Radio communication system

• US 7,496,384 B2
• Filed: 11/29/2005
• Issued: 02/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/13/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Shibata, Osamu, Matsuoka, Hidehiro, Murakami, Yasushi, Seto, Ichiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Bhattacharya; Sam
• Application Number:
  US11/288,171
• Publication Number:
  US 20060079290A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,183 Days
• Field of Search: 455/562.1, 455/561, 455/67.16, 455/67.13, 455/63.4, 455/25, 455/132, 455/134, 455/135, 455/524, 455/525, 455/277.1, 455/277.2, 455/272, 398/41, 398/43, 398/58, 398/28, 398/103, 398/106, 398/130, 398/145, 370/343, 370/480, 370/497, 370/536, 375/260, 375/350
• US Class Current: 455/562.1
• 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 3/2676 Optically controlled phased array
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/25753 Distribution optical network, e.g. between a base station and a plurality of remote units
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/10 of transmitters
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/20 of receivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0617 for beam forming
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/086 using weights depending on external parameters, e.g. direction of arrival [DOA], predetermined weights or beamforming
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/02 Wavelength-division multiplex systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/0298 with sub-carrier multiplexing [SCM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 Access point devices

Abstract

There is disclosed a radio communication system in which a constitution of a base station and further a control station can be simplified. A radio communication system according to the present invention converts a received signal received by a plurality of antenna elements in a base station to a signal of different frequency band, and then conflates the converted signal in order to generate sub-carrier wave multiplex signal. The signal is converted to an optical signal, and then the optical signal is transmitted to a control station via an optical fiber. Or the control station performs weighting to phase of the transmitted signal transmitted from a plurality of antennas of a base station, and then performs frequency conversion to different frequency band, and then conflates the converted signal in order to generate the sub-carrier wave multiplex signal. The signal is converted to an optical signal, and then an optical signal is transmitted to the base station side via the optical fiber. The control station and the base station divides the received sub-carrier wave multiplex signal by each frequency band, and then the frequency of the divided signals are converted to the same frequency band in order to generate the transmitted/received signal of each antenna element. By such a constitution, it is possible to reduce constituent of the optical transmission components to the minimum and to simplify the constitution of the base station. Furthermore, it is possible to maintain the relative phase difference and the relative intensity of the transmitted/received signal of each antenna element. Because of this, it is possible to estimate an arrival direction of the received signal and to control radiation beam pattern of the transmitted signal.

Claims

1. A radio communication system comprising:

a radio communication terminal;

a base station for performing radio communication with the radio communication terminal; and

a control station connected to the base station via an optical transmission line;

said base station comprising

an array antenna comprising a plurality of antenna elements, and

a feedback unit configured to feed respective transmitted signals corresponding to said antenna elements transmitted from said control station via said optical transmission line back to said control station via said optical transmission; and

said control station comprising

a comparing detection unit configured to compare at least two signals among said respective transmitted signals fed back from said feedback unit, and detecting a phase difference and/or an amplitude fluctuation amount, and

a compensation unit configured to compensate for the respective transmitted signals corresponding to said plurality of antenna elements based on the phase difference and/or the amplitude fluctuation amount detected by said comparing detection unit.

2. The radio communication system according to claim 1 wherein,

said feedback unit further comprises

a pilot signal insertion unit configured to insert a pilot signal with a known phase and/or amplitude into the respective transmitted signals to said plurality of antenna elements, and

a transmission unit configured to multiplex respective output signals of said pilot signal insertion unit and transmitting the signals to said control station via said optical transmission;

and

said comparing detection unit comprises

a first detection unit configured to detect the phase difference and/or the amplitude fluctuation amount of a receiver path to said control station from said base station based on said pilot signal, and

a second detection unit configured to detect the phase difference and/or the amplitude fluctuation amount of a transmitter path to said base station from said control station based on the detection result of said first detection unit.

3. The radio communication system according to claim 1 wherein,

said feedback unit comprises

a combiner unit configured to combine the respective transmitted signals to said plurality of antenna elements with received signals in said corresponding antenna elements,

a pilot signal insertion unit configured to insert a pilot signal with a known phase and/or amplitude into the respective signals synthesized by said combiner unit,

a plurality of first frequency conversion units configured to convert respective output signals of said pilot signal insertion unit to different frequency signals,

a frequency multiplexing unit configured to multiplex respective output signals of said plurality of first frequency conversion unit, and

an electric/optical conversion unit configured to optically modulate the signal multiplexed by said frequency multiplexing unit and transmitting the signal to said control station via said optical transmission line;

said control station comprises

an optical/electric conversion unit configured to convert a optical signal transmitted from said electric/optical conversion unit via said optical transmission line to an electric signal,

a demultiplex unit configured to divide the electric signal converted by said optical/electric conversion unit to a plurality of different frequency signals, and

a plurality of second frequency conversion units configured to convert the respective signals divided by said demultiplex unit to the signals of the same frequency; and

said comparing detection unit comprises

an extraction unit configured to extract said pilot signal and a feedback signal of the transmitted signal to said plurality of antenna elements from respective output signals of said plurality of second frequency conversion unit,

a first detection unit configured to detect the phase difference and/or the amplitude fluctuation amount of a receiver path to said control station from said base station based on said pilot signal, and

a second detection unit configured to detect the phase difference and/or the amplitude fluctuation amount of a transmitter path to said base station from said control station based on the detection result of said first detection unit.

4. A radio communication system comprising:

a base station for performing radio communication with a radio communication terminal; and

a control station connected to the base station via an optical transmission line;

said base station comprising

an array antenna comprising a plurality of antenna elements, and

a feedback unit configured to feed respective transmitted signals corresponding to said antenna elements transmitted from said control station via said optical transmission line back to said control station via said optical transmission line;

said control station comprising

a comparing detection unit configured to compare at least one of said respective transmitted signals corresponding to said plurality of antenna elements with at least one of the signals fed back from said feedback unit, and detecting an absolute phase difference and/or an absolute amplitude fluctuation amount of both signals, and

a compensation unit configured to compensate for the respective transmitted signals corresponding to said plurality of antenna elements based on the comparison result of said comparing detection unit.

5. The radio communication system according to claim 4 wherein,

said feedback unit comprises

a combiner unit configured to combine the respective transmitted signals corresponding to said plurality of antenna elements with received signals in said corresponding antenna elements,

a plurality of first frequency conversion units configured to convert the respective signals synthesized by said combiner unit to different frequency signals,

a frequency multiplexing unit configured to multiplex respective output signals of said plurality of first frequency conversion units,

a first electric/optical conversion unit configured to optically modulate the signal multiplexed by said frequency multiplexing unit and transmitting the signal to said control station via said optical transmission line,

a base station side switch unit configured to select any one of the respective transmitted signals to said plurality of antenna elements,

a second frequency conversion unit configured to subject the transmitted signal selected by said base station side switch unit to frequency conversion, and

a second electric/optical conversion unit configured to optically modulate an output signal of said second frequency conversion unit and transmitting the signal to said control station via said exclusive transmission line;

said control station comprises

a first optical/electric conversion unit configured to convert a optical signal transmitted from said first electric/optical conversion unit via said optical transmission line to an electric signal,

a demultiplex unit configured to divide the electric signal converted by said first optical/electric conversion unit to a plurality of frequency signals,

a plurality of third frequency conversion units configured to convert the respective signals divided by said demultiplex unit to the signals of the same frequency,

a second optical/electric conversion unit configured to convert the optical signal transmitted from said second electric/optical conversion unit via said exclusive transmission line to the electric signal, and

a control station side switch unit configured to select any one of the respective transmitted signals corresponding to said plurality of antenna elements;

said comparing detection unit successively switches said base station side switch unit and said control station side switch unit, compares the corresponding transmitted signal with the output signal of said second optical/electric conversion unit for said antenna elements, and detects the absolute phase difference and/or the absolute amplitude fluctuation amount of the transmitted signal.

6. The radio communication system according to claim 4 wherein,

said array antenna is an adaptive antenna which can change directivity of a transmission/reception beam;

said control station further comprises

an adaptive antenna weighting coefficient calculation unit configured to calculate an adaptive antenna weighting coefficient with respect to the phase and amplitude with respect to said respective antenna elements to change the radiation beam-pattern of said adaptive antenna; and

said compensation unit comprises

a calibration coefficient calculation unit configured to calculate a calibration coefficient for estimating a phase difference and/or an amplitude fluctuation amount of the respective transmitted signals corresponding to said plurality of antenna elements based on the comparison result of said comparing detection unit,

a weighting coefficient calculation unit configured to calculate a transmission weighting coefficient and a reception weighting coefficient based on said adaptive antenna weighting coefficient and said calibration coefficient,

a first weighting unit configured to perform weighting of the received signals in said plurality of antenna elements based on said reception weighting coefficient, and

a second weighting unit configured to perform the weighting of the transmitted signals to said plurality of antenna elements based on said transmission weighting coefficient.