MATLAB & Simulink
SIGNAL PROCESSING AND COMMUNICATIONS
Wireless Communications Systems Design with MATLAB and USRP Software-Defined Radios
Course Highlights
This two-day course shows how to design and simulate single- and multi-carrier digital communications systems using MATLAB. Multi-antenna and turbo-coded communication systems are introduced, and different channel impairments and their modeling are demonstrated. Components from LTE and IEEE 802.11 systems will be used as examples. Students will build a radio-in-the-loop system using real-time hardware (RTL-SDR and USRP).
The target audience for this course includes system engineers and RF engineers who need a fast ramp-up on modern communication techniques and the radio-in-the-loop workflow.
Prerequisite
MATLAB® Fundamentals and knowledge of digital communications systems.
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Upcoming Program

Techsource Systems is
Mathworks Sole and Authorised Distributor and Training Partner
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Please keep me posted on the next schedule
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Please contact me to arrange customized/ in-house training
Course Outline
Day 1 of 2
Communication Over a Noiseless Channel
Objective: Modeling an ideal single-carrier communications system and becoming familiar with System objects.
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Sampling theorem and aliasing
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Complex baseband versus real passband simulation
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Creating a random bit stream
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System objects and their benefits
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Modulating a bit stream using QPSK
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Applying pulse-shaping to the transmitted signal
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Eye diagrams and spectral analysis
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Modeling a QPSK receiver for a noiseless channel
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Computing bit error rate
Noisy Channels, Channel Coding, and Error Rates
Objective: Modeling an AWGN channel. Using convolutional, LDPC, and turbo codes to reduce bit error rate. Error correcting codes from DVB-S.2 and LTE systems are used as examples. Accelerating simulations using multiple cores.
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Modeling an AWGN channel
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Using channel coding and decoding: convolutional, LDPC, and turbo codes
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Trellis diagram and Viterbi decoding
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Using Parallel Computing Toolbox to accelerate Monte Carlo simulations
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Discussion of alternative acceleration methods: GPUs, MDCS, MATLAB Parallel Cloud
Timing and Frequency Errors and Multipath Channels
Objective: Modeling frequency offset, timing jitter errors, and mitigation using frequency and timing synchronization techniques. Modeling flat fading, multipath channels, and mitigation using equalizers.
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Modeling phase and timing offsets
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Mitigating frequency offset using a PLL
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Mitigating timing jitter using Gardner timing synchronization
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Modeling flat fading channels
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Channel estimation using training sequences
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Modeling frequency selective fading channels
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Using Viterbi equalizers for time-invariant channels and LMS linear equalizers for time-varying channels
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Demonstration of a real-time demodulation of single-carrier broadcast using RTL-SDR
Day 2 of 2
Multi-carrier Communications Systems for Multipath Channels
Objective: Understanding motivation for multi-carrier communications systems for frequency selective channels. Modeling an OFDM transceiver with a cyclic prefix and windowing. System parameter values from IEEE 802.11ac and LTE will be used.
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Motivation for multi-carrier communications
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Introduction to Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM)
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Generating OFDM symbols using the IFFT
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Preventing inter-block interference using a cyclic prefix
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Using windowing to reduce out-of-band emissions
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Advantages and disadvantages of OFDM
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Timing and frequency recovery methods for OFDM
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Channel estimation using pilot symbols
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Frequency domain equalization
Using Multiple Antennas for Robustness and Capacity Gains
Objective: Understanding alternative multiple antenna communications system. Modeling beamforming, diversity, and spatial multiplexing systems. Constructing a MIMO-OFDM system for wideband communications. MIMO modes of IEEE 802.11ac and LTE will be discussed.
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Advantages and types of multi-antenna systems
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Transmit and receive beamforming
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Receive diversity techniques
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Achieving transmit diversity using orthogonal space-time block codes
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Narrowband multiple input-multiple output (MIMO) channel model
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MIMO channel estimation
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Spatial multiplexing using ZF and MMSE equalization
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Wideband communications using an MIMO-OFDM system
Building a Radio-in-the-Loop System
Objective: Understanding the radio-in-the-loop development workflow. Using RTL-SDRs and USRPs as radio-in-the-loop development platforms.
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Overview of the radio-in-the-loop workflow
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MathWorks communications hardware support (RTL-SDR, USRP, Zynq-Based Radio)
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Hardware alternative comparison (pros/cons table)
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Different RIL transmit and receive modes (single burst, looped, streamed)
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Build an end-to-end single-antenna multi-carrier communications system using a USRP
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Demonstration of a 2x2 OFDM-MIMO over-the-air system using USRPs