Smart Antenna Basics

Smart antenna has become due to its tremendous potential to enhance performance of the nect generation wireless communication systems such as Mobile WiMAX, LTE, LTE advanced and WLAN. In this page we will cover smart antenna basics, types, applications and smart antenna advantages.

There are two basic types of smart antennas viz. phased array and adaptive antenna array.

Phased array type consists of either number of fixed beams with one beam switched on towards desired signal or a single beam which is steered toward the desired signal. It is also referred as multibeam antenna.

The other type of smart antenna is adaptive antenna array. It is an array of multiple antenna elements in which received signals are weighted and combined to maximize the desired SINR. This puts main beam in the direction of desired signal and nulls in the direction of interference. This smart antenna type adjusts to the environment. The beam is steered as desired and also beam pattern is changed as per requirement of the user.

Future wireless systems are developed for higher data rate and more coverage limits. This is achieved with the help of MIMO and beamforming techniques. The smart antenna concept helps in achieving better coverage by enhancing the signal strength in the desired direction.

Smart Antenna Advantages

•  Higher Gain for desired signal in the direction of interest.

•  Phased array smart antenna reduces probability of interference with narrower beam and adaptive array adjust the beam pattern to suppress the interference.

•  It also helps in multipath mitigation which supports three types of antenna diversity viz. spatial, polarization and angle diversity.

Smart Antenna Applications

Phased array antenna type is mainly targetted for point to point wireless systems for example wireless local loops. They are also used for macrocellular Base Stations.

Adaptive antenna arrays are used for indoor systems where in received signals arrive via widely separetd paths. It is used where phased array smart antenna does not provide needed gain.


Beamforming smart antenna design using FPGA

The following pdf covers beamforming smart antenna design using FPGA. It covers smart antenna design, adaptive beam forming, adaptive algorithm, QRD RLS algorithm and more.




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