Mobile WiMAX field trial test through multimedia performance evaluation

IEEE 802.16e is a mobile version of Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) that plays an important role in the evolution towards 4G. In this study, we focus on multimedia performance measurement for the purpose of a more realistic mobile WiMAX network test. This study aims to make a contribution in better understanding the mobile WiMAX performance for multimedia applications. For that purpose, we employ Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and video streaming to test the network performance, where two distinct evaluation systems are used, professional and user-friendly. Our test results show that the mobile WiMAX network can support well the bandwidth-intense and delay-sensitive multimedia application. We find that the VoIP quality at the cell center is perfect, where the value of Perceptual Evaluation of Speech Quality exceeds 4. At the cell edge, the quality is degraded but still adequate. We also observe that the downlink of mobile WiMAX network can support video streaming up to 4 Mbps with the Mean Opinion Score (MOS) value of 4.5. On the uplink, the bitrate of 1 Mbps is supported with MOS 4.5 at the cell center and with MOS 3.2 at the cell edge, respectively. Our experiments further indicate that a smooth playback of YouTube 480P video is consistently provided. Finally, the handover case has very limited impact to the overall quality degradation of both VoIP and video streaming.