EULER – Technology

Technology – Key issues

Technical issues addressed in Euler project include:

  • New high-data-rate waveform for emergency and security operations,
  • Proof-of-concept waveform implementation and portability on several software defined radio platforms,
  • Security features implementation, and
  • Integrated demonstrator targeted towards end-users.

In parallel with the technical issues Euler aims to Increase the general awareness of the SDR technologies in the service of public safety as well as inclusion of public safety critical features in future relevant technology standards.

Euler Waveform

TEWF High-speed data waveform principles:

  • Identify Wimax (802.16) suitable subset targeting both wireless infrastructure and terminals
  • Reuse state of the art radio techniques (notably PHY layer)
  • Implement IP network functionality on top of waveform
  • Good reception quality in multi-path environment (e.g urban environment)
  • Revisit Wimax Security (security threats analysis)
  • Support for dynamic coexistence (w.r.t spectrum) of networks,
  • Impact of operation in PMR relevant frequency bands
  • Investigation of Satcom waveform for crisis management in SDR
    • Complementary to land-waveform
    • Dynamic Bandwidth and Cognitive Radio aspects by automatic flexible bandwidth allocation using scalable networks features

EFW will be developed in collaborative manner in Euler. Partners will involve in either co-developing some layer, or providing separately some layers.

Euler, Waveform security

The platform hardware and software for each SDR node needs to implement the necessary security capabilities; it is possible to take adaptations from the SCA Specification. The complete platform security implementation is out of Euler objectives, which aims at demonstrating a secure WiMAX WF portability between some pre-selected international platforms rather than implementing security within a SDR platform. However, it is worth mentioning the main assets needed to implement a secure SDR set, many of them introduced by SCA Security Annex, taking into account that some of them are inherently covered by the Platforms provided in Euler:

  • HW, which includes the implementation of an isolated and distributed architecture with different boundaries.
  • Operating Environment, includes a secure Operating System, Drivers, Middleware and Core Framework.
  • System Applications, integral to the function of the radio or able to service multiple waveforms.

A secure high-data-rate WF, which follows the WiMAX 802.16 Standard, will be implemented in Euler to fulfill some of the requirements identified by Public Services for their communications. The WiMAX standard was selected since it provides several strong mechanisms to resolve these issues, and some additional ones, through two main protocols:

  • Key management protocol, known as Privacy Key Management Protocol (PKM), is included to provide secure management and distribution of keying material. PKM is also used to enforce conditional access to network services, providing mutual authentication between nodes and protecting the network from theft of service, and making available a secure key exchange.
  • Encapsulation protocol ensures confidentiality and integrity of the packets transmitted across the network. Working in close relation with the PKM protocol, this protocol employs a set of supported cryptographic suites, i.e., pairings of data encryption and authentication algorithms, and other associated data, as keys, IVs and lifetimes.

Legacy public safety systems feature a number of security mechanisms including end-to-end encryption removing of any need of trust to existing infrastructure; these systems include both standard algorithms available or national solutions. Furthermore, there are local Key Management Centres with a suite of COMSEC methods which may have National policy.

The Euler security sublayer implementation aims to offer a commensurate suite of security mechanisms and corresponding key management infrastructures which either corresponds or exceeds the minimum level of security which is expected by the end user.

Euler SDR Platforms

Among the topics required by the EC to be addressed in the Euler project, the high data rate waveform (HDR WF) development requires a specific effort; we refer to a radio processing able to transport data at the rate in the range of 1-100Mbit/s. Even if the channel bandwidth extension depends on the use of spectrally efficient technologies (source coding), this one can spread up to the limit of some 20 MHz specified on IEEE 802.16 standard. The Euler WF Architecture results from the decomposition of a wireless protocol waveform obtained from a customized subset of WiMAX profile in turn defined according to the operational, functional and performance requirements output from the system analysis.

Time performances of SW processes running interacting with a Real Time Operative System can be predicted by means the RTOS performances in turn described by timelines among process’ threads (process’s components) and inter-process communications. Then a design for peak load can be made. All the above considerations are applicable to traditional real time digital signal processing systems.

Figure below represents the decomposition of a wireless protocol waveform obtained from a customized subset of WiMAX profile defined according to the operational, functional and performance requirements. It provides also an indicative Euler HDR WF architecture using the SCA based waveform definition; which benefits from:

  • Security aspects including the authentication process.
  • Link aspects including scheduling
  • Physical layer aspects.
  • O&M - Operations and Maintenance.
  • Backbone infrastructure.

SDR standardization is still a work in progress, especially in the scope of better supporting portability, specialized devices (DSPs and FPGAs), and also in the specification of general enough hardware abstraction layers. The aim to realize a high-data-rate portable waveform emphasizes these needs, because of the implied important use of the DSP and FPGAs specialized devices for performance reasons. Euler is partly a portability exercise on different SDR platforms:

  • Different SDR platform providers are Thales, Astrium and Spectrum
  • Transceiver facility V1 implementation (SDR-Forum)
  • Authentication,
  • Different execution environments are utilized: CORBA everywhere and MHAL

Demonstration setup

The Euler will provide a technology demonstration at the end of the project, directed both to end-users as well as technology experts. We present here the main issues of the anticipated demonstration.

The demonstration will utilize three different SDR platforms from three providers: SDR-4000 by Prismtech, IPBB by TCF and LC1000 with satellite connection by EADS-Astrium. The Euler wireless backbone networking waveform will be implemented to all these devices, thus highlighting the crucial waveform portability issue and at the same providing the wireless backbone for the demo. Moreover, satellite connection to off-site services will be demonstrated.

A Wimax COTS based network, as well as a standard Tetra network will be bridged to Euler backbone.