#NSN-004 Titel [Alt+T]
High quality voice capacity - Software
features that double GSM capacity
Operators who serve a rising demand for voice capacity in megacities
are suffering from declining network quality. Typically, the only option is to
reduce the radio interference by lowering antenna heights and by adding
new BTS sites. A new, cheaper option is to add BTS site capacity through
software upgrades while maintaining consistent network quality.
Software pushes the limits of
radio interference
The amount of interference a
system can handle limits the
amount of calls per frequency it
can process. Better interference
cancellation increases call capacity.
Two recent software based radio
features, Dynamic Frequency
Channel Allocation (DFCA) and
Orthogonal Sub-Channel (OSC)
use new algorithms to push the
boundaries.
DFCA
Nokia Siemens Networks’ unique
DFCA application software feature
adds up to 100% BTS site capacity
in synchronized BTS clusters
limited by downlink interference.
Downlink interference means that
mobiles do not receive the BTS
signal clearly.
Radio channels are allocated
based on real-time interference
measurements. DFCA predicts the
carrier-to-interference ratio for
every channel candidate and then
selects the best channel.
Different channel modes can
tolerate different levels of
background noise, and channel
modes depend on handset
capabilities. Enhanced Full Rate
(EFR) is a sensitive channel mode
that requires a high carrier-to-
interference ratio: it needs a quiet
channel. Adaptive Multirate Full
Rate (AMR FR) is a robust mode
and accepts more background
noise. DFCA finds the best
channels for modes like EFR and
AMR hiding their different noise
sensitivity from users. Unlike
switching channels on television –
where volumes suddenly go up
and down – GSM users get a
higher uniform quality voice even
as channels are switched in the
background. More importantly,
network capacity can be doubled
while maintaining the network quality.
OSC
While DFCA adds site capacity, the
OSC application software feature
adds up to 100% voice capacity
in BTS cells experiencing traffic
channel blockage (more traffic
channels requested than available).
The idea behind OSC is to allocate
up to four end users into one GSM
radio timeslot; this is called the Dual
Half Rate concept (DHR). This is
achieved by adopting a quaternary
modulation scheme (QPSK) instead
of the classical modulation scheme
used in GSM (GMSK) in downlink,
from the BTS to the mobile. In
uplink direction, the BTS can
decode the signals of twice the
number of mobiles thanks to
“multiuser MIMO” functionality.
On the mobile side, for OSC to
work, Single Antenna Interference
Cancellation (SAIC) is required.
Most of the handsets currently
available in the market support
SAIC, thereby providing immediate
benefits from the OSC. The first
regions we analyzed showed that six
out of ten handsets supported SAIC.
Also, BTS sites with activated OSC
consume up to 50% less energy
and reduce CO2 emissions up to
50% - making GSM networks
greener.
World-firsts quickly gaining
ground
Nokia Siemens Networks launched
DFCA and OSC in 2010 to help
operators increase voice capacities
with software upgrades. Today, we
have 34 DFCA customers and real
life BTS site capacity can be more
than doubled with the DFCA
feature. The first pre-commercial
live network OSC implementations
have proven the Dual Half Rate
concept, and first indications of the
BTS site capacity increase is one
third when SAIC handset
penetration is around 60%.
Nokia Siemens Networks connects
2.3 billion of the world’s 4.1 bn
GSM subscribers in 325 GSM
networks and 229 EDGE networks.
Copyright © 2010 Nokia Siemens Networks.