5G

This is the largest category of patents in our portfolio. Some of these technologies have been advanced to prototype development, miniaturization and in one case a pre-commercial unit (a mmWave product that allows RF to penetration through walls or glass without wiring or drilling www.waveagility.com ).

 

SDN-Based mmWave Backhaul

Highlights include an SDN architecture in a mmWave for mobile backhaul, SDN based channel estimation, multiplexing techniques between Line of Sight (LOS) mmWaves, Non-Line of Sight (NLOS) sub-6 GHz and Free Space Optics (FSO). The architecture uses OpenFlow Fast Failover to switch from the main link to the backup link and uses SDN to calculate a primary and a secondary path for small cell backhauling. It also uses SDN Control plane for forwarding decisions in backhaul and uses MAC layer protocol messages to infer the state of the mmWave backhaul links.

There are also patents that use SDN for operation and maintenance (O&M) of small cell wireless backhaul networks to extend OpenFlow in order to gather information on wireless links and power. LTE interface is used on each SDN enabled small cell backhaul node for a robust control channel and reduced latency. The network is very robust as it uses multi-hop deployment for routing and forwarding of the data plane over a multiband (mmWave, sub 6 GHz and FSO) network. It also can use extensions for the OpenDaylight (ODL) controller for routing infrastructure of a small cell backhaul operation. It repairs link failures using fast failover tables from OpenFlow and controls existing paths' latency at the SDN controller to interact with a Backhaul Orchestrator to optimize the backhaul operation.

 

SDR-Based Cloud RAN and with COMP and Massive MIMO

Highlights include network slicing for different service requirements. Cloud RAN and RAN slicing for massive connections of multiple standards are introduced. It uses on-demand network functions through control and user plane separation and unified database management. Multi-connectivity with carrier aggregation over licensed, shared, and unlicensed bands are introduced with optimization of mutli-modal problems by attraction basins and finding the local optima in these basins. The main 5G offerings of enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low latency communications (uRLLC), and massive machine type communications (mMTC) are introduced via network slicing. It uses SDR based coordinated multipoint (COMP) massive-MIMO for eMBB. Different demands from different applications in different industries can be offered by the operator over one single network. These functions all run on cloud-native architecture with heterogeneous networks (HetNet) that have multiple services, standards, and sites. It uses SDN and NFV to enable 5G and cloudify (as well as virtualize) access, transport, and core networks. Network function orchestration is used to select control plane or user plane functions according to different service requirements. In this architecture, SDN is used to generate data forwarding paths based on network topology and service requirements to implement network optimization. COMP massive MIMO are used at different bands, and network slices are separated with customizable service functions and independent O&M. There are eMBB slices cached in the mobile cloud engine of a local data center (DC), with uRLLC slices in the central office DC (closer to the end user) and mMTC slices in the mobile the local DC, and  other functions and application servers deployed in the regional DC.

 

RAN Virtualization with SON, SDN, Mesh SDR Indoor & Outdoor Networks

There are sections on cloudification (and virtualization) of the RAN using Mobile Cloud Engine (MCE), CloudRAN for orchestration of RAN, RAN real time functions with dedicated hardware and accelerator processing located close to services and RAN non-real-time functions for centralized deployment. It also introduces multiple processing capabilities to allow CloudRAN to support 4G, 4.5G, 5G, and Wi-Fi, and coordination of macro, micro, pico and COMP massive MIMO sites over licensed, shared, and unlicensed bands.

There are patents on the use of 3.5 GHz and 5 GHz to build an indoor and outdoor private MulteFire, SDR, SON, SDN, mesh, and coordinated multipoint (COMP) massive MIMO based system while leveraging network slicing for different applications. They use SDR based indoor and outdoor MulteFire systems to allow private networks to have scalable coverage, capacity, and control. These networks use private indoor and outdoor MulteFire networks to support a multiservice capability with low-bit-rate Internet of Things (IoT), control signaling, and smartphones optimizing multimodal functions in large scale global optimization. The optimization uses Covariance Matrix Adaptation, Recombination operators and probabilistic mutation distribution which uses parameterized multivariate normal distribution for mutation distribution.

 

Optimal Locations of Small Cells and Fiber to Maximize Capacity & Coverage

There are also multiple patents on how we can identify the locations of small cells to reduce the total cost of ownership in both the access and backhaul networks. In these patents, sophisticated multi-dimensional Euler-Lagrange optimization techniques are used to not only identify the location of small cells, but also the layout and paths for fiber links to the sites based on traffic, morphology, photogrammetry and street furniture databases.

 

SDN/NFV Based Unified Core Network with V-RAN BBUs & Partitioned Core

Highlights include patents on orchestration of using an SDN/NFV based unified core network with Multefire for supporting multiple private CBRS or other networks of multiple private owners. The network uses a Multefire LTE network with a unified cloud core for a partitioned network and distributed V-RAN BBUs. It uses network slicing to separate the private networks and separating the use cases over the same network (enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable and low latency communications (uRLLC), massive machine type communications (mMTC)). It introduces the possibility of partitioning each component of the core (CPG, MME, PCRF, PCEF…etc.) for different private owners to use one tool with their own databases. It also utilizes optical links between the centralized unified Core and the distributed V-RAN BBUs (partitioned for different owners and sliced for different use cases). Utilizing a private indoor and outdoor MulteFire network allows for better capacity that can configure uplink and downlink, set usage policy and engineer their RAN network based on their specific capacity demands as well as performance and latency requirements. NFV and SDN networks are used to virtualize the data plane and the control plane for this unified core network that is centralized and partitioned for multiple private networks. It uses a SON based CBRS network for self-healing, self-configuration, self-optimization, and auto-provisioning. The PCRF, PCEF, MME, and HSS are partitioned to meet the needs of each private network with individual policy requirements such as gating and quality of service for an individual IP. It uses an optimized and unified core to enable packet core user plane functions on general purpose servers. The unified core decouples network functions from hardware to provide a service-based, modular design that can also provide control plane and user plane separation. It also supports fault, configuration, accounting, performance, and security for a network. This architecture uses commodity storage, compute and network hardware as well as host and guest Operating Systems, hypervisor and virtual data plane and control interfaces.

 

P2MP and MP2MP with Massive MIMO WiGig and a new MAC Beyond TCP/IP

These patents include the use of 60 GHz to build an indoor and outdoor Point-to-Multipoint and Multipoint-to-Multipoint SDR, SON, SDN, mesh network system over WiGig standard with new MAC Layer. This network can have high capacity 60 GHz access, backhaul and fronthaul. The network can route and steer around interference and is implemented with IPv6-only nodes, an SDN-like cloud compute controller, and a new modular routing protocol for fast route convergence and failure detection. The Mac layer is re-architected to solve the shortcomings of TCP/IP over wireless links (beyond WiGig). It has improved network efficiency using concepts derived from LTE-TDD in 60 GHz WiGig protocol with enhanced fixed broadband (eFBB), ultra-reliable low latency communications (uRLLC) with massive MIMO over WiGig. It uses a central controller and mesh client that operate on top of a WiGig baseband. To achieve high reliability, it uses multi-­hop topology, QoS support, and failover management. It also uses mesh software functions for network discovery, autonomous neighbor selection, management of node, sector state machines, link failure handling, and switching to alternate paths. It has self-organized network for access that is self-healing, self-configurable, self-optimizable, and auto-provisioning. It can use big data analytics for targeted decision making, network awareness, advanced processing with multi-core radios, dynamical reporting, open source standards, and network slicing.

 

New Pilot Signals for Massive MIMO to Reduce Pilot Pollution

The use of non-orthogonal pilot schemes for channel estimation in multi-cell TDD  networks,  is  considered  as  a  major  source  of pilot  contamination  due  to  the  limitations  of coherence  time. Therefore, better orthogonal signals are needed. The approach in our patent is to use a new set of orthogonal basis functions. These signals minimize time-frequency resources in LTE resource frame. These signals are not correlated with one another in time domain or in frequency domain. Pilot contamination can be eliminated using these pilot signals as all versions of the signals are mutually orthogonal to any other from within the cell or outside of the cell. There are other sources of pilot contamination, which include hardware impairment and non-reciprocal transceivers and therefore any attempt to use better orthogonal pilot signals is critical for estimating the channel correctly and achieve better spectral efficiency via MIMO.

The minimum number of UL pilot symbols may equal to the number of ULs. However, the optimal number of training symbols can be larger than the number of antennas if training and data power are required to be equal. One can assume that the same size of pilot signals is used in all cells. However, arbitrary pilot allocation is possible in multi-cell system. Better spectral efficiency in wireless networks requires appropriate frequency or time  or  pilot  reuse  factors  in  order  to  maximize  system throughput.  The reuse of frequency has been shown to provide more efficient use of the limited available spectrum, but it also introduces co-channel interference in a massive MIMO. Therefore, we need both orthogonality as well as efficient use of time-frequency resources. These are provided by QLO signals where they minimize time-bandwidth products and yet all signals are mutually orthogonal to one another. The pilot signals which are used to estimate the channels can be contaminated as a result of reuse of non-orthogonal pilot signals in a multi-cell system. This phenomenon causes the inter-cell interference that is proportional to the number of BS antennas, which in turn reduces the achievable rates in the network and affect the spectral efficiency. Therefore, QLO pilot signals can resolve these degradations.

There are several techniques on eliminating inter-cell interference in multi-cell systems in which it is assumed that the BSs are aware of CSI. For instance, coordinated beamforming has been proposed in multi-cell multi-antenna wireless systems in eliminating inter-cell interference with the assumption that the CSI of each UL is available at the BS. However, QLO signals as pilots are very useful in conjunction with these techniques. In practical implementation, estimation of channel state information is required.  In the asymptotic regime, where the BS has unlimited number of antennas and there is no cooperation in the cellular network, not all interference vanishes because of reuse of orthogonal training sequences across adjacent cells leading to inter-cell interference. Therefore, QLO signals as pilots are necessary to reduce such interference. There are several techniques on reduction of inter-cell interference with a focus on mitigation of pilot contamination in channel estimation.  Although most techniques have focused the reuse of non-orthogonal training sequence as the only source of pilot contamination, there are other sources of pilot contamination. These include hardware impairments due to in-band and out-of-bound distortions that interfere with training signals and non-reciprocal transceivers due to internal clock structures of RF chain. Therefore, QLO signals as pilots are critical.

 

New Techniques to Improve Isolation in Full Duplex

In-Band Full Duplex is a technique to transmit and receive signals over the same frequency band as well as over the same time slots simultaneously. This will theoretically double the spectral efficiency or data throughput. However, the TX and RX need to be isolated so that there in so self-interference between them. To that end, we use two separate helicities of electromagnetic waves to create extra isolation beyond the traditional analog and digital isolations. Sending orthogonal helicity +1 and receiving orthogonal helicity -1 on first transceiver while sending orthogonal helicity -1 and receiving helicity +1 on second transceiver to achieve simultaneous transmission and reception of signals between transmission sites without interference from differing signals. We use OAM and Laguerre-Gaussian functions implemented in a cylindrical coordinate system to transmit orthogonal functions between transmission sites. We use patch antennas to generate Laguerre-Gaussian functions in a cylindrical coordinate system for transmitting and receiving. Also using lenses to focus the beam to increase distance. Because the OAM signals are orthogonal this approach will achieve isolation that is required for full duplex. Since HG, LG or IG beams have a large path loss, a hybrid patch and parabolic dish can enhance the gain and propagate the beams for longer distances. Each component of patch antenna would have a different phase to produce orthogonal eigen-channels and each mode is a new eigen channel and totally orthogonal to others making them non-interfering. We also use transmission of a pilot/measurement to specify the channel characteristic. We can also detect and correct the channel (i.e. turbulence or channel impairments) for Higher Order Spatial Modes.

There are applications of this in mid band as well as high bands. For mid-bands, we can use the entire band without the guard band in between. For different distances, we can have specific arrangements for aperture size as a function of signal power. We can also have specific spot size at receiver as a functions of transmission distance for different OAM helicities. We may also use specific alignment characteristics and auto tracking between transmitter and receiver. We can also correct for specific lateral displacement as a function of power for different OAM helicities and specific receiver angular error as a function of power for different OAM helicities.

 

mmWave Penetration through Walls or Glass without Wires or Drilling

Please also see www.waveagility.com

mmWaves in licensed or unlicensed bands do not penetrate to in-building locations. Directional radio waves can be produced using patch antennas in different configurations that generate directional beams to tunnel through glass, low-e glass or walls. The frequencies can be down converted to lower frequency EM waves that can penetrate through glass and walls and also be amplified using antenna arrays. This can be done at all frequencies including current cellular LTE frequencies, mid-bands 2.5 GHz, 3.5 GHz CBRS, 5 GHz Wifi, ... to high bands 24, 28, 39, 60, 70, 80 GHz mm-bands. The Wave Agility unit is a consumer installed repeater outside the building and a transceiver inside the building. mmWaves have the advantage of higher bit rates, more precise beam forming and steering, and smaller footprint components, but they have issues in penetrating through barriers. The outside unit can be powered by magnetic resonance induction from the inside unit so there is no need for an outside power source. The outside unit can also perform beam forming to have optimum connection to the base station.