Apparatus and method for canceling interference in wireless communication system, and storage medium

Abstract

This electronic device may comprise: a memory for storing instructions; and at least one processor. When executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, the instructions can cause the electronic device to: generate covariance information about noise and interference for reception antennas on the basis of channel estimation using a reference signal acquired through the reception antennas; if each of a first variance component corresponding to a first reception antenna and a second variance component of a second reception antenna of the covariance information is less than a threshold value, generate the modified covariance information by changing, to a reference value, a covariance component related to both the first reception antenna and the second reception antenna; and perform equalization on received signals according to the weight determined using the modified covariance information.

Description

Device, method, and storage medium for eliminating interference in a wireless communication system

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a wireless communication system, and more particularly, to a device, method, and storage medium for eliminating interference.

[0002] To improve signal transmission and reception performance, multiple antenna elements may be utilized. For example, the technologies utilized by the multiple antenna elements may include single-input multiple-output (SIMO) technology, multiple-input single-output (MISO) technology, and multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technology. The channel capacity of a wireless communication system utilizing the above technologies utilizing multiple antenna elements can be significantly improved compared to single-antenna technology.

[0003] The above information may be provided as background art to aid in understanding the present disclosure. No claim or determination is made as to whether any of the above is applicable as prior art related to the present disclosure.

[0004] An electronic device may include a memory storing instructions. The electronic device may include at least one processor. The instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to generate covariance information of noise and interference for the receive antennas based on channel estimation using reference signals acquired through the receive antennas. The instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to generate modified covariance information by changing covariance components associated with both the first receive antenna and the second receive antenna to a reference value when each of a first variance component corresponding to a first receive antenna and a second variance component of the covariance information corresponding to a second receive antenna is less than a threshold value. The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to perform equalization of received signals according to weights determined using the modified covariance information.

[0005] An electronic device may include a memory that stores instructions. The electronic device may include at least one processor. The instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to generate covariance information of noise and interference for the receive antennas based on channel estimation using reference signals acquired through the receive antennas. The instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to generate modified covariance information by changing covariance components associated with both the first receive antenna group and the second receive antenna group to a reference value when each of first variance information corresponding to a first receive antenna group of the covariance information and second variance information corresponding to a second receive antenna group is below a threshold level. The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to perform equalization of received signals according to weights determined using the modified covariance information.

[0006] In a method performed by an electronic device, the method may include an operation of generating covariance information of noise and interference for the receiving antennas based on channel estimation using reference signals acquired through the receiving antennas. The method may include an operation of generating modified covariance information by changing covariance components associated with both the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna to reference values ​​when a first variance component corresponding to a first receiving antenna and a second variance component of the covariance information corresponding to a second receiving antenna are each less than a threshold value. The method may include an operation of performing equalization of the receiving signals according to weights determined using the modified covariance information.

[0007] A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may store one or more programs that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor of an electronic device, cause the electronic device to generate covariance information of noise and interference for the receive antennas based on channel estimation using reference signals acquired through the receive antennas. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may store one or more programs that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor of the electronic device, cause the electronic device to generate modified covariance information by changing covariance components associated with both the first receive antenna and the second receive antenna to a reference value when each of a first variance component corresponding to a first receive antenna and a second variance component of a second receive antenna of the covariance information is below a threshold value. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may store one or more programs that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor of an electronic device, cause the electronic device to perform equalization of received signals according to weights determined using the modified covariance information.

[0008] Figure 1 illustrates an example of a wireless communication system.

[0009] Figure 2a illustrates an example of network entities according to distributed deployment.

[0010] Figure 2b illustrates an example of function splitting of network entities.

[0011] Figure 3 illustrates an example of a functional configuration of an electronic device.

[0012] Figure 4 illustrates an example of a resource structure in the time domain and frequency domain.

[0013] Figure 5 illustrates an example of a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) within a slot.

[0014] Figure 6 illustrates an example of a MIMO (multiple input multiple output) transmitter and receiver.

[0015] Figure 7 illustrates an example of an operational flow for a method in which an electronic device performs interference rejection based on interference per receiving antenna.

[0016] Figure 8 shows an example of a covariance matrix in which the off-diagonal entries associated with the receiving antenna are changed to reference values.

[0017] Figure 9 illustrates an example of an operational flow for a method in which an electronic device performs interference rejection based on interference by group of receiving antennas.

[0018] Figure 10 illustrates an example of a covariance matrix in which the off-diagonal components associated with a group of receiving antennas are changed to reference values.

[0019] FIG. 11 illustrates an example of an operational flow for a method in which an electronic device generates corrected covariance information from covariance information of noise and interference and performs equalization using the corrected covariance information.

[0020] The terms used in this disclosure are used only to describe specific embodiments and may not be intended to limit the scope of other embodiments. The singular expression may include plural expressions unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, may have the same meaning as commonly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art described in this disclosure. Terms defined in general dictionaries among the terms used in this disclosure may be interpreted as having the same or similar meaning in the context of the relevant technology, and shall not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless explicitly defined in this disclosure. In some cases, even if a term is defined in this disclosure, it cannot be interpreted to exclude embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0021] The various embodiments of the present disclosure described below illustrate a hardware-based approach as an example. However, since the various embodiments of the present disclosure include techniques utilizing both hardware and software, the various embodiments of the present disclosure do not exclude a software-based approach.

[0022] In the following description, terms referring to signals (e.g., packet, message, signal, information, signaling), terms referring to resources (e.g., symbol, slot, subframe, radio frame, subcarrier, RE (resource element), RB (resource block), BWP (bandwidth part), occasion), terms for operational states (e.g., step, operation, procedure), terms referring to data (e.g., packet, message, user stream, information, bit, symbol, codeword), terms referring to channels, terms referring to network entities (distributed unit (DU), radio unit (RU), central unit (CU), CU-CP (control plane), CU-UP (user plane), O-DU (O-RAN (open radio access network) DU), O-RU (O-RAN RU), O-CU (O-RAN CU), Terms such as O-CU-UP (O-RAN CU-CP), O-CU-CP (O-RAN CU-CP)), referring to components of the device, are examples for convenience of explanation. Therefore, the present disclosure is not limited to the terms described below, and other terms having equivalent technical meanings may be used. In addition, terms such as '... part', '... device', '... object', '... body', etc. used below may mean at least one shape structure or a unit that processes a function.

[0023] In addition, in the present disclosure, expressions such as "more than" or "less than" may be used to determine whether a specific condition is satisfied or fulfilled, but this is merely a description for expressing an example and does not exclude descriptions such as "more than" or "less than." A condition described as "more than" may be replaced with "more than," a condition described as "less than" may be replaced with "less than," and a condition described as "more than and less than" may be replaced with "more than and less than." In addition, hereinafter, "A" to "B" mean at least one of elements from A (including A) to B (including B). hereinafter, "C" and / or "D" mean at least one of "C" or "D," that is, including {"C", "D", "C" and "D"}.

[0024] Although this disclosure describes embodiments using terminology used in certain communication standards (e.g., 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP)), this is merely an example for illustrative purposes. Embodiments of this disclosure can also be applied to other communication and broadcasting systems.

[0025] Figure 1 illustrates an example of a wireless communication system.

[0026] Referring to FIG. 1, FIG. 1 illustrates a base station (110) and a terminal (120) as some of the nodes utilizing a wireless channel in a wireless communication system. Although FIG. 1 illustrates only one base station, the wireless communication system may further include other base stations identical or similar to the base station (110).

[0027] The base station (110) is a network infrastructure that provides wireless access to the terminal (120). The base station (110) has coverage defined based on the distance at which a signal can be transmitted. In addition to the base station, the base station (110) may be referred to as an 'access point (AP)', 'eNodeB (eNB)', '5th generation node', 'next generation nodeB (gNB)', 'wireless point', 'transmission / reception point (TRP)', or other terms having equivalent technical meanings.

[0028] The terminal (120) is a device used by a user and communicates with the base station (110) via a wireless channel. The link from the base station (110) to the terminal (120) is referred to as a downlink (DL), and the link from the terminal (120) to the base station (110) is referred to as an uplink (UL). In addition, although not shown in FIG. 1, the terminal (120) and another terminal may communicate with each other via a wireless channel. In this case, the link between the terminal (120) and another terminal (device-to-device link, D2D) is referred to as a sidelink, and the sidelink may be used interchangeably with the PC5 interface. In some other embodiments, the terminal (120) may be operated without the involvement of a user. In one embodiment, the terminal (120) is a device that performs machine type communication (MTC) and may not be carried by the user. Additionally, according to one embodiment, the terminal (120) may be an NB (narrowband)-IoT (internet of things) device.

[0029] The terminal (120) may be referred to as a terminal, or other terms such as 'user equipment (UE),' 'customer premises equipment (CPE),' 'mobile station,' 'subscriber station,' 'remote terminal,' 'wireless terminal,' 'electronic device,' or 'user device,' or other terms having equivalent technical meanings.

[0030] The base station (110) and the terminal (120) can perform beamforming. The base station (110) and the terminal (120) can transmit and receive wireless signals in a relatively low frequency band (e.g., FR 1 (frequency range 1) of NR). In addition, the base station (110) and the terminal (120) can transmit and receive wireless signals in a relatively high frequency band (e.g., FR 2 (or, FR 2-1, FR 2-2, FR 2-3), FR 3 of NR), millimeter wave (mmWave) band (e.g., 28 GHz, 30 GHz, 38 GHz, 60 GHz)). To improve channel gain, the base station (110) and the terminal (120) can perform beamforming. Here, the beamforming can include transmission beamforming and reception beamforming. The base station (110) and the terminal (120) can impart directionality to the transmitted or received signal. To this end, the base station (110) and the terminal (120) can select serving beams through a beam search or beam management procedure. After the serving beams are selected, subsequent communication can be performed through resources that have a QCL relationship with the resource that transmitted the serving beams.

[0031] If large-scale characteristics of a channel carrying a symbol on a first antenna port can be inferred from a channel carrying a symbol on a second antenna port, the first antenna port and the second antenna port can be evaluated to have a QCL relationship. For example, the large-scale characteristics may include at least one of delay spread, Doppler spread, Doppler shift, average gain, average delay, and a spatial receiver parameter.

[0032] Although both the base station (110) and the terminal (120) are described as performing beamforming in FIG. 1, the embodiments of the present disclosure are not necessarily limited thereto. In some embodiments, the terminal may or may not perform beamforming. Furthermore, the base station may or may not perform beamforming. That is, either only one of the base station and the terminal may perform beamforming, or neither the base station nor the terminal may perform beamforming.

[0033] In the present disclosure, a beam refers to a spatial flow of a signal in a wireless channel, and is formed by one or more antennas (or antenna elements), and this forming process may be referred to as beamforming. Beamforming may include at least one of analog beamforming and digital beamforming (e.g., precoding). Reference signals transmitted based on beamforming may include, for example, a demodulation-reference signal (DM-RS), a channel state information-reference signal (CSI-RS), a synchronization signal / physical broadcast channel (SS / PBCH), and a sounding reference signal (SRS). In addition, as a configuration for each reference signal, an IE such as a CSI-RS resource or an SRS-resource may be used, and this configuration may include information associated with the beam. Information associated with a beam may mean whether the configuration (e.g., a CSI-RS resource) uses the same spatial domain filter as another configuration (e.g., another CSI-RS resource within the same CSI-RS resource set) or a different spatial domain filter, or whether it is quasi-co-located (QCL) with a reference signal, and if so, what type it is (e.g., QCL type A, B, C, D).

[0034] In communication systems with relatively large cell radius of base stations, each base station is installed to include the functions of a digital processing unit (or DU (distributed unit)) and an RF (radio frequency) processing unit (or RU (radio unit)). However, as higher frequency bands are used in 4G (4th generation) and / or subsequent communication systems (e.g., 5G) and the cell coverage of base stations becomes smaller, the number of base stations to cover a specific area has increased. The installation cost burden on operators for installing base stations has also increased. In order to minimize the installation cost of base stations, a structure has been proposed in which the DU (digital unit) and RU (radio unit) (or MMU (massive multiple input multiple output) unit) of the base station are separated, one or more RUs are connected to one DU through a wired network, and one or more RUs are geographically distributed to cover a specific area. Below, the layout structure and expansion examples of base stations according to various embodiments of the present disclosure are described through FIG. 2a.

[0035] Figure 2a illustrates an example of network entities according to distributed deployment.

[0036] For example, the network entities may include a digital unit (DU) (210) and a radio unit (RU) (220) (or a massive multiple input multiple output (MMU) unit). For example, the network entities may be connected via a fronthaul. Unlike the backhaul between a base station and a core network, the fronthaul refers to entities (e.g., DU (210), RU (220)) between a wireless LAN and a base station. Although FIG. 2A illustrates an example of a fronthaul structure between a DU (210) and one RU (220), this is merely for convenience of explanation and the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In other words, embodiments of the present disclosure may also be applied to a fronthaul structure between one DU and multiple RUs. For example, embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to a fronthaul structure between one DU and two RUs. Additionally, the embodiments of the present disclosure can also be applied to a fronthaul structure between one DU and three RUs.

[0037] Referring to FIG. 2A, a base station (110) may include a DU (210) and a RU (220). A fronthaul (215) between the DU (210) and the RU (220) may be operated via an Fx interface. For the operation of the fronthaul (215), an interface such as an enhanced common public radio interface (eCPRI) or radio over ethernet (ROE) may be used, for example. Depending on the implementation example, the DU (210) may be referred to as a baseband unit (BBU), a digital BBU, a baseband digital unit, a digital processing unit, a digital processing circuit, a baseband processing circuit, a baseband processing unit, and / or equivalent technical terms in addition to a DU (digital unit). According to an implementation example, the RU (220) may be referred to as a remote unit, a radio demote head (RRH), a radio processing circuit, a radio processing unit, an antenna-integrated radio, an air radio device, an air scale communication device, a radio device, a radio communication device, and / or equivalent technical terms in addition to the RU (radio unit). In addition, according to an implementation example, although a network entity connected to the DU (210) in the present disclosure is described as the RU (220), it is of course possible for an MMU (massive multiple input multiple output) unit) to be connected to and used with the DU (210) instead of the RU (220).

[0038] As communication technology advances, mobile data traffic increases, significantly increasing the bandwidth requirements for the fronthaul between the digital unit and the wireless unit. In a deployment such as a centralized / cloud radio access network (C-RAN), the DU (210) performs functions for the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP), radio link control (RLC), media access control (MAC), and physical (PHY) layer, and the RU (220) can be implemented to perform functions for the PHY layer in addition to the RF (radio frequency) function.

[0039] The DU (210) may be responsible for upper layer functions of a wireless network. For example, the DU (210) may perform functions of the MAC layer and a part of the PHY layer. Here, a part of the PHY layer refers to functions performed at a higher level among the functions of the PHY layer, and may include, for example, channel encoding (or channel decoding), scrambling (or descrambling), modulation (or demodulation), and layer mapping (or layer demapping). According to an embodiment, if the DU (210) complies with the O-RAN standard, it may be referred to as an O-DU (O-RAN DU). The DU (210) may be replaced with a first network entity for a base station (e.g., gNB) in embodiments of the present disclosure, if necessary.

[0040] The RU (220) may be responsible for lower layer functions of a wireless network. For example, the RU (220) may perform a part of the PHY layer, an RF function. Here, a part of the PHY layer refers to functions of the PHY layer that are performed at a relatively lower level than the DU (210), and may include, for example, iFFT transformation (or FFT transformation), CP insertion (CP removal), and digital beamforming. The RU (220) may be referred to as an 'access unit (AU)', an 'access point (AP)', a 'transmission / reception point (TRP)', a 'remote radio head (RRH)', a 'radio unit (RU)', or other terms having an equivalent technical meaning thereto. According to an embodiment, when the RU (220) complies with the O-RAN standard, it may be referred to as an O-RU (O-RAN RU). RU (220) may be replaced with a second network entity for a base station (e.g., gNB) in embodiments of the present disclosure as needed.

[0041] In FIG. 2A, the base station (110) is described as including a DU (210) and a RU (220), but the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto. The base station according to the embodiments may be implemented in a distributed deployment according to a centralized unit (CU) configured to perform functions of upper layers of an access network (e.g., packet data convergence protocol (PDCP), radio resource control (RRC)) and a distributed unit (DU) configured to perform functions of lower layers. For example, the digital unit (DU) (210) may be implemented by separating into a centralized unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU). Between a core (e.g., 5G core (5GC) or next generation core (NGC)) network and a radio network (RAN), the base station may be implemented in a structure in which a centralized unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), and a radio unit (RU) are arranged in that order. The interface between the CU (centralized unit) and the DU (distributed unit) can be referred to as the F1 interface.

[0042] A centralized unit (CU) may be connected to one or more distributed units (DUs) and may be responsible for functions at a higher layer than the distributed units (DUs). For example, the CU may be responsible for functions at the radio resource control (RRC) and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layers, while the DU and RU may be responsible for functions at lower layers. The DU may perform some functions (high PHY) of the radio link control (RLC), media access control (MAC), and physical (PHY) layers, while the RU may be responsible for the remaining functions (low PHY) of the PHY layer. In addition, for example, a digital unit (DU) may be included in a distributed unit (DU) depending on the implementation of a distributed deployment of the base station. Hereinafter, unless otherwise defined, the operations of DU (digital unit) and RU are described, but various embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to both a base station arrangement including a CU and an arrangement in which a DU is directly connected to a core network (i.e., a base station in which the CU and DU are integrated into a single entity (e.g., an NG-RAN node)).

[0043] Fig. 2b illustrates an example of functional splitting of network entities. The network entities of Fig. 2b may include DU (210) and RU (220) of Fig. 2a.

[0044] As wireless communication technology develops (e.g., introduction of 5G (5th generation) communication system (or, NR (new radio) communication system), the frequency band used has increased further. As the cell radius of the base station has become very small, the number of RUs that need to be installed has also increased further. In addition, in 5G communication system, the amount of data transmitted has increased by a large amount, up to ten times, so the transmission capacity of the wired network transmitted to the fronthaul has increased significantly. Due to the factors described above, the installation cost of the wired network in the 5G communication system may increase significantly. Therefore, in order to lower the transmission capacity of the wired network and reduce the installation cost of the wired network, 'function split' can be used to lower the transmission capacity of the fronthaul by transferring some of the functions of the modem of the DU to the RU. Although described as RU below, the function split described below can be equally applied not only to the RU but also to the relationship between the MMU and the DU.

[0045] To reduce the burden on the DU, the role of the RU, which is traditionally solely responsible for RF functions, can be expanded to include some physical layer functions. As the RU performs higher-layer functions, its throughput increases, which can increase transmission bandwidth in the fronthaul while reducing latency requirements due to response processing. However, as the RU performs higher-layer functions, virtualization gains decrease, and the RU's size, weight, and cost increase. Considering the trade-offs between the advantages and disadvantages described above, implementing an optimal functional separation is required.

[0046] Referring to Figure 2b, the functional separation in the physical layer below the MAC layer is illustrated. For the downlink (DL) that transmits signals to a terminal through a wireless network, the base station can sequentially perform channel encoding / scrambling, modulation, layer mapping, antenna mapping, RE mapping, digital beamforming (e.g., precoding), iFFT transform / CP insertion, and RF transform. For the uplink (UL) that receives signals from a terminal through a wireless network, the base station can sequentially perform RF transform, FFT transform / CP removal, digital beamforming (pre-combining), RE demapping, channel estimation, layer demapping, demodulation, and decoding / descrambling. The separation of uplink and downlink functions can be defined in various types depending on the needs of vendors, discussions in standards, etc., according to the above-mentioned trade-offs.

[0047] In the first functional separation (255), the RU performs the RF function, and the DU performs the PHY function. The first functional separation is one in which the PHY function is not substantially implemented in the RU, and may be referred to as Option 8, for example. In the second functional separation (260), the RU performs iFFT conversion / CP insertion in the DL and FFT conversion / CP removal in the UL of the PHY function, and the DU performs the remaining PHY functions. As an example, the second functional separation (260) may be referred to as Option 7-1. In the third functional separation (270a), the RU performs iFFT conversion / CP insertion in the DL and FFT conversion / CP removal and digital beamforming in the UL of the PHY function, and the DU performs the remaining PHY functions. As an example, the third functional separation (270a) may be referred to as Option 7-2x Category A. In the fourth functional separation (270b), the RU performs up to digital beamforming in both the DL and UL, and the DU performs upper PHY functions after the digital beamforming. For example, the fourth functional separation (270b) may be referred to as Option 7-2x Category B. In the fifth functional separation (275), the RU performs up to RE mapping (or RE demapping) in both the DL and UL, and the DU performs upper PHY functions after RE mapping (or RE demapping). For example, the fifth functional separation (275) may be referred to as Option 7-2. In the sixth functional separation (280), the RU performs up to modulation (or demodulation) in both the DL and UL, and the DU performs upper PHY functions after modulation (or demodulation). For example, the sixth functional separation (280) may be referred to as Option 7-3. In the seventh functional separation (290), the RU performs encoding / scrambling (or decoding / descrambling) in both the DL and UL, and the DU performs subsequent upper PHY functions up to modulation (or demodulation). For example, the seventh functional separation (290) may be referred to as Option 6.

[0048] In one embodiment, when a large amount of signal processing is expected, such as in the FR 1 MMU, functional separation at a relatively high layer (e.g., the fourth functional separation (270b)) may be required to reduce fronthaul capacity. In addition, functional separation at too high a layer (e.g., the sixth functional separation (280)) may complicate the control interface and cause a burden on the implementation of the RU due to the inclusion of a large number of PHY processing blocks within the RU. Therefore, appropriate functional separation may be required depending on the arrangement and implementation method of the DU and the RU.

[0049] In one embodiment, if the precoding of data received from the DU cannot be processed (i.e., if the precoding capability of the RU is limited), the third functional separation (270a) or a lower functional separation (e.g., the second functional separation (260)) may be applied. Conversely, if the DU has the capability to process the precoding of data received from the DU, the fourth functional separation (270b) or a higher functional separation (e.g., the sixth functional separation (280)) may be applied.

[0050] The O-RAN standard distinguishes the types of O-RUs depending on whether the precoding function is located at the interface of the O-DU or the O-RU interface. For example, the RU may perform operations according to the functional separation of the third functional separation (270a) (which may be referred to as category A (CAT-A)) or the fourth functional separation (270b) (which may be referred to as category B (CAT-B)) for performing beamforming processing. In other words, an O-RU that does not perform precoding (i.e., has low complexity) may be referred to as a CAT-A O-RU. An O-RU that performs precoding may be referred to as a CAT-B O-RU. In addition, for example, channel estimation may be performed in the O-RU instead of the O-DU. To improve uplink performance, the O-RU may also operate according to the sixth functional separation (280) (Option 7-3).

[0051] Hereinafter, the upper-PHY refers to the physical layer processing processed in the DU of the fronthaul interface. For example, the upper-PHY may include FEC encoding / decoding, scrambling, and modulation / demodulation. The lower-PHY refers to the physical layer processing processed in the RU of the fronthaul interface. For example, the lower-PHY may include FFT / iFFT, digital beamforming, PRACH (physical random access channel) extraction and filtering. However, the above-described criteria do not exclude embodiments through other functional separations. The functional configuration, signaling, or operation of FIGS. 6 to 11 described below may be applied not only to the third functional separation (270a), the fourth functional separation (270b), but also to other functional separations (e.g., the sixth functional separation (280)). For example, channel estimation may be performed in the O-RU instead of the O-DU. To improve uplink performance, the O-RU may operate according to the sixth functional separation (280) (Option 7-3).

[0052] Figure 3 illustrates an example of a functional configuration of an electronic device.

[0053] The configuration of the electronic device (300) illustrated in FIG. 3 can be understood as a configuration of a base station (110), a terminal (120), a DU (210), or an RU (220) (or an MMU). Terms such as "...unit" and "...unit" used hereinafter mean a unit that processes at least one function or operation, and this can be implemented by hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software.

[0054] Referring to FIG. 3, the electronic device (300) may include a transceiver (310), a memory (320), and a processor (330). However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the electronic device (300) may not include at least some of the components illustrated in FIG. 3, or may further include components not illustrated in FIG. 3.

[0055] The transceiver (310) can perform functions for transmitting and receiving signals in a wired communication environment. The transceiver (310) can include a wired interface for controlling direct connections between devices via a transmission medium (e.g., copper wire, optical fiber). For example, the transceiver (310) can transmit electrical signals to other devices via copper wire, or perform conversion between electrical signals and optical signals.

[0056] The transceiver (310) may perform functions for transmitting and receiving signals in a wireless communication environment. For example, the transceiver (310) may perform a conversion function between baseband signals and bit streams according to the physical layer specifications of the system. For example, when transmitting data, the transceiver (310) encodes and modulates the transmitted bit stream to generate complex-valued symbols. Furthermore, when receiving data, the transceiver (310) demodulates and decodes the baseband signal to restore the received bit stream. Furthermore, the transceiver (310) may include multiple transmission and reception paths.

[0057] The transceiver (310) transmits and receives signals as described above. Accordingly, all or part of the transceiver (310) may be referred to as a "communication unit," a "transmitter," a "receiver," or a "transmitter-receiver unit." Furthermore, in the following description, transmission and reception performed via a wireless channel are used to mean that the transceiver (310) performs the processing described above.

[0058] Although not illustrated in FIG. 3, the transceiver (310) may further include a backhaul transceiver for connection to the core network or other base stations. The backhaul transceiver provides an interface for communicating with other nodes within the network. That is, the backhaul transceiver converts a bit stream transmitted from the base station to other nodes, such as other access nodes, other base stations, upper nodes, the core network, etc., into a physical signal, and converts a physical signal received from other nodes into a bit stream.

[0059] The memory (320) stores data such as basic programs, application programs, and setting information for the operation of the electronic device (300). The memory (320) may be referred to as a storage unit. The memory (320) may be composed of volatile memory, nonvolatile memory, or a combination of volatile memory and nonvolatile memory. In addition, the memory (320) provides stored data upon request from the processor (330).

[0060] For example, the processor (330) may include various processing circuits and / or multiple processors. For example, the term "processor" as used herein, including in the claims, may include various processing circuits including at least one processor, one or more of which may be configured to individually and / or collectively perform the various functions described below in a distributed manner. As used herein, when "processor," "at least one processor," and "one or more processors" are described as being configured to perform various functions, these terms encompass, for example, and without limitation, situations where one processor performs some of the recited functions and other processor(s) perform other parts of the recited functions, and also situations where one processor may perform all of the recited functions. Additionally, the at least one processor may include a combination of processors that perform the various functions enumerated / disclosed, for example, in a distributed manner. At least one processor may execute program instructions to achieve or perform the various functions.

[0061] The processor (330) controls the overall operations of the electronic device (300). The processor (380) may be referred to as a control unit. For example, the processor (330) transmits and receives signals via the transceiver (310) (or via a backhaul communication unit). In addition, the processor (330) records and reads data from the memory (320). In addition, the processor (330) may perform the functions of a protocol stack required by a communication standard. Although only the processor (330) is illustrated in FIG. 3, the electronic device (300) may include two or more processors according to other implementation examples.

[0062] The configuration of the electronic device (300) illustrated in FIG. 3 is only an example, and examples of the electronic device (300) performing the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to the configuration illustrated in FIG. 3. In some embodiments, some configurations may be added, deleted, or changed. For example, if the electronic device (300) is an RU, the electronic device (300) may further include a fronthaul transceiver. For example, the fronthaul transceiver may transmit and receive signals on a fronthaul interface. For example, the fronthaul transceiver may receive a management plane (M-plane) message. For example, the fronthaul transceiver may receive a management plane (S-plane) message. For example, the fronthaul transceiver may receive a control plane (C-plane) message. For example, the fronthaul transceiver may transmit a user plane (U-plane) message. For example, the fronthaul transceiver can receive user plane messages.

[0063] Figure 4 illustrates an example of a resource structure in the time domain and frequency domain.

[0064] Figure 4 illustrates the basic structure of the time-frequency domain, which is a radio resource region in which data or control channels are transmitted in the downlink or uplink.

[0065] Referring to Figure 4, the horizontal axis represents the time domain and the vertical axis represents the frequency domain. The minimum transmission unit in the time domain is an OFDM symbol, N symb OFDM symbols (402) are grouped to form one slot (406). The length of a subframe is defined as 1.0 ms, and the length of a radio frame (414) is defined as 10 ms. The minimum transmission unit in the frequency domain is a subcarrier, and the carrier bandwidth constituting the resource grid is N DL RB Dog (downlink) or N UL RB It consists of subcarriers (404) of the dog (uplink).

[0066] The basic unit of resources in the time-frequency domain is a resource element (RE) (412), which can be represented by an OFDM symbol index and a subcarrier index. A resource block may include multiple resource elements. In the LTE system, a resource block (RB) (or physical resource block (PRB)) is N in the time domain. symb N consecutive OFDM symbols and frequency domain SC RB is defined as a series of consecutive subcarriers. In an NR system, a resource block (RB) (408) is defined as N in the frequency domain. SC RB can be defined as a series of consecutive subcarriers (410). One RB (408) is N on the frequency axis. SC RBIt contains 412 REs. In general, the minimum transmission unit of data is RB and the number of subcarriers is N. SC RB =12. The frequency domain may include common resource blocks (CRBs). Physical resource blocks (PRBs) may be defined in the bandwidth part (BWP) of the frequency domain. The CRB and PRB numbers may be determined based on subcarrier spacing. The data rate may increase in proportion to the number of RBs scheduled to the terminal.

[0067] In the NR system, in the case of a frequency division duplex (FDD) system that operates the downlink and uplink by frequency division, the downlink transmission bandwidth and the uplink transmission bandwidth may be different. The channel bandwidth represents the radio frequency (RF) bandwidth corresponding to the system transmission bandwidth. [Table 1] shows part of the correspondence between the system transmission bandwidth, subcarrier spacing (SCS), and channel bandwidth defined in the NR system in a frequency band lower than x GHz (e.g., frequency range (FR) 1 (410 MHz to 7125 MHz)). And [Table 2] shows part of the correspondence between the transmission bandwidth, subcarrier spacing, and channel bandwidth defined in the NR system in a frequency band higher than y GHz (e.g., FR2 (24250 MHz - 52600 MHz) or FR2-2 (52600 MHz to 71000 MHz)). For example, an NR system with a 100 MHz channel bandwidth and a 30 kHz subcarrier spacing has a transmission bandwidth of 273 RBs. In [Table 1] and [Table 2], N / A may be a bandwidth-subcarrier combination not supported by the NR system.

[0068] Channel bandwidth [MHz] SCS 5 10 20 50 80 100 Transmission bandwidth configuration N RB 15kHz2552106207N / AN / A30kHz11245113321727360kHzN / A112465107135

[0069] Channel bandwidth [MHz] SCS50100200400 Transmission bandwidth configuration N RB 60kHz66132264N / A120kHz3266132264

[0070] Figure 5 illustrates an example of a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) within a slot. The DMRS is a reference signal (RS) used to demodulate data. The DMRS can be used to estimate the channel for demodulating data (e.g., PDSCH, PUSCH) and obtain the results of the channel estimation.

[0071] The above channel may include a physical channel, a transport channel, and a logical channel, depending on the layers defined in the communication standard. The physical channel may provide functions (e.g., channel coding, HARQ processing, modulation, multi-antenna processing, resource mapping) necessary for generating physical signals in the physical layer. In the physical layer, the physical signals are modulated using OFDM and can be transmitted in a wireless environment through time-frequency resources (e.g., resources of the resource grid of FIG. 4).

[0072] In downlink transmission, the physical channel may include at least one of a physical broadcast channel (PBCH), a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), or a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). The PDCCH may be used to carry downlink control information (DCI). Generally, downlink data may refer to symbols transmitted through the PDSCH, and a downlink control signal may refer to symbols transmitted through the PDCCH. In addition, in the downlink, in addition to the channels, a synchronization signal (e.g., a primary synchronization signal (PSS), a secondary synchronization signal (SSS)) and an SS / PBCH block including a broadcast signal (e.g., a PBCH)) may be transmitted for synchronization. In addition, in the downlink, a channel state information-reference signal (CSI-RS) for obtaining measurement or channel information, a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) for channel estimation and demodulation, and a phase tracking reference signal (PTRS) may be transmitted in the downlink.

[0073] In uplink transmission, the physical channel may include at least one of a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), or a physical random access channel (PRACH). The PUSCH or PUCCH may be used to carry uplink control information (UCI). Generally, uplink data refers to symbols transmitted through the PUSCH, and the uplink control signal may mean symbols corresponding to the UCI. For example, the UCI may include at least one of a scheduling request (SR), a hybrid automatic request (HARQ)-acknowledge (ACK) bit(s), or channel state information (CSI). In addition, in the uplink, in addition to the above channels, a DMRS and a PTRS for channel estimation and demodulation may be transmitted in the downlink for channel estimation.

[0074] The above transmission channel connects a physical layer and a medium access channel (MAC) layer located at an upper level of the physical layer, and can be classified according to how data is transmitted through the wireless interface. In the downlink, the transmission channel may include at least one of a paging channel (PCH) for paging, a broadcast channel (BCH) for broadcasting system information, or a downlink shared channel (DL-SCH) for transmitting downlink data. In the uplink, the transmission channel may include at least one of a random access channel (RACH) for transmitting a random access preamble or an uplink shared channel (UL-SCH) for transmitting downlink data.

[0075] The above logical channel is located above the transport channel and is mapped to the transport channel. The logical channel can be divided into a control channel for transmitting control region information and a traffic channel for transmitting user region information. The control channel of the logical channel can include at least one of a paging control channel (PCCH), a broadcast control channel (BCCH), a common control channel (CCCH), or a dedicated control channel (DCCH). The traffic channel of the logical channel can include a dedicated traffic channel (DTCH).

[0076] In describing embodiments of the present disclosure, "data" may refer to sequences other than reference signals. For example, "data" acquired by a receiver in uplink communication may refer to signals transmitted via the PUSCH. However, the PUSCH is merely exemplary, and it is understood that embodiments of the present disclosure may also be applied to other channels requiring channel estimation (e.g., PDSCH, PBCH, PDCCH, PUCCH).

[0077] Hereinafter, to explain the channel estimation of the present disclosure and the operations utilizing DMRS for channel estimation, uplink transmission in an NR communication system is described as an example. However, the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to the uplink of an NR communication system. It goes without saying that the embodiments of the present disclosure can also be applied to downlink or other communication systems.

[0078] Referring to FIG. 5, a base station (e.g., base station 110) may receive a signal from a terminal (e.g., terminal 120). The terminal 120 may transmit an uplink signal to the base station 110. The received signal may include data (hereinafter, “received data”) received on an uplink channel (e.g., PUSCH). The received data may be transmitted in data symbols in the time domain. In addition, the received signal may include reference signals (hereinafter, “received reference signals”) (e.g., DMRS) for channel estimation and coherent demodulation of the data symbols. The received reference signals may be transmitted in DMRS symbols in the time domain. The base station 110 may receive the received data from the terminal 120 in the data symbols of a slot and receive the received reference signals in the DMRS symbols. A slot may include 14 symbols (e.g., symbol #0 (500), symbol #1 (501), symbol #2 (502), symbol #3 (503), symbol #4 (504), symbol #5 (505), symbol #6 (506), symbol #7 (507), symbol #8 (508), symbol #9 (509), symbol #10 (510), symbol #11 (511), symbol #12 (512), and symbol #13 (513)). At least some of the 14 symbols may be used to carry DMRS sequences. For example, a section of symbol #2 (502) and a section of symbol #11 (511) may include DMRS symbols.

[0079] The base station (110) can estimate the channel between the base station (110) and the terminal (120) through the reception reference signals. The base station (110) can obtain information about the channel experienced by the reception reference signals. For example, the base station (110) can obtain information about the channel experienced by the reception data through the relationship between the positions where the DMRS symbols of the reception reference signals are mapped and the positions where the data symbols of the reception data are mapped. For example, the base station (110) can obtain information about the channel experienced by the reception data by performing interpolation in the frequency domain or interpolation in the time domain based on the information about the channel experienced by the reception reference signals.

[0080] The base station (110) can estimate a channel in each resource element in time-frequency resources using uplink reference signals (e.g., DMRS, SRS). Although FIG. 5 illustrates an example in which channel estimation is performed using two DMRS symbols (e.g., symbol #2 (502) and symbol #11 (511)) within one slot, the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto. The DMRS symbols used for channel estimation need not necessarily be limited to symbols within the same slot.

[0081] Figure 6 illustrates an example of a MIMO (multiple input multiple output) transmitter and receiver.

[0082] Referring to FIG. 6, a communication system (600) for supporting MIMO (e.g., a wired and wireless communication system, or a broadcasting system) may include a transmitter (610) and a receiver (620) as part of electronic devices or nodes that utilize a channel (630) (e.g., a wired or wireless channel, or a combined wired and wireless channel). In the following disclosure, the transmitter (610) and the receiver (620) may be referred to as a transmitter or a receiver, respectively.

[0083] Each of the transmitter (610) and the receiver (620) of FIG. 6 may be included in the electronic device (300). For example, if the transmitter (610) is included in the terminal (120) of FIG. 1, the receiver (620) may be included in the base station (110) of FIG. 1. For example, if the transmitter (610) is included in the terminal (120) of FIG. 1, the receiver (620) may be included in the DU (210) (or, RU (220), DU (210), and RU (220)) of FIG. 2A. However, the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto. For example, if the transmitter (610) is included in the base station (110) of FIG. 1, the receiver (620) may be included in the terminal (120) of FIG. 1.

[0084] According to one embodiment, the transmitter (610) and the receiver (620) may be included in different electronic devices depending on the link formed between the communication nodes. For example, the transmitter (610) may be a base station (110), and the receiver (620) may be a terminal (120). Furthermore, the receiver (620) may be a base station (110), and the transmitter (610) may be a terminal (120). For example, the transmitter (610) or the receiver (620) may be included in the base station (110), which includes a digital unit (DU) (e.g., DU (210) of FIG. 2A) and a radio unit (RU) (e.g., RU (220) of FIG. 2A). For example, at least some of the signal processing operations of the transmitter (610) or the receiver (620) may be performed in the DU of the base station (110).

[0085] Hereinafter, the entity transmitting the signal is described as a transmitter (610), and the entity receiving the signal is described as a receiver (620). However, these are only functional expressions for explaining the signal processing process and are not to be construed as limiting a specific embodiment. For convenience of explanation, FIG. 6 exemplifies a communication system (600) in which the transmitter (610) and the receiver (620) are implemented as different electronic devices or nodes. However, the transmitter (610) and the receiver (620) may be included within a single electronic device.

[0086] According to one embodiment, the transmitter (610) can perform conversion between a baseband signal and a bit stream according to the physical layer specification of the system. For example, the transmitter (610) can generate a codeword by encoding information bits based on at least one channel encoder (611). The transmitter (610) can generate complex symbols based on the encoded codeword through a modulator (612). The transmitter (610) can process a reference signal known to the transmitter (610) together with the complex symbols through a resource mapping and multiplexer (613). For example, the transmitter (610) can perform time / space / frequency resource mapping on the complex symbols and the reference signal, and multiplex them using an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDM) / discrete Fourier transform-spread-OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) / code division multiple access (CDMA) method, etc. The transmitter (610) can transmit a signal processed through a transmission front end (614). For example, in a communication system (600) supporting MIMO, the transmission front end (614) of the transmitter (610) can include a plurality of transmission antennas. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, in a communication system (600) supporting SIMO, the transmission front end (614) of the transmitter (610) can include one transmission antenna.For example, the transmitter (610) may up-convert a baseband signal to an RF (radio frequency) signal and then transmit the RF signal through an antenna. As the transmitted RF signal passes through the channel (630), it may be affected by damage or gain reduction due to background noise, interference, fading, etc.

[0087] According to one embodiment, the receiver (620) may receive an RF signal transmitted from the transmitter (610) and passing through a channel (630) through the reception front end (621). For example, in a communication system (600) supporting MIMO, the reception front end (621) of the receiver (620) may include a plurality of reception antennas. For example, the RF signal may be received through an antenna after passing through the channel (630). The RF signal may be down-converted to a baseband signal. The receiver (620) may process the baseband signal through a resource demapping and demultiplexer (622). For example, the receiver (620) may demultiplex and demap the baseband signal to distinguish it into a reference signal and a data signal. The baseband signal may be referred to as a reception signal received by the receiver (620). The reference signal and the data signal identified by demultiplexing and dephasing from the above-described reception signal may be referred to as a reception reference signal and a reception data signal, respectively. The receiving end (620) may estimate a channel (630) from the reference signal through a channel estimator (623). The receiving end (620) may perform equalization through a channel equalizer (624) based on information about the channel estimation and the data signal. The receiving end (620) may estimate or restore the transmitted bit string by demodulating and decoding through a demodulator (625) and a channel decoder (626).

[0088] In communication systems, efficient cell operation is required to handle a large amount of traffic and increase coverage. When cells are operated at boundaries or small cells are operated, interference from adjacent cells may exist within the coverage area of ​​a specific cell. To eliminate such interference, various interference rejection (or interference cancellation, interference suppression) techniques can be utilized. For example, the interference rejection techniques may include an interference rejection combining (IRC) technique that utilizes covariance information of interference and noise. For example, the covariance information of interference and noise may include a covariance matrix of the interference and noise. For example, the IRC technique can utilize the covariance matrix of the interference and noise to remove interference (or signals from adjacent cells) from received signals and detect signal components (or signals from a specific cell). The above IRC technique can effectively remove interference from received signals when the level of interference (hereinafter, “interference level”) is greater than the level of noise (hereinafter, “noise level”). However, when the level of interference is less than the noise level, the IRC technique may distort not only the interference but also the signal components of the received signals, thereby reducing efficiency.

[0089] In order to complement the above IRC technique, a technique that adaptively performs the IRC technique based on the signal to interference ratio (SIR) or interference to noise ratio (INR) (adaptive IRC technique) or a technique that combines the IRC technique with the successive interference cancellation (SIC) decoding method (IRC-SIC technique) can be used. However, the adaptive IRC technique or the IRC-SIC technique can effectively remove interference when the same level of interference is introduced to all receiving antennas of a receiver (e.g., the receiving end (620) of FIG. 6), but it may be difficult to effectively remove interference when the presence or level of interference is different for each receiving antenna.

[0090] In addition, when the receiving antenna of the electronic device (300) is an antenna using dual polarization, the receiving antenna may be composed of a plurality of antenna elements. Even if the positions of the receiving antennas are the same, interference may be introduced to a specific antenna element but not to another antenna element depending on the arrangement of the antenna element that receives a signal of a first polarization (e.g., vertical polarization) and the antenna element that receives a signal of a second polarization (e.g., horizontal polarization). In addition, when a base station of a serving cell and a neighboring base station of a neighboring cell use CoMP (coordinated multi-point operation) (or cooperative beamforming), the base station may perform communication based on the CoMP using some of the receiving antennas included in the base station, but may perform normal communication using other antennas among the receiving antennas. In this case, a signal transmitted or received to or from the other antennas may act as interference to some of the antennas. In the above example, interference may be introduced from some of the receiving antennas included in the base station. In the above example, the electronic device (300) including the receiving antennas is exemplified as a base station (e.g., the base station (110) of FIG. 1), but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the electronic device (300) may include a terminal (e.g., the terminal (120) of FIG. 1) that receives service from the base station.

[0091] As described above, when an electronic device (300) includes a plurality of receiving antennas (or antenna elements, receiving antenna elements), interference may be introduced only to a specific receiving antenna among the receiving antennas. For example, the plurality of receiving antennas may be referred to as physical antennas. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the plurality of receiving antennas may be referred to as antenna ports, which are logical antennas. However, the exemplified IRC techniques only perform interference cancellation based on a covariance matrix defined (or calculated) for all receiving antennas included in the electronic device (300), and cannot perform interference cancellation and control on a receiving antenna basis.

[0092] Hereinafter, the device, method, and storage medium according to the present disclosure can perform interference cancellation for a specific receiving antenna unit in interference cancellation using the IRC technique. For example, the device, method, and storage medium according to the present disclosure can generate a covariance matrix of noise and interference for receiving antennas, and determine whether to perform interference cancellation for each receiving antenna, thereby generating a modified covariance matrix (hereinafter, a modified covariance matrix) from the covariance matrix. The device, method, and storage medium according to the present disclosure can perform equalization and decoding on receiving signals by determining weights using the modified covariance matrix. The device, method, and storage medium according to an embodiment of the present disclosure can perform interference cancellation for some receiving antennas into which interference has not been introduced (or turn off the IRC function) and perform interference cancellation for other receiving antennas into which interference has been introduced. Accordingly, the device, method, and storage medium according to the embodiment of the present disclosure can effectively detect signal components by reducing power consumption used in analyzing received signals and removing interference more accurately.

[0093] Hereinafter, in the present disclosure, the following mathematical symbols may be used.

[0094] ● In this disclosure, unless otherwise stated, it is assumed that the index of the first element of a set, sequence, or vector starts from 0 (zero-based numbering).

[0095]

[0096]

[0097] For convenience of explanation, an example is assumed in which an external electronic device (or transmitter (e.g., transmitter (610) of FIG. 6)) transmits a PUSCH (physical uplink shared channel). For example, the external electronic device may include the terminal (120) of FIG. 1. For example, the external electronic device may transmit signals including a data signal and a reference signal on the PUSCH. The transmitted signals may be referred to as transmission signals. For example, the reference signal may include the DMRS illustrated in FIG. 5.

[0098] The electronic device (300) (or receiver (e.g., the receiving end (620) of FIG. 6)) can acquire the signals on the PUSCH through the receiving antennas. In one example, when the electronic device (300) is the DU (210) of FIG. 2A, the electronic device (300) can receive the signals received through the receiving antennas of the RU (220) from the RU (220). The signals acquired by the electronic device (300) can be referred to as received signals. A data signal within the received signals can be referred to as a received data signal, and a reference signal within the received signals can be referred to as a received reference signal.

[0099] For example, the electronic device (300) is N rx The received signals can be acquired through the receiving antennas (e.g., the receiving antennas in the receiving front end (621)). The relationship between the received signals and the transmitted signals can be referred to by the following mathematical equation.

[0100]

[0101]

[0102] For example, the electronic device (300) may, based on channel estimation for the reference signals, The electronic device (300) can generate (or calculate) a covariance matrix of the noise and the interference using the result of the channel estimation. For example, the covariance matrix of the noise and the interference is as follows:

[0103]

[0104]

[0105]

[0106]

[0107]

[0108] The electronic device (300) can perform equalization on the received signals using weights (or weight matrices) determined using the covariance matrix. For example, the following mathematical formula may be used to refer to a method for applying the weights to the equalization of the received signals.

[0109]

[0110]

[0111]

[0112]

[0113]

[0114] Figure 7 illustrates an example of an operational flow for a method in which an electronic device performs interference rejection based on interference per receiving antenna. Figure 8 illustrates an example of a covariance matrix in which off-diagonal entries associated with receiving antennas are changed to reference values.

[0115] At least some of the methods of FIG. 7 may be performed by the electronic device (300) of FIG. 3. For example, at least some of the methods may be controlled by the processor (330) of the electronic device (300). In the following embodiments, each operation may be performed sequentially, but is not necessarily performed sequentially. For example, the order of each operation may be changed, and at least two operations may be performed in parallel.

[0116] In operation (700), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may obtain received signals including a reference signal. For example, the electronic device (300) (or receiver) may directly receive the received signals from an external electronic device (or transmitter) via receiving antennas. Alternatively, for example, the electronic device (300) (e.g., DU (210) of FIG. 2A) may receive the received signals from another electronic device (e.g., RU (220) of FIG. 2A) that has received the received signals from the external electronic device via the receiving antennas. The received signals may include the reference signal and a data signal. For example, the reference signal may include DMRS.

[0117] In operation (705), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may generate a covariance matrix of noise and interference for the receiving antennas. For example, the electronic device (300) may perform channel estimation on the reference signal acquired through the receiving antennas. For example, the electronic device (300) may generate the covariance matrix of noise and interference based on the result of the channel estimation. For example, the covariance matrix may be referred to as covariance information. For example, a specific example of the covariance matrix may be referred to as FIG. 8.

[0118]

[0119]

[0120] Referring again to FIG. 7, the electronic device (300) calculates the covariance matrix (e.g., FIG. 8) based on the results of the channel estimation. can be created.

[0121] In operation (710), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may determine whether the first diagonal component is less than a threshold value. For example, the electronic device (300) may recognize the first diagonal component of the covariance matrix and determine whether the first diagonal component is less than the threshold value. For example, the first diagonal component may be referred to as a first variance component corresponding to a first receiving antenna. Referring to the example (800) of FIG. 8, the electronic device (300) may determine whether the first diagonal component, which is the first diagonal component (R 11 )(810) can determine whether it is less than the above threshold value.

[0122] In one embodiment, the threshold value may be determined based on the noise levels of the receiving antennas. For example, the threshold value may be determined based on an average value of the noise levels of the receiving antennas used to receive the reference signal. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the threshold value may be determined based on a representative value (e.g., a median value, a maximum value) of the noise levels.

[0123] In operation (710), if the first diagonal component is less than the threshold value, the electronic device (300) may perform operation (715). In operation (710), if the first diagonal component is greater than or equal to the threshold value, the electronic device (300) may perform operation (720).

[0124] In operation (715), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may determine whether the second diagonal component is less than the threshold value. For example, if the first diagonal component is less than the threshold value, the electronic device (300) may determine whether the second diagonal component, which is different from the first diagonal component, is less than the threshold value. For example, the second diagonal component may be referred to as a second dispersion component corresponding to a second receiving antenna. Referring to example (800) of FIG. 8, the electronic device (300) may determine whether the second diagonal component (R) is less than the threshold value. 22 )(820) can determine whether it is less than the above threshold value.

[0125] According to one embodiment, the threshold value as a comparison target of the second diagonal component may be the same as the threshold value as a comparison target of the first diagonal component. For example, the threshold value may have the same value for all receiving antennas. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. According to one embodiment, the threshold value may have a different value for each receiving antenna. For example, when the physical antenna structure of each of the receiving antennas is changed or the receiving antennas are used in different receiving environments (e.g., the first to fourth receiving antennas are receiving antennas of the first RU, and the fifth to eighth receiving antennas are receiving antennas of the second RU), the threshold value may have a different value for each receiving antenna.

[0126] In operation (715), if the second diagonal component is less than the threshold value, the electronic device (300) may perform operation (725). In operation (715), if the second diagonal component is greater than or equal to the threshold value, the electronic device (300) may perform operation (720).

[0127] In operation (720), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may generate weights using the covariance matrix. For example, the electronic device (300) may generate the weights using the covariance matrix generated in operation (705). For example, the weights may be referred to as MMSE weights of the receiver.

[0128] In Fig. 7, for convenience of explanation, the weight is illustrated as being generated based on the result of comparing two diagonal components (the first diagonal component and the second diagonal component), but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the electronic device (300) may perform a comparison between two diagonal components among all diagonal components in the covariance matrix. The two diagonal components for which the comparison is performed are pairs of diagonal components that can be combined among all diagonal components (e.g., (R in the example (800) of Fig. 8). 11 , R 22 ), (R 11 , R 33 ), (R 11 , R 44 ), (R 11 , R 55 ), (R 11 , R 66 ), (R 11 , R 77 ), (R 11 , R 88 ), (R 22 , R 33 ), (R 22 , R 44 ), (R 22 , R 55 ), (R 22 , R 66 ), (R 22 , R 77 ), (R 22 , R 88 ), (R 33 , R 44 ), (R 33 , R 55 ), (R 33 , R 66), (R 33 , R 77 ), (R 33 , R 88 ), (R 44 , R 55 ), (R 44 , R 66 ), (R 44 , R 77 ), (R 44 , R 88 ), (R 55 , R 66 ), (R 55 , R 77 ), (R 55 , R 88 ), (R 66 , R 77 ), (R 66 , R 88 ), (R 77 , R 88 )). In the above example, the electronic device (300) may perform a comparison for each of the 28 pairs. If the result of the comparison for each of the 28 pairs is that one of the two diagonal components of each pair is greater than or equal to the threshold value or the remaining diagonal component is greater than or equal to the threshold value, the electronic device (300) may generate the weights using the covariance matrix generated in operation (705). The covariance matrix generated in operation (705) may indicate that the interference cancellation function (or IRC) is activated (or ON) for the receiving antennas. In other words, the electronic device (300) calculating the weights using the covariance matrix may be referred to as performing interference cancellation for all of the receiving antennas.

[0129] Although not illustrated in FIG. 7, the electronic device (300) may perform equalization of the received signals according to the weights determined using the covariance matrix. The electronic device (300) may perform decoding on the equalized received signals (or data signals).

[0130] In operation (725), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may change each of one or more first off-diagonal components located in a row of the first diagonal component and each of one or more second off-diagonal components located in a column of the second diagonal component to a reference value. For example, the electronic device (300) may change (or replace) each of the one or more first off-diagonal components and the one or more second off-diagonal components to the reference value based on the first diagonal component being less than the threshold value and the second diagonal component being less than the threshold value. For example, the reference value may represent a value indicating no interference. For example, the value indicating no interference may be 0.

[0131] Referring to example (800) of Fig. 8, the electronic device (300) has the first diagonal component (R 11 )(810) is less than the above threshold value, and the second diagonal component (R 22 )(820) is determined to be less than the above threshold value, the first diagonal component (R 11 )(810) can change each of one or more first off-diagonal components (831) located in a row (e.g., the first row) to the reference value (e.g., 0). One or more first off-diagonal components (831) (or covariance components) can be associated with the first receiving antenna. In addition, the electronic device (300) can change the first diagonal component (R 11 )(810) is less than the above threshold value, and the second diagonal component (R 22 )(820) is determined to be less than the above threshold value, the second diagonal component (R 22)(820) can change each of one or more second off-diagonal components (832) located in the column (e.g., the second column) to the reference value (e.g., 0). One or more second off-diagonal components (832) (or covariance components) can be associated with the second receiving antenna. In this case, the off-diagonal component (R) associated with both the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna 12 )(833)(or covariance component) can be changed to the above reference value.

[0132] Referring again to FIG. 7, in operation (730), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may generate a modified covariance matrix. For example, the electronic device (300) may generate the modified covariance matrix by changing at least some components (or at least some covariance components) of the covariance matrix generated in operation (705) to the reference value. For example, the modified covariance matrix may be a covariance matrix of which at least some components have the reference value from the covariance matrix generated in operation (705). The modified covariance matrix generated in operation (730) may indicate that the interference cancellation function (or IRC) is activated (or ON) or deactivated (or OFF) for each receiving antenna. In other words, the electronic device (300) calculating weights using the modified covariance matrix may be referred to as performing interference cancellation on some of the receiving antennas and not performing interference cancellation on other receiving antennas. Alternatively, in a specific case (e.g., when all off-diagonal components are changed to the reference value), the electronic device (300) calculating weights using the modified covariance matrix may be referred to as not performing interference cancellation on all receiving antennas.

[0133] In operation (735), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may generate weights using the modified covariance matrix. For example, the electronic device (300) may generate the weights using the modified covariance matrix generated in operation (730). For example, the weights may be referenced as MMSE weights of the receiver. For example, the weights generated in operation (735) may be different from the weights generated in operation (720).

[0134] In FIGS. 7 and 8, for convenience of explanation, the electronic device (300) is illustrated as comparing the first diagonal component associated with the first receiving antenna and the second diagonal component associated with the second receiving antenna and generating the modified covariance matrix, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. As described above, the electronic device (300) can perform a comparison between two diagonal components among all diagonal components in the covariance matrix. The two diagonal components for which the comparison is performed are pairs of diagonal components that can be combined among all diagonal components (e.g., (R in the example (800) of FIG. 8). 11 , R 22 ), (R 11 , R 33 ), (R 11 , R 44 ), (R 11 , R 55 ), (R 11 , R 66 ), (R 11 , R 77 ), (R 11 , R 88 ), (R 22 , R 33 ), (R 22 , R 44 ), (R 22 , R 55 ), (R 22 , R 66 ), (R 22 , R 77 ), (R 22, R 88 ), (R 33 , R 44 ), (R 33 , R 55 ), (R 33 , R 66 ), (R 33 , R 77 ), (R 33 , R 88 ), (R 44 , R 55 ), (R 44 , R 66 ), (R 44 , R 77 ), (R 44 , R 88 ), (R 55 , R 66 ), (R 55 , R 77 ), (R 55 , R 88 ), (R 66 , R 77 ), (R 66 , R 88 ), (R 77 , R 88 )) can be expressed. By performing a change to the reference value for all off-diagonal elements that satisfy the condition according to the result of the above comparison, the modified covariance matrix can be generated.

[0135] Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, the electronic device (300) can determine whether to perform IRC on a per-receive antenna basis by replacing off-diagonal elements (e.g., rows or columns) associated with the receive antennas with reference values ​​through comparison between diagonal elements of the covariance matrix for the receive antennas. The above-described method can be referenced in the table below.

[0136]

[0137]

[0138] Referring to the above table, the electronic device (300) may perform a comparison between diagonal components for two of the receiving antennas, and if a condition (e.g., each of the two diagonal components is less than the threshold value) is satisfied, the off-diagonal components associated with the two receiving antennas being compared may be changed to the reference value (e.g., 0). In the above table, the case where all off-diagonal components located in the rows of the diagonal components and all off-diagonal components located in the columns are changed (or replaced) to the reference value is shown, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, if the above condition is satisfied, the electronic device (300) may change the off-diagonal components associated with both of the two receiving antennas being compared to the reference value. For specific details related thereto, the following table may be referenced.

[0139]

[0140]

[0141] Although FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate an example of a method for generating a modified covariance matrix based on a comparison between two of the receive antennas, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, a modified covariance matrix may also be generated based on a comparison between a first receive antenna group and a second receive antenna group among the receive antennas. For specific details related thereto, reference may be made to FIGS. 9 and 10 below.

[0142] Figure 9 illustrates an example of an operational flow for a method in which an electronic device performs interference rejection based on interference for each receive antenna group. Figure 10 illustrates an example of a covariance matrix in which off-diagonal components associated with a receive antenna group are changed to a reference value.

[0143] At least some of the methods of FIG. 9 may be performed by the electronic device (300) of FIG. 3. For example, at least some of the methods may be controlled by the processor (330) of the electronic device (300). In the following embodiments, each operation may be performed sequentially, but is not necessarily performed sequentially. For example, the order of each operation may be changed, and at least two operations may be performed in parallel.

[0144] In operation (900), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may obtain received signals including a reference signal. For example, the electronic device (300) (or receiver) may directly receive the received signals from an external electronic device (or transmitter) via receiving antennas. Alternatively, for example, the electronic device (300) (e.g., DU (210) of FIG. 2A) may receive the received signals from another electronic device (e.g., RU (220) of FIG. 2A) that has received the received signals from the external electronic device via the receiving antennas. The received signals may include the reference signal and a data signal. For example, the reference signal may include DMRS.

[0145] In operation (905), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may generate a covariance matrix of noise and interference for the receiving antennas. For example, the electronic device (300) may perform channel estimation on the reference signal acquired through the receiving antennas. For example, the electronic device (300) may generate the covariance matrix of noise and interference based on the result of the channel estimation. For example, the covariance matrix may be referred to as covariance information. For example, a specific example of the covariance matrix may be referred to as FIG. 10.

[0146]

[0147]

[0148] Referring again to FIG. 9, the electronic device (300) calculates the covariance matrix (e.g., FIG. 10) based on the results of the channel estimation. can be created.

[0149] In operation (910), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may determine whether the first distribution information corresponding to the first antenna group is below a threshold level. For example, the first antenna group may be referred to as a first receive antenna group, a first set of receive antennas. For example, the first antenna group may include two or more receive antennas, and may include a smaller number of receive antennas than the number of receive antennas. For example, the electronic device (300) may recognize the first distribution information corresponding to the first antenna group and determine whether the first distribution information is below the threshold level.

[0150] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may determine a threshold value as the threshold level when the first distribution information corresponding to the first antenna group is a first average value of diagonal components for receiving antennas in the first antenna group. For example, when the first distribution information is the first average value of the diagonal components of the first antenna group, the electronic device (300) may determine the threshold level as the threshold value as a comparison target of the first average value. Referring to the example (1000) of FIG. 10, it is assumed that the first antenna group includes a first receiving antenna and a second receiving antenna. For example, the electronic device (300) may determine a first diagonal component (R) among the block diagonal matrix (1010) of the first antenna group. 11 )(1011) and the second diagonal component (R 22)(1012) can obtain the first variance information representing the first average value. The electronic device (300) can determine whether the first average value is less than the threshold value.

[0151] In one embodiment, the threshold value may be determined based on the noise levels of the receiving antennas. For example, the threshold value may be determined based on an average value of the noise levels of the receiving antennas used to receive the reference signal. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the threshold value may be determined based on a representative value (e.g., a median value, a maximum value) of the noise levels.

[0152] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may determine a threshold number as the threshold level when the first distribution information corresponding to the first antenna group is a first number representing the number of diagonal components greater than or equal to the threshold value among the diagonal components for the receiving antennas in the first antenna group. For example, when the first distribution information is the first number of diagonal components greater than or equal to the threshold value among the diagonal components of the first antenna group, the electronic device (300) may determine the threshold level as the threshold number as a comparison target of the first number. Referring to the example (1000) of FIG. 10, it is assumed that the first antenna group includes a first receiving antenna and a second receiving antenna. For example, the electronic device (300) may determine a first diagonal component (R) among the block diagonal matrix (1010) of the first antenna group. 11 )(1011) and the second diagonal component (R 22 )(1012) can be compared with the above threshold value. For example, the electronic device (300) may compare the first diagonal component (R) that is greater than or equal to the threshold value according to the comparison. 11)(1011) and the second diagonal component (R) below the threshold value 22 )(1012) and can obtain the first distributed information indicating the first number (e.g., 1). For example, the electronic device (300) can determine whether the first number is less than the threshold number (e.g., 2). In the above example, for convenience of explanation, a case is illustrated where the first antenna group includes two receiving antennas, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0153] In operation (910), if the first distributed information is below the threshold level, the electronic device (300) may perform operation (915). In operation (910), if the first distributed information is above the threshold level, the electronic device (300) may perform operation (920).

[0154] In operation (915), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may determine whether the second distribution information corresponding to the second antenna group is below a threshold level. The second antenna group may be different from the first antenna group. For example, the second antenna group may not overlap with the first antenna group. For example, the second antenna group may be referred to as a second receive antenna group, a second set of receive antennas. For example, the second antenna group may include two or more receive antennas, and may include a smaller number of receive antennas than the number of receive antennas. For example, the electronic device (300) may recognize the second distribution information corresponding to the second antenna group and determine whether the second distribution information is below the threshold level.

[0155] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may determine the threshold value as the threshold level when the second distribution information corresponding to the second antenna group is the second average value of the diagonal components for the receiving antennas in the second antenna group. For example, when the second distribution information is the second average value of the diagonal components of the second antenna group, the electronic device (300) may determine the threshold level as the threshold value as a comparison target of the second average value. Referring to the example (1000) of FIG. 10, it is assumed that the second antenna group includes a fifth receiving antenna and a sixth receiving antenna. For example, the electronic device (300) may determine the fifth diagonal component (R) among the block diagonal matrix (1020) of the second antenna group. 55 )(1021) and the sixth diagonal component (R 66 )(1022) can obtain the second variance information representing the second average value. The electronic device (300) can determine whether the second average value is less than the threshold value.

[0156] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may determine the threshold number as the threshold level when the second distribution information corresponding to the second antenna group is a second number representing the number of diagonal components greater than or equal to the threshold value among the diagonal components for the receiving antennas in the second antenna group. For example, when the second distribution information is the second number of diagonal components greater than or equal to the threshold value among the diagonal components of the second antenna group, the electronic device (300) may determine the threshold level as the threshold number as a comparison target of the second number. Referring to the example (1000) of FIG. 10, it is assumed that the second antenna group includes a fifth receiving antenna and a sixth receiving antenna. For example, the electronic device (300) may determine the fifth diagonal component (R) among the block diagonal matrix (1020) of the second antenna group. 55 )(1021) and the sixth diagonal component (R 66 )(1022) can be compared with the threshold value. For example, the electronic device (300) may compare the fifth diagonal component (R) that is less than the threshold value according to the comparison. 55 )(1021) and the sixth diagonal component (R 66 )(1022) and can obtain the second distributed information indicating the second number (e.g., 0). For example, the electronic device (300) can determine whether the second number is less than the threshold number (e.g., 2). In the above example, for convenience of explanation, the case where the second antenna group includes two receiving antennas is illustrated, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the number of antennas included in the second antenna group may be different from the number of antennas included in the first antenna group.

[0157] In one embodiment, the first distribution information and the second distribution information may be of the same type of distribution information. For example, if the first distribution information is an average value, the second distribution information may also be an average value. For example, if the first distribution information is a count, the second distribution information may also be a count.

[0158] In operation (915), if the second distributed information is below the threshold level, the electronic device (300) may perform operation (925). In operation (915), if the second distributed information is above the threshold level, the electronic device (300) may perform operation (920).

[0159] In operation (920), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may generate weights using the covariance matrix. For example, the electronic device (300) may generate the weights using the covariance matrix generated in operation (705). For example, the weights may be referred to as MMSE weights of the receiver.

[0160] For convenience of explanation, in FIG. 9, the weights are illustrated as being generated based on the results of comparing the distribution information of two antenna groups (e.g., the first distribution information and the second distribution information), but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the electronic device (300) may perform a comparison between two antenna groups among all antenna groups constituting the receiving antennas. For example, if the receiving antennas include eight receiving antennas, and four antenna groups (e.g., first antenna group (first receiving antenna, second receiving antenna), second antenna group (third receiving antenna, fourth receiving antenna), third antenna group (fifth receiving antenna, sixth receiving antenna), fourth antenna group (seventh receiving antenna, eighth receiving antenna)) are formed, a comparison can be performed between pairs of combinable antenna groups (e.g., (first antenna group, second antenna group), (first antenna group, third antenna group), (first antenna group, fourth antenna group), (second antenna group, third antenna group), (second antenna group, fourth antenna group), (third antenna group, fourth antenna group)). For example, the electronic device (300) can perform a comparison for each of the four pairs. If the result of the comparison for each of the four pairs above is that the dispersion information of one of the two antenna groups of each pair is greater than or equal to the threshold level or the dispersion information of the remaining antenna groups is at the threshold level, the electronic device (300) may perform operation (920). In other words, the electronic device (300) may perform operation (920) after performing operation (910) and operation (915) for all of the combinable pairs.

[0161] In operation (920), the electronic device (300) may generate the weights using the covariance matrix generated in operation (905). The covariance matrix generated in operation (905) may indicate that the interference cancellation function (or IRC) is activated (or ON) for the receiving antennas. In other words, the electronic device (300) calculating the weights using the covariance matrix may be referred to as performing interference cancellation for all of the receiving antennas.

[0162] Although not illustrated in FIG. 9, the electronic device (300) may perform equalization of the received signals according to the weights determined using the covariance matrix. The electronic device (300) may perform decoding on the equalized received signals (or data signals).

[0163] In operation (925), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may change each of the off-diagonal components related to both the first antenna group and the second antenna group to the reference value. For example, the electronic device (300) may change (or replace) each of the off-diagonal components related to both the first antenna group and the second antenna group to the reference value based on the first variance information that is below the threshold level and the second variance information that is below the threshold level. For example, the reference value may represent a value indicating no interference. For example, the value indicating no interference may be 0.

[0164] Referring to the example (1000) of FIG. 10, the electronic device (300) determines that the first analysis information (e.g., the first average value or the first number) obtained from the block diagonal matrix (1010) corresponding to the first antenna group is below the threshold level, and the second analysis information (e.g., the second average value or the second number) obtained from the block diagonal matrix (1020) corresponding to the second antenna group is below the threshold level, and then determines off-diagonal components (1030) (e.g., R) associated with both the first antenna group and the second antenna group. 15 , R 16 , R 25 , R 26 ) can be changed to the reference value (e.g., 0). Alternatively, the electronic device (300) determines that the first analysis information (e.g., the first average value or the first number) obtained from the block diagonal matrix (1010) corresponding to the first antenna group is less than the threshold level, and the second analysis information (e.g., the second average value or the second number) obtained from the block diagonal matrix (1020) corresponding to the second antenna group is less than the threshold level, and then determines off-diagonal components (1040) (e.g., R) associated with both the first antenna group and the second antenna group. 51 , R 52 , R 61 , R 62 ) can be changed to the reference value (e.g., 0). In example (1000), an example of changing both the off-diagonal components (1030) and the off-diagonal components (1040) to the reference value is shown, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, only one of the off-diagonal components (1030) and the off-diagonal components (1040) may be changed to the reference value.

[0165] Referring back to FIG. 9, in operation (930), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may generate a modified covariance matrix. For example, the electronic device (300) may generate the modified covariance matrix by changing at least some components (or at least some covariance components) of the covariance matrix generated in operation (905) to the reference value. For example, the modified covariance matrix may be a covariance matrix of which at least some components have the reference value from the covariance matrix generated in operation (905). The modified covariance matrix generated in operation (730) may indicate that the interference cancellation function (or IRC) is activated (or ON) or deactivated (or OFF) for each receive antenna group. In other words, the electronic device (300) calculating weights using the modified covariance matrix may be referred to as performing interference cancellation on some groups of receiving antennas and not performing interference cancellation on other groups of receiving antennas. Alternatively, in a specific case (e.g., when all off-diagonal components are changed to the reference value), the electronic device (300) calculating weights using the modified covariance matrix may be referred to as not performing interference cancellation on all receiving antennas.

[0166] In operation (935), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may generate weights using the modified covariance matrix. For example, the electronic device (300) may generate the weights using the modified covariance matrix generated in operation (930). For example, the weights may be referenced as MMSE weights of the receiver. For example, the weights generated in operation (935) may be different from the weights generated in operation (920).

[0167] Referring to FIGS. 9 and 10, the electronic device (300) can determine whether to perform IRC for each receiving antenna group by replacing the off-diagonal elements related to the receiving antenna group with a reference value through a comparison between the diagonal elements of the covariance matrix for the antenna groups among the receiving antennas.

[0168] In the above example, it is described that each of the first antenna group and the second antenna group includes a smaller number of antennas than the number of receiving antennas included in the electronic device (300), but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, if the first antenna group corresponds to the number of receiving antennas, the electronic device (300) may generate a covariance matrix (e.g., as shown in FIG. 10) for the receiving antennas. You can determine whether IRC is being performed on a per unit basis.

[0169] FIG. 11 illustrates an example of an operational flow for a method in which an electronic device generates corrected covariance information from covariance information of noise and interference and performs equalization using the corrected covariance information.

[0170] At least some of the methods of FIG. 11 may be performed by the electronic device (300) of FIG. 3. For example, at least some of the methods may be controlled by the processor (330) of the electronic device (300). In the following embodiments, each operation may be performed sequentially, but is not necessarily performed sequentially. For example, the order of each operation may be changed, and at least two operations may be performed in parallel.

[0171] In operation (1110), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) can generate covariance information of noise and interference for the receiving antennas based on channel estimation using reference signals obtained through the receiving antennas.

[0172] For example, the electronic device (300) can obtain reception signals including the reference signal. For example, the electronic device (300) (or receiver) can directly receive the reception signals from an external electronic device (or transmitter) through reception antennas. Or, for example, the electronic device (300) (e.g., DU (210) of FIG. 2A) can receive the reception signals from another electronic device (e.g., RU (220) of FIG. 2A) that has received the reception signals from the external electronic device through the reception antennas. The reception signals can include the reference signal and a data signal. For example, the reference signal can include DMRS.

[0173] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may generate covariance information of noise and interference for the receiving antennas. The covariance information may include a covariance matrix of noise and interference for the receiving antennas. For example, the electronic device (300) may perform channel estimation for the reference signal acquired through the receiving antennas. For example, the electronic device (300) may generate a covariance matrix of noise and interference based on the result of the channel estimation. For example, the covariance matrix may be referred to as covariance information. For example, a specific example of the covariance matrix may be referred to as FIG. 8.

[0174] In operation (1120), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may generate corrected covariance information by changing covariance components associated with both the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna to a reference value. For example, the electronic device (300) may generate corrected covariance information by changing the covariance components associated with both the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna to the reference value when each of the first variance component corresponding to the first receiving antenna of the covariance information and the second variance component corresponding to the second receiving antenna of the covariance information is less than a threshold value.

[0175] For example, the first variance component may represent a first diagonal component corresponding to the first receiving antenna in the covariance matrix. For example, the second variance component may represent a second diagonal component corresponding to the second receiving antenna in the covariance matrix.

[0176] In one embodiment, the threshold value may be determined based on the noise levels of the receiving antennas. For example, the threshold value may be determined based on an average value of the noise levels of the receiving antennas used to receive the reference signal. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the threshold value may be determined based on a representative value (e.g., a median value, a maximum value) of the noise levels.

[0177] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may compare each of the first variance component and the second variance component with the threshold value. For example, the electronic device (300) may perform equalization of the received signals according to a weight determined using the covariance information when the first variance component is greater than or equal to the threshold value or the second variance component is greater than or equal to the threshold value. For example, the covariance information may represent a covariance matrix generated in operation (1110). For example, the electronic device (300) may generate the modified covariance information when each of the first variance component and the second variance component is less than the threshold value. For example, the modified covariance information may represent a covariance matrix in which the covariance components associated with both the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna are replaced with the reference value from the covariance information.

[0178] In operation (1130), according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may perform equalization of the received signals based on weights determined using the modified covariance information. For example, the electronic device (300) may generate the weights using the modified covariance matrix. For example, the weights may be calculated based on the modified covariance information and channel estimation information according to the channel estimation. For example, the weights may be referenced as MMSE weights of the receiver.

[0179] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may perform decoding of the received signals based on the equalization. For example, the electronic device (300) may perform decoding on equalized received signals (or data signals) according to the equalization.

[0180] Although not illustrated in FIG. 11, according to one embodiment, the electronic device (300) may change each of the one or more first covariance components associated with the first receiving antenna to the reference value and each of the one or more second covariance components associated with the second receiving antenna to the reference value when each of the first variance component and the second variance component is less than the threshold value. For example, each of the one or more first covariance components may include a non-diagonal component located in a row of the first diagonal component of the covariance matrix. Each of the one or more second covariance components may include a non-diagonal component located in a column of the second diagonal component of the covariance matrix. For example, the covariance component associated with both the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna may be included in the one or more first covariance components and the one or more second covariance components.

[0181] According to one embodiment, the number of variance components (or diagonal components) of the covariance matrix may correspond to the number of receiving antennas used by the electronic device (300) to receive the receiving signals.

[0182] Additionally, FIG. 11 illustrates an example of a method by which an electronic device (300) determines whether to perform IRC for each receiving antenna, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the electronic device (300) may also determine whether to perform IRC for each group of receiving antennas, as described in FIGS. 9 and 10 .

[0183] Referring to FIGS. 1 to 11, the device, method, and storage medium according to the present disclosure can estimate the interference level for each receiving antenna (or each receiving antenna group) using the diagonal elements of the covariance matrix, and determine whether to perform interference cancellation for each receiving antenna (or each receiving antenna group) using the estimation result. The device, method, and storage medium according to the present disclosure can generate a modified covariance matrix that takes into account whether to perform interference cancellation for each receiving antenna from a covariance matrix based on channel estimation, and perform equalization and decoding on received signals using the modified covariance matrix. The device, method, and storage medium according to the present disclosure can perform equalization and decoding on received signals by determining weights using the modified covariance matrix. The device, method, and storage medium according to an embodiment of the present disclosure can perform interference cancellation for some receiving antennas into which interference has not been introduced (or turn off the function) and perform interference cancellation for other receiving antennas into which interference has been introduced. Accordingly, the device, method, and storage medium according to the embodiment of the present disclosure can effectively detect signal components by reducing power consumption used in analyzing received signals and removing interference more accurately.

[0184] The effects that can be obtained from the present disclosure are not limited to the effects mentioned above, and other effects that are not mentioned can be clearly understood by a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the present disclosure belongs from the description below.

[0185] As described above, an electronic device may include a memory storing instructions. The electronic device may include at least one processor. The instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to generate covariance information of noise and interference for the receive antennas based on channel estimation using reference signals acquired through the receive antennas. The instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to generate modified covariance information by changing covariance components associated with both the first receive antenna and the second receive antenna to a reference value when each of a first variance component corresponding to a first receive antenna and a second variance component of a second receive antenna of the covariance information is less than a threshold value. The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to perform equalization of received signals according to weights determined using the modified covariance information.

[0186] According to one embodiment, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to change each of the one or more first covariance components associated with the first receive antenna to the reference value and each of the one or more second covariance components associated with the second receive antenna to the reference value if each of the first covariance component and the second covariance component is less than the threshold value. The modified covariance information may include the covariance information in which each of the one or more first covariance components and the one or more second covariance components of the covariance information is changed to the reference value. The one or more first covariance components and the one or more second covariance components may include the covariance component.

[0187] According to one embodiment, the covariance information may include a covariance matrix for the receiving antennas. The first variance component may include a first diagonal component corresponding to the first receiving antenna of the covariance matrix. The second variance component may include a second diagonal component corresponding to the second receiving antenna of the covariance matrix. Each of the one or more first covariance components may include a non-diagonal component located in a row of the first diagonal component of the covariance matrix. Each of the one or more second covariance components may include a non-diagonal component located in a column of the second diagonal component of the covariance matrix.

[0188] In one embodiment, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to compare each of the first variance component and the second variance component to the threshold value. The instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to perform equalization of the received signals according to another weight determined using the covariance information if the first variance component is greater than or equal to the threshold value or the second variance component is greater than or equal to the threshold value.

[0189] According to one embodiment, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to obtain the received signals including the reference signal received via the receiving antennas. The instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to perform decoding of the received signals based on the equalization.

[0190] According to one embodiment, the number of variance components of the covariance information including the first variance component and the second variance component may correspond to the number of the receiving antennas.

[0191] In one embodiment, the threshold value may be determined based on an average value of noise levels of the receiving antennas used to receive the reference signal. The reference value may include 0 to indicate no interference.

[0192] According to one embodiment, the weight may be calculated using the modified covariance information and channel estimation information according to the channel estimation.

[0193] According to one embodiment, the reference signal may include a demodulation reference signal (DMRS).

[0194] An electronic device as described above may include a memory storing instructions. The electronic device may include at least one processor. The instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to generate covariance information of noise and interference for the receive antennas based on channel estimation using reference signals acquired through the receive antennas. The instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to generate modified covariance information by changing covariance components associated with both the first receive antenna group and the second receive antenna group to a reference value when each of first variance information corresponding to a first receive antenna group of the covariance information and second variance information of a second receive antenna group is below a threshold level. The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to perform equalization of received signals according to weights determined using the modified covariance information.

[0195] According to one embodiment, when the first dispersion information includes a first average value for dispersion components of the receiving antennas in the first receiving antenna group and the second dispersion information includes a second average value for dispersion components of the receiving antennas in the second receiving antenna group, the threshold level may include a threshold value determined based on an average value for noise levels of the receiving antennas used to receive the reference signal.

[0196] According to one embodiment, when the first dispersion information includes a first number of dispersion components exceeding a threshold value among dispersion components of the receive antennas in the first receive antenna group, and the second dispersion information includes a second number of dispersion components exceeding the threshold value among dispersion components of the receive antennas in the second receive antenna group, the threshold level may include a threshold number. The threshold value may be determined based on an average value of noise levels of the receive antennas used to receive the reference signal.

[0197] According to one embodiment, the covariance information may include a covariance matrix for the receiving antennas. The first variance information may be obtained from a first block diagonal matrix of the covariance matrix associated with the first receiving antenna. The second variance information may be obtained from a second block diagonal matrix of the covariance matrix associated with the second receiving antenna. The covariance components may include a block diagonal matrix determined by the first block diagonal matrix and the second block diagonal matrix of the covariance matrix.

[0198] In one embodiment, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to compare each of the first variance information and the second variance information with the threshold level. The instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to perform equalization of the received signals according to another weight determined using the covariance information if the first variance information is greater than or equal to the threshold level or the second variance information is greater than or equal to the threshold level.

[0199] According to one embodiment, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to obtain the received signals including the reference signal received via the receiving antennas. The instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to perform decoding of the received signals based on the equalization.

[0200] According to one embodiment, the number of variance components of the covariance information may correspond to the number of receiving antennas.

[0201] In one embodiment, the reference value may include 0 to indicate no interference. The weight may be calculated using the modified covariance information and channel estimation information according to the channel estimation.

[0202] According to one embodiment, the reference signal may include a demodulation reference signal (DMRS).

[0203] In a method performed by an electronic device as described above, the method may include an operation of generating covariance information of noise and interference for the receiving antennas based on channel estimation using reference signals acquired through the receiving antennas. The method may include an operation of generating modified covariance information by changing covariance components associated with both the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna to reference values ​​when each of a first variance component corresponding to a first receiving antenna and a second variance component of the covariance information corresponding to a second receiving antenna is less than a threshold value. The method may include an operation of performing equalization of the receiving signals according to weights determined using the modified covariance information.

[0204] The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium as described above may store one or more programs that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor of the electronic device, cause the electronic device to generate covariance information of noise and interference for the receive antennas based on channel estimation using reference signals acquired through the receive antennas. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may store one or more programs that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor of the electronic device, cause the electronic device to generate modified covariance information by changing covariance components associated with both the first receive antenna and the second receive antenna to a reference value when each of a first variance component corresponding to a first receive antenna and a second variance component of a second receive antenna of the covariance information is below a threshold value. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may store one or more programs that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor of an electronic device, cause the electronic device to perform equalization of received signals according to weights determined using the modified covariance information.

[0205] The methods according to the embodiments described in the claims or specification of the present disclosure may be implemented in the form of hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software.

[0206] When implemented in software, a computer-readable storage medium storing one or more programs (software modules) may be provided. The one or more programs stored in the computer-readable storage medium are configured to be executed by one or more processors in an electronic device. The one or more programs include instructions that cause the electronic device to execute methods according to embodiments described in the claims or specification of the present disclosure. The one or more programs may be provided as a computer program product. The computer program product may be traded between a seller and a buyer as a commodity. The computer program product may be distributed in the form of a machine-readable storage medium (e.g., compact disc read only memory (CD-ROM)), or may be distributed online (e.g., downloaded or uploaded) via an application store (e.g., Play Store™) or directly between two user devices (e.g., smart phones). In the case of online distribution, at least a portion of the computer program product may be temporarily stored or temporarily created in a device-readable storage medium, such as the memory of a manufacturer's server, an application store's server, or an intermediary server.

[0207] These programs (software modules, software) may be stored in random access memory, non-volatile memory including flash memory, read only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM), magnetic disc storage devices, compact disc-ROM (CD-ROM), digital versatile discs (DVDs) or other forms of optical storage devices, magnetic cassettes, or may be stored in memories formed by a combination of some or all of these. In addition, each configuration memory may include multiple copies.

[0208] Additionally, the program may be stored on an attachable storage device that is accessible via a communication network, such as the Internet, an intranet, a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), a storage area network (SAN), or a combination thereof. Such a storage device may be connected to a device implementing an embodiment of the present disclosure via an external port. Additionally, a separate storage device on the communication network may be connected to a device implementing an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0209] In the specific embodiments of the present disclosure described above, components included in the disclosure are expressed singularly or plurally, depending on the specific embodiment presented. However, the singular or plural expressions are selected to suit the presented situation for convenience of explanation, and the present disclosure is not limited to singular or plural components. Components expressed in plural may be composed of singular elements, or components expressed in singular may be composed of plural elements.

[0210] According to embodiments, one or more of the components or operations of the aforementioned components may be omitted, or one or more other components or operations may be added. Alternatively or additionally, a plurality of components (e.g., modules or programs) may be integrated into a single component. In such a case, the integrated component may perform one or more functions of each of the plurality of components identically or similarly to those performed by the corresponding component among the plurality of components prior to the integration. According to embodiments, the operations performed by a module, program, or other component may be executed sequentially, in parallel, iteratively, or heuristically, or one or more of the operations may be executed in a different order, omitted, or one or more other operations may be added.

[0211] Meanwhile, although the detailed description of the present disclosure has described specific embodiments, it is obvious that various modifications are possible within the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. In electronic devices, Memory for storing instructions; and comprising at least one processor, The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to: Based on channel estimation using reference signals acquired through receiving antennas, covariance information of noise and interference for the receiving antennas is generated; If each of the first variance component corresponding to the first receiving antenna of the covariance information and the second variance component of the second receiving antenna is less than a threshold value, modifying covariance information is generated by changing the covariance components associated with both the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna to a reference value; and Causing equalization of received signals to be performed according to weights determined using the above modified covariance information. Electronic devices.

2. In claim 1, The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to: If each of the first variance component and the second variance component is less than the threshold value: changing each of one or more first covariance components associated with said first receiving antenna to said reference value; and causing each of one or more second covariance components associated with said second receiving antenna to be changed to said reference value, The above modified covariance information includes the covariance information in which each of the one or more first covariance components and the one or more second covariance components of the covariance information is changed to the reference value, and The one or more first covariance components and the one or more second covariance components include the covariance components, Electronic devices.

3. In claim 2, The above covariance information includes a covariance matrix for the receiving antennas, The first variance component includes a first diagonal component corresponding to the first receiving antenna of the covariance matrix, The second variance component includes a second diagonal component corresponding to the second receiving antenna of the covariance matrix, Each of said one or more first covariance components includes an off-diagonal component located in a row of said first diagonal component of said covariance matrix, and Each of said one or more second covariance components comprises an off-diagonal component located in a column of said second diagonal component of said covariance matrix. Electronic devices.

4. In claim 1, The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to: comparing each of the first variance component and the second variance component with the threshold value; and If the first variance component is greater than or equal to the threshold value or the second variance component is greater than or equal to the threshold value, equalization of the received signals is performed according to another weight determined using the covariance information. Electronic devices.

5. In claim 1, The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to: Obtaining the reception signals including the reference signal received through the receiving antennas; and Based on the above equalization, causing decoding of the received signals to be performed, Electronic devices.

6. In claim 1, The number of variance components of the covariance information including the first variance component and the second variance component corresponds to the number of the receiving antennas. Electronic devices.

7. In claim 1, The above threshold value is determined based on an average value of the noise levels of the receiving antennas used to receive the reference signal, and The above reference values include 0 to indicate no interference. Electronic devices.

8. In claim 1, The above weight is calculated using the modified covariance information and the channel estimation information according to the channel estimation. Electronic devices.

9. In claim 1, The above reference signal includes a demodulation reference signal (DMRS). Electronic devices.

10. In a method performed by an electronic device, the method comprises: An operation of generating covariance information of noise and interference for the receiving antennas based on channel estimation using reference signals acquired through the receiving antennas; An operation of generating modified covariance information by changing covariance components related to both the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna to a reference value when each of the first variance component corresponding to the first receiving antenna of the covariance information and the second variance component of the second receiving antenna is less than a threshold value; and An operation for performing equalization of received signals according to weights determined using the above modified covariance information is included. method.

11. In claim 10, The above method: If each of the first variance component and the second variance component is less than the threshold value: An operation of changing each of one or more first covariance components associated with said first receiving antenna to said reference value; and comprising an operation of changing each of one or more second covariance components associated with the second receiving antenna to the reference value; The above modified covariance information includes the covariance information in which each of the one or more first covariance components and the one or more second covariance components of the covariance information is changed to the reference value, and The one or more first covariance components and the one or more second covariance components include the covariance components, method.

12. In claim 11, The above covariance information includes a covariance matrix for the receiving antennas, The first variance component includes a first diagonal component corresponding to the first receiving antenna of the covariance matrix, The second variance component includes a second diagonal component corresponding to the second receiving antenna of the covariance matrix, Each of said one or more first covariance components includes an off-diagonal component located in a row of said first diagonal component of said covariance matrix, and Each of said one or more second covariance components comprises an off-diagonal component located in a column of said second diagonal component of said covariance matrix. method.

13. In claim 10, The above method: An operation of comparing each of the first variance component and the second variance component with the threshold value; and Including an operation of performing equalization of received signals according to another weight determined using the covariance information, when the first variance component is greater than or equal to the threshold value or the second variance component is greater than or equal to the threshold value. method.

14. In claim 10, The above method: An operation of obtaining the reception signals including the reference signals received through the receiving antennas; and Based on the above equalization, an operation of performing decoding of the received signals is included. method.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor of an electronic device, causes the electronic device to: Based on channel estimation using reference signals acquired through receiving antennas, covariance information of noise and interference for the receiving antennas is generated; If each of the first variance component corresponding to the first receiving antenna of the covariance information and the second variance component of the second receiving antenna is less than a threshold value, modifying covariance information is generated by changing the covariance components associated with both the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna to a reference value; and storing one or more programs that store instructions that cause equalization of received signals to be performed according to weights determined using the above modified covariance information; A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium.

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