Antenna Visualization

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Antenna Visualization
Provided that you are currently displaying survey data and your ActixOne system has antenna patterns loaded, this feature is available from: The Radio Network Analysis tab in Network Optimization - click on the Antenna Visualization button The Tools button on the map. Once you have activated Antenna Visualization, you can now see the terrain profile displayed beneath the map, and a corresponding line drawn from the selected sector. If you select a bin, this line is drawn from the sector to the bin, otherwise the visualization line will match the antenna's azimuth. .

Radio Network Analysis, showing the antenna profile display, visualization line on the map, and antenna pattern.

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Antenna Visualization

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The terrain profile display shows a cross section of terrain along the visualization line. The width of the profile corresponds to the distance of the line displayed on the map, allowing you to identify terrain features. Note that the map shows a shaded band that extends some small distance away from the visualization line. Any bins displayed on the map within this area will also be displayed in the terrain profile. On the left end of the profile display, three solid lines extend from the antenna icon . These correspond to the main bore of the antenna, and a drop of 3 dB above and below the main bore (these lines are also drawn on the antenna pattern). If a line meets the terrain, this is shown on the map by a short bar across the main bore line. The shading on the map and the profile show the region closest aligned to the main bore of the antenna. You can control the shading of this region by using the Antenna Visualization Settings dialog described below.

Controlling the antenna tilt

To control the displayed tilt of the antenna, use the two sliders. The left slider controls mechanical tilt, the right slider controls electrical tilt. Click the button below the slider to enable the slider control. Clicking the electrical tilt button also displays the antenna pattern in an adjacent window. If for some reason, the antenna pattern is not available, a default pattern will be assumed, and only mechanical (not electrical) tilt will be available.

The Antenna Visualization Settings

This dialog is displayed by clicking on the Antenna Visualization Settings button.

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Antenna Visualization

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The antenna visualization feature shows two shaded regions, starting from where the main bore line meets the terrain, with an end point where the line below the main bore meets the terrain, and another end point where the line above the main bore meets the terrain (or more likely, at the edge of the Default Distance for the visualization). All bins within the Region Width and between the Region Start distance and the Default Distance from the antenna are shown on the terrain profile display. Default Antenna Height This allows you to change the antenna height value for the purposes of the visualization. Default Distance This defines the distance in meters to the outer edge of the visualization region, and is shown on the map as a large circle around the selected sector. The terrain profile is scaled to use this distance as the maximum extent of the terrain profile display. Region Start This defines the distance in meters from the antenna at which bins will start to be displayed in the terrain profile. Region Width This defines the width in meters of the shaded region. Start/End Alpha These values define the transparency of the start and end of each shaded region. A value of 1 is solid, and a value of 0 is totally transparent. The shading will grade steadily from the start point to the end point of each shaded region. Start/End Color These selections define the color at the start and end of each shaded region. The color will change steadily from one color to the other from the start point to the end point of each shaded region. Use Symmetric Scaling This changes the vertical scale in the terrain profile to match the map scale. The terrain profile display is usually turned off to accentuate the vertical scale. Show Grid Lines Check this box to display lines on the terrain profile corresponding to each successive 3 dB reduction in antenna power. The following image shows symmetric scaling and grid lines in use.

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Antenna Visualization

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