Experimental Studies on Impact of Mobile Systems Operating in the UHF Frequency Band on DTT Video Signals

The delivery of digital TV service in Italy is now experiencing a transition period characterized by the introduction of the DVB-T2 standard in place of the currently operating DVB-T standard. This transition makes available a range of frequencies in the 700MHz band which has been assigned to the emerging 5G-NR services. As a consequence, in line with similar investigations carried out when LTE services were launched in the 800MHz band, it appears of interest to analyze the possible impact on the correct reception of DTT signals transmitted in the frequency band ranging from 470 to 694 MHz due to the combined effect of LTE and 5G-NR interferer mobile radio signals, operating respectively in the 800 and 700MHz frequency bands. In this context, the present study aims to investigate the interference scenario that will arise after 5G-NR base stations will be turned on, with specific focus on the interference that DVB-T2 terrestrial TV signals may suffer. The final goal of the research work is to provide an interference model aimed to estimate TV reception areas where it is expected mobile signals could degrade the reception quality of the TV service in presence of Master Antenna Television (MATV) system including a broadband amplifier. The paper provides a description of the experimental setup used in the study as well as some preliminary results.