Multi-carrier communications methods and apparatus
First Claim
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1. A communications system, comprising:
- a plurality of multi-sector cells, including a first multi-sector cell and a second multi-sector cell, each multi-sector cell including a plurality of sectors and a sector transmitter for each sector of the multi-sector cell, said first and second multi-sector cells being physically adjacent cells;
wherein said first multi-sector cell includes a base station that uses a single carrier frequency in each of a plurality of different sectors of said first cell, a first carrier frequency being used in a first sector of said first cell and a second carrier frequency being used in a second sector of said first multi-sector cell, the first and second carrier frequencies being different; and
wherein said second multi-sector cell includes a second base station that uses said first and second carrier frequencies in a first sector of said second multi-sector cell; and
wherein said plurality of multi-sector cells further includes;
a third multi-sector cell, said third multi-sector cell including a base station which uses at least said first and second carrier frequencies in each of the sectors of said third cell, wherein the base station of said third multi-sector cell further uses a third carrier frequency in each of said sectors of said third multi-sector cell; and
wherein a first frequency band is associated with and includes said first carrier frequency, a second frequency band is associated with and includes said second carrier frequency, and a third frequency band is associated with and includes the third carrier frequency, the first, second and third frequency bands being non-overlapping frequency bands of the same size and including a plurality of uniformly spaced tones used to transmit symbols;
wherein each of said first, second, and third frequency bands have a bandwidth which is 2 MHz or less and wherein the total bandwidth occupied by said 3 bands is at most 6 MHz; and
wherein each base station includes means for controlling each sector transmitter to periodically transmit a narrowband signal at a high power level on each carrier used for downlink signals in the sector into which the sector transmitter transmits, said narrowband signal including a signal transmitted over a tone with tone power being at least 20 times the average per tone transmission power in each carrier.
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Abstract
Methods and apparatus for implementing a multi-carrier communications system are described. Various approaches to a phased system deployment and system configurations resulting from different levels of deployment are described. In addition mobile node and methods of operating mobile nodes in communications systems that may have different levels of deployment in different cells are described.
65 Citations
32 Claims
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1. A communications system, comprising:
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a plurality of multi-sector cells, including a first multi-sector cell and a second multi-sector cell, each multi-sector cell including a plurality of sectors and a sector transmitter for each sector of the multi-sector cell, said first and second multi-sector cells being physically adjacent cells; wherein said first multi-sector cell includes a base station that uses a single carrier frequency in each of a plurality of different sectors of said first cell, a first carrier frequency being used in a first sector of said first cell and a second carrier frequency being used in a second sector of said first multi-sector cell, the first and second carrier frequencies being different; and wherein said second multi-sector cell includes a second base station that uses said first and second carrier frequencies in a first sector of said second multi-sector cell; and wherein said plurality of multi-sector cells further includes; a third multi-sector cell, said third multi-sector cell including a base station which uses at least said first and second carrier frequencies in each of the sectors of said third cell, wherein the base station of said third multi-sector cell further uses a third carrier frequency in each of said sectors of said third multi-sector cell; and wherein a first frequency band is associated with and includes said first carrier frequency, a second frequency band is associated with and includes said second carrier frequency, and a third frequency band is associated with and includes the third carrier frequency, the first, second and third frequency bands being non-overlapping frequency bands of the same size and including a plurality of uniformly spaced tones used to transmit symbols; wherein each of said first, second, and third frequency bands have a bandwidth which is 2 MHz or less and wherein the total bandwidth occupied by said 3 bands is at most 6 MHz; and wherein each base station includes means for controlling each sector transmitter to periodically transmit a narrowband signal at a high power level on each carrier used for downlink signals in the sector into which the sector transmitter transmits, said narrowband signal including a signal transmitted over a tone with tone power being at least 20 times the average per tone transmission power in each carrier. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A communications system, comprising:
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a plurality of multi-sector cells including a first multi-sector cell, a second multi-sector cell, and a third multi-sector cell, each of said first, second and third multi-sector cells including a plurality of sectors and means for transmitting into each of said sectors, said first, second and third multi-sector cells being physically adjacent cells; wherein said first multi-sector cell uses a single carrier frequency in each of the plurality of different sectors of said first cell, means for transmitting into said first sector of said first multi-sector cell transmitting on a first carrier frequency and means for transmitting into said second sector of said first multi-sector cell transmitting on a second carrier frequency, the first and second carrier frequencies being different; wherein said second multi-sector cell uses said first and second carrier frequencies, said second multi-sector cell including means for transmitting on said first and second carriers into a first sector of said second multi-sector cell; wherein said third multi-sector cell uses at least said first and second carrier frequencies in each of the sectors of said third cell in addition to a third carrier frequency and includes means for transmitting said first, second and third carrier frequencies into each of said sectors of said third multi-sector cell; and wherein a first frequency band is associated with and includes said first carrier frequency, a second frequency band is associated with and includes said second carrier frequency, and a third frequency band is associated with and includes the third carrier frequency, the first, second and third frequency bands being non-overlapping frequency bands of the same size and including a plurality of uniformly spaced tones used to transmit symbols; wherein each of said first, second, and third frequency bands have a bandwidth which is 2 MHz or less and wherein the total bandwidth occupied by said 3 bands is at most 6 MHz; and wherein each of said first and second cells includes means for controlling each means for transmitting into a sector to periodically transmit a narrowband signal at a high power level on each carrier on which the means for transmitting transmits downlink signals, said narrowband signal including a signal transmitted on a tone on the carrier used for downlink signals, said tone being transmitted with a tone power level which is at least 20 times the average per tone transmission power of tones transmitted on the carrier on which said narrowband signal is being transmitted. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27)
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28. A communications system, comprising:
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a plurality of multi-sector cells, including a first multi-sector cell, a second multi-sector cell, and a third multi-sector cell, each of said first, second and third multi-sector cells including a plurality of sectors and sector transmitters for transmitting into each of said sectors, said first, second and third multi-sector cells being physically adjacent cells; wherein said first multi-sector cell uses a single carrier frequency in each of the plurality of different sectors of said first cell, said first multi-sector cell including a first processor for controlling transmission into said first sector of said first multi-sector cell on a first carrier frequency and means for controlling transmission into said second sector of said first multi-sector cell on a second carrier frequency, the first and second carrier frequencies being different; wherein said second multi-sector cell uses said first and second carrier frequencies, said second multi-sector cell including means for transmitting on said first and second carriers into a first sector of said second multi-sector cell; wherein said third multi-sector cell uses at least said first and second carrier frequencies in each of the sectors of said third cell in addition to a third carrier frequency and includes a processor for controlling transmission of said first, second and third carrier frequencies into in each of said sectors of said third multi-sector cell; and wherein a first frequency band is associated with and includes said first carrier frequency, a second frequency band is associated with and includes said second carrier frequency, and a third frequency band is associated with and includes the third carrier frequency, the first, second and third frequency bands being non-overlapping frequency bands of the same size and including a plurality of uniformly spaced tones used to transmit symbols; wherein each of said first, second, and third frequency bands have a bandwidth which is 2 MHz or less and wherein the total bandwidth occupied by said 3 bands is at most 6 MHz; and wherein the processor used to control transmission into each of said first and second cells further controls a sector transmitter of each sector to periodically transmit a narrowband signal at a high power level on each carrier on which the sector transmitter transmits downlink signals, said narrowband signal including a signal transmitted over a tone on the carrier used for downlink signals, said tone being transmitted with a tone power level which is at least 20 times the average per tone transmission power of tones transmitted on the carrier on which said narrowband signal is being transmitted. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30)
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31. A communications system, comprising:
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a plurality of multi-sector cells, including a first multi-sector cell, a second multi-sector cell, and a third multi-sector cell, each of said first, second and third multi-sector cells including a plurality of sectors and sector transmitters for transmitting into each of said sectors, said first, second and third multi-sector cells being physically adjacent cells; wherein said first multi-sector cell uses a single carrier frequency in each of the plurality of different sectors of said first cell, a first computer readable medium storing machine executable instructions for controlling transmission into said first sector of said first multi-sector cell on a first carrier frequency and means for controlling transmission into said second sector of said first multi-sector cell on a second carrier frequency, the first and second carrier frequencies being different; wherein said second multi-sector cell uses said first and second carrier frequencies, said second multi-sector cell including a second computer readable medium storing machine executable instructions for controlling transmission on said first and second carriers into a first sector of said second multi-sector cell; wherein said third multi-sector cell uses at least said first and second carrier frequencies in each of the sectors of said third cell in addition to a third carrier frequency and includes a third computer readable medium storing machine executable instructions for controlling transmission of said first, second and third carrier frequencies into in each of said sectors of said third multi-sector cell; and wherein a first frequency band is associated with and includes said first carrier frequency, a second frequency band is associated with and includes said second carrier frequency, and a third frequency band is associated with and includes the third carrier frequency, the first, second and third frequency bands being non-overlapping frequency bands of the same size and including a plurality of uniformly spaced tones used to transmit symbols; wherein each of said first, second, and third frequency bands have a bandwidth which is 2 MHz or less and wherein the total bandwidth occupied by said 3 bands is at most 6 MHz; and wherein a processor used to control transmission into each of said first and second cells controls a sector transmitter of each sector to periodically transmit a narrowband signal at a high power level on each carrier on which the sector transmitter transmits downlink signals, said narrowband signal including a signal transmitted over a tone on the carrier used for downlink signals, said tone being transmitted with a tone power level which is at least 20 times the average per tone transmission power of tones transmitted on the carrier on which said narrowband signal is being transmitted.
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32. A communications method for use in a system including a plurality of multi-sector cells, including a first multi-sector cell, a second multi-sector cell, and a third multi-sector cell, each of said first, second and third multi-sector cells including a plurality of sectors and means for transmitting into each of said sectors, said first, second and third multi-sector cells being physically adjacent cells, the method, comprising:
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operating said first multi-sector cell to use a single carrier frequency in each of the plurality of different sectors of said first cell, operating said first multi-sector cell including operating the first multi-sector cell to transmit into said first sector of said first multi-sector cell on a first carrier frequency and transmit into said second sector of said first multi-sector cell on a second carrier frequency, the first and second carrier frequencies being different; operating said second multi-sector cell to use said first and second carrier frequencies, operating said second multi-sector cell to use said first and second carrier frequencies including operating the second multi-sector cell to transmit on said first and second carriers into a first sector of said second multi-sector cell; operating said third multi-sector cell to use at least said first and second carrier frequencies in each of the sectors of said third cell in addition to a third carrier frequency, operating said third multi-sector cell including controlling the third multi-sector cell to transmit said first, second and third carrier frequencies into in each of said sectors of said third multi-sector cell; and wherein a first frequency band is associated with and includes said first carrier frequency, a second frequency band is associated with and includes said second carrier frequency, and a third frequency band is associated with and includes the third carrier frequency, the first, second and third frequency bands being non-overlapping frequency bands of the same size and including a plurality of uniformly spaced tones used to transmit symbols; wherein each of said first, second, and third frequency bands have a bandwidth which is 2 MHz or less and wherein the total bandwidth occupied by said 3 bands is at most 6 MHz; and controlling each of the individual sectors in said first and second multi-sector cells to periodically transmit a narrowband signal at a high power level on each carrier on which downlink signals are transmitted in the individual sector, said narrowband signal including a signal transmitted over a tone on the carrier used for downlink signals in said individual sector, said tone being transmitted with a tone power level which is at least 20 times the average per tone transmission power of tones transmitted on the carrier on which said narrowband signal is being transmitted.
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Specification