Measurements and Characterization of Ultra Wideband Propagation Channels in a Passenger-Car Compartment

Ultra wideband (UWB) signal propagation was measured and characterized in comparison with narrowband in a passenger-car compartment, to accommodate a design of new wireless devices for the safety and comfort of passengers. Spatial distributions of UWB and narrowband path gain, delay profiles, and delay spreads within the compartment were derived from frequency-domain responses (from 3.1 to 10.6 GHz) measured with a vector network analyzer. Whereas narrowband channels resulted in a number of dead spots (deep fading points), UWB yielded none, though some frequency dispersion was inevitable. Fading depth versus occupied bandwidth was also derived, which indicated superiority of UWB over narrowband systems from the viewpoint of link budget. Comparison with two other environments was also made in the received energy contained in a given number of multipath components