Current wireless system-level simulation frameworks utilize cell wraparound in order to reduce boundary effects and provide an accurate evaluation of system performance. The current wraparound technique is purely distance based, where UEs always pick the closest cells, ignoring the radio propagation characteristics of the channel. While this wraparound methodology works well for a 2D channel model, it fails to account for the enhancements and spatial characteristics of the 3D channel model.
In this paper we investigate the use of a radio distance based wraparound scheme for 3D channel models. This new wraparound methodology uses received downlink signal power to perform wraparound cell selection, allowing it to account for the radio propagation characteristics of the 3D channel model. We compare the performance of these two wraparound techniques with respect to coupling gain and other key metrics when considering a 3D channel model. Our results demonstrate the differences between the two schemes and highlight the improved accuracy offered by the radio distance based wraparound scheme.