QoS and channel-aware packet bundeling for capacity improvement in cellular networks

We study the problem of multiple packet bundling to improve spectral efficiency in cellular networks. The packet size of real-time data, such as VoIP, is often very small. However, the common use of time division multiplexing limits the number of VoIP users supported, because a packet has to wait until it receives a time slot, and if only one small VoIP packet is placed in a time slot, capacity is wasted. Packet bundling can alleviate such a problem by sharing a time slot among multiple users. A recent revision of cdma2000 1xEV-DO introduced the concept of the multi-user packet (MUP) in the downlink to overcome limitations on the number of time slots. However, the efficacy of packet bundling is not well understood, particularly in the presence of time varying channels. We propose a novel QoS and channel-aware packet bundling algorithm that takes advantage of adaptive modulation and coding. We show that optimal algorithms are NP-complete, recommend heuristic approaches, and use analytical performance modeling to show the gains in capacity that can be achieved from our packet bundling algorithms. We show that channel utilization can be significantly increased by slightly delaying some real-time packets within their QoS requirements while bundling those packets with like channel conditions. We validate our study through extensive OPNET simulations with a complete EV-DO implementation.Supported in part by U.S. National Science Foundation under grant no. 072971

Quality of service and channel-aware packet bundling for capacity improvement in cellular networks

Title from PDF of title page, viewed on May 26, 2011VitaIncludes bibliographical references (p. 76-84)Thesis (Ph.D.)--School of Computing and Engineering. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2011We study the problem of multiple packet bundling to improve spectral efficiency in cellular networks. The packet size of real-time data, such as VoIP, is often very small. However, the common use of time division multiplexing limits the number of VoIP users supported, because a packet has to wait until it receives a time slot, and if only one small VoIP packet is placed in a time slot, capacity is wasted. Packet bundling can alleviate such a problem by sharing a time slot among multiple users. A recent revision of cdma2000 1xEV-DO introduced the concept of the multi-user packet (MUP) in the downlink to overcome limitations on the number of time slots. However, the efficacy of packet bundling is not well understood, particularly in the presence of time varying channels. We propose a novel QoS and channel-aware packet bundling algorithm that takes advantage of adaptive modulation and coding. We show that optimal algorithms are NP complete and recommend heuristic approaches. We also show that channel utilization can be significantly increased by slightly delaying some real-time packets within their QoS requirements while bundling those packets with like channel conditions. We validate our study through extensive OPNET simulations with a complete EV-DO implementation.Introduction -- Related work -- Background on wireless systems -- Multiple packet bundling -- Evaluation -- Conclusion

WiMax - a critical view of the technology and its economics

University of the Witwatersrand Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment School of Information and Electrical EngineeringMobile Broadband is now more of a necessity than a luxury, especially amongst the younger generation, irrespective of where they live. Mobile WiMax and LTE, the latest and fastest Mobile Broadband technologies, mark significant improvements over 3G networks because they use IP (Internet Protocol) end-to-end. To end-users, this means faster network speeds, better quality services, and increased coverage area. To the Network Operators, this means simplified network architectures, efficient use of resources, and improved security. In this report, the different issues and challenges related to deploying Mobile WiMax (802.16e or 802.16m) in rural South Africa, were identifed and explored. In this project, Atoll, SONAR, and Touch Point analysis tools were used to determine which Mobile Broadband technology is economically and technically suited for rural South Africa. It was found that LTE yields superior performance results than WiMax, which in turn yields superior performance results to all other existing 3G technologies. However it will take time for LTE to reach rural areas therefore WiMax can be considered as a solution to extend Broadband services to rural South Africa and thus assist in bridging the digital divide. Recommendations on how best to deploy Mobile WiMax are made based on observations made from the experimental work.MT201

Comparative study of data transfers in mobile telecommunication networks

katedra: KSI; přílohy: 1 CD; rozsah: x s., 47 s.Tato bakalářská práce se zabývá principy komunikace, provozem a strukturou mobilních sítí a schopnostmi datových technologií (GPRS, EDGE, CDMA, W-CDMA, HSDPA). Studie by měla sloužit jako seznamovací text podávající základní a všeobecný přehled pro běžné uživatele mobilních zařízení. Práce je zaměřena především na popis, praktické využití, srovnání a vyhodnocení vlastností a parametrů současně dostupných technologií, včetně nově nastupujících sítí třetí generace. Práce zachycuje souhrn technologií v celosvětovém měřítku. Součástí práce je také řešení aplikace, která má umožnit sledování aktuální rychlosti při mobilním přenosu dat. Tato aplikace je vytvořena v prostředí Java 2 Micro Edition.This bachelor thesis deals with principles of communication, functioning and structure of mobile telecommunication networks and capabilities of data technologies (GPRS, EDGE, CDMA, W-CDMA, HSDPA). This work should serve as an introductory text which gives basic and overall overview for common users of mobile devices. This work is especially aimed at description, practical purposes, comparison and evaluation of properties and characteristics of currently available technologies and technologies of the third generation. This work also contains summary of technologies in a world-wide scale. A component of this work is a solution of application which allows tracking the current speed during the data transfer. This application is created in Java 2 Micro Edition platform

M-Business: Economy Driver or a Mess?

Reports about mobile wireless technology in the media may be confusing. While we know that the telecommunication industry is in distress, we also observe a phenomenal, indeed unprecedented explosion of the use of mobile wireless devices and services all over the globe. This paper presents a balanced introduction to wireless technology including devices, mobile operating systems, and communication protocols. It discusses standardization efforts, technology evolution paths, and several new and potentially disruptive technologies, some still in the research stage. The paper lists leading global wireless service providers in terms of the number of domestic subscribers and presents an analysis of the six U.S. national operators including their strengths and weaknesses. Only four of them are profitable now. Although the consumer market currently dictates technology evolution, several examples of successful business applications of wireless mobile technology are presented. Finally, the question presented in the title is addressed

Support of real-time services in recent 3G mobile networks

Tato diplomová práce je zaměřena na současnou třetí generaci mobilních sítí. První část popisuje standardizační vývoj 3G a mapuje postupný rozvoj 3G sítí v České republice z hlediska komerčně spuštěných technologií a přidělených frekvenčních pásem pro jednotlivé operátory působících na českém trhu. V dalších podkapitolách v první části jsou stručně přiblíženy technologie UMTS a CDMA 2000. Podkapitola CDMA 2000 stručně popisuje architekturu a fyzickou vrstvu této sítě a charakterizuje základní prvky čtyř revizí u vývojové větve CDMA 2000 1x EV-DO. Podkapitola UMTS se především zaměřuje na porovnání fyzických vrstev dvou různých přístupových technologií, a to TD-CDMA a W-CDMA. Pro zajištění lepších podmínek mobilního připojení pro provozování služeb reálného času byly implementovány nové prvky do stávajícího systému UMTS. Tyto prvky zvyšující přenosovou rychlost a snižující zpoždění jsou popsány v kapitole Technologie HSPA. Tato kapitola vybírá nejdůležitější z nich a popisuje jaké změny (řízení, architektura) musely být ve stávající UMTS architektuře provedeny. První kapitola je uzavřena technologií WiMAX. Podkapitola stručně porovnává technologii WiMAX se současnými nejperspektivnějšími buňkovými systémy a přináší kvalitativní parametry připojení této technologie. Na českém trhu jsou komerčně spuštěny tři různé technologie 3G: UMTS-FDD, UMTS-TDD a CDMA 2000. Druhá kapitola stručně srovnává 3G pokrytí všech tří českých operátorů: Telefónica O2, T-Mobile a U:fon, a po té prezentuje výsledky kvalitativních parametrů mobilních připojení příslušných 3G technologií. Testy prováděné pomocí simulačního softwaru IxChariot byly zaměřeny na proměření a porovnání parametrů propustnost, zpoždění, jitter, ztrátovost, MLR a DF. Na základě proměření těchto parametrů byly stanoveny předpoklady pro provozování VoIP a videohovorů u jednotlivých operátorů, které byly prakticky ověřeny. V poslední kapitole je zpracována laboratorní úloha, která má seznámit studenty s technologií UMTS-TDD komerčně provozovanou operátorem T-Mobile a za pomocí běžně dostupných nástrojů proměřit všechny kvalitativní parametry této technologie.This Master’s thesis is focused on the recent 3G mobile networks. The first chapter describes an evolution of standardization 3G and surveys a gradual development of 3G networks in Czech Republic from a point of view of commercially launched technologies and assigned frequency spectrums for single mobile operators. UMTS and CDMA 2000 are briefly approached in next subchapters. The subchapter CDMA 2000 is briefly concentrated on architecture and a physical layer of this technology and characterizes main features of four revises of developmental branch CDMA 2000 1x EV-DO. The subchapter UMTS is especially focused on a comparison of air interfaces TD-CDMA and W-CDMA. New features were implemented to the recent system UMTS for a better support of real-time services. These features increasing a throughput and decreasing a delay are described in a chapter Technology HSPA. This chapter chooses the most important features and describes changes (in a control and architecture) which had to be implemented. First chapter is finished by technology WiMAX. The most recent perspective cell systems are compared with WiMAX in this subchapter and qualitative parameters of WiMAX are shown there. The three different 3G technologies (UMTS-FDD, UMTS-TDD and CDMA 2000) are lunched in Czech Republic. The second chapter briefly compares coverage of three czech mobile operators (Telefónica O2, T-Mobile and U:fon) and then presents results of qualitative parameters of used 3G technologies. The simulation conducted by software IxChariot were focused on to gauge parameters like throughput, delay, jitter, lost data, MLR and DF. The conditions for providing real-time services were specified based on simulations that were practically checked. The lab composed in last chapter should bring closer to students technology UMTS-TDD launched by T-Mobile. The students will measure the qualitative parameters of this technology with the assistance of commonly available tools.

A Unified Mobility Management Architecture for Interworked Heterogeneous Mobile Networks

The buzzword of this decade has been convergence: the convergence of telecommunications, Internet, entertainment, and information technologies for the seamless provisioning of multimedia services across different network types. Thus the future Next Generation Mobile Network (NGMN) can be envisioned as a group of co-existing heterogeneous mobile data networking technologies sharing a common Internet Protocol (IP) based backbone. In such all-IP based heterogeneous networking environments, ongoing sessions from roaming users are subjected to frequent vertical handoffs across network boundaries. Therefore, ensuring uninterrupted service continuity during session handoffs requires successful mobility and session management mechanisms to be implemented in these participating access networks. Therefore, it is essential for a common interworking framework to be in place for ensuring seamless service continuity over dissimilar networks to enable a potential user to freely roam from one network to another. For the best of our knowledge, the need for a suitable unified mobility and session management framework for the NGMN has not been successfully addressed as yet. This can be seen as the primary motivation of this research. Therefore, the key objectives of this thesis can be stated as: To propose a mobility-aware novel architecture for interworking between heterogeneous mobile data networks To propose a framework for facilitating unified real-time session management (inclusive of session establishment and seamless session handoff) across these different networks. In order to achieve the above goals, an interworking architecture is designed by incorporating the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) as the coupling mediator between dissipate mobile data networking technologies. Subsequently, two different mobility management frameworks are proposed and implemented over the initial interworking architectural design. The first mobility management framework is fully handled by the IMS at the Application Layer. This framework is primarily dependant on the IMS’s default session management protocol, which is the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP). The second framework is a combined method based on SIP and the Mobile IP (MIP) protocols, which is essentially operated at the Network Layer. An analytical model is derived for evaluating the proposed scheme for analyzing the network Quality of Service (QoS) metrics and measures involved in session mobility management for the proposed mobility management frameworks. More precisely, these analyzed QoS metrics include vertical handoff delay, transient packet loss, jitter, and signaling overhead/cost. The results of the QoS analysis indicates that a MIP-SIP based mobility management framework performs better than its predecessor, the Pure-SIP based mobility management method. Also, the analysis results indicate that the QoS performances for the investigated parameters are within acceptable levels for real-time VoIP conversations. An OPNET based simulation platform is also used for modeling the proposed mobility management frameworks. All simulated scenarios prove to be capable of performing successful VoIP session handoffs between dissimilar networks whilst maintaining acceptable QoS levels. Lastly, based on the findings, the contributions made by this thesis can be summarized as: The development of a novel framework for interworked heterogeneous mobile data networks in a NGMN environment. The final design conveniently enables 3G cellular technologies (such as the Universal Mobile Telecommunications Systems (UMTS) or Code Division Multiple Access 2000 (CDMA2000) type systems), Wireless Local Area Networking (WLAN) technologies, and Wireless Metropolitan Area Networking (WMAN) technologies (e.g., Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) systems such as WiMAX) to interwork under a common signaling platform. The introduction of a novel unified/centralized mobility and session management platform by exploiting the IMS as a universal coupling mediator for real-time session negotiation and management. This enables a roaming user to seamlessly handoff sessions between different heterogeneous networks. As secondary outcomes of this thesis, an analytical framework and an OPNET simulation framework are developed for analyzing vertical handoff performance. This OPNET simulation platform is suitable for commercial use

Technology Assessment for the Future Aeronautical Communications System

To address emerging saturation in the VHF aeronautical bands allocated internationally for air traffic management communications, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has requested development of a common global solution through its Aeronautical Communications Panel (ACP). In response, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Eurocontrol initiated a joint study, with the support of NASA and U.S. and European contractors, to provide major findings on alternatives and recommendations to the ICAO ACP Working Group C (WG-C). Under an FAA/Eurocontrol cooperative research and development agreement, ACP WG-C Action Plan 17 (AP-17), commonly referred to as the Future Communications Study (FCS), NASA Glenn Research Center is responsible for the investigation of potential communications technologies that support the long-term mobile communication operational concepts of the FCS. This report documents the results of the first phase of the technology assessment and recommendations referred to in the Technology Pre-Screening Task 3.1 of AP-17. The prescreening identifies potential technologies that are under development in the industry and provides an initial assessment against a harmonized set of evaluation criteria that address high level capabilities, projected maturity for the time frame for usage in aviation, and potential applicability to aviation. A wide variety of candidate technologies were evaluated from several communications service categories including: cellular telephony; IEEE-802.xx standards; public safety radio; satellite and over-the-horizon communications; custom narrowband VHF; custom wideband; and military communications

3G migration in Pakistan

The telecommunication industry in Pakistan has come a long way since the country\u27s independence in 1947. The initial era could be fairly termed as the PTCL (Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited) monopoly, for it was the sole provider of all telecommunication services across the country. It was not until four decades later that the region embarked into the new world of wireless communication, hence ending the decades old PTCL monopoly. By the end of the late 1990\u27s, government support and international investment in the region opened new doors to innovation and better quality, low cost, healthy competition. Wireless licenses for the private sector in the telecommunication industry triggered a promising chain of events that resulted in a drastic change in the telecommunication infrastructure and service profile. The newly introduced wireless (GSM) technology received enormous support from all stakeholders (consumers, regulatory body, and market) and caused a vital boost in Pakistan\u27s economy. Numerous tangential elements had triggered this vital move in the history of telecommunications in Pakistan. Entrepreneurs intended to test the idea of global joint ventures in the East and hence the idea of international business became a reality. The technology had proven to be a great success in the West, while Pakistan\u27s telecom consumer had lived under the shadow of PTCL dominance for decades and needed more flexibility. At last the world was moving from wired to wireless! Analysts termed this move as the beginning of a new era. The investors, telecommunication businesses, and Pakistani treasury prospered. It was a win-win situation for all involved. The learning curve was steep for both operators and consumers but certainly improved over time. In essence, the principle of deploying the right technology in the right market at the right time led to this remarkable success. The industry today stands on the brink of a similar crossroads via transition from second generation to something beyond. With the partial success of 3G in Europe and the USA, the government has announced the release of three 3G licenses by mid 2009. This decision is not yet fully supported by all but still initiated parallel efforts by the operators and the vendors to integrate this next move into their existing infrastructure