Method and device for maintaining the performance quality of a communication system in the presence of narrow band interference

• US 8,767,628 B2
• Filed: 08/16/2012
• Issued: 07/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: ISCO International Inc.
• Original Assignee: ISCO International Inc.
• Inventors: Jagger, Charles E., Willetts, Mark N., Tobia, Micolino
• Primary Examiner(s): Hamza, Faruk
• Assistant Examiner(s): LO, DIANE LEE
• Application Number:
  US13/587,168
• Publication Number:
  US 20120309438A1
• Time in Patent Office: 684 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/328
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/10 Means associated with receiver for limiting or suppressing noise or interference
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/1036 with automatic suppression of narrow band noise or interference, e.g. by using tuneable notch filters H04B1/123 takes precedence; filter circuits H03H
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/71 the interference being narrowband interference
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/7103 the interference being multiple access interference
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 15/00 Suppression or limitation of noise or interference by means associated with receiver H04B1/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2001/1063 using a notch filter
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2201/709709 Methods of preventing interference
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2201/709718 Determine interference
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/005 Control of transmission; Equalising
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/02 Arrangements for optimising operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/04 Arrangements for maintaining operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/10 Scheduling measurement reports ; Arrangements for measurement reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/04 Error control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/16 Central resource management; Negotiation of resources or communication parameters, e.g. negotiating bandwidth or QoS [Quality of Service]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/20 Negotiating bandwidth
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/243 taking into account interferences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/245 taking into account received signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0453 Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/541 : using the level of interference
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/542 : using measured or perceived quality
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 : Terminal devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 : Access point devices

Abstract

A system that incorporates teachings of the subject disclosure may include, for example, a method for receiving a mitigation strategy for reducing interference caused by at least one narrow band interferer detected in a wide frequency band according to an average wideband power level, an adaptive threshold, or both, creating a message according to the mitigation strategy to transmit to at least one communication device transmitting wireless signals that are associated with the at least one narrow band interferer, and transmitting the mitigation message to the at least one communication device to cause the at least one communication device to adjust operations of a wireless transmitter of the at least one communication device. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a memory storing executable instructions;

a circuit coupled to the memory, wherein responsive to executing the executable instructions, the circuit performs operations comprising;

receiving information from a device that detects a narrow band interferer according to an average wideband power level, an adaptive threshold, or both, wherein the narrow band interferer is detected by the device in a wide frequency band, wherein the average wideband power level and the adaptive threshold are determined by sampling less than all narrow band signal power levels in the wide frequency band, and wherein the information is descriptive of the narrow band interferer;

determining from the received information that a source for the narrow band interferer comprises a communication device transmitting wireless signals;

determining a mitigation strategy according to the received information; and

causing a base station of a plurality of base stations of the system to reduce interference caused by the narrow band interferer according to the mitigation strategy wherein the mitigation strategy comprises causing the communication device to adjust operations of a wireless transmitter of the communication device by switching to a new operation frequency for the communication device.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the circuit further performs operations comprising, responsive to a detection of the narrow band interferer, intercepting identification information for the communication device, wherein the communication device transmits the identification information.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein determining of the average wideband power level by the sampling of less than all the narrow band signal power levels in the wide frequency band comprises selecting a number of the narrow band signal power levels to be excluded from the determining of the average wideband power level according to a number of notch modules to be employed for filtering.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the received information comprises an electronic serial number for the communication device, and wherein the electronic serial number is transmitted by the communication device with the wireless signals.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise selecting a subset of notch modules from among a total number of available notch modules for filtering of the narrow band interferer.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the received information comprises an identity of the narrow band interferer.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the circuit further performs operations comprising storing the received information about the narrow band interferer in a log that tracks narrow band interferers.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the circuit further performs operations comprising determining from the log of narrow band interferers a spectral integrity of a geographic area serviced by at least a portion of the plurality of base stations.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the circuit further performs operations comprising determining fixed interferers from the determined spectral integrity of the geographic area.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the circuit further performs operations comprising correlating base station performance of the plurality of base stations based on the log of narrow band interferers.

11. A computer-readable storage device, comprising instructions, which when executed by a circuit, causes the circuit to perform operations comprising:

receiving information about narrow band interferers detected according to an average wideband power level, an adaptive threshold, or both, wherein the narrow band interferers are detected in a wide frequency band, wherein the average wideband power level and the adaptive threshold are determined by sampling less than all narrow band signal power levels in the wide frequency band, and wherein the information is descriptive of the narrow band interferer;

determining from the received information that a source for the narrow band interferer comprises a communication device transmitting wireless signals;

determining a mitigation strategy according to the received information; and

causing one or more base stations of a plurality of base stations to reduce interference caused by the narrow band interferers according to the mitigation strategy, wherein the mitigation strategy comprises causing the communication device to adjust operations of a wireless transmitter of the communication device by one of switching to a new operation frequency for the communication device or ceasing the transmitting of the wireless signals by the communication device.

12. The computer-readable storage device of claim 11, wherein the circuit further performs operations comprising, responsive to a detection of the narrow band interferer, intercepting identification information for the communication device, wherein the communication device transmits the identification information.

13. The computer-readable storage device of claim 12, wherein determining of the average wideband power level by the sampling of less than all the narrow band signal power levels in the wide frequency band comprises selecting a number of the narrow band signal power levels to be excluded from the determining of the average wideband power level according to a number of notch modules to be employed for filtering.

14. The computer readable storage device of claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise selecting a subset of notch modules from among a total number of available notch modules for filtering of the narrow band interferer.

15. The computer-readable storage device of claim 14, wherein the received information comprises an electronic serial number for the communication device, and wherein the electronic serial number is transmitted by the communication device with the wireless signals.

16. The computer-readable storage device of claim 11, wherein the circuit further performs operations comprising storing the received information about the narrow band interferers.

17. The computer-readable storage device of claim 11, wherein the circuit further performs operations comprising correlating base station performance of the plurality of base stations based on the received information about the narrow band interferers to determine an effectiveness of increasing system capacity according to the mitigation strategy.

18. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a base station, a mitigation strategy for reducing interference caused by at least one narrow band interferer detected in a wide frequency band according to an average wideband power level, an adaptive threshold, or both, wherein the average wideband power level and the adaptive threshold are determined by sampling less than all narrow band signal power levels in the wide frequency band, and wherein information obtained by the base station enables the base station to determine that a source for the narrow band interferer comprises a communication device transmitting wireless signals;

creating, by the base station, a mitigation message according to the mitigation strategy to transmit to the communication device transmitting the wireless signals; and

transmitting, by the base station, the mitigation message to the communication device to cause the communication device to switch to a new operation frequency for the communication device or cease the transmitting of the wireless signals by the communication device.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising, responsive to a detection of the narrow band interferer, intercepting identification information for the communication device, wherein the communication device transmits the identification information.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the base station is a cellular base station.