Weak Coverage (Coverage hole) - 4G/5G

Weak Coverage (Coverage hole) - 4G/5G

Coverage is measured in downlink using reference signal received power (RSRP). If Received Signal Received Power (RSRP) is less than certain threshold to maintain service, then weak coverage area (or coverage hole) is created. This threshold to maintain service is termed as “qRxlevelmin”.

There are multiple factors which lead to weak coverage such as –

1. Geographical conditions, Propagation conditions, and terrain types. Any obstacle in the wireless radio environment leads to reflection, diffraction, scattering & impacts the signal propagation.

2. Inadequate planning & implementation – Physical parameters such as Antenna type, height, azimuth, tilt, etc. are not planned and implemented properly. Poor implementation at base station leads to impedance mismatches (high vswr), high losses etc.

3. Unsuitable RF parameters – Soft parameters such as transmitted power (EIRP), qrxlevmin, inter-RAT cell reselection/HO settings, RS power setting, power offsets etc. are not defined appropriately.

There are a few other factors but the above are key factors contributing to weak coverage (coverage hole). Will share the parameters & its optimization related to coverage in next post.

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