Technology & Services

3G Tri-Sector Antenna Disguises Base Stations and Maintains Performance

a report by

S t e p h e n J F o t i and I a n G o v e
Technical Director, and Product Development Manager, Thales Antennas Ltd

Introduction

As 3G spectrum licences are issued at great expense to mobile network operators the publics acceptance of base-station towers is becoming less tolerant. This is due to the visual impact on the environment and the perceived safety hazard of being near a base-station tower and these factors have increased the difficulties encountered in obtaining installation permission from authorities for the erection of towers. The problem for network operators is compounded by the fact that the propagation losses are greater at 3G frequencies, making coverage achievement more difficult, especially with fewer base stations. This is further exacerbated by the fact that, as high data rate users come online (essential to generate increased revenue beyond voice service), the coverage for this increased capacity shrinks because of the increase in interference generated by each user (cell breathing in wideband code division multiple access, w-CDMA). The dilemma for the operators is that there are two primary solutions to the problem: 1. Keep the number of base stations to a minimum and employ larger antennas with higher gain in conjunction with narrower beam hex-sectorisation (doubling the number of antennas) or even smart antennas that offer carrier to interference ratio (C/I) improvements by increasing the gain in the direction of the desired signals and adaptively nullifying the interferers. This solution would require much larger base-station towers compared with standard base stations. 2. Increase the number of base stations in high trafficdensity urban areas. This solution could be made acceptable to the public if the visual impact of the base-station towers could be reduced and if their concerns over safety could be mitigated. Such a solution must not compromise performance, however. This article addresses the solution that employs more base stations and offers disguised antenna solutions to
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Figure 1: (a) 2G Spatial diversity configuration using a separated pair of vertically polarised antennas on each face of the large triangular masthead and (b) Thales Antennas 3G tri-sector disguised in a flagpole configuration (top 1.7m section) using three cross-polar antennas integrated into a 167mm diameter tube.

aid the acceptance of such a solution. It is important to note that disguised antennas are not recommended as a means of hiding a base station from the public. Knowing that it exists should become more acceptable if the base station has lower visual impact. Furthermore, this article discusses the fact that, contrary to common belief, being closer to the base station would reduce any perceived hazard risk, not increase it.
Antenna Evolution from 2G to 3G

Figure 1a shows a typical 2G base-station antenna system that employs spatial diversity to reduce the effects of multi-path fading. In Figure 1b, a Thales Antennas 3G tri-sector antenna using polarisation diversity and disguised in the top (1.7 metre) section of a flagpole shows the reduced visual impact compared with the 2G system. The streetworks configuration of the same antenna is shown in Figure 2. For spatial diversity to be effective, the two antennas in each sector must receive similar strength signals

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Figure 2: Thales Antennas 3G tri-sector, disguised in a streetworks installation

reduction in the overall size of the antenna system by typically replacing six vertically polarised antennas on a large head-frame with three closely spaced crosspolar antennas in a monopole configuration. Although polarisation diversity is equivalent to spatial diversity in urban areas it is still subject to certain fundamental characteristics of the total diversity system (antenna plus maximal ratio combiner receiver) being achieved. These include the following: As before, the two signals being processed must have similar amplitudes. For a cross-polar antenna, this means that the +45 and the -45 polarised radiation patterns must track (overlay) especially over the full 120 sector. The signals received by the two ports of the crosspolar antenna must remain uncorrelated. It should be noted that, in a high multi-path environment, the vertically polarised signals arriving at the two antennas in the spatial diversity system were uncorrelated because of the random nature of the reflections. In the polarisation diversity system, the + and -45 polarised signals arriving at the same location (i.e. the cross-polar antenna) are also uncorrelated by virtue of the random nature of the polarisation dependent reflections. However, the signal must not become correlated due to the characteristics of the cross-polar antenna because this would reduce achieved diversity gain. These characteristics include tracking as mentioned above and polarisation orthogonality over the full 120 sector (orthogonality may be defined as the polarisation mismatch loss between two, in general, elliptically polarised wave responses corresponding to the two ports of the crosspolar antenna in each direction in space). Ideally, it is desirable for the cross-polar antenna to maintain a pure +45 polarised response for its +45 port and a pure -45 polarised response for its -45 port. Unfortunately, owing to the vector nature of the phenomena, this can be mathematically shown to be impossible over all space. It is therefore the antenna designers job to try to maximise orthogonality as best as possible over the 120 sector. Figure 4 shows the relationship between the orthogonality of a cross-polar antenna and the reduction in diversity gain from the maximum achievable in a polarisation diversity system.
Design Evolution of Integrated Tri-sector Antenna

Figure 3: Spatial Diversity

h = antenna height from ground D = horizontal separation/spacing between the two antennas Source: K Fujimoto and J R James (1994), Mobile Antenna Systems Handbook, Artech House, Inc.

and, although the phases may vary considerably due to the multiple reflections, a maximal ratio combiner receiver in the base station will recover the power in these signals and provide the diversity gain plotted in Figure 3. Although the graph shows that the lower the ratio of the height of the antenna above ground level (h) to the horizontal spacing between the two antennas (D) of the higher the diversity gain, in practice, the optimum ratio is approximately 11. This is due to the fact that, for higher (Ds) (lower h/D), the assumption of equal amplitude at each antenna starts to be less true. In the 1990s, comparisons of spatial diversity and polarisation diversity systems determined that polarisation diversity offered similar diversity gains in urban areas. This then allowed considerable

The design of a stand-alone low-profile cross-polar sector antenna with high performance and low cost is challenging in itself; but when three of these are to be integrated into a small diameter tube radome to
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3G Tri-sector Antenna Disguises Base Stations and Maintains Performance

provide tri-sector coverage (azimuth beams at 0, 120 and 240), the design difficulties increase due to interactions as one would expect. Thales Antennas has expended a great deal of research and development work refining designoptimisation procedures that have included much computer-based electromagnetic simulation and experimental techniques. An overview description of the important antenna specification parameters that affect the overall polarisation diversity system performance and measured data is presented, demonstrating the outstanding performance achieved in Thales Antennas 3G tri-sector antenna products. As mentioned above, integrating three cross-polar sector antennas into a small diameter (167 millimetre (mm)) radome causes interactions that, even if the individual sector antennas exhibited good performance, the integrated assembly may not, unless special interaction suppression/compensation design techniques are established. The particular specification parameters that are typically affected are as follows: isolation between sectors (and between +/-45 polarised ports); individual sector azimuth beam width; front-to-back ratio (over rear +/-30 sector); tracking between the +45 and -45 polarisations over each 120 azimuth sector; and polarisation orthogonality between the +45 and -45 polarisations over each 120 azimuth sector. For the purpose of demonstration, the measured data for Thales Antennas 1.7 metre tri-sector antenna with 2, 4 and 6 down-tilt sectors will be used. The specifications for this product are provided in Table 1.
Isolation Between Sectors Figure 4: Relationship between polarisation orthogonality of a cross-polar antenna and the reduction in diversity gain in a polarisation diversity system

Table 1: Thales Antennas 1.7 metre 3G trisector antenna (with 2, 4 and 6 down-tilt sectors) Electrical Specifications Parameter Specification Frequency 1,900MHz2,170MHz Impedance 50 nominal Polarisation 45 nominal No. of Sectors 3 Electrical Down-tilts () 2, 4 & 6 +/-0.5 Voltage Standing Wave Ratio <1.4:1 Isolation (dB) >30dB Gain (dBi) 18.6 0.5 Horizontal 3dB Beam Width () 65 6 Upper Side-lobe Suppression (dB) >18 Null Fill (dB) Optional Front to Back Ratio (dB) >25 (rear +/-30 sector) Elevation Beam Width () 5.2 +/- 0.4 Azimuth Tracking (dB), over Horizontal 3dB Beam Width < 0.5 Azimuth Tracking (dB), over Horizontal 60 Beam Width <1 Orthogonality (dB), over Horizontal 3dB Beam Width >15

After special coupling suppression structures were added to the integrated assembly, excellent isolation performance has been achieved over the full Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) frequency band. A worst-case isolation of 32.5 decibels (dB) between ports for all combinations of sectors and polarisations has been achieved. A typical measured plot of isolation between the +45 polar ports of the 6 and 4 sectors is shown in Figure 5. Typical azimuth and elevation radiation patterns are shown in Figure 6. The desired front-to-back ratio for all the azimuth sector beams has been realised
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(see Figure 6a), as has the side-lobe suppression above the main beam for the elevation pattern shown in Figure 6b. It is also seen that the required beam width has been maintained for all azimuth beams. Excellent tracking between the +45 and 45 polar patterns can also be observed in Figure 6a. This performance is the result of the optimisation work summarised below.
Azimuth Tracking Solutions

As discussed in the previous section, polarisation diversity gain relies on the antenna achieving close

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Figure 5: Typical Measured Isolation Plot

This particular isolation plot was measured between the +45 polar 6 sector and the +45 polar 4 sector

tracking and good orthogonality between the +45 and -45 polar ports over each full 120 sector. Our experience shows that, for a well-designed individual cross-polar sector antenna, this is achieved with reasonable ease for small electrical down-tilts, but for larger down-tilts this degrades. In order to develop a technique to overcome this problem, we have studied the two-dimensional radiation contour plots obtained for conventional designs. Figure 7 illustrates the phenomena that was observed. Referring to the left side of Figure 7, a conventional design has been defined as one for which the individual cross-polar radiating elements in the vertical-line array of each sector of the antenna exhibits an element beam maxima at zero azimuth and elevation. It is the element pattern that determines the azimuth pattern characteristics of the antenna. (The elevation pattern is primarily controlled by the relative amplitude and phase weights within the signal distribution network, feeding the array elements and the element pattern has a lesser affect.) Conventional designs typically exhibit unequal E and H-Plane beam widths, and for a +/-45 cross-polar element, the blue and red elliptically shaped contours shown in Figure 7 (corresponding to the +45 and -45 polar patterns of the element) depict this with an exaggerated degree of inequality of the E and H-plane beam widths. It is easily observed that, if a conventional element were employed in a sector array for a zero degree electrical down-tilt, the tracking between the +45 and -45 polar patterns would then be very good; however, as the electrical down-tilt is increased, the tracking would degrade as shown.

Thales Antennas has developed a proprietary technique that facilitates the scanning of the element pattern downward for designs requiring substantial electrical down-tilts. The result of this is illustrated on the right side of Figure 7. Clearly, the tracking for this example of 6 down-tilt is excellent, as desired. The actual measured results for this comparison of the conventional and the improved design technique designs are shown in Figure 8. Before the technique was applied, the tracking was as poor as 2dB and, after, it is seen to reduce to 0.65dB maximum with most of the 120 sector remaining within 0.2dB.
Polarisation Orthogonality and Diversity Gain

It turns out that there is interdependence between polarisation tracking and polarisation orthogonality and after the application of the improved design technique; the resultant typical orthogonality plot of Figure 9 was measured. Examining this plot and referring to the graph in Figure 4, it can be observed that, within +/-45 angular sector, the orthogonality remains below -20dB, which yields virtually no reduction in the system polarisation diversity gain. The worst case over the full +/-60 sector is seen to exhibit a maximum orthogonality of -12.5dB, which relates to a maximum diversity gain reduction of less that 0.25dB.
Disguised Antenna Configurations

Owing to the low profile of the three individual crosspolar sector antennas within the integrated assembly of
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3G Tri-sector Antenna Disguises Base Stations and Maintains Performance

the tri-Sector antenna and the resultant small overall diameter of only 167mm, the antenna may be easily disguised in many ways. The only limitation is that whatever disguising treatment is employed, it must not adversely affect the performance of the antenna. Descriptions of the various configurations already considered include the following: Standard streetworks solution a photograph of this configuration is shown in Figure 2. The antenna is provided with an inline mounting section that slides into a steel pole. There is a short section between the actual antenna and the pole with provision for trapdoor access to connections of the feeders routed within the pole including earthing-kit connection points and messenger wire-strain relief connections. In addition to the inline flange mounting, alternative flange plates are available for interfacing to tower tops. Flagpole solutions a photograph of a typical configuration is shown in Figure 1b. A top-cap with a pulley and halyard is supplied for raising and lowering a flag. Variations have been supplied for

Figure 6: Typical Measured Azimuth and Elevation Patterns of Tri-sector Antenna

Note the excellent tracking between the +45 and -45 polar patterns

Figure 7: Contour Plots of Element Patterns

In conventional designs the element pattern is maximum at zero azimuth and elevation but, in the improved design, the element pattern maximum is steered to the desired elevation down-tilt angle, thus greatly improving tracking in the main beam of the full antenna array. Note: All elliptical contour plots shown represent the 3dB contours of the element patterns for either the +45 or -45 polarised ports.

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Figure 8: Demonstration of Measured Tracking Improvement

Before Conventional Design After Improved Design for -6 elevation

mounting on church towers, for example, with guy-wire installation kits for three or four-point fixing. It is important to note that the presence of a wet flag hanging directly in front of one of the sectors does affect the performance. We have tested this situation in our near-field anechoic chamber. The primary effects are a small reduction in gain (~0.5dB) and a slight narrowing of the azimuth beam width by a few degrees. The reason for this is that, since the dielectric constant of water is 77, then since the space in front of the sector is filled with a combination of air, water and the flag material, it is reasonable to assume an effective dielectric constant of >1 (air) in the region. This then acts as a lens that causes the slight beam narrowing. The small gain reduction is due to the dissipation in the water content. Clearly, in wet weather, the flag could be lowered to avoid any effect or the small performance degradation may be acceptable. For the case of church-tower installations that typically enjoy a higher elevation and a clear view, this is usually quite acceptable. Telegraph pole solution the streetworks solution has been modified by one of our customers by the addition of a glass-reinforced polyester simulated dark-timber grain to camouflage the antenna as a standard telegraph pole. We expect that this coating (depending upon the thickness) would degrade performance somewhat; but, although we were not asked to measure this, performance in the field was deemed acceptable. In-tree solution another customer considered taking the telegraph pole configuration one step further by adding spruce tree branches to the structure. Contrary to our recommendation, this was supplied to us for testing with steel stems within

the branches. As expected, this caused excessive scattering of the waves and severely degraded performance. The customer is now considering alternative non-metallic stems for the branches. We do not recommend this configuration even if the scattering can be overcome because of increased wind loading and water accumulation on the branches unless the area to be covered can tolerate low performance.
Safety Hazard Considerations

Even if the use of disguised tri-sector antennas can make the visual impact much more acceptable, the public perception of the hazard associated with being in the vicinity of a base-station antenna is far greater than any medical evidence of a biological effect. Clearly, the public needs to be educated on safety issues; but the following simple mitigating facts can be stated concerning the use of many tri-sector antennas in urban areas close to the public: Although the base-station antenna transmits more power than the mobile phone itself, this power rapidly deteriorates as one moves away from the base station, thus greatly reducing the power density of the radiation, even at distances only a few metres away. In contrast, although the transmit power of the mobile phone is much less than the base station, the power density at the head of the user when the phone is held against the head has not decayed significantly. This means that the power density at the head due to the mobile phone is higher than that due to the base station. Hence, anything that can be done to reduce the power density at the head due to the mobile phone will make it even
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3G Tri-sector Antenna Disguises Base Stations and Maintains Performance

safer to use. Hands-free kits help because the phone is moved away from the head, but the transmit power remains the same. Also, some development work being done on the mobile phone aerial by reducing its near fields and directing its radiation away from the head will also be helpful. When the mobile phone is at the maximum range of the base- station mast, it must radiate maximum power. The hand-held mobile phone typically radiates ~1 million times the power density at the head compared with the base-station mast when the mobile phone is at the edge of the base-station range (with no proven health hazard). This power level is controlled by the system and is automatically reduced, as the mobile phone gets closer to the base-station mast. Further to the above, if more base-station masts are distributed throughout an urban area these will require lower transmit power thus improving the safety of the public even further. Lastly, since the tri-sector antenna product employs a solid internal metal support structure, installation of the supplied small lightning rod on the top facilitates connection of a lightning current path to earth. Hence, safety from lightning strikes in the vicinity of the tri-sector antenna will also be improved.
Conclusions
Figure 9: Typical Measured Polarisation Orthogonality Plot for the Tri-Sector Antenna

Using the measured values on this plot and the graph shown in Figure 4, the system diversity gain reduction for all angles within the 120 sector can be determined.

In consideration of the above, we believe that the following conclusions have been demonstrated: For future increased capacity in urban areas, one solution is to employ many small-cell base stations with environmentally friendly tri-sector disguised antennas. These base stations should require lower transmit power because the required range is reduced. The power level of a mobile phone is controlled by the system and is automatically reduced, as the mobile phone gets closer to the base-station mast. Disguised antennas do not necessarily need to sacrifice performance compared with larger conventional antenna mast configurations. Thales Antennas low-profile printed patch technology, incorporating a proprietary technique to maintain excellent tracking and diversity gain performance for large electrical

down-tilts as demonstrated by measured results, enables Thales Antennas to provide a total solution to network operators and original equipment manufacturers, while possibly easing public concerns (provided the public is educated on the points listed above). Current tri-sector products from Thales Antennas offer a selection of fixed electrical down-tilt options for each sector. Antenna lengths of 1.3 metres and 1.7 metres are available with electrical down-tilts ranging from zero to -10. Future models may include a remote-control feature for electrical down-tilt. s
Contact Information Thales Antennas Ltd First Avenue, Millbrook Trading Estate Southampton SO15 0LJ United Kingdom Tel: (44) 23 8070 5705 Fax: (44) 23 8070 1122 e-Mail: sales@thalesantennas.com http://www.thalesantennas.com

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