HK1149129A - Multiplexing over i and q branches - Google Patents

Abstract

Systems and methodologies are described that facilitate transmitting and receiving signals over I and Q branches of a communication channel to mitigate potential I/Q imbalance. In particular, a device can transmit a signal over the I and Q branches to distribute transmission power substantially evenly for a given channel. The device can demodulate the data with a code or matrix having real and complex modifiers resulting in an I and Q branch signal for transmission. Where the channel has multiple resources, the device can alternate or transmit over the I branch in one resource and the Q branch in another resource for a given signal to distribute power. Also, the device can apply a complex scrambling code to distribute a signal over both the I and Q branches. The device can also use QPSK or higher order modulation to send the signals meant for the same user.

Description

Multiplexing on I and Q branches

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefit OF U.S. provisional patent application No. 61/027,143 entitled "method OF MULTIPLEXING USERS SHARING THE same RESOURCEs" filed on 8.2.2008 and U.S. provisional patent application No. 6I/034,227 entitled "method OF MULTIPLEXING USERS SHARING THE SAME RESOURCEs sharing the same RESOURCEs" filed on 6.3.2008. The above application is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

Technical Field

The following description relates generally to wireless communications, and more particularly to multiplexing multi-device communications over one or more shared resources.

Background

Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content such as voice, data, and so on. A typical wireless communication system may be a multiple-access system capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing the available system resources (e.g., bandwidth, transmit power, … …). Examples of the multiple-access system may include a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) system, a Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) system, a Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) system, an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) system, and the like. Additionally, the system may conform to specifications such as third generation partnership project (3GPP), 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), and/or multicarrier wireless specifications such as evolution-data optimized (EV-DO), one or more revisions thereof.

In general, a wireless multiple-access communication system may simultaneously support communication for multiple mobile devices. Each mobile device may communicate with one or more base stations via transmissions on forward and reverse links. The forward link (or downlink) refers to the communication link from base stations to mobile devices, and the reverse link (or uplink) refers to the communication link from mobile devices to base stations. Additionally, communications between mobile devices and base stations can be established via single-input single-output (SISO) systems, multiple-input single-output (MISO) systems, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems, and so forth. Further, mobile devices can communicate with other mobile devices (and/or base stations with other base stations) in peer-to-peer wireless network configurations.

A device in wireless communication may transmit and receive signals on shared resources. For example, signals may be combined over resources utilizing one or more multiplexing techniques (e.g., Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM), Time Division Multiplexing (TDM), Code Division Multiplexing (CDM), orthogonal FDM (ofdm), etc.). A device may utilize Binary Phase Shift Keying (BPSK) to achieve quadrature on one or more resources and in-phase/quadrature (I/Q) multiplexing to extend the capacity of the resources. This, in turn, may desirably increase the number of signals supported on the resource, resulting in improved communication throughput over the resource and associated wireless communication network. However, the large difference in transmit power on the I and Q branches may cause I/Q imbalance, leading to undesirable results when demultiplexing the received signal.

Disclosure of Invention

The following presents a simplified summary of one or more embodiments in order to provide a basic understanding of such embodiments. This summary is not an extensive overview of all contemplated embodiments, and is intended to neither identify key or critical elements of all embodiments nor delineate the scope of any or all embodiments. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more embodiments in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

In accordance with one or more embodiments and corresponding disclosure thereof, various aspects are described in connection with utilizing in-phase/quadrature (I/Q) multiplexing to facilitate transmission of one or more individual signals on both an I branch and a Q branch to more evenly spread transmit power. In one example, a portion of a given signal may be transmitted on the I branch, with the remainder being transmitted on the Q branch. In this regard, for example, the transmit power of a given signal is substantially similar on both the I and Q branches. In another example, a multiple repeated signal may alternate between transmitting on the I branch and transmitting on the Q branch in one or more repetitions to provide more balanced I/Q multiplexing.

According to a related aspect, a method for modulating data for I/Q multiplexing is provided. The method can include receiving configuration information related to a wireless communication channel. The method may further comprise: modulating data into one or more signals according to the configuration information; and transmitting signals on the I and Q branches of the communication channel.

Another aspect relates to a wireless communications apparatus. The wireless communications apparatus can comprise at least one processor configured to: generating a signal for transmission based at least in part on the received data; and distributing the signal across the I and Q branches of the communication channel. The processor is further configured to transmit a signal over a communication channel using the I-branch and the Q-branch. The wireless communications apparatus also includes a memory coupled to the at least one processor.

Yet another aspect relates to a wireless communication device that facilitates mitigating I/Q imbalance when transmitting wireless communication signals. The wireless communications apparatus can include: means for generating a signal based at least in part on data to be transmitted; and means for distributing the signal across the I-branch and the Q-branch of the communication channel. The wireless communications apparatus can additionally comprise means for transmitting signals of an I-branch and a Q-branch of a communication channel.

Yet another aspect relates to a computer program product, which can have a computer-readable medium including code for causing at least one computer to determine configuration information related to a communication channel. The computer-readable medium can also include code for causing at least one computer to modulate data into one or more signals divided over an I branch and a Q branch of a communication channel. Further, the computer-readable medium can comprise code for causing at least one computer to transmit signals on an I branch and a Q branch of a communication channel.

Moreover, an additional aspect relates to an apparatus. The apparatus may comprise a channel resource determiner that receives configuration information related to one or more communication channels. The apparatus may further comprise: a data modulator to generate a signal for transmission on an I-branch of a channel and a signal for transmission on a Q-branch of the channel based at least in part on configuration information; and a transmitter that transmits signals on the I and Q branches.

According to another aspect, a method is provided that facilitates evaluating a communication channel based on a signal multiplexed on an I-branch and a Q-branch. The method comprises the following steps: receiving multiplexed signals associated with a communication channel from a plurality of wireless devices; and separating the multiplexed signal into a portion received at the I branch and a portion received at the Q branch. The method further comprises the following steps: a portion of the portion received at the I branch and a portion of the portion received at the Q branch are demodulated to generate data transmitted by one of the plurality of wireless devices over a communication channel.

Another aspect relates to a wireless communications apparatus. The wireless communications apparatus can comprise at least one processor configured to: receiving multiplexed signals from a plurality of wireless devices over a communication channel; and demultiplexing the multiplexed signal to determine a plurality of signals transmitted on the I and Q branches of the communication channel each related to at least one of the plurality of wireless devices. The processor is further configured to demodulate at least one signal transmitted on the I branch and one signal transmitted on the Q branch to determine data transmitted by at least one of the plurality of wireless devices. The wireless communications apparatus also includes a memory coupled to the at least one processor.

Yet another aspect relates to a wireless communications apparatus for receiving an I/Q multiplexed signal. The wireless communications apparatus can include means for receiving multiplexed signals relating to a communication channel on an I-branch and a Q-branch. The wireless communication device may additionally include: means for demultiplexing the I-branch and Q-branch multiplexed signals to generate a plurality of signals from the device transmitted on the branches; and means for demodulating at least one device signal from the I branch and one device signal from the Q branch to receive data transmitted by the device.

Yet another aspect relates to a computer program product, which can have a computer-readable medium comprising code for causing at least one computer to receive multiplexed signals relating to a communication channel from a plurality of wireless devices. The computer-readable medium may also include code for causing at least one computer to separate the multiplexed signal into a portion received at the I branch and a portion received at the Q branch. Further, the computer-readable medium may include code for causing at least one computer to demodulate a portion of the portion received at the I branch and a portion of the portion received at the Q branch to generate data transmitted by one of the plurality of wireless devices over the communication channel.

Moreover, an additional aspect relates to an apparatus. The apparatus may comprise: a receiver that receives multiplexed signals related to a communication channel from a plurality of wireless devices; and a demultiplexer that demultiplexes the I and Q branches of the communication channel to generate a plurality of signals transmitted on both the I and Q branches. The apparatus may further comprise: a demodulator that demodulates at least one of the plurality of signals transmitted on an I branch and at least one of the plurality of signals transmitted on a Q branch to determine data transmitted by one of the plurality of wireless devices.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the one or more embodiments comprise the features hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the annexed drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative aspects of the one or more embodiments. These aspects are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of various embodiments may be employed and the described embodiments are intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is an illustration of a wireless communication system in accordance with various aspects set forth herein.

FIG. 2 is an illustration of an example apparatus for modulating signals on the I and Q branches to mitigate I/Q imbalance.

Fig. 3 is an illustration of an example communications apparatus for employment within a wireless communications environment.

Fig. 4 is an illustration of an example wireless communication system that enables transmitting and receiving signals on an I-branch and a Q-branch.

Fig. 5 is an illustration of an example methodology that facilitates transmitting signals on an I-branch and a Q-branch in accordance with received configuration information.

Fig. 6 is an illustration of an example methodology that facilitates processing signals received on an I-branch and a Q-branch.

Fig. 7 is an illustration of an example mobile device that modulates and/or scrambles signals for transmission on the I and Q branches.

Fig. 8 is an illustration of an example system that assigns a channel configuration and receives signals transmitted on the I and Q branches.

Fig. 9 is an illustration of an example wireless network environment that can be employed in conjunction with the various systems and methods described herein.

Fig. 10 is an illustration of an example system that mitigates I/Q imbalance by distributing signal transmission across the I and Q branches.

Fig. 11 is an illustration of an example system that receives signals transmitted on the I and Q branches and determines device data from the signals.

Detailed Description

Various embodiments are now described with reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements throughout. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of one or more embodiments. It may be evident, however, that such embodiment(s) may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to facilitate describing one or more embodiments.

As used in this application, the terms "component," "module," "system," and the like are intended to refer to a computer-related entity: hardware, firmware, a combination of hardware and software, or software in execution. For example, a component may be, but is not limited to being, a process running on a processor, an object, an executable, a thread of execution, a program, and/or a computer. For example, both an application running on a computing device and the computing device can be a component. One or more components may reside within a process and/or thread of execution and a component may be localized on one computer and/or distributed between two or more computers. In addition, these components can execute from various computer readable media having various data structures stored thereon. The components may communicate by way of local and/or remote processes such as in accordance with a signal having one or more data packets (e.g., data from a component interacting with another component in a local system, distributed system, and/or across a network such as the internet with other systems by way of the signal).

Further, various embodiments are described herein in connection with a mobile device. A mobile device can also be called a system, subscriber unit, subscriber station, mobile, remote station, remote terminal, access terminal, user terminal, wireless communication device, user agent, user device, or User Equipment (UE). A mobile device may be a cellular telephone, a cordless telephone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a Wireless Local Loop (WLL) station, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a handheld device having wireless connection capability, a computing device, or other processing device connected to a wireless modem. Moreover, various embodiments are described herein in connection with a base station. A base station may be used for communicating with mobile device(s) and may also be referred to as an access point, a node B, an evolved node B (eNode B or eNB), a Base Transceiver Station (BTS), or some other terminology.

Moreover, various aspects or features described herein may be implemented as a method, apparatus, or article of manufacture using standard programming and/or engineering techniques. The term "article of manufacture" as used herein is intended to encompass a computer program accessible from any computer-readable device, carrier, or media. For example, computer-readable media can include but are not limited to magnetic storage devices (e.g., hard disk, floppy disk, magnetic strips, etc.), optical disks (e.g., Compact Disk (CD), Digital Versatile Disk (DVD), etc.), smart cards, and flash memory devices (e.g., EPROM, card, stick, key drive, etc.). Additionally, various storage media described herein can represent one or more devices and/or other machine-readable media for storing information. The term "machine-readable medium" can include, without being limited to, wireless channels and various other media capable of storing, containing, and/or carrying instruction(s) and/or data.

The techniques described herein may be used for various wireless communication systems such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), single carrier frequency domain multiplexing (SC-FDMA), and other systems. The terms "system" and "network" are often used interchangeably. A CDMA system may implement a radio technology such as Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), CDMA2000, etc. UTRA includes wideband CDMA (W-CDMA) and other variations of CDMA. CDMA2000 covers IS-2000, IS-95 and IS-856 standards. A TDMA system may implement a radio technology such as global system for mobile communications (GSM). An OFDMA system may implement radio technologies such as evolved UTRA (E-UTRA), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11(Wi-Fi), IEEE802.16(WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash OFDM (Flash-OFDM), and so on. UTRA and E-UTRA are part of the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS). 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) is an upcoming release that uses E-UTRA, which uses OFDMA on the downlink and SC-FDMA on the uplink. UTRA, E-UTRA, UMTS, LTE, and GSM are described in documents from an organization named "third Generation partnership project" (3 GPP). CDMA2000 and UMB are described in documents from an organization named "third generation partnership project 2" (3GPP 2). The techniques described herein may also be used for evolution data optimized (EV-DO) standards, such as 1xEV-DO revision B or other revisions, and/or the like. Additionally, the wireless communication system may additionally include a peer-to-peer (e.g., mobile device to mobile device) ad hoc network system, which typically uses unpaired unlicensed spectrum, 802.xx wireless LAN, BLUETOOTH (BLUETOOTH), and any other short-range or long-range wireless communication technology.

Various aspects or features will be presented in terms of systems that may include a number of devices, components, modules, and the like. It is to be understood and appreciated that the various systems may include additional devices, components, modules, etc. and/or may not include all of the devices, components, modules etc. discussed in connection with the figures. Combinations of these methods may also be used.

Referring now to fig. 1, a wireless communication system 100 is illustrated in accordance with various embodiments presented herein. System 100 includes a base station 102 that can include multiple antenna groups. For example, one antenna group may include antennas 104 and 106, another group may include antennas 108 and 110, and an additional group may include antennas 112 and 114. Two antennas are illustrated for each antenna group; however, more or fewer antennas may be used for each group. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that base station 102 can additionally comprise a transmitter chain and a receiver chain, each of which can in turn comprise a plurality of components associated with signal transmission and reception (e.g., processors, modulators, multiplexers, demodulators, demultiplexers, antennas, etc.).

Base station 102 can communicate with one or more mobile devices, such as mobile device 116 and mobile device 122; it should be appreciated, however, that base station 102 can communicate with substantially any number of mobile devices similar to mobile devices 116 and 122. Mobile devices 116 and 122 can be, for example, cellular phones, smart phones, laptops, handheld communication devices, handheld computing devices, satellite radios, global positioning systems, PDAs, and/or any other suitable device for communicating over wireless communication system 100. As depicted, mobile device 116 is in communication with antennas 112 and 114, where antennas 112 and 114 transmit information to mobile device 116 over a forward link 118 and receive information from mobile device 116 over a reverse link 120. Moreover, mobile device 122 is in communication with antennas 104 and 106, where antennas 104 and 106 transmit information to mobile device 122 over a forward link 124 and receive information from mobile device 122 over a reverse link 126. In a Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) system, forward link 118 can utilize a different frequency band than that used by reverse link 120, and forward link 124 can employ a different frequency band than that employed by reverse link 126, for example. Additionally, in a Time Division Duplex (TDD) system, forward link 118 and reverse link 120 can utilize a common frequency band and forward link 124 and reverse link 126 can utilize a common frequency band.

Each group of antennas and/or the area in which they are designated to communicate can be referred to as a sector of base station 102. For example, antenna groups can be designed to communicate to mobile devices in a sector of the areas covered by base station 102. In communication over forward links 118 and 124, the transmitting antennas of base station 102 can utilize beamforming to improve signal-to-noise ratio of forward links 118 and 124 for mobile devices 116 and 122. Also, when base station 102 utilizes beamforming to transmit to mobile devices 116 and 122 that are randomly spread in an associated coverage, mobile devices in neighboring cells may experience less interference than a base station that transmits to all mobile devices of the base station via a single antenna. Further, mobile devices 116 and 122 can communicate directly with each other using peer-to-peer or ad hoc technology (not shown).

According to an example, system 100 can be a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication system. Additionally, system 100 can utilize substantially any type of duplexing technique to divide communication channels (e.g., forward link, reverse link … …), such as FDD, FDM, TDD, TDM, CDM, and so forth. Further, the communication channel may be orthogonalized to allow simultaneous communication with multiple devices over the channel; in one example, OFDM may be used in this regard. Mobile devices 116 and 122 can modulate data onto one or more communication channels using Binary Phase Shift Keying (BPSK), Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), etc. to ensure orthogonality across the channels. Mobile devices 116 and 122 can multiplex the modulated signals using, for example, in-phase/quadrature (I/Q) multiplexing and transmit the signals to base station 102 and/or each other (not shown). The I/Q multiplexing increases the capacity of the communication channel by allowing communication on each of two branches, which are rotated relative to each other to mitigate interference. However, the signals transmitted on the I and Q branches may experience interference from the other branch due to imbalance in the transmit power of the signals on the branches.

To mitigate I/Q imbalance, mobile devices 116 and 122 can multiplex a given modulated signal so that at least one signal is transmitted on both the I and Q branches. In one example, mobile devices 116 and 122 can transmit a portion (e.g., substantially half of the signal) of the modulated signal on the I-branch and the remaining portion on the corresponding Q-branch. This substantially levels the power on the branches. In another example where the modulated signals are transmitted in a group of signals, the signals in the group may alternate between the I and Q branches in multiple transmissions. It is to be appreciated that signals from base station 102 can be similarly modulated and/or multiplexed. Further, mobile devices 116 and/or 122 or base station 102 can communicate with similar devices in a peer-to-peer or ad hoc mode utilizing the multiplexing and/or modulation functionality described herein as mentioned.

Referring now to fig. 2, a system 200 that facilitates spreading data across I and Q branches for subsequent transmission is shown. System 200 includes a modulator 202, modulator 202 preparing data for transmission as a signal over a wireless communication network. As depicted, modulator 202 can receive data to be transmitted in accordance with an input state as well as channel configuration information. The channel configuration information may relate to, for example, channel resources assigned by the wireless device, information regarding transmitting data on the channel (e.g., codes used to modulate, scramble, and/or multiplex the data), transmission intervals, repetition/request information, and/or the like. According to the channel configuration information, modulator 202 may spread data over the I and Q branches of an associated antenna (not shown) for transmission.

The received channel configuration information may specify one or more instructions for spreading data on the I and Q branches. In one example, the channel configuration information may comprise a code or matrix, such as an orthogonal or quasi-orthogonal code (e.g., including Walsh codes), an M matrix, and/or other such codes/matrices with good correlation properties. It should be appreciated that quasi-orthogonal codes may refer to a matrix of codes that are orthogonal in rows or columns, or any other set of codes that exhibit partial orthogonality. The modulator 202 may utilize a code to transform the data into a signal for transmission. In one example, the code, when applied to the data, may generate a signal on the I branch and a 90 degree phase rotated signal for the Q branch. According to one example, the code may facilitate generating the signal such that substantially half of the signal power associated with the data is on the I branch and the other half is on the Q branch. As described, this approach may mitigate I/Q imbalance.

In another example, the channel configuration information may be repeatedly correlated with the provided signal so that the signal generated by modulator 202 may be transmitted multiple times. This may occur, for example, in an automatic repeat/request (ARQ) configuration, a hybrid ARQ (harq) configuration, and/or the like, in which multiple partial time and frequency resources, such as Control Channel Elements (CCEs), may exist for a given channel. Thus, in one example, modulator 202 may transmit a signal on the I branch and repeat the signal on the Q branch according to channel configuration information. It should be appreciated that in one example, more than one repetition may be specified by a configuration, and the signal may alternate between the I and Q branches, or otherwise be transmitted at least once on each branch. Additionally, for example, the channel configuration information may relate to applying a complex scrambling code such that at least a portion of a signal is transmitted on the Q branch if the signal was previously scheduled to be transmitted on the I branch (and/or vice versa). Moreover, in an example, modulator 202 can support communication with an apparatus over a MIMO channel having multiple transport blocks, e.g., an uplink Single User (SU) MIMO channel. In this regard, the modulators 202 may each modulate signals related to a plurality of Physical HARQ Indicator Channels (PHICHs) on at least one I branch and at least one Q branch to mitigate I/Q imbalance when SU-MIMO channels are supported.

Turning to fig. 3, illustrated is a communication device 300 for use within a wireless communication environment. The communications apparatus 300 can be a base station or a portion thereof, a mobile device or a portion thereof, or substantially any communications apparatus that receives data transmitted in a wireless communications environment. The communication device 300 may include: a channel resource assignor 302 that allocates one or more channel resources to one or more wireless devices (not shown); and a signal receiver 304 that receives one or more signals transmitted by the one or more wireless devices. In previous solutions, signals are multiplexed such that each wireless device or associated user transmits data on either the I or Q branch of the channel. Thus, each wireless device or related user is assigned to a multiplexing configuration that utilizes walsh codes for transmission on a signal channel branch (e.g., I-branch or Q-branch). It should be appreciated that walsh codes can refer to orthogonal codes that are applied to data or signals when defining a communication channel. For example, a walsh code for a channel supporting 4 signals may comprise [ 1111 ], which may be transmitted on the I-branch]、[1 -1 1 -1]、[1 1 -1 -1]And [ 1-1-11]. Thus, the phase may be rotated by 90 degrees (e.g., multiplied by an imaginary number) by the addition) While the applied walsh codes spread the channel to support 8 signals, which 8 signals can be transmitted on the Q branch.

According to the subject matter described herein, channel resource assigner 302 can allocate a multiplexing configuration to wireless devices such that a given wireless device transmits a portion (e.g., half a signal) of a correlated signal on the I-branch and the remaining portion on the Q-branch. In this regard, the transmit power may be substantially similar across the branches. In one example, this may be accomplished by utilizing a modified walsh code (described below), an M matrix, or generally any matrix with good correlation properties. For example, where walsh codes are utilized to multiplex symbols, the codes may each have an I-branch modifier (modifier) and a Q-branch modifier. Thus, for example, Walsh codes for channels supporting 8 signals through I/Q multiplexing may include [ 11 j j ], [ 1-1 j-j ], [ 11-j-j ], [ 1-1-j j ], and the aforementioned codes multiplied by j. Thus, in this example, channel resource assigner 302 can allocate one or more of the channels and corresponding walsh codes to the wireless device. Signal receiver 304 can then receive signals from the wireless device on the channel according to the assigned walsh codes and demultiplex the signal with the least I/Q imbalance (since the codes cause transmission on the I and Q branches for a given channel signal). In another example, a signal may be distributed over multiple CCEs (or other partial time and frequency resources of a channel); in this regard, the channel resource assignor 302 can assign CCEs such that a wireless device can alternately transmit signals between the I-branch and the Q-branch for a given signal over a CCE. In yet another example, channel resource assigner 302 can specify a complex scrambling code for encoding a signal; the code may cause a signal to be transmitted on the I and Q branches.

Referring now to fig. 4, illustrated is a wireless communication system 400 that facilitates communication using distributed I/Q multiplexed signals. Wireless devices 402 and/or 404 may be mobile devices (e.g., including not only independently powered devices, but also modems), base stations, and/or portions thereof. In one example, where wireless devices 402 and 404 are of a similar type, the devices 402 and 404 may communicate using peer-to-peer or ad hoc technologies. Moreover, system 400 can be a MIMO system and/or can conform to one or more wireless network system specifications (e.g., EV-DO, 3GPP2, 3GPP LTE, WiMAX, etc.). Also, in one example, the components and functionality shown and described below in wireless device 402 may also be present in wireless device 404, and vice versa; for ease of explanation, the depicted configuration excludes these components.

The wireless device 402 includes: a channel resource determiner 406 that can obtain information related to communicating over a communication channel; a data modulator 408 that can modulate data into one or more signals to be transmitted over a communication channel; a signal scrambler 410 that may apply a scrambling sequence to one or more signals, the scrambling sequence encoding a message for protection during transmission; and a transmitter 412 that can transmit signals over the wireless communication system 400. Wireless device 404 may include: a channel resource assigner 414 that can allocate communication channel resources to one or more wireless devices, such as wireless device 402; a receiver 416 that can receive one or more signals from the one or more wireless devices; a descrambler 418 that may reverse the scrambling applied on the received signal; a demultiplexer 420 that may demultiplex the received signal into one or more single signals; and a demodulator 422 that can demodulate the signal to generate the data conveyed by the signal. It should be appreciated that one or more of the components in wireless devices 402 and 404 may be optional. For example, signal scrambler 410 may not be present or may not be utilized by wireless device 402, and the presence or utilization of descrambler 418 in wireless device 404 may depend on whether signal scrambler 410 is present and/or utilized.

According to an example, wireless device 402 can distribute signals across the I and Q branches to facilitate substantially balanced I/Q multiplexing, as described herein. In one example, channel resource determiner 406 can obtain one or more channel resources and/or related configuration information for transmitting signals thereon. The configuration information may be hard coded (hardcode) in wireless device 402, received from one or more network components, received from channel resource assigner 414, and/or similarly obtained. The configuration information may be related to transmitting signals on the I and Q branches of the communication channel. In one example, the information can be one or more walsh codes or other orthogonal or quasi-orthogonal codes used to modulate data, where at least one walsh code has an I portion and a Q portion, such that modulation of data causes a portion of the data to be modulated onto the I branch and a portion onto the Q branch, as described above.

In one example, channel resource assigner 414 can define and allocate channel resources and/or modulate data for various wireless devices to support sharing channels among multiple signals and thus devices. For example, channel resource assigner 414 can use a matrix of walsh codes that assigns each device to a column to provide orthogonal modulation of data on the I and Q branches.

For the I branch isAnd for the Q branch is

Thus, each code represented by a column assignable to a device applies the I-branch and Q-branch attributes in order to equalize the signal on both branches. In this example, the 8 channels may be grouped into a set for transmission as signals from various wireless devices, including wireless device 402, to wireless device 404. It should be appreciated that more or fewer channels may be grouped in a similar manner. For example, where a channel includes 4 groups, the following code may be utilized.

For the I branch isAnd for the Q branch is

According to one example, the channel can be a control channel, e.g., PHICH. Further, the channel can be associated with multiple control channels (e.g., multiple PHICHs) for supporting uplink SU-MIMO communication with multiple transport blocks. In this example, multiple PHICHs associated with a single device, such as wireless device 404, can each be transmitted on the I and Q branches to mitigate imbalance in communicating multiple PHICHs to the device. Furthermore, channel walsh codes can be constructed based on a Cyclic Prefix (CP) associated with a channel (e.g., PHICH with a normal CP can utilize a group of 8 codes, while PHICH with an extended CP can utilize a group of 4 codes).

For example, channel resource determiner 406 can receive the resource assignment from wireless device 404 (e.g., channel resource assigner 414) that comprises one or more orthogonal codes or quasi-orthogonal codes (e.g., walsh codes) for transmitting a signal on the channel. In this example, data modulator 408 may spread data over the I and Q branches of the channel using the provided codes to generate one or more signals for transmission. In one example, the signal scrambler 410 may apply a scrambling code to the signal, and the transmitter 412 may transmit the scrambled signal. In one example, wireless device 404 may receive the signals on the I and Q branches and one or more signals for/from disparate wireless devices, and the signals may be displayed as multiplexed signals based on code utilized by the device in modulating data into the signals.

For example, receiver 416 may receive the multiplexed signal, and descrambler 418 may descramble the signal (if scrambled). The demultiplexer 420 may demultiplex the signal into signals transmitted by/to the paired devices. In one example, the demultiplexer 420 may evaluate signals received on both the I and Q branches to determine signals sent to/by separate devices (e.g., the wireless device 402). For example, the signals received on the I and Q branches may be represented as:

where M is the number of channels that can be handled separately at each branch, h is the channel gain on an mx 1 grid, w is the walsh code,is a vector of signals transmitted on each channel on the I branch, andis a vector of signals transmitted on each channel on the Q branch, andis a vector representing the noise on each channel on the two branches. In this example, with M tones, 2M channel groups are evenly distributed across the I and Q branches. Thus, the demultiplexer 420 may apply the channel estimate to the vectorIn one example, after separating the I and Q branches, the signal at each branch may be represented as follows:

thus, a demultiplexer 420 is used inThe despreading of (a) produces the desired signal on the first M PHICHs andthe despreading of (a) produces the remaining M PHICH signals.

Once the signal is despread, demodulator 422 may generate data from the signal, e.g., based on the orthogonal or quasi-orthogonal codes (e.g., walsh codes) utilized as described above. It should be appreciated that this is just one example of a distribution over the branches; for example, the distributions need not be evenly spaced as described. It should also be appreciated that walsh codes need not be used; instead, for example, an M matrix or any matrix having generally good correlation properties may also be utilized in this regard.

In another example, the configuration information received at channel resource determiner 406 may relate to alternating transmissions of repeated signals such that at least one transmission is on the I branch and at least one transmission is on the Q branch. For example, where the channel over which the signal is transmitted provides for repeated signal transmissions (e.g., more than one CCE per channel), the data modulator 408 may modulate the desired data into a signal on the I branch for transmission once by the transmitter 412, into a signal on the Q branch for subsequent transmission by the transmitter 412, and so on. In one example, this effectively equalizes the transmit power on the I and Q branches to achieve full transmission of the signal. As in the previous example, the signal scrambler 410 may encode a signal to ensure security, and the transmitter 412 may transmit a signal, which may be received at the receiver 416. Descrambler 418 may descramble the signal (if scrambled by signal scrambler 410) and demultiplexer 420 may demultiplex the received signal (e.g., using conventional methods in this example). A demodulator 422 can then invert the applied walsh codes to determine the data in the signal that was transmitted by the device, such as wireless device 402.

Further, in an example, the configuration information received from channel resource determiner 406 can relate to using a complex scrambling code on the signal such that the resulting signal is correlated on either the I branch or the Q branch. For example, data modulator 408 may modulate data on the I-branch, generating a signal for transmission thereon. The signal scrambler 410 may apply a complex scrambling code that causes a portion or substantially all of the signal to be transmitted by the transmitter 412 on the Q branch. The distribution of the signal in this respect also makes it possible to equalize or spread the transmit power over the I and Q branches to mitigate I/Q imbalance. In this case, receiver 416 may receive the I-branch and Q-branch signals, descrambler 418 may descramble the received signals using a complex scrambling code, and demultiplexer 420 may separate the individual signals from the I-branch and Q-branch for demodulation 422. As described, the demodulator 422 can determine the data transmitted in the signal based on the code (e.g., walsh code) used to spread the data over the signal. It should be appreciated that in general any functionality is possible that modulates signals on both the I and Q branches; the foregoing are but a few examples.

Referring to fig. 5-6, methodologies relating to transmitting and receiving signals using I/Q multiplexing while mitigating I/Q imbalance are illustrated. While, for purposes of simplicity of explanation, the methodologies are shown and described as a series of acts, it is to be understood and appreciated that the methodologies are not limited by the order of acts, as some acts may, in accordance with one or more embodiments, occur in different orders and/or concurrently with other acts from that shown and described herein. For example, those skilled in the art will understand and appreciate that a methodology could alternatively be represented as a series of interrelated states or events, such as in a state diagram. Moreover, not all illustrated acts may be required to implement a methodology in accordance with one or more embodiments.

Turning to fig. 5, illustrated is a methodology 500 that facilitates mitigating I/Q imbalance upon transmission over a wireless communication channel. At 502, configuration information related to a wireless communication channel is received. For example, as described, the configuration information can relate to one or more codes or matrices (e.g., walsh codes) having good correlation properties to facilitate orthogonal communication of signals over the channel, complex scrambling codes, transmission specifications for multiple CCE channels, and so forth. In this regard, the configuration information may relate to transmitting a portion of the signal on the I branch and transmitting a portion on the Q branch. At 504, data may be modulated into one or more signals according to the configuration information to mitigate I/Q imbalance, as previously described. For example, where the configuration information includes walsh codes, the codes can have real and complex elements such that modulation using the codes produces I and Q signals for a given set of data. Further, in one example, where the configuration information relates to a complex scrambling code, as described, a portion of the signal may be scrambled on the I branch and a portion scrambled on the Q branch. At 506, signals may be transmitted on the I and Q branches of the communication channel. This may, for example, spread the associated transmit power evenly to mitigate I/Q imbalance.

Turning to fig. 6, illustrated is a methodology 600 that facilitates receiving data transmitted on an I branch and a Q branch to mitigate I/Q imbalance. At 602, a multiplexed signal related to a communication channel can be received for/from a plurality of wireless devices. For example, the multiplexed signal may comprise a plurality of signals transmitted for/by various wireless devices over a communication channel. For example, as described, matrices and/or codes with good correlation properties may be used to modulate data to achieve the foregoing. At 604, the multiplexed signal may be separated into a portion received on the I branch and a portion received on the Q branch. In one example, the Q branch may be phase-rotated 90 degrees compared to the I branch to allow further quadrature transmission on the branch. At 606, the portion received on the I branch and the portion received on the Q branch may be demultiplexed into a plurality of signals, which may have been transmitted for/by a plurality of wireless devices. At 608, the demultiplexed signals from both the I and Q branches may be demodulated to determine the data transmitted for a given wireless device on the communication channel, for example. Thus, the two branches are used to transmit data to mitigate I/Q imbalance.

It is to be appreciated that, in accordance with one or more aspects described herein, inferences can be made regarding determining a code to use in modulating data, a scrambling code to encode data, a repetition scheme for transmitting data on the I and Q branches in different CCEs, and/or the like. As used herein, the term to "infer" or "inference" refers generally to the process of reasoning about or inferring states of the system, environment, and/or user from a set of observations as captured via events and/or data. Inference can be employed to identify a specific context or action, or can generate a probability distribution over states, for example. The inference can be probabilistic-that is, the computation of a probability distribution over states of interest based on a consideration of data and events. Inference can also refer to techniques employed for composing higher-level events from a set of events and/or data. Such inference results in the construction of new events or actions from a set of observed events and/or stored event data, whether or not the events are correlated in close temporal proximity, and whether the events and data come from one or several event and data sources.

Fig. 7 is an illustration of a mobile device 700 that facilitates transmitting signals on an I-branch and a Q-branch of a channel. Mobile device 700 comprises a receiver 702 that receives one or more signals over one or more carriers from, for instance, a receive antenna (not shown), performs typical actions on (e.g., filters, amplifies, downconverts, etc.) the received signal, and digitizes the conditioned signal to obtain samples. Receiver 702 can comprise a demodulator 704 that can demodulate received symbols and provide them to a processor 706 for channel estimation. Processor 706 can be a processor dedicated to analyzing information received by receiver 702 and/or generating information for transmission by a transmitter 716, a processor that controls one or more components of mobile device 700, and/or a processor that both analyzes information received by receiver 702, generates information for transmission by transmitter 716, and controls one or more components of mobile device 700.

Mobile device 700 can additionally comprise memory 708, memory 708 being operatively coupled to processor 706 and that can store data to be transmitted, received data, information related to available channels, data associated with analyzed signal and/or interference strength, information related to an assigned channel, power, rate, or the like, and any other suitable information for estimating a channel and communicating via the channel. Memory 708 can additionally store protocols and/or algorithms associated with estimating and/or utilizing a channel (e.g., performance based, capacity based, etc.).

It will be appreciated that the data store (e.g., memory 708) described herein can be either volatile memory or nonvolatile memory, or can include both volatile and nonvolatile memory. By way of illustration, and not limitation, nonvolatile memory can include Read Only Memory (ROM), programmable ROM (prom), electrically programmable ROM (eprom), electrically erasable prom (eeprom), or flash memory. Volatile memory can include Random Access Memory (RAM), which acts as external cache memory. By way of illustration and not limitation, RAM is available in many forms, such as Synchronous RAM (SRAM), Dynamic RAM (DRAM), Synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), Enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), Synchlink DRAM (SLDRAM), and Direct Rambus RAM (DRRAM). The memory 708 of the subject systems and methods is intended to comprise, without being limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

Processor 706 can be further operatively coupled to a configuration information receiver 710 that can obtain parameters related to transmitting data over a wireless network. For example, as described, the configuration information may relate to codes and/or matrices that may be used to generate signals from data, with the resulting signals transmitted on both the I and Q branches of the communication channel. As described, the mobile device 700 still further includes a modulator 712, which modulator 712 can modulate data into a signal based on the configuration information. For example, modulator 712 can apply a code and/or matrix (e.g., a walsh code or other code/matrix with good correlation properties) to the data to generate a signal.

Further, the mobile device 700 can include a scrambler 714, which scrambler 714 can encode a signal for secure transmission thereof. As described, for example, scrambler 714 may utilize a complex scrambling code to additionally or alternatively cause a portion of the signal to be transmitted on the I branch and the remaining portion to be transmitted on the Q branch. The mobile device also includes a transmitter 716, the transmitter 716 transmitting a signal to, for example, a base station, another mobile device, and/or the like. Although depicted as being separate from the processor 706, it is to be appreciated that the demodulator 704, configuration information receiver, modulator 712, and/or scrambler 714 can be part of the processor 706 or multiple processors (not shown).

Fig. 8 is an illustration of a system 800 that facilitates receiving signals from a mobile device on an I-branch and a Q-branch of a communication channel. System 800 includes a base station 802 (e.g., access point, … …), base station 802 having: a receiver 810 that receives signals from one or more mobile devices 804 via a plurality of receive antennas 806; and a transmitter 824 that is transmitted via the transmit antenna 808 to the one or more mobile devices 804. Receiver 810 can receive information from receive antennas 806 and is operatively associated with a descrambler that can decode received signals. Further, demodulator 814 may demodulate the received descrambled signal. Processor 816 analyzes the demodulated symbols, processor 816 can be similar to that described above with respect to fig. 7 and coupled to memory 818, memory 818 storing information related to estimating signal (e.g., pilot) strength and/or interference strength, data to be transmitted to or received from mobile device 804 (or a disparate base station (not shown)), and/or any other suitable information related to performing the various acts and functions described herein. The processor 816 is further coupled to a configuration information designator 820 that can assign channel configuration information to one or more mobile devices 804 and transmit the information to the one or more mobile devices 804.

According to an example, descrambler 812 may decode signals received on the I and Q branches to produce a single signal for demodulation. In another example, demodulator 814 can demodulate signals received on the I and Q branches to determine data from mobile device 804. The configuration information designator 820 may transmit configuration information to the mobile device 804 to force the mobile device 804 to utilize the I branch and the Q branch in transmission/reception. As described, transmitting data for/from devices on the I and Q branches may distribute transmit power across the branches to mitigate I/Q imbalance. Further, although depicted as being separate from the processor 816, it is to be appreciated that the demodulator 814, descrambler 818, configuration information designator 820, and/or modulator 822 can be part of the processor 816 or multiple processors (not shown).

Fig. 9 shows an example wireless communication system 900. The wireless communication system 900 depicts one base station 910 and one mobile device 950 for sake of brevity. However, it is to be appreciated that system 900 can include more than one base station and/or more than one mobile device, wherein additional base stations and/or mobile devices can be substantially similar or different from example base station 910 and mobile device 950 described below. Moreover, it is to be appreciated that base station 910 and/or mobile device 950 can employ the systems (fig. 1-4 and 7-8) and/or methods (fig. 5-6) described herein to facilitate wireless communication there between.

At base station 910, traffic data for a number of data streams is provided from a data source 912 to a Transmit (TX) data processor 914. According to an example, each data stream can be transmitted on a respective antenna. TX data processor 914 formats, codes, and interleaves the traffic data stream based on a particular coding scheme selected for that data stream to provide coded data.

The coded data for each data stream may be multiplexed with pilot data using Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) techniques. Additionally or alternatively, the pilot symbols may be Frequency Division Multiplexed (FDM), Time Division Multiplexed (TDM), or Code Division Multiplexed (CDM). The pilot data is typically a known data pattern that is processed in a known manner and can be used at mobile device 950 to estimate channel response. The multiplexed pilot and coded data for each data stream can be modulated (e.g., symbol mapped) based on a particular modulation scheme (e.g., BPSK, QPSK, M-PSK, M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM), etc.) selected for that data stream to provide modulation symbols. The data rate, coding, and modulation for each data stream can be determined by instructions performed or provided by processor 930.

The modulation symbols for the data streams can be provided to a TX MIMO processor 920, and the TX MIMO processor 920 can further process the modulation symbols (e.g., for OFDM). TX MIMO processor 920 then passes N_TA stream of modulation symbols is provided to N_TAnd Transmitters (TMTR)922a through 922 t. In various embodiments, TX MIMO processor 920 applies beamforming weights to the symbols of the data streams and to the antenna from which the symbol is being transmitted.

Each transmitter 922 receives and processes a respective symbol stream to provide one or more analog signals, and further conditions (e.g., amplifies, filters, and frequency upconverts) the analog signals to provide a modulated signal suitable for transmission over the MIMO channel. In addition, from N respectively_TN from transmitters 922a through 922t are transmitted by antennas 924a through 924t_TA modulated signal.

At mobile device 950, by N_RThe transmitted modulated signals are received by antennas 952a through 952r and the received signal from each antenna 952 is provided to a respective receiver (RCVR)954a through 954 r. Each receiver 954 conditions (e.g., filters, amplifies, and downconverts) a respective signal, digitizes the conditioned signal to provide samples, and further processes the samples to provide a corresponding "received" symbol stream.

RX data processor 960 may receive and process data from N based on a particular receiver processing technique_RN of a receiver 954_RA received symbol stream to provide N_TA stream of "detected" symbols. RX data processor 960 can demodulate, deinterleave, and decode each detected symbol stream to recover the traffic data for the data stream. The processing by RX data processor 960 is complementary to that performed by TX MIMO processor 920 and TX data processor 914 at base station 910.

A processor 970 can periodically determine which precoding matrix to utilize as discussed above. Further, processor 970 can formulate a reverse link message comprising a matrix index portion and a rank value (rank value) portion.

The reverse link message may comprise various types of information regarding the communication link and/or the received data stream. The reverse link message may be processed by a TX data processor 938, which also receives traffic data for a number of data streams from a data source 936, modulated by a modulator 980, conditioned by transmitters 954a through 954r, and transmitted back to base station 910.

At base station 910, the modulated signals from mobile device 950 are received by antennas 924, conditioned by receivers 922, demodulated by a demodulator 940, and processed by a RX data processor 942 to extract the reverse link message transmitted by mobile device 950. In addition, processor 930 can process the extracted message to determine which precoding matrix to use for determining the beamforming weights.

Processors 930 and 970 can direct (e.g., control, coordinate, manage, etc.) operation at base station 910 and mobile device 950, respectively. Respective processors 930 and 970 can be associated with memory 932 and 972 that store program codes and data. Processors 930 and 970 can also perform computations to derive frequency and impulse response estimates for the uplink and downlink, respectively.

It is to be understood that the embodiments described herein may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode, or any combination thereof. For a hardware implementation, the processing units may be implemented within one or more Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Digital Signal Processors (DSPs), Digital Signal Processing Devices (DSPDs), Programmable Logic Devices (PLDs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, other electronic units designed to perform the functions described herein, or a combination thereof.

When the embodiments are implemented in software, firmware, middleware or microcode, program code or code segments, they may be stored in a machine-readable medium, such as a storage component. A code segment may represent a procedure, a function, a subprogram, a program, a routine, a subroutine, a module, a software package, a class, or any combination of instructions, data structures, or program statements. A code segment may be coupled to another code segment or a hardware circuit by passing and/or receiving information, data, arguments, parameters, or memory contents. Information, arguments, parameters, data, etc. may be passed, forwarded, or transmitted using any suitable means including memory sharing, message passing, token passing, network transmission, etc.

For a software implementation, the techniques described herein may be implemented with modules (e.g., procedures, functions, and so on) that perform the functions described herein. The software codes may be stored in memory units and executed by processors. The memory unit may be implemented within the processor or external to the processor, in which case it can be communicatively coupled to the processor via various means as is known in the art.

Referring to fig. 10, a system 1000 is illustrated that system 1000 transmits signals on the I and Q branches to distribute power across the branches, thus reducing I/Q imbalance. For example, system 1000 can reside at least partially within a base station, mobile device, etc. It is to be appreciated that system 1000 is represented as including functional blocks, which can be functional blocks that represent functions implemented by a processor, software, or combination thereof (e.g., firmware). System 1000 includes a logical grouping 1002 of electrical components that can act in conjunction. For example, logical grouping 1002 can include an electrical component for generating a signal based at least in part on data to be transmitted 1004. For example, a signal may be generated by modulating data using a code or matrix (e.g., walsh code, etc.) that has good correlation properties. In another example, a signal may be transmitted on the I branch followed by a signal on the Q branch using a repetitive transmission technique, as described above. Additionally, logical grouping 1002 can include an electrical component for distributing signals across the I and Q branches of the communication channel 1006. In this regard, as described, signals may be balanced or distributed in power across both the I and Q branches to mitigate I/Q imbalance. In one example, as described, a code or matrix provided to modulate data may include real and complex modifiers to facilitate this behavior.

Further, logical grouping 1002 can include an electrical component for applying a complex scrambling code to a signal for transmission on the I branch to generate a disparate signal for transmission on the Q branch 1008. Thus, for example, scrambling codes may additionally or alternatively be used to generate signals transmitted on the I and Q branches. Further, logical group 1002 can also include an electrical component 1010 for transmitting signals of the I-branch and the Q-branch of the communication channel. As described, since signals are transmitted on the two branches and thus signal power, I/Q imbalance may be mitigated. Additionally, system 1000 can include a memory 1012 that retains instructions for executing functions associated with electrical components 1004, 1006, 1008, and 1010. While electrical components 1004, 1006, 1008, and 1010 are shown as being external to memory 1012, it is to be understood that one or more of electrical components 1004, 1006, 1008, and 1010 can exist within memory 1012.

Turning to fig. 11, illustrated is a system 1100 that receives signals transmitted on I and Q branches of a communication channel. System 1100 can reside within a base station, mobile device, etc., for instance. As depicted, system 1100 includes functional blocks that can represent functions implemented by a processor, software, or combination thereof (e.g., firmware). System 1100 includes a logical grouping 1102 of electrical components that receive and interpret signals to determine data transmitted by the signals. Logical grouping 1102 can include an electrical component for receiving multiplexed signals related to a communication channel on the I and Q branches 1104. The multiplexed signals may include signals transmitted to/received from various wireless devices in order to receive the multiplexed signals to facilitate orthogonal communication. Further, logical group 1102 may include an electrical component for demultiplexing the multiplexed signals of the I and Q branches to generate a plurality of device signals transmitted on the branches 1106. For example, the device signals may be split among the I and Q branches such that the signal for a given device has both an I portion and a Q portion. In this regard, logical group 1102 may also include an electrical component 1108 for demodulating at least one device signal from the I branch and one device signal from the Q branch to receive data transmitted by the device. Since signals may be transmitted in this manner, I/Q imbalance may be mitigated as the signal power for a given device is distributed across the I and Q branches.

Further, logical group 1102 can include an electrical component for descrambling at least one device signal transmitted on the I-branch and at least one device signal transmitted on the Q-branch using a complex scrambling code 1110. Where the received signal is scrambled, such an electrical component 1110 may be utilized prior to demultiplexing the signal, as described herein. Thus, where the signal is distributed over the I and Q branches with scrambling codes, electrical component 1110 may invert the codes to generate the device signals for demultiplexing. Also, logical group 1102 can include an electrical component for providing channel configuration information related to transmitting a portion of data on an I-branch and the remaining portion on a Q-branch of a communication channel to at least one wireless device 1112. As described above, the wireless device may utilize this configuration information to transmit signals over the wireless network. Additionally, system 1100 can include a memory 1114, memory 1114 holding instructions for performing functions associated with electrical components 1104, 1106, 1108, 1110, and 1112. While the electrical components 1104, 1106, 1108, 1110 and 1112 are shown as being external to the memory 1114, it is to be understood that the electrical components 1104, 1106, 1108, 1110 and 1112 can exist within the memory 1114.

What has been described above includes examples of one or more embodiments. It is, of course, not possible to describe every conceivable combination of components or methodologies for purposes of describing the aforementioned embodiments, but one of ordinary skill in the art may recognize that many further combinations and permutations of various embodiments are possible. Accordingly, the described embodiments are intended to embrace all such alterations, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, to the extent that the term "includes" is used in either the detailed description or the claims, such term is intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term "comprising" as "comprising" is interpreted when employed as a transitional word in a claim. Furthermore, although elements of the described aspects and/or embodiments may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural is contemplated unless limitation to the singular is explicitly stated. Additionally, all or a portion of any aspect and/or embodiment may be utilized with all or a portion of any other aspect and/or embodiment, unless stated otherwise.

The various illustrative logics, logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented or performed with: a general purpose processor, a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration. Additionally, at least one processor may comprise one or more modules operable to perform one or more of the steps and/or actions described above.

Additionally, the steps and/or actions of a method or algorithm described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. A software module may reside in RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium may be coupled to the processor such the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. In addition, in some aspects, the processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. Additionally, the ASIC may reside in a user terminal. In the alternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside as discrete components in a user terminal. Additionally, in some aspects, the steps and/or actions of a method or algorithm may reside as one or any combination or set of codes and/or instructions on a machine readable medium and/or computer readable medium, which may be incorporated into a computer program product.

In one or more aspects, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium. Disk and disc, as used herein, includes Compact Disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, Digital Versatile Disc (DVD), floppy disk and blu-ray disc where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs usually reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

Claims (37)

1. A method for modulating data for in-phase/quadrature (I/Q) multiplexing, comprising:

receiving configuration information associated with a wireless communication channel;

modulating data into one or more signals according to the configuration information; and

the signal is transmitted on the I and Q branches of the communication channel.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein modulating the data comprises mapping a portion of the data for transmission on the I-branch and mapping a remaining portion of the data for transmission on the Q-branch.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the portion of the data for transmission on the I-branch is substantially half of the data.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the configuration information comprises one or more orthogonal codes or quasi-orthogonal codes used to modulate the data.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the orthogonal or quasi-orthogonal code comprises a real part and a complex part.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the portion of data mapped for transmission on the I-branch corresponds to a first control channel supporting multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication for a device using a plurality of transport blocks, and data mapped for transmission on the Q-branch corresponds to a disparate control channel related to the first control channel.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the signal is repeatedly transmitted over a plurality of fractional time and frequency resources associated with the communication channel.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein transmitting the signal comprises alternately transmitting on the I branch and the Q branch for a given portion of time and frequency resources.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuration information relates to a complex scrambling code used to encode the signal.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising scrambling the signal with the complex scrambling code to facilitate transmitting the signal on the I branch and the Q branch of the communication channel.

11. A wireless communications apparatus, comprising:

at least one processor configured to:

generating a signal for transmission based at least in part on the received data;

distributing the signal over an I-branch and a Q-branch of a communication channel; and

transmitting the signal over the communication channel using the I branch and the Q branch; and

a memory coupled to the at least one processor.

12. A wireless communications apparatus that facilitates mitigating I/Q imbalance when transmitting wireless communication signals, comprising:

means for generating a signal based at least in part on data to be transmitted;

means for distributing the signal across an I-branch and a Q-branch of a communication channel; and

means for transmitting the signals of the I and Q branches of the communication channel.

13. A computer program product, comprising:

a computer-readable medium, comprising:

code for causing at least one computer to determine configuration information related to a communication channel;

code for causing the at least one computer to modulate data into one or more signals divided over an I branch and a Q branch of the communication channel; and

code for causing the at least one computer to transmit the signal on the I branch and the Q branch of the communication channel.

14. An apparatus, comprising:

a channel resource determiner that receives configuration information related to one or more communication channels;

a data modulator that generates a signal for transmission on an I-branch of the channel and a signal for transmission on a Q-branch of the channel based at least in part on the configuration information; and

a transmitter that transmits the signal on the I branch and the Q branch.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the configuration information comprises a plurality of codes, and the data modulator applies the codes to data to generate the signal for transmission on the I branch and the signal for transmission on the Q branch.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the code is one or more orthogonal codes or quasi-orthogonal codes for facilitating simultaneous transmission of the signals.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the signal for transmission on the I-branch relates to a portion of the data and the signal for transmission on the Q-branch relates to a remaining portion of the data.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the signal for transmission on the I-branch comprises substantially all of the data and the signal transmitted on the Q-branch comprises substantially all of the data.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the transmitter transmits the signal for transmission on the I-branch in a portion of time and frequency resources related to the communication channel and transmits the signal for transmission on the Q-branch in a disparate portion of time and frequency resources related to the communication channel.

20. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the configuration information relates to a complex scrambling code used to encode the signal for transmission on the I-branch.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, further comprising a signal scrambler that applies the complex scrambling code to the signal for transmission on the I branch, producing a disparate signal for transmission on the Q branch.

22. A method that facilitates evaluating a communication channel based on a signal multiplexed on an I-branch and a Q-branch, comprising:

receiving multiplexed signals associated with a communication channel from a plurality of wireless devices;

separating the multiplexed signal into a portion received at an I branch and a portion received at a Q branch; and

demodulating a portion of the portion received at the I branch and a portion of the portion received at the Q branch to produce data transmitted by one of the plurality of wireless devices on the communication channel.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising descrambling the portion of the portion received at the I branch and the portion of the portion received at the Q branch using a complex scrambling code.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the demodulation is performed using orthogonal codes or quasi-orthogonal codes having a real and complex property.

25. The method of claim 22, further comprising assigning channel resources to at least one of the plurality of wireless devices, wherein the channel resources comprise channel configuration information related to transmitting a portion of channel data on an I branch and transmitting a remaining portion on a Q branch.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the channel configuration information relates to one or more orthogonal codes or quasi-orthogonal codes having a real parameter and a complex parameter.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the channel configuration information relates to a complex scrambling code used to encode data transmitted on the channel.

28. The method of claim 25, wherein the portion received at the I branch corresponds to a first control channel supporting multiple-input multiple-output communication and the portion received at the Q branch corresponds to a disparate control channel related to the first control channel.

29. A wireless communications apparatus, comprising:

at least one processor configured to:

receiving multiplexed signals from a plurality of wireless devices over a communication channel;

demultiplexing the multiplexed signal to determine a plurality of signals transmitted on an I-branch and a Q-branch of the communication channel each related to at least one of the plurality of wireless devices; and

demodulating at least one signal transmitted on the I branch and one signal transmitted on the Q branch to determine data transmitted by at least one of the plurality of wireless devices; and

a memory coupled to the at least one processor.

30. A wireless communications apparatus for receiving an I/Q multiplexed signal, comprising:

means for receiving multiplexed signals related to a communication channel on an I-branch and a Q-branch;

means for demultiplexing the multiplexed signals of the I and Q branches to generate a plurality of signals from devices transmitted on the branches; and

means for demodulating at least one device signal from the I branch and one device signal from the Q branch to receive data transmitted by the device.

31. A computer program product, comprising:

a computer-readable medium, comprising:

code for causing at least one computer to receive multiplexed signals related to a communication channel from a plurality of wireless devices;

code for causing the at least one computer to separate the multiplexed signal into a portion received at an I branch and a portion received at a Q branch; and

code for causing the at least one computer to demodulate a portion of the portion received at the I branch and a portion of the portion received at the Q branch to generate data transmitted by one of the plurality of wireless devices over the communication channel.

32. An apparatus, comprising:

a receiver that receives multiplexed signals related to a communication channel from a plurality of wireless devices;

a demultiplexer that demultiplexes an I branch and a Q branch of the communication channel to generate a plurality of signals transmitted on both the I branch and the Q branch; and

a demodulator that demodulates at least one of the plurality of signals transmitted on the I branch and at least one of the plurality of signals transmitted on the Q branch to determine data transmitted by one of the plurality of wireless devices.

33. The apparatus of claim 32, further comprising a descrambler that descrambles the at least one of the plurality of signals transmitted on the I branch and the at least one of the plurality of signals transmitted on the Q branch using a complex scrambling code.

34. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the demodulator demodulates using one or more orthogonal codes or quasi-orthogonal codes.

35. The apparatus of claim 32, further comprising a channel resource assigner that provides channel configuration information to at least one of the plurality of wireless devices, wherein the configuration information relates to transmitting a portion of data on the I-branch of the communication channel and transmitting a remaining portion on the Q-branch of the communication channel.

36. The apparatus of claim 35, wherein the channel configuration information relates to one or more orthogonal codes or quasi-orthogonal codes having a real parameter and a complex parameter.

37. The apparatus of claim 35, wherein the channel configuration information relates to a complex scrambling code used to encode data transmitted on the channel.