Modern Wireless Networks

Cellular Networks
IECE 574– Spring 2021
Prof. Dola Saha
1
 Cellular Generations

Universally
accepted single
technology

~1980 ~1990 ~2000 ~2010 ~2020

3
The Next Generation – 5G/NR
Ø Discussions on fifth-generation (5G) mobile
communication began around 2012.
Ø The term 5G is often used to refer to specific new
5G radio-access technology.
Ø 5G Use Cases:
§ enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB),
§ massive machine-type communication (mMTC), and
§ ultra-reliable and low-latency communication (URLLC)
4
5G Use Case Classification
Examples?

5
 5G Use Case Classification

Virtual Reality
4K video

Massive number of
Traffic Safety
remote
Factory Automation
sensors/actuators

6
NR – New 5G Radio-Access Technology
Ø All requirements were not met by LTE
Ø 3GPP initiated the development of a new radio-
access technology known as NR (New Radio)

7
5G Wireless Access
Ø More Spectrum
Ø Tight interworking with LTE
Ø Not restricted to be backward
compatible
Ø Standalone mode
Ø 5G Core Network (5GCN) is
under development

8
Standardization
Ø Coordinated international effort by wireless industry
Ø Depends on Global & Regional regulations
Ø Interoperability of the products
Ø Multiple organizations involved in creating technical
specifications and standards as well as regulation
§ Standards Developing Organizations (SDOs)
§ Regulatory bodies and administrations
§ Industry Forums

9
Standards Developing Organizations
Ø Develop and agree on technical standards for
mobile communications systems
Ø Protocol to communicate is standardized
Ø Proprietary solutions possible (like scheduling)
Ø Usually nonprofit industry organizations and not
government controlled
Ø Example: 3GPP

10
Regulatory bodies and administrations
Ø Government-led organizations that set regulatory and
legal requirements for selling, deploying, and
operating mobile systems and other
telecommunication products.
Ø Spectrum allocation, amount of emisions from a Tx.
Ø International Telecommunications Union (ITU)
handles spectrum regulation on a Global level.
Ø Federal Communications Communications (FCC) for
USA. 11
Industry Forums
Ø Industry-led groups promoting and lobbying for
specific technologies or other interests
Ø Mostly led by network operators
Ø Examples: Next Generation Mobile Networks
(NGMN), 5G Americas

12
Organizations in Cellular Network

13
Requirements
Ø ITU-R is the radio communications sector of the
International Telecommunications Union (ITU).
Ø ITU-R defines the spectrum for different services
in the RF spectrum
Ø International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT)
– requirements issued by ITU-R.
Ø The framework and objective for IMT-2020 is
outlined in ITU-R Recommendation M.2083.
14
Workplan for IMT-2020 in ITU-R

World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC) 15

16
Recommendation ITU-R M.2083
Capabilities

17
Capabilities – IMT 2020
Ø Peak data rate
§ = System bandwidth x Peak spectral efficiency
Ø The user experienced data rate
§ the data rate that can be achieved over a large coverage area for a majority
of the users
Ø Spectrum efficiency
§ the average data throughput per Hz of spectrum and per “cell” (or TRP)
Ø Area traffic capacity
§ = Spectrum efficiency x BW x TRP density
TRP- Transmission/Reception Point 18
Capabilities – IMT 2020
Ø Network energy efficiency
§ Energy consumed per bit of data (Tx & Rx)
Ø Latency (10 fold reduction compared to IMT
Advanced)
Ø Mobility (500Km/hr)
Ø Connection Density

19
Additional Capabilities – IMT 2020
Ø Spectrum and bandwidth flexibility
Ø Reliability (very high level of availability)
Ø Resilience (operate correctly after disturbance)
Ø Security & Privacy
Ø Operational lifetime (example, machine-type
devices requiring a very long battery life > 10
years)
20
3GPP Standardization
Ø Requirements: what is to be achieved by the specification.
Ø Architecture: the main building blocks and interfaces are
decided.
Ø Detailed specifications: every interface is specified in detail.
Ø Testing and verification: the interface specifications are proven
to work with real-life equipment.

21
3GPP Technical Specifications Groups
Ø RAN
Ø Services & System Aspects
Ø Core Network & Terminals

22
Spectrum for LTE
Ø Paired bands
§ separated frequency ranges are assigned for uplink and
downlink
§ used for Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) operation
Ø Unpaired bands
§ single shared frequency range for both uplink and downlink
§ used for Time Division Duplex (TDD) operation
Ø Unpaired downlink only bands
§ used for carrier aggregation for supplemental downlink
23
Bands allocated above 1GHz for LTE

24
Bands Allocated below 1GHz for LTE

25
Spectrum for 5G (All bands in LTE + More)
Ø Bands to be studied already Ø Bands to be studied not
assigned to the mobile assigned to the mobile service
service on a primary basis on a primary basis
§ 24.25-27.5 GHz § 31.8-33.4 GHz (aeronautical and
§ 37-40.5 GHz shipborne radar)
§ 42.5-43.5 GHz § 40.5-42.5 GHz (satellite)
§ 45.5-47 GHz § 47-47.2 GHz (amateur satellite
radio)
§ 47.2-50.2 GHz
§ 50.4-52.6 GHz
§ 66-76 GHz
§ 81-86 GHz
26
Bands for 5G NR in FR1 (below 6 GHz)

27
Bands for 5G NR in FR2 (24.2-52.6 GHz.)

28
RF Exposure Limits
Ø Mandated
§ Recommended by International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation (ICNIRP)
§ Specified by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the US
Ø Set with wide safety margins to protect against excessive heating of tissue
due to energy absorption
Ø Energy absorption in tissue becomes increasingly superficial with
increasing frequency, and thereby more difficult to measure
Ø To be compliant with ICNIRP at the higher frequencies, the transmit power
might have to be up to 10 dB below the power levels used for current
cellular technologies

29
LTE Releases

30
LTE Core Network
Ø RAN: Radio Access Network
Ø S-GW: Serving Gateway
Ø P-GW: Packet Data Network Gateway
Ø MME: Mobility Management Entity
Ø HSS: Home Subscriber Service
Ø EPC: Evolved Packet Core
Ø EPC and LTE RAN is together termed
EPS (Evolved Packet Service)

31
Path to Internet
Ø User Equipment (UE) to the Internet

32
Evolved Packet System (EPS)
Ø RAN: Radio related functionalities
§ scheduling, radio-resource handling, retransmission protocols,
coding, and various multi-antenna schemes
Ø EPC: functionalities needed for providing a
complete mobile-broadband network
§ authentication, charging functionality, and setup of end-to-end
connections
Ø Why two separate entities?
33
Modules of EPC
Ø MME
§ Control-plane node of the EPC.
§ Handles connection/release of bearers to a device, handling of IDLE to
ACTIVE transitions, and handling of security keys.
Ø S-GW
§ User-plane node connecting the EPC to the LTE RAN.
§ The S-GW acts as a mobility anchor when devices move between
eNodeBs.
§ Collection of information and statistics necessary for charging is also
handled by the S-GW.
34
Modules of EPC
Ø P-GW
§ connects the EPC to the internet
§ Allocation of the IP address for a specific device
§ quality- of-service (QoS) enforcement
Ø HSS
§ a database containing subscriber information
Ø Other modules:
§ Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Services (MBMS)
§ The Policy Control and Charging Rules Function (PCRF)

35
Radio Access Network Interfaces

36
eNodeB (evolved NodeB)
Ø eNodeB:
§ logical representation
§ physical implementation can be a three-sector BS
§ can be a BBU pool, where RRH are connected remotely
Ø Interfaces:
§ S1: connection between eNB and EPC (S1-U and S1-C)
§ X2: connecting eNBs for active mode mobility, multi-cell
radio resource management (RRM)

37
5G Core Network Architecture

38
Modules of 5G
Ø User Plane Function (UPF):
§ Gateway between the RAN and external networks such as the Internet.
§ Handles packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, quality-of-
service handling and packet filtering, and traffic measurements.
§ Serves as an anchor point for (inter-RAT) mobility when necessary.
Ø Session Management Function (SMF):
§ Handles IP address allocation for the UE, control of policy enforcement,
and general session-management functions.

39
Modules of 5G
Ø The Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF):
§ handles control signaling between the core network and the device, security for
user data, idle-state mobility, and authentication.
Ø Other functions:
§ the Policy Control Function (PCF) responsible for policy rules,
§ the Unified Data Management (UDM) responsible for authentication credentials
and access authorization
§ the Network Exposure Function (NEF)
§ the NR Repository Function (NRF)
§ the Authentication Server Function (AUSF) handing authentication functionality
§ the Application Function (AF).

40
Combination of Core Networks & RATs
Ø eNodeB – evolved Node B
Ø gNodeB – next generation Node B

41
RAN Protocol Architecture

42
Protocol

43
Protocol Entities of the RAN
Ø Packet data convergence protocol (PDCP)
§ performs IP header compression, ciphering, and integrity protection.
§ handles in-sequence delivery and duplicate removal in case of handover.
Ø Radio-link control (RLC)
§ responsible for segmentation/concatenation, retransmission handling,
duplicate detection, and in-sequence delivery to higher layers.
§ provides services to the PDCP.

44
Protocol Entities of the RAN
Ø Medium-access control (MAC)
§ handles multiplexing of logical channels, hybrid-ARQ
retransmissions, and uplink and downlink scheduling.
§ The scheduling functionality is located in the eNodeB for both
uplink and downlink.
§ The hybrid-ARQ protocol part is present in both the
transmitting and receiving ends of the MAC protocol.
§ The MAC provides services to the RLC in the form of logical
channels.
45
Protocol Entities of the RAN
Ø Physical layer (PHY)
§ coding/decoding, modulation/demodulation, multi-antenna
mapping, and other typical physical-layer functions.
§ The physical layer offers services to the MAC layer in the
form of transport channels.

46
LTE Data Flow

47