Mobile Computing

Registration and Call Processing

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V i j a y K u m a r C o m p u t e r S c i e n c e U n i v e r s i t y o f M i s s o u r i - K a n s a s C i t y K a n s a s C i t y , M O 6 4 1 1 0 , U S A .

kumar@cstp.umkc.edu

References
1. Wireless Communications; Principles and Practice by Theodore S. Rappaport. Prentice Hall, 1996. 2. Internerwork Mobility. The CDPD approach, by Mark S. Taylor, William Waung, and Moshen Banan. Prentice Hall, PTR, 1997. 3. Mobile and Wireless Networks by Uyless Black. Prentice Hall, 1996. 4. Wireless PCS by Rajan Kuruppillai, Mahi Dontamsetti, and Fil J. Cosentino. McGraw Hill, 1997.

Vijay Kumar, UMKC, USA

Registration
It is the process of informing the presence or arrival of an MU to a BS. There are six different types of registration. Power-down registration: This is done by the MU when it intends to switch itself off. The BS broadcasts a bit indicating if power-down registration is supported in the cell or not. If it is so, the MU, prior to switching itself off, sends a registration message with a power down indication to the BS. The BS forwards this message to the network, which puts a flag in the subscriber's profile to indicate that the subscriber has powered down. This is used to cut down network paging and signaling load. If a call is placed to the MU, which has previously sent a power-down registration, the network does not have to page this MU, since it knows that this MU would not respond to the page. Power-up registration: This is opposite to power-down registration. When an MU is switched on and if the network supports power-up registration, then the MU sends a registration message with a power-up indication to the BS. This message is sent to the network, which removes the flag from the subscribers profile to allow future incoming calls (the BS will page this MU). Deregistration: It occurs when an MU decides to acquire control channel service on a different type of network (public, private, or residential). If the network supports deregistration the MU sends a deregistration indication into its registration message. It can optionally also include information about the new network to which it is going. New system/location area registration: If the broadcast system ID does not match the SID stored in the MU or if the MU desires service on a new private SID or residential SID, it sends a registration message to the BS with a new system indication. Similarly, when the location area of the MU changes, it sends a registration message. Periodic registration: An MU may be instructed to periodically register with the network. The registration interval is in the multiple of 94 superframes and can range from 94 to 48,128 superframes (approximately 1 minute to 8.5 hours). Whenever the registration interval expires, the mobile station sends a registration message to the BS with a periodic registration indication. Forced registration: A network may, under certain circumstances, force all MUs to register. This is done by broadcasting. Every MU then sends a registration message with an indication that this is a forced registration.

Call Management
We discuss call management in AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System). This is an analog system and was introduced by AT&T. Communication between the BS and the MU is defined by a standard common air interface (CAI). There are two types of RF channels (a) control channels and (b) voice channels. Control channels are further classified as forward control channel signaling (FOCC) and reverse control channel signaling (RECC). Forward control channel signaling (FOCC): BSs use this channel to send information to MS. Each MS automatically monitors FOCC, which contains general information

Vijay Kumar, UMKC, USA

about the system such as system identification. The FOCC has a data transmission rate of 10 kbps. Reverse control channel signaling (RECC): The reverse control channel (RECC) carries the control date sent from MU to BS. The control data includes page responses, access requests, and registration requests. The RECC data stream is generated at a rate of 10 kbps. Voice channel signaling: The analog voice channel transports both voice and digital signaling information. When signaling data is to be sent on the voice channel the audio is suppressed and replaced with digital message. The bit rate of the digital message is 10 kbps. Supervisory Audio Tones (SAT) are used to ensure reliable voice communications. An AMPS system has SAT codes (6 kHz tones at frequencies 5910, 6000, and 6030) that are transmitted on the speech channels. The SAT is generated by the BS and looped back by the MS. If the BS receives the same SAT that it is sending, that means the MS is tuned to the right BS. Two types of mobility can be identified in PCS: (a) terminal mobility and (b) personal mobility. Terminal Mobility: Terminal mobility allows the processing unit (MU) to roam around while maintaining communication with other MU. It allows a terminal to be identified by a unique terminal identifier independent of the point of attachment to the network. Calls intended for that MU can be delivered to it regardless of its geographical location. To facilitate terminal mobility, a network must provide several functions, which include those that locate, identify, and validate the MU and provide services to MU based on the location information. This implies that the network must store and maintain the location information of the terminal based on a unique identifier assigned to that terminal. Personal Mobility: This mobility allows a PCS user to make and receive calls independently of both the network point of attachment and a specific MU. This implies that the services a user has subscribed to (stored in user's service profile) are available to the user even if the user moves or changes his/her MU. Functions needed to provide personal mobility include those that identify (authenticate) the end user and provide services to an end user independent of both the terminal and the location of the user. An example of a functionality needed to provide personal mobility for voice calls is the need to maintain a user's location information based on a unique number, the Universal Personal Telecommunications (UPT) number, assigned to that user. UPT numbers are also NANP numbers. Another example would allow end users to define and manage their service profiles to enable users to tailor services to suit their needs. The functions of PCS can be divided into four categories: Mobility management, Radio system management, Call processing and service management, Operations, Administration and maintenance, and Terrestrial transmission facilities management.

Vijay Kumar, UMKC, USA

Automatic roaming: This facility allows an MU to move around in the geographical domain freely without experiencing any disruption in the communication. This means a subscriber can establish communication with any other MU from anywhere. In terms of home and foreign cells, an MU can obtain the same mobile services at a foreign cell that it obtains at its home cell. For example, if an MU can dial 911 from Portland, Oregon, then it can do so from Boston as well. We say that the mobile system provides a seamless service through automatic roaming. In reality no existing service is capable of providing seamless service. Subscriber Identification: Every subscriber is uniquely identified by a unique identity. This identity, in addition to the subscriber, identifies the type of services the subscriber has or can utilize (user profile). Subscriber id =Mobile Identification Number (MIN) + Electronic Serial Number (ESN)

Call processing
Each BS's transmit and receive channels are separated by 45 MHz. A total of 416 channels are allocated for the customer's traffic channels and control channels. The traffic channels (TCH) are used for the calls. Band A has channels 1 to 312 and B has channels 355 to 366. So each carrier has 312 voice channels at its disposal. The control channels are used by MU and BS to set up and clear calls, and exchange other network management and provisioning messages. Both bands contain 21 control channels for a total of 42 channels. Band A has control channels from 313 to 333, and band B has channels from 334 to 354. When the MS is first powered on, it checks its internal memory for several stored initializing parameters. The MS then scans the dedicated control channels and records their strength. The MS tunes to the strongest dedicated control channel and receives a system parameter message and records information from the message. This information is used for subsequent access to the network. The MS stores information such as SID (system identification) and the number of paging channels and determines the range of paging channels to monitor. The MS tunes to the strongest paging channel and receives an overhead message train. The mobile based on the SID being transmitted on the paging channel determines if it is roaming or not. The roaming indicator in the mobile is set according to this determination. The MS, after completing the initialization procedures, enters the idle mode. A call is a sequence of events that allocates and assigns resources and signaling channels required to establish a connection. In call processing the following functions are involved: 1. Call establishment (call setup): is a set of functions that arrange for the connection of cellular calls. There are essentially two types of cellular calls: (a) mobile originated calls, that is, calls are placed from a MS and (b) Mobile terminated calls, that is, calls that are made to a MS. 2. Call release (call disconnect): is a set of functions that releases the cellular calls. Calls can be disconnected either by (a) calling party, or (b) called party, or by (d) the network.

Vijay Kumar, UMKC, USA

3. Call features (supplementary services): these are services provided to the cellular subscribers that offer variations on the basic service.

Mobile-to-Land Call
Figure 1 illustrates the call processing flow and the following steps are performed to setup and terminate the call. Note that the MS is in an idle state.
PSTN 5. Call routed to called party number 1. Outgoing call Base station 2. Setup circuit to MSC Serving 4. Return information VLR MSC 3. Query for service qualification and features Signaling

Voice

Figure 1. Mobile to land call set up. 1. MU dials the number of the landline user. Unlike the landline telephone, the dialed number is stored in its memory and remains there until the user presses SEND key. The MU remains in idle mode. 2. The user presses SEND key. The MU enters the system access mode with the indicator as origination. 3. The MU tunes to the strongest control channel and attempts to send an origination message. 4. The BS sends relevant information to MTSO (MSC) and MSC validates the user. MSC access VLR for performing the validation. If the record of this MU is not in VLR, then HLR is accessed. It might also check the user's service profile (usually stored in VLR or in HLR) to ensure that this user is allowed to make outgoing calls or has a long distance service subscription. 5. After a successful validation the MSC decides to provide the requested service to the user. It indicates this by sending a message to the BS to assign a voice channel. The voice channel is known to the MSC. 6. The BS assigns a voice channel to the MU and indicates the voice channel particulars such as channel number to the MU via an initial voice channel designation (IVCD) order. 7. The BS transmits the SAT (supervisory audio tone) code. 8. The MU tunes to the assigned voice channel and transponds the SAT on that voice channel back to BS via the reverse voice channel. 9. Upon detecting the SAT, the BS ensures that the MU is on the channel and sends a SAT received message to MTSO, which dials the called number and connects the call to the landline user via the PSTN. 10. The MU receives the call-progress tones, such as ringing or busy, from the PSTN. 11. Conversation begins when the landline user answers the call. After the conversation is over, either party terminates the call.

Vijay Kumar, UMKC, USA

Figure 2, illustrates the message flow for mobile to land call.

Landline phone P S T N M T S O B Request S access Assign voice channel MU M S Request access Dial digits and press SEND (including dial digits) Assign voice channel Send SAT Ring phone Status tone Status tone Return SAT Status tone Transpond SAT Ring/Busy tone Tune to voice channel

Validate MIN/ESN

Answer phone Talk Hang up Talk Disconnect Talk Release channel Channel available
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Talk Release channel Send ST 1.8 sec Send ST 1.8 sec

Talk

End conversation Disconnect

Dial tone

Disconnect

Disconnect

Figure 2. Mobile-to-land call message flow. Call termination 1. If the MU terminates the call, then it transmits a signaling tone (ST) for 1.8 seconds and terminates the transmission. 2. The BS detects the ST and generates a disconnect message, which is sent to MTSO. 3. The MTSO, on receiving this message, releases the connection with the PSTN and the landline user. 4. If the landline user terminates the call, the release from the PSTN is converted to a release channel message by the MTSO and sent to the BS. 5. The BS sends a release channel message to MU, which releases the connection and transmits ST for 1.8 seconds to the BS that is no longer using the channel. 6. The BS sends a channel available message to MTSO.

Land-to-mobile call
Figure 3 illustrates the call processing flow and the following steps are performed to setup and terminate the call. Note that the MS is in an idle state.
1. Incoming call to subscriber's directory number PSTN 2. Call routed to cellular network 1. Page MSl Base station 3. Query for registration 2. Setup circuit to base station Serving status and features HLR MSC 4. Return information

Voice

Signaling

Figure 3. Land-to-mobile call processing.

Vijay Kumar, UMKC, USA

1. The landline user dials the number (MIN) of the MU. The MIN provides routing information to the PSTN to enable the call to be routed to the correct MTSO. 2. The MTSO on receiving the call has to contact the MU to indicate that there is an incoming call and it also ensures that the MU is not already involved in a call. Also, the MTSO might have a prior knowledge of the general area where the MU is, due to registration. The MTSO can optionally try to contact the MU only in the registration area or in the entire system. 3. The MTSO sends a page request to the BS to page the MU. 4. The BS pages the MU by sending a page message on the paging channel. The MU has to be powered up and idle to respond to the page 5. The MU on receiving the page sends a page response on the access channel to the BS. This message contains fields indicating that this is a page origination. 6. The BS forwards this message to MTSO. 7. The MTSO, after verifying MU's identity asks the BS to assign a voice channel. 8. The BS sends an IVCD (initial voice channel designation) order to the MU asking it to tune to the indicated voice channel. The MU tunes to the voice channel and transponds the SAT (supervisory audio tone) back to the BS. 9. The BS on detecting the SAT sends an alert order to the MU. 10. On receiving this order, the MU locally generates power ringing to alert the user that there is an incoming call. After the MU has alerted the user, it generates the signaling tone on the reverse voice channel. Figure 4, illustrates the message flow for mobile to land call.
Landline phone Dial digits Dial phone P Route to MTSO S T Validate N MIN/ESN M T S O Page request at all cell sites B Request S access Paging signal Page request Assign voice channel Send SAT Return SAT Send alert Send ST Remove ST Transpond SAT Ring phone Answer phone M S MU

Access system

Assign voice channel

Tune to voice channel

Receive ringing

Send ringback Remove ringback

Confirm alert Off hook message

Talk Hang up

Talk Disconnect

Talk Release channel Channel available

Or

Talk Release channel Send ST 1.8 sec Send ST 1.8 sec

Talk

End conversation

Dial tone

Disconnect

Disconnect

Disconnect

Figure 4. Land-to-mobile call message flow. 11. The BS on detecting the ST generates a message to the MTSO indicating that the MU has started alerting.

Vijay Kumar, UMKC, USA

12. On receipt of this message the MTSO generates ring-back tone for the landline user. When the mobile user answers the phone, the Mu stops generating ST and connects the voice path. 13. The BS detects the absence of ST and indicates this to MTSO via a message. The MTSO terminates ring-back toward the landline user and connects the voice path. The conversation between the mobile and the landline user begins. The termination is identical to the mobile-to-landline call flow. Call termination 1. If the MU terminates the call, then it transmits a signaling tone (ST) for 1.8 seconds and terminates the transmission. 2. The BS detects the ST and generates a disconnect message, which is sent to MTSO. 3. The MTSO, on receiving this message, releases the connection with the PSTN and the landline user. 4. If the landline user terminates the call, the release from the PSTN is converted to a release channel message by the MTSO and sent to the BS. 5. The BS sends a release channel message to MU, which releases the connection and transmits ST for 1.8 seconds to the BS that is no longer using the channel. 6. The BS sends a channel available message to MTSO.

Vijay Kumar, UMKC, USA