WLAN - Wireless communications for the mobile business community (page 1 of 3)

As globalization grows, more professionals are travelling on business, creating a fast expanding need for remote broadband access to data. Business professionals now anticipate high-speed, mobile broadband access that is as quick and easy to use when travelling as it is in the office. All these users need wireless LAN access and they need it in public places, wherever they happen to be.

Providing fast wireless data access for laptops is one of the most cost-effective and quickest ways for mobile operators to boost ARPU from business users. Hotspots, such as airports, hotels and conference centres, are prime locations for users wanting broadband data connectivity to access large files and synchronize their e-mails. WLAN is a short range packet data communication between base stations and user terminals and direct communication between terminals is possible. WLAN allows the business professionals to access their company's Intranet.

Wireless LAN access is all about using data, which makes it vital to stimulate the mobile corporate sector to use broadband data and applications. Public Wireless LAN is becoming a mobile business that complements 2G and 3G services. Operator Wireless LAN is a way to complement the service offering and in this way differentiate from the competition. It is a way to attract new subscribers and an opportunity to increase average revenue per user (ARPU). Mobile operators can also offer global roaming via the 25,000 agreements between the members of the GSM association.

A working example of WLAN is O2 Ireland who has employed the Nokia Operator Wireless LAN solution to provide it's customers with flexible wireless broadband access to Internet and corporate intranet services in public "Wi-Fi Zones(TM)", such as the hotspots mentioned above. It is not difficult to see why this solution has been so successful when the technical capabilities and the convenience it offers are taken into consideration.

The Nokia solution uses 11Mbit/s IEEE802.11 Wireless LAN technology and complements the mobile operator's other data services, combining HSCSD, GPRS and Wireless LAN into a single service. Accompanied by the easy to use D211 multimode radio card, which supplies the key to accessing these services, it provides an excellent solution by extending the reach of local area networks (LANs). Instead of plugging into a wired LAN wall outlet, you can quickly connect to the corporate network through your PC and wireless LAN card for easy access to broadband data rates without wires.

Wireless LAN Technologies

Narrowband technology

A narrowband radio system transmits and receives user information on a specific radio frequency. The narrowband radio keeps the radio signal frequency as narrow as possible just to pass the information. Undesirable crosstalk between communications channels is avoided by carefully coordinating users on different channel frequencies.

A private telephone line is much like a radio frequency. When each house has its own private telephone line, people in one house cannot listen to calls made to the other house. In a radio system, privacy and non-interference are accomplished by using separate radio frequencies. The radio receiver filters out all radio signals except the ones on its designated frequency.

Spread spectrum

Most wireless LAN systems use the spread spectrum technology, a wideband radio frequency technique developed by the military for use in reliable, secure, mission-critical communications systems.