Wireless communication device

Abstract

To provide a wireless communication device capable of suppressing a difference in radio wave quality between users as compared with the conventional case by effectively utilizing a beam pattern table on the transmitting side.SOLUTION: A wireless communication device includes a lookup table that stores a beam pattern table, and at least one beamforming antenna that transmits or receives radio signals in a beam pattern identified by a set of antenna weight vectors selected from the beam pattern table, and the number of antenna weight vectors for obtaining a beam pattern having a narrow half-value width for transmission included in the beam pattern table is larger than the number of antenna weight vectors for obtaining a narrow beam pattern for reception.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a wireless communication device. [Background technology]

[0002] In order to increase the capacity of wireless communication, the development of wireless communication devices using millimeter waves is progressing by using wider and higher frequencies. For example, the 60 GHz band is being considered for use in small cells linked to mobile communication networks, wireless access networks of wireless Internet service providers, and as wireless backhaul links for wireless base stations, wireless relay stations, and public wireless LAN communication access points.

[0003] In the millimeter wave band, where propagation loss is large, beam antennas with high gain and sharp directionality are generally used. The IEEE802.llad standard takes into consideration that communication partners may move and that multiple communication partners may communicate Point-to-multipoint (P2MP), and uses beamforming antennas whose beam direction can be varied by electrical control from a control unit. The IEEE802.llad standard also searches for the optimal beam direction between the local station and the remote station when communication begins and successively during communication.

[0004] In a wireless communication device conforming to the IEEE802.llad standard, a search for a suitable beam direction is performed by a beamforming process called Sector-level sweep (SLS) and Beam Refinement Protocol (BRP) phase, as described in Patent Document 1, for example. In the technology described in Patent Document 1, first, at least one set of AWVs that realizes a quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern is usually used, and second, one standard beam table in which the angular intervals of the beams are uniform is used. In the technology described in Patent Document 1, when scanning by sequentially switching between multiple beam patterns over a certain angle range using a standard beam table including a series of beam patterns, the radiation directions of each beam pattern to be designed are designed to have equal angular intervals. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] U.S. Patent No. 9,960,877 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, conventional wireless communication devices store quasi-omnidirectional beam patterns on both the transmitting side and the receiving side. The quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern is essential on the receiving side, but not essential on the transmitting side.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and provides a wireless communication device that can reduce the difference in radio wave quality between users more than ever before by effectively utilizing the transmitting side beam pattern table. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] A wireless communication device according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a lookup table storing a beam pattern table, and at least one beamforming antenna for transmitting or receiving a wireless signal with a beam pattern specified by a set of antenna weight vectors selected from the beam pattern table, wherein the number of antenna weight vectors for obtaining a beam pattern with a narrow half-width for transmission included in the beam pattern table is greater than the number of antenna weight vectors for obtaining a beam pattern with a narrow half-width for reception.

[0009] According to one aspect of the present invention, the number of beam tables for the transmitting antenna is made larger than the number of beam tables for the receiving antenna. As a result, according to one aspect of the present invention, the angular interval between adjacent beams can be narrowed by using more beam patterns than in the past. As a result, according to one aspect of the present invention, the deterioration of gain in the valley between beams can be suppressed. As a result, according to one aspect of the present invention, when a communication partner exists in the direction of the valley between beams, the communication quality of the communication partner can be improved compared to the past.

[0010] In a wireless communication device according to one embodiment of the present invention, the beam pattern table may include a first beam pattern table and a second beam pattern table, the first beam pattern table may include antenna weight vectors for obtaining N (N is an integer greater than or equal to 2) beam patterns with narrow half-widths for the transmission, and the second beam pattern table may include an antenna weight vector for obtaining one quasi-omni beam pattern or a wide beam pattern, and an antenna weight vector for obtaining N-1 beam patterns with narrow half-widths for the reception.

[0011] In a wireless communication device according to one aspect of the present invention, in the beam pattern table, the angular interval between adjacent beams may be smaller for the beam pattern with a narrow half-width for transmitting than for the beam pattern with a narrow half-width for receiving. Effect of the Invention

[0012] According to one aspect of the present invention, by effectively utilizing the beam pattern table on the transmitting side, the difference in radio wave quality between users can be reduced more than ever before. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication system using a wireless communication device according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a wireless communication device according to an embodiment. [Diagram 3] 1 is a diagram showing, in polar coordinates, array factors of a transmit beam table stored in an LUT in the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 4] 1 is a diagram showing, in polar coordinates, the array factor of a receive beam table stored in an LUT in the first embodiment. FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing, in tabular form, the configuration of a beam pattern table in the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing, in polar coordinates, array factors of a transmit beam table stored in an LUT in the second embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing, in polar coordinates, the array factor of a receive beam table stored in an LUT in the second embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing, in tabular form, the configuration of a beam pattern table in the second embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the array factor of a transmit beam table in a comparative example in polar coordinates. [Figure 10] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the array factor of a receive beam table in a comparative example in polar coordinates. [Figure 11] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing, in tabular form, the configuration of a beam pattern table in the comparative example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0015] (Example of wireless communication system configuration) Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a wireless communication system using a wireless communication device according to an embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, the wireless communication system 1 includes a first wireless communication device 2 (hereinafter, simply referred to as the wireless communication device 2) and a second wireless communication device 3.

[0016] The first wireless communication device 2 is connected to a higher-level network such as a provider network via an optical fiber line or other communication line, and is thereby connected to a network such as the Internet. The first wireless communication device 2 is a wireless communication device installed by a service provider such as a WISP or a wireless communication carrier. The first wireless communication device 2 includes, for example, a receiving beamforming antenna 21-1 and a transmitting beamforming antenna 21-2. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the beamforming antenna 21-1 has 15 beams, and the beamforming antenna 21-2 has 16 beams. The first wireless communication device 2 also includes a LUT 2221 that is a Look Up Table. The LUT 2221 will be described later.

[0017] The second wireless communication device 3 is installed in a user's home who uses a service provided by a service provider such as a WISP or a wireless communication carrier. The second wireless communication device 3 includes, for example, a receiving beamforming antenna 31-1 and a transmitting beamforming antenna 31-2. In the example shown in Fig. 1, the beamforming antenna 31-1 has 15 beams and the beamforming antenna 31-2 has 16 beams.

[0018] 1, the first wireless communication device 2 and the second wireless communication device 3 are provided with two beam antennas, one for transmission and one for reception, but each of the first wireless communication device 2 and the second wireless communication device 3 may have at least one beamforming antenna. When there is one beamforming antenna, the first wireless communication device 2 or the second wireless communication device 3 switches between using one antenna for transmission and reception.

[0019] Furthermore, each of the first wireless communication device 2 and the second wireless communication device 3 includes a control unit that executes beamforming within the device. The first wireless communication device 2 and the second wireless communication device 3 recognize each other's presence during the process of performing beamforming, select an appropriate beam, and select an MCS (Modulation and Coding Scheme) according to the quality of the radio waves to perform wireless communication. In the following description, an example will be described in which the first wireless communication device 2 includes one beamforming antenna and includes a control unit that executes beamforming within the device.

[0020] In addition, the first wireless communication device 2 and the second wireless communication device 3 are not limited to a service provider and its service user, but may be both installed as internal networks by an organization such as a company or public institution.

[0021] (Explanation of terms used in the embodiment) Here, an overview of a wireless communication device that performs communication using a beamforming antenna and terms used in the embodiments will be described. The basic configuration of a beamforming antenna is that each aligned antenna element is powered with a phase shift, which allows radio waves with the same phase to be emitted in the desired direction, resulting in a beam with sharp directionality.

[0022] When designing a beam pattern for a beam that radiates radio waves in a desired direction, the arrangement of each antenna element in the antenna array, the distance between the antenna elements, the wavelength of the radiated radio waves, etc. are taken into consideration to calculate phase conditions so that the radio waves radiated from each antenna element interfere and reinforce each other in the desired direction, and the phase and power to be supplied to each antenna element are determined.

[0023] A wireless communication device equipped with a beamforming antenna has a beam table composed of multiple Antenna Weight Vectors (AWVs). Here, AWV refers to a vector that represents the gain of an amplitude adjuster and the phase shift amount of a variable phase shifter corresponding to each antenna element. When a beamforming antenna is composed of n antenna elements, a set of n AWVs represents one beam pattern.

[0024] The radiation pattern of the entire array antenna calculated based only on the AWV is called the array factor. If the antenna elements are omnidirectional, the array factor is the radiation pattern of the entire array antenna. If the antenna elements have directionality, the product of the array factor and the radiation pattern of the antenna elements is the radiation pattern of the entire array antenna.

[0025] (Example of the configuration of a wireless communication device) 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a wireless communication device according to an embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the wireless communication device 2 includes an antenna 21 and a control unit 22. The control unit 22 includes a BBIC 221, an RFIC 222, a control system 223, an NI (Network Interface) 224, and a PS (Power Supply) 225. The RFIC 222 includes a LUT 2221 and a Beamformer 2222.

[0026] The antenna 21 is a digital phased array type beamforming antenna in which a plurality of elements are arranged and can be electrically controlled by a set value of an AWV (Antenna Weight Vector).

[0027] The BBIC 221 is, for example, a Baseband Integrated Circuit. The BBIC 221 is a circuit section that processes a Baseband signal, and also mediates control of the RFIC 222 from the control system 223 in some cases.

[0028] The RFIC222 is, for example, a Radio Frequency Integrated Circuit, which processes high-frequency signals, transmits and receives millimeter-wave signals, and performs beamforming. The RFIC222 sets the AWV by setting a value in the LUT2221.

[0029] The LUT2221 stores a set of AWVs as a beam table. Each set of AWVs corresponds to one beam pattern and is composed of AWVs corresponding to the number of antenna elements. The LUT2221 also stores a transmit beam table (first beam pattern table) and a receive beam table (second beam pattern table). The receive beam table is further composed of an AWV for obtaining a quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern or a wide beam pattern, and N-1 AWVs for obtaining beam patterns with narrow beam half widths, which is one less than the number N (N is an integer equal to or greater than 2) of AWVs for obtaining beam patterns with narrow beam half widths stored in the transmit beam table.

[0030] The beamformer 2222 controls the power supply to the antenna elements based on the AWV setting value.

[0031] The control system 223 is connected to an upstream network such as the Internet connected to the wireless communication device 2 via the NI 224. The control system 223 mediates communication between a first network via the NI 224 and a second network connected by a communication line via the antenna 21 by controlling the BBIC 221 and the RFIC 222. The control system 223 controls the BBIC 221 and the RFIC 222 by referring to various databases according to a program, for example. The control system 223 may include a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a SoC (System-on-a-Chip), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), etc.

[0032] The NI 224 is a network interface, and is an interface for connecting the wireless communication device 2 to an upstream network. The PS 225 is a power supply unit, and supplies power supplied from an external source to each component of the wireless communication device 2 .

[0033] <First Example> In the first embodiment, an example will be described in which the LUT 2221 stores 16 beam patterns for transmission and 15 beam patterns for reception.

[0034] Fig. 3 is a diagram showing, in polar coordinates, the array factor of the transmit beam table stored in the LUT 2221 according to this embodiment. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing, in polar coordinates, the array factor of the receive beam table stored in the LUT 2221 according to this embodiment. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing, in tabular form, the configuration of the beam pattern table in this embodiment.

[0035] FIG. 3 shows 16 array factors corresponding to TX0 to TX15 in FIG. 5, excluding the quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern. Also, Fig. 4 shows 15 array factors corresponding to RX1 to RX15 in Fig. 5. RX0 is not shown in Fig. 4 because it has a quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern.

[0036] In the first embodiment, the target direction of each beam is determined with uniform beam spacing for the angle range to be covered, a beam pattern is designed, and a set of AWVs for realizing the beam pattern is designed. Note that the design is performed, for example, by the designer of the wireless communication device 2. The LUT 2221 stores the beam pattern designed in this way.

[0037] 5, unlike the conventional technology, the LUT2221 does not store a quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern as a transmit beam table, but stores 16 beam patterns with narrow half-widths (TX0 to TX15). Also, the LUT2221 stores a quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern of RX0 and 15 beam patterns with narrow half-widths (RX1 to RX15) as a receive beam table. Note that in the embodiment, the angle range of the transmit beam table is the same as the angle range of the receive beam table.

[0038] For the transmit beam table, a beam table that realizes 16 beam patterns was configured using a series of 16 AWV sets. The antenna array has 16 antenna elements lined up in a row, and the alignment directions are 0 degrees and 180 degrees in Figures 3 and 5. Note that 90 degrees is the direction perpendicular to the alignment direction of the antenna elements. For the receive beam table, a series of 15 AWV sets was used to configure the beam table, which realizes 15 beam patterns.

[0039] 3 to 5, an angular range of 120 degrees is covered, from 30 degrees to 150 degrees. The angular interval between beams is set to 8.6 degrees in the receive beam table and 8.0 degrees in the transmit beam table. The array factor is symmetrical with respect to the line from 0 degrees to 180 degrees. For this reason, the range from 180 degrees to 360 degrees is omitted in Figs. 3 and 4.

[0040] The conditions for designing the AWV and calculating the array factor were: the operating frequency was 60.48 GHz, 16 planar patch antennas were aligned in a row at 1 / 2 wavelength intervals, and the resolution of the phase shifter was 8 bits (256 gradations).

[0041] Thus, according to the first embodiment, in the valley direction between adjacent beams where the gain is weak, in the receive beam table, the gain is weakest in the 85.7 degree and 94.3 degree directions, with the array factor gain being 9.08 dB. Also, according to the first embodiment, in the transmit beam table, the gain is weakest in the 90 degree direction, with the 90 degree array factor gain being 9.54 dB, and degradation is suppressed compared to the receive beam table.

[0042] Although Figures 3 to 5 show an example in which an angle range of 120 degrees from the 30 degree direction to the 150 degree direction is covered, the angle range to be covered may be other angle ranges as long as it is an angle range appropriate for the application.

[0043] <Second Example> In the second embodiment, an example will be described in which 32 beam patterns for transmission and 31 beam patterns for reception are stored in the LUT 2221. Note that the design conditions are the same as those in the first embodiment.

[0044] Fig. 6 is a diagram showing, in polar coordinates, the array factor of the transmit beam table stored in the LUT 2221 according to this embodiment. Fig. 7 is a diagram showing, in polar coordinates, the array factor of the receive beam table stored in the LUT 2221 according to this embodiment. Fig. 8 is a diagram showing, in tabular form, the configuration of the beam pattern table in this embodiment.

[0045] FIG. 6 shows 32 array factors corresponding to TX0 to TX31 in FIG. 8, excluding the quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern. Also, Fig. 7 shows 31 array factors corresponding to RX1 to RX31 in Fig. 8. RX0 is not shown in Fig. 7 because it has a quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern.

[0046] In the second embodiment, the target direction of each beam is determined with uniform beam spacing for the angle range to be covered, a beam pattern is designed, and a set of AWVs for realizing the beam pattern is designed. The design is performed, for example, by the designer of the wireless communication device 2. The LUT 2221 stores the beam pattern designed in this way.

[0047] 8, unlike the conventional technology, the LUT2221 does not store a quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern as a transmission beam table, but stores 32 beam patterns with narrow half-widths (TX0 to TX31). Also, the LUT2221 stores a quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern of RX0 and 31 beam patterns with narrow half-widths (RX1 to RX31) as a reception beam table.

[0048] For the transmit beam table, a beam table that realizes 32 beam patterns was configured using a series of 32 AWV sets. The antenna array has 32 antenna elements lined up in a row, and the alignment directions are 0 degrees and 180 degrees in Figures 6 and 7. Also, 90 degrees is the direction perpendicular to the alignment direction of the antenna elements. For the receive beam table, a series of 31 AWV sets was used to configure the beam table, which realizes 31 beam patterns.

[0049] 6 to 8, an angular range of 120 degrees is covered, from 30 degrees to 150 degrees. The angular interval between beams is set to 4.0 degrees in the receive beam table and 3.9 degrees in the transmit beam table.

[0050] Thus, according to the second embodiment, in the valley direction between adjacent beams where the gain is weak, in the receive beam table, the gain is weakest in the 88.0 degree and 92.0 degree directions, with the array factor gain being 11.47 dB. Also, according to the second embodiment, in the transmit beam table, the gain is weakest in the 90 degree direction, with the array factor gain being 11.52 dB, and degradation is suppressed compared to the receive beam table.

[0051] <Comparative Example> Here, an example of an array factor of a beam table used in a wireless communication system using the conventional technology will be described. Fig. 9 is a diagram showing an array factor of a transmit beam table in a comparative example in polar coordinates. Fig. 10 is a diagram showing an array factor of a receive beam table in a comparative example in polar coordinates. Fig. 11 is a diagram showing the configuration of a beam pattern table in a comparative example in tabular form.

[0052] In the comparative example, the LUT stores one quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern in both the transmit beam table and the receive beam table, and stores 15 beams with narrow half-widths in the transmit beam table and 15 beams in the receive beam table. In the comparative example, the angular interval between beams is 8.6 degrees for both the transmit beam table and the receive beam table. For the direction of weak gain, which is the valley between adjacent beams where the gain is weak, the weakest directions are 85.7 degrees and 94.3 degrees for both the transmit beam table and the receive beam table, and the gain of the array factor is 9.08 dB.

[0053] In this way, in the conventional technology, when N beam patterns (N is an integer equal to or greater than 2) can be stored in the LUT, one quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern and N-1 beams with narrow half-widths are stored in the LUT. In the conventional technology, this was designed to cover a certain angle range. The quasi-omnidirectional beam pattern is required in the table of receive antennas, but not in the table of transmit antennas, during the search process for a preferred beam direction.

[0054] For this reason, in this embodiment, as in the first and second examples described above, in the beam pattern table for the transmitting antenna, quasi-omnidirectional beam patterns are not stored, and all beams with narrow half-widths are stored in the LUT. That is, in this embodiment, the number of beam tables with narrow half-widths for transmitting is greater than the number of beam tables with narrow half-widths for receiving. Also, in this embodiment, as in the first and second examples, the interval between the angles of the beams is smaller in the transmitting beam table than in the receiving beam table.

[0055] In the above-described first and second embodiments, examples have been described in which the beam table for the receiving antenna stores a quasi-omni beam pattern, but the beam table may store an AWV of a wide beam pattern. In the above-mentioned examples, the number of beam pattern tables of the receiving antenna is 16 or 32, but the present invention is not limited to this. The number of beam pattern tables may be less than 16 or more than 32.

[0056] As described above, according to this embodiment, the number of beam tables for the transmitting antenna is made larger than the number of beam tables for the receiving antenna. As a result, according to this embodiment, by using one more beam pattern than in the conventional technology, the angular interval between adjacent beams can be narrowed. As a result, according to this embodiment, the deterioration of gain in the valley between beams can be suppressed. As a result, according to this embodiment, when a communication partner exists in the direction of the valley between beams, the communication quality of the communication partner can be improved compared to the conventional technology.

[0057] The above describes the form for carrying out the present invention using an embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and various modifications and substitutions can be made within the scope that does not deviate from the gist of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0058] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1... wireless communication system 2... first wireless communication device (wireless communication device) 3... second wireless communication device 21... antenna 22... control unit 221... BBIC 222... RFIC 223... control system 224... NI 225... PS 2221... LUT 2222... beamformer

Claims

1. a lookup table for storing a beam pattern table; at least one beamforming antenna that transmits or receives a radio signal in a beam pattern specified by a set of antenna weight vectors selected from the beam pattern table; Equipped with the number of sets of antenna weight vectors for obtaining a beam pattern with a narrow half-width for transmission included in the beam pattern table is greater than the number of sets of antenna weight vectors for obtaining a beam pattern with a narrow half-width for reception; The beam pattern table includes: A first beam pattern table and a second beam pattern table are provided, the first beam pattern table includes antenna weight vectors for obtaining N beam patterns with narrow half-widths for transmission, where N is an integer equal to or greater than 2; The second beam pattern table includes an antenna weight vector for obtaining one quasi-omni beam pattern or a wide beam pattern, and an antenna weight vector for obtaining N-1 beam patterns with narrow half-widths for reception. Wireless communication device.

2. A lookup table for storing a beam pattern table; at least one beamforming antenna that transmits or receives a radio signal in a beam pattern specified by a set of antenna weight vectors selected from the beam pattern table; Equipped with the number of sets of antenna weight vectors for obtaining a beam pattern with a narrow half-width for transmission included in the beam pattern table is greater than the number of sets of antenna weight vectors for obtaining a beam pattern with a narrow half-width for reception; In the beam pattern table, the angular interval between adjacent beams is smaller for the beam pattern with a narrow half-width for transmission than for the beam pattern with a narrow half-width for reception. Wireless communication device.

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