Parameter estimation and equalization techniques for communication channels with multipath and multiple frequency offsets

We consider estimation of frequency offset (FO) and equalization of a wireless communication channel, within a general framework which allows for different frequency offsets for various multipaths. Such a scenario may arise due to different Doppler shifts associated with various multipaths, or in situations where multiple basestations are used to transmit identical information. For this general framework, we propose an approximative maximum-likelihood estimator exploiting the correlation property of the transmitted pilot signal. We further show that the conventional minimum mean-square error equalizer is computationally cumbersome, as the effective channel-convolution matrix changes deterministically between symbols, due to the multiple FOs. Exploiting the structural property of these variations, we propose a computationally efficient recursive algorithm for the equalizer design. Simulation results show that the proposed estimator is statistically efficient, as the mean-square estimation error attains the Crame´r-Rao lower bound. Further, we show via extensive simulations that our proposed scheme significantly outperforms equalizers not employing FO estimation

ICI Cancellation in OFDM Systems by Frequency Offset Reduction

With the rapid growth of digital communication in recent years, the need for high speed data transmission is increased. Moreover, future wireless systems are expected to support a wide range of services which includes video, data and voice. OFDM is a promising candidate for achieving high data rates in mobile environment because of its multicarrier modulation technique and ability to convert a frequency selective fading channel into several nearly flat fading channels. Now OFDM is being widely used in wireless communications standards, such as IEEE 802.11a, the multimedia mobile access communication (MMAC), and the HIPERLAN/2. However, one of the main disadvantages of OFDM is its sensitivity against carrier frequency offset which causes inter carrier interference (ICI). A well-known problem of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), however, is its sensitivity to frequency offset between the transmitted and received signals, which may be caused by Doppler shift in the channel, or by the difference between the transmitter and receiver local oscillator frequencies. This carrier frequency offset causes loss of orthogonality between sub-carriers and the signals transmitted on each carrier are not independent of each other. The orthogonality of the carriers is no longer maintained, which results in inter-carrier interference (ICI). The undesired ICI degrades the performance of the system. Depending on the Doppler spread in the channel and the block length chosen for transmission, ICI can potentially cause a severe deterioration of quality of service (QOS) in OFDM systems. ICI mitigation techniques are essential in improving the performance of an OFDM system in an environment which induces frequency offset error in the transmitted signal. The comparisons of these schemes in terms of various parameters will be useful in determining the choice of ICI mitigation techniques for different applications and mobile environments. This project investigates an efficient ICI cancellation method termed ICI self-cancellation scheme for combating the impact of ICI on OFDM systems. The ICI self-cancellation scheme is a technique in which redundant data is transmitted onto adjacent sub-carriers such that the ICI between adjacent sub-carriers cancels out at the receiver. The main idea is one data symbol is modulated onto a group of adjacent subcarriers with a group of weighting coefficients. By doing so, the ICI signals generated within a group can be self-cancelled each other. At the receiver side, by linearly combining the received signals on these subcarriers with proposed coefficients, the residual ICI contained in the received signals can then be further reduced. Although the proposed scheme causes a reduction in bandwidth efficiency, it can be compensated, by using larger signal alphabet sizes in modulation. The average carrier-to-interference power ratio (CIR) is used as the ICI level indicator, and a theoretical CIR expression is derived for the proposed scheme. The proposed scheme provides significant CIR improvement, which has been studied theoretically and supported by simulations. Simulation results show that under the condition of the same bandwidth efficiency and larger frequency offsets, the proposed OFDM system using the ICI self-cancellation scheme per- forms much better than standard OFDM systems in AWGN channel with large Doppler frequencies. In addition, since no channel equalization is needed for reducing ICI, the proposed scheme is therefore beneficial in implementation issue without increasing system complexit

Equalization of doubly selective channels using iterative and recursive methods

Novel iterative and recursive schemes for the equalization of time-varying frequency selective channels are proposed. Such doubly selective channels are shown to be common place in mobile communication systems, for example in second generation systems based on time division multiple access (TDMA) and so-called beyond third generation systems most probably utilizing orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM). A new maximum likelihood approach for the estimation of the complex multipath gains (MGs) and the real Doppler spreads (DSs) of a parametrically modelled doubly selective single input single output (SISO) channel is derived. Considerable complexity reduction is achieved by exploiting the statistical properties of the training sequence in a TDMA system. The Cramer-Rao lower bound for the resulting estimator is derived and simulation studies are employed to confirm the statistical efficiency of the scheme. A similar estimation scheme is derived for the MGs and DSs in the context of a multiple input multiple output (MIMO) TDMA system. A computationally efficient recursive equalization scheme for both a SISO and MIMO TDMA system which exploits the estimated MGs and DSs is derived on the basis of repeated application of the matrix inversion lemma. Bit error rate (BER) simulations confirm the advantage of this scheme over equalizers which have limited knowledge of such parameters. For OFDM transmission over a general random doubly selective SISO channel, the time selectivity is mitigated with an innovative relatively low complexity iterative method. Equalization is in effect split into two stages: one which exploits the sparsity in the associated channel convolution matrix and a second which performs a posteriori detection of the frequency domain symbols. These two procedures interact in an iterative manner, exchanging information between the time and frequency domains. Simulation studies show that the performance of the scheme approaches the matched filter bound when interleaving is also introduced to aid in decorrelation. Finally, to overcome the peak to average power problem in conventional OFDM transmission, the iterative approach is extended for single carrier with cyclic prefix (SCCP) systems. The resulting scheme has particularly low complexity and is shown by simulation to have robust performance.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

A comparison of digital transmission techniques under multichannel conditions at 2.4 GHz in the ISM BAND

In order to meet the observation quality criteria of micro-UAVs, and particularly in the context of the « Trophée Micro-Drones », ISAE/SUPAERO is studying technical solutions to transmit a high data rate from a video payload onboard a micro-UAV. The laboratory has to consider the impact of multipath and shadowing effects on the emitted signal. Therefore fading resistant transmission techniques are considered. This techniques paper have to reveal an optimum trade-off between three parameters, namely: the characteristics of the video stream, the complexity of the modulation and coding scheme, and the efficiency of the transmission, in term of BER

Timing and Carrier Synchronization in Wireless Communication Systems: A Survey and Classification of Research in the Last 5 Years

Timing and carrier synchronization is a fundamental requirement for any wireless communication system to work properly. Timing synchronization is the process by which a receiver node determines the correct instants of time at which to sample the incoming signal. Carrier synchronization is the process by which a receiver adapts the frequency and phase of its local carrier oscillator with those of the received signal. In this paper, we survey the literature over the last 5 years (2010–2014) and present a comprehensive literature review and classification of the recent research progress in achieving timing and carrier synchronization in single-input single-output (SISO), multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), cooperative relaying, and multiuser/multicell interference networks. Considering both single-carrier and multi-carrier communication systems, we survey and categorize the timing and carrier synchronization techniques proposed for the different communication systems focusing on the system model assumptions for synchronization, the synchronization challenges, and the state-of-the-art synchronization solutions and their limitations. Finally, we envision some future research directions