Real-time processing of a software defined W-CDMA modem

As the code division multiple access (CDMA) based third generation cellular infrastructure requires high performance signal processing in the baseband modem, a common approach of chip rate processing has been to use an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or field programmable gate array (FPGA) implementation. The use of digital signal processors (DSP) is explored for a wideband CDMA (W-CDMA) channel modem with the goal of increasing flexibility. Design concepts of a software defined radio (SDR) platform we implemented are presented, including its hardware-software architecture and test results. Practical issues for the optimization of DSP software are also discussed in detail.