Radio Access Networks –

The Evolution
MOBILE TELEPHONY
 Mobile communication is now viewed as a necessity and is one of the fastest growing and most

demanding technologies. Mobile systems have evolved over time. When discussing different

developments, we speak of system generations.

 First generation (1G) systems were analog with reasonably reliable networks but limited

service offerings and did not permit roaming between networks.

 Second generation (2G) mobile systems are digital and bring significant advantages in terms of

service sophistication, capacity and quality. GSM is a 2G technology. The increasing demand

for wireless access to the Internet has led to further developments within 2G systems.
 Thus we speak of 2.5G systems. General Packet Radio Services (GPRS) and EGDE (Enhanced

Data Rates for Global Evolution) are examples of 2.5G technology and are standardized

packet switched technologies enabling mobile use of the Internet.

 Other standard and optional features of digital mobile networks have appeared over time including

Intelligent Network (IN) features, mobile positioning features, SMS (Short Message Service) and

developments in signaling and network management software.

 Since there are several 2G systems using incompatible radio technologies, on different frequency

spectra, they cannot capture a real worldwide mass-market in the long-term.

 These factors have led to the concept of third generation (3G) systems which will allow

communication, information and entertainment services to be delivered via wireless terminals.

The foundation for these services has already been laid in 2G systems, but in order to support such

services we need higher capacity on the radio links as well as compatibility between systems in

order to provide seamless access worldwide. An example of a 3G system is Universal Mobile

Telecommunication Systems (UMTS).

 GSM therefore is a pivotal technology from which to look back at previous technologies and

examine future trends.

HISTORY OF WIRELESS COMMUNICATION
 The origins of mobile communications quickly followed the invention of radio
in the late 1800s. The first applications of mobile radio were related to the
navigation and safety of ships at sea. As radio concepts developed, radio was
used more and more as a communications tool.

THE EVOLUTION OF MOBILE NETWORKS

 The first three generations of mobile networks are conventionally defined by air
interfaces and transport technologies. However, it is worth noting that each
generation clearly provided an increase in functionality to the mobile user, and
could therefore be defined in those terms, rather than in transport technology
terms.
 1G: Basic mobile telephony service
 2G: Mobile telephony service for mass users with improved ciphering and efficient
utilization of the radio spectrum

 2.5G: Mobile Internet services

 3G: Enhanced 2.5G services plus global roaming, and emerging new applications
 The first generation (1G) is based on analog cellular technology, such as the American Mobile

Phone Service (AMPS) in the United States and the NTT system in Japan.
 The second-generation (2G) technology is based on digital cellular technology.
 Packet-switched networks were overlaid onto many of the 2G networks, in the middle of the 2G

period. Generally, 2G networks with packet-switched communication systems added are referred

to as 2.5G mobile networks. It is noteworthy that the functional leap between 2G and 2.5G

networks delivered arguably the greatest user impact.

 This type of wireless data services offers a huge range of services over a variety of handsets. This

mobile computing functionality enables users to perform telephone banking, make airline

reservations, conduct stock transactions, send and receive e-mail, play games, obtain weather

reports and access the worldwide web.

 3G mobile networks are characterized by their ability to carry data at much higher rates than the

9.6 kbps (kilobits per second) supported by 2G networks, and several tens of Kbps typically

offered by 2.5G mobile technologies.

 The 3G mobile networks provide significantly greater bandwidth and can therefore

accommodate new mobile services, such as enhanced multimedia applications that

cannot be supported by 2.5G mobile networks.This important distinction is the first

indication that applications and services, not only technologies, will determine

future generation differentiations.

 LTE and LTE-Advanced have crossed the “generational boundary” offering the next

generation(s) of capabilities. With their capacity for high speed data, significant

spectral efficiencies and adoption of advanced radio techniques; their emergence

has been the basis for all new mobile systems from Release 8 onwards.
 It should be noted that LTE-Advanced (From Release 10) is 3GPP's ITU-R

IMTAdvanced radio interface. LTE-Advanced is the first true 4G technology to be

specified by 3GPP.
MOBILE STANDARDS and 3GPP

Standards play a major role in telecommunications by:

 Allowing products from diverse suppliers to be interconnected •
 Facilitating innovation by creating large markets for common products.
 The standards-making process is one of co-operation at many levels, both

nationally and internationally and includes co-operation between:

 Industrial concerns within a country
 These industrial concerns and their governments
 National governments at an international level
 The primary purpose of a standard for mobile communications is to

specify how mobile phone calls are to be handled by a mobile

network. For example, this includes specification of the following:

 The signals to be transmitted and received by the mobile phone
 The format of these signals
 The interaction of network nodes
 The basic network services which should be available to mobile

subscribers
 The basic network structure (i.e. cells, etc.)
 The main standards and the main markets in which they are used are summarized in the
following table
3GPP
 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) unites [Seven] telecommunications
standard development organizations (ARIB, ATIS, CCSA, ETSI, TSDSI, TTA, TTC),
known as “Organizational Partners” and provides their members with a stable
environment to produce the Reports and Specifications that define 3GPP technologies.
 Project covers cellular telecommunications network technologies, including radio
access, the core transport network, and service capabilities - including work on
codecs, security, and quality of service.
 Specifications also provide hooks for non-radio access to the core network, and for
interworking with Wi-Fi networks.
 3GPP specifications and studies are contribution-driven, by member companies, in
Working Groups and at the Technical Specification Group level.
The three Technical Specification Groups (TSG) in 3GPP are:

 Radio Access Networks (RAN)

 Services & Systems Aspects (SA)
 Core Network & Terminals (CT)
Radio Access Milestones
 3GPP Technical Specification Group RAN, like other TSGs, ensures that systems
based on 3GPP specifications are capable of rapid development and deployment
with the provision of global roaming of equipment. Some of the headline 3GPP
radio technologies and systems over the recent Releases have been:
 All of these advances have provided a high degree of continuity in the
evolving systems, allowing existing equipment to be prepared for future
features and functionality - delivering higher data rates, quality of service
and cost efficiencies. Each progressive 3GPP radio access technology aims
to reduce complexity and avoid fragmentation of technologies on offer.
INDUSTRY TERMINOLOGY
 Vendor: A vendor, or a supplier, is a term that means anyone who provides goods

or services to a company or individuals. A vendor often manufactures inventorial

items, and sells those items to a customer. Ericsson is one of the few

telecommunication vendors where we sell our telecom products to the operator

along with a various portfolio of services to enable the product we sell to them.
 Telecom OEM: OEM referred to the company that originally built a given

product, which was then sold to other companies to deploy and use. Ericsson is

also part of the Telecom OEM group where we make original equipment to enable

various technologies of mobile networks.

 Operator: A mobile network operator or MNO, also known as a wireless service

provider, wireless carrier, cellular company, or mobile network carrier, is a provider of

services wireless communications that owns or controls all the elements necessary to

sell and deliver services to an end user including radio spectrum allocation, wireless

network infrastructure, back haul infrastructure, billing, customer care, provisioning

computer systems and marketing and repair organizations.

 A key defining characteristic of a mobile network operator is that an MNO must own

or control access to a radio spectrum license from a regulatory or government entity.

A second key defining characteristic of an MNO is that an MNO must own or control

the elements of the network infrastructure necessary to provide services to subscribers

over the licensed spectrum

TELECOM TEAM STRUCTURE
 A telecommunication team is broken into various units, each responsible

for a certain aspect of the RAN evolution as discussed below:-

 Planning: This team is part of the initial phase when the business plan is

setup. They are introduced during the new site rollout phase when

deployment strategy is to be worked out. They are also responsible for

the site acquisition phase. Some of this team’s member might also be

responsible for the Radio Network Design

 Tower Crew: This team as the name suggest is responsible for all the

tower related activities. They complete the site engineering, civil works

as well as the equipment installation phase of the RAN Evolution.

 Integration Team: After the tower crew is done completing the tower and the

equipment has been installed the equipment is to be setup correctly and integrated

with the rest of the network. This task is completed by the integration team.

 Optimization: This team comes into role after the site has been integrated and is

now ready for deployment. They are responsible for the initial tuning where they

ensure that the site is functioning properly and providing adequate coverage. After

which they are tasked with carrying out the commercial launch. Once the same is

complete they are required to ensure good performance and complete any

optimization related activity to achieve the same.

 Field O&M: This team is responsible for operations and maintenance of the

equipment once the same is put on commercial service. They are deployed to carry

out regular maintenance activity as well as to resolve any outages that might occur

due to equipment malfunction.

 NOC: NOC stands for Network Operations Center and is tasked with 24X7

monitoring of an operators network to ensure good performance and proactive

discovery of any outages and their resolution. This team monitors the network

continuously and works hand in hand with the Field O&M to resolve any

outages that might require field work.

 Regulatory: Telecom vendors are required to strictly adhere to government

guidelines may it be for spectrum that they use, heights of towers, power that

they are radiating and etc. Failing on which they would be required to pay hefty

fines or even service discontinue. For the same, a separate team is constituted

to ensure compliance of these guidelines and called the regulatory group.

GENERIC NETWORK ARCHITECTURE

Based on the 3GPP reference network model, the Wireless

network can be considered to consist of four major components:
 User Equipment (UE)
 Radio Access Network (AN)
 Core Network (CN)
 Networks External to
 The Generic network reference model as defined by 3GPP is
shown on an overview level in figure
 User Equipment – Is the term given to the device used by an
individual to contact and connect to the network. Examples shown
include a standard cellular handset, and a laptop with a 3G or
HSDPA modem/data-card
 Access Network – The Access Network provides users with a
defined area with access to the main (core) area of the network.
 Typically the area to be covered will be split into cells, with ` each
cell containing a Base Station. This provides the UE with access to
the network. Groups of base stations are then managed by
controlling nodes, which make up the rest of the Access Network.
 Core Network – The Core Network acts as the nerve centre for the
network. It contains the main switching and routing nodes, as well as
database nodes and interfaces to application servers.
 The Core network is split up into separate domains for circuit and packet
switched traffic, as well as interfacing to the IMS domain. IMS (which
will be covered in chapter 5), is a separate core network made up of
Control, and internetworking nodes that supply multimedia user-user
services to end users.
 External Networks - The network must support connections to external
networks. Users will need to be able to connect to the PSTN fixed line
network on circuit switched calls or to the Internet/Corporate LAN on
packet switched sessions. The 3GPP reference model allows for this by
defining the connections to these external networks as the 4th area in their
reference model.
RAN NETWORK COMPONENTS
 APPLICATION LAYER The “Application Layer” is responsible for providing
services to users via applications regardless of the device and method in which the
user accesses the network. The Application Layer itself is not a real network as
such, important operator parts of the Application Layer may, however, be realized
in what are called Service Networks.
 CONTROL LAYER The “Control Layer” contains nodes that control and direct
traffic (both Circuit and Packet Switched). The WCDMA Core Network will
contain, for example, MSC -Servers, HLR/HSS, GMSC, SGSN, GGSN and
interfaces to IMS.
 CONNECTIVITY LAYER The “Connectivity Layer” consists of the transport
nodes M-MGW, SGSN and GGSN (the packet switched nodes are represented in
both layers), and connects to the various access networks.
RAN LIFE CYCLE
 Before starting to learn about Performance Management and Optimization
it is important to understand where this set of activities and their associated
team are situated in the common RAN lifecycle and also to have a basic
awareness of the previous stages and how they can affect the Performance
Management / Optimization activities.
 The evolution of a LTE RAN begins with a Business Plan to provide a
level of service to a defined area and number of subscribers as illustrated
in Figure
 During the Radio Network Design phase, a detailed network plan is
produced based on the requirements of the Business Plan. Site
locations for the enodeBs must be found during the Site
Acquisition phase with detailed drawings produces in the Site
Engineering phase.
 After planning, applications have been approved in the Civil Works
phase the eNodeBs are then installed in the Installation phase.
 During the Integration phase the eNodeBs are commissioned and
brought into service. The Initial Tuning begins before any live
traffic is carried by the network.
 During the Initial Tuning phase drive tests are made to ensure that it is possible
to make and maintain sessions in the defined coverage area.
 Data collected during these drive tests are then used to analyze and locate any
underlying problems related to the design of the network.
 The results from the Initial Tuning phase are normally antenna azimuth and/or
downtilt changes or other network configuration changes.
 When the Initial Tuning is complete the network can be commercially
launched. This may be done with friendly, non-paying users or actual fee
paying subscribers.
 Once the network is carrying live traffic, Performance Management and
Optimization can begin and will continue for the lifetime of the network.
 During this phase network statistics (counters) are collected from the
nodes and used to create Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to gauge
the performance of the network against a defined set of targets.
 A detailed analysis of the network is required if these targets are not
met. This is achieved using additional counters or any of the many
optimization tools available to the Operator.
 The results of the optimization phase are normally parameter changes
or other network configuration changes.
 In some instances, a drive test may be required to give a better picture
of the network performance during this phase.
 Initial Tuning and Optimization are usually offered as separate services as
illustrated in Figure