Radio communication apparatus and transmission antenna changing method

• US 6,281,840 B1
• Filed: 10/25/1999
• Issued: 08/28/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Aurum Certus LLC, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Miyoshi, Kenichi, Suzuki, Takayuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Tarcza, Thomas H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mull, Fred H
• Application Number:
  US09/426,199
• Time in Patent Office: 673 Days
• Field of Search: 342/374, 342/368, 342/373, 455/101, 455/103, 455/562, 455/277.1, 455/277.2, 375/299
• US Class Current: 342/374
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/318 Received signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0608 Antenna selection according to transmission parameters

Abstract

Received signal strength detecting means 109 and 110 detect received signal strength of the antennas of the respective terminals. A transmission antenna selector 111 selects an antenna with a maximum received signal strength with respect to the respective communication destinations, and when there is a plurality of communication destinations having the same antenna with a maximum received signal strength, the transmission antenna selector selects transmission antennas to be different from each other based on the received signal strength of the antennas with the second largest received signal strength, and an internal switch of a transmission antenna change device 114 is changed based on the selection result. This eliminates the need for providing mixers without reducing transmission diversity effect, and results in a reduction of a maximum output of a transmission amplifier.

Claims

1. A radio communication apparatus comprising:

a received signal strength detector configured to detect received signal strength of signals received by a plurality of antennas at the same time for each communication destination and for each antenna;

a transmission antenna selector configured to select antennas different from each other with respect to the respective communication destinations as transmission antennas based on said detected received signal strength; and

a transmission antenna changer configured to change said transmission antenna in accordance with a selection result by said transmission antenna selector.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said transmission antenna selector selects an antenna with a maximum received signal strength with respect to only one communication destination as a transmission antenna to said corresponding communication destination, and when there is a plurality of communication destinations having the same antenna with a maximum received signal strength, said transmission antenna selector compares the second largest received signal strength of antennas of the respective communication destinations, and selects a transmission antenna with respect to each communication destination based on the comparison result.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein in the plurality of communication destinations having the same antenna with a maximum received signal strength, said transmission antenna selector allocates said antenna with the maximum received signal strength to the communication destination having an antenna with a minimum value of the second largest received signal strength as a transmission antenna.

4. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein when there are antennas having a maximum received signal strength with respect to two communication destinations, said transmission antenna selector allocates an antenna having a higher value of the second largest received signal strength of said two communication destinations to said corresponding communication destination as a transmission antenna, and allocates said antenna with the maximum received signal strength to the other communication destination as a transmission antenna.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein when the second largest received signal strength of antennas in two communication destinations are equal to each other, said transmission antenna selector compares the received signal strength of antennas with a maximum received signal strength in said communication destinations, and selects an antenna with a higher value of the received signal strength to said corresponding communication destination as a transmission antenna and selects the antenna with the second largest received signal strength to the other communication destination as a transmission antenna.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said transmission antenna selector selects a transmission antenna for a communication channel and selects an antenna for a control channel from the residual antennas.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when communications is performed using a plurality of frequencies at the same time, a channel, in which a difference in an average value of received signal strength between channels is increased in a plurality of vacant channel, is allocated to a destination station from which a communication request is sent.

8. A communication terminal apparatus having a radio communication apparatus, said radio communication apparatus comprising:

a received signal strength detector configured to detect received signal strength of signals received by a plurality of antennas at the same time for each communication destination and for each antenna;

a transmission antenna selector configured to select antennas different from each other with respect to the respective communication destinations as transmission antennas based on said detected received signal strength; and

a transmission antenna changer configured to change said transmission antenna in accordance with a selection result by said transmission antenna selector.

9. A base station apparatus having a radio communication apparatus, said radio communication apparatus comprising:

a received signal strength detector configured to detect received signal strength of signals received by a plurality of antennas at the same time for each communication destination and for each antenna;

a transmission antenna selector configured to select antennas different from each other with respect to the respective communication destinations as transmission antennas based on said detected received signal strength; and

a transmission antenna changer configured to change said transmission antenna in accordance with a selection result by said transmission antenna selector.

10. A transmission antenna changing method comprising the steps of:

detecting received signal strength of signals received by a plurality of antennas at the same time for each communication destination and for each antenna;

selecting antennas different from each other with respect to the respective communication destinations as transmission antennas based on said detected received signal strength; and

changing said transmission antenna in accordance with a selection result by said transmission antenna selecting means.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein an antenna having a maximum received signal strength with respect to only one communication destination is selected as a transmission antenna to said corresponding communication destination, and when there is a plurality of communication destinations having the same antenna with a maximum received signal strength, the second largest received signal strength of antennas of the respective communication destinations are compared, and a transmission antenna with respect to each communication destination is selected based on the comparison result.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein in the plurality of communication destinations having the same antenna with a maximum received signal strength, said antenna with the maximum received signal strength is allocated to the communication destination having an antenna with a minimum value of the second largest received signal strength as a transmission antenna.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein when there are antennas having a maximum received signal strength with respect to two communication destinations, an antenna with a higher value of the second largest received signal strength of said two communication destinations is allocated to the corresponding communication destination as a transmission antenna, and said antenna with the maximum received signal strength is allocated to the other communication destination as a transmission antenna.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein when the second largest received signal strength of antennas in two communication destinations are equal to each other, the received signal strength of antennas having the maximum received signal strength in said communication destinations are compared, and an antenna with a higher value of the received signal strength is allocated to said corresponding communication destination as a transmission antenna and the antenna with the second largest received signal strength is allocated to the other communication destination as a transmission antenna.

15. The method according to claim 10, a transmission antenna for a communication channel is selected and an antenna for a control channel is selected from the residual antennas.

16. A radio communication method for transmitting signals from antennas determined by the transmission antenna changing method described in claim 10, wherein when communications is performed using a plurality of frequencies at the same time, a channel, in which a difference in an average value of received signal strength between channels is increased in a plurality of vacant channel, is allocated to a destination station from which a communication request is sent.

17. A radio communication apparatus comprising:

a received signal strength detector configured to detect received signal strength of signals received by a plurality of antennas at the same time for each communication destination and for each antenna;

a transmission antenna selector configured to select transmission antennas to transmit signals to the respective communication destinations based on the detected received signal strength; and

a transmission antenna changer configured to change said transmission antenna in accordance with a selection result by said transmission antenna selector.