Existing software radio platforms constructed by discrete devices have many disadvantages, such as high power consumption, high cost, and poor portability. In this study, an AD9361-based software radio communication system was designed on the basis of the zero-IF bandpass sampling software radio structure to solve the poor universality and expansibility problem of traditional software radio receivers. In the AD9361-based software radio communication system, the influences of channels on received signals and the inter-symbol interference caused by the multipath configuration are offset and eliminated by the minimum mean-squared error (MMSE) equalization algorithm. The simulation analyses on the core functions, including group detection, frame synchronization, channel estimation, and frequency-domain equilibrium, of the designed receiver was performed by ModelSim. The receiving functions of the software radio were realized by the core radio frequency (RF) board of AD9361 and the digital baseband development board of ZC706. The signal frequency spectra received and sent by the designed receiver overlap on the basis of the joint debugging and testing of the RF and digital baseband modules. Test results demonstrate that the designed software radio receiver has a reasonable structural design and can meet the design requirements in terms of overall performance. Additionally, the repeated development process of traditional software radio receivers is simplified, and the integration level and expansibility of the system can be improved. The results can provide valuable references for the development of universal software radio receivers.
