Near-optimal decoding for coded and power-controlled DS-CDMA downlink

We first present the traditional decoding approach that employs the common pilot-channel-based maximal ratio combining and the Viterbi or iterative decoding cannot achieve the optimal error-rate performance for downlink direct-sequence code-division multiple-access (CDMA) signals when a fast power control technique is applied together with a convolutional or turbo coding. Then, as an efficient method to realize a nearly optimal decoding, we propose a branch metric power readjustment (BMPR) technique, where the downlink power control command generated by the mobile station is used not only to adjust the base station power in the transmitter side, but also to readjust the decoder input branch metric power in the receiver side. Numerical results show that the BMPR technique applied to the IMT-2000 wideband-CDMA system can improve the transmit power utilization by up to 0.4 dB for the block-error rate of 10^-2.