Telecommunications – Transmitter and receiver at separate stations – Having measuring – testing – or monitoring of system or part
Patent
1996-08-22
1999-08-24
Vo, Nguyen
Telecommunications
Transmitter and receiver at separate stations
Having measuring, testing, or monitoring of system or part
455115, H04B 1700
Patent
active
059436093
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a system for the supervising of receiving antennas said system being intended preferably for a base station in a cellular telephone system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Problems that arise generally today in antenna systems, i.e., one or more antennas including cable arrangements, for base stations in cellular telephone systems include, for instance, the supervising of parameters that describe the performance of the antennas as well as their operability together with other components in the base station. For both transmitting and receiving antennas it is desirable to be able to detect and/or to localize errors originating from, for example, physical damage; incoming or outgoing radio wave radiation, e.g., buildings, other structures or vegetation, being added or, possibly, removed in the surroundings of the antenna; influence from other antennas or antenna systems placed in the surroundings of the antenna.
The characteristics of the antennas or antenna systems that may be influenced according to the above include, e.g., the shape of the coverage area and the transmission quality of the connected calls or the data flows.
Known means for the supervising of receiving antennas in base stations include the connection of measuring instruments for the measuring of, e.g., standing wave ratio or incoming power from the antenna. Through this manual procedure, no effective or systematic supervising of receiving antennas may be achieved whatsoever at reasonable costs.
It is further known to supervise a receiving antenna by connecting a DC voltage to the antenna from the receiving circuits, said antenna usually constituting a short circuit for direct current. The resulting direct current is sensed, giving an indication of whether the galvanic connection between the antenna and the receiving circuits is intact.
Further, in diversity antennas for receiving, as is customary in the receiving circuits, signal levels originating from the different antennas have been sensed and compared. In doing so, it has been possible to establish also antenna errors that give abnormal relations between the signal levels.
Moreover, in a transmitting antenna, which is connected or connectable to transmitting circuits for its transmitting function, sensors for the sensing of outgoing and incoming electrical signals to and from, respectively, the transmitting antenna sensors have been permanently arranged. In doing this, through the measuring of, e.g., transmitted and reflected power, it has been possible to detect errors originating at the transmitter antenna, particularly due to connector or cable errors, environmental influence, normal aging or physical damage.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is based on the long felt need to supervise a receiving antenna by the sensing of electrical signals to or from the receiving antenna, without breaking for that sake, at the occasion of the sensing, the contact between the receiving antenna and the associated receiving circuits in order to apply a sensor. Through a solution to this problem it would be possible, through the use of, e.g., a microcomputer means, to achieve automatic supervising of the receiving antenna.
The present invention solves the above mentioned problem in the supervising of receiving antennas is solved by a system.
The invention makes it possible to supervise a receiving antenna by the sensing of electrical signals from the receiving antenna, without any need to change physically the connection between the receiving antennas and the associated receiving circuits. Through this solution to the problem, it is possible to achieve automatic supervising of the receiving antenna by means of the signal processing means. An alarm on site and/or via a remote connection may be delivered in case of an error that causes, for a physical quantity or from a quantity derived therefrom, e.g., a sudden change or the exceeding of a predetermined value. Also single or periodic operability reports may be gen
REFERENCES:
patent: 5233537 (1993-08-01), Tietsworth
patent: 5483680 (1996-01-01), Talbot
patent: 5574981 (1996-11-01), Ahonen
patent: 5590415 (1996-12-01), Peltola et al.
Patent Abstracts of Japan, vol. 10, No. 240, JP, A, 61-70826 (NEC CORP.), Apr. 11, 1986.
Patent Abstracts of Japan, vol. 8, No. 13, JP, A, 58-178645 (Mitsubishi Denki K.K.), Oct. 19, 1983.
Ahlstrom Alf
Ericson Lars
Allgon AB
Vo Nguyen
LandOfFree
System for antenna supervising does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with System for antenna supervising, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and System for antenna supervising will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-476412