GBC 004 E0 1 Radio Parameters-60

GBC_004_E0_1 Radio parameters
ZTE University
GSM-BSS Team
Objectives
At the end of this course, you will be able to:

Understand the meaning of various radio
parameters
Grasp the setting of radio parameters
State the effect to radio network performance
of various kind of radio parameters
Content
Network identification parameters
System control parameters
Cell selection parameters
Network function parameters
Roles of identification parameters
Enable the MS to correctly identify the ID of the

current network
Enable the network to be real time informed of the
correct geographical location of the MS
Enable the MS to report correctly the adjacent cell
information during the conversation process
CELL GLOBAL IDENTITY (CGI)
Cell Global Identity (CGI)

f It is used for identifying individual cells within an LA
3 Digits 2-3 Digits Max 16 Bits Max 16 bits
MCC MNC LAC CI
LAI
Cell Global Identity
ROLES OF CGI
The CGI information is sent along the system

broadcasting information in every cell.
When the MS receives the system information, it will

extract the CGI information from it and determines
whether to camp on the cell according to the MCC
and MNC specified by the CGI.
It judges whether the current location area is

changed, then determines whether to take the
location updating process.
SETTING OF CGI
MCCMobile Country Code: consists of 3 decimal

digits, and the value range is the decimal 000 999.
MNCMobile Network Code: consists of 3 decimal

digits, and the value range is the decimal 00 999.
LACLocation Area Code: The range is 1-65535.
CICell Identity: The range is 0-65535.
BASE STATION IDENTITY CODE (BSIC)
Base Station Identity Code (BSIC)

f It enables MSs to distinguish between neighboring base
stations
3 Bits 3 Bits
NCC BCC
BSIC
NCC Network/ National Color Code Value Range: 0~7

BCC Base Station Color Code Value Range: 0~7
NCC and BCC ROLES
NCC: In the connection mode (during conversation), the

MS must measure the signals in the adjacent cells and
report the result to the network. As each measurement
report sent by the MS can only contain the contents of six
cells, so it is necessary to control the MS so as to only
report the information of cells factually related to the cell
concerned. The high 3 bits (i.e. NCC) in the BSIC serve
this purpose.
BCC: The BCC is used to identify different BS using the
same BCCH in the same GSMPLMN.
BSIC CONFIGURATION PRINCIPLE
A B C
D E F
In general, it is required that Cells A, B, C, D, E and F use

different BSIC when they have same BCCH frequency.
When the BSIC resources are not enough, the cells close
to each other may take the priority to use different BSIC.
ROLES OF BSIC
Inform the MS the TSC used by the common signaling channel

of the cell.
As the BSIC takes part in the decoding process of the random
access channel (RACH), it can be used to prevent the BS from
mis-decoding the RACH, sent by the MS to an adjacent cell, as
the access channel of this cell.
When the MS is in the connection mode (during conversation),
it must measure the BCCH level of adjacent cells broadcasting
by BCCH and report the results to the BS. In the uplink
measurement report, MS must show BSIC of this carrier it has
measured to every frequency point.
BA LIST (BCCH ADJACENT LIST)
Adjacent cell BCCH table
At most 32 adjacent cell
Carried by BCCH when MS is idle, by SACCH when MS

is dedicated
The MS will first search carriers from this table and if

none is found it will turns to find any of 30 carriers with
highest levels.
Content
RANDOM ACCESS
Random access is the process that messages being

transmitted on RACH when a MS turns from idle to
specialized mode. The main parameters includes:
f MAXRETRANS
f Tx_Integer
f AC
MAX RETRANS
When starting the immediate assignment process (e.g, when MS

needs location updating, originating calls or responding to paging
calls), the MS will transmit the "channel request" message over the
RACH to the network. As the RACH is an ALOHA channel, in order
to enhance the MS access success rate, the network allows the MS
to transmit multiple channel request messages before receiving the
immediate assignment message. The numbers of maximum
retransmission (MAX RETRANS) are determined by the network.
MAX RETRANS
The MAX RETRANS is often set in the following ways:

f For areas (suburbs or rural areas) where the cell radius is more
than 3km and the traffic is smaller, the MAX RETRANS can be set
11 (i.e. the MAX RETRANS is 7).
f For areas (not bustling city blocks) where the cell radius is less
than 3km and the traffic is moderate, the MAX RETRANS can be
set 10i.e. the MAX RETRANS is 4).
f For micro-cellular, its recommend that the MAX RETRANS be set
01i.e. the MAX RETRANS is 2).
f For microcellular areas with very high traffic and cells with
apparent congestion, its recommend that the MAX RETRANS be
set 00i.e. the MAX RETRANS is 1).
Transmission Distribution Timeslots (Tx_integer)
The Tx_integer parameter is the interval in timeslots at

which the MS continuously sends multiple channel
request messages.
The parameter S is an intermediate variable in the access

algorithm, and is to be determined by the Tx_integer
parameter and the combination mode of the CCCH and
SDCCH.
Format of Tx_Integer
MS starts the first channel request message : {0, 1, ..., MAX

(Tx_integer, 8)-1}
The number of timeslots between any two adjacent channel request

messages {S, S+1, ..., S+Tx_integer-1}
The Tx_integer is a decimal number, which can be 3~12, 14, 16, 20,
25, 32 and 50 (default). The values of the parameter S are shown as
below:
CCH Combination Mode

Tx_integer
CCCH Not Shared with SDCCH CCCH Shared with SDCCH
3, 8, 14, 50 55 41
4, 9, 16, 76 52
5, 10, 20, 109 58
6, 11, 25, 163 86
7, 12, 32, 217 115
ACCESS CONTROL AC
The access levels are distributed as follows:

f C 0C9: ordinary subscribers;
f C11: used for PLMN management;
f C12: used by the security department;
f C13: public utilities e.g. water, gas;
f C14: emergency service;
f C15: PLMN staff.
SETTING OF AC
In the BS installation and commissioning process or in the

process of maintaining or testing some cells, the operator can
set C0C9 as 0 to forcedly forbid the access of ordinary
subscribers so as to reduce the unnecessary effects on the
installation or maintenance work.
In some cells with very high traffic, the congestion will occur in
busy hours. For example, the RACH conflict happens
frequently, the AGCH is overloaded and the Abis interface flow
is overloaded. The network operator can set proper access
control parametersC0C15to control the traffic of some
cells.
CCCH_CONF
The CCCH can be one or more physical channels. The CCCH

and SDCCH can share the same physical channel. The
combination mode of the common control channel in a cell is
determined by the CCCH_CONF
CCCH message
CCCH_CONF
Meanings blocks in one
Coding
BCCH
0 CCCH use one basic physical channel, not shared with SDCCH 9
1 CCCH use one basic physical channel, shares with SDCCH 3
10 CCCH use two basic physical channels, not shared with SDCCH 18
100 CCCH use three basic physical channels, not shared with SDCCH 27
110 CCCH use 4 basic physical channels, not shared with SDCCH 36
Others Reserved
CCCH_CONF
The CCCH_CONF is determined by the telecom

operation department according to the traffic model of a
cell.
f If a cell has 1 TRX, we recommend that the CCCH uses
one basic physical channel and shares it with the SDCCH
f If a cell has 2 ~ 8 TRX, we recommend that the CCCH
uses one basic physical channel but does not share it with
the SDCCH.
AGBLK
Since the CCCH consists of the access grant channel (AGCH)

and paging channel (PCH), it is necessary to set how many
blocks of the CCCH information blocks are reserved and
dedicated to the AGCH, the access grant reserve blocks
(AGBLK).
AGBLK is represented in decimal numerals, and its value range
is:
f CCCH is not combined with SDCCH: 07.
f CCCH is combined with SDCCH: 02.
AGBLK
SETTING AND IMPACT OF AGBLK

f The AGBLK setting principle is: given that the AGCH is not
overloaded, try to reduce the parameter as much as
possible to shorten the time when the MS responds to the
paging and improve the quality of service of the system.
f The recommended value of AGBLK is usually 1 (when the
CCCH is combined with the SDCCH), 2 or 3 (when the
CCCH is not combined with the SDCCH).
BS-PA-MFRMS
According to the GSM specifications, every mobile subscriber

belongs to a paging group. the MS calculates the paging group
to which it belongs by its own IMSI.
In an actual network, the MS only "receives the contents in
the paging subchannel to which it belongs but ignores the
contents in other paging subchannels. (i.e. DRX source).
The BS-PA-MFRMS refers to how many multi-frames are used
as a cycle of a paging subchannel. This parameter in fact
determines how many paging sub-channels are to be divided
from the paging channels of a cell.
BS-PA-MFRMS (2)
BS-PA-MFRMS is represented in decimal numerals and

its value range is 29, its unit is multiframe 51
frames, its default value is 2
Multiframes of the same
BS-PA-MFRMS paging group that cycle
on the paging channel
2 2
3 3
4 4
5 5
6 6
7 7
8 8
9 9
PERIODIC UPDATING TIMER (T3212)
The frequency of periodic location update is controlled

via the network and the period length is determined by
the parameter T3212.
The T3212 is a decimal number, within the range of

0~255, in the unit of six minutes (1/10 hours).
If the T3212 is set to 0, it means that the cell needs no

periodical location update.
NCCPERM
In the connection mode (during the conversation), the MS will

report the measured signals of the adjacent cells to the BS, but
each report may contain at most 6 adjacent cells.
Therefore, let the MS only report the information of the cells that
may become the hand-over target cells.
The above functions can be fulfilled by limiting the MS to merely

measure the cells whose NCC have been specified. The
NCCPERM lists the NCCs of cells to be measured by the MS.
NCCPERM will affect handover

RADIO LINK TIMEOUT (RLT)
GSM specification stipulates that the MS must have a timer (S),

which is assigned with an initial value at the start of the
conversation, that is, the downlink radio link timeout value.
Every time the MS fails to decode a correct SACCH message
when it should receive the SACCH, the S is decreased by 1. On
the contrary, every time the MS receives a correct SACCH
message, the S is increased by 2, but the S should not exceed the
downlink radio link timeout value. When the S reaches 0, the MS
will report the downlink radio link failure.
The radio link timeout is a decimal number, within the range of 4 ~
64, at the step of 4, defaulted to 16.
MBCR (1)
The parameter "multiband indication (MBCR)" is

used to notify the MS that it should report the
multiband adjacent cell contents.
The value is 0-3
MBCR (2)
0: Based on the signal strength of adjacent cells, the MS

reports the measurement results of 6 adjacent cells whose
signals are the strongest, whose NCC are known and allowed
no matter in which band the adjacent cells lie. The default
value is 0
1: The MS should report the measurement result of one
adjacent cell in each band (not including the band used by the
current service area) in the adjacent table, whose signal is the
strongest and whose NCC is already known and allowed.
MBCR (3)
2: The MS should report the measurement results of two

adjacent cells in each band (not including the band used by the
current service area) in the adjacent table, whose signals are the
strongest and whose NCC are already known and allowed.
3: The MS should report the measurement results of three
adjacent cells in each band (not including the band used by the
current service area) in the adjacent table, whose signals are the
strongest and whose NCC are already known and allowed.
Application of MBCR
Content

CELL SELECTION C1
When the MS is turned on, it will try to contact a public

GSM PLMN, so the MS will select a proper cell and
extract from the cell the control channel parameters and
prerequisite system messages. This selection process is
called cell selection.
The quality of radio channels is an important factor in cell

selection. The GSM Specifications defines the path loss
rule C1. For the so-called proper cell, C1>0 must be
ensured.
CELL SELECTION C1
C1 = RXLEV - RXLEV_ACCESS_MIN
- Max(MS_TXPWR_MAX_CCH - P ,0)
where:
f RXLEV_ACCESS_MIN is the minimum received level the MS is
allowed to access the network
f MS_TXPWR_MAX_CCH is the maximum power level of the
control channel (when MS sending on RACH);
f RXLEV is average received level;
f P is the maximum TX power of MS;
y MAXX, YX; if X Y.
y MAXX, YY; if Y X.
RXLEV_ACCESS_MIN
The RXLEV_ACCESS_MIN is a decimal number, within

the range of -110dBm ~ -47dBm
Default value is 0 (-110dBm).
RXLEV_ACCESS_MIN Meaning
-47 dBm > -48 dBm (level 63)
-46 dBm -49 ~ -48 dBm (level 62)
... ...
-108 dBm -109 ~ -108 dBm (level 2)
-109 dBm -110 ~ -109 dBm (level 1)
-110 dBm <-110 dBm (level 0)
Setting and Influence
For a cell with traffic overload, you can appropriately

increase the RXLEV_ACCESS_MIN
RXLEV_ACCESS_MIN value cannot be set to too high a

value. Otherwise, blind areas will be caused on the
borders of cells.
It is suggested that the RXLEV_ACCESS_MIN value

should not exceed -90 dBm.
CELL RESELECTION C2
Cell Reselection (C2) is a process when MS change its

service cell in idle mode.
When the MS selects a cell it will begin to measure the
signal levels of the BCCH TRX of its adjacent cells (at
most 6)
When given conditions are met, the MS will move from
the current cell into another one. This process is called
cell reselection.
CELL RESELECTION C2
When C2 Parameter Indicator (PI) indicates YESthe MS will

get parameters (CRO, TO and PT) , from BCCH, to be used to
calculate C2(channel quality criterion), which serves as cell
reselection norm. The equation is as follows:
C2C1CROHPTTTO, when PT 31
C2C1CRO , when PT= 31
Where T is a timer. When a cell is recorded by MS as one of

the six strongest cells, timer starts counting, otherwise, T is
reset to zero.
PARAMETER INDICATOR (PI)
PI is used to notify the MS whether to use C2 as the cell

reselect parameter and whether the parameters
calculating C2 exist.
PI consists of 1 bit. 1means the MS should extract

parameters from the system message broadcasting in the
cell to calculate the C2 value, and use the C2 value as
the standard for cell reselect; 0 means the MS should
use parameter C1 as the standard for cell reselect
(equivalent to C2C1.
CRO, PT AND TO
The cell reselection initiated by the radio channel quality

regards C2 as the standard. C2 is a parameter based on C1
plus some artificial offset parameters.
The artificial influence is to encourage the MS to take the
priority in accessing to some cells or prevent it from accessing
to others. These methods are often used to balance the traffic
in the network.
In addition to C1, there are three other factors influencing C2,
namely: CELL_RESELECT_OFFSET (CRO),
TEMPORARY_OFFSET (TO) and PENALTY_TIME (PT).
Format of CRO, PT and TO
The CRO is a decimal number, in dB, within the range of

0 ~ 63, meaning 0 ~ 126 dB, at the step of 2 dB.
The TO is a decimal number, in dB, within the range of 0

~ 7, meaning 0 ~ 70 dB, at the step of 10 dB, where 70
means infinite.
The PT is a decimal number, in seconds, within the range

of 0 ~ 31, meaning 20 ~ 620 seconds for 0 ~ 30, and at
the step of 20 seconds. The value of 31 is reserved to
change the direction of effect that the CRO works on the
C2 parameter.
C2 TYPICAL APPLICATIONS
For cells where the traffic is very heavy or the channel

quality is very low. the PT may be set 31, making TO
invalid, so C2=C1-CRO.
For cells where the traffic is moderate, the recommended

value for CRO is zero and PT=31, thus causing C2=C1, i.
e. no artificial impact will be imposed.
C2 TYPICAL APPLICATIONS
For cells with light traffic, its recommended that CRO

be ranged from 0 to 20dB. The greater the CRO,
the more possible the cells will be reselected ,and
vice versa. Its also suggested that TO is equal or a
little higher than CRO. PT, whose main role is to avoid
frequent cell reselection by MS, is generally
recommended to be set at 20 seconds or 40
seconds.
CELL SELECTION HYSTERESIS (1)
When a MS reselects a cell, if the old cell and the target cell are
in different locations, then the MS must initiate a location
updating process after cell reselection.
Due to the fading features of the radio channel, the C2 values
of two adjacent cells measured along their borders will fluctuate
greatly.
MS will frequently conduct the cell reselection, which will not
only increase the network signaling flow and lead to low
efficiency use of radio resources, but reduces the access
success rate of the system, as the MS cannot respond to
paging calls in the location updating process.
CELL SELECTION HYSTERESIS (2)
To minimize the influence of this issue, the GSM

specifications put forward a parameter called cell
selection hysteresis (CSH),
The cell selection hysteresis is represented in

decimal numerals, its unit is dB, its range is 014,
its step length is 2dB, and its default value is 4.
CELL RESELECTION PRINCIPLE
If the MS calculates that the C2 value of an adjacent cell

(Same location area) surpasses the C2 value of the serving
cell and maintains for 5s or longer, the MS will start cell
reselection .
If the MS detects a cell that is not in the same location area
with the current cell, the calculated C2 value surpasses the
sum of the C2 value of the current cell and the cell selection
hysteresis (CSH) parameter and if it remains for 5s or longer,
the MS will start the cell reselection .
The cell reselection caused by C2 should be originated at
least at the interval of 15s.
CELL BAR ACCESS (CBA)
In the system message broadcasting in each cell, there is a bit

information indicating whether to allow the MS to access to it, which is
called cell bar access (CBA). The parameter CBA is to indicate
whether the cell bar access is set in a cell.
The parameter is represented in character string. Its value range is:
YES: the cell is barred for access

NO: the cell is not barred for access
The CBA bit is a parameter for the network operator to set. Usually all
the cells are allowed to be accessed by MS , so the bit is set NO.
However, in special cases, the telecom operator may want to assign a
certain cells for handover service only, then the bit can be set YES.
CELL BAR ACCESS (CBA)
Area A
BTS B
MS A
BTS C
CELL BAR QUALIFY (CBQ)
In areas where the cells overlay with each other and differ
in capacity, traffic and functions, the telecom operator
often hopes that the MS can have priority in selecting
some cells, that is, the setting of cell priority. This function
is set by way of the parameter "Cell Bar Qualify" (CBQ).
YES: The cell has low priority

NO: The cell has normal priority
CELL BAR QUALIFY (CBQ) 2
C1 and C2 States with CBA and CBQ Configurations
Cell Selection Cell Reselection

CBQ CBA
Priority State
No No Normal Normal
No Yes Barred Barred
Yes No Low Normal
Yes Yes Low Normal
EXAMPLE OF CBQ SETTING
A B
For some reasons, the traffic of Cells A and B is apparently

higher than that of other adjacent cells. To balance the traffic in
the whole area, you can set the priority of Cells A and B as low,
and set the priority of the rest cells as normal so that the traffic in
the shade area will be absorbed by adjacent cells. It must be
noted that the result of this setting is that the actual coverage of
Cell A and Cell B is narrowed. However, this is different from
reducing the transmitting power of Cell A and Cell B, the latter
may cause blind areas of the network coverage and the reduction
of communication quality.
Content

LIMITn
According to GSM Specification 05.08, the BTS must measure

the interference levels of the upward links of all the free
channels for the purpose of providing basis for managing and
allocating radio resources.
Moreover, the BTS should analyze its measured results,
divide the interference levels into 5 grades and report them to
the BSC. The division of the 5 interference grades (i.e. the so-
called interference bands) is set by the operator through the
man-machine interface. The parameter "Interference band
border(LIMITn) determines the borders of the 5 interference
bands.
LIMITn
Value Range Specified dBm Level

0 <-110 dBm
1 -110 dBm ~ -109 dBm
2 -109 dBm ~ -108 dBm

61 -50 dBm ~ -49 dBm
62 -49 dBm ~ -48 dBm
Default: LIMIT14 LIMIT28 LIMIT315 LIMIT425

The division of the interference bands should be favorable in describing the
interference in the system. Generally the default values are recommended. In
the ordinary situations, the free channel interference level is smaller, so the
LIMIT14 value should be smaller. When apparently large interference
appears in the system, you can properly increase the LIMIT1~4 values in order
to know the exact interference.
INTAVE
Due to the randomness of the radio channel interference,

the BTS must average the measured uplink interference
levels within the specified period, and this average cycle
is determined by the INTAVE parameter.
This parameter is a decimal number, in SACCH multi-

frames, within the range of 1 ~ 31.
New Cause Indication (NECI)
The NECI is a decimal number, within the range of 0 ~ 1,

with the meaning described as below:
f When the NECI is 0, it means that the cell does not support
the access of half-rate services.
f When the NECI is 1, it means that the cell supports the
access of half-rate services.
RE-ESTABLISHMENT ENABLE (RE)
For the drop calls caused by the radio link fault, the MS can start the
call reestablishment process to resume the conversation, but the
network is entitled to determine whether the call reestablishment is
allowed or not. 0=Yes, 1=No.
In some special circumstances, the drop call may occur when the MS
goes through a blind area during the conversation. If the call
reestablishment is allowed, the mean drop call rate will be reduced.
However, the call reestablishment process will occupy a longer
period of time, most of the subscribers have hung up before the
reestablishment process is over, as a result, the call reestablishment
failed to achieve its purpose and wasted many radio resources. We
recommend that the call reestablishment be not allowed in the
network except for some individual cells.

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GBC_004_E0_1 Radio parameters

At the end of this course, you will be able to:

Network identification parameters

System control parameters

Cell selection parameters

Network function parameters

Network identification parameters

Roles of identification parameters

Enable the MS to correctly identify the ID of the

CELL GLOBAL IDENTITY (CGI)

Cell Global Identity (CGI)

3 Digits 2-3 Digits Max 16 Bits Max 16 bits

MCC MNC LAC CI

Cell Global Identity

Network identification parameters

The CGI information is sent along the system

When the MS receives the system information, it will

It judges whether the current location area is

MCCMobile Country Code: consists of 3 decimal

MNCMobile Network Code: consists of 3 decimal

LACLocation Area Code: The range is 1-65535.

CICell Identity: The range is 0-65535.

Network identification parameters

BASE STATION IDENTITY CODE (BSIC)

Base Station Identity Code (BSIC)

NCC Network/ National Color Code Value Range: 0~7

NCC and BCC ROLES

NCC: In the connection mode (during conversation), the

Network identification parameters

BSIC CONFIGURATION PRINCIPLE

In general, it is required that Cells A, B, C, D, E and F use

Inform the MS the TSC used by the common signaling channel

Network identification parameters

BA LIST (BCCH ADJACENT LIST)

Adjacent cell BCCH table

At most 32 adjacent cell

Carried by BCCH when MS is idle, by SACCH when MS

The MS will first search carriers from this table and if

Network identification parameters

System control parameters

Cell selection parameters

Network function parameters

System control parameters

Random access is the process that messages being

When starting the immediate assignment process (e.g, when MS

System control parameters

The MAX RETRANS is often set in the following ways:

Transmission Distribution Timeslots (Tx_integer)

The Tx_integer parameter is the interval in timeslots at

The parameter S is an intermediate variable in the access

System control parameters

MS starts the first channel request message : {0, 1, ..., MAX

The number of timeslots between any two adjacent channel request

CCH Combination Mode

The access levels are distributed as follows:

f C11: used for PLMN management;

f C12: used by the security department;

f C13: public utilities e.g. water, gas;

f C14: emergency service;

f C15: PLMN staff.

System control parameters

In the BS installation and commissioning process or in the

The CCCH can be one or more physical channels. The CCCH

System control parameters