On the performance of cellular network deployments in TV whitespaces

In this paper we analyze the prospects of deploying a cellular network in the TV whitespaces. We study the challenges of planning for a large-scale transmitter network that is constrained by an interference-to-primary regulation. For this purpose we derive a novel methodology to maximize the downlink capacity at the cell edge of base stations that makes use of a heuristic algorithm for per-channel power allocation. A discretized formulation as a multiple-choice nested knapsack problem is presented and scenario-specific algorithmic improvements are discussed. The methodology is assessed for the case of Germany which, due to the specific challenges of the geographic region, can be considered indicative for similar deployments in other countries.