Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!usc!jarthur!bridge2!mips!sgi!decwrl!hayes!accuvax.nwu.edu!nucsrl!telecom-request
From: motcid!ahlenius@uunet.uu.net (Mark Ahlenius)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Is Analog Cellular Dead?
Message-ID: <8918@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 13 Jun 90 15:40:45 GMT
Sender: news@accuvax.nwu.edu
Organization: Motorola Inc., Cellular Infrastructure Div., Arlington Hgts, IL
Lines: 35
Approved: Telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 431, Message 3 of 11


pixar!bp@ucbvax.berkeley.edu (Bruce Perens) writes:

> From what I've seen of the digital cellular format, it seems to be a
>way of ripping off the customer to reduce the carrier's overhead.  The
>real fix for high-traffic zones is to add more cells, not increase the
>capacity of the existing ones at the expense of fidelity and
>reliability.

The problem is that there is a limit on how small you can make cells
and still retain "in-building" coverage.  Cell splitting (i.e. making
smaller cells out of larger ones to increase traffic capacity) can
only be done up to a limit.  Cell costs are high and so is the real
estate needed for the base station.  You just don't plop down cells
anywhere you have traffic problems and hope that solves your problems.
Added new cells or splitting existing ones has affects on the rest of
your systems frequency plan.  Thus you may have to retune existing
cells and/or shuffle channels around to permit the new cell to work
properly.  It is a complex problem.  There is also a limitation on the
number of radio channels that can be installed in a cell site - due to
the frequency reuse pattern (i.e. N=4, 7, 12, etc.).

Also the FCC has placed a limit on the present bandwidth allotted for
analog cellular.

Do you consider the (more expensive) pcm type trunks that MA bell has
installed across the country a rip off - because they can have 24, 48,
... conversations going across the same pair of wires?  I hope not -
they developed this technology for efficient use of a resource and
that is what digital cellular is also working towards.


Mark Ahlenius 		  voice:(708)-632-5346  email: uunet!motcid!ahleniusm
Motorola Inc.		  fax:  (708)-632-2413
Arlington, Hts. IL, USA	 60004