Telecommunications: Introduction

Scheduled Dates (sort by: location | date)

Course Overview

Today's telecommunications networks have the ability to transport voice, data and image traffic to any location in the world. While most organisations use many separate networks for the various types of information they exchange, many are moving towards convergence of several types of traffic into fewer networks.

This comprehensive introductory course demystifies all of the components and standards of today's telecommunications options. You learn how to evaluate your organisation's choices and develop a strategy that achieves the best balance between cost, security and performance for each type of traffic.

Audience

This course is valuable for those involved in projects requiring the transmission of voice, data and video over wide area networks.

Skills Gained

• Apply multiple communications technologies when planning convergence networks for voice, data and video
• Choose the correct wired or wireless transmission medium for network access
• Specify the most cost-effective telephony network technologies for your enterprise
• Take advantage of Internet technology to handle your data and voice communications
• Evaluate current data network alternatives for cost-effective technical support

Course Outline

Introduction and Overview

Convergence fundamentals

• Why convergence matters
• The structure of convergence

The complete network

• Components
• Leased and switched networks
• Public and private networks

Comparing Transmission Media

Selecting the medium

• Copper and fibre
• Terrestrial radio
• Geosynchronous and LEO satellites

Applying analogue and digital techniques

• Bandwidth, loss, frequency response
• Modulation methods

T1/E1 equipment

• DS-1 and E1 rates and formats
• Fractional services

Differences between PDH and SDH

• Scalable capacity
• Manageability
• SONET/SDH rings

Mastering Basic Telephony

The local loop

• TIP and ring
• Bandwidth and DC power

How a telephone works

• 3.1-kHz signals
• Hybrids and two-wire loops
• Loop signalling

Components of LXs and PBXs

• Switch matrices and controllers
• Circuit and packet switching
• Lines and trunks
• Remote multiplexors

Calculating blocking probability

• ABSBH
• Erlang B and C
• Trunk group efficiency
• Sizing PBX trunk groups

Modern Telephony and Video Conferencing

Basic and primary rate ISDN

• NT1s, TAs, TE1s, TE2s
• Voice/data applications

Comparing cellular techniques

• Frequency reuse, handoff, roaming
• Planning for 3G evolution
• TDMA vs. CDMA
• GSM, PCS, UMTS

Choosing a voice coding method

• A-Law, mu-law, ADPCM
• Low bit-rate coding: LPC, CELP

Voice and video conferencing

• Video coding: H.261
• H.320/H.323 terminals, SIP
• Following a VoIP call

Signalling

Channel-associated signalling

• Dial pulse and DTMF
• E&M interfaces
• Robbed-bit and E1 slot-16 signalling

Applying common-channel signalling

• Q.931 ISDN call control
• SS7 signalling network
• QSIG for PBXs

Deploying Data Communications Networks

A TCP/IP primer

• The TCP/IP suite
• IP addressing
• Routers
• Internet and intranets

Exploiting PSTN and narrow-band ISDN

• V.90 and V.92 56-kbit/s modems
• ISDN telecommuting and Internet access
• BONDING, PPP-MP

Specifying frame relay options

• LAN-to-LAN interconnection
• Data rate and latency
• Risk, CIR and EIR

Applying VPN technology

• Leased line replacement
• Remote access
• Performance
• Tunnelling for security

Planning Voice/Data/Video Convergence

Transmission-level convergence

• ADSL, cable modems
• 802.16 WiMAX wireless local loops
• WiMAX vs. Wi-Fi vs. cellular

Network-level convergence

• Challenges of VoIP
• ATM cell relay
• QoS

Application-level convergence

• PBX vs. Centrex
• CTI architectures
• The five VoIP architectures
• VoIP migration strategies
• IP-based PBXs
• SLAs and outsourcing

Dealing with evolving WANs

• Passive optical networks
• Ethernet WANs
• IP over ATM/SONET/SDH/glass
• RTP, DiffServ, RSVP, MPLS

Telecommunications: Introduction / 373