Method and apparatus for converting optical signals to radio channels

• US 20060164271A1
• Filed: 03/08/2004
• Published: 07/27/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Weiss, Beat, Hirt, Walter, Gfeller, Fritz
• Granted Patent: US 7,356,019 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 341/143
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/7174 Pulse generation in general H04L25/03834
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/7176 Data mapping, e.g. modulation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/18 Information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by the network of the transmitted or received information for the purpose of wireless delivery to users or terminals

Abstract

The invention relates to a conversion of a pulse modulated signal to a radio frequency signal enableing use of applications and protocols designed for wireless optical links on radio frequency channels. The method comprises receiving the pulse modulated input signal, decoding the received pulse modulated input signal into a decoded data bit-stream, encoding the decoded data bit-stream into a recoded data bit-stream, under use of the recoded data bit-stream modulating a radio frequency signal, and transmitting the modulated radio frequency signal. In the receiver path a received radio frequency signal is converted to a pulse modulated output signal by the steps of demodulating the received radio frequency signal into a demodulated data bit-stream, decoding the demodulated data bit-stream into a received data bit-stream, encoding the received data bit-stream into a pulse modulated output signal, and forwarding the pulse modulated output signal.

Claims

1-14. -14. (canceled)

15. A method for converting a pulse modulated input signal (A) to a radio frequency signal (D, E), the method comprising the steps of:

i.) receiving the pulse modulated input signal (A);

ii.) decoding the received pulse modulated input signal (A) into a decoded data bit-stream (B);

iv.) modulating a radio frequency signal (D, E) with the decoded data bit-stream (B); and

v.) transmitting the modulated radio frequency signal (D, E), wherein the pulse modulated input signal (A) is an optical signal that is converted to an electrical signal for charging a battery used to operate a transverter.

16. The method according to claim 15, further comprising the step of iii.) encoding the decoded data bit-stream (B) into a recoded data bit-stream (C);

and amending the subsequent step to iv.) modulating the radio frequency signal (D, E) with the recoded data bit-stream (B).

17. The method according to claim 16 further for converting a received radio frequency signal (F, G) to a pulse modulated output signal (J) further comprising the steps of:

vi.) demodulating the received radio frequency signal (F, G) into a demodulated data bit-stream (H);

vii.) decoding the demodulated data bit-stream (H) into a received data bit-stream (I);

iix.) encoding the received data bit-stream (I) into the pulse modulated output signal (J); and

ix.) forwarding the pulse modulated output signal (J).

18. The method according to claim 15, wherein the pulse modulated input signal (A) is received from an optical controller (1).

19. The method according to claim 15, further comprising amplifying the modulated radio frequency signal (D) to an amplified modulated radio frequency signal (E).

20. The method according to claim 15, wherein the pulse modulated input signal (A) is based on the IrDA specification and the radio frequency signal (D, E) is based on an ultra-wideband (UWB) signal specification and/or the pulse modulated output signal (J) is adapted to the IrDA specification and the received radio frequency signal (F, G) bases on an ultra-wideband (UWB) signal specification.

21. A transverter for converting a pulse modulated input signal (A) to a radio frequency signal (D, E) comprising:

a signal decoder unit for decoding the pulse modulated input signal (A) into a decoded data bit-stream (B); and

a radio frequency modulator for modulating a radio frequency signal (D, E) with the decoded data bit-stream (B), wherein the pulse modulated input signal (A) is an optical signal that is converted to an electrical signal for charging a battery used to operate the transverter.

22. The transverter of claim 21, further comprising a data encoder unit for encoding the decoded data bit-stream (B) into a recoded data bit-stream (C);

and wherein the radio frequency modulator is adapted to modulate the radio frequency signal (D, E) with the recoded data bit-stream (C).

23. The transverter of claim 22 for further converting a received radio frequency signal (F, G) to a pulse modulated output signal (J), comprising:

a demodulator unit for demodulating the received radio frequency signal (F, G) into a demodulated data bit-stream (H);

a data decoder unit for decoding the demodulated data bit-stream (H) into a received data bit-stream (I); and

a signal encoder unit for encoding the received data bit-stream (I) into the pulse modulated output signal (J).

24. The transverter according to claim 22, comprising a transverter controller.

25. The transverter according to claim 23, comprising a transverter controller.

26. The transverter according to claim 21, comprising an optical transceiver and an optical window which attenuates an optical signal received and/or sent by the optical transceiver.

27. The transverter according to claim 22, comprising an optical transceiver and an optical window which attenuates an optical signal received and/or sent by the optical transceiver.

28. The transverter according to claim 23, comprising an optical transceiver and an optical window which attenuates an optical signal received and/or sent by the optical transceiver.

29. The transverter according to claim 24, comprising an optical transceiver and an optical window which attenuates an optical signal received and/or sent by the optical transceiver.

30. The transverter according to claim 21, being part of a mobile device using the IrDA protocol specification and/or an UWB-RF signal specification.

31. The transverter according to claim 22, being part of a mobile device using the IrDA protocol specification and/or an UWB-RF signal specification.

32. The transverter according to claim 23, being part of a mobile device using the IrDA protocol specification and/or an UWB-RF signal specification.

33. The transverter according to claim 24, being part of a mobile device using the IrDA protocol specification and/or an UWB-RF signal specification.

34. The transverter according to claim 25, being part of a mobile device using the IrDA protocol specification and/or an UWB-RF signal specification.