Method of and system for one plus one protection for radio equipment

Abstract

A method of and apparatus incorporating 1+1 protection in a point-to-point radio system includes redundant microwave radio transceiver pairs, each transceiver including identical controls for identifying faults and reconfiguring to accommodate failures. Each transceiver includes receiver and transmitter monitoring circuitry for detecting a loss of received signal or transmitted signal, respectively. Fault signals are generated in response to loss of signal which are then processed by a designated master processor implementing a set of rules for identifying a likely failure corresponding to the faults detected. According to the rule, a partial loss of received signal by one of the receivers indicates a failure of that receiver, while loss of signal by both receivers is interpreted as a failure of the corresponding far-end transmitter. Conversely, receipt of a loss of signal message from a far-end radio station is interpreted as a failure of the active transmitter or the master controller. In response, the hot standby transceiver is brought online, the active transceiver is placed in a standby mode, and the appropriate maintenance facilities are notified. In addition to activating the standby transceiver of the pair experiencing the failure, the communication system may be configured to initiate a similar changeover at the far-end site to maintain particular radio links, or, may initiate a corresponding changeover in a mated redundant pair at the same location so as to maintain a particular rooftop radio pair correspondence.