SSH EN 302 217-3 V1.2.1:2008

Fixed Radio Systems; Characteristics and requirements for point-to-point equipment and antennas; Part 3: Harmonized EN covering essential requirements of article 3.2 of R&TTE Directive for equipment operating in frequency bands where simplified or no frequency co-ordination procedures are applied

Scope

The present document specifies the essential requirements for point-to-point Digital Fixed Radio Systems (DFRS)
operating in higher frequency bands, which might not require detailed link-by-link co-ordinated frequency planning;
this imply either no co-ordination at all (i.e. the band usage is free and the user is responsible for detecting a suitable
interference-free operating frequency) or simplified co-ordination procedures implying the knowledge of existing links
(e.g. through a public national database) so that the impact of a possible new link could be evaluated on the basis of
budgetary considerations of typical equipment receiver parameters (which will not be considered related to essential
requirements of art 3.2 R&TTE Directive [1]). It is intended to cover the provisions of Directive 1999/5/EC [1]
(R&TTE Directive) regarding article 3.2, which states that "… radio equipment shall be so constructed that it
effectively uses the spectrum allocated to terrestrial/space radio communications and orbital resources so as to avoid
harmful interference".
The EN 302 217 series introduces requirements for systems (equipment and antennas) that were formerly covered by
EN 301 751 [20] and that are technically equivalent or less stringent requirements. Therefore, from a strictly technical
point of view, it is expected that equipment already conforming to the previous EN 301 751 [20] or previous versions of
the present harmonized standard, would not need a new test report for re-assessment of essential requirements according
this new multi-part deliverable; however, legal implications with respect to the declaration of conformity and equipment
labelling are not in the scope of the present document.
In addition to the present document, other ENs that specify technical requirements in respect of essential requirements
under other parts of article 3 of the R&TTE Directive [1] will apply to equipment within the scope of the present
document.
NOTE: A list of such ENs is included on the web site http://www.newapproach.org/.
In order to technically cover different market and network requirements, with an appropriate balance of performance to
cost and effective and appropriate use of the radio spectrum, the present document, together with EN 302 217-4-2 [8],
offers system types and antennas alternatives, for selection by administrations, operators and manufacturers dependent
on the desired use of the radio spectrum and network/market requirements, those options include:
• channel separation alternatives (as provided by the relevant CEPT Recommendation);
• implemented procedure for free radio channel selection;
• antenna directivity class alternatives (for different network density requirement).
The present document is mainly intended to cover fixed radio equipment without integral antennas. However, it also
applies to fixed radio systems products with integral antennas, for which all the technical requirements included in the
present document and in EN 302 217-4-2 [8] apply. For more background information on the equipment and antenna
parameters here identified as relevant to article 3.2 of R&TTE Directive see EG 201 399 [15] and TR 101 506 [21] .
For example, the frequency band 58 GHz is proposed to be used by various technologies for uncoordinated use of the
band. Besides the RF-channel selection procedure, specified in clause 4.2 to avoid unacceptable interference situations,
this band also benefits from the high and stable atmospheric attenuation which suppresses efficiently distant interferers
(about 10 dB/km to 15 dB/km at sea level, refer to ITU-R Recommendation P.676 [22] .
For the purposes of the present document two equipment Classes are specified depending on the network requirements:
• Class A: Digital equipment which apply the automatic RF-channel selection procedure (see clause 4.2) for
interference avoidance and error performance enhancement.
• Class B: Equipment without automatic RF-channel selection procedure.
Typical applications for Class A equipment are interconnection between cellular networks where, in some cases, there
is a need for short length connections (up to about 500 m). The RF channel selection procedure shall be used to protect
existing systems from a new system being commissioned. However, the channel selection procedure may not guarantee
interference free installation or operation in all cases, due to limitations in the procedure with respect to the variety of
systems.
Typical applications for Class B equipment are:
• private connections, such as video surveillance systems in 58 GHz band;
ETSI
9 ETSI EN 302 217-3 V1.2.1 (2008-02)
• very high capacity (of Gigabit/s order or more) over relatively short links (up to around 2 km) in 65 GHz band
(e.g. for connecting large data servers).