A versatile wave propagation model for the VHF/UHF range considering three-dimensional terrain

A polarimetric wave propagation model for field strength forecasting and coverage prediction in the VHF/UHF frequency range is presented. The model uses a digital terrain data bank and considers multipath propagation. Based on the uniform geometrical theory of diffraction (UTD) and physical optics an approach is described for calculating the propagation effects in natural 3-D terrain, given by topological and morphographical data. The method for field strength forecasting is described and methods for the analysis of the predicted multipath signal are discussed. It is shown how the complex probability density function (PDF) for the receiver field strength and the field strength delay spectrum can be derived. Methods for further evaluation of the transmitting channel characteristics are discussed