Title: Cognitive Radio Research at the Communications Research Centre

Speaker: John Sydor, Manager, Broad Band Wireless Group, Communications
Research Centre (CRC)

Time/Venue: 10 am, Thu. 17 Sep. 2009 Kaiser (2332 Main Mall) Room 1110

Abstract:
CRC is embarking on a cognitive radio investigation program which has as
its objective new types of spectrum usage models that are somewhat
different from the classical approach to spectrum management where
licensees are granted access to spectrum for their sole use. In these
new models radio spectrum is considered to be a shared resource in which
interference is monitored and controlled and spectrum efficiency and
reuse is encouraged. How this is done is a matter of investigation, but
could entail the use of collaborative radios sharing common radio
emission data bases, it could be also a series of radio etiquettes
embedded in equipment standards, or it may be supported by the use of a
common temporal signaling channel over which a variety of radios share
specific information regarding spectrum occupancy. The anticipated
systems will likely incorporate MIMO as well as classical antenna
beamforming..

In the presentation John Sydor will discuss the approach the Research
Broad Band Wireless laboratory at CRC is taking in support of cognitive
radio. The program has a mix of academic investigation and practical
implementation through the use of demonstration experiments. We are
developing a Cognitive Radio, called the WIFI_CR, that will be made
available to researchers and entrepreneurs and we will work on
developing a forum within which ideas and proposals on Cognitive Radio
can be shared and investigated. Having a cognitive radio that is
reconfigurable and reprogrammable, as embodied in the WIFI_CR, will
provide investigators with hardware that will allow ideas and simulation
results to be implemented as testable radio systems. Since CRC’s R&D
window is usually tailored to implementation periods that are 2-5 years
in the future, our focus on the work at hand is to consider techniques
and technology that can have an impact within that time frame. Standards
development and regulations policy factor highly into our work.
Consequently, WIFI_CR is meant to be a development tool giving
researchers and developers a near-term means by which to implement the
algorithms and MAC/PHY layer techniques that will be important to
cognitive radio.

A number of experiments are planned over the next year and these will be
discussed, as will some of the theoretical work on cognitive radio that
provides the background to the work we are embarking upon.

Biography of Speaker:

John Sydor is the Research Manager of the Research Broad Band Wireless
Group at the Communications Research Centre (CRC) in Ottawa. Under his
guidance the group has developed a number of novel satellite and
terrestrial communications technologies for commercial and government
applications. He has published over 30 papers and holds 7 patents
related to wireless devices and systems. Some of the patents and
Intellectual Property were formative to the establishment of a number of
wireless companies in Canada and all through his career he has worked
closely with Canadian industry in the development and transfer of
wireless technology. He has acted as a consultant on regulatory matters
in Canada and at the ITU, principally on issues related to ISM band
regulations, and has participated in the writing of the IEEE 802.16/16h
standards for local and metropolitan area wireless networks. Currently
his group is involved with the development of Cognitive Radio and MIMO
systems for cellular and rural wireless applications. This work extends
to a number research collaborations with agencies and universities, both
nationally and internationally, and involves wireless companies and
service providers in Canada. He has a B.Ap.Sc from the University of
British Columbia and has undertaken graduate engineering studies at the
Carleton University and the University of Ottawa, with a focus on
electromagnetics, antennas, and packet radio protocols.