Partner und Internationale Organisationen
(Englisch)
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Telespazio S.p.A. (I), Siemens Oesterreich AG (A), Space Engineering S.p.A (I), Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen (D), European Business Associates Srl (EBA) (I), Università Degli Studi Di L'Aquila(I), Ericsson Hellas(EL), Integration Y Systemas De Media S.A (E)
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Abstract
(Englisch)
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The FUTURE project aims at adopting recent advances in the Internet arena in UMTS by exploring applicability of native internet protocols (in accordance with IETF multimedia data and control architecture) in 3G. Special emphasis is given to core network consolidation towards a general purpose multi service UMTS connectivity network, legacy GSM/UMTS voice service migration to the consolidated packet based UMTS core network domain, and the introduction of a wide range of optimised multimedia communication and information services, based on SIP and Web/WAP techniques. The integration of telephony services with information services is regarded as base for end-user service multiplication and will be combined with inherent capabilities of S-UMTS satellites like wide area coverage, broadcasting, and location determination. Key functions of the envisaged full service IP based target UMTS will be identified, designed, and demonstrated, using the VIRTUOUS Demonstrator as a starting point.
In particular, the FUTURE project has to achieve the following specific objectives:
1. A SIP based UMTS multimedia subsystem will be designed to be integrated into the cellular network operator's/service provider's network infrastructure, complementing the UMTS packet domain, to offer real-time multimedia services. The impact and dependencies of both bearer level and application level roaming will be studied. Mechanisms to offer seamless end-user services irrespective of the radio access network will be analysed.
2. A multimedia SIP Client and an enhanced SIP Proxy which meets the requirements in the UMTS environment will be designed, developed, and partly implemented as prototypes, using a commercial platform. It is aimed at demonstrating not only telephony but also video streaming and e.g., whiteboard applications. Various video and audio codecs including UMTS/GSM specific codecs shall be investigated.
3. Vistas of innovative applications offering yet unknown added value to end users are expected from innumerable combinations of SIP based real-time multimedia communication services and Web/WAP based non-real-time information services. Special emphasis will be given to leverage inherent capabilities of S-UMTS satellites like wide area coverage, broadcasting, and location determination. The potential of SIP broadcasting and unified messaging with SIP in a mobile wireless environment is to be investigated, including security and billing aspects.
4. Demonstrating the achievement of end-to-end QoS for the following services: voice over IP, web browsing and ftp server. Achieving end-to-end QoS means being able to respect certain end-to-end QoS contracts established with the users at connection set-up; these contracts specifies the kind of traffic to be supported and the expected QoS performance (e.g. in terms of maximum transfer delay, maximum delay jitter, maximum loss undergone by the information relevant to the connection). In order to meet the above-mentioned challenging goal, two sub-goals must be achieved, namely to respect a QoS subcontract in the UMTS Access Network (i.e. the UMTS Radio Access Network (URAN)) and to respect an other QoS subcontract in the UMTS Core Network. As a matter of fact, in the UMTS network, the end-to-end QoS contract have to be split in two subcontracts: one holding for the Core Network and the other one for the UMTS Access Network. The issue of properly splitting the end-to-end QoS contract in the two above-mentioned subcontract is a challenging issue in itself.
5. Demonstrating the 'QoS guaranteeing functions' allowing to meet the QoS subcontract in the UMTS Access Network. In particular, the QoS guaranteeing functions which will be demonstrated are:
· the Connection Admission Control (CAC), i.e. a mechanism which is triggered whenever a new connection set-up attempt occurs. The CAC Handler decides whether or not the connection can be set-up and, in the positive case, establishes the QoS subcontract relevant to the connection;
· the Scheduling mechanism, i.e. the algorithm by which the wireless network dynamically (i.e. frame by frame) selects which connections the available CDMA codes have to be assigned. (this is a difficult problem in consideration of the real-time constraints imposed by the transmission process and even in consideration of the multi-cell nature of UMTS);
· the Active Set handling aiming at an efficient management of macrodiversity and soft handover;
· (The Measurement Control necessary to coordinate the various measurements (BER, SNR, buffer length,...) which have to be taken for performing the above-mentioned functions
6. Evaluating the efficiency of physical and MAC layer access mechanisms in regard of packet services. In particular packet access, as defined in the ESA SW-CDMA, will be further investigated because no definitive solution for the S-UMTS packet mode has yet been devised. Approaches for both the forward- and the reverse-link will be investigated, starting from the 3GPP solutions for T-UMTS and the VIRTUOUS results. Augmentation of the VIRTUOUS demonstrator to include the support for efficient packet operation on forward link is foreseen. The enhanced demonstrator will support two active users, thus allowing to also validate QoS solutions (see item 5 above).
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