Power control in telecommunications networks

Abstract

A method for controlling a radio frequency (RF) transmitter, the method having an integrating controller to produce a reference value of a first quality measure from a first error signal; producing an estimated value of the first quality measure relating to an actual value of the first quality measure; and supplying a tracking signal related to the estimated value of the first quality measure and the reference value of a first quality measure to the reference integrating controller.

1 . A method for controlling a radio frequency (RF) transmitter, the method comprising:
 using an integrating controller to produce a reference value of a first quality measure from a first error signal wherein the first error signal is based on a reference value of a second quality measure and an estimated value of the second quality measure;   producing an estimated value of the first quality measure relating to an actual value of the first quality measure; and   supplying a tracking signal related to the estimated value of the first quality measure and the reference value of a first quality measure to the integrating controller.   
   
   
       2 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the first error signal is based on a reference value of a second quality measure and an estimated value of the second quality measure. 
   
   
       3 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the first error signal is the difference between the reference value of the second quality measure and the estimated value of the second quality measure. 
   
   
       4 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the second quality measure is one of block error rate (BLER), bit error rate (BER), frame error rate (FER), a number of iterations performed by a decoder, or a value based on reliability of decision statistics. 
   
   
       5 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the tracking signal is the difference between the reference value of the first quality measure and the estimated value of the first quality measure. 
   
   
       6 . A method as claimed in  claim 5 , wherein the first quality measure is a signal to interference ratio (SIR). 
   
   
       7 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the integrating controller is one of a proportional integrating (PI) controller or a proportional integrating derivative (PID) controller. 
   
   
       9 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the reference value of the second quality measure is set to produce a desired actual value of the second quality measure of the received signal. 
   
   
       10 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the reference value of the first quality measure is set to produce a desired actual value of the first quality measure of the received signal. 
   
   
       11 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the reference value of the first quality measure is set to produce a command indicative of a desired change in transmission power. 
   
   
       12 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the tracking signal is filtered before being supplied to the integrating controller. 
   
   
       13 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the integrating controller is operable to not update the integrator if the tracking signal indicates that an update would not be advisable. 
   
   
       14 . A controller for controlling a radio frequency (RF) transmitter, the method comprising:
 an integrating controller operable to produce a reference value of a first quality measure from a first error signal, wherein the first error signal is based on a reference value of a second quality measure and an estimated value of the second quality measure;   an estimator operable to produce an estimated value of the first quality measure relating to an actual value of the first quality measure; and   a tracking unit operable to supply a tracking signal related to the estimated value of the first quality measure and the reference value of a first quality measure to the integrating controller.   
   
   
       15 . A controller as claimed in  claim 14 , wherein the first error signal is based on a reference value of a second quality measure and an estimated value of the second quality measure. 
   
   
       16 . A controller as claimed in  claim 15 , wherein the first error signal is the difference between the reference value of the second quality measure and the estimated value of the second quality measure. 
   
   
       17 . A controller as claimed in  claim 14 , wherein the second quality measure is one of block error rate (BLER), bit error rate (BER), frame error rate (FER), a number of iterations performed by a decoder, or a value based on reliability of decision statistics. 
   
   
       18 . A controller as claimed in  claim 14 , wherein the tracking signal is the difference between the reference value of the first quality measure and the estimated value of the first quality measure. 
   
   
       19 . A controller as claimed in  claim 14 , wherein the first quality measure is a signal to interference ratio (SIR). 
   
   
       20 . A controller as claimed in  claim 14 , wherein the integrating controller is one of a proportional integrating (PI) controller or a proportional integrating derivative (PID) controller. 
   
   
       21 . A controller as claimed in  claim 14 , wherein the reference value of the second quality measure is set to produce a desired actual value of the second quality measure of the received signal. 
   
   
       22 . A controller as claimed in  claim 14 , wherein the reference value of the first quality measure is set to produce a desired actual value of the first quality measure of the received signal. 
   
   
       23 . A controller as claimed in  claim 14 , wherein the reference value of the first quality measure is set to produce a command indicative of a desired change in transmission power. 
   
   
       24 . A controller as claimed in  claim 14 , wherein the tracking unit is operable to filter the tracking signal. 
   
   
       25 . A controller as claimed in  claim 14 , wherein the tracking unit is operable to set the adjusted tracking signal to zero if the absolute value of the tracking signal is less than a predetermined threshold value. 
   
   
       26 . A controller as claimed in  claim 14 , wherein the integrating controller is operable to not update the integrator if the tracking signal indicates that an update would not be advisable.