Heatmaps
Learn how to use all of Hamina's heatmaps, and how to change them to match your network requirements.
Last updated
Learn how to use all of Hamina's heatmaps, and how to change them to match your network requirements.
Last updated
You can access heatmap options by clicking on the Expand button in the Legend popover, which is in the lower left corner of the canvas.
When the Legend popover is expanded, the Heatmap settings appear. You can choose the Technology, Heatmap, and Band (for Wi-Fi). The exact available settings depend on whether Simulation, Survey or Live is selected.
The Global settings button in the upper right of the popover reveals more settings, some of which change depending on the technology and heatmap that is selected.
Coverage
Primary: Shows signal strength from the loudest access point.
Secondary: Shows signal strength from the second loudest access point, which helps ensure that there are always at least two access points above a certain signal strength threshold. Important for redundancy and smooth roaming performance.
Tertiary: Shows signal strength from the third loudest access point, which helps ensure that there are always at least three access points above a certain signal strength threshold. Primary used for Wi-Fi-based real-time location services.
SNR: The Signal-to-noise Ratio shows how much signal strength there is above the noise floor.
Interference: Shows how many access points are audible on the same channel from a given location.
Data rate: Shows the theoretical maximum data rate available, based on on the SNR.
For Hamina Network Planner Plus users, most Wi-Fi heatmaps maps offer both Downlink and Uplink options.
Downlink: Shows the heatmap from the client's perspective. For example, Primary Coverage with Downlink selected would show the client's perspective of received signal strength from the access point.
Uplink: Shows the heatmap from the access point's perspective. For example, Primary Coverage with Uplink selected would show the access point's perspective of received signal from the client.
The client transmit power can be adjusted in Global settings.
RSRP
Primary: Shows the signal strength from the loudest base station, in RSRP (Reference Signal Received Power).
Secondary RSRP: Shows the signal strength from the second loudest base station.
Tertiary RSRP: Shows the signal strength from the third loudest base station.
SINR: Shows the signal quality in SINR (Signal to Interference & Noise Ratio).
Downlink throughput: Shows the expected throughput.
All 4G/5G heatmaps maps offer both Downlink and Uplink options.
Downlink: Shows the heatmap from the client's perspective. For example, Primary Coverage with Downlink selected would show the client's perspective of received signal strength from the base station.
Uplink: Shows the heatmap from the base station's perspective. For example, Primary Coverage with Uplink selected would show the base station's perspective of received signal from the client.
The client transmit power and spatial streams/radio access technology combination can be adjusted in Global settings.
To switch heatmaps, configure project requirements, and adjust heatmap settings, click on the Expand button.
To divide the heatmaps into multiple colors, Hamina Network Planner uses configurable thresholds. For each heatmap, there is a default divsion of colors, and labels for each division that can be changed and customized, per project.
The labels can be renamed in the row above legend bar, and the thresholds can be changed and deleted using the row below. Click the + button on the right to add thresholds back in. The maximum amount of thresholds is three, and the minimum is one.
It is best practice to design wireless networks to meet a set of requirements, such as -65 dBm of coverage, or better. Using the Hamina default labels as an example: High (-65 dBm or better) is usually considered a Pass, while everything below -65 dBm (Decent, Low, and Edge) is considered a Fail.
To illustrate this, we've changed the default Edge/Decent/Low/High to Fail/Fail/Fail/Pass in the example above, with a pass being -67 dBm.
To access more heatmap settings, click the Global heatmap settings in the upper right corner of the Heatmap settings popover.
The contents of the Global heatmap settings popover will vary, depending on:
The selected view (Simulation, Survey, or Live)
The selecte heatmap and technology
Whether the map is being viewed in 2D or 3D
Opacity - Adjusts the opacity of the heatmap, which can be adjusted lower to make the map underneath the heatmap easier to see, or adjusted higher to make the heatmap easier to see.
Client height - Adjusts the height of the client devices in the network simulation. By default, Hamina Network Planner simulates a client that is 1 meter off the ground (which is the average height of a client in a user's hand, or on a desk).
Simulated diffraction and reflection effects (Hamina Planner Plus only) - Adjusts the intensity of Fast Ray Tracing effects. For more information, see Fast Ray Tracing.
Display heatmap at client height (3D only) - In 3D mode, by default, Hamina Network Planner places the heatmap on the floor. Enabling this option causes the heatmap to hover off the floor at the height of the client, which may be useful for visualization purposes. This option is only available in 3D.
Full Building Propagation (Beta) - Without this option enabled, Hamina Network Planner only calculates propagation for the current floor, and the floors above and below the current floor. This usually provides a good balance of speed and accuracy, as most buildings don't see significant signal propagation beyond one floor in either vertical direction. With this option enabled, signal propagation is calculated across all floors in the building, which can be useful for multi-floor atriums, theaters, and stadiums.
In some environments, enabling Full building propagation may cause significant performance problems. Enable it with care, and disable if needed.
List all APs on mouseover - By default, the Legend only shows the loudest AP on most heatmaps. With this option enabled, all access points will be listed on mouseover.
Auto-select prediction input - By default, Hamina chooses which model to use for prediction. By disabling this option, you can manually choose which model Hamina should use in both the Simulation tab and Live tab.
The Live View is currently available as a beta feature for Hamina Network Planner Plus subscribers.
Environment learning (Survey) is currently available as a beta feature.
Hamina has several different models for simulations, depending on the view that is selected (Simulation, Survey, Live) and what data is available.
Simulation and Live View (Feature Preview) prediction modes:
Walls + Objects: Uses free space path loss and attenuation from walls and attenuating objects to simulate propagation.
Environment Type (PLE): Modifies signal propagation across the entire map, depending on the selected Environment type in the Project settings. Technically speaking, Environment Type changes the Path Loss Exponent (PLE) to cause more loss in open space. Any walls or attenuating objects on the map will be ignored. This model isn't recommended unless there is absolutely no other data source available.
Environment Learning (AP-AP): With Juniper Mist and Arista (in the Live View beta), measurements are taken between access points to create attenuation on the map.
Environment Learning (Survey): Site survey data can be used to create attenuation on the map (currently available as a beta feature).
Since the Survey view uses real-world measurements, no simulation is applied, so there are no selections to be made.
Hamina Network Planner keeps planning fast, smooth and responsive by calculating heatmaps in stages. The first stage is a relatively low-resolution heatmap, so you get instant (or near-instant) results. Then, Hamina Network Planner opportunistically calculates successively higher-resolution heatmaps until it was reached the maximum resolution for the browser window.
Lower-resolution stages can produce two side effects:
Blocky and less-detailed heatmaps
"Holes" in coverage areas such as warehouse aisles
In most cases, these side effects either don't appear, or simply don't matter. In some cases (such as with warehouse aisles), it is necessary to let Hamina Network Planner calculate higher-resolution heatmaps (by simply letting Hamina sit idle for a moment, so it can complete the calculations).
The progress of this calculation is represented with a blue Heatmap Progress Bar along the top of Hamina Network Planner. The progress bar will disappear when the maximum resolution heatmap is completed. It will also reset whenever the calculations start over, for example by changing the viewport or modifying the predictive model (in other words, modifying walls, attenuating objects, or access points).
In almost all cases, you don't need to wait for the Heatmap Progress Bar to finish. In most projects, the first couple of stages will give you plenty of resolution to make decisions, and potentially move on to the next design task.
The calculation is optimized for the current viewport, which is the part of the map that is currently visible in Hamina Network Planner. The viewport changes as you pan and zoom around the project.
Hamina Network Planner will reset heatmap calculations whenever the viewport changes (e.g., by panning and zooming), or whenever the predictive model changes (e.g. by moving an access point or placing a wall). Heatmap calculation is automatically reset and started, so you don't have to think about it - just plan, and we'll take care of the heatmaps for you.
If you'd like to quickly get a high-resolution heatmap for a specific area, zoom in on it.
Hamina Network Planner Plus includes the option to calculate heatmaps with Fast Ray Tracing, which simulate the effects of diffraction and refraction.
Since FRT (Fast Ray Tracing) heatmaps can take more time to calculate, the heatmap calculation is manually triggered by clicking the Compute FRT heatmap button in the upper right corner.
The Compute FRT heatmap button has moved a little bit from the screenshots, but it's in almost the exact same place.
To disable the FRT heatmap, click the Compute FRT heatmap button again.
The intensity of simulated diffraction and refraction effects can be adjusted to simulate more or less reflective environments using the Simulated diffraction and reflection effects slider.
The slider is located in the Global heatmap settings popover.
We recommend starting with setting 3, comparing with measurements in the environment (such as a full site survey, or spot-checks from a client device), and adjusting it up or down until the reflectivity more closely matches the real-world measurement.
