Antenna transmission and reception system

• US 7,069,050 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2003
• Issued: 06/27/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Yoshida, Shousei
• Primary Examiner(s): Milord, Marceau
• Application Number:
  US10/442,190
• Publication Number:
  US 20040009755A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,133 Days
• Field of Search: 455/101, 455/277.2, 455/561, 455/562.1, 455/575.7, 455/269, 455/272, 375/347, 375/267, 375/299, 370/334, 370/336
• US Class Current: 455/562.1
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/246 specially adapted for base stations
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 21/08 the units being spaced along or adjacent to a rectilinear path waveguide fed H01Q21/0037
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 3/24 varying the orientation by switching energy from one active radiating element to another, e.g. for beam switching
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 3/26 varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elements; varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture H01Q3/12, H01Q3/22, H01Q3/24 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0452 Multi-user MIMO systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0697 using spatial multiplexing

Abstract

A transmitter of a base station includes a data serial-to-parallel converter, M modulators, M beam formers, and transmission antennas. The data serial-to-parallel converter converts transmission data into M sequences. Each modulator modulates the transmission data. Each beam former weights the modulation signal to form directional beams. The transmission antennas narrow the beams and transmit the modulation signals in parallel (MIMO transmission). In a mobile station, a receiver has reception antennas for receiving data transmitted in parallel and an MIMO demodulator for demodulating the data.

Claims

1. An antenna transmission and reception system in a mobile communication system, comprising:

a base station which has a plurality of antennas, the antennas being divided into a plurality of array antenna groups in accordance with a cell propagation environment, each array antenna group performing loose directional-beam control, the array antenna groups transmitting different data in parallel utilizing a multiple input multiple output (MIMO) technique; and

a mobile station which has a plurality of antennas to receive the data transmitted in parallel.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein:

an interval between each of the antennas of each array antenna group of the base station is set to λ

/2, where λ

denotes a carrier wavelength, in order to increase an antenna correlation value, and

an interval between each of the array antenna groups is set to 10λ

or larger in order to reduce the antenna correlation value.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein:

at least one of the number of array antenna groups and a width of each directional beam of each array antenna group is determined in accordance with a difference between arrival angles of multipaths in the base station or the antenna correlation value of each array antenna group.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein:

at least one of the number of array antenna groups and a width of each directional beam of each array antenna group is determined in accordance with a height of each antenna of the base station or a radius of a cell where the base station is arranged.

5. An antenna transmission and reception system in a mobile communication system, comprising:

a first base station group which includes first base stations each having a plurality of antennas and which constitute an array antenna to perform desired directional-beam control;

a second base station group which includes second base stations each having a plurality of antennas, the antennas being divided into a plurality of array antenna groups in accordance with a cell propagation environment, each array antenna group performing loose directional-beam control, the array antenna groups transmitting different data in parallel utilizing a multiple input multiple output (MIMO) technique; and

a mobile station which has a plurality of antennas and which performs diversity reception upon communicating with the first base station group and which receives data transmitted in parallel upon communicating with the second base station group.

6. The system according to claim 5, wherein:

an interval between each of the antennas of each first base station is set to λ

/2, where λ

denotes a carrier wavelength, so as to increase an antenna correlation value,

an interval between each of the antennas of each array antenna group of each second base station is set to λ

/2 so as to increase the antenna correlation value, and

an interval between each of the array antenna groups is set to 10λ

or larger so as to reduce the antenna correlation value.

7. The system according to claim 6, wherein:

at least one of selection between the first base station group and the second base station group, the number of array antenna groups in each second base station, and a width of each directional beam of each array antenna group is determined in accordance with a difference between arrival angles of multipaths in each base station or the antenna correlation value of each array antenna group.

8. The system according to claim 5, wherein:

at least one of selection between the first base station group and the second base station group, the number of array antenna groups in each second base station, and a width of each directional beam of each array antenna group is determined in accordance with a height of each antenna of each base station or a radius of a cell where the base station is arranged.

9. The system according to claim 5, wherein:

the mobile station includes software having a diversity reception function and software having an MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) reception function and selects between the software in accordance with an antenna transmission system of the base station to accomplish diversity reception or reception of data transmitted in parallel.

10. An antenna transmission and reception system in a mobile communication system, comprising:

at base station which has a transmitter,

wherein the transmitter comprising;

a data serial-to-parallel converter for converting transmission data into M sequences, where M is an integer of 2 or more,

M modulators for modulating the M sequences of the transmission data subjected to a serial-to-parallel conversion,

M beam formers for weighting respective modulation signals to form directional beams, and

M transmission antenna groups for transmitting M modulation signals in parallel, each modulation signal having directional beams controlled by the beam former; and

a mobile station having a receiver,

wherein the receiver comprising;

reception antennas for receiving data transmitted in parallel, and

an MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) demodulator for demodulating transmission data.

11. An antenna transmission and reception system in a mobile communication system, comprising:

a first base station group which includes first base stations each having a first transmitter,

wherein the first transmitter comprising;

a modulator for modulating transmission data,

a beam former for weighting a modulation signal, output from the modulator, to form directional beams, and

transmission antennas for transmitting the modulation signal having directional beams controlled by the beam former;

a second base station group which includes second base stations each having a second transmitter,

wherein the second transmitter comprising;

a data serial-to-parallel converter for converting transmission data into M sequences, where M is an integer of 2 or more,

M modulators for modulating the M sequences of transmission data subjected to the serial-to-parallel conversion,

M beam formers for weighting respective modulation signals to form directional beams, and

M transmission antenna groups for transmitting M modulation signals in parallel, each modulation signal having the directional beams controlled by the beam former; and

a mobile station which has a receiver;

wherein the receiver compromising;

reception antennas for receiving transmission data,

a diversity demodulator for performing diversity demodulation to data transmitted from the first base station group, and

an MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) demodulator for

demodulating data transmitted in parallel from the second base station group.

12. The system according to claim 11, wherein:

the receiver of the mobile station has software having a diversity demodulation function of performing diversity demodulation to the data transmitted from the first base station group and software having an MIMO demodulation function of demodulating the data transmitted in parallel from the second base station group, and further Includes a demodulation-mode switching unit for switching between the software in accordance with an antenna transmission system of the base station to realize diversity demodulation or MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) demodulation.

13. A mobile station for a mobile communication system, the mobile station being movable in each cell of a cell system in which each base station has a plurality of antennas, the antennas are divided into a plurality of array antenna groups in accordance with a cell propagation environment, each array antenna group performs loose directional-beam control, and the array antenna groups transmit different data in parallel, the mobile station comprising:

a plurality of reception antennas for receiving signals transmitted in parallel from the base station; and

MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) demodulation means for demodulating the transmitted signals.

14. A mobile station for a mobile communication system, the mobile station being movable in each cell of a cell system, the cell system comprising a first cell group in which each base station has plurality of antennas constituting an array antenna to perform desired directional-beam control, and a second cell group in which each base station has a plurality of antennas, the antennas are divided into a plurality of array antenna groups in accordance with a cell propagation environment, each array antenna group performs loose directional-beam control, and the array antenna groups transmit different data in parallel, the mobile station comprising:

a plurality of reception antennas for receiving data transmitted from the base station;

diversity demodulation means for performing diversity demodulation to data transmitted from the base station of the first cell group;

MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) demodulation means for demodulating data transmitted in parallel from the base station of the second cell group; and

demodulation-mode switching means for switching between a diversity demodulation mode and an MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) demodulation mode.