A Generic Validation Framework for Wideband MIMO Channel Models

In this paper, a generic framework for validating wideband MIMO channel models based on channel measurement results is proposed. The framework is formulated as a series of continuous functions (metrics) and a definition of distance of continuous function space (degree of approximation). The metrics characterize the MIMO channel from different perspectives, and the distance provides a quantitative measure of the degree of approximation for the specified model. Several fundamental metrics which reflect the spatial multiplexing gain, diversity capability, time and frequency variability, are derived for exploring the frequency-selective fading property. Based on an extensive measurement campaign at 5.25 GHz, the propagation channel is reconstructed by a WINNER-like model. The metrics are calculated from both the model generated channel realizations and the measured impulse response as a demonstration. The proposed framework can be applied to compare different channel models and to evaluate the simplified version of channel models.