Introduction to Cellular

Networking and Rethinking

Mobile Architectures
Jatinder Pal Singh
EE 392I, Lecture-3
April 13th, 2010

Agenda
Basics & Technology Evolution
Architecture and Functionality (GSM, 3G and
beyond)
Cellular future goals
Emerging trends
Alternative wireless access technologies
Convergence

Comparison with Internet and sample

scenario studies
Economics of operation
From a clean slate

Basics: Structure
Multiple Access

Downlink

Handoff

Uplink
Mobile Station

Base Station

Distributed transceivers

Fixed transceiver

Cells
Different
Frequencies or
Codes

Basics: Multiple Access

Methods
Frequency
CMDA: Code
Division Multiple
Access

TDMA: Time
Division Multiple
Access
FDMA: Frequency
Division Multiple
Access

Codes

Time

Some More Basics

Uplink & Downlink separated in
Time: Time Division Duplex (TDD), or
Frequency: Frequency Division Duplex (FDD)

Information (voice, data) is digitized and bit

streams modulated onto carrier
Modulation, data redundancy (coding),
transmission power, data retransmissions
(ARQ) adapted to varying wireless channel
quality
Spatial attenuation of signal
Frequency or codes can be reused (frequency
reuse)

Cellular Technology
Evolution

0G: Mobile radio telephones (e.g. MTS)

1G: Analog
2G/3G/4G .. - digital:
GSM/3GPP Family

cdmaOne/CDMA2000 Family

GSM
cdmaOne/IS-95
2G

GPRS
EDGE

3G
4G

UMTS, WCDMA
HSPA
LTE

CDMA2000 EV-DO

Agenda
Basics & Technology Evolution
Architecture and Functionality (GSM,
3G and beyond)
Cellular future goals
Emerging trends
Alternative wireless access technologies
Convergence

Comparison with Internet and sample

scenario studies
Economics of operation
From a clean slate

Global System for Mobile

communications (GSM)
900/1800 MHz band (US: 850/1900 MHz)
For 900 MHz band
Uplink: 890-915
Downlink: 935-960

25 MHz bandwidth - 124 carrier frequency

channels, spaced 200KHz apart
Time Division Multiplexing for 8 full rate
speech channels per frequency channel.
Handset transmission power limited to 2
W in GSM850/900 and 1 W in
GSM1800/1900.

Architecture

The Base Station Subsystem

(BSS)
Base Transceiver Station BTS - transceivers
serve different frequencies.
Frequency hopping by handsets and
transceivers
Sectorization using directional antennas
Base Station Controller (BSC) controls
several (tens to hundreds) of BTSs
allocation of radio channels
handovers between BTSs
concentrator of traffic
databases with information such as carrier
frequencies, frequency hopping lists, power
reduction levels, etc. for each cell site

Network Switching Subsystem

(NSS)
This GSM core network manages communication
amongst mobile devices & with PSTN
Mobile Switching Center (MSC) : routing of calls
and GSM services for users, mobility management,
handovers,
Gateway MSC interfaces with PSTN, determines the
visited MSC at which the subscriber being called is
currently located
Visited MSC - MSC where a customer is currently located.
The Visitor Location Register (VLR) associated with this
MSC has subscriber's data.
Anchor MSC - MSC from which handover initiated.
Target MSC - MSC toward which a handover should take
place.

Home Location Register (HLR): database with all

mobile phone subscriber details

GPRS core network

Mobility management, session
management, and transport for IP
services
GPRS Tunneling Protocol, GTP allows end
users mobility with continued Internet
connectivity by transporting users data
between users current SGSN and GGSN
GPRS support nodes (GSN)
GGSN - Gateway GPRS Support Node
SGSN - Serving GPRS Support Node

GSM Support for Data Services:

GPRS
User gets pair of uplink and downlink
frequencies.
Multiple users share the same frequency
channel with time domain multiplexing.
Packets have constant length corresponding
to a GSM time slot.
Downlink uses FCFS packet scheduling
Uplink
Slotted ALOHA for reservation inquiries during
contention phase
data transferred using dynamic TDMA with FCFS
scheduling.

Upto 64 kbps (more for EDGE) downlink per

user.

UMTS and 3G technologies

(WCDMA & HSPA)
Universal Mobile Telecommunications System
(UMTS) commonly uses WCDMA as the
underlying interface
Theoretically supports up to 14 Mbps rates with
HSDPA
WCDMA Frequency bands
1885-2025 Mhz (uplink), 2110-2200 Mhz (downlink)
US: 1710-1755 MHz and 2110-2155 MHz

W-CDMA has 5 Mhz wide radio channels

(CDMA2000 transmits on one or several pairs
of 1.25 Mhz radio channels).
HSDPA allows networks based on UMTS to have
higher data rates on downlink(1.8. 3.6, 7.2,
14.0 Mbps via AMC, and HARQ, fast packet
scheduling.

Agenda
Basics & Technology Evolution
Architecture and Functionality (GSM, 3G and
beyond)
Cellular future goals
Emerging trends
Alternative wireless access technologies
Convergence

Comparison with Internet and sample

scenario studies
Economics of operation
From a clean slate

Next Generation Mobile

Networks
Next Generation Mobile Networks (NGMN)
Ltd. - Consortium with partnership of major
mobile operators
Recommendations without specific
technology prescriptions
Target to establish performance targets,
recommendations and deployment
scenarios for future wide-area mobile
broadband network packet switched core
The architecture intended to provide a
smooth migration of existing 2G/3G
networks towards an IP network that is cost
competitive and has broadband
performance.

NGMN: Beyond 3G
Video telephony and multimedia conferencing, IM,
video streaming among high drivers for NGMN
Essential System recommendations
Seamless mobility across all bearers with service
continuity through a min of 120 km/h
Peak uplink data rates 30-50 Mbps
Peak > 100Mbps downlink
Latency core < 10ms, RAN <10ms, <30ms e2e
QoS based global roaming
Broadcast, multicast, and unicast services to subscribers
of all environments
Real time, conversational and streaming in PS across all
required bearers
Cost per MB : as close to DSL as possible

NGMN Envisioned System

Architecture

Agenda
Basics & Technology Evolution
Architecture and Functionality (GSM, 3G and
beyond)
Cellular future goals
Emerging trends
Alternative wireless access technologies
Convergence

Comparison with Internet and sample

scenario studies
Economics of operation
From a clean slate

Alternative fixed wireless and

MAN standards
WiMAX, the Worldwide Interoperability
for Microwave Access based on IEEE
802.16 standard
Last-mile broadband access, backhaul
for cellular networks, Internet Services
802.16d Fixed WiMAX, 802.16e Mobile WiMAX.
Licensed spectrum profiles: 2.3GHz,
2.5GHz and 3.5GHz. US mostly around
2.5 GHz, assigned primarily to Sprint
Nextel, Clearwire.

Convergence
Heterogeneous access technologies
Multi-mode access devices
Dual mode phones (WiFi, 2.5/3G), UMA

Heterogeneous Services
Cellular Internet access and Internet based
voice/video access
Challenges
Time variant heterogeneous network
characteristics
Heterogeneous applications with different utilities
System design and networking challenges

Agenda
Basics & Technology Evolution
Architecture and Functionality (GSM, 3G and
beyond)
Cellular future goals
Emerging trends
Alternative wireless access technologies
Convergence

Comparison with Internet and sample

scenario studies
Economics of operation
From a clean slate

Cellular Networks and

Internet
Internet
Cellular Networks
Incipient
Service

Voice
Circuit Switched Analog

Technology

Circuit Switched Digital

Data

Packet
Switched

C.S. Voice + P.S. Data

Evolution
New Services
Mobility
Support

Controlled
Operator initiated
or partnered
Good

Semi-Organic
Third party/
independent (largely)
Poor

Cellular Networks and

Internet
Cellular Networks
QoS at edges

Data rates for

supporting
broadband
services
Cost per MB
of data

Good Support
(voice vs. data)

Insufficient as of
present

Higher

Internet

Mostly absent

Relatively high

Lower

Internet : Sample scenario

Residential Broadband access

Internet
DSLAM

BRAS

Home WiFi Router

QoS: Wireless hop (802.11e?), PPPoE, IP QoS (Diffserv)
and translation mechanisms
Mobility Options: MIP - high-barrier, delay performance,
incremental patch rather than clean solution?

Cellular Scenario

Better QoS, scheduling

Better Mobility within the cellular network
Integrated voice/data Authentication
Downside is excessive edge network delays,
costs of network deployment.

Agenda
Basics & Technology Evolution
Architecture and Functionality (GSM, 3G and
beyond)
Cellular future goals
Emerging trends
Alternative wireless access technologies
Convergence

Comparison with Internet and sample

scenario studies
Economics of operation
From a clean slate

The Economics
3G spectrum licensing and migration cost
Telecom equipment vendors economics
of operation, meeting bids vs. system
upgrades for technical innovation
Stiff competition for fixed and mobile
segments of operators, drive towards
services.
Interesting and sometimes conflicting
dynamics for both fixed and mobile
operators.

Agenda
Basics & Technology Evolution
Architecture and Functionality (GSM, 3G and
beyond)
Cellular future goals
Emerging trends
Alternative wireless access technologies
Convergence

Comparison with Internet and sample

scenario studies
Economics of operation
From a clean slate

From a Clean Slate

Greater intelligence at edges of networks, eventually leading
to just network elements of different sizes and capabilities
Functional homogeneity in network elements in terms of
storage/caching, processing, networking capability. Such
network element should likely
be multi-homed connected with heterogeneous technologies
(including p2p, delay tolerant),
have intelligence for resource allocation, QoS
have interaction capability with other network elements
(including user devices),
support mobility, handoffs
have ability to recognize needs of existing and new applications
(HDTV, phone, streaming video)
be plug and play

Interfacing of applications/services (QoS specs) with

underlying serving networks for fast and easy deployment.
Heterogeneity in access technologies amongst user carried
devices honored and accepted by the network elements.

Options for operators

Sharing the spectrum/infrastructure
costs?
New service models to forestall cost
of upgrades
Good opportunity for fixed and mobile
carriers to take initiative.