BITS Pilani BITS Pilani

Pilani | Dubai | Goa | Hyderabad

M1.5V1
Characteristics of Wireless Transmission
Wireless Transmission - Characteristics
BITS Pilani

• Wired network - guided medium

• Wireless network - wireless hosts and wireless base
stations connected via wireless links

Infrastructure mode
• Hosts associated with a base station are said to be
operating in infrastructure mode
• Traditional network services provided by the network to
which a host is connected via the base station

Ad-hoc mode
• Wireless hosts have no infrastructure with which to
connect
• Hosts themselves provide for network services such as
routing and address assignment
Wireless Transmission - Characteristics
BITS Pilani

• Unguided medium
• Significantly different characteristics from that of wired
medium

• Different wireless link technologies have different

transmission rates and can transmit over different
distances

Wireless systems have certain challenges that are not

typical of wired systems
A Closer Look at CSMA/CD in Ethernet
BITS Pilani

• CSMA/CD: Carrier Sensing Multiple

Access with Collision Detection

• Shared medium access protocol for IEEE

802.3 Ethernet

• Need for shared medium access protocol

• Simultaneous transmissions leads to

collisions
Collision
Common Link Layer Protocols –
CSMA/CD in Ethernet BITS Pilani

Host Host Host

A B C

Host Host Host

A B C

Host Host Host

A B C

Host Host Host

A B C

JAM JAM JAM JAM JAM

Common Link Layer Protocols – BITS Pilani

CSMA/CD in Ethernet
Hidden Node Problem
BITS Pilani

• With wireless LANs, CSMA/CD does not work well

• Hidden terminal problem caused by:

• Physical obstructions in the environment
• Fading of signal strength

Range of A’s Range of C’s

radio radio

A B C
Exposed Node Problem BITS Pilani

Exposed node problem

• Occurs when a node is prevented from sending packets
to other nodes because of a neighbouring transmitter
Multipath Propagation
BITS Pilani

• Multipath propagation

• Radio signals reflect off solid

objects

• Multiple paths of different lengths

between a sender and receiver

• Blurring of the received signal at

the receiver
Path Loss
BITS Pilani

• Decreasing signal strength caused by attenuation of

electromagnetic radiation

• Signals disperse as it traverses the medium

• Decreased signal strength as the distance between

sender and receiver increases
Interference from Other Sources
BITS Pilani

• Radio sources transmitting in the same frequency

band can interfere with each other

• Eg: Devices operating in the same frequency band,

microwave oven
Airplane-
flutter

Receiver
Building
Transmitter
Moving
scatleres
In Summary..
BITS Pilani

• Received signal at the receiver is a combination of the

original signal transmitted by the sender, degraded
form, mixed with noise in the environment

Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR)

• A relative measure of the strength of the received
signal and this noise
• Measured in decibels
• Lower the SNR, lower the quality of the received
signal at the receiver
Working around Impairments in Wireless
Media BITS Pilani

Collision avoidance mechanisms

• Sender node transmits a Request To Send (RTS)

signal to indicate it has data to transmit

• Receiver node answers back with a Clear To Send

(CTS) signal that indicates that the node can transmit

• Either the RTS or the CTS or both will be heard by

the neighboring nodes

• They then derive a map of the transmission intervals

used by the other nodes, and refrain from
transmissions during such transmission intervals
Other Considerations for Wireless
Networks BITS Pilani

• Mobility
• Handover
 BITS Pilani BITS Pilani
Pilani | Dubai | Goa | Hyderabad

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