Abstract: A communication apparatus, terminal apparatus, system and method are provided for performing wireless communication. The communication apparatus supports a plurality of component carriers, wherein one of the plurality of component carriers is designated as a current primary component and at least one of the plurality of component carriers is designated as a current secondary component carrier providing at least downlink communication. The communication apparatus comprises control circuitry for controlling a component carrier testing procedure for one or more component carriers. The testing procedure comprises, for each component carrier: establishing an uplink connection from the terminal apparatus to the communication apparatus using the component carrier; and determining a quality of the uplink connection for the component carrier.

Abstract: A cellular communication apparatus includes antenna circuitry. A transceiver receives or transmits a signal using the antenna circuitry on a chosen channel of a portion of a radio spectrum. The portion of the radio spectrum is divided into one or more channels including the chosen channel each occupying a bandwidth of the portion of the radio spectrum. Control circuitry dynamically changes a configuration of the one or more channels of the radio spectrum and communication circuitry communicates the configuration of the one or more channels of the radio spectrum to one or more items of user equipment.

Abstract: There is provided a network comprising antenna circuitry to receive incoming signals and transmit outgoing signals. Remote modem circuitry, connected to the antenna circuitry by analog cabling, demodulates a first incoming signal of the incoming signals to produce first incoming data and control circuitry, remote from the remote modem circuitry and connected to the remote modem circuitry via digital cabling, controls a behaviour of the remote modem circuitry and receives the first incoming data from the remote modem circuitry.

Abstract: An apparatus and method are provided for performing a handover analysis. The apparatus comprises base station location identifying circuitry to obtain base station location information for a plurality of base stations that provide a wireless network for communication with a moving vehicle. In addition, moving vehicle tracking circuitry is provided to obtain position and velocity information for the moving vehicle. Handover metrics computation circuitry is then used to generate at least one handover metric computed from the position and velocity information for the moving vehicle and the base station location information, for use in determining a target base station in said plurality to be used when performing a handover procedure to transition communication with the moving vehicle from the current base station in said plurality to the target base station.

Abstract: A mechanism is provided for performing timing adjustment within a wireless communication system for a moving vehicle. The wireless communication system has an antenna system for communicating with a further antenna system, and communication control circuitry for performing a sign-on procedure to seek to establish a communication link with the further antenna system. During the sign-on procedure, the communication control circuitry issues via the antenna system a connection setup signal for receipt by the further antenna within an identified timing window. The wireless communication system also has location specifying circuitry for identifying a current location of the wireless communication system, and distance computation circuitry for obtaining location information specifying a location of the further antenna system, and for determining a separation distance between the antenna. system and the further antenna system.

Abstract: A wireless communication system for a moving vehicle, and a method of operation of a wireless communication system for a moving vehicle, are described. The wireless communication system comprises an antenna system configured to receive a received signal from a further antenna system and to transmit a transmitted signal to the further antenna system, communication control circuitry to control operation of the antenna system, and analysis circuitry. The analysis circuitry is configured to obtain at least one item of information from the received signal, and perform a Doppler adjustment process to determine, based on the at least one item of information, an adjusted transmitted frequency (ft) to be used for transmission of the transmitted signal from the antenna system, such that an observed frequency of the transmitted signal at the further antenna system is a predetermined uplink frequency (fUL).

Abstract: An apparatus is described, comprising circuitry to obtain base station location information for a plurality of base stations that provide a wireless network for communication with a moving vehicle, the plurality of base stations comprising a current base station and one or more other base stations, circuitry to obtain moving vehicle tracking information for the moving vehicle, circuitry to determine, based on the moving vehicle tracking information and the base station location information, transmission adjustment control information associated with each other base station, and an interface configured to transmit, for reception by the moving vehicle, the transmission adjustment control information associated with at least a selected other base station, to enable the moving vehicle to adjust a signal transmitted to the selected other base station when a handover procedure is performed to transition communication with the moving vehicle from the current base station to the selected other base station.

Abstract: There is provided an apparatus comprising a location receiver to receive a signal indicative of a location of the location receiver. A movement mechanism rotates the location receiver about an axis and provides an angle of the location receiver about the axis from a known point. Calculation circuitry produces an output value indicative of an absolute bearing of the known point about the axis, based on a plurality of given angles of the location receiver about the axis from the known point, and a plurality of associated locations of the location receiver indicated by the signal received when the location receiver is at each of the given angles.

Abstract: An apparatus and method are provided for configuring a communication link. The apparatus has a plurality of antenna elements to support RF communication over a communication link using a plurality of frequency channels, a plurality of RF processing circuits, and configuration circuitry to apply a selected configuration from a plurality of different configurations, where each configuration identifies which RF processing circuit each antenna element is coupled to, and which frequency channel is allocated to each RF processing circuit. The configuration circuitry is arranged to employ a reinforcement learning process in order to dynamically alter which of the plurality of different configurations to apply as a currently selected configuration.

Abstract: An antenna apparatus comprising at least one antenna array configured to produce a beam to facilitate wireless communication with at least one other antenna apparatus is described, in which the beam can be electronically steered in an associated beamforming plane by beamforming circuitry. The at least one antenna array has an associated antenna array plane, and an antenna array rotation mechanism is configured to rotate each antenna array in its associated antenna array plane to cause its beamforming plane to rotate. Methods for operating such an antenna apparatus, and for deploying an antenna apparatus in a wireless communication network, are also described.

Abstract: A technique is provided for controlling a beam pattern employed by an antenna apparatus. The antenna apparatus comprises an antenna array, and beamforming circuitry to employ a beam pattern in order to generate a beam using the antenna array to facilitate wireless communication with at least one further antenna apparatus. Beam pattern adjustment circuitry is then arranged to receive a control signal indicative of a motion being imparted to the antenna apparatus, and to adjust the beam pattern to be used by the beamforming circuitry in dependence on the control signal, so as to alter a width of the beam in order to mitigate variation in link quality of the wireless communication due to the motion.

Abstract: The present technique provides an antenna apparatus and a method of operating an antenna apparatus comprising a first antenna array and a second antenna array. Antenna positioning circuitry is used to move the first antenna array relative to the second antenna array about a common axis of rotation to facilitate positioning of the first and second antenna arrays in a chosen deployment configuration between a first limit and a second limit. Antenna array control circuitry is used to coordinate operation of the first antenna array and the second antenna array dependent on the chosen deployment configuration.

Abstract: An antenna apparatus for use in a wireless network and method of operating such an antenna apparatus are provided. A wireless network controller provides a configuration of such an antenna apparatus, a method of operating such a wireless network controller, and a resulting wireless network. The antenna apparatus comprises a directional antenna and a uniform circular antenna array. The directional antenna can be rotatably positioned about an axis with respect to a fixed mounting portion of the apparatus in dependence on wireless signals received by the antenna array. The antenna array allows the antenna apparatus to receive wireless signals isotropically and thus to accurately monitor the wireless signal environment in which it finds itself. The antenna apparatus can thus monitor and characterize incoming signals, both from external interference sources and from other network nodes, and the directional antenna can then be positioned in rotation to improve the network throughput.

Abstract: A method and apparatus configures a wireless network comprising a plurality of nodes to mitigate effects of an external interference source. A subset of the nodes simultaneously participate in an external interference sampling process in which each node of the subset samples signals received by an antenna array of that node. A measurement report, comprising a signal source angle and a received signal strength, is received from a node. A location of the external interference source is estimated using the measurement report. The external interference source is then characterized using the estimated location of the external interference source and the received signal strength to calculate for the external interference source at least one of: a source power; a beam width; an antenna bearing; and a front-to-back transmission ratio. The nodes are configured to mitigate effects of the external interference source in dependence on a result of the characterizing step.

Abstract: An antenna apparatus for use in a wireless network and method of operating such an antenna apparatus are provided. The antenna apparatus has omnidirectional antenna elements and RF chains, where there are fewer RF chains than omnidirectional antenna elements. A subset of the omnidirectional antenna elements are coupled to the RF chains and sampling circuitry coupled to the RF chains samples the signals received by the subset of the omnidirectional antenna elements. This forms part of a signal detection process in which different subsets of the omnidirectional antenna elements are iteratively coupled to the RF chains. A signal sample spatial covariance matrix for the omnidirectional antenna elements is constructed from the signals sampled by the sampling circuitry at each iteration and a beamforming algorithm applied to the signal sample spatial covariance matrix parameterizes the signals received by the omnidirectional antenna elements.

Abstract: An antenna apparatus for use in a wireless network and method of operating such an antenna apparatus are provided. A wireless network controller provides a configuration of such an antenna apparatus, a method of operating such a wireless network controller, and a resulting wireless network. The antenna apparatus comprises a directional antenna and a uniform circular antenna array. The directional antenna can be rotatably positioned about an axis with respect to a fixed mounting portion of the apparatus in dependence on wireless signals received by the antenna array. The antenna array allows the antenna apparatus to receive wireless signals isotropically and thus to accurately monitor the wireless signal environment in which it finds itself. The antenna apparatus can thus monitor and characterise incoming signals, both from external interference sources and from other network nodes, and the directional antenna can then be positioned in rotation to improve the network throughput.

Abstract: A method and corresponding apparatus are provided for network configuration selection in a wireless network comprising a plurality of nodes. A subset of the nodes are configured to simultaneously participate in a sounding process, in which a node of the subset omni-directionally transmits a predetermined signal and in which other nodes of the subset of nodes sample the predetermined signal as received by an omni-directional antenna array of that node. Measurement reports are received from the subset of nodes, each measurement report comprising a signal source angle and a received signal strength. A path loss is determined in dependence on each measurement report to generate a set of path losses covering a plurality of transmitter node receiver node pairs. Then a directional configuration is selected for a directional antenna of each node of the subset of nodes for data transmission in dependence on the set of path losses.

Abstract: A wireless feeder network comprises feeder base stations coupled to the communications network and feeder terminals coupled to associated access base stations of the access network. A group of wireless network components form elements of a feeder cluster and the elements of the feeder cluster are connected by an additional communications resource configured to be operated in parallel with the wireless resource of the wireless feeder network. Both a primary and secondary element of the feeder cluster seek to decode at least one resource block allocated to the primary element for reception of data. Information derived from the secondary decoded data is transmitted from the secondary element to the primary element via the additional communications resource. The primary element then performs a revised decoding process additionally using the information received from said secondary element to improve its own decode probability.

Abstract: An antenna apparatus for use in a wireless network and method of operating such an antenna apparatus are provided. The antenna apparatus has omnidirectional antenna elements and RF chains, where there are fewer RF chains than omnidirectional antenna elements. A subset of the omnidirectional antenna elements are coupled to the RF chains and sampling circuitry coupled to the RF chains samples the signals received by the subset of the omnidirectional antenna elements. This forms part of a signal detection process in which different subsets of the omnidirectional antenna elements are iteratively coupled to the RF chains. A signal sample spatial covariance matrix for the omnidirectional antenna elements is constructed from the signals sampled by the sampling circuitry at each iteration and a beamforming algorithm applied to the signal sample spatial covariance matrix parameterises the signals received by the omnidirectional antenna elements.

Abstract: An antenna apparatus for use in a wireless network and method of operating such an antenna apparatus are provided. A wireless network controller provides a configuration of such an antenna apparatus, a method of operating such a wireless network controller, and a resulting wireless network. The antenna apparatus comprises a directional antenna and a uniform circular antenna array. The directional antenna can be rotatably positioned about an axis with respect to a fixed mounting portion of the apparatus in dependence on wireless signals received by the antenna array. The antenna array allows the antenna apparatus to receive wireless signals isotropically and thus to accurately monitor the wireless signal environment in which it finds itself. The antenna apparatus can thus monitor and characterise incoming signals, both from external interference sources and from other network nodes, and the directional antenna can then be positioned in rotation to improve the network throughput.