Multi-band interference optimization

• US 9,614,490 B2
• Filed: 06/06/2014
• Issued: 04/04/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qorvo US, Inc. (Qorvo, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Qorvo US, Inc. (Qorvo, Inc.)
• Inventors: Maxim, George, Leipold, Dirk Robert Walter, Scott, Baker
• Primary Examiner(s): AKINYEMI, AJIBOLA A
• Application Number:
  US14/298,852
• Publication Number:
  US 20140364077A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,033 Days
• Field of Search: 455296
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/4824 Pads with extended contours, e.g. grid structure, branch structure, finger structure
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 1/565 using inductive elements
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2200/111 the amplifier being a dual or triple band amplifier, e.g. 900 and 1800 MHz, e.g. switched or not switched, simultaneously or not
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2200/267 A capacitor based passive circuit, e.g. filter, being used in an amplifying circuit
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2200/451 the amplifier being a radio frequency amplifier
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2203/7209 the gated amplifier being switched from a first band to a second band
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 3/193 with field-effect devices H03F3/195 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 3/245 with semiconductor devices only
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 3/68 Combinations of amplifiers, e.g. multi-channel amplifiers for stereophonics power amplifiers using a combination of several semiconductor amplifiers H03F3/211; combinations of amplifiers using coupling networks with distributed constants H03F3/602
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 3/72 Gated amplifiers, i.e. amplifiers which are rendered operative or inoperative by means of a control signal
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 2210/012 Centre frequency; Cut-off frequency
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 2210/025 Capacitor
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 2210/04 Filter calibration method
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 7/0115 comprising only inductors and capacitors H03H7/075, H03H7/09, H03H7/12, H03H7/13 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 7/0153 Electrical filters; Controlling thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 7/09 Filters comprising mutual inductance
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 7/1775 Parallel LC in shunt or branch path H03H7/1791 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 7/46 Networks for connecting several sources or loads, working on different frequencies or frequency bands, to a common load or source for use in multiplex transmission systems H04J1/00
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 7/463 Duplexers
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 7/465 having variable circuit topology, e.g. including switches
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/1027 : assessing signal quality or detecting noise/interference for the received signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/18 : Input circuits, e.g. for coupling to an antenna or a transmission line coupling networks between antennas or lines and receivers independent of the nature of the receiver H03H

Abstract

RF communications circuitry, which includes a first RF filter structure and control circuitry, is disclosed. The first RF filter structure includes a pair of weakly coupled resonators and a first tunable RF filter. The control circuitry provides a first filter control signal. The first tunable RF filter receives and filters an upstream RF signal to provide a first filtered RF signal, such that a center frequency of the first tunable RF filter is based on the first filter control signal.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a first RF filter structure comprising a pair of weakly coupled resonators and configured to provide a first tunable RF filter, which is configured to receive and filter an upstream RF signal to provide a first filtered RF signal, such that a center frequency of the first tunable RF filter is based on a first filter control signal, wherein the first tunable RF filter is further configured to be a reconfigurable tunable RF filter, such that a shape of a transfer function of the first tunable RF filter is reconfigurable, and a configuration of the first tunable RF filter is based on a first filter reconfiguration signal; and

control circuitry configured to provide the first filter control signal.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the control circuitry is further configured to provide the first filter control signal, which is based on a measurement-based RF spectrum profile.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

the first filter control signal is based on a measurement-based RF spectrum profile; and

the control circuitry is further configured to provide the first filter reconfiguration signal, which is based on the measurement-based RF spectrum profile.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

the first tunable RF filter has a bandpass filter response;

the first tunable RF filter further has one of a first configuration and a second configuration based on the first filter reconfiguration signal; and

an order of the first tunable RF filter is higher during the second configuration than during the first configuration.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein:

during the first configuration and the second configuration, the first tunable RF filter has a single path between a first connection node and a first common connection node;

during the first configuration, all of a first plurality of resonators are coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node;

during the second configuration, all of a second plurality of resonators are coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node; and

a number of resonators in the second plurality of resonators is greater than a number of resonators in the first plurality of resonators.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein:

during the first configuration, all of the first plurality of resonators and at least one coupling circuit are coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node; and

during the second configuration, all of the second plurality of resonators and all of a first plurality of coupling circuits are coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first tunable RF filter is a first tunable RF receive filter.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first tunable RF filter is a first tunable RF transmit filter.

9. An apparatus comprising:

a first RF filter structure comprising a pair of weakly coupled resonators and configured to provide a first tunable RF filter, which is configured to receive and filter an upstream RF signal to provide a first filtered RF signal, such that a center frequency of the first tunable RF filter is based on a first filter control signal;

control circuitry configured to provide the first filter control signal; and

RF detection circuitry configured to receive and detect the first filtered RF signal to provide a first detected signal, wherein a measurement-based RF spectrum profile is based on a plurality of measurements using at least the first detected signal.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the first tunable RF filter is a first tunable RF receive filter and the upstream RF signal is a first upstream RF receive signal, such that the measurement-based RF spectrum profile is based on an RF communications band.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein the RF communications band comprises a plurality of active RF signals, such that each of the plurality of active RF signals has a corresponding center frequency, wherein each of at least a portion of the plurality of measurements is associated with each of at least a portion of the plurality of active RF signals.

12. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein detection of the first filtered RF signal is direct RF detection, which excludes any down-conversion of the first filtered RF signal.

13. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein detection of the first filtered RF signal comprises amplitude modulation (AM) detection, such that the first detected signal comprises a first detected AM signal, which is based on the AM detection, wherein the measurement-based RF spectrum profile is further based on the first detected AM signal.

14. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein detection of the first filtered RF signal comprises amplitude modulation (AM) detection and phase modulation (PM) detection, such that the first detected signal comprises a first detected AM signal, which is based on the AM detection, and a first detected PM signal, which is based on the PM detection, wherein the measurement-based RF spectrum profile is further based on the first detected AM signal and the first detected PM signal.

15. The apparatus of claim 9 further comprising a plurality of tunable RF filters, which comprises the first tunable RF filter and is configured to provide a plurality of filtered RF signals, wherein the RF detection circuitry is further configured to receive and detect the plurality of filtered RF signals to provide a plurality of detected signals, wherein the measurement-based RF spectrum profile is further based on a plurality of measurements using the plurality of detected signals.

16. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the control circuitry is configured to construct the measurement-based RF spectrum profile based on the plurality of measurements.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein RF communications circuitry comprises the control circuitry, such that the RF communications circuitry is configured to provide the measurement-based RF spectrum profile to alternate RF communications circuitry via an information transfer system.

18. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the control circuitry is further configured to provide the first filter control signal.

19. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein:

the control circuitry is further configured to select one of a normal operating mode and a profiling mode;

during the profiling mode, the RF detection circuitry is further configured to provide the first detected signal for the plurality of measurements; and

during the normal operating mode, the first tunable RF filter is configured to receive and filter the upstream RF signal to provide the first filtered RF signal for normal operations.

20. An apparatus comprising:

a first RF filter structure comprising a pair of weakly coupled resonators and configured to provide a first tunable RF filter, which is configured to receive and filter an upstream RF signal to provide a first filtered RF signal, such that a center frequency of the first tunable RF filter is based on a first filter control signal and a configuration of the first tunable RF filter is based on a first filter reconfiguration signal, such that the first tunable RF filter has a bandpass filter response with a side notch filter response; and

control circuitry configured to provide the first filter control signal.

21. The apparatus of claim 20 wherein:

the first tunable RF filter comprises a first path between a first connection node and a first common connection node;

the first tunable RF filter further comprises a second path between the first connection node and the first common connection node;

the first path comprises a first plurality of resonators coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node; and

the second path comprises a second plurality of resonators coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node.

22. The apparatus of claim 21 wherein:

all of the first plurality of resonators and at least one coupling circuit are coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node; and

all of the second plurality of resonators and all of a first plurality of coupling circuits are coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node.

23. The apparatus of claim 21 wherein the first path and the second path share at least one resonator, such that the first plurality of resonators is not identical to the second plurality of resonators.

24. An apparatus comprising:

a first RF filter structure comprising a pair of weakly coupled resonators and configured to provide a first tunable RF filter, which is configured to receive and filter an upstream RF signal to provide a first filtered RF signal, such that a center frequency of the first tunable RF filter is based on a first filter control signal, and a configuration of the first tunable RF filter is based on a first filter reconfiguration signal, such that the first tunable RF filter has a bandpass filter response with a left-side notch filter response and a right-side notch filter response; and

control circuitry configured to provide the first filter control signal.

25. The apparatus of claim 24 wherein:

the first tunable RF filter comprises a first path between a first connection node and a first common connection node;

the first tunable RF filter further comprises a second path between the first connection node and the first common connection node;

the first tunable RF filter further comprises a third path between the first connection node and the first common connection node;

the first path comprises a first plurality of resonators coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node;

the second path comprises a second plurality of resonators coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node; and

the third path comprises a third plurality of resonators coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node.

26. The apparatus of claim 25 wherein:

all of the first plurality of resonators and at least one coupling circuit are coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node;

all of the second plurality of resonators and all of a first plurality of coupling circuits are coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node; and

all of the third plurality of resonators and all of a second plurality of coupling circuits are coupled in series between the first connection node and the first common connection node.

27. The apparatus of claim 25 wherein the first path, the second path, and the third path share at least one resonator, such that the first plurality of resonators is not identical to the second plurality of resonators, the second plurality of resonators is not identical to the third plurality of resonators, and the first plurality of resonators is not identical to the third plurality of resonators.