Cellular antenna and systems and methods therefor
First Claim
1. A cellular communications antenna comprising:
- an array antenna configured to produce a beam and mounted for adjustable orientation;
an antenna orientation sensor mounted upon or near the antenna and configured to develop a signal characterizing the physical orientation of the antenna;
an electrical actuator for adjusting an attribute of the array antenna or the beam; and
an antenna controller responsive to the sensor signal and configured to control the actuator to achieve a desired antenna orientation or beam orientation or configuration.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A cellular communications antenna including sensors for determining position and/or orientation of the antenna. Position information may be obtained using, for example, a GPS receiver or by triangulation. Orientation information may be obtained using, for example, an electronic compass and/or gyroscope and/or an inclinometer. Position and/or orientation information may be utilised locally to control attributes of the antenna or may be communicated to a central controller which may control attributes of the antenna. Signals may be sent to a central controller to indicate that an attribute of the antenna is outside a desired range.
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Citations
51 Claims
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1. A cellular communications antenna comprising:
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an array antenna configured to produce a beam and mounted for adjustable orientation;
an antenna orientation sensor mounted upon or near the antenna and configured to develop a signal characterizing the physical orientation of the antenna;
an electrical actuator for adjusting an attribute of the array antenna or the beam; and
an antenna controller responsive to the sensor signal and configured to control the actuator to achieve a desired antenna orientation or beam orientation or configuration. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A cellular communications antenna system comprising:
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a plurality of array antennas producing beams covering a plurality of cell sectors;
a plurality of antenna orientation sensors associated with said plurality of antennas and configured to respectively sense the physical orientations of said array antennas;
a plurality of actuators for respectively adjusting an attribute of the array antennas; and
a control arrangement configured to receive orientation information from the orientation sensors and adjust an attribute of each of the array antennas to achieve for each antenna a desired antenna orientation or beam orientation or configuration.
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12. A cellular communications antenna system as claimed in claim 12 wherein the desired antenna attribute of at least one antenna is selected to achieve one of:
- system coverage, system usage and desired antenna orientation.
- View Dependent Claims (11, 13, 14, 15)
- 18. A cellular communications system as claimed in claim 18 wherein each antenna system supplies orientation information to the central controller when requested by the central controller.
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24. A method of controlling the orientation of a cellular communications antenna having an orientation sensor for measuring the orientation of the antenna and an actuator for adjusting the orientation of the antenna, comprising:
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determining the orientation of the antenna; and
, if the orientation of the antenna is not within a desired range,driving the actuator and monitoring the orientation of the antenna measured by the orientation sensor until the orientation of the antenna is within the desired range.
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26. A method of controlling a beam attribute of a cellular communications antenna having an orientation sensor for measuring the orientation of the antenna and an actuator for adjusting a variable element of an antenna feed network of the antenna, comprising:
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determining the orientation of the antenna; and
controlling the actuator of the antenna to achieve a desired beam pattern in dependence upon the orientation of the antenna. - View Dependent Claims (25)
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28. In a cellular communications system a method of determining the configuration of a plurality of antenna systems comprising a plurality of antennas having orientation sensors for measuring the orientation of the antennas and position sensors for determining the positions of the antennas, the method comprising:
obtaining position and orientation readings for antennas of each antenna system and communicating the readings to a central controller. - View Dependent Claims (27)
- 30. A method as claimed in claim 30 wherein the central controller maintains a database of antenna positions and orientations and sends desired attribute values to the antenna systems.
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31. A method of configuring a cellular communications antenna including an orientation sensor for measuring the orientation of the antenna and a position sensor for determining the position of the antenna comprising:
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determining the position and orientation of the antenna;
storing position and orientation information in a controller; and
controlling actuators to adjust attributes of the antenna to provide desired beam coverage based on the stored position and orientation information.
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33. A cellular communications antenna comprising:
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an array antenna for producing a beam;
antenna position and orientation sensors mounted upon or near the antenna and configured to develop a signal characterizing the position and orientation of the antenna;
an actuator for adjusting an attribute of the array antenna or the beam; and
an antenna controller responsive to the sensor signal and configured to control the actuator to achieve a desired antenna or beam configuration. - View Dependent Claims (32)
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34. A method of controlling coverage in a cellular communications system including one or more base station, comprising the steps of:
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a. obtaining information as to the position and orientation of an antenna of the one or more base station;
b. obtaining desired beam coverage information;
c. calculating a desired antenna orientation for the antenna based at least in part upon the desired beam coverage information; and
d. controlling the antenna so that its beam conforms to the desired antenna orientation. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
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41. A method of controlling coverage in a cellular communications system including one or more base station, comprising the steps of:
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a. obtaining information as to the position and orientation of an antenna of the one or more base station;
b. displaying a virtual projection of the antenna beam onto a virtual topography corresponding to the environment in which the antenna is located;
c. modifying the antenna beam orientation via a user input device;
d. displaying a modified virtual antenna beam in the virtual environment corresponding to modification via the user input device; and
e. controlling the antenna so that the beam conforms to the desired antenna orientation. - View Dependent Claims (42, 43, 44)
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45. A cellular communications system comprising:
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a. a central controller;
b. one or more base station, each base station having one or more antenna and a base station controller which provides information as to the orientation of each antenna to the central controller;
c. wherein the central controller controls the orientation of each antenna to achieve a desired coverage. - View Dependent Claims (46, 47)
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48. A cellular communications system comprising:
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a. a central controller; and
b. one or more base station, each base station having one or more antenna and a base station controller which provides information as to the orientation of each antenna to the central controller;
wherein the central controller includes display means for displaying virtual antenna beams representative of the antenna beams of the base stations superposed on a virtual topology and a user input device enabling a user to manipulate a virtual beam to generate control signals sent to control attributes of the corresponding antenna. - View Dependent Claims (49, 50, 51)
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Specification