
drive-test (temporary congestion, for example) or do
all customers experience similar problems in the cell?
Moreover, drive-test data only provides detailed
information on the downlink. Uplink data is limited to
some information as sent by the mobile, but no
information is available to indicate how the base
station receives this information.

The solution
It would not be a wise engineering practice to start
adjusting cell and HO parameters based on a specific
drive test. It is vital that a specific problem be
reproducible and statistically representative before
any network action is taken. Adjusting network
parameters on a sporadic problem, while bringing a
possible local solution, may degrade the overall
quality of the network. Only a more global approach
can help the engineer validate a problem encountered
during a drive-test and identify its cause.

Abis is the ideal data source for level, quality and

interference analysis. It provides a global view of
the cells under investigation, while providing
detailed reports on all mobiles (calls) handled by
these cells during the recording period. Moreover,
Abis traces provide synchronized information
both on the uplink and downlink.
By carefully selecting a recording timeincluding the
network-critical periodsengineers can have at their
disposal a set of a data from which statistically
representative problems can be extracted and
analyzed.

Quality Distribution
Counts of uplink and downlink quality, and graphs of
downlink quality vs. downlink level and uplink quality
vs. uplink level.
The quality distribution histogram gives an overview
of the cell behavior and helps validate frequency
planning. A sane cell should show a distribution of
quality samples smoothly decreasing while quality
decreases.
The bubble charts showing quality against receive
level can help identify interference problems.
Typically, interference will appear as a peak of bad
quality with a relatively high level (above 90 or 85
dBm). A sane cell would normally show good quality
until the level becomes quite low (depending on the
environment and network design, but usually 100
dBm), then rapidly yet regularly degrading quality at
lower levels.

Poor Quality Contributors

Poor qualities for uplink and downlink plotted against
corresponding level.
The bubble charts in this report compare the level and
timing advance distribution of poor quality samples
against the distribution for all measurement samples.
This indicates at what distance and level poor quality
is occurring, and the proportion this represents of the
traffic at that point.

Level and Interference

Interference vs. downlink Rx level followed by
interference definition chart..
This chart shows the distribution of level
measurements. It compares overall RxLev distribution
with the distribution of interfered measurements.
Interference is implied by a combination of RxQuality
and RxLevel, defined below the chart.
The Rxlev distribution plot can also be used to
validate power control settings. The aim of power
control is to maintain the RxLev of the link in a
relatively small window where quality criteria can be
easily met. Its advantage is to save battery life on the
mobile side, since only the minimum necessary power
will be used. To a lesser extend, it can help reduce
interference, although rendering it more bursty.
If power control is working properly, the RxLev
distribution will show a clear statistical concentration
of data samples between the trigger values defined
for the power control window. Moreover, if the power
control parameters have been chosen correctly, the
corresponding quality in the power control level
window should be very good.

Timing Advance and Interference

Interference vs. timing advance followed by
interference definition chart.
This chart shows the distribution of timing
measurements. It compares overall timing advance
distribution with the distribution of interfered
measurements.
Interference is implied by a combination of RxQuality
and RxLevel, defined below the chart. It is useful for
identifying the location of island coverage or coverage
holes, and for assessing the quality of service in those
locations.
A space distribution plot of RxLev samples (RxLev vs.
TA) is usually a safe source of information when
adjusting antenna tilts. Actually, excessive tilt typically
shows up on such a plot as a peak of higher RxLev
clearly separated from the main set of data. This is
due to the secondary lobe of the antenna radiating
below the horizon after the antenna has been tilted.

When adjusting antenna tilts, it is a good idea to

record a trace of the cell before the adjustment to
serve as a reference. All islands are not necessarily
related to secondary lobe problems. Other elements,
such as repeaters or even terrain configuration, can
lead to similar results. But indications of terrain- or
repeater-related coverage islands remain fixed,
whereas the secondary lobe problems significantly
change location when the tilt is adjusted.