Relay Re-Encoded Codewords for Low-Delay Reliable Signal Transmission

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current wireless and mobile networks face challenges in transmission reliability and efficiency, particularly in real-time applications, due to high error sensitivity and increased network capacity requirements, especially when using relays for error correction and network coding.

Innovation Solution

A method involving the concatenation of codes in transmitters and relays, where intermediate code words are interleaved and re-encoded to generate redundancy, allowing for iterative decoding in receivers without requiring turbo-coding in transmitters, utilizing techniques like pseudo-random interleaving and product codes for improved error correction.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If network coding with relay is used to improve transmission efficiency, then transmission reliability is improved, but decoding complexity increases and sensitivity to relay errors occurs

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetransmission reliabilityVSAvoiddecoding complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the coding function across multiple transmitters and the relay station. Each transmitter independently encodes its data stream, and the relay station performs network coding by combining received packets. This segmentation distributes the coding burden and enables parallel processing at the relay, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining reliability through distributed redundancy.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies preliminary error correction coding at each transmitter before data is sent to the relay. This preliminary action ensures that individual data streams are already protected against errors before network coding combines them, reducing the sensitivity to relay errors and simplifying the decoding process at the destination by providing multiple layers of error protection.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Measurement precision

If high precision LLR transmission is used to reduce relay errors, then decoding accuracy improves, but network capacity is reduced

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedecoding accuracyVSAvoidnetwork capacity
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies different levels of precision to different parts of the transmission system. Transmitters use full-precision encoding for their local data streams, while the relay performs network coding with reduced precision requirements. The destination receiver then combines information from multiple sources with different precision levels, achieving high overall decoding accuracy without requiring high precision throughout the entire network, thus preserving capacity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The patent uses partial precision in the network coding operation at the relay rather than full precision. By applying partial precision (reduced bit-depth quantization) in the relay's network coding step, the system achieves sufficient decoding accuracy at the destination while significantly reducing the bandwidth and computational resources required, thereby maintaining higher network capacity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

3Reliability

If turbo-coding is implemented in transmitters to achieve high decoding efficiency, then error correction performance improves, but coding delays increase making it incompatible with real-time applications

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveerror correction performanceVSAvoidcoding delays
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges the error correction functionality from transmitter-based turbo-coding into the network coding operation at the relay station. Instead of each transmitter performing complex iterative decoding, the relay combines multiple encoded streams through network coding, and the destination performs a single iterative decoding process that simultaneously decodes all combined streams. This merging eliminates redundant encoding/decoding operations and reduces overall coding delay while maintaining error correction performance.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The relay station acts as an intermediary that performs network coding to combine data streams from multiple transmitters. This intermediary function allows the system to achieve the error correction benefits of turbo-coding through the combined effect of multiple independent encodings and the network coding combination, without requiring each transmitter to implement full turbo-coding, thus reducing latency while maintaining reliability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Data Source

PatentEP2266234B1Method for transmitting a digital signal between at least two transmitters and at least one receiver, using at least one relay, and corresponding program product and relay device
Publication Date: 2013.07.24 ORANGE SA
  • EP2266234B1 patent drawingFigure 1~3
  • EP2266234B1 patent drawingFigure 4
  • EP2266234B1 patent drawingFigure 5~6A

AI summary

The invention relates to a method for transmitting a digital signal between at least two transmitters and at least one receiver, using a concatenation of at least two codes, characterized in that it comprises: - a first encoding step, in said transmitters, which outputs at least two first code words; - a first transmission step of said first code words, via at least two distinct transmission channels; - a receiving step, in at least one relay device, of at least two of said first code words, known as intermediate code words; - a step for intertwining at least one part of the bits of said intermediate code words that outputs the intertwined bits; - a second step for encoding said intertwined bits, in said relay(s), which outputs at least one second code word, taking into consideration said intermediate code words; - a second step for transmitting said second code word(s) through said relay device(s), so as to enable, in said receiver(s), an iterative decoding, taking into account said first code words, and then a redundancy formed by said second code word(s).