Shadowing effects in MIMO channels for personal area networks

In this paper we analyze the effects of body shadowing in multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) channels used for personal area networks (PANs). We give physical reasoning to why PANs may experience two different types of shadowing, and to support our argument, we present results from a measurement campaign for three different PAN channels with human influence. The campaign is performed using different types of multi-element antenna devices; an access point, a body-worn device and two hand-held devices, conducted over a series of distances between 1-10 m. For each distance, a number of channel realizations are obtained by moving the antenna devices over a small area, and by rotating the persons holding the devices. The results show that it is suitable to distinguish between body shadowing (due to the rotation of the person holding the device) and shadowing due to surrounding objects (lateral movement). We also present a statistical model where the two types of shadowing are described as separate log-normal processes. Furthermore, we find that body shadowing has a big influence on the capacity of the investigated PAN channels. © 2006 IEEE.