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Wireless atm network demonstrator

Objective

The project has three main objectives;
to specify a wireless, customer premises, access system for ATM networks that maintains the service characteristics and benefits of the ATM networks to the mobile user;
to promote the standardisation, notably in ETSI, of wireless ATM access as developed in this project; and
to demonstrate and carry out user trials with the selected user group and test the feasibility of a radio based ATM access system.
The main result of the project will be a Wireless ATM Access Network Demonstration system which will serve as a proof of concept for the developed technology and help the wireless ATM standardisation work in the relevant fora.
The current achievements of the project include the complete functional system specification on the demonstrator which has been specified with the SDL (Specification and Description Language) and verified with the simulation model. In addition, the project has defined the exact demo platform setup and therefore enabled the basis for the implementation work which has been started on all parts of the system.
Besides demonstrator work, the project has been active in its liaison and standardisation activities. The stochastical radio channel model for channel simulations was developed and verified by measurements on 5 and 17 GHz frequency bands. The model has been given as an input e.g. for SIG1 work. Furthermore, the project has been active in the standardisation fora by contributing and harmonising the work between ATM forum and ETSI RES10.
The Magic WAND project will continue the work on gaining knowledge on the wireless ATM radio design and its medium access control functions as well as wireless ATM specific Control and Signalling functions. These results will be further contributed to ETSI and ATM forum in order to influence on the all relevant standards for wireless ATM systems.
Expected Impact
The main benefit of wireless ATM is that it enhances the effectiveness of people in many occupations and businesses by providing them with location independent and high capacity [20 Mbit/s] access to broadband infrastructure networks. Wireless ATM will allow users to transmit and receive data at realistic data rates and controlled service levels that match those of the wired ATM world. This assurance of service is imperative as long distance ATM services are relatively expensive and users can not be expected to accept service degradation on the final (radio) link.

Main contributions to the programme objectives:
Main deliverables
A WLAN(Wireless Local Area Network) platform demonstrating broadband wireless ATM services using the 5.2 GHz frequency band, with bit rates capability up 20 Mb/s
Contribution to the programme
Example of European R&D co-operation (among competing operators and suppliers) to develop a common "real numbers" cost database.
Technical Approach
The Magic WAND project (Wireless ATM Network Demonstrator) covers the whole range of functionality from basic (wireless) data transmission to shared multi-media applications. The primary goal of the project is to demonstrate that wireless access to ATM, capable of providing real multi-media services to mobile users, is technically feasible. The project partners have chosen to use the 5 GHz frequency band for the demonstrator and perform also studies on higher bit rate operation (>50 Mb/s( in the 17 GHz frequency band.

This project will consist of three major phases. In the first phase, system and component design will be undertaken. In the second phase an implementation of the design will be produced. The implementation, using mobile terminals based on the portable computers in combination with wireless Access Points (AP) serviced by an ATM switch, will be as close as possible to the targeted functionality defined in the design phase. In the final phase, wireless ATM access system will be tested out with real end users to verify the system operation.
Summary of Trial
The aim of the user trials is to verify a wireless, customer premises, access system for ATM networks that maintains the service characteristics and benefits of ATM networks in the 5 GHz range allocated to wireless high speed data transmission. The feasibility of a radio based ATM access system will be demonstrated by the user trials with selected end-user groups in hospital (medical consultation) and office environments (mobile computing)
The medical consultation shows an advanced scenario, fully exploiting the wireless ATM service capabilities in the hospital environment. The JVTOS (Joint Video Telecommunication Operating System) will be used with an X-ray viewing application using both native audio and video services over ATM. In this scenario, doctor will be equipped with mobile terminal while visiting patients. With the help of wireless ATM connection, doctor is able to retrieve patient information from network, consult expert doctors and share documents.
The mobile computing trial, will demonstrate legacy applications built on top of the TCP/IP protocol stack such as Internet Web-browsers over the wireless ATM link with university students as an user group.
Independent trial sites are provided by University of Ulm, Technical University of Tampere and Bosch in liaison with the Finnish Mobile National Host and the German National Host.
Key Issues
ATM transmission is fundamentally a fast 53 byte cell switching technology for fixed network assuming reliable wired fiber or copper connections. Wireless ATM intends to extend all the benefits of the ATM and therefore also the ATM signaling and virtual channels/paths into the mobile terminal raising important issues that have to be solved both in the wireless access interface and in the supporting customer premises ATM network.
In the air interface the wireless ATM transmission will be subject to the vagaries of the radio medium and therefore special radio design measures will be required in order to offer users an adequate level of service. These measures constitute some of the major technical challenges of this project.
In the fixed network side the challenge will be the retrofitting of special call set-up and re-routing features into the Control and Signalling functions developed for the wired broadband world. The wired technology has to be enhanced in order to be able to cope with mobile ATM users.

Call for proposal

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Coordinator

Nokia Mobile Phones
EU contribution
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Address
Sinitaival 5
33721 Tampere
Finland

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Total cost
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Participants (12)