Bruno ESPINOSA, ECO
EUTC2012, Warsaw,
26th October 2012 bruno.espinosa@eco.cept.org
www.cept.org/eco www.cept.org/ecc

Overview

CEPT, ECC and ECO regulatory agencies and/or ministries
The ECC is the part of the CEPT that deals with radio spectrum.
ECO: permanent office in
Copenhagen.

Three main players in spectrum regulation in Europe
European Commission:
Single market issues
Binding regulations through specific procedures with MS
ECC:
Spectrum allocation and technical conditions for its use
48 member countries acting together
Technical and regulatory expertise used by EC (Mandate to CEPT)
ETSI:
Equipment and system specifications: including ‘spectrum use’ characteristics
Recognised standards body for ‘harmonised standards’
Makes ‘System Reference Documents’ which inform and trigger much of the ECC work
Largely industry-driven;

European Frequency Management Framework
2002 Radio Spectrum
Decision
Read more at http://apps.cept.org/ eccetsirel/

Role of the ECC in Europe
Consensus and voluntary character: flexible instrument of the national administrations
4 types of deliverable
– ECC Decisions
– ECC Recommendations
– ECC Reports
– CEPT Reports http://www.ecodocdb.dk/
Activities triggered by the national administrations, the EC (Mandate) and ETSI (System Reference Documents)

EFIS (ECO Frequency Information System)
Developed by the ECO recognised by the EC as the tool on the harmonized availability of information regarding spectrum use in Europe
Tables of frequency available in EFIS ( www.efis.dk
):
42 countries, including all EU member states
• ITU-R Region 1
• European Common Allocation (ECA) Table (also available as document: ERC Report 25)
Data types in EFIS:
1.Allocations (RR, ECA and all the National Tables of Frequency Allocation)
2.Applications (National Frequency Utilisation Plans)
3.Radio interfaces (mostly ECS and reference documents for unlicensed usage)
4.Documents (related to spectrum usage)
5.Right of use info (individual authorisations, mostly for ECS bands)

Regulations applicable to Short Range Devices (SRD)
• “Short Range Device” (SRD) is intended to cover the radio transmitters which provide either unidirectional or bi-directional communication which have low capability of causing interference to other radio equipment.
• SRDs are not considered a “Radio Service” under the ITU Radio
Regulations (Article 1).
• SRDs in general operate in shared bands and are not permitted to cause harmful interference to radio services
• SRDs in general cannot claim protection from radio services;
• SRDs are generally exempted from individual licensing.

Regulations applicable to Short Range Devices (SRD)
• Use of SRDs in Europe regulated by Recommendation ERC 70-03 developed and maintained within the ECC
• Describes the spectrum management requirements for SRDs relating to allocated frequency bands, maximum power levels, channel spacing and duty cycle
• Identifies frequency bands for a wide range of applications
• Non-specific SRDs
• Applications having specific requirements : e.g. alarms, radio microphones, railway applications, RFID, active medical implants…
• Applications for certain short range devices are subject to relevant EC
Decisions
• Current trend: focus on technology and application-neutral solutions to keep flexibility, avoid spectrum fragmentation and foster innovations. Reduce the application specific bands.

ECC considerations on smart grids and smart meterings
• So far, considerations in ECC on EUT applications (smart grid, smart metering, Metropolitan Mesh Machine Networks) under the
SRD approach.
• Current version of Recommendation 70-03 identifies the band
169.4-169.475 MHz for meter reading under specific technical conditions (500 mW max e.r.p., duty cycle < 10%, Max 50 kHz channel spacing).
• Possibility to use bands for non-specific SRD (e.g. 863-870 MHz) under the associated conditions. But need to cope with the sharing with other applications in these bands.
• Current ECC activities to improve the efficient use of the band 863-
870 MHz may offer some perspectives.

Work in the ECC on Smart Grids / Smart Metering
(and others – under the UHF Roadmap)
Work in ECC on possible extension bands for SRD (870-876/915-921 MHz) was triggered by 4 ETSI
System Reference Documents:
ETSI SRDoc TR 102 649-2 (SRD and RFID appl, incl SM/SG, 870-876/915-921 MHz)
ETSI SRDoc TR 102 886 (SM in 873-876 MHz)
ETSI SRDoc TR 103 055 (SM/SG in 870-876 MHz)
ETSI SRDoc TR 103 056 (Alarms/Social alarms 870-876 MHz)
ECC WGSE conducts spectrum compatibility studies, covering compatibility with the existing systems
(e.g. governmental services, GSM-R) in the band and in adjacent bands and coexistence between various SRD applications.
ECC WGFM SRD/MG collected spectrum inventory information and works on a draft ECC Report 189 which includes identification of the objectives/benefits, assessment of the ETSI request , need for harmonisation as well proposal for choice of frequency regulatory framework and frequency options for each application
Full pan-European immediate harmonisation unlikely because of governmental services in all or parts of the 870-876/915-921 MHz bands in 11 (of 48) countries.

Work in the ECC on Smart Grids / Smart Metering
• Smart metering: some opportunities may be offered for smart metering in the UHF band. No exclusive band. Sharing based on application-neutral medium access conditions.
• Smart Grids: because of high reliability, availability requirements and security issues attached, SRD concept (no harmful interference, no protection) may not be applicable to all the applications. To be considered under other available radio regulations (mobile networks, PMR/PAMR, Fixed Services).
• Need to define the requirements before sending request (e.g. through ETSI) to ECC for spectrum harmonisation.

Participating in ECC work: where to start

bruno.espinosa@eco.cept.org
www.cept.org/eco www.cept.org/ecc