The struggle for co-existence : communication policy by private technical standards making and its limits in unlicensed spectrum

Huge increase in the demand by the wireless sector to use the airwaves has trained focus on the classic policy problem of resource scarcity in the field. This article illuminates a part of wireless communication – unlicensed spectrum – where a particularly fractious debate over the future usage of such space has developed between incumbent Wi-Fi interests and new entrants from the field of licensed mobile communication. The case is novel in that private technical standards making has become a site aimed at resolving what is a contest for co-existence in unlicensed spectrum. In its conceptualisation of private technical standards making processes as communication policy activity, the article illuminates both their affordances and limitations. It also shows the enduring utility of public regulatory steer in what are, in effect, private self-regulatory processes aimed at creating solutions to problems with a complex socio-technical character

Hands-On Open Access Broadband Wireless Technology Lab Mapping Course Outcomes to Lab Experiments

The unprecedented growth in wireless communication is offering opportunities and challenges for educators. Thanks to technology advances and job opportunities, more and more students are interested in wireless communications courses. However, bridging the gap between classroom and real-world experience remains a challenge. Advanced undergraduate communications courses typically focus more on theory. Some courses are given online, and lack hands-on experiments. Driven by feedback from industry and students, we propose practical laboratory experiments that attempt to bridge the gap between classroom and real world. The laboratory exercises take advantage of the infrastructure of deployed wireless networks and allow students to measure, and analyze data, as well as to interact. The proposed labs can be used even in online courses. This paper describes the experiments proposed, the procedures and typical results. The experiments are tied to course objective

Wireless Cloud Architecture Based on Thin Clients and Ontologies

Recently, several researchers have discovered the need for radios to use description techniques for the objects in the wireless realm. The concept of RF field-programmable analog array (FPAA) was also proposed recently and the lack of hardware abstractions was identified as a problem. We propose a hardware abstraction for RF FPAAs, which enables an open RF-digital interface. We advance the concept of wireless thin clients. These clients are connected to the cloud using the open RF-digital interface. We describe the architecture of a comprehensive wireless ontology

The Role of Standards in Engineering Education

The role of standards is increasing, and as a result the role of education about standards should also increase. At the same time, there are a set of requirements—accreditation criteria—toward engineering programs. The close relationships between the accreditation criteria and standards education is not fully recognized, even by accreditation bodies and educators. The goal of this article is to uncover these relationships. Furthermore, the article establishes connections between other components of engineering education such as ethics, engineering design, labs, and integrated courses, on one hand and standards education on another. The conclusion from these relationships is that standards education is more important than previously realized. The article also discusses how standards education can be incorporated in engineering and technical curricula.</p