Patent ID: 12256224

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

An exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described hereinafter in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. For the purpose of conciseness and clarity, not all features of an embodiment are described in this specification. However, it should be understood that multiple decisions specific to the embodiment have to be made in a process of developing any such embodiment to realize a particular object of a developer, for example, conforming to those constraints related to a system and a business, and these constraints may change as the embodiments differs. Furthermore, it should also be understood that although the development work may be very complicated and time-consuming, for those skilled in the art benefiting from the present disclosure, such development work is only a routine task.

Here, it should also be noted that in order to avoid obscuring the present invention due to unnecessary details, only a device structure and/or processing steps closely related to the solution according to the present invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawing, and other details having little relationship to the present invention are omitted.

The First Embodiment

FIG.1illustrates a structural block diagram of a spectrum management apparatus100according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown inFIG.1, the spectrum management apparatus100includes: an acquiring unit101, configured to acquire spectrum utilization information of at least one wireless communication system in a predetermined region on a predetermined frequency band: a determining unit102, configured to determine, according to the spectrum utilization information, spectrum utilization efficiency of a corresponding wireless communication system in the predetermined region; and an adjusting unit103, configured to adjust, based on the spectrum utilization efficiency, spectrum sensing parameters of the corresponding wireless communication system in the predetermined region on the predetermined frequency band.

Wherein, the predetermined frequency band is a frequency band to be dynamically used or being dynamically used in common by the above mentioned wireless communication systems (hereinafter, referred as a communication system or system simply). In an example, the predetermined frequency band is an unlicensed frequency band, such as 2.4G and 5G frequency band for industrial, research and medical use, or a frequency band which can be used in an unlicensed manner according to the law in each country such as the television frequency band, 3.5 GHz in USA, etc. It is to be understood, the predetermined frequency band can be any frequency band which is capable of being commonly used by multiple wireless communication systems. Each of the wireless communication systems or a sub-system therein, when aiming to use the predetermined frequency band, should judge whether the frequency band is available, such as whether it has been occupied by another system or another sub-system via spectrum sensing at first, in order to ensure the validity and fairness of usage of the frequency band.

The predetermined region may be all or a part of the region managed by the spectrum management apparatus100. For this predetermined region, the spectrum management apparatus100performs, for example, optimization of spectrum utilization efficiency of a predetermined frequency band. In other words, the predetermined region may be a region determined according to the optimization of the application or the service. As a non-limiting example, the predetermined region may be a region of an administrative division, a building, or a mall, or may be a temporarily selected geographical range for a certain purpose. For example, the predetermined region may be a rectangular region, a circular region, an oval region, or any other shape of region. The predetermined region may be determined in advance by the spectrum management apparatus100, or may be set by a higher-level device or application. As an example, a predetermined region may be determined by vertices of a rectangle in the case that it is a rectangular region, a predetermined region may be determined by a boundary of one building in the case that it is a region of the building, and so on and so forth.

Furthermore, in the embodiments of the present application, a wireless communication system can be considered as a combination of multiple devices having function of transmitting and receiving. For example, the wireless communication system can be a set consisting of all the base stations and user devices of the same mobile operator, or a set consisting of all the base stations and user devices of the same mobile operator which use the same communication format. The wireless communication system can also be a sub-set of the above mentioned set, for example, the base stations and user devices limited in the management region of the spectrum management apparatus. In addition, the wireless communication system can further be a set of the base stations and user devices of different mobile operators using the same communication format or it is similar to the previously stated sub-set. On the other hand, the wireless communication system can be a set of the base stations and user devices belonging to the same service provider or it is similar to the previously stated sub-set. As an example, in the case of the LTE communication system, the wireless communication system can be a sub-set of the LTE communication system, for example, a group of sub-systems at the cell level. The sub-system at the cell level includes for example a base station (macro base station or small base station) and one or more user devices. In practice, the wireless communication system is not limited to the LTE communication system or its sub-set. Instead, it can also be other kind of communication system or its sub-set, such as the WiFi communication system or its sub-set and the like. In addition, in some examples, for example, in the scenario of the device to device communications, the wireless communication system can be appreciated as a device cluster formed by a plurality of user devices.

Accordingly, the predetermined region may include multiple wireless communication systems. These wireless communication systems may be of the same type, such as the LTE communication system, or may be of different types, for example, including an LTE communication system and a WiFi communication system. The LTE communication system may be operated by different operators, and may adopt different communication schemes. The WiFi communication system may include multiple access points (a region covered by each access point is equivalent to a small cell in LTE). As a specific example, the predetermined region may be a range of a macro cell covered by one or more LTE communication systems, and several WiFi access points are distributed in this range.

To facilitate description, a sub-set of the LTE communication system is taken as an application example in the following embodiments. However, it should be understood that this is not limiting.

As mentioned above, one or more wireless communication systems can be arranged in the predetermined region, which manages their behavior of making use of the predetermined frequency band. For ease of understanding,FIG.2illustrates an example of the system distribution under the scenario of the LTE communication system. InFIG.2, the triangle denotes a macro base station, the pentagrams in the left ellipse denote small cell base stations belonging to the first operator, and circles in the right ellipse denote small cell base stations belonging to the second operator. The devices in the left ellipse can be taken as a wireless communication system and the devices in the right ellipse can be taken as another wireless communication system. Note that although the small cell base stations of the two operators are respectively included in different ellipses inFIG.2, these small cell base stations are distributed in the same geographical region, i.e., the predetermined region described above. In other words, in this example, the predetermined region is a part of the coverage range of the macro cell and is simultaneously covered by two wireless communication systems. In practice, the two communication systems can be managed by the same spectrum management apparatus, or can also be managed by different spectrum management apparatus, which will be described in detail later.

As stated above, in the spectrum management apparatus100, the acquiring unit101acquires the utilization status of each wireless communication system in a predetermined region on the predetermined frequency band, so that the determining unit102determines the spectrum utilization efficiency of respective communication system. Then, the adjusting unit103adjusts the spectrum sensing parameters of respective communication systems according to the spectrum utilization efficiency. Wherein, the spectrum sensing parameters are information of the configuration adopted by the wireless communication system in the predetermined region in performing spectrum sensing on the predetermined frequency band. Through changing the spectrum sensing parameters, the wireless communication system (or each sub-system therein such as the LTE cell) can be caused to make different judgment as to whether the current spectrum is available, and thus the probability for the wireless communication system to get the spectrum resources and the probability of protection of the existing communication systems are changed. That is, the spectrum utilization efficiency of the wireless communication system is changed. It should be understood that in the case that the predetermined region is different, the spectrum utilization information acquired by the acquisition unit101is different, so that the determined spectrum utilization efficiency is different. Accordingly, the adjusting unit103may adjust the spectrum sensing parameters differently.

As an example, the spectrum sensing parameters include at least one of the following: an energy detection threshold for spectrum sensing, time duration for spectrum sensing, the number of nodes involved in sensing and a judgment criterion of spectrum sensing in the case of distributed spectrum sensing.

In the embodiments of the present application, any suitable spectrum sensing technology can be adopted to perform the spectrum sensing. Correspondingly, the spectrum sensing parameters can be any parameters influencing the result of the spectrum sensing during the process. For example, as for a system performing the spectrum sensing by energy detection, if the energy detection threshold is set to be −70 dBm, when the energy detection performed by the system finds that the signal energy in the spectrum of this frequency band is lower than −70 dBm, it is considered that no system is occupying the frequency band and thus it is determined that the spectrum resources are available. At this time, other communication systems may exist. However, due to a long transmission distance, the energy of the signal after reaching the system which is performing the spectrum sensing has been attenuated to be below −70 dBm, for example, to −80 dBm, and thus can not be detected. If the energy detection threshold is decreased to −85 dBm, the system which is performing the spectrum sensing would detect the existence of that system and thus determines that the frequency band is not available. Meanwhile, it is to be understood that setting different energy detection threshold would lead to different protection of the existing systems. The higher energy detection threshold increases the chance to use the spectrum, but also increases the probability of producing interferences to the existing systems. On the contrary, decreasing the energy detection threshold will decrease the chance to use the spectrum, but enhance the protection for the existing systems.

In addition, the spectrum sensing duration, i.e., the size of the time window to perform the spectrum sensing can also be adjusted. It can be appreciated that the longer the time duration is, the larger the probability of detecting the existence of the existing communication systems becomes. Thus, the chance of using the spectrum is decreased and the protection for the existing systems is enhanced. Otherwise, the chance of using the spectrum is increased and the protection for the existing systems is weakened.

As another way, distributed spectrum sensing (i.e., coordinated sensing) can also be adopted. In this situation, spectrum sensing such as the above mentioned energy detection is performed by a plurality of independent communication devices such as a plurality of base stations in different positions. Then, the results are aggregated in a central judgment apparatus to perform the judgment whether the spectrum is available. The central judgment apparatus can be located in a certain base station or in the spectrum management apparatus, for example. In another example, the communication devices performing the spectrum sensing can further include the user devices. The user device and the base station can be generally referred as nodes.

Since the final judgment is performed according to the spectrum sensing results of multiple nodes in the central judgment apparatus, factors such as the number of nodes involved in sensing and the judgment criterion of spectrum sensing will affect the probability of succeeding in getting the spectrum. The judgment criterion of spectrum sensing may include for example the AND principle, the OR principle, the proportion principle or the like. The AND principle means that only when all the nodes determines that the predetermined frequency band is available, the frequency band is finally determined to be available. The OR principle means that if one node determines that the predetermined frequency band is available, the frequency band is finally determined to be available. The proportion principle means that if the nodes determining that the predetermined frequency band is available accounts for a preset proportion of the nodes performing the spectrum sensing, the frequency band is finally determined to be available. It is to be understood that, in the case that the number of nodes is the same, when adopting the OR principle, the communication system will have a higher chance to obtain the spectrum resources, while the AND principle will cause the communication system to obtain the spectrum resources in a quite conservative way, realizing better protection for the existing systems.

The adjusting unit103can adjust one of the above mentioned several spectrum sensing parameters, or adjust two or more thereof simultaneously. Moreover, the spectrum sensing parameters are not limited to the above examples, and can include other parameters depending on different spectrum sensing technology.

For example, the adjusting unit103can adjust, in the case that the spectrum utilization efficiency deviates from an expected value, the spectrum sensing parameters of the corresponding wireless communication system, so that the spectrum utilization efficiency of the corresponding wireless communication system reaches the expected value. The expected value is a target value of the spectrum utilization efficiency of the corresponding communication system. It can be preset by the spectrum management apparatus100, or can be adjusted automatically or manually during the operation.

The actual spectrum utilization efficiency of the communication system is determined by the determination unit102based on the spectrum utilization information acquired by the acquiring unit101. As an example, the spectrum utilization information includes at least one of the following: information of actual activation status of each cell in the wireless communication system in a predetermined region after spectrum sensing, throughput of the wireless communication system in the predetermined region, and a signal to noise ratio of the wireless communication system in the predetermined region. For example, when the spectrum utilization information is the information of actual activation status of each cell, the spectrum utilization efficiency can be denoted by the number of the activated cells or the proportion thereof.

For example, in the case that the spectrum sensing parameters are the energy detection threshold, the adjusting unit103is configured to, in the case of the spectrum utilization efficiency being higher than the expected value, decrease the energy detection threshold of the corresponding wireless communication system, and/or in the case of the spectrum utilization efficiency being lower than the expected value, increase the energy detection threshold of the corresponding wireless communication system. This is because when the energy detection threshold decreases, the probability for the wireless communication system to obtain the spectrum resources decreases, and correspondingly the ratio of the spectrum resource utilization would decrease.

It should be noted that, although adjusting spectrum sensing parameters is described in the above with respect to the wireless communication system, that is, the wireless communication system is adjusted as a whole, adjusting can also be performed only with respect to its sub-system, or different adjusting is performed on different sub-systems. For example, different spectrum sensing parameters can be set for different LTE cells, or different parameter adjusting can be performed for different LTE cells.

The adjusting unit103can perform the above mentioned adjusting based on a preset system model. In the preset system model, the relationship between the spectrum sensing parameters and the spectrum utilization efficiency is reflected. For example, the preset system model can include at least one of the following: a channel model, a service model, a model of probability for spectrum activation of the system in the predetermined region, and a geographical location model.

Taking the model of probability for spectrum activation of the system as an example, it can be calculated from the actual service model that the number of the activated cells follows the Poisson distribution. Or, each cell is assumed to be provided with an activation probability according to its service requirement. The activated cells perform the spectrum sensing and it is determined whether the predetermined frequency band is available. At last, the spectrum utilization efficiency of the system can be calculated by statistics. By changing the spectrum sensing parameters such as the energy detection threshold, the expected spectrum utilization efficiency can be achieved.

In an example, different expected values of spectrum utilization efficiency can be set for wireless communication systems with different priority levels of utilizing the spectrum. For example, a system with a higher priority level is provided with a higher expected value. In practice, the expected value of the spectrum utilization efficiency of a communication system can also be set according to its service category, payment state and the like.

In addition, the acquiring unit101can be further configured to acquire information indicating an identifier of each cell in the wireless communication system in the predetermined region, and the determining unit102is configured to determine whether a cell in an active state and a cell failing to be activated are systems of the same type based on the information indicating the identifier of each cell in the wireless communication system, wherein, the adjusting unit103can be configured to perform the adjusting in the case that the determining unit102determines that the cell in the active state and the cell failing to be activated are systems of the same type.

Here, the systems of the same type refer to one of the following cases: the systems use the same spectrum access strategy, for example, all of them are LTE cells or all of them are WiFi cells: or they belong to the same mobile operator or the same service provider. Moreover, the information of the identifier of the cell can be an ID of the cell or a reference signal of the cell. The spectrum management apparatus100knows information of the ID assignment and the assignment of reference signal of cells of different wireless communication systems in advance. Therefore, the determining unit102can determine whether two cells are systems of the same type according to the acquired information of the identifier. The adjusting unit103can performs the adjusting only in the case of being systems of the same type.

As for a LTE communication system, the spectrum management apparatus100can be located at the base station side, for example, implemented by the macro base station or the small base station. Alternatively, it can also be located in the core network, for example, implemented by the evolved packet core (EPC) under the LTE protocol. In addition, in a current system complying with IEEE 802.19.1 standard, the spectrum management apparatus100can be implemented in the co-existence manager (CM).

In an example, the acquiring unit101can acquire the above mentioned spectrum utilization information (and the information of the identifier of the cell, or the like) via a wired manner. For example, the transmission of the information can be performed through the backhaul connection from the base station to the spectrum management apparatus100located in the core network.

In another example, the predetermined frequency band is an unlicensed frequency band and the acquiring unit101acquires the spectrum utilization information via wireless communication in a licensed frequency band. For example, when the spectrum management apparatus100is located in the base station, it is possible to perform the transmission of information in this way.

In this embodiment, the number of the wireless communication systems managed by the spectrum management apparatus100can be two or more. In such a situation, as an example, the adjusting unit103can be configured to adjust, with respect to a wireless communication system the spectrum utilization efficiency of which does not reach the expected value, the spectrum sensing parameters of the wireless communication system without influencing the spectrum utilization efficiency of the other wireless communication systems. For example, the determining unit102can be caused to determine the spectrum utilization efficiency of the other wireless communication systems according to a system simulation model. The system simulation model mentioned herein can be the previously stated channel model, service model, model of probability for spectrum activation of the system, geographical location model or the like. For example, if the determining unit102determines that the spectrum utilization efficiency of the other wireless communication systems is influenced, the above adjusting is not performed.

In this example, different wireless communication systems can belong to different mobile operators or different service providers.

Taking the scenario shown inFIG.2as an example,FIG.3illustrates a simulation result of the probability of activation of the communication system on the right side (the second communication system, belonging to the second operator) and the communication system on the left side (referred as the first communication system, belonging to the first operator), in the case that the adjusting unit103adjusts the spectrum sensing parameters of the first communication system. In the simulation, the above mentioned model of probability for spectrum activation of the system is adopted. Each communication system includes 10 cells in total respectively, and the probability of activation for each cell is assumed to be 50%. The histogram inFIG.3illustrates a graph of statistical distribution of the number of the activated cells, when 10000 simulations are performed in the case of changing the energy detection threshold of the first communication system. The horizontal axis denotes the number of the activated cells, and the vertical axis denotes the number of occurrences of the event of activating the corresponding number of cells in the 10000 experiments. The (a), (c) and (e) on the left side ofFIG.3denotes the simulation result for the first communication system, and (b), (d) and (f) on the right side ofFIG.3denotes the simulation result for the second communication system. The (c) ofFIG.3is obtained in the case that the energy detection threshold is decreased compared with the case of (a). It can be seen that, the probability of being activated is decreased for most cells, that is, the probability that the cells obtain the spectrum resources decreases and the spectrum utilization efficiency of the system is low: The (e) ofFIG.3is obtained in the case that the energy detection threshold is further decreased, and the spectrum utilization efficiency of the system is further lowered at this time. In the case of changing the energy detection threshold of the first communication system, the energy detection threshold of the second communication system keeps unchanged. Moreover, it can be seen from (b), (d) and (f) ofFIG.3, the probability that the cells of the second communication system obtain the spectrum resources substantially keeps unchanged. This is because that, the primary interferences originate from the co-existence interferences among cells of itself, and thus the adjustment of the energy detection threshold of the first communication system does not influence it much.

It can be seen that, in this example, the spectrum management apparatus100operates as a centralized management apparatus. It manages multiple wireless communication systems, so that the multiple systems utilize the spectrum resources reasonably. For example, the spectrum management apparatus can be a geographical location database.

In the present embodiment, by adjusting the spectrum sensing parameters of the managed wireless communication system according to the spectrum utilization efficiency, the usage of the wireless communication system with respect to the spectrum resources of the predetermined frequency band can be effectively guaranteed, and/or different communication systems are enabled to use the spectrum resources reasonably and effectively.

The Second Embodiment

FIG.4illustrates a structural block diagram of the spectrum management apparatus200according to another embodiment of the present application. Besides the units shown inFIG.1, the spectrum management apparatus200further includes: an interaction unit201, configured to interact with other spectrum management apparatus so that the adjusting unit103performs the adjusting while taking into consideration the influence to the other wireless communication systems. In this embodiment, the number of the wireless communication systems managed by the spectrum management apparatus is one.

Still takingFIG.2as an example, at this time, the first communication system and the second communication system are each provided with a respective spectrum management apparatus. Therefore, a kind of distributed management is realized in this embodiment.

In an example, the interaction unit201is configured to transmit a parameter changing request to the other wireless communication apparatus in the case that the adjusting unit103has performed adjusting, and receive a feedback from the other wireless communication apparatus. The adjusting unit103further adjusts the spectrum sensing parameters according to the feedback. This operation of the interaction unit201can avoid the influence to the other wireless communication systems.

The feedback can indicate whether the spectrum utilization efficiency of the wireless communication systems managed by the other spectrum management apparatus is influenced, and the adjusting unit103is configured to, in the case that the feedback indicates that the spectrum utilization efficiency of the wireless communication systems managed by the other spectrum management apparatus is influenced, re-adjust the spectrum sensing parameters. For example, the spectrum sensing parameters are re-adjusted to a value between the original value and the adjusted value, or re-adjusted to the original value, and the like. In other words, if the feedback indicates that the spectrum utilization efficiency of the wireless communication systems managed by the other spectrum management apparatus is not influenced, the adjusted spectrum sensing parameters are maintained. The feedback is made by the other spectrum management apparatus according to for example the spectrum utilization efficiency of its managed wireless communication system.

In addition, when the interaction unit201receives the parameter changing request from the other spectrum management apparatus, the acquiring unit101acquires the spectrum utilization information of the wireless communication system, the determining unit102determines the spectrum utilization efficiency of the wireless communication system and determines whether the spectrum utilization efficiency is influenced, and the interaction unit201provides the feedback indicating whether the spectrum utilization efficiency is influenced to the other spectrum management apparatus. Therefore, upon receiving the parameter changing request, the spectrum management apparatus200measures the spectrum utilization efficiency of its managed wireless communication system and feedbacks.

It can be seen that, the spectrum management apparatus of the embodiment just needs to interchange simple commands between them to achieve cooperation among different communication systems, so that they utilize the spectrum resources on the predetermined frequency band commonly in a reasonable way.

The Third Embodiment

FIG.5illustrates a structural block diagram of the apparatus300for a wireless communication system according to an embodiment of the present application, wherein the apparatus300can be located for example at a base station side. The apparatus300includes: a transmitting unit301, configured to transmit spectrum utilization information of a cell served by the base station on a predetermined frequency band to a spectrum management apparatus; and a receiving unit302, configured to receive a change in spectrum sensing parameters from the spectrum management apparatus.

As stated previously, the spectrum management apparatus can be located at the base station side, for example, implemented by the macro base station or the small base station. Alternatively, it can also be located in the core network, for example, implemented by the EPC under the LTE protocol. In addition, in a current system complying with IEEE 802.19.1 standard, the spectrum management apparatus can be implemented in the co-existence manager (CM). As an example, the spectrum management apparatus can be the previously mentioned spectrum management apparatus100or200, but not limited thereto. In addition, the explanation about the predetermined frequency band and the wireless communication system is similar to that in the first embodiment, and will not be repeated herein.

When a cell served by the base station is to utilize the predetermined frequency band, the spectrum sensing is to be performed at first. The spectrum sensing can be executed by the base station separately, or can be executed with the assistance of its user devices. Further, the spectrum sensing can be executed in cooperation with the other base stations and/or the user devices of the other base stations. When the result of spectrum sensing indicates that the predetermined frequency band is available, the cell makes use of this predetermined frequency band. The base station reports the utilization information of its served cells with respect to the predetermined frequency band to the spectrum management apparatus, so that the spectrum management apparatus acquires the spectrum utilization efficiency of the corresponding wireless communication system.

In an example, the spectrum utilization information includes at least one of the following: information of actual activation status of the cell after spectrum sensing, throughput of the base station, and a signal to noise ratio of the base station. After each base station reports the spectrum utilization information, the spectrum management apparatus can acquire the spectrum utilization efficiency of the whole communication system, so as to decide whether to adjust the spectrum sensing parameters.

When the spectrum management apparatus decides that it is necessary to change the spectrum sensing parameters, it notifies the base station of the change to be made, so that the base station performs the spectrum sensing using the changed spectrum sensing parameters.

For example, the spectrum sensing parameters include at least one of the following: an energy detection threshold for spectrum sensing, time duration for spectrum sensing, the number of nodes involved in sensing and a judgment criterion of spectrum sensing in the case of distributed spectrum sensing. Upon the receiving unit302receives the change of the spectrum sensing parameters, the base station uses the changed spectrum sensing parameters when performing the spectrum sensing. In the case that the user devices assist the base station in performing the spectrum sensing, the base station further notifies the user devices of the change of the spectrum sensing parameters. The detailed description about the spectrum sensing parameters has been present in the first embodiment, and will not be repeated herein. As stated above, since the change of the spectrum sensing parameters may affect the probability for obtaining the spectrum resources, the spectrum utilization efficiency of the system may be changed.

As shown by the dotted line block inFIG.5, the apparatus300can further include: a judgment unit303, configured to judge whether the predetermined frequency band is available based on the spectrum sensing result of the base station.

In an example, the receiving unit302is further configured to receive the spectrum sensing results from other nodes, and the judgment unit303is further configured to perform the judging based on the spectrum sensing results from the other nodes. The other nodes herein include user devices and/or other base stations. The judgment unit303judges whether the predetermined frequency band is available based on the spectrum sensing results from multiple nodes (including the present base station). It can be understood that, in this example, the apparatus300operates as a central judgment apparatus in the distributed spectrum sensing.

The judgment unit303would perform the final judgment according to the judgment criterion of spectrum sensing set in the spectrum sensing parameters, using the spectrum sensing results from the nodes, the number of which is set in the spectrum sensing parameters. The detailed description about the judgment criterion has been given in the first embodiment, and will not be repeated here. When these nodes are performing spectrum sensing, they adopt the energy detection threshold and the time duration for spectrum sensing set in the spectrum sensing parameters.

In addition, the judgment unit303can further judge, in the case that the predetermined frequency band is unavailable, judge whether the present cell and a cell already occupying the predetermined frequency band are systems of the same type, and the transmitting unit301provides a result of the judging to the spectrum management apparatus. As stated previously, the systems of the same type refer to one of the following cases: the systems use the same spectrum access strategy, for example, all of them are LTE cells or all of them are WiFi cells; or they belong to the same mobile operator or the same service provider, for example, the cells located in the same ellipse of one side in the example ofFIG.2are systems of the same type.

In this situation, the spectrum management apparatus can perform the adjusting of the spectrum sensing parameters for example when receiving the notification of being systems of the same type. Otherwise, it does not perform the adjusting.

The judgment unit303can perform the judging of whether being systems of the same type based on at least one of the following: information of an identifier of the cell, reference signal detection. The reference signal detection is for example the preamble detection in WiFi, the synchronization signal detection in LTE or the like. Such information can be extracted from the signals acquired during the spectrum sensing. Since the cells of different wireless communication systems have different information of the identifier and different formats and/or content of the reference signal, it is possible to judge whether the cells are systems of the same type by the information.

In this embodiment, the apparatus300can report the spectrum utilization status to the spectrum management apparatus, and change the spectrum sensing parameters according to the instruction of the spectrum management apparatus, thereby realizing reasonable utilization of the spectrum resources.

In addition, it should be understood that the apparatus300may also be located for example at an access point of a WiFi. Specifically, the transmitting unit301transmits spectrum utilization information of the access point on the predetermined frequency band to the spectrum management apparatus, and the receiving unit302receives a change in spectrum sensing parameters from the spectrum management apparatus.

The Fourth Embodiment

FIG.6illustrates a structural block diagram of the apparatus400for a user device side of a wireless communication system according to an embodiment of the present application. The apparatus400includes: a receiving unit401, configured to receive an instruction for performing spectrum sensing and corresponding spectrum sensing parameters from a base station: a sensing unit402, configured to perform the spectrum sensing according to the spectrum sensing parameters in response to the instruction; and a transmitting unit403, configured to transmit a result of the spectrum sensing to the base station.

As stated previously, the spectrum sensing parameters include at least one of the following: an energy detection threshold for spectrum sensing, time duration for spectrum sensing, the number of nodes involved in sensing and a judgment criterion of spectrum sensing in the case of distributed spectrum sensing.

In this embodiment, the user device assists the base station in performing the spectrum sensing. Specifically, when the base station needs to perform the spectrum sensing, it notifies the user device. The user device notifies the base station of the result after finishing sensing, so that the base station can judge whether the predetermined frequency band is available. When the base station receives the change of the spectrum sensing parameters notified by the spectrum management apparatus, it also notifies the user device accordingly, so that the user device performs the spectrum sensing in accordance with the changed spectrum sensing parameters. As stated previously, since the change of the spectrum sensing parameters may influence the probability of obtaining the spectrum resources, the spectrum utilization efficiency of the system may be changed.

In this embodiment, the user device can receive the setting of the spectrum sensing parameters, and performs the spectrum sensing according to such setting, so as to use the spectrum resources reasonably. Similarly, it should be understood that the user device may also be a WiFi user device.

The Fifth Embodiment

It is apparent that some processing or methods are also disclosed in the description above on the spectrum management apparatus and the apparatus for a base station side and a user device side of a wireless communication system according to embodiments of the present invention. Below; the summary of the methods is described without repeating the details which are already discussed above, however, it should be noted that although disclosed in the description of the spectrum management apparatus and the apparatus for a base station side and a user device side of a wireless communication system, the methods do not certainly employ or are not certainly executed by the aforementioned components. For instance, embodiments of the spectrum management apparatus and the apparatus for a base station side and a user device side of a wireless communication system may be partially or completely achieved by hardware and/or firmware, and the method described below may be fully achieved by a computer-executable program, although the methods may employ the hardware and/or firmware of the spectrum management apparatus and the apparatus for a base station side and a user device side of a wireless communication system.

FIG.7illustrates a flowchart of the spectrum management method according to an embodiment of the present application. The method includes: acquiring spectrum utilization information of at least one wireless communication system in a predetermined region on a predetermined frequency band (S11): determining, according to the spectrum utilization information, spectrum utilization efficiency of a corresponding wireless communication system in the predetermined region (S12); and adjusting, based on the spectrum utilization efficiency, spectrum sensing parameters of the corresponding wireless communication system in the predetermined region on the predetermined frequency band (S14).

Wherein, the spectrum utilization information can include at least one of the following: information of actual activation status of each cell in the wireless communication system in the predetermined region after spectrum sensing, throughput of the wireless communication system in the predetermined region, and a signal to noise ratio of the wireless communication system in the predetermined region.

The spectrum sensing parameters can include at least one of the following: an energy detection threshold for spectrum sensing, time duration for spectrum sensing, the number of nodes involved in sensing and a judgment criterion of spectrum sensing in the case of distributed spectrum sensing.

In an example, in the step S14, in the case that the spectrum utilization efficiency deviates from an expected value, the spectrum sensing parameters of the corresponding wireless communication system is adjusted, so that the spectrum utilization efficiency of the corresponding wireless communication system reaches the expected value. For example, in the step S14, the adjusting can be performed based on a preset system model. The preset system model includes at least one of the following: a channel model, a service model, a model of probability for spectrum activation of the system in the predetermined region, and a geographical location model. In addition, different expected values of spectrum utilization efficiency can be set for wireless communication systems with different priority levels of utilizing the spectrum.

For example, in the case of the spectrum sensing parameters being an energy detection threshold, in the step S14, if the spectrum utilization efficiency is higher than the expected value, the energy detection threshold of the corresponding wireless communication system is decreased, and/or if the spectrum utilization efficiency is lower than the expected value, the energy detection threshold of the corresponding wireless communication system is increased.

In the step S11, the spectrum utilization information can be acquired via a wired manner. In an example, the predetermined frequency band is an unlicensed frequency band and in the step S11, the spectrum utilization information is acquired via wireless communication in a licensed frequency band.

In the step S11, it is further possible to acquire information indicating an identifier of each cell in the wireless communication system in the predetermined region. As shown by the dotted line block inFIG.7, the method can further include a step S13before the step S14. In step S13, it is determined whether a cell in an active state and a cell failing to be activated are systems of the same type based on the information indicating the identifier of each cell in the wireless communication system, for example, by detecting the signals during the spectrum sensing, extracting information of the cell ID from therein and determining. If it is a WiFi signal, the determining can be further performed by detecting its preamble information. In the case of determining that the cell in the active state and the cell failing to be activated are systems of the same type, the adjusting of step S14is performed.

In an example, the number of the managed wireless communication systems is two or more. In step S14, with respect to a wireless communication system the spectrum utilization efficiency of which does not reach the expected value, the spectrum sensing parameters of the wireless communication system are adjusted without influencing the spectrum utilization efficiency of the other wireless communication systems. Wherein, the spectrum utilization efficiency of the other wireless communication systems can be determined according to a system simulation model in the step S12. The examples of the system simulation model are as stated above, and will not be repeated here.

In this example, different wireless communication systems belong to different mobile operators or service providers. The above mentioned method can be implemented for example in a geographical location database.

In addition, in another example, the number of the wireless communication systems managed by the spectrum management apparatus is one, and in step S14, interacting with other spectrum management apparatus is performed so that the adjusting is performed while taking into consideration the influence to the other wireless communication systems.

For example, the above mentioned method can further include the following step: transmitting a parameter changing request to the spectrum management apparatus of the other wireless communication apparatus in the case of performing the adjusting in step S14(S15), receiving a feedback from the other wireless communication apparatus (S16), and further adjusting the spectrum sensing parameters according to the feedback (S17).

Wherein, the feedback indicates whether the spectrum utilization efficiency of the wireless communication systems managed by the other spectrum management apparatus is influenced, and in the step S17, in the case that the feedback indicates that the spectrum utilization efficiency of the wireless communication systems managed by the other spectrum management apparatus is influenced, the spectrum sensing parameters can be re-adjusted, for example, be re-adjusted back to the original value or be re-adjusted to a value between the original value and the adjusted value, or the like.

In addition, although not shown in the Figure, the above mentioned method can further include the following steps: receiving the parameter changing request from the spectrum management apparatus of the other wireless communication system: acquiring the spectrum utilization information of the wireless communication system: determining the spectrum utilization efficiency of the wireless communication system and determining whether the spectrum utilization efficiency is influenced; and providing the feedback indicating whether the spectrum utilization efficiency is influenced to the above mentioned spectrum management apparatus.

FIG.8illustrates a flowchart of the method for a base station side of a wireless communication system according to another embodiment of the present application. The method includes: transmitting spectrum utilization information of a cell served by the base station on a predetermined frequency band to a spectrum management apparatus (S22); and receiving a change in spectrum sensing parameters from the spectrum management apparatus (S23).

Wherein, the spectrum utilization information includes at least one of the following: information of actual activation status of the cell after spectrum sensing, throughput of the base station, and a signal to noise ratio of the base station.

The spectrum sensing parameters can include at least one of the following: an energy detection threshold for spectrum sensing, time duration for spectrum sensing, the number of nodes involved in sensing and a judgment criterion of spectrum sensing in the case of distributed spectrum sensing.

In addition, as shown by the dotted line block inFIG.8, the above method can further include a step S21: judging whether the predetermined frequency band is available based on the spectrum sensing result. The spectrum sensing result can be the spectrum sensing result of the base station itself, or can include the spectrum sensing result received from the other nodes (including the base station and the user device), i.e., a distributed sensing manner is adopted.

In addition, in the Step21, in the case of judging that the predetermined frequency band is unavailable, it is further judged whether the present cell and a cell already occupying the predetermined frequency band are systems of the same type, and a result of the judging is provided to the spectrum management apparatus in step S22. For example, the judging of whether being systems of the same type can be performed based on at least one of the following: information of an identifier of the cell, reference signal detection.

FIG.9illustrates a flowchart of the method for a user device side of a wireless communication system according to another embodiment of the present application. The method includes: receiving an instruction for performing spectrum sensing and corresponding spectrum sensing parameters from a base station: performing the spectrum sensing according to the spectrum sensing parameters in response to the instruction; and transmitting a result of the spectrum sensing to the base station.

Wherein, the spectrum sensing parameters can include at least one of the following: an energy detection threshold for spectrum sensing, time duration for spectrum sensing, the number of nodes involved in sensing and a judgment criterion of spectrum sensing in the case of distributed spectrum sensing.

It is to be noted that, the above mentioned methods can be adopted separately or in combination, the details of which have been described in detail in the first to the fourth embodiment and will not be repeated here.

In addition, in the above description, a communication system is also disclosed, including a base station and a user device, the base station includes the apparatus300, and the user device includes the apparatus400.

For convenience of understanding,FIGS.10and11illustrate examples of the information procedure between the spectrum management apparatus and the wireless communication systems. It is to be noted that these are not limiting. InFIG.10, the first wireless communication system and the second wireless communication system are located in in the predetermined region of the spectrum management apparatus. The two wireless communication systems report their spectrum utilization information such as the information of activation status of each cell to the spectrum management apparatus, and the spectrum management apparatus determines the spectrum utilization efficiency of the two wireless communication systems based on such information. For example, assuming that the spectrum utilization efficiency of the first wireless communication system is lower than the expected value, while the spectrum utilization efficiency of the second wireless communication system is substantially equal to the expected value, according to the calculation of the system simulation model, the updated spectrum sensing parameters of the first wireless communication system are calculated without influencing the spectrum utilization efficiency of the second wireless communication system and a spectrum sensing parameters updating command is transmitted to the first wireless communication system.

InFIG.11, an example where one spectrum management apparatus manages one wireless communication system and two spectrum management apparatus interact with each other is illustrated. The first spectrum management apparatus determines the spectrum utilization efficiency based on the acquired spectrum utilization information, and in the case of finding that the spectrum utilization efficiency deviates from the expected value, adjusts the spectrum sensing parameters, that is, transmits a spectrum sensing parameters changing instruction to the first communication system, and issues a parameter changing request to the second spectrum management apparatus. The second spectrum management apparatus acquires, upon receiving this request, the spectrum utilization information from the managed second communication system, judges whether the spectrum utilization efficiency is influenced by the change of the spectrum sensing parameters of the first communication system, and provides a feedback to the first spectrum management apparatus based on the judgment. When the feedback indicates that the second communication system is not influenced, the first spectrum management apparatus instructs the first communication system to use the adjusted spectrum sensing parameters to operate, or no long provide any additional instruction to the first communication system. Otherwise, the first spectrum management apparatus instructs the first communication system to use the original spectrum sensing parameters to operate.

Illustratively, the spectrum management apparatus described above may be used for coexistence management of wireless communication systems in a building that is covered by services of multiple LTE communication systems and WiFi systems.

<Application Examples>

The technology of the present disclosure is applicable to various products. For example, the spectrum management apparatus100and200may be realized as any type of server such as a tower server, a rack server, and a blade server. The spectrum management apparatus100and200may be a control module (such as an integrated circuit module including a single die, and a card or a blade that is inserted into a slot of a blade server) mounted on a server.

In addition, the above mentioned base station300may be realized as any type of evolved Node B (eNB) such as a macro eNB and a small eNB. The small eNB may be an eNB such as a pico eNB, a micro eNB, and a home (femto) eNB that covers a cell smaller than a macro cell. Instead, the base station may be realized as any other types of base stations such as a NodeB and a base transceiver station (BTS). The base station may include a main body (that is also referred to as a base station apparatus) configured to control radio communication, and one or more remote radio heads (RRH) disposed in a different place from the main body. In addition, various types of terminals, which will be described below, may each operate as the base station by temporarily or semi-persistently executing a base station function.

For example, the user device400may be realized as a mobile terminal such as a smartphone, a tablet personal computer (PC), a notebook PC, a portable game terminal, a portable/dongle type mobile router, and a digital camera, or an in-vehicle terminal such as a car navigation apparatus. The terminal apparatus300may also be realized as a terminal (that is also referred to as a machine type communication (MTC) terminal) that performs machine-to-machine (M2M) communication. Furthermore, the user device400may be a radio communication module (such as an integrated circuit module including a single die) mounted on each of the terminals.

[Application Examples Regarding Base Station]

First Application Example

FIG.12is a block diagram illustrating a first example of a schematic configuration of an eNB to which the technology of the present disclosure may be applied. An eNB800includes one or more antennas810and a base station apparatus820. Each antenna810and the base station apparatus820may be connected to each other via an RF cable.

Each of the antennas810includes a single or multiple antenna elements (such as multiple antenna elements included in an MIMO antenna), and is used for the base station apparatus820to transmit and receive radio signals. The eNB800may include the multiple antennas810, as illustrated inFIG.12. For example, the multiple antennas810may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the eNB800. AlthoughFIG.12illustrates the example in which the eNB800includes the multiple antennas810, the eNB800may also include a single antenna810.

The base station apparatus820includes a controller821, a memory822, a network interface823, and a radio communication interface825.

The controller821may be, for example, a CPU or a DSP, and operates various functions of a higher layer of the base station apparatus820. For example, the controller821generates a data packet from data in signals processed by the radio communication interface825, and transfers the generated packet via the network interface823. The controller821may bundle data from multiple base band processors to generate the bundled packet, and transfer the generated bundled packet. The controller821may have logical functions of performing control such as radio resource control, radio bearer control, mobility management, admission control, and scheduling. The control may be performed in corporation with an eNB or a core network node in the vicinity. The memory822includes RAM and ROM, and stores a program that is executed by the controller821, and various types of control data (such as a terminal list, transmission power data, and scheduling data).

The network interface823is a communication interface for connecting the base station apparatus820) to a core network824. The controller821may communicate with a core network node or another eNB via the network interface823. In that case, the eNB800, and the core network node or the other eNB may be connected to each other through a logical interface (such as an S1 interface and an X2 interface). The network interface823may also be a wired communication interface or a radio communication interface for radio backhaul. If the network interface823is a radio communication interface, the network interface823may use a higher frequency band for radio communication than a frequency band used by the radio communication interface825.

The radio communication interface825supports any cellular communication scheme such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) and LTE-Advanced, and provides radio connection to a terminal positioned in a cell of the eNB800via the antenna810. The radio communication interface825may typically include, for example, a baseband (BB) processor826and an RF circuit827. The BB processor826may perform, for example, encoding/decoding, modulating/demodulating, and multiplexing/demultiplexing, and performs various types of signal processing of layers (such as L1, medium access control (MAC), radio link control (RLC), and a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP)). The BB processor826may have a part or all of the above-described logical functions instead of the controller821. The BB processor826may be a memory that stores a communication control program, or a module that includes a processor and a related circuit configured to execute the program. Updating the program may allow the functions of the BB processor826to be changed. The module may be a card or a blade that is inserted into a slot of the base station apparatus820. Alternatively, the module may also be a chip that is mounted on the card or the blade. Meanwhile, the RF circuit827may include, for example, a mixer, a filter, and an amplifier, and transmits and receives radio signals via the antenna810.

The radio communication interface825may include the multiple BB processors826, as illustrated inFIG.12. For example, the multiple BB processors826may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the eNB800. The radio communication interface825may include the multiple RF circuits827, as illustrated inFIG.12. For example, the multiple RF circuits827may be compatible with multiple antenna elements. AlthoughFIG.12illustrates the example in which the radio communication interface825includes the multiple BB processors826and the multiple RF circuits827, the radio communication interface825may also include a single BB processor826or a single RF circuit827.

In the eNB800illustrated inFIG.12, the transmitting unit301and receiving unit302described by usingFIG.5may be implemented by the radio communication interface825. At least a part of the functions may also be implemented by the controller821. For example, the controller821can implement the judgment whether the predetermined frequency band is available by implementing the function of the judgment unit303.

Second Application Example

FIG.13is a block diagram illustrating a second example of a schematic configuration of an eNB to which the technology of the present disclosure may be applied. An eNB830includes one or more antennas840, a base station apparatus850, and an RRH860. Each antenna840) and the RRH860may be connected to each other via an RF cable. The base station apparatus850and the RRH860may be connected to each other via a high speed line such as an optical fiber cable.

Each of the antennas840includes a single or multiple antenna elements (such as multiple antenna elements included in an MIMO antenna), and is used for the RRH860to transmit and receive radio signals. The eNB830may include the multiple antennas840, as illustrated inFIG.13. For example, the multiple antennas840may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the eNB830. AlthoughFIG.13illustrates the example in which the eNB830includes the multiple antennas840, the eNB830may also include a single antenna840.

The base station apparatus850includes a controller851, a memory852, a network interface853, a radio communication interface855, and a connection interface857. The controller851, the memory852, and the network interface853are the same as the controller821, the memory822, and the network interface823described with reference toFIG.12.

The radio communication interface855supports any cellular communication scheme such as LTE and LTE-Advanced, and provides radio communication to a terminal positioned in a sector corresponding to the RRH860via the RRH860and the antenna840. The radio communication interface855may typically include, for example, a BB processor856. The BB processor856is the same as the BB processor826described with reference toFIG.12, except the BB processor856is connected to the RF circuit864of the RRH860via the connection interface857. The radio communication interface855may include the multiple BB processors856, as illustrated inFIG.13. For example, the multiple BB processors856may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the eNB830. AlthoughFIG.13illustrates the example in which the radio communication interface855includes the multiple BB processors856, the radio communication interface855may also include a single BB processor856.

The connection interface857is an interface for connecting the base station apparatus850) (radio communication interface855) to the RRH860. The connection interface857may also be a communication module for communication in the above-described high speed line that connects the base station apparatus850(radio communication interface855) to the RRH860.

The RRH860includes a connection interface861and a radio communication interface863.

The connection interface861is an interface for connecting the RRH860(radio communication interface863) to the base station apparatus850. The connection interface861may also be a communication module for communication in the above-described high speed line.

The radio communication interface863transmits and receives radio signals via the antenna840. The radio communication interface863may typically include, for example, the RF circuit864. The RF circuit864may include, for example, a mixer, a filter, and an amplifier, and transmits and receives radio signals via the antenna840. The radio communication interface863may include multiple RF circuits864, as illustrated inFIG.13. For example, the multiple RF circuits864may support multiple antenna elements. AlthoughFIG.13illustrates the example in which the radio communication interface863includes the multiple RF circuits864, the radio communication interface863may also include a single RF circuit864.

In the eNB830illustrated inFIG.13, the transmitting unit301and receiving unit302described by usingFIG.5may be implemented by the radio communication interface855and/or the radio communication interface863. At least a part of the functions may also be implemented by the controller851. For example, the controller851can implement the judgment whether the predetermined frequency band is available by implementing the function of the judgment unit303.

[4-3. Application Examples Regarding User Device]

First Application Example

FIG.14is a block diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a smartphone900to which the technology of the present disclosure may be applied. The smartphone900includes a processor901, a memory902, a storage903, an external connection interface904, a camera906, a sensor907, a microphone908, an input device909, a display device910, a speaker911, a radio communication interface912, one or more antenna switches915, one or more antennas916, a bus917, a battery918, and an auxiliary controller919.

The processor901may be, for example, a CPU or a system on a chip (SoC), and controls functions of an application layer and another layer of the smartphone900. The memory902includes RAM and ROM, and stores a program that is executed by the processor901, and data. The storage903may include a storage medium such as a semiconductor memory and a hard disk. The external connection interface904is an interface for connecting an external device such as a memory card and a universal serial bus (USB) device to the smartphone900.

The camera906includes an image sensor such as a charge coupled device (CCD) and a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS), and generates a captured image. The sensor907may include a group of sensors such as a measurement sensor, a gyro sensor, a geomagnetic sensor, and an acceleration sensor. The microphone908converts sounds that are input to the smartphone900to audio signals. The input device909includes, for example, a touch sensor configured to detect touch onto a screen of the display device910, a keypad, a keyboard, a button, or a switch, and receives an operation or an information input from a user. The display device910includes a screen such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) and an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display, and displays an output image of the smartphone900. The speaker911converts audio signals that are output from the smartphone900to sounds.

The radio communication interface912supports any cellular communication scheme such as LET and LTE-Advanced, and performs radio communication. The radio communication interface912may typically include, for example, a BB processor913and an RF circuit914. The BB processor913may perform, for example, encoding/decoding, modulating/demodulating, and multiplexing/demultiplexing, and performs various types of signal processing for radio communication. Meanwhile, the RF circuit914may include, for example, a mixer, a filter, and an amplifier, and transmits and receives radio signals via the antenna916. The radio communication interface912may be a one chip module having the BB processor913and the RF circuit914integrated thereon. The radio communication interface912may include the multiple BB processors913and the multiple RF circuits914, as illustrated inFIG.14. AlthoughFIG.14illustrates the example in which the radio communication interface912includes the multiple BB processors913and the multiple RF circuits914, the radio communication interface912may also include a single BB processor913or a single RF circuit914.

Furthermore, in addition to a cellular communication scheme, the radio communication interface912may support another type of radio communication scheme such as a short-distance wireless communication scheme, a near field communication scheme, and a radio local area network (LAN) scheme. In that case, the radio communication interface912may include the BB processor913and the RF circuit914for each radio communication scheme.

Each of the antenna switches915switches connection destinations of the antennas916among multiple circuits (such as circuits for different radio communication schemes) included in the radio communication interface912.

Each of the antennas916includes a single or multiple antenna elements (such as multiple antenna elements included in an MIMO antenna), and is used for the radio communication interface912to transmit and receive radio signals. The smartphone900may include the multiple antennas916, as illustrated inFIG.14. AlthoughFIG.14illustrates the example in which the smartphone900includes the multiple antennas916, the smartphone900may also include a single antenna916.

Furthermore, the smartphone900may include the antenna916for each radio communication scheme. In that case, the antenna switches915may be omitted from the configuration of the smartphone900.

The bus917connects the processor901, the memory902, the storage903, the external connection interface904, the camera906, the sensor907, the microphone908, the input device909, the display device910, the speaker911, the radio communication interface912, and the auxiliary controller919to each other. The battery918supplies power to blocks of the smartphone900illustrated inFIG.14via feeder lines, which are partially shown as dashed lines in the figure. The auxiliary controller919operates a minimum necessary function of the smartphone900, for example, in a sleep mode.

In the smartphone900illustrated inFIG.14, the receiving unit401and the transmitting unit403described by usingFIG.6may be implemented by the radio communication interface912. At least a part of the functions may also be implemented by the processor901or the auxiliary controller919. For example, the processor901or the auxiliary controller919can implement spectrum sensing by implementing the function of the sensing unit402.

Second Application Example

FIG.15is a block diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a car navigation apparatus920to which the technology of the present disclosure may be applied. The car navigation apparatus920includes a processor921, a memory922, a global positioning system (GPS) module924, a sensor925, a data interface926, a content player927, a storage medium interface928, an input device929, a display device930, a speaker931, a radio communication interface933, one or more antenna switches936, one or more antennas937, and a battery938.

The processor921may be, for example, a CPU or a SoC, and controls a navigation function and another function of the car navigation apparatus920. The memory922includes RAM and ROM, and stores a program that is executed by the processor921, and data.

The GPS module924uses GPS signals received from a GPS satellite to measure a position (such as latitude, longitude, and altitude) of the car navigation apparatus920. The sensor925may include a group of sensors such as a gyro sensor, a geomagnetic sensor, and an air pressure sensor. The data interface926is connected to, for example, an in-vehicle network941via a terminal that is not shown, and acquires data generated by the vehicle, such as vehicle speed data.

The content player927reproduces content stored in a storage medium (such as a CD and a DVD) that is inserted into the storage medium interface928. The input device929includes, for example, a touch sensor configured to detect touch onto a screen of the display device930, a button, or a switch, and receives an operation or an information input from a user. The display device930includes a screen such as a LCD or an OLED display, and displays an image of the navigation function or content that is reproduced. The speaker931outputs sounds of the navigation function or the content that is reproduced.

The radio communication interface933supports any cellular communication scheme such as LTE and LTE-Advanced, and performs radio communication. The radio communication interface933may typically include, for example, a BB processor934and an RF circuit935. The BB processor934may perform, for example, encoding/decoding, modulating/demodulating, and multiplexing/demultiplexing, and performs various types of signal processing for radio communication. Meanwhile, the RF circuit935may include, for example, a mixer, a filter, and an amplifier, and transmits and receives radio signals via the antenna937. The radio communication interface933may also be a one chip module that has the BB processor934and the RF circuit935integrated thereon. The radio communication interface933may include the multiple BB processors934and the multiple RF circuits935, as illustrated inFIG.15. AlthoughFIG.15illustrates the example in which the radio communication interface933includes the multiple BB processors934and the multiple RF circuits935, the radio communication interface933may also include a single BB processor934or a single RF circuit935.

Furthermore, in addition to a cellular communication scheme, the radio communication interface933may support another type of radio communication scheme such as a short-distance wireless communication scheme, a near field communication scheme, and a radio LAN scheme. In that case, the radio communication interface933may include the BB processor934and the RF circuit935for each radio communication scheme.

Each of the antenna switches936switches connection destinations of the antennas937among multiple circuits (such as circuits for different radio communication schemes) included in the radio communication interface933.

Each of the antennas937includes a single or multiple antenna elements (such as multiple antenna elements included in an MIMO antenna), and is used for the radio communication interface933to transmit and receive radio signals. The car navigation apparatus920may include the multiple antennas937, as illustrated inFIG.15. AlthoughFIG.15illustrates the example in which the car navigation apparatus920includes the multiple antennas937, the car navigation apparatus920may also include a single antenna937.

Furthermore, the car navigation apparatus920may include the antenna937for each radio communication scheme. In that case, the antenna switches936may be omitted from the configuration of the car navigation apparatus920.

The battery938supplies power to blocks of the car navigation apparatus920illustrated inFIG.15via feeder lines that are partially shown as dashed lines in the figure. The battery938accumulates power supplied form the vehicle.

In the car navigation apparatus920illustrated inFIG.15, the receiving unit401and the transmitting unit403described by usingFIG.6may be implemented by the radio communication interface933. At least a part of the functions may also be implemented by the processor921. For example, the processor921can implement spectrum sensing by implementing the function of the sensing unit402.

The technology of the present disclosure may also be realized as an in-vehicle system (or a vehicle)940including one or more blocks of the car navigation apparatus920, the in-vehicle network941, and a vehicle module942. The vehicle module942generates vehicle data such as vehicle speed, engine speed, and trouble information, and outputs the generated data to the in-vehicle network941.

The basic principle of the present invention has been described above in conjunction with particular embodiments. However, as can be appreciated by those ordinarily skilled in the art, all or any of the steps or components of the method and apparatus according to the invention can be implemented in hardware, firmware, software or a combination thereof in any computing device (including a processor, a storage medium, etc.) or a network of computing devices by those ordinarily skilled in the art in light of the disclosure of the invention and making use of their general circuit designing knowledge or general programming skills.

As can be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the modules in the above mentioned apparatus such as the determining unit, the adjusting unit, the sensing unit, the judgment unit, and so on can be implemented by one or more processors, while the modules such as the acquiring unit, the interaction unit, the transmitting unit, the receiving unit and so on can be implemented by circuit elements such as an antenna, a filter, a modem, a codec and so on.

Therefore, the present application further provides an electronic device (1), including a circuit, configured to: acquire spectrum utilization information of at least one wireless communication system on a predetermined frequency band: determine, according to the spectrum utilization information, spectrum utilization efficiency of a corresponding wireless communication system; and adjust spectrum sensing parameters of the corresponding wireless communication system on the predetermined frequency band based on the spectrum utilization efficiency.

The present application further provides an electronic device (2), including a circuit, configured to: transmit spectrum utilization information of a cell served by a base station on a predetermined frequency band to a spectrum management apparatus; and receive change in spectrum sensing parameters from the spectrum management apparatus.

The present application further provides an electronic device (3), including a circuit, configured to: receive an instruction for performing spectrum sensing and corresponding spectrum sensing parameters from a base station: performing the spectrum sensing according to the spectrum sensing parameters in response to the instruction; and transmitting a result of the spectrum sensing to the base station.

Moreover, the present invention further discloses a program product in which machine-readable instruction codes are stored. The aforementioned methods according to the embodiments can be implemented when the instruction codes are read and executed by a machine.

Accordingly, a memory medium for carrying the program product in which machine-readable instruction codes are stored is also covered in the present invention. The memory medium includes but is not limited to soft disc, optical disc, magnetic optical disc, memory card, memory stick and the like.

In the case where the present application is realized by software or firmware, a program constituting the software is installed in a computer with a dedicated hardware structure (e.g. the general computer1600shown inFIG.16) from a storage medium or network, wherein the computer is capable of implementing various functions when installed with various programs.

InFIG.16, a central processing unit (CPU)1601executes various processing according to a program stored in a read-only memory (ROM)1602or a program loaded to a random access memory (RAM)1603from a memory section1608. The data needed for the various processing of the CPU1601may be stored in the RAM1603as needed. The CPU1601, the ROM1602and the RAM1603are linked with each other via a bus1604. An input/output interface1605is also linked to the bus1604.

The following components are linked to the input/output interface1605: an input section1606(including keyboard, mouse and the like), an output section1607(including displays such as a cathode ray tube (CRT), a liquid crystal display (LCD), a loudspeaker and the like), a memory section1608(including hard disc and the like), and a communication section1609(including a network interface card such as a LAN card, modem and the like). The communication section1609performs communication processing via a network such as the Internet. A driver1610may also be linked to the input/output interface1605, if needed. If needed, a removable medium1611, for example, a magnetic disc, an optical disc, a magnetic optical disc, a semiconductor memory and the like, may be installed in the driver1610, so that the computer program read therefrom is installed in the memory section1608as appropriate.

In the case where the foregoing series of processing is achieved through software, programs forming the software are installed from a network such as the Internet or a memory medium such as the removable medium1611.

It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the memory medium is not limited to the removable medium1611shown inFIG.16, which has program stored therein and is distributed separately from the apparatus so as to provide the programs to users. The removable medium1611may be, for example, a magnetic disc (including floppy disc (registered trademark)), a compact disc (including compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) and digital versatile disc (DVD), a magneto optical disc (including mini disc (MD) (registered trademark)), and a semiconductor memory. Alternatively, the memory medium may be the hard discs included in ROM1602and the memory section1608in which programs are stored, and can be distributed to users along with the device in which they are incorporated.

To be further noted, in the apparatus, method and system according to the invention, the respective components or steps can be decomposed and/or recombined. These decompositions and/or recombinations shall be regarded as equivalent solutions of the invention. Moreover, the above series of processing steps can naturally be performed temporally in the sequence as described above but will not be limited thereto, and some of the steps can be performed in parallel or independently from each other.

Finally, to be further noted, the term “include”, “comprise” or any variant thereof is intended to encompass nonexclusive inclusion so that a process, method, article or device including a series of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements which have been not listed definitely or an element(s) inherent to the process, method, article or device. Moreover, the expression “comprising a (n) . . . ” in which an element is defined will not preclude presence of an additional identical element(s) in a process, method, article or device comprising the defined element(s)” unless further defined.

Although the embodiments of the invention have been described above in detail in connection with the drawings, it shall be appreciated that the embodiments as described above are merely illustrative but not limitative of the invention. Those skilled in the art can make various modifications and variations to the above embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, the scope of the invention is defined merely by the appended claims and their equivalents.