Analysis, characterization and modeling of interference sources on wireless communication systems in complex indoor scenarios

Abstract

This research work presents a novel methodology of assessing wireless interferences on Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) by the aid of an in-house developed 3D Ray Launching method, which is a novel deterministic approach for radio propagation prediction in complex environments. Firstly, the 3D Ray Launching simulation procedure has been validated by means of comparing the simulation results with radio propagation measurements within different complex scenarios. Afterwards, a novel point of view regarding the traditional use of radio propagation models is presented: its use for assessing wireless interferences between different deployed wireless networks and WSNs, instead of only predicting the radio propagation of the transceivers belonging to a wireless communication system. The obtained results show that the assessment of potential wireless interferences will be a major issue in order to deploy optimally WSNs, even more taking into account that in a future framed by the Smart City concept and the so called Internet of Things (IoT) along the appearance of 5G systems, the quantity of wireless transceivers is expected to be huge. Once the methodology for the assessment of the interferences between wireless communication systems has been performed, a further step has been taken in order to analyze the interferences created by electrical devices which do not belong to wireless communication systems. For that purpose, a novel hybrid simulation method based on the 3D Ray Launching algorithm and Equivalent Sources has been developed in order to obtain computational models for the estimation of radiated emissions of potential wireless interference sources. Specifically, a common domestic microwave oven has been chosen as the interference source under analysis.