1 HSDPA Concept

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 1.1 HSDPA Benefits............................................................................3
1.2 HSDPA boosts Mobile Data Download .......................................4
1.3 HSDPA Concept (1/3) ...................................................................5
1.3 HSDPA Concept (2/3) ...................................................................6
1.3 HSDPA Concept (3/3) ...................................................................7

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1.1 HSDPA Benefits

High-speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) is an enhancement to Wideband-CDMA that

provides a smooth evolutionary path to higher data rates for current UMTS Rel. 99 networks.
HSDPA delivers higher capacity through improved spectral efficiency, which provides higher
data rates up to – in theory – 14 Mbps, as well as shorter response times and a better quality
of service. It also supports the sharing of channels between users, ensuring that channel
resources are utilized efficiently for packet data.

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1.2 HSDPA boosts Mobile Data Download

The most significant advantage of HSDPA is a dramatic reduction of data download time for
end users. Let‘s have a look at a download example. A 3 MB MP3 audio file has to be
downloaded from the web into a mobile. Using different media we can observe the following
average data rates that can be converted into download times:

• GPRS with 30 kbps needs 780 seconds (13 min)

• UMTS at 200 kbps needs 120 seconds (2 min), finally,
• HSDPA at 600 kbps needs only 40 seconds. And that is not on the fastest achivable
data rate. Thus wie are only using 5% of the GPRS transmission time.
• Just to compare with a legacy ISDN scenario using a 64kbps B channel the
transmission would need 390 seconds. (6.5 min)

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1.3 HSDPA Concept (1/3)

The HSDPA concept can not only support efficiently non-real time UMTS QoS classes, but
also the real time streaming UMTS QoS classes with guaranteed bit rates. The use of
HSDPA also provides significant benefits in the case of mixed terminal deployment, with cell
code and power resources shared between HSDPA and non- HSDPA users.

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1.3 HSDPA Concept (2/3)

In contrast to UMTS Rel. 99, the HSDPA concept utilizes a distributed architecture in which
the processing power is brought is closer to the air interface at Node B for low delay link
adaptation. It provides a significant higher cell throughput than the Release '99 system
especially in micro cells whit a throughput of up to 5 Mbps per sector per carrier, that is, 1
bit/s/Hz/cell. The HSDPA concept offers more than 100 % higher peak user bit rates than
Release '99. HSDPA bit rates are comparable to Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) modern bit
rates. The mean user bit rates in a large macro cell environment can exceed 1 Mbps and in
small micro cells 5 Mbps.

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1.3 HSDPA Concept (3/3)

How does HSDPA achieve these benefits? According to the 3GPP Rel. 5 specifications for
UMTS we can identify 4 major mechanisms that will be considered in detail later on:

• Adaptive Modulation and Coding (AMC) and

• Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ). Both of these are already used in a
similar way with EDGE (Enhanced Data rates for Global Evolution).
• Then we have a Multi-code operation and finally,
• new Physical and Transport Channels on the Uu interface between the Node B and
the User Equipment.

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