Transitioning from envelope tracking to average power tracking

• US 9,207,692 B2
• Filed: 10/17/2013
• Issued: 12/08/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qorvo US, Inc. (Qorvo, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: RF Micro Devices Incorporated (Qorvo, Inc.)
• Inventors: Khlat, Nadim, Kay, Michael R., Adeeb, Mohammad Ahsanul
• Primary Examiner(s): Phu, Sanh
• Application Number:
  US14/056,292
• Publication Number:
  US 20140111178A1
• Time in Patent Office: 782 Days
• Field of Search: 455/127.1, 455/67.13, 455/522, 330/127
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G05F 1/46 wherein the variable actually regulated by the final control device is dc G05F1/625 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 1/0211 with control of the supply voltage or current
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 1/0227 using supply converters
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 1/3223 using feed-forward H03F1/3211 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2200/102 A non-specified detector of a signal envelope being used in an amplifying circuit
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2200/432 Two or more amplifiers of different type are coupled in parallel at the input or output, e.g. a class D and a linear amplifier, a class B and a class A amplifier
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 3/189 High-frequency amplifiers, e.g. radio frequency amplifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 3/24 of transmitter output stages
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2001/0441 with linearisation using feed-forward

Abstract

An envelope tracking power supply and an offset capacitive element are disclosed. The offset capacitive element is coupled between a switching output and an analog output of the envelope tracking power supply, which operates in one of an envelope tracking mode, a transition mode, and an average power tracking mode. During the envelope tracking mode, the envelope tracking power supply provides an envelope power supply signal using both the switching output and the analog output. During the transition mode, the envelope tracking power supply drives a voltage across the offset capacitive element from a first voltage to a second voltage, such that during a transition from the envelope tracking mode to the transition mode, the offset capacitive element has the first voltage, and during a transition from the transition mode to the average power tracking mode, the offset capacitive element has the second voltage.

Claims

1. Circuitry comprising:

an offset capacitive element coupled between a switching output and an analog output; and

an envelope tracking power supply having the switching output and the analog output, and configured to;

operate in one of an envelope tracking mode, a transition mode, and an average power tracking mode;

during the envelope tracking mode, provide an envelope power supply signal using the switching output and the analog output, wherein the envelope power supply signal at least partially envelope tracks an RF transmit signal;

during the transition mode, drive a voltage across the offset capacitive element from a first voltage to a second voltage; and

during the average power tracking mode, provide the envelope power supply signal, which is about equal to the second voltage, wherein;

during a transition from the envelope tracking mode to the transition mode, the offset capacitive element has the first voltage; and

during a transition from the transition mode to the average power tracking mode, the offset capacitive element has the second voltage.

2. The circuitry of claim 1 wherein the envelope tracking power supply is further configured to:

during a communications slot prior and adjacent to a transition slot boundary, operate in the envelope tracking mode;

during a communications slot after and adjacent to the transition slot boundary, operate in the average power tracking mode; and

during the transition slot boundary, operate in the envelope tracking mode prior to the transition from the envelope tracking mode to the transition mode; and

during the transition slot boundary, operate in the average power tracking mode after the transition from the transition mode to the average power tracking mode.

3. The circuitry of claim 2 wherein:

the envelope power supply signal has an envelope power supply voltage; and

during the transition slot boundary and prior to the transition from the envelope tracking mode to the transition mode, the envelope tracking power supply is further configured to regulate the envelope power supply voltage based on a setpoint of the envelope power supply signal.

4. The circuitry of claim 2 wherein during the transition slot boundary and prior to the transition from the envelope tracking mode to the transition mode, the envelope tracking power supply is further configured to regulate the voltage across the offset capacitive element to be about equal to the first voltage.

5. The circuitry of claim 2 wherein during the communications slot after and adjacent to the transition slot boundary, the envelope tracking power supply is further configured to drive the analog output to be about equal to a ground.

6. The circuitry of claim 5 wherein:

the envelope power supply signal has an envelope power supply voltage; and

during the communications slot after and adjacent to the transition slot boundary, the envelope tracking power supply is further configured to regulate the envelope power supply voltage to be about equal to the second voltage.

7. The circuitry of claim 5 wherein:

the envelope tracking power supply comprises a switching element coupled between the analog output and the ground; and

during the communications slot after and adjacent to the transition slot boundary, the switching element is configured to be in an ON state.

8. The circuitry of claim 7 wherein during the communications slot prior and adjacent to the transition slot boundary, the switching element is further configured to be in an OFF state.

9. The circuitry of claim 5 wherein:

the envelope tracking power supply comprises a parallel amplifier, such that an output from the parallel amplifier is coupled to the analog output; and

during the communications slot after and adjacent to the transition slot boundary, the parallel amplifier is configured to be disabled.

10. The circuitry of claim 1 wherein:

the envelope tracking power supply comprises a parallel amplifier, such that an output from the parallel amplifier is coupled to the analog output; and

during the transition mode, the parallel amplifier is configured to drive the analog output to be about equal to a ground.

11. The circuitry of claim 10 wherein:

the envelope tracking power supply further comprises a switching element coupled between the analog output and the ground; and

during the transition mode and after the analog output is about equal to the ground, the switching element is configured to transition from an OFF state to an ON state.

12. The circuitry of claim 11 wherein after the transition from the OFF state to the ON state, the parallel amplifier is further configured to be disabled.

13. The circuitry of claim 1 wherein during the average power tracking mode, the analog output has about zero volts.

14. The circuitry of claim 1 wherein the envelope tracking power supply comprises a parallel amplifier, such that an output from the parallel amplifier is coupled to the analog output.

15. The circuitry of claim 14 wherein during the average power tracking mode, the parallel amplifier is configured to be disabled.

16. The circuitry of claim 14 wherein during the envelope tracking mode, the parallel amplifier is configured to regulate a voltage of the envelope power supply signal based on a setpoint of the envelope power supply signal.

17. The circuitry of claim 14 wherein the envelope tracking power supply further comprises a switching supply, such that an output from the switching supply is coupled to the switching output.

18. The circuitry of claim 17 wherein during the envelope tracking mode, the switching supply is configured to drive an output current from the parallel amplifier toward zero.

19. The circuitry of claim 17 wherein during the envelope tracking mode, the parallel amplifier is configured to partially provide the envelope power supply signal and the switching supply is configured to partially provide the envelope power supply signal.

20. The circuitry of claim 1 further comprising a radio frequency power amplifier configured to during the envelope tracking mode and during the average power tracking mode, receive and amplify a radio frequency input signal to provide a radio frequency transmit signal using the envelope power supply signal.

21. The circuitry of claim 20 wherein during the envelope tracking mode, the envelope power supply signal provides power for amplification and at least partially envelope tracks the radio frequency transmit signal.

22. The circuitry of claim 1 wherein:

the envelope power supply signal has an envelope power supply voltage; and

during the average power tracking mode, the envelope power supply voltage is about equal to a direct current source voltage.

23. The circuitry of claim 1 wherein control circuitry is configured to select the one of the envelope tracking mode, the transition mode, and the average power tracking mode.

24. The circuitry of claim 23 wherein radio frequency system control circuitry comprises the control circuitry.

25. The circuitry of claim 23 further comprising the control circuitry.

26. The circuitry of claim 23 wherein the control circuitry is further configured to select the average power tracking mode when an average output power from a radio frequency power amplifier is less than a power threshold.

27. The circuitry of claim 1 wherein during the envelope tracking mode, the envelope tracking power supply is further configured to regulate the voltage across the offset capacitive element to be about equal to an offset voltage setpoint.

28. A method comprising:

providing an offset capacitive element coupled between a switching output and an analog output; and

operating in one of an envelope tracking mode, a transition mode, and an average power tracking mode;

during the envelope tracking mode, providing an envelope power supply signal using the switching output and the analog output, wherein the envelope power supply signal at least partially envelope tracks an RF transmit signal;

during the transition mode, driving a voltage across the offset capacitive element from a first voltage to a second voltage; and

during the average power tracking mode, providing the envelope power supply signal, which is about equal to the second voltage, wherein

during a transition from the envelope tracking mode to the transition mode, the offset capacitive element has the first voltage; and

during a transition from the transition mode to the average power tracking mode, the offset capacitive element has the second voltage.