Channel Planning
V4.2.6 of LINKPlanner introduces the ability to assign frequency channels to access points and PMP links. Each channel can be assigned a different color to make it easy to visualise the assigned channels in the map views.
Defining Channels
The Channel Plans are located under the Project Configuration branch of the project tree (see Figure 1 - Channel Plan Panel). Above the channel plan table is a new toolbar which provides the following commands:
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Create a new channel plan. |
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Delete the selected channel plans. |
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Automatically create the channel plans based on the access point configurations in the project. |
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Increase the number of channels that can be defined. The project will default to 2 channels and has a maximum of 16 channels. |
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Decrease the number of channels that can be defined. There must always be at least 1 channel. |
Figure 1 - Channel Plan Panel
If the current project already contains access points, then the easiest way to configure the channel plans is with the 
command. This will create a channel plan for each access point equipment configuration.
A channel plan can be manually configured by selecting the cell in the table. The Name can be any valid text. The Band, Product, Country and Bandwidth options are the same as those used to configure the access point equipment (see Figure 2- Editing Channel Plans). The Raster options vary according to the other configuration settings.
Figure 2 - Editing Channel Plans
Setting the Channel Frequency
Once the channel plan has been configured, the first channel frequency can be selected. Click in the appropriate “Ch 1” cell and select the required frequency from the list (see Figure 3- Frequency Selection). The channels must be defined from left to right, since the available frequencies are based on the previous configuration settings.
Note:
If a channel frequency is modified after setting the higher channel frequencies then it may result in subsequent frequencies being cleared. The same may be true if the equipment configuration settings are modified for the channel plan.
Figure 3 - Frequency Selection
Since the frequency options are based on the previous selections, certain configurations may only allow 2 or 3 channels to be defined before there are no more valid frequencies (see Figure 4 - Restricted Channel Options).
Figure 4 - Restricted Channel Options
Changing the Colors
Each channel has a default color, but it is possible to assign colors to individual frequencies if required. To change the color, select one or more cells and then click on the “Color…” icon or right-click in the selection and select the “Color” command.
Figure 5 - Changing Color
The color selection dialog will appear. Use this to choose the appropriate color and click “OK”. Once the frequencies and colors have been defined it is then time to assign the channels to the access points.
Assigning Channels
There are two ways that the channel can be assigned to an access point; through the access point panel and on the offline map.
Figure 6 - Setting the Channel in Access Point Panel
When a channel plan has been defined which matches the access point configuration, the Channel Selection settings will appear on the access point panel. These options can then be used to set the appropriate channel plan and channel for the access point.
Figure 7 - Setting the Channel in the Offline Map
To assign the channel in the offline map, simply right-click on the access point and then select the appropriate channel from the “Set channel” sub-menu which appears in the pop-up menu. The current selection is shown with a colored tick. When the access point has several channel plans that could be applied, the channel plan name will be included next to the channel name.
Copy, Paste and Duplicate
The channel plan pop-up menu appears when the right-mouse button is clicked in one of the channel plan configuration columns (Name -> Raster). The menu provides the commands to Copy, Paste, Duplicate and Delete the selected channel plans.
Figure 8 - Channel Plan Pop-up Menu
Power Back-off
Some country regulations impose a reduced transmit power limit for the channels on the edge of the frequency band to meet the out of band emissions. LINKPlanner will automatically apply the appropriate power limits to the access point and subscriber module according to the selected channel. The table below shows the conditions where additional power limits will apply. See the product User Guides for further details of the transmit power limitations.
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Power Back-off Conditions |
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2.4 GHz PMP-450, Canada, Other-FCC or United States |
The transmit power is limited when the frequency is set to the minimum or maximum frequency in the channel band. The maximum transmit power is bandwidth dependent. |
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5.1 GHz ePMP 1000, Guam, Puerto Rico, United States, US Virgin Islands |
The transmit power is limited when the frequency is set to the minimum frequency in the channel band. The maximum transmit power depends on the bandwidth and the antenna gain. |