Robust Antenna Array Transmitter Failure Compensation
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Solution Overview
Problem
The increasing demand for wireless voice and data services leads to a surge in the number of antennas and radios at cell-tower sites, resulting in weight, cost, and maintenance issues due to the need for additional coaxial cables and redundant systems, which are costly and difficult to maintain, especially when radios are located on towers.
Innovation Solution
A wireless communication system with a robust transmitter array that includes multiple transmitters connected through digital and analog hybrid matrices, allowing for signal processing and redistribution to maintain performance even if one transmitter fails, with an additional output port connected to a non-antenna load to minimize signal energy loss.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If redundant transmitter devices are added to compensate for transmitter failures, then reliability is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple transmitter devices into a single integrated antenna array system where transmitters are co-located with antenna elements. This merging reduces the need for separate redundant transmitter installations while maintaining reliability through the array's inherent redundancy capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
Each transmitter device in the array is designed to serve multiple functions and can compensate for failures of other transmitters. The system provides universal coverage where any transmitter can potentially replace a failed one, eliminating the need for dedicated standby transmitters and reducing overall device complexity.
2Adaptability or versatility
If coaxial cables are extended to connect radios and antennas at remote locations, then adaptability is improved, but weight and installation difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the radio functionality from centralized enclosures and places it directly at the antenna locations. This eliminates the need for long coaxial cable runs by removing the cable connection requirement between remote radios and antennas, significantly reducing cable weight and installation complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces integrated radio antenna units that serve as intermediary components, combining the radio and antenna functions in a single co-located unit. This eliminates the need for coaxial cables as intermediaries for signal transmission between separate radio and antenna components.
3Ease of operation
If radios are integrated with antennas into active antennas, then ease of operation is improved, but maintenance difficulty and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the antenna array into modular active antenna elements, where each element is a self-contained unit with integrated radio and antenna components. This segmentation allows individual elements to be independently maintained or replaced without affecting the entire system, facilitating easier repair operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The integrated active antenna elements are designed with self-diagnostic and self-monitoring capabilities, allowing the system to detect and report failures automatically. This self-service approach reduces the need for manual inspection and simplifies maintenance planning, even though the units are located on towers.
4Productivity
If the number of transmitters is increased to meet service demand, then productivity is improved, but weight and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple transmitter functions into a compact antenna array configuration where transmitters are integrated with antenna elements. This merging reduces the overall space and weight requirements compared to traditional separate transmitter installations, allowing higher service capacity without proportionally increasing tower loading.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from horizontal/ground-based transmitter deployment to a vertical/distributed array configuration on the tower. By organizing transmitters in a spatial array dimension rather than stacking them horizontally, the system achieves high capacity while distributing weight more efficiently across the tower structure.
Data Source
AI summary
A wireless communication system that includes a robust transmitter array. The robust transmitter array includes an antenna array system with at least one column, at least one antenna element, and at least one polarization, a plurality of transmitter devices to transmit analog voice/data signals through the antenna array system, and a signal processor. The signal processor modifies two or more input signals in the event of a transmitter device failure such that substantially similar amounts of each of the two or more input signals are output from the transmitter system to the antenna array system, and wherein substantially less transmitted signal power is lost than in the case wherein the signal processor does not modify the two or more input signals in the event of a transmitter failure.