CPqD

A partnership between Intel, a well-known manufacturer of processors, and CPqD, based in the city of Campinas, has led to the digital inclusion of dwellers of a remote locality in the Amazon. CPqD has provided special consulting services to Intel, which will supply a wireless network for telemedicine and teleeducation applications, by offering services related to videoconferencing, videostreaming and Internet. The chosen locality was the city of Parintins, located on an island on the Amazon River considered one of the most remote places in the world.

CPqD was responsible for the planning and design of the Wi-Fi and WiMAX networks ? wireless broadband connection systems ? specification, installation and configuration of the equipment, as well as the network acceptance and the integration of all tasks involving the partners in the project ? Embratel, Proxim, Cisco, the Universidade Estadual da Amazônia and the Universidade de São Paulo.

The wireless infrastructure includes Wi-Fi short-range radio transceivers, located in public schools, health care centers, and WiMAX radios with the ability of long range transmission, interconnecting them with the Embratel satellite station and from there to the entire world. This technology was specially designed to be the most efficient and cheapest way to build wireless networks for broadband Internet access in rural and metropolitan areas. CPqD has centralized its activities so that it could create a WiMAX Competence Center.

The Parintins project ? in which a WiMAX network was installed in a health center, two public schools and a community center ? is part of a program called World Ahead, an initiative in which Intel plans to invest over US$ 1 billion worldwide, during the next five years, in order to speed the access to computers, Internet, and technology for people from developing communities. The technology is allowing the Universidade Estadual da Amazônia to expand its Telemedicine program for the city of Parintins, together with the Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo. The new tools, including real-time video interaction between specialists and patients separated by thousands of kilometers, allow the 32 doctors to have fast access to the latest medical data or opinions from specialists.

?We are determined to make feasible the use of WiMAX and offer the citizens from any part of this country the social improvements related specially to public education, health and security? says Hélio Graciosa, CEO of CPqD. ?Therefore? mentions Graciosa, ?we are using the most innovative and state-of-the-art technology, equipment, and engineering techniques to develop the municipal government networks?.

?We were blessed with this project?, says Frank Bi Garcia, Mayor of Parintins. ?Due to the geographic obstacles, the city of Parintins cannot be connected through cable to have access to the Internet. From now on, we will get wireless access, through antennas and satellites, which is a huge feat for the region. This project will groom the new generation for the future?.

Wireless

Wi-Fi and WiMAX technologies are stepping up to become the means of broadband, fast Internet access. Many advantages can be expected from these technologies in comparison to others: flexibility, mobility, and no more entangled wires in comparison with traditional connections.

Regarding Wi-Fi, the computer is connected, via wireless, to the Internet through an access point or hotspot, which is a small device that can be hung on a wall transmitting and receiving radio waves. This technology has been spreading over the world and it is used in several airports, malls, hotels, convention centers, and other places such as offices and homes.

However, WiMAX technology is used mainly to provide high speed access to remote locations or places without proper infrastructure, such as the case of Parintins, without the use of cables. Through this system, Internet can be accessed from distant locations, for instance a farm, by using a computer, a laptop, or any other equipment that provides connection. For the Parintins case, there is integration between Wi-Fi, which allows access within small areas considering a radius of hundreds of meters, and WiMAX, which covers large areas established in kilometers.

Source: Correio Popular