Channel Concepts

In GSM System
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GBSS Training Team

Copyright © 2006 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. All rights reserved.

 After the completion of this
course, the trainees should
understand about:
 Types of Channels in GSM
 Different Burst and frame
definition

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  BSS Feature Description
 BSS Signaling Analysis
Manual
 BSC Technical Manual

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 Chapter 1 Channel Concepts
Chapter 2 Bursts
Chapter 3 Frames

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Channel Concepts
Downlink

Uplink

Physical channel - Each timeslot on a carrier is referred to as a physical channel.

Per carrier there are 8 physical channels.

Logical channel - Variety of information is transmitted between the MS and BTS.

There are different logical channels depending on the information sent. The logical
channels are of two types
• Traffic channel
• Control channel

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 Physical and Logical Channel
The physical channel is the medium over which
the information is carried: 200KHz and 0.577ms

The logical channel consists of the information

carried over the physical channels

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3
Timeslot The information carried in one time
slot is called a “burst”

TDMA FRAME TDMA FRAME

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 Two types of Logical Channel
Traffic Channel (TCH) :
Transmits traffic information, include data and
speech.

Control Channel (CCH) :

Or Signaling Channel, transmits all kinds of
control information.

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Traffic Channel (TCH)

TCH
Traffic Channels

Speech Data

TCH/FS TCH/HS
TCH/9.6 TCH/2.4
TCH Traffic Channel
TCH/FS Full rate Speech Channel
TCH/HS Half rate Speech Channel
TCH/9.6 Data Channel 9.6kb/s
TCH/4.8 Data Channel 4.8kb/s TCH/4.8
TCH/2.4 Data Channel 2.4Kb/s

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 Traffic Channel (TCH)
User Data Transmission:
 Speech and data (not SMS) are transmitted using traffic
channel (TCH).
 Full Rate (TCH): Transmits full rate speech
(13Kbits/sec). A full rate TCH occupies one physical
channel.
 Half Rate (TCH/2): Transmits half rate speech
(6.5Kbits/sec). Two half rate TCH’s can share one
physical channel, thus doubling the capacity of a cell.

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 Control Channel (CCH)
CCH (Control Channels)

DCCH BCH

SDCCH ACCH
BCCH Synch. CH.

FACCH SACCH CCCH

SCH FCCH

Broadcast Control Channel – BCCH RACH CBCH

Common Control Channel – CCCH
Dedicated Control Channel – DCCH
Associated Control Channel – ACCH PCH/AGCH

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BCH Channels
BCCH( Broadcast Control Channel )
• Downlink only
• Broadcasts general information of the serving cell called System
Information
• BCCH is transmitted on timeslot zero of BCCH carrier
• Read only by idle mobile at least once every 30 sec.
SCH( Synchronization Channel )
• Downlink only
• Carries information for frame synchronization. Contains TDMA
frame number and BSIC.
FCCH( Frequency Correction Channel )
• Downlink only.
• Enables MS to synchronies to the frequency.
• Also helps mobiles of the n cells to locate TS 0 of BCCH carrier.

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CCCH Channels
RACH( Random Access Channel )

• Uplink only
• Used by the MS to access the Network.

AGCH( Access Grant Channel )

• Downlink only
• Used by the network to assign a signaling channel upon
successful decoding of access bursts.

PCH( Paging Channel )

• Downlink only.
• Used by the Network to contact the MS.

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DCCH Channels
SDCCH( Standalone Dedicated Control Channel )
• Uplink and Downlink
• Used for call setup, location update and SMS.
SACCH( Slow Associated Control Channel )
• Used on Uplink and Downlink only in dedicated mode.
• Uplink SACCH messages - Measurement reports.
• Downlink SACCH messages - control info.
FACCH( Fast Associated Control Channel )
• Uplink and Downlink.
• Associated with TCH only.
• Is used to send fast messages like handover messages.
• Works by stealing traffic bursts.

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 Uplink Logical channel

CCH
RACH CCCH

SDCCH
SACCH DCCH DCH
FACCH

TCH/F
TCH
TCH/H

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 Downlink Logical channel

FCCH
BCCH SCH
CCH BCCH

PCH
CCCH
AGCH

SDCCH
DCCH SACCH
DCH FACCH

TCH/F
TCH
TCH/H

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 How to use these channels?
Power-off
Search for frequency correction burst FCCH
Search for synchronous burst SCH
Extract system information BCCH
Idle mode

Monitor paging message PCH

Send access burst RACH
Allocate signaling channel AGCH
Dedicated mode
Set up the call SDCCH

Allocate voice channel SDCCH

Conversation TCH

Idle mode Release the call FACCH

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 Chapter 1 Channel Concepts
Chapter 2 Bursts
Chapter 3 Frames

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 Bursts
Burst:

• Unit of transmission ( about hundred modulated bits )

• Have finite duration
• Occupy a finite number of spectrum
• Sent in time and frequency windows ( Slots )

Burst Types:

• Normal Burst
• Frequency Correction
• Synchronization Burst
• Access Burst
• Dummy Burst

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 Normal Burst
FRAME1(4.615ms)
FRAME2

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

0.577ms
0.546ms
3 57 bits 26 bits 57 bits 3

Guard Tail Flag Training Flag Tail Guard

Data Data
Period Bits Bit sequence Bit Bits Period
(8.25 bits)
• Carries traffic channel and control channels BCCH, PCH, AGCH, SDCCH, SACCH and
FACCH.

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 Normal Burst
Data - Two blocks of 57 bits each. Carries speech, data or control info.
Tail bits - Used to indicate the start and end of each burst. Three bits always 000.

Guard period - 8.25 bits long. The receiver can only receive and decode if the
burst is received within the timeslot designated for it.Since the MS are moving.
Exact synchronization of burst is not possible practically. Hence 8.25bits
corresponding to about 30us is available as guard period for a small margin of
error.

Flag bits - This bit is used to indicate if the 57 bits data block is used as FACCH.

Training Sequence - This is a set sequence of bits known by both the

transmitter and the receiver( BCC of BSIC). When a burst of information is
received the equalizer searches for the training sequence code. The receiver
measures and then mimics the distortion which the signal has been subjected to.
The receiver then compares the received data with the distorted possible
transmitted sequence and chooses the most likely one.

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 Frequency Correction Burst
FRAME1(4.615ms) FRAME2

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

0.577ms
0.546ms
3 142 bits 3

Guard Tail Tail Guard

Fixed Data
Period Bits Bits Period
(8.25 bits)
• Carries FCCH channel.
• Made up of 142 consecutive zeros.
• Enables MS to correct its local oscillator locking it to that of the BTS.

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 Synchronisation Burst

FRAME1(4.615ms) FRAME2

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

0.577ms
0.546ms
3 39 bits 64 bits 39 bits 3

Guard Tail Encrypted Synchronisation Encrypted Tail Guard

Period Bits Bits Sequence Bits Bits Period
• Carries SCH channel. (8.25 bits)
• Enables MS to synchronies its timings with the BTS.
• Contains BSIC and TDMA Frame number.

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 Access Burst

FRAME1(4.615ms) FRAME2

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

0.577ms

8 41 bits 36 bits 3 68.25 bits

Guard Tail Synchronization Encrypted Tail Guard

Period Bits Bits Sequence Bits Period
• Carries RACH and FACCH channels.
• Used for Random and Handover access

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 Dummy Burst

FRAME1(4.615ms) FRAME2

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

0.577ms
0.546ms
3 57 bits 26 bits 57 bits 3

Guard Tail Flag Training Flag Tail Guard

Data Data
Period Bits Bit sequence Bit Bits Period

• Transmitted on the unused timeslots of the BCCH carrier in the downlink.

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 Chapter 1 Channel Concepts
Chapter 2 Bursts
Chapter 3 Frames

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 Frames

 26 TDMA frame multiframe: Used to carry

traffic channels. TCH,SACCH and FACCH.
 51 TDMA frame multiframe: Used to carry
control channels BCCH,CCCH,SDCCH and
SACCH.

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 GSM Multi-frames

TDMA Frames

0 1
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

0 1 2 3 4 46 47 48 49 50

51 – Frame Multi-frames

CONTROL CHANNELS

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 GSM Multi-frames

TDMA Frames
0 1
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

0 1 2 3 4 21 22 23 24 25

26 – Frame Multi-frames

TRAFFIC CHANNELS

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Hyperframe and Superframe Structure
3h 28min 53s 760ms 1 Hyperframe = 2048 superframes = 2,715,648 TDMA frames

0 1 2 2045 2046 2047

6.12s 1 Superframe = 1326 TDMAframes = 51(26 fr) 0r 26(51 fr) multiframes

0 1 2 3 47 48 49 50

0 1 24 25

120ms 235.38ms

0 1 2 23 24 25 0 1 2 48 49 50

Traffic 26 - Frame Multiframe Control 51 - Frame Multiframe

4.615ms

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 TDMA Frame

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  Basic Idea about various channels used
in GSM.
 Different types of bursts and frames.
 Structure of bursts and frames.

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Thank you
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