Assignment number:-02 Name:M.E.(VLSI & Embedded system) R !! n .

:" SEM:-I

Sub:- S #t$are %e#ined Radi .

&uesti n 'a'er (()*+)-+,ME(VLSI & Embedded system) S #t$are %e#ined Radi E!e.ti/e-IV) Se.ti n-I &.0 a) 12at is s #t$are de#ined radi 3 4 $ t2e . n.e't # S%R is bui!d3 E5'!ain t2e m ti/ati n be2ind t2e S%R3 Ans:- Software-Defined Radio (SDR) refers to the technology wherein software modules running on a generic hardware platform consisting of DSPs and general purpose microprocessors are used to implement radio functions such as generation of transmitted signal (modulation) at transmitter and tuning/detection of received radio signal (demodulation) at receiver An ideal !software radio " is a system that performs analog-to-digital conversion directly after the antenna and then does all signal processing re#uired in the digital domain on a platform that supports reconfiguration !Software-defined radio " (SDR) is the term used for a more realistic approach in which part of the processing is still done in the analog domain A side effect of this rapid growth is an e$cess of mo%ile system standards &herefore' the SDR concept is emerging as a potential pragmatic solution (t aims to %uild fle$i%le radio systems' which are multipleservice' multi-standard' multi-%and' re-configura%le and reprogramma%le' %y software 6 n.e't: SDR was strongly influencing the future of wireless and mo%ile communications &his standard ) the Software *ommunications Architecture (S*A) ) specifies rules on how to develop'deploy and configure SDRs &he S*A allows radios to %e interopera%le' as they can %e reconfigured in real-time to use different communications protocols and fre#uency %ands &he S*A also serves to reduce radio terminal costs %y ena%ling the use of commercial off-theshelf(*+&S) hardware M ti/ati n # S%R , *ommercial wireless communication industry is currently facing pro%lems due to constant evolution of lin--layer protocol standards (. /0' 10' and 20) . 3$istence of incompati%le wireless networ- technologies in different countries inhi%iting deployment of glo%al roaming facilities 1 Pro%lems in rolling-out new services/features due to wide-spread presence of legacy su%scri%er handsets ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&.0 b) %ra$ 2ard$are ar.2ite.ture # S%R & e5'!ain it in detai!3 ANS: SDR hardware architecture , %loc- diagram

4 4 4

D5*: Digital upconverter

DD*: Digital downconverter

*6R: *rest factor reduction DPD: Digital predistortion PA: Power amplifier 78A: 7ow noise amplifier

8o fre#uency conversion is used in this configuration as the A.D and D.A conversion ta-es place at the fre#uency of operation Apart from the control and management software and its associated hardware' a software defined radio (SDR) can %e considered to contain a num%er of %asic functional %loc-s as detailed %elow:

RF Amplification: &hese elements are the R6 amplification of the signals travelling to and from the antenna +n the transmit side the amplifier is used to increase the level of the R6 signal to the re#uired power to %e transmitted (t is unli-ely that direct conversion %y the DA* will give the re#uired output level +n the receive side signals from the antenna need to %e amplified %efore passing further into the receiver (f antenna signals are directly converted into digital signals' #uantisation noise %ecomes an issue even f the fre#uency limits are not e$ceeded Frequency conversion: (n many designs' some analogue processing may %e re#uired &ypically this may involve converting the signal to and from the final radio fre#uency (n some designs this analogue section may not %e present and the signal will %e converted directly to and from the final fre#uency from and to the digital format Some intermediate fre#uency processing may also %e present

Digital conversion: (t is at this stage that the signal is converted %etween the digital and analogue formats &his conversion is in many ways at the heart of the e#uipment 9hen underta-ing these conversions there are issues that need to %e considered +n the receive side' the ma$imum fre#uency and num%er of %its to give the re#uired #uantisation noise are of great importance +n the transmit side' the ma$imum fre#uency and the re#uired power level are some of the ma:or issues Baseband processor: &he %ase%and processor is at the very centre of the software defined radio (t performs many functions from digitally converting the incoming or outgoing signal in fre#uency &hese elements are -nown as the Digital 5p *onverter (D5*) for converting the outgoing signal from the %ase fre#uency up to the re#uired output fre#uency for conversion from digital to analogue +n the receive side a Digital Down *onverter (DD*) is used to %ring the signal down in fre#uency &he signal also needs to %e filtered' demodulated and the re#uired data e$tracted for further processing +ne of the -ey issues of the %ase%and processor is the amount of processing power re#uired &he greater the level of processing' the higher the current consumption and in turn this re#uired additional cooling' etc &his may have an impact on what can %e achieved if power consumption and si;e are limitations Also the format of any processing needs to %e considered - general processors' DSPs' AS(*s and in particular 6P0As may %e used 6P0As are of particular interest %ecause they may %e reconfigured to change the definition of the radio -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

&.2 a) 12at are t2e ty'i.a! . m' nent re7uirement # S%R3 ANS: &ypical *omponents of SDR , . 1 2 Analog Radio 6re#uency (R6) receiver/transmitter in the .<< =>; to multi-gigahert; range >igh-speed A/D and D/A converters to digiti;e a wide portion of the spectrum at ./ to .,< =samples/sec >igh-speed front-end signal processing including Digital Down *onversion (DD*) consisting of one or more chains of mi$ ? filter ? decimate or up conversion Protocol-specific processing such as 9ide%and *ode Division =ultiple Access (9*D=A) or +6D=' including spreading/de-spreading' fre#uency-hop-and chip-rate recovery' code/decode functions' including modulation/demodulation' carrier and sym%ol rate recovery' and channel interleaving/de-interleaving Data communications interface with carrier networ-s and %ac-%one for data (/+ and command-and-control processing' usually handled %y general purpose AR= or PowerP* processors and Real-&ime +perating System (R&+S)

9hat is a software-defined radio@ According to the SDR 6orum it is a collection of hardware and software technologies that ena%le reconfigura%le system architec-tures for wireless networ-s and user terminals SDR provides an efficient and omparatively ine$pensive solution to the pro%lem of %uilding multi-mode' multi-%and' multi-functional wireless devices that can %e enhanced using software upgrades (t is applica%le across a wide range ofareas within the wireless industry

6or a commercial %ase station' SDR re#uirements will vary depending on the userAs position in the value chain As such' the needs of the networ- operator are different to those of the original- e#uipment-manufacturer (+3=) %ase-station-e#uipment manufacturer radio-resourcemanagement issues needs SDR to: 4 =a$imi;e e#uipment longevity to minimi;e costs %y deploying early with-out ris-ing incapa%ility with standards as they evolve 4 Deploy new services #uic-ly 4 +ptimi;e Buality of Service (BoS) %y dynamically modifying resource allo-cation to maintain desired BoS over radio channels 4 Provide fle$i%le spectrum allocation A %ase-station e#uipment vendor' on the other hand' needs SDR to: 4 Provide economies of scale SDR provides for consolidation of product variants onto reconfigura%le product platforms 4 Simplify %ug fi$es and software updates 4 Reduce time to mar-et Reconfigura%le SDR reduces the amount of new intellectual property ((P) that needs to %e created' ma$imi;es the reuse of e$isting (P' and ena%les hardware/software codesign for reduced time to mar-et 4 6acilitate adaptive-antenna support for third-generation (10) technology Support for smart-antenna su%systems on second-generation (.0) %ase stations is often implemented through use of a front-end appli#uC to the e$isting e#uipment >owever' this approach is infeasi%le for 10 %ase-station systems ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&. 2 b) E5'!ain t2e im' rtan.e # A%6 and %A6 in S%R
Ans:

A software-defined radio receiver uses an analog-to-digital converter (AD*) to digiti;e the analog signal in the receiver as close to the antenna as practical' generally at an intermediate fre#uency ((6) +nce digiti;ed' the signals are filtered' demodulated' and separated into individual channels Similarly' a software-defined radio transmitter performs coding' modulation' etc in the digital domain (n the final output (6 stage' a digital-to-analog converter (DA*) is used to convert the signal %ac- to an analog format for transmission AD* and DA* components often ma-e or %rea- an SDR system (n general' as speed goes up' resolution goes down >igher conversion rates allow more %andwidth to %e digiti;ed' %ut higherresolution converters provide more dynamic range (the difference in amplitude %etween the strongest and wea-est signals that can %e simultaneously digiti;ed)
As AD* and DA* technologies improve' they will continue to lead the way for higher efficiency' reconfigura%le' and multistandard radios AD* technology allows sampling of high fre#uencies providing improvements in performance AD* provides wide Spurious Free Dynamic Range (SFDR) and S8R to meet the receiverAs needs SDRs are well suited for multi-carrier applications since they employ a highly oversampled AD* with ample availa%le %andwidth DA* is used to reconstruct multiple signals &o get good performance from the transmitter' the %andwidth must %e very high &he %andwidth re#uirements of DA* are more stringent DA* allows %oth comple$ and real outputs DA* provides high S8R

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&.( a) 12at are t2e /ari us .2ara.teristi.s # S%R & E5'!ain t2em in detai!3 software defined radios or SDRs' do have characteristics that ma-e them uni#ue from other types of radios As the name implies' a SDR is a radio that has the a%ility to %e transformed through the use of software or re-defina%le logic Buite often this is done with general purpose DSPs or 6P0As as discussed later in the chapter (n order to ta-e advantage of such digital processing' traditional analog signals must %e converted to and from the digital domain &his is accomplished using analog-to-digital (AD*) and digital-to-analog converters (DA*) &o ta-e full advantage of digital processing' SDRs -eep the signal in the digital domain for as much of the signal chain as possi%le' digiti;ing and reconstructing as close to the antenna as possi%le' which allows digital techni#ues to perform functions traditionally done %y analog components as well as others not possi%le in the analog domain &here are limits to this however Despite the fact that an AD* or DA* connected directly to an antenna is a desira%le end goal' there are issues with selectivity and sensitivity that an analog front end can remedy &he alternative to digiti;ing at the antenna is the use of a completely fle$i%le analog front end (A63) capa%le of translating a wide range of fre#uencies and %ands to that which the data converters themselves can ade#uately process SDRs are ideal candidates to %e used for multi-carrier' single-carrier' single-%and' multi%and and multi-mode transceivers Some of these issues will %e covered later &he -ey point is that SDRs have the a%ility to go %eyond simple single channel' single mode transceiver technology with the a%ility to change modes ar%itrarily %ecause the channel %andwidth' rate' and modulation are all fle$i%ly determined through software &hese characteristics may %e changed %y direct input' floppy dis-' over the air download or through the use of careful signal analysis to determine analytically how the information is coded through a process termed as *ognitive Radio Regardless of the means %y which the radio is reconfigured' a fully implemented SDR will have the a%ility to navigate a wide range of fre#uencies with programma%le channel %andwidth and modulation characteristics &he ta%le %elow lists some of the possi%le characteristics of a SDR (n addition to R6 tuning' a transceiver must include the a%ility to ta-e advantage of one or more of these characteristics to %e considered as an SDR , *hannel Dandwidth . Data Rate 1 =odulation &ype 2 *onversion 0ain As'e.ts # s #t$are de#ined radi As the ta%le a%ove indicates' there are a num%er of characteristics that an SDR possesses 9hile it is not re#uired that an SDR have all of these characteristics' having one or more of them is Additionally' the categories a%ove can %e further %ro-en down as detailed %elow (t should %e -ept in mind that since software defined implies a high degree of fle$i%ility and varia%ility' the list %elow is not all encompassing and su%:ect to change over time' %ut serves as a starting point at understanding the different facets of what SDR can %e Multi-Band

=ost traditional radio architectures operate on a single %and or range of fre#uencies &here are many applications where multiple fre#uencies of operations are desired &hese include cellular communications' government and non-government agencies' and intelligence collection to list a few 9here these situations e$ist' the norm is to utili;e multiple radiosE each designed to operate in one specified %and A multi-%and radio has the a%ility to operate on two or more %ands either se#uentially or simultaneously as in the case of a %asestation that may %e lin-ing handsets from different %ands Multi-Carrier A multi-carrier or multi-channel radio has the a%ility to simultaneously operate on more than one fre#uency at a time &his may %e within the same %and or in the case of a multi%and radio' in two different %ands at the same time Buite often' multi-carrier applies to a %asestation that may %e servicing many users at once' %ut can also apply to a user terminal that my %e processing %oth voice and data on different R6 carriers Multi-Mode =ulti-mode implies the a%ility to process several different -inds of standards 3$amples of standards include A=' 6=' 0=SF' *D=A %ut is limited to none of these An SDR has the a%ility to wor- with many different standards and %e continuously reprogrammed &herefore' a %etter term than multi-mode' which implies a discrete num%er of modes' may %e varia%le mode' which implying a continuously changea%le mode of operation As with other characteristics' these modes may %e se#uentially or simultaneously in the case of a multi-carrier radio Mu!ti-Rate =ulti-rate is closely related to multi-mode A multi-rate radio is one that either processes different parts of the signal chain at different samples rates as in a multi-rate filter or one where the radio has the a%ility to process different modes that re#uire different data rates An e$ample of a multi-rate radio would %e one that can process 0S= at .G< H11 -SPS or *D=A at , ..HH =*PS As with other characteristics' this can %e se#uentially or at the same time on different carriers Variab!e 8and$idt2 Iaria%le %andwidth is also another aspect of multi-mode A traditional radio determines the channel %andwidth with a fi$ed analog filter such as a SA9 or ceramic filter An SDR however determines the channel %andwidth using digital filters that can %e altered 9hile a series of switched analog filters could %e used to change the channel %andwidth in a traditional receiver' only a small num%er would %e practical Additionally' digital filters have the potential to implement filters not possi%le in the analog domain 7astly' digital filters can %e tailored to %oth adapt around interferers and compensate for transmission path distortion' %oth features that analog filters are hard pressed to accomplish &.() a) 1rite /ari us .2ara.teristi.s # S%R & e5'!ain t2em in detai!. Ans. 9: 62ara.teristi.s # S%R: 0) Mu!ti-8and =ost traditional radio architectures operate on a single %and or range of fre#uencies &here are many applications where multiple fre#uencies of operations are desired &hese include cellular ,M

communications' government and non-government agencies' and intelligence collection to list a few 9here these situations e$ist' the norm is to utili;e multiple radiosE each designed to operate in one specified %and A multi-%and radio has the a%ility to operate on two or more %ands either se#uentially or simultaneously as in the case of a %asestation that may %e lin-ing handsets from different %ands 2) Mu!ti-6arrier A multi-carrier or multi-channel radio has the a%ility to simultaneously operate on more than one fre#uency at a time &his may %e within the same %and or in the case of a multi-%and radio' in two different %ands at the same time Buite often' multi-carrier applies to a %asestation that may %e servicing many users at once' %ut can also apply to a user terminal that my %e processing %oth voice and data on different R6 carriers

() Mu!ti-M de =ulti-mode implies the a%ility to process several different -inds of standards 3$amples of standards include A=' 6=' 0=SF' *D=A %ut is limited to none of these An SDR has the a%ility to wor- with many different standards and %e continuously reprogrammed &herefore' a %etter term than multi-mode' which implies a discrete num%er of modes' may %e varia%le mode' which implying a continuously changea%le mode of operation As with other characteristics' these modes may %e se#uentially or simultaneously in the case of a multi-carrier radio ;) Mu!ti-Rate =ulti-rate is closely related to multi-mode A multi-rate radio is one that either processes different parts of the signal chain at different samples rates as in a multi-rate filter or one where the radio has the a%ility to process different modes that re#uire different data rates An e$ample of a multi-rate radio would %e one that can process 0S= at .G< H11 -SPS or *D=A at , ..HH =*PS As with other characteristics' this can %e se#uentially or at the same time on different carriers +) Variab!e 8and$idt2 Iaria%le %andwidth is also another aspect of multi-mode A traditional radio determines the channel %andwidth with a fi$ed analog filter such as a SA9 or ceramic filter An SDR however determines the channel %andwidth using digital filters that can %e altered 9hile a series of switched analog filters could %e used to change the channel %andwidth in a traditional receiver' only a small num%er would %e practical Additionally' digital filters have the potential to implement filters not possi%le in the analog domain 7astly' digital filters can %e tailored to %oth adapt around interferers and compensate for transmission path distortion' %oth features that analog filters are hard pressed to accomplish --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

&.( b) 12at are t2e /ari us 'r .essing ste's re7uired in transmitter & re.ei/er # R< #r nt end $.r.t S%R3 Ans. 9: Re.ei/er Re7uirements Receivers are characteri;ed %y many more parameters than :ust gain and noise figure 0) Sensiti/ity &his is the minimum receiver input power measured at the antenna input connector for which the D3R does not e$ceed a specified value &he 5=&S %ase station receiver sensitivity specification is J,., dDm' given a data rate of ,. . F%ps and a D3R of less than < <<, 2) %ynami. Range &his is the a%ility of the receiver to handle a surge of interference in the channel &he receiver is re#uired to fulfill a specified D3R re#uirement for a specified sensitivity degradation of the re#uired signal in the presence of an interfering additive white 0aussian noise (A908) signal in the same channel A 5=&S %ase station receiver must %e a%le to maintain a D3R of less than < <<,' while the re#uired signal power is JK, dDm or greater' and the interfering signal power is JG1 dDm () Ad=a.ent 62anne! Se!e.ti/ity Ad:acent channel selectivity is a measure of the receiverAs a%ility to receive a wanted signal on its assigned channel in the presence of an ad:acent channel signal at a given fre#uency offset from the center fre#uency of the assigned channel 6or a D3R of less than < <<, and a data rate of ,. . F%ps' a 5=&S %ase station receiver with a wanted signal power of J,,/ dDm must %e a%le to handle an interfering signal power of J /. dDm' given that the interferer is either / =>; a%ove or %elow the wanted signal ;) 8! .>ing Dloc-ing is a measure of the receiverAs a%ility to maintain performance for a wanted signal in the presence of an interferer &he interferer is located on any fre#uency other than the ad:acent channel or those coinciding with the receiverAs spurious responses 6or e$ample' in the ,'K.<J,'KH<-=>; %and' a 5=&S %ase station receiverAs performance should not degrade' given a wanted signal power of J,,/ dDm and an interfering 9*D=A signal power of J2< dDm at a ,< =>; offset from the wanted signal +) Interm du!ati n &he mi$ing of two interfering R6 signals can produce second-' third-' and higher-order products in the %and of the wanted channel (ntermodulation re:ection is a measure of the capa%ility of the receiver to receive a wanted signal on its assigned channel in the presence of two or more interfering signals that have a specific fre#uency relationship to the wanted signal (? @ransmitter Re7uirements 0) A..u'ied 8and$idt2 &he transmitterAs occupied %andwidth is the span of fre#uency that contains a specified percentage of the mean emitted power 6or a 5=&S %ase station the occupied %andwidth must %e less than / =>; and must contain KK /L of the mean emitted power (n other words' only < /L of the mean power is allowed to %e radiated outside the occupied %andwidth

2) Aut- #-8and Emissi ns &hese emissions are the unwanted emissions occurring immediately outside the desired channel %andwidth +ut-of-%and emissions e$clude spurious emissions and result from the modulation process and nonlinearity in the transmitter &he out-of-%and emission limit is specified in terms of a spectrum emission mas- and ad:acent channel lea-age power ratio for the transmitter Part of the 5=&S %ase station specification states that for a transmitter with power output of greater than 21 dDm' at an offset of G / =>; from the carrier' a ,-=>; measurement filter shall record a power of less than J,1 dDm () @ransmitter S'uri us Emissi ns Spurious emissions are emissions that are caused %y unwanted transmitter effects' such as harmonic emissions' parasitic emissions' intermodulation products' and fre#uency conversion products' %ut e$clude out-of-%and emissions 6or a 5=&S %ase station the re#uirement applies at fre#uencies that are more than ,. / =>; under the first carrier fre#uency used and more than ,. / =>; a%ove the last carrier fre#uency used Part of the re#uirement states that in the ,/< ->; to 1< =>; region spurious emissions shall %e less than J1M dDm in a ,<-->; measurement %andwidth ;) @ransmitter Interm du!ati n (ntermodulation performance is a measure of the capa%ility of the transmitter to inhi%it the generation of signals in its nonlinear elements caused %y the presence of the wanted signal and an interfering signal reaching the transmitter via the antenna 6or a 5=&S %ase station the intermodulation level is the power of the intermodulation products when a 9*D=A modulated interference signal is in:ected into an antenna connector at a level of 1< dD lower than that of the wanted signal &he fre#uency of the interference signal can %e / =>;' ,< =>;' or ,/ =>; offset %elow the first or a%ove the last carrier fre#uency used in the transmitter &he transmit intermodulation level must not e$ceed the out-of-%and emission or the spurious emission re#uirements -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&.; a) 12at are t2e /ari us #a.t rs $2i.2 s2 u!d be . nsidered $2i!e designing dynami. range # sdr re.ei/er design3 Ans$er:- 0. Sensiti/ity is the minimum receiver input power measured at the antenna input connector for which the D3R does not e$ceed a specified value &he 5=&S %ase station receiver sensitivity specification is J,., dDm' given a data rate of ,. . F%ps and a D3R of less than < <<, 2.%ynami. Range is the a%ility of the receiver to handle a surge of interference in the channel &he receiver is re#uired to fulfill a specified D3R re#uirement for a specified sensitivity degradation of the re#uired signal in the presence of an interfering additive white 0aussian noise (A908) signal in the same channel A 5=&S %ase station receiver must %e a%le to maintain a D3R of less than < <<,' while the re#uired signal power is JK, dDm or greater' and the interfering signal power is JG1 dDm (.Ad=a.ent .2anne! se!e.ti/ity is a measure of the receiverAs a%ility to receive a wanted signal on its assigned channel in the presence of an ad:acent channel signal at a given fre#uency offset from the center fre#uency of the assigned channel 6or a D3R of less than < <<, and a data rate of ,. . F%ps' a 5=&S %ase station receiver with a wanted signal power of J,,/ dDm must

%e a%le to handle an interfering signal power of J/. dDm' given that the interferer is either / =>; a%ove or %elow the wanted signal ;.8! .>ing is a measure of the receiverAs a%ility to maintain performance for a wanted signal in the presence of an interferer &he interferer is located on any fre#uency other than the ad:acent channel or those coinciding with the receiverAs spurious responses 6or e$ample' in the ,'K.<J,'KH<-=>; %and' a 5=&S %ase station receiverAs performance should not degrade' given a wanted signal power of J ,,/ dDm and an interfering 9*D=A signal power of J2< dDm at a ,< =>; offset from the wanted signal +.Interm du!ati n &he mi$ing of two interfering R6 signals can produce second-' third-' and higher-order products in the %and of the wanted channel (ntermodulation re:ection is a measure of the capa%ility of the receiver to receive a wanted signal on its assigned channel in the presence of two or more interfering signals that have a specific fre#uency relationship to the wanted signal

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&. ; b) S2 rt n te n B@2e S #t$are %e#ined Radi < rumC Ans$er :- &he Software Defined Radio 6orum (formerly the =odular =ultifunction (nformation &ransfer Systems forum) was formed in ,KKM as the result of 5 S government action to promote open standards architecture for SP3AF easy' a military software radio pro:ect &he SDR 6orum is an open' non-profit corporation dedicated to supporting the development' deployment' and use of open architectures for advanced wireless systems &he 6orum mem%ership is international' and growing =em%ership is represented %y software radio manufacturers' telecommunications infrastructure and terminal manufacturers' silicon chip vendors' test e#uipment ma-ers' telecommunications companies' scientific and research organi;ations' and others from the commercial and defense sector &here are three parts to the 6orumAs technical committee: the download/ handheld' %ase station/smart antennas' and mo%ile wor-ing groups 3ach committee has its own aim with the handheld group aiming to promote the use of software defined radio technology in handheld terminals providing dynamic reconfiguration under severe constraints on si;e' weight' and power &he %ase station committee is aiming to promote the use of software defined radio and reconfigura%le adaptive processing technology in wireless %ase stations worldwide for terrestrial' satellite' mo%ile' and fi$ed services' while the mo%ile group see-s to promote the use of software defined radio technology in commercial and military applications under

adverse terminal conditions where station mo%ility' dynamic networ-ing' and operational fle$i%ility are re#uired using a variety of wireless and networ- interfaces &he SDR 6orum is not a standards %ody such as the &(A or 3&S(E however' it does develop recommendations that may' in the future' turn into standards if enough commercial cooperation is developed &.+ a) %es.ribe aim & re7uirements # S6A. &he Software *ommunications Architecture' or S*A' provides a set of specifications !that facilitate porta%ility' interopera%ility and configura%ility of the software and hardware components used in the manufacturing of radio systems"N &he original technologies for these specifications were developed in the late ,KH<As and early ,KK<As with the first pu%lic release of a consolidated specification occurring through the 6orumAs &echnical Report Iersion , < in ,KKG as the !Software Radio Architecture (SRA)" &he SRA architecture was matured in the 6orumAs &echnical Report Iersion . , entitled !!Architecture and 3lements of Software Defined Radio Systems as Related to Standards"N1O' and was further matured %y the mem%ers of the =odular Software Programma%le Radio *onsortium (=SR*)' wor-ing in cooperation with the 6orumAs =o%ile 9or-ing 0roup into what %ecame the Point &actical Radio System Software *ommunications Architecture (P&RS S*A) &he concept for the Software *ommunications Architecture came out of the Point &actical Radio System' P&RS During the pro:ect it was necessary to assem%le software for the Software Defined Radio from a num%er of different suppliers (t was also necessary to %e a%le to re-use software wherever possi%le Accordingly the Software *ommunications Architecture was defined and implemented S*A Software *ommunications Architecture is aimed at governing the structure and operation of the software within a Software Defined radio ena%ling them to load waveforms' run applications' and %e networ-ed into an integrated system &he use of S*A also provides improved levels of interopera%ility among radio sets &his results from the fact that the one piece of software used to generate a particular waveform software can %e imported into the software of several radio sets (n this way small differences that may have e$isted if the software for different sets came from different sources would not e$ist S6A basi.s &he S*A Software *ommunications Architecture %asically descri%es the software components within a Software Defined Radio and in particular it defines the interfaces &he use of S*A provides two main advantages:

(t ena%les software elements or modules to %e written %y different organisations and to %e %rought together (t ena%les the re-use of some modules' there%y improving interopera%ility and providing significant cost savings

S*A Software *ommunications Architecture software falls into one of three categories (t is useful to categorise them %ecause they need to %e handled in slightly different ways' and some can %e re-used across several platforms while others may not &he three S*A categories may %e defined as follows: , Management: Software which falls into this S*A category is used for managing the radio system Iarious applications may include plug and playE deployment and configuration software

. 1

Node: &his software may comprise such applications as %ootstrapping and access to hardware Application: &his type of software is used particularly for the signal processing 3$amples of this may include waveform generation' demodulation' fre#uency translation' etc

+f these three different S*A software categories only the application software can %e re-used %etween different platforms &he other two need to directly interface with the platform hardware and are therefore platform specific Despite the fact that only the application S*A software can %e transported this nevertheless produces very significant cost savings 0enerating the software for a specific waveform is a very costly e$ercise re#uiring very many man-years of software effort in development and then in rigorous testing Additionally' the a%ility of %eing a%le to port it across several platforms means that any inconsistencies should not %e noticea%le and cause any pro%lems %ecause all radios will wor- in the same manner S6A summary S*A Software *ommunications Architecture is an ideal standard to use for large Software Defined radio SDR pro:ects where different software elements may %e %rought in from different software houses (t provides a ro%ust interface %etween the different software modules that allows components to communicate together relia%ly in a -nown standard format >owever the use of S*A Software *ommunications Architecture does place an overhead on the comple$ity of the system &his may mean that S*A may not %e the right choice for many smaller pro:ects 9hether to use S*A or not is a design choice that needs to %e made at the %eginning of the pro:ect -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&.* a) $2at is r !e # %SD in S%R3 Ans: =ooreAs 7aw is now widely accepted as part of the microprocessor vernacularE it relates to the compound dou%ling of computer processing power that has %een o%served to occur appro$imately every ,H months or so &hese advances have %een possi%le due to improving designs and chemical processes that have shrun- the si;e of transistors (halving every ,H months)' increased cloc-ing speeds (dou%ling every ,H months)' and reduced power consumption &here are theories that this e$ponential improvement will hit a ceiling due to physical effects such as unreali;a%le cloc- speed or gamma radiation entering the silicon chip and causing false logic state changes So far this has proved not to %e the case' and recent reports indicate that =ooreAs 7aw will %e a%le to support another decade of improvement at least 0ordon =oore reported this trend in ,KM/ and since then it has %een mostly associated with general-purpose microprocessors DSPs have followed a similar trend' as illustrated in 6igure' where million multiply and accumulations per second (==A*S) are plotted over time for the &e$as (nstruments range of DSPs &he =A* is a good overall performance indication for the DSP as applied to software radio' %ecause many radio functions are multiply and accumulation intensive

&herefore' on average' every ,H months we can e$pect a dou%ling in processing power for the same volume' power consumption' and cost &his e#uates to an order of magnitude (or ,<Q) improvement every si$ to seven years (t is this e$ponential improvement that has leveraged the software radio from the university la%oratory into the commercial mar-etplace &here is also an argument that the actual re#uirement for processing power needed %y the wireless industry is e$ceeding =ooreAs 7aw (nvestigations into the increase in algorithmic comple$ity e$perienced during the transitions from ,0 to 10 suggest that the actual need for processing DSP software can %e developed using either the * or *?? programming languages' and the de%ugger supports multiprocessor configurations &he DSP supports an internal %us structure with one program %us' three data read %uses' two data write %uses' and additional %uses for peripheral and D=A use

6igure: =ooreAs 7aw and DSP ==A*S versus time ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&.)) 1.r.t E@RS $rite s2 rt n te n :a) Ar.2ite.ture /er/ie$ b) <un.ti na! /ie$ .) Net$ r> /er/ie$ d) 6 re #rame $ r> Ans. a) Ar.2ite.ture A/er/ie$ A graphical depiction of the relationships %etween the +3 (*6 and *+&S) and SDR noncore components is provided in 6igure G 1E this details the -ey elements and (D7 interfaces for the *6 &he SDR software structure shows that the noncore components are a%stracted away from the underlying hardware' and all entities are connected via a logical software %us %y using *+RDA Adapters are provided to allow non-*+RDA modem' security' and (/+ components to interface with the *+RDA components via the *+RDA %us &he software architecture is capa%le of operating using *+&S hardware %us architectures (e g ' I=3' cP*(' and so on)E however' the actual implementation will %e determined %y the derived performance re#uirements of the noncore components (e g ' data %andwidth and timing)

*+&S operating systems (+Ss) with real-time em%edded capa%ilities such as preemptive multitas-ing are e$pected to %e suita%le for SDR &he +S is also assumed to %e porta%le operating system interface (P+S(Q) compliant and the S*AS recommends the use of P+S(Q ,<<1 ,1 P+S(Q was first pu%lished %y the (333 in ,KK< and now consists of more than 1< standards' ranging from %asic +S definitions through to those with advanced real-time e$tensions &hese e$tensions include such features as threads' priority scheduling' and semaphores P+S(Q ,<<1 ,1 does not contain any additional featuresE instead' it groups the functions of e$isting P+S(Q standards into units of functionality

&he operating environment is the integration into an SDR implementation of the *6 services and *+&S infrastructure (e g ' +Ss' %us support pac-ages' and *+RDA middleware services) &he S*AS emphasises open standards' multiple vendor availa%le commercial (*+&S) elements' and higher-order software languages &he %oard support pac-age (DSP) dualconnection to a %lac- secure %us and a red nonsecure %us would only %e implemented for defense type applications and is not e$pected to %e necessary for civilian and 10 mo%ile cellular applications b) <un.ti na! Vie$ &he functional view starts with a traditional description of the system with data flow and control paths &he data flow follows the convention ' where the air interface is on the left and the networ- interface on the right &his traditional data flow view is captured as a software reference model' depicted in 6igure G 2 &he model is %ased upon the programma%le modular communications system reference model (t serves to introduce the various functional roles performed %y the SDR software entities (without dictating a structural model)' as well as the control and traffic data interfaces %etween functional software entities

.) Net$ r>ing A/er/ie$ &he S*AS includes specification of the e$ternal protocols that define communication %etween an S*AS-compliant software radio and its peer systems Although the S*AS references many military protocols' it also considers the popular (S-K/A *D=A mo%ile cellular standard as an e$ample 6igure G G illustrates how the S*AS AP(s map onto the +S( seven layer networ-ing model &his mapping is not dissimilar to that used in the cellular mo%ile world' where the 5=&S (10PP) and *D=A.<<< (10PP.) specifications concentrate on the physical (layer one)' lin(layer two)' and networ-ing (layer three) layers

d) 6 re <rame$ r> &he core framewor- (6igure G H) is part of the +3 and is the essential core set of open application layer interfaces and services to provide an a%straction of the underlying software and hardware layers for software application designers &he *6 consists of the following:

Dase application interfaces (Port, LifeCycle, TestableObject, Property- Set, PortSupplier, ResourceFactory, and Resource)' which can %e used %y all software applications 6ramewor- control interfaces (DomainManager, De iceManager, !pplication, !pplicationFactory, De ice, Loa"ableDe ice, #$ecutable- De ice, and !ggregate)' which provide control of the SDR 6ramewor- services interfaces' which support %oth core and noncore applications (FileSystem, File, FileManager, and Timer) A domain profile' which descri%es the properties of hardware devices (device profile) and software components (software profile) in the SDR

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&.,) 12at are t2e #a.t rs $2i.2 s2 u!d be ta>en in a.. unt $2i!e se!e.ting R@AS3 E5'!ain any ne #r m # !! $ing in detai!. a) LINFG & R@LINFG b) V51 r>s .) ASE d) M&G e) %SD H 8IAS Ans. 9: a) LINFG & R@ LINFG 7(85Q is a free 58(Q type of operating system that is made availa%le under the 085 general pu%lic license (t was originally developed %y 7inus &orvlads in ,KK,' when it was released as version < <. &he licensing arrangement ensures that users can o%tain source code for the operating system +nce a user has the source code' he or she is permitted to create new versions' which they can charge for' %ut the new source code must %e made availa%le %ac- to the community &he open source' low-cost environment has spurred on thousands of developers

worldwide to contri%ute to 7(85Q' with the result that the operating system is now very widespread and increasing in popularity at an e$ponential rate 9hile 7(85Q has %een particularly popular in the P* world' it is generally not suita%le for hard real-time em%edded systems Standard 7(85Q ta-es up to M<< Rsec to start a handler and can %e more than .< Rsec late for a periodic tas- &he 7(85Q operating system is optimi;ed for the general case and has some fundamental features that contradict real-time re#uirements 6or e$ample' 7(85Q will not preempt the e$ecution of the lowest-priority tas-s during system calls' synchroni;ation is not fine enough and causes long periods when data is tied up %y a non-real-time thread and unavaila%le to real-time threads' and 7(85Q will ma-e high-priority tas-s wait for low-priority tas-s to release resources Real-&ime 7(85Q (R& 7(85Q) has %een developed to solve the shortcomings of standard 7(85Q and is now availa%le to meet the growing need for a low-cost' real-time em%edded operating system R& 7(85Q treats the 7(85Q -ernel as a tas- e$ecuting under a small' real-time operating system &he design has 7(85Q as the !idle" tas- for the real-time +S and only e$ecuting when there are no real-time tas-s to run (n this mode the 7(85Q tas- cannot prevent itself from %eing preempted or allow the %loc-ing of interrupts &his is achieved %y the R& 7(85Q -ernel intercepting 7(85Q re#uests to disa%le interrupts and recording them and then returning to 7(85Q (f there is a handler for the real-time event' it will %e invo-ed &his ensures that 7(85Q cannot add latency to the real-time interrupt response time no matter what state 7(85Q is in R& 7(85Q is distri%uted %y a commercial organi;ation (6S=7a%s)' which was founded %y the original product creators b) V51 r>s &he I$9or-s real-time operating system (R&+S) is a commercially availa%le product from 9indRiver &he operating system is a closed proprietary offer ingE however' it has grown in popularity and was selected for the high-profile ,KKG =ars Pathfinder 7ander pro:ect 9indRiver recently too- over the pS+S operating system' and it is widely e$pected that I$9or-s and pS+S will %e merged in the future into a single product &he operating system is a good choice for systems that only use general- purpose microprocessors (e g ' PowerP*' (ntel Pentium' AR=' SPAR*' =(PS' and so on) =a:or disadvantages for I$9or-s when considering software radio are that the operating system does not support any digital signal processing devices (e g ' &( or Analog Devices)' and it imposes a royalty fee for every deployed instance of the R&+S on a processor 6eatures include unlimited multitas-ing' preemptive scheduling' round-ro%in scheduling' ./M priority levels' P+S(Q ,<<1 , compati%ility' and a good range of diagnostic tools 6or larger' em%edded systems there is support for networ-ing protocols such as &*P/(P' PPP' 6&P' S8&P' and others

.) ASE &he +S3 R&+S %y 3nea is similar to I$9or-s in that it is also a closed proprietary and commercially availa%le system with a similar licensing structure (royalty per instance) &he advantages of +S3 is that it supports %oth general- purpose microprocessors and DSPs and is certified for use in systems re#uiring a level of safety integrity d) M&G A commercially availa%le product with a different supply model is the =BQ R&+S %y Precise &he supplier has chosen a halfway house %etween 7(85Q and I$9or-s %y supplying the source code for =BQ and ma-ing it royalty free &he R&+S suits mi$ed processor environments and is availa%le for R(S* and *(S* microprocessors (e g ' PowerP*' AR*' AR='

=(PS) and DSPs (&(*M$' &(*/$' &(*2$' &(*1$' and ADSP.,<M$) Dy %eing provided with the source code for the operating system' the user has the choice to port to other processors if re#uired =BQ presents the user with a standard AP( regardless of the processor used e) %SDH8IAS DSP/D(+S is a -ernel provided %y &e$as (nstruments that provides real-time operating support for DSPs &he -ernel supports preemptive multitas-ing and other services that ena%le applications to more effectively use event driven and interrupt service paradigms Application software can ta-e advantage of traditional multitas-ing services' mail%o$es' #ueues' semaphores' and resource protection loc-s Developers have the fle$i%ility of selecting several (/+ mechanisms' including data pipes and data stream models &he configuration of the -ernel o%:ect programming model can %e static or dynamic' and the -ernel allows run-time memory management' providing dynamic memory allocations and deallocations Application management and configuration of resources can %e performed dynamically' there%y ena%ling developers to %uild self-configuring and more comple$ applications whose mi$ of functions changes over time -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&.- a) $2at are t2e #a.t rs se!e.ting t2e antenna t S%R3 t2at s2 u!d be ta>en int a.. unt $2i!e

Ans: 3ven though digital signal processing technology is pushing the software radio closer to the antenna terminals' it has a long way to go %efore emulating the analog transmission line networ- in a phased antenna array for fre#uencies a%ove ,<< =>; &han-fully this isnAt necessary' %ecause digital signal processing is a%le to perform the e#uivalent radio fre#uency function at %ase%and using #uadrature processing &he %asic SDR architecture is e$panded in 6igure for a smart antenna application &he %idirectional data flow arrows indicate the reciprocal nature of the data processing functions (i e ' the system could %e a transmitter or receiver) A wide%and analog front end is re#uired for each antenna elementE for receive processing it converts from analog R6 to a digital (6 and vice versa for transmit processing 3ach digital (6 channel is fed into a pool of digital fre#uency conversion and %ase%and processing resources &he resource pool is responsi%le for converting the digital (6 to #uadrature (( and B) %ase%and and then performing the smart antenna' modulation/demodulation' and channel coding/decoding functions &he architecture relies on maintaining phase alignment %etween each *hain from the antenna to the input of the smart antenna function Decause this architecture multiples %y n the num%er of analog front ends and increases the si;e of the re#uired processing pool' it is mostly suita%le for high traffic capacity systems where spectrum is limited 6or this case it can %ecome cost effective to e$pand the capacity of a %ase station %y adding a smart antenna function rather than purchasing more spectrums

6igure K 1 Smart antenna system using software radio System capacity can also %e e$panded %y cell splitting (i e ' macrocells are divided into many more microcells) &his re#uires more D&S sites' and in situations where it is impossi%le to operate more sites (e g ' community opposition) the only option may %e to e$pand e$isting site capacity %y the addition of a smart antenna capa%ility -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------&.- b) %es.ribe any ! $ . st e5'erimenta! S #t$are Radi '!at# rm3 Ans: (ntroduction &he design issues associated with the development of a software radio' with particular emphasis on the 10 cellular mo%ile standards 9e now provide implementation-level detail for an e$perimental software radio platform Platform Re#uirements &he system re#uirements were to design and implement software radio functionality in a highlevel software language %y using a low-cost platform &he hardware was re#uired to receive radio fre#uency signals in the several =>; range' demodulate' and audio amplify them System Architecture &he &e$as (nstrumentsA *MG<, evaluation module (3I=)' &>S,.<H. AD* 3I=' and *ode *omposer source code development tools were chosen as the compliant solution &he *MG<, 3I= hosts a single &=S1.<*MG<, floating-point DSP' and the card uses a full-length P*(

form-factor for installation in a P* &he *MG<, is provided with an evaluation copy of the *ode *omposer software development tool for the 9indows operating system &he &>S,.<H. 3I= is designed either to %e used standalone or connected to the *MG<, 3I= via the &=S1.<*M.$ 3I= daughter%oard interface (t contains a ,.-%it AD*' which can %e cloc-ed at up to H =>;' and' importantly' it also features an on-chip ,M-word 6(6+ 9ithout a 6(6+ (e g ' &>S,.<K AD*) the DSP must read every AD* sample %efore the ne$t one is writtenE this usually occurs during an interrupt service routine ((SR) after the AD* has interrupted the DSP indicating that new data is ready (n this situation the DSP needs a fi$ed amount of time (latency) to halt the processor and enter the (SR to perform the read &his latency limits the fre#uency of DSP reads and reduces the num%er of cycles availa%le for signal processing 6or e$ample' a &=S1.<*/2. cloc-ed at 2< =>; e$periences 2<<nanosecond latency and will not %e a%le to -eep pace reading samples from a &>S,.<H./&>S,.<M cloc-ed at . =>; &he same processor can reach a M-=>; transfer rate when the 6(6+ is used and the trigger level (6(6+ depth) is set to eight words 3ven though the trigger level can %e increased' it has %een found that eight is the optimum figure to ensure that old data is not overwritten &he system hardware architecture is illustrated in 6igure and shows the ma:or system interfaces and signals

6ig: System hardware architecture &00 b) 1rite S2 rt n te n BSDEAIeasyC Ans:-SP3AFeasy'a :oint pro:ect of the %ranches of the 5 S military 'was one of the first attempts to create a formali;ed software radio architecture and launched the 5 S militaryAs continuing involvement in software radios SP3AFeasy was the %eginning of a long-term strategy %y the military to advance software radio technology and to decrease costs to leveraging the commercial mass mar-et SP3AFeasy is a successful implementation of a software-defined radio (SDR) for military applications (t permits general-purpose digital hardware to communicate over a wide range of fre#uencies' modulation techni#ues' data encoding methods' cryptographic types' and other communication parameters &he SP3AFeasy program started with a phase where functions such as programma%ility' fle$i%ility' reconfigura%ility' and the use of signal processors were illustrated (t showed the 3valuation of SDR &echnology SDR &echnology 6e%ruary .<<M capa%ility of %eing a%le to communicate with multiple legacy systems simultaneously at demonstrations &he demonstrations in ,KK2 were conducted with over-the-air transmission and reception using standard >6' I>6' and 5>6 antennas covering the K<-.<<=>; %and &he successes of the

initial phase lead to a continuation in ,KK/ where the o%:ective was set to develop field capa%le prototypes with full R6 capa%ility &he implementation had to include commercial off the shelf (*+&S) components' the use of non-proprietary %uses' open architecture' (86+S3* and wide%and data waveforms 7ac-ing additional funding the SP3AFeasy program was restructured in ,KKG as all the tas-s related to the wide%and capa%ility were eliminated >owever' there was sufficient interest to initiate a new programmed and the Point &actical Radio Systems program was esta%lished to investigate the re#uirements for scala%ility' the porta%ility of waveforms' and the development of a common software communications architecture (S*A) that would facilitate the simple e$change of waveforms &he SP3AFeasy program was %ro-en into two phases Phase ( was a proof-of-concept pro:ect to demonstrate the feasi%ility of software radios and the suita%ility reconfigura%le modem phase (( sought to create a via%le implementation of a software radio and to formali;e a complete software radio architecture SDEAIeasy '2ase I 6rom ,KK. to ,KK/' the goal was to produce a radio for the 5 S Army which could operate from . =>; to . 0>;' and operate with ground force radios (fre#uency-agile I>6' 6=' and S(8*0ARS)' Air 6orce radios (I>6 A=)' 8aval Radios (I>6 A= and >6 SSD teleprinters) and satellites (microwave BA=) Some particular goals were to provide a new signal format in two wee-s from a standing start' and demonstrate a radio into which multiple contractors could plug parts and software &he pro:ect was demonstrated at &6-QQ( Advanced 9arfighting 3$ercise' and met all these goals &here was some discontent with certain unspecified features (ts cryptographic processor could not change conte$t fast enough to -eep several radio conversations on the air at once (ts software architecture' though practical enough' %ore no resem%lance to any other &he %asic arrangement of the radio receiver used an antenna feeding an amplifier and downconverter (see 6re#uency mi$er) feeding an automatic gain control' which fed an analog to digital converter that was on a computer I=3%us with a lot of digital signal processors (&e$as (nstruments *2<s) &he transmitter had digital to analog converters on the P*( %us feeding an up converter (mi$er) that led to a power amplifier and antenna &he very wide fre#uency range was divided into a few su%-%ands with different analog radio technologies feeding the same analog to digital converters &his has since %ecome a standard design scheme for wide %and software radios &he first phase of SP3AFeasy was intended to show that radio had the potential to Alleviate the militaryAs interopera%ility issues Provide more advanced security functions Simplify the process of incorporating new technology Simplify information security implementations Add fle$i%ility without significantly increasing power consumption

SDEAIeasy '2ase II

&he goal was to get a more #uic-ly reconfigura%le architecture (i e several conversations at once)' in an open software architecture' with cross-channel connectivity (the radio can S%ridgeS different radio protocols) &he secondary goals were to ma-e it smaller' cheaper' and weigh less &he pro:ect produced a demonstration radio only fifteen months into a three-year research pro:ect &he demonstration was so successful that further development was halted' and the radio went into production with only a 2 =>; to 2<< =>; range &he software architecture identified standard interfaces for different modules of the radio: Sradio fre#uency controlS to manage the analog parts of the radio' Smodem controlS managed resources for modulation and demodulation schemes (6=' A=' SSD' BA=' etc)' Swaveform processingS modules actually performed the modem functions' S-ey processingS and Scryptographic processingS managed the cryptographic functions' a SmultimediaS module did voice processing' a Shuman interfaceS provided local or remote controls' there was a SroutingS module for networservices' and a ScontrolS module to -eep it all straight &he modules are said to communicate without a central operating system (nstead' they send messages over the P*( computer %us to each other with a layered protocol As a military pro:ect' the radio strongly distinguished SredS (unsecured secret data) and S%lac-S (cryptographically-secured data) &he pro:ect was the first -nown to use 6P0As (field programma%le gate arrays) for digital processing of radio data &he time to reprogram these was an issue limiting application of the radio &oday' the time to write a program for an 6P0A is still significant' %ut the time to download a stored 6P0A program is around .< milliseconds &his means an SDR could change transmission protocols and fre#uencies in one fiftieth of a second' pro%a%ly not an intolera%le interruption for that tas&he Phase (( architecture also formed a more structured solution to incorporating %oth secure and unsecure modules into a single architecture &he primary goal of Phase (( architecture were to (mplement a reconfigura%le architecture (mplement an open architecture Active cross-channel connectivity and secondary goals were to (ncorporate more commercial off the shelf components Reduce the form factor to a si;e deploya%le in the field (ncorporate reconfigura%le hardware (mprove the *TPR(S chipAs conte$t switching time SP3AFeasy program was motivated %y interoperata%ility and cost issues associated with the 5 S militaryAs radio Phase ( demonstrated that reprogramma%le devices were sufficiently powerful and power efficient for use in software radio and that software radios had the potential to solve the militaryAs interoperata%ility issues Phase (( designed

and implemented a complete software architecture and incorporate reconfigura%le hardware ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------