METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR REDUCED COMPLEXITY CHANNEL ESTIMATION AND INTERFERENCE CANCELLATION FOR V-MIMO DEMODULATION

• US 20110293028A1
• Filed: 11/12/2009
• Published: 12/01/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Inventors: Boudreau, Gary D., Panicker, John P., Illidge, Ed, Petras, Michael
• Granted Patent: US 8,724,723 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 375/260
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 11/0036 at the receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 11/005 of intercell interference
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 11/0056 Inter-base station aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 11/0059 Out-of-cell user aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0048 in conjunction with detection of multiuser or interfering signals, e.g. iteration between CDMA or MIMO detector and FEC decoder for spatial equalizer H04L25/03286
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 25/0202 Channel estimation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 25/0204 of multiple channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements

Abstract

A method and system for wireless communication in a wireless communication network. The wireless communication network has a first mobile terminal and a second mobile terminal arranged in virtual multiple input, multiple output (“V-MIMO”) communication with a base station. A first wireless communication uplink channel corresponding to the first mobile terminal is estimated. The estimate is based on a first reference symbol signal and the cancellation of interference from a second reference symbol signal received from the second mobile terminal. A second wireless communication uplink channel corresponding to the second mobile terminal is estimated. The estimate is based on the second reference symbol signal and the cancellation of interference from the first reference symbol signal received from the first mobile terminal. The estimated first wireless communication uplink channel is used to demodulate a first data signal received from the first wireless device, and the estimated second wireless communication uplink channel is used to demodulate a second data signal received from the second wireless device.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication in a wireless communication network, the wireless communication network having a plurality of mobile terminals arranged in virtual multiple input, multiple output (“

V-MIMO”

) communication with a base station, the method comprising;

receiving an uplink reference signal from each of the plurality of mobile terminals;

determining a first reference signal channel estimate for each of the plurality of mobile terminals based on the corresponding received reference signal;

determining an interference cancelled estimate for each of the plurality of mobile terminals using the corresponding first reference signal channel estimate; and

determining a corresponding second reference signal channel estimate for each of the plurality of mobile terminals based on the corresponding interference cancelled estimate.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein each second reference signal channel estimate is determined using a minimum mean square error method.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein each second reference signal channel estimate is determined in a frequency domain.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising demodulating user data signal received from each of the plurality of mobile terminals using the second reference channel estimate corresponding to the mobile terminal.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising performing a first error checking of the demodulated user data for each of the plurality of mobile terminals.

6. The method according to claim 5, further comprising, in a case where there are no errors in the demodulated user data for the plurality of the mobile terminals:

determining that the demodulated user data from the plurality of the mobile terminals are valid; and

processing the demodulated user data as V-MIMO data.

7. The method according to claim 5, further comprising, in a case where the first error checking of the demodulated data for one of the plurality of mobile terminals yields a failure:

using the demodulated user data and the second reference signal channel estimate corresponding to at least one of the mobile terminals other than the mobile terminal yielding the failed first error checking to;

cancel the interference from the signal corresponding to the mobile terminal yielding the first failed error checking; and

regenerate the user data signal for the mobile terminal yielding the first failed error checking.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein cancelling the interference from the signal corresponding to the mobile terminal yielding the first failed error checking includes:

(a) multiplying the second reference signal channel estimate corresponding to at least one of the mobile terminals passing the error checking by the demodulated user data corresponding to the same at least one of the mobile terminals passing the error checking; and

(b) subtracting the multiplication result of step (a) from a received composite signal of the plurality of mobile terminals.

9. The method according to claim 7, further comprising performing a second error checking on the regenerated data signal.

10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising signaling a next hybrid automatic repeat request (“

HARQ”

) if the second error checking yields a failure.

11. A base station for use in a wireless communication system, the base station capable of engaging in wireless communication with a plurality of mobile terminals arranged in virtual multiple input multiple output (“

V-MIMO”

) communication with the base station, the base station arranged to;

receive an uplink reference signal from each of the plurality of mobile terminals;

determine a first reference signal channel estimate for each of the plurality of mobile terminals based on the corresponding received reference signal;

determine an interference cancelled estimate for each of the plurality of mobile terminals using the corresponding first reference signal channel estimate; and

determine a corresponding second reference signal channel estimate for each of the plurality of mobile terminals based on the corresponding interference cancelled estimate.

12. The base station according to claim 11, wherein the base station is further arranged to demodulate user data signals received from each of the plurality of mobile terminals using the second reference channel estimate corresponding to the mobile terminal.

13. The base station according to claim 12, wherein the base station is further arranged to perform a first error checking of the demodulated user data for each of the plurality of mobile terminals.

14. The base station according to claim 13, wherein in a case where the first error checking of the demodulated data for one of the plurality of mobile terminals yields a failure, the base station further uses the demodulated user data and the second reference signal channel estimate corresponding to at least one of the mobile terminals other than the mobile terminal yielding the failed first error checking to:

cancel the interference from the signal corresponding to the mobile terminal yielding the first failed error checking; and

regenerate the data signal for the mobile terminal yielding the first failed error checking.

15. The base station according to claim 14, wherein cancelling the interference from the signal corresponding to the mobile terminal yielding the first failed error checking includes:

(a) multiplying the second reference signal channel estimate corresponding to at least one of the mobile terminals passing the error checking by the demodulated user data corresponding to the same at least one of the mobile terminals passing the error checking; and

(b) subtracting the multiplication result of step (a) from a received composite signal of the plurality of mobile terminals.

16. A method for wireless communication in a wireless communication network, the wireless communication network having a first mobile terminal and a second mobile terminal arranged in virtual multiple input, multiple output (“

V-MIMO”

) communication with a base station, the method comprising;

estimating a first wireless communication uplink channel corresponding to the first mobile terminal, the estimate being based on a first reference symbol signal received from the first mobile terminal and based on a second reference symbol received from the second mobile terminal, the second reference symbol signal being used to estimate and cancel the interference of a third reference symbol signal received from the second mobile terminal from the first reference symbol signal; and

estimating a second wireless communication uplink channel corresponding to the second mobile terminal, the estimate being based on the third reference symbol signal received from the second mobile terminal and the cancellation of interference by the first reference symbol signal received from the first mobile terminal based on a fourth reference signal received from the first mobile terminal.

17. The method according to claim 16, further comprising:

using the estimated first wireless communication uplink channel to demodulate a first data signal received from the first wireless device; and

using the estimated second wireless communication uplink channel to demodulate a second data signal received from the second wireless device.

18. The method according to claim 17, further comprising:

further comprising performing a first error checking of the demodulated user data for the first mobile terminal and the second mobile terminal.

19. The method according to claim 18, further comprising, in a case where the first error checking of the demodulated data for first mobile terminal yields a failure:

using the demodulated second data signal and the estimate of the second wireless communication uplink channel corresponding to the second mobile terminal to;

cancel the interference from the signal corresponding to the first mobile terminal; and

regenerate the data signal for the first mobile terminal.

20. The method according to claim 19, further comprising performing a second error checking on the regenerated data signal for the first mobile terminal.