Hardware-efficient demodulator for CDMA adaptive antenna array systems

• US 6,249,251 B1
• Filed: 11/05/1999
• Issued: 06/19/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Uniloc 2017 LLC (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Inventors: Park, Youn Ok, Kang, Yang Gi, Shin, Eung Soon, Kyeong, Mun Geon, Park, Hyung Rae, Chang, Kyung Hi
• Primary Examiner(s): Tarcza, Thomas H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mull, Fred H.
• Application Number:
  US09/435,039
• Time in Patent Office: 592 Days
• Field of Search: 342/368-378, 342/383, 375/144, 375/347
• US Class Current: 342/378
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 3/2605 Array of radiating elements provided with a feedback control over the element weights, e.g. adaptive arrays
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/709 Correlator structure
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/7115 Constructive combining of multi-path signals, i.e. RAKE receivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/086 using weights depending on external parameters, e.g. direction of arrival [DOA], predetermined weights or beamforming

Abstract

In the hardware-efficient demodulator for a CDMA adaptive antenna array mechanism of a mobile radio communication system, a correlators bank receives digital baseband signals received through an antenna array of a base station and computes correlation values with a local code sequence. A beamformer receives the digital baseband signals and the correlation values from the correlators bank and calculates beamforming weight vectors. A searchers bank receives the digital baseband signals and calculates an initial acquisition and reliable timing information for a multipath search by a common work with the beamformer, which uses a beamforming algorithm. A beamforming complex multiplier for a finger performs a complex multiplication for the beamforming weight vectors and the digital baseband signals, and sums up them. A finger bank receives output signals from the beamforming complex multiplier, executes a code tracking for an alignment between a transmission code and a phase by each multipath on the basis of the multipath search timing information to then provide the timing information of the multipath tracking to the correlators bank, and outputs signals of dispreaded multipath through a time alignment based on each path. A multipath combiner performs a multipath combination for the output signals of the finger bank on a time base and outputting it.

Claims

1. A demodulator for a CDMA adaptive antenna array system comprising:

correlators bank means for receiving digital baseband signals of a chip-level received through an antenna array of a base station and computing correlation values with a local code sequence;

beamforming means for receiving the digital baseband signals and calculating beamforming weight vectors on the basis of the correlation values of said correlators bank means;

beamforming complex multiplying means for a multipath searcher, for receiving the digital baseband signals, performing a complex multiplication for the beamforming weight vector from said beamforming means and the respective signals, and summing up them;

searchers bank means for receiving output signals from said beamforming complex multiplying means provided for the multipath searcher, executing a multipath search to output multipath search timing information, and inputting and outputting data from/to said beamforming means for a selection diversity;

beamforming complex multiplying means for a finger, for receiving the digital baseband signals, performing the complex multiplication for the beamforming weight vector from said beamforming means and the respective signals, and summing up them;

finger bank means for receiving output signals from said beamforming complex multiplying means provided for the finger, executing a multipath tracking on the basis of the multipath search timing information of said searchers bank means, and supplying traced multipath tracking timing information to said correlators bank means; and

multipath-combining means for receiving output signals from said finger bank means, performing a multipath combination for the output signals on a time base, and outputting it.

2. The demodulator of claim 1, wherein said beamforming means prestores the beamforming weight vectors corresponding to each subsector within one sector of a cell therein;

receives correlation results with the local code sequence of a subsector set for each beamforming weight vector from said searchers bank means and searches for the subsector index corresponding to the largest correlation value;

searches for initial acquisition or the timing information for the multipath search from correlation values with a signal concerned with the subsector index to feedback it to said searchers bank means; and

generates the beamforming weight vectors by the selection diversity in which the beamforming weight vector of one set among the beamforming weight vectors corresponding to each subsector is selected and used.

3. The demodulator of claim 1, wherein said beamforming means generates the beamforming weight vectors for said searchers bank means and the beamforming weight vectors for the finger bank by using the digital baseband signals, input data from said searchers bank means and input data from said correlators bank means and sends the generated beamforming weight vectors to said beamforming complex multiplying means for said searchers bank means and said beamforming complex multiplying means for the finger.

4. The demodulator of claim 1, wherein said searchers bank means determines the timing information corresponding to the correlation value which is over a predetermined threshold among all the correlation values, as timing information concerned with the initial acquisition or the multipath search, by using the beamforming weight vectors provided from said beamforming means.

5. The demodulator of claim 1, wherein said correlators bank means generates the correlation values obtained by a calculation result accumulated within several code chip period on the basis of the multipath tracking timing information provided from said finger bank means, and sends the values to said beamforming means, so that it is no need to store several correlation values in said searchers bank means or said finger bank means.

6. A demodulator for a CDMA adaptive antenna array system comprising:

correlators bank means for receiving digital baseband signals received through an antenna array of a base station and computing correlation values with a local code sequence;

beamforming means for receiving the digital baseband signals and calculating beamforming weight vectors on the basis of the correlation values of said correlators bank means;

searchers bank means for receiving the digital baseband signals and calculating an initial acquisition and reliable timing information for a multipath search, by a common work with said beamforming means which uses a beamforming algorithm;

finger bank means for receiving the digital baseband signals, executing a code tracking for an alignment between a transmission code and a phase by each multipath on the basis of the multipath search timing information by the common work with said beamforming means, and providing the multipath tracking timing information to said correlators bank means;

complex multiplying means for complex-multiplying the digital baseband input signals of dispreaded symbol-level outputted from said finger bank means, by the beamforming weight vectors provided from said beamforming means, respectively, and then performing its summing-up; and

multipath combining means for performing a multipath combination of the output signals provided from said complex multiplying means, on a time base, and outputting it.

7. A demodulator for a CDMA adaptive antenna array system comprising:

correlators bank means for receiving digital baseband signals received through an antenna array of a base station and computing correlation values with a local code sequence;

beamforming means for receiving the digital baseband signals and the correlation values from said correlators bank means, and computing beamforming weight vectors;

searchers bank means for receiving the digital baseband signals and calculating an initial acquisition and reliable timing information for a multipath search, by a common work with said beamforming means which uses a beamforming algorithm;

beamforming complex multiplying means for a finger, for performing a complex multiplication for the beamforming weight vectors and the digital baseband signals, and summing up them;

finger bank means for receiving output signals from said beamforming complex multiplying means, executing a code tracking for an alignment between a transmission code and a phase by each multipath on the basis of the multipath search timing information to then provide the traced multipath tracking timing information to said correlators bank means, and outputting signals of dispreaded multipath through a time alignment based on each path; and

multipath combining means for performing a multipath combination of output signals provided from said finger bank means on a time base, and outputting it.