Square-Wave Receiver Mixing for Flexible Multi-Subband Signals

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional receivers for multi-subband signals require a large number of channels, lack flexibility, and incur high hardware overheads due to the need for fixed hardware configurations, making them inflexible and costly to maintain or upgrade when frequency bands change or increase.

Innovation Solution

A receiver design that uses square wave signals for frequency mixing, allowing for flexible configuration and reduced hardware requirements by generating square wave signals digitally, enabling efficient processing of multiple narrowband signals with fewer channels.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If conventional analog devices are used to generate sine wave or cosine wave signals for frequency mixing, then the receiver can process narrowband signals, but the hardware configuration becomes fixed and inflexible when frequency bands change or increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveflexibility of receiver configurationVSAvoidhardware overhead
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces conventional analog frequency mixing devices with a digital signal processing approach. A digital signal processor generates square wave signals and performs frequency mixing through digital computation, eliminating the need for fixed analog hardware configurations. This substitution enables flexible adaptation to different frequency bands through software reconfiguration rather than hardware changes.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent changes the waveform parameter from traditional sine/cosine waves to square waves for frequency mixing. This parameter change allows the use of digital signal processing methods, where the square wave signals can be easily generated and adjusted in the digital domain, providing flexibility in adapting to different frequency bands without requiring complex analog hardware modifications.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Adaptability or versatility

If the receiver is designed to handle a maximum of k narrowband signals, then it can process multi-subband signals, but 2k channels are required which increases hardware overhead

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecapability to process multiple frequency bandsVSAvoidquantity of channels
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges multiple frequency mixing operations into a unified digital signal processing framework. Instead of requiring separate analog frequency mixing circuits for each channel, the digital signal processor consolidates these functions, processing multiple narrowband signals through a shared digital infrastructure, thereby reducing the total quantity of hardware channels required.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The digital signal processor serves multiple functions simultaneously: it generates square wave signals, performs frequency mixing for multiple channels, and processes different frequency bands. This multi-functional approach eliminates the need for dedicated hardware for each function, reducing overall channel quantity and hardware overhead while maintaining the capability to process multiple narrowband signals.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

The receiver provides improved flexibility and reduced hardware overheads, allowing it to adapt to changing frequency bands without the need for hardware replacement, while maintaining effective signal processing performance.

Implementation Method 1

a first frequency mixer, configured to perform frequency mixing on a first received signal by using a first square wave signal to obtain a first frequency-mixed signal

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectFrequency mixing: Heterodyne

Data Source

PatentEP3163826B1Receiver and signal processing method
Publication Date: 2018.12.05 HUAWEI TECH CO LTD
  • EP3163826B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP3163826B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4
  • EP3163826B1 patent drawingFigure 5~6

AI summary

The present invention provides a receiver and a signal processing method. The receiver includes: a first frequency mixer, performing frequency mixing on a received signal by using a square wave signal to obtain a first frequency-mixed signal; a first low-pass filter, filtering the first frequency-mixed signal to obtain a first filtered signal; a first analog-to-digital converter, performing analog-to-digital conversion on the first filtered signal to obtain a first sampled signal; and a signal processing unit, estimating, according to the first sampled signal, an information symbol transmitted by a transmit end, where the square wave signal is generated according to a carrier frequency estimation value of the received signal. The receiver according to embodiments of the present invention provides better flexibility.