Efficient implementation of deterministic 3-D ray tracing model to predict propagation losses in indoor environments

This paper discusses an efficient implementation of deterministic ray tracing model for indoor wireless propagation. It is important to characterize the indoor propagation channel to ensure satisfactory performance of a wireless communication system. The ray tracing method is extremely effective in indoor environments for estimating the average propagation loss caused by severe multi path reflections. In this model the dominant rays are calculated using geometrical optics implemented by the method of images. Deterministic models are computationally expensive but provide accurate results, which become essential in indoor wireless site specific propagation modeling. A software package has been developed which performs 3-D ray tracing and calculates signal strength variations in a given wireless environment. To validate software results, experimentation at 836 MHz & 1 GHz was carried out in the building of Electrical Engineering Department at UET Lahore. Measured results were mostly found to be in close agreement with the calculated values, proving the validity of the implemented model.