On the Potential of Uplink Beamforming in Vehicular Networks Based on Experimental Measurements

This work evaluates the concept of uplink beamforming for vehicular communications in the sub-6 GHz frequency bands to improve throughput, latency and coverage of the vehicle to Base Station (BS) link. The data recorded in the experimental measurements using live cellular signals are used to study the performance of two direction acquisition methods: the Angle of Arrival (AoA) estimation and downlink-based beam sweep. Next, the feasibility of signal tracking techniques exploiting the location of the vehicle and the BS are investigated to alleviate the need for continuous direction acquisition. The results show that the downlink-based beam sweep leads to higher Signal to Interference and Noise Ratio (SINR) than beamforming based on the estimated AoA. Evaluated tracking techniques are shown to be capable of correctly estimating the beamforming angle for distances in order of hundreds of meters when BS's location is known to the vehicle.