System and method utilizing dynamic beam forming for wireless communication signals
AssigneeInterDigital Technology Corporation
InventorPrabhakar R. Chitrapu
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Abstract
The present invention relates to a method and system using dynamic beam forming for wireless communication signals in a wireless network. Base stations and/or UEs are provided with antenna systems having a range of beam forming selections. Relative base station and UE locations are one type of criteria used to make beam forming decisions.
Claims24
A smart handover method of selectively directing base station RF communication signals in a wireless telecommunication system wherein base stations that have known locations and overlapping transmission ranges conduct wireless RF communications with a mobile user equipment (UE), the method comprising:
- a. determining an estimated location of a mobile UE which is receiving RF communication signals from a base station and is located in the transmission range of a plurality of base stations;
- b. identifying each base station that has a transmission range which encompasses the estimated UE location;
- c. determining relative UE location data in relation to each identified base station using said estimated UE location and the base station's known location;
- d. calculating beam forming criteria based in part on said determined relative location data such that said UE is assigned to one of said identified base stations from which RF communication signals for that UE are to be transmitted;
- and
- f. forming a directed beam of base station RF communication signals for said UEs transmitted from said one base station based on said calculated beam forming criteria such that said directed beam encompasses the estimated location of that UE;
- and
- g. repeating steps a-g based on selected criteria to dynamically reconfigure base station transmission beams.
A wireless telecommunication system comprising:
- a plurality of base stations for conducting wireless RF communications with a mobile user equipment (UE);
- each based station having:
- an RF module and an associated antenna system that is located at a predetermined position and a geographic transmission range which overlaps with the transmission range of at least one other of said base stations;
- and
- a beam former operatively associated with the RF module to form a set of desired beams within a range of beams which the base station's antenna array system is capable of producing;
- a network interface interconnecting said base stations and one or more associated geolocation processors configured to:
- process UE geolocation data that corresponds to an estimated location of a selected mobile UE relative to location data of antenna array systems of base stations having transmission ranges that encompass the estimated location of the selected UE;
- select a base station of the base stations having transmission ranges that encompass the estimated location of the selected UE;
- and
- output parameters to the beam former of the selected base station such that the selected base station transmits communication data for the selected UE in a shaped beam that encompasses the estimated location of the selected UE.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.