Erik Vanem

Effects of multiple access alternatives in heterogeneous wireless networks

The future mobile telecom systems will consists of a set of different radio access networks. A typical scenario will consist of at least one network that covers wide geographical area supplemented by so-called hot spots that provides higher bandwidth access within limited areas. When the user finds himself in these hot spots he will frequently have to choose which wireless link to use to connect to the core network according to his needs and the characteristics of the available wireless networks. There will be a handover algorithm that takes these decisions on behalf of the user. Different handover algorithms will choose different wireless networks and correspond in a varying degree to the users needs. In other words, the user may be more or less satisfied with his telecom services depending on which handover algorithm is used. In this paper, an approach to evaluate the user satisfaction in such a scenario is described. A set of simple mobility models and handover algorithms are used to illustrate this approach, and a user satisfaction function will determine which handover algorithm is best for the various scenarios. The mobility models, the handover algorithms and the user satisfaction function presented are simple, but they will nevertheless serve as good illustrations of how to approach the problem of user satisfaction in overlay networks. Further study can develop these models more, incorporating other parameters and features, and thus get more detailed and realistic estimates of the user satisfaction using the same principles as outlined in this paper.

Multimedia communications with multiple devices using the personal virtual network service

Nowadays the user is confronted with several different devices such as a plain-old telephone, a mobile phone, a cordless phone, and a PC or a workstation as well as more simple devices like microphones, loudspeakers, TV screens, digital cameras etc. In principle, all these devices can be autonomous and function independently of each other without any coordination, but the proposed service will allow the user to handle them all via his personal virtual network service (PVNS) and hence consider them all as his personal virtual network (PVN) i.e. as one big terminal (the virtual terminal). In this case, the users different devices can act together as one multimedia system offering the end-user the ultimate in multimedia services. This paper introduces the concept of the personal virtual network service, which will take care of the management, coordination and configuration of all the devices that make up the PVN. Furthermore, it will be described how the use of this service can provide multimedia communications to the end-user using only his old-fashioned single-media devices. In addition, this paper briefly discusses the technologies, emerging and existing, that are required for the implementation of the personal virtual network service.

The device management service

This paper presents a novel service, which is aiming at assisting the end-user in the management of his electronic devices. Nowadays the user is confronted with several different communications devices as, for example, a plain-old telephone, a mobile telephone, a cordless telephone, and a PC or a workstation which acts as a multimedia terminal. All these devices are autonomous and function independently of each other and without any coordination. In fact they are even not aware of the presence of other devices. As the owner the user is required to handle them all and does not always succeed since as a human being he cannot perform many tasks at the same time. This paper describes in detail the functions of the Device Management Service (DMS) with use cases. Each use case is examined carefully with several implementation alternatives. The technologies required for each alternative are also identified.

Extending VHE with the device unifying service

The virtual home environment is a powerful concept that enables personal service environment (PSE) portability across network boundaries and between terminals. The device unifying service (DUS) presented in this paper extends the VHE concept by allowing the usage of multiple devices simultaneously and the possibility of adding, removing or changing devices both on the fly or according to predefined profiles.. The user will be able to specify several different personal service environments, professional office environments, private home environments, travelling environments etc., and to select the most appropriate environment for a given time and according to his changing roles. This paper presents the concept of the device unifying service, which will take care of the management, coordination and configuration of all the devices that the user has at his disposal. A discussion regarding the system architecture is given, suggesting the best solution for where to locate this function. In addition, this paper discusses the technologies, emerging and existing, that are required for implementing the device unifying service.

Realising service portability with the Device Unifying Service using Parlay API

The Device Unifying Service presented in this paper is a powerful concept that realises service portability between different devices. It extends the VHE concept by allowing the usage of multiple devices simultaneously and the possibility of adding, removing or changing devices both on the fly or according to predefined profiles. The Device Unifying Service addresses both service portability for communication service and data services. Communication services like a normal phone call can for example easily be transferred from a fixed phone to a mobile phone or an IP phone with the Device Unifying Service. Additionally, a data service like a Web browsing session can be transferred from a PC to a laptop of PDA including cached information like history and bookmarks. Providing an easy way for moving services between devices, the Device Unifying Service thus fulfils the vision of service portability in an elegant way. This paper presents the concept of the Device Unifying Service, a novel service that will take care of the management, coordination and configuration of all the devices that the user has at his disposal and provide service portability and adaptation of services to devices with different characteristics. Furthermore, this paper will reveal how the first version of the Device Unifying Service has been implemented using Parlay APIs and H.323 technologies.

Managing heterogeneous services and devices with the Device Unifying Service: implemented with Parlay APIs

The Device Unifying Service presented in this paper is a novel powerful concept that allows anyone confronted with multiple devices and services to administer and manage them by themselves. With this service, different devices connected to different networks offering different types of data and communication services can be integrated and handled in a straightforward way. It allows the usage of multiple devices simultaneously and the possibility of adding, removing or changing devices in a service session. The Device Unifying Service addresses personal service management for both communication services and data services. Communication services like a normal telephone call can for example easily be transferred from a fixed telephone to a mobile telephone or an IP telephone with multimedia capabilities with the Device Unifying Service. Additionally, a data service like a Web browsing session can be transferred from a PC to a laptop or PDA including cached information like history and bookmarks. Providing an easy way of moving services between devices, the Device Unifying Service thus fulfils the vision of service portability in an elegant way. This paper presents the concept of the Device Unifying Service, a novel service that will take care of the management, coordination and configuration of all the devices that the user has at his disposal and provide service portability and adaptation of services to devices with different characteristics. Furthermore, this paper reveals how the first version of the Device Unifying Service has been implemented using Parlay API and H.323 technologies.

Virtual Terminals as an XML Webservic

In this paper, a novel approach to offering the Virtual Terminal service is presented, i.e. to offer the Virtual Terminal as an XML Web service. Exposing Virtual Terminal functionalities as XML Web services will have a number of advantages compared to the current version of the Virtual Terminal. First of all it will enhance the accessibility of the service, enabling 3rd parties to introduce it to new market segments in a straightforward way. Customization of the service will be possible enabling different flavours of Virtual Terminals to be introduced, and finally, the virtual Terminal functionalities will be available to other applications and not only human end users. In this way, the Virtual Terminal functionalities can be invoked by applications and utilized as components in order to build a wide range of other complex services.

Managing Heterogeneous Services and Devices with the Device Unifying Service

Due to the ubiquitous explosion of the Internet and the fast proliferation of heterogeneous networked devices and services, the end user are faced with a formidable task in managing it all. The Device Unifying Service presented in this paper is a novel powerful concept that allows anyone confronted with multiple devices and services to administer and manage them by themselves. With this service, different devices connected to different networks offering different types of data and communication services can be integrated and handled in a straightforward way. It allows the usage of multiple devices simultaneously and the possibility of adding, removing or changing devices in a service session. The Device Unifying Service addresses personal service management for both communication services and data services. Communication services like a normal phone call can for example easily be transferred from a fixed phone to a mobile phone or an IP phone with multimedia capabilities with the Device Unifying Service. Additionally, a data service like a WEB browsing session can be transferred from a PC to a laptop or PDA including cached information like history and bookmarks. Providing an easy way of moving services between devices, the Device Unifying Service thus fulfils the vision of service portability in an elegant way. This paper presents the concept of the Device Unifying Service, a novel service that will take care of the management, coordination and configuration of all the devices that the user has at his disposal and provide service portability and adaptation of services to devices with different characteristics. Furthermore, this paper will reveal how the first version of the Device Unifying Service has been implemented using Parlay APIs and H.323 technologies.