1.

Explain benefits and challenges of wireless communications relative to

wired communication.
 Wireless Communication

The term wireless refers to communication without wires. In order to transmit information (voice
or data) using wireless communication we need antenna. The antenna is the device which
couples RF energy from one medium (i.e. waveguide, transmission line etc.) to the other medium
(i.e. air). We require two systems viz. transmitter and receiver to complete end to end wireless
link. Wireless communication uses electromagnetic waves as medium for carrying the
information through the channel between transmitter and receiver. Wireless technology is a truly
revolutionary paradigm shift, enabling multimedia communications between people and devices
from any location. It also underpins exciting applications such as sensor networks, smart homes,
telemedicine, and automated highways.

Wireless communication generally works through electromagnetic signals that are broadcast by
an enabled device within the air, physical environment or atmosphere. The sending device can be
a sender or an intermediate device with the ability to propagate wireless signals. The
communication between two devices occurs when the destination or receiving intermediate
device captures these signals, creating a wireless communication bridge between the sender and
receiver device. Wireless communication has various forms, technology and delivery methods
including:

 Satellite communication
 Mobile communication
 Wireless network communication
 Infrared communication
 Bluetooth communication

Although all of these communication technologies have different underlying architecture, they
all lack a physical or wired connection between their respective devices to initiate and execute
communication.

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Wireless Networks operate by transmitting specific radio frequency signals. These signals allow
wireless enabled devices to communicate with each other and the internet, without having to be
connected through a physical cable or ethernet. So, let us dig into the advantages and
disadvantages of wireless networks

 Advantages of wireless communication

Cost: The cost of wireless is largely based on the amount of space where connectivity is needed.
Structured cabling and all associated hardware are still needed, but less cable drops, and wall
jacks are necessary. Cost is an advantage of both wired and wireless in our explanation due to the
subjectivity of the hardware. The cost of wireless depends largely on your unique business and
the amount of wireless access points (WAPs), routers and other hardware you require.

Installation: While initial structured cabling installation is extensive, adding or upgrading

wireless systems is much easier. When you are expanding or adding employees you do not need
to do as much disruptive physical work. It can be as simple as running a single cable to add a
WAP to a new office or cubicle area. Which is considerably easier than installing wall jacks into
each new space?

Mobility: Seamless, Freedom Mobile to all levels. Self-explanatory to say the least, however
wireless connection allows office workers the flexibility to accesses the network from any
location on any device. Guests can easily join a public wi-fi connection and collaboration can be
done anywhere connectivity is present.

 Disadvantages of wireless communication

Visibility: One network is visible to the other which can affect the performance of your
connection. Because the networks can see one another, the possibility of interference by other
wireless enabled devices or obstructions is higher. Additionally, the nodes or connectivity points
on a wireless network cannot hear the other nodes on a single network. This can compromise the
performance and quality of connection.

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Security: Hot topic and of high importance. Truth: wireless networks are less secure than wired.
Communication signals being transmitted through the air/ radio waves are far more likely to get
intercepted if the proper encryption (security) technologies are not in place. However, many
security options are available so wireless internet can be very safe.

Speed: While wireless internet keeps getting faster and faster, a hardwired connection will
always be the fastest option. Hybrid configuration is always an option for internet connectivity,
meaning you can have wireless internet along with some areas where you can hardwire in.

Reliability & Stability: Finally, reliability and stability of wireless networks are prone to
interference by other networks, wireless enabled devices, and objects such as walls that can
obstruct the connection. The strength of the connection can vary from place to place, and the
design of your network makes all the difference. It is important to have a professional provider
install your network to ensure your space has even and reliable connectivity.

 Wired communication

Wired communication refers to the transmission of data over a wire-based communication

technology. Wired communication is also known as wireline communication. Examples include
telephone networks, cable television or internet access, and fiber-optic communication. Wired
communications is a broad term that is used to describe any type of communication process that
relies on the direct use of cables and wiring to transmit audio and visual data. A classic example
of wired communications is the traditional home telephone that is connected to the local
telephone switch via wires that are ran from the home to the switch.

A wired network is where you physically plug your computer or docking station into an ethernet
cord or wall jack. You would not be connecting to wireless internet in this case. This can be quite
a bit less convenient but there are advantages to this type of network.

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  Advantages of Wired Communication

Reliability and Stability: Wired networks are generally more stable and reliable. When you are
physically connected to the internet (not wi-fi) the chance of losing connection or experiencing
latency issues is much lower. Signal interference compromises stability, as well as physical
interference like walls or objects nearby.

Visibility: A wired network is not visible to other wired networks. This allows for no
interference with the connection, and simultaneously the network nodes still communicate with
other nodes on the network to facilitate effective data transfer/ storage over the network.

Speed: Wired networks are generally much faster than wireless networks. In buildings where
there are concrete walls or other obstructions to wireless signals, physical connections will be
much faster and more reliable. A wired network is also much faster given that it will not be
slowed down by any outside/ unexpected traffic. Unauthorized users are unable to connect to the
network unless their device is connected using an Ethernet cable.

Security: With the protection of firewalls and other security devices, a wired network is broadly
protected. Daily business operations are performed using correct ports, network monitoring, and
a wired connection with security technologies.

Cost: The hardware required for a wired network often has a longer lifecycle than a wireless
network. There may be less hardware needed which can reduce cost.

Taking the above into account, let us dig into some DISADVANTAGES of using a wired
network.

 Disadvantages of wired communication

Lack of mobility takes the lead. A wired network creates an environment where you cannot pick
up your laptop and move to a different location in your space. You are forced to work where
there is a cable to connect to the internet. This can make collaboration with colleagues difficult
very difficult.

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Installation: Network installation can be a much longer process and is ideally done at the very
beginning of construction. Not only does the installation process take a lot of time, but the end
user side of routers, switches, and hubs can require security and firewall components as well. If
you are expanding or adding an employee, you will need to add cable drops for them to connect.

Maintenance: Maintenance to the physical server of the network requires consistent attention to

maintain connectivity, capacity, storage, and workload. You will likely need to have a full time
Infrastructure team to monitor a wired network.

Wires: Visible wiring is not aesthetically pleasing. Unless installed and maintained

professionally, your office can become a mess of cables. Exposed cables and cords can be a
hazard in the workplace or be accidentally disconnected by office workers/ cleaning crews.

There is a good balance of pros and cons to a wired network. Now let us consider a wireless
network, which is much more popular in workspaces today.

2. Explain the evolution, market status and popular business actors for
cellular, satellite, Microwave and Radar communication.

Evolution of Microwave communication

Microwave is a line-of-sight wireless communication technology that uses high frequency beams

of radio waves to provide high speed wireless connections that can send and receive voice,
video, and data information.

Microwave links are are widely used for point-to-point communications because their small
wavelength allows conveniently-sized antennas to direct them in narrow beams, which can be
pointed directly at the receiving antenna. This allows nearby microwave equipment to use the
same frequencies without interfering with each other, as lower frequency radio waves do.
Another advantage is that the high frequency of microwaves gives the microwave band a very
large information-carrying capacity; the microwave band has a bandwidth 30 times that of all the
rest of the radio spectrum below it.

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James Clerk Maxwell, using his famous “Maxwell’s equations,” predicted the existence of
invisible electromagnetic waves, of which microwaves are a part, in 1865. In 1888, Heinrich
Hertz became the first to demonstrate the existence of such waves by building an apparatus that
produced and detected microwaves in the ultra high frequency region. Hertz recognized that the
results of his experiment validated Maxwell’s prediction, but he did not see any practical
applications for these invisible waves. Later work by others led to the invention of wireless
communications, based on microwaves. Contributors to this work included Nikola Tesla,
Guglielmo Marconi, Samuel Morse, Sir William Thomson (later Lord Kelvin), Oliver Heaviside,
Lord Rayleigh, and Oliver Lodge.

Microwave Link over English Channel, 1931

In 1931 a US-French consortium demonstrated an experimental microwave relay link across the
English Channel using 10 foot (3m) dishes, one of the earliest microwave communication
systems. Telephony, telegraph and facsimile data was transmitted over the 1.7 GHz beams 40
miles between Dover, UK and Calais, France. However it could not compete with cheap
undersea cable rates, and a planned commercial system was never built.
During the 1950s the AT&T Long Lines system of microwave relay links grew to carry the
majority of US long distance telephone traffic, as well as intercontinental television network
signals. The prototype was called TDX and was tested with a connection between New York
City and Murray Hill, the location of Bell Laboratories in 1946. The TDX system was set up
between New York and Boston in 1947.

A microwave link is a communications system that uses a beam of radio waves in the microwave
frequency range to transmit video, audio, or data between two locations, which can be from just a few feet

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or meters to several miles or kilometers apart. Examples of Commercial Microwave links from CableFree
may be see here. Modern Microwave Links can carry up to 400Mbps in a 56MHz channel using
256QAM modulation and IP header compression techniques.  Operating Distances for microwave links
are determined by antenna size (gain), frequency band, and link capacity.

Microwave Communication Tower

Market status of microwave communication

The microwave transmission equipment market is expected to be valued at USD 6.18 Billion by 2022,
growing at a CAGR of 3.38% between 2016 and 2022. The growth of this market is propelled by the rise
of 4G, LTE advanced, and other new standards, along with increased spectrum efficiency.

Evolution of Radar Communication

The history of radar (where radar stands for radio detection and ranging) started with experiments

by Heinrich Hertz in the late 19th century that showed that radio waves were reflected by metallic objects. This
possibility was suggested in James Clerk Maxwell's seminal work on electromagnetism. However, it was not
until the early 20th century that systems able to use these principles were becoming widely available, and it
was German inventor Christian Hülsmeyer who first used them to build a simple ship detection device
intended to help avoid collisions in fog (Reichspatent Nr. 165546). True radar, such as the British Chain
Home early warning system provided directional information to objects over short ranges, were developed
over the next two decades.

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The development of systems able to produce short pulses of radio energy was the key advance that allowed
modern radar systems to come into existence. By timing the pulses on an oscilloscope, the range could be
determined and the direction of the antenna revealed the angular location of the targets. The two, combined,
produced a "fix", locating the target relative to the antenna. In the 1934–1939 period, eight nations developed
independently, and in great secrecy, systems of this type: the United Kingdom, Germany, the United States,
the USSR, Japan, the Netherlands, France, and Italy. In addition, Britain shared their information with the
United States and four Commonwealth countries: Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and South Africa, and
these countries also developed their own radar systems. During the war, Hungary was added to this list. [1] The
term RADAR was coined in 1939 by the United States Signal Corps as it worked on these systems for the
Navy.[2]

Progress during the war was rapid and of great importance, probably one of the decisive factors for the victory
of the Allies. A key development was the magnetron in the UK,[3] which allowed the creation of relatively
small systems with sub-meter resolution. By the end of hostilities, Britain, Germany, the United States, the
USSR, and Japan had a wide variety of land- and sea-based radars as well as small airborne systems. After the
war, radar use was widened to numerous fields including: civil aviation, marine navigation, radar guns for
police, meteorology and even medicine. Key developments in the post-war period include the travelling wave
tube as a way to produce large quantities of coherent microwaves, the development of signal delay systems
that led to phased array radars, and ever-increasing frequencies that allow higher resolutions. Increases in
signal processing capability due to the introduction of solid state computers has also had a large impact on
radar use.

Market status for radar communication

According to Verified Market Research, the Radar Systems Market size was valued at USD 31.5 Billion
in 2021 and is projected to reach USD 47.8 Billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 4.6% from 2022 to
2030.

Evolution of satellite communication

The idea of communicating through a satellite first appeared in the short story titled “The Brick
Moon,” written by the American clergyman and author Edward Everett Hale and published
in The Atlantic Monthly in 1869–70. The story describes the construction and launch
into Earth orbit of a satellite 200 feet (60 metres) in diameter and made of bricks. The brick
moon aided mariners in navigation, as people sent Morse code signals back to Earth by jumping
up and down on the satellite’s surface.

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The first practical concept of satellite communication was proposed by 27-year-old Royal Air
Force officer Arthur C. Clarke in a paper titled “Extra-Terrestrial Relays: Can Rocket Stations
Give World-wide Radio Coverage?” published in the October 1945 issue of Wireless World.
Clarke, who would later become an accomplished science fiction writer, proposed that a satellite
at an altitude of 35,786 km (22,236 miles) above Earth’s surface would be moving at the same
speed as Earth’s rotation. At this altitude the satellite would remain in a fixed position relative to
a point on Earth. This orbit, now called a “geostationary orbit,” is ideal for satellite
communications, since an antenna on the ground can be pointed to a satellite 24 hours a day
without having to track its position. Clarke calculated in his paper that three satellites spaced
equidistantly in geostationary orbit would be able to provide radio coverage that would be
almost worldwide with the sole exception of some of the polar regions.

The first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, was launched successfully by the Soviet

Union on October 4, 1957. Sputnik 1 was only 58 cm (23 inches) in diameter with
four antennas sending low-frequency radio signals at regular intervals. It orbited Earth
in a elliptical orbit, taking 96.2 minutes to complete one revolution. It transmitted
signals for only 22 days until its battery ran out and was in orbit for only three
months, but its launch sparked the beginning of the space race between the United
States and the Soviet Union.

The first satellite to relay voice signals was launched by the U.S. government’s
Project SCORE (Signal Communication by Orbiting Relay Equipment) from Cape Canaveral,
Florida, on December 19, 1958. It broadcast a taped message conveying “peace on earth and
goodwill toward men everywhere” from U.S. Pres. Dwight D. Eisenhower.

American engineers John Pierce of American Telephone and Telegraph Company’s

(AT&T’s) Bell Laboratories and Harold Rosen of Hughes Aircraft Company developed key
technologies in the 1950s and ’60s that made commercial communication satellites possible.
Pierce outlined the principles of satellite communications in an article titled “Orbital Radio
Relays” published in the April 1955 issue of Jet Propulsion. In it he calculated the precise power
requirements to transmit signals to satellites in various Earth orbits. Pierce’s main contribution to

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satellite technology was the development of the traveling wave tube amplifier, which enabled a
satellite to receive, amplify, and transmit radio signals. Rosen developed spin-stabilization
technology that provided stability to satellites orbiting in space.

Market status for satellite communication

The global satellite communication market size was valued at USD 71.6 billion in 2021 and is
expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.5% from 2022 to 2030. The
increasing need for mobile satellite services and small satellites for earth observation services across
the energy, oil & gas, defense, and agriculture industries is propelling the market growth. Satellite
Communication (Satcom) has become an integral part of the modern communication infrastructure
that involves an artificial satellite in a network. This is expected to propel the growth of the market.

Evolution of cellular communication

1G

The very first generation of commercial cellular network was introduced in the late 70’s with
fully implemented standards being established throughout the 80’s. The radio signals used by 1G
are analogue, meaning the voice of a call is modulated to a higher frequency rather than being
encoded to digital signals.

Analogue signals degrade over time and space meaning that voice data can very often lack
quality within a call. In comparison, digital is a representation of analogue stored as signals,
meaning larger amounts of data can be carried more effectively.

2G

The second generation saw the introduction of GSM (Global System for Mobile
Communication) technologies as a standard in the early 90’s. It allowed for digital voice and data
to be sent across the network and allowed users to roam for the first time.

2G also used Signalling and Data Confidentially and Mobile Station Authentication to ensure
improved security and privacy of telephone calls.

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The advance in technology from 1G to 2G introduced many of the fundamental services that we
still use today, such as SMS, internal roaming, conference calls, call hold and billing based on
services e.g. charges based on long distance calls and real time billing.

2.5G

Between the year 2000 and 2003, an upgrade in technologies introduced the packet network
which provided high speed data transfer and internet and became known as 2.5G.

The standards included GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) and EDGE (enhanced Data Rates
in GSM).

GPRS supports flexible data transmission rates and provides continuous connection with the
network. It also allows for the service provider to charge for the amount of data that is sent rather
than their connection time.

3G

Introduced commercially in 2001, the goals set out for third generation mobile communication
were to facilitate greater voice and data capacity, support a wider range of applications, and
increase data transmission at a lower cost.

For the first time, this generation supported high speed wide band internet access as well as fixed
wireless internet access and allowed for video calls, chatting and conferencing, mobile TV, video
on demand services, navigational maps, email, mobile gaming, music and digital services such as
movies.

Significantly greater security features were introduced within 3G, including Network Access and
Domain Security and Application Security.

4G

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Initiated in 2010, the fourth generation is an all IP based network system. Its purpose is to
provide high speed, high quality and high capacity to users while improving security and lower
the cost of voice and data services, multimedia and internet over IP.

The major benefit of an IP based network is that it is able to seamlessly handover, for voice and
data to GSM, UMTS and CDMA2000 technologies from the previous different generations
infrastructure.

4G introduced the LTE standard which only support packet switching and an all IP Network.
There are a significant amount of infrastructure changes needed to be implemented by service
providers in order to supply because voice calls in GSM, UMTS and CDMA2000 are circuit
switched, so with the adoption of LTE, carriers will have to re-engineer their voice call network.

5G

5G is the next generation of commercial cellular network, set to greatly increase internet
connectivity speeds. At this time, there aren’t any publicly agreed definitive standards that have
been set as with previous generations so not a great deal of information is known about the
specific technologies that are going to be used.

Different estimations have been made for the date of commercial introduction of 5G networks,
but they are generally around the year 2020.

One of the main benefits of increased connectivity being plugged as the underlying selling point
of 5G is IoT (Internet of Things), which would make the most of the higher speed of connectivity
to allow for seamless integration of devices on a scale never been achievable before.

Market status for cellular communication

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