Systems and methods for integrating asynchronous signals in distributed antenna system with direct digital interface to base station

• US 10,205,584 B2
• Filed: 10/06/2017
• Issued: 02/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Commscope Emea Limited (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: CommScope Technologies, LLC (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Inventors: Zavadsky, Dean, Wala, Philip M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chau, Peter P
• Application Number:
  US15/727,469
• Publication Number:
  US 20180034617A1
• Time in Patent Office: 494 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/14 Two-way operation using the same type of signal, i.e. duplex
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/143 for modulated signals H04L5/1469 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/1469 using time-sharing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/085 Access point devices with remote components

Abstract

A distributed antenna system (DAS) includes: signal interface units to receive downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals for radio frequency carriers from external device(s), each having a different clock, the signal interface units configured to: re-clock the downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals to a master clock of the DAS and convert the downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals to downlink digital signals; a host unit communicatively coupled to signal interface units and configured to combine at least two downlink digital signals into an aggregate downlink digital signal; an antenna unit coupled to the host unit and configured to: receive the aggregate downlink digital signal from the host unit, convert the aggregate downlink digital signal(s) and/or another signal based on the aggregate downlink digital signal into downlink radio frequency signals, and wirelessly transmit downlink radio frequency signals to a subscriber unit.

Claims

1. A distributed antenna system, comprising:

a plurality of signal interface circuits configured to receive a plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals for a plurality of radio frequency carriers from at least one external device, each of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals having a different clock;

wherein the plurality of signal interface circuits is further configured to re-clock the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals to a master clock of the distributed antenna system from each different clock of each of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals;

wherein the plurality of signal interface circuits is further configured to convert the re-clocked plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals to downlink digital signals;

a host circuit communicatively coupled to the plurality of signal interface circuits and configured to combine at least two of the downlink digital signals into an aggregate downlink digital signal;

an antenna circuit communicatively coupled to the host circuit and configured to receive the aggregate downlink digital signal from the host circuit;

wherein the antenna circuit is further configured to convert at least one of the aggregate downlink digital signal and another signal based on the aggregate downlink digital signal into downlink radio frequency signals;

wherein the antenna circuit is further configured to wirelessly transmit the downlink radio frequency signals to at least one subscriber unit.

2. The distributed antenna system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of signal interface circuits includes at least one resampling filter that re-clocks the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals to the master clock of the distributed antenna system from each different clock of each of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals.

3. The distributed antenna system of claim 1, wherein the at least one external device includes a plurality of external devices, wherein the plurality of signal interface circuits is configured to convert from first clock domains of the plurality of external devices to a second clock domain of the antenna circuit using a Farrow structure.

4. The distributed antenna system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of signal interface circuits is configured to re-clock at least one downlink asynchronous radio carrier signal by converting first samples of a channelized radio carrier synchronous with a first clock of a first clock domain to second samples synchronous with a second clock of a second clock domain.

5. The distributed antenna system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals is specific to a particular channel and requires additional baseband conversion before radio frequency conversion and transmission is performed;

and

wherein the aggregate downlink digital signal is not specific to a particular channel and does not require additional baseband conversion before radio frequency conversion and transmission is performed.

6. The distributed antenna system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals includes I/Q pairs.

7. The distributed antenna system of claim 1, wherein individual channels within the at least two of the downlink digital signals do not overlap and are upconverted together simultaneously to radio frequency spectrum once combined into the aggregate downlink digital signal.

8. The distributed antenna system of claim 1, wherein one or more of the at least one external device is a baseband processing unit of a base station.

9. The distributed antenna system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals received at the plurality of signal interface circuits uses at least one of a Synchronous Optical Networking (SONET) protocol and an Ethernet protocol to receive I/Q pairs.

10. The distributed antenna system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of signal interface circuits includes at least one of a Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI) base station interface, an Open Base Station Architecture Initiative (OBSAI) base station interface, and an Open Radio Interface (ORI) interface;

and

wherein at least one of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals is formatted according to at least one of a Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI) standard, an Open Base Station Architecture Initiative (OBSAI) standard, and an Open Radio Interface (ORI) standard.

11. The distributed antenna system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals contains a digital representation of a radio carrier positioned within a set of spectrum that reflects the eventual location of the radio carrier within radio frequency spectrum.

12. The distributed antenna system of claim 1, further comprising:

wherein the plurality of signal interface circuits is further configured to convert a plurality of uplink digital signals to uplink asynchronous radio carrier signals at least in part by re-clocking a plurality of the uplink digital signals to a plurality of asynchronous clocks, different from the master clock of the distributed antenna system.

13. A method for interfacing a plurality of asynchronous downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals in a distributed antenna system, comprising:

receiving a plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals for a plurality of radio frequency carriers at a plurality of signal interface circuits from at least one external device, each of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals having a different clock;

re-clocking the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals to a master clock of the distributed antenna system from each different clock of each of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals at the plurality of signal interface circuits;

converting the re-clocked plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals to downlink digital signals at the plurality of signal interface circuits;

communicating the downlink digital signals from the plurality of signal interface circuits to a host circuit;

combining at least two of the downlink digital signals into an aggregate downlink digital signal at the host circuit;

communicating the aggregate downlink digital signal from the host circuit to an antenna circuit; and

converting at least one of the aggregate downlink digital signal and another signal based on the aggregate downlink digital signal into downlink radio frequency signals at the antenna circuit.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

wirelessly transmitting the downlink radio frequency signals to at least one subscriber unit.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein re-clocking the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals to the master clock of the distributed antenna system from each different clock of each of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals at the antenna circuit occurs through at least one resampling filter.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the at least one external device includes a plurality of external devices, wherein re-clocking the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals to the master clock of the distributed antenna system converts the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals from first clock domains of the plurality of external devices to a second clock domain of the antenna circuit using a Farrow structure.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein re-clocking the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals to the master clock of the distributed antenna system includes converting first samples of a channelized radio carrier synchronous with a first clock of a first clock domain to second samples synchronous with a second clock of a second clock domain.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein each of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals is specific to a particular channel and requires additional baseband conversion before radio frequency conversion and transmission is performed;

and

wherein the aggregate downlink digital signal is not specific to a particular channel and does not require additional baseband conversion before radio frequency conversion and transmission is performed.

19. The method of claim 13, wherein each of the downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals includes I/Q pairs.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein individual channels within the at least two of the plurality of downlink digital signals do not overlap and are upconverted together simultaneously to radio frequency spectrum once combined into the aggregate downlink digital signal.

21. The method of claim 13, wherein one or more of the at least one external device is at least one of a baseband processing unit of a base station.

22. The method of claim 13, wherein receiving at least one of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals for the plurality of radio frequency carriers occurs using at least one of a Synchronous Optical Networking (SONET) protocol and an Ethernet protocol to transmit I/Q pairs.

23. The method of claim 13, wherein at least one of the plurality of signal interface circuits includes at least one of a Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI) base station interface, an Open Base Station Architecture Initiative (OBSAI) base station interface, and an Open Radio Interface (ORI) interface;

and

wherein at least one of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals is formatted according to at least one of a Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI) standard, an Open Base Station Architecture Initiative (OBSAI) standard, and an Open Radio Interface (ORI) standard.

24. The method of claim 13, wherein at least one of the plurality of downlink asynchronous radio carrier signals contains a digital representation of a radio carrier positioned within a set of spectrum that reflects the eventual location of the radio carrier within radio frequency spectrum.

25. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

converting a plurality of uplink digital signals to uplink asynchronous radio carrier signals at the plurality of signal interface circuits at least in part by re-clocking a plurality of the uplink digital signals to a plurality of asynchronous clocks, different from the master clock of the distributed antenna system.