Phase Noise Reduction in Communication Systems

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Solution Overview

Problem

Wireless communication systems face challenges with common phase error and carrier frequency offset, especially at high carrier frequencies, which affect the quality of communication and are difficult to address with existing methods due to high computational complexity and poor performance at low signal-to-noise ratios.

Innovation Solution

A communication system apparatus and method that derotates data symbols by setting the phase rotating angle to zero for the first symbol and then estimates and corrects phase rotations for subsequent symbols using threshold values to reduce the number of samples in the constellation, effectively eliminating phase noise and carrier frequency offset.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If existing phase noise reduction methods are used, then phase noise tracking is achieved, but computational complexity increases and performance deteriorates at low signal-to-noise ratios

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvephase noise reduction accuracyVSAvoidcomputational complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts only the essential corner samples from the complete symbol constellation for phase rotation estimation. Instead of processing all constellation points, the method selectively uses samples at the corners of the rectangular constellation, which contain sufficient phase information while dramatically reducing the number of computations required for phase noise tracking.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent changes the parameter of sample selection from using all constellation points to using only corner samples. This parameter change in the estimation process reduces computational complexity while maintaining accuracy, as corner samples provide adequate phase rotation information without the overhead of processing the entire constellation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Reliability

If existing phase noise reduction methods are used, then phase noise tracking is achieved, but performance deteriorates at low signal-to-noise ratios

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvephase noise reduction accuracyVSAvoidsignal-to-noise ratio sensitivity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts only the essential corner samples from the complete symbol constellation for phase rotation estimation. Instead of processing all constellation points, the method selectively uses samples at the corners of the rectangular constellation, which contain sufficient phase information while dramatically reducing the number of computations required for phase noise tracking.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies partial action by using only a subset of constellation samples (the corners) rather than all samples. This partial sampling approach is sufficient for accurate phase rotation estimation and reduces the impact of noise by focusing on the most informative samples, thereby improving performance at low signal-to-noise ratios.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

3Measurement precision

If all samples in the constellation are used for phase rotation estimation, then estimation accuracy is maintained, but the number of computations increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvephase rotation estimation accuracyVSAvoidprocessing speed
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts only the essential corner samples from the complete symbol constellation for phase rotation estimation. Instead of processing all constellation points, the method selectively uses samples at the corners of the rectangular constellation, which contain sufficient phase information while dramatically reducing the number of computations required for phase noise tracking.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies partial action by using only a subset of constellation samples (the corners) rather than all samples. This partial sampling approach is sufficient for accurate phase rotation estimation and reduces the impact of noise by focusing on the most informative samples, thereby improving performance at low signal-to-noise ratios.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentEP3396916B1Apparatus and method for reducing effects of phase noise
Publication Date: 2020.04.01 NOKIA TECHNOLOGIES OY
  • EP3396916B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP3396916B1 patent drawingFigure 3A
  • EP3396916B1 patent drawingFigure 3B

AI summary

The proposed solution relates to a method and an apparatus in a communication system. The solution comprises receiving (300) as an input a frame comprising of a set of data symbols and reference symbols, each data symbol forming a rectangular symbol constellation of samples, derotating (302) the first symbol of the set on the basis of the reference symbols, and setting (304) phase rotating angle of the first symbol as zero. The solution further comprises for each following successive symbol in the set of symbols: performing (306) equalization; reducing (308) the number of samples in the constellation by selecting samples in two or more corners of the constellation by utilising two or more threshold values; estimating (310) the phase rotating angle of the symbol from the reduced number of samples and derotating (312) the symbol on the basis of the determined phase rotating angle.