Unit – 1

Introduction to Mobile Computing

Kartik Detroja
Government Polytechnic Porbandar
Data vs Information

Data Data Data

Processing

Information
MOBILE COMPUTING
Mobile Computing
• A computing environment over physical
mobility
• User of Mobile Computing Environment will
be able to access Data/Information from
any device in any network while on the
move.
• Public, Corporate and Personal Spaces
• Various Range of devices from Mobile,
Laptop, desktop etc.
• To make it ubiquitous – communication
over wired and wireless channels
Mobile Computing.. AKA
• Mobile Computing
• Anywhere, Anytime Information
• Virtual Home Environment (VHE)
• Nomadic Computing
• Pervasive Computing
• Ubiquitous Computing
• Global Service Portability
• Wearable Computers
Mobile Computing Functions
• User with Device
– Laptop, Desktop, Mobile, Fixed phone, TV etc.
• Network
– GSM, CDMA, Ethernet, WLAN, Bluetooth etc.
• Gateway
– To interface different bearers.
– E.g. IVR Gateway, WAP Gateway, SMS Gateway etc.
• Middleware
– Presentation and Rendering of content on a
particular device.
– Security and Personalization for user.
• Content
– Server content: Application, System or service.
Mobile Computing Characteristic

• User Portability
• Network Portability
• Bearer Portability
• Device Mobility
• Session Mobility
• Service Mobility
Radio Transmission Technology
• Simplex System
– E.g. Pager
• Half Duplex System
– E.g. Walkie-talkie
• Full Duplex System
– E.g. Mobile communication
– Methods:
• Frequency Division Duplex (FDD)
• Time Division Duplex (TDD)
Communication
• Wired
– Twisted Pair
– Coaxial Cable
– Ethernet
– Optical Fiber
• Wireless
– Wi-Fi
– Bluetooth
– Zigbee
– Li-Fi
– Satellite
MOBILE COMMUNICATION
Mobile Communication
• A wireless form of communication in which
voice and data information is transmitted
and received via microwaves.

• This type of communication allows user to

converse with one another and/or transmit
and receive data while moving from place to
place.

• E.g. Cellular, Digital cordless telephones,

pagers, air to ground communications and
satellite communications.
Mobile phone or Cell phone
• Mobile phone or Cell phone is a long-
range portable electronics device used
for mobile communication.
• In addition to standard voice function of
a telephone, current mobile phone support
many additional services such as SMS for
text messaging, email, packet switching
for access to the Internet, MMS for
sending and receiving photos and videos.
• Current mobile phones connects to a
cellular network of base stations, which
is in turn interconnected to the public
switched telephone network.
Mobile Communication Concepts
Features of Cell phones
• It doesn’t use a wired
communication.
• Cellular phone network uses a number
of short-range radio transmitter
receivers to communicate.
• The wireless network is connected to
the public telephone system, another
wireless carrier network of the
internet for completing calls to
another phone or to a computer.
Inside a Cell phone
• Microphone
• Speaker
• Display
• Keyboard
• Antenna
• Battery
• Circuit board
Cell phone Applications
• Voice call
• Voice mail
• Email
• Messaging
• Gaming
• Music
• Movie
• Take photos/videos
• Download images/videos
• Organize personal information
• Shop
• Bank
• Location based services
• etc.
DIFFERENT GENERATION OF
WIRELESS TECHNOLOGY
Introduction
• Wireless Communication can be
classified into three eras.
– Pioneer Era (Till 1920)
– Pre Cellular Era(1920-1979)
– Cellular Era (beyond 1979)
• M. G. Marconi initiated wireless
telegraph in 1895.
Pre-Cellular Era
• Initially wireless communication was used
in the military to fulfill their strategic
requirements.
• The first commercial mobile telephone
system was launched by BELL in St. Louis,
USA, in 1946.
• It used single high power transmitters with
analog Frequency Modulation techniques to
give coverage up to about 50 miles.
• Only limited customers could get the
service due to this severe constraints of
bandwidth and high cost.
Cellular Era
• To overcome the constraints of bandwidth scarcity
and to give coverage to larger sections, BELL lab
introduced the principle of Cellular concept.
• By frequency reuse technique this method delivered
better coverage, better utility of available
frequency spectrum and reduced transmitter power.
• But the established calls are to be handed over
between base stations while the phones are on
move.
• Even though the US based BELL lab introduced the
cellular principle, the Nordic countries were the
first to introduce cellular services for
commercial use with the introduction of the Nordic
Mobile Telephone (NMT) in 1981.
1G (1980s)
• Analog Cellular Networks
• Example: AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone
Service), NMT
• FDMA (Frequency Division Multiple Access)
for modulation.
• Up to 2.4 Kbits/sec
• 824 – 894 MHz
• Problems:
– Analog, so highly susceptible to noise
– No Encryption, so anyone can eavesdrop if they
tune right frequency.
– Different Countries had different standards,
which were incompatible.
2G (late 1980s)
• It used Digital Signals, Digitized Voice
• E.g. GSM, IS-95
• TDMA/FDD & CDMA/FDD Technology
• Up to 64 Kbits/sec
• 850-1900 MHz (GSM), 825-849 MHz (CDMA)
• SMS Service
• Problems:
– Strong signals are required to help phone
work.
– Unable to handle complex data such as videos.
2G (late 1980s)
• It introduced three popular TMDA standards
and one popular CDMA standard.
• TDMA/FDD Standards:
– Global System For Mobile
– Interim Standard 136 (IS-136)
– Pacific Digital Cellular(PDC)
It used TDMA to divide digital signals into time
slots.
• CDMA/FDD Standard:
– Interim Standard 95 (IS-95):
• Known as CDMA-One
• It provides user a code to communicate over a
physical network.
• GSM is most widely used 2G Standard.
2.5G (2000)
• Between 2G and 3G
• 64 Kbits/sec to 144 Kbits/sec
• Main upgradation techniques are:
– Support for higher data rate for web browsing
– Support email traffic
– Enabling location based mobile service
• Brought few popular application:
– WAP (Wireless Application Protocol)
– GPRS (General Packet Radio Service)
– EDGE (Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution)
etc.
3G (in 2000)
• High speed IP and Data
• From 144 kbits/sec to 2 Mbits/sec
• Smart phones: features increased its bandwidth and data
transfer rates to accommodate web-based application and
audio and video files.
• Advanced services compare to 1G and 2G:
– Data Services
– Access to TV/Videos
– Web Browsing
– Email
– Video Conferencing
– Paging
– Fax
– Navigational Maps etc.
• A 3G mobile system was defined by an organization
called 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) which
fulfils the IMT-2000 standards. It was called as UMTS
(Universal Mobile Telecommunication System)
4G (in late 2000)
• IP based network system.
• High speed, high quality, high capacity,
security, low cost for:
– voice and data services
– multimedia
– internet over IP
• It has capability upto 100 Mbps to 1Gbps.
4G (in late 2000)
• The 4G technology integrate different existing
and future wireless technologies (e.g. OFDM, MC-
CDMA, LAS-CDMA, Network-LMDS etc) to provide
freedom of movement and uninterrupted roaming
from one technology to another.
• To use the 4G mobile network, multimode user
terminals should be able to select target
wireless system. To provide wireless service at
anytime and anywhere.
• Terminal mobility is key factor in 4G. Terminal
mobility implies automatic roaming between
different wireless networks.
• LTE (Long Term Evolution) and WiMAX (Wireless
Interoperability for Microwave Access) are
considered as 4G Technologies.
 BASICS OF CELL,
CLUSTER AND FREQUENCY
REUSE CONCEPTS
Cellular Technology
• The Frequency reuse concept led to the
development of cellular technology as
originally conceived by AT&T and Bell Labs way
back in 1947.
• The technique of substituting a single high
power transmitter by several low power
transmitters to support many users is the
backbone of the cellular concept.
• In practice, the following four parameters are
most important while considering the cellular
issues:
– System capacity
– Quality of service
– Spectrum efficiency
– Power management
Cell
• The power of the radio signals transmitted by the
BS decay as the signals travel away from it.
• A minimum amount of signal strength (let us say,
x dB) is needed in order to be detected by the MS
or mobile sets which may the hand-held personal
units or those installed in the vehicles.
• The region over which the signal strength lies
above this threshold value x dB is known as the
coverage area of a BS and it must be a circular
region, considering the BS to be isotropic
radiator.
• Such a circle, which gives this actual radio
coverage, is called the foot print of a cell
Cell
• It might so happen that either there may be an
overlap between any two such side by side circles
or there might be a gap between the coverage
areas of two adjacent circles.
Cell
• We need a regular shape for cellular design over
a territory which can be served by 3 regular
polygons: equilateral triangle, square and
regular hexagon, which can cover the entire area
without any overlap and gaps.
• Along with its regularity, a cell must be
designed such that it is most reliable too, i.e.,
it supports even the weakest mobile which occurs
at the edges of the cell.
• For any distance between the center and the
farthest point in the cell from it, a regular
hexagon covers the maximum area.
• Hence regular Hexagonal geometry is used as the
cells in mobile communication.
Frequency Reuse
• Frequency reuse, or, frequency planning, is a
technique of reusing frequencies and channels
within a communication system to improve capacity
and spectral efficiency.
• Frequency reuse is one of the fundamental
concepts on which commercial wireless systems are
based that involve the partitioning of an RF
radiating area into cells.
• The increased capacity in a commercial wireless
network, compared with a network with a single
transmitter, comes from the fact that the same
radio frequency can be reused in a different area
for a completely different transmission.
Frequency Reuse
• Frequency reuse in mobile cellular systems means
that frequencies allocated to the service are
reused in a regular pattern of cells, each covered
by one base station. The repeating regular pattern
of cells is called cluster.
• Since each cell is designed to use radio
frequencies only within its boundaries, the same
frequencies can be reused in other cells not far
away without interference, in another cluster.
• Such cells are called `co-channel' cells. The reuse
of frequencies enables a cellular system to handle
a huge number of calls with a limited number of
channels.
• Figure shows a frequency planning with cluster size
of 7, showing the co-channels cells in different
clusters by the same letter.
Frequency Reuse
Frequency Reuse
• The closest distance between the co-channel cells
(in different clusters) is determined by the
choice of the cluster size and the layout of the
cell cluster.
• Consider a cellular system with S duplex channels
available for use and let N be the number of
cells in a cluster. If each cell is allotted K
duplex channels with all being allotted unique
and disjoint channel groups we have S = K*N under
normal circumstances.
• Now, if the cluster are repeated M times within
the total area, the total number of duplex
channels, or, the total number of users in the
system would be
T = M*S = K*M*N.
Frequency Reuse
T = M*S = K*M*N.
• Clearly, if K and N remain constant, then
T α M
The capacity gain achieved is directly proportional
to the number of times a cluster is repeated

• If T and K remain constant, then

N α 1/M
for a fixed cell size, small N decreases the size
of the cluster which in turn results in the
increase of the number of clusters and hence the
capacity
• However for small N, co-channel cells are located
much closer and hence more interference.
NOISE AND ITS EFFECTS ON
MOBILE
Noise
• Noise is undesired signal in communication
circuit.
• Noise is unwanted disturbance superimposed on a
useful signal, which tends to degrade its
information content.

• Noise are classified into two categories:

– Internal Noise
– External Noise
External Noise
• Atmospheric Noises
– Due to natural atmospheric processes for e.g. Lighting
discharges in Thunderstorm and other natural electrical
disturbances occurring in the Atmosphere.
• Extraterrestrial Noises
• Man-made noises or Industrial Noises
Internal Noise
• Thermal Noise or White Noise
– Noise generated in transmission media and communication
equipment due to random motion of electrons is
characterized as Thermal Noise.
– Every equipment element and the transmission medium itself
contribute thermal noise to a communication system if
temperature is above absolute zero.
• Shot Noise
– Produced by random arrival of electrons or holes at output
element, at the plate in a tube or at the collector or
drain in a transistor.
• Transmit Time Noise
– Transit-time noise results when a signal frequency's period
is the same as the time an electron takes to travel from
sender to receiver.
• Miscellaneous Internal Noise
– Flicker noise or Modulation noise is the one appearing in
transistors operating at low frequencies.
Cross-talk
Cross-talk refers to signals interfering with each
other electromagnetically. There are essentially
three causes of cross-talk:
• Electrical coupling between transmission media,
like adjacent wires in a multilane serial
interface connection -- for
example, Ethernet or Fiber Channel
• Poor control of frequency response -- i.e.,
defective filters or poor filter design
• Nonlinear performance in analog multiplex
systems.
High levels of cross-talk increase bit-error
rates and degrade a digital path's performance.
UNDERSTANDING GSM AND
CDMA
GSM and CDMA
GSM (Global System For Mobile Communication)
CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access)
• Technologies for Mobile communication.
• Two technologies differ in the way calls and data
travel over phone network take place.
• GSM has some limitation when the call quality is
concerned but has more flexibility and easy
implementation relative to CDMA.
• Main differences:
– Technology they use
– Security factors
– Their global reach
– Data transfer speed
GSM
• Most widely used wireless technology in the
world.
• Available in more than 219 countries and
territories world wide with 90% market share
• GSM
– 2G cell phone technology
– Aim – better capacity to be achieved than 1G
analogue technology - Done by TDMA (Time division
multiple access)
– More number of users can be accommodated in
available bandwidth.
– In analogue technology it was possible for anyone
to listen to the calls if they know right
frequency.
– In GSM, ciphering of digitally encoded speech was
adopted to retain privacy.
GSM
2G 2.5G 3G
GSM Standards GSM GSM GPRS/EDGE UMTS (3GSM)
Speed 10 Kbps 200 Kbps 384 Kbps

– In GSM, Subscriber and wireless provider

information is stored in interchangeable modules
known as SIM (Subscriber Identification Module)
cards.
– By swapping out the SIM card, user painlessly
switch phones or providers. For this reasons, GSM
is enormously popular and well-supported
throughout the world.
GSM
– GSM is the legacy network of the evolution to the
third generation (3G) technologies UMTS
(Universal Mobile Telecommunication System), also
known as WCDMA and HSPA (High speed Packet
Access)
– GSM Family includes: GSM, GPRS, EDGE, UMTS and
HSPA
GSM Features
– Clear Voice Quality
– International Roaming
– Spectral Flexibility
– Tight Security
– Data Support
– SIM Cards
– Product Selection
– Research and Development
CDMA
– Commercially launched in 1996 by Qualcomm
Telecommunications.
– Available in 122 countries.
– Goal of CDMA is to break up a finite radio
frequency so that multiple users can access
it at the same time.
– CDMA divides the radio frequency spectrum to
share the space for multiple users using a
code to accomplish the multiplexing instead
of time or frequency division.
– This give CDMA a great advantage over GSM as
it can support more users on the available
bandwidth.
CDMA
– Code:
– It refers to the string of binary sequence that
the transmitter and the receiver share.
– This code encodes the information into a low
frequency signal before it is transmitted over a
channel.
– This same code is used by receiver to decode the
information.
– Division:
– In CDMA a single channel is divided into numerous
slots which can be used by multiple users.
– This is because of the use of unique code.
– Multiple Access:
– Due to code based communication, multiple users
can communicate and access the same channel
simultaneously without any undesirable
interference and loses.
CDMA
2G 2.5G 3G
CDMA Standards CDMA CDMA2000 CDMA2000 1XEV-
(CDMAOne 1X(1XRTT) DO(EVDO)
or IS-95)

– CDMA refers to both a spread spectrum

technique and a cellular standard popular in
North America.
– CDMA networks boast greater range and clarity
than GSM.
– It is more difficult for users to switch
phones and carriers since subscriber
information is programmed directly into the
phone rather than on a SIM card.
 GSM vs CDMA
GSM CDMA
Global System for Mobile Communication Code Division Multiple Access

Storage: SIM Memory Storage: Internal Phone Memory

Global Market Share: 75% Global Market Share: 25%
Dominant Standard worldwide Dominant Standard in US
Every Cell has a corresponding network There is one physical channel and a special
tower, which serves the mobile phones in code for every device in coverage network.
that cellular area. Using this code, the signal of the device is
multiplexed and the same physical channel
is used to send the signal

Most Accessible Less Accessible

Multiple Frequency Band Single Frequency Band(850 MHz)
(850/900/1800/1900 MHz)
SIM specific Handset specific
Emits 28 times more radiation than CDMA Emits less radiation
BASICS OF GSM
ARCHITECTURE
GSM
• Globally accepted standard for Digital
cellular communication
• GSM uses narrowband TDMA for voice and
SMS.
GSM
GSM
GSM Entities
• The Mobile Station (MS):
– This includes the Mobile Equipment (ME) and the
Subscriber Identity Module (SIM).
• The Base Station Subsystem (BSS):
– This includes the Base Transceiver Station
(BTS) and the Base Station Controller (BSC).
• The Network and Switching Subsystem (NSS):
– This includes Mobile Switching Center (MSC), Home
Location Register (HLR), Visitor Location Register
(VLR), Equipment Identity Register (EIR), and the
Authentication Center (AUC).
• The Operation and Support Subsystem (OSS):
– This includes the Operation and Maintenance Center
(OMC).
Mobile Station (MS)
• Mobile Station is the technical name of the
mobile or the cellular phone.
• Early Days: Bulky and sometimes installed in Cars
• Now phones has become smaller and lighter
• MS consists of two main elements:
– The mobile equipment or the mobile device. In
other words, this is the phone without the
SIM card.
– The Subscriber Identity Module (SIM)
• MS provides below services:
– Interface to GSM network
– Voice telephone services
– Data bearer services
– The features supplementary services
Mobile Station (MS)
• SIM
– The SIM is installed in every GSM phone and
identifies the terminal. Without the SIM card, the
terminal is not operational.
– SIM card contains
• International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI)
– to identify Subscriber
• Secret key for authentication
• Other security information
– The SIM cards used in GSM phones are smart
processor cards. These cards posses a processor
and a small memory. By inserting the SIM card into
the terminal, the user can have access to all the
subscribed services.
– IMEI and IMSI numbers are independent so user can
insert SIM card on another phone and easily use
the services on that phone.
Base Station Subsystem (BSS)
• The BSS connects the Mobile Station and
the NSS (Network and Switching
subsystem).
• It is in charge of the transmission and
reception for the last mile.
• The BSS can be divided into two parts:
– The Base Transceiver Station (BTS) or Base
Station in short.
– The Base Station Controller (BSC).
Base Station Subsystem (BSS)

• Base Transceiver Station

(BTS):
– BTS houses the radio
transceivers that define
a cell and handles the
radio link protocols with
the MS.
– In Large urban area,
large number of BTs may
be deployed.
– Requirements for BTS are:
• Ruggedness
• Reliability
• Portability
• Minimum Cost
Base Station Subsystem (BSS)
• Base Transceiver Station (BTS):
– The Base Transceiver Station corresponds to
the transceivers and antennas used in each
cell of the network.
– A BTS is usually placed in the center of a
cell. Its transmitting power defines the size
of a cell.
– Each BTS has between 1 and 16 transceivers,
depending on the density of users in the
cell.
– Each BTS serves a single cell.
Base Station Subsystem (BSS)
• Base Transceiver Station (BTS) functions:
– Encoding, encrypting, multiplexing,
modulating and feeding the RG signals to the
antenna
– Transcoding and rate adaption
– Time and frequency synchronizing
– Voice through full or half-rate services
– Decoding, decrypting and equalizing received
signals
– Random access detection
– Timing advances
– Uplink channel measurements
Base Station Subsystem (BSS)

MSC
• Base Station
Controller (BSC):
– Base Station
Controller is the
connection between
the BTS and the BSC
Mobile service
Switching Center
(MSC).
Base Station Subsystem (BSS)
• Base Station Controller (BSC):
– The BSC manages the radio resources for one
or more BTSs.
– Radio components of a BSS may consist of four
to seven or nine cells.
– BSS uses the Abis interface between BTS and
BSC. A separate high-speed line is then
connected from BSS to the MSC.
– It handles handovers, radio-channel setup,
control of radio frequency power levels of
the BTSs, exchange function, and the
frequency hopping.
The Network and Switching System (NSS)

• The central component

of the Network
Subsystem is the Mobile
Switching Center (MSC).
• It works as Mobile
central office (CO) PSTN
ISDN
• It provides PSPDN
functionality needed to PLMN
handle a mobile
subscriber, such as
registration,
authentication,
location updating,
handovers and call
routing to a roaming
subscriber.
The Network and Switching System (NSS)

• MSC does multiple functions:

– It acts like a normal switching node for mobile
subscribers of the same network (connection between
mobile phone to mobile phone within the same
network).
– It acts like a normal switching node for the PSTN
fixed telephone (connection between mobile phone to
fixed phone).
– It acts like a normal switching node for ISDN.
– It provides all the functionality needed to handle a
mobile subscriber, such as registration,
authentication, location updating, handovers and call
routing.
– It includes databases needed in order to store
information to manage the mobility of a roaming
subscriber.
The Network and Switching System (NSS)

• The MSC together with Home Location Register

(HLR) and Visitor Location Register (VLR)
databases, provide the call-routing and roaming
capabilities of GSM. The HLR is considered a very
important database that stores information of
subscribers belonging to the covering area of a
MSC.
• The VLR can be considered a temporary copy of
some of the important information stored in the
HLR. VLR is similar to a cache, whereas HLR is
the persistent storage. The VLR contains selected
administrative information borrowed from the HLR,
necessary for call control and provisioning of
the subscribed services. This is true for each
mobile currently located in the geographical area
controlled by a VLR.
The Network and Switching System (NSS)

• Gateway MSC (GMSC)

– It is associated with MSC
– Gateway is node interconnecting two networks
– GMSC is the interface between the mobile
cellular network and PSTN.
– It is in charge of routing calls from the
fixed network towards a GSM user and vice
versa.
– GSMC is implemented in the same node as MSC.
The Operation and Support Subsystem
(OSS)
• As the name suggests, Operations and Support
Subsystem (OSS) controls and monitors the GSM
system. The OSS is connected to the different
components of the NSS and to the BSC.
• It is also in charge of controlling the traffic
load of the BSS. However, the increasing number
of base stations, due to the development of
cellular radio networks, has resulted in some of
the maintenance tasks being transferred to the
BTS. This transfer decreases considerably the
costs of the maintenance of the system.
• Provisioning information for different services
is managed in this layer.
The Operation and Support Subsystem
(OSS)
• EIR
– Each mobile station is identify by its
International Mobile Equipment Identity
(IMEI).
– EIR (Equipment Identity Register) is a
database that contains list of all valid
equipment within the network.
– An IMEI marked as invalid if it has been
reported stolen or is not type approved.
– The EIR allows the MSC to forbid calls from
this stolen or unauthorized terminal.
The Operation and Support Subsystem
(OSS)
• AUC
– AUC(Authentication Center) is responsible for
the authentication of a subscriber.
– This is a protected database and stores a
copy of the secret key stored in each
subscriber’s SIM card.
– These data help to verify the user’s
identity.
GSM SERVICES
Voice Call

• Most basic GSM teleservice

• Full-rate speech at 15 Kbps and emergency
calls.
• Emergency service provider is notified by
dialing three digits.
• E.g. 911 in USA
SMS

• Short Messaging Service

• Text messaging which allows you to send
and receive text messages on your GSM
Mobile phone.
• Text message can be upto 160 character
length.
MMS

• Multimedia Messaging Service

• Extension to SMS service.
• Allows user to send/receive text and
Multimedia –Picture, Slideshow, Audio and
Video etc.
LBS – Location based Services

• Knowledge of “Location” of a user is the most

valuable asset of a wireless service provider.
• Technology behind LBS is “positioning” and the
most widely recognized system for this is Global
Positioning System (GPS)
• Using this information a service provider can
offer several very useful value-added services to
its subscribers to not only gain customer loyalty
but also increase profitability – Location Based
Services
• Few example:
– Location based information
– Emergency services and Tracking, Road side
assistant
– Travel Information
– Store locator etc.
VAS – Value Added Service

• All the services beyond voice and data

• At no cost or at very minimal cost
• In telecom industry VAS add value to the
standard services offering subscribers to
use their phone more and allowing
Operators to drive up revenue.
• For example:
– Contests and voting
– Missed call alerts and voicemail box
– Ringtone, Caller tune
– Mobile TV, Live Streaming
– Online Gaming
– Sports and Infotainment services etc.
MODES OF MOBILE
COMMUNICATION
Modes of Mobile communication

Different modes of mobile communication include:

• Infrared (IR) wireless communication
• Broadcast Radio
• Microwave Radio
• Communications Satellites
• Wi-Fi
• Bluetooth
• Zigbee
Wavelength Chart
Wavelength Chart
Wavelength Chart
Infrared (IR) wireless communication

• The source and destination can be mobile phones,

TVs, security systems, laptops etc supports
wireless communication.
Infrared (IR) wireless communication

• Infrared wireless communication communicates

information in a device or systems through IR
radiation.
• In the electromagnetic spectrum, IR radiation
lies between microwaves and visible light.
• IR is electromagnetic energy at a wavelength that
is longer than that of red light (665 nm).
• For a successful infrared communication, a photo
LED transmitter and a photo diode receptor are
required.
• It is used for security control, TV remote
control and short range communications.
Broadcast Radio
Broadcast Radio

• Basically an audio broadcasting service, radio

broadcasts sound through the air as radio waves. 
• Radio uses a transmitter which is used to
transmit the data in the form of radio waves to a
receiving antenna
• To broadcast common programming, stations are
associated  with  the radio Networks.
• The broadcast happens either in simulcast or
syndication or both.
• Radio broadcasting may be done via cable FM, the
net and satellites. A broadcast sends information
over long distances at up to two megabits/sec
(AM/FM Radio)
Broadcast Radio

• For example, you can take a radio station. When

the RJ says you are listening to 92.7 BIG FM,
what he really means is that signals are being
broadcasted at a frequency of 92.7 Mega Hertz,
that successively means the transmitter at the
station is periodic at a frequency of 92,700,000
Cycles/second.
• When you would like to listen to 92.7 BIG FM, all
you have to do is tune the radio to just accept
that specific frequency and you will receive
perfect audio reception.
Microwave Radio

• Microwave wireless communication is an effective

type of communication. This transmission uses
radio waves, and the wavelengths of radio waves
are measured in centimeters.
• Microwaves belong to the radio spectrum ranges of
roughly 1 GHz to 30 GHz.
• Antennas used in microwave transmissions are of
convenient sizes and shapes.
• Microwave transmission depends on line of sight
in order to work properly.
• For two way communications to take place, two
frequencies are used. However this does not
require two antennas because the frequencies can
be dealt with one antenna at both ends.
Microwave Radio

Two Methods
• In satellite method, the data can be transmitted
though a satellite, that orbit 22,300 miles above
the earth. Stations on the earth send and receive
data signals from the satellite with a frequency
ranging from 11GHz-14GHz and with a transmission
speed of 1Mbps to 10Mbps.
• In terrestrial method, in which two microwave
towers with a clear line of sight between them are
used, ensuring no obstacles to disrupt the line of
sight. So it is used often for the purpose of
privacy. The frequency range of the terrestrial
system is typically 4GHz-6GHz and with a
transmission speed is usually 1Mbps to 10Mbps.
Communication Satellites

• Satellite communication is one type of self

contained wireless communication technology, it is
widely spread all over the world to allow users to
stay connected almost anywhere on the earth.
• When the signal (a beam of modulated microwave) is
sent near the satellite then, satellite amplifies
the signal and sent it back to the antenna 
receiver which is located on the surface of the
earth.
• Satellite communication contains two main
components like the space segment and the ground
segment. The ground segment consists of  fixed or
mobile transmission, reception and ancillary
equipment and the space segment, which mainly is
the  satellite itself.
Communication Satellites
Wi-Fi

• Wi-Fi is a low power wireless communication, that

is used by various electronic devices like smart
phones, laptops, etc.
• In  this setup, a router works  as a
communication hub wirelessly. These networks
allow users to connect only within close
proximity to a router.
• Wi-Fi is very common in networking applications
which affords portability wirelessly.
• These networks need to be protected with
passwords for the purpose of security, otherwise
it will access by others
Bluetooth

• This technology has various

functions and it is used
commonly in the wireless
communication market.
• The main function of the
Bluetooth technology is
that permits you to connect
a various electronic
devices wirelessly to a
system for the transferring
of data.
• Cell phones are connected
to hands free earphones,
mouse, wireless keyboard.
• By using Bluetooth device
the information from one
device to another device.
ZigBee

• ZigBee is a wireless
communication standard
designed to address the
unique needs of low-
power, low-cost wireless
sensor, and control
networks.
• ZigBee can be used almost
anywhere, as it is easy
to implement and requires
little power to operate.
• Zigbee has been developed
looking into the needs of
the communication of data
with a simple structure
like the data from the
sensors.
ARCHITECTURE OF MOBILE
COMPUTING
Mobile Computing Environment

Computing environment is mobile if:

• User Mobility: user shout be able to move from
one location to another
• Network mobility: user should be able to move
from one network to another network and use same
service
• Device mobility: user should be able to move from
one device to another and use same service
• Session mobility: user session should be able to
move from one user-agent environment to another
• Service mobility: User should be able to move
from one service to another
• Host mobility: User can be either a client or
server.
Mobile Computing functions

Mobile computing functions can be logically divided

into the major segments:
• User with device: Fixed or portable
• Network: different networks – GSM, CDMA,
Ethernet, wireless LAN etc.
• Gateway: Interfacing different transport bearers
• Middleware: handling the presentation and
rendering of the content on a particular device
• Content: it is the domain where the origin server
and content is.
3-tier Architecture
3-tier Architecture for Mobile
Computing
3-tier Architecture

• First Tier: User Interface or Presentation Tier

– Deals with user facing device handling and
rendering
– Includes user system interface where user
services such as session, text input, dialog and
display management resides.
• Second Tier: Process Management or Application
Tier
– Facility of executing business logic and rules
– Controls transactions and asynchronous queuing
to ensure reliable completion of transaction
• Third Tier: Database management or Data Tier
– Provides database access and management
3-tier Architecture

• Thick Client
– Client handling the UI and BL
– Requires heavy traffic with the server, difficult
to use over slower network
• Thin Client
– Client handling only UI
– Communication between Client and Middle tier

• N-Tier
– 3-tier solution is scalable, so possible to add
more tier making it N-tier
– Increases complexity and cost of installation
3-tier Architecture

It provides:
• Performance, Flexibility, Maintainability,
Reusability and scalability
• Security is best in 3-tier architecture as middle
tier protects database tier.
• Centralized process logic makes administration
and change management easier by localizing
changes in a central place and using them
throughout the system
• It is better suited for client-server design
• Popular for internet application & net centric
info systems.
Mobile computing platform
Mobile computing platform
DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS FOR
MOBILE COMPUTING
Design Considerations

• Mobile computing environment is constrained in many

ways.
• Mobile elements themselves are resource-poor and
unreliable. Network connectivity is often achieved
through low-bandwidth wireless links.
• The difficulties raised by these constraints are
compounded by mobility that induces variability in the
availability of both communication and computational
resources.
• This restriction have a great impact on design and
structure and structure of mobile computing applications
and motivate the development of new computing models.
• These mobile computing models must provide efficient
access to both existing and new applications which is a
key requirement for the wide acceptance of mobile
computing.
Design Considerations

• One important design consideration is the type of

functionality assigned to mobile host.
– One approach is to treat the mobile units as
dumb terminals just running a user interface
due to limited resources.
– Other approach is putting more functionality
at the mobile host so that they are less
dependant on remote servers.
– Right balance of above approaches are
required.
Design Considerations
• Developing a durable technology architecture for today and
tomorrow
• Wireless and fixed wireline network design – selecting
right components and service provider
• Integration of the mobile applications with the internet
and web architecture (client and server)
• Capacity planning and calculating response time – both
network and application processing.
• Data compression and bandwidth optimization considerations
and technique
• Wireless security issues – providing security while
allowing mobility
• Ergonomic design – such as form factor, battery life,
method of input etc.
• Memory and CPU performance
• Multitude of Operating system
• Handling smaller display size to cover required components
optimally
CHARACTERISTICS OF MOBILE
COMMUNICATION
Characteristics of Mobile
Communication
• Communication
– mobile, wireless digital communication; support for voice
and data services
• Total mobility
– international access, chip-card enables use of access
points of different providers
• Worldwide connectivity
– one number, the network handles localization
• High capacity
– better frequency efficiency, smaller cells, more
customers per cell
• High transmission quality
– high audio quality
– uninterrupted phone calls at higher speeds (e.g., from
cars, trains) – better handoffs and
• Security functions
– access control, authentication via chip-card and PIN
APPLICATION OF MOBILE
COMMUNICATION
Application of Mobile Communication

• Vehicles
– transmission of news, road conditions,
weather
– personal communication using cellular
– position identification via GPS
– inter vehicle communications for accident
prevention
– vehicle and road inter communications for
traffic control, signaling, data gathering
– ambulances, police, etc.: early transmission
of patient data to the hospital, situation
reporting
– entertainment: music, video
Application of Mobile Communication

• Mobile workers
– access to customer files and company documents
stored in a central location
– collaborative work environments
– access to email and voice messages
• Replacement of fixed networks
– remote sensors, e.g., weather, environment, road
conditions
– flexible work spaces
– LANs in legacy buildings
• Entertainment, education, ...
– outdoor Internet access
– intelligent travel guide with up-to-date location
dependent information
– ad-hoc networks for multi user games
SECURITY CONCERN RELATED
TO MOBILE COMPUTING
Security concern

• Mobile computing has its fair share of security

concerns as any other technology.
• Due to their nomadic nature, its not easy to
monitor the proper usage.
• User may have different intentions on how to
utilize this privilege.
• Improper and unethical practices such as hacking,
industrial espionage, pirating, online fraud and
malicious destruction are some but few of the
problems experienced by mobile computing.
Security concern

• Another big problem plaguing mobile computing is

credential verification. It is not possible to
verify that person using system that person is
true barrier.
• The problem of identity theft is very difficult
to contain or eradicate.
• Issues with unauthorized access to data and
information by hackers is also a plaguing
problem. They can gain access to vital data of
companies. This problem is major headache and
hindrance in rolling out mobile computing
services.
Risk of Mobile Computing

• Mobile computing devices can store large amounts

of data, are highly portable and are frequently
unprotected. They are easy to steal or loose and
unless precautions are taken, an unauthorized
person can gain access to the information stored
on them or accessed through them.
• Even if not stolen or lost, intruders can
sometimes gain all the access they need if the
device is left alone and unprotected, if data is
“sniffed out of the air” during wireless
communications or if malware is installed.
• The result can include crippled devices, personal
data loss, disclosure of non-public data and
disciplinary actions for the device owner.
Risk of Mobile Computing

• Mobile computing devices are of concern both

because of the data that might be stored on them,
and because they may provide access to other
services that stored or display non-public data.
• This access may be enabled because the mobile
device contains passwords or security
certificates that identify the device or its user
to the email system, VPN (Virtual Private
Networks) or other applications.
Guidelines for securing Mobile
Computing Device
Securing Portable Storage Devices
• Portable storage devices are usually large
capacity devices that are easily moved from place
to place. (e.g. pendrive, removable hard disks
etc.)
• Devices which are used to store or transport
prohibited or restricted data must be encrypted.
• Keep portable devices password protected
Guidelines for securing Mobile
Computing Device
Securing Mobile Phones and Tablets
• Label your device with your name and a phone
number where it can be return if it is lost
• Configure a passcode to gain access to and use
the device.
• Set an idle timeout that will automatically lock
the phone when not in use.
• Keep all software up to date including operating
system.
• Do not jailbreak or root your device.
• Obtain your apps only from trusted sources.
• Enroll your device in a managed environment. This
helps you configure and maintain your security
and privacy settings.
MIDDLEWARE AND GATEWAY REQUIRED
FOR MOBILE COMPUTING
Middleware

• Middleware is Software layered between a user

application and operating system.
• Examples:
– Communication middleware
– Object oriented middleware
– Massage oriented middleware
– Database middleware etc.
• In mobile computing middleware smoothes over the
mobile computing issues, so that same application
can run on wired as well as wireless networks.
Middleware Functions

• Establishes connections between mobile clients

and servers over wireless networks and delivers
messages over the connection
• Transforms data from one format to another (e.g.
one type of markup to another)
• Detects the mobile device characteristics and
optimizes the wireless data output according to
device attributes.
• Compresses data to minimize the amount of data
being sent over a slow cellular wireless link
• Encrypts/Decrypts data for security
• Allows monitoring and troubleshooting of wireless
device and networks.
Middleware types

• Communication Middleware:
– The application will communicate with different nodes and
services through different communication middleware.
• Message Oriented Middleware
– This type of middleware is an infrastructure that
supports the receiving and sending of messages over
distributed applications. It enables applications to be
disbursed over various platforms and makes the process of
creating software applications spanning many operating
systems and network protocols much less complicated.
– It holds many advantages over middleware alternatives
(e.g. hard coding logic) and is one of the most widely
used types of middleware.
• Object Middleware
– Object middleware, also called an object request broker,
gives applications the ability to send objects and
request services via an object oriented system. In short,
it manages the communication between objects.
Middleware types
• Embedded Middleware
– This type of middleware allows for communication and
integration services with an interface of software or
firmware. It acts as a liaison between embedded
applications and the real-time operating system.
• Behavior Management Middleware
– For different devices we need different types of
rendering. We can have applications which are developed
specific for different types of rendering.
– For example we can have one application for Web, another
for WAP and a different for SMS
• Communication Gateways
– Between the device and the middleware there will be
network of network. Gateways are deployed when there are
different transport bearers or network with dissimilar
protocols.
– For example, we need an IVR gateway to interface voice
with a computer or a WAP gateway to access internet over
a mobile phone.
Middleware types

• Remote Procedural Call (RPC) Middleware

– An RPC is exactly what it sounds like. It calls
procedures on remote systems and is used to perform
synchronous or asynchronous interactions between
applications or systems. It is usually utilized within a
software application.
• Database Middleware
– This type of middleware allows for direct access to
databases, providing direct interaction with them. There
are many database gateways and connectivity options. You
simply have to see what will work best for your necessary
solution. This is the most general and commonly known
type of middleware. This includes SQL database software.
• Transaction Middleware
– This type of middleware includes applications like
transaction processing monitors. It also encompasses web-
application servers. These types of middleware are
becoming more and more common today.
 MAKING EXISTING
APPLICATION MOBILE ENABLE
Making Existing Appl. Mobile Enable
• There are many applications are being used within
the intranet and corporate network. These
applications needs to be made ubiquitous and
mobile computing capable:
– Enhance existing application to support mobile
computing
– Rent an application from an ASP, there are many
organizations that develop ubiquitous applications
and rent the same at a fee
– Write a new application that meets a new business
requirement of the mobile computing
– Buy a packaged solution, there are many companies who
are offering packaged solutions for various business
areas starting from manufacturing to sales and
marketing.
– Bridge the gap through middleware, use different
middleware techniques to facelift and mobile
computing enable the existing application.
MOBILE IP
Mobile IP
• Mobile IP (or MIP) is an Internet Engineering Task
Force (IETF) standard communications protocol that
is designed to allow mobile device users to move
from one network to another while maintaining a
permanent IP address, stay connected, and maintain
ongoing applications.
• In IP networks, routing is based on stationary IP
addresses, similar to how a postal letter is
delivered to the fixed address on the envelope.
• A device on a network is reachable through normal
IP routing by the IP address it is assigned on the
network.
Problem with Internet Protocol (IP)
• In IP Network host address is made up of a
network number and a host part.
• Network number tells the user that network the
host is attached to.
• Original IP algorithm tell certain router how to
get packets to their correct networks.
• Now with the regular IP if the host disconnected
itself from its original network and joined
another network, the host would never receive any
packets because the host has the same IP address
from its old network that would not be recognized
by the network in which it joined.
• So host would seem to be missing because its IP
address does not match its new network number and
therefore would never receive any packets.
Mobile IP
• The problem occurs when a device roams away from
its home network and is no longer reachable using
normal IP routing. This results in the active
sessions of the device being terminated.
• Mobile IP was created to enable users to keep the
same IP address while traveling to a different
network (which may even be on a different
wireless operator), thus ensuring that a roaming
individual could continue communication without
sessions or connections being dropped.
Mobile IP
• Because the mobility functions of Mobile IP are
performed at the network layer rather than the
physical layer, the mobile device can span
different types of wireless and wireline networks
while maintaining connections and ongoing
applications. 
• Remote login, remote printing, and file transfers
are some examples of applications where it is
undesirable to interrupt communications while an
individual roams across network boundaries.
• Also, certain network services, such as software
licenses and access privileges, are based on IP
addresses. Changing these IP addresses could
compromise the network services.
• Mobile IPv6 protocol is defined to address above
issues.
BASIC MOBILE COMPUTING
PROTOCOL
Mobile IP Protocol
• Mobile IP has the following three components:
– Mobile Node
– Home Agent
– Foreign Agent
Mobile IP Protocol
• Mobile Node:
– a device such as a cell phone, personal digital
assistant, or laptop whose software enables
network roaming capabilities.
• Home Agent:
– a router on the home network serving as the anchor
point for communication with the Mobile Node; it
tunnels packets from a device on the Internet,
called a Correspondent Node, to the roaming Mobile
Node. (A tunnel is established between the Home
Agent and a reachable point for the Mobile Node in
the foreign network.)
• Foreign Agent:
– a router that may function as the point of
attachment for the Mobile Node when it roams to a
foreign network, delivering packets from the Home
Agent to the Mobile Node.
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
The Mobile IP process has three main phases, which
are discussed in the following sections.
• Agent Discovery
– A Mobile Node discovers its Foreign and Home
Agents during agent discovery.
• Registration
– The Mobile Node registers its current location
with the Foreign Agent and Home Agent during
registration.
• Tunneling
– A reciprocal tunnel is set up by the Home Agent to
the care-of address (current location of the
Mobile Node on the foreign network) to route
packets to the Mobile Node as it roams.
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
Agent Discovery
• During Discover phase, Home agent and Foreign agent
advertise their services on the network using ICMP
router discovery protocol (IRDP).
• Mobile node listen to the advertisement to determine
if it is connected to home network or foreign network.
• The IRDP advertisements carry Mobile IP extensions
that specify whether an agent is a Home Agent, Foreign
Agent, or both; its care-of address; the types of
services it will provide such as reverse tunneling and
generic routing encapsulation (GRE); and the allowed
registration lifetime or roaming period for visiting
Mobile Nodes.
• Rather than waiting for agent advertisements, a Mobile
Node can send out an agent solicitation. This
solicitation forces any agents on the link to
immediately send an agent advertisement.
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
Agent Discovery
• If a Mobile Node determines that it is connected to a
foreign network, it acquires a care-of address. Two
types of care-of addresses exist:
– Care-of address acquired from a Foreign Agent
– Co-located care-of address
• A Foreign Agent care-of address is an IP address of a
Foreign Agent that has an interface on the foreign
network being visited by a Mobile Node. A Mobile Node
that acquires this type of care-of address can share
the address with other Mobile Nodes.
• A co-located care-of address is an IP address
temporarily assigned to the interface of the Mobile
Node itself by DHCP.
• When the Mobile Node hears a Foreign Agent
advertisement and detects that it has moved outside of
its home network, it begins registration.
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
Registration
• The Mobile Node is configured with the IP address and
mobility security association (which includes the
shared key) of its Home Agent. In addition, the Mobile
Node is configured with either its home IP address, or
another user identifier, such as a Network Access
Identifier.
• The Mobile Node uses this information along with the
information that it learns from the Foreign Agent
advertisements to form a Mobile IP registration
request. It adds the registration request to its
pending list and sends the registration request to its
Home Agent
– Either through the Foreign Agent or
– Directly if it is using a co-located care-of
address and is not required to register through
the Foreign Agent.
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
Registration
• If the registration request is sent through the
Foreign Agent, the Foreign Agent checks the validity
of the registration request, which includes checking
that the requested lifetime does not exceed its
limitations, the requested tunnel encapsulation is
available, and that reverse tunnel is supported.
• If the registration request is valid, the Foreign
Agent adds the visiting Mobile Node to its pending
list before relaying the request to the Home Agent.
• If the registration request is not valid, the Foreign
Agent sends a registration reply with appropriate
error code to the Mobile Node.
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
Registration
• The Home Agent checks the validity of the registration
request, which includes authentication of the Mobile
Node. If the registration request is valid, the Home
Agent creates a mobility binding (an association of
the Mobile Node with its care-of address), a tunnel to
the care-of address, and a routing entry for
forwarding packets to the home address through the
tunnel.
• The Home Agent then sends a registration reply to the
Mobile Node
– through the Foreign Agent (if the registration
request was received via the Foreign Agent) or
– directly to the Mobile Node.
• If the registration request is not valid, the Home
Agent rejects the request by sending a registration
reply with an appropriate error code.
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
Registration
• The Foreign Agent checks the validity of the
registration reply, including ensuring that an
associated registration request exists in its pending
list.
• If the registration reply is valid, the Foreign Agent
adds the Mobile Node to its visitor list, establishes
a tunnel to the Home Agent, and creates a routing
entry for forwarding packets to the home address.
• It then relays the registration reply to the Mobile
Node.
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
Registration
• Finally, the Mobile Node checks the validity of the
registration reply, which includes ensuring an
associated request is in its pending list as well as
proper authentication of the Home Agent.
• If the registration reply is not valid, the Mobile
Node discards the reply.
• If a valid registration reply specifies that the
registration is accepted, the Mobile Node is confirmed
that the mobility agents are aware of its roaming.
• In the colocated care-of address case, it adds a
tunnel to the Home Agent. Subsequently, it sends all
packets to the Foreign Agent.
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
Registration
• The Mobile Node reregisters before its registration
lifetime expires.
• The Home Agent and Foreign Agent update their mobility
binding and visitor entry, respectively, during re-
registration.
• In the case where the registration is denied, the
Mobile Node makes the necessary adjustments and
attempts to register again. For example, if the
registration is denied because of time mismatch and
the Home Agent sends back its time stamp for
synchronization, the Mobile Node adjusts the time
stamp in future registration requests.
• Thus, a successful Mobile IP registration sets up the
routing mechanism for transporting packets to and from
the Mobile Node as it roams.
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
Tunneling
• The Mobile Node sends packets using its home IP
address, effectively maintaining the appearance that
it is always on its home network. Even while the
Mobile Node is roaming on foreign networks, its
movements are transparent to correspondent nodes.
• Data packets addressed to the Mobile Node are routed
to its home network, where the Home Agent now
intercepts and tunnels them to the care-of address
toward the Mobile Node.
• Tunneling has two primary functions: encapsulation of
the data packet to reach the tunnel endpoint, and
decapsulation when the packet is delivered at that
endpoint.
• The default tunnel mode is IP Encapsulation within IP
Encapsulation.
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
Tunneling
• However, this data path is topologically incorrect
because it does not reflect the true IP network source
for the data—rather, it reflects the home network of
the Mobile Node.
• Because the packets show the home network as their
source inside a foreign network, an access control
list on routers in the network called ingress
filtering drops the packets instead of forwarding
them.
• A feature called reverse tunneling solves this problem
by having the Foreign Agent tunnel packets back to the
Home Agent when it receives them from the Mobile Node.
 
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP)
MOBILE COMMUNICATION VIA
SATELLITE
Introduction
• Satellite based wireless systems represent the
far-end of wide-area coverage, extending over the
ocean as well as remote land areas.
• First use of satellite technology was in military
for voice communications in early 1960s.
• Despite the advancements in satellite technology,
commercial providers are prohibited from
construction and launching satellites at will.
• Satellites can provide information on
meteorology, agriculture, forestry, geology,
environment science and other area.
Satellite System
Satellites Components
Satellite System

Satellite system components:

• Earth Stations:
– Antenna systems on or near the earth
• Uplink:
– Transmission from an earth station to a satellite
• Downlink:
– Transmission from a satellite to an earth station
• Transponder:
– Electronics in the satellite that convert/amplify
uplink signal to downlink signals.
– There are typically 16-20 transponders per
satellite, each with 36-50 MHz BW.
How do Satellites work?

• Earth station – an installation designed to

transmit and receive signals from a satellite in
orbit around the earth.
• Earth stations send information via high-powered,
high-frequency (GHz range) signals to satellites,
which receive and retransmit the signals back to
earth where they are received by other earth
stations in the coverage area of the satellite.
• The area that receives a signal of useful
strength from the satellite is known as the
satellite’s footprint.
• The transmission system from the earth station to
the satellite is called the uplink and the system
from the satellite to the earth station is called
the downlink.
Satellites Frequency Bands

• Three most commonly used satellite frequency

bands are:
– C-band
– Ku-band
– Ka-band
• C-band and Ku-band are the two most common
frequency spectrums used by today’s satellites.

• Note: Frequency and Wavelength has inverse

relationship – when frequency increases,
wavelength decreases. As wavelength increases,
larger antennas are required to receive the
signal.
C-band: Satellites Frequency Band

• Transmissions occupy the 4 to 8 GHz

frequency.
• There relatively low frequencies translate
to higher wavelengths than Ku-band and Ka-
band.
• These larger wavelengths of the C-band mean
that a larger satellite antenna is required
to gather the minimum signal strength.
• The minimum size of an average C-band
antenna is approximately 2-3 meters in
diameter.
Ku-band: Satellites Frequency Band

• Ku-band satellite transmissions occupy the

11 to 17 GHz frequency ranges.
• These relatively higher frequency
transmissions correspond to shorter
wavelengths, and therefore a smaller antenna
can be used to receive the minimum signal
strength.
• Ku-band antennas can be as small as 18-
inches in diameter
Ka-band: Satellites Frequency Band

• Ka-band satellite transmission occupy the 20

to 30 GHz frequency range.
• These very high frequency transmission mean
very small wavelengths and very small
diameter receiving antennas.
Types of Satellites Communications
There are three types of satellite communication
systems which differ in terms of orbit and signal
strength.
• Geosynchronous earth orbit (GEO) Satellites
– At 22300 miles
– Positioned over the equator
• Medium earth orbit (MEO) satellites
– Peak at 9000 miles
– Commonly used in navigation systems such as GPS
• Low earth orbit (LEO) satellites
– Below 1800 miles
– Small coverage area
Distance of orbit from the earth has inverse relationship
with the signal strength and positive one with a
satellites life span.
LEO and MEO are used most frequently by satellite phone
services.
Types of Satellites Communications
Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO) Satellite

• Majority of satellites in orbit around the

earth are positioned at a point 22,300 miles
above the earth’s equator in Geosynchronous
Earth Orbit (GEO).
• At a 223000 miles, a satellite can maintain
an orbit with a period of rotation around
the earth exactly equal to 24 hours.
• Because the satellites revolve at the same
rotational speed of the earth, they appear
stationary from the earth’s surface.
• That’s why most earth stations antennas
don’t need to move after they have been
properly aimed at the target satellite in
the sky.
Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO) Satellite

• GEOS systems- small number of

large and expensive stations
• E.g. OmniTracs and Inmarsat.
• Imnarsat is mainly geared
towards providing analog
voice transmission services
to ships at sea.
• OmniTracs is primarily
intended to serve the
trucking industry.
• OmniTracs provides low speed
message oriented
communication with the mobile
units as well as location
positioning.
Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) Satellite

• It falls between LEOS and GEOS, leveraging their

advantages and disadvantages.
• MEO satellites orbit at a distance of about 8000
Miles.
• Signal transmitted from a MEOS travel a shorter
distance, which translate to improved signal
strength at the receiving end. This means smaller
and lighter antennas can be used.
• Due to short distance, less transmission delay.
• For GEO satellite requires 0.25 seconds for a
round trip. While MEO satellite requires 0.2
seconds for the same. MEO operates in the 2 GHz
frequency range.
Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Satellite

• Relatively small, inexpensive satellites that provide

low data rate, two way digital communication to hand-
held sets
• LEOS systems are in better position to provide
personal communication type of services, by having
tens or hundreds of satellites providing small cell
coverage.
• By using sufficient number of satellites, direct line
to a satellite can exist from any point on earth at
any time.
• Main advantage of LEOS is the low cost satellites and
their ability to produce small coverage areas and thus
better utilize a given spectrum allocation (Frequency
Re-use)
• E.g.: Orbcomm, providing full world coverage with 34
satellites and data rates of 2.4 Kbps on the uplink
and 4.8 Kbps on the downlink.
Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Satellite

• Microsoft corporation and McCaw Cellular (Now AT&T)

have partnered to deploy 288 satellites.
• Proposed LEO satellites: Little LEOs, big LEOs and
Mega LEOs.
• LEO will orbit at a distance of only 500 to 1000 miles
above the earth.
• This relatively short distance reduces transmission
delay to only 0.05 seconds and further reduces the
need of sensitive and bulky receiving equipment.
• Little LEOs will operate in 800 MHz range, big LEOs
will operate in 2 GHz or above range, and mega LEOs
will operate in 20 to 30 GHz range.
• Higher frequencies associated with mega LEOs translate
into more information carrying capacity and the
capability of real-time, low delay video transmission.
Satellite Phones

• Satellite phone is a phone that uses satellites for

communication instead of terrestrial lines.
• Ideally, these phones enable communication anywhere
around the world irrespective of location where as
normal cell phones require proper terrestrial network
coverage to enable communication.
• Due to cost and other reasons such as government
regulations on use, satellite phones are utilized
primarily where there is no access to a telephone or
cellular network.
• Major applications or satellite phones can be found
in:
– Marine Engineering (Ships)
– Aviation (Aero-planes)
– Military
– Emergency Conditions
Satellite phones vs cell phones

• Cellular phones
– function on the basis of cell and hence called cell
phones. Whole network area is divided into small area and
an antenna is installed in each area – Tower.
– Modern cellular phones works mostly in urban area and on
highways.
– Cell is a radio link from cell phone to the PSTN and if a
cell phone user is in area where there are no cells,
there is no service as it is not possible for cellular
providers to put up cell towers in rural areas.
• Satellite phones
– Use LEO, MEO or GEO satellites.
– They do not have any intermediate towers and they do not
use cell towers, so communication link rarely gets
broken.
Features of Satellite phones

• Satellite phones provide a solution for

communication when all other form of
communication are disrupted or limited in case
like earthquakes, floods etc.
• The coverage area of a satellite greatly exceeds
that of a terrestrial system
• Transmission cost of a satellite is independent
of the distance from the center of the coverage
area
• Satellite to Satellite communication is very
precise
• Higher bandwidths are available for use.
 Components of a satellite phone network

• Subscriber products (Satellite phone an data units)

• Satellite network
– Consist of one or more satellites for transmitting the
signals for source to destination.
– E.g. Iridium satellite network consists of 66 satellites
circles around the earth along LEO. Each satellite
traveling at 16832 miles per hour, each satellite is able
to circle the glove every 100 minutes. There satellites act
as cellular towers in the sky. Voice and data messages can
be routed anywhere in the world by the Iridium network.
• Ground stations
– Consist of earth stations that are used for command and
control, in addition to transmission/reception of user
signals.
– Earth stations also work as Hubs for interconnecting with
other communication systems.
– For example, Iridium gateways interconnect the iridium
constellation with PSTN, making communication possible
between iridium phones and any other telephone in the world
Functioning of a satellite phone network
 Functioning of a satellite phone network

• A satellite phone is in actuality nothing but a radio

transceiver. It sends signals directly to a satellite (part of
a network of satellites). When the satellite phone is turned
on, the signal goes up to any number of satellites in a
compatible constellation where it is then registered with the
constellation.
• Those signals are then sent back to earth to a station. The
Gateway (earth station) processes and takes care of the
switching of the calls rather than the satellite network. This
station then directs the call to the Public Switched Telephone
Network (PSTN) or to a cellular network.
• If calling from a cell or wired phone to a satellite phone, the
system works in reverse. Or suppose a satellite phone calling
another satellite phone. The signal goes up to the satellite,
down to earth, back up to a satellite and then back down to
earth again.
• The frequency specification of a satellite phone is 626.5 to
1660.5 MHz for transmitter and 1525.0 to 1559.0 MHz for
receiver.
 Manufacturers of satellite phone system

• Inmarsat
• Iridium
• Thuraya
• Globalstar
 Advantages of satellite phone system

• Wide network coverage

• Uniform performance irrespective of location
• Uniformity in phone number
• No installation/setup required
• Highly useful in disaster response
 Disadvantages of satellite phone system

• High cost of the phone as well as call cost

• Large antenna size
• Delay in voice communications conversations,
particularly when using networks based on
geosynchronous orbits
• Low data bandwidths for internet access etc.
• Local government regulations may also prevent
one from using satellite phones without prior
permission.
References
• Lecture Notes on Mobile Communication, A
Curriculum Development Cell Project Under
QIP, IIT Guwahati, by Dr. Abhijit Mitra
THANK YOU