Device for communication in wireless communication network and method for operating and testing device

Abstract

To provide a device and a method that enable highly accurate beamforming.SOLUTION: In a system 100, a device 20 transmits a stimulus signal 16 toward a transmitting / receiving device 10, receives a plurality of transmission beam patterns 14 from the transmitting / receiving device, selects a corresponding beam pattern from the plurality of transmission beam patterns, and transmits response information 24 to a receiving device. The response information indicates the corresponding beam pattern.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1a

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a device for communicating in a wireless communication network and to a method for operating / testing such a device. The present invention further relates to local beam sweeping / beam set selection. [Background technology]

[0002] In the beam correspondence (BC) over-the-air (OTA) measurement procedure, the best beam is selected / determined by the system simulator (SS) / test equipment (TE). The beam correspondence look-up table (LUT) in the user equipment (UE) is pre-configured by the manufacturer. However, such LUT may be inaccurate. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] Therefore, there is a need to enable accurate beamforming. Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to enable highly accurate beamforming. [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] This object is achieved by the subject matter defined in the independent claims. The inventors have found that by updating the corresponding LUT, i.e., by selecting the best beam, deviations from the preset configuration and variations over the lifetime of the device can be compensated for.

[0005] According to one embodiment, a device for communicating in a wireless communication network includes an antenna arrangement, the device is configured to beamform a plurality of transmit beam patterns using the antenna arrangement, the device is configured to receive a wireless signal and determine a corresponding beam pattern corresponding to the wireless signal, the device is configured to select a subset from the plurality of transmit beam patterns including the corresponding beam pattern and a further transmit beam pattern and form the selected subset, the device is configured to receive response information indicative of at least one transmit beam pattern of the selected subset based on the formed subset, and the device is configured to use the indicated transmit beam pattern, thereby enabling external correction or adaptation of the corresponding beam pattern. This information may be used once by the device and / or stored in a LUT for further use.

[0006] According to one embodiment, the device is configured to transmit a stimulus signal towards the transceiver device, receive a plurality of beam patterns from the transceiver device, select a corresponding beam pattern from the plurality of beam patterns, and transmit response information to the receiving device, the response information indicating the corresponding beam pattern.

[0007] According to one embodiment, the system comprises at least one device configured to receive a received signal and at least one device configured to transmit a stimulus signal, the system being, for example, a measurement environment or a wireless communication network, for example a cell thereof.

[0008] According to one embodiment, a method for operating a device having an antenna arrangement, the device configured to beamform a plurality of beam patterns using the antenna arrangement, includes receiving a wireless signal and determining a corresponding beam pattern corresponding to the wireless signal; selecting a subset from the plurality of transmit beam patterns to form a selected subset, the subset including the corresponding transmit beam pattern; receiving response information indicative of at least one transmit beam pattern of the selected subset; and using the indicated transmit beam pattern.

[0009] According to one embodiment, a method for operating a device includes the steps of transmitting a stimulus signal to a transceiver device, receiving a plurality of transmit beam patterns from the transceiver device, selecting at least one corresponding transmit beam pattern from the plurality of beam patterns, and transmitting response information to the transceiver device, the response information indicating the at least one transmit beam pattern.

[0010] According to one embodiment, a method for testing or updating a device having an antenna arrangement includes transmitting a stimulus signal to the device to stimulate the device to establish a link with a source of the stimulus signal along a receive direction; receiving a plurality of transmit beam patterns from the device; selecting at least one of the plurality of transmit beam patterns, a plurality including a corresponding beam pattern, by the device as the transmit beam pattern corresponding to the stimulus signal; transmitting information to the device indicative of the selected at least one transmit beam pattern; and updating information in a memory of the device based on the information indicative of the at least one selected beam pattern.

[0011] Further advantageous embodiments are defined in the dependent claims. Embodiments of the invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1a] 1 is a schematic block diagram of a system 100 according to one embodiment. [Figure 1b] FIG. 10 is a schematic perspective view illustrating the selection of a predetermined number of beam patterns for a subset. [Figure 2] 1 is a schematic flowchart of a method for testing or updating a device according to one embodiment. [Figure 3] 1 is a schematic flowchart of a method according to one embodiment that can be used to operate a device. [Figure 4] 1 is a simplified flowchart of a method according to one embodiment that may be implemented to operate another device. [Figure 5] 10 is a flowchart of a network-assisted uplink beam sweeping procedure that can be used in embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] Identical or equivalent elements, or elements with identical or equivalent functionality, are designated in the following description with identical or equivalent reference numerals, even if they occur in different figures.

[0014] In the following description, numerous details are set forth to provide a more thorough explanation of embodiments of the present invention. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that embodiments of the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form, rather than in detail, to avoid obscuring embodiments of the present invention. In addition, features of different embodiments described below can be combined with each other unless otherwise specified.

[0015] The embodiments described herein relate to beam patterns formed by a device. Such beam patterns may be transmit and / or receive beam patterns, i.e., spatial patterns of preferred directions for transmitting and / or receiving signals.

[0016] Each such beam pattern may include a main lobe and possibly one or more side lobes. Optionally, a so-called null may be located between two adjacent lobes.

[0017] Forming a beam pattern in connection with the embodiments described herein can involve static beam patterns, but can also involve dynamic, i.e., sweeping, beam patterns. A sweeping beam pattern can be understood as a constant or changing pattern that is moved in space or frequency, e.g., rotated or laterally shifted. Such sweeping can allow for adjusting the direction of lobes and / or nulls of the beam pattern.

[0018] The directions described in connection with this embodiment do not limit the scope of the embodiment to a narrow sense of direction, i.e., a single vector. The term direction should also be understood to include a set of dominant angular components that significantly contribute to the received signal at a communication partner's location / position, area / zone, or volume. This may correspond to a complex 3D receive beam pattern that collects and weights different incoming multipath components into an effective receive antenna input signal. Thus, a direction is not limited to a single line but can cover the aggregation of signals from directions collected by the receive pattern. A transmission strategy can select a transmit beam pattern that provides good signal power transfer from the transmitter to the target receiver / communication partner.

[0019] A device described herein capable of beamforming can include an antenna arrangement having one or more antenna panels, each of which can include one or more antenna elements. That is, each antenna panel includes an arrangement of radiating / receiving antenna elements such that such panel or its sub-panels can perform coherent beamforming. That is, the number of antenna elements grouped into an antenna panel for beamforming, the number of antenna panels, and therefore the total number of antenna elements, can be any number.

[0020] FIG. 1a shows a schematic block diagram of a system 100 according to one embodiment. The system 100 includes a device 10 and a device 20. The device 10 may be referred to as user equipment, but may also refer to any device equipped with an antenna arrangement having one or more antenna panels 121 and / or 122 disposed on one or more sides of the device 10, the antenna arrangement 12 and / or panels 121 and 122 configured to generate a beam pattern 14. Examples may be stationary devices, mobile devices, and / or satellites. While each beam pattern 141 through 148 is illustrated as having only a single main lobe, a beam pattern may be formed independently of other beam patterns having the same or different number of main lobes and / or side lobes and / or nulls, and may be a transmit beam pattern or a receive beam pattern.

[0021] The device 20 may be, for example, a base station of a wireless communication network, or alternatively, measurement equipment, such as a system simulator (SS) or test equipment (TE). Alternatively, the device 20 may be configured as another device 10, such as a UE or a satellite, perhaps when building a peer-to-peer network or a direct network that can operate without a base station. That is, a wireless communication network can include several access points / base stations, but need not have a single access point / base station. The minimum case may be directed to two devices communicating with each other using the same mechanism. This can be understood as using forward and reverse links for uplink and downlink, similar to those used in the satellite world.

[0022] Thus, the embodiments also relate to direct radio link access to a satellite, just as the embodiments also relate to direct radio link access to a satellite or satellite backhaul.

[0023] Device 20 may be configured to transmit stimulus signal 16 in a directionally or omnidirectionally manner using link antenna 18, and device 10 receives stimulus signal 16 as a received signal or a radio signal. Device 10 may be configured to determine a receive direction 22 from which received signal 16 is received, i.e., an orientation relative to device 10 in which the source of signal 16 is estimated. The link antenna may include a fixed beam pattern under measurement conditions. As described below, device 20 may be implemented differently and may optionally include an antenna arrangement capable of coherent beamforming.

[0024] That is, the downlink antenna reference signal is provided to stimulate the device 10, e.g., a UE, to select an uplink beam for establishing a link. Establishing a link to another device may involve exchanging data and / or signals and may include implicit or explicit estimation of the direction of arrival of radio waves. To do so, the device 10 may use a receive beamformer, and metrics applied to such receive beamformer enable the device 10 to determine an appropriate transmit beamformer for responding to or replying to a communication partner. The selected beam pattern may be referred to as a corresponding beam pattern. The corresponding beam pattern may be related to a transmit beam pattern selected by the device 10, UE, possibly autonomously and / or based on measured received signals or any other metrics / methods.

[0025] The UE can (independently or with assistance) select / provide a corresponding uplink beam. For example, the device may be configured to select a corresponding beam pattern based on a metric that compares the received signal to multiple predetermined values. That is, the UE can select an uplink beam based on a metric used to evaluate the received signal with different / selected receive beams, for example, referred to as EIRP as described herein. This can include the use of one or more thresholds and ranges.

[0026] For example, given pattern reciprocity, transposed beams at baseband may be used to transmit in a pattern corresponding to the best or selected best reception pattern, where the corresponding beam pattern may be understood as a beam pattern that includes the corresponding main direction in the sense of a pattern that is at least closest to the reception direction and / or is adapted to transmit radio signal power toward the location of the source from which the incoming signal was transmitted.

[0027] Based thereon, in an optimal or error-free environment, beam pattern 142 is, for example, a beam pattern that can be generated by antenna arrangement 12 to include a main lobe or a side lobe or a null direction along the receive direction, i.e., beam pattern 142 can be a corresponding beam pattern in an error-free state.

[0028] For various reasons, the device 10 may select the beam pattern 141 (or any other beam pattern) as the corresponding beam pattern. For example, the device may be configured to select the corresponding beam pattern based on a transmit power criterion such as equivalent isotropically radiated power (EIRP). Details regarding EIRP are known from [6]. The reason for such an imperfect determination may be misalignment of at least a portion of the antenna arrangement 12, deviation between the positions of the receive antenna and the transmit antenna, or interference along the transmission path. For example, a part of the human body, such as a hand or head, may be positioned between the device 20 and the device 10, such that the device 10's measurements and estimations are prone to error and an incorrect receive direction 22 is determined. As described herein, the device's determination may be accurate, but there may be different reasons why it may select for a different beam pattern. It may be advantageous to receive response information that enables the device 10 to select a beam pattern from multiple appropriate beam patterns.

[0029] The device 10 is configured to select a subset from the plurality of beam patterns 141 to 148, the subset including the corresponding beam pattern selected by the UE, i.e., beam pattern 141, which is consistent with the imperfect receive direction 22′. The subset includes at least one additional beam pattern. The selection criteria for determining whether a possible beam pattern 141 to 148 is part of the subset can be based on various parameters. A possible parameter is, for example, transmit power toward the source of the received signal 16. For example, beam patterns 141, 142, 143, and 144 may be determined to have associated transmit power along the imperfect receive direction 22′. In contrast, beam patterns 145, 146, 147, and 148 may be determined to have associated transmit power along the imperfect receive direction 22′. 7、 and 148 may be determined to have no, or at least no, associated transmit power along receive direction 22'.

[0030] The additional beam patterns of the subset may be any other beam patterns that device 10 is capable of generating. For example, these beam patterns may exclude or include expansion or contraction of the same pattern with more or less power, or / and different weights (power and direction) on the main lobe and side lobes of such pattern. The selection of at least one beam pattern to be part of the subset may be such that, after propagation of the signal through the wireless channel, the received power at the other end is above a threshold or within a range or tolerance; preferably, these transmit beam patterns provide overlapping coverage with the corresponding beam, i.e., the subset may include transmit beam patterns that provide reception within and around a volume / zone and in a direction surrounding it.

[0031] Referring again to the criteria by which the subset is selected by the device 10, one possible parameter is the transmit power towards the source of the received signal, i.e., the device 20, above a threshold. An alternative or additional parameter may be the location of the coverage area, coverage volume, or coverage zone of the beam pattern relative to the receive direction 22. In other words, for example, the device 20, such as a base station or measurement equipment (e.g., gNB, SS, or TE), may request the UE to provide (select) several beams (a subset or part of all possible beams that can be formed by the UE) that provide sufficient, i.e., predetermined link coverage, in the direction of the link antenna to cover a spherical segment / zone in and / or around the receive direction 22 according to option 1, according to option 2. The area can be understood as a cut of a sphere or a spherical segment. The volume can be understood as a 3D area in which other communication partners are located, possibly including the space around them. This may be a kind of substantial zone in which the received power coming from the transmitted beam pattern is above a threshold / reasonable signal level. When considering the torch analogy, we can use all beams (make them part of the subset) that transmit enough light from the source (transmitting device) to the destination (measurement / link antenna or gNB or another device located somewhere in 3D space).

[0032] The device 10 can form a selected subset of beam patterns. The beam patterns may be formed simultaneously, but preferably sequentially. For example, the device 10 can sequentially form beam patterns 141 to 144. To enable differentiation between the beam patterns 141 to 144, the device 10 can be configured to individually label, mark, or identify each pattern in the subset. A method for identifying the beam patterns 141 to 144 can be the use of sounding reference symbol (SRS) resources that identify specific beam patterns 141 to 144, i.e., the device 20 can determine which beam pattern has been received and can differentiate between different beam patterns in the subset. Thus, the device 20 receives one or more, preferably all, of the formed beam patterns in the subset. Once the subset of beam patterns is labeled, the device 20 can identify the beam pattern that provides the most promising link to the device 10, e.g., that has the highest signal power when receiving the beam pattern.

[0033] Device 20 may be configured to select one of beam patterns 141-144 from the subset based on, for example, transmit power or any other suitable parameter. For example, a parameter associated with the most likely link quality, e.g., signal power, may be used. That is, device 20 may select a true corresponding beam pattern from the received subset. Device 20 may be configured to transmit response information 24, e.g., a signal including such information, to device 10. Response information 24 may indicate the corresponding beam pattern selected by device 20, beam pattern 142 in this example.

[0034] The device 10 may receive the response information 24 and may be configured to use the indicated beam pattern 142 as the corresponding beam pattern. For example, the device 10 may establish a link to the device 20 using the beam pattern 142. Alternatively or additionally, the device 10 may update the correspondence information stored in the memory 26 of the device 10. The correspondence information may associate each of the multiple beam patterns 141-148 with a corresponding receive direction 22. Updating the correspondence information may at least partially compensate for the effects of an incomplete or erroneous receive direction. For example, the device 10 may change the receive beam or apply a different receive beam pattern to select an appropriate corresponding transmit beam pattern. Based on the modified or updated information, the device 10 may update the correspondence information.

[0035] Using the indicated beam can be associated with different possible actions, including combinations thereof. For example, according to option A, the transceiver / device 10 can follow the feedback so as to be configured to use the indicated beam as a new corresponding beam when the device is in a similar situation. This can include, for example, means for determining what the situation is, using sensors or external information (location, environment, etc.). According to option B, the transceiver / device 10 can follow the feedback so as to consider the indicated beam to be selected in the future as the corresponding beam and update the relevant entry in a look-up table (LUT). This offers the advantage that the device manufacturer still has full control over their algorithms and the device is less likely to be fooled by incomplete messages.

[0036] Device 10 can be configured to autonomously select and form a subset of beam patterns according to option 3. That is, device 10 receiving stimulus signal 16 can select a subset in response thereto. In other words, UE (device 10) can autonomously provide (select) a number of beams (a subset of all possible beams that can be formed by the UE) that provide sufficient link coverage in the direction of the link antenna, i.e., receive direction 22.

[0037] Predetermined or sufficient link coverage can be understood as at least sufficient signal power being transmitted along the direction of the communication partner, i.e., predetermined link coverage can be understood as a way of providing at least sufficient signal power being transmitted in the direction and / or location of the user / communication partner and in closer / local vicinity, such that all members of a subset of beams can be provided with reasonable communication / signal quality, with some of them being suitable to provide even better signals depending on the instantaneous location of the device and the directionality of its receiving antenna.

[0038] In each of Options 1, 2, and 3, the formation of the subset beam pattern may occur automatically or autonomously. The formation of the subset, or at least a portion thereof, may be initiated or initiated automatically or in response to a command or trigger. The command may be received from a communication partner, e.g., device 20, or from a protocol instance within the device. The trigger may be an observed condition event or development from the receiver; for example, the receiver tracks an incoming wireless signal and an algorithm concludes / determines that the use of another member of the selected subset is more appropriate for use in a given condition, time, etc. In other words, the command may communicate what to do and when, and the trigger may simply initiate another algorithm loop or initiate a pre-configured action to be performed.

[0039] Alternatively or additionally, the subset beam patterns may be formed sequentially, in parallel, i.e. simultaneously, selectively, overlapping, and / or on demand, in an order indicated externally or determined by the device 10, the details of each option being indicated by command or trigger.

[0040] Alternatively or additionally, device 10 may be adapted to operate in a first operating mode. In the first operating mode, device 10 is adapted to select only a corresponding beam pattern, e.g., beam pattern 141. For example, this may be a normal operating mode outdoors. In this mode, no other beam patterns may be formed to establish a link. The device may be adapted to receive a request signal, possibly transmitted by device 20, indicating a request to form the described subset. This request signal may instruct device 10 to switch to a second mode in which a subset is formed, either after forming only the single corresponding beam pattern 141, or alternatively. According to one embodiment, information generating the request signal indicating the request may be included in the stimulus signal 16 such that different types of stimulus signal 16 may result in different responses in device 10. Alternatively or additionally, device 10 may select between different modes. For example, when stimulus signal 16 is received with a signal quality or signal power below a threshold, the stimulus signal may provide a subset to allow device 20 to select the best possible beam pattern.

[0041] The request signal or additional request may request the device 10 to sweep or switch between individual members of the subset, beam patterns, etc. Essentially, this may be linked to a beam identification that may be advantageously used in conjunction with an embodiment to explicitly or implicitly activate the use of additional beam subsets in a particular mode or on request.

[0042] By externally checking the selected corresponding beam pattern for accuracy or to check for an otherwise better beam pattern, the device 10 can be updated and / or enabled to learn a new LUT on the fly.

[0043] Named options 1, 2, and 3 provide for the extension of EIRP measurements (EIRP = Equivalent Isotropic Radiated Power). With respect to EIRP, the inventors have found that measurement requirements can be relevant to determining both minimum peak EIRP and spherical coverage. In such procedures, the UE may utilize uplink beam sweeping.

[0044] Several EIRP test procedures using uplink beam sweeping can be used (see [2]). As noted in [3], this method forms the baseline for conformance testing and was approved in a change request [4] to 3GPP TR 38.810. According to [3], to reduce test time, the SRS resource set used for uplink beam sweeping can be limited, i.e., the upper limit of the number of SRS resources (M) from TE is 4, 8, or 16, to reduce the "SRS resource limit: test time" ratio.

[0045] According to the present invention, a) the baseline EIRP measurement procedure agreed in WF [3], b) the number of beams comprising the uplink beam sweeping set, and c) the size of the SRS resource set are described. A flowchart of the network-assisted uplink beam sweeping procedure [2][4] is presented in Figure 5, and the following steps are referenced: 1. The UE is placed in the test position. 2. For each point on the measurement grid, the link between the UE and the system simulator (SS) is Link = Θ is established through the measurement antenna. 3. The UE performs an uplink beam sweep using a set of configured reference signals (SRS) based on the downlink reference signal. 4. The SS uses its measurement capabilities to determine the power of all uplink sweeping beams. The identity of the "best beam" is returned to the UE. 5. The UE configures the "best beam" and enables beam lock. 6. The total component EIRP for both polarizations is determined using EIRP test equipment (TE), e.g., a spectrum analyzer or power meter. 7. [Loop A] UE unlocks the beam. Pol Link Switching SS to the measurement antenna = Φ. Steps 3 to 6 are repeated once before moving to step 8. 8. [Loop B] Move to the next measurement point on the grid. Repeat steps 2 through 7 until all measurement points on the grid have been evaluated.

[0046] The network-assisted uplink beam-sweeping procedure provides relatively short measurement times and reasonably good emulation of network performance, but it depends on the ability of the SS to accurately assess the uplink. Note that an alternative method was proposed in [5] that provides greater accuracy at the expense of increased measurement times.

[0047] Despite this, it is unclear whether the set of configured reference signals (those that define the uplink beam sweep) will be the same for each of the test points on the grid, or whether a different set of beams will be used for each test point.

[0048] To reliably determine the EIRP, it is advantageous for the best beam, i.e. the uplink beam with the highest power in the direction of the established link with SS or EIRP TE (TE), to form part of the set of swept beams. Since the availability of the UE codebook cannot be assumed either at SS or TE, the UE must sweep through all available beams to ensure that the best beam is not missed.

[0049] On the other hand, if the SS or TE has complete or partial knowledge of the UE codebook, the number of beams in the sweep set can be reduced, which has the advantage of reducing measurement time in direct proportion to the size of the condensed set of SRS resources.

[0050] Observation 1: Without knowledge of the UE codebook, it is necessary to sweep all available beams to avoid missing the best beam. Observation 2: Equipping the SS or TE with full or partial knowledge of the UE codebook reduces test time in direct proportion to the size of the condensed set of SRS resources.

[0051] Proposal according to embodiment 1: To enable intelligent SRS selection, knowledge of the UE codebook is provided to the SS or TE.

[0052] RAN4#90 WF [3] states that SRS resources (M) should have an upper limit to reduce test time. Currently, values ​​between 4 and 16 are described.

[0053] Observation 3: RAN4 identifies the benefits of limiting SRS resources (M). In view of the foregoing, embodiments define that M, i.e., the number of distinguishable beam patterns, and optionally the maximum size of the subset of beam patterns, is selected or chosen according to the dimensions of the antenna array (e.g., 4×n or 8×n) and such that spherical coverage can be achieved using the resulting uplink beam sweep set. For example, the half-power beamwidth (HPBW) of a 4×n array and an 8×n array is approximately 26° and 13°, resulting in beam sets of approximately 64 and approximately 256 beams, respectively. Without an appropriately sized set of SRS resources, it is impossible to ensure that the “best beam” is part of the resulting uplink sweep set.

[0054] Proposal according to embodiment 2: The size of the SRS resource set (M) shall be selected according to the antenna array dimension.

[0055] To select the subset, the device may alternatively or additionally consider operating parameters of the device. For example, the operating parameters may guide the device 10 to exclude beam patterns from multiple beam patterns. For example, for measurement reduction, the selected subset may be very small compared to all possible transmit beams the UE / device can form. For example, as few as 4 or 8 out of 64 or 256 beam patterns.

[0056] As an example, device 10 may include only those beam patterns in the subset that have relevant or sufficient transmission characteristics for device 20, or that include a predetermined number with the best characteristics. Alternatively or additionally, device 10 may have knowledge that a corresponding beam pattern (however possibly correctly determined) or a different beam pattern in the subset is currently undesirable or unacceptable. This may be, for example, the location of the user of the device, e.g., their head, such that the user's location is excluded from the subset to avoid directing the device's maximum power toward the user. Any other criteria for excluding particular beam patterns may be implemented. Device 10 may be configured to update a lookup table indicating multiple beam patterns based on user interaction information indicative of the user's use of the device. For example, device 10 may implement one or more sensors or input devices indicative of user interaction. For example, a proximity sensor may indicate or sense the user's head being near device 10, which includes, for example, a microphone and / or speaker. Alternatively or additionally, device 10 may detect the user's hand holding the device. For example, user interaction information may include holding the device in the hand, near the head, etc., so that certain beam patterns should not be used / excluded to meet SAR level requirements (SAR: Specific Absorption Rate).

[0057] That is, for example, beam patterns can be excluded from the subset based on known locations so that transmit beam patterns pointing to other users, other devices, or access points / base stations / eNBs / gNBs are excluded due to interference to those locations. For example, device 10 can receive feedback regarding other devices or receivers in the space, e.g., other UEs or other gNBs, that directly or indirectly indicate their presence and / or desire to remain unobstructed by device 10. For example, a device experiencing interference reports directly to device 10 or a serving gNB through a control channel that the UE experiences undesirable interference power levels when using a particular beam pattern. As a result, the UE can decide not to use these beams by itself or in a coordinated manner, e.g., in time slots where another device would / would not be experiencing such an interfering beam. Alternatively, as a further option, power backoff may be implemented.

[0058] Alternatively, or in addition, the interfered device transmits a response that effectively reverses the interfering channel on the resources it perceives as interfered with. In this way, the interfering device, i.e., device 10, is also interfered with and can adaptively avoid transmitting in directions associated with receive patterns that have collected substantial signal power from other devices.

[0059] Thus, embodiments enable a device configured to update parameter settings associated with an algorithm to determine multiple beam patterns based on user interaction information indicative of a user's use of the device, i.e., the device can know that it can apply different beam patterns when used by a user apart from its initial state.

[0060] Device 10 may be configured to receive stimulus signals 16 and / or response information 24 using the same antenna arrangement 12 adapted to form beam patterns 141 to 148. Alternatively, device 10 may include different antenna arrangements for receiving signals 16 and 24 and forming beam patterns.

[0061] Preferably, the subset is a strict subset of the plurality of beam patterns 141 to 148. That is, at least one of the possible beam patterns 141 to 148 is preferably not included in the selected subset. This may have the particular advantage that the time to select, evaluate, or choose the best beam pattern may be shorter when compared to testing all beam patterns. Unnecessary measurement time, especially in the measurement environment, may be reduced by not selecting beam patterns as part of the subset that are known not to be good candidates for the corresponding beam pattern.

[0062] Although system 100 is shown as having one device 10 and one device 20, system 100 may comprise multiple devices of the device 10 type and / or multiple devices of the device 20 type.

[0063] An embodiment, which can be combined with other embodiments without limitation, addresses the selection of a subset of beam patterns. For example, operation during normal network operation and / or during measurements may be limited or dependent on regulations. For example, device 10 may be required to implement up to, or even more precisely, a predetermined number of beam patterns as a subset. Such number M may be any suitable number, e.g., 5, 6, 8, 12, or a different or even higher number.

[0064] For example, device 10 may be subject to a requirement to provide a subset with up to M beam patterns. That is, if device 10 estimates at most a predetermined number, namely, M, suitable for the subset, device 10 forms the subset as described in connection with other embodiments described herein. Alternatively, device 10 may include additional, possibly less suitable or inappropriate, beam patterns in the subset to reach the predetermined number. For example, device 10 may be configured to select subset 15 to include exactly a predetermined number of beam patterns, where the predetermined number is M. Suitability may be related, for example, to the radiated power illuminating a particular area, e.g., the location of link antenna 18.

[0065] 1b shows a schematic perspective view illustrating the selection of a predetermined number of beam patterns for the subset. The predetermined number M may be, for example, 8 (or a different number), and example values ​​of corresponding beam patterns for M include 2, 4, 8, 16, or any other number therebetween or greater. The formed beam patterns 141 to 148 are referred to as "beam patterns." i ", where i is an index a, ..., x, i.e., subset 15 is a selection of i beam patterns that device 10 can form.

[0066] The selection may be influenced by at least the receipt of a signal 17 indicating that a respective mode is requested to be performed by device 10. For example, device 10 may be configured to select subset 15 to include a predetermined number M of beam patterns. The predetermined number M may be considered the minimum number of beam patterns device 10 can form, e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4, or a higher number such as 8, 16, 32, 48, 64, and the maximum number allowed by the system. For example, the former may apply if the number of beam patterns is less than the maximum number allowed by the system (8 in this example), while the latter applies in the opposite case. Device 10 may form the subset such that the number of beam patterns identified in the subset and / or subsequently formed by device 10 is equal to or less than the predetermined number; i.e., the predetermined number may limit the beam pattern count of subset 15.

[0067] The beams of subset 15 may be correlated with each other by a local dispersion of the beam pattern's main direction. For example, as shown for beam patterns 141 to 148, the device may be configured to select a subset such that a predetermined number of beam patterns locally cover an area around the corresponding beam pattern, i.e., beam patterns 141 to 148 are selected to locally cover or illuminate link antenna 18. For example, a subset may include a predetermined number of beams that are spatially closest to the link antenna in terms of transmitted power. For example, the device may be configured to select subset 15 such that a predetermined number of beam patterns have a maximum density around the corresponding beam pattern.

[0068] Alternatively or additionally, the device may be configured to select subset 15, e.g., subsequently or as an alternative mode, where a predetermined number of beam patterns, as shown for beam patterns 14'1 through 14'8, are diffused with a diffusion region, which is at least a portion of a sphere 21 that includes the area illuminated by the corresponding beam pattern. Compared to a relatively small region or portion 19a of sphere 21, i.e., a possible virtual projection surface spanned or evaluated by, for example, a measurement instrument, the region or portion, i.e., diffusion region 19b, may be large. For example, region 19b may be the entire sphere or a region of interest thereof. The size of region 19b may be indicated, for example, by use of signal 17, which may also be signal 16, or may be preset or determined by device 10. That is, the device may be configured to select the size of diffusion region 19b based on a static, predetermined value or based on a variable value received as part of the signal.

[0069] For example, device 10 may be configured to select subsets 15 such that a predetermined number are uniformly distributed within the diffusion area, within the capabilities of the device, i.e., beam patterns 14'1 to 14'8 (e.g., maximum or minimum radiated power of the beam patterns, or positions of different reference points) may be uniformly or non-uniformly distributed along one or more directions of sphere 21.

[0070] Alternatively or additionally, device 10 may be configured to transmit signal 23 including a subset indication indicating that the subset includes a predetermined number. That is, device 10 may indicate to other devices and / or measurement equipment or a base station that it will only use subset 15, which is limited to the predetermined number. Alternatively or additionally, device 10 may be configured to receive a signal, e.g., signals 16 and / or 17, or a different signal including a subset request. The subset request may be a bit / flag or sequence / multiple bits included in the signal, or may be a dedicated signal, indicating that device 10 is requested to select subset 15 to include the predetermined number M. Device 10 may select subset 15 to include the predetermined number M based on the subset request.

[0071] In some cases, the device may not be able to comply with such a request once or repeatedly. For example, the required number of beam patterns may not be formed because some possible beam patterns are (currently) not allowed, perhaps because the user's location is further excluded. The device 10 may be configured to determine that the requested operation exceeds the capabilities of the device 10. The device 10 may transmit a response signal 25 indicating that the device 10 will not operate according to the request. Alternatively or optionally, the device 10 may be configured to transmit a response signal 25 based on the request, the response signal 25 indicating that the device 10 will operate according to the request, for example, as a positive response. The response signal 25 may also contain information by its presence or absence. That is, absence may indicate a positive or negative response.

[0072] While device 10 may be required to limit the number of beam patterns in subset 15, and thus the number of beam patterns formed as a basis for subsequent selection, it may be appropriate to have more than a predetermined number of beam patterns, particularly in terms of measurement purposes. Consider, for example, eight beam patterns distributed along two directions of sphere 21 and generated to cover a large or maximum possible beam coverage area of ​​the sphere around device 10. In such and other situations, device 10 may generate many or multiple subsets, e.g., sequentially one after the other, with different subsets having at least partially different beam patterns. According to one embodiment, the subsets may be non-overlapping or separate with respect to the selected beam pattern and / or coverage area.

[0073] In some cases, one or more of the subsets may be selected to have no corresponding beam pattern. This may enable covering a wide diffusion region 19b and / or covering the diffusion region 19b with dense beam patterns. For example, device 10 may be configured to signal information, e.g., using signal 25 or a different signal, indicating that the number of selected beam patterns considered as candidates for subset 15 exceeds a predetermined number M. This may be an indication that additional subsets are possible / necessary. Device 10 may receive a response to such a signal indicating that device 10 is requested to provide, i.e., select and form, additional subsets. Thus, device 10 may receive a signal / request to form at least a second subset to at least select and form a second subset including at least one beam pattern that differs when compared to the first subset of beam patterns.

[0074] By selecting different subsets, different, possibly overlapping, areas of the sphere 21 can be illuminated, with each subset, its beam pattern at least partially covering a different area of ​​the sphere 21 around the device 10.

[0075] In other words, due to the limited number of M beams provided by the DuT / UE, the options to cover the whole or a significant part of the sphere are limited, and depending on the narrowness of the beams, even local beam sweeping may not cover all possible / suitable beams around the direction towards the link antenna.

[0076] Therefore, further information exchange between the DuT and the ME / BS may be supported. The measurement equipment or measurement environment may also be a base station emulator or test platform. To limit this exchange to a minimum, embodiments provide the following mechanisms and related implementation options:

[0077] Option A: Implement the following flags / signals / bits: A.1: Allows a UE / device to signal M beams marked / identified by SRS or SSB (i.e., distinguishable by sounding reference symbols) distributed to cover a sphere or locally for local beam sweeping. A.2: Allows the ME / BS to request the UE to distribute M beams marked / identified by SRS or SSB to cover a sphere or locally for local beam sweeping.

[0078] Having several beams around a given direction or covering a spherical region / zone / area of ​​relevance / interest can be called a set of local beams for sweeping.

[0079] An embodiment that may be alternatively or additionally implemented relates to a device such as device 10 configured to select subset 15 based on a preconfigured codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list that associates a corresponding beam pattern with at least one additional beam pattern.

[0080] The codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list may be associated with several beam patterns summed together with the corresponding beam patterns up to a predetermined number of beam patterns, such as the described M. That is, for each corresponding beam pattern, a subset 15 may be predefined or preset.

[0081] Device 10 may be configured to select subset 15 using a codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list based on a signal indicating a respective request, e.g., signal 16 or 17. The device may be configured to transmit a response signal, e.g., signal 25 based on the request, which response signal indicates that the device will act in accordance with the request and / or, if, for example, the device determines that the requested action exceeds the capabilities or current operating mode of the device, the response may indicate that the device will not act in accordance with the request as described above.

[0082] The device may be configured to variably store the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list and update the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list in response to a respective signal, and / or to statically store the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list. That is, the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list may be implemented, for example, by a manufacturer and may remain unchanged over time, but may be set at the start of a particular test or mode of operation. The device 10 may be configured to update the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list at least one of the following: at the start of a measurement procedure, during a device manufacturer software update, and during a network provider software update.

[0083] The device 10 may be configured to form the subset 15 while performing local beam sweeping, i.e., the orientation of at least a portion of the beam pattern (lobes and / or nulls) may be changed to move the beam pattern in space.

[0084] In other words, according to an embodiment: Option B: The UE / device uses / applies a pre-configured state covering the equivalent of local or spherical coverage beam sweeping. B1: A pre-configured state / alphabet / (space) / lookup table / register / list codebook is known to the UE / device and / or the a priori of receiving a request to set a flag / behave / act according to the flag is programmed into the UE / device. B2: Pre-configured states / alphabet / spatial codebooks / lookup tables / registers / lists may be set / configured by the ME / BS or any other entity in communication with the UE / device. Such pre-configured states must be remembered by the device / UE for a significant period of time between the time the states / alphabet / spatial codebooks / lookup tables / registers / lists are set / configured and the time they are applied.

[0085] With respect to option B1, the set of pre-configured beams may be selected, for example, in response to DL (downlink) measurements, a particular orientation of the UE, or a particular spatial relationship between the device / UE and the ME / measurement antenna, or with respect to a body or object, e.g., the head, close to the device / UE.

[0086] With respect to option B2, the duration of the period may include any suitable amount of time, e.g., they may allow programming at the start of a measurement procedure that is subsequently invoked to reconfigure device 10, e.g., during periodic software updates by the manufacturer and / or in connection with software updates for new / different / special wireless networks and / or countries / geographic regions / resale markets. For example, the chipset of device 10 may be equipped with different configurations of panels and / or antennas, or they may be distributed / located or aligned differently on device 10. The codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list may be understood as a combination of phase and amplitude values ​​that allows a particular beam to be formed. The phase and amplitude values ​​may be discrete or continuous, including analog, digital beamforming, and hybrid options.

[0087] In relation to such signaling capabilities and their application to measurement procedures, embodiments may provide the following UE capabilities: 1.) It can process / respond to such commands / flags with appropriate action a. Supports / local beam sweeping in all directions of the sphere, or b. Support / local beam sweeping can be performed only in specific directions. 2.) The UE is unable to process / respond to such commands / flags with appropriate action a. No support / local beam sweeping

[0088] As another embodiment described herein, the described concepts related to subset 15, i.e., the selection of a subset of beam patterns with a predetermined number, are applicable to user equipment as well as other devices such as relays or base stations. Thus, the device may be a base station or a relay, and the beam marking / identification may be an SSB (synchronization signal block) or the like indicating the particular beam formed by the device.

[0089] The described embodiment having a limited subset with M beam patterns may also relate to the following. 1. A device (UE) may have the capability to perform local beam sweeping or not, which may be known or may be indirectly signaled without using a bit in the device capability register. 2. The tester, e.g., measurement equipment / environment (ME), can set a flag / parameter to force a local beam sweep with M, e.g., four relatively small beam patterns, to minimize the number of SRSs measured. For example, it is not necessary to be able to configure multiple M with different beam patterns. For example, M can be further reduced to enable testing of simple, low-cost UEs with limited beamforming capabilities. This comes at the expense of extra bits for signaling the mode / state / M. Therefore, the value of "m" may be selected to be smaller than the maximum value of M. 3. It may be necessary to identify the center / direction / area around which a local sweep should be performed based on downlink measurements made by the UE / device using, for example, CSI-RS.

[0090] Embodiments may further relate to local beam sweeping being identified as a way to overcome the large number of M by setting it to the minimum necessary, e.g., M=4. In this way, the number of SRSs measured by the ME can be reduced, supporting simple UEs as well as more complex ones. This method enables optimized beam correspondence evaluation using local beam sweeping, resulting in reduced measurement time / effort and reduced measurement uncertainty (MU), especially for UEs / devices using larger antenna arrays with more than four antenna elements that can form narrower beams.

[0091] A measurement procedure, i.e., a method for evaluating a device, according to one embodiment may include, for example: transmitting a stimulus signal to the device along a receive direction to stimulate the device to establish a link with a source of the stimulus signal; receiving a transmit beam pattern from the device; reporting a quality measure of the transmit beam pattern to the device; selecting an area to be covered during testing and selecting a subset of beam patterns formable by the device to illuminate that area; forming a subset of beam patterns; and It may include measuring a subset of the beam patterns to evaluate the device.

[0092] In other words, such a procedure may include: Step 1: Based on the DL (downlink) signal, a UL (uplink) beam is selected by the UE / device and its EIRP is measured by the measurement equipment (ME). Based on the DL measurements, e.g., based on CSI-RS and further knowledge, the area to be covered by the set of selected beams for local beam sweeping is selected. For example, the same UL beamforming coefficients (spatial filters) used for the DL beams can be used to select the UL beam. Step 2: Further beams are then selected by the UE / device to provide a set of beams suitable for a local sweep covering a local area. The EIRP of all beams belonging to the set of beams for the sweep should be measured by the ME.

[0093] The predetermined number M may be a fixed value, for example, set by the network. Alternatively, the value M may be variable. For example, a base station or test equipment, e.g., device 20, may indicate the value of M, for example, by using an appropriate signal. Such a signal or a different signal may be used to indicate the area covered by a subset of beam patterns, for example, depending on a particular test mode being performed or a particular aperture angle obtained along one or more directions, for example, to cover base stations at a particular distance. The selection of the area may be determined, for example, from measurements of the stimulus signal.

[0094] FIG. 2 shows a schematic flowchart of a method 200 for testing or updating a device, e.g., device 10. Method 200 includes step 210, in which a wireless stimulation signal is transmitted to the device, e.g., along a receive direction, to stimulate the device and establish a link with a source of the stimulation signal along the receive direction. In step 220, a plurality of beam patterns are received from the device, e.g., device 20. In step 230, at least one of the plurality of beam patterns is selected. The plurality of beam patterns includes a corresponding beam pattern selected by the device as a beam pattern corresponding to the stimulation signal. This selected beam pattern may be determined correctly or incorrectly. Step 240 may include transmitting information, e.g., response information 24, to the device indicating the at least one selected beam pattern. The response information 24 may conform to the selection made by device 10 or may deviate therefrom. Step 250 may include updating information in the device's memory based on the information indicating the at least one selected beam pattern to change future selection of the corresponding beam pattern. This step may be optional, as it may not be necessary when the selection information conforms to the selection made by device 10, i.e., when no related error occurs.

[0095] FIG. 3 shows a schematic flowchart of a method 300 according to one embodiment that may be used to operate a device, such as device 10. Method 300 includes step 310, which includes receiving a wireless received signal and determining a corresponding beam pattern corresponding to the wireless signal, e.g., a receive beam used to receive the signal. Step 320 includes selecting a subset from a plurality of beam patterns that may be generated, such that the subset includes a corresponding beam pattern that includes a primary direction corresponding to the receive direction. The selected subset is formed, possibly by sequentially forming the beam patterns of the subset. Step 330 includes receiving response information indicating one beam pattern of the selected subset. Step 340 includes using the indicated beam pattern as the corresponding beam pattern, e.g., or updating a memory, e.g., a LUT.

[0096] 4 shows a schematic flowchart of a method 400 that may be implemented to operate a device, e.g., device 20. Step 410 includes transmitting a wireless signal to a receiving device, e.g., device 10, which is a transceiving device, based on guided transmission of device 10, e.g., along a receive direction (including omnidirectional transmission). Step 420 includes receiving a plurality of beam patterns from the receiving device. Step 430 includes selecting a corresponding beam pattern from the plurality of beam patterns. Step 440 includes transmitting response information to the receiving device, the response information indicating the corresponding beam pattern.

[0097] The examples described herein can be used in various scenarios. One scenario is illustrated by an example in which, due to the variability of use cases, the user's body's interaction with the device can result in different receive and uplink beam patterns, for example, due to different panels used for reception and transmission. The embodiments enable the UE to generate, or even enforce, a set of appropriate beams that provide complete or at least sufficient link coverage within the required zone. The SS or gNB (in live operation) can assist the UE in learning about the best, or at least better, corresponding beam in a given setup / radio propagation environment. The signal / signal dispersion in the link direction can meet within a predetermined range, for example, 20 dB, 15 dB, 10 dB, or 5 dB. This can include a main lobe, split beams, and side lobes. According to one embodiment, the selected beam pattern to be part of the subset can include only a main lobe in the link direction. This can be obtained by selecting only those beam patterns with a main lobe located along the link direction (i.e., the main lobe is at least partially oriented in the link direction). The embodiments are directed to a UE comprising means for selecting a set of beams required for a local beam sweep. The local beam sweep can be performed in and around a given direction having radio link significance. While known devices are implemented to select corresponding beams, the embodiments allow for verifying this selection in order to obtain the best beam pattern, i.e., the beam pattern with the highest or maximum matching.

[0098] Some of the above-described embodiments relate to adapting or correcting the corresponding beam pattern selection or selection made by the UE. According to other embodiments, there may be other reasons for changing the UE's selection and / or providing the UE with an updated or changed basis for determining which transmit beam to use.

[0099] For example, device 10 of FIG. 1a may provide a subset. However, instead of presenting only one beam pattern at device 20, device 20 may also always provide a selection of at least two beam patterns of the subset, based on its own decision or in response to a request received from device 10. The selection may be based on parametric information, such as key performance indicators (KPIs). For example, given a set of receive beam patterns that together cover a larger area and whose individual receive beams have coverage overlap, device 10 may define a set of transmit beams that cover the same or approximately the same or a larger area. Those beam patterns may acquire / learn / define virtual path correspondences, meaning that a particular optimized trajectory through / along a receive beam spot / region corresponds to a trajectory through / along a transmit beam spot / region. This concept can be analogous to a UE navigating a cellular network observing the signal strengths of neighboring base stations (known via a neighbor list, which in this case corresponds to a subset of the receive and transmit beam sets used) when several base stations are received at a certain ratio of power at which a handover (HO) from one serving base station is / can be triggered. Similarly, by observing the received power using different receive beams, the UE can determine when a different transmit beam may be used / appears more appropriate, to smoothly / aggressively / delay. This mechanism supports a more robust and unambiguous selection of the corresponding transmit beam based on the observed and evaluated received beam signals.

[0100] For example, the response information received from device 20 may include a determination, i.e., which beam pattern of the subset is identified as providing sufficient link quality to enable device 10 to select a beam pattern to be implemented by itself, based on which beam pattern has some kind of spatial or power margin, for example. For example, a beam pattern that is more centrally located on the antenna panel or requires less power may be preferred. A more centralized beam pattern, among other things, may allow for a longer time between switching between antenna panels, thus delaying antenna handover.

[0101] Alternatively or additionally, the response information may include an order or sequence of beam patterns, e.g., ranking, etc. Alternatively or additionally, further information, e.g., KPIs, may be transmitted, and device 20 may determine the information to be transmitted and / or device 10 may request the respective information. This concept may be combined without limitation with updating of corresponding information.

[0102] Embodiments described herein may relate to correcting the corresponding beam selection and / or changing the selection, e.g., providing the device with a selection of patterns to be used. Further embodiments relate to the device learning from its experience. For example, by learning that a link was established to the device in a particular direction and then provided a set (subset) of beams from which a particular beam was selected, in the future, when a link is requested in a similar direction to one that the device already knows (due to learning / experience), it will return a different set of beams than the set provided “early in learning,” e.g., in a post-manufacturing configuration. For example, a smaller or subset of beams may be used that introduces beams not previously included (to test beam suitability and beam selection capabilities). Such information may be used in addition to and / or directly included in the correspondence information, e.g., to weight a single transmit beam pattern for a particular scenario.

[0103] Further embodiments relate to devices that update their correspondence information not only in response to a signal transmitted to the device 10 requesting it to provide a subset in response to the device's attempt to establish a link, but also alternatively or additionally in response to an event triggered by the network or base station. For example, the device 20 may recognize or estimate that the device 10 is not in use or has not been moved, which may indicate that little or no user interference is expected, and autonomously trigger an update of the correspondence information by transmitting a stimulus signal. This may allow for compensation for deviations from the conditions of the device 10 that served as the basis for programming or manufacturing the lookup table of the device 10 during manufacturing, e.g., in a laboratory environment. Based on different covers, housings, or modifications to the device 10, its characteristics may have changed, which may be compensated for by a network-side trigger of an update. That is, the device may be configured to use an indicated transmit beam pattern as a corresponding beam pattern and / or to adapt information indicating the correspondence information indicating the associated transmit beam pattern.

[0104] Further embodiments, which may be combined with other embodiments without limitation, recognize that transmit beam patterns are not limited to a single beam pattern at a time. Two or more beam patterns may be implemented at a time, with each transmit beam pattern enabling a separate, associated data connection to be established and maintained. For example, a long-distance transmission, such as to the moon, may implement different polarizations of the beam patterns. However, the embodiments are not limited to long-distance transmissions or polarizations. The embodiments also relate to any range and any distinguishing characteristics, such as different time, frequency, code, polarization, angular momentum, or other spatial resources / dimensions.

[0105] Thus, embodiments relate to a device, e.g., device 10, that can simultaneously form and maintain multiple transmit beam patterns. When providing a subset, the device may be configured to provide, to a node receiving the subset, a transmit beam pattern along with an associated transmit beam pattern that is provided as a pair or triplet of beams, .... The response information may then indicate each pair, triplet, ... of transmit beam patterns. In MIMO, beam pairs are simultaneously active, i.e., the beams of a beam pair are transmitting simultaneously (in MIMO mode).

[0106] In other words, some embodiments consider devices that provide a set of beams from which the "best" beam is selected and used for subsequent purposes. That is, from a set of many beams, only one beam is selected and then used. An extension here considers the case where more than one beam is ultimately selected and then used. One example of this is in MIMO applications.

[0107] Extending the embodiment to multiple beams If the UE / BS (Base Station) / IAB (Integrated Access and Backhaul Node) ("Device" 10) uses more than one beam, several beams must be combined for selection. >This may indicate the need for "multi-beam (pair) support." -Applicable to simultaneous multi-beam operation Depends on the channel and supported MIMO modes (multipath diversity, multiplexing to one base station or different base stations) The embodiments then cover procedures that allow for individual beam marking for each simultaneous beam. SRS (Sounding Reference Symbols) can be orthogonal or quasi-orthogonal or any other simultaneous SRS design, where the Sounding Reference Symbols are one option for marking specific beams o The implementation of the procedure can be as follows: Simultaneous, sequential or optional (e.g., performed by another entity present in the network) ○ID or SRS can be defined / applied per beam or per beam per panel

[0108] Multi-beam compatible procedures The device estimates and / or selects appropriate receive beams to achieve and / or support a given MIMO scheme, and depending on these individual beams and their combinations, selects pairs and / or combinations of beams corresponding to a transmission strategy for the UL. The device can provide a combination of two beams to be used as a probe to the UL to obtain response feedback from SS or TE or gNB or other equipment equipped for network operation. Again, the beam pair can follow the previous concept of targeting / pointing in the direction of the other communicating party. Considering certain metrics and thresholds, appropriate beam pairs (or higher order groups) can be selected and potentially stored in a LUT The LUT can take into account specific beam pair or beam combination exclusions specific to the device's antenna placement, or specifications of long-term or short-term nature in the propagation environment (reflections and user effects in the environment or temporarily mismatched antenna placements). The device can use an ordered procedure for selecting beams, e.g., QR decomposition. Beam combination may also depend on beam combination at the gNB in ​​general (beam selection at the gNB, antenna placement / panel, and a function of the UE and propagation environment).

[0109] The following considerations pertain to other embodiments. Multiple beams can be implemented / applied in: ○ Same or different time, frequency, code, polarization, angular momentum or other spatial resources / dimensions. Beam identification example ○ SRS,methods are not excluded, different resource of frame structure (slot, time base, modulation, coding, bandwidth, etc.) The beams forming the beam pair can be selected as follows: ○ Individual / independent for each beam ○ Sequentially in an ordered or unordered manner ○Jointly The overall transmission strategy between two communicating devices using single-user MIMO in diversity or multiplexing mode can be optimized by optimizing the transmit beams independently, iteratively, or jointly on one or both sides. Even in MIMO diversity mode (single stream transmission), several receive and transmit beams (which act as virtual antennas in an effective MIMO system) can be used. A direct extension could be support for multi-user MIMO, where a gNB supports multiple users / links simultaneously, with only one link / stream per user being active / relevant. Especially with multi-user MIMO in the UL, the UE beams must be aligned in space, time, and frequency to facilitate spatial separation at the gNB.

[0110] With respect to the above-described embodiments, e.g., QR decomposition, in a single-user MIMO system, optimal capacity can be achieved if the transmit and receive strategies and associated beamformers use eigenmode beamforming, meaning that the beamformers feed into the dominant spatial eigenmodes of the MIMO channel. Furthermore, a strategy called water-filling is capacity-achieving.

[0111] In an iterative approach, each end of the link can estimate the MIMO channel and perform a QR decomposition. The Q-transpose is then used to calculate the answer before feeding it into the MIMO channel. When done iteratively, the two Qs at each end of the MIMO system result in input and output beamformers that match the perfectly orthogonal eigenmodes of the MIMO channel.

[0112] The beam correspondence to a given wireless channel and the transmission strategy (beamformer) used at the other end of the communication link should be answered by a corresponding beam pair that satisfies the Q-transpose criterion.

[0113] In this way, a two-way beamforming single-user MIMO system can converge on the ability to achieve eigenmode beamforming. However, because perfect reciprocity (pattern reciprocity) down to baseband is difficult to achieve in practice, embodiments propose providing several beam combinations, possibly marked with beam IDs / SRSs, which is a much more practical approach to addressing the problem. Furthermore, spatial domain tracking of receive beams relative to corresponding transmit beams is extended toward eigenbeam tracking at one or both ends of the wireless link.

[0114] Although some aspects have been described in the context of an apparatus, it will be apparent that these aspects also represent descriptions of corresponding methods, where a block or device corresponds to a method step or feature of a method step. Similarly, aspects described in the context of a method step also represent descriptions of a corresponding block or item or feature of a corresponding apparatus.

[0115] Depending on particular implementation requirements, embodiments of the present invention can be implemented in hardware or software. Implementation can be performed using a digital storage medium, such as a floppy disk, DVD, CD, ROM, PROM, EPROM, EEPROM or flash memory, on which electronically readable control signals are stored, which cooperate (or can cooperate) with a programmable computer system so that the respective methods are performed.

[0116] Some embodiments according to the invention include a data carrier having electronically readable control signals capable of cooperating with a programmable computer system to cause one of the methods described herein to be performed.

[0117] Generally, embodiments of the present invention can be implemented as a computer program product with program code that operates to perform one of the methods when the computer program product is run on a computer. The program code can, for example, be stored on a machine-readable carrier.

[0118] Other embodiments comprise the computer program for performing one of the methods described herein, stored on a machine readable carrier. In other words, therefore, an embodiment of the inventive methods is a computer program having a program code for performing one of the methods described herein, when the computer program runs on a computer.

[0119] A further embodiment of the inventive method is, therefore, a data carrier (or digital storage medium, or computer readable medium) comprising, recorded on it, the computer program for performing one of the methods described herein.

[0120] A further embodiment of the inventive method is, therefore, a data stream or a sequence of signals representing the computer program for performing one of the methods described herein, The data stream or sequence of signals can for example be adapted to be transferred via a data communication connection, for example via the Internet.

[0121] A further embodiment comprises a processing means, for example a computer, or a programmable logic device, configured to or adapted to perform one of the methods described herein.

[0122] A further embodiment comprises a computer having installed thereon the computer program for performing one of the methods described herein.

[0123] In some embodiments, a programmable logic device (e.g., a field programmable gate array) may be used to perform some or all of the functions of the methods described herein. In some embodiments, a field programmable gate array may cooperate with a microprocessor to perform one of the methods described herein. In general, the methods are preferably performed by any hardware apparatus.

[0124] The above-described embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles of the present invention. It is understood that modifications and variations of the arrangements and details described herein will be apparent to others skilled in the art. It is therefore intended to be limited only by the scope of the claims which follow and not by the specific details presented by way of description and explanation of the embodiments herein.

[0125] References [1] RP-182879, "WF with Beam Support", Samsung, Apple, Nokia, Intel, ZTE, Sanechips, Qualcomm, MediaTek, Panasonic, Verizon, CATT, AT&T, OPPO, CMCC, Huawei, HiSilicon, CAICT, vivo, LG Electronics and KT Corp., RAN#82, Sorrento, Italy, December 10-13, 2018. [2] R4-1900278, "Uplink Beam Sweeping Based on EIRP Test Procedure," Samsung and CAICT, RAN4# 92, Athens, Greece, February 25-March 1, 2019. [3] R4-1902684, "WF on Simulation Assumptions for BC Tolerance Requirements", LG Electronics, RAN4 #92, Athens, Greece, February 25-March 1, 2019. [4] R4-1902683, "Beam-Compatible Test Procedures from Draft CR to TR 38.810," Samsung and Qualcomm, RAN4 #92, Athens, Greece, February 25-March 1, 2019. [5] R4-1902252, "Proceedings of the Ad Hoc Meeting on Beam Support," Samsung, RAN 4#92, Athens, Greece, February 25-March 1, 2019. [6] IEEE Standard for Definitions of Terms Relating to Antennas, IEEE Std 145-2013 (a revision of IEEE Std 145-1993), March 6, 2014. [7] IEEE Standard Test Procedures for Antennas, ANSI / IEEE Standard 149-1979, Volume 1, Number 1, pp. 0_1-, 1979, Reaffirmed 1990, 2003, 2008. The following describes additional embodiments and aspects of the present invention that can be used individually or in combination with any of the features and functionality and details described herein. Aspect 1: A device for communicating in a wireless communication network, the device having an antenna arrangement, the device configured to beamform a plurality of transmit beam patterns using the antenna arrangement, the device comprising: receiving a wireless signal and determining a corresponding beam pattern corresponding to the wireless signal; selecting a subset from the plurality of transmit beam patterns, the subset including the corresponding beam pattern, to form the selected subset; A device configured to receive response information indicating at least one transmit beam pattern of the selected subset, the device configured to use the indicated transmit beam pattern. Aspect 2: The device described in aspect 1, wherein the device is configured to use the indicated transmit beam pattern as a corresponding beam pattern and / or to adapt information indicating corresponding information indicating an associated transmit beam pattern. Aspect 3: The device of aspect 1 or 2, wherein the device includes a memory storing correspondence information associating each of the plurality of transmit beam patterns with an associated receive beam pattern for receiving the wireless signal, and the device is configured to update the correspondence information based on the response information so as to associate different transmit beam patterns with the receive beam patterns. Aspect 4: The device is adapted to operate in a first mode and, in response to the wireless signal, form the corresponding beam pattern while not forming other beam patterns in the first mode, and the device is configured to receive a request signal indicating a request to form the subset, and to switch to a second mode and form the subset in the second mode based on the request signal; and / or 4. The device of any one of aspects 1 to 3, wherein the device is configured to autonomously select and form the subset of transmit beam patterns. Aspect 5: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 4, wherein the device is configured to sequentially, selectively, overlap, and / or apply the transmit beam patterns of the subset on demand based on received command or trigger signals. Aspect 6: The device may further include: a transmit power towards or in the direction of the source of said radio signal above a threshold; and A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 5, configured to select as several transmit beam patterns comprising at least one of the positions covering an area / zone or region of the transmit beam pattern relative to the source of the wireless signal. Aspect 7: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 6, wherein the device is configured to select the subset based on operating parameters of the device or upon request based on a received command signal or trigger signal to exclude at least one transmit beam pattern from the plurality of transmit beam patterns from the subset. Aspect 8: The device described in aspect 7, wherein the operational parameters indicate a position / direction such that all transmit beam patterns pointing to the position / direction are excluded from the subset. Aspect 9: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 8, wherein the device is configured to select a subset to include a predetermined number of beam patterns (M) and such that the (M) beam patterns of the subset are correlated with each other by a local variance of the main directions of the beam patterns. Aspect 10: The device described in aspect 9, wherein the device is configured to select the subset such that the predetermined number M of beam patterns locally cover an area around the corresponding beam pattern. Aspect 11: The device of aspect 9 or 10, wherein the device is configured to select the subset such that the predetermined number M of beam patterns have maximum density around the corresponding beam pattern. Aspect 12: A device described in any one of aspects 9 to 8c, wherein the device is configured to select the subset so that the predetermined number of beam patterns (M) are diffused in a diffusion region that is at least a portion of a sphere that includes an area illuminated by the corresponding beam pattern. Aspect 13: The device of aspect 12, wherein the device is configured to select the subset such that the predetermined number is uniformly distributed with the diffusion area within the capacity of the device. Aspect 14: The device of aspect 12 or 13, wherein the device is configured to select the size of the diffusion region based on a static, predetermined value or based on a variable value received as part of a signal. Aspect 15: the device is configured to transmit a signal including a subset indication indicating that the subset includes the predetermined number; and / or 15. The device of any one of aspects 9 to 14, wherein the device is configured to select the subset to include the predetermined number, and to receive a signal including a subset request indicating that the device is requested to select the subset to include the predetermined number based on the subset request. Aspect 16: The device is configured to transmit a response signal based on the request, the response signal indicating that the device will act in accordance with the request; and / or A device described in any one of aspects 15, wherein the device is configured to determine that the requested operation exceeds the capabilities or the currently supported mode of operation of the device, and the response indicates that the device will not operate in accordance with the request. Aspect 17: The device comprises: Dedicated signal, dedicated flags, and 17. The device of aspect 16, configured to transmit the subset indication using at least one of a plurality of bits. Aspect 18: A device described in any one of aspects 9 to 17, wherein the device is configured to select the subset to include exactly the predetermined number M of beam patterns, the predetermined number being preferably 8. Aspect 19: A device described in any one of aspects 9 to 18, wherein the device is configured to signal information indicating that the number of selected beam patterns considered as candidates for the subset exceeds the predetermined number M. Aspect 20: The device described in Aspect 19, wherein the subset is a first subset, and the device is configured to receive a signal indicating a request to form at least a second subset in response to signaling of the information indicating that the number of selected beam patterns considered as candidates for the subset exceeds the predetermined number M, and to select and form at least the second subset including at least one different beam pattern when compared to the first set of beam patterns. Aspect 21: The device described in Aspect 20, wherein the device is configured to select the second subset so that the beam patterns of the first and second subsets at least partially cover different regions of a sphere surrounding the device. Aspect 22: The device of aspect 20 or 21, wherein the device is configured to select a subsequent subset of up to M beam patterns. Aspect 23: The device of aspect 22, wherein the beam pattern of each subset is different compared to the beam pattern of the previously selected subset. Aspect 24: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 23, wherein the device is configured to select the subset based on a preconfigured codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list that associates the corresponding beam pattern with at least one additional beam pattern. Aspect 25: The device described in aspect 24, wherein the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list associates the corresponding beam pattern with several beam patterns that add up to a predetermined number M of beam patterns together with the corresponding beam pattern. Aspect 26: The device of aspect 24 or 25, wherein the device is configured to select the subset using the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list based on a signal indicating a respective request. Aspect 27: The device is configured to transmit a response signal based on the request, the response signal indicating that the device will act in accordance with the request; and / or 27. The device of claim 26, wherein the device is configured to determine that the requested operation exceeds the capabilities or the currently supported mode of operation of the device, and the response indicates that the device will not operate in accordance with the request. Aspect 28: The device variably stores the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list and updates the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list in response to a respective signal; or 28. The device of any one of aspects 24-27, wherein the device is configured to statically store the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list. Aspect 29: The device may further include: At the start of a measurement or test procedure, During device manufacturer software updates, 30. The device of embodiment 28, wherein the device is configured to update with at least one of a network provider's software updates. Aspect 30: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 29, wherein the device is configured to form the subset while performing local beam sweeping. Aspect 31: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 30, wherein the device is configured to update the lookup table indicating the multiple transmit beam patterns based on user interaction information indicating use of the device by a user. Aspect 32: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 31, wherein the device is configured to update parameter settings associated with an algorithm that determines the multiple transmit beam patterns based on user interaction information indicating use of the device by a user. Aspect 33: The device of any one of aspects 1 to 32, wherein the device is configured to select the subset to provide at least a predetermined link coverage. Aspect 34: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 33, wherein the device is configured to select the corresponding beam pattern based on a metric that compares the wireless signal with a plurality of predetermined values. Aspect 35: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 34, wherein the device is configured to receive the wireless signal with the same antenna arrangement or a different antenna arrangement as used to form the subset, which is a set of transmit beam patterns. Embodiment 36: A device described in any one of embodiments 1 to 35, having multiple antenna arrangements or antenna panels used for transmission and / or reception. Aspect 37: The device of any one of aspects 1 to 36, wherein the device is configured to establish a link pointing to the location / direction of a source of the wireless signal. Aspect 38: The device of any one of aspects 1 to 37, wherein the device is configured to select the corresponding beam pattern based on equivalent or effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP). Aspect 39: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 38, wherein the subset is a strict subset of the plurality of transmit beam patterns. Aspect 40: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 39, wherein the subset includes the corresponding beam pattern and at least one additional beam pattern. Aspect 41: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 40, wherein the subset includes the corresponding beam pattern and at least one additional beam pattern, the additional beam pattern providing signal power toward a source of the stimulation signal above a threshold and / or within a tolerance range. Aspect 42: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 41, wherein the transmit beam pattern is a transmit beam pattern. Aspect 43: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 42, wherein the device is configured to individually label or identify each transmit beam pattern of the subset. Aspect 44: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 43, wherein the device is configured to receive response information indicating at least two transmit beam patterns from the subset of transmit beam patterns, and the device is configured to select one of the transmit beam patterns indicated in the response information as the transmit beam pattern for establishing a link. Aspect 45: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 44, wherein the device is configured to receive the wireless signal in response to an attempt by the device to establish a connection or by an event initiated by the wireless network. Aspect 46: A device described in any one of aspects 1 to 45, wherein the device is configured to provide the subset for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) and to include at least one pair of simultaneously formed transmit beam patterns, and to receive response information indicating at least one of the at least one pair. Aspect 47: Transmitting a stimulus signal to a transceiver device; receiving a plurality of transmit beam patterns from the transceiver device; selecting a corresponding beam pattern from the plurality of transmit beam patterns; and A device configured to transmit response information to the receiving device, the response information indicating the corresponding beam pattern. Aspect 48: The device described in aspect 47, wherein the device is configured to select the corresponding beam pattern based on received signal power from each of the transmit beam patterns of the plurality of transmit beam patterns. Aspect 49: The device comprises: receiving a first transmit beam pattern in response to the stimulus signal; transmitting the request signal to the transceiver device indicating a request to the transceiver device to form the plurality of transmit beam patterns; and 49. The device of aspect 47 or 48, configured to receive the plurality of transmit beam patterns in response to the request signal. Aspect 50: A device described in any one of aspects 47 to 49, wherein the device is a base station, or equipment emulating a base station, or measurement equipment, or a device equipped to operate in the network, or user equipment. Aspect 51: A device described in any one of aspects 47 to 50, wherein the device is configured to evaluate at least one transmit beam pattern from the plurality of transmit beam patterns and transmit information to the transceiver device representing a performance indicator or ranked order by a metric / criterion, the information indicating the corresponding beam pattern to be selected or input to the transceiver device to select / select the corresponding beam pattern and / or the subset of transmit beams. Aspect 52: A device described in any one of aspects 47 to 51, wherein the device is configured to transmit the response information to indicate at least two transmit beam patterns. Aspect 53: A device described in any one of aspects 47 to 52, wherein the device is configured to autonomously transmit the stimulation signal. Aspect 54: The device described in any one of aspects 47 to 53, wherein the device is configured for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) and to receive the subset to include at least one pair of transmit beam patterns, and to transmit response information indicating at least one of the at least one pair. Embodiment 55: At least one device according to any one of embodiments 1 to 46; and and at least one device according to any one of aspects 47 to 54. Aspect 56: The system described in aspect 55, wherein the system is a measurement environment or a wireless communication network or a wireless communication system. Aspect 57: A method for operating a device having an antenna arrangement, the device configured to beamform a plurality of transmit beam patterns using the antenna arrangement, the method comprising: receiving a wireless signal and determining a corresponding beam pattern corresponding to the wireless signal; selecting a subset from the plurality of transmit beam patterns, and forming the selected subset, such that the subset includes a corresponding transmit beam pattern; receiving response information indicative of at least one transmit beam pattern of the selected subset; and using the indicated transmit beam pattern. Aspect 58: The method of aspect 57, comprising using multiple antenna arrangements or antenna panels for transmission and / or reception. Aspect 59: A method for operating a device, the method comprising: transmitting a stimulus signal to a transceiver device; receiving a plurality of transmit beam patterns from the transceiver device; selecting at least one corresponding transmit beam pattern from the plurality of transmit beam patterns; transmitting response information to the transceiver device, the response information indicating at least one transmit beam pattern. Aspect 60: A method for testing or updating a device having an antenna arrangement, the method comprising: transmitting a stimulus signal to the device along a receive direction to stimulate the device to establish a link with a source of the stimulus signal; receiving a plurality of transmit beam patterns from the device; selecting at least one of the plurality of transmit beam patterns, the plurality including a corresponding transmit beam pattern selected by the device as a transmit beam pattern corresponding to the stimulus signal; transmitting information to the device indicative of the selected at least one transmit beam pattern; and updating information in a memory of the device based on the information indicative of the at least one selected transmit beam pattern. Aspect 61: The method described in aspect 60, wherein the step of transmitting the information indicating the selected at least one transmit beam pattern includes a step of referencing a beam ID or SRS associated with the transmit beam pattern. Aspect 62: A method described in aspect 60 or 61, wherein the step of selecting at least one of the multiple transmit beam patterns is performed at the source of the stimulation signal, at the receiving side of the stimulation signal, and / or in a distributed / iterative manner. Aspect 63: A method for testing or updating a device having an antenna arrangement, the method comprising: transmitting a stimulus signal to the device along a receive direction to stimulate the device to establish a link with a source of the stimulus signal; receiving a transmit beam pattern from the device; reporting a quality measure of the transmit beam pattern to the device; selecting an area to be covered during the test and selecting a subset of beam patterns formable by the device to illuminate the area; forming said subset of beam patterns; and measuring the subset of beam patterns to evaluate the device. Aspect 64: The method described in aspect 63, wherein the selection of the region is determined from measurements of the stimulation signal.

Claims

1. In wireless communication networks 1. A device for communicating, the device having an antenna arrangement, the device configured to beamform a plurality of transmit beam patterns using the antenna arrangement, the device comprising: receiving a wireless signal and determining a corresponding beam pattern corresponding to the wireless signal; selecting a subset from the plurality of transmit beam patterns, the subset including the corresponding beam pattern, to form the selected subset; A device configured to receive response information indicating at least one transmit beam pattern of the selected subset, the device configured to use the indicated transmit beam pattern.

2. 2. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to use the indicated transmit beam pattern as a corresponding beam pattern and / or to adapt information indicative of corresponding information indicative of an associated transmit beam pattern.

3. 3. The device of claim 1, further comprising: a memory storing correspondence information associating each of the plurality of transmit beam patterns with an associated receive beam pattern for receiving the wireless signal; and the device is configured to update the correspondence information based on the response information to associate different transmit beam patterns with the receive beam patterns.

4. the device is adapted to operate in a first mode and to form the corresponding beam pattern in the first mode in response to the wireless signal while not forming other beam patterns, the device being configured to receive a request signal indicating a request to form the subset, and to switch to a second mode based on the request signal and to form the subset in the second mode; and / or The device of claim 1 , wherein the device is configured to autonomously select and form the subset of transmit beam patterns.

5. 5. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to apply the transmit beam patterns of the subset sequentially, selectively, overlappingly, and / or on demand based on received command or trigger signals.

6. The device may further include: a transmit power towards or in the direction of the source of said radio signal above a threshold; and 6. The device of claim 1 , configured to select from several transmit beam patterns comprising at least one of the positions covering an area / zone or region of the transmit beam pattern relative to the source of the radio signal.

7. 7. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to select the subset based on an operating parameter of the device or on request based on a received command or trigger signal to exclude at least one transmit beam pattern from the plurality of transmit beam patterns from the subset.

8. The device of claim 7 , wherein the operational parameters indicate a position / orientation such that all transmit beam patterns pointing to the position / orientation are excluded from the subset.

9. 9. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to select a subset such that it comprises a predetermined number of beam patterns (M) and such that the (M) beam patterns of the subset are correlated with each other by a local variance of the main directions of the beam patterns.

10. The device of claim 9 , wherein the device is configured to select the subset such that the predetermined number M of beam patterns locally cover an area around the corresponding beam pattern.

11. The device of claim 9 or 10, wherein the device is configured to select the subset such that the predetermined number M of beam patterns have a maximum density around the corresponding beam pattern.

12. 9. The device according to claim 8, wherein the device is configured to select the subset such that the predetermined number of beam patterns (M) are spread over a spreading region that is at least a portion of a sphere that includes an area illuminated by the corresponding beam pattern.

13. The device of claim 12 , wherein the device is configured to select the subset such that the predetermined number is uniformly distributed with the diffusion areas within the capacity of the device.

14. 14. A device according to claim 12 or 13, wherein the device is configured to select the size of the diffusion region based on a static predetermined value or based on a variable value received as part of a signal.

15. the device is configured to transmit a signal including a subset indication indicating that the subset includes the predetermined number; and / or 15. The device of claim 9, wherein the device is configured to select the subset to include the predetermined number, and to receive a signal including a subset request indicating that the device is requested to select the subset to include the predetermined number based on the subset request.

16. the device is configured to transmit a response signal based on the request, the response signal indicating that the device will act in accordance with the request; and / or 16. The device of claim 15, wherein the device is configured to determine that the requested operation exceeds the capabilities or the currently supported modes of operation of the device, and the response indicates that the device will not operate in accordance with the request.

17. The device comprises: Dedicated signal, dedicated flags, and 17. The device of claim 16, configured to transmit the subset indication using at least one of a plurality of bits.

18. 18. A device according to any one of claims 9 to 17, wherein the device is configured to select the subset to include exactly the predetermined number M of beam patterns, the predetermined number being preferably eight.

19. 19. The device of claim 9, wherein the device is configured to signal information indicating that the number of selected beam patterns considered as candidates for the subset exceeds the predetermined number M.

20. 20. The device of claim 19, wherein the subset is a first subset, and the device is configured to receive a signal indicating a request to form at least a second subset in response to signaling of the information indicating that a number of selected beam patterns considered as candidates for the subset exceeds the predetermined number M, and to select and form at least the second subset including at least one different beam pattern when compared to the first set of beam patterns.

21. 21. The device of claim 20, wherein the device is configured to select the second subset such that the beam patterns of the first and second subsets at least partially cover different regions of a sphere around the device.

22. 22. The device of claim 20 or 21, wherein the device is configured to select a subsequent subset of up to M beam patterns.

23. 23. The device of claim 22, wherein the beam pattern of each subset is different compared to the beam pattern of the previously selected subset.

24. 24. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to select the subset based on a pre-configured codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list that associates the corresponding beam pattern with at least one additional beam pattern.

25. 25. The device of claim 24, wherein the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / registry / list associates the corresponding beam pattern with a number of beam patterns that sum with the corresponding beam pattern up to a predetermined number M of beam patterns.

26. 26. A device according to claim 24 or 25, wherein the device is configured to select the subset using the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list based on a signal indicating a respective request.

27. the device is configured to transmit a response signal based on the request, the response signal indicating that the device will act in accordance with the request; and / or 27. The device of claim 26, wherein the device is configured to determine that the requested operation exceeds the capabilities or the currently supported modes of operation of the device, and the response indicates that the device will not operate in accordance with the request.

28. the device variably stores the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list and updates the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list in response to a respective signal; or 28. A device according to any one of claims 24 to 27, configured to statically store the codebook / state / alphabet / LUT / register / list.

29. The device may: At the start of a measurement or test procedure, During device manufacturer software updates, 30. The device of claim 28, configured to update with at least one of a network provider's software updates.

30. 30. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to form the subsets while performing local beam sweeping.

31. 31. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to update the lookup table indicating the plurality of transmit beam patterns based on user interaction information indicating use of the device by a user.

32. 32. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to update parameter settings associated with an algorithm that determines the plurality of transmit beam patterns based on user interaction information indicative of a user's use of the device.

33. 33. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to select the subset to provide at least a predetermined link coverage.

34. 34. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to select the corresponding beam pattern based on a metric that compares the wireless signal to a plurality of predetermined values.

35. 35. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to receive the wireless signals with the same antenna arrangement or a different antenna arrangement than that used to form the subset of transmit beam patterns.

36. 36. A device according to any one of the preceding claims, having multiple antenna arrangements or antenna panels used for transmission and / or reception.

37. 37. A device according to any one of claims 1 to 36, wherein the device is configured to establish a link pointing to the location / direction of a source of the radio signal.

38. 38. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to select the corresponding beam pattern based on equivalent or effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP).

39. 39. The device of claim 1, wherein the subset is a strict subset of the plurality of transmit beam patterns.

40. 40. The device of claim 1, wherein the subset includes the corresponding beam pattern and at least one additional beam pattern.

41. 41. The device of claim 1, wherein the subset includes the corresponding beam pattern and at least one additional beam pattern, the additional beam pattern providing signal power toward a source of the stimulation signal above a threshold and / or within a tolerance range.

42. 42. The device of claim 1, wherein the transmit beam pattern is a transmit beam pattern.

43. 43. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to individually label or identify each transmit beam pattern of the subset.

44. 44. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to receive response information indicating at least two transmit beam patterns from the subset of transmit beam patterns, and wherein the device is configured to select one of the transmit beam patterns indicated in the response information as the transmit beam pattern for establishing a link.

45. 45. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to receive the wireless signal in response to an attempt by the device to establish a connection or by an event initiated by the wireless network.

46. 46. ​​The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to provide the subset for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) and to include at least one pair of simultaneously formed transmit beam patterns, and to receive response information indicative of at least one of the at least one pair.

47. transmitting a stimulus signal to the transmitting and receiving device; receiving a plurality of transmit beam patterns from the transceiver device; selecting a corresponding beam pattern from the plurality of transmit beam patterns; and A device configured to transmit response information to the receiving device, the response information indicating the corresponding beam pattern.

48. 48. The device of claim 47, wherein the device is configured to select the corresponding beam pattern based on received signal power from each of the transmit beam patterns of the plurality of transmit beam patterns.

49. The device comprises: receiving a first transmit beam pattern in response to the stimulus signal; transmitting the request signal to the transceiver device indicating a request to the transceiver device to form the plurality of transmit beam patterns; and 49. The device of claim 47 or 48, configured to receive the plurality of transmit beam patterns in response to the request signal.

50. 50. A device according to any one of claims 47 to 49, wherein the device is a base station, or equipment emulating a base station, or measurement equipment, or a device equipped to operate in the network, or user equipment.

51. 51. The device of claim 47, wherein the device is configured to evaluate at least one transmit beam pattern from the plurality of transmit beam patterns and to transmit information to the transceiver device representing a performance indicator or a ranked order by a metric / criterion, the information indicating the corresponding beam pattern to be selected or input for selecting / choosing the corresponding beam pattern and / or the subset of transmit beams at the transceiver device.

52. 52. The device of any one of claims 47 to 51, wherein the device is configured to transmit the response information to indicate at least two transmit beam patterns.

53. 53. The device of any one of claims 47 to 52, wherein the device is configured to transmit the stimulation signal autonomously.

54. 54. The device of any one of claims 47 to 53, wherein the device is configured for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) and to receive the subset to include at least one pair of transmit beam patterns, and to transmit response information indicative of at least one of the at least one pair.

55. At least one device according to any one of claims 1 to 46; and at least one device according to any one of claims 47 to 54.

56. 56. The system of claim 55, wherein the system is a measurement environment or a wireless communication network or a wireless communication system.

57. 1. A method for operating a device having an antenna arrangement, the device being configured to beamform a plurality of transmit beam patterns using the antenna arrangement, the method comprising: receiving a wireless signal and determining a corresponding beam pattern corresponding to the wireless signal; selecting a subset from the plurality of transmit beam patterns, and forming the selected subset, such that the subset includes a corresponding transmit beam pattern; receiving response information indicative of at least one transmit beam pattern of the selected subset; and using the indicated transmit beam pattern.

58. 58. A method according to claim 57, comprising using multiple antenna arrangements or antenna panels for transmission and / or reception.

59. 1. A method for operating a device, the method comprising: transmitting a stimulus signal to a transceiver device; receiving a plurality of transmit beam patterns from the transceiver device; selecting at least one corresponding transmit beam pattern from the plurality of transmit beam patterns; transmitting response information to the transceiver device, the response information indicating at least one transmit beam pattern.

60. 1. A method for testing or updating a device having an antenna arrangement, the method comprising: transmitting a stimulus signal to the device along a receive direction to stimulate the device to establish a link with a source of the stimulus signal; receiving a plurality of transmit beam patterns from the device; selecting at least one of the plurality of transmit beam patterns, the plurality including a corresponding transmit beam pattern selected by the device as a transmit beam pattern corresponding to the stimulus signal; transmitting information indicating the selected at least one transmit beam pattern to the device; and updating information in a memory of the device based on the information indicative of the at least one selected transmit beam pattern.

61. 61. The method of claim 60, wherein the step of transmitting the information indicative of the selected at least one transmit beam pattern includes referencing a beam ID or SRS associated with the transmit beam pattern.

62. 62. The method of claim 60 or 61, wherein the step of selecting at least one of the plurality of transmit beam patterns is performed at a source of the stimulus signal, at a receiver of the stimulus signal, and / or in a distributed / iterative manner.

63. 1. A method for testing or updating a device having an antenna arrangement, the method comprising: transmitting a stimulus signal to the device along a receive direction to stimulate the device to establish a link with a source of the stimulus signal; receiving a transmit beam pattern from the device; reporting a quality measure of the transmit beam pattern to the device; selecting an area to be covered during the test and selecting a subset of beam patterns formable by the device to illuminate the area; forming said subset of beam patterns; and measuring the subset of beam patterns to evaluate the device.

64. 64. The method of claim 63, wherein the selection of the region is determined from measurements of the stimulation signal.

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