Patents Examined by Charles Chow
  • Patent number: 7496340
    Abstract: A system and method are provided for calibrating for an I/Q mismatch of a direct conversion receiver based on a random signal having a two-dimensional I versus Q trajectory, such as radio frequency (RF) noise. In general, the random signal is received and downconverted to a quadrature baseband signal having an in-phase component and a quadrature component. The variance of the in-phase component, the variance of the quadrature component, and the covariance of the in-phase component with the quadrature component are computed based on samples of the quadrature baseband signal. A correction matrix used to compensate for the I/Q mismatch of the receiver and/or I/Q mismatch including a gain mismatch and a phase mismatch of the receiver is then computed based on the variance of the in-phase component, the variance of the quadrature component, and the covariance of the in-phase component with the quadrature component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 2005
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2009
    Assignee: RF Micro Devices, Inc.
    Inventors: Jesse E. Chen, Patrick Vandenameele, Steven Thoen, Alex Zenkin, Pengfei Zhang, Peter Hanson, Dmitri Varsanofiev, Peter Cnudde
  • Patent number: 7474883
    Abstract: A receiver in a radio communication system and method for optimizing a use of an available dynamic range. The receiver has an automatic gain controller in an automatic gain control loop, a first measuring device, connected to the automatic gain controller, operable to measure a total received energy, a second measuring device, connected to the automatic gain controller, operable to measure the inband signal energy, wherein the automatic gain controller is operable to adjust the gain based on both the total received energy and the inband signal energy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2009
    Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
    Inventor: Mikael Rudberg
  • Patent number: 7466965
    Abstract: An amplitude component of a modulating signal is detected, band-divided by first and second frequency selecting circuits, and an amplitude component of a high-frequency band is down-converted by a first frequency conversion circuit. An amplitude component selected by the first frequency selecting circuit and an amplitude component selected by the first frequency conversion circuit are amplified by first and second operational amplifiers, and a signal amplified by the second operational amplifier is up-converted by a second frequency conversion circuit to be restored to the initial frequency band. Output amplitudes of the first operational amplifier and a second frequency converter are added up by an adder to be direct-current converted. The amplitudes after the direct-current conversion are band-divided by third and fourth frequency selecting circuits, respectively, feedback amounts thereof are adjusted, and then fed back to the first and second operational amplifiers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2008
    Assignee: Panasonic Corporation
    Inventor: Mitsuru Tanabe
  • Patent number: 7460840
    Abstract: A multi-port transceiver includes a transmitter and receiver for each port. The invention is a test method and apparatus for testing individual components in the transmit and receive paths. Specifically, the invention includes a method of testing the full range of a programmable gain amplifier (PGA) and an analog to digital converter (ADC) in the receive path of each port. This is accomplished by connecting the transmitter of one port directly to the receiver of a second port, and varying the amplitude of the transmitter over a range of gain settings of the PGA while examining if the dynamic range of the receiver has been exceeded.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2008
    Assignee: Broadcom Corporation
    Inventor: John Lock Creigh
  • Patent number: 7454183
    Abstract: A method and system for antenna selection diversity with dynamic gain control. A receiver selects a starting antenna and dwells on it until an incoming signal is detected. An AGC is applied on the received signal and an estimate of the received power is determined for the starting antenna. The receiver may dwell on other antennas if the signal in the first antenna is not strong enough for signal processing. The gain of an antenna may be set by the gain and power levels of the previously dwelled-on antennas and/or by a power coupling factor that exists between the antennas in an antenna switch. The receiver switches through the remaining antennas as long as necessary to select at least one of the antennas for signal processing. Dynamically adjusting the gain of antennas in a diversity system provides a more accurate and efficient antenna selection scheme.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 18, 2008
    Assignee: Broadcom Corporation
    Inventors: Rajendra Tushar Moorti, Min Chuin Hoo
  • Patent number: 7454181
    Abstract: A mobile device comprises a receiver unit that has at least two receivers to implement multi-antenna receive diversity. A control unit estimates, at the mobile, an amount of utilization by a traffic channel of the mobile of total transmission power capacity at a base station. The mobile applies multi-antenna receive diversity in the mobile device based on the power capacity utilization. The mobile estimates an amount of power a network is transmitting to the mobile relative to a pilot reference. Other indicators are based on quality of the traffic channel between the mobile and the network, capacity limiting resources, a number of sectors in a soft hand-off in a wireless system, etc. The indicators are used to control application of multi-antenna receive diversity in a mobile device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2005
    Date of Patent: November 18, 2008
    Assignee: QUALCOMM Incorporated
    Inventors: Brian C. Banister, Fatih Ulupinar, Gregory A. Breit, Edward G. Tiedemann, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7447526
    Abstract: A power saving method of the present invention is provide for a wireless sensor network including a plurality of sensor nodes each transiting between a power saving mode and a transmit/receive mode, determines whether or not there is no transmit or receive data, enters the power saving mode if there is no transmit or receive data, and controls power consumption on the basis of signal-to-noise ratios in the power saving mode. In the power saving method of the present invention, it is possible to minimize the power consumption regardless of nodes density and without an adverse effect on the connectivity of the network, since the sojourn times of the sleep and idle states are determined adaptive to the interference level from neighboring nodes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 28, 2005
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2008
    Assignees: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., Board of Regents, The University of Texas System
    Inventors: Jae-Hoon Kim, Jung-Ho Kim, Ji-Hoon Lee, Young-Gon Choi, Young-Sang Kim, Ari Arapostathis
  • Patent number: 7437184
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an input device, especially for a mobile telephone, a module comprising an input device and a method for the production of an input device and/or a module. An input device is provided, including, a module comprising an input device, a mobile telephone and a production method enabling improved permanent fixing of an input device to an/or inside a housing, whereby at mechanically stable fixing means is arranged between a first plane consisting of at least one cap and a second plane of a flexible carrier connected to the cap, such that the cap and the flexible carrier transmit force in a substantially punctual manner via a plane of a fixing means and the fixing means, in one area of at least one terminal edge, is configured in such a way it can secure the input device in or on a housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 5, 2003
    Date of Patent: October 14, 2008
    Assignee: Palm, Inc.
    Inventor: Bernhard Faust
  • Patent number: 7433653
    Abstract: A transmitter adopting a polar loop system including a phase control loop for controlling the phase of a carrier signal outputted from a transmitting oscillator and an amplitude control loop for controlling the amplitude of a transmitting output signal outputted from a power amplification circuit, and designed to be capable of performing transmission using a GMSK modulation mode and transmission using an 8-PSK modulation mode. In the transmitter, the phase control loop is shared as a phase control loop for use in the GMSK modulation mode and a phase control loop for use in the 8-PSK modulation mode. A component similar to any one of components constituting a loop filter is provided in parallel therewith so that the component can be connected or disconnected in accordance with the modulation mode, for example, by use of a switching element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2007
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2008
    Assignees: Renesas Technology Corp., TTPCOM Limited
    Inventors: Ryoichi Takano, Kazuhiko Hikasa, Yasuyuki Kimura, Hiroshi Hagisawa, Patrick Wurm, Robert Astle Henshaw, David Freeborough
  • Patent number: 7424278
    Abstract: A low IF mixer and method for down-converting a signal at a desired frequency are disclosed with improved selectivity performance. The energy of sidebands on each side of the desired frequency is evaluated; and a local oscillator frequency is selected based on the evaluation of the energy. Generally, the local oscillator frequency associated with the sideband having a lower energy is selected. The desired frequency may have a frequency of RF and the sidebands have a frequency of the desired frequency plus or minus an offset frequency (RF+IF or RF?IF). The signal at the desired frequency may be multiplied by the selected local oscillator frequency to down-convert the signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 9, 2008
    Assignee: Agere Systems Inc.
    Inventors: Edward E. Campbell, Syed Aon Mujtaba
  • Patent number: 7421291
    Abstract: A hand held radio host includes circuitry for selectively providing power to radiating transceiver elements and non-radiating application elements according to a plurality of power modes of operation to achieve desired effects and in a way that saves power and extends battery life. In one embodiment of the invention, the hand held host operates in one of three modes. In a full power mode, any selected application element as well as all transceiver elements are powered on at the same time. Thus, for example, a cell phone module, a wireless personal access network module, a wireless local area network module and one of a pager/short message service message module may all be powered on at the same time to receive corresponding messages, calls, data sessions, etc. At the same time that all of the transceiver elements are powered on, any selected application element receives power.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2002
    Date of Patent: September 2, 2008
    Assignee: Broadcom Corporation
    Inventors: Jeyhan Karaoguz, Nambi Seshadri
  • Patent number: 7418251
    Abstract: A radio frequency (“RF”) harmonic filter circuit as disclosed herein is fabricated using integrated passive device (“IPD”) technology. The RF harmonic filter circuit is configured to provide second, third, and fourth harmonic rejection while providing good input and output impedance matching. The RF harmonic filter circuit employs only one IPD loop inductance (preferably used for a second harmonic resonance circuit), which results in a significant die/package size reduction. The RF harmonic filter circuit also employs a combined circuit that performs input and/or output impedance matching and third harmonic rejection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 26, 2008
    Assignee: Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventor: Lianjun Liu
  • Patent number: 7412215
    Abstract: A system and method are provided for switching from one phase-locked loop feedback source to another in a radio frequency (RF) transmitter. The RF transmitter includes a phase-locked loop (PLL) that provides a phase-modulated RF input signal and power amplifier circuitry that amplifies the RF input signal to provide an RF output signal. The PLL includes switching circuitry that couples a feedback path of the PLL to an output of the PLL for open loop operation and couples the feedback path of the PLL to an output of the power amplifier circuitry for closed loop operation. Prior to switching the feedback path from the output of the PLL to the output of the power amplifier circuitry, time alignment circuitry operates to time-align feedback signals from the outputs of the PLL and the power amplifier circuitry such that switching from open loop operation to closed loop operation causes minimal phase disturbance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 12, 2008
    Assignee: RF Micro Devices, Inc.
    Inventors: Alexander Wayne Hietala, Jeffery Peter Ortiz, Scott Robert Humphreys
  • Patent number: 7409191
    Abstract: A transmitting apparatus includes a plurality of antenna elements, user signal output unit, calibration signal generation unit, antenna signal processing unit, and total transmission power measuring unit. The user signal output unit weights a user signal by an antenna weight and outputs it to each antenna element. The calibration signal generation unit outputs a calibration signal to be used to detect the characteristic of a transmission path. The antenna signal processing unit provided in the transmission path executes spread modulation and multiplexing for the user signal and calibration signal and outputs a multiplexed signal. The total transmission power measuring unit measures the value of total transmission power of the multiplexed signal to be transmitted from each antenna element on the basis of the multiplexed signal input from the antenna signal processing unit. An antenna weight correction unit executes a correction operation on the basis of the total transmission power value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 8, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 5, 2008
    Assignee: NEC Corporation
    Inventor: Tomohiro Azuma
  • Patent number: 7400871
    Abstract: A multi-antenna receiving and processing circuit assembly is disclosed to include multiple antennas for receiving wireless signals, multiple pre-processing units respectively electrically connected to the antennas, a matching circuit electrically connected to the pre-processing units for matching signals from the pre-processing units into a matching signal, a post-processing unit electrically connected to the matching circuit for processing the matching signal from the matching circuit through a single intermediate frequency signal and into a plurality of audio frequency signals respective to each antenna, and an output circuit electrically connected to the post-processing unit for outputting the audio frequency signals to external audio output devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 15, 2008
    Assignee: Seikaku Technical Group Limited
    Inventor: Ming-Lung Yang
  • Patent number: 7389126
    Abstract: The present invention provides cellular phone in which a plurality of mounting parts for IC cards in which the country number of the contracting country and the own-station telephone number are stored are disposed, the cellular phone comprising position information storage means that store position of the cellular phone, selection means which make it possible to select the IC card in which the own-station telephone number that is used for calling is stored, first determination means which determine, on the basis of the country number stored in the selected IC card and the stored position information, whether or not calling is to be performed by adding header information for accessing the exchange of the contracting country of the IC card, and calling means which perform calling by adding the header information in cases where the first determination means determine that calling is to be performed by adding the header information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2004
    Date of Patent: June 17, 2008
    Assignee: Aruze Corporation
    Inventor: Kazuo Okada
  • Patent number: 7379714
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for dynamically adjusting the impedance between a transmitter's power amplifier (PA) and antenna to efficiently transfer power from the PA to the antenna. The impedance between the PA and the antenna is adjusted based on power level measurements and/or PA direct current (DC) consumption measurements, depending on whether the PA is a linear PA or a switch-mode PA. In another embodiment, a hybrid PA including a first stage linear PA and a second stage switch-mode PA is implemented in a transmitter. The hybrid PA selectively connects the output of the first stage linear PA to one of the input of the second stage switch-mode PA and the output of the hybrid PA, depending on the output power level of the first stage linear PA, the output power level of the hybrid PA, or a requirement indicated by a transmit power control (TPC) command.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2008
    Assignee: InterDigital Technology Corporation
    Inventors: Tanbir Haque, Alpaslan Demir, Leonid Kazakevich, Gerard Klahn
  • Patent number: 7379730
    Abstract: A vehicle security system for cooperating with a communications network includes a plurality of communication nodes in which a given communication node may transmit an acknowledgment message to an adjacent wireless transceiver upon receipt of a message therefrom. The vehicle security system may include a wireless transceiver and a security controller at the vehicle. The security controller may transmit a message related to vehicle security via the wireless transceiver. The security controller may retransmit the message related to vehicle security if the wireless transceiver does not receive an acknowledgment message from an adjacent communication node. The security controller may not retransmit the message related to vehicle security if the wireless transceiver does receive an acknowledgment message from the adjacent communication node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2005
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2008
    Assignee: Omega Patents, L.L.C.
    Inventors: Kenneth E. Flick, Edward P. Muldowney
  • Patent number: 7376448
    Abstract: The heterodyne receiver includes an antenna, a local oscillator, a mixer mixing a signal received by the antenna with a local oscillation signal generated by the local oscillator to produce an IF signal, and a demodulator demodulating the IF signal. The local oscillator is configured to set a frequency of the local oscillation signal at such a frequency that a frequency of the IF signal becomes a predetermined intermediate frequency when any one of intended signals having frequencies within a predetermined frequency range is being received by the antenna, and to fix the frequency of the local oscillation signal at a predetermined oscillation frequency when any one of the intended signals is not being received by the antenna.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2005
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2008
    Assignee: Denso Corporation
    Inventor: Nobuya Watabe
  • Patent number: 7366180
    Abstract: A hybrid base station transceiver has an ATM matching unit for connecting a wireless terminal to an ATM-based communication network; an IP matching unit for connecting a wireless terminal to an IP-based communication network; a channel and RF processor for performing physical connection protocol processing and RF transceiving processing with the wireless terminal; and a routing processor for determining which network to which the wireless terminal is to connect to by analyzing a signal of OSI Layer 2 or Layer 3 received from the wireless terminal and for connecting the wireless terminal to the ATM-based or IP-based communication network through the channel and RF processor according to the analysis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 29, 2008
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Moo-Yeon Woo, Gui-Jung Lee, Chang-Young Song