Elements and Performance Criteria

The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included.

Functional elements may include:
code division multiple access (CDMA)
frequency division multiple access (FDMA)
time division multiple access (TDMA)
wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA).
Radio systems may include:
3G
4G
CDMA
GPRS
Global system for mobiles (GSM)
trunked
WCDMA
worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX).
Path loss refers to:
received power to transmitted power ratio and may depend on:
antenna height
atmospheric absorption
distance
rain
reflection coefficient.
Variables may include:
clutter factor
Doppler effect on mobile transmission
frequency
Fresnel distance and absorption
K factor
point-to-multipoint
point-to-point
Raleigh fading and counter measures
reflection coefficient.
Modulation types may include:
FM
AM
orthogonal frequency division multiplex (OFDM)
COFDM
quaternary phase shift keying (QPSK)
16 quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM)
256 QAM.
Specified reliability may include:
drop outs
outage time
power margin
signal fading.

The evidence guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package.

Overview of assessment

Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit
Evidence of the ability to:

analyse the signal degradation characteristics of radio paths and calculate power budgets for various distances and antenna heights versus transmitted power
research the constraints imposed by mobile phone frequency allocations and simulate carrier to interference radiation patterns around a cell site
complete evaluation report on radio system performance and document processes used to determine power link budget.
Context of and specific resources for assessment
Assessment must ensure:

telecommunications operations site
mobile telephony devices and equipment
networked computers and relevant software.
Method of assessment
A range of assessment methods should be used to assess practical skills and knowledge. The following examples are appropriate for this unit:

oral or written questioning to assess required knowledge
review of link budget reports completed by the candidate for different communication scenarios
direct observation of the candidate analysing radio systems and calculating link budgets.
Guidance information for assessment
Holistic assessment with other units relevant to the industry sector, workplaces and job role is recommended, for example:

ICTPMG7145B Underatke a telecommunications project
ICTTEN7193B Plan a transmission network.

Aboriginal people and other people from a non-English speaking background may have second language issues.

Access must be provided to appropriate learning and assessment support when required.

Assessment processes and techniques must be culturally appropriate, and appropriate to the oral communication skill level, and language and literacy capacity of the candidate and the work being performed.

In all cases where practical assessment is used it will be combined with targeted questioning to assess required knowledge. Questioning techniques should not require language, literacy and numeracy skills beyond those required in this unit of competency.

Where applicable, physical resources should include equipment modified for people with special needs.