SYSTEM TRAINING

Introduction to UMTS
Training Document

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Copyright Nokia Oyj 2003. All rights reserved.

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Contents

1 Module objectives................................................................................ 4

2 Background and history...................................................................... 5

2.1 Specification process for UMTS............................................................. 8
2.2 UMTS network structure ...................................................................... 11

3 Network evolution.............................................................................. 15
3.1 Starting with the basic GSM................................................................. 15
3.1.1 GSM network elements........................................................................ 16
3.2 Adding value to GSM networks............................................................ 17
3.3 Adding value with GSM phase2+ and IN services................................ 18
3.3.1 IN services........................................................................................... 18
3.4 Increasing data transfer in existing GSM networks .............................. 19
3.4.1 Benefits of faster data and services ..................................................... 19
3.5 Evolving GSM to packet core............................................................... 20
3.6 Increasing speed with EDGE ............................................................... 21
3.7 Evolving towards to the universal mobile network (Service
platform) .............................................................................................. 22
3.7.1 UMTS development ............................................................................. 23
3.7.2 Service potential in the mobile information society............................... 23
3.8 3G end-to-end IP solutions .................................................................. 24

4 Basics of the air interface and the path to WCDMA ........................ 25

4.1 Wireless principles............................................................................... 25
4.1.1 Duplex transmission ............................................................................ 25
4.1.2 Radio communication .......................................................................... 26
4.1.2.1 Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) ....................................... 27
4.1.2.2 Space Division Multiple Access (SDMA) .............................................. 28
4.1.2.3 Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) ................................................ 29
4.1.2.4 Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) ............................................... 31
4.2 CDMA background .............................................................................. 32
4.3 Principles of CDMA.............................................................................. 33
4.3.1 CDMA information, theory and codes .................................................. 35
4.3.2 Spread spectrum and the principle of direct sequence CDMA ............. 36
4.4 Motives for using WCDMA in UMTS .................................................... 38
4.4.1 Features of WCDMA in UMTS ............................................................. 38

5 User Services ..................................................................................... 40

6 Review questions .............................................................................. 41

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1 Module objectives
The aim of this module is to give the participant the introductory knowledge
needed for explaining how the UMTS network has evolved. Topics to be
covered in this module include understanding the historic factors driving the
system development and the evolution of the mobile networks. Furthermore, the
student should gain a basic understanding of the different types of the air
interface and list the key benefits of UMTS for the operator and the end user.
After completing this module, the participant should be able to:
List at least three significant events in the evolution of CDMA networks
List the four main network subsystems of UMTS Release 99
Explain how existing GSM networks have evolved to support additional
services and new technologies
Name the four basic air interface access technologies
List at least three key benefits of WCDMA and identify at least three
advantages of 3G networks for both the operator and the end user
without using any references.

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2 Background and history

There are three different generations as far as mobile communication is
concerned. The first generation, 1G, is the name for the analogue or semi-
analogue (analogue radio path, but digital switching) mobile networks
established after the mid-1980s, such as NMT (Nordic Mobile Telephone) and
AMPS (American Mobile Phone System). These networks offered basic
services for the users, and the emphasis was on speech and services related
matters. 1G networks were mainly national efforts and very often they were
specified after the networks were established. Due to this, the 1G networks were
incompatible with each other. Mobile communication was considered some
kind of curiosity, and it added value service on top of the fixed networks in
those times.
As the need for mobile communication increased, also the need for a more
global mobile communication system increased. The international specification
bodies started to specify what the second generation, 2G, mobile
communication system should look like. The emphasis on 2G is/was on
compatibility and international transparency; the system should be a global one
and the users of the system should be able to access it basically anywhere the
service exists. Due to some political reasons, the concept of globalisation did
not succeed completely and there were some 2G systems available on the
market. Out of these, the commercial success story is/was GSM (Global System
for Mobile communications) and its adaptations: GSM has clearly exceeded all
the expectations set, both technically and commercially.
The third generation, 3G, is expected to complete the globalisation process of
the mobile communication. Again there are national interests involved. Also
some difficulties can be foreseen. Several 3G solutions were standardised, such
as UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), cdma2000, and
UWC-136 (Universal Wireless Communication).
The 3G system UMTS is mostly be based on GSM technical solutions due to
two reasons. Firstly, the GSM as technology dominates the market, and
secondly, investments made to GSM should be utilised as much as possible.
Based on this, the specification bodies created a vision about how mobile
telecommunication will develop within the next decade. Through this vision,
some requirements for UMTS were short-listed as follows:
The system to be developed must be fully specified (like GSM). The
specifications generated should be valid world-wide.
The system must bring clear added value when comparing to the GSM in
all aspects. However, in the beginning phase(s) the system must be
backward compatible at least with GSM and ISDN.
Multimedia and all of its components must be supported throughout the
system.
The radio access of the 3G must be generic.

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The services for the end users must be independent: Radio access and the
network infrastructure must not limit the services to be generated. That is,
the technology platform is one issue and the services using the platform
totally another issue.
In order to appreciate the work in creating standards like UMTS, it is helpful to
understand the history and background of wireless communications in general,
as well as GSM and CDMA. A timeline of significant GSM and CDMA events
is contained in the following table.

Table 1. Significant events

Year Event
1900 In December, the first human voice transmission via radio was
accomplished by Reginald Fessenden.
1906 First radio broadcast (also Reginald Fessenden).
1948 John Pierce writes a memo describing CDMA multiplexing.
1949 Claude Shannon and John Pierce describe major CDMA effects.
1956 Antimultipath RAKE receiver patented.
1970s CDMA used in several military communication and navigation
systems.
1980s Studies for narrowband CDMA for mobile cellular systems.
1981 Nokia introduces Nordic Mobile Telephone System (NMT).
1982 CEPT established Groupe Speciale Mobile by the joint proposal of
the Nordic countries and the Netherlands.
1983 Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS) introduced.
1985 ITU starts studies for Future Public Land Mobile
Telecommunication Systems (FPLMTS).
A decision made on GSM time schedule and action plan.
1986 Eight experimental GSM systems are tested in Paris.
1987 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU); the services of the GSM
system will be offered in all of western Europe.
A decision on system parameters and preparation of draft
recommendations.
1989 Final GSM recommendations and specifications.
1990s Studies for wideband ~5 MHz CDMA for mobile cellular systems.
th
1991 First official GSM call in the world was made on January 7 using
Nokia equipment.

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Year Event
1992 GSM system ready in capitals and international airports. DCS
1800 start-up implementation.
In February, the World Administrative Radio Conference allocates
rd
initial global radio spectrum for 3 generation mobile systems in
the 1885 2025 and 2110 2200 MHz frequency ranges.
1993 Major European urban areas have GSM coverage.
nd
2 generation mobile system using narrowband CDMA
standardised in USA; it is called IS-95 (Intermediate Standard).
1994 ARIB in Japan forms a special group for FPLMTS radio interface
development.
1995 GSM covers main transportation links between major urban areas.
1996 UMTS Forum formed to raise market awareness.
In December, ETSI SMG2 forms study group for UTRA.
1997 ITU changes FPLMTS name to International Mobile
Telecommunications 2000 (IMT-2000) during WARC-97.
ITU requests proposals of Candidate Radio Transmission
Technologies (RTTs) for IMT-2000 Radio Interface.
1998 In June, ITU receives 10 proposals for terrestrial RTTs and five for
satellite RTTs. These include CDMA2000 from the USA, ARIB
W-CDMA from Japan, and UTRA from Europe.
rd
3GPP formed to co-ordinate the development of a joint 3
generation system based on evolved GSM core and UTRA air
interface.
rd
1999 ETSI start UMTS project to co-ordinate European 3 generation
network development.
In January, four operators are given 3rd generation mobile network
operating licenses in Finland.
2003 Commercial use of WCDMA systems.

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2.1 Specification process for UMTS

As the 3G system is expected to be global, world-wide and generic, the
specification bodies related are also global ones (see the following list). In
addition to the specification bodies, the specification process includes co-
operation of operators and manufacturers.

3GPP - Third Generation Partnership Project

ARIB - Association of Radio Industries and

Businesses

CWTS - China Wireless Telecommunication

Standard group

ETSI - European Telecommunications

Standards Institute

T1 - Standards Committee T1 Telecommunications

TTA - Telecommunications Technology Association

TTC - Telecommunication Technology Committee

GSM - Global System for Mobile communications

UMTS - Universal Mobile Telecommunications

System

IETF - Internet Engineering Task Force

ITU-R - International Telecommunication Union -

Radiocommunication

ITU-T - International Telecommunication Union -

Telecommunication Standardisation

Figure 1. 3G specification bodies

There are four international standardisation bodies acting as generators for

3G specification work:

ITU-T (International Telecommunication Union)

This organisation provides in practise all the telecommunication branch
specifications that are official in nature. Hence, these form all the guidelines
required by the manufacturers and country-specific authorities. ITU-T has
finished its development process for IMT2000, International Mobile Telephone
2000. IMT-2000 represents a framework on how the network evolution from a
second to a third generation mobile communication system shall take place.
Even more important, different radio interface scenarios were outlined for 3G
systems (see figure below).

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IMT-2000 TDMA FDMA

radio CDMA
interface Direct Spread Multi Carrier Single Carrier
Time Code Time Code
options (on paired (on paired (on unpaired (on paired (on unpaired
frequency frequency frequency frequency frequency
spectrum) spectrum) spectrum) spectrum) spectrum)

3G systems
cdma2000 UWC-136 (DECT)
(EDGE)

FDD mode
UMTS
TDD mode

Figure 2. IMT-2000 framework and resulting 3G standards

ETSI (European Telecommunication Standard Institute)

This organisational body has had a very strong role when GSM Specifications
were developed and enhanced. ETSI is divided into workgroups named SMG
(number), and every workgroup has a specific area to develop. Because of the
GSM background, ETSI is in a relatively dominant role in this specification
work.

ARIB (Alliance of Radio Industries and Business)

ARIB provides commercially oriented contributions for the specification
process from the Australia-Asian area. It has remarkable experience - both
commercial and technical - in the new selected 3G air interface technology and
several variants of it.

ANSI (American National Standard Institute)

ANSI is the American specification body that has issued a license for a
subgroup to define telecommunication-related issues in that part of the world.
Because of some political points of view, ANSIs role is relatively small as far
as UMTS concerned. The ANSI subgroup is mainly concentrating on a
competing 3G air interface technology selection called cdma2000.
In order to maintain globalisation and complete control of the UMTS
specifications, a separate specification body called 3GPP (3rd Generation
Partnership Project) was established to take care of the specification work in co-
operation with the previously listed institutes. The outcome of the 3GPP work is
a complete set of specifications defining the 3G network functionality,
procedures, and service aspects.

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OHG

UMTS

3G.IP

rd
Figure 3. 3 Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standardisation
body for UMTS

Because there are some political desires involved, the issue is not as simple as
described; global system means global business and this is why there has been a
lot of pressure to select or emphasise certain solutions more than others. This
political debate actually delayed the specification work remarkably, and finally
an organisation was established to take care of the harmonisation issues. This
organisation, OHG (Operator Harmonisation Group) aims to find a common
understanding concerning the global issues. The results of this organisation are
used as inputs in 3GPP work as well as in 3G future implementations. The OHG
made its maybe the most remarkable decision in April-May 1999, when it
decided the common-for-all-variants code word (chip) rate in the 3G WCDMA
air interface. This issue has a direct effect on the system capacity and
implementation and it was maybe the biggest delaying factor concerning the
UMTS specifications.
The aim of the OHG work is to affect the specifications so that all radio access
variants are compatible with all the variants meant for switching; this will
ensure true globalisation for 3G systems.
The first UMTS release was frozen in December 1999. This release is called
UMTS Release 99. In UMTS Release 99, the specification body 3GPP
concentrated on two main aspects:
Inauguration of a new radio interface solution. A new 3G radio
interface solution must use the radio interface resources more efficient
than it is the case with 2G radio interface solution. In addition to that, it
must be very flexible in terms of data rates to allow a wide range of
applications to be served.

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The UMTS radio interface solutions are based on the multiple access
principle CDMA. CDMA stands for Code Division Multiple Access. In
UMTS Release 99, CDMA is applied on 5 MHz carrier frequency
bands. This is the reason, why in some areas of the world, UMTS is
called Wideband CDMA (WCDMA).
Two radio interface solutions were specified with UMTS Release 99:
The FDD-mode combines CDMA with frequency division duplex, i.e.
uplink and downlink transmission are realised on separate 5 MHz
frequency carriers
The TDD-mode combines CDMA with time division duplex, i.e.
uplink and downlink are made available of the same 5 MHz frequency
carrier, separated by time.
Network evolution: GSM is nowadays the dominating mobile
communications technology. In order to protect the investment of a
large number of mobile operators, network evolution guarantees the re-
use of the existing core network and service infrastructure in UMTS.
This was archived in UMTS Release 99 by adopting an enhanced GSM
core network solution for the UMTS core network.
The next version of the 3GPP Specifications is Release 4, which was frozen
March 2001, and Release 5, which was frozen in March/June 2002. In Release 4
and 5, the upgrades in the radio access and radio access network were minor.
The main focus lay on the core network and the service infrastructure. UMTS
Release 4 included a specification of the Multimedia Messaging Service
(MMS), a new radio interface solution for China called low chip rate TDD
mode (or TD-SCDMA). While in UMTS Release 4 the first steps toward a 3G
All IP could be found, this was fully specified in UMTS Release 5, including
the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS).

2.2 UMTS network structure

The obvious lack of GSM systems is the bandwidth offered to the end user. In the
beginning the bandwidth offered to the end user was reasonable, but as the
technology developed, the end user requirements increased. New services (such as
the Internet) became more common, so the bandwidth became inadequate. This
was the main reason for starting the specification for the next generation cellular
networks. As mentioned earlier in this document, one of the requirement points
was that the air interface of the 3G should be generic. Roughly, this means that
the radio part of the network should be even more functionally separated than in
the GSM. To clarify and specify this, the call establishment related parts of the 3G
network are expressed as follows:

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ATM
Service
Service
WCDMA Platform
Platform
Uu Iu

RAN
RAN CN
CN
UE
UE
O&M

UE = User Equipment
RAN = Radio Acces Network
NMS
NMS
CN = Core Network
NMS = Network Management System

Figure 4. 3G network principle diagram

The multiple access method used between the User Equipment (UE) and the
RAN (Radio Access Network) is called Wideband Code Division Multiple
Access (WCDMA). The 3GPP is aiming to specify open interfaces also within
the RAN in order to guarantee multivendor scenarios. Despite this, it is
reasonable to believe that operators will not select a large number of suppliers
for the RAN, nor for the Core Network (CN) implementation.
In GSM, we use TDM (Time Division Multiplexing) as the transmission
method between the different network elements. For UMTS, ATM
(Asynchronous Transfer Mode) has been chosen as the transmission method in
the radio access network. The basic difference between TDM and ATM is that
in TDM, we use timeslots for conveying information between network
elements. In ATM, on the other hand, the data is transmitted in cells (packets)
of fixed size across the network. (An ATM cell has 48 octets of payload, 5
octets of headers.)
Also the interfaces within the CN and between the CN and the other networks
can be considered as open, but there may be several national limitations /
enhancements / extensions present. The 3G network can also be presented as a
collection of management layers, which cover certain parts of the network.

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Communication Management (CM)

Session Management (SM)

Mobility Management (MM)

Radio Resource Management (RRM)

UE RAN CN

Figure 5. 3G network management layers

The radio resource management (RRM) is completely covered between the

RAN and the user equipment (UE) and it involves managing how the channels
are allocated. The core network (CN) domains control the mobility management
(MM), session management (SM) and call control layers. The functions depend
on whether the core network domain is the CS (circuit switched) or PS (packet
switched). The higher-layer functions performed between the UE and CN are
often called communication management (CM). The CM entity covers the
topics like call control (CC), supplementary services (SS) and short message
service (SMS). In the module UMTS Traffic Management, these management
layers are further explained.
The added value that the WCDMA brings into the 3G network is the wideband
radio access, thus enabling a situation, in which the operator is able to offer
completely new services to the end users. The planned access rates to be offered
with WCDMA are roughly presented in Figure 6. In 3G networks, the user
access rate will vary as a function of the speed. It should be noted that the bit
rates presented here are mainly points of interest when data services are in
question. The very basic circuit-switched services, such as a plain voice calls,
do not require these bit rates, but when the user chooses to use e.g. fast Internet
or video phone services, the bit rates face the limits as expressed in Figure 6.
The 3GPP Specifications have been designed to divide the service platform
from the physical platform. This means that the services are independent from
the physical network. In GSM, we use traffic channels to carry data from the
terminal to the core network. In UMTS, the physical network routes a bearer
between the terminal and the core network. The bearer is variable in terms of
speed and quality, and it is allocated depending on the services the subscriber
wishes to use. The subscriber may also be using different bearers for different
services simultaneously.

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3G Radio Access

Pedestrian & Office (<10 km/h): Outdoor (< 150 km/h): Outdoor (<250 km/h):
bit rate <= 2 Mb/s bit rate 384 kb/s, target 512 kb/s bit rate 144 kb/s, preferably more

Figure 6. 3G access rates

As indicated already, the 3G network will have the means and readiness for data
transfer in all forms. The traffic to be delivered through 3G can be divided into
two categories: Circuit Switched and Packet Switched. The circuit switched
traffic normally has a high real-time requirement (that is, no delay or the delay
occurring must be constant). Normal speech and video phoning are examples of
this kind of traffic. The packet switched traffic normally does not have such
exact real-time requirements, and a good example of this kind of traffic is an
Internet connection. Based on this traffic division, the services generating traffic
are either Real-Time (RT) or Non-Real-Time (NRT) services. The following
values are defined for the 3G and services to be used.

Table 2. 3G RT and NRT service access rates as a function of user

speed

Environment RT Service Peak Rate NRT Service Peak Rate

(Delay fixed 20 300 ms) (Delay varies 20 300 ms)
Rural outdoor 144 384 kb/s 144 384 kb/s
(Speed < 250 km/h)
Urban/Suburban 384 512 kb/s 384 512 kb/s
(Speed < 150 km/h)
Indoor/Low range outdoor - 2 Mb/s - 2 Mb/s
(Speed < 10 km/h) (Special conditions) (Special conditions)

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3 Network evolution
How can GSM as a system be converted or upgraded further on to face the
increased requirements set by the cellular operators and their subscribers? When
studying this matter, it is relatively easy to realise that there are several steps as
to how things will be implemented. On the other hand, there are several "clans"
being either for or against certain technical development step(s).
The majority of networks will support UMTS by evolving from GSM
backbones. Several public authorities have announced that it is not necessary to
implement every single step described here, but, by experience, a complicated
technical concept must be done in phases in order to guarantee final quality and
better working equipment.

3.1 Starting with the basic GSM

HLR & AC & EIR

BTS BSC TCSM MSC&VLR

PSTN

ISDN

BTS BSC TCSM

Figure 7. Basic GSM network principle diagram

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3.1.1 GSM network elements

The GSM radio access network called BSS (Base Station Subsystem) consists
of the following elements:
BSC (Base Station Controller) is responsible for radio path and radio
resource management.
BTS (Base Transceiver Station) is the network radio terminal forming the
air interface that the MSs (Mobile Stations) use for network access and
communication purposes.
TCSM (Transcoding and Sub-Multiplexer Unit) is the channel coding
converter making it possible to use more effective channel coding within
the BSS (transcoding), and thus enables saving in transmission costs
(through sub-multiplexing).

NSS (Network Switching (Sub) system), the switching part of the GSM
network, contains the following elements:
MSC (Mobile Switching Centre) performs the traffic path connections
and is responsible for the majority of the connection management related
entities.
VLR (Visitor Location Register) contains subscription and security
information of the active subscribers located in the radio network part.
The nature of the data the VLR contains is not stable: when the
subscribers change their location(s), the VLR data changes respectively.
HLR (Home Location Register) is the static data storage of the
subscription information. The HLR also contains the subscriber location
information, but the accuracy of this information is on the VLR level.
AC (Authentication Centre) maintains security information of the
subscriptions.
EIR (Equipment Identity Register) maintains security information related
to the mobile equipment, not to the subscription.

Figure 7 presents a very basic GSM network made strictly according to

specifications. That is, all possible open and proprietary interfaces are included.
The network described above is always the first step when a new/old operator is
starting its GSM cellular business. The subscribers in this kind of network have
all the basic services available:
Speech, circuit switched data up to 9.6 kb/s, Facsimile
Call forwarding, call barring, in-call services (Wait, Hold, Multi-Party)

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3.2 Adding value to GSM networks

The GSM Technical Specifications define certain interfaces, which make it
possible to add some value to the system. Through these interfaces, the
operators connect the Value Added Service (VAS) platform(s) into use.
A typical VAS platform consists of two elements: Short Message Service
Centre (SMSC) and Voice Mail System (VMS). In other respects the GSM
network is the same as in the previous phase.

HLR & AC & EIR

BTS BSC TCSM MSC&VLR

PSTN

ISDN

BTS Value Added

BSC TCSM Service Platform(s):
SMSC, VMS

Figure 8. GSM & Value Added Services

The Short Message Service (SMS) has proven its potential in commercial use.
Originally, the SMS was not seriously considered as a service at all and thus it
was very cheap to use. However (and partly surprisingly), the subscribers
adopted this service and nowadays a remarkable share of the traffic in the GSM
networks is SMS based.
Another issue is the capacity offered. In this phase the capacity of the network
is (normally) drastically increased, and a clear difference between the analogue
and digital technology in this respect becomes evident.

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3.3 Adding value with GSM phase2+ and IN services

The control of the services provided by the basic GSM is relatively good.
However, these services are not very flexible. In other words, the basic GSM
offers mass service for mass subscribers. To change the situation, the IN
(Intelligent Network) is integrated to the cellular network. The IN platform
provides the operator the tools for creating completely new services, as well as
full access to modify existing ones, even on a subscriber basis.

HLR & AC & EIR

BTS BSC TCSM MSC&VLR

PSTN

ISDN

Value Added
BTS BSC TCSM Service Platform(s):
SMSC, VMS
IN

Figure 9. GSM Intelligent Network included

3.3.1 IN services

Fraud management is a very essential issue for the operators. For this purpose,
the basic GSM has two registers: AuC and EIR. However, these registers cannot
guarantee that the subscribers pay their bills.
IN is maybe the most common and flexible way to create a service called
Prepaid, where the prepaid customers have their own account (paid in advance)
with a call credit balance. During each call the account balance is regularly
checked. When the balance is 0 it is not possible to establish any calls.
Naturally, the subscribers are able to buy more airtime, thus increasing their
account balances.
The Intelligent Network has the following advantages:
Possibility to differentiate and compete with services.
Customer segmentation from the operators point of view.
Better utilisation of the service platform: VAS (Value Added Service)
components used in IN services.

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3.4 Increasing data transfer in existing GSM networks

The data transfer rate of the basic GSM is low. Thus, new concepts to tackle
this issue are introduced. The first one is HSCSD (High Speed Circuit Switched
Data), with its more effective channel coding. The enhancements allow the end
user to have data calls with bit rates like 40 60 kb/s. These enhancements
require only very limited changes in the existing network elements.

HW/SW
Changes HLR & AC & EIR

IP Networks

BTS BSC TCSM MSC&VLR

PSTN

ISDN

Value Added
BTS BSC TCSM Service Platform(s):
SMSC, VMS

IN

Figure 10. Enhancing GSM High Speed Data

3.4.1 Benefits of faster data and services

HSCSD increases data transfer capability. Hereby, physical radio channels are
allocated to the HSCSD subscriber on demand only one physical channel is
guaranteed to the subscriber. The operator can therefore optimise the radio
interface usage given the demand of normal GSM subscribers and HSCSD
subscribers. A set of coding schemes allows a dynamic adjustment of the
amount of redundancy added to the user information. This is done to maximise
the throughput via the radio interface.
Mobile phones usually have small screens. Therefore http-pages cannot be
presented in a satisfying way. WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) was
introduced to overcome this problem. This is a uniform way to browse the
Internet from the mobile station without any accessory equipment. Roughly, the
WAP changes the nature of the mobile equipment from pure mobile towards
data terminal; the mobile able to use WAP is actually an ASCII based Internet
browser.

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3.5 Evolving GSM to packet core

GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) is the way to transfer packet data over
the GSM air interface. This requires HW/SW changes in the existing network
elements, and some new elements as well. The term IP backbone refers to the
part of the network handling packet switching and connections to the Internet
and other data networks. The basic packet switched data core consists of two
major elements: SGSN (Serving GPRS Support Node) and GGSN (Gateway
GPRS Support Node). In addition to these, the IP backbone contains other
routers, firewall servers, and DNS (Domain Name Server).

HW/SW
Changes HLR & AC & EIR

IP Networks

BTS BSC TCSM MSC&VLR

PSTN

ISDN
Value Added
BTS BSC TCSM Service Platform(s):
SMSC, VMS

IN
SGSN

GGSN
IP Networks

Figure 11. GSM and packet switched data core

The traffic through the packet core is not equal when comparing to the MSC
side: the packet core traffic uses free air interface slots and thus the capacity of
the packet connection varies all the time. This is the basic reason why the 2G
packet traffic does not have exact QoS (Quality of Service) classification in use;
it is said that 2G packet connection QoS is best effort.
From the operator point of view, the packet connections increase traffic anyway
and the time slots not used by circuit switched services are in effective use.
Fast, wireless access to the Internet is enabled; theoretically, bit rates of 150
kb/s in optimal circumstances are possible. A subscriber can expect nowadays
data rates of about 30 to 40 kb/s. Packet data transfer does not waste the
capacity (as the HSCSD does on one physical channel). WAP and SMS will be
utilised very effectively in the context of different services either provided by
the operator or a 3rd party.

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3.6 Increasing speed with EDGE

Within the existing knowledge and technology, it is possible to further enhance
the transferred bit rates up to the level of 384 kb/s for circuit switched services,
and to a level of up to 473 kb/s for packet switched services. This is achieved by
introducing a new modulation scheme (8PSK), combined with sophisticated
coding methods over the air interface. These methods are backward compatible
with the existing GSM methods, and they form a concept called EDGE
(Enhanced Data rates in GSM Environment). Please note that issues like
availability of timeslots, and transmission quality, affect the bit rates that can be
obtained.

HW/SW
Changes HLR & AC & EIR

IP Networks

BTS BSC TCSM MSC&VLR

PSTN

ISDN
Value Added
BTS BSC TCSM Service Platform(s):
SMSC, VMS

IN
SGSN

TRX Change & Transmission

Upgrade GGSN
IP Networks

Figure 12. GSM - EDGE

This step will probably be the end point for several operators due to the
licensing policy (country-specific regulations). On the other hand, some
operators may skip this phase and move on to the next step in this development
path. EDGE utilises everything built in the GSM, including the multiple access
method used in the air interface (TDMA, Time Division Multiple Access).
Because the channel coding methods experience remarkable changes in this
step, the spectral efficiency does not change: same kinds of time slots are still in
use, carrying traffic like they have been carrying in a normal GSM. Also from
the network planning point of view, the use of radio frequencies will not
change. The changes in the system are related to transmission and multiple time
slot allocation required in PSTN connections.

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3.7 Evolving towards to the universal mobile network

(Service platform)
3G has a completely new way to approach the term service: all the services
offered should be independent from the technology platform. This really opens
the windows for free, 3rd party service development. There will be several
services, and the majority of those will be based on the Internet in one form or
another. In addition, imaging (picture transfer) and video phoning will be
interesting services.

HW/SW Changes
HLR & AC & EIR

IP Networks

BTS BSC TCSM MSC&VLR

PSTN

ISDN

Value Added
BTS BSC TCSM Service Platform(s):
SMSC, VMS

IN
SGSN

GGSN
IP Networks

BTS MGW
RNC

Figure 13. UMTS New radio access introduced: UMTS network

architecture

If there is a possibility (as well as requirements and license), the operator may
move to a completely new level in service offering. This phase introduces new
wideband radio access technology, which, in the beginning, roughly equals the
bit rates the EDGE concept is able to provide. The new radio access require new
network elements in the radio network: RNC (Radio Network Controller) and
BS (Base Station) The BS is referred to as Node B in the 3GPP specifications.
The new radio access introduced in this phase is, however, utilising the
frequency spectrum more efficiently; the data flow and its bit rate is not
dependent on time slots any more. When the radio access method was planned,
the packet type of traffic was especially considered.

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3.7.1 UMTS development

UMTS will be developed in releases like GSM. When the technology is more
mature, the services will be more sophisticated and involved in every area of
life.
The structure of the network will change considerably. There will be several
radio access technologies in use in parallel. The wideband communication has
changed the structure of the network equipment and transmission.
The trend is that packet switched traffic volume soon will dominate over circuit
switched. It is expected that circuit switched traffic is used only in special cases,
such as for real time services that have high Quality of Service (QoS)
requirements.

3.7.2 Service potential in the mobile information society

The UMTS cellular network is tightly integrated to the society, and some other
items (like digital signature) are widely used. This offers the possibility to
combine many items together. For instance, banking and business can be done
almost completely wirelessly. The 3G terminal is far more than a phone, it
may act as a social security card, passport, purse, etc.
The business model will change, too. In an ordinary 2G network the operator
provides most of the services. In UMTS network the operator can be considered
as a carrier provider. Some service providers use carrier provider resources to
deliver the service and the content of the service is provided to the service
providers by content providers. This structure will create a lot of challenges to
be sorted out when integrating UMTS to the other networks and technologies.

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3.8 3G end-to-end IP solutions

With UMTS Release 99, a radio interface solution was introduced to allow the
transport of a wide range of multimedia services. The transmission network
solution of the UMTS radio access network is based on ATM (and an
alternative specification of IP transport partly exists), which guarantees flexible
bearer establishment in the radio access network. But the UMTS CN solution is
still rooted in GSM, and this may impose limitations for multimedia
applications. In UMTS Rel. 4 and 5, call-processing server solutions combined
with media gateways were specified for circuit and packet switched services to
allow flexible bearer establishment also in the core network. The specifications
explicitly mention IP and ATM as potential transmission solutions for the core
network.
This means a core network evolution.

IS D N
PSTN

Figure 14. 3G IP Majority of the traffic over IP

The majority of the traffic is expected to be packet switched data transfer over
IP (its more mature variant(s)). That is, the IP is expected to fully support
mobility management (if expressed in telecommunication terms). Additionally,
in this kind of environment the IP must fully support QoS (Quality of Service)
thinking. These two conditions are essential if cellular IP terminals are going to
be used.

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4 Basics of the air interface and the path

to WCDMA
Air interface is a very complicated part of the UMTS network, especially in
comparison to actual 2G networks (such as GSM).
The following sections give a basic understanding of the air interface, which in
turn helps to gain a better understanding of the issues and properties of the
WCDMA interface.

4.1 Wireless principles

4.1.1 Duplex transmission

There are three ways to accomplish communications:

Simplex
Half-duplex
Duplex
Simplex has been used since the early 1900s. It is communication in a one-way
direction, such as AM and FM broadcast stations. Simplex uses one frequency
broadcast to one or multiple receivers.
Half duplex is communication in a two-way direction. However, only one
person may talk at a time, since half duplex uses only one frequency. Half
duplex is often referred to as push-to-talk (PTT).
Duplex is communication in a two-way direction on two frequencies. One
frequency is used to talk and the other one to listen. This is the modern way of
cellular communication.
There are two common ways to realise duplex transmission:
Frequency Division Duplex (FDD)
In this case, frequency resources are allocated to the mobile
communication system. Some of the frequency bands are allocated to
uplink communication only, while other frequency bands are used for
downlink communication. In other words duplex transmission is
enabled by using different frequency bands, meaning that uplink and
downlink are separated by frequency.
Time Division Duplex (TDD)
In this case, one carrier frequency band is used for uplink and downlink
communication. The transmission is organised in time frames. Within

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in each time frame, some time resources are used for uplink
transmission, while the remaining ones are used for downlink
transmission.

Frequency Division Duplex Time Division Duplex

e
Uplink

tim

tim
Downlink

Uplink

Downlink

link

link
Up

wn
Uplink

Do
Downlink

frequency frequency

Figure 15. FDD and TDD

4.1.2 Radio communication

There are two basic formats used in the radio communication: analogue and
digital. The commercially available analogue format has been used since 1900,
while the commercially available digital format was introduced in 1990. The
difference between the analogue and the digital format is that when using
analogue, a persons voice signal is transmitted over the air, while the digital
format uses a string of 1s and 0s to represent the voice signal (Figure 16). If
someone would lock on to the frequency used for an analogue conversation,
he/she could actually hear the users voices. For that same situation in the
digital format the observer would need to decode the 1s and 0s before hearing
the conversation.
There are four basic air interface technologies used for communication:
Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA)
Space Division Multiple Access (SDMA)
Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA)
Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)

Both FDMA and SDMA were introduced in the analogue format. TDMA and
CDMA technologies are based on the digital format.

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Analogue

So you see bla, bla, bla, yada, yada

110000110101100011101110001

Digital

Figure 16. The difference between analogue and digital

4.1.2.1 Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA)

In December 1900, Reginald Fessenden accomplished the first human voice
transmission via radio. This first link was over a mile long. Six years later he
transmitted the first radio broadcast. Soon afterwards, Frequency Division
Multiple Access (FDMA) technology was used. Different broadcasts in the
same geographical region could be heard by using different radio frequencies.
That is the idea behind the FDMA; the frequency range is broken down into
unique bandwidths and distributed to the users. FDMA is used in cellular
communications. One frequency to speak on and one to listen on; thus we have
duplex communications. That way multiple users can operate in a particular
frequency spectrum.

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e
tim

4
1

e
e

on
on

on

on

ph
ph

ph

ph
ile
ile

ile

ile

ob
ob

ob

ob

m
m

m
frequency
carrier band

Figure 17. With FDMA, users transmit simultaneously using separate

frequencies

Early cellular systems (1940s - 1960s) used higher power and lower frequencies
compared to todays cellular systems.

4.1.2.2 Space Division Multiple Access (SDMA)

In 1946, Bell Telephone System planners started submitting proposals for a
large-scale system that would satisfy the growing customer demand for more
wireless access. The idea behind the proposals was to break a huge geographical
region into smaller areas called cells. Each cell would use a frequency
different than those of its nearest neighbours to prevent any interference.
That is the idea behind the Space Division Multiple Access (SDMA), the same
frequency can be used multiple times in the same geographical region.
The advantage to this technology is increased network capacity. The easiest way
for FDMA broadcasters to increase their coverage area is to increase their
transmitting power. However, increased power causes interference problems
and increases the distance before a frequency can be reused. SDMA can
increase coverage by adding more cells. Modern cellular uses higher
frequencies and lower power. This causes less interference and reduces the
frequency reuse distance. This technology emerged with the offering of
Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS) in the early 1980s.
Although this was a big capacity improvement, it soon ran into its limits. The
network planners made a few modifications to this design to increase capacity.
One solution was to reduce the cell size even further and to add more cells to fill

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in the newly created uncovered areas. A second alternative was to add another
frequency to the existing cell, so that two calls could be placed from the same
cell. Both of these solutions, however, did not overcome the basic limit of one
call per frequency.

Figure 18. Space Division Multiple Access

4.1.2.3 Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA)

The next step in providing greater network capacity was not only to divide
frequencies into different cells, but also to divide this frequency into different
slices of time. Originally, the frequency could only carry one conversation, but
with the Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) technology, multiple users
could carry on conversations using the same frequency in the same cell or
space.
That is the idea behind TDMA; dividing the frequency into multiple time slices
so that multiple users can access the same frequency at the same time.
The commercially available products associated with this new technology are
Digital Advanced Mobile Phone Service (D-AMPS) and Global System for
Mobile Communication (GSM). D-AMPS was introduced in the late 1980s, and
GSM became available in 1990. These two products are not compatible. D-
AMPS is a digital overlay to the existing analogue system AMPS for the
purpose of increasing capacity. GSM is standalone product with a digital format
at its core.

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f3

f1 f6

f4 f2

f2 f7

f5 f3

f1

Figure 19. Time Division Multiple Access

Mobile Phone 3
e
tim

Mobile Phone 2
Mobile Phone 1
Mobile Phone 4
Mobile Phone 3
Mobile Phone 2 TDMA frame
Mobile Phone 1
Mobile Phone 4
Mobile Phone 3
Mobile Phone 2 TDMA frame

Mobile Phone 1
carrier band frequency

Figure 20. TDMA divides the frequency into multiple time slices

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4.1.2.4 Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)

Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) also uses digital format. In CDMA
systems, several transmissions via the radio interface take place simultaneously
on the same frequency bandwidth. The user data is combined at the
transmitters side with a code, then transmitted. On air, all transmission get
mixed. At the receivers side, the same code is used as in the transmitters side.
The code helps the receiver to filter the user information of the transmitter from
the incoming mixture of all transmissions on the same frequency band and same
time. This is often represented by layers, as can be seen in the figure below.
In contrast to classical FDMA and TDMA systems, the same carrier frequency
band can be used in neighbouring cells. Frequency reuse factor in CDMA is
one.

Figure 21. Code Division Multiple Access

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Power (P)

Time

Codes

Frequency

Figure 22. CDMA is digital and identifies each conversation by a code

rather than frequency or time slice

4.2 CDMA background

Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) is a type of spread-spectrum; a family
of digital communication methods that the military has used for some time
dating back to World War II. It is particularly useful to the military for two
reasons:
It provides protection from enemy jamming, because the spread signal is
difficult to interfere with.
It can conceal that any communication is taking place.
Even though CDMA was hypothetically possible in the late 1940s, it was not
available to the civilian market for another four decades. A primary reason for
this was that low cost, high-density digital integrated circuits had to be
developed to keep the cost and the weight of the units down.

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4.3 Principles of CDMA

CDMA is the classic example of a room with people speaking different
languages.
Let us imagine that a corporate CEO is hosting a large multinational gathering.
Our host, having mastered many languages, is primarily the one making the
conversation. Our host demands that his guests speak in their native tongues.
Our host, a true mediator, is able to interpret the conversations between guests if
they wish to talk with each other; he can fluently follow several conversations at
the same time. He can understand different speakers, all talking at the same
time, because they speak in different languages.
He occasionally has to tell some guests, who tend to get carried away, to speak
a little softer; and he has to ask the soft speakers to talk more loudly so that he
can hear them better.
In the corner, a jazz band begins to play. Because of the music, the guests have
to speak louder in general. The host will no longer be able to hear the soft
speakers in the back, even though they yell at the top of their lungs. When the
band takes a break, it is easier to communicate again. The guests can speak with
less volume for a while.
The party starts to mature and many more guests arrive. The overall volume
begins to rise, because there are more people speaking at the same time. The
host asks the guests nearest to him to speak more softly, while he asks the ones
further away to please speak up.
CDMA functions are much like our party. The CEO hosting the party is our
Base Station (BS), the band represents another BS, and the guests are the
Mobile Stations (MS). The different languages correspond to codes in a CDMA
system. The BS can tell the mobiles apart, even though they are transmitting at
the same time, by the codes that they use. Each MS uses a separate code. Each
BS also uses a different code when they talk with the MSs. The codes the
mobiles use increase, spread the bandwidth used. The bandwidth actually used
is much larger than what is actually required. That is why we also call this a
spread spectrum system.

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Figure 23. The CDMA multinational gathering

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4.3.1 CDMA information, theory and codes

Originating Bit WCDMA Received Bit

Power Frequency
Band

Spreading
Factor

Figure 24. General transmission principle

In direct sequence CDMA, the transmission takes place continuously. If one

user data bit has to be transmitted from the transmitter (e.g. the mobile phone)
to the receiver (e.g. the base station), a certain amount of energy is required.
The amount of energy depends on the distance of the transmitter from the
receiver, the obstacles in the transmission path, etc. The energy can be
represented like a box having specific volume. The energy/volume is constant
- but the dimensions of the box can be change. As can be seen above, the boxs
volume is made of the frequency band, transmitter power, and time for the
transmission. In UMTS, the frequency band is constant. The other two
dimensions, power and duration for the transmission, are subject to change. A
high data rates means many bits in one second, so the duration for each
information bit is short. Consequently, the output power for each bit must be
high to keep the boxs volume at a specific, constant level. If the data rate goes
down, less information bits are transmitted in one second, and therefore the
duration of one information bit is longer. If the energy for the transmission of
the information bit has not changed, the volume of the box is the same.
Consequently, less output power is required at the transmitters side.

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Power (P)

Time

Codes

Frequency

Figure 25. CDMA Code Division Multiple Access

In direct sequence CDMA technology based systems (like WCDMA), every

user is assigned a code/codes varying per transaction, i.e. the different users use
separate codes. These codes are called spreading codes. It should be noted that
one user may also use several spreading codes in certain situations. The user
data is directly multiplied with his code. This processes is called spreading.
Then the user data is transmitted via the common frequency band.
If the originating bit rate is low, the power required for transmission is
small. This kind of case can be seen as a narrow layer in Figure 25.
If the originating bit rate is high, is higher. This kind of case can be seen
as a thick layer in Figure 25.

4.3.2 Spread spectrum and the principle of direct sequence CDMA

There are several spread spectrum system designs:

In direct sequence spread spectrum we spread or code the message we want
to send by directly multiplying it with a large bandwidth user-specific code
called the spreading sequence.
Frequency hopping spread spectrum utilises the large system bandwidth by
periodically changing the carrier frequency of the narrowband message
according to a user-specific sequence.
Time hopping spread spectrum uses a user-specific sequence to key the
transmitter on and off at equal duration time segments. Unlike GSM, there is no
user-specific timeslot.

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The direct sequence (DS) spread spectrum method is used in both the 2nd
generation CDMA systems (that is, IS-95) and in the new 3rd generation
Wideband CDMA (WCDMA) (UMTS and cdma2000).
Let us visualise the spreading process. We have the information bits with some
power per bits. The spreading signal is like a monster truck driving over the
bits. The bits get squashed and spread over the ground. The power that
previously defined the height of the bits is also flattened. The power is spread
over the spectrum, that is, the power per unit bandwidth is small. This is our
goal. For someone not knowing how the information was actually squashed, it
is very difficult to detect the presence of a spread spectrum user. All one would
hear is an increased amount of noise.

P User A

f f
Data Data after
spreading
P f f
User B
Transm ission
Transmission Despread
over the air User A signal
at the receiver

f f

Figure 26. Spreading and sharing the same space

In a spread spectrum system all the users are in the same frequency band. The
frequency band is not divided in time to the users as in GSM. All users may
send at the same time at will. The users information is spread over the whole
frequency band with a user-specific pseudo-noise (PN) signal, the spreading
code. The transmitted signal occupies a much wider bandwidth than would be
necessary to send the information. The bits in the spreading code are called
chips. The chip rate of our code is fixed to 1.96 Mchip/s.
In a multiple access environment, we will have at the receiver our spread
spectrum signal summed with the other user signals. Our receiver will decode
the original message fine as long as the noise caused by the other signals present
is not too high. This is why we can say that each user is sharing a pool of power
in the system.

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4.4 Motives for using WCDMA in UMTS

The UMTS specifications include 3rd generation mobile services platforms.
Being able to deliver wideband multimedia services is going to require a higher
performance standard than the current wireless standards. UMTS will smooth
the progress of new wireless wideband multimedia applications, while fully
supporting both packet and circuit switched communications (e.g. Internet and
traditional landline telephone). From the outset, UMTS has been designed for
high-speed data services and Internet based packet data offering up to 2 Mbps in
stationary or office environments and up to 384 Kbps in wide area or mobile
environments.
In UMTS Release 99, there are two WCDMA modes:
FDD mode
FDD stands for frequency division duplex. Two separate 5 MHz
frequency bands are used one for uplink transmission and another one
for downlink transmission.
TDD mode
TDD stands for time division duplex. Hereby, one frequency band is
used both for uplink and downlink transmission.
In the FDD mode a continuous transmission in one transmission direction can
take place. The TDD mode is more similar to GSM. Bursts are transmitted. The
reason for that is routed in the fact, that uplink and downlink transmission must
be managed on the same frequency bands at different times. The FDD mode is
seen as a very good solution to get coverage. The TDD mode is especially
efficient, when there is asymmetric traffic. Because of this and its bursty nature,
it use is seen mainly in the pico and micro cell environment.
Both in the FDD and TDD mode, direct sequence CDMA is applied. The radio
interface solution is called Wideband CDMA (WCDMA), because 5 MHz
carriers are used.

4.4.1 Features of WCDMA in UMTS

WCDMA for UMTS has several advantages, for example:

Efficient use of the radio frequency spectrum

Different technologies, which improve the spectrum usage, are easy to apply to
CDMA. E.g. in GSM, one physical channel is dedicated to one user for speech
transmission. If discontinuous transmission is applied, several timeslots of the
physical channels are not used. These timeslots cannot be used otherwise. In
UMTS, the transmission of several mobile phones takes place on the same
frequency band at the same time. Therefore, each transmission imposes
interference to the transmissions of other mobile phones on the same carrier
frequency band. UMTS supports discontinuous transmission via the radio

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interface. Consequently, if mobile phones are silent, when there is nothing to

transmit, the interference level is reduced and therefore the radio interface
capacity increased. Another option allowed in UMTS is the multiplexing of
packet switched traffic with circuit switched traffic. If there is no speech to
transmit for a subscriber, the silent times are used for packet switched traffic.

Limited frequency management

CDMA uses the same frequency in adjacent cells. There is no need for the
FDMA/TDMA type of frequency assignment that can sometimes be difficult.
This is the main reason for increased radio interface efficiency of WCDMA

Low mobile station transmit power

With advanced receiver technologies, CDMA can improve the reception
performance. The required transmit power of a CDMA mobile phone can be
reduced as compared to TDMA systems. In the FDD mode, where bursty
transmission is avoided, the peak power can be kept low. Continuous
transmission also avoids the electromagnetic emission problems caused by
pulsed transmission to, for example, hearing aids and hospital equipment.

Uplink and downlink resource utilisation independent

Different bit rates for uplink and downlink can be allocated to each user.
CDMA thus supports asymmetric communications such as TCP/IP access.

Wide variety of data rates

The wide bandwidth of WCDMA enables the provision of higher transmission
rates. Additionally, it provides low and high rate services in the same band.

Improvement of multipath resolution

The wide bandwidth of WCDMA makes it possible to resolve more multipath
components than in 2nd generation CDMA, by using a so-called RAKE receiver.
This assists in lowering the transmit power required and lowers interference
power at the same time. The result is further improved spectrum efficiency.

Statistical multiplexing advantage

The wideband carrier of the WCDMA system allows more channels/users in
one carrier. The statistical multiplexing effect also increase the frequency usage
efficiency. This efficiency drops in narrowband systems with fast data
communications, because the number of the users on one carrier is limited.

Increased standby time from higher rate control channels

The wideband carrier can enhance the transmission of the control channels. The
MS only listens to the control channels part of the time, thereby increasing the
standby time.

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5 User Services
Subscribers are paying for value added services offered to them. Therefore
mobile operators are currently concentrating in broadening the services, offered
to the subscribers.
Access to a complete range of integrated, customer-friendly services
customised to their needs by operators and service providers. These
services will be available irrespective of the serving network and
terminal, assuming that similar capabilities are available. Where the
capabilities are not available, the user will be presented with a subset of
the service.
Enhanced user service management covering the ability to customise and
configure the appearance and behaviour of user services and applications.
This management may include user interface customisation where the
terminal supports that capability.
Simplified service provisioning and service upgrades through the
capability to download new service applications with minimal customer
interaction.
Wireless personal Internet
information anywhere at
anytime.
Multimedia messaging
Enhanced e-mail
Telecommuting
Improved quality of service
Support for video/audio clips

If the subscriber benefits from the UMTS introduction, so does the

operator:
New service capabilities (means new business opportunity for operators)
Revenue opportunity with increased data/voice traffic
New frequency spectrum (new capacity)

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6 Review questions
Please take some time to answer the following questions.

1. Which of the following definitions for the abbreviation 3GPP is true?

a. It is a specification body organised by the manufactures to promote
new technologies.
b. It is an EU organisation that specifies all the features that a 3G
network must support.
c. It is an organisational body by the operators to promote the
harmonisation of different 3G technologies.
d. It is the name of the interface between the RAN and the CN.
e. It is a specification body that takes care of the specification work in
co-operation with many institutes.

2. Name the four subsystems in the UMTS network Release 99.

3. Which of the following elements is not part of the core network?

a. HLR
b. GGSN
c. RNC
d. EIR

4. Which of the following sentences about EDGE is true?

a. EDGE is needed to support IN prepaid services.
b. EDGE is using a more efficient coding and modulation technique
than in GSM to increase data throughput.
c. EDGE and GSM networks are incompatible.
d. EDGE will allow telephone calls to take place faster as people can
talk faster than in GSM.

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5. The SGSN is not needed to support 3G IP connections.

True False

6. List the four basic air interface technologies.

7. Which of the following is true (circle the correct answer)?

a. 1st generation networks are digital and 2nd generation networks are
analogue.
b. WCDMA is a 2nd generation technology.
c. TDMA and CDMA were introduced in 2nd generation networks.
d. Data, fax, and SMS services will first be introduced with
WCDMA.

8. Describe the main difference between analogue and digital.

9. Which of the following are benefits of WCDMA (circle the correct

answer)?
a. Improvement of Erlang capacity.
b. No frequency change allows imperceptible soft handovers.
c. New available frequency spectrum.
d. All of the above.

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10. CDMA is an access technology, which was developed for high capacity
commercial mobile networks.

True False

11. Which of the following are benefits or services for the end user?
a. Integrated services that may be customised per subscriber
b. Ability to download and activate new services at will
c. Multimedia messaging
d. Possibility for telecommuting
e. Improved quality of service
f. Videophony
g. Location-based services
h. Support for video/audio clips
i. All of the above.

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