Distributed antenna system and C-RAN system utilizing smart detection of surrounding environment
In one example, a system comprises a central unit and a radiating point located remotely from the central unit and communicatively coupled to the central unit. The radiating point is configured to provide radio frequency signals to a coverage zone via one or more antennas. The system further comprises a radar sensor communicatively coupled to the radiating point and configured to capture image data in the coverage zone of the radiating point, wherein the radar sensor includes a plurality of transmitters and receivers coupled to an antenna array. One or more components of the system are configured to determine user detection data for users in the coverage zone based on the image data captured by the radar sensor and adjust the power consumption of the radiating point based on the user detection data.
1. A system, comprising:
a central unit;
a radiating point located remotely from the central unit and communicatively coupled to the central unit, wherein the radiating point is configured to provide radio frequency signals to a coverage zone via one or more antennas, wherein an operating frequency range of the radiating point is approximately between 380 MHz and 3.8 GHz;
a radar sensor communicatively coupled to the radiating point and configured to capture image data in the coverage zone of the radiating point, wherein the radar sensor includes a plurality of transmitters and receivers coupled to an antenna array, wherein the radar sensor is configured to operate in a non-interfering frequency range compared to the operating frequency range of the radiating point;
wherein one or more components of the system are configured to:
determine user detection data for users in the coverage zone based on the image data captured by the radar sensor; and
adjust power consumption of the radiating point based on the user detection data.
2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the radiating point is configured to autonomously adjust the power consumption of the radiating point based on the user detection data.
3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the central unit is configured to receive the image data or the user detection data from the radiating point and provide a control signal to the radiating point to adjust the power consumption of the radiating point.
4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more components of the system are configured to adjust the power consumption of the radiating point by activating or deactivating at least one power amplifier of the radiating point.
5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the one or more components of the system are further configured to modify a speed of internal fans of the radiating point based on a number of active power amplifiers of the radiating point.
6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the radar sensor is configured to have approximately the same coverage area as the radiating point.
7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the user detection data includes a location of each detected user in the coverage zone of the radiating point.
8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the system is configured to modify a transmission power of the radiating point based on the location of the detected users in the coverage zone of the radiating point.
9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the central unit is further configured to dynamically allocate capacity to the radiating point based on the user detection data and other user detection data derived from image data captured by other radar sensors in coverage zones of different radiating points of the system.
10. The system of claim 9 , wherein the central unit is configured to prioritize distributing capacity to the radiating point when the user detection data indicates that a number of users in the coverage zone of the radiating point is higher than a number of users in a second coverage zone.
11. The system of claim 1 , wherein the radar sensor is integrated into a housing of the radiating point.
12. The system of claim 1 , wherein the radar sensor is mounted near the radiating point and communicatively coupled to the radiating point.
13. The system of claim 1 , wherein the system comprises a distributed antenna system, wherein the central unit is a master unit, wherein the radiating point is a remote antenna unit.
14. The system of claim 1 , wherein the system comprises a cloud radio access network system, wherein the central unit is a controller, wherein the radiating point is a radio point.
15. A method, comprising:
determining a number of users in a coverage area of a radiating point of a system based on image data captured by a radar sensor, wherein the radiating point is located remotely from a central unit of the system and communicatively coupled to the central unit, wherein the radiating point is configured to provide radio frequency signals to a coverage zone via one or more antennas, wherein an operating frequency range of the radiating point is approximately between 380 MHz and 3.8 GHz, wherein the radar sensor includes a plurality of transmitters and receivers coupled to an antenna array, wherein the radar sensor is configured to operate in a non-interfering frequency range compared to the operating frequency range of the radiating point; and
adjusting power consumption of the radiating point based on the number of users in the coverage area of the radiating point.
16. The method of claim 15 , wherein adjusting power consumption of the radiating point based on the number of users in the coverage area of the radiating point comprises at least one of:
activating at least one power amplifier of the radiating point when a user is in the coverage area of the radiating point;
deactivating the power amplifiers of the radiating point when no users are present in the coverage area of the radiating point; and
adjusting a speed of internal fans of the radiating point based on a number of power amplifiers of the radiating point that are activated.
17. The method of claim 16 , further comprising waiting a predetermined delay period prior to deactivating the power amplifiers of the radiating point when no users are present in the coverage area of the radiating point.
18. The method of claim 15 , further comprising dynamically allocating capacity to the radiating point based on the number of users in the coverage area of the radiating point.
19. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:
determining a position of detected users in the coverage area of the radiating point based on the image data captured by the radar sensor;
determining a distance between the detected users in the coverage area and the radiating point; and
adjusting power consumption of the radiating point based on a largest distance between a detected user and the radiating point.