SSB Beam Frequency Regions for Beam Squint Mitigation
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Solution Overview
Problem
As system bandwidth and the number of antenna array elements increase, the beam squint issue becomes more pronounced in phased array antennas, leading to reduced beam gain over multiple subcarriers, and increasing the complexity and cost of frequency-dependent beamforming architectures by relying on time-delay units.
Innovation Solution
Implementing multiple frequency effective regions to cover the system bandwidth, mitigating beam squint without solely depending on adding time-delay units, thereby reducing complexity and cost.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If time-delay units are added to frequency-dependent beamforming architectures to mitigate beam squint, then beam gain stability across subcarriers is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the carrier frequency bandwidth into multiple beam frequency effective regions, where each region is associated with a separate synchronization signal block burst. This segmentation allows the system to handle beam squint on a per-region basis rather than requiring complex frequency-dependent beamforming across the entire bandwidth, thereby reducing the need for time-delay units while maintaining beam gain stability within each effective region.
2Reliability
If the number of antenna array elements is increased to improve beamforming capability, then beam gain is improved, but beam squint becomes more pronounced
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the bandwidth into multiple beam frequency effective regions and associating each with a separate SSB burst, the patent enables the use of larger antenna arrays to achieve higher beam gain while mitigating beam squint through regional frequency division. Each region can be optimized for its specific frequency range, reducing the overall beam squint effect across the entire system.
3Productivity
If system bandwidth is increased to support more users and data, then productivity is improved, but beam squint issue becomes more pronounced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the wide carrier frequency bandwidth into multiple beam frequency effective regions, allowing the system to support high productivity through increased bandwidth while mitigating beam squint by confining each SSB burst to a specific frequency region. This enables wide bandwidth operation without suffering from the beam squint problems that would affect a single wideband beam.
Data Source
AI summary
Various aspects of the present disclosure relate to transmitting a plurality of SSB bursts within each of a plurality of beam frequency effective regions, each SSB burst comprising a plurality of SSBs. Aspects of the present disclosure relate to associating a RACH occasion with each beam frequency effective region of an SSB transmission based at least in part on the frequency region configuration. Aspects of the present disclosure relate to receiving a PRACH transmission from a UE, and determining a respective beam frequency effective region associated with the UE based on a PRACH configuration and the PRACH transmission. Aspects of the present disclosure relate to establishing a connection with the UE using resources associated with the respective beam frequency effective region.