Coverage uncertainty and reliability estimation for microcellular radio network planning

Analytical expressions are derived for estimation of the coverage probability and cell area reliability in Rice-log-normal fading conditions. The expressions include both short term and long term signal distributions in addition to the utilisation of the empirically determined area mean. The presented methodology could be used for optimal radio network planning, when different classes of the service quality are offered by the operator. The best server probability levels including statistical cell boundaries are calculated for microcells in rectilinear streets. The handover request probability is calculated for a particular network scenario. The cell radius as a statistical quantity is then modelled and the uncertainties in cell area estimation are calculated. The dependence of the coverage area reliability on the radio channel parameters is also quantified.