Hybrid techniques for antenna retuning utilizing transmit and receive power information

• US 8,213,886 B2
• Filed: 05/07/2007
• Issued: 07/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NXP USA, Inc. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Original Assignee: Paratek Microwave Incorporated (Blackberry Limited)
• Inventors: Blin, Guillaume
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Tuan A
• Application Number:
  US11/800,592
• Publication Number:
  US 20080280570A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,884 Days
• Field of Search: 455/67.11, 455 6713- 6716, 455 68- 70, 455/522, 455120-126, 4551151-1154, 4552261-2264, 455/193.1, 455 78- 82
• US Class Current: 455/123
• CPC Class Codes: H03J 1/0008 using a central processing unit, e.g. a microprocessor digital tuning in general H03J5/0245
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0209 in terminal devices terminal devices per se H04W88/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0245 according to signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0251 using monitoring of local events, e.g. events related to user activity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

An embodiment of the present invention provides an apparatus, comprising a transceiver, an antenna tuner connecting the transceiver to an antenna, a power sensor adapted to acquire measurements about transmit power, a receive signal strength indicator (RSSI) adapted to acquire measurements about receive power and wherein the tuner tunes the antenna based upon the transmit and receive measurements to optimize the antenna in both the receive and transmit bands.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

using a power sensor adapted to acquire measurements about transmit power during a first burst transmission;

using a receive signal strength indicator (RSSI) adapted to acquire measurements about receive power; and

tuning an antenna coupled with a transceiver using a tuner once per frame prior to a second burst transmission based upon said transmit and receive measurements to improve said antenna in both the receive and transmit bands, wherein both the transmit and receive measurements are simultaneously utilized in determining the tuning, and wherein the second burst transmission follows the first burst transmission in time.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

using a modulator driving a power amplifier module (PAM), a low noise amplifier adapted to receive the output of said PAM via a switch, and a variable gain amplifier (VGA) receiving the output of said low noise amplifier in said transceiver.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising receiving the output of said VGA by said RSSI and outputting to a processor, thereby providing the receive sense for said receive signal measurements.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising coupling the output of said PAM via a coupler and switch to said power sensor to determine the transmit measurements.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising using a microcontroller adapted to received transmit measurements from said power sensor and receive measurements from said RSSI via a processor and passing this information to an application specific programmable integrated circuit (ASPIC) to control said tuner.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising specifying by a base-band to said microcontroller the transmit and receive state.

7. The method of claim 5, further comprising specifying by a base-band to said microcontroller the transmit and receive state or receive state only.

8. The method of claim 5, further comprising transmitting by said microcontroller to said ASPIC either a default received state only or an optimized transmit or receive state based on a base-band specification.

9. A machine-accessible medium that provides instructions, which when accessed, cause a machine to perform operations comprising:

using a power sensor adapted to acquire measurements about transmit power during a first burst transmission;

using a receive signal strength indicator (RSSI) adapted to acquire measurements about receive power; and

tuning an antenna coupled with a transceiver using a tuner based upon said transmit and receive measurements to improve said antenna in both the receive and transmit bands, wherein both the transmit and receive measurements are simultaneously utilized in determining the tuning, wherein the tuning is performed once per frame, wherein the tuning is performed prior to a second burst transmission, and wherein the second burst transmission follows the first burst transmission in time.

10. The machine-accessible medium of claim 9, further comprising said instructions causing said machine to perform operations further comprising using a modulator driving a power amplifier module (PAM), a low noise amplifier adapted to receive the output of said PAM via a switch, and a variable gain amplifier (VGA) receiving the output of said low noise amplifier in said transceiver.

11. The machine-accessible medium of claim 10, further comprising said instructions causing said machine to perform operations further comprising receiving the output of said VGA by said RSSI and outputting to a processor, thereby providing the receive sense for said receive signal measurements.

12. The machine-accessible medium of claim 11, further comprising said instructions causing said machine to perform operations further comprising coupling the output of said PAM via a coupler and switch to said power sensor to determine the transmit measurements.

13. The machine-accessible medium of claim 12, further comprising said instructions causing said machine to perform operations further comprising a microcontroller adapted to received transmit measurements from said power sensor and receive measurements from said RSSI via a processor and passing this information to an application specific programmable integrated circuit (ASPIC) to control said tuner.

14. The machine-accessible medium of claim 13, further comprising said instructions causing said machine to perform operations further comprising specifying by a base-band to said microcontroller the transmit and receive state or receive state only.

15. The machine-accessible medium of claim 13, further comprising said instructions causing said machine to perform operations further comprising transmitting by said microcontroller to said ASPIC either a default received state only or an optimized transmit or receive state based on a base-band specification.