HK1148127B - Configurable receiver, transmitter, transceiver, and method using in transceiver - Google Patents

Description

Configurable receiver, transmitter and method for use in a transceiver

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a communication device, and more particularly, to a communication device that communicates with a plurality of networks on a plurality of frequency bands.

Background

It is known that wireless communication systems support wireless communication between wireless communication devices that join the system. Such wireless communication systems extend from national and/or international cellular telephone systems to point-to-point in-home wireless networks (point-to-point wireless networks). Each type of wireless communication system is constructed and operates in accordance with one or more standards. Such Wireless communication standards include, but are not limited to, IEEE802.11, 802.15, 802.16, Long Term Evolution (LTE), bluetooth, Advanced Mobile Phone Service (AMPS), digital AMPS (digital AMPS), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Wireless Application Protocol (WAP), Local Multipoint Distribution Services (LMDS), Multichannel Multipoint Distribution System (MMDS), and/or other modified standards.

An IEEE802.11 compliant wireless communication system includes a plurality of client devices (e.g., laptops, personal computers, personal digital assistants, etc. connected to a station) that communicate with one or more access points over a wireless link. As is also well known in the art, many wireless communication systems use the Carrier Sense Multiple Access (CSMA) protocol, which allows multiple communication devices to share the same radio spectrum. Prior to transmission by the wireless communication device, the wireless link is "listened" to determine if the spectrum is being used by another station to avoid potential data collisions. In other systems, transmissions may be scheduled using, for example, a management frame or Power Save Multi Poll (PSMP). In many cases, a transmitting device (e.g., a client device or an access point) transmits at a fixed power level (fixedower level) regardless of the distance between the transmitting device and a target device (e.g., a station or access point). Typically, the closer the transmitting device is to the target device, the fewer errors will occur in the received transmitted signal.

Cognitive radio (cognitive radio) is a wireless communication device that can adjust transmission or reception parameters for efficient communication, thereby avoiding interference. The change of parameters may be implemented based on active monitoring (active monitoring) of certain parameters in the external and internal radio environment, such as radio spectrum, user behavior and network status.

As one or more of these communication devices move, their transmission and reception characteristics may change as the device moves: when it is far from or near to a device with which it communicates, when a transmission environment changes due to the device location with respect to a reflecting member (reflecting member), an interfering station (interfering station), a noise source (noise sources), and the like.

Other drawbacks and disadvantages of the prior art will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art upon examination of the following system of the present invention as described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention will be fully described in the operating device and method with reference to the accompanying drawings, examples and claims.

According to an aspect of the invention, a configurable receiver (configurable receiver) is proposed, comprising:

an RF receiver section (section) generating at least one down-converted signal from at least one received RF signal; wherein the RF receiver section comprises a plurality of RF receiver stages configured in parallel, wherein each of the plurality of RF receiver stages is selectively usable in response to a control signal; and

a receiver processing module, coupled to the RF receiver section, processes the at least one downconverted signal to produce an inbound data stream.

Preferably, the configurable receiver further comprises:

a plurality of antennas connected with the RF receiver section (section) for generating at least one received RF signal;

wherein the plurality of antennas and the RF receiver portion are configurable into a selected one of a plurality of antenna modes in response to the control signal, wherein the plurality of antenna modes includes at least one of: single input single output mode, multiple input single output mode, single input multiple output mode, and multiple input multiple output mode.

Preferably, at least one of the plurality of RF receiver stages comprises a blocking circuit (blocking circuit) selectively accessible in response to the control signal to provide interference blocking.

Preferably, each of the plurality of RF receiver stages includes blocking circuitry that can be selectively used in response to a control signal to provide interference blocking.

Preferably, the RF receiver portion includes a plurality of down-conversion modules, the RF receiver portion being configurable to generate a plurality of down-converted signals from a plurality of RF signals in response to the control signal.

Preferably, the receiver processing module processes the at least one downconverted signal in a plurality of receiver stages to produce an inbound data stream, wherein the receiver processing module is configurable to selectively bypass at least one of the plurality of processing stages in response to a control signal.

According to an aspect of the invention, a configurable transmitter (configurable bletarsmitter) is proposed, comprising:

a transmitter processing module to process outbound data to generate at least one baseband signal; and

an RF transmitter section (section) coupled to the transmitter processing module to generate at least one RF signal from the at least one baseband signal, wherein the RF transmitter section is configurable to operate in a mixed signal mode of operation and a phase modulation mode of operation in response to a control signal.

Preferably, the RF transmitter module includes:

a phase modulation up-converter for up-converting the at least one baseband signal in a phase modulation mode of operation; and

a mixed signal up-conversion module for up-converting the at least one baseband signal in a mixed signal operation mode.

Preferably, the configurable transmitter further comprises:

a plurality of antennas connected with the RF transmitter section (section) for transmitting at least one RF signal;

wherein the plurality of antennas and the RF transmitter portion are configurable into a selected one of a plurality of antenna modes in response to the control signal, wherein the plurality of antenna modes includes at least one of: single input single output mode, multiple input single output mode, single input multiple output mode, and multiple input multiple output mode.

Preferably, the configurable transmitter further comprises:

a plurality of antennas connected to the RF transmitter section for transmitting at least one RF signal;

wherein the RF transmitter section includes a beamforming stage for generating a plurality of beamformed upconverted signals for a corresponding plurality of antennas.

Preferably, the RF transmitter section includes a plurality of power amplification stages configured in parallel, wherein each of the plurality of power amplification stages is selectively bypassed for low power operation in response to a control signal.

Preferably, each of the plurality of power amplification stages comprises a linear power amplifier and a non-linear power amplifier, wherein the linear power amplifier and the non-linear power amplifier are independently selectable.

Preferably, each of the plurality of power amplification stages includes a polar amplifier operating based on a baseband signal.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method in a transceiver comprising an RF receiver section having a plurality of RF receiver stages configured in parallel and a configurable RF transmitter section, the method comprising:

selectively enabling a plurality of RF receiver stages (stages) in response to a control signal;

configuring the configurable RF transmitter section to operate in response to the control signal in one of: a mixed signal mode of operation and a phase modulation mode of operation.

Preferably, the method further comprises:

configuring a plurality of antennas to a selected one of a plurality of antenna modes in response to a control signal, the plurality of antennas connected with the RF receiver portion and the RF transmitter portion, wherein the plurality of antenna modes includes at least one of: single input single output mode, multiple input single output mode, single input multiple output mode, and multiple input multiple output mode.

Preferably, the method further comprises:

the beamforming stages are selectively enabled to generate a plurality of beamformed, upconverted signals for a corresponding plurality of antennas.

Preferably, the method further comprises:

interference blocking is selectively enabled in at least one of the plurality of RF receiver levels.

Preferably, the method further comprises:

one of a plurality of power amplification modes is selected, the plurality of power amplification modes including a linear power amplification mode and a non-linear power amplification mode.

Preferably, the plurality of power amplification modes further includes a low power mode.

Preferably, the plurality of power amplification modes further comprises a polarized power amplification mode.

The following detailed description of specific embodiments is provided to facilitate an understanding of various advantages, aspects, and novel features of the invention as they may be better understood when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a communication system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of a communication system in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of wireless networks 111 and 107 according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 125 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram of RF transceiver 123 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram of the transmitter processing module 146 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 7 is a schematic block diagram of the receiver processing module 144 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a schematic block diagram of a portion of an RF transmitter in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a schematic block diagram of an RF receiver portion in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram of a configurable power supply in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 11 is a schematic block diagram of a power management unit (power management unit) according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 12 is a schematic block diagram of a power management unit (power management unit) according to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a schematic block diagram of a power management unit (power management unit) according to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 14 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 15 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 16 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 17 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 18 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 19 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 20 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the invention.

Detailed Description

Fig. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In particular, the illustrated communication system includes a communication device 10 that wirelessly communicates real-time data 24 and/or non-real-time data 26 with one or more other devices, such as a base station 18, a non-real-time device 20, a real-time device 22, and a non-real-time and/or real-time device 25. In addition, communication device 10 may also optionally communicate with non-real-time device 12, real-time device 14, non-real-time and/or real-time device 16 via a wired connection.

In one embodiment of the present invention, wired connection 28 is a wired connection that operates according to one or more standard protocols, such as Universal Serial Bus (USB), IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers)488, IEEE 1394 (firewire), Ethernet, SCSI (Small Computer System interface), Serial or Parallel Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA), PATA, Parallel Advanced Technology Attachment, other wired communication protocols, standard or proprietary (proprietary). The wireless connection may communicate in accordance with a wireless networking protocol, such as IEEE802.11, bluetooth, UWB (Ultra-Wideband), WIMAX, or other wireless networking protocols, a wireless telephony Data/voice protocol such as Global system for mobile Communications (GSM), GPRS (General Packet Radio Service), EDGE (Enhanced Data Rate for Global Evolution), PCS (Personal Communications Service), WCDMA, LTE or other mobile wireless protocols or other wireless communication protocols, standard or proprietary. Further, the wireless communication path includes separate transmit and receive paths using separate carrier frequencies and/or separate frequency channels. Alternatively, a single frequency or frequency channel is used to bi-directionally transfer data from or to the communication device 10.

The communication device 10 is a mobile device such as a cellular telephone, Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), gaming device (game console), personal computer, portable computer, wireless display screen, or other device that performs one or more functions, including the transfer of voice and/or data over a wired connection 28 and/or a wireless communication path. In one embodiment of the present invention, real-time and/or non-real-time devices 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, and 25 are base stations, access points, terminals, personal computers, portable computers, PDAs, storage devices, Cable Replacement devices (Cable Replacement), bridge/hub devices, wireless HDMI devices, mobile phones, such as cellular phones, devices equipped with wireless local area networks or bluetooth transceivers, FM tuners, TV tuners, digital cameras, digital camcorders (camcorders), or other devices that either generate, process, or use audio, video signals, or other data or communications.

In operation, the communication device includes one or more applications, including Voice communications, such as standard telephony applications, VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) applications, local games, web games, email, instant messaging, multimedia messaging, web browsing, audio/video recording, audio/video playback, audio/video downloading, playing audio/video streams, office applications (such as databases, spreadsheets, word processing, report authoring and processing), and other Voice and data applications. Along with these applications, real-time data 26 includes voice, audio, video, and multimedia applications including internet gaming and the like. Non-real-time data 24 includes text messages, e-mail, web browsing, file uploads and downloads, and the like.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the communication device 10 is a multi-service device capable of wirelessly communicating real-time and/or non-real-time data, such as with multiple networks, simultaneously or non-simultaneously. The multi-service function includes the ability to engage in communications over multiple networks to select an optimal network or to have an optional optimal network for a particular communication. For example, communication device 10 may wish to place a telephone call, initiate a traditional telephone call to a remote caller over a cellular telephone network via a cellular voice protocol, initiate a voice gateway telephone over a data network via a wireless local area network protocol, or initiate communication with another communication device in a point-to-point manner via a bluetooth protocol. In another example, a communication device 10 that wishes to access a video program may receive a video signal stream over a cellular telephone network via a cellular data protocol, receive a direct broadcast video signal, download a podcast video signal over a data network via a wireless local area network protocol, and so forth.

In one embodiment of the invention, the communication device 10 comprises an integrated circuit, such as an RF integrated circuit, that incorporates one or more features or functions of the present invention. Such an integrated circuit will be described in more detail below in conjunction with fig. 3-20.

Fig. 2 is a schematic block diagram of a communication system according to another embodiment of the present invention. In particular, the communication system shown in fig. 2 includes many of the common components in fig. 1, like components being numbered with like reference numerals. The communication device 30 is similar to the communication device 10 with any of the applications, functions and features of the communication device 10 set forth in connection with fig. 1. However, the communication device 30 includes two or more separate wireless transceivers that simultaneously use two or more wireless communication protocols to communicate with data devices 32 and/or data base stations 34 in the network 6 via RF data 40 and to communicate with voice base stations 36 and/or voice devices 38 in the network 8 via RF voice signals 42.

Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of wireless networks 111 and 107 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. Wireless network 111 includes an access point 110 connected to packet switched backbone network 101. The access point 110 manages the communication streams over the wireless network 111 from and to each of the communication devices 91, 93, 97 and 125. Each communication device 91, 93, 97, and 125 may access the service provider network 105 and the internet 103 through the access point 110, and thus may, for example, browse websites, download audio and/or video programs, send and receive messages (such as text messages, voice messages, and multimedia messages, access broadcasts, stored audio or streaming audio, video, or other multimedia content), play games, send and receive telephone calls, and perform any other activities provided directly through the access point 110 or indirectly through the packet switched backbone network 101.

One or more of the communication devices 91, 93, 97, and 125, such as communication device 125, is a mobile device that includes the functionality of communication device 10 or 30. Additionally, the communication devices 125 can optionally communicate over one or more of the other networks 107 described in conjunction with fig. 1 and 2.

Fig. 4 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 125 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. In particular, the Integrated Circuit (IC)50 is shown for implementing the communication device 125 in conjunction with: a microphone 60, a keypad/keyboard 58, a memory 54, a speaker/headset interface 62, a display screen 56, a camera 76, an antenna interface 72.. 72', and a wired port 64. In operation, IC50 includes a plurality of wireless transceivers, such as transceivers 73 and 73 ', which contain RF and baseband module data for transmitting and receiving data (e.g., RF real-time data 26 and non-real-time data 24) and transmitting via antennas 72.. 72'. Each antenna may be a fixed antenna, a single-input single-output antenna (SISO), a multiple-input multiple-output antenna (MIMO), a diversity antenna system, an antenna array (antenna array) that allows beamforming (beam shape), gain, polarization, or other controllable antenna parameters, or other antenna configurations. In addition, IC50 includes an input/output module 71 (including appropriate interfaces), drivers, encoders and decoders for communicating over wired connection 28 via wired port 64, an optional memory interface for communicating with off-chip memory 54, a codec for encoding voice signals from microphone 60 into digital voice signals, a keypad/keyboard interface (for generating data for keypad/keyboard 58 responsive to user actions), a display driver (such as driving via color video signals, text, graphics, or other display data) for driving display screen 56, an audio driver such as an audio amplifier (for driving microphone 62 and one or more other interfaces for connecting camera 76 or other peripherals).

In operation, the RF transceiver 73.. 73' generates outbound RF signals from the outbound data and inbound data from the inbound RF signals to communicate with a plurality of networks, such as networks 6, 8, 107, and 111. The controller 221 is configured to configure the one or more transceivers 73.. 73 ', antennas 72.. 72 ', and power management unit 95 to meet channel conditions, specific transmission requirements for data sent to and received from the transceivers 73.. 73 ', to conserve power, reduce interference, and communicate more efficiently with one or more networks or remote devices.

The power management circuit (PMU)95 includes one or more DC-DC converters, voltage regulators, current regulators or other power supplies to power the IC50 and optionally other components of the communication device 10 and/or peripheral devices to which voltage and/or current (collectively, power signals) are supplied. Power management circuitry 95 may employ one or more batteries, power lines (power lines), inductive power sources (inductive power) received from a remote device, piezoelectric power sources (piezoelectric power) that generate electrical power in response to movement of the integrated circuit, and/or other power sources (not shown). In particular, power management module 95 may select to provide the following power signals in response to control signals received from the configuration controller: with different voltage, current or current limit (current limit), or adjustable voltage, current or current limit. While a off-chip module is shown, PMU 95 may also be implemented in on-chip circuitry.

In addition, IC50 includes a position generation module 48 that generates position or motion parameters, such as longitude, latitude, altitude (altitude), address, velocity vector, acceleration (including deceleration), and/or other position or motion parameters, based on the position or motion of the device. The location generation module 48 includes a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver, one or more accelerometers, gyroscopic (gyroscopic) or location sensors, a device that operates on triangulation (triangulation) data received over a network, or other location generation device that generates or receives location or motion parameters.

In one embodiment of the invention, the IC50 is an integrated circuit system on a chip that includes at least one processing device. Such as processing module 225, is a microprocessor, microcontroller, digital signal processor, microcomputer, central processing unit, field programmable gate array, programmable logic device, state machine, logic circuitry, analog circuitry, digital circuitry, and/or any device that controls signals (analog and/or digital) based on operational instructions. The associated memory is a single memory device or multiple memory devices, which may be on-chip or off-chip such as memory 54. The memory device may be a read-only memory, random access memory, volatile memory, non-volatile memory, static memory, dynamic memory, flash memory, and/or any device that stores digital information. Note that when IC50 implements one or more functions via a state machine, analog circuitry, digital circuitry, and/or logic circuitry, the associated memory storing the corresponding operational instructions for such circuitry may be embedded within the circuitry comprising the state machine, analog circuitry, digital circuitry, and/or logic circuitry.

It should also be noted that some of the modules of the illustrated communication device 125 are included on the IC50 and others are not included on the IC50, and that the IC50 is used for exemplary purposes and may include more or less modules of the communication device 125 depending on the particular implementation. Further, the communication device 125 may include additional or fewer modules than those shown. In operation, the IC50 executes operational instructions to implement one or more applications (real-time or non-real-time) of the communication device 125 described in conjunction with fig. 1-3.

Fig. 5 is a schematic block diagram of an RF transceiver 123, such as transceivers 73, 73', in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The RF transceiver includes an RF transmitter 129, an RF receiver 127. The RF receiver 127 includes an RF front end 140, a down conversion module 142, and a receiver baseband processing module 144 operating under control of a control signal 141. The RF transmitter 129 includes a transmitter baseband processing module 146, an up-conversion module 148, and a wireless transmitter (radio transmitter) front end 150 that operates under control of a control signal 141.

As shown, the receiver and transmitter are connected to an antenna 171 and a duplexer 177 (duplex), such as antenna interface 72 or 74, respectively, to convert the transmit signal 155 to produce the outbound RF signal 170 and to convert the inbound signal 152 to produce the received signal 153. Alternatively, a transmit/receive switch is used instead of the duplexer 177. Although only a single antenna is shown, the receiver and transmitter may also share a multiple antenna structure including two or more antennas. In another embodiment, the receiver and the transmitter share a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna structure, a diversity antenna structure, a phased array (phased array), or other controllable antenna structure that includes multiple antennas. Each antenna may be fixed, programmable, and an antenna array or other antenna configuration.

In operation, the transmitter receives outbound data 162 from other portions of the host device, such as a communication application executed by the processing module 225 or other source through the transmitter processing module 146. The transmitter processing module 146 processes the outbound data 162 in accordance with a particular wireless communication standard (e.g., IEEE802.11, bluetooth, RFID, GSM, CDMA, etc.) to generate a true baseband signal without frequency offset or an Intermediate Frequency (IF) Transmit (TX) signal including the outbound data 162. The baseband or low IF Transmit (TX) signal 164 may be a digital baseband signal (e.g., having a 0 IF) or a digital low IF signal, where the low IF is typically in the frequency range of hundreds of KHz to several MHz. Note that the processing performed by the transmitter processing module 146 includes, but is not limited to, scrambling, encoding, puncturing (puncturing), mapping, modulation, and/or digital baseband to IF conversion.

The up-conversion module 148 includes a digital-to-analog conversion (DAC) module, a filtering and/or gain module, and a mixing section (mixing section). The DAC module converts the baseband or low IF TX signal 164 from the digital domain to the analog domain. The filtering and/or gain module filters and/or adjusts the gain of the analog signal before providing the signal to the mixing section. The mixing section converts the analog baseband or low IF signal to an up-converted signal 166 based on the transmitter local oscillation.

The wireless transmitter front end 150 includes a power amplifier and may also include a transmit filter module. The power amplifier amplifies the upconverted signal 166 to generate an outbound RF signal 170, which, if included, needs to be filtered by a transmit filter module. The antenna structure transmits the outbound RF signal 170 to a target device, such as an RF tag (tag), a base station, an access point and/or another wireless communication device that is connected to an antenna via an antenna interface 171, the antenna providing impedance matching and optional band pass filtering (bandpass filtering).

The receiver receives an inbound RF signal 152 through an antenna and off-chip antenna interface 171, the off-chip antenna interface 171 for processing the inbound signal 152 into a received signal 153 for the receiver front end 140. In general, the antenna interface 171 provides antenna impedance matching for the RF front end 140, optional bandpass filtering for the inbound RF signals 152, and optional control for the configuration of the antenna in response to one or more control signals 141 generated by the processing module 225.

The down conversion module 142 includes a mixing portion, an analog-to-digital conversion (ADC) module, and may also include a filtering and/or gain module. The mixing section converts the desired RF signal 154 to a down-converted signal 156, such as an analog baseband or low IF signal, based on receiver local oscillation. The ADC module converts the analog baseband or low IF signal to a digital baseband or low IF signal. The filtering and/or gain module high pass and/or low pass filters the digital baseband or low IF signal to produce a baseband or low IF signal 156. Note that the order of the ADC block and the filtering and/or gain block may be switched, and then the filtering and/or gain block is an analog block.

The receiver processing module 144 processes the baseband or low IF signal 156 in accordance with a particular wireless communication standard (e.g., IEEE802.11, bluetooth, RFID, GSM, CDMA, etc.) to generate inbound data 160. The processing performed by the receiver processing module 144 includes, but is not limited to, digital intermediate frequency to baseband conversion, demodulation, demapping, depuncturing, decoding, and/or descrambling.

Further, the configuration controller 221 generates one or more control signals 141 for configuring or adapting the RF transceiver 123. In operation, the configuration controller 221 generates the control signals 141 to modify transmit and/or receive parameters of the RF transceiver 125, such as protocol parameters, data rates, modulation types, channel utilization methods, and other data parameters, frequency bands, channels and bandwidths, filter settings, gains, power levels, ADC and DAC parameters, and other parameters used by the RF front-end 140, the radio transmitter front-end 150, the down-conversion module 142, and the up-conversion module 148, as well as antenna configurations used by the antenna interface 171 for setting beam patterns (beam patterns), gains, polarizations, or other antenna configurations of the antenna.

In one embodiment of the invention, the configuration controller receives channel data 143 from the RF front end that is indicative of the reception conditions of the channel, such as the strength of the received signal, the signal-to-noise ratio, the ratio of signal to noise and interference, and/or an automatic gain control signal or other data indicative of the current performance of the channel. In addition, the configuration controller 221 is capable of receiving channel data 145 from the receiver processing module 144. The channel data 145 includes a bit error rate and/or a packet error rate that further indicates current channel conditions. Further, the configuration controller 221 receives demand data (requirement data) corresponding to the inbound data stream, wherein the demand data includes a plurality of services, signal delay limits, signal content, e.g., signal type (such as real-time MPEG2 video stream, real-time audio stream, non-real-time data file, etc.).

Configuration controller 221, receiver processing module 144, and transmitter processing module 146 may each be implemented by a dedicated or shared processing device. The processing device may be, for example, a microprocessor, microcontroller, digital signal processor, microcomputer, central processing unit, field programmable gate array, programmable logic device, state machine, logic circuitry, analog circuitry, digital circuitry, and/or any device that controls signals (analog and/or digital) based on operational instructions. An associative memory is a single memory device or multiple memory devices, which may be on-chip or off-chip. The memory device may be a read-only memory, random access memory, volatile memory, non-volatile memory, static memory, dynamic memory, flash memory, and/or any device that stores digital information. Note that when configuration controller 221, receiver processing module 144, and transmitter processing module 146 implement one or more functions via a state machine, analog circuitry, digital circuitry, and/or logic circuitry, the associated memory storing the corresponding operational instructions for such circuitry may be embedded within the circuitry comprising the state machine, analog circuitry, digital circuitry, and/or logic circuitry.

In one embodiment of the invention, the configuration controller 221 includes a look-up table that generates the control signal 141 based on the demand data 223 and the channel data 143 and 145. The control signal 141 may be an analog signal, a digital signal, a discrete time signal of other signals for controlling the modules of the RF transceiver 123 to accommodate communications based on the channel data 143 and 145 and the demand data 223. In particular, control signal 141 is a plurality of individual signals or a single multi-dimensional (multidimensional) signal that can independently control modules of RF transceiver 123 that are used to adjust, adapt, control, or configure the operation of other similar transceivers 123 and power management unit 95. Details regarding the particular conditions under which the control signal 141 is generated will be discussed later in connection with fig. 6-20.

Fig. 6 is a schematic block diagram of the transmitter processing module 146 according to an embodiment of the invention. In particular, the transmitter processing module 146 processes the outbound data in multiple transmitter stages to generate at least one baseband signal, such as a baseband or low IF transmit signal 164. In one embodiment, the transmitter stages shown include a scrambling stage 180, a coding stage 181, an interleaving stage 182, a mapping stage 183, and a space/time coding stage 184. The transmitter processing module 146 further includes an inverse FFT transform module 185 (which can optionally also be bypassed). In response to the control signal 141, each stage may be individually or optionally bypassed by a multiplexer (multiplexer) 186. In operation, the multiplexer 186 executes a switching matrix to selectively turn on (switch) or bypass each of the transmitter stages to place the transmitter processing module 146 in a different configuration. Each of the transmitter stages may be individually powered by a dedicated power supply signal from the power management unit 95. In this manner, the unused transmitter stages may be powered down to conserve power.

In addition, each transmitter stage 180-184 may also be configured separately. In this manner, the control signal 141 may select one of a plurality of scrambling methods or use different scrambling seeds or encryption keys, may select one of a plurality of encoding techniques, may select one of a plurality of interleaving pairs, may select one of one or more spatial/temporal codes in a plurality of mappings.

By selectively bypassing one or more transmitter stages and/or configuring each stage, transmitter processing module 146 may be configured to be one of a plurality of modulation modes (such as a minimum frequency shift keying mode, a binary phase shift keying mode, a quadrature amplitude modulation mode, and a frequency shift keying mode), and may be configured to be a selected one of a plurality of channel utilization modes (such as an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing mode, a coded orthogonal frequency division multiplexing mode, a time division multiplexing mode, a frequency division multiplexing mode, a code division multiplexing mode, and a spread spectrum mode) in response to control signal 141.

Although transmitter processing module 146 is shown producing a single baseband or low IF transmit signal 164, multiple baseband or low IF transmit signals may be generated through one or more redundant paths for applications such as transmitter processing module 146 connected to an RF transmitter section that is configurable to generate multiple RF signals for transmission by multiple antennas. In this embodiment, the transmitter processing module 146 may be configured as one of a plurality of antenna modes in response to the control signal 141, such as a single-input single-output mode, a multiple-input single-output mode, a single-input multiple-output mode, and a multiple-input multiple-output mode.

In this manner, the configuration controller 221 configures channel utilization, antenna modes to achieve effective throughput based on the channel conditions reflected by the channel data 143 and 145 and further based on the demand data 223. For example, when good channel conditions with high received power and low interference are observed, certain redundancy and channel compensation characteristics may be reduced or bypassed altogether to simplify generation of baseband or low IF transmit signals, and/or to reduce power by reducing processing speed and/or disabling bypassed transmit stages (transmit ranges).

Fig. 7 is a schematic block diagram of the receiver processing module 144 according to an embodiment of the invention. In a complementary manner to the transmitter processing module 146, the receiver processing module 144 includes a plurality of receiver stages that are individually configurable and optionally bypassed in response to the control signal 141 to produce the inbound data stream 160. In particular, the stages include a descrambling stage 194, a decoding stage 193, a de-interleaving stage 192, a demapping stage 191, a spatial/temporal decoding stage 190, and an FFT stage 189 (which can also be optionally bypassed depending on the particular implementation). Each receiver stage may be separately powered by a dedicated power supply signal from the power management unit 95. In this manner, unused receiver stages may be powered down to save power.

One or more of the downconverted signals 156 may be processed in this manner: combining the processed signals in a combining module 197; the combining module performs summation, maximum ratio recombination (recombination), or other combining to generate inbound data 160 in response. Optionally, the combination module 197 generates the channel data 145 by determining a packet error rate, bit error rate, indicative of the current channel conditions.

By selectively bypassing one or more transmitter stages and/or configuring each of these stages, receiver processing module 144 may be configured as one of a plurality of modulation modes (such as a minimum frequency shift keying mode, a binary phase shift keying mode, a quadrature amplitude modulation mode, and a frequency shift keying mode), and as a selected one of a plurality of channel utilization modes (such as an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing mode, a coded orthogonal frequency division multiplexing mode, a time division multiplexing mode, a frequency division multiplexing mode, a code division multiplexing mode, and a spread spectrum mode) in response to control signal 141.

In addition, one or more redundant paths may be selectively enabled or disabled in response to the control signal 141 to configure the receiver processing module 144 to a selected one of a plurality of antenna modes, such as a single-input single-output mode, a multiple-input single-output mode, a single-input multiple-output mode, and a multiple-input multiple-output mode.

In this manner, the configuration controller 221 configures channel utilization, antenna modes to achieve effective throughput based on the channel conditions reflected by the channel data 143 and 145 and further based on the demand data 223. For example, when good channel conditions with high received power and low interference are observed, certain redundancy and channel compensation characteristics may be reduced or bypassed altogether to simplify processing of the downconverted signal 156 and/or to reduce power by reducing processing speed and/or disabling bypassed transmit stages.

Fig. 8 is a schematic block diagram of an RF transmitter portion in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. In particular, the RF transmitter portions shown are such as a wireless transmitter front end 150 and an up-conversion module 148. The RF transmitter section is coupled to an antenna (such as antenna 171) to generate one or more RF signals 224 from at least one baseband signal, such as baseband or low IF transmit signal 164. The antenna module 214 includes multiple antennas driven by the RF signals 224. Through the multiplexer 222 and the demultiplexer 220, the antenna module 214 and the RF transmitter section may be configured in one of a plurality of antenna modes in response to the control signal 141, such as a single-input single-output mode, a multiple-input single-output mode, a single-input multiple-output mode, and a multiple-input multiple-output mode.

In addition, a beamforming stage 204 is included for generating a plurality of beamformed up-converted signals having controlled amplitude and phase and capable of being passed to a plurality of parallel power amplification sections 226 to generate RF signals 224 for the antenna module 214, for transmitting signals having directional beams (as part of a phased array), for acquiring spatial diversity (as part of spatial/temporal coding), for transmitting in a controlled polarization (polarization), and so on. In the low power mode, one or more power amplifier stages 226 may be turned off to conserve power.

In operation, the configurable RF transmitter section operates in a mixed signal mode of operation in response to the control signal 141 by selecting the I-Q upconversion module 202; the I-Q up-conversion module 202 operates based on the generation of in-phase (I) and quadrature-phase (Q) signals. Further, by selecting the phase modulation up-conversion module 200 (including a phase locked loop or other phase or frequency modulator), the RF transmitter section may be configured to operate in a phase modulation mode of operation in response to the control signal 141.

In an embodiment of the invention, each module of the RF transmitter portion may be separately powered by a dedicated power signal 228 from the power management unit 95. In this manner, unused modules may be shut down to conserve power.

As previously described, the RF transmitter section includes a plurality of power amplification stages 226, e.g., each stage corresponding to one of the plurality of antennas in the antenna module 214. Each stage of the power amplifier stage 226 is driven by a driver 206 or other pre-amplification stage (pre-amplification). The power amplifier stage 226 may be configured in parallel to be selectively bypassed for low power operation in response to the control signal 141. As shown, each stage of the power amplification stage 226 includes a linear power amplifier 208 and a non-linear power amplifier 210. The linear power amplifier 208 and the non-linear power amplifier 210 may be individually selected based on a desired power level in response to the control signal 141. Further, the linear power amplifier 208 is a polar amplifier (polar amplifier) that operates on the modulated signal 151 contained in the baseband or low IF transmit signal 164 to generate an amplitude modulated output.

In operation, the configuration controller 221 generates the control signal 141 based on the channel data 143 and/or 145. The control signal 141 configures the RF transmitter portion to generate one or more RF signals 226 having a selected power level. If, for example, RF transceiver 123 is in communication with an external device and receives an inbound RF signal 152 having a high signal strength, the strength of received signal 153 may be used to generate channel data 143, which channel data 143 controls RF front end gain reduction, which channel data is used by configuration controller 221 to configure the RF transmitter portion for a low power mode of operation (by turning off or bypassing one or more power amplification stages) via control signal 141. This can conserve power and can extend battery life, and when the device incorporating RF transceiver 123 is a mobile communication device, can help reduce interference with other stations (communicating with the same access point or base station or using the same frequency spectrum) within the operating range of RF transceiver 123.

Similarly, if, for example, the RF transceiver 123 communicates with an external device and receives an inbound RF signal 152 having a low signal strength with a higher bit error rate or packet error rate than acceptable or with stringent QOS requirements, the configuration controller 221 can generate control signals to select a higher power level for the RF signal 224, use more power amplification stages and transmit through more than all of the antennas in the antenna module 214, more carefully beam-form the antenna pattern, etc. This facilitates the outbound RF signal 170 reaching external devices that are remote or have partially blocked communication paths connected to the RF transceiver 123.

Fig. 9 is a schematic block diagram of an RF receiver portion in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. In particular, the RF receiver section, such as the RF front end 140 and the down conversion module 142, is connected to the antenna module 214. The RF receiver portion generates one or more downconverted signals 156 from at least one received RF signal generated by the antenna module 214. Each module of the RF receiver section may be separately powered by a dedicated power signal 238 from the power management unit 95. In this manner, unused modules may be powered down to conserve power.

The RF receiver section includes a plurality of RF receiver stages 236 configured in parallel, where these devices may be selectively powered on by a dedicated power supply signal to enable each of the plurality of RF receiver stages. For example, the RF receiver portion may be configured in one of a plurality of antenna modes, such as a single-input single-output mode, a multiple-input single-output mode, a single-input multiple-output mode, and a multiple-input multiple-output mode. In operation, the power management unit 95 is operable to selectively and individually respond to control signals 141 of stages of the circuit, with those stages being in an active state and other stages being in an off state. Channel data generator 236 generates channel data 143 based on received signal strength, signal-to-noise ratio, signal-to-noise-and-interference ratio, automatic gain control data, or other data indicative of the conditions of the particular channel being received.

As shown, the RF receiver stages 236 include low noise amplifiers 232, and one or more of the RF receiver stages 236 further include blocking circuitry 234 that can be selectively employed in response to the control signal 141 to provide interference blocking by filtering, cancellation, or other blocking techniques. In this manner, one or more blocking circuits 234 may be selectively used when the presence of high interference is indicated by channel data 143 and/or channel data 145. In one embodiment of the invention, the configuration controller 221 may selectively use the blocking circuits and monitor the channel data 143 and/or 145 to determine if the channel conditions are better when each individual blocking circuit 234 is used or not used.

The RF receiver portion includes a plurality of down-conversion modules 230, such as down-conversion module 142, which may be configured to generate a plurality of down-converted signals from a plurality of RF signals in response to a control signal 141.

FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram of a configurable power supply in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. In particular, the illustrated power supply 240 may include providing one or more power supply signals Vdd_RFThe power supply signal Vdd of the power supply management unit 95_RFPowering a configurable RF section 244, such as the RF transmitter section of FIG. 8And the RF receiver section in fig. 9. In addition, the power supply 240 generates one or more power supply signals Vdd_BBConfigurable baseband processing modules 242, such as transmitter processing module 146 and receiver processing module 144, are powered. In operation, power supply 240Vdd_RFAnd Vdd_BBAt least one of the plurality of power consumption parameters is adjusted in accordance with the plurality of power consumption parameters and based on a control signal 241, such as control signal 141. In an embodiment of the invention, separate ones of the configurable RF section 244 and the configurable baseband processing module 242 may be powered by a dedicated power supply signal Vdd from the power supply 240_RFAnd Vdd_BBAnd supplying power separately. In this manner, unused modules may be powered down to conserve power.

In one embodiment of the invention, power supply 240 may further adjust a power consumption parameter, such as the power contained at Vdd_RFAnd Vdd_BBReceiver power signal voltage, receiver power signal current, transmitter power signal voltage, transmitter power signal current. In this manner, the control signal 241 simultaneously configures the power supply 240 to adjust the power supply signal Vdd when the configuration controller 221 configures the RF and baseband portions of the receiver and transmitter_RFAnd Vdd_BBAnd thus to accommodate changes in power requirements of the configurable baseband (BB) processing module 242 and the configurable RF section 244.

For example, the power supply 240 adjusts the power signal Vdd_RFAnd Vdd_BBIn response to the control signal 241 to correspond to a selected one of a plurality of antenna modes, such as a single-input single-output mode, a multiple-input single-output mode, a single-input multiple-output mode, and a multiple-input multiple-output mode. In another example, the power supply 240 adjusts the power supply signal Vdd_RFAnd Vdd_BBIn response to control signal 241, to correspond to a selected one of a plurality of modulation modes. Such as a minimum frequency shift keying mode, a binary phase shift keying mode, a quadrature amplitude modulation mode, and a frequency shift keying mode. In a further example, the power supply 240 adjusts the power supply signal Vdd_RFAnd Vdd_BBAnd selection of one of a plurality of channel utilization modesIn response to the control signal 241, the plurality of channels utilize modes such as an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing mode, a coded orthogonal frequency division multiplexing mode, a time division multiplexing mode, a frequency division multiplexing mode, a code division multiplexing mode, and a spread spectrum mode. The power supply 240 may also adjust the power signal Vdd_RFAnd Vdd_BBCorresponding to a selected one of a plurality of power amplification modes such as a linear power amplification mode, a non-linear power amplification mode, a low power mode, and a polarized power amplification mode, in response to the control signal 241.

FIG. 11 is a schematic block diagram of a power management circuit according to an embodiment of the invention. In particular, selected modules of the IC50 are shown to include an RF transceiver 123 and a configuration controller 221. The off-chip power management circuitry 95 receives the control signal 241 and generates a plurality of power signals 254, such as one or more transmitter power signals 252, one or more receiver power signals 250, to power the off-chip and on-chip modules in use. As illustrated in FIG. 10, the transmitter power signal 252 and the receiver power signal 250 (including one or more power signals Vdd) may be adjusted based on the control signal 141 and the corresponding particular mode of operation_RFAnd Vdd_BB)。

For example, the various operating modes of the RF transmitter 129 and RF receiver 127 include a power level for a low power range, a power level for a medium power range, a power level for a high power range, a transmitter power amplification mode, an antenna mode, a modulation mode, and a channel utilization mode. The control signal 141 may indicate to the off-chip power management circuitry 95 the selected mode of the RF transmitter 129 so that the off-chip power management circuitry 95 may provide the necessary power signal 254 to meet the power requirements of the selected mode of operation. This approach allows for powering the RF transmitter and/or the various modules contained therein, only the power mode currently in use needs to be satisfied (address).

If communication device 10 or 30 is using certain peripherals and/or certain interfaces or modules at a given time, off-chip power management circuitry 95 is commanded to provide only those power signals 254 that are required by the peripherals, interfaces or other modules in use. Further, if a USB device is connected to wired port 64, a power mode command is sent to off-chip power management module 95 to generate a power signal 204, which power signal 204 provides a power supply voltage (such as a 5 volt, 8 milliamp power supply voltage) to wired port 64 to power the USB device or a device connected thereto. In another example, if the communication device 10 comprises a mobile communication device operating in accordance with GSM or EDGE wireless protocols, the off-chip power management circuit 95 generates power supply voltages for the baseband and RF modules of the transceiver only when the transceiver is operational.

Further, power is supplied to the peripheral devices (such as camera 76, memory 54, keypad/keyboard 58, microphone 60, display 56, speaker 62) when they are connected (and may be separated to some extent) and to some extent when they are currently being used by the application.

The power management features of the present invention may operate based on a power mode determined by the configuration controller 221 that corresponds to other operating modes of the IC 50. The configuration controller 221 determines the power mode by determining the particular power supply signal (which needs to be generated based on the device in use and optionally the respective power state) and via a look-up table, calculation (calculation), other processing (processing routine).

The off-chip power management circuitry 95 may be implemented as a multi-output programmable power supply that receives the control signal 141 and generates the power signal 254, and optionally routes the power signal 254 to a particular port, pin, or pin (pad) of the IC50, or directly through a switching matrix (switchmatrix) to a peripheral device as commanded by the control signal 141. In one embodiment of the invention, the control signal 141 is decoded by the off-chip power management module to determine the particular power signal to be generated and its characteristics (such as voltage, current, and/or current limit).

In one embodiment of the invention, the IC50 connects the control signal 141 to off-chip via one or more dedicated data lines (including parallel interfaces)A power management circuit 95. Further, IC50 may also communicate via a serial communication interface (such as I)²A C-interface, serial/serial-to-parallel converter (SERDES)), or other serial interface connects control signal 141 to the off-chip power management circuit.

Fig. 12 is a schematic block diagram of a power management unit (power management unit) according to another embodiment of the present invention. In particular, on-chip power management circuit 95' operates in a manner similar to off-chip power management circuit 95 to generate power signal 255 (similar to power signal 254). The on-chip power management circuitry 95' includes one or more DC-DC converters, voltage regulators, current regulators, or other power supplies to power the IC50 and optionally other components of the communication device 10 and/or its peripherals that require a supply voltage and/or current (collectively, power signals). The on-chip power management circuit 95' employs one or more batteries, power lines (line powers), and/or other power sources, not shown herein, as described in connection with fig. 11.

FIG. 13 is a schematic block diagram of a power management unit according to another embodiment of the invention. In particular, a MIMO configuration of the transceivers 73.. 73 'is shown, the transceivers 73.. 73' including a plurality of RF transceivers 350 (such as RF transceivers 123), transmitting outbound data 162 through each transceiver 350 and generating outbound data 160 by maximal ratio re-combining or other processing techniques, in conjunction with inbound data from each transceiver 350. Each transceiver includes an RF transmitter (such as RF transmitter 129) and an RF receiver (such as RF receiver 127) that share a common antenna, share a common antenna structure that includes multiple antennas, or use separate antennas with the transmitter and receiver. Under this configuration, the configuration controller 221 generates the control signal 141 based on the demand data 223 and channel data 147 (such as channel data 143 and 145) received from each transceiver 350.

FIG. 14 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the invention. In particular, the illustrated method is used in conjunction with one or more of the functions and features illustrated in fig. 1-13. In step 400, the receiver processing module may be configured to selectively bypass at least one of the plurality of receiver processing stages in response to a control signal. In step 402, the transmitter processing module may be configured to selectively bypass at least one of the plurality of transmitter processing stages in response to a control signal.

In an embodiment of the invention, the transceiver further comprises a plurality of antennas, wherein the transmitter processing module and the receiver processing module are configurable to a selected one of a plurality of antenna modes, wherein the plurality of antenna modes comprises a single-input single-output mode, a multiple-input single-output mode, a single-input multiple-output mode, and a multiple-input multiple-output mode. The transmitter processing module and the receiver processing module are configurable to a selected one of a plurality of modulation modes, wherein the plurality of modulation modes includes a minimum frequency shift keying mode, a binary phase shift keying mode, a quadrature amplitude modulation mode, and a frequency shift keying mode. The transmitter processing module and the receiver processing module are configurable to a selected one of a plurality of channel utilization modes, wherein the plurality of channel utilization modes includes an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing mode, a coded orthogonal frequency division multiplexing mode, a time division multiplexing mode, a frequency division multiplexing mode, a code division multiplexing mode, and a spread spectrum mode.

FIG. 15 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the invention. In particular, the illustrated method is used in conjunction with one or more of the functions and features illustrated in fig. 1-14. In step 410, a plurality of RF receiver stages may be selectively activated in response to a control signal. In step 412, the configurable RF transmitter section is configured to operate in one of the following modes in response to the control signal: mixed signal mode of operation, phase modulation mode of operation.

FIG. 16 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the invention. In particular, the illustrated method is used in conjunction with one or more of the functions and features illustrated in fig. 1-15. In step 420, a plurality of antennas coupled to the RF receiver section and the RF transmitter section are configured in a selected one of a plurality of antenna modes in response to the control signal, wherein the plurality of antenna modes includes a single-input single-output mode, a multiple-input single-output mode, a single-input multiple-output mode, and a multiple-input multiple-output mode.

FIG. 17 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the invention. In particular, the illustrated method is used in conjunction with one or more of the functions and features illustrated in fig. 1-16. In step 430, a beamforming stage may be optionally used, the beamforming stage being configured to generate a plurality of beamformed upconverted signals for a corresponding plurality of antennas.

FIG. 18 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the invention. In particular, the illustrated method is used in conjunction with one or more of the functions and features illustrated in fig. 1-17. In step 440, interference blocking may be selectively used in at least one of the plurality of RF receiver stages.

FIG. 19 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the invention. In particular, the illustrated method is used in conjunction with one or more of the functions and features illustrated in fig. 1-18. In step 450, one of a plurality of power amplification modes is selected, the plurality of power amplification modes including a linear power amplification mode, a non-linear power amplification mode, a low power mode, and/or a polar power amplification mode.

FIG. 20 is a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the invention. In particular, the illustrated method is used in conjunction with one or more of the functions and features illustrated in fig. 1-19. In step 460, an inbound data stream is generated by the RF receiver from the at least one received RF signal in response to the control signal. In step 462, at least one RF signal is generated from the outbound data stream by the configurable RF transmitter portion in response to the control signal. In step 464, at least one receiver power signal and at least one transmitter power signal are generated as a function of a plurality of power consumption parameters. In step 466, a control signal is generated based on the channel data. In step 468, at least one parameter of the plurality of power consumption parameter values is adjusted based on the control signal.

In one embodiment of the invention, the plurality of power consumption parameters includes a receiver power signal voltage, a receiver power signal, a transmitter power signal voltage, and/or a transmitter power signal current.

The RF transceiver and the RF transmitter are configurable to a selected one of a plurality of modulation modes in response to the control signal, wherein the plurality of modulation modes includes a minimum frequency shift keying mode, a binary phase shift keying mode, a quadrature amplitude modulation mode, and/or a frequency shift keying mode, wherein the adjustment of the at least one of the plurality of power consumption parameters is based on the selected one of the plurality of modulation modes.

The RF transceiver and the RF transmitter are configurable to a selected one of a plurality of channel utilization modes, wherein the plurality of channel utilization modes includes an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing mode, a coded orthogonal frequency division multiplexing mode, a time division multiplexing mode, a frequency division multiplexing mode, a code division multiplexing mode, and a spread spectrum mode, wherein the adjustment of the at least one of the plurality of power consumption parameters is based on the selected one of the plurality of channel utilization modes.

The control signal may be generated based on channel data including received signal strength, signal-to-noise ratio, signal-to-noise and interference ratio, automatic gain control data, bit error rate, packet error rate, quality of service, signal delay limit (signal delay limit), and/or signal content.

The RF transmitter is configurable into one of a plurality of power amplification modes, and the adjustment of the plurality of power consumption parameters is based on a selected one of the plurality of power amplification modes. The plurality of power amplification modes include a linear power amplification mode, a non-linear power amplification mode, a low power mode, and/or a polar power amplification mode.

As used herein, the term "substantially" or "approximately" provides an industry-accepted tolerance for the relatedness of the respective terms and/or components. Such an industry-accepted tolerance ranges from less than 1% to 50% and corresponds to, but is not limited to, component values, integrated circuit process fluctuations, temperature fluctuations, rise and fall times, and/or thermal noise. The correlation between these components ranges from a difference in percentage to a difference in magnitude. As used herein, the term "coupled" includes direct connection between components and/or indirect connection of two components through intervening components (e.g., components including, but not limited to, components, elements, circuits, and/or modules). Where for indirect connections, the intervening component does not alter the information of the signal, but may adjust its current level, voltage level, and/or power level. As further used herein, inferred coupling (i.e., where one element is coupled to another element by inference) includes direct and indirect coupling between two elements in the same manner as "coupled". As further used herein, the term "operatively connected" indicates that a component comprising one or more power connections, inputs, outputs, etc., performs one or more corresponding functions, and further includes inferred connections to one or more other components. As used herein, the term "associated connection" includes a direct and/or indirect connection between an individual element and/or an element embedded in another element. As used herein, the term "compares favorably", as may be used herein, means that a comparison between two or more component signals, etc., provides a desired relationship. For example, when the desired relationship is that signal 1 has a greater amplitude than signal 2, favorable comparison results may be obtained when the amplitude of signal 1 is greater than the amplitude of signal 2 or the amplitude of signal 2 is less than the amplitude of signal 1.

The invention has been described above with the aid of method steps illustrating the performance of specified functions and relationships. For convenience of description, the boundaries and sequence of these functional building blocks and method steps have been defined herein specifically. However, given the appropriate implementation of functions and relationships, changes in the limits and sequences are allowed. Any such boundaries or sequence of changes should be considered to be within the scope of the claims.

The invention has also been described above with the aid of functional building blocks illustrating the performance of certain important functions. For convenience of description, the boundaries of these functional building blocks have been defined specifically herein. When these important functions are implemented properly, varying their boundaries is permissible. Similarly, flow diagram blocks may be specifically defined herein to illustrate certain important functions, and the boundaries and sequence of the flow diagram blocks may be otherwise defined for general application so long as the important functions are still achieved. Variations in the boundaries and sequence of the above described functional blocks, flowchart functional blocks, and steps may be considered within the scope of the following claims. Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that the functional blocks, and other illustrative blocks, modules, and components described herein may be implemented as discrete components, application specific integrated circuits, processors with appropriate software, and the like, or any combination thereof.

Claims (8)

1. A configurable receiver, comprising:

an RF receiver section generating at least one down-converted signal from at least one received RF signal; wherein the RF receiver section comprises a plurality of RF receiver stages configured in parallel, wherein each of the plurality of RF receiver stages is selectively usable in response to a control signal, wherein at least one of the plurality of RF receiver stages comprises blocking circuitry selectively usable in response to the control signal to provide interference blocking; and

a receiver processing module, coupled to the RF receiver portion, processes the at least one downconverted signal to generate an inbound data stream.

2. The configurable receiver of claim 1, wherein the configurable receiver further comprises:

a plurality of antennas connected to the RF receiver section for generating at least one received RF signal;

wherein the plurality of antennas and the RF receiver portion are configurable into a selected one of a plurality of antenna modes in response to the control signal, wherein the plurality of antenna modes includes at least one of: single input single output mode, multiple input single output mode, single input multiple output mode, and multiple input multiple output mode.

3. The configurable receiver according to claim 1, wherein each of said plurality of RF receiver stages comprises blocking circuitry selectively usable in response to a control signal to provide interference blocking.

4. The configurable receiver of claim 1 wherein said RF receiver section comprises a plurality of down-conversion modules, the RF receiver section configurable to generate a plurality of down-converted signals from a plurality of RF signals in response to said control signal.

5. The configurable receiver of claim 1, wherein said receiver processing module processes said at least one downconverted signal in a plurality of receiver stages to produce an inbound data stream, wherein said receiver processing module is configurable to selectively bypass at least one of the plurality of processing stages in response to a control signal.

6. A configurable transmitter, comprising:

a transmitter processing module to process outbound data to generate at least one baseband signal; and

an RF transmitter section coupled to the transmitter processing module and configured to generate at least one RF signal from the at least one baseband signal, wherein the RF transmitter section is configurable to operate in a mixed signal mode of operation and a phase modulation mode of operation in response to a control signal,

wherein the RF transmitter section includes:

a phase modulation up-converter for up-converting the at least one baseband signal in a phase modulation mode of operation; and

a mixed signal up-conversion module for up-converting the at least one baseband signal in a mixed signal operation mode.

7. The configurable transmitter of claim 6, wherein the configurable transmitter further comprises:

a plurality of antennas connected to the RF transmitter section for transmitting at least one RF signal;

wherein the plurality of antennas and the RF transmitter portion are configurable into a selected one of a plurality of antenna modes in response to the control signal, wherein the plurality of antenna modes includes at least one of: single input single output mode, multiple input single output mode, single input multiple output mode, and multiple input multiple output mode.

8. A method for use in a transceiver comprising an RF receiver section having a plurality of RF receiver stages configured in parallel and a configurable RF transmitter section, the method comprising:

processing the outbound data to generate at least one baseband signal;

selectively enabling a plurality of RF receiver stages in response to a control signal, wherein at least one of the plurality of RF receiver stages includes a blocking circuit selectively usable in response to the control signal to provide interference blocking;

configuring the configurable RF transmitter section to operate in response to the control signal in one of: a mixed signal mode of operation and a phase modulation mode of operation,

wherein the at least one baseband signal is up-converted in a phase modulation mode of operation; up-converting the at least one baseband signal in a mixed signal mode of operation.