27Oct History of WLAN - Part 2

The first generation of wireless data modems was developed in the early 1980s by amateur radio operators, who commonly referred to this as packet radio. They added a voice band data communication modem, with data rates below 9600 bit/s, to an existing short distance radio system, typically in the two meter amateur band. The second generation of wireless modems was developed immediately after the FCC announcement in the experimental bands for non-military use of the spread spectrum technology. These modems provided data rates on the order of hundreds of kbit/s. The third generation of wireless modem [then] aimed at compatibility with the existing LANs with data rates on the order of Mbit/s. Several companies [developed] the third generation products with data rates above 1 Mbit/s and a couple of products [had] already been announced [by the time of the first IEEE Workshop on Wireless LANs].

The first of the IEEE Workshops on Wireless LAN was held in 1991. At that time early wireless LAN products had just appeared in the market and the IEEE 802.11 committee had just started its activities to develop a standard for wireless LANs. The focus of that first workshop was evaluation of the alternative technologies. [By 1996], the technology [was] relatively mature, a variety of applications [had] been identified and addressed and technologies that enable these applications [were] well understood. Chip sets aimed at wireless LAN implementations and applications, a key enabling technology for rapid market growth, [were] emerging in the market. Wireless LANs [were being] used in hospitals, stock exchanges, and other in building and campus settings for nomadic access, point-to-point LAN bridges, ad-hoc networking, and even larger applications through internetworking. The IEEE 802.11 standard and variants and alternatives, such as the wireless LAN interoperability forum and the European HiperLAN specification had made rapid progress, and the unlicensed PCS [ Unlicensed Personal Communications Services and the proposed SUPERNet, later on renamed as U-NII, bands also presented new opportunities.