Capacity evaluation for multi-layer GSM networks with voice and data traffic

GSM network planning requires frequent assessments of cell blocking probabilities in potential network variants under the prospective load, in order to identify a cost-efficient configuration meeting the coverage and capacity targets. Such assessments must take into account that in the prevailing multi-layer GSM network architectures, handover mechanisms balance the load among the layers in order to reduce blocking losses. In this work we propose an analytical way of calculating the overall blocking losses of multi-layer GSM networks with mixed voice and data traffic. Our approach ignores losses caused by interference and avoids snapshot simulations. In an example we show that the proposed capacity evaluation is fast enough to support site selection and cell optimization planning processes in GSM networks.