System Design Perspective

The next generation of cellular networks has evolved from voice-based to data-centric communication. The recent focus has been mainly on high data-rate services like mobile gaming, high quality music, Internet browsing, video streaming, etcetera, which consumes lots of bandwidth. This puts a severe constraint on the available radio resource. In this chapter, the IEEE 802.16 based multihop WiMAX networks (802.16j) is introduced, and the system design is explained in detail. The chapter outlines the background and the importance of multihop wireless networks, especially in the cellular domain. Different types of multihop design for WiMAX are explained, along with a detailed analysis of the effect of the number of hops in the WiMAX networks. Further, in order to support next generation rich media services, the system design requirements, and challenges for real-time video transmission are explained.