Measuring Specific Absorption Rate by using Standard Communications Equipment

Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) is used to measure the body tissue exposure to electromagnetic fields. This chapter describes how SAR values can be estimated from a deployed Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). We carried out this work using the Received Signal Strength (RSS) obtained from the access points. This parameter is easily obtained by an ordinary wireless network scanner. RSS variations are measured for a different number of people in the same room and without people. It will allow us to estimate how much energy is absorbed by a group of people and by a single person on average. Moreover, we have included the weight of the people in order to know the RSS lost by kilogram. These measurements were taken at the Higher Polytechnic School of Gandia, Universitat Politècnica de València, Spain, in two placements: the library and inside an anechoic camera.