CN117998557A

CN117998557A - Electronic device and operation method thereof

Info

Publication number: CN117998557A
Application number: CN202311385371.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李康敏; 俞炫硕; 李桐旭; 李政泽
Original assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Current assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Priority date: 2022-11-04
Filing date: 2023-10-24
Publication date: 2024-05-07

Abstract

An electronic device and a method of operating the electronic device are disclosed. The electronic device includes: a transmitter including a plurality of antennas; and a communication processor for calculating a Total Exposure Ratio (TER) value for each of the plurality of antennas; wherein the communication processor comprises: an antenna index buffer for storing a usage antenna index, which is an index of one or more usage antennas used in each window among the plurality of antennas; a usage power buffer for storing usage power of an antenna corresponding to the usage antenna index; and a controller configured to calculate a TER value based on using the antenna index, using the power and the impact matrix.

Description

Electronic device and operation method thereof

The present application is based on and claims priority of korean patent application No. 10-2022-0146368 filed in the korean intellectual property office on 4 th 11 th 2022 and korean patent application No. 10-2023-0018982 filed on 13 th 2 nd 2023, the disclosures of each of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

Technical Field

The inventive concept relates to an electronic apparatus that sets transmission power based on usage power.

Background

Electronic devices may transmit Radio Frequency (RF) signals through antennas to communicate with other devices. Electromagnetic waves of RF signals transmitted through an antenna may have a harmful effect on a human body. To reduce the deleterious effects of such electromagnetic waves, the authorized organization specifies a total exposure ratio (TER: total Exposure Ratio) value that is measured when the electronic device transmits RF signals. Therefore, when the electronic apparatus transmits an RF signal, a TER value specification condition must be satisfied.

In this case, in order for the electronic device to satisfy the TER value specification condition, the transmission power of the RF signal must be reduced. Such a decrease in transmission power may result in a decrease in communication performance of the electronic device. Accordingly, it is desirable to develop a method capable of satisfying the TER value specification condition while minimizing degradation of the communication performance of the electronic device.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides an electronic device capable of providing optimal communication performance while satisfying a prescribed condition of a Total Exposure Ratio (TER) value.

According to an aspect of the inventive concept, an electronic device includes: a transmitter including a plurality of antennas, and a communication processor configured to calculate a Total Exposure Ratio (TER) value for each of the plurality of antennas. The communication processor includes: an antenna index buffer configured to store a usage antenna index; the used antenna index is an index of one or more used antennas used in each of a plurality of windows in the TER measurement interval among a plurality of antennas; a usage power buffer configured to store usage power of an antenna corresponding to the usage antenna index; and a controller configured to calculate a TER value based on using the antenna index, using the power, and an influence matrix, wherein the influence matrix includes a plurality of influence coefficients R (i, j), each of the plurality of influence coefficients R (i, j) representing a degree of influence of exposure caused by Radio Frequency (RF) signaling of an i-th antenna on the j-th antenna, and wherein i and j are integers equal to the number of the plurality of antennas.

According to an embodiment of the inventive concept, a method of operating an electronic device including a transmitter including a plurality of antennas and a communication processor for calculating a Total Exposure Ratio (TER) value for each of the plurality of antennas, the method includes: storing a usage antenna index, the usage antenna index being an index of one or more usage antennas used in each of a plurality of windows in a TER measurement interval among the plurality of antennas; storing a usage power of an antenna corresponding to the usage antenna index; calculating a TER value based on using an antenna index, using power, and an influence matrix, wherein the influence matrix includes a plurality of influence coefficients R (i, j), each of the plurality of influence coefficients R (i, j) representing a degree of influence of exposure caused by RF signal transmission of an i-th antenna on the j-th antenna, and wherein i and j are integers equal to the number of the plurality of antennas; calculating a transmit power limit of the one or more usage antennas to be used in the set target window after the TER measurement interval based on the TER value; and setting the transmit power of the one or more usage antennas based on the transmit power limit of the one or more usage antennas.

According to an embodiment of the inventive concept, an electronic device includes: a transmitter including a plurality of antennas; and a communication processor configured to: a Total Exposure Ratio (TER) value for each of the plurality of antennas is calculated, and transmit power of one or more of the plurality of antennas using the antenna is set. The communication processor includes: an antenna index buffer configured to store a usage antenna index, the usage antenna index being an index of the one or more usage antennas used in each window; a usage power buffer configured to store usage power of an antenna corresponding to the usage antenna index; and a controller configured to: calculating a TER value based on the usage antenna index, the usage power, the influence matrix, and the number of the one or more usage antennas, wherein the influence matrix includes a plurality of influence coefficients R (i, j), each of the plurality of influence coefficients R (i, j) representing a degree of influence of exposure caused by RF signal transmission of the i-th antenna on the j-th antenna, and wherein i and j are integers equal to the number of the plurality of antennas; calculating a transmit power limit of the one or more usage antennas to be used in setting a target window based on the TER value; and setting the transmit power of the one or more usage antennas based on the transmit power limit of the one or more usage antennas.

Drawings

Examples of the inventive concept will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating a wireless communication system including an electronic device according to an embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a diagram for describing a TER measurement interval of an electronic device according to an embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment;

fig. 4 is a block diagram of an arrangement of a plurality of antennas included in an electronic device according to an embodiment;

Fig. 5 is a diagram illustrating an antenna index buffer and a usage power buffer of an electronic device according to an embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of a method of operating an electronic device according to an embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart of a method of calculating a TER value for an electronic device according to an embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a method of operation when an electronic device performs communications using a communications network and a used antenna, according to an embodiment;

fig. 9 is a flowchart of a method of determining whether to change a used antenna and a method of setting transmission power accordingly when an electronic device performs communication using a communication network and includes a used antenna according to an embodiment;

fig. 10 is a flowchart of a transmission restriction power calculation method and a transmission power setting method when an electronic device includes a plurality of antennas used according to an embodiment; and

Fig. 11 is a block diagram of a wireless communication device according to an embodiment.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments of the inventive concept are described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating a wireless communication system including an electronic device according to an embodiment.

Referring to fig. 1, a wireless communication system may include a base station 100 and an electronic device 200. The base station 100 and the electronic device 200 may communicate with each other through a downlink channel 300 and an uplink channel 400.

Base station 100 may generally refer to a fixed station that communicates with electronic device 200 and other base stations and may exchange data and control information by communicating with electronic device 200 and other base stations. The base station 100 may also be referred to as a node B, an evolved node B (eNB), a Base Transceiver System (BTS), or an Access Point (AP).

The electronic device 200 is a device capable of performing wireless communication, may be fixed or mobile, and may be any of various devices capable of transmitting and receiving data and control information to and from the base station 100 by communicating with the base station 100. The electronic device 200 may also be referred to as a terminal equipment, a Mobile Station (MS), a Mobile Terminal (MT), a User Terminal (UT), a Subscriber Station (SS), a wireless device, a handheld device, etc.

The wireless communication network between the base station 100 and the electronic device 200 may support communication for multiple users by sharing the available network resources. For example, in a wireless communication network, information may be transmitted in various ways, such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), and single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA).

The electronic device 200 may include a transmitter 210 and a communication processor 220.

The transmitter 210 may transmit RF signals to the base station 100 through the uplink channel 400. The transmitter 210 may receive RF signals from the base station 100 through the downlink channel 300.

The transmitter 210 may include multiple antennas. The transmitter 210 may transmit and receive RF signals by using at least one of a plurality of antennas. The transmitter 210 may output transmission power to at least one antenna such that the RF signal is transmitted through the at least one antenna.

The communication processor 220 may adjust the transmit power of the transmitter 210. In other words, the communication processor 220 may adjust the transmit power of the transmitter 210 such that the desired RF signal is ultimately output through one or more antennas. In one embodiment, the communication processor 220 may directly adjust the transmit power of the transmitter 210, and in another embodiment, the communication processor 220 may adjust the transmit power of the transmitter 210 through a separate Power Management Integrated Circuit (PMIC).

The communication processor 220 may be implemented by a processor, a Numerical Processor (NPU), a Graphics Processor (GPU), or the like.

The communication processor 220 may set a transmit power limit (i.e., transmit power limit) of the transmitter 210. The communication processor 220 may control the transmitter 210 to transmit the RF signal at a transmission power equal to or less than the transmission limit power.

The transmit power of the transmitter 210 may be adjusted by uplink Transmit Power Control (TPC) commands transmitted from the base station 100 to the electronic device 200 via the downlink channel 300. For example, to maintain a signal-to-interference ratio (SIR) of an RF signal received from the electronic device 200 at a target level, the base station 100 may transmit TPC commands to the electronic device 200 based on the estimated SIR. The electronic device 200 may adjust the transmit power of the RF signal transmitted to the base station 100 through the uplink channel 400 based on the TPC commands received through the communication processor 220.

The transmit power of the transmitter 210 may be related to the energy radiated from the electronic device 200. In other words, a strong electromagnetic wave may be generated in the electronic apparatus 200 by an RF signal generated at a high transmission power, and the electromagnetic wave may have a harmful effect on a user. The detrimental effect of such electromagnetic waves on the user may be measured by specific absorption rate (SAR: specific Absorption Rate) values or Power Density (PD) values. In addition, the SAR value and the PD value measured when the electronic device transmits the RF signal may be limited by a prescribed condition of a Total Exposure Ratio (TER) value, and the TER value prescribed condition may be as shown in the following mathematical formula 1.

[ Mathematical formula 1]

In mathematical formula 1, SAR _limit may indicate a limit of SAR values determined by the authority, SAR _avr,n may indicate an average of SAR values in an nth measurement interval, PD _limit may indicate a limit of PD values determined by the authority, and PD _avr,m may indicate an average of PD values in an mth measurement interval. Where N, M may indicate the number of measurement intervals, and N, M may be a positive integer.

The SAR value and the PD value can be calculated by well-known formulas. In this case, the SAR value and the PD value may be proportional to the transmission power of the electronic device 200. Because the TER value is calculated as the sum of the SAR value and the PD value, the TER value may be proportional to the transmit power of the electronic device 200. Accordingly, by increasing or decreasing the transmission power of the electronic device 200, the TER value measured when the electronic device 200 transmits an RF signal can be increased or decreased.

In order to satisfy the TER value specification condition in the above mathematical formula, the communication processor 220 of the electronic device 200 according to the embodiment may calculate the TER value of each of the plurality of antennas and set the power of one or more using antennas among the plurality of antennas. In more detail, the communication processor 220 may store a usage antenna index, which is an index of one or more usage antennas used in each window among a plurality of antennas, store a usage power of the antenna corresponding to the usage antenna index, and calculate a TER value based on the usage antenna index, the usage power, and the influence matrix. Further, the communication processor 220 may calculate a transmission restriction power of one or more usage antennas in the set target window based on the TER value, and set the transmission power of one or more usage antennas based on the transmission restriction power of one or more usage antennas.

More detailed operation of the communication processor 220 is described below with reference to fig. 3.

Fig. 2 is a diagram for describing a TER measurement interval of an electronic device according to an embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a histogram showing the result of measuring the power used over time. In the graph of fig. 2, the horizontal axis may represent time, the vertical axis may represent power used, and each interval may correspond to a window.

The window may be a unit having a preset time length, and for example, one window may have a time length of 250 milliseconds. A window may be divided into N (N may be a positive integer) time slots. A slot may represent a unit of time for transmitting a plurality of communication symbols. In one embodiment, the communication processor 220 may measure the transmission power of the transmitter 210 in units of time slots and add the transmission powers measured in units of time slots to obtain the transmission power in units of windows.

The TER measurement interval may mean a period in which the TER value is measured to determine whether a condition specified for the TER value is satisfied. In the embodiment of fig. 2, the TER measurement interval may include M (M may be a positive integer) windows.

The TER measurement interval may be set based on the communication band of the electronic device 200. For example, when the communication band of the electronic device 200 is less than 3GHz, the TER measurement interval may be 100 seconds and may include 400 windows. In addition, when the communication band of the electronic device 200 is greater than or equal to about 3GHz and less than about 6GHz, the TER measurement interval may be 60 seconds and may include 240 windows. In addition, when the communication band of the electronic device 200 is 6GHz or higher, the TER measurement interval may be 4 seconds and may include 16 windows.

In one embodiment, because the TER value is proportional to the transmit power of the electronic device 200, the electronic device 200 may calculate the TER value during the TER measurement interval based on the power used (e.g., sampled (m), sampled (m+1) … …) during the TER measurement interval. In addition, the electronic device 200 may calculate a transmission restriction power (for example, plimit) of the set target window based on the calculated TER value, and set the transmission power of the set target window based on the transmission restriction power of the set target window.

The setting target window is a window in which transmission power is to be set based on a TER value of a TER measurement interval, and may be a window immediately following the window included in the TER measurement interval. In the embodiment of fig. 2, when the TER measurement interval includes a total of M windows from time point t=m to time point t=m+m-1, the target window is set to be the window at time point t=m+m. Wherein Pmax may indicate the maximum power among the powers used in the multiple windows in the TER measurement interval.

Fig. 3 is a block diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment.

Referring to fig. 3, an electronic device 200 according to an embodiment may include a transmitter 210 and a communication processor 220.

The transmitter 210 may include a plurality of antennas 211. The transmitter 210 may transmit and receive RF signals by using at least one of the plurality of antennas 211.

Each of the plurality of antennas 211 may transmit RF signals to the base station 100 over the uplink channel 400. Each of the plurality of antennas 211 may receive RF signals from the base station 100 over the downlink channel 300.

At least one of the plurality of antennas 211 may receive an input of transmission power from the transmitter 210 and transmit an RF signal by using the received transmission power.

An example of an arrangement of the plurality of antennas 211 within the electronic device 200 may be identified with reference to fig. 4.

Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an arrangement of a plurality of antennas included in an electronic device according to an embodiment.

Referring to fig. 4, an example of an arrangement of a plurality of antennas 211 included in the electronic device 200 according to an embodiment may be identified. Fig. 4 shows an embodiment comprising a total of eight antennas in the electronic device. However, the inventive concept is not limited thereto, and the number and positions of the plurality of antennas 211 may be adjusted according to an embodiment.

In the embodiment of fig. 4, the first antenna Ant1 may be located on the top side of the electronic device 200. In the embodiment of fig. 4, the second antenna Ant2, the third antenna Ant3, and the sixth antenna Ant6 may be located at the left side of the electronic device 200. In the embodiment of fig. 4, the fourth antenna Ant4, the fifth antenna Ant5, the seventh antenna Ant7, and the eighth antenna Ant8 may be located on the right side of the electronic device 200.

At this time, a TER value specification condition (such as mathematical formula 1) must be satisfied for each antenna. When determining whether the TER value specification condition is satisfied based on the first antenna Ant1, it is necessary to determine whether the TER value specification condition is satisfied by considering both the TER value due to exposure caused by the RF signal transmission of the first antenna Ant1 and the TER value considering the degree of influence of the exposure caused by the RF signal transmission of the second antenna Ant2 to the eighth antenna Ant 8. At this time, the degree of influence of the exposure caused by the RF signal transmission of the i-th antenna Anti on the j-th antenna Antj may be represented by an influence coefficient such as R (i, j) (where i and j are different natural numbers less than or equal to 8 and greater than 0). For example, the extent of the effect of the exposure caused by the RF signal transmission of the first antenna Ant1 on the second antenna Ant2 may be represented by an influence coefficient such as R (1, 2).

At this time, the exposure caused by the RF signal transmission of the first antenna Ant1 may have the same degree of influence on the second antenna Ant2 as the exposure caused by the RF signal transmission of the second antenna Ant 2. In other words, R (1, 2) may have the same value as R (2, 1). Thus, R (i, j) may be referred to as an influence coefficient between the i-th antenna Anti and the j-th antenna Antj.

Although some of the influence coefficients between the plurality of antennas 211 are indicated by using dotted arrows in fig. 4, this does not indicate all the influence coefficients, and there may be influence coefficients between the plurality of antennas that are not connected by dotted arrows.

Returning to fig. 3, the communication processor 220 may include an antenna index buffer 221, a usage power buffer 222, and a controller 223.

The antenna index buffer 221 may store a usage antenna index, which is an index of one or more usage antennas used in each window among the plurality of antennas 211.

Use of an antenna may refer to an antenna for transmitting RF signals. The communication processor 220 may store the usage antenna index corresponding to each window in the antenna index buffer 221. In some embodiments, each of the plurality of antennas 211 may have a unique identifier that is distinguishable from the other antennas. Such a unique identifier may be referred to as an antenna index.

The usage power buffer 222 may store usage power of an antenna corresponding to the usage antenna index. The communication processor 220 may store power consumed by an antenna corresponding to the use antenna index stored in the antenna index buffer 221 in the use power buffer 222 as the use power. The usage power may be obtained by receiving from the controller one or more of the previous windows transmission powers using the antennas.

An example of the antenna index buffer 221 and the use power buffer 222 may be identified with reference to fig. 5.

Fig. 5 is a diagram illustrating an antenna index buffer and a usage power buffer according to an embodiment.

Referring to fig. 5, the identifiable usage power buffer 222 is shown at the top and the antenna index buffer 221 is shown at the bottom.

In each area of the antenna index buffer 221, a usage antenna index of a corresponding window may be stored. For example, in the area indicated by AntIdx (M), the use antenna index of the window corresponding to the time point t=m may be stored, and in the area indicated by AntIdx (m+m-1), the use antenna index of the window corresponding to the time point t=m+m-1 may be stored.

When there are a plurality of used antennas in a window of a specific point in time, a plurality of used antenna indexes may be stored in a plurality of antenna index buffers or in a plurality of areas of the antenna index buffers, respectively.

In each region of the usage power buffer 222, the usage power of the usage antenna in the corresponding window may be stored. For example, in the area marked as set (M), the use power of the use antenna in the window corresponding to the time point t=m may be stored, and in the area marked as set (m+m-1), the use power of the use antenna in the window corresponding to the time point t=m+m-1 may be stored.

In this case, the use powers stored in the areas of the use power buffer 222 may correspond to the use antenna indexes stored in the antenna index buffer 221, respectively. For example, the usage power of the usage antenna corresponding to the usage antenna index stored in the AntIdx (m) region of the antenna index buffer 221 may be stored in the purified (m) region of the usage power buffer 222.

When there are a plurality of usage antennas in a window of a certain point of time, a plurality of usage powers of the plurality of usage antennas may be stored in a plurality of usage power buffers or a plurality of areas of the usage power buffer, respectively.

Returning to fig. 3, the controller 223 may control the overall operation of the communication processor 220.

The controller 223 may calculate the TER value based on using the antenna index, using the power and the impact matrix. At this time, the controller 223 may read the use antenna index stored in the antenna index buffer 221, and read the use power stored in the use power buffer 222, and calculate the TER value using the read power.

The influence matrix may be a matrix storing influence coefficients described with reference to fig. 4. At this time, the extent of the effect of the exposure caused by the RF signal transmission of the ith antenna Anti on the jth antenna Antj is equal to the extent of the effect of the exposure caused by the RF signal transmission of the jth antenna Antj on the ith antenna Anti, and thus, the effect matrix may be a symmetric matrix. In some embodiments, the diagonal elements of the impact matrix may be zero.

In one embodiment, the influence matrix may be calculated in advance based on at least one of a correlation between the plurality of antennas 211, an electromagnetic wave transmission direction of the plurality of antennas 211, an electromagnetic wave transmission amount of the plurality of antennas 211, a state of the electronic device 200, and a distance between the plurality of antennas 211. The correlation between the plurality of antennas 211 may be a correlation coefficient indicating independence between the plurality of antennas 211. For example, the smaller the correlation between the plurality of antennas 211, the more independent the plurality of antennas 211 are from each other.

At this time, the state of the electronic device 200 may mean the influence of constraints on the use of the plurality of antennas 211, the use power of the electronic device 200, and the like due to other operations. For example, when the electronic device performs another operation (such as using a camera), the use of the plurality of antennas 211 may be restricted. In another example, the use of multiple antennas 211 may be constrained as the power consumption of electronic device 200 increases as the electronic device performs other operations (such as processing a large number of computations). When the use of the plurality of antennas 211 may be constrained as in the above example, the state of the electronic device 200 may render one or more antennas among the plurality of antennas 211 unavailable. At this time, the correlation between the plurality of antennas 211, the electromagnetic wave emission direction of the plurality of antennas 211, the electromagnetic wave emission amount of the plurality of antennas 211, and the distance between the plurality of antennas 211 may be determined at the time of manufacture and may not be changed, but the state of the electronic device 200 may be continuously changed according to the operation of the electronic device 200.

In one embodiment, the controller 233 may store an influence matrix set including a plurality of influence matrices corresponding to the state of the electronic device 200. In this case, the controller 223 may select one influence matrix from the influence matrix group based on the state of the electronic device 200, and calculate the TER value based on the selected influence matrix.

In one embodiment, the controller 223 may calculate the TER value based on the ith antenna in the window corresponding to time point t=m in the following order. First, the controller 223 may read the usage antenna index of the window corresponding to the time point t=m from the antenna index buffer 221. Second, the controller 223 may read the usage power of the usage antenna of the window corresponding to the time point t=m from the usage power buffer 222. Third, the controller 223 may obtain an influence coefficient between the used antenna and the i-th antenna of the window corresponding to the time point t=m in an influence matrix (for example, a convergence influence matrix). Finally, the controller 223 may calculate the TER value by using a value obtained by multiplying the usage power read in the second step by the influence coefficient obtained in the third step.

In one embodiment, when the electronic device 200 performs communication using one communication network and uses a plurality of used antennas, the controller 223 may calculate the convergence influence matrix based on the plurality of used antennas and the influence matrix.

The communication network is a network for communication between the base station 100 and the electronic device 200, between the base stations 100, or between the electronic devices 200, and may be a network using 5G (or New Radio (NR)), long Term Evolution (LTE), long term evolution-advanced (LTE-a), wiMAX, wiFi, CDMA, global system for mobile communications (GSM), wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), or any other wireless communication technology.

In other words, when the electronic device 200 performs communication through one communication network using two or more antennas among a plurality of antennas, the controller 223 may calculate the convergence influence matrix.

The convergence influence matrix is a matrix generated by simplifying the influence matrix, and may represent only the relationship between a plurality of used antennas. At this time, the convergence influence matrix may be calculated as shown in the following mathematical formula 2.

[ Mathematical formula 2]

R_conv(i，j)＝max(R(i，j)，R(k，i)+R(k，j)-1)

Here, R _conv (i, j) indicates a component (i.e., element) of the convergence influencing matrix, and i and j may correspond to indexes of antennas used. In addition, R (i, j), R (k, i), and R (k, j) may indicate influence coefficients as elements of the influence matrix. For example, R (i, j) represents the degree of influence of exposure caused by RF signal transmission of the i-th antenna on the j-th antenna, and i and j are positive integers equal to or smaller than the number of the plurality of antennas 211. R (k, i) represents the degree of influence of exposure caused by RF signal transmission of the kth antenna on the ith antenna, and k is a positive integer equal to or smaller than the number of the plurality of antennas 211. R (k, j) represents the extent to which exposure caused by RF signal transmission of the kth antenna affects the jth antenna. max may indicate a function that obtains a maximum value for a set of data.

The controller 223 may calculate a plurality of TER values using the antennas based on the calculated convergence influence matrix. In this case, the method of the controller 223 calculating the TER values of the plurality of used antennas based on the convergence influence matrix may be the same as the method of calculating the TER values of the plurality of used antennas based on the influence matrix.

In one embodiment, when the electronic device 200 performs communication using a plurality of communication networks and uses a plurality of antennas, the controller 223 may calculate the convergence influence matrix based on the plurality of using antennas and the influence matrix. In addition, the controller 223 may adjust the convergence influence matrix based on the antenna coefficients of each of the plurality of used antennas. The antenna coefficient may be a coefficient indicating a degree of influence of exposure caused by RF signal transmission of one of the plurality of used antennas on the other plurality of used antennas. For example, the controller 223 may increase the value of a component (i.e., element) of the convergence influencing matrix based on a plurality of antenna coefficients using each of the antennas. For example, when the antenna coefficient of the specific use antenna is greater than a preset reference value (e.g., 0.5), the controller 223 may increase the value of the component of the convergence influence matrix associated with the specific use antenna.

The controller 223 may calculate the TER values for the plurality of used antennas based on the adjusted convergence influence matrix. In this case, the method of the controller 223 calculating the TER values of the plurality of used antennas based on the adjusted convergence influence matrix may be the same as the method of calculating the TER values of the plurality of used antennas based on the influence matrix.

The controller 223 may calculate a number of TER values for the use antennas and then calculate a transmit limited power for one or more of the use antennas in the set target window based on the TER values. Here, one or more of the used antennas in the set target window may be defaulted to be the same as or alternatively, may be different from one or more used antennas during the TER measurement interval.

In more detail, the controller 223 may calculate a residual TER value based on the calculated TER value, the residual TER value indicating how much less a TER value is used during the TER measurement interval than a restricted TER value during the TER measurement interval, the restricted TER value during the TER measurement interval may indicate a maximum TER value allowed during the TER measurement interval and may be preset. The controller 223 may calculate an available TER value, which is a limitation of the available TER values in the set target window, based on the residual TER. The controller 223 may calculate the transmit limited power using the antenna based on the available TER value.

In this case, when the electronic device 200 has a plurality of use antennas, the controller 223 may calculate transmission restriction powers of the plurality of use antennas in the set target window based on the TER values of the plurality of use antennas. In other words, when there are a plurality of use antennas, the controller 223 may calculate the transmission limit power of each of the plurality of use antennas.

In one embodiment, when the electronic device 200 performs communication using one communication network and has only one use antenna, the controller 223 may compare the transmission limiting power using the antenna with the maximum required power for transmitting the RF signal in the set target window. When the transmission limit power of the used antenna is less than the maximum required power in the set target window, the controller 223 may calculate the transmission limit power of an unused antenna among the plurality of antennas. Further, the controller 223 may determine a change in the used antenna based on the transmission limited power and the maximum required power of the unused antenna (i.e., may determine whether to use the unused antenna instead of the used antenna based on the transmission limited power and the maximum required power of the unused antenna).

When the transmission limited power of the unused antenna is equal to or greater than the maximum required power, the controller 223 may change the unused antenna to the used antenna (i.e., may set the unused antenna to a new used antenna to be used in the setting target window). In contrast, when the transmission limited power of the unused antenna is smaller than the maximum required power, the used antenna may not be changed (i.e., may remain used in the set target window).

In this way, in the case where the electronic apparatus 200 performs communication using one communication network and has one use antenna, when an RF signal cannot be transmitted with the maximum required power and the communication quality is deteriorated, the electronic apparatus 200 can change the use antenna to transmit the signal with the maximum transmission power, so that the communication quality is improved.

The controller 223 may set the transmit power of one or more usage antennas based on the transmit limited power of one or more usage antennas.

In this case, when the electronic device 200 has a plurality of use antennas, the controller 223 may set the transmission powers of the plurality of use antennas based on the transmission limit powers of the plurality of use antennas. In other words, when there are a plurality of use antennas, the controller 223 may calculate the transmission power of each of the plurality of use antennas.

When the electronic device 200 according to the inventive concept as described above is used, by calculating a TER value based on using an antenna index, using power, and an influence matrix, it is possible to ensure optimal communication performance while satisfying a TER value specification condition.

Fig. 6 is a flowchart of a method of operating an electronic device according to an embodiment.

Referring to fig. 6, in operation S610, the electronic device 200 may store the use antenna index in the antenna index buffer 221. The electronic device 200 may store the usage antenna index of the usage antenna of the plurality of windows included in the TER measurement interval in the antenna index buffer 221.

In operation S620, the electronic device 200 may store the usage power in the usage power buffer 222. The electronic device 200 may store the usage power of the usage antenna of the plurality of windows included in the TER measurement interval in the usage power buffer 222. At this time, the usage power stored in the usage power buffer 222 may correspond to the usage antenna index stored in the antenna index buffer 221.

In operation S630, the electronic device 200 may calculate a TER value. The electronic device 200 may calculate the TER value based on using the antenna index, using the power and the impact matrix. A detailed method of calculating the TER value by the electronic apparatus 200 may be described with reference to fig. 7.

Fig. 7 is a flow chart of a method of calculating a TER value by an electronic device according to an embodiment.

Referring to fig. 7, the electronic apparatus 200 may select an influence matrix in operation S710. The electronic device 200 may select, by the controller 223, one influence matrix from the set of influence matrices based on the state of the electronic device 200.

In operation S720, the electronic device may determine whether there are a plurality of used antennas (e.g., determine whether the number of one or more used antennas of the plurality of windows included in the TER measurement interval is a plurality). At this time, when there is only one usage antenna, the process may directly proceed to operation S760.

When there are a plurality of using antennas, the electronic device 200 may calculate a convergence influence matrix in operation S730.

In operation S740, the electronic device 200 may determine whether a plurality of communication networks are in use. At this time, when there is only one communication network in use, the method may directly proceed to operation S760.

When a plurality of communication networks are in use, the electronic device 200 may adjust the convergence influence matrix in operation S750.

In operation S760, the electronic device 200 may calculate a TER value.

At this time, when the method proceeds from operation S720 to operation S760, the electronic device 200 may calculate a TER value based on the usage antenna index, the usage power, and the impact matrix through the controller 223. In addition, when the method proceeds from operation S740 to operation S760, the electronic device 200 may calculate a TER value based on the use antenna index, the use power, and the convergence influence matrix through the controller 223. Finally, when the method proceeds from operation S750 to operation S760, the electronic device 200 may calculate a TER value based on the use antenna index, the use power, and the adjusted convergence influence matrix through the controller 223.

Returning to fig. 6, in operation S640, the electronic device 200 may calculate a transmission limiting power. The electronic device 200 may calculate a residual TER based on the TER value calculated by the controller 223, calculate an available TER value based on the residual TER, and calculate a transmission limited power using the antenna based on the available TER value.

In operation S650, the electronic device 200 may calculate a transmission power. The electronic device 200 may calculate the transmission power based on the transmission limit power calculated by the controller 223.

When the method of operating the electronic apparatus 200 according to the inventive concept as described above is used by calculating a TER value based on using an antenna index, using power, and an influence matrix, it is possible to ensure optimal communication performance while satisfying a TER value specification condition.

Fig. 8 is a flow chart of a method of operating an electronic device that communicates using a communication network and using an antenna, in accordance with an embodiment.

Referring to fig. 8, a flowchart of an embodiment that can be selectively applied after calculating the transmission limit power of the antenna used in operation S640 of fig. 6 may be identified.

In operation S810, the electronic apparatus 200 may determine whether an in-use communication network exists.

When there are multiple communication networks in use, the electronic device 200 may terminate its operation without subsequent operations related to changing the antenna in use.

When there is an in-use communication network, the electronic device 200 may determine whether there is an in-use antenna in operation S820.

When the number of used antennas is plural, the electronic device 200 may terminate its operation without performing subsequent operations related to changing the use of antennas.

When there is one usage antenna, the electronic device 200 may determine whether the transmission limited power of the usage antenna is less than the maximum required power in operation S830.

When the transmission limiting power of the used antenna is greater than or equal to the maximum required power, the RF signal can be transmitted with the highest communication quality even without changing the use of the antenna, and thus, the operation can be terminated without performing additional operations.

When the transmission restriction power of the used antenna is less than the maximum required power, the electronic device 200 may calculate the transmission restriction power of the unused antenna in operation S840.

In operation S850, the electronic device 200 may determine whether to change the use of the antenna. The method of determining whether to change the use of the antenna by the controller 223 by the electronic device 200 may be described in more detail with reference to fig. 9.

Fig. 9 is a flowchart of a method of determining whether to change a method of using an antenna and a method of setting transmission power accordingly when an electronic device performs communication using a communication network and has one antenna, according to an embodiment.

Referring to fig. 9, the electronic device 200 may determine whether the transmission limited power of the unused antenna is greater than or equal to the maximum required power in operation S910.

When the transmission limited power of the unused antenna is greater than or equal to the maximum required power, the electronic device 200 may change the unused antenna to the used antenna in operation S920. In addition, the electronic device 200 may set the transmission power based on the maximum required power in operation S930. In this way, since the antenna newly set as the use antenna can transmit the RF signal by using the maximum required power, the electronic device 200 can determine to change the use antenna and set the transmission power based on the maximum required power, thereby improving the communication quality.

In contrast, when the transmission limited power of the unused antenna is less than the maximum required power, the electronic device 200 may not change the used antenna (i.e., may keep the used antenna used in the setting target window) in operation S940. In addition, the electronic device 200 may set the transmission power based on the transmission limiting power in operation S950. In other words, since the electronic device 200 needs to transmit the RF signal by using the existing antenna, the transmission power may be set based on the transmission limit power of the existing antenna.

Fig. 10 is a flowchart of a transmission restriction power calculation method and a transmission power setting method when an electronic device has a plurality of antennas used according to an embodiment.

Referring to fig. 10, in operation S1010, the electronic device 200 may determine whether there are a plurality of usage antennas.

When there is one use antenna, the transmission restriction power can be calculated in the same manner as described above, and the transmission power can be set.

When there are a plurality of use antennas, the electronic device 200 may calculate transmission restriction power of the plurality of use antennas in the set target window based on the TER values of the plurality of use antennas in operation S1020. In other words, when there are a plurality of use antennas, the electronic device 200 may calculate the transmission limit power of each of all the plurality of use antennas through the controller 223.

Next, in operation S1030, the electronic device 200 may calculate transmission powers of the plurality of usage antennas based on the transmission limited powers of the plurality of usage antennas. In other words, when there are a plurality of use antennas, the electronic device 200 may calculate the transmission power of each of the plurality of use antennas through the controller 223.

Referring to fig. 11, the wireless communication device 2000 may include an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) 2100, a special instruction set processor (ASIP) 2200, a memory 2300, a main processor 2400, and a main memory 2500. Two or more of the ASIC 2100, ASIP 2200, and host processor 2400 may communicate with each other. In addition, at least two of the ASIC 2100, the ASIP 2200, the memory 2300, the main processor 2400, and the main memory 2500 may be embedded in one chip.

ASIC 2100 is an integrated circuit tailored for a particular purpose and may include, for example, a Radio Frequency Integrated Circuit (RFIC), a modulator, a demodulator, and the like. ASIP 2200 may support a specific instruction set for a particular application and may execute instructions included in the instruction set. Memory 2300 may be in communication with ASIP 2200 and may store a plurality of instructions to be executed by ASIP 2200 as a non-transitory storage device. For example, memory 2300 may include any type of memory (such as Random Access Memory (RAM), read Only Memory (ROM), magnetic tape, magnetic disk, optical disk, volatile memory, non-volatile memory, and combinations thereof) that is accessible by ASIP 2200.

The main processor 2400 can control the wireless communication device 2000 by executing a plurality of instructions. For example, the main processor 2400 may control the ASIC 2100 and the ASIP 2200, may process data received through a wireless communication network, or may process user input to the wireless communication device 2000. Main memory 2500 may be in communication with main processor 2400 and may store, as a non-transitory storage device, a plurality of instructions to be executed by main processor 2400. For example, main memory 2500 may include any type of memory (such as RAM, ROM, magnetic tape, magnetic disk, optical disk, volatile memory, non-volatile memory, and combinations thereof) that is accessible by main processor 2400.

The operations of configuring the elements of the electronic apparatus 200 or the operation method of the electronic apparatus 200 according to the above-described embodiments may be included in at least one element included in the wireless communication device 2000 of fig. 11. For example, at least one operation of the electronic device 200 of fig. 1 or the operations of the above-described method of operating the electronic device 200 may be implemented as a plurality of instructions stored in the memory 2300, and the ASIP 2200 may perform the operation of the electronic device 200 or the at least one operation by executing the plurality of instructions stored in the memory 2300. As another example, at least one of the operations of the electronic device 200 of fig. 1 or the method of operating the electronic device 200 described above may be implemented as a hardware block and included in the ASIC 2100. As another example, at least one of the electronic device 200 of fig. 1 or the method of operating the electronic device 200 may be implemented as a plurality of instructions stored in the main memory 2500, and the main processor 4400 may perform at least one operation of the electronic device 200 or the method of operating the electronic device 200 described above by executing the plurality of instructions stored in the main memory 2500.

While the inventive concept has been particularly shown and described with reference to embodiments thereof, it will be understood that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. An electronic device, comprising:

A transmitter including a plurality of antennas; and

A communication processor configured to calculate a total exposure ratio, TER, value for each of the plurality of antennas,

Wherein the communication processor comprises:

An antenna index buffer configured to store a usage antenna index, the usage antenna index being an index of one or more usage antennas used in each of a plurality of windows in a TER measurement interval among the plurality of antennas;

A usage power buffer configured to store usage power of an antenna corresponding to the usage antenna index; and

A controller configured to calculate a TER value based on using the antenna index, using the power and the influence matrix, wherein the influence matrix includes a plurality of influence coefficients R (i, j), each of the plurality of influence coefficients R (i, j) representing a degree of influence of exposure caused by radio frequency, RF, signal transmission of the i-th antenna on the j-th antenna, and wherein i and j are positive integers equal to or less than a number of the plurality of antennas.

2. The electronic device according to claim 1,

Wherein the influence matrix is calculated based on at least one of correlation between the plurality of antennas, electromagnetic wave emission directions of the plurality of antennas, electromagnetic wave emission amounts of the plurality of antennas, a state of the electronic device, and a distance between the plurality of antennas.

3. The electronic device according to claim 2,

Wherein the controller is further configured to:

Selecting an influence matrix from a set of influence matrices comprising a plurality of influence matrices based on a state of the electronic device; and

A TER value is calculated based on the selected impact matrix.

4. The electronic device according to claim 1,

Wherein the controller is further configured to:

Calculating a transmit power limit of one or more usage antennas to be used in a set target window after the TER measurement interval based on the TER value; and

The transmit power of the one or more usage antennas is set based on the transmit power limit of the one or more usage antennas.

5. The electronic device according to claim 4,

Wherein the controller is further configured to:

In a case where the electronic apparatus performs communication using one communication network and the number of the one or more used antennas is one, when a transmission power limit of the one used antenna to be used in setting the target window is smaller than a maximum required power for transmitting the RF signal, calculating a transmission power limit of an unused antenna among the plurality of antennas; and

Whether to replace the one used antenna with an unused antenna is determined based on a transmit power limit of the unused antenna and a maximum required power.

6. The electronic device according to claim 5,

Wherein the controller is further configured to:

Setting the unused antenna as a newly used antenna to be used in the setting target window when the transmission power limit of the unused antenna is greater than or equal to the maximum required power, and setting the transmission power of the newly used antenna to be used in the setting target window based on the maximum required power; and

When the transmission power limit of the unused antenna is smaller than the maximum required power, the one used antenna is kept used in the setting target window, and the transmission power of the one used antenna to be used in the setting target window is set based on the transmission power limit of the one used antenna.

7. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to: when the electronic apparatus performs communication using one communication network and the number of the one or more used antennas is a plurality, a convergence influence matrix is calculated based on the plurality of used antennas and the influence matrix, and TER values of the plurality of used antennas are calculated based on the convergence influence matrix.

8. The electronic device of claim 7, wherein the controller is further configured to:

When the electronic apparatus performs communication using one communication network and the number of the one or more used antennas is plural, calculating a transmission power limit of the plurality of used antennas to be used in the setting target window based on TER values of the plurality of used antennas; and

The transmit power of the plurality of usage antennas is set based on transmit power limits of the plurality of usage antennas.

9. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to: when the electronic apparatus performs communication using a plurality of communication networks and the number of the one or more used antennas is a plurality, a convergence influence matrix is calculated based on the plurality of used antennas and the influence matrix, the convergence influence matrix is adjusted based on an antenna coefficient of each of the plurality of used antennas, and a TER value of the plurality of used antennas is calculated based on the adjusted convergence influence matrix.

10. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to:

When the electronic apparatus communicates using a plurality of communication networks and the number of the one or more used antennas is one, calculating the one used antenna transmission power limit to be used in a set target window after a TER measurement interval based on a TER value of the one used antenna; and

The transmit power of the one usage antenna is set based on the transmit power limit of the one usage antenna.

11. A method of operating an electronic device comprising a transmitter including a plurality of antennas and a communication processor for calculating a total exposure ratio TER value for each of the plurality of antennas, the method comprising the steps of:

storing a usage antenna index, the usage antenna index being an index of one or more usage antennas used in each of a plurality of windows in a TER measurement interval among the plurality of antennas;

storing a usage power of an antenna corresponding to the usage antenna index;

Calculating a TER value based on using an antenna index, using power, and an influence matrix, wherein the influence matrix includes a plurality of influence coefficients R (i, j), each of the plurality of influence coefficients R (i, j) representing a degree of influence of exposure caused by radio frequency, RF, signal transmission of an i-th antenna on the j-th antenna, and wherein i and j are positive integers equal to or less than a number of the plurality of antennas;

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

In a case where the electronic apparatus performs communication using one communication network and the number of the one or more used antennas is one, when a transmission power limit of one used antenna to be used in setting the target window is smaller than a maximum required power for transmitting the RF signal, calculating a transmission power limit of an unused antenna among the plurality of antennas; and

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of determining whether to replace the one used antenna with an unused antenna comprises the steps of:

setting the unused antenna as a newly used antenna to be used in the setting target window when the transmission power limit of the unused antenna is greater than or equal to the maximum required power; and

When the transmission power limit of the unused antenna is smaller than the maximum required power, the one used antenna is kept used in setting the target window.

14. The method according to claim 13,

Wherein the step of setting the transmission power includes the steps of:

When the transmission power limit of the unused antenna is greater than or equal to the maximum required power, setting the transmission power of the newly used antenna to be used in the setting target window based on the maximum required power; and

When the transmission power limit of the unused antenna is smaller than the maximum required power, the transmission power of the one used antenna to be used in the setting target window is set based on the transmission power limit of the one used antenna.

15. The method according to claim 11,

Wherein the step of calculating the TER comprises the steps of:

When the electronic device performs communication using one communication network and the number of the one or more used antennas is a plurality, calculating a convergence influence matrix based on the plurality of used antennas and the influence matrix; and

The TER values for the plurality of used antennas are calculated based on the convergence influence matrix.

16. The method according to claim 11,

Wherein the step of calculating the TER value comprises the steps of:

When the electronic device performs communication using a plurality of communication networks and the number of the one or more used antennas is a plurality, calculating a convergence influence matrix based on the plurality of used antennas and the influence matrix;

Adjusting a convergence influencing matrix based on antenna coefficients of each of the plurality of used antennas; and

The TER values for the plurality of used antennas are calculated based on the adjusted convergence influence matrix.

17. An electronic device, comprising:

A transmitter including a plurality of antennas; and

A communication processor configured to:

calculating a total exposure ratio TER value for each of the plurality of antennas; and

One or more of the plurality of antennas is set to use the transmission power of the antenna,

Wherein the communication processor comprises:

An antenna index buffer configured to store a usage antenna index, the usage antenna index being an index of the one or more usage antennas used in each window;

A controller configured to:

Calculating a TER value based on the usage antenna index, the usage power, the influence matrix, and the number of the one or more usage antennas, wherein the influence matrix includes a plurality of influence coefficients R (i, j), each of the plurality of influence coefficients R (i, j) representing a degree of influence of exposure caused by radio frequency RF signal transmission of the i-th antenna on the j-th antenna, and wherein i and j are positive integers equal to or less than the number of the plurality of antennas;

Calculating a transmission limit power of the one or more usage antennas to be used in the set target window based on the TER value; and

The transmit power of the one or more usage antennas is set based on the transmit limit power of the one or more usage antennas.

18. The electronic device according to claim 17,

Wherein the controller is further configured to: when an electronic apparatus performs communication using one communication network and the number of the one or more used antennas is one, the transmission power of the one used antenna is set based on the transmission power limit of the one used antenna, the transmission power limit of an unused antenna among the plurality of antennas, and the maximum required power for transmitting an RF signal.

19. The electronic device according to claim 17,

Wherein the controller is further configured to: when the electronic apparatus performs communication using one communication network and the number of the one or more used antennas is plural, a convergence influence matrix is calculated based on the plural used antennas and the influence matrix, and TER values of the plural used antennas are calculated.

20. The electronic device according to claim 17,

Wherein the controller is further configured to: when an electronic device performs communication using a plurality of communication networks and the number of the one or more used antennas is a plurality, a convergence influence matrix is calculated based on the plurality of used antennas and the influence matrix, the convergence influence matrix is adjusted based on antenna coefficients of each of the plurality of used antennas, and TER values of the plurality of used antennas are calculated based on the adjusted convergence influence matrix.