Modeling environmental effects on directionality in wireless networks

One method for improving wireless network throughput involves using directional antennas to increase signal gain and/or decrease interference. The physical layer models used in current networking simulators only minimally address the interaction of directional antennas and radio propagation. This paper compares the models found in popular simulation tools with measurements taken across a variety of links in multiple environments. We find that the effects of antenna direction are significantly different from those predicted by the models used in the common wireless network simulators. We propose a parametric model that better captures the effects of different propagation environments on directional antenna systems; we also show that the derived models are sensitive to both the direction of signal gain and the environment in which the antenna is used.