MOBILE NETWORKBENCHMARKING ANDTESTING DRIVE TESTING

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MOBILE NETWORKBENCHMARKING AND TESTINGDRIVE TESTING

Whether you are a networkoperator, a service provider, aninfrastructure provider or aregulatory agency, benchmarking isbecoming increasingly important.

The benefits of benchmarking

For operators, mobile networkbenchmarking enables insight intothe subscribers’ experience and iscritical for ensuring coverage andquality of service (QoS). In a worldwhere mobile subscribers have littletolerance for failed/dropped callsand the inability to access data andapplications, operators must knowhow well their QoS and subscribers’quality of experience (QoE)compares with the competition andchanges over time. Service providers and operatorsalike need benchmarkingmeasurements to ensure that theymeet certain key performanceindicators (KPIs) so that they canprove to subscribers and enterprisecustomers that they deliver the QoSthat these customers pay for, andthat their QoS is superior. Infrastructure providers needbenchmarking measurements toensure that they comply with theirservice level agreementswith network operators. Regulatory agencies needbenchmarking to ensure that thelicensed operators in theirnations deliver the requiredminimum level of service toconsumers.

Impartial benchmarking

Ramboll offers impartialbenchmarking using equipmentfrom Ascom, capable of GSM,

WCDMA and LTE of up to 4 speechand 4 IP channels in parallel and ascanner. Other network types and/or measurement types can beaccommodated if needed. The measurement channels can beused with different operators(benchmarking) or on the sameoperator performing different tasks(functional testing). SpeechQuality Testing is with MOS(P.OLQA.) evaluation, and IP datatesting is with throughputmeasurements.

Drive testing

The vehicle that Ramboll uses fordrive tests has been speciallydeveloped for this purpose. It isequipped with extra power supplyto maintain sufficient and stabilepower to the test equipment andwith fixed antennas in the roof tosecure proper RF-conditions. Boththe equipment and the antennas arefrequently checked, and the entiresetup meets the highestinternational standards. Ramboll's approach to drive tests isfirst of all to agree on the pre-planned driving route andmeasurement setup. During thedrive tests, measurement results aremonitored for validity by anelectronic engineer with morethan 10 years of experience in drivetesting/test equipment. Thisensures that faulty measurementsare avoided. As an option, ourengineer may report on any majornetwork incidents detected duringdrive tests in order to maketroubleshooting faster and easier.

The drive test data can be deliveredwith or without post-processingand/or reporting.

On locations where drive testing isnot possible, such as indoor, we useportable equipment todocument the actual coverage/functionality.

Technical description

• Dedicated measurement vehicle• Dedicated drive test engineer• Fixed roof-mounted antennas• 4 mobile to mobile speech with MOS• 4 IP data with throughput• Frequency scanning• GSM (2G), WCDMA (3G), LTE (4G)