 There are many types of cellular services; before delving

into details, focus on basics (helps navigate the

“acronym soup”)
 Cellular network/telephony is a radio-based
technology; radio waves are electromagnetic waves that
antennas propagate
 Most signals are in the 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz,
and 1900 MHz frequency bands

Cell phones operate in this frequency

range (note the logarithmic scale)
 Base stations transmit to and receive from mobiles
at the assigned spectrum
◦ Multiple base stations use the same spectrum (spectral
reuse)
 The service area of each base station is called a cell
 Each mobile terminal is typically served by the
‘closest’ base stations
◦ Handoff when terminals move
 It is useful to think of cellular
Network/telephony in terms of generations:
◦ 0G: Briefcase-size mobile radio telephones
◦ 1G: Analog cellular telephony
◦ 2G: Digital cellular telephony
◦ 3G: High-speed digital cellular telephony
(including video telephony)
◦ 4G: IP-based “anytime, anywhere” voice, data,
and multimedia telephony at faster data rates
than 3G
(to be deployed in 2012–2015)
1G 2G 2.5G 3G 4G
 The base stations need to serve many mobile
terminals at the same time (both downlink
and uplink)
 All mobiles in the cell need to transmit to the

base station
 Interference among different senders and

receivers
 So we need multiple access scheme
 3 orthogonal Schemes:
• Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA)
• Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA)
• Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)
 frequency

 Each mobile is assigned a separate frequency channel for the

duration of the call
 Sufficient guard band is required to prevent adjacent channel
interference
 Usually, mobile terminals will have one downlink frequency
band and one uplink frequency band
 Different cellular network protocols use different frequencies
 Frequency is a precious and scare resource. We are running
out of it
◦ Cognitive radio
 Guard time – signal transmitted by mobile
terminals at different locations do no arrive
at the base station at the same time
• Time is divided into slots and only one mobile terminal transmits
during each slot
– Like during the lecture, only one can talk, but others may take the floor in
turn
• Each user is given a specific slot. No competition in cellular
network
– Unlike Carrier Sensing Multiple Access (CSMA) in WiFi
 Use of orthogonal codes to separate different
transmissions
 Each symbol of bit is transmitted as a larger
number of bits using the user specific code –
Spreading
◦ Bandwidth occupied by the signal is much larger than the
information transmission rate
◦ But all users use the same frequency band Orthogonal
together among users
 Abbreviation for Global System for Mobile
Communications
 Concurrent development in USA and Europe

in the 1980’s
 The European system was called GSM and

deployed in the early 1990’s

 Voice, 3.1 kHz
 Short Message Service (SMS)
◦ 1985 GSM standard that allows messages of at most 160
chars. (incl. spaces) to be sent between handsets and other
stations
◦ Over 2.4 billion people use it; multi-billion $ industry
 General Packet Radio Service (GPRS)
◦ GSM upgrade that provides IP-based packet data
transmission up to 114 kbps
◦ Users can “simultaneously” make calls and send data
◦ GPRS provides “always on” Internet access and the
Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) whereby users can
send rich text, audio, video messages to each other
◦ Performance degrades as number of users increase
◦ GPRS is an example of 2.5G telephony – 2G service similar
to 3G
 Downlink
Channels
Uplink

 Physical Channel: Each timeslot on a carrier is

referred to as a physical channel
 Logical Channel: Variety of information is
transmitted between the MS and BTS. Different
types of logical channels:
◦ Traffic channel
◦ Control Channel
 Originally designed on 900MHz range, now
also available on 800MHz, 1800MHz and
1900 MHz ranges.
 Separate Uplink and Downlink frequencies

◦ One example channel on the 1800 MHz frequency

band, where RF carriers are space every 200 MHz
UPLINK FREQUENCIES DOWNLINK FREQUENCIES

1710 MHz 1785 MHz 1805 MHz 1880 MHz

UPLINK AND DOWNLINK FREQUENCY SEPARATED BY 95MHZ

 MS is the user’s handset and has two
parts
 Mobile Equipment
◦ Radio equipment
◦ User interface
◦ Processing capability and memory required
for various tasks
 Call signalling
 Encryption
 SMS
◦ Equipment IMEI number
 Subscriber Identity Module
 A small smart card
 Encryption codes needed to identify the subscriber
 Subscriber IMSI number
 Subscriber’s own information (telephone directory)
 Third party applications (banking etc.)
 Can also be used in other systems besides GSM,
e.g., some WLAN access points accept SIM based
user authentication
• Transcoding Rate and Adaptation Unit (TRAU)
– Performs coding between the 64kbps PCM coding used
in the backbone network and the 13 kbps coding used
for the Mobile Station (MS)
• Base Station Controller (BSC)
– Controls the channel (time slot) allocation implemented
by the BTSes
– Manages the handovers within BSS area
– Knows which mobile stations are within the cell and
informs the MSC/VLR about this
• Base Transceiver System (BTS)
– Controls several transmitters
– Each transmitter has 8 time slots, some used for
signaling, on a specific frequency
 The backbone of a GSM network is a telephone network
with additional cellular network capabilities
 Mobile Switching Center (MSC)
◦ An typical telephony exchange (ISDN exchange) which
supports mobile communications
◦ Visitor Location Register (VLR)
 A database, part of the MSC
 Contains the location of the active Mobile Stations
 Gateway Mobile Switching Center (GMSC)
◦ Links the system to PSTN and other operators
 Home Location Register (HLR)
◦ Contain subscriber information, including authentication
information in Authentication Center (AuC)
 Equipment Identity Register (EIR)
◦ International Mobile Station Equipment Identity (IMEI) codes
for e.g., blacklisting stolen phones
 One database per operator
 Contains all the permanent subscriber
information
◦ MSISDN (Mobile Subscriber ISDN number) is the
telephone number of the subscriber
◦ International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) is a 15
digit code used to identify the subscriber
 It incorporates a country code and operator code
◦ IMSI code is used to link the MSISDN number to the
subscriber’s SIM (Subscriber Identity Module)
◦ Charging information
◦ Services available to the customer
 Also the subscriber’s present Location Area
Code, which refers to the MSC, which can connect
to the MS.
 Operations Support System
◦ The management network for the whole GSM network
◦ Usually vendor dependent
◦ Very loosely specified in the GSM standards
 Value added services
◦ Voice mail
◦ Call forwarding
◦ Group calls
 Short Message Service Center
◦ Stores and forwards the SMS messages
◦ Like an E-mail server
◦ Required to operate the SMS services
 The cells overlap and usually a mobile station
can ‘see’ several transceivers (BTSes)
 The MS monitors the identifier for the BSC
controlling the cells
 When the mobile station reaches a new BSC’s
area, it requests an location update
 The update is forwarded to the MSC, entered
into the VLR, the old BSC is notified and an
acknowledgement is passed back
 When a call is in process, the changes in
location need special processing
 Within a BSS, the BSC, which knows the
current radio link configuration (including
feedbacks from the MS), prepares an
available channel in the new BTS
 The MS is told to switch over to the new BTS
 This is called a hard handoff
◦ In a soft handoff, the MS is connected to two
BTSes simultaneously
 When a MS enters another operators
network, it can be allowed to use the
services of this operator
◦ Operator to operator agreements and
contracts
◦ Higher billing
 The MS is identified by the information in
the SIM card and the identification
request is forwarded to the home
operator
◦ The home HLR is updated to reflect the MS’s
current location
 3G is created by ITU-T and is called IMT-
2000
 2G IS-95 GSM- IS-136 & PDC

GPRS
IS-95B
2.5G
HSCSD EDGE

Cdma2000-1xRTT W-CDMA
3G Cdma2000-1xEV,DV,DO EDGE
TD-SCDMA
Cdma2000-3xRTT
3GPP2 3GPP
 Improved performance, decreasing cost of delivery

Broadband
3G-specific
3G-specific services
services take
take in wide area
advantage
advantage of
of higher
higher bandwidth
bandwidth
and/or Video sharing
and/or real-time
real-time QoS
QoS Video telephony
AA number
number ofof mobile
mobile Real-time IP
services Multitasking multimedia and games
services are
are bearer
bearer
independent
independent in in nature
nature WEB browsing Multicasting
Corporate data access
Streaming audio/video
MMS picture / video
xHTML browsing
Application downloading
E-mail
Voice & SMS Presence/location
Push-to-talk
Typical
average bit GSM GPRS EGPRS WCDMA HSDPA
rates 9.6 171 473 2 1-10
(peak rates
higher) kbps kbps kbps Mbps Mbps
2000 1x
CDMA

CDMA

CDMA
EVDO

EVDV
2000-

2000-
 High Speed Circuit Switched Data
Dedicate up to 4 timeslots for data connection ~ 50 kbps
Good for real-time applications c.w. GPRS
Inefficient -> ties up resources, even when nothing sent
Not as popular as GPRS (many skipping HSCSD)

Enhanced Data Rates for Global Evolution

GSM Uses 8PSK modulation
HSCSD
9.6kbps (one timeslot) 3x improvement in data rate on short distances
GSM Data Can fall back to GMSK for greater distances
Also called CSD Combine with GPRS (EGPRS) ~ 384 kbps
Can also be combined with HSCSD
GSM GPRS
WCDMA
General Packet Radio Services
Data rates up to ~ 115 kbps EDGE
Max: 8 timeslots used as any one time
Packet switched; resources not tied up all the time
Contention based. Efficient, but variable delays
GSM / GPRS core network re-used by WCDMA (3G)
 Universal Mobile Telecommunications
System (UMTS)
 UMTS is an upgrade from GSM via GPRS
or EDGE
 The standardization work for UMTS is
carried out by Third Generation
Partnership Project (3GPP)
 Data rates of UMTS are:
◦ 144 kbps for rural
◦ 384 kbps for urban outdoor
◦ 2048 kbps for indoor and low range outdoor
 Virtual Home Environment (VHE)
 UMTS Band
◦ 1900-2025 MHz and 2110-2200 MHz for 3G
transmission
◦ In the US, 1710–1755 MHz and 2110–2155 MHz
will be used instead, as the 1900 MHz band was
already used.
 Base Station
Network Subsystem
Mobile Station Subsystem Other Networks

MSC/ GMSC
BSC VLR PSTN
BTS
ME
SIM

EIR HLR AUC PLMN

RNS
GGSN
SGSN
Node RNC Internet
ME B
USIM

UTRAN
+
SD

Note: Interfaces have been omitted for clarity purposes.

 UMTS network architecture consists of three
domains
◦ Core Network (CN): Provide switching, routing and
transit for user traffic
◦ UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN):
Provides the air interface access method for user
equipment.
◦ User Equipment (UE): Terminals work as air
interface counterpart for base stations. The various
identities are: IMSI, TMSI, P-TMSI, TLLI, MSISDN,
IMEI, IMEISV
 Wide band CDMA technology is selected for
UTRAN air interface
◦ WCDMA
◦ TD-SCDMA
 Base stations are referred to as Node-B and
control equipment for Node-B is called as Radio
Network Controller (RNC).
◦ Functions of Node-B are
 Air Interface Tx/Rx
 Modulation/Demodulation
◦ Functions of RNC are:
 Radio Resource Control
 Channel Allocation
 Power Control Settings
 Handover Control
 Ciphering
 Segmentation and reassembly
High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) is an amalgamation
of two mobile telephony protocols, High Speed
Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) and High Speed
Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA), that extends and
improves the performance of existing WCDMA
protocols
3.5G introduces many new features that will enhance
the UMTS technology in future. 1xEV-DV already
supports most of the features that will be provided in
3.5G. These include:
- Adaptive Modulation and Coding
- Fast Scheduling
- Backward compatibility with 3G
- Enhanced Air Interface
 LTE stands for Long Term Evolution
 Next Generation mobile broadband

technology
 Promises data transfer rates of 100 Mbps
 Based on UMTS 3G technology
 Optimized for All-IP traffic
 Uses Orthogonal Frequency Division
Multiplexing (OFDM) for downlink
 Uses Single Carrier Frequency Division
Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) for uplink
 Uses Multi-input Multi-output(MIMO) for
enhanced throughput
 Reduced power consumption
 Higher RF power amplifier efficiency (less
battery power used by handsets)
 Functional changes compared to the current
UMTS architecture
Fung Po Tso, City University of Hong Kong
Jin Teng, Ohio State University
Weijia Jia, City University of Hong Kong
Dong Xuan, Ohio State University

ACM Mobihoc’10
Evolved hardware technologies
+
Improved network bandwidth
=
Entertainment apps on mobile

MobiHoc '10 45
When you are NOT mobile, you use

MobiHoc '10 46
When you are mobile, you use

MobiHoc '10 47
Millions of passengers per day!

MobiHoc '10 48
 Can HSPA provide
HSPA Node B
the same level of
HSPA Node B
service to mobile
users on public
transport?

pictures’ source: Wikipedia

MobiHoc '10 49
 Measurement Methodology
 General Impact of Mobility
 Mobility Impact on Bandwidth Sharing
 Mobility Impact in Transitional Region
 Conclusion

MobiHoc '10 50
 Type Average Highest Characteristics
Speed Speed

Trains 40 kmh 100 kmh Surface ground

Subways 30 kmh 80 kmh Underground

Self-driving 50 & 30 80 kmh Surface ground

Vehicles & Buses kmh

Ferries 80 kmh 90 kmh Sea, Surface ground

MobiHoc '10 51
Over 100 km in 3 months
MobiHoc '10 52
 Two Servers:
◦ Lab & Data Center
 Three types of
evaluations:
◦ download only; upload
only; simultaneous
download & upload.

MobiHoc '10 53
 A large spread of HSDPA bit rates and signal
quality

MobiHoc '10 54
Common View: Mobility is irrelevant, if not
detrimental, to the fairness in HSPA
bandwidth sharing among users
Observation: The bandwidth sharing practice in
stationary HSPA environments is unfair. In
contrast, mobility surprisingly improves fairness
of bandwidth sharing (fairer).

MobiHoc '10 55
 Mobility actually improves the fairness of
bandwidth sharing among users

MobiHoc '10 56
 UE can hardly keep its dominancy under rapid
change of radio environment.
◦ Mobile nodes may see better signal quality at new
locations
 Cell to cell based scheduling algorithm
prevent unfairness from propagating

MobiHoc '10 57
Common View: Mobility affects all flows
equally. And TCP flows suffer more than UDP
ones
Observation: TCP flows unexpectedly see much
better performance during mobility than UDP
flows.

MobiHoc '10 58
 TCP flows see better performance during
mobility

MobiHoc '10 59
 TCP traffic is much constrained and adaptive
to the channel condition, while UDP traffic
keeps pumping almost the same amount of
data regardless of the channel condition

MobiHoc '10 60
Common View: Handoffs are triggered in the
transitional region between cells and always
result in a better wireless connection
Observation: Nearly 30% of all handoffs, selection
of a base station with poorer signal quality can be
witnessed

MobiHoc '10 61
 throughput often
drops sharply, and
sometimes, as high
as 90% during
handoff period.

MobiHoc '10 62
 Ec/Io of the new
base stations are
statistically better
than the original
base stations by
10dBm.
 But almost 30% of
all the handoffs
do not end up
with a better base
stations

MobiHoc '10 63
 Mobility is a double edged sword
◦ Degrades HSPA services, e.g. throughput
◦ Improves fairness in bandwidth allocation among
users and traffic flows
 Communication characteristics in HSPA
transitional regions are very complicated

MobiHoc '10 64
 Part of the slides are adapted from the slides
of Posco Tso, Harish Vishwanath, Erran Li and
Justino Lorenco, Saro Velrajan and TCL India