Near Field Communication Devices and Methods

• US 20140187150A1
• Filed: 12/27/2012
• Published: 07/03/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm technologies international, ltd. (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cambridge Silicon Radio Limited (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Inventors: McFarthing, Anthony Lawrence
• Granted Patent: US 9,112,543 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/41.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/72 for local intradevice communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/79 for data transfer in combination with power transfer

Abstract

Methods and devices are disclosed, including a method of communicating, the method comprising transmitting, in a first time period, a signal for powering a communications device, and communicating, in a second time period, with the communications device using one of phase shift keying (PSK), frequency shift keying (FSK) and quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM).

Claims

1. A method of communicating, the method comprising:

transmitting, in a first time period, a signal for powering a communications device; and

communicating, in a second time period, with the communications device using one of phase shift keying (PSK), frequency shift keying (FSK) and quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM).

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the communications device is a passive near field communications (NFC) tag.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein no data is transmitted in the first time period.

4. The method of claim 1, comprising periodically repeating the transmitting and communicating steps.

5. The method of claim 4, comprising repeating the steps approximately every 10 μ

s.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of communicating comprises at least one of transmitting data to and receiving data from the communications device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting in the first time period comprises adjusting a Q factor of an antenna system used to transmit the signal to a first value, and communicating in the second time period comprises adjusting the Q factor of the antenna system to a second value and using the antenna system for the communicating, and wherein the first value is higher than the second value.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting in the first time period comprises using a first antenna system having a first Q factor, and communicating in the second time period comprises using a second antenna system having a second Q factor, wherein the first Q factor is higher than the second Q factor.

9. A method of communicating, the method comprising:

receiving at a communications device, in a first time period, a signal for powering the communications device; and

communicating, in a second time period, with another communications device using one of phase shift keying (PSK), frequency shift keying (FSK) and quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM).

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the communications device is a passive near field communications (NFC) tag and the another communications device is a NFC reader.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein no data is transmitted in the first time period.

12. The method of claim 9, comprising periodically repeating the receiving and communicating steps.

13. The method of claim 12, comprising repeating the steps approximately every 10 μ

s.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of communicating comprises at least one of transmitting data to and receiving data from the another communications device.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein receiving in the first time period comprises adjusting a Q factor of an antenna system used to receive the signal to a first value, and communicating in the second time period comprises adjusting the Q factor of the antenna system to a second value and using the antenna system for the communicating, and wherein the first value is higher than the second value.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein receiving in the first time period comprises using a first antenna system having a first Q factor, and communicating in the second time period comprises using a second antenna system having a second Q factor, wherein the first Q factor is higher than the second Q factor.

17. A wireless communications device, comprising:

means for transmitting, in a first time period, a signal for powering another wireless communications device; and

means for communicating, in a second time period, with the another wireless communications device using one of phase shift keying (PSK), frequency shift keying (FSK) and quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM).

18. A wireless communications device, comprising:

means for receiving, in a first time period, a signal for powering the wireless communications device; and

communicating, in a second time period, with another wireless communications device using one of phase shift keying (PSK), frequency shift keying (FSK) and quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM).

19. A wireless communications device, comprising:

a transmitter for transmitting, in a first time period, a signal for powering another wireless communications device; and

a communications circuit for at least one of transmitting and receiving a data signal in a second time period, wherein the data signal is modulated using one of phase shift keying (PSK), frequency shift keying (FSK) and quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM).

20. The device of claim 19, wherein a Q factor of an antenna system is adjustable to a first value in the first time period, and the Q factor of the amplifier and the antenna system is adjustable to a second value in the second time period, wherein the first value is higher than the second value, and wherein the antenna system is used in both the first and second time periods.

21. The device of claim 20, wherein the Q factor is adjusted by adjusting an impedance of the antenna system.

22. The device of claim 21, wherein the impedance comprises a resistance.

23. The device of claim 20, wherein the Q factor is adjusted by adjusting an output impedance of an amplifier in the antenna system.

24. The device of claim 19, comprising a first antenna system used in said first time period and having a first Q factor, and a second antenna system used in said second time period and having a second Q factor, wherein said first Q factor is higher than said second Q factor.

25. The device of claim 19, wherein the another wireless communications device is a passive near field communications (NFC) tag.

26. The device of claim 19, wherein the device transmits no data in the first time period.

27. The device of claim 19, wherein the device periodically repeats the first and second time periods.

28. The device of claim 27, wherein the device periodically repeats the first and second time periods approximately every 10 μ

s.

29. The device of claim 19, wherein the device is a near field communications (NFC) reader.

30. A wireless communications device, comprising:

a receiver for receiving, in a first time period, a signal for powering the wireless communications device; and

a communications circuit for at least one of transmitting and receiving a data signal in a second time period, wherein the data signal is modulated using one of phase shift keying (PSK), frequency shift keying (FSK) and quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM).

31. The device of claim 30, wherein a Q factor of an antenna system is adjustable to a first value in the first time period, and the Q factor of the amplifier and the antenna system is adjustable to a second value in the second time period, wherein the first value is higher than the second value, and wherein the antenna system is used in both the first and second time periods.

32. The device of claim 31, wherein the Q factor is adjusted by adjusting an impedance of the antenna system.

33. The device of claim 32, wherein the impedance comprises a resistance.

34. The device of claim 31, wherein the Q factor is adjusted by adjusting an output impedance of an amplifier in the antenna system.

35. The device of claim 30, comprising a first antenna system used in said first time period and having a first Q factor, and a second antenna system used in said second time period and having a second Q factor, wherein said first Q factor is higher than said second Q factor.

36. The device of claim 30, wherein the wireless communications device is a passive near field communications (NFC) tag.

37. The device of claim 30, wherein the device receives no data in the first time period.

38. The device of claim 30, wherein the device periodically repeats the first and second time periods.

39. The device of claim 38, wherein the device periodically repeats the first and second time periods approximately every 10 μ

s.

40. The device of claim 30, wherein the signal for powering the wireless communications device is received from a near field communications (NFC) reader.

41. The device of claim 40, wherein the data signal is transmitted to or received from the NFC reader.