ANTENNA AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS MONITORING FOR WIRELESS AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS FOR PRIVATE, PUBLIC, FIRST RESPONDERS, AND EMERGENCY RESPONDER RADIO COMMUNICATION SYSTEM (ERRCS)
Antenna monitoring systems and methods can include, among other things, a transmitter near each of the antennas in a distributed antenna system (DAS). The transmitter can transmit an antenna identifier corresponding to that antenna, so that the various transmitters in the DAS each transmit different antenna identifiers. These antenna identifiers can be detected by a receiver and can be processed to determine whether any antenna identifiers are missing. If any expected antenna identifier is missing, the receiver can infer that the antenna or a component associated with the antenna (such as cabling) may have failed. The receiver can then output an indication or notification that may be accessed by maintenance personnel and/or emergency personnel to enable them to identify and repair the non-functioning antenna or component. The transmitter can transmit other data, such as environmental data, RF data, or the like, to facilitate additional or alternative monitoring functionality.
1 - 25 . (canceled)
26 . An antenna monitoring system comprising:
a plurality of transmitters associated with a plurality of antennas, the plurality of transmitters being configured to:
monitor radio frequency (RF) data;
transmit a first plurality of signals and the RF data to the plurality of antennas, a signal of the first plurality of signals comprising an antenna identifier for an antenna associated with a transmitter transmitting the signal; and
cause the plurality of antennas to transmit a second plurality of signals; and
a receiver comprising an electronic processing circuitry configured to:
receive the second plurality of signals from the plurality of antennas;
determine that a plurality of antenna identifiers included in the second plurality of signals does not include a first antenna identifier for a first antenna of the plurality of antennas;
in response to determining that the plurality of antenna identifiers does not include the first antenna identifier for the first antenna, provide an indication corresponding to a failure of the first antenna; and
determine and provide an indication of performance of a second antenna of the plurality of antennas using the RF data included in the second plurality of signals.
27 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 26 , wherein the RF data comprises one or more properties of RF signals received or transmitted by an antenna of the plurality of antennas.
28 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 26 , wherein a transmitter of the plurality of transmitters is configured to encode as encoded data a signal comprising an antenna identifier for an antenna associated with the transmitter and the RF data, and wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit the encoded data to the antenna.
29 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 28 , wherein the electronic processing circuitry of the receiver is further configured to decode a second signal from the second plurality of signals to determine the signal comprising the antenna identifier and the RF data.
30 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 26 , wherein the electronic processing circuitry of the receiver is further configured to:
determine that the plurality of antenna identifiers does not include a second antenna identifier for the second antenna of the plurality of antennas; and
in response to determining that the plurality of antenna identifiers does not include the second antenna identifier for the second antenna, provide an indication corresponding to a failure of the second antenna.
31 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 26 , wherein the electronic processing circuitry of the receiver is configured to provide the indication corresponding to the failure of the first antenna for output on at least one of a display, a fire alarm control unit, or an annunciator panel.
32 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 26 , wherein the receiver utilizes the RF data for one or more of monitoring or analytics.
33 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 26 , wherein the plurality of transmitters is configured to selectively block one or more signals transmitted by at least some of antennas of the plurality of antennas.
34 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 33 , wherein the plurality of transmitters is configured to generate one or more RF signals that interfere with the one or more signals transmitted by at least some of the antennas of the plurality of antennas to selectively block the one or more signals transmitted by at least some of antennas of the plurality of antennas.
35 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 26 , wherein a transmitter of the plurality of transmitters is configured to detect presence of a computing device being in proximity with the transmitter to track movements of the computing device.
36 . An antenna monitoring system comprising:
a plurality of transmitters associated with a plurality of antennas, the plurality of transmitters being configured to:
monitor environmental data;
transmit a first plurality of signals and the environmental data to the plurality of antennas, a signal of the first plurality of signals comprising an antenna identifier for an antenna associated with a transmitter transmitting the signal; and
cause the plurality of antennas to transmit a second plurality of signals that include a plurality of antenna identifiers and the environmental data; and
a receiver comprising an electronic processing circuitry configured to:
receive the second plurality of signals from the plurality of antennas;
determine that the plurality of antenna identifiers included in the second plurality of signals does not include a first antenna identifier for a first antenna of the plurality of antennas;
in response to determining that the plurality of antenna identifiers does not include the first antenna identifier for the first antenna, provide an indication corresponding to a failure of the first antenna; and
determine and provide an indication of presence of at least one environmental condition using the environmental data included in the second plurality of signals.
37 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 36 , wherein the environmental data comprises one or more of temperature or humidity.
38 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 36 , wherein a transmitter of the plurality of transmitters is configured to encode as encoded data a signal comprising an antenna identifier for an antenna associated with the transmitter and the environmental data, and wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit the encoded data to the antenna.
39 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 38 , wherein the electronic processing circuitry of the receiver is further configured to decode a second signal from the second plurality of signals to determine the signal comprising the antenna identifier and the environmental data.
40 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 36 , wherein the electronic processing circuitry of the receiver is further configured to:
determine that the plurality of antenna identifiers does not include a second antenna identifier for a second antenna of the plurality of antennas; and
in response to determining that the plurality of antenna identifiers does not include the second antenna identifier for the second antenna, provide an indication corresponding to a failure of the second antenna.
41 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 36 , wherein the electronic processing circuitry of the receiver is configured to provide the indication corresponding to the failure of the first antenna for output on at least one of a display, a fire alarm control unit, or an annunciator panel.
42 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 36 , wherein the receiver utilizes the environmental data for one or more of monitoring or analytics.
43 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 36 , wherein the plurality of transmitters is configured to selectively block one or more signals transmitted by at least some of antennas of the plurality of antennas.
44 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 43 , wherein the plurality of transmitters is configured to generate one or more radio frequency (RF) signals that interfere with the one or more signals transmitted by at least some of the antennas of the plurality of antennas to selectively block the one or more signals transmitted by at least some of antennas of the plurality of antennas.
45 . The antenna monitoring system of claim 36 , wherein a transmitter of the plurality of transmitters is configured to detect presence of a computing device being in proximity with the transmitter to track movements of the computing device.