Hi,
Today I’ll try to explain what makes WIFI6. Starting with the brief history; WiFi6 is also known as 802.11ax, was released back in 2019. We have just started seeing the mainstream adoption of WIFI6 as more and more businesses have started to realize its requirement and how they can benefit from it. Another role is of the device manufacturers that since WIFI6 ready devices have started rolling in market, WIFI6 backend supported equipment requirement is also getting a rise. Although it may seem to be more expensive, WIFI6 access points deliver various advantages over WiFi5. WIFI6 performs up to 4x better in denser populated environments than its WiFi5) counterpart. WIFI6 is also configured to handle multiple types of WiFi devices in a better way that are simultaneously connecting to an access point. Moreover, WIFI6 delivers up to 3x faster performance according to the chip manufacturers.
Now, that we are caught up with what WIFI6 can do, I’ll be discussing OFDMA (orthogonal frequency division multiple access) and MU-MIMO (multiuser-multiple input multiple outputs).
OFDMA
OFDMA stands for orthogonal frequency division multiple access, and it is one of the most significant features that come with the WIFI6 802.11ax standard. As technology improved, WIFI is considered as a primary requirement in all network devices including laptops, mobile phones, tablets, video conference endpoints etc. OFDMA affects uplink and downlink streams of devices connected to the devices. Also, how client devices are connected to the access point and how they are given bandwidth prioritization is also directly related to the OFDMA. OFDMA is a process of shaping bandwidth usage by client devices into Resource Units. Resource units are what allows the access point to carry multiple services for different needs simultaneously.
Data rates up to 9.6 Gbps can only be supported for different application requirement only through the OFDMA. This enables WIFI6 access points to be extremely agile in a way that it divides the large spectrum of bandwidth and assign appropriate bandwidth to the device depending on the needs of the application. OFDMA generally works best and is best applied in scenarios where multiple type of devices are available for example, smart phones, laptops, zigbees, IP phones etc. APs can reserve the bandwidth of each application and device based on its category and usage type. In highly populated WiFi scenarios, this ensures each device is receiving appropriate amount of bandwidth which is sufficient and is basic requirement for each application.
MU-MIMO
First introduced with Wi-Fi 5, MU-MIMO has been improved in WIFI6. Wi-Fi 5's MIMO technology allowed access points to "speak" to multiple devices at once. However, those devices couldn't speak back to the access point simultaneously. This would occasionally cause slower speeds and network congestion if multiple high-bandwidth applications were all demanding a connection at the same time. WIFI6 MU-MIMO provides an improved version of MIMO that enables devices to respond to the access point simultaneously. The advantage of this is improved performance of each spatial stream. Each access point you deploy will experience increased efficiency in environments with multiple simultaneous users, along with a slight decrease in client latency. Improved MU-MIMO means less total access points needed in a solution, which makes for a less expensive WIFI6 deployment.
Additionally, the total amount of MU groupings has increased from 4 to 8 with 802.11 ax, furthering the efficiency of a single access point that is handling multiple high-bandwidth devices. MU groups allow devices to be bound together in up to 8 streams that can simultaneously communicate between access point and Wi-Fi device. This solves Wi-Fi 5's occasional problem of these streams becoming over congested when multiple devices across several groups are simultaneously utilizing high-bandwidth applications.
MU-MIMO and OFDMA Together
MU-MIMO and OFDMA come together in WIFI6 to complement each other in Wi-Fi deployments. In a actual WIFI6 deployment, MU-MIMO and OFDMA are dynamically utilized by the access point depending on device types, QoS, and upstream/downstream usage. MU-MIMO allows access points to better handle multiple high-bandwidth devices, while OFDMA takes over for better management of many different devices. Both features result in a more efficient Wi-Fi solution, lower device latency, and higher network speeds.
I hope you have learnt a lot today. In case of any question, please do let me know in comments.
