Techniques for filtering multi-component signals

• US 9,490,875 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2015
• Issued: 11/08/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2014
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Ossia, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Ossia, Inc.
• Inventors: Shylendra, Prithvi, Johnson, Anthony L., Zeine, Hatem, Williams, Douglas Wayne
• Primary Examiner(s): Fureman, Jared
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pham, Duc M
• Application Number:
  US14/926,014
• Publication Number:
  US 20160127012A1
• Time in Patent Office: 376 Days
• Field of Search: 307/104
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/20 using microwaves or radio frequency waves
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/402 the two or more transmitting or the two or more receiving devices being integrated in the same unit, e.g. power mats with several coils or antennas with several sub-antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00034 Charger exchanging data with an electronic device, i.e. telephone, whose internal battery is under charge
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/24 Inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/79 for data transfer in combination with power transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/028 by filtering

Abstract

Techniques are described herein for filtering and/or otherwise isolating or extracting components of multi-component signals. More specifically, embodiments of the present disclosure describe techniques for filtering and/or otherwise extracting a continuous wave component (or wireless power component) and a modulated data component from a multi-component signal. In some embodiments, the techniques describe systems, apparatuses and methods for filtering and/or otherwise isolating or extracting a frequency (e.g., modulated data component) from a continuous wave (e.g., wireless power component) without affecting the levels of other frequencies. The individual components or signals can be transmitted by one or more sources and received at one or more existing antennas of an electronic device simultaneously.

Claims

1. A signal extraction apparatus for separating a modulated data component and a power component from a wirelessly received multi-component signal, the apparatus comprising:

a signal splitting element configured to replicate the multi-component signal on a first signal processing path and a second signal processing path;

a filter network element coupled to the two-way signal splitting element, the filter element configured to remove the modulated data component from the multi-component signal on the second signal processing path;

a signal separation element communicatively coupled to the two-way splitting element and the filter network element via the first signal processing path and the second signal processing path, the signal separation element configured to couple in-phase input signals to constructively generate a sum signal and destructively generate a difference signal,

wherein the sum signal comprises the power component and the difference signal comprises the modulated data component; and

a delay element configured to delay first signals on the first signal processing path or second signals the second signal processing path such that the input signals are in-phase at the signal separation element.

2. The signal extraction apparatus of claim 1, wherein the signal separation element comprises a rat-race coupler having four ports, each port situated one quarter wavelength away from each other around the top half of a ring, wherein the four ports include two input ports, a summation output port and a delta output port.

3. The signal extraction apparatus of claim 1, wherein the signal splitting element comprises a two-way signal splitting element.

4. The signal extraction apparatus of claim 1, wherein the modulated data component and the power component are received simultaneously at one or more antennas resulting in the received multi-component signal.

5. The signal extraction apparatus of claim 4, wherein the modulated data component is transmitted by one or more antennas of a modulated data source and the wireless power component is transmitted by one or more antenna of a wireless charger.

6. The signal extraction apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

first routing circuitry configured to route the power component to wireless power processing circuitry; and

second routing circuitry configured to rout the modulated data component to modulated data processing circuitry.

7. The signal extraction apparatus of claim 1, wherein the filter network element comprises a band-pass filter.

8. The signal extraction apparatus of claim 1, wherein the filter network element further comprises:

an N-way splitter configured to evenly split the multi-component signal into multiple sub-signals,

wherein each of the multiple sub-signals have a corresponding power and modulated data sub-component;

a delay network configured to route the multiple sub-signals through delays that are integer multiples of a wavelength of the multi-component signal;

an N-way combiner configured to combine outputs of the delay network such that the power sub-components add constructively and the modulated data sub-components average out through the delay network.

9. The signal extraction apparatus of claim 1, wherein the filter network element results in a one hundred and eighty-degree phase shift.

17. The signal extraction apparatus of claim 1, wherein the signal splitting element comprises a two-way signal splitting element, and wherein the filter network element results in a one hundred and eighty-degree phase shift.

10. An electronic device comprising:

one or more antennas configured to receive a multi-component signal,

wherein the multi-component signal includes a modulated data component and a wireless power component;

a signal extraction system for extracting the modulated data component and the wireless power component from the multi-component signal, the apparatus comprising;

a signal splitting element configured to replicate the multi-component signal on a first signal processing path and a second signal processing path;

a filter network element coupled to the two-way signal splitting element, the filter element configured to remove the modulated data component from the multi-component signal on the second signal processing path;

a signal separation element communicatively coupled to the two-way splitting element and the filter network element via the first signal processing path and the second signal processing path, the signal separation element configured to couple in-phase input signals to constructively generate a sum signal and destructively generate a difference signal,

wherein the sum signal comprises an extracted power component and the difference signal comprises an extracted modulated data component; and

a delay element configured to delay first signals on the first signal processing path or second signals the second signal processing path so that the input signals are in-phase at the signal separation element.

11. The electronic device of claim 10, further comprising:

modulated data processing circuitry configured to process the extracted modulated data component.

12. The electronic device of claim 10, further comprising:

wireless power receiver circuitry configured to process the extracted wireless power component.

13. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the modulated data component and the power component are received simultaneously at the one or more antennas resulting in the received multi-component signal.

14. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the filter network element comprises a band-pass filter.

15. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the filter network element further comprises:

an N-way splitter configured to evenly split the multi-component signal into multiple sub-signals,

wherein each of the multiple sub-signals have a corresponding power and modulated data sub-component;

a delay network configured to route the multiple sub-signals through delays that are integer multiples of a wavelength of the multi-component signal;

an N-way combiner configured to combine outputs of the delay network such that the power sub-components add constructively and the modulated data sub-components average out through the delay network.

16. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the signal separation element comprises a rat-race coupler having four ports each situated one quarter wavelength away from each other around the top half of a ring, wherein the four ports include two input ports, a summation output port and a delta output port.

18. A method of separating a modulated data component and a power component from a multi-component signal, the method comprising:

receiving a first signal at a first input port of an extraction element,

wherein the first signal is received over a first path and includes the modulated data component and the power component;

receiving a second signal at a second input port of the extraction element,

wherein the second signal is received at the second port over a second path in-phase with the first signal at the first port, the second signal comprising a portion of the multi-component signal including the power component;

coupling the first and second in-phase signals to constructively generate a sum signal and destructively generate a difference signal,

wherein the sum signal comprises the power component and the difference signal comprises the modulated data component.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

extracting the modulated data component at a first output port of the extraction element; and

routing the extracted modulated data component to modulated data processing circuitry,

wherein the modulated data processing circuitry processes the modulated data to identify a communication.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

extracting the wireless power component at a second output port of the extraction element; and

routing the extracted wireless power component to a rectifier of a wireless power receiver.