A Directional FM Channel Model for Contemporary Wireless Systems

It is anticipated that the existing analog use of the frequency modulation (FM) band (87.5-108 MHz) will ultimately be replaced by contemporary digital systems beyond 3G. Before such a transition is realized, it is important to understand the channel characteristics of the FM band in order to perform preliminary studies before deployment of new systems. Hence, in this paper, for the FM band, we introduce a directional wireless channel model suitable for dense hilly terrain regions. The model is a modified version of the existing COST 259 for ~2 GHz. Physical modifications and new concepts are introduced in order to extend the existing models and to fit the characteristics of the FM band. With the introduced modifications, a directional channel model suitable for the FM band is developed. The new model is verified through comparisons with some existing measurements for the bands near the FM band and through simulations using Wireless Insite software, a commercially available radio-frequency ray tracing tool. With the developed model, it is anticipated that contemporary wireless systems considered to be operated in the FM band can be better assessed for their performance measures.