The widespread availability of low-cost personal computers has enhanced the desire to relay tremendous volumes of information between parties in communication over networks such as the Internet. A similar demand exists for wireless communication technology such as voice-based cellular telephones due to the convenience afforded by mobile flexibility. It is not surprising, therefore, that there exists increasing demand for combined technology supporting high speed data transfers between interconnected computers over wireless communication links.
One fairly low-cost solution supporting wireless communication is to connect a computer to a modem and cellular phone to create a connection with an Internet service provider, thus, forming a wireless link between a client computer and a network such as the Internet. Unfortunately, this type of link has several drawbacks. In particular, such a link is often painstakingly slow due to the inefficiencies of combining the two technologies.
Part of the inefficiencies in mating wireless and network communications is due to their inherent architectures. For example, the protocols used for connecting computers over hardwired links do not easily lend themselves to efficient transmission over standard wireless links, which have been designed for voice grade communications requiring continuous but relatively slow data transfer rates.
Cellular networks were originally designed to provide voice grade communications, which typically require only a 3 Kilohertz bandwidth. Based on these techniques, the low frequency channels employed for voice communication are generally limited to a digital baud rate of 9.6 kilobits per second (kbps), which is slow compared to transfer rates such as 56.6 kbps that are now commonly available in inexpensive wire-line modems. Notably, the reception of a sophisticated web page at a client computer based on wireless voice grade channels is slow compared to the speed of a tethered modem connection to a hardwired telephone link. In short, it is similarly difficult to receive, or transfer for that matter, any large files over standard voice based telephone systems.
Based on the increased desire to communicate with networks in the wireless sense, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) has developed a standard for Wireless Local Areas Networks (WLANS) known as 802.11. This standard focuses on resolving compatibility issues between manufacturers of WLAN equipment. In short, it supports a single hub topology that provides wireless links to a plurality of users, connecting each of them to a network link such as 802.3 otherwise known as Ethernet. Based on this architecture, a plurality of computers are able to communicate with a network over a wireless link eventually coupled to a hardwired link. Unfortunately, the range of this wireless link with respect to the stationary hardwired link and hub is limited in range of up to 500 meters. Moreover, the standard is further restrictive because hub is typically in communication with a network over a tethered Ethernet link. On a positive note, however, the standard provides high speed data transfers over a plurality of short-range wireless communication links.
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