Personal communications using an UEAN: concept, example and measurements

This work describes the functionality of the "User Environment Area Network" (UEAN) and explores some issues related to its practical implementation. An UEAN is a network that connects the electronic devices that belong to a person, in spite of their physical location. The "Functional Convergence" (FC) of personal electronic devices allows the implementation of virtual personal electronic devices, that are implemented by grouping sources, sinks, storage, processors or gateways that belong to the UEAN. We explore the feasibility to use water copper pipelines as the backbone to establish a UEAN based on the interconnection of several Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPAN) operating in the different rooms of a house. The copper pipeline represents a good candidate to interconnect the multiple WPAN because of its high bandwidth and strong shielding to external electromagnetic noise. Some measurements in the 2.4 GHz frequency band are presented. The converging trends observed in telecommunications technology and markets, make us believe that it is important to study and model a network of personal devices in terms of an UEAN.