4. Features & License#
Revised on Dec. 4, 2023
PicoScenes is a feature-rich, powerful, and user-friendly middleware for Wi-Fi ISAC research. This page outlines the notable features of PicoScenes and provides links to their usage and explanations.
To ensure the sustainable development of the PicoScenes platform, we have implemented a licensing mechanism for these features. The majority of features are available free of charge, while a license fee is required for certain advanced features, only for SDR frontends.
In the sections below, we cover three main topics:
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4.1. Features of The PicoScenes Platform#
We categorize the distinctive features of the PicoScenes platform into three tables: Platform Features, Hardware Features, and Data & API Access. In these tables, we also list the availability of each feature for free users (in the Free columns) and Pro users (in the Pro columns). A detailed comparison between the Free and Pro licenses can be found in Introducing PicoScenes Licensing Plan and Pricing & Payment.
4.1.1. Platform Features#
Feature |
Description |
Free |
Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
Rich Hardware Support |
PicoScenes supports COTS NICs (AX210/AX200, QCA9300, and IWL5300) and SDR Devices (NI USRP Series and Hack RF One). See Supported Hardware. |
✓ |
✓ |
Hardware Interoperability |
Frame transmission and CSI measurement among heterogeneous hardware. See Interoperability among SDR and COTS NICs. |
✓ |
✓ |
Easy Installation |
Out-of-box experience. Easy installation on Ubuntu 20.04 and 22.04 in less than 10 mins. No kernel or driver compilations. Debian apt based upgrading. See PicoScenes Installation & Upgrade. |
✓ |
✓ |
PicoScenes MATLAB Toolbox |
Parsing the .csi files in MATLAB via Drag’n’Drop. See PicoScenes MATLAB Toolbox Core. |
✓ |
✓ |
Plugins Development |
Allowing users to implement their own ISAC measurement protocols, like round-trip CSI measurements or spectrum scanning. See Developing Your PicoScenes Plugins |
✓ |
✓ |
Best in class Documentation |
✓ |
✓ |
|
Public Technical Support |
Public and searchable assistance at wifisensing/picoscenes-issue-tracker |
✓ |
✓ |
Very Timely and Personal Technical Support on IM |
Very timely assistance on WeChat or other IM Apps, only for Pro users, |
✓ |
4.1.2. Hardware Features#
We categorize the technical features based on the underlying hardware: Support for SDR: NI USRP Hardware and HackRF One, COTS NIC: AX210 and AX200, COTS NIC: QCA9300 and IWL5300.
4.1.3. Support for SDR: NI USRP Hardware and HackRF One#
One of the major highlights of the PicoScenes platform is its built-in high-performance software baseband implementation of the 802.11 PHY, which supports the 802.11a/g/n/ac/ax/be protocols, 4096-QAM, up to 320 MHz CBW, and LDPC codecs. Developed in C++, it leverages the multi-threading, BLAS library, and AVX2 instruction set for accelerated processing.
Feature |
Description |
Free |
Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
SDR Hardware Support |
Supporting all models of NI USRP SDR devices and the HackRF One. See ISAC Research using NI USRP or HackRF One SDR |
✓ |
✓ |
Transmit 11a/g/n/ac/ax/be-Format Frames with 20/40/80/160/320 MHz CBW |
SDR-based Packet Injection supporting up to 320 MHz CBW and Wi-Fi 7 format. See Transmitting 40/80/160/320 MHz bandwidth 802.11a/g/n/ac/ax/be Format Frames |
✓ (Up to 2x2 MIMO) |
✓ |
Receiving and Measuring CSI for 20/40/80/160/320 MHz CBW Frames |
Fully Passive Sensing with Wi-Fi 7 format and up to 320 MHz CBW. See Listening to 40/80/160/320 MHz Bandwidth Channels |
✓ (Up to 2x2 MIMO) |
✓ |
Rx Multi-Thread Decoding |
Scaling-up Rx decoding performance. See Multi-Thread Rx Decoding (Experimental) |
✓ |
✓ |
Tx/Rx Gain Control |
Manual Tx/Rx gain control, and Rx AGC. See Tx Gain Control and Rx Gain Control: Manual GC and AGC |
✓ |
✓ |
Tx Chain Specification |
Multi-(RF) Channel and MIMO Transmission up to 4x4. See Multi-Channel (RF Chain) and MIMO Tx with NI USRP Devices |
✓ (Up to 2 channels) |
✓ |
Rx Chain Specification |
Multi-(RF) Channel Reception up to 4x4 MIMO. See Multi-Channel Rx by Single NI USRP Device and Multi-Channel Rx by Multiple NI USRP Devices |
✓ Up to 2 channels) |
✓ |
Antenna Selection |
Tx/Rx antenna specification. See Antenna Selection (Only for NI USRP Device) |
✓ |
✓ |
Operating in Non-Standard Channel (Carrier Frequency) |
Operating at any hardware-supported frequency range, e.g., in [1 - 7.200] MHz range by the NI USRP X410. See Transmission, Reception, and CSI Measurement with Non-Standard Channel and Bandwidth. |
✓ |
✓ |
Operating with Non-Standard Bandwidth (Sampling Rate) |
Operating with any hardware-supported sampling rate. e.g.. up to 400 MHz sampling rate by the NI USRP X410. See Transmission, Reception, and CSI Measurement with Non-Standard Channel and Bandwidth. |
✓ |
✓ |
Record and Replay Tx/Rx Baseband Signals |
Record Tx and Rx baseband signals, and replay them during offline analysis. See Signal Recording and Replaying (Both Tx and Rx Ends) |
✓ (Only Rx Record and Replay) |
✓ |
Tx/Rx Resampling |
Realizing arbitrary bandwidth Tx/Rx on USPRs with fixed master clock rate, e.g., achieving 320 MHz CBW with 400 MHz fix-rate NI USRP X410. See Non-Standard Tx/Rx with NI USRP N2x0/X3x0/N3x0 Series. |
✓ |
✓ |
Support External Clock Source |
Realizing Multi-USRP clock/phase synchronization. e.g., MIMO Tx/Rx and phased array. See Clock Synchronization across Multiple USRP Devices |
✓ |
|
Multi-USRP Combination |
Combining multiple USRP devices into a virtual and larger USRP with more synchronized channels, e.g., achieving up to 8x8 MIMO using four NI USRP X310. See Multi-Channel Rx by Single NI USRP Device, Multi-Channel Rx by Multiple NI USRP Devices, and Multi-Channel (RF Chain) and MIMO Tx with NI USRP Devices |
✓ (Up to 2 devices) |
✓ |
Multi-Channel Splitting and Stitching |
Combining two half-rate sampling channels into a full-rate channel, e.g., achieving up to 400 MHz bandwidth with a single NI USRP X310 (200 MHz rate max.). See Dual-Channel Spectrum Splitting and Stitching (Experimental) |
✓ |
✓ |
Multiple CSI Measurement per Frame |
Supporting up to 39 CSI measurements from a single frame. See Multiple CSI Measurements per Frame. |
✓ |
✓ |
Channel Impairment Simulation |
Simulating CFO, SFO, I/Q Imbalance and their combinations at Tx or Rx end. See Channel Impairment Simulation |
✓ |
✓ |
Wi-Fi Radar Mode |
The self-Tx-self-Rx radar model is highly suitable for Wi-Fi sensing research. See Wi-Fi Radar (802.11bf Mono-Static Sensing Mode) with 802.11a/g/n/ac/ax/be Frame Format |
✓ |
✓ |
Interoperability |
Interoperability with COTS NICs, AX210/AX200, QCA9300, IWL5300 and all other Wi-Fi NICs. See Interoperability among SDR and COTS NICs |
✓ |
✓ |
4.1.4. COTS NIC: AX210 and AX200#
PicoScenes is the exclusive platform that supports the packet injection (Tx), receiving, and CSI measurement on Intel AX210/AX200 NIC. All features below are free of charge.
Feature |
Description |
Free |
Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
6 GHz Band Access (AX210 Only) |
Accessing the full 6 GHz band channels (5955 to 7115 MHz) around the globe. See CSI Measurement using AX210/AX200 NICs and Wi-Fi Channelization. |
✓ |
✓ |
CSI Measurement with Associated AP |
Measuring CSI from the associated AP. See CSI Measurement from Associated Wi-Fi AP |
✓ |
✓ |
CSI Measurement in Monitor Mode (Passive Sensing) |
Supporting measuring CSI for all overheard frames (11a/g/n/ac/ax format) in monitor mode with up to 160 MHz CBW. See Fully-Passive CSI Measurement in Monitor Mode |
✓ |
✓ |
Transmit 11a/g/n/ac/ax-Format Frames with 20/40/80/160 MHz CBW |
Supporting Packet Injection with 11a/g/n/ac/ax format and up to 160 MHz CBW. See Packet Injection-Based CSI Measurement (Tx with 802.11a/g/n/ac/ax Format and 20/40/80/160 MHz CBW) and Packet Injection with MCS Setting and Antenna Selection |
✓ |
✓ |
Runtime Specifying Channel and Bandwidth |
Specifying channel, CBW, Tx/Rx chainmasks in runtime by commands or APIs. See Specifying Channel and Bandwidth in Real-time. |
✓ |
✓ |
4.1.5. COTS NIC: QCA9300 and IWL5300#
PicoScenes supports the legendary QCA9300 and IWL5300 NICs and exclusively unlocks several low-level controls for QCA9300. See The academic paper of PicoScenes for more details. All features below are free of charge.
Feature |
Description |
Free |
Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
CSI Measurement by “Monitor mode + Packet Injection” |
Packet Injection in 11a/g/n/ac/ax format with 20/40 MHz Channel bandwidth (CBW) with Extra Spatial Sounding (ESS). See Packet Injection based CSI Measurement |
✓ |
✓ |
Accessing Non-Standard Channel and Bandwidth by QCA9300 |
QCA9300 supports operating in [2.2-2.9, 4.4-6.1] GHz spectrum and [2.5-80] MHz bandwidth. See QCA9300 Operating with Non-Standard Channel, Bandwidth, and Manual Rx Gain |
✓ |
✓ |
Manual Rx Gain Control by QCA9300 |
Disabling AGC and specifying a fixed [0-60] dBm Rx Gain. See QCA9300 Operating with Non-Standard Channel, Bandwidth, and Manual Rx Gain |
✓ |
✓ |
Tx/Rx chain specification |
Specify Tx and Rx chainmasks in runtime, see Specifying Tx and Rx Chains |
✓ |
✓ |
4.1.6. Data & API Access#
Feature |
Description |
Free |
Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
Complete baseband signal |
SDR Only. Return the per-packet complete multi-channel baseband signals. See Data structures of the Raw Parsing |
✓ |
✓ |
Multi-CSI-per-Frame |
SDR Only. Return multiple CSI measurements (if available). See Multiple CSI Measurements per Frame. |
✓ |
✓ |
4.2. Introducing PicoScenes Licensing Plan#
PicoScenes Licensing Plan (PSLP) has two tiers: Free License and Pro License. Their differences are:
Free License (PSLP-FL): PSLP-FL is free of charge but comes with limited access to advanced features.
- Pro License (PSLP-PRO): PSLP-PRO users pay a license fee and gain full access to all PicoScenes features along with timely technical support. It has two subtypes:
Transferable License (PSLP-PRO-TL): It allows users to activate and use the license on a single computer. Users can conveniently transfer the license between computers as needed, providing flexibility for multi-device usage scenarios.
Device-Bound License (PSLP-PRO-DBL): This option ties a untransferable Pro license to a newly-bought NI USRP device. Compared to PSLP-PRO-TL, PSLP-PRO-DBL users can enjoy immediate and full access to the licensed features without explicit activation and online validation. This model is suitable for researches on newly-bought NI USRP hardware, offering faster program start, and long-term offline operation. This option is exclusively available in mainland China, as discussed in 与NI中国合作赠送 PSLP-PRO-DBL许可证 (Gifting PSLP-PRO-DBL Licenses in Collaboration with NI China).
PSLP Option |
Pros |
Cons |
|---|---|---|
PSLP-FL |
|
|
PSLP-PRO-TL |
|
|
PSLP-PRO-DBL (Coming Soon) |
|
|
Note
PSLP-PUL v0.8.1 is converted to PSLP-PRO-TL in v1.0 automatically.
4.2.1. 与NI中国合作赠送 PSLP-PRO-DBL许可证 (Gifting PSLP-PRO-DBL Licenses in Collaboration with NI China)#
PicoScenes平台非常荣幸地得到 NI (美国国家仪器)公司(中国)的认可与支持，NI公司认为“PicoScenes平台填补了NI公司在Wi-Fi ISAC领域的不足”。
为支持更多用户基于PicoScenes平台及NI USRP系列产品进行Wi-Fi/5G/6G ISAC领域的研究与应用，NI公司(中国)与PicoScenes平台达成合作：对每台从PicoScenes合作公司售出的USRP系列SDR设备(独立机器或“母板+子板”套件)，免费赠送一份PSLP-PRO-DBL许可证。作为回报，NI公司(中国)将资助PicoScenes平台、提供多型号USRP设备供PicoScenes平台研发及测试，并提供技术支持。感谢NI公司对PicoScenes平台的认可支持❤️❤️❤️！
The PicoScenes platform is honored to receive recognition and support from National Instruments (NI). NI acknowledges that “the PicoScenes platform has addressed the gaps in NI’s offering in the Wi-Fi ISAC domain.”
To support more users in the Wi-Fi/5G/6G ISAC field for research and applications using the PicoScenes platform and NI USRP series products, NI (China) has entered into a collaboration with the PicoScenes team: a PSLP-PRO-DBL license will be provided free of charge for each USRP Series SDR device sold by PicoScenes’ partner store (independent machine or “motherboard + daughterboard” kit). In return, NI (China) will fund the PicoScenes platform, provide USRP devices for PicoScenes platform development and testing, and offer technical support. We sincerely appreciate NI’s recognition and support for the PicoScenes platform ❤️❤️❤️!
4.3. Pricing & Payment#
PSLP-PRO-TL:
For Chinese users(中国区用户): 一次性付费8688元人民币得到2个永久PSLP-PRO-TL许可证。我们捆绑2个许可证一起销售，是因为常用的”(Tx) Packet Injection + (Rx) CSI Measurement in Monitor Mode”模式需要两台机器配合使用。请在我们的合作店铺购买: PicoScenes软件Pro可转移许可证(PSLP-PRO-TL)。
For English-speaking users outside mainland China: One-time payment of 1500 USD for 2 PSLP-PRO-TL licenses. We bundle 2 PSLP-PRO-TL licenses together for sale because the commonly used ISAC scenario ‘(Tx) Packet Injection + (Rx) CSI Measurement in Monitor Mode’ requires two independent machines. Compared to 8688 RMB (roughly 1200 USD) for Chinese users, the additional $300 USD is for currency exchange processing fee and technical support in English. Payment channel still establishing …..
PSLP-PRO-DBL: 我们在这个页面单独说明USRP采购及相关问题： Selling NI USRP Devices (与NI合作销售USRP系列产品)