10 - LTE SAE Architecture and Procedures

3G Long-Term Evolution (LTE) and
System Architecture Evolution (SAE)

• Intro Separate sessions on
• Architecture • LTE Radio
• Air Interface • LTE Applications & Services
• Bearers and QoS • SON
• Call Handling Procedures
• Mobility Handling
• LTE-Advanced
3GPP Evolution – Background
• 3G Long-Term Evolution (LTE) is the advancement of UMTS with the following
targets:
– Significant increase of the data rates: mobile broadband
– Simplification of the network architecture
– Reduction of the signaling effort esp. for activation/ deactivation
• Work in 3GPP started in Dec 2004

– LTE is not backward compatible to UMTS HSPA
– LTE is a packet only network – there is no support of circuit switched
services (no MSC)
– LTE started on a clean state – everything was up for discussion including
the system architecture and the split of functionality between RAN and CN
• Since 2010, LTE has been further enhanced

– LTE-Advanced with increased performance targets
– Application of new scenarios (MTC) and novel concepts (D2D)
Cellular Communication Systems Andreas Mitschele-Thiel, Jens Mueckenheim November 18 2

LTE Requirements and Performance Targets
Improved Spectrum Efficiency * Assumes

High Peak Data Rates 2x2 in DL
3–4x HSPA Rel.6 in DL* for LTE,
100 Mbps DL (20 MHz, 2x2 MIMO) but 1x2 for
2–3x HSPA Rel.6 in UL HSPA Rel.6
50 Mbps UL (20 MHz, 1x2)
1 bps/Hz broadcast
Improved Cell Edge Rates

Support Scalable BW 2–3x HSPA Rel.6 in DL*
1.4, 3, 5, 10, 15, 20 MHz 2–3x HSPA Rel.6 in UL
Full broadband coverage
Low Latency
< 5 ms user plane (UE to RAN edge) Packet Domain Only
< 100 ms camped to active High VoIP capacity
< 50 ms dormant to active Simplified network architecture

Key Features of LTE to Meet Requirements
• Selection of OFDM for the air interface
– Less receiver complexity
– Robust to frequency selective fading and inter-symbol interference (ISI)
– Access to both time and frequency domain allows additional flexibility in
scheduling (including interference coordination)
– Scalable OFDM makes it straightforward to extend to different
transmission bandwidths
• Integration of MIMO techniques

– Pilot structure to support 1, 2, or 4 Tx antennas in the DL and MU-MIMO
in the UL
• Simplified network architecture

– All IP architecture
– Reduction in number of logical nodes → flatter architecture
– Clean separation between user and control plane

LTE/SAE Releases
Release 8 2008 Q4 First LTE release. All-IP Network (SAE). New OFDMA, FDE and MIMO based radio
interface.
Release 9 2009 Q4 SAES Enhancements, WiMAX and LTE/UMTS Interoperability. LTE HeNB.
Release 10 2011 Q1 LTE Advanced fulfilling IMT Advanced 4G requirements. Backwards compatible with
release 8 (LTE).
Release 11 2012 Q3 Advanced IP Interconnection of Services. Service layer interconnection between
national operators/carriers as well as third party application providers.
Heterogeneous networks (HetNet) improvements, Coordinated Multi-Point operation
(CoMP). In-device Co-existence (IDC).
Release 12 2015 Q1 Enhanced Small Cells (higher order modulation, dual connectivity, cell discovery, self
configuration), Carrier Aggregation (2 uplink carriers, 3 downlink carriers, FDD/TDD
carrier aggregation), MIMO (3D channel modeling, elevation beamforming, massive
MIMO), New and Enhanced Services (cost and range of MTC, D2D communication,
eMBMS enhancements)
Release 13 2016 Q1 LTE in unlicensed, LTE enhancements for Machine-Type Communication. Elevation
Beamforming/Full-Dimension MIMO, Indoor positioning. LTE-Advanced Pro.
Release 14 2017 Q2 Energy Efficiency, Location Services (LCS), Mission Critical Data over LTE, Mission
Critical Video over LTE, Flexible Mobile Service Steering (FMSS), Multimedia
Broadcast Supplement for Public Warning System (MBSP), enhancement for TV
service, massive Internet of Things, Cell Broadcast Service (CBS)
Release 15 Planned First "New Radio" (NR) release. Support for 5G Vehicle-to-x service, IP Multimedia
for Sept Core Network Subsystem (IMS), Future Railway Mobile Communication System
2018

How to navigate in 3GPP documents?
Overview on 3GPP document series:
http://www.3gpp.org/specifications/specification-numbering
• 22 series: Service aspects

• 23 series: Technical realization
– TS 23.203: Policy and Charging Control Architecture
– TS 23.401: GPRS enhancements for E-UTRAN access
– TS 23.501: Systems Architecture for the 5G System
• 24 series: Signaling protocols – user to network
– TS 24.301 NAS protocol for EPS (MM, SM procedures)
• 29 series: Signaling protocols - intra-fixed-network
– TS 29.171-173: Location Services
• 33 series: Security
• 36 series: LTE radio aspects
– TS 36.300: E-UTRAN – Overall description; Stage 2
– TS 36.331: Radio Resource Control (RRC); protocol specification
• 38: 5G radio aspects

LTE/SAE Network Architecture
• Evolved UTRAN (E-UTRAN)

• Evolved Node B
• Evolved Packet System (EPS)
• MME, S-GW, P-GW, HSS, PCRF
• EPS Protocol Architecture and Interfaces
Evolved UTRAN (E-UTRAN) Architecture
• Key elements of radio network

architecture
– No more RNC EPC
– RNC functionalities moved to MME / S-GW MME / S-GW
evolved-NodeB (eNB)
– Termination of radio access in
eNB
S1
S1
– X2 interface for seamless
mobility (i.e. data/context
S1
S1
forwarding) and load X2 E-UTRAN
management among eNBs eNB eNB
X2
X2
• Note: Standard only defines
logical structure/nodes ! eNB
EPC = Evolved Packet Core

Evolved Node B
eNodeB (eNB) provides all radio access

functions
– Radio Resource Management (RRC,
eNB
dynamic scheduling)
Inter Cell RRM
– Routing of User Plane data towards
Serving Gateway
RB Control
– Scheduling and transmission of

Connection Mobility Cont.
MME
paging and broadcast messages

Radio Admission Control
NAS Security
– IP header compression and user

eNB Measurement
Configuration & Provision
Idle State Mobility
Dynamic Resource
Handling plane ciphering
Allocation (Scheduler)
EPS Bearer Control – Measurements and measurement
RRC
reporting configuration
– Selection of a MME at UE
PDCP
S-GW P-GW
RLC
Mobility attachment, when not given by UE
UE IP address
MAC Anchoring allocation
S1
PHY Packet Filtering
internet
E-UTRAN EPC

Evolved Packet System (EPS) Architecture
HSS
S6a
MME PCRF
Gxc
S1-MME S10 S11 Gx
E-UTRAN Serving GW PDN GW Internet

S1-U S5 SGi
Evolved Packet Core (EPC)

Control plane
User plane
• EPS comprises EPC, E-UTRAN and UE

• E-UTRAN, i.e. eNB performs radio access functions
• EPC provides connectivity & performs mobility & user management functions
– separation between C Plane and U Plane in EPC

Mobility Management Entity (MME)
HSS
S6a
MME
S1-MME S10 S11
E-UTRAN Serving GW
S1-U
– UE Reachability in ECM-Idle/RCC-Idle state

– Tracking area management
– NAS signaling/security, AS security control
– Authentication & authorization
– S-GW/P-GW selection
– MME selection for HO with MME change, SGSN selection for HO to 3G/2G
– Inter-EPC signaling for mobility between 3GPP access networks
– Bearer management functions including dedicated bearer establishment

Serving and PDN Gateways
Serving Gateway (S-GW)
– Serves EPC (U Plane) - E-UTRAN interface (S1-U interface)
– Local mobility anchor for inter-eNB as well as inter-3GPP handovers
– Packet routing and forwarding
– Idle mode (ECM_IDLE) DL packet buffering and triggering of network-
based service request procedure
– Accounting on user and QCI granularity for inter-operator charging
– UL and DL charging per UE, PDN, and QCI
– Lawful Interception
PDN Gateway (P-GW)

– Serves SGi interface towards PDN
– UE IP address allocation
– Mobility anchor for internetworking with non-3GPP networks
– DL packet filtering and assignment to EPS bearers (QoS) based on TFTs
– QoS enforcement and flow based-charging according to rules from PCRF
(Policy and Charging Enforcement Function – PCEF)
– Lawful Interception

Home Subscriber Server (HSS)
HSS
S6a
MME PCRF
Gxc
S1-MME S10 S11 Gx
E-UTRAN Serving GW PDN GW Internet

S1-U S5 SGi
EPS Core
– User subscription repository for permanent user data (subscriber profiles

including MSISDN, IMSI, keys, user capabilities, etc.)
– Dynamic user data esp. current location
– Combines functionality of HLR and AuC

PCRF – Policy Control and Charging Rules Function
Key Functionalities:
PCRF • fundamental entity to manage flow-
Gxc
specific traffic differentiation and
Gx QoS provisioning
PCEF • maps QoS requirements of individual
Serving GW PDN GW Internet services (SDF – beyond EPS) to an
S5 SGi individual flow (EPS bearer – inside
EPS)
PCRF
• Subscriber-specific and service-
• controls QoS and charging of
specific selection of Access Point
EPS bearers
Name (APN) and APN-specific policy
• provides policy and charging control, e.g. IMS for voice
control (PCC) rules
• ensures proper charging for use of
QoS enabled services (time-,
volume- or event-based)
• instructs and authorizes the P-GW
(PCEF – Policy and Charging
See TS 23.203 for details
Enforcement Function) about QoS
authorization (QCI and throughput)
EPS Protocol Architecture (U Plane)
Application
IP IP
Relay Relay
PDCP GTP-U
PDCP GTP-U GTP-U
GTP-U
RLC RLC UDP/IP UDP/IP UDP/IP UDP/IP
MAC MAC L2 L2 L2 L2
L1 L1 L1 L1 L1 L1
LTE-Uu S1-U S5/S8 SGi
UE eNodeB Serving GW PDN GW
LTE-Uu: radio interface (UE - eNB)

GPRS Tunneling Protocol for the user plane (GTP-U):
• tunnels user data between eNodeB and the S-GW as well as between the S-
GW and the P-GW

EPS Protocol Architecture (C Plane)
NAS NAS
Relay
RRC S1-AP
RRC S1-AP
PDCP PDCP SCTP SCTP
RLC RLC IP IP
MAC MAC L2 L2
L1 L1 L1 L1
LTE-Uu S1-MME
UE eNodeB MME
Non-Access Stratum Signaling (NAS):

• supports mobility management functionality and user plane bearer activation,
modification and deactivation
• ciphering and integrity protection of NAS signaling
S1 Application Protocol (S1-AP): Signaling Application Layer between eNB
and MME

S1 Interface (eNB - EPC)
• S1 Interface is the reference point between eNodeB and EPC
• Two types of S1 Interface
– C Plane: S1-MME between eNodeB and MME
– U Plane: S1-U between eNodeB and S-GW
S1-AP S1-AP GTP-U GTP-U
SCTP SCTP UDP UDP
IP IP IP IP
L2 L2 L2 L2
L1 L1 L1 L1
S1-MME S1-U
eNodeB MME eNodeB S-GW
Legend
– S1 Application Protocol (S1-AP): Application Layer Protocol between the eNodeB
and the MME
– Streaming Control Transfer Protocol for the control plane (SCTP): guaranteed
delivery of signaling messages between MME and eNodeB (S1); defined in RFC 4960
– GPRS Tunneling Protocol for the user plane (GTP-U): tunnels user data between
eNodeB and S-GW
X2 Interface (eNB - eNB)
• The X2 Interface is defined between two eNodeBs
– U Plane: X2-U used for data forwarding
– C Plane: X2-C used for HO support and load management
X2-U interface X2-C interface
Legend:
– X2 Application Protocol (X2-AP): Application Layer Protocol between the
eNodeBs
– Streaming Control Transfer Protocol for the control plane (SCTP):
guarantees delivery of signaling messages between the eNodeB (X2)
– GPRS Tunneling Protocol for the user plane (GTP-U): tunnels user data
between the eNodeB
S5/S8 Interface (S-GW - P-GW)
• S5 and S8 interfaces provide user plane tunneling and tunnel management
between the S-GW and the P-GW
– S5 to connect S-GW to (non-collocated) P-GW of same operator
– S8 to connect S-GW in visited PLMN to a P-GW in Home-PLMN
S5/S8 interface via GTP S5/S8 interface via PMIP
GTP-U/C GTP-U/C PMIPv6 PMIPv6

UDP UDP
IPv4/IPv6 IPv4/IPv6
IP IP
L2 L2
L2 L2
L1 L1 L1 L1
S5 or S8 Serving GW PDN GW
S-GW P-GW S5 or S8
Legend
– GPRS Tunnelling Protocol for the control plane (GTP-C): tunnels signalling
messages between S-GW and P-GW
– GPRS Tunneling Protocol for the user plane (GTP-U): tunnels user data
between S-GW and P-GW
– Proxy Mobile IP (PMIP): transports signalling messages between S-GW and
P-GW; PMIPv6 is defined in RFC 5213
Air Interface Protocol Architecture
• LTE Protocol Architecture

• LTE Channels
• Services and Functions
LTE Protocol Architecture - Overview
UE eNB MME
NAS NAS
RRC RRC
PDCP PDCP
C Plane
RLC RLC
MAC MAC
PHY PHY
UE eNB S-Gateway
PDCP PDCP
RLC RLC
U Plane
MAC MAC
PHY PHY

LTE Protocol Architecture – U Plane Overview
Physical sub-layer performs:
 Modulation
PDCP sub-layer performs:
 Coding (FEC)
 Header compression
 UL power control
 Ciphering
 Multi-stream transmission &
reception (MIMO)
UE eNB S-Gateway
RLC sub-layer performs:
PDCP PDCP  Transfer of upper layer PDUs
 Error correction through ARQ
 Reordering of RLC data PDUs
RLC RLC  Duplicate detection
 Flow control
 Segmentation/Concatenation of SDUs
MAC MAC
MAC sub-layer performs:
 Mapping of logical channels to
PHY PHY transport channels
 Scheduling
 Error correction through HARQ
 Priority handling across UEs & logical
channels
UE eNodeB MME

LTE Protocol Architecture – C Plane Overview
NAS sub-layer performs:
 Authentication
 Security control
 Idle mode mobility handling/
paging origination
UE eNB MME
NAS NAS
RRC RRC RRC sub-layer performs:

 Broadcasting
 Paging
PDCP PDCP  RRC Connection Management
 Radio bearer control
RLC RLC  Mobility functions
 UE measurement reporting & control
PDCP sub-layer performs:

MAC MAC
 Integrity protection & ciphering
PHY PHY
UE eNodeB MME

Physical Layer Resource Scheduling and Allocation
Basic unit of allocation is called a Resource Block (RB)

12 subcarriers in frequency (= 180 kHz)
1 timeslot in time (= 0.5 ms, = 7 OFDM symbols)
Multiple resource blocks can be allocated to a user in a given subframe
12 sub-carriers
(180 kHz)
The total number of RBs available depends on the operating bandwidth
Bandwidth (MHz) 1.4 3.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0
Number of available 6 15 25 50 75 100

resource blocks

Physical Layer Services – Transport Channels
• Shared Channel SCH (UL & DL)
– Carries majority of data and control traffic
– Adaptive modulation and coding (AMC) & Hybrid ARQ (HARQ)
– Possibility to use beamforming
– Controlled by eNodeB scheduler
• Broadcast Channel BCH (DL)
– Broadcast of system information (MIB)
– Fixed transport format, broadcast over entire cell
• Paging Channel PCH (DL)
– Notification of UEs
– Support of DRX, broadcast over entire cell
– Mapped to PDSCH
• Random Access Channel RACH (UL):
– Provides indication of UE request
– Collision-based channel

Physical Layer Model: DL-SCH
Node B UE Error
Channel- state N Transport blocks indications
information, etc. ( dynamic size S1 ..., SN )
ACK/NACK ACK/NACK
HARQ
HARQ HARQ info HARQ info HARQ
HARQ
CRC
CRC
Redundancyfor
CRC
error detection CRC
Coding + RM Redundancyfor
MAC scheduler
Coding + RM Coding + RM
Redundancy data detection Decoding + RM
version
Modulation
scheme QPSK, 16QAM,
Data modulation Data modulation
Data modulation 64QAM Data demodulation
Data demodulation
Resource/power
assignment RB mapping RB mapping
Resource mapping Resource demapping
Antenna
mapping
Multi- antenna
Antenna mapping processing Antenna demapping

Physical Layer Model: UL-SCH
Node B Error UE
indications
Channel- state
information, etc.
ACK/NACK
HARQ
HARQ HARQ info HARQ info HARQ
HARQ
CRC
CRC
CRC CRC
Uplink transmission control

CRC
CRC
Coding + RM
MAC scheduler
Decoding
Decoding++RM
RM Coding +
Coding + RM
Redundancy Coding +RM
RM
Redundancy
version
version
Interl.
Deinterleaving
Deinterleaving Interl.
Interleaving
Modulation Modulation
scheme Data modulation scheme
Data demodulation
Data demodulation Data
Data
Datamodulation
modulation
modulation
Resource Resource/power
assignment RB mapping assignment
Resource
Resourcedemapping
demapping RB mapping
Resource
Resourcemapping
mapping
Antenna Antenna
mapping mapping
Antenna
Antennademapping
demapping Antenna
Antennamapping
mapping

Layer 2 – Structure (DL)
Radio Bearers
ROHC ROHC ROHC ROHC

PDCP
Security Security Security Security
Segm. Segm. Segm. Segm.

RLC ... ... Segm. Segm.
ARQ etc ARQ etc ARQ etc ARQ etc CCCH BCCH PCCH
MTCH MCCH
Logical Channels
Unicast Scheduling / Priority Handling MBMS Scheduling
MAC Multiplexing UE1 Multiplexing UEn Multiplexing
HARQ HARQ
Transport Channels
DL structure – eNodeB side

Layer 2 – Structure (UL)
Radio Bearers
ROHC ROHC
PDCP
Security Security
Segm. Segm.
RLC ...
ARQ etc ARQ etc
CCCH
Logical Channels
Scheduling / Priority Handling
MAC Multiplexing
HARQ
Transport Channels
UL structure – UE side

MAC Sublayer
• Services – Logical Channels
– Dedicated Traffic Channel DTCH (UL & DL): user data
– Dedicated Control Channel DCCH (UL & DL): control data (SRB1 & 2)
– Common Control Channel CCCH: control data (SRB0)
– Broadcast Control Channel BCCH: broadcast of cell information
– Paging Control Channel PCCH: notification of UEs
• Functions
– Mapping between logical channels and transport channels
– Multiplexing/ demultiplexing of MAC SDUs belonging to one or different
logical channels into/from transport blocks (TB) delivered to/ from the
physical layer on transport channels
– Scheduling information reporting
– Error correction through HARQ
– Priority handling between logical channels of one UE
– Priority handling between UEs by means of dynamic scheduling
– Transport format selection
– Padding
Mapping between DL Channels
PCCH BCCH CCCH DCCH DTCH MCCH MTCH
Downlink
Logical channels
PCH: paging channel

Downlink
Transport channels
PCH BCH DL-SCH MCH
BCH: broadcast channel
DL-SCH: DL shared channel
Downlink
PDSCH: physical DL shared channel
Physical Channels
PDCCH: physical DL control channel PCFICH PBCH PHICH PDSCH PDCCH PMCH
PHICH: physical HARQ indication

channel
PCFICH: physical control format

indication channel
PBCH: Physical broadcast channel

Mapping between UL Channels
CCCH DCCH DTCH
Uplink
Logical channels
RACH: random access channel Uplink

Transport channels
UL-SCH: UL shared channel RACH UL-SCH
Uplink
PUSCH: physical UL shared channel
Physical Channels
PUCCH: physical UL control channel PRACH PUSCH PUCCH
PRACH: physical random access channel

RLC Sublayer
• Services
– TM (transparent mode) data transfer: no modification
– UM (unacknowledged mode) data transfer: error indication only
– AM (acknowledged mode) data transfer: error correction
• Functions
– Transfer of upper layer PDUs
– Error correction through ARQ (only for AM data transfer)
– Concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs (only
for UM and AM data transfer)
– Re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs (only for AM data transfer)
– Reordering of RLC data PDUs (only for UM and AM data transfer)
– Duplicate detection (only for UM and AM data transfer)
– RLC SDU discard (only for UM and AM data transfer)
– RLC re-establishment
– Protocol error correction (only for AM data transfer)
RLC Model for AM
AM-SAP
Transmission
RLC control SDU reassembly
buffer
Remove RLC header

Segmentation & Retransmission
Concatenation buffer
RLC Acknowledged
Mode Entity
Reception
buffer & HARQ
reordering
Add RLC header

Routing
DCCH/DTCH DCCH/DTCH

PDCP Sublayer
• Functions on U Plane
– Transfer of user data
– Ciphering and deciphering
– Robust header compression and decompression: ROHC
– In-sequence delivery of upper layer PDUs at PDCP re-
establishment procedure for RLC AM
– Duplicate detection of lower layer SDUs at PDCP re-
establishment procedure for RLC AM
– Retransmission of PDCP SDUs after handover (RLC AM only)
– Timer-based SDU discard in uplink
• Functions on C Plane
– Transfer of control plane data
– Ciphering and Integrity Protection

Data Flow through Layer 2
PDCP
PDCP SDU PDCP SDU: IP packet
header
(compressed/ uncompr.)
PDCP PDU PDCP header: 1 or 2 bytes
RLC SDU n n+1 n+2 n+3

RLC header:
... ... • Sequence number
• Segmentation/
concatenation
information
RLC header RLC header
RLC PDU
MAC control elements:

• UL: MAC reports
R/R/E/LCID
sub-header
R/R/E/LCID
sub-header
... R/R/E/LCID/F/L
sub-header
R/R/E/LCID padding
sub-header • DL: Timing advance
• Control Information
MAC header
MAC Control
element 1
MAC Control
element 2
MAC SDU ... MAC SDU
Padding
(opt)
MAC PDU
All PDUs are byte-aligned

RRC Layer
• Services
– Broadcast of common control information
– Notification of UEs in RRC_IDLE, e.g. about an arriving call
– Transfer of dedicated control information, i.e. information for one
specific UE
• Functions
– Broadcast of system information:
 Including NAS common information
 Information for UEs in RRC_IDLE state, e.g. cell (re-)selection
parameters, neighbouring cell information
 Information for UEs in RRC_CONNECTED state, e.g. common
channel configuration information

RRC Layer (contd.)
• Functions (contd.)
– RRC connection control:
 Paging
 Establishment, modification & release of RRC connection
 Initial security activation
 RRC connection mobility
 Establishment, modification & release of radio bearers carrying user
data (DRBs)
 Radio configuration control
 QoS control
 Recovery from radio link failure
– Inter-RAT mobility including e.g. security activation, transfer of
RRC context information
– Measurement configuration and reporting
– Generic protocol error handling

RRC States
UMTS LTE GSM/GPRS
Connection
establishment/release
RRC States incl. Inter-RAT mobility (3GPP only)

Tracking Area
BCCH BCCH
TAI 2 TAI 3
BCCH BCCH BCCH BCCH

TAI 1 TAI 2 TAI 2 TAI 3
BCCH BCCH BCCH

BCCH
TAI 1 TAI 2 TAI 3
TAI 1
BCCH BCCH BCCH BCCH

TAI 1 TAI 2 TAI 2 TAI 3
BCCH
TAI 1
Tracking Area 3
Tracking Area 2
Tracking Area 1
• Tracking Area Identifier (TAI) sent over Broadcast Channel BCCH

• Tracking Areas can be shared by multiple MMEs
• An UE may be allocated to multiple tracking areas
• Different from UMTS, no hierarchy in the paging area!
Bearers, States and Identifiers
• EPS Bearers and Radio Bearers

• RRC, ECM & EMM States
• UE Identifiers
EPS Bearer Service Architecture – Overview
E-UTRAN EPC Internet
UE eNB S-GW P-GW Peer

Entity
End-to-end Service
EPS Bearer External Bearer
E-RAB S5/S8 Bearer
Radio Bearer S1 Bearer
Radio S1 S5/S8 Gi
3GPP: TS 23.203 Policy and Charging Control Architecture

Radio Bearer: SRB vs. DRB
• A radio bearer is a RLC connection between UE and eNodeB
– Radio Bearers provide the data transfer over the air interface
• Signaling Radio Bearers (SRB) are used to transfer RRC and NAS
control messages between UE and eNodeB
– SRB0: RRC messages over CCCH
– SRB1: RRC and NAS (when no security) messages over DCCH
– SRB2: NAS messages (when security established) over DCCH
• Data Radio Bearer (DRB) transports packets of an EPS bearer

between UE and eNodeB
– One-to-one mapping between this data radio bearer and the EPS
bearer/E-RAB
– Each DRB has its own handling policy (QoS, priority, handling
during HO)

EPS Bearer: Default vs. Dedicated
• EPS Bearer: logical association between UE and P-GW
– Aggregates one or several service data flows (SDF)
– Consists of three elements: Radio Bearer, S1 Bearer, S5/S8
Bearer
– Each bearer has its own QoS attributes (e.g. GBR/MBR)
• Default EPS Bearer
– First connection, established during initial attach to a PDN
– Remains established during lifetime of PDN connection
– There can be multiple default bearers to different PDN (having a
unique IP address)
• Dedicated EPS Bearers
– Additional EPS bearers established to the P-GW
– Multiple bearer connections with dedicated QoS policies
• All EPS bearers of an UE are handled by the same S-GW

LTE RRC States
Establish RRC connection

RRC_IDLE RRC_Connected
Release RRC connection
• No RRC connection, no context in • RRC connection and context in

eNodeB (but EPS bearers are eNodeB
retained) • Network controlled mobility
• UE controls mobility through cell • Transfer of unicast and broadcast
selection data to and from UE
• UE acquires system information • UE monitors control channels
from broadcast channel associated with the shared data
• UE monitors paging channel to channels
detect incoming calls • UE provides channel quality and
• UE-specific paging DRX cycle feedback information
controlled by upper layers • Connected mode DRX can be
configured by eNodeB according to
UE activity level

EPS Connection Management States (ECM)
Signaling connection established

ECM_IDLE ECM_Connected
Signaling connection released
• No signaling connection • Signaling connection

between UE and core network established between UE and
(no S1-U/ S1-MME) MME, consists of two
• No RRC connection (i.e. components
RRC_IDLE) – RRC connection
• UE performs cell selection and – S1-MME connection
tracking area updates (TAU) • UE location is known to
accuracy of Cell-ID
• Mobility via handover
procedure

EPS Mobility Management States (EMM)
Attach
EMM_Deregistered EMM_Registered
Detach
• EMM context does not hold • UE successfully registers with

valid location or routing MME with Attach procedure or
information for UE Tracking Area Update (TAU)
• UE is not reachable by MME as – Setup EPS security context
UE location is not known • UE location known (at least)
with accuracy of tracking area
• MME can page UE
• UE maintains at least one PDN
connection (default EPS
bearer)

Relation between EMM and ECM States
EMM-Deregistered EMM-Registered
Attach
• UE Inactivity Detection
Attach • TAU Accept
PLMN/ PLMN/
Cell Selection Cell Selection Handover Cell Reselection
A B C D
ECM-Idle ECM-Idle ECM-Connected ECM-Idle
RRC-Idle Power is RRC-Idle RRC-Connected RRC-Idle

turned off
for a long
time
• Detach
Power On Power On • Attach Reject • New Traffic
• TAU Reject • TAU Request
• UE Power Off
UE Power Off
Adapted from www.netmanias.com

EPS Bearer and Signaling Connections in EMM-registered State
State C:
• EMM-Registered
• ECM-Connected
• RRC-Connected
MME
UE eNB S-GW P-GW
ECM Connection
Control
Plane
S1 signaling
RRC Connection Connection S11 GTP-C S5 GTP-C
Data Radio Bearer S1 Bearer S5 Bearer

Plane
Data
EPS Bearer

EPS Bearer and Signaling Connections in EMM-registered State
State D:
• EMM-Registered
• ECM-Idle
• RRC-Idle
MME
UE eNB S-GW P-GW
ECM Connection
Control
Plane
S1 signaling
RRC Connection Connection S11 GTP-C S5 GTP-C
Data Radio Bearer S1 Bearer S5 Bearer

Plane
Data
EPS Bearer

EMM, ECM and RRC States
Layer State Entity Description

EMM EMM- UE, • UE is not attached to any LTE network
Deregistered MME • MME does not know the current location of the UE, but may have
tracking area (TA) information last reported by the UE
EMM- UE, • UE has been attached to the LTE network
Registered MME • IP address has been assigned to the UE
• EPS bearer has been established
• MME knows the current location of the UE with an accuracy of a
cell or, at least, a tracking area
ECM ECM-Idle UE, • No NAS signalling connection (ECM connection) established yet
MME • UE has not been assigned physical resources, i.e. radio resources
(SRB/DRB) and network resources (S1 bearer/S1 signalling
connection) yet
ECM- UE, • NAS signalling connection (ECM connection) is established
Connected MME • UE has been assigned physical resources, i.e. radio resources
(SRB/CRB) and network resources (S1 bearer/S1 signalling
connection)
RRC RRC-Idle UE, eNB • No RRC connection is established yet
RRC- UE, eNB • RRC connection has been established

Connected

EMM, ECM and RRC States – User View
Case State User Experiences (Examples)

EMM-Deregistered • When a UE is switched on for the first time after subscription
A + ECM-Idle • When a UE is switched on after staying turned off for a long time
+ RRC-Idle • No UE context is present in the LTE network
EMM-Deregistered • When a UE is switched on within a certain period of time after being
+ ECM-Idle turned off
+ RRC-Idle • When ECM connection is lost during communication due to radio link
B
failure
• Some UE context from the last attach can still be stored in the network
(e.g. to avoid running an AKA procedure during every Attach procedure)
EMM-Registered • UE is attached to the network (an MME) and is using services (e.g.
C + ECM-Connected Internet, VoIP, Live TV)
+ RRC-Connected • Mobility handled by handover procedures
EMM-Registered • UE is attached to the network (an MME), but not using any service
D + ECM-Idle • Mobility handled by cell reselection procedures
+ RRC-Idle
UE Location Information in Network Elements
Case State UE eNB S-GW P-GW MME HSS PCRF SPR

EMM-Deregistered - - - - - - - -
A + ECM-Idle
+ RRC-Idle
EMM-Deregistered - - - - TAI of MME - -
B + ECM-Idle last TAU
+ RRC-Idle
EMM-Registered - Cell/ Cell/ Cell/ Cell/ MME -
C + ECM-Connected eNB eNB eNB eNB
+ RRC-Connected
EMM-Registered - - TAI of TAI of TAI of MME -
D + ECM-Idle last TAU last TAU last TAU
+ RRC-Idle

UE Identifiers
• IMSI: International Mobile Subscriber Identity
– Assigned by service provider, stored on SIM-card
• TMSI: Temporary Mobile Subscriber Identity
– Assigned temporarily by the control nodes
• IMEI: International Mobile Equipment Identity
– Unique identity for each mobile assigned by manufacturer
• MSISDN: Mobile Subscriber ISDN number
– Telephone number assigned by service provider

UE Identifiers
• GUTI: Global Unique Temporary Identity
– UE Identity without revealing the mobile or the user
– GUTI has two parts
 Globally Unique MME Identifier (GUMMEI) identifies the MME,
assigned by service provider
 M-TMSI identifies UE within the MME, assigned by MME
GUTI
GUMMEI M-TMSI
MME
MCC MNC MME Group ID
Code
MME ID
48 bits 32 bits
• The UE can attach to the network using either IMSI or GUTI

UE Identifiers
• RNTI: Radio Network Temporary Identifier
– Used by eNB to temporary address the UEs (MAC)
• There exist a variety of different RNTIs

– Cell RNTI (C-RNTI): unique identification used for identifying RRC
connection and scheduling
– Paging RNTI (P-RNTI)
– Random Access RNTI (RA-RNTI)
– System Information RNTI (SI-RNTI)
– Transmit Power Control RNTI (TPC-RNTI)
– MBMS RNTI (M-RNTI, Rel.-9)

UE IDs maintained in Network Elements
GUTI (Globally Unique Temporary UE Identity)

replaces TMSI to uniquely identify the UE and the
used MME
Case State UE eNB S-GW P-GW MME HSS PCRF SPR
EMM-Deregistered IMSI - - - - IMSI - IMSI

A + ECM-Idle
+ RRC-Idle
EMM-Deregistered IMSI, - - - IMSI, GUTI IMSI - IMSI

B + ECM-Idle GUTI
+ RRC-Idle
EMM-Registered IMSI, C-RNTI, IMSI IMSI, IMSI, GUTI, UE IMSI IMSI, UE IMSI
+ ECM-Connected GUTI, UE eNB/MME UE IP IP addr, IP addr
+ RRC-Connected IP addr, UE S1AP addr eNB/MME UE
C C_RNTI ID, S1AP ID
Old/New
eNB UE
X2AP ID
EMM-Registered IMSI, - IMSI IMSI, IMSI, GUTI, UE IMSI IMSI, UE IMSI
D + ECM-Idle GUTI, UE UE IP IP addr IP addr
+ RRC-Idle IP addr addr

Quality of Service
• QoS Parameters
• QoS Bearers
• QoS Architecture
QoS Architecture (U Plane) - Overview
E-UTRAN EPC Internet
UE eNB S-GW P-GW Peer

Entity
End-to-end Service
EPS Bearer External Bearer
E-RAB S5/S8 Bearer
Radio Bearer S1 Bearer
Radio S1 S5/S8 Gi
3GPP: TS 23.203 Policy and Charging Control Architecture

Implementation of QoS
- QoS involves functions in
- C plane (connection management) and
- U plane (forwarding and policing)
- QoS requires end-to-end considerations of all involved network

entities as QoS can only be as good as its weakest element
- QoS is a cross-layer issue involves basically all layers

- Application layer: identification of service and classification,
source coding
- Transport layer: Retransmission policy – latency and reliability
- Network, data link and PHY layer: provisioning of needed
resources (transport and processing), forwarding and scheduling
over physical resources (including, modulation, channel coding,
PRB scheduling, diversity and redundancy strategy)

Options that influence QoS
QoS requirements and influencing factors
- throughput
⇒ depends on amount of resources allocated
- error rate/reliability
⇒ depends on robustness of transmission (modulation and coding,
TX power/SINR, redundancy, transmission diversity, etc.)
- latency
⇒ depends on scheduling strategy, processing delay, error
rate/retransmission rate, system load
=> See AMCN course for details on QoS in general

QoS Class Identifier (QCIs)
Packet
Packet
Resource Error
QCI Priority Delay Example Services
Type Loss
Budget
Rate
1 2 100 ms 10-2 Conversational Voice
2
GBR
4 150 ms 10-3 Conversational Video (Live Streaming)
3 3 50 ms 10-3 Real Time Gaming

Non-Conversational Video (Buffered
4 5 300 ms 10-6 Streaming)
5 1 100 ms 10-6 IMS Signalling
Video (Buffered Streaming)
6 TCP-based (e.g., www, e-mail, chat, ftp,
6 300 ms 10-6 p2p file sharing, progressive video, etc.)
Voice,
7 Non-GBR Video (Live Streaming)
7 100 ms 10-3 Interactive Gaming
Video (Buffered Streaming)

8
8 TCP-based (e.g., www, e-mail, chat, ftp,
300 ms 10-6 p2p file
9
9 sharing, progressive video, etc.)

Traffic Flow Template (TFT) and QoS Enforcement
Context
• QCIs represent classes (or QoS types) of traffic
• To provide a flow with a certain QoS, we need
– QCI, to specify handling wrt latency, error correction and data rate
– Throughput (guaranteed and maximum bit rate – GBR & MBR)
– TFT, to define rules to identify external flows and to map each flow
on specific EPS bearer (with QCI and throughput requirements)
– ARP (Admission and Retention Policy) for overload handling
Purpose of TFT
• Identify IP packet flows (SDFs) and map to EPS bearers
• Mapping implemented at the edges of the network, i.e. UE and P-GW
Content of TFT (for traffic identification)

• IP source and destination
• Port numbers
• ...
Important Terms and Ingredients for QoS
- QCI (QoS Class Identifier) – defines QoS requirements with
exception of throughput
- ARP (Admission and Retention Policy) – defines priority of EPS
bearer for admission and contention cases
- TFT (Traffic Flow Template) – defines mapping of SDFs on EPS
bearer (formerly PDP context) – unit for QoS management
- Data rate, latency, error rate/reliability
- SDF (Service Data Flow) – service-specific IP flow
- EPS bearers (IP addresses, port numbers, protocol ID)
- IP CAN (end-to-end bearer), i.e. an IP flow
- GBR: Guaranteed Bit Rate

- MBR: Maximum Bit Rate
- AMBR: Aggregated MBR
- APN-AMBR: APN-specific MBR

QoS Parameters for SDF and EPS Bearer
Source: www.netmanias.com
Service Data Flow (SDF):
- defines QCI, ARP, MBR and possibly GBR
EPS bearer
- defines QCI, ARP, possibly GBR, MBR or UE-AMBR and APN-AMBR
- may combine several SDFs to a single EPS bearer
EPS session:
- comprises one or more SDFs (i.e. services) mapped to one or more EPS
bearers (default or dedicated bearer)
Enforcement of QoS
EPS bearers SDFs
(inside EPS) (outside EPS)
SDF-EPS mapping via TFTs
Main entities for QoS handling are the network edges, i.e.
- P-GW for the DL
- eNB and UE for the UL (eNB provides grants to the UE for UL transmission)

QoS Policing and Scheduling for DL
SDF-EPS mapping via TFTs
DL Scheduling Policing
QoS Policing and Scheduling for UL
SDF-EPS mapping via TFTs Provision of
Policing on UL provided grants UL grants

Call Handling Procedures
• Basic procedures
− Paging
− RRC Connection Establishment
− Dedicated S1 Establishment
− E-RAB Setup/Release
− RRC Re-establishment
• End-to-end procedures:
− First Attach
− Tracking Area Update
Call Handling: End-to-End Scenarios
End-to-end scenarios eNB use cases Applicable eNB procedure Applicable 3GPP RRC, S1, X2
(cf 3GPP 23.401) blocks procedures
Attach MO Default E-RAB setup RRC Connection Establishment RRC: RRC Connection Establishment
S1-AP: -
S1 Dedicated Establishment RRC: -
S1-AP: Initial UE Message
NAS Transfer RRC: NAS Direct Transfer
S1-AP: NAS Transport
Initial Context Setup RRC: RRC Connection Reconfiguration
S1-AP: Initial Context Setup
Detach S1 release (EPC triggered) S1 Release (EPC triggered) RRC: RRC Connection Release
S1-AP: UE Context Release
Tracking Area Update Connection establishment without RRC Connection establishment RRC: RRC Connection Establishment
E-RAB setup S1-AP: -
S1 Dedicated Establishment RRC: -
S1-AP: Initial UE Message
NAS Transfer RRC: NAS Direct Transfer
S1-AP: NAS Transport
UE Release RRC: RRC Connection Release
UE triggered Service Request MO Default E-RAB setup Same as “Attach”
Network Triggered Service MT Default E-RAB setup Paging + MO Default E-RAB
Request Setup
Dedicated bearer activation (or UE Dedicated E-RAB setup E-RAB Setup RRC: RRC Connection Reconfiguration
requested bearer resource S1-AP: E-RAB Setup
activation)
Dedicated bearer de-activation (or Dedicated E-RAB release E-RAB Release RRC: RRC Connection Reconfiguration
UE Requested Bearer Resource S1-AP: E-RAB Release
Release)
S1 release (EPC triggered) S1 release (EPC triggered) S1 Release (EPC triggered) RRC: RRC Connection Release
S1 release (ENB triggered) S1 release (ENB triggered) S1 Release Request (ENB RRC: RRC Connection Release
triggered) S1-AP: UE Context Release Request
S1 Release (EPC triggered) UE Context Release

Paging
UE eNB MME
S1-AP: Paging
RRC: Paging
• Upon receiving an S1-AP PAGING message, the eNB determines the list of
cells on which to page the UE from the “List of TAIs” provided by the S1-AP
PAGING message
• For each cell on which the UE must be paged, the eNB will:
– Compute the frame number and sub-frame number of the UE's paging
occasion (based on UE Identity Index Value, DRX paging cycle)
– ASN1 encode the paging record for the given UE
– Provide this data to the scheduler along with the DRX paging cycle

RRC Connection Establishment
• RRC Connection Establishment procedure establishes SRB1 between
UE and eNB
UE eNB
UE
CCCH
Random Access RRC_idle
SRB0
RLC
TM RRCConnectionRequest
CCCH
InitialUE-Identity SRB0
establishmentCause RLC
RRCConnectionSetup TM
DCCH RadioResourceConfigDedicated
SRB1
RLC
AM RRCConnectionSetupComplete
SelectedPLMN-Identity, UE
RegisteredMME RRC_co
nnected
NAS-DedicatedInformation

RRC Connection Establishment (cont.)
• RRC Connection Setup uses contention-based Random Access

– RACH only used for indication of scheduling request
– First data sent on assigned UL-SCH
• Establishment causes
– Emergency
– High Priority Access
– Mobile Terminated (MT) Access
– Mobile Originated (MO) Signaling
– Mobile Originated Data
• In case of failure (RRC Connection Reject) UE will repeat RRC
Connection Request message

Dedicated S1 Establishment
• Dedicated S1 Establishment procedure establishes the S1 dedicated
connection to complement RRC connection
UE eNB MME
RRC Connection Establishment
S1-AP: INITIAL UE MESSAGE

eNB S1-AP UE Identity (Case 1) or (Case 2)
S1-AP: DL NAS TRANSPORT

MME S1-AP UE Identity, eNB S1-AP UE identity
DL INFORMATION TRANSFER
UL INFORMATION TRANSFER
S1-AP: UL NAS TRANSPORT
S1-AP: INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST

MME S1-AP UE Identity, eNB S1-AP UE identity
AS Security Activation
E-RAB Setup
S1-AP: INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE

Dedicated S1 Establishment (contd.)
• Upon reception of RRC Connection Setup Complete, the eNB will:
– Perform MME selection if needed
– Allocate an eNB UE identity that will be sent to the MME
– Send S1-AP INITIAL UE MESSAGE towards the selected MME
• Case 1: UE not authenticated
– Exchange of NAS-messages for authentication
– MME S1-AP UE identity received in S1-AP DL NAS TRANSPORT
message
• Case 2: UE authenticated (e.g. after case 1)
– Initial Context Setup procedure to establish the first E-RAB(s)
– eNB will initiate security activation over the radio interface prior
to establishment of SRB2 and/or DRBs
– eNB stores “UE Radio Capability” IE either from S1-AP message
or by using RRC UE capability transfer procedure
– MME S1-AP UE identity received in S1-AP INITIAL UE CONTEXT
SETUP REQUEST message

Dedicated E-RAB setup
• Dedicated E-RAB setup procedure establishes new E-RAB(s) after
Initial Context Setup
– eNB will manage new E-RAB establishment similarly to SRB2 and
DRB(s) establishment in Initial Context Setup case.
UE eNB MME
S1AP E-RAB SETUP REQUEST

eNB S1-AP UE Identity
RRCConnectionReconfiguration MME S1-AP UE Identity
E-RAB to be Setup List
nas-DedicatedInformationList
RadioResourceConfigDedicated (DRB(s))
RRCConnectionReconfigurationComplete
S1AP E-RAB SETUP RESPONSE

MME S1-AP UE Identity
E-RAB Setup List

E-RAB Release
• E-RAB Release procedure is used to release one or several E-RABs
– Initiated by MME
– When initiated by eNB: S1-AP E-RAB RELEASE INDICATION sent
to MME
UE eNB MME
S1AP E-RAB RELEASE COMMAND

RRCConnectionReconfiguration MME S1-AP UE Identity
E-RAB to be Released List
nas-DedicatedInformationList
RadioResourceConfigDedicated (DRB(s))
RRCConnectionReconfigurationComplete
S1AP E-RAB RELEASE RESPONSE

E-RAB Release List

UE Context Release
• UE Context Release procedure releases all E-RABs for an UE,
including S1-U bearers, Radio bearers and the S1-MME signaling
connection for the UE
– Initiated by MME
– When initiated by eNB: S1-AP UE CONTEXT RELEASE REQUEST
message sent before to MME
UE eNB MME
S1AP UE CONTEXT RELEASE COMMAND

Cause
RRCConnectionRelease
S1AP UE CONTEXT RELEASE COMPLETE

RRC Connection Re-establishment
UE eNB
RRCConnectionReestablishmentRequest
RRCConnectionReestablishment
RRCConnectionReestablishmentComplete
• Re-establishment procedure is triggered in the following cases:

– UE detects a L1/ L2 failure
– RRC Connection Reconfiguration procedure fails
– Mobility procedure fails
• eNB re-establishes the RRC connection
– Re-establishment of MAC, RLC and PDCP for SRBs and DRB
– Re-establishment of SRB1
– RRC Connection Reconfiguration used afterwards to re-establish SRB2
and DRB(s)
Initial Attach Procedure
UE eNB MME SGW PGW PCRF HSS/EIR
RRC Connection Est.
Attach Request
Authentication/ Security
Update Location
Create Session Req.
Create Session Req.
IP-CAN Session Est.
Create Session Resp.
DL Data
Initial Context Setup/ Attach Accept

Attach Complete
UL Data
Modify Bearer
DL Data

Tracking Area Update with MME/S-GW Change
UE eNB New MME New S-GW Old MME Old S-GW P-GW HSS
RRC Connection Est.
TAU Request
Context Retrieval
Authentication/ Security
Context Ack
Create Session Req.

Modify Bearer
Update Location
Cancel Location
Update Location Ack
TAU Accept
Delete Session
TAU Complete

LTE Mobility
• Handover Principle, UE Measurements

• LTE-Handover over X2, S1
• Inter-RAT Handover to UTRAN
LTE Handover
• LTE uses UE-assisted network-controlled handover
– UE reports measurements; network decides when to handover and to
which cell
– Relies on UE to detect neighbor cells → no need to maintain and
broadcast neighbor lists
 Allows "plug-and-play" capability; saves BCH resources
– For search and measurement of inter-frequency neighboring cells only
carrier frequencies need to be indicated
• X2 interface used for handover preparation and forwarding of user data
– Target eNB prepares handover by sending required information to UE
transparently through source eNB as part of the Handover Request
Acknowledge message
 New configuration information needed from system broadcast
 Accelerates handover as UE does not need to read BCCH on target cell
– Buffered and new data are transferred from source to target eNB until
path switch → prevents data loss
– UE uses non-contention based random access to accelerate handover

UE Measurements
• In LTE the UE measurements are mainly used for HO purpose
• Measurement quantities depend on the RAT to measure

– LTE (intra-/ inter-frequency)
 Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP)
 Reference Signal Received Quality (RSRQ)
– UMTS (FDD)
 Carrier Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI)
 CPiCH Received Signal Code Power (RSCP)
 CPiCH Ec/I0
– GSM
 Carrier Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI)
• eNB scheduler shall provide transmission gaps to allow inter-

frequency and inter-RAT measurements

UE Measurement Model
• The measurement model consists of the following parts
RRC configures RRC configures
parameters parameters
Layer 1 Layer 3
A filtering B filtering C Evaluation D
of reporting
C' criteria
• Measurement filtering:
𝐹𝐹𝑛𝑛 = 1 − 𝑎𝑎 ⋅ 𝐹𝐹𝑛𝑛−1 + 𝑎𝑎 ⋅ 𝑀𝑀𝑛𝑛
Filter coefficient: 𝑎𝑎 = 2−𝑘𝑘⁄4 , 𝑘𝑘 = 0 … 19
sample rate at point B: 200msec
• Reporting criteria
– Measurement triggers for event-based reporting: handover
– Periodical reporting: e.g. tracing

Handover Measurement Events
• Intra-LTE measurement events (intra- and inter-frequency)
– A1: Serving cell better than threshold
– A2: Serving cell worse than threshold
– A3: Neighbor cell with offset better than serving cell
– A4: Neighbor cell better than threshold
– A5: Serving cell worse than threshold #1, neighbor cell better
than threshold #2
• Inter-RAT measurement events

– B1: Inter-RAT neighbor cell better than threshold
– B2: Serving cell worse than threshold #1, Inter-RAT neighbor cell
better than threshold #2
• To reduce signaling amount, hysteresis and time-to-trigger might be

applied

X2 Handover: Preparation Phase
Source Target
UE MME S-GW
sGW
eNB eNB
Measurement Control
Packet Data Packet Data

L1/L2
UL allocation
signaling
Measurement Reports
L3 signaling
HO decision User data

HO Request
Admission Control
HO Request Ack
DL allocation
RRC Connection Reconfig. SN Status Transfer
• HO decision is made by source eNB based on UE measurement report

• Target eNB prepares HO by sending relevant info to UE through source eNB as
part of HO request ACK command, so that UE does not need to read target
cell BCH

X2 Handover: Execution Phase
Source Target
UE MME S-GW
sGW
eNB eNB
Packet Data
Detach from old cell, Deliver buffered packets and forward

sync with new cell new packets to target eNB L1/L2
signaling
DL data forwarding via X2
L3 signaling
Buffer packets from User data

source eNB
Synchronisation
UL allocation and Timing Advance
RRC Connection Reconfig. Complete
Packet Data
UL Packet Data
• RACH is used here only so target eNB can estimate UE timing and provide
timing advance for synchronization; RACH timing agreements ensure UE does
not need to read target cell P-BCH to obtain SFN (radio frame timing from SCH
is sufficient to know PRACH locations)

X2 Handover: Completion Phase
Source Target
UE MME S-GW
sGW
eNB eNB
DL Packet Data
DL data forwarding
Packet Data
Path switch req
Modify bearer req.
End Marker
Switch DL path
Path switch req ACK Modify bearer resp.

UE Context Release
Flush DL buffer,
continue delivering in- L1/L2
transit packets signaling
End Marker L3 signaling
User data
Release resources

LTE Handover: Illustration of Interruption Period
Source Target
UEs stops UE eNB eNB
Rx/Tx on the old cell
UL HO Request
Measurement
Report
HO Confirm
Handover
U- plane active Preparation
HO Command
DL DL sync
synchronisation
+ RACH + (no
Handover
Approx.
contention)
Timing advance
Latency
20 ms (approx. 55 ms)
Handover + Timing + Adv
Interruption +UL
ULresource request/grant
Resource Req
(approx. 35 ms) and Grant
HO Complete
ACK
U- plane active

S1 Handover
• S1 handover is performed, when there is no X2 connection between

source and target eNodeB
– Operator preference
– No logical connectivity, e.g. HeNB
• Handover procedure is similar to X2 handover, except for

– C Plane messages forwarded via MME
– U Plane data forwarded via S-GW
– increase in handover latency

S1 Handover Procedure
Source Target
UE MME S-GW
sGW
eNB eNB
L3 signaling
Measurement Reports
User data
HO decision
HO Required
HO Request
Admission Control
HO Request Ack
HO Command
RRC Connection Reconfig.
ENB Status Transfer
MME Status Transfer
Detach from old cell, Packet Data

sync with new cell DL data forwarding via S1
RRC Connection Reconfig. Complete

Packet Data UL Packet Data
HO Notify
Path switch procedure/ UE Context Release in source eNB


References
• Literature
– Holma, Toskala: LTE for UMTS – Evolution to LTE-Advanced, Wiley 2011
– E. Dahlman, S. Parkvall, J. Sköld: 4G, LTE-Advanced Pro and the Road
to 5G, 3rd edition, Aademic Press, 2016
– Sesia, Toufik, Baker: LTE - The UMTS Long Term Evolution: From
Theory to Practice, Wiley 2011
– LTE EMM and ECM States: www.netmanias.com
– The LTE Network Architecture - strategic white paper – Alcatel-
Lucent, 2009
• 3GPP standards (www.3gpp.org/specifications):

– 36-series: LTE radio aspects
– 36.300: E-UTRAN – Overall description; Stage 2
– 36.213: Physical layer procedures
– 36.321: Medium Access Control (MAC) protocol specification
– 36.331: Radio Resource Control (RRC); protocol specification
– 36.413: S1 Application Protocol (S1AP)
– 36.423: X2 Application Protocol (X2AP)

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3G Long-Term Evolution (LTE) and

System Architecture Evolution (SAE)

• Work in 3GPP started in Dec 2004

• Since 2010, LTE has been further enhanced

Cellular Communication Systems Andreas Mitschele-Thiel, Jens Mueckenheim November 18 2

Improved Spectrum Efficiency * Assumes

Improved Cell Edge Rates

1.4, 3, 5, 10, 15, 20 MHz 2–3x HSPA Rel.6 in UL

Full broadband coverage

< 100 ms camped to active High VoIP capacity

< 50 ms dormant to active Simplified network architecture

Cellular Communication Systems Andreas Mitschele-Thiel, Jens Mueckenheim November 18 3

• Integration of MIMO techniques

• Simplified network architecture

Cellular Communication Systems Andreas Mitschele-Thiel, Jens Mueckenheim November 18 4

Cellular Communication Systems Andreas Mitschele-Thiel, Jens Mueckenheim November 18 5

• 22 series: Service aspects

Cellular Communication Systems Andreas Mitschele-Thiel, Jens Mueckenheim November 18 6

• Evolved UTRAN (E-UTRAN)

• Key elements of radio network

EPC = Evolved Packet Core

Cellular Communication Systems Andreas Mitschele-Thiel, Jens Mueckenheim November 18 8

eNodeB (eNB) provides all radio access

– Scheduling and transmission of

paging and broadcast messages

– IP header compression and user

Cellular Communication Systems Andreas Mitschele-Thiel, Jens Mueckenheim November 18 9

E-UTRAN Serving GW PDN GW Internet

Evolved Packet Core (EPC)

• EPS comprises EPC, E-UTRAN and UE

Cellular Communication Systems Andreas Mitschele-Thiel, Jens Mueckenheim November 18 10

S1-MME S10 S11

– UE Reachability in ECM-Idle/RCC-Idle state

Cellular Communication Systems Andreas Mitschele-Thiel, Jens Mueckenheim November 18 11

PDN Gateway (P-GW)

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E-UTRAN Serving GW PDN GW Internet

– User subscription repository for permanent user data (subscriber profiles

Cellular Communication Systems Andreas Mitschele-Thiel, Jens Mueckenheim November 18 13

RLC RLC UDP/IP UDP/IP UDP/IP UDP/IP

LTE-Uu S1-U S5/S8 SGi

UE eNodeB Serving GW PDN GW

LTE-Uu: radio interface (UE - eNB)

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Non-Access Stratum Signaling (NAS):

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S1-AP S1-AP GTP-U GTP-U

SCTP SCTP UDP UDP

X2-U interface X2-C interface

GTP-U/C GTP-U/C PMIPv6 PMIPv6

• LTE Protocol Architecture

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Cellular Communication Systems Andreas Mitschele-Thiel, Jens Mueckenheim November 18 22

RRC RRC RRC sub-layer performs:

PDCP sub-layer performs:

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Basic unit of allocation is called a Resource Block (RB)

The total number of RBs available depends on the operating bandwidth