planning and design considerations for a 4g lte network presented by: engineering associates, inc....

Planning and Design Considerations For a 4G LTE Network

Presented by:Engineering Associates, Inc.Professional Engineering Firm

2012 ACE/RUSSchool and Symposium

Previous Speakers with Wireless Topics

• Leo Zoucha• Connecting in the Wireless Networks (Backhaul)

• Don Swedenburg• Will LTE be the Death of the Landline?

• Gordon Caverly, Ben Pidek• Wireless Video in the Home

2 - CONFIDENTIAL

Overview

• Funding Options• Design Criteria• Technology Considerations• Frequency Bands• Core Design• RF Design - RAN• Backhaul Considerations• Bandwidth Efficiency & Traffic Planning• Investment/Pricing Models

3 - CONFIDENTIAL

Funding Options

• Connect America Fund• Universal Service Fund transitioning to Connect America

Fund• Objective is to Accelerate Broadband Build-Out in Rural

Areas• Additional $300M of CAF Funding Available to Incumbent

Providers that Commit to FCC Broadband Requirements for Unserved Areas

• 4 MB/s Downstream; 1 Mb/s Upstream

• Remaining Areas to Receive CAF Money Based Upon Broadband Cost Models and Competitive Bidding

4 – CONFIDENTIAL

Funding Options

• RUS Broadband Loans• Provides Funds to Provide Broadband Service in Eligible

Rural Areas• Includes New Construction, Improvements, and Acquisition• No More than One Loan Awarded per Service Area

• Broadband Grants• Funding is Ongoing but Application Process has Ended• Additional Funding Would Require New Legislation

5 – CONFIDENTIAL

Design Criteria

• Which Spectrum Licenses are Available?• Is Coverage Area Urban or Rural?• Are Existing Towers Available or Will Tower Construction

be Required?• Applications - Fixed Solution vs. Mobility?• CPE – Outdoor, USB Desktop, Dongle, or Handsets• What Backhaul Options are Available?• Product Availability and Number of Vendor Options?• Ensure Design Reflects Goals for Geographic Coverage

and Broadband Speed?

6 – CONFIDENTIAL

700 MHz Band Plan

700 MHz – Lower Band 48 MHz; Upper Band 60 MHzMost Blocks are 6 MHz, Allowing 5 MHz LTE Carrier

35% Build-Out Required by June 13, 2013 for A,B, & E40% Build-Out Required by June 13, 2013 for Upper C

7 - CONFIDENTIAL

700 MHz Details

• Block A – 12 MHz Lower Band Paired

• Block B – 12 MHz Lower Band Paired

• Block C – 12 MHz Lower Band Paired and 22 MHz Upper Band Paired

• Block D – 6 MHz Lower Band Unpaired (Video) and 10 MHz Upper Band Paired (Public Safety)

• Block E – 6 MHz Lower Band Unpaired (Video)

8 – CONFIDENTIAL

700 MHz Spectrum Ownership

• Verizon – 22 MHz Upper C Block Nationwide (except Alaska and U.S. Territories) and Scattered Lower A and B Blocks

• AT&T – Scattered Lower B and C Blocks (Mostly Metro Areas); Purchasing Unpaired Lower D Block Nationwide and

Unpaired E Block in some Major Markets from QualComm (for LTE Use)

• Sprint – No 700 MHz

• T-Mobile – No 700 MHz

• Regional Carriers – Lower B and C Blocks (Mostly Rural)

• Public Safety – 10 MHz Upper D Block9 – CONFIDENTIAL

AWS Band Plan

AWS – Advanced Wireless Service; 1.7 GHz; 2.1 GHzBlocks are 6 or 10 MHz, Allowing 5 or 10 MHz LTE Carrier

Substantial Service Build-Out Deadline is 2021

10 - CONFIDENTIAL

PCS Band Plan

PCS – Broadband Radio Service; 1.9 GHz

11 – CONFIDENTIAL

BRS/EBS Band Plan

BRS – Broadband Radio Service; 2.6 GHz

• EBS (Educational Broadband Service) was not licensed for commercial services, although its use has been postulated for LTE in some markets.

• Due to current Band 7 ecosystem using FDD, BRS is of limited use until Band 41 TDD ecosystem becomes reality.

12 – CONFIDENTIAL

RF Design - RAN

• Using RF Analysis Tool, Determine Predicted Coverage Levels and Aggregate Speeds Based Upon Technology and CPE Selection

• Utilize Various GIS Data To Evaluate Possible Tower Sites• Select First Choice Tower Locations in Populated Areas• Select Additional Tower Locations to Fill in Rural Areas• Identify Areas Where New Towers May Be Required• Generate Site Search Rings When Necessary• Analyze Results and Add or Delete Sites as Required

13 – CONFIDENTIAL

Service Area Of Interest

• Network Planning / Design Tools-GIS Software• E911 Location Data• Highway/Street Traffic Count Vector Data• Minimum UL/DL Throughput Requirements• Network Resource Locations

Propagation Tools

• Propagation Software Tools• Integrated With GIS Software• Target to Customer Design• Backhaul (Microwave) Feasibility Tool• Operations Reports to Assist with Customer

Service

Shaded Relief Showing Topography of Area

E911 Points for Potential Locations

Evaluate Network Objective• Percentage of Projected Coverage Area• Coverage of Major Thoroughfares• Ability For Sites To Be Contiguous• Fixed Locations and/or Mobile Devices

Network Parameters• Technology Type• Frequency Band(s)• Network Backbone/Backhaul

18

Existing Cellular Coverage in Planned Service Area

Coverage Objective for Planned Service Area

Establish Search Area Ring (SAR)

Search Area Ring (SAR)

Description: Identify feasible sites for providing necessary coverage as to existing network.

The SAR includes the following activities and deliverables: • Importing target coverage zones• Develop alternate search area ringsBase map indicating:• RSA Boundaries• E911 addresses (When Necessary)• Existing Coverage• Contours• Topography• Roadways• Target and Propagation overlay demonstrating RF coverage as related to

target zones for specified frequencies.

21

Review Co-Location Possibilities

22

Establish Site Location

Projected Coverage in Planned Service Area

• PERCENTAGE OF PROJECTED COVERAGE AREA• COVERAGE OF MAJOR THOROUGHFARES

LTE Coverage Maps

LTE Downlink (USB Dongle) 2Mbps to 8MbpsFour Towers with Five Mile Radius; Roughly 16 Miles x 16 Miles

24 – CONFIDENTIAL

LTE Coverage Maps

LTE Uplink (USB Dongle) 2Mbps to 6MbpsFour Towers with Five Mile Radius; Roughly 16 Miles x 16 Miles

25 – CONFIDENTIAL

Backhaul

• LTE demands high-capacity backhaul• Leased T1’s will prove inadequate• Viable choices are fiber or microwave

26 – CONFIDENTIAL

Core Design

• Design Core Network Based Upon Projected Number of Subscribers and Bandwidth Requirements

• Is VoIP Required or Data Only?• Ancillary/OEM Solutions Needed

• Billing• Network Management, • Subscriber Provisioning• Regulatory (E911, CALEA)

• Identify Existing Equipment Required to Interface• Evaluate Building Feasibility Related to Redundant

Backhaul Facilities, Security, and Back-up Power

27 – CONFIDENTIAL

LTE Evolved Packet Core

28 – CONFIDENTIAL

Technology Considerations

• 700 MHz is Fundamental Design Based Upon Coverage; However, Bandwidth is Limited

• Reserve 700 MHz for Rural Areas that Require More Reach but Serves Fewer Subscribers

• Use AWS, BRS, or PCS for Capacity in Populated Areas with Shorter Reach

29 – CONFIDENTIAL

LTE vs. WiMax

• Although LTE and WiMAX are Similar in Technology, Vendors have Moved Development Emphasis to LTE

• WiMAX has Less Vendor Competition Today

• LTE will have Longer Product Life and Future Prices are More Likely to Decrease

30 – CONFIDENTIAL

Technology Comparison

700 MHz WiMAX LTE

Downlink OFDMA OFDMA

Uplink OFDMA SC-FDMA

MIMO Supported Today 2x2 4x2 downlink, 1x4 uplink

Cell edge interference control

Soft frequency re-use

Inter-cell Interference control

Mobility Hard handoff Full mobility

Microcells available Yes Yes

VoIP Support w/ optional core node w/ optional IMS core

31 – CONFIDENTIAL

Technology Comparison

700 MHz WiMAX LTE

Router CPE Yes Yes

USB Dongle CPE Yes Yes

Outdoor CPE Yes Yes

Smart Phones No Future

Built-in Laptop Support Not at 700 MHz Future

Vendors at 700 MHz One Five or More

Industry Group IEEE/WiMax Forum 3GPP

32 – CONFIDENTIAL

Bandwidth Efficiency

700 MHz LTE

Available Licensed Bandwidth (MHz) 6 + 6

Usable Bandwidth (MHz) 5 + 5

Spectral efficiency, downlink (bps/Hz) 1.67

Spectral efficiency, uplink (bps/Hz) 0.89

Average Throughput per 3-sector site, downlink (Mbps) 25.05

Average Throughput per 3-sector site, uplink (Mbps) 13.35

Loading Factor, downlink 70%

Loading Factor, uplink 60%

33 – CONFIDENTIAL

* Performance data is averaged from various vendors’ claims as of 2011.

Subscriber Traffic Model

700 MHz LTETraffic per Subscriber per Month (GB) 30

Downlink Traffic (%) 70%

Uplink Traffic (%) 30%

Hours in the Busy Period per Day 4

Percent of Daily Traffic Carried in Busy Period 25%

Downlink Busy Hour Traffic per Subscriber 97 kbps

Uplink Busy Hour Traffic per Subscriber 42 kbps

Subscribers Supported per Sector 60

Subscribers Supported per Base Station (3 sectors) 180

34 – CONFIDENTIAL

* Performance data is averaged from various vendors’ claims as of 2011.

Estimate of Investment

700 MHz LTE

Access Network

3-Sector Single-5MHz-Carrier Macro Cell $55,000

Investment per Subscriber $306

Core Network

Broadband Data-Only Core Network $3,000,000

Incremental for VoIP Core Network $1,400,000

CPE Terminals

Desktop/Fixed CPE $395

USB Dongle $200

35 – CONFIDENTIAL

* Pricing data is averaged from various vendors’ proposals as of 2011.

Pricing - Example Network #1

700 MHz LTE

Base Stations 50

Subscribers Supported 9000

Total Investment $9,827,500

Investment per Subscriber $1,092

36 – CONFIDENTIAL



700 MHz LTE

Base Stations 100

Subscribers Supported 18,000



37 – CONFIDENTIAL



700 MHz LTE

Base Stations 200

Subscribers Supported 36,000



38 – CONFIDENTIAL


Summary - Start to Finish Process

• Feasibility Study and Business Case• Preliminary RF/Backhaul Network Design• RFP Preparation, Proposal Analysis, and Contract

Negotiation• Site Acquisition and Lease Negotiations• Permitting / Legal• Detailed RF/Backhaul Network Design• Project Management and Asset Management• Construction Management• As Built Drawings

39 – CONFIDENTIAL

Thank You

Engineering Associates, Inc.1220 Old Alpharetta Road, Suite 390

Alpharetta, GA 30005678-455-7266

engineeringassociates.com

40 – CONFIDENTIAL

planning and design considerations for a 4g lte network presented by: engineering associates, inc....

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