Reception Beam Selection for Carrier Aggregation in 5G Devices
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Solution Overview
Problem
5G electronic devices face challenges in selecting optimal reception beams for multiple component carriers (CCs) due to hardware restrictions, such as having fewer antenna modules than CCs, which limits the ability to form distinct reception beams for each carrier in carrier aggregation (CA) scenarios, especially in mmWave networks.
Innovation Solution
An electronic device with fewer antenna modules selects optimal reception beams by receiving reference signals from multiple CCs, identifying signal strengths, grouping CCs with similar signal characteristics, and determining reception beams based on these strengths, allowing for efficient beam selection even in situations with fewer antenna modules than CCs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the electronic device uses one antenna module per component carrier (CC) to form distinct reception beams for each CC in carrier aggregation (CA), then the ability to receive and process multiple frequency bands simultaneously is improved, but the device complexity and hardware requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple CCs into groups where each group shares a common reception beam. Instead of creating separate reception beams for each CC, the method combines multiple CCs that can be served by a single reception beam, thereby reducing the total number of antenna modules required while maintaining the ability to receive multiple frequency bands simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
Each antenna module is designed to serve multiple functions by forming reception beams that can handle multiple CCs within a group. The same antenna module and reception beam configuration is used across different CCs in a group, making the antenna module universal for multiple carriers rather than dedicated to a single CC.
2Productivity
If the electronic device forms a separate reception beam for each component carrier (CC), then the data transmission capability across multiple frequency bands is improved, but the time required for beam selection and configuration increases
Solution Approach 1:
By merging multiple CCs into groups that share common reception beams, the patent reduces the total number of beam selection operations required. Instead of selecting beams for each CC individually, the device performs beam selection at the group level, significantly reducing the time required for beam configuration while maintaining data transmission capability across all CCs in the group.
3Device complexity
If the electronic device has a limited number of antenna modules (fewer than the number of CCs), then the device cost and hardware complexity are reduced, but the ability to form distinct reception beams for each CC is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent directly addresses this contradiction by merging multiple CCs into groups that share common reception beams. This approach allows the device to operate with fewer antenna modules than the total number of CCs, while still maintaining the functional capability to receive and process all CCs through the grouped beam configuration.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by not creating distinct reception beams for every single CC, but rather for groups of CCs. This partial differentiation is sufficient to maintain adaptability, as the grouping strategy ensures that all CCs are still served appropriately through their group's reception beam, without requiring excessive antenna modules for complete individual coverage.
Data Source
AI summary
According to various embodiments, an electronic device may include: at least one antenna module including at least one antenna, and a processor configured to: control the electronic device to receive, through the at least one antenna module, a reference signal (RS) corresponding to each of frequency bands of multiple component carriers (CC) configured for carrier aggregation (CA), identify a reception signal strength of the reference signal corresponding to each of the frequency bands with regard to the multiple CCs, identify at least two CCs operating in the CA among the multiple CCs, based on reception signal strengths of multiple reference signals corresponding to the multiple CCs, and determine at least one reception beam corresponding to the at least one antenna module based on reception signal strengths of at least two reference signals corresponding to the at least two identified CCs.