Patent ID: 8811928

Claim:
A method for finding differences in path loss between a plurality of radio frequency (RF) paths between a first transceiver and a second transceiver in a wireless communications system, the method comprising: using different ones of the RF paths during respective different defined intervals of time to receive signals at one of the first and second transceivers from the other one of the first and second transceivers, measuring first and second signal strengths of the signals received using respective first and second ones of the RF paths during first and second ones of said respective different intervals, comparing the first and second signal strengths of the first and second RF paths using measurements from the first and second intervals, wherein one of the first and second transceivers comprises a base station comprising different physical transmission antennas, wherein a different one of the first and second transceivers comprises a mobile device, and wherein the different ones of the RF paths are defined by transmission from the different physical transmission antennas of the base station and/or by different transmission polarizations, and by reception at the mobile device; and communicating between the first and second transceivers using a third RF path, and not the first RF path and not the second RF path, between the first and second transceivers, during a third interval that follows the first and second intervals, the method further comprising: determining an average difference between a third signal strength of the third RF path and the first signal strength; determining an average difference between the third signal strength and the second signal strength; and identifying greater attenuation provided by one of the different ones of the RF paths responsive to determining an average difference between the signal strengths of the different ones of the RF paths, respectively.