In addition to Gaussian minimum-shift keying (GMSK), EDGE uses higher-order PSK/8 phase shift keying (8PSK) for the

upper five of its nine modulation and coding schemes. EDGE produces a 3-bit word for every change in carrier phase. This effectively triples the gross data rate offered by GSM. EDGE, like GPRS, uses a rate adaptation algorithm that adapts the modulation and coding scheme (MCS) according to the quality of the radio channel, and thus the bit rate and robustness of data transmission. It introduces a new technology not found in GPRS, Incremental Redundancy, which, instead of retransmitting disturbed packets, sends more redundancy information to be combined in the receiver. This increases the probability of correct decoding. not equal) to GPRS

MCS SCHEME NAME

EFFECTIVE CODING RATE

MODULATION FORMAT

DATA RATE FOR ONE SLOT (KBPS)

8.8 11.2 14.8 17.6 22.4 29.6 44.8 54.4 59.2

MCS-1 MCS-2 MCS-3 MCS-4 MCS-5 MCS-6 MCS-7 MCS-8 MCS-9

0.53 0.66 0.8 1.0 0.37 0.49 0.76 0.92 1

GMSK GMSK GMSK GMSK 8PSK 8PSK 8PSK 8PSK 8PSK

. EDGE can carry a bandwidth up to 384 kbit/s (with end-to-end latency of less than 150 ms) for 4 timeslots (theoretical maximum is 473.6 kbit/s for 8 timeslots) in packet mode. This means it can handle four times as much traffic as standard GPRS. EDGE meets the International Telecommunications Union's requirement for a 3G network, and has been accepted [1] by the ITU as part of theIMT-2000 family of 3G standards. It also enhances the circuit data mode called HSCSD, increasing the data rate of this service.

EDGE modulation and coding scheme (MCS)

EDGE is four times as efficient as GPRS. GPRS uses four coding schemes (CS-1 to 4) while EDGE uses nine Modulation and Coding Schemes (MCS-1 to 9), of which the first four have similar performance (but not equal to gprs

Evolved EDGE
Evolved EDGE improves on EDGE in a number of ways. Latencies are reduced by lowering the Transmission Time Interval by half (from 20 ms to 10 ms). Bit rates are increased up to 1 Mbit/s peak bandwidth and latencies down to 80 ms using dual carriers, higher symbol rate and higher-order modulation (32QAM and 16QAM instead of 9-PSK), and turbo codes to improve error correction. And finally signal quality is improved using dual antennas improving average bit-rates and spectrum efficiency. EDGE Evolution can be gradually introduced as software upgrades, taking advantage of the installed base. With EDGE Evolution, end-users will be able to experience mobile internet connections corresponding to a 500 kbit/s ADSL service.

The UMTS network architecture is required to provide a greater level of performance to that of the original GSM network. However as many networks had migrated through the use of GPRS and EDGE, they already had the ability to carry data. Accordingly many of the elements required for the WCDMA / UMTS network architecture were seen as a migration. This considerably reduced the cost of implementing the UMTS network as many elements were in place or needed upgrading. With one of the major aims of UMTS being to be able to carry data, the UMTS network architecture was designed to enable a considerable improvement in data performance over that provided for GSM.

UMTS network constituents

The UMTS network architecture can be divided into three main elements: 1. User Equipment (UE): The User Equipment or UE is the name given to what was previous termed the mobile, or cellphone. The new name was chosne because the considerably greater functionality that the UE could have. It could also be anything between a mobile phone used for talking to a data terminal attached to a computer with no voice capability. 2. Radio Network Subsystem (RNS): The RNS is the equivalent of the previous Base Station Subsystem or BSS in GSM. It provides and manages the air interface fort he overall network. 3. Core Network: The core network provides all the central processing and management for the system. It is the equivalent of the GSM Network Switching Subsystem or NSS. The core network is then the overall entity that interfaces to external networks including the public phone network and other cellular telecommunications networks.

UMTS Network Architecture Overview

User Equipment, UE
The USER Equipment or UE is a major element of the overall UMTS network architecture. It forms the final interface with the user. In view of the far greater number of applications and facilities that it can perform, the decision was made to call it a user equipment rather than a mobile. However it is essentially the handset (in the broadest terminology), although having access to much higher speed data communications, it can be much more versatile, containing many more applications. It consists of a variety of different elements including RF circuitry, processing, antenna, battery, etc. There are a number of elements within the UE that can be described separately:

UE RF circuitry: The RF areas handle all elements of the signal, both for the receiver and for the transmitter. One of the major challenges for the RF power amplifier was to reduce the power consumption. The form of modulation used for W-CDMA requires the use of a linear amplifier. These inherently take more current than non linear amplifiers which can be used for the form of modulation used on GSM. Accordingly to

maintain battery life, measures were introduced into many of the designs to ensure the optimum efficiency. Baseband processing: The base-band signal processing consists mainly of digital circuitry. This is considerably more complicated than that used in phones for previous generations. Again this has been optimised to reduce the current consumption as far as possible.

Battery: While current consumption has been minimised as far as possible within the circuitry of the phone, there has been an increase in current drain on the battery. With users expecting the same lifetime between charging batteries as experienced on the previous generation phones, this has necessitated the use of new and improved battery technology. Now Lithium Ion (Li-ion) batteries are used. These phones to remain small

and relatively light while still retaining or even improving the overall life between charges. Universal Subscriber Identity Module, USIM: The UE also contains a SIM card, although in the case of UMTS it is termed a USIM (Universal Subscriber Identity Module). This is a more advanced version of the SIM card used in GSM and other systems, but embodies the same types of information. It contains the International Mobile Subscriber Identity number (IMSI) as well as the Mobile Station International ISDN Number (MSISDN). Other information that the USIM holds includes the preferred language to enable the correct language information to be displayed, especially when roaming, and a list of preferred and prohibited Public Land Mobile Networks (PLMN). The USIM also contains a short message storage area that allows messages to stay with the user even when the phone is changed. Similarly "phone book" numbers and call information of the numbers of incoming and outgoing calls are stored.

The UE can take a variety of forms, although the most common format is still a version of a "mobile phone" although having many data capabilities. Other broadband dongles are also being widely used.

UMTS Radio Network Subsystem

This is the section of the UMTS / WCDMA network that interfaces to both the UE and the core network. The overall radio access network, i.e. collectively all the Radio Network Subsystem is known as the UTRAN UMTS Radio Access Network. The Radio Network Subsystem comprises two main components:

Radio Network Controller, RNC:

This element of the radio network subsystem controls the Node Bs that

are connected to it. The RNC undertakes the radio resource management and some of the mobility management functions, although not all. It is also the point at which the data encryption / decryption is

performed to protect the user data from eavesdropping. Node B: Node B is the term used within UMTS to denote the base station transceiver. It contains the transmitter and receiver to communicate with the UEs within the cell.

In order to facilitate effective handover between Node Bs under the control of different RNCs, the RNC not only communicates with the Core Network, but also with neighbouring RNCs.

UMTS Radio Network Subsystem Architecture

UMTS Core Network

The UMTS core network architecture is a migration of that used for GSM with further elements overlaid to enable the additional functionality demanded by UMTS. In view of the different ways in which data may be carried, the UMTS core network may be split into two different areas:

Circuit switched elements: These elements are primarily based on the GSM network entities and carry data in a circuit switched manner, i.e. a permanent channel for the duration of the call. Packet switched elements: These network entities are designed to carry packet data. This enables much higher network usage as the capacity can be shared and data is carried as packets which are routed according to their destination.

Some network elements, particularly those that are associated with registration are shared by both domains and operate in the same way that they did with GSM.

UMTS Core Network Circuit switched elements The circuit switched elements of the UMTS core network architecture include the following network entities:

Mobile switching centre (MSC): circuit switched calls under way. Gateway MSC (GMSC):

This is essentially the same as that within GSM, and it manages the

This is effectively the interface to the external networks.

Packet switched elements The packet switched elements of the UMTS core network architecture include the following network entities:

Serving GPRS Support Node (SGSN): As the name implies, this entity was first developed when GPRS was introduced, and its use has been carried over into the UMTS network architecture. The SGSN provides a number of functions within the UMTS network architecture. o Mobility management When a UE attaches to the Packet Switched domain of the UMTS Core

Network, the SGSN generates MM information based on the mobile's current location. Session management: The SGSN manages the data sessions providing the required quality of service and also managing what are termed the PDP (Packet data Protocol) contexts, i.e. the pipes over which the data is sent.

Interaction with other areas of the network: The SGSN is able to manage its elements within the network only by communicating with other areas of the network, e.g. MSC and other circuit switched areas. Billing: The SGSN is also responsible billing. It achieves this by monitoring the flow of user data

across the GPRS network. CDRs (Call Detail Records) are generated by the SGSN before being transferred to the charging entities (Charging Gateway Function, CGF).

Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN): Like the SGSN, this entity was also first introduced into the GPRS network. The Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN) is the central element within the UMTS packet switched network. It handles inter-working between the UMTS packet switched network and external packet switched networks, and can be considered as a very sophisticated router. In operation, when the GGSN receives data addressed to a specific user, it checks if the user is active and then forwards the data to the SGSN serving the particular UE.

Shared elements The shared elements of the UMTS core network architecture include the following network entities:

Home location register (HLR):

This database contains all the administrative information about each

subscriber along with their last known location. In this way, the UMTS network is able to route calls to the relevant RNC / Node B. When a user switches on their UE, it registers with the network and from this it is possible to determine which Node B it communicates with so that incoming calls can be routed appropriately. Even when the UE is not active (but switched on) it re-registers periodically to ensure that the network (HLR)

is aware of its latest position with their current or last known location on the network. Equipment identity register (EIR): The EIR is the entity that decides whether a given UE equipment may be allowed onto the network. Each UE equipment has a number known as the International Mobile Equipment Identity. This number, as mentioned above, is installed in the equipment and is checked by the network during

registration. Authentication centre (AuC) : in the user's USIM card.

The AuC is a protected database that contains the secret key also contained

There are many UMTS channells that are used within the UMTS system. The data carried by the UMTS / WCDMA transmissions is organised into frames, slots and channels. In this way all the payload data as well as the control and status data can be carried in an efficient manner. UMTS uses CDMA techniques (as WCDMA) as its multiple access technology, but it additionally uses time division techniques with a slot and frame structure to provide the full channel structure. A channel is divided into 10 ms frames, each of which has fifteen time slots each of 666 microseconds length. On the downlink the time is further subdivided so that the time slots contain fields that contain either user data or control messages. On the uplink dual channel modulation is used so that both data and control are transmitted simultaneously. Here the control elements contain a pilot signal, Transport Format Combination Identifier (TFCI), FeedBack Information (FBI) and Transmission Power Control (TPC). The channels carried are categorised into three: logical, transport and physical channels. The logical channels define the way in which the data will be transferred, the transport channel along with the logical channel again defines the way in which the data is transferred, the physical channel carries the payload data and govern the physical characteristics of the signal. The channels are organised such that the logical channels are related to what is transported, whereas the physical layer transport channels deal with how, and with what characteristics. The MAC layer provides data transfer services on logical channels. A set of logical channel types is defined for different kinds of data transfer services.

Logical Channels:
Broadcast Control Channel (BCCH), (downlink). This channel broadcasts information to UEs relevant to the cell, such as radio channels of neighbouring cells, etc. Paging Control Channel (PCCH), (downlink). This channel is associated with the PICH and is used for paging messages and notification information. Dedicated Control Channel (DCCH), (up and downlinks) This channel is used to carry dedicated control information in both directions. Common Control Channel (CCCH), (up and downlinks). This bi-directional channel is used to transfer control information. Shared Channel Control Channel (SHCCH), (bi-directional). This channel is bi-directional and only found in the TDD form of WCDMA / UMTS, where it is used to transport shared channel control information. Dedicated Traffic Channel (DTCH), (up and downlinks). This is a bidirectional channel used to carry user data or traffic. Common Traffic Channel (CTCH), (downlink) A unidirectional channel used to transfer dedicated user information to a group of UEs.

Transport Channels:
Dedicated Transport Channel (DCH), (up and downlink). This is used to transfer data to a particular UE. Each UE has its own DCH in each direction. Broadcast Channel (BCH), (downlink). This channel broadcasts information to the UEs in the cell to enable them to identify the network and the cell. Forward Access Channel (FACH),(down link). This is channel carries data or information to the UEs that are registered on the system. There may be more than one FACH per cell as they may carry packet data. Paging Channel (PCH) (downlink). This channel carries messages that alert the UE to incoming calls, SMS messages, data sessions or required maintenance such as re-registration. Random Access Channel (RACH), (uplink). This channel carries requests for service from UEs trying to access the system Uplink Common Packet Channel (CPCH), (uplink). This channel provides additional capability beyond that of the RACH and for fast power control.

Downlink Shared Channel (DSCH) (downlink).This channel can be shared by several users and is used for data that is "bursty" in nature such as that obtained from web browsing etc.

Physical Channels:
Primary Common Control Physical Channel (PCCPCH) (downlink). This channel continuously broadcasts system identification and access control information. Secondary Common Control Physical Channel (SCCPCH) (downlink) This channel carries the Forward Access Channel (FACH) providing control information, and the Paging Channel (PACH) with messages for UEs that are registered on the network. Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) (uplink). This channel enables the UE to transmit random access bursts in an attempt to access a network. Dedicated Physical Data Channel (DPDCH) (up and downlink). This channel is used to transfer user data. Dedicated Physical Control Channel (DPCCH) (up and downlink). This channel carries control information to and from the UE. In both directions the channel carries pilot bits and the Transport Format Combination Identifier (TFCI). The downlink channel also includes the Transmit Power Control and FeedBack Information (FBI) bits. Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) (downlink). This channel shares control information to UEs within the coverage area of the node B. Physical Common Packet Channel (PCPCH). This channel is specifically intended to carry packet data. In operation the UE monitors the system to check if it is busy, and if not it then transmits a brief access burst. This is retransmitted if no acknowledgement is gained with a slight increase in power each time. Once the node B acknowledges the request, the data is transmitted on the channel. Synchronisation Channel (SCH) The synchronisation channel is used in allowing UEs to synchronise with the network. Common Pilot Channel (CPICH) This channel is transmitted by every node B so that the UEs are able estimate the timing for signal demodulation. Additionally they can be used as a beacon for the UE to determine the best cell with which to communicate. Acquisition Indicator Channel (AICH) The AICH is used to inform a UE about the Data Channel (DCH) it can use to communicate with the node B. This channel assignment occurs as a result of a successful random access service request from the UE. Paging Indication Channel (PICH) This channel provides the information to the UE to be able to operate its sleep mode to conserve its battery when listening on the Paging Channel (PCH). As the UE needs to know when to monitor the PCH, data is provided on the PICH to assign a UE a paging repetition ratio to enable it to determine how often it needs to 'wake up' and listen to the PCH. CPCH Status Indication Channel (CSICH) This channel, which only appears in the downlink carries the status of the CPCH and may also be used to carry some intermittent, or "bursty" data. It works in a similar fashion to PICH. Collision Detection/Channel Assignment Indication Channel (CD/CA-ICH) This channel, present in the downlink is used to indicate whether the channel assignment is active or inactive to the UE.

HSPA
3G HSPA of High Speed packet Access is the combination of two technologies, one of the downlink and the other for the uplink that can be built onto the existing 3G UMTS or W-CDMA technology to provide increased data transfer speeds. The original 3G UMTS / W-CDMA standard provided a maximum download speed of 384 kbps. With many users requiring much high data transfer speeds to compete with fixed line broadband services and also to support services that require higher data rates, the need for an increase in the speeds obtainable became necessary. This resulted in the development of the technologies for 3G HSPA.

3G HSPA benefits
The UMTS cellular system as defined under the 3GPP Release 99 standard was orientated more towards switched circuit operation and was not well suited to packet operation. Additionally greater speeds were required by users than could be provided with the original UMTS networks. Accordingly the changes required for 3G HSPA were incorporated into many UMTS networks to enable them to operate more in the manner required for current applications. 3G HSPA provides a number of significant benefits that enable the new service to provide a far better performance for the user. While 3G UMTS HSPA offers higher data transfer rates, this is not the only benefit, as 3G HSPA offers many other improvements as well: 1. Use of higher order modulation: 16QAM is used in the downlink instead of QPSK to enable data to be transmitted at a higher rate. This provides for maximum data rates of 14 Mbps in the downlink. QPSK is still used in the uplink where data rates of up to 5.8 Mbps are achieved. The data rates quoted are for raw data rates and do not include reductions in actual payload data resulting from the protocol overheads. 2. Shorter Transmission Time Interval (TTI): The use of a shorter TTI within 3G HSPA reduces the round trip time and enables improvements in adapting to fast channel variations and provides for reductions in latency. 3. Use of shared channel transmission: Sharing the resources enables greater levels of efficiency to be

achieved and integrates with IP and packet data concepts. 4. Use of link adaptation: By adapting the link it is possible to maximize the channel usage. 5. Fast Node B scheduling: The use of fast scheduling within 3G HSPA with adaptive coding and modulation (only downlink) enables the system to respond to the varying radio channel and interference conditions and to accommodate data traffic which tends to be "bursty" in nature. 6. Node B based Hybrid ARQ: This enables 3G HSPA to provide reduced retransmission round trip times and it adds robustness to the system by allowing soft combining of retransmissions. For the network operator, the introduction of 3G HSPA technology brings a cost reduction per bit carried as well as an increase in system capacity. With the increase in data traffic, and operators looking to bring in increased revenue from data transmission, this is a particularly attractive proposition. A further advantage of the introduction of 3G HSPA is that it can often be rolled out by incorporating a software update into the system. This means that the use of 3G HSPA brings significant benefits to user and operator alike.

3G UMTS HSPA constituents

There are two main components to 3G UMTS HSPA, each addressing one of the links between the base station and the user equipment, i.e. one for the uplink, and one for the downlink.

Uplink and downlink transmission directions The two technologies were released at different times through 3GPP. They also have different properties resulting from the different modes of operation that are required. In view of these facts they were often treated as almost separate entities. Now they are generally rolled out together. The two technologies are summarised below:

HSDPA - High Speed Downlink Packet Access:

HSDPA provides packet data support, reduced delays,

and a peak raw data rate (i.e. over the air) of 14 Mbps. It also provides around three times the capacity of the 3G UMTS technology defined in Release 99 of the 3GPP UMTS standard.

HSUPA - High Speed Uplink Packet Access: HSUPA provides improved uplink packet support, reduced delays and a peak raw data rate of 5.74 Mbps. This results in a capacity increase of around twice that provided by the Release 99 services.

Beyond 3G HSPA
With the elements of 3G HSPA launched, further evolutions were in the pipeline. The first of these was known as HSPA+ or Evolved HSPA. The evolved HSPA or HSPA+ provides data rates up to 42 Mbps in the downlink and 11 Mbps in the uplink (per 5MHz carrier) which it achieves by using high order modulation and MIMO (multiple input, multiple output) technologies. In addition to 3G HSPA, and its evolutions, the next evolution for 3G UMTS is known as LTE - Long Term Evolution. This uses a completely different air interface that is based around OFDM as the modulation format. While many operators have opted to migrate directly from UMTS to LTE, the majority are using 3G HSPA to upgrade their existing 3G networks

3G LTE specification overview

It is worth summarizing the key parameters of the 3G LTE specification. In view of the fact that there are a number of differences between the operation of the uplink and downlink, these naturally differ in the performance they can offer.
PARAMETER Peak downlink speed 64QAM (Mbps) Peak uplink speeds (Mbps) Data type Channel bandwidths (MHz) Duplex schemes Mobility FDD and TDD 0 - 15 km/h (optimised), 15 - 120 km/h (high performance) Latency Idle to active less than 100ms Small packets ~10 ms Spectral efficiency Downlink: Uplink: Access schemes 3 - 4 times Rel 6 HSDPA All packet switched data (voice and data). No circuit switched. 1.4, 3, 5, 10, 15, 20 50 (QPSK), 57 (16QAM), 86 (64QAM) DETAILS 100 (SISO), 172 (2x2 MIMO), 326 (4x4 MIMO)

2 -3 x Rel 6 HSUPA

OFDMA (Downlink) SC-FDMA (Uplink)

Modulation types supported

QPSK,

16QAM,

64QAM (Uplink and downlink)

An Access Point Name (APN) is the name of a gateway between a GPRS (or 3G, etc) mobile network and another computer network, frequently the public Internet. A mobile device making a data connection must be configured with an APN to present to the carrier. The carrier will then examine this identifier to determine what type of network connection should be created, for example: what IP addresses should be assigned to the wireless device, what security methods should be used, and how or if, it should be [1] connected to some private customer network. More specifically, the APN identifies the packet data network (PDN), that a mobile data user wants to communicate with. In addition to identifying a PDN, an APN may also be used to define the type of service, (e.g. connection to wireless application protocol (WAP) server, multimedia messaging service (MMS)), that is provided by the PDN. APN is used in 3GPP data access networks, e.g. general packet radio service (GPRS), evolved packet core (EPC A structured APN consists of two parts
[2]

Network Identifier: Defines the external network to which the Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN) is connected. Optionally, it may also include the service requested by the user. This part of the APN is mandatory Operator Identifier: Defines the specific operators packet domain network in which the GGSN is located. This part of the APN is optional. The MCC is the Mobile Country Code and the MNC is the Mobile Network Code which together uniquely identify a mobile network operator.