RF transceiver

• US 10,346,732 B2
• Filed: 12/14/2017
• Issued: 07/09/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NXP B.V. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Original Assignee: NXP B.V. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Inventors: Philip, Melaine, Susplugas, Olivier
• Primary Examiner(s): Alunkal, Thomas D
• Application Number:
  US15/842,871
• Publication Number:
  US 20180165560A1
• Time in Patent Office: 572 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0705 the battery being connected to a power saving arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0712 the arrangement being capable of triggering distinct operating modes or functions dependent on the strength of an energy or interrogation field in the proximity of the record carrier active means for hindering electromagnetic reading or writing G06K19/07336
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/48 Transceivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/72 for local intradevice communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/77 for interrogation

Abstract

A RF transceiver for RF communication with a further RF transceiver is described. The RF transceiver comprises a RF transmitter; a clock generator coupled to the RF transmitter, the clock generator comprising a crystal oscillator circuit including an amplifier, a distance monitor configured to monitor the distance between the RF transceiver and the further RF transceiver; a controller coupled to the distance monitor and the clock generator. The controller is configured to vary the crystal oscillator swing amplitude dependent on the distance between the RF transceiver and the further RF transceiver.

Claims

1. A RF transceiver for short-range RF communication with a further RF transceiver, the RF transceiver comprising:

a RF transmitter;

a clock generator coupled to the RF transmitter, the clock generator comprising a crystal oscillator circuit including an amplifier,

a distance monitor configured to monitor the distance between the RF transceiver and the further RF transceiver;

a controller coupled to the distance monitor and the clock generator;

wherein the controller is configured to vary the crystal oscillator swing amplitude by varying a crystal power supply dependent on the distance between the RF transceiver and the further RF transceiver.

2. The RF transceiver of claim 1 further comprising a detector coupled to the controller, the detector being configured to detect the presence of the further RF transceiver;

wherein

the controller is further configured to;

vary the crystal oscillator swing amplitude in response to the presence of the further RF transceiver being detected.

3. The RF transceiver of claim 1, wherein the crystal oscillator circuit comprises a crystal oscillator voltage driver for supplying power to the crystal oscillator circuit amplifier and wherein the controller is configured to increase the crystal oscillator swing amplitude by increasing the voltage supplied to the crystal oscillator circuit amplifier from a first voltage to a second higher voltage in response to the monitored distance being above a predetermined distance threshold.

4. The RF transceiver of claim 3 wherein the controller is configured to increase the crystal oscillator swing amplitude by reducing the voltage supplied from the second voltage to the first voltage after a predetermined time period.

5. The RF transceiver of claim 3, wherein the controller is configured to reduce the voltage from the second voltage to the first voltage in response to the monitored distance being below a further predetermined distance threshold.

6. The RF transceiver of claim 3, wherein the controller is configured to reduce the crystal supply voltage from the second voltage to the first voltage when no further RF transceiver is detected.

7. The RF transceiver of claim 3, wherein the crystal oscillator voltage driver comprises a slope generator coupled to a voltage regulator and wherein the slope generator is operable to change the input voltage to the voltage regulator between the first voltage value and the second voltage value in response to a control signal from the controller.

8. The RF transceiver of claim 1, wherein the distance monitor comprises a current sensor configured to determine a value of the current consumption during RF transmission by the RF transceiver and wherein the current consumption value is indicative of a relative distance between the RF transceiver and a further RF transceiver.

9. The RF transceiver of claim 8 wherein the crystal oscillator supply voltage is reduced in response to the variation in current consumption increasing above a reference current threshold.

10. The RF transceiver of claim 1, wherein the distance monitor comprises an amplitude detector configured to detect the amplitude of a received signal from a further RF transceiver.

11. The RF transceiver of claim 1, wherein the crystal oscillator circuit comprises a variable gain amplifier and wherein the controller is configured to vary crystal oscillator swing amplitude by varying the gain of the amplifier.

12. An NFC reader comprising the RF transceiver of claim 2, wherein the controller is configured to:

detect the presence of a further NFC device;

in response to the detection, increase the oscillator swing amplitude;

in response to the monitored distance being below a predetermined threshold, decrease the oscillator swing amplitude;

in response to the monitored distance being above a predetermined threshold, increase the oscillator swing amplitude; and

in response to the presence of the further NFC device no longer being detected, reduce the oscillator swing amplitude.

13. A method of RF communication for an RF transceiver comprising a crystal oscillator circuit including an amplifier for providing a clock signal to the RF transceiver, the method comprising:

monitoring the distance between the RF transceiver and a further RF transceiver; and

varying the crystal oscillator amplitude swing by varying a crystal power supply dependent on the distance between the RF transceiver and the further RF transceiver.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising detecting the presence of a further RF transceiver and varying the crystal oscillator amplitude swing by varying the supply voltage in response to the presence of a further RF transceiver being detected.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising varying the amplitude swing by varying the crystal oscillator supply current in response to the presence of a further RF transceiver being detected.