Teaching & Examination Scheme

Mobile Computing
1.Course Code 🡪 CSC603

2.Contact
Hours 🡪 03 (Theory )
Mobile Computing Lab 🡪 02 (Practical)

3. Marks
I)End Term Exam 🡪 80 Marks (03 Hours Duration)

II)Internal Assessment 🡪
(Test 1 (20 Marks) + Test 2 ( 20 Marks))/2 🡪 20 Marks
III)Mobile Application Development Tech. Lab
Term Work 🡪 25 Marks
 Introduction
Mobile communication

🡪 Two aspects of mobility:

❑ user mobility: users communicate (wireless) “anytime, anywhere,
with anyone”
❑ device portability: devices can be connected anytime, anywhere to
the network

Wireless vs. mobile Examples

🡪 🡪 stationary computer
🡪 ✔ notebook in a hotel
✔ 🡪 wireless LANs in historic buildings
✔ ✔ Personal Digital Assistant (PDA)
 Introduction
🡪A communication device can thus exhibit one of the following characteristics:
● Fixed and wired: This configuration describes the typical desktop computer in an
office. Neither weight nor power consumption of the devices allow for mobile
usage. The devices use fixed networks for performance reasons.

● Mobile and wired: Many of today’s laptops fall into this category; users carry the
laptop from one hotel to the next, reconnecting to the company’s network via the
telephone network and a modem.

● Fixed and wireless: This mode is used for installing networks, e.g., in historical
buildings to avoid damage by installing wires, or at trade shows to ensure fast
network setup. Another example is bridging the last mile to a customer by a new
operator that has no wired infrastructure and does not want to lease lines from a
competitor.

● Mobile and wireless: This is the most interesting case. No cable restricts the
user, who can roam between different wireless networks.
 Applications
🡪 Vehicles
❑ transmission of news, road condition, weather, music via DAB
❑ personal communication using GSM
❑ position via GPS
❑ local ad-hoc network with vehicles close-by to prevent accidents, guidance
system, redundancy
❑ vehicle data (e.g., from busses, high-speed trains) can be transmitted in
advance for maintenance

🡪 Emergencies
❑ early transmission of patient data to the hospital, current status, first
diagnosis
❑ replacement of a fixed infrastructure in case of earthquakes, hurricanes, fire
etc.
❑ crisis, war, ...
Typical application: road traffic

UMTS, WLAN, c
DAB, DVB, GSM, ho
ad
cdma2000, TETRA, ...

Personal Travel Assistant,

PDA, Laptop,
GSM, UMTS, WLAN,
Bluetooth, ...
 Mobile and wireless services – Always Best Connected
UMTS, GSM LAN
DSL/ WLAN GSM/GPRS 53 kbit/s 115 kbit/s 100 Mbit/s,
3 Mbit/s Bluetooth 500 kbit/s WLAN
54 Mbit/s

UMTS
2 Mbit/s

GSM/EDGE 384 kbit/s,

DSL/WLAN 3 Mbit/s
UMTS, GSM
GSM 115 kbit/s,
384 kbit/s
WLAN 11 Mbit/s
 Applications II

🡪 Travelling salesmen
❑ direct access to customer files stored in a central location
❑ consistent databases for all agents
❑ mobile office
🡪 Replacement of fixed networks
❑ remote sensors, e.g., weather, earth activities
❑ flexibility for trade shows
❑ LANs in historic buildings
🡪 Entertainment, education, ...
❑ outdoor Internet access
❑ intelligent travel guide with up-to-date
location dependent information
❑ ad-hoc networks for
multi user games

Mobile Communications: Introduction

 Location dependent services

🡪 Location aware services

❑ what services, e.g., printer, fax, phone, server etc. exist in the local
environment
🡪 Follow-on services
❑ automatic call-forwarding, transmission of the actual workspace to
the current location
🡪 Information services
❑ „push“: e.g., current special offers in the supermarket
❑ „pull“: e.g., where is the Black Forrest Cherry Cake?
🡪 Support services
❑ caches, intermediate results, state information etc. „follow“ the
mobile device through the fixed network
🡪 Privacy
❑ who should gain knowledge about the location

Mobile Communications: Introduction

 Mobile devices
Pager PDA Laptop/Notebook
• receive only • graphical displays • fully functional
• tiny displays • character recognition • standard applications
• simple text • simplified WWW
messages

Sensors,
embedded
controllers

Mobile phones Palmtop

• voice, data • tiny keyboard
• simple graphical displays • simple versions
of standard applications

performance

Mobile Communications: Introduction

 Effects of device portability
🡪 Power consumption
❑ limited computing power, low quality displays, small disks due to
limited battery capacity
❑ CPU: power consumption ~ CV2f
● C: internal capacity, reduced by integration
● V: supply voltage, can be reduced to a certain limit
● f: clock frequency, can be reduced temporally
🡪 Loss of data
❑ higher probability, has to be included in advance into the design
(e.g., defects, theft)
🡪 Limited user interfaces
❑ compromise between size of fingers and portability
❑ integration of character/voice recognition, abstract symbols
🡪 Limited memory
❑ limited value of mass memories with moving parts
❑ flash-memory or ? as alternative

Mobile Communications: Introduction

 Wireless networks in comparison to fixed networks

🡪 Higher loss-rates due to interference

❑ emissions of, e.g., engines, lightning
🡪 Restrictive regulations of frequencies
❑ frequencies have to be coordinated, useful frequencies are almost
all occupied
🡪 Low transmission rates
❑ local some Mbit/s, regional currently, e.g., 53kbit/s with GSM/GPRS
🡪 Higher delays, higher jitter
❑ connection setup time with GSM in the second range, several
hundred milliseconds for other wireless systems
🡪 Lower security, simpler active attacking
❑ radio interface accessible for everyone, base station can be
simulated, thus attracting calls from mobile phones
🡪 Always shared medium
❑ secure access mechanisms important

Mobile Communications: Introduction

 Influence of mobile communication to the layer model
❑ service location
Application layer ❑ new applications, multimedia
❑ adaptive applications
Transport layer ❑ congestion and flow control
❑ quality of service
❑ addressing, routing,
Network layer device location
❑ hand-over
❑ authentication
Data link layer
❑ media access
❑ multiplexing
❑ media access control
Physical layer ❑ encryption
❑ modulation
❑ interference
❑ attenuation
❑ frequency

Mobile Communications: Introduction

 Areas of research in mobile communication

🡪 Wireless Communication
❑ transmission quality (bandwidth, error rate, delay)
❑ modulation, coding, interference
❑ media access, regulations
❑ ...
🡪 Mobility
❑ location dependent services
❑ location transparency
❑ quality of service support (delay, jitter, security)
❑ ...
🡪 Portability
❑ power consumption
❑ limited computing power, sizes of display, ...
❑ usability
❑ ...

Mobile Communications: Introduction

 Overview of Chapters
🡪 Introduction 🡪 Wireless LANs
Use-cases, applications Basic Technology
Definition of terms IEEE 802.11a/b/g, .15, Bluetooth
Challenges, history
🡪 Network Protocols
🡪 Wireless Transmission
frequencies & regulations signals, antennas, Mobile IP
signal propagation multiplexing, modulation, Ad-hoc networking
spread spectrum, cellular system Routing

🡪 Media Access 🡪 Transport Protocols

motivation, SDMA, FDMA, TDMA (fixed, Reliable transmission
Aloha, CSMA, DAMA, PRMA, MACA, Flow control
collision avoidance, polling), CDMA Quality of Service
🡪 Wireless Telecommunication Systems
GSM, HSCSD, GPRS, DECT, TETRA, 🡪 Support for Mobility
UMTS, IMT-2000 File systems, WWW, WAP, i-mode,
J2ME, ...
🡪 Satellite Systems Outlook
GEO, LEO, MEO, routing, handover

Mobile Communications: Introduction