SCHOOL OF ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION ENGINEERING

UNIT – V – ANTENNA AND WAVE PROPAGATION- SECA1505

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UNIT V SMART ANTENNAS

Concepts and Benefits of Smart antennas - Fixed weight beamforming- Adaptive beamforming –
Design of Planar array antennas for Beamforming applications – Feed techniques for Planar arrays -
Role of Smart Antennas in Green Communications and 5G wireless communications –Software
Tools for Antenna Design and Analysis

5.1 Smart Antennas

Recently and over the last decade, the wireless and mobile technologies in addition to the new
and improved services have grown rapidly at exponential and formidable rate. In the evolution of
the modern telecommunication networks and multiple access systems, the employment of the
spatial processing approaches and techniques becomes essential according to the related
standards. The spatial processing is considered as the main idea behind the use of adaptive and
smart antennas, antenna arrays, beam forming algorithms, interference cancelation, bandwidth-
efficient signaling systems, and direction of arrival (DOA) estimation schemes (in the case of
non-blind beam forming).

Smart antenna system basically consists of multiple antennas or antenna arrays and digital signal
processing algorithms that are in charge of very important functions such as DOA estimation of
the signals. In general, the wireless communication systems development stages can be classified
based on the adopted technologies driven by the challenges of capacity demand and quality of
service (QoS) requirements. These stages are summarized as follows:

Omni-directional systems: with conventional cellular structure, frequency reuse (7 cells reuse
patterns), Omni-directional antenna types in the base station at the center of each cell.

Cell splitting and sectorized systems: smaller cells (micro-cells), cell sectoring with several
directional antennas in the base station.

Smart antenna systems : with dynamic cell sectorization, multiple antennas (antenna arrays),
innovative signal processing algorithms, and beam forming techniques (user location based beam
assignment).

The aforementioned smart antenna systems are widely implemented in two forms, namely, the
switched beam approach where the system can choose one of many predefined antenna beam
patterns (the antenna radiation or propagation pattern is defined as graphical representation of the
power variation and radiation properties of the antenna as a function of the direction and space
coordinates), and the adaptive array approach where the antenna adapts the radiation pattern
beams in real time in accordance with the radio environment.

The smart antennas systems achieve higher capacity increase in comparison with the switched
beam systems especially in the case of densely populated coverage areas and reduce more

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effectively the negative impacts of the interference. Additionally, there are more advantages that
can be counted in favor of adaptive array systems such as range increasing, security
enhancement (more difficult to tap any connection), and location-based services improvements
especially for emergency situations (spatial detection characteristics).

As in the case of any system or technology, some disadvantages or drawbacks of the smart
antenna systems are found like the complexity of transmitters and receivers design, the high
computation intensity with the need of powerful digital signal processors (DSPs), and the overall
system employment cost.

Advantages of Smart Antenna System

Numerous advantages of Smart Antenna System include:

 It improves the wireless system performance

 It is economic for a large range of potential users
 It increases in signal quality, capacity as well as the coverage
 It is now possible to multiple channels in spatial dimension

Disadvantages of Smart Antenna System

It comes with disadvantages along with the advantages mentioned above. They are:

 Smart Antenna System is complex in design

 Very expensive
 Larger size than traditional one
 Applications of Smart Antenna System
 It is efficiently used in cellular and wireless networks
 It is highly usable in radars
 Electronic warfare is used as a countermeasure to the electronic jamming
 It is used in the satellite systems

5.2 Fixed weight Beam forming:

Fixed beam forming generally describes a conventional technique where the antenna array
pattern is obtained from fixed element weights that do not depend on the signal environment.
Conventional beamformers, such as the Butler matrix, use a fixed set of weightings and time-
delays (or phasings) to combine the signals from the sensors in the array, primarily using only
information about the location of the sensors in space and the wave directions of interest. In
contrast, adaptive beamforming techniques (e.g., MUSIC, SAMV) generally combine this
information with properties of the signals actually received by the array, typically to improve
rejection of unwanted signals from other directions. This process may be carried out in either the
time or the frequency domain.

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5.3Antenna arrays
In many applications, it is necessary to design antennas with very directive characteristics (very
high gains) to meet demands for long distance communication. In general, this can only be
accomplished by increasing the electrical size of the antenna. Another effective way is to form an
assembly of radiating elements in a geometrical and electrical configuration, without necessarily
increasing the size of the individual elements. Such a multi element radiation device is defined as
an antenna array. The total electromagnetic field of an array is determined by vector addition of
the fields radiated by the individual elements, combined properly in both amplitude and phase.
Antenna arrays can be one-, two-, and three-dimensional. By using basic array geometries, the
analysis and synthesis of their radiation characteristics can be simplified. In an array of identical
elements, there are at least five individual controls (degrees of freedom) that can be used to
shape the overall pattern of the antenna. These are:
i. geometrical configuration of the overall array (linear, circular, rectangular,
spherical,etc.)
ii. relative displacement between the elements
iii. amplitude excitation of the individual elements
iv. phase excitation of the individual elements
v. relative pattern of the individual elements
5.4 Smart Antennas
Many refer to smart antenna systems as smart antennas, but in reality antennas by themselves are
not smart. It is the digital signal processing capability, along with the antennas, which make the
system smart. Although it may seem that smart antenna systems are a new technology, the
fundamental principles upon which they are based are not new. In fact, in the 1970s and1980s
two special issues of the IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation were devoted to
adaptive antenna arrays and associated signal processing techniques.
The use of adaptive antennas in communication systems initially attracted interest in military
applications. Particularly, the techniques have been used for many years in electronic warfare
(EWF) as counter measures to electronic jamming. In military radar systems, similar techniques
were already used during World War-II. However, it is only because of today’s advancement in
powerful low-cost digital signal processors, general-purpose processors and ASICs (Application
Specific Integrated Circuits), as well as innovative software-based signal processing techniques
(algorithms),that smart antenna systems are gradually becoming commercially available.
Need for Smart Antennas
Wireless communication systems, as opposed to their wire line counterparts, pose some unique
challenges:
i. the limited allocated spectrum results in a limit on capacity

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ii. the radio propagation environment and the mobility of users give rise to signal fading and
spreading in time, space and frequency
iii. The limited battery life at the mobile device poses power constraints
In addition, cellular wireless communication systems have to cope with interference due to
frequency reuse. Research efforts investigating effective technologies to mitigate such effects
have been going on for the past twenty five years, as wireless communications are experiencing
rapid growth. Among these methods are multiple access schemes, channel coding and
equalization and smart antenna employment.
Human auditory function and Smart Antenna System
The basic idea on which smart antenna systems were developed is most often introduced with a
simple intuitive example that correlates their operation with that of the human auditory system.
A person is able to determine the Direction of Arrival (DoA) of a sound by utilizing a three-stage
process:
 One’s ears act as acoustic sensors and receive the signal.
 Because of the separation between the ears, each ear receives the signal with a different
time delay.
 The human brain, a specialized signal processor, does a large number of calculations
tocorrelate information and computes the location of the received sound.
To better provide an insight of how a smart antenna system works, let us imagine two persons
carrying on a conversation inside an isolated room as illustrated in Fig. 5.1. The listener among
the two persons is capable of determining the location of the speaker as he moves about the room
because the voice of the speaker arrives at each acoustic sensor, the ear, at a different time. The
human “signal processor,” the brain, computes the direction of the speaker from the time
differences or delays received by the two ears. Afterward, the brain adds the strength of the
signals from each ear so as to focus on the sound of the computed direction.

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 Fig 5.1: Human auditory function.
Utilizing a similar process, the human brain is capable of distinguishing between multiple signals
that have different directions of arrival. Thus, if additional speakers join the conversation, the
brain is able to enhance the received signal from the speaker of interest and tune out unwanted
interferers. Therefore, the listener has the ability to distinguish one person’s voice, from among
many people talking simultaneously, and concentrate on one conversation at a time. In this way,
any unwanted interference is attenuated. Conversely, the listener can respond back to the same
direction of the desired speaker by orienting his/her transmitter, his/her mouth, toward the
speaker.
Smart antenna systems work the same way using two antennas instead of two ears, and a digital
signal processor instead of the brain as seen in Fig. 5.2.

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 Fig 5.2. A two-element electrical smart antenna

Thus, based on the time delays due to the impinging signals onto the antenna elements, the
digital signal processor computes the direction-of-arrival (DOA) of the signal-of-interest (SOI),
and then it adjusts the excitations (gains and phases of the signals) to produce a radiation pattern
that focuses on the SOI while tuning out any interferers or signals-not-of-interest
(SNOI).Transferring the same idea to mobile communication systems, the base station plays the
role of the listener, and the active cellular telephones simulate the role of the several sounds
heard by human ears. The principle of a smart antenna system is illustrated in Fig. 5.3.
A digital signal processor located at the base station works in conjunction with the antenna array
and is responsible for adjusting various system parameters to filter out any interferers or signals-
not-of-interest (SNOI) while enhancing desired communication or signals-of-interest (SOI).
Thus, the system forms the radiation pattern in an adaptive manner, responding dynamically to
the signal environment and its alterations. The principle of beam forming is essentially to weight
the transmit signals in such a way that the receiver obtains a constructive superposition of
different signal parts. Note that some knowledge of the transmission channel at the transmitter is
necessary in order for beam forming to be feasible.
5.5 Smart Antenna Configurations
Basically, there are two major configurations of smart antennas:
 Switched-Beam: A finite number of fixed, predefined patterns or combining strategies
(sectors).
 Adaptive Array: A theoretically infinite numbers of patterns (scenario-based) that are
adjusted in real time according to the spatial changes of SOIs and SNOIs.
In the presence of a low level interference, both types of smart antennas provide
significant gains over the conventional sectorized systems. However, when a high level
interference is present, the interference rejection capability of the adaptive systems provides
significantly more coverage than either the conventional or switched beam system.
5.5.1 Switched-Beam Antennas
A switched-beam system is the simplest smart antenna technique. It forms multiple fixed beams
with heightened sensitivity in particular directions. Such antenna system detects signal strength,
chooses from one of several predetermined fixed beams, and switches from one beam to another
as the cellular phone moves throughout the sector, as illustrated in Fig.5.3.

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 Fig.5.3: switched-beam coverage pattern
The switched-beam, which is based on a basic switching function, can select the beam that gives
the strongest received signal. By changing the phase differences of the signals used to feed the
antenna elements or received from them, the main beam can be driven indifferent directions
throughout space. Instead of shaping the directional antenna pattern, the switched-beam systems
combine the outputs of multiple antennas in such a way as to form narrow sectorized
(directional) beams with more spatial selectivity that can be achieved with conventional, single-
element approaches. Other sources in the literature define this concept as phased array or multi-
beam antenna. Such a configuration consists of a number of fixed beams either with one beam
turned on toward the desired signal or a single beam that is steered toward the desired signal.
A more generalized to the Switched-Lobe concept is the Dynamical Phased Array (DPA). In this
concept, a direction of arrival (DOA) algorithm is embedded in the system. The DOA is first
estimated and then different parameters in the system are adjusted in accordance with the desired
steering angle. In this way, the received power is maximized but with the trade-off of more
complicated antenna designs. The elements used in these arrays must be connected to the sources
and/or receivers by feed networks.
One of the most widely-known multiple beamforming networks is the Butler matrix. It is a
linear, passive feeding, N × N network with beam steering capabilities for phased array antennas
with N outputs connected to antenna elements and N inputs or beam ports. The Butler matrix
performs a spatial fast Fourier transform and provides N orthogonal beams, where N should be
an integer power of 2 (i.e. N = 2n, n ∈Z+)]. These beams are linear independent combinations of
the array element patterns. A Butler matrix-fed array can cover a sector of up to 360◦ depending
on element patterns and spacing. Each beam can be used by a dedicated transmitter and/or

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receiver and the appropriate beam can be selected using an RF switch. A Butler matrix can also
be used to steer the beam of a circular array by exciting the Butler matrix beam ports with
amplitude and phase weighted inputs followed by a variable uniform phase taper. The only
required transmit/receive chain combines alternate rows of hybrid junctions (or directional
couplers) and fixed phase shifters. Fig. 5.4 shows a schematic diagram of a 4 × 4 Butler matrix.
A total of (N/2) × log2N hybrids and (N/2) × log2(N − 1) fixed phase shifters are required to form
the network. The hybrids can be either 90◦ or 180◦ 3 dB hybrids, depending on if the beams are
to be symmetrical distributed about the broadside or whether one of the beams is to be in the
broadside direction. A Butler matrix serves two functions:
 distribution of RF signals to radiating antenna elements and
 orthogonal beam forming and beam steering.
By connecting a Butler matrix between an antenna array and an RF switch, multiple beam
forming can be achieved by exciting two or more beam ports with RF signals at the same time. A
signal introduced at an input port will produce equal excitations at all output ports with a
progressive phase between them, resulting in a beam radiated at a certain angle in space. A signal
at another input port will form a beam in another direction, achieving beam steering.
If ports 1R and 4L are excited at the same time with RF signals of equal amplitude and phase,
beams 2R and 3L will radiate simultaneously. Although multiple beam forming is possible, there
is a limitation. Two adjacent beams cannot be formed simultaneously as they will add to produce
a single beam.

Fig. 5.4 a schematic diagram of a 4 × 4 butler matrix.

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 Fig.5. 8 orthogonal beams formed by an 8 × 8 butler matrix.
5.5.2Adaptive Antenna Approach
The adaptive antenna systems approach communication between a user and a base station in a
different way by adding the dimension of space. By adjusting to the RF environment as it
changes (or the spatial origin of signals), adaptive antenna technology can dynamically alter the
signal patterns to optimize the performance of the wireless system.
Adaptive array systems provide more degrees of freedom since they have the ability to adapt in
real time the radiation pattern to the RF signal environment; in other words, they can direct the
main beam toward the pilot signal or SOI while suppressing the antenna pattern in the direction
of the interferers or SNOIs. To put it simply, adaptive array systems can customize an
appropriate radiation pattern for each individual user. Fig. 5.6 illustrates the general idea of an
adaptive antenna system.

Fig. 5.6: adaptive array coverage

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The adaptive concept is far superior to the performance of a switched-beam system. Adaptive
array systems can locate and track signals (users and interferers) and dynamically adjust the
antenna pattern to enhance reception while minimizing interference using signal processing
algorithms .A functional block diagram of the digital signal processing part of an adaptive array
antenna system is shown in Fig. 5.7.

FIGURE 5.7: Functional block diagram of an adaptive array system.

After the system down converts the received signals to baseband and digitizes them, it locates the
SOI using the direction-of-arrival (DOA) algorithm, and it continuously tracks the SOI and
SNOIs by dynamically changing the complex weights (amplitudes and phases of the antenna
elements). Basically, the DOA computes the direction-of-arrival of all the signals by computing
the time delays between the antenna elements, and afterward, the adaptive algorithm, using a
cost function, computes the appropriate weights that result in an optimum radiation pattern.
Because adaptive arrays are generally more digital processing intensive and require a complete
RF portion of the transceiver behind each antenna element, they tend to be more expensive than
switched-beam systems.
Adaptive arrays utilize sophisticated signal-processing algorithms to continuously distinguish
between desired signals, multipath, and interfering signals, as well as calculate their Directions
of Arrival (DOA). This approach updates its transmit strategy continuously based on changes in
both the desired and interfering signal locations. A number of well-documented algorithms exist
for estimating the DOA; for example, MUSIC, ESPRIT, or SAGE. These algorithms make use of

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a data matrix with the array snapshots collected within the coherence time of the channel. In
essence, spatial processing dynamically creates a different sector for each user and conducts a
frequency/channel allocation in an ongoing manner in real time. Fig. 5.8 illustrates the beams of
a fully adaptive antenna system supporting two users.

Fig 5.8: fully adaptive spatial processing supporting two users on the same conventional channel

In adaptive beam forming techniques, two main strategies are distinguished. The first one is
based on the assumption that part of the desired signal is already known through the
simultaneously in the same cell use of a training sequence. This known signal is then compared
with what is received, and the weights are then adjusted to minimize the Mean Square Error
(MSE) between the known and the received signals. In this way, the beam pattern can be
adjusted to null the interferers. This approach optimizes the signal-to-interference ratio (SIR),
and is applicable to non-line-of-sight (NLOS) environments. Since the weights are updated
according to the incoming signals, not only the interference is reduced but the multipath fading is
also mitigated. In the second one, the directions of arrivals from all sources transmitting signals
to the array antenna are first identified.
The complex weights are then adjusted to produce a maximum toward the desired angle and null
toward interfering signals. This strategy may turn out to be deficient in practical scenarios where
there are too many DOAs due to multipath, and the algorithms are more likely to fail in properly
detecting them. This is more likely to occur in NLOS environments where there are many local
scatterers close to the users and the base station, thus resulting in wider spread of the angle of
arrival.
Another significant advantage of the adaptive antenna systems is the ability to share spectrum.
Because of the accurate tracking and robust interference rejection capabilities, multiple users can

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share the same conventional channel within the same cell. System capacity increases through
lower inter-cell frequency reuse patterns as well as intra-cell frequency reuse. Fig. 5.9 shows
how adaptive antenna approach can be used to support simultaneously two users in the same cell
on the same conventional channel.
In each of the two plots, the pattern on the left is used to communicate with the user on the left
while the pattern on the right is used to talk with the user on the right. The drawn lines delineate
the actual direction of each signal. Notice that as the signals travel down the indicated line
toward the base station, the signal from the right user arrives at a null of the left pattern or
minimum gain point and vice versa. As the users move, beam patterns are constantly updated to
insure these positions. The plot at the bottom of the figure shows how the beam patterns have
dynamically changed to insure maximum signal quality as one user moves toward the other.
5.6 Architecture of a Smart Antenna System
Any wireless system can be separated to its reception and transmission parts. Because of the
advanced functions in a smart antennas system, there is a greater need for better co-operation
between its reception and transmission parts.
Smart Antenna Receiver
Fig. 5.9 shows schematically the block diagram of the reception part of a wireless system
employing a smart antenna with M elements. In addition to the antenna itself, it contains a radio
unit, a beam forming unit, and a signal processing unit.

Fig. 5.9 reception part of a smart antenna

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The number of elements in the array should be relatively low (the minimum required), in order to
avoid unnecessarily high complexity in the signal processing unit. Array antenna scan be one-,
two-, and three-dimensional, depending on the dimension of space one wants to access.
Fig. 5.10 shows different array geometries that can be applied in adaptive antennas
implementations. The first structure is used primarily for beam forming in the horizontal plane
(azimuth) only. This will normally be sufficient for outdoor environments; at least in large cells.
The first example (a) shows a one-dimensional linear array with uniform element spacing of Δx.
Such a structure can perform beam forming in one plane within an angular sector. This is the
most common structure due to its low complexity. The second example (b) shows a circular
array with uniform angular spacing between adjacent elements of Δϕ= 2π/N, where N represents
the number of elements. This structure can perform beam forming in any direction but, because
of its symmetry, is more appropriate for azimuthal beam forming.

Fig 5.10: different uniform array geometries for smart antennas

The last two structures are used to perform two-dimensional beam forming, i.e. in both azimuthal
and elevation angles .Such specifications are usually desirable for indoor or dense urban
environments. The front view of a two-dimensional rectangular array with horizontal element
spacing of Δx and vertical element spacing of Δyis shown in (c). Beamforming in the entire
space, within all angles, requires some sort of cubic or spherical structure (three-dimensional

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configuration). The fourth example (d) shows a cubic structure with element separations of Δx,
Δy, and Δz, respectively, in each direction in space.
The radio unit consists of down-conversion chains and (complex) analog-to-digital conversion
(A/D). There must be M down-conversion chains, one for each of the array elements. The
received signals from the mobile units are combined into one, which is the input to the remaining
part of the receiver (amplifier, channel decoding, etc.).Based on the received signal, the signal-
processing unit calculates the complex weightsw1 ,w2, . . . , wM with which they received signal
from each of the array elements is multiplied. These weights will determine the antenna pattern
in the uplink direction.
The estimate of the weights can be optimized using one of the two main criteria depending on
the application and complexity:
a. Maximization of the power of the received signal from the desired user (e.g., switched
beam or phased array), or
b. Maximization of the SIR by suppressing the signal received from the interference sources
(adaptive array).
In theory, with M antenna elements, (M–1) sources of interference can be “nulled out”, but this
number will normally be lower due to the multipath propagation environment. The method for
calculating the weights differs depending on the type of optimization criterion. When the
switched-beam (SB) is used, the receiver will test all the predefined weight vectors
(corresponding to the beam set) and choose the best one giving the strongest received signal
level.
If the phased array approach (PA) is used, which consists of directing a maximum gain beam
toward the strongest signal component, the weights are calculated after the direction-of-arrival
(DOA) is first estimated. In the adaptive array approach (AA), where maximization of SIR is
needed, the optimum weight vector (of dimension M) wopt can be computed using a number of
algorithms such as optimum combining and others.
When the beam forming is done digitally (after A/D), the beam forming and signal processing
units can normally be integrated in the same unit (Digital Signal Processor, DSP).
Smart Antenna Transmitter
Normally the adaptive process is applied to the uplink/reception only (from the mobile to the
base station). In that case the mobile unit consumes less transmission power, and the operational
time of the battery is extended. However, the benefits of adaptation are very limited, if no beam
forming is applied in the downlink transmission (from the base station to the mobile). In
principle, the methods used in the uplink can be carried over the downlink. The transmission part
of a smart antenna system is schematically similar to its reception part as shown in Fig. 5.11.The
signal is split into N branches, which are weighted by the complex weights
w1,w2, . . . , wN in the lobe-forming unit. The signal-processing unit calculates suitably the
weights, which form the radiation pattern in the downlink direction. The radio unit consists of

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D/A converters and the up-converter chains. In practice, some components, such as the antennas
themselves and the DSP, will be the same as in reception.
The principal difference between uplink and downlink is that since there are no smart antennas
applied to the user terminals (mobile stations), there is only limited knowledge of the Channel
State Information(CSI) available. Therefore, the optimum beamforming in downlink is difficult
and the same performance as the uplink cannot be achieved.

Fig. 5.11: transmission part of a smart antenna.

5.7 Benefits and Drawbacks of Smart Antennas

The introduction of smart antennas is expected to have a large impact on the performance of
cellular communications networks. It will also affect many aspects of both the planning and
deployment of mobile systems. The great interest in smart antennas is the increase in capacity
and range. In densely populated areas the main source of noise is the interference from other
users. The deployment of adaptive arrays is to simultaneously increase the useful received signal
level and lower the interference level, thus providing significant improvement in the Signal to
Interference Ratio (SIR).
Another added advantage of smart antenna systems is security. In a society that becomes more
dependent on conducting business and distributing personal information, security is an important
issue. Smart antennas make it more difficult to tap a connection because the intruder must be

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positioned in the same direction as the user as “seen” from the base station to successfully tap a
connection.
Finally, due to the spatial detection nature of smart antenna systems, the network will have
access to spatial information about users. This information may be exploited in estimating the
positions of the users much more accurately than in existing networks. Consequently, exact
positioning can be used in services to locate humans in case of emergency calls or for any other
location-specific service.
Although the benefits of using smart antennas are considered many, there also exist some
important drawbacks. A smart antenna transceiver is much more complicated than a traditional
base station transceiver. Separate transceiver chains are needed for each of the array antenna
elements and accurate real-time calibration of each of them is required.
Moreover, adaptive beam forming is a computationally intensive process; thus the smart antenna
base station must include very powerful numeric processors and control systems.
5.8 Role of smart antennas in 5G wireless communication

A smart antenna system combines multiple antenna elements with a signal- processing
capability to optimize its radiation and/or reception pattern automatically in response to the
signal environment. Smart antennas will improve 5G coverage and optimize capacity by
focusing RF signals where they are needed the most. In addition, smart antennas enhance 5G
application and service mobility by facilitating a more continuous connection, which may
become particularly useful at 5G coverage.

Key elements of the 5G NR infrastructure are the active antenna arrays, allowing multi-user
MIMO technologies. These antenna modules use beam forming for targeted radio contact with
the receiver. Simulation of a 5G massive MIMO array antenna in a network environment. 5G
will use 'massive' MIMO (multiple input, multiple output) antennas that have very large numbers
of antenna elements or connections to send and receive more data simultaneously. ... The overall
physical size of the 5G base station antenna is expected to be similar to a 4G base station
antenna.

5G cellular networks promise to improve many aspects of wireless communications, supporting

enhanced mobile services, greater scalability for IoT systems, and ultra-reliable communications
for mission-critical applications. A portion of these benefits will be based on the evolution of 4G
LTE technologies as well as unique capabilities enabled by 5G New Radio, or 5GNR, based on
new infrastructure supporting mm Wave RAN equipment.

5G will provide ultra-low latency (less than 1 millisecond delay) required for certain portable or
mobile apps and services such as industrial automation, robotics, haptic Internet, and virtual
reality. This will enable portability/mobility for many previously tethered-only applications and

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services such as streaming 4K video, real-time remote control, haptic communications, and
more.

Fig. 5.12: architecture

Smart Antennas use a few key technologies to improve 5G capacity and coverage. One such
technology is beam forming in which RF energy is focused in a narrow beam to exactly where it
is needed rather than emanating the same energy in a broad area. Beamforming is especially
useful for 5GNR as the higher frequency mm Wave RF is subject to fading over distance and
attenuation loss caused by hitting objects (buildings, cars, foliage, etc.). A more directed beam of
RF energy helps to ensure a greater probability of optimal bandwidth and signal quality.
However, it is important to note that line of sight is still an issue as beamforming advantages are
diminished with attenuation.

Another technology leveraged is multiple antennas (e.g., antenna arrays), which use Multiple
Input/Multiple Output (MIMO) at both the source (transmitter) and the destination (receiver) to
improve signal quality. This is in contrast to non-array systems in which a single antenna (and
signal path) is used at the source and the destination. MIMO/MIMO is advantageous as multiple
signal paths can compensate for attenuation. A given path may experience signal gain while
another attenuates or is blocked altogether. Optimal signals will change frequently during the
course of a given 5G data or voice connection, meaning that the best signal will change from
antenna to antenna in an antenna array.

5G systems will also need Smart Antennas to optimize coverage, mobility, and minimize the
need for hand-over from 5G to 4G RAN. Smart Antennas are useful to optimize LTE, but they
are absolutely necessary to provide mobility support for many new and enhanced 5G apps and
services such as virtual reality, self-driving cars, connected vehicles, and Voice over 5G. Physics
dictates that higher frequencies need more power and/or more coverage as an RF signal fades
more than a lower frequency signal. This is why there will need to be at least an order of
magnitude more antennas than required for LTE. Putting this into perspective, the US will go
from roughly 30,000 antennas to 300,000 or more nationally.

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Smart Antennas for 5G will improve coverage and optimize capacity by focusing RF signals
where they are needed the most. In addition, Smart Antennas enhance 5G application and service
mobility by facilitating a more continuous connection, which may become particularly useful at
5G coverage seams. Otherwise, a 5G enabled user experience may degrade as hand-over from
5G to LTE occurs.

5.9 Smart-Antennas-Supported 5G Application Use Cases

There are many 5G-enabled applications that will benefit from Smart Antennas, many of which
require ultra-reliability and ultra-low latency. Mind Commerce 5G smart antenna market
research points towards 4 application use case areas that will benefit greatly from Smart Antenna
operation: public safety, robotics, connected vehicles, and drones. In addition, the market
research firm sees Smart Antennas used most frequently in an urban environment and critical for
support of many Smart City solutions.

Applications

1.Mission Critical Communications

The public safety community increasingly relies upon IP-based solutions for first responder
(ambulance, police, and fire) and dispatch communications as well as overall coordination in the
event of a disaster. Accordingly, the market for mission critical public safety related
communications is rapidly developing as developing technologies supply solutions necessary to
meet emerging demand for improved voice, data, and machine-oriented communications.

2. Industrial Automation and Robotics

Robotics is increasingly used to improve enterprise, industrial, and military automation. In

addition, robots are finding their way into more consumer use cases as the general public’s
concerns fade and acceptance grows in terms of benefits versus risks. Emerging areas for
industrial robotics include robotics-as-a-service, cloud robotics, autonomous robotics, and
general-purpose robotics. 5GNR will provide the bandwidth, reliability, and low-latency
necessary to allow various industries to leverage the next phase of robotics evolution.

3. Self-Driving Vehicles

Connected vehicles leverage many different wireless communications technologies including

WiFi, Satellite, LTE, and soon 5G. Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) refers to a vehicle’s ability to
communicate with other vehicles, infrastructure (traffic signals, buildings, kiosks/billboards,
parking lots, etc.), and even pedestrians. V2X will benefit greatly from 5GNR as dramatically
improved bandwidth and latency improvements enhance existing solutions and enable new

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applications. Self-driving vehicles require high-capacity, low-latency communications for safe
operation.

5.10 Software tools for antenna design and analysis

1. HFSS(High Frequency Structure Simulator)

HFSS, which is an acronym for high frequency structural simulator, is one of the most advanced
3D EM software that is commonly used in antenna design and for the design of complex RF
electronic circuits. IT bases its design and analysis method on the Finite Element Method. Ansys
HFSS is a commercial finite element method solver for electromagnetic structures from Ansys.
HFSS is one of several commercial tools used for antenna design, and the design of complex
radio frequency electronic circuit elements including filters, transmission lines, and packaging.

2. CST Studio Suite

Antenna Magus is a software tool to help accelerate the antenna design and modelling process. It
increases efficiency by helping the engineer to make a more informed choice of antenna element,
providing a good starting design tuned to the specifications of the application.

3. FEKO

FEKO is a method of Moment (MoM) tool that can be used to calculate the impedance, radiation
pattern and gain of an antenna while mounted on a defined geometry. In addition, it can calculate
the isolation or mutual coupling S12 between pairs of antennas, the near fields around an antenna
and the electric currents that flow on an antenna or the surrounding structure.

4. IE 3D

Method of moment based electromagnetic simulator IE3D was used for parametric calculation
and optimization of proposed patch antenna design.

5. Advanced Design System (ADS)

ADS is used for circuit co simulations where active components are also involved. It can be used
for planar antennas as well and is based upon MoM (Method of Moment). With the aid of
simulation, electromagnetic analysis in the design flow of electronic circuits is essential to
avoiding expensive reworks. Achieving precise designs requires the consideration of physical
properties, multiple technologies, interactions, and packaging that only EM modeling and
simulation can provide.

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TEXT / REFERENCE BOOKS
1. K.D.Prasad, “Antennas and Wave Propagation”, 3rd Edition, Satya Prakasan, New Delhi, 2003.
2. R.L. Yadava, “Antennas and Wave Propagation”, 2nd Edition, PHI Learning Private Limited, New
Delhi, 2011.
3. Balanis C.A., “Antenna Theory and Design”, 4th Edition, John Wiley & Sons, 2016.
4. Jordan E.C., Balmain, K.G., “Electromagnetic Waves and Radiating Systems”, 2nd Edition, Prentice Hall
of India, 2006.
5. Collin R.E., “Antennas and Radio Wave Propagation”, McGraw Hill, 1985.

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