GSM Frequency Planning 101

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Prepared by Tarik Ouazzani

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 Contents
I) Introduction : BCCH vs. TCH
II) Frequency Planning
• Why do we use frequency planning?
• Channel Numbering
• Reuse Factor
• C/I
II) BSIC Planning
• Why do we use frequency planning?
• BSIC Numbering
III) Neighbors List
IV) Frequency Hopping

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 BCCH vs. TCH

• Each BTS Sector Need one BCCH

• The first Radio is the BCCH radio even if only
one Time Slot is the BCCH
• The Second, Third…Radio are the TCH radios
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
B S T T T T T T BCCH Radio

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
One Sector T T T T T T T T TCH1 Radio

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
T T T T T T T T TCH2 Radio
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 Part I
Frequency Planning

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 Why do we use frequency planning?
• Efficient use of the frequency spectrum
• Minimize interference
• Improvement in voice quality

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 Uplink Vs Downlink

UP
LIN
K
DO
WN
LI N
K

Radio tower Cell phone 6

450 (Tetra): Being Introduced PCS

GSM 850 : 2*25 MHz Bands, 20 MHz Duplex spacing, 125 Carriers.
GSM 900 : 2*25 MHz Bands, 45 MHz Duplex spacing, 125 Carriers.
DCS 1800 : 2*75 MHz Bands, 95 MHz Duplex spacing, 375 Carriers.
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PCS 1900 : 2*60 MHz Bands, 80 MHz Duplex spacing, 300 Carriers.
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 Channel Numbering
GSM 900
Fu (n) = 890 MHz + (0.2 MHz) x n 1  n  124
Fd (n) = Fu (n) + 45 MHz

GSM 1800
Fu (n) = 1,710 MHz + (0.2 MHz) x (n-511) 512  n  885
Fd (n) = Fu (n) + 95 MHz

GSM 1900
Fu (n) = 1,850.2 MHz + (0.2 MHz) x (n-512) 512  n  810
Fd (n) = Fu (n) + 80 MHz

Fu = uplink frequency
Fd = downlink frequency
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 Channel Numbering
Block E: 1885-1890 and 1965-1970
The Channel Numbers : 586 to 611.
Fl(N)=1850.2+0.2*(N-512)
N=[(Fl(N)-1850.2)/0.2]+512
N=[(1885-1850.2)/0.2]+512=687
N=[(1889.8-1850.2)/0.2]+512=711

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 Carrier
• Need to know which carriers are available in the project
• Put the frequency range that the FCC allow

Band Channel Number

A 512-586
D 587-611

B 612-686

E 687-711

F 712-736

G 737-811 11
 Reuse Factor
• Low power transmitters to allow frequency reuse at much smaller
distances.
• Maximizing the number of times each channel may be reused in a
given geographic area is the key to an efficient cellular system design.
q= reuse factor
R= center-to-vertex distance
D= Co-channel separation A
q= D/R j=2
R

D= i  j  ij i=3
2 2

i= along any chain of hexagons

o
j= counter clockwise turn 60
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 Reuse Factor (cont’d )
• Frequency Reuse factor = 3x9

f2 f2 f2
f1 f1 f1
f3 f3 f3
f2 f2 f2
f1 f1 f1
f3 f3 f3
f2 f2
f1 f1
f3 f3

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 Reuse Factor ( cont’d)
• Frequency Reuse Factor = 4x12

f3 f3 f3
f1 f1 f1 f4
f4 f4 f2
f2 f2 f3 f3
f3 f1 f1
f1 f4 f4 f4
f2 f2 f2

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 Reuse Factor( cont’d )
• Frequency Reuse Factor = 7x21

f2 f3 f4
f3 f4 f5 f6
f5 f6 f7 f1
f6 f7 f1 f2 f3
f1 f2 f3 f4
f2 f3 f4 f5 f6
f4 f5 f6 f7 f1
f5 f6 f7 f1 f2
f7 f1 f2 f3 f4
f1 f2 f3 f4 f5
f3 f4 f5 f6 f7
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 C/I
• Co-channel Interference
Power(dBm)

9 dB

Desired signal

Interfering signal

F (MHz)
fo

• Between the cells having the same BCCH

• More than 9 dB difference doesn't effect

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 C/I (cont’d)
• Co-channel Interference example

[-79, -80,……]
C
-70 dBm
515  9dB
I
A2 CI 9
515
C= -70 dBm
A1
I  79 dBm

• Lower or equal than –79 dBm is acceptable

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 C/I (cont’d)
• Adjacent Interference
Power( dBm)

9 dB

fo Fo+200 KHz F ( MHz)

(for 1st Adjacent Interference)

• Between the adjacent cells

• Interfering signal can have signal level difference up to 9 dB
for the 1st Adjacent channel.
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 C/I (cont’d)
• 1st Adjacent Interference example

C
-70 dBm
[-61, -62,……]
 9dB (for 1st Adjacent Interference)
I
516
C  I  9
515 A2
C= -70 dBm
A1
I  61 dBm

• Lower or equal than –61 dBm is acceptable

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 C/I (cont’d)

Relation Name Spacing ( kHz) Protection (dB )

Co-channel C/I 0 9

1 st adjacent channel C/A1 200 -9

2 nd adjacent channel C/A2 400 -41

3 rd adjacent channel C/A3 600 -49

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 Block E Channels
• Calculation for a BTS Configuration Of 2/2/2:
• Reuse Factor N=4
• Block E has 5 MHz = 25 Channels. (Channel 687 to 711).
• 687 used as a Guard Band.

A1 B1 C1 D1 A2 B2 C2 D2 A3 B3 C3 D3
BCCH 688 689 690 691 692 693 694 695 696 697 698 699

A1 B1 C1 D1 A2 B2 C2 D2 A3 B3 C3 D3
TCH 700 701 702 703 704 705 706 707 708 709 710 711

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 Pattern N=4
• BCCH planning first, Then we match it with the TCH
Planning.

C1
690

f3 A1
C3
C2
B1
698 689
688 694
f1 f2 A3 A2 B3
B2 696 697
692 693
D3 D1
f4 699 691

D2
694

A1 B1 C1 D1 A2 B2 C2 D2 A3 B3 C3 D3
BCCH 688 689 690 691 692 693 694 695 696 697 698 699

A1 B1 C1 D1 A2 B2 C2 D2 A3 B3 C3 D3
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TCH 700 701 702 703 704 705 706 707 708 709 710 711
 Interference Table
• List of all the Frequencies that can cause interferences for a cell.
• Several steps are required:
 Best Server
 C/I plots
 Drive test Data : RXQual (0 to 7) Need to be 0.

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 Possible Interferences
Adjacent
688 Interference 690

Site A Site C

698
692
696 694

691 689 Adjacent

Interference
Adjacent
Interference Site D Site B

693
695
699 697

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 Frequency Plan For 1 Pattern
BSC: TBD

National Color Code: 3

Site Id Orientation BCCH TCH

Site A 0 688 700
120 692 704
240 696 708
Site B 0 689 701
120 693 705
240 697 709
Site C 0 690 702
120 694 706
240 698 710
Site D 0 690 703
120 694 707
240 698 711

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 Pattern N=4

f3 f3 f3
f1 f1 f1 f4
f4 f4 f2
f2 f2 f3 f3
f3 f1 f1
f1 f4 f4 f4
f2 f2 f2

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 Part II

BSIC Planning

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 BSIC
• BSIC: Base Transceiver Station Identity Code
• used to distinguish neighboring base
stations
• two components:
• Network Color Code (NCC)
• Base Station Color Code (BCC)
• directly adjacent PLMN and BS must have
different color
codes

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 BSIC Allocation
• BSIC=NCC+BCC
• NCC : (0 to 7 ) predefined for a Carrier ( AWS can be 3 , VT 4…)
• BCC: (0 to 7 ) Planned by the RF Engineer.
• Helps the mobile stations to distinguish between two neighboring
cells sharing the same BCCH
• BSIC combination has to be unique for all cells that are defined in
the neighbor list.
• The Mobile Recognize the BTS as it Neighbors or as the one it is
connecting to by the Combination BSIC+BCCH

BSIC=Base Station Identity Code

NCC= Network Color Code
BCC= Base Station Color Code
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 BSIC Allocation
BCCH = A1 BCCH = A1
BSIC = 30 BSIC = 30

Same BSIC + Same BCCH = Drop Call

Best Server BCCH = A1

BCCH = A1 BSIC = 31
BSIC = 30
Different BSIC + Same BCCH = Call on
the best server (9 dB better)

Radio tower
Radio tower

• If a Mobile receives 2 same BCCH with the Same BSIC. It will be impossible for him
to make the difference between the 2 BTSs. ----> Drop Call
• BSIC is the way the mobile make the difference between the 2 BTSs.

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BSIC Plan

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32 31
30 32

30 30 31
31
33 33

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 BSIC Plan

f3 f3 f3
f3 f3 F1 34 F1 33 F1 30 f4
F1 36 f4 f4 f4 f2
f4 f2 f2 f2 f3 f3
f3 f3 f3 F1 32 F1 31
F1 30 F1 37 F1 35 f4 f4 f4
f4 f4 f2 f2 f2
f2 f2

Reuse of BSIC 30 – Far Enough 32

 BSIC Plan
BSC: TBD

National Color Code: 3

Site Id Orientation BSIC BCCH TCH

Site A 0 30 688 700
120 30 692 704
240 30 696 708
Site B 0 31 689 701
120 31 693 705
240 31 697 709
Site C 0 32 690 702
120 32 694 706
240 32 698 710
Site D 0 32 690 703
120 32 694 707
240 32 698 711

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 BSIC Plan For Every BSC
BSIC PLAN FOR BSC XX
BCCH 688 689 690 691 692 693 694 695 696 697 698 699 700 701 702 703 704 705 706 707 708 709 710 711
BSIC
30 Site A1 Site A2 Site A3
31 Site B1 Site B2 Site B3
32 Site C1 Site C2 Site C3
33 Site D1 Site D2 Site D3
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36
37

• Optimization Purposes: you can check with this table what is the Interferer
• BSIC Planning : Help Choosing the BSIC Available.

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 Part III

Neighbors Planning

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 Neighbors Planning
• Find ALL the possible HO
• If one Neighbor is Missing ---> Possible Drop
Call
• Put in the List the Maximum numbers of
Neighbors (most vendors have 20 neighbors in the
NL). Check Stats Monthly (BSC Dump).
• When a HO occurs the mobile get a new NL from
the New Sector.

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 Possible HO

Site A Site C

Site D Site B

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 Neighbor List
StartUp Neighbors

Cell Name Neighbors

CELL Site A1 Site A2 Site A3 Site B1 Site B2 Site B3 Site C1 Site C2 Site C3 Site D1 Site D2 Site D3
CELL Site A2 Site A1 Site A3 Site B1 Site B2 Site B3 Site C1 Site C2 Site C3 Site D1 Site D2 Site D3
CELL Site A3 Site A2 Site A1 Site B1 Site B2 Site B3 Site C1 Site C2 Site C3 Site D1 Site D2 Site D3
CELL Site B1 Site B2 Site B3 Site A2 Site A2 Site A3 Site C1 Site C2 Site C3 Site D1 Site D2 Site D3
CELL Site B2 Site B1 Site B3 Site A2 Site A2 Site A3 Site C1 Site C2 Site C3 Site D1 Site D2 Site D3
CELL Site B3 Site B1 Site B2 Site A2 Site A2 Site A3 Site C1 Site C2 Site C3 Site D1 Site D2 Site D3
CELL Site C1 Site C2 Site C3 Site B1 Site B2 Site B3 Site A1 Site A2 Site A3 Site D1 Site D2 Site D3
CELL Site C2 Site C1 Site C3 Site B1 Site B2 Site B3 Site A1 Site A2 Site A3 Site D1 Site D2 Site D3
CELL Site C3 Site C1 Site C2 Site B1 Site B2 Site B3 Site A1 Site A2 Site A3 Site D1 Site D2 Site D3
CELL Site D1 Site D2 Site D3 Site B1 Site B2 Site B3 Site A1 Site A2 Site A3 Site C1 Site C2 Site C3
CELL Site D2 Site D1 Site D3 Site B1 Site B2 Site B3 Site A1 Site A2 Site A3 Site C1 Site C2 Site C3
CELL Site D3 Site D1 Site D2 Site B1 Site B2 Site B3 Site A1 Site A2 Site A3 Site C1 Site C2 Site C3

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 LAC
• Location Area Code: LAC.
• Planning the LAC can help Decrease the Signalization by
decreasing the number of Authentications. When ever a
subscriber enter a new LAC the network is informed of the
New LAC.
• From time to time the Network page the Mobile to update
the location of the Mobile. To reach the Mobile the
Network need to know which LAC it is located.

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 Final Frequency Plan
BSC: TBD

National Color Code: 3

Site Id Orientation BSIC BCCH TCH MCC MNC LAC CELL ID BSC MSC
Site A 0 30 688 700 XXX YY 10000 10000 TBD TBD
120 30 692 704 XXX YY 10000 10001
240 30 696 708 XXX YY 10000 10002
Site B 0 31 689 701 XXX YY 10000 10100 TBD TBD
120 31 693 705 XXX YY 10000 10101
240 31 697 709 XXX YY 10000 10102
Site C 0 32 690 702 XXX YY 10000 10200 TBD TBD
120 32 694 706 XXX YY 10000 10201
240 32 698 710 XXX YY 10000 10202
Site D 0 33 691 703 XXX YY 10000 10300 TBD TBD
120 33 695 707 XXX YY 10000 10301
240 33 699 711 XXX YY 10000 10302

MCC: Mobile Country Code: Unique for the Country. (208 for France,
USA is ??
MNC: Mobile Network Code: Unique for the Carrier (AWS is ??).
CELL ID: Each Cell ID has to be Unique In the Network.
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 Part IV

Frequency Hopping

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 Advantages
Based on the performance measurements, the
Quality Indicators and Drive tests, the following
conclusions can be derived.
• Call Drop Rate (TCH) 9 % Improvement

Much Easier Frequency Plan.

More Tolerance for the RXQual. MaxRxQual=5

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 Block E Channels
• Calculation for a BTS Configuration Of 2/2/2:
• Reuse Factor N=4
• Block E has 5 MHz = 25 Channels. (Channel 687 to 711).
• 687 used as a Guard Band.
• No Hopping allowed in the BCCH channel.

BCCH 688 689 690 691 692 693 694 695 696 697 698 699

Hop1 Hop2 Hop3

TCH 700 703 706 709 701 704 707 710 702 705 708 711

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 Hopping Planning
BCCH, TCH 688, Hop1 690, Hop1

Site C

692, Hop2 694, Hop2

696, Hop3 698, Hop3

691, Hop1 689, Hop1

Site D Site B

693, Hop2
699, Hop3 695, Hop2 697, Hop3

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 HSN and MAIO
• When a GSM phone is served by a cell that
is hopping over a set of frequencies, the
separate traffic channels hop over the
allocated frequencies according to a
hopping sequence number (HSN). The
traffic channels with the same HSN hop
over the same frequencies in the same order
but are separated in time by a mobile
allocation index offset (MAIO).

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 HSN and MAIO
• Ensure that the HSN is unique for all cells that
may cause interference to each other (random
hopping).
• A good choice of MAIO is as follows:(Allocated
per hopping group, per TRX and not per sector)
• Hop1: 0, 2, 4
• Hop2: 1, 3, 5
• Hop3: 0, 2, 4

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 Frequency Hopping Table
MAIO
N umbe r H oppCa
BT S-N o Site _ID Se ctor of T R X rr_1 H SN Ma lloc_0 Ma lloc_1 Ma lloc_2 Ma lloc_3 Ma lloc_4 Ma lloc_5 Ma lloc_6 Ma lloc_7 Ma lloc_8
SiteA 1 1 0 1 700 703 706 709
SiteA 2 1 2 1 701 704 707 710
SiteA 3 1 4 1 702 705 708 711
SiteB 1 1 0 2 700 703 706 709
SiteB 2 1 2 2 701 704 707 710
SiteB 3 1 4 2 702 705 708 711
SiteC 1 1 0 3 700 703 706 709
SiteC 2 1 2 3 701 704 707 710
SiteC 3 1 4 3 702 705 708 711
SiteD 1 1 0 4 700 703 706 709
SiteD 2 1 2 4 701 704 707 710
SiteD 3 1 4 4 702 705 708 711

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Questions?

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 Exercise 1
• Cellular Block A:

Calculate the Channel Numbers

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 Exercise 2
• PCS Block A (1930-1935 MHz) - (Ch512-
Ch586):
* Frequency Plan No Hopping.
* Frequency Plan Hopping
* BSIC Plan
* Neighbor List.

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 Frequency Plan No Hopping
BCCH

TCH

Frequency Plan With Hopping

BCCH

TCH

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 BSIC Plan
BSIC PLAN FOR BSC XX
514 515 516 517 518 519 520 521 522 523 524 525 526 527 528 529 530 531 532 533 534 535

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 Neighbor List
CELL Site A1
CELL Site A2
CELL Site A3
CELL Site B1
CELL Site B2
CELL Site B3
CELL Site C1
CELL Site C2
CELL Site C3
CELL Site D1
CELL Site D2
CELL Site D3

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