Patent Grant
10560137
This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 201810220073.X, filed on Mar. 16, 2018, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
This disclosure relates to the field of mobile terminal technologies, and more particularly to a multiway switch, a radio frequency system, and a wireless communication device.
With the popularity of electronic devices such as smart phones, the smart phone can support an increasing number of applications and is becoming more and more powerful. The smart phone is developing in a diversified and personalized way, becoming an indispensable electronic product in users' life. In the fourth generation (4G) mobile communication system, the electronic device generally adopts a single-antenna or dual-antenna radio frequency (RF) system architecture. Currently, in a new radio (NR) system of the fifth generation (5G) mobile communication system, requirements on an electronic device supporting a four-antenna RF system architecture are proposed.
Implementations of the disclosure provide a multiway switch, a radio frequency system, and a wireless communication device.
According to a first aspect of the disclosure, a multiway switch is provided. The multiway switch includes five throw (T) ports and four pole (P) ports. The five T ports include one first T port coupled with all of the four P ports.
The multiway switch is configured to be coupled with a radio frequency circuit and an antenna system of an electronic device operable in a dual-frequency single-transmit mode, to enable a preset function of the electronic device, the antenna system includes four antennas corresponding to the four P ports, and the preset function is a function of transmitting a sounding reference signal (SRS) through the four antennas in turn.
According to a second aspect of the disclosure, a radio frequency system is provided. The radio frequency system includes an antenna system, a radio frequency transceiver, a radio frequency circuit coupled with the radio frequency transceiver, and a multiway switch coupled with the radio frequency circuit and the antenna system. The multiway switch includes five T ports and four P ports. The five T ports include one first T port supporting only a transmission function and four second T ports supporting only a reception function. The first T port is coupled with all of the four P ports. The antenna system includes four antennas corresponding to the four P ports.
The multiway switch is configured to enable a preset function of transmitting an SRS through the four antennas in turn.
According to a third aspect of the disclosure, a wireless communication device is provided. The wireless communication device includes a radio frequency transceiver, a radio frequency circuit coupled with the radio frequency transceiver, an antenna system, and the multiway switch coupled with the radio frequency circuit and the antenna system. The multiway switch includes five T ports and four P ports. The five T ports include one first T port coupled with all of the four P ports. The antenna system includes four antennas corresponding to the four P ports.
The multiway switch is configured to enable a preset function of transmitting an SRS through the four antennas in turn.
To describe technical solutions in implementations of the present disclosure or in the related art more clearly, the following briefly introduces the accompanying drawings required for describing the implementations or the related art. Apparently, the accompanying drawings in the following description only illustrate some implementations of the present disclosure. Those of ordinary skill in the art may also obtain other drawings based on these accompanying drawings without creative efforts.
Technical solutions in implementations of the present disclosure will be described clearly and completely hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings described in the previous chapter. Apparently, the described implementations are merely some rather than all implementations of the present disclosure. All other implementations obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on the implementations of the present disclosure without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of the present disclosure.
The terms “first”, “second”, and the like used in the specification, the claims, and the accompanying drawings of the present disclosure are used to distinguish different objects rather than describe a particular order. In addition, the terms “include”, “comprise”, and “have” as well as variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus including a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, on the contrary, it can optionally include other steps or units that are not listed; alternatively, other steps or units inherent to the process, method, product, or device can be included either.
The term “embodiment” or “implementation” referred to herein means that a particular feature, structure, or feature described in conjunction with the implementation may be contained in at least one implementation of the present disclosure. The phrase appearing in various places in the specification does not necessarily refer to the same implementation, nor does it refer to an independent or alternative implementation that is mutually exclusive with other implementations. It is explicitly and implicitly understood by those skilled in the art that an implementation described herein may be combined with other implementations.
The electronic device involved in the implementations of the disclosure may include various handheld devices, in-vehicle devices, wearable devices, computing devices that have wireless communication functions or other processing devices connected to wireless modems, as well as various forms of user equipments (UE), mobile stations (MS), terminal devices, and the like. For the convenience of description, the above-mentioned devices are collectively referred to as an electronic device.
At present, sounding reference signal (SRS) switching in four antennas of a mobile phone is a mandatory option for the China mobile communications corporation (CMCC) in the China mobile fifth generation (5G) Scale Test Technology White Paper_Terminal, which is optional in the third generation partnership project (3GPP). Its main purpose is for a base station to determine quality and parameters of four channels via detecting uplink signals of four antennas of the mobile phone, to perform a beamforming of a downlink massive multi-input multi-output (MIMO) antenna array on the four channels according to a channel reciprocity, and finally to obtain the best data transmission performance for a downlink 4×4 MIMO.
To satisfy requirements of SRS switching in four antennas, a radio frequency architecture based on a simplified four-pole n-throw (4PnT) antenna switch is proposed in the implementations of the disclosure. Compared with a 3P3T/DPDT/multiway small switch switching scheme, the present switching scheme can reduce the number of series switches in each path by integrating all or part of switches into the 4PnT switch, thereby reducing link loss and optimizing the overall transmission and reception performance of the terminal. The implementations of the present application are described in detail below.
In the context of the disclosure, “P port” is the abbreviation of “pole port”, which refers to ports coupled with antennas of a multiway switch. “T port” is the abbreviation of “throw port”, which refers to ports coupled with radio frequency modules of the multiway switch. The multiway switch is a four-pole five-throw (4P5T) switch for example.
In the context of the disclosure, the abbreviation “LNA” refers to a low-noise amplifier and the abbreviation “PA” refers to a power amplifier. It should be noted that, “Module” can refer to circuits and any combination of related components.
According to an implementation of the disclosure, a multiway switch is provided. The multiway switch includes five T ports and four P ports. The five T ports include one first T port coupled with all of the four P ports. The multiway switch is configured to be coupled with a radio frequency circuit and an antenna system of an electronic device operable in a dual-frequency single-transmit mode, to enable a preset function of the electronic device. The antenna system includes four antennas corresponding to the four P ports. The preset function is a function of transmitting an SRS through the four antennas in turn.
According to an implementation of the disclosure, a radio frequency system is provided. The radio frequency system includes an antenna system, a radio frequency transceiver, a radio frequency circuit coupled with the radio frequency transceiver, and a multiway switch coupled with the radio frequency circuit and the antenna system. The multiway switch includes five T ports and four P ports. The five T ports include one first T port supporting only a transmission function and four second T ports supporting only a reception function. The first T port is coupled with all of the four P ports. The antenna system includes four antennas corresponding to the four P ports. The multiway switch is configured to enable a preset function of transmitting an SRS through the four antennas in turn.
According to an implementation of the disclosure, a wireless communication device is provided. The wireless communication device includes a radio frequency transceiver, a radio frequency circuit coupled with the radio frequency transceiver, an antenna system, and the multiway switch coupled with the radio frequency circuit and the antenna system. The multiway switch includes five T ports and four P ports. The five T ports include one first T port coupled with all of the four P ports. The antenna system includes four antennas corresponding to the four P ports. The multiway switch is configured to enable a preset function of transmitting an SRS through the four antennas in turn.
The multiway switch 10 is configured to be coupled with the radio frequency circuit 30 and the antenna system 20 to implement a preset function of the electronic device 100, and the preset function is a function of transmitting an SRS through the four antennas corresponding to the four P ports in turn.
Since five T ports are included, the 4PnT multiway switch is simplified to 4P5T in implementations of the present disclosure.
The transmit antennas refer to antennas supporting a transmission function (that is, a signal transmission function) of the four antennas.
The concept of coupling, full coupling, or other kinds of coupling between the T ports and the P ports of the multiway switch described in the implementations of the disclosure refer to a state in which the T ports are coupled with the P ports through first switch transistors. The concept of “full coupling” (fully coupled) of the T ports and the P ports of the multiway switch described in the implementations of the disclosure refers to a state in which the T ports are coupled with all of the P ports through first switch transistors. For example, a first T port is fully coupled with four P ports, which means the first T port is coupled with all of the four P ports. It should be noted that, one T port or one P port may be one port of a second switch transistor. The first switch transistors are configured to control a unidirectional conduction state between the T ports and the P ports (i.e., a unidirectional conduction state from the T ports to the P ports or from the P ports to the T ports). The first switch transistor can be, for example, a switch array composed of three metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) transistors. When the first switch transistor is disconnected and not grounded, parasitic parameters will greatly affect performance of other connected ports. Therefore, the first switch transistor is implemented with three MOS transistors, where the three MOS transistors can be in a common source connection, that is, coupled at a common source. When the first switch transistor is disconnected, two MOS transistors at two ends are disconnected and one MOS transistor in the middle is grounded. The second switch transistor is configured to enable a corresponding port (i.e., a T port or a P port) and can be, for example, a MOS transistor. It should be noted that, the specific configurations of the first switch transistor and the second switch transistor are not limited herein. In an implementation, the electronic device can control paths between the T port and the P port to switch on through the first switch transistor. As an implementation, the electronic device can be provided with a dedicated controller to be coupled with switch transistors of the multiway switch.
The transmitting an SRS through the four antennas corresponding to the four P ports in turn refers to a process in which an electronic device interacts with a base station based on a polling mechanism to determine quality of an uplink channel corresponding to each antenna.
The electronic device 100 can be a mobile phone or other terminal devices supporting the fifth generation new radio (5G NR), such as a customer premise equipment (CPE) or a portable broadband wireless device (for example, a mobile WiFi, MIFI).
The dual-frequency single-transmit mode mentioned above refers to an operating mode in which the electronic device can support dual frequency band-one uplink (UL) transmit path or dual frequency band-four downlink (DL) receive paths.
The first T port is a port fully coupled with the four P ports. The five T ports further include second T ports, and each of the second T ports is coupled with one of the four P ports.
In an implementation, the electronic device 100 further includes a radio frequency transceiver. The radio frequency transceiver is coupled with the radio frequency circuit and constitutes a radio frequency system of the electronic device 100 together with the radio frequency circuit, the multiway switch, and the antenna system.
In this implementation, the electronic device includes the antenna system, the radio frequency circuit, and the multiway switch. The antenna system includes the four antennas. The multiway switch includes the five T ports and the four P ports. The multiway switch is configured to be coupled with the radio frequency circuit and the antenna system to implement a function of the electric device of transmitting an SRS through the four antennas corresponding to the four P ports in turn.
In one possible implementation, the five T ports further include four second T ports. Each of the four second T ports is coupled with one of the four P ports, and among the four second T ports, second T ports operable at the same frequency band are coupled with different P ports of the four P ports. Each of the four P ports is coupled with a corresponding antenna of the four antennas. The first T port only supports a transmission function and the four second T ports only support a reception function.
Among the four second T ports, second T ports operable at the same frequency band are coupled with different P ports of the four P ports (in other words, any two T ports of same frequency band are coupled with different P ports).
When the electronic device is in a downlink 4*4 multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) mode, the four T ports in receiving state at the same frequency band are coupled with the four P ports in one-to-one correspondence.
In this implementation, since the multiway switch includes the first T port and the four second T ports, in comparison with a configuration in which all T ports are fully coupled with P ports, for the multiway switch provided herein, the number of switches is reduced. That is, the number of the switches of transmit paths and/or receive paths of the radio frequency system of the electronic device can be reduced, thereby reducing path loss, improving transmit power/sensitivity, data transmission rate in the 5G NR, uplink and downlink coverage of the mobile phone, and reducing power consumption and cost.
In one possible implementation, the radio frequency circuit of the electronic device logically includes two transmitter circuits and eight receiver circuits. The radio frequency circuit physically includes one independent circuit module. The independent circuit module has one transmit port and multiple receive ports, the transmit port is configured to be coupled with the first T port, and each receive port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port, that is, the multiple receive ports are configured to be coupled with multiple second T ports in one-to-one correspondence.
The “transmit-receive port”, “transmit port”, or “receive port” herein refers to a port (may be composed of one or more components) which implements a corresponding transmission and/or reception function and is located on the path of a transmitter circuit, on the path of a receiver circuit, or located on the path after integration of one or more transmitter circuits and/or one or more receiver circuits. It should be noted that the ports such as transmit ports, receive ports, and transmit-receive ports illustrated in the figures are exemplary and do not intend to indicate an exact port position and impose any restrictions.
The radio frequency circuit described as separated modules may be physically separated or logically separated. The terms “physically” or “logically” therein may be adopted according to an actual need, to implement the objective of solutions provided in the disclosure. In other words, “physically” or “logically” can be equivalent to each other.
In one possible implementation, the independent circuit module is embodied as a first independent circuit module 3100 including one first port and multiple second ports, the first port is configured to be coupled with the first T port of the multiway switch, and each second port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch). The independent circuit module 3100 includes one transmitter integrated circuit and four receiver integrated circuits. The transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits, and the two transmitter circuits have two transmit ports coupled with the first port of the independent circuit module 3100. Each of the four receiver integrated circuits includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with one of the second ports of the independent circuit module 3100.
As illustrated in
It should be noted that, the two transmitter circuits of the transmitter integrated circuit are operable at different frequency bands, and the two receiver circuits of each receiver integrated circuit are operable at different frequency bands.
In this implementation, for the electronic device operable in the dual-frequency single-transmit mode, the radio frequency circuit adapted to the multiway switch physically includes one independent circuit module, which is beneficial to reducing the use of electronic components, thereby simplifying the structure and reducing cost.
In one possible implementation, the radio frequency circuit of the electronic device logically includes two transmitter circuits and eight receiver circuits. The radio frequency circuit physically includes two independent circuit modules. The two independent circuit modules have one transmit port and multiple receive ports, the transmit port is configured to be coupled with the first T port, and each receive port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port, that is, the multiple receive ports are configured to be coupled with multiple second T ports in one-to-one correspondence.
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes two independent circuit modules, and each of the two independent circuit modules has a variety of possible configurations, which is beneficial to improving the diversity and flexibility of the physical configuration of the radio frequency circuit.
In one possible implementation, the two independent circuit modules are embodied as one first independent circuit module 4100 and one second independent circuit module 4200. The first independent circuit module 4100 includes one first port configured to be coupled with the first T port of the multiway switch. The second independent circuit module 4200 includes multiple second ports, and each second port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch).
The first independent circuit module 4100 includes one transmitter integrated circuit. The transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits, and the two transmitter circuits have two transmit ports coupled with the first port of the first independent circuit module 4100.
The second independent circuit module 4200 includes four receiver integrated circuits. Each of the four receiver integrated circuits includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with one of the second ports of the second independent circuit module 4200.
The radio frequency circuit including two independent circuit modules is illustrated in
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes two independent circuit modules, and the two independent circuit modules are respectively configured with different types of processing circuits, which is beneficial to simplifying the radio frequency circuit and improving the reusability of different types of processing circuits.
In one possible implementation, the two independent circuit modules are embodied as one first independent circuit module 4300 and one second independent circuit module 4400. The first independent circuit module 4300 includes one first port and multiple second ports, the first port is configured to be coupled with the first T port of the multiway switch, and each second port of the first independent circuit module 4300 is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch). The second independent circuit module 4400 includes multiple second ports, and each second port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch).
The first independent circuit module 4300 includes one transmitter integrated circuit and two receiver integrated circuits. The transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits, and the two transmitter circuits have two transmit ports coupled with the first port of the first independent circuit module 4300. Each receiver integrated circuit of the first independent circuit module 4300 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with one of the second ports of the first independent circuit module 4300.
The second independent circuit module 4400 includes two receiver integrated circuits. Each receiver integrated circuit of the second independent circuit module 4400 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with one of the second ports of the second independent circuit module 4400.
The radio frequency circuit including two independent circuit modules is illustrated in
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes two independent circuit modules, and the two independent circuit modules have the same number of receiver integrated circuits, which is beneficial to realizing the symmetrical structure of physical form of the radio frequency circuit and simplifying of the structure of the radio frequency circuit.
In one possible implementation, the two independent circuit modules are embodied as one first independent circuit module 4500 and one second independent circuit module 4600. The first independent circuit module 4500 includes one first port and one second port, the first port is configured to be coupled with the first T port of the multiway switch, and the second port of the first independent circuit module 4500 is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch). The second independent circuit module 4600 includes multiple second ports, and each second port of the second independent circuit module 4600 is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch).
The first independent circuit module 4500 includes one transmitter integrated circuit and one receiver integrated circuit. The transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits, and the two transmitter circuits have two transmit ports coupled with the first port of the first independent circuit module 4500. The receiver integrated circuit of the first independent circuit module 4500 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the first independent circuit module 4500.
The second independent circuit module 4600 includes three receiver integrated circuits. Each receiver integrated circuit of the second independent circuit module 4600 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with one of the second ports of the second independent circuit module 4600.
The radio frequency circuit including two independent circuit modules is illustrated in
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes two independent circuit modules, and the number of processing circuits and the number of ports are both approximate in the two independent circuit modules, which is beneficial to reducing the volume of each independent circuit module and the number of switches of each independent circuit module.
In one possible implementation, the two independent circuit modules are embodied as one first independent circuit module 4700 and one second independent circuit module 4800. The first independent circuit module 4700 includes one first port and multiple second ports, the first port is configured to be coupled with the first T port of the multiway switch, and each second port of the first independent circuit module 4700 is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch). The second independent circuit module 4800 includes one second port, and the second port of the second independent circuit module 4800 is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch).
The first independent circuit module 4700 includes one transmitter integrated circuit and three receiver integrated circuits. The transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits, and the two transmitter circuits have two transmit ports coupled with the first port of the first independent circuit module 4700. Each receiver integrated circuit of the first independent circuit module 4700 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with one of the second ports of the first independent circuit module 4700.
The second independent circuit module 4800 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the second independent circuit module 4800 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the second independent circuit module 4800.
The radio frequency circuit including two independent circuit modules is illustrated in
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes two independent circuit modules, and one of the two independent circuit modules only includes one receiver integrated circuit, which is beneficial to improving the reusability of independent circuit modules, and to improving the convenience and flexibility of the configuration of the radio frequency circuit.
In one possible implementation, the radio frequency circuit of the electronic device logically includes two transmitter circuits and eight receiver circuits. The radio frequency circuit physically includes three independent circuit modules. The three independent circuit modules have one transmit port and multiple receive ports, the transmit port is configured to be coupled with the first T port, and each receive port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port, that is, the multiple receive ports are configured to be coupled with multiple second T ports in one-to-one correspondence.
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes three independent circuit modules, and the volume of each independent circuit module is further reduced. Moreover, fewer processing circuits of each independent circuit module will result in a higher reusability of each independent circuit module. Also, it is possible to enhance the adaptability of the installation of each independent circuit module.
In one possible implementation, the three independent circuit modules are embodied as one first independent circuit module 5010, one second independent circuit module 5020, and one third independent circuit module 5030. The first independent circuit module 5010 includes one first port configured to be coupled with the first T port of the multiway switch. The second independent circuit module 5020 and the third independent circuit module 5030 each include multiple second ports, and each second port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch).
The first independent circuit module 5010 includes one transmitter integrated circuit. The transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits, and the two transmitter circuits have two transmit ports coupled with the first port of the first independent circuit module 5010.
The second independent circuit module 5020 includes two receiver integrated circuits. Each receiver integrated circuit of the second independent circuit module 5020 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with one of the second ports of the second independent circuit module 5020.
The third independent circuit module 5030 includes two receiver integrated circuits. Each receiver integrated circuit of the third independent circuit module 5030 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with one of the second ports of the third independent circuit module 5030.
The radio frequency circuit including three independent circuit modules is illustrated in
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes three independent circuit modules, two of the three independent circuit modules have the same configuration, and the first independent circuit module 5010 only includes one transmitter integrated circuit, which is beneficial to improving the reusability of each independent circuit module, and improving the convenience of the production of the radio frequency circuit and the plasticity of the installation of the radio frequency circuit while reducing the volume of each independent circuit module.
In one possible implementation, the three independent circuit modules are embodied as one first independent circuit module 5040, one second independent circuit module 5050, and one third independent circuit module 5060. The first independent circuit module 5040 includes one first port configured to be coupled with the first T port of the multiway switch. The second independent circuit module 5050 includes one second port and the third independent circuit module 5060 includes multiple second ports, and each second port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch).
The first independent circuit module 5040 includes one transmitter integrated circuit. The transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits, and the two transmitter circuits have two transmit ports coupled with the first port of the first independent circuit module 5040.
The second independent circuit module 5050 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the second independent circuit module 5050 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the second independent circuit module 5050.
The third independent circuit module 5060 includes three receiver integrated circuits. Each receiver integrated circuit of the third independent circuit module 5060 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with one of the second ports of the third independent circuit module 5060.
The radio frequency circuit including three independent circuit modules is illustrated in
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes three independent circuit modules, and each of the three independent circuit modules has a different configuration, and the three independent circuit modules include one separate receiver integrated circuit and one separate transmitter integrated circuit, which is beneficial to improving the reusability of each independent circuit module and to improving the diversity of the configuration of each independent circuit module.
In one possible implementation, the three independent circuit modules are embodied as one first independent circuit module 5070, one second independent circuit module 5080, and one third independent circuit module 5090. The first independent circuit module 5070 includes one first port and multiple second ports, the first port is configured to be coupled with the first T port of the multiway switch, and each second port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch). The second independent circuit module 5080 and the third independent circuit module 5090 each include one second port, and each second port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch).
The first independent circuit module 5070 includes one transmitter integrated circuit and two receiver integrated circuits. The transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits, and the two transmitter circuits have two transmit ports coupled with the first port of the first independent circuit module 5070. Each receiver integrated circuit of the first independent circuit module 5070 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with one of the second ports of the first independent circuit module 5070.
The second independent circuit module 5080 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the second independent circuit module 5080 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the second independent circuit module 5080.
The third independent circuit module 5090 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the third independent circuit module 5090 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the third independent circuit module 5090.
The radio frequency circuit including three independent circuit modules is illustrated in
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes three independent circuit modules, and two of the three independent circuit modules have the same configuration, in fact, only two types of independent circuit modules are adopted in the production of the radio frequency circuit, which further improves the simplicity and convenience of the production of the radio frequency circuit.
In one possible implementation, the three independent circuit modules are embodied as one first independent circuit module 5100, one second independent circuit module 5200, and one third independent circuit module 5300. The first independent circuit module 5100 includes one first port and one second port, the first port is configured to be coupled with the first T port of the multiway switch, and the second port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch). The second independent circuit module 5200 includes one second port and the third independent circuit module 5300 includes multiple second ports, and each second port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch).
The first independent circuit module 5100 includes one transmitter integrated circuit and one receiver integrated circuit. The transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits, and the two transmitter circuits have two transmit ports coupled with the first port of the first independent circuit module 5100. The receiver integrated circuit of the first independent circuit module 5100 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the first independent circuit module 5100.
The second independent circuit module 5200 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the second independent circuit module 5200 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the second independent circuit module 5200.
The third independent circuit module 5300 includes two receiver integrated circuits. Each receiver integrated circuit of the third independent circuit module 5300 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with one of the second ports of the third independent circuit module 5300.
The radio frequency circuit including three independent circuit modules is illustrated in
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes three independent circuit modules, and each of the three independent circuit modules has a different configuration, which is beneficial to improving the reusability of each independent circuit module and the diversity of the configuration of each independent circuit module.
In one possible implementation, the radio frequency circuit of the electronic device logically includes two transmitter circuits and eight receiver circuits. The radio frequency circuit physically includes four independent circuit modules. The four independent circuit modules have one transmit port and multiple receive ports, the transmit port is configured to be coupled with the first T port, and each receive port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port, that is, the multiple receive ports are configured to be coupled with multiple second T ports in one-to-one correspondence.
In the implementation, the radio frequency circuit is divided into four independent circuit modules and each independent circuit module can have a volume as small as possible, which is beneficial to improving the diversity of the radio frequency circuit including the four independent circuit modules, and to applying the radio frequency circuit with to various electronic devices.
In one possible implementation, the four independent circuit modules are embodied as one first independent circuit module 6100, one second independent circuit module 6200, one third independent circuit module 6300, and one fourth independent circuit module 6400. The first independent circuit module 6100 includes one first port configured to be coupled with the first T port of the multiway switch. The second independent circuit module 6200 includes multiple second ports, the third independent circuit module 6300 and the fourth independent circuit module 6400 each include one second port, and each second port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch).
The first independent circuit module 6100 includes one transmitter integrated circuit. The transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits, and the two transmitter circuits have two transmit ports coupled with the first port of the first independent circuit module 6100.
The second independent circuit module 6200 includes two receiver integrated circuits. Each receiver integrated circuit of the second independent circuit module 6200 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with one of the second ports of the second independent circuit module 6200.
The third independent circuit module 6300 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the third independent circuit module 6300 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the third independent circuit module 6300.
The fourth independent circuit module 6400 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the fourth independent circuit module 6400 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the fourth independent circuit module 6400.
The radio frequency circuit including four independent circuit modules is illustrated in
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes four independent circuit modules, and two of the four independent circuit modules have the same configuration, and three of the four independent circuit modules only include one transmitter integrated circuit or one receiver integrated circuit, which further improves the reusability of a single independent circuit module and simplifies the production of each independent circuit module.
In one possible implementation, the four independent circuit modules are embodied as one first independent circuit module 6500, one second independent circuit module 6600, one third independent circuit module 6700, and one fourth independent circuit module 6800. The first independent circuit module 6500 includes one first port and one second port, the first port is configured to be coupled with the first T port of the multiway switch, and the second port of the first independent circuit module 6500 is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch). The second independent circuit module 6600, the third independent circuit module 6700, and the fourth independent circuit module 6800 each include one second port, and each second port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch).
The first independent circuit module 6500 includes one transmitter integrated circuit and one receiver integrated circuit. The transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits, and the two transmitter circuits have two transmit ports coupled with the first port of the first independent circuit module 6500. The receiver integrated circuit of the first independent circuit module 6500 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the first independent circuit module 6500.
The second independent circuit module 6600 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the second independent circuit module 6600 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the second independent circuit module 6600.
The third independent circuit module 6700 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the third independent circuit module 6700 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the third independent circuit module 6700.
The fourth independent circuit module 6800 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the fourth independent circuit module 6800 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the fourth independent circuit module 6800.
The radio frequency circuit including four independent circuit modules is illustrated in
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes four independent circuit modules, and three of the four independent circuit modules have the same configuration, in fact, only two types of independent circuit modules are adopted in the production of the radio frequency circuit, which improves the simplicity and convenience of the production of each independent circuit module.
In one possible implementation, the radio frequency circuit of the electronic device logically includes two transmitter circuits and eight receiver circuits. The radio frequency circuit physically includes five independent circuit modules. The five independent circuit modules have one transmit port and multiple receive ports, the transmit port is configured to be coupled with the first T port, and each receive port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port, that is, the multiple receive ports are configured to be coupled with multiple second T ports in one-to-one correspondence.
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit is divided into five independent circuit modules, and each independent circuit module can have a volume as small as possible, which is beneficial to increasing the diversity of the radio frequency circuit including the five independent circuit modules, and it is possible to adapt the radio frequency circuit to more kinds of electronic devices.
In one possible implementation, the five independent circuit modules are embodied as one first independent circuit module 7100, one second independent circuit module 7200, one third independent circuit module 7300, one fourth independent circuit module 7400, and one fifth independent circuit module 7500. The first independent circuit module 7100 includes one first port configured to be coupled with the first T port of the multiway switch. The second independent circuit module 7200, the third independent circuit module 7300, the fourth independent circuit module 7400, and fifth independent circuit module 7500 each include one second port, and each second port is configured to be coupled with a corresponding second T port of the multiway switch (that is, one of the four second T ports of the multiway switch).
The first independent circuit module 7100 includes one transmitter integrated circuit. The transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits, and the two transmitter circuits have two transmit ports coupled with the first port of the first independent circuit module 7100.
The second independent circuit module 7200 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the second independent circuit module 7200 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the second independent circuit module 7200.
The third independent circuit module 7300 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the third independent circuit module 7300 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the third independent circuit module 7300.
The fourth independent circuit module 7400 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the fourth independent circuit module 7400 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the fourth independent circuit module 7400.
The fifth independent circuit module 7500 includes one receiver integrated circuit. The receiver integrated circuit of the fifth independent circuit module 7500 includes two receiver circuits, and the two receiver circuits have two receive ports coupled with the second port of the fifth independent circuit module 7500.
The radio frequency circuit including five independent circuit modules is illustrated in
In this implementation, the radio frequency circuit physically includes five independent circuit modules, and four of the five independent circuit modules have the same configuration, thus, in fact, only two types of independent circuit modules are adopted in making the radio frequency circuit. Moreover, a minimum number of processing circuits are included in each independent circuit module, and the volume of the independent circuit module is reduced to a minimum volume, which further improves the simplicity and convenience of the radio frequency circuit making.
For example, the overall architecture of the radio frequency system of an electronic device is illustrated in
Similarly, when the electronic device receives data through a frequency band Ny, the working process of the radio frequency system is as follows. The four antennas send four receive signals respectively to the four P ports of the multiway switch 10 in the same time period. The four P ports send the four receive signals respectively to four second T ports of the multiway switch 10, where the four second T ports support a reception function. Each of the four second T ports receives one receive signal from each of the four P ports. Each of the four second T ports sends, through a second port of a second independent circuit module, the receive signal to each of four receiver circuits, where each receiver circuit corresponds to a receive port of a frequency band Ny of the radio frequency transceiver 40. Each receiver circuit sends the receive signal received to the receive port of the frequency band Ny of the radio frequency transceiver 40 (that is, the receive ports of the frequency band Ny are Rx1_Ny, RX2_Ny, RX3_Ny, RX4_Ny respectively) through an LNA and a filter, thereby implementing four receive-signal paths of the electronic device.
It may be understood that circuits of an independent circuit module may be diverse and will not be uniquely limited to the implementations of the present disclosure. The following provides some possible implementations.
In one possible implementation, the receiver circuit includes an LNA and a first filter. The first filter has an input port coupled with a corresponding second port of an independent circuit module, the first filter has an output port coupled with an input port of the LNA, and the LNA has an output port coupled with a corresponding port of a radio frequency transceiver.
In one possible implementation, the transmitter circuit includes a PA, a second filter, and a power coupler. The PA has an input port coupled with a corresponding port of the RF transceiver, the PA has an output port coupled with an input port of the second filter, the second filter has an output port coupled with an input port of the power coupler, and the power coupler has an output port coupled with the first port of an independent circuit module.
In one possible implementation, the receiver integrated circuit including two receiver circuits operable at different frequency bands and integrated through a switch of the receiver integrated circuit. The switch of the receiver integrated circuit has an input port and two output ports, the input port of the switch of the receiver integrated circuit is coupled with a corresponding second port of an independent circuit module, and each of the two output ports of the switch of the receiver integrated circuit is coupled with one of two input ports of two first filters of the two receiver circuits.
In one possible implementation, the transmitter integrated circuit includes two transmitter circuits operable at different frequency bands and sharing the input port of the power coupler, and the power coupler has the output port coupled with the first port of an independent circuit module through a switch of the transmitter integrated circuit.
The transmitter circuit may further include multiple control circuits. For example, as illustrated in
In this implementation, although the radio frequency circuit can have various physical forms, it can include part or all of these five types of processing circuits. Moreover, the structures of the five types of processing circuits are simple and require fewer circuit components, which is advantageous for simplifying the radio frequency circuit.
In one possible implementation, the multiway switch is composed of field-effect transistors (FETs), and the multiway includes thirty-three FETs.
One first T port among the five T ports is a full-coupling port. As illustrated in
It can be seen that, by limiting the number of T ports that are fully coupled with four P ports among the five T ports to one, the number of switches of the radio frequency system of the electronic device can be effectively reduced. That is to say, the number of full-coupling T ports has a great influence on the performance of the radio frequency system.
It can be understood that the specific implementation manners of the receiver circuit and the transmitter circuit mentioned-above may be various, and the implementation of the present disclosure is not limited. The matching form of the above radio frequency circuit and the multiway switch includes but is not limited to the structure of the drawing, and is merely an example herein.
In one possible implementation, the four antennas include a first antenna, a second antenna, a third antenna, and a fourth antenna. These four antennas are all operable at a fifth generation new radio (5G NR) frequency band.
The 5G NR band may include, for example, 3.3 GHz to 3.8 GHz and 4.4 GHz to 5 GHz.
In one possible implementation, the four antennas include a first antenna, a second antenna, a third antenna, and a fourth antenna. The first antenna and the fourth antenna are antennas operable at a long term evolution (LTE) frequency band and a 5G NR frequency band. The second antenna and the third antenna are antennas only operable at the 5G NR frequency band.
The first and fourth antennas are configured to support DL 4×4 MIMO of some frequency bands in LTE on terminals. These two receive antennas are shared with the 5G NR antenna (hereinafter, “shared antennas” for short). The LTE frequency band may include, for example, 1880-1920 MHz and 2496-2690 MHz.
In one possible implementation, as illustrated in
The LTE 4*4 MIMO is a downlink LTE receive circuit and can be defined as a third receive path. Since the LTE currently has two receive paths, in order to support LTE 4×4 MIMO, the third receive path and a fourth receive path are added.
According to performance of the four antennas, the electronic device will configure one antenna with better performance for the circuit for PRX (primary receiver), and the antenna will in a standby state. Moreover, the first T port in the switch having both the transmission function and the reception function can be configured for TX (transmit) and PRX purpose, and thus the antenna can be switched arbitrarily. In this way, there is no need to restrict the coupling between ports of shared antennas.
In one possible implementation, as illustrated in
It can be seen that, for the transmit paths and the receive paths of the radio frequency system of the electronic device. The transmit paths can include one single independent switch (a 4P5T switch) or two independent switches (a SPDT switch and a 4P5T switch), and the receive paths can include one single independent switch (a 4P5T switch) or two independent switches (a SPDT switch and a 4P5T switch). That is to say, by integrating more switch functions of the transmit paths and the receive paths of the radio frequency system into the 4P5T switch, the number of independent switches of the transmit paths and the receive paths can be effectively reduced.
The schemes of the disclosure can be combined or replaced with each other. As an example, the radio frequency circuit described above can be applied or combined into the radio frequency system or the wireless communication device below. As another example, the antenna system and/or the multiway switch described above can be applied or combined into the radio frequency system or the wireless communication device below. It is to be noted that, “the antenna system and/or the multiway switch” of the disclosure means “the antenna system”, “the multiway switch”, or “the antenna system and the multiway switch”.
As an implementation, the multiway switch 10 includes five T ports and four P ports. The five T ports include one first T port supporting only a transmission function and four second T ports supporting only a reception function. The first T port is coupled with all of the four P ports. The antenna system 20 includes four antennas corresponding to the four P ports. The multiway switch 10 is configured to enable a preset function of transmitting an SRS through the four antennas in turn.
As an implementation, the multiway switch 10 includes five T ports and four P ports. The five T ports include one first T port coupled with all of the four P ports. The antenna system 20 includes four antennas corresponding to the four P ports. The multiway switch 10 is configured to enable a preset function of transmitting an SRS through the four antennas in turn.
As another implementation, the five T ports further include four second T ports. Each of the four second T ports is coupled with one of the four P ports, and any two second T ports operable at the same frequency band are coupled with different P ports of the four P ports. Each of the four P ports is coupled with a corresponding antenna of the four antennas. The first T port only supports a transmission function. The four second T ports only support a reception function.
In addition, as illustrated in
The receive antenna may be an antenna include at least one of four antennas (When the receive antenna is composed more than one antenna, the antenna is strobed via the switch between the antennas).
For example, as illustrated in
While the disclosure has been described in connection with certain implementations, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not to be limited to the disclosed implementations but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the scope of the appended claims, which scope is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures as is permitted under the law.
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