TR-398 (Wi-Fi In-Premises Performance Testing).pdf

TR-398
Wi-Fi In-Premises
Performance Testing
ISSUE: 1
ISSUE DATE: FEBRUARY 2019

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Issue History
Issue Number Approval Date Publication Date Issue Editor Changes
1 26 February 2019 26 February 2019 Tony Zeng, Huawei
Lincoln Lavoie,
UNH-IOL
Original
Comments or questions about this Broadband Forum Technical Report should be
directed to info@broadband-forum.org
Editor
Tony Zeng Huawei
Lincoln Lavoie UNH-IOL
Work Area Director(s)
Jason Walls QA Cafe
John Blackford ARRIS
Les Brown Huawei
Martin Casey CALIX

Table of Contents
Executive Summary..............................................................................................................................7
1 Purpose and Scope............................................................................................................8
1.1 Purpose.........................................................................................................................................8
1.2 Scope.
.............................................................................................................................................8
2 References and Terminology.
.....................................................................................9
2.1 Conventions.
..............................................................................................................................9
2.2 References.................................................................................................................................9
2.3 Definitions.
................................................................................................................................10
2.4 Abbreviations.
........................................................................................................................10
3 Technical Report Impact.
..............................................................................................12
3.1 Energy Efficiency.................................................................................................................12
3.2 Security.......................................................................................................................................12
3.3 Privacy.
.........................................................................................................................................12
4 Equipment Features.........................................................................................................13
4.1 Device Under Test (DUT) and Station (STA)..................................................13
4.1.1 Device information.............................................................................................................13
4.1.2 Management of the DUT and STA.
.......................................................................13
4.2 Testing equipment and components.
............................................................... 14
5 Test Environment............................................................................................................... 15
5.1 Test Configuration............................................................................................................. 15
5.1.1 Ethernet/IP Traffic Setup............................................................................................. 15
5.1.2 Ethernet traffic flow generation..............................................................................16
5.1.3 Example: Ethernet traffic generation by iPerf3...........................................17
5.2 Test Setup Characteristics.......................................................................................... 18
5.2.1 Shielded Test Chamber................................................................................................ 18
5.2.2 Distance and Test Channel Realization........................................................... 19
5.2.3 STA Requirements.............................................................................................................21
5.3 Device Under Test (DUT) settings.
........................................................................21
5.3.1 DUT Requirements.
...........................................................................................................21
5.3.2 SSID setting............................................................................................................................22
5.3.3 Work setting...........................................................................................................................22
6 Performance Tests.
...........................................................................................................24
6.1 RF capability..........................................................................................................................24
6.1.1 Receiver Sensitivity Test..............................................................................................24
6.2 Baseline performance...................................................................................................27
6.2.1 Maximum Connection Test.
.......................................................................................27

6.2.2 Maximum Throughput Test.......................................................................................28
6.2.3 Airtime Fairness Test.......................................................................................................30
6.3 Coverage.
..................................................................................................................................32
6.3.1 Range Versus Rate Test.
...............................................................................................32
6.3.2 Spatial consistency test................................................................................................35
6.4 Multiple STAs Performance.
......................................................................................38
6.4.1 Multiple STAs Performance Test.
..........................................................................38
6.4.2 Multiple Association/Disassociation Stability Test................................39
6.4.3 Downlink MU-MIMO Performance Test..........................................................40
6.5 Stability/Robustness.
......................................................................................................42
6.5.1 Long Term Stability Test..............................................................................................42
6.5.2 AP Coexistence Test.
.......................................................................................................43
Appendix I.
Instantiations of test setups.........................................................................................................47
I.1 Test setup by using IP packet through TCP or UDP.
.............................47
I.2 Test setup by using level-2 Ethernet packet...............................................48
List of Figures
Figure 1 Test setup for performance testing for single STA.............................. 15
Figure 2 Single Chamber Implementation.
......................................................................20
Figure 3 Multiple Chamber Implementation...................................................................21
Figure 4 Test Setup for Receiver Sensitivity...................................................................25
Figure 5 Test setup of Maximum Connection Test...................................................27
Figure 6 Test setup of Maximum Throughput Test..................................................29
Figure 7 Test setup of Airtime Fairness Test...................................................................31
Figure 8 Test setup of Range Versus Rate Test.
..........................................................33
Figure 9 Test setup of Spatial Consistency Test.........................................................36
Figure 10 Test Setup of AP Coexistence Test.
...............................................................44
Figure 11 Test setup by using TCP/UDP flows with separate
Packet Generator/Analyzer..........................................................................................................47
Figure 12 Test setup by using TCP/UDP flows with the dedicated
testing equipment.
...............................................................................................................................47
Figure 13 Test setup by using TCP/UDP flows with an
independent STA..................................................................................................................................48
Figure 14 Test Setup by using level-2 Ethernet flows with a
common Packet Generator/Analyzer..................................................................................48

List of Tables
Table 1 DUT Information.
..................................................................................................................13
Table 2 STA Information.
...................................................................................................................13
Table 3 Traffic Generator/Analyzer Information........................................................... 14
Table 4 Attenuator Information.................................................................................................. 14
Table 5 Test Chamber Information......................................................................................... 14
Table 6 Additioanl Antenna Information............................................................................ 14
Table 7 Temperature and Humidity Range of Test Facility................................ 19
Table 8 SSID setting configuration.........................................................................................22
Table 9 Work setting configuration for 2.4 GHz band.............................................22
Table 10 Work setting configuration for 5 GHz band.
..............................................23
Table 11 Wi-Fi Test Configurations for Receiver Sensitivity...............................25
Table 12 MCS Rate and Traffic Test Configuration for 802.11n..........................26
Table 13 MCS and Traffic Test Configuration for 802.11ac....................................26
Table 14 Required Receiver Sensitivity for 802.11n...................................................26
Table 15 Required Receiver Sensitivity for 802.11ac................................................27
Table 16 The throughput requirement................................................................................30
Table 17 General configuration for spatial consistency test..............................33
Table 18 Additional attenuation for STA RF chain during the test.
................34
Table 19 The throughput requirement................................................................................35
Table 20 General configuration for spatial consistency test.............................36
Table 21 Pass/Fail criteria for spatial consistency test by performance.37
Table 22 Pass/Fail criteria for spatial consistency test by variation............37
Table 23 Throughput requirement of Multiple STAs Performance Test..39
Table 24 General configuration for spatial consistency test.............................40
Table 25 General configuration for AP coexistence test......................................44
Table 26 Channel configuration in the test......................................................................45
Table 27 Pass/Fail criteria for AP coexistence test...................................................46

7
February 2019 © Broadband Forum. All rights reserved.
Executive Summary
TR-398 provides a set of performance test cases with pass/fail requirements for 802.11n/ac
implementations according to Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) specification 802.11ac
[1].
The primary goal of TR-398 is to provide a set of test cases and framework to verify the performance
between Access Point (AP) (e.g., a CPE with Wi-Fi) and one or more Station (STA) (e.g., Personal Computer
[PC], integrated testing equipment, etc.). The test cases are defined for a Device Under Test (DUT – AP only),
tested against a or a set of STA.
Technical contents of TR-398 test plan include test setup information, equipment configuration
requirements, test procedures, and pass/fail requirements for each test case.

8
1 Purpose and Scope
1.1 Purpose
TR-398 provides a set of performance test cases with pass/fail requirements for 802.11n/ac
implementations according to IEEE specification 802.11ac [1]. The corresponding certification programs of
interoperability are “Wi-Fi 4” and “Wi-Fi 5” for 802.11n and 802.11ac in Wi-Fi Alliance, respectively.
The primary goal of TR-398 Issue 1 is to provide a set of test cases and framework to verify the performance
between AP (e.g., a CPE with Wi-Fi) and one or more STA (e.g., PC, integrated testing equipment, etc.). The
test cases are defined for a Device Under Test (DUT – AP only), tested against a or a set of STA. The DUT
SHOULD NOT be a reference design and SHOULD contain the necessary system functionality to execute
this test plan (see section 5)
Technical content in this test plan includes test setup information, equipment configuration requirements,
test procedures, and pass/fail requirements for each test case. Specific manufacturer information for test
and measurement has not been included in this document, except in cases where the selection or use of
alternate equipment could negatively impact the results of the testing.
1.2 Scope
This Technical Report intends to provide a performance test plan for “IEEE standard for Information
technology-Telecommunications and information exchange between systems Local and metropolitan area
networks- Specific requirements Part 11: Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer
(PHY) Specifications specification”. TR-398 Issue 1 is specifically developed for 802.11n/ac compliant access
point devices. The performance of Wi-Fi station (STA) is not in the scope of this project.
TR-398 Issue 1 is intended to address a common set of performance test cases according to in-home
scenarios that can be applied to different deployment. The performance test cases include but are not
limited to the tests for access point to verify:
1. RF capability
2. Throughput performance
3. Spatial consistency
4. Airtime fairness
5. Connection capability
6. Stability/Robustness

9
2 References and Terminology
2.1 Conventions
In this Technical Report, several words are used to signify the requirements of the specification.
These words are always capitalized. More information can be found be in RFC 2119 [2].
SHALL
This word, or the term “REQUIRED”, means that the definition is an absolute requirement of the specification.
SHALL NOT
This phrase means that the definition is an absolute prohibition of the specification.
SHOULD
This word, or the term “RECOMMENDED”, means that there could exist valid reasons in particular
circumstances to ignore this item, but the full implications need to be understood and carefully weighed
before choosing a different course.
SHOULD NOT
This phrase, or the phrase “NOT RECOMMENDED” means that there could exist valid
reasons in particular circumstances when the particular behavior is acceptable or even useful, but the full
implications need to be understood and the case carefully weighed before implementing any behavior
described with this label.
MAY
This word, or the term “OPTIONAL”, means that this item is one of an allowed set of alternatives.
An implementation that does not include this option SHALL be prepared to inter-operate with another
implementation that does include the option.
2.2 References
The following references are of relevance to this Technical Report. At the time of publication, the editions
indicated were valid. All references are subject to revision; users of this Technical Report are therefore
encouraged to investigate the possibility of applying the most recent edition of the references listed below.
A list of currently valid Broadband Forum Technical Reports is published at
www.broadband-forum.org.

10
Document Title Source Year
[1] 802.11ac IEEE standard for Information technology-Telecommunications and
information exchange between systems Local and metropolitan
area networks- Specific requirements Part 11: Wireless LAN Medi-
um Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications
specification
IETF 1997
[2] RFC 2119 Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate Requirement Levels IEEE 2016
[3] P.2040-1 Effects of building materials and structures on radiowave
propagation above about 100 MHz
ITU-R 2015
[4] Report Building Materials and Propagation Ofcom 2014
2.3 Definitions
The following terminology is used throughout this Technical Report.
CPE
Customer Premises Equipment. In the context of this Technical Report, CPE is used for any device or other
equipment placed inside the premises of a Service Provider’s customer.
Wi-Fi
A name created and trademarked by the Wi-Fi Alliance to describe technology based on IEEE 802.11
standards.
2.4 Abbreviations
This Technical Report uses the following abbreviations:
AP Access Point
DL Downlink
DTIM Delivery Traffic Indication Message
DUT Device Under Test
GE Gigabit Ethernet
GUI Graphical User Interface
ICMP Internet Control Message Protocol
IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
IP Internet Protocol
IPv4 Internet Protocol version 4
LAN Local Area Network
MAC Medium Access Control
MCS Modulation and Coding Scheme
MIMO Multi-input Multi-output
MTU Maximum Transmission Unit
MU-MIMO Multi-user MIMO
PC Personal Computer

11
PER Packet Error Rate
PHY Physical Layer
PSDU PHY Service Data Unit
QoS Quality of Service
RF Radio Frequency
RSSI Received Signal Strength Indicator
SSID Service Set Identifier
STA Station
TCP Transmission Control Protocol
TR Technical Report
Tx Transmission
UL Uplink
UDP User Datagram Protocol
VLAN Virtual Local Area Network
WA Work Area
WLAN Wireless Local Area Network
WMM Wi-Fi Multimedia

12
3 Technical Report Impact
3.1 Energy Efficiency
TR-398 has no impact on Energy Efficiency.
3.2 Security
TR-398 has no impact on Security.
3.3 Privacy
Any issues regarding privacy are not affected by TR-398.

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4 Equipment Features
4.1 Device Under Test (DUT) and Station (STA)
4.1.1 Device Information
Table 1 and Table 2 are intended to provide test engineers and readers of the test report with sufficient
information about the DUT and connected STAs in order to assure repeatability of results and to allow for
accurate comparisons of reported test results. The information defined in the tables SHALL be provided to
the test engineer prior to the start of the testing and SHALL be included as part of the test report. All fields
SHALL be populated; if an item is not applicable to the DUT or connected STAs, the item MAY be marked as
“Not Applicable” .
Table 1 DUT Information
DUT system vendor
DUT system firmware version
DUT chipset vendor
DUT chipset firmware version
Table 2 STA Information
STA type (e.g., PC, mobile phone, etc.)
STA system vendor
STA system firmware version
STA chipset vendor
STA chipset firmware version
Supported IEEE specification by STA
Note: Multiple tables of STAs SHALL be
created to record the information of STAs
with different capability (e.g., legacy STA
that supports only 802.11a/b/g).
4.1.2 Management of the DUT and STA
The DUT SHALL support a DUT Northbound management protocol or local Graphical User Interface (GUI
) that allows the ability to configure and retrieve the settings defined in 5.3 in this test plan. The management
protocol is DUT vendor discretionary.
The STA SHALL support a STA Southbound management protocol that is required for execution of this test
plan except as required to configure the STA to pass Ethernet traffic between the STA and Local Area
Network (LAN) interface(s).

14
4.2 Testing Equipment and Components
This section includes tables to record information of testing equipment and components that are used in
the test. The information defined in the tables SHALL be provided to the test engineer prior to the start of
the testing and SHALL be included as part of the test report. All fields SHALL be populated; if an item is not
applicable to the DUT or connected STAs, the item MAY be marked as “Not Applicable” .
Table 3 Traffic Generator/Analyzer Information
Manufacturer
Equipment model
Code version
Table 4 Attenuator Information
Manufacturer
Component model
Supported frequency range
Attenuation value used in the test
Table 5 Test Chamber Information
Manufacturer
Component model
Table 6 Additioanl Antenna Information
Manufacturer
Component model
Where it is used (on test chamber/traffic
analyzer/etc.)

15
5 Test Environment
The Wi-Fi performance test environment can easily be impacted by external factors and the environment,
such as existing office Wi-Fi systems, or nearby appliances (e.g., microwave ovens). The construction of the
test environment used by this test plan SHALL be constructed in a fashion to mitigate the impact of these
external factors. The test environment SHALL meet the requirements outlined in this section for all tests
within this test plan.
5.1 Test Configuration
5.1.1 Ethernet/IP Traffic Setup
The LAN interface(s) used for transmission of test traffic SHALL be a Gigabit Ethernet port(s), supporting
speeds of at least 1 Gbps. The Peer Stations (STAs) SHALL send/receive Wi-Fi packets to/from the DUT air
interface or coax interface (if it is required). Packet generation, reception, and analysis SHALL be done using
testing software or a traffic generator capable of generating stateful Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)
and User Datagram Protocol (UDP) traffic with fixed (controlled) packet size.
If the test case requires test traffic larger than 1 Gbps at the LAN interface, multiple Gigabit Ethernet ports
SHALL be employed to fulfill the test traffic demand in the test. In this case, identical traffic streams with
same Quality of Service (QoS) setting SHALL be injected to Gigabit Ethernet ports, respectively.
If the DUT supports Ethernet port with higher rate than 1Gbps (e.g., 2.5G, 5G, or 10G Ethernet, etc.), no
additional port is used in the testing.
Figure 1 shows the basic setup for passing Ethernet/IP traffic through the DUT and single STA. Appendix I
shows the instantiations of the test setups. The Packet Generator/Analyzer MAY be a discrete device from
the STA, or the Packet Generator/Analyzer may be embedded directly on the STA device. The Packet
Generator/Analyzer SHALL NOT be combined with the DUT and SHALL be a discrete device running the
testing software to generate/receive the packets for DUT.
Note: The Physical Layer Test Setup shown in Figure 1 contains any specific test setup(s) or equipment that
may be required within the Wi-Fi link, such as a channel simulator, attenuators, etc.
Figure 1 Test setup for performance testing for single STA

16
The DUT and STA SHOULD support the following requirements to enable these tests.
The DUT SHOULD support:
1. Forwarding of Ethernet/IP traffic between the Wi-Fi interface(s) and the northbound Ethernet interface,
based on MAC learning or Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) markings.
2. Allocating local IP address for STA through physical interface (air or coax cable) and for traffic generator.
The STA SHOULD support at least one of the following configurations:
1. In case the Packet Generator/Analyzer is used for STA, the interfaces between STA and Packet
Generator/Analyzer SHALL fulfill the traffic flow requirement and not impact the performance test.
5.1.2 Ethernet Traffic Flow Generation
This section provides requirements for TCP and UDP setting in order to create consistent flow pattern while
different testing software, operating system or independent equipment are utilized in the test.
Where the Packet Generator/Analyzer is used to implement the traffic throughout measurements within this
test plan, the following settings SHALL be used to configure the traffic generator. All throughput
measurements SHALL be the layer 4 (payload rate) for the TCP or UDP traffic streams.
•  Common setting for both TCP and UDP:
A. Establish TCP/UDP link through IP pairing before generation of traffic flow, i.e., setting up the
IP address of DUT and STA to make sure that all of the devices are in the same LAN.
B. The flow generation SHALL base on IPv4.
C. Create 5 and 1 measurement streams between DUT and each STA for TCP and UDP,
respectively. The throughput between the DUT and STA is the summation of all the
measurement streams.
D. No delay SHALL be reserved after starting the measurement.
E. No rate limitation SHALL be set for the TCP/UDP flow.
F. The data sent over the TCP SHALL not be compressed.
•  Setting for TCP:
A. TCP window size SHALL be set as 64KB.
B. A code file (file size of 100000 bytes for 2.4GHz testing and 10000000 bytes for 5 GHZ
testing)
transaction SHALL be simulated in the TCP connection. This transaction SHALL be
continuously conducted during the measurement time.
C. Each fragment of the file is send continuously to operating system that the test software
runs over. The TCP payload size SHOULD be determined by the operating system.
•  Setting for UDP:
A. A code file (file size of 730000) transaction SHALL be simulated in the UDP connection. This
transaction SHALL be continuously conducted during the measurement time.

17
B. The UDP payload size SHALL be set as 1460 bytes.
Note: This leads to 1472 bytes Ethernet frame size. The size of the transmitted data is 1460 bytes with
20-bytes IP header and 8-byte UDP header.
5.1.3 Example: Ethernet traffic generation by iPerf3
Where the open source program iPerf3 is used to implement the traffic throughout measurements within
this test plan, a predetermined set of command line flags SHALL be used to start and run the iPerf3
program as documented below, unless a specific test case provides alternate commands, to ensure
consistency within testing.
The iPerf3 program runs as either a client or server process, where the server acts as a traffic reflector/
recipient, while the client is responsible for the definition of specific tests/measurements to perform
between the client and server processes. For the purposes of definitions below, the commands assume
the iPerf3 server process is running on the AP side and the client process is running on the STA side of the
Wi-Fi link. The processes MAY be run on either side of the link during testing, provided the uplink/downlink
definitions are consistently maintained.
The iPerf3 server SHALL be started with the command iPerf3 --server.
Specific client commands for each test scenario are located below. An explanation of the commands
follows, for information only.
SERVER_IP address is the IP address of the system where the server is running.
TEST_TIME is the length of time the measurement will run for. This is set within each test case below.
The bitrate parameter is set to zero, to instruct iPerf3 to attempt to determine (measure) the maximum
throughput between the client and server.
The parallel parameter instructs iPerf3 to run five measurement streams in parallel between the client and
server. This improves the overall accuracy of the measurement. The individual bandwidth used by each
stream can vary, and the summation/average is used to calculate the overall measurement.
The reverse parameter instructs iPerf3 to measure the bandwidth from the server to the client. The default
behaviour performs the measurement from the client to the server.
The udp parameter instructs iPerf3 to use the UDP transport instead of the default TCP transport.
The omit 2 parameter instructs iPerf3 to “discard” the first 2 seconds of the measurement, to avoid inclusion
of TCP slow start, etc.
Additional commands MAY be used to alter/direct logging or format of results, such as the --logfile or --json
options. However, any additional command SHALL NOT alter the operation or measurement traffic used by
the program.

18
The iPerf3 programs SHALL be run on a Linux based system, using a kernel version of 4.14 or newer.
The system SHALL include at least one processor, with two cores, of at least 2 GHz.
5.1.3.1 Commands for Downlink Testing
5.1.3.1.1 TCP Traffic Throughput
iPerf3 --client <SERVER_IP> --time <TEST_TIME> --bitrate 0 –parallel 5 –reverse --omit 2
5.1.3.1.2 UDP Traffic Throughput
iPerf3 --client <SERVER_IP> --time <TEST_TIME> --bitrate <BITRATE> –reverse --udp --omit 2
5.1.3.2 Commands for Uplink Testing
5.1.3.2.1 TCP Traffic Throughput
iPerf3 --client <SERVER_IP> --time <TEST_TIME> --bitrate 0 –parallel 5 --omit 2
5.1.3.2.2 UDP Traffic Throughput
iPerf3 --client <SERVER_IP> --time <TEST_TIME> --bitrate <BITRATE> --udp --omit 2
5.2 Test Setup Characteristics
Test results obtained as a result of testing performed in accordance with TR-398 SHALL contain the
information described in sections 5.2.1.
5.2.1 Shielded Test Chamber
Several tests specify an anechoic shielded chamber environment. Within this test environment, the
ambient noise + signal power SHALL be less than -100 dBm total in an 80 MHz bandwidth at the working
channel frequency, as measured by a spectrum analyzer with receive sensitivity of at least -103 dBm in the
same bandwidth. This condition guarantees no false back off or contention take place and facilitates the
correct performance measurement in extreme cases (e.g., performance testing with large attenuation).
5.2.1.1 Temperature and Humidity
The ranges of temperature and humidity of the test facility, over the entire time tests are conducted, SHALL
be recorded as the high and low values observed during testing (see Table 7 ) and SHALL be included as
part of the test report. The temperature SHOULD be within 21±5 °C. The humidity SHOULD be between 20%
and 60%.

19
Table 7 Temperature and Humidity Range of Test Facility
Parameter High Low
Temparature
Humidity

5.2.2 Distance and Test Channel Realization
To facilitate repeatable testing and support the application of absolute performance requirements, the
wireless channel between the DUT and STA(s) needs to be well controlled. The test setup implemented
SHALL meet the requirements within this section. Various methods to create and control this environment
exist and MAY be used for the support of the testing defined in this document, provided the test setup
implemented meets the requirements within sections.
The peer STAs are separated from the DUT by the Wi-Fi test channel. This separation can be defined as a
specific distance, or as a specific path-loss. The test report SHALL indicate how the Wi-Fi test channel is
established. The specific separation is defined in each test, however:
A. If distance is used, then the peer STA SHALL be placed at the same height as the DUT.
Additionally, the test report SHALL indicate the rotational orientation of both the STA and
DUT. Both STA and DUT SHALL be placed in their “upright” position, as defined by the
manufacturers.
B. If external antenna is used, the direction of the antenna SHALL be adjusted perpendicularly
to the horizontal plane.
C. If path-loss is used, then the peer STA SHALL be separated from the DUT by the equivalent
free space path loss at the working frequency. Free space path loss between isotropic
antennas is expressed as P_L (dB)=20 Log10 (f_GHz ) + 20 Log10 (d_meters ) + 32.45. For
example, at 2.4 GHz the path loss equivalent to a 1-meter separation is 40 dB, and at 5.2 GHz
the path loss is 46.8 dB. The attenuation value for testing SHALL be rounded to the nearest
whole dB value.
D. A channel emulator (e.g., test equipment) MAY be used to implement the test channel.
E. If the test channel is created using attenuators or a channel emulator, the test equipment
SHALL support at least the same number of independent channels as the number of spatial
streams being tested.
F. The attenuators used to create signal attenuation SHALL perform flat attenuation in the fre
quency bandwidth.
There are several important parameters and conditions that define a test configuration. These are:
• The test environment SHALL be free from interference, and,
• There is a certain path loss between the devices, and,
• There is the ability to modify that path loss in a controllable and repeatable fashion.
There are several ways that such an environment could be implemented. Two possible options are shown
below; either of these methods MAY be used to implement the testing defined within the document, or
any other method could be used as long as it can be shown to meet the requirements of these sections.
To simplify this document, each test case includes only a test setup figure or diagram based on the single
chamber implementation.

20
Within a shielded chamber, RF signals will reflect from the chamber walls, and can appear as interference
to the devices within the chamber. Any chamber used in the test plan SHOULD attenuate the reflections by
at least 20 dB to minimize the impact of these reflections.
5.2.2.1 Single Chamber Implementation
In a single chamber implementation of the test environment, there is a single shielded chamber used to
provide the interference-free environment, and physical separation is used to provide path-loss between
devices. For path-loss modification, attenuators are placed on the STA antenna ports. Note that one
difficulty in this implementation is in gaining access to the STA antenna ports, which will not be possible with
all STAs.
In this implementation, it is anticipated the single chamber provides the required shielding to meeting the
ingress noise requirements. The chamber SHALL be large enough to meet the spacing requirements
defined in each test case.
Figure 2 Single Chamber Implementation
5.2.2.2 Multiple Chamber Implementation
In a multiple chamber implementation of the test environment, there are multiple chambers used to provide
the interference-free environment. The RF separation between the devices is composed of the free-space
path-loss inside the chambers, the RF cabling that connects the boxes, and the variable attenuation. Note
that in this implementation the variable attenuation is available without access to the DUT or STA antenna
ports. Additionally, a channel fading or multi-path emulator can also be inserted into the RF cable path to
better align the test results with those observed in a purely free space environment. The distance
(DistanceDUT_Probe ) between the probe antennas and the DUT/STA SHALL be less than 0.5 meter.

21
Figure 3 Multiple Chamber Implementation
5.2.3 STA Requirements
The Wi-Fi Station (STA) acts as a peer device within transmitting and receiving data traffic from the Wi-Fi
Access Point (DUT). The STA devices used for testing SHALL meet the requirements of this section.
The STA(s) SHALL have at least the same Wi-Fi physical layer capability (i.e., maximum spatial streams
supported and antenna number) as the DUT unless the test case specifies the capability of the STA used in
the test. The STA(s) MAY support physical layer capabilities exceeding those of the DUT.
The STA device(s) used for testing MAY be real products (i.e., a Laptop or Phone) or MAY be dedicated test
and measurement equipment that emulates the behaviour of standard Wi-Fi station.
For tests that required multiple STA devices, the devices MAY be multiple discrete devices or the multiple
STA devices may be emulated by a single test and measurement device.
5.3 Device Under Test (DUT) settings
5.3.1 DUT Requirements
The DUT SHALL be able to support at least 2 spatial streams (Nss≥2 as defined in the 802.11n/ac
specification) for Wi-Fi packet transmission.
If the DUT supports multiple Wi-Fi channels, the DUT SHALL select channel 6 for 2.4 GHz frequency band
and channel 36 for 5 GHz frequency band. The test report SHALL document the channel used in the test
plan. If the channel is not supported due to regulatory issue, a neighbor channel SHALL be selected
accordingly. The peer STA/STAs register to the DUT to establish the link.
Note: A fixed channel facilitates good repeatability across the tests in labs.
DUT SHALL NOT use any proprietary implementation beyond the scope of Wi-Fi standard [1], e.g., 256QAM
modulation for 802.11n, etc.

22
5.3.2 SSID setting
The setting for Service Set Identifier (SSID) SHALL be configured as defined in Table 8. SSID for 2.4GHz and
5GHz band SHALL be set up separately.
Table 8 SSID setting configuration
Configuration Parameters Default value
SSID name BBF_Wi-Fi_Perf_Test_XG (NOTE1)
Enable SSID True
Number of associated devices 32
Broadcast SSID True
Enable WMM True
Authentication Mode WPA2-Personal
Encryption Mode AES
WPA PreShareKey (NOTE2)
WPA Group Key Regeneration Interval 3600 seconds
Note 1: “X” represent “2.4” when DUT is configured to work in 2.4 GHz band while “X” rep-
resent “5” when DUT is configured to work in 5 GHz band.
Note 2: Defined by test agent.
5.3.3 Work setting
5.3.3.1 2.4 GHz band
All the DUT supporting 802.11n SHALL set the operating frequency band as 2.4 GHz. The default setting
SHALL be configured as defined in Table 9. Unless otherwise specified in the specific test, the DUT SHALL
have only the operating frequency under test enabled (not allow to switch to 5 GHz frequency band during
the test if the device is configured in 2.4 GHz band).
Table 9 Work setting configuration for 2.4 GHz band
Tx Power 100 % (NOTE1)
Regulatory Domain (NOTE2)
Channel Channel 6
Chanel Width 20 MHz
Standard mode 802.11b/g/n
DTIM period 1
Beacon Period 100 ms
Note 1: 100% is corresponding to 20 dBm, this value indicates the aggregated power of all
the chains used for communication by air-interface.
Note 2: Defined by test agent or automatically selected by the DUT.
All of the test cases in this test plan for 802.11n SHALL be conducted in the working frequency of 2.4 GHz.
The test plan for 802.11n working in 5 GHz is left for further study.

23
5.3.3.2 5 GHz band
All the DUT supporting 802.11ac SHALL set the operating frequency band as 5 GHz. The default setting for
work mode SHALL be configured as defined in Table 10. If the DUT support dual band in 5GHz, two work
settings SHALL be set up separately. Unless otherwise specified in the specific test, the DUT SHALL have
only the operating frequency under test enabled (not allow to switch to 2.4 GHz frequency band during the
test if the device is configured in 5 GHz band).
Table 10 Work setting configuration for 5 GHz band
Tx Power 100 % (NOTE1)
Regulatory Domain (NOTE2)
Channel Channel 36
Chanel Width 20/40/80 MHz
Standard mode 802.11a/ac
DTIM period 1
Beacon Interval 100 ms
Note 1:100% is corresponding to 23 dBm, this value indicates the aggregated power for all
the chains used for communication by air-interface.
Note 2: defined by test agent or automatically selected by the DUT.

24
6 Performance Tests
Chapter 6 includes a set of test cases for verification of Wi-Fi performance. Test cases are categorized into 5
sets (RF capability, Baseline performance, Coverage, Multiple STAs performance, and Stability/Robustness).
6.1 RF capability
6.1.1 Receiver Sensitivity Test
6.1.1.1 Introduction
Receiver Sensitivity is a receiver’s ability to receive and correctly demodulate weak signals. This test
provides a simplified measurement of the receiver’s sensitivity, relative to the total attenuation inserted
between the DUT and the STA. As that attenuation is increased, the STA is limited to a single coding
scheme, eventually causing the connection to degrade. The point at which the connection degrades
represents the receiver’s approximate sensitivity. This is an approximate measurement only, where a
detailed receiver sensitivity measurement would typically be performed in a conducted test environment
with calibrated transmitter power levels. The test is repeated with multiple coding schemes, ensuring the
DUT should smoothly transition between coding schedules as the attenuation increases in normal
operation.
This test SHALL be OPTIONAL for the test plan.
6.1.1.2 Setup
1. The test setup (shown in Figure 4) SHALL utilize a shielded chamber (see section 5.2.1 and 5.2.2).
2. A Traffic Generator/Analyzer is connected to the station and DUT, capable of sending and receiving
Ethernet frames in order to measure packet error rate. A UDP link SHALL be established between
DUT and STA and traffic rate SHALL be set to 65% of the theoretical maximum throughput rate for
each Modulation and Coding Scheme (MCS). The direction of data packet is from STA to DUT.
3. A controllable attenuator is added to each RF path between the STA and DUT. The attenuator
SHALL support the attenuation values between 0 dB and 60 dB, in 1 dB steps.
4. The PHY Service Data Unit (PSDU) of the transmission packet by Wi-Fi link SHALL be set to 4096
octets in STA [3].
5. The STA SHALL use omnidirectional antenna for packet transmission.
6. A rotation platform is used to rotate the DUT for angle-based data collection.

25
Figure 4 Test Setup for Receiver Sensitivity
6.1.1.3 DUT Configuration
The test SHALL be run using the each of the configurations from Table 11 below supported by the DUT.
The test SHALL be conducted to the configurations that the DUT supports.
Table 11 Wi-Fi Test Configurations for Receiver Sensitivity
Test Configuration Wi-Fi configuration
1 802.11n/2.4 GHz/20 MHz
2 802.11ac/80 MHz
NOTE: Both configurations SHALL use a station supporting one spatial stream (Nss =1)
only.
Note: The test plan considers the common configurations to reduce the testing complexity.
6.1.1.4 Procedure
1. Set the rotation angle to 0 degree.
2. Configure the STA to use the MCS rate for the first test index from Table 12 or Table 13 applicable to the
test configuration from Table 11.
3. Configure the Traffic Generator to use the test data rate from Table 12 or Table 13 for the configured MCS
rate.
4. Allow STA to associate with the DUT.
5. Configure the attenuator(s) to 0 dB.
6. Enable packet generation from the STA to the DUT for 20 seconds.
7. Record packet error rate (PER).
8. Increase the attenuator by 1 dB and repeat steps 6-8 until the PER is greater than 10%. Record the final
attenuation value as the approximate receiver sensitivity.
9. Increase the rotation angle by 45 degrees. Repeat Step 5 through 8 until the DUT has been rotated by

26
360 degrees. Calculate the average receiver sensitivity.
10. Repeat steps 1 through 9 for each test index applicable to the test configuration from Table 11.
11. Repeat steps 1 through 10 for each test configuration in Table 11 supported by the DUT.
Table 12 MCS Rate and Traffic Test Configuration for 802.11n
Test Index MCS Index Modulation Data Rates (Mbps)
GI = 800 ns
20 MHz channel, Nss = 1
Theoretical Test
1 0 BPSK 6.5 4.23
2 7 64-QAM 65 42.25
Note 1: The MCS rates are defined in Ref [3].
Note 2: Data rates specified for Long Guard interval, while testing may be performed using either guard interval, as supported by
the DUT.
Table 13 MCS and Traffic Test Configuration for 802.11ac
Test Index MCS Index Modulation Data Rates (Mbps)
GI = 800 ns
80 MHz channel, Nss = 1
Theoretical Test
3 0 BPSK 29.3 19.05
4 9 256-QAM 390 253.5
Note 1: The MCS rates are defined in Ref [3].
Note 2: Data rates specified for Long Guard interval, while testing may be performed using either guard interval, as supported by
the DUT.
6.1.1.5 Metrics (Pass/Fail Criteria)
The measured average (between all rotation points) receiver sensitivity (inserted attenuation) in the test
SHALL be greater than or equal to the required receiver sensitivity, as shown in Table 14 and Table 15.
Table 14 Required Receiver Sensitivity for 802.11n
Test Index MCS Index Modulation Approximately Receiver Sensitivity (dB)
Required (Nss=2)
1 0 BPSK 56
2 7 64-QAM 38

27
Table 15 Required Receiver Sensitivity for 802.11ac
Test Index MCS Index Modulation Approximately Receiver Sensitivity (dB)
Required (Nss=2)
1 0 BPSK 56
2 7 64-QAM 38
6.2 Baseline performance
6.2.1 Maximum Connection Test
The Maximum Connection test intends to verify that the Wi-Fi AP can support 32 STAs simultaneously
connected with minimal packet loss and no disassociations taking place.
This test SHALL be MANDATORY for the test plan.
6.2.1.2 Setup
1. The test setup (shown in Figure 5) SHALL be located in anechoic shielded chamber (see section 5.2.1
and 5.2.2).
2. A Traffic Generator/Analyzer, sending the Ethernet packets, connects to the LAN interface (e.g., GE port)
of the DUT. The peer STAs is put at a distance of 2 meters to the DUT (For 2.4 GHz band, 2 meters free
space of wireless channel leads to 46 dB attenuation).
3. 32 STAs are prepared and associated to DUT during the test.
4. UDP connection SHALL be used for Ethernet packet transmission in the test.
Figure 5 Test setup of Maximum Connection Test

28
Note: The test result may be slightly affected by the capability of Peer STA. It is recommended STA used in
the test have chipsets from at least 2 different vendors.
The test SHALL run under the following configuration:
1. The DUT works in different modes if applicable:
A. 802.11n
B. 802.11ac
6.2.1.4 Procedures
1. Configure the working mode of DUT to 802.11n with default configuration.
2. Establish the LAN connection and allow STA to associate with the DUT.
3. Simultaneously measure the downlink UDP packet loss, using a test time of 120 seconds and a traffic
rate of 2 Mbps for 802.11n or 8 Mbps for 802.11ac, through each STA. Record the number of packets
transmitted and received to calculate the packet error rate.
4. Simultaneously measure the uplink UDP packet loss, using a test time of 120 seconds and a traffic rate
of 2 Mbps for 802.11n or 8 Mbps for 802.11ac, through each STA. Record the number of packets
5. Change the working mode of DUT to 802.11ac with default configuration.
7. Simultaneously measure the downlink UDP packet loss, using a test time of 120 seconds and a traffic
rate of 2 Mbps for 802.11n or 8 Mbps for 802.11ac, through each STA. Record the number of packets
8. Simultaneously measure the uplink UDP packet loss, using a test time of 120 seconds and a traffic rate
of 2 Mbps for 802.11n or 8 Mbps for 802.11ac, through each STA. Record the number of packets
In order to pass the test case, the recorded results SHALL meet the Pass/Fail Criteria, described as
following:
1. For each of the test configuration, Packet Error Rate (PER) for each STA SHALL achieve less than 1 %.
2. For each of the test configuration, the overall throughput of all connected STA SHALL achieve:
A. For 32 connected STA (802.11n), both downlink and uplink summed throughput SHALL be
not less than 64 Mbps * 99%.
B. For 32 connected STA (802.11ac), both downlink and uplink summed throughput SHALL be
not less than 256 Mbps * 99%.
6.2.2 Maximum Throughput Test
Maximum throughput test intends to measure the maximum throughput performance of the DUT. The test
is conducted with connection by air interface in short distance (by considering the actual utilization of Wi-Fi).

29
6.2.2.2 Setup
1. The test setup (shown in Figure 6) SHALL be located in the anechoic shielded chamber (see section
5.2.1 and 5.2.2).
of the DUT. The peer STA is put at a distance of 2 meters to the DUT (For 2.4 GHz band, 2 meter free
space of wireless channel leads to 46 dB attenuation).
3. TCP connection SHALL be used for Ethernet packet transmission in the test.
Figure 6 Test setup of Maximum Throughput Test
6.2.2.3 DUT configuration
1. The DUT works in different modes:
A. 802.11n
B. 802.11ac
The test case SHALL be conducted on all the applicable modes of the DUT.
6.2.2.4 Procedures
1. Configure the working mode of DUT to 802.11n with default configuration.
3. Measure the downlink TCP throughput to the STA, using a test time of 120 seconds.
4. Measure the uplink TCP throughput to the STA, using a test time of 120 seconds.
5. Set the working mode of DUT to 802.11ac, and repeat steps 3-4 for bandwidth 80MHz.
Note: The test result MAY be slightly affected by the capability of Peer STA. The test can be conducted with
different peer STAs with chipsets from different vendors. The calculated average throughput then can be

30
averaged again in the dimension of chipset.
following:
1. The measured average throughput SHALL meet the performance requirement of Table 16 according to
the GI used in the test.
Table 16 The Throughput Requirement
Wi-Fi
configuration
(DUT)
Wi-Fi
configuration
(Peer STA)
Bandwidth
(MHz)
Downlink
throughput
requirement
（Mbps）
GI=400ns
Uplink
throughput
requirement
（Mbps）
GI=400ns
Downlink
throughput
requirement
（Mbps）
GI=800ns
Uplink
throughput
requirement
（Mbps）
GI=800ns
802.11n (Nss=2) 802.11n (Nss=2) 20 100 100 90 90
802.11ac (Nss=2) 802.11ac (Nss=2) 80 560 560 504 504
6.2.3 Airtime Fairness Test
Wi-Fi signal transmission can be seen as a multicast process since the STAs involved share the transmission
medium. Air interface becomes a rare resource when dense connections or high throughput requests exist.
Channel condition determines the MCS selection, therefore affecting the data throughput. In general, long
distance to travel or obstacle penetration leads to larger attenuation, which makes the data rate in a low
level. Occupying excessive air time of STA with small MCS will be unfair to the STAs with large MCS (here,
assuming the QoS requirement is similar) when the air resources have already run out.
Airtime Fairness Test intends to verify the capability of Wi-Fi device to guarantee the fairness of airtime
usage.
6.2.3.2 Setup
1. The test setup (shown in Figure 7) SHALL locate in the anechoic shielded chamber (see section 5.2.1
and 5.2.2).
2. Three peer STAs are used in the test. STA1 and STA2 are 802.11n/ac devices with the same number of
spatial streams supported by the DUT in both 2.4 and 5GHz bands. STA3 is a legacy 802.11a/b/g device.
All STAs are located in the distance of 2 meter to the DUT (For 2.4 GHz band, 2 meter free space of
wireless channel leads to 46 dB attenuation).
3. DUT is set to 2.4 GHz operating frequency band with default configuration in the beginning of the test.
4. A Traffic Generator/Analyzer, sending the Ethernet packet to each peer STA, connects to the LAN
interface (e.g., GE port) of the DUT.

31
5. The TCP connection SHALL be used for Ethernet packet transmission in the test.
Figure 7 Test setup of Airtime Fairness Test
The test SHALL run under the default configuration.
6.2.3.4 Procedures
1. Establish the setup using default configuration.
2. Associate STA1 and STA2 with DUT. Establish the LAN connection and wait for 10 seconds.
3. Measure the downlink TCP throughput to each STA1 and STA2, using a test time of 120 seconds. Record
this as STA1 _throughput_1 and STA2 _throughput_1.
4. Move STA2 to a medium distance to the DUT (equivalent to 38 dB@2.4GHz and 32 dB @5GHz
attenuation between DUT and STA2). Wait for 10 seconds.
5. Measure the downlink TCP throughput to STA 1 and STA2, using a test time of 120 seconds. Record this
as STA1 _throughput_2 and STA2 _throughput_2.
6. Disassociate STA2 with the DUT. Replace STA 2 by STA 3 and remove the attenuation. STA3 is configured
to support only a 2.4 GHz connection. Establish the Wi-Fi connection between STA3 and DUT and wait
for 10 seconds.
7. Measure the downlink TCP throughput to STA 1 and STA3, using a test time of 120 seconds. Record this
as STA1 _throughput_3 and STA3 _throughput_3.
8. Replace STA 3 with a STA that uses only 802.11a. Set the DUT to operating frequency band of 5 GHz.
Repeat Step 2 to 7.

32
following:
A. The throughput variation of DUT SHALL meet
For the test in 2.4 GHz frequency band:
1. STA1_throughput_1 SHALL be within (1±5%)*Mean(STA2_throughput_1, STA1_throughput_1) .
4. STA1_throughput_3 SHALL be within (1±15%)*Mean(STA2_throughput_1, STA1_throughput_1).
For the test in 5 GHz frequency band:
A. The throughput of DUT SHALL meet:
For the test in 2.4 GHz frequency band with Nss = 2:
1. The summation of STA1_throughput_1 and STA2_throughput_1 SHALL be larger than 80 Mbps.
For the test in 5 GHz frequency band with Nss = 2:
6.3 Coverage
6.3.1 Range Versus Rate Test
Range versus rate test intends to measure the baseband and RF chain performance of Wi-Fi device. The
attenuation of signals due to range increase is achieved by using attenuator in the STA sides.
6.3.1.2 Setup
and 5.2.2).
of the DUT. The peer STA is located in 2 meter to the DUT (46dB attenuation for 2.4 GHz, 53 dB

33
attenuation for 5.2 GHz).
3. Additional attenuation is added in each RF chain of STA to simulate the incremental distance.
The specific attenuation values used for testing are defined in 6.3.1.3.
4. The host SHALL send the Ethernet packet at the maximum rate which the DUT can achieve
theoretically.
Note 1: The attenuators need to be capable of providing discontinuous attenuation between 0dB ~ 63dB for
the selected operating frequency band.
Note 2: A channel simulator, which emulates a specific real environment, MAY be used to replace the simple
attenuators for more comprehensive test.
Figure 8 Test setup of Range Versus Rate Test
1. General configuration for DUT/STA working mode, bandwidth and number of RF chains:
Table 17 General configuration for spatial consistency test
Wi-Fi
configuration
(DUT)
Wi-Fi
configuration
(Peer STA)
Bandwidth
(MHz)
802.11n (Nss=2) 802.11n (Nss=2) 20
802.11ac (Nss=2) 802.11ac (Nss=2) 80

34
2. Additional attenuation for STA RF chain during the test (see Table 18):
Table 18 Additional attenuation for STA RF chain during the test
Additional attenuation for test of 802.11n
0 dB (default), 10 dB, 21 dB, 24 dB, 27 dB, 30 dB, 33 dB, 36 dB, 39
dB, 42 dB, 45 dB, 48 dB, 51 dB, 54 dB, 57 dB, 60 dB, 63 dB.
Additional attenuation for test of 802.11ac
10 dB, 21 dB, 24 dB, 27 dB, 30 dB, 33 dB, 36 dB, 39 dB, 42 dB, 45 dB,
48 dB, 51 dB, 54 dB.
6.3.1.4 Procedures
1. Configure the attenuator with 0 dB attenuation. Configure the working mode of DUT to 802.11n and
operating frequency band to 2.4 GHz with default configuration.
3. Measure the downlink TCP throughput to the STA, using a test time of 120 seconds.
4. Measure the uplink TCP throughput to the DUT, using a test time of 120 seconds.
5. Change the attenuation for STA RF chain according to 6.3.1.3 until the attenuation reaches to 63 dB.
Repeat step 2-4.
6. Configure the attenuator with 0 dB attenuation. Set the working mode of DUT to 802.11ac with 80MHz
bandwidth. Repeat step 2-4 for all attenuation values in section 6.3.1.3.
Note: The test result MAY be slightly affected by the capability of Peer STA. The test MAY be conducted
with different peer STAs with chipsets from different vendors. The calculated average throughput then is
following:
The measured average throughput SHALL meet the performance requirement of Table 19. For each
configuration, the test allows no more than 2 testing points fall below the throughput requirement.

35
Table 19 The throughput requirement
Wi-Fi
configuration
(DUT)
Wi-Fi
configuration
(Peer STA)
Bandwidth
(MHz)
Attenuation
(dB)
Throughput
requirement
（(Mbps）)
Attenuation
(dB)
Throughput
requirement
（(Mbps）)
802.11n (Nss=2) 802.11n (Nss=2) 20
DL UL DL UL
0 100 100 42 75 75
10 100 100 45 50 50
21 100 100 48 45 31
24 100 100 51 35 24
27 100 100 54 25 17
30 100 100 57 14 12
33 100 100 60 9 7
36 95 95 63 8 4
802.11ac (Nss=2) 802.11ac (Nss=2) 80
39 80 80
0 560 560 42 100 100
10 530 530 45 45 45
21 420 420 48 25 25
24 400 400 51 5 5
27 360 360 54 1 1
30 300 300
33 220 220
150 150
39 125 125
6.3.2 Spatial consistency test
Spatial consistency test intends to verify the Wi-Fi signal consistency in spatial domain.
6.3.2.2 Setup
and 5.2.2), DUT and peer STA is in a distance of 2 meters. DUT is fixed in a two-dimensional rotation
platform.
2. A Traffic Generator/Analyzer, sending the Ethernet packet, connects to the LAN interface (e.g., GE port)
of the DUT. The Peer STA receives the Wi-Fi packet from the DUT through air interface.
3. Additional attenuation is added in each RF chain of STA to simulate the incremental distance.
The concrete values are defined in 6.3.2.3.

36
Figure 9 Test setup of Spatial Consistency Test
The test SHALL run under the following configuration if applicable:
Wi-Fi
configuration
(DUT)
Wi-Fi
configuration
(Peer STA)
Bandwidth
(MHz)
802.11n (Nss=2) 802.11n (Nss=2) 20
802.11ac (Nss=2) 802.11ac (Nss=2) 80
2. Additional attenuation for STA RF chain during the test:
A. STA with strong signals: 10 dB @2.4GHz band, 10 dB @5GHz band;
B. STA with medium signals: 38 dB @2.4GHz band, 32 dB @5GHz band;
C. STA with weak signals: 48 dB @2.4 GHz band, 42 dB @5GHz band.
6.3.2.4 Procedures
1. Configure the working mode of DUT to 802.11n, operating frequency band to 2.4 GHz with default
configuration.
2. Establish the LAN connection and allow STA to associate with to the DUT.
3. Measure the downlink TCP throughput to the STA, using a test time of 60 seconds. Wait for 10 seconds.
Measure the uplink TCP throughput to the STA, using a test time of 60 seconds.
4. Rotate the DUT platform by 30° and repeat Step 3 until the platform has been rotated by 360°.
5. Increase the attenuation for each RF chain according to 6.3.2.3 and reset the position of DUT platform to
0°, until all the attenuation values have been tested. Repeat Step 2-5.

37
6. Set the working mode of DUT to 802.11ac with a bandwidth of 80 MHz and operating frequency to 5
GHz, reset the position of DUT platform to 0°. Repeat Step 2-5.
with multiple peer STAs with chipsets from different vendors. The calculated average throughput then is
following:
A. The average throughput measured at each angle SHALL satisfy the requirements in Table 21:
Table 21 Pass/Fail criteria for spatial consistency test by performance
Wi-Fi
configuration
(DUT)
Wi-Fi
configuration
(Peer STA)
Bandwidth
(MHz)
Throughput under different attenuation
(Mbps)
Strong signals Medium signals Weak signals
DL UL DL UL DL UL
802.11n (Nss=2) 802.11n (Nss=2) 20 90 90 70 70 35 35
802.11ac (Nss=2) 802.11ac (Nss=2) 80 500 500 200 200 100 100
B. The maximum variation during rotation SHALL satisfy the requirements in Table 22:
Note: The variation at each specific attenuation is calculated as the difference between the minimum
throughput value and the average throughput value, divided by the average throughput value over all
rotations.
Table 22 Pass/Fail criteria for spatial consistency test by variation
Wi-Fi
configuration
(DUT)
Wi-Fi
configuration
(Peer STA)
Bandwidth
(MHz)
Variation under different attenuation
(%)
Strong signals Medium signals Weak signals
DL UL DL UL DL UL
802.11n (Nss=2) 802.11n (Nss=2) 20 30% 30% 30% 30% 30% 30%
802.11ac (Nss=2) 802.11ac (Nss=2) 80 40% 40% 40% 40% 40% 40%

38
6.4 Multiple STAs Performance
6.4.1 Multiple STAs Performance Test
Multiple STAs performance test intends to measure the performance of Wi-Fi device connected with
multiple STAs simultaneously. To simulate a circumstance of real environment, various levels of signals
reflecting various distance between Wi-Fi device and STA are considered in the test.
6.4.1.2 Setup
1. The same test setup shown in Figure 8 SHALL be used.
Note: STA in Figure 8 is duplicated by 9 times in this test.
2. Total 9 STAs are engaged in the test. Three STAs are located in a short distance to the DUT. Three STAs
are located in a medium distance to the DUT. The rest STAs are located in a long distance to the DUT.
The short/medium/long distance are emulated by adding additional attenuation for the signals as
follows:
A. STA in short distance: 10 dB @2.4GHz band, 10 dB @5GHz band;
B. STA in medium distance: 38 dB @2.4GHz band, 32 dB @5GHz band;
C. STA in long distance: 48 dB @2.4 GHz band, 42 dB @5GHz band.
3. A Traffic Generator/Analyzer, sending the corresponding Ethernet packets to each STA, connects to the
LAN interface (e.g., GE port) of the DUT.
1. The DUT SHALL use the maximum RF chain capability (Nss = Maximum Nss number).
6.4.1.4 Procedures
1. Configure DUT working mode as 802.11n, operating frequency band as 2.4GHz with default
configuration.
2. Enable the radios on the STAs with the short distance. Allow STA to associate with the DUT.
3. Measure the downlink TCP throughput to each STA, using a test time of 120 seconds. Calculate
the summation of downlink TCP throughput of the three STA in short distance. Record the result as
“Throughput_S_DL”.Wait for 10 seconds. Measure the uplink TCP throughput to each STA, using a test
time of 120 seconds. Calculate the summation uplink TCP throughput of the three STA in short distance.
Record the result as “Throughput_S_UL”.
4. Enable the radios on the STAs with the medium distance. Allow STA to associate with the DUT. Measure
the downlink TCP throughput to each STA, using a test time of 120 seconds. Calculate the summation of
downlink TCP throughput of all STA (three STA in short distance and the three STA in medium distance).
Record the result as “Throughput_SM_DL”.Wait for 10 seconds. Measure the uplink TCP
throughput to each STA, using a test time of 120 seconds. Calculate the summation of uplink TCP
throughput of all STA (the three STA in short distance and the three STA in medium distance). Record

39
the result as “Throughput_SM_UL”.
5. Enable the radios on the STAs with the long distance. Allow STA to associate with the DUT. Measure the
downlink TCP throughput to each STA, using a test time of 120 seconds. Calculate the summation of all
STA (downlink TCP throughput of the three STA in short distance, the three STA in medium distance and
the three STA in long distance). Record the result as “Throughput_SML_DL”.Wait for 10 seconds.
Measure the uplink TCP throughput to each STA, using a test time of 120 seconds. Calculate the
summation of uplink TCP throughput of all STA (the three STA in short distance, the three STA in
medium distance and the three STA in long distance). Record the result as “Throughput_SML_UL”.
6. Set the working mode of DUT to 802.11ac according to Table 23, and bandwidth to 80 MHz if applicable,
and repeat Step 2- 5.
Note 1: The test result MAY be slightly affected by the capability of Peer STA. The test MAY be conducted
with multiple peer STAs with chipsets from different vendors. The calculated average throughput then is
Note 2: Distance MAY be simulated by using attenuators between RF output and antenna of Wi-Fi device.
following:
A. Throughput of the Peer STAs SHALL satisfy the requirement in Table 23
Table 23 Throughput requirement of Multiple STAs Performance Test
Wi-Fi
configuration
(DUT)
Wi-Fi
configuration
(Peer STA)
Bandwidth
(MHz)
Throughput_S
(Mbps)
Throughput_SM
(Mbps)
Throughput_SML
(Mbps)
DL UL DL UL DL UL
11n (Nss=2) 11n (Nss=2) 20 70 70 60 60 50 50
11ac (Nss=2) 11ac (Nss=2) 80 500 500 400 400 300 300
6.4.2 Multiple Association/Disassociation Stability Test
Multiple association/disassociation stability test intends to measure stability of Wi-Fi device under a
dynamic environment with frequent change of connection status.
6.4.2.2 Setup
and 5.2.2).
2. 16 peer STAs SHALL be connected to the dedicated operating frequency band (2.4 GHz or 5 GHz) and
in a short distance of 2 meter to the DUT (For 2.4 GHz band, 2 meter free space of wireless channel

40
leads to 46 dB attenuation). The test is only conducted for one operating frequency band in each test
circle.
3. UDP connection SHALL be used for Ethernet packet transmission in the test.
Wi-Fi
configuration
(DUT)
Wi-Fi
configuration
(Peer STA)
Bandwidth
(MHz)
802.11n (Nss=2) 802.11n (Nss=2) 20
802.11ac (Nss=2) 802.11ac (Nss=2) 80
The general configuration SHALL be tested if the configuration is applicable for DUT.
6.4.2.4 Procedures
1. Configure the working mode of DUT as 802.11n, operating frequency as 2.4GHz with the default
configuration.
2. 8 STAs are picked for sending/receiving packet while the other 8 STAs are picked to do association/
re-association process during the test. Establish the LAN connection and allow STA to associate with
the DUT. Enable downlink UDP flow (4 Mbps @2.4GHz and 8 Mbps @5GHz) from DUT to each STA.
3. Continue monitoring the traffic flow of each STA by recording the UDP flow rate every second.
4. Disassociate the rest peer STAs. Wait for 30 seconds. Re-associate the STAs simultaneously.
5. Configure the working mode of DUT as 802.11ac, operating frequency band as 5 GHz and the channel
bandwidth to 80 MHz, respectively. Wait for 10 seconds, repeat Steps 2-4.
with multiple peer STAs with chipsets from different vendors.
following:
A. The disassociation/association does not affect the performance of other peer STAs: (1)
Error-free UDP traffic rate is at leat 99% of the configured rate for each STA.
6.4.3 Downlink MU-MIMO Performance Test
Downlink MU-MIMO Performance Test intends to verify the performance of Wi-Fi device when Downlink

41
MU-MIMO is applied. This best represents a typical deployment, where stations may only support 1x1 or 2x2
RF chain configurations. The test is only applicable to the Wi-Fi device supporting the 802.11ac. Downlink
MU-MIMO capability, also referred to as 802.11ac Wave 2. The DUT SHALL support 802.11ac MU-MIMO and
at least 4 spatial streams.
This test SHALL be conditionally MANDATORY for the test plan.
6.4.3.2 Setup
1. The test setup (see Figure 7) SHALL locate in the anechoic shielded chamber (see section 5.2.1 and
5.2.2).
2. The DUT and engaged peer STAs SHALL support 802.11ac and MU-MIMO. One STA (STA 1) supports
maximum two spatial streams while two STAs (STA 2 and STA 3) support only one spatial stream. All
STAs are located in the distance of 2 meter to the DUT (For 5.2 GHz band, 2-meter free space of
wireless channel leads to 52.8 dB attenuation) and are placed at different angles relative to the DUT,
ideally more than 45 degrees apart.
3. A Traffic Generator/Analyzer, sending the Ethernet packet to each peer STA, connects to the LAN
interface of the DUT.
The test SHALL run under the default configuration except the following:
A. Downlink MU-MIMO enable.
6.4.3.4 Procedures
1. Establish the setup by using the default configuration as detailed above.
2. Associate STA 1 with DUT. Establish the LAN connection and wait for 10 seconds.
3. Measure the downlink TCP throughput to STA1, using a test time of 120 seconds. Record this value as
STA1_throughput_1.
4. Disassociate STA1. Wait for 10 seconds. Associate STA 2 with DUT. Wait for 10 seconds. Measure the
downlink TCP throughput to STA2, using a test time of 120 seconds. Record this value as STA2_ through-
put_1.
5. Disassociate STA 2. Wait for 10 seconds. Associate STA 3 with DUT. Wait for 10 seconds. Measure the
downlink TCP throughput to STA 3, using a test time of 120 seconds. Record this value as STA3_through-
put_1.
6. Associate STA 1 and STA 2 with DUT (STA 3 remains associated). Simultaneously measure the downlink
TCP throughput to all STA, using a test time of 120 seconds. Record these value as STA1_throughput_2,
STA2_throughput_2 and STA3_throughput_2.
7. Disable DL MU-MIMO and wait for 10 seconds. Measure the downlink TCP throughput to each STA,
using a test time of 120 seconds. Record these values as STA1_throughput_3, STA2_throughput_3 and
STA3_throughput_3. If the DUT does not support this operation, this step and the associated test metric
SHALL NOT apply.

42
following:
A. The sum of STA1_throughput_2, STA2_throughput_2, and STA3_throughput_2 SHALL be at
least 45% of the sum of STA1_throughput_1, STA2_throughput_1, and STA3_throughput_1.
B. The sum of STA1_throughput_2, STA2_throughput_2, and STA3_throughput_2 SHALL be
greater than the sum of STA1_throughput_3, STA2_throughput_3, and STA3_throughput_3.
This test metrics SHALL only apply to the DUT that supports the configuration to disable DL
MU-MIMO.
6.5 Stability/Robustness
6.5.1 Long Term Stability Test
Long term stability test intends to measure the stability performance of Wi-Fi device under stress.
Throughput and connection availability are continuously monitored in a long period of time (24 hours).
6.5.1.2 Setup
1. The test setup (See Figure 7) SHALL locate in the anechoic shielded chamber (see section 5.2.1 and
5.2.2).
2. Total 3 STAs are engaged in the test. In each test cycle, one operating frequency band (2.4 GHz or 5
GHz) is used. Two STAs are picked for packet reception and ping test and one STA periodically
association/disassociation. All of the STAs are put in a distance of 2 meters to the DUT.
3. A Traffic Generator/Analyzer, establishing the Ethernet packets transmission to the STA (allocated to
receive packets), connects to the LAN interface (e.g., GE port) of the DUT. DUT SHALL select 20 MHz
bandwidth for 2.4 GHz band and 80MHz bandwidth for 5 GHz band if applicable.
1. The DUT SHALL use the maximum RF chain capability (Nss = Maximum Nss number).
6.5.1.4 Procedures
1. Configure the STAs and DUT to the 802.11n configuration.
2. Establish the LAN connection and let STA register to the DUT. Wait for 10 seconds.
3. Configure the STA not being used for the throughput and ping tests to join (associate) and leave
(disassociate) the network once every 6 minutes (for example, the station should be active for 5 minutes,
followed by 1 minute inactive, followed by 5 minutes active, etc.). This process continues throughout the
remainder of the test procedure.

43
4. Start an Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) Ping Test between each STA and AP, transmitting one
64-byte ping per second.
5. Perform a downlink TCP throughput test for each STA, using a test time of 120 seconds. Record the
throughput rates as STA1_throughput_interval_X and STA2_throughput_interval_X, where X indicates
the throughput test (1 through 288).
6. Wait for 3 minutes.
7. Repeat steps 5 through 6, for a total of 288 measurements (24 hour total test time).
8. Stop the ping test and record ping success rate as STA1_ping_success and STA2_ping_success.
9. Configure the STAs and DUT to the 802.11ac configuration, repeat steps 2 through 7.
following:
A. Downlink throughput of the Peer STAs keeps stable in each frequency band with less than
20% deviation of the minimum sampling points by referring to the average throughput during
the measurement of 24 hours;
B. For every hour, PER of the Ping test SHALL be less than 0.1 %.
6.5.2 AP Coexistence Test
AP coexistence test intends to verify Wi-Fi device performance with existence of alien AP. The alien AP in
the test SHALL support the same Wi-Fi standard (802.11n/802.11ac).
Note: This test case implements a simplified scenario where the alien network presents a 50% utilization/
contention with the DUT.
6.5.2.2 Setup
1. The test setup (show in Figure 10) SHALL locate in the anechoic shielded chamber (see section 5.2.1 and
5.2.2), DUT and peer STA is in a distance of 2 meters.
2. A host sends/receives the Ethernet packets/IP packets to DUT. The Peer STA receives/sends the Wi-Fi
packets from/to the DUT through air interface.
3. The host SHALL send the Ethernet packets/IP packets at the maximum rate which the DUT can achieve
theoretically.
4. A set of Wi-Fi interfaces/radios, supporting the same Wi-Fi standard (802.11n/802.11ac), are used to
generate the alien network interference, per the configurations described in Table 26. The QoS settings
on the alien network SHALL match those on the DUT.

44
Figure 10 Test Setup of AP Coexistence Test
Table 25 General configuration for AP coexistence test
Wi-Fi
configuration
(DUT)
Wi-Fi
configuration
(Peer STA)
Bandwidth
(MHz)
802.11n (Nss=2) 802.11n (Nss=2) 20
802.11ac (Nss=2) 802.11ac (Nss=2) 80
Note: The channel configuration of alien network MAY
use either NSS = 1 or NSS = 2.
2. The alien network SHALL be set to different configurations:

45
Table 26 Channel configuration in the test
Working frequency Channel
configuration
(DUT+peer STA)
Channel configuration
Same channel Overlapping
channel
Adjoining
channel
2.4 GHz 6 6 7 11
5 GHz 36 36 36 (NOTE) 52
Note: This intends to emulate the effects of an overlapped channel (5 GHz alien configuration is set to use a
40 MHz channel, while the DUT continues to use an 80 MHz channel).
6.5.2.4 Procedure
1. Configure the working mode of DUT to 802.11n, operating frequency band to 2.4 GHz with default
configuration. Allow peer STA registers the DUT.
2. The channel of alien network SHALL be set to the same channel as DUT.
3. Keep the alien network radios shutdown (not transmitting any signals).
4. Wait for 10 seconds. Measure the downlink TCP throughput to peer STA, using a test time of 120
seconds. Record this measurement as THROUGHPUT_SHORT_DUT.
5. Enable the alien network radios. The alien network SHALL be configured according to Table 26. The
alien network will transmit beacon frames according to the default configuration settings of 5.3.3.
seconds. Record this measurement as THROUGHPUT_SHORT_DUT_1.
7. Configure the alien network to utilize 50% of the available “air time”. This can be achieved by packet
transmission using the alien network of 1500-byte packets at one of the following rates, depending
on the configuration used for the alien network and the wireless MSC rate selected by the transmitter:
32 Mbps for 802.11n 20MHz channels with 1 spatial stream, 90 Mbps for 802.11ac 40MHz with 1 spatial
stream, 195 Mbps for 802.11ac 80MHz with 1 spatial stream, 65 Mbps for 802.11n 20MHz channels with 2
spatial streams, 180 Mbps for 802.11ac 40MHz with 2 spatial streams, or 390 Mbps for 802.11ac 80MHz
with 2 spatial streams.
seconds. Record this measurement as THROUGHPUT_SHORT_DUT_2.
9. Change the channel configuration of alien AP according to Table 26 until all the configuration has been
tested. Repeat Step 8. Stop the packet transmission for alien network.
10. Shut down the radios on the alien network.
11. Configure the working mode of DUT to 802.11ac, operating frequency band to 5 GHz, and channel
bandwidth to 80 MHz. Allow peer STA registers the DUT.
12. Repeat Steps 2-11. Record the corresponding average throughput for new working frequency.
following:
A. The average throughput measured SHALL satisfy the requirements in Table 27:

46
Table 27 Pass/Fail criteria for AP coexistence test
Wi-Fi
configuration
(DUT)
Wi-Fi
configuration
(Peer STA)
Bandwidth
(MHz)
Throughput requirement referred to the No-Alien-device-turn-on
No alien
device turn
on
Alien AP
turn on
Alien
network
working
(same
channel)
Alien
network
working
(over-
lapping
channel)
Alien network
working
(adjoining
channel)
802.11n (Nss=2) 802.11n (Nss=2) 20 - <5% <60 % <60% <5%
802.11ac (Nss=2) 802.11ac (Nss=2) 80 - <5 % <60 % <60 % <5 %
Note: Percentage indicates the performance deduction referred to the case with no alien device turned on.

47
Appendix I.
Instantiations of Test Setups
Appendix I provides instantiations of test setups as guidelines for execution of the test plan. The selection of
the test equipment is out of scope of this document.
I.1 Test setup by using IP packet through TCP or UDP
If TCP/UDP flow is required in the test, the Packet Generator/Analyzer SHALL be IP traffic generator/
analyzer. Performance statistics of TCP flow SHOULD conducted from the TCP flow sender (packet
generator) while a performance statistics of UDP flow as a report SHOULD be sent from the receiver (packet
analyzer) to sender (packet generator).
Figure 11 Test setup by using TCP/UDP flows with separate Packet Generator/Analyzer
Figure 11 shows typical examples when TCP/UDP flows are used in the test. Two independent Packet
Generators/Analyzers are utilized for packet generation/analysis. In this case, STA/STAs SHALL provide
interface to receive/forward packets from/to packet generation/analysis in STA side.
Figure 12 Test setup by using TCP/UDP flows with the dedicated testing equipment

48
Figure 12 shows another example for usage of TCP/UDP flows. The dedicated testing equipment containing
a common Packet Generator/Analyzer and STA/STAs capability is used in the test.
Figure 13 Test setup by using TCP/UDP flows with an independent STA
Figure 13 shows another example for usage of TCP/UDP flows. Independent STA/STAs (i.e., being capable
to generate/analyze IP traffic) are used in the test. Additional software SHOULD be necessary to facilitate
packet generation/reception within the STA/STAs. The software is out of scope in this test plan.
I.2 Test Setup by Using Level-2 Ethernet Packet
If level-2 Ethernet packet is required in the test, the Packet Generator/Analyzer for DUT side and the Packet
Generator/Analyzer for STA side MAY be located in the same box.
Figure 14 shows a typical example when level-2 Ethernet flows are used in the test. A common Packet
Generator/Analyzer provide bidirectional packet generation/reception. In this case, STA/STAs SHALL
provide interface to receive/forward packets from/to packet generation/analysis in STA side.
Figure 14 Test Setup by using level-2 Ethernet flows with a common Packet Generator/Analyzer

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