Marina Ruggieri

A multicell model of handover initiation in mobile cellular networks

A model is provided for the analysis of handover initiation algorithms in cellular systems, which are based on the averages of signal strength measurements and hysteresis. An extension of Vijayans and Holtzmans (1993) model is achieved, which accounts for: (1) the effects of the angular direction when a mobile terminal moves from a current to a target base station; (2) the presence of more than two base stations; and (3) the effects of cross correlation of shadow fadings affecting the links between the mobile terminal and the various base stations. The level crossing theory of Gaussian processes is used to derive the algorithm performance. The results obtained from the model are in good agreement with those obtained from simulations. It is seen that the model tends to underestimate the algorithm performance, thus yielding a lower performance bound and guaranteeing an intrinsic design margin. It is also seen that, for a typical trajectory of the mobile terminal from the current base station, the number of handovers might be noticeably increased due to the presence of disturbant stations. Moreover, when cross correlation among shadow fadings is also accounted for, significant variations are observed in both the number of handovers and handover delay. As a final result, tradeoff curves are derived and presented for the most general case.

Outage analysis in mobile radio systems with generically correlated log-normal interferers

A novel methodology is proposed for computing the outage probability in mobile radio systems in the presence of log-normal shadowing. A relevant feature is that the proposed analysis assumes a general correlation for any pair of links. Various approaches are considered to compute the statistics of user signal-to-interference ratio (SIR), namely Schwartz and Yehs method, Wilkinsons method, and Fentons method. By a simple reformulation of the problem, these methods can be used to calculate in a straightforward way the parameters of the SIR. The accuracy of the methods is checked in a number of situations of interest. Moreover, when the same correlation is assigned to any pair of links, the novel analysis is more accurate than previously proposed approaches.

A spectrum- and power-efficient EHF mobile satellite system to be integrated with terrestrial cellular systems

An EHF satellite system for land-mobile applications to be integrated with a terrestrial cellular system is described. An approach to evaluate the carrier-to-cochannel interference occurring in multispot satellite coverage adopting frequency reuse is introduced, and results from the analysis are shown. Criteria for spectrum efficiency evaluation are also outlined along with traffic and link budget estimates. Possible options for payload implementation and mobile terminal design are presented. >

Exploitation of the W-band for high capacity satellite communications

The scientific mission DAVID (Data and Video Interactive Distribution) of the Italian Space Agency (ASI) will pioneer the use of the W-band for a challenging telecommunications experiment. The unavailability of channel measurements and the technological limitations in that frequency range imply a system assessment based on channel extrapolation and a wise error control strategy. In that frame, a system approach is proposed that will allow the exploitation of the W-band for high capacity satellite communications. The results obtained through that approach in the assessment of the DAVID W-band experiment are provided and their perspectives identified and discussed.

Integrated satellite-HAP systems

Thus far, high-altitude platform (HAP)-based systems have been mainly conceived as an alternative to satellites for complementing the terrestrial network. This article aims to show that HAP should no longer be seen as a competitor technology by investors of satellites, but as a key element for an efficient hybrid terrestrial-satellite communication system. Two integrated HAP-satellite scenarios are presented, in which the HAP is used to overcome some of the shortcomings of satellite-based communications. Moreover, it is shown that the integration of HAPs with satellite systems can be used to provide more efficient fleet-management and traffic-control services and more powerful data-relay systems.

Experimental Missions in W -Band: A Small LEO Satellite Approach

W-band (75-110 GHz) is proposed nowadays as a valuable alternative to intensively-exploited Ku- and Ka-bands for high-speed transmission over satellite networks. In such a framework, some experiments are being carried out, which are targeted to verify the feasibility of exploitation of W-band for broadband service deployment. From a theoretical viewpoint, the large bandwidth availability and the scarce amount of interference typical of W-band should guarantee high capacities. Nevertheless, many crucial aspects are still to be carefully investigated, e.g., signal propagation issues, RF impairments, choice of modulation and coding, efficient antenna design, etc. In this paper, an overview is made on the low Earth orbit (LEO) nano-satellite mission in-orbit key-test and validation of W-band (IKNOW). IKNOW mission is an ongoing advanced feasibility study part of an Italian Space Agency Project, named W-band analysis and verification (WAVE), coordinated by the Department of Electronic Engineering, University of Rome ldquoTor Vergatardquo. The main objective of the IKNOW mission is to tackle some of the unexplored critical aspects concerning W-band satellite transmission. In such a perspective, IKNOW should be regarded as a ldquopilot mission,rdquo whose results will be used for a first uplink-downlink satellite channel characterization, in-orbit validation of W-band technology, and space qualification processes. This paper is focused on the research work carried out in a preliminary phase of the IKNOW study and will also consider a number of elements related to the mission configuration, payload architecture, link analysis, potential RF impairment factors, and atmospheric effects. Proposed analysis and preliminary results shown can provide to interested readers the basic guidelines that will drive the practical implementation of IKNOW mission, as well as the most relevant issues to be faced by future developers of W-band missions using small LEO satellites.

A general analysis of signal strength handover algorithms with cochannel interference

In this paper, the problem of computing cochannel interference statistics in signal strength measurements in mobile radio systems is presented. In a cellular environment with cross-correlated log-normal shadowings, extensions of Wilkinsons method and Schwartz and Yehs (1982) method are proposed for evaluating the statistics of differences between signal strengths that a mobile terminal measures on the links to any pair of base stations in the presence of cochannel interferers. The derived statistics are then used in the performance analysis of relative signal strength handover algorithms. Results provided by the two methods are compared with simulation results, in order to assess their accuracy, and computational issues are addressed. From numerical results, it is also seen that handover algorithm performance has a noticeable dependence on both cross correlation among shadow fadings and the interference level. Finally, it is seen that previous approaches to derive cochannel interference statistics in the presence of log-normal shadowing can be obtained as particular cases.

SALICE project: Satellite-Assisted Localization and Communication Systems for Emergency Services

Restoring the connectivity in the emergency areas and providing NAV/COM services able to support and coordinate the rescue teams represent two of the main telecommunication needs for efficient emergency situation management. The SALICE (Satellite-Assisted LocalIzation and Communication system for Emergency services) Project aimed at identifying the system architecture and the most suitable solutions to be adopted in the future integrated reconfigurable NAV/COM systems and to analyze their feasibility in realistic emergency scenarios. The article analyzes the proposed strategies and the most significant project results in pursuing both the global coverage of the emergency areas and the development of a reconfigurable and cooperative NAV/COM system.

The W-band data collection experiment of the DAVID mission

The data collection experiment (DCE) of the scientific mission DAVID (DAta and Video Interactive Distribution) of the Italian Space Agency (ASI) will pioneer the use of the W-band for telecommunications experiments. In particular the collection of high volumes of data from remote or virtually remote sites will be achieved through the exploitation of a W-band link in a time window of a few minutes per satellite pass. The experiment will hence demonstrate the capability of the W-band channel to be used reliably for a telecommunication link. At the same time, the experiment will provide useful elements for the characterisation of the W-band channel, in order to be able to design properly future operational systems working at W-band.

Efficient Waveform Design for High-Bit-Rate W-band Satellite Transmissions

In the EHF (extremely high frequency) domain, W-band (75-110 GHz) offers promising perspectives for future satellite communications, mainly in terms of large bandwidth availability for high-bit-rate transmission. In this work an innovative physical (PHY) layer design for broadband satellite connections operating in W-band is proposed, which is based on the prolate spheroidal wave functions (PSWFs). PSWF waveforms (originally proposed in short-range indoor ultra-wideband communications) are aimed at optimizing the tradeoff between the concentration of pulse energy in a finite time interval and in a limited bandwidth. In our paper, PSWF-based 4-ary pulse shape modulation (PSM), characterized by a nearly optimal compromise between spectral and envelope compactness, has been tested for the radio interface of a W-band geostationary (GEO) downlink connection. The effect of nonlinear distortions, introduced by power-efficient saturating amplifiers, can be drastically reduced without any power back-off and will maintain a very good spectral efficiency. Experimental results obtained by means of realistic simulations fully demonstrate the potential advantages taken by PSWF in terms of increased spectral efficiency, link availability, and net payload rate with respect to state-of-the-art pulse-shaped modulations, raised-cosine filtered quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM), and Gaussian minimum shift keying (GMSK) commonly employed in satellite communications.