Abstract: A method and apparatus for synchronizing and demodulating radio wave signals transmitted in frame format with an unique word, involving correcting the frequency offset of the received signal and differentially correlating the frequency corrected signal with the unique word, A first timing estimate is further refined by a 2-D search between frequency and time and a first frequency estimate is further refined by quadratic interpolation. The finely synchronized signal is demodulated using a Viterbi-based demodulator.

Abstract: Systems and methods for frequency acquisition and channel tracking in a direct sequence code division multiple access system are described. Frequency estimates are prepared and refined, which estimates are also used in the channel tracking process.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for receiving adjacent channel signals wherein adjacent channel interference effects are minimized through joint demodulation of the adjacent channel signals. A channel associated with each signal and each corresponding frequency band is estimated and used to form joint branch metrics for joint sequence estimation. In an exemplary embodiment, a baseband processor receives baseband samples corresponding to at least one carrier frequency, and then jointly demodulates at least two information streams corresponding to different carrier frequencies in dependence upon the received baseband samples. In another embodiment, a joint channel estimator receives at least two baseband sample streams, each stream corresponding to a different frequency band, and jointly estimates medium responses for each of at least two information signals which were transmitted in different frequency bands.

Abstract: The amount of co-channel interference which occurs for any given time slot in a cellular communication system can be reduced by distributing or averaging out the co-channel interference to other time slots. This averaging out results from the staggering of control and traffic signals for a given time slot wherein the staggering is relative to the same time slot in the same frequency channel at neighboring clusters of cells. If a transmitter is on a satellite which transmits to the various clusters, the method and apparatus prevents an interfering signal from interfering with the entire time slot. The inventive method and apparatus requires synchronization of the control and traffic signal transmission to the clusters relative to each other so that the amount of delay introduced while staggering the time slots can be predicted and controlled.

Abstract: A fading compensation apparatus and method are provided in which blocks of the analog AM signal (e.g., voice) are time-compressed at a transmitter. Gaps in the time-compressed signal are filled with pilot symbols (or similar complex waveforms) having known characteristics, such as predetermined amplitudes. The time-compressed analog AM signal (e.g., SSB or VSB) is transmitted over the fading channel. At an analog AM receiver, an estimate of the fading that occurred in the transmission channel is made by observing the amplitude of the received pilot symbols at discrete points in time, and interpolating to determine the amount of fading that occurred across the total transmitted signal. A fading compensator compares the received faded time-compressed signal with the interpolation results, and adjusts the amplitude and phase of the received signal accordingly to compensate for the fading that occurred in the transmission channel. The compensated analog AM signal is time expanded and output to a user.

Abstract: A method and system for increasing the signal margin of a radiocommunication link to provide a short message service which is reliable, even under non-ideal conditions. According to the method, an increase in transmission power is used in combination with bit repetition to increase signal margin without complications in the mobile unit design, significant delay, or co-channel interference. Where a more significant increase in signal margin is desired, when a longer message is required, or for voice messages, the message may be stored and the mobile unit alerted of the message.

Abstract: A communication system provides efficient satellite communication in rural, remote, or sparsely populated areas, or in areas lacking a conventional telephone infrastructure, or in special purpose uses such as airport coverage. Subscribers in such areas communicate with the satellite via a simple, highly modular entry node located in a local area to be served. Subscriber units provide subscribers with access to the system. The subscriber units are connected to the entry node via local access loops provided by point-to-point wireless links between the subscriber units and the entry node. The entry node internally switches local traffic among subscribers and connects traffic to outside circuits, via wireless links with the satellite, as appropriate. The outside circuits are provided by the cooperative working of the satellite, an entry-node controller, and an earth station. The wireless links between the satellite and the entry node and the local access loops may operate at the same or different frequencies.

Abstract: A delay spread is created in a digital radio signal to reduce the coherence bandwidth and facilitate frequency hopping to reduce the effect of fading losses within an enclosed propagation environment The delay spread is introduced into the signal in several ways. One technique disclosed employs a transmitter with two separate antennas one of which transmits the digital signal and the other of which transmits the same signal after a phase delay has been introduced into the signal. The carrier frequency of the signals is hopped between at least two frequencies and the receiver processes the resulting signals. In another embodiment, a single transmit antenna is used but the signal is received by two different antennas with the output signal from one of those antennas being phase delayed before combining it with the other prior to processing by the receiver circuitry.

Abstract: An important consideration in a coded modulation scheme is the choice of the component codes, which has a significant impact on the overall bit error rate performance and which determines the decoding complexity. Methods and apparatus employing product codes are described that can improve the performance of selected classes of information in the coded modulation scheme without affecting the decoding complexity or performance of other classes of information.

Abstract: Characteristics of a communication channel are used to establish key sequences for use in encrypting communicated information. In one embodiment, these characteristics are the impedances of the channel viewed from one transceiver to the other and vice versa. The keys can be established with computations equivalent to a bounded distance decoding procedure, and the decoder used to establish a key may be used for processing the subsequent data transmission. Compared to classical and public-key cryptographic systems, an alternative mechanism for establishing and sharing key sequences that depends on a physical process is provided in which each party need not generate a pseudo-random quantity because the necessary randomness is provided by the properties of the communication channel itself. By using a channel decoder, the probability of two users establishing the same secret key is substantially unity, and the probability of an eavesdropper establishing the same key is substantially zero.

Abstract: The disclosure presents a number of reduced complexity architectures for despreading direct sequence spread spectrum communications signals. In a first despreading architecture for a sequence removal unit, received chip-spaced complex samples are negated in accordance with the processed phase of a complex spreading sequence. Furthermore, the in-phase and quadrature phase sample values are switched for each other in accordance with the processed phase. In a second despreading architecture, in a sequence removal unit, received chip-spaced complex samples are processed in the logarithmic domain, with the phase of the complex spreading sequence added to the detected phase, and the resulting complex signal then converted back to Cartesian coordinates. In a third despreading architecture for a correlator, sequence removal and correlation are performed in the logarithmic domain with the amplitudes and phases for the resulting complex signal arithmetically averaged and then converted back to Cartesian coordinates.

Abstract: Characteristics of the radio channel are used to establish pseudorandom sequences for use in communicating information. These characteristics are the short-term reciprocity and rapid spatial decorrelation of phase of the radio channel. Due to the reciprocal nature of these radio channel characteristics, the transceivers which are communicating via the radio channel will generally both determine the same sequence. Although the determined sequences are not always sufficiently random for use in pseudorandom functions, a randomness tester can be provided to discard those sequences which are not sufficiently random. Exemplary pseudorandom communication functions include the selection of a spreading sequence in CDMA systems and the selection of a hopping sequence in a TDMA or CDMA system.

Abstract: A delay spread is created in a digital radio signal to reduce the coherence bandwidth and facilitate frequency hopping to reduce the effect of fading losses within an enclosed propagation environment. The delay spread is introduced into the signal in several ways. One technique disclosed employs a transmitter with two separate antennas one of which transmits the digital signal and the other of which transmits the same signal after a phase delay has been introduced into the signal. The carrier frequency of the signals is hopped between at least two frequencies and the receiver processes the resulting signals. In another embodiment, a single transmit antenna is used but the signal is received by two different antennas with the output signal from one of those antennas being phase delayed before combining it with the other prior to processing by the receiver circuitry.

Abstract: An error control decoder receives a received vector to be decoded. The decoder then calculates, as an error estimate, the Euclidean distance between a codeword choice and the received vector. The output error estimate is appropriately scaled and quantized in accordance with the particular code being processed by the decoder. The efficient Conway-Sloane algorithm is extended for use in connection with the decoding of shortened Golay codes. A modification is made to the generator matrix for the Golay code to produce a modified generator matrix that is unique for each shortened code. The modified generator matrix is then implemented in the Conway-Sloane algorithm to identify the best codeword for conversion to its corresponding information bits for output.

Abstract: A method and associated circuitry for initiating communication between a network station and a user terminal of a radiotelephonic communication system, such as a satellite-cellular communication system. When communication is to be initiated, a paging signal is transmitted by a network station to the user terminal. When the user terminal detects the paging signal, an acknowledgment signal is generated by the user terminal and encoded to increase the margin of the acknowledgment signal. Upon reception, the acknowledgment signal is correlated using a multiplicity of correlators. An increased margin acknowledgment signal acknowledging reception of the paging signal is transmitted to facilitate communication of the acknowledgment signal back to the network station.

Abstract: A communication system is disclosed as including a plurality of mobile radio telephones, a control unit for transmitting a signaling message to an intended mobile radio telephone, and at least one paging channel through which the control unit is able to transmit the signaling message at varying margin levels. The control unit initially transmits the signaling message at a specified margin level for a predetermined number of attempts and progressively continues to transmit the signaling message at margin levels greater than the specified margin level until the intended mobile radio telephone receives the signaling message.

Abstract: A method and associated circuitry for initiating communication between a network station and a user terminal of a radiotelephonic communication system, such as a satellite-cellular communication system. When communication is to be initiated, a paging signal is transmitted by a network station to the user terminal. When the user terminal detects the paging signal, an acknowledgment signal is generated by the user terminal and encoded to increase the margin of the acknowledgment signal. An increased-margin acknowledgment signal acknowledging reception of the paging signal is transmitted to facilitate communication of the acknowledgment signal back to the network station.

Abstract: A system and method for bidirectionally demodulating data symbols transmitted through a communication channel. The method includes sequentially receiving and storing a first plurality of known data symbols, a second plurality of unknown data symbols, and a third plurality of known data symbols. Thereafter, a first block of the unknown data symbols received nearer the first plurality of known data symbols is forward-demodulated. Likewise, a second block of the unknown data symbols received nearer the third plurality of known data symbols is backward-demodulated. The forward- and backward-demodulation of the unknown data symbols determines quality values (figure-of-merits based on at least one of signal power, noise power and a combination of signal power plus noise power) indicative of demodulation qualities of the unknown data symbols that are compared to produce a best direction indication.

Abstract: A low complexity, high performance trellis decoder adapts the complexity of the trellis decoding process based on a current condition of the communications system. A trellis structure of nodes and branches is developed to decode the sequence of symbols received over a communications channel. Each set of nodes in the trellis represents the possible values of a received symbol at one time instant. Each branch defines a specific transition between nodes at different time instants, and each branch has an associated branch metric or weight. A linkage of branches between the nodes and the trellis defines a path through the trellis that represents one possible symbol sequence, and an accumulated metric/weight is generated for each possible path through the trellis. A variable number M survivor paths through the trellis is determined based on their accumulated path metric/weights. The value of the variable M depends on the current condition of the communications system.

Abstract: A method for encoding and decoding the digital information sequence uses a combination of two block codes to simultaneously correct and detect errors. The information sequence is encoded by a first stage of the encoder to produce an information code word including an information vector and a primary redundancy vector. The primary redundancy vector is encoded in a second stage of the encoder to obtain a redundancy code word. The information code word and redundancy code word are interleaved and transmitted to the receiver. At the receiver, the information code word and redundancy code word are decoded in a first stage of the decoder to obtain a first estimate of the information code word. The first estimate of the information code word is decoded in the second stage of the decoder to produce a second estimate of the information code word. The distance between the first and second estimates of the information code word is evaluated. If the distance is more than one, the received code word is erased.