Analog FEC Before ADC for High-Rate Wireless Receivers

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Solution Overview

Problem

The increasing data rates in wireless communication, such as in 5G technology, lead to higher power consumption, making it challenging to implement efficient forward error correction (FEC) systems.

Innovation Solution

The implementation of soft decision forward error correction in the analog domain before digitization, using analog signal processing techniques such as polarity extraction, bit multiplication, absolute value extraction, minimum search, and multiplication and accumulation operations, allows for reduced power consumption and hardware complexity.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If data rates are increased in wireless communication systems, then communication capacity is improved, but power consumption increases significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedata rateVSAvoidpower consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces digital signal processing operations with analog circuit implementations. Specifically, analog circuits perform functions such as adding received signals with soft information, calculating metrics, and generating decoded signals, thereby eliminating the need for high-power digital processors and reducing overall power consumption while maintaining high data rates

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

2Reliability

If forward error correction is implemented in the digital domain, then error correction capability is achieved, but hardware complexity and power consumption increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveerror correction capabilityVSAvoidhardware complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements forward error correction using analog circuits that perform decoding operations in the analog domain. The analog circuit receives a first signal and soft information, adds them to produce a second signal, calculates a metric from the second signal, and generates a decoded signal - all through analog processing, thereby reducing hardware complexity compared to digital implementations

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces soft information as an intermediary element that carries reliability data about received bits. This soft information is combined with the received signal in the analog domain to enable error correction without requiring complex digital processing, thus simplifying the overall hardware architecture

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Data Source

PatentUS12341535B2Analog forward error correction

Publication Date: 2025.06.24 INTEL CORP

AI summary

A wireless communication device, including a radiofrequency frontend, configured to wirelessly receive a radiofrequency signal; perform one or more analog baseband operations on the received radiofrequency signal, according to a radio access technology; and output an analog signal representing an output of the analog baseband operations on the received radiofrequency signal; an error corrector, configured to perform an error correction operation on the analog signal; and output an error corrected signal in analog domain; and the analog-digital converter, configured to convert the error corrected signal to digital domain.