UNIVERSITY OF MADRAS

B.Sc. DEGREE COURSE IN COMPUTER SCIENCE

SYLLABUS WITH EFFECT FROM 2020-2021
BCE-DSE2A
ELECTIVE-II(A): MOBILE COMPUTING
III YEAR / VI SEM CREDIT: 05
OBJECTIVES:
To make the student understand the concepts of mobile computing and familiar with the network
protocol stack
To be exposed to Ad-Hoc networks Gain knowledge about different mobile platforms and
application development.
OUTCOMES:
Explain the basics of mobile telecommunication system.
Choose the required functionality at each layer for given application.
Use simulator tools and design Ad hoc networks and develop a mobile application.
UNIT - I
Introduction-Mobile Computing – Mobile Computing Vs wireless Networking – Mobile Computing
Applications –Characteristics of Mobile computing – Structure of Mobile Computing Application.
MAC Protocols – Wireless MAC Issues – Fixed Assignment Schemes – Random Assignment Schemes
– Reservation Based Schemes.
UNIT - II
Mobile Internet Protocol and Transport Layer-Overview of Mobile IP – Features of Mobile IP – Key
Mechanism in Mobile IP – route Optimization. Overview of TCP/IP – Architecture of TCP/IP-
Adaptation of TCP Window – Improvement in TCP Performance.
UNIT - III
Mobile Telecommunication System-Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) – General
Packet Radio Service (GPRS) – Universal Mobile Tele communication System (UMTS).
UNIT - IV
Mobile Ad-Hoc Networks-Ad-Hoc Basic Concepts – Characteristics – Applications – Design Issues –
Routing – Essential of Traditional Routing Protocols –Popular Routing Protocols – Vehicular Ad Hoc
networks ( VANET) – MANET Vs VANET –Security.
UNIT - V
Mobile Platforms and Applications-Mobile Device Operating Systems – Special Constrains &
Requirements – Commercial Mobile Operating Systems – Software Development Kit: iOS, Android,
BlackBerry, Windows Phone – M-Commerce – Structure– Pros & Cons – Mobile Payment System –
Security Issues.
TEXT BOOK:
1. Prasant Kumar Pattnaik, Rajib Mall, “Fundamentals of Mobile Computing”, PHI Learning Pvt.
Ltd, New Delhi 2012.
REFERENCES:
1. Jochen H. Schller, “Mobile Communications”, Pearson Education, New Delhi, 2007, 2nd Edition.
2. Dharma Prakash Agarval, Qing and An Zeng, "Introduction to Wireless and Mobile systems",
Thomson Asia Pvt Ltd. 2005.
3. Uwe Hansmann, LotharMerk, Martin S. Nicklons and Thomas Stober, “Principles of Mobile
Computing”, Springer 2003.
WEB REFERENCES:
NPTEL & MOOC courses titled Mobile Computing
https://www.smartzworld.com/notes/mobile-computing-pdf-notes-mc-notes-pdf/
https://www.vidyarthiplus.com/vp/Thread-IT6601-Mobile-Computing-Lecture-Notes-All-Uni
https://nptel.ac.in/courses/106106147/
 UNIT I
Introduction-Mobile Computing – Mobile Computing Vs wireless Networking – Mobile Computing
Applications –Characteristics of Mobile computing – Structure of Mobile Computing Application.
MAC Protocols – Wireless MAC Issues – Fixed Assignment Schemes – Random Assignment Schemes
– Reservation Based Schemes.

INTRODUCTION
MOBILE COMPUTING
 Mobile computing is widely described as the ability to compute remotely while on the move.
 It is also known as ubiquitous computing and nomadic computing.
 This is a new and fast emerging discipline that has made it possible for people to access
information from anywhere and at any time.
 Mobile computing can be viewed as encompassing two separate and distinct concepts:
1. Mobility – Mobility provides the capability to change location while communicating to
invoke computing services at some remote computers.
2. Computing - Computing denotes the capability to automatically carry out certain
processing related to service invocations on a remote computer.
 The main advantage of this type of mobile computing is the tremendous flexibility it provides
to the users.
 The user need not be tethered to the chair in front of his desktop, but can move locally or even
to faraway places and at the same time achieve what used to be performed while sitting in front
of a desktop.

MOBILE COMPUTING VS WIRELESS NETWORKING

 The terms “mobile” and “wireless” are often used interchangeably but in reality, they are two
very different concepts applied to modern computing and technology.
 Mobile is a word that is commonly used to describe portable devices. A mobile device is one
that is made to be taken anywhere. Therefore, it needs an internal battery for power, and must
be connected to a modern mobile network that can help it to send and receive data
without attaching to a hardware infrastructure.
 Wireless, on the other hand, does not mean mobile. Traditional computers or other non-mobile
devices can access wireless networks. One very common example is the use of a localized
browser product in a local area network (LAN), where the router takes what used to be a cabled
interaction and makes it wireless. Other kinds of wireless networks called wide
area networks (WAN) can even use components of 3G or 4G
wireless systems made specifically for mobile devices, but that doesn‘t mean that the devices
on these networks are mobile. They may still be plugged in or require proximity to a router or
network node.
 Mobile and wireless systems really accomplish two very different things. While a wireless
system provides a fixed or portable endpoint with access to a distributed network, a mobile
system offers all of the resources of that distributed network to something that can go anywhere,
barring any issues with local reception or technical area coverage.
 For another example of the difference between mobile and wireless, think of businesses that
offer Wi-Fi hotspots. A Wi-Fi hotspot is typically a resource for someone who has a relatively
fixed device, such as a laptop computer that doesn’t have its own internal Internet access built
in. By contrast, mobile devices already have inherent access to the Internet or other wireless
 systems through those cell tower networks that ISPs and telecom companies built specifically
for them. So mobile devices don‘t need Wi-Fi – they already have their connections.
 To some who are used to using both wireless and mobile networks, this distinction may seem
very simple. However, the difference between providing mobile and wireless is likely to be
something that gets explored more as new technologies continue to develop, and companies
continue to offer more different kinds of interfaces to consumers.
 Mobile is subgroup from wireless. We have wireless systems that are not mobile and we have
technologies which are wireless but not mobile in sense of technologies deployed in mobile
operators networks. We have fixed wireless (e.g. fixed WiMAX) and e.g. TETRA which is not
technology deployed in mobile (operators) networks.
 In communication engineering, wireless communication (both static and dynamic) is
communication between Nodes/system without use of direct physical connection rather it is
through a non-conducting or dielectric media. Where as in mobile communication,
communicating nodes moves within specified area and method of communication is wireless
communication suitably...e.g.-Mobile Ad-hoc networks (MANETs).

Wireless network based on fixed infrastructures

Wireless network having no fixed infrastructures

 Wireless Communication in itself is a very broad concept that is achieved using various inter-
related technologies. Mobile Communication utilizes some of the technologies that are made
available / possible by Wireless Communication. Some of the popular wireless technologies
employed in Mobile Communication include: GPRS (General Packet Radio Service), LTE
(Long Term Evolution), HSPA (High Speed Packet Access), GSM (Global System for Mobile
Communication), EDGE (Enhanced Data GSM Environment), CDMA (Code Division
Multiple Access) and its variants, etc.
 Wireless refers to the method of transferring information between a computing device, such as
a personal data assistant (PDA), and a data source, such as an agency database server, without
a physical connection. However, not all wireless communications technologies are created
equally, offer the same uses or are even mobile.
 Mobile computing refers to computing devices that are not restricted to a desktop. A mobile
device may be a PDA, a smart phone or a web phone, a laptop computer, or any one of numerous
 other devices that allow the user to complete tasks without being tethered, or connected, to a
network. Mobile computing does not necessarily require wireless communication. In fact, it
may not require communication between devices at all.
 Wireless communication is simply data communication without the use of a landline. This may
involve a cellular telephone, a two way radio, a fixed wireless connection, a laser, or satellite
communications. Here the computing device is continuously connected to the base network.
 Mobile computing essentially refers to a device that is not always connected to a central
network. This group of devices includes laptops, newly created smart phones and also PDA’s.
These products may communicate with a base location, with or without, a wireless connection.

MOBILE COMPUTING APPLICATIONS

1. Traffic:
During travelling in traffic if we require to know road situation,latest news and when if feel more stress
in driving then can play music and other important broadcast data are received through digital audio
broadcasting(DAB).If we forget the road then we can know our exact location with the help of global
positioning system (GPS).In case if got accident then can to inform police and ambulance via an
emergency call to service provider, which help to improve organization and save time & money.
2. Emergencies Situation:
To play vital role in medical sector can hire an ambulance with great quality wireless connection and
help of this can carry significant information about injured persons. The useful step can prepare for
particular accident and doctor can consulted for diagnosis. Only Wireless networks work of
communication in nature disaster2 such as earthquakes, tsunami,flood and fire .In worst conditions only
decentralized, wireless ad-hoc networks survive.Means that can handle Emergencies situation by mobile
computing easily.
3. Use in Business:
As per business point of view CEO help of this computing system can represent the presentation at the
front of their clients while can access hot news of market. Help of video conference could be discuss at
the topic without hindrance any time. Other side if travelling salesman want to access company database
as per requirement then can be retrieved data on his wireless device and maintain the consistency
company’s database. Cause of these every employee are updated up to date.
4. Credit Card Verification:
Credit card verification using this computing most secure. In respect of Sale terminals(POS) when
customer buy items in malls and other small shops when and pay bill in form of swap credit card for
transactions then need to establish network in between POS terminal and bank central computer then
over protected cellular network verify the credential information of card fastly, if match it then proceed
further otherwise denied get boost up speed of transaction process and relieve the burden at the POS
network.
5. Replacement of Fixed Networks:
Wired network has been replaced in wireless network e.g. trade shows, remote sensors and historical
buildings. in wired networks ,weather forecasting, earthquake detection and to get environmental data
are impossible .This is possible only in adapting replacement of fixed networks in this computing.
6. Infotainment:
Wireless networks are capable to deliver latest information at any suitable regions and can download
knowledge about concert at morning through wireless network that concert is conducting in any region
as well as Another growing field of wireless network applications lies in entertainment and games to
enable, e.g., ad-hoc gaming networks as soon as people meet to play together.So Infotainment by
wireless computing is more easy.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF MOBILE COMPUTING

 A computing environment is said to be “mobile”, when either the sender or the receiver of
information can be on the move while transmitting or receiving information.
 The following are some of the important characteristics of a mobile computing environment.

1. Ubiquity:
 The dictionary meaning of ubiquity is present everywhere.
 In the context of mobile computing, ubiquity means the ability of a user to perform
computations from anywhere and at anytime.
 For example, a business executive can receive business notifications and issue business
transactions as long he is in the wireless coverage area.
2. Location awareness:
 A hand-held device equipped with global positioning system (GPS) can transparently
provide information about the current location of a user to a tracking station.
 Many applications, ranging from strategic to personalized services, require or get value
additions by location-based services.
 For example, a person travelling by road in a car, may need to find out a car maintenance
service that may be available nearby. He can easily locate such a service through mobile
computing where an application may show the nearby maintenance shop.
 A few other example applications include traffic control, fleet management and emergency
services. In a traffic control application, the density of traffic along various roads can be
dynamically monitored, and traffic can be directed appropriately to reduce congestions.
 In a fleet management application, the manager of a transport company can have up-to-date
information regarding the position of its fleet of vehicles, thus enabling him to plan
accurately and provide accurate information to customers regarding the state of their
consignments.
 Location awareness can also make emergency services more effective by automatically
directing the emergency service vehicles to the site of the call.
3. Adaptation:
 Adaptation in the context of mobile computing implies the ability of a system to adjust to
bandwidth fluctuation without inconveniencing the user.
 In a mobile computing environment, adaptation is crucial because of intermittent
disconnections and bandwidth fluctuations that can arise due to a number of factors such as
handoff, obstacles, environmental noise, etc.
4. Broadcast:
 Due to the broadcast nature of the underlying communication network of a mobile
computing environment, efficient delivery of data can be made simultaneously to hundreds
of mobile users.
 For example, all users at a specific location, such as those near a railway station, may be
sent advertising information by a taxi service operator.
5. Personalization:
 Services in a mobile environment can be easily personalized according to a user’s profile.
 This is required to let the users easily avail information with their hand-held devices.
 For example, a mobile user may need only a certain type of information from specific
sources. This can be easily done through personalization.
 STRUCTURE OF MOBILE COMPUTING APPLICATION

 A mobile computing application is usually structured in terms of the functionalities

implemented.
 The simple three-tier structure of a mobile computing application is depicted in the following
figure.

 A specific scenario of the types of functionalities provided by each tier is shown below.
 The three tiers are named
1. presentation tier
2. application tier and
3. data tier.

1. Presentation tier:
 The topmost level of a mobile computing application concerns the user interface.
  A good user interface facilitates the users to issue requests and to present the results to the
them meaningfully.
 Obviously, the programs at this layer run on the client’s computer.
 This layer usually includes web browsers and customized client programs for dissemination
of information and for collection of data from the user.
2. Application tier:
 This layer has the vital responsibility of making logical decisions and performing
calculations.
 It also moves and processes data between the presentation and data layers.
 Consider the middle tier to be like an “engine” of an automobile. It performs the processing
of user input, obtaining information and then making decisions.
 This layer is implemented using technology like Java, .NET services, cold fusion, etc.
 The implementation of this layer and the functionality provided by this layer should be
database independent.
 This layer of functionalities is usually implemented on a fixed server.

3. Data tier:
 The data tier is responsible for providing the basic facilities of data storage, access, and
manipulation.
 Often this layer contains a database.
 The information is stored and retrieved from this database.
 But, when only small amounts of data need to be stored, a file system can be used.
 This layer is also implemented on a fixed server.

MAC PROTOCOLS
 In a wireless network, multiple nodes may contend to transmit on the same shared channel at
the same time.
 In this situation, the transmitted data would get garbled unless a suitable medium access
arbitration scheme is deployed.
 Usually, it is the responsibility of the medium access control (MAC) protocol to perform this
task.
 The MAC protocol is a sublayer of the data link layer protocol and it directly invokes the
physical layer protocol.
 The primary responsibility of a MAC protocol is to enforce discipline in the access of a shared
channel when multiple nodes contend to access that channel.
 At the same time, two other objectives of any MAC protocol are
 Maximization of the utilization of the channel and
 Minimization of average latency of transmission.
 However, a MAC protocol must be fair and ensure that no node has to wait for an unduly long
time, before it is allowed to transmit.

Characteristics Or Properties Required For MAC Protocols:

 It should implement some rules that help to enforce discipline when multiple nodes contend for
a shared channel.
 It should help maximize the utilization of the channel.
  Channel allocation needs to be fair. No node should be discriminated against at any time and
made to wait for an unduly long time for transmission.
 It should be capable of supporting several types of traffic having different maximum and
average bit rates.
 It should be robust in the face of equipment failures and changing network conditions.

 At present, IEEE 802.11 has emerged as a popular and standard MAC protocol for wireless
networks.
 Wireless networks can be divided mainly into two categories:
(a) infrastructure-based wireless networks that include the WLANs, and
(b) infrastructure-less wireless networks that include the mobile ad hoc networks
(MANETs).
 Though the MAC protocols for these two environments have many things in common, MAC
protocols for Infrastructure-less networks are surprisingly much more complex as they have
to address certain additional problems that arise in the infrastructure-less environments.

WIRELESS MAC ISSUES

 A MAC protocol in a wireless medium is much more complex than its wired counterpart.
 First, a collision detection scheme is difficult to implement in a wireless environment, since
collisions are hard to be detected by the transmitting nodes.
 Also, in infrastructure-less networks, the issue of hidden and exposed terminals make a MAC
protocol extremely inefficient unless special care is taken to overcome these problems.
 We elaborate the hidden and exposed terminal problems in the following:

The Hidden and Exposed Terminal Problems in an Infrastructure-less Network

1. Hidden Terminal Problem

 The hidden terminal problem arises when at least three nodes (A, B, and C), as shown below,
communicate among each other.

 As shown in the figure, B is in the radio range of A, and B is also within the radio range of C.
 However, the nodes A and C are not in the radio range of each other.
  Note that if both A and C start to transmit to B at the same time, the data received at node B
would get garbled.
 Such a situation can arise because A and C are “hidden” from each other, because they are
outside each other’s transmission range.
 In this situation, when one node starts to sense the medium before transmission, it cannot sense
that the other node is also transmitting.
 This creates a very difficult and important arbitration problem that a MAC protocol needs to
resolve.

2. Exposed Terminal Problem:

 A related problem called exposed terminal could arise in a scenario such as that depicted in
the following figure.

 MAC protocols usually inhibit transmission when transmission from another terminal is
detected.
 As a result, node A will not be able to transmit to any node when B is transmitting to C.
 On the other hand, had A transmitted to D, it would have been received correctly by D and B’s
transmission would have also been correctly received at C.
 The problem arise only because A and B are within each other’s transmission range, though the
destination nodes are in the transmission range of only one of the nodes.
 In other words, the problem occurs because A is exposed to B’s transmission.
 The overall effect of this problem is that it leads to inefficient spectrum usage as well as
unnecessary transmission delays unless these are carefully addressed by a wireless MAC
protocol.
A Taxonomy of MAC Protocols
 A large number of MAC protocols have been proposed.
 These MAC protocols can be broadly divided into the following three categories:

1. Fixed assignment schemes

2. Random assignment schemes
3. Reservation-based schemes

 On the other hand, the random assignment schemes and the reservation schemes are called
packet-switched schemes.
 The random assignment schemes are comparable to the connection-less packet-switching
schemes.
  In this, no resource reservations are made, the nodes simply start to transmit as soon as they
have a packet to send.
 In the reservation schemes, a node makes explicit reservation of the channel for an entire call
before transmitting.
 This is analogous to a connection-based packet-switching scheme.
 The reservation-based MAC schemes are suitable to handle calls with widely varying traffic
characteristics.

FIXED ASSIGNMENT SCHEMES

 The fixed assignment schemes are usually called circuit-switched schemes.

 In the fixed assignment schemes, the resources required for a call are assigned for the entire
duration of the call.
 A few important categories of fixed assignment MAC protocols are the following:
 Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA)
 Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA)
 Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)

1. Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA)

 In FDMA, the available bandwidth (frequency range) is divided into many narrower
frequency bands called channels.

Channels in Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) scheme

 The above figure shows a division of the existing bandwidth into many channels (shown
as Ch 1, Ch 2, etc.).
 For full duplex communication to take place, each user is allocated a forward link (channel)
for communicating from it (mobile handset) to the base station (BS), and a reverse channel
for communicating from the BS to it.
 Thus, each user making a call is allocated two unique frequency bands (channels), one for
transmitting and the other for receiving signals during the call. Obviously, when a call is
underway, no other user would be allocated the same frequency band to make a call.
 Unused transmission time in a frequency band that occurs when the allocated caller pauses
between transmissions, or when no user is allocated a band, goes idle and is wasted.
 FDMA, therefore, does not achieve a high channel utilization.
2. Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA)

 TDMA is an access method in which multiple nodes are allotted different time slots to
access the same physical channel.
  That is, the timeline is divided into fixed-sized time slots and these are divided among
multiple nodes who can transmit.
 Note that in this case, all sources use the same channel, but take turns in transmitting.
 The below figure shows the situation where time slots are allocated to users in a round
robin manner, with each user being assigned one time slot per frame.

Channels in Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) scheme

 In TDMA, each user of the channel owns the channel for exclusive use for one time slot at
a time in a round robin fashion. Obviously, unused time slots go idle, leading to low
channel utilization.

3. Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)

 In CDMA, multiple users are allotted different codes that consist of sequences of 0 and 1
to access the same channel.
 As shown in Figure, a special coding scheme is used that allows signals from multiple users
to be multiplexed over the same physical channel.
 As shown in the figure, three different users who have been assigned separate codes are
multiplexed on the same physical channel.

Schematic of operation of Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)

 In the following, we elaborate the CDMA technology.

 In CDMA, multiple users use the same frequency at the same time and no time scheduling
is applied.
 All the senders send signals simultaneously through a common medium.
  The bandwidth of this medium is much larger than the space that would be allocated to
each packet transmission during FDMA and the signals can be distinguished from each
other by means of a special coding scheme that is used.
 This is done with the help of a frequency spreading code known as the m-bit pseudo-noise
(PN) code sequence.
 Using m bits, 2m – 1 different codes can be obtained.
 From these codes, each user will use only one code.
 It is possible to distinguish transmissions from different nodes by ensuring some properties
on the codes.
 A code for a user should be orthogonal (that is, non-interfering) to the codes assigned to
other nodes.
 The term “orthogonal” means that the vector inner product is zero, and good
autocorrelation uses the bipolar notation where a code sequence of binary 0 is represented
as –1 and binary 1 is represented as +1.
 On the receiving end, only the same PN sequence is able to demodulate the signal to
successfully convert the input data.
 For simplicity, we assume that all nodes transmit on the same frequency at the same time
using the entire bandwidth of the transmission channel.
 Each sender has a unique random number key, and the sender XORs the signal with this
random number key.
 The receiver can “tune” into this signal if it knows the pseudorandom number.
 Consider an example, where X, Y are the transmitters and Z is a receiver.
 Sender X_data = 1 and X_Key = (010011).
 Its autocorrelation representation is (–1, +1, –1, –1, +1, +1).
 The signal to be calculated at sender X is
Xs = X_data  X_key = +1X_key = (–1, +1, –1, –1, +1, +1).
 Similarly, sender Y_data = 0 and Y_key = (110101) and the signal to be sent at Y is
Ys = –1Y_key = –1(+1, +1, –1, +1, –1, +1) = (–1, –1, +1, –1, +1, –1).
 The signal received by receiver Z is
Xs + Ys = (–1, +1, –1, –1, +1, +1) + (–1, –1, +1, –1, +1, –1) = (–2, 0, 0, –2, +2, 0).
 At the receiver, in order to receive the data sent by sender X, the signal Z is dispread.
 So now if Z wants to get information of sender X data, then
ZX_key = (–2, 0, 0, –2, +2, 0)(–1, +1, –1, –1, +1, +1) = 2 + 0 + 0 + 2 + 2 + 0 = 6 > 0
(positive), that is the original bit was a 1.
 Similarly, the information of sender Y data may be obtained as
ZY_key = (–2, 0, 0, –2, +2, 0)(+ 1, +1, –1, +1, –1, +1) = –2 + 0 + 0 – 2 – 2 + 0 = – 6
< 0 (negative).
 So, the Y data original bit was a 0.

RANDOM ASSIGNMENT SCHEMES

 There are a number of random assignment schemes that are used in MAC protocols.
 A few important ones are the following:

• ALOHA
• Slotted ALOHA
• CSMA
 • CSMA/CD
• CSMA/CA

ALOHA Scheme:

 It is a simple communication scheme that was developed at the university of Hawaii.

 The basic (also called pure) ALOHA scheme, is a simple protocol.
 If a node has data to send, it begins to transmit.
 Note that the first step implies that Pure ALOHA does not check whether the channel is busy
before transmitting.
 If the frame successfully reaches the destination (receiver), the next frame is sent.
 If the frame fails to be received at the destination, it is sent again.
 The simple ALOHA scheme works acceptably, when the chances of contention are small (i.e.,
when a small number of senders send data infrequently).
 However, the collisions can become unacceptably high if the number of contenders for
transmission is high.
 An improvement over the pure ALOHA scheme is the slotted ALOHA.
 In the slotted ALOHA scheme, the chances of collisions are attempted to be reduced by
enforcing the following restrictions.
 The time is divided into equal-sized slots in which a packet can be sent.
 Thus, the size of the packet is restricted.
 A node wanting to send a packet, can start to do so only at the beginning of a slot.
 The slotted ALOHA system employs beacon signals that are sent at precise intervals that mark
the beginning of a slot, at which point the nodes having data to send can start to transmit.
 Again, this protocol does not work very well if the number of stations contending to send data
is high.
 In such cases, the CSMA scheme (described next) works better.

The CSMA Scheme:

 A popular MAC arbitration technique is the Carrier Sense Multiple Access (CSMA).
 In this technique, a node senses the medium before starting to transmit.
 If it senses that some transmission is already underway, it defers its transmission.
 Two popular extensions of the basic CSMA technique are the collision detection (CSMA/CD)
and the collision avoidance (CSMA/ CA) techniques.
 Unlike that in a wired network, in a wireless network the CSMA/CD technique does not work
very well.
 In the CSMA/CD technique, the sender starts to transmit if it senses the channel to be free.
 But, even if it senses the channel to be free, there can be a collision (why?) during transmission.
 In a wired network, the implementation of a collision detection scheme is simple.
 However, in a wireless network it is very difficult for a transmitting node to detect a collision,
since any received signal from other nodes would be too feeble compared to its own signal and
can easily be masked by noise.
 As a result, a transmitting node would continue to transmit the frame, and only the destination
node would notice the corrupted frame after it computes the checksum.
 This leads to retransmissions and severe wastage of channel utilization.
  In contrast, in a wired network when a node detects a collision, it immediately stops
transmitting, thereby minimizing channel wastage.
 In a wireless network, a collision avoidance scheme works much better compared to a collision
detection-based scheme.
 A collision avoidance scheme is based on the idea that it is necessary to prevent collisions at
the moment they are most likely to occur, that is, when the bus is released after a packet
transmission.
 Reason:

 During the time a node is transmitting on the channel, several nodes might be wanting
to transmit.
 These nodes would be monitoring the channel and waiting for it to become free.
 The moment the transmitting node completes its transmission, these waiting nodes
would sense the channel to be free, and would all start transmitting at the same time.
 To overcome such collisions, in the collision avoidance scheme, all nodes are forced to
wait for a random time and then sense the medium again, before starting their
transmission.
 If the medium is sensed to be busy, a node waiting to transmit waits for a further random
amount of time and so on.
 Thus, the chance of two nodes starting to transmit at the same time would be greatly
reduced.

RESERVATION BASED SCHEMES

 A basic form of the reservation scheme is the RTS/CTS scheme.

 In an RTS/CTS scheme, a sender transmits an RTS (Ready to Send) packet to the receiver
before the actual data transmission.
 On receiving this, the receiver sends a CTS (Clear to Send) packet, and the actual data transfer
commences only after that.
 When the other nodes sharing the medium sense the CTS packet, they refrain from transmitting
until the transmission from the sending node is complete.
 In a contention-based MAC protocol, a node wanting to send a message first reserves the
medium by using an appropriate control message.
 For example, reservation of the medium can be achieved by transmitting a “Ready To Send”
(RTS) message and the corresponding destination node accepting this request answers with a
“Clear To Send” (CTS) message.
 Every node that hears the RTS and CTS messages defers its transmission during the specified
time period in order to avoid a collision.
 A few examples of RTS-CTS based MAC protocols are MACA, MACAW, MACA-BI,
PAMAS, DBTMA, MARCH, S-MAC protocols which have specifically been designed for
sensor networks.

MACA:
 MACA stands for Multiple Access Collision Avoidance.
 MACA solves the hidden/exposed terminal problems by regulating the transmitter power.
 A node running MACA requests to use the medium by sending an RTS to the receiver.
 Since radio signals propagate omni-directionally, every terminal within the sender’s radio range
will hear this and then refrain from transmitting.
 As soon as the receiver is ready to receive data, it responds with a CTS.

Hidden terminal solution in MACA

 The above figure schematically shows how MACA avoids the hidden terminal problem.
 Before the start of its transmission, it sends a Request To Send (RTS).
 B receives the RTS that contains the sender’s name and the receiver’s name, as well as the
length of the future transmission.
 In response to the RTS, an acknowledgment from B is triggered indicating Clear To Send
(CTS).
 The CTS contains the names of the sender and receiver, and the length of the planned
transmission.
 This CTS is heard by C and the medium is reserved for use by A for the duration of the
transmission.
 On receipt of a CTS from B, C refrains from transmitting anything for the time indicated in the
CTS.
 Thus a collision cannot occur at B during data transmission, and the hidden terminal problem
is solved.
 Though this is a collision avoidance protocol, a collision can occur during the sending of an
RTS.
 Both A and C could send an RTS at same time.
 But an RTS occurs over a very small duration compared to the duration of data transmission.
 Thus the probability of collision remains much less.
 B resolves this contention problem by acknowledging only one station in the CTS.
 No transmission occurs without an appropriate CTS.

Exposed terminal solution in MACA

  The above figure schematically shows how the exposed terminal problem is solved in MACA.
 Assume that B needs to transmit to A.
 B has to transmit an RTS first as shown in figure.
 The RTS would contain the names of the receiver (A) and the sender (B).
 C does not act in response to this message as it is not the receiver, but A responds with a CTS.
 C does not receive this CTS and concludes that A is outside the detection range.
 Thus C can start its transmission assuming that no collision would occur at A.

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS:

1. What is mobile computing? What are the other names of mobile computing?
2. Write down the applications of mobile computing?
3. What are the types of wireless networking?
4. Distinguish between mobile computing and wireless networking.
5. Distinguish between infrastructure-based networks and infrastructure-less networks with
the help of suitable schematic diagrams.
6. Differentiate piconets and scatternets.
7. What is MANET?
8. What are the characteristics of mobile computing?
9. Explain the architecture of Mobile computing.
10. What is the role of a MAC protocol? At which ISO/OSI layer does it operate?
11. What are the objectives of MAC protocol?
12. List down the properties of MAC protocol.
13. What is a hidden terminal? What problem does it create during wireless communications?
14. When does the exposed terminal problem arise?
15. What are the principal responsibilities of the MAC protocols? How do MAC protocols for
wireless networks differ from those in wired networks?
16. What are the broad categories of MAC protocols?
17. Explain fixed assignment schemes in detail with neat diagram.
18. Explain random assignment schemes in detail.
19. What is m-bit pseudo noise code sequence?
20. Expand RTS and CTS. List the contents available in RTS and CTS.
21. Why are collision-detection based protocols not suitable for wireless networks?
22. What is MACA protocol? In which environment is it suitable? Briefly explain its working.
How does MACA protocol solve the hidden/ exposed terminal problems?