GSM

TDMA engineering
RE56 Spring 2006
Alexandre CAMINADA
UTBM – Computer Science Department

What is TDMA engineering ?

 TDMA communications systems are based on temporal division of frequency use

 The capacity of TDMA depends on the number of frequency and time-slots available for
communications

 For a given capacity, the communications quality (voice transmission) and the real
throughput (data transmission) depend on the management of interference between base
stations
• If BS use different frequency there is no interference, and the network efficiency is good
• If the number of frequency is limited, lower than the required capacity, the BS must share
frequency, and then frequency reuse bring in the same time a better capacity and a worst
quality due to interference between frequency which are reused several times

 TDMA engineering aims at managing the frequency reuse between BS to increase the
capacity and the quality in the same time

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

2 - 2006
 Contents

1. Spectrum use
2. Frequency assignment
3. Frequency hopping

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

3 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) 3/ Frequency hopping

 1G analogue systems
 Plus: easy to do Communication 1
Communication 2
 Minus: interference, fading Communication 3

m
ec tr u
Sp

Time

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

4 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Frequency-Time DMA (F-TDMA) 3/ Frequency hopping

 2G numerical systems: GSM, DECT, D-AMPS…

 Plus: gain in capacity Communication 1
 Minus: synchronisation, fading Communication 2
Communication 3

m
ec tr u
Sp

Time
Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM
5 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Slow Frequency Hopping F-TDMA 3/ Frequency hopping

 GSM
 Plus: gain in interference, gain in fading
 Minus: complex to evaluate
Communication 1
Communication 2
r um
ect Communication 3
Sp

Time

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

6 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Spectrum reuse in mobile networks 3/ Frequency hopping

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

7 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Interference brings by spectrum reuse 3/ Frequency hopping

 Reuse is depending on system ability for interference management

 It is not possible to use the same frequency in adjacent cells: co-channel
interference between 2 mobiles
 Interference is C/(I+N), where
• C, power of expected signal
• I, set of interference, often limited to co-channel
• N, white noise, where N << I

Co-channel interference
Signals are strong source of interference on the cell borders

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

8 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Downlink interference formulation 3/ Frequency hopping

Let Pei,j the emitted power from BS j to MS i, and Li,j the global loss from BS j to MS i
Then
Ci, j  Pei , j Li , j

I intra i
 
i ' i , i 'C0
Pei ', j Li , j et I inter i
 
j '  j , j 'BS
Ptoti , j ' Li , j ' ,  orthogonality factor

Pei , j Li , j
C /I 
i, j tot i
 
i ' i , i 'C0
Pei ', j Li , j  
j '  j , j 'BS
Ptoti , j ' Li , j '

With TDMA, cell’s circuits are rightly orthogonal (=0) then there is no intra-cell
interference

Iintra BS0
BSk+1
Li,0
Iinter
Li,k+1

Li,k Li,1
Iinter
Iinter BS1
BSk Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM
9 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Distance of reuse between cells 3/ Frequency hopping

 Lower required C/I means shorter reuse distance and higher capacity
• Analogue system: C/I  18 dB
• GSM: C/I  9dB
 “Reuse separation distance ranges from 4 to 6 times the cell radius” (W.C.Y. LEE)
f1 f1
D

R R

R: cell radius
D: frequency reuse distance D R  Seuil

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

10 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Frequency reuse pattern between cells 3/ Frequency hopping

K=3
 Frequency reuse pattern (k=3, 7, 12) 3
7

 Hypothesis 1
2

• Regular network (grid) 3

• Regular traffic demand

2

• Regular propagation
 Graph-coloring problem
 Advantages K=7
2
• Easy to do 2 7 3
• No propagation model 7
7
3 1
1 6 4
 Inherent problem 6 4
4 5
5 2
• High traffic demand requires small patterns 7 3
• Small patterns produce interference 1
6 4
5

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

11 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
The big problem of real cell coverage 3/ Frequency hopping

Nominal cell boundaries

Radio link
Transmitter

T-antenna Coverage:
Frequency Blue: field strength > -100
Distance Yellow: field strength > -90
Propagation & Weather
Environmental effects Obstacle
…dependent
R-antenna

Receiver
The cell

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

12 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
The big problem of real cell coverage 3/ Frequency hopping

Theory Reality

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

13 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
The real networks are far from theory 3/ Frequency hopping

The model is built on ideal scenario

• Regular plane surface: uniform propagation (no obstacles)

• Each station located at a node on a regular grid
• No vacancy on node
• All stations parameters settings identical (omni directional
diagram)
• Each station has a regular traffic
• Co-channel interference is only considered (no adjacent
interference)

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

14 - 2006
 Contents

1. Spectrum use

2. Frequency assignment
3. Frequency hopping

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

15 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
The theoretical basis of frequency assignment 3/ Frequency hopping

 Definition: frequency reuse consists in

using the same frequency channel on
areas that are separated enough to
avoid co-channel interference
problems

 It is a graph colouring problem: the

frequency are assigned to cells as
the colours are assigned to areas

 This concept is fundamental to get the

gap between low bandwidth and high
capacity one need to catch a lot of
customers

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

16 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Cells are overlapping each others 3/ Frequency hopping

 Cell overlap is measured from

• Propagation simulation
• Field and neighbor measurement reports
 On one pixel, currently are 40 to 70 significant signals
 6 or 7 good signals are needed (HO)
 Others are multiple radio interference: I = I1+I2+…+In

Good signals

Interference
Best server

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

17 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Carrier-to-Interference matrix computation 3/ Frequency hopping

 CIM [i,j] = surface with single radio interference between stations i (carrier) and j
(interference) at all C/I level
 Computed from cell overlap
 Pixels restricted to single radio interference

Interference from B Pixel

Cover from A CIM [A,B]

C/I

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

18 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Carrier-to-Interference matrix computation 3/ Frequency hopping

 OM [i,j] = surface with single radio interference between stations i (carrier) and j
(interference) for a given C/I compatibility threshold for co-channel and adjacent
channel
 Computed from C/I matrix
 Threshold per cell, per channel, per network layer….

Pixel Pixel

OM [A,B]

C/I

Threshold
Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM
19 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Carrier-to-Interference matrix computation 3/ Frequency hopping

 Co-channel and adjacent channel interference rating for cell pairs are specified in terms of
affected areas
 Specification are cell planned ; it supposes that TRX in a cell use the same technology and
the same transmission power, and emit from the same antenna ; or several cells have to be
defined
Stations A B C D
A 0,30 0,25
0,12 0,15
B 0,12
0
C 0,34
0,08
D 0,18 0,15
0,12 0

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

20 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Matrix of channel separations between cells 3/ Frequency hopping

 Additional separations required for engineering constraints

• Co-station separation: 3 channels (>= 3)
• Co-site separation: 2 channels (>= 2) ; A and C are co-located
 SM [i,j] = channel separation requirement between frequency assigned to stations i
and j to avoid any interference from j on i
 Computed from overlapping matrix for (i,j) where i  j

Stations A B C D Stations A B C D
A 0,30 0,25 A 3 2 2 2
0,12 0,15
B 1 3 0 0
B 0,12
0 C 2 0 3 2
Etc. D 2 0 1 3

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

21 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Major FAP problems for operators 3/ Frequency hopping

 Assigning frequency to cell is computing a frequency plan following

one of the problems below
• Problem 1: Minimize Spectrum FAP
– A number of frequencies is available for the network
– Objective is to minimize the number of frequencies used while satisfying all
compatibility constraints and demand constraints
• Problem 2: Minimum Span FAP
– Span of an assignment is the difference between the largest channel used and the
smallest channel used
– Objective is to minimize the span needed to satisfy all EMC and demand
constraints
• Problem 3: Minimize Interference FAP
– Finite, fixed number of frequencies available for the network
– Objective is to satisfy all demands constraints (its increases the reuse factor!) and
to minimize some measure of interference (e.g. EMC constraints violation) with the
given frequencies

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

22 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Evaluating the quality of frequency plan 3/ Frequency hopping

Interference
Network’s Computation
stations

Frequency
plan

Cell
coverage

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

23 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Evaluating the quality of frequency plan 3/ Frequency hopping

 Radio interference C/I+N ; N<<I

(carrier/interference+noise)
 Surface-based or traffic-based criteria
 Co-channel, adjacent channel and
multiple interference are considered

C / I (i, j, k , p)  C
I 
i

j k ,p
j

-4 dB

14 dB
 Radio interference are analyzed 15 dB
continuously
> 50 dB

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

24 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Communications quality thresholds 3/ Frequency hopping

 C/I thresholds depend on the engineering on frequency planning

• Most of the time radio interference are considered around 14 dB on non hopping
network

 Several FP evaluation are available on one pixel

• C/I worst case on the pixel; non hopping
• C/I mean value on the pixel; average of all frequencies; band base hopping
• C/I worst case among the best frequency per cell; BCCH

 C/I minimum threshold depends on channel separation between communications

Co-channel C/I = 9 dB 2nd adjacent C/I = - 41dB

1st adjacent C/I = -9 dB 3rd adjacent C/I = - 49 dB

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

25 - 2006

Contents

1. Spectrum use
2. Frequency assignment

3. Frequency hopping

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

26 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Why Frequency Hopping? 3/ Frequency hopping

 Frequency Hopping stands for the dynamic changing of frequency during communications
• On each hop, only a burst of information is transmitted on one frequency
• The transmitter and the receiver must have the foreknowledge of the correct sequence of
frequency changes

 Advantages on jamming
• The jamming frequency is not always the same, sometime jamming sometime not
• Spread Spectrum ability (FH-SS): the total transmission, viewed over a long period such 1 sec,
appears to occupy the entire bandwidth (spreading of spectrum)
• We are not trying to eliminate interference with channelization, interference levels will rise
gradually with the number of mobiles

 Advantage on multi-path fading

• Deep fades tend to be frequency selective
• If the hops are separated by a given distance (coherence bandwidth = 600 KHz at 900 MHz), two
successive hops are not faded
• The average fade on the whole frequency range is much less: equivalent of about 2-3 dB instead
of 20 dB

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

27 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use
2/ Frequency assignment
Family of Frequency Hopping 3/ Frequency hopping

 Slow Frequency Hopping (SFH): GSM

• Speed: 1733 times per second (at every burst)
• Base band hopping: few frequency are used
• Synthesized hopping: all spectrum can be used

 Fast Frequency Hopping (FFH): military system

• A burst is a very few bits: frequency hopping each n electric symbols
(eventually n=1) where 1 electric symbol = 1, 2 or 4 bits
• The length of the burst must be lower than the propagation time from the
transmitter to the receiver (typically 10-100 microseconds)
• The time the jammer detects the signal, the transmitter has already shifted to a
new frequency
• The sequences are randomized

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

28 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use

SFH – Base band hopping 2/ Frequency assignment

3/ Frequency hopping

0.577ms
TRX2
(f2)

f2 f2 f2 f2 f2
TRX1
(f1)

f1 f1 f1 f1 f1
TRX0

f0 f0 f0 f0
(f0)

f0

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
time

TDMA frame
4.62 ms
Base band hopping

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

29 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use

SFH – Synthesized hopping 2/ Frequency assignment

3/ Frequency hopping

0.577ms
(f1,f2)
TRX2

f2 f1 f2
(f1,f2)
TRX1

f1 f1 f2 f2 f1 f1
TRX0
(f0)

f0 f0 f0 f0 f0 f0

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
time

TDMA frame
4.62 ms Synthesized hopping

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

30 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use

SFH – Synthesized hopping 2/ Frequency assignment

3/ Frequency hopping

cy
en
Power

qu
F re

Interference
threshold

Carrier Time

Interferer 1, low power

Interferer 2, high power

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

31 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use

SFH – Synthesized hopping parameters 2/ Frequency assignment

3/ Frequency hopping

 Implementing synthesized frequency hopping allows the planner to assign much

more frequency than TRX
• Gain in frequency diversity (quality of radio path is frequency dependent)
• Gain in interference diversity (successive bursts suffer from varying sources of
interference)
• In TU50, diversity gains are low

 New parameters: MAL, HSN and MAIO

• Size of Mobile Allocation Lists (number of frequency channels) per station
• Frequency to assign to Mobile Allocation Lists per station
• Hopping Sequence Number to assign to stations or sites (station versus site driven)
• Mobile Allocation Index Offset to assign to TRX
 New evaluation criteria: FER
• Frame Erasure Rate: number of erased vocal frame, that is after FEC application
Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM
32 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use

SFH – Frequency diversity gains 2/ Frequency assignment

3/ Frequency hopping

Gain at 2% FER from random hopping in test conditions

(Ref: GSM, GPRS and EDGE performance, WILEY, 2002)
Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM
33 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use

Synthesized hopping – Parameters setting 2/ Frequency assignment

3/ Frequency hopping

SITE DRIVEN STATION DRIVEN

• 3 BCCH = 3 channels • 3 BCCH = 3 channels

• MAL TCH = 1 for all stations • MAL TCH = 1 per station
• Size of MAL: greater than the number • Size of MAL: greater than the number
of TRX TCH on the site of TRX TCH on the station

BCCH 1 BCCH 1

1 MAL TCH 3 MAL TCH

BCCH 3 BCCH 3

BCCH 2 BCCH 2
Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM
34 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use

Synthesized hopping – Parameters setting 2/ Frequency assignment

3/ Frequency hopping

 Let MAL = N frequencies (<= 62), FH is done on regular or pseudo-randomized

cycle on N
 HSN features (BS level)
• Frequency involved in hopping are numerated from 0 to N-1
• HSN in [1..(N-1)]
• Normalized algorithm A(FN, HSN) = sequence of numbers in [0..(N-1)], where FN is
the Frame Number (coded on 22 bits) inside the Hyper-Frame (3h30 of transmission)
• One HSN per BS, and the BS and its MS are following the same sequence
 MAIO features (TRX level)
• MAIO is an index on sequences
• MAIO is in [0..(N-1)]
• One MAIO per TRX
• The MS computes the frequency to use adding MAIO (modulo N) to the current
frequency number
• Two different MAIO on the same HSN define two orthogonal sequences

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

35 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use

Synthesized hopping – Reuse Pattern 2/ Frequency assignment

3/ Frequency hopping

 Characteristics of FP for synthesized hopping

• Pattern 1.1 or 1.3 are sufficient to start
• Easy to add capacity: new TRX or new sites
• BCCH does not jump i.e. frequency plan is needed for BCCH assignment

 Study for Optimized Fractional Reuse

• Adaptation of MAL and frequency groups to condition of interference when
there is saturation on FER indicator

 Some problems occur

• Interference are much more difficult to identify
• Station configurations need retunes (cf. next slide)
Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM
36 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use

Synthesized hopping – Interfering cells 2/ Frequency assignment

3/ Frequency hopping

Non hopping
• Cell are interfering continuously
• But interfering powers: low

Synthesized hopping
• Cell are interfering with intermittence
• But interfering powers: high (HO areas)

• NB: further interfering cells (second circle

of neighbours) are still present but also
intermittently and with a higher loss =>
not a problem

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

37 - 2006

1/ Spectrum use

SFH – Quality thresholds in FER 2/ Frequency assignment

3/ Frequency hopping

 FER evaluation with synthesized hopping: thresholds to 4% and 7%

• C/I mean: 12 dB on base band hopping network
• C/I mean: 8 dB on synthesized hopping network on theoretical conditions
 SFH quality measurement is complex
• Traffic load is needed
• Go from C/I to FER needs to estimate error corrections process between BER and FER
• NB: BER is calculated before the decoding with no gain from FH, so the BER is the same for all
hopping configuration
• Simulated quality tables are required
 SFH gain is strong for TU3 and week for TU50 because of the natural diversity of the
channel (fast variations)

At C/I = 9 dB FER without SFH FER with SFH

TU3 21% 3%
TU50 6% 3%
Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM
38 - 2006
 1/ Spectrum use

SFH – FER(C/I) estimation 2/ Frequency assignment

3/ Frequency hopping

TU3 full hopping link with 6 interferers for different loads in the case of power control
(Ref: GSM, GPRS and EDGE performance, WILEY, 2002)

Alexandre CAMINADA, UTBM

39 - 2006