Enhancement of the Okumura-Hata propagation model using detailed morphological and building data

The enhancement of the empirical Okumura (1968) and Hata (1980) propagation model by using detailed morphological and building data is introduced. Two different ways to consider the morphological structure of the propagation environment in the model are presented. The first method considers the morphological structure within the path and is suitable for rural and suburban areas. The second method, which uses accurate building data instead of morphological data for urban areas, considers the building density, the building volume and the street orientation as parameters in the modified propagation model. Measurements to verify the model for rural and urban environments were performed. A comparison between the original model, the modified prediction model and the measurements reveals the enhancement of the modified prediction model. For the first method the standard deviation of the prediction error diminishes from 4.5 dB for the original model to 4 dB for the modified model. The range of the mean prediction error for all measurement routes taken in urban environments is reduced from 6.5 dB to 4.2 dB.