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Importing cell site data using the Network Explorer

The Network Explorer allows you to import network element data,

creating a cell plan file called cellrefs.txt. It also lets you browse and

edit this network information once it has been loaded. The Automatic

Import feature provides an automated method of updating cell site

information as changes are made to the network.

This section describes how to import delimited data, and how to

configure the Automatic Import tool.

Importing Network Data

The important thing to remember about the network data import

process is that the process requires two files:

1 A delimited text file that contains unformatted data arranged in

tabular form, with one row for each individual sector in a network.

2 A blank file, containing only Actix header information, to be

populated with formatted data.

Obtaining Site Data in tabular format

In order to import cell site data from your own network, you will need

to obtain a delimited text file containing the data listed in the table

below. To maximize the benefit your Actix Software can bring to UMTS

network analysis, the parameters listed in bold in the table on the

following page are REQUIRED for cell data to function with logged data

in the main workspace. All other parameters are optional.

The data may come from a network database or a planning tool

configuration file. As long as the data is in a tabular format with one

row for each sector, you will be able to import the data.

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UMTS Cell Site Parameters for Import:

Parameter Actix Group Actix Name Purpose

Site Name WCDMA_Site SiteName Text description of the site for display on map.

Site Number

WCDMA_Site SiteID Numeric identifier for the site.

Latitude WCDMA_Site Latitude Locates site icons on map.

Longitude WCDMA_Site Longitude Locates site icons on map.

Sector Number

WCDMA_Cell Sector ID Sector-specific information useful for display on maps (can be alpha or numeric)

Azimuth WCDMA_Cell Azimuth Orients the sector icons on the map.

Beamwidth WCDMA_Cell Beamwidth Governs the shape of the sector wedge icon to reflect the beamwidth of antenna deployed at the site.

Scrambling Code

WCDMA_Cell SC Used for cell site identification and to calculate lines to cells.

EIRP WCDMA_Cell EIRP Equivalent Isotropic Radiated Power for informational purposes only

Mobile Country Code

WCDMA_Cell MCC Mobile Country Code for informational purposes only

Mobile Network Code

WCDMA_Cell MNC National Domain Code for informational purposes only

Location Area Code

WCDMA_Cell LAC Location Area Code for informational purposes only

Cell Identity WCDMA_Cell WCDMA_CI Cell Identity for informational purposes only

BSIC WCDMA_Cell BSIC Legacy parameter unused

Neighbor List

WCDMA_Cell WCDMANeighborList

Used to define a pre-defined neighbor list for each cell. Used during neighbor list recommendations analysis.

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The figure below is an example of a delimited UMTS file that could be

used to import a site list. Though the columns can be in any order for

import, the figure shows all of the REQUIRED fields. Additionally, the

Excel spreadsheet must be saved as a TEXT file for import.

Figure 88 - UMTS Cell Site Data Spreadsheet

Guidelines for formatting tabular data

Although cell-site data fields do not need to be listed in a particular

order, following these guidelines will provide the best results:

1 The Site ID field must contain a unique value for each site location.

Beware of non-unique Site IDs - that is, entries that have multiple

sets of latitudes and longitudes for the same Site ID. Non-unique

Site IDs will result in site markers appearing on the map without

sector wedges. Site Names need not be unique - they are used for

labeling purposes only.

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2 Position information must be accurate to display sites in the correct

location on the map. Longitudes that have a 'West' notation should

be represented as a negative decimal, as should latitudes with a

'South' notation. Sites will appear skewed on the map if the latitude

and longitude fields are transposed.

Obtaining the file to be populated with formatted data

Before importing new cells, ensure that your Actix Software is pointing

to a valid cell site database.

A valid cell site database is a text file in which the first line

contains the text below:

; #NetworkData datafile

Every installation comes with a clean file called cellrefs.txt

located in the folder:

C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application

Data\Actix\Analyzer\Bin\Cellrefs

The file to be populated need not be named cellrefs.txt . We

recommend renaming this file with a meaningful name in order

to prevent the file from being overwritten during reinstallation.

To point your Actix Software to the file that you wish to populate with

the new cell site data, use the File Location line in the Tools

Preferences dialog. See the section on Loading Cell Site Data for

more details.

Importing the data

Once you have obtained your cell site database in delimited format

and have referenced a valid cellrefs file, you are ready to open the

Network Explorer and import the site information.

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1 To access the Network Explorer, select Tools

Network

Explorer.

Figure 89- Network Explorer Window

The Network Explorer display consists of two panels. The left panel

contains a tree view of the network element data. The right panel

shows details about relevant parameters for the current selection.

If you have referenced a cellrefs file containing only header

information, you will not see any cell site data at this time.

2 From the toolbar, select Import

Import From New Template

to open the Import dialog.

3 Select the appropriate network data file and click Open to display

the Import Settings dialog.

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Figure 90- Import Settings Dialog (Step 1 of 2)

4 Give the Template a meaningful Template Name.

5 Check the appropriate Delimiter.

6 In most cases, the default information under the General Settings

and Coordinate Information headers will apply. Adjust these

settings if necessary.

7 Click Next.

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Figure 91 - Settings (Step 2 of 2) Assign WCDMA_Site Data

8 Expand the WCDMA_Site data node. Click in the Column field

next to the Site_Name parameter. Select the parameter name

from your site database that corresponds to the Site_Name

parameter. Repeat for each of the required fields in the

WCDMA_Site data node, based on the table below:

Field Mapping required for proper operation?

Site_Name Optional, but this field is frequently used for the site label.

SiteID Required, and this field must be unique for each site in the database.

Latitude Required

Longitude Required

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Figure 92 - Column Settings (Step 2 of 2) Assign WCDMA_Cell Data

9 Expand the WCDMA_Cell data node. Click in the Column field

next to the Sector_ID parameter. Select the parameter name

from your site database that corresponds to the Sector_ID

parameter. Repeat for each of the required fields in the

WCDMA_Cell data node, based on the table below:

Field Required for proper operation?

Sector_ID Required

Azimuth Required

Beamwidth Required

EIRP Optional

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Field Required for proper operation?

SC Required

MCC Optional

MNC Optional

LAC Optional

WCDMA_CI Optional

BSIC Unused

WCDMANeighborList

Optional

10 Click Finish when all the columns have been assigned. If the

current workspace contains existing site data, you will be asked

whether you want to remove existing data before importing new

data. Select Yes to overwrite existing data. Select No to append to

existing data.

11 If any errors occur during the import, a pop-up message will

indicate that an error log has been created. The error log specifies

the cause of each error encountered and can be found in:

C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application

Data\Actix\Analyzer\Bin\Cellrefs\ImportErrors.log

12 Inspect the cell data in the Network Explorer by expanding the

All_WCDMA_Site_Elements folder in the left-hand pane of the

Network Explorer.

13 Double-click on any site name in the right hand pane. The Name,

Location and ID of the site will appear, as well as a folder

containing WCDMA Cell Elements. Drill into the WCDMA Cell

Elements folder and examine the values corresponding to each

sector.

14 To save the formatted site information, select the Save button.

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15 Close the Network Explorer by clicking the X in the top right hand

corner.

16 After closing the Network Explorer, view a new map by selecting

View

Display New Map.

Figure 93 - Use Zoom to Layer to Locate Cells on Map

17 If cell icons do not appear on the map, right click on the

WCDMA_Cell layer in the map legend at the left hand side of the

map window. Select Zoom to Layer to zoom the map to the

appropriate location. Be sure to close the map with the X at the

upper right hand corner to save all changes to the map view.

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Updating Cell Site Data

There are two convenient ways to update cell plan information:

Minor cell plan changes (a few azimuths, SCs, etc.) can be

modified directly from the Network Explorer. Simply browse to

find the site and sector of interest and double click on a single

parameter to activate the text. Be sure to save the

modifications before exiting the Network Explorer!

If the cellplan file is updated (multiple sites added, complete

frequency retune), use the Automatic Import feature to detect

changes to an existing cell plan and import the updated cell site

file. Instructions for using the Automatic Import feature follow.

Automatic import of Cell Site Data

The Automatic Import feature detects changes to cell plan data and

updates the configured site data every time you open your Actix

Software.

To use the Automatic Import feature

1 From the main menu, select Tools

Preferences.

2 Expand the Automatic Import option under Cellrefs and select

the Enable Automatic Import option.

3 Select the Automatic Import Input File. This text file contains

your delimited site data.

4 Select the Automatic Import Template. Once a template has

been created, a new workspace must be started in order for that

template to appear in this list. To use a template created on

another computer, copy the template of interest from this folder:

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C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application

Data\Actix\Analyzer\Bin\Cellrefs\Templates

to the same directory on your machine.

5 Click OK to exit the Change Preferences dialog. A message will

appear that Automatic Import has been enabled and that your

currently loaded cellrefs will be overwritten the next time you

restart your Actix Software.

Figure 94 - Automatic Import Setup

Once Automatic Import is configured, any changes to the Automatic

Import Input File will be detected, and will be changed accordingly in

your cell site file each time you start your Actix Software.