TECHNIQUES TO CONTROL A SHARED ANTENNA ARCHITECTURE FOR MULTIPLE CO-LOCATED RADIO MODULES

• US 20110111708A1
• Filed: 10/08/2010
• Published: 05/12/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Palm, Inc. (TCL Technology Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Robinson, Mike, Beninghaus, James, Tu, Jerome C.
• Granted Patent: US 8,583,057 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/0053 with common antenna for more than one band
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/02 including a Bluetooth interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/06 including a wireless LAN interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/028 switching on or off only a part of the equipment circuit blocks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/1215 for collaboration of different radio technologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Techniques to control a shared antenna architecture for multiple co-located radio modules is disclosed. For example, a method may comprise receiving power state information for a set of transceivers, receiving activity information for the set of transceivers, and generating control signals for simultaneous operations or mutually-exclusive operations for a shared antenna structure connecting the set of transceivers to an antenna based on the power state information and activity information. Other embodiments are disclosed and claimed.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

an antenna;

a first radio module having a first transceiver to communicate wirelessly across a first link and a first communications controller to control the first transceiver;

a second radio module having a second transceiver to communicate wirelessly across a second link and a second communications controller to control the second transceiver;

a shared antenna structure communicatively coupled to the first radio module, the second radio module and the antenna, the shared antenna structure comprising a combiner and at least one switch arranged to allow the first transceiver and the second transceiver to share the antenna for simultaneous operations or mutually-exclusive operations; and

a host processor communicatively coupled to the shared antenna structure, the host processor to execute a first antenna control module arranged to receive power state information and activity information for the first and second transceivers, and control the shared antenna structure for simultaneous operations or mutually-exclusive operations based on the power state information and activity information.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, the shared antenna structure comprising a first switch communicatively coupled to the first transceiver, a second switch communicatively coupled to the second transceiver, a combiner communicatively coupled to the first and second switches, and a third switch communicatively coupled to the first switch, the second switch and the combiner.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, the shared antenna structure comprising a first switch communicatively coupled to the first transceiver, a second switch communicatively coupled to the second transceiver, a combiner communicatively coupled to the first and second switches, a third switch communicatively coupled to the first switch, the second switch, the combiner and a diplexer, and a fourth switch communicatively coupled to the first transceiver and the diplexer.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, the first antenna control module to send a control signal to switch the at least one switch to a first switch position to form a first signal path between the first transceiver and the antenna without the combiner in the first signal path to allow mutually-exclusive operations for the first transceiver when the power state information indicates only the first transceiver is in a power-on state.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, the first antenna control module to send a control signal to switch the at least one switch to a second switch position to form a second signal path between the second transceiver and the antenna without the combiner in the second signal path to allow mutually-exclusive operations for the second transceiver when the power state information indicates only the second transceiver is in a power-on state.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, the first antenna control module to send a control signal to switch the at least one switch to a third switch position to form a third and fourth signal path between each of the respective first and second transceivers and the antenna with the combiner in the third and fourth signal paths to allow simultaneous operations for the first and second transceivers when the power state information indicates the first and second transceivers are both in a power-on state and the activity information indicates the first and second transceivers are both in an active state.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, the first communications controller comprising a second antenna control module arranged to control the shared antenna structure for simultaneous operations or mutually-exclusive operations when the power state information indicates the first and second transceivers are both in a power-on state and the activity information indicates the first and second transceivers are both in an idle state.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, the second antenna control module to send a control signal to switch the at least one switch to a first switch position to form a first signal path between the first transceiver and the antenna without the combiner in the first signal path to allow mutually-exclusive operations for the first transceiver when the activity information indicates only the first transceiver is in an active state.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, the second antenna control module to send a control signal to switch the at least one switch to a second switch position to form a second signal path between the second transceiver and the antenna without the combiner in the second signal path to allow mutually-exclusive operations for the second transceiver when the activity information indicates the first transceiver is in an idle state.

10. The apparatus of claim 7, the second antenna control module to send a control signal to switch the at least one switch to a third switch position to form third and fourth signal paths between each of the respective first and second transceivers and the antenna with the combiner in the third and fourth signal paths to allow simultaneous operations for the first and second transceivers when the activity information indicates the first and second transceivers are both in an active state.

11. The apparatus of claim 7, the first antenna control module or the second antenna control module to send a first control signal to switch the at least one switch to a second switch position to form a second signal path between the second transceiver and the antenna without the combiner in the second signal path, and a second control signal to switch a second switch to a switch position to form a fifth signal path between the first transceiver and the antenna without the combiner in the fifth signal path, to allow simultaneous operations for the first and second transceivers when the activity information indicates the first and second transceivers are both in an active state.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, the combiner arranged to isolate signal paths formed between the respective first and second transceivers and the antenna for simultaneous operations or mutually-exclusive operations.

13. A method, comprising:

receiving power state information for a set of transceivers;

receiving activity information for the set of transceivers; and

generating control signals for simultaneous operations or mutually-exclusive operations for a shared antenna structure connecting the set of transceivers to an antenna based on the power state information and activity information.

14. The method of claim 13, comprising sending a control signal from a host processor to set a switch to a first switch position to form a first signal path between a first transceiver and the antenna without a combiner in the first signal path to allow mutually-exclusive operations for the first transceiver when the power state information indicates only the first transceiver is in a power-on state.

15. The method of claim 13, comprising sending a control signal from a host processor to set a switch to a second switch position to form a second signal path between a first transceiver and the antenna without a combiner in the second signal path to allow mutually-exclusive operations for the second transceiver when the power state information indicates only the second transceiver is in a power-on state.

16. The method of claim 13, comprising sending a control signal from a host processor to set a switch to a third switch position to form a third and fourth signal path between each of respective first and second transceivers and the antenna with a combiner in the third and fourth signal paths to allow simultaneous operations for the first and second transceivers when the power state information indicates the first and second transceivers are both in a power-on state and the activity information indicates the first and second transceivers are both in an active state.

17. The method of claim 13, comprising sending a control signal from a communications controller to set a switch to a first switch position to form a first signal path between a first transceiver and the antenna without a combiner in the first signal path to allow mutually-exclusive operations for the first transceiver when the activity information indicates only the first transceiver is in an active state.

18. The method of claim 13, comprising sending a control signal from a communications controller to set a switch to a second switch position to form a second signal path between a second transceiver and the antenna without a combiner in the second signal path to allow mutually-exclusive operations for the second transceiver when the activity information indicates the first transceiver is in an idle state.

19. The method of claim 13, comprising sending a control signal from a communications controller to set a switch to a third switch position to form third and fourth signal paths between each of respective first and second transceivers and the antenna with a combiner in the third and fourth signal paths to allow simultaneous operations for the first and second transceivers when the activity information indicates the first and second transceivers are both in an active state.

20. The method of claim 13, comprising sending a first control signal to switch the at least one switch to a second switch position to form a second signal path between the second transceiver and the antenna without the combiner in the second signal path, and a second control signal to switch a second switch to a switch position to form a fifth signal path between the first transceiver and the antenna without the combiner in the fifth signal path, to allow simultaneous operations for the first and second transceivers when the activity information indicates the first and second transceivers are both in an active state.

21. An article comprising a storage medium containing instructions that when executed enable a system to:

receive power state information for a set of transceivers;

receive activity information for the set of transceivers; and

generate control signals for simultaneous operations or mutually-exclusive operations for a shared antenna structure connecting the set of transceivers to an antenna based on the power state information and activity information.

22. The article of claim 21, further comprising instructions to send control signals from a host processor to a switch to form a signal path without a combiner of the shared antenna structure for mutually-exclusive operations when only one transceiver from the set of transceivers is in a power-on state.

23. The article of claim 21, further comprising instructions to send control signals from a communications controller to a switch to form a signal path without a combiner of the shared antenna structure for mutually-exclusive operations when only one transceiver from the set of transceivers is in a power-on state and an active state, and a signal path with the combiner of the shared antenna structure for simultaneous operations when all of the transceivers are in a power-on state and active states.

24. The article of claim 21, further comprising instructions to send control signals from a host processor to multiple switches to form multiple signal paths without the combiner between each transceiver and the antenna to allow simultaneous operations for the transceivers when the power state information indicates both transceivers are in power-on states and the activity information indicates both transceivers are in active states.

25. The article of claim 21, further comprising instructions to send control signals from a communications controller to multiple switches to form multiple signal paths without the combiner between each transceiver and the antenna to allow simultaneous operations for the transceivers when the power state information indicates both transceivers are in power-on states and the activity information indicates both transceivers are in active states.