Precoding a transmission from a multi-panel antenna array
The invention relates to a wireless communication device configured for use in a wireless communication system, wherein, based on one or more structural properties of a multi-panel antenna array describing how the antenna array is structured into multiple panels, a precoder is selected to be applied for a transmission from the multi-panel antenna array; and wherein an information indicative of the determined precoder is signaled to a transmit radio node; the invention further refers to a transmit radio node configured for transmitting via a multi-panel antenna array in a wireless communication system, wherein signaling indicating one or more structural properties of a multi-panel antenna array describing how the antenna array is structured into multiple panels is transmitted to the wireless communication device.
1. A method performed by a wireless communication device configured for use in a wireless communication system, the method comprising:
determining, based on a structural property of a multi-panel antenna array describing how the multi-panel antenna array is structured into multiple panels, a precoder matrix to recommend to a transmit radio network node for applying to a transmission from the multi-panel antenna array; and
transmitting signaling indicating the determined precoder matrix to the transmit radio network node.
2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving signaling indicating the structural property.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the signaling is radio resource control signaling.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the determined precoder matrix is determined from an inter-panel precoding codebook, and wherein the inter-panel precoding codebook is a Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) codebook.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein, through the determined precoder matrix, panels of the multi-panel antenna array are co-phased.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the structural property includes a total number of the multiple panels into which the multi-panel antenna array is structured.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein, through the determined precoder matrix, a phase offset is applied between antenna ports corresponding to different panels that differs from a phase offset applied to antenna ports corresponding to a same panel.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein, through the determined precoder matrix, antenna ports corresponding to different antenna panels are combined onto thea same transmission layer.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein, through the determined precoder matrix, for the multiple panels, a panel-specific complex weight is applied to all antenna ports corresponding to that panel.
10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the panel-specific complex weight is a phase shift with unitary amplitude.
11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the signaling is radio resource control signaling.
12. A method implemented by a transmit radio network node configured for transmitting via a multi-panel antenna array in a wireless communication system, the method comprising:
transmitting to a wireless communication device signaling indicating a structural property of a multi-panel antenna array describing how the multi-panel antenna array is structured into multiple panels.
13. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
responsive to transmitting said signaling, receiving from the wireless communication device signaling indicating a precoder matrix that the wireless communication device recommends to the transmit radio network node for applying to a transmission from the multi-panel antenna array; and
precoding a transmission from the multi-panel antenna array using the recommended precoder matrix.
14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the recommended precoder matrix is determined from an inter-panel precoding codebook, wherein the inter-panel precoding codebook is a Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) codebook.
15. The method of claim 13 , wherein, through the recommended precoder matrix, panels of the multi-panel antenna array are co-phased.
16. The method of claim 13 , wherein, through the recommended precoder matrix, a phase offset is applied between antenna ports corresponding to different panels that differs from a phase offset applied to antenna ports corresponding to the a same panel.
17. The method of claim 13 , wherein, through the recommended precoder matrix, antenna ports corresponding to different antenna panels are combined onto a same transmission layer.
18. The method of claim 13 , wherein, through the recommended precoder matrix, for the multiple panels, a panel-specific complex weight is applied to all antenna ports corresponding to that panel.
19. The method of claim 18 , wherein the panel-specific complex weight is a phase shift with unitary amplitude.
20. A wireless communication device configured for use in a wireless communication system, the wireless communication device comprising:
processing circuitry; and
memory comprising instructions executable by the processing circuitry whereby the wireless communication device is configured to:
determine, based on a structural property of a multi-panel antenna array describing how the multi-panel antenna array is structured into multiple panels, a precoder matrix to recommend to a transmit radio network node for applying to a transmission from the multi-panel antenna array; and
signal the determined precoder matrix to the transmit radio network node.
21. A transmit radio network node configured for use in transmitting via a multi-panel antenna array in a wireless communication system, the transmit radio network node comprising:
processing circuitry and memory, the memory comprising instructions executable by the processing circuitry whereby the transmit radio network node is configured to transmit to a wireless communication device signaling indicating a structural property of a multi-panel antenna array describing how the multi-panel antenna array is structured into multiple panels.