GPS World

Tag: over-the-air

  • Spirent GNSS simulator now integrated with MVG over-the-air test systems

    Spirent GNSS simulator now integrated with MVG over-the-air test systems

    Spirent Communications announced that the Spirent GSS7000 GNSS simulator has been integrated into Microwave Vision Group (MVG) over-the-air (OTA) and passive antenna test systems.

    MVG, an antenna measurement solutions company, enables the characterization and evaluation of antennas for testing wireless connectivity, reliability, and standards compliance. MVG near-field test systems perform fast and accurate measurements for OTA tests of antennas designed for satellite communications and other GNSS-enabled products, systems, and networks.

    As connectivity in industries such as automotive, aviation and military becomes ever more sophisticated, the need to ensure that all the pieces of technology work together in the way they should increases. The integration of Spirent into MVG test systems enables R&D engineers to incorporate the antenna and the vehicle in a test environment that represents the real-world signal environment as closely as possible while maintaining full control and repeatability.

    “Our integration into MVG over-the-air test systems, such as the multi-probe SG24 or StarLab, delivers a cutting-edge testing solution, helping to accelerate the development of next-generation products and systems,”  says Adam Price, VP of PNT Simulation at Spirent.

  • Rohde & Schwarz and Bluetest partner on A-GNSS OTA antenna testing

    Rohde & Schwarz and Bluetest partner on A-GNSS OTA antenna testing

    Testing the antenna performance of GNSS signals such as GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo and Metropolitan Beacon Systems (MBS) is key to location accuracy performance of a mobile device.

    To address the testing need for A-GNSS services, Rohde & Schwarz and Bluetest are partnering in creating test concepts for over-the-air (OTA) antenna measurements.

    The CMW500 wideband radio communication tester. (Photo: Rohde & Schwarz)
    The CMW500 wideband radio communication tester. (Photo: Rohde & Schwarz)

    The two companies integrate the R&S LBS Server, a software component running on the R&S CMW500 wideband radio communication tester, and the Bluetest OTA test solution for A-GNSS systems based on Bluetest’s RTS65 reverberation chamber and Bluetest’s Flow measurement software.

    In the test setup, the R&S LBS Server controls the Rohde & Schwarz base-station simulator R&S CMW500 for LTE, WCDMA and GSM, and uses the R&S SMBV100B vector signal generator for simulation of GNSS and MBS signals.

    A simple and straightforward upgrade of the setup for 5G will be available soon, making sure that investments are protected and most relevant standards can be tested with the same system.

    The R&S LBS Server is an essential part of the R&S TS8991 OTA Performance Test System. This cooperation between Rohde & Schwarz and Bluetest marks the first time that the R&S LBS Server, used here as a software tool on R&S CMW500, is available also for third parties.

    “We are delighted to collaborate with Bluetest to contribute with our test and measurement expertise to OTA 4G/3G/GSM and GNSS technology development,” said Alexander Pabst, vice president, Systems and Projects at Rohde & Schwarz. “With a strong global footprint for location based services LBS and close cooperation with partners, Rohde & Schwarz is committed to accompanying the evolution path from OTA testing for GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou and Galileo with innovative test and measurement solutions.”

    “The addition of A-GNSS measurements means that the full range of wireless technology in a modern cellular device can be verified with just one test solution,” said Robert Rehammar, Bluetest CTO. “Bluetest has enjoyed the close cooperation with Rohde & Schwarz on this project, leading to a very strong joint solution and customer offering.”

  • IZT Solutions’ over-the-air system tests GNSS receiver performance

    German research organization Fraunhofer Gesellschaft has developed and presented an over-the-air (OTA) wave-field synthesis system for test and certification of GNSS receivers. The testing platform is at its Fraunhofer IIS Facility for Over the Air Research and Testing (FORTE) in Ilmenau, Germany.

    The innovative and complex OTA test system is based on hardware and software solutions from IZT GmbH, such as powerful RF receivers and high-performance signal generators.

    The demonstrated setup to test GNSS receivers represents a new approach that — in contrast to conventional conducted and open-field tests — realistically emulates real-world scenarios under controllable and repeatable conditions, enabling the realistic comparison of receivers and algorithms. The OTA test system is cost-effective, flexible and scalable.

    The newest generations of mobile communication systems employ multiple antennas for transmission and reception, such as LTE, LTE-A, WIMAX and Wireless LAN. Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) OTA test systems are typically deployed for certification, performance testing and product evaluation of broadband wireless devices. The related devices have to be tested in their related environments.

    In contrast to mobile phones, GNSS receivers are extremely susceptible to all types of interference. Hence, the goal was to develop a new testing method for interference robustness of GNSS receivers.

    The OTA Test Approach

    The OTA test laboratory comprises a satellite signal emulator (Spirent) used as signal source, several OTA channel emulators used for wave-field synthesis that are able to emulate any electromagnetic environment in an anechoic chamber, and several OTA illumination antennas. The OTA channel emulators from IZT GmbH support 8 input and 32 phase coherent output channels (up to 256 logical channels) in the frequency range of 1 to 6 GHz, and provide the output signals to the OTA illumination antennas. Note that the final extension of the system based on the IZT components will have 12 x 32 channels.

    The unique test environment developed at FORTE together with IZT GmbH excels in its great flexibility regarding possible applications in communications technology. The new OTA emulation approach enables realistic radio channel emulation taking into consideration multipath propagation, multi-frequency, and multi-user scenarios.

    The OTA system supports emulation of complex channel impulse responses of nearly unlimited length. Besides GNSS equipment, the test system can be applied for LTE and Cognitive Radio (CR), sensor networks (including energy networks and smart metering) or car-to-car and car-to-infrastructure communications.

    The Innovationszentrum für Telekommunikationstechnik GmbH IZT is a spin-off of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, Germany’s leading institution for applied research. Founded in 1997 in Erlangen, the company emanated from the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits (IIS). It specializes in advanced digital signal processing and field programmable gate array (FPGA) designs in combination with high-frequency and microwave technology.