Stress-Free Wireless Development.

Passing PTCRB Over the Air Tests

PTCRB test consists of a large set of test.  If you are a module buyer most of these tests will not affect you as they have already been passed by the module you have bought, if it has a PTCRB listing.  However, even if your module is already PTCRB approved you still need to pass the suite of Over The Air (OTA) tests before your carrier will allow it on their network. The OTA tests are actually written by the CTIA and are recognized by both the PTCRB and GCF.

The tests you do need to be concerned about are:

  • Total Radiated Power (TRP)
  • Total Isotropic Sensitivity (TIS)
  • Radiate Spurious Emissions (RSE ). A 2G GSM (GPRS or EDGE) test only.

These test are specified in Test Plan for Wireless Device Over-the-Air Performance, Version 3.5.2, September 2015.

Failures come with a variety of root causes with the most common being:

  • Antenna performance
  • Antenna match
  • PCB design
  • Grounding
  • Self interference (receiver desensitization)

We have experience in resolving all of these failure mechanisms.

PTCRB Over the air help line