Mobile WiMAX

A Systems Approach to Understanding IEEE 802.16m Radio Access Technology

Sassan Ahmadi

• Publisher: Academic Press
• Year: 2010
• ISBN:
  9780080960975
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Electrical Engineering & Telecommunications
• Index: Technology & Engineering

Presenting the new IEEE 802.16m standard, this is the first book to take a systematic, top-down approach to describing Mobile WiMAX and its next generation, giving detailed algorithmic descriptions together with explanations of the principles behind the operation of individual air-interface protocols and network components.

Features:

• A systematic and detailed, top-down approach to the design of 4G cellular systems based on IEEE 802.16m and 3GPP LTE/LTE-Advanced technologies
• A systematic approach to understanding IEEE 802.16m radio access network and mobile WiMAX network architecture and protocols
• The first comprehensive technical reference on the design, development and performance evaluation of IMT-Advanced systems, including the theoretical background and design principles as well as implementation considerations

About the author:

The author, chief architect and technical lead of the IEEE 802.16m project at Intel Corporation, initiated and masterminded the development of the IEEE 802.16m standard and has been one of the leading technical drivers in its standardization process in IEEE. The author was also a leading technical contributor to the definition and development of requirements and evaluation methodology for the IMT-Advanced systems in ITU-R. Reflecting the author's 20+ years expertise and experience, the book provides an in-depth, systematic and structured technical reference for professional engineers, researchers, and graduate students working in cellular communication systems, radio air-interface technologies, cellular communications protocols, advanced radio access technologies for 4G systems, and broadband cellular standards.

• A systematic and detailed, top-down approach to the design of 4G cellular systems based on IEEE 802.16m and 3GPP LTE/LTE-Advanced technologies
• A systematic approach to understanding IEEE 802.16m radio access network and mobile WiMAX network architecture and protocols
• The first comprehensive technical reference on the design, development and performance evaluation of IMT-Advanced systems, including the theoretical background and design principles as well as implementation considerations

Chapter 1

Introduction to Mobile Broadband Wireless Access

Introduction

The last two decades have witnessed a rapid growth in the number of subscribers and incredible advancement in technology of cellular communication from simple, all-circuit-switched, analog first generation systems with limited voice service capabilities, limited mobility, and small capacity to the third generation systems with significantly increased capacity, advanced all-digital packet-switched all-IP implementations that offer a variety of multimedia services. With the increasing demand for high-quality wireless multimedia services, the radio access technologies continue to advance with faster pace toward the next generation of systems. The general characteristics envisioned for the fourth generation of the cellular systems include all-IP core networks, support for a wide range of user mobility, significantly improved user throughput and system capacity, reliability and robustness, seamless connectivity, reduced access latencies, etc.

In this chapter we discuss the current status of broadband wireless access technologies and the efforts that are made by prominent standardization organizations to materialize the vision and to fulfill the objectives for the next generation of broadband radio access systems. Presently, the most important activities in this area are conducted by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and 3rd Generation Partnership Project. These two organizations have historically contributed to the development and advancement of fixed and mobile broadband systems such as the IEEE 802.16, IEEE 802.11, IEEE 802.3, and the UMTS family of standards. Both organizations have already taken significant steps toward the next generation of fixed and mobile broadband wireless access technologies also known as IMT-Advanced systems.

There is a great amount of commonality and similarity between the latest generations of wireless access system standards that started with similar system requirements and has further continued with similar functional blocks, protocols, and baseband processing, resulting in the notion of ultimate convergence in the 4th or later generations of broadband wireless access technologies. An attempt will be made to provide the background information and justification for this viewpoint throughout this chapter, while adhering to a systematic and structured approach.

1.1 Mobile Broadband Wireless Access Technologies

Wireless broadband technologies provide ubiquitous broadband access to mobile users, enabling consumers with a broad range of mobility and a variety of wireless multimedia services and applications. Broadband wireless access technologies provide broadband data access through wireless media to consumer and business markets. The most common example of broadband wireless access is wireless local area network. There have been continued efforts to deliver ubiquitous broadband wireless access by developing and deploying advanced radio access technologies such as 3GPP UMTS and LTE, as well as mobile WiMAX systems. The broadband wireless access is also an attractive option to network operators in geographically remote areas with no or limited wired network. The advantages in terms of savings in speed of deployment and installation costs are further motivation for broadband wireless access technologies.

There are various types of broadband wireless access technologies that are classified based on the coverage area and user mobility as follows:

1. Personal Area Network (PAN) is a wireless data network used for communication among data devices/peripherals around a user. The wireless PAN coverage area is typically limited to a few meters with no mobility. Examples of PAN technologies include Bluetooth or IEEE 802.15.1 [1] and Ultra Wideband (UWB) technology [2].

2. Local Area Network (LAN) is a wireless or wireline data network used for communication among data/voice devices covering small areas such as home or office environments with no or limited mobility. Examples include Ethernet (fixed wired LAN) [3] and Wi-Fi or IEEE 802.11 [4] (wireless LAN for fixed and nomadic users).

3. Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) is a data network that connects a number of LANs or a group of stationary/mobile users distributed in a relatively large geographical area. Wireless infrastructure or optical fiber connections are typically used to link the dispersed LANs. Examples include the IEEE 802.16-2004 (fixed WiMAX) [5] and Ethernet-based MAN [3].

4. Wide Area Network (WAN) is a data network that connects geographically dispersed users via a set of inter-connected switching nodes, hosts, LANs, etc., and covers a wide geographical area. Examples of WAN include the Internet [3] and cellular networks such as 3GPP UMTS [6], 3GPP LTE [7], and mobile WiMAX or IEEE 802.16-2009 [8].

The user demand for broadband wireless services and applications are continually growing. In particular, users expect a dynamic, continuing stream of new applications, capabilities, and services that are ubiquitous and available across a range of devices using a single subscription and a single or unique identity. Offering customized and ubiquitous services based on diverse individual needs through versatile communication systems will require certain considerations in the technology design and deployment.

A number of important factors are accelerating the adoption of wireless data services. These include increased user demand for wireless multimedia services, advances in smart-phone technologies, and global coverage of broadband wired and wireless access. In the meantime, application and content providers are either optimizing their offerings or developing new applications to address the needs and expectations of fixed and mobile users.

Wireless multimedia applications are growing far more rapidly than voice, and are increasingly dominating network traffic. There has been a gradual change from predominantly circuit-switched to packet-based and all-IP networks since the beginning of this millennium [9]. This change will provide the user with the ability to more efficiently utilize multimedia services including e-mail, file transfers, IP TV, VoIP, interactive gaming, messaging, and distribution services. These services are either symmetrical or asymmetrical and real-time or non real-time. They require wider frequency bandwidths, lower transmission and processing latencies, and higher data throughputs.

It is envisioned that within the next decade a large number of the world population would have access to advanced mobile communication devices. The statistics suggest that the number of broadband wireless service subscribers can exceed two billion in the next few years [9]. There are already more portable handsets than either fixed line telephones or wired line equipment such as desktops that can access the Internet, and the number of mobile devices is expected to continue to grow more rapidly than fixed line devices. Mobile terminals will be the most commonly used devices for accessing and exchanging information as well as e-commerce [10]. This trend is viewed as the integration and convergence of information technology, telecommunications, and content. This trend has resulted in new service delivery dynamics and a paradigm shift in telecommunications that will benefit both end users and service providers [10].

The following general requirements are applied to telecommunication services and applications, noting that the requirements may be different from one service offering to another:

• Seamless and continuous connectivity, as well as seamless handover across heterogeneous networks to support a wide range of user mobility from stationary to high speed. This includes mobility management and inter-system interoperability when users are in multi-mode service [11].

• Low power consumption in multi-mode devices through complexity and size reduction.

• Application scalability and quality of service to maintain services despite changes of radio channel condition by adapting the data rate and/or the error tolerance of the application.

• Security and data integrity for multimedia and e-commerce applications. In the latter, authentication of user information integrity and protection of user information are required to support high security services and prevent security breaches.

• Prioritization for applications with urgency such as emergency/disaster. Such applications require higher priority than other applications and support of prioritization of access to network resources.

• Location determination capability and accuracy to enable certain location-dependent applications. An important aspect of this capability is the ability to protect the privacy information of the user.

• Broadcast and multicast and efficient support for point-to-multipoint transmission is required because broadcast and multicast services are expected to be an important part of an operator’s service offering in the future.

• Presence to allow a set of users to be informed about the availability, willingness, and means of communication of the other users in a group.

• Usability and interactiveness of applications to allow easy and convenient use of services. The usability may include voice recognition and user-friendliness of human-to-machine interfaces. Good user experience plays a crucial role in the acceptance and proliferation of services.

In defining the framework for development of IMT-Advanced, and systems beyond IMT-Advanced, it is important to understand the user demands and technology trends that will affect the development of such systems. In particular, the framework should be based on increasing user expectations and the growing demand for mobile services, as well as the evolving nature of the services and applications that may become available.

Figure 1-1 shows four service classes (conversational, interactive, streaming, and background services) and their characteristics in terms of reliability, bit rate, and latency [12]. We will further discuss these requirements and characteristics...

Table of contents

• Cover image
• Title page
• Table of Contents
• Dedication
• Copyright
• Preface
• Introduction
• Acknowledgements
• Abbreviations
• Chapter 1. Introduction to Mobile Broadband Wireless Access
• Chapter 2. WiMAX Network Architecture
• Chapter 3. IEEE 802.16m Reference Model and Protocol Structure
• Chapter 4. IEEE 802.16m System Operation and State Diagrams
• Chapter 5. The IEEE 802.16m Convergence Sub-Layer
• Chapter 6. The IEEE 802.16m Medium Access Control Common Part Sub-layer (Part I)
• Chapter 7. The IEEE 802.16m Medium Access Control Common Part Sub-layer (Part II)
• Chapter 8. The IEEE 802.16m Security Sub-Layer
• Chapter 9. The IEEE 802.16m Physical Layer (Part I)
• Chapter 10. The IEEE 802.16m Physical Layer (Part II)
• Chapter 11. Multi-Carrier Operation
• Chapter 12. Performance of IEEE 802.16m and 3GPP LTE-Advanced
• Index