Prototype of a DSP-based instrument for in-service wireless transmitter power measurement

A prototype of a DSP-based instrument for in-service transmitter power measurements is presented. The instrument implements a signal-selective algorithm for power measurements that is suitable for use in wireless environments, where possible uncontrolled interfering sources are present in the radio channel and are overlapped to the signal emitted by the transmitter under test, possibly in both time and frequency domain. The measurement method exploits the principles of cyclic spectral analysis, which are briefly recalled in the paper. Potentialities, as well as limitations of the prototype use are discussed, and the results of experiments with both modulated and unmodulated interfering sources are presented