Bidirectional wireless communication system, wireless communication apparatus, and bidirectional wireless communication method

• US 8,699,388 B2
• Filed: 04/03/2013
• Issued: 04/15/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Uno, Masahiro
• Primary Examiner(s): RIYAMI, ABDULLAH A
• Application Number:
  US13/855,773
• Publication Number:
  US 20130215806A1
• Time in Patent Office: 377 Days
• Field of Search: 370/229, 370/230, 370/235, 370/295, 370/310, 370/324, 370/329, 370/431, 370/503, 455/3, 455/75, 455/76, 455/219, 455/260, 455/112, 455/41.2, 455/39, 455/344, 375/135, 375/136, 375/220, 375/219, 375/344, 375/356, 375/354, 375/358, 398/183, 398/161, 398/154, 398/155, 398/156, 398/140
• US Class Current: 370/281
• CPC Class Codes: H03J 1/0008 using a central processing unit, e.g. a microprocessor digital tuning in general H03J5/0245
• CPC Class Codes: H03L 7/24 using a reference signal directly applied to the generator
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/50 using different frequencies for the two directions of communication

Abstract

A bidirectional wireless communication system includes: a first wireless communication apparatus for bidirectional communication configured to multiplex a modulated signal obtained by modulating an input signal by a reference carrier signal having a predetermined carrier frequency, and transmit a resultant transmission signal; and a second wireless communication apparatus, having an oscillator configured to oscillate a signal having a free-running oscillation frequency, configured to inject a reception signal received from the first wireless communication apparatus into the oscillator, receive the reception signal while variably controlling the free-running oscillation frequency of the oscillator of the second wireless communication apparatus, detect whether the free-running oscillation frequency of the signal of the oscillator of the second wireless communication apparatus has entered the frequency range up to the injection locking to be frequency-locked with a carrier frequency of the injected reception signal, and generate a communication enable signal.

Claims

1. A wireless communication apparatus for bidirectional wireless communication, comprising:

a reception section configured to receive a wireless transmission signal and produce therefrom a reception signal;

a first oscillator configured to produce a signal having a frequency upon which reception processing is based, where the reception signal is injected into the first oscillator;

a frequency locking detection unit configured to detect whether the frequency of the signal of the first oscillator is frequency locked with a carrier frequency of the reception signal,

wherein, if the frequency locking detection unit detects that oscillation frequency of the signal of the first oscillator is frequency-locked with the carrier frequency of the reception signal, the wireless communication apparatus transmits a communication enable signal; and

a control unit,

wherein the first oscillator is configured to produce a signal having a free-running oscillation frequency, and

the control unit is configured to vary the free-running oscillation frequency of the first oscillator.

2. The wireless communication apparatus of claim 1,

further comprising at least one transmission section configured to wirelessly transmit signals,

wherein the at least one transmission section executes transmission processing on the basis of a carrier signal obtained by multiplying the frequency of the first oscillator after injection locking by a predetermined value.

3. The wireless communication apparatus of claim 1,

further comprising a plurality of transmission sections configured to wirelessly transmit respective signals,

wherein each of the plurality of transmission sections executes transmission processing on the basis of a different carrier signal, each of the carrier signals of the plurality of transmission sections being obtained by multiplying the frequency of the first oscillator after injection locking by a different predetermined value.

4. The wireless communication apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the reception section is configured to receive wireless signals in the millimeter waveband.

5. The wireless communication apparatus of claim 2,

wherein the reception section is configured to receive wireless signals in the millimeter waveband and the at least one transmission section is configured to transmit signals in the millimeter waveband.

6. The wireless communication apparatus of claim 1,

further comprising a down-converter unit configured to down-convert the reception signal on the basis of the signal of the first oscillator and to output a down-converted signal,

wherein the frequency locking detection unit comprises a frequency discriminator that receives the down-converted signal as an input and outputs a frequency discriminated output value to a comparator, which compares the frequency discriminated output value to a threshold value, and

wherein the frequency locking detection unit detects that the free-running oscillation frequency of the signal of the first oscillator is frequency-locked with the carrier frequency of the reception signal when an output of the comparator changes.

7. The wireless communication apparatus of claim 1,

further comprising at least one transmission section configured to wirelessly transmit signals,

wherein the at least one transmission section executes transmission processing on the basis of a carrier signal obtained by multiplying the free-running oscillation frequency of the first oscillator after injection locking by a predetermined value.

8. The wireless communication apparatus of claim 1,

further comprising a plurality of transmission sections configured to wirelessly transmit respective signals,

wherein each of the plurality of transmission sections executes transmission processing on the basis of a different carrier signal, each of the carrier signals of the plurality of transmission sections being obtained by multiplying the free-running oscillation frequency of the first oscillator after injection locking by a different predetermined value.

9. The wireless communication apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the control unit is configured to vary the free-running oscillation frequency of the first oscillator such that the frequency of the first oscillator is periodically incremented by a predetermined amount at a predetermined period until the frequency locking detection unit detects that the free-running oscillation frequency of the signal of the first oscillator is frequency-locked with the carrier frequency of the reception signal.

10. A wireless communication apparatus, comprising:

reception means for receiving a wireless transmission signal and producing therefrom a reception signal;

first oscillation means for producing a signal having a frequency upon which reception processing is based, where the reception signal is injected into the first oscillation means;

frequency locking detection means for detecting whether the frequency of the signal of the first oscillation means is frequency locked with a carrier frequency of the reception signal,

wherein, if the frequency locking detection means detects that the frequency of the signal of the first oscillation means is frequency-locked with the carrier frequency of the reception signal, the wireless communication apparatus transmits a communication enable signal; and

a control means,

wherein first oscillation means produces a signal having a free-running oscillation frequency, and

the control means varies the free-running oscillation frequency of the first oscillator.

13. The wireless communication apparatus of claim 10,

further comprising at least one transmission section configured to wirelessly transmit signals,

wherein the at least one transmission section executes transmission processing on the basis of a carrier signal obtained by multiplying the frequency of the first oscillator after injection locking by a predetermined value.

14. The wireless communication apparatus of claim 10,

further comprising a plurality of transmission sections configured to wirelessly transmit respective signals,

wherein each of the plurality of transmission sections executes transmission processing on the basis of a different carrier signal, each of the carrier signals of the plurality of transmission sections being obtained by multiplying the frequency of the first oscillator after injection locking by a different predetermined value.

15. The wireless communication apparatus of claim 10,

wherein the reception section is configured to receive wireless signals in the millimeter waveband.

16. The wireless communication apparatus of claim 13,

wherein the reception section is configured to receive wireless signals in the millimeter waveband and the at least one transmission section is configured to transmit signals in the millimeter waveband.

11. A method of bidirectional wireless communication via a wireless communication apparatus comprising:

prior to beginning communication of data via the wireless communication apparatus, performing an injection locking control process comprising;

wirelessly receiving a transmission signal and generating therefrom a reception signal,

injecting the reception signal into a first oscillator whose frequency is used for reception processing,

determining whether the frequency of the first oscillator is frequency locked with a carrier frequency of the reception signal,

if the frequency of the signal of the first oscillator is frequency-locked with the carrier frequency of the reception signal, transmitting a communication enable signal,

wherein the first oscillator has a free-running oscillation frequency, and

varying a frequency of the first oscillator until the frequency of the signal of the first oscillator is frequency-locked with the carrier frequency of the reception signal; and

beginning communication of data via the wireless communication apparatus only after the enable signal has been transmitted.

17. The method of claim 11,

wherein at least one transmission section is configured to wirelessly transmit signals, and

the at least one transmission section executes transmission processing on the basis of a carrier signal obtained by multiplying the frequency of the first oscillator after injection locking by a predetermined value.

18. The method of claim 11,

wherein a plurality of transmission sections are configured to wirelessly transmit respective signals, and

each of the plurality of transmission sections executes transmission processing on the basis of a different carrier signal, each of the carrier signals of the plurality of transmission sections being obtained by multiplying the frequency of the first oscillator after injection locking by a different predetermined value.

19. The method of claim 11,

wherein the reception section is configured to receive wireless signals in the millimeter waveband.

20. The method of claim 17,

wherein the reception section is configured to receive wireless signals in the millimeter waveband and the at least one transmission section is configured to transmit signals in the millimeter waveband.

12. A non-transitory computer readable medium having program code stored thereon, the program code being executable by a processor to cause the processor to issue commands to control bidirectional wireless communication of a wireless communication apparatus such that:

prior to beginning communication of data, the wireless communication apparatus performs an injection locking control process comprising;

wirelessly receiving a transmission signal and generating therefrom a reception signal,

injecting the reception signal into a first oscillator whose frequency is used for reception processing,

determining whether the frequency of the first oscillator is frequency locked with a carrier frequency of the reception signal, and

if the frequency of the signal of the first oscillator is frequency-locked with the carrier frequency of the reception signal, transmitting a communication enable signal; and

the wireless communication apparatus begins communication of data only after the enable signal has been transmitted,

wherein the first oscillator has a free-running oscillation frequency, and

the program code is executable by the processor to cause the processor to issue commands to control bidirectional wireless communication of the wireless communication apparatus such that the wireless communication apparatus varies a frequency of the first oscillator until the frequency of the signal of the first oscillator is frequency-locked with the carrier frequency of the reception signal.

21. The computer readable medium of claim 12,

wherein at least one transmission section is configured to wirelessly transmit signals, and

the at least one transmission section executes transmission processing on the basis of a carrier signal obtained by multiplying the frequency of the first oscillator after injection locking by a predetermined value.

22. The computer readable medium of claim 12,

wherein a plurality of transmission sections are configured to wirelessly transmit respective signals, and

each of the plurality of transmission sections executes transmission processing on the basis of a different carrier signal, each of the carrier signals of the plurality of transmission sections being obtained by multiplying the frequency of the first oscillator after injection locking by a different predetermined value.

23. The computer readable medium of claim 12,

wherein the reception section is configured to receive wireless signals in the millimeter waveband.

24. The computer readable medium of claim 21,

wherein the reception section is configured to receive wireless signals in the millimeter waveband and the at least one transmission section is configured to transmit signals in the millimeter waveband.