SBIR Phase I: Programmable, Scalable Wireless Information Infrastructure

这个来自Vanu公司的小企业创新研究第一阶段项目提供了一个基于软件无线电技术的可编程、可扩展无线信息基础设施的研究和开发计划。该系统将支持许多数字无线通信系统的所有信号处理，完全在商用现成pc机集群上的应用级软件中。这种方法通过软件升级实现了极大的灵活性，可以克服当前无线通信系统的许多限制。例如，蜂窝电话基础设施在基站中利用基于硬件的信号处理。添加新服务或迁移到新标准需要耗时且昂贵的硬件升级。使用软件无线电基础设施，只需下载软件就可以执行这些更改。这种能力将加快无线市场创新的步伐，减少与部署新服务相关的风险，并降低提供创新服务（如无线宽带互联网接入和有线电视服务）的公司的进入壁垒。研究目标如下：为实时信号处理设计一个健壮、可扩展、分布式的软件无线电基础设施；负载均衡算法的设计；先进数字通信系统的计算需求评估以及在商业环境中确定这种方法的可行性。Vanu公司提供的技术将成为商业软件无线电产品的基础，该产品将允许部署任何无线支架或服务作为软件升级。该公司还打算通过创建一个平台来支持大学在无线通信和网络方面的研究，从而使学术界受益。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project from Vanu, Inc. provides a plan for the research and development of a programmable, scalable wireless information infrastructure based on software radio technology. The system will support all of the signal processing for many digital wireless communications systems entirely in application level software on a cluster of commercial off-the-shelf PCs. This approach enables significant flexibility, through software upgrades, that can overcome many of the limitations of current wireless communications systems. For example, the cellular telephony infrastructure utilizes hardware-based signal processing in base stations. Adding new services or migrating to new standards requires time consuming and costly hardware upgrades. With a software radio infrastructure, these changes can be executed by simply downloading software. This capability will accelerate the pace of innovation in the wireless marketplace, reduce the risk associated with deployment of new services and reduce the barrier to entry for firms with innovative services, such as wireless broadband internet access and cable television services. The research objectives are as follows: design of a robust, scalable, distributed software radio infrastructure for real-time signal processing; design of a load balancing algorithm; evaluation of the computational requirements for advanced digital communications systems; and the determination of feasibility of this approach in a commercial context.Vanu, Inc.'s proffered technology with be the basis for a commercial software radio product that will permit the deployment of any wireless stand or service as a software upgrade. The firm also intends to benefit the academic community by creating a platform to support university research in wireless communication and networking.