Advanced array processing techniques and systems

Research and development on smart antennas, which are recognized as a promising technique to improve the performance of mobile communications, have been extensive in the recent years. Smart antennas combine multiple antenna elements with a signal processing capability in both space and time to optimize its radiation and reception pattern automatically in response to the signal environment. This paper concentrates on the signal processing aspects of smart antenna systems. Smart antennas are often classified as either switched-beam or adaptive-array systems, for which a variety of algorithms have been developed to enhance the signal of interest and reject the interference. The antenna systems need to differentiate the desired signal from the interference, and normally requires either a priori knowledge or the signal direction to achieve its goal. There exists a variety of methods for direction of arrival (DOA) estimation with conflicting demands of accuracy and computation. Similarly, there are many algorithms to compute array weights to direct the maximum radiation of the array pattern toward the signal and place nulls toward the interference, each with its convergence property and computational complexity. This paper discusses some of the typical algorithms for DOA estimation and beamforming. The concept and details of each algorithm are provided. Smart antennas can significantly help in improving the performance of communication systems by increasing channel capacity and spectrum efficiency, extending range coverage, multiplexing channels with spatial division multiple access (SDMA), and compensating electronically for aperture distortion. They also reduce delay spread, multipath fading, co-channel interference, system complexity, bit error rates, and outage probability. In addition, smart antennas can locate mobile units or assist the location determination through DOA and range estimation. This capability can support and benefit many location-based services including emergency assistance, tracking services, safety services, billing services, and information services such as navigation, weather, traffic, and directory assistance

Intelligent joint channel parameter estimation techniques for mobile wireless positioning applications

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Mobile wireless positioning has recently received great attention. For mobile wireless communication networks, an inherently suitable approach is to obtain the parameters that are used for positioning estimates from the radio signal measurements between a mobile device and one or more xed base stations. However, obtaining accurate estimates of these location-dependent channel parameters is a challenging task. The focus of this thesis is on the estimation of these channel parameters for mobile wireless positioning applications. In particular, we investigate novel estimators that jointly estimate more than one type of channel parameters. We rst perform a comprehensive critical review on the most recent and popular joint channel parameter estimation techniques. Secondly, we improve a state-of-the-art technique, namely the Space Alternating Generalised Expectation maximisation (SAGE) algorithm by employing adaptive interference cancellation to improve the estimation accuracy of weaker paths. Thirdly, a novel intelligent channel parameter estimation technique using Evolution Strategy (ES) is proposed to overcome the drawbacks of the existing iterative maximum likelihood methods. Furthermore, given that in reality it is di cult to obtain the number of multipath in advance, we propose a two tier Hierarchically Organised ES to jointly estimate the number of multipath as well as the channel parameters. Finally, we extend the proposed ES method to further estimate the Doppler shift in mobile environments. Our proposed intelligent joint channel estimation techniques are shown to exhibit excellent performance even with low Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) channel conditions as well as robust against uncertainties in initialisations.EPSRC and Cambridge Silicon Radi

Blind adaptive constrained reduced-rank parameter estimation based on constant modulus design for CDMA interference suppression

This paper proposes a multistage decomposition for blind adaptive parameter estimation in the Krylov subspace with the code-constrained constant modulus (CCM) design criterion. Based on constrained optimization of the constant modulus cost function and utilizing the Lanczos algorithm and Arnoldi-like iterations, a multistage decomposition is developed for blind parameter estimation. A family of computationally efficient blind adaptive reduced-rank stochastic gradient (SG) and recursive least squares (RLS) type algorithms along with an automatic rank selection procedure are also devised and evaluated against existing methods. An analysis of the convergence properties of the method is carried out and convergence conditions for the reduced-rank adaptive algorithms are established. Simulation results consider the application of the proposed techniques to the suppression of multiaccess and intersymbol interference in DS-CDMA systems

Increasing the Capacity of Wireless Networks Using Beamforming

Wireless mobile communications are growing in an exponential manner, especially in terms of the number of users. Also, the demand for high Quality of Service (QoS) has become essential. Nowadays, subscribers are using more applications such as the internet, video conferencing, and high quality TV. These applications require high data rates. The Space Division Multiple Access (SDMA) is the key element that can enable reusing of the same channels among different users in the same cell to meet this demand. For the application of SDMA in an efficient way, it is required to identify the users’ positions and directions in the cell. The Direction of Arrival (DOA) algorithms can estimate the incident angles of all the received signals impinging on the array antenna. These algorithms give the DOAs of all relevant signals of the user sources and interference sources. However, they are not capable of distinguishing and identifying which one is the direction of the desired user. In this thesis, we have proposed to use a Reference Signal (RFS) known by the transmitter and the receiver to identify which one of the estimated DOAs is the DOA of the desired user in the cell. Using a RFS and applying the correlation concept, we can distinguish the desired signal from the others. Moreover, we have considered the Affine Projection Algorithm (APA) to enhance the accuracy of the estimated direction and to form a beam towards the desired user and nulls towards the interferers. Our simulation results assure that, in the presence of the RFS, the DOA algorithms can identify the direction of the desired user with high accuracy and resolution. We have investigated this concept on different DOA algorithms such as MUltiple Signal Classification (MUSIC), ROOT MUSIC, and Estimate the direction of arrival of Signals Parameters via Rotational Invariance Technique (ESPRIT) algorithms. Moreover , we have introduced an approach for using the smart antennas (SA) to exploit the space diversity for the next generations of mobile communication systems. We have applied a combination of the MUSIC and the Least Mean Squares (LMS) algorithms. We have proposed the MUSIC algorithm for finding the directions of the users in the cell. In addition, we have considered the LMS algorithm for enhancing the accuracy of the DOA, performing the beam generation process, and keeping track of the users in the cell. Furthermore, we have proposed a scheduling algorithm that performs the scheduling in terms of the generated beams. The space diversity, together with the time and frequency diversities of LTE (Long Term Evolution) results in a large capacity increase in the next generations of wireless mobile communication systems. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm called MUltiple Signal Classification and Least Mean Squares (MLMS), has the capability to converge and completely follow the desired user signal with a very high resolution. The convergence and the accurate tracking of the desired signal user take place after 13 iterations while in the traditional LMS, the convergence needs 85 iterations to take place. This means an 84.7% improvement over the traditional LMS algorithm for the same number of calculations in each iteration. In contrast to the traditional LMS algorithm, the proposed algorithm can work in the presence of high level of interference. Furthermore, the proposed scheduling scheme based on beamforming shows a gain of 15% in the total aggregated throughput for each 10o decrease in the beam size. The proposed model provides an optimum, complete, and practical design for the next generations of the mobile communication systems. In this model, we have proposed a mechanism to find the direction of each user in the cell, enhance the accuracy of the obtained DOAs, and perform scheduling based on the generated beams. In addition, we have presented an approach for Frequency Reuse (FR) based on beamforming for 5G. We have implemented a synthesizer in order to smartly form the desired beam shape and make the nulls deeper. We have taken the advantage of the SAs, beamforming capabilities, and the radiation pattern (RP) synthesizing techniques to build up a FR scheme for 5G. Also, we have developed a formula for calculating the Signal to Interference and Noise Ratio (SINR) in terms of the desired and the interferers directions. The objective is to maintain the SINR at the minimum acceptable levels required by the LTE while reducing the beam sizes, and hence increase the FR factor. The simulation results show that with a Uniform Linear Antenna (ULA) of 11 elements, we can achieve the desirable SINR levels using beams of 100 width, which improves the FR factor from 1 to 18, and subsequently increases the number of mobile users

Robust Techniques for Bearing Estimation in Contaminated Gaussian Noise

The problem of estimating directions-of-arrival (DOA) of radiating sources from measurements provided by a passive array of sensors is frequently encountered in radar, sonar, radio astronomy and seismology. In this study various robust methods for the DOA estimation problem are developed, where the term robustness refers to insensitivity against small deviation in the underlying Gaussian noise assumption. The first method utilizes an eigenvector method and robust reconstruction of the correlation matrix by time series modeling of the array data; Secondly, a decentralized processing scheme is considered for geographically distributed array sites. The method provides reliable estimates even when a few of the subarray sites are malfunctioning. The above two techniques are useful for narrow band and incoherent sources. The third robust method, which utilizes Radon Transform, is capable of handling both the narrow band and wide band sources as well as the incoherent or coherent sources. The technique is also Useful in situations of very low SNR and colored noise with unknown correlation structure. The fourth method is an efficient narrow band robust maximum likelihood DOA estimation algorithm which is capable of handling coherent signals as well as the single snapshot cases. Furthermore, relationships between eigenvector methods and a ML DOA estimation, where the source signals are treated as sample functions of Gaussian random processes, are investigate

時間と周波数領域情報に基づいたシステムモデリングとその応用

System modeling is required to deal with the time-varying system dynamics or the experimental data with insufficient information. However, the existing methods cannot construct satisfactory models for rapidly varying systems or severely band-limited signals. This thesis focuses on the new approaches to solve such system modeling problems based on time and frequency-domain information and illustrates their applications in time-varying channel identification and localization system. For the rapid time-varying systems, parameters can be approximated by the cosine series using virtual even periodic functions. Following the orthogonality of the trigonometric functions, the parameter estimation is recursively implemented by estimating the coefficients of each degree of the cosine harmonic term. For the localization system with insufficient frequency components, the spectral characteristics including phase information in frequency domain and the information evaluation in time domain are applied to improve the convergence performance. Numerical simulations demonstrate the effectiveness of the new approaches.北九州市立大

Spatio-Temporal processing for Optimum Uplink-Downlink WCDMA Systems

The capacity of a cellular system is limited by two different phenomena, namely multipath fading and multiple access interference (MAl). A Two Dimensional (2-D) receiver combats both of these by processing the signal both in the spatial and temporal domain. An ideal 2-D receiver would perform joint space-time processing, but at the price of high computational complexity. In this research we investigate computationally simpler technique termed as a Beamfom1er-Rake. In a Beamformer-Rake, the output of a beamfom1er is fed into a succeeding temporal processor to take advantage of both the beamformer and Rake receiver. Wireless service providers throughout the world are working to introduce the third generation (3G) and beyond (3G) cellular service that will provide higher data rates and better spectral efficiency. Wideband COMA (WCDMA) has been widely accepted as one of the air interfaces for 3G. A Beamformer-Rake receiver can be an effective solution to provide the receivers enhanced capabilities needed to achieve the required performance of a WCDMA system. We consider three different Pilot Symbol Assisted (PSA) beamforming techniques, Direct Matrix Inversion (DMI), Least-Mean Square (LMS) and Recursive Least Square (RLS) adaptive algorithms. Geometrically Based Single Bounce (GBSB) statistical Circular channel model is considered, which is more suitable for array processing, and conductive to RAKE combining. The performances of the Beam former-Rake receiver are evaluated in this channel model as a function of the number of antenna elements and RAKE fingers, in which are evaluated for the uplink WCDMA system. It is shown that, the Beamformer-Rake receiver outperforms the conventional RAKE receiver and the conventional beamformer by a significant margin. Also, we optimize and develop a mathematical formulation for the output Signal to Interference plus Noise Ratio (SINR) of a Beam former-Rake receiver. In this research, also, we develop, simulate and evaluate the SINR and Signal to Noise Ratio (Et!Nol performances of an adaptive beamforming technique in the WCDMA system for downlink. The performance is then compared with an omnidirectional antenna system. Simulation shows that the best perfom1ance can be achieved when all the mobiles with same Angle-of-Arrival (AOA) and different distance from base station are formed in one beam

Adaptive beamforming and switching in smart antenna systems

The ever increasing requirement for providing large bandwidth and seamless data access to commuters has prompted new challenges to wireless solution providers. The communication channel characteristics between mobile clients and base station change rapidly with the increasing traveling speed of vehicles. Smart antenna systems with adaptive beamforming and switching technology is the key component to tackle the challenges. As a spatial filter, beamformer has long been widely used in wireless communication, radar, acoustics, medical imaging systems to enhance the received signal from a particular looking direction while suppressing noise and interference from other directions. The adaptive beamforming algorithm provides the capability to track the varying nature of the communication channel characteristics. However, the conventional adaptive beamformer assumes that the Direction of Arrival (DOA) of the signal of interest changes slowly, although the interference direction could be changed dynamically. The proliferation of High Speed Rail (HSR) and seamless wireless communication between infrastructure ( roadside, trackside equipment) and the vehicles (train, car, boat etc.) brings a unique challenge for adaptive beamforming due to its rapid change of DOA. For a HSR train with 250km/h, the DOA change speed can be up to 4⁰ per millisecond. To address these unique challenges, faster algorithms to calculate the beamforming weight based on the rapid-changing DOA are needed. In this dissertation, two strategies are adopted to address the challenges. The first one is to improve the weight calculation speed. The second strategy is to improve the speed of DOA estimation for the impinging signal by leveraging on the predefined constrained route for the transportation market. Based on these concepts, various algorithms in beampattern generation and adaptive weight control are evaluated and investigated in this thesis. The well known Generalized Sidelobe Cancellation (GSC) architecture is adopted in this dissertation. But it faces serious signal cancellation problem when the estimated DOA deviates from the actual DOA which is severe in high mobility scenarios as in the transportation market. Algorithms to improve various parts of the GSC are proposed in this dissertation. Firstly, a Cyclic Variable Step Size (CVSS) algorithm for adjusting the Least Mean Square (LMS) step size with simplicity for implementation is proposed and evaluated. Secondly, a Kalman filter based solution to fuse different sensor information for a faster estimation and tracking of the DOA is investigated and proposed. Thirdly, to address the DOA mismatch issue caused by the rapid DOA change, a fast blocking matrix generation algorithm named Simplifized Zero Placement Algorithm (SZPA) is proposed to mitigate the signal cancellation in GSC. Fourthly, to make the beam pattern robust against DOA mismatch, a fast algorithm for the generation of at beam pattern named Zero Placement Flat Top (ZPFT) for the fixed beamforming path in GSC is proposed. Finally, to evaluate the effectiveness and performance of the beamforming algorithms, wireless channel simulation is needed. One of the challenging aspects for wireless simulation is the coupling between Probability Density Function (PDF) and Power Spectral Density (PSD) for a random variable. In this regard, a simplified solution to simulate Non Gaussian wireless channel is proposed, proved and evaluated for the effectiveness of the algorithm. With the above optimizations, the controlled simulation shows that the at top beampattern can be generated 380 times faster than iterative optimization method and blocking matrix can be generated 9 times faster than normal SVD method while the same overall optimum state performance can be achieved