Systems and methods for presenting channel quality indicator (CQI) data associated with a multi-mode antenna

Abstract

A method for presenting data indicating a channel quality indication (CQI) is provided, the data indicating the CQI being associated with a multimode antenna of a first device. The method includes obtaining data indicating the CQI when the multimode antenna is configured in each of a plurality of antenna modes. Each of the plurality of antenna modes has a different radiation pattern. The method includes determining, based at least in part on the data indicating the CQI, one of the plurality of antenna modes as a selected antenna mode of the multimode antenna. The method includes providing, to a second device separate from the first device, data indicating the CQI associated with one or more of the plurality of antenna modes.

Description

[0001] Priority Claim

[0002] This application claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62 / 988,584, filed on Mar. 12, 2020, entitled "Systems and Methods for Presenting Channel Quality Indicator (CQI) Data Associated with a Multimode Antenna", which is incorporated herein by reference. This application also claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 004,625, filed on Apr. 3, 2020, entitled "Systems and Methods for Presenting Channel Quality Indicator (CQI) Data Associated with a Multimode Antenna", which is incorporated herein by reference. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present disclosure generally relates to devices having multimode antennas, and more particularly to a method for presenting CQI data from a multimode antenna to one or more remote devices configured to process the data to analyze network performance. Background of the Invention

[0004] Multimode antennas can be used in a variety of applications. For example, multimode antennas can be used in smartphones to facilitate communication with other devices such as other smartphones. A multimode antenna can be configurable in multiple antenna modes. Each of the multiple antenna modes can have a different radiation pattern. In addition, one or more control devices can be configured to obtain data indicative of CQI when the multimode antenna is configured in each of the multiple antenna modes. The one or more control devices can be configured to determine, at least in part based on the data indicative of CQI, one of the multiple antenna modes as the selected antenna mode of the multimode antenna. In this way, the multimode antenna can be configured in an antenna mode (e.g., the selected antenna mode) that provides an optimal or near-optimal communication link between the multimode antenna and one or more remote devices (e.g., routers, cell towers, etc.). Summary of the Invention

[0005] Aspects and advantages of embodiments of the present disclosure will be set forth in part in the description that follows, or may be learned from the description, or may be learned by practice of the embodiments.

[0006] In one aspect, a method for presenting data indicative of a channel quality indicator (CQI) associated with a multimode antenna of a first device is provided. The method includes: obtaining data indicative of the CQI when the multimode antenna is configured in each of a plurality of antenna modes, where the various ones of the plurality of antenna modes have different radiation patterns; determining, at least in part based on the data indicative of the CQI, one of the plurality of antenna modes as a selected antenna mode of the multimode antenna; and providing, to a second device separate from the first device, data indicative of the CQI associated with one or more of the plurality of antenna modes.

[0007] In another aspect, a system for presenting CQI data associated with a multimode antenna is provided. The system includes a multimode antenna associated with a first device, the multimode antenna being configurable to operate in a plurality of antenna modes, where the various antenna modes of the plurality of antenna modes have different radiation patterns. The system further includes one or more control devices configured to obtain data indicative of the CQI when the multimode antenna is configured in each of the plurality of antenna modes, to determine, at least in part based on the data indicative of the CQI, one of the plurality of antenna modes as a selected antenna mode of the multimode antenna, and to provide data indicative of the CQI to a second device separate from the first device.

[0008] In yet another aspect, a method for controlling the operation of a network is provided. The method includes: providing, by one or more computing devices of a second device, a request for data indicative of a channel quality indicator (CQI) associated with one or more of a plurality of antenna modes in which a multimode antenna of a first device is configurable, the second device being remote from the first device; obtaining, by the one or more computing devices, data indicative of the CQI associated with the one or more antenna modes from the first device; performing, by the one or more computing devices, one or more network analysis operations at least in part based on the data indicative of the CQI; and performing, by the one or more computing devices, one or more control actions at least in part based on the one or more network analysis operations.

[0009] These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the various embodiments will become better understood with reference to the following description and the appended claims. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the related principles. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] For those of ordinary skill in the art, the embodiments are discussed in detail in the specification with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0011] Figure 1 A system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is depicted.

[0012] Figure 2 A multi-mode antenna according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is depicted.

[0013] Figure 3 A two-dimensional radiation pattern associated with a multi-mode antenna according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is depicted.

[0014] Figure 4 A frequency diagram of a multi-mode antenna according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is depicted.

[0015] Figure 5 Depicts components of a first device in a system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 1 of the present disclosure.

[0016] Figure 6 A flowchart of a method for presenting data indicative of a channel quality indication associated with one or more antenna modes of a multi-mode antenna according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is depicted.

[0017] Figure 7 A flowchart of a method for controlling the operation of a communication network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is depicted. Detailed Description

[0018] Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments, one or more examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Each example is provided by way of explanation of the embodiments, not limitation of the disclosure. In fact, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the embodiments without departing from the scope or spirit of the disclosure. For example, features shown or described as part of one embodiment can be used with another embodiment to yield yet another embodiment. Accordingly, it is intended that aspects of the disclosure cover such modifications and variations.

[0019] Example aspects of the present disclosure are directed to a system for presenting a channel quality indicator (CQI) of one or more of a plurality of antenna modes in which a multimode antenna of a first device can be configured. In some embodiments, the first device can be a mobile computing device (e.g., a smartphone, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, etc.). The system can include one or more control devices. The one or more control devices can be configured to obtain data indicative of the CQI when the multimode antenna is configured in each of the plurality of antenna modes. The one or more control devices can also be configured to select one of the plurality of antenna modes as a selected antenna mode and configure the multimode antenna to be in the selected antenna mode. As will be discussed below, the one or more control devices can be configured to provide data indicative of the CQI to a second device (e.g., a network controller) separate from the first device, and the second device is configured to determine the performance of the network at least in part based on the data indicative of the CQI.

[0020] In some embodiments, the one or more control devices can be configured to provide data indicative of the CQI to the second device whenever the one or more control devices implement a control routine associated with obtaining and updating data indicative of the CQI for each of the plurality of antenna modes in which the multimode antenna can be configured. For example, the one or more control devices can be configured to implement the control routine at a predetermined time interval. Alternatively, the one or more control devices can be configured to implement the control routine in response to a triggering event. For example, the one or more control devices can be configured to implement the control routine whenever a device associated with the multimode antenna is restarted.

[0021] In some embodiments, the system can include an application programming interface configured to facilitate communication between the first device and the second device. For example, one or more computing devices of the second device can be configured to execute a software application (e.g., computer-readable instructions) associated with monitoring the performance of the network. In these embodiments, a request for data indicative of the CQI from the software application can be provided to the one or more control devices of the system through the application programming interface. Additionally, data indicative of the CQI can be provided to the software application through the application programming interface. In this way, the application programming interface can provide two-way communication between the first device and the second device. As will be discussed in more detail below, the second device can be configured to perform one or more network analysis operations at least in part based on the data indicative of the CQI.

[0022] In some embodiments, a software application executed on one or more computing devices of a second device may include one or more machine learning models. In these embodiments, the one or more network analysis operations may include: providing data indicative of CQI as an input to the one or more machine learning models. The one or more machine learning models may be configured to: process the data indicative of CQI and output data indicative of the performance of the network. It should be appreciated that in some embodiments, one or more additional data feeds separate from the data indicative of CQI may be provided as inputs to the one or more machine learning models.

[0023] In some embodiments, the second device may include a display (e.g., a screen). In this way, the data output by the one or more machine learning models may be displayed for viewing. Alternatively or additionally, the data indicative of CQI may be displayed for viewing at the second device. In some embodiments, the data output by the one or more machine learning models may be provided to the first device via an application programming interface. As will be discussed below, the second device may be configured to perform one or more control actions at least in part based on the one or more network analysis operations.

[0024] In some embodiments, the one or more control actions may include providing one or more control signals associated with an adjustment of an antenna pattern of a multi-mode antenna of one or more client devices on the network. For example, the one or more control signals may be associated with switching the multi-mode antenna of the one or more client devices from a first antenna pattern to a second antenna pattern different from the first antenna pattern to improve the performance of the network.

[0025] The system according to an example aspect of the present disclosure may provide many technical effects and advantages. For example, presenting (e.g., providing) data indicative of CQI to a second device (e.g., a network controller) separate from the first device having a multi-mode antenna may allow one or more computing devices in the second device to process the data and determine one or more adjustments to one or more client devices on the network to improve the performance of communications on the network. In this way, the performance of communications on the network may be improved at least in part due to the data indicative of CQI presented (e.g., provided) to the second device.

[0026] Now referring to the drawings, Figure 1Illustrates system 100 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown, system 100 may include a first device 110 having a multi-mode antenna 120. In some embodiments, the first device 110 may be a mobile computing device, such as a smartphone, laptop computer, tablet computer, wearable device, etc. The multi-mode antenna 120 may be configured to provide a beam steering function to improve the link quality between the first device 110 and a second device 160, which is remote from (e.g., separate from) the first device 110 and communicates with the first device 110. More specifically, the multi-mode antenna 120 may be configurable in a plurality of antenna modes (e.g., Am-1, Am-2, Am-3, etc.). The various antenna modes of the plurality of antenna modes may be associated with different radiation patterns and / or polarizations. It should be understood that the first device 110 may include any suitable number of multi-mode antennas 120. For example, in some embodiments, the first device 110 may include two or more multi-mode antennas 120.

[0027] In some embodiments, the multi-mode antenna 120 may communicate with the second device 160 via a network 150. It should be recognized that the multi-mode antenna 120 may be configured to communicate with the second device 160 via any suitable type of network 150. For example, in some embodiments, the network 150 may be a cellular network. In alternative embodiments, the network 150 may be an 802.11 network (e.g., a WiFi network) or other wireless local area network (WLAN).

[0028] As shown, system 100 may include one or more control devices 130. In some embodiments, the one or more control devices 130 may be located on the first device 110. The one or more control devices 130 may be configured to control the operation of the multi-mode antenna 120. For example, the one or more control devices 130 may configure the multi-mode antenna 120 to be in each of the plurality of antenna modes. In this way, the one or more control devices 130 may obtain data indicating CQI for each of the plurality of antenna modes. In addition, the one or more control devices 130 may be configured to determine, at least in part based on the data indicating CQI, one of the plurality of antenna modes as the selected antenna mode of the multi-mode antenna 120. The one or more control devices 130 may also be configured to present (e.g., provide) to the second device 160 data indicating CQI for one or more of the plurality of antenna modes of the multi-mode antenna 120, and as will be discussed in more detail below, the second device 160 may be configured to analyze the performance of the network 150 at least in part based on the data indicating CQI.

[0029] In some embodiments, the second device 160 may include one or more computing devices 162. The one or more computing devices 162 may include one or more processors, and one or more storage devices. The processor may include any suitable processing device, such as a microprocessor, a microcontroller, an integrated circuit, a logic device, or other suitable processing device. The storage device may include one or more computer-readable media, which include but are not limited to non-transitory computer-readable media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), hard disk drives, flash drives, or other storage devices.

[0030] The storage device may store information accessible by the processor, which includes computer-readable instructions executable by the processor. The computer-readable instructions may be any set of instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations. The computer-readable instructions may be software written in any suitable programming language, or may be implemented in hardware. In some embodiments, the computer-readable instructions may be executed by the processor to cause the processor to perform operations, which will now be discussed in more detail.

[0031] The one or more computing devices 162 may be configured to perform one or more network analysis operations based at least in part on data indicating CQI. In some embodiments, the second device 160 may include one or more machine learning models 164. In these embodiments, the one or more network analysis operations may include providing the data indicating CQI as input to the one or more machine learning models 164. The one or more machine learning models 164 may be configured to process the data indicating CQI to output data indicating the performance of the network 150. In some embodiments, the second device 160 may include a display screen 166. In this way, the data output by the one or more machine learning models 164 may be provided for viewing through the display screen 166. Alternatively or additionally, the data indicating CQI may be provided for viewing through the display screen 166 of the second device 160.

[0032] It should be appreciated that the one or more machine learning models 164 may include any suitable type of machine learning model. For example, the one or more machine learning models 164 may include but are not limited to: random forest classifiers, logistic regression classifiers, support vector machines, one or more decision trees, neural networks, and / or other types of machine learning models that include both linear and non-linear models. Example neural networks may include feedforward neural networks, recurrent neural networks (e.g., long short-term memory recurrent neural networks), or other forms of neural networks.

[0033] In some embodiments, the one or more machine learning models 164 can be trained by using a model trainer 168. The model trainer 168 can use one or more training or learning algorithms to train the one or more machine learning models 164. An example training method is error backpropagation (“backpropagation”). For example, backpropagation can include Levenberg-Marquardt backpropagation. In some embodiments, the model trainer 168 can perform a supervised training method using a set of labeled training data. In other embodiments, the model trainer 168 can perform an unsupervised training method using a set of unlabeled training data. The model trainer 168 can perform a number of generalization methods to improve the generalization ability of the model being trained. Generalization methods include weight decay, dropout, or other methods. In particular, the model trainer 168 can train the one or more machine learning models 164 based on a set of training data 169. The training data 169 can include a large number of training examples. Each training example can include an instance of data indicating CQI for one or more antenna patterns, where the one or more antenna patterns are one or more of the multiple antenna patterns in which the multi-mode antenna 120 can be configured.

[0034] In some embodiments, the one or more computing devices 162 can be configured to perform one or more control actions at least in part based on one or more network analysis operations. For example, the one or more computing devices 162 can determine one or more adjustments to one or more of the multiple client devices 180 on the network 150 at least in part based on data indicating the performance of the network 150 output by the one or more machine learning models 164. In some embodiments, the one or more control actions can include providing one or more control signals associated with an adjustment to the antenna pattern of a multi-mode antenna (not shown) of the one or more client devices 180. For example, the one or more control signals can be associated with switching the multi-mode antenna (not shown) of the one or more client devices from a first antenna pattern to a second antenna pattern different from the first antenna pattern to improve the performance of the network 150.

[0035] In some embodiments, the one or more computing devices 162 may be configured to implement software applications. For example, a third-party software application may be associated with monitoring the performance of the network 150. In these embodiments, the system 100 may include an application programming interface 140 to facilitate communication between the one or more control devices 130 and the software application. For example, the application programming interface 140 may allow the one or more control devices 130 to obtain a request for data indicating one or more antenna modes of the multi-mode antenna 120 of the first device 110 from the software application. Also, the one or more control devices 130 may provide, via the application programming interface 140, data indicating CQI associated with the one or more antenna modes of the multi-mode antenna 120 to the software application. It should be appreciated that the application programming interface 140 may be bidirectional. In this manner, data indicating the performance of the network 150 determined by the software application may be provided to the one or more control devices 130 via the application programming interface 140.

[0036] It should be appreciated that examples of data indicating channel quality indication associated with one or more antenna modes of the multi-mode antenna 120 may include receive signal strength indicator (RSSI), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), magnitude error ratio (MER), error vector magnitude (EVM), bit error rate (BER), block error rate (BLER), packet error rate (PER), or a combination of the above, and / or various other metrics.

[0037] Figure 2Illustrates an example multi - mode antenna 120 in accordance with the present disclosure. As shown, the multi - mode antenna 120 may include a circuit board 200 (e.g., including a ground plane) and a driven antenna element 202 disposed on the circuit board 200. An antenna volume may be defined between the circuit board 200 (e.g., including the ground plane) and the driven antenna element 202. The multi - mode antenna 120 may include a first parasitic element 204 that is at least partially positioned within the antenna volume. The multi - mode antenna 120 may further include a first tuning element 206 coupled to the first parasitic element 204. The first tuning element 206 may be a passive or active component, or a series of elements, and may be configured to change the reactance on the first parasitic element 204 either through a variable reactance or by short - circuiting to ground. It should be appreciated that changing the reactance of the first parasitic element 204 causes a frequency shift of the multi - mode antenna 120. It should also be appreciated that the first tuning element 206 may include at least one of a tunable capacitor, a micro - electro - mechanical system (MEMS) device, a tunable inductor, a switch, a tunable phase shifter, a field - effect transistor, or a diode.

[0038] In some embodiments, the multi - mode antenna 120 may include a second parasitic element 208 disposed near the driven antenna element 202 and outside the antenna volume. The multi - mode antenna 120 may further include a second tuning element 210. In some embodiments, the second tuning element 210 may be a passive or active element, or a series of elements, and may be configured to change the reactance on the second parasitic element 208 either through a variable reactance or by short - circuiting to ground. It should be appreciated that changing the reactance of the second parasitic element 208 causes a frequency shift of the multi - mode antenna 120. It should also be appreciated that the second tuning element 210 may include at least one of a tunable capacitor, a MEMS device, a tunable inductor, a switch, a tunable phase shifter, a field - effect transistor, or a diode.

[0039] In an example embodiment, the operation of at least one of the first tuning element 206 and the second tuning element 210 may be controlled to adjust (e.g., change) the antenna radiation pattern of the driven antenna element 202. For example, the reactance of at least one of the first tuning element 206 and the second tuning element 210 may be controlled to adjust the antenna radiation pattern of the driven antenna element 202. Adjusting the antenna radiation pattern may be referred to as “beam steering”. However, in instances where the antenna radiation pattern includes nulls, a similar operation commonly referred to as “null steering” may be performed to shift the nulls to alternative positions around the driven antenna element 202 (e.g., to reduce interference).

[0040] Figure 3 Depicts an example embodiment in accordance with the present disclosure related to Figure 1The antenna radiation pattern associated with the multi-mode antenna 120. It should be recognized that the operation of at least one of the first parasitic element 204 and the second parasitic element 208 can be controlled so as to configure the multi-mode antenna 120 to be in multiple modes. It should also be recognized that when the multi-mode antenna 120 is configured to be in each of the multiple modes, the multi-mode antenna 120 can have a different antenna radiation pattern or antenna polarization.

[0041] In some embodiments, when the multi-mode antenna 120 is configured to be in the first mode of the multiple modes, the multi-mode antenna 120 can have a first antenna radiation pattern 300. Moreover, when the multi-mode antenna 120 is configured to be in the second mode of the multiple modes, the multi-mode antenna 120 can have a second antenna radiation pattern 302. In addition, when the multi-mode antenna 120 is configured to be in the third mode of the multiple modes, the multi-mode antenna 120 can have a third antenna radiation pattern 304. As shown, the first antenna radiation pattern 300, the second antenna radiation pattern 302, and the third antenna radiation pattern 304 can be different from each other. In this way, when the multi-mode antenna 120 is configured to be in various ones of the first mode, the second mode, and the third mode, the multi-mode antenna 120 can have different radiation patterns.

[0042] Figure 4 Depicts an example frequency diagram of the Figure 1 multi-mode antenna 120 according to certain aspects of the present disclosure. It should be understood that the electrical characteristics (e.g., reactance) of at least one of the first parasitic element 204 and the second parasitic element 208 can be controlled. In this way, the electrical characteristics of at least one of the first parasitic element 204 and the second parasitic element 208 can be adjusted to change the frequency at which the corresponding multi-mode antenna operates.

[0043] In some embodiments, when the first parasitic element 204 and the second parasitic element 208 are deactivated (e.g., disconnected), the multi-mode antenna 120 can be tuned to a first frequency f 0 . Alternatively and / or additionally, when the second parasitic element 208 is shorted to ground, the multi-mode antenna 120 can be tuned to frequencies f L and f H . In addition, when both the first parasitic element 204 and the second parasitic element 208 are shorted to ground, the multi-mode antenna 120 can be tuned to frequency f 4 . Further still, when each of the first parasitic element 204 and the second parasitic element 208 is shorted to ground, the multi-mode antenna 120 can be tuned to frequencies f 4 and f 0It should be understood that other configurations are also within the scope of the present disclosure. For example, more or fewer parasitic elements may be employed. The configuration of the parasitic elements may be altered to achieve additional modes that may exhibit different frequencies and / or frequency combinations.

[0044] Figures 2-4 An example multimode antenna having multiple modes is depicted for illustration and discussion. Those of ordinary skill in the art using the disclosure provided herein will understand that other multimode antennas and / or antenna configurations may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. As used herein, a "multimode antenna" refers to an antenna capable of operating in multiple modes, where the various modes of the multiple modes are associated with different radiation patterns.

[0045] Now referring to Figure 5 provides an example embodiment of the first device 110 of the system 100 discussed above with reference to Figure 1 As shown, the multimode antenna 120 may include a driving element 510 and a parasitic element 512. As discussed above, the multimode antenna 120 may operate in a plurality of different antenna modes. For example, as described above with reference to Figures 2-4 the various modes of the multiple antenna modes may be associated with different radiation patterns and / or polarization characteristics. Additionally, although the first device 110 is depicted as having only one multimode antenna 120, it should be recognized that the first device 110 may include any suitable number of multimode antennas 120. For example, in some embodiments, the first device 110 may include two or more multimode antennas 120.

[0046] The first device 110 may include a tuning circuit 520 configured to control the electrical characteristics associated with the parasitic element 512 to cause the multimode antenna 120 to operate in a plurality of different antenna modes. In some embodiments, the first device 110 may include a tunable component 530. As shown, the tunable component 530 may be coupled between the parasitic element 512 and the tuning circuit 520. The tuning circuit 520 may be configured to control the operation of the tunable component 530 to change the electrical connectivity of the parasitic element 512 to a voltage or current source, or a voltage or current sink, such as coupling the parasitic element 512 to electrical ground.

[0047] The first device 110 may include radio frequency (RF) circuitry 540. In some embodiments, the RF circuitry 540 may include a front-end module. For example, the front-end module may include one or more power amplifiers, low-noise amplifiers, impedance matching circuits, etc. In this manner, the front-end module may be configured to amplify the RF signals transmitted to the driving element 510 of the multimode antenna 120 and / or the RF signals received from the driving element 510 of the multimode antenna 120.

[0048] In some embodiments, the one or more control devices 130 of system 100 may be operably coupled to a tuning circuit 520. In this manner, the one or more control devices 130 may be configured to control the operation of the tuning circuit 520 to configure the multi-mode antenna 120 in a plurality of different antenna modes. Alternatively or additionally, the one or more control devices 130 may be in electrical communication with the RF circuit 540. In this manner, RF signals received at the multi-mode antenna 120 may be provided to the one or more control devices 130 via the RF circuit 540. Further, the one or more control devices 130 may provide data to be modulated onto a transmitted RF signal, which is provided to the drive element 510 of the multi-mode antenna 120 via the RF circuit 540.

[0049] The one or more control devices 130 may include one or more processors 132 and one or more storage devices 134. The processor 132 may include any suitable processing device, such as a microprocessor, a microcontroller, an integrated circuit, a logic device, or other suitable processing device. The storage device 134 may include one or more computer-readable media, which include but are not limited to non-transitory computer-readable media, RAM, ROM, hard disk drives, flash drives, or other storage devices.

[0050] The storage device 134 may store information accessible by the processor 132, which includes computer-readable instructions executable by the processor 132. The computer-readable instructions may be any set of instructions that, when executed by the processor 132, cause the processor 132 to perform operations. The computer-readable instructions may be software written in any suitable programming language or may be implemented in hardware. In some embodiments, the computer-readable instructions may be executed by the processor 132 such that the processor 132 performs operations, which will now be discussed in more detail.

[0051] Now referring Figure 6 to, a flowchart of a method 600 for presenting data indicative of CQI associated with a multi-mode antenna of a first device is provided in accordance with an example embodiment of the present disclosure. Generally, herein, the method 600 will be discussed with reference to the system 100 described above with reference Figure 1 to. Further, although Figure 6 the steps are depicted as being performed in a particular order for purposes of illustration and discussion, the methods discussed herein are not limited to any particular order or arrangement. Those skilled in the art using the disclosure provided herein will recognize that the various steps of the methods disclosed herein may be omitted, rearranged, combined, and / or modified in various ways without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0052] At (602), method 600 may include: obtaining, by one or more control devices, data indicating CQI when a multi-mode antenna is configured in each of a plurality of antenna modes, each of the various ones of the plurality of antenna modes having a different radiation pattern. For example, in some embodiments, the multi-mode antenna may be configurable in four different antenna modes. In these embodiments, the one or more control devices may be configured to obtain, when the multi-mode antenna is configured in each of the four different antenna modes, data indicating CQI of the multi-mode antenna. However, it should be understood that the multi-mode antenna may be configurable in any suitable number of antenna modes.

[0053] At (604), method 600 may include: determining, by the one or more control devices, at least in part based on the data indicating CQI obtained at (602), one of the plurality of antenna modes as a selected antenna mode of the multi-mode antenna. Additionally, at (606), method 600 may include: configuring, by the one or more control devices, the multi-mode antenna to be in the selected antenna mode.

[0054] At (608), method 600 may include: providing, by the one or more control devices, to a second device separate from the first device, data indicating CQI associated with one or more of the plurality of antenna modes. In some embodiments, method 600 may include: in response to obtaining a request from a software application implemented by one or more computing devices of the second device, providing data indicating CQI associated with one or more of the plurality of antenna modes. For example, in these embodiments, the one or more control devices may obtain the request through an application programming interface configured to facilitate communication between the first device and the second device. More specifically, the application programming interface facilitates communication (e.g., two-way) between the first device and a software application executed by one or more computing devices of the second device.

[0055] Now refer to Figure 7 , a flowchart of a method 700 for controlling the operation of a communication network is provided according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. Generally, herein, method 700 will be discussed with reference to system 100 described above. Additionally, although Figure 1 the steps are depicted as being executed in a particular order for purposes of illustration and discussion, the methods discussed herein are not limited to any particular order or arrangement. Those skilled in the art using the disclosure provided herein will understand that the individual steps in the methods disclosed herein may be omitted, rearranged, combined, and / or modified in various ways without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Figure 7

[0056] At (702), method 700 includes: providing, by one or more computing devices of a second device, a request for data indicating a CQI associated with one or more of a plurality of antenna modes in which a multimode antenna of a first device can be configured, the second device being remote relative to the first device.

[0057] At (704), method 700 includes: obtaining, by the one or more computing devices, data indicating a CQI from a first device having a multimode antenna. It should be appreciated that data indicating a channel quality indicator associated with one or more of the antenna modes of multimode antenna 120 may include: receive signal strength indicator (RSSI), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), magnitude error ratio (MER), error vector magnitude (EVM), bit error rate (BER), block error rate (BLER), packet error rate (PER), or a combination of the above, and / or various other metrics. In some embodiments, obtaining data indicating a CQI may include: displaying, by the one or more computing devices, data indicating a CQI via a display associated with the second device.

[0058] At (706), method 700 includes: performing, by the one or more computing devices, one or more network analysis operations based at least in part on data indicating a CQI associated with one or more of a plurality of antenna modes in which a multimode antenna can be configured. For example, in some embodiments, performing one or more network analysis operations may include: providing, by the one or more computing devices, data indicating a CQI obtained at (704) as an input to one or more machine learning models. As discussed above, the one or more machine learning models may process data indicating a CQI to output data indicating the performance of a network.

[0059] At (708), method 700 includes: performing, by the one or more computing devices, one or more control actions at least in part based on one or more network analysis operations performed at (706). For example, in some embodiments, performing the one or more control actions may include: providing, by the one or more computing devices, one or more control signals at least in part based on data associated with the one or more network analysis operations performed at (706), the one or more control signals being associated with adjustments to the operation of one or more client devices on the network. In particular, in some embodiments, the one or more client devices may include multimode antennas, and the one or more control signals may be associated with configuring the multimode antennas of the one or more client devices in one of a plurality of antenna modes at least in part based on the results of the one or more network analysis operations performed at (706).

[0060] At (710), method 700 includes providing, by the one or more computing devices, data associated with the one or more network analysis operations performed at (706) to a first device having a multimode antenna. For example, in some embodiments, the data may be provided via an application programming interface configured to facilitate communication between the first device and a second device. It should be appreciated that the data provided to the first device may include any data indicative of the performance of the network.

[0061] Although the subject matter has been described in detail with respect to specific example embodiments of the subject matter, it will be recognized that those skilled in the art, having obtained an understanding of the foregoing, can readily make alterations, variations, and equivalents of these embodiments. Accordingly, the scope of the present disclosure is presented by way of example and not limitation, and the subject matter disclosure does not exclude inclusion of such modifications, variations, and / or additions to the subject matter that are obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art.

Claims

1. A method for presenting data indicating a Channel Quality Indicator (CQI), the data indicating the CQI being associated with a multi-mode antenna of a first device on a network, the method comprises: acquiring, by one or more control devices of the first device, data indicating the CQI when the multi-mode antenna is configured in each of a plurality of antenna modes, each of the plurality of antenna modes having a different radiation pattern; determining, by the one or more control devices of the first device, one of the plurality of antenna modes as a selected antenna mode of the multi-mode antenna, at least in part based on the data indicating the CQI; acquiring, by the one or more control devices of the first device, a request for the data indicating the CQI from a software application implemented on a second device separate from the first device; and providing, by the one or more control devices of the first device, in response to acquiring the request for the data indicating the CQI from the second device, the data indicating the CQI associated with one or more of the plurality of antenna modes to the second device, the second device being configured to perform one or more network analysis operations at least in part based on the data indicating the CQI and perform one or more control actions at least in part based on the one or more network analysis operations; wherein, the one or more network analysis operations include providing the data indicating the CQI as an input to one or more machine learning models, the one or more machine learning models being configured to process the data indicating the CQI and output data indicating the performance of the network, and wherein, the one or more control actions include providing one or more control signals, the one or more control signals being associated with an adjustment of the operation of one or more client devices on the network at least in part based on the output data indicating the performance of the network; wherein, the one or more control devices acquire the request through an application programming interface, the application programming interface being configured to facilitate communication between the one or more control devices of the first device and the software application implemented on the second device.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, providing the data indicating the CQI associated with one or more of the plurality of antenna modes includes: providing, by the one or more control devices, the data indicating the CQI associated with each of the plurality of antenna modes.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein, the data indicating the CQI includes at least one of a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI), a Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR), or a Signal-to-Interference-plus-Noise Ratio (SINR).

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein, Providing the data indicating the CQI associated with one or more of the multiple antenna modes to the second device includes: providing, by the one or more control devices, the data indicating the CQI associated with the selected antenna mode of the multimode antenna.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein, providing the data indicating the CQI to the second device includes: providing, by the one or more control devices, the data indicating the CQI to the second device via the network.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein, the network includes a cellular network or a wireless local area network.

7. The method according to claim 1, further includes: configuring, by the one or more control devices, the multimode antenna to be in the selected antenna mode.

8. A system for presenting data indicating a channel quality indicator CQI associated with a multimode antenna, comprising: the multimode antenna, which is associated with a first device on a network, the multimode antenna being capable of being configured to operate in multiple antenna modes, and various antenna modes of the multiple antenna modes having different radiation patterns; one or more control devices, which are associated with the first device, the one or more control devices being configured to: acquire data indicating a channel quality indicator CQI when the multimode antenna is configured in each of the multiple antenna modes; determine, at least in part based on the data indicating the CQI, one of the multiple antenna modes as the selected antenna mode of the multimode antenna; acquire a request for the data indicating the CQI from a software application implemented on a second device separate from the first device; and provide the data indicating the CQI to the second device, the second device being configured to perform one or more network analysis operations at least in part based on the data indicating the CQI, and perform one or more control actions at least in part based on the one or more network analysis operations; wherein the one or more network analysis operations include providing the data indicating the CQI as an input to one or more machine learning models, the one or more machine learning models being configured to process the data indicating the CQI and output data indicating the performance of the network, and wherein the one or more control actions include providing one or more control signals, the one or more control signals being associated with adjustments to the operation of one or more client devices on the network at least in part based on the output data indicating the performance of the network; and an application programming interface, which is stored on one or more storage devices, the application programming interface being configured to facilitate communication between the one or more control devices associated with the first device and the software application implemented on the second device, Wherein, the one or more control devices associated with the first device are configured to provide the second device with the data indicating the CQI in response to obtaining the request from the software application implemented on the second device.

9. The system according to claim 8, wherein, the one or more control devices are further configured to: configure the multi-mode antenna to be in the selected antenna mode.

10. The system according to claim 8, wherein, the first device includes a mobile computing device.

11. A method for controlling the operation of a network, the method comprises: providing, by one or more computing devices of a second device, a request for data indicating a channel quality indicator (CQI), the data indicating the CQI being associated with one or more of a plurality of antenna modes in which a multi-mode antenna of a first device can be configured, the second device being remote from the first device; obtaining, by the one or more computing devices of the second device, from the first device the data indicating the CQI associated with the one or more antenna modes in response to providing the request for the data indicating the CQI to the first device; performing, by the one or more computing devices of the second device, one or more network analysis operations at least in part based on the data indicating the CQI, wherein the one or more network analysis operations include providing the data indicating the CQI as an input to one or more machine learning models, the one or more machine learning models being configured to process the data indicating the CQI and output data indicating the performance of the network; performing, by the one or more computing devices of the second device, one or more control actions at least in part based on the one or more network analysis operations, wherein the one or more control actions include providing one or more control signals, the one or more control signals being associated with an adjustment of the operation of one or more client devices on the network based at least in part on the output data indicating the performance of the network; and providing, by the one or more computing devices of the second device, data associated with the one or more network analysis operations to the first device through an application programming interface.

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