Demystifying

Beamforming

Ruckus Wireless | White Paper

Beamforming is the newest Wi-Fi

innovation to extend range and
improve reliability. Learn why.

Introduction: Why Wi-Fi Must Do More

What is Beamforming?

Wireless local area networks (WLANs) are quickly progressing

Beamforming is a specialized method of radio-frequency (RF)

beyond serving as spot solutions for data-centric, vertical

transmission most often used in Wi-Fi access points (APs). APs

applications such as retail barcode scanning and warehouse

that support beamforming focus the RF energy they radiate

inventory picking. With the Ethernet-like throughput potential

directly at a receiving Wi-Fi client device. The purpose is to

of the 802.11n Wi-Fi networks, WLANs are strong contenders

improve signal reception at the client and, as a result, increase

for becoming businesses mainstream, primary LAN access

throughput.

method.
Beamforming can do more than improve average throughput
In addition, because of the trend toward unified communica-

rates. It can be implemented in a way that delivers predictable

tions, collaborative network applications and IPTV, WLANs

throughput at a given rangeperformance that is sustained

will soon be expected to regularly transport application traffic

even when the client device is in motion. Having both ample

types that require predictable network throughput. Among this

bandwidth and consistent bandwidth available at all times

traffic is real-time voice and high-definition video. These mul-

means users can enjoy a far more satisfying experience with

timedia transmissions cant tolerate flaky network connections

Wi-Fi than has traditionally been possible. Stable connections

that incur significant packet loss, delays and jitter. Such condi-

are particularly important when users are engaged in voice

tions can result in a phone call being dropped, an audio stream

and video sessions, which are far less tolerant of fluctuations in

being interrupted, or a video screen breaking up.

network performance than data applications.

In short, WLANs must be enhanced to deliver predictable

Another valuable benefit of beamforming is its positive effect

throughput rates and to reject interference so that they behave,

on radio fog. By focusing transmissions toward receiving

consistently, in an Ethernet-like manner. Beamforming is neces-

clients, beamforming avoids wasted energy and doesnt create

sary to bring those attributes to Wi-Fi.

unnecessary RF interference in other directions.

Demystifying
Beamforming

Ruckus Wireless | White Paper

Beamforming is the newest Wi-Fi

innovation to extend range and
improve reliability. Learn why.

Introduction: Why Wi-Fi Must Do More

What is Beamforming?

Wireless local area networks (WLANs) are quickly progressing

Beamforming is a specialized method of radio-frequency (RF)

beyond serving as spot solutions for data-centric, vertical

transmission most often used in Wi-Fi access points (APs). APs

applications such as retail barcode scanning and warehouse

that support beamforming focus the RF energy they radiate

inventory picking. With the Ethernet-like throughput potential

directly at a receiving Wi-Fi client device. The purpose is to

of the 802.11n Wi-Fi networks, WLANs are strong contenders

improve signal reception at the client and, as a result, increase

for becoming businesses mainstream, primary LAN access

throughput.

method.
Beamforming can do more than improve average throughput
In addition, because of the trend toward unified communica-

rates. It can be implemented in a way that delivers predictable

tions, collaborative network applications and IPTV, WLANs

throughput at a given rangeperformance that is sustained

will soon be expected to regularly transport application traffic

even when the client device is in motion. Having both ample

types that require predictable network throughput. Among this

bandwidth and consistent bandwidth available at all times

traffic is real-time voice and high-definition video. These mul-

means users can enjoy a far more satisfying experience with

timedia transmissions cant tolerate flaky network connections

Wi-Fi than has traditionally been possible. Stable connections

that incur significant packet loss, delays and jitter. Such condi-

are particularly important when users are engaged in voice

tions can result in a phone call being dropped, an audio stream

and video sessions, which are far less tolerant of fluctuations in

being interrupted, or a video screen breaking up.

network performance than data applications.

In short, WLANs must be enhanced to deliver predictable

Another valuable benefit of beamforming is its positive effect

throughput rates and to reject interference so that they behave,

on radio fog. By focusing transmissions toward receiving

consistently, in an Ethernet-like manner. Beamforming is neces-

clients, beamforming avoids wasted energy and doesnt create

sary to bring those attributes to Wi-Fi.

unnecessary RF interference in other directions.

Page 2

Demystifying Beamforming

Today, there are two popular methods of beamforming (see

Each beamforming approach uses a fundamentally different

Figure 1): chip-based and antenna-based. And a third method

technique. However, both chip- and antenna-level beamform-

will ultimately combine the two.

ing provide benefits by calculating a best path to a client

device within the RF environment. Chip-based and antenna-

Chip-based transmit beamforming (often abbreviated as TxBF)

is currently an option to the emerging IEEE 802.11n standard.
Within the chip-level implementation, there are three alternative methods: legacy, implicit, and explicit beamforming. These
methods vary by how much, if any, feedback information from

based beamforming can be used independently or in combination to provide cumulative benefits. The section, Chip- and
Antenna-Level Options: A Closer Look, delves further into
the details of how the two different types and subtypes of
beamforming operate.

the client is necessary for them to work.

Antenna-based beamforming is implemented in firmware that
sits above 802.11s PHY and MAC layers. Also called smart antenna technology and required on the AP side only, it works with
all 802.11 clients (a, b, g, n) and operates in a dynamic mode to
adapt to changing environmental conditions and client loca-

What Problems Does Beamforming Solve?

By focusing energy the way a flashlight concentrates light, beamforming can extend Wi-Fi signal coverage by two to four times.
However, the improved range is really a side benefit to two fundamental problems in wireless LANs that beamforming solves:

tions. Currently, implementations are based on individual vendors intellectual property. Ruckus Wireless is one vendor that
supports smart antenna-based beamforming with its patented
BeamFlex technology, which is embedded in Ruckus APs.
Figure 1
Different beamforming implementation options

1) It makes what has traditionally been inconsistent performance predictable and stable.

Page 3

Demystifying Beamforming

2) In antenna-level implementations, it avoids and rejects

reliability over the typical channel switching approach by mini-

unneeded interference, which would otherwise impede

mizing packet loss and resulting retransmissions. These factors,

network performance.

if left unchecked, cause Wi-Fi devices to reduce their physical

Lets take a look at each issue.

data transmission rates to stop the packet loss and provide additional signal gain.

Making Throughput Predictable

Network managers using wired Ethernet technology know that
they can count on a certain throughput at 100 meters over twisted-pair wiring. Depending on which standard their equipment
uses, they might get 10 Mbps, 100 Mbps or 1000 Mbps (1 Gbps)
of switched throughput across their wired LANs, for example. To
date, however, wireless throughput has been far less predictable.

Lowering the physical data rate negatively affects all users associated with that AP regardless of the location of the interference. Smart antennabased beamforming actively addresses
this issue by selecting the best transmission path at any given
timeone that accounts for signal gain and interference rejection in its calculations to sustain maximum data rates. In other
words, antenna-based beamforming not only avoids existing
interference; it also uses directionality and antenna diversity

Wi-Fi throughput inconsistency has been understandable, given

to avoid creating it. In this respect, antenna-based beamform-

the random movements of users, the interference that comes and

ing has a clear advantage over chip-level beamforming, which

goes between Wi-Fi receivers and transmitters and the fact that

provides gain, but has to contend with interference. In fact, in

Wi-Fi uses a shared transmission medium.

indoor environments, interference mitigation often has a much

bigger impact on overall performance than does signal gain.

These variables negatively affect performance on a random basis

and are unique to wireless. To understand why, consider that in a
physically cabled network, a users device is directly plugged into

How Beamforming Works: The Basics

a stationary Ethernet switch port and remains there. It doesnt ran-

Transmitters supporting beamforming use a number of physi-

domly move from port to port or have to contend with concrete

cal antennas or antenna elements to create antenna patterns,

walls, metal cabinets, human beings or other sources of interfer-

or paths, between the AP and client. At any given time, the

ence suddenly blocking the signal between device and switch

AP selects the best path. The best path will be the one where

port. Wireless transmissions, however, face all these issues.

the radio waves emanating from at least two AP antennas

combine to form a still higher signal at the client; signals are

The interference problem is actually exacerbated as Wi-Fi

thus in phase.

speeds increase to 300 Mbps per channel. In most 802.11n

implementations, APs transmit two or more spatial streams at a

Being in phase means that the delays in the transmission

time.

and receive paths are continually synchronized, rather than

remaining static. The result of this synchronization is akin to

Wi-Fi at 802.11n speeds has the raw capacity to support the

two people at opposite ends of a loud, noisy crowd having a

latest high-bandwidth applications, including real-time and

direct, soundproof pipe between them through which they

streaming multimedia and collaboration applications. But

can talk and listen, immune to the outside noise. By contrast,

without resource predictability, user experiences with these ap-

out-of-phase communication paths interfere with one another

plications will remain inconsistent and often frustrating.

to cancel each other out, and throughput drops. With a smart,

Avoiding and Rejecting RF Interference

adaptive antenna array offering thousands of patterns from

which to select, it is possible to control these multiple waves so

Much has been done in terms of RF management tools to help

that they are in phase frequently.

detect interference and mitigate it in todays wireless networks,

usually by making a transmission temporarily hop to a clear

By contrast, traditional static antennas might see multiple waves

channel. Automatically avoiding or mitigating interference

in phase at one point in time, but the environment is guaran-

provides significant advantages in terms of performance and

teed to change, while static antennas cannot adapt to change.

Page 4

Demystifying Beamforming

Chip- and Antenna-Level Options: A Closer Look

Legacy beamforming uses signal processing techniques

As noted, the different approaches to beamforming can be

and multiple transmit paths to optimize the signal sent by

used alone or together for cumulative benefits. Because TxBF

an 802.11n AP to older 802.11 a/g/b clients in the downlink

is an optional component of 802.11n, Wi-Fi chip vendors are

direction. It operates in legacy 802.11a/b/g networks without

working to integrate the capability into their Wi-Fi silicon. This

requiring client feedback and can statistically yield 1-3 dB of

means that most WLAN systems vendors will eventually support

signal gain with two radios.

chip-level transmit beamforming by default.

Implicit beamforming leverages some information from the
Adding antenna-level beamforming over and above this

client device upon initial association to determine how best

capability adds a measure of predictability and reliability to

to form Wi-Fi beams toward the receiving clients. Still, without

chip-based TxBF that is not possible without having precise

explicit client feedback, APs have no way of knowing if the

antenna control.

beams are optimum or working properly. Today there are no

solutions that support implicit beamforming.

Chip-Based Beamforming and Subtypes

Chip-level beamforming, which is at the heart of the optional

Explicit beamforming requires the same signal-processing

technology in the emerging 802.11n technical standards, has

capabilities in the client as in the AP so that APs can continu-

three different types currently specified. The primary difference

ally gather information needed about the client environment

among them is in how much client feedback they require.

to make dynamic best-path decisions. As chip-level beamforming is optional in the 802.11n standard, there is currently
no client support for this option.

Figure 2
Chip-based beamforming leverages phasing to
focus RF energy toward the client.

Smart AntennaBased Beamforming:

Explicit Feedback
Smart antennabased beamforming is required on the AP side
only. Smart antennas continually gather information about the
client environment and adjust transmissions to keep them optimally focused at all times. They do this using control software
on the AP that automatically adjusts the antenna array configuration on a per-packet basis to select the best-performing and
highest-quality signal path and optimum data rate for each
receiving device.
This approach can result in 9dB signal gain and interference
rejection of -17dB or more for a total increase in signal-to-noise
ratio or effective gain of 27dB. As noted earlier, interference
rejection can actually be more beneficial to overall system performance than improving signal gain.
Smart antennabased beamforming leverages 802.11s built-in

The RF footprint formed by a Wi-Fi chipset

attached to two omni-directional antennas.
Chip-based beamforming only uses phasing
so it has the limitation of being unable to form
a single beam toward the client, therefore
creating 360 of unwanted interference and
wasting RF energy.

acknowledgement mechanisms to continually determine the

quality and performance of a physical RF link.
Expert software extracts important information from all 802.11
packets received, such as the senders performance, the optimum data rate, signal strength, error rates and approximate

Page 5

Demystifying Beamforming

location. It then ranks the optimum antenna patterns for each

hallway. These are alternatives to more commonly used omnidi-

communicating device, keeping track of the best performing

rectional antennas, which assume a client device is equally likely

signal path for any given client at any point in time.

to be anywhere within a three-dimensional, 360-degree radius

as anywhere else. As a result, these antennas blast signals

The firmware tracks thousands of possible connection paths to

each client and dynamically selects, on a per-packet basis, the

evenly and everywhere, often wasting energy and causing unnecessary interference in some areas.

best path. The chart below summarizes the attributes and differences among the various beamforming options.

But even traditional directional antennas are statically focused. So

one pointed directly at a given client device one minute might be
fruitlessly aiming signals at nothing the next minute, once the user
and device have moved. Performing the RF-steering capability dy-

Beamforming Options
Chip-based
Legacy (802.11a/g)

Chip-based
Implicit/Explicit
(802.11n)

Antenna-based
Explicit/Dynamic
(802.11a/g/n)

namically, in sync with where the client devices are, requires lots of
antenna patterns (transmission paths) and intelligence in the APs
antenna firmware, as described in the previous section.

Inherently DSP
(chip) based
(tradeoff required)

Inherently DSP
(chip) based
(tradeoff required)

Additive to 802.11n
chips at the physical
layer

Doesnt use client

feedback

Requires 802.11n
client support (not
client support today)

Feedback built into

every 802.11a/b/g/n
client, nothing
needed

Provides up to 1-2 dB
gain with 1-2 radios

Provides up to 3 dB
gain with 2 radios

Provides up to
9 dB gain with 1-2
radios

Cant focus RF
energy in only one
direction

Cant focus RF
energy in only one
direction

Focuses RF energy
only where its
needed

tent.

No mechanism to
avoid RF interference

No mechanism to
avoid RF interference

Up to -17 dB of
interference rejection

antenna is provided for diversity reception only. The second

Doesnt increase in
Wi-Fi cell size

Doesnt increase in
Wi-Fi cell size

Delivers 2 to 4x
increase in cell size

One reason that legacy 802.11a/g Wi-Fi networks have run out of
gas is because, as noted, their throughput is unpredictable. By
standard design, these networks have no inherent mechanism
for managing multipath and its effect on throughput. Multipath
is the phenomenon whereby signals randomly bounce off of
objects, walls and people en route to their destination. So, unlike
in 802.11n networks, multipath is a hindrance in legacy networks,
where it degrades network performance and renders it inconsis-

While 802.11a/g APs typically sport two antennas, the second

antenna is placed a few centimeters away from the first and
APs switch between the antennas to increase the likelihood of
picking up a given signal, not to double throughput with two
parallel transmissions, as is the case in 802.11n networks. As a
result, legacy APs provide best effort Wi-Fi performance for
the following reasons:

Antennas and the Importance of Dynamic Signal

Steering with Smart Wi-Fi

1) Only one data stream is transmitted and received at a time.

Enterprise RF environments are in a constant state of flux with

3) Antennas remain static while the RF environment changes,

2) The effects of multipath arent manageable.

users on the move while AP antennas remain fixed. Conse-

as new sources of interference emerge to alter the signal

quently, the trick to maintaining Ethernet-like predictability and

pattern and, of course, as users move.

performance in wireless networks is to adapt and direct the RF

energy at clients dynamically.

4) IT administrators have no idea how to optimally position the

omnidirectional antennas.

There have long been directional antennas on the market for

By contrast, 802.11n supports advanced technologies in the

focusing RF energy in a certain direction, such as down a long

chipset, such as support for multiple concurrent transmit radios

Page 6

Demystifying Beamforming

An 802.11n Lexicon
A number of standard and optional-standard features are
being implemented at the chip level in 802.11n products to
improve throughput across Wi-Fi networks. They are defined
and described here.
MIMO. Splitting a data frame into multiple pieces and
transmitting the pieces in parallel using multiple radios
attached to multiple antennas. The receiver uses different
antennas, radios, and processing to recover the original
streams. This is analogous to five people on one side of a
room each throwing a card containing one word of a five-word
sentence on it across the room to another group of people.
The group of people on the receiving end use their collective intelligence to assemble the cards in the proper order to
reconstruct the sentence.
M x N. The number of transmitting radio/antenna pairs and
the number of receiving radio/antenna pairs in an 802.11n
device. A 2x3 MIMO product, for example, has two transmitting
radios and antennas and three receiving radios and antennas.

Spatial multiplexing. Sending two or more different data

streams across the same channel to multiply the throughput of
a single stream. A separate radio and antenna pair is required
for each data stream sent and received. Spatial multiplexing is
distance-sensitive and works best for high-throughput, shortdistance transmissions. In cases where distances are too long
for spatial multiplexing to be used, 802.11n APs rely on spatial
diversity or beamforming to boost throughput.
Spatial diversity. Using redundancy to improve signal reception. Specifically, this involves sending the same data stream
out of two or more antennas and delaying one stream slightly
to improve reception chances and thus improve throughput or
coverage distance.
Transmit beamforming/TxBF (802.11n option). Rather than
radiating signals in all directions, an 802.11n transmitter adjusts
the signal emitted from each individual MIMO antenna and
aims it in the direction of a particular receiver. This function,
similar to what is achieved with a traditional directional antenna,
is required in both transmitter and receiver.

parallel for greater throughput. This technology is called mul-

Relationship to Other Advanced

RF Technologies

tiple input, multiple output (MIMO).

If you have some experience with 802.11, and particularly

and receive amplifiers, which can send out multiple signals in

With MIMO techniques, 802.11n not only manages multipath

but exploits it to boost performance. But, 802.11n antennas, like
those of legacy 802.11a/g networks, remain static in nearly all

802.11n, youre probably familiar with MIMO already and may

have heard of related technologies such as spatial diversity
and spatial multiplexing.

implementations today. This means that over-the-air transmis-

These 802.11n technology, described in the sidebar, work to-

sion path is usually fixed, regardless of how the RF environment

gether to improve throughput by at least twice that of legacy

changes and where users move. So while average throughput

802.11g and 802.11a networks. Some of these are transmit

becomes higher in 802.11n networks because of MIMOs mul-

technologies that utilize multiple transmit antennas, and some

tiple, parallel transmissions, performance remains unpredict-

are receive technologies that utilize multiple receive antennas.

able from moment to moment.

As you have learned, TxBF is an optional 802.11n feature. It
Beamforming helps improve upon MIMO throughput to

enhances spatial multiplexing (transmit), spatial diversity

enhance both throughput and reliability. Because traditional,

(transmit), or MRC (receive). Enabling TxBF requires additional

static antenna technology hasnt kept pace with MIMO and

transmit antennas. Otherwise TxBF can only be achieved at the

802.11ns other attributes (see sidebar, An 802.11n Lexicon),

expense of one of the other enhanced transmit technologies.

implementing beamforming directly in an adaptive antenna

This is because todays 802.11n products have just two or three

and AP firmware, where sophisticated mathematical calcula-

transmitting and receiving antennas, and each of these features

tions continually track client location and select best paths,

requires at least two antennas.

adds a layer of throughput consistency to other levels of control which are present in the 802.11n chipset.

Page 7

Demystifying Beamforming

With two transmit antennas, you can concurrently enable one

BeamFlex Advances the State of Wi-Fi

Ruckus Wireless has popularized smart antennabased
beamforming with its patented BeamFlex technology.
BeamFlex is an adaptive, high-gain directional antenna
system. Integrated into every Ruckus Smart Wi-Fi AP,
BeamFlex combines an intelligent antenna array with best
path selection algorithms to extend range and improve
reliability of any standard 802.11 system.

transmit technology; with three transmit antennas, you can enable two transmit technologies. In a two-transmitter system,
for instance, if you enable TxBF in the chip, then you dont
get concurrent multiple stream support (spatial multiplexing).
In other words, there arent enough antennas to serve all the
functions simultaneously.
The addition of smart antenna-based beamforming to

Central to BeamFlex is an agile antenna system with

multiple antenna elements that can be combined in real
time to offer an exponential increase in diversity order.
With N number of high-gain, directional antenna elements,
a BeamFlex provides 2N-1 unique radiating patterns to
maximize range and coverage

chip-based beamforming helps solve this problem, since its

benefits are directly added over and above any chip-based
techniques. Smart antennabased beamforming thus allows
for concurrent support for multiple 802.11n functions.

Summary
A diversity combiner made of low-cost, softwarecontrolled circuitry allows the BeamFlex software to
manage antenna combining in real time. The core of the
BeamFlex software is an expert system that constantly
learns the environment the RF conditions, communicating devices, network performance and application flows.
A path control module selects optimum antenna combinations on a per-packet basis to ensure a quality signal
path to each receiving device. The transmission control
module sets the transmission policies including data rate
and queuing strategy based on application and station
knowledge. BeamFlex software interfaces to the 802.11
MAC layer and is compatible with standard 802.11 chipsets.
Residing in the host processor, it adds minimal incremental
CPU load and memory utilization.
By independently steering each spatial stream, BeamFlex
with 802.11n maximizes spatial multiplexing by increasing
the percentage of time that spatial multiplexing communication is possible. In addition to maximizing channel decorrelation, the smart antenna array provides interference
rejection and gain enhancement benefits to 802.11n.
BeamFlex operates automatically without any human
intervention, configuration or management. And because
BeamFlex leverages 802.11 MAC acknowledgements, no
client software is required for explicit beamforming to be
achieved.

Ruckus Wireless, Inc.

880 West Maude Avenue, Suite 101, Sunnyvale, CA 94085 USA

A top performance goal with Wi-Fi networks is not only to

achieve generally higher transmission speeds than earlier
802.11 networks, but also to guarantee consistent and predictable throughput levels at range.
The enhancements in emerging 802.11n networks theoretically at least double the throughput rate of wireless devices,
depending on how many radio/antenna pairs are in use. Chipbased transmit beamforming, or TxBF, helps by pointing energy
in a given direction. However, in most conventional systems,
this energy is ultimately transmitted or received using two or
three static antennas. This is the vulnerability of these systems
in providing consistent performance. Dynamic antennas, can
use the few chip radios and antennas, but emulate thousands
of radio/antenna pairs in firmware.
This approach provides thousands of antenna over-the-air
paths between AP and client from which to choose. The AP automatically selects the path where communicating amplitudes
are in phase, which is dependent on where the client device is
at a given moment.
In this way, dynamic antennas not only help to boost overall
throughput levels, but enable those levels to remain predictable and consistent. Just like Ethernet.

(650) 265-4200 Ph \ (408) 738-2065 Fx

Copyright 2009, Ruckus Wireless, Inc. All rights reserved. Ruckus Wireless and Ruckus Wireless design are registered in the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office. Ruckus Wireless, the Ruckus Wireless logo, BeamFlex, ZoneFlex, MediaFlex, MetroFlex, FlexMaster, ZoneDirector, SpeedFlex,
SmartCast, and Dynamic PSK are trademarks of Ruckus Wireless, Inc. in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks mentioned in
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