The IEEE 802.11 Handbook: A Designer's Companion

The IEEE 802.11 Handbook: A Designer's Companion familiarizes system network architects, hardware engineers and software engineers with the basic concepts, terminology and key specifications of the IEEE 802.11 standard--serving as an indispensable primer.

This book takes the reader from a basic understanding of WLANs through the details of the PHY and MAC layer of the standard. The authors articulate a clear picture of the standard to both first-time and experienced designers of wireless products. So if you're a new market entrant or an existing original equipment manufacturer (OEM) of proprietary WLAN solutions and you're developing IEEE 802.11 based products for the RF or Infrared WLAN market, this book is for you.

In this book, you will:

* Acquire a solid working definition of a wireless LAN
* Discover the evolution of the 802.11 standard
* Learn the various market segment applications, ranging from manufacturing to enterprise wireless communication

What's more, A Designer's Companion, covers in detail:

* General network topologies of an ad-hoc and distributed network for an IEEE 802.11 wireless medium
* Key specifications and attributes of the five physical layers specified in the standard
- direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) physical layer
- frequency-hopping spread spectrum (FHSS) physical layer
- high rate direct sequence spread spectrum (HRDSSS) physical layer
- orthogonal frequency division multiplexed (OFDM) physical layer
- infrared (IR) physical layer
* Basics of the protocol relative to the ad-hoc and distributed network configuration, including the MAC layer-the most difficult entity in the standard

In addition, the book outlines the world regulatory bodies requiring certification for operating IEEE 802.11 conformant products in the 2.4 GHz ISM and 5 GHz UNII frequency bands.