Welcomes You all to the….
Software Defined Radio
Prospects and Strategies for Development
By
Rajan T Joseph
ED,C-DAC,Trivandrum
25th April 2005
Elitex – 2005 New Delhi
Agenda
Introduction
 SDR Technology
 Frame work of R&D
 Discussions

C-DAC – Centre for Development of Advanced Computing
• A merged entity of the 4 Societies under DIT indicated below
• Spread out at 10 locations with 14 Labs and about 2000 work
force
• Expertise and Infrastructure to take up multidiscipline,
complex projects and system
C-DAC –
Pune, Bangalore, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata
(Centre for Development of Advanced Computing)
ER&DCI –
Thiruvananthapuram, Noida, Kolkata
(Electronics Research & Development Centre, India)
NCST –
Mumbai, Bangalore, Navi Mumbai
(National Centre for Software Technology)
CEDTI -
Mohali
(Centre for Electronics Design and Technology, India)
C-DAC, Trivandrum
 Established by Govt. of Kerala in 1974 as an
autonomous Scientific Society to promote R&D in
Electronics
 Taken over by Govt. of India in 1988 and made an
autonomous Scientific Society under Dept. of
Electronics
 Merged with ER&DC India, a national level
Scientific Society in December 1994
 Merged with CDAC in 2002
 Staff Strength over 500
Areas of research
 Control & Instrumentation
 Power Electronics
 Underwater Electronics
 ASIC Design
 Networking
 E-Governance
 Broadcast & Communications
Broadcast and Communications
Executing projects in advanced area of Broadcast and
Communications with expertise in
 Protocol Stack
 Analog and Mixed Signal Design
 Communication algorithms
 RF Trans-Receivers
 Embedded systems
 Real-time systems
 Device Drivers, GUI & Data Base
Major Projects

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TETRA Hand Held
TETRA Base Station
TETRA Protocol Stacks
CDART 1-Advanced Hand Portable
IP Telephone
Watermarking Digital Audio
Lawful Interception of VoIP Traffic
IP Telephone
C-DAC SDR Related Projects/ Achievements
•A DIT study project on SDR completed in 2004
-Opportunity to study the complex SDR technology in
brief,understand the need for SDR and,generate a
Vision in the forward path for SDR Projects
-Study report available in DIT web site
•Development of the TETRA Base Station based on
semi-SDR architecture
•Meetings with different R&D Organizations on SDR
activities
•SDR-FORUM membership
SDR FORUM
SDR Forum is an open - non profit
corporation dedicated to supporting the
development, deployment and use of open
architecture for advanced wireless system.
 Initially known as MMITS
 More than 60 member companies
 C-DAC is a member of SDR Forum

SDR Defined
The term SDR is used to describe radios that provide software
control of a variety of modulation techniques, wideband or
narrowband operation, communication security functions and
waveform requirements of current and evolving standards over
a broad frequency range.
Not a single technological breakthrough – rather a collection of
implementation technologies that enable configurability.
Scope
The Mobile communication is strangled by a multitude of standards
with wide diversity in:
 Bandwidth
 Modulation methods
 Error protections
 Protocols
 TDMA/FDMA schemes……
Every new standard boasts unification, but this never happens.
The Civil, Government and Military scenarios have different needs.
System architects and users are equally baffled by this process.
Large revenue is wasted to maintain rusty junks of hardware.
World over, the search for intelligent radios is on.
Multiband, Multimode capability will pave way to future-proof radios.
The Software Defined Radio is destined to take over.
Conventional Radio Analog
RX SYNTH
F
F
Duplexer
I
F
Q
I
F
Q
TX SYNTH
ADC
ADC
DAC
DAC
TO
DSP
Information
input
Direct Conversion
Architecture
I
Q
Wideband
DAC
I
Wideband
ADC
Q
Information
output
Wideband
DAC
Quadrature
upconverter
Quadrature
downconverter
Wideband
ADC
AGC
RF Power
amplifier
RF
low-noise
amplifier
Multiband
antenna
Information
input
IF Based Architecture
Multiband
antenna
I
Q
I
Information
output
Q
Digital
I-F
upconverter
Wideband
DAC
Digital
I-F
downconverter
Wideband
ADC
I-F
I-F
AGC
RF
upconverter
RF Power
amplifier
RF
downconverter
RF
low-noise
amplifier
Benefits
•
•
•
•
•
•
A single Hardware for Multimode, multiband and
multifunctional Wireless Systems
Software Upgrade for add on functionalities
Customization of a single generic hardware for
diverse needs
Higher levels of software reusability
Lower costs to meet new user demands
Lower time to market new terminals
FEATURES OF SDR


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SDR provides solutions for the legacy system as well as emerging
wireless technologies spanning over 2G, 3G and beyond. Radios built
using SDR concepts offer:
Standard architecture for a wide range of communications products
Non-restrictive wireless roaming for consumers by extending the
capabilities of current and emerging commercial air-interface
standards
Uniform communication across commercial, civil, federal and
military organizations
Potential for significant life-cycle cost reductions
Over the air downloads of new features and services as well as
software patches
Advanced networking capabilities to allow truly "portable" networks
SDR APPLICATION in WIRELESS SYSTEMS
Network flexibility and
spectrum utilization
enhanced using SDR
Software downloads for
SDR product and service
upgrades, enhancements
SDR exploited to enable
fewer, more flexible
product platforms
4G
3G
2G
1G
1980
1990
2000
2010
2020
ADVANTAGES OF SDR
SDR provides the following advantages to the stakeholders:
For subscribers – easier international roaming, improved and more
flexible services increased personalization and choice.
For network operators – the potential to rapidly develop and
introduce new, personalized and customized services, tools for
increased customer retention, new added-value services and revenue
streams, reduced costs of network evolution and enhancement,
increased flexibility of spectrum management and usage.
For handset and base station manufacturers – the promise of new
economies of scale, increased production flexibility and improved,
and more rapid, product evolution.
For regulators – the prospect of increased spectrum efficiency, better
use of a scarce resource.
SDR EVOLUTION
In the final decade of twentieth century, SDR made
an incredibly rapid transition, within perhaps just 5
years, from an obscure military and academic
concept to a commercial credibility in the mobile
communication market.

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



1970
1980
1990
2000
2005
2010
-
MULTIMODE VHF RADIO
TACTICAL ANTI JAM RADIOS WITH E WAVEFORM MODULES
MULTIBAND, MULTIMODE - SPEAKeasy
RE-CONFIGURABLE RADIO PLATFORMS
MULTI-MODE BASE STATIONS
SDR BASED USER TERMINALS
Network
Base Station
European
Vision of
Re-congurable
Radio Systems
& Networks
Terminal
Broadband Multimedia
Initial Concept
Of Software
Radio
Voice, Low- Data Rate
Military
Commercial
Enabling Technologies
 ADC – the single most demanding performance
 DAC similar to ADC requirements
 DDC / DUC – (Digital down/up converters) programmable embedded DSP
functionalities with NCO for RSP/TSP with frequency hopping capability
 FPGAs/ASICs : Embedded DSP functionalities
 DSP : meet computational overheads of base band processing
 Host Processor : Application Programs, Protocol stacks, system controls
 Operating System
 Broadband RF Front End
Direct Conversion / IF digitization, high dynamic range Receiver,
Linearized Upconverters and Transmitters
SDR – the status quo
•
SDR technology has some drawbacks like higher power
•
The extent of SDR progress will be decided largely by RF
•
Higher communication rates are accelerating higher
processing requirements on DSP.
•
SDR “solutions” are currently available for cellular and PCS
base stations as well as fixed station military applications.
•
Technology not yet ripe for hand-sets.
•
SDR has already been adopted by many infrastructure
manufacturers as their core platform
consumption, higher processing power (MIPS) requirement,
increased complexity of software and higher initial costs
technology
SDR Standards

Software Communications Architecture
specifications (SCAS) from United States
Joint Tactical Radio System
 Distributed Object Computing Software
Radio Architecture (DOCSRA) from
SDR Forum’s Mobile Working Group
Areas of Skill required
Radio systems
Antennas
RF Design
Modulation
Demodulation
Error control coding
A to D conversion(HF)
D to A conversion(HF)
DSP Algorithms
FPGA /ASIC Design
OS development
Network Control and
Management S/W
Communication protocols
Multiple Access Techniques
Application software
Secure Software Download
Major Activities & Challenges
Parallel development of H/W and S/W
 Extensive simulations of RF and DSP
 The Antenna/RF subsystem (AIU)
 The digital IF modem: ASIC, FPGA, DSP
 Application program development
 OS development
 Protocol stacks – various standards
 Secure Software Download mechanisms

Reconfigurable Wireless SubSystems
Antenna
 Radio Transceiver
 Base band Processing
 Applications and services, e.g., to
ensure a committed QoS

Reconfigurable Systems
Key Objectives and General Requirements
Adaptation of the radio interface to
varying deployment environment and air
interface standards
 Provision of new applications and
services
 Software updates
 Enabling full exploitation of flexible
heterogeneous radio network services.

Requirements – three distinct
groups
Radio Configuration Control
 Creation and provision of services to
reconfigurable terminals (over
converging networks and various Air
Interface)
 User profile, terminal, access network
and location management

SDR DEVELOPMENT
TASKS DIVISION
APPLICATIONS-20%
SOFTWARE-55%
HARDWARE-25%
Broadcast and Communications
Executing projects in advanced area of Broadcast and
Communications with expertise in
 Protocol Stack
 Analog and Mixed Signal Design
 Communication algorithms
 RF Trans-Receivers
 Embedded systems
 Real-time systems
 Device Drivers, GUI & Data Base
Research Areas









Generic Reconfigurable Architecture
with distributed Intelligence
Network Reconfiguration Management
Adaptive Protocols
Adaptive Base band
Object Oriented Hardware Reconfiguration
Radio Resource Management, RRM & JRRM
Mode Identification & Monitoring Methods
Reconfigurable RF subsystems
User Requirements - Statistical Study
Need for SDR technology development
• High IPR content
• Need for indigenous base on strategic reasons
• The technology of tomorrow’s Wireless
• Military and Commercial interest
• Success of 3G and beyond depends
heavily on SDR
Participating Organisation

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DEAL
LRDE
CDoT
CRL
IISc
CEWIT
SAMEER
IIT
C-DAC
-
HARDWARE
ENCRYPTION
SOFTWARE/HARDWARE
ANTENNA
SPEECH CODES
PROTOCOL/ALGORITHM
EMI/EMC/ANTENNA
PROTOCOL/ALGORITHM
HARDWARE/SOFTWARE
CDAC in Retrospect
They stand us in good stead
• Embedded Hardware
• Digital Signal Processing
• Operating Systems
• Protocol Stacks
• TETRA Digital Mobile Radio
• TETRA Base Station
SDR-Technology Development Path
Special Customer
Needs
SDR User inputs
Lab n
SDR-TDP
Lab3
SDR-TDP
Lab 2
SDR-TDP
SDR
Technology
Development
Platforms
Lab 1
Outputs to Industry
SDR Products
/Application
Reference
Platforms
SDR-TDP
2005
2007
2010
National Mission Project on SDR Technology Development
SDR Mission Project- Steering Group
Project Co-Ordination Group - DIT
MoD
DEAL
DRDO
MCIT
Service Providers
C-DAC C-DoT
GSM
BEL
MHRD
CDMA
Sameer CEWT
Technology
Products
IPRs
Papers
Knowledge Base
Awareness
User/Application/Industry
Presentation/Training
IITs
IISc
The VISION
Foster future-proof wireless technology and bring it to the
forefront of competing standards, with scalability to cater to the
diverse communication needs of the nation.
The MISSION
Through a convergence of research talents among
various organizations, develop indigenous SDR
technology with hardware, firmware and software
solutions necessary to materialize the vision,
generate intellectual property rights and pave the way
for a renewed wireless industry activity capable of
global presence, through transfer of manufacturing
technology of scalable SDR products by 2010.
SDR ….Important REFERENCES
1. Software Defined Radio:Origins,Drivers and International Perspectives
By Tuttlebee
2. Software Defined Radio:Enabling Technologies
By Tuttlebee
3. Software Defined Radio- Selected Readings
By Mitola and Zvonar
4. SDR study Report
By C-DAC (www.mit.gov.in)
5. SDR Forum web site www.sdrforum.org
Thanks a lot…