Channel Measurement Equipment for mobile propagation channel: Measurements in a hybrid DVB-SH pilot network

Advanced communication and broadcasting systems use heavily diversity techniques to improve service availability. To analyze the performance of systems using techniques such as time diversity or time interleaving, antenna diversity and angle diversity, a detailed knowledge of the channel characteristics is essential. Especially the statistical analysis and the evaluation of the slow fading effect become more important. The Channel Measurement Equipment presented in this paper is a tool for the analysis of waveform topologies and diversity techniques used in general hybrid satellite and terrestrial systems. The equipment was developed in the frame of the ARTES Programme of the European Space Agency. It helps to verify the performance of mobile satellite systems during the system deployment phase and to perform an early validation of the user terminals using multi-antenna configurations. As such, the Channel Measurement Equipment will leverage the position of European industry to design new mobile satellite systems. This paper describes the main characteristics of the Channel Measurement Equipment and the associated methodology for carrying out field experiments. As a firsthand application, a measurement campaign carried out in the DVB-SH pilot network in Erlangen (Germany) is described. Initial results on the characteristics of antenna diversity and the influence of UMTS signals on DVB-SH systems are presented.