Rohde & Schwarz and Nomor Research provide real-world, cost-efficient LTE base station receiver test solutions

The uplink inter-cell interference signal is then physically generated by signal generators from Rohde & Schwarz. The solution elegantly circumvents the costly requirement of deploying a large number of base stations with multiple UEs to simulate realistic load generation. It is suitable for both LTE field trials and in test lab environments.



In LTE, realistic uplink inter-cell interference is essential for testing radio resource management (RRM) algorithms and overall performance. Traditional methods of interference modeling (e.g. using AWGN interference sources) are not reliable because of the particular algorithms used in the OFDMA-based access schemes such as SC-FDMA in LTE uplink. This is especially true at the cell boundaries. Using realistic uplink interference in a lab or field trial environment provides a much better evaluation of the base station‘s receiver performance in real-life conditions.

Nomor Research offers a large number of interference files that conform to the requirements of network operators and are acknowledged as being representative of the interference that future LTE networks are likely to encounter. Files for the standard package modeling uplink interference are provided at no cost under a temporary evaluation license agreement (ELA) from Nomor Research and can be used with any Rohde & Schwarz vector signal generator, e.g. the R&S SMU200A or the R&S SMBV100A.

“We saw the first LTE networks coming to life during 2010 and significantly more are expected to start commercial operation in 2011. With growing competition it will be essential to ensure superior performance in real-life conditions without having to conduct expensive and time-consuming tests. The solution developed will greatly assist infrastructure providers and network operators in achieving their goals”, said Hans-Joerg Strufe, Head of Product Management for signal generators at Rohde & Schwarz.

“When LTE networks become popular, they will be more heavily loaded. System performance will no longer be limited by the link budget, but will depend on how the network performs in severe inter-cell interference situations. Already today, our joint test solution allows LTE base stations to be tested in various deployment scenarios under varying load and traffic conditions. This prepares network equipment for large-scale deployment”, said Eiko Seidel, Chief Technical Officer at Nomor Research.