Radio interference evaluation device, radio interference evaluation method, and radio interference evaluation program

Abstract

A radio wave interference evaluation device (100) according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises: an acquisition unit (121) for acquiring the total received electric power of a prescribed frequency band as measured at a point (56) within a communication area (55) of a wireless communication system (50) of interest, the received electric power of a reference signal of the wireless communication system of interest as measured at the point, and the use state of wireless resources of the wireless communication system of interest; and an evaluation unit (122) for evaluating radio wave interference to the wireless communication system (50) of interest from a source other than the wireless communication system of interest.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a radio interference evaluation device, a radio interference evaluation method, and a radio interference evaluation program. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, the use of wireless communication systems has increased, and there is a demand for wireless communication systems with good communication quality. The communication quality of a wireless communication system is degraded when radio interference occurs. Radio interference includes not only radio interference within a wireless communication system, but also radio interference from outside the wireless communication system. It is important to evaluate radio interference from outside the wireless communication system in order to maintain the communication quality of the wireless communication system.

[0003] Patent Document 1 describes a device that estimates the location of a source of radio interference in a wireless communication network based on the number of times that data is received repeatedly due to retransmission. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2015-073242 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in general, data retransmission may occur for reasons other than radio interference. One aspect of the present invention aims to evaluate radio interference from outside a target wireless system by using information on radio quality, without using the number of times data is retransmitted. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A radio wave interference evaluation device according to one aspect of the present invention comprises an acquisition means for acquiring a total received power in a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within a communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system, a received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and a usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system, and an evaluation means for evaluating radio wave interference from outside the target wireless communication system with respect to the target wireless communication system by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of wireless resources.

[0007] A radio wave interference evaluation method according to one aspect of the present invention includes a computer acquiring a total received power in a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within a communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system, a received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and a usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system, and the computer evaluating radio wave interference from outside the target wireless communication system with respect to the target wireless communication system by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of the wireless resources.

[0008] A radio interference evaluation program according to one aspect of the present invention is a radio interference evaluation program that causes a computer to function as a radio interference evaluation device, and the program causes the computer to function as: an acquisition means that acquires the total received power in a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within a communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system, the received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and the usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system; and an evaluation means that evaluates radio interference from outside the target wireless communication system with respect to the target wireless communication system by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of the wireless resources. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to one aspect of the present invention, it is possible to evaluate radio interference from outside a target wireless communication system using information on wireless quality, without using the number of times data is retransmitted. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overview of a radio interference evaluation device according to a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 1 is a flow diagram of a radio interference evaluation method according to an exemplary embodiment 1 of the present invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an overview of a radio interference evaluation device according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an application environment of a radio interference evaluation device according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] FIG. 11 is a flow diagram of a radio interference evaluation method according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] 10A to 10C are diagrams illustrating details of a radio interference evaluation method according to an exemplary embodiment 2 of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an overview of a modified example of a radio interference evaluation device according to the second exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an overview of another modified example of a radio interference evaluation device according to the second exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an application environment of a radio interference evaluation device according to an exemplary embodiment 5 of the present invention. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is a flow diagram of a radio interference evaluation method according to an exemplary embodiment 5 of the present invention. [Figure 11] 13 is a diagram for explaining details of radio interference caused by a radio interference evaluation device according to an exemplary embodiment 5 of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 12] 13 is a diagram for explaining details of radio interference caused by a radio interference evaluation device according to an exemplary embodiment 5 of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining details of a radio interference evaluation device according to an exemplary embodiment 6 of the present invention. [Figure 14] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a computer that executes instructions of a program, which is software that realizes each function of a radio wave interference evaluation device according to each exemplary embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Example Embodiment 1 A first exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. This exemplary embodiment is a basic form of the exemplary embodiments described later.

[0012] (Radio interference evaluation device) The configuration of a radio wave interference evaluation device 100 according to this exemplary embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an overview of the radio wave interference evaluation device 100. The radio wave interference evaluation device 100 is a device for evaluating radio wave interference from outside a target wireless communication system to a target wireless communication system.

[0013] The radio interference to be evaluated by the radio interference evaluation device 100 is not interference within the own radio communication system, but radio interference from outside (outside the target radio communication system) to the own radio communication system. Note that the source of radio interference is not limited to the radio communication system.

[0014] As shown in FIG. 1, the radio interference evaluation device 100 includes an acquisition unit 121 (acquisition means) and an evaluation unit 122 (evaluation means).

[0015] The acquisition unit 121 acquires the total received power of a specified frequency band measured at a point within the communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system, the received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and the usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system.

[0016] The total received power of the predetermined frequency band and the received power of the reference signal of the target wireless communication system are measured by a terminal at a point within the communication area of ​​the target wireless communication system. The terminal may notify the measured power to the core network of the target wireless communication system via a base station. The acquisition unit 121 can acquire this information from the terminal or the core network.

[0017] The usage status of the radio resources of the target wireless communication system is calculated in a core network of the target wireless communication system or in a base station constituting the target wireless communication system. The acquisition unit 121 can acquire the usage status of the radio resources of the target wireless communication system from the base station or the core network.

[0018] The usage status of the wireless resources is not necessarily limited to only the actual information from the base station, and a value assumed in advance may be used. For example, in order to make a conservative judgment, it is possible to assume that the usage rate of the wireless resources is 100% and to judge only the radio interference that has a large influence. The acquisition unit 121 may acquire such an assumed value.

[0019] The total received power (RSSI) of a specified frequency band measured at a point within the communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system includes the sum of the received power from the wireless communication system (target wireless communication system) with which a terminal located at a certain point within the communication area should communicate, and the sum of the received power of radio waves from outside the target wireless system (e.g., other wireless communication systems or radio wave sources other than the wireless communication system).

[0020] In short, RSSI is calculated by the following formula; RSSI ≒ Total received power from the target wireless communication system (X) + Total received power from outside the target wireless communication system (Y) It can be expressed as:

[0021] Here, the total received power (X) from the target wireless communication system can be estimated based on the following two factors: - Received power of the reference signal of the target wireless communication system - Radio resource usage status of the target wireless communication system.

[0022] Therefore, by comparing the total received power (RSSI) with the estimated total received power (X') from the target wireless communication system, which is estimated from the received power of the reference signal of the target wireless communication system and the wireless resource usage status of the target wireless communication system, the total received power (Y) from outside the target wireless communication system can be estimated.

[0023] That is, the evaluation unit 122 evaluates radio interference from outside the target wireless communication system with respect to the target wireless communication system by referring to the total received power (RSSI) acquired by the acquisition unit 121, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of the wireless resources.

[0024] Specifically, the evaluation unit 122 estimates the estimated total received power (X') from the target wireless communication system based on the received power of the reference signal of the target wireless communication system and the wireless resource usage status of the target wireless communication system.

[0025] Then, the evaluation unit 122 compares the total received power (RSSI) acquired by the acquisition unit 121 with the estimated total received power (X') from the target wireless communication system. By the comparison, it is possible to estimate the presence or absence of the total received power (Y) from outside the target wireless communication system shown in the above formula. As a result, for example, if Y is present, the evaluation unit 122 can evaluate that radio wave interference from outside the target wireless communication system with respect to the terminal at the point is "present."

[0026] In addition, for example, the evaluation unit 122 can also estimate the magnitude of the total received power (Y) from outside the target wireless communication system by comparing the RSSI with X', and can evaluate the strength of radio wave interference from outside the target wireless communication system to the terminal at the location.

[0027] As described above, according to the radio wave interference evaluation device 100, the evaluation unit 122 can evaluate radio wave interference from outside the target radio communication system at a point within the communication area of ​​the target radio communication system.

[0028] (Radio interference evaluation method) The radio wave interference evaluation method according to this exemplary embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an operation flow of the radio wave interference evaluation method according to this exemplary embodiment. The operation flow shown in Fig. 2 is performed by the above-mentioned radio wave interference evaluation device 100 (computer).

[0029] The radio wave interference evaluation method according to this exemplary embodiment includes: a radio wave interference evaluation device 100 acquiring a total received power in a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within a communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system, a received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and a usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system; and the radio wave interference evaluation device 100 evaluating radio wave interference from outside the target wireless communication system with respect to the target wireless communication system by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of wireless resources.

[0030] In detail, first, in step S1 (acquisition process), the acquisition unit 121 acquires the total received power (RSSI) of a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within the communication area of ​​the target wireless communication system, the received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and the usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system. The total received power (RSSI), the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of wireless resources can be specified based on information acquired from a terminal at a point within the communication area of ​​the target wireless communication system or a core network of the target wireless communication system.

[0031] In step S2 (evaluation process), the total received power (RSSI) of the predetermined frequency band measured at a point within the communication area of ​​the target wireless communication system acquired in step S1, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of the wireless resources are referenced. Then, in step S2, an estimated total received power (X') from the target wireless communication system is estimated based on the received power of the reference signal of the target wireless communication system and the usage status of the wireless resources of the target wireless communication system. Then, the estimated total received power (X') from the target wireless communication system is compared with the total received power (RSSI) of the predetermined frequency band.

[0032] In step S2, the presence or absence of total received power (Y) from outside the target wireless communication system can be estimated by the above-mentioned comparison, and the presence or absence of radio wave interference from outside the target wireless communication system for the terminal at the location can be evaluated.

[0033] In addition, in this step S2, by comparing RSSI with X', the magnitude of the total received power (Y) from outside the target wireless communication system can also be estimated, and the strength of radio interference from outside the target wireless communication system to the terminal at the location can also be evaluated.

[0034] As described above, according to the radio wave interference evaluation method of this exemplary embodiment, it is possible to evaluate radio wave interference from outside the target radio communication system at a point within the communication area of ​​the target radio communication system.

[0035] (Radio interference evaluation program) The functions of the radio interference evaluation device 100 described above can also be realized by a program. The radio interference evaluation program according to this exemplary embodiment is a radio interference evaluation program that causes a computer to function as a radio interference evaluation device, and the program causes the computer to function as an acquisition means for acquiring the total received power of a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within the communication area of ​​a target radio communication system, the reference signal of the target radio communication system measured at the point, and the received power of the usage status of radio resources of the target radio communication system, and an evaluation means for evaluating radio interference from outside the target radio communication system with respect to the target radio communication system by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of the radio resources. Therefore, according to the radio interference evaluation program according to this exemplary embodiment, an effect is obtained in which radio interference from outside the target radio communication system can be evaluated at a point within the communication area of ​​the target radio communication system.

[0036] Exemplary embodiment 2 A second exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that components having the same functions as those described in the first exemplary embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

[0037] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configurations of the radio interference evaluation device 100 of this exemplary embodiment, a wireless communication system 50 that is the subject of evaluation by the radio interference evaluation device 100, and a terminal 10 located within the communication area of ​​the wireless communication system 50.

[0038] (Terminal 10) The terminal 10 is a wireless communication terminal including a communication unit 11 and a measurement unit 12 .

[0039] When the terminal 10 is within the communication area of ​​the wireless communication system 50, the communication unit 11 is connected to a base station that constitutes the wireless communication system 50, and can perform wireless communication with the base station.

[0040] The measurement unit 12 measures the total received power of the predetermined frequency band used for communication and the received power of the reference signal from the target wireless communication system received from the base station. The measured total received power of the predetermined frequency band and the received power of the reference signal are notified to the base station via the communication unit 11.

[0041] In one embodiment, the total received power may be a received signal strength indicator (RSSI), and the reference signal received power may be a reference signal received power (RSRP).

[0042] (Wireless communication system 50) A wireless communication system 50 includes a plurality of base stations 51 and 52, which communicate with a terminal 10 by wireless communication.

[0043] Each of the base stations 51, 52 can communicate with the communication unit 110 of the radio interference evaluation device 100. Each of the base stations 51, 52 provides the radio interference evaluation device 100 with the reception power of the reference signal notified from the communication unit 11 of the terminal 10. In addition, each of the base stations 51, 52 provides the radio interference evaluation device 100 with the usage status of the radio resources of the own base station.

[0044] The value indicating the usage status of the radio resources may be a resource block usage rate, the number of used resource blocks, etc. Furthermore, the value indicating the usage status of the radio resources may be a value at a certain timing, or an average value for a predetermined period of time.

[0045] (Radio interference evaluation device 100) The radio interference evaluation device 100 includes a communication unit 110 and a main control unit 120 .

[0046] The communication unit 110 is capable of communicating with each of the base stations 51, 52 of the wireless communication system 50, and acquires information from each of the base stations 51, 52. Note that the communication unit 110 may be capable of communicating with each of the base stations 51, 52 of the wireless communication system 50 via a core network of the wireless communication system 50, or may be capable of communicating directly with each of the base stations 51, 52 of the wireless communication system 50.

[0047] The main control unit 120 includes an acquisition unit 121 (acquisition means) and an evaluation unit 122 (evaluation means).

[0048] The acquisition unit 121 acquires, for each of the base stations 51, 52 constituting the wireless communication system 50 (target wireless communication system), the received power of a reference signal from the base station measured at a point within the communication area of ​​the wireless communication system 50, and the usage status of wireless resources of the base station. The acquisition unit 121 acquires these pieces of information via the communication unit 110. As described above, the acquisition unit 121 may acquire a value assumed in advance as the usage status of wireless resources.

[0049] 4 is a diagram showing a state in which terminal 10 is located at point 56 within communication area 55 of wireless communication system 50. Terminal 10 located at point 56 is capable of communicating with base station 51 and base station 52 that constitute wireless communication system 50.

[0050] Furthermore, the terminal 10 located at the point 56 receives radio waves from a base station 60 of a wireless communication system different from the wireless communication system 50, causing radio wave interference. In short, the base station 60 is a source of radio wave interference from outside the wireless communication system 50 to the wireless communication system 50.

[0051] The terminal 10 located at the point 56 experiences radio wave interference from the base station 60, which impairs wireless communication within the communication area 55 (such as a drop in communication speed and communication delay). The evaluation unit 122 evaluates whether or not the terminal 10 is receiving radio wave interference from the base station 60 of a wireless communication system outside the wireless communication system 50, as illustrated in FIG.

[0052] The evaluation unit 122 calculates an estimated total received power from the target wireless communication system at the location and the specified frequency band by referring to the received power of the reference signal and the usage status of the wireless resources, and evaluates the radio interference by comparing the estimated total received power with the total received power acquired by the acquisition means.

[0053] Here, the "estimated total received power from the target wireless communication system at the location and the specified frequency band" refers to the total received power (X) from the target wireless communication system measured by terminal 10 at location 56 within communication area 55 of the target wireless communication system.

[0054] When the target wireless communication system has multiple cells, the total received power (X) from the target wireless communication system is the sum of the received power from each cell in a predetermined frequency band. In the following, for the sake of simplicity, it is assumed that the target wireless communication system has two cells, cell A (cell of base station 51) and cell B (cell of base station 52).

[0055] Under this assumption, the total received power (X) from the target wireless communication system is calculated by the following formula: X = Received power from cell A in a given frequency band + Received power from cell B in a given frequency band It can be expressed as:

[0056] The estimated received power from cell A in a given frequency band is obtained by multiplying the following two factors; · Cell A reference signal reception power Cell A resource block usage rate or number of used resource blocks

[0057] Here, the above-mentioned two elements will be explained based on Fig. 6. Radio communication is performed using at least some of a plurality of resource blocks (radio resources) as shown on the left side of Fig. 6. Each resource block is composed of a plurality of resource elements as shown on the right side of Fig. 6. The resource elements include resource elements including reference signals and resource elements including data and control signals.

[0058] "Receiving power of reference signal of cell A" refers to the receiving power of the reference signal shown in FIG. 6, measured by terminal 10 (FIG. 3) that wirelessly communicates with cell A. "Receiving power of reference signal" cannot take into account the traffic load including user data, etc. Therefore, in order to take the traffic load into account, the resource block usage rate or the number of resources used in the cell is used.

[0059] In this exemplary embodiment, the estimated received power from cell A in the predetermined frequency band is calculated based on the resource block, but the present invention is not limited to this. Even if the radio resource is not configured by the resource block, the received power from cell A in the predetermined frequency band can be calculated based on the "received power of the reference signal" and the usage status of the radio resource, which is an index of the traffic load including user data, etc.

[0060] The received power from cell B in the specified frequency band is also obtained by multiplying the received power of the reference signal of cell B by the resource block usage rate or the number of used resource blocks of cell B. Then, the estimated received power from cell A in the specified frequency band and the estimated received power from cell B in the specified frequency band are summed up to calculate the estimated total received power in the specified frequency band.

[0061] In addition, when the terminal 10 is connected to another base station in addition to the base stations 51 and 52, the estimated received power from the cell of the other base station in a specified frequency band, which is obtained by multiplying the received power of the reference signal of the cell of the other base station by the resource block usage rate or the number of used resource blocks of the cell, may be further added up.

[0062] Next, an example of the calculation of the estimated total received power will be described. In the following, an example will be described in which the target wireless communication system is a system of LTE (Long Term Evolution), which is a communication standard dedicated to mobile terminals. In the case of a communication system using LTE, it can be assumed that the transmission power is constant for all subcarriers. Therefore, the estimated total received power (X') from the target wireless communication system can be estimated by the following formula.

[0063] X'= RSRP(A) × RB(A) × K + RSRP(B) × RB(B) × K In the formula, RSRP(A) and RSRP(B) respectively indicate the received power of the reference signals of cells A and B. RB(A) and RB(B) respectively indicate the resource block usage rates of cells A and B. K is a value obtained by multiplying the number of resource elements in a resource block in the frequency direction by the number of resource blocks in the frequency direction within a predetermined frequency band.

[0064] According to the above formula, the received power of the reference signal in one resource element is multiplied by the number of resource elements in the frequency direction in the resource block, then multiplied by the number of resource blocks in the frequency direction in the specified frequency band, and then multiplied by the resource block usage rate, thereby making it possible to calculate the estimated total received power in the specified frequency band.

[0065] In addition, even if the target wireless communication system is a communication standard dedicated to mobile terminals other than LTE, such as a 5G / NR (New Radio) system, or other wireless communication systems that use reference signals, the estimated received power in a specified frequency band can be calculated by taking into account the received power of the reference signal and the wireless resource usage status, as in the case of LTE.

[0066] In this manner, the evaluation unit 122 calculates the estimated total received power (X') from the target wireless communication system.

[0067] As described in the first exemplary embodiment, the evaluation unit 122 compares the RSSI acquired by the acquisition unit 121, that is, the total received power of the predetermined frequency band measured at the point 56 in the communication area 55 of the target wireless communication system, with the calculated X'. As described above, the RSSI is calculated using the following formula: RSSI ≒ Total received power from the target wireless communication system (X) + Total received power from outside the target wireless communication system (Y) From this, the evaluation unit 122 compares the RSSI with the calculated X' to evaluate the presence or absence of the total received power (Y) from outside the target wireless communication system.

[0068] For more accurate evaluation, the evaluation unit 122 may evaluate radio interference by comparing the total received power (RSSI) from which background noise in a predetermined frequency band has been subtracted with the estimated total received power (X'). Background noise includes artificial noise contributed by an unspecified number of unintentional emissions and natural noise. The characteristics of these noises have a significant effect on the communication quality of a wireless communication system. Therefore, a high-quality evaluation can be performed by excluding the background noise when evaluating radio interference. The evaluation unit 122 may calculate the background noise by a known method or may obtain the background noise from an external source.

[0069] (Radio interference evaluation method) The radio wave interference evaluation method according to this exemplary embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an operation flow of the radio wave interference evaluation method according to this exemplary embodiment. The operation flow shown in Fig. 5 is performed by the radio wave interference evaluation device 100 shown in Fig. 3. In other words, the radio wave interference evaluation method according to this exemplary embodiment is executed by the main control unit 120 (Fig. 3).

[0070] More specifically, in step S11 (acquisition process) shown in FIG. 5, the radio interference evaluation method according to this exemplary embodiment causes the acquisition unit 121 (FIG. 3) of the main control unit 120 to acquire the total received power of a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within the communication area of ​​the target wireless communication system, the received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the same point, and the usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system.

[0071] Next, in step S12 (evaluation process 1), the evaluation section 122 (FIG. 3) of the main control section 120 calculates the estimated total received power (X') from the target wireless communication system in the manner described above.

[0072] Next, in step S13 (evaluation process 2), the evaluation unit 122 (FIG. 3) compares the estimated total received power (X') from the target wireless communication system calculated in step S12 with the RSSI acquired by the acquisition unit 121 (the total received power in the specified frequency band measured at point 56).

[0073] Next, in step S14 (evaluation process 3), if the comparison result shows that the RSSI is greater than X', it is evaluated that there is a total received power (Y) from outside the target wireless communication system. Also, in step S14, if there is Y, the degree of interference may be evaluated based on its magnitude.

[0074] According to the radio wave interference evaluation method of the present exemplary embodiment described above, it is possible to evaluate the presence or absence of radio wave interference from outside the target radio communication system and the magnitude of the interference at a point within the communication area of ​​the target radio communication system.

[0075] [Modifications] This exemplary embodiment is not limited to the above-mentioned configuration, and various configurations can be adopted as long as the radio wave interference evaluation device 100 is configured to acquire the total received power of a predetermined frequency band measured at a point 56 in the communication area 55 of the radio communication system 50, the received power of a reference signal of the radio communication system 50 measured at the point 56, and the usage status of radio resources of the radio communication system 50, and evaluates radio wave interference from outside the radio communication system 50 with the radio communication system 50 by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of the radio resources. Some modified examples other than the configuration shown in FIG. 3 will be described below.

[0076] [Variation 1] In the configuration shown in Fig. 3, the wireless communication system 50 and the radio wave interference evaluation device 100 are separate configurations. In short, this is a mode in which radio wave interference evaluation is performed by a mechanism independent of the target wireless communication system. However, this is not limited to this, and a modified example as shown in Fig. 7 may also be used.

[0077] In Fig. 7, the radio wave interference evaluation device 100 is included in the wireless communication system 50. As an example, the modified example of Fig. 7 can be realized by incorporating the radio wave interference evaluation device 100 in the core network of the target wireless communication system. Even in the modified example shown in Fig. 7, the operation flow of the radio wave interference evaluation is the same as that described in the present exemplary embodiment.

[0078] [Modification 2] In the modification shown in FIG. 7, the radio communication system 50 includes the radio interference evaluation device 100, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the radio interference evaluation device 100 may be included in a terminal.

[0079] Specifically, as shown in Fig. 8, the radio wave interference evaluation device 100 includes a communication unit 110 that realizes communication as a wireless communication terminal, a measurement unit 111 having the same function as the measurement unit 12 shown in Fig. 3, and a main control unit 120. The main control unit 120 has the same function as the main control unit 120 in Fig. 3 described in this exemplary embodiment. Even in the modified example shown in Fig. 8, the operation flow of the radio wave interference evaluation is the same as that described in this exemplary embodiment.

[0080] Exemplary embodiment 3 The third exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that components having the same functions as those described in the first and second exemplary embodiments are given the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

[0081] In the above-mentioned second exemplary embodiment, the usage status of radio resources of the base station itself is provided to the radio interference evaluation device 100 via each of the base stations 51 and 52. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a value assumed in advance may be used as the usage status of radio resources. For example, in order to make a conservative judgment, it is possible to evaluate only radio interference that has a large impact by assuming that the usage rate of radio resources is 100%.

[0082] That is, the acquisition unit 121 is not limited to the aspect of the second exemplary embodiment in which the acquisition unit 121 acquires the radio resource usage status directly from each of the base stations 51 and 52 .

[0083] As another example, the amount of traffic being transmitted and received by the base station or the amount of buffered data in the base station may be acquired, and the wireless resource usage status may be indirectly estimated from at least one of them.

[0084] In this exemplary embodiment, the evaluation unit 122 can estimate the received power from cell A in a predetermined frequency band based on the "received power of the reference signal" and the estimated radio resource usage status, and can calculate the estimated total received power (X') from the target wireless communication system. The subsequent processing of the evaluation unit 122 is the same as that described in the second exemplary embodiment, and therefore will not be described here.

[0085] The radio wave interference evaluation device of the present exemplary embodiment described above can also evaluate the presence or absence of radio wave interference from outside the target radio communication system and the magnitude of that interference at a point within the communication area of ​​the target radio communication system.

[0086] Exemplary embodiment 4 A fourth exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that components having the same functions as those described in the first and second exemplary embodiments are given the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

[0087] In the above-mentioned second exemplary embodiment, the usage status of the radio resources of the base station itself is provided to the radio interference evaluation device 100 via each of the base stations 51 and 52. Also, in the above-mentioned third exemplary embodiment, the usage status of the radio resources is estimated. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Instead, the usage status of the radio resources is not acquired or estimated, and control is performed so that the usage status of the radio resources becomes a desired one, and the evaluation unit 122 may evaluate the interference using the desired usage status of the radio resources.

[0088] One example is intentionally generating excessive traffic. Intentionally generating excessive traffic results in 100% wireless resource usage (desired wireless resource usage status). This allows the evaluation unit 122 (FIG. 3) to evaluate interference using the desired wireless resource usage status. The generation of excessive traffic can be achieved by controlling the wireless communication system 50 by the main control unit 120 (FIG. 3).

[0089] In this way, the radio resource usage is not acquired or estimated, but instead is controlled to a desired radio resource usage, and interference can be evaluated.

[0090] Exemplary embodiment 5 The fifth exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that components having the same functions as those described in the first and second exemplary embodiments are given the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

[0091] In the above-mentioned second exemplary embodiment, as shown in Fig. 4, radio interference is evaluated based on the total received power and the received power of the reference signal measured at the terminal 10 at one point 56. In contrast, in this exemplary embodiment, as shown in Fig. 8, the total received power and the received power of the reference signal measured by the terminals 10A, 10B, and 10C at a plurality of points 56A, 56B, and 56C are respectively acquired, and radio interference is evaluated for each of the points 56A, 56B, and 56C.

[0092] Also, this exemplary embodiment differs from the above-described second exemplary embodiment in that in addition to identifying (assessing) the presence or absence of radio wave interference, the position of the interference source is estimated.

[0093] Hereinafter, details will be described with reference to the operational flow of radio wave interference evaluation according to this exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 10. However, since the configuration of the radio wave interference evaluation device is the same as that of the radio wave interference evaluation device 100 shown in FIG. 3, the description will be given using the configuration of the radio wave interference evaluation device 100 shown in FIG. 3.

[0094] The acquisition unit 121 acquires the total received power (RSSI) and the received power of the reference signal measured at the terminals 10A, 10B, and 10C at the multiple points 56A, 56B, and 56C, respectively. In addition to these, the acquisition unit 121 acquires the usage status of the wireless resources (resource blocks) and the location information of the multiple points 56A, 56B, and 56C, respectively (step S21 in FIG. 10).

[0095] The evaluation unit 122 evaluates radio interference for each of the points 56A, 56B, and 56C. Specifically, the evaluation unit 122 calculates an estimated total received power for each of the points 56A, 56B, and 56C based on the total received power (RSSI) acquired by the acquisition unit 121, the received power of the reference signal, and the like (step S22 in FIG. 10). The estimated total received power is the estimated total received power (X') from the target wireless communication system described in the second exemplary embodiment. The calculation method is the same as the calculation method described in the second exemplary embodiment, so a description thereof will be omitted here. Note that, although three points 56A, 56B, and 56C are given as an example in this exemplary embodiment, the number is not limited to this number.

[0096] Next, the evaluation unit 122 compares the total received power (X) calculated for each of the points 56A, 56B, and 56C in step S22 with the total received power (RSSI) (step S23 in FIG. 10).

[0097] Next, by comparison in step S23, the presence or absence of radio wave interference from outside the target wireless communication system 50 is evaluated for each of the points 56A, 56B, and 56C (step S24 in FIG. 10). This evaluation is also the same as that described in the second exemplary embodiment, so a description thereof will be omitted here.

[0098] In addition, the evaluation unit 122 can appropriately estimate the position of the interference source in subsequent steps by evaluating the radio interference for each of the points 56A, 56B, 56C by referring to the total received power (RSSI) and the received power of the reference signal measured at the multiple points 56A, 56B, 56C during the same time zone, as well as the usage status of the radio resources of the target wireless communication system during the same time zone (e.g., resource block usage rate).

[0099] Next, the evaluation unit 122 estimates the position of the interference source based on the position information of the points 56A, 56B, and 56C (step S25 in FIG. 10). Here, the position of the interference source includes an approximate position, i.e., in which direction the interference source is located from each point, and a specific position of the interference source. The estimation of the approximate position (direction) and the estimation of the specific position are respectively described below.

[0100] (Direction Estimation) The location information of the points 56A, 56B, and 56C is obtained from the terminals 10A, 10B, and 10C located at the points 56A, 56B, and 56C, respectively. The evaluation unit 122 maps the amount of radio interference (magnitude of radio interference) on a map using the location information of the points 56A, 56B, and 56C. As an example, the mapping is shown in FIG. 11.

[0101] In the example shown in Fig. 11, terminal 10A (point 56A) has a large amount of radio interference, terminal 10B (point 56B) has a medium amount of radio interference, and terminal 10C (point 56C) has no radio interference. By mapping on a map as in Fig. 11, it can be estimated that the interference source is located in the direction from communication area 55 toward terminal 10A (point 56A), that is, in the direction indicated by arrow 70.

[0102] (Location Estimation) The evaluation unit 122 can use the location information of the points 56A, 56B, and 56C to specify the range from which the interference wave is expected to come based on the amount of radio wave interference at each of the terminals 10A, 10B, and 10C. The evaluation unit 122 can also map the range on a map. An example of the mapping is shown in FIG. 12.

[0103] In the example shown in Fig. 12, the range from which interference waves arrive is estimated from the upper and lower limits of radio wave output based on the amount of radio wave interference at each of terminals 10A and 10B, and is mapped onto circles (annular shapes) 80A and 80B. Here, Fig. 12 shows a case in which there is no radio wave interference at terminal 10C (point 56C), similar to the example in Fig. 11. The evaluation unit 122 can identify an overlapping portion 90 of the mapped circles 80A and 80B shown in Fig. 12. This portion 90 is the position where it can be estimated that there is a source of radio wave interference.

[0104] As described above, according to this exemplary embodiment, the acquisition unit 121 is configured to further acquire location information of the multiple points 56A, 56B, and 56C, and the evaluation unit 122 is configured to estimate the location of the interference source based on the evaluation results of the radio interference for each of the points 56A, 56B, and 56C and the location information of the multiple points.

[0105] Exemplary embodiment 6 The sixth exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that components having the same functions as those described in the first, second, and third exemplary embodiments are given the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

[0106] In the above-mentioned first to fifth exemplary embodiments, only evaluation of radio wave interference is performed. In contrast, the present exemplary embodiment is different in that it further includes a communication control unit (control means) that controls or notifies one or more radio communication systems other than the target radio communication system or a management device that manages the one or more radio communication systems based on the evaluation result of radio wave interference.

[0107] FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the radio interference evaluation device 100 of this exemplary embodiment, as well as the main configurations of a target wireless communication system 50, a terminal 10 that performs wireless communication using the target wireless communication system 50, and a wireless communication system 60A that is different from the target wireless communication system 50.

[0108] It is assumed that the communication area of ​​the wireless communication system 60A is close to the communication area of ​​the target wireless communication system 50, and that the wireless communication system 60A can be a source of radio wave interference to the target wireless communication system 50.

[0109] 3 in that the main control unit 120 includes a notification control unit 123 (control means). The notification control unit 123 controls or notifies the wireless communication system 60A based on the evaluation result by the evaluation unit 122. More specifically, the notification control unit 123 may control or notify the management device 61 that manages the wireless communication system 60A or other components of the wireless communication system 60A.

[0110] (Cases where notification is required) For example, when the evaluation result by the evaluation unit 122 indicates that there is interference, the notification control unit 123 may notify the management device 61 that radio interference is occurring in the wireless communication system 50. Also, for example, when the evaluation result by the evaluation unit 122 indicates that there is no interference, the notification control unit 123 may notify the management device 61 that radio interference is not occurring in the wireless communication system 50.

[0111] Note that, as in the radio interference evaluation device 100 of the exemplary embodiment 5, when the evaluation unit 122 estimates the position of the interference source, the notification control unit 123 may select a notification destination based on the position of the interference source estimated by the evaluation unit 122. That is, the notification control unit 123 may refer to a list of notification destination candidates and a position range corresponding to each candidate included in the list, select a notification destination based on the position of the interference source estimated by the evaluation unit 122, and perform notification.

[0112] (Control case) A typical case in which the notification control unit 123 controls the management device 61 is when the radio interference evaluation device 100 is a third party independent of the wireless communication systems 50 and 60A and manages both wireless communication systems from a higher level. In such a case, for example, when the evaluation result by the evaluation unit 122 indicates the presence of interference, the notification control unit 123 may control the management device 61 to reduce or stop the output of the wireless communication system 60A.

[0113] In addition, the notification control unit 123 may control the management device 61 to restore the output of the wireless communication system 60A to its original state, for example, when the evaluation unit 122 evaluates that there is no interference in a situation where the output of the wireless communication system 60A is reduced or stopped.

[0114] As in the case of performing notification, when the evaluation unit 122 estimates the position of the interference source as in the radio interference evaluation device 100 of the exemplary embodiment 5, the notification control unit 123 may select a control destination based on the position of the interference source estimated by the evaluation unit 122. That is, the notification control unit 123 may refer to a list of candidates for the control destination and a range of positions corresponding to each candidate included in the list, and select a control destination based on the position of the interference source estimated by the evaluation unit 122, and perform control.

[0115] The notification control unit 123 may perform both the notification and the control described above, or may perform only one of them.

[0116] [Software implementation example] A part or all of the functions of the radio interference evaluation device may be realized by hardware such as an integrated circuit (IC chip), or may be realized by software.

[0117] In the latter case, the radio wave interference evaluation device is realized, for example, by a computer that executes instructions of a program, which is software that realizes each function. An example of such a computer (hereinafter, referred to as computer C) is shown in FIG. 14. The computer C includes at least one processor C1 and at least one memory C2. The memory C2 stores a program P for operating the computer C as a radio wave interference evaluation device. In the computer C, the processor C1 reads and executes the program P from the memory C2, thereby realizing each function of the radio wave interference evaluation device.

[0118] The processor C1 may be, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), a graphic processing unit (GPU), a digital signal processor (DSP), a micro processing unit (MPU), a floating point number processing unit (FPU), a physics processing unit (PPU), a microcontroller, or a combination of these. The memory C2 may be, for example, a flash memory, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), or a combination of these.

[0119] The computer C may further include a RAM (Random Access Memory) for expanding the program P during execution and for temporarily storing various data. The computer C may further include a communication interface for transmitting and receiving data to and from other devices. The computer C may further include an input / output interface for connecting input / output devices such as a keyboard, a mouse, a display, and a printer.

[0120] Furthermore, the program P can be recorded on a non-transitory tangible recording medium M that can be read by the computer C. Such a recording medium M can be, for example, a tape, a disk, a card, a semiconductor memory, or a programmable logic circuit. The computer C can obtain the program P via such a recording medium M. Furthermore, the program P can be transmitted via a transmission medium. Such a transmission medium can be, for example, a communication network or broadcast waves. The computer C can also obtain the program P via such a transmission medium.

[0121] [Additional Note 1] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. For example, embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in the above-described embodiment are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

[0122] [Additional Note 2] Some or all of the above-described embodiments can be described as follows. However, the present invention is not limited to the following described aspects.

[0123] (Appendix 1) A radio wave interference evaluation device comprising: an acquisition means for acquiring a total received power of a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within a communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system, a received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and a usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system; and an evaluation means for evaluating radio wave interference from outside the target wireless communication system with respect to the target wireless communication system by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of wireless resources.

[0124] (Appendix 2) The radio interference evaluation device described in Appendix 1, wherein the acquisition means acquires, for each base station constituting the target wireless communication system, the received power of a reference signal from that base station measured at the location, and the usage status of wireless resources of that base station.

[0125] (Appendix 3) The radio interference evaluation device described in Appendix 1 or 2, wherein the evaluation means calculates an estimated total received power from the target wireless communication system at the location and the specified frequency band by referring to the received power of the reference signal and the usage status of the wireless resources, and evaluates the radio interference by comparing the estimated total received power with the total received power acquired by the acquisition means.

[0126] (Appendix 4) 4. The radio interference evaluation device according to claim 3, wherein the evaluation means evaluates the radio interference by comparing the total received power from which background noise in the specified frequency band has been subtracted with the estimated total received power.

[0127] (Appendix 5) The acquiring means acquires the total received power and the received power of the reference signal measured at a plurality of points, 5. The radio interference evaluation device according to claim 1, wherein the evaluation means evaluates the radio interference for each of the locations.

[0128] (Appendix 6) The acquiring means further acquires position information of the plurality of points, 6. The radio wave interference evaluation device according to claim 5, wherein the evaluation means estimates a position of a source of the radio wave interference based on the evaluation result of the radio wave interference for each of the locations and position information of the plurality of locations.

[0129] (Appendix 7) 7. The radio interference evaluation device according to claim 6, wherein the evaluation means evaluates the radio interference for each of the locations by referring to the total received power and the received power of the reference signal measured at the multiple locations in the same time zone.

[0130] (Appendix 8) The radio wave interference evaluation device according to any one of appendices 1 to 7, further comprising a control means for controlling or notifying one or more radio communication systems different from the target radio communication system or a management device that manages the one or more radio communication systems based on a result of the evaluation of the radio wave interference by the evaluation means.

[0131] (Appendix 9) A radio interference evaluation method comprising: a computer acquiring a total received power of a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within a communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system, a received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and a usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system; and the computer evaluating radio interference from outside the target wireless communication system with respect to the target wireless communication system by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of wireless resources.

[0132] (Appendix 10) A radio wave interference evaluation program that causes a computer to function as a radio wave interference evaluation device, The program causes the computer to function as an acquisition means for acquiring the total received power in a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within the communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system, the received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and the usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system, and an evaluation means for evaluating radio interference from outside the target wireless communication system with respect to the target wireless communication system by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of wireless resources.

[0133] (Appendix 11) A part or all of the above-described embodiments can be further expressed as follows.

[0134] A radio wave interference evaluation device having at least one processor, the processor executing an acquisition process of acquiring a total received power in a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within a communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system, a received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and a usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system, and an evaluation process of evaluating radio wave interference from outside the target wireless communication system with respect to the target wireless communication system by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of wireless resources.

[0135] The radio interference evaluation device may further include a memory, and the memory may store a program for causing the processor to execute the acquisition process and the evaluation process. The program may be recorded in a computer-readable, non-transitory, tangible recording medium. [Explanation of symbols]

[0136] 10, 10A, 10B, 10C terminals 11, 110 Communications Department 12, 111 Measuring section 50 Wireless communication system (Target wireless communication system) 51, 52 base station 55 Communication Area Points 56, 56A, 56B, 56C 60A Radio communication systems other than the target radio communication systems 61 Management device 80A, 80B Range of radio interference sources 100 Radio interference evaluation device 120 Main control unit 121 Acquisition Department 122 Evaluation Section 123 Notification control section

Claims

1. an acquisition means for acquiring a total received power of a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within a communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system, a received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and a usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system; and an evaluation means for evaluating radio interference from outside the target wireless communication system with respect to the target wireless communication system by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of the wireless resources.

2. 2. The radio interference evaluation device according to claim 1, wherein the acquisition means acquires, for each base station constituting the target wireless communication system, the received power of a reference signal from that base station measured at the location, and the usage status of wireless resources of that base station.

3. 3. The radio interference evaluation device according to claim 1, wherein the evaluation means calculates an estimated total received power from the target wireless communication system at the location and the specified frequency band by referring to the received power of the reference signal and the usage status of the wireless resources, and evaluates the radio interference by comparing the estimated total received power with the total received power acquired by the acquisition means.

4. 4. The radio interference evaluation device according to claim 3, wherein the evaluation means evaluates the radio interference by comparing the total received power from which background noise in the predetermined frequency band has been subtracted with the estimated total received power.

5. The acquiring means acquires the total received power and the received power of the reference signal measured at a plurality of points, 5. The radio wave interference evaluation device according to claim 1, wherein the evaluation means evaluates the radio wave interference for each of the locations.

6. The acquiring means further acquires position information of the plurality of points, 6. The radio wave interference evaluation device according to claim 5, wherein the evaluation means estimates a position of an interference source of the radio wave interference based on the evaluation result of the radio wave interference for each of the locations and on position information of the plurality of locations.

7. 7. The radio interference evaluation device according to claim 5, wherein the evaluation means evaluates the radio interference for each of the locations by referring to the total received power and the received power of the reference signal measured at the multiple locations in the same time zone.

8. The radio wave interference evaluation device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising a control means for controlling or notifying one or more radio communication systems different from the target radio communication system or a management device that manages the one or more radio communication systems based on a result of the evaluation of the radio wave interference by the evaluation means.

9. a computer acquires a total received power of a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within a communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system, a received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and a usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system; The computer evaluates radio interference from outside the target wireless communication system by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of the wireless resources.

10. A radio wave interference evaluation program that causes a computer to function as a radio wave interference evaluation device, The program causes the computer to an acquisition means for acquiring a total received power of a predetermined frequency band measured at a point within a communication area of ​​a target wireless communication system, a received power of a reference signal of the target wireless communication system measured at the point, and a usage status of wireless resources of the target wireless communication system; a radio interference evaluation program that functions as an evaluation means for evaluating radio interference from outside the target wireless communication system with respect to the target wireless communication system by referring to the total received power, the received power of the reference signal, and the usage status of the wireless resources.

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