Predictor Antenna: A Technique to Boost the Performance of Moving Relays
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In future wireless systems, a large number of users may access wireless networks via moving relays (MRs) installed on top of public transportation vehicles. One of the main challenges of MRs is the rapid channel variation which may make the channel estimation, and its following procedures, difficult. To overcome these issues, various schemes have been designed, among which predictor antenna (PA) is a candidate technology. The PA system refers to a setup with two sets of antennas on top of a vehicle, where the PA(s) positioned at the front of the vehicle is used to predict the channel state information required for data transmission to the receive antennas (RAs) aligned behind the PA. In this paper, we introduce the concept and the potentials of PA systems. Moreover, summarizing the initial field trials for PA systems and the 3GPP attempts on moving relays, we compare the performance of different PA and non-PA methods for vehicle communications in both urban and rural areas with the PA setup backhauled through terrestrial or satellite technology, respectively. As we show, a dedicated PA deployment has the potential to improve the backhaul performance of MRs.
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