Agilent Technologies

E7475A GSM Drive-Test System

Product Overview

Do more than
just detect problems
on your GSM network,
solve them with a
combination phone-
and receiver-based
drive-test system
 Drive-testing shouldn’t
just uncover problems on
your GSM network – it
should allow you to fix
them quickly.
Your GSM business is growing rapidly.
You may be rolling out a brand new
GSM network, in the process of
migrating it to newer data services and
air-interface formats, or expanding
your current network capacity to
keep up with the number of new
subscribers—adding new cell sites and
re-using frequencies to accommodate
service demands.

In any case, keeping your network

optimized is vital. Changes in the
environment continually affect
network performance. You can’t afford
to have unhappy subscribers because
there are holes in your coverage or
because interference is causing
dropped or blocked calls.

To migrate to new technologies and

applications you need a drive-test
system that will expand with your
needs. The E7475A allows complete
scalability on current formats (GSM,
TDMA, CDMA) and future formats
(check for availability). It has features
for site selection, optimization,
troubleshooting, indoor analysis,
benchmarking, etc.

Drive-testing plays an important role

in creating and maintaining a robust
GSM network. But you need a system Your customers expect high quality of service.
that does more than just tell you that
your network has problems!

Our drive-test system provides a fast,

easy way to solve them.

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 Now, you’ll know why you
Manage the complete have a problem, not just
network life cycle where.

With the E7475A drive-test system, Of course, you can perform all the An optional dual-band phone lets you
you’ll be able to detect and resolve traditional call processing tests and seamlessly track handoffs between
network problems quickly before log protocol data. A built-in GPS GSM and DCS bands. Using multiple
minor annoyances turn into major receiver tracks your vehicle’s position, phones with one or more receivers,
sources of customer churn. so that you can characterize network you can quickly benchmark your
performance as it relates to a user’s competitors’ networks, whether
Our unique system combines the location. The system expands trans- they are using GSM, CDMA or
power of an integrated digital receiv- parently from outdoor to indoor other formats.
er and advanced test mobile phone to measurement capability via a software
assess the service coverage of GSM license, battery pack, optional With the E7475A drive-test system,
networks. It allows you to quickly pen-based tablet computer and you’ll make your installation and
evaluate RF signal strength and quali- customized backpack. maintenance teams more efficient
ty, detect co-channel and spurious and you’ll deliver a better quality of
interfering signals, and diagnose com- Easy-to-use software lets you set up service to your customers.
plex RF problems on your GSM900, automatic measurement routines
DCS1800, GSM1900 or Railway GSM complete with alerts and alarms.
(GSM-R) network.

Build-out and turn-up

R&D Brand RF planning Install & Verification/

cleaning commission optimization

Quality of Fraud
Trouble- Network detection/
Service Optimization shooting expansion
(QoS) surveilance

In service

The E7475A covers the complete network life cycle.

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 Deploy your network and
meet acceptance criteria
more quickly
The E7475A has a wide range of fea- The specialized receiver in the drive-
tures that make it useful throughout test system has, amongst others, a
the entire life cycle of a GSM net- CW analyzer to measure the signal of
work including cell-site selection, your test transmitter. Because this
network turn-up, expansion of cell receiver makes measurements and
sites, network optimization and trou- logs data faster than a phone can,
bleshooting. you get a more accurate picture of
potential coverage as you drive
When you first roll out your network around a prospective site. With this
and when you later expand the num- more accurate site survey, you’ll be
ber of cell sites to accommodate able to easily determine just how
more subscribers, you will probably many cells you need for complete RF
use sophisticated computer modeling coverage and how to best tune the
tools to help you determine the best network for optimal performance.
location for your base stations. But
you also need to take live measure- By completing the work quickly and
ments to verify and refine your net- accurately with the integrated sys-
work plan. tem, you’ll reduce your costs too.

Measure CW signals accurately with the E7475A.

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Maximize the return on
your test-equipment budget
Large revenue potential exists The E7475A systems easily converts The backpack uses an internal anten-
for network operators at airports from an outdoor to indoor system na to make indoor test as unobtru-
(international roaming customers), with complete reuse of your invest- sive as possible. The system uses
shopping malls, subways and office ments in receiver and phone hard- scanned maps for ease-of-use and
blocks. Its is crucial to properly opti- ware. By adding an indoor software allows absolute positioning to be able
mize these indoor environments to license, receiver battery packs, an to merge indoor and outdoor data in
maximize performance and revenue. optional pen-based tablet computer post-processing. This allows verifica-
and a specially designed backpack, tion of the complete subscriber expe-
the system can be transparently rience in your network.
reused for both applications.

Accessories designed for Optimize the indoor performance of your wireless network.
comfort and portability.

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 Powerful components
in a compact package
To best measure the performance of
the air interface of your GSM network,
Agilent has combined a series of pow-
erful instrument and computing capa-
bilities in a highly portable package.

• Compact digital receiver with

specialized GSM measurements
and optional, built-in GPS
• Single or dual-band GSM test
mobile phone
• Powerful co-channel interference
measurement
• Powerful software that logs data
and integrates receiver and
phone measurements
• Easy-to-use Windows® 95, 98 or
Windows NT®‚ interface
• Ability to integrate up to four
receivers and four phones into a
single system and user interface
• Flexible export capability to
mapping software for easy
post-processing
• Compatibility with many third-
party post-processing packages
• Scalability between indoor and
outdoor capability

Don’t just find problems—solve them!

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Optimize your network
on an ongoing basis
to ensure customer
satisfaction
The E7475A will help ensure that your Operation of the receiver and test The GSM receiver also provides real-
GSM network is performing efficiently. phone can be linked, so that the time, non-intrusive interference meas-
Traditional phone tools are largely receiver automatically tracks the urements and interferer identification
dependent on network settings to guide phone’s serving cell as you move so that you can detect and troubleshoot
their data collection and measurement. from cell to cell. The test phone logs interfering signals promptly and
The E7475A drive-test system can critical call performance indicators, improve network performance without
measure the power and quality of all including dropped calls and blocked impacting normal operation.
GSM broadcast channels. Different calls, while the receiver decodes the
from a phone-only-based system, it base station identity code (BSIC) and
looks at all the signals present in the measures the power of the GSM
RF environment, not just the signals channels.
that it has been told are there. Unlike
a phone, the receiver is network
independent. A measurement of the
top N broadcast channels helps you
find the true optimal neighbor for
handovers.

Measure all
the broadcast
channels in
your network.

Get the best performance from your network.

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 Identify co-channel interference non-intrusively.

Adjacent
channel
measurements Co-channel
Carrier to carrier
interference information
ratio
Adjacent
channel
graphs

Delay
spread
graph

Co-channel interference information (BSIC and cell name).

Troubleshoot problems
and manage interference
with minimal time and effort
Interference is recognized as a major Whatever the source, interference Specialized measurement algorithms
cause of poor quality and dropped calls. can be hard to identify. Traditional allow the BSIC of the primary signal
As the subscriber density on your tools based on test phones and sim- and that of the strongest interfering
network increases, you may find that ple receivers usually require that you signal to be decoded.
you are being forced to reuse a limited turn off your cell-site while you try to
number of available channels. Using uncover the interfering signal. You To help you further identify sources
these channels in close proximity can may have to move your equipment of interference, the drive system
cause co-channel and adjacent channel from point to point to take stationary includes a built-in spectrum analyzer
interference, which reduces the quality measurements. Such methods are that can help distinguish externally
of the signal received by a subscriber’s tedious and costly to perform. generated noise.
phone and degrades the quality of
the call. The digital receiver in the Agilent
drive-test system saves you this time
Multi-path problems can also occur and expense by enabling you to char-
in the network when a carrier signal acterize interference during normal
is reflected off buildings or other cell-site operation. Non-intrusive
physical obstructions. In other cases, co-channel carrier-to-interference,
interfering signals may arise outside adjacent-channel and multi-path
the network, such as from faulty measurements are made while you
transmitters, pirate radio and televi- drive, helping you quickly identify
sion stations, repeaters or other any sources of internal network
radiating sources. interference.

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 Benchmark
the competition
With competition intensifying, you
are probably interested in how well
your network compares with the net-
works of other cellular operators in
your region. In the past, collecting
competitive data probably meant
owning multiple sets of instruments
or doing multiple drives of the
coverage area.

The E7475A drive-test system can be

configured to handle up to four
phones, all controlled by the same
software on your laptop. It is possible
to configure a system to support
CDMA as well as GSM measurement
hardware. Up to four receivers and
four test mobile phones can be run
from a single laptop controller. So now
it is possible to collect data simulta-
neously from several networks in one
drive, using one system.

Control up to four test mobile phones for competitive comparisons.

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 Put measurement data
to work immediately
With highly automated measurements VCR-type controls. You can jump
and flexible alert and alarm functions, forward or backward in the file to
many more of your technicians can the location of recorded alarms
perform drive-tests and gather data. and notes.
The alerts and alarms can be set to
trigger on almost any combination of Data recorded by the drive system
complex measurement conditions, or can easily be exported to post-
they can simply be set to warn the processing tools such as Map Info,
driver when the laptop battery is spreadsheets or many third-party
running low, or if post-processing tools.
the GPS antenna is
taken out. An optional real-time line trace map
is included that can show the base
The system records station positions and plot a single
measurements to a measurement result. The system will
disk file that can be update the map plotting line data
played back using from the GPS coordinates taken
during the drive.

Easy export to popular post-

processing tools.

Flexible export capabilities allow for easy post-processing.

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Key features
and specifications
GSM test mobile phone GSM digital receiver

The E7475A test mobiles cover the The E7475A digital receivers cover
E-GSM900, DCS1800, GSM1900 and the E-GSM900, DCS1800, GSM1900
dual-mode GSM/DCS frequency and GSM-R frequency bands.
bands.
Use them to:
Use them to: • Manage interference with
• Get a user’s point-of-view of co-channel and adjacent
network performance channel measurements and
• Evaluate call-processing detection of other spurious
operations signals
• Perform selected call processing • Find network problems faster
functions through network independent
• Measure and report the measurements
amplitude of the received base • Reduce network downtime by
station identifying interfering signals
• Measure and report the signal while the network is live
quality of the received base • Identify the BSIC of received
station base stations
• Read and report the neighbor • Measure power and signal
cell list from the broadcast quality on any BCH as the
messages receiver is not restricted to
• Report the amplitude of the network neighbor list
neighbor list base stations • Perform spectrum analysis,
• Log Layer II and Layer III covering both the downlink and
protocol messages in decoded uplink bands
form for easy interpretation • Measure CW channel power

Measure serving and neighbor cells with the test mobile phone.

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 Key features
and specifications (continued)

Decode layer II and III protocol from the test mobile phone.

A spectrum analyzer assists with interference management.

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 Combined test mobile
phone and digital receiver
The E7475A is an integrated phone-
and receiver-based solution that will
help you:

• Monitor the RF uplink and

downlink bands while on a call
• Perform integrated analysis
using the phone and receiver at
the same time
• Correlate call drops within the
RF environment
• Compare network neighbor
list with the actual strongest
neighbor list
• Save training and support costs
with a single-vendor, single-
interface phone and receiver
system Combining receiver and phone gives powerful troubleshooting capabilities.
• Manage your network life cycle
measurement needs with one
integrated solution

E7475A drive-test system.

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 Notes

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Notes

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 Increase the value of your investment Agilent Technologies' Test and Measurement
Support, Services, and Assistance

Caring for your GSM network requires more than good test equipment. Agilent Agilent Technologies aims to maximize the
has the products, knowledge and services to help you and your team do the value you receive, while minimizing your risk
job. The range of services we offer includes productivity assistance, start-up and problems. We strive to ensure that you get
assistance, training and education programs for RF technicians and engineers, the test and measurement capabilities you paid
for and obtain the support you need. Our exten-
on-site product and application consulting, product assistance and more! We
sive support resources and services can help
can help you easily deploy, optimize and support your wireless network. you choose the right Agilent products for your
applications and apply them successfully. Every
More information instrument and system we sell has a global
warranty. Support is available for at least five
years beyond the production life of the product.
We offer application notes that span many of today’s RF network issues: Two concepts underlay Agilent's overall support
• Optimizing Your Wireless Network Today and Tomorrow. policy: "Our Promise" and "Your Advantage."
Solutions for CDMA Networks, Application Note 1345
(literature number 5968-9916E) Our Promise
• Optimizing Your Wireless Network Today and Tomorrow. Our Promise means your Agilent test and
Identifying Interference for IS-136 TDMA Networks, measurement equipment will meet its advertised
performance and functionality. When you are
Application Note 1342 (literature number 5980-0219E)
choosing new equipment, we will help you
• Optimizing your GSM Network Today and Tomorrow. with product information, including realistic
Troubleshoot Network Problems: Coverage, Interference, Handover, performance specifications and practical recom-
Margin and Neighbor Lists, Application Note 1344 mendations from experienced test engineers.
(literature number 5980-0218E) When you use Agilent equipment, we can verify
that it works properly, help with product opera-
For specific examples of how the Agilent Technologies drive-test tion, and provide basic measurement assistance
solutions are used to solve optimization problems: for the use of specified capabilities, at no extra
• Spectrum and Power Measurements Using the Agilent CDMA, TDMA and cost upon request. Many self-help tools are
available.
GSM Drive-Test Systems Product Note (literature number 5968-8598E)
Your Advantage
For additional Agilent Technologies GSM drive-test information: Your Advantage means that Agilent offers a wide
• E7475A GSM Drive-Test Configuration Guide range of additional expert test and measurement
(literature number 5968-5563E) services, which you can purchase according to
• E7475A GSM Drive-Test Technical Specifications your unique technical and business needs.
(literature number 5968-5564E) Solve problems efficiently and gain a competitive
• Indoor Wireless Measurement System Product Overview edge by contracting with us for calibration,
extra-cost upgrades, out-of-warranty repairs,
(literature number 5968-8691E) and on-site education and training, as well as
design, system integration, project management,
Web-based information: and other professional services. Experienced
• Visit our website at www.agilent.com/find/wireless Agilent engineers and technicians worldwide
can help you maximize your productivity, optimize
the return on investment of your Agilent instru-
ments and systems, and obtain dependable
measurement accuracy for the life of those
products.

Online and Phone assistance:

www.agilent.com/find/assist

United States: (tel) 1 800 452 4844

Product specifications and descriptions in this

document subject to change without notice.

Copyright © 2000 Agilent Technologies

Printed in USA 4/00
Windows® 95, 98 and Windows NT® are U.S. registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. 5980-0439E

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