RF Unit VSWR Threshold Crossed

Alarm Description
The voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR) measures the signal power that the load actually receives from the
transmission line. The VSWR at the antenna port is calculated based on the sampled forward power and
reverse power. This alarm is reported when the VSWR at the antenna port of the TX channel of an RF unit is
greater than the preset VSWR alarm threshold or VSWR alarm post-processing threshold.
Impact on System
The return loss at the antenna port is excessive. When the detected VSWR exceeds the major alarm threshold,
the system determines whether to switch off the TX channel of the RF unit based on the configurations. The
return loss at the antenna port is relatively large. In this case, the output power of the RF unit decreases and
the cell coverage shrinks.

Possible Causes
Data configuration

 The preset VSWR threshold is very low. It is recommended that the VSWR alarm threshold not be
used as the VSWR acceptance threshold.
 The VSWR threshold is set to an excessively low value for the other mode of the multimode RF units.
 When the RF unit is connected to a split antenna, the connection between the RF unit and the
antenna is not configured, and the antenna is not configured as a split antenna. As a result, the VSWR
exceeds the preset VSWR alarm threshold.
Hardware
 The jumper installation does not conform to the plan.
 The feeder connector on the antenna port does not meet the requirements, which is loose or
waterlogged, or has foreign matter.
 The feeder connected to the antenna port of the RF unit is bent or deformed; the feeder is damaged.
 The RF unit is faulty in hardware.
 The frequency bands supported by the RF unit do not match the frequency bands supported by the
components of the antenna system. The components of the antenna system include antennas, feeders,
jumpers, combiner-dividers, filters, and tower-mounted amplifiers (TMAs).
 A component of the antenna system is damaged.
Steps in detecting the cause of VSWR alarm
NOTE: Before measuring the VSWR, always deactivate the cell of the corresponding sector to be measured especially
when measuring TX/RX port.

1. Remove the outdoor RF outdoor jumper cable (RF Jumper from Antenna to TTA). Connect a dummy
load to the RF outdoor jumper replacing the antenna. Measure the VSWR using Site Master. If the
VSWR is greater than 1.5 go to step 2.

2. Connect the dummy load on the TTA (Antenna Port) and measure the VSWR. If the VSWR is greater
than 1.5 go to step 3.

3. Remove the RF outdoor jumper (Jumper from TTA to Feeder) and connect the dummy load. Measure
the VSWR. If the VSWR is greater than 1.5 go to step 4.

4. Connect the dummy load on the feeder cable and measure the VSWR. If the VSWR is greater than 1.5
go to step 5.

5. Disconnect the RF indoor jumper cable and connect the dummy load. Measure the VSWR. If the VSWR
is greater than 1.5 go to step 6.

6. Connect the dummy load on top of the BTS cabinet (TX/RX or RXD port). Remove the Node B internal
RF cable connected to the transceiver and measure the VSWR. If the VSWR is still greater than 1.5,
replace the Node B indoor RF cable.