Optical wireless communication (21EC72) 4th module

Module-4
Multiple Access Techniques: FDMA, TDMA, CDMA, SDMA, Hybrid Multiple Access Techniques,
Multicarrier Multiple Access Schemes. A Basic Cellular System: A basic cellular system connected to
PSTN, Parts of basic cellular system, Operation of a cellular system. [Text2: 8.2, 8.3, 8.4.5, 8.5, 8.6, 8.10,
9.2.2, 9.2.3, 9.3]

Q1.Write a note on Multiple Access Techniques

Multiple Access Techniques

This chapter describes various multiple access techniques such as FDMA, TDMA, SSMA, SDMA, and
hybrid multiple access that are used in analog and digital wireless communications systems. Their relative
advantages and disadvantages have been outlined here. An overview of packet radio multiple access
technique including CSMA is presented in the end.

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There are four basic forms of multiple access techniques applied to wireless communications, depending on
which particular resource is exploited: Frequency-Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Time-Division
Multiple Access (TDMA), Spread- Spectrum Multiple Access (SSMA), and Space-Division Multiple Access
(SDMA). The objective of all these multiple access strategies is to maximise the spectrum utilisation

The choice of an access method will have a great impact on the capacity and quality of service provided by a
wireless network. In practice, most wireless communication systems are a combination of one or more of
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these multiple access strategies. There are many instances in multiple access com- munications, in which a
mobile subscriber is required to send a packet of information to the cell-site at a random instant in time,
leading to contention-based packet radio protocols such as ALOHA and CSMA. The multiple-access packet
radio protocols, also known as the medium access control sublayer protocols, are primarily a set of rules that
communicating mobile subscribers need to follow.
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Q.2 WITH A DIAGRAM EXPLAIN THE TECHNIQUE OF FREQUENCY DIVISION MULTIPLE
ACCESS (FDMA)

S 8.2 FREQUENCY DIVISION MULTIPLE ACCESS (FDMA)

Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) refers to sharing the available radio spectrum by assigning
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specific frequency channels to subscribers either on a permanent basis or on a temporary basis.

The differentiation between the carrier frequencies of the forward channels (also called downlink-
communication between the cell-site and mobile subscribers) and reverse channels (also called uplink-
communication between the mobile subscribers and the cell-site) is an important design parameter related to
FDMA technique.
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FDD :
If the forward channels and reverse channels use different
Frequencies that are spaced ,the duplexing scheme is referred as FDD
The FDD technique is mostly used in macrocellular communication systems designed for radio cov-
erage of several kilometres.
The base station dynamically assigns a different carrier frequency to each active mobile subscriber.
In order to adjust and maintain the transmission and reception frequencies, a frequency synthesiser is
used at the base station and the mobile station

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The concept of FDMA is shown in Fig. 8.1. In FDMA, the

available radio spectrum is divided into a set of continuous
frequency channels labeled 1 through N, and the frequency
channels are assigned to individual mobile subscribers on a
continuous-time basis for the duration of a call

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FDMA bandwidth structure is illustrated in Fig. 8.2.

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Fig. 8.3 shows the basic structure of a FDMA system,
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The FDMA structure consist of
1. Of a cell-site (CS) and many mobile subscribers.
2. There is a pair of simplex channels for the communication wireless link between the CS and the
mobile subscribers.
3. The paired channel is called forward channel (downlink) and reverse channel (uplink). A
forward channel is used to transfer data from the cell-site to the mobile subscriber and a reverse
channel is used to transfer data from the mobile subscriber to the cell-site.
4. Different frequency channels are assigned to different mobile subscribers. Each pair of
communicating mobile subscribers is assigned different frequency channels to enable full
duplex communication
5. The frequency bandwidth allocated to each mobile subscriber is called the subband Bc.

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6. FDMA has been widely adopted in all first generation forward and reverse channels.
The structure of forward and reverse channels in FDMA is shown in Fig. 8.4
If there are N channels in a FDMA system, the total bandwidth Bt is equal to N × Bc.
A guard band Wg is used to minimise adjacent channel interference between two adjacent channels,
as shown in Fig. 8.5.
In both forward and reverse channels, the signal transmitted must be kept confined within its
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assigned channel bandwidth, and the out-of-band signal energy causes negligible interference to the
subscribers using adjacent channels.
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In order to minimise adjacent channel interference, two design measures are usually
considered:

a. The power spectral density of the modulated signal is controlled so that the power radiated into
the adjacent band is at least 60 to 80 dB below that in the desired band. This requirement can be
achieved with the use of highly selective filters in the system design.

b. Guard bands are inserted as buffer frequency zones in adjacent channels.

If a large number of mobile subscribers can operate satisfactorily within the allocated radio

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spectrum then the multiple-access system is said to be highly spectral efficient.
In general, the spectral efficiency in FDMA systems depends on how closely the individual channels
(frequency subbands) can be assigned.
There are several factors that limit the adjacent channel spacing, the most important of which is
adjacent channel interference (ACI).

Q.4 explain Measures to handle the near–far problem in FDMA cellular systems,
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Measures to handle the near–far problem in FDMA cellular systems,

1. Channel assignment should be done in such a way so that the frequencies in each cell are
grouped as far apart as possible from each other.
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2. Guard bands should be included in the frequency channel to further reduce adjacent channel
interference.
This, however, has the effect of reducing the overall spectrum efficiency.
3. The transmitter power of the mobile subscribers should be controlled so as not to cause
interference to other transmissions in the cell.
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 In an FDMA system, many channels share the same transmitting antenna at the base station.
 The transmitter RF power amplifiers or the transmitter multichannel power combiners are
nonlinear devices when operated at or near saturation signal levels for maximum power
efficiency.
 The nonlinearities cause spreading of the signal in the frequency domain and generate
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intermodulation frequencies which are undesirable harmonics.

 The first-generation analog cellular communication systems use FDMA/FDD technique, with
speech signals being transmitted over the forward or reverse channels using frequency
modulation scheme. The data control functions are performed digitally by means of frequency-
shift keying modulation scheme for data transmission.
 A useful feature of FDMA systems is that the radio transmission takes place over a narrow
channel of bandwidth (B/N ) Hz for each mobile subscriber. Due to narrowband transmissions,
flat fading may be experienced by the signal.

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EXAMPLE 8.2 FDMA/FDD in AMPS

Illustrate the concept of FDMA/FDD system commonly used in First Generation (1G) analog
cellular communication systems such as AMPS.

Solution In FDMA/FDD systems, forward and reverse channels use different carrier frequencies,
and a fixed subchannel pair is assigned to a subscriber during the communication session.
Fig. 8.6 shows the FDMA/FDD system commonly used in first generation analog cellular systems.
At the receiving end, the mobile unit filters the designated channel out of the composite signal
received.

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The Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS) based on FDMA/FDD is. As shown in Fig. 8.7, the
AMPS system allocates 30 kHz of channel downlink (869 MHz–894 MHz) frequency band.

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Salient features of the FDMA/ FDD system concept

1. During the call, a mobile subscriber occupies two simplex channels, one each on the
uplink and downlink, for full-duplex communication.
2. The two simplex channels are spaced by fixed duplex spacing. For example, duplex
spacing in AMPS is (869 MHz–824 MHz = 45 MHz).
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3. When a call is terminated, or when hand-off occurs, the occupied channels are released
which can be used by other mobile subscribers in the system.
4. Multiple or simultaneous mobile subscribers are accommodated in AMPS by allocating
each calling or called mobile subscriber a dedicated channel.
5. Voice signals are sent on the forward channel from the base station to the mobile user,
and on the reverse channel from the mobile user to the base station.

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In AMPS, analog narrowband frequency modulation technique is used to modulate the carrier.
The number of channels, N that can be simultaneously supported in an FDMA system is given by
N = (Bt 2 Bg) / Bc (8.1)
where Bt is the total spectrum allocation,
Bg is the guard band allocated at the edge of the allocated spectrum band, and
Bc is the channel bandwidth.
Bt and Bc may be specified in terms of simplex bandwidths where it is understood that there are
symmetric frequency allocations for the forward band and reverse band.

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EXAMPLE 8.3 Number of channels in AMPS
A US AMPS analog cellular system is allocated 12.5 MHz for each simplex band. If the
guard band at either end of the allocated spectrum is 10 kHz, and the channel
bandwidth is 30 kHz, find the number of channels available in an FDMA system.
Solution
Allocated spectrum, Bt = 12.5 MHz (given) Allocated
guard band, Bg = 10 kHz (given)
Channel bandwidth, Bc = 30 kHz (given)
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The number of channels available in the FDMA system is given as
N = (Bt − 2 Bg) / Bc
Or, N = (12.5 × 106 − 2 (10 × 103) / (30 × 103) Or, N = 416
Hence the number of channels available in an FDMA system is 416 channels
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EXAMPLE 8.4 Number of simultaneous links in an FDMA system
A cellular system operator is allocated a total spectrum of 5 MHz for deployment of an
analog cellular system based on the FDMA technique, with each simplex channel
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occupying 25 kHz bandwidth. Compute the number of simultaneous calls possible in the
system.
Solution
Total spectrum allocated = 5 MHz (given) Channel
bandwidth = 25 kHz (given)
Step 1. To determine number of simplex channels
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Number of simplex channels = Total spectrum allocated / Channel bandwidth

Number of simplex channels = 5 MHz / 25 kHz = 200
Step 2. To determine number of duplex channels
Number of simplex channels in a duplex channel = 2
Therefore,number of duplex channels = 200 / 2 = 100
Step 3. To compute the number of simultaneous calls
Hence, in a given analog cellular FDMA system, 100 full-duplex communication
links can be established simultaneously as each link requires two simplex channels
(one for uplink and another for downlink) or one duplex channel.
Therefore, the number of simultaneous calls = 100 calls
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More about FDMA Technique

 The FDMA channel carries only one dedicated communication link at a time. After the assignment of a
voice channel, the base station and the mobile subscriber transmit simultaneously and continuously.
 If the assigned channel is not in use then it remains idle and cannot be used by other mobile
subscribers. This is clearly wastage of spectrum resource.
 The utilisation of a channel during free time is essential to increase system capacity.
 FDMA is usually implemented in narrowband systems.
 The bandwidths of FDMA channels are relatively narrow (for example, 30 kHz in AMPS) as each
channel supports only one communication link per carrier.
 The complexity of FDMA wireless communication systems is lower as compared to that of TDMA

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systems.
 The FDMA mobile subscriber equipment uses RF duplexers since both the transmitter and receiver
operate at the same time using a common antenna. This results in an increase in the cost of FDMA
subscriber units and base stations. Because of the single channel per carrier design, FDMA systems
have higher cell site system costs

Q.5 EXPLAIN TIME-DIVISION MULTIPLE ACCESS

2.
MethTECHNIQUE
8.3 TIME-DIVISION
1.
MULTIPLE ACCESS lo
Time-division multiple access (TDMA) technique refers to allowing a number of subscribers to
access a specified channel bandwidth on a time-shared basis.
TDMA systems divide the carrier channel bandwidth into time slots, and in each time slot only
one subscriber is allowed to either transmit or receive.
3. TDMA utilises the digital technology with more efficient and complex strategies of sharing the
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available spectrum among a number of subscribers simultaneously.
4. In TDMA systems, number of subscribers share the same frequency band by taking their
assigned turns in time for transmission or reception.
5. With TDMA, a base-station controller assigns time slots to subscribers for the requested
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service, and an assigned time slot is held by a subscriber until it releases it.
6. The receiver synchronises to the incoming TDMA signal frame, and extracts the time slot
designated for that subscriber. Therefore, the most critical feature of TDMA operation is time
synchronisation.
7. In TDMA, one carrier channel is used by several subscribers and each subscriber is served in a
round-robin method.
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8. In TDMA, a carrier channel is The cell-site assigns different time slots to different
divided into N number of time subscribers.
slots. These time slots are Let there be N number of time slots in a TDMA frame.
allocated for each subscriber to Each subscriber occupies a cyclically repeating time
slot which reoccurs in every frame periodically.
transmit and receive information.
The transmission in a TDMA system for any subscriber
9. The number of distinct is noncontinuous and data is transmitted in a buffer-
consecutive time slots is called a and-burst method. The splitting of a single carrier
frame before these time slots are channel into several time slots and distribution of time
repeated. Each frame of the slots among multiple subscribers is shown in Fig. 8.8.

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The illustration of forward and

reverse channels in a
TDMA/FDD system employing
the similar frame and time slot
structure is given in Fig. 8.9

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A TDMA system may operate in either of two
modes:
– TDMA/ DD mode The forward and
reverse channel frequencies differ.
– TDMA/TDD mode The forward and
reverse channel frequencies are same.
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In TDMA/FDD systems, the carrier frequencies
are different but frame structures are same for
the forward and reverse channels.
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More about TDMA
i. Digital data encoding and digital-modulation schemes are used with TDMA.
ii. The transmission from various subscribers is interlaced into a uniformly repeating TDMA
frame structure.
iii. As shown in Fig. 8.11, a TDMA frame consists of a preamble, an information data field, and tail
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bits.
The information data field of a frame consists of a number of time slots.
iv. In a TDMA frame, the preamble contains the address and synchronisation data that is used by
both the base station and the subscribers to identify each other. Tail bits and guard bits allow
synchronization of the receivers between different time slots and frames.
v. Various TDMA-based cellular standards such as USDC, GSM have different TDMA frame
structures.
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vi. In a TDMA system, the communication channels essentially consist of many time slots, which
makes it possible for one frequency carrier channel to be efficiently utilised by many mobile
subscribers.
vii. Each mobile subscriber utilises a different time slot. The basic structure of a TDMA system is
shown in Fig. 8.12.

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Q 6..Difference between TDMA systems from FDMA systems

TDMA FDMA
In TDMA each subscriber has access to FDMA each subscriber is assigned only
the total bandwidth Bt of the carrier a fraction of the channel bandwidth, that
channel is, Bc = Bt /N.
each subscriber accesses the channel on a
In TDMA, each subscriber accesses the continuous-time basis.
channel for only a fraction of the time that
it is in use and on a periodic regular and
orderly basis, with the overall channel

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transmission data rate being N times the
subscriber’s required data rate

The total number of TDMA time slots that can be provided in a TDMA system is determined by
multiplying the number of time slots per carrier channel by the number of channels available and
is given by
= N × t − 2 (8.2)

supported on each carrier channel

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where N is the total number of TDMA time slots in a TDMA system
m is the number of time slots per carrier channel or the maximum number of TDMA subscribers

Bt is the total allocated spectrum bandwidth in Hz

Bc is the carrier channel bandwidth in Hz,Bg is the guard bandwidth in Hz
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EXAMPLE 8.5 Number of simultaneous subscribers in GSM
Consider Global System for Mobile, which is a TDMA/FDD system that uses 25 MHz band for the
forward link, which is divided into radio channels of 200 kHz each. If 8 speech channels (time
slots) are supported on a single radio channel, find the number of simultaneous subscribers that can
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be accommodated in GSM, assuming no guard band.

Solution
The allocated spectrum, B = 25 MHz = 25 × 106 Hz (given)
The channel bandwidth, Bc = 200 kHz = 200 × 10 Hz (given)
Number of speech channels, m = 8 per radio channel The guard bandwidth, Bg = 0
The number of simultaneous subscribers that can be accommodated in the GSM system is given as
N = m × (Bt − 2Bg) / Bc
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Or, N = 8 × (25 × 106 2 × 0 / (200 × 103)

Or, N = 8 × (25 × 106 ) / (200 × 103) = 1000 subscribers
Hence the GSM system can accommodate 1000 simultaneous subscribers

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List and explain the salient features of TDMA Technique
Salient Features of TDMA Technique
1. Several subscribers share a single carrier frequency by using non-overlapping time slots.
2. The number of time slots per frame depends upon several factors such as available bandwidth
and digital-modulation scheme used.
3. The transmission data rate is quite high as compared to that of in FDMA.
4. The available bandwidth can be utilised on demand by different subscribers as more than one
time slot per frame can be allocated to them.
5. Thus, bandwidth can be supplied to different subscribers on demand by concatenating or
reassigning time slots as per assigned priority.
6. Data transmission is bursty and hence not continuous in time domain. This implies that a

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subscriber transmitter can be turned off when not in use, thereby saving battery power.
7. A significant part of the voice call consists of quiet time, when neither the calling nor the
called subscriber is speaking. Special signal-processing techniques can be employed to fill the
quiet times with data or other voice calls.
8. This leads to considerable improvement in the channel efficiency.
9. Duplexers are not required in the subscriber equipment since the system uses different time
slots for transmission and reception.
10. A fast RF switch is sufficient to switch between transmitter and receiver to use the common
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antenna. Synchronisation is essential and the guard time or time for synchronisation should be
minimum.
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Q.7 List out Advantages of TDMA cellular over FDMA cellular systems

1. TDMA systems transmit each signal with sufficient guard time between time slots.
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This enables to accommodate the transmission time delay because of propagation

distance, predetermined delay spread, source time inaccuracies due to clock instability,
and the tails of signal pulses due to transient responses.
2. There is a threefold to sixfold increase in the number of mobile subscribers using a
single carrier channel because of interleaving transmissions in the time domain.
3. Digital compression techniques are used to realise timesharing. It produces bit rates
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which may be approximately one-tenth of the initial raw sample rate and about one-
fifth of the initial sample rate after inclusion of error detection/correction bits.
4. With the use of more advanced digital-modulation schemes and signal-processing
techniques, digital signals are much easier to process than analog signals.
5. Digital signals can be easily encrypted at the transmitting end and decrypted at the
receiver end, leading to safeguarding against eavesdropping.

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A Basic TDMA Communication Link

functional needs of TDMA systems
1. Some of these functions include source-coding and channel-coding techniques, sophisticated
timing and fast acquisition operations for synchronising, and for the efficient and reliable
transmission of data over the wireless channel.
2. The fading is frequency selective which introduces intersymbol interference (ISI) because of
wider channel bandwidths along with an increased data transmission rate. To mitigate the ISI
problem, channel equalisation has to be provided. Passband modulation techniques are
required to be used for the transmis- sion of digitised speech and data over a wireless channel.
This necessitates the use of synchronisation for the locally generated carrier frequency,

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carrier phase, and symbol timing at the receiver. Fig. 8.14 shows the block diagram of a basic
TDMA link.
3. The speech signal input is first sampled to convert analog signal into equivalent digitised
speech signal. In order to remove redundant information, the digitised speech signal is
encoded without compromising the ability of the receiver to provide a high-quality
reproduction of the original signal. The channel encoder introduces controlled redundancy
bits into the speech-encoded signal to provide protection against channel noise.
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4. A wireless channel produces errors in the form of data bursts, mainly due to deep signal
fades. To mitigate this particular channel impairment, an interleaver is used for the purpose of
pseudo-randomising the order of the binary symbols in the channel-encoded signal in a
deterministic manner.
5. The function of a packetiser is to convert the encoded and interleaved sequence of digitised
speech data into successive packets. Each packet occupies a significant part of a basic TDMA
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frame. Each frame also includes synchronisation bits in order to synchronise the timing
operations in the receiver with the corre- sponding ones in the transmitter.
6. Knowing the estimate of the channel impulse response, channel equalisation at the receiving
end of the TDMA communication link is made possible. The packetised speech data is then
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modulated onto a sinusoidal carrier for transmission over the channel.

7. The receiver side consists of a cascade of several functional blocks in order to reverse the
corresponding operations performed by the transmitter and the wireless channel.
8. The digital demodulator converts the modulated received RF signal into its baseband form
without any loss of information.
9. The baseband processor operates on the resulting complex baseband signal to estimate the
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unknown channel impulse response, and channel equalisation. The resulting output is then
deinterleaved, channel decoded, source decoded, and, low-pass filtered for final delivery of
an estimate of the original speech signal to the receiver output.

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Q.8 What is spread spectrum multiple access (SSMA) and how spread
spectrum works
Spread spectrum multiple access (SSMA)
- uses signals which have a transmission bandwidth that is several times greater than the
minimum required RF bandwidth.
- The spread-spectrum technique spreads the information-bearing data signal over a large
bandwidth.

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- As a result, it allows the same spectrum to be used simultaneously by many subscribers in
adjacent cells.
- SSMA also provides immunity to multipath interference and robust capability for multiple
access.
- SSMA is not very bandwidth efficient when used by a single subscriber. However, spread
spectrum systems become bandwidth efficient in a multiple subscriber environment since many
subscribers can share the same spread spectrum bandwidth without interfering with one another.
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How Spread Spectrum Technique Works
i. Spread spectrum is a transmission technique wherein transmitted data occupy a larger
bandwidth than required. Spreading of bandwidth is accomplished through the use of a
code that is independent of the subscriber data.
ii. The same code is used to demodulate the received data at the receiving end.
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iii. Spread-spectrum systems employ modulation techniques in which the information signal
with bandwidth Rb, is spread to occupy a much larger transmission bandwidth Rc.
iv. With spread-spectrum techniques, the spectrum is not divided. Rather, more than one
subscriber is permitted to occupy all or any part of the spectrum when transmitting
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simultaneously.
v. Spread-spectrum techniques have greater tolerance for noise and interference because of
use of wideband, noise-like signals. The spread signals are difficult to demodulate, detect,
intercept or jam than narrowband signals.
vi. Spread signals are intentionally made to occupy much wider bandwidth than the
bandwidth of the information signals they carry, to behave as more noise-like. Spread-
spectrum signals use fast code signals having a data rate many times the data rate of the
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information signal.
vii. These spreading codes are referred to as pseudorandom or pseudonoise (not real Gaussian
noise) codes.Spread-spectrum transmitters use similar transmit power levels as that of any
narrowband transmitters. Because of wide spread-spectrum signals, they transmit at a
much lower spectral power density than narrow- band transmitters.
viii. This enables spread signals as well as narrowband signals to occupy the same
bandwidth, with little or no interference. In fact, spread spectrum can be considered as a class
of digital modulation techniques, characterised by its wide frequency spectra. The modulated
output spreaded signals occupy a much larger bandwidth than the signal’s baseband
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information bandwidth. To qualify the modulated signal as a spread spectrum signal, there
are two main criteria:

Q.9 Write a note on CDMA technology

CDMA

CDMA
Spread spectrum is a modulation technique that is quite tolerant of interference, and it
forms the basis for the access technique known as spread-spectrum multiple access or
code-division multiple access (CDMA)

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CDMA refers to a multiple access technique in which the individual mobile
subscribers occupy the complete spectrum whenever they transmit
In principle, CDMA can accommodate various subscribers with different bandwidth
requirements, switching methods and technical characteristics
CDMA is a form of spread spectrum modulation in which subscribers are allowed to
use the available spec- trum, but their signal must be spread with a specific PN code
to distinguish it from other signals

carrier frequency
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In CDMA, all subscribers transmit information simultaneously by using the same

Each subscriber has its own code word, which is orthogonal to code words of other
subscribers. To detect the information, the receiver should know the exact code word
used by the transmitter and perform a time correlation operation
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In CDMA technique, one unique code is assigned to each subscriber and distinct
codes are used for different subscribers. This code is employed by a subscriber to mix
with each information bit before it is transmitted.
A basic structure of a CDMA system is shown in Fig. 8.19.
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Table 8.1 Multiple access techniques in cellular systems

S. No. Type of cellularStandard Multiplexing Multiple access

system technique technique
1. 1G Analog Cellular AMPS FDD FDMA
2. US Digital Cellular USDC FDD TDMA
3. 2G Digital Cellular GSM FDD TDMA

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4. Pacific DigitalPDC FDD TDMA
Cellular
5. US NarrowbandIS-95 FDD CDMA
Spread
Spectrum Digital
Cellular
6. 3G Digital Cellular W-CDMA FDD/TDD CDMA
7.
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3G Digital Cellular Cdma2000

Q,.10 8.5 SPACE DIVISION MULTIPLE ACCESS

FDD/TDD

A simplified version of transmission using SDMA is illustrated in Fig. 8.24.

CDMA

The cell-site (CS) forms different antenna beams for each spatially separable subscriber on
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the forward and reverse channels, The noise and interference for each subscriber and the cell-
site is minimised.
This not only enhances the quality of the communication link significantly but also increases
the overall system capacity. Currently, SDMA technology is still being explored and its future
looks quite promising
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Advantages of SDMA approach
It can be applied with FDMA, TDMA, or CDMA.
It allows many subscribers to operate on the same frequency and/or time slot in the same cell.
It leads to more number of subscribers within the same allocated frequency spectrum with
enhanced user capacity.
This technology can be applied at the cell-site without affecting the mobile subscriber.
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When subscriber density grows beyond the capacity of a single cell in conventional cell-sites
using omnidirectional antennas, the growth is accommodated by dividing the initial larger cell
into a number of smaller cells in a process known as cell splitting. Power control is used to
reduce the interference among these smaller cells. Although sector antennas are more
expensive than omnidirectional antennas, it is still more economical to add sector antennas
than adding new cell-sites.

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SDMA and Smart Antennas

SDMA technique basically takes advantage of the directional nature of wireless

communications and relies on the deployment of smart antennas at the cell-site. Some examples
of smart antennas are given below:
The simplest example of a smart antenna is the use of sector antennas at the cell-site. The
sectored antenna arrangement provides significant capacity gains simply by dividing the service
area of each cell-site into three (or more) angular sections.
Switched-beam antennas are the next evolution of smart antennas. These antennas have a

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number of fixed beams that cover 360°. Switched-beam antennas are typically narrower than
sector antennas. The mobile receiver selects the beam that provides the best signal level and
interference reduction.
Adaptive antennas are the most advanced example of smart antennas. Adaptive antennas
provide a dedicated beam for each subscriber. These antenna dynamically adjusts its sequence
to minimise the effects of noise, interference, and multipath.

8.6
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Q.11 Explain HYBRID MULTIPLE ACCESS TECHNIQUES

HYBRID MULTIPLE ACCESS TECHNIQUES

It is a combination of two or more of the basic multiple- access techniques: FDMA, TDMA,
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CDMA, and SDMA.
The main objective of hybrid multiple access approach is to provide a reasonable subscriber
growth strategy, thereby reducing the network complexity as the hybrid technique remains
backward compatible with the existing system.
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Various hybrid multiple access techniques which are in use in different wireless systems are the
following:

1. Hybrid TDMA/FDMA
a. In practical wireless communication systems, TDMA is generally implemented in an
overlaid fashion on FDMA technique.
b. Every wireless communication system has an FDMA technique as baseline, and multiple-
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access schemes such as TDMA are overlaid on this baseline.

c. The North American IS-54 digital cellular system is an example of such a system, which is
also called Narrowband TDMA system.
d. The number of frequency channels is typically large but the number of subscribers time-
sharing a single channel is relatively very small
e. GSM digital cellular system combines TDMA with FDMA as well as frequency hopping
(optional). Accordingly, a physical channel is partitioned in both frequency and time.
f. The carrier channel is divided in 8 time slots and each carrier channel supports eight
simultaneous physical channels mapped onto the eight time slots.

Dr sudhina ,VSMIT Nipani

 Optical wireless communication (21EC72) 4th module
g. A time slot assigned to a particular physical channel is naturally used in every TDMA
frame till the channel is engaged by a subscriber. Combined with a frequency-hopping
algorithm, partitioning of the channel in frequency arises because the carrier assigned to
such a time slot changes its frequency from one frame to the next.
h. In hybrid TDMA/FDMA technique, the allocated RF spectrum is divided into a number of
frequency channels, each of defined channel bandwidth, thereby enabling FDMA
operation, followed by dividing each carrier channel into a number of defined time slots in
time domain, leading to TDMA/FDMA operation. Figure 8.26 shows a generalised view of
FDMA/TDMA technique used in 2G digital cellular communication systems.

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2. Hybrid TDMA/DSMA
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a. In a hybrid time division direct sequence multiple access (TDMA/DSMA) technique,
C
each cell is using a different spreading code (DSMA employed between cells) that
is conveyed to the mobile subscribers operating in its coverage area. Inside each cell
(inside a DSMA channel),
b. TDMA is employed to multiplex multiple mobile subscribers. A particular time slot in a
TDMA frame is allocated to one mobile subscriber per cell.
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c. This implies that only one mobile subscriber transmits in each cell at any time. This
results in significant reduction of near–far effect.
d. During the hand-off process from one cell to another cell or from one sector to another
sector of the same cell, it is the spreading code of the mobile subscriber which changes
while retaining the same allocated time slot of TDMA frame for maintaining the
communication link.
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3. Hybrid TDMA/FHMA
a. In TDMA-based wireless communication systems, if the cochannel interference is
excessive or the occupied channel coincides with a deep frequency selective fading,
the received voice signal is distorted.
b. One of the practical methods to minimise the excessive co channel interference or
reduce the duration of the frequency selective fades is to provide for a slow
frequency-hopping sequence that imposes a restriction on the co channel interference
effects or duration of the frequency selective fading. This is termed the TDMA/FHMA

Dr sudhina ,VSMIT Nipani

 Optical wireless communication (21EC72) 4th module
technique.
c. This is widely employed in severe cochannel interference and multi-path environments.
d. In the hybrid TDMA/FHMA technique, the mobile subscriber can hop to a new
frequency at the beginning of every TDMA frame.
e. At each time slot, the mobile subscriber is hopped to a new frequency according to a
pseudorandom hopping sequence

4. Hybrid DSMA/FHMA
a. A hybrid direct sequence/frequency hopped multiple access (DS/FHMA) technique
combines direct sequence (DS) and frequency hopping (FH).the advantages of both
techniques.

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b. With direct-sequence spreading, the original signal is multiplied by a known code signal
sequence of much larger bandwidth.
c. With frequency-hopped spreading, the centre frequency of the transmitted signal is
varied in a pseudo-random sequence. Practically, it is difficult to use the frequency
hopping unless a super-fast frequency synthesiser is used.
d. In the hybrid DSMA/FHMA technique, the signals are spread using spreading codes
(direct sequence signals are obtained), but these signals are not transmitted over a
lo
constant carrier frequency;
e. they are trans- mitted over a frequency-hopping carrier frequency. The centre frequency
of a direct sequence modulated signal is made to hop periodically in a pseudorandom
manner.
f. In this technique, there is always possibility of transmitting the same data burst in more
than one frequency-hopped channels, there by improving the signal quality performance
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in a hostile mobile environment.
5. Hybrid FDMA/DSMA
a. In the hybrid FDMA/DSMA technique, the available wide band frequency spectrum is
divided into a number of narrowband radio channels.
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b. Each one of these narrowband channel DSMA system has processing gain which is much
lower than the original wideband DSMA system.
c. Depending on the requirements of various mobile subscribers, different narrowband
channels can be assigned to each one of these. The overall system capacity of the hybrid
FDMA/DSMA technique remains the same as that of the original DSMA system.
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6. Hybrid SDMA with FDMA/TDMA/CDMA

a. When SDMA is used with TDMA as well as DSMA (SDMA/TDMA/DSMA), different
service areas can be covered by the individual antenna beam, thereby providing a similar
effect as obtained by frequency reuse.
b. However, this requires more network resources for proper management because there will
be more intra-cell hand-offs needed in SDMA approach as compared to TDMA or DSMA
systems alone.

Dr sudhina ,VSMIT Nipani

 Q.12 EXPLAIN MULTI CARRIER MULTIPLE ACCESS SCHEMES

8.10 MULTI CARRIER MULTIPLE ACCESS SCHEMES

Multicarrier multiple access schemes use multiple carrier signals at different frequencies,
sending some of the bits on each channel. There are a number of such schemes which find
application in advanced wireless communication systems.

8.10.1 OFDMA
 Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) is a multi-user version of the

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Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM) digital-modulation scheme.
 This is similar to FDM in concept.
 In the case of OFDM, all of the sub-channels are dedicated to a single data source.
 The OFDM scheme uses advanced digital signal-processing techniques to distribute the
data over multiple carriers at precise frequencies.
 The precise relationship among the subcarriers is referred to as orthogonality.
 This means that the peaks of the power spectral density of each subcarrier occur at a point
lo
at which the power of other subcarriers is zero. With OFDM, the subcarriers can be packed
tightly together because there is minimal interference between adjacent subcarriers.
Fig. 8.32 illustrates the concept of OFDM.

1. Let there be a data stream operating at R bps and an available bandwidth of (N × b),
2. where N is an integer related to the number of subcarriers, and b is the base frequency,
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centered at 0. The entire bandwidth could be used to send the data stream, in which case
each bit duration would be 1/R. The alternative is to split the data stream into N
substreams, using a serial-to-parallel converter.
3. Each substream has a data rate of R/N bps and is transmitted on a separate subcarrier, with
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a spacing between adjacent subcarriers of b. Now the bit duration is N/R.

4. The base frequency, b is the lowest-frequency subcarrier. All of the other subcarriers are
integer multiples of the base frequency, namely 2 b, 3 b, and so on.
5. OFDM has several advantages. First, frequency-selective fading affects some subchannels
only and not the complete signal. If the data stream is protected by a forward error-
correcting code, the impact of frequency
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8.10.2 SC-FDMA
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1. Single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) is a frequency-division multiple access scheme.

2. SC-FDMA is a new multiple access technique, which utilises single-carrier modulation, .
3. SC-FDMA is currently adopted as the uplink multiple access scheme in 3GPP, and a variant
of SC-FDMA using code spreading is used in 3GPP2 uplink. IEEE 802.16 is also considering
it for uplink.
4. SC-FDMA can be viewed as a linearly precoded OFDMA scheme (LP-OFDMA).
V

5. It can also be viewed as a single-carrier multiple access scheme.

6. Single Carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) is an extension of SC-FDE to accommodate multiple-
user access. SC-FDMA is also regarded as DFT-precoded or DFT-spread OFDMA.
7. The main advantage of SC-FDE and SC-FDMA/LP-OFDMA signals over conventional
OFDM and OFDMA signals is that they have lower peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR)
because of its inherent single carrier structure.
8.In SC-FDMA, multiple access is made possible by inserting silent Fourier-coefficients on the
transmitter side before the IFFT, and removing them on the receiver side before the IFFT.
Different users are assigned to different Fourier-coefficients (sub-carriers).
In SC-FDMA, equalisation is achieved on the receiver side after the FFT calculation, by
multiplying

Fig. 8.33 depicts the pictorial representation of the relationship among SC-FDMA, OFDMA,
 and DS-CDMA/FDE.

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8.10.3 MC-CDMA
1. The Multi-Carrier Code Division Multiple Access (MC-CDMA) scheme is a combination
of OFDM and DS-CDMA.

system,
lo
2. MC-CDMA shows high envelope power fluctuation as in OFDM. For an N-subcarrier

The peak power becomes N times the average power in the worst case and the signal is
distorted in the RF power amplifiers, yielding spurious power emission. To reduce the
distortion, the operating point in the amplifiers can be backed off, but this may lead to
C
inefficient power usage.
3. MC-CDMA maintains the original signaling interval while it spreads the signal over wide
bandwidth like DS-CDMA. To transmit 1 Mbps data with the processing gain of 20 dB, the
chip rate required in DS-CDMA is 100 Mcps, which necessitates four times faster internal
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digital front-end processor or at least a 100-MHz analogue matched filter.

4. MC-CDMA is sensitive to frequency offset and small Doppler spread is preferred. The
difference in the arrival times of multipath signals in indoor wire less environment is
typically much less than 1 μs.
5. MC-CDMA gathers nearly all the scattered powers effectively using the cyclic prefix
insertion technique. As the received signals are sampled at the original symbol rate in MC-
V

CDMA, the sampling points may not be optimum.

In general, the performance of MC-CDMA is equivalent to the m-finger rake receiver in DS-
CDMA, where m is the number of symbols in cyclic prefix of MC-CDMA.

8.10.4 MC-DS-CDMA
1. The Multi-Carrier Direct Sequence Code Division Multiple Access (MC-DS-CDMA)
scheme is a combination of time-domain spreading and Orthogonal Frequency Division
Multiplexing (OFDM),
2. while Multi-Carrier Code Division Multiple Access (MC-CDMA) is a combination of
frequency domain spreading and OFDM. In MC-CDMA, a good Bit Error Rate (BER)
performance can be achieved by using Frequency-Domain Equalisation (FDE), since the
frequency diversity gain is obtained.
On the other hand, conventional MC-DS-CDMA cannot obtain the frequency diversity gain.

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 PART- B (4TH MODULE)

A Basic Cellular System

LIMITATIONS OF CONVENTIONAL MOBILE TELEPHONE SYSTEM

1) The primary motivation for development of cellular mobile telephone communication
systems is to overcome some of the major operational limitations of conventional mobile
telephone systems.
2) The conventional mobile systems deploy a high- transmitter-power base station in a large
autonomous geographical service area providing limited service capability.
3)The inefficient frequency spectrum utilisation, low subscriber capacity, poor service
performance, high blocking probability during busy hours, and no continuation of call

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between different service areas are the major concerns in conventional mobile systems.
4)The cellular concept is a major breakthrough in resolving the issues of spectral congestion
and subscriber capacity, besides offering many utility services to highly mobile subscribers.
5)It can provide very high subscriber capacity in a limited spectrum allocation without any
major technological changes.
6)But cellular communication systems are much more complex and require sophisticated
computing power in the mobile phone.
lo
Q.13 Main Parts of a Basic Cellular System

9.2.2 Main Parts of a Basic Cellular System

1. A basic cellular system consists of mainly three parts: Cell-Site Equipment (CSE), Mobile
Telephone Switching Office (MTSO), and Mobile Subscriber Unit (MSU) as shown in Fig.
C
9.2.
2. There is an air interface between the MSU and CSE. The interconnectivity between the CSE
and MTSO, MTSOs, and the MTSO and PSTN is through wirelines or dedicated point-to-
point microwave links.
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I. Cell-Site Equipment (CSE) :

a. A cell-site is a fixed base station used for wireless communication with a mobile subscriber
on one side as well as signaling/data communication with the MTSO on the other side. It is
usually located at the centre or the edge of the coverage region of a cell.
b. A cell-site consists of a number of transreceivers, Tx/Rx antennas mounted on a tall tower,
data links, and power plant. The radio transmitting equipment operates at considerably higher
V

RF power than do the mobile equipments.

c. Tx power is shared among all the channels that are used at the cell-site. Similarly, there are
as many receivers for each control and voice channel in use at the cell-site, as well as
additional receivers for monitoring the signal strength of mobile subscribers in adjacent cells.
d. Cell-site equipment basically comprises of two main parts cell-site transceiver and cell-site
controller.
e. There may be adequate number of transceiver modules at the cell-site equipment in order to
meet the subscriber capacity requirement within a cell. Data links are used to carry multiple-
channel data from the cell-site to the MTSO.
f. The transmission data rate on data links vary from 10 kbps to several Mbps. Many data-link
channels can be multiplexed and passed through a wideband T-carrier (or E-carrier) wireline
or a point-to-point microwave radio link operating at 850 MHz or higher frequency.
g.
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II . Mobile Telephone Switching Office
a. (MTSO) It is the central coordinating element for all the cell-sites connected to it.
b. It comprises of the switch and the processor. It also interfaces with the Public Switch
lo
Telephone Network (PSTN), controls call processing and handles billing activities. It uses
voice trunks as well as data links between the cell-sites and the central processor
c. Microwave radio links or T-carriers (wirelines) carry both voice and data between the cell-
site and the MTSO because the high-speed data link cannot be transmitted over the standard
telephone trunks.
d. The capacity of switching equipment in cellular systems is not based on the number of switch
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ports but on the capacity of the processor associated with the switches.
The processor should be as large as possible.
e. The electronic switching centre located in the MTSO or MSC is a sort of digital telephone
exchange that becomes the heart of a cellular telephone system. Electronic switches
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communicate with cell-site controllers using a data-link protocol, such as X.25, at a

transmission rate of 9.6 kbps or higher.
f. The electronic switching centre performs two essential functions:
– It controls switching between the public landline telephone network and the cell-site base
stations for landline-to-mobile, mobile-to-landline, and mobile-to-mobile calls.
– It processes data received from the cell-site controllers concerning mobile subscriber status,
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diagnostic data, and bill-compiling information.

Mobile Subscriber Unit (MSU) Basically, a mobile subscriber unit comprises of a single
antenna, transreceiver, and microprocessor-based control circuit. Because the cellular system is
full duplex, the transmitter and receiver must operate simultaneously with a single antenna.
A duplexer is used to separate the transmit and receive signals. The 45-MHz band separation
between transmit and receive frequencies makes the operation relatively easy, and simplifies
frequency synthesiser design.
For example, GSM mobile subscriber comprises of two parts––the mobile equipment (ME) and
an electronic smart card called a subscriber identity module (SIM).
The ME is the hardware used by the subscriber to access the cellular network.
The SIM is a card, which plugs into the ME. This card identifies the MS subscriber and also
provides other information regarding the service that the subscriber should receive.
Each mobile subscriber consists of a mobile antenna, a multiple-frequency radio transceiver, and
a control/logic unit.
The transceiver uses a frequency synthesiser to tune into any designated cellular system channel.
The control unit houses all the user interfaces, including a built-in handset or earphone or
external microphone/speaker arrangement.
The logic unit interrupts subscriber actions and system commands while managing the operation
of the transceiver including transmit power.

9.3 OPERATION OF A CELLULAR SYSTEM

 Voice calls over cellular communication networks require two full-duplex radio-frequency

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channels simultaneously.
 Two types of channels are available between the mobile subscriber and the base station:
control channels and traffic channels.
 Control channels are used to exchange information concerning initiating and
maintaining calls and with establishing of a relationship between a mobile
subscriber and the nearest base station. The control channel is also used for
transferring control and diagnostic information between mobile subscribers and
lo
a central cellular switch through a cell-site. Traffic channels carry a voice or data
connection between subscribers.
 The traffic channel is the actual voice channel where calling mobile subscribers
communicate directly with other called mobile subscribers and landline
telephone subscribers through the cell-site and MTSO.
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 Base stations transmit on the forward control channel and forward voice channel and receive
on the reverse control channel and reverse voice channel.
 Similarly, mobile subscribers transmit on the reverse control channel and reverse voice
channel and receive on the forward control channel and forward voice channel.
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 Establishment of a voice call within a cellular communication system is similar to completing

a telephone voice call using the landline PSTN. The use of a cellular system is fully
automated and requires no action on the part of the mobile subscriber other than placing or
answering a call.
 When a mobile subscriber is first turned on, it performs a series of start-up procedures and
then samples the received signal strength on all control channels.
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 The mobile subscriber automatically gets tuned to the control channel with the strongest
received signal strength level and synchronises to the control data transmitted by the cell-site
controller.
 The mobile subscriber interprets the data and continues monitoring the control channel(s).
The mobile subscriber automatically rescans the control channels periodically to ensure that
it is using the best control channel.
From a subscriber’s point of view, the operation can be divided into four parts and a hand-
off procedure.
– Mobile-unit initialisation or registration
– Mobile-originated calls
– Network-originated calls
– Call termination
– Hand-off procedure
Q.14 With steps explain Mobile-Unit Initialisation or Registration
9.3.1 Mobile-Unit Initialisation or Registration
1. Immediately after the mobile subscriber is switched on, it first scans the group of forward
control channels and selects the strongest one, which usually belongs to the nearest cell-site.
2. It then continuously monitors that control channel until its received signal level drops below
the pre-defined threshold received level. In case the signal strength of the control channel
becomes weak, the mobile subscriber again begins scanning of the forward control channels
in search of the strongest signal. This self-location scheme is subscriber-independent.
3. After pre-determined time, this procedure is repeated to update the availability status of the
forward control channel. Cells assigned specific channels.
4. About 5% of the total number of channels available in the system are defined as control

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channels and standardised over the entire geographic area covered.
5. The remaining 95% of the total number of channels are dedicated to voice and data traffic
for the mobile subscribers. Since the control channels are standardised and are identical
throughout different service areas within a large geographic service area for a particular
cellular operator, every mobile subscriber phone scans the same set of control channels.
6. A very important aspect for successful operation of numerous system functions in the cellular
system is that each and every mobile subscriber units must be registered at one of the MTSOs
or MSCs. lo
7. This is maintained for authentication and identity verification, access privileges, and also for
billing purposes. Moreover, the cellular system needs to know whether the MSU is currently
located in its own home service area or is visiting some other service area. This enables
incoming calls meant for roaming mobile subscribers to be routed to an appropriate cell
location and assures desirable support for outgoing calls.
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8. CSEs periodically broadcast control signals to determine and test nearby MSUs.
9. This is done by exchanging signals known as handshake signals between the CSE and the
MSU. Each MSU listens for broadcast control signals transmitted by CSEs. Some of the
information contained in the broadcast forward control signals includes cellular network
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identifier, timestamp, ID (identification) of the paging area, gateway MSC address, and other
system parameters of the CSE. If the MSU listens to a broadcast forward control signal from
the new CSE, it updates its information database.
10. The MSU uses this information to locate the nearest CSE and establish an appropriate
communication link with the cellular system through the nearest operational CSE as a
gateway.
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Q.15 Explain the steps for Mobile-Originated Calls

9.3.2 Mobile-Originated Calls

 When a mobile subscriber originates a call, a call initiation request is sent on the reverse
control channel.
 The mobile subscriber enters the called subscriber number on its mobile equipment and
presses the send button.
 A request for service is sent on an available reverse control channel. With this request, the
mobile subscriber transmits its own telephone number, electronic serial number of the mobile
equipment, station class mark which indicates what the maximum transmitter power level is
for the calling subscriber, and the called subscriber number (of another mobile subscriber or
landline telephone subscriber).
 The nearest cell-site receives this complete data on the reverse control channel and sends a
 request to the MTSO for allocation of required resources to establish the voice
communication link between the calling mobile subscriber and the desired called subscriber
 The MTSO validates this call request. After authentication, the MTSO directs a cell-site to
assign an available forward voice channel for the call. The MTSO also connects the
called mobile subscriber or makes a connection to the called landline subscriber through
the PSTN.
 The MTSO also instructs the cellsite and the calling mobile subscriber to shift to an unused
forward and reverse voice channel pair to allow the conversation to begin. Figure 9.3 depicts
the call processing using various parts of a cellular system.

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9.3 depicts the call processing using various parts of a cellular system.
Within a cellular communication system, the following types of mobile-originated
calls can take place involving mobile cellular subscribers originating calls:
– Mobile (cellular)-to-landline (PSTN) call
– Mobile (cellular)-to-mobile (cellular) within the same cell
– Mobile (cellular)-to-mobile (cellular) operating in different cells

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A general description for the sequence of events involved with connecting a call
initiated by a mobile subscriber in a cellular system is briefly described here.
Q.16 Explain Mobile (Cellular)-to-Landline (PSTN) Call Procedures

Mobile (Cellular)-to-Landline (PSTN) Call Procedures

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Step 1. Calls from mobile subscribers to landline telephone subscribers can be
initiated by entering the landline telephone number into the mobile unit’s
keypad. The mobile subscriber then presses a send key, which transmits the called
landline telephone number as well as the mobile unit’s identification number
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(MIN), ESN and Station Class Mark over a reverse control channel to the base
station.
Step 2. The base station receives a call-initiation request along with the MIN, ESN,
and Station Class Mark. If the calling mobile unit’s ID number is valid, the cell-site
controller routes the called landline telephone number over a wireline trunk circuit to
the MTSO.
Step 3. The MTSO uses either standard call progress signals or the SS7 signaling
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protocol network to locate a switching path through the PSTN to the called landline
telephone subscriber.
Step 4. Using the cell-site controller, the MTSO assigns the calling mobile subscriber
an available traffic or voice channel and instructs the mobile subscriber to get tuned to
that channel.
Step 5. After the cell-site controller receives verification that the mobile subscriber
has tuned to the selected voice channel and it has been determined that the called
landline telephone number is not busy, the mobile subscriber receives an audible call
progress tone (ring-back) while the landline telephone caller receives a standard
ringing tone.
Step 6. If a suitable switching path is available to the landline telephone number, the
call is completed when the landline party answers the incoming call on its telephone.
Q.16 Explain Mobile (Cellular)-to-Mobile (Cellular) Call Procedures

Mobile (Cellular)-to-Mobile (Cellular) Call Procedures

Step 1. The originating mobile subscriber initiates the call in the same manner as it
would do for a mobile-tolandline call.
Step 2. The cell-site controller receives the caller’s identification number and the
destination telephone number through a reverse control channel, which are then
forwarded to the MTSO.
Step 3. The MTSO sends a page command to all cell-site controllers to locate the
called mobile subscriber (which may be anywhere within or out of the service area).
Step 4. Once the called mobile subscriber is located, the destination cell-site
controller sends a page request through a forward control channel to the called mobile

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subscriber to determine if it is on and not busy.
Step 5. After receiving a positive response to the page, the available free traffic
channels are assigned to both the calling and called mobile subscribers.
Step 6. Call-progress tones are given to both the calling and called mobile subscribers
(ring- back and ringtones respectively).
Step 7. When the MTSO receives a response that the called mobile subscriber has
answered the incoming call, the call-progress tones are terminated, and the
conversation begins. lo
Step 8. If a mobile subscriber wishes to initiate a call and all traffic channels are busy,
the MTSO sends a directed retry command, instructing the calling mobile
subscriber’s unit to reattempt the call through a neighbouring cell.
Step 9. If the MTSO cannot allocate traffic channels through a neighbouring cell, it
sends an intercept message to the calling mobile subscriber over the forward control
channel.
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During the mobile- initiated call stage, if all the traffic channels assigned to
the nearest cell-site are busy, then the mobile subscriber makes a preconfigured
number of repeated attempts. After a certain number of failed attempts, a busy tone is
returned to the calling mobile subscriber. This situation is termed as call blocking.
Step 10. If the called mobile subscriber is busy, the calling mobile subscriber receives
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a busy signal.
Step 11.If the called mobile number is invalid, the calling mobile subscriber receives
a recorded message announcing that the call cannot be processed by the network.

Q.17 Explain steps Network-Originated Calls

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9.3.3 Network-Originated Calls

 When a telephone call is placed by a landline telephone subscriber to a mobile
subscriber, the MTSO dispatches the request to all cell-sites in the cellular
system, or it sends a paging message to certain cell-sites based on the called
mobile subscriber number and search algorithm.
 Each cell-site transmits the page on its forward control channel.
 The called subscriber’s mobile phone number is then broadcast as a paging
message over all of the
forward control channels throughout the cellular system.
 The mobile receives the paging message sent by the base station which it
monitors, and responds by identifying itself over the reverse control channel. It
 also locks on to the assigned voice channel and initiates a subscriber alert tone.
 The cell-site relays back the acknowledgment signal sent by the called mobile
subscriber and informs the MTSO of the successful handshake. At this point, an
alert message is transmitted to instruct the called mobile subscriber to ring,
thereby instructing the mobile subscriber to answer the incoming call.
 Then, the MTSO instructs the cell-site to move the call to the available free
forward and reverse voice channel pair.
 The step-by-step procedure given below shows the sequence of events involved
for landline (PSTN)-to-mobile (cellular) call in a cellular telephone system. All of
these events occur within a few seconds and are not noticeable by the subscriber.
Step 1. The landline telephone goes off hook to complete the wireline loop, receives a
dial tone from PSTN, and then inputs the mobile subscriber’s phone number.

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Step 2. The mobile phone number is transferred from the PSTN switch to the cellular
network switch (MTSO) that services the called mobile subscriber.
Step 3. The cellular network MTSO translates the received digits, and locates the cell-
sites nearest the called mobile subscriber, which determines if the mobile
subscriber is on and ready to receive the incoming call. It sends the
requested mobile phone number to the cell-sites.
Step 4. The base station transmits the page containing mobile subscriber phone
number on forward control channel.
lo
Step 5. The called mobile subscriber receives the page signal and matches the
received mobile subscriber phone number with its own mobile phone
number, assuming that the called mobile subscriber is available.
Step 6. The called mobile subscriber acknowledges back the receipt of the mobile
subscriber phone number and sends a positive page response including its
ESN and Station Class Mark on the reverse control channel to the
cell-site for forwarding it to the MTSO.
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Step 7. The cell-site receives the mobile subscriber phone number, ESN, and Station
Class Mark and passes the information to the MTSO.
Step 8. The MTSO verifies that the called mobile has a valid mobile subscriber phone
number and ESN pair.
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Step 9. The MTSO requests the cell-site controller to move the called mobile to the
available pair of forward and reverse voice channels.
Step 10. The cell-site controller assigns an idle voice channel for the called mobile
subscriber and the cell-site transmits the data message on the forward control
channel for the called mobile subscriber to move to the specified voice
channel.
Step 11. The called mobile subscriber receives the data messages on forward control
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channel to move to the specified voice channel and sends verification of

designated voice channel to the cell-site.
Step 12.The cell-site controller sends an audible call progress tone to the called
mobile subscriber, causing it to ring. The MTSO connects the called mobile
subscriber with the calling landline phone on the PSTN. At the same time, a
ring-back signal is sent back to the landline-calling telephone subscriber
by PSTN.
Step 13. The called mobile subscriber answers back, the MTSO terminates the call-
progress tones, and the two-way voice conversation begins on the forward
voice channel and reverse voice channel between the calling telephone
subscriber and the called mobile subscriber.
Once a call is in progress, the MTSO adjusts the transmitted power of the mobile subscriber and
changes the channel of the mobile subscriber and cell-site in order to maintain call quality as the
subscriber moves in and out of range of each cell-site. This is called hand-off procedure. Special
control signaling is applied to the voice channels so that the cell-site may control the mobile
subscriber while a call is in progress.
9.3.4 Call Termination
 When either the calling subscriber (cellular mobile or landline) or the called
subscriber (cellular mobile or landline) engaged in conversation terminates the
call, the MTSO is informed and the traffic channels at the cellsite(s) are released.
 When the mobile subscriber terminates the call, a particular message signal is
transmitted to the cell-site. The voice channel is released.
 The mobile subscriber resumes monitoring page messages through the strongest
forward control channel.
 During a connection, if the base station cannot maintain the minimum required
signal strength for a certain period of time because of interference or weak signal

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spots in certain areas, the voice channel assigned to the mobile subscriber is
dropped and the MTSO is informed. This situation is termed as call drop, not call
termination.

Q.18 Explain the Hand -off Procedure

9.3.5 Hand-off Procedure

1. When the mobile subscriber moves out of the coverage area of its cell-site during
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the call, the received signal level becomes weak.
2. The present cell-site requests a hand-off to MTSO. The MTSO switches the
ongoing call to a new voice channel in a new cellsite without either interrupting
the call or alerting the engaged mobile subscriber.
3. The call continues as long as the conversation is on. The mobile subscriber does
not notice the hand-off occurrence.
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4. Hand-off occurrence depends on the size of the cell, radio coverage boundary,
received signal strength, fading, reflection and refraction of signals, and man-
made noise.
 Assuming that the MSUs are uniformly distributed in each cell, the probability
of a voice channel being available in a new cell depends on the number of
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channels per unit area.

The number of channels per unit area increases if the number of channels
allocated per cell is increased or if the area of each cell is decreased. But the
radio resources and the number of assigned channels are limited.
The radio coverage area of the cell could be decreased for a given number of
channels per cell.
This leads to a smaller cell size and may be good for the availability of free
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channel perspectives. However, this would cause more frequent hand-offs,

especially for MSUs with high mobility and vehicle speed.
5. Hand-off can be initiated by the cell-site on its own or assisted by the mobile
subscriber.
6. Cellular systems provide a service called roaming. This allows mobile
subscribers to operate in service areas other than the one from which the service
is subscribed. When a mobile subscriber enters another geographic area that is
different from its home service area, it is registered as a roamer in the new service
area.
7. This is accomplished over the forward control channel, since each roaming
mobile subscriber is stationed on a forward control channel at all times.
8. After a pre-defined time interval, the MTSO issues a broadcast command over
each forward control channel in the cellular system, requesting all mobile
subscribers, which are previously unregistered to report their identities such as
mobile phone number and ESN over the reverse control channel.
9. New unregistered mobile subscribers in the system periodically report back their
subscriber information upon receiving the registration request. The MTSO uses
the received data to request billing status from the home location register for each
roaming mobile subscriber.
10. If a particular roaming mobile subscriber has roaming authorisation for billing
purposes, the MTSO registers the mobile subscriber as a valid roamer.
11. Once registered, roaming mobile subscribers are allowed to receive and place
calls from that service area, and billing is routed automatically to the subscriber’s

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home service provider.

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