Lecture 2

Wireless Technologies

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WIRELESS TECHNOLOGIES
WWAN WMAN WLAN WPAN
GSM/ GPRS / CDMA IEEE802.16 IEEE802.11 Bluetooth

WAN

WAN-MAN
PAN
MAN
MAN-LAN
LAN-PAN
Pico-Cell

Personal Operating Space

~50km ~2km 0km ~10m

TYPES OF WIRELESS NETWORKS
Four broad categories:
Wireless personal area networks
Wireless local area networks
Wireless metropolitan area networks
Wireless wide area networks

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WIRELESS PERSONAL AREA NETWORK (WPAN)
WPAN: wireless network designed for hand-held and mobile devices
 Slow transmission speeds
 Close proximity to other devices (max distance is generally 33 feet)
Bluetooth – WPAN technology that uses short-range transmissions
 Enables users to connect wirelessly to devices such as notebook/tablet computers,
smartphones, and other portable devices

 802.15.4/ZigBee
 802.15.1 (Bluetooth)
 UWB (Ultra wide band)

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WIRELESS LOCAL AREA NETWORKS (WLANS)
WLAN: designed to replace or supplement a wired local area network (LAN)
Devices can communicate within 100 meters
Transmission speeds can range up to 600 Mbps
Wireless LAN Standards

IEEE 802.11a 5 GHz

IEEE 802.11b/g 2.4 GHz
IEEE 802.11n 5 GHz/2.4 GHz

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WIRELESS METROPOLITAN AREA NETWORK
(WMAN)
WMAN: designed for devices in a broader area of coverage or at higher speeds
A WMAN coverage area could range from several city blocks to an entire small city
Some WMAN technologies use light impulses to send and receive data
Standards
IEEE 802.16

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WIRELESS WIDE AREA NETWORK (WWAN)
WWAN: wireless data network that extends beyond the range of a WMAN
 Can encompass multiple states, regions, or countries
 Can even be a world-wide wireless data network
Long Term Evolution (LTE) modem provides wireless access several miles away from
the transmission point at speeds up to 30 Mbps.
Standards
GSM
2G
3G

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 Figure 1-8 Coverage areas of wireless networks

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WIRELESS STANDARDS ORGANIZATIONS AND
REGULATORY AGENCIES
Several organizations provide direction, standards, and accountability in wireless
technology
 International Telecommunication Union Radio Communication Sector (ITU-R)
 US Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
 International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
 Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
 Wi-Fi Alliance

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INTERNATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATION
UNION RADIO COMMUNICATION SECTOR
(ITU-R)
ITU-R: responsible for global management of the
radio frequency spectrum
Develops standards for wireless communications
systems
 To ensure most effective use of the radio spectrum

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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION (FCC)
FCC: serves as the primary regulatory agency for wireless
communications in the US
 Includes communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable
Other responsibilities include:
 Processing applications for licenses and other filings
 Analyzing complaints
 Conducting investigations
 Taking part in congressional hearings
 Representing the US in negotiations with other nations regarding
telecommunications issues

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INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR
STANDARDIZATION (ISO)
ISO: international body that sets industrial and commercial standards
 Officially not a government entity

ISO identifies needs in business and develops standards to address needs

Goal: make development, manufacturing, and supply of products and services
more efficient, safer, and cleaner
ISO works to make trade between countries easier and fairer

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INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS
ENGINEERS (IEEE)
IEEE: most widely known and influential organization in computer networking
and wireless communications field
Currently involved in revising over 800 standards
Developers of standards in energy, biomedical, health care, and
transportation industries
IEEE standard for WLANs is typically referred to as IEEE 802.11
 Variations of the standard: 802.11g, 802.11n, 802.1af

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 INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL AND
ELECTRONICS ENGINEERS (IEEE)
Working group (WG): IEEE committee
responsible for creating and
overseeing a specific standard
 Example: IEEE 802.11 WG

Within the workgroup are

subgroups
 Ad-hoc groups
 Study groups: defines the purpose of amendments
 Task group (TG): responsible for specific amendments
 Example: IEEE 802.11 TG

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 INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL AND
ELECTRONICS ENGINEERS (IEEE)
Creation and ratification process:
 SG creates a charter identifying the problem the
proposed amendment is designed to address
 If the SG charter is accepted by the WG, a TG is
sanctioned
 TG must either fulfill the charter to solve the problem
or disband if no solution can be identified
 TG calls for proposals which will be reviewed and voted on

 Once amendment has been approved by WG, it is

passed on to the entire IEEE 802 committee
 Once approved the amendment becomes ratified
and can be published to general public

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 Figure 1-9 IEEE Ratification Process

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 Table 1-5 IEEE documents

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 WI-FI ALLIANCE
Initially known as the Wireless Ethernet
Compatibility Alliance (WECA) – formed in
1999
Had three goals:
 Encourage wireless manufacturers to use the IEEE WLAN technologies
 Promote and market these technologies
 Test and certify that wireless products adhere to the IEEE standards to
ensure interoperability

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WI-FI ALLIANCE
In Oct. 2002 – WECA changed
name to Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity)
Alliance
Only devices that have passed
Wi-Fi Alliance testing are
allowed to refer to their products
as Wi-Fi Certified (registered
trademark)

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SUMMARY
Wireless data communications are in all sectors of the economy
and is ideal for reducing operating costs of educational
institutions and businesses
The construction, warehouse management, and manufacturing
industries rely heavily on wireless data technologies for
scheduling employees, managing inventory, and in the
manufacturing process itself
The travel industry offers Internet access to passengers, installs
software updates on planes, and accesses latest maintenance
information using wireless communications

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 SUMMARY
Advantages to wireless technology include user mobility, providing access to
a network where previously none existed, improved connectivity, cost
effectiveness, and ease of installation
Disadvantages to wireless technology include not being as secure as cabled
networks, radio signal interference, limited coverage, and slower data
transmission speeds
Four basic types of wireless networks: WPAN, WLAN, WMAN, and WWAN
Several different organizations provide direction, standards, and
accountability in wireless technology: ITU-R, FCC, ISO, IEEE, and the Wi-Fi
Alliance

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