The Most Effective Strategies for Predicting Network Coverage in Future Constructions

In the ever-evolving landscape of technology, predicting network coverage in future buildings is a crucial aspect that demands attention. The ability to anticipate how well a network will perform within a structure is paramount for providing optimal connectivity and ensuring a seamless user experience. In this blog post, we’ll delve into the why, the key benefits for customers, and the most effective strategies for predicting network coverage.

Why Predict Network Coverage for Future Buildings?

Understanding the motivations behind predicting network coverage is fundamental to appreciating its significance. As technology advances, our reliance on robust connectivity grows exponentially. Whether it’s for everyday communication, smart home applications, or business operations, a strong and reliable network is the backbone of modern living.

Differences Between Existing and Future Buildings

Future building designs, especially those focused on energy efficiency, present distinct challenges for network coverage compared to traditional structures. As highlighted in our recent webinar, upcoming constructions are mandated to comply with rigorous thermal insulation regulations, resulting in what are known as energy-efficient buildings.

These energy-efficient buildings, often equipped with materials like low E glass and specialized insulation, pose significant challenges for robust network coverage. Unlike traditional constructions that typically exhibit lower transmission losses, future buildings demand a reevaluation of network prediction strategies.

The use of low E glass, designed to minimize heat transfer, inadvertently amplifies signal attenuation for radio waves, resulting in approximately 30 decibels of signal loss—equivalent to the obstruction caused by a concrete wall. This discrepancy between traditional and future buildings necessitates tailored approaches for anticipating and mitigating coverage issues.

Source: Waveform

Main Challenges in Predicting Network Coverage

Predicting network coverage in modern buildings presents several significant challenges, including:

Material Impact on Signal Propagation: The choice of modern construction materials, such as low E glass and specialized insulation, significantly impacts signal propagation, resulting in increased attenuation and coverage challenges.

Source: Wilson Amplifiers

In the image below, you can see how little outdoor signal can penetrate the walls inside of a modern low E glass building, resulting in many areas without a network connection.

Resource-Intensive Surveys: Conducting thorough site surveys to assess network conditions within modern buildings is resource-intensive, demanding substantial time and effort. Access constraints and logistical hurdles further complicate this process, potentially leading to delays in network deployment.

Optimization vs. Over-Engineering: Balancing network design optimization with cost-efficiency is crucial. Over-engineering can inflate project costs by necessitating an excess of antennas, while under-engineering may result in inadequate coverage, necessitating costly post-installation optimizations.

Integration of External Data Sources: Integrating external data sources, such as macro network details, poses challenges in ensuring accuracy and reliability. While ideal scenarios involve direct data acquisition from network operators, alternative sources like crowdsourced coverage maps and governmental databases often serve as viable substitutes.

Key Benefits of Predicting Network Coverage

Seamless Connectivity: Predicting network coverage ensures that customers experience uninterrupted connectivity, enabling them to stay connected with their digital world effortlessly.
Enhanced User Experience: Anticipating and addressing potential network issues in advance leads to an improved user experience. Customers can enjoy faster data speeds and smoother performance on their devices.
Future-Proofing Investments: For property owners and developers, predicting network coverage is a strategic move. It allows them to future-proof their investments by incorporating the latest connectivity solutions, making their properties more attractive to potential occupants.

Effective Strategies for Predicting Network Coverage

1. Survey Data Analysis: The Foundation of Prediction

One of the primary strategies is leveraging survey data. Conducting thorough surveys of the building’s interior helps in understanding the existing network landscape. The key use case involves identifying potential dead zones or areas with weak signals. The advantages of this approach include precise insights into the current network scenario within the building.

Advantages:

Precision: Survey data analysis provides detailed and precise information about the existing network conditions.
Targeted Improvements: Identifying specific areas with weak signals allows for targeted improvements to enhance coverage.

Challenges:

Resource-Intensive: Conducting thorough surveys can be resource-intensive, requiring time and effort.

2. Inbuilding Prediction with Antenna Positioning

Another approach focuses on in-building prediction using different antenna positions. This strategy involves strategically placing antennas around the building to simulate and predict network coverage. The key use case is to optimize antenna placement for maximum coverage.

Advantages:

Optimized Placement: Antennas can be strategically placed for optimized coverage, reducing potential dead zones.
Cost-Effective: Simulating antenna positions in a virtual environment can be more cost-effective than physical adjustments.

Challenges:

Simulation Variability: Real-world conditions may introduce variability not accounted for in simulations.

3. Geo/Macro Data Integration for Comprehensive Insights

The third strategy involves geo/macro data integration to predict coverage accurately. This comprehensive solution considers external factors and introduces the concept of using iBwave Reach for precise predictions.

Advantages:

Holistic Analysis: Geo/macro data integration provides a holistic analysis of external factors impacting network coverage.
Precision: With iBwave Reach, cou can enhance prediction precision with advanced capabilities.

Challenges:

Data Integration Challenges: Integrating external data sources may pose challenges in ensuring accuracy. However, with iBwave Reach, these challenges disappear thanks to its seamless integration with our inbulilding design tool iBwave Design.

How iBwave Can Help

Leveraging iBwave’s suite of solutions, including iBwave Reach, Design, and Mobile Survey, significantly aids in predicting network coverage effectively. For example, iBwave Reach facilitates real and accurate data integration, considering elevation, surroundings, and more. The seamless integration between iBwave tools eliminates challenges in data integration, ensuring a comprehensive and precise approach to predicting network coverage.

Here’s how our tools can help you predict network coverage:

Survey Data Analysis – iBwave Mobile & iBwave Design

iBwave Mobile is a simple and cost-effective solution empowering field technicians to survey LTE, 5G, Wi-Fi, or P25 Public Safety Networks quickly and seamlessly. iBwave Mobile – our simple mobile application seamlessly integrates with a lightweight and powerful Epiq PRiSM scanner for deeper scanning of wireless networks.

iBwave Mobile also integrates with our flagship solution for designing in-building networks, iBwave Design. Thanks to this integration, you can easily interpolate the survey data and predict the network coverage inside of your future building.

In-Building Prediction with Antenna Positioning – iBwave Design

iBwave Design is the industry standard solution for designing the best-in-class inbuilding wireless networks. You can easily position antennas around the building and simulate their performance and penetration in the building at different heights and floors.

Geo/Macro Data Integration – iBwave Reach

iBwave Reach is a solution for designing campus networks that bridges the gap between indoor and outdoor wireless. By integrating the macro network data, you can see its effect on the indoor wireless networks and penetration inside of the building. iBwave Reach considers elevation and surrounding buildings, giving you the most accurate predictions. Another advantage is its integration with iBwave Design, bridging the data integration challenges.

Conclusion: Empowering Connectivity in the Future

In conclusion, predicting network coverage is not just about ensuring connectivity; it’s about empowering the future. By understanding the motivations, benefits, and effective strategies, stakeholders can make informed decisions. iBwave’s solutions play a pivotal role in navigating the complexities of network prediction, making it an indispensable ally in the journey towards seamless connectivity.

Don’t miss out on the deeper insights! Watch our on-demand webinar with our special guest, STF Gruppe, to learn everything about predicting network coverage in future constructions.

Check out our blog for more tips and topics to learn more about wireless networks and their planning!

How To Survey 5G and LTE Networks Efficiently: Stepping Beyond Network Testing

Wireless networks, especially LTE and 5G, play a pivotal role in our increasingly connected world. Efficient surveying and testing of these networks is essential for optimal performance and reliability. This article explores the key benefits, challenges, and strategies for mastering effective wireless network surveying, with a focus on simplicity and cost-effectiveness.

1. Why We Survey 5G and LTE Networks

5G and LTE network surveying serves as an indispensable requirement for several reasons. It contributes to the optimization of network performance by providing insights into signal strength, coverage areas, and potential interference, allowing engineers to enhance overall network efficiency. Additionally, it plays a crucial role in troubleshooting and maintenance, enabling proactive identification and resolution of network issues, and minimizing downtime.

Capacity planning is another critical aspect where LTE and 5G surveying shines. It helps determine network performance in areas with potential high capacity, allowing for optimal resource allocation and meeting the growing demand. Moreover, network surveying offers valuable insights during the initial design phase, post-installation validation, and subsequent expansion projects, while ensuring precise planning and efficient use of resources.

2. Key Benefits of Network Surveying

a. Network Performance Optimization: Network surveys verify signal strength and coverage and identify interference, ensuring a seamless user experience. By collecting key data, wireless engineers optimize network performance.

b. Troubleshooting and Maintenance: Regular surveys proactively address network issues like signal degradation, interference challenges, and coverage gaps, minimizing downtime and extending infrastructure lifespan.

c. Efficient Capacity Planning: Survey data is foundational for efficient capacity planning in high-density areas, managing handoff zones, and optimizing resources to meet growing demand effectively.

d. Streamlined Network Design and Expansion: Network surveying offers insights from design to expansion, ensuring precise planning and efficient resource utilization. This streamlined approach contributes to successful initiatives and minimizes change orders from equipment placement to address dominance over macro coverage and poor overlap zones.

e. Cost Savings and Time Efficiency: Network surveying contributes to significant cost savings and time efficiency by detecting issues early, reducing operational costs, and streamlining processes. This cost-effective approach enhances overall network efficiency. The resolution of network discrepancies increases exponentially the further along the project lifecycle it takes for discovery.

3. Challenges with 5G and LTE Surveying

Conducting surveys for LTE and 5G networks is pivotal for optimal performance and reliability. However, technological advancements bring forth multifaceted challenges that demand attention.

Complexity of Current Solutions: In the dynamic world of wireless network planning, existing tools fall short in complexity as networks evolve. Evolved technologies create a disconnect between solutions, demanding a reassessment of tool suitability and capability.

Operational Hurdles: Beyond technical challenges, operational complexities arise. Navigating new environments, addressing aesthetic challenges, and adapting to evolving demands for various applications add layers of difficulty to effective survey execution.

Heavy and Disjointed Tools: Many available solutions are characterized by their heaviness and lack of cohesion. Cumbersome tools hinder maneuverability, impacting the effectiveness of the test and survey and contributing to challenges faced by field technicians and IT teams.

Financial Implications: The repercussions of using complex disjointed tools extend to financial aspects. Network surveying and testing become more expensive with extensive training requirements and potential errors during operation. Overcoming these challenges necessitates a shift towards simpler, cohesive tools, prioritizing both operational efficiency and cost-effectiveness.

Wireless network survey challenges encompass technical, operational, and financial considerations. Streamlining the survey process involves strategic tool choices, emphasizing simplicity, employing cohesiveness, and empowering field technicians. As connectivity evolves, proactive solutions are necessary to master effective tests and surveys.

4. Mastering Effective Wireless Network Surveying

Achieving proficiency in wireless network surveying and testing involves strategic planning, efficient tools, and insightful analysis. Here is a comprehensive breakdown:

Testing vs Surveying:

Testing the network can be done simply with an end-user device. Verifying the device can access the network, transmit and receive voice or data, and handoff between RF (Radio Frequency) signal sources is testing the network, but it is not enough. Even though end-user devices may be able to display critical key performance indicators (KPIs), capturing that test data for further analysis on a map/floorplan is surveying.

Surveying is only as good as the test data captured, but adding clearly mapped critical area annotations with as much information as is available makes a good survey great. Great surveys create efficiency in the life cycle of the project from design to deployment, ongoing maintenance, and future expansion.

Essential Steps Before the Survey:

Prior to initiating a survey, meticulous preparation is essential. Understanding the deployment environment, the network technology of service, and the end-user device capabilities are critical fundamentals, then identifying potential interference sources and establishing a clear survey plan is foundational. This phase acts as a compass, guiding technicians through the intricacies of the test and survey. It also involves verifying the network design to ensure alignment with the intended deployment goals.

During the Survey:

Optimizing the survey process requires employing lightweight, powerful tools for simultaneous channel scanning. This approach ensures a swift yet comprehensive analysis of active frequencies, providing real-time insights. The emphasis is on empowering field technicians with tools that elevate the survey process strategically. Implementing a blind scan at the beginning of the survey can verify the intended signals and uncover unexpected interference or anomalies, contributing to a more robust process.

Post-Survey Analysis:

The post-survey phase involves a thorough examination of collected data, scrutinizing signal strength, coverage areas, and potential interference. Identifying areas for improvement becomes a strategic roadmap for enhancing network performance. This analysis is not just routine; it is a diagnostic tool ensuring optimal network functioning. Ongoing maintenance checks, including periodic blind scans, are crucial to identifying evolving network challenges and maintaining peak performance.

Efficient Process:

Streamlining the network survey process goes beyond tool selection. It involves seamlessly integrating tools into the workflow, minimizing field setup time, capturing geolocated test and survey notations efficiently, and eliminating post-processing complexities. This comprehensive approach provides instant access to survey data, enhancing overall efficiency. It also incorporates the validation of network designs during and after the survey, ensuring they align with performance objectives.

Mastering effective wireless network evaluation for LTE and 5G demands a comprehensive approach that encompasses meticulous preparation, empowered testing, efficient surveying, insightful analysis, including blind scans, ongoing maintenance checks, and strategic validation of network designs. It is about strategically navigating challenges, saving time, and ensuring optimal network performance in the dynamic landscape of connectivity technologies.

5. How iBwave Helps Streamline 5G and LTE Surveys

When surveying LTE and 5G networks, our easy-to-use app, iBwave Mobile, along with the lightweight and powerful Epiq PRiSM scanner, emerges as the simplest and most cost-effective tool. It enables you to save time and costs thanks to eliminated post-processing, survey multiple technologies at once, and determine interference and active frequencies with a spectrum analyzer.

Elevate your network surveying with iBwave and unlock massive cost and time savings! Learn more about our seamless survey solution here!

You can also watch our full 5G survey demo video below!

Conclusion

Efficient 5G and LTE network surveys are indispensable for maintaining optimal performance and reliability in today’s dynamic connectivity landscape. Embracing simplified survey and test techniques and leveraging advanced tools like iBwave’s solution ensures seamless network design, deployment, and management. As networks evolve, mastering effective surveys requires proactive solutions to overcome challenges, save time, and ensure optimal performance.

Making Smart Cities Smarter: The Role of Private Wireless Networks

Smart cities are rapidly becoming a reality, with many municipalities across the world investing in digital infrastructure to increase efficiency and improve citizen experiences. To reach their fullest potential, smart cities must leverage private wireless networks to provide high-speed data connectivity between critical applications.

Understanding the Need for Private Wireless Networks in Smart Cities

Smart cities are rapidly transforming the way we live, enabling greater efficiency and improved citizen experiences. For smart cities to reach their full potential, they require a reliable and secure wireless infrastructure that can meet the demands of its users. Public wireless networks can be supplemented with private wireless networks to provide the necessary performance and scalability for smart cities to thrive.

Public wireless networks, such as those used by cellular providers or public Wi-Fi hotspots, are often inadequate in supporting new technology and applications in smart cities. These networks can suffer from bandwidth limitations and interference due to an abundance of users in the same area competing for spectrum resources. Additionally, these networks are unable to provide a secure connection with enterprise-grade security features such as encryption and authentication protocols.

Private wireless networks address these challenges by providing dedicated spectrum resources that enable high-performance data transfer speeds and low latency connections between connected devices.

The use cases of private wireless networks in smart cities include:

remote monitoring of traffic conditions or public safety sensors
real-time tracking of municipal vehicles
access control systems for buildings or parking lots
video surveillance systems
machine-to-machine communication (M2M) for automated processes such as waste management

As well as many more applications requiring reliable connectivity with minimal latency requirements.

The emergence of 5G technology brings with it opportunities to deploy private wireless networks at lower costs than ever before. With new advances in hardware technology, private LTE solutions have become cost effective enough for small businesses and municipalities. As 5G continues to mature over time, its flexibility will enable these solutions to expand their capabilities far beyond what is currently possible on 4G/LTE technology. This flexibility further increases the value proposition for private networks within smart city initiatives moving forward.

Scalability is also an important factor when considering private wireless network solutions for smart cities. Private networks must be able to grow alongside the needs of the city itself over time. As new applications continue to emerge within smart cities across the globe — from autonomous driving initiatives to augmented reality applications—having a scalable network solution that can accommodate additional devices will be essential for these projects to succeed long term.

Private wireless networks offer a range of benefits that make them ideal solutions for supporting new technology and mission-critical applications in smart cities across the world today.

Private networks can be a helpful addition to city development because of their enhanced performance capabilities, scalability options that allow them to keep up with future needs, and lower deployment costs. The secure connections private networks provide between connected devices with enterprise-grade security features will allow for improved smart city infrastructure in the future.

Types of Private Wireless Network Solutions Available for Smart Cities

Smart cities are increasingly relying on private wireless networks to provide the connectivity required for their various applications. Private wireless networks offer dedicated spectrum resources, enhanced performance capabilities, scalability, and secure connections with enterprise-grade security features.

For smart cities, there are four main types of private wireless network solutions available:

LTE (long term evolution)
5G (fifth generation) cellular networks
Wi-Fi 6 (IEEE 802.11ax)
Mesh networks

Each of these solutions offers its own advantages and disadvantages when it comes to speed, coverage, scalability, security, cost, and other considerations.

LTE for Smart City Networks

LTE is the most widely used type of private wireless network solution for smart cities due to its low cost and extensive coverage area. LTE can provide data speeds up to 10 Mbps with low latency rates and is also capable of supporting a wide range of devices from different manufacturers.

However, LTE networks can be prone to signal interference in areas where there are a lot of users or multiple sources of radio frequency signals.

5G for Smart City Networks

5G provides much higher speeds than LTE — up to 1 Gbps — as well as increased capacity for handling more users at once and lower latency rates than LTE. Higher speeds provided by 5G makes it ideal for applications that require high bandwidth, such as streaming video or virtual reality experiences in smart cities. Additionally, 5G offers greater flexibility in deployment options compared to earlier generations of cellular technology.

On the downside, 5G technology has not yet been widely adopted by many countries due to its complex infrastructure requirements and the expensive equipment costs associated with deploying it.

Wi-Fi 6 for Smart City Networks

Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) is another option for providing private wireless networks in smart cities that offer higher data transfer speeds than previous Wi-Fi protocols while also being more power efficient than previous versions. In addition to higher data transfer rates compared to earlier Wi-Fi protocols, Wi-Fi 6 also offers improved security features such as encryption which help protect against unauthorized access attempts into the network itself or individual devices connected to it.

However, Wi-Fi 6 still requires significant investment in both equipment costs and time spent on setup before it can be used effectively in a smart city environment.

Mesh Networks for Smart Cities

Finally, mesh networks make use of multiple nodes that communicate wirelessly with each other instead of relying on an internet connection from a single source like traditional private wireless networks do. This type of network allows for easier scalability since new nodes can be added easily without having to worry about compatibility issues between different equipment manufacturers, making them ideal for large scale deployments across entire towns or regions. They also offer improved reliability since if one node goes down, traffic can be rerouted through another node seamlessly.

The major disadvantage, however, is that they tend to have lower data transfer speeds due to all the nodes communicating with each other at once.

Overall, private wireless networks play an important role in enabling smart city initiatives by providing faster connections, better coverage areas, improved security measures, greater scalability options, and cost savings over traditional wired networking solutions. Different types of solutions are available depending on specific needs, but the resilience provided by these solutions ensures reliable communications even during times when traditional wired networking may not be possible.

Key Considerations for Implementing Private Wireless Networks in Smart Cities

As the demand for private wireless networks grows in smart cities, it is important to be aware of the key considerations when implementing such solutions. Private wireless networks provide greater speed, coverage, scalability, and security than traditional wired networking solutions. However, designing a network with sufficient capacity to meet the needs of the smart city is important.

Choosing the right network technology is also critical. LTE provides an affordable solution with extensive coverage area, while 5G offers much higher speeds and increased capacity. Wi-Fi 6 (IEEE 802.11ax) offers faster data transfer speeds and improved security features; mesh networks are easier to scale and have improved reliability. It’s important to balance cost and flexibility in selecting a solution that meets the present and future demands of the smart city’s infrastructure.

Scalability should also be taken into consideration when planning for private wireless networks in smart cities. As new applications emerge within a city’s infrastructure, having a scalable network solution that can accommodate additional devices will be essential for success. If there isn’t enough capacity or flexibility built into the system from the start, problems may arise as more users join or as traffic increases over time.

Reliability and coverage are also important considerations when designing a private wireless network for a smart city. Breaks or dead spots in coverage could lead to disruptions in service that can affect citizens’ quality of life and businesses’ bottom-line performance. It’s important to plan for adequate coverage in all areas where public safety services are needed or where citizens may need access to internet services.

Security needs to be considered when implementing private wireless networks into smart cities’ infrastructures. Selecting appropriate protocols for authentication mechanisms is essential since data breaches can have far-reaching consequences if not adequately protected against malicious actors. With hackers continually finding ways around standard measures used by public networks, it becomes even more important for private wireless networks used in intelligent urban environments to make sure their security measures remain up to date.

Implementing private wireless networks into smart cities requires careful consideration of various factors including choosing an appropriate network technology and ensuring adequate coverage and scalability to reap all its benefits without compromising on security protocols or reliability issues.

Conclusion

The evolution of smart cities provides a unique opportunity to revolutionize urban living with private wireless networks. These systems are designed to provide dedicated spectrum resources, enhanced performance capabilities, scalability, and secure connections with enterprise-grade security features.

Through careful planning and investment in this technology, municipalities can take advantage of its many benefits while ensuring that citizens remain safe from malicious actors on public networks.

The potential for private wireless networks in smart cities is significant. Private networks offer access to high-speed internet connections and can increase productivity for businesses and improve public safety initiatives such as emergency response systems. Moreover, citizens can enjoy greater convenience and improved quality of life in their daily lives. 5G technology stands out as a particularly attractive option due to its flexibility and cost-effectiveness.

When planning for the implementation of private wireless networks in smart cities, there are several key considerations: selecting the correct network technology, making sure that the system is adequately scalable and secure, and having enough capacity to accommodate additional devices as new applications emerge within the city.

With proper planning and investment in this technology, smart cities can reap significant rewards from their use of private wireless networks and can provide a more efficient, connected, and secure environment overall.

iBwave delivers the simplest and most reliable solution for planning, designing, and delivering private, high-performance networks for smart cities and beyond. Request a demo to learn more about how iBwave can help you design your next wireless network project.