STANDARDIZATION MOVES

Before elaborating on standardization, let us study some of the existing wireless standards which are summarized in table 1.

Table 1: The existing wireless standards 

1G	NMT, AMPS, Hicap, CDPD, Mobitex, DataTAC
2G	GSM, iDEN, D-AMPS, IS-95/cdmaOne. PDC, CSD, PHS, 2.5G - GPRS, HSCSD, WiDEN, 2.75G - CDMA2000, IxRTT/IS-2000, EDGE (EGPRS)
3G	W-CDMA, UMTS (3GSM). FOMA, lxEV-DO/IS-856, TD-SCDMA, GAN/UMA, 3.5G - HSDPA, 3.75G - HSUPA
4G	WiMax, WiBro

The two groups within the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) are specifically engaged to define the next generation of mobile wireless. These two groups are:

• Working Party 8F (WP8F) in section ITU-R.
• Special Study Group (SSG) "IMT 2000 and Beyond" in section ITU-T.

WP8F is focused on the overall radio-system aspects of 4G, such as radio interfaces, Radio-Access Networks (RANs) spectrum issues, service and traffic characteristics, and market estimations as shown in figure 7. The SSG "IMT - 2000 and Beyond" is primarily responsible for the network or wireless aspects of future wireless systems including wireless Internet, convergence of mobile and fixed networks, mobility management, internetworking and interoperability.

 

Figure 1: Structure of WP 8F

The main deliverable of WP8F is Recommendation ITU-R M 1645. This recommendation contains the overall goals for the future development of wireless communications. The list of the suggestions that are contained in the recommendation are:(i) the framework for 4G systems should fuse elements of current cellular systems with nomadic wireless-access systems and personal-area networks in a seamless layered architecture that is transparent to the user; (ii) data rates of 100 Mbps for mobile applications and 1 Gbps for nomadic applications should be achievable by the year 2010; (iii) Worldwide common spectrum and open, global standardization should be pursued.

Not only above, but the process of developing a standard is a long one, carried out by other several groups, which include Standards Development Organizations (SDOs),industry forums, and companies, such as OEMs, that have a stake in the end product. Some of the major SDOs are nonprofit regional or governmental bodies, such as ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute) in Europe, CCSA (China Communications Standards Association) in China, and the TTA (Telecommunications Technology Association) in Korea. 3GPP and 3GPP2 are examples of industry SDOs (Service Data Objects) that develop and maintain standards for current 2G and 3G technologies. In April 2007, the ITU convened a global congress to set a course for the 4G standards development process. China has expressed interest to submit the standard in 2010. Presently it is doubtful that standard will emerge 2012. Nor are standards necessarily the final word on the subject. In the meantime, there is nothing to stop the various SDOs and wireless operators from deploying so-called 4G systems without waiting for the completion of the formal standards process.

The World Radio Communication Conference (WRC) in October/November 2007 at Switzerland discussed on the spectrum assignment for 4G. The road map of the ITU-R (International Telecommunication Union Radio communication Sector) targets the availability of 4G standard proposals for the year 2012. As soon as frequency bands for 4G are defined, 4G standardization activities are expected to start.