1Historical Sketch of Wireless Communications

The reason why humans have become the most advanced species is that they produce information, store it on paper or in electronic devices, and exchange it among them. Especially, the exchange and diffusion of information has changed people’s lifestyle significantly. For example, let’s assume a traveler is visiting a place. Before cellular phones were in use, the traveler had to plan his visit carefully. He should book the hotel and flight and collect the information about the location manually beforehand. To locate the hotel or attraction points, he should make use of a map. Some people find this difficult as they may be disorientated. After cellular phones have come into use, a traveler can book a hotel and flight on the website using his smart phone. Once he reaches the place, the phone can guide him to the attraction points and provide useful information such as about a nice restaurant or a nearby bargain sale shop. In addition, he can make use of his phone to check email or stock price anytime and at anyplace. This drastic change in lifestyle is due to high-speed wireless communication. In this chapter, we will trace back through successive stages of wireless communications development in technical and economical aspects.

1.1 Advancement of Wireless Communications Technologies

Smoke signals used by Indian tribes are considered to be the start of wireless communication systems. Transmitting and receiving, and sending a message ...

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