A MIH Based Architecture for WiMAX and TD-SCDMA Interworking

One motivation of wireless technology is the ubiquitous wireless access abilities, which provide the automatic handovers for any moving devices at any place and any time in the heterogeneous networks combining different access technologies. TD-SCDMA is a very advanced 3G standard with global coverage, but bandwidth is its weakness. WiMAX offers higher bandwidth with low operational costs but its maximum mobility is at about 120 km/h. A WiMAX & TD-SCDMA interworking approach can make best use of advantages of both technologies and can eliminate their stand-alone defects. In this paper, we present a possible interworking architecture for WiMAX and TD-SCDMA based on the WiMAX Forum and 3GPP standards. Handover is an essential part of interworking .The proposed handover scheme is based on IEEE 802.21 media independent handover functions (MIHFs) and the key component to support mobility management is Mobile IP.