JP2005223788A - Software radio equipment and software download method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize software radio equipment which is capable of efficiently downloading and managing software with a little memory capacity. <P>SOLUTION: A function for realizing communication using each of communication schemes is divided into, at a minimum, a fundamental module required for downloading software using each of the communication schemes and an extension module required for realizing a higher-performance application. Only the fundamental module is held at all the time and the extension module is stored, as needed, by communication using the fundamental module. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention particularly relates to a software defined radio and a software download method thereof.

  In recent years, wireless communication terminals such as mobile phones have become widespread. Nevertheless, wireless communication technology continues to evolve. Therefore, there is a request “I want to improve the performance of wireless communication functions and correct defects after purchasing a terminal” and “I want to support a plurality of new communication methods with a single terminal”.

  Software-defined radio (SDR) is a technology that meets such requirements. This technique is to change the wireless communication function according to the electrical setting information and realize a wireless communication apparatus that supports a plurality of communication methods. Here, the electrical setting information includes DSP (Digital Signal Processor) and CPU (Central Processing Unit) programs, FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) and reconfigurable logic configuration data, and analog whose characteristics can be changed. Information for controlling the circuit. Hereinafter, the electrical setting information is called software, and the individual programs and control information are called software modules or simply modules.

  In the software defined radio, the software for each communication method is stored in a memory, and the software for the communication method to be used is loaded into the above-described device (DSP or the like) to support a plurality of communication methods. Therefore, a large memory capacity is required to support a large number of communication methods. This hinders downsizing, cost reduction, and power consumption especially for portable terminals.

As a method of solving such a problem, there is a method of downloading software by wireless communication. As a conventional software defined radio having such a function, there is one described in Patent Document 1, for example. The wireless communication device described in Patent Document 1 downloads only necessary software modules corresponding to the requested function, so that unnecessary modules are not downloaded.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-44301

  However, using the technique described in Patent Document 1 may cause inconveniences when moving between service areas with different provided communication methods. For example, when moving outside the service area of the first communication method during communication using the first communication method, it is necessary to perform handover (switching of the communication method) to the second communication method. At this time, the software defined radio tries to download the software of the second communication method. However, since it is already out of the service area of the first communication method, transmission and reception cannot be performed using the first communication method. As a result, the software of the second communication method cannot be downloaded and the handover fails.

  Eventually, the user needs to download the software of the second communication method in advance, so that the memory capacity is required accordingly.

  When the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 is used, when a software module that is not mounted inside is required, it is necessary to download the software module every time the application is used. As a result, the startup of the application is delayed, and the convenience for the user may be reduced.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and in a software defined radio capable of using a plurality of communication methods, a software defined radio capable of efficiently performing software download and management with a simple configuration and software download It aims to provide a method.

  In order to solve such a problem, the software defined radio according to the present invention includes a configurable wireless communication unit that realizes each wireless communication system by loading software corresponding to each wireless communication system, and at least a plurality of wireless softwares. The basic module that can be acquired by the communication method and the data that can be acquired by the basic module when the basic module is acquired as needed and loaded into the configurable wireless communication means. On the other hand, a configuration including an expansion module having a software configuration and a rewritable storage means for storing the extension module, which is constructed so as to obtain data for realizing a higher performance application, is adopted.

  According to this configuration, the function for realizing each wireless communication method is divided into a basic module and an expansion module, and the expansion module uses the basic module to acquire it as necessary. Even in an area, the necessary expansion module can be quickly acquired using the basic module corresponding to the communication method. Since the basic module may have a minimum configuration capable of acquiring software, the memory capacity (when the basic module is configured by software) or the amount of hardware (when the basic module is configured by hardware) may be small. .

  In the software defined radio of the present invention, the basic module has a software configuration and is always maintained.

  According to this configuration, even if no special hardware is required, a necessary extension module can be quickly acquired at any time by loading a basic module corresponding to the currently available communication method into the configurable wireless communication means. become.

  The software defined radio according to the present invention employs a configuration in which the extension module is deleted from the storage unit according to the use date and time or the use frequency.

  According to this configuration, it is possible to effectively use the limited memory capacity of the storage unit and maintain an optimal module configuration in accordance with the usage status of the user. For example, since an expansion module with high usage frequency remains stored in the storage means, the number of downloads can be reduced.

  In the software download method for a software defined radio of the present invention, a basic module for each of a plurality of communication systems is built in beforehand, and an expansion module for a plurality of communication systems is downloaded as needed using the basic module.

  Thus, according to the present invention, it is possible to realize a software defined radio and a software download method capable of efficiently performing software download and management with a simple configuration.

  The essence of the present invention is that the minimum functional module capable of downloading software by each communication method is always held as a basic module, and the expansion module of each communication method is used as needed by using the basic module. It is to download. As a result, transmission and reception can be performed using the basic module in any communication service area, so that the extension module can be downloaded at any time. In addition, since only the basic module for each communication method needs to be held at all times, the required amount of memory is small when the basic module is configured by software, and the hardware amount when the basic module is configured by hardware. Will be less.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a communication system and a software defined radio according to the present embodiment. The software defined radio 100 requests desired software from the download server, and obtains software corresponding to the request from the download server.

  The software defined radio 100 roughly includes a configurable radio communication circuit 110, an application processing unit 120, an external input / output unit 130, a storage unit 140, and a control unit 150.

  The configurable wireless communication circuit 110 can support a plurality of communication methods by changing software. The configurable wireless communication circuit 110 includes an RF front end 111, a signal conversion unit 112, and a digital signal processing unit 113.

  The RF front end 111 is composed of an amplifier, a down converter, and an up converter. At the time of reception, the reception signal from the shared antenna AN is amplified and down-converted and transmitted to the signal conversion unit 112. At the time of transmission, the signal from the signal conversion unit 112 is transmitted. Up-convert and amplify and send to shared antenna AN.

  The signal converter 112 includes a wideband analog-to-digital converter (A / D) and a wideband digital-to-analog converter (D / A). Upon reception, the signal from the RF front end 111 is converted from analog to digital to a digital signal processing unit. The signal from the digital signal processing unit 113 is digital-analog converted and transmitted to the RF front end 111 during transmission.

  The digital signal processing unit 113 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), and a reconfigurable logic. Furthermore, fixed hardware may be included.

  The application processing unit 120 has a GUI (Graphical User Interface) function, an image processing function, a mail function, a voice processing function, and an OS (operating system) that controls them. The external input / output unit 130 includes a display unit, input keys, a speaker, a microphone, a vibration device, and a camera, and displays received image data and received audio data processed by the application processing unit 120 on the display unit or from the speaker. It is designed to output. For example, audio data and image data input from the external input / output unit 130 are input to the configurable wireless communication circuit 110 via the application processing unit 120.

  The storage unit 140 stores software to be supplied to the configurable wireless communication circuit 110. Incidentally, the software is divided for each functional module. Various communication systems are realized in the configurable wireless communication circuit 110 by combining the functional modules.

  In the present embodiment, software is classified into basic modules and extension modules. The basic module is a module that can execute at least software download for all assumed communication methods. When the extension module is loaded into the configurable radio communication circuit 110, the configurable radio communication circuit 110 receives data for realizing a higher performance application than the data that can be acquired by the basic module. A module that builds on what you can get.

  In the present embodiment, the basic module is always held in the storage unit 140. On the other hand, expansion modules are acquired from a download server as necessary, and are deleted when they are no longer needed. As the basic module, a module written in a ROM (Read Only Memory) or the like may be mounted at the time of product shipment, or may be downloaded from a download server to a writable memory such as a RAM (Random Access Memory). The expansion module is stored in a rewritable memory such as a RAM.

  The control unit 150 reads the software (basic module and / or extension module) stored in the storage unit 140 and loads the necessary modules into the respective units 111, 112, and 113 of the configurable wireless communication circuit 110. At this time, the control unit 150 monitors the output signal of the digital signal processing unit 113 to recognize a communication method that is currently available (that is, applied in the service area), and sends it to the configurable wireless communication circuit 110. Load the module corresponding to this available communication method. Further, when the designation information of the communication method by the user is input from the external input / output unit 130, the control unit 150 selects and selects the communication method corresponding to the designation information from the currently available communication methods. Load the module corresponding to the communication method.

  Further, when the control unit 150 receives information indicating that an application is to be executed by the user from the external input / output unit 130, whether or not an extension module necessary to execute the application currently exists in the storage unit 140. Is detected. When there is no necessary extension module, a signal instructing the download server to transmit the extension module is transmitted.

  Thus, in this embodiment, software is classified into basic modules and expansion modules, the basic modules are always stored, and the expansion modules are downloaded from the download server as necessary.

  As a result, in the software defined radio 100, the basic module of each communication method can be used at any time. Therefore, in any communication method service area, a necessary extension module can be installed using the basic module corresponding to the communication method. Can be acquired. Further, since the basic module may be the minimum software that can acquire the extension module, the amount of software that must be kept at all times is small. Even when a part or all of the basic module is configured by hardware, the minimum amount of hardware is sufficient because it is sufficient to provide a minimum function for acquiring the extension module.

  FIG. 2 shows examples of basic modules and expansion modules. Here, a W-CDMA system and a wireless LAN (IEEE 802.11a) system module will be described as an example.

  In the figure, <1> (hereinafter referred to as class 1) is a basic module. Those other than the basic module written as <2> and <3> (hereinafter referred to as classes 2 and 3) are extension modules.

  In the present embodiment, the 11 types of illustrated modules of class 1 or higher are built in the software defined radio 100 in advance. This basic module may be built in with a hardware configuration as described above, or, for example, all W-CDMA class 1 modules may be downloaded when a W-CDMA contract is made. . Class 1 modules are designed to be as small as possible in program size. In the example of FIG. 2, the software defined radio 100 has a class 2 FFT circuit as a basic module. This is because the FFT circuit is a fixed circuit and cannot be rewritten by software download.

  When only such a basic module is used, the software defined radio 100 downloads software using a very limited logical channel.

  Incidentally, there are functional modules that can be downloaded and those that cannot. Examples of downloadable programs include a CPU program (executable format), a DSP program (executable format), FPGA configuration data, and reconfigurable logic configuration data. On the other hand, non-downloadable items include fixed hardware and ROM contents that are similar to the downloadable items. Therefore, the software in the embodiment refers to a program that can be executed by a CPU or DSP, FPGA, reconfigurable configuration data, or the like.

  FIG. 3 shows classes of each functional module necessary for using each application. Here, consider a case where the software defined radio 100 is located in an area where the W-CDMA system can be used and the voice call function is used. From FIG. 3, it is necessary to make the class equivalent to the W-CDMA synchronization and the equalizer for the voice call. Therefore, first, after downloading these extension modules, a call is made. Since the W-CDMA system can be used, the extension module can be downloaded from the download server by using at least the basic module of the W-CDMA system.

  Next, when performing high-speed data communication in an area where the WLAN system can be used, a Class 2 802.11a TOP, an equalizer, a channel decoding, and a Viterbi Decoder are required. Also in this case, the extension module can be downloaded from the download server by using at least a WLAN (802.11a) basic module. Also, if the W-CDMA system extension module possessed by the software defined radio 100 is used, if necessary extension modules can be executed more efficiently, the software can be downloaded from the download server using the W-CDMA system. Also good.

  Next, consider the case of performing high-speed data communication in a mobile environment. The class 2 W-CDMA synchronization and the equivalent are already downloaded and stored in the storage unit 140. Therefore, the extension modules of W-CDMA TOP, despreading, channel decoding, and Turbo Decoder that are lacking are downloaded. At this time, if the memory capacity of the storage unit 140 is insufficient, for example, the 802.11a equalizer may be deleted.

  Next, the download operation of the extension module in the software defined radio 100 will be described with reference to FIG. The sequence in FIG. 4 is activated immediately before the user uses the application.

  When the software defined radio 100 starts processing in step ST0, in step ST1, the control unit 150 determines whether or not it is necessary to change the communication method. Specifically, if the software currently loaded in the configurable wireless communication circuit 110 is suitable for the application to be used, the process proceeds to step ST8, where the processing is terminated and communication is started as it is. On the other hand, if the software currently loaded in the configurable wireless communication circuit 110 is not suitable for the application to be used, the process proceeds to step ST2.

  In step ST2, the control unit 150 determines whether there is a missing module. Specifically, the control unit 150 determines whether an extension module corresponding to the application to be executed is present in the storage unit 140. If it exists, the process proceeds to step ST7, and if it does not exist, the process proceeds to step ST3.

  In step ST3, the controller 150 calculates the capacity of the extension module to be downloaded. In the subsequent step ST4, the control unit 150 determines whether or not the storage unit 140 has enough free space to download the necessary extension module, and if it is determined that there is not enough free space, the control unit 150 proceeds to step ST5. Move.

  In step ST5, the extension module that has not been used for the longest period is deleted. However, modules that need to be used are not deleted. When the processing of steps ST4 to ST5 to ST4 is performed and the storage unit 140 has enough free space to download the necessary extension module, the process proceeds to step ST6.

  In step ST6, all necessary (shortage) extension modules are downloaded. If the download cannot be executed with the current settings, the configurable wireless communication circuit 110 is reconfigured and the download is executed. In this case, since the software defined radio 100 has a basic module corresponding to a plurality of communication methods, the configurable wireless communication circuit 110 can be configured to execute download regardless of the service area of any communication method. Can be reconfigured.

  In step ST7, the controller 150 reconfigures the configurable radio communication circuit 110 to the target communication system by loading the configurable radio communication circuit 110 with a module corresponding to the target communication system.

  Further, in the present embodiment, it is proposed to perform a process as shown in FIG. 5 in order to download an extension module more efficiently.

  By performing the sequence of FIG. 5, for example, a user who hardly uses high-speed data communication of the WLAN system can make free space in the memory by deleting the extension module related to 802.11a. At this time, by changing the W-CDMA despreading module from class 2 to class 3, the high-speed data communication function in a frequently used mobile environment can be improved. The following processing may be performed by the control unit 150, for example.

  This will be specifically described. First, in step ST10, the module m1 to be processed is selected. In step ST11, it is determined whether or not the module m1 is the highest class (that is, the highest performance) module. If it is the highest class, the process ends in step ST18. On the other hand, if it is not the highest class, the process proceeds to step ST12.

  In step ST12, an expansion module that is not related to the module m1 and has the oldest last use date is selected as a deletion candidate from the expansion modules in the storage unit 140. In the subsequent step ST13, it is determined whether or not the last use date and time of the extension module that is a deletion candidate is one week or more before the last use date and time of the module m1, and if it is one week or more, it is left as a deletion target and is left as it is in step ST15. If it is not more than one week ago, the module may be used in the near future, so it is excluded from the deletion target and the process ends in step ST18.

  In step ST15, it is determined whether or not the module m1 can be updated by deleting the deletion candidate extension module (that is, whether or not the class can be increased to a higher performance one). This determination is made based on the increase in the amount of data at the time of the update, the amount of data of the extension module as a deletion candidate, and the current free memory capacity.

  If it is determined that the module m1 can be updated by deleting the deletion candidate extension module, the process proceeds to step ST16 to delete the deletion candidate extension module from the storage unit 140, and the module m1 is updated in the subsequent step ST17. .

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the module m1 cannot be updated even if the extension module as a deletion candidate is deleted, the process proceeds to step ST14, and the extension module that is not related to the module m1 and has the next oldest use date and time. After selecting as a deletion candidate, the process returns to step ST13.

  Incidentally, the sequence of FIG. 5 is activated for a module to be used immediately before the user uses the application. For example, when performing high-speed data communication in a mobile environment, the W-CDMA despreading module is activated as m1. When the sequence of FIG. 5 is activated, it is possible to predict the time required for the sequence to be completed in advance, and to prevent the activation of this sequence when it is determined that it exceeds the allowable time, the user convenience is improved. .

  The sequence of FIG. 4 may be activated for all modules when connected to a charger at home or the like. Further, it may be after a certain time has elapsed since the connection to the charger. In this way, even if the software is downloaded, the battery does not have to be consumed. Furthermore, since the software is automatically downloaded when the software defined radio is not used, it is possible to maintain an optimal module configuration in accordance with the usage situation of the user.

  Thus, according to the present embodiment, a function for realizing communication using each communication method, a basic module necessary for realizing software download in each communication method at a minimum, and a higher-performance application It is divided into the expansion modules that are required to realize the service, and only the basic module is always held, and the expansion module is stored as required by communication using the basic module, so that the service area of which communication method The necessary modules can be quickly acquired even if they are.

  In addition, when you actually use an application, you can download and use a high-performance expansion module only when the necessary functions and quality cannot be satisfied with only the basic module, so you can use all applications with a small amount of memory. It becomes like this.

  Also, when storing necessary extension modules in memory, the last use date / time is old or the extension modules that are not frequently used are preferentially deleted from the memory, so it is optimal for the usage situation of the user. Module configuration can be maintained.

  In addition, the extension module with the last use date or the low usage frequency is deleted from the memory, and the other extension module is updated to a higher performance accordingly, so that it matches the usage situation of the user. An optimal module configuration can be maintained.

  By the way, examples of limited “frequently used functions” include: • People who use only voice calls and text mail • People who do not use wireless LAN • People who live outside the FOMA area

  The basic module does not necessarily have to be specialized / restricted to download. For example, a function such as a voice call may be realized with only a basic module on condition that download can be realized at a minimum. Further, some functions of the basic module may be used by the extension module.

  Further, a part of the basic module or the extension module may be configured as fixed hardware. For example, if a function commonly used in a plurality of communication methods is provided as fixed hardware, the cost of the software defined radio can be reduced.

  Even if a communication method does not have a basic module, the communication method can be realized if an extension module necessary for the communication can be downloaded. For example, you can download at the airport before going abroad, or download a method that can only be used in the theme park at the entrance. This is effective when the communication method is not normally used and it is known in advance that the communication method is used.

  In addition to using wireless communication, downloading may be performed by connecting to a wired network or using an external flash memory.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the extension module is updated has been described. However, the basic module may be updated by downloading.

  The software to be downloaded is not limited to software that realizes wireless communication transmission processing. For example, an audio codec (encoding / decoding processing module) or an image codec can be targeted. Since these application software modules and transmission software modules are related to the usage frequency, the use efficiency of the memory can be improved by managing them together. Furthermore, if configured in this way, the performance of the entire terminal can be changed simply by changing the capacity of the storage unit and the computing capability of the digital signal processing unit in the configurable wireless communication circuit. As a result, it becomes possible to provide a low-cost terminal that meets the various needs of users.

  The present invention can be applied to a software defined radio that implements each communication method by loading software corresponding to each communication method.

The block diagram which shows the structure of the software defined radio which concerns on embodiment of this invention Diagram showing examples of basic modules and expansion modules Diagram showing the class of each functional module required to use each application Flow chart for explaining the download operation of the extension module in the software defined radio Flow chart for explaining functional module update processing

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Software defined radio 110 Configurable radio communication circuit 111 RF front end 112 Signal conversion unit 113 Digital signal processing unit 120 Application processing unit 130 External input / output unit 140 Storage unit 150 Control unit

Claims (4)

Configurable wireless communication means for realizing each wireless communication method by loading software corresponding to each wireless communication method;
A basic module capable of acquiring at least software by a plurality of wireless communication methods; and
When acquired using the basic module as needed and loaded into the configurable radio communication means, the configurable radio communication means is more expensive than data that can be acquired by the basic module. An extension module of software configuration that is built to be able to acquire data for realizing performance applications,
A software defined radio comprising: rewritable storage means for storing the extension module. The software defined radio according to claim 1, wherein the basic module has a software configuration and is always maintained. The software defined radio according to claim 1, wherein the extension module is deleted from the storage unit according to a use date and time or a use frequency. A software download method for a software defined radio, wherein a basic module for each of a plurality of communication systems is built in in advance, and an extension module for the plurality of communication systems is downloaded as needed using the basic module.

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