JP7672799B2 - Communication Equipment - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to a communication device.

One method for expanding the transmission bandwidth is multicarrier transmission. In multicarrier transmission, multiple narrowband signals called "subcarriers" are frequency multiplexed, and all narrowband signals are transmitted from the same transmitting antenna, for example. If the number of subcarriers is M, then M signals are transmitted in parallel over the same wireless link, so the communication speed is M times that of one subcarrier.

A representative multicarrier transmission technique is orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 1). OFDM transmits signals using subcarriers with a frequency interval of 1/T _u between adjacent subcarriers, where T _u is the symbol length of each subcarrier. In other words, OFDM is a multiplexing method that performs parallel transmission by serially converting a transmission signal sequence into a parallel signal, dividing the signal into blocks, modulating the subcarriers for each block, and arranging the modulated subcarriers at the above frequency interval.

Any two subcarriers are orthogonal on the frequency axis, and in an ideal transmission, there would be no interference between the subcarriers after demodulation at the receiving end. On the other hand, in multicarrier transmission other than OFDM, in order to avoid interference at the receiving end, the subcarriers are separated in the frequency domain and transmitted so that the spectra of any two subcarriers do not overlap with each other. For this reason, multicarrier transmission other than OFDM has lower frequency utilization efficiency compared to OFDM.

The main advantage of OFDM compared to single-carrier is its ability to better accommodate frequency and phase distortions in the received signal caused by transmitter imperfections or propagation through the wireless channel. For example, by using a known transmitted signal, the receiver has the ability to easily correct and demodulate the signal due to frequency-dependent distortions.

In recent years, there has been a demand for faster communication speeds, lower latency, and larger capacity in wireless communication systems such as 5G (5th Generation), and to meet these demands, the carrier frequency of communication devices is becoming higher.

Minoru Okada, "Fundamentals of OFDM", Microwave Workshop and Exhibition (MWE2003), Basic Lecture 02, Digital Modulation and Demodulation Technology, November 2003, [Retrieved September 9, 2014], Internet <URL: http://www.apmc-mwe.org/mwe2004/ja_mwe2003_TL/TL02-02.pdf>

However, as the carrier frequency increases, the power consumption of the communication device increases.

One of the objectives of this disclosure is to suppress increases in power consumption of communication devices.

The communication device disclosed herein is a communication device that performs multi-carrier communication and includes an intermediate frequency converter that upconverts parallel transmission signals to an intermediate frequency for each group, a multiplexer that combines the transmission signals upconverted to the intermediate frequency for each group, and a radio frequency converter that upconverts the combined transmission signals to a radio frequency.

This disclosure makes it possible to suppress increases in power consumption of communication devices.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a block configuration of a communication device according to a first embodiment. 4 is a diagram showing an example of frequency characteristics of a signal output from an IF converter. 4 is a diagram showing an example of frequency characteristics of a signal output from an RF converter. FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a communication device according to a second embodiment. 4 is a diagram showing an example of frequency characteristics of a signal output from an IF converter. 4 is a diagram showing an example of frequency characteristics of a signal output from an RF converter. FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a communication device according to a third embodiment. 10A and 10B are diagrams for explaining examples of setting the phase amount of a high-frequency phase shifter; FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a communication device according to a fourth embodiment. FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a communication device according to a fifth embodiment. FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating an example of a block configuration of a communication device according to a sixth embodiment. FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating an example of a block configuration of a communication device according to a seventh embodiment.

The following describes an embodiment of the present disclosure with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
A multicarrier signal is a wideband signal obtained by modulating a plurality of subcarriers with a blocked transmission signal and multiplexing the signal in the frequency domain. In general, in a communication path with a constant bandwidth ratio, a higher frequency can ensure a wider bandwidth. For example, in the case of a device with a bandwidth ratio of 10%, a device can operate in a bandwidth of 100 MHz at 1 GHz, while a device can operate in a bandwidth of 10 GHz, which is 100 times the bandwidth, at 100 GHz. However, since the wavelength becomes shorter as the frequency increases, the free space propagation loss Lf shown in the following formula (1) increases as the frequency increases for the same distance. In formula (1), "r" indicates the propagation distance, and "λ" indicates the wavelength.

In addition, in order to ensure the reception SNR (signal-to-noise ratio) resulting from each modulation method at the receiver, for example, the antenna gain is increased or the transmission power is increased in proportion to the bandwidth. Here, if there are physical installation restrictions, there is a limit to how much the antenna gain can be increased. Therefore, any shortfall in the increase in antenna gain must be compensated for by increasing the transmission power.

In addition, in general, in a multicarrier signal, the frequency of each subcarrier is different, and the phase of the signal spectrum is independent, so the envelope of the vector of the composite signal fluctuates greatly. One of the parameters that indicates the degree of envelope fluctuation is the PAPR (Peak to Average Power Ratio), which indicates the ratio of the maximum power value to the average power value of the signal. For example, in a modulated wave of 64QAM (quadrature amplitude modulation), the PAPR is 5.9 for a single carrier, while the PAPR is 9.5 for OFDM with 32 subcarriers. Therefore, in order to ensure a larger backoff, the amplifier is required to have a high output in amplifying the multicarrier signal. Furthermore, since the heat dissipation mechanism also becomes larger with the increase in output, it becomes difficult to miniaturize the transmitter by integrating the antenna and the amplifier. In addition, in the high frequency band, it is difficult to increase the output due to the characteristics of the transistors used in the amplifier. Therefore, a configuration is required in which a lower output amplifier is used to amplify the wideband signal to an output that can ensure the required SNR in the receiver.

In addition, the lower the frequency band, the larger the relative bandwidth becomes, making wideband signal processing more difficult. For example, an analog baseband signal is obtained by D/A (digital to analog) converting a digital baseband signal, but the wider the bandwidth of the converted signal, the more power the D/A converter consumes. Therefore, power consumption can be reduced by dividing a wideband subcarrier group into individual subcarriers, generating a baseband signal for each subcarrier, and performing narrowband transmission.

On the other hand, for example, by dividing a wideband signal into multiple subcarriers and amplifying and then combining each subcarrier, the signal band input to each amplifier can be narrowed. Also, losses in other components can be reduced. However, since the combiner has a combining loss, it is necessary to increase the output power of the amplifier. Furthermore, when dividing the band of a modulation method in which each subcarrier is not independent, such as OFDM, it is necessary to maintain the relationship of the subcarriers before division after combination.

From the above perspective, in order to ensure the required SNR at the receiver, the amplifier is required to increase its maximum output power in proportion to the signal bandwidth. However, when amplifying a wideband signal with a single amplifier, the maximum output power required of the amplifier may not be achieved. Even if the amplifier can achieve the maximum output power, power consumption increases in generating a wideband multicarrier signal as the D/A converter speed increases.

The communication device of the present invention achieves multi-carrier transmission by splitting a wideband signal into narrow bands, transmitting the narrow bands, and then combining them again in space to create a wideband signal. This allows the communication device to reduce power consumption. Furthermore, the communication device can increase the maximum output power required of the amplifier with a simple configuration. Furthermore, the communication device can be made smaller.

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a block configuration of a communication device 1 according to a first embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, the communication device 1 has a serial-parallel converter 11, a group generator 12, a plurality of BB (Base Band) generating units 13, a plurality of D/A converters 14, a plurality of IF (Intermediate Frequency) converters 15, a plurality of multiplexers 16, a plurality of RF (Radio Frequency) converters 17, a plurality of amplifiers 18, and a plurality of antennas 19.

In the following, when distinguishing between the multiple BB generation units 13, they may be described as the xth group BB generation unit 13, the yth branch BB generation unit 13, or the zth BB generation unit 13. When distinguishing between the multiple D/A converters 14, the multiple IF converters 15, the multiple multiplexers 16, the multiple RF converters 17, the multiple amplifiers 18, and the multiple antennas 19, they may be described in the same manner as the BB generation unit 13 described above.

The serial-to-parallel converter 11 converts a serial data sequence into a parallel data sequence. The serial-to-parallel converter 11 may convert the serial data into M pieces of parallel data and output M' pieces of parallel data that satisfy the following formula (1). This is so that the number of parallel data pieces grouped into N groups by the group generator 12 described below is the same in each group. The data may be referred to as transmission data, a signal, or a transmission signal.

For example, let M be a predetermined integer equal to or greater than 2. The data m (an integer) converted into parallel data satisfies 1≦m≦M.

n is an integer satisfying 1≦n≦N, and N is the number of groups into which the group generator 12, which will be described later, groups the parallel data. For example, in FIG. 1, the group generator 12 outputs parallel data grouped into a first group, ..., an nth group, ..., an Nth group. In this case, M' may satisfy the following formula (2).

M’=M+(N-Mod(M/N)) (2)

The parallel data m' (integer) output from the serial-to-parallel converter 11 satisfies 1 ≤ m' ≤ M'. Note that if Mod(M/N) ≠ 0, the data sequence from the (M+1)th output to the M'th output of the serial-to-parallel converter 11 is set to 0.

The group generator 12 groups the parallel data output from the serial-to-parallel converter 11 into N groups and outputs them. For example, the group generator 12 groups the parallel data output from the serial-to-parallel converter 11 into a first group, ..., nth group, ..., Nth group.

Each group has P branches, numbered from the first branch to the Pth branch. P is an integer and is expressed by the following formula (3).

P=M’/N (3)

Note that p in the pth branch shown in Figure 1 is an integer that satisfies 1≦p≦P.

The group generator 12 generates groups such as the nth output, the (n+N)th output, the (n+2N)th output, (omitted below) of the serial-to-parallel converter 11 as the nth group. Therefore, the pth branch of the nth group corresponds to the (n+N(p-1))th output of the serial-to-parallel converter 11, and the (n+N(p-1))th output of the serial-to-parallel converter 11 is input to the (n+N(p-1))th BB generator 13.

The BB generating unit 13 generates a BB signal of the data output from the group generator 12. For example, the BB generating unit 13 generates a BB signal of a center frequency f _B. The output of the (n+N(p-1)) BB generating unit 13 is input to the (n+N(p-1)) D/A converter 14.

The D/A converter 14 converts the analog BB signal into a digital signal. The output of the (n+N(p-1)) D/A converter 14 is input to the (n+N(p-1)) IF converter 15.

The IF converter 15 converts the signal output from the D/A converter 14 to an intermediate frequency. The (n+N(p-1))th IF converter 15 performs frequency conversion using the (n+N(p-1))th low-frequency local signal, and the center frequency fc of the output signal of the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter 15 is given by the following equation (4).

fc=f _B +f _L + ((n-1)+N(p-1))Δf (4)

Here, f _L is the lowest frequency of the low-frequency local signal. Δf is the frequency interval between adjacent branches and is a fixed value. "f _L + ((n-1) + N(p-1)) Δf" included in equation (4) is the frequency of the low-frequency local signal (LO _Lnp ) of the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter 15. The output signal of the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter 15 is combined via the nth multiplexer 16, which has a passband of f _B + f _L + ((n-1) + N(p-1)).

Figure 2 shows an example of the frequency characteristics of the signal output from the IF converter 15.

Figure 2 (1) shows the frequency characteristics of the signal output from the IF converter 15 in the first group in Figure 1. The center frequency of the output signal from the IF converter 15 in each of the first branch of the first group, the second branch of the first group, ..., the pth branch of the first group, ..., the Pth branch of the first group is as shown in Figure 2 (1).

Figure 2 (2) shows the frequency characteristics of the signal output from IF converter 15 in the nth group in Figure 1. The center frequency of the output signal of IF converter 15 in each of the first branch of the nth group, the second branch of the nth group, ..., the pth branch of the nth group, ..., the Pth branch of the nth group is as shown in Figure 2 (2).

Returning to the explanation of FIG. 1, the multiplexer 16 is composed of a parallel connection (filter bank) of multiple bandpass filters that block all but the output of the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter 15. The output of the nth multiplexer 16 is input to the nth RF converter 17.

The nth RF converter 17 converts the signal output from the nth multiplexer 16 to a radio frequency by the nth high frequency local signal LO _Hn . Here, the frequency of the nth high frequency local signal (LO _Hn ) is a fixed value. If the frequency of the nth high frequency local signal (LO _Hn ) is _fH , the frequency f _r of the signal output from the nth RF converter 17 is expressed by the following equation (5).

f _r =f _B +f _L +f _H + ((n-1)+N(p-1))Δf (5)

Figure 3 shows an example of the frequency characteristics of the signal output from the RF converter 17. The frequency characteristics of the output signal from the RF converter 17 in the first group in Figure 1 are as shown in Figure 3 (1). The frequency characteristics of the output signal from the RF converter 17 in the nth group in Figure 1 are as shown in Figure 3 (2).

Returning to the explanation of FIG. 1, the nth amplifier 18 amplifies the signal output from the nth RF converter 17. The signal amplified in the nth amplifier 18 is fed to the nth antenna 19 and radiated into space.

Note that it is not necessary to actually construct a branch for the branch corresponding to the data sequence from the (M+1)th output to the M'th output of the serial-to-parallel converter 11.

When OFDM is applied to the communication device 1, in each branch up to the input of the nth multiplexer 16, the bandwidth of the modulated wave becomes a narrowband signal of Δf, which is 1/M of the required bandwidth when the data sequence is directly modulated. Therefore, the bandwidth required for the element circuits or parts (components) up to the multiplexer is 1/M, making it easier to improve the performance of each component. Similarly, in multicarriers other than OFDM, the bandwidth required for the element circuits or parts up to the multiplexer is smaller, making it easier to improve the performance of each component.

For example, in the amplifier 18, the flatness of the gain is improved, making it easier to reduce power consumption. It is also known that the wider the bandwidth of the D/A converter 14, the greater the power consumption. Narrowing the bandwidth and reducing power consumption also contributes to miniaturization from the standpoint of heat dissipation. Furthermore, since the signals of each band are combined in the nth multiplexer 16, the insertion loss is only the insertion loss of the filter that constitutes the multiplexer 16, which is smaller than when a combiner is used. Furthermore, since each signal input to the nth multiplexer 16 is detuned in frequency by NΔf, bands other than the own band can be sufficiently attenuated by selecting N and Δf.

The communication device 1 uses at least M low-frequency local signals with a frequency difference of Δf. For example, a DDS (Direct Digital Synthesizer) may be used to generate the low-frequency local signals. The DDS is a circuit that can generate a sine wave of a desired frequency from a high-speed clock generation circuit, and can generate the frequency with high resolution. When a frequency higher than the oscillation frequency of the DDS is applied to the low-frequency local signal, the DDS can be used to generate multiple sine waves with a frequency difference of Δf, and by up-converting the frequency, a sine wave of any frequency with a frequency difference of Δf can be generated.

When OFDM is applied to the communication device 1, the high frequency local signal may be generated from a common signal source and distributed among all the branches. A group of signals distributed within a bandwidth of "N(P-1)Δf+Δf" is input to the nth RF converter 17, but the RF converter 17 can generally be used in a wide band. The nth amplifier 18 and the nth antenna 19 can also support a wide band. On the other hand, the amplifier 18 amplifies the energy of the entire band by dividing it into N parts, so the output power can be 1/N times that of the case where the same amplifier amplifies the entire band at once. The number of amplifiers 18 is N times, but the amount of heat dissipated by lowering the output of each amplifier 18 allows for a reduction in size, including the heat sink.

The transmission signals radiated from each antenna 19 become plane waves in the far field. Each transmission signal is combined in the far field, and M' subcarriers are combined to generate a wideband signal with a bandwidth of "((N-1)+N(P-1))Δf+B". B indicates the bandwidth of the subcarriers.

When a receiving antenna is in the far field, the signal received by the receiving antenna is the above-mentioned wideband signal. Among these, the data sequence from the (M+1)th output to the M'th output of the serial-to-parallel converter 11 may be set to 0, in which case the bandwidth is reduced.

When OFDM transmission, which has excellent frequency utilization efficiency, is applied to the communication device 1, efficient transmission is possible without inserting guard bands. However, the shift in phase characteristics between subcarriers may affect demodulation performance on the receiving side. For example, when the signals transmitted from each branch are OFDM subcarriers, phase errors between subcarriers may degrade demodulation performance. In such cases, however, by detecting the phase error on the receiving side and feeding it back to the transmitting side, the transmitting side can control the phase between the subcarriers of the transmitted signal to suppress the phase error on the receiving side.

As described above, the communication device 1 has an IF converter 15 that upconverts the parallel transmission signals to an intermediate frequency for each group, a multiplexer 16 that combines the transmission signals upconverted to the intermediate frequency for each group, and an RF converter 17 that upconverts the combined transmission signals to a radio frequency.

As a result, the transmission signal processed by the communication device 1 is narrowbanded in each of the first group, ..., nth group, ..., Nth group. Therefore, the communication device 1 can suppress an increase in power consumption.

For example, the wider the bandwidth of the D/A converter 14 and the amplifier 18, the greater the power consumption. However, the transmission signals processed by the communication device 1 are grouped and narrowed in bandwidth, so the increase in power consumption is suppressed. In addition, the communication device 1 can be made compact by reducing the heat dissipation mechanism.

Second Embodiment
In the first embodiment, the frequency of the IF converter 15 was different for each branch in each group, but in the second embodiment, a common low-frequency local signal is used for each group, and the frequency of the low-frequency local signal is made different for each branch (within a group). Also, in the first embodiment, the frequency of the high-frequency local signal LO _Hn of the RF converter 17 was fixed at frequency _fH for each group, but in the second embodiment, the frequency of the RF converter 17 is made different for each group. The following describes the differences from the first embodiment.

Figure 4 is a diagram showing an example of a block configuration of a communication device 2 according to the second embodiment. In Figure 4, the same components as those in Figure 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

As shown in FIG. 4, the same combination of frequencies for the low-frequency local signal input to the IF converter 15 is used in each group.

For example, the same frequency is used for the low-frequency local signal LO _L11 input to the IF converter 15 of the first branch in the first group and the low-frequency local signal LO _L11 input to the IF converter 15 of the first branch in the nth group. The same frequency is used for the low-frequency local signal LO _L1p input to the IF converter 15 of the pth branch in the first group and the low-frequency local signal LO L1p input to the IF converter 15 of the pth branch in the nth group. The same frequency is used for the low-frequency local signal LO _L1P input to the IF converter 15 of the Pth branch in the first group and the low-frequency local signal LO _L1P input to the IF converter 15 of the Pth branch _in the nth group.

Figure 5 shows an example of the frequency characteristics of the signal output from the IF converter 15.

Figure 5 (1) shows the frequency characteristics of the signal output from the IF converter 15 in the first group in Figure 4. The center frequency of the output signal from the IF converter 15 in each of the first branch of the first group, the second branch of the first group, ..., the pth branch of the first group, ..., the Pth branch of the first group is as shown in Figure 5 (1).

Figure 5 (2) shows the frequency characteristics of the signal output from IF converter 15 in the nth group in Figure 4. The center frequency of the output signal of IF converter 15 in each of the first branch of the nth group, the second branch of the nth group, ..., the pth branch of the nth group, ..., the Pth branch of the nth group is as shown in Figure 5 (2).

Returning to the explanation of Fig. 4, the frequency of the low-frequency local signal of the p-th branch of the n-th group is " _fL +N(p-1)Δf", which is P frequencies where p is "1 to P". Therefore, the communication device 2 in Fig. 4 only needs to generate P low-frequency local signals with a frequency difference of NΔf.

On the other hand, the frequency of the high frequency local signal input to the RF converter 17 is "f _H +(n-1)Δf", which is N frequencies where n is "1 to N". Therefore, it is sufficient to generate N local signals with a frequency difference of Δf.

Figure 6 shows an example of the frequency characteristics of the signal output from the RF converter 17. The frequency characteristics of the output signal from the RF converter 17 in the first group in Figure 4 are as shown in Figure 6 (1). The frequency characteristics of the output signal from the RF converter 17 in the nth group in Figure 4 are as shown in Figure 6 (2).

Therefore, the communication device 2 in FIG. 4 has (P+N)/(P×N) times as many low-frequency local signals and high-frequency local signals as the communication device 1 in FIG. 1. For this reason, the communication device 2 in FIG. 4 can use the same components in each of the first to Nth groups, making procurement or maintenance of each component easier. Furthermore, the communication device 2 in FIG. 4 can reduce costs.

As described above, the IF converter 17 upconverts the transmission signal to an intermediate frequency using the low-frequency local signals LO _L11 , ..., LO _L1p , ..., LO _L1P common to each group. The frequencies of the low-frequency local signals LO _L11 , ..., LO _L1p , ..., LO _L1P are different within each group. The RF converter 17 upconverts the transmission signal combined for each group to a radio frequency using high-frequency local signals having different frequencies for each group. This allows the communication device 2 to reduce the number of RF converters 17 compared to the communication device 1.

Third Embodiment
In the third embodiment, a phase shifter is inserted between the RF converter 17 and the amplifier 18 .

Figure 7 is a diagram showing an example of a block configuration of a communication device 3 according to the third embodiment. In Figure 7, the same components as in Figure 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

As shown in FIG. 7, the communication device 3 has a high-frequency phase shifter 31 between the RF converter 17 and the amplifier 18.

The high frequency phase shifter 31 controls the phase of the nth group of signals. The phase amount of each transmission signal output from the antenna 19 is controlled (set) in the nth high frequency phase shifter 31, and the signals are combined in the far field in the radiation direction θ.

Figure 8 is a diagram explaining an example of setting the phase amount of the high-frequency phase shifter 31. Figure 8 shows the RF converter 17, high-frequency phase shifter 31, amplifier 18, and antenna 19 of the communication device 3 shown in Figure 7.

Each transmission signal output from antenna 19 is synthesized in the far field with M subcarriers, resulting in a wideband signal with a bandwidth of ((N-1)+N(P-1))Δf+B. If a receiving antenna is located in the far field with the radiation direction θ, the signal received by the receiving antenna will be the above-mentioned wideband signal.

The phase amount of the nth high-frequency phase shifter 31 is set so that the phase difference φ _n between the first antenna and the nth antenna satisfies the following equation (6): d denotes the distance (m) between adjacent antennas 19, and λ denotes the wavelength of the transmission signal.

As described above, the communication device 3 has a high-frequency phase shifter 31 that controls the phase of the transmission signal upconverted to a radio frequency. As a result, the transmission signal transmitted from the communication device 3 is synthesized in the far field of the radiation direction θ, and the receiving communication device located in the far field of the radiation direction θ can properly receive the transmission signal from the communication device 3.

(Fourth embodiment)
In the fourth embodiment, a phase shifter is inserted at the input of the high frequency local signal of the RF converter 17 .

Figure 9 is a diagram showing an example of a block configuration of a communication device 4 according to the fourth embodiment. In Figure 9, the same components as in Figure 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

As shown in FIG. 9, the communication device 4 has a high-frequency phase shifter 41 at the input of the high-frequency local signal of the RF converter 17.

A high frequency local signal is input to the high frequency phase shifter 41. The high frequency phase shifter 41 controls the phase of the high frequency local signal and outputs it to the RF converter 17. The high frequency phase shifter 41 controls the phase of the high frequency local signal so that, for example, the phase difference φ _n between the first antenna and the nth antenna satisfies the above formula (6).

As described above, the communication device 4 has a high-frequency phase shifter 41 that controls the phase of the high-frequency local signal input to the RF converter 17. As a result, the transmission signal sent from the communication device 4 is synthesized in the far field of the radiation direction θ, and the receiving communication device located in the far field of the radiation direction θ can properly receive the transmission signal from the communication device 4.

Fifth embodiment
In the fifth embodiment, a phase shifter is inserted at the input of the low-frequency local signal of the IF converter 15 .

Figure 10 is a diagram showing an example of a block configuration of a communication device 5 according to the fifth embodiment. In Figure 10, the same components as those in Figure 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

As shown in FIG. 10, the communication device 5 has a low-frequency phase shifter 51 at the input of the low-frequency local signal of the IF converter 15. Note that FIG. 10 does not show the first group of components shown in FIG. 1.

A low-frequency local signal is input to the low-frequency phase shifter 51. The low-frequency phase shifter 51 controls the phase of the low-frequency local signal and outputs it to the IF converter 15. The low-frequency phase shifter 51 controls the phase of the low-frequency local signal so that, for example, the phase difference φ _n between the first antenna and the n-th antenna satisfies the above formula (6).

As described above, the communication device 5 has a low-frequency phase shifter 51 that controls the phase of the low-frequency local signal input to the IF converter 15. As a result, the transmission signal sent from the communication device 5 is synthesized in the far field of the radiation direction θ, and the receiving communication device located in the far field of the radiation direction θ can properly receive the transmission signal from the communication device 5.

Sixth embodiment
In the sixth embodiment, an amplitude phase shifter is inserted between the RF converter 17 and the amplifier 18 .

Figure 11 is a diagram showing an example of a block configuration of a communication device 6 according to a sixth embodiment. In Figure 11, the same components as those in Figure 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

As shown in FIG. 11, the communication device 6 has a high-frequency amplitude phase shifter 61 between the RF converter 17 and the amplifier 18.

The nth high-frequency amplitude phase shifter 61 controls the amplitude and phase of the nth group of signals. The amplitude and phase of each transmission signal output from the antenna 19 are controlled in the nth high-frequency phase shifter 31.

The following describes the case where the radiation direction is "θ = 0". However, in cases other than "θ = 0", the third to fifth embodiments can be applied and the phase of each antenna 19 can be adjusted, so the description will be omitted.

For example, when the multicarrier signal is OFDM, each subcarrier is not independent, so it is required to maintain the relationship of the subcarriers before division after synthesis. The nth high-frequency amplitude phase shifter 61 detects and corrects the amount of fluctuation in the amplitude and phase of the nth branch. The amount of fluctuation may be detected by extracting a portion of the signal power of the nth branch and comparing it with a reference signal, or information on the amount of correction may be fed back from the receiving side.

When the receiving antenna is located at a distance d from antenna 19 that satisfies the following equation (7), the receiving antenna is not in the far field, and a phase difference occurs between each transmission signal according to the path difference. Therefore, the relationship between the subcarriers before division cannot be maintained in spatial synthesis. Even in this case, the nth high-frequency amplitude phase shifter 61 detects and corrects the amount of fluctuation in the amplitude and phase of the nth branch. The amount of fluctuation may be detected by extracting a portion of the signal power of the nth branch and comparing it with a reference signal, or information on the amount of correction may be fed back from the receiving side. Note that D in equation (7) indicates the aperture length of the antenna.

As described above, the communication device 6 has a high-frequency amplitude phase shifter 61 that controls the amplitude and phase of the transmission signal upconverted to a radio frequency. As a result, the transmission signal transmitted from the communication device 6 is synthesized in the far field of the radiation direction θ, and the receiving communication device located in the far field of the radiation direction θ can properly receive the transmission signal from the communication device 6.

Seventh embodiment
In the seventh embodiment, an example of the configuration of a receiver will be described.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a block configuration of a communication device 7 according to a seventh embodiment. The communication device 7 shown in FIG. 12 is, for example, a receiver. The communication device 7 has an antenna 71, a switch 72, an amplifier 73, a power sensor (P.S.: Power Sensor) 74, an adder 75, an RF converter 76, a demultiplexer 77, an IF amplifier 78, an IF converter 79, an A/D (analog to digital) converter 80, an equalizer 81, and a BB processing unit 82. Although FIG. 12 shows only components in one group, the communication device 7 may have components in multiple groups. For example, the communication device 7 may have N components (first group, ..., nth group, ..., Nth group).

The antenna 71 receives a multicarrier signal. For example, the antenna 71 receives a multicarrier signal transmitted from the communication devices 1 to 6 described in the first to sixth embodiments. The multicarrier signal received by the antenna 71 may be referred to as a signal, a received signal, data, or received data.

The switch 72 switches between transmitting and receiving signals. When the switch 72 is switched to the receiving side, the antenna 71 and the amplifier 73 are connected. When the switch 72 is switched to the transmitting side, for example, the antenna 71 and the amplifier 18 of the communication devices 1 to 6 may be connected. That is, the communication device 7 shown in FIG. 12 may function as both a transmitter and a receiver.

The amplifier 73 amplifies the received signal. For example, a low-noise amplifier (LNA) may be used as the amplifier 73.

The power sensor 74 detects the power of the received signal output from the amplifier 73. The amplifier 73 may control the amplification factor based on the power detected by the power sensor 74, for example.

The received signal is input to the RF converter 76 via the adder 75. By providing multiple antennas 71 and combining the received signals at each antenna in phase with the adder 75, the power of the received signal can be increased. Note that in order to combine the received signals at each antenna in phase, a phase shifter may be provided before the input to the adder 75 to adjust the phase of each received signal.

The RF converter 76 down-converts the radio frequency of the input received signal to an IF frequency. For example, a high-frequency local signal of the frequency input to the RF converter 17 of the communication devices 1 to 6 described in the first to sixth embodiments may be input to the RF converter 76.

The demultiplexer 77 is composed of a parallel connection (filter bank) of multiple bandpass filters that block signals other than the IF frequency of the corresponding IF converter 79. The output of the demultiplexer 77 is input to the IF converter 79 via the IF amplifier 78.

The IF converter 79 down-converts the received signal at the IF frequency output from the amplifier 78 to the BB frequency. For example, the IF converter 79 may receive a low-frequency local signal at the frequency input to the IF converter 15 of the communication devices 1 to 6 described in the first to sixth embodiments.

The A/D converter 80 converts the analog received signal output from the IF converter 79 into a digital received signal.

The equalizer 81 corrects the frequency characteristics of the received signal output from the A/D converter 80.

The BB processing unit 82 performs BB processing on the received signal output from the equalizer 81. The BB processing unit 82 also converts parallel data into serial data and outputs it to the downstream circuit.

As described above, the communication device 7 has an RF converter 76 that downconverts the received radio frequency signal to an intermediate frequency, a demultiplexer 77 that splits the received signal downconverted to the intermediate frequency into groups, and an IF converter 79 that downconverts the split received signal to the BB frequency.

As a result, the received signal processed by the communication device 7 is narrowbanded into each of the first group, ..., nth group, ..., Nth group. Therefore, the communication device 7 can suppress an increase in power consumption.

For example, the amplifier 73, IF amplifier 78, and A/D converter 80 consume more power as the bandwidth becomes wider. However, the received signals processed by the communication device 7 are grouped and narrowed in bandwidth, so the increase in power consumption is suppressed. In addition, the communication device 7 can be made smaller in size by reducing the heat dissipation mechanism.

The present disclosure has been described above. The multiplexer described above is composed of multiple filters, but the bandwidth of the filters does not have to be constant. In general, when filters are constructed with a structure that results in the same relative bandwidth, the passband width differs depending on the center frequency.

For example, if the bandwidth ratio is 5%, then the passband is 250 MHz when the center frequency is 5 GHz, but 500 MHz when the center frequency is 10 GHz. Therefore, the higher the frequency band, the more likely it is that the multiplexer can be made more compact by using a filter with a wider frequency band. Here, the filters that make up the multiplexer only need to be able to sufficiently attenuate adjacent frequency bands, so there are no particular operational problems even if the filter bandwidth is freely selected. Note that if the filters have different passband widths, a band signal corresponding to the filter passband width is formed when forming the group.

Furthermore, each embodiment may be combined. For example, the communication device 2 according to the second embodiment may be provided with the phase shifter and amplitude phase shifter described in the third to sixth embodiments.

The low frequency local signal may also be referred to as an IF local signal. The high frequency local signal may also be referred to as an RF local signal. The frequency of the high frequency local signal is higher than the frequency of the low frequency local signal. The radio frequency may also be referred to as a radio carrier frequency.

(Hardware configuration)
The block diagrams used in the description of the above embodiments show functional blocks. These functional blocks (components) are realized by any combination of at least one of hardware and software. The method of realizing each functional block is not particularly limited. That is, each functional block may be realized using one device that is physically or logically coupled, or may be realized using two or more devices that are physically or logically separated and directly or indirectly connected (for example, using wires, wirelessly, etc.). The functional blocks may be realized by combining the one device or the multiple devices with software.

Functions include, but are not limited to, judgement, determination, judgment, calculation, computation, processing, derivation, investigation, search, confirmation, reception, transmission, output, access, resolution, selection, selection, establishment, comparison, assumption, expectation, regard, broadcasting, notifying, communicating, forwarding, configuring, reconfiguring, allocating, mapping, and assignment. For example, a functional block (component) that performs the transmission function is called a transmitting unit or transmitter. As mentioned above, there are no particular limitations on the method of realization for either of these.

For example, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the serial-parallel converter 11, group generator 12, BB generator 13, equalizer 81, and BB processor 82 may have some or all of their functions realized by a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a DSP (Digital Processing Unit). In addition, the serial-parallel converter 11, group generator 12, BB generator 13, equalizer 81, and BB processor 82 may be configured to include hardware such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), a PLD (Programmable Logic Device), or an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), and some or all of their functions may be realized by the hardware.

(Information notification, signaling)
The notification of information is not limited to the aspects/embodiments described in the present disclosure, and may be performed using other methods. For example, the notification of information may be performed by physical layer signaling (e.g., Downlink Control Information (DCI), Uplink Control Information (UCI)), higher layer signaling (e.g., Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, Medium Access Control (MAC) signaling, broadcast information (Master Information Block (MIB), System Information Block (SIB)), other signals, or a combination thereof. In addition, the RRC signaling may be called an RRC message, and may be, for example, an RRC Connection Setup message, an RRC Connection Reconfiguration message, or the like.

(Applicable system)
Each aspect/embodiment described in the present disclosure may be applied to at least one of LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE-A (LTE-Advanced), SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, 4G (4th generation mobile communication system), 5G (5th generation mobile communication system), FRA (Future Radio Access), NR (New Radio), W-CDMA (registered trademark), GSM (registered trademark), CDMA2000, UMB (Ultra Mobile Broadband), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.20, UWB (Ultra-WideBand), Bluetooth (registered trademark), and other suitable systems, and next-generation systems extended based on these. In addition, a combination of multiple systems (e.g., a combination of at least one of LTE and LTE-A and 5G, etc.) may be applied.

(Processing procedures, etc.)
The order of the steps, sequences, flow charts, etc. of each aspect/embodiment described in this disclosure may be changed unless inconsistent. For example, the methods described in this disclosure present elements of various steps using an example order, and are not limited to the particular order presented.

(Base Station Operation)
In the present disclosure, a specific operation performed by a base station may be performed by its upper node in some cases. In a network consisting of one or more network nodes having a base station, it is clear that various operations performed for communication with a terminal may be performed by at least one of the base station and other network nodes other than the base station (e.g., MME or S-GW, etc., but are not limited to these). Although the above example illustrates a case where there is one other network node other than the base station, it may be a combination of multiple other network nodes (e.g., MME and S-GW).

(Input/Output direction)
Information, etc. (see the "Information, Signals" section) may be output from a higher layer (or a lower layer) to a lower layer (or a higher layer). It may be input/output via multiple network nodes.

(Handling of input and output information, etc.)
The input and output information may be stored in a specific location (e.g., memory) or may be managed using a management table. The input and output information may be overwritten, updated, or added. The output information may be deleted. The input information may be transmitted to another device.

(Method of Determination)
The determination may be based on a value represented by one bit (0 or 1), a Boolean value (true or false), or a numerical comparison (e.g., comparison with a predetermined value).

(software)
Software shall be construed broadly to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, threads of execution, procedures, functions, etc., whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise.

Software, instructions, information, etc. may also be transmitted and received via a transmission medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using wired technologies (such as coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)), and/or wireless technologies (such as infrared, microwave), then these wired and/or wireless technologies are included within the definition of a transmission medium.

(Information, Signals)
The information, signals, etc. described in this disclosure may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies. For example, the data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, chips, etc. that may be referred to throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or photons, or any combination thereof.

Note that the terms described in this disclosure and the terms necessary for understanding this disclosure may be replaced with terms having the same or similar meanings. For example, at least one of the channel and the symbol may be a signal (signaling). Also, the signal may be a message. Also, the component carrier (CC) may be called a carrier frequency, a cell, a frequency carrier, etc.

("System", "Network")
As used in this disclosure, the terms "system" and "network" are used interchangeably.

(parameter, channel name)
In addition, the information, parameters, etc. described in the present disclosure may be represented using absolute values, may be represented using relative values from a predetermined value, or may be represented using other corresponding information. For example, a radio resource may be indicated by an index.

The names used for the above-mentioned parameters are not limiting in any way. Moreover, the formulas etc. using these parameters may differ from those explicitly disclosed in this disclosure. The various channels (e.g., PUCCH, PDCCH, etc.) and information elements may be identified by any suitable names, and therefore the various names assigned to these various channels and information elements are not limiting in any way.

(Base station (wireless base station))
In the present disclosure, terms such as "base station (BS)", "radio base station", "fixed station", "NodeB", "eNodeB (eNB)", "gNodeB (gNB)", "access point", "transmission point", "reception point", "transmission/reception point", "cell", "sector", "cell group", "carrier", "component carrier", etc. may be used interchangeably. A base station may also be referred to by terms such as a macro cell, a small cell, a femto cell, a pico cell, etc.

A base station can accommodate one or more (e.g., three) cells. When a base station accommodates multiple cells, the entire coverage area of the base station can be divided into multiple smaller areas, and each smaller area can also be provided with communication services by a base station subsystem (e.g., a small indoor base station (RRH: Remote Radio Head)). The term "cell" or "sector" refers to a part or the entire coverage area of at least one of the base station and base station subsystems that provide communication services in this coverage.

(Terminal)
In this disclosure, the terms "Mobile Station (MS)", "user terminal", "User Equipment (UE)", "terminal", etc. may be used interchangeably.

A mobile station may also be referred to by those skilled in the art as a subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile subscriber station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handset, user agent, mobile client, client, or some other suitable terminology.

(Base station/Mobile station)
At least one of the base station and the mobile station may be called a transmitting device, a receiving device, a communication device, etc. At least one of the base station and the mobile station may be a device mounted on a moving body, the moving body itself, etc. The moving body may be a vehicle (e.g., a car, an airplane, etc.), an unmanned moving body (e.g., a drone, an autonomous vehicle, etc.), or a robot (manned or unmanned). At least one of the base station and the mobile station may include a device that does not necessarily move during communication operation. For example, at least one of the base station and the mobile station may be an IoT (Internet of Things) device such as a sensor.

In addition, the base station in the present disclosure may be read as a user terminal. For example, each aspect/embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to a configuration in which communication between a base station and a user terminal is replaced with communication between multiple user terminals (which may be called, for example, D2D (Device-to-Device) or V2X (Vehicle-to-Everything)). In this case, the terminal may be configured to have the functions of the above-mentioned base station. Furthermore, terms such as "uplink" and "downlink" may be read as terms corresponding to terminal-to-terminal communication (for example, "side"). For example, uplink channel, downlink channel, etc. may be read as side channel.

Similarly, the terminal in this disclosure may be interpreted as a base station. In this case, the base station may be configured to have the functions of the terminal described above.

(Meaning and interpretation of terms)
As used in this disclosure, the terms "determining" and "determining" may encompass a wide variety of actions. "Determining" and "determining" may include, for example, judging, calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, looking up, search, inquiry (e.g., searching in a table, database, or other data structure), ascertaining, and the like. "Determining" and "determining" may also include receiving (e.g., receiving information), transmitting (e.g., sending information), input, output, accessing (e.g., accessing data in a memory), and the like. In addition, "judgment" and "decision" can include considering resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing, comparing, etc., to be a "judgment" or "decision." In other words, "judgment" and "decision" can include considering some action to be a "judgment" or "decision." Furthermore, "judgment (decision)" can be interpreted as "assuming,""expecting,""considering," etc.

The terms "connected," "coupled," or any variation thereof, refer to any direct or indirect connection or coupling between two or more elements, and may include the presence of one or more intermediate elements between two elements that are "connected" or "coupled" to each other. The coupling or connection between elements may be physical, logical, or a combination thereof. For example, "connected" may be read as "access." As used in this disclosure, two elements may be considered to be "connected" or "coupled" to each other using at least one of one or more wires, cables, and printed electrical connections, as well as electromagnetic energy having wavelengths in the radio frequency range, microwave range, and optical (both visible and invisible) range, as some non-limiting and non-exhaustive examples.

The reference signal may also be abbreviated as RS (Reference Signal) or may be called a pilot depending on the applicable standard.

As used in this disclosure, the phrase "based on" does not mean "based only on," unless expressly stated otherwise. In other words, the phrase "based on" means both "based only on" and "based at least on."

Any reference to an element using a designation such as "first," "second," etc. does not generally limit the quantity or order of those elements. These designations may be used in this disclosure as a convenient method of distinguishing between two or more elements. Thus, a reference to a first and a second element does not imply that only two elements may be employed or that the first element must precede the second element in some way.

The "part" in the configuration of each of the above devices may be replaced with "means," "circuit," "device," etc.

When the terms "include," "including," and variations thereof are used in this disclosure, these terms are intended to be inclusive, similar to the term "comprising." Additionally, the term "or," as used in this disclosure, is not intended to be an exclusive or.

A radio frame may consist of one or more frames in the time domain.
Each of the one or more frames in the time domain may be called a subframe. A subframe may further be composed of one or more slots in the time domain. A subframe may have a fixed time length (e.g., 1 ms) that is independent of numerology.

Numerology may be a communication parameter that applies to at least one of the transmission and reception of a signal or channel. Numerology may indicate, for example, at least one of the following: Subcarrier Spacing (SCS), bandwidth, symbol length, cyclic prefix length, Transmission Time Interval (TTI), number of symbols per TTI, radio frame structure, a particular filtering process performed by the transceiver in the frequency domain, a particular windowing process performed by the transceiver in the time domain, etc.

A slot may consist of one or more symbols (such as an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbol, a Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) symbol, etc.) in the time domain. A slot may be a time unit based on numerology.

A slot may include multiple minislots. Each minislot may consist of one or multiple symbols in the time domain. A minislot may also be called a subslot. A minislot may consist of fewer symbols than a slot. A PDSCH (or PUSCH) transmitted in a time unit larger than a minislot may be called PDSCH (or PUSCH) mapping type A. A PDSCH (or PUSCH) transmitted using a minislot may be called PDSCH (or PUSCH) mapping type B.

Radio frame, subframe, slot, minislot, and symbol all represent time units for transmitting signals. Radio frame, subframe, slot, minislot, and symbol may each be referred to by a different name.

For example, one subframe may be called a Transmission Time Interval (TTI), multiple consecutive subframes may be called a TTI, or one slot or one minislot may be called a TTI. In other words, at least one of the subframe and the TTI may be a subframe (1 ms) in existing LTE, a period shorter than 1 ms (e.g., 1-13 symbols), or a period longer than 1 ms. Note that the unit representing the TTI may be called a slot, minislot, etc., instead of a subframe.

Here, TTI refers to, for example, the smallest time unit for scheduling in wireless communication. For example, in an LTE system, a base station schedules each user terminal by allocating radio resources (such as frequency bandwidth and transmission power that can be used by each user terminal) in TTI units. Note that the definition of TTI is not limited to this.

The TTI may be a transmission time unit for a channel-coded data packet (transport block), a code block, a code word, etc., or may be a processing unit for scheduling, link adaptation, etc. When a TTI is given, the time interval (e.g., the number of symbols) in which a transport block, a code block, a code word, etc. is actually mapped may be shorter than the TTI.

When one slot or one minislot is called a TTI, one or more TTIs (i.e., one or more slots or one or more minislots) may be the minimum time unit of scheduling. In addition, the number of slots (minislots) constituting the minimum time unit of scheduling may be controlled.

A TTI having a time length of 1 ms may be called a normal TTI (TTI in LTE Rel. 8-12), normal TTI, long TTI, normal subframe, normal subframe, long subframe, slot, etc. A TTI shorter than a normal TTI may be called a shortened TTI, short TTI, partial or fractional TTI, shortened subframe, short subframe, minislot, subslot, slot, etc.

Note that a long TTI (e.g., a normal TTI, a subframe, etc.) may be interpreted as a TTI having a time length of more than 1 ms, and a short TTI (e.g., a shortened TTI, etc.) may be interpreted as a TTI having a TTI length shorter than the TTI length of a long TTI and equal to or greater than 1 ms.

A resource block (RB) is a resource allocation unit in the time domain and frequency domain, and may include one or more consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain. The number of subcarriers included in an RB may be the same regardless of the numerology, and may be, for example, 12. The number of subcarriers included in an RB may be determined based on the numerology.

The time domain of an RB may include one or more symbols and may be one slot, one minislot, one subframe, or one TTI in length. Each of one TTI, one subframe, etc. may be composed of one or more resource blocks.

In addition, one or more RBs may be referred to as a physical resource block (PRB), a sub-carrier group (SCG), a resource element group (REG), a PRB pair, an RB pair, etc.

A resource block may also be composed of one or more resource elements (REs). For example, one RE may be a radio resource region of one subcarrier and one symbol.

A Bandwidth Part (BWP), which may also be referred to as a partial bandwidth, may represent a subset of contiguous common resource blocks (RBs) for a given numerology on a given carrier, where the common RBs may be identified by an index of the RB relative to a common reference point of the carrier. PRBs may be defined in a BWP and numbered within the BWP.

The BWP may include a BWP for UL (UL BWP) and a BWP for DL (DL BWP). One or more BWPs may be configured for a UE within one carrier.

At least one of the configured BWPs may be active, and the UE may not expect to transmit or receive a given signal/channel outside the active BWP. Note that the terms "cell", "carrier", etc. in this disclosure may be read as "BWP".

The above-mentioned structures of radio frames, subframes, slots, minislots, and symbols are merely examples. For example, the number of subframes included in a radio frame, the number of slots per subframe or radio frame, the number of minislots included in a slot, the number of symbols and RBs included in a slot or minislot, the number of subcarriers included in an RB, as well as the number of symbols in a TTI, the symbol length, and the cyclic prefix (CP) length can be changed in various ways.

In this disclosure, where articles have been added through translation, such as a, an, and the in English, the disclosure may include that the nouns following these articles are in the plural form.

In this disclosure, the term "A and B are different" may mean "A and B are different from each other." The term may also mean "A and B are each different from C." Terms such as "separate" and "combined" may also be interpreted in the same way as "different."

(Variations in form, etc.)
Each aspect/embodiment described in the present disclosure may be used alone, in combination, or switched according to execution. In addition, notification of predetermined information (e.g., notification that "X is true") is not limited to being done explicitly, but may be done implicitly (e.g., not notifying the predetermined information).

Although the present disclosure has been described in detail above, it is clear to those skilled in the art that the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described herein. The present disclosure can be implemented in modified and altered forms without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the claims. Therefore, the description of the present disclosure is intended as an illustrative example and does not have any limiting meaning on the present disclosure.

(Appendix 1)
a serial-to-parallel converter converts the data sequence into M parallel data sequences, where M is a predetermined integer equal to or greater than 2 and m is an integer satisfying 1≦m≦M;
where N is a predetermined integer equal to or greater than 1, n is an integer satisfying 1≦n≦N, M′=M+(N−Mod(M/N)), m′ is an integer satisfying 1≦m′≦M′, and the serial-to-parallel converter outputs M′ pieces of data;
The data sequence from the (M+1)th output to the M'th output of the serial-to-parallel converter is set to 0, P is an integer expressed as P=M'/N, and p is an integer satisfying 1≦p≦P. The group generator divides the M' outputs of the serial-to-parallel converter into N groups,
The n-th group is composed of the 1st branch to the P-th branch, and the (n+N(p-1))-th output of the serial-to-parallel converter is connected to the p-th branch.
The (n+N(p-1))th output of the serial-to-parallel converter is input to the (n+N(p-1))th BB generator,
The output of the (n+N(p-1))th BB generation unit is input to the (n+N(p-1))th D/A converter,
The output of the (n+N(p-1))th D/A converter is input to the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter,
the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter performs frequency conversion using the (n+N(p-1))th low-frequency local signal;
The frequency of the (n+N(p-1))th low-frequency local signal is detuned by Δf from the frequency of the low-frequency local signal of the adjacent branch,
The output of the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter is combined via an nth multiplexer that has the output frequency of the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter as its passband;
The multiplexer is configured by a parallel connection of a plurality of band-pass filters that rejects signals other than the output of the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter;
The output of the nth multiplexer is input to the nth RF converter;
the nth RF converter performs frequency conversion using the nth high frequency local signal;
The output of the nth RF converter is input to the nth amplifier;
The output of the nth amplifier is fed to the nth transmitting antenna and radiated into space.
Transmitting device.

(Appendix 2)
a serial-to-parallel converter converts the data sequence into M parallel data sequences, where M is a predetermined integer equal to or greater than 2 and m is an integer satisfying 1≦m≦M;
where N is a predetermined integer equal to or greater than 1, n is an integer satisfying 1≦n≦N, M′=M+(N−Mod(M/N)), m′ is an integer satisfying 1≦m′≦M′, and the serial-to-parallel converter outputs M′ pieces of data;
The data sequence from the (M+1)th output to the M'th output of the serial-to-parallel converter is set to 0, P is an integer expressed as P=M'/N, and p is an integer satisfying 1≦p≦P. The group generator divides the M' outputs of the serial-to-parallel converter into N groups,
The n-th group is composed of the 1st branch to the P-th branch, and the (n+N(p-1))-th output of the serial-to-parallel converter is connected to the p-th branch.
The (n+N(p-1))th output of the serial-to-parallel converter is input to the (n+N(p-1))th BB generator,
The output of the (n+N(p-1))th BB generation unit is input to the (n+N(p-1))th D/A converter,
The output of the (n+N(p-1))th D/A converter is input to the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter,
the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter performs frequency conversion using the (n+N(p-1))th low-frequency local signal;
The frequency of the low-frequency local signal of the p-th branch is detuned by Δf from the frequency of the low-frequency local signal of an adjacent branch in the group N,
The output signal of the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter is input to an nth multiplexer whose passband is the output signal frequency of the (n+N(p-1))th IF converter;
The output of the nth multiplexer is input to the nth RF frequency converter;
the n-th RF frequency converter performs frequency conversion using the n-th high frequency local signal;
The frequency of the high frequency local signal of the n-th branch is detuned by PΔf from the frequency of the high frequency local signal of an adjacent branch,
The output of the nth RF frequency converter is input to the nth amplifier;
The output of the nth amplifier is fed to the nth transmitting antenna and radiated into space.
Transmitting device.

(Appendix 3)
In the transmitting device according to claim 1 or 2,
an nth high frequency phase shifter is connected to the output of the nth RF frequency converter;
The output of the nth high frequency phase shifter is input to the nth amplifier,
The output of the nth amplifier is fed to the nth antenna and radiated into space.
Transmitting device.

(Appendix 4)
In the transmitting device according to claim 1 or 2,
an nth high frequency phase shifter is connected to an nth high frequency local signal input terminal of the nth RF frequency converter;
The output of the nth RF frequency converter is input to the nth amplifier;
The output of the nth amplifier is fed to the nth antenna and radiated into space.
Transmitting device.

The present disclosure is useful for multi-carrier transmission systems that transmit information using multiple carrier waves in wideband signal transmission.

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 Communication device 11 Serial-parallel converter 12 Group generator 13 BB generator 14 D/A converter 15, 79 IF converter 16 Multiplexer 17, 76 RF converter 18, 73 Amplifier 19, 71 Antenna 31, 41 High-frequency phase shifter 51 Low-frequency phase shifter 61 High-frequency amplitude phase shifter 72 Switch 74 Power sensor 75 Adder 77 Demultiplexer 78 IF amplifier 80 A/D converter 81 Equalizer 82 BB processing unit

Claims (4)

A communication device that performs multi-carrier communication,
an intermediate frequency converter for up-converting the parallel transmission signals to an intermediate frequency for each group;
a multiplexer that combines the transmission signals up-converted to an intermediate frequency for each group;
a radio frequency converter for up-converting the combined transmission signal to a radio frequency;
the intermediate frequency converter up-converts the transmission signal to the intermediate frequency by using a first local signal common to each group;
the frequency of the first local signal varies within the group;
The radio frequency converter up- converts the transmission signal combined for each group to a radio frequency by using a second local signal having a different frequency for each group;
The signals synthesized for each group and up-converted to a radio frequency are fed to antennas provided corresponding to each group.
Communications equipment. The multiplexer is configured with a filter bank having the intermediate frequency as a passband.
The communication device according to claim 1 . and a phase shifter for controlling the phase of the transmission signal up-converted to a radio frequency.
3. A communication device according to claim 1 or 2. A phase shifter for controlling the phase of a radio frequency local signal input to the radio frequency converter.
3. A communication device according to claim 1 or 2.

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