IP Library Granted Patent US 10,986,669
Granted Patent B2
US 10,986,669 · App. 16/413,178 · Granted Apr 20, 2021

Physical random access channel scheme for wireless networks using an analog bloom filter

Inventor: Zhenghao Zhang (Tallahassee, FL)
Assignee: The Florida State University Research Foundation, Inc.
H04W74/0833
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,986,669
App. No.
16/413,178
Granted
Apr 20, 2021
Kind
B2
Abstract

This disclosure describes a novel PRACH scheme based on an Analog Bloom Filter, in which user equipment is allowed to transmit multiple sequences to a base station, instead of only one sequence as is the case with the current LTE. A new decoding algorithm is disclosed, which copes with the unique challenges in the signal generated with ZC sequences, such as peak shifting and multiple peaks. In addition, when CFO can be removed the new scheme allows the UE to piggyback log 2 ⁢ ⁢ 7 bits of information along with the signal. Evaluation shows that the new scheme outperforms the existing PRACH of LTE by more than an order of magnitude in many cases, and therefore is a good candidate as the PRACH for future wireless networks (e.g., 5G).

Claims (72)

1. A device, the device comprising memory and processing circuitry configured to:

receive a signal comprising one or more symbol sequences on a physical random access channel (PRACH);

identify, based on the signal, a first potential active user device and a second potential active user device, wherein to identify the first potential active user device and the second potential active user device comprises:

identify a first signal peak and a second signal peak within the signal; and

associate the first signal peak to a first potential active user device and the second signal peak to a second potential active user device; and

determine, using an Analog Bloom Filter (ABF), the first potential active user device is a first actual active user device and the second potential active user device is a second actual active user device from the one or more potential active user devices.

2. The device of claim 1 , wherein to identify a first signal peak and a second signal peak within the signal further comprises:

receive a threshold value; and

perform a linear scan of the at least one signal, wherein the at least one signal comprises a signal vector comprising one or more indices, and wherein to perform the linear scan includes:

determine that a value of a first scanned index of the one or more indices is higher than the threshold;

determine a location of a jump is the value of the first scanned index based on the value of the first scanned index being at least one of (1) either more than three times larger than a value of a last scanned index or (2) more than five times a minimum value corresponding to the lowest value of any index of a set of indices between the index of a last jump and the last scanned index; and

identify the first signal peak, wherein the signal peak is a local maxima.

3. The device of claim 2 , wherein to identify one or more active user devices further comprises strengthening the signal peak.

4. The device of claim 2 , wherein the device is further configured to:

receive a list of peaks, the list of peaks including a third signal peak;

determine that the third signal peak is associated with both the first potential active user device and the second potential active user device;

determine a first summation of credits the first potential active user device has received from a signal peak friend set associated with the first potential active user device and a second summation of credits the second potential active user device has received from a signal peak friend set associated with second potential active user device;

determine that the first summation of credits is a maximum credit allocation, a total power of the first potential active user device signal peak friend set is above a threshold, and the first active user device friend set has peaks of similar power values; and

identify the first potential active user device as owning the first signal peak.

5. The device of claim 4 , wherein the memory and processing circuitry are further configured to:

receive a list of peaks associated with the first potential active user device; and

subtract signals near a first peak of the list of peaks associated with the first potential active user device by signals near one or more other peaks of the list of peaks associated with the first potential active user device to remove fake peaks.

6. The device of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of symbol sequences comprise a pattern, and wherein the pattern is selected based on criteria including at least: that the pattern, after shifting by no more than a certain number of points, such as 15 points, to either the left or to the right, does not overlap with at most one sequence in any other pattern and that any two sequences in the pattern are separated by a minimum distance.

7. The device of claim 6 , wherein fake peaks may include at least one of side peaks or shoulder peaks.

8. The device of claim 1 , wherein the memory and processing circuitry are further configured to:

decode a multiple bit message from the one or more potential active user devices based at least in part on the one or more signal peaks; and

estimate a propagation delay associated with the one or more potential active user devices based at least in part on the one or more signal peaks.

9. A method, comprising:

receiving a signal comprising one or more symbol sequences on a physical random access channel (PRACH);

identifying, based on the signal, a first potential active user device and a second potential active user device, wherein to identify the first potential active user device and the second potential active user device comprises:

identifying a first signal peak and a second signal peak within the signal; and

associating the first signal peak to a first potential active user device and the second signal peak to a second potential active user device; and

determining, using an Analog Bloom Filter (ABF), the first potential active user device is a first actual active user device and the second potential active user device is a second actual active user device from the one or more potential active user devices.

10. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:

receiving a threshold value; and

performing a linear scan of the at least one signal, wherein the at least one signal comprises a signal vector comprising one or more indices, and wherein to perform the linear scan includes:

determining that a value of a first scanned index of the one or more indices is higher than the threshold;

determining a location of a jump is the value of the first scanned index based on the value of the first scanned index being at least one of (1) either more than three times larger than a value of a last scanned index or (2) more than five times a minimum value corresponding to the lowest value of any index of a set of indices between the index of a last jump and the last scanned index; and

identifying the first signal peak, wherein the signal peak is a local maxima.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein to identify one or more active user devices further comprises strengthening the signal peak.

12. The method of claim 10 , further comprising:

receiving a list of peaks, the list of peaks including a third signal peak;

determining that the third signal peak is associated with both the first potential active user device and the second potential active user device;

determining a first summation of credits the first potential active user device has received from a signal peak friend set associated with the first potential active user device and a second summation of credits the second potential active user device has received from a signal peak friend set associated with second potential active user device;

determining that the first summation of credits is a maximum credit allocation, a total power of the first potential active user device signal peak friend set is above a threshold, and the first active user device friend set has peaks of similar power values; and

identifying the first potential active user device as owning the first signal peak.

13. The method of claim 12 , further comprising

receiving a list of peaks associated with the first potential active user device; and

subtracting signals near a first peak of the list of peaks associated with the first potential active user device by signals near one or more other peaks of the list of peaks associated with the first potential active user device to remove fake peaks.

14. The method of claim 9 , wherein the plurality of symbol sequences comprise a pattern, and wherein the pattern is selected based on criteria including at least: that the pattern, after shifting by no more than a certain number of points, such as 15 points, to either the left or to the right, does not overlap with at most one sequence in any other pattern and that any two sequences in the pattern are separated by a minimum distance.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein fake peaks may include at least one of side peaks or shoulder peaks.

16. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:

decoding a multiple bit message from the one or more potential active user devices based at least in part on the one or more signal peaks; and

estimating a propagation delay associated with the one or more potential active user devices based at least in part on the one or more signal peaks.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, configure the at least one processor to perform operations comprising:

receiving a signal comprising one or more symbol sequences on a physical random access channel (PRACH);

identifying, based on the signal, a first potential active user device and a second potential active user device, wherein to identify the first potential active user device and the second potential active user device comprises:

identifying and strengthening a first signal peak and a second signal peak within the signal; and

associating the first signal peak to a first potential active user device and the second signal peak to a second potential active user device; and

determining, using an Analog Bloom Filter (ABF), the first potential active user device is a first actual active user device and the second potential active user device is a second actual active user device from the one or more potential active user devices.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 17 further configured to perform operations comprising:

receiving a threshold value; and

performing a linear scan of the at least one signal, wherein the at least one signal comprises a signal vector comprising one or more indices, and wherein to perform the linear scan includes:

determining that a value of a first scanned index of the one or more indices is higher than the threshold;

determining a location of a jump is the value of the first scanned index based on the value of the first scanned index being at least one of (1) either more than three times larger than a value of a last scanned index or (2) more than five times a minimum value corresponding to the lowest value of any index of a set of indices between the index of a last jump and the last scanned index; and

identifying the first signal peak, wherein the signal peak is a local maxima;

receiving a list of peaks associated with the first potential active user device; and

subtracting signals near a first peak of the list of peaks associated with the first potential active user device by signals near one or more other peaks of the list of peaks associated with the first potential active user device to remove fake peaks.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 17 further configured to perform operations comprising:

decoding a multiple bit message from the one or more potential active user devices based at least in part on the one or more signal peaks; and

estimating a propagation delay associated with the one or more potential active user devices based at least in part on the one or more signal peaks.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 17 , wherein the plurality of symbol sequences comprise a pattern, and wherein the pattern is selected based on criteria including at least: that the pattern, after shifting by no more than a certain number of points, such as 15 points, to either the left or to the right, does not overlap with at most one sequence in any other pattern and that any two sequences in the pattern are separated by a minimum distance, and wherein a total of 2304 different patterns exist.

Assignments (2)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Dec 3, 2025
From: ZHANG, ZHENGHAO
To: THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY RESEARCH FOUNDATION, INC.
Reel/Frame 073094/0448 →
CONFIRMATORY LICENSE Recorded Oct 8, 2019
From: FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY
To: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Reel/Frame 050660/0149 →
Continuity (2)
Provisional Application 62671719 · May 15, 2018
Related Publication 20190357259A1 · Nov 21, 2019