RapidIO: The Next Generation Communication Fabric For Embedded Application

13.2. RAPIDIO IN CELLULAR WIRELESS INFRASTRUCTURE

Alan Gatherer and Peter Olanders

13.2.1. Introduction to Wireless Infrastructure

The cellular wireless infrastructure network can be divided into three main parts, as shown in Figure 13.4.

Data and calls entering the system from the network arrive via a mobile switching center (MSC) from the public switched telephony network (PSTN) or via a general packet radio system (GPRS) support node (GSN) from the IP network. There are many functions performed on the data at the network interface, including protocol termination and translation, routing, switching, and transcoding and transrating of telephony and video signals. Normally, the number of MSC and GSN nodes in a network is kept to a minimum, so that each node processes a large number of calls. Therefore, the data rates are large, on the order of 10–100 Gigabit/s (Gbps), and high-bandwidth switching and routing occurs. Transcoding and transrating large quantities of voice and video signals requires banks of DSP farms that are connected to the routers by high-speed interconnect.

Once the data has been formatted for the wireless infrastructure, it passes to the radio network controller (RNC) in the radio access layer of the network. The RNC controls access to the basestations and is responsible for setting up and tearing down connections between users and the network. The RNC is responsible for managing the mobility of a user who is moving around between cells and networks. A certain ...