EDGE

Introduction
The business of wireless data is expect ed to grow in th e region of 1002 0 0 p er ce n t p er an n u m an d t h e mo b i l e co m mu n i ca t i o n s i n d u s t r y ag r ee s that wireless data services will form th e foundation for future business. The enor mous su cce ss o f sh or t mes sagin g in man y countr ies pr oves that people accept the benefits of non-voice services.
Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) as well as the higher transmission speeds of High Speed Circuit Switched Data (HSCSD), and the

c o n v e n i e n c e o f " a l w a ys o n - l i n e " d i r e c t i n t e r n e t c o n n e c t i o n s w i t h G e n e r a l Packet Radio Service (GPRS) these stand ards enable greater sophistication as end-user services move towards personal multimed ia. A new

t e c h n o l o g y, E n h a n c e d D a t a R a t e s f o r G S M E v o l u t i o n ( E D G E ) w a s introduced to boost network capacit y and data rates of both circuit switchin g (HS CS D) and packet switchin g (GP RS ), to meet the demands of w i r e l e s s m u l t i m e d i a a p p l i c a t i o n s a n d m a s s m a r k e t d e p l o ym e n t . W i t h t h e introduction of EDGE in GSM phase 2+, ex isting services su ch as GPRS and high-speed circuit switched data (HS CSD) are enhanced b y offerin g a n e w p h ys i c a l l a ye r . T h e s e r v i c e s t h e m s e l v e s a r e n o t m o d i f i e d . E D G E i s introduced within ex isting specifications and descriptions rather than b y creating new ones. Man y wireless data applications toda y can be implemented with 9.6kbit/s data. However, ban dwidth-hungry fix ed line data applications - web browsing, access to corporate data bases , and so on - would benefit from higher transmission speeds when used o ver the mobile netw ork. HS CSD will significantl y improve will performance, enable especiall y for time- critical access to

applications.

GPRS

cost-effective

wireless

applications that rel y upon data bursts, adding packet switching to GSM with a packet-bas ed air interface on top of the current circuit switched m o d e o f o p e r a t i o n .

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EDGE GPRS will provide the connectivit y needed in packet-sw itched data n etw o rk s su ch as th e In tern et . G en eral P ack et R ad io S erv ices (GP R S ) is a packet- bas ed wirele ss communication s ervice that promises data rates fro m 5 6 u p to 1 1 4 K b p s an d co n tin u o us co n n ectio n to th e In tern et fo r mobile phone and co mputer users. The higher data rates will allow users to take part in video conferences and interact with multimedia Web sites and similar applications using mobile handheld devices as well as n o t e b o o k c o m p u t e r s . G P R S i s b a s e d o n G l o b a l S ys t e m f o r M o b i l e ( G S M ) communic ation and will comp lement ex isting services s uch circuitswitched cellular phone connections and the Short Message Service (SMS). I n t h e o r y, G P R S p a c k e t - b a s e d s e r v i c e s h o u l d c o s t u s e r s l e s s t h a n c i r c u i t switched s ervices s ince communication channels are bein g used on a shared-use, as-packets-are-needed basis rather than dedicated onl y to one u s er at a time. It s h o u ld als o b e eas i er to mak e ap p licatio n s av ailab le to mobile users because the faster data rate means that middlew are curr entl y n e e d e d t o a d a p t a p p l i c a t i o n s t o t h e s l o w e r s p e e d o f w i r e l e s s s ys t e m s w i l l no longer be neede d. As GP RS beco mes available, mobile users of a virtual private network (VPN) will be able to access the private network continuousl y rather than throu gh a di al-up connection.

GP RS will also co mplement Bluetooth, a standard for replacin g w ired co n n ectio n s b etw e en d ev ices w ith w irele s s rad io co n n ectio n s . In ad d itio n to th e In tern et P ro to co l ( IP ), GP R S s u p po rts X. 2 5 , a p ack et- b as ed p ro to co l that is used mainl y in Europe. GPRS is an evolutionar y step toward Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE).

EDGE, a new radio interface technolog y with enhanced modulation, increas es the HSCSD and GPRS data rates b y up to three fold. EDGE modulation will increas e the data throughput provided b y the packet s w i t c h e d s e r v i c e e v e n o v e r 4 0 0 k b i t / s p e r c a r r i e r . S i m i l a r l y, t h e d a t a r a t e s Model Engineering College,Thrikkakara 2

EDGE of circuit switched data can be increased, or ex isting data rates can b e a c h i e v e d u s i n g f e w e r t i m e s l o t s , s a v i n g c a p a c i t y . A c c o r d i n g l y, t h e s e h i g h e r speed data services are referred to as EGP RS (Enhanced GPRS) and ECSD (Enhanced Circuit Switched Data). GPRS allows data rates of 115 kbps a n d , t h e o r e t i c a l l y, o f u p t o 1 6 0 k b p s o n t h e p h y s i c a l l a y e r . E G P R S i s c a p a b l e o f o f f e r i n g d a t a r a t e s o f 3 8 4 k b p s a n d , t h e o r e t i c a l l y, o f u p t o 473.6 kbps. A new modulation technique and error-tolerant transmission methods, comb ined with improved link adaptation mechan isms, mak e these EGPRS rates possible. This is the key to increas ed spectrum efficienc y and enhan ced applications, such as wireless Internet access, email and file trans fers. As a modification to ex isting GS M netw orks, EDGE does not require new network elemen ts. E DGE is especiall y attractive to GSM 900, GSM 1800 and GSM 1900 operators that do not have a licence for UM TS, but still wish to offer competitive personal multi media applications utilising the ex isting band allocation. Also, EDGE can co-ex ist with UMTS, for instance to provide high-speed services for wide-area co verage while U M T S i s d e p l o y e d i n u r b a n h o t s p o t s .

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EDGE

T ech n ica l d ifferen ces b etw een GP R S a n d E GPR S

R eg a r d ed as a s u b s ys t e m w i t h i n t h e G S M s t an d ar d , G P R S h a s i n t r o d u ced packet-switched data into GSM networks. Man y new protocols and new nodes have been introduced to make this possible.

EDGE is a method to increas e the data rates on the radio lin k for GSM. B a s i c a l l y, E D G E o n l y i n t r o d u c e s a n e w m o d u l a t i o n t e c h n i q u e a n d n e w channel coding that can be used to transmit both packet-s witched and circuit-switched voice and data services. EDGE is therefore an add-on to GP RS and cannot work alone. GPRS has a greater impact on the GS M s ys t e m t h a n E D G E h a s . B y a d d i n g t h e n e w m o d u l a t i o n a n d c o d i n g t o GP RS and b y making adjustments to the radio link protocols, EGP RS o f f e r s s i g n i f i c a n t l y h i g h e r t h r o u g h p u t a n d c a p a c i t y.

GPRS and EGPRS have different protocols and different behavior on the b a s e s t a t i o n s ys t e m s i d e . H o w e v e r , o n t h e c o r e n e t w o r k s i d e , G P R S a n d EGPRS share the same packet-handling protocols and, therefore, behave in t h e s a m e w a y. R e u s e o f t h e e x i s t i n g G P R S c o r e i n f r a s t r u c t u r e ( s e r v i n g GRPS support node/gatew a y GP RS support node) emph asizes the fact that E G P R S i s o n l y a n a d d - o n t o t h e b a s e s t a t i o n s ys t e m a n d i s t h e r e f o r e much easier to introduce than GP RS .

In addition to enhan cing the throughput for each data user, EDGE also i n c r e a s e s c a p a c i t y. W i t h E D G E , t h e s a m e t i m e s l o t c a n s u p p o r t m o r e users. This decreases the number of rad io resources required to support the same traffic, thu s freein g up capacit y for more data or voice services. EDGE makes it easier for circuit-switch ed and packet-s witched traffic to coex ist while makin g more efficient use of the same radio resources. Thus in tightl y planned networks with limi ted spectrum, ED GE ma y also be s e e n a s a c a p a c i t y b o o s t e r f o r t h e d a t a t r a f f i c . Model Engineering College,Thrikkakara 4

EDGE

EDGE technology
EDGE leverages the knowledge gained t hrou gh use of the ex is ting GP RS s tandard to deliver s ignificant technical improvements .

A l t h o u g h G P R S a n d E D G E s h a r e t h e s a m e s ym b o l r a t e , t h e m o d u l a t i o n b i t rate differs. ED GE c an transmit three times as man y bits as G P RS during the same period of time. This is the main reason for the higher ED GE bit rates.

The differences between the radio and user data rates are the result of whether or not the packet headers are taken into consideration. These d i f f e r e n t w a ys o f c a l c u l a t i n g t h r o u g h p u t o f t e n c a u s e m i s u n d e r s t a n d i n g within the industr y about actual throughput figures for GPRS and EGPRS. The data rate of 3 84 kbps is often used in relation to EDGE. The In te r n atio n al T ele co mmu n ic at io n s Un io n ( ITU ) h as d ef in ed 3 8 4 k b p s as the data rate limit required for a s ervice to fulfill the Internat ion al M obile

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EDGE

EDGE modulation technique

T h e m o d u l a t i o n t yp e t h a t i s u s e d i n G S M i s t h e G a u s s i a n m i n i m u m s h i f t k e yi n g ( G M S K ) , w h i c h i s a k i n d o f p h a s e m o d u l a t i o n . T h i s c a n b e visualized in an I/Q diagram that shows the real (I) and imaginar y (Q) compon ents of the transmitted signal. Transmitting a zero bit or one bit is then represented b y changin g the phase b y increments of + _ p. Ever y s ym b o l t h a t i s t r a n s m i t t e d r e p r e s e n t s o n e b i t ; t h a t i s , e a c h s h i f t i n t h e phase represents one bit.

To achieve higher bit rates per time slot than those availab le in GSM/GP RS , the modu lation method requires change. EDG E is specified to reuse the channel structure, channel width, channel coding and the ex isting me chanis ms and functionalit y of GPRS and H SCSD. The

m o d u l a t i o n s t a n d a r d s e l e c t e d f o r E D G E , 8 - p h a s e s h i f t k e yi n g ( 8 P S K ) , fulfills all of those requiremen ts. 8PS K modulation has the same qualities in terms of generating interference on adjacent channels as GMS K. This mak es it possible to integrate EDGE cha nnels into an ex isting frequenc y

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EDGE plan and to assign new EDGE channels in the same wa y as standard GS M channels.

The 8PS K modulation method is a linear method in which thre e c o n s e c u t i v e b i t s a r e m a p p e d o n t o o n e s y m b o l i n t h e I / Q p l a n e . T h e s ym b o l r a t e , o r t h e n u m b e r o f s ym b o l s s e n t w i t h i n a c e r t a i n p e r i o d o f t i m e , r e m a i n s t h e s a m e a s f o r G M S K , b u t e a c h s ym b o l n o w r e p r e s e n t s t h r e e b i t s instead of one. The total data rate is th erefore increas ed b y a factor of t h r e e . T h e d i s t a n c e b e t w e e n t h e d i f f e r e n t s ym b o l s i s s h o r t e r u s i n g 8 P S K modulation than when using GMS K. Shorter distances increas e the risk for m i s i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f t h e s ym b o l s b e c a u s e i t i s m o r e d i f f i c u l t f o r t h e r a d i o r e c e i v e r t o d e t e c t w h i c h s ym b o l i t h a s r e c e i v e d . U n d e r g o o d r a d i o conditions, this does not matter. Under poor radio conditions, however, it does. The ex tra bits will be used to a dd more errorcorrect ing coding, and the correct infor mation can be recovered. Onl y under ver y poor radio environments is GMS K more efficien t. Therefore the ED GE coding schemes are a mix ture of both GMSK and 8PSK.

Coding schemes
For GPRS, four different coding schemes, designated CS1 through CS4, are defined. Each has different amounts of error-correcting c oding that is optimiz ed for different radio environments. For EGP RS , nine modulation coding schemes, des ignated MCS 1 through MCS 9, are introduced. These fulfill the same task as the GP RS coding schemes. The lower four EGP RS coding schemes (MS C1 to MSC4) use GMS K, whereas the upper five (MS C5 to MSC9) use 8P S K modulation. Figure 4 shows both GP RS and EGPRS coding schemes, along with their maximum throughputs.

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EDGE

GP RS user throughput reaches saturation at a max imum of 20 kbps with CS4, whereas th e EGPRS bit rate continues to increas e as the radio qualit y increases, until throughput reaches s atu ration at 59.2 kbps. Both GPRS CS 1 to CS 4 and EGP RS MCS 1 to M CS 4 use GMSK modulation with slightl y different throughput performances. This is due to differences in t h e h e a d e r s i z e ( a n d p a yl o a d s i z e ) o f t h e E G P R S p a c k e t s . T h i s m a k e s i t possible to resegmen t EGPRS packets. A packet sent with a higher coding scheme (less error correction) that is not properl y received, can be retrans mitted with a lower coding scheme (more error correction) if the new radio environmen t requires it. This resegmenting (retr ans mitting with a n o t h e r c o d i n g s c h e m e ) r e q u i r e s c h a n g e s i n t h e p a yl o a d s i z e s o f t h e r a d i o blocks, which is wh y EGP RS and GP RS do not have the same performance for the GMS K modulated coding schemes . Resegmen tation is not possible w i t h G P R S .

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EDGE

Packet handling
Another improvemen t that has been made to the EG P RS standard is the abilit y to retrans mit a packet that has not been decoded properl y with a more robust coding scheme. F or GP RS , resegmentation is not possible. Once packets have been sent, the y must b e retransmitted using the original coding s cheme even if the r adio environmen t has chan ged. This has a significant imp act on the throughput, as the algorithm decides the level of co n f i d en ce w i t h w h i ch t h e l i n k ad ap t at i o n ( LA ) mu s t w o r k . Below is an example of packet transfer and retransmission for GP RS .

A. The GP RS termin al receives data fr om the network on t he downlink. Due to a GP RS meas urement report that was previously recei ved, the link adaptation algorithm in the base station controller decides to s end the next radio blocks (e.g., n umbers 1 to 4) with CS 3. During the transmission of these packages, the carrier-to-interference ratio (C / I) decreas es

d r a m a t i c a l l y, c h a n g i n g t h e r a d i o e n v i r o n m e n t . A f t e r t h e p a c k e t s h a v e b e e n transmitted, the network polls for a new measurement repo rt, including the acknowled ged/unacknowled ged bitmap that tells the network which r a d i o b l o c k s w e r e r e c e i v e d c o r r e c t l y.

B.

The

GPRS

handset

replies

with

packet

downlink

acknowled ged/unack nowledged message containing the information about the link qualit y an d the bitmap. In this s cenar io, it is ass umed that pack ets 2 a n d 3 w e r e s e n t e r r o n e o u s l y.

C. Bas ed on the new link qualit y information, the GPRS link adaptation algorithm will adap t the coding schem e to the new radio environment using CS1 for the new packets 5 and 6. However, because GPRS cannot resegment the old packets, pack ets 2 and 3 must be retrans mitted usin g CS 3, although there is a significant risk that these packets still ma y not be d e c o d e d c o r r e c t l y. A s a r e s u l t , t h e l i n k a d a p t a t i o n f o r G P R S r e q u i r e s Model Engineering College,Thrikkakara 9

EDGE careful s election of the coding scheme in order to avoid retrans missions as much as possible. With EGP RS , res egmentation is possible. P ackets sent with little error p rotection can be retransmitted with more error

protection, if required b y the new r adio environment. The rapidly chan ging radio envir onmen t has a much smaller effect on the problem of choosing the wrong coding scheme for the nex t sequence of radio blocks becaus e res egmen tati on is poss ible.

Addressing window
Before a sequence of coded radio link co ntrol packets or radio blocks can be transmitted over the Um (radio) interface, the transmitter must address the packets with an identification number. This information is then included in the head er of ever y pack et. The packets in GP RS are numbered from 1 to 128. After transmission of a sequence of pack ets (e. g., 10 packets), the transmitter asks the receive r to verif y the correctness of the packets received in the form of an acknowled ged/unacknowledged report. This report informs the transmitter which packet or packets were not successfull y decoded and must be retr ansmitted. S ince th e number of packets is limited to 128 and the addressing window is 64, the packet Model Engineering College,Thrikkakara 10

EDGE sending process can run out of addresses after 64 packets. If an erroneousl y decoded packet must be retransmitted, it ma y have the same number as a new packet in the queue. If so, the protocol between the ter minal and the network stalls, and all the packets belonging to the same l o w - l a ye r c a p a b i l i t y f r a m e m u s t b e r e t r a n s m i t t e d .

In EGP RS , the addressing numbers have been increased to 2 048 and the window has been increas ed to 1024 in order to minimiz e the risk for s t a l l i n g . T h i s , i n t u r n , m i n i m i z e s t h e r i s k f o r r e t r a n s m i t t i n g l o w - l a ye r capabil it y frames and prevents decreased throughput.

Interleaving
To increase the per formance of the higher coding s chemes in EGP RS (MCS7 to MCS9) even at low C/I, the interleavin g proced ure has been chan ged within the EGPRS standard. When frequency hopping is used, the radio environ ment is chan gin g on a per- burst level. Because a radio block is interleaved and transmitted over four bursts for GP RS , each burst ma y ex perience a comp letel y different interfer en ce environ ment. If jus t one of the four bursts is not properl y received, the entire radio block will not be properl y decoded an d will have to be retransmitted. In the cas e of CS4 for Model Engineering College,Thrikkakara 11

EDGE GPRS, hardl y an y error protection is used at all. With EGPRS, the standard handles th e higher coding scheme differentl y than GP RS to comb at this problem. MCS 7, MCS 8 and MCS 9 actuall y trans mit two radio blocks over the four bursts, and the interleaving occurs over two bursts instead of four. This reduces the number of bursts that must be retrans mitted should errors occur. Th e likelihood of receiving two consecutive errorfree bursts is higher than receiving four consecutive errorfree bursts. This means that the higher coding schemes for EDGE have a better robustness with regard to frequency hopping.

EGPRS linkcontrolling function

To achieve the h i ghes t poss ible through put over the radio link, EGP RS uses a combination of two functionalities: link ad aptation an d in crem en tal r ed un d an cy . Compared to a pure link adaptation solution, this combination of mechanis ms significantl y improves performance.

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EDGE

Link adaptation
L i n k a d a p t a t i o n u s e s t h e r a d i o l i n k q u a l i t y, m e a s u r e d e i t h e r b y t h e m o b i l e station in a downlink transfer or b y the base station in an uplink transfer, to select the most ap propriate modulation coding sch eme for trans mission of the nex t sequence of packets. For an u plink packet transfer , the network informs the mobile station which coding scheme to use for transmission of the nex t sequence of packets. The mo dulation coding sch eme can be changed for each radio block (four bursts), but a chan ge is usuall y initiated b y new qualit y estimates. The practical adaptation rate is therefore decided b y the measurement interval.

T h e r e a r e t h r e e f a m i l i e s : A , B a n d C . W i t h i n e a c h f a m i l y, t h e r e i s a r e l a t i o n s h i p b e t w e e n t h e p a yl o a d s i z e s , w h i c h m a k e s r e s e g m e n t a t i o n f o r retrans missions possible.

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EDGE

Incremental redundancy
Incrementa l redundanc y initiall y uses a coding scheme, such as MCS 9, with ver y little error protection and without consideration for the actual r a d i o l i n k q u a l i t y. W h e n i n f o r m a t i o n i s r e c e i v e d i n c o r r e c t l y, a d d i t i o n a l coding is transmitted and then soft co mbined in the recei ver with the previousl y received information. S oft-combining increas es the probabilit y of decoding the inf ormation. This procedure will be repeated until the information is successfully decoded. This means that information about t h e r a d i o l i n k i s n o t n e c e s s a r y t o s u p p o r t i n c r e m e n t a l r e d u n d a n c y. F o r t h e mobile stations, incremental redundanc y support is mandator y in the s t a n d a r d .

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EDGE

EDGE Standardization
Standardization of the first releases of the thirdgeneration cellular s ys t e m s t h a t c o m p l y w i t h I T U / I M T - 2 0 0 0 r e q u i r e m e n t s h a s n o w b e e n finalized with European Telecommunications Standar ds Institute

( E T S I / 3 G P P ) R e l e a s e 9 9 . T w o s u c h m a j o r s ys t e m s a r e U n i v e r s a l M o b i l e T e l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n s S ys t e m ( U M T S ) a n d G S M / E D G E .

Fulfilling the EDGE Standardization

EDGE standardization can be divided in three areas: s t a n d a r d i z a t i o n o f t h e p h ys i c a l l a ye r c h a n g e s (definition of the modulation and coding schemes) the protocol chan ges for ECS D and EGPRS.

EDGE standard and references

T h e E D G E b a s e s t a t i o n s ys t e m w o r k i t e m p r o v i d e s a p l a t f o r m t o e m p l o y new modulation techniques, whereas the EDGE netw ork support

s u b s ys t e m w o r k i t e m d e f i n e s t h e n e t w o r k c h a n g e s t o f a c i l i t a t e t h e p h ys i c a l l a ye r . A c c o r d i n g t o t h e w o r k i t e m descriptions, EDGE will provide two phases: P hase 1: S ingle- an d multislot packet- switched services and single and multislot circuitswitched services. P h a s e 2 : R e a l - t i m e s e r v i c e s e m p l o yi n g t h e n e w m o d u l a t i o n t e c h n i q u e s t h a t are not included in Phase 1.

P hase 1 has been co mpleted with 3GP P Releas e 99. P hase 2 is ongoing in the 3GPP standardization, and its scope has been ex tended to cover the ali gn men t w ith W C D M A an d th e p ro v is io n in g o f In tern et p ro to co l ( IP ) multimedia. This co ncept, currentl y st andardized in 3GP P , is known as G E R A N . 15

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EDGE

Requirements on EDGE
From the beginning, the standardization of EDGE was restricted to the p h ys i c a l l a y e r a n d t o t h e i n t r o d u c t i o n o f a n e w m o d u l a t i o n s c h e m e . S i n c e EDGE was intended as an evolution of the ex isting GSM radio access t e c h n o l o g y, t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s w e r e s e t a c c o r d i n g l y: EDGE- and non-EDGE-capable mobile stations should be able to share one and the same time slot. E D G E - a n d n o n - E D G E - c a p a b l e t r a n s c e i v e r s s h o u l d b e d e p l o ya b l e in the same spectrum. A partial introduction of EDGE should be possible.

To eas e implemen tation of new ter mina ls while taking into account the a s ym m e t r i c a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c o f m o s t s e r v i c e s c u r r e n t l y a v a i l a b l e , i t w a s also decided that two classes of terminals should be supported b y the EDGE standard: a terminal that provides 8P S K capabilit y in the downlink onl y a terminal that provides 8P S K in the uplink and downlink.

EDGE data applications

With EDGE, GSM goes personal multime dia. EDGE w ill boost all ex isting circuit and packet- s witched services and enable comp let el y new highs p e e d d a t a a p p l i c a t i o n s .

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EDGE

Enhanced General Packet Radio Service (EGPRS)

The dominan t data networking protocol, on which most d ata network ap p licatio n s are ru n n in g, is TC P / IP , th e In tern et Pro to co l. A ll w eb ap p licati o n s are ru n o n so me fo rm o f TC P / IP , w h ich is b y n atu re a protocol famil y for p acket switched netw orks. This means that (E)GPRS is an ideal bearer for an y pack et switched application such as an Internet connection. From the end us er 's point of view, th e (E)GPRS network is an Internet sub-network that has wireless access. Internet addres sing is used an d In t ern et s erv ice s can b e acces s ed . A n ew n u mb er, t h e IP ad d res s n u mb er, is in tro d u ced w ith th e telep h o n e n u mb er. Fro m t h e In tern et 's point of view, the (E)GPRS network is j ust one sub-network among man y o t h e r s . T yp i c a l E G P R S a p p l i c a t i o n s a r e : Online Email Web Enhanced short messages Wireless imaging with instant pictures Video services Document and infor mation sharing Surveillance V oice ov er In tern et Broadcasting

Enhanced Circuit Switched Data (ECSD)

S ome applications, such as f ax and video, require a transparent service (constant bit rates), while other applicat ions (the web, e-mai l) can work w e l l w i t h n o n - t r a n s p a r e n t s e r v i c e s . T yp i c a l E C S D a p p l i c a t i o n s a r e :

E-mail download and upload

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EDGE Ban dwidth- s ecure mobi le high s peed LA N acces s File transfer V e r t i c a l a p p l i c a t i o n s s u c h a s b a t c h - t yp e f i e l d s a l e s i n f o r m a t i o n o r document transfer Real-time applications demanding a cons tant bit rate and

transmission delay Ti me-critical wireles s imaging Mobile videophon y Video on demand Live video s treamin g

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EDGE

Deployment of edge
All next-generation wireless networks have three main components:

The radio infrastructure, which includes the cell sites. The packet core infrastructure, which handles only the packet-data traffic. The cir cuit-s witche d infrastructure, w hich includes the mobile switching centers (MSCs), and handles circuit-switched t r a f f i c . E v e n t u a l l y, voice

as w irel es s n etw o rk s ev o lv e to an all- IP

architecture, voice will also be packetized and travel over the packet core, and the circuit-switched infrastructure will be phased out.

A l l c u r r e n t - g e n e r a t i o n w i r e l e s s n e t w o r k s , r e g a r d l e s s o f t e c h n o l o g y, h a v e ci r cu i t - s w i t c h ed i n f r as t r u ct u r e. T h e p ack e t c o r e i s d ep l o yed w h en an operator migr ates to GP RS , which is the first step toward 3G . Because EDGE is an upgrade to GP RS , it leverages the inves tments in the packet core and circuit- switched infrastructure b y r e- using them. The majorit y of the changes to dep lo y EDGE are in the radio infrastructure, where software and hardware are added at each cell site.

This approach to migration benefits customers because their EDGE devices will work on GPRS networks, ensuring EDGE can use their GPRS devices on an EDGE network because of the forward and backward compatibility of the GPRS and EDGE technologies/networks.

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EDGE

How Gsm Deploy edge?

Most GSM operators will deplo y GPRS before upgrading to EDGE. The G P R S u p g r a d e l a ys t h e f o u n d a t i o n f o r E D G E b y a d d i n g t h e p a c k e t c o r e infrastructure, which EDGE re-uses.

I f a G S M r a d i o i n f r a s t r u c t u r e i s l e s s t h a n f i v e ye a r s o l d ( a s m o s t G S M networks in the Americas are), it usuall y can be upgraded from GPRS to EDGE with software and channel cards. If the operator has older GSM radio infrastructure and chooses to replace it during the GPRS upgrade, the ED GE up grade is still simp le and cost effective beca use all new GSM/GP RS radio equipment is alread y d esigned to support EDGE.

With EDGE, the circuit-switched infrastructure continues to handle onl y v o i c e c a l l s . N o c h a n g e s a r e n e c e s s a r y.

How does an analog or TDMA operator deploy EDGE?

Analog and TDMA operators that have chosen th e GSM-bas ed migration p a t h t o 3 G b e g i n b y d e p l o yi n g a G S M / G P R S n e t w o r k i n p a r a l l e l w i t h t h e i r ex isting network. Doing so allows the operator to continue generatin g revenue from their e xisting customers wh ile signing up new c usto mers for GSM/GPRS. Depen ding on their business plan, the y could choose to

d e p l o y E D G E a t t h e s a m e t i m e a s t h e i r G S M / G P R S d e p l o ym e n t , o r t h e y could deplo y GS M/GP RS /EDGE in only some places, such as major cities, and then add EDGE software to the rest of their GSM/GPRS footprint as m a r k e t c o n d i t i o n s a n d b u s i n e s s p l a n s d i c t a t e .

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EDGE T D M A o p e r a t o r s h a v e t h e o p t i o n o f d e p l o yi n g a G S M / G P R S / E D G E overlay alongside th eir TDMA networks at 850 MHz and/or 1900 MHz. A n a l o g o p e r a t o r s h a v e t h e o p t i o n o f d e p l o yi n g a G S M / G P R S / E D G E overla y alongside th eir 850 MHz networks. Signals travel far ther at lower f r e q u e n c i e s , s o a n 8 5 0 M H z E D G E d e p l o ym e n t i s p a r t i c u l a r l y a t t r a c t i v e b ecau s e o f th e ex cellen t p ro p ag atio n C H A RA C TER IS T IC S C E LL s ites coverin g large areas, thus reducing the n umber of sites neces sar y to cover a market with 3G. areas. This makes EDGE particularl y favorab le for rural

One frequent operator concern, particularl y for those with networks a l r e a d y a t c a p a c i t y, i s w h e t h e r t h e y h a v e e n o u g h s p e c t r u m t o d e p l o y a second network, es peciall y when additional spectrum is ex pensive or unavailab le. Th e solution is first to switch the ex isting n etw ork to a more efficient frequency re-use pattern, wh ich frees up betw een 50-90% s p e c t r u m c a p a c i t y. T h i s a d d i t i o n a l c a p a c i t y c a n t h e n b e u s e d f o r t h e GSM/GPRS/EDGE network. Since GSM/GPRS is also much mor e

spectrall y efficient, GSM can support at least seven times more voice calls than analo g and nearl y twice as man y a s TDMA in the same amount of spectrum.

A l t h o u g h E D G E i s a d a t a t e c h n o l o g y, i t a l s o h e l p s b o o s t t h e n u m b e r o f voice calls that a network can handle simultan eousl y b y s ending data more efficientl y than GP RS . With EDGE trans mitting more data in to the same amount of bandwidth, the voice- coding or vocoder technolog y in the GSM voice network can b e upgraded to a vers ion thats ex pected to boost voice c a p a c i t y b e t w e e n 1 5 2 0 % .

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EDGE

Advantages of Edge
Edges advantages can be divided into two categori es : us er benefits and operator benefits.

The key user benefits include:

Speed: EDGE supports theoretical peak data rates of 473 kbps and average rates of 110-130 kbps. The average rates are fast eno ugh to support a wide range of advanced data services, including streamin g au d io an d v id eo , fas t In tern et ac ces s an d lar ge file d o w n lo ad s . Fo r ex ample, a 100 kb Multimedia M essa ging S ervices (MMS ) video clip takes 26.7 seco nds to download on GPRS but onl y 10 s econds on EDGE . An " a lw ay s-on " co n n ectio n : Lik e cab le b ro ad b an d an d DS L, ED G E p ro v id es a co n s tan t In tern et co n n ectio n , eli min atin g th e n eed to lo g o n each tim e t o acces s th e In t ern et, an d cu s to mers can receive "pushed" services, such as stock alerts. EDGE als o lets customers main tain a data session while answ erin g a phone call. This is wholl y unique to GS M technologi es Va lu e: E DG E is p ack et- b as ed , wh ich is a mo re effici en t w a y fo r operators to provide services. That savings can be passed on to customers in the f orm of lower rates . P acket also mean s that customers pay onl y for the data that they send and receive instead o f a l s o p a yi n g f o r t h e a i r t i m e t o s e t u p a c o n n e c t i o n a n d w a i t i n g f o r a server to respond. Coverage: EDGE is a relativel y inex pensive, simple upgrade for o p e r a t o r s , s o E D G E c o v e r a g e s h o u l d q u i c k l y e x p a n d b e yo n d c i t i e s to suburbs and other areas. EDGE also is co mpatib le with GP RS , so w h e n c u s t o m e r s m o v e o u t o f a n a r e a w i t h E D G E c o v e r a g e , t h e y' l l b e auto matical l y s witch ed to a GP R S netwo rk, which are av aila ble in Model Engineering College,Thrikkakara 22

EDGE more than 90 countries as of April 2005. As a result, EDGE c u s t o m e r s a r e a l w a ys a s s u r e d o f h a v i n g s o m e l e v e l o f p a c k e t - d a t a service at home and when traveling. With dozens of major operators d e p l o yi n g E D G E n e t w o r k s o n e v e r y m a j o r c o n t i n e n t , E D G E w i l l g r o w r a p i d l y. Ph o n e s electio n : C u s to mers will h av e a v ariet y o f ch o ices in devices and PC cards from leading manufacturers including LG Electron ics, Motorola, Nokia, NEC Amer ica, S amsung, S ieme ns and Son y Ericsson. The devices support GSM/GPRS and work on multiple spectrum bands, including variations of 850/900/1800/1900 MHz.

The key operator benefits include:

Spectrally efficient and flexible: EDGE let operators q uickl y launch 3G within their existing spectrum. As a narro wband

technolog y that uses 200 kHz channels, EDGE does not require a l a r g e b l o c k o f s p e c t r u m , t h e r e f o r e i t c a n b e d e p l o ye d i n t o d a y' s most widel y used bands: 850, 900, 1800 and 1900 MHz. The abilit y to deplo y EDGE within ex isting spectru m without a new 3G licens e means that an operator can ex pedite the launch of 3G s ervices, in more mark ets and at a lower cost than if it w ere necessar y to bu y additional spectrum. Ease of u p grad e: EDGE uses the same TDMA fr ame structure, l o g i c c h a n n e l a n d 2 0 0 k H z c a r r i e r b a n d w i d t h a s t o d a y' s G S M n e t w o r k s . T h e r e f o r e , d e p l o yi n g E D G E d o e s n ' t r e q u i r e a m a j o r r e engineerin g of cell plans. If an operator's radio infrastructure is less t h a n f i v e ye a r s o l d - a s i s t h e c a s e f o r m o s t G S M o p e r a t o r s i n t h e Americas - then upgradin g to EDG E usuall y requires only new software and channel cards for cell sites. As a result, upgrading all of the cell sites in a major cit y takes o nl y a few w eeks, allowing

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EDGE o p e r a t o r s t o l a u n c h E D G E s e r v i c e s q u i c k l y. T h e r e l a t i v e l y l o w c o s t of the EDGE upgrade also means that operators can price their advanced services much more competitivel y than if the upgrade required replacing major elements of the radio infrastructure. Compa tib ility: EDGE is compatible with other technologies in the GSM m i gr at i on p at h t o 3 G , s o w hen cus t omers w i t h mul t i- mode p hon e s a n d P C c a r d m o d e m s m o v e o u t o f E D G E c o v e r a g e , t h e y' r e a u t o maticall y switched to GP RS or WCDMA networks, depending the data services that they use. EDGE also re-uses the packet-data net w o r k i n f r a s t r u c t u r e d e p l o ye d f o r G P R S , m a k i n g u p g r a d e c o s t s i n c remental rather than monumental. Cost-efficiency : Practical ex perience shows that the cost to u pgrade to EDGE from GS M/GPRS is about $1-$2 per POP, given the upgrade onl y requires relativel y simple software and har dware modifications. Vo lum es : M o r e th an 1 6 5 o p erat o rs o n ev er y maj o r co n tin en t h av e announced plans to deplo y EDGE. As of May 2005, these operato r commitmen ts repr es ented mor e th an 871 million customers. In the Americas alone, 70 operators, repr esenting mor e than 250 million potential captive custo mers, have publicl y committed to EDGE. Cingular Wireless was the first operator to launch EDGE, in Indianapolis on J une 30, 2003, and [then] AT&T Wirel es s [ now Cingular Wireless] launched EDGE natio nwide in November 2003. Operators in Canada, Mex ico, South America, the Caribbean, Asia, Europe, and Africa have also launched EDGE and operator

a n n o u n c e m e n t s o f E D G E d e p l o ym e n t s w o r l d w i d e c o n t i n u e t o g r o w . This market size translates into high volumes of EDGE

infrastructure and u ser devices, and on e rule of business is that higher volumes drive down costs. EDGE offers affordable

infrastructure for op erators, and for the consumers it offers a wide range of price points on devices. EDGE als o will be STANDARD Model Engineering College,Thrikkakara 24

EDGE FEATURE IN UMT S DEVICES without significantl y increasing their cost. More control: EDGE includes sophisticat ed q u a l i t y- o f - s e r v i c e

(QoS ) mechan isms that give operators more control, ensuring that each application or customer gets the right amount of bandwidth. QoS is key for a service that targets enterprise customers, and it helps retain customers while reducing the need for cut-rate p ricing to attract customers to replace those who have churned.

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EDGE

Future of EDGE
T h e n ex t ev o l u t i o n ar y s t ep f o r t h e G S M / E D G E c el l u l a r s ys t e m i n cl u d es enhancemen ts of ser vice provisioning for the packet- switched domain and increas ed alignment with the service provisioning in UMT S (Universal M o b i l e T e l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n s S ys t e m ) / U T R A N ( U M T S t e r r e s t r i a l r a d i o access network). These enhancemen ts are currentl y being specified for the coming releases of the 3GPP standard.

Based on EDGE h igh-speed transmiss ion techniques combined with enhance men ts to the GP RS radio link interface, GERAN will provide improved support for all qualit y of service (QoS ) classes defined for UMTS: interactive, back ground, streaming and conversation al. B y doing s o , a n ew r an g e o f ap p licatio n s , in clu d ing IP mu lti med ia ap p licatio n s , w ill be adequatel y supported. This part of th e GSM/EDGE evolution focuses on support for the conversational and streamin g s ervice clas ses, because adequate support for interactive and background services alread y ex ists. A d d i t i o n a l l y, m u l t i m e d i a a p p l i c a t i o n s w i l l b e s u p p o r t e d b y p a r a l l e l simultaneous bearers with DIFFERENT QOS characteristics towards the s ame MS , s u ch as mu l tip le med i a s tre ams h an d led th ro u gh IM S d o main . A driver for su ch evolution on the packet-switched side is the paradigm shift within the telecommu nications world from circuit to packet- switched communications.

Both the core network defined for GPRS and the current GSM/EDGE radio access network require modifications to support enhanced packet services. The GPRS/EGPRS networks can quickl y and cost effectivel y evolve with market needs, and align with services provided by WCDMA networks.

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EDGE

Conclusions
EDGE will provide the solution for operators wanting to offer personal multimedia services earl y and who need to increase the dat a capacit y in t h e i r G S M n e t w o r k p r i o r t o U M T S d e p l o ym e n t . E D G E i s e s p e c i a l l y valuable fo r operato rs that do not d eplo y UM TS .

EDGE will not replace ex isting investments or services but will upgrade them to a highl y competi tive level throu gh gradual inves t ment.

EDGE rollout can s atisf y increased data demand and produce increas ed revenues by first launching EDGE service in urban and office

environments for business users and then providing wider area covera ge as p r i v a t e u s a g e t a k e s o f f .

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EDGE

Reference
Nok ia Wh ite p ap er Er ics s on Wh ite Pap er w ww .3gamericas .org

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