Analog Beam Tracking in Linear Antenna Arrays: Convergence, Optimality, and Performance

TL;DR

This paper introduces a recursive beam tracking algorithm for mmWave analog antenna arrays that achieves fast, accurate, and low-overhead tracking of high-speed mobiles, outperforming existing methods in static and dynamic scenarios.

Contribution

The paper presents a novel recursive beam tracking algorithm that converges to the CRLB in static cases and effectively tracks fast-moving mobiles with low pilot overhead.

Findings

Converges to the CRLB in static scenarios

Tracks mobiles at 10-20 degrees/sec at 0dB SNR

Outperforms several state-of-the-art algorithms

Abstract

The directionality of millimeter-wave (mmWave) communications creates a significant challenge in serving fast-moving mobile terminals on, e.g., high-speed vehicles, trains, and UAVs. This challenge is exacerbated in mmWave systems using analog antenna arrays, because of the inherent non-convexity in the control of the phase shifters. In this paper, we develop a recursive beam tracking algorithm which can simultaneously achieve fast tracking speed, high tracking accuracy, low complexity, and low pilot overhead. In static scenarios, this algorithm converges to the minimum Cram\'er-Rao lower bound (CRLB) of beam tracking with high probability. In dynamic scenarios, even at SNRs as low as 0dB, our algorithm is capable of tracking a mobile moving randomly at an absolute angular velocity of 10-20 degrees per second, using only 5 pilot symbols per second. If combining with a simple TDMA pilot pattern, this algorithm can track hundreds of high-speed mobiles in 5G configurations. Our simulations show that the tracking performance of this algorithm is much better than several state-of-the-art algorithms.