Antenna system and method of operating an antenna system

Abstract

An antenna system for a mobile communication base station and a method of operating a communication network comprising a base station are described. The antenna system comprises an antenna array for beamforming and is configured as a radar sensor, a communication antenna or a combined radar sensor and communication antenna. Radar images can be used to determine a map of objects in the vicinity of the antenna system and to adjust the beam control or beamforming of the antenna system.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an antenna system for a base station of a mobile communication network and a method for operating a mobile communication network comprising a base station. BACKGROUND

[0002] Mobile communication cellular networks, e.g. networks supporting the 4G or 5G mobile communication standard, can use base transceiver stations (BTS) or base stations comprising an antenna system using beamforming techniques to support multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication to improve network capacity and coverage.

[0003] These antenna systems comprise an antenna array, which is typically implemented as patch antennas arranged in a regular rectangular grid. The pitch or spacing of the patch antennas is determined by the wavelength of the communication frequencies used in transmission or reception. The patch antennas can be dual-polarized antennas with orthogonal polarizations to improve antenna diversity and allow antenna elements to be doubled within a given area.

[0004] In operation, beamforming and / or beam steering can be used in a transmission mode to concentrate the direction of a transmitted RF signal towards another BTS or user equipment receiver (UE), e.g. a mobile phone, and in a reception mode to improve the sensitivity of signals transmitted from a user equipment transmitter.

[0005] Beamforming requires two or more antennas to operate in a transmit (TX) or receive (RX) mode. In the transmission mode, the phase and amplitude of the signal is adjusted for each of the relevant antennas to form a desired beam direction. In the reception mode, signal processing techniques are used to combine the received signals from multiple antenna patches to selectively receive signals from a desired beam direction and suppress unwanted signals.

[0006] The antenna system can be configured to use different numbers of patch antennas in the transmission and reception modes. In the transmission mode, this results in a trade-off between the power of the transmitted signal and the narrowness of the transmitted beam. Using more patch antennas results in higher power and narrower beams. In the reception mode, using more patch antennas results in higher sensitivity and narrower beams in a particular direction.

[0007] Such antenna systems can be used to form several communication channels between different user equipment and the rest of the mobile communication network. In the 5G communication standard, time-division duplexing (TDD) is used for communication on the channels. In TDD, the same frequency is used for transmission and reception. SUMMARY

[0008] Aspects of the disclosure are defined in the appended claims.

[0009] In a first aspect, there is provided an antenna system for a base station of a mobile communication network, the antenna system comprising: an antenna array for beamforming, the antenna array comprising at least one of a plurality of dual-polarized patch antennas and a plurality of waveguide antennas, and a controller coupled to the antenna array for configuring each antenna to transmit or receive RF signals; wherein the controller is to: (i) configure at least two of the plurality of antennas to transmit and / or receive RF communication signals and configure at least one of the plurality of antennas to transmit a radar signal and one of the plurality of antennas to receive a reflected radar signal, or (ii) configure at least two of the plurality of antennas to transmit and / or receive RF communication signals in a first mode and configure at least one of the plurality of antennas to transmit a radar signal and at least one further of the plurality of antennas to receive the reflected radar signal in a second mode.

[0010] In some embodiments, the antenna array comprises: two patch antennas, and wherein the controller in the first mode is to: configure a first patch antenna to be in a first polarization and a second patch antenna to be in a second polarization, and receive a detected communication signal via the first and second patch antennas, or transmit a communication signal via the first and second patch antennas.

[0011] In some embodiments, the antenna array comprises: two patch antennas, and wherein the controller in the first mode is to: configure the first patch antenna and the second patch antenna to be in one of a first polarization and a second polarization, and receive a detected communication signal via the first and second patch antennas, or transmit a communication signal via the first and second patch antennas.

[0012] In some embodiments, the antenna array comprises: two patch antennas, and wherein the controller in the second mode is to: configure the first patch antenna to be in the first polarization and the second patch antenna to be in the second polarization, and transmit a radar signal via one of the first and second patch antennas and receive the reflected radar signal via the other of the first and second patch antennas.

[0013] In some embodiments, the antenna array comprises: four patch antennas, wherein the controller in a first mode is to configure the beamforming antennas to transmit and / or receive two RF communication signals, and the controller in a second mode is to configure the beamforming antennas to transmit two radar signals and receive two reflected radar signals.

[0014] In some embodiments, in the first mode, the controller is to: configure the two patch antennas to be in a first polarization to respectively transmit and receive first RF communication signals, and configure the two patch antennas to be in a second polarization to respectively transmit and receive second RF communication signals.

[0015] In some embodiments, in the second mode, the controller is to: configure the two patch antennas to be in a first polarization to respectively transmit first radar signals and receive first reflected radar signals, and configure the two patch antennas to be in a second polarization to respectively transmit second radar signals and receive second reflected radar signals. The second reflected radar signals are typically reflections from the second radar signals. However, in other embodiments, the second reflected radar signals can be reflections from the first radar signals.

[0016] In some embodiments, the antenna array comprises: a tile of a plurality of patch antennas arranged in an array having m rows and n columns, and wherein the controller is configured to configure each patch antenna to be in a same one of a first polarization and a second polarization.

[0017] In some embodiments, the antenna array comprises an array of four tiles, and the controller is to: (i) configure a first tile to transmit RF communication signals in the first polarization and a second tile to transmit RF communication signals in the second polarization; and (ii) configure all tiles to transmit or receive RF communication signals in one of the first polarization and the second polarization; and (iii) configure two tiles to transmit RF communication signals in the first polarization and two tiles to transmit RF communication signals in the second polarization; and (iv) configure two tiles to receive RF communication signals in the first polarization and two tiles to receive RF communication signals in the second polarization.

[0018] In some embodiments, the antenna array comprises an array of four tiles, and the controller is to: (i) configure all tiles to be in one of the first polarization and the second polarization, and further configure two tiles to transmit radar signals and two other tiles to receive radar signals; and (ii) configure a first tile to transmit a first radar signal at the first polarization, a second tile to receive the first radar signal at the first polarization, a third tile to transmit a second radar signal at the second polarization, and a fourth tile to receive the first radar signal at the second polarization, each radar signal having the same frequency; and (iii) configure all tiles to be in one of the first polarization and the second polarization, configure a first tile to transmit a first radar signal, configure a second tile to receive the first radar signal, configure a third tile to transmit a second radar signal, and configure a fourth tile to receive the first radar signal, wherein the first and second radar signals have different frequencies.

[0019] In some embodiments, the radar signals can comprise the same frequency as a frequency of the RF communication carrier signal.

[0020] In some embodiments, the radar signals can comprise a frequency that is one half of a frequency of the RF communication carrier signal.

[0021] In some embodiments, the antenna system can be comprised in an RF communication device, wherein the antenna system is configurable as an imaging radar sensor, an RF communication antenna, or a combined imaging radar sensor and RF communication antenna.

[0022] The antenna system can be comprised in a mobile communication base station for a communication network, the communication network can operate according to the Third Generation Partnership Project 3GPP TM developed standards.

[0023] In a second aspect, a method of operating an RF device in a mobile communication network is provided, the RF device comprising an antenna system for beamforming, the antenna system comprising a plurality of antenna patches and being configurable as an imaging radar sensor, an RF communication beamforming antenna, or a combined imaging radar sensor and RF communication beamforming antenna, the method comprising: configuring at least a portion of the antenna system to transmit radar signals and to receive reflected radar signals; determining at least one parameter from the received reflected radar signals for channel estimation; configuring at least a portion of the antenna system as a beamforming antenna to transmit and / or receive communication signals; receiving and / or transmitting signals for at least one communication channel between a network element and a user equipment.

[0024] In a third aspect, a method for operating a mobile network comprising a base station, the base station comprising an antenna system comprising an antenna array for beamforming, the antenna array being configurable as any one of an imaging radar sensor, an RF communication antenna, or a combined imaging radar sensor and RF communication antenna, the method comprising: configuring at least a part of the antenna system as an imaging radar sensor; transmitting a radar signal and receiving a reflected radar signal, thereby determining from the reflected radar signal a radar image of a surrounding of the mobile communication base station; determining at least one of a position of an object and a classification of the object from the radar image; configuring at least a part of the antenna system as an RF communication antenna; transmitting and / or receiving at least one communication signal. The reflected radar signal can comprise at least one reflection from the transmitted radar signal.

[0025] In some embodiments, the method further comprises determining at least one parameter from the received radar signal for channel estimation in dependence on the classification and position of the object.

[0026] In some embodiments, the method further comprises determining that a user device is associated with at least one object; determining at least one channel communication path based on a position of the user device and positions of other objects in the radar image; and adapting a beam control of at least a part of the antenna system to a direction of the at least one channel communication path.

[0027] In some embodiments, the method further comprises configuring the antenna system to reduce power consumption in response to none of the objects being a human.

[0028] In some embodiments, the method further comprises adjusting a transmission power of the antenna system in dependence on a position of the human in response to classifying at least one of the objects as a human.

[0029] In some embodiments, the method further comprises enabling at least one of a light and a camera in response to classifying at least one of the objects as a human in response to the human being within a predetermined range of the mobile communication base station.

[0030] In some embodiments, the method further comprises classifying at least one object as a vehicle; determining whether a user device is associated with the vehicle, and transmitting a predetermined data set to the user device by means of the communication signal in response to determining that a user device is associated with the vehicle. In some embodiments, the predetermined data set comprises at least one of an advertisement, a map of objects identified in the radar image, and a hazard notification.

[0031] In some embodiments, the method further comprises determining whether to initiate a handover of a user device to a neighboring mobile communication base station from the radar image. Doppler measurements using radar can be used to determine a velocity of an object, which, along with location information, can be used to determine whether the base station should initiate a handover to a next cell.

[0032] In some embodiments, the method further comprises storing a location of each handover.

[0033] In some embodiments, the method further comprises determining whether to initiate a handover by comparing a current location identified from the radar image to a previously stored location.

[0034] In some embodiments, the method further comprises combining radar images determined from a first base station with radar images determined from a further base station.

[0035] In some embodiments, the method further comprises providing a map of objects from the radar image to a piece of user equipment.

[0036] In a fourth aspect, there is provided a mobile communication base station comprising an antenna system, the antenna system comprising an antenna array for beamforming and a controller coupled to the antenna array, and the controller to: configure at least a portion of the antenna system as an imaging radar sensor; transmit a radar signal and receive a reflected radar signal; transmit reflected radar signal information to a network device; configure at least a portion of the antenna system as an RF communication antenna; and transmit and / or receive at least one communication signal. The reflected radar signal information can be reflected radar signal data and / or information extracted from the reflected radar signal.

[0037] In some embodiments, the mobile communication base station is further configured to receive, from the network device, parameters for the beamforming or beam control of the antenna system from at least one of a location of an object and a classification of an object determined from the reflected radar signal.

[0038] In a fourth aspect, there is provided a mobile communication network device configured to: receive a detected radar signal from a mobile communication base station; determine, from the detected radar signal, a radar image of a surrounding environment of the mobile communication base station; determine, from the radar image, a location of an object and a classification of an object.

[0039] In some embodiments, the network device is configured to transmit, to the mobile communication base station, parameters for beamforming or beam control of an antenna system from at least one of the location of the object and the classification of the object.

[0040] Embodiments of the mobile communication network device and the mobile communication base station can be comprised in a mobile cellular communication network. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0041] In the drawings and description, identical reference signs refer to identical features. The embodiments are now described in detail, by way of example only, with the help of the drawings, in which:

[0042] Figure 1 A mobile communication network comprising a base station with an antenna system according to an embodiment is shown.

[0043] Figure 2A An antenna system of Figure 1 configured in a radar operation mode is shown.

[0044] Figure 2B An antenna system of Figure 1 configured in a radar operation mode is shown.

[0045] Figure 2C An antenna system of Figure 1 configured in a communication operation mode is shown.

[0046] Figure 2D An antenna system of Figure 1 configured in a communication operation mode is shown.

[0047] Figure 3A An operating method for an RF device in a mobile network communication system according to an embodiment is shown.

[0048] Figure 3B An operating method of a mobile network according to an embodiment is shown.

[0049] Figure 4 An operating method of a mobile network according to an embodiment is shown.

[0050] Figure 5 An operating method of a mobile network according to an embodiment is shown.

[0051] Figure 6 An operating method of a mobile network according to an embodiment is shown.

[0052] Figure 7 An operating method of a mobile network according to an embodiment is shown.

[0053] Figure 8 An operating method of a mobile network according to an embodiment is shown.

[0054] Figure 9A An operating method of a mobile network according to an embodiment is shown.

[0055] Figure 9B An operation method of a mobile network according to an embodiment is shown.

[0056] Figure 9C An operation method of a mobile network according to an embodiment is shown.

[0057] Figure 10A An antenna system according to an embodiment is shown.

[0058] Figure 10B A detailed view of a transmit / receive chain of an antenna system for Figure 10A is shown.

[0059] Figure 10C A plan view of an alternative arrangement of antenna patches of an antenna system for Figure 10A is shown.

[0060] Figure 11A An antenna system according to an embodiment is shown.

[0061] Figure 11B A detailed view of a transmit / receive chain of an antenna system for Figure 11A is shown.

[0062] Figure 12A , 12B and 12C show different operational configurations of an antenna system with two patch antennas according to an embodiment.

[0063] Figure 13A , 13B , 13C, 13D and 13E show different operational configurations of an antenna system with four patch antennas according to an embodiment.

[0064] Figure 14A A tile of a patch antenna of an antenna system according to an embodiment is shown.

[0065] Figure 14B , 14C , 14D, 14E, 14F and 14G show different operational configurations of an antenna system comprising Figure 14A four tiles according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0066] Figure 1 An mobile communication network 100 comprising base stations 120 is shown. The mobile communication network 100 can comprise a central network element 118 forming part of a wide area network (WAN) 116. The central network element 118 can communicate with the base stations or radio remote units 120 via links 108. The base stations 120 comprise reconfigurable antenna systems 110.

[0067] The communication network 100 can be a time division duplex (TDD) communication network using millimeter wave communications. The antenna system 110 can be configured to form an imaging radar sensor that can provide information via a data link 108 used by the central network element 118 to create a computational model 104.

[0068] The antenna system 110 can also be configured as a beamforming antenna that constructs one or more spatially selective communication channels 112 between the central network element 118 and various pieces of user equipment 114 or other base stations.

[0069] The computational model 104 can provide a quasi-static physical model of the surrounding environment and a map of people and / or vehicles and other objects (e.g., buildings and trees) that exist within the transmission range of the base stations 120. The computational model 104 can include channel estimates of the physical communication links between the base stations 120 and the user equipment 114 and can also determine the location of the user equipment, for example, by triangulation using multiple (three or more) base station scans to derive x, y, z coordinates. This can allow the user equipment to correlate with objects in the radar image to allow accurate tracking of people and / or vehicles. These channel estimates can be used by the central network element 118 as input to a beam control algorithm 106. The beam control algorithm can be used to control the antenna system 110 to drive the spatial beam steering elements so that the line-of-sight properties, i.e., the direct path between the base stations 120 and the user equipment 114 without physical obstructions, and, in particular, the non-line-of-sight propagation paths (reflections) of the millimeter wave communication system 100, can be efficiently utilized. For example, as shown, the channel 112 utilizes a non-line-of-sight path via a building. The central network element 118 can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and software.

[0070] An example beam control algorithm that can be used to control the beamforming can include a delay-and-sum (Bartlett) or minimum variance beamforming algorithm. The antenna system 110 can be configured to optimize the highest data throughput using the lowest electrical power.

[0071] The computational model 104 can also include quasi-static parameters that can be obtained from the mobile communication network that can be stored in a database 102. These parameters can include, for example, user subscription types that can define the data needs expected and can also provide priority of channels for particular user equipment. Other parameters can include the time of day and weather conditions or other environmental data that can be used as complementary elements to optimize the beam control algorithm 106.

[0072] The antenna system 110 can reconfigure between a radar operating mode and a communication operating mode in time slots between (radar) image sensing and actual network-to-UE communication. A minimum required time can be allocated in the time slots to create sufficiently accurate images of the surrounding environment needed to determine parameters for the channel estimation part of the computational model 104. The channel estimation can subsequently be used to optimize the channel link. In some examples, a part of the antenna system 110 can be used for radar image sensing at the same time as other parts of the antenna system 110 are still used for network-to-UE communication.

[0073] The inventors of the present disclosure have realized that for millimeter wave communication systems, especially millimeter wave communication systems using TDD such as 5G mobile communication networks, the antenna array used for communication can also be configured to function as a radar image sensor. Moreover, this reconfiguration can not require any physical changes to the antenna array, but according to embodiments, can be achieved by providing appropriate signals to one or more antennas in the antenna array. This radar image sensor provides a radar image that can provide information to reduce power consumption or to improve communication quality and / or data throughput by improving channel estimation. The antenna system 110 can be configured such that at least a part of the array is in a transmitting mode and another part is in a receiving mode. The frequency used for radar sensing can be the same or different from the carrier frequency used for RF communication. In some examples, the frequency used for radar sensing can comprise any multiple of one half of the RF communication frequency, e.g. 1 / 2 or 1 / 4 of the RF communication frequency. In some millimeter wave systems where the frequency is in the range of 92 GHz to 100 GHz, the bandwidth of the signal can be 8 GHz. The radar signal can be a linear frequency modulated signal or a linear frequency modulated signal modulated by a code. In other words, the frequency of the radar signal can vary over time or be fixed.

[0074] Figure 2AAn antenna system 110 configured as a radar image sensor is shown. The antenna system 110 includes a controller 130 and an antenna array 140 that includes an array of patch antennas 122 that can be dual polarized. As shown, the patch antennas 122 are circular, as this has been found to achieve desirable performance. However, in other examples, the patch antennas 122 can use different shaped patches. The antenna array 140 shows a 4x6 array of antenna patches 122. However, it should be appreciated that in other examples, fewer or more antenna patches can be used. In other examples, instead of or in addition to patch antennas, an array of waveguide antennas can be used, which can be referred to as transmitter antennas. The controller 130 can control transmitter / receiver chains (not shown) connected to each antenna patch 122. The controller 130 is connected to the antenna array via connections 126, which can include multiple individual connections, with two connections per antenna patch 122. The controller 130 can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and software. The controller 130 can send or receive control and communication data via connections 128, which can be sent to and / or received from a central network element 118.

[0075] The controller 130 can configure a subset 124 of the patch antennas 122 to transmit radar signals or to receive (reflected) radar signals. In other examples, the controller 130 can configure half of the patch antennas 122 to each transmit radar signals that can be the same signals or different signals, and the other half of the patch antennas 122 to detect one or more reflected radar signals. In other examples, the number of patch antennas 122 used for transmission and detection can be different. In a radar configuration, the antenna system 110 can use beamforming and beam steering to scan the environment to map objects. In other examples, the antenna system 110 can determine a radar image of the surrounding environment in all directions without using beamforming. In other examples, beamforming can be used to scan the environment to map objects using a relatively narrow beam width. For example, a narrower beam width can have a divergence angle of 5 degrees or less for the transmitting antennas. A wider beam width can have a divergence angle of 30 degrees or more for the transmitting antennas. Figure 2B The antenna system 110 is shown transmitting radar signals 132 and detecting reflected radar signals 134 from various objects in the vicinity of the antenna system 110.

[0076] Figure 2C and Figure 2DAn antenna system 110 configured for communication is shown. A controller 130 can configure a first beamforming antenna 142, which in the illustrated non-limiting example has two antenna patches 122 that form a first communication channel 146. The controller 130 can configure a beamforming antenna 144 of the antenna array 140, and in the illustrated non-limiting example, the beamforming antenna 144 has four antenna patches 122 to form a second communication channel 148. Each of the first beamforming antenna 142 and the second beamforming antenna 144 can transmit and receive communication signals.

[0077] Figure 3A An operating method 200 for an RF device in a mobile network communication system is shown, according to an embodiment. At step 202, at least a portion of beamforming antennas can be configured to transmit and receive radar signals. At step 204, at least one parameter can be determined from the received radar signals for channel estimation. At step 206, the antenna system can be reconfigured to transmit and / or receive communication signals. At step 208, signals can be received or transmitted using the antenna system over at least one communication channel between a network element and a user device.

[0078] Figure 3B An operating method 210 for a mobile network communication system is shown, according to an embodiment. At step 212, at least a portion of antennas in a base station can be configured to transmit and receive radar signals, thereby acting as a radar sensor. At step 214, a classification of objects and locations of objects can be determined from a radar image derived from the detected radar signals. At step 216, the antenna system of the mobile base station can be reconfigured to transmit and / or receive communication signals. The reconfiguration can include updating beam control and beamforming parameters using location and object information derived from the radar image. At step 218, signals can be received or transmitted using the antenna system over at least one communication channel between a network element and a user device.

[0079] Figure 4 A method 220 of operating a mobile network including an antenna system is shown, according to an embodiment. The antenna system can be included in one or more base stations. At step 222, at least a portion of beamforming antennas can be configured to transmit and receive radar signals. At step 224, a radar image of a surrounding environment of the antenna system can be created. At step 226, a check can be made to see if a human has been detected based on the created radar image. If a human has not been detected, the method proceeds to step 228, and the antenna system can enter a low power mode and a radar imaging duty cycle is reduced.

[0080] Alternatively, instead of reducing the radar imaging duty cycle, the radar mode can be used to track the moving object using a progressive algorithm. For example, a radio signal strength indicator (RSSI) can be used in conjunction with a location algorithm such as a fingerprint corrected weighted centroid (FCWC) for example in a Wi-Fi access point using a beacon signal to determine the location in time. This algorithm can be performed progressively to dynamically track the user location from consecutive radar images.

[0081] In this way, by configuring the antenna as a radar sensor and using the information provided by the detected radar signals, the power consumption of a base station or a radio remote unit of a mobile communication network comprising the antenna system can be reduced. After step 228, the method can return to step 222. If a person has been detected in step 226, the method can proceed to step 230 and the beamforming antenna can be configured to transmit and receive communication signals.

[0082] Figure 5 A method 240 of operating a mobile network comprising an antenna system according to an embodiment is shown. The antenna system can be comprised in a base station. In step 242, at least a part of the beamforming antenna can be configured to transmit and receive radar signals. In step 244, a radar image of the surrounding environment can be created. In step 246, based on the determined radar image, a channel with the lowest path loss comprising all possible line-of-sight and non-line-of-sight paths can be determined. In step 248, the beamforming antenna can be reconfigured to transmit and / or receive communication signals. The beamforming parameters used for configuring the beamforming can be determined from the determined channel characteristics. The method 240 can result in an ideal selection of channel paths that can improve the quality and / or data rate of the communication channel.

[0083] Figure 6 A method 250 of operating a mobile network comprising an antenna system according to an embodiment is shown. The antenna system can be comprised in a base station. In step 252, at least a part of the beamforming antenna can be configured to transmit radar signals and receive reflected radar signals. In step 254, a radar image of the surrounding environment can be created from the reflected radar signals. In step 256, a maximum transmit power can be determined based on a detected person being closest to a predetermined safety parameter compared to the safety parameters. In step 258, the beamforming antenna can be reconfigured to transmit and / or receive communication signals using the maximum power determined in step 256.

[0084] Figure 7A method 260 of operating a mobile network including an antenna system is shown according to an embodiment. The antenna system can be included in a base station. At step 262, at least a portion of the beamforming antennas can be configured to transmit and receive radar signals. At step 264, a radar image of the surrounding environment can be created. At step 266, it can be determined whether a person is in the vicinity and whether it is nighttime based on time information. If a person is in the vicinity and it is nighttime, the method moves to step 268 and a light and / or camera can be enabled. When the antenna system is included in a base station, this can be used to provide security protection for the antenna system. After step 268, the method can proceed to step 270, where the beamforming antennas are reconfigured to transmit and / or receive communication signals. Returning to step 246, if no person is detected in the vicinity, the step proceeds directly to 250.

[0085] Figure 8 A method 280 regarding a mobile network including an antenna system is shown according to an embodiment. The antenna system can be included in a base station. At step 282, at least a portion of the beamforming antennas can be configured to transmit and receive radar signals. At step 284, a radar image of the surrounding environment can be created. At step 286, the beamforming antennas can be reconfigured to transmit and / or receive communication signals. At step 288, specific messages or advertisements can be uploaded to or downloaded from the communication network. Alternatively or additionally, in some examples, a map of objects determined from the radar image can be transmitted, which can be used by a driver or an autonomous vehicle for navigation. If a car or other vehicle is detected and any user equipment in the vehicle is enabled, these messages can be transmitted to the user equipment.

[0086] Figure 9A A method 500 of operating a mobile network including an antenna system is shown according to an embodiment. The antenna system can be included in a base station. At step 502, at least a portion of the beamforming antennas can be configured to transmit and receive radar signals. At step 504, a radar image of the surrounding environment can be created. At step 506, an object in the radar image, such as a person or a vehicle, can be associated with a mobile user equipment (UE). At step 508, it can be determined that a piece of user equipment is moving away from a cell of a cellular network. In one non-limiting example, this can be accomplished by comparing the radar image to a previous radar image. If the UE is moving away from the cell, at step 510, the path of the UE is determined, for example, using the speed and angular position of the UE. This information can then be used to identify a next cell for a cell handover. The method then proceeds to step 512 and the beamforming antennas are reconfigured to transmit and / or receive communication signals. Returning to step 508, if the UE is not moving away from the cell, the method proceeds directly to step 512.

[0087] Figure 9B A method 520 of operating a mobile network comprising an antenna system is shown according to an embodiment. The antenna system can be comprised in a base station. In step 522, a cell edge, i.e. a maximum distance from the antenna system at which a UE can still effectively communicate with the antenna system, can be determined by monitoring the power strength of the UE signal. In step 524, a determination of the speed and direction of an object can be determined. The value of the speed can be determined from the Doppler shift of the frequency of the reflected radar signal compared to the transmitted radar signal. If the UE is associated with an object which can be determined by a correlation of the object position and the UE position, the object position being determined from the radar image, the object and thus the UE can be checked in step 526 whether it is moving away from the cell. If the UE is moving away from the cell, a handover message can be transmitted to an identified base station in step 528, the identified base station being another base station in the network, typically in the vicinity of the position towards which the UE is moving away when, to instruct the base station to take over the communication with the UE. In step 532, the position of the handover in the radar image can be stored. The method then proceeds to step 530 and the beamforming antenna is reconfigured to transmit and / or receive communication signals. Returning to step 526, if the UE is not moving away from the cell, the method proceeds directly to step 530.

[0088] Figure 9C A method 540 of operating a mobile network comprising an antenna system is shown according to an embodiment. The antenna system can be comprised in a base station. In step 542, a predetermined preferred handover position can be determined from a previously stored position determination as described in method 520. In step 544, a determination of the speed and direction of an object can be determined, e.g. using the previously described method. If the UE is associated with an object which can be determined by a correlation of the UE position and the object position, the object and thus the UE can be checked in step 546 whether it is moving away from the cell. This check can be done, e.g. by determining that the object is located at a predetermined cell edge, the object being, e.g. a person or a vehicle associated with the UE through the communication network. If the UE is moving away from the cell, in step 548, the current position of the object is compared to a list of predetermined positions for handover. If the current position is in the list of predetermined positions, in step 554, a handover message can be transmitted to an identified base station. The method then proceeds to step 552 and the beamforming antenna is reconfigured to transmit and / or receive communication signals. Returning to step 546, if the UE is not moving away from the cell, the method proceeds directly to step 552. Returning to step 548, if the current position is not in the list of predetermined positions, the position of the current object can be stored for a subsequent estimation in step 550 to determine whether the position of the current object is a candidate for handover. The method then returns to step 542.

[0089] In some examples, radar images detected from multiple neighboring base stations can be combined to construct a more detailed image.

[0090] The antenna system can be reconfigured from a long range radar to a short range radar. The longer range radar can use a lower frequency, but still be wideband for time resolution. The short range radar can use a higher frequency and / or a larger bandwidth to limit self-interference due to other radar transmitters. For example, an embodiment of the antenna system can be configured as a long range radar that uses a frequency of 76GHz to 77GHz that corresponds to a bandwidth of 1GHz. An embodiment of the antenna system can be configured as a short range radar that uses a frequency of 76GHz to 81GHz that corresponds to a bandwidth of 4GHz.

[0091] In some examples, the antenna panel can be configured to operate in a'sparse operation' mode to avoid using adjacent antenna patches and / or to use fewer patches. This can be achieved by changing the frequency to maintain a half-λ (wavelength) spacing, for example by halving the frequency and then using the patches one by one.

[0092] Figure 10A An antenna system 300 for a cellular network according to an embodiment is shown. The antenna system 300 comprises a controller 310, an antenna array 340 and a beamformer 312, which can be an analog or digital beamformer, or a hybrid analog and digital beamformer. In some examples, the beamformer can be part of the controller. The controller 310 can have a port 302, which can be a single wire or bus connection, configured to receive or transmit communication signals and control parameters from or to a central network element (not shown). The controller 310 can have a connection 308 to the beamformer 312 to send or receive communication or radar signals. The connection 308 can be a single wire or bus connection. The controller 310 can have a first control output 304 connected to control inputs of RF transmit / receive chains 320a-d. The controller 306 can have a second control output connected to control inputs of the beamformer 312. The beamformer 312 can be connected to respective RF ports 314a-d of each of the transmit / receive chains 320a-d. The antenna array 340 comprises dual polarized patch antennas 330a-d. A respective first feed point of each of the patch antennas 330a-d is connected to a respective transmitter output 322a-d of the RF transmitter / receiver chains 320a-d. A respective second feed point of each of the patch antennas 330a-d is connected to a respective receiver input 324a-d of the RF transmitter / receiver chains 320a-d.

[0093] Figure 10B Transmit / receive circuitry 320 is shown that can be used in each of transmit / receive channels 320a-d. Transmit / receive circuitry 320 includes an RF port 314 connected to an RF switch 332. A control input of RF switch 332 can be connected to control port 304 to select between transmit and receive paths. An input 334 of a transmit amplifier 338 is connected to RF switch 332. An output 336 of a receiver amplifier 342 is connected to RF switch 332. An output of transmit amplifier 338 is connected to a transmitter output 322. An input of receiver amplifier 342 is connected to a receiver input 324.

[0094] Figure 10C An alternative arrangement of patch antennas 330a is shown arranged in a grid rather than a linear array.

[0095] In operation, controller 310 can receive beam control parameters via communication interface 302. The controller can use the parameters to control beamformer 312 to produce one or more beams for a communication channel using a subset of patch antennas 322a-d. Alternatively, for example, when using a radar mode of operation, controller 310 can configure beamformer 312 so that no beamforming is performed, i.e., no modification of gain and / or phase for different channels. Controller 310 can control whether patch antennas are configured to transmit or receive signals by controlling output 304. As shown, a single control output is used to configure all patch antennas 330a-d to be in transmit mode or in receive mode. However, it should be appreciated that in other examples, controller 310 can be configured to independently control each transmit / receive channel 320a-d, for example, by replacing the single control connection 304 with a bus connection. In a communication mode, for a given communication channel, controller 310 can configure a set of patch antennas 330a-d to time multiplex between transmit and receive to support TDD communication. Patch antennas 330 are typically dual polarized, with the polarization determined by which feed point is used to transmit and receive. In a radar mode, controller 360 can configure a first subset of patch antennas 330a-d to transmit radar signals that can be generated by controller 360 and a second subset of patch antennas 330a-d to detect reflected radar signals.

[0096] Figure 11AAn antenna system 350 for a cellular network is shown in accordance with an embodiment. The antenna system 350 includes a controller 360, an antenna array 390, and a beamformer 362, which can be an analog or digital beamformer. In some examples, the beamformer can be part of the controller. The controller 360 can have a port 352, which can be a single wire or bus connection, configured to receive or transmit communication signals and control parameters from or to a central network element (not shown). The controller 360 can have a connection 358 to the beamformer 362 to send or receive communication or radar signals. The connection 358 can be a single wire or bus connection. The controller 360 can have control outputs 354, 354' connected to respective control inputs of RF transmit / receive chains 370a-d. The controller 360 can have a control output 356 connected to a control input of the beamformer 312. The beamformer 312 can be connected to respective RF ports 364a-d, 364a'-364d' of each of the transmit / receive chains 370a-d. The antenna array 390 includes dual polarized patch antennas 380a-d. A respective first feed point of each of the patch antennas 380a-d is connected to a respective transmitter / receiver port 372a-d of the RF transmitter / receiver chains 370a-d. A respective second feed point of each of the patch antennas 380a-d is connected to a respective transmitter / receiver port 374a-d of the RF transmitter / receiver chains 370a-d.

[0097] Figure 11B A transmitter / receiver circuit 370 is shown that can be used in each of the transmitter / receiver channels 370a-d. The transmitter / receiver circuit 370 allows each feed point of the patch antennas 380a-d to be connected for transmission or reception. The transmitter / receiver circuit 370 includes two RF ports 364, 364' connected to respective RF switches 382, 382'. A control input of the RF switches 382, 382' can be connected to the control ports 354, 354' to select between the transmit and receive paths for each channel. An input 384, 384' of each transmitter amplifier 388, 388' is connected to the respective RF switch 382, 382'. An output 386, 386' of each receiver amplifier 392, 392' is connected to the respective RF switch 382, 382'. An output of each transmitter amplifier 388, 388' is connected to a respective second RF switch 398, 398'. An input of each receiver amplifier 392, 392' is connected to a respective second RF switch 398, 398". A first transmit / receive port 372 is connected to the second RF switch 398. A second transmit / receive port 374 is connected to the second RF switch 398".

[0098] In operation, the controller 360 can receive beam control parameters via the communication interface 352. The controller can use the received beam control parameters to control the beamformer 362 to produce one or more beams for a communication channel using a subset of the patch antennas 372a-d. Alternatively, the controller 360 can configure the beamformer 362 such that no beamforming is performed, e.g., when using a radar mode of operation. The controller 360 can control whether the patch antennas are configured to transmit or receive signals by controlling the output 354, 354'. As shown, for each feed point, the control output 354, 354' is used to configure all of the patch antennas 380a-d to be in the same one of a transmit mode and a receive mode. However, it should be appreciated that in other examples, the controller can be configured to independently control each transmit / receive channel 370a-d, e.g., by replacing the single control connection 354, 354' with a bus connection. In a communication mode, for a given communication channel, the controller 360 can configure a set of patch antennas 380a-d to be time multiplexed between transmitting and receiving to support TDD communication. The patch antennas 380a-d are typically dual polarized, with the polarization being determined by which feed point is used to transmit and receive. In other examples, the patch antennas 380a-d can be configured to transmit in horizontal and vertical polarization or to receive in horizontal and vertical polarization. In a radar mode, the controller 360 can configure a set of patch antennas 380a-d to transmit radar signals that can be generated by the controller 360 or to detect radar signals.

[0099] Figures 12A to 12C Different configurations of an antenna system 400 having two dual polarized patch antennas 402a, 402b are shown in accordance with an embodiment. The antenna system 400 can be configured by a controller (not shown). Figure 12A A communication mode is shown in which the antenna 400 is configured as two antenna patches with one stream and two polarizations, H and V representing horizontal and vertical polarizations, respectively. It should be appreciated that the terms horizontal and vertical polarization are used in a relative sense to indicate streams of orthogonal polarizations. As shown, the antenna patches 402a, 402b can be configured to receive in the respective horizontal and vertical polarizations or to transmit in the respective horizontal and vertical polarizations. Figure 12B An alternative configuration in a communication mode is shown in which the antenna system 400 can receive or transmit in a single polarization, which can be horizontal or vertical. In this example, the antenna system 400 is configured to receive in the horizontal polarization and to transmit in the vertical polarization. Figure 12CIn the illustrated radar mode of operation, antenna patch 402b is configured to receive only and antenna patch 402a is configured to transmit only. Note that as illustrated in this and the following figures, the direction of the arrows refers to the electrical feed to / from the antenna, not the electrical feed to the signal propagating in air. Antenna patch 402a can thus transmit a radar signal and antenna patch 402b can receive a reflected radar signal. Both antenna patch 402a and antenna patch 402b can be configured to be in the same polarization

[0100] Figures 13A to 13E Different configurations of an antenna system 410 with four dual-polarized patch antennas 412a-d are illustrated, according to embodiments. The antenna system 410 can be configured by a controller (not shown).

[0101] Figure 13A A communication mode of operation of the four antenna patches 412a-d for two streams is illustrated, in two orthogonal polarizations. Patch antennas 412a and 412c can be configured to transmit or receive horizontally polarized signals. Patch antennas 412b and 412d can be configured to transmit and receive vertically polarized signals. In this configuration, the antenna system 410 can receive beams in horizontal and vertical polarization, one beam using antenna patches 412a and 412c and one beam using antenna patches 412b and 412d.

[0102] Figure 13B An alternative communication mode of operation of the antenna system 410 for two streams, in two orthogonal polarizations, is illustrated, with horizontal polarization for antenna patches 412a and 412b and vertical polarization for antenna patches 412c and 412d.

[0103] Figure 13C A radar mode of operation of the antenna system 410 is illustrated, in which patch antenna 412a is configured to transmit in horizontal polarization, patch antenna 412b is configured to transmit in vertical polarization, patch antenna 412c is configured to receive in horizontal polarization, and patch antenna 412d is configured to receive in vertical polarization. This can allow two different radar streams, one in horizontal polarization and one in vertical polarization, to improve the resolution of the radar image. Alternatively, different frequencies can be used for the two radar streams, in addition to using different polarizations.

[0104] Figure 13D An alternative configuration of a radar mode of operation for the antenna system 410 is illustrated, for transmitting and detecting two radar streams in two different polarizations. Patch antenna 412a is configured to transmit in horizontal polarization, patch antenna 412b is configured to receive in horizontal polarization, patch antenna 412c is configured to transmit in vertical polarization, and patch antenna 412d is configured to receive in vertical polarization.

[0105] Figure 13E An alternative configuration for the radar mode of operation of the antenna system 410 is shown for transmitting and detecting two radar streams under two different polarizations, where the radar streams are positioned diagonally. The patch antenna 412a is configured to transmit under horizontal polarization, the patch antenna 412b is configured to receive under vertical polarization, the patch antenna 412c is configured to transmit under vertical polarization, and the patch antenna 412d is configured to receive under horizontal polarization. It is noted that in this case the effective spacing between the antenna patches is larger than the spacing between directly adjacent patches (a factor of the square root of two), so the optimal frequency is correspondingly reduced by a factor of the square root of two.

[0106] Figure 14A A tile 420 is shown having mxn antenna patches 422 arranged in a grid of n columns and m rows connected to RF ends 424. Each patch is polarized for transmission (TX) and reception (RX), so the tile 420 can be enabled to be in one polarization and operate as either transmitting or receiving. The size of the tile 420 can be effectively adjusted by setting the transmission or reception mode of each antenna patch, respectively.

[0107] Figures 14B to 14G A different configuration of an antenna system 430 having four tiles 420a-d and corresponding RF connections 424a-d is shown according to an embodiment. The antenna system 430 can be configured by a controller (not shown).

[0108] Figure 14B A communication mode of the antenna system 430 is shown, where tile 420a has mxn patches in transmit mode and horizontal polarization, and tile 420b has mxn patches in transmit mode and vertical polarization. Tile 420a can form one beam and tile 420b can form another beam. In other examples (not shown), tile 420a can be configured to be in receive mode and horizontal polarization, and tile 420b can be configured to be in receive mode and vertical polarization.

[0109] Figure 14C A communication mode of the antenna system 430 is shown, where all tiles 420a-d are in transmit or receive mode and in the same (horizontal) polarization.

[0110] Figure 14D A communication mode of the antenna system 430 is shown, where two tiles 420a, 420c are in transmit or receive mode and in the same (horizontal) polarization, and the other two tiles 420b, 420d are configured to be in the other (vertical) polarization.

[0111] Figure 14EA radar mode of the antenna system 430 is shown, where two tiles 420a, 420c are in transmit mode, and the other two tiles 420b, 420d are configured to be in receive mode and in the same (horizontal) polarization.

[0112] Figure 14F A radar mode of the antenna system 430 is shown, where tile 420a is in transmit mode, tile 420b is in receive mode and in one (horizontal) polarization, tile 420c is in transmit mode, and tile 420d is configured to be in receive mode and in the other (vertical) polarization. Alternatively, tiles 420c and 420d can be configured to be in the same polarization as tiles 420a and 420b, but using different frequencies.

[0113] Figure 14G A combined mode of operation is shown. In this mode, the radar frequency can typically be different from the communication frequency, to avoid interference. Tiles 420a and 420b can be configured to transmit or receive communication signals. Tile 420c can be configured to transmit radar signals. Tile 420d can be configured to detect reflected radar signals.

[0114] An antenna system for a mobile communication base station and a method of operating a communication network comprising the base station are described. The antenna system comprises an antenna array for beamforming and is configured as a radar sensor, a communication antenna or a combined radar sensor and communication antenna. The radar image can be used to determine a map of objects in the vicinity of the antenna system and to adjust the beam control or beamforming of the antenna system.

[0115] The described example embodiments can be included in base stations and other network equipment for mobile and / or wireless communication networks. For example, the embodiments can operate in a mobile communication radio access network (RAN), e.g. WCDMA or LTE, operating according to standards including but not limited to standards defined by 3GPP TM The example embodiments described herein can be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software.

[0116] In some example embodiments, the instruction sets / method steps described above are implemented as functions and software instructions embodied as sets of executable instructions, which are implemented on a computer or machine programmed and controlled with the executable instructions. Such instructions are loaded for execution on a processor (e.g., one or more CPUs). The term processor includes a microprocessor, microcontroller, processor module or subsystem (including one or more microprocessors or microcontrollers), or other control or computing device. The processor can refer to a single component or multiple components.

[0117] In other examples, the instruction sets / methods shown herein and the data and instructions associated therewith are stored in respective storage devices, which are implemented as one or more non-transitory machine- or computer-readable or -usable storage media. Such computer-readable or computer-usable storage media are deemed to be part of an article (or article of manufacture). An article or article of manufacture can refer to one or more of a manufactured single component or multiple components. The non-transitory machine or computer-usable media as defined herein excludes signals per se but can include information bearing signals and / or other transitory media.

[0118] Example embodiments of the material discussed in this specification can be implemented in whole or in part via a network, computer or data-based device and / or service. These can include a cloud, the Internet, an intranet, a mobile device, a desktop computer, a processor, a lookup table, a microcontroller, a consumer device, an infrastructure, or other enabling devices and services. As can be used herein and in the claims, the following non-exclusive definitions are provided.

[0119] In one example, one or more instructions or steps discussed herein are automated. The term automated or automate (and similar variants) means controlling the operation of a device, system, and / or process using a computer and / or mechanical / electrical devices without the need for human intervention, observation, effort, and / or decision.

[0120] While the appended claims are directed to particular combinations of features, it will be understood that the scope of the disclosure of the present application extends to any novel features or any novel combinations of features disclosed herein, explicitly or implicitly, whether or not the novel features or combinations of features are directed to the same application as the presently claimed application or the same technical problem as the presently claimed application is directed to, and whether the novel features or combinations of features pertain to the same technical field or a different technical field than the presently claimed application.

[0121] Features described in the context of separate embodiments can also be provided in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features described in the context of a single embodiment can also be provided separately or in any suitable sub-combination.

[0122] Applicant hereby reminds that new claims can be formulated during the examination of this application or any further application deriving therefrom, directed to such features and / or combinations of such features.

[0123] For the sake of completeness, it is also specified that the term "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, that the term "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality, that a single processor or other unit can fulfill the functions of several means recited in the claims, and that the apparatus claims do not exclude any feature or combination of features.

Claims

1. A method for operating a mobile network comprising a base station, the base station comprising an antenna system, the antenna system comprising an antenna array for beamforming, the antenna array being configurable as any one of an imaging radar sensor, an RF communication antenna, or a combined imaging radar sensor and RF communication antenna, characterized in that, The method comprises: in a radar mode, configuring parts of the antenna system as imaging radar sensors; in the radar mode, transmitting radar signals and receiving reflected radar signals by the imaging radar sensors; determining from the reflected radar signals a radar image of the surrounding of the mobile communication base station; determining at least one of a position of an object and a classification of an object from the radar image; in a communication mode, reconfiguring parts of the antenna system as RF communication antennas, wherein the reconfiguring comprises updating beam steering and beam shaping parameters using position and object information derived from the radar image; and in the communication mode, transmitting and / or receiving at least one communication signal by the RF communication antennas.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, Further comprising: determining at least one parameter from the received radar signals for channel estimation according to the classification and position of the object.

3. The method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that, Further comprising: determining that a user equipment is associated with at least one object; determining at least one channel communication path based on the position of the user equipment and the position of other objects in the radar image; and adapting beam steering of at least part of the antenna system to a direction of the at least one channel communication path. Further comprising:

4. The method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by, in response to none of the objects being a human, configuring the antenna system to reduce power consumption. Further comprising:

5. The method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by, in response to classifying at least one of the objects as a human, adjusting a transmission power of the antenna system according to the position of the human. Further comprising:

6. The method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by, in response to classifying at least one of the objects as a human, enabling at least one of a light and a camera in response to the human being within a predetermined range of the mobile communication base station. Further comprising:

7. The method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by, classifying at least one object as a vehicle; determining whether a user equipment is associated with the vehicle, and in response to determining that a user equipment is associated with the vehicle, transmitting a predetermined data set to the user equipment by means of the communication signal. The antenna system comprises an antenna array for beam shaping and a controller coupled to the antenna array, and the controller is to:

8. A mobile communication base station comprising an antenna system, characterized in that in a radar mode, configure parts of the antenna system as imaging radar sensors; in the radar mode, transmit radar signals and receive reflected radar signals by the imaging radar sensors; transmit reflected radar signal information to a network device, determine from the reflected radar signals a radar image of the surrounding of the mobile communication base station; in a communication mode, reconfigure parts of the antenna system as RF communication antennas; wherein the reconfiguring comprises updating beam steering and beam shaping parameters using position and object information derived from the radar image and in the communication mode, transmit and / or receive at least one communication signal by the RF communication antennas. comprising a mobile communication base station according to claim 8 and a mobile communication network device.

9. A mobile cellular communications network characterised by ​

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