Abstract:
Duplex supporting apparatus and method in a base station system which supports a multi-antenna are provided. The duplex supporting apparatus in a base station system which supports K(≧1)-ary sectors and M(≧1)-ary antennas per sector, includes a plurality of channel cards for generating M-ary data to be sent to the M-ary antennas, exchanging part of the M-ary data with other channel cards, constituting a frame with part of the M-ary data and data received from the other channel cards, and providing the generated frame to a corresponding Radio Frequency (RF) module; and a plurality of RF modules for extracting the M-ary data from a frame of a corresponding channel card among the channel cards, RF-processing the extracted M-ary data, and feeding the processed data to original sectors/antennas.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION AND CLAIM OF PRIORITY 
       [0001]    The present application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) of a Korean Patent Application filed in the Korean Intellectual Property Office on Nov. 21, 2006 and assigned Serial No. 2006-115001, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
       TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates generally to a base station and an operation method of the base station in a wireless communication system, and in particular, to an apparatus and method for supporting a duplex without using an extra module in a base station using a multi-sector and a multi-antenna. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    A conventional base station generally has a structure of 1Tx/1Rx radio frequency (RF) path, or 1Tx/2Rx or 1Tx/4Rx RF paths per sector for the reception performance enhancement. However, as a base station widely employs a multi-antenna, such as Multiple Input-Multiple Output (MIMO) or beamforming in a Time Division Duplex (TDD) system, the base station is advancing to the structure of 2Tx/2Rx or 4Tx/4Rx or more RF paths per sector. 
         [0004]    Typically, the base station duplexes an RF module to raise the reliability. 
         [0005]      FIG. 1  illustrates a duplex structure of a general multi-antenna system. 
         [0006]    As shown in  FIG. 1 , a plurality of transmit (Tx) paths is provided to support the multi-antenna. A first antenna signal passes through a digital card  102 - 1 , a transceiver  104 - 1 , a power amplifier  106 - 1 , and a filter  108 - 1 , and then transmitted over a first transmit (Tx) antenna  100 - 1 . That is, the N-th antenna signal passes through the digital card  102 -N, the transceiver  104 -N, the power amplifier  106 -N, and the filter  108 -N, and then transmitted over the N-th Tx antenna  100 -N. 
         [0007]    A digital card  110 , a transceiver  112 , and a power amplifier  114  are modules added for the duplex. When error occurs in one of the N paths, the signal of the error path can be processed through the modules added for the duplex. For example, when an error occurs in the power amplifier  106 - 1 , the signal processed at the transceiver  104 - 1  is fed to the redundant power amplifier  114  according to the operation of a switch  116 . The signal processed at the power amplifier  114  is fed to the filter  108 - 1  according to the switching operation of a switch  118 , and the signal processed at the filter  108 - 1  is transmitted over the first Tx antenna  100 - 1 . 
         [0008]    However, since the extra modules  110 ,  112 , and  114  and the switch modules  116  and  118  are additionally provided for the duplex, the structure of  FIG. 1  aggravates the system complexity and raises the cost. In addition, the multi-antenna system includes two or more receive (Rx) paths and transmit (Tx) paths per sector. When the duplex structure is adopted to the multi-antenna system, the complexity is far more aggravated. To mitigate the complexity, an integrated RF module combining the transceiver, the power amplifier, and the filter into a single module is being used. 
         [0009]      FIG. 2  illustrates a duplex structure of a 3-sector 2×2 multi-antenna system. 
         [0010]    Two paths per sector are established to support the multi-antenna in  FIG. 2 . Signals processed at a digital card  200  and an integrated RF module  202  are transmitted over first sector antennas  204 - 1  and  204 - 2 . Signals processed at a digital card  206  and an integrated RF module  208  are transmitted over second sector antennas  210 - 1  and  210 - 2 . Signals processed at a digital card  212  and an integrated RF module  214  are transmitted over third sector antennas  216 - 1  and  216 - 2 . 
         [0011]    An extra integrated RF module  218 , which is added for the duplex, can process a signal of the corresponding path when error occurs in one of the basic modules. For example, when error occurs in the integrated RF module  208  for the second sector, signals processed at the digital card  206  are fed to the integrated RF module  218 . The signals processed at the integrated RF module  218  are fed to the second sector antennas  210 - 1  and  210 - 2  according to the switching operation of a duplex switch  220 . 
         [0012]    However, since the base station employing the integrated RF module of  FIG. 2  additionally requires the extra duplex module  218  and the switch module  210  for the sake of the duplex, the system complexity is still aggravated and the cost is increased. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0013]    To address the above-discussed deficiencies of the prior art, it is a primary object of the present invention to substantially solve at least the above problems and/or disadvantages and to provide at least the advantages below. Accordingly, an aspect of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for supporting the duplex without extra modules in a base station using a multi-antenna. 
         [0014]    Another aspect of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for constantly maintaining service in every sector even when a module error occurs to a specific sector in a base station using a multi-antenna. 
         [0015]    A further aspect of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for processing signals of different sectors using a single RF module in a base station using a multi-antenna. 
         [0016]    The above aspects are achieved by providing a duplex supporting apparatus in a base station system which supports K sectors and M antennas per sector, which includes a plurality of channel cards for generating M data to be sent to the M antennas, exchanging part of the M data with other channel cards, constituting a frame with part of the M-ary data and data received from the other channel cards, and providing the constituted frame to a corresponding radio frequency (RF) module; and a plurality of RF modules for extracting the M data from a frame of a corresponding channel card among the channel cards, RF-processing the extracted M data, and feeding the processed RF signals to original sectors/antennas. 
         [0017]    According to one aspect of the present invention, a duplex supporting method in a base station system which supports K sectors and M antennas per sector, includes generating, at a channel card, M data to be sent to the M antennas; exchanging part of the M data with other channel cards; formatting a frame with part of the M data and data received from the other channel cards; providing the formatted frame to a corresponding radio frequency (RF) module; extracting, at the RF module, the Mdata from a frame of a corresponding channel card among the channel cards; and RF-processing the extracted M data and feeding the processed RF signals to original sectors/antennas. 
         [0018]    Before undertaking the DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION below, it may be advantageous to set forth definitions of certain words and phrases used throughout this patent document: the terms “include” and “comprise,” as well as derivatives thereof, mean inclusion without limitation; the term “or,” is inclusive, meaning and/or; the phrases “associated with” and “associated therewith,” as well as derivatives thereof, may mean to include, be included within, interconnect with, contain, be contained within, connect to or with, couple to or with, be communicable with, cooperate with, interleave, juxtapose, be proximate to, be bound to or with, have, have a property of, or the like; and the term “controller” means any device, system or part thereof that controls at least one operation, such a device may be implemented in hardware, firmware or software, or some combination of at least two of the same. It should be noted that the functionality associated with any particular controller may be centralized or distributed, whether locally or remotely. Definitions for certain words and phrases are provided throughout this patent document, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that in many, if not most instances, such definitions apply to prior, as well as future uses of such defined words and phrases. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0019]    For a more complete understanding of the present disclosure and its advantages, reference is now made to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals represent like parts: 
           [0020]      FIG. 1  illustrates a duplex structure of a general multi-antenna system; 
           [0021]      FIG. 2  illustrates a duplex structure of a 3-sector 2×2 multi-antenna system; 
           [0022]      FIG. 3  illustrates a base station system using two multi-antennas per sector according to the present invention; 
           [0023]      FIG. 4  illustrates a base station system using four multi-antennas per sector according to the present invention; 
           [0024]      FIG. 5  illustrates a channel card in detail according to the present invention; 
           [0025]      FIG. 6  illustrates a base station system using N multi-antennas per sector according to the present invention; and 
           [0026]      FIG. 7  illustrates a method for processing error in the base station using the multi-sector and the multi-antenna according to the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0027]      FIGS. 3 through 7 , discussed below, and the various embodiments used to describe the principles of the present disclosure in this patent document are by way of illustration only and should not be construed in any way to limit the scope of the disclosure. Those skilled in the art will understand that the principles of the present disclosure may be implemented in any suitably arranged wireless communication system. 
         [0028]    Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described herein below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, well-known functions or constructions are not described in detail since they would obscure the invention in unnecessary detail. 
         [0029]    The present invention provides a method for supporting the duplex without an extra module in a base station system which supports a multi-sector and a multi-antenna. That is, the present invention provides a method for constantly maintaining service in every sector even when module error occurs to a specific sector. 
         [0030]      FIG. 3  illustrates a base station system using two multi-antennas per sector according to the present invention. 
         [0031]    The base station system of  FIG. 3  includes three channel cards  300 ,  302  and  304 , three radio frequency (RF) modules  306 ,  308  and  310 , and two antennas per sector to support three sectors. To assist in understanding the described embodiment, a signal transmission is described. It should be appreciated that a received signal is processed by reversing the transmission path. 
         [0032]    The first channel card  300  codes and modulates data to be transmitted to a first sector α, and generates first antenna data α_ 1  and second antenna data α_ 2  by multi-antenna signal processing. The first channel card  300  outputs the second antenna data α_ 2  to the third channel card  304  and receives second antenna data β_ 2  from the second channel card  302 . Next, the first channel card  300  formats a frame with the first sector/the first antenna data α_ 1  and the second sector/the second antenna data β_ 2  according to a certain frame standard and outputs the formatted frame to the first RF module  306 . Herein, the frame standard is an interface standard defined between the channel card and the RF module. For example, the frame standard includes Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI) and Open Base Station Architecture Initiative (OBSAI). 
         [0033]    The first RF module  306  converts the first sector/the first antenna data α_ 1  fed from the channel card  300  to a RF signal and outputs the RF signal to the first antenna  312 - 1  of the first sector. The first RF module  306  converts the second sector/the second antenna data β_ 2  fed from the channel card  300  to a RF signal and outputs the RF signal to the second antenna  314 - 2  of the second sector. 
         [0034]    The second channel card  302  formats a frame with second sector/first antenna data β_ 1  and third sector/second antenna data γ_ 2  according to a certain frame standard and outputs the formatted frame to the second RF module  308 . The second RF module  308  converts the two input data to RF signals and feeds the converted RF signals to the respective antennas. One of the converted signals is fed to the first antenna  314 - 1  of the second sector and the other signal is fed to the second antenna  316 - 2  of the third sector. 
         [0035]    Likewise, the third channel card  304  formats a frame with third sector/first antenna data γ_ 1  and first sector/second antenna data α_ 2  according to a certain frame standard and outputs them to the third RF module  310 . The third RF module  310  converts the two input data to RF signals and provides the converted RF signals to the respective antennas. One of the converted signals is fed to the first antenna  316 - 1  of the third sector and the other signal is fed to the second antenna  312 - 2  of the first sector. 
         [0036]    As such, the channel card formats a frame with its generated data and the data fed from the other channel card and provides the formatted frame to the corresponding RF module, and the RF module RF-processes the data of the different sectors. The RF module provides one of the RF-processed signals to the antenna of its sector and the other signal to the antenna of the other sector. When the RF module processes the data of the different sectors and provides the processed data to the original antennas, it is possible to prevent an out-of-service condition in a specific sector because of the error occurring in the specific RF module. 
         [0037]    When the error occurs to the second RF module  308 , the second sector and the third sector operate only one antenna and accordingly operate in a Single Input Single Output (SISO) mode. In specific, the second antenna  314 - 2  of the second sector, which receives the signal from the first RF module  306 , can keep servicing. The second antenna  316 - 2  of the third sector is out of service because of the error of the second RF module  308 , whereas the first antenna  316 - 1  keeps servicing because it receives the signal from the third RF module  310 . In the SISO mode, at the sacrifice of the gain of the multi-antenna, the out-of-service condition of the specific sector can be avoided. 
         [0038]      FIG. 4  illustrates a base station system using four multi-antennas per sector according to the present invention. 
         [0039]    The base station system of  FIG. 4  includes three channel cards  400 ,  402  and  404 , three RF modules  406 ,  408  and  410 , and four antennas per sector, to support three sectors. To facilitate understanding, a signal transmission is described. Note that a received signal is processed by reversing the transmission path. 
         [0040]    The first channel card  400  codes and modulates data to be transmitted to the first sector α, and generates first antenna data α_ 1  through fourth antenna data α_ 4  by multi-antenna signal processing. The first channel card  400  outputs the second antenna data α_ 2  to the third channel card  404  and receives second antenna data β_ 2  from the second channel card  402 . Next, the first channel card  400  formats a frame with the first sector/the first antenna data α_ 1 , the second sector/the second antenna data β_ 2 , the third sector/the third antenna data γ_ 3 , and the first sector/the fourth antenna data α_ 4  according to a certain frame standard and outputs the formatted frame to the first RF module  406 . Herein, the frame standard is an interface standard defined between the channel card and the RF module. For example, the frame standard includes CPRI and OBSAI. 
         [0041]    The first RF module  406  converts the first sector/the first antenna data α_ 1  fed from the channel card  400  to a RF signal and provides the RF signal to the first antenna  412 - 1  of the first sector. The first RF module  406  converts the second sector/the second antenna data β_ 2  fed from the channel card  400  to a RF signal and provides the RF signal to the second antenna  414 - 2  of the second sector. The first RF module  406  converts the third sector/the third antenna data γ_ 3  fed from the channel card  400  to a RF signal and provides the RF signal to the third antenna  416 - 3  of the third sector. The first RF module  406  converts the first sector/the fourth antenna data α_ 4  fed from the channel card  400  to a RF signal and provides the RF signal to the fourth antenna  412 - 4  of the first sector. 
         [0042]    The second channel card  402  formats a frame with the second sector/the first antenna data β_ 1 , the first sector/the third antenna data α_ 3 , the third sector/the second antenna data γ_ 3 , and the second sector/the fourth antenna data β_ 4  according to a certain frame standard and outputs the formatted data to the second RF module  408 . The second RF module  408  converts the four fed data to RF signals and provides the converted RF signals to the respective antennas. In specific, the first signal of the converted signals is fed to the first antenna  414 - 1  of the second sector, the second signal is fed to the third antenna  412 - 3  of the first sector, the third signal is fed to the second antenna  416 - 2  of the third sector, and the fourth signal is fed to the fourth antenna  414 - 4  of the second sector. 
         [0043]    Likewise, the third channel card  404  formats a frame with the third sector/the first antenna data γ_ 1 , the first sector/the second antenna data α_ 2 , the second sector/the third antenna data β_ 3 , and the third sector/the fourth antenna data γ_ 4  according to a certain frame standard and outputs the formatted data to the third RF module  410 . The third RF module  410  converts the four fed data to RF signals and provides the converted RF signals to the respective antennas. Among the converted signals, the first signal is fed to the first antenna  416 - 1  of the third sector, the second signal is fed to the second antenna  412 - 2  of the first sector, the third signal is fed to the third antenna  414 - 3  of the second sector, and the fourth signal is fed to the fourth antenna  416 - 4  of the third sector. 
         [0044]    As above, the channel card formats a frame with its generated data and the data input from the other channel card and provides the formatted data to the corresponding RF module, and the RF module RF-processes the input data of the different sectors. The RF module provides part of the RF-processed signals to the antenna of its sector and provides the remaining signals to the antennas of the other sectors. When the RF module processes the data of the different sectors and provides the processed data to the original antennas respectively, it is possible to prevent a specific sector from being out of service because of the error of a specific RF module. 
         [0045]    A main controller  418  determines whether error occurs by collecting alarms from the RF modules  406  through  410 , and selects a channel card which needs to change its mode when a specific RF module has the error. The main controller  418  operates to maintain a normal service in every sector by requesting the mode change to the selected channel cards. 
         [0046]    When the error occurs to the second RF module  408  as shown in  FIG. 4 , the third antenna  412 - 3  of the first sector, the first antenna  414 - 1  and the fourth antenna  414 - 4  of the second sector, and the second antenna  416 - 2  of the third sector cannot be serviced. Hence, the main controller  418  requests the mode change to the channel cards  400 ,  402  and  404 . For example, since the first sector and the third sector can be serviced using three antennas, the main controller  418  requests a multi-antenna mode which operates using three antennas, to the first and third channel cards  400  and  404 . Since the second sector can be serviced using two antennas, the main controller  418  requests a multi-antenna mode which operates using two antennas to the second channel card  402 . Upon receiving the mode change request, the channel cards  400 ,  402  and  404  enter the multi-antenna mode and process the baseband signal according to their changed modes. 
         [0047]    Thus, when the error occurs to the specific RF module, the number of the antennas serviceable in the sectors reduces, whereas an out-of-service condition of the specific sector can be avoided. 
         [0048]      FIG. 5  illustrates the channel card in detail according to the present invention. 
         [0049]    Since the channel cards  400 ,  402  and  404  of  FIG. 4  have the same structure, merely the first channel card  400  is explained for example. To assist in understanding the disclosed embodiment, the signal transmission is described. 
         [0050]    The channel card  400  of  FIG. 5  includes a media access control (MAC) layer part  41 , an encoder  42 , a modulator  43 , a multi-antenna signal processor  44 , and a frame constructor(or frame formatter)  45 . 
         [0051]    The MAC layer part  41  generates and outputs transmit data. The encoder  42  generates coded symbols by encoding the data provided from the MAC layer part  41 . For example, the encoder  42  can employ an encoder using convolutional code (CC), an encoder using a block turbo code (BTC), and an encoder using a convolutional turbo code (CTC). 
         [0052]    The modulator  43  generates modulated symbols by modulating the coded symbols fed from the encoder  42  using a certain modulation scheme. For example, the modulator  42  can adopt a modulation scheme such as quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), 16 quadrature amplitude modulation (16 QAM), and 32 QAM. 
         [0053]    The multi-antenna signal processor  44  determines the multi-antenna mode according to the request of the main controller  418 , and generates a plurality of antenna data by processing the data fed from the modulator  43  in the determined multi-antenna mode. When the system of  FIG. 4  normally operates, the multi-antenna signal processor  44  generates four antenna data α_ 1  through α_ 4 . The first sector/the third antenna data α_ 3  is provided to the channel card  402  of the second sector, the first sector/the second antenna data α_ 2  is provided to the channel card  404  of the third sector. The first sector/the first antenna data α_ 1  and the first sector/the fourth antenna data α_ 4  are provided to the frame structure  45 . 
         [0054]    The frame constructor  45  formats a frame with the two data α_ 1  and α_ 4  fed from the multi-antenna signal processor  45  and the two other data β_ 2  and γ_ 3  fed from the other channel cards  402  and  404  according to the certain frame standard, and outputs the formatted data to the second RF module  406 . 
         [0055]    The RF module  406  extracts four data α_ 1 , α_ 4 , β_ 2  and γ_ 3  by decomposing the frame from the frame constructor  45  and converts the four data to RF signals. The first signal α_ 1  is fed to the first antenna  412 - 1  of the first sector, the second signal β_ 2  is fed to the second antenna  414 - 2  of the second sector, the third signal γ_ 3  is fed to the third antenna  416 - 3  of the third sector, and the fourth signal α_ 4  is fed to the fourth antenna  412 - 4  of the first sector. 
         [0056]      FIG. 6  illustrates a base station system using N multi-antennas per sector according to the present invention. 
         [0057]    The base station system of  FIG. 6  includes three channel cards  600 ,  602  and  604 , three RF modules  606 ,  608  and  610 , and N antennas per sector, to support three sectors. Note that  FIG. 6  shows the generalized concept of the present invention. Since the base station system of  FIG. 6  operates the same as in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , its further description shall be omitted. 
         [0058]    To assist in understanding the disclosed embodiment, the data exchange rule between the channel cards is explained. 
         [0059]    Table 1 arranges the data exchange rule in the system of  FIG. 3 . 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
               
             
               
               
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
                 TABLE 1 
               
             
             
               
                   
                   
               
               
                   
                 Transmit 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                   
                 first sector 
                 second sector 
                 Third 
               
               
                   
                 Receive 
                 (α) 
                 (β) 
                 sector (γ) 
               
               
                   
                   
               
               
                   
                 first sector 
                 α_1 
                 β_2 
                 — 
               
               
                   
                 (α) 
               
               
                   
                 Second sector 
                 — 
                 β_1 
                 γ_2 
               
               
                   
                 (β) 
               
               
                   
                 third sector 
                 α_2 
                 — 
                 γ_1 
               
               
                   
                 (γ) 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0060]    As shown in Table 1, the channel card  300  of the first sector formats a frame with the first sector/the first antenna data α_ 1  and the second sector/the second antenna data β_ 2  and provides the formatted frame to the RF module  306 . The channel card  302  of the second sector constitutes a frame with the second sector/the first antenna data β_ 1  and the third sector/the second antenna data γ_ 2  and provides the constituted frame to the RF module  308 . The channel card  304  of the third sector constitutes a frame with the first sector/the second antenna data α_ 2  and the third sector/the first antenna data γ_ 1  and provides the constituted d frame to the RF module  310 . 
         [0061]    Table 2 shows the data change rule in the system of  FIG. 4 . 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
               
             
               
               
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
                 TABLE 2 
               
             
             
               
                   
                   
               
               
                   
                 Transmit 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                   
                 first sector 
                 second sector 
                 Third 
               
               
                   
                 Receive 
                 (α) 
                 (β) 
                 sector (γ) 
               
               
                   
                   
               
               
                   
                 first sector 
                 α_1, α_4 
                 β_2 
                 γ_3 
               
               
                   
                 (α) 
               
               
                   
                 second sector 
                 α_3 
                 β_1, β_4 
                 γ_2 
               
               
                   
                 (β) 
               
               
                   
                 third sector 
                 α_2 
                 β_3 
                 γ_1, γ_4 
               
               
                   
                 (γ) 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0062]    For example, the channel card  400  of the first sector constitutes a frame with the first sector/the first antenna data α_ 1 , the first sector/the fourth antenna data α_ 4 , the second sector/the second antenna data α_ 2 , and the third sector/the third antenna data γ_ 3 , and provides the generated frame to the RF module  406 . 
         [0063]    Table 3 shows the data exchange rule in the system of  FIG. 6 . 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
               
             
               
               
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
                 TABLE 3 
               
             
             
               
                   
                   
               
               
                   
                 Transmit 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                   
                 first sector 
                 second sector 
                 Third 
               
               
                   
                 Receive 
                 (α) 
                 (β) 
                 sector (γ) 
               
               
                   
                   
               
               
                   
                 first sector (α) 
                 α_3n + 1 
                 β_3n + 2 
                 γ_3n 
               
               
                   
                 second sector (β) 
                 α_3n 
                 β_3n + 1 
                 γ_3n + 2 
               
               
                   
                 third sector (γ) 
                 α_3n + 2 
                 β_3n 
                 γ_3n + 1 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0064]    The value of n ranges from 0≦n≦the quotient of M/3, and M is the number of antennas. 
         [0065]    As shown in Table 3, the channel card  600  of the first sector constitutes a frame with the first sector/the (3n+1)-th antenna data α — 3n+1, the second sector/the (3n+2)-th antenna data β — 3n+2, and the third sector/the 3n-th antenna data γ — 3n, and provides the generated frame to the RF module  606 . The channel card  602  of the second sector constitutes a frame with the first sector/the 3n-th antenna data α — 3n, the second sector/the (3n+1)-th antenna data β — 3n+1, and the third sector/the (3n+2)-th antenna data γ — 3n+2, and provides the generated frame to the RF module  608 . The channel card  604  of the third sector constitutes a frame with the first sector/the (3n+2)-th antenna data α — 3n+2, the second sector/the 3n-th antenna data β — 3n, and the third sector/the (3n+1)-th antenna data γ — 3n+1, and provides the generated frame to the RF module  610 . The RF modules RF-process the fed data and feed the RF-processed signals to the respective sectors/antennas. 
         [0066]      FIG. 7  illustrates a method for processing error in the base station using the multi-sector and the multi-antenna according to the present invention. 
         [0067]    In step  701 , the base station detects the error. The main controller  418  of  FIG. 4  determines the error by monitoring the alarms from the RF modules  406 ,  408  and  410 . 
         [0068]    Upon detecting the error, the base station confirms the RF module of the error in step  703 . In step  705 , the base station determines the modes serviceable in the sectors. As mentioned above, when the error occurs to a certain RF module, the number of the serviceable antennas per sector is reduced. Thus, the base station determines the multi-antenna mode by taking into account the number of the serviceable antennas for the sectors. If only one antenna is serviceable, the corresponding sector should enter the SISO mode. 
         [0069]    When the modes for the sectors are determined, the base station changes the mode of the channel cards in step  707  and operates the channel cards in the changed modes in step  709 . Therefore, when the error occurs, the modes are properly changed by taking into account the number of the serviceable antennas in the sectors, to thus achieve the seamless service in every sector. 
         [0070]    As set forth above, in the base station supporting the multi-sector and the multi-antenna, the integrated RF module constituted per sector processes two or more signals of the different sectors. Thus, even when an error occurs in a certain RF module, at least one path per sector can be serviced. That is, even when an error occurs in a certain RF module, the seamless service can be provided in every sector. As a result, the service reliability can be enhanced without employing extra RF modules. Further, by realizing the duplex without the extra modules, the system complexity and the cost increase can be addressed. 
         [0071]    Although the present disclosure has been described with an exemplary embodiment, various changes and modifications may be suggested to one skilled in the art. It is intended that the present disclosure encompass such changes and modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims.