GMSK Radio Modulation Introduction

CHAPTER-1
INTRODUCTION
GMSK RADIO MODULATION 1

INTRODUCTION
This chapter introduces basic concepts of modulation like analog,

digital, radio etc and concepts of GMSK and its origin.
1.1 MODULATION
In telecommunications, modulation is the process of varying a

periodic waveform, i.e. a tone, in order to use that signal to convey a
message, in a similar fashion as a musician may modulate the tone
from a musical instrument by varying its volume, timing and pitch.
Normally a high-frequency sinusoid waveform is used as carrier
signal. The three key parameters of a sine wave are its amplitude
("volume"), its phase ("timing") and its frequency ("pitch"), all of which
can be modified in accordance with a low frequency information
signal to obtain the modulated signal.
A device that performs modulation is known as a modulator and a

device that performs the inverse operation of demodulation is known
as a demodulator (sometimes detector). A device that can do both
operations is a modem (a contraction of the two terms).

1.2 ANALOG MODULATION
The aim of analog modulation is to transfer an analog lowpass

signal, for example an audio signal or TV signal, over an analog
bandpass channel, for example a limited radio frequency band or a
cable TV network channel.
1.2.1 MODULATION TECHNIQUES

Common analog modulation techniques are:
• Angular modulation
Phase modulation (PM)
Frequency modulation (FM)
• Amplitude modulation (AM)
Double-sideband modulation with unsuppressed carrier (used
on the radio AM band)
Double-sideband suppressed-carrier transmission (DSB-SC)
Double-sideband reduced carrier transmission (DSB-RC)
Single-sideband modulation (SSB, or SSB-AM)
Single-sideband suppressed carrier modulation (SSB-SC)
Vestigial-sideband modulation (VSB, or VSB-AM)
Quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM)

1.3 DIGITAL MODULATION
The aim of digital modulation is to transfer a digital bit stream over

an analog bandpass channel, for example over the public switched
telephone network (where a filter limits the frequency range to
between 300 and 3400 Hz) or a limited radio frequency band.
1.3.1 MODULATION TECHNIQUES

The most common digital modulation techniques are:
• Phase-shift keying (PSK)
• Frequency-shift keying (FSK)
• Amplitude-shift keying (ASK)
Quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) a combination of PSK and

ASK
• Polar modulation like QAM a combination of PSK and ASK.
• Continuous phase modulation (CPM)
Minimum-shift keying (MSK)
Gaussian minimum-shift keying (GMSK)
• Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) modulation,
also known as discrete multitone (DMT).
• Wavelet modulation
• Trellis coded modulation (TCM) also known as trellis
modulation

1.4 RADIO MODULATION
Signals sent by radio (or over long wires or when stored on magnetic
media) must be modulated with some method that prevents their
signal from degrading before the signals can be received. A
transmitter and receiver must use the same mode of modulation to
successfully communicate. Some of these are digital modulations,
which typically modulate data to intermediate frequencies, which are
then modulated to radio frequencies using another modulation mode
such as FM or AM. [1,2,3,4,5]
1.5 CPM (CONTINUOUS PHASE MODULATION)
CPM is a method for modulation of data commonly used in wireless

modems. In contrast to other coherent digital phase-modulation
techniques where the carrier phase abruptly resets to zero at the start
of every symbol (e.g. M-PSK), with CPM the carrier phase is
modulated in a continuous manner. For instance, with QPSK the
carrier instantaneously jumps from a sine to a cosine (i.e. a 90
degree phase shift) whenever one of the two 5 GMSK RADIO
MODULATION message bits of the current symbol differs from the
two message bits of the previous symbol. This discontinuity requires
a relatively large percentage of the power to occur outside of the
intended band (e.g., high fractional out-of band power), leading to
poor spectral efficiency. Furthermore, CPM is typically implemented
as a constant-envelope waveform, i.e. the transmitted carrier power is
constant.

Therefore, CPM is attractive because the phase continuity yields high
spectral efficiency, and the constant-envelope yields excellent power
efficiency. The primary drawback is the high implementation
complexity required for an optimal receiver.
Each symbol is modulated by gradually changing the phase of the

carrier from the starting value to the final value, over the symbol
duration. The modulation and demodulation of CPM is complicated by
the fact that the initial phase of each symbol is determined by the
cumulative total phase of all previous transmitted symbols, which is
known as the phase memory.
Therefore, the optimal receiver cannot make decisions on any

isolated symbol without taking the entire sequence of transmitted
symbols into account.

1.6 MSK (Minimum-shift keying)
MSK is another name for CPM with an excess bandwidth of ½ and a

linear phase trajectory. Although this linear phase trajectory is
continuous, it is not smooth since the derivative of the phase is not
continuous. The spectral efficiency of CPM can be further improved
by using a smooth phase trajectory. This is typically accomplished by
filtering the phase trajectory prior to modulation, commonly using a
Raised Cosine or a Gaussian filter. The raised cosine filter has a
strictly finite duration, and GMSK RADIO MODULATION can yield a
full-response CPM waveform that prevents Inter symbol Interference
(ISI).
1.7 GMSK (Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying)
GMSK is a digital modulation scheme which uses Gaussian instead

of sinusoidal pulse shapes and commonly used in wireless, mobile
communications. GMSK is derived from MSK. In MSK we replace the
rectangular pulse with a sinusoidal pulse. Obviously other pulse
shapes are possible. A Gaussian-shaped impulse response filter
generates a signal with low side lobes and narrower main lobe than
the rectangular pulse. Since the filter theoretically has output before
input, it can only be approximated by a delayed and shaped impulse
response that has a Gaussian - like shape. This modulation is called
Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying (GMSK).

The relationship between the premodulation filter bandwidth, B and
the bit period, T defines the bandwidth of the system. GSM designers
used a BT = 0.3 with a channel data rate of 270.8 kbs. This
compromises between a bit error rate and an out-of-band interference
since the narrow filter increases the intersymbol interference and
reduces the signal power.

1.8 NOISE IN COMMUNICATION SYSTEM
Noise is one of the factors that affects the information being

delivered. It can create interference, alter the integrity of the signal
and sometimes even degrade the signal to an unrecognizable
pattern. Noise can come from a variety of sources, and can be
external or internal. Sources of external noise can be man-made such
as motors or ignition systems, can come from the atmosphere or
even sometimes from outer space. Internal noise, on the other hand,
can be classified as Thermal or Johnson noise due to the thermal
interaction of particles in a conductor, Transistor noise caused by the
random paths of motion in semiconductors, or Low Frequency noise
called also "flicker" which occurs due to changes in dc current levels
at low frequencies.
It is very difficult to measure Noise, and there exist only a few

empirical formulas which can be applied only to specific instances of
Noise, one of the examples being Thermal Noise.
The two figures below show how some small amount of Noise can
affect a signal's shape. On the left figure the Noise "rides" on the
original signal affecting its smoothness, the figure on the right
displays the signal without any Noise.

Figure 1.8.1 Effect Of Noise On Signal
Noise is an important factor in any communication modeling. For

idealing the effect of noise in wireless medium, a good selection of
modulation scheme is required. GMSK is a good candidate to reduce
the effect of noise. Next chapters illustrate GMSK in greater detail.

CHAPTER-2
THEORY OF
GAUSSIAN MINIMUM SHIFT
KEYING

GAUSSIAN MINIMUM SHIFT KEYING
In this chapter GMSK and other Digital modulation scheme which are
earlier used are discussed in detail .GMSK uses Gaussian Filter
which is also discussed.
2.1 DIGITAL MODULATION AND GMSK
A brief introduction to digital modulation schemes is given, showing

the logical development of GMSK from simpler schemes. GMSK is of
interest since it is used in the GSM system. The phase and amplitude
relations between carrier cycles over a data bit are developed,
enabling rigourous modelling of ensemble fields to be carried out.
2.1.1 Amplitude Shift Keying
Amplitude-shift keying (ASK) is a form of modulation that

represents digital data as variations in the amplitude of a carrier
wave.The amplitude of an analog carrier signal varies in accordance
with the bit stream (modulating signal), keeping frequency and phase
constant. The level of amplitude can be used to represent binary logic
0s and 1s. We can think of a carrier signal as an ON or OFF switch.
In the modulated signal, logic 0 is represented by the absence of a
carrier, thus giving OFF/ON keying operation and hence the name
given.

Like AM, ASK is also linear and sensitive to atmospheric noise,
distortions, propagation conditions on different routes in PSTN, etc.
Both ASK modulation and demodulation processes are relatively
inexpensive. The ASK technique is also commonly used to transmit
digital data over optical fiber. For LED transmitters, binary 1 is
represented by a short pulse of light and binary 0 by the absence of
light. Laser transmitters normally have a fixed "bias" current that
causes the device to emit a low light level.
This low level represents binary 0, while a higher-amplitude lightwave

represents binary 1.
2.1.2 Frequency Shift Keying

Frequency-shift keying (FSK) is a form of frequency modulation in
which the modulating signal shifts the output frequency between
predetermined values. Usually, the instantaneous frequency is shifted
between two discrete values termed the mark frequency and the
space frequency. Continuous phase forms of FSK exist in which there
is no phase discontinuity in the modulated signal. The example
shown at right is of such a form. Other names for FSK are frequency-
shift modulation and frequencyshift signaling.
Audio frequency-shift keying (AFSK) is a modulation technique by

which digital data is represented as changes in the frequency (pitch)
of an audio tone, yielding an encoded signal suitable for transmission
via radio or telephone. Normally, the transmitted audio alternates
between two tones: one, the "mark", represents a binary one; the

other, the "space", represents a binary zero. AFSK differs from
regular frequency-shift keying in that the modulation is performed at
baseband frequencies. In radio applications, the AFSK-modulated
signal is normally used to modulate an RF carrier (using a
conventional technique, such as AM, FM or ACSSB(R)(LM Mode(R))
for transmission. AFSK is not generally used for high-speed data
communications, as it is less efficient than other modulation modes.
In addition to its simplicity, however, AFSK has the advantage that
encoded signals will pass through AC-coupled links, including most
equipment originally designed to carry music or speech. [2,3,5,12]
2.1.3 Phase shift keying

For binary PSK (BPSK)
S0(t) = A cos (ùt) represents binary “0”
S1(t) = A cos (ùt + ð) represents binary “1”
For M-ary PSK, M different phases are required, and every n (where
M=2n )
bits of the binary bit stream are coded as one signal that is
transmitted as
A sin (ùt + .j)
Where,
j=1,...,M.
2.1.4 Quadrature Phase Shift Keying
If we define four signals, each with a phase shift differing by 900 then
we have quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK).

The input binary bit stream {dk}, dk = 0,1,2,..... arrives at the
modulator input at a rate 1/T bits/sec and is separated into two data
streams dI (t) and dQ (t) containing odd and even bits respectively.
dI(t) = d0, d2, d4 ,...
dQ(t) = d1, d3, d5 , ...
A convenient orthogonal realisation of a QPSK waveform , s(t) is
achieved by amplitude modulating the in-phase and quadrature data
streams onto the cosine and sine functions of a carrier wave as
follows:
Using trigonometric identities this can also be written as
Figure 2.1.4.1 Even and Odd data Stream

The pulse stream dI(t) modulates the cosine function with an
amplitude of ±ƒn1. This is equivalent to shifting the phase of the
cosine function by 0 or ð; consequently this produces a BPSK
waveform. Similarly the pulse stream dQ(t) modulates the sine
function, yielding a BPSK waveform orthogonal to the cosine function.
The summation of these two orthogonal waveforms is the QPSK
waveform.
The values of .(t) = 0, -(ð/2), ð/2, ð represent the four possible

combinations of aI (t) and aQ (t). Each of the four possible phases of
carriers represents two bits of data. Thus there are two bits per
symbol. Since the symbol rate for QPSK is half the bit rate, twice as
much data can be carried in the same amount of channel bandwidth
as compared to BPSK. This is possible because the two signals I and
Q are orthogonal to each other and can be transmitted without
interfering with each other.
In QPSK the carrier phase can change only once every 2T secs. If
from one T interval to the next one, neither bit stream changes sign,
the carrier phase remains unchanged. If one component aI(t) or aQ
(t) changes sign, a phase change of ð/2 occurs. However if both
components change sign then a phase shift of ð occurs.

Figure 2.1.4.2 QPSK Waveform
If a QPSK modulated signal undergoes filtering to reduce the spectral

side lobes, the resulting waveform will no longer have a constant
envelop and in fact, the occasional 180o shifts in phase will cause the
envelope to go to zero momentarily.
2.1.5 Offset Quadrature Phase Shift Keying

If the two bit streams I and Q are offset by a 1/2 bit interval, then the
amplitude fluctuations are minimized since the phase never changes
by 180o. This modulation scheme, Offset Quadrature Phase shift
Keying (OQPSK) is obtained from QPSK by delaying the odd bit
stream by half a bit interval with respect to the even bit stream.

Thus the range of phase transitions is 0o and 90o (the possibility of a
phase shift of 180o is eliminated) and occurs twice as often, but with
half the intensity of the QPSK. While amplitude fluctuations still occur
in the transmitter and receiver they have smaller magnitude. The bit
error rate for QPSK and OQPSK are the same as for BPSK.
Figure 2.1.5 OQPSK Waveform
When an OQPSK signal undergoes band limiting, the resulting

intersymbol interference causes the envelop to droop slightly to the
region of ±ƒn90o phase transition, but since the phase transitions of
180o have been avoided in OQPSK, the envelop will never go to zero
as it does in QPSK.

2.2 GAUSSIAN MINIMUM SHIFT KEYING BASICS
Prior to discussing GMSK in detail we need to review MSK, from
which GMSK is derived. Minimum Shift Keying (MSK) is derived from
OQPSK by replacing the rectangular pulse in amplitude with a half-
cycle sinusoidal pulse. The MSK signal is defined as:

Figure 2.2.1 – Representation of MSK signal
The MSK modulation makes the phase change linear and limited to
±ƒn(ð/2) over a bit interval T. This enables MSK to provide a
significant improvement over QPSK. Because of the effect of the
linear phase change, the power spectral density has low side lobes
that help to control adjacent-channel interference. However the main
lobe becomes wider than the quadrature shift keying.
MSK is a continuous phase modulation scheme where the modulated

carrier contains no phase discontinuities and frequency changes
occur at the carrier zero crossings. MSK is unique due to the
relationship between the frequency of a logical zero and one: the
difference between the frequency of a logical zero and a logical one

is always equal to half the data rate. In other words, the modulation
index is 0.5 for MSK, and is defined as
For example, a 1200 bit per second baseband MSK data signal could
be composed of 1200 Hz and 1800 Hz frequencies for a logical one
and zero respectively.
Baseband MSK, as shown in Figure 2.2.2, is a robust means of

transmitting data in wireless systems where the data rate is relatively
low compared to the channel BW. MX-COM devices such as the
MX429 and MX469 are single chip solutions for baseband MSK
systems, incorporating modulation and demodulation circuitry on a
single chip.

Figure 2.2.2 1200 baud MSK data signal a) NRZ data ,b)MSK
signal
An alternative method for generating MSK modulation can be realized
by directly injecting NRZ data into a frequency modulator with its
modulation index set for 0.5 (see Figure 2.2.3). This approach is
essentially equivalent to baseband MSK. However, in the direct
approach the VCO is part of the RF/IF section, whereas in baseband
MSK the voltage to frequency conversion takes place at baseband.
Figure 2.2.3 Direct MSK Modulation

The fundamental problem with MSK is that the spectrum is not
compact enough to realize data rates approaching the RF channel
BW. A plot of the spectrum for MSK reveals sidelobes extending well
above the data rate. For wireless data transmission systems which
require more efficient use of the RF channel BW, it is necessary to
reduce the energy of the MSK upper sidelobes. Earlier we stated that
a straightforward means of reducing this energy is lowpass filtering
the data stream prior to presenting it to the modulator (pre-modulation
filtering).
The pre-modulation lowpass filter must have a narrow BW with a

sharp cutoff frequency and very little overshoot in its impulse
response. This is where the Gaussian filter characteristic comes in. It
has an impulse response characterized by a classical Gaussian
distribution (bell shaped curve), as shown in Figure 2.2.4. Notice the
absence of overshoot or ringing.

Figure 2.2.4 Gaussian Filter impulse response for BT=0.3 ,0.5
Figure 2.2.4 depicts the impulse response of a Gaussian filter for BT
= 0.3 and 0.5. BT is related to the filter’s - 3dB BW and data rate by
Hence, for a data rate of 9.6 kbps and a BT of 0.3, the filter’s -3dB
cutoff frequency is 2880Hz. Still referring to Figure 2.2.4, notice that a
bit is spread over approximately 3 bit periods for BT=0.3 and two bit
periods for BT=0.5. This gives rise to a phenomenon called inter-
symbol interference (ISI). For BT=0.3 adjacent symbols or bits will
interfere with each other more than for BT=0.5. GMSK with BT=0.5 is
equivalent to MSK. In other words, MSK does not intentionally

introduce ISI. Greater ISI allows the spectrum to be more compact,
making demodulation more difficult. Hence, spectral compactness is
the primary trade-off in going from MSK to Gaussian premodulation
filtered MSK.
Figure 2.2.5 displays the normalized spectral densities for MSK and
GMSK. Notice the reduced sidelobe energy for GMSK. Ultimately,
this means channel spacing can be tighter for GMSK when compared
to MSK for the same adjacent channel interference.
Figure 2.2.5 Spectral density for MSK and GMSK

2.3 PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENTS
The performance of a GMSK modem is generally quantified by
measurement of the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) versus BER. SNR is
related to Eb/N0 by

2.4 BER MEASUREMENT
In digital communications systems, transmitter, channel and receiver

imperfections corrupt an ideal digital communications signal so that
the digital information is corrupted. Bit error rate (BER) provides a
fundamental measure of system performance in digital
communications systems. For ideal assessment of system
performance, it is desirable to estimate BER in real-time. If accurate
BER estimation can be done in real-time, various techniques can be
employed to combat the sources of bit errors and thus minimize the
BER. This, of course, translates into benefits such as better quality of
service (QOS), greater capacity, and/or less power requirements.
This chapter outlines techniques for performing real-time BER
estimation.
System providers need techniques to approximate real-time BER

estimation, without having to resort to brute-force counting methods.
Because of the dynamic, often unpredictable, nature of the wireless
channel, a priori (deductive) techniques (e.g., where the channel is
assumed before demodulation) are not very useful and are
unreliable .A posteriori (inductive) estimation techniques (e.g., where
knowledge of signal impairments is acquired after the signal is
demodulated) are preferable because they assume no prior
knowledge of the channel.
BER can be measured by counting the number of errors that occur

within a given sequence of bits. This method becomes impractical for

small BERs of interest. For example, one would have to transmit a
known training sequence of 10,000 bits and receive one error out of
that known sequence to calculate a very crude BER=10-4 (and the
variance of the estimator would still be quite high). BERs on the order
of 10-6 or 10-7 require training sequences of 1,000,000 or
10,000,000 bits, respectively.
Measured BER based on one error is unreliable, since BER is a

random variable with some probability density function (pdf). For
more accurate BER estimates, the BER pdf should be taken into
account. Even for known data, received communications signals are
random processes (since the channel conditions are random), and
thus, BER is a random variable. In a binary system, the decision
statistic is that quantity (usually a sample) by which a decision is
made at the receiver as to whether a +1 or a -1 (i.e., zero) was sent.
BER measurement is an important factor in selection of any particular

modulation technique .In next chapter the mathematical
implementation of GMSK is given and error measurement is done.

CHAPTER-3
MATHEMATICAL IMPLEMENTATION
OF GMSK

MATHEMATICAL IMPLEMENTATION OF GMSK
The baseband signal is generated by first transforming the zero/one

encoded bits into -1/+1 encoded bits. This -1/+1 signal is then filtered
in such a way that the "boxcar" shaped +1/-1 pulses are transformed
into Gaussian-shaped signals. The baseband signal is then
modulated using frequency modulation, producing a complete GMSK
signal. If the Gaussian shapes do not overlap, then the modulation
form is called 1-GMSK. If the slots overlap 50% (½), the modulation is
called 2-GMSK, and so on.
3.1 GMSK TRANSMITED SIGNAL

A GMSK transmitter can be implemented by a Gaussian
premodulation low pass filter and FM modulator, where the GMSK
signal is produced by applying the NRZ data stream of unity
amplitude to the Gaussian filter whose response is

Bb is the 3 dB bandwidth of a low pass filter having a Gaussian
shaped spectrum, T is the bit period, and is the normalized
bandwidth. The resulting signal is multiplied by 2ðhf, where hf is the
GMSK modulation index, and applied to a voltage control oscillator
(VCO).
Figure 3.1.1 Direct FM modulator
However, the GMSK baseband signals in our simulation is produced

by a phase modulator where the binary symbol sequence Ik, either 1
or -1, is processed by the phase constructor prior to a quadrature
phase modulator.
Figure 3.1.2 Production of FM via phase modulation

The carrier phase which contains information of the GMSK signal with
normalised modulation bandwidth of Bn=0.5 can be expressed as:
where Ik is the sequence of bipolar source bits and Ö(t) is the phase
shape with the following definitions:
The phase of the GMSK signal in the nthbit interval can be

rearranged as

where è(t,I)is the correlative state vector that depends on the two
most recent bits and èn is the accumulated phase of all the previous
bits that have passed through the phase constructor and it is referred
to as the phase state.
The term Ö(t) is obtained by convolving a ramp of width one bit

period and height ð/2 ( an MSK ramp ) by a Gaussian function whose
response is shown by Equation 1, hence the name Gaussian MSK.
3.2 DEMONSTRATION OF MODULATION

To demonstrate the modulation, we are using the following randomly
chosen binary data stream. (This data stream repeats after 12 bits.)
{1,1,-1,1,1,-1,-1,1,-1,1,-1,-1, 1,1,-1,1,1,-1,-1,1,-1,1,-1,-1,............}.
The beginning of this data stream can be represented graphically by
the following figure.
Figure 3.2.1 Data stream

As the data passes through the filter it is shaped and ISI (inter symbol
interference) is introduced since more than one bit is passing through
the filter at any one time. For BN = 0.5, since the bits are spread over
two bit periods, the second bit enters the filter as the first is half way
through, the third enters as the first leaves etc....The first few
Gaussian shaped pulses are represented graphically in the following
figure.
Figure 3.2.2 Shaped pulses representing the data stream
These individual shaped pulses are then added together to give a

function which is represented graphically in the following figure. This
is the function denoted by b(t).

Figure 3.2.3 Function B(t)
This function, b(t), is then integrated, with respect to t (time) from t to ,

to give the function c(t) as shown in the second figure. This function
c(t) is represented graphically below.
Figure 3.2.4 Function C(t)

Once we have the function c(t), we take Sine and Cosine functions of
it to produce the I and Q-baseband signals. Taking the Cosine of c(t)
produces the I-baseband signal I(t) i.e. I(t) = Cos[ c(t) ].
This function I(t) is represented graphically below.
Figure 3.2.5 I-baseband signa

Taking the Sine of c(t) produces the Q-baseband signal Q(t) i.e.
Q(t) = Sin[ c(t) ].
Figure 3.2.6 Q-baseband signal

These two functions I(t) and Q(t) are then passed through the I/Q
modulator which leads to the output signal m(t) which can be written
as m(t) = Sin(2ïfc t) I(t) + Cos(2ïfct) Q(t), where, fc is the carrier
frequency used as the oscillator in the second figure The GMSK
signal m(t) is represented
Figure 3.2.1 GMSK modulated signal

CHAPTER-4
SIMULATION OF
GMSK

4.1 SIMULATION

4.2 BERNOULLI BINARY GENERATOR
The Bernoulli Binary Generator block generates random binary

numbers using a Bernoulli distribution. The Bernoulli distribution with
parameter p produces zero with probability p and one with probability
1-p. The Bernoulli distribution has mean value 1-p and variance p(1-
p). The Probability of a zero parameter specifies p, and can be any
real number between zero and one.
Probability of a zero:-The probability with which a zero output

occurs.
Initial seed:-The initial seed value for the random number generator.
The seed can be either a vector of the same length as the Probability
of a zero parameter, or a scalar.
Sample time:-The period of each sample-based vector or each row

of frame-based matrix.

Frame-based outputs:-Determines whether the output is frame-
based or sample-based. This box is active only if Interpret vector
parameters as 1-D are unchecked.
Samples per frame:-The number of samples in each column of a

framebased output signal. This field is active only if Frame-based
outputs are checked. Interpret vector parameters as 1-D.If this box is
checked, then the output is a one-dimensional signal. Otherwise, the
output is a twodimensional signal. This box is active only if Frame-
based outputs are unchecked.
4.3 GMSK MODULATOR BASEBAND
The GMSK Modulator Baseband block modulates using the

Gaussian minimum shift keying method. The output is a baseband
representation of the modulated signal. The BT product parameter
represents bandwidth multiplied by time. This parameter is a
nonnegative scalar. It is used to reduce the bandwidth at the expense
of increased intersymbol interference. The Pulse length parameter
measures the length of the Gaussian pulse shape, in symbol
intervals. For the exact definitions of the pulse shape, see the work
by Anderson, Aulin, and Sundberg among the references listed
below. The Symbol prehistory parameter is a scalar or vector that
specifies the data symbols used before the start of the simulation, in
reverse chronological order. If it is a vector, then its length must be
one less than the Pulse length parameter. In this block, a symbol of

1 causes a phase shift of ð/2 radians. The Phase offset parameter is
the initial phase of the output waveform, measured in radians.
Input type:-Indicates whether the input consists of bipolar or binary

values.
BT product:-The product of bandwidth and time.
Pulse length (symbol intervals):-The length of the frequency pulse

shape.
Symbol prehistory:-The data symbols used before the start of the

simulation, in reverse chronological order.
Phase offset (rad):-The initial phase of the output waveform.
Samples per symbol:-The number of output samples that the block

produces for each integer or bit in the input

CHAPTER-5
RESULTS

RESULTS
5.1 BERNOULLI BINARY GENERATOR:-

The Bernoulli Binary Generator is used to generate random data bit
required as input to the simulation model.
In this generator
+1 is denoted for 1 and,
-1 is denoted for 0
Figure 5.1.1:- Output of Bernoulli Binary Generator
5.2 GMSK MODULATOR:-

The output of Bernoulli Binary Generator is applied to the input of
GMSK modulator, which first converts binary data train to the
Gaussian shaped train by passing through the Gaussian filter which

is shown in figure 5.2.1. This Gaussian shaped train is the input to the
modulator section. The output modulated signal is shown in figure
5.2.2.
Figure 5.2.1:- Output of Gaussian Filter
Figure 5.2.2:- GMSK Modulated Signal

CHAPTER-6
APPLICATION OF GMSK

6.1 APPLICATION OF GMSK in GSM
In digital communication, Gaussian minimum shift keying or GMSK

is a continuous-phase frequency-shift keying modulation scheme. It is
similar to standard minimum-shift keying (MSK); however the digital
data stream is first shaped with a Gaussian filter before being applied
to a frequency modulator. This has the advantage of reducing
sideband power, which in turn reduces out-of-band interference
between signal carriers in adjacent frequency channels. However, the
Gaussian filter increases the modulation memory in the system and
causes intersymbol interference, making it more difficult to
discriminate between different transmitted data values and requiring
more complex channel equalization algorithms such as an adaptive
equalizer at the receiver.
GMSK is most notably used in the Global System for Mobile

Communications (GSM).
Global System for Mobile communications (GSM: originally from

Groupe Spécial Mobile) is the most popular standard for mobile
phones in the world. Its promoter, the GSM Association, estimates
[1]
that 82% of the global mobile market uses the standard . GSM is
used by over 2 billion people across more than 212 countries and
territories.[2][3] Its ubiquity makes international roaming very common
between mobile phone operators, enabling subscribers to use their
phones in many parts of the world. GSM differs from its predecessors
in that both signaling and speech channels are digital call quality, and

so is considered a second generation (2G) mobile phone system.
This has also meant that data communication were built into the
system using the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP).
The GSM logo is used to identify compatible handsets and

equipment The key advantage of GSM systems to consumers has
been better voice quality and low-cost alternatives to making calls,
such as the Short message service (SMS, also called "text
messaging"). The advantage for network operators has been the
ease of deploying equipment from any vendors that implement the
standard.[4] Like other cellular standards, GSM allows network
operators to offer roaming services so that subscribers can use their
phones on GSM networks all over the world.
Newer versions of the standard were backward-compatible with the

original GSM phones. For example, Release '97 of the standard
added packet data capabilities, by means of General Packet Radio
Service (GPRS). Release '99 introduced higher speed data
transmission using Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE).

6.2 APPLICATION OF GMSK IN AEROSPACE
Using bandwidth-efficient modulation, communication satellites

can transmit signals through a smaller frequency band. The
Aerospace Corporation's research into one such technique has
yielded tangible benefits for the military's protected
communication satellites.
The recent proliferation of terrestrial and space-based

communication systems has given rise to an increasingly critical
problem—the lack of available frequency spectrum. One tool that
satellite system designers can use to maximize the use of
available spectrum is bandwidth-efficient modulation. This
technique can enhance bandwidth efficiency while retaining
reasonable power efficiency and implementation complexity.
Because of the wide applicability of bandwidth-efficient
modulation to most new satellite systems, The Aerospace
Corporation has performed extensive research in this area. One
recent application can be found in the Advanced Extremely High
Frequency (AEHF) program.

With Gaussian minimum shift keying, the rectangular pulses
representing input bits are converted into Gaussian shaped pulses.
The resulting carrier signal is smooth in phase, and therefore requires
less bandwidth to transmit. The configuration shown here uses a
bandwidth–bit-time product of 1/5.

A successor to Milstar I and II, the AEHF program will form the
basis of the military's next-generation protected communication
system. Specifications called for a tenfold increase in capacity
over the current Milstar system; however, early studies clearly
indicated that the new downlink requirements could not be met
within the existing frequency allocation simply by extending the
Milstar design. The MILSATCOM (Military Satellite
Communications) Joint Program Office at the Air Force Space
and Missile Systems Center asked Aerospace to help investigate
alternative signaling methods that would use the allotted
bandwidth more efficiently.
6.2.1 Phase-Shift Modulation
Aerospace researchers began by characterizing traditional binary

phase-shift keying and quarternary phase-shift keying—two
commonly employed satellite signal-transmission techniques—in
light of the new capacity requirements. Milstar currently uses
differential phase-shift keying for its downlink. This method is
similar to binary phase-shift keying and exhibits the same power
spectral density, a measure of the distribution of signal power
versus frequency.

Systems that transmit multiple signals within a given bandwidth
have several options for sharing frequency resources. One
technique, called frequency-division multiple access, assigns a
carrier or channel to each signal, centered at a unique
transmission frequency. Designers typically want to space these
channels as closely as possible to increase the system capacity,
but as the spacing gets too close, the power spectra start to
overlap, and power from one channel spills into another. This
phenomenon, known as adjacent channel interference, increases
the probability of transmission errors, also known as the bit-error
rate (see sidebar, Performance Measures for Digital
Communication Systems).

The power spectral density for Gaussian minimum shift keying is
much more compact than that of differential phase-shift keying and
does not exhibit the same pronounced sidelobes. In this example, the
bandwidth–bit-time product is 1/6.

Gaussian minimum shift keying waveforms with varying bandwidth–
bit-time products are compared with binary and differential phase-
shift keying. As the bandwidth–bit-time product decreases, the
waveform spectra grows narrower.

The power spectral density of both binary and quarternary phase-
shift keying is fairly broad, and when channels are packed
together too tightly, the adjacent channel interference can be
severe. In the case of the AEHF program, the channels would
have to be spaced far apart to avoid large degradations from such
interference. Researchers discovered that they simply could not fit
enough channels within the allocated downlink frequency to meet
the capacity requirement using standard binary, differential, or
quarternary phase-shift keying. Other, more advanced modulation
techniques would have to be found.
6.2.2 Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying
Aerospace had been studying a modulation technique known as
Gaussian minimum shift keying for potential application in the Air
Force Satellite Control Network and recognized that it might be a
good candidate for the AEHF program.

Gaussian minimum shift keying is a form of continuous phase
modulation, a technique that achieves smooth phase transitions
between signal states, thereby reducing bandwidth requirements
(see sidebar, Modulation Basics). With Gaussian minimum shift
keying, input bits with rectangular (+1, -1) representation are
converted to Gaussian (bell-shaped) pulses by a Gaussian filter
before further smoothing by a frequency modulator. Also, in most
cases, the Gaussian pulse is allowed to last longer than one bit
time—the amount of time a binary 1 is in the "on" position.
Consequently, the pulses overlap, giving rise to a phenomenon
known as intersymbol interference. The extent of this overlap is
determined by the product of the bandwidth of the Gaussian filter
and the data-bit duration; the smaller the bandwidth–bit-time
product, the more the data bits or pulses overlap.

Measured data showing growth of sidelobes in the power spectral
density of offset quarternary phase-shift keying. The pink curve
indicates performance through a standard (linear) amplifier, while the
green curve shows the poorer performance though a saturated
(nonlinear) amplifier.

The resulting carrier signal is very smooth in phase—particularly
in comparison to waveforms generated through standard binary or
quarternary phase-shift keying. This is important because signals
with smooth phase transitions require less bandwidth to transmit.
On the other hand, this very smooth phase makes the receiver's
job much harder. With Gaussian minimum shift keying, there are
no well-defined phase transitions to detect for bit synchronization,
and the energy from each bit is mixed with the energy from
several other bits. The transmitter output looks nothing like the
data input, and on the receiver side, a special demodulator of
increased complexity is needed to extract the data bits. For the
receiver to achieve a given bit-error rate, the transmitter must
generate more power to overcome the receiver noise in the
presence of the intersymbol interference. In other words, the
Gaussian minimum shift keying waveform is usually less power-
efficient than more traditional waveforms such as binary phase-
shift keying and requires a more complex receiver, but this
potential reduction in power efficiency and increase in receiver
complexity could be rewarded with a very significant
enhancement of bandwidth efficiency. So, with Gaussian
minimum shift keying, there is a trade-off between bandwidth
efficiency and power efficiency.
Gaussian minimum shift keying is not new—the technique has

been used extensively in Europe for cell-phone applications with a
bandwidth–bit-time product of 0.3. But system designs using very
small bandwidth–bit-time products such as 1/5 or 1/8 are new—

and challenging. Aerospace became interested in these smaller
bandwidth–bit-time products because of their narrow bandwidth
occupancy and the rapid roll-off of their power spectra. These two
factors strongly influence the ability to pack many different
channels into a limited amount of bandwidth. The Gaussian
minimum shift keying waveform exhibits a steep power spectrum
and therefore coexists well with adjacent channels in a frequency-
division multiple-access system.
The resulting carrier signal is very smooth in phase—particularly

in comparison to waveforms generated through standard binary or
quarternary phase-shift keying. This is important because signals
with smooth phase transitions require less bandwidth to transmit.
On the other hand, this very smooth phase makes the receiver's
job much harder. With Gaussian minimum shift keying, there are
no well-defined phase transitions to detect for bit synchronization,
and the energy from each bit is mixed with the energy from
several other bits. The transmitter output looks nothing like the
data input, and on the receiver side, a special demodulator of
increased complexity is needed to extract the data bits. For the
receiver to achieve a given bit-error rate, the transmitter must
generate more power to overcome the receiver noise in the
presence of the intersymbol interference. In other words, the
Gaussian minimum shift keying waveform is usually less power-
efficient than more traditional waveforms such as binary phase-
shift keying and requires a more complex receiver, but this
potential reduction in power efficiency and increase in receiver

complexity could be rewarded with a very significant
enhancement of bandwidth efficiency. So, with Gaussian
minimum shift keying, there is a trade-off between bandwidth
efficiency and power efficiency.
Gaussian minimum shift keying is not new—the technique has

been used extensively in Europe for cell-phone applications with a
bandwidth–bit-time product of 0.3. But system designs using very
small bandwidth–bit-time products such as 1/5 or 1/8 are new—
and challenging. Aerospace became interested in these smaller
bandwidth–bit-time products because of their narrow bandwidth
occupancy and the rapid roll-off of their power spectra. These two
factors strongly influence the ability to pack many different
channels into a limited amount of bandwidth. The Gaussian
minimum shift keying waveform exhibits a steep power spectrum
and therefore coexists well with adjacent channels in a frequency-
division multiple-access system.

This graph shows the measured power spectral density for Gaussian
minimum shift keying when passed though a standard (linear) and
saturated (nonlinear) power amplifier. Even in scenarios involving
saturated amplifiers, the technique does not give rise to significant
sidelobes. In this example, the bandwidth–bit-time product is 0.125,
and the data rate is 1 megabit per second.

CHAPTER-7
CONCLUSION

CONCLUSION
This project has presented a partial simulating model of GMSK with

its identical real life conditions. The variations in the performance of
signal at various stages and under various circumstances (such as
with and without noise, multipath fading etc) is drawn on separate out
blocks. These results help comparing GMSK model with all other
known schemes BPSK (which was previously used widely ) at
BT=0.3 has BER of about 0.251, but from this model the BER of
GMSK has found to be about 0.530 under same conditions when
differentially encoded method was used.
But using OQPSK method shows the same performance as BPSK.

Spectrum utilization is an very importance factor since in wireless
communication the spectrums to be allocated is limited. GMSK
introduces use of Gaussian filter for prefiltering which compresses the
width and removes unwanted side lobes. Thus it also reduces power
requirements.
Overall we can conclude that GMSK is an intelligent compromise

between spectrum utilization, power requirement and the BER
performance. Thus GMSK is widely used in modern communication
systems.

APPENDIX
Matlab Code For GMSK Modulation and Demodulation

clear all;
close all;
%*********************************
% Variable Definition
%*********************************
DRate = 1; % data rate or 1 bit in one second
M = 18; % no. of sample per bit
N = 36; % no. of bits for simulation [-18:18]
BT = 0.5; % Bandwidth*Period (cannot change )
T = 1/DRate; % data period , i.e 1 bit in one second
Ts = T/M;
k=[-18:18]; % Chen's values. More than needed;
% only introduces a little more delay
%******************************************************************
% CONSTRUCTION OF GAUSSIAN FILTER
%******************************************************************
alpha = sqrt(log(2))/(2*pi*BT);
% alpha calculated for the gaussian filter
h = exp(-(k*Ts).^2/(2*alpha^2*T^2))/(sqrt(2*pi)*alpha*T);
% Gaussian Filter Response in time domain
figure;
plot(h,'*r')
title('Response of Gaussian Filter');

xlabel( 'Sample at Ts');
ylabel( 'Normalized Magnitude');
grid;
bits = [zeros(1,36) 1 zeros(1,36) 1 zeros(1,36) -1 zeros(1,36) -1
zeros(1,36) 1
zeros(1,36) 1 zeros(1,36) 1 zeros(1,36)];
% data is randomly selected, here 1 indicates 1 and -1 indicates zero
%**************
% MODULATION
%**************
m = filter(h,1,bits);
% bits are passed through the all pole filter described by h, i.e bits are
% shaped by gaussian filter
t0=.35; % signal duration
ts=0.00135; % sampling interval
fc=200; % carrier frequency
kf=100; % Modulation index
fs=1/ts; % sampling frequency
t=[0:ts:t0]; % time vector
df=0.25; % required frequency resolution
int_m(1)=0;
for i=1:length(t)-1 % Integral of m
int_m(i+1)=int_m(i)+m(i)*ts;
end
tx_signal=cos(2*pi*fc*t+2*pi*kf*int_m);
% FM is a form of angle modulation in Which the instantaneous

%frequency of the carrier signal is varied linearly with the baseband
signal m(t),
x = cos(2*pi*fc*t);
y = sin(2*pi*fc*t);
figure;
subplot(2,1,1)
stem(bits(1:250))
title('RANDOM DATA BITS,+1 FOR ONE AND -1 FOR ZERO ');
grid;
subplot(2,1,2)
plot(m(1:250),'r')
title('GAUSSIAN SHAPED TRAIN');
xlim([0 260]);
figure;
plot(tx_signal)
title('MODULATED SIGNAL');
xlim([0 225]);

REFERENCES
1. Simon Haykin, “Communication System” ,3rd edition ,(pg-114)

2. John G. Proakis, “Digital Comunication” , 4th edition,
( pg -80,283,660,800)
3. Herbert Taub and Donald Schilling “Principles of
Communication System” ,Tata Mcgraw Hill edition,(pg-
249,286,298)
4. J. S. Chitode, “Electronic Communication”, 3rd edition, (pg-
390,406,440)
5. W.C.Y. Lee, “Cellular Mobile Communication”, 2nd edition, (pg-
463,471,480)
6. A.B. Carlson, “Communication Systems” 3rd edition, (pg-217)
7. B.P. Lathi, “Communication Systems” ,2nd edition, (pg-71,119)
8. A.V. Openheim, “Signals and System” ,4th edition, (pg-
189,378)
9. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GMSK
10. http://www.answers.com/topic/continuous-phase-modulation
11. http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761569907/Radio.htm l#
461530 757
12. www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/ra/topics/research/topics/emc/l
inkpc p/appd.pdf -
13. www.eetkorea.com/ARTICLES/2003AUG/A/2003AUG29_
NTEK_A N.PDF
14. www.dsprelated.com/showmessage/51149/1.php
15. www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/fileexchange/
loadFile.do?objectI d=10503&objectType=file

16. www.cholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/public/etd-59415
13972900/etd.pdf
17. www.synetcom.com/images/pdf/Spra139.pdf
18. www .etfec.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/reprint/E88-A/10/2863.pdf
19. www.hpl.hp.com/techreports/98/HPL-98-36.pdf
20. www.eecg.utoronto.ca/~tcc/DenisDalyBAScThesis.pdf
21. www.comblock.com/download/com1028.pdf
22. www.comblock.com/download/com1027.pdf
23. Matlab 7

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CHAPTER-1

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 1

This chapter introduces basic concepts of modulation like analog,

In telecommunications, modulation is the process of varying a

A device that performs modulation is known as a modulator and a

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 2

The aim of analog modulation is to transfer an analog lowpass

1.2.1 MODULATION TECHNIQUES

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 3

The aim of digital modulation is to transfer a digital bit stream over

1.3.1 MODULATION TECHNIQUES

Quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) a combination of PSK and

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 4

1.5 CPM (CONTINUOUS PHASE MODULATION)

CPM is a method for modulation of data commonly used in wireless

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 5

Each symbol is modulated by gradually changing the phase of the

Therefore, the optimal receiver cannot make decisions on any

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 6

MSK is another name for CPM with an excess bandwidth of ½ and a

1.7 GMSK (Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying)

GMSK is a digital modulation scheme which uses Gaussian instead

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 7

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 8

Noise is one of the factors that affects the information being

It is very difficult to measure Noise, and there exist only a few

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 9

Noise is an important factor in any communication modeling. For

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 10

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 11

2.1 DIGITAL MODULATION AND GMSK

A brief introduction to digital modulation schemes is given, showing

2.1.1 Amplitude Shift Keying

Amplitude-shift keying (ASK) is a form of modulation that

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 12

This low level represents binary 0, while a higher-amplitude lightwave

2.1.2 Frequency Shift Keying

Audio frequency-shift keying (AFSK) is a modulation technique by

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 13

2.1.3 Phase shift keying

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 14

Using trigonometric identities this can also be written as

Figure 2.1.4.1 Even and Odd data Stream

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 15

The values of .(t) = 0, -(ð/2), ð/2, ð represent the four possible

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 16

If a QPSK modulated signal undergoes filtering to reduce the spectral

2.1.5 Offset Quadrature Phase Shift Keying

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 17

Figure 2.1.5 OQPSK Waveform

When an OQPSK signal undergoes band limiting, the resulting

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 18

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 19

MSK is a continuous phase modulation scheme where the modulated

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 20

Baseband MSK, as shown in Figure 2.2.2, is a robust means of

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 21

Figure 2.2.3 Direct MSK Modulation

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 22

The pre-modulation lowpass filter must have a narrow BW with a

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 23

GMSK RADIO MODULATION 24