Method and apparatus for selecting at least one desired channel utilizing a bank of vibrating micromechanical apparatus

• US 6,566,786 B2
• Filed: 04/20/2001
• Issued: 05/20/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 01/14/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Board of Regents of the University of Michigan (University of Michigan)
• Original Assignee: Board of Regents of the University of Michigan (University of Michigan)
• Inventors: Nguyen, Clark T.-C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dougherty, Thomas M.
• Application Number:
  US09/839,098
• Publication Number:
  US 20010031025A1
• Time in Patent Office: 760 Days
• Field of Search: 310/309, 333/186, 333/194
• US Class Current: 310/309
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2059/0072 with stoppers or protrusions for maintaining a gap, reducing the contact area or for preventing stiction between the movable and the fixed electrode in the attracted position
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 59/0009 making use of micromechanics
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 2009/02511 Vertical, i.e. perpendicular to the substrate plane
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 2009/02519 Torsional
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 2009/02527 Combined
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 3/0078 involving adjustment of the transducing gap
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 9/02409 by application of a DC-bias voltage H03H9/02417 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 9/24 Constructional features of resonators of material which is not piezoelectric, electrostrictive, or magnetostrictive
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 9/2452 Free-free beam resonators
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 9/462 Microelectro-mechanical filters
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 9/465 in combination with other electronic elements
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 9/467 Post-fabrication trimming of parameters, e.g. center frequency
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 9/505 for microelectro-mechanical filters

Abstract

Several MEMS-based methods and architectures which utilize vibrating micromechanical resonators in circuits to implement filtering, mixing, frequency reference and amplifying functions are provided. For example, a method and apparatus for selecting at least one desired channel in an RF receiver subsystem is shown. One of the primary benefits of the use of such architectures is a savings in power consumption by trading power for high selectivity (i.e., high Q). Consequently, the present invention relies on the use of a large number of micromechanical links in SSI to VLSI networks to implement signal processing functions with basically zero DC power consumption.

Claims

1. In a system, a channel selector apparatus for selecting at least one desired channel while minimizing the power consumption in the rest of the system, the apparatus comprising:

a parallel bank of on/off switchable micromechanical filters wherein each of the filters has a passband which corresponds to at least one channel and wherein each of the filters is switchable between on and off states and tunable; and

a controller for selectively switching a desired filter of the bank of filters “

on”

while switching the rest of the filters “

off”

to thereby provide channel selection and remove interferers wherein each of the filters has a Q greater than 5000.

2. A method for selecting at least one desired channel from a plurality of channels to reduce power handling requirements of circuits in a system, the method comprising:

providing a bank of micromechanical apparatus wherein each apparatus has a passband corresponding to at least one channel and each of the apparatus is switchable between on and off states and tunable;

controllably switching the bank of micromechanical apparatus to select the at least one channel and to substantially attenuate power outside the at least one desired channel; and

vibrating the micromechanical apparatus corresponding to the at least one desired channel wherein the step of switching includes applying a bias voltage to the micromechanical apparatus corresponding to the at least one desired channel.

3. In a system, a channel selector apparatus for selecting at least one desired channel while minimizing the power consumption in the rest of the system, the apparatus comprising:

a parallel bank of on/off switchable micromechanical filters wherein each of the filters has a passband which corresponds to at least one channel and wherein each of the filters is switchable between on and off states and tunable; and

a controller for selectively switching a desired filter of the bank of filters “

on”

while switching the rest of the filters “

off”

to thereby provide channel selection and remove interferers wherein the controller applies a bias voltage only to the desired filter to thereby switch the rest of the filters “

off”

.