HK1119309B - Method and system for wireless communication - Google Patents

Description

Method and system for wireless communication

Technical Field

The present invention relates to wireless communications, and more particularly, to a method and system for dynamically tuning and calibrating an antenna using antenna hopping.

Background

Wireless devices use antennas to receive RF (radio frequency) signals. The size of the antenna depends on the wavelength of the RF signal to be received by the wireless device. In general, longer antennas are required for receiving signals with longer wavelengths. Therefore, the mobile terminal receives signals in the GHz range using an antenna several inches long. However, for FM radio signals in the 100MHz range, these antennas need to be longer. As wired headsets become more popular among mobile terminal users, many mobile terminal manufacturers use the headset wire as an antenna, for example, as an antenna for FM receivers.

However, the advent of bluetooth headsets has made the use of wired headsets unnecessary. Other solutions have been developed by mobile terminal manufacturers to implement FM antennas. One such antenna includes a conductive coil or loop disposed on a small circuit board, which is typically mounted on the back of the mobile terminal. Due to the limitations on the size of small FM antennas, such antennas are tunable for supporting FM wireless bandwidth. In addition, external factors have a great influence on the reception sensitivity due to the limited ability of the circuit board antenna to receive FM signals. For example, when a mobile terminal user holds the mobile terminal, variations in capacitance and inductance may cause the center frequency of the FM antenna to deviate from its design frequency. Furthermore, the mobile terminal part, such as a battery, may also interfere with the reception of signals, and/or the distortion and/or short-circuiting of the circuit board antenna may also change the antenna characteristics of the circuit board antenna. Although the reception characteristics of the mobile terminal antenna may change during use of the mobile terminal, the mobile terminal cannot determine the degree of center frequency drift.

The limitations and disadvantages of conventional and existing approaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, through comparison of some aspects of the present system with those of the present system, after reading the following description and drawings.

Disclosure of Invention

A system and/or method for dynamically tuning and calibrating an antenna using antenna hopping, substantially as shown in and/or described in connection with at least one of the figures, as set forth more completely in the claims.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for wireless communication is provided that includes dynamically tuning a mobile terminal antenna to hop from a current center frequency antenna to at least one of a plurality of different center frequencies within a specified range to receive an RF signal for processing by the mobile terminal.

In the method of the present invention, the antenna hopping includes at least one of: slow antenna hopping and fast antenna hopping.

In the method of the invention, the method further comprises aggregating (aggregating) signals received in the desired channel on each of a plurality of center frequencies, wherein the mobile terminal antenna is configured by the fast antenna hopping using the plurality of center frequencies.

In the method of the present invention, the rate of the fast antenna hopping is greater than 2 times the highest baseband signal frequency of the desired channel.

In the method of the present invention, the method further comprises using the antenna hopping to determine a center frequency that enables a desired channel to receive sufficient signals based on at least one of: a received signal strength of the desired channel and a bit error rate of the desired channel.

In the method of the present invention, the method further comprises adding the determined center frequencies each enabling the desired channel to receive a sufficient number of signals to an effective center frequency table.

In the method of the present invention, the method further comprises removing from the table of effective center frequencies that previously existed in the table of effective center frequencies that are currently determined to have failed to receive sufficient signals for the desired channel.

In the method of the present invention, the method further comprises tuning the mobile terminal antenna to the determined center frequency enabling the desired channel to receive a sufficient amount of signals during the fast antenna hopping.

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a machine readable storage, having stored thereon, a computer program comprising at least one code section for wireless communication, the code section being executable by a machine for controlling the machine to perform the steps of: a mobile terminal antenna is dynamically tuned to hop from a current center frequency antenna to at least one of a plurality of different center frequencies within a specified range to receive RF signals for processing by the mobile terminal.

In the machine-readable memory of the present invention, the antenna hopping includes at least one of: slow antenna hopping and fast antenna hopping.

In the machine readable storage of the present invention, said at least one code section comprises code for aggregating signals received in a desired channel on each of a plurality of center frequencies, wherein said plurality of center frequencies are used to configure said mobile terminal antenna by said fast antenna hopping.

In the machine-readable memory of the present invention, the rate of the fast antenna hopping is greater than 2 times the highest baseband signal frequency of the desired channel.

In the machine-readable storage of the present invention, said at least one code segment comprises code for determining a center frequency that enables a desired channel to receive sufficient signals based on at least one of: a received signal strength of the desired channel and a bit error rate of the desired channel.

In the machine-readable storage of the present invention, said at least one code segment comprises code for adding to an effective center frequency table said determined center frequencies each enabling a sufficient number of signals to be received by said desired channel.

In the machine-readable storage of the present invention, said at least one code segment comprises code for removing from the table of effective center frequencies previously present in the table of effective center frequencies that are currently determined to have failed to receive sufficient signals for said desired channel.

In the machine-readable storage of the present invention, said at least one code segment comprises code for tuning said mobile terminal antenna to said determined center frequency enabling sufficient signal reception for said desired channel during said fast antenna hopping.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for wireless communication, comprising: at least one circuit for dynamically tuning a mobile terminal antenna to hop from a current center frequency antenna to at least one of a plurality of different center frequencies within a specified range to receive an RF signal for processing by the mobile terminal.

In the system of the present invention, the antenna hopping includes at least one of: slow antenna hopping and fast antenna hopping.

In the system of the present invention, the at least one circuit is configured to aggregate signals received in a desired channel at each of a plurality of center frequencies, wherein the plurality of center frequencies are used to configure the mobile terminal antenna by the fast antenna hopping.

In the system of the present invention, the at least one circuit is configured to change the rate of the fast antenna hopping to be greater than 2 times the highest baseband signal frequency of the desired channel.

In the system of the present invention, the at least one circuit is configured to determine a center frequency that enables a desired channel to receive sufficient signals using the antenna hopping based on at least one of: a received signal strength of the desired channel and a bit error rate of the desired channel.

In the system of the present invention, the at least one circuit is configured to add to the table of effective center frequencies the determined center frequencies each enabling a sufficient number of signals to be received by the desired channel.

In the system of the present invention, the at least one circuit is configured to remove from the table of effective center frequencies previously present in the table of effective center frequencies that are currently determined to have failed to receive sufficient signals for the desired channel.

In the system of the present invention, the at least one circuit is configured to tune the mobile terminal antenna to the determined center frequency enabling sufficient signal reception for the desired channel during the fast antenna hopping.

Further features and advantages of the invention, as well as the architecture and operation of various embodiments of the invention, are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of an exemplary inductive circuit module that may be used to dynamically tune an antenna, according to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2B is a graph illustrating the received signal strength in a channel with a frequency at the center frequency of the antenna bandwidth, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2C is a graph illustrating the received signal strength in a channel offset from the center frequency of the antenna bandwidth in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2D is a diagram illustrating the received signal strength in the channel when the center frequency changes due to antenna hopping, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 3A is a flow chart of exemplary steps for slow antenna hopping according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 3B is a flow chart of exemplary steps for fast antenna hopping according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

Some embodiments of the invention relate to methods and systems for dynamically tuning and calibrating an antenna using antenna hopping. Features of the present invention include dynamically tuning a mobile terminal antenna to hop the antenna to a plurality of different center frequencies to receive RF signals. Accordingly, antenna hopping may occur when the mobile terminal antenna is tuned to other center frequencies than the current center frequency. The antenna hopping can include slow antenna hopping and fast antenna hopping. In fast antenna hopping, the received signals at each center frequency in the channel will be aggregated together. The hop rate in fast antenna hopping is greater than twice the frequency of the highest baseband signal in the desired channel. For example, for an FM channel, the hop rate will be greater than 36000 hops/sec because the baseband bandwidth of the FM channel is 18 KHz.

At each center frequency, whether slow or fast, it is necessary to determine whether enough signals are received in the channel. Whether the signal is sufficient may be determined by measuring the received signal strength of the desired channel, the channel throughput of the desired channel, and/or the bit error rate of the desired channel. The center frequency at which a sufficient number of signals can be received in the desired channel is referred to as the effective center frequency. In this way, an effective center frequency table may be provided for a desired channel, and for a center frequency, if the desired channel is capable of receiving enough signals at that center frequency, that center frequency is added to the effective center frequency table. For a frequency in the table of effective center frequencies, if the number of signals recently received by the desired channel at that frequency is insufficient, the center frequency is removed from the table of effective center frequencies. For slow antenna hopping, the mobile terminal antenna can be tuned to a determined center frequency of the desired channel.

Fig. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 1, a mobile terminal 100 is illustrated that may include, for example, an antenna 105, an antenna tuning circuit module 110, an RF front end 112, a baseband processor 114, a processor 116, and a system memory 118. The antenna tuning circuit block 110 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, and/or code that may enable tuning the center frequency of the antenna 105. The antenna tuning circuit module 110 may also tune the bandwidth of signals that may be received by the antenna 105. The antenna tuning circuit module 110 may also be used to impedance match the antenna 105 to the RF front end 112.

The RF front end 112 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, and/or code that may enable processing of received RF signals and/or RF signals to be transmitted. The RF front end 112 may be coupled to the antenna 105 through the antenna tuning circuit 110 for receiving and/or transmitting signals. For a received signal, the RF front end 112 may demodulate it and then further process it. In addition, the RF front end 112 may also include other exemplary functions, such as filtering, amplifying, and/or down-converting the received signal to an ultra-low intermediate frequency (VLIF) signal and/or a baseband signal. The RF front end 112 may include an IF processor to digitize the IF signal and digitally process the digital IF signal to filter and/or down convert the digital IF signal to generate a digital baseband signal. The IF processor may then convert the digital baseband signal to an analog baseband signal.

The RF front end 112 may also include an analog signal aggregator (aggregator)112a controlled by, for example, a processor 116. The analog signal aggregator 112a may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, and/or code that may enable aggregating analog signals over a period of time. For example, the signal aggregator may be a voltage accumulator that accumulates the voltage and transmits the voltage upon indication, for example, by the processor 116 or other logic.

The RF front end 112 may also receive digital or analog baseband signals from, for example, a baseband processor 114. For example, the baseband processor 114 may generate one or more signals to the RF front end 112 for controlling one or more functions performed by the RF front end 112. Thus, in one embodiment of the invention, one or more signals generated by baseband processor 114 and/or processor 116 may be used to program various components in RF front end 112, such as filters, phase-locked loops (PLLs), or synthesizers. The RF front end 112 may appropriately filter, amplify, and/or modulate the analog signals before transmitting through the antenna 105. The RF front end 112 may also convert digital signals to analog signals as part of the pre-transmit processing.

The baseband processor 114 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, and/or code that may enable processing of analog or digital baseband signals generated by the RF front end 112. The baseband processor 114 may also send the baseband signal to the RF front end 112 for processing and subsequent transmission. The baseband processor 114 may also comprise suitable logic, circuitry, and/or code that may enable aggregation of received signals. For example, the baseband processor may process four consecutive digital samples from the received signal to generate a single digital sample. The generation of the digital samples may be independently designed and/or implemented. For example, the generated digital sample may be an average of the four digital samples. One embodiment of the invention may use discrete circuit blocks for aggregation, such as the digital signal aggregator 114a, while other embodiments may use a processor, such as the DSP114b, to do so.

The processor 116 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, and/or code that may enable controlling operation of the antenna tuning circuit 110, the RF front end 112, and/or the baseband processor 114. For example, the processor 116 may be used to update and/or modify programmable parameters and/or values in various elements, devices, and/or processing components in the antenna tuning circuit 110, the RF front end 112, and/or the baseband processor 114. Exemplary programmable parameters may include gain of the amplifier, bandwidth of the filter, and/or PLL parameters. Control and/or data information may also be communicated from another controller and/or processor in the mobile terminal 100 to the processor 116. Similarly, the processor 116 may also direct control and/or data information to another controller and/or processor in the mobile terminal 100.

The processor 116 may use the received control and/or data information to determine the operating mode of the RF front end 112. For example, the processor 116 may select a particular frequency for a local oscillator or a particular gain for a variable gain amplifier. In addition, the particular frequency selected and/or parameters required to calculate the particular frequency, and/or the particular gain value and/or parameters required to calculate the particular gain value, may be stored in the system memory 118 by the controller/processor 116. Information stored in the system memory 118 may be communicated to the RF front end 112 via the controller/processor 116. The system memory 118 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, and/or code that may enable storage of a plurality of control and/or data information, including parameters required for calculation of frequency and/or gain, and/or frequency values and/or gain values. The system memory 118 may also store various parameters, such as for antenna hopping. The antenna hopping parameters can include, for example, various antenna tuning circuit parameters for determining the center frequency and bandwidth of the antenna 105, and the impedance matching of the antenna 105 and the RF front end 112.

During operation, RF signals may be transmitted from antenna 105 to antenna tuning circuit 110. The antenna tuning circuit 110 presents an impedance to the antenna 105 such that the antenna 105, along with the antenna tuning circuit 110, will have a center frequency and a bandwidth around the center frequency. The antenna tuning circuit 110 may also impedance match the antenna 105 to the RF front end 112. Thus, the reception of signals within the above-mentioned bandwidth by the antenna 105 will be ideal. However, various environmental conditions, including when a human body such as a user holds the mobile terminal 100, may cause the center frequency to drift away from the desired center frequency. For example, when the palm of the hand touches the mobile terminal, the capacitive and inductive characteristics of the hand may change the center frequency. The mobile terminal 100 can detect the center frequency drift and then dynamically configure the antenna tuning circuit module 110 to pull the center frequency back around the desired center frequency.

The center frequency drift may be detected by the RF front end 112, and the RF front end 112 may receive a weak signal at the desired frequency. Center frequency drift may also be detected by processing the received signal. For example, if the received signal contains digital information, the baseband processor 114 may detect an increase in bit error rate, which may indicate a shift in the center frequency.

The signal strength indication and/or bit error rate will be sent to the processor 116, and the processor 116 will thereby determine that the antenna tuning circuit block 110 needs to be reconfigured. Accordingly, the processor 116 may issue appropriate control and/or data to the antenna tuning circuit module 110 to reconfigure and/or retune the antenna tuning circuit module 110. By processing information related to the received signal, the processor 116 can dynamically adjust the center frequency to reduce the effect of center frequency drift. The processor 116 may also reconfigure the antenna tuning circuit module 110 to adjust the bandwidth of the antenna 105 and/or the impedance matching between the antenna 105 and the RF front end 112.

Although in one embodiment of the present invention the antenna tuning circuit module 110 is presented as a single functional module, the present invention is not so limited. For example, the antenna tuning circuit module 110 may be part of the RF front end 112. Furthermore, although the processor 116 determines when and how to configure the antenna tuning circuit 110 in the above description, the invention is not limited thereto. For example, the antenna tuning circuit module 110 may also independently include or cooperate with the processor 116 to perform functions such as adjusting the center frequency, the bandwidth of the antenna 105, and/or the impedance matching between the antenna 105 and the RF front end 112. Further, although communication with at least one other processor or controller is required in FIG. 1, the invention is not so limited. Thus, the processor 116 may not have to communicate with other processors in controlling the RF communications. For example, a mobile terminal design may not use a processor other than processor 116, or processor 116 may have read all the information needed to control RF communications.

Fig. 2A is a schematic diagram of an exemplary inductive circuit module that may be used to dynamically tune an antenna in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. As shown in fig. 2A, in one embodiment of the invention, the antenna tuning circuit module 110 may include a tuning control module 210 and a sensing circuit module 230. The tuning control module 210 may include a control module 212 and a plurality of capacitive arrays 214, 216, … …, 218. The control module 212 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, and/or code that may enable control of the capacitance value of each of the capacitive arrays 214, 216, … …, 218. In some embodiments of the invention, the capacitive arrays 214, 216, … …, 218 may be disposed on the same chip as the sensing circuit module 220. In other embodiments of the present invention, the sensing circuit module 220 is separate from the on-chip capacitor arrays 214, 216, … …, 218.

Each of the capacitive arrays 214, 216, … …, 218 may include a plurality of capacitive elements whose capacitance values may be superimposed to form different capacitances having different capacitance values. The capacitive arrays 214, 216, … …, 218 will be described in detail in FIG. 2C. The sensing circuit module 220 may include a plurality of inductive elements coupled to the capacitive arrays 214, 216, … …, 218.

The sensing circuit block 230 depicts an exemplary configuration of the inductive elements in the sensing circuit block 230. The sensing circuit module 230 may include a plurality of inductive elements 230a, 230b, … … 230c in series. Each capacitive array 214, 216, … …, 218 may be connected to a node in the sense circuit module 230. For example, capacitor array 214 may be connected to the node between inductors 230a and 230b, capacitor array 216 may be connected to the node between inductors 230b and 230c, and capacitor array 218 may be connected to the node where inductor 230c is not connected to inductor 230 b.

In operation, the tuning control module 210 may configure the capacitive arrays 214, 216, … …, 218 for use with the sensing circuit module 230. Control module 212 may select the capacitance value of each capacitive array 214, 216, … …, 218 by activating the respective capacitive element for receiving RF signals from antenna 105. Thus, the impedance of the circuit may be varied, such that the center frequency and/or bandwidth of the antenna 105 may be adjusted. Changing the impedance of the circuit may also impedance match the antenna 105 to the RF front end 112.

Although the inductive devices 230a, 230b, … …, 230c are shown in series in the inductive circuit block 230, the invention is not limited thereto. Inductive devices 230a, 230b, … …, 230c may also be configured in other ways, such as in parallel, pi (pi) or star configurations, and combinations of series, parallel, pi or star configurations. The use of an on-chip digitally controlled capacitive array to dynamically tune and calibrate an antenna is described in co-pending U.S. patent application 11/536678 (attorney docket No. 17783US01), the entire contents of which are also incorporated herein.

Fig. 2B is a diagram illustrating signal strength in a channel with a frequency at the center frequency of the antenna bandwidth according to an embodiment of the invention. As shown in fig. 2B, a signal strength diagram is shown, wherein the horizontal axis represents frequency and the vertical axis represents signal strength. The antenna 105 may be tuned to have a bandwidth 250. For exemplary purposes, the case of signals received within the FM radio bandwidth (88 MHz-108 MHz) is depicted in FIG. 2B. Further, for exemplary purposes, the antenna bandwidth 250 is less than the FM bandwidth of 88 MHz-108 MHz. For example, the bandwidth of the antenna 250 is 5 MHz. The actual bandwidth of the antenna 105 is designed and/or implemented on a case-by-case basis and can be changed by dynamically tuning the antenna 105. An exemplary description of aspects of antenna dynamic tuning is shown in fig. 2A, and similar content is described in co-pending U.S. patent application 11/536678 (attorney docket No. 17783US01), the entire contents of which are also used herein.

In fig. 2B, the desired channel 252 has a frequency f_DCFrequency f_DCAlso the actual center frequency f of the antenna 105_CFA. Thus, the antenna 105 can be properly tuned to receive the desired channel 252. For exemplary purposes, the received signal level in the desired channel 252 is normalized by signal strength 1. Various embodiments of the present invention may tune the center frequency such that the actual center frequency f_CFAWith the desired channel frequency f_DCAre equal. Various embodiments of the present invention may also reconfigure the antenna tuning circuit module 110 to adjust the bandwidth of the antenna 105 and/or the impedance matching between the antenna 105 and the RF front end 112.

Fig. 2C is a diagram illustrating the received signal strength in a channel frequency shifted from the center frequency of the antenna bandwidth according to an embodiment of the invention. As shown in fig. 2C, a signal strength diagram is shown, which is the same as fig. 2B, wherein the horizontal axis represents frequency and the vertical axis represents signal strength. The antenna 105 is shown with an actual center frequency 263f_CFAWhich is different from the desired channel frequency f_DC. This may be caused by environmental factors such as additional capacitance and/or inductance introduced by a user holding the mobile terminal 100. Thus, when the center frequency of the antenna 105 has been tuned to the desired channel f_DCWhen matched, the user may again affect the antenna characteristics, causing the center frequency and/or antenna bandwidth 260 to change again. Thus, the desired channel is at frequency f_DCThe signal strength 262 at may be weaker than its actual center frequency f_CFA263 matched. The signal strength 262 of the desired channel may be represented as, for example, a normalized signal strength of 0.5.

Fig. 2D is a diagram illustrating the received signal strength in the channel when the center frequency changes due to antenna hopping according to an embodiment of the invention. As shown in fig. 2D, a signal strength diagram is shown, which is the same as fig. 2B, wherein the horizontal axis represents frequency and the vertical axis represents signal strength. The mobile terminal 100 cannot determine the frequency offset of the desired center frequency of the desired channel from the actual center frequency. Thus, one embodiment of the present invention may change the center frequency of antenna 105 to multiple frequencies by tuning antenna 105 for antenna hopping.

For example, the desired channel frequency and the desired center frequency may be the frequency f_DCAnd the actual center frequency may drift to, for example, the actual center frequency 263f_CFA. Although the mobile terminal 100 cannot know that the actual center frequency 263 is different from the desired center frequency, the antenna hopping algorithm is still applicable. Thus, the signal of the desired channel can be received on a plurality of center frequencies. For example, the first antenna hop may tune the antenna tuning circuit 110 to a frequency f_CFA1273 of the center frequency. Since the center frequency 273 is close to the desired channel frequency f_DCThus for the center frequency f_CFA1The signal strength 272 of the corresponding signal in the desired channel is normalized to 0.9.

The next antenna hop may tune the antenna tuning circuit 110 to a frequency f_CFA2The center frequency 275. Due to deviation of the concentric frequency 273 from the desired channel frequency f_DCCenter frequency 275 deviates from the desired channel frequency f_DCIs greater, and therefore, for the center frequency f_CFA2The signal strength 274 of the corresponding signal in the desired channel has a smaller normalized value of 0.4. Antenna hopping can be configured such that adjacent antenna bandwidths overlap one another. For example, the antenna bandwidth associated with center frequency 273 has a partial overlap with the antenna bandwidth associated with center frequency 275. By hopping the antennas to multiple center frequencies, the processor 116 can build an effective center frequency table to be able to receive enough signals for the desired channel. This approach is referred to as fast antenna hopping, which has an antenna hopping rate that is greater than the antenna hopping rate of slow antenna hopping.

As part of fast antenna hopping, the mobile terminal 100 may aggregate signals received over a limited number of center frequencies in a desired channel. The aggregation of the signals may be performed in, for example, the RF front end 112 or the baseband processor 114. The aggregation of the signals may be performed by voltage accumulation by the analog signal aggregator 112a or by processing the digital baseband data by the digital signal aggregator 114a or the DSP114 b. Thus, the antenna hopping rate for fast antenna hopping is greater than the Nyquist sampling rate for the signal content of the desired channel being received. For example, if the desired channel is an analog FM channel, the Nyquist rate is equal to or greater than 36000 KHz. Thus, fast antenna hopping can hop to a different center frequency every 28 microseconds or faster. The number of center frequencies used for fast antenna hopping can be independently designed and/or implemented. An effective center frequency table used for fast antenna hopping may be generated during slow antenna hopping and/or modified during fast antenna hopping. Signal strength will also be measured during fast antenna hopping. For example, if the signal strength in the desired channel is below the threshold used to determine whether the signal strength is sufficient, the processor 116 may remove the center frequency corresponding to the signal strength from the table of valid center frequencies.

The slow antenna hop may stay at the center frequency for a period of time, e.g., a few milliseconds. Depending on the length of the signal reception time in the desired channel during the slow antenna hopping process, the mobile terminal 100 may not aggregate the signals of the desired channel during the slow antenna hopping process. The table of effective center frequencies for the desired channel may include, for example, those center frequencies for which the average power level of the desired channel is above a threshold. The threshold may be predetermined. Averaging the power over a longer period of time may reduce distortion caused by sudden increases or decreases in signal level (instant spike or dip). In other embodiments of the invention that receive, for example, digital signals, it may be determined whether the signals at the desired channels at these frequencies are sufficiently high by determining the bit error rates of the desired channels at the different antenna center frequencies.

In this manner, the mobile terminal 100 may receive signals of a desired channel at different center frequencies (associated with the antenna 105) at different times. Therefore, the mobile terminal can compensate for the center frequency offset even if the specific degree of the offset is not known. Other embodiments of the present invention may optionally use an antenna hopping algorithm. For example, an antenna hopping algorithm is used when the strength of the received signal is below a threshold.

Various embodiments of the present invention may use different antenna hopping algorithms, such as slow antenna hopping and fast antenna hopping. For example, when the number of center frequencies of the desired channel is sufficiently large (e.g., 4 center frequencies are included in the effective center frequency table), fast antenna hopping may be used. In another embodiment of the present invention, if a center frequency is strong enough, only one center frequency may be used. Another embodiment of the present invention may update the effective center frequency table with the slow center frequency at the beginning and then switch to fast antenna hopping after a predetermined number of antenna hops.

Fig. 3A is a flow chart of exemplary steps for slow antenna hopping according to an embodiment of the invention. As shown in fig. 3A, steps 300-312 are shown. At step 300, the processor 116 begins slow antenna hopping of the antenna 105, configuring the antenna tuning circuit 110 using the first center frequency. At step 302, the antenna tuning circuit 110 will tune to a first center frequency, receive a signal from a desired channel, and be processed by, for example, the RF front end 112.

At step 304, the RF front end 112 may, for example, measure the strength of the received signal to determine the correctness of the signal. The strength value of the received signal is sent to, for example, the processor 116. At step 306, the processor 116 may compare the strength value of the received signal to, for example, a predetermined signal strength value (which may be stored, for example, in the system memory 118). If the received signal strength value is greater than or equal to the predetermined signal strength value, the next step 308 is reached. Otherwise, go to step 310.

At step 308, the processor 116 determines whether the current center frequency is part of the table of expected channel effective center frequencies. If the current center frequency is not part of the table of effective center frequencies, the current center frequency will be added to the table of effective center frequencies for the desired channel. The next step is step 312 where the processor 116 reconfigures the antenna tuning circuit 110 and the antenna hops to a next center frequency, where the antenna bandwidth of the next center frequency may overlap with the antenna bandwidth of the current center frequency. And then proceeds to step 304.

At step 310, the processor 116 determines whether the current center frequency is part of the table of desired channel cable center frequencies. If so, the center frequency is deleted from the table of expected channel effective center frequencies. And then proceeds to step 312.

Fig. 3B is a flow chart of exemplary steps for fast antenna hopping according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 3B, steps 320-326 are shown. At step 320, the processor initiates a fast antenna hop for the antenna 105, configuring the antenna tuning circuit 110 using the first center frequency from the table of desired channel effective center frequencies. The table of effective center frequencies may be stored, for example, in system memory 118. At step 322, the antenna tuning circuit 110 will tune to the first center frequency, receive signals from the desired channel, and then be processed by, for example, the RF front end 112.

At step 324, the received signals are aggregated. For example, if 4 frequencies are used in fast antenna hopping, the received signals corresponding to the 4 center frequencies will be aggregated. For example, the aggregation process may be performed in, for example, the RF front end 112, and the received signal (the received signal is from the desired channel and the center frequency is the center frequency used in the fast antenna hopping) is voltage-integrated by the analog signal aggregator 112 a. After hopping to 4 center frequencies, the signals in the following 4 antenna hops will be aggregated. The aggregation process may also occur in the baseband processor 114 by converting the received signal corresponding to the four center frequencies into 4 digital samples, and processing the 4 digital samples to generate a single digital sample. The processing of the digital signals may be performed by the digital signal aggregator 114a or the DSP114 b.

At step 326, the processor 116 will continue to perform fast antenna hopping for the antenna 105, configuring the antenna tuning circuit 110 with the next center frequency in the table of desired channel effective center frequencies. If the current center frequency is the last of the 4 center frequencies used in fast antenna hopping, then the next center frequency will be the first of the four center frequencies.

According to one embodiment of the invention, an exemplary system of the invention may include an antenna tuning circuit 110 that dynamically tunes the antenna 105, hops the antenna to at least one of a plurality of different center frequencies, and then receives the RF signal. The antenna hopping can include slow antenna hopping and fast antenna hopping. In fast antenna hopping, the mobile terminal 100 may aggregate the received RF signals at each of the multiple center frequencies of the channel through, for example, the baseband processor 114 or the RF front end 112. Fast antenna hopping uses an antenna hopping rate that is greater than twice the highest baseband signal frequency of the desired channel.

The mobile terminal 100 may determine a center frequency at which a desired channel is able to receive enough signals. Whether the received signal is sufficiently high may be determined by, for example, processor 116 and/or baseband processor 114 by processing the strength of the received signal in the desired channel and/or the bit error rate of the desired channel. Processor 116 and/or baseband processor 114 may add each center frequency that enables a sufficient number of signals to be received for a desired channel to the table of effective center frequencies. Processor 116 and/or baseband processor 114 may also remove from the table of effective center frequencies that previously existed in the table of effective center frequencies that are currently determined to have failed to receive enough signals for the desired channel. The effective center frequency table is applied during fast antenna hopping to tune the tuned antenna 105 to a center frequency that enables a desired channel to receive a sufficient number of signals.

Another embodiment of the present invention provides a machine-readable storage, having stored thereon, a computer program having at least one code section executable by a machine for controlling the machine to perform the steps described above for dynamically tuning and calibrating an antenna using antenna hopping.

The present invention can be realized in hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software. The present invention can be realized in a centralized fashion in at least one computer system, or in a distributed fashion where different elements are spread across several interconnected computer systems. Any kind of computer system or other apparatus adapted for carrying out the methods described herein is suited. A typical combination of hardware and software could be a general purpose computer system with a computer program that, when being loaded and executed, controls the computer system such that it carries out the methods described herein.

The present invention can also be implemented by a computer program product, which comprises all the features enabling the implementation of the methods of the invention and which, when loaded in a computer system, is able to carry out these methods. The computer program in the present document refers to: any expression, in any programming language, code or notation, of a set of instructions intended to cause a system having an information processing capability to perform a particular function either directly or after either or both of the following a) conversion to another language, code or notation; b) reproduced in different formats to implement specific functions.

While the invention has been described with reference to several embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from its scope. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.

Cross reference to related applications

This application references and incorporates by reference the following U.S. patent applications filed on 9/29 2006 in their entirety:

U.S. patent application No.: 11/536678, respectively; 11/536650, respectively; 11/536644, respectively; 11/536676, respectively; 11/536659, respectively; 11/536673, respectively; 11/536679, respectively; 11/536670, respectively; 11/536672, respectively; 11/536648, respectively; 11/536669, respectively; 11/536666, respectively; 11/536675, respectively; 11/536685, respectively; 11/536645, respectively; 11/536655, respectively; 11/536660, respectively; 11/536657, respectively; 11/536662, respectively; 11/536688, respectively; 11/536667, respectively; 11/536651, respectively; 11/536656, respectively; 11/536663.

Claims (4)

1. A method for wireless communication, comprising

Dynamically configuring a mobile terminal antenna to receive RF signals using a plurality of center frequencies, wherein the plurality of center frequencies are distinct from one another;

and performing slow antenna hopping on the mobile terminal antenna, wherein the slow antenna hopping comprises the following steps: for each center frequency, measuring a received signal strength value of a desired channel to determine center frequencies that enable the desired channel to receive a sufficient number of signals, and adding each of said determined center frequencies that enable said desired channel to receive a sufficient number of signals to the table of effective center frequencies;

performing fast antenna hopping on the mobile terminal antenna, wherein the fast antenna hopping comprises: configuring the mobile terminal antennas using center frequencies in the effective center frequency table, tuning the mobile terminal antennas to the center frequencies in the effective center frequency table, and aggregating signals received in a desired channel at each of a plurality of center frequencies.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the fast antenna hopping comprises switching between the plurality of center frequencies at a rate greater than 2 times a highest baseband signal frequency of the desired channel.

3. The method of claim 1, comprising removing from the table of effective center frequencies previously present in the table of effective center frequencies that are currently determined to have failed to receive sufficient signal for the desired channel.

4. A system for wireless communication, comprising: at least one circuit for

Dynamically configuring a mobile terminal antenna to receive RF signals using a plurality of center frequencies, wherein the plurality of center frequencies are distinct from one another;

and performing slow antenna hopping on the mobile terminal antenna, wherein the slow antenna hopping comprises the following steps: for each center frequency, measuring a received signal strength value of a desired channel to determine center frequencies that enable the desired channel to receive a sufficient number of signals, and adding each of said determined center frequencies that enable said desired channel to receive a sufficient number of signals to the table of effective center frequencies;

performing fast antenna hopping on the mobile terminal antenna, wherein the fast antenna hopping comprises: configuring the mobile terminal antennas using center frequencies in the effective center frequency table, tuning the mobile terminal antennas to the center frequencies in the effective center frequency table, and aggregating signals received in a desired channel at each of a plurality of center frequencies.