Method of controlling a plurality of internal antennas in a mobile communication device

• US 8,639,304 B2
• Filed: 09/13/2012
• Issued: 01/28/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Kezys, Vytautas Robertas, Qi, Yihong
• Primary Examiner(s): Trinh, Sonny
• Application Number:
  US13/614,586
• Publication Number:
  US 20130012143A1
• Time in Patent Office: 502 Days
• Field of Search: 455/140, 455/575.7, 455/277.1, 455/132, 455/133, 455/134, 455/135, 455/575.1, 455/575.5
• US Class Current: 455/575.7
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/243 with built-in antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/245 with means for shaping the antenna pattern, e.g. in order to protect user against rf exposure
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 21/28 Combinations of substantially independent non-interacting antenna units or systems multiple beam H01Q25/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0608 Antenna selection according to transmission parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0615 of weighted versions of same signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0808 comparing all antennas before reception
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0814 based on current reception conditions, e.g. switching to different antenna when signal level is below threshold
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0848 Joint weighting
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/28 using beam steering

Abstract

In one embodiment, a mobile communication device comprises a first antenna; a second antenna; a transceiver for processing a received signal and generating a transmit signal; and a controller, based on a detected condition of one of the first antenna or second antenna, for selecting the other one of said first antenna or said second antenna and coupling the transmit signal to the selected other one of said first antenna or said second antenna.

Claims

1. A mobile communication device comprising:

a first antenna operable to receive a first received signal, said first antenna being disposed substantially in a plane and having a first polarity;

a second antenna operable to receive a second received signal, said second antenna being disposed substantially coplanar with said first antenna and having a second polarity substantially orthogonal to said first polarity;

a transceiver operably connected to said first antenna and to said second antenna; and

a controller operably connected to a memory having instructions that when executed by said controller generates, based on determining that one of the first received signal and the second received signal is weak, a resultant received signal from a remaining signal of the first received signal and the second received signal.

2. The mobile communication device of claim 1 wherein said first antenna and said second antenna have locations at opposed ends of the mobile communication device.

3. The mobile communication device of claim 2 wherein said locations provide for high antenna system efficiency for a holding position adjacent said first antenna.

4. The mobile communication device of claim 1 wherein the mobile communication device is a data communication device.

5. The mobile communication device of claim 1 wherein the mobile communication device is a multifunction communication device having voice and data communication capabilities.

6. The mobile communication device of claim 1 wherein the mobile communication device is a personal digital assistant (PDA).

7. The mobile communication device of claim 1 wherein the mobile communication device is a computer.

8. The mobile communication device of claim 7 wherein the computer is a laptop computer.

9. A method of operating a mobile communications device having a housing, a wireless transceiver and a plurality of antennas connected to the wireless transceiver, the method comprising:

determining a strength of a first signal received via a first antenna disposed substantially in a plane and having a first polarity;

determining a strength of a second signal received via a second antenna disposed substantially co-planar with the first antenna and having a second polarity substantially orthogonal to the first polarity; and

based on determining that one of the first signal and the second signal is weak, generating a resultant received signal from a remaining signal of the first and second signals.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein a signal transformation technique is operable to manipulate the remaining signal to generate the resultant received signal.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the signal transformation technique is operable to attenuate the remaining signal to generate the resultant received signal.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein the signal transformation technique is operable to amplify the remaining signal to generate the resultant received signal.

13. The method of claim 9 wherein the resultant received signal is identical to one of the first and second received signals.