In-vehicle WLAN radio-frequency communication characterization

Recently, new standards have emerged in the telecommunication industry, which provide an open global specification that enables mobile devices to access and interact with information and services instantly. These mobile devices are, for example, laptops and personal digital assistants. These emerging standards, generically called wireless "x" area networks (WxAN), will in the future be frequently operated from inside vehicles as part of the deployment of mobile offices and to support advanced intelligent transportation system services. These wireless networks currently operate between 1-6 GHz, although 60 GHz could be used when the technology will be economically viable. These mobile devices are frequently put to use in vehicles. To be ensure that portable equipment left in a jacket pocket somewhere in the trunk can interact with other car equipment or portable objects elsewhere in the car needs some investigation. Thus, this paper characterizes radio-frequency propagation inside vehicle bodies, with passengers, in order to evaluate the effectiveness of such a WxAN in vehicle environments.