Isolation techniques for multiple co-located radio modules

• US 8,909,165 B2
• Filed: 08/24/2009
• Issued: 12/09/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Hendin, Neil
• Primary Examiner(s): Hanidu, Ganiyu A
• Application Number:
  US12/546,425
• Publication Number:
  US 20100227570A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,933 Days
• Field of Search: 455/63, 455/234.1, 455/232.1, 455/63.1, 455/226.1, 455/295, 455/3.01, 455/67.3, 455/67.16, 455/90.3, 455/575.1, 455/82, 455/62, 455/78, 370/335, 370/342, 370/252
• US Class Current: 455/78
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/006 using switches for selecting the desired band H04B1/0057 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/406 with more than one transmission mode, e.g. analog and digital modes
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/525 with means for reducing leakage of transmitter signal into the receiver
• 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 88/06 adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals

Abstract

Isolation techniques for multiple co-located radio modules are disclosed. For example, an apparatus may include an antenna, a first transceiver to communicate wirelessly across a first link, a second transceiver to communicate wirelessly across a second link, a shared antenna structure operative to allow the first transceiver and the second transceiver to share the antenna for simultaneous operations, and an active signal canceller operative to generate a cancellation signal to cancel an interference signal for a radio-frequency coupling channel between the first and second transceivers. Other embodiments are disclosed and claimed.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

an antenna;

a first transceiver that is to communicate wirelessly across a first link;

a second transceiver that is to communicate wirelessly across a second link;

a combiner that is to allow the first transceiver and the second transceiver to share the antenna for simultaneous operation;

an antenna switch that is to select one of the first transceiver and the second transceiver to exclusively use the antenna; and

an active signal canceller that is to generate a cancellation signal to cancel an interference signal for a radio-frequency (RF) coupling channel between the first and second transceivers when the first transceiver is transmitting via the antenna.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the active signal canceller comprises a phase delay element to receive a transmit signal from the first transceiver, to modify a phase of the transmit signal, and to generate an intermediate cancellation signal.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the phase delay element modifies the phase of the transmit signal by approximately 180 degrees.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the active signal canceller comprises a variable gain amplifier to receive the intermediate cancellation signal, to modify an amount of gain applied to the intermediate cancellation signal, and to generate the cancellation signal.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the active signal canceller comprises a controller to generate control parameters for the phase delay element and the variable gain amplifier to generate the cancellation signal.

6. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the cancellation signal is provided to the second transceiver to cancel the interference signal.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the RF coupling channel between the first and second transceivers includes a residual signal leakage across the combiner.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a first switch coupled to the first transceiver, a second switch coupled to the second transceiver, the combiner coupled to the first and second switches, and the antenna switch coupled to the first switch, the second switch and the combiner.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a first switch coupled to the first transceiver, the combiner coupled to the first switch and the second transceiver, and a second switch coupled to the first switch and the combiner.

10. A method, comprising:

forming a radio-frequency coupling channel between a first transceiver and a second transceiver of a mobile computing device including an antenna, including a combiner to allow the first transceiver and the second transceiver to share the antenna for simultaneous operation, and including an antenna switch to select one of the first transceiver and the second transceiver to exclusively use the antenna; and

generating a cancellation signal to cancel an interference signal for the radio-frequency coupling channel between the first transceiver and the second transceiver when the first transceiver is transmitting via the antenna.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

receiving a transmit signal from the first transceiver;

modifying a phase of the transmit signal; and

generating an intermediate cancellation signal.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising modifying a phase of a transmit signal from the first transceiver by approximately 180 degrees.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

receiving an intermediate cancellation signal;

modifying an amount of gain for the intermediate cancellation signal; and

generating the cancellation signal.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising generating control parameters for a phase delay element and a variable gain amplifier of an active signal canceller to generate the cancellation signal.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising cancelling the interference signal by providing the cancellation signal to the second transceiver.

16. An article comprising a non-transitory storage medium containing instructions that, when executed by a processor of a system, cause the system to:

generate control parameters for a phase delay element and a variable gain amplifier of an active signal canceller; and

provide the control parameters to the phase delay element and the variable gain amplifier of the active signal canceller to generate a cancellation signal that cancels an interference signal for a radio-frequency coupling channel between a first transceiver and a second transceiver when the first transceiver is transmitting via an antenna and a combiner that allows the first transceiver and the second transceiver to share the antenna for simultaneous operation and a switch to select one of the first transceiver and the second transceiver to exclusively use the antenna.

17. The article of claim 16, wherein the instructions to generate the control parameters for the phase delay element of the active signal canceller comprise instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the system to control an amount of phase delay applied to a transmit signal from the first transceiver to form an intermediate cancellation signal.

18. The article of claim 16, wherein the instructions to generate the control parameters for the variable gain amplifier of the active signal canceller comprise instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the system to vary an amount of gain applied to an intermediate cancellation signal to form the cancellation signal.

19. The article of claim 16, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the system to retrieve the control parameters for the phase delay element and the variable gain amplifier of the active signal canceller from a memory unit.