Wireless Access Channels with Near-Ground Level Antennas

In this work we present an empirical study of the added propagation losses that may be associated with providing fixed wireless service from near-ground base-stations to homes in a suburban environment. We present results for various types of environments, classified according to the existence of obstructions in the propagation path and the choice of outdoor-outdoor or outdoor-indoor service. Our results indicate that while on average the additional path-losses associated with lowering the base antenna are relatively small, the variance of these losses will increase at near-ground level, particularly in obstructed links. This has as a result that the power margin required for high availability of a near-ground base antenna may be quite significant.