Uncoordinated microwave paths in coordinated frequency bands

• US 7,949,344 B1
• Filed: 02/13/2007
• Issued: 05/24/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wireless Strategies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Wireless Strategies, Inc.
• Inventors: Mulcay, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Chang; Kent
• Assistant Examiner(s): Elhag; Magdi
• Application Number:
  US11/674,621
• Time in Patent Office: 1,561 Days
• Field of Search: 455445-449, 455/454, 455/63.1, 455/67.15, 455/456.4, 455/114.2, 455/63.3, 455/63.4, 455/67.13, 455/426.1, 455/426.2, 370/322, 370/354
• US Class Current: 455/454
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/14 Spectrum sharing arrangements between different networks

Abstract

A system is described. The system includes a fixed microwave path pair between a first site and a second site and an additional microwave path between the first site and a third site. A transceiver portion of the first site and a transceiver portion of the second site are configured to transmit on the fixed microwave path pair on TDD-FDD reversed paired frequencies. The transceiver portion of the first site is configured to transmit to the transceiver portion of the third site on one frequency of the paired frequencies using the side lobe radiation of an antenna at the first site.

Claims

1. A method for operating an uncoordinated microwave path in coordinated frequency bands comprising:

determining a safe area defined by and including the union of a first coordination area of a first base station at a first site and a second coordination area of a second base station at a second site, including

determining interference contours of the first coordination area from an antenna pattern at the first base station, transceiver power transmitting from the first base station on a first frequency and a second frequency of a frequency pair, and an Effective Isotropic Radiated Power (EIRP) associated with the first base station, and

determining interference contours of the second coordination area from an antenna pattern at the second base station, transceiver power transmitting from the second base station on a first frequency and a second frequency of the frequency pair, and an EIRP associated with the second base station,

where the interference contours represent co-channel interference within the safe area, created by transmitting from the first base station and second base station, as a result of which no foreign transceiver can operate on a different coordinated microwave path on the first frequency or the second frequency in the safe area without being subjected to or causing interference greater than a permissible level;

operating a first coordinated microwave path from the first base station to the second base station on the frequency pair using frequency division duplex-time division duplex (FDD-TDD);

operating a second coordinated microwave path from the second base station to the first base station on the frequency pair using FDD-TDD such that the first frequency and the second frequency cause the co-channel interference; and

transmitting on an uncoordinated microwave path operating with time division duplex (TDD) from a transceiver portion of the first base station to a transceiver portion at a third site located in the safe area on the first and/or second frequency using a side lobe of an antenna of the first base station.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting on an uncoordinated microwave path from the transceiver portion of the first base station to the transceiver portion at the third site includes transmitting on the first frequency and the second frequency.

2. A method for operating an uncoordinated microwave path in coordinated frequency bands comprising:

determining a safe area defined by and including the union of a first coordination area of a first base station at a first site and a second coordination area of a second base station at a second site, including

determining interference contours of the first coordination area from an antenna pattern at the first base station, transceiver power transmitting from the first base station on a first frequency and a second frequency of a frequency pair, and an Effective Isotropic Radiated Power (EIRP) associated with the first base station, and

determining interference contours of the second coordination area from an antenna pattern at the second base station, transceiver power transmitting from the second base station on a first frequency and a second frequency of the frequency pair, and an EIRP associated with the second base station,

where the interference contours represent co-channel interference within the safe area, created by transmitting from the first base station and second base station, as a result of which no foreign transceiver can operate on a different coordinated microwave path on the first frequency or the second frequency in the safe area without being subjected to or causing interference greater than a permissible level;

operating a first coordinated microwave path from the first base station to the second base station on the frequency pair using frequency division duplex-time division duplex (FDD-TDD);

operating a second coordinated microwave path from the second base station to the first base station on the frequency pair using FDD-TDD such that the first frequency and the second frequency cause the co-channel interference; and

transmitting on an uncoordinated microwave path operating with time division duplex (TDD) from a transceiver portion at a third site located in the safe area to a transceiver portion of the first base station on the first frequency and/or second frequency using a side lobe of an antenna of the first base station.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the transceiver portion at the third site is configured to operate as an access point or laptop for a personal area network, a wireless local area network, or a wireless metropolitan area network.

14. The method of claim 2, wherein transmitting on an uncoordinated microwave path from the transceiver portion at the third site to the transceiver portion of the first base station includes transmitting on the first frequency and the second frequency.

4. A method for operating an uncoordinated microwave path in coordinated frequency bands comprising:

determining a safe area defined by and including the union of a first coordination area of a first base station at a first site and a second coordination area of a second base station at a second site, including

determining interference contours of the first coordination area from an antenna pattern at the first base station, transceiver power transmitting from the first base station on a first frequency and a second frequency of a frequency pair, and an Effective Isotropic Radiated Power (EIRP) associated with the first base station, and

determining interference contours of the second coordination area from an antenna pattern at the second base station, transceiver power transmitting from the second base station on a first frequency and a second frequency of the frequency pair, and an EIRP associated with the second base station,

where the contours represent co-channel interference within the safe area, created by transmitting from the first base station and second base station, as a result of which no foreign transceiver can operate on a different coordinated microwave path on the first frequency or the second frequency in the safe area without being subjected to or causing interference greater than a permissible level;

operating a first coordinated microwave path from the first site base station to the second base station on the frequency pair using frequency division duplex-time division duplex (FDD-TDD);

operating a second coordinated microwave path from the second base station to the first base station on the frequency pair using FDD-TDD such that the first frequency and the second frequency cause the co-channel interference; and

determining configurations for one or more transceiver portions of one or more new sites in the safe area, the transceiver portion of each new site to be configured to transmit on an uncoordinated microwave path operating with time division duplex (TDD) to the transceiver portion of the first base station on the first frequency and/or second frequency using a side lobe of an antenna of the first base station.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein determining the configurations for one or more transceiver portions at one or more new sites comprises:

for each new site, selecting settings for one or more parameters of the transceiver portion at the new site, the parameters including the location for an antenna, the orientation of the antenna, the gain of the antenna, or the power of the transceiver portion;

for each new site, estimating the interference from the transceiver portion of the new site to a transceiver portion of one or more sites located outside the safe area, the transceiver portion of each site located outside the safe area configured to operate on a different coordinated microwave path on the first frequency; and

estimating the interference from the transceiver portion of the first base station to the transceiver portion of the one or more sites located outside the safe area.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

for each new site and for each site located outside the safe area, determining whether the ratio of harmful interference from the transceiver portion of the first or second base station to the interference from the transceiver portion at the new site is greater than or equal to one; and

for each new site and for each site located outside the safe area, if the ratio is not greater than or equal to one, adjusting the settings for the one or more parameters of the transceiver portion at the new site.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein one or more sites located outside the safe area is an existing site.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein one or more sites located outside the safe area is a modeled future site.

9. The method of claim 5, wherein the interference from the transceiver portion of a site located inside the safe area to the transceiver portion of a site located outside the safe area, IFrxTrx, is calculated according to:

IFrxTrx=TrxEIRP+AFrx−

96.6−

20 log(Fo)−

20 log(D), where;

TrxEIRP=Equivalent Isotropic Radiated Power of the transceiver portion of the site located inside the safe area transmitting directly towards the transceiver portion of the site located outside the safe area in dBm, AFrx=antenna gain of the transceiver portion of the site located outside the safe area at an angle directly towards the transceiver portion of the site located inside the safe area in dBi, Fo=first frequency in GHz, and D=distance between the site located inside the safe area and the site located outside the safe area in miles.

10. A system for operating an uncoordinated microwave path in coordinated frequency bands comprising:

a first base station at a first site, the first base station comprising a transceiver portion;

a second base station at a second site, the second base station comprising a transceiver portion, wherein the transceiver portion of the first base station and the transceiver portion of the second base station are configured to provide a first coordinated microwave path from the first base station to the second base station on a frequency pair using frequency division duplex (FDD) and to provide a second coordinated microwave path from the second base station to the first base station on the frequency pair using FDD such that a first frequency and a second frequency of the frequency pair operate with frequency division duplex-time division duplex (FDD-TDD) so as to cause co-channel interference; and

a transceiver portion at a third site, the transceiver portion of the third site configured to transmit to or receive from the transceiver portion of the first base station on an uncoordinated microwave path operating with time division duplex (TDD) on the first frequency and/or the second frequency using a side lobe of an antenna of the first base station, the third site located in a safe area defined by and including the union of a first coordination area of the first base station and a second coordination area of the second base station and the safe area being subject to the co-channel interference created by transmitting from the first base station and the second base station as a result of which no foreign transceiver can operate on a different coordinated microwave path on the first frequency or the second frequency in the safe area without being subjected to or causing interference greater than a permissible level.

11. An auxiliary station comprising:

a transceiver portion located in a safe area defined by and including the union of a first coordination area of a first base station at a first site and a second coordination area of a second base station at a second site, the safe area being subject to co-channel interference created by transmitting from the first base station and the second base station on a first frequency and a second frequency using frequency division duplex-time division duplex (FDD-TDD) as a result of which no foreign transceiver can operate on a different coordinated microwave path on the first frequency or the second frequency in the safe area without being subjected to or causing interference greater than a permissible level, the transceiver portion configured to transmit to and receive from a transceiver portion of the first base station on an uncoordinated microwave path operating with time division duplex (TDD) on the first frequency and/or a second frequency using a side lobe of an antenna of the first base station.

12. A first base station comprising:

a transceiver portion at a first site configured to transmit to and receive from a transceiver portion of a second base station at a second site on a coordinated microwave path pair on a first frequency and a second frequency using frequency division duplex-time division duplex (FDD-TDD), the transceiver portion of the first base station further configured to transmit to and receive from a transceiver portion at a third site on an uncoordinated microwave path operating with time division duplex (TDD) on the first frequency and/or second frequency using a side lobe of an antenna of the first base station, the third site located in a safe area, the safe area defined by and including the union of a first coordination area of the first base station and a second coordination area of the second base station, the safe area being subject to co-channel interference created by transmitting from the first base station and the second base station on the first frequency and the second frequency as a result of which no foreign transceiver can operate on a different coordinated microwave path on the first frequency or the second frequency in the safe area without being subjected to or causing interference greater than a permissible level.