Communications device with direct cellular-to-collocated device communication channel interface

• US 9,179,428 B2
• Filed: 06/26/2013
• Issued: 11/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Medapalli, Kamesh, Lorenz, Robert, Abraham, Charles, Ibrahim, Brima, van Diggelen, Frank
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong, Dung
• Application Number:
  US13/927,977
• Publication Number:
  US 20150005029A1
• Time in Patent Office: 860 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.1, 455/456.2, 455/456.5, 455/456.6, 455/404.2, 455/550.1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/001 Synchronization between nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/0035 detecting errors in frequency or phase

Abstract

A communications device having a communication channel interface between a cellular communications module and a Global Navigation system (GNSS) module is provided. The communication channel interface can be used to forward one or more of: a frequency offset correction message, a fine time assistance (FTA) message, and an assisted-GNSS (A-GNSS) message from the cellular communications module to the GNSS module; to forward timing and frequency information from the GNSS module to the cellular communications module to enable a delayed sleep mode wake up of the cellular communications module; to enable hybrid data fusion between the cellular communications module and the GNSS module; and/or to offload processes from the GNSS module to the cellular communications module.

Claims

1. A communications device, comprising:

a crystal oscillator module configured to generate a clock signal and a temperature sensor signal indicative of temperature in proximity of the crystal oscillator module; and

a multi-chip module (MCM) comprising;

a cellular radio frequency (RF) integrated circuit (RFIC) module;

a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) module; and

clock circuitry configured to;

receive the clock signal and the temperature sensor signal from the crystal oscillator module,

utilize the temperature sensor signal as an index for a lookup table to retrieve a frequency correction,

apply the frequency correction to the clock signal to generate a temperature compensated clock signal, and

provide the temperature compensated clock signal to the cellular RFIC module and the GNSS module.

2. The communications device of claim 1, further comprising:

a cellular communications processor configured to implement communication protocols for one or more of;

Long Term Evolution (LTE), Evolved High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA+), Time Division-Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD-SCDMA), and Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE).

3. The communications device of claim 1, wherein the crystal oscillator module comprises:

a crystal oscillator circuit configured to generate the clock signal; and

a temperature sensor configured to generate the temperature sensor signal.

4. The communications device of claim 1, further comprising:

a combined wireless local area network (WLAN)/Bluetooth (BT) module,

wherein the clock circuitry is further configured to provide the temperature compensated clock signal to the combined WLAN/BT module.

5. The communications device of claim 1, further comprising:

a cellular communications module; and

a communication channel interface to directly couple the cellular communications module and the GNSS module.

6. The communications device of claim 1, further comprising:

a cellular communications module; and

a communication channel interface that couples the cellular communications module and the GNSS module,

wherein the communication channel interface includes a 2-wire Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter (UART) interface.

16. The communications device of claim 5, wherein the GNSS process includes a Geofencing function, and wherein the cellular communications module is further configured to send a notification message to the GNSS module when location conditions associated with the Geofencing function are satisfied.

7. A communications device, comprising:

a cellular communications module including a memory and a processor;

a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) module;

a cellular radio frequency (RF) integrated circuit (RFIC) module coupled to the cellular communication module and the GNSS module; and

a communication channel interface that couples the cellular communications module and the GNSS module,

wherein the cellular RFIC module and the GNSS module are monolithically integrated in a single chip, the single chip comprising;

clock circuitry configured to;

receive a clock signal and a temperature sensor signal from a crystal oscillator module,

utilize the temperature sensor signal as an index for a lookup table to retrieve a frequency correction,

apply the frequency correction to the clock signal to generate a temperature compensated clock signal, and

provide the temperature compensated clock signal to the cellular RFIC module and the GNSS module.

8. The communications device of claim 7, wherein the GNSS module is configured to forward timing and frequency information to the cellular communications module.

9. The communications device of claim 8, wherein the cellular communications module is further configured to request the timing and frequency information from the GNSS module before terminating a sleep mode cycle.

10. The communications device of claim 7, wherein the cellular communications module is further configured to forward a cellular position estimate of the communications device to the GNSS module.

11. The communications device of claim 10, wherein the GNSS module is configured to combine the cellular position estimate with a GNSS position estimate generated by the GNSS module to generate a position estimate of the communications device.

12. The communications device of claim 7, wherein the cellular communications module is further configured to forward a coexistence control message to the GNSS module.

13. The communications device of claim 12, wherein the GNSS module is configured to process samples of received satellite signals in accordance with the coexistence control message.

14. The communications device of claim 7, wherein the GNSS module is configured to borrow a resource of the cellular communications module to perform a GNSS function.

15. The communications device of claim 7, wherein the GNSS module is configured to offload a GNSS process to the cellular communications module.

17. The communications device of claim 7, wherein the cellular communications module is configured to forward one or more of:

a frequency offset correction message, a fine time assistance (FTA) message, and an assisted-GNSS (A-GNSS) message to the GNSS module via the communication channel interface.

18. A communications device, comprising:

a cellular communications module;

an integrated module including a cellular radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC), a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receiver, and clock circuitry; and

a communication channel interface that couples the cellular communications module and the GNSS receiver,

wherein the clock circuitry is configured to;

receive a clock signal and a temperature sensor signal indicative of temperature in proximity of a location within the communications device,

utilize the temperature sensor signal as an index for a lookup table to retrieve a frequency correction,

apply the frequency correction to the clock signal to generate a temperature compensated clock signal, and

provide the temperature compensated clock signal to the cellular RFIC module and the GNSS module.

19. The communications device of claim 18, further comprising a clock oscillator module including:

a crystal oscillator circuit configured to generate the clock signal; and

a temperature sensor configured to generate the temperature sensor signal indicative of temperature in proximity of the crystal oscillator circuit.