gnumeric-plugins/pathloss

path-loss plugin for gnumeric

This directory contains a python-language plugin for adding functions to compute (Radio Frequency) path loss to the gnumeric spreadsheet software.

Using those functions, you can easily create spreadsheets performing calculations around RF path loss, for example in order to estimate the range of a radio transmitter (such as a cellular base station) according to a variety of path loss models:

• Free-space path-loss
• Okumura-Hata model for open area, urban area and sub-urban area
• Egli model for outdoor line-of-sight

This plug-in was written in 2016 by Harald Welte laforge@gnumonks.org as part of the Osmocom project for open source mobile communications.

Installation

You need a version of gnumeric that includes its python API. This may not be the case for all versions of gnumeric. For example, on Debian GNU/Linux, the python support is part of a separate gnumeric-plugins-extra package that needs to be installed alongside gnumeric. So on Debian, you would need to install it using apt install gnumeric gnumeric-plugins-extra

Once you have a python-capable gnumeric installed, you will need to install this pathloss plugin. To do so, copy the entire directory into one of gnumeric's plugin directories. The list of plugin directories can be obtained from the gnumeric UI via the Tools/Plug-Ins... menu item in the Directories tab.

The default directories on Linux systems are typically the system-wide /usr/lib/gnumeric/$version/plugins and the per-user $HOME/.gnumeric/$version/plugins directories.

So as a normal user, the usual strategy is to copy (or sym-link) the path-loss directory into your personal $HOME/.gnumeric/$version/plugins.

Once you have copied it, you can start gnumeric and should have access to the functions implemented here.

Usage

The plug-in provides several gnumeric functions:

• PATHLOSS_FREESPACE(freq_mhz, dist_m)
• RF_RANGE_FREESPACE(freq_mhz, path_loss)
• PATHLOSS_EGLI(freq_mhz, dist_m, tx_ant_m, rx_ant_m)
• RF_RANGE_EGLI(freq_mhz, path_loss_db, bts_ant_m, ms_ant_m)
• PATHLOSS_HATA(environment, freq_mhz, dist_m, bts_ant_m, ms_ant_m)
• RF_RANGE_HATA(environment, freq_mhz, path_loss_db, bts_ant_m, ms_ant_m)

These functions can be used like any other spreadsheet function

PATHLOSS_FREESPACE(freq_mhz, dist_m)

The function computes the free-space path-loss (in dB) given the following input parameters:

• freq_mhz, the radio frequency (in MHz)
• dist_m, the distance between transmitter and receiver (in meters)

RF_RANGE_FREESPACE(freq_mhz, path_loss)

The function computes the free-space range (in meters) of a RF link given the following input parameters:

• freq_mhz, the radio frequency (in MHz)
• path_loss, the maximum permitted loss of your radio signal between transmitter and receiver (in dB)

PATHLOSS_EGLI(freq_mhz, dist_m, tx_ant_m, rx_ant_m)

The function estimates the path-loss (in dB) according to the Egli model given the following input parameters:

• freq_mhz, the radio frequency (in MHz)
• dist_m, the distance between transmitter and receiver (in meters)
• tx_ant_m, the height of the transmitter antenna (in meters)
• rx_ant_m, the height of the receiver antenna (in meters)

RF_RANGE_EGLI(freq_mhz, path_loss_db, bts_ant_m, ms_ant_m)

The function estimates the range (in meters) of a RF link according to the Egli model given the following input parameters:

• freq_mhz, the radio frequency (in MHz)
• path_loss_db, the maximum permitted loss of your radio signal between transmitter and receiver (in dB)
• bts_ant_m, the height of the transmitter antenna (in meters)
• ms_ant_m, the height of the receiver antenna (in meters)

PATHLOSS_HATA(environment, freq_mhz, dist_m, bts_ant_m, ms_ant_m)

The function estimates the path-loss (in dB) according to the Okumura-Hata model given the following input parameters:

• environment, the environment (valid: open_area, rural, suburban, city_small, city_medium, city_large)
• freq_mhz, the radio frequency (in MHz)
• dist_m, the distance between transmitter and receiver (in meters)
• bts_ant_m, the height of the transmitter antenna (in meters)
• ms_ant_m, the height of the receiver antenna (in meters)

RF_RANGE_HATA(environment, freq_mhz, path_loss_db, bts_ant_m, ms_ant_m)

The function estimates the range (in meters) of a RF link according to the Okumura-Hata model given the following input parameters:

• environment, the environment (valid: open_area, rural, suburban, city_small, city_medium, city_large)
• freq_mhz, the radio frequency (in MHz)
• path_loss_db, the maximum permitted loss of your radio signal between transmitter and receiver (in dB)
• bts_ant_m, the height of the transmitter antenna (in meters)
• ms_ant_m, the height of the receiver antenna (in meters)

Example

An example spreadsheet is provided as pathloss.gnumeric in this directory. It was created for sysmocom to estimate the range of a variety of cellular base station products.