Ground network with access node clusters for end-to-end beamforming

A method for providing a communication service to user terminals geographically distributed over a user coverage area via an end-to-end relay comprising multiple receive/transmit signal paths, comprising:

• obtaining multiple forward beam signals comprising forward user data streams for transmission to a plurality of the user terminals grouped by multiple forward user beam coverage areas;
• identifying a forward beam weight matrix for end-to-end beamforming of transmissions from a set of access nodes to the multiple forward user beam coverage areas via the end-to-end relay, the set of access nodes comprising access nodes of at least one of a plurality of access node clusters, wherein each of the plurality of access node clusters comprises a plurality of access nodes at geographically distributed locations within a corresponding one of a plurality of access node areas;
• generating respective access node-specific forward signals for transmission by the set of access nodes, each of the respective access node-specific forward signals comprising a composite of respective forward beam signals weighted by respective forward beamforming weights of the forward beam weight matrix;
• and
• transmitting respective forward uplink signals from the set of access nodes based on the respective access node-specific forward signals, wherein the respective forward uplink signals are pre-corrected to compensate for respective path delays and phase shifts between the plurality of access nodes and the end-to-end relay.

A system for providing a communication service to user terminals geographically distributed over a user coverage area via an end-to-end relay comprising multiple receive/transmit signal paths, comprising:

• a plurality of access node clusters, wherein each access node cluster is associated with a corresponding one of a plurality of access node areas, and wherein each of the plurality of access node clusters comprises:
• a plurality of access nodes geographically distributed within the corresponding access node area, each of the plurality of access nodes comprising a receiver that receives a respective return downlink signal from the end-to-end relay, each of the respective return downlink signals comprising a composite of return uplink signals transmitted from a plurality of the user terminals and relayed by at least a subset of the multiple receive/transmit signal paths of the end-to-end relay to form a composite return signal;
• a beam weight generator that generates a return beam weight matrix for end-to-end beamforming of transmissions from multiple return user beam coverage areas to the plurality of access node clusters via the end-to-end relay;
• and
• a return beamformer coupled with the beam weight generator, the return beamformer comprising a matrix multiplier that obtains respective return beam signals for the multiple return user beam coverage areas based on a matrix product of the return beam weight matrix and a vector of the respective composite return signals, wherein the respective composite return signals are corrected for timing and phase for respective path delays and phase shifts between the end-to-end relay and the plurality of access nodes.

A method for providing a communication service to user terminals geographically distributed over a user coverage area via an end-to-end relay comprising multiple receive/transmit signal paths, the method comprising:

• receiving, at a set of access nodes, respective return downlink signals from the end-to-end relay, each of the respective return downlink signals comprising return user data streams transmitted from a plurality of the user terminals and relayed by the end-to-end relay, to form a composite return signal, the set of access nodes comprising access nodes of at least one of a plurality of access node clusters, wherein each of the plurality of access node clusters comprises a plurality of access nodes at geographically distributed locations within a corresponding one of a plurality of access node areas;
• identifying a return beam weight matrix for end-to-end beamforming of transmissions from multiple return user beam coverage areas to the set of access nodes via the end-to-end relay;
• applying, to each of the respective composite return signals, respective beamforming weights of the return beam weight matrix to obtain a respective plurality of weighted composite return signals associated with each of the multiple return user beam coverage areas;
• and
• combining, for the each of the multiple return user beam coverage areas, the respective plurality of weighted composite return signals to obtain a return beam signal associated with the each of the multiple return user beam coverage areas, wherein the respective plurality of weighted composite return signals are corrected to compensate for respective path delays and phase shifts between the end-to-end relay and the set of access nodes prior to the combining.