On-Site Permittivity Estimation at 60 GHz Through Reflecting Surface Identification in the Point Cloud

Accurate site-specific radio propagation simulations provide an important basis for cellular coverage analysis. The quality of these simulations relies on the accuracy of environmental description and electrical properties of constituent materials. This paper presents a novel method of on-site permittivity estimation. The method utilizes an accurate geometrical database of the environment for identifying flat and smooth surfaces producing reflections. The method exploits a limited number of on-site channel sounding to extract reflected multipaths and compare them with ray tracing based on the environmental database. The permittivity of the identified reflecting surfaces is estimated by solving an inverse reflection problem. The method was experimentally tested with limited radio channel measurements at 60 GHz in a large empty office room. The identified reflecting surfaces are classified according to their mean permittivity estimates, showing their consistency with physical material evidence and the permittivity database in the International Telecommunication Union Radiocommunication Recommendation (ITU-R P.2040-1). The estimated permittivity values are visualized as a 3-D map, giving an intuitive understanding of materials constituting the environment. This paper demonstrates on-site permittivity estimation and material classification without the need for isolated measurements of composite materials in an anechoic chamber or in situ measurements of built environments.

[1]  K. Thiel,et al.  PERFORMANCE CAPABILITIES OF LASER SCANNERS-AN OVERVIEW AND MEASUREMENT PRINCIPLE ANALYSIS - , 2004 .

[2]  Theodore S. Rappaport,et al.  Millimeter-Wave Enhanced Local Area Systems: A High-Data-Rate Approach for Future Wireless Networks , 2014, IEEE Journal on Selected Areas in Communications.

[3]  David Ferreira,et al.  Estimation of dielectric concrete properties from power measurements at 18.7 and 60 GHz , 2011, 2011 Loughborough Antennas & Propagation Conference.

[4]  Katsuyuki Haneda,et al.  Estimating the omni-directional pathloss from directional channel sounding , 2016, 2016 10th European Conference on Antennas and Propagation (EuCAP).

[5]  Jin Chen,et al.  Comparison and application of FDTD and ray optical method for indoor wave propagation modeling , 2010, Proceedings of the Fourth European Conference on Antennas and Propagation.

[6]  M. J. Neve,et al.  Modeling Propagation in Multifloor Buildings Using the FDTD Method , 2011, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation.

[7]  M.G. Sanchez,et al.  Comparison of the electromagnetic properties of building materials at 5.8 GHz and 62.4 GHz , 2000, Vehicular Technology Conference Fall 2000. IEEE VTS Fall VTC2000. 52nd Vehicular Technology Conference (Cat. No.00CH37152).

[8]  T. Rappaport,et al.  A comparison of theoretical and empirical reflection coefficients for typical exterior wall surfaces in a mobile radio environment , 1996 .

[9]  C. D. Taylor,et al.  On the propagation of RF into a building constructed of cinder block over the frequency range 200 MHz to 3 GHz , 1999 .

[10]  B. Langen,et al.  Reflection and transmission behaviour of building materials at 60 GHz , 1994, 5th IEEE International Symposium on Personal, Indoor and Mobile Radio Communications, Wireless Networks - Catching the Mobile Future..

[11]  Maria-Teresa Martinez-Ingles,et al.  On the Importance of Diffuse Scattering Model Parameterization in Indoor Wireless Channels at mm-Wave Frequencies , 2016, IEEE Access.

[12]  Kamel Haddadi,et al.  Geometrical Optics-Based Model for Dielectric Constant and Loss Tangent Free-Space Measurement , 2014, IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement.

[13]  Henry L. Bertoni,et al.  Radio Propagation for Modern Wireless Systems , 1999 .

[14]  Mehmet Fatih Akay,et al.  An automated amplitudes-only measurement system for permittivity determination using free-space method , 2001, IMTC 2001. Proceedings of the 18th IEEE Instrumentation and Measurement Technology Conference. Rediscovering Measurement in the Age of Informatics (Cat. No.01CH 37188).

[15]  Wenbin Dou,et al.  Ultra-Wideband Measurement of the Dielectric Constant and Loss Tangent of Concrete Slabs , 2008, 2008 China-Japan Joint Microwave Conference.

[16]  I. Vilović,et al.  Estimation of dielectric constant of composite materials in buildings using reflected fields and PSO algorithm , 2010, Proceedings of the Fourth European Conference on Antennas and Propagation.

[17]  Jie Zhang,et al.  Applying FDTD to the Coverage Prediction of WiMAX Femtocells , 2009, EURASIP J. Wirel. Commun. Netw..

[18]  Theodore S. Rappaport,et al.  Wireless communications - principles and practice , 1996 .

[19]  Thomas Kurner,et al.  Channel characteristics study for future indoor millimeter and submillimeter wireless communications , 2016, 2016 10th European Conference on Antennas and Propagation (EuCAP).

[20]  W. Wiesbeck,et al.  Capability of 3-D Ray Tracing for Defining Parameter Sets for the Specification of Future Mobile Communications Systems , 2006, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation.

[21]  Mansor Nakhkash,et al.  Characterisation of layered dielectric medium using reflection coefficient , 1998 .

[22]  Jan Jarvelainen,et al.  Measurement-Based Millimeter-Wave Radio Channel Simulations and Modeling , 2016 .

[23]  P. Vainikainen,et al.  Full-wave characterization of indoor office environment for accurate coverage analysis , 2013, 2013 International Conference on Electromagnetics in Advanced Applications (ICEAA).

[24]  Zulkifly Abbas,et al.  Complex permittivity measurements at Ka-Band using rectangular dielectric waveguide , 2001, IEEE Trans. Instrum. Meas..

[25]  Katsuyuki Haneda,et al.  Evaluation of Millimeter-Wave Line-of-Sight Probability With Point Cloud Data , 2016, IEEE Wireless Communications Letters.

[26]  Wilhelm Keusgen,et al.  Measurement and Ray-Tracing Simulation of the 60 GHz Indoor Broadband Channel: Model Accuracy and Parameterization , 2007 .

[27]  Theodore S. Rappaport,et al.  Millimeter Wave Mobile Communications for 5G Cellular: It Will Work! , 2013, IEEE Access.

[28]  Sima Noghanian,et al.  Reflection Coefficient Measurement for North American House Flooring at 57–64 GHz , 2011, IEEE Antennas and Wireless Propagation Letters.

[29]  Katsuyuki Haneda,et al.  Simulating specular reflections for point cloud geometrical database of the environment , 2015, 2015 Loughborough Antennas & Propagation Conference (LAPC).

[30]  Katsuyuki Haneda,et al.  Indoor Propagation Channel Simulations at 60 GHz Using Point Cloud Data , 2016, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation.

[31]  Theodore S. Rappaport,et al.  In situ microwave reflection coefficient measurements for smooth and rough exterior wall surfaces , 1993, IEEE 43rd Vehicular Technology Conference.

[32]  V. Mikhnev,et al.  Complex permittivity of concrete in the frequency range 0.8 to 12 GHz , 2013, 2013 7th European Conference on Antennas and Propagation (EuCAP).

[33]  Takeshi Manabe,et al.  Measurements of reflection and transmission characteristics of interior structures of office building in the 60 GHz band , 1996, Proceedings of PIMRC '96 - 7th International Symposium on Personal, Indoor, and Mobile Communications.

[34]  Zhihong Ma,et al.  Permittivity determination using amplitudes of transmission and reflection coefficients at microwave frequency , 1999 .

[35]  Manuel Garcia Sanchez,et al.  Comparison of reflection mechanisms from smooth and rough surfaces at 62 GHz , 1999 .

[36]  V. Varadan,et al.  A free-space method for measurement of dielectric constants and loss tangents at microwave frequencies , 1989 .

[37]  Luis M. Correia,et al.  Estimation of materials characteristics from power measurements at 60 GHz , 1994, 5th IEEE International Symposium on Personal, Indoor and Mobile Radio Communications, Wireless Networks - Catching the Mobile Future..