Sei sulla pagina 1di 7

See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/331876117

Scrambling Code Planning and Optimization for UMTS System

Conference Paper · March 2019

CITATIONS READS

0 1,299

4 authors, including:

Rabie Ramadan Ayman Gaber


Cairo University IEEE Computer Society
120 PUBLICATIONS   488 CITATIONS    6 PUBLICATIONS   0 CITATIONS   

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:

Information Security and Risk management View project

Learning based Intrusion Detection Mechanism in Wireless Sensor Communication Systems View project

All content following this page was uploaded by Ayman Gaber on 19 March 2019.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.


Scrambling Code Planning and Optimization for
UMTS System

Hoda Hafez, Fatma El-Zahraa El -Taher, Rabie A. Ayman Gaber


Ramadan Radio Access Network Expert - Vodafone
Center of Wireless Studies, Cairo University Cairo, Egypt
Cairo, Egypt

Abstract—In this paper, the problem of scrambling code (SC) Scrambling Code planning and optimization algorithm can
planning and optimization in 3G networks is addressed. be introduced in an existing network to resolve co-SC issues
Scrambling Codes are used to identify and distinguish cells from resulting in code clashes. It can also be equally applied to a
one another in WCDMA networks. These SCs are reported by green field network to prevent code clashes.
the mobile users to the network to declare which cells they are
able to connect to. Under the limitation of available SCs to be Proper SC planning must be carried out for all WCDMA
assigned to the cells we propose various allocation schemes that networks to ensure that all cells within the neighbor definition
assign the scrambling codes according to the planner needs. In range are unique ‎[4]. In ‎[4], Asset 3G Planning tool to design
addition, a detection algorithm of SC clashes1 has been developed the UMTS network, scrambling code planning is done in two
and the recommended assignment is then proposed to decrease phases. Phase I: Dividing the design area into clusters of 18
the overall interference. Our results were applied to a live sites each and assigning those clusters into color group. Phase
WCDMA cellular network and the achieved performance benefit II: Assigning Scrambling Code to the clusters. For each cluster
is presented. a text file is generated and then assignment is done using
Excel. File is done per cluster then imported into the tool.
Keywords-Scrambling Codes;Planning; Optimization; UMTS These steps are considered annoying for the user when they are
I. INTRODUCTION applied on large areas.
Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) is There are some algorithms used in the literature for SC
one of the technologies belonging to the third generation planning. For instance, two planning algorithms were proposed
family. WCDMA is the radio access scheme used for third in ‎[5]. The first one named cluster reuse-based strategy. The
generation cellular systems. The chip rate of 3.84 Mcps leads SC allocation in this algorithm is based on a threshold distance.
to a carrier bandwidth of approximately 5 MHz ‎[1]. In This threshold distance is calculated based on cells coverage
WCDMA, there are two possible modes of operation, namely areas. This method depends on the region nature and the
TDD and FDD. The most commonly used mode is the FDD propagation model as cell coverage varies from urban to rural
mode where the uplink and downlink transmissions employ environment. In addition, any error in cell coverage estimation
two separate frequency bands. would lead to a SC clash.
WCDMA systems implicate two operations that are applied The other technique is the graph coloring algorithm; the
to the physical channels: the channelization and the scrambling. authors consider the new color as a new SC. However, the
In the channelization operation, Orthogonal Variable Spreading original graph coloring algorithm would not be helpful and
Factor (OVSF) codes are used to maintain the orthogonally may cause many clashes. For instance a node with red color
between the physical channels of connections even if they may have different neighbors that are not connected to each
operate at different rates. Codes used in the channelization other with blue colors. Therefore, the red node is seeing
process are orthogonal ‎[2]. In the scrambling operation, different nodes with the same scrambling code. Therefore, the
multiple transmitters are allowed to share the same Radio original algorithm has to be crafted to fit the SC requirements.
Frequency using pseudo noise codes. To separate different Certainly, this adds to the complexity of the algorithm.
cells, different downlink scrambling codes are used. During the In ‎[6], the author presented the impact of the code planning
initial cell search, the UE first searches for the strongest base- on various aspects of the UMTS network like UE processing
station cell. The UE then determines the scrambling code and load, battery life, measurements for handovers and quality of
the frame synchronization of that cell ‎[3]. Scrambling codes are service. Results showed that an improper code planning could
used in downlink to distinguish different cells while the impose significantly extra load on the processing engine of the
channelization codes represent different channels. The UE and could enlarge unacceptably the required time for
available number of SCs is 512; however, they are used to synchronization acquisition, which could essentially result in
identify thousands of sectors over the network. Therefore code poor system performance. Consequently, a proper code
planning is essential in the downlink direction. planning strategy should be taken into consideration to avoid
the mentioned drawbacks. In ‎[7], the authors address the
1
SC clash happens when one cell has the same SC of one of problem of Primary Scrambling Code (PSC) selection in small
its direct or indirect neighbor
cell networks due to the limitations of choosing a proper SC Since the network is composed of more than one carrier,
from the number of codes reserved for small cells. However, then, taking this information into account will be beneficial in
other problems that might occur are ignored . reducing the number of SC clashes. Thus, in our algorithm, we
considered three options that affect the operation of the
Generally, the previous algorithms were designed to handle algorithm which are First Carrier, Second Carriers, and all
the global SC plan while the new node planning was not Carriers.
considered. In addition, different carriers were not considered
in the previously mentioned algorithms. Therefore, in our
paper, we propose different algorithms considering the
problems of the previously proposed methods regardless of the
number of reserved codes.
The paper is organized as follows; the Scrambling code
planning methods are presented in Section 2. Section 3
proposes an optimization algorithm for pre-configured
networks. In Section 4, the tool description with its different
options is presented. In Section 5, the performance of the
proposed algorithm is evaluated through application on the live
network and results are discussed from Key Performance
Indicators (KPIs) perspective. Finally, Section 6 concludes the
paper.
II. SCRAMBLING CODE PLANNING METHODS
SC planning is the process of assigning new SC for cells
regardless of their old ones, targeting to enhance network Key
Performance Indicators (KPIs).
SC planning is required in the following cases:
 Global SC solution – Redefine SCs for the whole
network. Figure 1. Flow Chat of SC Global Solution by Maximum Reuse Distance
 New Cells Planning – Select the best SCs for newly
integrated cells. a) First Carrier: The design will be on the first carrier
cells only; the SC reuse distance will be maximized.
In this paper, two types of scrambling code planning
b) Second Carrier: The design will be on the second
methodologies are presented. The first one, is based on
carrier cells only; the SC reuse distance will be maximized.
maximizing the reuse distance between the codes; and the
second one is based on avoiding the code clashes up to the Nth c) All carriers: The design will be on the first carrier and
tier neighbors. Each strategy will have the option to run over then the cells of second carrier are mapped to first carrier.
first carrier cells, second carrier cells or both. When the planner chooses to run "First Carrier" then
"Second Carrier", the two carriers are then treated as two
In the following subsections, we will discuss first the
different networks. When the planner chooses to run "All
assignment methodologies, then the detailed description of the
Carriers", the algorithm uses the same scrambling code for all
planning cases will be presented based on the assignment
carriers in one sector which will avoid new planning when
methodology. The allocation will be also carrier dependent as
introducing second carrier in existing sites.
will be explained.
2) New Cells Planning
A. SC Allocation based on Maximum Reuse Distance
This option aims to select the best SCs for newly integrated
The main idea of this algorithm is that we choose to assign a cells into the network. It will be considered as a part of the
given cell with the farthest scrambling code available. Global SC Solution taking into consideration all the configured
Certainly, this assignment reduces the number of clashes based SCs based on their distance. The assignment is conducted in a
on the distance between the nodes. The two cases that are way that each cell is allocated the farthest SC . The carrier of
considered are the Global and New Cell planning. the new cell will be taken into consideration whether to get a
1) Global SC Solution new plan or map to first carrier.
In this case, a network of the overall cells is created and it th
B. SC Allocation based on Avoiding N Tier Neighbor Clashes
is required to assign codes for all the cells regardless of their
old ones. Generating the network of cells is mainly based on Here, the available information about the neighbor relations
the network cell file stored on the OSS. The assignment flow between different cells is represented in the form of an
chart is shown in Figure 1. As can be seen, the algorithm starts undirected graph. For a given cell under analysis, it should be
by a random cell. Then, it assigns the nearest 511 cells using all assigned‎any‎SC‎that‎doesn’t‎exist‎in‎its‎neighbor‎relations‎up‎
SCs. For all the remaining cells, they will be assigned the to the Nth tier neighbor.
farthest SC.
The neighbor tier will be calculated as the number of hops conducted in a way that each cell is allocated the SC that is not
on the shortest path connecting the two cells. In Figure 2, the allocated within its Nth tier neighbor. The carrier of the new
neighbor‎tier‎is‎‘2’‎as‎the‎shortest‎path‎comes from the second cell will be taken into consideration whether to get a new plan
carrier cell. The shortest path is drawn by the dashed arrows. or map to first carrier.
III. SCRAMBLING CODE OPTIMIZATION ALGORITHM
SC optimization is based on the current network
configuration. In order to achieve this goal, the old SCs already
configured into the network will be extracted and analyzed, we
have to go through all cells and check clashes that may be
caused by their old SCs. The optimization algorithm aims to
avoid code clashes and minimize interference.
A. Code Clash Detection Based on Maximum Reuse Distance
The code clash will appear if two cells having same SC are
Figure 2. Neighbor Tier Calculation. configured within a previously defined distance (input from
user). The "Check Conflict and Fix" algorithm will detect
Again, during the assignment of Nth tier neighbor, the clashes and assign new SC is following these steps:
algorithm considers either Global SC assignment or New Cell
planning as follows: Algorithm 1: Based on Known Network Configuration
for All cells
1) Global SC Solution
In this case, cells across the whole network will be assigned Check Code Clash of cell
new SCs, regardless of their old ones. The assignment will be
If distance conflict is detected
based on the configured neighbor relations across the whole
network. An initial cell is chosen at random to start the Assign a new SC for the cell (the SC of the
assignment process. A repetition is only allowed after the Nth farthest assigned cell)
tier neighbor condition is not satisfied. Once more, the Global
SC‎ solution‎ is‎ applicable‎ for‎ the‎ “First‎ Carrier”,‎ “Second‎ end for
Carrier”,‎and‎“All‎Carriers”.‎‎ a) First Carrier: The clash detection will be on the first
a) First Carrier: In order to assign the SCs for the first carrier only; the distance threshold to check clashes will be
carrier, we have to take the Second carrier neighbors into input from user.
consideration. SCs are allowed to be repeated after the Nth tier b) Second Carrier: The clash detection will be on the
neighbor. If the number of Nth tier neighbors exceeds 512 second carrier only; the distance threshold to check clashes will
codes, and no scrambling code value was available for be input from user.
assignment, then the minimum number of tiers, before SC c) All carriers: The clash detection will be on the first
repetition is allowed will be decremented to N-1. then the cells of second carrier are mapped to first carrier.
b) Second Carrier: In this case, there is no need to take
the first carrier into consideration. The planning will only
consider the second carrier neighbors as it has lower number of B. Code Clash Detection based on Nth Tier Neighbor
cells than the first carrier. The shortest path between any two The code clash will appear if we have 2 or more cells
second-carrier cells passes through second carrier cells only. configured within Nth tier neighbor having the same SC. The
That’s‎why‎ we‎ won't‎take‎ the‎first‎carrier‎relations‎effect‎into‎ algorithm will detect clashes based on neighbors and assign
consideration. new SC using two options: either with the farthest SC that is
not used in the neighbors or with the least reused SC overall
c) All carriers: Again, here, the planning will be mainly the network. "Check Conflict and Fix" algorithm is following
based on the first carrier as explained above. Second carrier these steps:
cells will be mapped to the first carrier cells.
When the planner chooses to run "First Carrier" then Algorithm 2: Based on Known Network Configuration and
"Second Carrier", the two carriers are then treated as two Relations
different networks. When the planner chooses to run "All for All cells
Carriers", use same scrambling code for all carriers in one
sector which will avoid new planning when introducing second Check Code Clash of cell
carrier in existing sites.
If neighbor conflict is detected
2) New Cells Planning Assign a new SC for the cell (Assigned with
This option aims to select the best SCs for newly integrated the lowest reused SC OR the farthest SC)
cells into the network. It will be considered as a part of the
Global SC Solution taking into consideration all the configured end for
SCs based on their neighbor relations. The assignment is
a) First Carrier: We have to take the second carrier V. PERFORMANCE VALIDATION AND RESULTS
neighbors into consideration. The neighbor tier is represented In order to validate the performance and efficiency of the
by the number of hops of the shortest path that connects the explained algorithms, the following test cases are considered.
two cells. If number of neighbors exceeds 512 codes, then the The output recommendations are directly applied to live
code assignment will be decremented to the previous tier. The cellular network - Egyptian Operator. Network KPIs showed
recommended SC (excluding all neighbors SCs) will be either: major improvements. In these test cases, "Check conflict and
1. Assigned with the lowest reused SC over the network Fix" algorithm is applied to solve clashes over the network.
2. OR the farthest SC. A. Code Clash Detection based on 4th Tier Neighbor and
b) Second Carrier: Clash detection will be only on the Assignment based on Lowest Reused SC
second carrier as it has lower number of cells than the first
carrier. SC clash appears if SCs are repeated within the Nth tier 1) Network Enviroment:
neighbor of Second carrier cells without considering the first Network has several thousand cells over all carriers. Used
carrier relations.
SCs are 512 codes distributed over all the cells. In this test
c) All carriers: The clash detection will be as in "First case, conflict check and Assign new SC algorithm is applied on
Carrier Clash Detection " then the cells of second carrier are first carrier cells only.
mapped to first carrier.
In any of the clash detection and fixing algorithms, the change 2) Output and Recommendations:
of SC in any cell is taken into account in the next step of the Clashes are detected for many cells in the network and
algorithm. need new SCs. SC modification in current cell will affect
"check conflict" of the next cell.
IV. TOOL DESCRIPTION
Table I shows an example of output cases where clashes
Scrambling Code Planning and Optimization is one module
are detected where:
of a 3G network optimization tool where several modules are
developed and integrated. These features aim to fix problems,  Tier Number: is the number of hops between the
improve performance, and intelligently correlate different two cells that make clash in the network (in some
available inputs to ultimately optimize the 3G network. The cases a single cell makes clash with more than one
integrated tool is under development by the CWS cell in different tiers).
communication and software teams. During the first phase of
the implementation, the SC module was tried on live WCDMA  Number of Clashes: is the number of occurrences
network and the initial results showed significant improvement this clash appears between this pair of cells.
in the network performance. Figure 3 describes the SC
Planning and Optimization Process. Various options are TABLE I. NUMBER OF CLASHES PER TIER NUMBER
offered by the program when the user selects different Tier Number Number of Clashes
combinations of assignment algorithm, case and carrier. The 1 1
output of the SC Optimization process can be summarized in 2 8
the following information: 2,3 2
2,3,4 1
1- The Recommendation Excel File: it contains the new 2,4 5
SCs assigned to the cells depending on the selected case and 2,4,4 2
the chosen algorithm as described earlier. 2,4,4,4 2
2,4,4,4,4 1
2- The Report File: it contains information about 3 66
scrambling code usage. For each scrambling code, there is 3,3 17
additional information about the minimum distance between 3,3,3 1
3,3,3.4 1
two cells of this scrambling code and the number of each
3,3,3,4,4 1
scrambling code reuse. 3,3,3,4,4,4,4,4 1
3- Visualization Map: To visualize the SC allocation on 3,3,4 11
3,3,4,4 3
the map, cells are grouped together according to their
3,3,4,4,4 1
Scrambling Codes. Cells with the same Scrambling Codes will 3,4 106
appear with the same color on Map. Cells causing clash will 3,4,4 22
appear on Map in red to highlight the clash problem. 3,4,4,4 7
3,4,4,4,4 1
4- Fixing XML: it contains the SCs of all cells after 4 51
performing selected optimization. The XML file is generated to 4,4 137
run directly on the system and apply SC recommendations 4,4,4 16
automatically.
Figure 3. SC Planning and Optimization Process

Network has several thousand cells over all carriers. Used


3) Results: SCs are 512 codes distributed over all the cells. In this test
After applying the recommended SC plan, a direct impact for case, conflict check and Assign new SC algorithm is applied on
resolving these SC clashes is that the Active Set (AS) addition first carrier cells only. The recommended SC is the farthest one
failures have been dramatically decreased on certain sub-region available that does not exist within the third tier neighbor.
as shown in Figure 4.
2) Output and Recommendations:
Clashes are detected in several cells in the network and
need new SCs. SC modification in current cell will affect
"check conflict" of the next cell.
Table II shows an example of the output cases where
clashes are detected.
Table II. Number of Clashes per Tier Number

Tier Number Number of Clashes


1 1
1,3,3,3 1
2 45
2,3 10
2,3,3,3 1
3 83
Figure 4. AS addition failure before and after new SC plan 3,3 85
3,3,3 13
3,3,3,3,3 1

3) Results:
After applying the recommended SC plan, a major DCLR
improvement occurs in the whole network as shown in Figure
6.

Figure 5. DCLR before and after new SC plan

On the other hand, the new SC plan has led to almost 15%
improvement in drop call rate (DCLR) as shown in Figure 5.

B. Code Clash Detection based on 3rd Tier Neighbor and Figure 6. DCLR before and after new SC plan
Assignment based on Maximum Reuse Distance
1) Network Enviroment:
C. Global SC Assignment based on Maximum Reuse Distance ACKNOWLEDGMENT
In order to validate the SC Assignment based on
Part of this work was supported by the Egyptian National
Maximum Reuse Distance, we checked the number of clashes Telecommunications Regulatory. The authors would like to
over many distance thresholds before and after SC assignment.
thank Vodafone Egypt for making available the data and for
As shown in Figure 7, the detected clashes appear only after
their continuous cooperation and assistance in results
5kms when the optimized SC allocation is performed. This
validation.
means that the minimum code reuse distance is greater than
5kms for a more than 11 thousands cells network.

REFERENCES
[1] A. T. H. Holma, WCDMA for UMTS - radio access
for third generation mobile communications, J.
Wiley, Ed., Chichester, 2000.
[2] Korhonen, Juha. Introduction to 3G mobile
communications. Artech House Publishers,
second edition, 2003.
[3] Dahlman, Erik, Per Beming, Jens Knutson,
Fredrik Ovesjo, Magnus Person, and Christian
Robol. "WCDMA-the radio interface for future
Figure 7. Detected Number of Clashes before and after Optimization mobile multimedia communications." Vehicular
Technology, IEEE Transactions on 47, no. 4
Another validation for the SC assignment based on Maximum (1998): 1105-1118.
Reuse Distance was simulated to allocate the scrambling [4] UMTS RF Design Using Asset3g Using Ericsson
codes for all cells and to reduce the clashes between cells
having same scrambling code. Equipment, TMobile, 2006
The feedback calculating the number of clashes is provided by [5] Y. Y.H. Jung, “Scrambling code planning for
the network simulation tool (Forsk Atoll ®) ‎[8] and ‎[9] to 3GPP W-CDMA systems,”in Proceedings of IEEE
detect pairs of cells causing SC clashes. The results showed
that the proposed allocation is free of clashes. The simulation vehicular technology conference, Rhodes,
was run on 340 cells using only a set of 50 SCs. As shown in Greece, Spring 2001, pp. 2431–2434.
Figure 8, the code reuse is almost the same which indicates the [6] S. Kourtis, “Code planning strategy for UMTS-
code usage balance all over the network.
FDD networks”, Proceedings of VTC 2000, USA,
2000
[7] Checco, Alessandro, Rouzbeh Razavi, Douglas J.
Leith, and Holger Claussen. "Self-configuration
of scrambling codes for WCDMA small cell
networks." In Personal Indoor and Mobile Radio
Communications (PIMRC), 2012 IEEE 23rd
International Symposium on, pp. 149-154. IEEE,
Figure 8. Code Reuse for Distance Algorithm
2012.
VI . CONCLUSION [8] Atoll Radio Planning and Optimization Software,
In this paper, we discussed two SC planning techniques, the Technical Reference Guide, version 2.8.3, ©
first is based on maximizing the reuse distance and the other
based on avoiding the Nth tier neighbor clashes. Code clash Forsk 2011
detection algorithm is developed and tested on live network. [9] Atoll Radio Planning and Optimization
Applying our recommendations showed major improvement in Software, User Manual, version 2.8.3, © Forsk
mobility and integrity KPIs which represent the most important
categories of cellular network. An optimally planned network 2011
would provide higher revenue to the operator and better quality
of service to the subscribers.

View publication stats

Potrebbero piacerti anche