Microwave Link Design - Nueva Ecija
Microwave Link Design - Nueva Ecija
Microwave Link Design - Nueva Ecija
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
DESIGN
SUBMITTED TO
IN
PARTIAL FULFILLMENT
ECEG11A – EC
SUBMITTED BY:
MORTALLA, Anjo
PRELIMINARY PAGES:
Dedication ……………………………………………………………………………………………….………….. iv
Q. K – Q Reliability …………………………………………………………………… 56
Bibliography …………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 73
Dear Sir:
In view of our requirements in the course Communications Theory 5, we have
prepared documentation on “Microwave Link Design”. In relation to this we have come
up with a proposed repeater, receiver and transmitter location with its equipment and
specifications based on the design we have made.
We are hoping that all the expectations were met with the completion of this
design. Thank you very much.
Respectfully,
_______________________________ _______________________________
Manalo, April Gray Calderon, Leonard Andre’
_______________________________ ______________________________
Mortalla, Anjo Peguit, Jan Anthony
This is to certify that the group have designed, conducted studies and
documented important parameters in this microwave design which was prepared by the
group entitled MICROWAVE LINK SYSTEM DESIGN, and that this document has been
submitted for final examination by the oral examination committee.
_____________________________ ____________________________
Manalo, April Gray Calderon, Leonard Andre’
____________________________ ____________________________
Mortalla, Anjo Peguit, Jan Anthony
______________________________
Panel
We give our warmest thanks to the Calderon and Peguit family, for welcoming us
in their humble homes during those sleepless nights of labor and hardwork.
We also give our deep gratitude to Engr. Antipas Teologo Jr. who gave us the
opportunity to gain the knowledge we need through practical applications and designs.
We would also like to thank our parents who have supported us emotionally and
financially in making this design. And also for letting us go through with the series of
overnights to make this project successful. Your trust and understanding has given us
To the group, this would not be done without the trust and the cooperation
within our group. And this whole thing would not be possible if we never believed with
And most especially, we give our thanks to the Lord Almighty for all the guidance
finish this project. And we owe Him the strength that pushed us to continue in all that
A. Objectives
Communications System
reliability of 99.9999%
• To be able to come up with a project that will help the students grasp the idea of
• To be able to provide the students a material that will serve as their guide in
This paper describes and provides guidelines for the design and implementation
to these guidelines should allow significant terrain and propagation dynamics as well as
cost savings to be made for the pursuit of a highly reliable system. The suggested
evaluating path clearances with regard to refractive effects, evaluating path clearances
with regard to Fresnel zones, considering path reflections, deriving a power budget and
The system link’s Site A is located on General Tinio, Site B is located on Tampak-I, and
Site C is located on Bongabon. A 13 Ghz operating frequency is used for both Hop 1 and
Hop 2 and in each relay station in an SFN (single frequency network), the coupling from
This part deals with the scopes and limitations of the design. These categorize
the reach and restrictions of the microwave system which might be useful to the
repeater.
purposes.
microwave designs were destined for profitable applications. Because of the fast
phasing of technology, there is a need, for students who are not yet in the actual field of
This design will be of great help to the students to practice everything they have
learned theoretically. This design intends to introduce the basics of microwave system
design to the students who are required to take up this subject as well as to those who
This design as well will serve as a reference for students who will take the
system, the design considerations and the components behind a fully functional system
that would work under the conditions of being a microwave communications system
design.
From researches about Microwave Systems, it specifies that there are so many
The transmit and receive antennas in a microwave system should have a line-of-sight to
the aid of a topographical map. This type of map will show the various elevations along
the length of the path between proposed endpoints. Plotting these elevations at
intervals will produce a path profile showing terrain relative to the antenna elevations.
condition exists between endpoints but also in measuring clearances between the
This will identify path obstructions from terrain features. A field survey should follow,
which offers the necessary visual confirmation that the height of man-made
objects (which are not indicated on a topographical map) will not be located in or too
Earth for which the distance to the radio horizon in straight-line propagation is the same
as for the actual Earth with a uniform vertical gradient of atmospheric refractive index.
Less obvious barriers to microwave signals include the Earth’s curvature (k-
factor) and atmospheric conditions, which differ over geographic areas and change
locally throughout the year. In coastal areas, for example, changes in atmospheric
density due to temperature inversions, rain storms, and normal diurnal fluctuations can
vary the Earth’s effective curvature from 4/3 to 0.5. During the year, a typical
atmospheric fluctuations cause the beam to bend, the signal strength can easily vary by
20 to 30 dBm. (See Figure 2) In order to account for these fluctuations, the engineer
must carefully calculate the Fresnel zone clearance based on the likely range of k-factors
for the region where the microwave path is to be built. Thus, Fresnel zone clearance
The entire path survey for a microwave link system includes four details
analysis.
Microwave link design covers a very wide range and field of study. A well-
planned system is very much required to reach the objectives in putting up a point-to-
Adjacent-channel interference fade margin (AIFM) (in decibels). Accounts for receiver
Antenna bandwidth. The frequency range within which the antenna performance
meet specifications.
Antenna gain. A measure of directivity properties and the efficiency of the antenna. It
is defined as the ratio of the radiation intensity in the peak intensity direction to the
intensity that would be obtained if the power accepted by the antenna were radiated
isotropically. The difference between the antenna gain and the directivity is that the
antenna efficiency is taken into account in the former parameter. Antenna gain is
Branching losses. Comes from the hardware used to deliver the transmitter/receiver
Fading. Defined as the variation of the strength of a received radio carrier signal due to
atmospheric changes and/or ground and water reflections in the propagation path.
Four fading types are considered while planning links. They are all dependent on path
margin
falls below a specified minimum in order to avoid fading. Allowance made in radio
First Fresnel Zone. Circular portion of a wavefront transverse to the line between an
emitter and a more distant point, where the resultant disturbance is being observed,
whose center is the intersection of the front with the direct ray, and whose radius is
such that the shortest path from the emitter through the periphery to the receiving
Flat fade margin. In an analog microwave radio system, the flat fade margin is equal to
the system total Gains minus system total losses. In a digital microwave radio system,
the "flat" or thermal fade margin (TFM) is calculated from the system total Gains minus
Free Space Loss. The signal attenuation that would result if all absorbing, diffracting,
by beam divergence, i.e., signal energy spreading over larger areas at increased
and a point where the disturbance is being observed; the nth zone includes all paths
whose lengths are between n -1 and n half-wavelengths longer than the line-of-sight
radio relay region.The absorption peaks are located around 23GHz for water molecules
atmosphere.
Interference fade margin (IFM). Is the depth of fade to the point at which RF
interference degrades the BER to 1x 10-3 . The actual IFM value used in a path
Link Budget. The accounting of all of the gains and losses from the transmitter, through
the medium (free space, cable, waveguide, fiber, etc.) to the receiver in
due to propagation, as well as the antenna gains, feed line and miscellaneous losses.
Randomly varying channel gains such as fading are taken into account by adding some
Microwave. These are the ultra high, super high and extremely high frequencies
includes
• Loss/attenuation Calculations
Miscellaneous (other) losses. Unpredictable and sporadic in character like fog, moving
objects crossing the path, poor equipment installation and less than perfect antenna
alignment etc.
Multipath Fading. The dominant fading mechanism for frequencies lower than 10GHz.
A reflected wave causes a multipath, i.e.when a reflected wave reaches the receiver as
the direct wave that travels in a straight line from the transmitter.
Multipath Interference. When signals arrive at a remote antenna after being reflected
off the ground or refracted back to earth from the sky (sometimes called ducting), they
will subtract (or add) to the main signal and cause the received signal to be weaker (or
Dual polarized feeds available. Frequencies from 1.7 to 23.6 GHz can be accommodated
just by changing out the Feed assembly. Various mounting hardware and accessories
cloud formations or areas in which rain is falling; increases with the density of the
Receive Signal Level. Receive signal level is the actual received signal level (usually
measured in negative dBm) presented to the antenna port of a radio receiver from a
remote transmitter.
measured in negative dBm) that a radio needs receive in order to demodulate and
Receiver sensitivity threshold. Is the signal level at which the radio runs continuous
Earth’s surface becomes curved and terrain irregularities, man-made structures and
other objects may intercept the Fresnel Zone. For high k values, the Earth’s surface gets
close to a plane surface and better LOS(lower antenna height) is obtained. The
System Operating Margin. System operating margin (SOM) is the difference (measured
in dB) between the nominal signal level received at one end of a radio link and the signal
level required by that radio to assure that a packet of data is decoded without error.
Thermal fade margin (TFM). In db, is the difference between the normal received
signal RSL at the input of microwave receiver expressed in dbm and the receiver's
Transmit Power. The transmit power is the RF power coming out of the antenna port of
a transmitter. It is measured in dBm, Watts or milliWatts and does not include the signal
For many wireless carriers, microwave is becoming a popular choice over wire
line transport. It is an attractive option for many reasons, especially as radio equipment
costs decrease. Low monthly operating costs can undercut those of typical expenses,
proving it more economical over the long term. But before you move forward, make
sure you understand all of the design considerations that will affect your deployment.
Frequency Options
Wavelengths in the lower frequencies are longer, which is important because the
wavelength determines how the atmosphere affects transmission. The atmosphere may
refract longer waves. Refraction can reduce the length of the path, or microwave hop.
Microwave Systems in the 2GHz to 6GHz frequencies can transmit over longer
distances, which make them more suitable for rural areas. High-frequency systems are a
hills, trees and buildings can block a microwave signal and limit the distance of a
microwave path.
equipment, antenna size, tower heights and terrain elevation will play a major role in
how you plan and construct the system. These four factors also will dictate system
You will use a large antenna (low frequency) when the path is longer. Large
antennas require large towers and have higher wind factors. As a result, you also must
consider existing tower loads to ensure that you can implement the design on existing
You also must take into account attenuation, the reduction in energy as a signal
travels through equipment, transmission lines or air. The term often refers to the impact
itself.
Path reliability normally has to meet the same standards as the rest of the
microwave system. Reliability objectives are often stated on a per hop basis or end-to-
end. The objective applied to each hop is limited to a distance of 35km to 40km, having
obstructions, and rain attenuation. Equipment and power-source reliability demands are
dealt with through a combination of highly reliable components plus designs that
Equipment Selection
When selecting equipment, determine the amount of power the system uses to
transmit and receive signals. More power usage equates to higher operating costs.
System planners should perform path calculations to establish fade margins and system
gain, taking into account an estimate of system downtime for the locale of the planned
radio (average rainfall). Fade margin is the allowance made to accommodate estimated
free space loss, attenuation and availability requirements, you can integrate microwave
Population
Sites A, B, and C are located at towns in Nueva Ecija where the population is not
that large, to avoid so much of external interference, however, the population is not
that small as well to attain the objective of providing reliable information signals to the
people.
Site Description
The province has three cities: Cabanatuan, San Jose, and Palayan, its capital.
Nueva Ecija has a total land area of 550,718 hectares with 29 municipalities consisting
Natividad, General Tinio, Guimba, Jaen, Laur, Licab, Llanera, Lupao, Muñoz, Nampicuan,
Pantabangan, Peñaranda, Quezon, Rizal, San Antonio, San Isidro, San Leonardo, Sta.
Clavería, with the capital at Baler (now part of Aurora). It was formerly part of the
province of Pampanga. From its humble beginning, its land area grew to cover almost
the entire island of Luzon. Spanish Records in the Philippines recognizes 2 Spanish
countries in the Pacific-- Las Islas Filipinas and Nueva Ecija. Poverty was the only reason
why Nueva Ecija was not given recognition as a separate country from the Philippines by
the King of Spain in 1840s. From 1777 to 1917, Nueva Ecija's territory was however
subdivided to give way to the creation of other provinces. The Province of Tayabas (now
Aurora and Quezon) including Polilio Islands, the provinces of Palanan (now Isabela),
Cagayan, the province of Nueva Vizcaya, the territory which became part of the
Province of Quirino, and the province of Manila north of the province of Tondo in 1867,
and the District of Morong (now Rizal) were among those created out of Nueva Ecija.
The Province was named after the old city of Écija in Seville, Spain. In 1896,
Nueva Ecija became one of the first provinces to revolt against Spanish rule, and one of
Nueva Ecija is bounded by the provinces of Pangasinan and Nueva Vizcaya on the
north, Pampanga and Bulacan on the south, Aurora and Quezon on the east, and Tarlac
on the west. Three mountain ranges bound the said province: Sierra Madre on the east,
Caraballo on the north, and Cordillera on the west. The rainy season is from May to
November and is dry the rest of the year. Most of the typhoons occur during the months
of October and November. An average of six typhoons visit the province per annum. The
mean average temperature at 27.3 degrees centigrade. The province is the largest in
Central Luzon. Its terrain begins with the southwestern marshes near the Pampanga
border. It levels off and then gradually increases in elevation to rolling hills as it
approaches the mountains of Sierra Madre in the east, and the Caraballo and Cordillera
Cabanatuan City, being the center of economic activities in the province, is the most
densely populated area. There are at least 41 languages and dialects used in the
languages and dialects (2 percent) are those coming from Luzon, Visayas, and
Mindanao. There are also tribal and ethnic groups in Nueva Ecija composed of
Dumagats, Ilongots, Ibalois, Kankanaeys, Kalingas, Kalanguyas, among others. They live
Modern Infrastructure
There are four major roads in Nueva Ecija: the Maharlika Highway, Gapan-
Olongapo Road, Cabanatuan-Tarlac, and the Cabanatuan-Aurora Road. There are 104
concrete and two temporary bridges with a total length of 4,500 kilometers. The
National Food Authority compound, Camp Tinio, Fort Magsaysay, and Nueva Ecija
Trading activities are agri-based mostly confined to buying and selling of agri-
crops, farm inputs, and small farm machineries augmented by the wholesale and retail
business. The main industries in Nueva Ecija are as follows: wood and other forest
and processing, livestock and poultry production, cattle breeding/fattening, and dairy
pickling/relishing, citrus fruit juices, mango juice, tomato paste and juice, garlic,
There are eight investment centers in Nueva Ecija: Cabanatuan, San Jose, and
Palayan cities; Gapan, Talavera, Guimba, Sta. Rosa, and Muñoz. The preferred
manufacturing.
There are various tourist spots in Nueva Ecija. Some of these are: the
Minalungao National Park (Gapan), Barrio Puncan (Carranglan), Hot Springs (Rizal),
Burburayok Springs (Talugtug), Pajanutic Falls (Carranglan), Palasapas Falls (San Jose
City), historic Barrio Labi (Bongabon), Camp Pangatian (Cabanatuan City), Dalton Pass
Diamond Park (San Jose City), and the Rubber Dam in Llanera.
There are many transportation facilities in the area. The Baliwag Transit Inc., Five
Star Transit, Ram Transit, RL Bus, Royal Eagle, Arayat Express, Sierra Madre Transit, ABC
Transit, and Danilo Transit are some of the buses playing the area. Mini buses and
Majority of industrial, commercial, and domestic water users using ground water
are supplied by local water utilities or privately-owned deep well pumps. The
Pampanga River Integrated Irrigation Systems also supply water to the municipal and
Pantabangan, and Bitas Power Plant are the major sources of power in the province.
NEECO I, II & III, and San Jose Electric Company are the electric cooperatives which also
extend electric utilities in some of the barangays The historical Freedom Park which
Philippines. According to the latest census, it has a population of 38,640 people in 6,878
households. The town is at the foot of the Sierra Mountain Ridges adjoining the Fort
Magsaysay Army Reservation on the Eastside. The municipalities of San Miguel, Bulacan,
Peñaranda and San Leonardo, Nueva Ecija abut the town from its South, West and
Northside.
Barangays
households. It was incorporated by the King of Spain by virtue of a royal decree in 1897.
Barangays
households in 28,352.90 hectares land area. It is the leading producer of onion in the
Each barangay in Bongabon has its own fiesta. The town fiesta, celebrated
annually on the 1st to 2nd week of April, is known as the Sibuyasan Onion Festival.
Barangays
Path Profile
C. FREQUENCY PLAN
For Hop 1:
Frequency Band: 13 GHz
Frequency Range: 12.75 – 13.25GHz
For Hop 2:
Frequency Band: 13 GHz
Frequency Range: 12.75 – 13.25GHz
For Hop 1
For Hop 2
LINK PARAMETERS
Hop 1:
Hop 2:
For Hop 1
For Hop 2
For Hop 1
H. RAIN LOSS
LBF:
M = (log 12 – log 12.75)/(log 12 – log 15)
M = 0.27
α = 1.154 – (0.27)(1.154-1.217)
α = 1.17
HBF:
M = (log 12 – log 13.25)/(log 12 – log 15)
M = 0.44
α = 1.154 – (0.44)(1.154-1.217)
α = 1.18
Do = 35 x e-0.015 x R0.01
Do = 35 x e-0.015 x 180
Do = 2.35
DE = D/ [1 + (D/Do)]
Hop 1:
DE = 40 / [1 + (40/2.35)]
= 2.22
Hop 2:
DE = 40 / [1 + (40/2.35)]
= 2.22
J. RAIN ATTENUATION
LBF:
γ = k (180)α
γ = 0.029 (180)1.17
γ = 12.62
Arain = DE (γ)
Arain = 2.22 (12.62)
Arain = 28.0164 dB
Arain = DE (γ)
Arain = 2.22 (11.46)
Arain = 25.4412 dB
K. ATMOSPHERIC LOSSES
LBF:
HBF:
HBF:
AH2O = [0.067 + (3/((13.25-22.3)2 + 7.3)) + (9/((13.25-183.3)2 + 6)) + ( 4.3/ ((13.25-
323.8)2 + 10))] (13.252 x 1.18 x 10-4)
AH2O = 2.09 x 10-3 dB/km
AH2O for 40km = 0.0836 dB
For Hop 1
For Hop 1
LBF:
FMCOMPOSITE = -10 log[10(-28.08/10) +(3)(10 (-70/10))
FMCOMPOSITE = 28.08 dB
HBF:
FMCOMPOSITE = -10 log[10(-28.57/10) +(3)(10 (-70/10))
FMCOMPOSITE = 28.57 dB
For Hop 2
LBF:
FMCOMPOSITE = -10 log[10(-23.48/10) +(3)(10 (-70/10))
FMCOMPOSITE = 23.48 dB
HBF:
FMCOMPOSITE = -10 log[10(-23.97/10) +(3)(10 (-70/10))
FMCOMPOSITE = 23.97 dB
N. RELIABILITY CALCULATIONS
Hop 1:
Hop 2:
Distance (km) Path Elevations Path Elevations Squared
0 0 0
1 0 0
2 0 0
3 0 0
4 24 576
5 38 1444
6 0 0
7 0 0
8 0 0
9 39 1521
10 0 0
11 0 0
12 0 0
13 0 0
14 0 0
15 0 0
16 0 0
17 0 0
18 0 0
19 0 0
20 0 0
21 0 0
22 0 0
23 58 3364
24 0 0
25 0 0
U = K-Q x fb x Dc x 10(-FMeff/10)
Hop 1
R = (1 – U) x 100%
For Hop 1
For Hop 2
U = (K-Q/S1.3) x fb x Dc x 10(-FMeff/10)
Hop 1:
R = (1 – U) x 100%
Hop 1:
Hop 2:
LBF: R = (1 – 1.12 x 10-6) x 100%
= 99.99988%
HBF: R = (1 – 1.05 x 10-6) x 100%
= 99.999895%
communications. Most installers know that clear line of sight is required between two
antennas, but there is a lot more to it than that. To have some certainty as to whether
Upon the completion of this design, we were able to meet the needed outcomes
and conditions regarding the design. We were able to make a Point – to –Point Cellular
Due to the importance of a design like this, we highly recommend this paper to
the students who are interested in microwave communications system design and to
those who are required to take the subject Microwave Engineering and make their own
link design.
Equipment Specifications
Books:
Ampoloquio, J. (2005), SUPERBook Electronic Systems and Technology
Tomasi, W. (2004), Electronic Communications System – 5th Edition, New Jersey: Pearson
Education Inc.
Internet:
http://digital-microwave-radio.at-communication.com/en/at/at9900.html
www.electronicslab.ph
www.wikipedia.org
www.ydi.com
Publications:
Frequency kH kV αV αH
LINE OF SIGHT:
0.6 CLEARANCE 1ST FRESNEL: LOS - (0.6 Larger 1st Fresnel + Obstruction Height)
GRAPH 0.6 LARGER 1ST FRESNEL: LOS – 0.6 Larger 1st Fresnel
GRAPH 1.5 LARGER 1ST FRESNEL: LOS – 1.5 Larger 1st Fresnel
RECEIVED SIGNAL LEVEL: RSL = Po + AGTx + AGRx - CLTx - CLRx - WLTx - WLRx – FSL
Do = 35 x e-0.015 x 180
Do = 2.35
DE = D/ [1 + (D/Do)]
Arain = DE (γ)
ATMOSPHERIC LOSSES:
U = K-Q x fb x Dc x 10(-FMeff/10)
U = (K-Q/S1.3) x fb x Dc x 10(-FMeff/10)