Wireless Communications

and Mobile Computing

 Chapter One
Wireless Communication
 Outline

⚫ Introduction
⚫ History wireless communications
⚫ Types of services
⚫ Strength and weaknesses
⚫ Wireless vs Mobile
⚫ Applications of wireless communications
 Introduction

⚫ Mobile computing systems are computing

systems that may be easily moved physically
and whose computing capabilities may be
used while they are being moved.
⚫ Examples are laptops, personal digital
assistants (PDAs), and mobile phones
 Introduction…

⚫ Wireless communication involves the

process of sending/reciving information
through invisible waves in the air.
Information such as data, voice, and video
are carried through the radio frequency of
the electromagnetic spectrum.
 Introduction…
⚫ Wireless communications is one of the
biggest engineering success
⚫ market size dominating the whole economy
⚫ e.g + 4 billion GSM subscribers of the world

⚫ Working habits, have been changed

“anywhere, anytime.”
⚫ mobility of workers have increased
 Introduction …

⚫ large number of applications have been

developed,
⚫ Wireless sensor networks monitor factories,
⚫ wireless links replace the cables between computers
and keyboards, mouse and other peripheral devices
⚫ wireless positioning systems monitor the location of
trucks
⚫ This variety of new applications causes the
technical challenges for the wireless engineers
to become bigger with each day.
 History : How it all started
⚫ Ancient Systems – shouts and jungle drums ,smoke
signals, light ,Carrier Pigeons,…….
⚫ Marconi invented the wireless telegraph in 1896.
⚫ By encoding alphanumeric characters in analog signals,
he sent telegraphic signals across the Atlantic Ocean.
⚫ This led to a great many developments in wireless
communication networks that support radio, television,
mobile telephone, and satellite systems that have changed
our lives.
 History : The First Systems

⚫ Unidirectional information transmission

⚫ was done for entertainment broadcasting. By the
late 1930s,
⚫ the need for bidirectional mobile
communications emerged.
⚫ Military ,police departments ,fire station….
⚫ Many sophisticated military radio systems
were developed during and after WW2
History :The First Systems…

⚫ 1946, the first mobile telephone system

⚫ have an interface to the Public Switched
Telephone Network (PSTN),
⚫ this interface was not automated, but rather
consisted of human telephone operators.
⚫ Has a total of six speech channels for the whole
city, the system soon met its limits.
⚫ Led to investigations of how the number
of users could be increased.
History :The First Systems…
⚫ Researchers at AT&T’s Bell Labs found the
answer:
⚫ The cellular principle, where the geographical
area is divided into cells; different cells might use
the same frequencies.
⚫ To this day, this principle forms the basis for
the majority of wireless communications
⚫ In 1957, the Soviet Union launched the first
satellite (Sputnik) and the U.S.A. soon followed.
 BASE
STATION
History: Analog Cellular Systems
⚫ 1970s saw a revived interest in cellular communications
⚫ Device miniaturization made the vision of “portable”
devices more realistic.
⚫ Motorola, AT&T, Ericson
⚫ Nordic Mobile Telephone (NMT) system
⚫ use digital switching technology that allowed them to
combine different cells in a large area into a single network
⚫ Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS).
⚫ analog phone standards in the U.S.A
 …
⚫ 1980s, the phones were “portable,” but definitely not
handheld.
⚫ In most languages, they were just called “carphones,”.
⚫ But at the end of the 1980s, handheld phones with
good speech quality and quite acceptable battery
lifetime flourish.
⚫ The quality had become so good that in some markets
digital phones had difficulty establishing themselves.
 History: GSM and the Worldwide Cellular
Revolution

⚫ Analog phones have a bad spectral efficiency and

due to the rapid growth of the cellular market,
operators had a high interest in making room for more
customers
⚫ In 1990s, the European Telecommunications
Standards Institute (ETSI) group came up with a
digital cellular standard that would become
mandatory throughout Europe and was later adopted
in most parts of the world:
⚫ Global System for Mobile communications (GSM).
 History: GSM and the Worldwide Cellular
Revolution

⚫ GSM got wide acceptance with short

period
⚫ better speech quality, and the possibility for
secure communications.
⚫ By the year 2000, market penetration in
Western Europe and Japan had exceeded 50%
growth rates were spectacular
 Cellular Communication Systems

⚫ 1G: Basic mobile telephony service

⚫ Based on analog cellular technology
⚫ American Mobile Phone (AMPS) and NMT in Europe
⚫ 2G: Mobile telephony services for mass users with encryption
and efficient utilization of the radio spectrum
⚫ Digital cellular technology……… GSM and CDMA
⚫ 2.5G: Mobile Internet/data services together with voice
services
⚫ Packet switching technology adding into 2G
⚫ Providing mobile data services over 2G networks
⚫ GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) and EDGE
⚫ 3G: enhanced 2.5G services with improved mobile internet
services and emerging new applications
⚫ CDMA2000 and UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunication System)
History :New wireless systems
⚫ a whole range of new services was introduced in the
1990s.
⚫ Cordless started to replace the “normal” telephones
⚫ The first versions of these phones used analog technology;
however, digital technology proved to be superior.
⚫ Among other aspects, the possibility of listening into
analog conversations, and the possibility for neighbors to
“highjack” an analog cordless Base Station (BS) and make
calls at other people’s expense, led to a shift to digital
communications.
⚫ While cordless phones never achieved the spectacular
market size of cell phones, they constitute a solid market.
History :New wireless systems

⚫ Fixed wireless access and Wireless Local

Loop (WLL) –
⚫ To address the “last mile” problem in other
words, replacing the copper lines to the
homes of the users by wireless links, but
without the specific benefit of mobility.
⚫ This is especially popular in developing
countries.
 Types of Services
⚫ Broadcast
⚫ The first wireless service was broadcast radio.
⚫ Properties
⚫ information is only sent in one direction
⚫ transmitted information is the same for all users.
⚫ information is transmitted continuously.
⚫ Simple
⚫ Transmitter does not need to have any knowledge or
consideration about the receivers
⚫ Simplex
⚫ No. of users does not matter
 …
⚫ Paging
⚫ Unidirectional wireless communications systems.
⚫ Properties
⚫ user can only receive information, but cannot transmit.
⚫ The information is intended for, and received by, only a
single user.
⚫ The amount of transmitted information is very small.
⚫ Used by..doctors , police allowing them to react to
emergencies in shorter time.
⚫ Better area coverage
 …

⚫ Cellular Telephony
⚫ Most important form of wireless
communications.
⚫ Properties
⚫ Information flow is bidirectional.(full duplex)
…
 …
⚫ Trunking radio
⚫ there is no connection between the wireless system and the PSTN;
⚫ it allows the communications of closed user groups.
⚫ Obvious applications include police departments, fire departments,
taxis, and similar
⚫ Services
⚫ Group calls: several users simultaneously, or several conference call
between multiple users of the system.
⚫ Call priorities: enable the prioritization of calls and allow dropping a
low-priority call in favor of a high-priority one.
⚫ Relay networks: the range of the network can be extended by using
each Mobile Station (MS) as a relay station for other MSs .
 …
⚫ Cordless telephony
⚫ describes a wireless link between a handset and a BS that is directly connected to
the public telephone system.
⚫ main difference from a cell phone
⚫ is associated with, and can communicate with, only a single BS
⚫ thus no mobile switching center; rather, the BS is directly connected to the
PSTN.
⚫ Properties
⚫ no need to find out the location of the MS. Similarly, there is no need to provide for
handover between different BSs.
⚫ There is no central system, there is no need for (and no possibility for) frequency
planning.
⚫ there are no network operators that can charge fees for connections from the MS to
the BS; rather, the only occurring fees are the fees from the BS into the PSTN.
 …
⚫ Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs)
⚫ very similar to that of cordless phones
⚫ connecting a single mobile user device to a public
landline system. Laptop -to-Internet.
⚫ main advantage is convenience for the user, allowing
mobility.
⚫ WLANs can even be used for connecting fixed-
location computers (desktops)
⚫ A major difference between wireless LANs and
cordless phones is the required data rate
 …
⚫ Cordless 64kbps more than 700kbps for wWLAN
⚫ a number of standards have been developed for WLAN, all of
which carry the identifier IEEE 802.11.
⚫ The original IEEE 802.11 standard 1Mbit/s,
⚫ The very popular 802.11b standard (also known under the name
WiFi) allows up to 11Mbit/s and the 802.11a standard extends
that to 55Mbit/s.
⚫ Even higher rates are realized by the 802.11n standard that was
introduced in 2008/2009.
⚫ WLAN devices can, in principle, connect to any BS (access
point) that uses the same standard.
 …
⚫ Personal area network(PAN)
⚫ coverage area even smaller than that of WLANs,
⚫ number of standards for PANs have been developed by
the IEEE 802.15 group
⚫ intended for simple “cable replacement” duties.
⚫ For example, Bluetooth standard allow to connect a
hands-free headset to a phone without requiring a
cable; in that case, the distance between the two devices
is less than a meter.
⚫ In such applications, data rates are fairly low
(<1Mbit/s).
 PAN…
⚫ Recently, wireless communications between (DVD
player to TV), between computer and peripheral devices
(printer, mouse), and similar applications have gained
importance . data rates in excess of 100Mbit/s are used.
⚫ Networks for even smaller distances like Body Area
Networks (BANs), which enable communications
between devices located on various parts of a user’s
body. monitoring of patients’ health and of medical
devices(e.g., pacemakers).
 Services…
Fixed Wireless Access
⚫ Essentially replacing a dedicated cable connection
between the user and the public landline system.
⚫ No mobility of the user devices
⚫ The distances bridged by fixed wireless access devices
are much larger (between 100m and several tens of
kilometers).
⚫ Its main market for covering rural areas, and for
establishing connections in developing countries that do
not have any wired infrastructure in place.
 Services..
Ad hoc Networks and Sensor Networks
⚫ Up to now, we have dealt with “infrastructure-based” wireless
communications,
⚫ where certain components (base stations, TV transmitters, etc.) are
intended by design to be in a fixed location, to control over the network and
interface with other networks.
⚫ An alternative in which there is only one type of equipment, and those
devices, all of which may be mobile, organize themselves into a network
according to their location and according to necessity. Such networks
are called ad hoc networks
⚫ There can still be “controllers” in an ad hoc network, but the choice of
which device acts as master and which as slave is done opportunistically
whenever a network is formed.
 …
⚫ The advantages of ad hoc networks
⚫ low costs (because no infrastructure is required), high flexibility.
⚫ The drawbacks
⚫ Reduced efficiency, smaller communication range, and
restrictions on the number of devices that can be included in a
network.
⚫ Ad hoc networks play a major role in the recent abundance of
sensor networks, which allow communications between
machines for the purpose of building control (controlling air
conditioning, lighting, etc., based on sensor data), factory
automation, surveillance, etc.
 Satellite Systems

⚫ Cover very large areas

⚫ Distance several hundred kilometers
⚫ The transmit powers need to be larger,
⚫ High-gain antennas need to be used
⚫ Communications from within buildings is almost impossible
⚫ Costs of setting up a satellite – are much higher
⚫ Global Positioning System (GPS) use growing
⚫ Satellite signals used to pinpoint location
⚫ Popular in cell phones, PDAs, and navigation devices
 …
⚫ Strength
⚫ Social & cultural factor
⚫ Mobile life style (Anytime Anywhere)
⚫ Increase of social communication
⚫ Increase revenue & productivity

⚫ Ease of setup
⚫ Less expensive
⚫ High data rate
⚫ Development in mobile devices
 …
⚫ Weakness and issues
⚫ Social issue
⚫ Privacy
⚫ Security (easy to tap)
⚫ Health issues (Brain cancer)
⚫ Noise pollution ,(irritation in classroom)
⚫ Accident (use of cellphone while driving)
 …
⚫ Weakness…
⚫ Technology issues
⚫ Lack of standards
⚫ High cost of technology
⚫ Quality of service
⚫ Device limitation
⚫ Low data rates
 Applications
⚫ Vehicles
⚫ Emergencies
⚫ Business
⚫ Agriculture
⚫ Replacement of wired networks
⚫ Infotainment and more
⚫ Location dependent services
 …

⚫ Vehicles
⚫ Navigation , tracking(GPS)
⚫ Music, news, weather report (DAB)
⚫ Collision avoidance(wireless sensors)
⚫ Accident reporting , Traffic reporting (Ad-
hoc)
 Collision Avoidance : V2V Networks
 bland spots
⚫ stalled vehicle
warning

39
 …
⚫ Emergencies
⚫ Wireless networks are the only means of
communication in the case of natural
disasters such as hurricanes or earthquakes.
(wireless ad-hoc networks)
⚫ Accident reporting (wireless sensors)
⚫ Ambulance high-quality wireless connection
 …

⚫ Business
⚫ Traveling salesman/employee
⚫ having instant access to the company’s
database: to ensure that files on his or her
laptop reflect the current situation,
⚫ Business anytime anywhere mobile office,
 …
⚫ Agriculture and Natural Resources
⚫ Animal tracking and identification.
⚫ Monitoring water or flood levels.
⚫ Monitor crop health, rainfall, temperature and
other meterological data.
⚫ Track shipments of perishable crops and crop
inputs
 …

⚫ Replacement of wired networks

⚫ remote sensors for weather forecasts,
earthquake detection, or to provide
environmental information
⚫ for tradeshows, or in historic buildings.
 …

⚫ Infotainment
⚫ Provide up-to-date information at any
appropriate location.
⚫ Internet everywhere? Not without wireless
networks!
⚫ Entertainment and games to enable, e.g., ad-
hoc gaming networks as soon as people meet
to play together.
 …

⚫ Location dependent services

⚫ Follow-on services: Wherever you are, service
and information will follow you

⚫ Location aware services:

 …

Is wireless mobile?
or
Is mobile wireless?
 …
⚫ A communication device can exhibit any one of the following
characteristics:
⚫ Fixed and wired
⚫ Example the typical desktop computer in an office. Neither
weight nor power consumption of the devices allow for mobile
usage. The devices use fixed networks for performance reasons.
⚫ Mobile and wired:
⚫ Many of yesterday’s laptops fall into this category; users carry
the laptop from one hotel to the next, reconnecting to the
company’s network via the telephone network and a modem.
 …
⚫ Fixed and wireless:
⚫ This mode is used for installing networks, e.g., in
historical buildings to avoid damage by installing wires, or
at trade shows to ensure fast network setup.
⚫ Mobile and wireless:
⚫ This is the most interesting case. No cable restricts the
user, who can roam between different wireless networks.
Most technologies discussed in this course deal with this
type of device and the networks supporting them.
⚫ Today’s most successful example for this category is GSM
with more than 4 Billion users.
Future Wireless Networks
Ubiquitous Communication Among People and Devices

Next-generation Cellular
Wireless Internet Access
Wireless Multimedia
Sensor Networks
Smart Homes/Spaces
Automated Highways
In-Body Networks
All this and more …
 Home work

⚫ Compare and contrast wireless systems

with wired systems.
⚫ Ubiquitous Communication
⚫ Read the article:
“The computer for the 21st century”
by Mark weiser
End ??
⚫Next class
⚫Mobile Computing Fundamentals