Wired Medium and Wireless Medium

 Wired Medium
The information from source to destination is sent via wires/cables
 Wireless Medium
The information from source to destination is sent via wireless medium i.e. Electro magnetic
waves or radio waves
Evolution to cellular networks
 Radio communication was invented by Nikola Tesla and Guglielmo Marconi: in
1893, Nikola Tesla made the first public demonstration of wireless (radio)
telegraphy; Guglielmo Marconi conducted long-distance (over see) telegraphy
1897
 in 1940 the first walkie-talkie was used by the US military
 in 1947, John Bardeen and Walter Brattain from AT&T’s Bell Labs invented the
transistor (semiconductor device used to amplify and switch electronic signals)
 AT&T introduced commercial radio comm.: car phone – two way radio link to the
local phone network
 in 1979 the first commercial cellular phone service was launched by the Nordic
Mobile Telephone (in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark
Origin of Wireless communication
 Wireless communications gained popularity in 1930’s
 Mainly used for public safety by police and other government organizations
 Not connected to the PSTN (Public Switching Telephone Networks)
 First public mobile telephone service started in 1946 in United States
 Using a single high power transmitter and large tower to cover an area of 50 km
 Mobile radio telephones were used for military communications in early 20th century
 Car-based telephones first introduced in mid 1940s
 Single large transmitter on top of a tall building
 Single channel used for sending and receiving
 To talk, user pushed a button, enabled transmission and disabled reception
 Became known as “push-to-talk” in 1950s
 CB-radio, taxis, police cars use this technology
 IMTS (Improved Mobile Telephone System) introduced in 1960s
 Used two channels (one for sending, one for receiving)
 No need for push-to-talk
 Used 23 channels from 150 MHz to 450 MHz
Several Types of Mobile Radio Systems
 Garage Door Controller [<100 MHz]
 Remote Controllers [TV/VCR/DISH][Infra-Red: 1-100 THz]
 Cordless Telephone [<100 MHz]
 Hand-Held Radio [Walki-Talki] [VHF-UHF:40-480 MHz]
 Pagers/Beepers [< 1 GHz]
 Cellular Mobile Telephone[<2 GHz]
First generation Network
  Advanced Mobile Phone Service (AMPS) invented at Bell Labs and first installed in
1982
 Used in England (called TACS) and Japan (called MCS-L1)
 Key ideas:
 Exclusively analog
 Geographical area divided into cells (typically 10-25km)
 Cells are small: Frequency reuse exploited in nearby (not adjacent) cells
 As compared to IMTS, could use 5 to 10 times more users in same area by using
frequency re-use (divide area into cells)
 Smaller cells also required less powerful, cheaper,smaller devices

Overview of Cellular System

Overview of Cellular System

 The purpose of wireless networks is to provide wireless access to the fixed
network (PSTN)
Cellular System
 The service area is divided into cells
 Each cell is served by its own antenna
 Each base station consists of a transmitter, a receiver, and control unit
 Base station placed in the middle or at the border of the cell
 Each base station is allocated a certain frequency band (frequency allocation
Components of a cellular System
 BTS (Base Transceiver Station) – main component of a cell and it connects the
subscribers to the cellular network; for transmission/reception of information it uses
several antennas spread across the cell
 BSC (Basic Station Controller) – it is an interface between BTSs and it is linked to
BTSs by cable or microwave links; it routes calls between BTSs; it is also connected to
the MSC
 MSC (Mobile Switching Center) – the coordinator of a cellular network, it is connected
to several BSCs, it routes calls between BSCs; links the cellular network with other
networks like PSTN through fiber optics, microwave or copper cable
Cellular Operation
 Three basic devices
 A mobile station
 A base transceiver
 A Mobile Telecommunications Switching Office (MTSO)
Operational Channels (2 week)
Four types of channels used in each cell that take active part during a mobile call:
 Forward Voice Channel (FVC)
 Reverse Voice Channel (RVC)
 Forward Control Channel (FCC)
Reverse control channels (RCC)
 Four types of channels used in each cell that take active part during a mobile call:
 Forward Voice Channel (FVC): Used for the voice transmission from the BS to the MS.
 Reverse Voice Channel (RVC): Used for voice transmission from the MS to the BS.
 Forward Control Channel (FCC):
 Setting up calls
 Divert call to unused voice channels
 Channels transmit and receive call initiation and service request messages.
 Reverse Control Channel (RCC): This is used for the call control purpose from
the MS to the BS. Control channels are usually monitored by mobiles.
Common Air Interface (CAI)
• A standard that defines Communication between a Base Station and Mobile
• Specifies Four Channels [Voice Channels and Control / Setup Channels]
• FVC: Forward Voice Channel
• RVC: Reverse Voice Channel
• FCC: Forward Control Channel
• RCC: Reverse Control Channel

Network Cells Reverse Channel

 The entire network coverage area is divided into cells based on the principle of frequency
reuse Forward Channel
 A cell is a basic geographical unit of a cellular network, it is the area around an antenna
where a specific frequency range is used, it is represented graphically as a hexagonal
shape, but in reality it is irregular in shape
  When a subscriber moves to another cell, the antenna of the new cell takes over the signal
transmission
 A cluster is a group of adjacent cells, usually 7 cells; no frequency reuse is done within a
cluster
 The frequency spectrum is divided into sub bands and each sub band is used within one
cell of the cluster
 In heavy traffic zones cells are smaller, while in isolated zones cells are larger
 Cell design (around 10 mile radius) Served by base station consisting of transmitter,
receiver, and control unit.
 Base station (BS) antenna is placed in high places (churches, high rise buildings.
 Cells use low powered transmitters.
 Each cell is allocated a band of frequencies, and is served by its own antenna as well as a
base station consisting of a transmitter, receiver and control unit

Why cells
 The cellular concept was a major breakthrough in solving the problem of spectral
congestion and user capacity. It offered very high capacity in a limited spectrum
allocation without any major technological changes.
 The cellular concept has the following system level ideas
 Replacing a single, high power transmitter with many low power transmitters,
each providing coverage to only a small area.
 Neighboring cells are assigned different groups of channels in order to minimize
interference.
 The same set of channels is then reused at different geographical locations.
Cells
 A cell is an area covered by a transponder.

Cell Sectorization
 Cells can be divided into sectors to provide a smaller coverage area with in a cell, and
therefore, more frequency reuse.
 Cellular Area: Cellular areas aren’t really circular as the area depends on the terrain and
the interference that’s present.
  Cell Sectoring
 Cell divided into wedge shaped sectors
 3 – 6 sectors per cell
 Each with own channel set
 Subsets of cell’s channels
 Directional antennas
Types of cells
 Macro cell – their coverage is large (aprox. 6 miles in diameter); used in remote areas,
high-power transmitters and receivers are used
 Micro cell – their coverage is small (half a mile in diameter) and are used in urban zones;
low-powered transmitters and receivers are used to avoid interference with cells in
another clusters
 Pico cell – covers areas such as building or a tunnel
Cell Footprint
 The actual radio coverage of a cell is known as the cell footprint.
 Irregular cell structure and irregular placing of the transmitter may be acceptable
in the initial system design. However as traffic grows, where new cells and
channels need to be added, it may lead to inability to reuse frequencies because of
co-channel interference.
 For systematic cell planning, a regular shape is assumed for the footprint.
Other cellular concepts
 Handover : Moving a call from one zone (from the transmitter-receiver from one zone)
to another zone due to subscriber’s mobility
 Roaming : Allowing the subscriber to send/receive calls outside the service provider’s
coverage area
Frequency Reuse
 Each cell is served by a base station that uses the assigned channel group.
 The power radiated by a base station is deliberately kept low, and antennas are located so
as to achieve coverage within the particular cell.
 By limiting the coverage area within a cell, the same group of channels can be used to
cover various cells that are separated from one another by distances large enough to keep
the co channel interference level within tolerable limits.

Cellular Concept
  Let T = total number of duplex channels
K cells = size of cell cluster
(typically 4, 7,12, 21)
N = T/K = number of
channels per cell
• For a specific geographic area,
if clusters are replicated M times, then total number of channels
– system capacity = M x T
– Choice of K determines
distance between cells using the same frequencies – termed co-channel cells
– K depends on how much
interference can be tolerated by mobile stations
and path loss
Frequency reuse
• Each color/letter uses the same frequency band
Cellular Design Reuse Pattern
 Example: cell cluster size K = 7, frequency reuse factor = 1/7, assume T = 490 total
channels, N = T/K = 70 channels per cell
 Assume T = 490 total channels,
 K = 7, N = 70 channels/cell
 Clusters are replicated M=3
 times
 System capacity = 3x490 = 1470 total channels
Cluster Size
 From geometry of grid of hexagons only
certain values of K are
possible if replicating
cluster without gaps
 K = i2 + ij + j2 where i and j are non-negative
integers
Cellular Concepts
(Co-Channel Cells)
 To find co-channel neighbours of a cell, move i cells perpendicular to the hexagon
boundary, turn 60 degrees counter clockwise, and move j cells (example: i=2, j=2, K=12)
 In order to maximize capacity, Co-channel cells are placed as far apart as possible for a
given cluster size
 The relationship among the distance between the Co-channel cells, D, the cluster size K
and the cell radius R is given as;
D/R = √3K
Setting up a call process
 When powered on, the phone does not have a frequency/ time slot/ode assigned to it yet;
so it scans for the control channel of the BTS and picks the strongest signal
  then it sends a message (including its identification number) to the BTS to indicate its
presence
 the BTS sends an acknowledgement message back to the cell phone
 the phone then registers with the BTS and informs the BTS of its exact location
 after the phone is registered to the BTS, the BTS assigns a channel to the phone and the
phone is ready to receive or make calls
Setting up a call
 The subscriber dials the receiver’s number and sends it to the BTS
 the BTS sends to its BSC the ID, location and number of the caller and also the number
of the receiver
 the BSC forwards this information to its MSC
 the MSC routes the call to the receiver’s MSC which is then sent to the receiver’s BSC
and then to its BTS
 the communication with the receiver’s cell phone is established
Receiving a call process
 When the receiver’ phone is in an idle state it listens for the control channel of its BTS
 If there is an incoming call the BSC and BTS sends a message to the cells in the area
where the receiver’s phone is located
 The phone monitors its message and compares the number from the message with its own
 If the numbers matches the cell phone sends an acknowledgement to the BTS
 After authentication, the communication is established between the caller and the receiver
Mobility Management in a cell
Handover / Handoff
 Occurs as a mobile moves into a different cell during an existing call, or when going from
one cellular system into another.
 It must be user transparent, successful and not too frequent.
 Not only involves identifying a new BS, but also requires that the voice and
control signals be allocated to channels associated with the new BS
Handover / Handoff
 Once a particular signal level P min is specified as the minimum usable signal for
acceptable voice quality at the BS receiver, a slightly stronger signal level PHO is used as
a threshold at which a handover is made.

Handover indicator
 Each BS constantly monitors the signal strengths of all of its reverse voice channels to
determine the relative location of each mobile user with respect to the BS. This
information is forwarded to the MSC who makes decisions regarding handover.
 Mobile assisted handover (MAHO) : The mobile station measures the received power
from surrounding BSs and continually reports the results of these measurements to the
serving BS.
Practical handover
  High speed users and low speed users have vastly different dwell times which might
cause a high number of handover requests for high speed users. This will result in
interference and traffic management problem.
 The Umbrella Cell approach will help to solve this problems. High speed users are
serviced by large (macro) cells, while low speed users are handled by small (micro) cells.
First-Generation Cellular
 1st generation cellular networks are purely analog cellular systems.
 The transmission of data is sent via a continuously variable signal
 Advanced Mobile Phone Service (AMPS) invented at Bell Labs and first installed in
1982
 Used in England (called TACS) and Japan (called MCS-L1)
 Key ideas:
 Exclusively analog
 Geographical area divided into cells (typically 10-25km)
 Cells are small: Frequency reuse exploited in nearby (not adjacent) cells
 As compared to IMTS, could use 5 to 10 times more users in same area by using
frequency re-use (divide area into cells)
 Smaller cells also required less powerful, cheaper smaller devices
First Generation
 Analog
 Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA)
 Multiple users are provided access to a system by dividing the spectrum
up into frequency bands.
 Different users use different frequency bands.
 AMPS standard.
 30 kHz voice channels
First Generation
 Two 25-MHz bands are allocated to AMPS
 One from BS to mobile unit (869–894 MHz)
 Other from mobile to base station (824–849 MHz)
 Bands is split in two to encourage competition
 In each market two operators can be accommodated
 Operator is allocated only 12.5 MHz in each direction
 Channels spaced 30 kHz apart
 Total of 416 channels per operator
 Twenty-one channels allocated for control
 395 to carry calls
Second Generation Cellular
 2nd generation cellular networks refer to digital cellular and PC wireless systems.
 voice and low speed data services.
 They consist of digital traffic channels, perform encryption, error detection & correction
 Users share channels dynamically
 Based on digital transmission
  Different approaches in US and Europe
 US: divergence
 Only one player (AMPS) in 1G
 Became several players in 2G due to competition
 Survivors
 IS-54 and IS-135: backward compatible with AMPS frequency allocation
(dual mode - analog and digital)
 IS-95: uses spread spectrum
 Europe: Convergence
 5 incompatible 1G systems (no clear winner)
 European PTT development of GSM (uses new frequency and completely digital
communication)
Four popular standards for 2G
1- Global System for Mobile (GSM)
 Eight time-slotted users for each 200 kHz radio channel.
 Deployed widely in Europe, Asia, Australia, South America, and
some parts of the U.S. in the PCS band of spectrum.
 GSM uses SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) cards that can be
transferred from phone-to-phone. Phones for other types of
technologies must be programmed.
 T-Mobile, AT&T, and Cingular in the U.S.
2-Interim Standard 136 (IS-136)
 Also called North American Digital Cellular (NADC)
 Three time-slotted users per 30 kHz channel
 Popular in North America, South America, and Australia.
 Cingular and AT&T in the U.S. Both companies have larger areas for their
TDMA networks
3- Pacific Digital Cellular (PDC)
 Japanese standard
 Similar to IS-136
4- Interim Standard 95 (IS-95)
 CDMA
 Also known as cdmaOne
 64 users in a 1.25 MHz channel.
 Can be used in 800 MHz and 1900 MHz bands.
 Sprint and Verizon in the U.S.
 Digital modulation
 TDMA/FDD or CDMA/FDD
 Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) – 3 popular standards use this.
 Signal is digitized.
 Users occupy different time slots.
  Example from wired telephone: Each user needs to send an 8-bit
block of digitized voice every 125 microseconds (8000 times per
second).
 Requirement is for 64 kbps.
 One type of channel can support a data rate of 1.544 Mbps
(a "T1" telephone circuit).

Second generation
Second Generation

Differences Between First and Second Generation Systems

 Digital traffic channels – first-generation systems are almost purely analog; second-
generation systems are digital
 Encryption – all second generation systems provide encryption to prevent eavesdropping
 Error detection and correction – second-generation digital traffic allows for detection and
correction, giving clear voice reception
  Channel access – second-generation systems allow channels to be dynamically shared by
a number of users
First Generation Systems
 Advanced Mobile Phone Service (AMPS) invented at Bell Labs and first installed in
1982
 Advanced Mobile Phone Service (AMPS) is a standard system
for analog signal cellular telephone service in the United States and is also used in
other countries. It is based on the initial electromagnetic radiation spectrum
allocation for cellular service by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
in 1970. Introduced by AT&T in 1983, AMPS became one of the most widely
deployed cellular system in the United States
Cellular Terms/Concepts used in AMPS
 Users are Mobile
 Must transfer call from one region to another
 Low powered, handheld transmitters
 Must be relatively close to a receiver ( <20 miles)
 Frequencies are reused in other cells
 In band signaling
 Paging
 Frequency Modulation
 Helps remove noise.
First Generation Analog
 Original cellular telephone networks
 Analog traffic channels
 Early 1980s in North America
 Advanced Mobile Phone Service (AMPS)
 AT&T
 Also common in South America, Australia, and China
Spectral Allocation In North America
 Two 25-MHz bands are allocated to AMPS
 One from BS to mobile unit (869–894 MHz)
 Other from mobile to base station (824–849 MHz)
 Bands is split in two to encourage competition
 In each market two operators can be accommodated
 Operator is allocated only 12.5 MHz in each direction
 Channels spaced 30 kHz apart
 Total of 416 channels per operator
 Twenty-one channels allocated for control
 395 to carry calls
AMPS
 Originally 40 MHz of spectrum separated into two bands of 20 MHz each (A and B
band). Later expanded to 25 MHz each –
  FDD used with 45 MHz separation in uplink and downlink – prevents self interference. •
AMPS uses 30 kHz radio channels between mobile station and base stations • Two
service providers in area are each allocated 25 MHZ => 12.5 MHz for each direction =>
416 pairs of channels: split into 395 voice channels + 21 control channels for signaling •
Spectral Allocation In North America
 Control channels are 10 kbps data channels
 Conversation channels carry analog using frequency modulation
 Control information also sent on conversation channels in bursts as data
 Number of channels inadequate for most major markets
 For AMPS, frequency reuse is exploited
Overview of Cellular System

Operation
 AMPS-capable phone has numeric assignment module (NAM) in read-only memory
 NAM contains number of phone
 Assigned by service provider
 Serial number of phone
 Assigned by the manufacturer
 When phone turned on, transmits serial number and phone number to MTSO
 MTSO has database of mobile units reported stolen
 Uses serial number to lock out stolen units
 MTSO uses phone number for billing
 If phone is used in remote city, service is still billed to user's local service
provider
AMPS Control Channels
 21 full-duplex 30-kHz control channels
 Data are transmitted in frames
 Control information can be transmitted over voice channel during conversation
 Mobile unit or the base station inserts burst of data
 Turn off voice FM transmission for about 100 ms
 Replacing it with an FSK-encoded message
  Used to exchange urgent messages
 Change power level
 Handoff
Call Sequence
1. Subscriber initiates call by keying in number and presses send
2. MTSO validates telephone number and checks user authorized to place call
• Some service providers require a PIN to counter theft
3. MTSO issues message to user's phone indicating traffic channels to use
4. MTSO sends ringing signal to called party
• All operations, 2 through 4, occur within 10 s of initiating call
5. When called party answers, MTSO establishes circuit and initiates billing information
6. When one party hangs up MTSO releases circuit, frees radio channels, and completes
billing information
AMPS System Identifiers (ID codes)

Cellular bands for AMPS

Cellular bands for AMPS

AMPS Frequency Allocation and Channels

Frequency division duplexing (FDD)
 Two bands of frequencies for every user
 Forward band
 Reverse band
 Duplexer needed
 Frequency separation between forward band and reverse band is constant

FDD/FDMA – AMPS
Logical separation FDMA/FDD

Multiple Access Techniques in use

Radio Transmission
 Frequency Bands and Physical Channels: – The original system covered a bandwidth of
40 MHz – The band for forward transmission is 870 - 890 MHz – The reverse
transmission is 825 - 845 MHz – An AMPS physical channel is 30 kHz – Total number of
channel (per direction) is 20 MHz/30 kHz = 666 – The carrier frequency corresponding to
channel C is – f(C) = 825 MHz + 30 C kHz (reverse direction) – f(C) = 870 MHz + 30 C
kHz (forward direction)
Frequency Bands and Physical Channels
 AMPS spectrum is divided into two equal regions labeled A and B – Two cellular
operating licenses (corresponding to bands A and B) in each geographical area. – There
are 1,466 operating licenses in the USA. – All systems operating in A-band (416
channels) have the same odd SIDs (least significant bit = 1) – Among the 832 AMPS
channels, there are 42 control channels (21 channels for each band) from 313 - 354 – All
other channels (up to 395 channels) are traffic channels
What is a Decibel- dB
 Decibel is the unit used to express relative differences in signal strength. – It is expressed
as the base 10 logarithm of the ratio of the powers of two signals: – dB = 10 log (P2/P1)
– Logarithms are useful as the unit of measurement because • signal power tends to span
several orders of magnitude • signal attenuation losses and gains can be expressed in
terms of subtraction and addition
AMPS Logical Channels
Introduction to 2G networks
• Development driven by the need to improve speech quality, system capacity,
coverage and security
• First System that use digital transmission
• Examples of Second Generation (2G) cellular systems ...
• Digital AMPS (D-AMPS) in the US,
• Personal Digital Communication (PDC) in Japan,
• Intrim Standard `94 (IS-94) in Korea and the US
• Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM)
Introduction of GSM
• GSM stands for Global System for Mobile Communications
• Standard developed by European Telecommunications Standards Institute(ETSI).
• First deployed in Finland in July 1991
• Mobilink started operations as a first GSM cellular service in Pakistan
• Presently more than 1 billion mobile subscriber of GSM in more than 210 countries.
• GSM make use of narrow band Time division multiple access (TDMA) for transmitting
signals.
• GSM provides basic to advanced voice and data services including roaming service.
Why GSM???
• Early 1980s there was analog technologies
• Advance mobile phone services (AMPS) in North America
• Total Access Communication System( TACS) in UK
• Nordic Mobile telephone (NMT) in Northern Europe and North Atlantic
• Problems in 1G
• Each Country developed their own system due to which system worked
only within the boundaries of each country
 • System Capacity was not grown in cost efficient manner as then umber of
user increase
Positive of GSM…..
• Improved spectrum efficiency
• International roaming
• Low-cost mobile sets and base stations (BSs)
• High-quality speech
• Compatibility with Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) and other telephone
company services
Year Milestone
1982 GSM formed
1986 Field test
1987 TDMA chosen as access method
1988 Memorandum of understating signed
1989 Validation of GSM system
1990 Pre operation system
1991 Commercial system startup
1992 Coverage of larger cities / airports
1993 Coverage of main roads
1995 Coverage of rural areas
GSM Milestones
1996 June: 133 networks in 81 countries operational.

1997 July: 200 networks in 109 countries operational, around 44 million subscribers worldwide.

1999 Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) came into existence and became operational in
130 countries with 260 million subscribers.
2000 General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) came into existence.

2001 As of May 2001, over 550 million people were subscribers to mobile
telecommunications.
The GSM network
• Switching system(SS)
Switching system is responsible for performing call processing and subscriber
related functions.
 • Base station System(BSS)
All radio-related functions are performed in the BSS, which consists of base
station controllers (BSCs) and the base transceiver stations (BTSs).
• Operation and support system(OSS)
The functional entity from which the network operator monitors and controls the system.
OSS offer the customer cost-effective support for centralized, regional, and local operational
and maintenance activities that are required for a GSM network.
Switching System(SS)
The Switching system include the following component
• Mobile Switching Centre MSC
• the core switching entity in the network.
• Is connected to the radio access network (RAN);
• the RAN is formed by the BSCs and BTSs within the Public Land Mobile
Network (PLMN).
• all calls to and from the user are controlled by the MSC.
• A GSM network has one or more MSCs, geographically distributed.
• Home Location Register (HLR)
• A database used for storage and management of subscriptions.
• data about subscribers, including a subscriber's service profile, location
information, and activity status.
• When an individual buys a subscription, he or she is registered in the HLR of that
operator.
• Visitor Location Register (VLR)
• A database that contains temporary information about subscribers that is needed
by the MSC in order to service visiting subscribers.
• The VLR is always integrated with the MSC.
• For roaming user, VLR connected to that MSC will request data about the mobile
station from the HLR through MSC
• Authentication Centre (AUC)
• Provides authentication and encryption parameters that verify the user's identity
and ensure the confidentiality of each call.
• The AUC protects network operators from different types of fraud found in
today's cellular world.
• Equipment Identity Register (EIR)
• A database that contains information about the identity of mobile equipment that
prevents calls from stolen, unauthorized, or defective mobile stations.
• The AUC and EIR are implemented as stand-alone nodes or as a combined
AUC/EIR node.
Base Station System (BSS)
A Bastion Station System include the following component.
• Base Station Controller (BSC)
• provides all the control functions and physical links between the MSC and BTS.
 • It is a high-capacity switch that provides functions such as handover, cell
configuration data, and control of radio frequency (RF) power levels in base
transceiver stations.
• A number of BSCs are served by an MSC.
• Base Transceiver Station (BTS)
• handles the radio interface to the mobile station.
• The BTS is the radio equipment (transceivers and antennas) needed to service
each cell in the network.
A group of BTSs are controlled by a BSC
Operation and Support System (OSS)
• The OSS is an element within the overall GSM network architecture that is connected to
components of the SS and the BSC. It is used to control and monitor the overall GSM
network and it is also used to control the traffic load of the BSS. It must be noted that as
the number of BS increases with the scaling of the subscriber population some of the
maintenance tasks are transferred to the BTS, allowing savings in the cost of ownership
of the system.
GSM Network Areas
• GSM network is made up of geographic areas.

GSM Network Areas

• Cell
• The Cell is the area given radio coverage by one BTS
• The GSM Network identifies each cell via cell global identity (CGI) number,
assigned to each cell.
• Location Area (LA)
• Group of cell
 • It is the area in which the subscriber is paged.
• Each LA is served by one or more BSC but only by a single MSC.
• Each LA is assigned a location area identity(LAI)
• MSC/VLR Service Areas
• A MSC/VLR service area represents the part of the GSM network that is covered
by one MSC and which is reachable, as it is registered in the VLR of the MSC
• PLMN Network Areas
The PLMN service area is an area served by one network operator.
GSM specifications
• Uplink frequency band— 933 to 960 MHz (Basic 900 MHz only)
• Download Frequency band — 890 to 915MHz (basic 900 MHz only).
• duplex distance—80 MHz.
• channel bandwidth -- 200 kHz.
• modulation—Gaussian minimum shift keying (GMSK).
• transmission rate—over-the-air bit rate of 270 kbps.
• access method—time division multiple access (TDMA)
• speech coder—GSM uses linear predictive coding (LPC). Speech is encoded at 13 kbps.
GSM PLMN
• PLMN stand for public land mobile network
• Is a network that is established and operated by an administration or by a recognized
operating agency (ROA) for the specific purpose of providing land mobile
telecommunication service to public.
• A PLMN is identified by Mobile Country Code(MCC) and the Mobile Network
Code(MNC)
• Each operator has its own PLMN
• PLMNs interconnected with other PLMNs and public switched telephone network
(PSTN) for telephone communication or with Internet service provider (ISP) for data and
internet access of which link are defined as interconnect links between provider.
Objective of GSM PLMN
• To provide the subscriber a wide range of services and facilities, both voice and non
voice, that are compatible with those offered by existing networks (e.g., PSTN, ISDN)
• To introduce a mobile service that is compatible with ISDN
• To provide certain services and facilities exclusive to mobile situations
• To provide facilities for automatic roaming, locating, and updating of mobile subscribers
• To provide for efficient use of the frequency spectrum
• To give access to the GSM network for a mobile subscriber in a country that operates the
GSM system
• To provide service to a wide range of MSs, including vehicle-mounted stations,
portable stations, and handheld stations
• To allow for a low-cost infrastructure and terminal and to keep cost of service low
GSM PLMN Services
The basic telecommunication services provided by the GSM PLMN are divided into three main
groups
 1. Teleservices or telephony services
The abilities of a Bearer Service are used by a Teleservice to transport data. These services are
further divided in the following ways:
Voice Calls
The most basic Teleservice supported by GSM is telephony. This includes full-rate speech at 13
kbps and emergency calls, where the nearest emergency-service provider is notified by dialing
three digits.
Videotext and Facsmile
Another group of teleservices includes Videotext access, Teletex transmission, Facsimile
alternate speech and facsimile Group 3, Automatic facsimile Group, 3 etc.
Short Text Messages
Short Messaging Service (SMS) service is a text messaging service that allows sending and
receiving text messages on your GSM mobile phone. In addition to simple text messages, other
text data including news, sports, financial, language, cell broadcast and location-based data can
also be transmitted.
2.Bearer Services
• Data services or Bearer Services are used through a GSM phone. to receive and
send data is the essential building block leading to widespread mobile Internet
access and mobile data transfer. GSM currently has a data transfer rate of 9.6k.
New developments that will push up data transfer rates for GSM users are
HSCSD (high speed circuit switched data) and GPRS (general packet radio
service) are now available.
3. Supplementary services
Supplementary services are additional services that are provided in addition to teleservices and
bearer services. These services include caller identification, call forwarding, call waiting, multi-
party conversations, and barring of outgoing (international) calls, among others. Following are
the supplementary services
• Conferencing
• Call Waiting
• Call Hold
• Call Forwarding
• Call Barring
Number Identification :
Following supplementary services related to number identification:
• Calling Line Identification Presentation
• Calling Line Identification Restriction :
• Connected Line Identification Presentation
• Connected Line Identification Restriction
• Malicious Call Identification
• Advice of Charge (AoC)
• Closed User Groups (CUGs)
• Unstructured supplementary services data (USSD)
GSM Mobility
 • Roaming with GSM is made possible through the separation of switching capability and
subscription data.
• A GSM subscriber has her subscription data permanently registered in the HLR in his/her
HPLMN.
• The GSM operator is responsible for provisioning this data in the HLR. The MSC and
GMSC in a PLMN, on the other hand, are not specific for one subscriber group.

Mobile Station
• Mobile Equipment (ME)
• Subscriber Identification Module (SIM)
• this is the chip embedded in the SIM card that identifies a subscriber of a GSM
network;
• When the SIM card is inserted in the ME, the subscriber may register with a GSM
network.
• The ME is now effectively personalized for this GSM subscriber;
• The SIM card contains information such as IMSI, advice of charge parameters,
operator-specific emergency number, etc.
Identifiers in the GSM Network
• GSM uses several identifiers for
• the routing of calls,
• identifying subscribers (e.g. for charging),
• locating the HLR, identifying equipment, etc.
IMSI
• International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI)
• It is embedded on the SIM card and is used to identify a subscriber.
• The IMSI is also contained in the subscription data in the HLR.
• roaming charging – a VPLMN uses the IMSI to send billing records to the
HPLMN of a subscriber.
 • International Mobile Equipment Identifier
• Each ME has a unique IMEI which is hard-coded in the ME and cannot be
modified.
• (IMEI) is used to identify the ME.
• Mobile Station Roaming Number
• (MSRN) is used in the GSM network for routing a call to a MS.
• The MSRN is allocated to a subscriber during MT call handling and is released
when the call to that subscriber is established.
• Each MSC in a PLMN has a (limited) range of MSRNs allocated to it.

• Mobile Station Integrated Services Digital Network Number (MSISDN Number)

• The MSISDN is used to identify the subscriber when, among other things,
establishing a call to that subscriber or sending an SMS to that subscriber.
• The MSISDN is not stored on the subscriber’s SIM card and is normally not
available in the MS.
• The MSISDN is provisioned in the HLR, as part of the subscriber’s profile, and is
sent to MSC during registration.
Call Routing in GSM

Fixed PSTN/ Gateway HLR PSTN/ MSC/ MS

Subscriber ISDN MSC ISDN VLR
MSISDN
MSISDN
MSISDN
MSRN

MSRN
MSRN IMSI

S S S S
GPRS
GPRS is an enhancement over the GSM and adds some nodes in the network to provide the
packet switched services. These network nodes are called GSNs (GPRS Support Nodes) and are
responsible for the routing and delivery of the data packets to and from the MS and external
packet data networks (PDN).
Introduction to GPRS
• Goals of GPRS:
• Efficient bandwidth usage for bursty data traffic (e.g. Internet)
• Higher data rates
• New charging models
• Initially specified by ETSI
• A lot of releases (R97, R98, R99, R4 etc.)
• Specifications handed over to 3GPP
• A lot of specifications considered in this overview:
• Release 5 (Ganz) / 6 (most recent TS at 3GPP)
GPRS Release 5/6
• Two modes determined by generation of core network:
• 2G core => A/Gb
• 3G core => Iu
• Iu interface added in rel. 5 to align with UMTS
GERAN Reference Architecture

GPRS Architecture
A/Gb mode
• Class A: MS can operate simultaneous packet switched and circuit switched services
• Class B: MS can operate either one at one time
• Most common for handsets today
• Class C: MS can operate only packet switched services
• E.g. expansion cards for laptops
Iu mode
• CS/PS mode: Same as Class A in A/Gb mode
• PS mode: MS can only operate packet switched services
• CS mode: MS can only operate circuit switched services
Control Channels
• Packet Common Control Channel (PCCCH)
• When allocated in a cell, GPRS related mobiles camp on it
• Divded into
• Random Access (PRACH): MS initiate packet transfer or respond to
paging messages
• Paging (PPCH): to page an MS prior to packet transfer
• Access Grant (PAGCH): send resource assignment to MS prior to packet
transfer
• Packet Notification (PNCH): used to send a PTM-Multicast notification to
group of MS
• Packet Dedicated Control Channel (PDCCH)
• Slow Associated Control Channel (SACCH)
• Radio measurements, power control and data
• SMS transfer during calls
• Fast Associated Control Channel (FACCH)
• For one Traffic Channel (TCH)
• Carry Ack
• Stand-alone Dedicated Control Channel (SDCCH)
 • is used in the GSM system to provide a reliable connection for
signalling and Short Message Service.
• Packet Broadcast Control Channel (PBCCH)
• Frequency correction channels
• Allows the MS to synchronize their Local Oscillator (LO) to the Base
Station LO, using frequency offset estimation and correction.
• Synchronization channel (MS freq. vs. BS)
• Broadcast control channel for general information on the base station
Mobility
• A mobile station has three states in GPRS system:
• Idle
• Standby
• Active
• The operation of GPRS is partly independent of the GSM network. However, some
procedures share the network elements with current GSM functions.
• Data is transmitted between a mobile station and the GPRS network only when the
mobile station is in the active state.
• In the active state, the SGSN knows the cell location of the mobile station.
• In the standby state, the location of the station is known only as to which routing area it is
in.
• In the idle state, the mobile station does not have a logical GPRS context activated or
any Packet-Switched Public Data Network (PSPDZ) addresses allocated, The MS can
receive only those multicast messages that can be received by any GPRS mobile station.
Control Channels
• Packet Common Control Channel (PCCCH)
• When allocated in a cell, GPRS related mobiles camp on it
• Divded into
• Random Access (PRACH): MS initiate packet transfer or respond to
paging messages
• Paging (PPCH): to page an MS prior to packet transfer
• Access Grant (PAGCH): send resource assignment to MS prior to packet
transfer
• Packet Notification (PNCH): used to send a PTM-Multicast notification to
group of MS
• Packet Dedicated Control Channel (PDCCH)
• Slow Associated Control Channel (SACCH)
• Radio measurements, power control and data
• SMS transfer during calls
• Fast Associated Control Channel (FACCH)
• For one Traffic Channel (TCH)
• Carry Ack
• Stand-alone Dedicated Control Channel (SDCCH)
 • is used in the GSM system to provide a reliable connection for
signalling and Short Message Service.
• Packet Broadcast Control Channel (PBCCH)
• Frequency correction channels
• Allows the MS to synchronize their Local Oscillator (LO) to the Base
Station LO, using frequency offset estimation and correction.
• Synchronization channel (MS freq. vs. BS)
• Broadcast control channel for general information on the base station
GPRS Air Interface
• Master slave concept
• One PDCH acts as Master
• Master holds all PCCCH channels
• The rest of channels act as Slaves
• Capacity on demand
• PDCH(s) are increased or decreased according to demand
• Load supervision is done in MAC Layer
Uplink Data Transfer (from power point)
Mobility
• A mobile station has three states in GPRS system:
• Idle
• Standby
• Active
• The operation of GPRS is partly independent of the GSM network. However, some
procedures share the network elements with current GSM functions.
• Data is transmitted between a mobile station and the GPRS network only when the
mobile station is in the active state.
• In the active state, the SGSN knows the cell location of the mobile station.
• In the standby state, the location of the station is known only as to which routing area it is
in.
• In the idle state, the mobile station does not have a logical GPRS context activated or
any Packet-Switched Public Data Network (PSPDZ) addresses allocated, The MS can
receive only those multicast messages that can be received by any GPRS mobile station.
QoS Support
• Assumes that IP multimedia applications are able to
• Define their requirements
• Negotiate their capabilities
• Identify and select available media components
• GPRS specifies signaling that enable support for various traffic streams
• Constant/variable bit rate
• Connection oriented/connection less
• Etc.
QoS Profile for GPRS Bearers
• 4 parameters:
 • Service precedence
• 3 classes
• Reliability parameter
• 3 classes
• Delay parameters
• 4 classes
• Throughput parameter
• Maximum and mean bit rates
• QoS profile is included in Packet Data Protocol (PDP) context
• Negotiation managed through PDP procedures (activation, modification and deactivation)
Service Types
• Point-to-Point
• Internet access by user
• Point-to-Multipoint
• Delivery of information (e.g. news) to multiple locations or interactive conference
applications
GPRS BSS
• A software upgrade is required in the existing Base Transceiver Site (BTS).
• The Base Station Controller (BSC) also requires a software upgrade, and the installation
of a new piece of hardware called a packet control unit (PCU).
• The PCU directs the data traffic to the GPRS network and can be a separate hardware
element associated with BSC.
• The PCU provides a physical and logical data interface out of BSS for packet data
traffic.
Registration of a Mobile Node
A mobile station must register itself with GPRS network.
• GPRS attach
• The device sends message to the new SGSN containing the last assigned
Temporary Mobile Subscriber Id (TMSI), location area information, etc.
• The new SGSN queries the old SGSN for the identity of this mobile device.
• Then the new SGSN requests more information from the mobile device to
authenticate itself against the new SGSN
• GPRS detach
• GPRS detach can be initiated by the MS or the network.
Session Management
• After Successful attach, when it wishes to begin a packet data, it must activate Packet
Data Protocol (PDP) address.This address is unique only for a particular session. It
consists of,
• PDP type
• PDP address assigned to MS
• Requested QoS
• Once PDP Context is activated, a two-way tunnel is established between the device
current SGSN and the corresponding GGSN.
 • GGSN hides the mobility from onward
• PDP-Address allocation:
• Static:Assigned by network operator of User’s home PLMN.
• Dynamic:Assigned by Corresponding GGSN.
PDP Context Activation(from powerpoint)