Tony Harris TCI Spectrum Monitoring Evolution - RRS-21 Africa July 2021.pdf

Spectrum Monitoring Evolution: 5G and beyond

1. Spectrum Monitoring Evolution:
5G and beyond
Tony Harris IEngFIET
Regional Director
TCI International, Inc.
www.tcibr.com
13
th
July 2021

2. 5G Spectrum Monitoring -Assumptions
2
Key Assumptions

The RF spectrum will continue
to have high power emitters
(e.g.radio/TV stations), but
there will be many more low-
power / directional emitters in
the 5G environment

Monitoring solutions must be
modular and scalable to
provide economical solutions
for national monitoring
networks operating at the local
level, and over a much large
range of frequencies
July 13, 2021TCI International, Inc.
Direction of travel is a relentless drive to use the spectrum more efficiently

3. 5G Spectrum Monitoring -Assumptions
3
Key Assumptions
July 13, 2021

Existing fixed monitoring systems will continue
for monitoring high power emitters and providing
broad-scale spectrum occupancy

Transportable and semi-fixed spectrum
monitoring systems required to cover local 5G
operations –particularly where public hotspots
receive heavy use

Mobile and portable monitoring solutions
required to address more localized 5G spectrum
to detect and located low power emitters, and
measure local spectrum occupancy

Spectrum monitoring systems will need to
monitor up to 26 -40 GHz and beyond
TCI International, Inc.

4. Airborne Monitoring Station –Tethered Drone
July 13, 2021
TCI International, Inc.
4
Airborne monitoring solutions
LOS: Line of sight considering curvature of the earth –transmitter power, terrain, and clutter may limit actual coverage area

5. 5G Spectrum Monitoring Implications
5
Key Assumptions
•Spectrum usage information requiring dense
monitoring networks in urban/suburban areas
and mobile systems driving the rural areas,
particularly for SHF/EHF bands required for
5G, IOT, Smart Cities/Islands initiatives
•Spectrum occupancy becoming one of the
most important measurements to enable
more efficient spectrum allocation at some
local levels
•Data reduction, fusion, analysis of huge
volumes of data into occupancy, coverage and
geolocation blocks –edge/cloud computing
solutions –data analytics
•Fusion of channel/band occupancy data with
frequency assignment data with machine
learning/artificial intelligence –taking AVD to
the next level
July 13, 2021TCI International, Inc.

6. 5G Spectrum Monitoring -Assumptions
6
Key Assumptions
July 13, 2021

Artificial Intelligence, particularly in the form of
Radio Frequency Machine Learning (RFML), will
become a necessity to handle the large volume
of signals 5G will bring
TCI International, Inc.
Fully automated 24/7 signal
detection and recognition from
multiple monitoring sites to
support:
Confirmation that licensed protocols
are being used
Interference detection
Spectrum white space assessment
Learning new protocols from the
data saved in the database –used
to train the neural network

7. 5G Spectrum Monitoring -Assumptions
7
Key Assumptions
July 13, 2021

SMART Sensors will become the norm:
sensors with RFML capabilities will process
data at the local level (EDGE Sensors) and
avoid large I/Q back haul requirements

EDGE Sensors will be augmented with large
numbers of less-capable secondary sensors
to extend geographic coverage in the most
economical way

Some IQ data will still need to go back to
control center for further processing

Centralized databases and analytical tools
with real-time dashboards critical
TCI International, Inc.

8. 5G Spectrum Monitoring –Layered Mesh Networks
8
Key Assumptions
July 13, 2021

Layered monitoring
networks will become
common in the 5G world:•
Centralized Database
•
Fixed AOA/TDOA stations
(8 GHz) –EDGE Processing
•
Mobile monitoring stations
(40 GHz) –EDGE Processing
•
Semi-fixed & transportable
stations (multiple frequency)
•
Handheld “last mile” systems
•
Localized sensors –feed EDGE
Processors
TCI International, Inc.

9. 5G Spectrum Monitoring Big Data Implications
9
Key Assumptions
Developing intuitive mapping tools to visualise
current and historical spectrum usage, showing
coverage areas, interference areas, unused
frequencies
Applying AI (artificial intelligence) and ML
(machine learning) techniques to learn the
spectrum environment
•Automated intelligent interference and
geolocation alerts with signal recognition
•Automated spectrum reports and maps of
unused and under-used frequency bands
•Interfaces to automated frequency
assignment systems
July 13, 2021TCI International, Inc.

10. 5G Spectrum Management Implications –Integrating with Spectrum
Management Databases
10
July 13, 2021
Modern spectrum management systems/databases hold much
information about spectrum users, frequencies, licences, fees,
interference complaints, etc.
•Management reports and dashboards automatically produced
•KPIs, applications pending, licences issued, fees collected
•Integrating monitoring data allows trend analysis to report on
•Frequency bands becoming congested
•Frequency bands under-utilised and empty
•Refarmingexercises prior to auction
•Effectiveness of pricing mechanisms
•Customer/licensee analysis
•Compliance issues –licensed spectrum parameters,
coverage
•Detecting unlicensed use
•Interference issues
•Spectrum information system -NFAT, Spectrum trading database
•Monitoring inputs to TV white spaces database/dynamic
spectrum access/automatic frequency coordination systems
TCI International, Inc.

11. ATU-R –Spectrum Audit Recommendation –001-0
Spectrum Monitoring Requirements
11
July 13, 2021TCI International, Inc.
2. Publish databases of spectrum licensing, usage, and technical information on a publicly
accessible website, as appropriate.
6. Assess the EMF exposure measurements of radio systems should be undertaken to
monitor…all radio systems in operation to check if the stations are aligned with the license
conditions in terms of OOBE and EMF levels.
7. Establish and use spectrum monitoring tools to identify the use of the spectrum and to ensure
the use of the spectrum is restricted to the licensed frequencies. Spectrum monitoring should be
conducted periodically to provide the actual use of frequencies and bands, verify the technical
characteristics of transmitted signals, guarantee of license compliance, detection and identification
of illegal transmitters and potential interferers
.
10. Provide the national regulator with greater insights into spectrum use in all geographical areas.
12. Ensure adequate training and skills development of personnel to perform spectrum monitoring
and audit in the view of the new radio environment.
13. Invest adequately in robust spectrum licensing and occupancy database systems.
14. Support the development and maintenance of a spectrum occupancy database which could
reflect the occupancy of frequency in every member state. This would help develop statistics and
also assist in regional preparations for the World Radiocommunication Conference

12. Thank you!