A software-defined radio (SDR) is a wireless device that typically consists of a configurable RF front end with an FPGA or programmable system-on-chip (SoC) to perform digital functions. Commercially available SDR hardware can transmit and receive signals at different frequencies to implement wireless standards from FM radio to 5G, LTE, and Wi-Fi^®. Figure 1 shows a typical SDR block diagram and its connectivity to MATLAB^®.

Wireless engineers can use software-defined radio hardware as a cost-effective, real-time platform for a range of wireless engineering tasks, including:

• Over-the-air lab and field testing with live RF signals
• Rapid prototyping of custom radio functions
• Hands-on learning of wireless communications concepts and design skills

Wireless engineers can also work with various wireless standards such as 5G, LTE, DVB-S2, and others using SDR and MATLAB connectivity.

Using a software-defined radio together with MATLAB and Simulink^® for wireless design, simulation, and analysis enables engineers and students to:

• Learn about wireless transceiver hardware implementation with SDR
• Set up SDR hardware with preconfigured radio functions
• Transmit and receive standards-based and custom-generated signals
• Test designs in the presence of interference and other real-world conditions
• Perform real-time signal analysis and measurement
• Deploy, prototype, and verify custom designs on SDR hardware using HDL and C code generation from algorithm models as shown in Figure 2
• Verify implementation with radio-in-the-loop tests
• Test wideband wireless systems and perform spectrum monitoring
• Prototype, verify, and test practical wireless systems

MATLAB and Simulink Hardware Support for SDR

With MATLAB and Simulink support for popular SDR hardware, you can communicate with SDR platforms to perform radio-in-the-loop testing, prototyping, and hands-on learning. The images below show the supported SDR hardware and solutions offered by bat365 to design and prototype software-defined radio systems.