Field of the Invention
[0001] The invention relates to the field of wireless non-public network, particularly to
a method for detecting an interfering communication signal in the wireless non-public
network. The invention further relates to an app, a communication device, a system,
and to a use.
Background
[0002] So-called wireless non-public networks offer powerful communication capabilities,
for example a greater capacity, scalability, increased bandwidth, lower latency, and
further benefits. Therefore, said wireless non-public networks become widely used
for commercial purposes, e.g. for industrial plants or agricultural systems. However,
since administration is no longer necessarily done by a telecommunication company,
it may require considerable resources for a private administration to detect an interfering
signal, e.g. caused by an external jammer.
Description
[0003] It is an objective of the disclosure to provide a method for detecting at least some
types of interfering signals. This objective is achieved by the subject-matter of
the independent claims. Further embodiments are evident from the dependent claims
and the following description.
[0004] One aspect relates to a method for detecting an interfering communication signal
in a wireless non-public network, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a plurality of communication devices capable of receiving signals in a predefined
spectrum, each one of the plurality of communication devices located in a known place;
monitoring, by each one of the plurality of communication devices, for each frequency
band in the predefined spectrum, the interfering communication signal;
transmitting, by each one of the plurality of communication devices, the monitored
interfering communication signal and the communication device's known place to a centralized
network management entity; and
detecting, by the centralized network management entity, the interfering communication
signal, based on the monitored interfering communication signal and the known place
transmitted by each one of the plurality of communication devices.
[0005] A wireless non-public network may be a network having a private ownership and having
the capability of being administered by a private centralized network management entity.
The licence for the wireless non-public network is usually limited by a predefined
area and limited to a predefined set of frequency bands or channels to be used. Examples
of wireless non-public networks may comprise so-called 5G NPNs (5
th Generation Non-Public Network), e.g. a Standalone Non-Public Network (SNPN) or a
Public network integrated NPN (PNI-NPN), a 6G NPN, a 7G NPN, and/or a wireless non-public
network that fulfils the above definitions.
[0006] An interfering signal or an interfering communication signal may be a signal that
is strong enough to disturb a regular communication in a wireless non-public network.
The interfering signal may be caused, for example, by neighbouring senders that are
too strong and/or use at least one of the frequency bands of the wireless non-public
network. Further examples may comprise a so-called jammer, which sends - unintentionally
or intentionally - radio waves that interfere with frequency band(s) of the wireless
non-public network.
[0007] The communication devices may be regular communication devices, i.e. devices that
are configured for regular use in the area of interest, e.g. communication devices
for industrial and/or agricultural machines, particularly for Future Industrial Systems.
The communication devices may also comprise fixed devices - e.g. sensors, actuators,
controllers - that have a unit for wireless communication. The communication devices
may further comprise mobile devices like smartphones, pads, laptops, and the like.
It should be noted that the method described above and/or below does advantageously
not need specialized communication devices, that are configured for interference detection.
However, if necessary, those devices may also be integrated into this method, as far
as technically feasible.
[0008] The communication devices need to be capable to receive at least the predefined frequency
bands (aka channels or spectra) that are allowed and/or licensed for the wireless
non-public network of interest. The predefined frequency bands may comprise spectra
within the so-called "mid-band spectrum" (1 GHz - 6 GHz). This is considered as advantageous
for the intended applications, because it can carry plenty of data while traveling
significant distances. Particularly for 5G networks, a spectrum between 3.3 GHz and
3.8 GHz is considered as advantageous, e.g. by the GSM Association (GSMA).
[0009] The communication devices are located in a known place. "Known place" may mean for
a fixed device that its position is known from a database and/or from a message sent
by this device. "Known place" may mean for a mobile device that its position is known
from any positioning system, e.g. based on a satellite (like GPS and/or other country-
or region-specific ones), on a corrected satellite, on position-determining systems,
like the ones based, e.g., on WLAN or Bluetooth, and/or other systems that allow to
determine the device's position precisely enough for this method and/or for the wireless
non-public network of interest. Communication devices that are located at the same
place - or very close to each other, depending on the required position - may be evaluated
as one device.
[0010] Due to the fact that the communication devices are capable to receive at least the
predefined frequency bands, each one of the plurality of communication devices is
able to monitor, for each frequency band in the predefined spectrum, the interfering
communication signal. The monitoring may be done on demand or periodically. The monitoring
demand and/or its periodicity may be controlled by the centralized network management
entity. The monitoring on demand may be initiated by the centralized network management
entity for checking the functionality of the system; this may be done, e.g., once
per day. The monitoring on demand may, further, be initiated by the centralized network
management entity as soon as at least one of the communication devices transmits an
"interference occurred" message. The periodic monitoring may, for instance, be performed
0.1, 1, 10, 100 times per second, i.e. quite rarely, compared to the "productive"
communication. The periodicity may be changed from time to time. The periodicity may
depend on the vulnerability of the system and/or on other factors. The monitoring
may be followed (possibly immediately) by transmitting the monitored information.
[0011] The monitored interfering communication signal may be transmitted, along with the
communication device's known place, to the centralized network management entity.
The transmitting may be done on a regular basis and/or if an interfering signal has
been monitored by at least one of the communication devices. The transmitting may
further be done on request by the centralized network management entity. The centralized
network management entity may be similar, equal to and/or based on 5G's NME (Network
Management Engine). The centralized network management entity may collect said transmitted
information.
[0012] The transmitted information may be used by the centralized network management entity
to detect the interfering communication signal, i.e. to determine at least an existence
of the interfering communication signal.
[0013] The method advantageously uses the existing communication devices - and also already
existing infrastructure and communication technology - to detect and/or to determine
an interfering communication signal. Particularly, no dedicated receivers are necessary
for detecting the interfering signal. Furthermore, several types of interfering signals
can be detected, i.e. both jammers that spread over several frequencies or channels,
and also interfering signals that have impact on only one channel, and, of course,
anything in between.
[0014] In various embodiments, monitoring the communication signal comprises measuring a
signal strength of the interfering communication signal. Measuring the signal strength
may, e.g., be performed by using the Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI). Knowing
the signal strength may be relevant for evaluating the seriousness of the impact.
[0015] In various embodiments, the method further comprises the step of stopping, by the
centralized network management entity, any communication in the wireless non-public
network, while monitoring the communication signal. The stopping may be called to
define a "quiet slot". The stopping may be eased by the fact that in the wireless
non-public network exists the centralized network management entity, which is able
to control all the devices of this non-public network. For Orthogonal Frequency Division
Multiple Access (OFDMA) systems - e.g. 5G NR, WiFi6, and/or others - the stopping
may be implemented by allocating certain slots for sniffing for all subcarriers. By
stopping any communication in the wireless non-public network, the interfering signal
advantageously remains the only communication signal that is received by the plurality
of communication devices. This may lead to a very precise determination of the existence,
the type and/or the location of the interfering signal's source.
[0016] In various embodiments, determining the interfering communication signal comprises
determining an existence and/or a location of a jammer that sends the interfering
communication signal. Countermeasures and/or other reactions may be based on this
information.
[0017] In various embodiments, the method further comprises the step of mitigating, based
on determining the interfering communication signal, the effect of the interfering
communication signal. The mitigating may comprise avoiding the spectrum of the interfering
communication signal and/or sending an alarm that contains the spectrum of the interfering
communication signal. The mitigating may further comprise enabling or increasing redundancy
measures to enhance the reliability of the communication, and/or reconfiguring physical
layer parameters of the wireless communication technology to enhance the network's
resilience to errors.
[0018] In some embodiments, the wireless non-public network is a local 5G Non-Public Network,
NPN. Using the 5G NPN may have the advantage that the communication is precisely defined
by a standardization committee. This may, further, lead to lower costs of the components
used.
[0019] An aspect relates to an app for a communication device that is configured for performing
at least parts of a method described above and/or below.
[0020] An aspect relates to a communication device with an app as described above and/or
below.
[0021] An aspect relates to a system comprising a plurality of communication devices as
described above and/or below and a centralized network management entity, wherein
the system is configured for performing a method as described above and/or below.
[0022] An aspect relates to a use of the system described above and/or below for a communication
within a Future Industrial System.
[0023] For further elucidation, the disclosure is described by means of embodiments shown
in the figures. These embodiments are to be considered as examples only, but not as
limiting.
Brief Description of the Drawings
[0024] The drawings depict:
- Fig. 1
- schematically a wireless non-public network according to an embodiment;
- Fig. 2
- schematically communication channels according to an embodiment;
- Fig. 3
- a flow diagram according to an embodiment.
Detailed Description of Embodiments
[0025] Fig. 1 shows schematically a wireless non-public network 10 according to an embodiment.
The wireless non-public network 10 comprises a plurality of communication devices
14x (= 14a- 14g) and 16x (= 16a, 16b). Communication devices 14x are fixed devices,
communication devices 16x are mobile devices, whose direction of movement is depicted
by several overlapping circles. Each one of the communication devices 14x, 16x is
capable of receiving signals in a predefined spectrum or frequency band. The predefined
frequency bands may be the frequency bands that are allowed and/or licensed for this
wireless non-public network 10. The wireless non-public network 10 further comprises
a centralized network management entity, which is configured for controlling and/or
communicating with the communication devices 14x, 16x. The wireless non-public network
10 may have a neighbouring wireless non-public network 20, which may use different
frequency bands. The neighbouring wireless non-public network 20 has, analogously,
communication devices 24a - 24c and a neighbouring centralized network management
entity 22.
[0026] The scenario shown further comprises an interfering device or jammer 30, which may
send interfering communication signals, e.g. affecting several channels. The interfering
signals of the jammer 30 can be monitored within an interference radius 35. Hence,
the interfering signals can be monitored by the communication devices 14b, 14c, 14d,
16b, and 14e. The monitored interfering signal, along with the communication devices'
known places, are then transmitted to the centralized network management entity 12.
Optionally, also the signal strength of the interfering communication signal may be
transmitted. With this information, at least an existence of the interfering signal
be detected. In some embodiments, also the location of the jammer 30 can be detected.
[0027] With the method described above and/or below, also a different type of interfering
signal can be detected. If, for instance, the neighbouring communication device 24b
sends - e.g. erroneously - an interfering communication signal, this may be detected
by communication device 14c, although the signal of device 24b may only affect one
or two channels of the wireless non-public network 10. As a short-time countermeasure,
the affected channels may be blocked by the centralized network management entity
12. As a mid-term countermeasure, the owner and/or administrator of the neighbouring
wireless non-public network 20 may be informed.
[0028] Fig. 2 shows schematically communication channels Ch [1] to Ch [5] according to an embodiment.
The communication channels may be the ones the wireless non-public network 10 has
licensed. It can be seen that several communication devices - e.g. communication devices
14x, 16x of
Fig. 1 - use one or more of the channels Ch [1] to Ch [5] for their regular communication
40. In some slots, an interfering signal 32 can be detected. The interfering communication
signal 32 may come from a jammer 30 or from an interfering neighbouring communication
device 24b. For a clear detection of the interfering signal 32, a quiet slot 50 may
be inserted, e.g. controlled by the centralized network management entity 12. As an
effect of inserting the quiet slot 50, all regular or "productive" communication 40
is stopped, and only the interfering signal 32 is detectable by communication devices
14x, 16x. Since the quiet slot 50 is intended to occur only rarely, the performance
decrease on the "productive" communication 40 is quite small.
[0029] Fig. 3 shows a flow diagram 100 of a method for detecting an interfering signal in a wireless
non-public network 10 (see
Fig. 1) according to an embodiment. In a step 102, a plurality of communication devices 14x,
16x is provided. The communication devices 14x, 16x are capable of receiving signals
in a predefined spectrum. Each one of the plurality of communication devices 14x,
16x is located in a known place. In a step 104, the interfering communication signal
is monitored by each one of the plurality of communication devices 14x, 16x and for
each frequency band in the predefined spectrum. In a step 106, the monitored interfering
communication signal and the communication device's known place are transmitted to
a centralized network management entity 12. This is done by each one of the plurality
of communication devices 14x, 16x. In a step 108, the interfering communication signal
is detected by the centralized network management entity 12. The detecting is based
on the monitored interfering communication signal and the known place transmitted
by each one of the plurality of communication devices 14x, 16x. The steps described
may be performed on demand or periodically.
List of Reference Symbols
[0030]
- 10
- wireless non-public network
- 12
- centralized network management entity
- 14x
- fixed device
- 16x
- mobile device
- 20
- neighbouring wireless non-public network
- 22
- neighbouring centralized network management entity
- 24x
- neighbouring fixed devices
- 30
- jammer
- 32
- an interfering signal
- 35
- interference radius
- 40
- regular communication
- 50
- quiet slot
- 100
- flow diagram
1. A method for detecting an interfering communication signal (32) in a wireless non-public
network (10), the method comprising the steps of:
providing a plurality of communication devices (14x, 16x) capable of receiving signals
in a predefined spectrum, each one of the plurality of communication devices (14x,
16x) located in a known place;
monitoring, by each one of the plurality of communication devices (14x, 16x), for
each frequency band in the predefined spectrum, the interfering communication signal;
transmitting, by each one of the plurality of communication devices (14x, 16x), the
monitored interfering communication signal and the communication device's known place
to a centralized network management entity (12); and
detecting, by the centralized network management entity (12), the interfering communication
signal (32), based on the monitored interfering communication signal and the known
place transmitted by each one of the plurality of communication devices (14x, 16x).
2. The method of claim 1,
wherein the monitoring is performed on demand or periodically.
3. The method of claim 2,
wherein the periodic monitoring is performed 0.1, 1, 10, 100 times per second.
4. The method of any one of the preceding claims,
wherein a communication device of the plurality of communication devices (14x, 16x)
is a fixed device (14x) or a mobile device (16x).
5. The method of any one of the preceding claims,
wherein monitoring the interfering communication signal (32) comprises measuring a
signal strength of the interfering communication signal (32).
6. The method of any one of the preceding claims, further comprising the step of:
stopping, by the centralized network management entity (12), any communication in
the wireless non-public network (10), while monitoring the interfering communication
signal (32).
7. The method of any one of the preceding claims,
wherein determining the interfering communication signal comprises determining an
existence and/or a location of a jammer (30) that sends the interfering communication
signal (32).
8. The method of any one of the preceding claims, further comprising the step of:
mitigating, based on determining the interfering communication signal, the effect
of the interfering communication signal (32).
9. The method of claim 8,
wherein mitigating comprises avoiding the spectrum of the interfering communication
signal and/or sending an alarm that contains the spectrum of the interfering communication
signal (32).
10. The method of any one of the preceding claims,
wherein the wireless non-public network (10) is a local 5G Non-Public Network, NPN.
11. An app for a communication device (14x, 16x), configured for performing at least parts
of a method of any one of the preceding claims.
12. A communication device (14x, 16x) with an app according to claim 11.
13. A system comprising a plurality of communication devices (14x, 16x) according to claim
12 and a centralized network management entity (12), the system configured for performing
a method of any one of the claims 1-10.
14. Use of a system according to claim 13 for a communication and for detecting an interfering
communication signal within a Future Industrial System.