What is Beamforming and How Does It Work?
Beamforming is a general signal processing technique used to control the directionality of the transmission and reception of radio signals. An optional part of the Wi-Fi 802.11n standard, beamforming is defined in two basic types: implicit and explicit.
Implicit beamforming is designed to improve the transmission performance of a Wi-Fi access point by relying on mathematical calculations to determine how best to form Wi-Fi signals or beams toward receiving clients. But without explicit client feedback, access points have no way of knowing if the beams are optimum or if they are even working properly.
Explicit beamforming uses detailed channel matrix feedback from the client. However today’s Wi-Fi clients don’t support this 802.11n optional feature.
Patented BeamFlex Technology Combines Antenna Beamforming with Standard 802.11 Chips to Deliver Unmatched Performance Gains and Reliability
In stark contrast to chip-based beamforming, Ruckus Wireless has developed a patented, pattern-agile antenna technology called BeamFlex. BeamFlex combines beamforming at the physical layer, using smart antennas, with sophisticated client feedback mechanisms without requiring any modification to clients. This ensures the highest performance levels while extending signal range and rejecting interference by allowing Wi-Fi signals to be directed, on a per packet basis, over the best possible signal path for any given client.
With BeamFlex, physical antenna elements are combined in real time to form thousands of antenna patterns. For every packet, antenna control software learns and selects the optimum combinations as clients roam. This allows for unprecedented reliability by providing complete control over Wi-Fi signals and focusing RF energy only where it’s needed while not creating additional interference.
BeamFlex was specifically designed to take advantage of multipath environments. By controlling the form and direction of the transmission and reception of multiple Wi-Fi signals, higher data rates are achieved because interference and packet loss are avoided. Wi-Fi systems not employing automatically-controlled directional antennas are forced to lower their data rate when interference and packet loss is experienced thereby negatively affecting performance for all clients using that system.
BeamFlex cost effectively adds value on top of standard 802.11n chips, unlike any other Wi-Fi technology available today that purports to use beamforming. Ruckus BeamFlex (Smart Wi-Fi):
- Continuously calculates and tracks the best signal path for all clients based on explicit performance feedback from each client,
- Adds a software-controlled intelligent antenna array on top of any standard 802.11 chipset,
- Automatically optimizes for both beamforming and spatial multiplexing ,
- Offers over 4,000 different antenna combinations that can be used to form and direct Wi-Fi signals on a per packet basis to any client for ultra-reliability and performance,
- Provides system-level signal gain of up to 10dB and interference rejection up to 17dB
- Delivers a two-to-four fold extension of signal range,
- Was designed and optimized for multipath environments to create different patterns which reduces multipath fading and mitigates interference,
- Simultaneously uses advanced 802.11n features including spatial multiplexing, transmit diversity, beamforming and maximal ratio combining for greater reliability and performance.