Springer Software Defined Radios: From Smart(er) to Cognitive (Signals and Communication Technology)

Software Defined Radios presents a systematic approach to dealing with the complexity of wireless systems with varying standards. The text aims to enable smart operation of radios with impressive efficiency gains, without hampering the quality of service. Review From the reviews:“The monograph is intended for researchers advanced in wireless network design and optimization. For those interested in the concepts of wireless coexistence, this book will be a valuable source of information. The work is cohesive … . It is also compact and easy to read, especially for people familiar with advanced wireless communications concepts. … it is certainly worth reading―many practical and novel coexistence concepts are introduced therein. It will form a source of inspiration for further research in the area.” (Przemyslaw Pawelczak, IEEE Communications Magazine, August, 2011) From the Back Cover Mobile users need a variety of multimedia services, in very diverse geographical environments. The growing number of communication options within and across wireless standards is accommodating the growing volume and heterogeneity in wireless demands. On the other hand, advancement in radio technologies opening much more flexibility, a.o. through Software Defined Radios, opens up the possibility to realize mobile devices featuring multi-mode options at low cost and interesting form factors. It is crucial to manage the new degrees of freedom opened up in radios and standards in a smart way, such that the required service is offered at satisfactory quality, as efficiently as possible. Efficiency in energy consumption is paramount for battery powered mobile terminals, as well as in a broader, ecological context. Moreover, efficient usage of the spectrum is a growing prerequisite for wireless systems, and coexistence of different standards puts overall throughput at risk. The management of flexibility risks entails complexity which hampers the desired system agility. This book describes a systematic approach to master this challenge. Case studies show that this approach enables smart operation of radios realizing impressive efficiency gains, without hampering Quality-of-Service. Provides a concise overview of software defined radio technologies, opportunistic spectrum access and wireless standards; introduces opportunities and challenges related to the smart operation of radios in this context. Proposes a systematic approach to master the complexity of the desired agility. Demonstrates the application and benefits of this approach in recent systems, e.g. in WiFi context, and in the context of coexistence of different systems. Shows the need and potential in future scenarios, where cognitive radios will operate in an open spectrum environment. About the Author Sofie Pollin obtained the M.Sc. degree in Electrical Engineering Degree in 2002 and the PhD Degree in Electrical Engineering (with honors) in 2006 from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium. From 2002 to 2006 she was a researcher at the Wireless Research group of the Inter-university Microelectronics Center (IMEC) working on cross-layer energy and performance optimization of wireless systems. From 2005 till 2008 she was a post-doctoral researcher at UC Berkeley working on Cognitive Radio. Currently, she is a senior researcher at IMEC, leading the work on functionality and cognitive behavior of reconfigurable radios. Michael Timmers received the M. Sc. Degree in Electrical Engineering and the Ph.D. degree from the K.U.Leuven, Belgium, in 2005 and 2009, respectively. In September 2005, he joined the TELEMIC division of the Department of Electrical Engineering of K.U.Leuven, where he mainly focused on the application of radio waves in biomedical technology. In March 2006, he joined IMEC to pursue a PhD degree in the field of Cognitive Radio. He was a visiting scholar at the Connectivity Lab at U.C. Berkeley in the summer of