NIST, Industry Researchers Assess Factors Affecting Industrial Wireless Systems

Researchers from Emerson Automation, Spearix Technologies, and NIST’s Industrial Wireless Systems team recently assessed wireless factors – or “aggressors” – which could degrade the performance of industrial wireless systems. Emerson, a maker of factory automation technologies, and Spearix, a provider of industrial radio solutions, are actively involved in the NIST-chaired, IEEE P3388 Working Group, which seeks to develop a standard for assessing Industrial Wireless Systems.

Researchers conducted the tests at the NIST Gaithersburg campus, reproducing and assessing the impact of industrial wireless aggressors, which included:

• Multi-path propagation caused by large physical obstructions and reflective clutter
• Coexistence interference caused by Wi-Fi and Bluetooth signals impacting 802.15.4 networks
• Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) caused by Tungsten Inert Gas arc welding

Researchers also assessed the impact of wireless aggressors on data packets, delivered via single- and multi-core radios. They found multi-core radios performs well in scenarios, which indicated potential advantages for industry.  Researchers will report their findings to the IEEE P3388 Working Group.