1 The 2.4 GHz ISM band Paul Hansell CEng MIEE Managing Director, Aegis Systems Ltd

2 Structure of the presentation  Background  objectives & approach  applications  Study findings  problem areas  possible policy solutions  Recommendations  core recommendations  further recommendations

3 Study background  2.4 GHz ISM band  largely “licence exempt”  regulation is minimal  access is free  global allocation  ideally suited to high density fixed and mobile … has led to increasing demand for use

4 Study objectives The objectives of the work were:   to estimate demand for use of the band currently and over the next two to five years   to forecast bottle-necks for the use of new wireless technology   to advise on spectrum management strategies for handling demand

5 Study method   Literature review   Industry consultation   50 people from 37 organisations contributed:   20 face to face interviews (13 organisations)   10 telephone interviews (9 organisations)   20 written contributions   Special thanks to the FEI   Congestion modeling & analysis   Recommendations

6 Structure of the band ISM Military SRD AVI Outside Broadcast Links Radio Local Area Networks (Rec 70-03) Short Range Devices (Rec 70-03)

GHz - diverse applications

8 Diverse expectations of growth

9  Based on earlier Aegis & SE24 work  Used appropriate working assumptions for system parameters (eg power, duty cycle)  Density figures based on market forecasts  Sought to identify key areas of concern  high: systems likely to experience on-going, noticeable degradation in QoS  moderate: occasional noticeable degradation  low: no noticeable degradation Forecasting congestion

10 Problems: potential congestion … outdoor applications - the key problem area Victim Interferer

11 Problems: licence issues  Today:  Use of outdoor RLANs by ISPs  Tomorrow:  Use of any licence exempt application to compete with a licensed service (ie UMTS / FWA)

12 Policy options: containment  Do nothing  not good for “UK plc”  Close the band  no expansion of RFA  prevent any further outdoor RLANs  Tighten constraints  directional antennas  polite operations  power limits  digital technology

13 Policy options: migration  Refarming  Military  ENG/OB  RFA  Wireless networking  New licence exempt bands  5 GHz ISM

14 Core recommendations  Address congestion from outdoor applications by refarming  Ideally refarm two out of three applications:  if not: mandate power control, directionality, digitalisation 1. Congestion 2. Licensing   Resolve ISP legitimacy question   Note potential impact on UMTS/FWA vs customer choice 3. Hot spots   Limit public services to 1mW

15 Additional recommendations  Military  Discuss military vacation of band to reduce uncertainty and help standardise licence situation  Polite operations  Should be actively encouraged  Further licence exempt bands  Explore possibilities for additional spectrum

16 Conclusions  2.4 GHz ISM offers great potential for UK  Future congestion is manageable but requires action now w.r.t. outdoor systems  Action on licensing needed once public vs private issue resolved  Additional licence exempt bands merit further thought

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