Lecture 2 Wireless & 802.

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David Andersen Department of Computer Science Carnegie Mellon University 15-849, Fall 2005 [Link]
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From Signals to Packets

Analog Signal Digital Signal Bit Stream Packets Packet Transmission

0 0 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 1
0100010101011100101010101011101110000001111010101110101010101101011010111001

Header/Body

Header/Body

Header/Body

Sender

Receiver 2

Todays Lecture

Modulation. Bandwidth limitations. Frequency spectrum and its use. Multiplexing. Coding. Framing.

Modulation

Sender changes the nature of the signal in a way that the receiver can recognize.
Similar to radio: AM or FM

Digital transmission: encodes the values 0 or 1 in the signal.

It is also possible to encode multi-valued symbols

Amplitude modulation: change the strength of the signal, typically between on and off.
Sender and receiver agree on a rate On means 1, Off means 0

Similar: frequency or phase modulation. Can also combine method modulation types.
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Amplitude and Frequency Modulation

0011 0011000111000110001110

The Nyquist Limit

A noiseless channel of width H can at most transmit a binary signal at a rate 2 x H.

E.g. a 3000 Hz channel can transmit data at a rate of at most 6000 bits/second Assumes binary amplitude encoding

Past the Nyquist Limit

More aggressive encoding can increase the channel bandwidth.

Example: modems Same frequency - number of symbols per second Symbols have more possible values

psk

Psk + AM

Every transmission medium supports transmission in a certain frequency range.

The channel bandwidth is determined by the transmission medium and the quality of the transmitter and receivers Channel capacity increases over time

Capacity of a Noisy Channel

Cant add infinite symbols - you have to be able to tell them apart. This is where noise comes in. Shannons theorem:
C = B x log(1 + S/N) C: maximum capacity (bps) B: channel bandwidth (Hz) S/N: signal to noise ratio of the channel Often expressed in decibels (db). 10 log(S/N).

Example:
Local loop bandwidth: 3200 Hz Typical S/N: 1000 (30db) What is the upper limit on capacity? Modems: Teleco internally converts to 56kbit/s digital signal, which sets a limit on B and the S/N.

Example: Modem Rates

100000
Modem rate

10000 1000 100 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000

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Year

Limits to Speed and Distance

Noise: random energy is added to the signal. Attenuation: some of the energy in the signal leaks away. Dispersion: attenuation and propagation speed are frequency dependent.
Changes the shape of the signal

Attenuation: Loss (dB) = 20 log(4 pi d / lambda)

Loss ratio is proportional to: square of distance, frequency BUT: Antennas can be smaller with higher frequencies Gain can compensate for the attenuation

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Modulation vs. BER

More symbols =
Higher data rate: More information per baud Higher bit error rate: Harder to distinguish symbols

Why useful?
802.11b uses DBPSK (differential binary phase shift keying) for 1Mbps, and DQPSK (quadriture) for 2, 5.5, and 11. 802.11a uses four schemes - BPSK, PSK, 16-QAM, and 64-AM, as its rates go higher.

Effect: If your BER / packet loss rate is too high, drop down the speed: more noise resistance. Well see in some papers later in the semester that this means noise resistance isnt always linear with speed.

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Interference and Noise

Noise figure: Property of the receiver circuitry. How good amplifiers, etc., are.
Noise is random white noise. Major cause: Thermal agitation of electrons.

Attenuation is also termed large scale path loss Interference: Other signals
Microwaves, equipment, etc. But not only source: Multipath: Signals bounce off of walls, etc., and cancel out the desired signal in different places. Causes small-scale fading, particularly when mobile, or when the reflective environment is mobile. Effects vary in under a wavelength.

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Frequency Division Multiplexing: Multiple Channels

Determines Bandwidth of Link

Amplitude

Determines Bandwidth of Channel

Different Carrier Frequencies

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Wireless Technologies

Great technology: no wires to install, convenient mobility, .. High attenuation limits distances.
Wave propagates out as a sphere Signal strength reduces quickly (1/distance)3

High noise due to interference from other transmitters.

Use MAC and other rules to limit interference Aggressive encoding techniques to make signal less sensitive to noise

Other effects: multipath fading, security, .. Ether has limited bandwidth.

Try to maximize its use Government oversight to control use 14

Antennas and Attenuation

Isotropic Radiator: A theoretical antenna

Perfectly spherical radiation. Used for reference and FCC regulations.

Dipole antenna (vertical wire)

Radiation pattern like a doughnut

Parabolic antenna
Radiation pattern like a long balloon

Yagi antenna (common in 802.11)

Looks like |--|--|--|--|--|--| Directional, pretty much like a parabolic reflector

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Antennas

Spatial reuse:
Directional antennas allow more communication in same 3D space

Gain:
Focus RF energy in a certain direction Works for both transmission and reception

Frequency specific
Frequency range dependant on length / design of antenna, relative to wavelength.

FCC bit: Effective Isotropic Radiated Power. (EIRP).

Favors directionality. E.g., you can use an 8dB gain antenna b/c of spatial characteristics, but not always an 8dB amplifier.

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Spread Spectrum and CDMA

Basic idea: Use a wider bandwidth than needed to transmit the signal. Why??
Resistance to jamming and interference If one sub-channel is blocked, you still have the others Pseudo-encryption Have to know what frequencies it will use

Two techniques for spread spectrum

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Frequency Hopping SS

Pick a set of frequencies within a band At each time slot, pick a new frequency
Ex: original 1Mbit 802.11 used 300ms time slots

Frequency determined by a pseudorandom generator function with a shared seed. Freq

Time
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Direct Sequence SS

Use more bandwidth than you need to

Generate extra bits via a spreading sequence

Data Code Signal

1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 01 0 1 0 1

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CDMA

DSS with orthogonal codes

If receiver is using code A: Data xor A = signal Output = sum(signal xor A) Lets say someone else transmits with code B at the same time: Signal = Data xor A + other xor B Output: sum((signal xor A + other xor B) xor A)

= Data if A and B or orthogonal (dot product is zero) Ex: A: 1 -1 -1 1 -1 1 B: 1 1 -1 -1 1 1 Decode function: sum (bitwise received) Rx A1: 1*1 + -1*-1 + -1*-1 + 1*1 + -1*-1 + 1*1 = 6 A1 + B1 signal: 2 0 -2 0 0 2 Decode at A: 2*1 + 0 + -2*-1 + 0 + 0 + 2*1 = 6 (!)

In practice: use pseudorandom numbers, depend on balance and uniform distribution to make other transmissions look like noise.

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CDMA, continued
Lots of codes Useful if many transmitters are quiescent

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Medium Access Control

Think back to Ethernet MAC:

Wireless is a shared medium Transmitters interfere Need a way to ensure that (usually) only one person talks at a time. Goals: Efficiency, possibly fairness

But wireless is harder!

Cant really do collision detection: Cant listen while youre transmitting. You overwhelm your antenna Carrier sense is a bit weaker: Takes a while to switch between Tx/Rx. Wireless is not perfectly broadcast

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Hidden and Exposed Terminal

A B C When B transmits, both A and C hear. When A transmits, B hears, but C does not so C doesnt know that if it transmits, it will clobber the packet that B is receiving!
Hidden terminal

When B transmits to A, C hears it

and so mistakenly believes that it cant send anything to a node other than B. Exposed terminal

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MAC discussion

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802.11 particulars

802.11b (WiFi)
Frequency: 2.4 - 2.4835 Ghz DSSS Modulation: DBPSK (1Mbps) / DQPSK (faster) Orthogonal channels: 3 There are others, but they interfere. (!) Rates: 1, 2, 5.5, 11 Mbps

802.11a: Faster, 5Ghz OFDM. Up to 54Mbps 802.11g: Faster, 2.4Ghz, up to 54Mbps

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802.11 details

Fragmentation
802.11 can fragment large packets (this is separate from IP fragmentation).

Preamble
72 bits @ 1Mbps, 48 bits @ 2Mbps Note the relatively high per-packet overhead.

Control frames
RTS/CTS/ACK/etc.

Management frames
Association request, beacons, authentication, etc.

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802.11 DCF

Distributed Coordination Function (CSMA/CA) Sense medium. Wait for a DIFS (50 s) If busy, wait till not busy. Random backoff. If not busy, Tx. Backoff is binary exponential Acknowledgements use SIFS (short interframe spacing). 10 s.

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802.11 RTS/CTS

RTS sets duration field in header to

CTS time + SIFS + CTS time + SIFS + data pkt time

Receiver responds with a CTS

Field also known as the NAV - network allocation vector Duration set to RTS dur - CTS/SIFS time This reserves the medium for people who hear the CTS

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802.11 modes

Infrastructure mode
All packets go through a base station Cards associate with a BSS (basic service set) Multiple BSSs can be linked into an Extended Service Set (ESS) Handoff to new BSS in ESS is pretty quick

Wandering around CMU

Moving to new ESS is slower, may require readdressing

Wandering from CMU to Pitt

Ad Hoc mode
Cards communicate directly. Perform some, but not all, of the AP functions

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802.11 continued

802.11b packet header: (MPDU has its own) Preamble PLCP header 56 bits sync
Signal 8 bits Service 8 bits

MPDU 16 bit Start of Frame

Length 16 bits

CRC 16 bits

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802.11 packet
FC D/I Addr Addr SC Addr DATA FCS

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