A hardware abstraction framework for bridging RF front-ends design issues in open wireless architectures

Current wireless systems provide several services with reliability and functionality not envisioned some decades ago. However, they use mostly OEM equipment that is hardly reconfigurable or portable between platforms/networks. This creates an obstacle to realizing true open wireless architecture (OWA) systems where the end-user is able to mix and match building blocks based cost, performance or either user-specific criteria. In this paper, we present a review of the technological trends driving the development of OWA and we discuss the state-of-the-art of enabling technologies currently available in both baseband and RF sides that can quicken the OWAs' development and widespread acceptance. We also propose a generic top-down design framework based on a hardware abstraction strategy for the design of OWA-compliant RF front-ends. This new framework aims to bridge the gap between the baseband and RF design environments.