RFnest™: Radio frequency network emulator simulator tool

TLDR

RFnest™ is an FPGA‑based network channel emulator that reproduces realistic channel impulse responses and interference for all radio nodes in real time, enabling real RF nodes to receive signals from virtual nodes and vice versa. It is intended for protocol testing, replaying field tests, and validating models. RFnest™ comprises FPGA‑based emulation hardware with RF front‑ends, a time‑varying channel impulse‑response model driven by mobility scripts or a GUI, and integration with network emulators for managing real and virtual nodes. RFnest™ uniquely enables interaction between virtual and real RF nodes, providing high‑fidelity, scalable network simulation and emulation in a controlled, repeatable setting.

Abstract

RFnest™ is an FPGA based network channel emulator that allows all of the channels for a full network of radio nodes to be emulated in real time, with all communication experiencing a realistic channel impulse response and correct interference. RFnest™ is the first network emulator that allows virtual simulated nodes and real RF nodes to interact and have a shared wireless feeling. In other words, the real RF nodes in RFnest™ receive the signals sent by the virtual simulated nodes on their real radios and vice versa. This capability allows both high fidelity and scalable network simulation and emulation within the same controlled and repeatable environment. This allows RFnest™ to be used for protocol testing, replaying field tests, and model validation. RFnest™ has a modular design with three main components: 1) FPGA based emulation hardware with RF front ends to allow nodes with real radios to send their RF signal over an emulated channel without any modification to the radio, 2) modeling of time-varying channel impulse responses within the emulation hardware, with channel properties based on mobility defined with a scripted or interactive GUI environment, and 3) integration with network emulators and monitoring functionality allowing the user to instantiate, manage, and monitor real and virtual network nodes within the scenario.