UOWC Modulation Performance Evaluator
The UOWC Modulation Performance Evaluator simulates and compares the performance of various digital modulation schemes over Underwater Optical Wireless Communication (UOWC) channel
Overview
The UOWC Modulation Performance Evaluator simulates and compares the performance of various digital modulation schemes over Underwater Optical Wireless Communication (UOWC) channels. The software incorporates key underwater parameters—such as attenuation, scattering, temperature, salinity, turbulence, and misalignment errors—to provide realistic BER and SNR performance metrics across different water types. The tool is designed for researchers and system designers evaluating modulation choices in power-, bandwidth-, or complexity-constrained underwater environments. It supports modulation types including On-Off Keying (OOK), M-ary Phase Shift Keying (M-PSK), and M-ary Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (M-QAM).
Note: Distributed as a compiled .exe application. MATLAB source code is not provided. The executable runs using MATLAB Runtime (MCR).
Key features
- Modulation Schemes Supported: OOK (On-Off Keying), M-PSK (e.g., BPSK, QPSK, 8-PSK, etc.), M-QAM (e.g., 16-QAM, 64-QAM, etc.)
- Channel Modeling: Attenuation: Depth- and distance-dependent, wavelength-sensitive, using Beer-Lambert law, Scattering: Modeled with anisotropic phase functions (e.g., Henyey-Greenstein), Turbulence: Refractive index fluctuations due to temperature, salinity, and pressure, Misalignment Errors: Statistical pointing error modeling (Gaussian or Rayleigh)
- Performance Evaluation: Bit Error Rate (BER) as a function of SNR, distance, depth, and modulation type, Spectral Efficiency vs. BER trade-off curves, Power vs. Performance comparison for each modulation format
- Water Type Presets: Clear ocean, coastal water, and turbid harbor water (with adjustable parameters)
Use cases
- Modulation Scheme Comparison: Evaluate trade-offs between complexity, power consumption, and spectral efficiency
- Depth-Specific Link Design: Choose optimal modulation for specific operating depth and water type
- Experimental Planning: Predict BER before field deployments
- Training & Education: Use visual tools to demonstrate underwater channel effects on modulation
System requirements
- Software Dependencies: MATLAB or MATLAB Runtime (MCR)