Using Cognitive Radio as Solution for Brazilian National Broadband Planning

Luciano Mendes, Ricardo Silva Jr, Joo Melo, Lucas Chaves, Marco Ferrero and Ricardo Dias
luciano@inatel.br, { augustosilva, joaopedro, chaves, marco.ferrero, radias}@gee.inatel.br

Instituto Nacional de Telecomunicaes - Inatel Av. Joao de Camargo, 510 Santa Rita do Sapuca, MG, Brazil - 37540-000
Abstract Brazilian Digital Television system is on transition from an analog service to a digital service. Commercial DTV transmission has started on December 2006 and the analog switch off (ASO) is expected to December 2016. In this mean while, each broadcaster in Brazil is allowed to occupy two UHF channels: one for the analog signal and other one for the digital signal. After the ASO, the analog channel will be returned to government and new services are expected to be offered. Also, Brazilian Government has launched the Brazilian National Broadband Planning, aiming to deploy broadband Internet access for any Brazilian citizen. The challenges to accomplish this objective are huge because of the economic aspects, the continental size of Brazil, the infrastructure available and the interest from both telecommunications companies and broadcasters. The aim of this paper is to present this complex scenario and propose the use of the IEEE 802.22 standard as an economic and technical solution to complete the National Broadband Planning in Brazil. Keywords - IEEE 802.22, Cognitive Radio, Spectrum Sensing, Brazilian National Broadband Planning. 1. INTRODUCTION Today, Brazil is living a digital transformation, where traditional analog services are being switched to its digital version. An important example was the television system that has became digital in 2007. The advent on an interactive digital television system, the price reduction of computers and the continuous growth of the computational capacities of mobile devices are pushing the demand for broadband Internet access. In response to this demand, the Brazilian Federal Government has launched the Brazilian National Broadband Planning (BNBP) [1], which aims to provide broadband Internet access for the entire country at a low cost until 2014. This goal is very audacious for a colossal country like Brazil, which lacks of telecommunications infrastructure in several regions, such as North, Central-west and Northeast regions [2]. The use of bber optics is a feasible solution to provide the backbone infrastructure [3]. Cellular mobile technologies, such as HSDPA [4], WiMAX [5] and LTE [5] can be used with wired solution, like ADSL [6] and DOCIS [7], to provide the last mile access in areas with high population density. However, Brazil has huge areas with very low population density, i.e. the Amazon region, where the technologies mentioned above are not economic feasible. The small area coverage (typical less than 20km) and the use of licensed frequencies are some of the key factors that restrict the use of conventional technologies to attend low populated areas. The use of cognitive radios and the opportunistic access of the spectrum seem to be a solution to achieve the objectives of the BNBP. The use of the vacant spectrum as a secondary service, allied with a coverage area of more than 50km makes the IEEE 802.22 standard [8] a feasible economic solution to provide broadband Internet access in these regions. Nevertheless, there are huge challenges in deploying this technology. The rst challenge is the fact that this technology is very immature and it has never been use in large scale anywhere in the word. Also, the TV broadcasters that are expanding the DTV coverage in whole country are very suspicious about the capacity of the base stations and the user's devices in sensing the presence of the TV signal and change the channel in a short period of time. The aim of this paper is to present a proposal to use the cognitive radio technology of the IEEE 802.22 standard as a solution to provide the broadband Internet access in Brazil. A simulation tool to analyze the performance of a spectrum sensing algorithm has been developed and will also be presented. This simulation tool can be used to test, evaluate and compare the efficiency of different algorithms that may be implemented in this platform. In order to achieve these objectives, this paper is organized as follows: Section 2 brings the social, geographic, technical and economical aspects in Brazil today, Section 3 shows the Brazilian National Broadband Planning (BNBP) objectives and Section 4 presents the IEEE 802.22 standard and how this technology can be employed to accomplish the BNBP. Finally, Section 6 draws the conclusion of this paper.

2. BRAZILIAN BACKGROUND In order to understand the importance of the BNBP it is necessary to know some aspects of the Brazilian society today. The geography, cultural, technological and economic aspects of the Brazilian society will be briefly presented in the next subsections to allow the reader to have a general idea about the impact BNBP in this country and the challenges that must be overcame to deploy this system. a. Geographic aspects Brazil is a continental size country. With 8.514.876,599 km2 [2], it is the fifth largest country in the word, after Russia, Canada, China and USA. The 26 states and the federal district that compose the Federative Republic of Brazil are organized in five regions: North, Northeast, Southeast, Central-west and South. Table 1 presents the states that compose each region, the total area of each region with its population density [2]. Figure 1 illustrates the regions in Brazil. Table 1. Description of the regions in Brazil. Population Area Region States Density 2 [km ] [Inhab/km2] Roraima, Acre, Amazonas, North Rondnia, 3,853,575.624 4.12 Par, Amap and Tocantins Mato Grosso, Moto Grosso Centraldo Sul, Goinia 1,606,366.787 8.75 west and Federal District. Maranho, Piau, Sergipe, Cear, Rio Grande do Northeast 1,554,387.725 34.15 Norte, Paraba, Alagoas, Bahia, and Pernambuco. So Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Southeast Minas Gerais 924,596.056 69.63 and Esprito Santo. Rio Grande do South Sul, Paran and 563,802.077 48.57 Santa Catarina. It is easy to conclude from Figure 1 and Table 1 that the population in Brazil is concentrate in South and Southeast regions. North region, which corresponds to the Amazon Rain Forest, is the largest one in Brazil with the lowest population density.

Figure 1. Regions of Brazil. So Paulo, that has the most effective telecommunication infrastructure in Brazil, is 3,971 km always from Manaus, the largest city in the North region. Usually, satellite links are employed as backhaul solution for Internet access in North region. b. Penetration and influence of TV and Internet services Television sets are present in 96% of the Brazilian houses [2]. Another important information is that only 17% of the population has pay TV (satellite or cable) [9]. It means that people use their television set to watch free broadcasting program. In fact, free television broadcasting program are the main entertainment of a large portion of the Brazilian population. The broadcasting programs also works as social glue in the Brazilian society because the same programs are watched by people from different regions, different economic power and different ethnic group. Internet access in Brazil is also growing, but the penetration of computer connected to the Internet is still modest. Today, 26% of the houses have at least one computer and 73.9 million people access Internet using desktop, smartphones, notebooks or tablet [10]. Thus, it is clear that free broadcasting television programs have a huge impact on the life of the Brazilian people. Internet, however, has a much large potential to affect the life of a person than television. In an information era, as the one we live today, information access and education to allow a person to process this information are a key point to guarantee the development of a country. c. Economics, Technological and Political aspects Brazil has adopted the ISDB-T (Integrated Services of Digital Broadcasting Terrestrial) [11]. The robustness against multipath time-variant channels provided by the orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM)

and the possibility to simultaneously broadcast High Definition (HD) signals for fixed reception and Low Definition (LD) signals for mobile reception due the band-segmented transmission (BST) are the main reasons for adoption of this DTV standard in Brazil. The DTV standard in Brazil employs a local developed middleware, called Ginga [12], that allow interactive TV. Ginga allows the broadcaster to develop applications that request an interaction with the viewer. The data provided by the viewer are sent to the broadcaster data center through the Internet, using an interactive channel [13]. In mobile devices, the cellular system is the obvious solution to obtain an interactive channel, but cellular system can be also the only solution for fixed interactive channels in many different places in Brazil. These news services, besides the high definition of audio and video delivered by DTV system, are promising to make the free open air television in Brazil be even more popular. The ASO in Brazil is programmed to happen in 2016. In this mean time, the broadcasters are allowed to occupy two UHF channels: one for analog transmission and another for digital transmission. After the ASO, the analog channels will be returned for the Federal Government that is planning to use this frequency bands to provide personal communication, such as mobile Internet access. Educational, health care and social programs are also going to use the future available UHF frequencies. The broadcaster, however, consider that the UHF channels must be reserved for broadcasting services and shall not be employed to provide communication services. The main reasons pointed by the broadcaster to keep the UHF channels reserved for broadcasting services are: i) upgrade form 2k (HDTV 1920x1080 pixels) to 4k (Ultra HDTV - 38402160 pixels), ii) broadcasting of 3D signals and iii) transition from the actual DTV standard to a future standard. Since the penetration of open air free TV is extremely high, the broadcasters lobbyists always efficiently pressure the Federal Government. During the adoption the ISDB-T standard, Brazil was also migrating from the 2nd generation of cellular phone system based on GSM (Global System for Mobile communication) [14] to the 3rd generation based on HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access) [15] technology. The high data rates provided by the 3G technology, the advent of low prices smartphones subsidized by telecommunication operator and the services compatible with mobile platforms (such as Facebook, Google Picasa, Myspace, Tweeter, Orkut and others) collaborated with the growth of mobile Internet access in Brazil. The UHF channels that will be available after the ASO are being considered as the solution to provide high data rate Internet access for the exponential growing number of mobile users. Therefore, the interests on the UHF bandwidth that will

be available after the ASO are growing for both: broadcaster and telecommunication operators. In this scenario, a digital communication system that allows an opportunistic use of the available spectrum can be a solution to accommodate the interests of both sectors. 3. THE NATIONAL BROADBAND PLANNING We are living an information era, where the Internet access is a key factor to achieve personal and collective success. The Brazilian Federal Government has launched and public and private initiative that aims to popularize the broadband Internet access in Brazil before 2014, promoting the increasing of the communication infrastructure and offering opportunities for the population to join this digital world. This initiative has been called the Brazilian National Broadband Planning [1] and it aims to: Increase Internet penetration; Promote the electronic government (e-gov) services; Contribute with the Future Internet; Contribute with national development of new industries, mainly focused in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and; Stimulate the internal economy. It is clear that the BNBP aims not only the economical aspects of the ICT development. It also aims the social development of the Brazilian society, which is aligned with the WSIS (World Summit on the Information Society) [16] that aims to interconnect every school, hospital, health care centers, government agencies, scientific and development research institutes, museums and public libraries in the world, in order to guarantee radio and television access for 100% of the worldwide population and Internet access for 50% of the worldwide population by 2015. The BNBP stimulates the private sector to be the driver for this broadband access expansion, but the Government can complement the actions of the private sector, mainly to guarantee a reduction of the social and regions inequalities. It is important to notice that the Internet access is not uniform in Brazil. In fact, it is possible to divide the Internet access in three different scenarios: i) Large Cities, where the infrastructure is appropriated; ii) Small Cities, where the infrastructure is being provided by the private sector, but with a large latency and; iii) Rural, Remote and Boundaries Areas, where the Internet access can only be provided through public services. The BNBP has different tools to incentive the broadband Internet access in each scenario. The low Internet penetration in Brazil has two main reasons. The first one is the monthly subscription cost that can drive a significant percentage of the family monthly income. This factor can be minimized by development public policies that aim to reduce the cost of the monthly fee for Internet access. The second factor is the backhaul limitation that reduces the overall

bandwidth available for Internet access. This limitation also implies in the cost of the service, since the demand is very high, but the offer is restricted to the limited capacity of the backhaul. This situation is critical for the North region, but it is also a problem for communities that are located a part of the large center in the others regions in Brazil. The low diversity in the last mile access technologies is one factor that reduces the number of people with Internet access. ADSL, DOCSYS and 3G cellular system covers the areas where the population density is relatively high, but these technologies dont cover areas with small population density. Thus, the development of new technological solutions to allow the coverage of low density areas and that increases the overall capacity of the backhaul in Brazil is stimulated. The BNBP has several goals and tasks that must be accomplished by 2014. Table 2 presents a summary of these goals. Table 2. BNBP goals for 2014. Service Goal Individual Fixed a) 30 millions broadband connections. Internet Access. a) 100% of Federal, State and Municipal Administration units; b) 100% of public schools (more than 70,000 rural schools must be connected); c) 100% of heath care center and hospitals (more than 177,000 units Collective Fixed must be connected); Internet Access. d) 100% of public libraries (more than 10,000 units to be connected); e) 100% of public security centers (more than 14,000 units to be connected) f) Implement more 100,000 new public data centers. a) Implement 60 millions mobile Mobile access. broadband connections. The challenges to achieve the goals presented in Table 2 are huge, mainly for the North, Northeast and Centralwest regions. Some mechanisms have been created by the Federal Government to minimize the barriers in this process. One set of mechanisms is directed to stimulate the private investments on the telecommunication market, allowing the introduction of new players and reducing the bureaucracy for financing the sector. This set of mechanisms aims to encourage the competition in the sector, which reduces the prices of the services and increase the number of subscriptions. Other set of mechanisms is directed to reduce the taxes on telecommunication services and clarify the regulations aspects to use the licensed bandwidths at 450MHz, 2.5GHz and 3.5GHz for telecommunications services.

The total amount of resources (public and private) estimated to achieve the goals presented in the BNBP is around US$ 28 billion. The government budget to be applied in the BNBP is estimated to be US$ 3.2 billion/year. Thus, it is clear that the BNBP is a key program for the Brazilian Government and it is the main program that is stimulating the telecommunication market in Brazil. 4. IEEE 802.22 STANDARD The IEEE 802.22 WRAN (Wireless Regional Area Network) [17] is the first wireless communication standard based on the concept of cognitive radio. The purpose of this standard is to provide broadband connectivity to areas of low population density using the open channels in the TV spectrum, a frequency range of 54MHz to 862MHz. This standard establishes a coverage radius from 17km up to 50 km, depending on the channels conditions, data rate, number of users and parameters employed in the physical layer, such as modulation, coding rate, time guard interval, transmission power, sensibility of the receivers, etc. The IEEE 802.22 WRAN topology has an architecture based on cellular system, where the Base Station (BS) connects the Consumer Premises Equipments (CPEs) and manages the system. The BS uses the CPE to perform measurements of signal levels at various channels in the spectrum. These measurements are collected and processed by the base station determines all actions that shall be performed. The IEEE 802.22 can operate with LOS (Line of Sight) or NLOS (Non Line of Sight). The minimum data rate of the system is 1.5 Mbit/s for the downstream link (BS to the CPE) and 384 kbit/s for the upstream link (CPE to BS). The BS can support up to 255 CPEs. Figure 2 presents a systemic architecture of an IEEE 802.22 WRAN.

Figure 2. Systemic architecture of an IEEE 802.22 WRAN. The IEEE 802.22 WRAN nodes must use only the vacant channels, also called white spaces. The primary users, such as TV broadcasters, wireless microphones and any other service that has the premise of the spectrum utilization, shall not suffer any interference

from an IEEE 802.22 node. Thus, every IEEE 802.22 node senses the spectrum and reports to the BS about the vacant and occupied channels at its specific position. Beacons signals shall be used to inform the presence of very low power users, such as wireless microphone [17]. Each CPE shall have two antennas: an omnidirectional antenna that is used to sense the spectrum; and a directional antenna that is used for communication with the BS. High gain directional antennas with LOS link can be used to obtain a long distance communication in this scenario. The omnidirectional antennas shall be used outdoors for accurate monitoring of the spectrum. Figure 3 presents a simplified block diagram of the physical layer of the IEEE 802.22 standard. The physical layer of this standard is deeply based on the physical layer of the IEEE 802.16 standard (Wi-MAX) [5].

for communication and which channel are occupied by a primary user. The cognitive engine also defines the best operation mode for a specific channel condition. Adaptive modulation techniques are employed to guarantee that the parameters used in the communication link can be changed without loss of information. Table 3. Transmission modes of the IEEE 802.22.
Physical Layer Mode Modulation Code Rate Peak Data Rate (Mb/s) Spectral Efficiency BW (6MHz)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

BPSK QPSK QPSK QPSK QPSK QPSK 16 QAM 16 QAM 16 QAM 16 QAM 16 QAM 64 QAM 64 QAM 64 QAM

---1/2 1/2 2/3 3/4 5/6 1/2 2/3 3/4 5/6 1/2 2/3 3/4 5/6

4.54 1.51 4.54 6.05 6.81 7.56 9.08 12.10 13.61 15.13 13.61 18.15 20.42 22.69

0.76 0.25 0.76 1.01 1.13 1.26 1.51 2.02 2.27 2.52 2.27 3.03 3.40 3.78

Figure 3. Simplified block diagram of the physical layer of the IEEE 802.22 standard. The data to be transmitted must be coded to protect it from the errors introduced by the channel. Two concatenates codes are employed: an outer Reed Solomon RS (204,188,8) shortened code [18] and an inner convolution punctured code [18]. Optionally, the inner code can be a Turbo convolution code [19] or a Low Density Parity Check code [20]. Interleavers are also employed to increase the performance of the coding scheme in frequency-selective time-variant channels. The channel encoded bits are mapped into a Quadrature Amplitude Modulation with M symbols (M-QAM) [21]. Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) [22] is used to transmit the mapped data with robustness against multipath channels. Pilot subcarriers are introduced in the OFDM symbol to allow the receiver to synchronize with the transmitter. The pilot subcarriers are also employed to estimate the channel frequency response and also can be used by the cognitive engine of the radio to estipulate the best configuration for a particular channel condition. Table 3 summarizes the different transmission modes possible in this standard. The cognitive engine is responsible for sensing the spectrum in order to define which channels are available

The spectrum management provides information for the cognitive engine about the current policies that must be considered by the system, depending on its position. This ensures that the cognitive radio does not operate illegally from the standpoint of the political spectrum [23]. The Cognitive Radio Medium Access Control (CRMAC) is responsible to manage the communication link. The CR-MAC is responsible to change the communication channel if a primary user is detected. The transmission power control is also realized by the CR-MAC, which must guarantee that the desired covered area has reached without interfering in any primary user or other IEEE 802.22 networks (selfexistence). The BS controls the channel access of all CPEs connected to it. The CRMAC uses a synchronous timing structure based on frames that are grouped into a structure called a superframe. Figure 4 shows the frame structure used in IEEE 802.22 WRAN standard.

Figure 4. Frame structure employed in the CR-MAC. A superframe consists of 16 frames, each frame with a fixed duration of 10ms. The structure of a superframe starts with a superframe preamble followed by a frame

preamble and a superframe control header (SCH). It is important to notice that each frame has a frame preamble. The superframe is responsible for time synchronization. The channel estimation is done once at every frame. This procedure allows the receiver to robustly decode the SCH and the messages in sequence. Among the several important information carried by the SCH, such as MAC address, flux control timing and others, the silent period must be highlighted. The silence period is the period of time that all nodes in the IEEE 802.22 must turn off the transmitter and sense the channel, looking for a primary user. If a primary user is detected, the BS is notified by the presence of this users and it initiates the procedure to change the channel frequency. The SCH is transmitted with a high degree of robustness to allow an efficient decoding even at long distances, which is important to ensure that neighbors WRANs can sense the presence of a BS, avoiding interference [24]. Discovering other WRAN networks and coexistence is crucial; therefore it is important to understand the coexistence beacon protocol (CBP). Each frame is divided into subframes: downlink subframes (DSF) and the uplink subframes (USF). A coexistence window is added at the end of each subframe. The USF specifies the coexistence notifications (UCS Urgent Coexistence Situation) and the bandwidth requirements (BWR Bandwidth Requirements). The CPEs can use the UCS to notify the BS that a primary user has been detected in the currently used channel. presents the frames employed at the CRMAC layer of IEEE 802.22 standard.

main premises of the cognitive radio is that it cannot interfere with the primary users. Thus, the faster the sensing spectrum algorithms detect the primary users, the smaller will be the interference caused by the cognitive radio. These techniques should be able to accurately identify the status of channel sensed, identifying transmissions from the primary systems with high probability. Furthermore, these algorithms should also identify opportunities for transmissions with high probability, i.e., maintaining a low probability of false alarm, in which it classifies a channel as occupied when, in fact, the channel is available. In order to maximize the efficiency of the system, the spectrum sensing is performed in two steps: coarse sensing and fine sensing. Figure 6 illustrates this principle, where one can see that the MAC layer will control the spectrum sensing in order to maximize the probability of detection and reducing the probability of false alarm.

Figure 6. Simplified block diagram of the sensing technique: coarse sensing and fine sensing. The coarse spectrum sensing detects if there are a signal in the channel that is being used for communication. This measurement is done in a short period of time and it doesnt distinguish the type of signal that is present in the channel. The coarse spectrum sensing only points the presence or absence of signals within the analyzed spectrum. The fine spectrum sensing is more complex than the coarse spectrum sensing because this procedure aims to characterize the signal that have been found by the coarse spectrum sensing. The IEEE 802.22 standard does not specifies a sensing technique. However, it is necessary that the spectral sensing is in conformity with the spectral sensing framework, which completely specifies the inputs and outputs of the spectrum sensing algorithm and its behavior. This framework specifies that the CPEs must perform the spectrum sensing and inform the BS about the presence of a signal. The BS coordinates the coarse and fine sensing. Figure 7 presents the spectrum sensing framework, where it is possible to verify the necessary input information and the expected output information. The basic input information is: channel number, bandwidth (6, 7 or 8 MHz), type of signal to be sensed (Analog TV, DTV, microphone, etc.) and Pfa (false alarm Probability).

Figure 5. Frame structure of the CR-MAC layer. Spectral sensing is a fundamental function of a cognitive radio system. The performance of the dynamic allocation of radio spectrum depends on this function [25]. Usually, spectrum sensing consists only in measuring the RF power within a specific bandwidth, but for a cognitive radio, spectrum sensing should be provide more information about the signal that might occupy this specific bandwidth. Also spectrum sensing algorithms must be able to recognize the signal from the primary system even under the worst conditions of propagation, shadowing and fading, since one of the

Figure 7. Spectrum sensing framework. The output information is: sensing mode (coarse or fine), signal type, signal presence decision and confidence metric. Also, multiple sensing can be performed simultaneously [24]. In order to understand the principles of the spectrum sensing, a computational simulation has been developed using Matlab/Simulink [26]. Therefore, one can analyze each step of the spectrum sensing algorithm, aiming to understand how this procedure can define if the channel is occupied or vacant. The simulation has been conceived to allow an opportunistic use of the spectrum, so the UHF TV licensed bandwidth has been considered. In this case, each licensed users randomly transmit at one specific channel. The CR-MAC senses the overall spectrum and determines which channel is vacant. Then, cognitive radio occupies the available spectrum. If a primary user start to transmit in the same channel that has been occupied by the cognitive radio, the IEEE 802.22 senses the presence of this user and inform the BS, which is responsible to coordinate the change to other vacant channel. The energy detection algorithm has been used in this simulation, but any other algorithm can be developed and applied in this tool. Figure 8 presents the complete block diagram of the spectrum sensing simulator.

Figure 9. Simulation result where the 60MHz vacant channel has been opportunistically occupied by the cognitive radio. Since in Brazil there is a great conflict of interests for the use of the UHF bandwidth after the ASO, it is clear that the IEEE 802.22 standard can be used to accommodate both the broadcasters interests and the telecommunication operators interests. This standard can also solve the BNBP challenge to provide broadband access for low populated area. Since it can operate as a secondary service, there is no need for licensing the bandwidth. This means that small Internet Service Providers (ISP) can use this technology to offer broadband Internet access at low cost. The large coverage area of the IEEE 802.22 standard allows an economical feasible Internet service even for rural areas. Also, public sector can employ this technique as a cheap solution to deliver Internet access in regions where the private sector does not cover. Since technologies such as ADSL, DOCSIS, 3G, WiMAX and LTE are being used to provide the last mile connection in areas relatively high populated, it seems that Cognitive Radio technology based on an efficient spectrum sensing algorithm and opportunistic spectrum allocation is the right solution to provide broadband Internet access for the population of low density areas in a continental developing country, like Brazil. 5. CONCLUSIONS Brazil is a colossal developing country that is emerging as one of the future economic power. The Federal Government is concerned about the low penetration of the Internet access and its impact in the economy, education and social development of the population. The analog switch off can be seem as the solution to allocate UHF bandwidth to provide wireless broadband Internet access in areas sparsely populated. However, the Brazilian broadcasters, based on the huge penetration of free open air TV, are requesting the UHF channels that are being used today to broadcast analog

Figure 8. Complete block diagram of the spectrum sensing simulator. Figure 9 presents the simulation results where the 60 MHz vacant channel has been opportunistically occupied by the cognitive radio.

TV to allow the evolution of the DTV system. Future services, such as Ultra HDTV and 3D-HDTV are being pointed as the drivers to use the UHF that will be vacant. In this conflict scenario, the IEEE 802.22 standard can be a solution to attend the interests of both sectors. Since the spectrum sensing and opportunistic spectrum allocation protects the primary users and allows secondary users to use vacant channels, it can be used by telecommunication operators to provide wireless broadband Internet access, while the broadcaster can count on the UHF spectrum when the times come to implement a second generation of the DTV system. Besides, the cognitive radio technology allows small ISP to provide wireless Internet access for low populated areas, once it is possible to obtain large coverage areas. It means that the IEEE 802.22 also attends the requirements stated by the BNBP that aims to largely popularize the Internet access in Brazil by 2014, when the Soccer World Cup will be hosted by this country. REFERENCES [1] tila Augusto Souto, Daniel Calvalcanti and Roberto Pinto Martins, Um Plano Nacional para a Banda Larga. Braslia, Brasil: Ministrio das Comunicaes, 2009. [2] IBGE, "Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatstica", Braslia, Brasil, 2010. [3] A. Tanenbaum, Computer networks, 5th ed. Boston: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2011. [4] H. Holma, HSDPA HSUPA for UMTS: high speed radio access for mobile communications. Chichester: John Wiley, 2006. [5] M. Ergen, Mobile Broadband Including WiMAX and LTE. Boston, MA: Springer Science Business Media, LLC, 2009. [6] W. Goralski, ADSL & DSL technologies, 2nd ed. New York: Osborne/McGraw-Hill, 2002. [7] W. Ciciora, Modern cable television technology, 2nd ed. San Francisco, California; Oxford: Morgan Kaufmann; Elsevier Science, 2003. [8] IEEE Home Page, IEEE - The worlds largest professional association for the advancement of technology, Available: http://www.ieee.org/index.html. Accessed: 03/07/2011. [9] Agncia Nacional de Telecomunicaes, Penetrao da TV por Assinatura no Brasil. [Online]. Available: http://www.anatel.gov.br. Accessed: 04/17/2011. [10] Instituto Brasileiro de Opinio e Estatsticas, IBOPE, [Online] Available: http://www.ibope.com.br. Accessed: 17/042011. [11] ITU-R 205/11, Channel Coding, Frame Structure and Modulation Scheme for Terrestrial Integrated Services Digital Broadcasting (ISDB-T). International

Telecommunication Union, 1999. [12] Comunidade Ginga, Ginga Digital TV Middleware Specification. [Online]. Available: http://www.ginga.org.br/. Accessed: 04/18/2011. [13] ABNT NBR 15607-1, Digital terrestrial television Interactive channel. Part 1: Protocols, physical interfaces and software interfaces. So Paulo, Brazil: ABNT, 2007. [14] L. Harte, Introduction to global system for mobile communication (GSM): Physical channels, network, and operation. Fuquay-Varina NC: Althos, 2005. [15] 3GPP TR 25.855, 3rd Generation Partnership Project; Technical Specification Group Radio Access Network; High Speed Downlink Packet Access; Overall UTRAN Description. France: 3GPP, 2005. [16] WSIS-05/TUNIS/DOC/6, Tunis Agenda for the Information Society. Tunis, Tunsia: World Summit on the Information Society, 2005. [17] C. Cordeiro, K. Challapali, e D. Birru, IEEE 802.22: An Introduction to the First Wireless Standard based on Cognitive Radios, Journal of Communications, vol. 1, n. 1, 2006. [18] S. Lin, Error control coding: fundamentals and applications, 2nd ed. Englewood Cliffs N.J., Pearson Prentice Hall, 2004. [19] M. A. Hasan, Performance Evaluation of WiMAX/IEEE 802.16 OFDM Physical Layer, Helsinki University of Technology, 2007. [20] A. Shokrollahi, LDPC Codes: An Introduction. USA: Digital Foutain Inc., 2003. [21] S. Haykin, Communication systems, 5th ed. Hoboken NJ: Wiley, 2009. [22] A. Bahai, Multi-carrier digital communications: theory and applications of OFDM, 2nd ed. New York: Springer, 2004. [23] H. Mahmoud, T. Yucek, e H. Arslan, OFDM for Cognitive Radio: Merits and Challenges. Springer, 2007. [24] E. Hossain, Dynamic spectrum access and management in cognitive radio networks. Cambridge, UK; New York: Cambridge University Press, 2009. [25] Y. Zeng, Y.-C. Liang, e A. T. Hoang, A Review on SpectrumSensing for Cognitive Radio: Challenges and Solutions, EURASIP Journal on Advances in Signal Processing, vol. 1, 2010. [26] O. Beucher, Introduction to MATLAB & SIMULINK: a project approach, 3rd ed. Hingham Mass.: Infinity Science Press, 2008.