Patent ID: 8005170

Claim:
A method for detecting a signal in a communication system using at least two transmit antennas, the method comprising: selecting a symbol corresponding to a lowest branch metric from among a plurality of symbols, the number of symbols corresponds to a modulation scheme; determining a candidate symbol by extending the selecting of the symbol corresponding to a lowest branch metric from among a plurality of symbols corresponding to the previously selected symbol, to a number which is less by one than the number of the transmit antennas; setting an accumulated branch metric of the candidate symbol as a threshold; removing at least one symbol having an accumulated branch metric higher than the threshold; selecting, as a last received symbol, a symbol corresponding to a path having the lowest accumulated branch metric from among paths selected without being removed until a last stage; and when accumulated branch metrics of all the extended symbols are higher than the threshold, estimating a symbol having the threshold as a last received symbol.