TWI836016B - Wireless communication device and method of operation thereof and cell search method performed by the wireless communication device - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a method of operating a wireless communication device including a phased array including a first antenna group and a second antenna group to form a beam for transmitting and receiving signals polarized in different directions, which includes receiving first signals polarized in a first direction; receiving second signals polarized in a second direction; measuring power of the first signals and power of the second signals; analyzing a relationship between a channel corresponding to the first receiving beam and a channel corresponding to the second receiving beam; estimating power of third signals that are expected to be received through the first antenna group and power of fourth signals that are expected to be received through the second antenna group; and selecting a receiving beam pattern for wireless communication.

Description

Wireless communication device and operation method thereof, and cell search method performed by the wireless communication device

[Cross-reference to related applications]

This application claims the rights of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2019-0021298 filed on February 22, 2019, and Korean Patent Application No. 10-2019-0065473 filed on June 3, 2019, both filed in the Korean Intellectual Property Office. The disclosures of the aforementioned Korean Patent Applications are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

An exemplary embodiment of the inventive concept relates to a wireless communication device capable of fast beam selection.

Recently, the fifth-generation (5G) communication system as a new radio access technology aims to provide ultra-high-speed data services of billions of bits per second using an ultra-wideband having a bandwidth of 100 MHz or more compared to long-term evolution (LTE) and LTE advanced (LTE-A). However, it is difficult to obtain an ultra-wideband frequency of 100 MHz or more in a frequency band of hundreds of MHz or several GHz used in LTE and LTE-A, and therefore, a method of transmitting signals using a wideband in a frequency band of 6 GHz or more is being considered in the 5G communication system. Specifically, a technology that uses millimeter wave bands (such as 28 GHz and 60 GHz bands) to increase the transmission rate is being considered in 5G communication systems. However, since the frequency band is proportional to the path loss of radio waves, the service area may be reduced because the path loss of radio waves is large in ultra-high frequency bands such as millimeter wave bands.

To overcome the reduction in service area, in 5G communication systems, a beamforming technology that increases the range of radio waves by using multiple antennas to generate directional beams has attracted attention. Beamforming technology can be applied to each of a transmission device (e.g., a base station (BS)) and a receiving device (e.g., a terminal), and can not only expand the service area, but also reduce interference caused by focusing the physical beam toward a target.

In a 5G communication system, the directional direction of the transmission beam of the transmitting device must be aligned with the directional direction of the receiving beam of the receiving device to increase the effect of the beamforming technology, and therefore, select the desired (or, as another alternative, Optimal) transmission beam and receive beam technology is important. In addition, a technology for quickly selecting desired (or, alternatively, optimal) transmission beams and reception beams to meet the low latency solution of the 5G communication system has also attracted attention.

Exemplary embodiments of the inventive concept provide a wireless communication device and/or method of operation thereof that is capable of quickly selecting a pattern of receive beams that are optimally aligned with a desired (or, alternatively, predetermined) cell in a wireless communication system and/or method of operation thereof.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the inventive concept, a method of operating a wireless communication device including a phased array is provided, wherein the phased array includes a first antenna group and a second antenna group.

In some exemplary embodiments, the method includes: receiving a first signal polarized in a first direction by scanning a first receiving beam formed in the first antenna group to have a first pattern among a plurality of patterns; receiving a second signal polarized in a second direction by scanning a second receiving beam formed in the second antenna group to have a second pattern among the plurality of patterns; measuring the power of the first signal and the power of the second signal; analyzing the relationship between a channel corresponding to the first receiving beam and a channel corresponding to the second receiving beam; and determining the relationship between the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam based on the first receiving beam. In the relationship, the power of the third signal expected to be received by the first antenna group when the first receiving beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the first pattern among the multiple patterns and the power of the fourth signal expected to be received by the second antenna group when the second receiving beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the second pattern among the multiple patterns are estimated; and a receiving beam pattern is selected based on the power of the first signal, the power of the second signal, the power of the third signal, and the power of the fourth signal.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the inventive concept, a cell search method performed by a wireless communication device is provided.

In some exemplary embodiments, the cell search method includes: receiving a first signal polarized in a first direction by scanning a first receiving beam to have a first pattern among a plurality of patterns; receiving a second signal polarized in a second direction by scanning a second receiving beam to have a second pattern among the plurality of patterns; measuring the power of the first signal and the power of the second signal; calculating a ratio between the power of a first comparison signal and the power of a second comparison signal, wherein the first comparison signal and the second comparison signal each correspond to a difference between the first pattern and the second pattern. at least one reference pattern shared between two reception beam patterns; based on the ratio, estimating the power of a third signal expected to be received when the first reception beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the first pattern among the multiple patterns and the power of a fourth signal expected to be received when the second reception beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the second pattern among the multiple patterns; and selecting a candidate cell and a reception beam pattern based on the power of the first signal, the power of the second signal, the power of the third signal, and the power of the fourth signal.

Some exemplary embodiments relate to a wireless communication device.

In some exemplary embodiments, the wireless communication device includes: a phased array including a first antenna group and a second antenna group, the phased array being configured to form a beam for transmitting and receiving signals polarized in different directions; and a processor configured to: control scanning so that a first receiving beam formed in the first antenna group has a first pattern among a plurality of patterns, and a second receiving beam formed in the second antenna group has a second pattern among the plurality of patterns; and by measuring the power of a first signal polarized in a first direction received by the first receiving beam and by measuring the power of a second signal polarized in a first direction received by the second receiving beam. The method comprises: generating a power information of a second signal polarized in a second direction received by a receiving beam, generating measured power information; estimating the power of a third signal expected to be received by the first antenna group when the first receiving beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the first pattern among the multiple patterns and the power of a fourth signal expected to be received by the second antenna group when the second receiving beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the second pattern among the multiple patterns based on the measured power information; and preparing wireless communication based on the measured power information and the estimated power information.

1: Wireless communication system

10:Community

20, 100: Wireless communication device

110, 210: Phased array

112:First antenna group

114:Second antenna group

120: Radio Frequency Integrated Circuit (RFIC)

130, 1022: Processor

132: Fast beam selection module

132a: Reference beam pattern setter

132b: Beam scanning controller

132c: Reference ratio calculator

132d: Power estimator

132e:Beam pattern selector

211, 212, 213, 214, 215, 216, 217, 218: Antenna

1000: Electronic devices

1010:Memory

1011: Program storage unit

1012:Data storage unit

1013:Application

1014: Receive beam pattern selection program/fast beam selection program

1020: Processor unit

1021: Memory interface

1023: Peripheral device interface

1040: Input/output (I/O) controller

1050:Display unit

1060:Input device

1090: Communication processor

AntG1: The first antenna group

AntG2: The second antenna group

B_CS, B_CS': beam control signal

H-pol: horizontal direction

P1, P3, P6: pattern/first pattern

P2, P4, P5, P7: pattern/first pattern/second pattern

P4':Pattern

RB_CS, RB_CS _dynamic : reference beam control signal

RB_CS _RESET :Reset reference beam control signal

RBGa, RBGb: Reference beam antenna group

RCX_S1, RCX_S2: comparison signal

RX_P _REF , RX_P _REF ': Reference pattern

RX_P _SEL : Receive beam pattern

RX_S1: First signal

RX_S2: Second signal

S100, S100', S110, S120, S130, S141, S142, S143, S144, S150, S151, S152, S200, S210, S211, S212, S213, S214, S215, S216, S217, S218, S220, S221, S222, S223, S224, S225, S300, S310: Operation

TX_P _SEL : Transmit beam pattern

V-pol: vertical direction

θ1, θ2: angle

By reading the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, an exemplary embodiment of the present inventive concept will be more clearly understood, in which: FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a wireless communication system according to an exemplary embodiment.

2 is a block diagram of a wireless communication device according to an exemplary embodiment.

3 is a block diagram illustrating a fast beam selection module according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a method of determining a receive beam pattern performed by the processor shown in FIG. 2 according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a method of setting a reference pattern executed by the processor shown in FIG. 2 according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a method of resetting a reference pattern performed by the processor shown in FIG. 2 according to an exemplary embodiment.

7A and 7B are diagrams showing a method of forming a receiving beam having a reference pattern according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG8 is a diagram showing a method of calculating a reference ratio performed by the processor shown in FIG2 according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG9 and FIG10 are diagrams of beam scanning operations of the processor shown in FIG2 according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG11 is a flow chart of a cell search method of a wireless communication device according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 12A and FIG. 12B are diagrams of a method for selecting a receive beam pattern performed by the processor shown in FIG. 2 according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating a method of selecting a reception beam pattern performed by the processor shown in FIG. 2 according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram of an electronic device according to an exemplary embodiment.

A base station may be a subject that communicates with a wireless communication device and allocates communication network resources to the wireless communication device. A base station may be at least one of a cell, a base station (BS), a NodeB (NB), an evolved NodeB (eNB), a next-generation radio access network (NG RAN), a wireless communication unit, a base station controller, or a node on a network. In the following, a base station will be referred to as a cell.

The wireless communication device may be the main body communicating with the base station or another wireless communication device. Wireless communication devices may be called nodes, user equipment (UE), next-generation (NG) user equipment, mobile station (MS), mobile equipment (ME), device or terminal.

In addition, the wireless communication device may include at least one of the following: a smart phone, a tablet personal computer (PC), a mobile phone, a video phone, an electronic book (e-book) reader, a desktop Personal computer, laptop computer, netbook computer, personal digital assistant (PDA), portable multimedia player (PMP), animation expert group stage- 1 (Motion Picture Experts Group phase 1, MPEG-1) audio layer 3 (MPEG-1 audio layer 3, MP3) player, medical equipment, camera or wearable device. In addition, the wireless communication device may include at least one of the following: a television (TV), a digital video disk (DVD) player, an audio player, a refrigerator, an air conditioner, a vacuum cleaner, an oven, a microwave oven, Washing machines, air purifiers, set top boxes, home automation control panels, security control panels, media boxes (e.g., Samsung ^{HomeSync TM ,} Apple TV ^TM TV ^TM ) or Google TV ^TM (Google TV ^TM )), game consoles (for example, X Box ^TM (Xbox ^TM ) and PlayStation ^TM (PlayStation ^TM )), electronic dictionaries, electronic keys, Video camera or electronic frame. In addition, the wireless communication device may include at least one of the following: various medical equipment (for example, various portable medical measurement equipment (for example, blood glucose meter, heart rate meter, blood pressure monitor, thermometer, etc.), magnetic resonance angiography (magnetic resonance angiography) resonance angiography (MRA) equipment, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine computed tomography (CT) equipment, cameras, ultrasound devices, etc.), navigation devices, global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) ), event data recorder (EDR), flight data recorder (FDR), vehicle infotainment device (automotive infotainment device), ship electronic equipment (for example, ship navigation system, gyro compass, etc. ), avionics, safety devices, head units for vehicles, industrial or home robots, drones, automated teller machines (ATMs) for financial institutions, point of sales for stores , POS) or Internet of Things (IoT) devices (e.g., light bulbs, various sensors, sprinklers, fire alarms, thermostats, street lights, toasters, exercise equipment, hot water tanks, heating appliances, boilers, etc.). In addition, the wireless communication device may be various types of multimedia systems capable of performing communication functions.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments will be explained in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 is a block diagram of a wireless communication system 1 according to an exemplary embodiment.

1 , the wireless communication system 1 may include a cell 10 and a wireless communication device 20. For convenience, although FIG. 1 shows an exemplary embodiment in which the wireless communication system 1 includes only one cell 10, this is only an exemplary embodiment, and the inventive concept is not limited thereto. The wireless communication system 1 may include various numbers of base stations. In addition, although it is assumed that the wireless communication system 1 is a 5G communication system that applies beamforming technology, this is only an exemplary embodiment, and it is obvious that the concept of the inventive concept can also be applied to various communication systems. The cell 10 can be connected to the wireless communication device 20 via a wireless channel and provide various communication services. The cell 10 can provide all user traffic services via a shared channel, and collect and schedule status information of the wireless communication device 20 (e.g., buffer status, available transmission power status, and channel status). The wireless communication system 1 can use orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) as a radio access technology to support beamforming technology. In addition, the wireless communication system 1 can support an adaptive modulation and coding (AMC) scheme for determining a modulation scheme and a channel coding rate according to the channel status of the wireless communication device 20. The wireless communication device 20 according to an exemplary embodiment may include a phased array configured to simultaneously transmit or receive signals polarized in two or more different directions.

In addition, the wireless communication system 1 can transmit and receive signals using a wide frequency band in a frequency band of 6 GHz or greater than 6 GHz. For example, in the wireless communication system 1, the millimeter wave frequency band (such as the 28 GHz frequency band or the 60 GHz frequency band) can be used to increase the data transmission rate. In this case, since the millimeter wave frequency band has a relatively large signal attenuation per distance, in order to ensure coverage, the wireless communication system 1 can support transceiver operations based on directional beams generated using multiple antennas. The wireless communication system 1 may be a system configured to support multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO), and therefore, the cell 10 and the wireless communication device 20 may support beamforming technology. Beamforming technology can be classified into digital beamforming technology, analog beamforming technology and hybrid beamforming technology, and the concept of the present invention can be applied to all beamforming technologies.

The wireless communication device 20 according to an exemplary embodiment may perform a beam scanning operation on a receiving beam to enable a directional beam-based transceiving operation. beam The scanning operation may refer to sequentially or randomly scanning directional beams having a desired (or, alternatively, predetermined) pattern by each of the cell 10 and the wireless communication device 20 and selecting the directional directions relative to each other. The process of accurately transmitting beam patterns and receiving beam patterns. The pattern (or beam pattern) may be the shape of the beam, which is determined by the width of the beam and the direction in which the beam is directed. A pattern of transmit beams and a pattern of receive beams whose directional directions are aligned with each other can be selected as a pair of transceiver beam patterns. That is, when the cell 10 transmits data through the transmit beam with the selected pattern, the wireless communication device 20 can receive data through the receive beam with the selected pattern. Additionally, wireless communication device 20 may form a transmit beam having the same pattern as the selected pattern of the receive beam and transmit desired (or, alternatively, predetermined) data to cell 10 . Although the wireless communication device 20 receives signals from the one cell 10 in FIG. 1 , this is only an exemplary embodiment, and the inventive concept is not limited thereto. The wireless communication device 20 can receive signals from multiple cells at the same time. Hereinafter, an operation of selecting a pattern of reception beams performed by the wireless communication device 20 according to an exemplary embodiment will be explained.

The wireless communication device 20 may include a phased array provided with a first antenna group and a second antenna group to form beams for transmitting and receiving signals polarized in different directions. The first antenna group may include an antenna (or element antenna) for receiving a first signal polarized in a first direction, and the second antenna group may include a second antenna group for receiving a second signal polarized in a second direction. Signal antenna (or element antenna).

The wireless communication device 20 may receive a first signal polarized in a first direction by performing a beam scanning operation so that a first receiving beam formed in the first antenna group has a first pattern among a plurality of patterns. The wireless communication device 20 may receive a second signal polarized in a second direction by performing a beam scanning operation so that a second receiving beam formed in the second antenna group has a second pattern among the plurality of patterns. Specifically, the wireless communication device 20 may provide phase/gain control signals to the first antenna group and the second antenna group, respectively, to form a receiving beam or a transmitting beam having the plurality of patterns. The plurality of patterns may be patterns that can be formed in both the first antenna group and the second antenna group. The wireless communication device 20 may select some of the plurality of patterns as the first pattern, and select some of the plurality of patterns as the second pattern. The first pattern may include a different pattern than a pattern included in the second pattern.

The wireless communication device 20 can measure the power of the first signal received through the first antenna group and the power of the second signal received through the second antenna group. The power of a signal can be called the strength of the signal. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device 20 can receive a received signal strength indication (RSSI), a carrier to interference and noise ratio (CINR), a signal to interference ratio (CINR), and a signal to interference ratio (CINR). Either interference ratio (SIR) or reference signal received power (RSRP) value is used as the power of the signal.

The wireless communication device 20 may analyze the relationship between the channel corresponding to the first receiving beam and the channel corresponding to the second receiving beam. Specifically, the channel corresponding to the first receiving beam may mean a channel through which the first signal polarized in the first direction is received, and the channel corresponding to the second receiving beam may mean a channel in the second direction. The path through which the upwardly polarized and received second signal travels. The first signal or the second signal passes through The number of channels may vary depending on the pattern of the first receive beam or the second receive beam. However, when the pattern of the first receive beam is the same as the pattern of the second receive beam, it is possible to establish that the path experienced by the first signal received by the first receive beam and the path experienced by the second signal received by the second receive beam can be established. constant relationship between channels. Specifically, the relationship may be caused by the polarization characteristics of the first signal in the first direction and the polarization characteristics of the second signal in the second direction, and this relationship may be applied to other channels. For example, the relationship between the channels of the first signal and the channel of the second signal respectively received by the first and second receive beams having the same pattern x (where x is any integer) may be The relationship between the channels of the first signal and the channels of the second signal received by the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam having the same pattern y (where y is an arbitrary integer) is the same.

The wireless communication device 20 may estimate the power of the third signal expected to be received by the first antenna group when the first receive beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the first pattern among the plurality of patterns based on the analysis result. In addition, the wireless communication device 20 may estimate the power of the fourth signal expected to be received by the second antenna group when the second receive beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the second pattern among the plurality of patterns based on the analysis result. That is, the wireless communication device 20 may not perform a beam scanning operation, so that the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam formed in the first antenna group and the second antenna group respectively have all patterns in sequence if possible, and may perform a beam scanning operation, so that the first receiving beam has some patterns among all patterns if possible, and the second receiving beam has other patterns if possible, thereby reducing the time required for the beam scanning operation. In addition, the wireless communication device 20 can quickly estimate the power of the signal expected to be received by the pattern that the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam do not have, thereby minimizing the loss of the power of the signal received by some patterns that are skipped in the beam scanning operation.

The wireless communication device 20 may use the measured power of the first signal and the power of the second signal and the estimated power of the third signal and the power of the fourth signal to select a receive beam pattern for wireless communication. As described above, the receive beam pattern selected by the exemplary embodiment may be selected as a transmit beam pattern.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the wireless communication device 20 may perform beam scanning operations, power measurements of received signals, analysis of channel relationships between signals with different polarization directions, and power estimation of expected received signals to search for each signal. The operating carrier frequency of a frequency band, searching for cells in an environment where receive beamforming is applied in a specific frequency band, etc.

The wireless communication device 20 according to an exemplary embodiment can effectively reduce the time required for beam scanning by performing a beam scanning operation so that receiving beams with different polarization directions have different patterns along corresponding polarization directions, and can Compensating for possible performance losses due to some patterns being skipped in the beam scanning operation determines the optimal receive beam pattern efficiently and quickly.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a wireless communication device 100 according to an exemplary embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 2 , the wireless communication device 100 may include a phased array 110 , a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC) 120 and a processor 130 . In some embodiments, processor 130 may be referred to as a cell searcher. phase control Array 110 can communicate with RFIC 120, and RFIC 120 can communicate with processor 130. Although in the example shown in FIG. 2 , the wireless communication device 100 includes one phased array 110 , in some exemplary embodiments, the wireless communication device 100 may include more phased arrays, and each phased array may include More antenna groups. Phased array 110 may include multiple antennas. In some exemplary embodiments, the plurality of antennas of phased array 110 may be used to form transceiver beams, and in some exemplary embodiments, phased array 110 may include components configured to transmit or receive at a desired ( or, alternatively, an antenna for signals polarized in a predetermined) direction, and may include an antenna configured to simultaneously transmit or receive signals polarized in two or more different directions.

RFIC 120 may be connected to the plurality of antennas of phased array 110 through multiple ports. For example, the RFIC 120 may be connected to the first antenna group 112 through a first port and to the second antenna group 114 through a second port. The RFIC 120 may process signals received from the phased array 110 in the receive mode to generate a baseband signal. RFIC 120 may provide the generated baseband signal to processor 130 . RFIC 120 may provide generated signals to phased array 110 by processing signals received from processor 130 in transmit mode.

The processor 130 may generate data to be transmitted to the cell as a baseband signal, provide the baseband signal to the RFIC 120, and extract the data transmitted from the cell from the baseband signal received from the RFIC 120. For example, the processor 130 may include at least one digital-to-analog converter (DAC), which may output the baseband signal by converting the digital data modulated from the data to be transmitted to the cell. In addition, the processor 130 may include at least one analog-to-digital converter (ADC), which may output the digital data by converting the baseband signal. In some exemplary embodiments, processor 130 may include at least one core that executes a sequence of instructions and may be referred to as a modem or baseband processor.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the phased array 110 according to an exemplary embodiment may include a first antenna group 112 and a second antenna group 114 . The first antenna group 112 includes an antenna for receiving polarization in a first direction. The second antenna group 114 includes an antenna for receiving signals polarized in the second direction.

The processor 130 according to the exemplary embodiment may include a fast beam selection module 132. The fast beam selection module 132 may provide a beam control signal B_CS to the first antenna group 112 and the second antenna group 114 to perform a beam scanning operation so that a first receiving beam formed in the first antenna group 112 has a first pattern among a plurality of patterns, and perform a beam scanning operation so that a second receiving beam formed in the second antenna group 114 has a second pattern among the plurality of patterns. The beam control signal B_CS may be used to control the phase or gain of each of the plurality of antennas of the phased array 110.

The fast beam selection module 132 can measure the power of the first signal received through the first antenna group 112 and passing through the RFIC 120 and the power of the second signal received through the second antenna group 114 and passing through the RFIC 120 . However, this is only an exemplary embodiment, and the RFIC 120 can measure the power of the first signal and the power of the second signal.

The fast beam selection module 132 may analyze the relationship between the channel corresponding to the first receiving beam and the channel corresponding to the second receiving beam. As an exemplary embodiment, the fast beam selection module 132 may form a first receiving beam and a second receiving beam having the same reference pattern to analyze the relationship by the first antenna group 112 and the second antenna group 114, respectively, and may calculate the ratio between the power of the first comparison signal and the power of the second comparison signal received at this time. That is, the ratio between the power of the first comparison signal and the power of the second comparison signal may be an index indicating the relationship, and the fast beam selection module 132 may perform an estimation operation based on the index. Hereinafter, the ratio between the power of the first comparison signal and the power of the second comparison signal is defined as a reference ratio. However, this is an exemplary embodiment, and the concept of the present invention is not limited thereto, and the fast beam selection module 132 may perform a beam scanning operation to equally have a plurality of reference patterns, thereby calculating the ratio between the power of the first comparison signal and the power of the second comparison signal respectively received by the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam, and determining the reference ratio as the average value of the ratios. However, this is an exemplary embodiment, and the concept of the present invention is not limited thereto, and the fast beam selection module 132 may analyze the relationship between the channel corresponding to the first receiving beam and the channel corresponding to the second receiving beam in various ways.

As an exemplary embodiment, the reference pattern may be a pattern commonly included in the first pattern and the second pattern scanned during the beam scanning operation. Therefore, in order to analyze the relationship, the fast beam selection module 132 can obtain the power of the first signal received by the first receiving beam with the reference pattern as the first comparison signal among the measured power of the first signal. power and obtain the power of the second signal received by the second receive beam with the reference pattern in the measured power of the second signal as the power of the second comparison signal to analyze the relationship without separately The first receiving beam and the second receiving beam having the reference pattern are formed separately in the group 112 and the second antenna group 114 .

As another exemplary embodiment, the first pattern and the second pattern of the beam scanning operation may not include a common reference pattern, and the reference pattern may be dynamically set based on the power of the signal received by the phased array 110 as a result of performing the beam scanning operation. That is, the fast beam selection module 132 may set the best reference pattern in the first pattern and the second pattern based on the power of the received signal. The fast beam selection module 132 may separately form the first receiving beam or the second receiving beam with the determined reference pattern, and analyze the relationship using the power of the signal received by the first receiving beam or the second receiving beam and the pre-measured power of the signal corresponding to the reference pattern.

As another exemplary embodiment, the reference pattern may be formed using a different method than that used in the plurality of patterns during the beam scanning operation by the phased array 110 . For example, all antennas included in the first antenna group 112 or the second antenna group 114 may be used to form the plurality of patterns, and at the same time, all antennas included in the first antenna group 112 or the second antenna group may be used. Only some of the antennas in 114 form the reference pattern. Therefore, the width of the beams of the plurality of patterns may be different from the width of the beam of the reference pattern. At this time, in order to analyze the relationship, the fast beam selection module 132 can separately form the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam with the reference pattern in the first antenna group 112 and the second antenna group 114 respectively. And the power of the signal received by the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam is measured to analyze the relationship.

The fast beam selection module 132 may estimate the power of the third signal expected to be received by the first antenna group 112 when the first receiving beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the first pattern among the plurality of patterns and the power of the fourth signal expected to be received by the second antenna group 114 when the second receiving beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the second pattern among the plurality of patterns based on the analysis result. For example, assuming that the first pattern does not include pattern z (z is an arbitrary integer) and the second pattern includes pattern z in the beam scanning operation, the fast beam selection module 132 may estimate the power of the third signal expected to be received by the first receiving beam having pattern z by applying the reference ratio to the power of the second signal received by the second receiving beam having pattern z.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the fast beam selection module 132 may be executed multiple times during predetermined intervals (e.g., periodic intervals during which multiple cells transmit signals necessary for operating a carrier frequency search or cell search of the wireless communications device 100 ). Beam scanning operations and signal power measurement and estimation operations of phased array 110 and using the power of the first signal, the power of the second signal, the power of the third signal and the fourth signal generated as a result of the operations power to determine a cell candidate group, which includes cells among multiple cells that may be selected as valid cells.

The fast beam selection module 132 may select a cell with the highest reliability from the cell candidate group as the valid cell. Specifically, the fast beam selection module 132 may determine the reliability using a synchronization signal received from the cell candidate group by a first receiving beam and a second receiving beam having a pattern corresponding to the cell candidate group. The fast beam selection module 132 may select a pattern corresponding to the valid cell as a receiving beam pattern for communicating with the valid cell.

The fast beam selection module 132 according to the exemplary embodiment may be implemented by hardware logic within the processor 130. Alternatively, the fast beam selection module 132 may be implemented as software logic that is stored in a memory as a plurality of command codes and executed by the processor 130.

For example, in some exemplary embodiments, the processor 130 may be implemented using a processing circuit system such as hardware including a logic circuit, a hardware/software combination such as a processor executing software, or a combination thereof. For example, the processing circuit system may include, but is not limited to, a central processing unit (CPU), an arithmetic logic unit (ALU), a digital signal processor, a microcomputer, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a system-on-chip (SoC), a programmable logic unit, a microprocessor, or an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The processing circuit system can be configured as a dedicated computer to generate receiving beams so that receiving beams with different polarization directions have different patterns along the corresponding polarization directions, and compensate for possible performance loss caused by skipping some patterns in the beam scanning operation. Therefore, the processing circuit system can reduce the time required for beam scanning by performing the beam scanning operation and quickly determine the best receiving beam pattern.

Figure 3 is a block diagram illustrating fast beam selection module 132 according to an exemplary embodiment. Hereinafter, FIG. 3 will be explained with reference to the configuration shown in FIG. 2 , and redundant explanation given with reference to FIG. 2 will be omitted.

2 and 3, the fast beam selection module 132 may include a reference beam pattern setter 132a, a beam scanning controller 132b, a reference ratio calculator 132c, a power estimator 132d, and a beam pattern selector 132e. For example, the processing circuit system may be configured as a dedicated computer to perform the operations of the reference beam pattern setter 132a, the beam scanning controller 132b, the reference ratio calculator 132c, the power estimator 132d, and the beam pattern selector 132e.

The reference beam pattern setter 132a may set at least one reference pattern for analyzing the relationship between the channel corresponding to the first receive beam formed in the first antenna group 112 and the channel corresponding to the second receive beam formed in the second antenna group 114. The reference beam pattern setter 132a according to the exemplary embodiment may set the reference pattern, which is formed using the same method as the method of a plurality of patterns in the beam scanning operation performed by the phased array 110. For example, the reference beam pattern setter 132a may set at least one of the first patterns of the first receive beam as a reference pattern during the beam scanning operation, and may set the second pattern of the second receive beam to include the reference pattern during the beam scanning operation. Therefore, the reference pattern may be formed using all antennas included in the first antenna group 112 or the second antenna group 114. This will be explained in detail with reference to Figure 4.

The reference beam pattern setter 132a according to the exemplary embodiment may set a reference pattern formed using a method different from the method of the plurality of patterns in the beam scanning operation performed by the phased array 110. For example, the reference beam pattern setter 132a may selectively use an antenna included in the first antenna group 112 or the second antenna group 114 to set a reference pattern, thereby allowing a first receiving beam or a second receiving beam having a reference pattern to be formed. This will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 7A and 7B.

As a result of performing the beam scanning operation, the reference beam pattern setter 132a according to the exemplary embodiment may dynamically set a reference pattern based on the power of the signal received by the phased array 110. For example, the reference beam pattern setter 132a may select any one of the received signals having a power equal to or higher than a reference value, and set the pattern corresponding to the selected signal as the reference pattern. This will be explained in detail with reference to FIG. 5.

When the reference ratio calculated based on the set reference pattern does not satisfy a predetermined condition, the reference beam pattern setter 132a according to the exemplary embodiment may reset the reference pattern. This will be explained in detail with reference to FIG. 6.

The beam scanning controller 132b according to an exemplary embodiment may control the first antenna group 112 such that a first reception beam of the first antenna group 112 has a first pattern, and control the second antenna group 114 such that a second reception beam The beam has a second pattern. The beam scanning controller 132b may control beam scanning operations on the first antenna group 112 and the second antenna group 114 to be performed in parallel. According to some exemplary embodiments, each of the first pattern and the second pattern may include a common pattern (eg, a reference pattern). Furthermore, according to some exemplary embodiments, the first pattern and the second pattern may not include a common pattern.

The beam scanning controller 132b according to the exemplary embodiment can control the beam scanning operation on the first antenna group 112 and the second antenna group 114 based on the desired (or, alternatively, predetermined) rule. That is, the beam scanning controller 132b can control the beam scanning operation so that the first pattern and the second pattern can meet the desired (or, alternatively, predetermined) rule during the beam scanning process. The embodiment in this regard will be described in detail with reference to Figures 9 and 10.

According to some exemplary embodiments, the beam scanning controller 132b may control the phased array 110 independently of the beam scanning operation, thereby forming a first receiving beam or a second receiving beam having a reference pattern in order to calculate a reference ratio.

The reference ratio calculator 132c according to the exemplary embodiment may measure the power of the first signal received by the first receiving beam of the first antenna group 112 and the power of the second signal received by the second receiving beam of the second antenna group 114. The reference ratio calculator 132c may also measure or obtain the power of the comparison signal received by the first receiving beam having the reference pattern and the power of the comparison signal received by the second receiving beam having the reference pattern, and calculate the reference ratio using the measured or obtained powers.

The power estimator 132d according to the exemplary embodiment may estimate the power of the third signal expected to be received by the first antenna group 112 when the first receive beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the first pattern of the plurality of patterns using the actual measured power of the second signal and the reference ratio. The power estimator 132d may also estimate the power of the fourth signal expected to be received by the second antenna group 114 when the second receive beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the second pattern of the plurality of patterns using the actual measured power of the first signal and the reference ratio.

The beam pattern selector 132e according to an exemplary embodiment may select the first pattern using the actual measured power of the first signal, the actual measured power of the second signal, the estimated power of the third signal, and the estimated power of the fourth signal. At least one of the second patterns serves as a receive beam pattern. An embodiment of selecting a receive beam pattern will be explained in detail with reference to FIGS. 12A and 12B.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a method of determining a receiving beam pattern of the processor 130 shown in FIG. 2 performed by the processor 130 shown in FIG. 2 according to an exemplary embodiment. In the following, for the convenience of explanation, it is explained under the assumption that the multiple patterns include patterns P1 to P7, but this is only an exemplary embodiment, and the exemplary embodiments of the present inventive concept are not limited thereto.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 4 , the processor 130 may perform a beam scanning operation according to the received beam pattern by providing the beam control signal B_CS to the phased array 110 (operation S100 ). As an example, processor 130 may use first antenna group 112 to form a first receive beam having a first pattern and polarized in the horizontal direction H-pol, and use second antenna group 114 to form a first receive beam having a second pattern. and a second receive beam polarized in the vertical direction V-pol. Hereinafter, the first pattern may include patterns P1, P3, P4, and P6, and the second pattern may include patterns P2, P4, P5, and P7, and may be referred to as the first patterns P1, P3, P4, and P6 and the second pattern P2. , P4, P5 and P7, the pattern P4 is preset as the reference pattern RX_P _REF .

The processor 130 may measure the power of the first signal RX_S1 and the power of the second signal RX_S2 received by operation S100, and calculate a power ratio of the comparison signal received by the reception beam having the reference pattern RX_P _REF (operation S110). Specifically, the processor 130 may calculate a ratio between the power of the first comparison signal received through the first receive beam having pattern P4 and the power of the second comparison signal received through the second receive beam having pattern P4 as a reference ratio. According to some exemplary embodiments, the processor 130 may obtain the power of the first comparison signal and the power of the second comparison signal from the power of the first signal RX_S1 and the power of the second signal RX_S2 actually measured in operation S110.

The processor 130 may estimate the power of the signal expected to be received by the phased array 110 using the actual measured power of the first signal RX_S1 and the second signal RX_S2 and the reference ratio (operation S120). Specifically, the processor 130 may estimate that when the first receive beam is scanned to have patterns P2, The power of the third signal received by the first antenna group 112 is expected when P5 and P7, and can be estimated when the second receive beam is scanned to have patterns P1, P3 and other than the first patterns P2, P3, P5 and P7. P6 is the power of the fourth signal expected to be received by the second antenna group 114 .

The processor 130 may perform operations S100, S120, and S130 multiple times at desired (or, alternatively, predetermined) intervals, and may use the power of the first signal RX_S1, the power of the second signal RX_S2, the power of the third signal, and the power of the fourth signal generated as a result of performing the operations to determine a receiving beam pattern (operation S130). The processor 130 may determine a cell candidate group from a plurality of cells based on the power of the signal, determine a valid cell from the cell candidate group, and select at least one pattern corresponding to the valid cell as the receiving beam pattern.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a method of setting a reference pattern performed by the processor 130 shown in FIG. 2 according to an exemplary embodiment.

2 and 5, the processor 130 may perform a beam scanning operation (operation S100') according to a receive beam pattern by providing a beam control signal B_CS' to the phased array 110. As an example, the processor 130 may use the first antenna group 112 to form a first receive beam having a first pattern and polarized in the horizontal direction H-pol, and use the second antenna group 114 to form a second receive beam having a second pattern and polarized in the vertical direction V-pol. Hereinafter, the first pattern may include patterns P1, P3, P4, and P6, the second pattern may include patterns P2, P5, and P7, and the first patterns P1, P3, P4, and P6 and the second patterns P2, P5, and P7 may not have a common pattern.

The processor 130 may measure the first signal received by operation S100' The power of RX_S1 and the power of the second signal RX_S2 (operation S141).

The processor 130 may dynamically set the reference pattern RX_P _REF based on the results of measuring the power of the first signal RX_S1 and the power of the second signal RX_S2 (operation S142). For example, when the power of the first signal RX_S1 with the pattern P4 meets a specific condition, the processor 130 may set the pattern P4 as the reference pattern RX_P _REF . The specific conditions can be set in different ways, such that the power of the predetermined signal is equal to or higher than the reference value, or corresponds to the power with the maximum value among the measured powers of the signal.

The processor 130 may additionally form a reception beam (tilt area) having the reference pattern RX_P _REF (operation S143). Specifically, the processor 130 may provide the reference beam control signal RB_CS _dynamic to the second antenna group 114 to form a second receiving beam (tilt area) with pattern P4. The processor 130 may additionally receive the second signal RX_S2 through the second receiving beam (inclined area) having the pattern P4, and may measure the power of the received second signal RX_S2. The processor 130 may calculate a power ratio of the comparison signal received by the reception beam having the reference pattern RX_P _REF (operation S144). For example, the processor 130 may calculate a ratio between the power of the first comparison signal received through the first receive beam having pattern P4 and the power of the second comparison signal received through the second receive beam having pattern P4 as a reference ratio. Thereafter, the processor 130 may subsequently perform operation S120 shown in FIG. 4 .

As described above, the wireless communication device 100 according to the exemplary embodiment can further improve the wireless communication device 100 according to the exemplary embodiment by dynamically setting the reference pattern based on the actual measured power of the signal to set the best reference pattern matching the channel environment. Effect.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a method of resetting a reference pattern performed by the processor 130 shown in FIG. 2 according to an exemplary embodiment.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 6 , the processor 130 may perform a beam scanning operation according to the received beam pattern by providing the beam control signal B_CS to the phased array 110 (operation S100 ). As an example, processor 130 may use first antenna group 112 to form a first receive beam having a first pattern and polarized in the horizontal direction H-pol, and use second antenna group 114 to form a first receive beam having a second pattern. and a second receive beam polarized in the vertical direction V-pol. Hereinafter, the first pattern may include patterns P1, P3, P4, and P6, and the second pattern may include patterns P2, P4, P5, and P7, and may be referred to as the first patterns P1, P3, P4, and P6 and the second pattern P2. , P4, P5 and P7, the pattern P4 is preset as the reference pattern RX_P _REF .

The processor 130 may measure the power of the first signal RX_S1 and the power of the second signal RX_S2 received by operation S100, and calculate a power ratio of the comparison signal received by the reception beam having the reference pattern RX_P _REF (operation S150).

The processor 130 may determine whether the calculation result of the power ratio of the comparison signal is successful (operation S151). When it is determined that the calculation result of the power ratio of the comparison signal fails (operation S151, No), for example, when the ratio between the power of the first comparison signal received by the first receiving beam having the pattern P4 and the power of the second comparison signal received by the second receiving beam having the pattern P4 is outside the reference range, the processor 130 may determine that operation S151 fails and reset the reference pattern RX_P _REF (operation S152). The reference range may be set to determine whether the calculation result is reliable. Since a correct estimation operation may not be performed using a calculation result outside the reference range, the processor 130 may reset the reference pattern RX_P _REF . For example, the processor 130 may reset the pattern P7 to the reference pattern RX_P _REF ′.

The processor 130 may additionally form a receive beam (tilt area) with the reference pattern _{RX_PREF} '. Specifically, the processor 130 may provide the reset reference beam control signal RB_CS _RESET to the first antenna group 112 to form the first receiving beam (tilt area) with pattern P7. The processor 130 may additionally receive the second signal RX_S2 through the first receiving beam (inclined area) having the pattern P7, measure the power of the received second signal RX_S2, and then perform operations S150 and a part of operation S151.

Otherwise, when it is determined that the calculation result of the power ratio of the comparison signal is successful (operation S151, yes), for example, when the ratio between the power of the first comparison signal received by the first receiving beam having the pattern P4 and the power of the second comparison signal received by the second receiving beam having the pattern P4 is within the reference range, the processor 130 may then perform operation S120 (FIG. 4).

Therefore, the wireless communication device 100 according to the exemplary embodiment can ensure the communication performance according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention by resetting the reference pattern according to the situation.

FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B are diagrams showing a method of forming a receiving beam having a reference pattern according to an exemplary embodiment.

7A, the phased array 210 may include a first antenna group AntG1 and a second antenna group AntG2. The first antenna group AntG1 may include a plurality of antennas 211 to 214 for receiving signals polarized in a first direction (e.g., horizontal direction). The second antenna group AntG2 may include a plurality of antennas 215 to 218 for receiving signals polarized in a second direction (e.g., vertical direction).

The first antenna group AntG1 may form a first receiving beam having the first pattern by using all of the antennas 211 to 214 in a beam scanning operation, and the second antenna group AntG2 may form a first receiving beam by using each of the antennas 211 to 214 in a beam scanning operation. A second receive beam having a second pattern is formed using all of the antennas 215 to 218 .

Furthermore, the antennas 211 to 214 and 215 to 218 used to form the first receiving beam or the second receiving beam having the first pattern or the second pattern may be used to form the receiving beam having the reference pattern. The set of antennas 211 to 214 and 215 to 218 used to form the reception beam with the reference pattern may be referred to as the reference beam antenna group RBGa. The reference beam antenna group RBGa according to an exemplary embodiment may include antennas 211 to 214 of the first antenna group AntG 1 and antennas 215 to 218 of the second antenna group AntG2.

Referring to FIG. 7B , unlike FIG. 7A , only some of the antennas 211 to 214 and 215 to 218 used to form a first receiving beam or a second receiving beam having a first pattern or a second pattern may be used to form a receiving beam having a reference pattern. The reference beam antenna group RBGb according to the exemplary embodiment may include the antenna 211 of the first antenna group AntG1 and the antenna 215 of the second antenna group AntG2. However, this is only an example, and the inventive concept is not limited thereto, and the reference beam antenna group RBGb may include three or less antennas of the antennas 211 to 214 of the first antenna group AntG1 and three or less antennas of the antennas 215 to 218 of the second antenna group AntG2.

The number of antennas in the first antenna group AntG1 and the number of antennas in the second antenna group AntG2 shown in Figure 7A and Figure 7B are only examples, and the concept of the present invention is not limited thereto. And each of the first antenna group AntG1 and the second antenna group AntG2 may include four or more antennas or four or less antennas.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a method of calculating a reference ratio performed by the processor 130 shown in FIG. 2 according to an exemplary embodiment.

2 and 8 , the processor 130 may perform a beam scanning operation using the phased array 110 before performing the beam scanning operation, and then form a receive beam having a reference pattern RX_P _REF (operation S200). That is, operation S200 may be performed before the beam scanning operation or after the beam scanning operation. Specifically, the processor 130 may provide a reference beam control signal RB_CS to the phased array 110, so that a receive beam having a reference pattern RX_P _REF may be formed using the method shown in FIG. 7B . For example, the reference pattern RX_P _REF may be set to pattern P4′, and the processor 130 may use some antennas of the first antenna group 112 to form a first receive beam having pattern P4′, and use some antennas of the second antenna group 114 to form a second receive beam having pattern P4′.

The processor 130 may receive the comparison signals RCX_S1 and RCX_S2 received by the reception beam having the reference pattern RX_P _REF , and measure the power of the received comparison signals RCX_S1 and RCX_S2 (operation S210). The processor 130 may calculate a power ratio of the comparison signals RCX_S1 and RCX_S2 as a reference ratio (operation S220). According to an exemplary embodiment, processor 130 may use the reference ratio to estimate the power of the receivable signal.

9 and 10 are diagrams of beam scanning operations of the processor 130 shown in FIG. 2 according to an exemplary embodiment.

2 and 9, the processor 130 may perform a beam scanning operation using the first antenna group 112 and a beam scanning operation using the second antenna group 114 in parallel. The processor 130 may set the first pattern of the first receiving beam formed in the first antenna group 112 to include patterns P1, P2, P3, and P4, and set the second pattern of the second receiving beam formed in the second antenna group 114 to include patterns P5, P6, and P7.

The processor 130 according to the exemplary embodiment may control the beam scanning in a predetermined order, so that the angle θ1 between the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam formed at the same time is equal to or greater than the first reference value. For example, the phased array 110 may form a first receiving beam having a pattern P1 by the processor 130, at which time, a second receiving beam having a pattern P5 is formed, and then, a first receiving beam having a pattern P2 is formed, at which time, a second receiving beam having a pattern P6 is formed, and then, a first receiving beam having a pattern P3 is formed, at which time, a second receiving beam having a pattern P7 is formed, and then, a first receiving beam having a pattern P4 is formed.

That is, the processor 130 may set the first pattern and the second pattern so that the angle θ1 between the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam formed at the same time is equal to or greater than the first reference value, and control the beam scanning operation so that the correlation between the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam during the beam scanning operation can be less than the reference value. By reducing the correlation between the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam, the probability of error caused by polarization leakage can be reduced, thereby further improving the effect of the exemplary embodiment according to the inventive concept.

2 and 10 , the processor 130 may set the first pattern of the first receiving beam formed in the first antenna group 112 to include patterns P1, P3, P5, and P7, and set the second pattern of the second receiving beam formed in the second antenna group 114 to include patterns P2, P4, and P6.

The processor 130 according to an exemplary embodiment may control the beam scanning in a predetermined order such that the angle θ2 between the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam formed at the same time is equal to or smaller than the second reference value. For example, the phased array 110 may use the processor 130 to form a first receiving beam having pattern P1, and then form a second receiving beam having pattern P2, and then form a first receiving beam having pattern P3, so When , a second receive beam with pattern P4 is formed, then, a first receive beam with pattern P5 is formed, at this time, a second receive beam with pattern P6 is formed, and subsequently, a first receive beam with pattern P7 is formed.

That is, the processor 130 can set the first pattern and the second pattern so that the angle θ2 between the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam formed at the same time is equal to or less than the second reference value, and control the beam scanning operation, thereby The adverse channel environment experienced by the signal in a specific polarization direction is compensated, thereby allowing the accuracy of the power estimation operation according to the exemplary embodiments of the inventive concept to be greater than the reference value.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart of a cell search method of a wireless communication device according to an exemplary embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 11, the wireless communication device may select a beam pattern set from a plurality of patterns (operation S210). The set of beam patterns may include a pattern of the plurality of patterns mapped to a first antenna group of the phased array and a pattern mapped to a second antenna group of the phased array, and the plurality of patterns may be used by the wireless communication device via Phased array formation. For example, the i-th (i is an integer equal to or greater than 1) beam pattern set may include the 2i-1th pattern and the 2ith pattern. In the following, it is assumed that there are N (where N is 1 or an integer greater than 1) beam pattern sets.

The wireless communication device may map the 2i-1 pattern to the first antenna group (operation S211), and map the 2i-th pattern to the second antenna group (operation S212). The wireless communication device may measure the power of the signal received by the receiving beam formed in the first antenna group and the second antenna group (operation S213). The wireless communication device may determine whether "i" is "N" (operation S214), and when "i" is not "N" (operation S214, No), count "i" (operation S215), and then perform the operation S210. When "i" is "N" (operation S214, Yes), the wireless communication device can estimate the power of the signal expected to be received by the reception beam (operation S216). That is, when the first receiving beam formed in the first antenna group has the 2i pattern in the beam scanning operation including operations S210, S211, and S212, the wireless communication device can estimate the power of the expected received signal. Furthermore, in the beam scanning operation, when the second receiving beam formed in the second antenna group has the 2i-1 pattern in the beam scanning operation, the wireless communication device can estimate the power of the expected received signal.

Operation S216 may further include an operation in which the wireless communication device analyzes a relationship between a channel corresponding to the first receiving beam and a channel corresponding to the second receiving beam, and the wireless communication device may perform operation S216 based on the analysis result.

The wireless communication device may use the power of the signal measured in operation S213 and the power of the signal estimated in operation S216 to determine a cell candidate group including cells that may be selected as valid cells from among a plurality of cells, and select a cell with the highest reliability from among the cell candidate group as a valid cell (operation S217). Specifically, the wireless communication device may determine cells corresponding to signals having powers equal to or greater than a first threshold value as the cell candidate group according to the power of the signal. The wireless communication device may select a valid cell from among the cell candidate group by various methods such as a method of measuring the correlation between a signal received by an optimal reception beam of a corresponding cell from among cells in the cell candidate group and a reference signal (or synchronization signal). The best receive beam may include a first receive beam and a second receive beam having a pattern in which the wireless communication device measures or estimates a signal received from a cell having the highest power.

The wireless communication device may check the validity of the selected valid cell (operation S218). That is, since operation S216 is included in the cell search operation according to the exemplary embodiment, the reliability of the cell search operation may be improved by checking the validity of the selected valid cell. In the exemplary embodiment, the wireless communication device may check the validity by determining whether a specific value (e.g., correlation) as a basis for selecting a valid cell exceeds a second critical value or whether a difference between a specific value of a cell other than a valid cell of the cell candidate group and a specific value of the valid cell exceeds a third critical value. For example, when the specific value of the valid cell exceeds the second critical value or the difference between the specific value of the valid cell and the specific value of other cells exceeds the third critical value, the wireless communication device may determine that the valid cell is valid.

When the selected valid cell is valid (operation S218, yes), the wireless communication device can decode the signal (e.g., physical broadcast channel (PBCH)) received from the valid cell, and when the decoding is successful, the wireless communication with the valid cell is performed by selecting the pattern corresponding to the best receiving beam of the valid cell as the receiving beam pattern.

When the selected valid cell is invalid (operation S218, No), the wireless communication device may select the j-th beam pattern from a plurality of patterns (operation S220). The wireless communication device may map the j-th beam pattern to each of the first antenna group and the second antenna group of the phased array (operation S221). The wireless communication device may measure the power of the signal received by the receiving beam formed in the first antenna group and the second antenna group (operation S223). The wireless communication device can determine whether "j" is "M" (operation S224), and when "j" is not "N" (operation S224, No), count "j" (operation S222), and then perform the operation S220. When "j" is "N" (Yes in operation S224), the wireless communication device may use the power of the signal measured in operation S223 to determine a cell candidate group including cells among the plurality of cells that may be selected as valid cells, And the cell with the highest reliability in the cell candidate group is selected as the effective cell (operation S225). Thereafter, the wireless communication device can decode the signal (eg, PBCH) received from the selected active cell, and when the decoding is successful, perform wireless communication with the active cell by selecting a pattern corresponding to the active cell as the receive beam pattern. .

FIG. 12A and FIG. 12B are diagrams of a method for selecting a receiving beam pattern executed by the processor 130 shown in FIG. 2 according to an exemplary embodiment. In the following, for convenience, it is assumed that the receiving beam pattern is selected relative to the best receiving beam of the valid cell, and it is obvious that this method can also be applied to selecting the receiving beam pattern relative to the best receiving beam of other cells.

Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 12A, the processor 130 may control the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam to have the same receiving beam pattern. As described above, the processor 130 may perform a beam scanning operation to respectively select the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam. The effective cell receives the first signal and the second signal, measures the power of the first signal and the power of the second signal, and estimates the power of the third signal and the fourth signal that can be received by the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam. .

In an exemplary embodiment, the processor 130 may sum the power corresponding to the same pattern from the actual measured power of the first signal and the estimated power of the fourth signal, respectively, and sum the actual measured power from the second signal respectively. The measured power and the estimated power of the third signal are summed with powers corresponding to the same pattern. The processor 130 may select the pattern with the highest sum power as the receive beam pattern based on the summation result. For example, the processor 130 may select pattern P3 as the receive beam pattern RX_P _SEL , whereby the processor 130 may provide the beam control signal B_CS to each of the first antenna group 112 and the second antenna group 114 to The phased array 110 is controlled to form a first receiving beam and a second receiving beam each having a pattern P3. Thereafter, the wireless communication device 100 can receive data signals from the active cell by using the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam each having the pattern P3, and in addition, the pattern P3 can be selected as the transmission beam pattern _{TX_PSEL} , and by using the first receiving beam each having the pattern P3 The first receiving beam and the second receiving beam of P3 transmit the data signal to the effective cell.

Referring to FIG. 12B , unlike in FIG. 12A , the processor 130 may control the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam to have different receiving beam patterns. The processor 130 may determine a pattern corresponding to the signal with the maximum power as a receive beam pattern of the first receive beam based on the actual measured power of the first signal and the estimated power of the fourth signal, and based on the actual measurement of the second signal The power and the estimated power of the fourth signal are used to determine a pattern corresponding to the signal with the maximum power as the receive beam pattern of the second receive beam. For example, the processor 130 may select pattern P3 as the receive beam pattern _{RX_PSEL} of the first receive beam, and select pattern P2 as the receive beam pattern _{RX_PSEL} of the second receive beam. Therefore, the processor 130 may provide the beam control signal B_CS to each of the first antenna group 112 and the second antenna group 114 to control the phased array 110, thereby forming a third pattern having the pattern P3 and the pattern P2 respectively. a receive beam and a second receive beam. Thereafter, the wireless communication device 100 can receive data signals from the effective cell through the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam having the pattern P3 and the pattern P2 respectively, and in addition, the pattern P3 and the pattern P2 can be selected as the transmission beam pattern _{TX_PSEL} , And the data signal is transmitted to the effective cell through the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam having the pattern P3 and the pattern P2 respectively.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating a method of selecting a reception beam pattern performed by the processor 130 shown in FIG. 2 according to an exemplary embodiment.

2 and 13, the processor 130 may apply a weight to each of the actual measured power of the signal and the estimated power of the signal (operation S300). For example, considering the communication environment between the wireless communication device 100 and the cell, the processor 130 may apply different weights to the actual measured power of the signal and the estimated power of the signal. The weight may be obtained from a lookup table stored in a memory (not shown) of the wireless communication device 100, or may be obtained from a machine learning model applied to the wireless communication device 100.

The processor 130 may select a receive beam pattern based on the power to which the weight is applied (operation S310). That is, the processor 130 may select a receive beam pattern based on the power to which the weights are applied in accordance with the exemplary embodiments set forth with reference to FIGS. 12A and 12B.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram of an electronic device 1000 according to an exemplary embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 14 , the electronic device 1000 may include a memory 1010, a processor unit 1020, an input/output (I/O) controller 1040, a display unit 1050, an input device 1060, and a communication processor 1090. Here, the electronic device 1000 may include a plurality of memories 1010. Each component of the electronic device 1000 will now be described.

The memory 1010 may include a program storage unit 1011 configured to store programs for controlling operations of the electronic device 1000 and a data storage unit 1012 configured to store data generated during the programs. The data storage unit 1012 can store data required for the operation of the application program 1013 and the receiving beam pattern selection program 1014. The program storage unit 1011 may include an application program 1013 and a receiving beam pattern selection program 1014. Here, the program included in the program storage unit 1011 can be expressed as an instruction set, which is a set of instructions.

The application 1013 may include an application that operates in the electronic device 1000. That is, the application 1013 may include instructions for the application driven by the processor 1022. According to an exemplary embodiment, the receiving beam pattern selection program 1014 may perform a series of processes, such as beam scanning operations for selected patterns from a plurality of patterns using receiving beams with different polarization directions, channel relationship analysis between signals with different polarization directions, power estimation of expected received signals, etc.

The peripheral device interface 1023 can control the connection between the I/O peripheral device of the base station and the processor 1022 and the memory interface 1021. The processor 1022 may use at least one software program to control the base station to provide services corresponding to the base station. At this time, the processor 1022 can execute at least one program stored in the memory 1010 and provide the executed The program provides corresponding services.

I/O controller 1040 may interface between I/O devices (eg, display unit 1050 and input device 1060) and peripheral device interface 1023. The display unit 1050 can display status information, input characters, moving pictures and still pictures. For example, the display unit 1050 can display information of an application program driven by the processor 1022 .

The input device 1060 may provide input data generated by selecting the electronic device 1000 to the processor unit 1020 through the I/O controller 1040. At this time, the input device 1060 may include a keypad including at least one hardware button, a touch pad configured to sense touch information, etc. For example, the input device 1060 may provide touch information (e.g., touch, touch movement, and touch release) sensed by the touch pad to the processor 1022 through the I/O controller 1040. The electronic device 1000 may include a communication processor 1090 that performs a communication function for voice communication and data communication. According to an exemplary embodiment, the communication processor 1090 may include at least one phased array, and the fast beam selection program 1014 may control the communication processor 1090 when performing operations such as beam scanning operations, receiving beam selection operations, cell search, etc.

While the inventive concept has been specifically shown and described with reference to embodiments of the inventive concept, it will be understood that various changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the following claims.

100: Wireless communication device

110: Phased Array

112:First antenna group

114: Second antenna group

120: Radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC)

130: Processor

132: Fast beam selection module

B_CS: beam control signal

Claims (23)

A method of operating a wireless communication device including a phased array, the phased array including a first antenna group and a second antenna group, the method comprising: scanning an array formed in the first antenna group A first receiving beam receives a first signal polarized in a first direction with a first pattern of a plurality of patterns; a second receiving beam formed in the second antenna group is scanned to have the A second pattern of the plurality of patterns is used to receive a second signal polarized in a second direction; measuring the power of the first signal and the power of the second signal; and analyzing the signal corresponding to the first receiving beam. a relationship between a channel and a channel corresponding to the second receive beam; based on the relationship, it is estimated that when the first receive beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the first pattern of the plurality of patterns The power of a third signal expected to be received by the first set of antennas and the power expected to be received by the second receive beam when scanning the second receive beam to have a pattern other than the second one of the plurality of patterns. The power of the fourth signal received by the second antenna group; and based on the power of the first signal, the power of the second signal, the power of the third signal and the fourth signal The power selects the receive beam pattern. The method of claim 1, wherein analyzing the relationship includes calculating the power of a first comparison signal received by the first receive beam having the reference pattern in the first pattern and the power of the first comparison signal received by having the reference pattern in the first pattern. The power of the second comparison signal received by the second receiving beam of the reference pattern in the second pattern ratio. The method of claim 2, wherein estimating the power of the third signal and the power of the fourth signal includes: by applying the ratio to the power of the first signal and The power of the second signal is used to calculate the power of the third signal and the power of the fourth signal. The method of claim 1, wherein analyzing the relationship includes: setting one of the first pattern and the second pattern as a reference pattern based on the results of measuring the power of the first signal and the power of the second signal; additionally receiving a first comparison signal by forming a receiving beam having the reference pattern through the first antenna group or the second antenna group; measuring the power of the first comparison signal; and calculating a ratio between a pre-measured power of the second comparison signal having the reference pattern and the power of the first comparison signal. A method as described in claim 4, wherein the first pattern and the second pattern do not share redundant patterns. The method of claim 1, wherein analyzing the relationship comprises: receiving a first comparison signal by a third receiving beam formed in some antenna elements included in the first antenna group, the first comparison signal having a reference pattern; receiving a second comparison signal by a fourth receiving beam formed in some antenna elements included in the second antenna group, the second comparison signal having the reference pattern; measuring the power of the first comparison signal and the power of the second comparison signal; and calculating the ratio between the power of the first comparison signal and the power of the second comparison signal. The method of claim 6, wherein analyzing the relationship is immediately before receiving the first signal and receiving the second signal or immediately after receiving the first signal and receiving the second signal. The method as described in claim 1 further includes: scanning the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam in parallel. The method of claim 8, wherein the scanning scans the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam such that the angle between the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam formed simultaneously Greater than or equal to the first reference value. The method of claim 8, wherein the scanning scans the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam such that the angle between the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam formed simultaneously Less than or equal to the second reference value. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein selecting the receiving beam pattern comprises: performing a first summation on the power corresponding to the same pattern of each of the power from the first signal and the power from the fourth signal to generate a first sum; performing a second summation on the power corresponding to the same pattern of each of the power from the second signal and the power from the third signal to generate a second sum; and selecting one of the multiple patterns based on the first sum and the second sum. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the first summation includes applying a weight to the power of the fourth signal according to the communication environment to generate a weighted power of the fourth signal, and summing the power corresponding to the same pattern from each of the power of the first signal and the weighted power of the fourth signal, and the second summation includes applying a weight to the power of the third signal according to the communication environment to generate a weighted power of the third signal, and summing the power corresponding to the same pattern from each of the power of the second signal and the weighted power of the third signal. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the receive beam pattern includes: selecting a pattern for the first receive beam based on the power of the first signal and the power of the fourth signal as one of the plurality of patterns; and selecting a pattern for the second receive beam as one of the plurality of patterns based on the power of the second signal and the power of the third signal. One. The method as described in claim 1 further includes: selecting a transmission beam pattern that is the same as the reception beam pattern. A cell search method performed by a wireless communication device, the cell search method comprising: receiving a first signal polarized in a first direction by scanning a first receive beam to have a first pattern among a plurality of patterns; whereby Receive a second signal polarized in the second direction by scanning the second receive beam to have a second pattern in the plurality of patterns; measuring the power of the first signal and the power of the second signal; Calculating a ratio between the power of a first comparison signal and a power of a second comparison signal, each of the first comparison signal and the second comparison signal corresponding to a signal shared between the first pattern and the second pattern. at least one reference pattern; based on the ratio, estimating a power of a third signal expected to be received when scanning the first receive beam to have a pattern other than the first pattern of the plurality of patterns and when scanning the power of a fourth signal expected to be received when the second receive beam has a pattern other than the second pattern of the plurality of patterns; and based on the power of the first signal, the second The power of the signal, the power of the third signal and the power of the fourth signal select candidate cells and receive beam patterns. A cell search method as described in claim 15, wherein the number of the first patterns is the same as the number of the second patterns. A cell search method as described in claim 15, wherein the first pattern and the second pattern are set so that the correlation between the first receiving beam and the second receiving beam is less than or equal to a reference value. The cell search method of claim 15, wherein the first pattern and the second pattern are set such that the accuracy of the estimation is greater than or equal to a reference value. The cell search method as claimed in claim 15 further includes: checking the validity of the candidate cells; and selectively re-executing the cell search method based on the validity. The cell search method of claim 19, wherein calculating the ratio between the power of the first comparison signal and the power of the second comparison signal includes: responding to the first comparison signal The ratio between the power of the second comparison signal and the power of the second comparison signal is outside the reference range, and one of the first pattern and the second pattern is reset based on the measured result. Set as the at least one reference pattern; additionally receive a third comparison signal via the first receive beam or the second receive beam, the third comparison signal having a reset reference pattern; measure the third comparison a power of a signal; and calculating a ratio between a pre-measured power of a fourth comparison signal having the reset reference pattern and the power of the third comparison signal. A wireless communication device comprises: a phased array, comprising a first antenna group and a second antenna group, wherein the phased array is configured to form beams for transmitting and receiving signals polarized in different directions; and a processor, configured to control scanning so that a first receiving beam formed in the first antenna group has a first pattern among a plurality of patterns, and a second receiving beam formed in the second antenna group has a second pattern among the plurality of patterns, by measuring the power of a first signal polarized in a first direction received by the first receiving beam and the power of a second signal polarized in a first direction received by the second receiving beam. The method comprises: measuring the power of a second signal polarized in a second direction received by the first antenna group, generating measured power information, estimating the power of a third signal expected to be received by the first antenna group when the first receive beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the first pattern among the multiple patterns, and estimating the power of a fourth signal expected to be received by the second antenna group when the second receive beam is scanned to have a pattern other than the second pattern among the multiple patterns, generating estimated power information, and preparing wireless communication based on the measured power information and the estimated power information. The wireless communication device of claim 21, wherein the processor is further configured to search for an operating carrier frequency of each frequency band or perform a cell search operation based on the measured power information and the estimated power information. A wireless communication device as described in claim 21, wherein the processor is further configured to calculate a ratio between the power of a first comparison signal and the power of a second comparison signal, the first comparison signal and the second comparison signal corresponding to at least one reference pattern shared between the first pattern and the second pattern, and estimate the power of the third signal and the power of the fourth signal based on the ratio.

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