JOURNAL OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS, VOLUME 8, ISSUE 1, APRIL 2011 16

Analytical Analysis of Multimedia Mobile Networks

Mohammad Shahidul Islam
Abstract Cellular networks provide additional multimedia services, besides the traditional voice service. The introduction of multimedia services to cellular networks creates new problems for the design of such systems. We need to provide certain QoS for the offered multimedia services. In multimedia mobile IP networks one may expect different bandwidth demands by different traffic classes. Also, different classes have different traffic parameters, such as new call intensity and call/session duration. This paper addresses problems that arise from the increasing demand of multimedia services and we derive an analytical model for single-class mobile networks. Index Terms Cellular network, Mobile communication, network applications, network services, network traffic, wireless network.

1 INTRODUCTION
OR appropriate planning of multimedia mobile networks, we need to derive an analytical model for the expected traffic. Usually, we use an analytical approach for the time period during a day with the highest traffic load in the network or in a particular link (in circuit-switched networks we refer to this time period as the busy hour). In mobile networks we usually measure quality of service with new call blocking probability and call dropping probability. Call blocking chance refers to blocking of new calls in a cell. Dropping chance refers to forced termination of an already established call due to no availability of channels in any of the neighboring cells at the time of handover. To be able to use the analytical description of the resource allocation and call blocking/dropping, it is more convenient to split the available bandwidth into logical channels. Allocation of the logical channels may be done statically [fixed channel allocation (FCA)] or dynamically [dynamic channel allocation (DCA)]. In this paper we assume fixed allocation of logical channels in the wireless access network. [1]

2 ANALYSIS OF MOBILE NETWORKS

2.1 Single Traffic Class In fixed traffic networks, the users attachment point to the network is fixed during longer time periods (i.e., months or years), but in mobile networks, users tend to be on the move and therefore frequently change the wireless access point (e.g., the base station). Thus, a user is allowed to move during the duration of a call (or a session), thus performing handovers while moving through different cells. The mobility of the users is the reason for a different approach in dimensioning mobile networks than traditional fixed networks [2]. For example, in traditional telecommunications networks we

usually analyze two main parameters: a) call duration and b) call arrival rate (or call interarrival time), But in cellular networks, mobile terminals may allocate and release logical channels in the same or different cells several times during a call. In a case of multimedia traffic, the bandwidth demand by a specific connection varies during the call time. This is different from the classical mobile communication networks where each call uses or releases a defined (fixed) number of logical channel(s) or bandwidth portion. Hence, in packet cellular networks, a bandwidth portion of the wireless link (in a cell) may be allocated by a new or incoming handover call. Also, a occupied portion of the cell capacity may be released with the termination of the call or outgoing handover (to an adjacent cell). Traffic parameters depend on the cell sizes and the users mobility. In this paper we present analysis on a call-level. Therefore, we use call level traffic parameters according to their definitions. Using the declared definitions of the traffic parameters, we derive an analytical model for single-class mobile networks.

2.2 Analytical Modeling We need to learn how the traffic parameters are related to different cell sizes and the mobility of users. For that purpose we develop an analytical model. Traffic parameters are related to mobility parameters, such as velocity, initial position in the cell, and direction of the movement, which are modeled as random variables. In order to do traffic analysis in mobile networks, we need to analyze the following traffic and performance parameters: average channel holding time Tch, handover intensity, new call blocking chance Pbn, handover call blocking probability PFh (Pbn and PFh parameters define the grade of service), average number of handovers per call, and call dropping probability PD. Handovers are typical events in a wireless environment. When a Mohammad Shahidul Islam Assistant Professor and Head, Computer Science and Engineering De- handover call is blocked, however, the ongoing connection is partment, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Green University of Ban- dropped. Call dropping reduces the average call duration. Thus, gladesh, 220/D Gegum Rokeya Sharani, Dhaka-1207, Bangladesh we may define effective call duration 1/e, e=c+PBh 2.1
2011 JOT http://sites.google.com/site/journaloftelecommunications/

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Where c and h are call termination rate and handover departure rate. Considering a system consisting of two cells, which are switching handovers between each other. Denote with p (n1, n2) the joint probability distribution when n1 channels are busy in the first cell and n2 channels are busy in the second cell. The Markov state diagram for this scenario is given in Figure 2.1. Assuming C1 channels for cell 1 and C2 channels for cell 2, for ni = {0, 1, , Ci}, i = 1, 2:

Replacing (2.5) into (2.4), we obtain the following expression for the average number of handovers per call E[H]:

2.6

The probabilities Pn and Ph can be calculated using the following relations: 2.7

2.2 We get a system of (C1 + 1)(C2 + 1) equations. By solving these equations we will obtain the joint probability distribution. For the equilibrium case, when there are no handovers, state distribution is given with

2.8

where fTn(t) and fTh(t) are the probability distribution functions for new call cell residence time Tn and handover call cell residence time Th, respectively. Call dropping probability is the probability that a non blocked call will be forced to end due to lack of free channels in the target cell at a handover. We may calculate the probability PD[H] that a call performs H handovers before it is dropped:

2.9 Then, the call dropping probability is 2.10 Figure 2.1 Markov state diagram for two-cell scenario. 2.3 But when handovers exist, the above approach is not efficient. The average number of handovers per call is a significant parameter for obtaining the performances of the mobile system. We proceed with a more tractable analytical approach. If P[H = j] denotes the probability that there are j handovers per call, then the average number of handovers per call is 2.4 Let Pn be the probability that an accepted new call will require at least one handover before completion, let Ph be the probability that a call after a successful handover will require at least one more handover before completion, and let PFh denote the probability that a handover attempt will fail. Then we can calculate P[H = j]: 2.11 where P[H | t] is the probability that the call has H handovers when the holding time is t. If we insert (2.11) into (2.10), we obtain

where P[H = i] is the probability that the call has i handovers during its duration. In this approach we assumed that call duration is exponentially distributed with a mean Tc = 1/ [ is given by T=c+h]. Furthermore, if we assume that channel holding time is also exponentially distributed with a mean Tch (i.e., number of handovers per call follows the Poisson process), we may write

2.12

2.5

Furthermore, if we change the order of summing and integration, and utilize the expansion of the exponential function, we get

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2.13

Finally, from (2.13) we obtain the relation for the call dropping probability PD: 2.14

probability equals new call blocking probability (i.e., PBn = PFh). To bound call-dropping or handover-blocking probability, we need to reserve channels (or bandwidth) for handovers in advance. [1] The average number of handovers per call may be calculated using (2.6), applied to the specific traffic type, or we may calculate it by dividing the average call duration time Tc and average channel holding time Tch (within the cell): 2.15

The last equation shows the relation between the call dropping probability PD and handover blocking probability PFh. Mutual dependence of these two parameters is fundamental for traffic analysis of mobile networks and admission control procedures. In the following section we extend the traffic theory for mobile networks with a single traffic type to a scenario with multiple traffic types.

2.3 Analysis of Multimedia Mobile Networks with Deterministic Resource Reservation Multimedia mobile networks will include different traffic types, thus leading to different demands for network resources. We want to obtain the efficiency limit of such a multimedia mobile network. First, let us define the assumptions in the analysis. We assume that no handover or new calls are queued. If any call is blocked, it is cleared from the system. Furthermore, we will use an assumption that capacity C of a cell (i.e., wireless access link) is divided into a set of logical channels i, i = 1, 2, ..., N. Also, we assume that resource allocation is deterministic (i.e., changing of allocated channels within a single cell is not allowed).
The calls from different users are independent. This assumption holds in the cases where the number of users in a cell is many times greater than the available number of logical channels in that cell, and it usually holds in telecommunication mobile networks. Let us assume that the network has defined K different traffic classes. We assume that all call arrivals (for all classes) are according to the Poisson process. Similarly, call duration is exponentially distributed for all traffic classes. Hence, the call arrival process for a traffic type k is the Poisson process with rate k, and call duration time is exponentially distributed with mean 1/k. All calls from a same class k require the same amount of bandwidth denoted as bk. In a case of no free channels in the serving cell at the call initiation, the call will be rejected (i.e., blocked). We assume that the number of users in the cell is large enough, so the number of ongoing connections does not vary new call and handover intensity. Utilization of channels may be calculated as a relation between average time of resources allocation and cell capacity. Considering the QoS, an important quality measure for a mobile user is the probability of a successfully established call getting blocked at handover (i.e., call-dropping probability). For mobile users the dropping of an ongoing call is highly undesirable [3]. Therefore, we usually bound call-dropping probability by reserving a part of the cell capacity only for handover calls. The drawback is that such an approach increases new call blocking probability. Call dropping is directly associated with the handover blocking probability. If the system does not allow or use reservation of channels for handover, then handover blocking

To obtain the efficiency of the wireless networks, we should first consider a system where channels for a handover call must be reserved in advance in all cells that a mobile will visit during the call. This is the limiting case for handover mechanisms, because it provides zero handover blocking probability. Every other scheme should provide higher utilization of resources than this strategy. To provide the limiting case, we also assume that a mobile does not visit the same cell more than once throughout the call (although it may happen in reality). If a call of type k has Hk handovers, then the number of visited cells is Hk + 1. If we assume handover arrivals as a Poisson process during the call duration, then the average number of handovers may be calculated as Hk = Tc,k/Tch,k, where Tc,k and Tch,k are mean call duration and channel holding time for a traffic type k, respectively. In the analysis we assume that channels are deterministically reserved in advance in all the cells that the mobile will visit during the call. If the average bandwidth requirement per call of traffic type k is bk, then the average total bandwidth reserved for handovers during the entire duration of the call must be

2.16 If the average number of users per cell is N, and k = k/k is the offered traffic per mobile user of call type k, the average total used bandwidth in the system is given by 2.17

Using (2.16) and (2.17), we may obtain the total bandwidth reserved for handovers in the system as

2.18 We may define utilization u of resources in the cellular mobile network as

2.19

Because channel holding time is inverse-proportional to the mobility of users, from (2.19) we may conclude that utilization is also inversely proportional to the handover intensity. Thus, cellular networks with smaller cells or higher user mobility will

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have lower utilization of the resources. In a trivial case, when K = 1 traffic type, (2.19) transforms into

2.20 Furthermore, let us analyze the case with K = 2 traffic types (i.e., we consider a multiclass network). The utilization of wireless channels will be

that base stations can support within a cell. Then, capacity density is C =CT/P , where P is the coverage area of the cell. We usually use hexagonal model of the cells, although a cell in a real network can have various forms. The hexagonal cell is further approximated with a circle. Therefore, we may write P~R 2, where R is the cell radius. Using the hexagonal form of the cells (with side a) and considering, [1]

2.21

We may calculate capacity density using the following equation:

2.25 After some algebra, from the last relation we obtain The above equation shows the dependence between the capacity density C and cell radius R. By decreasing the cell size, we increase the physical capacity of the network; and this is a scenario of microcell and picocell networks. On the other hand, decreasing the cell size increases the average number of handovers per call (channel holding time Tch decreases). In such a case, using deterministic advance reservation of channels for handovers, we need to reserve a larger amount of bandwidth. Hence, a higher handover ratio leads to lower utilization of the wireless resources. Thus, we have two contradictory demands in cellular wireless networks: to increase the capacity we need to reduce the cell size, but at the same time smaller cells result in reduced utilization of the channels. From the analysis of the deterministic theoretical reservation scheme, we can draw the following main conclusions: Utilization of wireless resources decreases as cell size decreases; Utilization of wireless resources decreases as the diversity in traffic parameters of different traffic types increases (e.g., some multimedia calls have long holding time and large bandwidth demands, and others have shorter holding time and smaller bandwidth requirements).

2.22 Different traffic types have different traffic characteristics. Calls from one traffic type can have shorter duration, but higher intensity (e.g., phone calls). On the other hand, other traffic types can have longer call duration, but less frequent calls (e.g., multimedia calls). Without losing generality, we may define parameters as functions of one variable x (i.e., 1 = /x, 1 = /x2, b1 = bx, Tch,1 = Tch) for the first traffic type, and 2 = x, 2 = x2, b2 = b/x, Tch,2 = Tch for the second traffic type. According to such definitions of the parameters, we can control call duration, call intensity, and bandwidth requirements by changing the parameter x. If we introduce these definitions of the traffic parameters in (2.22), we may write

2.23

3
The last relation significantly differs from (2.20), except in the trivial case x = 1 when the analysis is transiting to the scenario with a single traffic type in the network. It is interesting to calculate utilization for the limiting cases (i.e., x0 and x): 2.24

CONCLUSION

This simple example with two traffic types in the network shows that utilization of the wireless resources decreases when we increase the diversity in traffic characteristics of different traffic types. Of course, this discussion considers the boundary case, when we reserve channels for handovers to reduce handover blocking probability to zero. In FDMA/TDMA systems (e.g., GSM) we need to perform frequency planning of the wireless radio network. For that purpose, we usually group frequency carriers into groups of frequencies called clusters. Let denote the cluster size, and CT denote the amount of capacity

In this paper we created an analytical framework for analysis of mobile networks with single traffic type (e.g., voice traffic) and with multiple traffic types (i.e., multimedia networks). We can use analytical and/or simulation techniques for dimensioning and design of the mobile networks. There are two main requirements at the design phase of a telecommunications network: 1. High quality of service, which satisfies the users; 2. Maximum utilization of network resources, which increases the revenue of the mobile operator. Both requirements are opposite, and therefore dimensioning and design of mobile networks should balance them. Traffic analysis and network dimensioning differs between circuitswitched mobile networks such as 2G, and heterogeneous wireless networks such as 3G. While in the former case we can use the Erlang-B formula adapted to mobile environment (i.e., considering handovers), in 3G mobile networks we have a multimedia environment and different wireless access techniques

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(e.g., combinations of FDMA, TDMA, and CDMA). Multimedia networks are supposed to support different services with different traffic parameters and bandwidth requirements. For their analysis we can exploit the multidimensional Erlang-B formula, the aggregation method, or the more generalized convolution algorithm. [1]

REFERENCES
Toni Janevski, Traffic Analysis and Design of Wireless IP Networks, Text book [2] Lam, D., D. C. Cox, and J. Widom, Teletraffic Modeling for Personal Communications Services, IEEE Communications Magazine, Vol. 35, No. 2, February 1997. [3] Hong, D., and S. Rappaport, Traffic Model and Performance Analysis for Cellular Mobile Radio Telephone Systems with Prioritized and Nonprioritized Handoff Procedures, IEEE Trans. on Vehicular Technology, Vol. VT-35, No. 3, August 1986. [4] Valko, A., and A. Campbell, An Efficiency Limit of Cellular Mobile Systems, Computer Communication Journal, Special Issue on Recent Advances in Mobile Communications Networks, 1999. [5] Ramjee, R., R. Nagarajan, and D. Towsley, On Optimal Call Admission Control in Cellular Networks, Wireless Networks Journal, Vol. 3, No. 1, 1997. [6] Kleinrock, L., Queuing Systems, Vol. I: Theory, New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1975. [7] Haring, G., et al., Loss Formulas and Their Application to Optimization for Cellular Networks, IEEE Trans. on Vehicular Technology, Vol. 50, No. 3, May 2001. [8] Iversen, V. B., Teletraffic Engineering Handbook, ITU-D SG 2/16 & ITC Draft, June 2001. [9] Hlavacs, H., et al., Modeling Resource Management for MultiClass Traffic in Mobile Cellular Networks, 35th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, 2002. [10] Viterbi, A. J., CDMA: Principles and Spread Spectrum Communication, Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1995. [11] Holma, H., and A. Toskala, WCDMA for UMTS, New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2001. [1]

Mohammad Shahidul Islam received his B.Tech. degree in Computer Science and Technology from Indian Institute of TechnologyRoorkee (I.I.T-R), Uttar Pradesh, India in 2002, 1st M.Sc. degree in Computer Science from American World University, London Campus, U.K in 2005 and 2nd M.Sc in Mobile Computing and Communication from University of Greenwich, London, U.K in 2008. Now he is serving as a Assistant Professor and Head in Computer Science and Engineering Department, Faculty of Science and Engineering at Green University of Bangladesh, 220/D Gegum Rokeya Sharani, Dhaka-1207, Bangladesh. His field of research interest includes wireless and mobile communication, Satelite Commucation and Computer Networking.