Transition from GPRS/EDGE to 3G mobile networks

Transition from GPRS/Edge to 3G Networks

Transition to from GRPS/EDGE to 3G Networks

An increase in the wireless business, together in terms of mobile technology and subscribers has been incomparable. Mobile network operators and vendors have accepted the significance of well-organized networks with similarly competent design processes. This has resulted in services connected to network development and optimization coming into immediate center of attention. With all the technological progress, and the simultaneous existence of 2G, 2.5G and 3G networks, the consequence of network effectiveness has become even more important. Many new designing scenarios have developed, and the inter-operability of the networks has to be well thought-out.

The world is moving toward third-generation (3G) mobile communications systems that are capable of bringing high quality mobile multimedia services to a mass market. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has put together a 3G framework known as International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 (IMT-2000). This framework encompasses a small number of frequency bands, available on a globally harmonized basis, that make use of existing national and regional mobile and mobile-satellite frequency allocations (Muller 46). Along the way toward 3G is a 2.5G service known as General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), which offers true packet data connectivity to cell phone users (Muller 47).

General Packet Radio Service (GPRS)

General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) was the first introduction of packet technology. It is packet switched, which means that multiple users share the same transition channel, only transmitting when they have data to send. During a session, a user is assigned to one pair of up-link and down-link frequency channels. It enables web applications from browsing to chat, location based applications, ecommerce, file transfer and remote access over the mobile network. Aggregate radio channels with higher data rates support but subject to channel availability and share aggregate channels among multiple users. GPRS gives GSM users direct IP network access while achieving significantly higher spectral efficiency than previously available circuit-switched data services (Hellberg, Greene, & Boyes 368).

GPRS bring into play Internet Protocol (IP) technologies, adding together convenience and propinquity to mobile data services. GPRS is best for wireless data applications with huge data, more than ever WAP based information recovery and database access. GPRS makes possible wireless users to have an always on data link, as well as high data transmit speeds. Although GPRS offers potential data transfer rates of up to 115 kbps, subscribers will only really notice faster service at the initial connection. The faster speed is in the connect time. At present, users connect at a maximum of 19.2 kbps (Muller 47). The expenditure over the packet-based service should be not as much of circuit-switched services, since message channels are common to a certain extent than devoted no more than to one client at an instance.

Enhanced Data rates for Global Evolution (EDGE)

EDGE is a digital mobile phone technology that allows it to increase data transmission rate and improve data transmission reliability. Even though technically a 3G network technology it is commonly classified as the unofficial typical 2.75G, due to its slower network speed. It can be used both packet-switched and circuit-switched voice and data services. High-speed data applications such as video services and other multimedia benefit from EGPRS' increased data capacity.

In GPRS, the gross payload per time slot is 116 bits in that same time slot with EDGE, the gross payload becomes 464 bits. This increase comes from the use of a higher order RF modulation format and different coding rates (Miceli 126). EDGE offers average end-user data rates of 80-130kbps and up to 473 kbps, offering a cost effective upgrade to GPRS and providing three to four times the data throughput of GPRS.

EDGE is a subsystem within the GSM standard and has introduced packet-switched data into GSM networks. With EDGE, a new technique and new channel coding that can be used to transmit both packet-switched and circuit-switched voice and data services and therefore much easier to introduce than GPRS. GPRS has a greater impact on the GSM system than EDGE has. Basically, EDGE only introduces a new modulation EDGE is an add-on to GPRS and cannot work alone. EDGE offers significantly higher throughput and capacity. This decreases the number of radio resources required to support the same traffic, thus freeing up capacity for more data or voice service during the same period of time. This is the main reason for the higher EDGE bitrates.

EDGE can transmit three times as many bits as GPRS. With EDGE, the same time slot can support more users. EDGE is just GPRS even be set up on existing GPRS networks with just a few tweaks. It manages to send three times as much data in a time slot as GPRS, greatly speeding things up. GPRS and EDGE have different protocols and different behavior on the base station system side. Same packet handling protocols and, therefore, behaves in the same way.

On the core network side, GPRS and EDGE share the same symbol rate, the modulation bit rate differs. For the reason that EDGE is designed to transmit standard IP packets, any data that can be transmitted on the Internet can be transmitted fairly efficiently on the radio link.

This leads to the concept of voice over IP, a concept many feel will not only become the norm for landline networks, but can also become the standard for wireless, using EDGE as the transmission medium. As the hardware will already be in place to get the bits from the network to the mobile, and vice versa, it is only a matter of using the right software and ensuring that the network can support an adequate data rate. Many operators have plans today to use EDGE for voice in the future.

At the time of this writing, most GSM operators have already deployed GPRS, and many have plans for EDGE deployment contingent on the need for higher speed data. It seems obvious that if wireless data does become demanded, GSM operators will need to upgrade to EDGE to compete with CDMA2000's data capabilities and relatively easy higher speed data upgrades. Nevertheless, EDGE (and GPRS) offers a 2.5G migration path to the global standard Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), which is considered a third-generation (3G) wireless communications platform that will be capable of supporting speeds of up to 2.4 Mbps (Muller 96).

Third Generation (3G)

3G is the third generation of mobile phone standards and technology, superseding

2.5G. It is based on the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) family of standards under the IMT-2000. 3G networks enable network operators to offer users a wider range of more advanced services while achieving greater network capacity through improved spectral efficiency. Services include wide-area wireless voice telephony, video calls, and broadband wireless data, all in a mobile environment.

Additional features also include HSPA data transmission capabilities able to deliver speeds up to 14.4Mbit/s on the downlink and 5.8Mbit/s on the uplink. Unlike IEEE 802.11 (common names Wi-Fi or WLAN) networks, 3G networks are wide area cellular telephone networks which evolved to incorporate high-speed internet access and video telephony. IEEE 802.11 networks are short-range, high bandwidth networks primarily developed for data.

3G evolution (pre-4G)

3G evolution uses in part beyond 3G technologies to improve the performance and to make a smooth migration path. There are several unusual paths from 2G to 3G. In Europe the major path happened from GSM when GPRS is added to a system. From this point it is probable to go to the UMTS system. In North America the system progression will start from Time division multiple access (TDMA), change to Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE) and then to UMTS.

Evolution from 2G to 3G

2G networks were built for the most part for voice data and slow communication. Due to rapid changes in user anticipation, they do not meet today's wireless requirements. Cellular mobile telecommunications networks are being improved to use 3G technologies from 1999 to 2010. Japan was the first country to introduce 3G nationally, and in Japan the transition to 3G was largely completed in 2006. Korea then adopted 3G Networks soon after and the transition was made as early as 2004.

From 2G to 2.5G (GPRS)

2.5G and even 2.75G are technologies such as i-mode data services, camera phones, high-speed circuit-switched data (HSCSD) and General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) that present some functionality domains like 3G networks, but not including the full transition to 3G network. They were built to set up the potentials of wireless application technology to the end customers, and so increase demand for 3G services. When converting a GSM network to a UMTS network, the first new technology is General Packet Radio Service (GPRS).

It is the trigger to 3G services. From the operator's point-of-view, it is important that GPRS investments are re-used when going to UMTS. Also capitalizing on GPRS business understanding is very essential. From GPRS, operators could update the network directly to UMTS, or invest in an EDGE system. One advantage of EDGE over UMTS is that it involves no new licenses. The frequencies are also reused and no new antennas are needed.