When viewing antenna patterns in .ADF format, or any format really, you will want to keep a close eye out for where the important information is within the file. Typically an antenna pattern file will contain a list of horizontal azimuths and the associated horizontal gains, and it usually lists the vertical azimuths and associated vertical gains as well. The file could potentially contain all azimuths from 0 to 360 degrees for both horizontal and vertical, or it could also list them in chunks where the gains for the missing portions are interpolated between the chunks. If the file contains some or all of this data, then you can potentially use this data along with this linked article: Understanding EDX Format Antenna Pattern Files , to build your antenna pattern into the proper EDX .pat format. Attached is a sample .ADF file for you to download and review for practice on building antenna patterns in EDX format.
When looking at the .ADF pattern you will notice the top of the file contains information relating the the name/manufacturer. As you scroll down the file you will notice it begins to list azimuths and their associated gains. You can infer that these azimuths and gains are associated to the horizontal plane because just above the list of values is the azimuth polarization identifier, which I have highlighted below:
As you continue to scroll down the file you will notice there are several sections of azimuths and gains, before each section there should be some sort of notation signifying whether the values are associated to horizontal or vertical planes. I have highlighted some of these polarization identifiers in the image:
When building this pattern you first open up a spreadsheet in excel or sheets. In the first row will go the header which consists of your antenna name in single quotations, the maximum gain of the antenna, and the value signifying whether the following tabulated pattern data is in relative field strength or relative dB. Then you will list out in two columns all of the horizontal azimuths and there associated gains, either 0 to 360 degrees, or -180 to 180, with a maximum increment between azimuths of 45 degrees. The next entry underneath the horizontal azimuths will be a special code “999”. Below that you will enter how many slices you have and the amount of points or values within each slice. Below that you will enter in the 0 degree azimuth and below that you will begin to list out the vertical slice. List all vertical azimuths and gains in each slice from -90 to 90. If only utilizing one slice, your pattern is complete. If you have 2 or more slices, you will need to list the value in degrees that each slice is based on. The more data you can include (ie; the more azimuths and gains) the more accurate your pattern should display and give results. Here is a sample pattern built from the linked sample .ADF file:
NOTICE: the attached pattern is in .csv format. This will work for SignalPro, but our preferred format is .PAT.
It is imperative to understand the format required for EDX pattern, be sure to review the article linked above to understand the format.
For any additional assistance converting or building antenna patterns in EDX format please create a support ticket: https://edxwireless.atlassian.net/servicedesk/customer/portal/2