Standards sultan sanctifies 60GHz wireless LAN tech

The IEEE has published a 60GHz wireless networking standard, 802.11ad, much to the joy of the WiGig Alliance: its 60GHz "USB/PCI/HDMI/DisplayPort" technology sits on top of the radio-based communications spec.

WiGig’s everything-over-the-air system is expected to deliver up to 7Gbit of data per second, albeit only over a relatively short distance from the wireless access point.

The Alliance-developed PHY and MAC specifications to achieve this transfer rate were provided to the IEEE and formed the basis for the latter’s process for standardising 802.11ad. WiGig president and chairman Ali Sadri said his specification and the IEEE standard are “completely aligned”, making it a formality for WiGig-branded kit to also claim 802.11ad compatibility.

802.11ad builds on 802.11ac, the latest gigabit-speed version of 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi. WiGig extends 802.11ad’s data networking emphasis with Protocol Adaption Layers for PCI, HDMI, DisplayPort and USB to allow the technology to operate as a wireless alternative to these cable standards.

So when the WiGig Alliance merges with the Wi-Fi Alliance, as the two organisations this week said they plan to do, Wi-Fi will add another 802.11 sub-standard to its stable and complete its domination of in-premises wireless networking. ®