GenesisX has extended the results of a previous Celtic project called Genesis which had delivered a platform for the generation and deployment of advanced VoIP services. The target of the extension project GenesisX was to enable mobile multimedia services over broadband wireless access networks through an interconnected NGN infrastructure.
The partners developed a WiMAX network infrastructure and Web-integrated multimedia services on top of it. IMS was selected as the framework for the delivery of the services.
Wireless broadband
Mobile multimedia services require a wireless infrastructure able to provide broadband and location information. The WiMAX technology fulfils such requirements. The evolution of WiMAX equipment focused on an efficient way to use the available bandwidth. This technology offers QoS profiles like eRT that enable the network operators to get the maximum of their spectrum (see figure 1). This QoS profile allocates zero bandwidth when there’s no media transmitted and ensures the required quality when the media is transmitted.
WiMAX mobile phones and WiMAX enabled tablets from several vendors successfully passed interoperability tests. This mature 4G technology looks therefore suitable for VoIP services, video streaming, IPTV, gaming and other bandwidth-hungry applications.
Figure 1: WIMAX QoS management
Figure 2: Web-integrated service GUI
Push2Video service
This service is a web-integrated videoconference system which includes a video-box. Users can send video messages which can be played on-the-fly if the caller is logged in and not involved in any other conversation. Otherwise, the video is diverted to the video-box. The media flow is sent just by one of the users and is received by the others at the same time. Users have a video-box where the videos of every conversation are stored chronologically and can be re-played at any time.
IMS integration
Three IMS cores from different vendors were used, and several roaming scenarios were achieved.
Additional work with IMS provided further output in terms of services like a mobile IMS-integrated CRM application and also in terms
of infrastructure like PicoCell supporting IMS services in regular GSM handsets.
The IMS infrastructure and services were monitored developing a tool based on fuzzy logic and intelligent probes.
Field testing
The GenesisX platform was deployed and validated with real users located in rural areas of the Aragon region, Spain, with satisfying results that encourage the partners to evolve the system.
Outlook
The future evolution of the platform should include in the network infrastructure evolved WiMAX equipment based on the recently released IEEE 802.16m standard that will offer average downlink speeds over 100Mbps to mobile users.
The Push2Video service could be an interesting complement to future social networks.
Conclusions
The optimized management of QoS at the WiMAX equipment and its mobile broadband capabilities make it especially suitable for Next Generation Services of which Push2Video is an excellent example of Web-Telco convergence.
Further information is available at
http://kristal-priv.ita.es/genesisX