GSM CHANNELS

CHANNELS

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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GSM Traffic Channels

Traffic Channels

TCH/F Full rate 22.8kbits/s

TCH/H Half rate 11.4 kbits/s

GSM Control Channels

Control Channels

BCH ( Broadcast channels ) Downlink only

CCCH(Common Control Chan) Downlink & Uplink

DCCH(Dedicated Channels) Downlink & Uplink

BCCH
Broadcast control channel

Synch. Channels

RACH
Random Access Channel

Cell Broadcast Channel

CBCH

SDCCH
Standalone dedicated control channel

Associated Control Channels

ACCH

SCH
Synchronisation channel

Frequency Correction channel

FCCH

Paging/Access grant

PCH/ AGCH

Fast Associated Control Channel

FACCH

Slow associated Control Channel

SACCH

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 secs. SCH( Synchronisation Channel ) Downlink only Carries information for frame synchronisation. Contains TDMA frame number and BSIC FCCH( Frequency Correction Channel ) Downlink only. Enables MS to synchronise to the frequency. Also helps mobiles of the ncells 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 signalling channel upon succesfull decoding of access bursts. PCH( Paging Channel ) Downlink only. Used by the Network to contact the MS.

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.

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 Guard Tail Period Bits 57 bits Data 26 bits Flag Training Bit sequence Flag Bit 57 bits Data 3 Tail Guard Bits Period

Carries traffic channel and control channels BCCH, PCH, AGCH, SDCCH, SACCH and FACCH.

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.

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 Guard Tail Period Bits 142 bits Fixed Data
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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3 Tail Guard Bits Period

Synchronization 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 its 64 its Synchronization Sequence

Carries SCH channel. Enables MS to synchronize its timings with the BTS. Contains BSIC and TDMA Frame number.
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39 its Encrypted Bits

3 Tail Guard Bits Period

Guard Tail Encrypted Bits Period Bits

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 Guard Tail Period Bits 57 its Data 26 its Flag Training Bit sequence Flag Bit 57 its Data 3 Tail Guard Bits Period

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

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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 Tail Bits 41 bits Synchronisation Sequence 36 bits 3 68.25 bits Guard Period

Encrypted Tail Bits Bits

Carries RACH.

Has a bigger guard period since it is used during initial access and the MS does not know how far it is actually from the BTS.
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Need for Timeslot offset

BSS Downlink

0 1

2 3

4 5

6 7

0 1

2 3

4 5

6 7

MS Uplink

0 1

2 3

4 5

6 7

0 1

2 3

4 5

6 7

If Uplink and Downlink are aligned exactly, then MS will have to transmit and receive at the same time. To overcome this problem a offset of 3 timeslots is provided between downlink and uplink
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Need for Timeslot offset

BSS Downlink

0 1

2 3

4 5

6 7

0 1

2 3

4 5

6 7

MS Uplink

5 6

7 0

1 2

3 4

5 6

7 0

1 2

3 4

3 timeslot offset As seen the MS does not have to transmit and receive at the same time. This simplifies the MS design which can now use only one synthesizer.
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26 Frame Multiframe Structure

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

T T T T T T T T T T T T S T T T T T T T T T T T T I 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 120 msec MS on dedicated mode on a TCH uses a 26-frame multiframe structure. Frame 0-11 and 13-24 used to carry traffic. Frame 12 used as SACCH to carry control information from and to MS to BTS. Frame 25 is idle and is used by mobile to decode the BSIC of neighbor cells.

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Hyperframe and Superframe structure

3h 28min 53s 760ms 0 6.12s 0 0 1 2 1 1 2 1 Hyperframe = 2048 superframes = 2,715,648 TDMA frames 2045 2046 2047

1 Superframe = 1326 TDMAframes = 51(26 fr) 0r 26(51 fr) multiframes 3 47 48 24 49 25 50

120ms 0 1 2 23 24 25 0 1 2

235.38ms 48 49 50

Traffic 26 - Frame Multiframe 4.615ms 0 1 2 3

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Control 51 - Frame Multiframe

TDMA Frame

SPEECH CODING CHANNEL CODING

SPEECH DECODING CHANNEL DECODING

INTERLEAVING

DEINTERLEAVING

BURST ASSEMBLING

BURST DISASSEMBLING

CIPHERING

DECIPHERING

MODULATION

Transmission
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DEMODULATION

SPEECH CODING
The transmission of speech is one of the most important service of a mobile cellular system. The GSM speech codec, which will transform the analog signal(voice) into a digital representation, has to meet the following criterias
y A good speech quality, at least as good as the one obtained with previous cellular systems. y To reduce the redundancy in the sounds of the voice. This reduction is essential due to the limited capacity of transmission of a radio channel. y The speech codec must not be very complex because complexity is equivalent to high costs.

The final choice for the GSM speech codec is a codec named RPE-LTP (Regular Pulse Excitation Long-Term Prediction). This codec uses the information from previous samples (this information does not change very quickly) in order to predict the current sample. The speech signal is divided into blocks of 20 ms. These blocks are then passed to the speech codec, which has a rate of 13 kbps, in order to obtain blocks of 260 bits.
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CHANNEL CODING
Channel coding adds redundancy bits to the original information in order to detect and correct, if possible, errors ocurred during the transmission. The channel coding is performed using two codes: a block code and a convolutional code. The block code receives an input block of 240 bits and adds four zero tail bits at the end of the input block. The output of the block code is consequently a block of 244 bits. A convolutional code adds redundancy bits in order to protect the information. A convolutional encoder contains memory. This property differentiates a convolutional code from a block code. A convolutional code can be defined by three variables : n, k and K. The value n corresponds to the number of bits at the output of the encoder, k to the number of bits at the input of the block and K to the memory of the encoder.
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CHANNEL CODING ( Cont )

The ratio, R, of the code is defined as R = k/n. Example Let's consider a convolutional code with the following values: k is equal to 1, n to 2 and K to 5. This convolutional code uses then a rate of R = 1/2 and a delay of K = 5, which means that it will add a redundant bit for each input bit. The convolutional code uses 5 consecutive bits in order to compute the redundancy bit. As the convolutional code is a 1/2 rate convolutional code, a block of 488 bits is generated. These 488 bits are punctured in order to produce a block of 456 bits. Thirty two bits, obtained as follows, are not transmitted : C (11 + 15 j) for j = 0, 1, ..., 31 k=1 1 bit input Convolution code R = k/n = 1/2 n=2 2 bit input

The block of 456 bits produced by the convolutional code is then passed to the interleaver
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CHANNEL CODING FOR GSM SPEECH CHANNELS

Before applying the channel coding, the 260 bits of a GSM speech frame are divided in three different classes according to their function and importance. The most important class is the class 1a containing 50 bits.Next important is the class 1b, which contains 132 bits.The least important is the class 2, which contains the remaining 78 bits. The different classes are coded differently. First of all, the class 1a bits are block-coded. Three parity bits, used for error detection, are added to the 50 class 1a bits.The resultant 53 bits are added to the class 1b bits. Four zero bits are added to this block of 185 bits (50+3+132). A convolutional code, with r = 1/2 and K = 5, is then applied, obtaining an output block of 378 bits. The class 2 bits are added, without any protection, to the output block of the convolutional coder. An output block of 456 bits is finally obtained.
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Speech Channel Coding

260 bits Class 1a 50 bits Parity check Class 1a 3 50 bits Class 1b 132 bits Class 1b 132 bits 4 Class 2 78 bits Tail bits

Convolution coding

378 bits 456 bits

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CHANNEL CODING FOR CONTROL CHANNELS

In GSM the signalling information is just contained in 184 bits. Forty parity bits, obtained using a fire code, and four zero bits are added to the 184 bits before applying the convolutional code (r = 1/2 and K = 5). The output of the convolutional code is then a block of 456 bits, which does not need to be punctured. 184 bits Fire code 184 bits 40 bits 4 Parity bits Tail bits

Convolution coding

456 bits
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CHANNEL CODING FOR DATA CHANNELS

In data information is contained in 240 bits. Four tails bits are added to the 240 bits before applying the convolutional code (r = 1/2 and K = 5). The output of the convolutional code is then a block of 488 bits which when punctuated yields 456 bits. 240 bits 240 bits Convolution coding 488 bits Punctuate 456 bits
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Tail bits

INTERLEAVING
An interleaving rearranges a group of bits in a particular way. It is used in combination with FEC codes( Forward Error Correction Codes ) in order to improve the performance of the error correction mechanisms. The interleaving decreases the possibility of losing whole bursts during the transmission, by dispersing the errors. As the errors are less concentrated, it is then easier to correct them.

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GSM SPEECH CHANNEL INTERLEAVING

A burst in GSM transmits two blocks of 57 data bits each. Therefore the 456 bits corresponding to the output of the channel coder fit into 8 57 data bits (8 * 57 = 456). The 456 bits are divided into eight blocks of 57 bits. The first block of 57 bits contains the bit numbers (0, 8, 16, .....448), the second one the bit numbers (1, 9, 17, .....449), etc. The last block of 57 bits will then contain the bit numbers (7, 15, .....455). The first four blocks of 57 bits are placed in the even-numbered bits of four consecutive bursts. The other four blocks of 57 bits are placed in the odd-numbered bits of the next four bursts. The interleaving depth of the GSM interleaving for speech channels is eight. A new data block also starts every four bursts. The interleaver for speech channels is called a block diagonal interleaver.
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GSM SPEECH CHANNEL INTERLEAVING ( Diagram )

Full rate encoded speech locks from a single conversation

4
456 bits

5
456 bits

6
456 bits

Bursts

TDMA Frames
0 1 2 3

Frame 1
4 5 6

Frame 2
0 1 2 3 4 5 6

Frame 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6

Frame 4
0 1 2 3 4 5 6

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CONTROL CHANNEL INTERLEAVING

A burst in GSM transmits two blocks of 57 data bits each. Therefore the 456 bits corresponding to the output of the channel coder fit into four bursts (4*114 = 456). The 456 bits are divided into eight blocks of 57 bits. The first block of 57 bits contains the bit numbers (0, 8, 16, .....448), the second one the bit numbers (1, 9, 17, .....449), etc. The last block of 57 bits will then contain the bit numbers (7, 15, .....455). The first four blocks of 57 bits are placed in the even-numbered bits of four bursts. The other four blocks of 57 bits are placed in the odd-numbered bits of the same four bursts. Therefore the interleaving depth of the GSM interleaving for control channels is four and a new data block starts every four bursts. The interleaver for control channels is called a block rectangular interleaver.
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DATA INTERLEAVING
A particular interleaving scheme, with an interleaving depth equal to 22, is applied to the block of 456 bits obtained after the channel coding. The block is divided into 16 blocks of 24 bits each, 2 blocks of 18 bits each, 2 blocks of 12 bits each and 2 blocks of 6 bits each. It is spread over 22 bursts in the following way :
the first and the twenty-second bursts carry one block of 6 bits each the second and the twenty-first bursts carry one block of 12 bits each the third and the twentieth bursts carry one block of 18 bits each from the fourth to the nineteenth burst, a block of 24 bits is placed in each burst

A burst will then carry information from five or six consecutive data blocks. The data blocks are said to be interleaved diagonally. A new data block starts every four bursts.

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CIPHERING
Ciphering is used to protect signaling and user data. A ciphering key is computed using the algorithm A8 stored on the SIM card, the subscriber key and a random number delivered by the network (this random number is the same as the one used for the authentication procedure). A 114 bit sequence is produced using the ciphering key, an algorithm called A5 and the burst numbers. This bit sequence is then XORed with the two 57 bit blocks of data included in a normal burst. In order to decipher correctly, the receiver has to use the same algorithm A5 for the deciphering procedure.

MODULATION
Modulation is done using 0.3 GMSK
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