Introduction to basics of wireless networks such as
• Radio waves & wireless signal encoding techniques
• Wireless networking issues & constraints
• Wireless internetworking devices
2. Outlines
Elements of a wireless system
Transmitter
Frequency spectrum
Modulation
Antenna
Medium
Propagation
Attenuation
Receiver
Antenna
Demodulation
Issues & constraints
2
3. Wireless Communication
Transfer of data between 2+ points that aren’t
connected by an electrical conductor
Typically use electromagnetic waves
Why wireless?
Running cables not always possible
Low footprint
Rapid (re)configuration
Low cost
3
4. Wireless History
Ancient systems – Smoke Signals, Carrier Pigeons, etc.
Radio invented in 1880s by Marconi
Many sophisticated military radio systems developed
during & after WW2
Exponential growth in Cellular systems since 1988
Ignited wireless revolution
Voice, data, & multimedia ubiquitous
6.8 billion subscribers worldwide as of Feb. 2013 (source ITU)
Use in 3rd-world countries growing rapidly
3.5 billion subscribers in Asia Pacific in 2013
Wi-Fi enjoying tremendous success & growth
Wide area networks (e.g., WiMax) & short-range systems other
than Bluetooth (e.g., UWB) less successful 4
6. Future Wireless Networks
Next-generation Cellular
Wireless Internet Access
Wireless Multimedia
Sensor Networks
Smart Homes/Spaces
Automated Highways
In-Body Networks
IoT
Ubiquitous communication
among People & Devices
Source: Andrea Goldsmith, “Cross
Layer Design in Wireless
Networks”, Stanford University
6
7. Wireless Services
Telemetry control & traffic control systems
Infrared & ultrasonic remote control devices
Professional LMR (Land Mobile Radio) & SMR (Specialized
Mobile Radio)
Used by business, industrial & public safety entities
Consumer 2-way radio
Airband & radio navigation equipment
Amateur Radio Service (Ham radio)
Cellular telephones & pagers
Global Positioning System (GPS)
Cordless computer peripherals
Cordless phones
Satellite television 7
Source: www.access.kth.se
8. Medium
Elements of a Wireless System
8
Transmitter
Receiver 1
Receiver 2
Receiver n
Source: www.mikroe.com/old/books/rrbook/chapter2/chapter2.htm
9. Transmitter
Elements depend on transmission technology
Frequency & wavelength, c = f λ
Modulation
Antenna
9
AM Transmitter
10. Exercise
Wavelength of an electromagnetic wave travelling
in space is 60 cm. What is its frequency?
Assume speed of light is 3×108 m/s
a) 500 MHz
b) 3 GHz
c) 5 GHz
d) 15 GHz
10
11. Frequency Spectrum
Range of available frequencies
To avoid interference, various wireless
technologies use distinct frequency bands
Signal power is well controlled
Assigned by regulatory agencies
e.g., FCC, ITU, TRC
11
Source: www.cosmosportal.org
12. 12
Government license not
required
Industrial, Scientific, &
Medical (ISM) band
VLF – very low frequency
LF – low frequency
MF – medium frequency
HF – high frequency
VHF – very high frequency
UHF – ultra-high frequency
SHF – super-high frequency
EHF – extremely high frequency
Source: P. Zheng et al., Wireless Networking Complete
13. Key Frequency Bands
AM – 520 - 1650.5 KHz
FM – 87.5 - 108 MHz
Direct broadcast satellite – 10.9 - 12.75 GHz
Global System for Mobile (GSM)
890 - 960 MHz & 1710 - 1880 MHz
Referred as 900 & 1800 bands
Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)
900 & 1800 bands
3G wideband CDMA (UMTS)
1900 - 1980, 2020 - 2025, & 2110 - 2190 MHz bands
Wireless LAN (IEEE 802.11)
902 - 928 MHz, 2400 - 2483 MHz, 5.15 - 5.725 GHz
ISM band – 2.4 GHz in US
13
14. Key Frequency Bands (Cont.)
Bluetooth – 2.402 - 2.480 GHz in US
WiMax – 2 - 11 GHz (includes both licensed &
unlicensed)
Ultra-wideband (UWB) – 1.1 - 10.6 GHz
Radio-frequency IDentification (RFID)
LF (120 – 140 KHz), HF (13.56 MHz), UHF (868 – 956 MHz), &
Microwave (2.4 GHz)
IrDA – 100 GHz
Wireless sensors
300 - 1000 MHz & 2.4 GHz ISM band
Global Positioning System (GPS)
1575.42 MHz (referred to as L1) & 1227.60 MHz (L2)
14
15. Antenna
15
Converts signal to electromagnetic waves
Size must be consistent with wavelength
Types
Directional
Satellite communication
Omnidirectional
Cell phones, car radios
MIMO
Wireless routers
Source: www.flann.com
16. Antenna Gain
How well an antenna converts input power into
radio waves headed in a specified direction
Depends on antenna's directivity & electrical
efficiency
Gain
Ratio of power produced by antenna to power
produced by a hypothetical lossless isotropic antenna
Unitless
Usually expressed in decibels (dB)
Directional high gain
Omnidirectional low gain
16
17. Attenuation
Reduction in signal strength with distance,
propagation medium, & atmospheric conditions
Typically high for high frequencies
Friis free-space equation
PR, PT – Power at receiver (in Watts or Milliwatts)
GT, GR – gain of antenna
λ – wavelength (in meters)
d – distance (in meters) 17
22
2
)4(
=)(
d
GGP
dP RTT
R
18. Example
Transmission frequency is 881.52 MHz & antenna gains
are 8 dB & 0 dB for base station & mobile station
What is the signal attenuation at a distance of 1,500 m?
c = 299 792 458 m/s
Solution
c = f λ λ = 299 792 458/881.52×106 = 0.34 m
8 dB = 100.8 = 6.3
0 dB = 100 = 1
Loss = PT – PR
Loss = 86.89 dB
18
8
9-
22
2
22
2
22
2
22
2
10×8788.4=
)(
10×0497.2=
)(
1500)4(
34.0×1×3.6
=
)(
1500)4(
34.0×1×3.6
=
)(
)4(
=
)(
)4(
=)(
dP
P
P
dP
P
dP
P
dP
d
GG
P
dP
d
GGP
dP
R
T
T
R
T
R
T
R
RT
T
R
RTT
R
19. Attenuation (Cont.)
Based on empirical evidence, more reasonable to
model PR as a log-distance path-loss model
np – path loss exponent
Xσ – zero-mean Gaussian random variable with STD σ
All power values are in dBm
19
)/log(10)()( 000 ddndPdP pR
Source: S. Rao, “Estimating the ZigBee
transmission-range ISM band,” EDN, May 2007.
20. Complex Attenuation
When signal encounters obstacles
High-frequency signals experience
1. Absorption
2. Shadowing
When object >> λ
3. Reflection
When object >> λ
4. Refraction
5. Diffraction
6. Scattering
When object ≤ λ
20
24. Example – Attenuation Experienced by
Mobile Phones
24
Source: www.intechopen.com/books/matlab-a-fundamental-tool-for-scientific-computing-and-engineering-
applications-volume-2/mobile-radio-propagation-prediction-for-two-different-districts-in-mosul-city
25. Exercise
Reflection of wireless signals occurs when
a) wavelength is constant
b) object size << wavelength
c) object size ≈ wavelength
d) object size >> wavelength
25
26. Noise
Disturbances introduced to wireless signals
26Source:
www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/video/ps8806/ps5684/ps2209/prod_white_paper0900aecd805738f5.html
27. Noise (Cont.)
Sources
Thermal (white) noise
From electronic circuit
PThermal = KTB
K – Boltzmann constant, T - Ambient temperature, B - receiver BW
Intermodulation noise
When 2 frequencies of signals are transmitted over same medium
27
2 signals at 270 & 275 MHz
Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inter
modulation
28. Noise (Cont.)
Crosstalk between channels
Impulse noise
Due to instantaneous electromagnetic changes
28
Source: http://volpefirm.com/impact-of-
impulse-noise-on-adaptive-pre-equalization-
part-ii/impulse-noise/
Source: www.chalmers.se/en/departments/s2/research/
Pages/Hardware-constrained-communication.aspx
29. Signal-to-Noise Ratio
To cope with noise, transmitted signal > noise
High Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR)
Or use spread spectrum technology
Embed signal over wide range of frequencies with low power
29
30. Example
PT = 10 W, free space loss 117 dB, antenna gains 8 dB
& 0 dB, total system losses 8 dB, receiver antenna
temperature 290 K, & receiver bandwidth 1.25 MHz
Find PR
Find thermal noise, K = 1.38×10-23 W/Kelvin-Hz
Find SNR at receiver
Solution
PR = -107 dBW
PThermal = KTB = 1.38×10-23 × 290 × 1.25×106 = -143 dBW
SNR = -107 + 143 = 36 dB
30
31. Multipath Propagation
Receive same signal through different paths
Different arrival times
Inter Symbol Interference (ISI)
Different levels of attenuation
Different levels of distortion
31
Source: http://www.ni.com/white-paper/6427/en/
32. Signal Propagation
Amplitude domain
Amplitude change with
time
Frequency domain
Frequency change
with time
Phase domain
Phase change with
time
Frequency & phase
modulation require high-
frequency carriers 32
Source: www.ni.com/white-paper/4805/en
35. Phase Modulation (Cont.)
Amplitude-Shift Keying (ASK)
Binary ASK
1 – By presence of a signal
0 – No signal
Pros
Bandwidth efficient
Simple to implement
Cons
Low power efficiency
Susceptible to noise & multipath propagation
Unclear absence of a signal vs. binary 0
35
36. Phase Modulation (Cont.)
Frequency-Shift Keying (FSK)
Binary FSK
1 – High frequency
0 – Low frequency
Pros
Better SNR
Simple decoding
Long distance
Cons
Slightly less bandwidth efficient than ASK & PSK
More complicated circuitry than ASK
36
37. Phase Modulation (Cont.)
Phase-Shift Keying (PSK)
Encode based on phase of carrier wave
Binary PSK
1 – 180o
0 – 0o
Quadrature PSK
0o, 90o, 180o, 270o
Pros
Power efficient
Cons
Low-bandwidth efficiency
More complicated circuitry than FSK
37
39. Multiplexing
Transmitting multiple signals simultaneously
Maximize capacity
Time Division Multiplexing (TDM)
Multiple channels occupy same frequency in
alternating slices
Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM)
Use different carrier frequencies
Code Division Multiplexing (CDM)
Same frequency & same time but different codes
Code – like Tx & Rx speak different languages
39
42. Exercise
Which of the following multiplexing technique
allow signals to use different frequencies at the
same time?
a) Amplitude Division Multiplexing
b) Frequency Division Multiplexing
c) Code Division Multiplexing
d) Time Division Multiplexing
42
43. Narrowband Transmission
Pros
Efficient use of frequency
Cons
Require regulation
Easier to intercept & jam
43
Source: www.tapr.org
44. Spread Spectrum
Spread signal over a large range of frequencies
Low power density (power per frequency)
Signal appear as background noise 44
www.intercomsonline.com/Spread-Spectrum-Technology_a/162.htm
45. Spread Spectrum (Cont.)
Only receivers that know the spreading scheme
can reconstruct original signal
Spreading scheme defined by a code
Only designated receiver knows the code
Pros
Improved channel capacity
Resistance against interference
Security against tapping & jamming
Cons
Complex circuits
45
46. Signal With & Without Noise
46
Source: www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0888327009003756
47. Types of Spread Spectrum Systems
1. Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS)
2. Frequency-Hopping Spread Spectrum (FHSS)
3. Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing
(OFDM)
47
48. Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS)
Spread signal over
broader frequency
band
Chipping technique to
spread signal
Transmitter & receiver
needs to be
synchronized
Used in WiFi
48
Source: www.maximintegrated.com/app-notes/index.mvp/id/1890
49. Frequency-Hopping Spread Spectrum
(FHSS)
Hoping sequence of
frequencies
Only subset of the available
frequencies are used to hop
Transmitter & receiver needs
to be synchronized
Relatively simple to implement
than DSSS
Relatively easier to recover Tx
signal than DSSS
Relatively less robust to signal
distortion & multipath effects
Used in Bluetooth 49
Source: www.maximintegrated.com/app-
notes/index.mvp/id/1890
50. Orthogonal Frequency-Division
Multiplexing (OFDM)
Utilize orthogonal multiple subcarriers in parallel
Much higher data rates
Low multipath interference
Used in IEEE 802.11 a/g
50
Source: http://wiki.hsc.com//Main/OFDM
51. Challenges
Wireless channels are a difficult & capacity-
limited communications medium
Typically less efficient
Traffic patterns, user locations, & network
conditions are constantly changing
Applications are heterogeneous with hard
constraints that must be met by networks
51
53. Growth in mobile data, massive spectrum deficit & stagnant revenues
require technical & political breakthroughs for ongoing success of cellular
Careful what you wish for…
53
Source: Unstrung Pyramid Research 2010Source: FCC
54. Software-Defined (SD) Radio
Wideband antennas & A/Ds span BW of desired signals
DSP programmed to process desired signal: no specialized
HW
Cellular
Apps
Processor
BT
Media
Processor
GPS
WLAN
Wimax
DVB-H
FM/XM A/D
A/D
DSP
A/D
A/D
Is this the solution to the device challenges?
Today, this isn’t cost, size, or power efficient
54
55. Summary
Bandwidth & QoS is in demand
Many applications & services
Spectrum is scare
Many elements & solutions
Still not enough
It’s only going to be even more interesting...
55