Wireless Broadband gets on the move for seamless Wi-Fi connectivity

The Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) has initiated a programme that it believes will ensure reliability in Wi-Fi connectivity in moving scenarios such as on buses, trains, planes and ships.

WBA’s Wi-Fi experience for moving networks report demonstrates how the latest Wi-Fi standards can enhance commutes, travel and daily errands with reliable and secure Wi-Fi.

The global industry body dedicated to driving service experience of Wi-Fi across the global wireless ecosystem is also inviting members and industry stakeholders to join its moving network trials to either provide a testing environment or gain a competitive edge by applying the latest technology when deploying a moving network solution.

The report outlines unique challenges in dynamic Wi-Fi networks and describes use cases that demonstrate how current standards, although not specifically designed for moving networks, can be adapted to improve user experiences and operational efficiency.

It also looks to offer industry stakeholders significant benefits by helping them enhance passenger experience and service reliability, reducing operational costs and opening new revenue opportunities. The WBA insists high-quality Wi-Fi services can attract more customers, increase engagement and provide a competitive edge while standardised practices foster industry collaboration.

WBA added that deploying technologies such as its OpenRoaming solution can address many of the challenges experienced by users when joining and hopping between moving networks. OpenRoaming is designed to facilitate connectivity between various Wi-Fi and cellular networks via a creditential, ensuring automatic authentication.

The moving Wi-Fi project looking to tackle the technical and logistical challenges of moving networks is being led by WBA members GlobalReach and Viasat, and supported by CableLabs, Cityroam, General Motors and HPE Aruba Networks.

Key areas of investigation include dynamic environments, handover issues, security concerns, service continuity and complex deployments. The first area will look to address inconsistent backhaul connectivity with advanced standards for seamless connections and combining multiple connectivity sources for enhanced stability.

Handover work will look at ensuring continuous service and preventing unnecessary network switching with intelligent network selection and enhanced roaming capabilities. The WBA will look to bolster network security through authentication methods such as WPA2/WPA3 Enterprise and per-user encryption to protect data in transient environments, as well as aim to maintain uninterrupted service with strategies such as local caching and authentication to ensure connectivity without backhaul access.

Complex deployments will be addressed through simplifying the installation and maintenance of network equipment on moving vehicles with modular components and remote management tools.

“The challenges of delivering reliable and secure Wi-Fi on moving networks are greater than fixed networks. This paper demonstrates how existing Wi-Fi standards can enhance these networks, engage more users and revolutionise the experience,” said Wireless Broadband Alliance CEO Tiago Rodrigues. “Our vision is to create a seamless and interoperable service experience of Wi-Fi across the wireless ecosystem, that spans both fixed and moving networks.”

Thomas Locke, chief technology officer at GlobalReach, added: “With the market adoption of technologies like Passpoint, users are now increasingly connecting seamlessly and securely onto shared public Wi-Fi networks. This can be challenging for non-fixed networks which are commonly found in Aviation and Maritime.

“This report outlines the unique challenges for dynamic Wi-Fi networks and demonstrates how current Wi-Fi standards can be adapted to improve the user experience and increase operational efficiency.”