Tuneable NFC-enabled device

• US 9,305,192 B2
• Filed: 06/20/2013
• Issued: 04/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/24/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NXP USA, Inc. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Wilson, Robin
• Primary Examiner(s): HSIEH, PING Y
• Application Number:
  US13/922,548
• Publication Number:
  US 20130281018A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,020 Days
• Field of Search: 235/451, 455/41.1, 455/41.2, 455/41.3, 327/564, 327/565, 3405721-5727
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0723 the record carrier comprising an arrangement for non-contact communication, e.g. wireless communication circuits on transponder cards, non-contact smart cards or RFIDs
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10237 the reader and the record carrier being capable of selectively switching between reader and record carrier appearance, e.g. in near field communication [NFC] devices where the NFC device may function as an RFID reader or as an RFID tag

Abstract

An NFC-enabled device configured at least in part as an integrated circuit, the integrated circuit including a controller and a plurality of capacitors. The controller is operable to control one or more of the plurality of capacitors to vary an operating parameter of the NFC-enabled device.

Claims

1. A near field communications (NFC) device coupled to a host device, the NFC device comprising:

a controller configured to;

receive a control signal sent by the host device in response to coupling a removable or replaceable attachment to the host device, and

determine, in response to the control signal, an expected field strength based upon a configuration of the host device having the removable or replaceable attachment; and

a magnetic field sensor configured to sense a magnetic field strength and to provide a sensed field strength signal,

wherein the controller is further configured to determine a difference between the sensed magnetic field strength and the expected field strength and to vary an operating parameter of the NFC device to change the difference in response to the sensed field strength signal.

2. The NFC device of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to:

change, using a peak detection process, the operating parameter in a plurality of increments until a final increment adversely affects the operating parameter; and

set the operating parameter to an increment immediately before the final increment.

3. The NFC device of claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of capacitors, coupled to the controller, at least one capacitor from among the plurality of capacitors being configurable to vary the operating parameter.

4. The NFC device of claim 3, wherein the at least one capacitor is configurable by the controller;

and

wherein the operating parameter comprises a capacitance of the at least one capacitor.

5. The NFC device of claim 3, further comprising:

a plurality of switches, each switch from among the plurality of switches being associated with a corresponding capacitor from among the plurality of capacitors,

wherein the controller is configured to control at least one of the plurality of switches to activate or deactivate its associated capacitor to vary the operating parameter.

6. The NFC device of claim 3, wherein the at least one capacitor comprises a varicap diode.

7. The NFC device of claim 3, wherein the at least one capacitor comprises:

a first and a second conductive track portion provided in a common layer of the NFC device, the first and the second conductive track portions being spaced from one another to form, respectively, a first and a second electrode of a capacitor from among the plurality of capacitors; and

wherein the first and the second electrodes include a first and a second plurality of transversely extending spaced conducting tabs, respectively, the first and the second electrodes being arranged such that the first plurality of transversely extending spaced conducting tabs is interleaved with the second plurality of transversely extending spaced conducting tabs.

8. The NFC device of claim 1, further comprising:

an inductive coupler;

wherein the controller is configured to vary the operating parameter of the NFC device to vary a resonant frequency of the inductive coupler.

9. The NFC device of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to vary the operating parameter of the NFC device to reduce the difference in response to the sensed field strength signal.

10. The NFC device of claim 1, wherein the removable or replaceable attachment comprises:

a battery,

a casing,

a security device, or

an electro-static discharge (ESD) device.

11. A communications device, comprising:

a controller configured to;

determine a mechanical variant of the communications device from among a plurality of mechanical variant types for the communications device, and

determine an expected field strength based upon the determined mechanical variant; and

a magnetic field sensor configured to sense a magnetic field strength and to provide a sensed field strength signal,

wherein the controller is further configured to determine a difference between the sensed magnetic field strength and the expected field strength and to vary an operating parameter of the communications device to change the difference in response to the sensed field strength signal.

12. The communications device of claim 11, wherein the controller is further configured to:

change, using a peak detection process, the operating parameter in a plurality of increments until a final increment adversely affects the operating parameter; and

set the operating parameter to an increment immediately before the final increment.

13. The communications device of claim 11, further comprising:

a plurality of capacitors, coupled to the controller, at least one capacitor from among the plurality of capacitors being configurable to vary the operating parameter.

14. The communications device of claim 13, wherein the at least one capacitor is configurable by the controller;

and

wherein the operating parameter comprises a capacitance of the at least one capacitor.

15. The communications device of claim 13, wherein the at least one capacitor comprises a varicap diode.

16. The communications device of claim 13, wherein the at least one capacitor comprises:

a first and a second conductive track portion provided in a common layer of the communications device, the first and the second conductive track portions being spaced from one another to form, respectively, a first and a second electrode of a capacitor from among the plurality of capacitors; and

wherein the first and the second electrodes include a first and a second plurality of transversely extending spaced conducting tabs, respectively, the first and the second electrodes being arranged such that the first plurality of transversely extending spaced conducting tabs is interleaved with the second plurality of transversely extending spaced conducting tabs.

17. The communications device of claim 11, further comprising:

an inductive coupler;

wherein the controller is configured to vary the operating parameter of the communications device to vary a resonant frequency of the inductive coupler.

18. The communications device of claim 11, wherein the plurality of mechanical variant types comprises:

the communications device having a battery;

the communications device having a casing;

or

the communications device having a removable or replaceable attachment.

19. The communications device of claim 11, wherein the controller is further configured to:

receive a control signal sent by the host device following attachment of a removable or replaceable attachment to the communications device, and

determine the mechanical variant of the communications device in response to the control signal.

20. The communications device of claim 19, wherein the removable or replaceable attachment comprises:

a battery,

a casing,

a security device, or

an electro-static discharge (ESD) device.

21. A near field communications (NFC) device coupled to a host device, comprising:

a controller configured to;

determine a variant type of the host device from among a plurality of variant types for the host device, and

determine an expected field strength based upon the determined variant type; and

a magnetic field sensor configured to sense a magnetic field strength of a received signal and to generate a sensed field strength signal,

wherein the controller is further configured to determine a difference between the sensed magnetic field strength and the expected field strength and to vary an operating parameter of the NFC device to change the difference in response to an operating condition of the NFC device.

22. The NFC device of claim 21, wherein the operating condition comprises at least one of:

the NFC device being configured to operate as an NFC reader; and

the NFC device being configured to operate as an NFC tag.

23. The NFC device of claim 21, wherein the NFC device is implemented as part of the host device;

and

wherein the operating condition comprises;

receiving a control signal from the host device indicating attachment of a removable or replaceable attachment to the host device.

24. The NFC device of claim 23, wherein the removable or replaceable attachment comprises at least one of:

a battery;

a casing;

a security device;

or

an electro-static discharge (ESD) device.

25. The NFC device of claim 21, further comprising:

an inductive coupler configured to inductively receive the received signal; and

a plurality of capacitors, coupled to the controller, at least one capacitor from among the plurality of capacitors being configurable by the controller to vary the operating parameter;

wherein the operating parameter comprises a capacitance of the at least one capacitor.

26. The NFC device of claim 21, wherein the operating condition comprises the sensed field strength signal;

and

wherein the controller is configured to vary the operating parameter of the NFC device in response to the sensed field strength signal falling below a predetermined threshold.

27. The NFC device of claim 21, wherein the controller is further configured to:

receive a control signal sent by the host device following attachment of a removable or replaceable attachment to the communications device, and

determine the variant type of the communications device in response to the control signal.

28. The NFC device of claim 27, wherein the removable or replaceable attachment comprises:

a battery,

a casing,

a security device, or

an electro-static discharge (ESD) device.

29. A method for operating a near field communications (NFC) device coupled to a host device, comprising:

coupling a removable or replaceable attachment to the host device;

determining, by the NFC device, an expected field strength in response to the coupling;

sensing, by the NFC device, a magnetic field strength of a received signal;

generating, by the NFC device, a sensed field strength signal;

determining, by the NFC device, a difference between the sensed magnetic field strength and the expected field strength; and

varying, by the NFC device, an operating parameter of the NFC device to change the difference.