Variable-bit-rate traffic modelling for dimensioning 3G CDMA systems

It is well known that the statistics of a traffic load impact strongly on the queueing and blocking performance of a network. It is not well understood what impact the traffic statistics have on the propagation dependent performance of a network. We consider whether it is possible to approximate variable-bit-rate traffic more conveniently as a constant traffic load when dimensioning the propagation aspects of a CDMA system. Simulating a typical outdoor 3G CDMA system and comparing downlink performance with both variable long-range-dependent traffic and a constant traffic approximation address this question. It is shown that in most scenarios the traffic statistics have negligible impact on the propagation model with low variability is the constant traffic approximation not appropriate.