Border LA Site Congestion

ISSUE: CS and PS RAB Congestion in Cells at Border LA (Location Area).

DESCRIPTION: Customer has identified several cells with CS and PS RAB Congestion located at Border LA. Also, customer has compared Congestion level between cells with similar number of HSDPA Users and identified that only the cells at Border LA have congestion.

ANALISYS: CS and PS RAB Congestion reported by the customer in Cells at Border LAC are related to DL Power Congestion. DL Power Congestion is due power used from the high number of DCH Connection by Location Area Update (LAU) and Routing Area Update (RAU).

At Figure 1, we can look the increase of DCH UEs after change the Location Area Code (LAC) in the cell XXXA, after the change this cell is at border LA.

Figure 1. RAB_DL_Power_Cong VS. Cell_DCH_UEs, after LAC in XXXA

The increase of DCH Connections increases DL Power Used by Non HS Services.

Figure 3. DL_Power_Use VS. Cell_DCH_UEs

The principal different between one cell at Border LA and other cell outside border LA, when these cells have similar number of HSDPA users, is the use of DCH Channel by LAU and RAU performed by the cell at Border LA. Therefore the probability of congestion from the cell at border LA is greater.

Figure 4. VS.HSDPA.UE.MeanCell XXXA VS YYYA

Figure 5. VS.CellDCHUEs XXXA VS YYYYA

Figure 6. RAB_DL_Power_Cong - XXXA VS YYYA

Conclusions and Recommendations:

- Increase of DL Power Use from Cell at Border LAC is a normal behavior due the high number of DCH Connections by LAU and RAU. - Probability of congestion from cells at border LA is greater than others outside border LA, when these cells have similar number of HSDPA users. - The following suggestions are useful to reduce the impact of cells at border LAC: 1. Choose LAC boundaries where user mobility and number of users are reduced. 2. Reduce the number of Cell Reselection attempts between Inter-LAC Neighbors using parameter IDLEQOFFSET2SN (suggested values: 2 and 3). 3. Allow users in Idle Mode and R99 to use Second Carrier Cells, to reduce the use of DCH connections in First Carrier Cells. Due Second Carrier Deployment of Guatemala City is just in hot spot cells, this change should be handled carefully because could be increase Drop Call Probability for R99 users (Voice users).