Uma ferramenta de predição e avaliação de cobertura para sistemas de comunicação ponto-área

Abstract

Coverage prediction in point-to-area communication systems is a complex task, depending on the precision imposed by the specific project. Furthermore, it demands the use of computational tools, given the numerous calculations that must be done. There are several of these tools available in the market, but normally the costs to acquire them are impractical for universities and small companies which can not afford it. Another aspect to be considered is that commercial tools do not show how the predictions are made; they just do them and present the results. These aspects were the main motivations for the development of this dissertation. This work deals with a computational coverage prediction tool developed by dedicated functions using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) and ArcView. ArcView is a software application dedicated to manage Geographical Information Systems (GIS), what is allowed by using VBA in the implementation of customized functions over tools already available in the application. Designed to have a useful and didactic system, the developed tool uses well known point-to-multipoint prediction models which are described in the dissertation and implemented stand-alone or combined. The facilities implemented allow the user the ability to choose the appropriated model according to the GIS data at hand and the specifics of the coverage area to be analyzed.