The implementation of a fast and efficient computer tool for field coverage studies in urban mobile radio systems is presented in this work. An accelerated and tailored ray launching method takes advantage of a ray tracing programmable framework optimized for massively parallel processing on GPUs. The PlotOptiX API is used to customize the code before applying the electromagnetic equations. The proposed code is described, and results are shown to demonstrate its correct operation. A high number of diffractions and reflections can be tracked in each ray from the transmitter to the receiver. In addition to the typical point-to-point simulation, measurement planes can also be set as receivers to provide fast predictions in wide urban areas.
Keywords: accelerated shooting and bouncing ray; propagation; ray launching; ray tracing.