Alcatel BSS Description

Alcatel BSS
BSS System Description
Descriptive Documentation BSS Concepts
3BK 20572 AAAA TQZZA Ed.04
BLANK PAGE BREAK
Status Short title
RELEASED System Description

All rights reserved. Passing on and copying of this document, use and communication of its contents not permitted without written authorization from Alcatel/Evolium.
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Contents
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2 BSS Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.1 Call Set Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.2 Call Handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.3 Call Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.4 Operations & Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3 BSS Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.1 Base Station Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.2 Base Transceiver Station . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.3 Transcoder And Transmission Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.4 The Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.5 Multi-GPU per BSS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4 Extended GSM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5 External Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.1 Network Subsystem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.2 Mobile Stations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.3 Phase 2 Mobile Support in a Phase 1 Infrastructure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.4 Operations and Maintenance Center-Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6 Network Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6.1 Telecommunications Management Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6.2 Q3 Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7 BSS Telecommunications Layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7.1 Call Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7.2 Mobility Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7.3 Radio Resource Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7.4 The A Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7.5 The Abis Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7.6 Satellite Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7.7 The Air Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GPRS in the BSS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.1 Packet Switching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.2 GPRS Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2 GPRS Channels and System Information Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.1 Master Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.2 Static Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.3 Dynamic Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.4 Multiple PCCCH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.5 Logical Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.6 Virtual Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.7 System Information Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3 GPRS Interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.1 The Gb Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.2 The BSCGP Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.3 The GCH Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4 GPRS Network Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.1 Mobility Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.2 Paging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.3 Radio Power Control and Radio Link Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5 Resource Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.1 Time Slot Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 14 16 16 17 17 17 18 18 19 22 23 25 26 28 29 30 33 33 34 34 35 36 36 36 37 38 39 39 41 47 48 48 49 52 52 52 53 54 56 56 57 59 59 60 61 62 63 64 64 65 65
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2.5.2 Frequency Hopping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 2.5.3 PCM Link Sharing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 2.5.4 Resource Reallocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 2.6 Traffic Load Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 2.6.1 Congestion Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 2.6.2 Smooth PDCH Traffic Adaption to Cell Load Variation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 2.6.3 GPRS Overload Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 2.6.4 Delayed Downlink TBF Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 2.7 Data Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 2.7.1 GPRS Attach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 2.7.2 Packet Data Protocol Context Activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 2.7.3 Data Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 2.7.4 Packet Data Protocol Context De-activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 2.7.5 GPRS Suspend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 2.7.6 GPRS Resume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 2.7.7 GPRS Detach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 Call Set Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 3.1 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 3.2 Mobile Originated Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 3.2.1 Radio and Link Establishment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 3.2.2 Authentication and Ciphering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 3.2.3 Normal Assignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 3.3 Mobile Terminated Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 3.3.1 Radio and Link Establishment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 3.3.2 Authentication and Ciphering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 3.3.3 Normal Assignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 3.3.4 IMSI Attach-Detach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 3.4 Paging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 3.4.1 Paging Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 3.4.2 Discontinuous Reception . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110 3.5 Congestion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 3.5.1 Queueing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 3.5.2 In-queue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 3.5.3 Pre-emption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 3.6 Classmark Handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 3.6.1 Classmark IE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 3.6.2 Classmark Updating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 3.6.3 Location Updating with Classmark Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 3.7 Authentication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122 3.8 Ciphering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 3.8.1 Ciphering Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 3.8.2 Ciphering Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 3.9 Tandem Free Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 3.9.1 TFO Functional Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 3.9.2 TFO Optimization and Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131 Call Handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133 4.1 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 4.2 In-Call Modification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 4.2.1 In-Call Modification Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135 4.2.2 Circuit-switched Group 3 Fax Data Rate Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 4.2.3 Error Handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 4.3 Frequency Hopping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 4.3.1 Baseband Frequency Hopping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 4.3.2 Synthesized Frequency Hopping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 4.4 Discontinuous Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140 4.4.1 Speech Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
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4.4.2 BSS Discontinuous Transmission Towards Mobile Station . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.3 Mobile Station Discontinuous Transmission Towards BSS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5 Radio Power Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5.1 BTS Radio Power Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5.2 Mobile Station Radio Power Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5.3 Radio Link Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5.4 Power Control Decision and Handover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5.5 Change Power Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6 Handover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.1 Radio Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.2 Handover Detection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.3 Target Cell Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.4 Synchronous and Asynchronous Handover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7 Overload Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7.1 BTS Overload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7.2 BSC Overload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8 Call Re-establishment by the Mobile Station . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Call Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2 Call Release Procedures in Normal Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.1 Normal Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.2 Calls Terminated Following a Channel Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3 Call Release - Special Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.1 Call Release Following Reset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.2 BSC-Initiated Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.3 BSC-Initiated SCCP Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.4 BTS-Initiated Call Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.5 Mobile Station-Initiated Call Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.6 Remote Transcoder Alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Handling User Traffic Across the BSS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2 Speech . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.1 Enhanced Full-Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.2 Half-Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.3 Adaptive Multiple Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.4 Channel Mode Adaption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3 Circuit-Switched Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3.1 Transparent Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3.2 Non-Transparent Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.4 Short Message Service - Cell Broadcast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5 Support of Localized Service Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6 PLMNs Interworking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cell Environments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.1 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2 Concentric Cell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3 Sectored Site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.4 Extended Cell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.5 Umbrella Cell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.5.1 Mini Cell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.5.2 Microcell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6 Cell Shared by Two BTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Operations & Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.1 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2 O&M Architecture and Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2.1 O&M Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
141 142 144 144 144 145 146 148 149 151 152 159 160 167 167 168 170 171 172 173 173 178 179 179 180 182 183 185 186 187 188 188 190 191 192 194 195 196 197 198 200 200 203 204 206 207 208 210 210 211 215 217 218 218 219
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8.3
8.4
8.5
8.6
8.7 8.8
8.2.2 O&M Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O&M Control - The OMC-R . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3.1 Multiple Human-Machine Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3.2 ACO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3.3 Secured X.25 Connection From BSC to OMC-R . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3.4 Electronic Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Configuration Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4.1 Hardware Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4.2 Logical Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4.3 Software Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4.4 Auto Identification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4.5 OML Auto-detection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4.6 NE Provisioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fault Management - Alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5.1 Alarm Generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5.2 Alarm Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5.3 BSC Alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5.4 BTS Alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5.5 Alarms Detected by the TSC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5.6 MFS Alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5.7 Recovery Example: Carrier Unit Failures with BCCH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5.8 Automatic Power-Down . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5.9 BSC Alerter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Performance Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.6.1 Traces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.6.2 Performance Monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.6.3 Radio Measurements Statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.6.4 Results Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Audits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Remote Inventory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
220 221 222 223 224 226 227 228 228 228 229 230 231 232 234 234 235 238 240 240 241 243 243 244 244 245 246 247 248 250
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Figures
Figure 1: BSS in the PLMN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Figure 2: Antenna Diversity on G1 and G2 BTSs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Figure 3: Antenna Diversity on the BTS A9100 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Figure 4: Transmission Components in the BSS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Figure 5: Cell Mapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Figure 6: Logical Position of External Components Associated with BSS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Figure 7: Location Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Figure 8: TMN System Hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Figure 9: General Telecommunication Layers within GSM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Figure 10: BSS Application, Transmission Layers and Interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Figure 11: Time Slot 4 of a Time Division Multiple Access Frame Supporting Access Grant Channels . . . 41 Figure 12: Model LLC Packet Data Unit used in GPRS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Figure 13: The Alcatel GPRS solution in the PLMN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Figure 14: GPRS Traffic Load Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Figure 15: GPRS Attach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 Figure 16: Mobile Station-Originating Packet Data Protocol Context Activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 Figure 17: GGSN-Originating Packet Data Protocol Context Activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 Figure 18: Mobile-Originated Data Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 Figure 19: Mobile-Terminated Data Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Figure 20: Mobile Station Originating Packet Data Protocol Context De-activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Figure 21: Network-Originating Packet Data Protocol Context De-activation Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Figure 22: GPRS Suspend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 Figure 23: GPRS Resume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 Figure 24: Mobile Station-Originating GPRS Detach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 Figure 25: Network-Originating GPRS Detach Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 Figure 26: Radio and Link Establishment for Mobile Originated Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 Figure 27: SDCCH Channel Activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 Figure 28: Immediate Assignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 Figure 29: Connection for Mobile Originated Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 Figure 30: Normal Assignment for Mobile Originated Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 Figure 31: Channel Activation Process for the Traffic Channel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99 Figure 32: Channel Assignment Process for the Traffic Channel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 Figure 33: Call Connection for Mobile Originated Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 Figure 34: Radio and Link Establishment for Mobile Terminated Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Figure 35: Normal Assignment for Mobile Terminated Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 Figure 36: CCCH with Three Blocks Reserved for AGCH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 Figure 37: Four TDMA Frame Cycles Providing 24 Paging Sub-channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 Figure 38: Paging Message Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109 Figure 39: Location Update with Classmark Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
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Figures
Figure 40: Location Update with Mobile Station Sending Location Area Identity of Previous VLR . . . . . . . 122 Figure 41: Ciphering Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127 Figure 42: Example of TFO Establishment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 Figure 43: Frequency Hopping within an FHS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 Figure 44: Different Forms of Discontinuous Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143 Figure 45: Power Control Flow of Measurement and Decision Action . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146 Figure 46: Power Output Balancing Based on Received Quality and Signal Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 Figure 47: Quality and Level Handover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 Figure 48: Better Zone Handover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154 Figure 49: Better Cell Handover (Power Budget) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155 Figure 50: Distance Handover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156 Figure 51: Umbrella Cell Load in Mobile Velocity Dependent Handover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 Figure 52: Synchronous Internal Handover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161 Figure 53: Asynchronous External Handover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164 Figure 54: Mobile Station Disconnecting a Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173 Figure 55: Normal Call Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174 Figure 56: Initiation of Normal Release by MSC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 Figure 57: BSC/BTS/Mobile Station interactions in Normal Call Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176 Figure 58: Normal Release Final Steps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177 Figure 59: Call Release Following a Channel Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178 Figure 60: Call Release Following Reset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180 Figure 61: BSC-initiated Call Release toward the MSC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181 Figure 62: BTS-initiated Call Release following LAPD failure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 Figure 63: Call Release due to Mobile Station initiated Radio Link Failure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185 Figure 64: Call Release due to Communication Failure detected by Transcoder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186 Figure 65: Encoded Speech Transmission Across the BSS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188 Figure 66: Multiplexed Ater Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189 Figure 67: Data Transmission Across the BSS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195 Figure 68: Short Message Service - Cell Broadcast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198 Figure 69: Example: Cell Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205 Figure 70: Sectored site configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207 Figure 71: Example of Extended Cell Topology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208 Figure 72: Umbrella Cell with Mini Cells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210 Figure 73: Example: Handovers due to Threshold Triggering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212 Figure 74: Indoor cell example network hierarchy with three layers and two bands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213 Figure 75: Multiple HMI Access to OMC-Rs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222 Figure 76: ACO Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223 Figure 77: X.25 Without Redundancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224 Figure 78: X.25 With Redundancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225 Figure 79: RSL Correlation on the Abis Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
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Figures
Figure 80: Example: Alarm Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237 Figure 81: Example: Loss of Carrier Unit Holding BCCH. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
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Tables
Tables
Table 1: System Information Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Table 2: GPRS System Information Message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 Table 3: GPRS System Information Messages Used with MPDCH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 Table 4: Gb Interface Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Table 5: BSCGP Interface Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Table 6: Network Operation Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Table 7: Time Slot Allocation Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Table 8: PDCH Traffic Load States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Table 9: Types of Calls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 Table 10: Call Set Up Phases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 Table 11: Cell List Identifier and Paging Performed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Table 12: Paging Request Message and Mobile Station Identification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109 Table 13: Classmark Handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 Table 14: Classmark Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 Table 15: Mobile Station Ciphering Capabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 Table 16: Downlink Discontinuous Transmission Status in Channel_activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141 Table 17: Operator Discontinuous Transmission Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142 Table 18: Radio Link Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145 Table 19: Mobile Station Maximum and Minimum Power Ranges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148 Table 20: Circuit-Switched Data Rate Conversions Across the Air Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196 Table 21: Configuration Management Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227 Table 22: Fault Management Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233 Table 23: BTS Alarm Hardware Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238 Table 24: BTS Alarms Functional Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238 Table 25: Performance Management Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244 Table 26: Audit Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
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Preface
Preface
Purpose
This document provides detailed descriptions of the functions and features of the Alcatel BSS. Some functions and features may not be available on the system installed at your location. The technical information in this document covers: Mobile Communications Support These areas describe how the BSS handles communications between a mobile station and the NSS. It follows a call through the Alcatel BSS, and describes how each element in the system functions individually and with other elements. This shows how the BSS and its units react as a system. Operations and Maintenance These areas describe the O&M functions within the system. It describes both local and distributed O&M functions in a BSS.
Audience
This manual is for people requiring an in-depth understanding of the functions of the Alcatel BSS: Network decision makers who require an understanding of the underlying functions of the system, including: Network planners Technical design staff Trainers. Operations and support staff who need to know how the system operates in normal conditions, including: Operators Support engineers Maintenance staff Client Help Desk personnel.
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Preface
Assumed Knowledge
The document assumes that the reader has an understanding of: GSM GPRS Mobile Telecommunications Network Management concepts and terminology.
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1 Introduction
1 Introduction
This chapter gives a brief overview of the Alcatel BSS, its functions and features. It describes: Overview BSS functions Internal and external components and interfaces BSS Network Management The distribution of telecommunications software in the BSS.
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1 Introduction
1.1 Overview
The BSS provides radio coverage for GSM subscribers in a defined area. Its principal role is to provide and support signalling and traffic channels between mobile stations and the NSS. The following figure shows the BSS within the PLMN, and its links to the PSTN and the PSDN in a fixed network.
PLMN
Mobile Stations Network Subsystem MSC TC BTS BSC MFS SGSN PSDN Fixed Network PSTN
Base Station Subsystem
OMCR
NMC
GGSN HLR MFS NMC PSDN PSTN SGSN
: Gateway GRPS Support Node : Home Location Register : Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server : Network Management Center : Packet Switched Data Network : Public Switched Telephone Network : Serving GRPS Support Node
Figure 1: BSS in the PLMN
EVOLIUM Radio Solutions
To respond to the swiftly evolving needs in BSSs, Alcatel offers the EVOLIUM Radio Solutions. The Alcatel EVOLIUM Radio Solutions includes the following BSS equipment described in this document: G2 BSC G2 Transcoder G2.5 Transcoder BTS A9100 BTS A910 A935 MFS.
Note:
BTS G1 and BTS G2 are still supported by EVOLIUM.
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1 Introduction
Extended GSM Band (E-GSM)
The Alcatel BSS supports the E-GSM band. E-GSM consists of: The 900 MHz primary band, called the P-GSM band. This uses 890-915 MHz for uplink, and 935-960 MHz for downlink. The 900 MHz extended band, called the G1 band. This uses 880-890 MHz for uplink, and 925-935 MHz for downlink. This corresponds to a total number of 174 addressable frequencies.
GSM 850
The GSM 850 MHz band has been introduced in the Release 1999 of the 3GPP Standard in 1999 to allow operators to replace progressively the D-AMPS and CDMA technologies that were using these frequencies. Besides certain Asian countries, the GSM 850 MHz band concerns in particular the Latin American countries where many operators already use in their network the GSM system with the GSM 1900 MHz to extend or replace their D-AMPS existing network. The term GSM 850 is used for any GSM system which operates in 824 MHz to 849 MHz band for the uplink direction and in the 869 MHz to 894 MHz band for the downlink direction. The GSM 850 band is defined by 124 absolute radio frequency channel numbers (ARFCN) among the 1024 ARFCNs available in the GSM standard. The Alcatel BSS supports the following multiband network configurations: BSS with a mix of GSM 850 and GSM 1900 cells BSS with a mix of GSM 850 and GSM 1800 cells BSS with a mix of GSM 900 and GSM 1800 cells. Refer also to Basic GSM System Specifications.
Frequency Band Configurations
GPRS
GPRS, the solution chosen by European Telecommunication Standards Institute to answer the demand for increased data transmission rates, is now available in the Alcatel BSS. This means there are now two parallel systems in the PLMN: circuit-switched transmission for voice, and packet-switched transmission for data. For information on how GPRS functions within the BSS, see GPRS in the BSS (Chapter 2).
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1 Introduction
1.2 BSS Functions

Functions are defined by the International Telecommunications Union and European Telecommunication Standards Institute recommendations. This section describes the BSS functions with a system-wide view; that is, how the BSS functions work together within the system. Network elements and functional units are indicated where applicable, but are not described. For more information, refer to the specific network element description manuals, such as the BTS Functional Description. The BSS provides signalling and traffic channels between the mobile station and the NSS. To ensure a high level of service to the subscribers, the BSS offers the following functions: Call Set Up Call Handling Call Release Operations & Maintenance.
1.2.1 Call Set Up

The Call Setup function is used for speech and data calls. The three basic types of call are: Mobility Management Supplementary service User traffic.
Mobility Management Calls Supplementary Service Calls User Traffic Calls
Mobility Management calls, such as location update, are used by the system to gather mobile station information. The exchanges are protocol messages only. Therefore, only a signalling channel is used. Supplementary service calls, such as SMS, allows the mobile station to send and receive messages to and from the BTS. These calls pass small amounts of information. Therefore, only a signalling channel is used. User traffic calls, such as speech or data calls to a correspondent, can pass large amounts of information. Therefore, they require greater bandwidth than a signalling channel. These calls use traffic channels. Call set up processes include: Radio and Link Establishment to assign a signalling channel between the mobile station and the NSS Classmark handling to manage different mobile station power and ciphering capabilities Ciphering to ensure data security on the Air Interface The normal assignment process to assign a traffic channel between the mobile station and the NSS. See Call Set Up (Chapter 3) for more information.
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1 Introduction
1.2.2 Call Handling

The call handling function is used to supervise and maintain calls which are in progress. Call handling involves: In-call channel modification during a call Maintenance of call integrity and quality through features such as Frequency Hopping, Discontinuous Transmission or Radio Power Control Handover to change channels when a mobile station moves from one cell to another Handover when the quality of the current channel drops below an acceptable level Ciphering to ensure data security on the Air Interface Overload control to manage the call load on the system. See Call Handling (Chapter 4) for more information.
1.2.3 Call Release

The call release function ensures that resources allocated to a call are free for reuse when they are no longer required by the current call. Specifically the Call Release function includes: Call Release in normal service: Calls terminated by call management Calls terminated following a channel change. Special Cases: Call release following a reset BSC-initiated release BTS-initiated release Mobile station-initiated release. See Call Release (Chapter 5) for more information.
1.2.4 Operations & Maintenance

O&M provides the operator interface for the management and control of the BSS, and its interconnection to the NSS. O&M is divided into three principal areas: Configuration Management Fault Management Performance Management. See Operations & Maintenance (Chapter 8) for more information.
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1 Introduction
1.3 BSS Components

There are three main units in the BSS: The BTS, which provides the radio transmission and reception functions for a cell The BSC, which acts as the controller of the BSS. The BSC provides control of the BTSs and their resources, and performs switching functions within the BSS The Transcoder, which performs rate adaptation and encoding/decoding of speech and data between the MSC and the BSC. The BSS shown in Figure 1 is supervised by the OMC-R. In a large network, one or more high-level supervisors, such as NMCs, can exist to centralize network management activities. The NMC has the authority to send directives to the OMC-R. For more information about the NMC, refer to documentation supplied with the NMC.
1.3.1 Base Station Controller

The BSC provides control of the BTSs and manages radio resources and radio parameters. From a transmission point of view, the BSC also performs a concentration function if more radio traffic channels than terrestrial channels are connected to the MSC. A single BSC can control a large number of BTSs. The exact number is a function of the BSC equipment and the configurations used. The BSC provides: Resource management Database management Radio measurement processing Channel management Operations and maintenance functions within the BSS Communication with the OMC-R Switching between the Air Interface channels (and their associated Abis channels), and the A Interface channels. Further information concerning these interfaces can be found in The A Interface (Section 1.7.4), The Abis Interface (Section 1.7.5) and The Air Interface (Section 1.7.7). The BSC also incorporates the following transmission equipment: The Base Station Interface Equipment, which performs signalling and submultiplexing on the Abis Interface The Transcoder Submultiplexer Controller, which collects and processes transmission data. It also provides an operator interface to certain transmission functions via a Local Maintenance Terminal. For a more detailed description of the BSC, refer to the EVOLIUM BSC/TC Overall Description document.
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1 Introduction
1.3.2 Base Transceiver Station

The BTS provides radio transmission, control and baseband functions for a cell. The BTS also supports the Air Interface with the mobile stations. Alcatel furnishes two families of BTS: BTS G1 or G2 (includes Micro-BTS M1M and M2M) BTS A9100 or BTS A910. These families of BTS have different architectures, and are not functionally identical, (e.g. only the BTS A9100 or BTS A910 can support GPRS). The BTS performs the following functions under the control of the BSC: Transmit and receive functions Antenna diversity Frequency hopping Radio channel measurements Radio frequency testing. The BTS also includes BIEs which enable it to communicate with the BSC over the Abis interface. In the BTS A9100 and BTS A910, the BIE is integrated into the SUM. For a more detailed description of the BTS, refer to the BTS Functional Description or the EVOLIUM BTS A9100/A910 Functional Description documents.
1.3.2.1 Antenna Diversity

Antenna Diversity is a BTS feature that protects against multipath fading. This is achieved by duplicating the receive antenna and receive path up to the Frame Unit of the BTS (or the TRE for a BTS A9100 or BTS A910). The Frame Unit (or TRE) uses the data burst which has the fewest errors. This increases the low-power mobile station range, thereby allowing larger cells.
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1 Introduction
1.3.2.2 G1 and G2 BTS Antenna Diversity

Antenna diversity on G1 and G2 BTSs duplicates the receive antenna and receive path up to the Frame Unit. The Frame Unit uses the data burst which has the fewest errors. This increases low-power mobile station range, thus allowing larger cells and lowering infrastructure investment. The following figure shows the antenna diversity path through the G1 and G2 BTS.
OTHER ANTENNAS
TX C O U P L I N G a a ab best of a&b b b a U N I T RX
B I E
FU
F H U
CU
RX (option)
OMU CONTROL
BIE CU FHU FU OMU RX TX
BASEBAND CONTROL
BASEBAND
RADIO
COUPLING
: Base Station Interface Equipment : Carrier Unit : Frequency Hopping Unit : Frame Unit : Operations and Maintenance Unit : Receiver : Transmitter
Figure 2: Antenna Diversity on G1 and G2 BTSs
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1 Introduction
1.3.2.3 BTS A9100/A910 Antenna Diversity

Antenna diversity on the BTS A9100 or BTS A910 follows the same principle as in the G1 and G2 BTSs. The antennas are used for both transmit and receive, and the receive path is duplicated up to the TRE, providing the same gain in efficiency and low-power mobile station range. The following figure shows the antenna diversity path through the BTS A9100.
TRE 1
ab best of a&b a b a ANT a Tx / Rx a a b b
TRE 2 S U M
ab best of a&b
TRE 3
ab ab best of a&b b a
TRE 4
ab best of a&b b a
b a
b ANT b Tx / Rx
ANy
ANx
ANC
BASEBAND CONTROL
ANT ANx ANy SUM TRE : Antenna : Antenna Network Type x : Antenna Network Type y : Station Unit Module : Transmitter/Receiver Equipment
BASEBAND
RADIO COMBINING
RADIO DUPLEXING
Figure 3: Antenna Diversity on the BTS A9100
Note:
The configuration shown above (1 Sector, 3X4 Transceivers) is one example only. Other combinations of Antennas and TREs are possible. There is no antenna network y in the BTS A910, and the antenna network y is not needed if the sector has two TREs.
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1 Introduction
1.3.3 Transcoder And Transmission Function

The Transcoder is the key component for the transmission function, which provides efficient use of the terrestrial links between the equipment of the BSS. The Transcoder provides: Conversion between A-law and Radio Test Equipment-Long Term Prediction encoded traffic (speech) Conversion between A-law and Algebraic Code Excited Linear Prediction encoded traffic (speech) Rate adaptation (data) O&M control of the transmission function. The Transcoder is normally located next to the MSC.
Submultiplexers
The Submultiplexer performs submultiplexing on the Ater Interface, between the MSC and the BSC. When submultiplexing is used, a Submultiplexer is located at each end of the link. The following figure shows how transmission components are distributed in the BSS.
TSC OMCR
BTS
BIE
BIE
BSC
SM
SM
TC
MSC
BTS
BIE
BIE
BSC
TC
TSC BTS
BIE SM TSC TC
: Base Station Interface Equipment : Submultiplexer : Transcoder Submultiplexer Controller : Transcoder
Figure 4: Transmission Components in the BSS
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1.3.4 The Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server

The MFS is preferably located at the Transcoder/MSC site. It is internal to the BSS and provides the following functions: PCU functions: PAD function Scheduling of packet data channels Automatic Retransmission Request functions Channel access control functions Radio channel management functions. The Gb interface protocol stack. The MFS converts GPRS frames, carried on multiple 16 kb/s links from multiple BTSs, to one or more frame relay channels connected to the SGSN on the Gb interface. See The Gb Interface (Section 2.3.1) for details of the Gb interface. The set-up of Packet Data Channels is controlled by the MFS. It also negotiates resources with the BSC and routes GPRS packets. When an additional channel is required on a BTS, the MFS asks the BSC to allocate a channel and to connect it to an Ater channel which the MFS controls. The Alcatel solution also supplies two dedicated GPRS interfaces between the MFS and the BSS: The BSCGP interface supplies routing of GPRS messages and resource negotiation between the BSC and the MFS The GCH interface routes user data traffic and signaling between the MFS and the BTS transparently (to the BSC). Hardware and software management of the MFS is provided using the IMT. The MFS is divided in GPRS processing units (GPU) which are inter-connected via an Ethernet bus and controlled a control station. The GPU handles the O&M and telecom functions of several cells, but a cell cannot be shared between several GPUs. A GPU cannot be connected to more than one BSC, which means that each GPU cannot manage simultaneously several BSSs. However, the use of several GPUs per BSS is required for traffic capacity reasons. The MFS is in charge of associating each cell to a GPU. This later operation is called GPU cell mapping. The GPU is in charge of: O&M functions: Initialization of the MFS Software download Software configuration Performance monitoring.
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Telecom functions: Radio and transmission resources control Radiolink control of packet connections Common control channels management MS radio resource control Logical Link Control (LLC) Protocol Data Unit (PDU) transfer Multiframe management Congestion control Gb interface management Signalling management on the GSL interface. The GPU is split into two sub-units, the Packet Management Unit (PMU) and the Packet Traffic Unit (PTU). The protocols handled by a GPU are split in the following manner: Protocols handled by the PTU: Radio interface protocols (RLC and MAC) GCH interface protocols (L2-GCH and L1-GCH). The PTU manages the corresponding GCH interface (see The GCH Interface (Section 2.3.3) for more information). Protocols handled by the PMU: Gb interface protocols (BSSGP, Network Service, and FR) BSC interface protocols (BSCGP, L2-GSL, and L1-GSL) RRM protocol. The PMU manages the corresponding Gb and GSL interfaces.
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1.3.5 Multi-GPU per BSS

To increase the GPRS capacity of the BSS in terms of number of PDCH, several GPU boards can be connected to the BSC to support the PCU function. This feature is applied regardless of the BTS type. Four GPU boards can be connected in each BSC.
Cell Mapping
Mapping a cell means that a cell is associated to a GPU. Remapping a cell means that a cell, already linked to a GPU, is moved to another GPU. The mapping of cells onto GPUs is performed by the MFS, which actually defines the mapping of cells onto LXPUs (logical GPU). An LXPU is either the primary GPU, or the spare GPU in the case of switch-over. All the GPRS traffic of one cell is handled by only one GPU. The following figure shows an example of cell mapping.
MFS
Cell 1 Cell 4 Cell 3 Cell 5 Cell 6 Cell 7 Cell 8 Cell 12 Cell 11 Cell 10 Cell 14 Cell 13 Cell 9 Cell 2
GPU1
BSC
GPU2
GPU3
GPU4
: GPRS Processing Unit
GPU
Figure 5: Cell Mapping
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1.4 Extended GSM

Two 10 MHz extended bands for GSM 900 in the range 880-890 MHz/925-935 MHz have been specified as an option on a national basis. The reason for this is mainly due to the lack of primary band frequencies in countries outside Europe. The term G1 is used for the extended band. The term P-GSM is used for the primary band. The term E-GSM is used for the whole GSM-900 frequency band, i.e. the primary band (890-915 MHz/935-960 MHz) plus the extended band (880-890 MHz/925-935 MHz). This corresponds to 174 addressable carrier frequencies and leads to an increase of 40% against the 124 frequencies in the primary band. All BCCH frequencies and SDCCH channels are entirely supported on the GSM primary band. This allows for the support of both primary and extended band mobiles in the same network.
E-GSM Mobile Station Recognition
From messages sent by the mobile station, the BSS determines if a mobile supports the E-GSM band. The mobile station is determined to be E-GSM if: The FC bit of the Classmark 2 is set to 1 (regardless of the value of the Band 2 bit of the Classmark 3) or The FC bit of the Classmark 2 is set to 0, and the Band 2 bit of the Classmark 3 is set to 1. If the information is not available, the mobile station is considered as not supporting the G1 band. The BSS never triggers a Classmark Interrogation procedure to obtain the E-GSM ability of a mobile station.
E-GSM Management After Initial Determination
Once the E-GSM ability has been initially determined as described above, it may happen that the mobile station radio characteristics change during a transaction. If the BSC receives a classmark change message, it takes this into account and updates the E-GSM ability according to the content of the received message.
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E-GSM Determination at Handover
In the case of internal handover, the E-GSM ability of a mobile station is stored in the BSC memory. In the case of external incoming Handover, the handover request message includes either Classmark 1 or Classmark 2 IE, and optionally Classmark 3 IE. If Classmark 1 is present and Classmark 3 is not present or Classmark 3 is present but does not contain the Band 2 bit, the mobile station is not considered as E-GSM. If both Classmark 1 and Classmark 3 are present, and Classmark 3 contains the Band 2 bit, the BSC gets the E-GSM ability of the mobile station from the Classmark 3. If Classmark 2 is present and Classmark 3 is not present, or Classmark 3 is present but does not contain the Band 2 bit, the BSC gets the E-GSM ability of the mobile station from the Classmark 2 ("FC" bit). If both Classmark 2 and Classmark 3 are present, the mobile station is seen as E-GSM: If the FC bit of the Classmark 2 is set to 1 (whatever the value of the band 2 bit of the Classmark 3) If the FC bit of the Classmark 2 is set to 0 and the band 2 bit of the Classmark 3 is set to 1. After an incoming external handover, if a classmark change message has been received from the mobile station, the BSC ignores any subsequent classmark update message received from the MSC.
TCH Allocation
The allocation of G1 band channels can be done for Normal Assignment (NASS), Internal Channel Change (ICC), or External Channel Change (ECC). Each TRE has the capability to support the P-GSM or the E-GSM band. Each TRX is configured as a P-GSM TRX or a G1 TRX. When a TCH is needed, if it is for an E-GSM mobile station then a TCH belonging to the G1 TRX subset is preferably chosen. If no resource is available in the G1 TRX subset, the mobile station is allocated to the P-GSM TRX subset.
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1.5 External Components

The BSS communicates with three external components: The NSS on the A Interface The mobile station on the Air Interface The OMC-R on the BSS/OMC-R Interface. The following figure shows the logical position of the External Components.
PLMN
Mobile Stations Network Subsystem
A Interface
Base Station Subsystem BTS BTS BTS

Abis Interface Ater Interface
Fixed Network PSTN
MSC
Transcoder BSC MFS

Gb Interface
SGSN
GGSN
PSDN
OMCR
HLR
NMC
GGSN HLR MFS NMC PSDN PSTN SGSN
: Gateway GRPS Support Node : Home Location Register : Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server : Network Management Center : Packet Switched Data Network : Public Switched Telephone Network : Serving GRPS Support Node
Figure 6: Logical Position of External Components Associated with BSS
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1.5.1 Network Subsystem

Managing communication within the PLMN and external networks is the primary role of the NSS. The NSS manages the subscriber administration databases. It contains the following components: MSC Home Location Register Visitor Location Register Authentication Center Equipment Identity Register. The Alcatel BSS shall support several own PLMN (up to four, at least one); an OMC-R may thus manage at least one (own) PLMN and up to eight PLMN (four own + four foreign). Both cell reselections and handovers shall be allowed between two cells belonging to different own PLMN.
MSC
Performs and coordinates the outgoing and incoming Call Set Up function. The MSC is a large capacity switch used for passing mobile traffic to mobile subscribers, or to subscribers of external networks. This part of the NSS interfaces with the BSS. The HLR is the central database within a given network for mobile subscriber specific data. It contains static data such as access authorization, information about subscribers and supplementary services. It also controls the dynamic data about the cell in which the mobile station is located. The VLR temporarily stores information about mobile stations entering its coverage area. Linked to one or more MSCs, the VLR transmits data to a new VLR when a mobile station changes areas. The AuC manages the security data used for subscriber authentication. The EIR contains the lists of mobile station equipment identities.
Home Location Register
Visitor Location Register
Authentication Center Equipment Identity Register
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1.5.2 Mobile Stations

Mobile stations provide radio and processing functions which allow subscribers to access the mobile network via the Air Interface. Subscriber related information is stored on a specific device called a SIM. The SIM is a removable smart-card that conforms to internationally recognized standards specified by the ISO. It contains the IMSI. This is used by the Network Operator to identify the subscriber in the network and to provide security and protection against misuse. Each mobile station has its own IMEI. The IMEI is used by the Network Operator to prevent stolen, or non-type approved mobile stations, from accessing the network. There are three types of mobile station in GSM: Phase 1 Phase 1 extended Phase 2. For information on GPRS mobile stations, refer to GPRS Elements (Section 2.1.2). Mobile stations have different capabilities according to the class of mobile station and the purpose for which the mobile station was designed. These differences include power output and ciphering. Only phase 2 mobile stations can turn off ciphering, or change the ciphering mode, during a channel change procedure such as a handover. The ciphering capability of a mobile station is signalled to the BSS in the mobile station classmark. Ciphering is used to protect information transmitted on the Air Interface. This is performed between the BTS and the mobile station (i.e. Air Interface). Transmission ciphering does not depend on the type of data to be transmitted (i.e. speech, user data, signalling), but to normal transmission bursts. See Ciphering (Section 3.8) for further information concerning mobile station ciphering capabilities.
Mobile Station Idle Mode
A mobile station is in idle mode when it is switched on, but not communicating with the network on an SDCCH or a traffic channel. The BSS supports three idle mode functions: Cell selection and cell reselection Location updating Overload control.
Mobile Station Cell Selection and Reselection
A mobile station monitors the broadcast messages from the BTS. This includes monitoring the FCCH and SCH. The mobile station chooses the best cell on which to camp. If this cell is in a location area other than that stored in the mobile station memory, then the mobile station initiates a location update procedure. For a mobile station to camp on a cell, it has to synchronize with the cell. The BTS broadcasts an FCCH and an SCH at a defined time in the BCCH cycle. These channels are used as reference points for the mobile station to synchronize with the BCCH. Once synchronized, the mobile station continues to monitor these channels to stay synchronized.
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This type of synchronization, along with cell configuration and channel frequency information, enables the mobile station to calculate where channels occur in the multiframe sequences. Timing advance information is sent to the mobile station when an SDCCH is assigned. The mobile station uses the channel configuration information to calculate which part of the CCCH contains its paging message, and therefore which time slot to monitor for paging messages. When the mobile station is camped on a cell, it continues to monitor the BCCH transmissions from neighboring cells. The BCCH frequencies of the neighboring cells are transmitted on the BCCH of the home cell (sys_info 2). It can decide to camp on a new cell if it receives a better signal from an adjacent cell. Reasons for moving to a new cell include: A problem in the existing cell The mobile station moving. If the mobile station moves to a new cell which is in the same location area as the one currently in its memory, it does not initiate a location update. It recalculates its paging group and monitors the new paging channel. Paging messages are broadcast from all cells in a particular location area.
GSM/GPRS to UMTS Cell Reselection
The reselection of a UTRAN cell is triggered by a multi-RAT mobile station in circuit-switched idle mode, packet-switched idle mode, or packet-switched transfer mode. In NC0 mode, a multi-RAT mobile station can reselect a UTRAN cell in any GMM state. In dedicated mode, the multi-RAT mobile station follows the GSM handover procedures. The BSS then broadcasts the set of UTRAN cell parameters which allows the multi-RAT mobile station to reselect a UTRAN cell on its own. The location update procedure is always initiated by the mobile station. Location update is performed after the call has finished (cell reselection). Reasons for location updates include: A periodic update Periodic location update is performed by the mobile station after a lack of signalling activity for a specific time. If the timer expires, the mobile station initiates a location update, even if it has not changed Location Area. The duration of the mobile station timer is defined by the network and sent to the mobile station as system information messages on the BCCH. The time can be between six minutes and 25 hours. A handover to a cell in a new location area. When a mobile station is handed over to a cell in a new location area, there is no automatic location update in the network. A new Location Area Identity in the BCCH (sys_info 3 and sys_info 4) is detected by the mobile station when the current call has finished, and initiates the location update procedure. This saves the system performing several location updates if the mobile station is handed over several times during a call. The mobile station camps on a cell with a different location area code to the one in the mobile station memory. The mobile station initiates the location update procedure by sending a channel_request message indicating that the call is for a location update. The BSS assigns a dedicated signalling channel and establishes a signalling path between the mobile station and MSC. See Mobile Originated Call (Section 3.2) for more information. When a signalling path is established, the mobile station sends the Location Area Identity of the old cell on which it was camped to the MSC. The new VLR
Location Updating
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interrogates the old VLR for authentication and subscriber information. For further information see Location Updating with Classmark Procedure (Section 3.6.3) and Authentication (Section 3.7). The Location Area Identity is made up of: Mobile Country Code Mobile Network Code Location Area Code. The BSS adds the cell identity of the mobile station current location to the message sent to the MSC. This information is sent in a Mobility Management sub-layer message and is transparent to the BSS. The NSS stores this information in either its HLR or its VLR. Following a location update procedure, the VLR can assign a new Temporary Mobile Subscriber Identity to the mobile station. See Authentication (Section 3.7) for more information about the TMSI. The following figure shows a mobile station as it moves to a new location area.
Mobile Station
BTS
BSC BSC
MSC
VLR
Mobile Station connecting in a new location area
Mobile Station
Protocol Messages
BTS
BSC BSC
MSC
VLR
VLR
: Visitor Location Register
Figure 7: Location Update
Overload Control
To protect the system against overload, the system can bar access to mobile stations, by changing the RACH control information in the system information messages described in Table 1. For further information, see GPRS Overload Control (Section 2.6.3) and Overload Control (Section 4.7).
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1.5.3 Phase 2 Mobile Support in a Phase 1 Infrastructure

When a phase 2 mobile station is used in a phase 1 infrastructure network, the BSS functions as phase 2 on the Air Interface and has the capability of functioning as phase 1 or phase 2, depending on the MSC capabilities. The infrastructure (BSS and MSC) remains phase 1. This conforms to updated GSM recommendations for phase 1. The problems of using phase 2 mobile stations on a phase 1 network are: The implementation rules for phase 1 are not strictly defined. Therefore some implementations cannot function with phase 2 mobiles. For example, some of the spare bits in phase 1 are now used by the phase 2 protocol. However, some phase 1 infrastructures reject the message as spare bits are used Some protocol changes in phase 2 changed or replaced a phase 1 protocol For example, power and quality measurements sent by phase 2 mobile stations have a finer range of power control, which the phase 1 infrastructure must process Phase 2 mobile stations send some phase 2 messages even though they are in a phase 1 environment. For example, phase 2 mobile stations send either new messages or new elements in messages, which the phase 1 infrastructure could reject. This blacklists the mobile station due to an invalid protocol message for phase 1. Depending on what these messages are, the updates to the phase 1 infrastructure would accept these messages/elements. The messages can be either ignored or only partly treated. This is based on information contained within the messages or elements.
1.5.4 Operations and Maintenance Center-Radio

The OMC-R supervises one or more BSSs. It performs the following functions: Manages the BSS software versions Acts as the central repository for configurations Manages fault and performance measurement reports Handles supervision of alarms and events Manages the MFS. The reported data is available to the operator from the OMC-Rs central database. The OMC-R only performs O&M activities. It does not perform user traffic processing or call establishment and control activities. Refer to the Operations & Maintenance Principles for more information. Operator actions via the terminal interface trigger commands throughout the BSS. The OMC-R provides object-oriented management information, and supports a Manager/Agent scheme to perform and control management activities. The terminal interface supports different user profiles with different access rights.
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1.6 Network Management

Normally the OMC-R provides all the network management and control functions required by the BSS. However, the management and control functions are proprietary to the system supplier. In keeping with International Telecommunications Union and European Telecommunication Standards Institute recommendations, the Telecommunications Management Network structure has been developed to standardize the Network Management function. Network Management is compatible with all equipment, even that of different manufacturers. Network Management is controlled from one or several NMCs.
1.6.1 Telecommunications Management Network

The ability to transfer management information across the Telecommunications Management Network environment is defined by a protocol suite, the Q Interfaces. The following figure shows the hierarchical structure of the Telecommunications Management Network. It graphically defines the respective management responsibilities in the three main levels of the Management Information Tree. Telecommunications Management Network is more fully discussed in the BSS/MFS and TMN Functions section of the Operations & Maintenance Principles document.
NMC Operator (Resource Management) NMC Q3 OSS Network Management & Network Element Management
OMCR Operator (Resource and Equipment Management)
OMCR
Mediation Function
MFS
Network Element
Security Block (SBL) Management
BSC
BSS
BTS
BTS
BTS
OSS MFS NMC
: Operation Support System : Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server : Network Management Center
Figure 8: TMN System Hierarchy
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1.6.2 Q3 Interface
Communication between the NMC and the OMC-R takes place across the Q3 Interface (see Figure 8). The Q3 protocols can be divided into the following main areas: Association connection and disconnection mechanisms Message format and structure Command types. For further information on Network Management and the Q3 Interface see the Operations & Maintenance Principles document.
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1.7 BSS Telecommunications Layers

The telecommunications functions of a GSM network are split into layers. These layers are split into two basic categories: The Application layer is split into sub-layers, to control: Call Management Mobility Management Radio Resource Management. The transmission layers which provide transmission between the various components.
Note:
These transmission layers relate to the OSI layers, that is, the Physical Layer (i.e. Layer 1) and the Data Layer (i.e. Layer 2). The protocols used for these layers are standard. The following figure shows the general distribution of the telecommunication functions within a GSM network.
MS BTS BSC NSS CM MM RRM GSM Application Layers
TRANSMISSION
CM MM MS RRM
: Call Management : Mobility Management : Mobile Station : Radio Resource Management
Figure 9: General Telecommunication Layers within GSM
1.7.1 Call Management

The Call Management sub-layer performs Call Control to establish, maintain and release calls. SMS within Call Management allows the mobile station to send and receive messages of up to 160 characters. The Supplementary Service functions are also provided to the mobile stations as part of Call Management.
1.7.2 Mobility Management

The Mobility Management sub-layer is used by the NSS to manage the subscriber database, including information on subscriber location and authentication. It is also used by the mobile stations to send location updates when they move to new location areas.
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1.7.3 Radio Resource Management

The Radio Resources Management sub-layer establishes, maintains and releases stable connections between the mobile station and the MSC for the duration of a call. This includes functions such as managing the limited radio resources, to ensure high service availability. It also performs handovers when a mobile station moves during a call, or the channel quality falls below an acceptable level. RRM functions occur mainly between the mobile station and the BSC. The following figure shows the application layers, transmission layers and Interfaces of the BSS.
MS BTS BSC MSC CM MM RRM BSSAP BSSAP BSSAP GSM Application Layers
LAPDm
LAPDm
LAPD
LAPD
SCCP SS7
SCCP SS7
Layer 2
Layer 1
Layer 1
Layer 1
Layer 1
Layer 1
Layer 1
08.60 Air Interface

BSSAP CM LAPD LAPDm MM RRM SCCP SS7 TC : BSS Application Part : Call Management : Link Access Protocol on the D Channel : Link Access Protocol on the Dm Channel : Mobility Management : Radio Resource Management : Signal Connection Control Part : Signaling System No. 7 : Transcoder
TC A Interface
Abis Interface
Figure 10: BSS Application, Transmission Layers and Interfaces
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1.7.4 The A Interface

The A Interface is used for communication between the BSC and the MSC. The connection between the BSC and MSC can be via one of the following: Terrestrial lines Satellite link. The A Interface comprises the: Physical layer 1 Data Link layer 2 RRM sub-layer 3 of the application layer.
Physical Layer 1
The physical layer provides a physical connection to transport the signals. It supports a 2 Mbit/s link divided into 32 x 64 kbit/s channels by Time Division Multiplex. The actual physical link used depends on Network Operator implementation. Layer 2 provides the frame handling functions for the interface. It is also used to pass signalling messages using the International Telecommunications Union signalling System No. 7 protocol. This comprises: Message Transfer Part, which provides the mechanism for reliable transfer of the signalling messages Signalling Connection Control Part, which provides the mechanism to identify transactions relating to a specific communication.
Data Link Layer 2
Application Sub-layer RRM
To transfer layer 3 messages relating to a transaction, the SCCP uses the BSS Application Part. This is divided into two parts: Direct Transfer Application Part, which transfers messages directly between the MSC and the mobile station. These messages are not interpreted by the BSS. The BSS must read and recognize the initial message as a DTAP message BSS Management Application Part which supports procedures between the MSC and the BSC, such as resource management and handover control. On the A Interface, the process is terminated at the BSC. Messages for the BSS, passed by the BSSMAP, are interpreted by the BSC layer 3.
Ater Interface
The part of the A Interface between the Transcoder and BSC is known as the Ater Mux Interface. The Ater Mux Interface is the result of multiplexing four Ater Interfaces. Transcoding is a layer 1 process, therefore the difference between the two interfaces is at the physical level. This feature improves efficiency on the Ater Mux PCM connection between the G2 BSC and the G2 Transcoder. Four Ater Interfaces are submultiplexed onto the Ater Mux connection. This interconnects four Digital Trunk Controllers and four Transcoder Rate Adaption Units, achieving a 4:1 mapping. The 4:1 mapping of the G2 BSC and G2 Transcoder allows up to 116 traffic channels.
Optimized Ater Interface Mapping
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1.7.5 The Abis Interface

The Abis Interface is used for communication between the BSC and the BTS. The Abis Interface comprises: Physical layer 1 Data Link layer 2 BTS management sub-layer 3 of the application layer.
Physical Layer 1
The physical layer provides a physical connection to transport the signals. It supports a 2 Mbit/s link divided into 32 x 64 kbit/s channels by TDM. The physical link used depends on the Network Operator implementing the interface.
Data Link Layer 2
The data link layer provides frame handling and signalling functions using the LAPD. This layer supports three types of signalling links: The Radio Signalling Link for signalling to the mobile station (including SMS) The O&M Link for O&M information The OML Auto-detection feature (see OML Auto-detection (Section 8.4.5)) allows the time slot reserved for the O&M Link to be used for signalling (if there are no G1/G2 BTS on the Abis interface). This provides for an increase in the amount of telecom traffic on the Abis interface. The Layer 2 Management Link for the layer 2 management functions such as frame checking and error correction.
Application Sub-layer BTS
The BTS management layer is used for layer 3 messages between the BSC and the BTS. Some of these messages are transparent to the BTS. These are passed directly to the mobile station using the BTS RR management sub-layer 3 on the Air Interface. Non-transparent messages include messages for radio link layer control and channel management.
1.7.6 Satellite Links

The Abis and Ater interfaces were designed to use terrestrial transmission links. However, in developing countries the terrestrial transmission infrastructure does not exist and in many cases is difficult and costly to provide. There is also a need in the developed world to provide temporary GSM coverage for transient mobile population density increases, for example at sporting events. Using geostationary earth orbiting satellites is a simple and relatively low cost solution to these problems. Unfortunately, there is one major drawback, transmission delay. The Geostationary orbit is located at an altitude of 35,786 km above the equator, therefore propagation delay of radio signals can vary between 119 ms at the equator to a maximum delay of 139 ms. The delay for one hop (the path from one point on earth to another point, via one satellite link) varies between 238 and 278 ms. This delay degrades speech quality, but although the degradation is worse than experienced in the PSTN, it is usable. The delay also has an effect on signaling messages. Satellite links can be used on the Abis interface or on the Ater interface (but not both).
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Modification of parameters is done from the OMC and propagated to the BSC and the concerned BTSs. A new connection type parameter is associated to each Abis link. The operator can set the parameter at Abis creation time. If the satellite link is to be made using the Ater interface, the new connection type parameter associated to Ater as a whole is used. Both Abis and Ater connection types can be either terrestrial, or via satellite. The default value for each is terrestrial.
Note:
This is not a standard GSM feature and Alcatel cannot guarantee the performance because there are so many unknown factors, such as error rate and mobile population variations, which have significant effects because of the delay.
1.7.6.1 Abis Interface Using Satellite Links

This feature is available only for EVOLIUM BTSs and later. When the link is installed on the Abis interface, for those BTS where the satellite link is installed, the following features are not available: Closed multidrop PCM synchronization (the BTS must be configured as free running) GPRS not supported. GPRS connections are not supported for: All BTS if the satellite is between MFS and BSC Some BTS if the satellite is between BSC and BTS. GPRS timers are generally shorter than GSM timers and the establishment of the connection may fail due to the round trip delay induced by the satellite link. The coding of the parameter BS_CV_Max, which defines the round trip delay on the radio interface cannot be extended for satellite usage. Synchronous handovers, fax and data (in circuit-switched mode, transparent and not transparent), are supported.
1.7.6.2 Ater Interface Using Satellite Links

On the Ater interface, the satellite link can be installed either on the Ater (between the BSC and the Transcoder), or on the A interface (between the Transcoder and the MSC). Because this latter case is rare, the wording Ater is used for both cases. When only some of the time slots are routed via the satellite, at least the Qmux and the X.25 (if the satellite link is on the A interface) must be routed. Channels that are not routed must be blocked, either from the MSC or from the OMC-R. If only one link is forwarded, there will be no longer be redundancy on the following: System No. 7, X.25, and Qmux.
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1.7.7 The Air Interface

The Air Interface is the radio interface between the BTS and the mobile station. The Air Interface comprises: Physical layer 1 Data Link layer 2 RRM sub-layer 3 of the application layer.
Physical Layer 1 Data Link Layer 2 Application Sub-Layer Radio Resources Management
The physical layer is a radio link where channels are divided by time and frequency. The data link layer provides frame handling and signalling functions, using a modified version of the LAPDm. On the Air Interface, most of the layer 3 messages are transparent to the BTS. The BTS uses layer 3 to extract certain information from some messages before passing on the equivalent message. For example, when the BTS receives an encryption_command message from the BSC, it reads the Ki value and the algorithm to be used, before passing on the cipher_mode_command message. This procedure is explained in detail in Ciphering (Section 3.8).
Air Interface Channels
The Air Interface is divided by frequency and time, using Frequency-Division Multiplex Access and Time Division Multiple Access. This provides frames of eight time slots for each frequency supported by the cell. The channels of the cell are then assigned to specific time slots within the Time Division Multiple Access frames. GPRS traffic uses the same radio resources as circuit-switched traffic, and is carried on the same type of physical channel. Refer to GPRS in the BSS (Chapter 2) for information on GPRS channels. However, not all channels require the full capacity of a time slot at each occurrence of a frame. Channels are configured to share time slots by only using certain occurrences of the frame. The cycle of frame occurrences is known as a multiframe. A multiframe can be 26 or 51 occurrences of a frame, depending on the channels configured within it. Within a multiframe, the same physical channel can support more than one logical channel. The following figure shows time slot four of a TDMA frame supporting Access Grant Channels.
A G C H
A G C H
A G C H
A G C H
A G C H
Frame 1
AGCH
Frame 2
Frame 3
Frame 4
Frame 5
: Access Grant Channel
Figure 11: Time Slot 4 of a Time Division Multiple Access Frame Supporting Access Grant Channels
Channels can be divided into traffic channels and control channels.
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Traffic Channels
A traffic channel can be used for speech or data. The Alcatel BSS supports the following types of traffic channels: Speech: Full-rate speech traffic channel Enhanced full-rate speech traffic channel Half-rate speech traffic channel. Data: Full-rate data traffic channel (9.6 Kbit/s) Full-rate data traffic channel (4.8 Kbit/s) Half-rate data traffic channel (4.8 Kbit/s) Full-rate data traffic channel (<2.4 Kbit/s) Half-rate data traffic channel (<2.4 Kbit/s).
Control Channels
CCHs control communications between the BSS and the mobile stations. There are three types of CCH: The BCCH broadcast cell information to any mobile station in range. Three channels use the BCCH time slot: FCCH: used on the downlink for frequency correction of the mobile station with the BTS SCH: used on the downlink for frame synchronization of the mobile station with the BTS BCCH: used to broadcast system information to the mobile stations on the downlink, to give the cell configuration, and how to access the cell. The CCCH communicate with mobile stations in the cell before a dedicated signalling channel is established. Three channels use the CCCH time slot: RACH: used on the uplink by the mobile station for initial access to the network PCH: used on the downlink for paging messages to the mobile station AGCH: used on the downlink to give the mobile station access information before a dedicated channel is assigned. The DCCH and ACCH pass signalling information for a specific mobile station transaction. Two channels use the DCCH time slot: SDCCH: used for signalling and short message information CBCH: uses an SDCCH channel for Short Message Service Cell Broadcasts.
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Two channels use the ACCH time slot: FACCH: associated with a traffic channel, and can steal slots out of 24 or 26 slots which are normally dedicated to the traffic channel for signalling purposes as well as the SACCH slot SACCH: associated with a traffic channel, which uses 1 out of 26 slots for signalling purposes. An ACCH channel is always associated with a traffic channel.
System Information Messages
System information messages transmit information about the cell to the mobile station. There are six system information messages. Four are sent on the BCCH as a general broadcast to any mobile stations in the cells, and two sent on the SACCH to mobile stations in communication with the BSS. System information messages 2 and 5 have several variations to avoid compatibility problems with phase 1 mobile stations. The following table shows the system information messages, the channel on which they are transmitted and the type of information in each.
Message Sys_info 1
Channel BCCH
Information Cell channel description. RACH control information.
Sys_info 2
BCCH
Neighbor cell BCCH frequency list Indication of which Network Color Code it is allowed to monitor. RACH control information.
Sys_info 2bis (multiband systems only)
BCCH
Extended Neighbor cell BCCH frequency list in same band as serving cell. This message is only sent if Sys_info 2 is not sufficient to encode all available frequencies. RACH control information. Spare bits.
Sys_info 2ter (multiband systems only)
BCCH
Extended Neighbor cell BCCH frequency list in different band as serving cell. The minimum number of cells, if available, to be reported in each supported band in measurement results. RACH control information. Spare bits.
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Message Sys_info 3
Channel BCCH
Information Cell Identity Location Area Identity Control channel description Cell options: Power central information Discontinuous Transmission (mechanism) information Radio link timeout. Cell selection parameters: Cell reselect hysteresis for Location Area reselection Maximum transmit power allowed in cell Additional reselection parameter Allows/forbids new establishment causes (phase 2 mobile stations) Minimum receive level to access cell. RACH control information Spare bits setting flags and timers.
Sys_info 4
BCCH
Location Area Identity Cell selection parameters: Cell reselect hysteresis for Location Area reselection Maximum transmit power allowed in cell Additional reselection parameter Allows/forbids new establishment causes (phase 2 mobile stations) Minimum receive level to access cell. RACH control information CBCH channel description CBCH Mobile Allocation Spare bits setting flags and timers.
Sys_info 5 Sys_info 5bis (multiband systems only)
SACCH SACCH
Neighbor cell BCCH frequency list. Extended Neighbor cell BCCH frequency list. This message is only sent if: The serving cell is a GSM 1800 cell and Sys_info 5 is not sufficient to encode all GSM 1800 neighbor frequencies The serving cell is a GSM 900 cell and The mobile station is phase 2 and There are neighboring GSM 1800 cells and Sys_info 5ter is not sufficient to encode all of the GSM 1800 cells.
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Message Sys_info 5ter (multiband systems and phase 2 mobile stations only) Sys_info 6
Channel SACCH
Information Extended Neighbor cell BCCH frequency list in different band as serving cell. The minimum number of cells, if available, to be reported in each supported band in measurement results.
SACCH
CI Location Area Identity Cell options: Power control information Discontinuous Transmission information Radio link timeout Indication of which Network Color Code it is allowed to monitor.
Table 1: System Information Messages
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2 GPRS in the BSS

GPRS in the BSS, provides an introduction to GPRS and describes: Overview Packet Switching GPRS Elements GPRS Channels and Interfaces GPRS Network Functions GPRS Data Transmission.
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2.1 Overview
The success of GSM has taken place in parallel with the explosion of interest in the Internet and related data services. Presently, data transmission over the air interface is limited to 9.6 kb/s, too slow for use of graphics-intensive services such as the World Wide Web and personal video conferencing. In addition, the circuit-switched method used for data transmission makes inefficient use of radio resources, which are under increasing pressure from the growth in GSM subscribers and use. The solution chosen by European Telecommunication Standards Institute for the double challenge of increased demand for data service and pressure on radio resources is called General Packet Radio Service. The European Telecommunication Standards Institute recommendations establish a standard for inserting an alternative transmission method for data in the PLMN: packet switching instead of circuit switching. The Alcatel GPRS solution follows the ETSI GSM phase 2+ recommendations closely.
2.1.1 Packet Switching

In circuit switching, a connection is established and maintained during the entire length of the exchange, whether data is being transmitted or not. Resources are dedicated to a single end-to-end connection, and a radio channel in a cell, with its associated transmission channels, may be unavailable for use even when little or no information is passing across it at a given moment. In packet-switched systems, data is transmitted over virtual circuits, which exist only while data is actively being transmitted over them. This means that during idle time, time slots can be used for carrying other data. Packet-switching systems operate according to the following general procedures: 1. The PAD function disassembles data into packets of a predefined size. 2. The PAD encloses the packets in a data envelope (headers and footers). This data envelope includes information about origination and destination points, and the order in which the packets contents are to be reassembled at the destination. The following figure shows a model of a GPRS Packet Data Unit at the LLC layer. 3. Packets move from origination to destination point by different routes and can arrive at the destination in a different order than that in which they were sent.
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4. At the destination, another PAD reads the envelope information, strips it off, and reassembles the data in the proper order.
Header Address Control Field Field DATA
Information Field
Footer
FCS
ENVELOPE
Address Field Contains: Protocol discriminator Command/response SAPI (mobility management, QoS, SMS)
FCS SAPI : Frame Check Sequence
Control Field 4 possible types: Confirmed information transfer Supervisory functions Unconfirmed information transfer Control functions
: Service Access Point Indicator
Figure 12: Model LLC Packet Data Unit used in GPRS

Examples of packet switching protocols include X.25 and Internet Protocol. Since GPRS is compatible with these widely used protocols, it is suitable for access to public or custom packet data services, or to the Internet. Mobile telephones using packet data services must be connected to a portable computer or an electronic organizer.
2.1.2 GPRS Elements

The different elements shown in the figure below represent a parallel system to the circuit-switched system used in GSM until now.
To Public Data Networks
MS
OMCR Gb FRDN Gb Packet Switched Traffic
SGSN
GGSN
BSS
BTS GCH BTS Abis BSC GCH BSCGP Transcoder Ater MSC/ VLR Circuit Switched Traffic MFS
To PSTN
GCH
BSCGP FRDN GCH GGSN MFS PSTN SGSN VLR
: BSC GPRS Protocol : Frame Relay Data Network : GPRS Channel : Gateway GRPS Support Node : Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server : Public Switched Telephone Network : Serving GRPS Support Node : Visitor Location Register
Figure 13: The Alcatel GPRS solution in the PLMN
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In the Alcatel solution, the Multi-BSS Fast packet Server with its associated interfaces is the BSS element. All other components are external to the BSS. The following internal and external components are described in this chapter: GPRS mobiles The Serving GPRS Support Node The Gateway GPRS Support Node The Multi-BSS Fast packet Server.
GPRS Mobiles
There are three classes of GPRS-capable mobile stations: Class A Class B Class C. Currently, only class B and C mobile stations are supported.
Class A Class B
Class A mobile stations can handle circuit-switched voice and GPRS traffic simultaneously. Class B mobile stations can be IMSI attached and GPRS attached at the same time, but use only one service (circuit-switched or GPRS) at a time. A GPRS attached class B mobile station can initiate an IMSI connection and suspend its GPRS service in the following cases: When the user is not engaged in any GPRS data transfer, and either: A mobile station originated call is initiated The mobile station receives a mobile termination call. When the user is engaged in a GPRS session (e.g. an internet session), and either: A mobile station originated call is initiated The mobile station receives a mobile termination call. The mobile station performs a LAU procedure in network mode II or network mode III
Class C The Serving GPRS Support Node
Class C mobile stations an be either IMSI attached or GPRS but not both, and can use circuit-switched or GPRS services alternately. The SGSN is a GPRS network entity at the same hierarchical level as the MSC. It is external to the BSS and communicates with it via Frame Relay over the Gb interface. The SGSN is involved in requesting specific network resources for GPRS traffic. It performs GPRS paging, authentication, and cipher setting procedures based on the same algorithms, keys and criteria as in circuit-switched GSM traffic. When a mobile station wants to access GPRS services, it makes its presence known to the network by performing a GPRS Attach procedure. This establishes a logical link between the mobile station and the SGSN. The mobile station is then available for SMS over GPRS, paging from the SGSN, and notification of incoming GPRS data.
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The SGSN also participates with other network elements in the routing and relaying of packets from one node to another. One SGSN can be connected to many MSCs and many MFSs.
The Gateway GPRS Support Node
The GGSN is connected with SGSNs via an IP-based backbone. It provides interworking between the GPRS network and external packet switched networks. It is external to the BSS. When the mobile station sends or receives GPRS data, it activates the Packet Data Protocol address that it wants to use. This has the effect of making the mobile station known to the GGSN. User data is transferred transparently from the mobile station and external data systems by the GGSN using encapsulation and tunnelling. This allows data packets equipped with GPRS-specific protocol information to be transferred between the mobile station and GGSN. This reduces the requirement for the GPRS system to interpret external data protocols. The GGSN also works with other network elements in the routing and relaying of packets from one node to another.
The Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server
See The Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server (Section 1.3.4) for details of the MFS
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2.2 GPRS Channels and System Information Messages

GPRS traffic uses the same radio resources as circuit-switched traffic, and is carried on the same type of physical channel. When a physical channel is allocated to carry packet logical channels (using TDMA frames, as does circuit-switched traffic), it is called a Packet Data Channel, or PDCH.
2.2.1 Master Channels

Master Channels are packet channels that carry Packet Broadcast Control Channel (PBCCH) only on the primary MPDCH, the Packet Common Control Channel (PCCCH), the Packet Data Traffic Channel (PDTCH) and the Packet Associated Control Channel (PACCH). They allow: More performance packet services to be offered through: Enhanced cell reselection by using optimized cell reselection criteria Optimized system information reception (the mobile station does not interrupt its data transfer to acquire or refresh system information from serving and neighbor cells) Faster TBF establishment (through dedicated PCCCH channels and multislot TBF allocation in one phase). GPRS signalling traffic to be placed on dedicated PCCCH channels. To prevent CCCH channel congestion, and thus degradation of the quality of the circuit-switched services, even at a low level of GPRS traffic (e.g. cells where the signalling induced by the circuit-switched services is already high, or cells at the border of a Location Area). Multiple MPDCHs may be required in case of an increase in the GPRS traffic in the cell. There are two types of Master Channel: GPRS Primary GPRS Secondary Primary Master Channels can be statically or dynamically allocated, secondary Master Channels can only be dynamically allocated.
2.2.2 Static Allocation

A dedicated O&M parameter allows the operator to configure the primary MPDCH. Only a primary MPDCH can be configured for static allocation. The primary MPDCH is permanently established in the cell even if there is no GPRS traffic. This is of use if the operator wants the mobile station to perform autonomous cell reselection based on the C31 and C32 parameters, or if the paging load is high independent of the GPRS traffic.
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2.2.3 Dynamic Allocation

The number of MPDCHs needed in a cell may significantly change in a day according to the GPRS traffic variation. Dynamic allocation of MPDCHs avoids forcing the operator to permanently configure MPDCHs (and hence GPRS radio slots), even when the GPRS traffic decreases.
GPRS Primary Master Channel
A primary Master Channel can be dynamically allocated as soon as there is GPRS traffic in a cell. This feature can be enabled on a per cell basis. If there is no GPRS traffic, the primary Master Channel is released in this cell. The GPRS Primary Master Channel is a Packet Data Channel (PDCH) carrying the Packet Broadcast Control Channel (PBCCH) to broadcast GPRS system information in the cell and the Packet Common Control Channel (PCCCH) providing GPRS specific control channels. The Primary MPDCH is dynamically allocated by the BSS upon occurrence of any GPRS traffic in the cell (receipt of either a downlink LLC PDU, or a channel request from a mobile station with any establishment cause). The primary MPDCH is dynamically de-allocated when no GPRS traffic is detected during a given period (typically a few minutes). This minimizes the TCU load (and also the CCCH load). When there is a GPRS Primary Master Channel in a cell, the Alcatel BSS broadcasts its channel description on the BCCH. Mobile stations can monitor the broadcast and thus receive all GPRS specific system information pertaining to the cell. The Primary Master Channel is mandatory when the Optimized access on CCCH feature is not used. There may be at most one Primary Master Channel in a cell. The Primary Master Channel feature allows the operator to set a primary Master Channel and to benefit from the following advantages, on a per cell basis: More complete GPRS system information to be broadcast which enhances the overall performance of the network. For example, the permanent broadcast of C31 and C32 criteria enhances the cell reselection for all GPRS attached mobile stations. Better performance in a GPRS network by reducing the load on CCCH. Shortened access time for multislot mobile stations. A faster paging cycle. A higher radio resource efficiency due to the flexibility in the mapping of logical channels onto the physical channels.
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GPRS Secondary Master Channel
The GPRS Secondary Master Channel is a Packet Data Channel (PDCH) carrying the Packet Common Control Channel (PCCCH) providing GPRS specific control channels. In addition to the Primary Master Channel, one or several Secondary Master Channels can be allocated in the cell. This feature enables automatic dynamic allocation and release of secondary Master Channels based on common signalling traffic load estimates. This dynamically adapts the GPRS signalling capacity of the cell to the traffic demand. The secondary master PDCH are always dynamically established or released in the cell, regardless of whether the Primary Master Channel is statically or dynamically allocated. The feature provides the operator with the following improvements: Increase the GPRS signalling capacity as the traffic load increases in the cell. Avoids the need to reserve static radio resources to match the maximum traffic demand. Configuration of the allocation and de-allocation algorithm thresholds is performed automatically by the BSS.
2.2.4 Multiple PCCCH

To allow for an increase in GPRS traffic and its associated signaling, and advanced servises (e.g. network controlled cell reselection, GPRS in multiband networks, traffic load management), more than one MPDCH is required. A secondary MPDCH is required to handle the increase in signaling. The following logical channels can be dynamically multiplexed on one MPDCH: PBCCH PCCCH PDTCH PACCH. The MPDCH carrying the PBCCH is called the primary Master PDCH. The PBCCH carrier is indicated on the BCCH (in the SI13 message). Up to 16 MPDCH can be allocated in a cell (one primary MPCCH, 15 secondary MPDCH). The additional MPDCH are called secondary Master PDCH. When the primary MPDCH is activated, the BSC broadcasts the SI 13 message with the radio configuration of the PBCCH. When the primary MPDCH is deactivated (always decided by the MFS even following a fault, e.g. TRX recovery impacting the MPDCH), the SI 13 message no longer contains a PBCCH description. Paging and assignment messages are routed either on CCCH or PCCCH according to the presence or not of the MPDCH. To summarize, if the primary MPDCH is on slots 0 to 3, the secondary MPDCH can be located at any slot position. If primary MPDCH is on slot k (k = 4 to 7), secondary MPDCH shall be on slot n with n > k 4; in such case, the lower k is, the highest flexibility is to allocate a secondary MPDCH.
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The following table describes the parameters that can be defined by the operator. Parameter Name Definition Type Mandatory Rules
BS_PBCCH_BLKS Coded on 2 bits: 00=Block B0 used for PBCCH 01=Block B0 and B6 used for PBCCH 10=Block B0, B6, and B3 used for PBCCH 11=Block B0, B6, B3, and B9 used for PBCCH
Number if: BS_PBCCH_BLKS=1 then PSI_REPEAT_PERIOD > 3. if: BS_PBCC H_BLKS > 1 then PSI_REPEAT_PERIOD > 4/BS_PBCC H_BLKS.
BS_PAG_BLKS _RES
Number of blocks allocated to the PAGCH or PDTCH or PACCH per 52 multiframe. Number of static prach blocks. Number of dynamic prach blocks.
Number None.
BS_PRACH_ BLKS BS_PRACK_ BLKS_MAX
Number BS_PRACH_BLKS <= BS_PRACH_BLKS_MAX Number BS_PRACH_BLKS_MAX >= BS_PRACH_BLKS S/(16 * BS_PRAC H_BLKS_ MAX) > round_trip_delay.
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2.2.5 Logical Channels

The types of logical channels which can be carried on a PDCH are: Packet traffic channel Packet Timing Advance Control Channel
Packet Traffic Channel
This channel is analogous to a circuit-switched traffic channel, and is used for user data transmission and its associated signaling. It has two sub-channels: Packet Data Traffic Channel which contains the user data traffic Packet Associated Control Channel (bi-directional) which contains the signalling information. If multiple PDTCHs are assigned to one mobile station, the PACCH is always allocated on one of the PDCHs on which PDTCHs are allocated. The function of these sub channels is analogous to their circuit-switched counterparts.
Packet Timing Advance Control Channel
This bi-directional channel is used for maintaining a continuous timing advance update mechanism.
2.2.6 Virtual Channels

Packet switching is a mode of operation adapted to transmission of "bursty" data - that is, data which comes in intense "bursts" separated by periods of inactivity. The network establishes a connection during the transmission of such a "burst" of data. If there is no activity on this connection, the connection is taken down. When the original user needs to send or receive another burst of data, a new temporary connection is put up. This can be on another channel in the same cell, or in another cell if the mobile station is in motion. The routing of one burst of data may be different from the routing of another. The establishment and dis-establishment of temporary connections is transparent to the user. The user sees an exchange of data that seems to be a continuous flow, unless the network is over congested. This semblance of continuous flow is a Virtual Channel. A virtual channel can be represented as the flow of data between two terminals during a user session. The user has the impression of a single continuous connection, but in the network, this is not the case. A single data transfer, either in the uplink or in the downlink direction, can pass between the MFS and the mobile station via one or more PDCH. A PDCH is shared between multiple mobile stations and the network. It contains asymmetric and independent uplink and downlink channels.
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2.2.7 System Information Messages

GPRS system information messages, like their GSM counterparts, transmit information about the cell to the mobile station. GSM BCCH messages, shown in Table 1, are also used in GPRS. GPRS also uses the additional message shown in the following table. Message SI 13 Channel BCCH Information The SI 13 message is sent on the BCCH and contains all the necessary information required for GPRS. It also indicates the presence and the location of the PBCCH in the serving cell. The SI13 message is broadcast only if GPRS is supported in the cell.
Table 2: GPRS System Information Message

Also, when an MPDCH exists, the messages shown in the following table are used. Message PSI 1 Channel PBCCH Information The PSI 1 message is sent on the PBCCH and gives information on: Cell selection Control of the PRACH Description of the control channels Description of power control parameters. To reduce the possibility that a mobile station involved in a data transfer has to reread the PBCCH, the PSI 1 message is also broadcast on PACCH/D of a MS in packet transfer mode: When one of the packet system information messages has been modified Every T_PSI_PACCH seconds.
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PSI 2
PBCCH
The PSI 2 message is sent on the PBCCH in several instances (up to 8) in order to give information on: Reference frequency lists Cell allocation GPRS mobile allocations PCCCH channel description Non GPRS cell options applicable to circuit switched access Cell identification. If the PSI 2 message is modified, the new PSI 2 message is also broadcast on PACCH/D of a mobile station that is in packet transfer mode.
PSI 3/3bis
PBCCH
The PSI 3/3bis messages are sent on PBCCH in several instances (up to 16) in order to give information on: BCCH allocation in the neighbor cells: The list of BCCH frequencies is then called the BA(GPRS) list. Cell selection parameters for the serving cell and the neighbor cells. Localized Service Area (LSA) identification of the serving cell and of the neighbor cells for the SoLSA feature. Up to 32 neighbor cells can be defined by the PSI 3/3bis messages. In order to reduce the number of PSI3/3bis instances, the coding of the PSI3/3bis messages is optimized by compressing the redundant parameters.
PSI 8
PBCCH
The PSI 8 message is optionally sent on the PBCCH to give information on the configuration of the cell broadcast channel (CBCH).
Table 3: GPRS System Information Messages Used with MPDCH
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2.3 GPRS Interfaces

New interfaces have been introduced for GPRS needs. These interfaces link the MFS and the SGSN, the BTS, and the BSC.
2.3.1 The Gb Interface

The Gb interface uses frame relay techniques to link the PCU function of the MFS and the SGSN. Physically, it can be routed in a variety of ways: A direct connection between the MFS and the SGSN Via a public Frame Relay Data Network Via the MSC Via the Ater Mux interface through the Transcoder to the MSC. In this case it carries a combination of packet-switched and circuit-switched traffic and signalling. Combinations of these methods are also possible. See Figure 13 for the position of the Gb interface in the system. The Gb interface provides end-to-end signaling between the MFS and the SGSN, and serves as the BSS-GPRS backbone. Its principal functions are shown in the following table. Function Network services Description Transfer of BSSGP-PDUs between BSS and SGSN Allocation and load sharing of PDUs among Virtual Channels Access to intermediate Frame Relay Data Network BSS-GPRS Protocol services Radio resource information Quality of Service Information Routing information Transfer of LLC-PDUs between the BSS and the SGSN Suspend and Resume procedures for class B mobile stations
Table 4: Gb Interface Functions
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2.3.2 The BSCGP Interface

The BSCGP interface provides communication between the BSC and the MFS (see Figure 13). The BSC GPRS Protocol controls two LAPDs connections (for redundancy) using 64 kb/s time slots. The following information is carried on the BSCGP Interface: Function Common radio signaling Description Circuit-switched and packet-switched paging (MFS to BSC) Channel Requests from BSC to MFS Uplink and downlink channel assignment (MFS to BSC) GPRS radio resource management Allocation/de-allocation of resources (MFS to BSC) Release indication (BSC to MFS) Load indication: this limits the allocation for GPRS traffic (BSC to MFS)
Table 5: BSCGP Interface Functions
Note:
The common radio signaling functions of the BSCGP are handled on the GPRS Signaling Link, which is carried inside the Ater interface.
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2.3.3 The GCH Interface

The GCH interface provides a synchronous connection between the MFS and the BTS, using 16 kb/s time slots. The GCH links pass transparently through the BSC (see Figure 13). Its functions are as follows: Transfer of PDUs between MFS and BTS (thus packet data is not directly handled by the BSC but passes transparently through it on the GCH interface) Synchronization with the radio interface at GCH link establishment Correction of clock drifts between Abis and BTS clocks. The protocol for the GCH interface uses two layers: L1-GCH layer L1-GCH is the physical layer based on ITU-T recommendations G.703. The L1-GCH layer utilizes digital transmission at a rate of 2048 kbit/s with a frame of 32 x 64 kbit/s time slots. An L1-GCH channel has a transmission rate of 16 kbit/s. L2-GCH layer L2-GCH is the data link layer which is an Alcatel proprietary protocol. This layer is in charge of the data transfer of the GCH frames between the MFS and the BTS. The L2-GCH layer offers a service of data transport for the RLC/MAC layers located in the MFS. Its main functions are: GCH link establishment and release Synchronization with the radio interface RLC/MAC PDUs transfer. For more information on GSM transmission, refer to Call Set Up (Chapter 3).
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2.4 GPRS Network Functions

This section describes various GPRS-specific network functions necessary for successful packet data transfer. This includes paging, cell reselection, error checking and reestablishment, as well as radio power control and link measurement.
MAC and RLC Functions
Since multiple mobile stations can be competing for the same physical resource(s), an arbitration procedure is necessary. This is provided by the Medium Access Control function. The MAC function operates between the MFS and the mobile station, and works in conjunction with the Radio Link Control function. Radio Link Control defines the procedures for retransmission of unsuccessfully delivered data blocks (error correction) and for the disassembly and reassembly of PDUs.
Temporary Block Flow
When PDUs need to be transferred between the MFS and the mobile station, a temporary point-to-point physical connection is set up to support the unidirectional transfer of PDUs on one or more PDCHs. This connection is called a Temporary Block Flow. A Temporary Block Flow is maintained only for the duration of the data transfer. The Temporary Block Flow is allocated radio resources on one or more PDCHs and comprises a number of RLC/MAC blocks carrying one or more PDUs. A typical user session in which data is exchanged bi-directionally requires the establishment of one Temporary Block Flow in each direction, and the path of each Temporary Block Flow can be different.
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2.4.1 Mobility Management

Since the integrity of the data transmitted is crucial, packet-switched networks employ a method of error checking. This confirms that the data received correspond exactly to the data transmitted. In GPRS, an LLC-PDU includes a Frame Check Sequence used to detect errors in the header and information fields of the PDU (see Figure 12). The Frame Check Sequence uses the Cyclic Redundancy Check method of error checking. When an error is detected, retransmission of the LLC-PDU is requested. This characteristic of packet-switched data transfer means that handovers, as they are done in traditional circuit-switched GSM calls, are not necessary. Mobility Management in GPRS can be accomplished by the combination of autonomous cell reselection by the mobile station and packet error correction. The process is as follows: 1. The mobile station performs an autonomous cell reselection. The process is based on average measurements of received signal strength on the PBCCH frequencies of the serving cell and the neighbor cells as indicated in the GPRS neighbor cell list. The cell reselection procedure is the same as for circuit-switched traffic, but based on GPRS reselection parameters configurable by the operator. If the cell does not have a PBCCH the mobile station applies existing circuit switching parameters using the BCCH. 2. Once the mobile station is camped on the new cell, the data transfer is resumed If an LLC-PDU has not been correctly received, it is re-emitted. This process produces a slight overhead on throughput but has the advantage of greatly simplifying the cell change process.
Re-establishment
If the mobile station detects a radio link failure, it will re-establish the link with the SGSN. The BSS transmits the reselection configuration parameters to be used by the mobile station. Mobile controlled re-selection is equivalent to circuit-switched call re-establishment. Refer to Call Re-establishment by the Mobile Station (Section 4.8) for more information.
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2.4.2 Paging
Paging is the procedure by which the network contacts a mobile station. The network can coordinate circuit-switched and packet-switched paging, if there is a Gs interface between the MSC and the SGSN. This means that circuit-switched paging messages can be sent on the channels used for packet-switched paging messages, and vice-versa. Three modes are defined. Mode Network Operation Mode 1 Description Circuit-switched paging messages are sent via the SGSN and MFS The circuit-switched paging message for the GPRS-attached mobile station is sent on the PPCH or CCCH paging channel, or on the PACCH. This means that the mobile station only needs to monitor one paging channel. It receives circuit-switched paging messages on the PACCH when the mobile station is in packet transfer mode. Circuit-switched paging messages are sent via the MSC and BSC, but not the MFS. The circuit-switched paging message for the GPRS-attached mobile station is sent on the CCCH paging channel. The channel is also used for packet-switched paging messages. This means that the mobile station only needs to monitor the PCH. Circuit-switched paging continues on the PCH even if the mobile station is assigned a PDCH. Circuit-switched paging messages are sent via the MSC and BSC, but not the MFS. The circuit-switched paging message for the GPRS-attached mobile station is sent on the CCCH paging channel. The packet-switched paging message is sent on either the PPCH (if allocated) or on the CCCH paging channel
Network Operation Mode 2
Network Operation Mode 3
Table 6: Network Operation Modes

Packet-switched paging does not use the Local Area for paging, but a GPRS Routing Area . The RA is smaller, thus fewer cells are involved.
2.4.3 Radio Power Control and Radio Link Measurement

In order to decrease the level of interference in a network, the uplink and downlink transmissions are constantly measured and a balance maintained between transmission power and the actual quality of the link. In GPRS, power control is implemented in open loop on the uplink path. This maintains speech quality in the network and keeps a low bit error rate for data transmission. The BSS broadcasts the configuration parameters necessary for the mobile station. When it first accesses a cell, the mobile station sets its output power as defined in the system information. It then re-sets its power output according to the parameters broadcast, and to an evaluation of the uplink path loss.
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2.5 Resource Management

In order to provide flexibility to the operator in managing the use of resources by circuit-switched and packet-switched traffic, resources are shared between the MFS and the BSC. Use of these resources by one system or the other can be controlled by a variety of parameters to meet operators needs. The MFS and BSC co-ordinate resource management over the BSCGP interface. In GPRS, resource management refers principally to the allocation of Packet Data Channels. PDCHs are dynamically allocated according to user-settable criteria. When a Temporary Block Flow request is made, resources are allocated on one or more PDCH for the transfer of PDUs. The allocation process takes place as follows: 1. A TBF establishment request is received (through a (Packet) Channel request for the uplink, or through a downlink LLC PDU for the downlink) 2. The number of PDCHs is determined with the: Mobile station multislot class. This is not always known in the uplink case. O&M parameter (MAX_PDCH_PER_TBF). This defines the maximum number of PDCHs which can be allocated per TBF. 3. If the requested number of PDCHs is not available, a request to establish a TBF is sent to the BSC. 4. PDCHs are allocated to the TBF
2.5.1 Time Slot Allocation

GPRS allows bandwidth to be shared between several mobiles. On a radio time slot, bandwidth can be shared between up to nine users on the downlink path and six on the uplink path- or up to 16 GPRS requests within one time slot. Circuit-switched data services require at least one time slot per user. The radio blocks on each time slot are equally distributed among the users assigned to the channel. For example, on the uplink path when coding scheme 2 is used, the minimum raw bit rate per user is 1.9 kbit/s (13.4/7) instead of 13.4 kbit/s. The following table describes the parameters for time slot allocation. This parameter: MAX_UL_TBF_ SPDCH MAX_DL_TBF_ SPDCH N_TBF_PER_ PDCH Is used to: Define the maximum number of users (between one and six) that share a PDCH in the uplink direction. Define the maximum number of users (between one and nine) that share a PDCH in the downlink direction. Define the optimum number of shared users per direction and per PDCH. This ensures a good bit rate as long as the GPRS load is normal.
Table 7: Time Slot Allocation Parameters
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Time Slot Allocation Scenario
If MAX_UL_TBF_SPDCH is set to five, the minimum raw bit rate per user will be increased from 1.9 kbit/s to 2.68 kbit/s (13.4/5). When the PDCH reaches five, it is declared full and will not accept a sixth shared user. However, setting the N_TBF_PER_PDCH parameter will affect a compromise between resource efficiency and quality of service For example, if N_TBF_PER_PDCH= 2 and coding scheme 2 is used, the preferred raw bit rate per user will be 6.7 kbits/s (13.4/2). When the number of users on the PDCH reaches the N_TBF_PER_PDCH value (2), the PDCH is declared busy and will preferably not accept a third user. But if the GPRS load is such that all PDCHs are busy, the BSS will override the number of users set in N_TBF_PER_PDCH and increase the number of shared resources to the maximum, using the MAL_XL_TBF_SPDCH value.
2.5.2 Frequency Hopping

Frequency hopping improves the bit error rate and therefore contributes to overall network quality. Frequency hopping, already provided for circuit-switched channels, has been extended to the packet-switched channels for GPRS implementation. The BSS sends the hopping law when setting up a connection. All GPRS channels then use the same hopping law in a synchronized scheme. For detailed information on frequency hopping, refer to Call Set Up (Chapter 3).
2.5.3 PCM Link Sharing

Resource allocation is facilitated by the use of a shared 2048 kb/s PCM link. GPRS signaling and traffic channels can be multiplexed with circuit-switched traffic channels on this link between the MFS and the BSC. Traffic on the Ater Mux interface between the MFS and the Transcoder is either processed by the MFS as GPRS traffic, or passed transparently through the cross-connect in the MFS to the BSC as circuit-switched traffic.
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2.5.4 Resource Reallocation

This feature can be enabled using the EN_RES_REALLOCATION parameter. The feature provides radio and transmission resources for a TBF following an uplink request received from the mobile station, or one or more downlink LLC PDUs received from the SGSN, when there is no established TBF for the mobile station. It is also now possible for more than one TRX allocated to GPRS services in any given cell. Resource allocation needs to be prioiitized, so proirity is set on PDCH groups. The allocation is granted towards the PDCH group with the highest priority. The feature avoids PDCH groups is a congested state and PDCG groups that are dual-rate capable. There can be one or more master PDCHs in a given cell (to support PBCCH and PCCCH channels). The primary master channel is allocated on time slots 0-3. The MPDCH allocation is therefore done preferrably on the leftmost available PDCH on the preferred TRX. In order to avoid holes between the MPDCH(s) and the SPDCH(s), the SPDCH allocation is therefore also done preferrably on the leftmost available PDCH. The requested throughput is served on the: Maximum number of slots allowed by the MS multislot class GPRS service constraints (the operator gives the maximum number of allowed slots for one GPRS connection) Network constraints (resource availability). Therefore the allocation strategy consists in maximising the usage of the allocated PDCH(s) and, if necessary, to request additional PDCH(s) from the BSC.
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2.6 Traffic Load Management

Traffic load conditions affect PDCH allocation, as described in Congestion Control (Section 2.6.1). A PDCH can have one of four possible states, as shown in the following table. State Empty Active Explanation No established TBFs. At least one established TBF and the total number of established TBFs is smaller than a defined threshold (O&M Parameter N_TBF_PER_PDCH). The number of established TBFs is greater than or equal to O&M Parameter N_TBF_PER_PDCH but smaller than the maximum allowed (O&M Parameter MAX_UL/DL_TBF_PDCH). The number of established TBFs is equal to the maximum set by O&M Parameter MAX_UL/DL_TBF_PDCH.
Busy
Full
Table 8: PDCH Traffic Load States

Additional O&M parameters are available to define a condition of "high load" traffic in the BSC. When traffic exceeds the threshold defining high load, the following occurs: 1. The maximum number of PDCHs allowed is lower than under normal load conditions. This maximum is set by the parameter MAX_PDCH_HIGH_LOAD. This corresponds to the reception of a high load BSC notification. There are two phases involved: A "soft pre-emption" where exceeding PDCHs are marked and cannot support new TBFs. The timer T_PDCH_Pre-emption is started. A "fast pre-emption" phase is entered when the timer T_PDCH_Pre-emption expires. When this occurs, the remaining TBFs on marked PDCHs are released. 2. The MFS de-allocates PDCHs as soon as they become empty until the new, lower threshold is reached. 3. When normal load conditions resume, the MFS can then reallocate additional resources up to the limit defined for its PDCH group. This is set by the parameter MAX_PDCH_GROUP. This is the process that takes place during the phase marked High BSC Load, shown in the figure below. The figure shows a typical sequence illustrating the PDCH allocation procedure. Numbers in bold refer to the steps above.
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Allocated PDCHs
Maximum number of PDCHs is reached 2
MAX_PDCH_GROUP 3
MAX_PDCH_HIGH_LOAD
1 MIN_PDCH_GROUP GPRS MS requests time slots Time
Cell activated
GPRS MS PDCH
Normal BSC load
High BSC load
Normal BSC load
: General Packet Radio Service : Mobile Station : Packet Data Channel
Figure 14: GPRS Traffic Load Management
2.6.1 Congestion Control

Capacity on Demand
Capacity on demand allows operators to both reserve a number of PDCH for GPRS traffic and reserve other PDCH for shared traffic, according to the real traffic load in the cell at any given moment. The actual GPRS traffic load is dynamically matched by allocating or de-allocating PDCH after negotiation between the MFS and the BSC. The BSC is the master in the negotiation process, which means if circuit-switched traffic is heavy in a cell, there is no guarantee a GPRS mobile station can establish a call. To ensure GPRS calls are possible at any time, the parameter MIN_PDCH can be set at the OMC-R to define the number of PDCH permanently allocated to GPRS in a cell. Using this parameter to set the minimum number of PDCH allocated to GPRS traffic also sets the maximum number of PDCH allocated to circuit-switched traffic.
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2.6.2 Smooth PDCH Traffic Adaption to Cell Load Variation

To avoid wasting GPRS traffic resources when entering a high load situation, (with the ability to allocate GPRS traffic on multiple TRXs the gap between MAX_PDCH and MAX_PDCH_HIGH_LOAD could be much bigger than in B6.2), the BSC evaluates the total (circuit and packet-switched) traffic per cell and indicates the amount of PDCHs that can be granted for GPRS traffic to the MFS. The BSC notifies the MFS about any change in the number of available GPRS resources. Thus the GPRS traffic is constantly adapted to the actual traffic situation in the cell. Two parameters conrol smooth PDCH traffic adaption:
EN_DYN_PDCH_ADAPTATION. Enables smooth PDCH traffic adaption. Load_EV_Period_GPRS. Calculates the number of load samples (calculated
every TCH_INFO_PERIOD) for the PDCH traffic adaption load averaging algorithm.
2.6.3 GPRS Overload Control

To prevent traffic overload conditions, the SGSN and the BSS constantly exchange traffic load information. This exchange of information, or flow control, regulates the downlink traffic between the SGSN and the BSS. The BSS sends mobile station and BSSGP Virtual Connection radio status information to the SGSN, which then regulates the output traffic to the BSS when needed. Flow control is thus applied at two levels: mobile station and BVC. Because more than one Network Service Virtual Connection can be used between the BSS and the SGSN, the traffic load can be shared and thus smoothly distributed over the Gb interface. At data transfer uplink initialization, an Network Service Virtual Connection is selected and the uplink bandwidth is reserved. If an Network Service Virtual Connection is unavailable, traffic is then put on another Network Service Virtual Connection. The reserved bandwidth on the Network Service Virtual Connection is released at the end of the transfer. Load sharing allows different data transfers within the same cell to be carried by different Network Service Virtual Connection.
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2.6.4 Delayed Downlink TBF Release

Delaying the release of downlink TBFs allows enhancement of the data throughput served to mobile station end users. It also significantly reduces the GPRS signalling load. GPRS RLC/MAC procedures were designed for nonreal-time data transfer where the data arrives as one large block. However, the true nature of packet traffic is usually different from this assumption. For example, TCP based applications often send small packets between peer entities before the actual data transfer starts. This leads to a high number of TBF establishments and releases. Consequently, the resource utilization is far from optimal and transmission delays unnecessary long. The problem can be avoided by delaying TBF release for a short period (e.g. 0.5-2s) after the transmission buffer becomes empty. Delayed downlink TBF release can occure in the following two modes: Acknowledged mode Unacknowledged mode. Two paramaters control delayed downlink TBF release:
EN_DELAYED_DL_TBF_REL, enables the delayed TBF release feature on the downlink. The default value is OFF. T_NETWORK_RESPONSE_TIME. This timer indicates the typical response time
of a network server as seen from this MFS. The timer range is 0-5000 ms (in 100 ms steps). The default value is 700 ms.
Acknowledged Mode
When the network wishes to delay the release of the TBF, it sends the last RLC data block but does not set the Final Block Indicator (FBI) bit. The network only sets the FBI bit when it wishes to permanently end the TBF. Once the network has sent the RLC data block containing the last octets of the most recent LLC frame to the MS, the network maintains the downlink TBF by occasionally sending dummy downlink RLC data blocks to the MS, incrementing the BSN with each dummy data block sent. When the network receives a new LLC frame, it begins to transmit new RLC data blocks to the MS, beginning with the next available BSN. When the network wishes to poll the MS for a Packet Downlink Ack/Nack when it has no LLC data to send, the network sends a dummy downlink RLC data block. The dummy downlink RLC data block is formed by inserting an LLC Dummy UI Command into a CS-1 downlink RLC data block. The LLC Dummy UI Command is an invalid LLC PDU and is discarded by the LLC entity in the MS.
Unacknowledged Mode
In RLC unacknowledged mode the MS detects the end of the TBF by detecting the Final Block Indicator (FBI) bit set to 1. The MS then transmits a Packet Control Acknowledgement, acknowledging the end of the TBF. The procedure for delayed release of downlink TBF in RLC acknowledged mode applies except that no retransmission of data blocks is done.
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2.7 Data Transmission

This section describes the actual process for GPRS data transmission, and explains Attach/Detach procedures, Packet Data Protocol Context Activation/De-activation, and mobile-originated and mobile-terminated data transfer.
2.7.1 GPRS Attach

To access GPRS services, the mobile station performs a GPRS Attach or combined GPRS/IMSI Attach to the SGSN. (For more information on IMSI Attach-Detach, a mobility feature, see IMSI Attach-Detach (Section 3.3.4)). This procedure establishes a logical link between the mobile station and the SGSN, and allows the mobile station to be available for paging from the SGSN and notification of incoming GPRS data. This process is illustrated in the following figure.
MS BTS BSC MFS SGSN HLR
GPRS
Attach
Reque
st
Update
Locati
on
on nticati Authe
er scrib Sub ta Da
Subs c Data riber ACK
ate Upd ACK n o i t a Loc
GPRS
Attach
Accep
GPRS Attach Comp lete
HLR MFS MS GPRS SGSN
: Home Location Register : Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server : Mobile station : General Packet Radio Service : Serving GRPS Support Node
Figure 15: GPRS Attach
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1. The mobile station sends a GPRS Attach Request to the SGSN. This request contains: The mobile station identity (IMSI or P_TMSI) The mobile station Routing Area Identity The type of Attach procedure requested (GPRS Attach, or combined GPRS/IMSI Attach) The mobile station classmark 2. The SGSN verifies the mobile station identity, sends a location update to the HLR, (if the attach requested is a combined GPRS/IMSI Attach, the MSC/VLR is also updated), and requests a subscriber data profile. 3. The HLR sends a location acknowledgment back to the SGSN with the subscriber data inserted. 4. The SGSN then assigns a P_TMSI to the mobile station. 5. The mobile station acknowledges the P_TMSI, and the Attach procedure is complete. Once the GPRS Attach procedure is performed, the mobile station is in Standby and can activate Packet Data Protocol contexts.
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2.7.2 Packet Data Protocol Context Activation

A Point-To-Point GPRS subscription contains one or more Packet Data Protocol addresses. Each Packet Data Protocol address is defined by an individual Packet Data Protocol context in the mobile station, the SGSN, and the GGSN. Before a mobile station can send or receive data, a Packet Data Protocol context must be activated. Only the GGSN or a mobile station in Standby or Ready can activate Packet Data Protocol contexts. This process is illustrated in the following figure.
MS BTS
Activat e PDP
BSC
MFS
SGSN
GGSN
Context Reque st
Create PDP Context Reque
st
tex Con
DP te P Crea sponse t Re
te PDP Activa
ept xt Acc Conte
GGSN MFS MS PDP SGSN
: Gateway GRPS Support Node : Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server : Mobile station : Packet Data Protocol : Serving GRPS Support Node
Figure 16: Mobile Station-Originating Packet Data Protocol Context Activation
Mobile Station-Originating Activation
1. The mobile station sends an Activation Request to the SGSN. This request contains: Transaction Identifier Packet Data Protocol type Packet Data Protocol address Access Point Name Quality of Service requested Packet Data Protocol configuration options. 2. The SGSN verifies the mobile station subscriber data, creates a Tunnel Identifier (TID a logical bidirectional tunnel between the mobile station and the GGSN), and sends the new Packet Data Protocol type and address to the GGSN. 3. The GGSN creates a context, sends an acknowledgment to the SGSN, which sends an acknowledgment to the mobile station. 4. The GGSN can now send data through the SGSN, and billing can begin.
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GGSN-Originating Activation
MS BTS
The GGSN Packet Data Protocol context activation process is illustrated in the following figure.
BSC MFS SGSN HLR GGSN
PDU
PDP Info ting Rou uest q e R
Routin
g Info ACK
PDU N
otifica
tion R
eques
PDU N otificatio n Resp onse
vation xt Acit Conte t PDP s e u q Re
PDP C
ontext
Activatio
GGSN HLR MFS MS PDP PDU SGSN
: Gateway GRPS Support Node : Home Location Register : Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server : Mobile station : Packet Data Protocol : Protocol Data Unit : Serving GRPS Support Node
Figure 17: GGSN-Originating Packet Data Protocol Context Activation

1. When the GGSN receives data, it sends a message to the HLR requesting the mobile station location. 2. The HLR sends the GGSN location information and the current SGSN IP address. 3. The GGSN sends a PDU Notification Request to the SGSN, which indicates a Packet Data Protocol context needs to be created. 4. The SGSN returns a PDU Notification Response to the GGSN, and sends a Request Packet Data Protocol Context Activation message to the mobile station. This message contains the Packet Data Protocol type and address 5. The mobile station then begins a Packet Data Protocol context activation procedure as described above
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2.7.3 Data Transfer

Mobile-Originated Data Transfer
The following figure illustrates the process.
MS
Pack
BSS
SGSN
et Ch Requ annel est
2 3
F L TB et U t Pack ignmen Ass
RLC
PDU
PDU RLC ACK N / K AC

UL L LC P DU
5
PDU RLC ACK N / ACK
LLC MS PDU RLC SGSN TBF UL
: Logical Link Control : Mobile station : Protocol Data Unit : Radio Link Control : Serving GRPS Support Node : Temporary Block Flow : Uplink
Figure 18: Mobile-Originated Data Transfer

When the mobile station has data to send: 1. An Uplink Temporary Block Flow is requested (either on PRACH, if there is a master PDCH, or on RACH). 2. An Uplink Temporary Block Flow is established. 3. Data is sent to the network through the Radio Link Control Protocol Data Units. 4. Radio Link Control Protocol Data Units are acknowledged by the network. 5. Radio Link Control Protocol Data Units are re-assembled into Logical Link Control Packet Data Units and sent to the SGSN. 6. On receipt of the last Radio Link Control Protocol Data Units, an acknowledgment is returned and the Uplink Temporary Block Flow is released.
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Mobile-Terminated Data Transfer
The following figure illustrates the process.

MS BSS SGSN
STAND BY
Pag PCH H or PPC Pack et Ch Requ annel est F L TB et U ent k c a P gnm Assi in g PS
2 3
LLC PDU UL LLC PDU
READY
LLC PDU
F L TB et D ent k c a P gnm Assi
DL
DL MS LLC PCH PDU PPCH PS SGSN TBF UL
: Downlink : Mobile station : Logical Link Control : Paging Channel : Protocol Data Unit : Packet Paging Channel : Packet Switched : Serving GRPS Support Node : Temporary Block Flow : Uplink
Figure 19: Mobile-Terminated Data Transfer

When the network has data to send to the mobile: 1. The SGSN receives a downlink Packet Data Protocol PDU for a mobile station, and sends a paging request to the BSS. 2. The BSS sends packet paging requests to all the cells in the routing area, on the PPCH if there is a master PDCH in the cell, or on the PCH. 3. The mobile station requests the establishment of an UL TBF from the BSS. 4. The UL TBF is established, which allows the mobile station to send a Logical Link Control PDU to the SGSN in order to acknowledge the paging message. 5. The SGSN sends the data LLC PDUs to the BSS. 6. The BSS establishes a Downlink TBF on receipt of the first LLC PDU, and releases on receipt of the last LLC PDU.
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2.7.4 Packet Data Protocol Context De-activation

Before a GPRS Detach procedure can be initiated, the Packet Data Protocol context must be de-activated.
Mobile Station-Originating De-activation

MS BTS
DeAc
The following figure illustrates this process.
BSC
MFS
SGSN
GGSN
tivate
PDP C
ontext
Reque
st
Delete PDP Conte xt Req uest
P te PD Dele esponse R t tex Con

PDP ctivate Conte xt Acc ept
DeA
Figure 20: Mobile Station Originating Packet Data Protocol Context De-activation
1. The mobile station sends a De-activate Packet Data Protocol Context Request to the SGSN. 2. The SGSN sends a Delete Packet Data Protocol Context Request to the GGSN, which contains the TID. 3. The GGSN deletes the Packet Data Protocol context, and sends a Delete Packet Data Protocol Context Response with the de-activated TID to the SGSN. 4. The SGSN sends a De-activate Packet Data Protocol Context Accept message to the mobile station, confirming the de-activation.
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SGSN-Originating De-activation
MS BTS
Network originated Packet Data Protocol context de-activation processes are shown in the following figure.
BSC MFS SGSN
GGSN
SGSNOriginating
DP te P Dele sponse Re t x onte
tivate DeAc
PDP C
ontext
Reque
st
DeAc
tivate
PDP C
ontext
Accep
GGSNOriginating
C
DP te P Dele equest R t x onte
tiv DeAc
ate PD
P Con
text Re
quest
DeAc
tivate
PDP C
ontext
Accep
Delete PDP Conte xt Res ponse
Figure 21: Network-Originating Packet Data Protocol Context De-activation Processes

1. The SGSN sends a Delete Packet Data Protocol Context Request to the GGSN, which contains the TID. 2. The GGSN de-activates the Packet Data Protocol context and sends a Delete Packet Data Protocol Context Response to the SGSN. 3. The SGSN sends a De-activate Packet Data Protocol Context Request to the mobile station. 4. The mobile station de-activates the context, and returns a De-activate Packet Data Protocol Context Accept.
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GGSN-Originating De-activation
1. The GGSN sends a Delete Packet Data Protocol Context request to the SGSN, which contains the TID. 2. The SGSN sends a De-activate Packet Data Protocol Context Request to the mobile station. 3. The mobile station de-activates the context and returns a De-activate Packet Data Protocol Context Accept. 4. The SGSN sends a Delete Packet Data Protocol Context Response to the GGSN, which deletes the context.
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2.7.5 GPRS Suspend

GPRS suspend processes are shown in the following figure.
MS BTS BSC MFS SGSN
RR Su
spend
Susp end
Susp end
T3
Suspe Suspe nd Ack nd Ack
MFS SGSN
: Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server : Serving GRPS Support Node
Figure 22: GPRS Suspend

1. The GPRS suspension procedure is initiated by the mobile station by sending an RR Suspend (TLLI, RAI, suspension cause) message to the BSC. This is sent as soon as possible, after entering the dedicated mode. If the GPRS suspension procedure was initiated during a GPRS transfer, the mobile station releases all its GPRS resources. 2. The BSC sends a Suspend (TLLI, RAI, suspension cause) message to the MFS, via the GSL link. The BSC stores TLLI and RAI in order to be able to request the SGSN (via the MFS) to resume GPRS services when the mobile station leaves the dedicated mode. A timer is not necessary to monitor the Suspend Ack reception. If this acknowledgment is not received (i.e. no Suspend Reference Number (SRN) reception, see step 4), the Resume will not be sent at circuit-switched call completion. 3. The MFS sends a Suspend (TLLI, RAI) message to the SGSN. 4. The MFS receives a Suspend Ack from the SGSN, in which there is a Suspend Reference Number which is used in the GPRS resume process. The acknowledgment of the SGSN is supervised by a timer (T3). 5. The MFS sends a suspend acknowledgment to the BSC, with the Suspend Reference Number information.
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2.7.6 GPRS Resume

GPRS resume processes are shown in the following figure.
MS BTS BSC MFS SGSN
Resu
me
Resu me
T_GPRS_Resume
T4
Resu Resu me A ck me A ck
se Relea annel RR Ch
Routing Area
Update Reque st
MFS MS RR SGSN
: Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server : Mobile station : Radio Resource : Serving GRPS Support Node
Figure 23: GPRS Resume

1. The BSC determines that the circuit-switched radio channel must be released (typically upon circuit-switched call completion). If the BSC is able to request the SGSN to resume GPRS services (i.e. the suspend procedure succeeded and the BSC received the Suspend Reference Number, and no external handover has occurred), the BSC sends a Resume (TLLI, RAI, Suspend Reference Number) message to the MFS. After sending the Resume message, the BSC starts a guard timer (T_GPRS_Resume) and waits for a Resume Ack message from the MFS. The guard timer is set as short as possible, so as to be compatible with the usual RR connection release procedure, and therefore not delay the procedure. However, this message is not sent in the case of successful completion of an external handover. In this case, the BSC deletes any stored data or suspend/resume context related to that mobile station. 2. On receipt of a Resume message from the BSC, the MFS sends a Resume (TLLI, RAI, Suspend Reference Number) message to the SGSN, starts a guard timer (T4) and waits for a Resume Ack message from the SGSN. 3. The MFS receives a Resume Ack from the SGSN.
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4. On receipt of the Resume Ack from the SGSN, the MFS stops the guard timer (T4) and sends a Resume Ack message to the BSC. If no Resume Ack is received from the SGSN before expiry of the guard timer (T4), the MFS sends a Resume Nack to the BSC. On receipt of the Resume Ack or Nack message from the MFS, the BSC stops the guard timer (T_GPRS_Resume). 5. The BSC sends an RR Channel Release (GPRS Resumption) message to the mobile station and deletes its suspend/resume context. GPRS Resumption indicates whether the BSS has successfully requested the SGSN to resume GPRS services for the mobile station, (i.e., whether Resume Ack was received in the BSS before the RR Channel Release message was transmitted). The mobile station then exits dedicated mode. If the guard timer expired, or if a Resume Nack message was received by the BSC, the Channel Release message includes the GPRS Resumption indication equal to NOK. 6. The mobile station resumes GPRS services by sending a Routing Area Update Request message in the following cases: Reception of a Channel Release with GPRS Resumption = NOK Reception of a Channel Release without GPRS Resumption IE T3240 expiry.
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2.7.7 GPRS Detach

After the Packet Data Protocol Context has been de-activated, the mobile station or the network can perform a GPRS Detach procedure. Whether the detach is initiated by the mobile station or the network, the results are the same: The mobile station leaves the Ready mode and enters the Idle mode All Packet Data Protocol contexts are deleted The mobile station returns to the circuit-switched system.
Mobile Station-Originating Detach

MS BTS
The following figure illustrates this process.
BSC
MFS
SGSN
GGSN
Detac
h Req
uest
P te PD Dele esponse R text Con

Detac h Acce pt
GPRS
Figure 24: Mobile Station-Originating GPRS Detach

1. The mobile station sends a GPRS Detach Request to the SGSN. This message contains: The type of Detach (GPRS or GPRS/IMSI) An indication if the Detach is due to a mobile station Switch off. 2. The SGSN tells the GGSN to de-activate the Packet Data Protocol context, and sends a Detach Accept message to the mobile station.
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Network-Originating Detach
MS BTS
Network-originating GPRS Detach procedures are shown in the following figure.

BSC MFS SGSN GGSN HLR
ion ocat cel L Can
Delete PDP Conte xt Req uest Detac h Req uest

DP te P Dele sponse e R t ntex
GPRS
Co
Detac
h Acce
pt
Cance
l Loca
tion AC
GGSN HLR MFS MS PDP SGSN
: Gateway GRPS Support Node : Home Location Register : Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server : Mobile station : Packet Data Protocol : Serving GRPS Support Node
Figure 25: Network-Originating GPRS Detach Procedures

A GPRS Detach can be initiated by both the SGSN and the HLR. An SGSN Detach is the most common network Detach. In this procedure: 1. The SGSN sends a Detach Request to the mobile station, which contains the Detach type. The Detach type tells the mobile station if it needs to re-attach and re-activate the Packet Data Protocol context previously used. 2. The SGSN tells the GGSN to de-activate the Packet Data Protocol contexts, and the mobile station sends the Detach Accept message to the SGSN. If the Detach is requested by the HLR: 1. The HLR sends a Cancel Location message to the SGSN, which initiates the above process. 2. The SGSN confirms the Packet Data Protocol context deletion by sending a Cancel Location Acknowledgment to the HLR.
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3 Call Set Up
3 Call Set Up
This chapter provides an overview of how a call is set up between the NSS and the mobile station. It describes the various kinds of calls that can be set up. The type of teleservice and bearer service required are also described. This chapter also describes the following parts of the Call Set Up procedure: Overview Mobile Originated Call Mobile Terminated Call Paging Congestion Classmark Handing Authentication Ciphering.
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3 Call Set Up
3.1 Overview
Call set up is required to establish communication between a mobile station and the NSS. The NSS is responsible for establishing the connection with the correspondent. Different types of calls require different teleservices. These teleservices are defined in the GSM specifications. The type of teleservice and bearer service to be used is negotiated before the normal assignment procedure. See Normal Assignment (Section 3.2.3) for more information.
Call Types
The following table shows the three basic types of call: Type of Call Mobility Management Calls Description These calls, e.g. location update, are used by the system to gather mobile station information. The exchanges are protocol messages only; therefore, only a signalling channel is used. Figure 7 illustrates the location update procedure. These calls, e.g. SMS and SS calls, pass small amounts of information. Therefore, only a signalling channel is used. These calls, e.g. speech or data calls to a correspondent, can pass large amounts of information. Therefore they require greater bandwidth than a signalling channel. These calls use traffic channels.
Service Calls
User Traffic Calls
Table 9: Types of Calls

The channels used for calls are the SDCCH for signalling and the traffic channel for user traffic (see The Air Interface (Section 1.7.7) for more information). These channels are associated with FACCH/SACCH. An SDCCH is always assigned for call set up, even if a traffic channel is later required for the call. The role of the BSS in call set up is to assign the correct channel for the call, and to provide and manage a communications path between the mobile station and the MSC.
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Call Set Up Phases
The following table shows the phases involved in call set up: Phase Radio and Link Establishment Composition Paging (for mobile terminated calls only) informs the mobile station that it is being called. If attach_detach_allowed is activated, the mobile station IMSI_detach message can eliminate the need for paging. See IMSI Attach-Detach (Section 3.3.4). Immediate assignment procedure allocates a resource to the mobile station and establishes a Radio signalling Linkbetween the BSS and the mobile station. A interface connection, to assign an SCCP signalling channel between the BSC and MSC Assignment of a switching path through the BSC. Authentication and Ciphering Classmark handling Authentication Ciphering. Normal assignment Teleservice/bearer service negotiation Channel allocation Physical context procedure Assigning a traffic channel, if required Connecting the call.
Table 10: Call Set Up Phases

The phases are described in Mobile Originated Call (Section 3.2) and Mobile Terminated Call (Section 3.3).
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3.2 Mobile Originated Call

A call initiated by a mobile station can either be a subscriber call, where speech and/or data is passed across the network, or a location update call from a mobile station in idle mode. Location update information is passed on the signalling connection. Therefore, the initial call set up procedure is similar to a subscriber call. The location update does not require allocation of a traffic channel.
3.2.1 Radio and Link Establishment

When a connection with a mobile station is required, the following must happen: A radio channel must be assigned to permit communication between the mobile station and the BSS A terrestrial link must be established in order to signal the presence of the mobile station to the network. The procedure of obtaining these initial connections is called radio and link establishment. The radio and link establishment procedure establishes signalling links between: The BSS and the mobile station via the SDCCH channel The BSS and the MSC via the SCCP link. These links pass the information for call negotiation, and set up a traffic channel, if required. The figure below shows radio and link establishment for a mobile originated call.
Channel Request
The mobile station initiates a call by sending a channel_request message, with an REF. The REF includes an establishment cause and a RAND (used for authentication). It is transmitted on the RACH channel. The RACH channel is associated with the CCCH channel which the mobile station is monitoring while in idle mode. The establishment cause field of the REF specifies: An emergency call Call re-establishment Response to paging Mobile station originating speech call Mobile station originating data call Location update Service call (SMS, etc.). The mobile station notes the random number and frame number associated with each channel_request message. These are used by the mobile station to recognize the response sent from the BSS. This response is sent on the AGCH, which can be monitored by many mobile stations. The mobile station decodes all messages sent on this AGCH, and only accepts a message with a random number and frame number matching one of the last three requests sent.
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MS
Channe l Reque st (RAC H)
BTS
BSC
MSC
REF
Chann
el Requ
ired
REF+R
FN+TA
REF stored in MS memory

vation el Acti Chann er +pow DCCH TA+S
Chann el Activatio
SDCCH Allocation
n Ack
Immed me assign nt (AG CH)
iate as
sign c
omma
nd
MS compares message with REF in memory Switch to SDCCH
Immed
iate
TA+S
DCC
H+po
wer+
REF RFN+
R REF+
FN+T
A+SD
CCH
SABM
+ cm +
Service
Request
Establis
h Indic
UA
cm + Ser
ation SCCP Conne ction R equest
vice Req
uest
uest e Req Servic
cm + Ser
vice Req
uest
Service Request must match original sent by MS in the SABM
SCCP
Conne
ction C
onfirm
cm ID power REF RFN SDCCH Service Request TA UA
: Classmark : Mobile station identity : Mobile station power or BTS power : Random access information value : Reduced frame number : Description of the allocated SDCCH (Stand-alone Dedicated Control Channel) : Initial layer 3 message : Timing advance : Un-numbered acknowledgment
Figure 26: Radio and Link Establishment for Mobile Originated Call
The mobile station continues to transmit channel_request messages until it receives a response. If no response is received before the mobile station has transmitted a predefined number of retries, the mobile station: Displays a network error message for all calls except location updates Performs automatic reselection for location update calls. This means that the mobile station attempts random access on a different cell. On receipt of the channel_request message from the mobile station, the BTS sends a channel_required message to the BSC. This message contains the random number sent by the mobile station, and the timing advance measured by the BTS.
Note:
Under peak load conditions, resources may be over allocated due to this process. See below for details on how the Immediate Assignment Extended feature works to alleviate this problem.
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SDCCH Channel Activation
The BSC checks the channel_required message to ensure it can accept the request. It allocates an SDCCH channel if one is available. The resource management software of the BSC allocates the SDCCH on the basis of which traffic channel has the most available SDCCHs. This ensures the load is spread between the traffic channels. The BSC then sends a channel_activation message to the BTS. It also sets a timer to wait for an acknowledgment from the BTS, indicating that it is ready to activate the channel. The channel_activation message contains: A description of the SDCCH to be used The timing advance Mobile station and BTS power commands. The mobile station and BTS power are set to the maximum allowed in the cell. The BTS initiates the physical layer resources for the channel and sets the LAPDm contention resolution ready for the first mobile station message on the SDCCH. It then sends a channel_activation_acknowledgment message to the BSC. The BSC stops its guard timer.
Note:
Contention resolution prevents two mobile stations connecting to the same SDCCH. The following figure shows the Channel Activation procedure.
MS BTS BSC SDCCH Allocation
Chann
TA+S
MSC
el Acti
vation
er
DCCH
+pow
Chann el Activ ation A ck
power SDCCH TA
: Mobile station power or BTS power : Description of the allocated SDCCH (Stand-alone Dedicated Control Channel) : Timing advance
Figure 27: SDCCH Channel Activation
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Immediate Assignment
The BSC builds and sends an immediate_assign_command message reiterating the information given in the channel_activation message. This message also includes the random number and frame number of the original mobile station request to which the BSC is replying. It also instructs the BTS to inform the mobile station of the SDCCH channel assignment. The BSC starts a guard timer for the mobile station to respond. The following figure shows the Immediate Assignment procedure.
MS BTS
nd omma sign c iate as d e m FN Im EF+R er+R +pow H C DC TA+S
BSC
Im
te as media
signm
ent (A
GCH)
Switch to SDCCH
REF RFN SDCCH TA
DCCH TA+S RFN+ + F E R
: Random access information value : Reduced frame number : Description of the allocated SDCCH (Stand-alone Dedicated Control Channel) : Timing advance
Figure 28: Immediate Assignment

The BTS sends the immediate_assignment message to the mobile station on the AGCH. The mobile station checks the random number and frame number in the immediate_assignment message. If it matches those from one of its last three channel_request messages, the mobile station switches to the indicated SDCCH and sets its timing advance to the value indicated in the immediate_assignment message.
Immediate Assignment Reject
When there is congestion on the SDCCH, the mobile station could retry repeatedly without success to access a channel. This produces the following undesired effects: Undesirable messages on the mobile station screen The subscriber has to restart his call attempt manually Repeated futile attempts to connect overload the RACH and Abis interface Ping-pong cell reselection by the mobile station. Therefore, the system implements a special immediate_assignment_reject message when the following conditions are met: The BSC flag EN_IM_ASS_REJ is set to true. This flag is set on a BSC basis, and can be viewed but not modified from the OMC-R. All SDCCHs in the cell are busy.
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The BSC receives a channel_required message from the BTS with one of the following establishment causes: Emergency call Call re-establishment Mobile station originating call Location update Service Calls. The immediate_assignment_reject message is contained in the information element of the immediate_assign_command message. This message starts a timer in the mobile station which causes it to wait in idle mode until the timer expires, before sending new channel_request messages. The length of the timer is dependent upon the establishment cause, and is user setable. If an immediate_assign_command message is received before expiration of the timer, it has priority and the mobile station will respond to it, thus connecting the call.
Note: Immediate Assignment Extended
This message can not be used when the mobile station is responding to paging, i.e. in the case of a Mobile-terminated call. Under peak load conditions, it is likely that the mobile station will send several channel_request messages before receiving an immediate_assignment message indicating that a channel has been allocated to it. At this stage, the BSC is unable to identify the mobile station which sent a given channel_request and so it will grant several SDCCHs to the same mobile station, thus wasting resources and reducing throughput on the AGCH. If several immediate_assignment messages are queued on the AGCH, the BTS will try to build an immediate_assignment_extended message, passed to the mobile station on the air interface, constructed from pieces of two immediate_assignment messages as follows: The first immediate_assignment message in the queue (i.e. the oldest) The first of the remaining immediate_assignment messages in the queue, which are able to be merged according to one of the following criteria: At least one of the two allocated channels is non-hopping If both allocated channels are hopping, they share the same Mobile Allocation (see Baseband Frequency Hopping (Section 4.3.1) for more information about Mobile Allocation). If there are several immediate_assignment messages in the AGCH queue, but the first one cannot be merged with any other in the queue (using the above criteria), a classic immediate_assignment message is sent on the air interface.
Set Asynchronous Balanced Mode
The first layer 2 frame sent on the SDCCH is a standard LAPDm type frame, known as the Set Asynchronous Balanced Mode. This is equivalent to the Set Asynchronous Balanced Mode Extended frame in the LAPD. On the Air interface, it establishes the LAPDm connection with the BTS. This frame can also contain layer 3 messages.
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Contention Resolution
The mobile station starts its LAPDm connection and sends a layer 3 message in its first frame. The BTS uses this message for contention resolution. The BTS sends an acknowledgment to the mobile station containing the same layer 3 message. Therefore, only the mobile station that sent the message can accept the acknowledgment from the BTS and consider itself connected. The following figure shows the establishment of the connection for a mobile originated call.
MS
SABM
BTS
BSC
MSC
+ cm +
Service Reques t
Establi
sh Indic
UA
Serv ice Re quest
cm + Se
ation SCCP Conne ction R equest
rvice Re
quest
cm + Se
rvice Re
quest
Co SCCP
nnecti
on Co
nfirm
cm Service Request UA
: Classmark : Initial layer 3 message including the mobile station identity and classmark : Un-numbered acknowledgment
Figure 29: Connection for Mobile Originated Call

For a mobile station originated call, the layer 3 message from the mobile station contains: An Information Element indicating: CM service request (speech/data, SMS, emergency call) Location updating request (location updating procedure) CM re-establishment request (after a failure) IMSI detach indication (mobile station power off - see IMSI Attach-Detach (Section 3.3.4) for more information). The mobile station identity (see Authentication (Section 3.7) for more information) The mobile station classmark (see Classmark Handling (Section 3.6) for more information). The network uses this message to decide which call negotiation procedures are required and whether to assign a traffic channel.
Establish Indication
The BTS sends an establish_indication message to the BSC to indicate that the mobile station has connected. The BSC stops the guard timer, extracts the classmark information, and initiates an SCCP connection with the MSC. The BSC sends an SCCP_connection_request message to the MSC. The MSC replies with an SCCP_connection_confirm message. This message can contain a classmark request or a cipher mode command. The signalling link is established between the mobile station and the MSC.
SCCP Connection
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3.2.2 Authentication and Ciphering

Classmark Procedure
The content of the classmark IE sent during radio and link establishment depends on the type of mobile station. The classmark information is used for mobile station power control and to set ciphering. The MSC can request a classmark update to ensure that it has the correct information. Classmark procedures are described in Classmark Handling (Section 3.6). The authentication procedure: Authenticates the mobile station identity Checks the mobile station has the correctIndividual Subscriber Authentication Key value on the SIM for the ciphering procedure Sends the Random Number for the ciphering and authentication procedures. This procedure is described in Authentication (Section 3.7).
Authentication
Ciphering
Information passed on the Air interface must be protected. The MSC can request that the BSS set the ciphering mode before information is passed on the SDCCH. Ciphering is described in Ciphering (Section 3.8).
3.2.3 Normal Assignment

The figure below shows the normal assignment process for a mobile originated call. Once the Radio and Link Establishment procedure has been successfully completed, the mobile station has a signalling link with the network. If the call requires a traffic channel to communicate with a called party, the mobile station sends a setup message. This indicates the teleservice and bearer service required, and the called party number. The information is sent transparently through the BSS. This message can contain more than one bearer service element, and a parameter indicating that the subscriber may request a change of service (In-Call Modification) during the call. See In-Call Modification (Section 4.2) for information concerning In-Call Modification. The MSC sends a call_proceeding message to the mobile station. This indicates that the call parameters have been received, and that attempts to establish communication with the called party are under way.
Channel Request
The MSC initiates the assignment of the traffic channel by sending the assignment_request message and sets a timer to supervise the response from the BSC. The BSC checks the message which must contain a channel type (for traffic channel this is speech or data plus data rate). This message also contains the mobile station classmark which the BSC uses if it has not received the classmark from the mobile station. The assignment_request message may contain a codec list, giving, in order of preferences, the type of codec it prefers to use (for example, one that supports enhanced full-rate speech). In this case, the BSC checks the list against those supported by the cell, and chooses the preferred codec type that can be used by both the BTS and by the mobile station. If the BSC finds an error in the assignment_request message, it sends an assignment_failure message. If no error is detected, it starts the normal assignment procedure towards the mobile station.
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MS
set up (S DCCH)
tele/bearer service called party no.
BTS
layer 3 CC
BSC
MSC
layer 3 CC
layer 3 CC
layer 3 CC
call proceeding
assign
ment re
nel ty
quest
m
TCH allocation
physic al con text re quest
chan
pe+c
physica
l conte
xt confi
TA
rm
power +
(SACC
H)
ates r upd powe e6 TA + 5 fo in + sys
vation el acti chann her + cip + TA er w TCH o p X+ + DT

channe l activa tion ac knowle dge
assign
H) (SDCC mand nt com e m n assig
comm ment
and
release SDCCH
SABM
(FACC
H) estab lish in dicatio
UA
H) (FACC
Set transcoder
assign ment c omple te (FA CCH)
Set switching path
assign
ment c o
mplete
layer 3 CC
layer 3 CC
initiate SDCCH release alerting

connect
layer 3 CC
connect acknowledgement
layer 3 CC
layer 3 CC
cipher cm DTX TA
: Encryption algorithm + ciphering key : Classmark : Discontinuous transmission flags : Timing advance
Figure 30: Normal Assignment for Mobile Originated Call
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Traffic Channel Allocation
The BSC ensures that it is not running any other procedures for the mobile station and then allocates resources for the traffic channel. The resources allocated are calculated using an algorithm in the BSC. The BSC can receive an assignment_request message in various situations. Therefore, it has traffic channel resource allocation algorithms for: Normal assignment In-call modification Intercell handover Intracell handover Directed retry Concentric cells Microcells. In normal conditions (mobile station originated call, normal assignment), the normal assignment algorithm is used. The BSC keeps a table of idle channels in which the channels are classified by their interference level (1 = low, 5 = high). The interference level of all free channels is monitored by the BTS. This information is periodically sent to the BSC in the RF_resource_indication message. The BSC does not automatically allocate a channel from the lowest interference level, as a number of channels can be reserved for handover. After all reserved channels are accounted for, the channel allocated is from the lowest interference level. If the number of reserved channels exceeds the number of free channels, then the BSC allocates a channel from the highest interference level. If no channels are available, the BSC sends an assignment_failure message to the MSC indicating the cause of the failure.
Traffic Channel Activation
The BSC sends a physical_context_request message to the BTS, to find out the current power and timing advance being used by the mobile station on the SDCCH. The BTS responds with a physical_context_confirm message, containing the relevant information. If no channel is available, and queuing is enabled, the call is placed in the queue. Refer to Congestion (Section 3.5) for more about queuing.
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The following figure shows the channel activation process for the traffic channel.
MS BTS BSC TCH allocation
quest text re al con physic
MSC
physical context confirm

power + TA
chann
(SACC H)
el activ
ation
er + ciph + TA TCH ower p + X + DT
ates r upd powe TA + 5&6 fo in + sys
channe
l activa
tion ack
nowled
ge
assig
o ment c assign CH) d (SDC mman
com nment
mand
cipher DTX MS TA TCH
: Encryption algorithm + ciphering key : Discontinuous transmission flags : Mobile station : Timing advance : Traffic Channel
Figure 31: Channel Activation Process for the Traffic Channel

The BSC sends a channel_activation message to the BTS. This contains: A description of the traffic channel to be used The mobile station timing advance to be applied The encryption algorithm and ciphering key (same as for SDCCH assignment) A Discontinuous Transmission indicator for uplink (not used) and downlink (see Speech Transmission (Section 4.4.1) for more information) The mobile station power to be used (see Radio Power Control (Section 4.5) for more information) The BTS power to be used. The BSC starts a timer, and waits for the BTS to acknowledge that it has activated the channel. The BTS initializes its resources for the traffic channel, sets the ciphering mode, sends timing advance and power information to the mobile station on the SACCH associated to the traffic channel, which is constantly monitored by the mobile station. At the same time, the BTS sends a channel_activation_acknowledgment message to the BSC. The BSC stops its timer and sends an assignment_command message on the SDCCH to the mobile station. This instructs the mobile station to change to the traffic channel. When the mobile station receives the assignment_command message, it disconnects the physical layer, and performs a local release to free the LAPDm connection of the SDCCH.
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The following figure shows the channel assignment process for the traffic channel.
MS release SDCCH
SABM
BTS
BSC
MSC
(FACC
H)
establi
UA (FA CCH)
Set transcoder
sh ind
ication
assign
ment c
omple
te (FA
CCH)
Set switching path
assign
ment c
omple
te
FACCH MS SABM UA
: Fast Associated Control Channel : Mobile station : Set Asynchronous Balanced Mode : Unnumbered Acknowledgment
Figure 32: Channel Assignment Process for the Traffic Channel

The mobile station then establishes the LAPDm connection (via the SABM on the FACCH) for the traffic channel. The BTS sends an establish_indication message to the BSC. It also sets the Transcoder and its radio link failure detection algorithm. The BTS sends a layer 2 acknowledgment to the mobile station. The mobile station sends an assignment_complete message to the BSC. When the BSC receives the establish_indication message, it establishes a switching path between the allocated Abis and A interface resources. When it receives the assignment_complete message, it sends an assignment_complete message to the MSC and initiates release of the SDCCH (see chapter 4 for more information).
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Connecting the Call
Once communication with the called party is established (but before the call is answered), the MSC sends an alerting message to the mobile station. The mobile station generates a ring tone. When the called party answers, the MSC sends a connect message to the mobile station. The mobile station responds with a connect_acknowledgment message. The call is established. The following figure shows the call connection process for a mobile originated call.
MS BTS BSC initiate SDCCH release MSC
layer 3 CC
layer 3 CC
alerting
layer 3 CC
layer 3 CC
connect
connect acknowledgement
layer 3 CC
MS SDCCH
: Mobile station : Stand-alone Dedicated Control Channel
Figure 33: Call Connection for Mobile Originated Call
Off Air Call Set-Up
OACSU is a method available in the BSS where the network assigns a traffic channel only when the called party has answered the call. This improves the efficiency of traffic channel allocation as unsuccessful calls will not take up any traffic channel resources. This feature is controlled by the MSC. Practically speaking, the way this happens is the Layer 3 alerting message is sent by the MSC just after the call_proceeding message. The mobile station then enters the ringing phase. The assignment_request message is not sent by the MSC until the called party answers. The rest of the Layer 3 exchanges between MSC and BSC take place after the mobile station sends the assignment_complete message to the MSC. When OACSU is in use the mobile station may provide internally generated tones to the user (in a Mobile Originated call) during the ringing phase, as the traffic channel is not yet available for tones or in-band announcements to be sent. This feature has the effect on the system of increasing the probability of an internal (SDCCH to SDCCH) handover being initiated by the BSS while the Normal Assignment procedure is being initiated by the MSC.
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3.3 Mobile Terminated Call

A call from the NSS to a mobile station can be either a call routed through the NSS from a calling party, or it can be initiated by the NSS for mobility management. A mobile terminated call set up follows the same basic procedures as a mobile originated call. This section describes only those procedures which are different. The following figure shows radio and link establishment for a mobile-terminated call.
MS BTS BSC
paging
cell lis t
MSC
paging
reques
t
SI
(PCH)
up + ing gro SI pag IM r I/ e b S TM el num chann
paging
com
mand
TMSI/
IMSI +
TMSI/IM
chann
el requ
est
(RACH )
chann
el requ
ired
IMSI MS PCH RACH TMSI
: International Mobile Subscriber Identity : Mobile station : Paging Channel : Random Access Channel : Temporary Mobile Subscriber Identity
Figure 34: Radio and Link Establishment for Mobile Terminated Call
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3.3.1 Radio and Link Establishment

Paging
Before the BSS sets up a signalling link, the mobile station has to be paged. This procedure is initiated by the MSC. It sends a paging message to the BSC controlling the location area from which the mobile station last performed a location update. This message is sent in connectionless mode and contains: The mobile station identity (TMSI or IMSI of the mobile station to be paged) A cell identifier list which identifies the cells where the paging request is to be sent. This could be all cells or a group of cells. The MSC sets a timer to wait for a paging_response message from the mobile station. The BSC checks the paging message and, if valid, calculates the mobile station paging group and the CCCH time slot for the paging group. The BSC sends a paging_command message to each BTS, indicating the TMSI or IMSI, the paging group and the channel number. Each BTS formats the information and broadcasts a paging_request message on the Paging Channel. The mobile station listens to messages sent to its paging group. When it receives a paging message with its mobile station identity, it sends a channel_request message on the RACH to the BTS, indicating that the request is in response to a paging_request message. The BSS then performs the radio and link establishment procedure described in Mobile Originated Call (Section 3.2).
Note:
When the mobile station sends the SABM, it indicates that the connection is in response to a paging request. For more information about paging, see Paging (Section 3.4).
3.3.2 Authentication and Ciphering

The system handles authentication and ciphering for a mobile terminated call in the same manner as a mobile originated call. Refer to Authentication and Ciphering (Section 3.2.2). Refer to Classmark Handling (Section 3.6) for more information about the classmark, Authentication (Section 3.7) for more information about authentication, and Ciphering (Section 3.8) for more information about ciphering procedures.
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3.3.3 Normal Assignment

The normal assignment procedure for a mobile station terminated call is initiated by the MSC. This is shown in the figure below. The MSC sends a layer 3 Call Control set_up message to the mobile station, indicating the bearer service and teleservice to be used for the call. The MSC can indicate more than one bearer service. The mobile station checks this message. If it can accept the call, it sends a call_confirmation message which can contain a bearer capability parameter indicating which bearer service is preferred. The BSS performs the physical context and channel assignment. This is described in Normal Assignment (Section 3.2.3). Once the traffic channel is assigned, the mobile station alerts the user and sends an alerting message to the MSC. When the mobile station user answers, the mobile station sends a connection message to the MSC. The MSC sends a connection_acknowledgment message to the mobile station and connects the call. All these messages are layer 3 Call Control messages, and are transparent to the BSS.
MS BTS BSC
set up
layer 3 CC layer 3 CC tele/beare r service
MSC
call confirmed
(SDCCH) ce layer 3 CC layer 3 CC
bearer servi
ring tone
alerting
layer 3 CC layer 3 CC
user answer
connect
layer 3 CC layer 3 CC
e knowledg connect ac layer 3 CC layer 3 CC
MS SDCCH
: Mobile station : Stand-alone Dedicated Control Channel
Figure 35: Normal Assignment for Mobile Terminated Call
Off Air Call Set-Up
If OACSU is in use, it is possible that at one moment the called party may have answered the call, but the traffic channel is still not assigned by the network (for example, the call is queued). In this case the mobile station may supply tones to the answering user, so that the user does not hang up before the Normal Assignment procedure completes.
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3.3.4 IMSI Attach-Detach

IMSI Attach-Detach is a mobility feature which primarily concerns the MSC and the mobile station. Used together with the periodic location update procedure, IMSI Attach-Detach allows the network to provide more efficient control and use of resources. For example, if a mobile-terminated call arrives for a mobile station which is detached, the MSC knows that the mobile station is not active and does not need to start a paging request. For the BSS, this can reduce load on the PCH. Initiation of the IMSI Attach-Detach procedure is controlled by a parameter in the BSS, attach_detach_allowed. When this parameter is set, the BSS broadcasts system information on all cells indicating that the network supports IMSI Attach-Detach. Mobile stations which have successfully connected and logged themselves onto the network are then obliged to perform IMSI Attach-Detach procedures. Refer to documentation supplied with mobile stations which support this function. For more information about the attach_detach_allowed parameter, see A1353RA Configuration Handbook. IMSI Attach-Detach is also used for other functions at the MSC. Refer to documentation for your networks MSC equipment.
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3.4 Paging
Paging is the procedure by which the network contacts a mobile station. For example, if the network needs to inform the mobile station of an incoming call, it pages the mobile station to prompt it to request a channel. After the immediate assign procedure, the service_request message from the mobile station indicates that the connection is in response to a paging message. Paging messages are sent on the CCCH. The downlink CCCH carries the AGCH and the PCH. The PCH is divided into sub-channels, each corresponding to a paging group. To save the mobile station from monitoring every occurrence of the PCH, each mobile station is assigned a paging group calculated from the IMSI. Each mobile station calculates its paging group and monitors only that PCH sub-channel. This saves mobile station battery power. The number of paging groups and the CCCH organization varies for each configuration. The mobile station knows the CCCH organization from the information passed on the BCCH (sys_info 3). The AGCH sends the immediate_assignment message to the mobile station. A number of blocks can be reserved for the AGCH using the BS_AG_BLKS_RES parameter. If this parameter is set to 0, then the immediate_assignment message is sent on the PCH. The following figure shows a TDMA frame with nine CCCH blocks, three of which are reserved for the AGCH and the rest are for the PCH. The parameter to reserve these blocks is set to BS_AG_BLKS_RES = 3.
TDMA Frame Cycle
CCCH0
CCCH1
CCCH2
CCCH3
CCCH4
CCCH5
CCCH6
CCCH7
CCCH8
Reserved for AGCH

AGCH CCCH PCH TDMA : Access Grant Channel : Common Control Channel : Paging Channel : Time Division Multiple Access
Available for PCH channels
Figure 36: CCCH with Three Blocks Reserved for AGCH
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In the example shown in the figure above, BS_AG_BLKS_RES is set to three. Every occurrence of the TDMA frame cycle carrying the CCCH has three AGCHs and six PCHs. However, more than six paging groups can be defined by assigning a different group of six PCHs to a number of TDMA multiframe cycles. This is specified using the parameter BS_PA_MFRMS, as shown in the following figure.
First TDMA Frame cycle
AGCH
AGCH
AGCH
PGR0
PGR1
PGR2
PGR3
PGR4
PGR5
Second TDMA Frame cycle
AGCH
AGCH
AGCH
PGR6
PGR7
PGR8
PGR9
PGR10
PGR11
Third TDMA Frame cycle
AGCH
AGCH
AGCH
PGR12
PGR13
PGR14
PGR15
PGR16
PGR17
Fourth/1 TDMA Frame cycle
AGCH
AGCH
AGCH
PGR18
PGR19
PGR20
PGR21
PGR22
PGR23
These four TDMA frames represent 24 PCHs. The parameter to reserve these is BS_PA_MFRMS =4
AGCH PGR PCH TDMA
: Access Grant Channel : Paging Group : Paging Channel : Time Division Multiple Access
Figure 37: Four TDMA Frame Cycles Providing 24 Paging Sub-channels
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3.4.1 Paging Control

The MSC has to initiate the paging procedure, as it holds the information on the last mobile station location update. The MSC sends the paging message to the BSC(s) and sets a timer for the paging_response from the mobile station, which is sent as part of the service_request message after the immediate assign procedure. The paging message from the MDC contains a cell list identifier IE, identifying the cells in which the paging message is to be transmitted. The BSC checks the cell identifier list and builds a paging_command message for the relevant BTSs. The following table shows the different cell identification lists and the paging performed by the BSC. Cell List Identifier No IE present IE indicates all cells Error in IE IE indicated specific cell(s) IE indicates specific location area(s) Paging Performance Paging performed in all cells controlled by BSC Paging performed in all cells controlled by BSC Paging performed in all cells controlled by BSC Paging performed in only those cells specified
Paging performed in all cells of each location area specified
Table 11: Cell List Identifier and Paging Performed

The BSC calculates the paging group of the mobile station for each cell and the CCCH time slot. It then sends a paging_command message to each BTS, indicating the CCCH time slot number, mobile station paging group and the mobile station identity (IMSI/TMSI). The BTS builds a paging_request_type_x message to send to the mobile station. There are three types of paging request messages, as the BTS can page more than one mobile station at a time. The following table shows the relationship between the paging message type, the number of mobile stations to be paged and the mobile station ID used. Paging Request Message Type_1, identifying up to two mobile stations Mobile Station Identification IMSI or TMSI (for 1 mobile station) IMSI, IMSI or TMSI, TMSI or IMSI, TMSI (for two mobile stations)
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Paging Request Message Type_2, identifying three mobile stations Type_3, identifying four mobile stations
Mobile Station Identification TMSI, TMSI, TMSI or TMSI, TMSI, IMSI TMSI, TMSI, TMSI, TMSI
Table 12: Paging Request Message and Mobile Station Identification

By using a combination of paging message types, several mobile stations can be simultaneously paged. This is done even if some mobile stations are paged using the IMSI and others are paged using the TMSI. The paging_request messages are stored in a buffer, while waiting to be sent on the relevant PCH subchannel. If this buffer becomes full, the next paging_command message is discarded. When the mobile station receives the paging_request message, it sends a channel_request message to initiate the immediate assign procedure. The service request message following the immediate assign procedure indicates that the channel_request is in response to a paging request message. This is shown in the following figure.
MS BTS BSC
paging
MSC
+ cell
paging and comm
list IE
paging
t reques
H time + CCC
slot +
paging
group
SI TMSI/IM
channe
l reque
st
channe
REF +
SABM + serv ice req uest (p aging respon
l requir
ed
RFN +
TA
se)
establis h indic ation
CCCH IE IMSI MS REF RFN SABM TA TMSI
: Common Control Channel : Information Element : International Mobile Subscriber Identity : Mobile station : Random access information value : Reduced frame number : Set Asynchronous Balanced Mode : Timing advance : Temporary Mobile Subscriber Identity
Figure 38: Paging Message Sequence
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3.4.2 Discontinuous Reception

Discontinuous Reception adds to the power saving abilities of the system, extending mobile station autonomy under battery operation. The DRX feature implements a receiver off/on ratio of 98 to 2. When the mobile station is in idle mode, DRX allows the mobile station to switch off its receiver and data processing. Instead of the mobile station listening continually on the Paging Channel sub-channel of the CCCH for a paging message, it only listens to that part of the PCH which corresponds to its paging group. The PCH is split into a number of paging sub-channels, each of which serves the mobile stations of a particular paging group. The mobile station calculates its paging group and the part of the PCH it has to monitor. It gets the information from its IMSI, and from the Control Channel description sent on the BCCH (sys_info 3). The paging information is transmitted at predefined regular intervals. The mobile station only turns on its receiver to listen to its paging group and then turns itself off again. This occurs cyclically, between 0.95 seconds and 4.25 seconds, depending on the configuration of the cell. Apart from listening to the PCH, the mobile station monitors the home cells BCCH up to once every 30 seconds, and the top six neighboring cells up to once every five minutes. For more information about Paging, refer to Paging (Section 3.4).
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3.5 Congestion
To prevent an assignment_request or an external handover_request message being rejected, the BSS allows queueing of traffic channel requests. Congestion occurs when all traffic channels are busy for a particular cell and the message arrives at the BSC. Queueing is allowed if indicated by the MSC in the request message.
3.5.1 Queueing
Queueing is used to achieve a higher rate of successful call set up and external handover completion in cases of traffic channel congestion. This is achieved by queueing the request for a defined period of time. During this time a traffic channel can become available and the traffic channel assignment can then be completed. When all traffic channels of a cell are busy, assignment and external handover requests for traffic channel allocation can be queued, if: Requested by the MSC If the MSC allows queueing, this information and the priority of the request for queueing are sent in the Priority Information Element of the request. Configured in the BSC The BTS can perform queueing if specified in the BSC configuration. BTS queueing can be enabled/disabled by an operator command through the OMC-R. Setting the BTS_Q_LENGTH parameter to 0 disables the queueing. If either the MSC or BSC does not allow the request to be queued, the request is immediately rejected and an assignment_failure message is sent to the MSC.
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3.5.2 In-queue
If queueing is allowed, the request cannot be queued if one of the two queue limits is exceeded. These limits are: The maximum number of requests that can be queued per BTS if defined by the O&M parameter BTS_Q_LENGTH. The range is from 1 to 64. This can be individually set for each BTS. The global limit of 64 queued requests in the BSS. The sum of all BTS queue lengths cannot exceed 64. When one of the queue limits is exceeded, the request may still be queued if there is a lower priority request in the queue. If the priority of the incoming request is higher than the lowest in the queue, the incoming request is queued and the oldest lowest priority request is then rejected. Once a request is queued, the BSC informs the MSC by sending a queueing_indication message. A timer is activated when the request is queued. If the timer expires or the request is preempted by a higher priority request, the request is rejected. Once in the queue, the request waits to be either accepted or rejected due to one of the following events: Traffic channel availability Forced Directed Retry.
Traffic Channel Availability
If another traffic channel disconnects within the cell, the request at the top of the queue is assigned to the newly available traffic channel. The request is removed from the queue. An assignment_complete message is sent to the MSC notifying it of the successful assignment of a traffic channel. The BSC detects that the call can be supported on another cell, and implements Forced Directed Retry. If the BSC detects the possibility of a handover for the queued request, it generates an internal or external handover alarm and initiates the appropriate handover procedure. A handover from an SDCCH in the serving cell to a traffic channel in a target cell is known as directed retry. On detection of the handover alarm, the BSC cancels the queued request, stops the timer, and selects a neighbor cell in the target cell list. The target cell must be able to support the ciphering requirements of the call. Once a cell is selected, a traffic channel is chosen and a handover is attempted (SDCCH to traffic channel). If the handover fails, another cell is chosen from the target cell list. This procedure continues until a successful handover or the handover limit (number of handover attempts allowed) is exceeded. The MSC is notified of a successful handover by an assignment_complete message. The direct retry finishes if the number of handover attempts is exceeded, or there are no more cells left in the target cell list. Finally an assignment_failure message is sent to the MSC indicating that there are no radio resources available.
Forced Directed Retry
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Queue Preemption
If a higher priority request arrives in the queue, Queue Preemption is implemented. If one of the queue limits is exceeded and the request is the oldest of the lowest priority requests in the queue, the request is rejected. An assignment_reject message is sent to the MSC indicating that there are no radio resources available.
Timer Expires
If the timer expires, the request is de-queued and rejected. An assignment_reject message is sent to the MSC indicating that there are no radio resources available. Half-rate calls use only a half time slot. If two half-rate calls are alone on separate time slots they are gathered on to a single time slot. This frees a whole time slot to serve a queued full-rate request. Reshuffling half-rate calls is enabled on a per cell basis, by setting the EN_HR_RESHUFFLING parameter to TRUE. Setting the EN_HR_RESHUFFLING parameter to FALSE disables reshuffling half-rate calls for that cell. Fast traffic handover is enabled when all of the following conditions are met: A request is queued at the top of the queue. The request is of full-rate type for assignment or emergency external incoming handover, and is not in the HOLD state There are at least two half-rate resources in the half-rate pool The parameter EN_HR_RESHUFFLING is set to TRUE. If the request is a half-rate request, it is not queued but served, because at least two half-rate resources in the half-rate pool are required to trigger the algorithm. If there is only one resource in the half-rate pool, it means there is an odd number of half-rate calls in the cell, so it is not possible to pair the last one. The queued request may be an assignment, or an incoming external emergency handover. If the algorithm has been triggered once and the queued request served (or rejected by expiry of the timer), if at least another request still remains in the queue, and if the trigger condition is still fulfilled for the top queued request (assignment or external emergency handover), then the algorithm is triggered again. If a half-rate request is queued behind a full-rate request, the half-rate request is served on a remaining half-rate resource of the half-rate pool (if any) without triggering the algorithm again. Half-rate calls are paired using an intracell handover. In the case of concentric cells, mobile stations are queued in the outer zone only. The check for two free half-rate resources applies to the outer zone only (to free a resource in the outer zone). The mobile station selected will make its handover into the outer zone (i.e. this handover does not allow handover from the outer zone to the inner zone).
Reshuffling Half-Rate Calls
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Fast Traffic Handover
Another possibility to save resources in case of traffic peaks is to force handovers toward neighbor cells which have less traffic. The fast traffic handover searches in the whole cell for a mobile which can perform a handover to a neighbor cell with less traffic if the received signal level of the BCCH is good enough. It is much more efficient than the forced directed retry when the overlap of adjacent cells is reduced, e.g., in the case of single layer networks, or for deep indoor coverage (if the umbrella cell does not overlap totally the microcells). Fast traffic handover is enabled on a per cell basis, by setting the EN_FAST_TRAFFIC_HO parameter to TRUE. Setting the EN_FAST_TRAFFIC_HO parameter to FALSE disables fast traffic handover for that cell. Fast traffic handover is enabled when all of the following conditions are met: A request is queued at the top of the queue. The request is of full-rate type for assignment or emergency external incoming handover, and is not in the HOLD state. The parameter EN_FAST_TRAFFIC_HO is set to TRUE. The queued request is an assignment. If it is an external incoming handover, it is an emergency handover to trigger the algorithm; otherwise the algorithm shall not be triggered.
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3.5.3 Pre-emption
Pre-emption is an optional feature and is initiated during congestion periods. The feature allows radio resources in a cell to be allocated to those calls which are deemed to be the most important. The importance of the connection is given by the MSC to the BSC via signalling on the A interface. During congestion periods, the BSC ensures that high priority transactions obtain the resources they require. The BSC performs a release of radio resources in order to obtain the radio resource for the higher priority call. For Phase 1 & Phase 2 GSM the signalling for priority and pre-emption exists on the A interface. The setting of this data on the A interface is controlled by the MSC. The conditions under which the information is set is up to operator choices. For Phase 2+ GSM the priority and pre-emption information is based on subscription data which is stored in the HLR and downloaded to the VLR via MAP protocols. This information can also be used by the MSC when setting the priority level and pre-emption attributes for the call. The pre-emption attributes of a call are defined by three bits: pci. The pre-emption capability indication indicates if the transaction can pre-empt another transaction pvi. The pre-emption vulnerability indication indicates if the transaction can be pre-empted prec. The pre-emption recommendation. This is needed in order that pre-emption can be deferred while a suitable non-congested cell is found in the preferred cell list. The pre-emption recommendation is used when the old BSS recommends that another connection is to be pre-empted. Pre-emption isapplied to TCH only. The pre-emption feature is optional and controlled by the O&M parameter (EN_TCH_PREEMPT) on a per-BSC basis. The BSC provides pre-emption of TCH radio resources. This takes into account the priority of the call. The lowest lower priority call with the pvi bit set is pre-empted and thus released. Directed retry and/or forced handover in order to avoid pre-emption is not supported.
eMLPP
Enhanced Multi Level Priority and Pre-emption (eMLPP) is a supplementary service that allows a subscriber in the fixed or mobile network to initiate calls that have a priority and pre-emption attribute known to all the network elements. The eMLPP standardization provides the transportation of the subscription information for priority and pre-emption on MAP. This subscription information is stored in the HLR and the GCR and is transported to the VLR. The informaton is used for the following procedures: Paging TCH Assignment TCH Handover. Only TCH pre-emption is supported (i.e. only for circuit-switched services).
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Pre-emption Rules
An Assignment Request message with pci=1 and priority level=p1 will pre-empt an on-going call with pvi=1 and priority level=p2 (p2 is lower than p1). A Handover Request message with pci=1 and priority level=p1 will pre-empt an on-going call with pvi=1 and priority level=p2, except if the prec bit is present and set to 0 (i.e. the old BSS does not recommend the pre-emption of an on-going call to be performed by the target BSS). In both cases, the call with the lowest priority level=p2 value is selected first, and if several calls have the same lowest priority level=p2 value, one of them with the pci bit set to 0 is preferred.
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3.6 Classmark Handling

The mobile station classmark contains information about the mobile station type and capabilities. This information is used by the BSS when implementing procedures that affect a mobile station, such as: Handover Power Control Ciphering Overload Control Location Updating. Mobile stations of different types have different capabilities within the network. It is essential that the network recognizes the mobile station classmark when initiating procedures for a specific mobile station. There are three entities that provide classmark handling as shown in the following table. Entity BSS Classmark Handling Performed by the BSC, which is responsible for collecting the classmark data needed to perform procedures on the mobile station. Indicates the mobile station classmark data to the BSC for MSC-initiated procedures. The BSS is informed of any classmark changes and information is sent on request from the BSS.
MSC
Mobile station
Table 13: Classmark Handling
Note:
The BSS can receive mobile station classmark information from both the MSC and the mobile station. The information from the mobile station overrides information from the MSC.
3.6.1 Classmark IE
The Alcatel 900/1800 BSS supports classmark 1, classmark 2 and classmark 3 IEs. The classmark 1 IE is always sent to the BSS when the mobile station tries to establish communication.
Classmark 1
The classmark 1 IE contains: The revision Level The RF Power Level Support of A5/1 Encryption.
Classmark 2
The classmark 2 IE is defined in GSM to allow the coding of phase 2 capabilities such as the A5/2 ciphering algorithm. The classmark contains the same elements as the classmark 1 IE, plus support of A5/2 encryption.
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Classmark 3
The classmark 3 IE is defined in GSM to allow multiband mobile stations to indicate their capabilities. The classmark specifies the supported bands and the respective power classes. The revision level indicates either a phase 1 or phase 2 mobile station. It does not distinguish between phase 1 and phase 1 extended mobile stations. If there is an error in this field, then a default phase 1 is assumed. The RF Power Level indicates the mobile station power capability. For Alcatel 900: Class 1 = 20W Class 2 = 8W Class 3 = 5W Class 4 = 2W Class 5 = 0.8W. For Alcatel 1800: Class 1 = 1W Class 2 = 0.25W. The value is not permitted if there is an error in this field. The result of this is that the mobile station power capability is assumed to be the same as the maximum transmit power allowed in the cell.
Revision Level
RF Power Level
Support of A5/1 Encryption Support of A5/2 Encryption Impact on BSS and MSC
This field indicates whether the mobile station supports the A5/1 encryption algorithm. If the A5/1 encryption algorithm is not supported, there is no indication of other algorithms being supported. This field indicates whether the mobile station supports the A5/2 encryption algorithm. If the A5/2 encryption algorithm is not supported, there is no indication of other algorithms being supported. The main difference between classmarks 1 and 2 for the BSS or MSC is the support of the encryption algorithm. For procedures that require ciphering, the BSS and MSC cannot recognize the mobile station ciphering capability if only the classmark 1 Information Element was received. Therefore, there is a classmark updating procedure. Similarly, for classmark 3, the BSS and MSC do not recognize the mobile stations multiband capabilities if only classmark 1 Information Element was received. Therefore, a classmark updating procedure is required.
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3.6.2 Classmark Updating

Further classmark information may be required by the BSS or MSC when initiating a procedure which needs to encrypt information. The mobile station can also send updated information if, for example, its power capability changes. This means that the updating of classmark information can be initiated from the: Mobile station by sending a classmark_change message to the BSC which sends a classmark_update message to the MSC. BSC by sending a classmark_enquiry message through the BTS to the mobile station. The mobile station responds with a classmark_change message. MSC by sending a classmark_request message to the BSC. This prompts the BSC to send a classmark_enquiry message to the mobile station which responds with a classmark_change message. The classmark_change message from the mobile station is passed through the BTS to the BSC. The BSC stores the information for its own use and forwards the information to the MSC. Depending on the network type and configuration, the classmark update is not always required. Therefore, the BSS has a parameter in the BSC (Parameter: BSS_SEND_CM_ENQUIRY) which can be configured. The following table shows the possible configurations. Parameter Value 0 Action The classmark_enquiry message is never initiated by the BSC. The BSC always initiates a classmark update when it receives a location update request. The BSC only initiates a classmark update on reception of a location update request if A5/1 is not available. This is worked out from the classmark 1 IE.
Table 14: Classmark Configuration

If the system requests a classmark update to a phase 1 mobile station, the mobile station is not able to respond. It considers the message an error and sends an RR_status message. This message is ignored by the BSS and is not passed to the MSC.
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3.6.3 Location Updating with Classmark Procedure

If the mobile station is a phase 1 extended or phase 2 mobile station, it can send classmark update information on request from the BSS or MSC. Because the BSS does not know the mobile station ciphering capability from the classmark 1 Information Element, updating is required. This is received when the mobile station establishes the LAPDm connection, as shown in the following figure.
MS
channel re quest
(RACH) channel required
BTS
BSC
MSC
switch to SDCCH
SABM + rn +
fn + cm
establish
indication
SCCP co
nnection
H/SA (FACC
CCH)
SCCP
connect
ion
pow
+s er + TA
ys info
5&6
ark classm
enauiry
confirm
classmark change
classmark 2IE
classmark update
classmark 2IE
location update
(SDCCH)
cm FACCH IE MS RACH SABM SACCH SCCP SDCCH TA
: Classmark : Fast Associated Control Channel : Information Element : Mobile station : Random Access Channel : Set Asynchronous Balanced Mode : Slow Associated Control Channel : Signal Connection Control Part : Stand-alone Dedicated Control Channel : Timing advance
Figure 39: Location Update with Classmark Update
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The mobile station initiates a location update procedure by sending a channel_request message on the RACH. The BSS performs the immediate assign procedure, as described in Mobile Originated Call (Section 3.2). The mobile station establishes the LAPDm link and sends the location update request and classmark 1 IE. The BTS sends an establish_indication message to the BSC, containing the location update request and classmark 1 IE. The BSC uses the classmark to send mobile station power control information to the BTS to start power control. It stores the classmark information and requests an SCCP connection with the MSC. When the BSC receives an SCCP_connection_confirm message, it sends a classmark_enquiry message to the mobile station. The mobile station responds with a classmark_change message containing the classmark 2 IE. This information is passed to the MSC in a classmark_updating message. If the mobile station is a phase 1 mobile station, it responds with an RR_status message which is ignored by the BSS. In this case, the BSS sets ciphering with the information available from the classmark 1 IE. The MSC initiates the authentication procedure and on receipt of the authentication response message, initiates the ciphering procedure. Refer to Ciphering (Section 3.8) for more information about ciphering. When ciphering is set, the MSC can accept the location update.
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3.7 Authentication
The authentication procedure ensures that the subscriber identification (IMSI, TMSI) and the IMEI are valid. The system behavior for non-valid identifications is at the discretion of the Network Operator. The procedure also validates the Ki value in the mobile station, and sends the RAND which is used to calculate the ciphering key.
IMSI/TMSI
When the subscriber accesses the network for the first time, the subscription is identified by the IMSI sent in the location_updating_request message. When the NSS has performed authentication and set the ciphering mode, the VLR assigns a TMSI, in an encrypted format over the Air interface. The next time the subscriber connects to the system, it uses the TMSI as its identification. If the mobile station has changed location area, it includes the old Location Area Identity. The new VLR interrogates the old VLR for the authentication information (IMSI and Ki value). The new VLR then assigns a new TMSI. This is shown in the figure below. New TMSIs can be assigned by the serving VLR at any time. The subscriber identity is secure because the TMSI is always ciphered and changed regularly.
BTS Mobile Station
BSC
MSC
VLR
Mobile Station moving and connecting in a new location area
info request
IMSI + Ki
service request + TMSI + old LAI new TMSI BTS Mobile Station BSC
MSC
VLR
IMSI Ki LAI TMSI VLR
: International Mobile Subscriber Identity : Individual Subscriber Authentication Key : Location Area Identity : Temporary Mobile Subscriber Identity : Visitor Location Register
Figure 40: Location Update with Mobile Station Sending Location Area Identity of Previous VLR
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Authentication Procedure
The authentication procedure is initiated by the NSS. It sends an authentication_request message to the mobile station and sets a guard timer. This message contains: Parameters for the mobile station to calculate the response A ciphering key sequence number. The ciphering key is calculated from the authentication Key value assigned to the IMSI or TMSI and the value RAND. The mobile station responds using the RAND and the value authentication Key assigned to its TMSI or IMSI. For mobile station originated calls, the mobile station uses: The TMSI, if available The IMSI, if no TMSI is assigned. For mobile station terminated calls, the mobile station uses the TMSI or IMSI as requested in the paging message from the network. For emergency calls, the mobile station uses: The TMSI, if available The IMSI, if no TMSI is assigned The IMEI, if there is no TMSI or IMSI. This can happen when there is no SIM in the mobile station. When the mobile station sends the authentication_response message, the NSS stops its guard timer and validates the response. If the mobile station response is not valid, the network response depends on whether the TMSI or IMSI was used: If the TMSI was used, the network can request that the mobile station sends its IMSI. If this is a valid IMSI, but is different from the IMSI that the network associated with the TMSI, the authentication procedure is restarted with the correct parameters. If the IMSI is invalid, the network sends an authentication_reject message to the mobile station.
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3.8 Ciphering
Ciphering is supported in the Alcatel 900/1800 BSS to protect information transmitted on the Air interface. This includes: Subscriber information such as the IMSI User data SMS and SS data Information such as called and calling party numbers. Ciphering protects the information by using encryption. There are three different ciphering modes, the use of which depends on the mobile station classmark and the capability of the BTS. These modes are: Encryption using algorithm A5/1 Encryption using algorithm A5/2 No encryption. The two encryption algorithms are defined in GSM. If either is to be used, both the mobile station and BTS must have the same encryption capability.
Mobile Station Capability
The mobile station ciphering capability depends on whether it is a phase 1 mobile station, a phase 1 extended mobile station, or a phase 2 mobile station. The following table shows the different mobile station ciphering capabilities. Mobile Station Type Phase 1 Phase 1 Extended Phase 2 Capability No encryption and A5/1 No encryption and A5/1 and A5/2 No encryption No encryption and A5/1 No encryption and A5/2 No encryption and A5/1 and A5/2
Table 15: Mobile Station Ciphering Capabilities

Only phase 2 mobile stations can turn off ciphering or change the ciphering mode during a channel change procedure such as a handover. The ciphering capability of a mobile station is signalled to the BSS in the mobile station classmark.
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BSS Capability
The Alcatel 900/1800 BSS supports both uniform ciphering network configurations and mixed ciphering network configurations. A cell can be configured to support one of the following: No encryption No encryption and the A5/1 algorithm No encryption and the A5/2 algorithm. A uniform ciphering network configuration is where all cells have the same ciphering capability. A mixed ciphering network configuration is where the cells have different ciphering capabilities.
3.8.1 Ciphering Keys

The encryption used on the Air interface is provided by the physical layer hardware. This means that it does not distinguish between signalling and user traffic; therefore, the entire bit stream is encrypted. The encryption pattern added to the bit stream is calculated by the algorithm A5/1 or A5/2, using a ciphering key. For maximum security, the value of the Ciphering Key is not a fixed value. It is calculated separately by the HLR, BSC and the mobile station for each call. This means that the value Kc is never transmitted on the Air interface. The value Kc must be the same in the HLR, BSC and the mobile station. It is calculated using: A value Ki, which is assigned to the IMSI when the user subscribed to the service A RAND, sent from the MSC during the authentication procedure. The resulting value Kc is used to decipher the encrypted bit stream on the downlink, by the mobile station, and on the uplink, by the BTS.
3.8.2 Ciphering Procedure

Choosing the Ciphering Mode
The ciphering chosen by the BSC for a call depends on: The algorithms that the Network Operator allows in the network. This information is sent in the permitted_algorithm message from the MSC during ciphering or external handover procedures. The ciphering capability of the mobile station. This information is sent to the BSC in the mobile station classmark. The ciphering capability of the BTS being used to set up the call. If the mobile station capability is not compatible with that of the BTS or is not allowed by the Network Operator, then the BSC sets ciphering with no encryption.
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Setting the Ciphering Mode
Ciphering is initiated by the MSC by sending a cipher_mode command to the BSC. This command contains the permitted_algorithms message. The BSC compares the permitted algorithms with the mobile station classmark and the BTS capability. If they match, the BSC sends an encryption_command message to the BTS containing the value Kc and the algorithm to be used. If there is no match and no encryption is permitted, the BSC sends the encryption_command to the BTS indicating no encryption. If the BTS and mobile station capabilities are not compatible and the MSC does not allow the no encryption option, then the BSC sends a cipher_mode_reject message to the MSC. The BTS sends the ciphering_mode command on the SDCCH to the mobile station indicating the algorithm or no encryption. If encryption is to be used the BTS sets its decryption mode ready to receive encrypted frames from the mobile station. The mobile station either: Starts the encryption and sends an encrypted layer 2 acknowledgment message to the BTS. This prompts the BTS to start encryption mode for frames sent to the mobile station. Sends an unencrypted level 2 acknowledgment to the BTS. The mobile station sends a ciphering_mode_complete message to the BTS which is passed transparently to the BSC. The BSC sends a cipher_mode_complete message to the MSC. This process is shown in the following figure.
MS BTS BSC MSC
cipheri
encryp tion co d mman
ng mo
de com
mand
ted a permit
lgorith
ms + K
cipheri
ng mo
man de com
H)
c or m+K algorith on ti p ry no enc
(SDCC
algorithm or no encryption
cipheri
ng mo
de com
plete
cipher mode
comple te
MS
: Mobile station
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SDCCH
: Stand-alone Dedicated Control Channel
Figure 41: Ciphering Procedure
Ciphering During Handover
Only phase 2 mobile stations can change ciphering mode during a handover. If a phase 2 mobile station using the A5/1 algorithm is handed over to a cell which supports A5/2 and no encryption, the BSC instructs the target BTS to set the new ciphering algorithm and sends the value Kc. If a phase 1 mobile station using the A5/1 algorithm needs to be handed over, the target cell must support A5/1, as the phase 1 mobile station cannot change ciphering mode. For mixed ciphering networks, it is normal that the initial cipher_mode command from the MSC only allows a phase 1 mobile station to use the no encryption option, as this is supported by all cells.
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3.9 Tandem Free Operation

Tandem Free Operation (TFO) provides a better voice quality by avoiding unnecessary successive coding and decoding operations in the case of mobile to mobile calls. The importance of TFO is always increasing, as the percentage of mobile to mobile calls increases with the number of subscribers. Taking the example of a call involving two mobile stations, mobile station 1 and mobile station 2: With TFO feature, the same codec will be used on both BSS, this will improve the speech quality of mobile-to-mobile calls, and particularly when using the half-rate codec. Without TFO One GSM coding and decoding scheme (codec), is used between mobile station 1 and Transcoder 1, then A/ law coding is used (at 64 kbit/s) between the two Transcoders and finally one GSM codec is used between Transcoder 2 and mobile station 2. This means a loss of quality for the speech call. With TFO The intermediate transcoding realized by the two involved Transcoders is avoided. The same codec is used on both BSS. This improves the speech quality of mobile-to-mobile calls, particularly when using the half-rate codec. This allows the wide use of the half-rate codec, with a good level of speech quality, in order to save resources in BSS. The TFO procedure can be applied whenever the two mobile stations use the same codec. To satisfy this condition, after TCH allocation, the two BSS negotiate at each side a common codec (full-rate, half-rate or enhanced full-rate), by using an in-band protocol in the speech frame. The following figure shows an example of TFO call establishment.
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BTS A
Channel activation TFO enabled
BSC A
TC A PCM samples
TC B
BSC B
Channel activation TFO enabled TRAU frames CON_REQ DL_ACK
BTS B
1 2 3 4
TRAU frames CON_REQ DL_ACK TRAU frames TFO_REQ TFO_REQ
TRAU frames
TFO_ACK
TFO_ACK
Codecs match
TFO_ON
TFO frames
TFO_ON
5
TFO REPORT (TFO STATUS= ON) TFO REPORT (TFO STATUS= ON)
PCM TC TFO TRAU
: Pulse Code Modulation : Transcoder : Tandem Free Operation : Transcoder Rate Adaptation Unit
Figure 42: Example of TFO Establishment

Referring to the figure above, the call establishment scenario is as follows: 1. At call establishment, the BSC sends to the BTS the channel activation message, containing information related to TFO. 2. TRAU frames are exchanged between the BTS and the Transcoder. PCM samples are exchanged between TRAUs. One TRAU frame is stolen from the BTS by the Transcoder, to send TFO configuration information (in the con_req message). 3. As soon as the TRAUs have received the information that the TFO is enabled in the con_req message, (and also the TFO configuration information), they send the tfo_req message, within PCM speech samples, to indicate that the TRAUs are TFO-capable. Meanwhile, the TFAUs acknowledge the con_req message to the BTS with the dl_ack indication. 4. The TRAUs acknowledge that the tfo_req message has been received by sending a tfo_ack indication. 5. The same codecs are then used on both sides. The TRAUs can exchange TFO frames. 6. The BTS are made aware of the exchange of TFO frames with the tfo_on indication. The BSC is informed via a tfo_report message on the Abis interface. The Alcatel TFO implementation is fully compliant with the GSM standard and additionally provides: As an operator s choice, the Alcatel BSS is able to force the distant BSS (Alcatel or not) to overcome ETSI codec choice rules, in order to optimize voice quality and load management. This mechanism is patented by Alcatel. Codec optimization, to take into account that the two mobile stations may use the same codec, but a better codec is available on both parts.
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3.9.1 TFO Functional Architecture

The TFO procedure is defined between two Transcoding and Rate Adaptation Units (TRAU). When TFO is possible between two Mobile Stations, TFO frames (similar to TRAU frames) are transferred between the two TRAUs on the A interface. These frames contain coded speech streams, and may also contain embedded TFO messages. They are supported by a 0.5 kbit/s signalling channel between two Transcoders, emulated during the TFO negotiation phase. This channel uses one bit (Least Significant Bit) every 16 PCM samples, regularly stolen on the 64 kbit/s circuit. Note that when TFO frames are transmitted, speech is nevertheless coded to G.711 law and sent to the A interface on the remaining MSB bits of the PCM samples. This allows a faster reversion to normal operation mode if required. Moreover, lawful interception in MSCs is still possible. The Alcatel solution avoids any Ater supplementary links, because the BSC-Transcoder TFO messages are exchanged through the BTS and the Abis layer 3 protocol.
Same Codec Used on Each Side Codec Mismatch, Negotiation Needed
As the same codec is used on both sides, there is no TFO negotiation needed between the TRAU. In this case, TFO communication is possible between the two BSS, but the TRAUs do not use the same speech codec. TFO negotiation and resolution by the BSS are needed. When detecting the mismatch, each TRAU sends to the other (using TFO messages) the codec locally used, and the list of possible codecs. At each side, the BSS determines the matching codec. On each BSS, the same algorithm is implemented, this algorithm attempts to find a matching codec using the information given by the TRAU. If a common codec can be found, an internal intra-cell handover is performed to change the speech codec locally used, and TFO exchange of speech stream begins. A logical parameter, configurable at OMC-R level, allows the BSC to ignore the load in the cell and to force the handover in order to solve codec mismatch situations. If no common codec can be found, or internal intra-cell handover is not possible, TFO mode is given up, and the system reverts to normal mode.
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3.9.2 TFO Optimization and Management

TFO is fully managed by the OMC-R operator, on a per cell basis. Several functions have been introduced to provide full control of TFO optimization, regarding load regulation, speech quality, or Adaptive Multi-Rate (see Adaptive Multiple Rate (Section 6.2.3)) codec support.
TFO Optimization
For a better speech quality, TFO Optimization allows a new TFO negotiation on an on-going TFO mobile-to-mobile call, to find a better common codec, in terms of speech quality. Therefore, enhanced full-rate coding is considered to be better than full-rate coding which is considered to be better than half-rate coding. The Enable TFO Optimization feature can be enabled or disabled, per cell, at the OMC-R. In some cases, both parts may use the same codec, but a better codec is available at each side and may be used (e.g., half-rate is used at both sides, but full-rate is possible). The procedure is then the same as the modification of speech codec in mismatch status, except that it takes place only when TFO frames are already exchanged. The TFO messages exchanged between both TRAUs are then embedded in TFO frames.
TFO Negotiation Control
For a better traffic load regulation Alcatel has defined the function "Force TFO half-rate when loaded" to give control to the operator of load regulation precedence over TFO. This function can be enabled or disabled, per cell, at the OMC-R, and allows the BSC to take into account the load in the cell while building the list of supported codec types. If the cell is loaded, only half-rate (if possible) will be included in the list. If the distant BSS supports TFO but not half-rate, the function "Force TFO half-rate when loaded" allows the BSC in this case to recompute the list of supported codec types by inserting full-rate and enhanced full-rate in the list. Therefore, the function Force TFO half-rate when loaded leads to three different behaviors, depending on three possible values of corresponding flag: TFO half-rate not forced. No filtering on the load is done. The load is not tested and all the codec types supported by the call and by the cell are listed in the supported codec type list TFO half-rate only. Filtering is done on the load, half-rate is forced if the cell is loaded and the mobile station supports half-rate, and if this codec type is authorized in the cell. The list of supported codec types is restricted to the half-rate codec type. As a consequence, if the distant part supports half-rate, then the distant part will do an intra-cell handover to use half-rate, and TFO will go on with half-rate. If the distant part does not support half-rate, TFO will not be possible. TFO half-rate preferred. Filtering is done on the load, but TFO is preferred to half-rate. In the case of a load situation, only half-rate is sent in the list of preferred codecs. But if the distant BSS does not support half-rate, a new list is computed, without taking into account the load in the cell.
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4 Call Handling
This chapter provides an overview of Call Handling and describes the supervision of a call in progress. The following specific areas are described: Overview In-call modification Frequency hopping Discontinuous Transmission Radio Power Control Handover procedures Overload conditions Call re-establishment by the mobile station.
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4.1 Overview
An obvious requirement for the effective management of calls in the BSS is to provide the following: Maximum perceived signal quality with minimum perceived interference Call continuity regardless of changes in propagation conditions or change of location of the mobile station. Given that spectrum is limited, this must be accomplished with maximum resource reuse. Another important factor for the customer (and the operator as well) is power efficiency to reduce overall power consumption and prolong the autonomy of the mobile station under battery operation. The supervision of calls in progress is provided by the Call Handling function. Call Handling, with associated features, implements needed changes in the required teleservice to maintain call quality and continuity. Call Handling functions and features include: In-Call Modification Frequency Hopping Discontinuous Transmission Radio Power Control Handover Overload Control Call re-establishment by the mobile station.
4.2 In-Call Modification

In-call modification allows the teleservice to be changed during a call. This means that a call does not have to be cleared, and a new call established, if more than one teleservice is to be used. The different types of in-call modification are: Alternate between speech and a transparent data service Alternate between speech and a non-transparent data service Change from speech to a transparent data service Change from speech to a non-transparent data service Alternate between speech and transparent fax group 3 Alternate between speech and non-transparent fax group 3 Data rate change for transparent fax group 3 Data rate change for non-transparent fax group 3.
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Calls requiring a change of service have to negotiate a dual-service before the normal assignment procedure. This is indicated in the set_up message, which is described in Call Set Up (Chapter 3).
Note:
Changing the data rate of a fax call is not a true in-call modification procedure, as the teleservice is not changed (no dual-service negotiation). The main difference between the in-call modification procedure and a change of data rate for fax are as follows: The in-call modification procedure is triggered by a message from the mobile station The data rate change for fax is triggered by in-band signalling from the fax machine to the MSC. Both procedures use existing resources, therefore no new resources need to be allocated. All full-rate traffic channels can be used for speech or data at any of the defined data rates. Both procedures use the mode modify procedure to change the transmission mode. This is basically a normal assignment procedure but instead of a new channel being assigned, a new mode is assigned.
4.2.1 In-Call Modification Procedure

In-call modification is initiated from a mobile station. This can occur during a call to a correspondent on the public telephone network or to a mobile station.
Mobile Station to Mobile Station Call
For a mobile station to mobile station call, both mobile stations must negotiate a dual service during call establishment. The mobile station initiates the procedure by sending a layer 3 Call Control modify message to the MSC, indicating the new mode. If the data call direction is different to the original call set up, then this message contains an indicator to reverse the call direction. The mobile station starts a guard timer for the procedure. The MSC checks the modify message. If it can accept the mode change, it starts the normal assignment procedure by sending an assignment_request message and starting a guard timer. This message contains a channel type (speech or data plus data rate). The BSS handles the normal assignment procedure as if assigning a traffic channel during call set up (described in Call Set Up (Chapter 3)), with the following exceptions: When the BSC has checked and accepted the assignment_request message, it does not assign a new traffic channel. This is because it already has a traffic channel assigned for the transaction. The transaction is identified by the SCCP connection on which the assignment_request message was received The channel_activation and channel_activation_acknowledge messages are replaced by the mode_modify and mode_modify acknowledge messages. When the MSC receives the assignment_complete message from the BSC, it sends a layer 3 CC modify_complete message to the mobile station. This
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informs the mobile station that the procedure is successfully completed, and the mobile station can start transmitting in the new mode.
4.2.2 Circuit-switched Group 3 Fax Data Rate Change

Group 3 facsimile equipment can change the data transmission speed to reduce the error rate. Fax data rates can be: 9600 bit/s 4800 bit/s 2400 bit/s 1200 bit/s. The Alcatel 900/1800 BSS supports both transparent and non-transparent fax transmission. The BSS supports the Group 3 fax data rate change by: In-band signalling for non-transparent fax The mode modify procedure for transparent fax.
Non-Transparent Group 3 Fax
For non-transparent fax transmission, the data rate change is handled within the BSS, using in-band signalling. This means that the frame size is signalled in the frame by a "frame delimiter" field. The Radio Link Protocol in the BTS uses this information to control the data flow on the Air interface. The BSS does not need to change the channel mode. Transparent fax frames are passed transparently through the BSS. Therefore, in-band signalling cannot be used within the BSS. The Group 3 fax equipment informs the MSC of a data rate change using in-band signalling. The MSC then initiates a mode modify procedure using the assignment_request message. This procedure is the same as the mode modify procedure for in-call modification, except that the MSC does not send a layer 3 Call Control mode_modify_complete message. This is because the procedure was not triggered by a layer 3 CC modify message from the mobile station. When the MSC receives the assignment_complete message from the BSC, it sets the new data rate to the correspondent.
Transparent Group 3 Fax
4.2.3 Error Handling

The Alcatel 900/1800 BSS tries to provide the highest level of service at all times. In general, if errors occur during an in-call modification, the BSS tries to revert to the old mode to keep the call active.
In-Call Modification Example
For example, if the mobile station does not reply to the channel_mode_modify message from the BSC, it is assumed that it is still active but in the old mode. The BTS, however, has set the new mode. The BSC sends a mode_modify message to the BTS indicating the old mode. If the BTS acknowledges that it has reverted to the old mode, the call is kept active.
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4.3 Frequency Hopping

Frequency Hopping is a method to increase frequency reuse and improve the systems ability to cope with adjacent channel interference. The Frequency Hopping algorithm can be either random or cyclic. Associated (i.e. paired) uplink and downlink frequencies are always 45 MHz. There are two major types of frequency hopping:
Baseband Frequency Hopping Synthesized Frequency Hopping.

Frequency Hopping improves BSS-mobile station performance by providing two types of diversity: Frequency diversity Interference diversity.
Frequency Diversity
Frequency Diversity averages the effects of signal fading by using several frequencies to improve transmission performance. Obstacles such as buildings produce fading by reflecting the signal out of phase with the main signal. Each frequency is affected differently by fading. After error correction information is added to the data, it is encoded so that the data is split into packets and the information is repeated. This creates redundant information which is transmitted in bursts on the Air Interface. With Frequency Hopping, each redundant information burst is transmitted on a different frequency. This enables the original data to be reconstructed from the received flow, even if errors occur due to fading. In this way Frequency Hopping improves transmission performance.
Interference Diversity
Interference Diversity spreads the co-channel interference between several mobile stations. In high traffic areas, the capacity of a cellular system is limited by its own interference; that is, the interference caused by frequency re-use. Interference Diversity minimizes the time during which a given user on a given mobile station will experience the effects of such interference.
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4.3.1 Baseband Frequency Hopping

A Mobile Allocation is a set of all the frequencies available for frequency hopping. When the Frequency Hopping procedure is implemented a group of mobile stations is assigned to a Mobile Allocation. When a traffic channel is set up in a cell where Frequency Hopping is active, the traffic channel is assigned: A particular time slot An FHS. An FHS is defined as the subset of frequencies within the MA to be used by a given cell for Frequency Hopping. A MAIO. The MAIO indicates the initial hopping frequency of the traffic channel within the FHS. Use of the MAIO ensures that each traffic channel is assigned a different frequency during hopping. An HSN. The HSN supplies the identifying number of an algorithm which is used to calculate the next frequency in the FHS on which the traffic channel transmits. There can be up to 63 different HSN algorithms, all of which are pseudo random. Within a given FHS, only one algorithm is used to avoid collisions. An HSN of zero means a cyclic use of the frequencies. An example of Frequency Hopping is shown in the figure below. Because the HSN = 0, hopping occurs in a sequential manner. With a non-zero HSN, each of the 3 traffic channels would hop in a random fashion determined by the algorithm corresponding to the HSN.
Within this FHS the HSN=0
Frame n Frame n+1 Frame n+2 Frame n+3
Assignment for TCH 1: TS=1 MAIO=0 HSN=0
TCH1 on TS1 MAIO=0
f1
f2
f3
f1
TCH2 on TS2 MAIO=1
f2
f3
f1
f2
TCH3 on TS3 MAIO=2
f3
f1
f2
f3
f FHS TCH MAIO HSN TS
: Frequency : Frequency Hopping System : Traffic Channel : Mobile Allocation Index Offset : Hopping Sequence Number : Time slot
Figure 43: Frequency Hopping within an FHS
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4.3.2 Synthesized Frequency Hopping

Synthesized Frequency Hopping functions in a similar fashion to Baseband Frequency Hopping, but is performed at a different location. Instead of switching each time slot between traffic channels, the channel assigned to a time slot is assigned to a fixed Carrier Unit (or TRE). The Carrier Unit/TRE changes frequency with each TDMA frame in accordance with the HSN algorithm selected, in the same manner as above. Thus, instead of the channel hopping from one fixed transceiver to another, the transceiver itself hops from one frequency to another, in both cases, according to the algorithm and parameters selected. Synthesized Frequency Hopping has the advantage of allowing an FHS to contain one more frequency than the number of Carrier Units/TREs in the system. This is particularly useful in some microcellular applications where only one transceiver is available for Frequency Hopping.
Note:
Normally, in both Frequency Hopping schemes (Baseband and Synthesized), time slot 0 (TS0) is not available for Frequency Hopping. This is because it carries the BCCH, which must always be at maximum power and on a frequency known to mobile stations in Idle mode in the cell.
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4.4 Discontinuous Transmission

Discontinuous Transmission and VAD work together to decrease the average transmission time on a channel. By transmitting only when actual speech is present, the system reduces the interference level generated by the network in both the uplink and downlink directions and saves power. In tandem with Frequency Hopping, this improves spectrum efficiency without jeopardizing the quality of the telephony service.
4.4.1 Speech Transmission

Speech is transmitted over the air in the following ways: Continuous transmission Discontinuous transmission.
Continuous Transmission
Sound is continuously encoded into digital information even when no one is talking. In normal conversation, only one participant at a time talks. This is used by the system to its advantage, by transmitting only when someone is speaking.
Discontinuous Transmission
Only actual speech is digitally encoded and transmitted. During the non-speech phase (silent periods), noise/comfort mode information is sent once every 480 ms instead of once every 20 ms for speech. In this way the system: Improves spectral interference Increases power savings. By transmitting at a reduced rate of 1 in 24 during the silent phases, the power autonomy of the mobile station improves. Discontinuous Transmission does not occur during half-rate speech or data modes. It can be activated for either the uplink or the downlink or both. The receivers of Discontinuous Transmission information can automatically detect that the transmitter is in Discontinuous Transmission mode by the reception of Silence Indication messages. During quiet periods SID messages are sent instead of speech bursts. SIDs carry noise information about background noise. This information is used to: Let the receiver know that the link is still open Provide comfort noise. Users of telephones prefer to hear background noise rather than silence; complete silence disturbs the listener. Provide measurements of the link quality and timing advance. If there are no bursts of data over the Air Interface for a particular channel, no power level control and quality can be performed. To eliminate the noise side effects generally known as banjo noise, the operator can ban Discontinuous Transmission on the downlink for all calls that are established on the BCCH TRX, without hopping, for all types of BTS. This is achieved using the FORBID_DTXD_NH_BCCH parameter. The parameter can be set to one of two values: 0. This is the default value, and allows Discontinuous Transmission on the downlink for all calls that are established on the BCCH TRX.
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1. This bans Discontinuous Transmission on the downlink for all calls that are established on the BCCH TRX.
Voice Activity Detection
VAD is used to detect when there is speech, silence or just background noise. The VAD device is located in the Transcoder. Once the VAD detects speech, it starts transmitting speech bursts. After four bursts of detected silence, the VAD goes back into silent mode, and SID information frames are transmitted (i.e. the comfort noise generation is activated).
4.4.2 BSS Discontinuous Transmission Towards Mobile Station

Downlink Discontinuous Transmission is activated on a per call basis by combining information from the MSC and the OMC-R. The MSC informs the BSC about its downlink Discontinuous Transmission preference. It does this via the Downlink Discontinuous Transmission flag in the assignment_request or handover_request messages on a per call basis. The OMC-R can enable or disable the possibility of downlink Discontinuous Transmission per BSC via the Discontinuous Transmission_DOWNLINK_ENABLE parameter. This is a static parameter which can be set via the CMISE command M_LOGICAL_PARAM_MODIFY. The overall system reaction is shown in the following table. OMC-R Discontinuous Transmission_ DOWNLINK_ ENABLE (per BSC basis) True True False False MSC Downlink_ Discontinuous Transmission flag (per call basis) Allowed Unavailable/not allowed Allowed Unavailable/not allowed Result Discontinuous Transmission flag ON OFF OFF OFF
Table 16: Downlink Discontinuous Transmission Status in Channel_activation

The MSC requests no downlink Discontinuous Transmission during mobile station to mobile station calls, where double clipping can occur if both ends perform Discontinuous Transmission. This can have a staccato-like effect on speech. The BTS tells the Transcoder to perform Discontinuous Transmission by setting the Discontinuous Transmission bit in the speech frame. In the BSS, the Transcoder is responsible for Discontinuous Transmission operation. In the BTS, the information is processed in the FU in the following way: 1. When the Transcoder detects voice activity it informs the FU, using inband signalling. The speech signalling flag is set in the speech frame. 2. Every 20 ms the FU receives either speech frames or SID frames containing background noise characteristics. 3. At the end of the speech period (four bursts of detected silence) the FU sends a SID frame over the Air Interface.
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4. During speech inactivity, the last received SID frame is sent at regular 480 ms intervals rather than at 20 ms. Otherwise dummy bursts are sent. These dummy bursts are: Transmitted for traffic channels on the BCCH frequency, due to the need for constant transmission on the BCCH frequency Not transmitted for traffic channels on other frequencies.
Note:
The BTS uses the measurement_result message to inform the BSC that Discontinuous Transmission is operating. The BSC compensates for Discontinuous Transmission when calculating power control and handover.
4.4.3 Mobile Station Discontinuous Transmission Towards BSS

The OMC-R operator controls whether a mobile station can perform Discontinuous Transmission towards the BSS per cell. This information is sent in cell options information (sys_info 3, and sys_info 6 on the Air Interface). The following table shows the available operator options. Option Will perform Discontinuous Transmission Description This forces the mobile station to use Discontinuous Transmission. It reduces the call quality but also reduces interference in the cell and saves mobile station battery power. During silent phases only 1 in 24 bursts are sent, which greatly reduces interference. This allows the mobile station to choose either quality by not using uplink Discontinuous Transmission, or power-saving by using uplink Discontinuous Transmission. The OMC-R operator has decided, due to low interference, to have improved speech and measurement control on the uplink side.
Can perform Discontinuous Transmission
Cannot perform Discontinuous Transmission
Table 17: Operator Discontinuous Transmission Options

The Transcoder detects that the mobile station is in Discontinuous Transmission mode by the reception of SIDs.
Note:
There is a small quality reduction due to the fact that VAD only starts sending speech when a user starts to talk. This can cut the start of each speech activity. Power control and handover are also affected, as the BTS has fewer incoming messages with which to calculate power and interference.
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The following figure shows the different forms of transmission.
Sound continuously encoded
DTX during Silence in uplink
DTX during Silence in downlink
DTX during Silence in up and downlink
Continuous Transmission Discontinuous Transmission
DTX
: Discontinuous Transmission
Figure 44: Different Forms of Discontinuous Transmission
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4.5 Radio Power Control

Radio Power Control operates independently, but in a coordinated manner with Handover to provide reliable service to the user. Both directions of the radio link between the mobile station and the BTS are subject to continuous power adjustments. The power adjustment of the BTS and the mobile station are under the control of the BSC (see Radio Measurements (Section 4.6.1)). RPC improves spectrum efficiency by limiting intra-system interference. It also increases the autonomy of the mobile station by saving battery power. The reasons for changing the mobile station power level are: Uplink power level too high or too low Uplink link quality too low, or using power resources beyond quality requirements of the call. Similarly, the reasons for changing the BTS power control are: Downlink power level too high or too low Downlink link quality too low, or using power resources beyond quality requirements of the call.
4.5.1 BTS Radio Power Control

The mobile station performs power measurements of radio signals being transmitted by the BTS. The mobile station, via the SACCH, regularly sends a measurement_report message to the BTS indicating the quality and strength of the downlink plus measurements of neighboring cells. This information is combined with uplink measurements taken by the BTS and sent to the BSC in the measurement_result message. The BSC then alters the BTS power, based on the measurement information it receives from the mobile station. The maximum power level is limited by the maximum power of the BTS, and also by the maximum power allowed in the cell.
4.5.2 Mobile Station Radio Power Control

The BTS measures the signal power transmitted by the mobile station. The resulting measurements are combined with the measurement_report message from the mobile station and are sent to the BSC in the measurement_result message. The BSC sends commands to change the power level of the mobile station as needed. The maximum power level is limited by the maximum power of the mobile station, and also by the maximum power allowed in the cell. Power control can be applied to traffic channels and Stand-Alone Dedicated Control Channels.
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4.5.3 Radio Link Measurements

Due to interference and signal quality problems on the Air Interface, the uplink and the downlink transmissions are constantly measured to maintain maximum efficiency of the air-waves. A balance is maintained between the transmission power, which can interfere with other cells using the same frequency, and the quality of the actual link. The following table shows the measurements used to achieve this balance. Measurement Signal strength Description Signal strength is calculated on both active and inactive channels. On active channels, this measurement is used to provide the actual strength of the signal received from the transmitter. Inactive channel strength provides measurement of interference levels. Signal quality The signal quality of a channel is calculated on the average Bit Error Rate on a particular channel. BER is a standard quality calculation in radio transmission. This is estimated by measuring the Time Of Arrival of the received burst at the BTS for each allocated time slot. The TOA is based on transmission distance and not the actual ground distance travelled. The calculation of one bit period (3.69 s) corresponds to 550m.
Absolute mobile station-BS distance
Table 18: Radio Link Measurements
Reporting Period
The statistical parameters of signal level and quality are obtained over a measurement period. This period is called the Reporting Period. The reporting period for a traffic channel is 104 TDMA frames (480 ms). The information is transmitted in the SACCH frames.
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4.5.4 Power Control Decision and Handover

At every measurement interval, the BSC receives: Pre-processed power measurement information (uplink and downlink) Timing advance (distance information) Power level information about neighboring cells (only the best six are transmitted). The BSC uses this information to perform power control by: Lowering the power level in the uplink or downlink, as this has little effect on the quality of the link Increasing the power on the uplink or downlink if the link quality/level is low Producing a handover alarm (refer to Handover Detection (Section 4.6.2) for more information) Taking no action, if the quality/level balance is acceptable. The following figure illustrates the measurements described previously, as well as power-control flow. Figure 46 shows how power control tries and maintains optimum quality and power levels.
MS Interruption of SACCH frames BTS BSC MSC
start counter
conn ectio n fail ure in dicati
lue
on
caus
e va
clear
n han el re e leas
requ
est
RF
and mm r co clea alue se v cau g in clud IE in
MS TX
: Mobile station : Transmitter
Figure 45: Power Control Flow of Measurement and Decision Action
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Note:
The signal and quality levels are converted into the ranges Received Signal Level and Received Signal Quality respectively. Each range is classed from 0-63 (Received Signal Level where 63 is high) and 7 -0 (Received Signal Quality where 7 is poor).
High Quality
R X Q U A L
Signal level low Increase power output
Desired balance no change
Signal level too high Decrease power output
Quality bad Increase power output
Signal level too high Quality bad Handover desired High Signal Level
Low Quality Low Signal Level

RXQUAL RXLEV
RXLEV
: Received Signal Quality : Received Signal Level
Figure 46: Power Output Balancing Based on Received Quality and Signal Levels
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4.5.5 Change Power Levels

The BSC controls the power levels of the BTS and the mobile station. The BTS power level can be altered down from its maximum power. This is done in 2 dBm steps to a minimum of -30 dBm from the maximum level. The BSC informs the BTS of the new power level via a BS_power_control message. The mobile station power level can be altered in steps of 2 dBm. The following table shows the maximum and minimum power ranges of mobile stations. Mobile Station Phase GSM 850/900/1800/1900 Mobile station phase 1, GSM 900 Mobile station phase 1, GSM 1800 Mobile station GSM 850 Mobile station phase 2, GSM 900 Mobile station phase 2, GSM 1800 Mobile station GSM 1900
Max Power 43 dBm (20 W)
Min Power 13 dBm
30 dBm (1 W)
10 dBm
39 dBm (8 W) 39 dBm (8 W)
13 dBm 13 dBm
30 dBm (1 W)
4 dBm
33 dBm (2 W)
0 dBm
Table 19: Mobile Station Maximum and Minimum Power Ranges

The maximum power setting of a mobile station is based on two factors: its classmark (its physical maximum power rating), and the maximum mobile station power setting for the cell. Each cell can limit the maximum power level for all mobile stations in the cell. For example, a 20 W mobile station can be limited to 5 W maximum power if that is the maximum mobile station power level allowed in the cell. However, a 1 W mobile station can never exceed 1 W, and can therefore never reach the 5 W maximum allowed in the cell. The BSC informs the BTS of the new power levels via the BS_power_control message. The BTS in turn transmits a power_command to the mobile station over the SACCH. Changing power from one power level to another happens gradually. The power level changes by 2 dB every 60 milliseconds, until the desired level is reached.
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4.6 Handover
A handover changes an active call from one channel to another channel. The new channel can be in the same cell or another cell. The types of handover are: Internal External Directed retry Internal External. Incoming emergency Fast traffic UMTS to GSM Handovers ensure a high level of call quality. They are performed when the BSS detects that the call quality has dropped below a defined level, and the call can be better supported by a different channel. The call quality can drop due to problems in the cell, such as an interface or an equipment problem. Call quality can also be affected simply because the mobile station has moved to an area where the radio coverage from another cell is better. The BSS detects the need for a handover by: Measuring the Air interface channel quality, mobile station and BTS power outputs and the timing advance Using an algorithm to see if the received information conforms to the criteria for handover Selecting a more suitable channel from a list of target cells and their available channels. If the BSS decides that a handover is required, the exact sequence of events depends on the type of handover to be performed. In all cases: A new channel is assigned, ready to support the call The mobile station moves over to the new channel On successful completion of the handover, the system clears the resources for the old channel.
Internal
Internal handovers take place between cells controlled by the same BSC. This can include channel changes within the same cell. More details about these handover cases is given in Target Cell Evaluation (Section 4.6.3). External Handovers take place between cells controlled by different BSCs. These can be under control of the same MSC or of different MSCs. See Target Cell Evaluation (Section 4.6.3) for more details about these handover cases.
External
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Directed Retry
Handovers can also be performed when there is congestion in a cell. If congestion exists, the traffic channel assignment can be queued. For more information about congestion management, refer to Congestion (Section 3.5). If there is no available traffic channel for the normal assignment procedure, a Directed Retry can be performed. A Directed Retry is an attempt to assign a mobile station to a traffic channel in a cell other than the serving cell. There are two types of Directed Retry: An Internal Directed Retry without queueing attempts to handover the call to a traffic channel of a neighbor cell controlled by the same BSC. An External Directed Retry attempts to handover the queued call to a traffic channel of a neighbor cell which is controlled by a different BSC.
Secured Incoming
The ability to keep free resources in a cell for incoming emergency and power budget handovers is provided on a cell basis. When the resource threshold is reached, assignments and other handover types are handled as if the cell was completely congested. Once such a request is queued, a directed retry can be performed as usual. The free resources can also be accessed in the case of a full-rate to half-rate handover in the case of AMR calls, because it allows half a resource (full-rate to half-rate) to be freed from the cell point of view. The feature improves the quality of service, as it helps to limit the number of lost calls. The fast traffic handover searches in the whole cell for a mobile which can perform a handover to a not loaded neighbor cell if the received signal level of the BCCH is good enough. It is much more efficient than the forced directed retry when the overlap of adjacent cells is reduced, e.g., in the case of single layer networks, or for deep indoor coverage (if the umbrella cell does not overlap totally the microcells). For circuit-switched services, the BSS supports handover from UMTS to GSM. The handover from GSM to UMTS is not supported in this release of the BSS. A hard handover is performed from the UTRAN to the GSM BSS between a UMTS core network and a 2G MSC. This handover is regarded by the BSS as a GSM inter-BSS hand over. The signalling procedures, from the BSS point of view, rely almost on the normal GSM procedures. For packet-switched services, the current 3GPP standard does not allow handover with channel preparation. Therefore, the UMTS mobile station receives the 2G radio resource cell change order Information Element from the UTRAN in the Inter System handover message. The UMTS mobile station then performs an access request in the GPRS cell. Therefore, from a BSS point of view, the UMTS mobile station is regarded as a 2G mobile station when it indicates that it has selected a GSM cell.
Fast Traffic
UMTS to GSM
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4.6.1 Radio Measurements

The BTS constantly monitors the radio link by: Measuring the received signal strength for active channels Measuring the received signal quality for active and inactive channels Measuring the received signal timing for active channels Collecting signal strength and quality measurements from the mobile station for the active channel Collecting adjacent cell BCCH signal strength measurements from the mobile station (adjacent cell BCCH frequencies are sent to the mobile station in the sys_info 5 message on the SACCH). The mobile station sends its measurements to the BTS in a layer 3Radio Resource measurement_report message on the SACCH. The mobile station and BTS measurements are passed to the BSC in a layer 3 RR measurement_result message. These messages are sent once per multiframe and are processed by the BSC. The BSC uses this information to: Perform power control for the BTS and mobile station Calculate whether a handover is needed Make traffic channel quality tables Make the target cell list Make a handover decision.
Power Control
BTS and mobile station power control is described in Power Control Decision and Handover (Section 4.5.4). From a handover point of view, no handover decision is made due to signal quality until the power levels have been set to maximum. The BSC calculates the need for a handover using an algorithm, the use of which is described in Handover Detection (Section 4.6.2). The BSC uses the uplink idle channel measurements made by the BTS to make a table of traffic channel channels, classified by interference levels. This table is used to select a channel for assignment. A target cell list can be made by the BSC using the neighbor cell BCCH measurements sent by the mobile station. This is used to evaluate whether a neighbor cell can provide a better channel than the existing one. Handover decision is based on averaged measurements and the results are averaged over a period of time. For example, the BSC detects the need for a handover, based on one measurement that may have been caused by freak conditions changing the signal propagation for a short period. This measurement is averaged with other measurements and a handover decision may or may not result, depending on the other measurements.
Need for Handover Traffic Channel Quality Tables Target Cell List
Handover Decision
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4.6.2 Handover Detection

Each time the BSC processes a set of Air interface measurements, it checks whether a handover is needed. If the need for a handover is detected, it triggers the target cell evaluation process. See Target Cell Evaluation (Section 4.6.3) for more information. If the handover algorithm in the BSC detects the need for a handover, it produces a handover alarm. As the target cell evaluation is handled by the BSC, this alarm is also handled internally by the BSC. The alarm includes a cause value used by the BSC to evaluate which type of handover is required. The basic types of handover are: Quality and level Better zone Better cell (power budget) Distance Mobile velocity dependent Preferred band.
4.6.2.1 Quality and Level Handover

These handovers are used to keep an active call connected when the signal quality falls below a defined threshold. If a handover is not performed, a radio link failure may be detected and the call cleared. This type of handover can be caused by the following events: Quality level too low on the uplink or downlink Signal level too low on the uplink or downlink Interference level too high on the uplink or downlink Signal level too low on the uplink or downlink compared to low threshold (microcells only) Signal level too low on the uplink or downlink compared to high threshold (microcells only) Several consecutive bad SACCH frames received (microcells only) Signal level too low on the uplink or downlink inner cell (concentric cells only). Microcell handovers are described in detail in Microcell (Section 7.5.2). Refer to Concentric Cell (Section 7.2) for more information on concentric cells. If the received signal level or the received signal quality is too low, the BSC performs BTS and mobile station power control to try and achieve the optimum level/quality ratio. This is described in Power Control Decision and Handover (Section 4.5.4). The figure below shows a graph of received signal level and received signal quality. The hatched areas show where power control is successful. The solid gray shaded areas show where power control fails to achieve the desired level/quality ratio. These areas are where the BSC detects the need for a handover.
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High Quality
Received Signal Quality
123456 123456789 123456 123456789 123456 123456789 123456789 Level 123456 Power Desired Power 123456789 Intercell 123456 Increase Quality Decrease to Handover 123456 to and Level 123456789 Conserve Improve Balance Resources 123456 123456789 Level (no action 123456789 and Minimize 123456 needed) 123456789 Interference 123456 123456 123456789 123456 123456789 123456789 123456 12345678901234 123456 12345678901234 Power Increase to 123456 12345678901234 improve quality 123456 12345678901234 123456 12345678901234
Quality Intercell Handover Quality Intracell Handover High Level Low Level
Low Quality
Received Signal Level
Figure 47: Quality and Level Handover
Level Intercell Handover
The Level Intercell Handover area represents the range of measurements where the received signal quality is acceptable, but the received signal level is too low. If the power output levels are already set to the maximum allowed in the cell, the BSC generates a handover alarm with a cause value indicating the reason for handover. Although the quality of the signal is acceptable (and may be very good), the call is in danger of being lost if the signal level drops rapidly, causing a radio link failure. The handover is an intercell handover, as the serving cell cannot support the call at the required power level. The call is handed over to a channel in a cell which can support the call at the required level and quality.
Quality Intercell Handover
The Quality Intercell Handover area represents the range of measurements where both the receive signal quality and the received signal level are too low. If the power output levels are already set to the maximum allowed in the cell, the BSC generates a handover alarm with a cause value indicating the reason for the handover. The handover is an intercell handover, as the serving cell cannot support the call at the required quality and power level. The call is handed over to a channel in a cell which can support the call at the required quality and level.
Quality Intracell Handover
The Quality Intracell Handover area represents the range of measurements where the received signal quality is too low, but the received signal level is acceptable. This situation is caused by interference on the channel, so the call is handed over to another channel in the same cell.
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4.6.2.2 Better Zone Handover

This is used in concentric cell configurations when the mobile station moves into the inner zone. If the inner zone has a free channel, an interzone handover is triggered. This enables the mobile station to be supported on a channel requiring a lower power level, therefore creating less interference in the cell. The detection of this type of handover is performed on signal level measurements only (SACCH of serving cell, BCCH of adjacent cells). This is shown in the following figure. This type of handover can be caused by the signal level being too high on the uplink and downlink outer zone (concentric cells only).
High Power Outer Zone
Low Power Inner Zone MS Handed Over to Low Power Zone

MS : Mobile station
Figure 48: Better Zone Handover
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4.6.2.3 Better Cell Handover

This feature is used to handover the mobile station to a cell that can support the call using lower BTS and mobile station power levels. The algorithm in the BSC calculates the power levels for the current cell, and the power levels required by adjacent cells from the adjacent cell information sent by the mobile station. This is shown in the figure below. This type of handover is often referred to as a power budget handover, as it uses the Power Budget parameter to detect whether an adjacent cell can be used (see also Multiband Power Budget Handover in Multiband Handover (Section 4.6.2.6 )). If the power budget for an adjacent cell gives a better reading for a certain amount of time (a defined number of SACCH frames), then a handover alarm is produced. This type of handover can be caused by the following events: Power budget is greater than handover margin threshold High signal level in neighbor microcell (macrocell to microcell handover).
BSS 1 = Best Cell BSS 2 = Best Cell
Serving Cell BSS 1
Target Cell BSS 2
Zone for Power Budget Handover from BSS 1 to BSS 2
Figure 49: Better Cell Handover (Power Budget)
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4.6.2.4 Distance Handover

This handover occurs when the propagation delay between the BTS and the mobile station is considered excessive. The mobile station is considered to be too far from the BTS and needs to be served by a closer BTS. This is shown in the figure below. Under normal circumstances, as the mobile station moves away from a BTS, a Quality and Level or Better Cell handover takes place. However, under certain conditions which change the propagation qualities of a signal, a cell can provide a very high quality signal outside of the normal operating range of the serving cell. These propagation qualities are often due to climactic conditions which can change suddenly. If the high quality signal disappears due to a change in the weather, the call would be lost. The distance handover ensures that this does not happen by handing the mobile station over to a closer cell once a distance limit is exceeded. This type of handover is caused by too great a distance between the mobile station and the Base Station .
BSS 1
1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890
BSS 2
Area of Normal Cell Boundaries
Distance Handover Area from BSS1 to BSS2
Figure 50: Distance Handover
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4.6.2.5 Mobile Velocity Dependent Handover

In a hierarchical cell structure, where mini or microcells are overlaid by an umbrella cell (macrocell), fast moving mobile stations are handled by the upper layer cell. Discrimination of the speed of a mobile station is based on the dwell time of that mobile station in a lower layer cell. Depending on the time elapsed in the serving cell, the call is transferred to the lower layer cell or the umbrella cell. If the dwell time in the serving cell is above the threshold, the mobile station is considered slow moving and is sent to the lower layer cell that triggered the handover. If the dwell time is below the threshold, the mobile station is considered fast moving. To prevent a high number of handovers between the smaller lower layer cells, the call is sent to the umbrella cell. Dwell time is only calculated if there has been a power budget handover from another lower layer cell. This is to avoid sending a call to the umbrella cell in the following cases: A call initiated at the limit of the lower layer cell A call transferred from the umbrella cell to the lower layer cell, just before reaching the limit of that cell After an external handover, when there is no information on the preceding cell and handover cause. Whatever the dwell time, any emergency handover sends the call to the umbrella cell, which acts as the rescue cell. The load on the umbrella cell is taken into consideration when determining the threshold at which handovers are performed. Saturation of the umbrella cell can cause the loss of calls, when a handover is required from another umbrella cell or a lower layer cell. As the load on the umbrella cell increases, the dwell time threshold is increased, keeping some mobile stations in the lower layer cells. When the load on the umbrella cell is very high, speed discrimination is disabled, and priority is given to the load in the umbrella cell. The following figure shows a graph of umbrella cell load and minimum dwell time.
Load in Umbrella Cell Macrocell saturated High load Traffic regulation Speed discrimination disabled
Low load Max speed discrimination in force Macrocell with little traffic
Minimum Dwell Time Low minimum dwell time High minimum dwell time
Figure 51: Umbrella Cell Load in Mobile Velocity Dependent Handover
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4.6.2.6 Multiband Handover

There are two types of multiband handover: Preferred-band handover Multiband Power Budget handover.
Preferred-Band Handover
Network capacity can be expanded by introducing multiband operation. This means that an existing network (for example, GSM 900) is expanded by adding cells in a different band (for example, GSM 1800). In such a network, the original band (GSM 900) is referred to as the first band. The new band (GSM 1800) is referred to as the preferred band. The existing monoband mobile stations, which use the first band, continue to do so. However, multiband mobile stations are handed over to the preferred band, where possible. This is done to free resources in the first band for use by monoband mobile stations. Normal handovers (for example, better cell handover), hand over multiband mobile stations to the preferred band. A new handover type, called preferred-band handover, hands over multiband mobile stations immediately when a first-band cell reaches a specified congestion threshold. This frees up resources for the monoband mobile stations in the cell. For a preferred-band handover to occur, the following conditions must be met: The first band cells traffic load reaches a high threshold Suitable neighboring cells in the preferred band are available The preferred band handover facility is enabled.
Multiband Power Budget Handover
In certain networks, two different frequency bands can exist, for example, one frequency band uses the GSM frequencies, the other frequency band uses the DCS frequencies. In this case, multiband power budget handovers can be enabled between the two frequency bands using the EN_MULTIBAND_PBGT_HO parameter: Setting the EN_MULTIBAND_PBGT_HO parameter to TRUE enables multiband power budget handovers between two frequency bands. Setting the EN_MULTIBAND_PBGT_HO parameter to FALSE disables multiband power budget handovers between two frequency bands. This parameter must be defined for each cell where multiband power budget handovers are required.
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4.6.3 Target Cell Evaluation

Cell evaluation is performed by the BSC. Once a handover alarm is detected within the BSC, it evaluates the neighbor cells and compiles a list of possible target cells. The serving cell can be on the target cell list. The cells are evaluated and ranked by preference, calculated by one of the two algorithms, ORDER or GRADE. The Network Operator chooses which algorithm is to be used on a cell-by-cell basis. The BSC tries to handover to the most suitable cell. If this cell is controlled by the BSC, the BSC handles the handover procedure. If the target cell is controlled by another BSC, the serving BSC sends a handover_request message to the MSC.
Target Cell
The exact calculation performed to choose the target cell depends on the algorithm used and the cause of the handover alarm. The target cell is chosen taking into account the following criteria: Received signal level Power budget Number of free channels Relative load on the traffic channel of the cell Maximum power allowed in cell
HO_MARGIN parameter
Mobile station distance from target BTS Handover cause. The HO_MARGIN parameter is an O&M parameter set by the Network Operator. It is used to prevent a call being continually handed over between two cells. For example, following a power budget handover, the new cell immediately starts power budget calculations for its neighbor cells. It may find that the original cell is giving a better power budget reading and try to hand back immediately. This effect can be caused by slight climactic changes which affect the propagation of signals. It is known as the ping-pong effect. The HO_MARGIN parameter stops a call being handed back to a cell from which it has just been handed over. There is also an O&M parameter, W_PBGT_HO which can be set by the OMC-R operator, to add a weighting for the power budget parameters of cells controlled by another BSC. Refer to A1353RA Configuration Handbook for more information. The target cell chosen also depends on the mobile station classmark (see Classmark Handling (Section 3.6)) and its compatibility with the BTSs ciphering capabilities (see Ciphering (Section 3.8)). The procedures initiated to handover a call depend on which cell has been chosen as the target cell.
Internal: Intracell
If the target cell and the serving cell are the same, the call is handed over to a channel in the same cell. This is an intracell handover. This type of handover is most commonly due to interference in the cell. It is controlled by the BSC.
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Internal (IntraBSS): Intercell
If the target cell is not the same as the serving cell but is controlled by the same BSC, this is called an intercell intraBSS handover. This handover is normally controlled by the BSC. However, the Network Operator can specify that this type of handover is controlled by the MSC. If the target cell and the serving cell are not controlled by the same BSC, but the two BSC are controlled by the same MSC, this is called an interBSS intraMSC handover. This handover is controlled by the MSC. If the target cell and the serving cell are controlled by different BSCs and the two BSCs are controlled by different MSCs, this is called an interBSS interMSC handover. The control of this handover is shared between the MSCs. Handovers controlled by the BSC are called internal handovers. Handovers controlled by the MSC are called external handovers.
External (InterBSS): IntraMSC External (InterBSS): InterMSC
4.6.4 Synchronous and Asynchronous Handover

The handover to the target cell can be synchronous or asynchronous. A synchronous handover can be performed if the master clocks of the serving cell and the target cell are synchronized. This is the case when: The serving cell and the target cell are the same cell The BTSs of the serving cell and the target cell are in a collocated configuration. BTSs in a collocated configuration take the clock pulse from one BTS in the configuration. For a synchronous handover, the mobile station does not have to resynchronize with the target BTS. Therefore, the physical context procedure for power levels and timing advance does not have to be performed after the mobile station accesses the target cell. For an asynchronous handover, the mobile station has to synchronize with the target cell before transmitting any user traffic.
4.6.4.1 Synchronous Internal Handover

This section describes the message flow for a synchronous internal handover. The example in the figure below is for a handover of a traffic channel between two separate cells controlled by two BTSs in a collocated configuration.
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MS
Target BTS
measu remen t report s (S ACCH )
Serving BTS
BSC
MSC
measu
remen
t result
HO detect HO alarm cell evaluation

physic al con text re quest
physic
al con
confirm
text
TA + p
ower
chann
el acti
vation
TA + c
iph
TX + er + D
chann
power
+ chan
nel
el acti
vation
ack
HO
A+ sc + T cell de ower + p + f re
hando
ver co
mman
nel + chan cipher
release with serving BTS

acces s burs t (SAC CH)
hando
SABM
ver de
tection
establis
h indic
ation
hando
ver co
mplete
hando
ver pe
rforme
DTX HO MS SABM SACCH TA
: Discontinuous Transmission : Handover : Mobile station : Set Asynchronous Balanced Mode : Slow Associated Control Channel : Timing advance
Figure 52: Synchronous Internal Handover
Measurement Reporting
The mobile station and BTS take measurements on the Air interface as described above. The mobile station sends measurement information to the BTS in a measurement_report message. The BTS sends mobile station and BTS measurements to the BSC in a measurement_results message.
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Handover Detection
The BSC detects the need for a handover and creates a handover alarm indicating the reason for the handover. The BSC evaluates possible target cells and creates a cell list. For this example, the first cell on the list (target cell) is a cell controlled by this BSC and the BTSs of both serving and target cell are collocated. Once this cell is chosen, the BSC initiates the synchronous internal handover procedure. The BSC sends a physical_context_request message to the serving BTS, requesting current timing advance and power level information. This information is passed to the target BTS. The serving BTS responds with a physical_context_confirm message.
Channel Activation
When the BSC receives the physical context information, it sends a channel_activation message to the target BTS, indicating: The channel to be used The mobile station timing advance to be applied The encryption algorithm and ciphering key A Discontinuous Transmission indicator for uplink (not used) and downlink (see Speech Transmission (Section 4.4.1)) The mobile station power to be used The BTS power to be used. The target BTS sets its resources to support the channel. It then uses a channel_activation_acknowledgment message to reply to the BSC. This lets the BSC know that the target BTS is ready. The target BTS also starts transmission of SACCH/FACCH frames so that when the mobile station accesses this BTS, it receives sys_info 5 and sys_info 6 messages. The mobile station also receives the timing advance and power control updates.
Handover Command
The BSC sends the handover_command message transparently through the BTS to the mobile station. This message contains: The new channel and its associated control channel The target cell description A power level indication for the mobile station initial access to the target cell A handover reference The timing advance to be used in the target cell Any cipher mode information (phase 2 mobile stations can change cipher mode during a handover procedure).
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The Handover
The mobile station releases its connection with the serving BTS and sends four consecutive access bursts to the target BTS on the uplink SACCH. These bursts include the handover reference and use a timing advance of 0. The BTS calculates the timing advance (it may have changed since the physical context procedure). It sends a handover_detection message to the BSC indicating the timing advance measured for the access burst. If the mobile station timing advance needs to be updated, the BSC sends this information in the physical_information message on the FACCH channel associated with the traffic channel. The mobile station then sets ciphering (as required). It sends its first frame, SABM, using the timing advance information either as sent in the handover_command message, or as updated in the FACCH frames. When the BTS receives the frame from the mobile station, it sends an acknowledgment frame to the mobile station and an establish_indication message to the BSC. This informs the BSC that the radio link has been established. The BSC starts BTS and mobile station power control. On receipt of the acknowledgment frame, the mobile station sends a handover_complete message to the BSC. The mobile station can now start transmitting on the new channel. The BSC informs the MSC of the handover in a handover_performed message and initiates the release of the old channel.
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4.6.4.2 Asynchronous External Handover

This section describes the message flow for an asynchronous external handover. The example in the figure below is for a handover of a traffic channel between two separate cells controlled by two different BSCs.
MS Target BTS
measurement repo rts
Serving BTS
Target BSC
Serving BSC
MSC
(SACCH)
measurement resu lts
HO detect HO alarm
handover required
handover requ
channel activati
SACCH/FACCH
est
on
X+cause+cm her+cell IDs+DT channel type+cip
channel activation
ack
hanover request
+ handover com
ack
mand
handover command
mand handover com
d handover comman
ch+cell+HOref+cipher
release with serving BTS

Synchronization (FCCH + SCH)
handover detect
access burst (SAC CH)
handover detect
HO ref + TA
handover detect
set up switching path between Abis & A interfaces

physical info physical info
(FACCH)
ack
establish indication
(FACCH)
handover complete
handover performed
clear comman
DTX FACCH HO MS SABM SACCH TA
: Discontinuous Transmission : Fast Associated Control Channel : Handover : Mobile station : Set Asynchronous Balanced Mode : Slow Associated Control Channel : Timing advance
Figure 53: Asynchronous External Handover
Measurement Reporting
The mobile station and BTS take measurements on the Air interface as described above. The mobile station sends measurement information to the BTS in a measurement_report message. The BTS sends mobile station and BTS measurements to the BSC in a measurement_results message.
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Handover Detection
The BSC detects the need for a handover and creates a handover alarm indicating the reason for the handover. The BSC evaluates possible target cells and creates a candidate cell list. To initiate the external handover procedure, the BSC sends a handover_required message to the MSC including the candidate cell list. It also starts a timer to prevent it sending the same cell list. It can only re-send the cell list when the timer times out, or if it receives a handover_request_reject message from the MSC. The MSC chooses the target cell from the cell list. It sends a handover_request to the target BSC to inform it that a mobile station is going to be handed over. This message contains: Channel type required Cipher mode information Mobile station classmark information Serving cell identification Target cell identification Downlink Discontinuous Transmission flag Handover cause.
Channel Activation
The target BSC initiates the channel activation for the new channel with the channel_activation message. The target BTS sets its resources to support the new channel, starts sending the SACCH/FACCH and sends a channel_activation_acknowledgment message to the target BSC.
Handover Command
The target BSC builds a handover command. This command is sent to the MSC in the handover_request_acknowledgment message. The handover command contains: The new channel and its associated control channel The target cell description A handover reference Any cipher mode information (phase 2 mobile stations can change cipher mode during a handover procedure). The MSC forwards the handover_command message to the serving BSC. The serving BSC sends the handover command message to the mobile station.
The Handover
The mobile station releases its connection to the serving BTS. It synchronizes with the target BTS using the FCCH and SCH information. Once synchronized, the mobile station continually sends access burst on the uplink SACCH until it receives the physical_information message on the FACCH from the target BSC. When the target BTS receives an access burst, it checks the handover reference and calculates the timing advance. This is sent to the target BSC in the handover_detect message. The target BSC informs the MSC of the handover detection and establishes a switching path between the allocated Abis and A interface resources.
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When the mobile station receives the physical_information message, it sends its first frame on the new channel using the timing advance sent in the physical_information message. The target BTS acknowledges the mobile stations first frame and sends an establish_indication message to the target BSC, and an acknowledgment to the mobile station. On receipt of the acknowledgment, the mobile station sends a handover_complete message on the uplink FACCH to the target BSC. The target BSC informs the MSC that the handover has been performed. The MSC initiates the call clearing procedure towards the serving BSC.
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4.7 Overload Control

A lot of telecommunications signalling is required for the BSS to support communication between mobile stations in the cells under its control and the MSC. Telecommunication processors in the BTS or BSC can become overloaded. To avoid a sudden loss of communication when a processor becomes saturated, the BSS controls the load on these processors in the following steps: 1. Taking local action to reduce the load. 2. Taking global BSS action to further reduce the load.
Note:
The telecommunications processors of the MSC can also become overloaded. However, MSC overload control is not the domain of the BSS.
4.7.1 BTS Overload

The BTS Frame Unit (TRE for a BTS A9100 or BTS A910) handles all the telecommunications signalling on the Air interface. If the FU or TRE becomes saturated, this can result in the loss of calls. Therefore, the BTS monitors the load and takes action where appropriate. On initial detection of the overload condition, the BTS takes local action to reduce the load. If the BTS local action does not reduce the load, the BTS sends overload messages to the BSC, which can decide to take global action. The different stages of BTS overload, from detection to resolution, are described below.
BTS Overload Detection
The BTS monitors the load on the FU or TRE by measuring the free time on the FU or TREs Signalling Control Processor and the free message space on the associated buffers. If either of these passes a set threshold, a counter is incremented. If a threshold is not passed again within a given time, the counter is decremented. The counter has two thresholds. If the first of these is passed, the BTS takes local overload action. If the second of these is passed the BTS sends overload messages to the BSC. When local action is triggered in the BTS, it discards low priority messages such as the establish_indication message to reduce the load on the SCP.
BTS Overload Action
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4.7.2 BSC Overload

The BSC has two entities handling telecommunications signalling: The TCU handles telecommunications signalling for the Abis interface The DTC handles telecommunications signalling for the A interface. The different stages of BSC overload, from detection to resolution, are described below.
BSC Overload Detection
For the BTS, overload is calculated on the processor free time and the free message space of the associated buffers. As the BSC handles more signalling traffic than the BTS, the detection of an overload, and whether to trigger local or global defense actions, is more complicated. The BSC uses an algorithm that takes into account which processors are affected, the level of overload, and which buffers are affected. Each processor has a local overload controller. The BSCs centralized overload controller is responsible for global overload defence actions. Local action in the BSC is taken by the local overload controller on each processor. Local actions reduce the load on an individual board. The local actions are: TCU Action The TCU discards a percentage of the measurement_result messages received from the BTS. The percentage of discarded messages is increased and decreased in steps, under the control of the local overload control. This only affects the handover and power control algorithms which still function but with less information. DTC Action When the DTC detects an overload, its state is set to congested on the BSC database. This means that it cannot be selected by the resource management software to provide a new SCCP connection. Also, the DTC cannot send connectionless messages to the MSC. BSC Global Overload Action The BSC controls global actions for the whole BSS. Global action reduces the amount of telecommunications signalling traffic in the BSS by inhibiting new calls. The BSC bars mobile station access classes either in one cell if the global action is requested by a BTS or TCU, or in several cells if a DTC MSC are overloaded.
BSC Local Overload Action
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Mobile Station Access Class Barring
When the BSC receives a request for global overload action from a BTS, from the MSC, or from one of its local overload control processors, it checks the message for errors. If it can accept the request, it builds new system information messages (1 to 4). These messages are sent on the BCCH. They bar certain mobile station classes from sending channel_request messages on the RACH. If the overload condition persists, the BSC can change the system information messages to bar more mobile station access classes from using the RACH. When the BTS is barring access classes, its behavior can be modified from the OMC-R by modifying the following parameters:
AUT_BAR enables/disables the automatic banning of cells after all access
classes have been barred. This forces the mobile station to camp on another cell.
EC_BAR enables/disables the automatic barring of emergency calls. EN_BSS_OVRL_CLASS_BARR enables/disables the ability of the BSC to perform global action for BTS to BSC overload conditions.
The number of access classes that can be barred and unbarred in one step can also be configured from the OMC-R.
Mobile Station Access Class Unbarring
When an overload message is received from the BTS or when an overload is detected in the BSC, a timer is set. If no overload message is received from the BTS, or no overload detected in the BSC during the period of the timer, the timer expires. When the timer expires, the BSC unbars some access classes according to a defined algorithm.
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4.8 Call Re-establishment by the Mobile Station

The mobile station initiates call re-establishment when there is already a speech or data call in a stable state (traffic channel path connected) and the mobile station detects a radio link failure. The mobile station waits a predetermined time for a response from the network. If there is no response the mobile station performs a cell reselection procedure. If the new cell allows the re-establishment procedure to be performed, the mobile station initiates the channel request procedure RACH and awaits the immediate_assignment message. The mobile station then performs the contention resolution procedure using the cm re-establishment request message. The radio and link establishment procedure continues as described in Mobile Originated Call (Section 3.2). The network may not allow the mobile station to perform the channel request procedure, due to inhibition of the mobile station access class broadcast in the sys_info 1 to 4 messages. If this is the case the mobile station radio resource entity reports the failure of the radio and link establishment procedure to the higher layer entities in the mobile station. When the MSC receives the cm re-establishment request message it initiates the procedures necessary to establish a new radio resource connection and continue the call management connection.
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5 Call Release
This chapter provides an overview of Call Release and describes the procedures which ensure resource allocation to a call. It specifically describes Call Release procedures in normal service plus the following special cases: Overview Following Reset BSC initiated BTS initiated Mobile station initiated This chapter also describes Remote Transcoder Alarms, and the processes used to break a connection and disconnect the resources, depending on the nature of radio transmission.
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5.1 Overview
The Call Release procedures ensure that resources allocated to a call are free for reuse when they are no longer required by the current call. Call Release procedures are required when: A call is finished and either the called or calling party hang up A mobile station is turned off A call is handed over and the resources for the original call are released A call is modified and the resources for the original channel are released There is operator intervention, such as a channel being blocked There is a failure There is a radio link failure The system detects an LAPDm failure. If a call is terminated normally, the Call Release procedures are triggered automatically. If the call is terminated abnormally, the system has to detect that the resources are no longer required and release them. For a complete Call Release, the following resources must be released: A interface resources Abis interface resources Air interface resources MSC resources: Layer 3 for the A interface SS7 signalling for the A interface Layer 1 physical resources for the A interface. BSC: Layer 3 for the A, Abis and Air interface Layer 2 SS7 for the A interface and LAPD for the Abis interface Layer 1 physical resource for the A and Abis interface. BTS: Layer 3 for the A, Abis and Air interface Layer 2 LAPD for the Abis interface and LAPDm for the Air interface Layer 1 physical resources for the Abis and Air interface. Mobile station: Layer 3 for the Air interface Layer 2 LAPDm for the Air interface Layer 1 for the Air interface.
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5.2 Call Release Procedures in Normal Service

The Call Release procedures, and the order in which they are triggered, depend on the reason for the release. This section describes the following Call Release scenarios, which occur during normal service: Normal Release (Calls terminated by Call Management) Calls terminated following a channel change. Special cases, including detailed behavior of the MSC, BSC, BTS and mobile station are described later in this chapter.
5.2.1 Normal Release

Call termination initiated by Call Management is considered to be a normal reason for Call Release. In this type of Call Release, the MSC initiates the release. Before this can happen, the mobile station must inform the MSC that it has disconnected the call. This is done with layer 3 messages passed transparently through the BSS between the mobile station and MSC, as shown in the following figure.
MS
discon
BSS
nect (la yer 3
MSC
CC)
relea
uest se req
(layer
3 CC)
release
comple
te
(layer 3
CC)
MS
: Mobile station
Figure 54: Mobile Station Disconnecting a Call

Once the MSC has confirmation that the mobile station wants to disconnect and no longer requires the connection, it initiates the release procedure towards the BSC. This procedure: Releases the circuit (if applicable) Releases the SCCP connection.
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The BSC responds to the MSC to clear the connection on the A interface, and initiates the Call Release procedure toward the BTS and mobile station. This procedure releases the radio resources. This action triggers the mobile station to release the LAPDm connection (disc message) and the BSC to release physical resources allocated to the call. This is shown in the following figure.
MS BTS BSC
clear c omma nd
MSC
e e valu g caus cludin MIE in
chann
el rele
ase
a activ te S AC CH
de
release of A interface resources Timer start (SCCP release)

clear c omplete
disc
(to re lease LAPD m)
disable remote TC alarm detect

relea se in
Timer start (release indication)

dicati
SCCP releas ed
UA
on
SCCP release comple te
physic
te al con
est xt requ
physic al con text co nfirm
Timer
RF cha
nnel re
lease
RF ch an
nel rele
Timer
ase ac k
LAPDm LAPDm MIE MS SACCH SCCP TC UA
: Link Access Protocol on the Dm Channel : Link Access Protocol on the Dm Channel : Mandatory Information Element : Mobile station : Slow Associated Control Channel : Signal Connection Control Part : Transcoder : Unnumbered Acknowledgment
Figure 55: Normal Call Release
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MSC actions
The MSC initiates Call Release at the end of the mobile station transaction. The MSC can be informed of the end of the mobile station transaction: By a level 3 disconnection message from the mobile station (Figure 54) By a disconnection message from the Network Operator if the correspondent terminates the call At the end of a service call (i.e., SMS or location updating). The normal release procedure of the MSC releases both the A interface resources used for the call, if any, and the SCCP connection used for the signalling which controls the connection. The MSC initiates the release procedure by sending a clear_command message to the BSC. This command can include a cause value in the Mandatory Information Element. The BSC accepts the command even if no cause value is included. It immediately releases the A interface resources for the call and replies to the MSC with a clear_complete message. This is shown in the following figure.
MS BTS BSC
clear c
MIE in
MSC
omma nd
e valu e
cludin
g caus
chann
el rele
ase
CH AC te S
dea
ctiv

clear c omplete

SCCP releas ed
SCCP release comple te
MIE MS SACCH SCCP
: Mandatory Information Element : Mobile station : Slow Associated Control Channel : Signal Connection Control Part
Figure 56: Initiation of Normal Release by MSC

The BSC initiates the release of the Abis and Air interface resources. It also sets a timer to ensure that the MSC releases the SCCP signalling resources. On receipt of the clear_complete message from the BSC, the MSC releases the resources associated with the A interface and initiates the release of the SCCP signalling resources by sending the SCCP_released message to the BSC. The BSC stops its timer and sends the SCCP_release_complete message. The SCCP resources are now released and can be used for another call. If the BSC timer expires before the SCCP_released message is received, then the BSC force releases the SCCP connection.
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BSC/BTS/Mobile Station Interactions
The normal Call Release procedure towards the mobile station/BTS releases: The radio resources associated with the call The Radio Frequency channel. The BSC initiates the release of the radio resource by sending: A channel_release message to the mobile station via the BTS A deactivate_SACCH message to the BTS. Thechannel_release message prompts the mobile station to send a disc message to the BTS to release the LAPDm resource. When this is received, the BTS acknowledges this with a ua message to the mobile station and sends a release_indication message to the BSC. This procedure is supervised by a timer in the BSC. The BSC considers the mobile station disconnected and starts the RF channel release when: The timer expires The BSC receives the release_indication message and stops the timer. When the BTS receives the deactivate_SACCH message, it stops sending SACCH information and disables the remote Transcoder alarm detection. This stops the sending of Transcoder alarms to the BSC when the Transcoder detects inactivity on the channel. This is shown in the figure below. If the mobile station does not receive the channel_release message, it considers the stopping of SACCH information as a radio link failure and performs a local release.
MS BTS BSC
clear c
MIE in
MSC
omma nd
e valu e
cludin
g caus
chann
el rele
ase
tiva ACC te S H
c dea

clear c omplete
disc (to re lease LAPD m)

UA
disable remote TC alarm detect

ed releas SCCP
relea
se in
dicati
on
SCCP
release
comple
te
LAPDm MIE MS SACCH SCCP TC UA
: Link Access Protocol on the Dm Channel : Mandatory Information Element : Mobile station : Slow Associated Control Channel : Signal Connection Control Part : Transcoder : Unnumbered Acknowledgment
Figure 57: BSC/BTS/Mobile Station interactions in Normal Call Release
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Once the BSC considers the mobile station disconnected, it initiates release of the RF channel from the BTS. In a normal call release procedure, this occurs following the release of the mobile station from the Air interface (as described earlier in this section). Before releasing the RF channel, the BSC sends a physical_context message to the BTS and starts a timer to supervise the response. The response from the BTS is a physical_context_confirm message which contains the last LAPDm performance measurements for the RF channel. On receipt of the physical_context_confirm message, or after the timer has timed out, the BSC sends an RF_channel_release message to the BTS and starts a timer to supervise the release. The BTS releases the level 1 and 2 resources for the channel and replies with an RF_channel_release_ack message. On receipt of the acknowledgment, the BSC releases all resources for the RF channel. This is shown in the following figure.
MS BTS BSC MSC
UA
relea
se in
dicati
on
quest
physic
al con
text re
physic
al con
Timer
text co nfirm
RF ch
annel
releas
RF ch
annel
Timer
releas e ack
MS UA
: Mobile station : Unnumbered Acknowledgment
Figure 58: Normal Release Final Steps

If the timer supervising the release times out, the BSC sends the RF_channel_release message again and restarts the timer. If the timer times out again, the BSC releases all resources locally. It also sends an O&M error report to the OMC-R with a cause value indicating that the RF channel release procedure has failed.
Note:
The RF channel can be released locally by the BTS and still be active. If the RF channel is still active, it is released when the BSC attempts to assign it to another call with a channel_activation message. The BTS replies with a channel_activation_nack and the BSC releases the channel (refer to chapter 3 for more information).
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5.2.2 Calls Terminated Following a Channel Change

This section describes the Call Release procedure following a successful channel change procedure. The case presented is an external intercell handover. For an internal channel change, the serving and target BSCs are the same, and in some cases, the serving and target BTSs are the same. The target BSC receives confirmation of the successful handover from the mobile station when the mobile station sends the handover_complete message. This message is passed transparently through the target BTS. See Call Handling (Chapter 4) for more information about handovers. The target BSC informs the MSC of the handover and initiates the Call Release procedure towards the serving BSC, by issuing a clear_command message. The serving BSC issues a channel_release message to the mobile station and a deactivate_SACCH message to the serving BTS. The normal Call Release procedure described in Normal Release (Section 5.2.1) continues between the serving BSC, the serving BTS, the MSC and the mobile station. This is shown in the following figure.
MS
(FACCH)
Target BTS
handover complet e
Serving BTS
Target BSC
Serving BSC
MSC
handover perform
ed
clear
comm
lu
and
se va lue
inc MIE
cau ding
chann
el rele
ase
c dea
tiva
te S
AC
CH
FACCH MIE MS SACCH
: Fast Associated Control Channel : Mandatory Information Element : Mobile station : Slow Associated Control Channel
Figure 59: Call Release Following a Channel Change
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5.3 Call Release - Special Cases

Call Release can occur for reasons outside normal service. This section treats the following special cases in which Call Release happens: Call Release following Reset BSC-initiated Call Release BTS-initiated Call Release Mobile station-initiated Call Release Remote Transcoder alarms.
5.3.1 Call Release Following Reset

Resets are used in software/hardware failure situations, or when the database is corrupted and recovery procedures have failed. The MSC can reset all calls within a BSC or an individual circuit. For example, if the MSC loses dynamic information regarding calls (i.e. preventing it from providing such services as accounting), it can send a reset or a reset_circuit message to the BSC.
Reset
The MSC initiates Call Release when it has to release all calls associated with the BSS (Reset). The MSC sends a reset message containing a cause value to the BSC. The BSC then: Sends an alarm to the OMC-R Sends a block message to the MSC to block circuits Starts to clear all calls in the BSS. For each call, the procedure in Normal Release (Section 5.2.1) is repeated. For each SCCP connection on the A interface, the BSC can send an SCCP_release message and release any A interface resources associated with the SCCP. A timer allocates a certain amount of time for the calls to clear. When the timer expires, the BSC sends a reset_ack message to the MSC. The figure below shows the Call Release process after a reset is initiated.
Reset Circuit
The reset circuit procedure is initiated from the MSC. The procedure informs the BSC that an individual circuit is no longer active in the MSC. This triggers the call clearing procedure if the circuit has an active SCCP connection. The MSC sends a reset_circuit message to the BSC for each circuit to be reset. Depending on the resources allocated, this can trigger the BSC to: Release the A interface resources Initiate the release of the SCCP Initiate Call Release towards the BTS and mobile station.
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MS
BTS
BSC
reset
MSC
send alarm to OMCR

channe l releas e
block
SCCP releas e
circuits blocked
te
disc
to relea se LAP Dm
SCCP
release
comple
channe
e l releas release
SCCP re lease
indicatio
n
rele CCP ase c omp lete
to re
disc
leas e LA PDm
phys
ntex ical co
t re
quest
S
physic al con text co nfirm

rele indic ase atio n
nnel RF cha release
RF channe l release ack l physica request context
physical context
confirm
RF cha
nnel re
lease
RF chan nel relea se
ack
timer
reset a ck
LAPDm MS SCCP
: Link Access Protocol on the Dm Channel : Mobile station : Signal Connection Control Part
Figure 60: Call Release Following Reset
Note:
If this procedure is invoked due to SCCP problems, then messages on the A interface may not be passed. The MSC and BSC locally release resources for the A interface connections. Refer to BSC-Initiated Release (Section 5.3.2) for more details.
5.3.2 BSC-Initiated Release

The BSC is involved in Call Release for both the A interface and Abis/Air interfaces. The BSC initiates Call Release on the A interface when events internal to the BSS terminate communication with the mobile station. The Call Release towards the mobile station may already be in progress or have finished when the BSC initiates a release on the A interface. If the mobile station is still connected when the BSC initiates a release on the A
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interface, the release towards the MSC is triggered by the clear message from the MSC to the BSC.
Towards the MSC
The BSC initiates the release towards the MSC by sending a clear_request message. It also starts a timer to supervise the procedure. The MSC releases resources for the A channel and sends the clear_command message to the BSC. This command contains a cause value indicating that the BSC initiated the release. From this point, the Call Release follows the procedure described for normal Call Release (refer to Normal Release (Section 5.2.1)). The procedure starts with the BSC releasing A channel resources. It initiates the release procedure towards the mobile station (if still attached), and returns a clear_complete message to the MSC. This sequence is shown in the following figure.
MS BTS BSC MSC
clear requ est
clea
MIE
alue se v cau ing d lu inc
r co
mm
and
MIE MS
: Mandatory Information Element : Mobile station
Figure 61: BSC-initiated Call Release toward the MSC
Towards the Mobile Station/BTS
The Call Release procedure towards the mobile station/BTS releases: The radio resources associated with the call The RF channel. The BSC initiates the release of the radio resource by sending: A channel_release message to the mobile station via the BTS A deactivate_SACCH message to the BTS. This is the Normal Release procedure described in Normal Release (Section 5.2.1).
Note:
In this process, once the BSC considers the mobile station disconnected, it initiates release of the RF channel from the BTS. This can occur following: The release of the mobile station from the Air interface (as in the Normal Release procedure) A handover, when the BSC is sure that the mobile station has successfully changed to the new channel. Refer to Calls Terminated Following a Channel Change (Section 5.2.2). An immediate assign procedure failure. This ensures that the SDCCH is available for reuse as quickly as possible. A normal assignment failure or handover failure. This ensures that the traffic channel is available for reuse as quickly as possible.
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5.3.3 BSC-Initiated SCCP Release

The BSC initiates an SCCP release when: A release procedure has failed Inactivity is detected in the BSC SCCP entity.
Failed Release Procedure
If there are no resources allocated to a call and the normal release of the SCCP connection has failed, the BSC forces the release of the SCCP connection: Internally by sending a level 3 command to its SCCP entity Externally by sending an SCCP_released message to the MSC. The BSC does not wait for a reply from the MSC before releasing the SCCP connection. If the original failure is due to a problem on the SCCP connection or in the BSC SCCP entity, the SCCP_released message may not be sent. If the message is sent, the MSC replies with an SCCP_release_complete message and releases any allocated resources.
Inactivity Procedure
The BSC performs an inactivity procedure for each SCCP connection. If the BSC detects inactivity, it assumes that the associated transaction is no longer active and therefore: Performs Call Release on the Air and Abis interfaces Initiates a reset circuit procedure if an A channel is active Initiates the release of the SCCP connection.
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5.3.4 BTS-Initiated Call Release

The BTS initiates a Call Release only if it detects an LAPD failure or when O&M requests a restart of the BTS. Otherwise the role of the BTS in Call Release is to: Relay channel release messages to the mobile station Deactivate the SACCH under control of the BSC Send a release_indication message to the BSC when the mobile station releases the LAPDm connection.
LAPD Failure
When the BTS detects an LAPD failure on a link between one of its frame units and the BSC, it forces the release of all mobile stations on active channels associated with that Frame Unit (TRE for a BTS A9100 or BTS A910). The BTS stops SACCH frames and sends a layer 2 disconnect message to each affected mobile station. It also starts a timer to supervise each LAPDm disconnection. The LAPD connection cannot be re-established until the BTS receives an acknowledgment, or the timer expires for each LAPDm connection. If a mobile station sends an acknowledgment, the BTS releases the RF resources. If a mobile station does not respond, the BTS continues to send layer 2 disconnect messages up to a predefined number. It then waits for the timer to expire and the BTS releases the RF resources.
Note:
If the maximum number of disconnect retries is reached, the BTS LAPDm entity sends an error report to the BSC. This does not stop the timer supervising the disconnection. When all mobile stations are disconnected, the BTS attempts to re-establish the LAPD connection. The BTS then sends an error report to the BSC with a cause value indicating O&M intervention. This cause value indicates that the FU or TRE has cleared all calls. The BSC reinitializes the link with the frame unit and starts Call Release for the affected calls with the MSC. This sequence is shown in the following figure.
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MS
BTS
BSC
MSC
Detection of LAPD failure. BTS stops sending SACCH frames.

disc
timer
disc
timer
disc
UA
timer
UA
release RF resources release RF resources
UA
release RF resources Reestablish LAPD connection

error repo rt
caus e valu e
Reinitialize FU or TRE link

clear re quest
value cause cluding MIE in cle ar compl ete
clear co
d mman
FU LAPD MIE MS SACCH TRE UA
: Frame Unit : Link Access Protocol on the D Channel : Mandatory Information Element : Mobile station : Slow Associated Control Channel : Transmitter/Receiver Equipment : Unnumbered Acknowledgment
Figure 62: BTS-initiated Call Release following LAPD failure
O&M Intervention
The BTS initiates a Call Release if its O&M entity requests a restart of an Frame Unit (TRE for a BTS A9100 or BTS A910). The FU or TREs response to a restart request is to stop sending frames on the Air interface. The BTS starts a timer to supervise the disconnection of the mobile stations. The timer allows enough time for the mobile stations to detect a radio link failure due to the lack of SACCH frames. The BTS RF performs a local release. The BTS resets the FU or TRE and waits for the timer to expire. When the timer expires, the FU or TRE attempts to reestablish the LAPD link with the BSC. The BTS sends an error report to the BSC with a cause value indicating O&M intervention. The BSC releases the RF resources and initiates a Call Release with the MSC.
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5.3.5 Mobile Station-Initiated Call Release

The mobile station can initiate a Call Release by: Initiating a radio link failure Disconnecting the LAPDm connection.
Mobile Station-Initiated Radio Link Failure
If SACCH frames are no longer received from the mobile station, the BTS starts to count the number of missing frames. When the BTS has counted a certain number of missing SACCH frames, it considers that the radio link has failed. This happens when the mobile station disappears from the Air interface (caused by adverse radio conditions, the mobile station is switched off, fatal error, etc.).
Note:
There is an optional feature where, after a number of missing SACCH frames, the BSC sets both mobile station and BTS power to maximum in an attempt to regain the Air Interface. If the BTS continues to register missing frames, the radio link fails as described below. The BTS sends a connection_failure_indication message to the BSC with a cause value indicating that the radio link has failed. The BSC initiates Normal Call Release procedures to the BTS by sending an RF_channel_release message to the BTS and a clear_request message to the MSC. This is shown in the following figure.
MS Interruption of SACCH frames
BTS
BSC
MSC
start counter
conn ectio n fail ure in dicati
lue
on
caus
e va
clear
e ann as l rele e
requ
est
RF
ch
MIE
and mm r co clea alue se v cau ing d lu inc
MIE MS SACCH
: Mandatory Information Element : Mobile station : Slow Associated Control Channel
Figure 63: Call Release due to Mobile Station initiated Radio Link Failure
Mobile Station-Initiated LAPDm Disconnection
If the mobile station has an error which unexpectedly terminates the call, it sends a disconnect message to the BTS. The system reaction to the disconnect message in this instance is the same as when the disconnect message from the mobile station is prompted by a channel_release message from the BSC (as explained in BSC-Initiated Release (Section 5.3.2)).
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5.3.6 Remote Transcoder Alarms

If the Transcoder detects a break in communication with the BTS, it sets a timer. This timer is defined by GSM standards. On expiration of this timer, the Transcoder sends an alarm to the BTS. If the BTS remote Transcoder alarm detection is active, a connection_failure_indication message is sent to the BSC with a cause value indicating a remote Transcoder alarm. If the BTS detects a break in communication with the Transcoder, it sends a connection_failure_indication message to the BSC with a cause value indicating a remote Transcoder alarm. See the figure below. During an internal handover, this can cause remote Transcoder alarms to arrive at the BSC, as the connection is still active but the call has been handed over. The BSC ignores these alarms for a guard period on new and old channels during handover.
MS BTS BSC MSC TC detects a communication break and times out
Alarm
conn ectio n fail ure in dicati on caus e valu e

clear requ est
e leas el re ann h c RF
clea
MIE inc
r co
mm
and
se v alue
g ludin
cau
MIE MS TC
: Mandatory Information Element : Mobile station : Transcoder
Figure 64: Call Release due to Communication Failure detected by Transcoder
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6 Handling User Traffic Across the BSS

This chapter describes the flow of speech and data traffic across the BSS. It describes: Overview How speech is encoded and rate adapted throughout the BSS What types of data can be transferred across the BSS Where data error correction is performed How the data rate is adapted.
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6.1 Overview
The BSS performs traffic handling in the uplink and downlink directions for speech and data. The BSS uses the BSC and BTS to perform the required radio transmission, control and baseband functions of a cell and to control the BTSs in its domain. The TSS provides the efficient use of the terrestrial links between the BSS components. Together these components perform the required encoding and rate adaptation procedures.
6.2 Speech
Speech is passed from the mobile station to the PSTN and from the PSTN to the mobile station. This section describes how speech is encoded from the mobile station to the PSTN, as shown in the following figure. Speech in the opposite direction follows the reverse process and so is not described.
Full Rate Speech TCH A 13 kbit/s CIM 13 kbit/s 64 kbit/s A/D
BTS
BIE
BIE
BSC
SM
SM
TC
MSC
PSTN
Mobile Station A 6.5 kbit/s CIM 6.5 kbit/s 13 kbit/s 64 kbit/s A/D
Half Rate Speech TCH

A A/D BIE CIM PSTN SM TC TCH : Analog : Analog/Digital : Base Station Interface Equipment : Channel Encoded, Interleaved, and Modulated : Public Switched Telephone Network : Submultiplexer : Transcoder : Traffic Channel
Figure 65: Encoded Speech Transmission Across the BSS
Analog
The microphone converts speech to an analog signal. The analog signal is encoded into a digital signal depending on the type of traffic channel used: 13 kbit/s for a full-rate traffic channel (or enhanced full-rate) 6.5 kbit/s for a half-rate traffic channel. It is then transmitted on a 16 kbit/s (8 kbit/s for half-rate) radio time slot. 3 kbit/s and 1.5 kbit/s are used for signalling on full-rate and half-rate channels respectively.
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Interleaving and Forward Error Correction
To pass speech over the Air interface, error checking and redundancy are included to make sure speech information is correctly transmitted. This ensures that valid continuous speech is passed through the BSS. Error correction is based on high redundancy with complicated parity and cyclic redundancy methods. This is done to ensure that many types of parasitic and sporadic errors are detected and to some degree, corrected. In the case of speech, there is cyclic coding, convolutional and parity error encoding of the data. The speech data starts as 260 bits (112 bits) and, after forward error checking, is encoded as a 456 bit block (228 bit block). These blocks are then split into eight (four for half-rate), and interleaved with adjacent blocks into TDMA frames to be transmitted as radio wave bursts. This means that if some of the blocks are lost during transmission, there is a high chance that the other blocks hold enough redundancy to still have a valid speech block.
Speech Data Bursts
The interleaved blocks are transmitted over the Air interface and are then reassembled in the BTS. As described above, when the interleaved blocks are reassembled and checked for parity errors, there is a high chance that the data can be recovered. In speech data the most significant bits are heavily protected and are always transmitted at the start of a TDMA frame. This ensures that even if the speech block cannot be reassembled, at least the most significant speech data can be used to provide a close approximation. Speech bursts are returned to digital speech blocks in the BTS. They are sent to the Transcoder as 13 kbit/s digital speech, plus 3 kbit/s for in-band signalling if they are full-rate speech. The channels on the Abis and Ater interfaces are 64 kbit/s. The speech blocks to be multiplexed on to these links. This is shown in the figure below. Half-rate speech is sent to the BSC on the Abis interface as 6.5 kbit/s, plus 1.5 kbit/s signalling. Two half-rate 8 kbit/s channels are associated together into a 16 kbit/s channel. On the Ater interface a 16 kbit/s submultiplexing scheme is used for all types of traffic. The two mated 8 kbit/s Abis channels are independently switched by the BSC onto two 16 kbit/s Ater channels.
Digital Speech
Ater Interface
Atermux Interface
Ater Interface
A Interface
BSC
SM
SM
TC
MSC
30 x 16 kbit/s user traffic channels per link

SM TC : Submultiplexer : Transcoder
Figure 66: Multiplexed Ater Interface
Digital 64 kbit/s A-law Encoded Speech
The Transcoder converts the 13 kbit/s digital speech to the 64 kbit/s A-law encoding. This is a standard digital speech interface for ISDN and PSTN exchanges. The information passes through the MSC and is sent to the PSTN. The Transcoder performs rate adaptation in both directions.
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6.2.1 Enhanced Full-Rate

Enhanced full-rate provides advanced speech encoding on a full-rate traffic channel, for improved voice quality and user comfort. The feature uses a codec with ACELP coding.
Enhanced Full-Rate Process
Enhanced full-rate is enabled in the BSC, on a cell-by-cell basis, by the O&M parameter EFR_ENABLED. When an enhanced full-rate call is set up, the following processes occur: The mobile station makes a call requiring speech, in which it announces its codec preferences to the MSC in the setup message. The MSC passes appropriate assignment_request and handover_request messages to the BSC. The BSC uses the codec list supplied by the MSC to choose the correct codec, based on the support for the codec in the BTS and A Interface TRAU equipment. The BSC activates the selected channel in the BTS, giving the indication of codec type. The BTS configures itself to handle the correct channel coding, and starts sending TRAU frames to the TRAU, in order to configure the TRAU. The BSC builds either an assignment_command message or a handover_command message, indicating to the mobile station which codec it should use when accessing the new channel. Once the mobile station is attached, the BSC reports the selected codec type to the MSC. In the case of subsequent handover if the BSC has had to change the codec the BSC informs the MSC of the change. For further information concerning enhanced full-rate, refer to the A1353RA Configuration Handbook.
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6.2.2 Half-Rate
Half-rate speech channels allow the operator to save time slots on the air interface when the number of available frequencies is very limited. Half-rate uses a different encoding algorithm than full-rate, in order to minimize any perceived loss of comfort by the subscriber. Use of the half-rate feature does create extra overhead on the A interface. Half-rate is activated on a per-cell basis. In effect, the cell is capable of operating in Dual Rate\mode, permitting either half-rate or full-rate traffic channels to be allocated. Half-rate can be applied to BSSs with the following equipment: G2 BSC G2 Transcoder One of the following BTSs: G1 BTS equipped with Dual Rate Frame Unit EVOLIUM BTS.
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6.2.3 Adaptive Multiple Rate

AMR increases the quality of speech during conversations and also increases the offered capacity due to the provision of half-rate channels. When looking at current GSM codecs (full-rate, half-rate, and enhanced full-rate), each of them answers only one facet of capacity and quality requirements: Enhanced full-rate brings a higher speech quality than full-rate but with no noticeable impact on capacity. Half-rate provides an answer to capacity requirement, but suffers from poor speech quality in bad radio conditions, or mobile station to mobile station calls when TFO (see Tandem Free Operation (Section 3.9)) cannot be used. AMR is a new technology defined by ETSI which relies on two extensive sets of codec modes. One has been defined for full-rate and one for half-rate. When used in combined full-rate and half-rate mode, AMR brings new answers to the trade-off between capacity and quality: Speech quality is improved, both in full-rate and half-rate. Offered capacity is increased due to the provision of half-rate channels. This allows the density of calls in the network to be increased, with only a low impact on speech quality. The AMR technology also provides the advantage of a consistent set of codecs, instead of the one by one introduction of new codecs. Alcatel offer two versions of AMR: Full-rate mode only, for operators who do not face capacity issues and want to benefit from the optimized quality of speech. Combined full-rate/half-rate mode, for operators who want to benefit from the above defined trade-off between quality of speech and capacity. Through these codec mode adaptations, AMR is able to adapt the sharing of speech information and speech protection to current radio conditions, which can vary in a large scale, depending on location, speed, and interference. Therefore, for any radio conditions, the Alcatel BSS is able to offer the best existing codec, thus the best existing voice quality. AMR functionality can be activated by configuration of the cells and the BTS radio resources in all the network elements (OMC, BSC, BTS). The relevant algorithms are activated on a call by call basis. On the radio interface, the AMR can only be used with AMR mobiles. On the A interface , the AMR can only be used if the NSS implements it. The AMR capability is available on a cell by cell basis.
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Normal Assignment
AMR is controlled on a per call basis by the MSC. In the assignment request message, the MSC gives the Channel type IE, which indicates the following: In octet 4 if full-rate or half-rate is to be used and if the BSS is allowed to change. In octet 5 and following octets indicate that AMR is allowed in half-rate or full-rate. The BSC activates the channel in the BTS by sending a channel activation message, containing the IE Multirate configuration. It indicates the subset of codecs used for full-rate (or half-rate, respectively) link adaptation, the threshold and hysteresis sent to the mobile station for full-rate (or half-rate, respectively) link adaptation and, optionally, the start mode (i.e. the initial codec mode). If the initial codec mode is not given, the BTS chooses the default start mode depending on the number of codec modes contained in the subset. Once the channel is activated within the BTS, the BSC sends all AMR relevant parameters to the mobile station in the assignment command message. When the speech path is established and synchronization is performed between the Transcoder and the BTS, the BTS checks if the Request or Indication Flag (RIF) given in the TRAU frame is coherent with the type of Codec Mode (Indication or Command) that should be sent on the radio interface. If necessary, a CMI_CMR alignment command is sent to the Transcoder. Once the BTS detects that downlink CMI/CMR is synchronized between the TRAU frames and the radio interface, it starts codec mode adaptation.
O&M Management
This section summarizes the main O&M configuration parameters that can be changed by the operator from the OMC-R:
AMR_SUBSET_FR Bitmap of 8 bits defining the codec subset for AMR full-rate
(1 to 4 codecs out of 8), on a per BSS basis.

AMR_SUBSET_HR Bitmap of 6 bits defining the codec subset for AMR half-rate (1 to 4 codecs out of 6), on a per BSS basis. EN_AMR_CHANNEL_ADAPTATION Flag on a per cell basis, used only for AMR
calls, to enable or disable intra-cell handovers for channel adaptation.

EN_AMR Flag on a per cell basis to enable or disable AMR. This single flag is
used for AMR full-rate and AMR half-rate.

OFFSET_CA_NORMAL Offset for the channel mode adaptation hysteresis under normal load. It can take the value from 0.0 to 7.0 (step = 0.1) on a per cell basis. OFFSET_CA_HIGH Offset for the channel mode adaptation hysteresis under high load. It can take the value from 0.0 to 7.0 (step = 0.1) on a per cell basis. RXQUAL_CA_NORMAL Threshold for channel mode adaptation under normal
load. It can take the value 0.0 to 7.0 (step = 0.1) on a per cell basis.
RXQUAL_CA_HIGH Threshold for channel mode adaptation under high load. It
can take the value from 0.0 to 7.0 (step = 0.1) on a per cell basis.
AMR_THR_3, AMR_THR_2, AMR_THR_1 Definition of thresholds on a per BSS
basis.
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AMR_HYST_3, AMR_HYST_2, AMR_HYST_1. Definition of thresholds and hysteresis, on a per BSS basis.
6.2.4 Channel Mode Adaption

Channel mode adaptation is the change from one full-rate channel to an half-rate channel and vice-versa. This adaptation is independent from the codec mode currently used. This feature is available when the AMR half-rate option has been installed. The operator has direct operational control of it through the parameter EN_AMR_CHANNEL_ADAPTATION used for both changes from full-rate to half-rate and from half-rate to full-rate.
Full-Rate Channel Adaptation Due to High Radio Quality
This channel adaptation involves ongoing AMR full-rate communications within cells where half-rate is enabled. During any AMR call, the downlink radio quality is reported by the mobile station through the RX_QUAL. In the same time, the uplink radio quality is evaluated by the BTS through the RX_QUAL, and both are compared to a load dependent threshold. Indeed, in a cell heavily loaded, a half-rate channel will be preferred even with a bad quality. Whenever both uplink and downlink radio quality are higher than this threshold, then an intracell handover takes place from full-rate to half-rate channel. To take into account the load, two different threshold values are used. The change will also only be performed if the current channel type is dual rate and it authorizes changes. This channel adaptation involves ongoing AMR half-rate communications, using a dual-rate channel type authorizing changes. During any such AMR call, the downlink and uplink radio quality are evaluated with the same metrics as stated for the full-rate channel adaption, and the same threshold comparison is performed. If either uplink or downlink radio quality are lower than this threshold, then an intracell handover takes place from half-rate to full-rate channel. To take into account the load, two different thresholds are also used but they differ from the ones used in full-rate adaptation by an offset value which is also cell load dependent. This offset allows a hysteresis to be introduced between full-rate and half-rate channels.
Half-Rate Channel Adaptation Due to Low Radio Quality
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6.3 Circuit-Switched Data

There are two types of circuit-switched data modes: Transparent Non-transparent.
Transparent
The transparent data mode is based on the V.110 protocol. V.110 is an ITU recommendation. It specifies how ISDN supports DTE. It also specifies the transport of synchronous/asynchronous data over a synchronous link. Data is packaged and sent to the Transcoder in the same way as speech. It is converted to the 64 kbit/s ISDN format for data transmission. Error handling is dealt with by the Air interface.
Non-Transparent
The non-transparent data mode is similar, although data is transmitted as packets from the modem on the mobile station to the modem in PSTN. Error handling is handled end-to-end. Refer to Transparent Mode (Section 6.3.1) for more information about the transparent mode and to Non-Transparent Mode (Section 6.3.2) for more information about the non-transparent mode. The following figure illustrates data transmission across the BSS.
BTS
BIE
BIE
BSC
SM
SM
TC
MSC
PSTN
Mobile Station V.110 data blocks A

A A/D BIE CIM PSTN SM TC
ISDN /Analog 64 kbit/s A/D
13 kbit/s
CIM
: Analog : Analog/Digital : Base Station Interface Equipment
13 kbit/s
: Channel Encoded, Interleaved, and Modulated : Public Switched Telephone Network : Submultiplexer : Transcoder
Figure 67: Data Transmission Across the BSS
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6.3.1 Transparent Mode

Transparent mode implies that the following functions are performed by the BSS: Interleaving and Channel Coding Rate adaptation.
Interleaving and Channel Coding
Interleaving for data is more complicated than for speech. The data block is split into 22 parts for interleaving 9.6 kbit/s and 4.8 kbit/s data rates. For 2.4 kbit/s, the interleaving is the same as speech. The lower the data rate, the more space can be used for redundancy and error detection. This lowers the error rate. The Air interface performs the error handling. The V.110 data packets are grouped together and transmitted across the Air interface exactly like speech. The table below shows the data rate and error rate. A low data rate provides more space for a better forward error correction scheme, in turn reducing the number of errors.
Rate adaptation
Data is packaged differently in V.110 for different data rates. The bandwidth is reduced and therefore the rate is lower. See the table below for the rate conversions. The Transcoder plays the final role in the rate adaptation when the data stream is adapted to 64 kbit/s packets. There is a difference between data and speech rate adaptation. Speech is encoded to A-law, while data is transposed to the first bit, and if required the second bit of a Pulse Code Modulation byte. PCM transmission is at 8 000 bytes (64 kbit/s). The 8 kbit/s and 16 kbit/s intermediate rates (before the Transcoder) are transposed as 1 or 2 bits per byte respectively. Error Rate (at Full-Rate) 0.3% 0.01% 0.001%
User Rate 9600 4800 <=2400
Intermediate Rate 16 kbit/s 8 kbit/s 8 kbit/s
Radio Interface 12 kbit/s 6 kbit/s 3.6 kbit/s
Table 20: Circuit-Switched Data Rate Conversions Across the Air Interface
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6.3.2 Non-Transparent Mode

The non-transparent data mode is a data transmission protocol. It is based on sending RLP packets as four V.110 frames. This is the same process used in transparent mode. Interleaving and channel coding are still used, as they are in the transparent mode. The RLP adds extra protection and also allows the re-transmission. Packing RLPs in four V.110 frames ensures transparency over the network. RLP packet size is the same as a radio block size, so it is transmitted as one radio block. The non-transparent data mode uses a 12 kbit/s radio interface rate. Interleaving and channel coding are at 9.6 kbit/s (the same as in Transparent mode). The only difference between transparent and non-transparent modes for the BSS is the processing of the four V.110 frames of an RLP packet.
Error Handling
The non-transparent data mode has a better error rate as there is no forward error checking or interleaving. Therefore, the size of packets remains small and less prone to errors. There are however, some cyclic redundancy bytes and the protocol is very similar in principle to (LAPD). There is no rate adaptation in non-transparent mode. The rate can only be adapted by physically transmitting less than the full bandwidth available. The data rate is also limited by the number of errors, as packets have to be retransmitted. The difference between transparent and non-transparent mode data links is transparent to the Transcoder, but not to the BTS. The Transcoder, as described in transparent mode, puts the data in the first bits of a PCM byte. The BTS must ensure that an RLP packet maps into four V.110 frames numbered 0, 1, 2, 3. These must be sent in one block on the Air interface.
Rate Adaptation
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6.4 Short Message Service - Cell Broadcast

There are two types of SMS: Point-to-point SMS allows a short message to be sent to, or received from, a mobile station SMS-CB allows messages to be broadcast to the mobile stations (i.e., one way). SMS-CB can be used for a number of reasons, e.g. to transmit emergency information, road traffic information, etc. An SMS-CB message can be transmitted to all the cells connected to the BSC, or to selected cells only, as required. The following figure shows the SMS-CB components.
Broadcast Message set up by OMCR Operator Broadcast Message to Selected Cell(s) BTS Message broadcast to all Mobile Stations Transmission Request BSC SMSCB commands and signaling CBC Broadcast Message set up by CBC Operator
CBC HMI SMS-CB : Cell Broadcast Center : Human Machine Interface : Short Message Service - Cell Broadcast
OMCR SMSCB commands and signaling
HMI
Figure 68: Short Message Service - Cell Broadcast

The SMS-CB is managed and operated from a separate CBC. The CBC is connected to the BSC and the data needed to connect the BSC to the CBC is sent from the OMC-R. The operator at the CBC inputs the cell broadcast message identifying the broadcast text and the selected cell identities. Only one broadcast message per cell, or cells, is allowed. Any subsequent message simply replaces the message being broadcast. The message is sent from CBC to the BSCs handling the selected cells. The BSCs then send the message to the individual BTSs of the selected cells. On receipt of the transmission request message from the BSC, the BTS broadcasts the message to the mobile stations in the cell over the Cell Broadcast Channel of the Air Interface. For SMS-CB, the BSC supports only the connection to an external CBC platform. The SMS-CB implements all of the improvements of the phase 2+ recommendations.
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Phase 2+ Enhancements
An external CBC can be connected directly to the BSC. This allows the BSC to send information to the CBC, e.g., billing information. Two types of connection can be used to connect the CBC to the BSC: CBC to BSC via PSDN This is the default connection. A BSC can be connected to one CBC. CBC to BSC via MSC The CBC and OMC-R must be connected to the same MSC In addition to the feature SMS-CB managed from CBC, the following enhancements are defined in the phase 2+ GSM recommendation: Greater throughput with a second CBCH channel (extended CBCH) Better responsiveness when urgent data is to be broadcast due to the use of high priority messages. Messages can be allocated a priority of high, normal, or background. Better service availability through the restart with recovery indication feature. The feature brings also better convenience with the support of multipage messages.
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6.5 Support of Localized Service Area

The aim of SoLSA is to link radio resources (cells) with services such as specific billing or differentiated access rights. These services are associated to LSAs (Localized Service Area). An LSA can be defined over several cells, and a cell can belong to several LSAs. One possible usage of this feature is to enable the efficient deployment of dedicated corporate applications. The following description uses this example. In order to manage efficiently corporate LSAs, the Alcatel BSS SoLSA implementation: Favors the camping of SoLSA mobiles on cells belonging to an LSA where they have a subscription. These mobile stations will likely camp on the corporate cells, even if they are not the best ones Informs the end user that he is camping on a cell belonging to a subscribed LSA and thus that he can benefit from the LSA services. This is achieved through the Localized Service Area Indication SoLSA service. The localized service area concept gives the operator the basis to offer subscribers or groups of subscribers different service features, different tariffs and different access rights depending on the location of the subscriber. It is up to the operator to decide which services features are required for a specific service. The LSA (Localized Service Area) can be considered as a logical subnetwork of the operators PLMN. This subnetwork can be configured by the operator. A subscriber can have LSAs at several PLMNs. The following list shows examples of different types of localized service area: Office indoors. The office cells are those that are provided by indoor base stations. Home or office and its neighborhood. The localized service area can be broadened outdoors. The neighborhood cells outdoors can be included into the local service area. Industry area. A company having several office buildings may want to have a localized service area that covers all its buildings and outdoor environments. A part of a city or several locations.
6.6 PLMNs Interworking

A foreign PLMN is a PLMN different from the own PLMN to which the cells internal to the OMC-R belongs. Only cells external to the OMC-R can belong to a foreign PLMN. All internal cells shall belong to the own PLMN. Both OMC-R own cells and cells external to the OMC-R can belong to an own PLMN. The Alcatel BSS supports: Incoming inter-PLMN 2G to 2G handovers Outgoing inter-PLMN 2G to 2G handovers, optional feature The operators are allowed to define handover adjacency links towards external cells belonging to a foreign PLMN, i.e. handovers from a serving cell belonging to the own PLMN towards a target cell belonging to a foreign PLMN.
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Inter-PLMN 2G to 2G cell reselections The Alcatel BSS allows the operator to define cell reselection adjacency between two cells belonging to different own PLMN (which must thus be owned by two different BSCs). Multi PLMN optional feature The Multi-PLMN feature allows operators to define several own PLMN in order to support network sharing (Tool Chain, OMC-R, MFS, Abis transmissions - and also BTS, via rack sharing). Inter-PLMN handovers and cell reselections between two different own PLMN are supported. The BSC itself cannot be shared and thus remains mono-PLMN (i.e. all BSC own cells belong to the same own PLMN). The Alcatel BSS supports several own PLMN (up to four, at least one). An OMC-R thus manage at least one (own) PLMN and up to eight PLMN (four own + four foreign). Both cell reselections and handovers are allowed between two cells belonging to different own PLMN. The operator is allowed to define handover adjacency between two cells belonging to different own PLMN (which must thus be owned by two different BSCs). The OMC-R (and the Tool Chain) is by definition of the feature itself always shared between the different own PLMN. On the other hand: The MFS can be shared. The BSC cannot be shared. The BTS can be shared up to the rack sharing level (no radio part sharing). The Abis transmission part can be shared. The transcoder part can be shared. The outgoing inter PLMN handovers feature is a prerequisite for multi PLMN feature.
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7 Cell Environments
7 Cell Environments
This chapter describes the cell environments available in the Alcatel 900/1800 BSS. The following cell environments are described: Overview Single Cell Concentric Cell Sectored Site Extended Cell Umbrella Cell Mini Cell Microcell. Indoor cell
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7 Cell Environments
7.1 Overview
The Alcatel BSS provides coverage suited to the needs of urban, rural and coastal areas by offering a variety of possible cell environments. The BSS supports a set of cell configurations to optimize the reuse of frequencies. The operator may choose to deploy a network using both GSM 900 and DCS 1800 bands. The parameters to define cells are grouped into five types: Cell dimension. This consists of macro up to 35 Km (can be up to 70 km with extended cell), and micro up to 300 meters. Cell Coverage. There are four types of coverage, single, lower, upper, and indoor. Cell Partition. Two types of frequency partition exist, normal or concentric. Cell Range. The cell range can be normal or extended. Cell Band Type. A cell belongs to either the GSM 900 or DCS 1800 bands, or both in case of a multi-band cell.
Rural and Coastal Coverage
In the rural and coastal environment coverage is principally a function of cell planning. Standard cell layouts provide coverage of up to 35 km. Extended cells, which have two co-located antennae, provide options covering traffic density and ranges up to 70 km. In the urban environment the coverage is determined by the location of the BTS antennae. Two types of cells are normally used: Macrocells - where the antenna is located above the roof tops and propagation occurs in all directions. These cells can be sectored by using specific antenna patterns. Microcells - where the antenna is located below roof top level, on building facades or street lights. Propagation occurs mainly as line of sight along the street, with strong attenuation at street corners. Indoor cells. These three cell types can be used in a hierarchical cell environment where continuous coverage is provided by the macrocell (umbrella cell) and locations of increased traffic density are covered by dedicated microcells and indoor cells. See Umbrella Cell (Section 7.5) for more information. The figure below shows various configurations of the normal GSM 900 or GSM 1800 cell type. Each of the following sections explain the functional differences between the cell described and the single cell configuration.
Urban Coverage
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7 Cell Environments
Inner Zone Outer Zone Single Cell Concentric Cell
Sectored Site Umbrella Cell Microcell Microcell Microcell Inner Cell Outer Limit Umbrella & Concentric Cell Microcell Microcell Microcell
Extended Cell
Inner Cell Outer Cell
Overlap Zone
Outer Cell Inner Limit
Figure 69: Example: Cell Configurations
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7 Cell Environments
7.2 Concentric Cell

The goal of concentric cells is to increase the frequency economy of the network. This is done by reducing the interference levels of some BTS carriers. These carrier frequencies can be re-used for smaller distances. The inner zone serves a high concentration of mobile station calls in a small area, with a reduced maximum power output limit. The outer zone performs call handling for a greater radius with a normal maximum power output limit. The BCCH, CCCH and SDCCH in concentric cells are put on the outer zone frequencies. Traffic channel assignment during call connection can be allocated to either the outer or inner zones. It depends on the location of the mobile station at that time. The inner and outer zones are part of the same cell, and a frequency carrier is assigned either to the inner or outer zone. This is signalled by the zone_type flag of 1 or 0, (1=inner, 0=outer). The outer zone maximum power limit is the same as normal zones. The inner zone is controlled by two maximum power limit values: one maximum power limit value for the mobile station and one maximum power limit value for the BTS.
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7 Cell Environments
7.3 Sectored Site

A sectored site consists of one or more BTS. Each BTS hosts up to six antennae illuminating up to six sectors, each sector covering a separate single macrocell. The figure below shows a three-sector arrangement. The BTS in a sectored site contains up to three transceivers which are each allocated to different given sectors. Each sector and its associated cell are managed independently and are seen functionally, by the OMC and BSC, as separate BTSs connected in chain mode. Within the physical BTS site, there is a master BTS and up to two slave BTSs (for G2 BTS and G3 BTS, each BTS can have three slaves using the Shared Cell feature, see Cell Shared by Two BTS (Section 7.6) for more information). Each BTS generates its own clock locally, but the slave BTSs are synchronized to the master BTS.
Sector 1
Cell 1
BTS Cell 2 Sector 2
Cell 3
Sector 3
Antenna
Figure 70: Sectored site configuration
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7 Cell Environments
7.4 Extended Cell

An extended cell is made up of two cells, an inner and an outer, as shown in the figure below. The inner cell handles calls up to a distance of 35 km (the same as a normal cell), while the outer cell handles traffic from 33 km up to a maximum range of 70 km. Extended cells are supported only by EVOLIUM BTSs.
Inner Cell Highway Urban Area 70 km max Outer Cell
35 km max
Figure 71: Example of Extended Cell Topology

The inner and outer cells are covered by two synchronized, co-located G2 BTSs. The reception (uplink) of the outer cell is delayed to correspond to a 33 km shift in range. Radio continuity between the two cells is ensured by the overlap zone. The inner cell uses two carrier units: Carrier Unit BCCH Inner: at the inner cell BCCH frequency Carrier Unit RACH Catcher: at the outer cell BCCH frequency, but with transmission switched off. Because the outer cell can have areas of strong signal within the inner cells coverage area, it is necessary to prevent a mobile station in such a region from camping on the outer cell frequency. This could lead to sudden signal degradation as conditions change, and eventual loss of the call. The RACH Catcher receives channel_request messages from mobile stations which are synchronized on the outer cell BCCH frequency, but are within 33 km of the BTS. The BTS knows, from the timing advance sent by the mobile station, that it is actually in the inner cell, and assigns the mobile station to an inner cell SDCCH frequency. The outer cell uses one Carrier Unit with reception delayed by 60 bits. This effectively shifts the logical position of a mobile station 33 km nearer than its actual position and allows it to be handled in the standard GSM 0-63 bit timing advance range. The handover procedure is controlled normally, with the settings ensuring that the necessary distance has been reached before handing a call over to the outer or inner cell. Different types of coverage are possible depending on the type of antenna used for the inner and outer cells. The example in the figure above shows an extended cell with an omnidirectional inner cell and directional outer cell.
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7 Cell Environments
Enlarged Extended Cell
The enlarged extended cell is an extended cell designed to provide enlarged capacity for areas where sustained traffic is high. It is especially well-suited for rural areas and dense highways where more than one TRX is necessary to handle traffic. The enlarged extended cell relies on the general principles of the extended cell: it is made up of two sub-cells to handle calls up to a distance of 70 km. However, with enlarged extended cell the two sub-cells are covered by one BTS, assuring a higher synchronization rate. The following telecom features are supported: The TDMA frame time slots can be used independently, providing any TRX with full capacity Inner cell mobile station access requests use the outer cell BCCH frequency Handover between the two sub-cells BCCH TRX recovery.
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7 Cell Environments
7.5 Umbrella Cell

In much denser traffic areas, depending on the required traffic capacity, a hierarchical network is used, where continuous coverage is provided by an umbrella cell (macrocell), and traffic hot-spots are covered with dedicated lower layer cells of limited range. Fast moving mobiles are kept in the upper layer cell to avoid a high rate of handovers. For medium density areas small macrocells (called mini cells) are overlaid with one umbrella macrocell. See Mini Cell (Section 7.5.1) for more information. For higher traffic densities microcells are installed in all the streets where very dense traffic occurs. Umbrella macrocells provide continuous coverage for level and quality handovers, and saturated overlaid cells. Refer to Microcell (Section 7.5.2) for more information about the relationship between umbrella cells and microcells.
7.5.1 Mini Cell

Mini cells are used for dense urban areas where traffic hot-spots are covered by very small macrocells (500 m to 1 km radius) and continuous coverage is provided by an overlaid macrocell (5 to 10 km radius). The lower layer mini cells handle pedestrian traffic while the umbrella cell handles the faster moving mobiles. As only macrocells are used there is no street corner effect. The following figure shows the application of the two-layer hierarchical network, with macrocells for both layers, in a small town.
Umbrella Cell
Pedestrian area
Mini Cells Urban area
Figure 72: Umbrella Cell with Mini Cells
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7 Cell Environments
7.5.2 Microcell
Microcells have a small coverage area (less than 300 m radius). These cells are usually situated indoors or along streets in built-up areas. Microcells have an umbrella cell (1 to 2 km radius) to minimize the risk of losing calls by providing maximum coverage. The microcells small radius is created by limiting the maximum power output strategically to cover a pre-defined microcell area. Handover occurs more frequently in a microcell environment due to the small radius sizes. Microcell handovers occur: To handle stationary mobile stations (especially mobile stations used indoors) When a mobile station moves in a street covered by microcells To avoid losing calls. Whenever there is a risk of losing a call, a handover is triggered to the umbrella cell. Fast moving mobiles are handled by the umbrella cell. A mobile handled by a microcell is sent to the umbrella cell if the delay between handovers becomes too small. Conversely a mobile is sent to a microcell if it receives a high level of signal for a sufficient time. Call quality/control is achieved by providing four thresholds for microcell handover and one handover threshold for macrocell handover.
7.5.2.1 Micro to Micro Handover

Microcell to microcell handover occurs due to the proximity of the two cells. When the power budget is better in another cell, the mobile station is handed over to the cell which will serve the call more efficiently. This normally occurs in microcells serving in the same street.
7.5.2.2 Micro to Macro Handover High Threshold Handover Low Threshold Handover
This type of handover occurs when the signal strength has dropped below the theoretical signal level at the radius of the cell. This would normally mean that the mobile station has turned a street corner. This type of handover occurs when the mobile station level is under the high threshold and the signal level has dropped below the low threshold. The handover is to the umbrella/macrocell, which supports the call until the mobile station moves into another cell. When the macro to micro threshold is exceeded in the umbrella/macrocell, the mobile station is passed to a new microcell. The mobile station is forced to handover to the umbrella cell when no measurement reports are transmitted. This occurs after a number of consecutive SACCH reporting periods.
Rescue Handover
7.5.2.3 Macro to Micro Handover M_to_m Threshold Handover

This occurs when the mobile station signal level in a microcell is above the M_to_m threshold for a certain period. This threshold value must always be higher than the low threshold value of the cell. Otherwise, a handover ping-pong effect can occur between the umbrella and the microcell. If the low threshold is not used, the M_to_m Threshold value must be above the high threshold value.
Note:
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7 Cell Environments
7.5.2.4 Threshold Handover Example

The example in the figure below shows two typical cases of handover in microcells: Micro-micro handover along a street (Case 1 in the figure below) Signal levels rising and dropping, causing macro/micro handover (Case 2 in the figure below). This example shows the use of the two levels of Macro-micro handover (strong to weak signal, and weak to weaker signal). This is represented by the high and low threshold handovers. This example also shows the macrocell handing back to a microcell once a stronger signal level is received.
High Signal Level 1 2
MicroMicro Handover High Threshold
d B m
6 M_to_m Threshold Low Threshold 5
Low Signal Level
Figure 73: Example: Handovers due to Threshold Triggering
Micro-Micro Handover (Case 1) Macro-Micro Handover (Case 2)
A mobile station is moving along a street. As it moves along a street, the mobile station is handed over from microcell to microcell (1). A mobile station turns a corner then moves indoors. 1. Call starts at (2). The signal level is normal. 2. The mobile station signal level drops below the high threshold level (3), e.g. when turning a corner. To protect the call, it is handed over to the macrocell until a better microcell is found. The call remains with the macrocell until a strong signal from another microcell is received (normal case). 3. If a strong signal from a microcell cannot be found, a weaker signal from a microcell with enough strength to be above M_to_m threshold level, but remain below the high threshold is found (4). In this case, as long as the signal strength remains above the low threshold and there is not a better microcell, the call remains with that microcell (e.g. the mobile station is indoors). 4. The signal level drops below the low threshold (5). The mobile station is again passed to the macrocell (e.g. the mobile station moves further inside a building). The macrocell is used to ensure call quality. 5. The mobile station moves into a position whereby the mobile station reports a microcell signal level above M_to_m threshold (6). The call is handed over to that microcell, e.g. the mobile station is still indoors, but has a stronger signal from a microcell.
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7 Cell Environments
7.5.2.5 Indoor Cell

The aim of indoor layer support is twofold: Firstly, to enable a better radio coverage inside large buildings (hotels, shopping malls, corporate centers) by the public network. Secondly, to unloaded the cells provided for outdoor coverage but which are accessible from these buildings. Indoor cells can be deployed in all types of network, even in already very dense networks which already have two layers (upper and lower). The feature eases the optimization of multilayer networks which include cells dedicated to indoor coverage. Indoor coverage is performed mostly from outdoor BTS. Although already satisfactory in many cases, the indoor quality of service can be improved by using dedicated in-building equipment. Together with this improved quality, an increase in the indoor capacity can be achieved, particularly in high density public areas such as airports, train stations, shopping malls, business parks, etc. A three layer per band management is introduced and a new type of cell is defined (the indoor cell) that maximizes traffic in these indoor cells while preserving quality. In idle mode, classical criteria (C2) allows mobiles to be forced to camp on indoor cells. For example, when entering a building covered by an indoor cell, calls are automatically transferred from outdoor cells, whatever their type. When moving inside the building, calls are transferred from one indoor cell to another one, even if the received power from outdoor cells is higher. It is only when the mobile leaves the indoor coverage that it is transferred to an outdoor cell. It is important for the Operator to minimize interference from indoor to outdoor. Therefore, indoor cells will often be used with very low radiated power (picocells). In this context, the feature provides also enhanced Power Control algorithms. The cells added to the network for indoor coverage are referred as indoor cells and form a new layer referred as the indoor layer. The following figure gives an example of network structure with three layers and two bands.
Umbrella cell 1800 Umbrella cell 900
Upper layer
Microcell 1800 Microcell 900
Lower layer
Indoor cell 1800 Indoor cell 900
Indoor layer
Figure 74: Indoor cell example network hierarchy with three layers and two bands
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7 Cell Environments
The already deployed network hierarchy has to be adapted as follows: If there were already two layers, cells belonging to the upper layer will remain unchanged. Outdoor cells belonging to the lower layer will also remain in the lower layer. New cells introduced for the indoor layer will belong to the indoor layer. If there was only one layer, cells having the cell_layer_type single will become upper. New cells introduced for the indoor layer will belong to the indoor layer. There is no lower layer.
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7 Cell Environments
7.6 Cell Shared by Two BTS

The system is able to handle cells whose TRXs are located in two different BTS. This feature brings important flexibility by allowing: An existing site to be extended by only adding TRXs in a new BTS, not changing the arrangement of the existing BTS. Existing cells to be combined into one, e.g. combine one 900 cell and one 1800 cell in order to get a multi-band cell. The support of 3x8 TRXs configurations in 2 racks (instead of 3). The support of 16 TRX per cell.
Note:
This feature is applies only to BTS A9100. Each set of TRX in a certain BTS must have its own coupling. It is possible to combine the coupling output towards the same antenna through an additional duplexer, although this is a special installation. The fact that part of the sector is in another BTS does not increase the number of necessary antennae. For BTS A9100, each BTS can have one slave, but each slave can in turn have another slave, up to a maximum of 3 linked slaves for one master BTS. If linked BTSs support part of the same cell, the linked BTSs must be clock synchronized with each other (master/slave). With this feature, the operator can associate two physical sectors from different BTSs into one shared sector. This shared sector can be mono or dual-band and it can support one cell as a normal sector. It takes the identity of one of the physical sectors, called the main sector. The other physical sector is the secondary sector.
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8 Operations & Maintenance

This chapter provides an overview and describes O&M functions in the context of an operational network. It describes: Overview O&M Architecture and Functions O&M Control - The OMC-R Configuration Management Fault Management - Alarms Performance Management Audits Remote nventory. This chapter does not describe the principles of O&M. For more information about O&M, refer to the Operations & Maintenance Principles document.
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8.1 Overview
To ensure that the BSS operates correctly, O&M actions are implemented at all levels within the BSS. The O&M functions in the BSS are grouped into three categories: Configuration Management Fault Management Performance Management. These categories are described later.
8.2 O&M Architecture and Functions

The BSS subsystems perform O&M functions, as follows: Configuration Management The main benefit of configuration management is the reduced time needed to perform operations and reduce telecom outages. This is achieved by having fewer operator commands and providing smooth migration and equipment configuration. The main functions of configuration management include radio configuration management and equipment management. Fault Management The BTS monitors the condition of the hardware modules it manages, and reports any change in status to the BSC. The BSC supervises its own hardware modules and reports changes in status to the OMC-R. The BSC and Transcoder provide together a set of transmission O&M functions to ensure a high level of fault tolerance and reliability. The function also provides efficient use of the terrestrial links between the equipment of the BSS. The MFS, like the BSC, supervises its own hardware modules and reports changes in status to the OMC-R. Hardware and software management of the MFS is provided using the IMT. The OMC-R is the primary control station for the BSS/MFS and is the heart of the O&M function. Performance Management Performance Management consists of three main system activities: The collection of raw measurement data from network elements by the BSC and the MFS The transfer of the raw measurements to the OMC-R The processing of the raw measurements and presentation of the results on the OMC-R.
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8.2.1 O&M Architecture

Control of O&M Functions
Local Maintenance Terminals are used when performing maintenance tasks at the BSC, BTS, and Transcoder. LMTs are connected directly to the equipment. The operations available at the LMTs act only on the local hardware, not on logical resources. The IMT performs maintenance tasks at the MFS, using a Netscape browser. All these tasks (except for three tasks associated with alarms, enable/disable sound, view history file, and enable/disable external alarm management) can also be accessed from the OMC-R terminal. The IMT alarm tasks are not provided when the IMT is accessed from the OMC-R because the OMC-R already has its own alarm management tasks. The IMT software can be accessed from either the IMT or the OMC-R. It has three different user profiles: administrator, operational, basic. If the IMT software is accessed from the IMT, only one session at a time can be run. Two instances of the IMT can be in use at the same time. For example, if there is one IMT connected to the MFS, then only one IMT window can be opened at the OMC-R. For more information about LMTs, refer to one of the following:
BSC Terminal User Guide Transmission Terminal User Guide BTS Terminal User Guide EVOLIUM A925 Compact TC Terminal User Guide EVOLIUM A935 MFS IMT User Guide
OML Auto-detection
An OML auto-detection feature has been introduced in order to take full advantage of the transmission configuration via OML feature (it is more reliable and more robust than configuration via the Qmux channel). The OML auto-detection feature provides the following benefits: Transmission configuration via OML on all EVOLIUM BTS No LMT configuration necessary during Move BTS Secure recovery after OML breakdown A simplification of the BTS installations (in the idea of Plug&Play BTS). See OML Auto-detection (Section 8.4.5) for more information.
Managed Objects
Managed Objects are used to represent elements of the Telecommunication TMN environment on the Q3 interface in terms of system resources. This concept is also used to represent the activities of management function blocks performed on these resources. In Alcatels network management model, Managed Objects can be physical entities, such as a BSS, BTS, BSC, or a hardware module within one of these entities. They can also be a logical entity, such as programs or program routines which implement communication protocols.
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Security Blocks
Alcatel has an internal object model structure, based on objects called Security Blocks. Security Blocks are only used for the BSC, the BTS, and the Transcoder. Security Blocks are only visible to an operator performing local maintenance using certain LMTs, i.e. BSC terminal, BTS terminal, or transmission terminal. The SBL model is not used by the OMC-R or the IMT. The OMC-R can display SBLs in certain circumstances, e.g. in BSSUSM.
8.2.2 O&M Functions

Each BSS subsystem has its own O&M function.
Configuration Management
Configuration Management is the process of viewing and controlling network resources. Configuration Management allows the operator to: Configure the BSS/MFS hardware and software when it is first installed Change the network by adding, deleting, or moving network entities Upgrade to new hardware or software Change equipment and telecom parameters to improve system performance.
Fault Management
Fault Management allows the operator to supervise and to repair the network when anomalies occur. It does this through a sequence of steps from detection to reporting and recovery. These are carried out by all the BSS/MFS subsystems, and are reported to the operator at the OMC-R. Performance Management allows the operator to monitor the efficiency of the system and the telecom services. It is controlled entirely from the OMC-R and provides measurements and statistics about various traffic events and resource usage in the BSS.
Performance Management
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8.3 O&M Control - The OMC-R

The OMC-R is the primary control station for the BSS/MFS and is the heart of the O&M function. Its principal operations are: Network configuration. Provides the operator with an interface to the system to: Perform software configuration management (files, version downloading) Perform hardware configuration management (e.g. update the configuration according to extension-reduction operations, configure certain BSS parameters such as Abis link characteristics and some BTS characteristics) Provide configuration functions for logical parameters. Network supervision. Provides the operator with an interface to the system to: Display alarm status and history Display equipment and resource states Monitor and display Performance Measurements Provide Usage State on Demand observations Definition and supervision of counter thresholds (Quality of Service alarms). Network maintainance. Provides the operator with an interface to the system to: Access to equipment management functions (test) Access to resource equipment state management. Locking and unlocking equipment and resources Keeping track of hardware and software configurations in the system and managing software versions Providing mediation between the Alcatel BSS and one or more NMCs. This uses the Q3 interface. Provide an interface to the electronic documentation collection.
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8.3.1 Multiple Human-Machine Interface

This feature permits one OMC-R operator to perform actions normally done by several OMC-Rs, typically during off-duty hours. The connection between the multiple access workstation and the other OMC-R hosts is made via an X.25 network. The following figure illustrates the principle of operation.
Central Site Additional Workstation Printer
HMI Server
Multiple Access Workstation
X.25 Network
OMCR Host 1 OMCR Host 2

HMI : Human Machine Interface
OMCR Host n
Figure 75: Multiple HMI Access to OMC-Rs

The implementation of this feature takes advantage of the distributed configuration of the OMC-R which usually consists of a host machine and distinct local or remote HMI servers.
Central Site Configuration
The site used for multiple access contains the following: Printing facilities Additional workstations which connect to the multiple access workstation, but only connect to the same OMC-R Configuration of each OMC-R is specific to the multiple access workstation and its peripherals.
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8.3.2 ACO
Alarm Call Out (ACO) is a process within the HMI server to perform alarm management tasks for a complete network. Alarms from the BSSs controlled by other OMC-Rs are directed to one OMC-R. These links are used to transfer alarm notifications from the controlled OMC-Rs to the ACO OMC-R as shown in the figure below. The ACO OMC-R collects alarms from these OMCs, applies filters defined by the on duty operator, sends the filtered results to a dedicated printer and sends e-mail to support technicians. ACO can be started and stopped from any OMC-R.
ACO OMCR Workstation
OMCR 3
OMCR 1
Area 3
Area 1
OMCR 2
Area 2
ACO : Alarm Call Out
Figure 76: ACO Links
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8.3.3 Secured X.25 Connection From BSC to OMC-R

The Secured X.25 Connection feature provides redundant links in the event of a link failure on either the OMC-R or BSC side. When a link failure occurs, the initiator system involved must process the change over. The configuration for the X.25 links consists of two physical links, one for CMISE, and one for FTAM. The following figure illustrates the configuration without redundancy.
OMCR X.25 Network CMISE BSC A HSI 0 BOARD 1 2 3 CMISE OSI CPRA 1 FTAM BSC A FTAM BSC A
OSI CPRA 2
CMISE CPRA FTAM HSI OSI
: Common Management Information Service Element : Common Processor Type A : File Transfer Access and Management : High Speed Interface : Open System Interconnection
Figure 77: X.25 Without Redundancy

Definition of the primary and the secondary links based on their hardware configuration can achieve various types of redundancy, such as: OMC-R side redundancy BSC side redundancy Complete redundancy.
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The following figure illustrates these redundancy types.

OMCR X.25 Network HSI Board 0 1 2 3 3 1 2 OSI CPRA 2 Secondary Link BSC Primary Link OSI CPRA 1
Secondary Link Configurations 1. OMCR side redundancy 2. BSC side redundancy 3. Complete redundancy
CPRA HSI OSI : Common Processor Type A : High Speed Interface : Open System Interconnection
Figure 78: X.25 With Redundancy
X.25 Link Transfer Scenario
When the OMC-R or the BSC sets up a CMISE or FTAM association, the subsystem chooses the active link. The active link is the primary link if it is in traffic, otherwise it is the secondary link. The following events occur: The transfer is performed on the primary link if the association is successful. The association is attempted three times. The primary link is set out of service if the association is unsuccessful after the third try. If the secondary link is in traffic, it becomes the active link and the association is tried on this link. If the secondary link is out of service, the application is impossible. Links are periodically tested for availability. When the primary link is recovered it becomes active and in traffic. Loss of one link (i.e. primary or secondary) triggers an alarm and the recovery triggers the end of alarm.
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8.3.4 Electronic Documentation

Installation and use of the electronic documentation collection depends of the configuration.
Small Configurations
The documentation collection is installed on each OMC-R as a collection without a Verity search engine. To search the documentation collection, install the documentation collection CD-ROM on a single PC, and use the search function provided on the CD-ROM. The license for the documentation collection and Verity search engine is installed on one OMC-R. All other OMC-R on the same site are connected to this OMC-R. The maximum number of users that can be managed for each search engine license is 75. This corresponds to a site with five Large configuration OMC-R. Refer to A1353-RA Capacity per BSS Category for more information on the various OMC-R configurations.
Standard, Large, and XLarge Configurations
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8.4 Configuration Management

Configuration Management, simply, is the process of putting in place the essential hardware and software components of the network, and determining their operating capabilities. The table below shows the configuration management functions of each network element. Network Element BSC Configuration Management Functions Software and database replacement Reading and modifying logical parameters. BTS Supervision of the BTS equipment. This includes initializing and configuring the BTS. Transfer of software and data files to the FUs (G1/G2 BTS) or TREs (BTS A9100/A910) Software and database replacement Auto Identification (BTS A9100/A910 only). See Auto Identification (Section 8.4.4) for more information. Application of the logical configuration of the BTS. Transcoder Communication through the Q1 interface with the Transcoder, SM and BIE modules Permission for configuration and reconfiguration of the Transcoder, SM and BIE modules. TSC Communication through the LAPD link with the BSC
MFS
Reading and modifying parameters Control station and GPU configuration Framer configuration for Gb Interface messages GPU switch configuration for circuit-switched connections.
Table 21: Configuration Management Functions

For detailed information about configuration management refer to the Configuration Management chapter in the Operations & Maintenance Principles document or the descriptive documentation.
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8.4.1 Hardware Configuration

Hardware Configuration enables the operator to control the placement in service of both BSS and MFS hardware, the manner in which deployed hardware elements will act and interact within the BSS and MFS, and to modify the parameters that control these elements. It also permits the operator to view the current hardware configuration status of the network.
8.4.2 Logical Configuration

There are three types of Logical Configuration: Radio Logical Configuration allows the operator to change the parameters that control the Air Interface. This includes channel definitions, manipulating and reconfiguring the Carrier Units or TREs and defining the Frequency Hopping System. Cell Logical Configuration displays and modifies BSS logical parameters and threshold values which influence a cells operational behavior. These are divided into several classes which simplify searches. GPRS Logical Configuration allows the management of the following: The telecommunications application, including bearer channels, Gb Interface, Ater Mux Interface towards the BSC, and cell management domains. Synchronization of the logical GPU resource states after a server changeover. Configuration of a logical GPU when requested by the GPU (after a start, reset or changeover). Network service configuration and the supervision of the Gb Interface domain.
8.4.3 Software Configuration

Software Configuration enables new versions of the BSS software to be installed in the BSS. This feature also allows the operator to display current software versions of the BSS. BSC and BTS software is managed from the OMC-R, MFS software is managed from the IMT.
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8.4.4 Auto Identification

Auto Identification gives the BTS A9100 and the BTS A910 the capacity to recognize their own hardware configuration, and to provide this information to the OMU and the BTS Terminal. The auto identification procedure is triggered by the OMU in the following situations: BTS/SUM power up BTS reset OMU reset/auto reset Module initialization (on maintenance operator command, or during a Local Recovery Action or Hardware Extension, the auto identification takes place only for the module(s) concerned by the operation). The BTS A9100 and the BTS A910 capabilities received by the OMU at auto identification are stored and can be used internally by the OMU software or sent to the BSC at Hardware audit. Auto identification has two components: Remote Inventory RF Cable Identification.
Remote Inventory
Remote inventory identifies the following: RIT type of each managed module Hardware capabilities of each RIT.
RF Cable Identification
RF Cable Identification provides the following information: Location of each RIT (subrack and slot) Sector to antenna network x mapping TRE to antenna network x mapping. For more information, refer to the BTS Functional Description and the BTS Terminal User Guide.
Consistency Checks
When a new Configuration Data Message is received from the BSC, the BTS A9100 and the BTS A910 performs a consistency check of its capabilities against the Configuration Data Message. It also does this at module initialization due to maintenance operator command or to a Hardware Extension operation. The BTS A9100 and the BTS A910 also checks that the received OMU Configuration Parameter Data File is valid for this generation of BTS. Consistency checks are also performed by G1 and G2 BTS. For more information, refer to the following:
EVOLIUM BTS A9100/A910 Functional Description EVOLIUM BTS A9100 Hardware Description EVOLIUM BTS A910 Hardware Description BTS Terminal User Guide
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8.4.5 OML Auto-detection

An OML auto-detection feature has been introduced in order to take full advantage of the transmission configuration via OML feature (it is more reliable and more robust than configuration via the Qmux channel). The OML auto-detection feature provides the following benefits: The feature allows one extra time slot to be used for signalling (if no G1/G2 BTS are present on the Abis interface). This provides an increase of telecom traffic on one Abis (because there are no time slots dedicated to the Qmux). There is no need of on-site BTS reconfiguration during a move BTS scenario (using the LMT to reconfigure the BTS). Also, the Qmux address for the EVOLIUM BTS can be modified remotely from the OMC-R. No need of on-site BTS reconfiguration during an OML multiplexing change (from 16k to 64k) Secure recovery after OML breakdown Simplification of the commissioning procedure: No synchronization any more between OMC-R and commissioning people. The BTS can be installed before or after the BTS is created at the OMC-R. The OMC-R operator no longer needs to know on which time slot is the OML, and no longer needs to configure it manually. Transmission configuration via OML for all EVOLIUM BTS.
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8.4.6 NE Provisioning
Network element provisioning allows equipment that is not yet in commercial use to be distinguished from equipment that is under maintenance. This is mot important for network monitoring. The feature introduces the status "commercial use" that can be associated to the BTS. This status is changeable online from the OMC-R. It is also available at the radio configuration export/import interface of the OMC-R for coordination with the operators information systems. For the BTS marked as "not in commercial use", potential alarms are raised with only a "warning" severity and the performance measurement results are not taken into account. The BTS marked as "not in commercial use" are not reported in the topology files sent to the A985-NPA and A956-RNO. They can be also filtered from the supervision view. Previously, as soon as a BTS was declared, it was supervised, but this raised permanent alarms when the BTS was not physically connected. If cells were created on this BTS, PM cell measurements were running on the BTS, and this lead to very poor PM results as the BTS was not in commercial service. An attribute (commercialUse = On or Off) is associated to each BTS. The attribute can be changed from both the SC and the PRC radio network level to mark the BTS as out of commercial use, or in commercial use. When this attribute is set (i.e. the BTS is out of commercial use), all alarms related to the BTS have a severity maximum equal to a warning (except for the alarms from the MFS). At the OMC-R, the operator still sees all of the alarms and alarm states, and is able to trigger all O&M commands, as usual. This allows the operator to be aware of the fault situation of the BTS, but does not give a false status of the network. There is no PM handling and storage for the BTS that are marked out of commercial use (except for the PM counters that are relative to RSL/OML traffic which are not filtered).
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8.5 Fault Management - Alarms

The BSS generates alarms to signal a change in the behavior of a particular function within the system, such as a potential problem or a confirmed failure in the system. This section describes the alarm generation process. It describes the alarms and their effects on the system. The following table shows the fault management functions of each network element. Network Element BSC Fault Management Functions
Fault detection, fault correlation and fault localization on all devices controlled by the processor BSC reconfiguration in case of loss of the BCCH, Terminal Control Unit/FU or a Carrier Unit (G1 or G2 BTS) BSC reconfiguration in case of loss of the BCCH, TCU/TRE (BTS A9100/A910). Through the TSC, the BSC also performs the following functions: Status monitoring of the Transcoder, SM and BIE modules Local access provision to configuration of the Transcoder, SM and BIE modules via an RS-232 connection to the BSC terminal. Giving access to the fault localizing features of the TSC (for example, the ability to set up loop-back tests)
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BTS
Testing of the equipment. This includes collecting alarms and reporting to the BSC. Fault detection, fault correlation and fault localization for the BTS Management of equipment states. This includes triggering BTS channel configuration in case of a failure. Access provision for the local diagnostics and configuration of the BTS BTS power supply control Event report management. See Alarm Generation (Section 8.5.1) for further information concerning events.
MFS
Collects all fault information for telecom and external alarms, the telecommunications hardware and the active server Records the fault information in a table Allows the IMT and the OMC-R to access the fault information Generates the ending alarm for pending alarms Manages the communications with the IMT.
Table 22: Fault Management Functions

For additional information about fault management refer to the descriptive documentation and the Fault Management chapter of the Operations & Maintenance Principles document.
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8.5.1 Alarm Generation

When an Alarm is generated, it is indicated as either: Fault (begin or end) If a fault arises, the related alarm is stored in the relevant BSS unit, and also in the OMC-R. The alarm begin message signals that a particular system activity has stopped due to an error. When the error is corrected, an alarm end message is sent to indicate that the condition no longer exists, and the alarm is taken out of the Alarms-in-Force List. Event An Event occurs when an unexpected situation arises during system operation. Alarms can be generated as a result of previous alarms or events which influence other parts of the system. For example, when the Carrier Unit produces an alarm to signal an internal fault, the FU and the Radio Signalling Link produce alarms to signal that no information is being received from the Carrier Unit. Fault correlation and filtering actions are performed by the O&M modules in each unit, so that a single fault is sent as an alarm. In the case of the faulty Carrier Unit, an alarm is sent signalling a Carrier Unit fault. In this example, the loss of the RSL link is signalled from the BSC but is not correlated. Refer also to the Alarm Handling section of the Operations & Maintenance Principles document.
8.5.2 Alarm Functions

Correlation
Correlation refers to the collection and analysis of all available fault indications for a particular problem. Fault correlation is performed to define where and why the fault occurred. An example of correlation is as follows: 1. When several boards in the BTS report clock problems, these reports are correlated by the OMU. 2. The clock generator is faulty alarm is sent to the OMC-R via the BSC.
Filtering
Alarms are filtered to minimize the number of fault alarms reported and displayed to the operator. Alarms are displayed in order of severity. Refer also to the Alarm Handling section of the Operations & Maintenance Principles document.
Persistency
A fault is signalled only if there is no recovery after the timer expiration. For example, in the case of an LAPD failure of an RSL link, an alarm is sent only if the LAPD link has not recovered before the persistency timer has expired. AS is an OMC-R application that supports fault management integration in TMN functions. It collects alarms issued by applications residing in the various Management Layers and processes them. Each BSS component keeps an Alarms-in-Force List, so that the system knows that an alarm has begun. This list ensures synchronization of alarms throughout the BSS components. This makes the alarm situation visible at all times. The OMC-R also keeps track of all the Alarms-in-Force Lists for each BSS component.
Alarm Surveillance
Alarms-in-Force List
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8.5.3 BSC Alarms

The BSC detects alarms on the Abis and A trunk via the TCU and the DTC. It also detects alarms from each functional unit of the BSC. Refer also to the Alarm Handling section of the Operations & Maintenance Principles document.
Processor Failure
The active S-CPRA creates a daisy-chain map of all the processors in the BSC. Every ten seconds, the S-CPRA sends the map to the next processor. This processor sends the information to the next processor in line, until the S-CPRA receives the daisy-chain map. The daisy-chain map can be modified by an intermediary processor when that processor cannot send the map to the next processor in line. In this case, the intermediary processor skips the processor and removes that processor from the daisy-chain map. When the S-CPRA receives the map with the same processor missing twice in a row, it tries to recover the processor. If the processor cannot be recovered, the S-CPRA places the processor in the FLT state. The S-CPRA signals the processor failure to the OMC-R as follows: If the processor failure is in the TCU, recovery only takes place to ensure BCCH functionality. If a DTC processor fails, the BSC tries to inform the MSC, so that the MSC is aware the SS7 link is out of service. This implies: The loss and, if possible, the change-over of the SS7 The blocking of circuits.
Telecom Link or Trunk Failure
The TSC supervises its trunks between the Transcoder, BTS, and MSC. Failure of the Abis interface is signalled to the BSC by all of the RSLs of the associated BTS. A single RSL failure reflects the status of the corresponding LAPD and FU. All A interface faults are controlled by the Transcoder and the MSC. However they are also monitored by the BSC, in order to define the status of each "end-to-end" A-trunk. The following figure shows RSL fault correlation on the Abis interface.
Note:
The BTS_TEL SBL describes the status of the GSM defined BTS telecom functions. Its state is defined by operator commands, and correlation of the LAPD RSL states or of the different Carrier Units.
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Fault Start RSL1
CPR Informed
RSL State Change Alarm begin BTS_TEL ACTIVE INACTIVE
Persistency
Correlation
Fault Start RSL2
Fault Start RSLN (last RSL)
CPR RSL
: Common Processor : Radio Signalling Link
Figure 79: RSL Correlation on the Abis Interface
Abis Interface Fault Monitoring
The BSC monitors the Abis interface faults as follows: 1. The BSC detects the first LAPD RSL link failure of the BTS. The BSC starts a persistency timer. It puts the SBL of the RSL into a Maintenance Seized-Auto state while the following actions occur: The RITs are now in the SOS state. This is because the RTS belonging to the RSL still functions, but cannot communicate with the BSC. Telecoms resources are blocked to prevent new activity at the BSC end of this link. The RSL SBL is put into the FLT state, reflecting the loss of the RSL. 2. The persistency timer expires and the CPR is informed of the fault. If the link recovers during the persistency period, nothing is reported. Otherwise a correlation timer starts and waits for further RSL link failures belonging to the same BTS. 3. Once the correlation timer expires, the BSC sends a state-change-report message to the OMC-R. The message contains a list of all RSL that are in the FLT state. 4. The OMC-R is then informed about the state of the BTS_TEL. If all the RSLs belonging to the BTS have failed, then an alarm is sent to the OMC-R signalling the loss of the cell. When an SBL is put in to the FLT state, it is shown in the Alarms-In-Force List.
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A Interface Fault Monitoring
When the BSC detects a DTC failure, the BSC puts the DTC SBL in the MSD-Auto state, then into the FLT state. Through the TS0 signalling, the MSC is informed that the trunk is no longer operational and prevents all transactions requiring the A channel (includes new mobile station-originated calls) from using the failed link of the DTC. The failure is also signalled to the OMC-R. The TSC also detects a failure of the Ater link and signals the failure to the OMC-R. The A channel is allocated only by the MSC. Software throughout the BSC detects error and alarm conditions. It reports these conditions to the alarm handling software. The alarm handling software performs persistency, filtering and correlation actions on the received alarm indicators, and determines the required action (e.g. to isolate a faulty SBL). The figure below shows an example alarm report. If one or more RSL links remain for the failed BTS, an event change is sent. The BTS_TEL is put in a FIT state, as some channels for that cell are in operation. The AIFL shows the new alarm. The BSC marks the cell as degraded in service and reconfigures the BTS.
Note: Failures Detected by Software
Figure 80: Example: Alarm Report
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8.5.4 BTS Alarms

Alarms in the BTS are tracked by the OMU. The following tables show the OMU hardware and functions. Alarm G1/G2 Alarm Buses OMU Function The OMU has a Q1 interface to the Carrier Units, MCLU, EACB, and FHU modules in the system, as well as a Token Bus interface with all of the FU modules. The BSII provides the OMU with an interface to the TRE functional unit, and to the antenna network x and TRANS & CLOCK functional entities, which have their own on-board controllers. The BCB provides an interface to all the functional entities in the BTS.
BTS A9100/A910 Alarm Buses
Table 23: BTS Alarm Hardware Description
Alarm Q1 Interface (G1/G2 BTS)
OMU Function On the Q1 interface, a system of double polling takes place. The OMU polls each subsystem individually to find out if there is an error. If there is an error, the OMU demands an error report from that board. Normally, the information from the error report is used as an alarm or an event notification. The OMU is informed by the FU about the type of error that has occurred. The OMU sends the alarm information to the BSC. Each module spontaneously reports errors to the OMU, which processes the report as an alarm or an event notification. The Base Station Control Bus operates in a master/slave configuration where the SUM functions as Pilot (master) and the functional entities function as Terminals (slaves) in normal conditions. The OMU collects alarm information on the BCB and sends it to the BSC.
Token Bus Interface (G1/G2 BTS)
BSSI (BTS A9100/A910)
BCB (BTS A9100/A910)
Table 24: BTS Alarms Functional Description
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Alarm Collection
The mechanism for BTS alarm collection on all buses is as follows: 1. The alarm is added to the AIFL. 2. The OMU enters alarm information in a queued buffer. In this way, alarms are queued even if the link between the BTS and the BSC is temporarily unusable. If the buffer becomes full (over 100 messages): All fault/state change messages are deleted No more messages are sent until a state and alarm audit takes place to synchronize the BSC and the OMC-R. An audit BTS request is transmitted on a regular basis until an audit occurs. 3. The alarm messages containing the alarm information are transmitted to the BSC. The alarm messsages are described in the BTS Alarm Dictionary and the BSC/TC Alarm Dictionary. 4. The message is sent to the CPR-A, where it is date and time stamped. 5. The BSC performs one of two activities: If possible, it converts the alarm into a CMISE message, performs an action and sends a different alarm/event to the OMC-R, via the alarm queue Otherwise, it re-transmits the message to the OMC-R, via the alarm queue. 6. The message is put in the alarm queue for BTS alarms. If the queue overflows, the BSC performs an Alarms-in-Force audit on all the modules in the BTS. This signals that information was received and lost when the queue overflowed, and that resynchronization is required. 7. The OMC-R receives the alarm over the CMISE link. The alarm is put into the AS component where it is logged.
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8.5.5 Alarms Detected by the TSC

TSC O&M activities are similar to those performed by the BTS. The TSC has a Q1 interface to the transmission equipment. A system of double polling occurs on the Q1 interface: The first poll checks if there was a change in states. The second poll occurs only if the state has changed, in order to obtain more information about the changes. The Transcoder supervises PCM links. The loss of a link between the BSC and Transcoder is reported by the Transcoder to the TSC.
8.5.6 MFS Alarms

The MFS generates alarms to signal a change in the behavior of a particular function within the system, such as a potential problem or a confirmed failure in the system. The Global Alarm Manager manages the MFS alarms. It processes all hardware and telecom alarms and is responsible for: Collecting all fault information relating to GPUs, the active server, and telecom and external alarms Recording alarms in a table Allowing the IMT and the OMC-R to access the alarms Generating ending alarms when a fault is cleared (for example, when a GPU is replaced) Managing a communication session with the IMT.
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8.5.7 Recovery Example: Carrier Unit Failures with BCCH

This recovery example considers a BTS with two Carrier Units. One Carrier Unit is used for BCCH channel handling, another is used for normal traffic. If the Carrier Unit holding the BCCH fails, it is switched out and the second Carrier Unit takes the place of the first. As an example, this section describes the systems reactions when a Carrier Unit (TRE for a BTS A9100 or a BTS A910) which has the BCCH channel fails.
Note:
In the BTS A9100 or the BTS A910, the SBLs FU and Carrier Unit have been merged into one indivisible SBL, called the TRE. At the BSC, however, all BTS A9100 and BTS A910 TRE faults are mapped to the Carrier Unit to provide compatibility with G1 and G2 BTSs. Thus, at the BSC all such errors are displayed as Carrier Unit faults. That is how they are presented in this example. FU faults in G1 and G2 BTSs continue to be reported as such.
Fault Recovery Mechanism
The recovery mechanism in the BSS allows a failed unit to switch to a replacement unit, such as: Redundant hardware A similar unit which had lower priority active use than the failed unit. (For example, the BCCH has to exist for the cell to function, so another Carrier Unit/FU pair (TRE for a BTS A9100 or a BTS A910) is expendable to replace the failed Carrier Unit). The recovery mechanism of the BSS recognizes that the Carrier Unit can change to its twin Carrier Unit. Below is a step-by-step scenario of Carrier Unit recovery.
Carrier Unit Recovery Scenario
1. The Carrier Unit holding the BCCH fails. 2. The BTS sends the BSC a recovery request, reporting that the Carrier Unit is faulty and is out of service, and that a recovery is required. The BTS also suggests a new Carrier Unit to the BSC, to be used to carry the BCCH. When the recovery request is received, the BSC temporarily blocks the resources while it checks if reconfiguration is available. If reconfiguration is available, the BTS_TEL SBL becomes FIT and all calls on the Carrier Unit are immediately released. The RSL is blocked. All calls on the Carrier Unit are immediately released. 3. The BSC sends an alarm to the OMC-R, signalling the loss of BCCH. 4. The BSC attempts a recovery. The recovery command is BTS-CONF-DATA(2).
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5. The BTS receives and acknowledges the recovery message. It then switches off the faulty Carrier Unit and switches on the second Carrier Unit. The second Carrier Unit adjusts its frequency to the BCCH frequency. 6. If the configuration was successful, the BTS sends a confirmation to the BSC. The BSC then sends the new SYS_INFO (1-6). 7. The BCCH is now broadcasting on the same frequency as before, via the newly configured Carrier Unit. 8. The BSC sets the BTS_TEL SBL to FIT and informs the OMC-R by sending an end of alarm. The BTS_TEL remains FIT due to the loss of a channel. 9. If the new Carrier Unit was previously IT, its previously attached resources are lost. An alarm is sent to the OMC-R to update the information on lost channels. The following figure shows the redundancy process for a failed Carrier Unit with BCCH.
OMC BSC
BTS_TEL=IT
Resources blocked, BCCH reconfiguration possible
req Reco_ (CU, F OS)
BTS
CU Fault
3 4
BTS_TEL=FIT
Alarm
ss (cell, lo
of BCC
H beg
in)
BTS_CO
NF_DAT
A (2)
BTS_TEL=FIT
5 BTS performs the reconfiguration
6 8
ss of B CCH e nd)
L COMP ONF_ BTS_C
SYS_INF
O (1..6)
ell, lo larm (c
9
begin)
(ce Alarm
ll, loss
of TCH
BTS_TEL=FIT
BCCH CU TCH
: Broadcast Control Channel : Carrier Unit : Traffic Channel
Figure 81: Example: Loss of Carrier Unit Holding BCCH.
Note:
BTS_TEL SBL describes the status of the GSM defined BTS telecom functions. Its state is driven by operator commands, or by correlation of the LAPD RSL states or of the different Carrier Units.
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8.5.8 Automatic Power-Down

This feature is available only on the BTS A9100. It is used typically in an outdoor installation where the BTS has a backup battery power supply. In case of main power-supply failure, the BTS A9100 is automatically switched to battery power. This situation continues until the main power is restored or the battery is drained, whichever happens first. To extend the time during which the BTS A9100 can function under battery power, the BTS is reduced to a minimum configuration to reduce power consumption.
Power-Down Alarm Processing
Once a power-supply failure alarm arrives, the OMU starts a timer. If, once the timer expires, the alarm is still active, the OMU switches off all TREs except the BCCH TRE (one per sector for a sectored site), by placing the TREs to be powered down in FOS state. If, in a given sector of a sectored site, the BCCH TRE is configured without a traffic channel, another TRE (which carries the SDCCH) is kept powered on, so that calls are still possible in this sector, though limited to one TRE. When the power-supply failure alarm disappears, the OMU starts a timer. If the alarm re-occurs before the timer expires, the OMU takes no further action. This is to guard against a possible unstable restoration of power. If the BTS power-supply remains stable until the timer expires, the OMU performs an autonomous auto reset with BTS activation. This re-initializes all available TREs. For more information on this feature, refer to the following:
EVOLIUM BTS A9100/A910 Functional Description EVOLIUM BTS A9100 Hardware Description EVOLIUM BTS A910 Hardware Description
8.5.9 BSC Alerter

The BSC Alerter is a telecom supervision function which generates an alarm event when the system suspects abnormal behavior of a resource. This is system defined and not dependent on site configuration or traffic conditions in a particular cell. An Alerter functions by monitoring and computing the levels of specific Performance Management counters. If the count exceeds the operator-defined parameters, the Alerter generates an alarm for the BSC resource. This alarm is sent to the OMC-R operator.
Note:
For performance reasons, each alerter type has a maximum limit of 16 alarms. For further information concerning BSC Alerters, refer to the BSC Alerters section of the Operations & Maintenance Principles document.
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8.6 Performance Management

The following provides a brief overview of performance management facilities in the BSS. For detailed information on performance management, refer to the Performance Management chapter of the Operations & Maintenance Principles document. For a description of individual counters, refer to the PM Counters and Indicators document. The following table shows the performance management functions of the BSC and the MFS. Network Element BSC Performance Management Functions Result collection and collation X.25 related counters Traffic measurements on radio channels Performance Measurement result reporting Trace invocation result reporting. MFS Collects the performance management counters associated with each logical GPU Creates a file to counter values.
Table 25: Performance Management Functions
8.6.1 Traces
Trace management coordinates and triggers trace activities within the BSS. Tracing is originated from the MSC. There are two types of tracing: Call tracing IMSI tracing. Call tracing follows a specified transaction (subscriber call, location update, short message, etc.) inside the BSC. When the specified transaction ends, or the transaction changes to another BSC, the trace activity ends. IMSI tracing is not restricted to speech. It includes information about the radio resources set up for the mobile. This includes, for example, location updating, supplementary services, short messages, etc. For more information on trace management, refer to the Trace Management section of the Operations & Maintenance Principles document.
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8.6.2 Performance Monitoring

Monitoring system performance provides information that can be used to improve the system performance, optimize traffic levels, perform network radio planning and optimization, and plan network reconfiguration. The OMC-R manages the gathering of data collected from all the network elements by means of PM counters. PM counter values are collected into results files in the BSC. In the BSS, there are two types of raw counters: standard and detailed. These two counter types are gathered in the following counter groups: Cumulative counters Status inspection counters DER counters RMS counters For the MFS, the counters are all standard counters. These counters are divided into two groups Counters monitoring activity between the BSC and the MFS Counters monitoring activity between the MSC and the MFS.
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8.6.3 Radio Measurements Statistics

In order to help the operator find "clean" frequencies for better frequency planning, the Radio Measurements Statistics (RMS) counters provide information based on the Mobile Assisted Frequency Allocation (MAFA) feature. MAFA is a standardized GSM feature that provides a way for the system to ask each mobile station to measure extra frequencies (frequencies of non-neighbor cells). MAFA can also be used to check interferences from non-neighbor cells. RMS is a BSC/BTS feature that records measurements from the BTS and mobile stations. For MAFA, specific mobiles supporting this standardized GSM feature are required. Every mobile station supporting MAFA acts as a potential spectrum analyzer and provides excellent information on the radio conditions for each single cell. Using this feature, the operator can: Detect interfered frequencies Assess the quality of the cell coverage Detect and quantify cell unexpected propagation Assess the traffic distribution in the cell from statistics on reported neighbor cells Evaluate the voice quality in the cell. During the observation period, the BTS/FU keeps track of all the RMS statistics derived from the measurements reported by the mobile stations or measured by the BTS/FU itself on the TCH (SDCCH are not used with RMS). At the end of the observation period when the RMS data has been collected from the concerned BTS/FUs, the BSC builds a report (called the RMS result file). The transfer towards the OMC-R occurs via FTAM. In addition, it is possible during the observation period to apply MAFA (also called Extended Measurement Reporting). This procedure consists in sending an Extended Measurement Order (EMO) to the mobile stations. On receipt of the command, the mobile stations take one SACCH multiframe to perform measurements on specific frequencies. The measurements are reported via the EXTENDED_MEASUREMENT_REPORT message. The EMO is sent only once per call. The statistics related to MAFA are collected in the BTS and integrated in the RMS results. The statistics are based on the measurements performed at the BTS and the mobile station, on the TCH only. The statistics can be classified as follows: Radio related statistics. These can be classified as follows: Statistics related to the whole serving cell Statistics related to the TRXs Voice quality statistics. Nine counters and indicators that provide an overview of the communications quality (TCH only) for each TRX. Radio Measurement Statistics is available on G1 BTS Mk2 and G2 BTS equipped with DRFU, EVOLIUM BTS, and Micro BTS M1M and M2M.
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8.6.4 Results Analysis

Using the OMC-R, an operator can view alarms and PM measurements from the OMC-R databases, and use this information to analyze data and produce reports. The OMC-R also generates QoS alarms to notify the operator of possible network problems. Counter and indicator information can be processed by a tool, in one of two versions: MPM, which is integrated in the OMC-R. It provides instant access to results files. NPA is usually a stand-alone tool that runs on a separate Sun workstation (but in the case of a small configuration, NPA can be embedded into the OMC-R). It has nearly the same functionality as MPM, with the following differences: NPA can aggregate the data on a day, week, or month basis, where MPM can only aggregate on a daily basis. NPA cannot manage alerters. For more information on results analysis and the tools available to process counter and indicators information, refer to the Results Analysis section of the Operations & Maintenance Principles document.
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8.7 Audits
Audits can be automatic or initiated by an operator. They can be performed at several levels: From the OMC-R to the Transcoder, the BSC, or the MFS From the BSC to the BTS. More information on Audits can be found as follows: Configuration Management Audits in the Configuration Management Audits/Resynchronization section of the Operations & Maintenance Principles document. Fault Management Audits in the Fault Management Audits section of the Operations & Maintenance Principles document.. Using the IMT, it is possible to perform a radio re-initialization, or a radio resynchronization of the MFS.
Audit Types
There are several types of audits, as described in the following table. Type Logical Audit Description A logical audit is performed on logical parameters. The logical parameters include dynamic cell information, its power ratings, information on adjacent cells, the radio configuration of the cell, and hopping and paging groups. No logical audit is provided for the MFS side. The software version audit controls the versions of software that exist on the subsystem. Hardware audits control the hardware on the subsystem. This audit provides a physical list of all components in the subsystem, their SBLs, and their associated RITs. The OMC-R updates the database with this information. The OMC-R requests the AIFL from a unit of the BSS. The OMC-R then compares this with its own list and updates its database if there are any differences. A state audit checks the state of SBLs on a particular subsystem, to ensure that SBL databases are synchronized. All the SBLs and their states are compared with the data in the OMC-R. If the SBL does not exist in the database, it is created and its state is registered.
Software Version Audit Hardware Audit
Alarm Audit
State Audit
Table 26: Audit Types
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Two types of action are possible for the MFS: Re-initialize GPRS configuration Allows the OMC-R to force the logical configuration of the MFS, by deleting the current one, and then recreating one from scratch, using the current OMC-R configuration. This is roughly the equivalent of a Force configuration at the BSS side. However, it always induces some outages. Re-synchronize GPRS configuration Allows the OMC-R to force the logical configuration of the MFS, by computing the differences with the current OMC-R configuration. It is the preferred synchronization action at the MFS side, as it minimizes the MFS outage. A suite of audits is automatically invoked by the OMC-R or the BSC, to resynchronize the system. This is done: To perform a RESET/RESTART When there is a loss of links between subsystems. This ensures that the system databases are synchronized after autonomous operation while the link was down (i.e. the BTS_O&M was disabled). To make changes in the databases, without the possibility of aligning both subsystems To start a BSC Alarms-in-Force audit if the BSC alarm queue overflows To perform software database replacement. Audit information for the whole system is stored in the OMC-R.
Audit Flow
Audit flow is based on an action request from the OMC-R, or on an automatic request. The subsystem receiving the audit request performs an audit of its functional units. The reply can have one or several report messages to pass the information back to the request originator. The request originator can generate more actions based on the information received. For example, when the state of the Carrier Unit and its pair FU do not match, the BSC disables the FU/Carrier Unit pairs. The OMC-R, on reception of the audit report, updates its database. During download the results of the software audit are used to provide the list of modules the OMC-R needs to update the BSS subsystem. This is done by comparing the OMC-R lists of modules to transfer, and their version numbers, to see if they already exist in the subsystem. Only the newer versions are transferred to the subsystem.
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8.8 Remote Inventory

The Remote Inventory feature allows an operator to get hardware and firmware information from the OMC-R. This information is used for retrofit, deployment or maintenance. The main benefit is that the amount of site visits can reduced considerably. The Remote Inventory data is reported to the OMC-R by the BTS A9100 and the BTS A910 which are very numerous and spread out on the field. The operator can get this data in two ways, automatic or on-demand. The on-demand mode remains available when the automatic mode is selected. Among the reported data is information that is very useful for retrofit or maintenance actions, e.g. the site name, the exact location of the board, the serial number, the part number and the variant. Sending the data to external tools is possible due to the ASCII file format. This format is the same as the one obtained when using a BTS Terminal at a BTS site. Existing external tools can therefore be re-used. The Remote Inventory feature brings the following benefits: Reliability Inventory data is reported directly (periodically if requested) by the BTS to the OMC-R (through the BSC which is transparent), so the operator always has the correct information. To keep the OMC-R at a high level of performance, Alcatel recommends using the automatic mode with a seven day acquisition period. Cost cutting It is no longer necessary to go on site to get hardware and firmware information before performing a retrofit or a maintenance action. Remote Inventory can be performed at the MFS. Information can be displayed for the selected subrack. For more information, refer to the online help of the IMT. For more information on Remote Inventory, see the Remote Inventory section in the Operations & Maintenance Principles document.
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BSS System Description

Descriptive Documentation BSS Concepts

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Status Short title

RELEASED System Description

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Base Station Subsystem

GGSN HLR MFS NMC PSDN PSTN SGSN

Figure 1: BSS in the PLMN

EVOLIUM Radio Solutions

BTS G1 and BTS G2 are still supported by EVOLIUM.

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Extended GSM Band (E-GSM)

Frequency Band Configurations

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1.2 BSS Functions

1.2.1 Call Set Up

Mobility Management Calls Supplementary Service Calls User Traffic Calls

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1.2.2 Call Handling

1.2.3 Call Release

1.2.4 Operations & Maintenance

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1.3 BSS Components

1.3.1 Base Station Controller

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1.3.2 Base Transceiver Station

1.3.2.1 Antenna Diversity

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1.3.2.2 G1 and G2 BTS Antenna Diversity

Figure 2: Antenna Diversity on G1 and G2 BTSs

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1.3.2.3 BTS A9100/A910 Antenna Diversity

Figure 3: Antenna Diversity on the BTS A9100

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1.3.3 Transcoder And Transmission Function

: Base Station Interface Equipment : Submultiplexer : Transcoder Submultiplexer Controller : Transcoder

Figure 4: Transmission Components in the BSS

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1.3.4 The Multi-BSS Fast Packet Server

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1.3.5 Multi-GPU per BSS

Figure 5: Cell Mapping

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1.4 Extended GSM

E-GSM Mobile Station Recognition

E-GSM Management After Initial Determination

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E-GSM Determination at Handover

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