Multi-User MIMO Beam Pattern Exclusion Zones
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Solution Overview
Problem
Determining optimal beam patterns for multiple antennas in transmitting and receiving devices in a multi-user MIMO group is challenging due to lack of coordination supported by existing communication protocols and networking subsystems, leading to interference and reduced performance.
Innovation Solution
A transmitting device calculates beam-pattern settings for a set of antennas to ensure receiving devices in a subset are on beams while others are in exclusion zones, reducing interference by intentionally excluding certain devices from communication, thereby improving throughput and performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If beamforming techniques are used to improve wireless communication performance, then signal quality and throughput are improved, but device complexity and coordination requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the group of receiving devices into two distinct subsets: those located on beams and those located in exclusion zones. This segmentation allows the transmitting device to apply different beam pattern configurations to different subsets, simplifying the coordination problem by breaking it down into manageable groups with distinct handling strategies.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by creating spatially differentiated beam patterns where different regions (beams vs. exclusion zones) have different signal characteristics. Devices in beam regions receive enhanced signals while devices in exclusion zones experience suppressed signals, allowing localized optimization of communication quality for different device groups.
2Reliability
If beam patterns are optimized for specific receiving devices, then communication performance with those devices improves, but interference to other devices increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the harmful effect of beamforming (which creates directional signal concentration) into a beneficial feature by intentionally designing exclusion zones alongside beams. The same beam-forming mechanism that concentrates signals toward target devices simultaneously creates regions of signal suppression that protect non-target devices from interference.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies preliminary anti-action by pre-establishing exclusion zones in the beam patterns before transmission occurs. By proactively designing these suppression regions, the system prevents interference to non-target devices before it can occur, rather than attempting to mitigate it afterward.
3Productivity
If all receiving devices are included in MIMO communication, then resource utilization improves, but beam pattern optimization becomes infeasible
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the receiving devices into distinct subsets (beam devices and exclusion zone devices), allowing simplified beam pattern calculations for each subset rather than attempting to optimize for all devices simultaneously. This segmentation makes the beam pattern optimization problem computationally feasible while still utilizing multiple receiving devices.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by focusing beam optimization efforts only on the subset of devices located on beams, while accepting that devices in exclusion zones will receive suppressed signals. This partial optimization approach achieves practical results without the computational burden of optimizing for all devices.
Data Source
AI summary
During wireless communication with a multi-user multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) group, a transmitting device may exclude a receiving device from a subset of the multi-user MIMO group to which it communicates data. In particular, based on responses from receiving devices to sounding packets with beamforming information for the receiving devices, the transmitting device calculates beam-pattern settings for a set of antennas so that, when communicating with the subset, receiving devices in the subset are located on beams within beam patterns formed by the set of antennas while a remainder of the receiving devices (including the receiving device) are located at exclusion zones in the beam patterns. Moreover, a beam pattern for a given receiving device in the subset provides a beam at a location of the given receiving device and provides exclusion zones at locations of the other receiving devices in the multi-user MIMO group.