Fixed Mobile Convergence (FMC) Architectures for Broadband Access: Integration of EPON and WiMAX

Many of the features of EPON and WiMAX are complementary. In [1] we proposed four basic architectures for the integration of EPON and WiMAX, which employs an EPON as a backhaul to interconnect multiple WiMAX base stations. The integration takes advantage of the high capacity of fibre communication as well as the mobile and non-line of sight (NLOS) features of wireless communication. In this article, we recap these basic architectures and relevant operational issues. We further propose more integrated architectures that are extended from the four basic architectures. In addition, more design and operational issues relevant to the architectures are discussed. We expect that integration of EPON and WiMAX can help realize fixed mobile convergence, and significantly reduce overall design and operational costs for the new-generation broadband access networks.