_______________________________________________________________Document on Frequency Hopping

FREQUENCY HOPPING
What is Frequency Hopping?
Frequency Hopping is an old technique introduced firstly in military transmission system
to ensure the secrecy of communications and combat jamming. Frequency Hopping is
mechanism in which the system changes the frequency (uplink and downlink) during
transmission at regular intervals. t allows the !F channel used for signaling channel
("#$$H) timeslot or traffic channel (%$H) timeslots& to change frequency every %#'(
frame ().*+, ms). %he frequency is changed on a per burst basis& which means that all
the bits in a burst are transmitted in the same frequency.
Advantages of Frequency Hopping
1. Frequency Diversity
n cellular urban environment& multipath propagation e-ists in most cases. #ue to
!ayleigh fading& short.term variations in received level are frequently observed. %his
mainly affects stationary or quasi.stationary mobiles. For a fast moving mobile& the
fading situation can be avoided from one burst to another because it also depends on the
position of the mobile so the problem is not so serious. Frequency Hopping is able to
take the advantage due to frequency selective nature of fading to decrease the number of
errors and at the same time they are temporally spread. (s a result& the decoding and de.
interleaving processes can more effectively remove bit errors caused by bursts received
whilst on fading frequencies (errors will be randomly distributed instead of having long
bursts of errors). %his increase in effectiveness leads to a transmission quality
improvement of the same proportion.
Frame /rasure !ate reduces due to * d0 to 1 d0 gain.
2umber of reports with r-qual * and 3 reduce.
!eported values of r-lev are more concentrated around mean.
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_______________________________________________________________Document on Frequency Hopping
2. Interference Aver!in!
nterference (veraging means spreading raw bit errors (0/! caused by the interference)
in order to have random distribution of errors instead of having burst of errors& and
therefore& enhance the effectiveness of decoding and de.interleaving process to cope with
the 0/! and lead to better value of F/!.
4ith hopping& the set of interfering calls will be continually changing and the effect is
that all the calls e-perience average quality rather than e-treme situations of either good
or bad quality. (ll the calls suffer from controlled interference but only for short and
distant periods of time& not for all the duration of the call.
For the same capacity& Frequency Hopping improves quality and for a given average
quality Frequency Hopping makes possible increase in capacity.
4hen more than 5 6 of the reports have r-qual of * or 3 then voice quality
disturbances start to appear.
7ains (reduction in the $8 value needed to satisfy the quality requirements involved
in the criterion) from hopping relative to fi-ed frequency operation can be achieved.
+85 interference9 + d0 gain
i.e. if + out of 5 frequencies are e-periencing a continuous interference a gain of + d0
in $8 requirement is obtained.
"imilarly&
+8) interference9 ) d0 gain
+8, interference9 * d0 gain
:8) interference9 ; d0 gain
:8, interference9 ) d0 gain
%he effective gain obtained with Frequency Hopping is due to the fact that the
interference effect is minimi<ed and it is easier to keep it under control.
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_______________________________________________________________Document on Frequency Hopping
&ypes of Frequency Hopping
%here are two ways of implementing Frequency Hopping in a 0ase "tation "ystem& one
referred as 0ase 0and Frequency Hopping (00H) and another as "ynthesi<er Frequency
Hopping ("FH). %heir operation differs in the way they establish the 0ase to 'obile
"tation link (downlink)& however there is not difference at all between 'obile "tation to
0ase "tation link in both types of hopping. 'otorola does not allow 00H and "FH to be
used together on the same site
1. "se "n# Frequency H$%%in!
%his is accomplished by routing the traffic channel data through fi-ed frequency #!$=s
via the %#' highway on a timeslot basis. n this case& the #!$= would have fi-ed
tuned transmitters combined either in low loss tuned combiners or hybrid combiners.
#!$= always transmits fi-ed frequency.
%he information for every call is moved among the available #!$=s on a per burst
basis. (0urst of ,33 s)
$all hops between same timeslots of all #!$=s.
>rocessing (coding and interleaving) is done by digital part associated with #!$= on
which call was initially assigned.
For uplink ? call is always processed by #!$= on which the call was initially
assigned.
2umber of #!$=s needed is equal to the number of frequencies in the hopping
sequence.
0$$H frequency can be included in the hopping sequence.
>ower control does not apply to 0$$H or bursts transmitting 0$$H frequency.
0$$H& timeslot ; will never hop.
(ny timeslot with $$$H will never hop.
%imeslot carrying all "#$$Hs can hop.
f a network running with fi-ed frequency plan is switched over to 00H (0$$H included
in '( list) without any frequency changes& significant quality improvement can be
observed in the network. (s a result drop call rate reduces in the network. (lternatively&
for the e-isting network quality additional capacity can be provided. FH can be used
effectively in 00H. Further details regarding FH planning are discussed later in the
document.
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_______________________________________________________________Document on Frequency Hopping
2. &ynt'esi(er Frequency H$%%in!
%his is accomplished by high speed switching of the transmit and receive frequency
synthesi<ers of the individual #!$=s. (s a result of dynamic nature of the transmit
frequency& broadband (hybrid) combining of the transmitters is necessary.
#!$= changes transmitting frequency every burst.
$all stays on the same #!$= where it started.
!emote tune combiners (!%$) are not allowed.
2umber of #!$=s is not related to number of frequencies in hopping sequence.
0$$H can be included in the hopping sequence9
+. f 0$$H is included in the hopping sequence& timeslots + to 3 can not be used to
carry traffic. %hey transmit dummy burst when 0$$H frequency is not in the
burst. 4henever 0$$H frequency is being transmitted in a burst by #!$=& it
will be transmitted at full power.
:. 0$$H #!$= will never hop. t either carries traffic in timeslots + to 3 or it
transmits dummy bursts.
%ransmission and reception is done on the same timeslot and same #!$=.
Frequency Hopping Parameters
7"' defines the following set of parameters9
)$*i+e A++$cti$n ,)A-. "et of frequencies the mobile is allowed to hop over.
'a-imum of *5 frequencies can be defined in the '( list.
H$%%in! &equence Nu/*er ,H&N-. #etermines the hopping order used in the cell. t is
possible to assign *) different H"2s. "etting H"2 @ ; provides cyclic hopping sequence
and H"2 @ + to *5 provide various pseudorandom hopping sequences.
)$*i+e A++$cti$n In#e0 Offset ,)AIO-. #etermines inside the hopping sequence&
which frequency the mobile starts to transmit on. %he value of '(A ranges between ;
to (2.+) where 2 is the number of frequencies defined in the '( list. '(A is set on
per carrier basis.
'otorola has defined an additional parameter& FH.
Frequency H$%%in! In#ict$r ,FHI-. #efines a hopping system& made up by an
associated set of frequencies ('() to hop over and sequence of hopping (H"2). %he
value of FH varies between ; to 5. t is possible to define all ) FHs in a single cell.
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_______________________________________________________________Document on Frequency Hopping
'otorola system allows to define the hopping system on a per timeslot basis. "o
different hopping configurations are allowed for different timeslots. %his is very useful
for interference averaging and to randomi<e the distribution of errors.
'(" a$gorithm
7"' has defined an algorithm for deciding hopping sequence. %he algorithm is used to
generate 'obile (llocation nde- ('() for a given set of parameters.
(!F$29 absolute radio frequency channel number
'(9 mobile allocation frequencies.
'(A9 'obile allocation offset (; to 2.+)& where 2 is the number of frequencies defined
in '(.
H"29 Hopping sequence number (;.*5)
%+9 "uper frame number (;.:;)3)
%:9 %$H multiframe number (;.:,)
%59 "ignaling multiframe number (;.,;)
%his algorithm generates a pseudorandom sequence of '(s. '( along with '(A
and '( will decide the actual (!F$2 to be used for the burst.
P$anning for Frequency Hopping
1. Frequency P+n.
Frequency Hopping plan differs from the conventional fi-ed frequency plan. %he plan
depends upon the type of Frequency Hopping system used. n case of "FH including
0$$H frequency in hopping sequence is not a practical option& as it results in loss of
traffic channels on 0$$H carrier. ( separate frequency plan is prepared for the 0$$H
carriers. %his planning is very much similar to the conventional fi-ed frequency plan
with lesser number of frequencies. %his plan needs to be done very carefully as the
system monitors cells based on the 0$$H frequency only. "ince 0$$H carrier radiates
continuously without downlink power control& frequencies used for 0$$H on one cell
should not be used as hopping frequencies on other cell. %he reason is to avoid
continuous interference from 0$$H carriers. %he benefits of hopping increase if more
frequencies are available for hopping. 7enerally the frequency band is divided into two
parts& one used for 0$$H frequency plan and other for hopping frequencies. %he
division of frequency band for allocation of 0$$H and hopping carriers should be done
to maintain reasonable $8 for 0$$H carriers as well as to have enough frequencies for
hopping.
e.g. consider a network with 5+ frequencies& using +: frequencies for 0$$H and using +1
for hopping with + frequency as guard& is the ideal option. 0ut it may not be practically
possible to plan 0$$Hs with +: frequencies ()8+: reuse). =sing +, for 0$$H plan and
+, for hopping frequencies is more practical. %here always e-ists a trade.off between
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_______________________________________________________________Document on Frequency Hopping
0$$H and hopping plans. =sing very less frequencies for 0$$H plan might result in
poor quality on 0$$H carrier and the advantages of having quality improvement on
hopping carriers may be lost.
n case of 00H& generally 0$$H carrier is included in the hopping sequence. %he
benefits of 00H can be obtained only when most of the sites in the network are having
more than one 20$$H carriers. 0enefits of 00H comparable to "FH can only be
obtained by equipping additional hardware in order to include more frequencies in
hopping sequence. However 00H without additional hardware will result in quality
improvements and provide scope of additional capacity as compared to fi-ed frequency
plan though the benefits may not be as significant as seen in "FH.
2. P+nnin! $f H&N.
H"2 allocation to the cells is done in random fashion. Barious scenarios are e-plained
below9
a. '( list is same for all the cells of the site ? n this case H"2 is kept same for all the
cells of the site. '(A is used on per carrier basis to provide offset for starting
frequency in hopping sequence and avoid hits among carriers of the site. >ractically
it is possible to achieve ;6 hit rate within the site& as all the cells of the same site are
synchroni<ed.
b. '( list is same for the cells of different sites ? n this case H"2 should be different
for all such cells. '(A can be same or different in this case as H"2 is different.
c. '( list is different for the cells ? n this case H"2 planning is not important& as there
can not be any hits between these cells.
d. H"2 is set to ; ? %his is the case of cyclic hopping. %he sequence for hopping
remains same and is repeated continuously. %his is not recommended in the urban
environment where frequency reuse is more. %his is because the network is not
synchroni<ed so if there is any one hit it will result in continuous sequence of hits.
$yclic hopping is preferred in rural environment as it provides the ma-imum benefits
of frequency diversity.
1. P+nnin! $f )AIO.
%he benefits of '(A planning can be best achieved only in case when sectors having
same '( list are synchroni<ed. For non.synchroni<ed sectors '(A can be the same.
n the present version (7"!:)& 'otorola does not provide manual '(A setting. t is set
automatically by the system. However from 7"!5 onwards it will be possible to set
'(A manually. t has to be changed on a case to case basis. n cases where there are
large numbers of hits& '(A change can be very effective as it adds the offset in the
hopping sequence and hitrate can be reduced.
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_______________________________________________________________Document on Frequency Hopping
2. P+nnin! $f FHI.
%his parameter is not specified in 7"'. FH is the 'otorola defined hopping system. t
actually means an independent hopping system consisting of '( and H"2. %otal of )
such hopping systems can be set in a cell.
FH can be defined on a timeslot basis.
e.g. consider a cell with 5 carriers i.e. : carriers are hopping. t is then possible to define
) different FHs for +* timeslots. %hat means timeslot ; to 5 of + carrier can have one
FH and so on.
0enefits and #rawbacks of FH
"eparate FH can be defined even for each carrier with separate '( list.
For a fully utili<ed cell& FH can be used to control increase in hitrate during peak
hours. %his can be done by defining different '( list associated with a FH for one
of the carriers.
'ain benefits of FH can be obtained in 00H. $onsider a cell with : carriers using
00H with 0$$H included in the hopping sequence. %imeslot ; of 0$$H will not
hop. ( separate FH (with '( list without 0$$H frequency) has to be defined for
timeslot ; of 20$$H.
#ifferent FHs in the same cell is not used e-tensively in 'otorola networks with
"FH& where 0$$H frequency is not included in hopping sequence.
Ane drawback of using FH on timeslot basis is that it adds more comple-ity to the
database.
3. Reuse %ttern f$r '$%%in! crriers.
$onventionally there are 5 main reuse patterns followed for hopping frequencies.
1 4 1. t means all the cells in the network use the same frequencies for hopping.
e.g. f +, frequencies are to be used for hopping& then every cell will have all +,
frequencies in the '( list. %his type of reuse is useful in urban areas& where capacity
requirement is large. However there is very less planning involved and so less control
over quality problems.
1 4 5. %hree hopping groups are used in 5 sites& one per site. n this case all the sites
should be considered as omni sites for planning frequency reuse. %he advantage of this
scheme is it provides better isolation between sites using same hopping frequencies. %he
problem with this method is that& addition of new site may require frequency replan for
the area.
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_______________________________________________________________Document on Frequency Hopping
1 4 1. %his scheme is very commonly used in 'otorola networks. Hopping frequencies
are divided in 5 groups. /ach cell on a site uses one group and it is repeated on all sites.
e.g. consider a network with standard orientation& all B+ sectors will use the same group
and so on. t is very easy to add a site in the network. %his reuse scheme is suitable for
homogeneous network with minimum overlapping areas. %he problem with this scheme
is in peak hours there may be more hits.
6. Effect $f Frequency H$%%in!
Hn#$vers. 4hen "FH is implemented& 0$$H plan is done using lesser number of
frequencies as compared to fi-ed frequency plan. %his may result in quality degradation.
However quality of hopping carriers improves than before. (lso& quality threshold for
handovers on hopping carrier should be increased as compared to fi-ed frequency plan.
n the present version (7"!:)& same quality threshold settings are set for both 0$$H and
20$$H. %his may result on more drop calls on 0$$H carriers. However 7"! 5
provides separate settings for 0$$H and 20$$H carriers. 0y setting lower quality
thresholds for 0$$H as compared to 20$$H& number of dropped calls can be
controlled.
C++ setu%. n call setup& "#$$H hopping is also possible. %here are no separate
settings required for "#$$H hopping. b "ince 7"!5 allows control over "#$$H
configuration (location of "#$$H on timeslot basis)& "#$$H hopping depends on the
location of "#$$H. n case of "FH (with 0$$H not included in '( list)& if "#$$Hs
are on 0$$H carrier they will not hop whereas "#$$Hs on 20$$H carriers may hop.
7enerally it is preferred to keep "#$$Hs on hopping carriers as they have better $8
compared to 0$$H carriers. $all success rate will depend on the cleanliness of 0$$H
carriers.
Fr/e Ersure Rte ,FER-. F/! indicates the number of %#'( frames that could not
be decoded by the mobile due to interference. %his parameter gives the indication of
hitrate. F/! improves (gain of * to 1 d0) after implementation of frequency hopping.

7. 8$$+s f$r si/u+ti$n n# #rive test. 'otorola uses a tool CHandsemD which can
simulate "FH plan (different reuse patters and H"2 plan). Eatest versions of pla2/% and
7olf are supposed to support Frequency Hopping simulation. #rive test tools that display
decoded layer 5 information are used for monitoring frequency hopping networks.
%/'" is one of the drive test tools that can be used for the purpose.
%eferences)
. 'otorola document on Frequency Hopping for $apacity mprovement (!eview ;.5)
. 'otorola 0"" $ommand !eference
. 7"' !ecommendations ,.;:
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_______________________________________________________________Document on Frequency Hopping
Document Prepared By Ajay Ghanekar
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