UNIT I

(INTRODUCTION)

Introduction to Mobile Computing – Applications of Mobile Computing- Generations of

Mobile Communication Technologies- Multiplexing – Spread spectrum -MAC Protocols –

SDMA- TDMA- FDMA- CDMA

1.1 INTRODUCTION TO MOBILE COMPUTING

Mobile Computing is an umbrella term used to describe technologies that enable people to
access network services anyplace, anytime, and anywhere.
Wireless Networking
Wireless networks are computer networks that are not connected by cables of any kind. The use
of a wireless network enables enterprises to avoid the costly process of introducing cables into
buildings or as a connection between different equipment locations.
Mobile Computing vs Wireless Networking
• It is backbone of mobile computing.
• It is an extension of physical wired network.
• It provides all the basic infrastructure for communications for mobile computing.
Characteristics of Mobile Computing:
❖ Ubiquity.
❖ Location awareness.
❖ Adaptation.
❖ Broadcast.
❖ Personalization.

(a) Ubiquity
❖ Present everywhere.
❖ Ability to perform computation anywhere any time.
❖ Very essential for business people.
(b) Location awareness
❖ GPS System ( Handheld devices are now equipped with this ).
❖ It is useful provide personalized services.
❖ Services
➢ Maps
➢ Traffic Control.
➢ Emergency Services.
➢ Fleet Management. ( Managing vehicles under one command )
(c) Adaptation
 ❖ Adaptation in mobile computing context that adjusting with bandwidth fluctuations
without inconveniencing the customers.
❖ It is very crucial for problems we have in mobile technologies,
➢ Handoffs.
➢ Obstacles.
➢ Environmental noises.
(d) Broadcast
❖ Effective data transmission for more than one node in the network.
❖ Advertising services based on the locations of the users.
(e) Personalization
❖ Mobile should be personalized according to the user profiles.
❖ We can personalize the information source for correct information source.
❖ Subscribing for specific news channels or news topics and get the valid information.

Limitations of Mobile Computing

i) Resource constraints: Radio transmission cannot be protected against interference

using shielding and result in higher loss rates for transmitted data or higher bit error
rates respectively
ii) Bandwidth: Transmission rates are very low for wireless devices compared to
desktop systems. Researchers look for more efficient communication protocols with
low overhead.
iii) Dynamic changes in communication environment: variations in signal power
within a region, thus link delays and connection losses
iv) Network Issues: discovery of the connection-service to destination and connection
stability Interoperability issues: the varying protocol standards
v) Security constraints: Not only can portable devices be stolen more easily, but the
radio interface is also prone to the dangers of eavesdropping. Wireless access must
always include encryption, authentication, and other security mechanisms that must
be efficient and simple to use.

1.2 APPLICATIONS OF MOBILE COMPUTING

The importance of Mobile Computers has been highlighted in many fields of which a few are
described below:

a) Vehicles:
Music, news, road conditions, weather reports and other broadcast information are received
via digital audio broadcasting. The service will be informed via an emergency call to a service
provider. Buses, trucks, and trains are already transmitting maintenance and logistic information
to their home base, which helps to improve organization and saves time and money.

b) Emergencies:
 An ambulance with a high-quality wireless connection to a hospital can carry vital information
about injured persons to the hospital from the scene of the accident. All the necessary steps for this
particular type of accident can be prepared and specialists can be consulted for an early diagnosis.
Wireless networks are the only means of communication in the case of natural disasters such as
hurricanes or earthquakes.

c) Business:
Managers can use mobile computers say, critical presentations to major customers. They can
access the latest market share information. At a small recess, they can revise the presentation to
take advantage of this information. They can communicate with the office about possible new
offers and call meetings for discussing responds to the new proposals. Therefore, mobile
computers can leverage competitive advantages.

A travelling salesman today needs instant access to the company’s database: to ensure that files
on his or her laptop reflect the current situation, to enable the company to keep track of all activities
of their travelling employees, to keep databases consistent etc. With wireless access, the laptop
can be turned into a true mobile office, but efficient and powerful synchronization mechanisms are
needed to ensure data consistency.

d) Credit Card Verification:

At Point of Sale (POS) terminals in shops and Supermarkets, when customers use credit cards
for transactions, the intercommunication required between the bank central computer and the POS
terminal, in order to effect verification of the card usage, can take place quickly and securely over
cellular channels using a mobile computer unit. This can speed up the transaction process and
relieve congestion at the POS terminals.

e) Replacement of Wired Networks:

Wireless networks can also be used to replace wired networks, e.g., remote sensors, for
tradeshows, or in historic buildings. Due to economic reasons, it is often impossible to wire remote
sensors for weather forecasts, earthquake detection, or to provide environmental information.
Wireless connections, e.g., via satellite, can help in this situation. Other examples for wireless
networks are computers, sensors, or information displays in historical buildings, where excess
cabling may destroy valuable walls or floors.

1.3 GENERATIONS OF MOBILE COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES

a) First Generation (1G)

❖ Frequency Spectrum is divided into number of sub bands.

❖ Each subband has a frequency of 25 MHz and 30 KHz as guard band.

❖ Two Channels are allocated for one user.

❖ One channel for incoming signals and another one for outgoing signals.
❖ The guard band leads to inefficient use of spectrum.

❖ 1G Standards globally:

➢ AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System) in the USA.

➢ NMT 450 (Nordic Mobile Telephone) in European Countries.

➢ TACS (Total Advanced Communications System) in the UK.

Drawbacks :

1. The call are connected using frequency reuse techniques (FDMA).

2. Same frequency is not used for non-adjacent cells.
3. When caller crossed the boundary may be new cell can’t allocate same frequency for user so
frequent call drops is experienced by the user.
4. No of callers accommodation is low by inefficient use of bandwidth.
5. It is pure analog system so efficiency is poor.
6. Voice Quality is too poor.
7. No security anyone can intercept the call with the right tuner.

b) Second Generation (2G)

❖ 2G Systems uses the encoding technique before transmit the voice and data.

❖ Functional Digital System with Noise Immunity and better bandwidth utilization.

❖ The 1G System is quickly replaced by 2G Systems.

❖ Call charges are drastically reduces.

❖ Lot of Improvements in Quality of Services.

❖ SMS services are introduced.

❖ 2G Systems uses the CDMA or TDMA Techniques.

❖ Deployment started in 1990’s.

❖ Two Standards:

➢ IS - 95 it is CDMA Technique used in North America, we can multiplex 64 calls per

channel in 800 MHz Band.

➢ But Globally adopted system is Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM)
that uses the TDMA to multiplex 8 calls per channel in the 900 and 1800 MHz band.
❖ It supports the good call quality and data services and e-mail.

c) 2.5 Generation (2.5G)

❖ General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) is an extension of GSM.

❖ It is a packet switching instead of circuit switching.

❖ Improved much better than 2G calls cost are much more reduced.

❖ User are remain connected with internet and enhances the multimedia capabilities in SMS
Charges.

❖ Deployed in 2000.

❖ EDGE (Enhanced Data for Global Evolution) comes for faster internet.

d) Third Generation (3G)

❖ It is often referred to IMT-2000 (International Mobile Telecommunications - 2000).

❖ 3G System supports much higher data transmission rate and Increased Bandwidth.

❖ Pure data network, voice are converted into digital data and considered as another form of
data.

❖ Cheaper calls with packets switching technique but it requires different infrastructure other
than 2G.

❖ It Offers the :

➢ E-Mails

➢ Instant Messagings

➢ Video Telephony

➢ Multimedia Gaming

➢ Live - Video Buffering

➢ Location Based Services.

❖ First 3G System is deployed in Japan in 2001 by DoCoMo.

❖ UMTS is designed to adopt the GSM systems for 3G Capabilities.

❖ European countries uses the UMTS, and USA uses the CDMA2000 for 3G Networks.
e) Fourth Generation (4G)

❖ Supports 10 times faster data rates than 3G.

❖ It offers:

➢ IP Telephony (VoLTE)

➢ Gaming Services.

➢ High Definition Mobile TV.

➢ Video Conferencing and 3D Television.

❖ Two standards :

➢ Mobile WiMAX.

➢ Long Term Evolution (LTE).

1.4 STRUCTURE OF MOBILE APPLICATION

❖ It is structured based on the functionality implementations

❖ Most of them are 3 tier architecture.

Elaborated View (Sales System)

a) Presentation Tier
❖ Top most level of mobile computing application.

❖ Good user interface that is responsible to produces the results in a meaningful manner.

❖ Runs on client side.

❖ Compatible with browsers and customized client applications.

❖ Example : Flipkart Interface

b) Application Tier
❖ Vital responsibility of this layer is making logical decisions and performing calculations.

❖ It moves and process the data between presentation and data tiers.

❖ It is also considered engine of the application.

❖ It gets the user input information and process with the logic and makes the decisions.

❖ It is implemented using the technology like Java, .NET services, ColdFusion.

Data Tier

❖ It provides the basic facilities of data.

➢ Storage.

➢ Access.

➢ Manipulations.

❖ This layer contains databases and Query processors.

❖ This layer implemented in the fixed server.

1.5 MULTIPLEXING

• Multiplexing is a technique in which, multiple simultaneous analog or digital signals are

transmitted across a single data link.

• The concept behind it is very simple: Proper Resource Sharing and its Utilization.

• It can be classified into four types. These are:

Frequency Division Multiplexing(FDM)

In Frequency Division , the frequency dimension spectrum is split into bands of smaller
frequency.

FDM is used because of the fact that, a number of frequency band can work simultaneously
without any time constraint.

Advantages of FDM

• This concept is applicable on both analog signals as well as digital signals.

 • Simultaneous signal transmission feature.

Disadvantages of FDM

• Less Flexibility.

• Bandwidth wastage is high and can be an issue.

For Example : Frequency Division Multiplexing can be used for radio station in a particular
region as every radio station will have their own frequency and can work simultaneously without
having any constraint of time.

Time Division Multiplexing(TDM)

• Time Division is used for a particular amount of time in which the whole spectrum is used.

• Time frames of same intervals are made such that the entire frequency spectrum can be
accessed at that time frame.

Advantages of TDM

Single user at a time.

Less complex and more flexible architecture.

Disadvantages of TDM

Difficult to implement.

For Example : ISDN(Integrated Service for Digital Network) telephonic service.

Code Division Multiplexing(CDM)

In Code Division Multiplexing, every channel is allotted with a unique code so that each of these
channels can use the same spectrum simultaneously at same time.

Advantages of CDM

Highly Efficient.

Less Inference.

Disadvantages of CDM

Less data transmission rates.

Complex in nature.

For Example : Cell Phone Spectrum Technology(2G, 3G etc.).

Space Division Multiplexing(SDM)

Space Division can be called as the combination of concepts of Frequency Division Multiplexing and
Time Division Multiplexing.

In SDM, the goal is to pass messages or data parallelly with the use of specific frequency at certain
interval of time.

It means, a particular channel for some amount of time will be used against a certain frequency band.

Advantages of SDM

High Data transmission rate.

Optimal Use of Time and Frequency bands.

Disadvantages of SDM

Inference Problems.

High inference losses.

For Example : GSM(Global Service For Mobile) Technology.

https://www.iith.ac.in/~tbr/teaching/docs/introduction.pdf

SPREAD SPECTRUM
Problem of radio transmission: frequency dependent fading can wipe out narrow band signals for
duration of the interference

Solution: spread the narrow band signal into a broad band signal using a special code protection against
narrow band interference
Side effects:

• coexistence of several signals without dynamic coordination

• tap-proof

Alternatives: Direct Sequence, Frequency Hopping

Effects of spreading and interference

Spreading and frequency selective fading

 FHSS DSSS / CDMA

Multiple frequencies are used Single frequency is used

Hard to find the user’s frequency at any User frequency, once allotted is always the
instant of time same

Frequency reuse is allowed Frequency reuse is not allowed

Sender need not wait Sender has to wait if the spectrum is busy
 Power strength of the signal is high Power strength of the signal is low

Stronger and penetrates through the

It is weaker compared to FHSS
obstacles

It is never affected by interference It can be affected by interference

It is cheaper It is expensive

This is the commonly used technique This technique is not frequently used

Media Access Control (MAC)

The Media Access Control (MAC) data communication protocol sub-layer, also known
as the Medium Access Control, is a sublayer of the Data Link Layer specified in the seven-layer
OSI model (layer 2). The hardware that implements the MAC is referred to as a Medium Access
Controller. The MAC sub-layer acts as an interface between the Logical Link Control (LLC)
sublayer and the network's physical layer. The MAC layer emulates a full-duplex logical
communication channel in a multi-point network. This channel may provide unicast, multicast
or broadcast communication service.

LLC and MAC sublayers

Motivation for a specialized MAC

One of the most commonly used MAC schemes for wired networks is carrier sense multiple access
with collision detection (CSMA/CD). In this scheme, a sender senses the medium (a wire or
coaxial cable) to see if it is free. If the medium is busy, the sender waits until it is free. If the
medium is free, the sender starts transmitting data and continues to listen into the medium. If the
sender detects a collision while sending, it stops at once and sends a jamming signal. But this
scheme doest work well with wireless networks. The problems are:

a) Signal strength decreases proportional to the square of the distance

b) The sender would apply CS and CD, but the collisions happen at the receiver

c) It might be a case that a sender cannot “hear” the collision, i.e., CD does not work

d) Furthermore, CS might not work, if for e.g., a terminal is “hidden”

Hidden and Exposed Terminals

Consider the scenario with three mobile phones as shown below. The transmission range
of A reaches B, but not C (the detection range does not reach C either). The transmission range
of C reaches B, but not A. Finally, the transmission range of B reaches A and C, i.e., A cannot
detect C and vice versa.

Hidden terminals
a) A sends to B, C cannot hear A
b) C wants to send to B, C senses a “free” medium (CS fails) and starts transmitting
c) Collision at B occurs, A cannot detect this collision (CD fails) and continues with its
transmission to B
d) A is “hidden” from C and vice versa
Exposed terminals
a) B sends to A, C wants to send to another terminal (not A or B) outside the range
b) C senses the carrier and detects that the carrier is busy.
c) C postpones its transmission until it detects the medium as being idle again but A is
outside radio range of C, waiting is not necessary
d) C is “exposed” to B

Hidden terminals cause collisions, where as Exposed terminals causes unnecessary delay.
Near and far terminals
Consider the situation shown below. A and B are both sending with the same transmission
power.
a) Signal strength decreases proportional to the square of the distance
b) So, B’s signal drowns out A’s signal making C unable to receive A’s transmission
c) If C is an arbiter for sending rights, B drown out A’s signal on the physical layer
making C unable to hear out A.
 The near/far effect is a severe problem of wireless networks using CDM. All signals
should arrive at the receiver with more or less the same strength for which Precise power control
is to be implemented.

SDMA
Space Division Multiple Access (SDMA) is used for allocating a separated space to
users
in wireless networks. A typical application involves assigning an optimal base station to a mobile
phone user. The mobile phone may receive several base stations with different quality. A MAC
algorithm could now decide which base station is best, taking into account which frequencies
(FDM), time slots (TDM) or code (CDM) are still available. The basis for the SDMA algorithm
is formed by cells and sectorized antennas which constitute the infrastructure implementing
space division multiplexing (SDM). SDM has the unique advantage of not requiring any
multiplexing equipment. It is usually combined with other multiplexing techniques to better
utilize the individual physical channels.

FDMA
Frequency division multiplexing (FDM) describes schemes to subdivide the frequency
dimension into several non-overlapping frequency bands.

Frequency Division Multiple Access is a method employed to permit several users to

transmit simultaneously on one satellite transponder by assigning a specific frequency within
the channel to each user. Each conversation gets its own, unique, radio channel. The channels
are relatively narrow, usually 30 KHz or less and are defined as either transmit or receive
channels. A full duplex conversation requires a transmit & receive channel pair. FDM is often
used for simultaneous access to the medium by base station and mobile station in cellular
networks establishing a duplex channel. A scheme called frequency division duplexing (FDD)
in which the two directions, mobile station to base station and vice versa are now separated using
different frequencies.

The two frequencies are also known as uplink, i.e., from mobile station to base station
or from ground control to satellite, and as downlink, i.e., from base station to mobile station or
from satellite to ground control. The basic frequency allocation scheme for GSM is fixed and
regulated by national authorities. All uplinks use the band between 890.2 and 915 MHz, all
downlinks use 935.2 to 960 MHz. According to FDMA, the base station, shown on the right
side, allocates a certain frequency for up- and downlink to establish a duplex channel with a
mobile phone. Up- and downlink have a fixed relation. If the uplink frequency is fu = 890 MHz
+ n·0.2 MHz, the downlink frequency is fd = fu + 45 MHz, i.e., fd = 935 MHz + n·0.2 MHz
for a certain channel . The base station selects the channel. Each channel (uplink and downlink)
has a bandwidth of 200 kHz.
This scheme also has disadvantages. While radio stations broadcast 24 hours a day,
mobile communication typically takes place for only a few minutes at a time. Assigning a
separate frequency for each possible communication scenario would be a tremendous waste of
(scarce) frequency resources. Additionally, the fixed assignment of a frequency to a sender
makes the scheme very inflexible and limits the number of senders.
TDMA
A more flexible multiplexing scheme for typical mobile communications is time division
multiplexing (TDM). Compared to FDMA, time division multiple access (TDMA) offers a much
more flexible scheme, which comprises all technologies that allocate certain time slots for
communication. Now synchronization between sender and receiver has to be achieved in the
time domain. Again this can be done by using a fixed pattern similar to FDMA techniques, i.e.,
allocating a certain time slot for a channel, or by using a dynamic allocation scheme.
 Listening to different frequencies at the same time is quite difficult, but listening to many
channels separated in time at the same frequency is simple. Fixed schemes do not need
identification, but are not as flexible considering varying bandwidth requirements.

Fixed TDM
The simplest algorithm for using TDM is allocating time slots for channels in a fixed
pattern. This results in a fixed bandwidth and is the typical solution for wireless phone systems.
MAC is quite simple, as the only crucial factor is accessing the reserved time slot at the right
moment. If this synchronization is assured, each mobile station knows its turn and no interference
will happen. The fixed pattern can be assigned by the base station, where competition between
different mobile stations that want to access the medium is solved.

The above figure shows how these fixed TDM patterns are used to implement multiple
access and a duplex channel between a base station and mobile station. Assigning different slots
for uplink and downlink using the same frequency is called time division duplex (TDD). As
shown in the figure, the base station uses one out of 12 slots for the downlink, whereas the mobile
station uses one out of 12 different slots for the uplink. Uplink and downlink are separated in
time. Up to 12 different mobile stations can use the same frequency without interference using
this scheme. Each connection is allotted its own up- and downlink pair. This general scheme
still wastes a lot of bandwidth. It is too static, too inflexible for data communication. In this case,
connectionless, demand-oriented TDMA schemes can be used.
Classical Aloha
In this scheme, TDM is applied without controlling medium access. Here each station can access
the medium at any time as shown below:
 This is a random access scheme, without a central arbiter controlling access and without
coordination among the stations. If two or more stations access the medium at the same time, a
collision occurs and the transmitted data is destroyed. Resolving this problem is left to higher
layers (e.g., retransmission of data). The simple Aloha works fine for a light load and does not
require any complicated access mechanisms.

Slotted Aloha
The first refinement of the classical Aloha scheme is provided by the introduction of
time slots (slotted Aloha). In this case, all senders have to be synchronized, transmission can
only start at the beginning of a time slot as shown below.

The introduction of slots raises the throughput from 18 per cent to 36 per cent, i.e., slotting
doubles the throughput. Both basic Aloha principles occur in many systems that implement
distributed access to a medium. Aloha systems work perfectly well under a light load, but
they
cannot give any hard transmission guarantees, such as maximum delay before accessing the
medium or minimum throughput.

Carrier sense multiple access

One improvement to the basic Aloha is sensing the carrier before accessing the medium. Sensing
the carrier and accessing the medium only if the carrier is idle decreases the probability of a
collision. But, as already mentioned in the introduction, hidden terminals cannot be detected, so,
if a hidden terminal transmits at the same time as another sender, a collision might occur at the
receiver. This basic scheme is still used in most wireless LANs. The different versions of CSMA
are:

a) 1-persistent CSMA: Stations sense the channel and listens if its busy and transmit
immediately, when the channel becomes idle. It’s called 1-persistent CSMA because the host
transmits with a probability of 1 whenever it finds the channel idle.

b) non-persistent CSMA: stations sense the carrier and start sending immediately if the
medium is idle. If the medium is busy, the station pauses a random amount of time before sensing
the medium again and repeating this pattern.

c) p-persistent CSMA: systems nodes also sense the medium, but only transmit with a
probability of p, with the station deferring to the next slot with the probability 1-p, i.e., access is
slotted in addition

CSMA with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA) is one of the access schemes used in wireless LANs
following the standard IEEE 802.11. Here sensing the carrier is combined with a back-off scheme
in case of a busy medium to achieve some fairness among competing stations.

Demand assigned multiple access

Channel efficiency for Aloha is 18% and for slotted Aloha is 36%. It can be increased to 80% by
implementing reservation mechanisms and combinations with some (fixed) TDM patterns. These
schemes typically have a reservation period followed by a transmission period. During the
reservation period, stations can reserve future slots in the transmission period. While, depending
on the scheme, collisions may occur during the reservation period, the transmission period can
then be accessed without collision.

One basic scheme is demand assigned multiple access (DAMA) also called reservation Aloha, a
scheme typical for satellite systems. It increases the amount of users in a pool of satellite channels
that are available for use by any station in a network. It is assumed that not all users will need
simultaneous access to the same communication channels. So that a call can be established,
DAMA assigns a pair of available channels based on requests issued from a user. Once the call is
completed, the channels are returned to the pool for an assignment to another call. Since the
resources of the satellite are being used only in proportion to the occupied channels for the time in
which they are being held, it is a perfect environment for voice traffic and data traffic in batch
mode.

It has two modes as shown below.

During a contention phase following the slotted Aloha scheme; all stations can try to
reserve future slots. Collisions during the reservation phase do not destroy data transmission,
but only the short requests for data transmission. If successful, a time slot in the future is reserved,
and no other station is allowed to transmit during this slot. Therefore, the satellite collects all
successful requests (the others are destroyed) and sends back a reservation list indicating access
rights for future slots. All ground stations have to obey this list. To maintain the fixed TDM
pattern of reservation and transmission, the stations have to be synchronized from time to time.
DAMA is an explicit reservation scheme. Each transmission slot has to be reserved explicitly.
PRMA packet reservation multiple access
It is a kind of implicit reservation scheme where, slots can be reserved implicitly. A
certain number of slots form a frame. The frame is repeated in time i.e., a fixed TDM pattern is
applied. A base station, which could be a satellite, now broadcasts the status of each slot to all
mobile stations. All stations receiving this vector will then know which slot is occupied and
which slot is currently free.
The base station broadcasts the reservation status ‘ACDABA-F’ to all stations, here A to

F. This means that slots one to six and eight are occupied, but slot seven is free in the following
transmission. All stations wishing to transmit can now compete for this free slot in Aloha fashion.
The already occupied slots are not touched. In the example shown, more than one station wants to
access this slot, so a collision occurs. The base station returns the reservation status ‘ACDABA-
F’, indicating that the reservation of slot seven failed (still indicated as free) and that nothing has
changed for the other slots. Again, stations can compete for this slot. Additionally, station D has
stopped sending in slot three and station F in slot eight. This is noticed by the base station after the
second frame. Before the third frame starts, the base station indicates that slots three and eight are
now idle. Station F has succeeded in reserving slot seven as also indicated by the base station.

As soon as a station has succeeded with a reservation, all future slots are implicitly reserved for
this station. This ensures transmission with a guaranteed data rate. The slotted aloha scheme is
used for idle slots only; data transmission is not destroyed by collision.

Reservation TDMA

In a fixed TDM scheme N mini-slots followed by N•k data-slots form a frame that is repeated.
Each station is allotted its own mini-slot and can use it to reserve up to k data-slots.

This guarantees each station a certain bandwidth and a fixed delay. Other stations can
now send data in unused data-slots as shown. Using these free slots can be based on a simple
round- robin scheme or can be uncoordinated using an Aloha scheme. This scheme allows for
the combination of, e.g., isochronous traffic with fixed bitrates and best-effort traffic without
any guarantees.
Multiple access with collision avoidance

Multiple access with collision avoidance (MACA) presents a simple scheme that solves the hidden
terminal problem, does not need a base station, and is still a random access Aloha scheme – but
with dynamic reservation. Consider the hidden terminal problem scenario.

A starts sending to B, C does not receive this transmission. C also wants to send something to B
and senses the medium. The medium appears to be free, the carrier sense fails. C also starts sending
causing a collision at B. But A cannot detect this collision at B and continues with its transmission.
A is hidden for C and vice versa.

With MACA, A does not start its transmission at once, but sends a request to send (RTS) first. B
receives the RTS that contains the name of sender and receiver, as well as the length of the future
transmission. This RTS is not heard by C, but triggers an acknowledgement from B, called clear
to send (CTS). The CTS again contains the names of sender (A) and receiver (B) of the user data,
and the length of the future transmission.

This CTS is now heard by C and the medium for future use by A is now reserved for the duration
of the transmission. After receiving a CTS, C is not allowed to send anything for the duration
indicated in the CTS toward B. A collision cannot occur at B during data transmission, and the
hidden terminal problem is solved. Still collisions might occur when A and C transmits a RTS at
the same time. B resolves this contention and acknowledges only one station in the CTS. No
transmission is allowed without an appropriate CTS.

Now MACA tries to avoid the exposed terminals in the following way:
With MACA, B has to transmit an RTS first containing the name of the receiver (A) and the sender
(B). C does not react to this message as it is not the receiver, but A acknowledges using a CTS
which identifies B as the sender and A as the receiver of the following data transmission. C

does not receive this CTS and concludes that A is outside the detection range. C can start its
transmission assuming it will not cause a collision at A. The problem with exposed terminals is
solved without fixed access patterns or a base station.

Polling

Polling schemes are used when one station wants to be heard by others. Polling is a strictly

centralized scheme with one master station and several slave stations. The master can poll the
slaves according to many schemes: round robin (only efficient if traffic patterns are similar over
all stations), randomly, according to reservations (the classroom example with polite students) etc.
The master could also establish a list of stations wishing to transmit during a contention phase.
After this phase, the station polls each station on the list.

Example: Randomly Addressed Polling

• base station signals readiness to all mobile terminals

• terminals ready to send transmit random number without collision using CDMA or FDMA

• the base station chooses one address for polling from list of all random numbers (collision
if two terminals choose the same address)

• the base station acknowledges correct packets and continues polling the next terminal

• this cycle starts again after polling all terminals of the list

Inhibit sense multiple access

This scheme, which is used for the packet data transmission service Cellular Digital Packet Data
(CDPD) in the AMPS mobile phone system, is also known as digital sense multiple access
(DSMA). Here, the base station only signals a busy medium via a busy tone (called BUSY/IDLE
indicator) on the downlink.
After the busy tone stops, accessing the uplink is not coordinated any further. The base station
acknowledges successful transmissions; a mobile station detects a collision only via the missing
positive acknowledgement. In case of collisions, additional back-off and retransmission
mechanisms are implemented.

CDMA

Code division multiple access systems apply codes with certain characteristics to the transmission
to separate different users in code space and to enable access to a shared medium without
interference.

All terminals send on the same frequency probably at the same time and can use the whole
bandwidth of the transmission channel. Each sender has a unique random number, the sender
XORs the signal with this random number. The receiver can “tune” into this signal if it knows the
pseudo random number, tuning is done via a correlation function

Disadvantages:

1. higher complexity of a receiver (receiver cannot just listen into the medium and start
receiving if there is a signal)

2. all signals should have the same strength at a receiver

Advantages:

1. all terminals can use the same frequency, no planning needed

2. huge code space (e.g. 232) compared to frequency space

3. interferences (e.g. white noise) is not coded

4. forward error correction and encryption can be easily integrated

 The following figure shows a sender A that wants to transmit the bits 101. The key of A
is shown as signal and binary sequence Ak. The binary “0” is assigned a positive signal value,
the binary “1” a negative signal value. After spreading, i.e., XORing Ad and Ak, the resulting
signal is As.
 Coding and spreading of data from sender A and sender B

The same happens with data from sender B with bits 100. The result is Bs. As and Bs now
superimpose during transmission. The resulting signal is simply the sum As + Bs as shown above.
A now tries to reconstruct the original data from Ad. The receiver applies A’s key, Ak, to the
received signal and feeds the result into an integrator. The integrator adds the products, a
comparator then has to decide if the result is a 0 or a 1 as shown below. As clearly seen, although
the original signal form is distorted by B’s signal, the result is quite clear. The same happens if a
receiver wants to receive B’s data.
Soft handover or soft handoff refers to a feature used by the CDMA and WCDMA standards,
where a cell phone is simultaneously connected to two or more cells (or cell sectors) during a call.
If the sectors are from the same physical cell site (a sectorised site), it is referred to as softer
handoff. This technique is a form of mobile-assisted handover, for IS-95/CDMA2000 CDMA cell
phones continuously make power measurements of a list of neighboring cell sites, and determine
whether or not to request or end soft handover with the cell sectors on the list.

Soft handoff is different from the traditional hard-handoff process. With hard handoff, a definite
decision is made on whether to hand off or not. The handoff is initiated and executed without the
user attempting to have simultaneous traffic channel communications with the two base stations.
With soft handoff, a conditional decision is made on whether to hand off. Depending on the
changes in pilot signal strength from the two or more base stations involved, a hard decision will
eventually be made to communicate with only one. This normally happens after it is evident that
the signal from one base station is considerably stronger than those from the others. In the interim
period, the user has simultaneous traffic channel communication with all candidate base stations.
It is desirable to implement soft handoff in power-controlled CDMA systems because
implementing hard handoff is potentially difficult in such systems.

Spread Aloha multiple access (SAMA)

CDMA senders and receivers are not really simple devices. Communicating with n
devices requires programming of the receiver to be able to decode n different codes. Aloha was
a very simple scheme, but could only provide a relatively low bandwidth due to collisions.
SAMA uses spread spectrum with only one single code (chipping sequence) for spreading for
all senders accessing according to aloha.
 In SAMA, each sender uses the same spreading code, for ex 110101 as shown below.
Sender A and B access the medium at the same time in their narrowband spectrum, so that the
three bits shown causes collisions. The same data could also be sent with higher power for shorter
periods as show.

The main problem in using this approach is finding good chipping sequences. The maximum
throughput is about 18 per cent, which is very similar to Aloha, but the approach benefits from the
advantages of spread spectrum techniques: robustness against narrowband interference and simple
coexistence with other systems in the same frequency bands.