Tuning matching circuits for transmitter and receiver bands as a function of the transmitter metrics

• US 8,798,555 B2
• Filed: 12/04/2012
• Issued: 08/05/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/14/2007
• Status: Expired

• Current Assignee: NXP USA, Inc. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Greene, Matthew
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Tuan
• Application Number:
  US13/693,388
• Publication Number:
  US 20130095765A1
• Time in Patent Office: 609 Days
• Field of Search: 455/522, 455/69, 455/67.16, 455/73, 455/77, 455/125, 455/178.1, 455/191.1, 455/193.2, 455/120
• US Class Current: 455/77
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 7/40 Automatic matching of load impedance to source impedance
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/0458 Arrangements for matching and coupling between power amplifier and antenna or between amplifying stages matching circuits in general H03H
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/02 Arrangements for optimising operational condition

Abstract

A system can obtain an operational metric associated with the transceiver, determine a target figure of merit based on a compromise between a desired transmitter performance and a desired receiver, determine a current figure of merit based on the operational metric, and adjust the variable reactance component of the impedance matching circuit based on a comparison of the current figure of merit with the target figure of merit. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

obtaining, by a processor of a communication device, an operational metric for a transceiver of the communication device;

identifying a desired transmitter performance and a desired receiver performance;

determining, by the processor, a target figure of merit based on a compromise between the desired transmitter performance and the desired receiver performance;

determining, by the processor, a current figure of merit based on the operational metric;

comparing, by the processor, the current figure of merit to the target figure of merit; and

adjusting, by the processor, a variable reactance component of an impedance matching circuit operably coupled with an antenna of the communication device, the adjusting of the variable reactance component being performed based on the comparing of the current and the target figures of merit.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the obtaining of the operational metric is during a transmit mode of the transceiver, wherein the variable reactance component is adjusted without utilizing operational metrics measured during a receive mode of the communication device.

3. The method of claim 1, comprising communicating, by the communication device, utilizing frequency division multiplexing.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining of the target figure of merit includes selecting a mid-point between the desired transmitter performance and the desired receiver performance.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining of the current figure of merit is based on known parameters associated with the variable reactance component and is not based on phase information.

6. The method of claim 1, comprising:

storing a tuning value based on the adjusting of the variable reactance component; and

utilizing the tuning value as a default value for subsequent tuning of the antenna.

7. The method of claim 6, comprising:

determining an operational state of the communication device; and

utilizing information associated with the operational state as a default value for subsequent tuning of the antenna.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the operational state comprises a use case scenario selected from the group consisting essentially of hand held operation, antenna position and slider position.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the compromise between the desired transmitter performance and the desired receiver performance is based on an evaluation of total radiated power.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the compromise between the desired transmitter performance and the desired receiver performance is based on an evaluation of total isotropic sensitivity.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the compromise between the desired transmitter performance and the desired receiver performance is based on an evaluation of transmitter linearity.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the compromise between the desired transmitter performance and the desired receiver performance is based on an evaluation of transmitter efficiency.

13. A communication device comprising:

an antenna;

a transceiver;

an impedance matching network coupled with the antenna and the transceiver, wherein the impedance matching network includes a variable reactance component;

a memory to store computer instructions; and

a controller coupled with the memory and the impedance matching network, wherein the controller, responsive to executing the computer instructions, performs operations comprising;

obtaining an operational metric associated with the transceiver;

identifying a desired transmitter performance and a desired receiver performance;

determining a target figure of merit based on a compromise between the desired transmitter performance and the desired receiver performance;

determining a current figure of merit based on the operational metric; and

adjusting the variable reactance component of the impedance matching circuit based on a comparison of the current figure of merit with the target figure of merit.

14. The communication device of claim 13, wherein the variable reactance component includes a voltage tunable capacitor, and wherein the operations of the controller further comprise:

determining a use case for the communication device; and

performing an initial adjustment of the voltage tunable capacitor based on the use case without utilizing any operational metrics associated with the transceiver, wherein the initial adjustment of the voltage tunable capacitor is performed prior to the adjusting based on the comparison of the current figure of merit with the target figure of merit.

15. The communication device of claim 13, wherein the variable reactance component includes a Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) variable reactance component.

16. The communication device of claim 13, wherein the operations of the controller further comprise:

storing a tuning value based on the adjusting of the variable reactance component; and

utilizing the tuning value as a default value for subsequent tuning of the antenna.

17. The communication device of claim 13, wherein the obtaining of the operational metric is during a transmit mode of the transceiver, and wherein the variable reactance component is adjusted without utilizing operational metrics measured during a receive mode of the communication device.

18. The communication device of claim 13, wherein the adjusting of the variable reactance component is associated with a communication session that utilizes frequency division multiplexing.

19. A method comprising:

obtaining an operational metric for a transceiver of a communication device;

determining a target figure of merit based on transceiver performance of the communication device;

determining a current figure of merit based on the operational metric, wherein the determining of the target figure of merit is not based on phase information;

comparing the current figure of merit to the target figure of merit to determine a figure of merit comparison; and

adjusting, by a processor of the communication device, a variable reactance component of an impedance matching circuit operably coupled with an antenna of the communication device, the adjusting of the variable reactance component being performed based on the figure of merit comparison and based on previous tuning results associated with previous adjusting of the variable reactance component.

20. The method of claim 19, comprising monitoring the previous tuning results by determining a change in the current figure of merit based on different reactance values for the variable reactance component.