Indoor Propagation

The workflow for a typical indoor propagation simulation is to use WallMan to create the geometry, Feko or AMan to produce the antenna pattern and ProMan to simulate the model and view the results.

For a typical indoor propagation simulation, the steps are as follows:
  1. Use WallMan to produce the geometry database.

    This can be done by creating it from scratch (possibly by drawing it with the aid of an existing bitmap) or by converting it from another source, making modifications if needed, and saving it in WinProp format.

    Optionally, an indoor database can be pre-processed in WallMan to establish visibility relations for ray-tracing, to avoid repetitive work during the actual ray-tracing later in ProMan.
    Note: File extensions for WallMan indoor databases are .idb1.
    Figure 1. Office building being drawn in WallMan with the aid of a bitmap.


  2. Use Feko or AMan to produce the antenna pattern.
    For actual antenna design and simulation, Feko (part of the Altair HyperWorks Products) can be used. Feko can export antenna patterns in the correct format to be used by ProMan.
    Note: Files with 3D antenna patterns have extension .ffe, .apa2 or .apb3.

    AMan is not an antenna simulator. Instead, it is a tool that enables you to produce an antenna pattern in WinProp format. The pattern may be converted from another source. AMan can also generate an approximate 3D antenna pattern in cases where only two 2D pattern cuts are available.

    Figure 2. Antenna pattern of a WLAN router exported from Feko and displayed in AMan.


  3. Start a new indoor propagation project in ProMan based on the database produced in WallMan. The key menu in ProMan is Project > Edit Project Parameter. This brings up a window with multiple tabs, specific to the simulation of interest, where many simulation parameters are specified.
    Figure 3. The key menu in ProMan is Project > Edit Project Parameter ....


    In this menu, you also select the simulation method. The multi-wall method is fast, but may under-estimate power levels far from the transmitter, after the signal has travelled through many walls. Of the more-rigorous methods, the dominant path model is recommended for pure coverage studies without multipath effects, while standard ray-tracing or intelligent ray-tracing is recommended in case the temporal or angular properties of the radio channel are of interest.
  4. Run the simulation in ProMan through the Computation menu or click the RUN PRO button.
    Figure 4. Click the RUN PRO button to run the simulation.


  5. Inspect the results in the same ProMan interface. Expand the tree on the left if necessary to access the results.
    Figure 5. Example of indoor propagation results.


1 indoor database binary
2 antenna pattern ASCII
3 antenna pattern binary