Because the CTIA, the main regulator of wireless communications, launched the interconnection standard, a significant change is taking place in this sector that brings with it some privileges.
by Osvaldo Callegari
RF Converged Group
The change that is brewing is a beneficial process in the universe of increasingly portable communications, where cell phone companies are in paragoods, as they incorporate WI-FI ® devices into their networks.
The CTIA® and WI-FI ® have agreed on the joint development of a plan to control the efficiency and performance of mixed Wi-Fi ® and cellular networks in different environments, within which technology integrators participate in the standardization of cellular mobiles and access points. This program includes a detailed radio frequency map to identify in which segment it operates safely.
For Carriers, providers of cellular links, this change means incorporating data sources from Wi-Fi® certified mobile devices, which generates new added value to their services. From this mixture of technologies in this wide spectrum, new frequencies of work are incorporated to achieve fascinating interoperability. The benefit for the end user will be very broad, since from their devices they will have a multiplicity of communicative functions. Since the end of 2006 there has been a verification test of the aforementioned services that includes:
- Take measurements in a 360º environment to recreate a real world or real conditions.
- Measure the range of WIFI radio signals sent by a cell phone or access point called TRP (radiated power transmission).
- Evaluate the ISOtropic sensitivity TIS, that is, the sensitivity of a WiFi equipment that can detect a call from a converged phone.
- Determine the sensitivity of the antennas by calling power and conducted sensitivity.
- Measurement of the reduction in the sensitivity of a WiFi receiver caused by the presence of an active cellular transmitter, in order to ensure performance within acceptable limits.
- Compliance with the certifications required by WI-FI Certified ® and WPA2® security, in addition to the CTIA certification for the performance of cell phones.
This plan was jointly developed by the Wireless Convergence Group, some of which are made in mirror on cellular devices. At the end of 2006 the agreement between the two major standards regulators CTIA® and Wi-Fi ® was signed and the standards verification developments were carried out simultaneously in this merger of the agreement.
The program includes verification of handheld mobile Wi-Fi equipment, PDA digital personal assistants and AP access points, which will be reviewed and incorporated into the standard incrementally for the interoperability of 802.11 a/b/g standards. Cell phone carriers will obtain an accurate report of each equipment to ensure its operation.
New WI-FI ® draft, new generation standard
It's a reality that WI-FI has transformed the way people connect, whether at work or at home. The result is an achievement in the service economy, as well as the ability to carry different devices. Today we can say that not only can laptops be connected exclusively but their coverage has been extended to an innumerable number of mobile devices, such as pda, MP3 players, MP4 and other entertainment products that have entered this market recently. There is a very rapid growth trend in this sector that forces consumers to know the std 802.11n.
Standard 802.11n
This standard has made a very important leap technologically speaking, as you get the best connection available for your computer or entertainment application. In addition, it improves the bandwidth, the scope of the service and the requirements that multimedia demands today.
It is important to note that the verifications to which these equipment have been subjected include the current security and encryption protections, as well as the compatibility with versions prior to n, which are the networks in a, b, g.
With this standard, people have the possibility of being interconnected anywhere in their home, with the expected quality to watch television, movies in any format or video games.
The new draft can cover the demand of all devices in a home from the computer, through game consoles, portable music players, digital cameras, memory banks etc, which allows the user experience not to be slowed down.
Additionally, its capacity is guaranteed for content-rich applications with an intelligent handling of network priorities, for example, the playback of a movie does not suffer interference while sending an email of a considerable volume.
Additional technological features
Among its advantages we can say that the transfer speed is five times more than its previous consecutive norm. Radio signals now bounce off the walls as a kind of echo, which leads to improved communications without concrete constructions, columns or blocks interfering with the service.
In turn, the 802.11n draft 2.0 makes it possible to have multiple antennas as if several FM radios were tuned simultaneously and the technology used (MIMO), multiple inputs and multiple outputs, makes it possible to have several channels so that the signal enters much clearer and more precise.
Not all tasks that are added to the network are always created in the same way. When one watches movies or listens to music there are interruptions or small "delays", but within the standards of the draft 2.0 these problems are solved, since it relies heavily on the resolution of them to avoid distortions.
To make this possible, an internal intelligence called QoS, quality of service, has been implemented, also applied in other technologies where priorities are established in the network to preserve the best multimedia experience, without having to use any extra configuration to enable this feature.
The fact that the equipment you buy has the WI-FI 802.11n logo guarantees you a better quality of operation of your devices, in addition to the extreme portability that it demonstrates.
The WIFI® alliance has certified since 2,000 more than 3,400 products from notebooks, laptops, pda, routers etc. Only those computers that pass all the verifications can be credited with the logo.
Interoperability, compatibility and security
Devices from different manufacturers can work together seamlessly, as the safety guards are on your plates. This advantage allows you not to be anchored with a particular brand for certain purposes. In this way you can opt for different items with the same operating interoperability slogan. Also the 802.11n can operate without problems with previous versions such as 802.11 a,b,g, (explained in articles of 2006).
WPA2™ (WiFI Protected Access) is the security built into the standard. In this system based on U.S. government standards, security options can be activated by the user and data travels encrypted giving you some peace of mind and protection. The application of this feature allows you to protect the network with a simple button or with a password or pin.
Technology forums and standard organizers
A significant number of organizations and engineering forums are working in their areas to develop interoperable standards, which will be the bridge that will allow users to have greater connectivity, especially in public wifi® access.
They are:
- IEEE: Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineers
- ETSI BRAN: Institute of Standard Telecommunications and Broadband Access Networks
- MMAC HSWA: Mobile Communications Access Systems and High Speed Wireless Access Committee
- IETF: Internet Engineering Group
- 3GPP: Projects of third generation partners of mobile technologies.
- IPDR: Internet Protocol Detailed Logging
The WiFi alliance, the IEEE 802.11 standards committee and several Wi-Fi members are working to develop new security standards such as 802.11i and 802.11x, which will use encryption from advanced technologies such as AES and TKIP, in addition to secure key sending methods.
Hackers can break encryption codes by intercepting and analyzing large volumes of data, but breaking the codes takes time, as the encryption key is automatically changed every five minutes or more and the network has a new key while the hacker keeps the old one.
At the enterprise level, administrators must change these keys manually, but 802.1x does so automatically.
Other security technologies
Today security is a constant challenge, and that's why companies are struggling to get security standards that are stable at least for a while.
There are a number of third-party products that support WIFI and possess quite effective tools for protection, such as associated firewall products and embedded routers etc. Some encryption techniques use special technologies to distort the transmission on one end and correct it on the other. Others use special codes to validate themselves through shipments, that is, if the receiver's key is identical to the transmitter, it is accepted itself.
There are also other security technologies such as:
- WPA (Wi-Fi Access Protected)
- WPA2 (Wi-Fi Access Protected 2)
- EAP (Extended Authentication Protocol)
- VPN (Virtual Private Networks)
- Firewall
- MAC (Data Access Control, Filtering)
- Radius (Authentication and Authorization)
- Kerberos
