A Study on Mm-wave Multi-User Directional Beamforming Based on Measurements and Ray Tracing Simulations

This study concerns the evaluation of beamforming techniques in multi-user indoor environment at the mm-wave frequency band of 70 GHz using both measurements and ray tracing simulations carried out in a furnished small-office environment. The goal of the work is twofold: (i) to evaluate ray tracing as a reliable directional channel model for beamforming assessment and for real-time assistance in the beam-searching phase, (ii) to evaluate simple beamforming schemes as means to enforce spatial division in a small-indoor environment. Results suggest that the considered ray tracing model can be reliable enough to reproduce the general performance trends of different beamforming schemes and to assist the beam-searching phase, therefore potentially reducing the related time delay and computational overhead.