UNIT-II

Interference

1
 Introduction
 The frequency reuse method is useful for increasing the efficiency of
spectrum usage but results in cochannel interference because the same
frequency channel is repeatedly in different cochannel cells.
 In most mobile radio environments, use of a seven-cell reuse pattern is
not sufficient to avoid cochannel interference.
 Increasing K>7 would reduce the number of channels per cell, and that
would also reduce spectrum efficiency.
 Therefore, it might be advisable to retain the same number of radios as
seven-cell system but to sector the cell radially as if slicing a pie. This
technique would reduce cochannel interference and use channel sharing
and channel borrowing schemes to increase spectrum efficiency.
2
Exploring Cochannel Interference areas in the System

 When customer demand increases , the channels which are limited in

number, have to be repeatedly reused in different areas which provides
many cochannel cells, which increases the systems capacity, but
cochannel interference results.
 For detection of interference areas in a cellular system, two tests are
suggested.
 Test 1
Find the cochannel interference area from a mobile receiver
 Test 2
Find the cochannel interference area which affects a cell site

3
 Test 1
Find the cochannel interference area from a mobile receiver

Figure 2.1 Cochannel interference at the mobile unit

4
 We can measure cochannel interference by selecting any one channel and
transmitting on that channel at all cochannel sites while the mobile
receiver is travelling in one of the cochannel cells.
 This test must be repeated as the mobile unit travels in every cochannel
cell.
 To facilitate this test, we can install a channel scanning receiver in one car.
 Channel f1 records the signal level
 Channel f2 records the interference level
 Channel f3 records the noise level

5
 To compare the results four conditions should be used

 If C/I > 18 dB throughout most of the cell, the system is properly

designed.

 If C/I < 18 dB and C/N > 18 dB in some areas,there is cochannel

interference

 If both C/N and C/I are less than 18 dB and C/N ≈ C/I in a given area, there
is a coverage area.

 If both C/N and C/I are less than 18 dB and C/N > C/I in a given area, there
is a coverage problem and cochannel interference. 6
 Test 2
Find the cochannel interference area which affects a cell site

Figure 2.2 Cochannel interference at the cell site

7
 In this test, we will be recording the signal strength at every cochannel cell

site while a mobile unit is travelling either in its own cell or in one of the
cochannel cells as shown in Fig 2.2.
 The carrier-to-interference ratio received at a desired cell, say the Jth cell
site
as follows

 The test can be carried out repeatedly for any given cell. We then compare
and determine cochannel interference condition which will be the same as
that in Test 1.

8
Real‐Time Cochannel Interference Measurement at Mobile Radio
Transceivers

• signal is
• interference is

• The received signal is

• where
•

9
Design of an Omnidirectional antenna system in the worst case

 The worst case is at the location where the mobile unit would receive the
weakest signal from its own cell site but strong interferences from all
interfering cell sites.

10
Fig : co-channel interference in an omnidirectional antenna system in
Worst case.

Source: Mobile Cellular Communication,Gottapu Sasibhushana Rao 11

 We know that, q=D/R, simplifying the above equation results in

Source:Mobile Cellular Communication,Gottapu Sasibhushana Rao 12

• For k=7, q=4.6
• Substituting q=4.6 in the above equation
• C/I = 54.3, converting this to dB
• C/I in dB = 10 log(54.3) = 17.34 dB < 18 dB
• Don’t implement Omnidirectional antenna
• interference is present

K C/I worst case C/I normal case

4 11.32 dB 13 dB
7 17.34 dB 18 dB
9 21 dB 20 dB

13
Design of a Directional Antenna System

 Call traffic begins to increase

 Use the frequency spectrum efficiently
 Avoid increasing the number of cells
When K increases, the number of frequency channels assigned in a cell
must become smaller.
 the efficiency of applying the frequency‐reuse scheme decreases
Directional Antennas in K = 7 Cell Patterns

15
 Three‐Sector Case

Fig: Single cell divided into 3 sectors of 120 degrees each

Source: Mobile Cellular Communication,Gottapu Sasibhushana Rao 16

 Three‐Sector Case(contd..)
2

3
1

6 4

Source: Mobile Cellular Communication,Gottapu Sasibhushana Rao 17

 Three‐Sector Case(contd..)
• The mobile unit at position E will experience greater interference in
the lower shaded cell sector than in the upper shaded cell‐sector
site.
• This is because the mobile receiver receives the weakest signal from its
own cell but fairly strong interference from the
interfering cell.

18
Let q = 4.6; then, the above equation becomes
C/I (Worst case) = 24.55 dB >>> 18 dB

The C / I could be 6 dB weaker than 24.55 dB given in in a heavy

traffic area as a result of irregular terrain contour and imperfect
cell site locations. The remaining 18.5 dB is still adequate.
 18.55 dB > 18 dB

19
• For 120 degrees antenna system
• K=4, q=??
C/I (worst case-3 sector) in dB = 19.86 dB

• K=9, q=??
C/I (worst case – 3 sector) in dB = 26.55 dB

20
 Six-sector case

Fig: Single cell divided into 6 sectors of 60 degrees each

21

Source: Mobile Cellular Communication,Gottapu Sasibhushana Rao

 Six-sector case(contd..)

22

Source: Mobile Cellular Communication,Gottapu Sasibhushana Rao

 Six‐sector Case

• divide a cell into six sectors by using six 60°‐beam directional antennas
• only one instance of interference can occur in each sector

• For q = 4.6,

• subtract 6 dB from the result of Eq. (6.5‐4), the remaining 23 dB is still

more than adequate.
• When heavy traffic occurs, the 60°‐sector configuration can be used to
reduce cochannel interference.
• For 60 degrees antenna system
• K=4, q=??
C/I (worst case-3 sector) in dB = 24.7 dB

• K=9, q=??
C/I worst case – 3 sector) in dB =30.8 dB

24
Non Cochannel Interference
 Types of Noncochannel Interference

 Adjacent channel Interference

 Near‐End‐Far‐End Interference

 Interference between systems

 UHF TV Interference

 Long distance interference

 Adjacent channel Interference

 Adjacent channel Interference includes

 next-channel (the channel next to the operating channel)

interference
 neighboring-channel (more than one channel away from the
operating channel) interference

 Adjacent channel interference can be eliminated on the basis of the

channel assignment, the filter characteristics, and the reduction of the
near-end-far-end (ratio) interference.
 Next-channel Interference

 Next-channel interference will arrive at the mobile unit from other cell

sites if the system is not properly designed.

 A mobile unit initiating a call on a control channel in a cell may cause

interference with the next control channel at another cell site.

 The methods for reducing this next-channel interference use the

receiving end.
 The filter with a sharp falloff slope can help to reduce all the adjacent

channel interference, including the next-channel interference.

 Neighboring-channel Interference

 The channels which are several channels away from the next channel

will cause interference with the desired signal.

 Usually, a fixed set of serving channels is assigned to each cell site.

 If all the channels are simultaneously transmitted at one cell-site

antenna, a sufficient amount of band isolation between channels is

required for a multichannel combiner to reduce intermodulation

products.
 Near‐End‐Far‐End Interference

 In one Cell
 Motor vehicles in a given cell are usually moving, some mobile units

are close to the cell site and some are not.

 The close-in mobile unit has stronger signal which causes adjacent

channel interference.
 In this , near-end-far-end interference can occur only at the

reception point in the cell site.

 A separation of 5B(five channel bandwidths) is needed for two
adjacent channels in a cell in order to avoid the near-end-far-end
interference.
 Near‐End‐Far‐End Interference

Figure 4.1: Near-end-far-end Interference in one cell

 Near‐End‐Far‐End Interference
(In cells of two systems)

Figure 4.2: Near-end-far-end Interference in two-system cells

 Near‐End‐Far‐End Interference
(In cells of two systems)
 In cells of two systems
 Adjacent channel interference can occur between two systems in a

duopoly market system.

 In this, adjacent channel interference can occur at both the cell site
and the mobile unit.
 For instance , mobile unit A can be located at the boundary of its
own home cell A in system A but very close to cell B of system B as
shown in Figure 4.2.
 The other situation would occur if mobile unit B were at the
boundary of cell B of system B but very close to cell A of system A.
 From the definition of near-end-far-end interference, the solid arrow indicates

that interference may occur at cell site A and the dotted arrow indicates that

interference may occur at mobile unit A.

 The same interference will be introduced at cell site B and mobile unit B.

Solution:

 The frequency channels of both cells of the two systems must be coordinated

in the neighborhood of the two-system frequency bands.

Spectrum allocation with new additional spectrum