HiperLAN2 technology enables wireless LANs

As consumers continue to accept cellular technologies and use of the Internet grows, there is great demand for more products to be wirelessly enabled, to be networked and to provide the convenience of the Internet. Several wireless technologies such as IEEE802.11b, Bluetooth, HomeRF, IEEE802.11a and HiperLAN2 are quickly gaining popularity as viable ways to wirelessly enable existing products.

Each technology varies in the frequency, data rates and range supported. To meet the networking requirements of tomorrow, however, a new generation of both wireless LAN (WLAN) and cellular network technologies is under development. These requirements include support for quality of service (QoS), security, handover when moving between local and wide areas (as well as between corporate and public environments), and increased throughput for the ever-demanding need for better performance from both bandwidth-demanding datacom, as well as, for example, videostreaming applications.

HiperLAN2, a next generation global WLAN technology, is being developed by the HiperLAN2 Global Forum. HiperLAN2 focuses on high-speed transmission, connection-oriented communication, QoS support, automatic frequency allocation, security support, mobility support, and network/ application independence.

HiperLAN2 has a high transmission rate, which, at the physical layer, extends up to 54 Mbps, and, on Layer 3, up to 25 Mbps. To achieve this, HiperLAN2 makes use of a modularization method called orthogonal frequency digital multiplexing to transmit the analog signals. In a HiperLAN2 network, data is transmitted on connections between the mobile terminal (MT) and the access point that have been established prior to the transmission, using signaling functions of the HiperLAN2 control plane.

HiperLAN2 is targeted at the following applications:

* Office/enterprise/corporate LAN: In a corporate network built around ethernet LAN and IP routers, a HiperLAN2 network is used as the last segment between the MTs and the network/LAN. The HiperLAN2 network supports mobility within the same LAN/subnet.

* Home network: Domestic electronics like televisions, stereo equipment, PCs and more can all be interconnected/networked by HiperLAN2. HiperLAN2 allows the creation of a wireless infrastructure for home devices and multimedia equipment to be intelligently controlled from any computing device in the home without the need for network cables.

* Public hot spots: HiperLAN2 networks can be deployed at hot-spot areas (e.g., airports, hotels) to enable an easy way of offering remote access and Internet services to business people.

* University: HiperLAN2 benefits both students and lecturers, allowing wireless access to the university and the Internet.

* Access to 3rd-generation cellular network: HiperLAN2 can be used as an alternative access technology to 3G cellular networks, to cover hot spots and city areas with HiperLAN2, and the wide area with wireless code division multiple access technology.

Dhir is a system architect in the strategic applications group at Xilinx Inc., San Jose, CA.

COPYRIGHT 2001 Nelson Publishing
COPYRIGHT 2001 Gale Group