scope:

The use and general aspects of the Base Station Controller (BSC) to Base Station Transceiver (BTS) interface (the Abis interface) are given in 3GPP TS OS.51.

This Technical Specification (TS) specifies the general structure of layer 3 and traffic management procedures and messages used on the A-bis interface to support signalling procedures as defined in 3GPP TS 04.0S. Support for Location Services (LCS) related signalling, as defined in 3GPP TS 03.71, is also included. 3GPP TS 03.71 identifies new A-bis signalling to support BTS-embedded Type B LMUs as well as standalone, Type B LMUs. The standalone Type B LMU supports the layer 1 and 2 signalling for the A-bis as well as the Location Service message defined in this specification.

Network management procedures and messages for the A-bis interface are defined in 3GPP TS OS.59.

The functional split between BSC and BTS is defined in 3GPP TS OS.52. The procedures and messages required to support this split are defined in detail in this TS.