Diversity transmission modes for MIMO OFDM communication systems

A method for processing data for transmission in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication system that utilizes orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), comprising:

• selecting a particular diversity transmission mode from among a plurality of possible transmission modes to use for each of one or more data streams, wherein each selected diversity transmission mode redundantly transmits data over time, frequency, space, or a combination thereof by using frequency diversity, Walsh transmit diversity, space time transmit diversity (STTD), or any combination and further wherein the selecting is done based in part upon at least one specific data stream channel being transmitted;
• coding and modulating each data stream based on coding and modulation schemes selected for the data stream to provide modulation symbols, wherein the coding and modulating is done based in part upon the at least one specific data stream channel being transmitted;
• and
• processing the modulation symbols for each data stream based on the selected diversity transmission mode to provide transmit symbols for transmission over a plurality of transmit antennas.