Over-the-Air (OTA) Testing

PCTEST’s OTA Anechoic Chamber for evaluating the Over-the-Air (OTA) Performance of mobile stations and modular devices consists of a rectangular chamber with an adjacent test equipment control room.

Specific test equipment configurations and detailed test procedures are used for OTA certification testing to ensure the accurate, repeatable, and uniform testing of Mobile Stations and Modular Devices and to certify that they meet industry, carrier and/or CTIA standards.

The measurement chamber consists of a fully anechoic lined absorber material, Multi-Axis Positioning System (MAPS), EMCO Communication Antenna, Dual-Polarized Horn Measurement Antenna, Phi test free-space positioner, SAM phantom head, Howland phantom hand, and integrated device positioner (laptop, wireless modules).

The complete Rohde & Schwarz TS9970 RF Antenna Performance Test System is located in the control room. The Rohde & Schwarz TS99790 Test System consists of the R&S CMU-200 Base Station Simulator, R&S FSP7 Spectrum Analyzer, R&S Vector Network Analyzer ZVC, R&S TS-RSP RF Switch Panel, R&S PTW70 Wireless LAN Protocol Tester, EMCO MAPS 1015 Controller and Control Computer with the ETS-Lindgren Measurement Software EMQuest.

• PCTEST is a CTIA Authorized Test Laboratory (CATL) for Antenna Performance Testing (OTA),

Expanded Air Interface Testing Protocols Include:

• CDMA2000, Cellular & PCS
• CDMA 1xRTT Data
• GSM, 850MHz/900MHz/1800MHz/1900MHz
• GPRS
• EGPRS/EDGE
• WCDMA/UMTS
• ANALOG
• 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-LAN
• EvDO Rev.0/EvDO Rev.A
• HSDPA/HSUPA
• 802.16 WiMAX
• Converged Wireless Devices

Total Radiated Power (TRP) is defined as the sum of all power radiated by the EUT antenna regardless of direction or polarization. Over-the-air measurements are performed by measuring the radiated transmit power at various locations surrounding the device to produce a spatially distributed three-dimensional characterization of the “transmit” performance of the EUT. The TRP is measured under Free-Space conditions, SAM Phantom Head conditions, and Phantom Hand conditions with the EUT antenna extended and retracted, as applicable.

Total Isotropic Sensitivity (TIS) is defined as the measured receiver sensitivity for each EUT test conditional integrated to a single figure of merit. Sensitivity measurements are performed by determining the minimum forward-link power to maintain a specific error rate (FER, BER, BLER, PER, ect., depending on the air interface) at each measured location on the sphere in accordance with applicable industry standards. The TIS is measured under Free-Space conditions, SAM Phantom Head conditions, and Phantom Hand conditions with the EUT antenna extended and retraced, as applicable.