User guide

Raven EDGE/GPRS for Cingular - User Guide, version 2.31 1
CHAPTER 1 Introduction to Raven EDGE/GPRS
FIGURE 1. Raven front and back
EDGE/GPRS Overview
The Raven's rugged form factor is ideal for industrial and commercial applications that require
real-time communications. The Raven provides cellular data communications for a variety of
applications, such as telemetry, public safety, SCADA, traffic control,
traffic metering, and more.
EDGE (Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution) provides end-to-end
packet data services with
an enhanced connectivity building on GPRS technology and using the established GSM net-
works. EDGE provides higher transmission rates and better transmission quality for data than
GPRS. EDGE can
carry data at speeds typically up to 384 kbit/s in packet mode.
When EDGE/GPRS is not available, your Raven will fal
l-back to GPRS for the connection to
Cingular to provide continued connectivity.
General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) is packet-switched
with many users sharing the same
transmission channel, but only transmitting when they have data to send. This means that the total
available bandwidth can be immediately dedicated to those users who are actually sending at any
given moment, providing higher utilization where users only send or receive data intermittently.
GPRS provides speeds of 30–70 kbps with bursts up to 170 kbps.