Investigation of Received Signal Quality of 3G GSM Networks in Yenagoa – Southern Nigeria

Abstract

After implementation, every radio frequency (RF) design should be assessed on a regular basis. The core of this article is to assess the performance of four GSM networks while taking received signal quality (RxQual) into account. RxQual readings of 10211, 10170, 10275, and 10523 were recorded for the MTN, Globacom, Airtel, and 9mobile networks. These collected data were statistically analyzed using bar charts, quality plots, and the generation of measures of central tendency and dispersion. The results reveal that for MTN, Globacom, Airtel, and 9mobile networks, 70.14%, 81.34%, 90.13%, and 88.52% of the driving test route had high signal quality and fulfilled the Nigerian telecommunication regulatory threshold of at least 4dB for RxQual. As a result, it can be concluded that Airtel had the best GSM network in terms of RxQual, followed by 9mobile, Globacom, and MTN. The results presented in this paper will assist mobile network operators in the future in improving signal quality, ensuring enhanced network coverage, and increasing network capacity.