Network-Turbo-Coding based Cooperation with Distributed Space-Time Block Codes

Inhalt:
In this paper, we propose a scheme to improve the performance of turbo-coded two-user cooperative uplink transmission. In the proposed scheme, each user transmits its partner’s second parity frame in addition to its own, using a network coded combination which is further protected by a space-time block code (STBC). The proposed system is simulated in slow and fast fading environments. Numerical simulation results indicate that for slow fading, the proposed scheme can yield up to 20% increase in data throughput compared to the traditional distributed turbo coding (DTC), while simultaneously providing a gain of 0.6dB in bit error rate (BER). This latter gain rises to approximately 2dB when a fast fading environment is considered.