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Imparting Knowledge. Inculcating values.
Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering

EC6014 COGNITIVE RADIO

PART – A (2 Marks)

1. Define Spectral Efficiency

Spectral efficiency represents the amount of information transferred in a given channel and it is
measured in bits per second per Hertz (bps/Hz).

k = number of bits per symbol

Rs = symbol rate (sps)
B = bandwidth

2. What is Throughput?
Throughput is a measure of the amount of good information received. It represents the
percentage of successful data transmitted without any errors. This definition distinguishes
throughput from data rate in that data rate is simply a measure of the rate data arrives with no
consideration for transmission errors.

3. Define Doppler shift

Due to the relative motion between the mobile and the base station, each multipath wave
experiences a shift in frequency. The shift in received signal frequency due to motion is called
the Doppler shift. It is directly proportional to the velocity and direction of motion of the mobile
with respect to the direction of arrival of the received multipath wave.

4. What is Excess delay spread?

The maximum excess delay (X dB) of the power delay profile is defined to be the time delay
during which multipath energy falls to X dB below the maximum.(i.e) The maximum excess
delay is defined as Tx- T0 , where t0 is the first arriving signal and Tx is the maximum delay at
which a multipath component is within X dB of the strongest arriving multipath signal

5. Write about selectivity of a radio channel.

The received signal has multiple versions of the transmitted waveform which are faded
differently. Even if some part of the transmit spectrum is strongly attenuated, there are other
 frequencies do not suffer from attenuation. Hence the interference effects are selective for
particular frequency.
6. Write notes on Mobility Management
The aim of mobility management is to track where the subscribers are, allowing calls, SMS and
other mobile phone services to be delivered to them. Roaming is one of the fundamental mobility
management procedures
Introduction of additional services and applications into cognitive wireless networks will worsen
the mobility issues. Consequently, the system capacity and implementation cost can be affected
by these issues. Therefore, it is desirable to develop an accurate mobility model during the
network planning phase.

7. Why Machine-readable policy-controlled radios are necessary

Machine-readable policy-controlled radios are attractive for several reasons.
The policy-driven approach is attractive because spatially variant or even temporally variant
regulations may be deployed.
The deployment may be controlled to a few radios on an experimental basis, so it is possible to
assess the observation and measurement of the behaviors. If the result is undesirable, the policies
may be removed quickly.
When a radio is used in one country, it is subject to that country’s regulations, and when the user
carries it to a new country, the policy may be reloaded to comply in the new jurisdiction.
If a band is available for use during a certain period but not during another, a machine-readable
policy can realize that behavior.

8. What are the issues for communication between network and handsets?
If the network wants to ask today’s handsets any query we have two issues,
The network has no standard language with which to pose such a question.
The handset has the answer in the structure internally, but it cannot access this information. It has
no computationally accessible description of its own structure. Thus, it does not “know that it
knows.”
9. What are the awareness of Cognitive radio?
Location Awareness
Environment Awareness
Spectrum Awareness
10. How is a cognitive radio Applications are Different from Other Radios?
Conventional
S. No Software Radio Cognitive Radio
Radio

Dynamically support
Supports a fixed Can create new waveforms
1 multiple variable systems,
number of systems on its own
protocols and interfaces
 Reconfigurability
Interface with diverse Can negotiate new
2 decided at the time
systems interfaces
of design
May support Adjusts operations to meet
multiple services, Provide a wide range of the QoS required by the
3
but chosen at the services with variable QoS application for the signal
time of design environment

11. How a cognitive radio design is Different from Other Radios?

Conventional
Software Radio Cognitive Radio
Radio

Conventional Radio + SDR +

Software Architecture Intelligence

Traditional RF Design
Reconfigurability Awareness
Traditional Baseband Design Learning
Provisions for easy upgrades
Observation

12. From position and time what a radio can infer?

From position and time, a radio can:
• Calculate the antenna pointing angle that best connects to another member of the network;
• Transmitpacket on the air so that it arrives at the receiver of another network member at
precisely the proper time slot to minimize interference with other users;
• Guide its user in his or her daily tasks to help achieve the user’s objectives
13. What is Software-Defined Radio?

Software-defined radio (SDR) is a radio communication system where components that have
been typically implemented in hardware are instead implemented by means of software on a
personal computer or embedded system. It is used to implement radio functions such as
generation of transmitted signal (modulation) at transmitter and tuning/detection of received
radio signal (demodulation) at receiver. The same piece of hardware can perform different
functions at different times.

14. Evolution of Software-Defined Radio

1992 – Joseph Mitola III envisioned a very different kind of digital radio that could be
reconfigured in fundamental ways just by changing the software code running on it.
Mid-1990s - U.S. military’s SPEAKeasy I and SPEAKeasy II radios, which allowed units from
different branches of armed forces to communicate irrespective of the underlying architecture.
1996 - Creation of the SDR Forum - The first industry association dedicated to SDR was
founded in 1996 as “The Modular Multifunction Information Transfer System (MMITS)
Forum.” In 1998 it became the SDR Forum, and then in 2010, the Wireless Innovation Forum.
 2005 - Vanu Inc., a U.S.-based company introduced AnywaveTM GSM base station, which runs
on a general-purpose processing platform and provides a software implementation of the BTS
(base transceiver station), BSC (base station controller), and TRAU (transcoder and rate
adaptation unit) modules of the BSS (base station subsystem). It supports GSM and can be
upgraded to GPRS and Edge.

15. What are the General Components of SDR?

Programmable gate arrays
Digital Signal processors
General processors
An antenna
A digital to analog converter and an analog to digital converter

16. What are the tradeoffs required in SDR?

Antenna Tradeoffs
RF and IF Processing Tradeoffs
Interference Suppression
RF MEMS
Digital Architectures
17. List out the potential benefits of SDR.
Multi functionality
Global mobility
Compactness and power efficiency-
Ease of manufacture
Ease of upgrades

18. Why cognitive radio was introduced?

Incompatible wireless network technologies in different countries are hindering the deployment
of global roaming facilities. Handsets with limited hardware capabilities are also delaying in
rolling-out new services/features.The concept of integrated seamless global coverage requires
that the radio support two distinct features:
a) Global roaming or seamless coverage across geographical regions; Multimode phones that can
switch between different cellular standards like IS-95 and Global System Mobile (GSM)
b) Interfacing with different systems and standards to provide seamless services at a fixed location.
(Bluetooth or IEEE 802.11 networks)
19. Discuss about Java Virtual Machine (JVM).
The Java Virtual Machine (JVM) defines a general purpose computing engine that hides the
details of the computer’s native Instruction Set Architecture (ISA) resulting in a platform-
independent Internet applications language.

20. What are the Advantages of MEMS?

1. Can reduce the size, weight, power consumption and component counts.
2. Superior performance.
3. Can be built with low cost, mass production and high reliability.
4. New functionality and system capability.
21. Differentiate DSPs and FPGAs
DSP- DSPs are somewhat different than GPPs. The DSP internal architecture is optimized to be
able to perform multiply accumulates very fast. This means they have one or more multipliers
and one or more accumulators in hardware.
• Currently, DSPs are available that can perform fractional mathematics (integer) multiply
accumulate instructions at rates of 1 GHz, and floating point multiply accumulates at 600 MHz.
FPGA- FPGAs have recently become capable of providing tremendous amounts of multiply
accumulate operations on a single chip, surpassing DSPs.
FPGAs can also provide the timing logic to synthesize clocks, baud rate, chip rate, time slot, and
frame timing, thus leading to a reasonably compact waveform implementation

22. Discuss about PowerPC

This class of processor is readily programmed in standard C or C++ language,
• It supports a very wide variety of addressing modes, floating point and integer computation,
and a large memory space
• It has multiple levels of on-chip and off-chip cache memory

23. Define spectrum pooling?

The unused spectrum of primary user can be used by secondary users for high-speed wireless
communications while simultaneously ensuring that the primary user's rights are not violated.
This idea of using multiple noncontiguous portions of spectrum is referred to as spectrum
pooling.
24. Define binding in Observe-phase data Structures
Binding associates specific stimuli in the scene with related internalized stimulus-
experience-response sets that are abstractions of prior scenes. When identical items (stimuli or
responses) are bound inascene,they form conceptual anchors. Dissimilar items may participate in
a variable value relationship, where one acts as a label for the other (for corresponding but
dissimilar- match binding)
 Part B

1. Explain about Artificial Intelligence Techniques

Artificial Intelligence Techniques
a) Neural Networks
b) Hidden Markov Models (HMM)
c) Fuzzy Logic
d) Evolutionary Algorithms
e) Case-Based Reasoning
Neural Networks
Neural networks are among the oldest form of AI in computer science, starting with the
mathematical formulation by McCulloch and Pitts. They have come and gone as a fad over the
decades, but recent advances, both hardware and software, enable their use in more applications.
Of particular importance to cognitive radios, neural networks provide a means for signal and
modulation detection and classification. Chan, et al. did some of the early published work on
signal classification algorithms with decision theoretic and pattern matching. Both methods used
time based statistics, and neither proved too robust under low SNR conditions. Azzouz and
Nandi then did some important work on the subject later and did some of the early work using
neural networks as the signal processing technique of choice that showed greater promise in
classification of more signals under noisier conditions. The use of neural networks in modulation
classification has since become as well-accepted technique using both time-based statistics and
frequency analysis inputs. Neural networks are really just glorified signal processing elements
that perform simple operations on data. However, the collection of artificial neurons and clever
learning algorithms allow networks to build and adapt to represent and process data in interesting
ways. In signal classification, they take multiple noisy input items and provide highly accurate
(when built correctly) answers to the type of modulation represented.

Hidden Markov Models (HMM)

In some circles, Hidden Markov Models (HMM) might be considered artificial
intelligence, though I certainly would not categorize them as such. A HMM is a processing tool
that uses past data to help predict future actions. I discuss them here because they are useful in
communications and cognitive radios, and while this section is all about AI techniques, there is
no other place to put this. The best reference to learn about how HMMs work is Rabiner's
tutorial. Channel modeling has extensively used Markov models in research. Probably the most
famous is the two-state Gilbert-Elliot model that describes a channel as in either a good state or
bad. When in one state, there is a probability of either staying in that state or moving to the other
state. The channel properties determine the type of transition probabilities. Researchers have
developed other, more extensive models, and provide a good comprehensive overview of these.
The idea of developing such a model lends itself to cognitive radios. Rieser and I looked into
using HMM's in channel models using genetic algorithms as the training method over the Baum-
Welch algorithm in order to develop compact channel models based on information gathered in a
live system to represent the current channel statistics. The idea was to use the HMMs as a sensor
to understand the channel behavior in a cognitive engine, though the research was not taken
much farther in this direction. Mohammad's work used HMMs for a similar purpose, but was
able to develop classification schemes in order to use the models for decision making in a
cellular network. The ability he developed to calculate a similarity distance between HMMs
provides promise for future implementation in a cognitive radio system
Fuzzy Logic
Fuzzy logic is a famous technique that started during the early development of artificial
intelligence. Because it deals extensively with uncertainty in decisionmaking and analysis, it has
great potential for application to cognitive radio. However, only a little work has so far been
published in the field, notably by Baldo andZorzi . Their implementation suggests some
interesting applications, and the discussionpoints out larger uses than the specific application of
adapting the TCP layerused in the paper. A problematic aspect of this work is the amount of
domain-specificrules required. All implementations of AI require domain information, but fuzzy
logicmust establish a rule related to the specific situation in which it is used and recallssome of
the limitations of expert systems, though still far more flexible and powerful.Fuzzy logic has
potential in either specific problem solving areas or as a subset orpart of a cognitive radio.

Evolutionary Algorithms
Christian Rieser and I pioneered the use of genetic algorithms early in cognitiveradio
research which this work extends. The basic principles, asdiscussed throughout, are that the large
search space involved in optimizing a radioare more complex than many search and optimization
algorithms can handle. Amongthose algorithms that are suited to the task, evolutionary,
specifically genetic, algorithmsoffer a significant amount of power and flexibility. Cognitive
radios are likely toface dynamic environments and situations as well as radio upgrades due to
advancingtechnology, so genetic algorithms are particularly applicable.Since then, Newman, has
contributed significantly to the useof genetic algorithms for cognitive radios. Newman's work
has developeda single, linear objective function to combine the objectives of BER
minimization,power minimization, and throughput. The topic of their research discusses the use
of a cognitive resource manager(CRM) to select an algorithm from a toolbox of algorithms to
solve a particularproblem. The paper specifically points out the use of genetic algorithms for
multidimensionalproblem analysis.

Case-Based Reasoning
The final traditional AI technique to discuss here is case-based reasoning (CBR). CBR
systems use past knowledge to learn and improve future actions. In these systems, a case-base
stores actions and receives inputs from a sensor. Those inputshelp find the action in the case-base
that best fits the information received by thesensor. As mentioned previously, an optimization
routine could, instead of designinga new waveform, select a waveform from a pre-defined list.
CBR is a method used tomake the associations. Although this may sound like an expert system,
CBR systemsgenerally provide learning and feedback to continuously and autonomously
improvetheir performance. As information is received and actions taken, the results can helpthe
system improve its response the next time.Another contribution from develops a similar idea in
the experiments theyrun using previous knowledge to seed the next run of the genetic algorithm.
Thecognitive radio remembers solutions found for one particular problem to apply to thenext
problem to initialize the population with known successful chromosomes. Their seeding concept
uses a factor to calculate the expected changein the environment between runs of the genetic
algorithm to provide context for howsuccessful a new chromosome might be with respect to the
new environment.
2. With neat diagram explain the sensing process.
Cognitive radio is one of the most promising technologies to realize advanced and
autonomouslocation and environment awareness capabilities in wireless systems. The cognitive
radioarchitecture with location, environment, and spectrum awareness capabilities shown in Fig.
isconsidered as the main system model. The proposed model consists of fourengines:

Cognitive engine,
Spectrum awareness engine,
Location awareness engine,
Environment awareness engine.

In this architecture, cognitive engine is the main engine that supervises the other engines
in order toaccomplish goal driven and autonomous tasks. The main responsibility of spectrum
awareness engineis to handle all the tasks related to dynamic spectrum (e.g., acquiring available
bands, corresponding carrier frequencies, and bandwidths). Similarly, environment awareness
engine is responsible formanaging environment information (e.g., number of paths,
corresponding path delays and coefficients). In addition, the main responsibility of location
awareness engine is to handle all the tasksrelated to location information. Cognitive engine
determines the optimal system parameters forachieving autonomous task using the information
collected from the engines that are participated.Cognitive engine generates signal with the
specified parameters using the adaptive waveform generator as well as the sensing interface in
order to interact with surrounding environment. Note that adaptive waveform
generator/processor ideally is an interface that can generate and process any typeof waveform at
the transmitter and receiver sides, respectively. Antennas are the only sensing interface in
conventional wireless systems to interact with the surrounding environment. The
informationacquired from the surrounding environment using only antennas can be inadequate.
On the otherhand, cognitive radio has an advanced sensing interface that consists of different
sensing systemssuch as radiosensing, radiovision, and radiohearing. These sensing systems are
utilized collectively orindividually to acquire and learn comprehensive knowledge from the
surrounding environment.
The development of location awareness engine in the proposed cognitive radio architecture is
thefocus of this dissertation, which is only emphasized further. The remainder functionalities of
theproposed cognitive radio architecture are active research areas.
3. Neatly explain the Functional model of a software radio node

Technology advances are enhancing the physical-layer flexibility of wireless devices.

Multiband antenna and radiofrequency(RF)technology,nowenableaccess to more than one RF
band at once. The Channel Set therefore includes multiple RF bands. Personal Communications
System (PCS) base stations and mobile military radios can also use fiber andcable, also
included in the channel set
The Channel Set includes multiple RF bands for different technologies.
RF/ Channel Access have smart antennas which can work in different bands of spectrum.
Channel coding includes programmable RF/ Channel Access, IF Processing, and Modem.
IF Processing may include filtering, further frequency translation; joint space-time equalization,
integration of space diversity, polarization or frequency diversity channels, digital
beamforming and smart antennas. At very high (gigahertz) frequencies, signal processing
circuitry performs poorly. Active devices such as transistors cannot deliver much amplification.
So a high frequency signal is converted to a lower IF for more convenient processing.
Intermediate frequency improves frequency selectivity.
Equalization is used to nullify the effects of ISI incurred by a signal transmitted through a
channel.
Diversity is a method for improving the reliability of a message signal by using two or more
communication channels with different characteristics. Beamforming or spatial filtering is a
signal processing technique used in sensor arrays for directional signal transmission or
reception. Bitstream processing has Forward Error Control (FEC)
Information Security (INFOSEC) is used for optional encryption & decryption For example,
authentication reduces fraud, and stream enciphering ensures privacy.IN- FOSEC may be null
for some applications. Thesourceset may include voice, data, facsimile, videoandmultimedia.
Some sources are physically remotefrom
theradionode,e.g.connectedviatheSynchronousDigitalHierarchy(SDH),aLocalAreaNetwork(LA
N) orothernetworkthroughService&NetworkSupport.
Service & Network Support helps in overcoming issues. Modem will generate multiple air
interface RF channel modulator-demodulator. Waveforms may be in different bands and may
span multiple bands. Joint Control implements all these functions using digital techniques in
 multithreaded multiprocessor software. Joint control assures system stability, error recovery,
and isochronous streaming of voice and video. Joint Control may evolve towards autonomous
selection of band, mode, and data format. A software radio can download new personalities.
Waveforms may be in different bands and may span multiple bands. Each combination of band
and mode is one of multiple personalities
In an SDR transmitter, baseband signals are transformed into sampled channel waveforms via
channel modem functions implemented in software that drives high performance DACs.
These signals may be pre emphasized or non-linearly pre-coded by the IF processing software.

4. What are the Technology Tradeoffs for SDR

a) Antenna Tradeoffs
b) RF and IF Processing Tradeoffs
c) Interference Suppression
d) RF MEMS
e) Digital Architectures

a) Antenna Tradeoffs
Flexible antennas, RF hardware, and IF processing is a major technology challenge for
software radio. Optimum analog performance requires resonantnarrow- band antennas. This
results in multiple parallel antenna/ RF-conversionchannels.
Inthisexample,aPersonalDigitalAssistant(PDA)accessesfirstgeneration(1G)cellular(AMPS),2G
digital cellular(PCS),or3Gwaveformsinthe1Gor2Gbands. For location-aware services, it has a
GPS receiver. It also uses the corporate wireless LAN (WLAN). One could fabricate such a
PDA with 4 parallel RF-ASIC channels, a commodity GPS chip and a future low cost
Bluetooth-class wireless local interconnect.

Thebroadbandapproachofsimplifiesthe antenna and RF to two parallel channels, reducing parts

count. Figure c shows a unitary wideband channel. The antenna response is not uniform across
such a broad RF range. High performance in multiple RF bands drives one towards
parallelnarrowband channels. This can be an effective approach if cost is not at issue.
Transmission efficiency and impedance matching is more challenging as bandwidth increases.
Since antennas, RF conversion, IF processing and the ADC can account for over 60% of the
manufacturing cost of an SDR, reducing the number of RF channels may be a significant design
goal.
Anticipating the Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS) program of the US DoD, SPEAKeasy
attempted to realize a unitary antenna. The RF range extended from 2 MHz to 2 GHz, a ratio of
1000:1or3decades.Thisrequiresatechnologybreak- through, since the maximum relative-
bandwidths of well-established designs are at most 10:1, one decade. Through in-depth
technology tradeoffs, it was deter- mined that at least 3 bands were needed. SPEAKeasy
bandswere:1)2–30MHz;2)30–400MHz;and3)0.4 to 2 GHz. Band 2 was implemented
inSPEAKeasy. Bands 1 and 2 were implemented inSPEAKeasy

b) RF and IF Processing Tradeoffs

RF tradeoffs minimize artifacts withinconstraints.

The second tradeoff concerns RF and IF conversion.
Thetransmittermayrequirebothlinearoperation(e.g. for QAM waveforms) and non-linear
operation (e.g. class-C amplifier for high power efficiency with FSK or PSKwaveforms).
Single-channel receivers may non-linearly distort the waveform, e.g. in a direct-
conversion architecture . Multi-channel receivers (e.g. for cell sites), how- ever, must provide
linear response for the strongest and weakest subscriber signals (“near-far ratio,” typically 90
dB). The RF and IF conversion linearity and dynamic range must match the ADC and
Automatic Gain Control (AGC), and must support digital filtering and signal enhancement
algorithms. The goal of this tradeoff is to balance the noise, spurious
components,intermodulationproducts,andartifactsasillustrated in Fig. 5. The noise floor is
determined by the totalbandwidth(e.g.ininterference-limitedbandsbe- low 400 MHz), or by the
Low Noise Amplifier (LNA)
Spurious responses and Local Oscillator(LO) leakage sometimes can mask subscriber signals.
LO leakage is problematic in homodyne receivers.Aconservativedesignkeepsthepeakenergyof
all noise, spurs, and artifacts at about half of the Least Significant Bit (LSB) of the wideband
ADC.

c) Interference Suppression

Antenna separation, frequency separation, programmable analog notch filters, and active
cancellation suppress interference at the RFstage. A programmable interference suppression
filter is illustrated in Fig. 6. The filter is called a roofing filter because the
interferencesetsthemaximumlinearlyprocess ablesignallevel (“roof”), while the dynamic range
sets the minimum (“floor”).

Workable situation for roofingfilter.

Without the roofing filter, the roof of thedynamic range is so high that weak signals fall
below the floor, resulting in dropped calls. With the filter, the roof is low so that the dynamic
range reaches the noise floor. Roofing filters need low insertion loss(<0.5dB), programmable
center frequency, and programmable band-width. Amplitude and phase ripple must be near zero
to avoid distorting subscriber signals. If there are more than four interference signals, the
roofing filters typically introduce excessive distortion.
Active cancellation is the process of introducing a replica of the transmitted signal into the
receiver so that it may be coherently subtracted from the input signal.
Wideband antennas and RF exacerbate interference. SDR algorithms can contribute to
interference suppression. For example, a table of constraints may
limitcombinationsofwaveformstoawell-behavedsub- set. The constraint table specifies
parameter limits on power, frequency, data rate, and number of simultaneous channels
supported. The SDR monitors mutual constraint satisfaction to minimize self-generated
interference.

d) RFMEMS

Most RF integrated circuits require off-chip resonators, inductors, and capacitors. Each discrete
device in- creases the cost of production manufacturing, which is nearly a linear function of the
number of parts (not cost per part). RF MEMS replaces these with on-chip 3D structures. For
example, MIT developed a VLSI- compatible sealed cavity thin-filmresonator (TFR) using
piezoelectricfilms. TFRs exhibita1.36GHz fundamental longitudinal resonance with a 3.5 dB
insertion loss and Q of 80,000 in 250 square microns. The
deviceissixordersofmagnitudesmallerthandiscrete-
componentcircuits.WidebandRFMEMSinGaAsand CMOSmaybeinproductionby2001–2003.
MEMS RF switches are an electromechanical
alternativetoPINdiodeswitchingcircuits(neededtoselect RF path), substantially reducing size,
weight, and power while improving performance. MEMS switches and tunable capacitors
operate up to 40 GHz. In antennainterfaceunitsforairbornesystems,theyreduce.

High performance MEMS switchfabric.

Size by 1000:1 and power by 10,000:1 while improving off isolation. Continuing research in
MEMS switch-arrays targets a 1Gbps data rate reconfigurable in 100 ns, a prototype of which
is illustrated in Fig. 7. Such components reduce the RF/IF devicesize,
enablingmultibandPDAsasanSDR-deliveryplatform.

e) DigitalArchitectures

An illustrative organization of DSP components for high performance SDR is shown in Fig. 8.
This abstraction may be used as a reference platform in that it specifies functional groupings
and interfaces butnot design.
Many possible signal flows may be implemented on such a hardware suite. In an N-
element array, the channel isolation filters extract channels for each of K subscribers on each
of N elements. Algorithms in the DSP pool form beams. They also extract first-stage soft-
decision parameters. Channels with low Carrier to Interference Ratio (CIR) are thus identified.
Their bulk-delayed signals may be isolated for sequentialinterference cancellation, which also
is performed inthe DSP pool. This pool provides the processors for modulation and pre-
distortion, including beamformingfor transmission[25].Switchingfunctionsemploythelow-
speedbus.
Matrix inversion for smart antennassubstantially increases the processing requirements,
but yields improved performance. Consequently, many techniques have been investigated to
 reduce the computational burden of optimal algorithms, or to enhance the cancellation
capability of simpler algorithms.

5. What are the Architecture Implications of a software defined radio

Software functions may be organized into real-time objects. The hosting of these objects onto the
complex SDR operating environment requires architecture analysis.
a) Architecture: Definition and Goals
b) Layering and Virtual Machines
c) Object-Oriented Analysis
a) Architecture: Definition and Goals
Because of the open-ended nature of radio services and technology, architecture must support
the evolution of new services, software, and hardware platforms. In addition, architectures
should support enterprise-level component reuse. Industry-wide component reuse is called “plug-
and-play.” In an architecture that sup- ports plug-and-play, the functional partitioning,
component interfaces, and related design rules ensure that hardware and software modules from
different suppliers work together when plugged into an existing sys- tem. Hardware modules
require physical and logical interfaces that are compatible with the host hardware platform.
Software modules require a comprehensive but simple interface to the software-operating
environment. A module that offers its description to this environment may be integrated as a
resource.
b) Layering and Virtual Machines
Protocol layering is a well-established method of achieving some of the goals of radio
architecture. Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) maps internet applications to the limited
data rate, connectivity, computation, and display limitations of cellular radio handsets. WAP
therefore is an interface layer between applications and the radio platform. Access to the
underlying platform is limited. The Java Virtual Machine (JVM) defines a general purpose
computing engine that hides the details of the computer’s native Instruction Set Architecture
(ISA) resulting in a platform-independent Internet applications language. Java, however, cannot
access the underlying radio communications capabilities of a handset or PDA. It has no
primitives to modulate a sine wave or tune a receiver. These are not yet elements of the JVM,
therefore one might use Java’s Native Interface (JNI) with radio-specific enhancements.

c) Object–Oriented Analysis
Object–Oriented Analysis (OOA) is the procedure of identifying software engineering
requirements and developing software specifications in terms of a software system’s object
model, which comprises of interacting objects. Object-oriented analysis is a process that groups
items that interact with one another, typically by class, data or behavior, to create a model that
accurately represents the intended purpose of the system as a whole. WAP is tailored to wireless
but not suited to integrating heterogeneous radio applications like a modem object and an IF
Filter object. Hence an encapsulated FPGA, or ASIC can be used. The Common Object Request
Broker Architecture (CORBA) and Interface Definition Language (IDL) can be an efficient
interfaces among software objects. The SDR Forum adopted CORBA as its middleware
6. Explain the each components and its functionality of xG network architecture

XG Network architecture

Today’s wireless networks are regulated by a fixed spectrum assignment policy the
spectrum is regulated by governmental agencies; the spectrum is assignment to license holders or
services on a long term basis for large geographical regions.
According to FCC, temporal and geographical variations in the utilization of the assigned
spectrum range from 15% to 85%. Problem of the fixed spectrum management Some bands were
allocated to services which have not been utilized at all, but it has been just left unused over a
decade (e.g. ERMES paging system, TFTS in-flight phone) Unbalanced allocation due to miss-
prediction of the demand (e.g. limited band for 3G system).
Difficulty for new applications/services to gain access
The limited available spectrum and the inefficiency in the spectrum usage necessitate a new
communication paradigm to exploit the existing wireless spectrum opportunistically. Dynamic
spectrum access is proposed to solve the spectrum inefficiency problems. DARPAs approach on
Dynamic Spectrum Access network, the so-called NeXt Generation (xG) program aims to
implement the policy based intelligent radios know as cognitive radios.
The inefficient usage of the existing spectrum can be improved through opportunistic
access to the licensed bands without interfering with the existing users. The key enabling
technology of xG networks is the cognitive radio (CR).
Cognitive radio techniques provide the capability to use or share the spectrum in an opportunistic
manner. Dynamic spectrum access techniques allow the cognitive radio to operate in the best
available channel.

The main functions for cognitive radios in xG networks:

Spectrum sensing - Detecting unused spectrum and sharing the spectrum without harmful
interference with other users
Spectrum management - Capturing the best available spectrum to meet user communication
requirements
Spectrum mobility - Maintaining seamless communication requirements during the transition to
better spectrum
Spectrum sharing - Providing the fair spectrum scheduling method among coexisting xG users
Limitations
The wideband RF antenna receives signals from various transmitters operating at different power
levels, bandwidths, and locations.
The RF front-end should have the capability to detect a weak signal in a large dynamic range.
The capability requires a multi-GHz speed A/D converter with high resolution, which might be
infeasible.
Solutions
Reduction of dynamic range of the signal, e.g., tunable notch filters
Multiple antennas such that signal filtering is performed in the spatial domain rather than
frequency domain, e.g., beamforming.
The xG Network Architecture
Primary Network
An existing network infrastructure is generally referred to as the primary network, which
has an exclusive right to a certain spectrum band.
Primary user
Primary base-station
The primary base-station does not have any xG capability for sharing spectrum with xG
users.
The primary base-station may be requested to have both legacy and xG protocols for the
primary network access of xG users.
xG Network
xG network (cognitive radio network, Dynamic Spectrum Access network, secondary
network, unlicensed network) does not have license to operate in a desired band.
The spectrum access is allowed only in an opportunistic manner.
xG users
xG base-station provides single hop connection to xG users without spectrum access license
Spectrum broker can be connected to each network and can serve as a spectrum information
manager to enable coexistence of multiple xG networks

xG network access
xG users can access their own xG base-station both on licensed and unlicensed spectrum bands.
xG ad hoc access
xG users can communicate with other xG users through ad hoc connection on both licensed and
unlicensed spectrum bands.
Primary network access
The xG users can also access the primary base-station through the licensed band.
xG networks is deployed to exploit the spectrum holes through cognitive communication
techniques.

The challenges is due to the existence of the primary users. the detection of the presence of
primary users. the interference avoidance with primary users
The channel capacity if the spectrum holes depends on the interference at the nearby primary
users.

Spectrum handoff
If primary users appear in the spectrum band occupied by xG users, xG users should vacate the
current spectrum band and move to the new available spectrum immediately.
Open spectrum policy has caused an impressive variety of important technologies and innovative
uses.
However, due to the interference among multiple heterogeneous network, the spectrum
efficiency of ISM band is decreasing.
xG networks can be designed for operation on unlicensed bands such that the efficiency is
improved in this portion of spectrum.
Intelligent spectrum sharing algorithm can improve the efficiency of spectrum usage and support
high QoS.
xG uses focus on detecting the transmissions of other xG users.
All xG users have the same right to access the spectrum
No spectrum handoff is triggered by the appearance of other primary users
If multiple xG network operators reside in the same unlicensed band, fair spectrum sharing
among these networks is also required.
7. What are challenges and requirements of spectrum sensing? Explain
Spectrum Sensing
The most efficient way to detect spectrum holes is Spectrum Sensing to detect the primary users
that are receiving data within the communication range of an xG user.
In reality, however, it is difficult for a cognitive radio to have a direct measurement of a channel
between a primary receiver and a transmitter.
Thus, the most recent work focuses on primary transmitter detection based on local observations
of xG users.

Classification of Spectrum Sensing Techniques

Spectrum Sensing Challenges

Interference temperature measurement

There exists no practical way for a CR to measure or estimate the interference temperature at
nearby primary receivers.
Primary receivers are usually passive devices
Spectrum sensing in multi-user networks
Current interference model do not consider the effect of multiple xG users
Detection capability
Detect the primary users in a very short time.

Spectrum Management
Since xG networks should decide on the best spectrum band to meet the QoS requirements over
all spectrum bands, new spectrum management functions are required for xG networks
considering the dynamic spectrum characteristics

Functions of spectrum management

Spectrum sensing
Spectrum analysis
Spectrum decision
Spectrum Analysis
The available spectrum holes show different characteristics which vary over time.Spectrum
analysis enables the characterization of different spectrum bands, which can be exploited to get
the spectrum band appropriate to the user requirements.In order to describe the dynamic nature
of xG networks, each spectrum hole should be characterized considering not only time-varying
radio environment and but also the primary user activity and the spectrum band information.

Interference
From the amount of the interference at the primary receiver, the permission power of an xG user
can be derived, which is used for the estimation of the channel capacity. Path loss - The path loss
increases as the operating frequency increases.Therefore, if the transmission power of an xG user
remains the same, the its transmission range decreases at higher frequencies.

Wireless link errors

Depending on the modulation scheme and the interference level of the spectrum band
Link layer delay- To address different path loss, wireless link error, and interference, different
types of link layer protocols are required at different spectrum bands.
results in different link layer packet transmission delay
Holding time - refers to the expected time duration that the xG user can occupy a licensed band
before getting interrupted.
The longer the holding time, the better the quality would be.
Spectrum Management Challenges
Decision model - how to combine these spectrum characterization parameters for the spectrum
decision model

Multiple spectrum band decision

The multi-spectrum transmission shows less quality degradation during the spectrum
handoff. Transmission in multiple spectrum bands allows lower power to be used in each
spectrum band. As a result, less interference with primary users is achieved. How to determine
the number of spectrum bands and how to select the set of appropriate bands. Cooperation with
reconfiguration
The CR technology enables the transmission parameters of a radio to be reconfigured for optimal
operation in a certain spectrum band.
For example, if SNR is fixed, the bet error rate can be adjusted to maintain the channel capacity
by exploiting adaptive modulation techniques.
Spectrum decision over heterogeneous spectrum bands
In licensed bands
Consider the activities of primary users in spectrum analysis and decision in order not to
influence the primary users’ transmission.
All the xG users have the same access rights, sophisticated spectrum sharing techniques are
necessary.

Spectrum Mobility
xG networks target to use the spectrum in a dynamic manner by allowing CR to operate
in the best available frequency band. Spectrum mobility is defined as the process when an xG
users changes its frequency of operation. Spectrum mobility arises when current channel
conditions become worse or a primary user appears. Each time an xG user changes its frequency
of operation, the network protocols are going to shift from one mode of operation to another.
The purpose of spectrum mobility management in xG networks is to make sure that such
transitions are made smoothly and as soon as possible. The applications running on an xG users
perceive minimum performance degradation during a spectrum handoff.

Spectrum Mobility Challenges

Algorithms are required to decide the best available spectrum based on the channel
characteristics of the available spectrum and the QoS requirements of the applications.
Design new mobility and connection management approaches to reduce delay and loss during
spectrum handoff. Novel algorithms are required to ensure that applications do not suffer from
severe performance degradation during the transitions. Inter-cell handoff and vertical handoff ,
Spectrum mobility in time domain. The available channels change over time, enabling QoS in
this environment is challenging. Spectrum mobility in space. The available bands also changes as
a user moves from one place to another. Continuous allocation of spectrum is a major challenge.

Spectrum Sharing
Spectrum sharing can be regarded to be similar to generic medium access control (MAC)
problems in the existing systems. The coexistence with licensed users and the wide range of
available spectrum are two of the main reasons from the unique challenges.
Spectrum sensing
Spectrum allocation
The allocation not only depends on spectrum availability, but it is also determined based on
internal (and possible external) policies.
Spectrum access
The access should be coordinated in order to prevent multiple users colliding in overlapping
portions of the spectrum.
Transmitter-receiver handshake
Spectrum mobility

Classification of Spectrum Sharing

Inter-network Spectrum Sharing

Centralized approaches
Common Spectrum Coordination Channel (CSCC) etiquette protocol for coexistence of IEEE
802.11b and 802.16a
Spectrum policy server
Each operator bids for the spectrum indicating the cost it will pay for the duration of the usage.
The SPS then allocates the spectrum by maximizing its profit from these bids
Distributed approaches
Distributed QoS based Dynamic Channel Reservation (D-QDCR)
A base station of a WISP competes with its interfere BSs according to the QoS requirements of
its users to allocate a portion of the spectrum.
Intra-network Spectrum Sharing
Cooperative approaches Local bargaining (LB) to ensure a minimum spectrum allocation to each
user and hence focuses on fairness of users Dynamic open spectrum sharing MAC (DOSS-MAC.
When a node is using a specific data channel for communication, both the transmitter and the
receiver send a busy tone signal through the associated busy tone channel.
Non-cooperative approaches
Device centric spectrum management (DCSM)
The communication overhead is minimized by providing five different system rules for spectrum
allocation.