To reduce the bandwidth needed for data transmission in an ad-hoc communication network, such as an Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) inter-vehicle communication network, a broadcast scheme is proposed where the data to be transmitted is arranged into several classes. Each class contains more specific and detailed information. Since information to be transmitted often has a geographical relevance, the classes can be structured to represent this relationship. As data is routed through the ad-hoc network, the total amount of transmitted data is reduced by removing the data contained in one class on each hop. The class structure is adaptive so that in unforeseen situations the relative importance of transmitted data can be dynamically adjusted. Furthermore different manufacturers can implement different classes structures, and total length of data may be different. By computer simulation it was shown that in the proposed system the required bandwidth for transmission to achieve similar data reception rates to conventional non-structured data schemes can be reduced to less than one third, resulting in a more efficient transmission scheme. In addition a packet structure similar to IP packets is proposed which will enable easily integration of multimedia transmissions into vehicle to vehicle communications.

To promote the commercial implementation of software download for software defined radio (SDR) terminals, a secure method of download is vital. This paper examines the needs of software download for SDR, and proposes a comprehensive system framework within which secure download can be carried out. The features of the proposed system include unique individual encryption to each terminal and secure exchangeability of any cryptographic components. The main goals of the security system are the following: (i) verification of the identity of the source of the software; (ii) control and verification of the integrity of the downloaded data; (iii) disabling of the ability to run unauthorized software on the software defined terminal; (iv) secrecy of the transmitted data. The proposed system is flexible and in harmony with current requirements regarding the SDR security issues.

In inter-vehicle communication (IVC) expectation for spread spectrum techniques is high. However, in a decentralized network environment, power control is difficult and until now perfect power control has been assumed. In this paper the use of sector antennas are proposed as a solution to the problems of power control in inter-vehicle communication. Results are shown for an IVC protocol in both no power control and imperfect power control environments in a realistic fading channel. Omni-directional, uniform sector antennas and non-uniform sector antennas are examined by computer simulation. Non-uniform sector antennas are shown to be the best solution and to have high packet reception rates even for no power control environments.

Inter-vehicle communication has aroused much interest because of its goal of reducing traffic accidents. In a non-platooning situation, where vehicles travel freely, multiple hop (MH) inter-vehicle communication has not yet been examined. In this paper a simple MH broadcast protocol is proposed, and shown to be effective. The effect of several parameters important to a MH network, such as maximum number of hops and data rate, are investigated. Multiple hop is shown to be superior to the conventional single hop (SH) system using non-platoon inter-vehicle communication.

This paper discusses a design methodology suitable for the development of software defined radio platforms. A flexible digital receiver was designed and implemented using a multi-port direct converter and an FPGA-based platform. The design starts with a hardware-oriented top-level system model. The model is built based on basic signal processing blocks connected together in a graphical tool. Carrier symbol timing recovery is implemented in the discrete-time (digital) domain with an interpolator-based synchronizer. Carrier phase and frequency are recovered using a feedback synchronization algorithm (a second-order type-II digital PLL). Experimental results of the platform and its simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed design methodology.