A new system makes home communication networks more versatile.
Researchers at Carlos III University of Madrid (UC3M) have developed a configuration that would improve the functioning of home communication networks and make them much more versatile, by facilitating and making more flexible the functions they perform.
Home communication networks are evolving so rapidly that some changes are needed to take advantage of emerging services and meet their bandwidth requirements. With this in mind, a group of researchers from UC3M has presented a new architectural proposal for a residential gateway (RGW), the device that connects a home communication network to an access network from any provider.
This work, recently published in the journal Computer Networks, is pioneering in its field, according to its authors. "Other research focuses on defining what functionalities a residential gateway should have, while we are dedicated to facilitating and making more flexible how to implement them," says one of its authors, Jaime García Reinoso, professor in the Department of Telematics Engineering at the Madrid university.
Households in constant evolution
: it's no longer unusual for homes to have two or more devices connected to the internet, and experts predict that within a few years, all home communications will be carried out using the IP protocol. In other words, telephony, radio, television, and any device that needs to communicate with another will be connected using the internet infrastructure.
"This requires a team that coordinates the rest to achieve the best possible performance and guarantee the necessary features so that users can enjoy excellent quality services, and the RGW that we propose in our article is designed for this purpose and at the same time frees users from cumbersome configurations, since it is designed to perform all its functions autonomously and efficiently," explains the professor.
If we think about an ADSL router, which is one of the most used devices in homes to access services such as Internet or IP television, with an RGW this router can be turned into a much "smarter" and more versatile device, in order to provide more and better services to its users, the researchers explain.
A RGW can be considered the central communications point of a home: all communications entering or leaving the home will pass through it, so events can be programmed according to the owners' preferences. "Let's think about a not-too-distant scenario," comments Professor García Reinoso. "A friend invites us over to watch a movie on his new high-definition television."
When we arrived at their house, we saw that, although the television was high-definition, their contract with their IPTV provider was only for standard definition television. Since we did have a high-definition television subscription, we entered our information and the RGW was automatically configured to receive the signal in the highest definition.
Today, the internet has several drawbacks, and one of the most significant is its lack of quality of service: all applications are distributed in the same way, which reduces the quality perceived by the end user. "For example," the researchers explain, "when we make a voice call or video conference over IP and simultaneously have a file download running, the quality is very poor in some cases."
Several organizations are working on what are called Next Generation Networks, or NGNs. These NGNs focus on quality of service to provide users with the best possible experience. All of this can be leveraged by smart homes, which we will call next-generation smart homes, as it opens up a new range of possibilities for service providers.
Today, the internet has several drawbacks, and one of the most significant is its lack of quality of service: all applications are distributed in the same way, which reduces the quality perceived by the end user. "For example," the researchers explain, "when we make a voice call or video conference over IP and simultaneously have a file download running, the quality is very poor in some cases."
New NGN Networks:
Several technology organizations are working on what are called Next Generation Networks, or NGNs. These NGNs focus on quality of service to provide users with the best possible experience. All of this can be leveraged by smart homes, which we will call next-generation, as it opens up a new range of possibilities for service providers.
Another example. We're at home watching IPTV when we hear a strange noise at the door. We dial the emergency number 112 on our IP phone. With a standard home router, this call wouldn't be possible because the TV would be overloading the downstream bandwidth. However, since the RGW has a module that detects emergency calls, it automatically reduces the TV signal quality to allow the emergency call to go through.
"None of this would be possible with the equipment we currently have in our homes, and the most interesting thing is that any type of home today could benefit from these advances, simply by installing an RGW like the one we describe in our article, since they are designed to take advantage of the benefits that NGNs will bring."
This gateway consists of a physical device that the user could install in their own home, and the cost, in mass production, could range around 100-120 euros, according to these experts.
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More information:
Jaime García Reinoso, Iván Vidal, Fco. Valera and Arturo Azcorra, "Zero config residential gateway experiences for next generation smart homes", Computer Networks, 53 (18): 2967-2984 - December 24, 2009 ISSN: 1389-1286
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