Apple Inc.

National Instruments Corporation

Freescale Semiconductor,inc.

Ian C Wong

Jayesh H Kotecha

Ning Chen

Nikhil U Kundargi

Karl F Nieman

Guang Yu Yang

James Wesley McCoy

Hugo A Andrade

Jeffrey N Correll

Jacob Kornerup

Kaushik Ravindran

Taeyoon Kim

Oghenekome Oteri

Leo G Dehner

Newton G Petersen

Michael J Trimborn

Rhishikesh Limaye

Guoqiang Wang

Arkadeb Ghosal

Sadia B Malik

John R Allen

Brooks C Prumo

Charles E Crain Ii

Guang Yang

Techniques are disclosed relating to a massive MIMO base station architecture. In some embodiments, a base station is configured to combine signals received by multiple antennas and, for at least a subset of processing elements included in the base station, each processing element is configured to operate on a different portion of the combined signals. In these embodiments, each portion includes signals from multiple antennas. In some embodiments, the portions are different time and/or frequency portions of the combined signals. In some embodiments, this distributed processing may allow the number of antennas of the base station to scale dramatically, provide dynamic re-configurability, facilitate real-time reciprocity-based precoding, etc.

Massive MIMO architecture

Techniques are disclosed relating to signaling and frame structure for massive MIMO communication systems. In some embodiments, an apparatus is configured to receive an uplink pilot symbol from a mobile device over a first channel and receive uplink data from the mobile device over the first channel, where the uplink data is included in one or more orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols at a symbol rate. In these embodiments, the apparatus is configured to, determine channel information based on the pilot symbol, precode downlink data based on the channel information, and transmit the precoded downlink data to the mobile device. In these embodiments, a transition interval between receiving the uplink pilot symbol and beginning to transmit the precoded downlink data corresponds to less than five OFDM symbols at the symbol rate. This may facilitate reciprocity-based precoding for fast-moving mobile devices, in some embodiments.

Signaling and frame structure for massive MIMO cellular telecommunication systems

Techniques are disclosed relating to synchronization of radios in a large antenna count (LAC) system. In some embodiments, a LAC system includes a plurality of slave radios, a clock and trigger distribution system, and a master device. In these embodiments, the plurality of slave radios are configured to establish a fixed relationship between a reference clock and their respective local clocks. In these embodiments, the master device and plurality of slave radios are configured to generate and align respective common periodic time reference (CPTR) signals, at a lower frequency than the local clocks. In these embodiments, the master device is configured to transmit a trigger signal based on its CPTR and the plurality of slave radios are configured to perform an action based on the trigger at a subsequent edge of their CPTRs. This may allow synchronization of sampling for antennas in a massive MIMO base station, for example. In some embodiments the master device a radio and includes a local clock, is configured to establish and maintain a fixed relationship between a reference clock and its local clock, and is configured to perform an action based on the trigger at the subsequent edge of its CPTR.

Synchronization of large antenna count systems

A technique for radio link detection in a wireless communication system includes estimating a first error rate of an indicator channel. In this case, the indicator channel includes an indication of a number of symbols in a control channel. A second error rate of the control channel is also estimated. The first and second error rates are then combined to provide a performance metric. Based on the performance metric, a determination is made as to whether a radio link problem exists.

Techniques for radio link problem and recovery detection in a wireless communication system

Embodiments of a system and methodology are disclosed for enabling a network to manage threshold values provided to UEs for use in decoding ACK-NAK signals. In various embodiments described herein, a base station signals an actual fixed threshold value in a semi-static manner for use by UEs to decode ACK/NAK signals. In these embodiments, the threshold value is part of a semi-static but UE-specific threshold value. This allows the base station to accommodate varying UE geometries, and optimize power savings for ACK-NAK transmissions. Embodiments of the invention also allow the base station to enforce a desired quality of service (QoS) without excessive power variations across ACK/NAK which are limited by the transmit power dynamic range.

Management of ARQ detection threshold in communication networks

System and method for optimizing a data flow diagram based on access pattern information are described. Access pattern information for a data flow diagram may be received. The data flow diagram may include a plurality of interconnected actors, e.g., functional blocks, visually indicating functionality of the data flow diagram. The access pattern information may include one or more of: input pattern information specifying cycles on which tokens are consumed by at least one of the actors, or output pattern information specifying cycles on which tokens are produced by at least one of the actors. A program that implements the functionality of the data flow diagram may be generated based at least in part on the access pattern information.

Optimization of a data flow program based on access pattern information

Embodiments of the disclosure provide a system and method for dynamically allocating storage capacity in a user equipment buffer. In various embodiments of the invention, a plurality of transport blocks associated with a process are stored in a plurality of subpartitions of a partition of a buffer in a user equipment device.

User equipment buffer management in multiple-input multiple-output communication systems

System and method for specifying and implementing programs. A graphical program is created in a graphical specification and constraint language that allows specification of a model of computation and explicit declaration of constraints in response to user input. The graphical program includes a specified model of computation, a plurality of interconnected functional blocks that visually indicate functionality of the graphical program in accordance with the specified model of computation, and specifications or constraints for the graphical program or at least one of the functional blocks in the graphical program. The specified model of computation and specifications or constraints are useable to analyze the graphical program or generate a program or simulation.

Developing programs in a graphical specification and constraint language

In a wireless communication system (), a compact control signaling scheme is provided for signaling the selected retransmission mode and codeword identifier for a codeword retransmission when one of a plurality of codewords (CWCW) being transmitted over two codeword pipes to a receiver () fails the transmission and when the base station/transmitter () switches from a higher order channel rank () to a lower order channel rank (), either by including one or more additional signaling bits in the control signal () to identify the retransmitted codeword, or by re-using existing control signal information in a way that can be recognized by the subscriber station/receiver to identify the retransmitted codeword. With the compact control signal, the receiver () is able to determine which codeword is being retransmitted and to determine the corresponding time-frequency resource allocation for the retransmitted codeword.

Method for efficient control signaling of two codeword to one codeword transmission

A method of fast predictive automatic gain control is disclosed including estimating channel gain applied to a received signal, predicting channel gain at a subsequent time by applying temporal correlation statistics to the estimated channel gain, determining a predicted receiver gain which reduces variance between the predicted channel gain and a predetermined target power level, and applying the predicted receiver gain to the received signal. The method may include applying linear minimum mean-squared error prediction to the estimated channel gain. The method may include predicting error variance at the subsequent time by applying the temporal correlation statistics to the estimated channel gain and combining the predicted channel gain and the predicted error variance. The method may include estimating channel gain of known pilot symbols, estimating a temporal correlation function using the estimated channel gain, and determining predicted channel gain using the estimated channel gain and the estimated temporal correlation function.

Fast predictive automatic gain control for dynamic range reduction in wireless communication receiver

Methods and corresponding systems for allocating resources in a communications system includes determining feasible sets of subchannels for allocation to a user subject to an allocation constraint. In one approach, a constraint matrix representing constraints for allocating subchannels to users in allocations of selected subchannels is computed, subject to the allocation constraint. Then a vector containing metrics corresponding to allocations of selected subchannels to the communication links is estimated. A binary decision vector representing an allocation of the subchannels to the users is computed using binary integer processing. In another approach a greedy heuristic allocation is used. The allocation constraint can be a restriction limiting multiple subchannels allocated to a user to be adjacent to one another. The metrics can be weighted capacities of allocations of selected subchannels to the users.

Growing community of inventors

Austin, TX, United States of America

Ian C Wong