Lecture 3: Cellular Systems

Frequency usage in GSM at

Europe
f
960 MHz 124

Downlink
935.2 MHz 1 200 kHz

20 MHz
915 MHz 124

1
Uplink
890.2 MHz
t

Bandwidth per channel is 200 kHz

Each user is assigned channel for an uplink and a downlink
So at most 124 simultaneous calls. Wow!
 Goals
• Low power transmitter system
• Increase network capacity
• Frequency reuse
• Build robust scaleable system
• Architecture to deal with different user
densities at different places
 Idea!
• Partition the region into smaller regions
called cells.
• Each cell gets at least one base station or
tower
• Users within a cell talks to the tower
• How can we divide the region into cells?
Cell structure
“Cell”ular Structure
 Properties of Cell structure
• Typical Cell sizes
– some cites few hundred meters
– country side few tens of kilometers
• Advantages of cell structures:
– more capacity due to frequency reusage
– less transmission power needed
– more robust, tolerate failures
– deals interference, transmission area locally
• Problems:
– fixed network needed for the base stations
– handover (changing from one cell to another) necessary
– interference with other cells
 Inside a cell
• Center-excited cell where the tower is
placed somewhat near the center with a
omni-directional antenna
• Edge-excited cell where the towers are
placed on three of the six corners with
sectored directional antennas.
 Channels Reuse
• Cell structure can reuse frequency only when
certain distance is maintained between cells that
use the same channels.
• Fixed frequency assignment:
– certain frequencies are assigned to a certain cell
– problem: different traffic load in different cells
• Dynamic frequency assignment:
– base station chooses frequencies depending on the
frequencies already used in neighbor cells
– more capacity in cells with more traffic
– assignment can also be based on interference
measurements
 Interference
• Co-channel interference
– Signals from cells that share a channel cause co-
channel interference
– Can’t remove it by increasing power.
• Adjacent channel interference
– Signals from adjacent cells cause this.
– Use filter to reduce it
• But, available channels decrease for incoming
calls.
Frequency reuse factor and Capacity
• Total available channels = S
• N “adjacent” cells (called a cluster) share
S channels
• System has M clusters
• Each cell gets k channels
S=kN
• Capacity of the system is C = MkN
• Frequency reuse factor is 1/ N
Geometry of Hexagonal Cell

30 degrees
 Distance calculation
• (u1,v1) and (u2,v2) are centers of two cells
• Distance D
• Radius is R for a cell.
b R cos 30
AB 2b 2 R cos 30
3
AB 2 R  3R 1.732 R
2

• Distance between adjacent cells is 1.732 R

 Co-channel Interference and
System Capacity
• Co-Channel Cells: Cells that use same frequency
• Co-Channel Interference: Interference between signals
from these cells. It cannot be combated by simply
increasing the carrier power of a transmitter.
• An increase in carrier transmit power increases the
interference to neighboring co-channel cells.
• To reduce co-channel interference, co-channel cells must
be physically separated by a minimum distance to provide
sufficient isolation due to propagation
• The co-channel interference ratio is independent of the
transmitted power and becomes a function of the radius of
the cell (R) and the distance between centers of the nearest
co-channel cells (D).
• By increasing the ratio of D/R, the spatial separation
between co-channel cells relative to the coverage distance
of a cell is increased.
• Thus, interference is reduced from improved isolation of
RF energy from the co-channel cell. The parameter Q,
called the co-channel reuse ratio, is related to the cluster
size
• A small value of Q provides larger capacity since the cluster
size N is small.

• A large value of Q improves the transmission quality, due to

a smaller level of co-channel interference.

• A trade-off must be made between these two objectives in

actual cellular design.
• Let i0 be the number of co-channel interfering cells. Then,
the signal-to interference ratio (S/I or SIR) for a mobile
receiver which monitors a forward channel can be
expressed as:

• where S is the desired signal power from the desired base

station and Ii is the interference power caused by the ith
interfering co-channel cell base station.
• The average received power Pr at a distance d from the
transmitting antenna is approximated by

• where P0 is the power received at a close-in reference point in

the far field region of the antenna at a small distance d0 from
the transmitting antenna and n is the path loss exponent.
• Let Di is the distance of the ith S/I for a mobile can be
interferer from the mobile, the approximated as
received power at a given
mobile due to the ith interfering
cell will be proportional to (Di)-n

• Let the transmit power of each (The path loss exponent typically
base station is equal and the path ranges between 2 and 4 in urban
loss exponent is the same cellular systems.)
throughout the coverage area.
First Tier
Interfering cells
Signal-to-Interference ratio for
the worst case
(Assuming n=4)
 Example
If a signal-to-interference ratio of 15 dB is required
for satisfactory forward channel performance of a
cellular system, what is the frequency reuse factor
and cluster size that should be used for maximum
capacity if the path loss exponent is (a) n = 4, (b) n
= 3?
•Assume that there are six co-channel cells in the
first tier, and all of them are at the same distance
from the mobile. Use suitable approximations.
 Solution

(a) n = 4
•First, let us consider a seven-cell reuse pattern.
Then the co-channel reuse ratio
D/R = 4.58
•The signal-to-noise interference ratio is given by
S/I = (1/6)×(4.58)4 = 75.3 =18.66 dB
•Since this is greater than the minimum required S/I,
N = 7 can be used.
 Cell reuse factor vs Mean S/I
Cell Q = D/R Voice Calls per Mean S/I
reuse Channels Cell per dB
factor N per cell Hour
4 3.5 99 2610 14.0

7 4.6 56 1376 18.7

12 6.0 33 739
23.3
Standard 7 cells sharing system (N = 7)

f5
f4 f6 f5
f1 f4 f6
f3 f7 f1
f2 f3 f7
f2
 Other Common Channel Sharing
f3 f3 f3
f2 f2 3 cell cluster
f2 f3 f7
f1 f1 f1
f5 f2
f3 f3
f4 f6 f5
f2 f2 f2
f1 f4
f1 f1
f3 f3 f3 f7 f1
f3
7 cell cluster
f2 f3
f6 f5 f2

f2 f2 f2
f1 f1 f1
f3 h2 f3 h2 f3
h1 h1
g2 h3 g2 h3 g2 3 cell cluster
g1 g1 g1
g3 g3 g3 with 3 sector antennas
 Handoff
• What happens when a user is mobile?
- Especially when crossing a cell boundary while
continuing the call.
• Handoff strategy is invoked.
– Find a new base station
– Process handoff
– higher priority over new call invocation
 Who and When
• Who initiates handoff
– Network directed ( tower determines )
– Terminal assisted ( user helps the tower)
– Terminal directed ( user determines )
• When to initiate handoff
– When the mean signal (over some predetermined
time) is below some threshold
 Types of Handoff
• Hard handoff
– Mobile user is passed between disjoint towers
that assign different frequency or adapt different
air-interface technology
• Soft handoff
– Mobile user communicates to two towers
simultaneously and the signal is treated as a
multipath signal
 High priority for Handoff
• Fraction of available channels is kept for
handoff purpose. These channels are called
guard channel.
 MAHO
• Stands for Mobile Assisted Handoff.
• Mobile Assisted Handoff (MAHO) is a technique in which the
mobile devices assist the (BSC) to transfer a call to another BSC.
• It is used in GSM cellular networks. In other systems, like AMPS,
a handoff is solely the job of the BSC and the Mobile Switching
Centre (MSC), without any participation of the mobile device.
• In GSM, when a mobile station is not using its time slots for
communicating, it measures signal quality to nearby BSC and
sends this information to the BSC. The BSC performs handoff
according to this information.
 Other problems with handoff
• High speed vehicles can cross many
“small” cells in a short time.
– Umbrella cell. Large cell with a powerful
tower to handle high speed vehicles
• Another problem is called cell dragging.
– Happens when the user moves slowly away
from the cell and the tower didn’t recognize it
due to strong average signal.
 Improving Capacity
• Sectoring
• Cell splitting
– Process of subdividing a congested cell into
smaller cells.
– Each has its own base station
– Smaller antenna and reduced transmission
power
– These smaller cells are called microcells
 AMPS Architecture
• Advanced Mobile Phone System

Land Lines

Mobile Land Mobile Public

station station Telephone Switched
Switching Telephone
Office Network
 Channel Allocation
• Each channel gets 30KHz.
• So a call takes two channels
– Forward channel (tower to mobile)
– Reverse channel (mobile to tower)
• Spectrum is divided into two bands
– A and B bands
– Two cellular operating licenses
– Each authorized to use 416 channels (expanded)
 Control Channels
• 42 channels (21 in each band) are called
control channels
– Carry only system information
– Receiver tunes to the control channel
– Use this channel to establish contact with tower
and determine what channel to use for
conversation.
 Power Control
• AMPS terminal can transmit at 6 or 8
different power levels
– Increase in steps of 4dB
– Message from Base Station control the power
level of active terminal
– Typically power remains the same during a
converstion
– DTX (Discontinuous Transmission) where the
power varies depending upon speech activity
 AMPS Identifiers
Notation Name Size Description
bits
MIN Mobile Identifier 34 Assigned by company to
subscriber
ESN Electronic serial no. 32 Assigned by manufacturer

SID System identifier 15 Assigned by regulators to a

geographical service area
SCM Station class mark 4 Capability of a mobile
station
SAT Supervisory audio * Assigned by operating
tone company to each BTS
DCC Digital color code 2 Same as above
 Adjacent Channel Interference
It is a common problem in mobile communication systems
that occurs when signals from one channel or frequency band
interfere with signals in an adjacent or nearby channel.

This interference can degrade the quality of communication

and reduce the system's overall performance.
Adjacent Channel Interference
 Adjacent Channel Interference
• Guard Bands: To prevent interference between adjacent
channels, guard bands are typically allocated between
channels.

• Guard bands are unused frequency ranges that act as a

buffer to minimize interference.

• They help ensure that signals in one channel do not spill

over into neighboring channels.
 Causes of ACI
• Transmitter Imperfections: Imperfections in the transmitters or
transceivers of mobile devices or base stations can lead to spurious
emissions that extend into adjacent channels.
• Non-Linear Effects: Non-linearities in amplifiers and other
components of the communication system can cause signal distortion
and spectral regrowth, leading to interference in adjacent channels.
• Frequency Drift: Variations in the frequency of a signal source, such
as a local oscillator, can cause the signal to drift into adjacent
channels.
• Receiver Selectivity: The selectivity of the receiver, or its ability to
reject signals from adjacent channels, plays a crucial role in preventing
ACI.
 Mitigation Techniques for ACI
• Better Filtering: Improved filtering at both the transmitter and receiver ends can
reduce unwanted emissions into adjacent channels.
• Frequency Planning: Careful frequency planning and allocation of channels
can help minimize interference by ensuring that neighboring cells use non-
overlapping frequency bands.
• Power Control: Dynamic power control can be used to adjust the transmit
power of mobile devices based on the proximity of neighboring cells, reducing
interference.
• Advanced Modulation Schemes: Using advanced modulation schemes and
error correction techniques can make the system more robust against
interference.
• Interference Cancellation: Some advanced receiver techniques can be
employed to cancel out unwanted adjacent channel interference.
• Regulatory Requirements: Regulatory bodies, such as
the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the
United States, or TRAI in India, impose limits on the
amount of power that can spill over into adjacent channels
to minimize interference and ensure spectrum efficiency.
• ACI is a significant concern in mobile communication
systems due to the reuse of frequency bands and the
potential for signal spillage between neighboring channels.
To address this issue, careful system design, improved
filtering, power control, and adherence to regulatory
requirements are essential.
 Improving Coverage and
Capacity in Cellular Systems
• As the demand for wireless service increases, the number
of channels assigned to a cell eventually becomes
insufficient to support the required number of users.

• At this point, cellular design techniques are needed to

provide more channels per unit coverage area.

• Techniques such as cell splitting, sectoring, and coverage

zone approaches are used in practice to expand the
capacity of cellular systems.
 Cell Splitting
• Cell splitting is the process of subdividing a congested cell
into smaller cells, each with its own base station and a
corresponding reduction in antenna height and transmitter
power.
• Cell splitting increases the capacity of a cellular system
since it increases the number of times that channels are
reused.
• By defining new cells which have a smaller radius than the
original cells and by installing these smaller cells (called
microcells) between the existing cells, capacity increases
due to the additional number of channels per unit area.
Base stations are placed at
corners of the cells, and the area
served by base station A is
assumed to be saturated with
traffic i.e., the blocking of base
station A exceeds acceptable
rates).

New base stations are therefore

needed in the region to increase
the number of channels in the
area and to reduce the area served
by the single base station.
• For the new cells to be smaller in size, the transmit power
of these cells must be reduced.
• The transmit power of the new cells with radius half that
of the original cells can be found by examining the
received power P at the new and old cell boundaries and
setting them equal to each other.
• This is necessary to ensure that the frequency reuse plan
for the new microcells behaves exactly as for the original
cells.

where Pt1 and Pt2 are the transmit powers of the larger and
smaller cell base stations, respectively
• Let, n=4
then, the received power in both the scenarios should be
equal;
Pt1 R  n Pt 2 ( R / 2)  n
Pt1 R  4 Pt 2 ( R / 2)  4
4
 2 4
Pt1 Pt 2   R Pt 216
 R
Pt1
Pt 2 
16
• This means, the transmit power must be reduced by 12dB
in order to fill in the original coverage area with
microcells, while maintaining the S/I requirement.
 Advantages of Cell Splitting
• Increased Capacity: By reducing the coverage area of
each cell, cell splitting effectively increases the network's
capacity.

• Improved Signal Quality: Smaller cells result in shorter

distances between mobile devices and base stations. This
reduced distance leads to better signal quality, reduced
interference, and improved call quality. Mobile devices
in smaller cells experience less path loss and lower signal
attenuation, which contributes to stronger and more
reliable connections.
 Advantages of Cell Splitting
• Load Balancing: In densely populated areas or during
peak usage times, the cellular network operator can
redirect some users to neighboring cells with lower traffic,
distributing the user load more evenly and preventing
network congestion.

• Efficient Spectrum Utilization: Cell splitting allows

operators to reuse the same frequency channels in different
cells. This reuse pattern, often referred to as "frequency
reuse," maximizes spectrum utilization and minimizes
interference between cells.
 Limitations of Cell Splitting
• Increased Infrastructure Costs: For the deployment of
additional base stations, antennas, and associated
infrastructure
• Handover Challenges: Smaller cells mean more frequent
handovers as mobile devices move through different cells
• Spectrum Fragmentation: Smaller cells reuse the same
frequency bands, which can result in increased interference
• Complexity of Interference Management: Managing and
mitigating interference through techniques like power
control and advanced modulation schemes can be
challenging.
 Limitations of Cell Splitting
• Increased Network Maintenance: With more cells to manage,
network maintenance and troubleshooting become more
complex and labor-intensive. Identifying and resolving issues
in a network with multiple cells can be time-consuming.
• Backhaul Capacity: Smaller cells generate more traffic that
needs to be transported to the core network through backhaul
links. Ensuring sufficient backhaul capacity can be a
challenge and may require costly upgrades.
• Scalability Challenges: There is a practical limit to how small
cells can become. As cells get smaller, the benefits of
splitting diminish.
 Types of Cell Splitting
There are different types of cell splitting, including:

•Soft Cell Splitting: This involves adjusting the transmit power

of existing base stations to reduce the cell size without adding
new hardware. It's a cost-effective method but may have
limitations.

•Hard Cell Splitting: In hard cell splitting, new base stations

and antennas are added to create smaller cells. This approach is
more expensive but provides more significant capacity
improvements.
 Example
Assume each base station uses 60 channels, regardless of cell
size. If each original cell has a radius of 1 km and each
microcell has a radius of 0.5 km, find the number of channels
contained in a 3 km by 3 km square centered around A under
the following conditions: (a) without the use of microcells;
(b) when the lettered microcells as shown in Figure 3.9 are
used; and (c) if all the original base stations are replaced by
microcells. Assume cells on the edge of the square to be
contained within the square.
(a) without the use of microcells:
•A cell radius of 1 km implies that the sides of the larger
hexagons are also 1 km in length.
•To cover the 3 x 3 km square centered around base station A,
we need to cover 1.5 km (1.5 times the hexagon radius) toward
the right, left, top, and bottom of base station A.
•This area contains five base stations.
•Since each base station has 60 channels, the total number of
channels without cell splitting is equal to:
5 × 60 = 300 channels.
(b) with the use of the microcells as shown:
•The base station A is surrounded by six microcells.
•Therefore, the total number of base stations in the square
area under consideration is equal to 5 + 6 = 11.
•Since each base station has 60 channels, the total number of
channels will be equal to 11 × 60 = 660 channels.
•This is a 2.2 times increase in capacity when compared to
case (a).
(c) if all the base stations are replaced by
microcells:
•From the Figure, we see there are a total of 5 + 12 = 17 base
stations in the square region under study. Since each base
station has 60 channels, the total number of channels will be
equal to 17 × 60 = 1020 channels.
•This is a 3.4 times increase in capacity compared to case (a).
•Theoretically, if all cells were microcells having half the
radius of the original cell, the capacity increase would
approach four.
 Sectoring
• Sectoring is a cellular network optimization technique
used to divide a cell's coverage area into smaller,
manageable sections or sectors.
• Each sector has its own dedicated set of antennas and
equipment, allowing for more efficient use of resources
and improved network performance.
• Sectoring is commonly employed in cellular network
design to enhance coverage, capacity, and quality of
service.
120o sectoring reduces
interference from co-
channel cells.

Out of the 6 co-channel

cells in the first tier, only
two of them interfere with
the center cell.

If omnidirectional antennas
were used at each base
station, all six co-channel
cells would interfere with
the center cell.
Motivation:
•The primary motivation behind sectoring is to increase the
overall capacity and efficiency of a cellular network.
•In a traditional omni-directional cell (a single cell with a
single antenna pointing in all directions), all users within the
cell share the available resources (frequency channels, power,
and bandwidth).
•As the number of users grows, this can lead to congestion
and reduced service quality.
Division of Coverage Area:
•Sectoring involves dividing a cell's coverage area into
multiple smaller sections, typically using directional
antennas.
•These sections are referred to as "sectors," and each sector is
assigned its own set of antennas, base station equipment, and
frequency channels.
•The number of sectors in a cell can vary, with common
configurations being three-sector and six-sector cells.
Directional Antennas:
•Directional antennas are used in each sector to focus the
radio signal in a specific direction.
•These antennas have a narrower beam-width compared to
omni-directional antennas, which allows for precise control
of where the signal is transmitted.
•Directional antennas help reduce interference between
neighboring sectors and cells.
 Benefits of Sectoring
• Increased Capacity: Reducing the number of users
sharing the same resources in each sector. This leads to
improved capacity and reduced congestion.
• Enhanced Coverage: Directional antennas can
concentrate signal strength in the desired direction,
providing better coverage where it's needed. This is
particularly useful in areas with varying terrain and
building structures.
• Effective Frequency Reuse: With directional antennas,
the same frequencies can be reused in neighboring sectors
without causing significant interference.
 Benefits of Sectoring
• Improved Quality of Service: By reducing congestion
and interference, sectoring improves the quality of voice
and data services for users.
• Enhanced Network Control: Network operators can
adjust the power levels and configurations of individual
sectors to optimize network performance and meet specific
demands.
 Challenges and Considerations
• Antenna Alignment: Proper alignment of directional
antennas is crucial to ensure optimal signal coverage and
minimize interference. Precise planning and adjustment
are required.
• Handover Management: Smoother handovers between
sectors are essential to maintain call continuity as users
move through different sectors. Seamless handover
algorithms must be implemented.
 Challenges and Considerations
• Increased Infrastructure Costs: Sectoring may require
additional base station equipment and antennas, leading to
higher infrastructure costs.
• Interference Management: While sectoring reduces
interference within the cell, careful interference
management is still necessary, especially in areas with
high user density.
 Repeaters for Range Extension
• Often a wireless operator needs to provide dedicated
coverage for hard-to-reach areas, such as within buildings,
or in valleys or tunnels.
• Radio retransmitters, known as repeaters, are often used to
provide such range extension capabilities.
• Repeaters are bidirectional in nature, and simultaneously
send signals to and receive signals from a serving base
station.
• Repeaters work using over-the-air signals, so they may be
installed anywhere and are capable of repeating an entire
cellular or PCS band.
Repeaters for Range Extension
 Repeaters for Range Extension
• Upon receiving signals from a base station forward link,
the repeater amplifies and reradiates the base station
signals to the specific coverage region.
• Repeaters can be easily thought of as bidirectional “bent
pipes” that retransmit what has been received.
• In practice, directional antennas or distributed antenna
systems (DAS) are connected to the inputs or outputs of
repeaters for localized spot coverage, particularly in
tunnels or buildings.
 Advantages
• By modifying the coverage of a serving cell, an operator is
able to dedicate a certain amount of the base station’s
traffic for the areas covered by the repeater.
• Repeaters are increasingly being used to provide coverage
into and around buildings, where coverage has been
traditionally weak.
• They enhance connectivity, reduce dead zones, and ensure
that users can access reliable wireless services across a
broader range.
 Limitation
• The received noise and interference is also reradiated by
the repeater on both the forward and reverse link, so care
must be taken to properly place the repeaters, and to adjust
the various forward and reverse link amplifier levels and
antenna patterns.
• Determining the proper location for repeaters and
distributed antenna systems within buildings requires
careful planning, particularly due to the fact that
interference levels are reradiated into the building from the
base station and from the interior of the building back to
the base station.
 Limitation
• Depending on the setup, repeaters can introduce some
latency (delay) in data transmission.
• The coverage area of a repeater depends on factors like its
power, antenna type, and environment. Coverage may
vary, so proper placement is critical.
• Repeater does not add capacity to the system.
 Microcell Zone Concept
• The increased number of handoffs required when sectoring
is employed results in an increased load on the switching
and control link elements of the mobile system.
• In a 7 cell reuse geometry, each of the three (or possibly
more) zone sites are connected to a single base station and
share the same radio equipment.
• Multiple zones and a single base station make up a cell. As
a mobile travels within the cell, it is served by the zone
with the strongest signal
 Microcell Zone Concept
• This approach is superior to sectoring since antennas are
placed at the outer edges of the cell, and any base station
channel may be assigned to any zone by the base station.
• As a mobile travels from one zone to another within the cell,
it retains the same channel. Thus, unlike in sectoring, a
handoff is not required at the MSC when the mobile travels
between zones within the cell.
• The base station simply switches the channel to a different
zone site. In this way, a given channel is active only in the
particular zone in which the mobile is traveling, and hence
the base station radiation is localized and interference is
reduced.
Microcell Zone
 Benefits of Microcell Zones
• The channels are distributed in time and space by all three zones
and are also reused in co-channel cells in the normal fashion.
• This technique is particularly useful along highways or along
urban traffic corridors.
• While the cell maintains a particular coverage radius, the co-
channel interference in the cellular system is reduced since a large
central base station is replaced by several lower powered
transmitters (zone transmitters) on the edges of the cell.
• Decreased co-channel interference improves the signal quality and
also leads to an increase in capacity without the degradation in
trunking efficiency caused by sectoring.
 Limitations
• Deployment Costs: The deployment and maintenance can
be costly due to the need for additional infrastructure,
backhaul connections, and power supply.
• Interference Management: Given the high density of
microcells within a zone, careful interference management
is required to avoid signal interference and degradation of
network performance.
• Coordination with Macrocells: Effective coordination
between microcells within the zone and neighboring
macrocells is essential to ensure seamless handovers as
users move between coverage areas.