Patent Description:
Communications devices may communicate with one another using wired connections, wireless (e.g., radio frequency (RF)) connections, or both. Wireless communications between communications devices may be performed using wireless spectrum that has been designated for a service provider, wireless technology, or both. In some examples, the amount of information that can be communicated via a wireless communications network is based on an amount of wireless spectrum designated to the service provider, and an amount of frequency reuse within the region in which service is provided. Wireless communications (e.g., cellular communications, satellite communications, etc.) may use beamforming and multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) techniques for communications between devices to increase frequency reuse. However, providing a high level of frequency reuse in some types of communication systems, such as satellite communications, presents challenges.

<CIT> describes a transceiver array. <CIT> describes a communication unit, integrated circuits and methods for cascading integrated circuits. <CIT> describes concurrent airborne communication methods and systems.

The invention is defined by the system of independent claim <NUM>.

A communications system (e.g., a satellite system) may include devices (e.g., satellites) equipped with multiple antennas. The communications system may use the devices to support concurrent communications by multiple terminals. In some examples, the communications system may use the devices to support beamformed communications. Beamformed communications may be used to increase a utilization of communication resources - e.g., by enabling wireless spectrum to be reused in different regions of a geographic area. In some examples, beamforming techniques may use the multi-antenna devices to form a set of spot beams that cover a geographic area (e.g., in an at least partially overlapping pattern).

Although beamforming techniques may be used to increase spectrum utilization, the resolution of beamforming techniques may be limited - e.g., based on a size of an antenna array. In some examples, the coverage areas of the spot beams are based on a size of an antenna array of the satellite system, a frequency used by the satellite system, or an orbit used by the satellite system (e.g., a geosynchronous earth orbit). For a typical satellite payload (e.g., an array fed reflector, where the reflector spans <NUM> to <NUM> meters) coverage areas of spot beams formed by a satellite system on the surface of the Earth may be relatively large (e.g., hundreds or thousands of kilometers in diameter). Thus, the use of current beamforming techniques to increase a reuse of frequency resources (e.g., by using smaller spot beams) may be limited.

To increase a resolution of beamforming and support an increased quantity of users within a geographic area, techniques described herein may use a large, sparse antenna array having antennas with inter-element spacing that is different across the antenna array. Current antenna arrays may be rigid and have consistent inter-element spacing, and thus, developing large antenna arrays using current techniques may be infeasible. In some examples, the large, sparse antenna array may span a large distance (e.g., greater than a kilometer) based on using flexible antenna arrays. In some cases, spacing between antennas of the flexible antenna arrays may be not rigidly set and thus the antenna arrays may have different inter-element spacing. In some cases, the inter-element spacing may change over time (e.g., due to drift of antennas relative to each other). In some cases, the antennas of a large, sparse antenna array may be grouped into sets of antennas (e.g., antenna subarrays), where each set of antennas may be used to form a beam (e.g., a discovery beam). Also, the antennas of multiple sets of the large, sparse antenna array may be used to form one or more beams (e.g., one or more communication beams).

The large, sparse antenna array may be used (e.g., in combination with respective beam coefficients) to form beams within a geographic area using geometric interpretation. In such cases, the beam coefficients may be selected based on positions of the antennas of the sparse antenna array relative to a geographic area. In some examples, prior to determining the positions of the antennas of the sparse antenna array relative to the geographic area, the positions of the antennas themselves may be determined. In some examples, antenna managers may be coupled with respective antennas of a large, sparse antenna array. The antenna managers may be configured to transmit (e.g., via respective antennas) and receive (e.g., via respective antennas) ranging signals. The ranging signals may be used (e.g., by the antenna managers) to measure parameters representative of distances between a respective antenna and the other antennas. The positions of the antennas may be determined (e.g., by a calibration unit) based on the measured parameters and positions of reference antennas. Based on determining the positions of the antennas, the sparse antenna array may be used to communicate (e.g., in combination with a communications manager) with a terminal according to beam coefficients determined for the antenna array using the determined positions of the antennas.

<FIG> shows an example of a satellite communications system <NUM> that supports sparse antenna array calibration in accordance with examples described herein. Satellite communications system <NUM> may include a ground system <NUM>, terminals <NUM>, and satellite system <NUM>.

The ground system <NUM> may include a network of access nodes <NUM> that are configured to communicate with the satellite system <NUM>. The access nodes <NUM> may be coupled with access node transceivers <NUM> that are configured to process signals received from and to be transmitted through corresponding access node(s) <NUM>. The access node transceivers <NUM> may also be configured to interface with a network <NUM> (e.g., the Internet) - e.g., via a network device <NUM> (e.g., a network operations center, satellite and gateway terminal command centers, or other central processing centers or devices) that may provide an interface for communicating with the network <NUM>.

Terminals <NUM> may include various devices configured to communicate signals with the satellite system <NUM>, which may include fixed terminals (e.g., ground-based stationary terminals) or mobile terminals such as terminals on boats, aircraft, ground-based vehicles, and the like. A terminal <NUM> may communicate data and information with an access node <NUM> via the satellite system <NUM>. The data and information may be communicated with a destination device such as a network device <NUM>, or some other device or distributed server associated with a network <NUM>.

The satellite system <NUM> may include a single satellite, or a network of satellites that are deployed in space orbits (e.g., low earth orbits, medium earth orbits, geostationary orbits, etc.). One or more satellites included in satellite system <NUM> may be equipped with multiple antennas (e.g., one or more antenna arrays). In some examples, the one or more satellites equipped with multiple antennas may each include one or more antenna panels that include an array of evenly distributed antennas (which may also be referred to as antenna elements). In some examples, a satellite may be equipped with an antenna array including antennas that are unevenly distributed across a large region. In some examples, the antennas may be connected to a central entity via wired or wireless links. Deploying the antennas over the large region may increase an aperture size of the antenna array of the satellite relative to an antenna array that includes evenly distributed antennas (e.g., due to limitations associated with manufacturing and deploying a large antenna array with evenly distributed antennas). In some examples, a set of satellites, each including an antenna, are unevenly distributed across the large region, where each satellite may communicate with a central entity (e.g., a central server or ground station). In such cases, the antennas of the set of satellites may be used to form an antenna array. In some examples, a set of satellites, each including an antenna subarray, are unevenly distributed across the large region, where each satellite may communicate with a central entity (e.g., a central server or ground station) and where the antenna subarrays may include an array of evenly distributed antennas. In such cases, the antenna subarrays of the set of satellites may be used to form an antenna array.

The satellite system <NUM> may use the one or more satellites to support multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) techniques to increase a utilization of frequency resources used for communications - e.g., by enabling wireless spectrum to be reused, in time and frequency, in different geographic regions of a geographic area. Similarly, the satellite system <NUM> may use the one or more satellites to support beamforming techniques to increase a utilization of frequency resources used for communications.

MIMO techniques may be used to exploit multipath signal propagation and increase spectral efficiency by transmitting or receiving multiple signals via different spatial layers. The multiple signals may, for example, be transmitted by a transmitting device (e.g., a satellite system) via a set of antennas in accordance with a set of weighting coefficients. Likewise, the multiple signals may be received by a receiving device (e.g., a satellite system) via a set of antennas in accordance with a set of weighting coefficients. Each of the multiple signals may be associated with a separate spatial stream and may carry bits associated with the same data stream (e.g., the same codeword) or different data streams (e.g., different codewords). MIMO techniques include single-user MIMO (SU-MIMO), where multiple spatial layers are used to communicate with one device, and multiple-user MIMO (MU-MIMO), where multiple spatial layers are used to communicate with multiple devices.

To determine weighting coefficients to apply to the set of antennas such that the N spatial layers are formed, an (M × N) MIMO matrix may be formed, where M may represent the quantity of antennas of the set of antennas. In some examples, M may be equal to N. The MIMO matrix may be determined based on a channel matrix and used to isolate the different spatial layers of the channel. In some examples, the weighting coefficients are selected to emphasize signals transmitted using the different spatial layers while reducing interference of signals transmitted in the other spatial layers. Accordingly, processing signals received at each antenna with the set of antennas (e.g., a signal received at the set of antennas) using the MIMO matrix may result in multiple signals being output, where each of the multiple signals may correspond to one of the spatial layers. The elements of the MIMO matrix used to form the spatial layers of the channel may be determined based on channel sounding probes received at a satellite system <NUM> - e.g., from one or more devices. In some examples, the weighting coefficients used for MIMO communications may be referred to as beam coefficients, and the multiple signals or spatial layers may be referred to as beam signals.

Beamforming techniques may be used to shape or steer a communication beam along a spatial path between a satellite system <NUM> and a geographic area. A communication beam may be formed by determining weighting coefficients for antenna elements of antenna array that result in the signals transmitted from or received at the antenna elements being combined such that signals propagating in a particular orientation with respect to an antenna array experience constructive interference while others experience destructive interference. Thus, beamforming may be used to transmit signals having energy that is focused in a direction of a communication beam and to receive signals that arrive in a direction of the communication with increased signal power (relative to the absence of beamforming). The weighting coefficients may be used to apply amplitude offsets, phase offsets, or both to signals carried via the antennas. In some examples, the weighting coefficients applied to the antennas may be used to form multiple beams associated with multiple directions, where the multiple beams may be used to communicate multiple signals having the same frequency at the same time. The weighting coefficients used for beamforming may be referred to as beam coefficients, and the multiple signals may be referred to as beam signals.

In some examples, beamforming techniques may be used by a satellite system <NUM> to form spot beams that are tiled (e.g., tessellated) across a geographic area. In some examples, the wireless spectrum used by a satellite system <NUM> may be reused across sets of the spot beams for communications between terminals <NUM> and the satellite system. In some examples, the wireless spectrum can be reused in spot beams that do not overlap, where a contiguous geographic region can be covered by overlapping spot beams that each use orthogonal resources (e.g., orthogonal time, frequency, or polarization resources).

To support an increased quantity of users within a geographic area, an antenna array (which may be referred to as a large, sparse antenna array) having antennas with inter-element spacing that is different across the antenna array may be used to increase a resolution of beamforming techniques. That is, the large, sparse antenna array may be used (e.g., in combination with respective beam coefficients) to form communication beams with small coverage areas (e.g., less than <NUM> kilometers in diameter). A large, sparse antenna array, such as antenna array <NUM>, may include multiple antenna units <NUM> (e.g., hundreds or thousands of antennas) that are unevenly distributed across an area - e.g., in space. In some examples, each antenna unit <NUM> is, or is installed on, an individual satellite. In other examples, the antenna units <NUM> are installed on a single satellite, where each antenna unit <NUM> is tethered to a central location - e.g., via a physical connection.

Additionally, the distance between the antenna units <NUM> may be greater than a distance associated with a wavelength of signals supported for communication by the large, sparse antenna array - e.g., the distance between the antenna units <NUM> may be greater than a distance associated with the wavelength. In some examples, the distance between the antenna units <NUM> may be greater than ten times the wavelength. In some examples, a first distance (di) between a first antenna unit of the antenna units <NUM> and a second antenna unit of the antenna units <NUM> may be different than a second distance (d<NUM>) between the second antenna unit and a third antenna unit of the antenna units <NUM>, and so on throughout antenna array <NUM>.

In some examples, a large, sparse antenna array includes multiple antenna subarrays (e.g., tens or hundreds of antenna subarrays) that are unevenly distributed across the area. In some examples, the antenna subarrays may each include a group of the antenna units <NUM>. In some examples, the antenna subarrays may include a single antenna unit <NUM>, where the antenna unit may be coupled with an antenna panel that includes a set of antenna elements that are evenly distributed across a corresponding antenna subarray. In some examples, in addition to being large and sparse, the antenna array <NUM> may be random or semi-random such that the distances between the antenna units <NUM> of the antenna array <NUM> may be uncontrolled or partially controlled (e.g., unconstrained in one or more dimensions, or allowed to drift in one or more dimensions relative to other antenna units <NUM>).

To form the small communication beams, geometric relationships between a geographic region and the antenna units <NUM> of the large, sparse antenna array <NUM> may be used. In some examples, the geometric relationships between a geographic region and the antenna units <NUM> of the large, sparse antenna array <NUM> may also be used to simplify the processing used for massive-MIMO techniques - e.g., based on the limited directions of signal incidence, location information known for the terminals, or any combination thereof.

In some examples, to support communicating using communication beams <NUM> with small coverage areas, a large, sparse antenna array <NUM> may be used (e.g., in combination with respective beam coefficients) to form discovery beams <NUM> within a geographic area <NUM>, where each discovery beam <NUM> may be formed by a corresponding set of antenna units <NUM> of the antenna array <NUM> and may cover a discovery area <NUM> within the geographic area <NUM>. For example, each subarray may form a discovery beam <NUM>, and the discovery beams may be tiled across the geographic area <NUM>. Preambles transmitted from terminals <NUM> within a discovery area <NUM> of a discovery beam <NUM> may be detected using the large, sparse antenna array <NUM> (e.g., each subarray may detect preambles transmitted from within a corresponding discovery area <NUM>).

Based on detecting a preamble using a discovery beam <NUM>, a presence of a terminal <NUM> in a discovery area <NUM> of the discovery beam <NUM> may be determined. Based on detecting the presence of the terminal <NUM>, a set of antenna units <NUM> (e.g., antenna units from more than one subarray, a substantial portion of antenna units <NUM>, a majority of antenna units <NUM>, or all of the antenna units <NUM>) of the antenna array <NUM> and corresponding beam coefficients may be selected to form a communication beam <NUM> (e.g., a small or narrow beam) having a beam coverage area <NUM> within the discovery area <NUM> that includes a position of the terminal <NUM>. Subsequently, signals detected at the antenna array <NUM> may be processed according to the beam coefficients used to form the small communication beam <NUM>, resulting in a beam signal for the small communication beam <NUM>. In some examples, the beam signal may include one or more signals transmitted from one or more terminals positioned within the beam coverage area <NUM>.

In some examples, antenna array <NUM> includes multiple antenna subarrays, where each antenna subarray may be used to form a discovery beam <NUM> associated with a corresponding discovery area <NUM>. Preambles from a set of terminals <NUM> may be detected using a subset of the discovery beams <NUM>. Based on detecting the terminals using the subset of the discovery beams <NUM>, communication beams <NUM> may be formed (e.g., using geometric interpretation or MIMO-based techniques) within the corresponding discovery areas <NUM>, where beam coverage areas <NUM> of the communication beams <NUM> may encompass the detected terminals <NUM>. Communications may be performed between the antenna array <NUM> and detected terminals <NUM> using the communication beams <NUM>, where at least a subset of the communication beams <NUM> may reuse common time, frequency, and polarization resources.

To determine beam coefficients for the antenna array <NUM> used to form communication beams <NUM> (e.g., using geometric interpretation or geometrically-informed MIMO), geometric relationships between a geographic region to be covered by the communication beams <NUM> and the antenna units <NUM> may be used. For example, the distance between an antenna unit <NUM> and the geographic region may be used to determine a value of a beam coefficient used to introduce a phase delay to a signal received at the antenna unit <NUM>. The geometric relationship between the antenna unit <NUM> and the geographic region may also be used to determine an angle of arrival of signals at the antenna unit <NUM>. In some examples, the angle of arrival of signals at an antenna unit <NUM> may be used to determine a value of a beam coefficient used to adjust a magnitude of a signal received at the antenna unit <NUM>. In some examples, the relative positions of antenna units <NUM> may be used to determine the beam coefficients for the antenna units <NUM> - e.g., the beam coefficients for other antenna units <NUM> may be determined relative to the beam coefficients determined for a reference antenna unit <NUM>.

To determine the geometric relationships between antenna units <NUM> and a geographic region and/or between antenna units <NUM>, the positions of each of the antenna units <NUM> may first be determined. For example, ground-based measurement techniques (e.g., radio detection and ranging (RADAR)) may be used to determine the position (e.g., xyz coordinates) of each the antenna units <NUM>. Additionally, or alternatively, the antenna units <NUM> may broadcast their positions - e.g., to a central processing unit of the antenna array <NUM> - to determine a distance between the antenna units <NUM> and a central position. In such cases, the central processing unit may also measure angles of arrival for each of the broadcast signals to use along with the determined distances to determine the positions of the broadcasting antenna units <NUM>.

In some examples, each antenna unit <NUM> may transmit a ranging signal (e.g., a unique ranging signal) used to determine a distance between the transmitting antenna unit <NUM> and the other antenna units <NUM> in antenna array <NUM>. Also, each antenna unit <NUM> may receive the ranging signals transmitted from the other antenna units <NUM>. In such cases, each antenna unit <NUM> may include an antenna <NUM> and an antenna manager <NUM>. The antenna <NUM> may be a single antenna or multiple antennas. In some examples, the antenna <NUM> may be an antenna panel that includes a set of consistently-spaced antenna elements (and may be referred to as an antenna subarray). The antenna manager <NUM> may be used to generate a ranging signal that is unique to a corresponding antenna unit <NUM>. In some examples, the antenna manager <NUM> may generate the ranging signal to include an identifier of the corresponding antenna unit <NUM> (e.g., each antenna unit <NUM> may be assigned an index), a time stamp indicating when the ranging signal was transmitted, global positioning (GPS) coordinates, or any combination thereof. In some examples, each of the antenna units <NUM> is configured to transmit the ranging signals at a same time. The antenna manager <NUM> may also be used to receive the ranging signals transmitted from the other antenna units <NUM>. In some examples, the antenna manager <NUM> is used to detect parameters associated with the received ranging signals (e.g., a time at which the ranging signals are received, an angle of arrival, an identity of the transmitting antenna unit <NUM>, etc.).

In some examples, the antenna manger <NUM> may transmit the detected parameters to a central processing unit (e.g., a calibration unit), which may determine the distances between each of the antenna units <NUM> (or, in some examples, between each of the antennas <NUM> of the antenna units <NUM>). In other examples, the antenna manager <NUM> may determine the distances between itself and each of the other antenna units based on the detected parameters and transmit the distances to the central processing unit. In such cases, the central processing unit may combine the received distances to determine the distances between each of the antenna units <NUM>. In either event, after determining the distances between each of the antenna units <NUM>, the central processing unit may use the distances to determine a position of each of the antenna units <NUM>. In some examples, in addition to using the distances, the central processing unit uses known positions of a set of the antenna units <NUM> that have been designated as reference antenna units (which may also be referred to as anchor antenna units) to determine an orientation of antenna array <NUM>. The central processing unit may use both the distances and the orientation of the antenna array <NUM> to determine the positions of the antenna units <NUM>. Determining the positions of each of the antenna units <NUM> may be referred to as calibration.

By configuring each antenna unit <NUM> to transmit a ranging signal and to receive the ranging signals transmitted from the other antenna units <NUM> and using anchor points to determine an orientation of the antenna array <NUM>, distances between antenna units <NUM> (and thus the positions of the antenna units <NUM>) may be determined with reduced latency, increased accuracy, and with reduced complexity - e.g., relative to ground-based measurement techniques, position broadcasting techniques, etc..

<FIG> shows an example of a sparse antenna array <NUM> that supports sparse antenna array calibration in accordance with examples described herein.

Antenna array <NUM> includes antenna units <NUM> that may be unevenly distributed throughout antenna array <NUM>. In some examples, a set of antenna units <NUM> may be designated as reference antenna units. For example, first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM>, second antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM>, and third antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may be designated as reference antenna units. In some examples, a position of an antenna of first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may be designated as the origin of antenna array <NUM>. That is, if a three-dimensional, xyz coordinate system is used, the position of the antenna of first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may be designated as (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>). Each antenna unit <NUM> may include an antenna <NUM>.

In some examples, the positions of the other antenna units designated as reference antenna units may be determined relative to the position of first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM>. For example, an antenna of second antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may be positioned a unit interval (e.g., a known distance, a distance equivalent to a wavelength or a multiple of the wavelength of a communication signal) away from the antenna of first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> in the x-direction. That is, the position of the antenna of second antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may be designated as (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>). And the antenna of third antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may be positioned a unit interval away from the antenna of first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> in the y-direction. That is, the position of the antenna of third antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may be designated as (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>). In some examples, the axes of the xyz coordinate system may not be fixed but instead may rotate with antenna array <NUM> to maintain the preceding relationship between the antennas of the reference antenna units regardless of a current orientation of antenna array <NUM>.

In some examples, a fourth reference antenna unit has an antenna located a unit interval away from the first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> in the Z-direction. That is, the position of the antenna of the fourth reference antenna unit may be designated as (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>). Other coordinate systems may be used to represent the positions of the antenna units <NUM> in antenna array <NUM> - e.g., a polar coordinate system.

In some examples, the above configuration of the reference antenna units may be maintained using rigid connections <NUM> between the reference antenna units. For example, rigid connection <NUM>-<NUM> may connect antenna units <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, while rigid connection <NUM>-<NUM> may connect antenna units <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>. In other examples, the above configuration of the reference antenna units may be maintained using other techniques such as station keeping (e.g., thrusters) via command and control signaling.

Additionally, or alternatively, the positions of the other reference antenna units may be determined using ground-based measurement techniques. For example, a ground station may use RADAR to determine a position of each of the reference antenna units. In some examples, the ground station may use RADAR to determine the positions of the other reference antenna units relative to the first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM>. In examples where mechanisms to maintain the relative positions of the reference antenna units are not used and ground-based measurement techniques are used, the positions of the reference antenna units may be configured differently than above - e.g., the position of the antenna of first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may be at (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>), the position of the antenna of second antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may be at (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>), and the position of the antenna of third antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may be at (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>).

As described herein, each of the antenna units <NUM> (including reference antenna units) may transmit a ranging signal <NUM>. Each of the ranging signals <NUM> transmitted by the antenna units <NUM> may be unique - e.g., fourth antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may transmit a fourth ranging signal <NUM>-<NUM> from antenna <NUM>-<NUM> (where different components received by different antenna units <NUM> are shown) that is unique to fourth antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM>, fifth antenna unit may transmit a fifth ranging signal <NUM>-<NUM> from antenna <NUM>-<NUM> (where different components received by different antenna units <NUM> are shown) that is unique to fifth antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM>, and so on for the other antenna units.

In some examples, a ranging signal is transmitted using a frequency range that is unique to the transmitting antenna unit. In some examples, a ranging signal may be modulated using a modulation sequence that is unique to the transmitting antenna unit. In some examples, the modulation sequence used to modulate a ranging signal may be used to indicate an identity of the transmitting antenna unit. The modulation sequences used to transmit the ranging signals <NUM> may be selected to be orthogonal to one another. In some examples, a ranging signal may include information, such as a time stamp indicating when the ranging signal was transmitted, an identity of the antenna unit that transmitted the ranging signal, the latest GPS coordinates of the antenna unit that transmitted the ranging signal, etc..

The ranging signals <NUM> may be transmitted using out-of-band frequencies. That is, the ranging signals <NUM> may be transmitted using a frequency band that is different than (e.g., non-overlapping with) a frequency band used for communication signals. In some examples, the ranging signals <NUM> are transmitted using a frequency band that higher than the frequency band used for communication signals - e.g., so that a frequency of the ranging signals may be higher than a carrier frequency of the communication signals. Using the higher frequency band may ensure that the wavelength of the ranging signals is smaller than a wavelength of the modulated communication signals. In some examples, the ranging signals are communicated using a <NUM> frequency band or greater.

As described herein, each antenna unit <NUM> (including the reference antenna units) may receive a component of each of the ranging signals transmitted from the other antenna units <NUM>). The antenna managers <NUM> of the antenna units may process each of the received ranging signals <NUM>. In some examples, the antenna managers <NUM> determine parameters of the received ranging signals <NUM>. For example, the antenna managers <NUM> may determine the respective antenna units <NUM> that transmitted the received ranging signals <NUM>. The antenna managers <NUM> may also determine a time at which the ranging signals <NUM> are received. In some examples, a timing component provides a clock or time reference to the antenna units <NUM>. The antenna managers <NUM> may also determine an angle of arrival of the received ranging signals <NUM>. The antenna managers <NUM> may also determine GPS coordinates of the respective antenna units <NUM> (e.g., antennas <NUM>) that transmitted the received ranging signals <NUM>.

In some examples, each antenna unit <NUM> transmits a response signal (e.g., of response signals <NUM>) in response to the received ranging signals <NUM>. In such cases, the antenna units <NUM> may determine a set of parameters based on the response signals <NUM>. For example, the antenna units <NUM> may determine a time at which the response signals <NUM> are received, an angle of arrival of the response signals <NUM>, respective antenna units <NUM> that transmitted the received response signals <NUM>, GPS coordinates of the respective antenna units <NUM> that transmitted the received response signals <NUM>, or any combination thereof. Techniques that involve response signals <NUM> may be referred to as round-trip signaling.

In some examples, the antenna managers <NUM> may transmit the determined parameters to a central processing unit (e.g., a central processing unit) which may use the parameters to determine distances between each of the antenna units <NUM> (or antennas <NUM>) of antenna array <NUM>. Additionally, or alternatively, the antenna managers <NUM> may themselves determine distances between the antenna units <NUM> (or antennas <NUM>) based on the determined parameters - e.g., by comparing a time at which a ranging signal was transmitted and a time at which the ranging signal was received divided by the speed at which the ranging signal travels (e.g., the speed of light). In some examples, the antenna managers <NUM> may determine the distances to the other antenna units without using a common time reference - e.g., when round-trip signaling is used based on knowing the time at which the ranging signal was transmitted and the time at which the response signal is received. The antenna units <NUM> may transmit the determined distances to the central processing unit. For example, antenna managers <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> of antenna units <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, respectively, may transmit determined distances from ranging signals <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> to the central processing unit.

The central processing unit may determine the distances between each of the antenna units <NUM> of antenna array <NUM> based on the received set of parameters or the distances received from the antenna units. The central processing unit may use the determined distances to determine positions of each of the antenna units <NUM>. In some examples, the central processing unit may use the reference antenna units to determine the orientation of antenna array <NUM>. The central processing unit may use both the determined distances, the known positions of the reference antenna units, and the orientation of the antenna array to determine the positions of each of the antenna units. Techniques used by the central processing unit to determine the positions of each of the antenna units are described in more detail herein and with respect to <FIG>.

<FIG> shows an example of a communications network <NUM> that supports sparse antenna array calibration in accordance with examples described herein.

Communications network <NUM> depicts a system for communicating using one or more of MIMO techniques, geometric interpretation techniques, and geometrically-informed MIMO techniques. Communications network <NUM> also depicts a system for calibrating antenna array <NUM>.

Communications network <NUM> may include antenna array <NUM>, bus <NUM>, beam manager <NUM>, calibration unit <NUM>, processor <NUM>, communications manager <NUM>, and memory <NUM>. At least a portion (e.g., all) of communications network <NUM> may be located within a space segment of communications network <NUM> (e.g., in a satellite system). In some examples, a portion of communications network <NUM> that is not included in the space segment may be located within a ground segment of communications network <NUM> (e.g., in a ground system). For example, antenna array <NUM>, beam manager <NUM>, calibration unit <NUM>, processor <NUM>, and memory <NUM> may be included in a space segment of communications network <NUM>, while communications manager <NUM> may be included in a ground segment of communications network <NUM>. In another example, antenna array <NUM> may be included in a space segment of communications network <NUM>, while beam manager <NUM>, calibration unit <NUM>, processor <NUM>, memory <NUM>, and communications manager <NUM> may be included in a ground segment of communications network <NUM>.

Antenna array <NUM> may be an example of the antenna array of <FIG> and <FIG> and may include antenna units <NUM>. The antenna units <NUM> may be examples of the antenna units described with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>. The spacing between the antenna units <NUM> may be different across antenna array <NUM>. In some examples, one or more of the antenna units <NUM> may be included in an antenna subarray (an antenna subarray with inconsistent spacing) or include an antenna subarray (e.g., an antenna subarray with consistent antenna spacing) as described with reference to <FIG>. In some examples, a distance (e.g., an average distance) between the antenna units <NUM> is greater than a distance associated with a wavelength of signals communicated using antenna array <NUM>. In some examples, a distance (e.g., an average distance) between the antenna units <NUM> is greater than a distance associated with ten times the wavelength of the signals communicated using antenna array <NUM>.

The antenna units <NUM> may include an antenna <NUM> and an antenna manager <NUM>. In some examples, the antenna <NUM> may be a single antenna or an antenna panel that includes consistently spaced antenna elements. The antenna managers <NUM> may be used to manage the transmission and reception of ranging signals from a respective antenna unit <NUM>. In some examples, a subset of the antenna units <NUM> (e.g., three or more of the antenna units <NUM>) are designated as reference antenna units. In such cases, one reference antenna unit of the subset of the antenna units <NUM> may be designated as an origin of antenna array <NUM> and may be referred to as the origin reference antenna unit. That is, the origin reference antenna unit may be designated as having an xyz position of (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>). In some examples, the reference antenna units are an affine set of points within an absolute orientation relative to a satellite including the antenna array <NUM>.

In some examples, a position of the other reference antenna units relative to the origin reference antenna unit may be known. In some examples, the position of the other reference antenna units may be known based on an architecture of antenna array <NUM>. For example, the antenna array <NUM> may be configured so that a second reference antenna has an xyz position of (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) and a third reference antenna has an xyz position of (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>). In some examples, the antenna array <NUM> may be configured so that a fourth reference antenna has an xyz position of (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>). In some examples, a unit of the xyz coordinates system is equivalent to a wavelength used for communication signals. Also, in some examples, the axis of the coordinate system may rotate with antenna array <NUM> to maintain the above coordinates regardless of the current orientation of antenna array <NUM>. In some examples, to obtain reference antenna units that are configured with the preceding coordinates, rigid connections between the reference antenna units may be used.

In other examples, the position of the other reference antenna units relative to the origin reference antenna unit may be known based on ground-based measurement. For example, the positions of the other reference antenna units relative to the origin reference antenna unit may be determined at a ground station using RADAR or light detection and ranging (LIDAR) techniques. In some examples, the ground station may signal the positions of the reference antenna units to calibration unit <NUM>.

Bus <NUM> may represent an interface over which signals may be exchanged between antenna array <NUM> and a central location that may be used to distribute the signals to the signal processing components of communications network <NUM> (e.g., beam manager <NUM> and calibration unit <NUM>. Bus <NUM> may include a collection of wires that connect to each of the antennas. Additionally, or alternatively, bus <NUM> may be a wireless interface that is used to wirelessly communicate signaling between antenna array <NUM> and the signal processing components - e.g., in accordance with a communication protocol.

Beam manager <NUM> may be configured to form beams, including discovery beams, communication beams, geometric interpretation-based beams, MIMO-based beams, and the like. In some examples, beam manager <NUM> may be configured to form one or more discovery beams (e.g., the discovery beams that cover the discovery areas <NUM> of <FIG>) within a geographic area (e.g., geographic area <NUM> of <FIG>) that is covered by the antenna array <NUM>. To form the discovery beams, native antenna patterns of sets of the antennas <NUM> of the antenna units <NUM> may be used, or may be combined with beamforming techniques, MIMO techniques, or a combination thereof.

Beam manager <NUM> may also be configured to form one or more communication beams (e.g., the communication beams that form the beam coverage areas <NUM> of <FIG>). To form the communication beams, geometric interpretation-based beamforming techniques, MIMO techniques, or geometrically-informed MIMO techniques may be used. Beam manager <NUM> may include geometric component <NUM> and MIMO component <NUM>.

Geometric component <NUM> may be configured to use a geometric relationship between a position of a terminal and a set (e.g., up to and including all) of the antenna units <NUM> of antenna array <NUM> to form small communication beams (e.g., communication beams that have a diameter that is less than ten (<NUM>) km, or less than five (<NUM>) km). In some examples, geometric component <NUM> may determine beam coefficients (e.g., phase shifts, amplitude components) that may be used to align in time signals detected at different antennas <NUM> of the antenna units <NUM> so that the signals may be summed together according to the spatial location of the terminal, increasing the signal strength of a transmitted signal associated with each of the detected signals. In some examples, geometric component <NUM> may determine a first set of beam coefficients associated with a first beam coverage area, a second set of beam coefficients associated with a second beam coverage area, and so on. Accordingly, geometric component <NUM> may independently determine and apply multiple sets of beam coefficients to signals received from antenna array <NUM>, each set of beam coefficients associated with a different beam coverage area.

MIMO component <NUM> may be configured to use multipath signal propagation to form MIMO-based beams. In some examples, MIMO component <NUM> may receive channel sounding probes from a set of transmitters (e.g., terminals), where the structure of the channel sounding probes may be known to MIMO component <NUM> and where the channel sounding probes transmitted from different transmitters may be orthogonal to one another. MIMO component <NUM> may use the channel sounding probes to estimate the channel between antenna array <NUM> and the transmitters. Based on the estimated channel, MIMO component <NUM> may determine beam coefficients (e.g., amplitude and phase shifts) that may be used to reveal the spatial layers of the channel. In some examples, MIMO component <NUM> may determine beam coefficients that may be used to isolate signals transmitted over the spatial layers from one another - e.g., by, in each spatial layer, emphasizing the signals transmitted within the spatial layer and canceling interference from signals transmitted within other spatial layers. MIMO component <NUM> may determine a single set of beam coefficients that is applied to the signals detected at a set (e.g., all) of the antennas <NUM> of the antenna units <NUM> at antenna array <NUM>. The beam coefficients may be included in an M × N matrix, where a value of M may indicate the quantity of antenna units <NUM> and a value of N may indicate the quantity of spatial layers, where the value of N may be less than or equal to the value of M.

Calibration unit <NUM> may be configured to determine a position (e.g., coordinates) of each of the antenna units <NUM> (or antennas <NUM>) of antenna array <NUM>. Calibration unit <NUM> may be configured to determine the distances between each of the antenna units <NUM> (or antennas <NUM>) of antenna array <NUM>. Calibration unit <NUM> may be configured to determine the orientation of antenna array <NUM>. In some examples, calibration unit <NUM> uses the determined distances between each of the antenna units <NUM> and the orientation of antenna array <NUM> to determine the position of each of the antenna units <NUM> (or antennas <NUM>). In some examples, beam manager <NUM> (e.g., either geometric component <NUM> or MIMO component <NUM>) may use the positions of the antenna units <NUM> determined by calibration unit <NUM> to determine beam coefficients for antenna array <NUM> to form communication beams for communicating with one or more terminals, discovery beams, or both. Calibration unit <NUM> may include positioning component <NUM>, measurement component <NUM>, and timing component <NUM>.

Positioning component <NUM> may be configured to determine positions of a set of the antenna units <NUM> that have been designated as reference antenna units. In some examples, positioning component <NUM> determines the positions of the reference antenna units based on an architecture of antenna array <NUM>. For example, positioning component <NUM> may determine that a first reference antenna unit is at an origin (e.g., (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>)) of antenna array <NUM>, a second reference antenna unit is at a point that is a unit interval away from the origin along a first axis (e.g., (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>)), and a third reference antenna unit is at a point that is a unit interval away from the origin along a second axis (e.g., (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>)). In some examples, the reference antenna units may be connected to one another by way of rigid connections that maintain this geometric relationship between the reference antenna units. In some examples, the trajectories of the reference antenna units may be controlled to maintain this geometric relationship. In such cases, the coordinate system may rotate with antenna array <NUM> to maintain this geometric relationship between the reference antenna units.

In some examples, positioning component <NUM> determines the positions of the reference antenna units based on positioning coordinates broadcast by the reference antenna units - e.g., in accordance with a fixed coordinate system. In some examples, positioning component <NUM> determines the positions of the reference antenna units based on positioning coordinates of the reference antenna units received from a ground-based ranging station that measures the position of each of the reference antenna units.

Measurement component <NUM> may be configured to determine distances between each of the antenna units <NUM> (or antennas <NUM>). In some examples, measurement component <NUM> determines the distances between each of the antenna units <NUM> (or antennas <NUM>) based on sets of parameters received from the antenna units <NUM>, where the sets of parameters may include transmission and reception timestamps. In some examples, measurement component <NUM> determines the distances between each of the antenna units <NUM> based on distances determined by and received from the antenna units <NUM>. In some examples, measurement component <NUM> determines the distances between each of the antenna units <NUM> based on distances received from a ground-based ranging station. In some examples, the distances are expressed as multiples of a wavelength of a principal communications frequency - e.g., a lowest frequency, central frequency, or highest frequency to be covered in the communications bandwidth. For example, if the communications bandwidth ranges from <NUM> to <NUM>, the wavelength used as a unit of measurement may be chosen as the wavelength of <NUM>, <NUM>, or <NUM>. In other examples, the distances may be expressed as multiples of a different wavelength related to the principal communications frequency (e.g., a wavelength corresponding to two times the highest frequency of the communications bandwidth).

In some examples, measurement component <NUM> may arrange the determined distances in matrix form, which may be referred to as a Euclidean distance matrix. For example, measurement component <NUM> may arrange the determined distances between a first antenna unit and the other antenna units (including itself) in a first row, the determined distances between a second antenna unit and the other antenna units (including itself) in a second row, and so on for all of the antenna units. Such a matrix may be represented as <MAT>, where d<NUM>,<NUM> represents the distance between the first antenna unit and itself; d<NUM>,N represents the distance between the first antenna unit and the Nth antenna unit; dN,<NUM> represents the distance between the Nth antenna unit and the first antenna unit; and dN,N represents the distance between the Nth antenna unit and the Nth antenna unit. Such a matrix may have zeros along the diagonal - e.g., because the distance between an antenna unit and itself may be equal to zero. Also, the matrix may be symmetric - that is, di,j may equal dj,i assuming noiseless measurement. Thus, the matrix may also be represented as <MAT>. An entry in the matrix, di,j, may be equal to ∥pi - pj∥<NUM>, which may be equivalent to <MAT>, which may be equivalent to <MAT>.

Measurement component <NUM> may also be configured to determine an orientation of antenna array <NUM>. In some examples, measurement component <NUM> may determine the orientation of antenna array <NUM> based on the reference antenna units. In some cases, measurement component <NUM> may determine the orientation of antenna array <NUM> based on receiving the positioning coordinates of the reference antenna units relative to a fixed coordinate system and determining a rotated coordinate system that provides a desired geometric relationship between the reference antenna units (e.g., (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>); (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>); (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>)). Measurement component <NUM> may compare the fixed and rotated coordinate systems to determine an orientation of antenna array <NUM>. In other cases, measurement component <NUM> may receive rotation information from the antenna units <NUM>, where the antenna managers <NUM> may determine offsets between positions of the antenna units <NUM> and positions of a fixed coordinate system.

Positioning component <NUM> may be further configured to calculate the positions of the antenna units <NUM> - e.g., based on the determined distances between each of the antenna units <NUM>. Positioning component <NUM> may arrange the positions of the antenna units in matrix form. For example, a position of a first antenna unit may be represented in a first column of a matrix P, a position of a second antenna unit may be represented in a second column of the matrix, and so on. Such a matrix may be represented as <MAT>. In some examples, the positions of a subset of the antenna units are known - e.g., the reference antenna units. In such cases, the matrix may be represented as <MAT>. Positioning component <NUM> may calculate the x, y, and z coordinates corresponding to the unknown positions of the antenna units based on the Euclidean distance matrix. In some examples, the determined matrix P may be rotated relative to a fixed coordinate system by a matrix R, which may be represented as <MAT>.

Timing component <NUM> may be configured to provide a common time reference to the antenna units <NUM>. In some examples, timing component <NUM> is configured to transmit (e.g., periodically) one or more signals that enable the antenna units <NUM> to synchronize their internal clocks.

Calibration unit <NUM> may also include a Kalman filter. In some examples, the measurements (e.g., sets of parameters) received by measurement component <NUM> may be applied to the Kalman filter and used to update a model of the positions of the antenna units <NUM>. In such cases, if the antenna units <NUM> are moving deterministically, the result of the Kalman filter may be used to predict positions of the antenna units <NUM> at a later time.

In some examples, positioning component <NUM> may be further configured to calculate the orientation of antennas (e.g., antennas <NUM>) of the antenna units <NUM>, for example using signal strength measurements of the ranging signals transmitted by an antenna unit <NUM> received at multiple other antenna units <NUM>, and a known radiation pattern of the antenna <NUM> of the antenna unit <NUM>. For example, an orientation of an antenna <NUM> may be determined by comparing relative signal strength measurements of ranging signals, taking into account the relative distances determined between the antenna units <NUM>.

Communications manager <NUM> may be configured to process beam signals received from beam manager <NUM>. Communications manager <NUM> may decode data symbols included in the beam signals. In some examples, communications manager <NUM> may configure different modes at beam manager <NUM>. For example, communications manager <NUM> may configure a first mode at beam manager <NUM> that is used for discovering terminals in a geographic area. While the first mode is configured, beam manager <NUM> may use beamforming and/or MIMO techniques to form discovery areas. Communications manager <NUM> may also configure a second mode at beam manager <NUM> that is used for communication with terminals in the geographic area using small beams. While the second mode is configured, beam manager <NUM> may use geometric interpretation to form beam coverage areas for communicating with discovered terminals.

Processor <NUM> may include an intelligent hardware device (e.g., a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application-specific integrated circuit ( ), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof). The processor <NUM> may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory (e.g., memory <NUM>) to cause the communications network <NUM> to perform various functions (e.g., functions or tasks supporting sparse antenna array calibration). For example, the communications network <NUM> or a component of the communications network <NUM> may include a processor <NUM> and memory <NUM> coupled to the processor <NUM> that are configured to perform various functions described herein.

The memory <NUM> may include random access memory (RAM) and/or read-only memory (ROM). The memory <NUM> may store code that is computer-readable and computer-executable. The code may include instructions that, when executed by the processor <NUM>, cause the communications network <NUM> to perform various functions described herein. The code <NUM> may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or another type of memory. In some cases, the memory <NUM> may contain, among other things, a basic I/O system (BIOS) which may control basic hardware or software operation such as the interaction with peripheral components or devices.

In some examples, beam manager <NUM>, calibration unit <NUM>, communications manager <NUM>, or various combinations or components thereof, may be implemented in hardware (e.g., in communications management circuitry). The hardware may include a processor, a DSP, an ASIC, an FPGA or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof configured as or otherwise supporting a means for performing the functions described in the present disclosure. In some examples, a processor and memory coupled with the processor may be configured to perform one or more of the functions described herein (e.g., by executing, by the processor, instructions stored in the memory).

Additionally, or alternatively, beam manager <NUM>, calibration unit <NUM>, communications manager <NUM>, or various combinations or components thereof, may be implemented in code <NUM> (e.g., as communications management software or firmware), executed by processor <NUM>. If implemented in code <NUM> executed by processor <NUM>, the functions of beam manager <NUM>, calibration unit <NUM>, communications manager <NUM>, or various combinations or components thereof may be performed by a general-purpose processor, a DSP, a central processing unit (CPU), an ASIC, an FPGA, or any combination of these or other programmable logic devices (e.g., configured as or otherwise supporting a means for performing the functions described in the present disclosure).

Ranging station <NUM> may be configured to determine geometric information of antenna array <NUM>. In some examples, ranging station <NUM> may be configured to determine a position of a set of antenna units <NUM> that have been designated as reference antenna units. Ranging station <NUM> may also be configured to determine a distance between each of the antenna units <NUM>. Ranging station <NUM> may be ground-based or satellite based.

<FIG> shows an example of a communications subsystem <NUM> that supports sparse antenna array calibration in accordance with examples described herein. Communications subsystem <NUM> depicts communications between antenna array <NUM> and terminals <NUM> that are processed using geometric relationships between the antenna units <NUM> of antenna array <NUM> and the terminals <NUM>. In some examples, a first set of signals <NUM> (signals <NUM>-<NUM> to <NUM>-M) are transmitted between first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> and antenna array <NUM>, and a second set of signals <NUM> (e.g., signals <NUM>-<NUM> to <NUM>-N) are transmitted between second terminal <NUM>-<NUM> and antenna array <NUM>. In some examples, the first set of signals <NUM> may be associated with a single signal (e.g., a preamble or data signal) transmitted from first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> to antenna array <NUM>, where the first set of signals <NUM> may be components (e.g., multipath components) of the signal transmitted from first terminal <NUM>-<NUM>. In other examples, the first set of signals <NUM> may be associated with a single signal (e.g., a preamble response or data signal) obtained at antenna array <NUM> for transmission to first terminal <NUM>-<NUM>, where the first set of signals <NUM> may be components (e.g., elements) of the signal transmitted from antenna array <NUM>. Similarly, the second set of signals <NUM> may be associated with a single signal (e.g., a preamble or data signal) transmitted from second terminal <NUM>-<NUM> to antenna array <NUM> or a single signal (e.g., a preamble response or data signal) obtained at antenna array <NUM> for transmission to second terminal <NUM>-<NUM>.

In some examples, a first set of the antenna units <NUM> and first beam coefficients are used to form discovery beam <NUM> having discovery area <NUM>. Signals received at antenna array <NUM> using the first set of the antenna units <NUM> and the first beam coefficients may be analyzed to determine whether a preamble indicating the presence of a terminal is included in the signals. In some examples, the presence of first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> is detected based on first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> transmitting a preamble, where the first set of signals <NUM> may be signal components of the preamble transmission. The preamble may include a repeating waveform. In some examples, the waveform may be modulated with a spreading code before transmission or may include encoded data to increase a difficulty associated with spoofing the preamble. The preamble may also include positioning information - e.g., in a second part of the preamble.

In some examples, a position of first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> may be determined based on positioning information included in the preamble. Additionally, or alternatively, the position of first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> may be determined based on dithering a beam coverage area around discovery area <NUM> after detecting the presence of first terminal <NUM>-<NUM>. The position of first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> may be determined based on a signal quality associated with first beam coverage area <NUM>-<NUM> satisfying a threshold, being higher than signal qualities associated with other beam coverage areas covered by the dithering operation, or both. The presence and position of second terminal <NUM>-<NUM> may similarly be detected based on a preamble transmitted from second terminal <NUM>-<NUM>, where the second set of signals <NUM> may be signal components of the preamble transmission. Similarly, the position of second terminal <NUM>-<NUM> may be determined based on dithering a beam coverage area <NUM>-<NUM> around discovery area <NUM> after detecting the presence of second terminal <NUM>-<NUM>.

Second beam coefficients may be determined for first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> based on the position of first terminal <NUM>-<NUM>. The second beam coefficients may also be determined based on a position of the antenna units <NUM> relative to first terminal <NUM>-<NUM>, where the position of the antenna units <NUM> may be determined as described above. In some cases, the second beam coefficients may also be determined based on determined orientations of the antenna units <NUM>, where the orientations of the antenna units may be determined as described above. The second beam coefficients, along with a second set of the antenna units <NUM>, may be used in the formation of first communication beam <NUM>-<NUM> having first beam coverage area <NUM>-<NUM>. The second beam coefficients may be used to apply timing shifts (e.g., phase shifts) or amplitude weighting to signals detected at different antennas of the second set of the antenna units <NUM>, such that signals transmitted within first beam coverage area <NUM>-<NUM> are distinguishable from signals transmitted within adjacent beam coverage areas. In some examples, the second beam coefficients may be represented using an M<NUM> × <NUM> vector, where M<NUM> may represent the quantity of antennas (e.g., <NUM> antennas, <NUM> antennas, etc.) of the second set of the antenna units <NUM>. In some cases, the M<NUM> × <NUM> vector may include coefficients for all of antenna units <NUM>, where some coefficients may be zero coefficients (e.g., the second set of antenna units <NUM> that contribute to the first communication beam <NUM>-<NUM> may be a subset of the antenna units <NUM>).

Third beam coefficients may similarly be determined for second terminal <NUM>-<NUM>. In some examples, the third beam coefficients may be represented using an M<NUM> × <NUM> vector, where M<NUM> may represent the quantity of antennas (e.g., <NUM> antennas, <NUM> antennas, etc.) of a third set of the antenna units <NUM>. In some examples, the third set of the antenna units <NUM> and the second set of the antenna units <NUM> are overlapping (e.g., partially or completely).

In some examples, the first set of the antenna units <NUM> associated with discovery beam <NUM> may detect the first set of signals <NUM> within discovery area <NUM> and the second beam coefficients used to form first communication beam <NUM>-<NUM> may be determined. Based on the determining, the second beam coefficients may be applied to a subsequent set of detected signals (e.g., corresponding to a subsequent data signal transmitted by first terminal <NUM>-<NUM>) that is output by the second set of the antenna units <NUM> associated with first communication beam <NUM>-<NUM>. In some examples, the second set of the antenna units <NUM> includes most (e.g., greater than <NUM>%, <NUM>%, <NUM>%, <NUM>%, or <NUM>%) of the antenna units <NUM> at antenna array <NUM>. In some cases, the second set of antenna units <NUM> may include a portion (or all) of the first set of antenna units <NUM> associated with discovery beam <NUM>, where the second set of antenna units <NUM> may include a larger quantity of the antenna units <NUM> than the first set of antenna units <NUM>.

The first set of antenna units <NUM> associated with discovery beam <NUM> may also detect the second set of signals <NUM> within discovery area <NUM> and the third beam coefficients used to form second communication beam <NUM>-<NUM> may be determined. Based on the determining, the third beam coefficients may be applied to a subsequent set of detected signals (corresponding to a subsequent data signal transmitted by second terminal <NUM>-<NUM>) that is output by the third set of the antenna units <NUM> associated with second communication beam <NUM>-<NUM>. The third set of antenna units <NUM> may be overlapping with the second set of antenna units <NUM> - e.g., may include a portion of or be the same as the second set of antenna units <NUM>. The second set of antenna units <NUM> may also include most (e.g., greater than <NUM>%, <NUM>%, <NUM>%, <NUM>%, or <NUM>%) of the antenna units <NUM> at antenna array <NUM>.

Signal diagram <NUM> depicts a first set of element signals <NUM> (e.g., element signals <NUM>-<NUM> to <NUM>-M) detected at the second set of antenna units <NUM> associated with first communication beam <NUM>-<NUM> and a second set of element signals <NUM> (e.g., element signals <NUM>-<NUM> to <NUM>-N) detected at the third set of antenna units <NUM> associated with second communication beam <NUM>-<NUM>. Signal diagram <NUM> also depicts time delays associated with when the first set of element signals <NUM> and second set of element signals <NUM> are detected at respective antennas. The first set of element signals <NUM> may correspond to the first set of signals <NUM>, and the second set of element signals <NUM> may correspond to the second set of signals <NUM>. In some examples, the first set of element signals <NUM> and the first set of signals <NUM> may be associated with a data signal transmitted from first terminal <NUM>-<NUM>. And the second set of element signals <NUM> and the second set of signals <NUM> may be associated with a data signal transmitted from second terminal <NUM>-<NUM>.

Signal diagram <NUM> also depicts a result of applying first beam coefficients <NUM>-<NUM> (which may correspond to the second beam coefficients used to form first communication beam <NUM>-<NUM>) to the first set of element signals <NUM> to obtain resulting element signals <NUM> (e.g., element signals <NUM>-<NUM> to <NUM>-M). In some examples, each beam coefficient of first beam coefficients <NUM>-<NUM> may be applied to a respective antenna of the second set of the antenna units <NUM>. Each beam coefficient of first beam coefficients <NUM>-<NUM> may be used to apply a time delay (e.g., a phase shift) or an amplitude weight, or both, to a signal received at a respective antenna element such that the resulting element signals <NUM> are aligned in time and can be combined (e.g., summed via summing component <NUM>) with one another to form first beam signal <NUM>-<NUM> for first communication beam <NUM>-<NUM>, where a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) value of first beam signal <NUM>-<NUM> may be proportional to the quantity of element signals <NUM>. In some examples, summing component <NUM> may include separate summing components that are used to sum the element signals obtained for respective communication beams.

Second beam coefficients <NUM>-<NUM> (which may correspond to the third beam coefficients used to form second communication beam <NUM>-<NUM>) may similarly be applied to the second set of element signals <NUM> and the resulting element signals <NUM> (e.g., element signals <NUM>-<NUM> to <NUM>-N) may be combined (e.g., summed via summing component <NUM>) to obtain second beam signal <NUM>-<NUM> for second communication beam <NUM>-<NUM>. Accordingly, the beam coefficients used to form the communication beams <NUM> may be independently determined and applied to signals received at antenna units <NUM>.

In some examples, the transmission of the associated data signal from first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> and the associated data signal from second terminal <NUM>-<NUM> may overlap (e.g., partially or fully) with one another in time. In such cases, the first set of element signals <NUM> and the second set of element signals <NUM> may be superimposed, forming a composite signal. Also, in such cases, first beam coefficients <NUM>-<NUM> may be applied to the composite signals to obtain resulting element signals <NUM> and second beam coefficients <NUM>-<NUM> may be applied to the composite signal to obtain resulting element signals <NUM>. In such cases, the undesired signals in the composite signals may result in noise in the resulting beam signal <NUM> and may approach being canceled for a large number of elements signals.

In some examples, the following equation may be used for determining beam signals received from multiple communication beams <NUM>: <MAT> where <MAT> corresponds to the signal received at the ith antenna of a set of antennas, f<NUM> is the carrier frequency of the signal, t is the current time, <MAT> is the time at which the signal is received at the ith antenna, <MAT> is a quantized estimate of the time delay between the signal received at the ith antenna and the earliest signal received at the set of antennas, and ø is the phase of the signal. The time delay between the signal recited at the ith antenna and the earliest signal received at the set of antennas represents the delay spread across the array at each ith antenna. Subtracting the individual delay may bring all signal samples into alignment - e.g., as if they were all co-located at the "earliest signal" arrival location.

<FIG> shows an example of a communications subsystem <NUM> that supports sparse antenna array calibration in accordance with examples described herein. Communications subsystem <NUM> depicts communications between antenna array <NUM> and terminals <NUM> that are processing using MIMO processing or geometrically-informed MIMO processing. In some examples, first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> is an example of first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> of <FIG>, and second terminal <NUM>-<NUM> is an example of second terminal <NUM>-<NUM> of <FIG>.

The communication paths between the terminals <NUM> and antenna array <NUM> may be referred to as a channel. The channel may be composed of multiple spatial layers, where the multiple antenna units <NUM> of antenna array <NUM> (along with a set of beam coefficients) may be used to expose the spatial layers of the channel. In some examples, the set of beam coefficients (which may also be referred to as MIMO coefficients) are selected to expose a first spatial layer of the channel that encompasses first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> (which may also be referred to as a communication beam or MIMO beam) and a second spatial layer of the channel that encompasses second terminal <NUM>-<NUM>.

In some examples, the beam coefficients are determined based on channel sounding probes transmitted from the terminals <NUM>. The channel sounding probes may have signal patterns that are known to the communications network and that can be used to adapt the beam coefficients to ensure that the spatial layers are focused on respective terminals (or groups of terminals). The channel sounding probes may also be orthogonal to one another. Estimation techniques, such as maximum ratio combining (MRC), minimum mean square error (MMSE), zero forcing, successive interference cancellation, maximum likelihood estimation, or neural network MIMO detection techniques, may be used to estimate the channel between antenna array <NUM> and the terminals <NUM>, as well as to determine the beam coefficients. Because the beam coefficients are formed using channel sounding probes received from multiple terminals, the resulting beam coefficients may be dependent on channel sounding probes transmitted in different spatial layers. That is, the beam coefficients may be determined to decrease interference from the channel sounding probes on each other and changes to one beam coefficient may result in changes to other beam coefficients. Accordingly, the beam coefficients may be included in a single MIMO matrix (e.g., a M × N matrix, where M may represent the quantity of antenna units <NUM> and N may represent the quantity of spatial streams), where the elements of the matrix may be dependent on one another.

In some examples, operations for determining the beam coefficients use high levels of processing and are highly complex. The amount of processing and complexity may increase as the quantity of antennas increases and as the quantity of spatial streams increases. In some examples, geometric relationships between terminals <NUM> and antenna units <NUM> may be used to simplify the operations for determining the beam coefficients - e.g., by constraining the channel matrix, reducing the set of possible beam coefficients, or both. In some examples, the channel sounding probes may experience less scattering based on the relative positions of the terminals <NUM> and antenna array <NUM>. Accordingly, the channel estimated using the channel sounding probes may be constrained, which may reduce a complexity associated with determining the beam coefficients.

The geometric relationships between terminals <NUM> and antenna units <NUM> may enable the set of possible beam coefficients to be reduced for one or more of the following reasons - the position of the antennas in space may reduce the amount of scattering and multipath components that are taken into consideration in a terrestrial application; the position of the antennas in space may reduce the angles from which the signals transmitted from terminals <NUM> may arrive; the time delays at the different antenna units <NUM> may be utilized to determine spatial information that facilitates determining the beam coefficients, etc..

Signal diagram <NUM> may depict a first set of element signals <NUM> (e.g., element signals <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM> to <NUM>-M) received at antenna array <NUM>, where each element signal <NUM> may be received at a respective antenna - e.g., first element signal <NUM>-<NUM> may correspond to a first antenna of the antenna units <NUM>. Each element signal <NUM> may receive signal components related to signals transmitted from first terminal <NUM>-<NUM> and second terminal <NUM>-<NUM> (and, in some examples, from other terminals), including direct path and multipath signals.

MIMO matrix <NUM> may be applied to the element signals <NUM>, where the elements of MIMO matrix <NUM> may be previously determined using channel sounding probes transmitted from a set of terminals. After MIMO matrix <NUM> is applied to element signals <NUM>, a set of beam signals <NUM> (e.g., beam signals <NUM>-<NUM> to <NUM>-N) may be output, where the beam signals <NUM> may be associated with respective spatial layers of the channel that are exposed by MIMO matrix <NUM>.

<FIG> shows an example set of operations for sparse antenna array calibration in accordance with examples described herein. Process flow <NUM> may be performed by processing unit <NUM> and antenna units <NUM> (e.g., antenna units <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>-<NUM> to <NUM>-N) of antenna array <NUM>. Processing unit <NUM> may include a calibration unit and a beam manager as described with reference to <FIG>. Antenna array <NUM> and antenna units <NUM> may be respective examples of an antenna array and antenna units as described with reference to <FIG>.

In some examples, process flow <NUM> illustrates an exemplary sequence of operations performed to support sparse antenna array calibration. For example, process flow <NUM> depicts operations for discovering terminals and forming small communication beams using a sparse antenna array. One or more of the operations described in process flow <NUM> may be performed earlier or later in the process, omitted, replaced, supplemented, or combined with another operation. Also, additional operations described herein that are not included in process flow <NUM> may be included.

At <NUM>, the antenna units <NUM> may each broadcast ranging signals. Each of the ranging signals may be unique to the transmitting antenna unit. For example, each ranging signal may be modulated using a modulation sequence that is unique to the transmitting antenna unit. In some examples, the ranging signals may include information, such as an identity of the transmitting antenna unit, a time at which the ranging signal was transmitted, GPS coordinates of the transmitting antenna unit, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the antenna units <NUM> may each broadcast the ranging signals at the same time. In other examples, the broadcasting of the ranging signals may be staggered - e.g., within a time window.

At <NUM>, the antenna units <NUM> may each transmit response signals in response to receiving a set of ranging signals. In some examples, the transmitting antenna units <NUM> may use the same modulation sequence used to transmit a broadcast ranging signal to transmit the response signals. Each of the response signals may be transmitted a fixed or known time after receiving the respective ranging signals. In some examples, the response signals may include information, such as an identity of the responding antenna unit, a time at which the response signal was transmitted, GPS coordinates of the responding antenna unit, or any combination thereof.

At <NUM>, the antenna units <NUM> may measure parameters for the ranging signals, response signals, or both. Based on receiving the ranging signals transmitted by the other antenna units, each of the antenna units <NUM> may determine parameters for each of the received ranging signals. For example, second antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may determine parameters (e.g., timing information, angle of arrival, received signal strength, etc.) for a ranging signal received from first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM>, and vice versa. Based on receiving response signals from the other antenna units, the receiving antenna units may determine parameters for the response signals. For example, first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may determine parameters (e.g., timing information, received signal strength, angle of arrival, etc.) for a response signal received from second antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> in response to the ranging signal transmitted by first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM>, and vice versa. In some examples, the antenna units <NUM> determine to which of the antenna units <NUM> the measured parameters belong based on identifying information indicated by the corresponding ranging signal or response signal. For example, the antenna units <NUM> may decode identifying information from the corresponding ranging signal or response signal. Additionally, or alternatively, the antenna units <NUM> may determine the identity of the corresponding antenna units based on an index of a modulation sequence used for the ranging signal - e.g., where each of the antenna units <NUM> may be assigned to use a respective modulation sequence of a set of modulation sequences.

At <NUM>, each of the antenna units <NUM> may determine distances between itself and the other antenna units - e.g., based on the measured parameters, information included in the ranging signals, information included in the response signals. In some examples, the antenna units <NUM> may use time stamps received in a ranging signal to determine the distances. For example, second antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may determine a distance between itself and first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> based on a timestamp included in the ranging signal transmitted from first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM>, a time at which the ranging signal was received at second antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM>, and speed at which the ranging signal propagates. In examples where each of the ranging signals are transmitted at a same time, second antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> may determine the distance between itself and first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> based on the common transmission time, a time at which the ranging signal transmitted by the first antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM> was received at second antenna unit <NUM>-<NUM>, and the speed at which the ranging signal propagates. In some examples, the antenna units <NUM> may use GPS coordinates received in a ranging signal to roughly determine the distances.

At <NUM>, the antenna units <NUM> may transmit ranging information to processing unit <NUM>. In some examples, the ranging information includes the parameters measured by the antenna units <NUM> for each of the other antenna units. In some examples, the ranging information includes the distances determined by each of the antenna units <NUM> between themselves and the other antenna units.

At <NUM>, processing unit <NUM> may determine the distances between each of the antenna units <NUM> - e.g., based on the received parameters, the received distances, or a combination thereof. Processing unit <NUM> may generate a Euclidean distance matrix based on the distances, as described herein and with reference to <FIG>, where the Euclidean distance matrix may express the distances between each of the antenna units <NUM>.

At <NUM>, processing unit <NUM> may determine an orientation of antenna array <NUM>. In some examples, a subset of antenna units <NUM> may be designated as reference antenna units with an origin of antenna array <NUM> being positioned at one of the reference antenna units, and processing unit <NUM> may use the reference antenna units to determine the orientation of antenna array <NUM>, as described herein and with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>.

At <NUM>, processing unit <NUM> may determine the positions of the antenna units <NUM> based on the distances determined between each of the antenna units <NUM> (e.g., the Euclidean distance matrix). In some examples, processing unit <NUM> may also use the orientation of antenna array <NUM> to determine the positions of the antenna units <NUM>. In some examples, processing unit <NUM> may determine orientations of each of the antenna units <NUM> relative to the orientation of the antenna array <NUM> based on the distances determined for each of the antenna units, measured signal strength of the ranging signals or response signals, and known antenna radiation patterns of the antenna units <NUM>.

At <NUM>, processing unit <NUM> may determine beam coefficients for antenna array <NUM>. The beam coefficients may be used in combination with antenna array <NUM> to form one or more communication beams having beam coverage areas encompassing one or more terminals. The beam coefficients may be determined based on the determined orientation of antenna array <NUM>, determined positions of the antenna units <NUM>, and/or the determined orientations of the antenna units <NUM> relative to the orientation of the antenna array <NUM>.

At <NUM>, processing unit <NUM> may receive communication signals from the one or more terminals via antenna units <NUM>.

At <NUM>, processing unit <NUM> may apply the determined beam coefficients to the received communication signals to obtain one or more beam signals transmitted from one or more terminals. For example, antenna units <NUM> may transmit representations of the received communications signals to processing unit <NUM>, which may apply the determined beam coefficients to obtain the one or more beam signals. In some examples, the beam coefficients are applied at antenna units <NUM> to obtain components of one or more beam signals, and the antenna units <NUM> transmit the components of the one or more beam signals to processing unit <NUM>. Processing unit <NUM> may combine (e.g., sum) the components of the one or more beam signals to obtain one or more beams signals.

At <NUM>, processing unit <NUM> may demodulate the beam signals and decode the resulting data signals.

<FIG> shows an example set of operations for sparse antenna array calibration in accordance with examples described herein. Method <NUM> may be performed by components of a communication network, such as an antenna array, a ground system, a calibration unit, or a combination thereof, which may be examples of a communications network (or components thereof) described with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>. In some examples, a communications network may execute a set of instructions to control the functional elements of the communications network to perform the described functions. Additionally, or alternatively, the communications network may perform aspects of the described functions using special-purpose hardware.

At <NUM>, method <NUM> may include determining positions of a plurality of reference antennas of an antenna array that comprises the plurality of reference antennas and a plurality of antennas, where a position of a first reference antenna of the plurality of reference antennas is at an origin of the antenna array, positions of other reference antennas of the plurality of reference antennas are determined relative to the first reference antenna, and an inter-element spacing of antennas of the plurality of antennas is different across the antenna array. The operations of <NUM> may be performed in accordance with examples as disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of <NUM> may be performed by a positioning component, as described herein and with reference to <FIG>.

At <NUM>, method <NUM> may include receiving, from a plurality of antenna managers coupled with the plurality of antennas, parameters representative of distances between antennas of the antenna array. The operations of <NUM> may be performed in accordance with examples as disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of <NUM> may be performed by a positioning component, as described as described herein and with reference to <FIG>.

At <NUM>, method <NUM> may include determining distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas based at least in part on the plurality of parameters. The operations of <NUM> may be performed in accordance with examples as disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of <NUM> may be performed by a positioning component, as described as described herein and with reference to <FIG>.

At <NUM>, method <NUM> may include determining a reference orientation of the antenna array based at least in part on the positions of the plurality of reference antennas. The operations of <NUM> may be performed in accordance with examples as disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of <NUM> may be performed by a positioning component, as described as described herein and with reference to <FIG>.

At <NUM>, method <NUM> may include calculating positions of the plurality of antennas based at least in part on the positions of the plurality of reference antennas, the distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas, and the reference orientation of the antenna array. The operations of <NUM> may be performed in accordance with examples as disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of <NUM> may be performed by a measurement component, as described as described herein and with reference to <FIG>.

At <NUM>, method <NUM> may include providing, to a communications manager, the calculated positions of the plurality of antennas. The operations of <NUM> may be performed in accordance with examples as disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of <NUM> may be performed by a measurement component, as described as described herein and with reference to <FIG>.

In some examples, an apparatus as described herein may perform a method or methods, such as the method <NUM>. The apparatus may include, features, circuitry, logic, means, or instructions (e.g., an apparatus including memory and a processor for executing instructions stored in the memory, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code comprising instructions executable by a processor) for determining positions of a plurality of reference antennas of an antenna array that includes the plurality of reference antennas and a plurality of antennas, where a position of a first reference antenna of the plurality of reference antennas is at an origin of the antenna array, positions of other reference antennas of the plurality of reference antennas are determined relative to the first reference antenna, and an inter-element spacing of antennas of the plurality of antennas is different across the antenna array; receiving, from a plurality of antenna managers coupled with the plurality of antennas, parameters representative of distances between antennas of the antenna array; determining distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas based at least in part on the plurality of parameters; determining a reference orientation of the antenna array based at least in part on the positions of the plurality of reference antennas; calculating positions of the plurality of antennas based at least in part on the positions of the plurality of reference antennas, the distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas, and the reference orientation of the antenna array; and providing, to a communications manager, the calculated positions of the plurality of antennas.

In some examples, to calculate the positions of the plurality of antennas, the apparatus may include, features, circuitry, logic, means, or instructions for calculating, based at least in part on the distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas, the calculated positions of the plurality of antennas relative to the origin of the antenna array and in accordance with the reference orientation.

In some examples, the set of parameters includes indications of the distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas, and determining the distances between each of antenna of the plurality of antennas is based at least in part on the indications of the distances.

In some examples, the positions of the plurality of reference antennas are determined based at least in part on a plurality of rigid connections between the plurality of reference antennas.

In some examples, the apparatus may include, features, circuitry, logic, means, or instructions for receiving, from a ground-based measurement station, measured positions of the plurality of reference antennas, where the positions of the plurality of reference antennas are determined based at least in part on the measured distances.

It should be noted that these methods describe examples of implementations, and that the operations and the steps may be rearranged or otherwise modified such that other implementations are possible. In some examples, aspects from two or more of the methods may be combined. For example, aspects of each of the methods may include steps or aspects of the other methods, or other steps or techniques described herein.

In some examples, a system as described herein may perform a method or methods, such as the method <NUM>. The system may include an antenna array comprising a plurality of antennas, where an inter-element spacing of antennas of the plurality of antennas is different across the antenna array; a plurality of antenna managers, where each antenna manager of the plurality of antenna managers is coupled with a respective antenna of the plurality of antennas and configured to: transmit a respective ranging signal from the respective antenna of the plurality of antennas, receive a respective set of ranging signals from other antennas of the plurality of antennas, and measure, based at least in part on receiving the respective set of ranging signals, respective parameters representative of distances between the respective antenna and the other antennas; a calibration unit configured to: determine positions of a plurality of reference antennas, where a position of a first reference antenna of the plurality of reference antennas is at an origin of the antenna array, and where positions of other reference antennas of the plurality of reference antennas are determined relative to the first reference antenna, the plurality of antennas comprising the plurality of reference antennas, determine distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas based at least in part on the parameters measured by the plurality of antenna managers, determine a reference orientation of the antenna array based at least in part on the positions of the plurality of reference antennas, and calculate positions of the plurality of antennas based at least in part on the positions of the plurality of reference antennas, the distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas, and the reference orientation of the antenna array; and a communications manager configured to communicate with a terminal according to beam coefficients determined for the antenna array based at least in part on the calculated positions of the plurality of antennas, the beam coefficients used to form a plurality of beams.

In some examples of the system, the system includes a beam manager configured to determine, for the antenna array, the beam coefficients based at least in part on the calculated positions of the plurality of antennas.

In some examples of the system, to calculate the positions of the plurality of antennas, the calibration unit is further configured to calculate, based at least in part on the distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas, the calculated positions of the plurality of antennas relative to the origin of the antenna array and in accordance with the reference orientation.

In some examples of the system, the plurality of antenna managers are configured to transmit, to the calibration unit, the parameters measured by the plurality of antenna managers, and the calibration unit is configured to determine the distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas based at least in part on receiving the parameters measured by the plurality of antenna managers.

In some examples of the system, each antenna manager of the plurality of antenna managers is configured to determine the distances between the respective antenna and the other antennas of the plurality of antennas based at least in part on measuring the respective set of parameters, and transmit, to the calibration unit, indications of the distances between the respective antenna and the other antennas; and the calibration unit is configured to determine the distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas based at least in part on the indications of the respective distances received from the plurality of antenna managers.

In some examples of the system, the respective ranging signals transmitted from the plurality of antennas are unique.

In some examples of the system, a ranging signal transmitted by an antenna manager of the plurality of antenna managers includes an identifier of the antenna manager, a timestamp of when the ranging signal was transmitted, positioning coordinates of the antenna manager, or any combination thereof.

In some examples of the system, the respective ranging signals are transmitted in a first band that is non-overlapping with a second band used by the communications manager to communicate with terminals.

In some examples of the system, a first frequency band used to transmit the respective ranging signals is higher than a second frequency band used to transmit communication signals.

In some examples of the system, a wavelength of the ranging signals is less than a wavelength of a communication signal.

In some examples of the system, a bandwidth of the ranging signals is greater than a center frequency of the second frequency band.

In some examples, the system includes a timing component configured to provide a common time reference to the plurality of antenna managers.

In some examples of the system, a second antenna manager of the plurality of antenna managers is configured to determine a distance between a first antenna coupled with a first antenna manager of the plurality of antenna managers and a second antenna coupled with the second antenna manager based at least in part on a ranging signal received from the first antenna.

In some examples of the system, the second antenna manager is further configured to determine the distance between the first antenna and the second antenna based at least in part on a timestamp signaled by the ranging signal and a time at which the ranging signal is received.

In some examples of the system, a first antenna manager of the plurality of antenna managers is configured to: determine a distance between a first antenna coupled with the first antenna manager and a second antenna coupled with a second antenna manager of the plurality of antenna managers based at least in part on a ranging signal transmitted by the first antenna manager and a response signal received from the second antenna in response to the ranging signal.

In some examples of the system, the first antenna manager is configured to determine a difference between a first time at which the ranging signal is transmitted by the first antennas manager and a second time at which the response signal is received from the second antenna, where the distance between the first antenna and the second antenna is based at least in part on the difference.

In some examples of the system, an antenna manager of the plurality of antenna managers is configured to: determine, over a plurality of time periods, a plurality of distances between the respective antenna and a second antenna of the plurality of antennas based at least in part on a plurality of parameters measured across the plurality of time periods; and obtain a distance between the respective antenna and the second antenna based at least in part on a function of the plurality of distances.

In some examples of the system, each antenna manager of the plurality of antenna managers is configured to: obtain, from the respective set of ranging signals, a set of GPS coordinates associated with the other antennas of the plurality of antennas; and determine a coarse estimate of a distance between a coupled antenna and the other antennas of the plurality of antennas based at least in part on the set of GPS coordinates.

In some examples, of the system, the antenna array includes a plurality of rigid connections between the plurality of reference antennas, where the calibration unit is configured to determine the positions of the plurality of reference antennas based at least in part on the plurality of rigid connections.

In some examples, the system includes a ground-based measurement station configured to measure the positions of the plurality of reference antennas to obtain measured positions and to signal the measured positions of the plurality of reference antennas to the calibration unit, where the calibration unit is configured to receive the signal comprising the measured positions of the plurality of reference antennas and to determine the positions of the plurality of reference antennas based at least in part on the signal.

By way of example, and not limitation, non-transitory computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory, compact disk read-only memory (CDROM) or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other non-transitory medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code means in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer, or a general-purpose or special-purpose processor.

Claim 1:
A system (<NUM>) for communications, comprising:
an antenna array (<NUM>) comprising a plurality of antennas (<NUM>), wherein an inter-element spacing of antennas of the plurality of antennas (<NUM>) is different across the antenna array (<NUM>);
a plurality of antenna managers (<NUM>), wherein each antenna manager of the plurality of antenna managers (<NUM>) is coupled with a respective antenna of the plurality of antennas (<NUM>) and configured to:
transmit a respective ranging signal (<NUM>, <NUM>) from the respective antenna of the plurality of antennas (<NUM>),
receive a respective set of ranging signals (<NUM>, <NUM>) from other antennas of the plurality of antennas (<NUM>), and
measure, based at least in part on receiving the respective set of ranging signals (<NUM>, <NUM>), respective parameters representative of distances between the respective antenna and the other antennas;
a calibration unit (<NUM>) configured to:
determine positions of a plurality of reference antennas (<NUM>), wherein a position of a first reference antenna (<NUM>-<NUM>) of the plurality of reference antennas (<NUM>) is at an origin of the antenna array (<NUM>), and wherein positions of other reference antennas of the plurality of reference antennas (<NUM>) are determined relative to the first reference antenna (<NUM>-<NUM>), the plurality of antennas (<NUM>) comprising the plurality of reference antennas (<NUM>),
determine distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas (<NUM>) based at least in part on the parameters measured by the plurality of antenna managers (<NUM>),
determine a reference orientation of the antenna array (<NUM>) based at least in part on the positions of the plurality of reference antennas (<NUM>), and
calculate positions of the plurality of antennas (<NUM>) based at least in part on the positions of the plurality of reference antennas (<NUM>), the distances between each antenna of the plurality of antennas (<NUM>), and the reference orientation of the antenna array (<NUM>); and
a communications manager (<NUM>) configured to communicate with a terminal (<NUM>) according to beam coefficients determined for the antenna array (<NUM>) based at least in part on the calculated positions of the plurality of antennas (<NUM>), the beam coefficients used to form a plurality of beams.