WiMax

(//Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access//)
WiMax is basically a network of long range wireless access points. The only difference being WiMax has a potential range of 31 miles with a maximum speed of 70Mb/s for fixed locations. In the U.S., Sprint has recently made available their own WiMax in Baltimore, MD using their XOHM branded hardware to access the service. They're hoping to achieve speeds of 10 Mb/s over a 10 km distance, but are releasing the hardware with modest transfers of 2 to 4 Mbps. Other parts of the world such as Pakistan already have majority coverage, so it should only be a matter of time before Sprint, as well as other carriers through competition spread their access points nationwide.
 * Description:**

This could be used in ambulances as well as hospitals where it is not economically feasible to provide broadband services. In Italy, Newport Digital Technologies (NDT) has already implemented the use of WiMax to keep ambulances and hospitals in sync. Taiwan has a similar effort through Nortel, launching at the Taipei Medical University Hospital. Both have already benefited from the use of WiMax to communicate vital information from ambulance to hospital. This smooths the transition from ambulance to hospital for the patient because the paramedics update has been done in real time. There's also a communications protocol called DIAMETER, which controls the flow of traffic. If bandwidth is an issue, the system will turn off e-mail downloads to preserve resources in regards to patient status. Developers are working on fully supporting the updates mentioned earlier, in addition to video and VOIP calling. Of course, WiMax has range, but its speed is still in the 15Mbps range, so those last features may prove taxing for the current speeds.
 * Application:**


 * Web Resources:**

http://lis3353.wikispaces.com/WiMAX http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WiMAX


 * Citations/References:**

"Chunghwa Telecom to Deliver "Taiwan Mobile Healthcare Services" with Nortel WiMAX technology." BNet. May-June 2007. Sept. 2008 .

Reed, Brad. "Sprint WiMAX service now online in Baltimore." Network World. 29 Sept. 2008. 15 Oct. 2008 .

Orr, Jeff. "NDT to deploy WiMAX across Italy." __WiMax.com__. Oct. 2008 .


 * Related Terminology:**

Mobile Healthcare


 * Graphics:**