Telecommunications Networks

Course Overview
• Properties and applications of twisted pair, coax and fibre-optic cable;
• Components of fixed microwave links, mobile radio links and satellite
systems.
• Principles of circuit switching; components of a PSTN exchange.
• Principles and advantages of packet switching.
• Capabilities of leased lines, circuit switched connections and virtual circuits.
• Principles of connectionless operation of the Internet and Internet
protocols

• Introduction to PDH, SDH and SONET based transmission networks.

• Structure of the PSTN inc.

inc the switching hierarchy; numbering issues.
issues

• Principles of X.25, Frame Relay and ATM based Wide Area Networks;
 Transmission
• Transmission - A transmission network provides high capacity physical links
which interconnect several p
physically
y y separated
p nodes.
• The transmission network will also include multiplex equipment which
combine traffic from different sources allowing them to be transported
over the same link.
link
• Modern transmission networks operate synchronously and employ optical
fibre and microwave radio links.
• Transmission systems may use copper cable, optical cable, or radio channels
to interconnect far-end and near-end equipment.
• C bl is th
Cable the medium
m di m through
th h which
hi h information
inf m ti n usually
s ll moves
m s from
f m one
n
network device to another
 Transmission Medium (Contd.)
• Types of line transmission cables
– Twisted Pair Cable
– Coaxial Cable
– Fibre-Optic Cable

Twisted Pair Cable

• A twisted pair cable consists of two insulated copper wires that are typically 0
0.4
4 to 0.6
0 6 mm
thick or about 1 mm thick if insulation is included.

• These two wires are twisted together to reduce external electrical interference and
interference from one pair to another in the same cable.
cable

• Segment length of 100 meters

• Twisted pairs are used in the telecommunications networks in subscriber lines

lines, in 2
2-Mbps
Mbps
digital transmissions with distances up to 2 km between repeaters, in DSLs up to several
megabits per second, and in short-haul data transmissions up to 100 Mbps in LANs.
Transmission Medium (Contd.)
• Unshielded Twisted Pair

• Twisted Pair

• RJ-45
 Transmission Medium (Contd.)
Coaxial Cable

yp of wire that consists of a center wire surrounded by

A type y insulation and then a
grounded shield of braided wire. The shield minimizes electrical and radio
frequency interference

C
Coaxial
i l cables
bl were used
d to
t provide
id (relatively)
( l ti l ) hi
high
h capacity
it li
links
k within
ithi
transmission networks and for submarine cable links. These links have now
largely been replaced by much higher capacity optical fibre cables.
Transmission Medium (Contd.)
( )

• BNC (Bayonet-Neill-Concelman or
British Naval Connector) Connector

• Coaxial Cable

• BNC & Coaxial Cable

 Transmission Medium (Contd.)
Fibre-Optic
p Cable

• A technology that uses glass (or plastic) threads (fibers) to transmit data. A
fiber optic cable consists of a bundle of glass threads, each of which is capable
of
f ttransmitting
itti messages modulated
d l t d onto
t li
light
ht waves .

• This technology uses laser transmitters to send pulses of light via hair-thin
strands of specially prepared glass fibers.

• New improvements promise cables that can transmit millions of telephone calls
over a single fiber. Already fiber optic cables provide the high
capacity 'backbone'
capacity, backbone links necessary to carry the enormous and growing volume
of telecommunications and Internet traffic.
Transmission Medium (Contd.)

• Core - Thin gglass center of the

fiber where the light travels
(typical value of 62.5µm)
• Cladding - Outer optical material
surrounding
di ththe core that
th t
reflects the light back into the
core (typical value of 125µm)
• Buffer coating - Plastic coating
that protects the fiber from
damage and moisture
Transmission Medium (Contd.)

• Fibre Optic Cable

• Light travels efficiently through

total internal reflection
Features of optical fiber:
Optical
p fiber used as a communication medium in telecommunication systems
y offers
the following features (or advantages):

1. It supports a very large bandwidth (50–80 MHz in multi-mode fibers (MMF), several
GHz in single-mode
g fiber ((SMF)),
)), allowing
g a high
g bit rate of transmission over thousands
of miles. It offers a very high capacity compared to hundreds of megabits per second
over a mile or so for coaxial cable and a few megabits per second for less than a mile of
twisted pair. For example, 30,000 telephone voice channels can be transmitted
simultaneouslyy at a bandwidth of 500 MHz.

2. It offers immunity to electromagnetic interference such as cross talk and electrical

sparks and, thus, can be used in a very highly noninterference-type of electromagnetic
environment.
3. Due to internal reflection inside the fiber, it has a minimal alternation coefficient, which
requires
q fewer repeaters
p than that of coaxial cables for the same distance. The spacing
p g
between repeaters depends on factors such as data rate and type of fiber being used.
Typically, spacing will be in the range of 20–40 miles as opposed to 2–4 miles in the case of
coaxial cable.

4. It has a very low error rate of 10–10 to 10–12, as compared to 10–5 to 10–7 in coaxial cable.

5. It has very small dimensions (offering small size and volume), minimal insight,
and higher
g mechanical flexibility.
y
6. It has very low sensitivity to range of temperature (low and high) variation and can easily
be installed and operated.
p

7. The rapid and continuing decline in the cost of hardware chips (due to VLSI technology) will
make this medium useful and popular.

8. It possesses a long life and long-term reliability.

9. It is impossible to detect or tap fiber-optic signals and, hence, it is highly secured

communication.

10. Well-timed integration of optics and opto-electronics seems to have a great impact
on economic conditions with respect to telecommunication services, speed of transmission,
etc.
 Problems with optical fiber: In spite of these features/advantages,
fiber optics suffer from the following problems:

1. The development of opto-electronics transducers, their optical interface with

fiber and reliability.
reliability
2. Electrical insulation between emitter, fiber, and receiver, and also the
problem of supplying direct current power to intermediate repeater stations.
3. Impurities in fiber, mismatching, poor alignment of connectors, operating
constraints, reliability issues, etc.
4 Difficulty
4. Diffi lt iin coupling
li off li
light
ht signals
si ls f
from one fib
fiber tto another
th fib
fiber.
5. Difficulty of installation and repair.
6. Expense
p of replacing
p g the existing
g equipment
q p for introducing
g and using
g fiber
optics.
7. Lack of standardization.
 Wireless communication
Electromagnetic signals and light signals carry information in the atmosphere. In
order to transmit and receive the signals
g in the case of unguided
g media,, we need an
antenna. The antenna transmits the electromagnetic signals into the atmosphere
(usually air) and the receiver receives the signals through the antenna. The
atmosphere has been divided into three regions: troposphere, stratosphere, and
ionosphere.
p
• Troposphere: This region is at altitudes lower than 15 km and is characterized by
clouds, winds etc.
• Stratosphere: This region is at altitudes from 15 to 40 km and is devoid of water
vapor.
p
• Ionosphere: This region is at altitudes from 40 to 500 km, which is characterized
by ionized layers, refraction, and reflection phenomena, and is useful for sky waves.
Electromagnetic signals are transmitted using different frequency ranges; allocation
to a p
particular mode of operation
p and its use is made by
y the International Radio
Communications Consultative Committee (CCIR) and International Frequency
Registration Board (IFRB)
Frequency bandwidth
and their application in
telecommunication
 Satellite communication

Satellite communication consists of a microwave link beyond the atmosphere, usually

assigned a pair of frequencies at 4 and 6 GHz, 11 and 14 GHz, or 20 and 30 GHz. The
satellite is in fact a microwave relay station, which connects a few ground‐based
microwave transmitters/receivers (known as earth stations or ground stations) and uses
the concept of line of sight. One band of frequency is used to transmit the signals to the
satellite which amplifies or repeats the signal and transmits it on another frequency band.
satellite, band

A satellite working on bands of frequency is known as a transponder. It supports point‐to‐

point and relay communications. In point‐to‐point communications, the satellite provides
communications
i i between
b two diff
different ground‐based
d b d antennas pointing
i i toward d the
h
satellite.

In relay communications, the satellite receives the signal from one ground‐based
transmitting antenna, amplifies or repeats it, and transmits it to a number of ground‐based
receiving antennas.
In order to maintain a line of sight
g between the antennas and the satellite, the
satellite must be stationary with respect to its position over the earth. This
means that the satellite must rotate at the same speed as that of the earth —
at a distance of 22,300 miles. In order to reduce any interference between
satellites in orbit, the current standard defines an angular displacement of 4°
spacing in a band of 4 to 6 GHz and a spacing of 3
3° for a band of 12 to 14 GHz.
GHz
Satellite communication is used in long-haul telephone communication, TV
distribution, private business networks, etc.
 Antennas

Different types of antennas for different applications in wireless communications

are described below.
1. Half‐wave dipole: This is the simplest form of antenna that can be designed
using coaxial or thin wire and is useful in the design of other antennas
antennas.
2. Folded antenna: This antenna is a modified version of the half‐wave dipole and
finds the same use as that of the half‐wave.
3. Quarter‐wave antenna: This antenna is used in automobile AM, FM, and CB
antennas.
4. Array antenna: This antenna is used in the design of such popular antennas as
parasitic or Yagi and log periodic antennas.
 Antennas (contd.)
5. Parasitic array and Yagi antenna: This antenna is useful in FM and TV antennas
and VHF and lower UHF (30 MHz to 1 GHz) applications.
applications They are very easy and
inexpensive to build.
6. Log periodic array: This is a very popular antenna and finds its applications in
VHF TV and FM antennas and VHF and UHF (30 MHz to 1GHz) applications.
7. Loop antenna: This antenna is useful for UHF band, television reception, AM
radios, and direction finding.
8. Helical antenna: This antenna is used in car telephones.
9 Parabolic antenna: This antenna is commonly used as a satellite
9. satellite‐receiving
receiving antenna
in the range of 4–6 GHz.
 Circuit-switched networks

•The circuit-switching technique was used in the first generation of telephone systems where
an operator inserts a jumper cable into input and output sockets to establish the connection
between subscribers
subscribers. A complete circuit or route (or path)
path), between source and destination
nodes is established before the data or voice information can be transmitted.

•The establishment of an entire circuit is obtained through many intermediate switching

offices which provide logic connection between input and output lines of those intermediate
offices.
 The circuit between source and destination can be established on any
•The
communication link/transmission medium (telephone line, coaxial cable, satellite link,
microwave link, etc.). The switching function for dialing equipment nowadays is
performed automatically. The telephone system is an example of this type of
switching.

•The dialing process in a computer network is usually manual, and it is used mostly
with remote terminals for interactive communications. A user dials a sequence
q of
bits to get access to a particular system.
•If he/she gets it, a dedicated circuit is established and the data information can be
transmitted on it.
it If he/she does not get access to the computer network
network, he/she
terminates the connection and tries to get access by redialing the sequence of bits
later on, perhaps establishing a different circuit for the same computer. Some
networks provide automatic circuit switching where the establishment of a circuit is
based on the bits contained in the data frame.

•This network is generally bidirectional, with the same channel for transmitting the
data in both directions (two-wire line or four-wire line system). For each of these
systems the following three steps are required to establish connections:
systems,
1. Setup of link: This detects a subscriber’s request for service, identifies the
terminal, searches and grabs a circuit, informs the required terminal, receives its
response, and, after the data is transmitted, de-establishes the circuit
(connection).

2. Hold-up of link: The established link is held during the transmission of data
between source and destination and sends out the billing information (depending
on the distance and duration of the connection) to the subscribers.

3. Release of the link: After the communication is completed, the link channels and
shared devices are released.
Components of a PSTN exchange
 Packet Switching

• In packet switching, the message is divided into blocks (or packets) of fixed
size and, further, each packet has its own control information regarding
the routing, etc., across the network. This means the packets may follow
different routes across the networks between source and destination and
that
h they
h alsol may arrive at theh destination
d in a different
d ff sequence.
• The receiver, after receiving the packets out of sequence, has to arrange
the packets in the same order as they were transmitted from the source.
 Packet Switching
• Packet switching is the dividing of messages into packets before they are sent,
transmitting each packet individually, and then reassembling them into the
original message once all of them have arrived at the intended destination.
• Packets are the fundamental unit of information transport in all modern
computer networks, and increasingly in other communications networks as
well. Each packet, which can be of fixed or variable size depending on the
protocol, consists of a header, body (also called a payload) and a trailer. The
body contains a segment of the message being transmitted.
• The header contains a set of instructions regarding the packet’s data, including
the sender’s IP address, the intended receiver’s IP address, the number of
packets into which the message has been divided, the identification number of
the
h particular
l packet,
k the h protocol,l packet
k llength h and
d synchronization.
h
 Advantages of packet switching

• The link utilization is improved, since the link can be shared by a number of
different packets. Each node has its own queue storing those packets which are
going to use the node. After the communication link is established, the packets (of
different or the same data messages) may be transmitted during the established
connection.
• In the case of packet‐switched networks, stations with different data rates can
communicate with each other, and the necessary conversion between different
data rates is done by the network, while in the case of circuit‐switched networks,
both stations must have the same data rate.
• In circuit‐switched networks, the packets may be lost, as the network will not
accept them in the event of a busy network, while the packets will be accepted in
the case of a packet
packet‐switched
switched network but there may be some delay in their
delivery.
• The delay in the transmission of packets at any node may become a problem in the
case of packet‐switched networks, while in the case of circuit‐switched networks, a
dedicated circuit has been established and hence there is no delay in the
transmission.

• Priorities
i i i can beb assigned
i d to the
h switching
i hi nodes d in
i the
h packet‐switched
k i h d networks k
such that nodes with higher priorities will transmit the packets waiting in their
respective queues before the lower‐priority nodes. In the case of circuit‐switched
networks,, there is no concept
p of p
priority.
y

• Circuit‐switched networks generate the ordered delivery of the packets, while

packet‐switched networks do not give any guarantee for the ordered delivery of
the packets.
 Capabilities of leased lines

• Leased Line
– A leased line is a permanent fibre optic or telephone connection between two
points set up by a telecommunications carrier. A leased line is also sometimes
referred to as a dedicated line. They can be used for telephone, data, or
internet services.
services

– A leased line is a fast permanent connection to the Internet from your office
or network,
network giving you access to the Internet instantly.
instantly Leased lines come in
different sizes dependant upon your needs with bandwidth from 64Kbps to
115Mbps.
 Capabilities of virtual circuits

• A virtual circuit is a logical connection created to ensure reliable communication

b t
between ttwo network
t k devices.
d i

• A virtual circuit denotes the existence of a logical, bidirectional path from one
DTE device to another. Physically,
y y, the connection can pass
p through
g any y number
of intermediate nodes, such as DCE devices and PSEs. Multiple virtual circuits
(logical connections) can be multiplexed onto a single physical circuit (a physical
connection).

• Virtual circuits are demultiplexed at the remote end, and data is sent to the
appropriate destinations.
 Virtual circuits (Contd.)

Virtual circuits can be multiplexed onto a

single physical circuit
 Internet & Internet Protocols

Internet

• The Internet, which has become a global communication network, uses

packet switching techniques to enable its attached devices—personal
computers workstations
computers, workstations, servers
servers, and wireless devices—to exchange
information.

• The information is encoded as long strings of bits called packets. In order

to achieve the transfer of packets between the attached devices, certain
rules about packet format and processing must be followed. These rules are
called protocols, and the suite of protocols used by the Internet is the
TCP/IP.
TCP/IP
 Connectionless operation of the internet

Datagram (connectionless)
• No setup phase for establishing a connection
• Routing of each datagram separately and independently
• Delay at each node (same as in virtual circuit and packet-switching)
• Useful for small-sized packets (small delay)
• Significant delay introduced at each switching node, as the packets have to be accepted,
stored, re-routed, etc.
• Not suitable for large-sized packets
• No dedicated link or circuit
• Fast for interactive communication
• Speed and code conversion
• Transmission delay, call setup delay
 Commonly used internet protocols

• Upper layer protocols

– SMTP(Simple Mail Transfer Protocol)
– FTP (File Transfer Protocol)
– Telnet: terminal emulation
– HyperText Markup Language (HTML)
– HyperText
yp Transfer Protocol

• Transport Protocols
– Transmission Control Protocol
– User Datagram Protocol

• Network Protocols
– Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4)
– P i
Point-to-point
i protocoll (PPP)
– PPP over Ethernet (PPPoE)
– Open Shortest Path First (OSPF)
– Border Gateway Protocol
 PDH, SDH & SONET Transmission

PDH is an integrated digital network, so it can carry a range of traffic, as long as that
traffic is presented in a digital manner.

Therefore, PDH represented the first opportunity for users and carriers to combine voice
and data traffic over the same pipes. In addition, it specifies the different transmission
levels or data rates, some of which are available for customers to subscribe to and others
of which are used by operators internally within the backbones.
backbones

Finally, it defines within each of the transmission levels how many channels can be made
available.
 PDH, SDH & SONET Transmission

• Synchronous optical networking (SONET) and Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH),

are two closely related multiplexing protocols for transferring multiple digital bit
streams using lasers or light-emitting diodes (LEDs) over the same optical fiber. The
method was developed to replace the Plesiochronous Digital Hierarchy (PDH) system
f transporting
for i llarger amounts of
f telephone
l h calls
ll and
d data
d traffic
ffi over the
h same
fiber wire without synchronization problems.

• SONET and SDH are based on circuit mode communication, meaning that each
connection achieves a constant bit rate and delay. For example, SDH or SONET may
be utilized to allow several Internet Service Providers to share the same optical
fiber without being affected by each other's
fiber, other s traffic load
load, and without being able to
temporarily borrow free capacity from each other. Only certain integer multiples of
64 kbit/s are possible bit rates.
 PDH, SDH & SONET Transmission

• Since SONET and SDH are characterized as pure time division multiplexing (TDM)
protocols (not to be confused with Time Division Multiple Access, TDMA), offering
permanent connections, and do not involve packet mode communication, they are
considered as physical layer protocols.

• Both SDH and SONET are widely used today: SONET in the U.S. and Canada and SDH
in the rest of the world.
world Although the SONET standards were developed before SDH
SDH,
their relative penetrations in the worldwide market dictate that SONET now is
considered the variation.
 Integrated networks

Th switching
The it hi ttechniques
h i di
discussed
d above
b also
l fifind
d th
their
i applications
li ti iin
different types of data and integrated networks. In the integrated environment
where both voice and
w n data can
n be sent
n over the same
m channel,
nn , the data
networks (based on packet-switching) will handle (process, transfer, etc.) only
the data while PSTN (based on circuit switching) will handle voice
communications. The networks supporting both data and voice are known as
integrated digital networks, offering narrow-band and broadband services.
 Integrated services digital networks (ISDNs)

Integrated networks offering both data and voice are known as Integrated Services Digital
Networks (ISDNs).
(ISDNs) These networks use both types of switching techniques for offering
integrated services. For voice communications, circuit switching involves both channels B
and D for their protocols, such that the B channel is defined for exchange of a message or
user’s information, and the D channel is concerned with the exchange of control
information between the network and users.

The control information deals with the establishment of calls, termination of calls,
accessing of networks, etc. The switching nodes receive control information from the
common channel signaling network (CCSN) regarding the control information for
connection of circuits and its use for transmitting the user information.

This CCSN uses the

Thi th common channel
h l signaling
i li systemt N
No. 7 (CCSS7) scheme
h ffor ISDN as
defined by CCITT. Packet switching is used on channel B, which is using circuit switching for
accessing the services of the ISDN, and also on channel D.
 Numbering
NUMBERING
• A customer's
t ' number
b serves many functions:
f ti it is
i the
th address
dd for
f receiving
i i calls,
ll it provides
id identity
id tit
for charging, it may have easily‐remembered significance. Businesses in particular may have
considerable investment in their telephone/fax numbers. But with the coming of competing PTOs,
new services like mobile and personal communications and the ever‐increasing demands of new
customers numbering systems have become important politically and therefore technically.
customers, technically
• Numbering issues include‐
• Geography, country code, open and closed systems, portability and personal numbering
Telephone connectors:
The FCC has defined a number of connectors. The registered jack (RJ) series is very
popular and offers a variety of connectors.
RJ‐11:
A modular plug that connects the telephone set to the wall socket, used for
voice
i and d data
d communications
i i andd also
l for
f LAN connections.
i
RJ‐14:
Has the same function as that of RJ‐11 but is more expensive and is not
recommended for applications
pp of RJ‐11.
RJ‐22:
A compact version of RJ‐11; can connect a telephone set to the telephone base.
RJ‐45:
Used in DTE/DCE interfaces and LANs (10 and 100 B‐T).
B T)
RJ‐48:
Used in DS‐1 or T1 circuits.
Introduction to X.25, Frame Relay and ATM Wide Area Networks
X 25
X.25
-Packet
ac t network
n twor standard
stan ar
•Packets, addresses
•Virtual circuits
•CCITT, 1976
•Supports dumb terminals
-Reliable
R li bl packet
k t network
t k
•Guaranteed delivery
-Connection-oriented
•Virtual circuits: SVC, PVCs
-Compare
C to
t
connectionless
•No virtual circuits
•No guarantees
Need end-end
•Need end end error control
Frame Relay

-Faster than X.25:

Lean and mean
-Lean: Virtual circuit
ID(DLCI) in frame
address
•Table
T bl lookup
l k ffor routing
ti
•Eliminates layer of software
-Mean: unreliable
service
•Frame
F m corrupted?
upt d? C
Congestion?
n sti n?
Discard
•User must ensure end-end
reliability
Frame Relay
Frame Relay

Since the frame relay

is an unreliable
service you have to
service,
ensure end-end
reliability by using the
TCP/IP
Frame Relay

To route connection
to more than one
area you assign IP
addresses to
identify
d f a virtuall
connection to one
point from the other
Frame Relay
Frame Relay
Frame Relay Performance

-Bandwidth on demand
•1.5Mb/s
1 5Mb/s access at each location
•Use carrier’s network on demand
•Usage sensitive pricing

-Performance

-Committed Information Rate

(CIR)
Guaranteed throughput
•Guaranteed
•Billed full period

-Burst Information Rate

•Short-term guarantee
g
•Moving average
 ATM

-Bandwidth on demand
-Promises
•Delays would be guaranteed
•Handle everything including voice on PSTN
•Switched virtual circuits
-Reality
•Not used on PSTN
•SVCs horribly complicated
-Service class = contract
•User traffic profile
•Network:QoS guarantee

-Continuous Bit Rate

•Emulates circuit switching

-Variable Bit Rate – Real

time
•Voice, video

-VBR – Non-real time

•Data; Frame Relay Transport

-Available Bit Rate

-Unspecified Bit rate

 END OF MODULE

Q
QUESTIONS!!!