An integrated wireless communication architecture for maritime sector

The rapid evolution of terrestrial wireless systems has brought mobile users more and more desired communication services. Maritime customers are asking for the same, such as the concepts of “Broadband at Sea” and “Maritime Internet”. Quite a lot of research work has focused on the development of new and better maritime communication technologies, but less attention has been paid on interworking of multiple maritime wireless networks or on satisfying service provisioning. To address this, an integrated wireless Communication Architecture for Maritime Sector (CAMS) has been introduced in this article. CAMS is aimed at 1) granting maritime customers uninterrupted connectivity through the best available network and 2) providing them with the best-provisioned communication services in terms of mobility, security and Quality of Experience (QoE). To address mobility challenge, the IEEE 802.21 standard is recommended to be used in CAMS in order to achieve seamless handover. CAMS provides application-level QoE support attending to the limited communication resources (e.g. bandwidth) at sea. Certain security considerations have also been proposed to supplement this architecture

Handover management for hybrid satellite/terrestrial networks

9 pagesInternational audienceInitially envisaged to support handover between different wireless 802.x network technologies, the IEEE 802.21 standard also appears as the good candidate for handover management in future integrated satellite / terrestrial systems. This paper presents an analysis of how this standard could be implemented in the frame of a realistic scenario and taking into account the current trends in wireless network and mobility architectures. Our solution is then evaluated by means of emulation over a DVB-RCS representative testbed, and based on an experimental MIH implementation. We finally show that seamless handover can nearly be achieved with very short service outages

Optimized Handover and Resource Management: An 802.21 Based Scheme to Optimize Handover and Resource Management in Hybrid Satellite-Terrestrial Networks

International audienceSatellite communications can provide fourth generation (4G) networks with large-scale coverage. However, their integration to 4G is challenging because satellite networks have not been designed with handover in mind. The setup of satellite links takes time, and so, handovers must be anticipated long before. This paper proposes a generic scheme based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers 802.21 standard to optimize handover and resource management in hybrid satellite-terrestrial networks. Our solution, namely optimized handover and resource management (OHRM), uses the terrestrial interface to prepare handover, which greatly speeds up the establishment of the satellite link. We propose two mechanisms to minimize the waste of bandwidth due to wrong handover predictions. First, we leverage the support of 802.21 in the terrestrial access network to shorten the path of the signaling messages towards the satellite resource manager. Second, we cancel the restoration of the satellite resources when the terrestrial link rolls back. We use OHRM to interconnect a digital video broadcasting and a wireless 4G terrestrial network. However for the simulation tool, we use a WiMAX as the terrestrial technology to illustrate the schemes. The simulation results show that OHRM minimizes the handover delay and the signaling overhead in the terrestrial and satellite networks

SCALABLE AND EFFICIENT VERTICAL HANDOVER DECISION ALGORITHMS IN VEHICULAR NETWORK CONTEXTS

A finales de los años noventa, y al comienzo del nuevo milenio, las redes inalámbricas han evolucionado bastante, pasando de ser sólo una tecnología prometedora para convertirse en un requisito para las actividades cotidianas en las sociedades desarrolladas. La infraestructura de transporte también ha evolucionado, ofreciendo comunicación a bordo para mejorar la seguridad vial y el acceso a contenidos de información y entretenimiento. Los requisitos de los usuarios finales se han hecho dependientes de la tecnología, lo que significa que sus necesidades de conectividad han aumentado debido a los diversos requisitos de las aplicaciones que se ejecutan en sus dispositivos móviles, tales como tabletas, teléfonos inteligentes, ordenadores portátiles o incluso ordenadores de abordo (On-Board Units (OBUs)) dentro de los vehículos. Para cumplir con dichos requisitos de conectividad, y teniendo en cuenta las diferentes redes inalámbricas disponibles, es necesario adoptar técnicas de Vertical Handover (VHO) para cambiar de red de forma transparente y sin necesidad de intervención del usuario. El objetivo de esta tesis es desarrollar algoritmos de decisión (Vertical Handover Decision Algorithms (VHDAs)) eficientes y escalables, optimizados para el contexto de las redes vehiculares. En ese sentido se ha propuesto, desarrollado y probado diferentes algoritmos de decisión basados en la infraestructura disponible en las actuales, y probablemente en las futuras, redes inalámbricas y redes vehiculares. Para ello se han combinado diferentes técnicas, métodos computacionales y modelos matemáticos, con el fin de garantizar una conectividad apropiada, y realizando el handover hacia las redes más adecuadas de manera a cumplir tanto con los requisitos de los usuarios como los requisitos de las aplicaciones. Con el fin de evaluar el contexto, se han utilizado diferentes herramientas para obtener información variada, como la disponibilidad de la red, el estado de la red, la geolocalizaciónMárquez Barja, JM. (2012). SCALABLE AND EFFICIENT VERTICAL HANDOVER DECISION ALGORITHMS IN VEHICULAR NETWORK CONTEXTS [Tesis doctoral no publicada]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/17869Palanci

Analysis of Reconfigurability, Control and Resource Management in Heterogeneous Wireless Networks

Modern communications networks integrate different access technologies that require interoperability for seamless and user-transparent transfer of multimedia-reach content. Latest standardization activities in this area pinpoint the IEEE 802.21 standard as an enabler of media independent handovers in various scenarios. Additionally, the implementation of the heterogeneous network paradigm yields optimized and efficient resource management techniques emphasizing the need for reconfiguration and interoperability capabilities within future wireless networks. This paper analyzes a combination of reconfigurability, interoperability and resource management aspects in heterogeneous wireless networks based on the IEEE 802.21 standard. It introduces a novel platform for wireless heterogeneous communication systems and a prototype of a reconfigurable mobile terminal that rely on the IEEE 802.21 standard. The introduced platforms are extensively validated through simulations and laboratory experiments showcasing that the IEEE 802.21-backed interoperability is able to support uninterrupted content delivery across multiple communication technologies with high performance

Integration of unidirectional technologies into wireless back-haul architecture

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Docter of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Back-haul infrastructures of today's wireless operators must support the triple-play services demanded by the market or regulatory bodies. To cope with increasing capacity demand, the EU FP7 project CARMEN has developed a cost-effective heterogeneous multi-radio wireless back-haul architecture, which may also leverage the native multicast capabilities of broadcast technologies such as DVB-T to off-load high-bandwidth broadcast content delivery. However, the integration of such unidirectional technologies into a packet-switched architecture requires careful considerations. The contribution of this thesis is the investigation, design and evaluation of protocols and mechanisms facilitating the integration of such unidirectional technologies into the wireless back-haul architecture so that they can be configured and utilized by the spectrum and capacity optimization modules. This integration mainly concerns the control plane and, in particular, the aspects related to resource and capability descriptions, neighborhood, link and Multi Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) Label-Switched Path (LSP) monitoring, unicast and multicast LSP signalling as well as topology forming and maintenance. During the course of this study we have analyzed the problem space, proposed solutions to the resulting research questions and evaluated our approach. Our results show that the now Unidirectional Technology (UDT)-aware architecture can readily consider Unidirectional Technologies (UDTs) to distribute, for example, broadcast content

Mobility and Handoff Management in Wireless Networks

With the increasing demands for new data and real-time services, wireless networks should support calls with different traffic characteristics and different Quality of Service (QoS)guarantees. In addition, various wireless technologies and networks exist currently that can satisfy different needs and requirements of mobile users. Since these different wireless networks act as complementary to each other in terms of their capabilities and suitability for different applications, integration of these networks will enable the mobile users to be always connected to the best available access network depending on their requirements. This integration of heterogeneous networks will, however, lead to heterogeneities in access technologies and network protocols. To meet the requirements of mobile users under this heterogeneous environment, a common infrastructure to interconnect multiple access networks will be needed. In this chapter, the design issues of a number of mobility management schemes have been presented. Each of these schemes utilizes IP-based technologies to enable efficient roaming in heterogeneous network. Efficient handoff mechanisms are essential for ensuring seamless connectivity and uninterrupted service delivery. A number of handoff schemes in a heterogeneous networking environment are also presented in this chapter.Comment: 28 pages, 11 figure

Path signalling in a wireless back-haul network integrating unidirectional broadcast technologies

The black-haul infrastructures of today's wireless operators must support the triple-play services demanded by the market or regulatory bodies. To cope with increasing capacity demand, in our previous work, we have developed a cost-effective heterogeneous layer 2.5 wireless back-haul (WiBACK) architecture, which leverages the native multicast capabilities of broadcast technologies such as DVB to off-load high-bandwidth broadcast content delivery. Furthermore, our architecture provides support for unidirectional technologies on the data and the control plane. This adopts a centralized coordinator approach, in which coordinator nodes install so-called management and data pipes. No routing state is kept at plain WiBACK nodes, which merely store QoS-aware pipe forwarding state. Consequently, the architecture requires a reliable protocol to push resource allocation and pipe forwarding state into the network, considering possibly unidirectional connectivity. Such a protocol, whose task is related to MPLS label distribution, is essential during the initial forming of WiBACK topologies and during regular network operations to reliably manage the data pipes. In this paper, we present a novel approach to extend our IEEE 802.21-inspired WiBACK TransportService and, based upon this, the design of an RSVP-TE-style pipe signalling protocol using nested hop-by-hop request/response MIH transactions that supports signalling over unidirectional technologies. A thorough evaluation and successful testbed deployments show that this protocol reliably signals pipe state even under high loss conditions

Multimedia delivery in the future internet

The term “Networked Media” implies that all kinds of media including text, image, 3D graphics, audio and video are produced, distributed, shared, managed and consumed on-line through various networks, like the Internet, Fiber, WiFi, WiMAX, GPRS, 3G and so on, in a convergent manner [1]. This white paper is the contribution of the Media Delivery Platform (MDP) cluster and aims to cover the Networked challenges of the Networked Media in the transition to the Future of the Internet. Internet has evolved and changed the way we work and live. End users of the Internet have been confronted with a bewildering range of media, services and applications and of technological innovations concerning media formats, wireless networks, terminal types and capabilities. And there is little evidence that the pace of this innovation is slowing. Today, over one billion of users access the Internet on regular basis, more than 100 million users have downloaded at least one (multi)media file and over 47 millions of them do so regularly, searching in more than 160 Exabytes1 of content. In the near future these numbers are expected to exponentially rise. It is expected that the Internet content will be increased by at least a factor of 6, rising to more than 990 Exabytes before 2012, fuelled mainly by the users themselves. Moreover, it is envisaged that in a near- to mid-term future, the Internet will provide the means to share and distribute (new) multimedia content and services with superior quality and striking flexibility, in a trusted and personalized way, improving citizens’ quality of life, working conditions, edutainment and safety. In this evolving environment, new transport protocols, new multimedia encoding schemes, cross-layer inthe network adaptation, machine-to-machine communication (including RFIDs), rich 3D content as well as community networks and the use of peer-to-peer (P2P) overlays are expected to generate new models of interaction and cooperation, and be able to support enhanced perceived quality-of-experience (PQoE) and innovative applications “on the move”, like virtual collaboration environments, personalised services/ media, virtual sport groups, on-line gaming, edutainment. In this context, the interaction with content combined with interactive/multimedia search capabilities across distributed repositories, opportunistic P2P networks and the dynamic adaptation to the characteristics of diverse mobile terminals are expected to contribute towards such a vision. Based on work that has taken place in a number of EC co-funded projects, in Framework Program 6 (FP6) and Framework Program 7 (FP7), a group of experts and technology visionaries have voluntarily contributed in this white paper aiming to describe the status, the state-of-the art, the challenges and the way ahead in the area of Content Aware media delivery platforms

Load balancing in heterogeneous wireless communications networks. Optimized load aware vertical handovers in satellite-terrestrial hybrid networks incorporating IEEE 802.21 media independent handover and cognitive algorithms.

Heterogeneous wireless networking technologies such as satellite, UMTS, WiMax and WLAN are being used to provide network access for both voice and data services. In big cities, the densely populated areas like town centres, shopping centres and train stations may have coverage of multiple wireless networks. Traditional Radio Access Technology (RAT) selection algorithms are mainly based on the ¿Always Best Connected¿ paradigm whereby the mobile nodes are always directed towards the available network which has the strongest and fastest link. Hence a large number of mobile users may be connected to the more common UMTS while the other networks like WiMax and WLAN would be underutilised, thereby creating an unbalanced load across these different wireless networks. This high variation among the load across different co-located networks may cause congestion on overloaded network leading to high call blocking and call dropping probabilities. This can be alleviated by moving mobile users from heavily loaded networks to least loaded networks. This thesis presents a novel framework for load balancing in heterogeneous wireless networks incorporating the IEEE 802.21 Media Independent Handover (MIH). The framework comprises of novel load-aware RAT selection techniques and novel network load balancing mechanism. Three new different load balancing algorithms i.e. baseline, fuzzy and neural-fuzzy algorithms have also been presented in this thesis that are used by the framework for efficient load balancing across the different co-located wireless networks. A simulation model developed in NS2 validates the performance of the proposed load balancing framework. Different attributes like load distribution in all wireless networks, handover latencies, packet drops, throughput at mobile nodes and network utilization have been observed to evaluate the effects of load balancing using different scenarios. The simulation results indicate that with load balancing the performance efficiency improves as the overloaded situation is avoided by load balancing