Apparatus, system, method and computer program product for digital beamforming in the intermediate frequency domain
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An apparatus for digital beamforming in the IF domain, comprising:
- a receiver unit adapted to receive a plurality of IF input signals from a plurality of input sources;
a separator/generating adapted to separate each of said plurality of IF input signals into a plurality of IF signal pairs and generate an in-phase and quadrature signal for each of said plurality of IF signal pairs;
a shifter unit adapted to shift at least one signal for each of said IF signal pairs in phase and amplitude;
a multiplier unit adapted to multiple each in-phase and quadrature signal with a predetermined weight coefficient vector;
a summer unit adapted to sum the weighted in-phase and quadrature signals to produce a plurality of IF output signals; and
a controller for the general control and monitoring of said units of the apparatus, wherein each of said output signals is associated with a data channel and an element of an antenna array.
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Abstract
An apparatus, system, method and computer program product for digital beamforming in the IF domain. The beamforming technique of the present invention can be implemented in general point-to-multipoint wireless networks to significantly increase bandwidth in both the downlink and uplink directions. This beamforming technique allows for a modular design of a smart antenna system which typically includes an antenna array, a multiple number of transceivers, IF beamformers, and a set of modems.
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Citations
49 Claims
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1. An apparatus for digital beamforming in the IF domain, comprising:
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a receiver unit adapted to receive a plurality of IF input signals from a plurality of input sources;
a separator/generating adapted to separate each of said plurality of IF input signals into a plurality of IF signal pairs and generate an in-phase and quadrature signal for each of said plurality of IF signal pairs;
a shifter unit adapted to shift at least one signal for each of said IF signal pairs in phase and amplitude;
a multiplier unit adapted to multiple each in-phase and quadrature signal with a predetermined weight coefficient vector;
a summer unit adapted to sum the weighted in-phase and quadrature signals to produce a plurality of IF output signals; and
a controller for the general control and monitoring of said units of the apparatus, wherein each of said output signals is associated with a data channel and an element of an antenna array. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 33)
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16. A system for digital beamforming in the IF domain, comprising:
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a network connection for communicating data between a data network and said system;
a router for routing data received from said network connection to said system;
a plurality of modems for receiving a plurality of IF signals from said router;
a digital beamformer unit for performing unique digital signal processing of said IF input signals received from said modems to produce a plurality of IF output signals;
a converter for converting said IF output signals received from said beamforming unit for transmission over a wireless network;
a plurality of transceivers having antenna elements for wirelessly transmitting said IF output signals to a plurality of remote units via respective data channels, wherein each antenna element transmitting said output signals corresponds to a particular data channel and a remote unit receiving said output signals from said system. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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17. A system for digital beamforming in the IF domain, comprising:
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a plurality of transceivers having antenna elements for wirelessly receiving a plurality of input signals from remote units via respective data channels;
a plurality of converters for converting said input signals received from said transceivers for processing in the IF domain;
a digital beamforming unit for performing unique digital signal processing of said IF input signals received from said converters to produce a plurality of IF outputs signals;
a plurality of modem connected to said digital beamforming unit for receiving said If output signals for transmission to a data network via a network connection; and
a router connected to said modems for establishing a network connection between said system and said data network for transmission of said IF output signals, wherein each modem receiving said IF output signals corresponds to a particular data channel and remote unit transmitting said input signals to said system.
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34. An method for digital beamforming in the IF domain, comprising:
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receiving at a beamformer unit a plurality of IF input signals from a plurality of input sources;
separating each of said plurality of IF input signals into a plurality of IF signal pairs using a separator in said beamformer unit;
generating an in-phase and quadrature signal for each of said plurality of IF input signals using a generator in said beamformer unit;
shifting at least one signal of said IF input signal pairs in both amplitude and phase using a shifter in said beamformer unit;
multiplying each in-phase and quadrature signal for said plurality of IF input signals with a predetermined weight coefficient vector using a multiplier in said beamformer; and
summing the weighted in-phase and quadrature signals for said plurality of IF input signals to produce a plurality of IF output signals using a summer in said beamformer unit;
wherein each of said output signals is associated with a data channel and an element of an antenna array. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42)
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43. A computer-readable medium encoded with processing instructions for implementing digital beamforming in the IF domain, comprising:
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program code for receiving at a beamforming unit a plurality of IF input signals from a plurality of input sources;
program code for separating each of said input signals into a plurality of IF signal pairs;
program code for generating an in-phase and quadrature signal for each of said IF signal pairs;
program code for shifting at least one signal of said IF input signal pairs in amplitude and phase;
program code for multiplying each in-phase and quadrature signal for said IF input signals with a predetermined weight coefficient vector; and
program code for summing the weighted in-phase and quadrature signals for said IF input signals to produce a plurality of IF output signals, wherein each of said output signals is associated with a data channel and an element of an antenna array. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49)
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Specification