Implementation and demonstration of receiver-coordinated distributed transmit beamforming across an ad-hoc radio network

Distributed transmit beamforming using an ad-hoc network of 10 RF transmitters was demonstrated using radio nodes developed from off-the-shelf components and modules. A time-slotted protocol allowed carrier phases from each transmitter to be measured at a receiver and fed back to the transmitters where Kalman filters were used to predict the offset phases and frequencies. Offsets were digitally compensated for during beamforming intervals. Beamforming gain within 0.1dB of ideal was demonstrated across 1 km at 910MHz. This is the first report (to our knowledge) of a successful outdoor RF distributed transmit beamforming experiment using independent clocks at this scale.