Transmitter and receiver device and method for synchronizing a receiver installation

• US 7,065,374 B2
• Filed: 05/02/2001
• Issued: 06/20/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rohde & Schwarz GmbH & Company KG
• Original Assignee: Rohde & Schwarz GmbH & Company KG
• Inventors: Lipp, Friedrich, Eppinger, Rolf
• Primary Examiner(s): To, Doris H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Yun, Eugene
• Application Number:
  US10/276,040
• Publication Number:
  US 20030176168A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,875 Days
• Field of Search: 455/502, 455/69, 455/230, 455/231, 455/13.2, 455/574, 455/70, 370/304, 370/324, 370/350, 370/395.62, 370/503, 370/507, 370/509, 370/510, 370/520, 375354-356, 375/358, 375/359
• US Class Current: 455/502
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18506 Communications with or from aircraft, i.e. aeronautical mobile service

Abstract

The invention relates to a transmitter and receiver device (1) for a cellular radio network, comprising a transmitter installation (6a) and a receiver installation (8a) located at a spatial distance to said transmitter installation (6areceiver (7) is connected to said transmitter installation (6a) and time-controls the transmission of transmission blocks by the installation (6a). The receiver installation (8a) is not provided with a time standard receiver. Instead, the receiver instal (8a), by intercepting the transmission signal emitted by the transmitter installation (6a) located in the same cell, generate signal for synchronizing the time of a timer of the receiver installation (8a).

Claims

1. A cellular radio network comprising:

at least one transmitter installation capable of transmitting transmission bursts to a mobile station, said transmitter installation including a time-standard receiver for receiving timing signals, said time standard receiver being capable of controlling the timing of said transmission bursts; and

a receiver installation located a physical distance away from said transmitter installation and being capable of receiving transmissions from said mobile station, said receiver installation not including a time-standard receiver;

wherein said receiver installation listens in on a transmission burst from one of said at least one transmitter installation;

wherein said receiver installation determines if said one of said transmitter installations is located in the same cell of said cellular radio network as said receiver installation; and

wherein said receiver installation generates a synchronizing signal for synchronizing a time at a first timer in said receiver installation with said timing signals based on said transmission burst if said one of said at least one transmitter installation is located in the same cell as said receiver installation.

2. The network of claim 1 wherein said synchronizing signal is only generated when said transmission burst is introduced by a predetermined training sequence.

3. The network of claim 2 wherein said time at said first timer is transferred to a second timer that controls the timing of the receiver installation only if at least one bit of a set of system information following said training sequence is of a predetermined value.

4. The network of claim 3 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if a field strength of said transmission burst exceeds a predetermined minimum value.

5. The network of claim 4 wherein said time at said first timer is oniy transferred to said second timer if an error rate of said transmission burst is lower than a predetermined maximum value.

6. The network of claim 4 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if said time at said first timer differs from said time at said second timer by less than a predetermined maximum difference in time.

7. The network of claim 6 wherein said predetermined maximum difference in time increases as a function of the time that has elapsed since the last transfer from said first timer to said second timer.

8. The network of claim 3 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if an error rate of said transmission burst is lower than a predetermined maximum value.

9. The network of claim 8 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if said time at said first timer differs from said time at said second timer by less than a predetermined maximum difference in time.

10. The network of claim 9 wherein said predetermined maximum difference in time increases as a function of the time that has elapsed since the last transfer from said first timer to said second timer.

11. The network of claim 3 wherein said time at said first timer is oniy transferred to said second timer if said time at said first timer differs from said time at said second timer by less than a predetermined maximum difference in time.

12. The network of claim 3 further comprising:

a time-transfer controller arranged between said first timer and said second timer that transmits said time at said first timer to said second timer.

13. The network of claim 3 wherein the receiver installation includes a signal processor that finds whether said predetermined training sequence has been transmitted, and a link processor connected downstream of the signal processor that finds whether the system information is of said predetermined value.

14. The network of claim 13 wherein the signal processor transmits said synchronizing signal to said first timer if said signal processor finds that said predetermined training sequence has been transmitted.

15. The network of claim 14 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if a field strength of said transmission burst exceeds a predetermined minimum value.

16. The network of claim 14 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if an error rate of said transmission burst is lower than a predetermined maximum value.

17. The network of claim 14 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if said time at said first timer differs from said time at said second timer by less than a predetermined maximum difference in time.

18. The network of claim 17 wherein said predetermined maximum difference in time increases as a function of the time that has elapsed since the last transfer from said first timer to said second timer.

19. The network of claim 13 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if a field strength of said transmission burst exceeds a predetermined minimum value.

20. The network of claim 13 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if said time at said first timer differs from said time at said second timer by less than a predetermined maximum difference in time.

21. The network of claim 20 wherein said predetermined maximum difference in time increases as a function of the time that has elapsed since the last transfer from said first timer to said second timer.

22. The network of claim 13 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if an error rate of said transmission burst is lower than a predetermined maximum value.

23. A method for synchronizing a receiver installation that is part of a cellular radio network with a transmitter installation located in the same cell, the method comprising:

having said transmitter installation generate a transmission signal to a mobile station, said transmission signal comprising a plurality of transmission bursts;

having said receiver installation listen in on said transmission signal;

if said transmitter installation is in the same cell as said receiver installation; and

if a transmission burst in said transmission signal is introduced by a predetermined training sequence, generating a synchronizing signal for synchronizing a time at a first timer at said receiver installation to said transmitter installation; and

if at least one bit of a set of system information following the training sequence is of a predetermined value;

transferring said time at said first timer to a second timer to synchronize said receiver installation with said transmitter installation.

24. The method of claim 23 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if a field strength of said transmission signal also exceeds a predetermined minimum value.

25. The method of claim 23 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if an error rate of the transmission signal is also less than a predetermined maximum value.

26. The method of claim 24 wherein said time at said first timer is only transferred to said second timer if an error rate of said transmission signal is also less than a predetermined maximum value.