Nokia Networks

Services for
Heterogeneous
Networks (HetNets)
Solving the
complexities of
HetNets to tackle
urban congestion
 YouTube is
My Twitter feed really bad on
I can make phone is stuck... this mobile! Email seems to work
I’m uploading calls but I can’t but I
a photo to get on can’t Skype
InstaGram... the web my friend
s–l–o–w–l–y

Services for Heterogeneous Networks 3

Why do operators need
Services for HetNets?

Mobile data continues to boom. By 2020 Nokia Networks expects networks to

be delivering 1 GB of personalized data per user per day and that will require a
thousand times more capacity than in 2010.

This traffic avalanche is driven by mass adoption of smartphones. As well as the

sheer numbers of devices, there is also a huge variety – some 70,000 different
models are listed in Nokia Networks’ Device Portfolio Analyzer. And with a vast
number of smartphones comes an explosion of apps, with over 2,000 new ones
being launched every day (Source: Venture Beat 2013).

The mobile device is a lifestyle essential for many people, who demand an
uninterrupted, high-quality, always-on experience. Furthermore, with 80% of traffic
being generated indoors it’s vital to ensure users get the best mobile broadband
experience throughout a building whether they are working in a tenth-floor office or
lunching on the ground floor.

How can networks cope? Macrocellular base stations are powerful but even they are
nearing maximum capacity. Meeting the challenge requires Heterogeneous Networks
or HetNets:

networks that use multiple layers (macro as well as smaller, lower powered base
stations) and multiple technologies (GSM/HSPA/LTE/Wi-Fi).

Yet, building efficient HetNets in complex cityscapes is no easy task. For example,
radio spectrum often needs to be shared and re-used by the different layers of the
HetNet. It takes experience and expertise to get it right. Nokia Services for HetNets
provides the support that operators need.

4 Services for Heterogeneous Networks

What does Nokia Services
for HetNets provide?
Nokia Networks helps operators manage
complexity and deploy the best performing
HetNets through a four-phase approach.

Geo-location
1. Consult User profiling Cost savings compared
Application profiling to a more traditional
Capacity analysis approach

4. Manage
LTE Wi-Fi WCDMA GSM
20%
Multi layer optimization
2. Plan

21%
SON automation 3-D geolocation Capacity and coverage
expansion (macro)

Small Cells Radio &

Wi-Fi DAS Pico Femto Macro Micro Backhaul planning

Turnkey solution More subscribers can

access the highest data
3. Deploy Remote management
and service delivery speeds
Clustered delivery of
standardized sites

Phase 1: Consult

Nokia Networks first analyzes the network’s current situation – how many calls and
how much data can the network carry? Where are the bottlenecks? Map-based
analysis identifies traffic hotspots that may become under-served by macro layer
base stations when traffic volumes rise. This typically achieves 50-100m accuracy,
which can be improved further by field measurements and matching with social
media traffic.

The use of 3-D geolocation-based HetNet planning for in-building solutions pinpoint
precise locations in high-rise buildings that have high demand or are suffering poor
service. This overcomes the limitations of conventional two-dimensional planning
that cannot distinguish between a building’s floors with different needs, such as a
corporate offices and residential spaces. This helps operators to deliver the best
mobile broadband experience indoors.

Nokia Multi-layer Optimization service also applies 3-D geolocation technology to

simulate network loading accurately and predict how device and app behavior may
impact network performance in the future. This allows operators to correct issues
before they arise and can lead to up to 20% fewer unnecessary handovers for a
better customer experience.

Services for Heterogeneous Networks 5

Profiling helps discover the type of mobile devices and applications in use, while
the analysis also looks at the customer experience in each location. Equally
important is where subscribers are located, how they behave and how they affect
network resources such as radio signaling. This analysis informs a selective approach
to network expansion – adding capacity only where it is most needed.

Phase 2: Plan

Planning initially looks at the macro layer, because upgrading existing infrastructure
is often the quickest and most effective way to increase capacity and coverage.

This can be done through modified settings, new software features or re-farming to
improve spectral efficiency. New hardware can also be used for example to add extra
sectors to the base station, creating smaller coverage areas with greater overall
capacity. Optimizing the macro layer before rolling out small cells makes sound
commercial sense.

Once the macro layer capacity has been maxed out, it’s time to add an additional
layer of low powered small cells such as Nokia Flexi Lite (HSPA) or Flexi Zone (LTE)
base stations. When sharing the same frequency band, small cells need to be located
carefully to avoid interference from macro base stations. Precise planning ensures
that extra capacity is placed close to subscribers. This gives better quality and steers
traffic efficiently from the macro layer onto the small cells.

Small cells are typically deployed on lamp-posts, bus shelters and other street
structures, which do not usually offer ready access to copper or fiber connections.
Backhaul – the transport connection between the small cell and the rest of the
network – is key to the performance and economic viability of small cells. Thorough
backhaul planning is therefore essential, and to deliver the best solutions it must
also be linked closely with the radio planning process.

Phase 3: Deploy

Once the best locations for small cells are planned, Nokia Networks can help the
operator get them up and running as quickly as possible. Telecom implementation
involves fixing a small cell base station to a lamp-post and plugging it into power
and backhaul. Nokia Networks makes this fast and efficient with a clustered approach
to site activities in which multiple small cells are deployed at the same time.
Standardized processes and installation accessories matched to the site location
further improve efficiency, reducing deployment time from days to hours.

Alternatively, an operator can ask Nokia Networks to take responsibility for providing
complete, ready-to-go network sites, handling all negotiations with local authorities
and site owners. This turnkey approach further speeds up small cell deployment and
minimizes risks.

Phase 4: Manage

Once the small cells are deployed, Nokia Networks ensures that all layers work
well together. This includes boosting quality, data speeds and ensuring successful
handovers between calls and connections as subscribers move around. Traffic
balancing shares voice calls and data volumes efficiently between the HetNet’s
layers, making the best use of the available resources and boosting the customer
experience.

6 Services for Heterogeneous Networks

Nokia Networks expertise
achieves the best performance
An example of what Nokia Service for HetNets can
achieve was demonstrated for a network operator in a
US city. The operator initially sought to provide more
capacity by locating small cells based on the city grid.
However, this did not take account of actual traffic
patterns and would not efficiently meet demand.

Before (based on grid) After (close to demand) Nokia Services for HetNets devised
a network deployment that took
account of the city’s hotspots,
leading to 17% fewer small cells and
a 20% cost saving, while 21% more
subscribers were able to access the
highest data speeds.

64QAM 16QAM
16QAM 37% 29%
43% 64QAM
QPSK 58%
QPSK 13%
20%

Choose Nokia Services for HetNets

For operators struggling to cope with rapidly growing traffic in their network, Nokia
Networks can help solving the complexities of HetNets to tackle urban congestion.
With its Services for HetNets, Nokia Networks offers the best analysis, forecast
and capacity expansion plan for both radio and backhaul. This is complemented by
selection of the best small cell sites that will avoid interference with the macro
layer, all backed by a comprehensive range of fully integrated solutions for macro,
in-building, Wi-Fi and small cell sites.

Services for Heterogeneous Networks 7

Nokia Solutions and Networks Oy
P.O. Box 1
FI-02022
Finland

Visiting address:
Karaportti 3
ESPOO
Finland

Product code C401-01170-B-201502-1-EN

© Nokia Solutions and Networks 2015

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Nokia Networks is the world’s specialist in mobile broadband. From the first ever call on GSM, to the first call on LTE, we operate at the forefront of each generation of
mobile technology. Our global experts invent the new capabilities our customers need in their networks. We provide the world’s most efficient mobile networks, the
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