Multi-mode/multi-carrier resource management in CDMA/AMPS deployment

The promise of PCS (personal communication service) is to bring affordable wireless communication service to maximum number of users at any time, any where. To materialize this goal, service providers need to identify the most optimum migration plan for the existing technology with the best technology and cost structure. In North America, analog cellular service, or AMPS, had been in existence since 1982. Due to the capacity limitation of AMPS technology, many, if not all of the AMPS operators are planning to digitalize their networks. Some operators choose to migrate their networks to TDMA, or the IS-136, while more operators choose to migrate their networks to CDMA, or the IS-95. This paper focuses on the migration from AMPS to CDMA. From the subscriber unit side, there are dual-mode (1900 CDMA, AMPS) and tri-mode (1900 CDMA, 800 CDMA, AMPS) terminals commercially available. From the infrastructure side, this multi-mode, multi-carrier CDMA/ AMPS deployment provides an invaluable opportunity to maximize the trunking efficiency across this pool of traffic-carrying capacity. The “grey zone” issue has arisen from the imbalance of the forward and reverse links in CDMA at the border areas of the overlying carrier in the same and/or different modes. There is a need for an IS-95A solution to address the “grey zone” issue. An alternative solution is discussed which will work with the existing IS-95A phones. Once this grey zone issue is resolved, operators will be able to flawlessly deploy the multi-mode (CDMA/AMPS) terminals in the network. The investigation analyses the expected gain in statistical multiplier effect (or the trunking efficiency) for the different mix of phones