A Cost-Effective Direct Magnitude Measurement Methodology for Smart Antennas

In this paper, a novel measurement methodology is presented for characterizing smart antennas prior to incorporation of the transceiver that includes forward-error correction (FEC) coding and modulation. Using this method, the signal-to-interference ratio (SIR) is plotted as a function of the separation angle between the desired signal and the interference according to different required link margins (RLMs). This parameter gives the system developers, network designers, and users a clear idea about whether a smart antenna will suit their wireless communication system. The radiation pattern of the smart antenna can also be obtained from the measured interference signal. A low-profile wideband electronically steerable parasitic array radiator (ESPAR) smart antenna is used for the comparison of the proposed method with the traditional method. Compared to traditional methods that measure smart antennas together with transceivers, the proposed method is simpler and can improve the measurement repeatability and reduce the measurement time.