Intra system Interference Analysis

OVERVIEW
Intra system interference is calculated in the network display. The calculation is organized in groups. Only visible
layers will be used in the calculation. All sites and links which are not on a visible layer will be ignored. The calcula-
tions use antenna and radio data files. These contain the parameters required for an interference calculation and are
described in detail in this section. The minimum conditions to calculate intra system interference are listed below:

• A Pathloss data file (pl4 or pl5) must be associated with each link to be used in the calculation.
• An antenna data file must be specified for each antenna in the Pathloss data file.
• The transmission analysis must be complete to the level of a receive signal calculation.
• Transmit and receive frequency assignments must be specified for the Pathloss data files used in the calcula-
tion.
A radio data file is optional; however, only the interfering level can be calculated without this file. This file is required
to calculate filter improvement and threshold degradation.

Note that there is no provision to calculate the interference from a transmitter into a receiver located at the same site.

On completion of an interference calculation, the user is prompted to save the calculation results. The default file
name is the gr5 file name with the extension ifr. The file can be reloaded provided that the current gr5 file was used
to create the interference file or the network display is blank.

INTERFERENCE CALCULATION PROCEDURE

Select the Interference - Calculate Interfer-
ence menu item on the network display menu
bar. The "Intra System Interference" dialog
box sets the options for the calculation.

Study Scope
Interference is calculated between two sets of
links. One set of links can act as the interfering
transmitters and the other as the victim receiv-
ers or both sets can act as interfering transmit-
ters. These sets of links can be a selection, a
named group of links, all links or the master
data base.

Select the two sets of sites and click on the

green arrow to change between a single direc-
tion and bidirectional analysis. Note that if the
two sets are the same, then the calculation is
inherently bidirectional and the specified direc-
tion has no effect.

When analysing one set of links against second set of links, it is expected, that the user will define two independent
sets without any overlapping links. In the case of overlapping links, the analysis in the overlap area will produce du-
plicate interference cases. These duplicates are removed from the results; however, as a cautionary measure, the
user is advised to examine the cross reference report to verify that duplicates are not present.

When an interference analysis between the network display and the master data base is carried out, duplicate inter-
ference cases can also occur. In this case, the test for duplicate interference cases can be ambiguous and the user
is responsible to delete any duplicates.
Digital Interference Objective
The objective is specified in terms of the allowable receiver threshold degradation. For frequency coordination with
other operators, the usual value is 1 dB; however, for intra system interference, the final criteria is determined by the
increased outage times resulting from the actual threshold degradation.

Note that the allowable threshold degradation determines the composite interfering level. A calculation margin de-
scribed below is subtracted from this composite interfering level to established a reporting threshold level. The fol-
lowing example illustrates this procedure.

threshold degradation 1 dB - user specified

receiver noise floor -107 dBm - calculated from RX threshold data
interfering level -113 dBm - calculated from receiver noise floor and threshold degradation
calculation margin 10 dB - user specified
reporting threshold -123 dBm - all interfering signals below this level will be ignored

Sometimes an analysis shows that there are no interference cases and the user would like to examine all interference
calculations. This can be accomplished by lowering the reporting threshold using a threshold degradation of 0.01 dB
and a calculation margin of 200 dB. In the above example, these values would result in a reporting threshold of -333.5
dBm which will show all cases in any practical system

Default Minimum Interference Level

In the above reporting threshold example, the interfering level required to meet the threshold degradation objective
was calculated from the receiver noise floor. In the event that the receiver noise floor is not available, the default
minimum interference level will be used as the interfering level required to meet the threshold degradation objective.
The reporting threshold level will then be given by the default minimum interference level minus the calculation mar-
gin.

Calculation Margin
The calculation margin sets a tolerance on the reporting of interference cases. If the interference level objective for
the receiver under test is -104 dBm and the calculation margin is set to 10 dB, then all interference cases greater
than -114 dBm (-104 - 10) will be reported.

The threshold degradation objective will be converted to an interference level objective for each receiver in the cal-
culation.

Coordination Distance
Interference is not calculated if the interfering path length is greater than the specified coordination distance.

Maximum Frequency Separation

Interference is not calculated if the difference between the interfering transmitter and victim receiver frequencies is
greater than the specified maximum value.

Note that if a radio data file is not available, a cochannel interference analysis can be carried out by setting the max-
imum frequency separation to some value less than the TX to RX frequency spacing.

Ignore Diversity Antennas

This option ignores all receive frequencies associated with a space diversity receive only antenna. In the initial fre-
quency analysis, this option will reduce the number of cases by 50%. If the main and diversity antenna gains are
different, then the final analysis should consider the diversity antennas.
Ignore Adjacent Channels
This option applies to 1 for N systems. Once the threshold degradation of the adjacent channels has been estab-
lished, use this option to limit the number of interference cases.

Calculate OHLOSS automatically

This option will automatically calculate the over the horizon loss (OHLOSS) on all interfering paths which do not have
a direct link to the affected receiver. Click the OHLOSS option button to set the specific options for the OHLOSS
calculation.

OHLOSS calculations can be a contentious item when resolving interference case between different organizations
It is important to note that if an OHLOSS calculation results in a interfering level below the reporting threshold, the
interference case will not appear in any report. If the OHLOSS calculations are carried out in the case detail report
screen after the main calculation is complete, the OHLOSS cases will remain in the analysis.

OHLOSS Options
Click the OHLOSS options button in the Intra system in-
terference dialog. These options will be used in all
OHLOSS calculations in the present analysis. Refer to
the help in the diffraction loss section of the PL50L pro-
gram for complete details on the OHLOSS calculation
procedure.

An OHLOSS calculation takes time variability into ac-

count. Current practice is to compute a long term and a
short term time variability. The long term is normally set
to 80%. Threshold degradation objectives refer to this
long term objective. In the short term, the allowable threshold degradation can be significantly higher.

If required set the diffraction algorithm, the climatic region and the short and long term time percentages.
Correlation Options

When an interfering path is the same as the de-

sired path, the interference case is defined as cor-
related.

In the diagram on the right, the Site 1 receiver from

Site 2 is being interfered with the Site 2 transmitter
towards Site 3. The main path is from Site 2 to Site
1 and the interfering path is also from Site 2 to Site
1. Therefore this is a correlated interference case

In this case it is expected that fading on the inter-

fering main paths will occur at the same time. In the case of multipath fading, the actual fade depths on the two paths
will depend on the type of correlation. If the interfering transmitter antenna heights are the same as the main trans-
mitter heights, then the two paths are completely correlated. In this case it is common practice to ignore the case,
particularly if automatic transmit power control is employed. The main path will increase power in response to the
fade; however the interfering transmitter may not change.

A partially correlated situation exists when the interfering transmitter antenna height is different than the main trans-
mitter antenna height. In this case, an additional loss in the order of 5 to 10 dB is added to the interfering signal

Although the same correlation options are used for both mulipath and rain, the definition of correlation is actually
whether the interfering and main paths are in the same rain cell.

Click the Correlation options button in the Intra system interference dialog to set the correlation options

INTERFERENCE CALCULATION
The calculation starts by building transmitter and receiver tables for the two sets of links. If the two sets are the same,
then only one set of transmitter and receiver tables is required.

The data is normally read from the Pathloss data files associated with each link. If one of these files is in memory,
i.e. the file has been loaded into one of the design sections, then the memory data will be used. The Pathloss data
file in memory can be edited and the interference run again to see the effect of the changes.

Interfering level objective

The interfering level objective Iobj is calculated for each receiver as follows:
 Nrx Tdo
 --------
10 
- ----------
10 
I obj = 10 ⋅ log 10  10 ⋅  10 – 1  (1)
  
where:

Tdo allowable threshold degradation specified in the Interference dialog box.

Nrx receiver noise threshold in dBm

The receiver noise threshold calculation will depend on the specific data available in the radio data file

Threshold to Interference T_I and the 10-6 BER receiver threshold RXthr

Nrx = RXthr -- T_I + 5.868 dBm

3 dB carrier to interference C_I3dB measured at the 10-6 BER receiver threshold RXthr10^6

Nrx = RXthr10^6 - C_I3dB

3 dB carrier to interference C_I3dB measured at the 10-3 BER receiver threshold RXthr10^3

Nrx = RXthr10^3 - C_I3dB dBm

Receiver noise figure NF and 3 dB receiver bandwidth BW3dB

Nrx = 10 * log10(n_f) + 30. + NF dBm

where

n_f = K * T * BW3dB * 1.E6

K 1.380658E-23 (Boltzman’s constant)
T 290 degrees Kelvin
and the 3 dB bandwidth is expressed in MHz

This interfering level objective represents the total power in the victim receiver passband which will degrade the re-
ceiver threshold by the specified amount. At this point, the frequencies and the bandwidths of the interfering trans-
mitter and victim receiver are not considered. These will be used later to calculate the filter improvement.

If the receiver noise threshold is not available due to missing data, the default minimum interfering level will be used
as the objective.

Note that Iobj - calculation margin is the reporting threshold.

Interference case rejection

As the calculation proceeds, an interference case will be rejected at any point if its interfering level is less than the
reporting threshold, Several other conditions to reject an interference case are as follows:

• The difference between the transmitter and receiver frequencies is greater than the specified maximum.
• The transmitter is located at the same station as the receiver.
• The transmitter is associated with the receiver under test.
• The interfering path length is greater than the specified coordination distance. The path length is calculated from
the receive and transmit coordinates.

Free Space Loss Interfering Signal

The free space loss interfering signal level is calculated as follows:
Ifs = TX power + TX antenna gain + RX antenna gain - TX loss - RX loss - free space loss - atmospheric absorption
loss.

Antenna Discrimination
The effects of the transmit and receive antenna discriminations are now considered:

• Calculate the antenna discrimination angles for the TX and RX antennas.

• Calculate the antenna discrimination for the TX and RX antennas. This calculation uses the antenna data files.
• Calculate the interfering signal levels for all combinations of TX and RX antenna polarizations.
Antenna discrimination is characterized by the four polarization combinations HH, HV, VV, and VH. The first letter is
the polarization of the receiving antenna. The second letter is the polarization of the transmitting antenna. For exam-
ple, the term HV is the response of a horizontally polarized receiving antenna to a vertically polarized transmitting
antenna.

At first glance, the total antenna discrimination would be obtained by adding the appropriate polarization combina-
tions of the interfering transmit antenna and the victim receiver antenna. Unfortunately, this is not the case, as the
ratio of horizontal and vertical polarized signals is unknown.

The following polarization combinations are determined and the minimum value is assigned as the total antenna dis-
crimination:

Tx H Rx H (HH) HH HH
HV HV
Tx H Rx V (HV) HV VV
HH VH
Tx V Rx V (VV) VV VV
VH VH
Tx V Rx H (VH) VH HH
VV HV
An example of this analysis is given below for a free space loss interfering signal level of -38.59 dBm. The first letter
in the polarization combination is the transmit polarization; the second letter is the receive polarization.

Antenna Discrimination HH HV VV VH
Interfering TX 0.00 32.00 0.00 32.00
Victim RX 65.00 69.00 67.00 69.00
Total Discrimination (dB) 65.00 69.00 67.00 69.00
Interfering Signal (dBm) -103.59 -107.59 -105.59 -107.59
If the interfering level for the specified polarization is less than (Iobj - calculation margin), then the interference case
is rejected.

If this is a cochannel case (same transmit and receive fre-

quencies) and the same radio data files are used for the If the interfering transmitter is an analog radio, the filter
transmitter and receiver, the calculation for this interfer- improvement is read from the victim receiver selectivity
ence case is complete. curve.

The modulation in the radio data file must be specified

Filter Improvement as “Analog”
Radio data files are required to calculate the filter improve-
ment. If a radio data file does not exist for the victim receiver, the calculation terminates. The calculation sequence
for filter improvement proceeds as follows:

• If the transmitter modulation is designated as “Analog”, the filter improvement will be interpolated from the
receive radio data file receiver selectivity curve.
• If the receiver and transmitter data files are the same and the data file contains a TtoI_Same curve or an
IRF_Same curve, the filter improvement will be interpolated from this curve.
• if the receiver data file contains an TtoI_Other curve or an IRF_Other curve for the transmit radio data file, the fil-
ter improvement will be interpolated from this curve.
If the required T to I or interference reduction factor curve is not available, the filter improvement will be calculated
by convoluting the spectrum of the interfering transmitter against the victim receiver selectivity. There are two levels
of default for both the transmitter and receiver.

If the transmitter radio data file includes a measured transmit spectrum, this will be used; otherwise, the default emis-
sion mask is used. In both cases, the data is normalized, so that the area under the curve is unity as shown in Equa-
tion (2).

 PI ( f ) df = 1 (2)

where PI(f) is the power spectral density of the interfering transmitter. This normalization was carried out when the
radio data file was created from the ASCII version

The receiver selectivity calculation curve

(RX_SELECTIVITY_CALC) is generated when the radio In the case detail report, the method used to calculate
data file is created using the following priorities for the the filter improvement is stated
source data: If the method used is different than the user’s expecta-
• user receiver selectivity data. This must represent the tion, then the radio data file must be checked for coding
composite receiver selectivity curve and include the errors
RF, IF, and baseband (Nyquist) filtering
• T to I curve for a carrier wave modulated (CW) interferer
• default receiver selectivity mask
This curve is optimized for the convolution process by using a variable point density concentrated around the receiver
passband.

The receiver selectivity and interfering power spectral density are convoluted together to calculate the filter improve-
ment FI as follows:

FI = 10 ⋅ log10 (  H r ( f ) ⋅ P i ( f + Δ f ) df ) (3)

where:

Δf interfering frequency - receiver frequency

Hr(f) receiver selectivity (RX_SELECTIVITY_CALC curve)
Pi(f) power spectral density of the interfering transmitter

Threshold Degradation
The threshold degradation is calculated using the following formula.

Nrx Ifl
 --------
10
- ------
10
Td = Nrx – 10 ⋅ log 10  10 + 10  (4)
 
where
Td threshold degradation (dB)
Nrx receiver noise threshold (dBm)
Ifl interfering signal level (dBm)

The composite threshold degradation is calculated in the same manner using the power sum of all interfering signals.

FADE CORRELATION
Once the basic interference calculation has been completed,
the rain and multipath fade correlation can be set for each inter-
ference case. Select the Interference - Fade correlation menu
item on the network display menu bar. Step through the cases
and sub cases to view the interference cases.

Use the go to case button to set a specific case number.

on the cross reference report

The current interference case - sub case is shown on the net-

work display

The following abbreviations are used in the display:

itx interfering transmitter antenna height

arx adjacent transmitter antenna height
v-i victim receiver to interfering transmitter distance
ang receive antenna discrimination angle
ifl interfering signal level
td threshold degradation

Refer to the Fade correlation options section for details of the

concept and typical values for fade correlation

TRANSFERRING INTERFERENCE TO THE PATHLOSS DATA FILES

When the correlation options have been set and all OHLOSS calculations have been reviewed, the interfering signal
levels can be transferred to the Pathloss data files. The composite interfering level is transferred and includes the
specified correlation for multipath and rain.

Select the Interference - Update Path-

loss files - Update threshold degrada-
tion menu item. All calculations will
now consider the degraded threshold
levels due to the interference.

In the Transmission analysis design

section, select the Operations - Inter-
ference menu item to view the results.

To remove all interference from the

Pathloss data files, Select the Interfer-
ence - Update Pathloss files - Re-
move threshold degradation menu
item.
SINGLE SITE INTERFERENCE ANALYSIS
Once an interference calculation has been carried out, it is possible to carry out an inter-
active interference analysis for all interference cases at a single site. Any parameter af-
fecting the interfering level can be changed and the results will be immediately updated.
Right click on a site legend and select the Interference menu item. The menu will not be
active if an interference calculation does not exist.

Position the Interference dialog so that the selected receiver is

visible on the network display. Each interference sub case will
be graphically displayed.

In the example header above, there are two receivers at Site D.

The coordinating station for receiver 1 is Site C. There are three
transmitters interfering with receiver 1. The overall results for
this receiver are summarized as follows:

• The composite threshold degradation due to all interfering

transmitters.
• The composite threshold degradation considering the corre-
lation status of the interfering transmitters. The correlated
threshold degradation is shown for both multipath and rain.
• The one way link availability at the receiver without interfer-
ence,
• The one way link availability at the receiver with the com-
posite correlated interference
Click the red arrows to step through the interfering sub cases for
the selected receiver.

Click the green arrows to step through the receivers at this site
The following data is displayed for each interference case:

• frequency and polarization of the receiver and interfering transmitter

• antenna model of the receiver and interfering transmitter
• radio model of the receiver and interfering transmitter
• interfering transmit power
• interfering transmitter ATPC range
• distance between the receiver and interfering transmitter
• true azimuth of the of the receiver and interfering transmitter antennas
• total discrimination of the receiver and interfering transmitter antennas
• the level of the interfering signal at the receiver
• the receive signal level from its coordinating station
• the frequency difference between the receiver and the interfering transmitter
• the filter improvement due to the frequency and bandwidth difference between the receiver and the interfering
transmitter
• the over the horizon loss (OHLOSS) for an interfering path which is not directly connected to the receiver.
• the adjusted interfering level including the filter improvement and the OHLOSS
• the carrier to interference ratio (receive signal to adjusted interfering level)
• the threshold degradation
• the type of correlation
• the specified correlation values for multipath and rain

Changing Parameters
The following parameters can be changed for the receiver

• frequency and polarization

• receiver antenna
• receive radio
The following parameters can be changed for the interfering transmitter

• frequency and polarization

• transmit antenna
• transmit radio
• transmit power
• transmit ATPC range
Click the blue arrow for the parameter to be changed. The associated data entry form will appear. The interference
results will be automatically be recalculated and displayed. The Reset button and the Change Pl5 files button will
become active whenever a change has been made.

Reset
This will reset all interference cases to the values on entry. Any changes made to any case or sub case will be lost.

Change Pl5 files

The associated PL5 files are not modified during the interactive procedure. Click the Change Pl5 files button to in-
corporate the changes to the individual Pl5 files. This operation will erase the main interference calculation and close
the Interference dialog

Other considerations.
When a change is made and the interference is recalculated, OHLOSS calculations are not recalculated. The original
values are used. If the changes made result in a new OHLOSS case, the case will not be valid.

If an OHLOSS case has not been calculated, the case will be marked as not calculated in red. In these cases it is
necessary to return to the main interference calculation and either repeat the calculation using the Calculate
OHLOSS automatically or carry out the calculations in the case detail interference report

Changes to the frequency, polarization, ATPC use the standard Frequency assignments data entry form. If multiple
channel assignments have been made, it is users responsibility to change the parameters for the specific case or
sub case. Additional channel assignments should not be added.

In the Change Pl5 files operation, any changes to a radio will be carried out at both ends of the link for point to point
links. In point to multipoint links, only the change will only be made at the base station or remote as applicable.
INTERFERENCE REPORTS
Summary report
This report provides a listing of the report case with the minimum of detail. An example of this report is shown below:

Case 1 ES01 from NS01 - 5863.125H - threshold degradation 2.23 dB

1-1 NS01 to NS02 - 5863.125H - correlated case
V-I distance 42.43 km
interfering level -103.03 dBm
threshold degradation 5.53 dB
1-2 NS03 to NS02 - 5863.125V - OHLOSS case
V-I distance 131.96 km
interfering level -122.92 dBm
threshold degradation 0.11 dB

Cross reference report

This report provides a concise summary of the interference cases. It is intended to be used as a cross reference into
the case detail report. An example of this report is shown below:

Coordination distance (km) 200.00 obj Objective (dBm)

Maximum frequency separation (MHz) 150.00 v-i V-I distance (km)
Default minimum interference level (dBm) -115.00 tad Total discrimination (dB)
Margin (dB) 10.00 ifl Interfering level (dBm)
Threshold degradation objective (db) 1.00 td Threshold degradation (dB)
Total number of cases calculated 12 _mp _rn multipath - rain correlated
OHLOSS case * Correlated case **

Case 1 ES01 (NS01), 5863.125V, HPX8-58W-TR, 6706-8, obj = -113.0, td_mp = 8.6, td_rn = 9.3
1-1 NS01 (ES01), 5878.875V, HPX8-58W, 6706-8, v-i = 42.4, tad = 0.0 (i 0.0° v 0.0°), ifl = -99.5 (-13.5), td = 8.36 **
1-2 NS01 (NS02), 5863.125V, HPX8-58W, 6706-8, v-i = 42.4, tad = 67.0 (i 165.8° v 0.0°), ifl = -105.0 (-8.0), td = 4.19 **

Case 2 ES01 (NS01), 5878.875V, HPX8-58W-TR, 6706-8, obj = -113.0, td_mp = 9.2, td_rn = 9.8
2-1 NS01 (ES01), 5863.125V, HPX8-58W, 6706-8, v-i = 42.4, tad = 0.0 (i 0.0° v 0.0°), ifl = -98.7 (-14.3), td = 9.01 **
2-2 NS01 (NS02), 5878.875V, HPX8-58W, 6706-8, v-i = 42.4, tad = 67.0 (i 165.8° v 0.0°), ifl = -105.1 (-7.9), td = 4.17 **

Case detail report

The case detail report provides the highest level of detail on the interference cases. This report allows the following
operations:

• View the TX and RX antenna specifications

• Views the TX and RX radio specifications
• Modify or ignore an interference case
• Calculate OHLOSS for a given case
• Delete an interference case and all sub-cases or a sub-case only

A sample report is show below:

Case 2 - ES01 from NS01
Victim RX Interfering TX
ES01 NS01
 Latitude 55 48 09.00 N 56 05 29.88 N
Longitude 120 12 58.00 W 120 12 58.00 W
True azimuth (°) 40.46 55.03
Coordinating station NS01 NS02

Antenna model HPX8-58W HPX8-58W

Usage TR TR
Antenna file name 1992 1992
Antenna height (m) 6.59 74.33
Antenna gain (dBi) 40.80 40.80
Polarization Vertical Vertical
Discrimination angle (°) 0.00 165.79

Radio model MDR-6706-8 MDR-6706-8

Radio file name 6706-8 6706-8
RX - TX loss (dB) 2.22 5.75
TX power (dBm) 29.00
ATPC range (dB)
RX noise floor (dBm) -107.13

Frequency (MHz) 5878.8750 5878.8750

Channel ID 6l 6l
V-I distance (km) 42.43
V-I free space loss (dB) 140.41
V-I atmospheric absorption loss (dB) 0.28

Antenna discrimination (dB) HH HV VV VH

Interfering TX 65.00 69.00 67.00 69.00
Victim RX 0.00 32.00 0.00 32.00
Total discrimination (dB) 65.00 69.00 67.00 69.00
Interfering level (dBm) -103.05 -107.05 -105.05 -107.05

Performance degradation
Objective (dBm) -113.00
Receive signal (dBm) -35.53
Interfering level (dBm) -105.05
Frequency separation (MHz) 0.00
Filter improvement (dB) 0.00
Other loss (dB)
Adjusted interfering level (dBm) -105.05
C to I (dB) 69.52
Threshold degradation (dB) 4.17 Partially correlated - MP 6.0, RN 0.0 dB

Hi-Lo violation report

This report simply provides a listing of all transmit frequencies used in the interference analysis. The channel ID letter
(H or L) is used as the high low consistency check. All frequencies at a site must be either H or L or a high low violation
exists which is sometimes referred to a frequency buck. The interfering effect is best determined by actual site meas-
urements.

TX RX
ES01 NS01 5896.625V C03H
NS01 5912.375V C06H

NS01 ES01 5863.125V C03L

NS02 5878.875V C06L
NS02 5863.125V C03L
ES01 5878.875V C06L

NS02 NS01 5912.375V C06H

NS01 5896.625V C03H
NS03 5912.375H C06H
NS03 5896.625H C03H

NS03 NS02 5863.125H C03L

NS02 5878.875H C06L