Synchronization signal transmitting method and base station apparatus

• US 10,051,484 B2
• Filed: 08/19/2014
• Issued: 08/14/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2013
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Inventors: Shen, Jiyun, Suyama, Satoshi, Okumura, Yukihiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Scheibel, Robert C.
• Application Number:
  US14/912,762
• Publication Number:
  US 20160212631A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,456 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/28 using beam steering
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/001 Synchronization between nodes

Abstract

In order to make full use of the performance of a Massive-MIMO-applied communication system, provided is a base station apparatus for controlling a transmission direction of a transmission beam for a synchronization signal used in cell search by beamforming using a plurality of antenna elements. The base station apparatus has a synchronization signal processing section (62) that generates the synchronization signal including information to identify the transmission beam for the synchronization signal and changes a beamforming weight for the synchronization signal at every given time interval; and a transmission section (64) that transmits the synchronization signal generated with the beamforming weight in downlink.

Claims

1. A synchronization signal transmitting method of controlling a transmission direction of a transmission beam for a synchronization signal used in cell search by beamforming using a plurality of antenna elements provided in a base station apparatus, the synchronization signal transmitting method comprising:

a synchronization signal processing step of generating the synchronization signal including information to identify the transmission beam for the synchronization signal and changing a beamforming weight for the synchronization signal at every given time interval;

a selecting step of selecting beamforming parameters including at least the time interval for changing the beamforming weight and a beam width of the transmission beam for the synchronization signal; and

a transmission step of transmitting the synchronization signal generated with the beamforming weight in downlink,

wherein, in the synchronization signal processing step, the beamforming parameters selected in the selecting step are used as a basis to control the beamforming weight and the time interval for changing the beamforming weight, and

wherein, in the selecting step, the time interval for changing the beamforming weight is determined based on a signal length of the synchronization signal.

2. The synchronization signal transmitting method according to claim 1, wherein in the synchronization signal processing step, the beamforming weight is selectable between a beamforming weight for controlling the transmission direction of the transmission beam for the synchronization signal in an azimuthal angle direction and a beamforming weight for controlling the transmission direction in the azimuthal angle direction and in an elevation angle direction.

3. The synchronization signal transmitting method according to claim 1, wherein, in the selecting step, the beam width of the transmission beam for the synchronization signal is determined based on at least one of a number of antenna elements in the base station apparatus, transmission power, frequency band, bandwidth and beam irradiation range.

4. The synchronization signal transmitting method according to claim 1, wherein, in the synchronization signal processing step, the beamforming weight comprises a beamforming weight for generating a beam group including a plurality of transmission beams for the synchronization signal.

5. The synchronization signal transmitting method according to claim 1, wherein, in the transmission step, the transmission beam for the synchronization signal is transmitted using a part of a bandwidth of a communication system.

6. The synchronization signal transmitting method according to claim 1,

further comprising an obtaining step of obtaining information for generating the transmission beam for the synchronization signal from an external communication apparatus, and

wherein the information obtained in the obtaining step is used as a basis to select the beamforming weight.

7. A base station apparatus for controlling a transmission direction of a transmission beam for a synchronization signal used in cell search by beamforming using a plurality of antenna elements, the base station apparatus comprising:

a processor that generates the synchronization signal including information to identify the transmission beam for the synchronization signal and changes a beamforming weight for the synchronization signal at every given time interval;

the processor selects beamforming parameters including at least the time interval for changing the beamforming weight and a beam width of the transmission beam for the synchronization signal; and

a transmitter that transmits the synchronization signal generated with the beamforming weight in downlink,

wherein the beamforming parameters selected by the processor are used as a basis to control the beamforming weight and the time interval for changing the beamforming weight, and

wherein the time interval for changing the beamforming weight is determined by the processor based on a signal length of the synchronization signal.