Konstantin Shkurko

Simulating Radio Frequency Propagation via Ray Tracing

Konstantin Shkurko, Thiago Ize, Christiaan Gribble, Erik Brunvand, and Lee A. Butler

In GPU Technology Conference (GTC), 2013

Teaser image
Figure: Optical ray tracing simulates the propagation of visible light in complex 3D environments and also elegantly handles important effects such as direct line-of-sight, reflection, and diffraction. We observe that RF energy is also a form of electromagnetic energy, albeit at a very different frequency than light; thus, ray tracing exhibits potential for simulating physical phenomena in the RF domain. We thus build on optical ray tracing to simulate RF energy propagation in complex urban environments.

Abstract

Prediction of radio frequency (RF) energy propagation in the presence of complex outdoor terrain features - urban environments, for example - is of great interest when planning, optimizing and analyzing wireless networks. A tool for fast prediction could improve network coverage, provide estimates of signal strength throughout the environment, estimate time delay of multipath signals, and provide data for power allocation in the deployed transmitters. Such a tool is essential when planning networks that need to be set up quickly for temporary purposes.


Links

Poster (pdf, 1.34 MB)
Poster (high res) (pdf, 46 MB)

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Army Research Labs and SURVICE Engineering.

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