 - In cellular telephone communications, the air interface is the radio-frequency
portion of the circuit between the cellular phone set or wireless modem (usually portable
or mobile) and the active base station. As a subscriber moves from one cell to
another in the system, the active base station changes periodically. Each changeover
is known as a handoff.
A cellular connection is only as good as its weakest link, which is almost
always the air interface. Radio-frequency (RF)circuits are subject to many variables
that affect signal quality. Factors that can cause problems include:
Use of the handheld phone set or portable wireless modem inside buildings,
cars, buses, trucks, or trains
Proximity to human-made, steel-frame obstructions, especially large
buildings and freeway overpasses
Abundance of utility wires that can reflect radio signals and/or
generate noise that interferes with reception
Irregular terrain, particularly canyons and ravines
Inadequate transmitter power in phone set or wireless modem
Poorly designed antenna in phone set or wireless modem
In addition to these variables, some cellular networks have inadequate
coverage in certain geographic areas. Usually this is because there are not enough
base stations to ensure continuous communications for subscribers using portable
(handheld) phone sets. As a network evolves, more base stations may be installed in
a given region, and in that case, this problem will diminish with time. Conversion
of a network from analog to digital can result in dramatic improvement.
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Learn more about Cell Phones and Cellular Technology |
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| Cellular bill consolidation: Making the most of managed mobility: Cellular bill consolidation can provide companies with low-overhead cellular management approaches that deliver predictable costs. |
| Cellular broadband is mobile and reliable: Cellular broadband is available from most of the major carriers now and in this guest column, John Shelper says it's reliable, available and relatively cheap. |
| Dual-mode Wi-Fi and cellular phones to grow: Dual-mode Wi-Fi and cellular VoIP phones are poised for huge growth, while mobile and single-mode phone sales continue to climb. |
| Mobile Radio Systems: This chapter is an intro to the various mobile radio systems. It provides a foundation for comparing competing mobile radio access systems for supporting mobile broadband services. |
| Cost-effective mobile connectivity: As companies facing mounting mobile connectivity costs you need to make sense of the available mobile connectivity options and reduce costs before they get out of control. |
| FCC releases list of 700MHz spectrum auction bidders: As the auction approaches, the FCC releases the list of bidders for rights to the 700MHz wireless spectrum. |
| Wireless carriers: The good, the bad, and the just plain annoying: It's not unusual for customers dealing with their wireless carriers to get bad service, but in his latest editorial Adama Brown recounts an especially bad example. |
| Managed mobile services: This managed mobile services series, examines services for device management, email, enterprise applications, and cellular telephony. It concludes with a best practices guide. |
| LAST UPDATED: |
11 Apr 2003
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