Wireless Communication and Mobile Computing

(CoSc3034 )
Lecture 3: Wireless Networking
/ Technologies
.
Department of Computer Science
Bonga University

By: Andualem W/giorgis

anduwgiorgis@yahoo.com

2022-Sem II
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 Chapter Three
3. Introduction to wireless networking
 Wireless communication is among technology‘s
biggest contributions to mankind.
 Wireless communication involves the transmission of
information over a distance without help of wires,
cables or any other forms of electrical conductors.
 The transmitted distance can be anywhere between a
few meters (for example, a television‘s remote control)
and thousands of kilometres (for example, radio
communication).
 Some of the devices used for wireless communication
are cordless telephones, mobiles, GPS units, wireless
computer parts, and satellite television.
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 Cont’d
 Wireless technology is the method of delivering data from
one point to another without using physical wires, and
includes radio, cellular, infrared, and satellite.
 The common wireless networks of today originated from
many evolutionary stages of wireless communications and
telegraph and radio applications.
 Although some discoveries occurred in the early 1800s,
much of the evolution of wireless communication began
with the emergence of the electrical age and was affected
by modern economics as much as by discoveries in physics.

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 3.1.History of Wireless Network
In the 19th century, numerous inventors and
scientists, including Michael Faraday, James Clerk
Maxwell, Heinrich Rudolf Hertz, Nikola Tesla, David
Edward Hughes, Thomas Edison, and Guglielmo
Marconi, began to experiment with wireless
communications.
 These innovators discovered and created many
theories about the concepts of electrical magnetic
radio frequency (RF).

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 Cont’d
 Wireless networking technology was first used by the U.S.
military during World War II to transmit data over an RF
medium using classified encryption technology, to send battle
plans across enemy lines.
 The spread spectrum radio technologies often used in today‘s
WLANs were also originally patented during the era of World
War II, although they were not implemented until almost two
decades later.
 In 1970, the University of Hawaii developed the first wireless
network, called ALOHAnet, to wirelessly communicate data
between the Hawaiian Islands.
 The network used a LAN communication Open Systems
Interconnection layer 2 protocols called ALOHA on a wireless
shared medium in the 400 MHz frequency range.
Read more about ALOHA
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omputer_(BookFi.org)Compiled
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 Cont’d
 The technology used in ALOHA net is often credited as a
building block for the Medium Access Control
technologies of Carrier Sense Multiple Access with
Collision Detection (CSMA/CD) used in Ethernet and
Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance
(CSMA/CA) used in 802.11 radios.
 ALOHA, also called the Aloha method, refers to a simple
communications scheme in which each source
(transmitter) in a network sends data whenever there is
a frame to send.
 If the frame successfully reaches the destination (receiver),
the next frame is sent.
 If the frame fails to be received at the destination, it is
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 Cont’d
In the 1990s, commercial networking vendors
began to produce low-speed wireless data
networking products, most of which operated in
the 900 MHz frequency band.
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers (IEEE) began to discuss standardizing
WLAN technologies in 1991.
 In 1997, the IEEE ratified the original 802.11
standard that is the foundation of the WLAN
technologies.
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 Cont’d
 Legacy 802.11 technology was deployed between 1997
and 1999 mostly in warehousing and manufacturing
environments for the use of low-speed data collection with
wireless barcode scanners.
 In 1999, the IEEE defined higher data speeds with the
802.11b amendment.
 The introduction of data rates as high as 11 Mbps along
with price decreases, ignited the sales of wireless home
networking routers in the small office, home office
(SOHO) market place.
 Home users soon became accustomed(adapted) to wireless
networking in their homes and began to demand that their
employers also provide wireless networking capabilities in
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 Cont’d
 After initial resistance to 802.11 technology, small
companies, medium-sized businesses, and corporations
began to realize the value of deploying 802.11 wireless
networking in their enterprises.
 If you ask the average user about their 802.11 wireless
networks, they may give you a strange look.
 The name that many people recognize for the technology
is Wi-Fi.
 Wi-Fi is a marketing term, recognized worldwide by
millions of people as referring to 802.11 wireless
networking.

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Common Wireless LAN Standards

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Other Wireless LAN Standards

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 What Does the Term Wi-Fi Mean?
 Many people mistakenly assume that Wi-Fi is an acronym
for the phrase wireless fidelity (much like hi-fi is short for
high fidelity), but Wi-Fi is simply a brand name used to
market 802.11 WLAN technology.
 Ambiguity in IEEE framework standards for wireless
communications allowed manufacturers to interpret the
802.11 standard in different ways.
 As a result, multiple vendors could have IEEE 802.11–
compliant devices that did not interoperate with each
other.
 The organization Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance
(WECA) was created to further define the IEEE standard
in such a way as to Compiled
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interoperability
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between vendors.
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 Cont’d
 WECA, now known as the Wi-Fi Alliance, chose the term
Wi-Fi as a marketing brand.
 The Wi-Fi Alliance champions enforcing interoperability
among wireless devices.
 To be Wi-Fi compliant, vendors must send their products
to a Wi-Fi Alliance test lab that thoroughly tests
compliance to the Wi-Fi certification.
 Wi-Fi radios are used for numerous enterprise applications
and can also be found in laptops, mobile phones, cameras,
televisions, printers, and many other consumer devices.
 More than 350 million Wi-Fi chipsets were shipped in
2010, with current estimates of annual sales of over one
billion Wi-Fi chipsets within
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 3.2. Wireless Technologies and Devices
 In addition to the wired network, various technologies
exist that allow the transmission of information between
hosts without cables.
 These are known as wireless technologies.
 Wireless technologies use electromagnetic waves to carry
information between devices.
 An electromagnetic wave is the same medium that carries
radio signals through the air.
 The electromagnetic spectrum includes such things as
radio and television broadcast bands, visible light, x-
rays and gamma-rays.
 Each of these has a specific range of wavelengths and
associated energiesCompiled
as shown in the diagram.
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 Cont’d

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 Cont’d
 Some types of electromagnetic waves are not suitable for
carrying data.
 Other parts of the spectrum are regulated by governments
and licensed to various organizations for specific
applications.
 Certain areas of the spectrum have been set aside to allow
public use without the restriction of having to apply for
special permits.
 The most common wavelengths used for public wireless
communications include the Infrared and part of the Radio
Frequency (RF) band.

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 3.4. Types of Wireless Network
Wireless networks are grouped into four major
categories:
Wireless Personal Area networks (WPAN),
Wireless Local Area networks (WLAN),
 Wireless Metropolitan Area Network (WMAN),
Wireless Wide Area networks (WWAN).

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Wireless Personal Area Network (WPAN)
 This is the smallest wireless network used to connect various
peripheral devices such as mice, keyboards and PDAs to a
computer.
 All of these devices are dedicated to a single host with usually
use IR or Bluetooth technology.
Personal Area Networks(PANs) :A PAN technology provides
communication over a short distance , and is intended for use with devices
that are owned and operated by a single user.

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Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN)
 WLAN is typically used to extend the boundaries of the
local wired network (LAN).
 WLANs use RF technology and conform to the IEEE
802.11 standards.
 They allow many users to connect to a wired network
through a device known as an Access Point (AP).
 An Access Point provides a connection between wireless
hosts and hosts on an Ethernet wired network.

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Wireless Metropolitan Area Network
(WMAN)
 WMAN provides RF coverage to a metropolitan area such
as a city and the surrounding suburbs.
 WMANs have been created for some time by matching
different wireless technologies, and recent advancements
have made this more practical.
 One wireless technology that is often associated with a
WMAN is defined by the 802.16 standard.
 This standard defines broadband wireless access and is
sometimes referred to as Worldwide Interoperability for
Microwave Access (WiMAX).

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 Cont…
 802.16 technologies are viewed as a direct competitor to
other broadband services such as DSL and cable.
 Although 802.16 wireless networking is typically thought
of as a last mile data-delivery solution, the technology
might also be used to provide access to users over
citywide areas.

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 Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN)
 WWAN networks provide coverage over extremely large
areas.
 A good example of a WWAN is the cell phone network.
 These networks use technologies such as Code Division
Multiple Access (CDMA) or Global System for Mobile
Communication (GSM) and are often regulated by
government agencies.

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 Infrared
 Infrared (IR) is relatively low energy and cannot penetrate
through walls or other obstacles.
 However, it is commonly used to connect and move data
between devices such as Personal Digital Assistants
(PDAs) and PCs.
 A specialized communication port known as an Infrared
Direct Access (IrDA) port uses IR to exchange information
between devices.
 IR only allows a one-to-one type of connection.
 IR is also used for remote control devices, wireless mice,
and wireless keyboards.

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 Cont’d
It is generally used for short-range, line-of-sight,
communications.
However, it is possible to reflect the IR signal off
objects to extend the range.
For greater ranges, higher frequencies of
electromagnetic waves are required.

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 Radio Frequency (RF)
 RF waves can penetrate through walls and other obstacles,
allowing a much greater range than IR.
 Certain areas of the RF bands have been set aside for use by
unlicensed devices such as wireless LANs, cordless phones
and computer peripherals.
 This includes the 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz and the 5 GHz
frequency ranges.
 These ranges are known as the Industrial Scientific and
Medical (ISM) bands and can be used with very few
restrictions.

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 Bluetooth
 Name comes from nickname of Danish king Harald Blåtand
 Allows users to make ad hoc wireless connections between
devices like mobile phones, desktop or notebook computers
wirelessly
 Data transfer at a speed of about 720 Kbps within 50 meters (150
feet) of range or beyond through walls, clothing and even luggage
bags
 Built into a small microchip
 Operates in a globally available frequency band ensuring
worldwide interoperability
 Managed and maintained by Bluetooth Special Interest Group
It is limited to low-speed, short-range communications, but has
the advantage of communicating with
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 Bluetooth Protocol
 Uses the unlicensed 2.4 GHz ISM (Industrial Scientific and
Medical) frequency band
 79 available channels spaced 1 MHz apart from 2.402 GHz to
2.480 GHz
 Allows power levels starting from 1mW (covering 10
centimeters) to 100mW (covering up to 100 meters) suitable
for short device zone to personal area networks within a home
 Supports both unicast (point-to-point) and multicast (point-to-
multipoint) connections
 Bluetooth protocols are a collection of many inter-related
protocols
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 Bluetooth Protocol
 Uses the master and slave relationship
Master and slaves together form a Piconet when master allows
slaves to talk
Up to seven ‗slave‘ devices can be set to communicate with a
‗master‘ in a Piconet
Scatternet is formed when several of piconets are linked
together to form a larger network in an ad hoc manner

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 Bluetooth Protocol
 Scatternet is a topology where a device from one piconet also
acts as a member of another piconet wherein a device being a
master in one piconet can simultaneously be a slave in the other
one

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 Bluetooth Protocol Stack

OBEX – Object Exchange Protocol TCS BIN – Telephony Control Specification Binary
WAE – Wireless Application Environment SDP – Service Discovery Protocol
WAP – Wireless Application Protocol RFCOMM – Radio Frequency Communication
LMP – Link Manager Protocol L2CAP – Logical Link Control and Adaptation Protocol
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 Bluetooth Protocol Stack
1. Bluetooth Core Protocols
2. Cable Replacement Protocol
3. Telephony Control Protocols
4. Adopted Protocols
Bluetooth Core Protocols
 Baseband – enables physical RF link
 Link Manager Protocol (LMP) – manages devices in range, power
modes, connections, duty cycles, etc.
 Logical Link Control and Adaptation Protocol (L2CAP) –
segmentation and re-assembly of fragmented packets with their
multiplexing
 Service Discovery Protocol (SDP) – Enables a device to join a
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 Cable Replacement Protocol
 Radio Frequency Communication (RFCOMM) - emulates RS-
232 control and data signals over Bluetooth baseband protocol

Telephony Control Protocols

 Telephony Control Specification Binary (TCS BIN) - defines the call control signaling
protocol and handles mobility management for groups of Bluetooth TCS devices
 Attention (AT) Commands - defines a set of commands by which a mobile phone can be
used and controlled as a modem for fax and data transfers

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 Adopted Protocols
 Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) - means of taking IP packets to/from the PPP
layer and placing them onto the LAN
 Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) - used for
communication across the Internet
 Object Exchange (OBEX) Protocol - session protocol to exchange objects
and used to browse the contents of folders on remote devices
 Content Formats - used to exchange messages and notes and synchronize
data amongst various devices

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IEEE 802 Model And Standards Summery

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 Wireless MAN Technology and WiMax
 The technology is standardized by IEEE under the category 802.16. A group
of companies coined the term WiMAX, which is interpreted to mean World-
wide Interoperability for Microwave Access, and formed the WiMAX Forum
to promote use of the technology.
 Also known as Wireless Metropolitan Area Network (Wireless MAN) and
Wireless Microwave Access (WiMAX)
 IEEE 802.16 standard released in April 2002
 Offers an alternative to high bandwidth wired access networks like fiber
optic, cable modems and DSL
 Provides network access to buildings through exterior antennas
communicating with radio base stations
 Networks can be created in just weeks by deploying a small number of base
stations on buildings or poles to create high capacity wireless access systems

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Overview of IEEE 802.16

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 Communications Satellites
 A communication satellite is an artificial satellite used
specifically as a communication transmitter/receiver in
orbit.
 It behaves like a radio relay station above the earth to
receive, amplify, and redirect analog and digital signals
carried on a specific radio frequency.
 Data is passed through a satellite using a transponder which
is a signal path.
 A transponder is a wireless communications,monitoring,or
control device that picks up and automatically responds to
an incoming signal.
 Most satellites have between 24 to 72 transponders, with a
single transponder capable of transmitting and receiving
155 million bits of information per second.
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 Cont’d

 Every communications satellite involves the transmission of

information from an originating ground station to the satellite
followed by a retransmission of the information from the satellite
back to the ground called the uplink and the downlink
respectively. Hence, the satellite must have a receiver with receive
antennas, and a transmitter with transmit antennas.

 It must also have some methods for connecting the uplink to

the downlink for retransmission with amplification; also, it must
have electrical power through solar energy to run all of the
electronics. The downlink may either be to a select number of
ground stations or may be broadcast to everyone over a large area.

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 Cont’d

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 Cont’d
 A properly designed satellite antenna will concentrate most of
the transmitter power within a designated area using space
division multiplexing.

 One of the biggest differences between a low earth satellite and

a geosynchronous satellite is in their antennas. All antennas in use
today radiate energy preferentially in some direction.

 The most important application for communication satellites

was in intercontinental long distance telephony. The fixed Public
Switched Telephone Network relays telephone calls from land line
telephones to an earth station, where they are then transmitted to a
geostationary satellite.

 The downlink follows an analogous path.

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 Low Earth Orbit Satellite
 A Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite typically orbits around the
earth about 400 kilometers above the earth‘s surface with a time
period of about 90 minutes.

 These satellites are only visible from within a radius of roughly

1000 kilometers from the sub-satellite point. Sub-satellite point is
the point of intersection of earth‘s surface with the straight line
from the satellite to the center of earth.

 The greatest advantage of LEO satellite is that it does not need

high powered rockets—making it less expensive to launch. Also,
due to its proximity to the ground, LEO does not require high
signal strength.

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 Medium Earth Orbit Satellite
 A Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), sometimes called Intermediate
Circular Orbit (ICO), is the region of space around the earth above
low earth orbit of 2,000 kilometres and below geostationary orbit
of 35,786 kilometers.

 The most common use for satellites in this region is for

navigation, such as the GPS (with an altitude of 20,200
kilometers), Communications satellites that cover the North and
South Pole are also put in MEO.

 The orbital periods of MEO satellites range from about 2 to 24

hours. The MEO orbit has a moderate number of satellites.

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 Geostationary Earth Orbit Satellite
 In geostationary satellite, the orbit of the artificial satellite is
such that the orbital speed of the satellite is same as the speed of
earth‘s rotation. Though the satellite is moving at a high speed,
from earth it will always appear to be stationary—this is the
reason for calling it geo-stationary.

 The GEO satellite could view approximately 42% of the earth.

Therefore, a system of three GEO satellites, with the ability to
relay messages from one GEO to the other could interconnect
virtually all of the earth except the polar regions.

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 Satellite Phones
 Initially satellite communication was being used for broadcast
to stationary TV receivers, and transmission of telephone
channels.

 However, demand on mobile phone made some companies to

look into satellite phones that will connect a subscriber directly
through the communication satellite, where the satellite will
function as the transceiver station connecting the mobile phone.

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 Broadcast Radio
 Basically an audio broadcasting service, radio broadcasts
sound through the air as radio waves.
 It uses a transmitter to transmit radio waves to a receiving
antenna.
 To broadcast common programming, stations are linked to
the radio networks.
 Radio broadcasting can also be done via cable FM, the
internet and satellites.
 A radio broadcast sends data over long distances (across
countries) at up to 2 mbps (AM/FM Radio).

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 Microwave Radio
 Microwave transmission involves the transfer of voice
and data through the atmosphere as super high-frequency
radio waves called microwaves.
 Microwave transmission is mainly used to transmit
messages between ground-based stations and satellite
communications systems.
 Microwave transmission mainly uses radio waves whose
wavelengths are conveniently measured in small units
such as centimeters.
 Microwaves belong to the radio spectrum ranges of
roughly 1.0 gigahertz (GHz) to 30 GHz.
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 Cont‘d
 Radio waves are electromagnetic signals transmitted by an
antenna.
 Radio waves have different frequency segments, and you
will be able to pick up an audio signal by tuning into a
specific frequency segment.
 For example, When the Radio FM Addis says ―You are
listening to 97.1 FM‖, what it actually means is that
signals are being broadcasted at a frequency of 97.1
megahertz, which in turn means that the transmitter at the
station is oscillating at a frequency of 97,100,000 cycles
per second.

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 Cont‘d
Antennas used in microwave transmissions are of
convenient sizes and shapes.
 Microwave transmission depends on line-of-sight
in order to work properly.
The main drawback of microwave signals is that
they can be affected by bad weather, especially
rain.

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 Cont’d
 This huge capability makes communication satellites
an ideal medium for transmitting and receiving all
kinds of content, including audios and videos.
 Satellites transmit information by using frequency
bands known as C-band and the higher Ku-band
 C-band(low frequency around 4 MHz).while ku band
Transmit around 11 to 12 GHz
 In the near future, the use of a much higher frequency
band known as Ku-band is expected to increase .

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 Cont’d

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3.3. Applications of Wireless communication
 Television Remote Control – Modern televisions use
wireless remote control. Currently radio waves are also
used.
 Wireless Local Area Network – This is a wireless local
area network that establishes internet connection with the
portable computers.
 Security systems – For homes and office buildings, hard
wired implementation security systems are replaced by the
Wireless technology.
 Cellular Telephone – Radio waves are used to facilitate
the operator to make phone calls from any place on the
earth. CDMA, GSM, and 3G are examples of the
advancement made by wireless communication in the
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domain.
 1.5. Benefits and Limitations of Wireless
Technology
 Wireless technology offers many advantages compared to
traditional wired networks.
 One of the main advantages is the ability to provide
anytime, anywhere connectivity.
 The widespread implementation of wireless in public
locations, known as hotspots, allows people to easily
connect to the Internet to download information and
exchange emails and files.
 Wireless technology is fairly easy and inexpensive to install.
 The cost of home and business wireless devices continues to
decrease.
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 Cont’d
Reduce installation time- installation of a
single piece of equipment can provide
connectivity for a number of people
Reliability in harsh environments- easy to
install in emergency and hostile environments

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 Cont’d
 Wireless technology enables networks to be easily
expanded, without the limitations of cabled connections.
 New and visiting users can join the network quickly and
easily.
 Generally the following are the benefits of wireless
technology:
 Mobility – allows for easy connection of both stationary
and mobile clients
 Scalability- can be easily expanded to allow more users to
connect and to increase the coverage area
 Flexibility- provides anytime, anywhere connectivity
 Cost savings- equipment costs continue to fall as the
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There are some limitations and risks.
 First, Wireless LAN (WLAN) technologies make use of
the unlicensed regions of the RF spectrum.
 Since these regions are unregulated, many different devices
make use of them.
 As a result, these regions are congested and signals from
different devices often interfere with each other.
 In addition, many devices such as microwave ovens and
cordless phones use these frequencies and can interfere
with WLAN communications.

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 Cont’d
 Second, a major concern with wireless is security.
 Wireless provides ease of access.
 It does this by broadcasting data in a manner that allows
anyone the ability to access it.
 However, this same feature also limits the amount of
protection wireless can provide for the data.
 It allows anyone to intercept the communication stream,
even unintended recipients.
 To address these security concerns, techniques have been
developed to help secure wireless transmissions including
encryption and authentication.
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 Cont..
The limitations of wireless technology are given as
follows:
 Interference –wireless technology is susceptible to
interference from other devices that produce
electromagnetic energies.
 This includes: cordless phones, microwaves, televisions
and other wireless LAN implementations.
 Network and Data Security- Wireless LAN technology is
designed to provide access to the data being transmitted,
not security of the data. Additionally, it can provide an
unprotected entrance into the wired network.
 Technology- technology continues to evolve. Wireless
LAN technology does not currently provide the speed or
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reliability of wired LANs.
 1.6. Standard Organizations
 Each of the standards organizations discussed below help
to guide a different aspect of the wireless networking
industry.
 The International Telecommunication Union Radio
communication Sector (ITU-R) and local entities such as
the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) set the
rules for what the user can do with a radio transmitter.
 These organizations manage and regulate frequencies,
power levels, and transmission methods.
 They also work together to help guide the growth and
expansion that is being demanded by wireless users.
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Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
 FCC regulates communications within the United States as
well as communications to and from the United States.
 It is responsible for regulating interstate and international
communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and
cable.
 The task of the FCC in wireless networking is to regulate
the radio signals that are used for wireless networking.
 The FCC and the respective controlling agencies in the
other countries typically regulate two categories of
wireless communications:
 licensed spectrum and unlicensed spectrum.
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International Telecommunication Union Radio
communication Sector (ITU-R)
 A global hierarchy exists for management of the RF
spectrum worldwide.
 The United Nations has tasked the International
Telecommunication Union Radio communication Sector
(ITU-R) with global spectrum management.
 The ITU-R maintains a database of worldwide
frequency assignments and coordinates spectrum
management through five administrative regions.

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The five regions are broken down as follows:
 Region A: North and South America Inter-American
Telecommunication Commission (CITEL)
 Region B: Western Europe European Conference of
Postal and Telecommunications Administrations (CEPT)
 Region C: Eastern Europe and Northern Asia Regional
Commonwealth in the field of Communications (RCC)
 Region D: Africa African Telecommunications Union
(ATU)
 Region E: Asia and Australasia Asia-Pacific
Telecommunity (APT)

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 Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers (IEEE)
 The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers,
commonly known as the IEEE, is a global professional
society with more than 400,000 members.
 The IEEE‘s mission is to ―foster technological innovation
and excellence for the benefit of humanity.‖
 To networking professionals, that means creating the
standards that we use to communicate.
 The IEEE standards must adhere(follow) to the rules of the
communications organizations, such as the FCC.

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Thank you!

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