Will my radio send my message?
Let's say I want to install a radio link.
First things come into mind such as:
- How much output power for the radio?
- Distance from transmitter
- How much line of sight there is
etc.
At the moment, I do not know which factors are important for my application. Is there a way to study each parameter before committing to an installation?
Simulation vs field tests are two methods available:
Simulation such as online tools provide a good indication through adjusting various parameters easily. If you were worried about, for example, RF power and range, you can test this easily.
For example:
Propagation across space allows you to see the correlation between signal level and distance from transmitter.
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Okumura Hata curves show how radio waves travel in different environments.
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Field tests are actual tests using real radio modules. With just a laptop and evaluation board, it is easy to perform tests, obtain real measurements such as seeing vacant channels and how much signal to noise ratio is available.
You can even carry out a real communication link test.
The above methods all have their own merits and de-merits and both should be used appropriately depending on application. To discover more about how they can benefit you, please click the following link.