LTE System Overview

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LTE System Overview

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LTE System Overview

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 LTE System Overview

l Mobile networks have been evolving for many years. The initial systems, which are
referred to as “First Generation” were launched commercially at the end of the 1980’s. the
pressure for greater capacity, more security and roaming saw these replaced with “Second
Generation”, and more recently “Third Generation” solutions. Today, the growth in mobile
broadband has promoted the development of 4G or “Fourth Generation” systems.
l 1st Generation mobile systems used analogue modulation techniques. These analogue
systems were proprietary, and based on Frequency Modulation. For this reason, they all
lacked security, any meaningful data service or international roaming capability. The main
commercial systems deployed around the world included AMPS, TACS and ETACS.
l AMPS
p The first AMPS system appeared in 1976 in the USA. From its initial commercial
launch it was mainly implemented in the America, Russia and Asia. Various issues
including weak security features made the system prone to hacking and handset
cloning.
l TACS
p The European version of AMPS but with slight modifications including its operation
on different frequency bands. It was mainly used in the UK, as well as part of Asia.
l ETACS
p An improved version of TACS. It enabled a greater number of channels and
therefore facilitated more users.

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 LTE System Overview

l The development of GSM, GPRS, EDGE, UMTS, HSPA and LTE, as well as the strategy for
future mobile networks has been coordinated and planned by the various parties that sit
within the 3GPP working groups. This development roadmap is based on a series of
specification releases. The diagram shows the key Release milestones. These started with
the introduction of GPRS in Release 97 and chart the evolution of 3GPP networks up to
the introduction of LTE and beyond.
l Pre-Release 99
p Pre-Release 99 saw the introduction of GSM, as well as the addition of GPRS. The
main GSM Phases and 3GPP Releases include:
n GSM Phase 1.
n GSM Phase 2.
n GSM Phase 2+ (Release 96).
n GSM Phase 2+ (Release 97).
n GSM Phase 2+ (Release 98).
l 3GPP Release 99
p 3GPP Release 99 saw the introduction of UMTS, as well as the EDGE enhancement
to GPRS. UMTS contains all the features needed to meet the IMT-2000
requirements as those defined by the ITU. It is able to support CS voice and video
services, as well as PS data services over common and dedicated bearers. Initial
data rates for UMTS were 64kbit/s, 128kbit/s, and 384kbit/s. Note that the
theoretical maximum was 2Mbit/s.

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 LTE System Overview

l Heterogeneous Network, or HetNet for short, stands for the different types of base
stations (macro, micro, pico, relay) operating on different technologies (GSM,
WCDMA and LTE) are used together in the same network to build the good coverage
and high capacity, that end-users demand from their operator. This concept is
contrary to ‘homogeneous’ networks, HomoNet for short, that are mainly built with one
type of base station, often macro.
l FusionNet
p Huawei in Barcelona at the Mobile World Congress (MWC 2013) demonstrated the
next generation LTE-B (R12/R13) network architecture FusionNet. It combines
multi-system, multi-band, multi-layer heterogeneous networks, improved 500%
cell edge user throughput, which really create borderless networks.
p The core of FusionNet is based on LTE-B techniques (such as multi-flow
aggregation, interference coordination, service adaptation, spectrum efficiency
optimization, etc.). With the existing LTE, LTE-A (such as multi-point coordinate,
carrier aggregation), FusionNet realizes multi-system, multi-band, multi-layer
network of deep integration, to help operators significantly reduce CAPEX and
OPEX, allowing users to enjoy ultra-broadband, zero-waiting and ubiquitous
connectivity.

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 LTE System Overview

l Technical advantages to 3G: High data throughput, PS transmission, lower latency, wider
coverage and downward compatibility

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LTE System Overview

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 LTE System Overview

l The LTE network has a flat architecture, which has the following characteristics:
p The RNC is removed from the radio access network. The only NE in the radio
access network is the NodeB.
p The MSC server and MGW are removed from the core network. Voice services are
provided based on IP.
p The PS domain of the core network adopted an architecture similar to softswitch.
It separates the control plane from user plane.
n The mobility management entity (MME) stores UE contexts on the control
plane, including the ID, status, and tracking area of the UE. It manages and
allocates an ID to an UE. The MME also performs functions such as mobility
management, authentication, key management, encryption, and integrity
protection.
n A serving gateway (SGW) provides functions such as paging, information
management for a UE in idle state, mobility management, encryption on
the user plane, PDCP, SAE bearer control, and encryption and integrity
protection for NAS signaling.
n It is an all-IP network.
l The reasons for this design are as follows:
p Too many network layers make it impossible to meet the requirement for low
delay, which is less than 10 ms on the radio network side.
p The all-IP network has the lowest costs because the VoIP technology is already
mature.

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 LTE System Overview

l All the interfaces within the EPC, and those extending to functions outside of the EPC, are
denoted by the letter “S”. These all use the service of IP. Elements supporting LTE
operation, apart from MME, S-GW and PDN-GW, include the HSS, PCRF and ePDG. The
RNC and SGSN may also be involved.
l HSS (Home Subscriber Server) is considered to be a “master” database. Although
logically it is considered as one entity, the HSS in practice is made up of several physical
databases depending on the number of subscribers and redundancy requirements. The
HSS holds variables and identities for the support, establishment and maintenance of calls
and sessions made by subscribers.
l PCRF (Policy and Charging Rules Function) supports functionality for policy control and
charging control. As such, it provides bearer network control in terms of QoS and the
allocation of the associated charging vectors.
l ePDG (evolved Packet Data Gateway) is used when connecting to Untrusted Non 3GPP
IP Access networks. It provides functionality to allocate IP addresses in addition to
encapsulating/ de-capsulating IPSec and PMIP tunnels.

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 LTE System Overview

l GUTI =GUMMEI + M-TMSI

=(MCC + MNC + MMEI) + M-TMSI
=(MCC + MNC + (MMEGI + MMEC)) + M-TMSI
=(MCC + MNC + MMEGI) + S-TMSI
l GUMMEI：Globally Unique MME Identifier
l MMEI：MME Identifier
l MMEGI: MME Group Identifier
l TMSI: Temporary Mobile Subscriber Identity
l MMEI=MMEGI + MMEC
l S-TMSI=MMEC + M-TMSI

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 LTE System Overview

l The eNB hosts the following functions:

p Functions for Radio Resource Management: Radio Bearer Control, Radio Admission
Control, Connection Mobility Control, Dynamic allocation of resources to UEs in
both uplink and downlink (scheduling);
p IP header compression and encryption of user data stream;
p Selection of an MME at UE attachment when no routing to an MME can be
determined from the information provided by the UE;
p Routing of User Plane data towards Serving Gateway;
p Scheduling and transmission of paging messages (originated from the MME);
p Scheduling and transmission of broadcast information (originated from the MME
or O&M);
p Measurement and measurement reporting configuration for mobility and
scheduling;
p Scheduling and transmission of PWS (which includes ETWS and CMAS) messages
(originated from the MME).

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 LTE System Overview

l Mobility Management Entity (MME): The MME manages mobility, UE identities and
security parameters. MME functions includes:
p NAS signalling;
p NAS signalling security;
p AS Security control;
p Inter CN node signalling for mobility between 3GPP access networks;
p Idle mode UE Reachability (including control and execution of paging
retransmission);
p Tracking Area list management (for UE in idle and active mode);
p PDN GW and Serving GW selection;
p MME selection for handovers with MME change;
p SGSN selection for handovers to 2G or 3G 3GPP access networks;
p Roaming;
p Authentication;
p Bearer management functions including dedicated bearer establishment;
p Support for PWS (which includes ETWS and CMAS) message transmission;
p Optionally performing paging optimisation.

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LTE System Overview

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 LTE System Overview

l For details about SCTP, see RFC2960.

l For details about UDP, see RFC 768.

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LTE System Overview

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LTE System Overview

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LTE System Overview

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LTE System Overview

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LTE System Overview

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 LTE System Overview

l OFDM has a history of 40 years in application, and it is initially used in radio

communications in military.
l In 1950s, American military established the first multi-carrier modulation system.
l In 1970s, the OFDM system with massive subcarriers appeared. However, mass
commercial application did not appear due to the system complexity and high costs.
l In 1990s, with the development of digital communication technologies, IFFT on the
OFDM transmitter side and FFT on the OFDM receiver side reduces system
complexity, enabling OFDM to be widely used.

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LTE System Overview

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l In traditional FDMA transmission, a channel is divided into multiple independent sub-

channels to transmit data streams in parallel, and the sub-channels are separated by
a group of filters on the receiver. This method is simple and direct while the spectral
efficiency is low because guard-bands are required between sub-channels. However,
subcarriers in the OFDM system are overlapping and orthogonal, which greatly
improves the spectral efficiency compared with common FDA systems, as shown in
the preceding figure.
l The orthogonal modulation and demodulation in each sub-channel can be performed
using IDFT and DFT. For systems with large N value, FFT can be used. IFFT and
FFT are easy to perform with the development of large-scale integrated circuit and
DSP technologies, as shown in the preceding figure.

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 LTE System Overview

l Why CP is needed:

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l How CP is added

Integrate (FFT) any 64

samples within the
extended period
Base symbol period, Extension, Base symbol period,
e.g 64 samples e.g 10 samples e.g 64 samples

Extended symbol period, e.g

64+10=74 samples

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 LTE System Overview

l Deep fading does not occur simultaneously in all subcarriers due to the frequency
selectivity. Therefore, dynamic bit or subcarrier allocation technology can be used to
utilize the sub-channels with high SNR and improve the system performance.
l In a multi-user system, a subcarrier that is in poor performance for a user probably is
in good performance for another user. Therefore, a sub-channel is not disabled
unless it is in poor performance for all users, which occurs at a low probability. The
single-carrier system performs adaptive modulation and coding (AMC) based on the
average SINR in the entire system, while the multi-carrier system performs AMC
based on the average SINR in different frequency bands.

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 LTE System Overview

l Orthogonality is required because spectrums of sub-channels overlap each other.

Frequency offset of radio signals, such as Doppler Shift, can be caused by radio
channel change with time. In addition, the difference between transmitter carrier
frequency and receiver oscillator frequency can also cause frequency offset,
destroying the orthogonality of subcarriers in the OFDM system. As a result, inter-
carrier interference (ICI) among sub-channels is generated, deteriorating the BER of
the system. The vulnerability to the frequency offset is the primary disadvantage of
the OFDM system.

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 LTE System Overview

l Different from single-carrier systems, multi-carrier system outputs combined signals of

multiple sub-channels. If these signals are in the same phase, the power of combined
signals must be higher than the average power of signals, resulting in a high PAR. To
reduce the high PAR, high linearity of the PA in the transmitter is required. If the
dynamic range of the PA cannot adjust to the signal change, signals are deformed,
changing the spectrum of the combined signals. As a result, the orthogonality of
signals in multiple sub-channels is destroyed, leading to interference and deteriorated
system performance.

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LTE System Overview

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 LTE System Overview

l The multiple-access technology is used to distinguish users in a system, including

FDMA, TDMA, and CDMA.
l FDMA: The first-generation mobile telecommunications uses FDMA, which divides a
frequency into multiple channels and is easy to deploy. However, the system capacity
is limited due to limited frequency resources.
l TDMA: Based on FDMA, TDMA divides each frequency in both the frequency domain
and time domain, increasing the system capacity and improving the spectral
efficiency.
l CDMA: CDMA distinguishes users based on the frequency, time, and code. In this
way, the system capacity is further improved. However, CDMA has a high
requirement in interference resistance technology.
l In terms of capacity, the capacity of a TDMA system is four to six times as large as
that of an FDMA system while the capacity of a CDMA system is ten to twenty times
as large as that of an FDMA system.
l The system capacity is closely related to the carrier-to-interference ratio (CIR), which
refers to a ratio of the strength of a carrier signal to the strength of an interfering
signal in a radio channel. If a large CIR is required, the interference resistance of the
system is weak, and the system capacity is small.
l In terms of deployment, FDMA is the easiest one while CDMA is the most
complicated one.
l Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) is a multi-user version of
the orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) digital modulation scheme. As
shown in the figure, a bandwidth is divided into smaller units, that is, subcarrier.
These subcarriers are grouped and allocated to UE. The UE can be allocated with
different resources in both the time domain and frequency domain.

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LTE System Overview

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l Compared with CDMA, OFDMA has the following advantages:

n Effectively eliminating multipath interference in radio communications by
using cyclic prefixes
n Achieving orthogonal frequency multiplexing between users with an
ensured spectral efficiency
n Combining OFDM and MIMO Technology
n Supporting frequency link adaptation and multi-user scheduling
l OFDMA is a multiple-access modulation scheme based on resources in the
time and frequency domains. The smallest resource in the frequency domain is
subcarriers and the smallest unit in the time domain is slot. For scheduling, the
smallest unit is RB, which occupies 12 subcarriers in frequency domain, and
1ms in time domain.

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 LTE System Overview

l Compared with OFDMA, SC_FDMA has the following advantages:

n Lower PAPR, facilitating the design of UE PAs
n Achieving orthogonal frequency multiplexing between users with an ensured
spectral efficiency
n Achieving multiplexing by using DFT and orthogonal subcarrier mapping
n Supporting frequency link adaptation and multi-user scheduling

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 LTE System Overview

l The figure shows the SC-FDMA subcarrier mapping concept. The basic transmitter and
receiver architecture is very similar (nearly identical) to OFDM, and it offers the same
degree of multipath protection. Importantly, because the underlying waveform is
essentially a single carrier, the PAPR is lower.
l In the figure, the SC-FDMA signal generation process starts by creating a time domain
waveform of data symbols to be transmitted. This is then converted into the frequency
domain, using a DFT (Discrete Fourier Transform). DFT length and sampling rate are
chosen so that the signal is fully represented, as well as being spaced 15kHz apart. Each
subcarrier will have its own fixed amplitude and phase for the duration of the SC-FDMA
symbol. Next the signal is shifted to the desired place in the channel bandwidth using the
zero insertion concept, i.e. subcarrier mapping. The signal is then converted to a single
carrier waveform using an IDFT (Inverse Discrete Fourier Transform) in addition to other
functions. Finally a cyclic prefix can be added. Note that additional functions such as S-P
(Serial to Parallel) and P-S (Parallel to Serial) converters are also required as part of a
detailed functional description.

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l The figure illustrates the concept of the DFT, such that a group of N symbols map to N
subcarriers. However depending on the combination of the N symbols into the DFT, the
output will vary. As such, the actual amplitude and phase of the N subcarriers is more like
a “code word”.

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 LTE System Overview

l At the eNodeB, the receiver takes the N subcarriers and reverses the process. This is
achieved using an IDFT (Inverse Discrete Fourier Transform) which effectively reproduces
the original N symbols. The figure illustrates the basic view of how the subcarriers received
at the eNodeB are converted back into the original signals. Note that the SC-FDMA
symbols have a constant amplitude and phase, and like OFDMA, a CP is still required.

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l Each 10 ms radio frame consists of two half-frames of 5 ms each. Each half-frame consists
of eight slots of length 0.5 ms and three special fields: DwPTS, GP and UpPTS
(DwPTS+GP+UpPTS=1ms).
l GP is reserved for downlink to uplink transition. Other Subframes are assigned for either
downlink or uplink transmission.
l Uplink and downlink transmissions are separated in the time domain.

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LTE System Overview

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 LTE System Overview

l Df=7.5kHz is available for MBSFN（MBMS over Single Frequency Network），which

defined in 3GPP Protocol 8 but applied until 3GPP Protocol9. Attention:7.5kHz is only
adapted for downlink.

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 LTE System Overview

l RE (Resource Element)
p Minimum unit in physical resource
p Time domain: 1 OFDM Symbol, frequency domain: 1 Subcarrier
l RB（Resource Block）
p Minimum unit for resource allocation used for data transmission in physical lay
p Time domain: 1 Slot; frequency domain: 12 continuous subcarriers
l CCE(Control Channel Element)
p Resource unit for control channel
p 1 CCE = 36 REs
p 1 CCE = 9 REGs (1 REG = 4 REs)
l TTI (Transmission Time Interval)
p Basic unit in time domain when scheduling data in physical lay
p 1 TTI = 1 subframe = 2 slots
p 1 TTI = 14 OFDM symbols(Normal CP)
p 1 TTI = 12 OFDM symbols (Extended CP)

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LTE System Overview

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