Technique for RF Performance Metric Estimation

• US 20140092771A1
• Filed: 10/01/2013
• Published: 04/03/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Siomina, Iana, Nejatian, Alireza
• Granted Patent: US 9,386,469 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/252
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic

Abstract

A technique for obtaining a radio frequency (RF) performance metric estimate for a receiver used for at least one of a positioning measurement and a timing measurement is described. A method implementation of that technique includes the steps of calculating at least one of a detection probability and a false alarm rate for a radio signal usable for the measurement, and obtaining at least one RF performance metric estimate for the receiver based on at least one of the calculated detection probability and the calculated false alarm rate.

Claims

1-31. -31. (canceled)

32. A method of obtaining a Radio Frequency (RF) performance metric estimate for a receiver used for at least one of a positioning measurement and a timing measurement, the method comprising:

calculating at least one of a detection probability and a false alarm rate for a radio signal usable for the at least one of the positioning measurement and the timing measurement; and

obtaining at least one RF performance metric estimate for the receiver based on at least one of the calculated detection probability and the calculated false alarm rate.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the at least one RF performance metric estimate comprises the at least one of the calculated detection probability and the calculated false alarm rate.

34. The method of claim 32, wherein obtaining the at least one RF performance metric comprises obtaining the at least one RF performance metric estimate for the receiver of a measuring node in the form of a Location Measurement Unit (LMU).

35. The method of claim 32, wherein the method is a testing procedure for the receiver.

36. The method of claim 35, further comprising verifying the at least one RF performance metric estimate versus at least one pre-defined or configured RF performance metric value.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein the at least one RF performance metric value comprises at least one of a reference or target detection probability and a reference or target false alarm rate.

38. The method of claim 36:

wherein obtaining the at least one RF performance metric comprises;

obtaining a first RF performance metric estimate based on the calculated detection probability; and

obtaining a second RF performance metric estimate based on the calculated false alarm rate; and

wherein verifying the at least one RF performance metric estimate comprises verifying the first and second RF performance metric estimates.

39. The method of claim 32, further comprising performing the calculating and obtaining steps at a test equipment node for a measuring node comprising the receiver.

40. The method of claim 39, further comprising:

receiving, by the test equipment node, measurement results from the measuring node; and

analyzing, by the test equipment node, the measurement results to determine whether the measuring device complies with one or more requirements.

41. The method of claim 40, wherein receiving the measurement results comprises receiving the measurement results responsive to measurement requests.

42. The method of claim 40, wherein analyzing the measurement results comprises comparing statistics of the measurement results with reference results.

43. The method of claim 40, wherein calculating the at least one of the detection probability and the false alarm rate comprises calculating at least one of the detection probability and the false alarm rate in connection with analyzing the measurement results.

44. The method of claim 32, wherein the detection probability is indicative of a presence of the radio signal.

45. The method of claim 32, wherein the false alarm rate is indicative of a radio signal determination that the radio signal is not present.

46. The method of claim 32, wherein calculating the at least one of the detection probability and the false alarm rate comprises calculating the at least one of the detection probability and the false alarm rate per receiver or antenna port of a measuring node.

47. The method of claim 32, wherein the receiver is compliant with Long Term Evolution (LTE) and wherein calculating the at least one of the detection probability and the false alarm rate comprises calculating the at least one of the detection probability and the false alarm rate for a radio signal comprising an uplink Sounding Reference Signal (SRS).

48. The method of claim 36, wherein a reference channel is specified for a radio signal transmission, and wherein the at least one pre-defined or configured RF performance metric value shall be met for the reference channel.

49. The method of claim 48, wherein the reference channel is specified for a physical reference signal.

50. The method of claim 49, wherein the physical reference signal comprises a Sounding Reference Signal (SRS).

51. The method of claim 50, wherein:

the receiver is compliant with Long Term Evolution (LTE);

calculating the at least one of the detection probability and the false alarm rate comprises calculating the at least one of the detection probability and the false alarm rate for a radio signal comprising an uplink Sounding Reference Signal (SRS); and

the reference channel is used to transmit one or more SRS parameters to permit detection of the uplink SRS.

52. The method of claim 48, wherein the reference channel is characterized by one or more of the following parameters:

modulation;

signal sequence;

transmission or reception scheduling including at least one of time and frequency resources;

signal bandwidth;

frequency hopping configuration;

cell Radio Network Temporary Identity (C-RNTI);

code or specific sequence associated with a wireless device from which the reference signal is obtained;

duplex configuration;

carrier aggregation (CA) configuration;

power control parameters;

Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number (EARFCN);

Uplink (UL) cyclic prefix;

UL system bandwidth of cell;

cell-specific Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) bandwidth configuration;

user equipment (UE)-specific bandwidth configuration;

number of antenna ports for SRS transmission;

SRS frequency domain position

SRS frequency hopping band-width configuration;

SRS cyclic shift;

SRS transmission comb;

SRS configuration index;

MaxUpPt used for Time Division Duplex (TDD) only;

an indication on whether group hopping is enabled; and

a delta signal strength (SS) parameter.

53. The method of claim 42 wherein a reference channel is specified for a radio signal transmission, and wherein the reference results shall be met for the reference channel.

54. The method of claim 53, wherein the reference channel is specified for a physical reference signal.

55. The method of claim 54, wherein the physical reference signal comprises a Sounding Reference Signal (SRS).

56. The method of claim 55, wherein:

the receiver is compliant with Long Term Evolution (LTE);

calculating the at least one of the detection probability and the false alarm rate comprises calculating the at least one of the detection probability and the false alarm rate for a radio signal comprising an uplink Sounding Reference Signal (SRS); and

the reference channel is used to transmit one or more SRS parameters to permit detection of the uplink SRS.

57. The method of claim 53, wherein the reference channel is characterized by one or more of the following parameters:

modulation;

signal sequence;

transmission or reception scheduling including at least one of time and frequency resources;

signal bandwidth;

frequency hopping configuration;

cell Radio Network Temporary Identity (C-RNTI);

code or specific sequence associated with a wireless device from which the reference signal is obtained;

duplex configuration;

carrier aggregation (CA) configuration;

power control parameters;

Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number (EARFCN);

Uplink (UL) cyclic prefix;

UL system bandwidth of cell;

cell-specific Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) bandwidth configuration;

user equipment (UE)-specific bandwidth configuration;

number of antenna ports for SRS transmission;

SRS frequency domain position

SRS frequency hopping band-width configuration;

SRS cyclic shift;

SRS transmission comb;

SRS configuration index;

MaxUpPt used for Time Division Duplex (TDD) only;

an indication on whether group hopping is enabled; and

a delta signal strength (SS) parameter.

58. The method of claim 32, wherein the receiver or a measurement node comprising the receiver is configured for at least one of a Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA) measurement and a Relative Time of Arrival (RTOA) measurement.

59. The method of claim 32, further comprising configuring at least one of the positioning measurement and the timing measurement responsive to or adaptively based on the obtained RF performance metric estimate.

60. A computer program product stored in a non-transitory computer readable medium for controlling a computing device, the computer program product comprising program code portions which, when executed on the computing device, causes the computing device to:

calculate at least one of a detection probability and a false alarm rate for a radio signal usable for the at least one of the positioning measurement and the timing measurement; and

obtain at least one RF performance metric estimate for the receiver based on at least one of the calculated detection probability and the calculated false alarm rate.

61. An apparatus for obtaining a Radio Frequency (RF) performance metric estimate for a receiver used for at least one of a positioning measurement and a timing measurement, the apparatus configured to:

calculate at least one of a detection probability and a false alarm rate of a radio signal usable for the at least one of the positioning measurement and the timing measurement; and

obtain at least one RF performance metric estimate for the receiver based on at least one of the calculated detection probability and the calculated false alarm rate.

62. The apparatus of claim 61, wherein the apparatus is included in a test equipment node.