CPICH Common Pilot Channel
This channel is used in UMTS to enable channel estimation. The CPICH uses a pre defined bit sequence. It has a fixed rate of 30Kbps with a SF (Spreading Factor) of 256. This allows the UE (User Equipment) to equalize the channel in order to achieve a phase reference with the SCH (Synchronisation Channel) and also allows estimations in terms of power control. The same channel code is always employed on the Primary CPICH.