Periodic calibration on a communications channel

• US 6,963,742 B2
• Filed: 04/29/2002
• Issued: 11/08/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/01/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: ArrayComm LLC (Ygomi LLC)
• Inventors: Boros, Tibor, Barratt, Craig H., Uhlik, Christopher R., Trott, Mitchell D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Urban, Edward F.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jackson, Blane J.
• Application Number:
  US10/136,048
• Publication Number:
  US 20030050016A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,289 Days
• Field of Search: 455/67.1, 455/67.4, 455/562.1, 455/423, 455/424, 455/67.11, 455/67.14, 455/561, 455/63.1, 455/69, 455/515, 455/67.16, 370/310, 370/328, 370/528, 370/343, 342/174, 342/378, 375/141
• US Class Current: 455/424
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/246 specially adapted for base stations
• 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: H01Q 3/267 Phased-array testing or checking devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/10 of transmitters
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/11 for calibration
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/12 of transmit antennas, e.g. of the amplitude or phase
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/14 of the whole transmission and reception path, e.g. self-test loop-back
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/21 for calibration; for correcting measurements
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/005 Control of transmission; Equalising
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0615 of weighted versions of same signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0617 for beam forming
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0842 Weighted combining
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0848 Joint weighting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2025/03426 transmission using multiple-input and multiple-output channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 25/03343 Arrangements at the transmitter end

Abstract

Calibration signals can be sent on a traffic channel without interrupting a connection between two radios. In one embodiment, the present invention includes receiving, at a second radio, a first traffic signal transmitted on a traffic channel by a first radio during a first time interval, receiving, at the second radio, a calibration signal transmitted on the traffic channel by the first radio during a second time interval, and receiving, at the second radio, a second traffic signal transmitted on the traffic channel by the first radio during a third time interval, wherein the traffic channel supports a connection between the first and second radios.

Claims

1. A method performed by a subscriber unit, the method comprising:

receiving a burst on a traffic channel of an air-interface protocol;

demodulating the received burst;

determining whether the received burst is a correctly received traffic burst of the air-interface protocol; and

if the received burst is not a correctly received traffic burst, then determining whether the received burst is a calibration burst.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising, if the received burst is a calibration burst, calculating a downlink spatial signature related measurement using the calibration burst.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising transmitting the downlink spatial signature related measurement to a base station from which the burst was received.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the traffic channel comprises a TCH according to the PHS air-interface protocol.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the received burst conforms to the air-interface protocol.

6. A subscriber unit comprising:

a receiver to receive a burst on traffic channel of an air-interface protocol;

a demodulator coupled to the receiver to demodulate the received burst;

a processor coupled to the demodulator to determine whether the received burst is a correctly received traffic burst of the air-interface protocol, and, if the received burst is not a correctly received traffic burst, then to further determine whether the received burst is a calibration burst.

7. The subscriber unit of claim 6, wherein if the received burst is a calibration burst, then the processor calculates a downlink spatial signature related measurement using the calibration burst.

8. The subscriber unit of claim 7, further comprising a transmitter to transmit the downlink spatial signature related measurement to a base station from which the burst was received.

9. The subscriber unit of claim 6, wherein the traffic channel comprises a TCH according to the PHS air-interface protocol.

10. The subscriber unit of claim 6, wherein the received burst conforms to the air-interface protocol.

11. A machine-readable medium having stored thereon data representing instructions that, when performed by a processor of a subscriber unit, cause the subscriber unit to perform operations comprising:

receiving a burst on a traffic channel of an air-interface protocol;

demodulating the received burst;

determining whether the received burst is a correctly received traffic burst of the air-interface protocol; and

if the received burst is not a correctly received traffic burst, then determining whether the received burst is a calibration burst.

12. The machine-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the instructions further cause the subscriber unit to, if the received burst is a calibration burst, calculate a downlink spatial signature related measurement using the calibration burst.

13. The machine-readable medium of claim 12, wherein the instructions further cause the subscriber unit to transmit the downlink spatial signature related measurement to a base station from which the burst was received.

14. The machine-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the traffic channel comprises a TCH according to the PHS air-interface protocol.

15. The machine-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the received burst conforms to the air-interface protocol.