Design alternatives for wireless local area networks

In this paper an overview of the wireless local area network (LAN) area is provided. The two types of wireless LAN topologies used today, infrastructure and ad hoc, are presented. The requirements that a wireless LAN is expected to meet are discussed. These requirements impact on the implementation of both the Physical and MAC layer of a wireless LAN. The unique characteristics of wireless physical layers are discussed and the "ve technology alternatives used today are presented. MAC layer issues are discussed and the two existing standards, IEEE 802.11 and HIPERLAN 1, are examined. Pollingbased MAC protocols (RAP, GRAP) are also reviewed. Finally, an introduction is made to wireless technologies that interact with WLANs, such as personal area networking (PAN) and wireless ATM and an overview of HIPERLAN 2, a WLAN using ATM technology, is provided. Copyright ( 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.