Wireless Innovation Forum

Lore & Background

The Wireless Innovation Forum was founded in 1996 at the request of the US military services, led by the Air Force, as an industry association focused on advancing software radio development. Originally named the Modular Multifunction Information Transfer System Forum, it published its first technical report in 1997 outlining the state of the art in software defined radio, including a reference application framework called the Software Radio Architecture based on the SPEAKeasy Architecture. In 1998, the organization changed its legal name to the Software Defined Radio Forum and broadened its focus to commercial and international participation, creating new internal groups including Markets and Regulatory Committees and the Base Station Work Group.

In 2001, the Forum contracted with Communications Research Centre Canada to provide a Software Communications Architecture (SCA) Reference Implementation (SCARI-Open). The Forum hosted its first Technical Conference and Product Exposition in 2002, which became an annual event. Between 2004 and 2010, the Forum signed memorandums of understanding with multiple international groups including the European End to End Efficiency Program, IEICE in Japan, IEEK in Korea, IEEE Standards Association, JTRS, and the European Science Foundation. In 2007, the Forum initiated the Smart Radio Challenge, a worldwide student engineering competition.

In late 2009, the Forum was renamed the Wireless Innovation Forum to reflect its expanded focus on Cognitive Radio, Systems of Systems, Ad Hoc Networks, and Dynamic Spectrum Access Technologies. The Forum restructured to establish Commercialization Committees focused on creating an ecosystem of vendors providing interoperable hardware and software radio components. The Forum is organized around three Commercialization Committees and one Technology Committee, including the Software Defined Systems Committee, Wireless Innovation Committee, CBRS Committee, and 6 GHz Committee, along with a Regulatory Advisory Committee.

Reader's Guide

The Wireless Innovation Forum's significance lies in its role as a collaborative industry body that has shaped the development and standardization of software defined radio and cognitive radio technologies over nearly three decades. Originally created at the request of the US military, the Forum evolved from a military-focused organization to a global entity addressing commercial and international wireless communications requirements. Its work on the Software Communications Architecture (SCA) has been particularly influential, with the Forum endorsing SCA 4.1 as a preferred software architecture for software defined radios and working to harmonize APIs with the European Secure Software Radio (ESSOR) architecture. The Forum's committees have developed baseline standards for spectrum sharing in the 3.5 GHz CBRS band, including Release 2 and Release 1+ standards, and have partnered with the Wi-Fi Alliance on AFC System Certification for the 6 GHz band. The Forum's legacy includes its advocacy for spectrum innovation, its technical conferences and student competitions, and its ongoing efforts to reduce development costs and speed time to market for wireless systems through interoperable standards.

Did You Know?

• The Forum was originally founded as the Modular Multifunction Information Transfer System Forum at the request of the US Air Force.
• The Forum published its first technical report in 1997, which included a Software Radio Architecture based on the existing SPEAKeasy Architecture.
• The Forum initiated the Smart Radio Challenge in 2007, a worldwide competition for student engineering teams.