Communication system of high capacity

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 11451418
  • Patent Number
    11,451,418
  • Date Filed
    Wednesday, June 3, 2020
    4 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, September 20, 2022
    2 years ago
  • Inventors
  • Examiners
    • Tadese; Berhanu
    Agents
    • Satterthwaite; Kyle R
    • Dupuis; Ryan W.
    • Ade & Company Inc.
Abstract
It is an objective of the current disclosure to design a novel communications system capable of offering improvement in channel capacity compared to current communications systems. To this end, the disclosure teaches how to add new information to a select number of Degrees of Freedom (DOF), through three design steps. All three steps aim to design the system such that the minimum required average received Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) is reduced for a given desired capacity and for a given specified mask. The first design step identifies the select number of DOF required for achieving the desired capacity. The second design step enhances the contribution of the selected DOF by matching them to the specified mask. This step aims to have the transmitted signal comply with the specified mask. The third design step randomizes the DOF using a pseudo-random phase. This step aims to reduce the required average received SNR.
Description
1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to the field of communications where it is desirable to communicate between a number of transmitting units (TUs) and receiving units (RUs):

  • 1. at a relatively high communications rate, over a communications channel, while
  • 2. reducing the complexity, cost, latency, bandwidth (BW) and power consumption of the TUs and RUs.


The present invention relates to methods and apparatuses for communications over a varied number of physical media such as: satellite, radio, audio, video, microwave, milli-meter (mm) wave, telephone line, subscriber loop, optical fiber cable, coaxial cable, twisted pair, USB cable, wireless, laser, infrared, power-line, tropospheric, ionospheric, Very High Frequency (VHF), Ultra High Frequency (UHF), etc.


The present invention relates to methods and apparatuses for communications using a varied number of examples of TUs and of RUs such as: a base station (BS), or an access point (AP), a satellite transponder, a cellular telephone, a mobile telephone, a PCS telephone, a wireline modem, a wireless modem, a power line modem, a WiFi station, Zigbee node, a Bluetooth radio, computers, tablets, PDAs, sensors, watches, an Internet-of-Things (IOT) device, a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) device, etc.


The present invention relates to a varied number of communications networks such as:

  • 1. A centralized network with a downlink (DL) portion from BS/AP to device, and/or an uplink (UL) portion from device to BS/AP, where we have referred to a BS/AP as the infrastructure unit of the network, and to a device as a unit receiving/transmitting services (voice, data, video, etc.) from/to the infrastructure units. A device includes a cellular telephone, a mobile telephone, a PCS telephone, a wireline modem, a wireless modem, a WiFi station, a Zigbee node, a Bluetooth radio, etc. Each BS/AP and each device comprises a TU and/or an RU.
  • 2. A distributed network where all TUs/RUs act either as a BS/AP or as a device, or both, including mesh networks, multi-hop networks, peer-to-peer networks etc. Each node comprises a TU and/or an RU.


The present invention relates to a varied number of communications applications such as ones with: 1. an UL emphasis such as Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN), 2. a DL emphasis such as Downstreaming Video (DV), 3. a Multicasting emphasis such as in radio and wireless systems,

  • 4. a Broadcasting emphasis such as in AM, FM, DAB and GPS/Glonass/Galileo systems, and 5. a peer-to-peer emphasis such as driverless cars.


The present invention relates to a varied number of standards such as: 1. 3G standards, 4G standards (also known as Long Term Evolution (LTE)), 5G standards, etc., 2. WiFi (IEEE 802.11a, b, g, n, ax, ac, ad, etc.) standards, 3. Bluetooth and Zigbee standards, 4. LoRa standards, 5. UWB standards, etc., to name a few.


The present invention relates to a varied number of communications networks with various ranges between each TU and its designated RU(s) such as: 1. Ultra long range communications including deep space systems, 2. long range communications including satellite, micro-wave links, LoRa and cellular systems, 3. medium range communications such as WiFi and laser systems, and 4. short range communications such as Zigbee and Bluetooth systems.


The present invention relates to a varied number of communications networks with various types of TUs and RUs such as: 1. TUs comprising one transmitter (Tx), also referred to as single input (SI), 2. RUs comprising one receiver (Rx), also referred to as single output (SO), 3. TUs comprising multiple Txs, also referred to as multiple input (MI) (also known as Multi-User (MU)), and 4. RUs comprising multiple Rxs, also referred to as multiple output (MO).


The present invention relates to a varied number of communications networks with various types of MI such as: 1. MI which can collaborate, and 2. MI which cannot collaborate, such as MU networks. Based on the above, this disclosure uses SISO, MISO, SIMO, MU-MISO and/or MU-MIMO communications links.


2. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In many applications, it is desirable to communicate between a number of TUs and a number of RUs over a communications channel, in an efficient way where complexity, BW, power consumption, latency and cost of each of the TUs and/or RUs are reduced while the transmission rate and range between each TU and its designated RU(s) are increased. In some applications, the specified channel is constrained by a mask, while the cost of each of the TUs and RUs is mainly dictated by its complexity. Reducing the power consumption of each of the TUs and RUs, while increasing its transmission rate, Rb, across a channel constrained by a mask of BW, custom character, can be usually considered a trade-off between power efficiency and bandwidth efficiency, η. Power efficiency is usually measured in terms of (how small) the minimum average received Signal Power-to-Noise Power Ratio (SNR), SNR, that is required to achieve a specific performance (such as Bit Error Rate (BER)), while bandwidth efficiency, η, is usually measured in terms of (how large) the number of bits that can be communicated per second, Rb, per Hertz (bps/Hz) of mask BW, custom character, between each TU and its designated RU(s) across a communications channel. This trade-off is often captured by an all-encompassing figure of merit, the well-known channel capacity, custom character, which provides an upper bound on







R
b



=
Δ



η
×

𝒲
m







that can be achieved as function of SNR.


This disclosure extends the capacity, custom characterBL, of a band-limited (BL) channel to include the capacity, custom characterTL, of a Time-Limited (TL) channel. Wyner first studied the capacity, custom characterTL, of a TL system in 1966, after constraining the system to be approximately Band-Limited (BL). When the system is instead constrained to be Root Mean Square (RMS) BL, reducing interference between input signals is accomplished by minimizing the RMS bandwidth of each signal. The solution of such a minimization was shown by Gabor to be one lobe of a sine wave. Over time, the notion that practical communication systems are approximately BL was replaced by the notion that they are indeed BL as far as the channel capacity, custom characterTL, is concerned. This was because it was thought that the high frequency components, which exist in a TL system and which fall far below the noise floor when the system is constrained by a spectral mask, couldn't realistically contribute to the channel capacity, custom characterTL, of the TL system. The disclosure shows that such components can indeed contribute significantly to custom characterTL, based on the fact that they represent an arbitrarily large number of Finite Access Time (FAT) Degrees of Freedom (DOF) with the ability to offer a linear SNR contribution towards the capacity. This is in contrast with BL systems, which contain a finite number of FAT DOF, and consequently, can only offer a logarithmic SNR contribution towards the capacity. By definition, the time to access a FAT DOF is finite.


More specifically, this disclosure introduces novel means and apparatuses for designing communications systems and techniques that are able to increase their channel capacity, custom characterTL, compared to the capacity, custom characterBL, of existing communications systems by transporting incremental information across the arbitrarily large number of FAT DOF that exist in a TL waveform. In contrast, existing systems are assumed to be BL and therefore are assumed to have a limited number of FAT DOF with a limited ability to carry incremental information. Moreover, existing communications systems attempt to comply with the constraint of a mask through the use of certain filters, either digital or analog, selected primarily as to not cause a significant loss in orthogonality between input signals, while restricting their signal BW as much as possible in the hope of maintaining their BL status. On the other hand, the current disclosure takes advantage of the existence of the arbitrarily large number of FAT DOF in a TL system, by matching parts of the FAT DOF in a TL system to the imposed mask. We refer to such a matching as a Mask-Matched TL method with FAT DOF, or the MTF method for short, and refer to the apparatus, which performs such a matching as the MTF apparatus.


Examples of the imposed mask in MTF methods and apparatuses include current wireless standards, such as WiFi and LTE systems, as well as future 5th Generation (5G) wireless standards, which promise to deliver more than 10 Gbps download capacities. In order to meet the promised 5G download capacities, current systems require a channel with an estimated median BW of 3.5 GHz. This large BW is only available across mm-wave bands (26 GHz, 28 GHz, 38 GHz, and 60 GHz). Such bands suffer from a high path loss and are not multipath rich. The high path loss restricts coverage to Line-of-Sight (LOS) coverage, while a poor multipath environment limits the number of spatial DOF in a MIMO system. Moreover, mm-wave bands are expensive and potentially harmful. By relying on MTF systems, this disclosure shows how to exceed current wireless standards as well as how to meet and exceed the 10 Gbps requirement for 5G systems with a BW, custom character=20 MHz, with a carrier frequency in the mid-band spectrum of [2 GHz, 6 GHz], i.e. without requiring mm-wave transmissions.


3. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an objective of the current disclosure to design novel communications systems that are capable of offering substantial improvement in channel capacity compared to current communications systems. To this end, the disclosure derives the channel capacity, custom characterTL, of a Time-Limited (TL) system across a communication channel contaminated by interference and by noise. The potential increase in channel capacity is shown to be due to the availability of an arbitrarily large number of FAT DOF in a TL system. Such FAT DOF are able to carry incremental information compared to the information that is carried by existing systems. By taking advantage of the arbitrarily large number of FAT DOF in a TL system, the disclosure shows that such incremental information can be made arbitrarily large as well, forcing the channel capacity, custom characterTL, of the TL system to contain a new SNR region, referred to as the medium SNR region, in addition to the traditional low and high SNR regions found in the capacity, custom characterBL, of a BL system. The newly created SNR region allows for the design of a novel TL system, namely the MTF system, where doubling custom characterTL requires only a fixed multiple increase in SNR, as opposed to a BL system where doubling custom characterBL requires a geometric multiple increase in SNR. The medium SNR region loads between 1 and 2 bits of information/DOF. This is in contrast with either the low SNR region, which loads <1 bit of information/DOF, or the high SNR region, which typically loads >1 bit of information/DOF.


Recently, several systems found a way to increase the number of their DOF. Such systems include MU systems, which form the basis for 3G wireless systems, and MIMO systems, which are currently adopted in most cellular standards, including 4G and 5G wireless systems. MU systems correspond to having K co-located users, each with a spreading gain N, which is the number of their DOF, while MIMO systems correspond to having K transmit antennas and N receive antennas where the number of DOF≤min {K, N}. Despite the fact that both systems have the ability to arbitrarily increase the number of their DOF, their respective capacities do not contain a medium SNR region since both systems fail to realize that, under certain conditions, some DOF, namely the FAT DOF, can offer a linear SNR contribution towards the capacity, by carrying incremental information. The current disclosure shows that in an MTF system, it is possible to force parts of the high SNR region to fall into the medium SNR region through the use of multiple receiving antennas such as in MIMO and/or in MU-MIMO communications. In summary, the disclosure shows several designs of MTF systems, which outperform current systems, including one design that is shown to meet future 5G capacity specifications without requiring mm-wave bands.





4 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention, both as to its organization and manner of operation, may best be understood by reference to the following descriptions, and the accompanying drawings of various embodiments wherein like reference numerals are used throughout the several views, and in which:



FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an embodiment of a SISO communications link between one TU 314 and one RU 315, over a communications channel 106, the link comprising

    • MTF Modulator 102, part of the digital side 510, which converts the (possibly Forward Error Correction (FEC) coded) information vector, {right arrow over (α)} 101, into an MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)} 103,
    • transmitter, Tx 104, part of the digital side 510 and analog side 511, 513, which converts the MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)} 103, into a transmitted MTF (analog) signal, x(t) 105,
    • communications channel 106 which transports the transmitted MTF (analog) signal, x(t) 105 from Tx 104 to be received as y(t) 107 at Rx 108,
    • receiver Rx 108, part of the analog side 616, 618 and digital side 617, which converts the MTF (analog) signal, y(t) 107, into a received MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (r)} 109, and
    • MTF Detector 110 part of the digital side 617, which detects the (possibly FEC coded) information vector, {right arrow over (α)} 101, as custom character111 from the received MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (r)} 109, using an estimate (possibly using a training sequence), which we refer to as Channel State Information at Receiver (CSIR) 115, of the state of the communications channel 106.



FIG. 2 is a schematic view of an embodiment of a MU-MISO communications link comprising K TUs 316, . . . , 318, and one RU 317, across a Multidimensional communications channel 306, the TU 316 comprising

    • MTF Modulator1 302, part of the digital side 510, which converts the (possibly FEC coded) information vector, {right arrow over (α)}1 301, into an MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)}1 303,
    • and Tx1 304, part of the digital side 510 and analog side 511, 513, which converts the MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)}1 303, into a transmitted MTF (analog) signal, x1(t) 305.


The TU 318 comprises

    • MTF ModulatorK 202, part of the digital side 510, which converts the (possibly FEC coded) information vector, {right arrow over (α)}K 201, into an MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)}K 203, part of the digital side 510,
    • and TxK 204, part of the digital side 510 and analog side 511, 513, which converts the MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)}K 203, into a transmitted MTF (analog) signal, xK(t) 205.


The RU 317 comprises

    • Rx1 308, part of the analog side 616, 618 and digital side 617, which converts the MTF (analog) signal, y1(t) 307, into a received MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (r)}1 309, and
    • MTF Detector1 310, MTF Detector 110 part of the digital side 617, which detects the (possibly FEC coded) information vectors, {right arrow over (α)}1 301, . . . , {right arrow over (α)}K 201 as custom character311, . . . , custom character211 from the received MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (r)}1 309, using CSIR 116, which is an estimate (possibly using a training sequence) of the state of the Multidimensional communications channel 306.



FIG. 3 is a schematic view of an embodiment of a MU-MIMO communications link comprising K TUs 316, . . . , 318, and Nr non-collaborating RUs 317, . . . , 319, across a Multidimensional communications channel 406, the TU 316 comprising

    • MTF Modulator1 302, part of the digital side 510, which converts the (possibly FEC coded) information vector, {right arrow over (α)}1 301, into an MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)}1 303,
    • and Tx1 304, part of the digital side 510 and analog side 511, 513, which converts the MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)}1 303, into a transmitted MTF (analog) signal, x1(t) 305.


The TU 318 comprises

    • MTF ModulatorK 202, part of the digital side 510, which converts the (possibly FEC coded) information vector, {right arrow over (α)}K 201, into an MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)}K 203,
    • and TxK 204, part of the digital side 510 and analog side 511, 513, which converts the MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)}K 203, into a transmitted MTF (analog) signal, xK(t) 205.


The RU 317 comprises

    • Rx1 308, part of the analog side 616, 618 and digital side 617, which converts the MTF (analog) signal, y1(t) 307, into a received MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (r)}1 309, and
    • MTF Detector1 310, MTF Detector 110 part of the digital side 617, which detects the (possibly FEC coded) K information vectors {right arrow over (α)}1 301, . . . , {right arrow over (α)}K 201 as custom character311, . . . , custom character211 from the received MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (r)}1 309, using CSIR 116, which is an estimate (possibly using a training sequence) of the state of the Multidimensional communications channel 406.


The RU 319 comprises

    • RxNr, 208, part of the analog side 616, 618 and digital side 617, which converts the MTF (analog) signal, yNr(t) 207, into a received MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (r)}Nr 209, and
    • MTF DetectorNr 210, MTF Detector 110 part of the digital side 617, which detects the (possibly FEC coded) information vectors {right arrow over (α)}1 301, . . . , {right arrow over (α)}K 201 as custom character311, . . . , custom characterK 211, from the received MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (r)}Nr, 209, using CSIR 117, which is an estimate (possibly using a training sequence) of the state of the communications channel 406.



FIG. 4 is a schematic view of an embodiment of a MU-MIMO communications link comprising K TUs 316, . . . , 318, and one RU 321 with Nr collaborating Rxs 308, . . . , 208, across a Multidimensional communications channel 406, the TU 316 comprising

    • MTF Modulator1 302, part of the digital side 510, which converts the (possibly FEC coded) information vector, {right arrow over (α)}1 301, into an MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)}1 303,
    • and Tx1 304, part of the digital side 510 and analog side 511, 513, which converts the MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)}1 303, into a transmitted MTF (analog) signal, x1(t) 305.


The TU 318 comprises

    • MTF ModulatorK 202, part of the digital side 510, which converts the (possibly FEC coded) information vector, {right arrow over (α)}K 201, into an MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)}K 203,
    • and TxK 204, part of the digital side 510 and analog side 511, 513, which converts the MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)}K 203, into a transmitted MTF (analog) signal, xK(t) 205.


The RU 321 comprises

    • Nr Rx 308, . . . , 208, part of the analog side 616, 618 and digital side 617, which converts the MTF (analog) signals, y1(t), . . . , yNr(t) 307, . . . , 207 into Nr received MTF (digital) vectors, {right arrow over (r)}1, . . . {right arrow over (r)}Nr 309, . . . , 209 respectively, and
    • MTF Detector1 310, MTF Detector 110 part of the digital side 617, which detects the (possibly FEC coded) K information vectors, {right arrow over (α)}1 301, . . . , {right arrow over (α)}K 201, as custom character311, . . . , custom character211, from the received MTF (digital) vectors {right arrow over (r)}1 109, . . . , {right arrow over (r)}Nr 209, using CSIR 118, which is an estimate (possibly using a training sequence) of the state of the channel 406.



FIG. 5a is a schematic view of an embodiment of Tx 104 (204, 304) for converting a baseband-sampled (consisting of complex samples) or an IF-sampled (consisting of real samples) MTF (digital 510) discrete-time vector, {right arrow over (β)} 103 (203, 303), into an MTF (analog 511) continuous-time RF signal, x(t) 105 (205, 305), to be transmitted, Tx 104 (204, 304) comprising

    • a Pre-Channel Filter 500 to pre-filter the baseband-sampled or the IF-sampled MTF (digital 510) vector, {right arrow over (β)} 103 (203, 303), based on the knowledge of the statistics of the channel 106 (306, 406) represented by Channel State Information at Transmitter (CSIT) 215, at Tx 104 (204, 304),
    • a Digital-to-Analog (D-to-A) Converter 502 to convert the pre-channel baseband-sampled or IF-sampled filtered MTF (digital 510) vector 501 into an analog 511 baseband or IF MTF signal 503,
    • an Up-Converter 504 to convert the analog baseband or IF MTF signal 503 into an up-converted analog 511 RF MTF (passband) signal 505,
    • a Power Amplifier (PA) 506 to amplify the up-converted analog 511 RF signal 505 into an amplified up-converted analog RF MTF signal 507, and
    • an Analog Filter 508 to filter the amplified up-converted analog 511 RF MTF signal 507 into a filtered amplified up-converted analog 511 RF MTF signal x(t) 105 (205, 305), which complies with a pre-specified spectral mask 701.



FIG. 5b is a schematic view of an embodiment of Rx 108 (208, 308) for converting a received MTF (analog 616) continuous-time RF signal, y(t) 107 (207, 307), into a received baseband-sampled (consisting of complex samples) or IF-sampled (consisting of real samples), MTF (digital) discrete-time vector, {right arrow over (r)} 109 (209, 309), to be used for detecting the original (possibly FEC coded) information vector, {right arrow over (α)} 101 (201, 301), Rx 108 (208, 308) comprising

    • an Analog Filter 607 to filter the received MTF (analog 616) RF signal, y(t) 107 (207, 307), into a filtered received analog RF MTF signal 608 (to filter and excise out-of-band noise and narrowband interferers),
    • a Low Noise Amplifier (LNA) 609 to amplify the filtered received analog 616 RF MTF signal 608, into an amplified filtered received analog 616 RF MTF signal 610,
    • a Down-Converter 611 to convert the amplified filtered received analog 616 RF MTF signal 610, into an amplified filtered received analog baseband or IF MTF signal 612, and
    • an Analog-to-Digital (A-to-D) Converter 613 to convert the amplified filtered received analog 616 baseband or IF MTF signal 612, into a baseband-sampled or IF-sampled digital 617 amplified filtered received MTF vector 614,
    • a Post-Channel Filter 615 to convert the baseband-sampled or IF-sampled digital 617 amplified filtered received MTF vector 614 into a post-channel filtered baseband-sampled or IF-sampled MTF vector {right arrow over (r)} 109 (209, 309) based on CSIR 115.



FIG. 6a is a schematic view of an alternative embodiment of Tx 104 for converting an RF-sampled, MTF (digital 510) discrete-time vector, {right arrow over (β)} 103 (203, 303), (consisting of real samples) into an (analog 513) continuous-time RF MTF signal, x(t) 105 (205, 305), to be transmitted, Tx 104 (204, 304) comprising

    • a Pre-Channel Filter 500 to pre-filter the RF sampled, pre-channel filtered, MTF (digital) vector, {right arrow over (β)} 103 (203, 303), based on CSIT 215 at Tx 104 (204, 304),
    • a D-to-A Converter 502 to convert the RF sampled, MTF (digital 510) vector 501, into an analog 513 RF MTF signal 503,
    • a PA 506 to amplify the analog 513 RF MTF signal 503, into an amplified analog 513 RF MTF signal 509, and
    • an Analog Filter 508 to filter the amplified analog 513 RF MTF signal 507, into a filtered amplified analog 513 RF MTF signal x(t) 105 (205, 305), which complies with a pre-specified spectral mask 701.



FIG. 6b is a schematic view of an alternative embodiment of Rx 108 (208, 308) for converting a received (analog 618) continuous-time RF MTF signal, y(t) 107 (207, 307), into a received RF MTF sampled, (digital 617) discrete-time MTF vector, {right arrow over (r)} 109 (209, 309), (consisting of real samples) to be used for detecting the original information vector, {right arrow over (α)} 101 (201, 301), Rx 108208, 308) comprising

    • an Analog Filter 607 to filter the received (analog 618) RF MTF signal, y(t) 107 (207, 307), into a filtered received analog 618 RF MTF signal 608 (to filter out-of-band noise and narrowband interferers),
    • an LNA 609 to amplify the filtered received analog 618 RF MTF signal 608, into an amplified filtered received analog 618 RF MTF signal 610, and
    • an A-to-D Converter 613 to convert the amplified filtered received analog 618 RF MTF signal 612, into an RF sampled digital 617 amplified filtered received MTF vector 614,
    • a Post-Channel Filter 215 to convert the RF sampled digital 617 amplified filtered received MTF vector 614 into a post-channel filtered RF sampled MTF vector {right arrow over (r)} 109 (209, 309) based on CSIR 115.



FIG. 7 shows a spectral mask, custom characterWiFi(f), 701 in dBr versus frequency, f−fc, as an example (among many) of a mask, where fc. is the carrier frequency. The selected mask, custom characterWiFi(f), is designated for the IEEE802.11 (also known as WiFi) WLAN mask for a 20 MHz band. The mask, custom characterWiFi(f), 701 contains three distinct (non-overlapping) spectral parts: 1. the Occupied Band 705, 2. the Out-of-Band Emissions (DOBE) Band 706, and 3. the Far Out Spurious Emmisions (FOSE) Band 707. Many other mask constraints are available depending on the standard, frequency band and jurisdiction. While different, all masks must generally contain three distinct spectral parts: Occupied Band 705, DOBE Band 706 and FOSE Band 707, similar to the ones described above for custom characterWiFi(f) 701.



FIG. 8 shows the PSD, custom characterx(t)(f) 802, in dBr versus frequency, f−fc, of the MTF signal, x(t) 105 (205, 305), where fc. is the carrier frequency. The MTF signal, x(t) 105 (205, 305), is designed in an attempt to match its PSD, custom characterx(t)(f) 802, with the spectral mask, custom characterWiFi(f) 701, in FIG. 7 as much as possible, however, without exceeding it. The PSD custom characterx(t)(f) 802, contains two distinct spectral parts:

    • custom character(f) 808, which is the PSD of custom character(f), to be matched with both the Occupied Band 705 and the DOBE Band 706 of the spectral mask, custom characterWiFi(f) 701, as much as possible, but without exceeding it.
    • custom character(f) 809, which is the PSD of custom character, to be matched with the FOSE Band 707 of the spectral mask, custom characterWiFi(f) 701, as much as possible, but without exceeding it.



FIG. 9 displays custom character(f) 808 for MTF3 with a null at the restricted bands as well as across |f|≤2 GHz, when custom character is selected as custom character with a PSD custom character908 while custom character is selected as defined in (17) with a PSD custom character(f) 809 pre-distorted according to (20). From FIG. 9, one can deduce that it is possible to increase custom characterMTF arbitrarily by increasing fs3 regardless of the value of fc where fs3 is the sampling frequency of MTF3.



FIG. 10a compares custom characterTL/custom character in (5) (shown with “.” markers) with custom characterBL/custom character in (6) (shown with “*” markers) when custom character=custom characterBL=1, custom character=K=1 and the kth column, {hCh}k of hCh corresponds to a rectangular pulse ∀k. In FIG. 10a, custom characterTL/custom character in (5) is illustrated as a number of curves, each curve corresponding to a value of Nmin. The selected values are Nmin=1, 2, 4, . . . , 1024, with Nmin=1 coinciding with custom characterBL/custom character in (6). custom characterBL/custom character in (6) contains a “Low” SNR region 1004 and a “High” SNR region 1005. Similarly, custom characterTL/custom character in (5) contains a “Low” SNR region 1001 and a “High” SNR region 1003. Unlike custom characterBL/custom character in (6), custom characterTL/custom character in (5) also contains a medium SNR region 1002, denoted as “Med. SNR” in FIG. 10a where doubling custom characterTL/custom character in (5) requires a fixed multiple increase in









Λ
k


𝓇


N
min






𝒜
_


K





𝔭




o



𝒲
m








since its contribution towards custom characterTL is mostly linear.



FIG. 10b shows that based on (10), custom characterMTF consists of two medium SNR regions 1006, 1007. As N increases, doubling custom characterMTF initially requires increasing the SNR by a fixed multiple of custom character, which is the first medium SNR region 1006, referred to as “1st Med. SNR” in FIG. 10b. Then, later on it requires increasing the SNR by a fixed multiple of 2, which is the second medium SNR region 1007, referred to as “2nd Med. SNR”. FIG. 10b compares custom characterMTF/custom character based on (10) with custom characterBL/custom character in (6), where custom character=custom characterBL=1, custom character=1, d=K=1 and custom character in (8) is a rectangular pulse with custom character in (8) 30dBr below custom character. In FIG. 10b, custom characterMTF/custom character without Constraint 3 is illustrated as a number of curves (with “.” markers), each curve corresponding to a value of Nmin·custom characterMTF/custom character with Constraint 3 is illustrated as a number of points (with “square” markers), each point corresponding to a value of Nmin. FIG. 10b shows that indeed Constraint 3 maximizes custom characterMTF/custom character in both medium SNR regions 1006, 1007.



FIG. 11a shows an embodiment of h 1101 as a block toeplitz matrix. The sup-matrix







[




h

B

a

s

i

c







0


𝒹


(

L
-
1

)


×
K





]





M
×
K







is used as a building block of h 1101 where hBasiccustom characterN×K in FIG. 11a comprises custom character sub-blocks with the first








N
𝒹







sub-blocks consisting of custom character rows each, while the last sub-block consisting of custom character′ rows, i.e. hBasic=[hBasic,1 . . . custom character]T with hBasic,1custom characterd×K 1102 and custom charactercustom characterd′×K 1103, where








𝒹




=
Δ



N





modulo






(
𝒹
)



,


N
𝒹



=
Δ





N
𝒹









is the ceiling function,








N
𝒹







is the floor function and [.]T denotes a transpose operation.



FIG. 11b shows an embodiment of hMTF 1104 as a block toeplitz matrix, where the K TUs 316, 318 are replaced by one equivalent TU 314 with one equivalent hMTF 1104. The sub-matrix








h



M

T

F




=
Δ




[




h

B





_





MTF







0


𝒹


(

L
-
1

)


×
K





]





M
×
K








is used as a building block of hMTF 1104 where hB_MTF in FIG. 11b comprises Nd sub-blocks with the first








N
𝒹







sub-blocks consisting of custom character rows each, while the last sub-block consisting of custom character′ rows, i.e.







h

B





_





MTF


=


[


h


B





_





MTF

,
1














h


B





_





MTF

,

N
d




]

T






with hB_MTF,1custom character1105 and







h


B





_





MTF

,

N
d








𝒹


×
K







1106.



FIG. 12a displays an embodiment for implementing equations (8) and (9), Equation (9)

    • convolves {right arrow over (h)}1,k 1201 with {right arrow over (g)}1,k 1203 using a circular convolution, denoted by “custom character1202, and
    • convolves custom character1204 with custom character1206 using a circular convolution, denoted by “custom character1205,
    • then, it performs custom character−1 linear convolution operations, (h1,kcustom character{right arrow over (g)}1,k) 1215* . . . *(custom character) 1216, using a linear convolution operator, denoted by “*” 1207, in order to produce custom character1208.


Equation (8) adds custom character1208 that is obtained from equation (9) with custom character1209 using an adder denoted by “+” 1210 in order to produce {hB_MTF}k 1308.



FIG. 12b displays a preferred embodiment for implementing equations (8) and (9) where all {right arrow over (h)}l,k ∀l 1201, 1204 in FIG. 12a are selected as {right arrow over (h)}REC,l,k 1212, 1213. In this case, custom character1208 in (8) is denoted as custom character1214.



FIG. 13 displays a preferred embodiment 1309 for implementing MTF Design Steps I-III, which designs {hB_MTF}k 1308 based on Theorem III with the goal of achieving a desired channel capacity, custom character, for a communications channel with (NTs)min and Ts,max 1301 defined

    • MTF Design Step I 1302: This step is referred to as the selection step 1302. It accepts custom character Nmin and Ts,max 1301, and generates the N selected FAT DOF 1303.
    • MTF Design Step II 1304: This step is referred to as the enhancement step 1304. It accepts the N selected FAT DOF 1303, and generates the N selected and enhanced FAT DOF 1305.
    • MTF Design Step III 1306: This step is referred to as the randomization step 1306. It accepts the N selected and enhanced FAT DOF 1305, and generates the N selected, enhanced and randomized FAT DOF 1307.


The N selected, enhanced and randomized FAT DOF 1307 are used to form the N elements of the kth column, {hB_MTF}k 1308, of hB_MTF using an inverse transform 1310.





5. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION
5.1 TL Systems

An information vector, {right arrow over (α)}∈custom characterQ×1 101, 201, 301, consisting of Q (possibly FEC coded) information symbols, can be transmitted by one or several active transmitters, Tx 104, 204, 304, across a communications channel 106, 306, 406 by converting {right arrow over (α)} 101, 201, 301 into a vector, {right arrow over (β)} 103, 203, 303, defined as










β




=
Δ



h


α







(
1
)








using a matrix, h∈custom characterM×Q 1101, where {right arrow over (β)}∈custom characterM×1 103, 203, 303 consists of samples, each of duration Ts for a total duration for {right arrow over (β)} of MTs. In this disclosure, we select h 1101, to be block toeplitz, i.e. h 1101 is defined as









h


=
Δ




toep
𝒹



{

h


}






(
2
)








where toepd{{right arrow over (h)}} is an operator, which forms h 1101 by repeatedly replicating the sub-matrix {right arrow over (h)} to the right L−1 times, while cyclically shifting {right arrow over (h)} down by d rows for every single replica to the right, with







L


=
Δ





Q
/
K




,





defined as the ceiling of Q/K. {right arrow over (h)}∈custom characterM×K is defined as







h




=
Δ





[




h
Basic






0


d


(

L
-
1

)


×
K





]






where






h
Basic






N
×
K








is referred to as the basic building block, while custom character is the all zero custom character(L−1)×K matrix, with custom character≤N and






M


=
Δ



N
+


d


(

L
-
1

)


.






Interpretation of h 1101: Since each column of h 1101 is responsible for transporting one information symbol in {right arrow over (α)} 101, 201, 301, therefore, {right arrow over (β)} 103, 203, 303 in (1) can model the output of a K-user TL system with spreading gain N<∞ with a number, custom character, of desired transmitters (Txs) intended for a receiver, Rx 108, 308, and a number, Ki, of interfering Txs 204, s.t. K=custom character+Ki. The kth active Tx 104, 204, 304 transmits a vector {right arrow over (β)}k, which transports the set of L symbols, {αk, αk+K, . . . , αk+(L−1)k}, after converting {right arrow over (α)}k into a continuous-time signal, xk(t), of finite duration MTs, with Ts the duration of one sample in {right arrow over (β)} 103, 203, 303.


Theorem I assumes that:

  • 1. The kth Tx 104, 204, 304 transmits xk(t) 105, 205, 305 subject to Constraint 1:










Constraint





1


:






-








𝒮


x
k



(
t
)





(
f
)



df





𝔭







k
















    • where custom character is the average allocatable transmit power at any Tx 104, 204, 304 and custom characterxk(t)(f) 802 is the Power Spectral Density (PSD) of xk(t) 105, 205, 305.



  • 2. The kth Tx 104, 204, 304 transmits xk(t) 105, 205, 305 using a single antenna across a communication channel where it is received at Rx 108, 208, 308 using a single antenna. The received signal, y(t), is then sampled at Rx 108, 208, 308 at a sampling frequency









f
s



=
Δ



1
/

T
s



,





to form a discrete-time signal {right arrow over (r)}∈custom character defined as










r




=
Δ





h

C

h




α



+

w







(
3
)









    • where hChcustom character corresponds to h 1101 after including the effects of the channel 106, 306, 406 such as replacing M by a number custom character≥M, and {right arrow over (w)}∈custom character models the WGN. We refer to the combination of the TL system and channel as a TL channel.





Theorem I: The capacity, custom characterTL, of the TL channel corresponding to hCh in (3), subject to Constraint 1, is










𝒞

T

L


=


1

M


T
s








k
=
1


rank


(

h

C

h


)







log
2



(

1
+


Λ
k





𝒜
_


K





𝔭




o



f
s





)







bps







(
4
)








where custom character/2 is the two-sided PSD of the WGN, custom character is the average attenuation in power across the channel, and Λk is the kth squared singular value of a normalized hCh s.t. its kth column, {hCh}k, has on average an L2-norm, which equals custom character∀k.


Importance of Theorem I: custom characterTL in (4) consists of several regions, which depend on the average received TL SNR,









𝒜
_






K





𝔭




o



f
s



.





Similar to the capacity, custom characterBL, of a BL system, which consists of a low SNR region 1004 and a high SNR region 1005, custom characterTL in (4) also consists of a low SNR region 1001 and a high SNR region 1003. Unlike BL systems, custom characterTL in (4) also contains a new medium SNR region 1002, when a number, custom character, of the terms,








Λ
k





𝒜
_






K





𝔭




o



f
s




,





in (4) are








<<
1







s
.
t
.






log
2



(

1
+


Λ
k





𝒜
_






K





𝔭




o



f
s





)







log
2


e






Λ
k






𝒜
_






K





𝔭




o



f
s



.







When custom characterTL is in the low SNR region 1001, custom character=rank (hCh). When custom characterTL is in the high SNR region 1003, custom character=0. When custom characterTL is in the medium SNR region 1002, 0<custom character≤rank (hCh).


Given that some of the communication channels in this disclosure are to be constrained by a spectral mask, Theorem I must be modified to include a mask constraint. First, we define the bandwidth (BW) of xk(t), then, introduce the mask constraint.


Definition of the BW of xk(t) 105, 205, 305: Since xk(t) 105, 205, 305 is TL, its PSD, custom characterxk(t)(f) 802, exists over the entire frequency domain f∈{−∞, ∞}, allowing for numerous definitions of BW to exist. In this disclosure, we adopt the same definition of BW as the one adopted by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), which defines transmitter spectrum emissions as falling into three distinct bands: (a) Occupied band 705 emission with a BW custom character; (b) Out-Of-Band-Emission (DOBE) band 706 with a BW custom characterOOBE; and (c) Far-Out-Spurious-Emission (FOSE) band 707 with an allowable power level









1


.






By adopting the same definition for BW as the ITU, we select the BW, custom characterTL, of the TL system to be defined as the BW, custom character, of the occupied band 705.


Spectral Mask Constraint 701: Some systems considered in this disclosure are constrained by a spectral mask, custom characterMask(f) 701. In this case, xk(t) 105, 205, 305 is subject to Constraint 2:











Constraint





2


:








𝒮


x
k



(
t
)





(
f
)














Mask



(
f
)









f



,


k














where custom character is a normalization constant, which depends on custom character, custom characterMask(f) 701 and h 1101. According to the ITU, custom character must be selected ≤custom characterm where custom characterm is the BW of custom characterMask(f) 701. This implies that custom characterTL must be selected ≤custom characterm as well. For this reason, we define in this disclosure an overhead factor,







𝔯


=
Δ





𝒲

T

L



N


T
s



1


,





as the overhead, both in time and in frequency, which is required for xk(t) 105, 205, 305 to comply with Constraint 2. It is selected such that custom characterTLcustom characterm or equivalently, N is selected








s
.
t
.




N



N
min




=
Δ




𝔯


𝒲
m



T
s



.





Under Constraints 1-2, custom characterTL in (4) can be expressed as










𝒞
TL

=



𝒲
m

𝔯




N
min

M






k
=
1


rank


(

h
Ch

)







log
2



(

1
+




Λ
k


𝔯


N
min






𝒜
_






K





𝔭




o



𝒲
m





)







bps







(
5
)







Similarly, under Constraints 1-2, a BL system, of fixed BW, custom characterBL, selected as custom characterBL=custom characterm, has a BL capacity, custom characterBL, given as










𝒞

B

L


=



𝒲
m



B

L






log
2



(

1
+



𝒜
_


K





𝔭




o



𝒲
m




)







bps





(
6
)








where custom characterBL is defined as the overhead factor, both in time and in frequency, which is required for the BL system to comply with Constraint 2. When











𝒜
_

_


K





𝔭



N
o



𝒲
m



>
1

,





(6) implies that doubling custom characterBL, with a fixed BW, requires a geometric multiple increase in








𝒜
_


K





𝔭




o



𝒲
m







since its contribution towards custom characterBL is logarithmic.



FIG. 10a compares custom characterTL/custom characterm in (5) (shown with “.” markers) with CBL/custom characterm in (6) (shown with “*” markers) versus the average received SNR that is normalized w.r.t. custom characterm, when custom character=custom characterBL=1, custom character=K=1 and the kth column, {hCh}k of hCh corresponds to a rectangular pulse ∀k. In FIG. 10a, custom characterTL/custom characterm in (5) is illustrated as a number of curves, each curve corresponding to a value of Nmin. The selected values are Nmin=1, 2, 4, . . . , 1024, with Nmin=1 coinciding with custom characterBL/custom characterm in (6). Similar to custom characterBL/custom characterm in (6), custom characterTL/custom characterm in (5) contains a “Low” SNR region 1001 and a “High” SNR region 1003. Unlike custom characterBL/custom characterm in (6), which contains a low SNR region 1004, and a high SNR region 1005, custom characterTL/custom characterm in (5) also contains a medium SNR region 1002, denoted as “Med. SNR” in FIG. 10a where doubling custom characterTL/custom characterm in (5) requires a fixed multiple increase in









Λ
k


𝓇


N
min






𝒜
_


K





𝔭




o



𝒲
m








since its contribution towards custom characterTL is mostly linear.


Interpretation of FIG. 10a: The medium SNR region 1002 is created in custom characterTL in (5) when the average received BL SNR









𝒜
_


K





𝔭




o



𝒲
m



,





is >1 while









𝒜
_


K





𝔭




o



𝒲
m







Λ
k


𝓇


N
min







is <<1. In other words,








Λ
k


𝓇


N
min






must be much smaller than








𝒜
_


K





𝔭




o



𝒲
m







in order to create the medium SNR region 1002. The source for having Λk small and Nmin large while keeping custom character<∞ is having an arbitrarily large number of DOF, while complying with Constraint 2. In a practical design requiring finite latency, all DOF must have a Finite Access Time (FAT), or equivalently, the time it takes to access any such DOF is finite. We refer to such DOF as FAT, and observe that only TL systems have an arbitrarily large number of FAT DOF in their high frequency components, while BL systems have only a finite number of FAT DOF since they are not allowed to contain high frequency components.


Attribute of h for custom character to be <∞: Given that some of the communication channels 106, 306, 406 in this disclosure are to be constrained by a spectral mask 701 with custom character<∞, it is imperative to analyze custom characterxk(t)(f) 801. An important attribute of h 1101, which affects the spectral decay of custom characterxk(t)(f) 801, is the Degree of Differenciability (DOD), custom characterk, of the kth column, {h}k of h 1101, defined as the number of times {h}k can be differenced in time until a Dirac delta impulse, δ, appears. Mathematically, this implies that








=
Δ




min



{


Δ


k
n

}

l

=
δ




{
n
}







where {{right arrow over (Δ)}kn}l is the lth element in the differencing vector, {right arrow over (Δ)}kn, of order n, corresponding to {h}k, and defined as









{


Δ


k
n

}

l



=
Δ






{


Δ


k

n
-
1


}


l
+
1


-



{


Δ


k

n
-
1


}

l






for





l




{

1
,





,

N
-
n


}



,

n

𝕀






with initial condition:









{


Δ


k
0

}

l



=
Δ




{
h
}


k
,
l



,

l



{

1
,





,

N
-
1


}

.






Examples of custom character:

    • When {h}k is a TL rectangular pulse, custom characterk=1.
    • When {h}k is one lobe of a sine wave, custom characterk=2.
    • When {h}k is a pseudo-noise (PN) sequence, custom characterk=0.


The following 2 DOD properties are used below:

    • DOD Property I: When {h}k is the sum of two TL vectors, {h1}k and {2}k, i.e. {h}k={h1}k+{h2}k, with respective DOD, custom characterk,1 and custom characterk,2, its resulting DOD, custom characterk, is asymptotically equal to








lim

N






k


=


min


(



k
,
1


,


k
,
2



)


.







    • DOD Property II: When {h}k is the linear or circular convolution between two TL vectors, {h1}k and {h2}k with respective DOD, custom characterk,1 and custom characterk,2, its resulting DOD, custom characterk, is: custom characterk=custom characterk,1+custom characterk,2





Theorem II derives the slope of the medium SNR region 1002 as a function of the DOD of hCh.


Theorem II: Doubling custom characterTL in (4) across its medium SNR region 1002 requires increasing








𝒜
_


K





𝔭




o



f
s







by a fixed multiple of custom character where custom characterk is the DOD of hCh.


The following constraint derives the modulation, which maximizes custom character, when using a Minimum Mean Square Error with Successive Interference Cancellation (MMSE-SIC) detector 110, 210, 310 at Rx 108, 208, 308, selected for its low complexity and its asymptotic optimality under certain conditions. This constraint maximizes custom characterTL in the medium SNR region 1002.


Modulation Constraint: It is possible to show that minimizing the arithmetic mean of the MMSE at Rx 108, 208, 308 is equivalent to maximizing







d

d

S

N


R
k






log
2



(

1
+


S

N


R
k



𝓅
k



)





k






where SNRk is the received normalized SNR corresponding to {hCh}k while






1

k






is its multiuser efficiency. Unlike water-filling, which deals with parallel channels, the solution for such optimization is








SNR
k


k


=

1








k
.








This implies that the modulation of choice for the elements of {right arrow over (α)} corresponds to loading each DOF with about 1 bit of information. In comparison, the low SNR regions 1001, 1004 correspond to loading <1 bit/DOF, while the high SNR regions 1003, 1005 typically correspond to loading >1 bit/DOF. When custom characterkcustom character for some k, we use instead:











min
k



{

SNR
k

}





max
k




{

k

}

.






Constraint





3







Theorem III modifies Theorem I to include a mask constraint 701 and a modulation constraint.


Theorem III: The capacity, custom characterTL, of the TL channel corresponding to hCh in (3), subject to Constraints 1-3, with K≤d and with custom characterk>0 is










𝒞
TL

=



𝒲
m




N
M






k
=
1

Q









log
2



(

1
+


SNR
k


k



)







bps







(
7
)








where custom characterk is asymptotically









1




-
1









as N>>1 with








N
𝒹



=
Δ





N


/


𝒹




,





the ceiling of N/custom character, and N≥Nmin, using an MMSE-SIC detector 110, 210, 310 at Rx 108, 208, 308.


Importance of Theorem III: In FIG. 10acustom characterTL/custom characterin (7) is illustrated as a number of points (shown with “square” markers), each corresponding to a value of Nmin. FIG. 10a confirms that Constraint 3 maximizes custom characterTL in the medium SNR region. Based on (7) and on Constraint 3,








lim

L






𝒞
TL






𝒲
m

𝓇




NK
𝒹

.







Therefore, doubling







lim

L






𝒞
TL






by doubling







N
𝒹

,





for a fixed







𝒲
m

𝓇





and K, requires increasing SNRk by a fixed multiple of custom character, while doubling







lim

L






𝒞
TL






by doubling K, for a fixed









𝒲
m

𝓇






and






N
𝒹


,





requires increasing SNRk by a fixed multiple of custom character when K≤d.


The next section introduces a novel TL system with FAT DOF, referred to as an MTF system.


5.2 MTF Design

Design Problem: h 1101 in (1) is to be designed based on Theorems I and III with the goal of achieving a desired channel capacity, custom character1301, for a given channel 106, 306, 406 of BW custom character. Three design steps, MTF Design Steps I-III 1302, 1304, 1306, are shown below, followed by a proposed MTF design implementation. All 3 steps attempt to design h 1101 such that the minimum required average received SNR is minimized for a given desired capacity, custom character1301, and for a given BW custom character. This requires designing h 1101 s.t. the set, {Λk}k=1rank (hCh), of squared singular values of hCh in (3) has a variance that is minimized while complying with Constraint 2.


MTF Design in Solution:


First, we define







T

s
,
max




=
Δ




K

𝒹𝒞
𝒷




1


/



f
s








1301 as a function of K and custom character, which depend on the selected TL channel. For example, when the TL channel has relatively low interference, such as with K=1, one can select the TL system to be with memory, i.e. with custom character=1<N, implying that







T

s
,
max


=


1

𝒞
𝒷




1


/



f
s






or






f
s




𝒞
𝒷







1301. On the other hand, when the TL channel has relatively high interference, i.e. with K>>1, one can select the TL system to be memoryless, i.e. with custom character=N, implying that







T

s
,
max


=


K

N






𝒞
𝒷





1


/



f
s






or






f
s





N
K



𝒞
𝒷








1301.

  • MTF Design Step I 1302: For a fixed Ts≤Ts,max 1301, select the number, N 1303, of FAT DOF as







N


=
Δ




N
𝒮

+

N
𝒥



,





where:

    • a) custom character is defined as the number of Shaping FAT (S-FAT) DOF 1303 selected such that custom character≥Nmin in order to comply with the BW constraint, custom characterTLcustom characterm, of custom characterMask(f) 701; and
    • b) custom character is defined as the number of Interpolating FAT (I-FAT) DOF 1303 obtained through the creation of interpolated sampled frequencies 1303 inside the existing occupied band 705.
    • Power is taken from existing frequencies and allocated to the newly formed frequencies 1303 s.t. Constraint 1 is preserved. Commonly, custom character=0 since no constraints depend on custom character.
  • MTF Design Step II 1304: Once N 1303 is selected and the newly sampled frequencies are created 1303, custom characterk can be reduced by equalizing the power, E{|Hk(Ω)|2}, across Ω∈[−π, π] as much as possible, while preserving Constraint 2, where Hk(Ω) is the Discrete-Time Fourier Transform (DTFT) of the kth column, {hBasic}k, of hBasic 1102, 1103 and Ω is the normalized frequency. This equalization is defined as taking power from frequency samples 1303 with above average power and allocating it to frequencies 1305 with below average power, thereby preserving Constraint 1. It can be shown using Karamata's inequality that such power allocation reduces the variance of {Λk}k=1rank (hCh) hence increasing custom characterTL.


MTF Design Step III 1306: Once N 1303 is selected, the newly sampled frequencies 1303 are created, and the power, E{|Hk(Ω)|2}, across Ω∈[−π, π] is equalized 1305 as much as possible, custom characterk can be reduced by selecting the phases of the samples of Hk(Ω), s.t. the entries 1307 of hBasic 1102, 1103 are zero mean RVs, (ideally) Gaussian. This assignment of the phases in Hk(Ω) does not affect the power, E{|Hk(Ω)|2}, across Ω∈[−π, π], and thus, preserves Constraints 1-2.


Nomenclature: We refer to h 1101 designed based on MTF Design Steps I-III 1302, 1304, 1306, and subject to Constraints 1-3, as an MTF matrix. In this case, we denote h 1101 as hMTF 1104, hCh as hMTF,Ch, hBasic 1102, 1103 as hB_MTF, custom characterTL in (7) as custom characterMTF and refer to the combination of the MTF system and of the channel as the MTF channel. hB_MTF is defined by the building blocks hB_MTF,1 1105, . . . , custom character, 1106. The kth column {hB_MTF}k 1308 of hB_MTF is obtained from Hk(Ω) using an inverse DTFT 1310.


MTF Design Implementation: An implementation of MTF Design Steps I-III 1302, 1304, 1306 is proposed here where the kth column, {hB_MTF}k 1308, of hB_MTF, is expressed as a sum:











{

h

B

_

MTF


}

k



=
Δ



+





(
8
)








of 2 vectors, custom character1208 and custom character1209, defined as follows:

    • Vector I: custom charactercustom characterN×1 1208 is a pulse vector with a DOD, custom characterk>0, selected in order for {hMTF}k to comply with the BW constraint, i.e. custom characterTLcustom characterm 705. It is formed using custom characterk linear convolutions (each denoted by ‘*’ 1207):











=
Δ




(



h



1
,
k





g



1
,
k



)

*

*

(



)

*


b


k






(
9
)








between custom characterk+1>0 vectors, with the lth vector, ({right arrow over (h)}l,kcustom character{right arrow over (g)}l, k) 1215, 1216 for l≤custom characterk, formed as a circular convolution (denoted by ‘custom character1202, 1205) between a zero mean pseudo-random (PR) vector, {right arrow over (g)}l,kcustom characterNl×1 1203, 1206 with a DOD=0, and a vector pulse, {right arrow over (h)}l,kcustom characterNl×1 12011204 with a DOD=1; while {right arrow over (b)}kcustom character1215 is a zero mean PR vector with a DOD=0. The first custom characterk−1 linear convolutions produce








N
𝒮



=
Δ






N
l


-

k

+

1





S


-


FAT





DOF



,





while the last produces







N
𝒥



=
Δ




N

𝒩
+
1


-

1





I


-


FAT






DOF
.









    • Vector II: custom characterk,0custom characterN0×1 1209 is a PR vector with a DOD=0 selected s.t. {hMTF}k complies with the FOSE 707 constraint of custom characterMask(f) 701, i.e. with a power level











𝒮


x
k



(
t
)





(
f
)




1







in the FOSE band 707. It is possible to generalize N0 so that it is not necessarily equal to N. For example, it is possible to select N0=0, implying that custom character1209 is not included in (8), or equivalently








{

h

B

_

MTF


}

k



=
Δ



.






It is also possible to select N0>N. In this case, N0−N zeros must be appended to custom character1208 in (9) in order for custom character1208 and {hB_MTF}k to have a total length of N0.


The reasoning behind separating {hB_MTF}k in (8) into two vectors, custom character1208 and custom character1209, is that it is difficult to simultaneously comply with the BW constraint, i.e. with custom characterTLcustom characterm 705; and the FOSE 707 constraint, i.e. with








𝒮


x
k



(
t
)





(
f
)




1







using a single vector with a single DOD. By taking advantage of DOD Property I, summing custom character1208 and custom character1209 results in {hMTF}k having a DOD custom characterk, since custom character1209 has a DOD 0.


The reasoning behind using custom characterk−1 circular convolutions 1202, 1205 in custom character1208 in (8) is that it is difficult to use a single vector with a single DOD while achieving the following 2 requirements: (1) the entries of {hB_MTF}k are zero mean RVs; while (2) {hMTF}k complies with the BW constraint that custom characterTLcustom characterm 705. By taking advantage of DOD Property II, circularly convolving {right arrow over (h)}l,k 1201, 1204 with {right arrow over (g)}l,k 1203, 1206, produces a vector with a DOD=1 since the DOD for {right arrow over (g)}l,k 1203, 1206 is 0, implying that custom character1208 has a DOD custom characterk. The pulse, custom character1208, is made to comply with custom characterTLcustom characterm 705 by properly selecting custom characterk and custom character.


Theorem IV: The MTF channel corresponding to {hB_MTF}k in (8) with custom character=0 under Constraints 1-3, has a capacity, custom characterMTF, identical to custom characterTL in (7) except custom characterk is proportional to










𝓅
k




(


1
+


N
0

λℛ




1



1
𝓇




+


c


N
0

,
0





𝓇






N
0



λℛ





N





)






as





N






>>






1





(
10
)








where custom character and cN0,0 are the coefficients of proportionality corresponding to custom character and custom character in (8) respectively, with







λ


=
Δ



𝓅


/




,





using an MMSE-SIC detector 110, 210, 310 at Rx 108, 208, 308.


Importance of Theorem IV: Based on (10), custom characterMTF consists of two medium SNR regions 1006, 1007, as shown in FIG. 10b. As N increases, doubling custom characterMTF initially requires increasing the SNR by a fixed multiple of custom character, which is the first medium SNR region 1006, referred to as “1st Med. SNR” in FIG. 10b. Then, later on it requires increasing the average received SNR by a fixed multiple of 2, which is the second medium SNR region 1007, referred to as “2nd Med. SNR” in FIG. 10a. FIG. 10a compares custom characterMTF/custom characterm based on (10) with custom characterBL/custom characterm in (6), where custom character=custom characterBL=1, custom character=1, custom character=K=1 and custom character in (8) is a rectangular pulse with custom characterin (8) 30 dBr below custom character. In FIG. 10b, custom characterMTF/custom characterm without Constraint 3 is illustrated as a number of curves (with “.” markers), each curve corresponding to a value of Nmin·custom characterMTF/custom characterm with Constraint 3 is illustrated as a number of points (with “square” markers), each point corresponding to a value of Nmin. FIG. 10b confirms that indeed Constraint 3 maximizes custom characterMTF/custom character in both medium SNR regions 1006, 1007.


Under certain conditions, the following asymptotic limits can be reached:

  • a) When









N
0

λℛ







<<






1

,





Theorem IV reduces to Theorem III.

  • b) When









N
0

λℛ







>>






1





and






c


N
0

,
0





𝓇






N
0



λℛ





N








>>







1


c

K
,
N
,
d
,
𝒩




1
𝓇



K


2


𝒩
k


-
1




N
𝒹

2


𝒩
k






,





we have











lim


N
0











𝓅
k


=

N
𝓇





(
11
)







This limit applies to the case when custom characterMask(f) 701 corresponds to the IEEE 802.11 WLAN mask, denoted as custom characterWiFi(f).

  • c) When








N
0

λℛ



=
Δ







𝓆






<<






1






with q, a constant and








c


N
0

,
0





𝓇






N
0



λℛ





N




>>







1


c

K
,
N
,
d
,

𝒩
k





1
𝓇



K


2


𝒩
k


-
1




N
𝒹

2


𝒩
k






,





we have











lim


N
0











𝓅
k


=

N
𝓆𝓇





(
12
)









    • This limit applies to the case when custom characterMask(f) 701 corresponds to the 3GPP LTE (E-UTRA) mask, denoted as custom characterLTE(f).





5.3 MTF Architecture

Section 5.3.1 introduces the constraints that are generally imposed on communication systems such as standard-imposed spectral masks 701, as well as the effects of fading and interference across the communication channel 106, 306, 406. Section 5.3.2 proposes several MTF designs based on the constraints introduced in Section 5.3.1, while Section 5.3.3 introduces an architecture that is suitable for allowing various MTF systems to communicate with each other when co-located while using the same band.


5.3.1 Design Constraints

First, we select 2 important custom characterMask(f) 701, namely custom characterWiFi(f) and custom characterLTE(f). Then, we model the communication channel 106, 306, 406 and examine its effects on the MTF architecture including the types of interference and restricted bands across such a channel.


Selection of custom characterMask(f) 107: In order to include Constraint 2 in Design Steps I-III 1302, 1304, 1306, and in order to derive a fair comparison with some of the existing systems, we define custom characterWiFi(f) and custom characterLTE(f):

  • a) The 3GPP LTE (E-UTRA) mask, custom characterLTE(f), is defined for a 1.4, 3, 5, 10, 15 and 20 MHz BW, as having ≤1% OOBE BW, or equivalently, custom character must contain ≥99% of the total integrated mean power in xk(t) 105, 205, 305 ∀k.
  • b) The IEEE 802.11 WLAN mask for a 20 MHz BW is:









WiFi



(
f
)




=
Δ



{




0

dBr











f




9





MHz









line





from





0

dBr





to





-

20

dBr











9





MHz




f




11





MHz









line





from





-


2

0


dBr





to





-

28

dBr






11





MHz




f




20





MHz








line





from





-

28

dBr





to





-

40

dBr






20





MHz




f




30





MHz








-
40


dBr






30





MHz




f


















    • In custom characterWiFi(f), the first frequency band, |f|≤9 MHz, corresponds to the occupied band 705 with a bandwidth, custom character=18 MHz. The middle three frequency bands correspond to DOBE 706 with a bandwidth, custom characterOOBE=42 MHz. The last frequency band, |f|≥30 MHz, correspond to the FOSE band 707 with an infinite bandwidth and a power level 1/custom character=−40 dBr.





Modeling of the Communication Channel 106, 306, 406: When







f
s



=
Δ




1


/



T
s






is







8





MHz







and NTs≤1 ms, the channel 106, 306, 406 can be modeled as a frequency-selective (FS) slowly fading channel affected by a frequency-dependent path loss (PL) modeled after Friis free-space PL (FSPL) model. Mathematically, such a channel can be modeled as Linear Time-Invariant (LTI) and characterized using a discrete-time random impulse response, {right arrow over (h)}Ch, of finite length, δN, referred to as the discrete delay spread of the channel. The fading can be modeled either as Rayleigh for a non-LOS channel or as Rician with a strong LOS component for a LOS channel.


Effects of the Selected Channel Model:

  • 1) Mathematically, the main effect of the frequency-selective channel is to linearly convolve each column, {hMTF}k, in hMTF 1104 with {right arrow over (h)}Ch. The outcome of such a convolution is a new MTF matrix, hMTF,Chcustom character, defined as










h

MTF
,
Ch




=
Δ




toep
d



{


h



MTF
,
Ch


}






(
13
)









    • where {right arrow over (h)}MTF,Chcustom characterhas hB_MTF replaced by hB_MTF,Chcustom characterwith M replaced by













=
Δ



𝒩
+

𝒹


(

L
-
1

)




,





N replaced by






𝒩


=
Δ



N
+

δ





N

-
1






and No replaced by







𝒩
o



=
Δ




N
o

+

δ





N

-
1.






The increase in N and in No by δN−1 is equivalent to an increase in the number, custom character, of I-FAT DOF in the MTF system by δN. Based on DOD Property II, the linear convolution between {right arrow over (h)}Ch and the kth column, {hMTF}k, in hMTF 1104 implies that the resulting DOD is equal to the sum between the original DOD, custom characterk, and the DOD, custom characterCh, of the communication channel.

    • Based on the adopted frequency-selective fading model of the communication channel 106, 306, 406, custom characterCh=0. In other words, the resulting DOD of hMTF,Ch, is equal to the original DOD of hMTF 1104 when the communication channel 106, 306, 406 is FS.
  • 2) The communication channel 106, 306, 406 can be equivalently characterized in the frequency domain by the DTFT of {right arrow over (h)}Ch, also referred to as its Transfer Function (TF), HCh(Ω). This implies that the following continuous-frequency product:











H


MTF
k

,
Ch




(
Ω
)




=
Δ





H

MTF
k




(
Ω
)





H
Ch



(
Ω
)










Ω


[


-
π

,
π

]








(
14
)









    • can replace the linear discrete-time convolution between {hMTF}k and {right arrow over (h)}Ch where HMTFk,Ch(Ω) is the DTFT of the kth column, {hMTF,Ch}k, of hMTF,Ch.



  • 3) Friis FSPL model is based on E{|HCh(Ω)|2} being inversely proportional to |Ω|2, i.e.











E


{





H
CH



(
Ω
)




2

}





1



Ω


2










Ω



[


-
π

,
0

)



(

0
,
π

]









(
15
)









    • where E{.} denotes expectation w.r.t. HCh(Ω) at Ω, assuming it is ergodic. Based on (15), it is possible to see that the FSPL has a DOD equal to 1. In other words, the effect of the FSPL is to increase the original DOD, custom characterk, of {hMTF}k by 1 if the carrier frequency, fc=0, otherwise, the effect of the FSPL on custom characterk depends on fc.





Based on all effects of the communication channel 106, 306, 406, Theorem III is still valid after replacing HMTFk(Ω) by HMTFk,Ch(Ω), M by custom character and after re-evaluating custom characterk based on fc. In order to preserve the original DOD, custom characterk, of hMTF 1104 a pre-channel filter 500 is required at Tx 104, 204, 304, which is discussed in Section 5.3.2.


Modeling of Interference: Two types of interference exist across a communication network:

  • (a) Narrow-Band Interference (NBI), defined as having a width ≤125 MHz; and
  • (b) Wide-Band Interference (WBI), defined as having a width >125 MHz.


NBI encompasses transmissions from existing systems such as LTE and Wi-Fi systems, and from other MTF systems due to the presence of custom character1208, while WBI encompasses transmissions from Ultra-Wide Band (UWB) systems and from other MTF systems due to the presence of custom character1209. Several studies have indicated low utilization of the frequency bands at frequencies >2 GHz as seen in Table I, which displays the average duty cycle versus frequency range ≤7,075 MHz based on results in in an urban environment. Table I is consistent with several other studies of urban centers across North America and Europe. All studies indicate an exponential decline in utilization directly proportional to frequency, f. We refer to frequency ranges with known Heavy Utilization as custom characterHU.









TABLE I







Average utilization duty cycle across a frequency range.










Frequency range
Average utilization duty cycle







 75-1000
42.00% 



1000-2000
13.30% 



2000-3000
3.73%



3000-4000
4.01%



4000-5000
1.63%



5000-6000
1.98%



6000-7075
1.78%










Restricted Bands, custom characterRB: Further to having to contend with both NBI and WBI, some bands, referred to as custom characterRB, have been deemed restricted by the regulatory bodies (47 CFR 15.205).


5.3.2 Pulse and Filter Design

Based on the knowledge of the statistics of the communication channel 106, 306, 406 including its model, the types of interference across it and the existence of custom characterRB, the disclosure designs pulses such as {right arrow over (h)}l,k 1201, 1204, custom character1209, {right arrow over (g)}l,k 1203, 1206 as well as filters such as a Pre-channel filter 500 at Tx 104, 204, 304, and a Post-channel filter 615 at Rx 108, 208, 308 with the goal of optimizing custom characterMTF subject to Constraints 1-3.


Design of {right arrow over (h)}l,kcustom characterNl×1 1201, 1204: A fundamental design for {right arrow over (h)}l,k 1201, 1204 in (9) is a rectangular pulse. Even though it has all its zeros on the unit circle, it is possible to move its zeros away from the unit circle by shifting it in frequency by 1/(2NlTs). This shift forms a complex pulse, {right arrow over (h)}REC,l,k 1212, 1213, with a real part in the shape of one lobe of a cosine wave and an imaginary part in the shape of a negative lobe of a sine wave. When all {right arrow over (h)}l,k ∀l 1201, 1204 are selected as {right arrow over (h)}REC,l,k 1212, 1213, custom character1208 in (9) is denoted as custom character1214. When custom character1208 in (9) is selected as








REC
,
1


,

λ


=
Δ








in Theorem III is asymptotically equal to π. In this case, the amplitude of custom characterREC,1 is selected to comply with Constraint 1.


Design of custom characterk,0 custom characterN0×1 1209: A possible design of custom characterk,0 1209 in (8) is:











k
,
0


=



{


[


e

j






ϑ

k
,
1
















e

j






ϑ

k
,

N
0






]

T

}






(
16
)








where custom character denotes an inverse Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) operation; and the phase, custom characterk,i∈{0,2π}, is chosen as PR with a uniform distribution across {0,2π} for 1≤i≤N0. custom characterk,0 1209 is also known as a frequency-based PR polyphase signature.


Design of {right arrow over (g)}l,kcustom characterNl×1 1203, 1206: A possible design of {right arrow over (g)}l,k 1203, 1206 in (9) is











g



l
,
k


=


𝒟ℱ𝒯

-
1




{


[


e

j






ϑ

l
,
k
,
1
















e

j






ϑ

l
,
k
,

N
l






]

T

}






(
17
)








with the phase, custom characterl,k,i∈{0,2π}, chosen as PR with a uniform distribution across {0,2π} for 1≤i≤Nl, similar to custom characterk,0 1209 in (16), except that custom characterl,k,1 must equal custom characterl,k, Nl in order to minimize the overhead factor, custom character. Since the communication channel forces HMTFk(Ω) in (14) to be multiplied by HCh(Ω), the resulting product, HMTFk,Ch(Ω), forces {right arrow over (g)}l,k 1203, 1206 in (17) to be replaced by











g



l
,
k
,
Ch


=


𝒟ℱ𝒯

-
1




{


[




a

l
,
k
,
1






e

j






ϑ

l
,
k
,
1


















a

l
,
k
,

𝒩
l







e

j






ϑ

l
,
k
,

𝒩
l






]

T

}






(
18
)








when custom character=1 and custom characterk=1 where |αl,k,1|, . . . , |custom character| are random amplitudes, which have either a Rician distribution with a strong LOS component across a LOS channel, or a Rayleigh distribution across a NLOS channel, and







𝒩
l



=
Δ




N
l

+

δ





N

-
1.





Selection of custom character when custom characterMask(f)≡custom characterLTE(f): The disclosure selects custom character in (12) as 0.5% and allocates the remaining 0.5% to the DOBE 706 BW in custom character1208. Under Constraint 2, (12) can be re-written as








lim


N
0











𝓅
k


=



(

N


/


𝓇

)

dB

+

23






dB
.







Design of Pre-channel filtering 500 at Tx 104, 204, 304: In order to comply with custom characterRB (47 CFR 15.205), and to prevent transmitting across custom characterHU, a pre-channel filter 500 is recommended at Tx 104, 204, 304. Furthermore, according to (15), the effect of the FSPL is to increase the DOD, custom characterk, of hMTF 1104 by 1 despite the fact that custom characterk,0 1209 has been added in (8) to force the resulting DOD to asymptotically take the value 0. In order to address all 3 concerns, hMTF 1104 is replaced by a pre-channel MTF matrix, custom character, based on replacing in (8) custom character1208 by custom character, custom characterk,0 1209 by custom character and {hMTF}k by








{

h
MTF
𝒫

}

k



=
Δ





𝓅



k
,
𝒩

𝒫

+


𝓅



k
,
0

𝒫







with a DTFT custom character (Ω) pre-processed by the following 2 actions:

  • 1. Pre-distort custom character(Ω) by |Ω| by ∀Ω∈[−π, 0) ∪(0, π] as











H

MTF
k

𝒫



(
Ω
)


=




Ω



v





H

MTF
k




(
Ω
)










Ω



[


-
π

,
0

)



(

0
,
π

]









(
19
)









    • where v is selected to keep










E


{





H

M

T


F
k


𝒫



(
Ω
)




2

}





1






Ω



[


-
π

,
0

)




(

0
,
π

]

.









  • 2. Force custom character(Ω) to contain a null at the excluded band:









ex



=
Δ




{


{



RB




HU


}




TL


}





_

TL







with









H

U




=
Δ



[

0
,
2





GHz

]






and custom characterTL the complement of








TL



=
Δ





[



f
c

-


f
s

/
4


,


f
c

+


f
s

/
4



]






and






f
c





f
s

/
4.






As a result of both actions, custom characterk in (10) is replaced by










𝓅
k




(


1
+


N
0


λ





v












c

K
,
N
,
d
,





1
𝓇



K


2



-
1




N
d

2





+


c


N
0

,
0





𝓇






N
0



λ





v











N





)






as





N


1




(
20
)








and (11) is replaced by








lim


N
0







𝓅
k






(

N
𝓇

)


d

B


-


5
.
1


6





dB







since v=2(π2/6) according to Basel problem where







2


(


lim


N
0










n
=
1


N
0




1

n
2




)


=


2


(


π
2

/
6

)


=


5
.
1


6





dB







when the samples are real. On the other hand, (12) is replaced by








lim


N
0







𝓅
k


=



(

N
𝓇

)


d

B


-


(
𝓆
)


d

B


-


5
.
1


6






dB
.








For example, when







𝓆
=

0.5

%


,



lim


N
0











𝓅
k


=



(

N
𝓇

)

dB

+

17.9






dB
.








Design of Post-channel filtering 615 at Rx 108, 208, 308: Post-channel filtering 615 can be used at Rx 108, 208, 308 to reduce the effects of NBI across the communication channel. In this case, it must include an MTF excision filter, which consists of the following two steps:

  • (a) Estimate the frequency range, custom characterNBI, corresponding to NBI. A frequency, f, belongs to custom characterNBI when custom charactery(t)(f)≥custom characterxk(t)(f)+custom characterTh where custom characterTh is a threshold selected to meet a certain optimization criterion for reducing NBI.
  • (b) Excise the estimated NBI by forcing a null in the PSD, custom charactery(t)(f), of the continuous-time version, y(t), of {right arrow over (r)}, at f∈custom characterNBI.


Post-channel filtering should also include a null at









NBI




ex




=
Δ




{


{



NBI




RB




HU


}




TL


}





_

TL







in order to reduce the effect of noise and interference at Rx 108, 208, 308.


Selection of Sampling Type and frequency, fs: There are 3 types of sampling available in communication systems: baseband sampling, IF sampling and RF sampling. RF sampling is recommended when fs≥4fc, since it does not require any up-conversion/down-conversion stages as shown in FIGS. 6a and 6b. In this case, the Carrier Frequency, fc, is selected ≤fs/4. On the other hand, IF sampling is recommended over baseband sampling when fs<4f, since it requires a smaller number of conversion stages as shown in FIGS. 5a and 5b. In this case, the Intermediate Frequency, fIF, is selected equal to fs/4.


Selection of Carrier Frequency fc: In order to select a frequency range s.t. fc≤fc/4 with relatively low interference and low path loss, while allowing for a multipath-rich environment that is suitable for MIMO communications and while avoiding custom characterHU, the disclosure proposes to select fc∈[2 GHz, 6 GHz]. It is possible to reduce custom characterk ∀k by selecting fc for the kth Tx to be distinct from all the other K−1 carrier frequencies ∀k. An optimal selection of the K carrier frequencies is for each frequency to select one unique frequency either from the optimal set







S

f
c




=
Δ



{



f
s


4

K


,


3


f
s



4

K


,





,



(


2

K

-
1

)



f
s



4

K



}






or from any other set such as







S

f
c





=
Δ




{




(

K
+
1

)



f
s



8

K


,



(

K
+
3

)



f
s



8

K


,





,



(


3

K

-
1

)



f
s



8

K



}

.





When K>1 and the K carrier frequencies are selected uniquely from Sfc or from Sfc′, Post-channel filtering 615 containing an MTF excision filter is recommended at Rx 108, 208, 308 in order to reduce NBI, which originates from the other K−1 interfering carrier frequencies.


5.3.3 MTF System Architecture

The architecture shown in FIGS. 1-4 together with Tx 104, 204, 304 and Rx 108, 208, 308 as described in FIGS. 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b enable an MTF system to communicate with other co-located MTF systems, when using overlapping licensed or unlicensed bands. Such MTF systems include cellular-type, Wi-Fi-type and wireless sensor/Internet-of-Things-type systems, all capable of communicating with one another. FIGS. 1-4 together with FIGS. 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, have a digital component 510, which includes MTF Modulator 102, 202, 302, a portion of Tx 104, 204, 304, a portion of Rx 108, 208, 308 and MTF detector 110, 210, 310. The digital portion of Tx 104, 204, 304 includes the Pre-Channel filter 500 and the digital portion of Digital-to-Analog (D/A) converter 503. The digital portion of Rx 108, 208, 308 includes the Post-Channel filter 615 and the digital portion of Analog-to-Digital (A/D) converter 613. The digital component is mostly software-defined (S/W) and is allowed to change personality according to the MTF system it is communicating with, by adjusting {hMTF}k, Pre-channel filter 500, Post-channel filter 615 and MMSE-SIC detector 110, 210, 310. Also, the architecture shown in FIGS. 1-4 together with a portion of Tx 104, 204, 304 and a portion of Rx 108, 208, 308 have analog components 511, 513, 616, 618, which are hardware-defined (H/W). As described in FIGS. 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, the analog portions of Tx 104, 204, 304 and Rx 108, 208, 308 include converters (e.g. D/A 502, Up/Down 504, 611 and A/D 613), analog filters 607 (e.g. Band-Pass Filter (BPF) and Low-Pass Filter (LPF)) and amplifiers (e.g. Power Amplifier (PA) 506 and Low Noise Amplifier (LNA) 609).


Given that most existing systems contain a S/W component and a H/W component, it is possible to upgrade such systems to an MTF system through a S/W download, without requiring a H/W modification as long as it is possible to overcome its limitation. For example, when the sampling frequency, fA/D, of the available A/D converter is smaller than the required fs by a multiple custom character>1 s.t. fA/D=fs/custom character, it is possible to reduce fs by custom character to accommodate fA/D while maintaining the same desired channel capacity, custom character, using several non mutually exclusive techniques:


MTF Technique 1: Decimate hMTF by custom character, while increasing Ts by custom character.


MTF Technique 2: Relax Constraint 3 by loading custom character>1 bits of information/DOF.


MTF Technique 3: Select custom character=custom character while forcing each column of custom character to have a distinct fc.


It is possible to combine several of the MTF techniques shown above in order to overcome the limitation of having fA/D=fs/custom character. For example, by increasing the number of information bits/DOF from 1 bit to 2 bits, while increasing custom character from 1 to 4, we have custom character=8.


5.4 MTF MA Networks

This section designs MTF MA networks across a centralized topology similar to existing MA networks, such as LTE and Wi-Fi networks. As typical of any centralized topology, the MTF MA network consists of two types of transmissions: (a) downlink (DL) transmissions, from Base Station (BS) or Access Point (AP) to device; and (b) uplink (UL) transmissions, from device to BS/AP. The designs of the MTF MA networks are based on the following assumptions:


5.4.1 Assumptions



  • a) Several co-located centralized MTF MA networks use overlapping licensed or unlicensed bands. Based on the system architecture in Section 5.3.3, such networks are capable to collaborate, which offers many benefits. For example Time Division Duplex (TDD) can be implemented, which forces temporal separation between DL and UL transmissions.

  • b) The MTF BS/AP contains an antenna array to be used in beamforming in the DL portion of most of the MTF MA networks in order to reduce WBI from interfering BSs/APs at devices.

  • c) The range, custom characterk, between the kth MTF Tx 104, 304 and an MTF Rx 108, 308 is a function of the link budget, custom character, between them, where












k
,
dB




=
Δ




𝓅
dBm

-

NF
dB

-


(



o



𝒲
m


)

dB

-


max
k




{

𝓅
k
𝒫

}

dB


+

G
dB






(
21
)








custom character
dBm is the average transmitted power; NFdB is the Noise Figure of Rx; custom character corresponds to









Δ

=


f
s



(

1
-

ζ
ex


)



,





which is the Noise-equivalent BW in Hz at the output of the post-channel filter; ζex is the excision factor, defined as








ζ
ex



=
Δ




1

f
s







f



ex




fdf



;





GdB is the antenna gain between Tx and Rx.

  • d) A unique {right arrow over (g)}l,k 1203, 1206 as defined in (17) and a unique custom characterk,0 1209 as defined in (16) are selected for the kth MTF device ∀k.
  • e) custom character1208, is designed s.t. its PSD, custom character(f) 808, has nulls at custom characterNBI custom characterex where custom character(t) is the continuous-time version of custom character1208.
  • f) custom character1209 is designed s.t. its PSD, custom character(f) 809, is pre-distorted according to (19), where custom character(t) is the continuous-time version of custom character1209.
  • g) custom character|UL=N in the UL portion of an MTF MA network in order to decrease







max
k



{

k

}






in (21), while custom character|DL=1 in the DL portion in order to maintain a high DL capacity, custom characterMTF, where custom character|UL and custom character|DL are the delays in (2) corresponding to UL and DL respectively. An additional reason for selecting custom character|UL=N is to reduce the Peak-to-Average Power Ratio (PAPR) corresponding to transmissions from an MTF device, which can be reduced even further by selecting custom character1208 in (9) as custom characterREC,1 1214. A further reason for selecting custom characterUL=N is to have a memoryless MTF MA network with custom characterMTF|L<∞=custom characterMTF|L−∞. On the other hand, selecting custom character|DL−1 in the DL portion implies that the MTF MA network has memory and








MTF



|

L
<




=


L
/

(

L
+

N
d

-
1

)





MTF

.







For example, when 10N<L<∞, custom characterMTF|L<∞>0.9custom characterMTF|L→∞.


In the UL portion, all Q symbols in {right arrow over (α)} 101, 201, 301, corresponding to all the K active Txs 104, 204, 304, are required to be detected, while in the DL portion, only the desired symbols in a {right arrow over (α)} 101, 201, 301, corresponding to the desired Tx 104, 204, 304, are required to be detected, with the remaining symbols, corresponding to the Ki=K−1 interfering columns in hMTF 1104, ignored. For this reason, a preferred embodiment is to constrain







max
k



{

k

}






in (21) to correspond to full implementation of Constraint 3 ∀k for the UL portion, while in the DL portion, a preferred embodiment is to constrain







max
k



{

k

}






in (21) to correspond to a partial implementation of Constraint 3 corresponding only to the desired received symbols in {right arrow over (α)} 101, 201, 301.


5.4.2 Designs of MTF MA Networks

Based on the above assumptions, we design 3 MTF MA networks, namely MTF1, MTF2 and MTF3, all constrained by a mask with a BW, custom characterm=20 MHz. This implies that








(

NT
s

)

min



=
Δ




/
20






MHz






1301. For example, when custom characterMask(f) 701 is selected as custom characterWiFi(f) and custom character1208 as custom character1214 with a PSD custom character(f) 908, custom character=64/3=21.3 and








(

NT
s

)

min



=
Δ





/
20






MHz

=

1.066





µs







1301. On the other hand, when custom characterMask(f) 107 is selected as custom characterLTE(f) and custom character1208 as custom character1214 with a PSDcustom character(f) 908, custom character=40.8 and








(

NT
s

)

min



=
Δ





20





MHz


=


2
.
0


4





µs







1301.


Moreover, since the DL portion of each network is assumed to have relatively low interference, it is characterized to be with memory, with custom character=K=1, and








T

s
,
max




|
DL




=
Δ




1
/



|

D

L






1
/

f
s





|
DL







1301. On the other hand, since the UL portion of each network is assumed to have relatively high interference, it is characterized as memoryless, with custom character=N, K>>1, and








T

s
,
max




|
UL




=
Δ





K


N




|

U

L






1
/

f
s





|
UL







1301. Therefore,









N
min



|
DL




=
Δ






(

NT
s

)

min



T

s
,
max




|
DL



=








|
DL



20





MHz







and















N
min



|
UL


=


Δ




(

NT
s

)

min



T

s
,
max




|
UL




=







|
UL


N


20





MHz





K








1301.


Design Parameters for MTF1, MTF2 and MTF3:

  • 1. MTF1 is selected to have a desired DL channel capacity of










DL


=

0.2

Gbps






1301, and a desired UL channel capacity of










UL


=

0.2

Gbps






1301, both across the unlicensed (Title 47 CFR 15.247) mid-band frequency of fc1=2.45 GHz. We also select for both DL and UL,








f

s
1





DL


=



f

s
1





UL


=

0.2





GHz







and IF sampling with









T


L
1



=


Δ


[



f

c
1


-


f

s
1


/
4


,


f

c
1


+


f

s
1


4



]







and










e


x
1





=
Δ




{


{




NBI
1






R

B






H

U



}





TL
1



}






_


TL
1


.






  • 2. MTF2 is selected to have










DL



=

2

Gbps







1301 and










UL


=

2

Gbps






1301, both across the unlicensed mid-band frequency of fc2=5.8 GHz. We also select








f

s
2





DL


=



f

s
2





UL


=

2





GHz







and IF sampling with









TL
2




=
Δ




[



f

c
2


-


f

s
2


/
4


,


f

c
2


+


f

s
2


/
4



]






and










ex
2




=
Δ




{


{




NBI
2




B
RB



B
HU


}





TL
2



}






_


TL
2


.






  • 3. MTF3 uses a licensed band at fc3=3.5 GHz with











DL


=

14

Gbps






1301 and










UL


=

6

Gbps






1301. We also select








f

s
3





DL


=



f

s
3





UL


=

14





GHz







and RF sampling with









TL
3




=
Δ




[



f

c
3


-


f

s
3


/
4


,


f

c
3


+


f

s
3


/
4



]






and










ex
3




=
Δ




{


{




NBI
3






R

B






H

U



}





T


L
3




}






_


T


L
3



.







FIG. 9 displays the PSD, custom character(f) 908, of custom character and the PSD, custom character(f) 809, of custom character1209 for MTF3, with nulls at custom characterex3, when custom character1208 is selected as custom character1214 while custom character1209 is selected as defined in (16) pre-distorted according to (19). One advantage of MTF3 over MTF1 and over MTF2 is that it is possible to increase










3





DL








and








3





UL









by a multiple custom character by decreasing







T
s



=
Δ



1
/

f

s
3








by custom characterregardless of the value of custom characterm at the cost of an increase in custom characterk.


Practical Consideration I: In general, it is possible to increase custom character|UL and custom character|DL by a multiple custom character while maintaining the same fs by selecting any combination of the 3 MTF Techniques 1-3 described in Section 5.3.3. For example, by increasing the number of information bits/DOF from 1 bit to 2 bits/DOF, while increasing custom character from 1 to 4, we can have custom character=8, and consequently,











DL


=





DL


=

1.6

Gbps



,





DL


=





DL


=



16

Gbps





and









DL


=





DL


=

112


Gbps
.










Practical Consideration II: It is possible to increase K by a multiple custom character while keeping custom character|UL and custom character|DL fixed and while maintaining the same fs, by selecting MTF Technique 3 in Section 5.3.3. In this case, the increase in custom characterk is reasonable as long as custom character≤8. If custom character>8, the increase in custom characterk can remain reasonable by increasing the delay, custom character. For example, it is possible to double custom character from 8 to 16, by doubling custom character from 1 to 2 samples, which halves custom character|UL and custom character|DL. The implication of having K increase from 1 to 16 implies that 16 co-located MTF networks can co-exist across the same overlapping licensed and unlicensed bands, after forcing custom character|UL and custom character|DL in to be halved.


Practical Consideration III: It is possible to increase K by custom character>8 without forcing custom character|UL and custom character|DL to be halved by decreasing the ratio, K/Nex, where








N

ex
_




=
Δ



N


(

1
-

ζ
ex


)



,





as shown below:


Increasing Nexwhen K is fixed:

  • a) One way to increase Nexis by increasing custom character at Tx 104, 204, 304, which does not affect the desired DL capacity per MTF device, custom character|DL 1301. It reduces the capacity per MTF device for the UL portion, without affecting the overall desired network capacity, custom character|UL 1301.
  • b) Another way to increase Nexis by increasing custom character indirectly at Rx 108, 208, 308 by taking advantage of the frequency-selective nature of a multipath-rich communication channel 106, 306, 406, which forces N to be replaced by custom character≥N, or equivalently, forces Nexto be replaced by







𝒩

ex
_




=
Δ




𝒩


(

1
-

ζ
ex


)


.






This is often referred to as multipath diversity. In this case, {right arrow over (g)}l,k 1203, 1206 in (17) is replaced by {right arrow over (g)}l,k,Ch in (18) at Rx 108, 308.

  • c) Another way to increase Nexindirectly at Rx 108, 208, 308 is by increasing the number, Nr, of receive antennas, which does not affect the channel capacity per MTF device, while it increases the overall network capacity accordingly. This is often referred to as spatial diversity or MU-MIMO as shown in FIG. 4. Assuming that each MTF BS/AP contains an array of Nr receiving antennas and that K is the number of simultaneously active MTF devices, therefore, the ith receiving antenna produces the received signal,








r


i



=
Δ





y


i

+



w


i









i


{

1
,





,

N
r


}










where









y


i



=
Δ






h



i
,
1
,
Ch


*


β


1


+









h



i
,
K
,
Ch


*


β


K




;


h



i
,
j
,
Ch







is the communications channel 106, 306, 406 between the jth transmitting antenna and the ith receiving antenna and {right arrow over (w)}i is the noise at the ith receiving antenna.

Claims
  • 1. A method for transmitting frames of information across a communications channel, the method comprising; a first conversion operation for converting the frames of information into a discrete-time Time-Limited signal where the frames of information are contained in a plurality of Finite Access Time (FAT) Degrees Of Freedom (DOF);a second conversion operation for converting the discrete-time Time-Limited signal into a continuous-time signal; anda transmission operation for transmitting the continuous-time signal across the communications channel.
  • 2. The method in claim 1, in which the first conversion operation uses a matrix that is designed such that the plurality of FAT DOF is selected as per Design Step I of a Mask-Matched Time-Limited method with FAT DOF (MTF).
  • 3. The method in claim 2, in which the matrix is Block Toeplitz.
  • 4. The method in claim 2, in which the matrix is further designed such that the selected plurality of FAT DOF is enhanced as per Design Step II of the MTF.
  • 5. The method in claim 4, in which the matrix is further designed such that the selected and enhanced plurality of FAT DOF is randomized as per Design Step III of the MTF.
  • 6. The method in claim 5, in which each column of the matrix is the result of adding a plurality of sub-columns; with the first sub-column corresponding to a function with a Degree of Differenciability (DOD) larger than zero.
  • 7. The method in claim 6, in which the second sub-column corresponds to a function with a DOD equal to zero.
  • 8. The method in claim 7, in which the elements of the second sub-column are independent pseudo-random variables.
  • 9. The method in claim 8, in which the first sub-column is the result of performing a linear convolution operation between a plurality of pulses, each pulse with a DOD larger than zero.
  • 10. The method in claim 9, in which the first pulse is the result of performing a circular convolution operation between a first sub-pulse with a DOD larger than zero; anda second sub-pulse with a DOD equal to zero.
  • 11. A An apparatus for transmitting frames of information across a communications channel, the apparatus comprising a first converter for converting the frames of information into a discrete-time Time-Limited signal where the frames of information are contained in a plurality of Finite Access Time (FAT) Degrees Of Freedom (DOF);a second converter for converting the discrete-time Time-Limited signal into a continuous-time signal; anda transmitter for transmitting the continuous-time signal across the communications channel.
  • 12. The apparatus in claim 11, in which the first converter uses a matrix that is designed such that the plurality of FAT DOF is selected as per Design Step I of a Mask-Matched Time-Limited method with FAT DOF (MTF).
  • 13. The apparatus in claim 12, in which the matrix is Block Toeplitz.
  • 14. The apparatus in claim 12, in which the matrix is further designed such that the selected plurality of FAT DOF is enhanced as per Design Step II of the MTF.
  • 15. The apparatus in claim 14, in which the matrix is further designed the selected and enhanced plurality of FAT DOF is randomized as per Design Step III of the MTF.
  • 16. The apparatus in claim 15, in which each column of the Matrix is the result of adding a plurality of sub-columns; with the first sub-column corresponding to a function with a Degree of Differenciability (DOD) larger than zero.
  • 17. The apparatus in claim 16, in which the second sub-column corresponds to a function with a DOD equal to zero.
  • 18. The apparatus in claim 17, in which the elements of the second sub-column are independent pseudo-random variables.
  • 19. The apparatus in claim 18, in which the first sub-column is the result of performing a linear convolution operation between a plurality of pulses, each pulse with a DOD larger than zero.
  • 20. The apparatus in claim 19, in which the first pulse is the result of performing a circular convolution operation between a first sub-pulse with a DOD larger than zero; anda second sub-pulse with a DOD equal to zero.
PCT Information
Filing Document Filing Date Country Kind
PCT/CA2020/050759 6/3/2020 WO
Publishing Document Publishing Date Country Kind
WO2020/243827 12/10/2020 WO A
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Related Publications (1)
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20220166653 A1 May 2022 US
Provisional Applications (1)
Number Date Country
62858861 Jun 2019 US