Repeaters

Topics
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Introduction to Repeaters Repeater Setup Considerations Procedure in Repeater Cell Setup Repeater Block Diagrams Frequency Shift Repeater Optical Repeater

Repeaters

Introduction to Repeaters

Repeaters

Radio Repeaters
Radio repeaters, or Bi-Directional Amplifiers (BDA)
Works as a bi-directional amplifier to increase the signal between mobiles and base stations, in uplink and downlink direction.

Used for an area with poor coverage in outdoor and indoor environment, or for coverage enhancements in areas blocked by obstacles. Uses a pick up (donor) antenna to receive and amplify the radio signal from a donor cell, and then retransmit from an antenna mounted near the area to be covered. Complete local monitor function and powerful remote repeater network administration (OMC).

Typical applications include

Indoor : conference centre, shopping mall, office building. Radio shadow areas : underground car parks, tunnels, valleys. Coverage extension : motorways.

Repeaters

Typical Repeater Setup

BTS Donar antenna Repeater

Service area antenna

Repeaters

Off-Air Repeater Application

Donor ANT Service ANT

BTS

Repeater Repeater Coverage

BTS Coverage

Extension of BTS Coverage

Repeaters

Benefits of a Repeater
Fast rollout and fast coverage leads to fast return on investment Low build out costs No microwave link and No 2 Mbit- connection needed Less antennas and cable usage, and smaller space required for equipment.

Easy to locate site for installation & coverage Expands coverage areas in: rural, tunnels, in-building, canyons and highways Platform for subscriber growth Acts just like base station

Repeaters

Types of Repeater
Band Selective / Broadband Pico repeater - Good for providing indoor coverage such as office, meeting room, function room and stairway etc. In-line Booster - Boost signal power in feeder cables. Bandwidth Adjustable Suitable for Inbuilding coverage. Outdoor coverage in rural and sub-urban areas.
-40 Centre frequency Frequency dB 0 -3 Typical 7 MHz Typical 25 MHz Typical 7 MHz

-40 Centre frequency dB 0 -3 390 kHz 390 kHz Frequency

Operator's band

Repeaters

Types of Repeater
Channel Selective Suitable for providing coverage in high rise buildings. Outdoor coverage in urban areas where frequencies reuse is tight.
dB 0 -3 approx 200 kHz

-40 190 kHz dB approx 200 kHz 190 kHz 390 kHz Operator's TCH band 390 kHz Frequency

Hybrid Repeater Suitable for use in synthesize frequency hopping network.

0 -3

-40 190 kHz

Repeaters

Centre 190 kHz frequency

Frequency

Repeater System Components

BDA To BTS Yagi antenna Panel antenna To MS service area coaxial Battery backup coaxial

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Donor Antennas
Donor antenna must be directed towards the donor cell (LOS) so that there is
stronger received downlink power from BTS. minimum downlink amplification needed.

minimum spurious or interfering signals; i.e. higher C/I. stronger uplink signals to the BTS.

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Donor Antenna
Popular belief that Yagis are best fitted as a donor antenna.

Yagis have low gains and high horizontal sidelobe

levels.

Radiation pattern of a typical 12 dBi Yagi antenna

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Donor Antenna
30 - 40 corner reflector or log-periodic antennas are better suited with higher gain (~18dBi) and F/B ratio (> 40dB).

Radiation pattern of a 30 degree, 18 dBi corner reflector antenna

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Donor Antenna
Grid Parabolic Antennas are best suited for repeater applications.

Very high gain : 18 ~ 25 dBi Narrow beamwidth : < 10 deg

Radiation pattern of a typical 23 dBi grid parabolic antenna

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Service Antenna
Planar antenna with broad radiation pattern, depending on requirements
lower gain antenna gives broader vertical beamwidth. use radiating cable for better vertical fill.

Antenna is directed to the center of the coverage area. For tunnels, use Yagi antennas. For indoor, use special indoor antennas. Use minimum 7/8" coaxial cable to minimize loss

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Outdoor Repeater Applications

Most Repeaters Systems are interfaced with the common Outdoor and Indoor applications. We integrate Channel Selective Repeaters and Band Selective Repeaters to give coverage in rural and urban areas.

Repeater coverage for a main road

Island Coverage when microwave link is not possible / available

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Typical Coverage Improvements

Blk 135

Blk 135

Before
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After
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Repeater Setup Considerations

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Antenna Isolation
A repeater can act as an oscillator if the signal feedback is greater than the gain.
Isolation between donor & service antenna should be at least 10 - 15 dB more than system gain. Fair distance from donor antenna for proper isolation is estimated to be 10-15m vertical spacing.

To measure, inject a known power into one antenna (or use tracking generator function), Spectrum & measure the Analyzer Donor level received by the other on a
spectrum analyzer.
isolation

Service

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Factors Affecting Isolation

Antenna Pattern
Antenna null should be pointing towards the other antenna. Donor and Service antennas should have high F/B ratio.

Vertical Separation

Narrow vertical aperture in the vertical antenna pattern.

Environmental Separation
Reflection and attenuation properties of materials near the antenna can influence isolation drastically. Concrete towers improves isolation as signals are attenuated and reflected.

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Effective Donor Path Loss (EDoPL)

ERP PLBTS-RR Lcoax EDoPL BTS Lcoax PLRR-MS(min) MSmin MSmax Donor Repeater Service PLRR-MS(max)

This comprises all losses and gains between the BTS output and the donor port of the repeater. EDoPL is assumed to be equal for uplink and downlink. EDoPL can be found by

checking with the Switch the BTS power setting, PBTS;

connecting a spectrum analyzer to the end of the donot cable and reading the received level, Pin-rr; EDoPL = PBTS - Pin-rr
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Effective Donor Path Loss (EDoPL)

The uplink noise level arriving from the repeater to the BTS Nu = Nth-rr + Grr + NFrr - EDoPL where Nth-rr = thermal noise of a GSM channel (-121 dBm @ 20C) Grr = uplink gain setting of repeater NFrr = repeater noise figure (typ 5 to 9 dB) To minimize noise interference at the BTS, let Nu be 3 dB less than thermal noise of BTS, Nth-bts; i.e. Nu = -(121+3) = -124 dBm. Assuming NFrr = 7 dB, the maximum repeater gain setting is determined by Nu = Nth-rr + Grr + NFrr - EDoPL -124 = -121 + Grr + 7 - EDoPL Grr = EDoPL - 10
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Repeater Saturation
Downlink Repeater input power (Pin) is too strong
Pin (dBm) => Pout (dBm) - Minimum Gain (dB) May need external attenuator

Repeater Gain set too High

Maximum Gain (dB) <= Pout - Pin (dBm)

Uplink Saturation is most important in indoor applications.

MS goes into full power when switched on. The use of an indoor distribution network reduces the risk of saturation due to increased feeder and splitter losses.

In outdoor, service antenna is usually mounted at a height. *Automatic Level Control will prevent repeater saturation
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Timing Advance & Delay Spread

Repeaters have filters that cause delays of around 5 s.
reduces the maximum distance between MS and BTS from 35 km to 33.5 km. Needs to be considered when implementation in rural areas.

Delay Spread
can be compensated by the GSM system if the C/I > 9 dB or delay spread is less than 15.5 s. Placing the repeater between the donor BTS and the service area satisfies this requirement.

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Interference & Handover

Band selective repeaters must be used with caution on sites close to the cell border
Signal strength of donor and adjacent cells are close. May result in some calls being originated at an adjacent cell but outside its cell borders. Donor antenna performance is important.

Problem do not occur for channel selective repeaters

Only the chosen GSM channels are repeated. Superior to band selective for outdoor large area coverage.

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Important Repeater Specifications

Broadband, Band Selective, Channel Selective, Hybrid. Number of channels. Output power per carrier. Maximum gain and adjustable range. Noise figure. Automatic gain control. Spurious emission : 36 dBm in G9 band (ETS 300342). : 30 dBm in G18 band Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF). Other features
remote connection via PSTN or GSM modem. Interface to OMC.

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Repeater Site Selection

Good LOS (Line Of Sight) with donor cell and intended coverage area. Good donor signal level received at site.
Example: A repeater with maximum 95dB gain and 37dBm output power requires a minimum input signal of -58dBm to produce max output power.

Sufficient antenna mounting space for good isolation. Good air ventilation with shelter (preferred). Easy access to repeater.

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Procedure in Repeater Cell Setup

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Steps In Setting Up Repeater Cell

Pre-Installation Drive Test Repeater Design

Repeater Installation Repeater Commissioning

Post-Installation Drive Test Optimization

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Pre-Installation Drive Test

Determine drive test route for existing coverage area. Identify weak spots. Repeater Coverage Design

Before

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Repeater Installation
Optimize Donor Antenna
Spectrum Analyzer Service Donor

Isolation Measurement
isolation

Configure Repeater

Test Calls

Optimize Coverage

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Repeater Installation
Optimize Donor Antenna
Direct Donor antenna towards donor cell. Scan for optimum donor carrier strength using spectrum analyzer. Adjust antenna until maximum donor signal strength is achieved.

Measurement of Coupling Loss (Isolation)

Measure the signal received by the other antenna on a spectrum analyzer. Isolation (coupling loss) is the difference between the 2 power levels. Inject a signal of known power level into one antenna.

Configure Repeater
Set to carrier frequency/bandwidth. Adjust Attenuation to achieve optimum DL & UL output power. Set appropriate threshold for alarms.

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Repeater Installation
Test Calls

Calls set up and voice quality. Test for any abnormal drop calls. Handovers between neighbour cells.

Optimize Service Antenna

Orientate antenna to achieve desired network coverage.

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Post-Installation Drive Test

Perform drive test on pre-determined route. Verify coverage enhancement at weak spots. Optimize repeater coverage
Repeater Cell
Blk 135

After

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Impact on Donor Cell

Enhanced network coverage at affected areas. Increase in cell traffic. Possible congestion due to increase in traffic. Higher handover in donor cell due to increase in traffic. Higher drop calls due to more handover and traffic congestion.

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Repeater Block Diagrams

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Channel Selective Repeater

ALC

C-ATT PA1 M-ATT LNA1

40dB Channel Filter f1 f1 ALC 20dB

Downlink

C-ATT PA2
20dB f2 DL Freq Select Module

Donor Ant DT

-30dB Test f2 ALC

Channel Filter

Mobile MT
-30dB Test

Ant

C-ATT PA3
20dB Channel f1 ALC Filter f1

Mobile

M-ATT
40dB

LNA2

PA4 C-ATT
20dB

Uplink
Channel f2 Filter f2

OMT Computer with Data card

UL Freq Select Module

Alarm Wireless Modem Modem Indicator

Main Control Unit

Power Supply

Li-ion BATT

OMC OMT

External Power

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Bandwidth Adjustable Repeater

ALC M-ATT LNA1 Band Test Downlink f1 Band f2 C-ATT PA1

Donor Ant DT

Filter f1 f2 Filter DL Freq Select Module

Mobile Ant

ALC C-ATT PA2 Band f2 Filter Band Filter f1 Uplink M-ATT LNA2

Test

MT

Mobile

f2 f1 UL Freq Select Module

OMT Computer with Data card

Modem

Alarm Indicator

Main Control Unit

Power Supply

Li-ion BATT

Wireless Modem External Power

OMC

OMT

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Band Selective Repeater

ALC M-ATT CDMA Freq FC1, FC2 fC1, fC2 -30dB Test LNA1 30dB Downlink f1 Band Filter f1 15dB C-ATT PA1

CDMA Freq FC1, FC2

fC1, fC2

Donor Ant

DL Freq Select Module -20dB Test M-ATT LNA2 15dB f2 Channel Filter 30dB f2 Uplink

Mobile Ant

ALC C-ATT PA3

Mobile

UL Freq Select and PA Module OMT Computer with Data card Modem Wireless Modem

Alarm Indicator Main Control Unit

Power Supply

Li-ion BATT

External Power

OMC

OMT

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Hybrid Repeater
ALC

C-ATT

PA1

-30dB Test

M-ATT LNA1
40dB

Downlink

20dB

C-ATT
20dB

f1

Band Filter

f1+fo

f2

Band Filter

f2+fo

DL Band Freq Select Module ALC

PA2
Channel f3 Filter f3+fo DL Channel Freq

Donor Ant DT
PA3
Band f2+fo Filter f2 f1+fo Band Filter f1 ALC

Select Module

Mobile Ant
-30dB Test

MT
Mobile

C-ATT
20dB

M-ATT LNA2
40dB

UL Band Freq Select Module ALC

C-ATT PA4 OMT Computer with Data card

UL Channel Freq Select Module f3+fo Channel Filter f3 20dB

Downlink

Wireless Modem

Alarm Indicator Modem

Main Control Unit

Power Supply

Li-ion BATT

External Alarm Sensors

OMC
External Power

OMT

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Indoor Band Selective Repeater

ALC

M-ATT LNA1
30dB -30dB Band f1 Filter f1+fo

PA1 Downlink

Donor Ant DT

Test

DL Freq Select and PA Module

Mobile Ant MT

ALC

M-ATT PA2
f1+fo Band Filter 30dB f1

LNA2 Uplink
Mobile

UL Freq Select and PA Module

OMT Computer with Data card

Wireless Modem Modem

Alarm Indicator

Main Control Unit

Power Supply

Li-ion BATT

External Alarm Sensors

OMC OMT

External Power 220VAC

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Indoor Wideband Booster

ALC

M-ATT LNA1 Downlink PA1

Donor Ant DT
ALC

Mobile Ant MT
M-ATT PA2 Uplink LNA2
Mobile

Alarm

Main Control Unit

Power Supply

Li-ion BATT

Computer with OMT Data card

Modem

Indicator

Wireless Modem Power 220VAC External

OMT OMC

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Frequency Shift Repeater

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Limitations of a Conventional Repeater

High uplink noise, especially for band-selective and wideband repeaters
Repeater coverage is uplink limited, based on thermal noise level reaching the BTS Requires careful uplink gain setting

Difficulty in deploying high power repeaters

Minimum isolation requirements or risk of oscillation Requires careful choice of donor and service antenna

Requires large tower for effective implementation Dependent on best donor traffic conditions Mainly suited for use in indoor coverage

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FSR vs Repeater
A conventional repeater can act as an oscillator if the signal feedback is greater than the gain.

Isolation between donor and service antenna should be at least 10 - 15 dB more than system gain. Fair distance from donor antenna for proper isolation; e.g. 15-20 m vertical separation and at least 120 degree horizontal separation for normal repeater setup for high gain operation

Isolation

Vertical Separation

The FSR works on the principle that the output signal frequency of a channel selective repeater is shifted from the input frequency

lower antenna isolation requirement (e.g. 70dB for inband FSR regardless the system gain) Fair distance from donor antenna for proper isolation; e.g. 1-2 m vertical separation; less stringent horizontal separation requirement
Repeaters

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Frequency Shift Repeater (FSR)

The FSR is a point-to-multipoint, frequency-shifting repeater system that overcomes antenna isolation problem in conventional repeater system. Supports 2 or 4 channel frequencies. Available in 2W, 10W or 20W. Comprises of Master Unit (Direct or Wireless Coupling) and Remote Unit. Available in GSM-DCS, GSM-GSM, DCS-DCS, GSM-CDMA, GSM-1.5GHz. Wireless remote and local monitor function (OMT). Optional powerful remote repeater network administration (OMC).

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System Applications
Point-to-Point using Direct Coupling Main Unit.

1800MHz RU

MU
900MHz 900MHz 900MHz

GSM BTS

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System Applications
Point-to-Point using Wireless Coupling Main Unit.

Internal or Ext Antenna

Internal or Ext Antenna

Wireless Coupling Main Unit

Remote Unit

GSM Mobile

GSM BTS

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System Applications
Point-to-Multipoint using Direct Coupling Main Unit.
RU F2 MU

F1

F2 F1
GSM BTS

F1 F1

F2 RU RU

F1 F1 F1 F1 F1 F1

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System Applications
Point-to-Multipoint using Wireless Coupling Main Unit.
WC MU F2 RU F1

F1

F1 F2
GSM BTS

F2

F1 RU

RU

F1 F1 F1 F1 F1 F1

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Optical Repeater

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System Block Diagram

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Main Unit Block Diagram

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Remote Unit Block Diagram

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Optical Repeater Applications

Fiber optic coupled Repeaters are often used for In- Buildings and also for some outdoor systems. Airports and underground exhibition halls are some of the common areas where fiber optic repeaters are used.

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Summary
1. Introduction to Repeaters 2. Repeater Setup Considerations 3. Procedure in Repeater Cell Setup 4. Repeater Block Diagrams 5. Frequency Shift Repeater 6. Optical Repeater

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