3GPP wireless networks

Abstract

The number of mobile subscriptions worldwide continues to grow and is reaching 4 billion by end of 2008, out of which about 85% are GSM. 3GPP has been taking advantage of this strong GSM subscription base to evolve to 3G, to Beyond 3G, and to 4G. The radio access network had evolved to ULTRA and WCDMA in 3G Wireless, to HSPA and HSPA+ in Beyond 3G Wireless, and then to Long Term Evolution (LTE). Femto cells will complement the access network. The core network had evolved to UMTS network and then to Evolved Packet Core (EPC) as it moves to all-IP network supporting different access networks with many different services and yet to reduce complexity with fatten network.

With the convergence of wireless networks, wired networks, and broadcast networks, the wireless networks are evolving fast towards 4G wireless and beyond. ITU has defined the requirements in IMT-Advanced to provide the standard for 4G Wireless. The 3GPP system of EPC, LTE+ and Femtocell is expected to be a strong player in 4G Wireless. Their architecture, requirements, challenges, and future trends will be discussed.