Measuring the information society 2013

The Measuring the Information Society (MIS) report, which has been published annually since 2009, features two benchmarking tools to measure the information society: the ICT Development Index (IDI) and the ICT Price Basket (IPB). The 2012 IDI captures the level of ICT developments in 157 economies worldwide and compares progress made during the last year. The 2012 IPB combines the consumer prices for (fixed and mobile) telephone and Internet broadband services for 161 economies into one measure and compares these across countries, and over time. This 5th edition of the ITU Measuring the Information Society report was launched on 7 October 2013, at ITU headquarters, Geneva, Switzerland

Television broadcast from space systems: Technology, costs

Broadcast satellite systems are described. The technologies which are unique to both high power broadcast satellites and small TV receive-only earth terminals are also described. A cost assessment of both space and earth segments is included and appendices present both a computer model for satellite cost and the pertinent reported experience with the Japanese BSE

Spectrum Coexistence Mechanisms for Mobile Networks in Unlicensed Frequency Bands

Mobile network operators have historically experienced increasing traffic loads at a steady pace, which has always strained the available network capacity and claimed constantly for new methods to increase the network capacity. A key solution proposed to increase the available spectrum is the exploitation of the unlicensed spectrum in the 5 GHz bands, predominantly occupied by Wi-Fi technology. However, an uncontrolled deployment of mobile networks in unlicensed bands could potentially lead to a resource starvation prob lem for Wi-Fi networks and therefore degrade their performance significantly. To address this issue, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standardised the Long Term Evolution Unlicensed (LTE-U) and Licensed Assisted Access (LAA) technologies. The main philosophy of these technologies is to allow mobile operators to benefit from the vast amount of available spectrum in unlicensed bands without degrading the performance of Wi-Fi networks, thus enabling a fair coexistence. However, the proposed coexistence mechanisms have been proven to provide very limited guarantees of fairness, if any at all. This thesis proposes several improvements to the 3GPP coexistence mechanisms to en able a truly fair coexistence between mobile and Wi-Fi networks in unlicensed bands. In particular, various methods are proposed to adjust the transmission duty cycle in LTE-U and to adapt/select both the waiting and transmission times for LAA. The main novelty of this work is that the proposed methods exploit the knowledge of the existing Wi-Fi activity statistics to tune the operating parameters of the coexistence protocol (duty cycle, contention window size and its adaptation, transmission opportunity times, etc.), optimise the fairness of spectrum coexistence and the performance of mobile networks. This research shows that, by means of a smart exploitation of the knowledge of the Wi-Fi activity statistics, it is possible to guarantee a truly fair coexistence between mobile and Wi-Fi systems in unlicensed bands. Compared to the 3GPP coexistence mechanisms, the proposed methods can attain a significantly better throughput performance for the mobile network while guaranteeing a fair coexistence with the Wi-Fi network. In some cases, the proposed methods are able not only to avoid degradation to the Wi-Fi network but even improve its performance (compared to a coexistence scenario between Wi-Fi networks only) as a result of the smart coexistence mechanisms proposed in this thesis. The proposed methods are evaluated for the 4G LTE standard but are similarly applicable to other more recent mobile technologies such as the Fifth Generation New Radio in Unlicensed bands (5G NR-U)

Radiated Emissions From High Frequency Powerline Telecommunications (PLT) Systems

The use of broadband Powerline Telecommunications (PLT) to deliver high speed services has been anticipated since the late 1990s. Due to its radiated emissions in the High Frequency (HF) band, the regulatory authorities have had difficulty in defining a repeatable measurement technique and an acceptable radiated limit for Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) compliance. Other researchers have undertaken work to predict, model or measure the effects on victim receivers but the uncertainty of the measurements is rarely discussed. This thesis identifies the areas of uncertainty in PLT radiated emission measurements and recommends a method to account for the measurement errors. A measurement campaign was undertaken in urban, rural and semi-rural test sites in the UK to demonstrate the effects of antenna type, orientation and measurement distance. Furthermore for each measurement location, attenuation with distance properties are described which can be used in the prediction of PLT radiated emissions at a distance. Additionally the K-factor which had previously been thought to be a useful parameter is calculated at each location and is shown to be of little value in the determination of a “safe radiated emission limit” for PLT. A novel test method of mutual interference testing is described which provides a more realistic demonstration of the effects of PLT radiated emissions on HF receivers. In conjunction with a risk mitigation strategy a compromise radiated emission limit is recommended that may facilitate the regulation of PLT

Public Service Communications Satellite User Requirements Workshop

Information on user requirements for public service communications was acquired to provide the basis of a study to determine the optimum satellite system to satisfy user requirements. The concept for such a system is described: Topics discussed included requirements for data and message services, elementary and secondary education, extension and continuing education, environmental communications, library services, medical education, medical services, public broadcasting, public safety, religious applications, state and local communications, and voluntary services. Information was also obtained on procedures to follow to make the transfer to commercial services

Free entry in infrastructure

With a policy of free entry, individuals, firms, or community groups who wish to supply power, water, and sanitation services can do so with minimal legal restrictions. Free entry is the opposite of"exclusivity"or"legal monopoly". Free entry is allowed in most industries, but governments usually allow only one provider of power, water, and sanitation in any given area. This is supposed to prevent wasteful duplication and ensure a supply of essential services to poor and marginal areas. But monopoly water and power utilities often operate at high cost, lack funds to invest, and provide low-quality, unreliable service. Worse, poor and marginal areas are often unserved. When the monopoly model doesn't work, it is time to look at alternatives. The authors provide examples of alternative solutions in developing countries: *In Karachi, Pakistan, the Orangi Pilot Project provides sanitation in an unplanned settlement. Roughly 800,000 working class people lived in an area where sanitary conditions were medievaland a long-hoped-for sewerage system never came. Starting in 1980, a charitable group developed a low-cost approach to piped sanitation, explained the technology to the community, and catalyzed community action. Householders and neighborhoods funded the construction of household pourflush latrines and sewerage lines. * In Paraguay, 300 to 400 private individuals and aguateros supply good quality piped water to areas unserved by the public water company. Unlike the public company, the aguateros allow payment of connection fees on installment, making it easier for low-income consumers to connect. * In Yemen, small-scale electricity providers innovatively meet the rural and village demand for electricity that the public utility does not meet. These entrants seldom duplicate investments, although some government intervention to ensure interconnection could improve efficiency. Limitations on entry may sometimes be justified for environmental reasons or to promote private sector investment, but those cases are rare. Legalizing alternative providers will allow them to expand and meet new needs. Limits on their entry may be needed sometimes, but limits should be the exception, not the rule, the authors argue. Generally, free entry should be allowed in power, water, and sanitation.Health Economics&Finance,Decentralization,Water and Industry,Economic Theory&Research,Environmental Economics&Policies,Town Water Supply and Sanitation,Environmental Economics&Policies,Health Economics&Finance,Water and Industry,Economic Theory&Research

Real-Time Waveform Prototyping

Mobile Netzwerke der fünften Generation zeichen sich aus durch vielfältigen Anforderungen und Einsatzszenarien. Drei unterschiedliche Anwendungsfälle sind hierbei besonders relevant: 1) Industrie-Applikationen fordern Echtzeitfunkübertragungen mit besonders niedrigen Ausfallraten. 2) Internet-of-things-Anwendungen erfordern die Anbindung einer Vielzahl von verteilten Sensoren. 3) Die Datenraten für Anwendung wie z.B. der Übermittlung von Videoinhalten sind massiv gestiegen. Diese zum Teil gegensätzlichen Erwartungen veranlassen Forscher und Ingenieure dazu, neue Konzepte und Technologien für zukünftige drahtlose Kommunikationssysteme in Betracht zu ziehen. Ziel ist es, aus einer Vielzahl neuer Ideen vielversprechende Kandidatentechnologien zu identifizieren und zu entscheiden, welche für die Umsetzung in zukünftige Produkte geeignet sind. Die Herausforderungen, diese Anforderungen zu erreichen, liegen jedoch jenseits der Möglichkeiten, die eine einzelne Verarbeitungsschicht in einem drahtlosen Netzwerk bieten kann. Daher müssen mehrere Forschungsbereiche Forschungsideen gemeinsam nutzen. Diese Arbeit beschreibt daher eine Plattform als Basis für zukünftige experimentelle Erforschung von drahtlosen Netzwerken unter reellen Bedingungen. Es werden folgende drei Aspekte näher vorgestellt: Zunächst erfolgt ein Überblick über moderne Prototypen und Testbed-Lösungen, die auf großes Interesse, Nachfrage, aber auch Förderungsmöglichkeiten stoßen. Allerdings ist der Entwicklungsaufwand nicht unerheblich und richtet sich stark nach den gewählten Eigenschaften der Plattform. Der Auswahlprozess ist jedoch aufgrund der Menge der verfügbaren Optionen und ihrer jeweiligen (versteckten) Implikationen komplex. Daher wird ein Leitfaden anhand verschiedener Beispiele vorgestellt, mit dem Ziel Erwartungen im Vergleich zu den für den Prototyp erforderlichen Aufwänden zu bewerten. Zweitens wird ein flexibler, aber echtzeitfähiger Signalprozessor eingeführt, der auf einer software-programmierbaren Funkplattform läuft. Der Prozessor ermöglicht die Rekonfiguration wichtiger Parameter der physikalischen Schicht während der Laufzeit, um eine Vielzahl moderner Wellenformen zu erzeugen. Es werden vier Parametereinstellungen 'LLC', 'WiFi', 'eMBB' und 'IoT' vorgestellt, um die Anforderungen der verschiedenen drahtlosen Anwendungen widerzuspiegeln. Diese werden dann zur Evaluierung der die in dieser Arbeit vorgestellte Implementierung herangezogen. Drittens wird durch die Einführung einer generischen Testinfrastruktur die Einbeziehung externer Partner aus der Ferne ermöglicht. Das Testfeld kann hier für verschiedenste Experimente flexibel auf die Anforderungen drahtloser Technologien zugeschnitten werden. Mit Hilfe der Testinfrastruktur wird die Leistung des vorgestellten Transceivers hinsichtlich Latenz, erreichbarem Durchsatz und Paketfehlerraten bewertet. Die öffentliche Demonstration eines taktilen Internet-Prototypen, unter Verwendung von Roboterarmen in einer Mehrbenutzerumgebung, konnte erfolgreich durchgeführt und bei mehreren Gelegenheiten präsentiert werden.:List of figures List of tables Abbreviations Notations 1 Introduction 1.1 Wireless applications 1.2 Motivation 1.3 Software-Defined Radio 1.4 State of the art 1.5 Testbed 1.6 Summary 2 Background 2.1 System Model 2.2 PHY Layer Structure 2.3 Generalized Frequency Division Multiplexing 2.4 Wireless Standards 2.4.1 IEEE 802.15.4 2.4.2 802.11 WLAN 2.4.3 LTE 2.4.4 Low Latency Industrial Wireless Communications 2.4.5 Summary 3 Wireless Prototyping 3.1 Testbed Examples 3.1.1 PHY - focused Testbeds 3.1.2 MAC - focused Testbeds 3.1.3 Network - focused testbeds 3.1.4 Generic testbeds 3.2 Considerations 3.3 Use cases and Scenarios 3.4 Requirements 3.5 Methodology 3.6 Hardware Platform 3.6.1 Host 3.6.2 FPGA 3.6.3 Hybrid 3.6.4 ASIC 3.7 Software Platform 3.7.1 Testbed Management Frameworks 3.7.2 Development Frameworks 3.7.3 Software Implementations 3.8 Deployment 3.9 Discussion 3.10 Conclusion 4 Flexible Transceiver 4.1 Signal Processing Modules 4.1.1 MAC interface 4.1.2 Encoding and Mapping 4.1.3 Modem 4.1.4 Post modem processing 4.1.5 Synchronization 4.1.6 Channel Estimation and Equalization 4.1.7 Demapping 4.1.8 Flexible Configuration 4.2 Analysis 4.2.1 Numerical Precision 4.2.2 Spectral analysis 4.2.3 Latency 4.2.4 Resource Consumption 4.3 Discussion 4.3.1 Extension to MIMO 4.4 Summary 5 Testbed 5.1 Infrastructure 5.2 Automation 5.3 Software Defined Radio Platform 5.4 Radio Frequency Front-end 5.4.1 Sub 6 GHz front-end 5.4.2 26 GHz mmWave front-end 5.5 Performance evaluation 5.6 Summary 6 Experiments 6.1 Single Link 6.1.1 Infrastructure 6.1.2 Single Link Experiments 6.1.3 End-to-End 6.2 Multi-User 6.3 26 GHz mmWave experimentation 6.4 Summary 7 Key lessons 7.1 Limitations Experienced During Development 7.2 Prototyping Future 7.3 Open points 7.4 Workflow 7.5 Summary 8 Conclusions 8.1 Future Work 8.1.1 Prototyping Workflow 8.1.2 Flexible Transceiver Core 8.1.3 Experimental Data-sets 8.1.4 Evolved Access Point Prototype For Industrial Networks 8.1.5 Testbed Standardization A Additional Resources A.1 Fourier Transform Blocks A.2 Resource Consumption A.3 Channel Sounding using Chirp sequences A.3.1 SNR Estimation A.3.2 Channel Estimation A.4 Hardware part listThe demand to achieve higher data rates for the Enhanced Mobile Broadband scenario and novel fifth generation use cases like Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency and Massive Machine-type Communications drive researchers and engineers to consider new concepts and technologies for future wireless communication systems. The goal is to identify promising candidate technologies among a vast number of new ideas and to decide, which are suitable for implementation in future products. However, the challenges to achieve those demands are beyond the capabilities a single processing layer in a wireless network can offer. Therefore, several research domains have to collaboratively exploit research ideas. This thesis presents a platform to provide a base for future applied research on wireless networks. Firstly, by giving an overview of state-of-the-art prototypes and testbed solutions. Secondly by introducing a flexible, yet real-time physical layer signal processor running on a software defined radio platform. The processor enables reconfiguring important parameters of the physical layer during run-time in order to create a multitude of modern waveforms. Thirdly, by introducing a generic test infrastructure, which can be tailored to prototype diverse wireless technology and which is remotely accessible in order to invite new ideas by third parties. Using the test infrastructure, the performance of the flexible transceiver is evaluated regarding latency, achievable throughput and packet error rates.:List of figures List of tables Abbreviations Notations 1 Introduction 1.1 Wireless applications 1.2 Motivation 1.3 Software-Defined Radio 1.4 State of the art 1.5 Testbed 1.6 Summary 2 Background 2.1 System Model 2.2 PHY Layer Structure 2.3 Generalized Frequency Division Multiplexing 2.4 Wireless Standards 2.4.1 IEEE 802.15.4 2.4.2 802.11 WLAN 2.4.3 LTE 2.4.4 Low Latency Industrial Wireless Communications 2.4.5 Summary 3 Wireless Prototyping 3.1 Testbed Examples 3.1.1 PHY - focused Testbeds 3.1.2 MAC - focused Testbeds 3.1.3 Network - focused testbeds 3.1.4 Generic testbeds 3.2 Considerations 3.3 Use cases and Scenarios 3.4 Requirements 3.5 Methodology 3.6 Hardware Platform 3.6.1 Host 3.6.2 FPGA 3.6.3 Hybrid 3.6.4 ASIC 3.7 Software Platform 3.7.1 Testbed Management Frameworks 3.7.2 Development Frameworks 3.7.3 Software Implementations 3.8 Deployment 3.9 Discussion 3.10 Conclusion 4 Flexible Transceiver 4.1 Signal Processing Modules 4.1.1 MAC interface 4.1.2 Encoding and Mapping 4.1.3 Modem 4.1.4 Post modem processing 4.1.5 Synchronization 4.1.6 Channel Estimation and Equalization 4.1.7 Demapping 4.1.8 Flexible Configuration 4.2 Analysis 4.2.1 Numerical Precision 4.2.2 Spectral analysis 4.2.3 Latency 4.2.4 Resource Consumption 4.3 Discussion 4.3.1 Extension to MIMO 4.4 Summary 5 Testbed 5.1 Infrastructure 5.2 Automation 5.3 Software Defined Radio Platform 5.4 Radio Frequency Front-end 5.4.1 Sub 6 GHz front-end 5.4.2 26 GHz mmWave front-end 5.5 Performance evaluation 5.6 Summary 6 Experiments 6.1 Single Link 6.1.1 Infrastructure 6.1.2 Single Link Experiments 6.1.3 End-to-End 6.2 Multi-User 6.3 26 GHz mmWave experimentation 6.4 Summary 7 Key lessons 7.1 Limitations Experienced During Development 7.2 Prototyping Future 7.3 Open points 7.4 Workflow 7.5 Summary 8 Conclusions 8.1 Future Work 8.1.1 Prototyping Workflow 8.1.2 Flexible Transceiver Core 8.1.3 Experimental Data-sets 8.1.4 Evolved Access Point Prototype For Industrial Networks 8.1.5 Testbed Standardization A Additional Resources A.1 Fourier Transform Blocks A.2 Resource Consumption A.3 Channel Sounding using Chirp sequences A.3.1 SNR Estimation A.3.2 Channel Estimation A.4 Hardware part lis