Radio communication device and method of controlling directivity

• US 9,825,719 B2
• Filed: 02/20/2015
• Issued: 11/21/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2014
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Shirakata, Naganori, Motozuka, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Harper, Kevin C
• Assistant Examiner(s): Rose, Derrick V
• Application Number:
  US14/626,939
• Publication Number:
  US 20150244478A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,005 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/12 of transmit antennas, e.g. of the amplitude or phase
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/309 Measuring or estimating channel quality parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/06 at the transmitting station
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0617 for beam forming
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0695 using beam selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0041 Arrangements at the transmitter end
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0045 Arrangements at the receiver end
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/188 Time-out mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/203 Details of error rate determination, e.g. BER, FER or WER
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/28 using beam steering

Abstract

A radio communication device includes: a directivity control unit that configures each of directivities of a plurality of antennas; a directivity switching unit that switches between the directivities of the antennas; a reception quality estimation unit that measures a reception quality of a received signal received by the antennas; and a block error estimation unit that estimates a block error in reception data which is obtained by decoding the received signal. In the case where a block error occurs continuously for a predetermined number of times or longer and an amount of decrease in the reception quality is lower than a predetermined value, the directivity control unit re-adjusts a directivity to decrease the block error, based on a result of the estimation of the block error and a result of the measurement of the reception quality, the re-adjusted directivity being one of the directivities of the antennas.

Claims

1. A radio communication device comprising:

directivity control circuitry, which, in operation, selects a first directivity of a plurality of antenna directivities;

directivity switching circuitry, which, in operation, switches between the plurality of antenna directivities;

reception quality estimation circuitry, which, in operation, measures a reception quality of a received signal received by the antennas; and

block error estimation circuitry, which, in operation, estimates a block error in reception data which is obtained by decoding the received signal,

wherein in the case where a block error occurs continuously for a determined number of times or longer and an amount of decrease in the reception quality is within a predetermined range, the directivity control circuitry selects a second directivity from among the second directivity and a third directivity, based on a result of the estimation of the block error and a result of the measurement of the reception quality, the second directivity being one of the plurality of antenna directivities, and having less the occurrence of continuous block errors than the first directivity, the third directivity being one of the plurality of antenna directivities, and having a reception quality higher than the first directivity.

2. The radio communication device according to claim 1, wherein in the case where a block error occurs randomly and an amount of decrease in the reception quality is outside the prescribed range, the directivity control circuitry reselects the third directivity from among the second directivity and the third directivity.

3. The radio communication device according to claim 1, wherein in the case where a block error occurs randomly and an amount of decrease in the reception quality is lower than a determined value, the directivity control circuitry re-adjusts a communication parameter.

7. The radio communication device according to claim 1, wherein in the case where the block error occurs continuously for the determined number of times or longer and the amount of decrease in the reception quality is outside the predetermined range, the directivity control circuitry selects the third directivity from among the second directivity and the third directivity.

4. A method of controlling a directivity of a radio communication device, the method comprising:

selecting a first directivity of a plurality of antenna directivities;

measuring a reception quality of a received signal received by a plurality of antennas;

estimating a block error in reception data which is obtained by decoding the received signal; and

based on a result of the estimation of the block error and a result of the measurement of the reception quality, selecting a second directivity from among the second directivity and a third directivity in the case where a block error occurs continuously for a determined number of times or longer and an amount of decrease in the reception quality is within a predetermined range, the second directivity being one of the plurality of antenna directivities, and having less occurrence of the continuous block errors than the first directivity, the third directivity being one of the plurality of antenna directivities, and having a reception quality higher than the first directivity.

5. The method of controlling the directivity of the radio communication device according to claim 4, further comprising:

in the case where a block error occurs randomly and an amount of decrease in the reception quality is outside the predetermined range, selecting the third directivity from among the second directivity and the third directivity.

6. The method of controlling the directivity of the radio communication device according to claim 4, further comprising:

in the case where a block error occurs randomly and an amount of decrease in the reception quality is within the predetermined range, adjusting a communication parameter.

8. The method of controlling the directivity of the radio communication device according to claim 4, further comprising:

in the case where the block error occurs continuously for the determined number of times or longer and the amount of decrease in the reception quality is outside the predetermined range, selecting the third directivity is from among the second directivity and the third directivity.