Patent Description:
In some instances, multiple antennas may be utilized in an organized fashion to improve the transmission and reception of messages. For example, a communication system may be designed with closely spaced antennas for beamforming purposes, which may provide gain within a desired direction. In another example, a communication system may be designed with multiple antennas to be utilized for diversity combining, where multiple received signals from the multiple antennas are combined into a single improved signal. In another example, a communication system may be designed with multiple antennas designed to send and receive the same message in different slots, resulting in a receive diversity that improves the quality of the signal. Although useful for specific purposes, these communications systems are limited in their ability to adjust to the needs of users in the field, as the communication needs of the user may change rapidly upon situational changes in the field. Therefore, it would be advantageous to provide a solution that cures the shortcomings described above. <CIT> relates to management of multiple antenna panels.

A communication system is provided in claim <NUM>.

A method is also provided in claim <NUM>.

Broadly, the embodiments of the disclosure are directed to a communication system. Specifically, the embodiments of the disclosure are directed to a communication system where nodes (e.g., platforms) within a group are interconnected by a local bearer (e.g., a low latency, high data rate bearer), with communication between groups maintained through long range signals (e.g., RF signals) supported by the architecture. The communication system includes multiple antennas, of which some of the antennas may be placed on mobile platforms, such as on an aircraft. The communication system is configured to organize the multiple antennas so that the quality of a signal may be increased as the message is transmitted and/or received through the system. The communication system may use more than one method of improving the quality of the signal through the use of multiple antennas, depending on one or more characteristics of at least one of the antennas, such as the distance from one antenna to another. These multiple antenna methods for improving the antenna signal include beamforming, nulling, diversity transmitting/receiving, receive combining, and diversity "avalanche" relay, all of which will be described further herein.

<FIG> is a block diagram illustrating a communication system <NUM> in accordance with one or more embodiments of this disclosure. In some embodiments, the communication system <NUM> includes one or more platforms 102a-b with each platform configurable to transmit and/or receive a signal. The one or more platforms 102a-b may be mobile platforms, nonmobile platforms, or any structure upon which an antenna may be disposed. For example, the one or more platforms 102a-b may be configured as any type of vehicle including but not limited to aircraft, troop transport vehicles (e.g., jeeps), trailers, tanks, automobiles and artillery. In another example, the one or more platforms 102a-b may be configured as a backpack. In another example, the one or more platforms 102a-b may be configured as a radio housing. In another example, the one or more platforms may be configured as a forward operating base (FOB). The communication system <NUM> may also include or more nodes in an ad hoc network (e.g., a mobile ad hoc network).

In some embodiments, the communication system <NUM> includes one or more antennas 104a-c disposed on the one or more platforms102a-b. The one or more platforms 102a-c may include any number of the one or more antennas 104a-c. For example, the one or platforms 102a-b may have a single antenna, two antennas, or ten antennas. The one or more antennas 104a-c may be any type of antenna known including but not limited to whip antennas, dipole antennas, isotropic antennas, monopole antennas, array antennas (i.e., one or more elements of an array antenna), loop antennas, conical antennas, aperture antennas, Y-shaped antennas, C-shaped antennas, bent antennas, straight antennas. For example, the one or more antennas 104a-c may be a <NUM>-foot whip antenna. One or more of the one or more platforms 102a-b may include antennas of different types.

In some embodiments, the one or more platforms102a-b include a transmitter 108a-b and/or receiver 112a-b configured to transmit and/or receive signals and disposed in a radio unit 116a-b. The transmitter 108a-b and receiver 112a-b may be combined to form a transceiver. The radio unit 116a-b further includes radio circuitry 120a-b configured to process signals received or to be transmitted by the radio unit <NUM> a-b. The radio circuitry may contain any number or type processing circuits (e.g., integrated circuits, FPGA, or wiring boards) to process radio signals.

In some embodiments, the communication system <NUM> may include one or more control modules <NUM> communicatively coupled to the one or more radio units 116a-b and configured to control the input and/or output of at least one of the one or more antennas 104a-c of the system. The communication system <NUM> include any number of control modules <NUM>. For example, the communication system <NUM> may include a single control module <NUM> disposed on one of the one or more platforms 102a-b (i.e., acting as a master control module among the servant one or more antennas 104a-c). In another example, all of the one or more platforms 102a-b include a control module <NUM> (i.e., each control module having an ability to control the input and/or output of one or more antennas 124a-c in the communication system. In another example, some of the platforms 102a-b include a control module <NUM>. The control module <NUM> may be configured as a stand-alone module within the one or more platforms 102a-b or may be integrated into one or more components of the platform 102a-b. For example, the control module <NUM> may be incorporated within a housing of the radio unit 116a-b, where it is communicatively coupled to, or is incorporated with, the radio circuitry 120a-b. The control module may operate automatically or may be operated manually via a user interface.

In embodiments, the control module <NUM> includes one or more controllers <NUM> communicatively coupled to other components within the control module <NUM> and/or one or more platforms 102a-b. The one or more controllers <NUM> may include one or more processors <NUM>, memory <NUM>, and a communication interface <NUM>. The memory <NUM> may store (e.g., have stored upon) one or more sets of program instructions. The one or more processors <NUM> may be configured to execute the one or more sets of program instructions to carry out one or more of the various steps described throughout the present disclosure. For example, the one or more processor <NUM> may be instructed to receive an input. For instance, the one or more processors <NUM> may be instructed to receive antenna attribute data (e.g., such as antenna position data). In another example, the one or more processors <NUM> may be instructed to determine a compatibility of at least one antenna (104a-c) of the antennas104a-c in the communication system <NUM> (i.e., of a plurality of antennas 104a-c) for at least one of diversity processing, adaptive antenna processing, or relay processing based on the antenna attribute data. In another example, the one or more processors <NUM> may be instructed to instruct the controller <NUM> to configure the communication system <NUM> for at least one of diversity signal processing, adaptive antenna processing, or relay communication processing based on the compatibility.

In some embodiments, one or more platforms 102a-b includes an antenna attribute unit <NUM> communicatively coupled to the control module and the one or more radio units 116a-b, and configured to gather antenna attribute data. The antenna attribute unit <NUM> may be configured as a stand-alone unit or may be incorporated within one or more components of the platform 102a-b. For example, the antenna attribute unit <NUM> may be incorporated within the circuitry of the control module. In another example, the antenna attribute unit may be incorporated within the radio circuitry 120a-b of the one or more radio units 116a-b.

Antenna attribute data gathered by the antenna attribute unit <NUM> may include any data that characterized the one or more antennas 104a-c within the communication system <NUM> including but not limited to antenna location, distance between antennas 104a-c within the communication system <NUM>, type of antennas 104a-c, transmit capabilities, receive capabilities, current and/or planned use of the antenna (i.e., is the antenna shared with another network). Antenna attribute data gathered by the antenna attribute unit <NUM> is then sent to the control module <NUM>.

In some embodiments, the communication system <NUM> includes one or more phase adjusters <NUM> communicatively coupled to the one or more radio units 116a-b and/or control module <NUM> and configured to adjust input and/or output from the one or more antennas <NUM>. For example, the one or more phase adjusters may be configured to transform a plurality of antenna into a phased-array type antenna. For instance, the phase adjustments may be coordinated in time with each antenna signal being injected in a particular time by a traffic master, such as the one or more radio units 116a-b. The timing of phase adjustments may be based on the antenna attribute data (e.g., relative distances between antennas, antenna shapes, antenna sized, or antenna orientations).

In some embodiments, the one or more phase adjusters <NUM> may be configured as digital modem processors. For example, the one or more phase adjusters <NUM> may be embodied in hardware circuitry or electronic control circuits that can adjust radiated transmissions. The one or more phase adjusters <NUM> may be operable in a variety of modulation techniques (e.g., amplitude modulation or frequency modulation). The individual radio units 116a-b may then receive and/or transmit the phase adjusted signal. Conventional HF radio circuits in accordance with principles of the present invention can be utilized. The one or more radio units 116a-b and other componentry of the communication system <NUM> may be configured to adjust the transmit power via the radio circuitry 120a-b. For example, the one or more platforms 102a-b may include computer executing software for providing timing and adjustments and control of the one or more phase adjusters <NUM>. For instance, the computer circuitry may include microprocessor and/or digital signal processor executing software. In another embodiment, an application specific circuit (ASIC) can be utilized.

In embodiments of the communication system, <NUM>, two or more platforms 102a, 102b localized within a grouping of platforms 102a, 102b communicate via a local bearer <NUM>. For example, the local bearer may be a service that supports low latency/high data rate transmission of signals. The local bearer <NUM> may be configured to support a variety of signal processing techniques including but not limited to diversity signal processing and adaptive antenna processing. For example, the local bearer <NUM> may be configured to support diversity signal processing techniques that include but are not limited to transmit diversity, receive diversity, or diversity combining. In another example, the local bearer may <NUM> be configured to support adaptive processing techniques that include but are not limited to beamforming and nulling. The local bearer <NUM> may also be able to support multiple types of signal processing within the communication system. For example, a communication system <NUM> may include one or more platforms 102a-e in close vicinity that utilize adaptive antenna processing via the local bearer <NUM>, and may also include two or more platforms 102a-e in close vicinity that participate in diversity signal processing via the local bearer <NUM>.

The control module <NUM> is configured to determine the ability of the one or more antennas 104a-c of the communication system <NUM> to collectively act to improve the quality of a radio signal based on available antenna attribute data. Once the collective abilities of the one or more antennas 104a-c have been determined, the control module will then instruct the one or more radio units 116a-c to transmit and/or receive radio signals in the determined collective fashion. <FIG> illustrate the types of collective action that may be taken by the one or more antennas 104a-c, in accordance to one or more embodiments of this disclosure.

In some embodiments, the one or more controllers <NUM> are communicatively coupled to other componentry within the control module <NUM>, one or more radio units 116a-b, and or one or more platforms 102a-b within the communication system <NUM>. For example, one or more of the one or more controllers <NUM> may be communicatively coupled to the one or more radio units 116a-b, the phase adjuster <NUM>, the one or more platforms 102a-b, and/or the antenna attribute unit <NUM>. The one or more controllers <NUM> may also be communicatively coupled to other componentry within the communication system <NUM> not listed here. Therefore, the above description should not be interpreted as a limitation of the present disclosure, but as an illustration.

The one or more processors <NUM> may include any one or more processing elements known in the art. In this sense, the one or more processors <NUM> may include any microprocessor device configured to execute algorithms and/or program instructions. In general, the term "processor" may be broadly defined to encompass any device having one or more processing elements, which execute a set of program instructions from a non-transitory memory medium (e.g., the memory <NUM>), where the one or more sets of program instructions is configured to cause the one or more processors <NUM> to carry out any of one or more process steps.

The memory <NUM> may include any storage medium known in the art suitable for storing the one or more sets of program instructions executable by the associated one or more processors <NUM>. For example, the memory <NUM> may include a non-transitory memory medium. For instance, the memory <NUM> may include, but is not limited to, a read-only memory (ROM), a random-access memory (RAM), a magnetic or optical memory device (e.g., disk), a magnetic tape, a solid-state drive, and the like. The memory <NUM> may be configured to provide information to the control module <NUM>, the one or more radio units 116a-b, the phase adjuster <NUM> and/or the antenna attribute unit. In addition, the memory <NUM> may be configured to store user input and/or antenna attribute data. The memory <NUM> may be housed in a common controller housing with the one or more processors <NUM>. The memory <NUM> may, alternatively or in addition, be located remotely with respect to the spatial location of the processors <NUM>, or the one or more controllers <NUM>. For example, the one or more processors <NUM> and/or one or more controllers <NUM> may access a remote memory <NUM> accessible through a network (e.g., wireless, and the like) via one or more communication interfaces <NUM>.

The one or more communication interfaces <NUM> may be operatively configured to communicate with components of the one or more controllers <NUM> or any other componentry within the communication system <NUM>. For example, the one or more communication interfaces <NUM> may be configured to retrieve data from the one or more processors <NUM> or other devices, transmit data for storage in the memory <NUM>, retrieve data from storage in the memory <NUM>, and so forth. The one or more communication interfaces <NUM> may also be communicatively coupled with the one or more processors <NUM> to facilitate data transfer between components of the one or more controllers <NUM> and the one or more processors <NUM>. It should be noted that while the one or more communication interfaces <NUM> is described as a component of the one or more controllers <NUM>, one or more components of the one or more communication interfaces <NUM> may be implemented as external components communicatively coupled to the one or more controllers <NUM> via a wired and/or wireless connection. The one or more controllers <NUM> may also include and/or connect to one or more user interfaces.

In some embodiments, one or more antennas 104a-e of the plurality of antennas may be organized via the control module <NUM> to perform beamforming operations (e.g., as shown in <FIG>). Beamforming coherently combines radio signals based on direction and provides gain in a desired direction. When operating as a transmit array, the phase relationship of the signal at each antenna element is manipulated so that the signal emitted by each element in the array combines constructively in the desired direction, resulting in a gain in that direction that is proportional to the number of elements in the array (e.g., as shown in <FIG>). On receive, the same principal can be used to obtain gain with respect to signals received from a desired direction, with the resulting coherently combined receive signal benefitting from a gain relative to an isotropic noise environment. In both transmit and receive, the organization and collaboration of the one or more antennas 104a-e is controlled by the control module <NUM>, or multiple control modules <NUM> acting in concert with each other.

In some embodiments, the one or more antennas 104a-e of the plurality of antennas may be organized via the control module <NUM> to perform interference nulling, an adaptive antenna operation that involves nulling the radio signal in a particular direction. For example, an array with N antennas 104a-e may form N-<NUM> directional nulls - directions from which signal is effectively cancelled. Interference nulling may be applied to both transmit and receive functions. On receive, interference nulling is useful in cancelling out interference impinging upon the one or more antennas 104a-e from specific directions. On transmit, interference nulling may be useful in preventing the emitted signal from propagating in an unwanted direction, either as a source of interference to another receiver, or to prevent an adversary from hearing a transmission. In both transmit and receive, the organization and collaboration of the one or more antennas 104a-e is controlled by the control module <NUM>, or multiple control modules <NUM> acting in concert with each other. Many adaptive antenna methods such as nulling require real time exchange of signal information between platforms 104a-e that may be adequately supported through the low latency/high data rate local bearer <NUM>.

Beamforming and interference nulling techniques are best performed when the plurality of antennas 104a-c are closely spaced, as the techniques perform best with a low latency/high data rate local bearer <NUM>. As array elements (i.e., antennas 104a-e) move apart, beamforming and nulling operations become less practical. Feasible distances are measured in terms of the wavelength of the emitted signal and the minimum separation between individual antennas 104a-e should be on the order of a wavelength or less (ideally ½ wavelength for some simple geometries). Separation between antennas 104a-e may be determined using the antenna attribute unit <NUM>, precision location technologies or, in some cases, by analysis of the coherence of the signals received by different antennas 104a-e of the plurality of antennas 104a-e. Although the separation of.

In some embodiments, the one or more antennas 104a-e of the plurality of antennas 104a-e may be organized via the control module <NUM> to provide diversity reception and/or transmission. For example, if the minimum antenna separation becomes too great for beamforming and/or nulling, the control module <NUM> may act to organize one or more antennas 104a-e to provide a diversity gain (e.g., as shown in <FIG>) For instance, the control module <NUM> may act to organize one or more antennas 104a-e to provide a diversity gain in a fading channel. These communications are supported via the local bearer <NUM>, as these techniques require real time exchange of signal information or information derived from the signal (e.g., soft decisions) between each platform 102a-e. Fading channels exhibit time-varying variability with respect to receive signal amplitude and phase. When a channel enters a deep fade, the received radio signal level can plummet, resulting in bursts of errors when the signal to noise ratio drops below the threshold where errors occur. With fading channels, when antennas 104a-e are separated by many wavelengths (e.g., <NUM> or more as a rule of thumb), the fading in the received signals seen at each of the antennas 104a-e is decorrelated. When these radio signals are processed together in a diversity combiner, very significant gains can be achieved. Similarly, when spatially separated antennas 104a-e are used for transmission diversity, if the radio signals are separated in time from one another by a short time delay, a receiver capable of benefitting from multipath and able to resolve the fading paths from each of the transmit antennas 104a-e can obtain a transmit diversity gain. For both transmission and reception diversity, the organization and collaboration of the one or more antennas 104a-e is controlled by the control module <NUM>, or multiple control modules <NUM> acting in concert with each other.

The concerted action of the multiple control modules <NUM> may require communication between the multiple control modules <NUM>. For example, communication between control modules <NUM> may be embodied through control signals that are sent and received via the one or more antennas 104a-c. In another example, communication between control modules <NUM> may be embodied via non-antenna signaling. For instance, one or more control modules <NUM> may send an/or receive instructions via a server <NUM>. In another example, the one or more control modules <NUM> may receive instructions in the form of a preloaded lookup table or user input.

In some embodiments, the one or more antennas 104a-e of the plurality of antennas (i.e., one or more antennas of a network node) may be organized via the control module <NUM> to provide diversity based-relay transmission and/or reception (e.g., as shown in <FIG>). For example, if the ability to exchange the received and/or transmitted radio signal between antennas 104a-c is lost (e.g., from mobile platforms 102a-e moving away from each other, where support by the local bearer <NUM> is lost), the local nodes can fall back upon an "avalanche" relay operation, where each node that hears a transmission retransmits the same information in a subsequent synchronized data slot (i.e., relay receive diversity and relay transmit diversity). Avalanche relays are well described in <CIT>.

In some embodiments, the communication system <NUM> is configured to support at least two of adaptive antenna processing (e.g., beamforming and/or nulling via the local bearer <NUM>), diversity signal processing (e.g., transmit diversity, receive diversity, and/or diversity combining via the local bearer <NUM>), and relay communication processing (e.g., relay transmit diversity and relay receive diversity via long range communication techniques, such as RF). In other words, the communication system <NUM> may be synchronously configurable to multiple communication methods (e.g., more than one method at the same time, or more than one method sequentially). For example, the communication system <NUM> may be configured for beamforming when the one or more platforms 102a-b are close to each other (i.e., the one or more antennas 104a-e are close to each other), then reorganize via the control module <NUM> to be configured for diversity transmission when the one or more platforms 102a-b move away from each other. In another example, the communication system <NUM> may be initially configured for diversity transmission, then <NUM> reorganize via the control module <NUM> to be configured for relay transmit diversity. In another example, the communication system <NUM> may be initially configured for relay transmit diversity, then <NUM> reorganize via the control module <NUM> to be configured for beamforming (i.e., when the platforms move in close to each other. In some embodiments, the communication system <NUM> is configured to support adaptive antenna processing, diversity signal processing, and relay communication processing (i.e., all methods are supported).

In some embodiments, the different modes of operation (e.g., adaptive antenna processing, diversity signal, and relay communication processing) may be combined. For example, clusters 204a-e of nodes employing one or more antennas 104a-e that are in close proximity can support adaptive antenna processing via a local bearer to exchange signal (i.e., antennas 104a-e within the same cluster 204a-e performing adaptive antenna processing). If there are multiple clusters 204a-e that are separated by distances too great to support adaptive antenna processing but still within range of the local high data rate bearer, each cluster 204a-e can independently employ adaptive antenna processing with the resulting signal from each cluster 204a-e processed to obtain further gain from a diversity signal processing (e.g., diversity combining). For example, the communication system <NUM> may gain the benefit of relay receive diversity from multiple platforms 102a-e hearing the original transmission, which then manifests as relay transmit diversity when multiple nodes retransmit the same information via the one or more antennas 104a-e in the subsequent slot. As Avalanche Relay does not require any coordination between nodes or knowledge of topology or geographic location, this mode of operation is supportable without requiring the exchange of information over a local bearer.

<FIG> illustrates a communication system <NUM> that includes clusters 204a-e of antennas 104a-e, in accordance with one or more embodiments of this disclosure. Adaptive antenna processing is supported between platforms 104a, 104b within each cluster 204a-e (via the local bearer <NUM>). as well as diversity signal processing (i.e., the antennas 104a-<NUM> within each cluster 204a-e are spaced closely enough for beamforming or nulling, with each cluster 204a-e as a collaborating whole coordinating with other clusters 204a-e to provide transmit or receive diversity). Similarly, for a communication system <NUM> configured with isolated clusters 204a-e widely spaced apart, each cluster 204a-e may coordinate locally to provide diversity combining or adaptive antenna operation while still operating as a single transmitter and/or receiver with relay communication processing capability (e.g., avalanche relay operation, which relies mainly on pre-planning for coordination) occurring between the isolated clusters 204a-e (e.g., as shown in <FIG>). Platforms 104a-e within the communication system <NUM> that are not connected by the local bearer <NUM> may utilize avalanche relay, whether the platform <NUM>-a-e is a solitary node or geographically organized within a cluster 204a-e.

It should be understood that the isolated clusters 204a-e may each have any number of antennas. For example, isolated cluster 204a may include one antenna, isolated cluster 204b may include three antennas, and isolated cluster 204c may include six antennas. Therefore, the above description should not be interpreted as a limitation of the present disclosure, but as an illustration.

<FIG> illustrates the relationship between the control module <NUM> and the different transmission/reception methods, in accordance with one or more embodiments of this disclosure. The one or more control module <NUM> are configured to determine, via the one or more processors <NUM>, the available methods of communication to that could utilized within the communication system <NUM> (e.g., adaptive antenna processing, diversity signal processing, and relay communication processing). The one or more control modules <NUM> may then facilitate the participation of the one or more platforms 102a-b (via the one or more antennas 104a-e, the one or more radio units 116a-b, the one or more antenna attribute units <NUM>, the one or more phase adjusters, and other control modules <NUM>) in the one or more transmission/reception methods described above.

It should be understood that the communication system <NUM> may use or be compatible with any type of channel access method including but not limited to frequency division multiple access (FDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), code division multiple access (CDMA), space division multiple access (SDMA) power division multiple access (PDMA), packet mode methods, duplexing methods, and hybrid channel access scheme application (e.g., Bluetooth). The communication system <NUM> may also use or be compatible with any type of diversity reception/transmission methods including but not limited to timing combining, transmit/reception diversity, antenna diversity, cooperative diversity, and smart antenna technology. Therefore, the above description should not be interpreted as a limitation of the present disclosure, but as an illustration.

<FIG> is a flow diagram illustrating a method <NUM> for radio communication, in accordance with one or more embodiments of this disclosure. In some embodiments, the method includes a step <NUM> of receiving antenna attribute data from a plurality of antennas of a communication system, wherein the plurality of antennas is disposed on at least two platforms. For example, the one or more processors <NUM> of the control module <NUM> may receive antenna attribute data that includes positional data of several antennas 104a-e via the antenna attribute unit <NUM>.

In some embodiments, the method includes a step <NUM> of determining if a least one of the plurality of antennas are configurable for at least one of diversity signal processing, adaptive antenna processing, or relay communication processing. In some embodiments, the method includes a step <NUM> of instructing the controller to configure the communication system for at least one of diversity signal processing, adaptive antenna processing, or relay processing based on the determination (e.g., the determination made by the control module <NUM> based on the antenna attribute data).

Claim 1:
A communication system comprising:
a plurality of antennas (104a-c) disposed on two or more platforms (102a-b) of a network, wherein the two of more platforms are physically separate and independently mobile to each other;
at least one transmitter (108a-b) disposed on each of the two or more platforms communicatively coupled at least one antenna of the plurality of antennas (104a-c);
at least one receiver (112a-b) disposed on each of the two or more platforms communicatively coupled to the at least one antenna of the plurality of antennas; and
at least one control module (<NUM>) communicatively coupled to the at least one transmitter (108a-b) and the at least one receiver (112a-b), and disposed on a separate platform than one of the at least one antenna of the plurality of antennas (<NUM>04a-c), wherein the at least one control module (<NUM>) is configured to control receiving signals received by the at least one receiver, and transmission signals transmitted by the at least one transmitter, wherein the at least one control module comprises:
a controller (<NUM>);
one or more processors (<NUM>) communicatively coupled to the controller (<NUM>); and
a memory (<NUM>) communicatively coupled to the one or more processors (<NUM>) and having instructions stored upon, which when executed by the one or more processors, causing the one or more processors to:
receive antenna attribute data;
determine a compatibility of at least one antenna of the plurality of antennas for relay communication processing and at least one of diversity signal processing or adaptive antenna processing based on the antenna attribute data, wherein the antenna attribute data includes a distance between the at least one antenna and another antenna on a different platform;
instruct the controller to configure the communication system for the relay communication processing or at least one of diversity signal processing or adaptive antenna processing based on the compatibility;
wherein the diversity signal processing comprises at least one of transmit diversity, receive diversity, or diversity combining;
wherein the adaptive antenna processing comprises at least one of beamforming or nulling;
wherein the relay communication processing comprises avalanche relay.