JP2006245862A - Wireless communication terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wireless communication terminal that includes a plurality of transmission modes, monitors a state of hardware such as temperature of the terminal and a battery voltage, and carries out switching control of selecting one transmission mode among a plurality of the transmission modes in response to a monitoring result so as to be in operation in an optimum transmission mode depending on the state of hardware. <P>SOLUTION: The wireless communication terminal 100 for using a battery 106 for a power supply, including first and second transmission modes, starting its operation in the first transmission mode the transmission data rate of which is higher than that of the second transmission mode, and thereafter being switched to the second transmission mode, switches the first transmission mode used so far into the second transmission mode when the terminal temperature sensed by a temperature sensor 104 gets higher than a prescribed temperature A during the operation in the first transmission mode. Further, a control section 103 switches the transmission mode again into the first transmission mode when the terminal temperature decreases to a prescribed temperature B (<A) or below during the operation in the second transmission mode. Moreover, when the battery voltage reaches a setting value or below, the control section 103 switches the transmission mode into the second transmission mode. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a wireless communication terminal, and more particularly, to a wireless communication terminal having a plurality of transmission modes and operating in a transmission mode selected from them.

  Wireless communication terminals represented by GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) / EGPRS (Enhanced General Packet Radio Service), etc., transmit data by multiplexing the number of transmission slots in a unit frame and changing the modulation method of a transmission signal. A technique for increasing the rate is used. However, this method has problems such as an increase in temperature of the wireless communication terminal due to an increase in current consumption at high speeds and an increase in battery consumption.

  Therefore, conventionally, wireless communication terminals having a function of reducing temperature rise are known (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 to 3). That is, the conventional wireless communication terminal described in Patent Document 1 limits the continuous transmission time, performs transmission with the transmission output attenuated after the time limit has elapsed, and outputs the transmission output when the temperature sensor exceeds a certain temperature. It is the structure which stops.

  Further, in the conventional wireless communication terminal described in Patent Document 2, when the PA module that amplifies the transmission signal becomes high temperature and the amplification capability is reduced, the absolute value of the gate voltage of the PA module is increased to increase the current of the PA module. In this configuration, the amount is suppressed. Further, Patent Document 3 discloses a mobile station that is provided with a temperature measuring device for performing temperature control of the mobile station, and reduces the transmission rate when the temperature exceeds a threshold value.

JP 2003-309473 A (page 2-3) JP-A-8-204587 (pages 5-7 and 12) Japanese translation of PCT publication No. 2002-531023 (page 17)

  However, the conventional wireless communication terminal described in Patent Document 1 controls transmission power or stops transmission according to the comparison result between the temperature in the terminal and the threshold voltage. The conventional wireless communication terminal described is for controlling the gate voltage of the PA module and is not configured to switch the transmission mode to lower the temperature. In addition, the conventional wireless communication terminal described in Patent Document 3 reduces the transmission rate by changing the ratio between the transmission slot and the reception slot out of the maximum number of time slots received and / or transmitted in one frame. It does not switch the transmission mode.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, has a plurality of transmission modes, further monitors the hardware state such as terminal temperature and battery voltage, and selects one of the plurality of transmission modes according to the monitoring result. An object of the present invention is to provide a wireless communication terminal that operates in an optimal transmission mode depending on the hardware state by performing switching control to the transmission mode.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is a wireless communication terminal that operates in a selected transmission mode among a plurality of transmission modes, a temperature detection means for detecting a terminal temperature inside the terminal, and a temperature detection means. The terminal temperature is monitored, and when the terminal temperature becomes higher than the preset first set temperature, or when the terminal temperature becomes lower than the preset second set temperature lower than the first set temperature, at that time Transmission mode switching means for switching from an operating transmission mode to another transmission mode. In the present invention, the transmission mode can be switched according to the terminal temperature.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, when the terminal temperature becomes higher than the first set temperature, the transmission mode switching means has a transmission data rate slower than that of the currently operating transmission mode. The terminal is switched to the transmission mode, and when the terminal temperature becomes equal to or lower than the second set temperature, the transmission mode is switched to the transmission mode having a higher transmission data rate than the currently operating transmission mode. Since the transmission mode with a low transmission data rate consumes less current than the transmission mode with a high transmission data rate, when the terminal temperature becomes higher than the first set temperature, transmission is performed in comparison with the transmission mode that is currently operating. By switching to a transmission mode with a low data rate, current consumption can be reduced, thereby suppressing an increase in terminal temperature.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention uses a battery as a power source, and in a wireless communication terminal that operates in a selected transmission mode among a plurality of transmission modes, battery voltage detection means for detecting the battery voltage of the battery, The battery voltage detected by the battery voltage detecting means is monitored, and when the battery voltage falls below a preset value, a transmission mode switching means for switching from the currently operating transmission mode to another transmission mode is provided. It is characterized by. In this invention, the transmission mode can be switched according to the battery voltage.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention starts operation in the first transmission mode having the higher transmission data rate out of the first and second transmission modes, and then enters the second transmission mode. In the switchable wireless communication terminal, the temperature detecting means for detecting the terminal temperature inside the terminal and the terminal temperature detected by the temperature detecting means during the operation in the first transmission mode are monitored, and the terminal temperature is preset. When the temperature is higher than the first set temperature, the mode is switched to the second transmission mode, the terminal temperature detected by the temperature detecting means during operation in the second transmission mode is monitored, and the terminal temperature is set to the first set temperature. And a transmission mode switching means for switching to the first transmission mode when the temperature becomes lower than a preset second preset temperature.

  In the present invention, since the first transmission mode has a higher transmission data rate than the second transmission mode, the internal temperature of the terminal operating in the first transmission mode due to a large current consumption (terminal temperature) ) Increases with time, whereas in the second transmission mode, the transmission data rate is low and current consumption is small, and the terminal temperature decreases with time while operating in the second transmission mode. In view of this, when the terminal temperature becomes higher than the first set temperature during the operation in the first transmission mode, the terminal temperature is lowered by switching to the second transmission mode, and the operation is performed in the second transmission mode. When the terminal temperature becomes equal to or lower than the second set temperature, the operation at a high transmission data rate can be performed by switching to the first transmission mode.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention uses a battery as a power source, and starts operation in the first transmission mode having the higher transmission data rate among the first and second transmission modes. In the wireless communication terminal switchable to the second transmission mode, the battery voltage detection means for detecting the battery voltage of the battery, and the battery voltage detected by the battery voltage detection means during operation in the first transmission mode are monitored. And a transmission mode switching means for switching from the first transmission mode to the second transmission mode when the battery voltage falls below a preset set value.

  In the present invention, since the first transmission mode has a higher transmission data rate than the second transmission mode, the battery voltage of the terminal operating in the first transmission mode is high due to the high current consumption. While the second transmission mode has a low transmission data rate, the second transmission mode has a low transmission data rate, so that the battery voltage of the terminal operating in the second transmission mode decreases with the passage of time. In view of the fact that it is smaller than during operation in the first transmission mode, when the battery voltage falls below the set value during operation in the first transmission mode, the ratio of battery consumption is reduced by switching to the second transmission mode. Can be made.

  Here, the first transmission mode is a normal mode in which the number of transmission slots in a unit frame can be multiplexed and the modulation scheme of a transmission signal can be switched, and the second transmission mode is a transmission in a unit frame. It may be a transmission control mode in which multiplexing of the number of slots and switching of the transmission signal modulation method are impossible.

  According to the present invention, in the wireless communication terminal that operates in the transmission mode selected from among the plurality of transmission modes, the transmission mode is switched according to the terminal temperature or the battery voltage. The optimal transmission mode can be selected depending on the hardware state.

  Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a wireless communication terminal according to the present invention. As shown in the figure, the radio communication terminal 100 includes a radio unit 101 that performs radio communication with the nearest radio base station (not shown), and a baseband unit 102 that processes signals transmitted and received by the radio unit 101. And a control unit 103 that performs overall control of the entire wireless communication terminal, a temperature sensor 104 that detects the temperature inside the terminal, and a battery voltage sensor 105 that detects the voltage value of the battery 106. It operates by supplying power.

  The radio unit 101 transmits a signal input from the baseband unit 102 to the radio base station under the control of the control unit 103, searches for and receives a signal transmitted from the radio base station, and outputs the signal to the baseband unit 102 . The baseband unit 102 performs baseband processing of data specified by the control unit 103 and then outputs the data to the wireless unit 101, and performs baseband processing of a signal input from the wireless unit 101. The control unit 103 controls the wireless unit 101 and the baseband unit 102.

  The temperature sensor 104 monitors (detects) the temperature in the wireless communication terminal 100 and outputs the detected temperature to the control unit 103. The battery voltage sensor 105 monitors (detects) the battery voltage of the battery 106 and outputs the detected value to the control unit 103.

  Next, a transmission mode in which radio communication terminal 100 according to the present embodiment can operate will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 2, “normal” in the transmission mode allows multiplexing of transmission slots (Slots) and switching of the modulation method, and the transmission data rate is high, but the current consumption is large. An example of GPRS / EGPRS in this transmission mode “normal” is an EGPRS Class 10 terminal. In this terminal, the maximum number of transmission slots is 2, and the modulation scheme can be switched between GMSK and 8PSK.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 2, in the transmission mode “transmission control mode”, neither multiplexing of transmission slots (Slot) nor switching of the modulation method is possible, the transmission data rate is low, but the current consumption is low. Few. An example of GPRS / EGPRS in this transmission mode “transmission control mode” is a GPRS Class 8 terminal. In this terminal, the maximum number of transmission slots is 1, and the modulation scheme is only GMSK.

  Next, the operation of the embodiment of FIG. 1 having the two transmission modes of FIG. 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The control unit 103 in FIG. 1 controls the terminal to start operation in the transmission mode “normal” in the initial state (step S1 in FIG. 3). During operation in the transmission mode “normal”, the temperature sensor 104 The detected temperature in the terminal (terminal temperature) is monitored (step S2 in FIG. 3). It is determined whether or not the detected terminal temperature is higher than a certain temperature A (step S3 in FIG. 3).

  When it is determined in step S3 that the detected terminal temperature is equal to or lower than the constant temperature A, the control unit 103 continues to operate at a high transmission rate in the transmission mode “normal” and the terminal temperature detected by the temperature sensor 104. It is monitored whether or not has become higher than a certain temperature A (steps S1 to S3).

  In the transmission mode “normal”, a high transmission speed can be secured, but since the current consumption is large, the heat generation of the terminal and the battery consumption tend to increase as the operation time increases. For this reason, if the operating time is lengthened, the terminal temperature detected by the temperature sensor 104 becomes higher than the constant temperature A. When determining that the terminal temperature has become higher than the constant temperature A in step S3, the control unit 103 switches the transmission mode from “normal” until then to “transmission control mode” (step S4 in FIG. 3).

  When switching to the “transmission control mode”, the control unit 103 monitors whether or not the terminal temperature detected by the temperature sensor 104 has become equal to or lower than a certain temperature B (<A) (step S5 in FIG. 3). In the transmission mode “transmission control mode”, although the transmission data rate is low, the current consumption is small, so that an increase in the terminal temperature of the wireless communication terminal 100 can be suppressed, and the terminal temperature decreases as the operation time increases. There is a tendency. Therefore, a predetermined constant temperature B lower than the constant temperature A is set, and the control unit 103 operates the wireless communication terminal 100 in the “transmission control mode” until the terminal temperature drops below the constant temperature B ( Steps S5 and S6 in FIG.

  When determining that the terminal temperature has become equal to or lower than the constant temperature B in step S6, the control unit 103 switches the transmission mode to “normal” again (step S7 in FIG. 3). Thereafter, the operation after step S2 is repeated until the operation is completed.

  FIG. 4 shows a graph of an example of changes in the terminal temperature of the wireless communication terminal 100. In the figure, in the section T1, the wireless communication terminal 100 operates in the transmission mode “normal”, and the terminal temperature tends to rise. When the wireless communication terminal 100 detects that the terminal temperature exceeds a certain temperature A, the wireless communication terminal 100 switches the transmission mode to the “transmission control mode”. In the section T2 operating in the “transmission control mode”, the terminal temperature of the wireless communication terminal 100 tends to decrease. When the wireless communication terminal 100 operating in the “transmission control mode” detects that the terminal temperature has become equal to or lower than the predetermined temperature B, the wireless communication terminal 100 switches the transmission mode to “normal” again, and in the section T3, the transmission mode is “normal”. Operate.

  As described above, the wireless communication terminal 100 according to the present embodiment operates at a high transmission rate until the terminal temperature exceeds the constant temperature A after the operation starts, with the transmission mode set to “normal”, and the terminal temperature is constant temperature. When A is exceeded, the transmission mode is switched to the “transmission control mode” to suppress the increase in the terminal temperature, and when the terminal temperature falls below a certain temperature B in this transmission control mode, the transmission mode is again changed to the high speed “normal” Since switching is performed, it is possible to select an optimal transmission mode according to the terminal temperature and perform an optimal operation.

  Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, the basic configuration is the same as that in FIG. 1, and the transmission mode can be switched between the two transmission modes shown in FIG. 2, but in the above embodiment, the terminal temperature is However, this embodiment is characterized in that the battery voltage is monitored and the transmission means is selected.

  In FIG. 1, the control unit 103 monitors the battery voltage of the battery 106 detected by the battery voltage sensor 105 and operates in the transmission mode “normal” until the monitored battery voltage reaches a certain voltage C. In the transmission mode “normal”, the transmission data rate is high, but since the current consumption is large, the battery voltage consumption of the battery 106 tends to be large. Therefore, the battery voltage decreases as the operation time becomes longer.

  When the control unit 103 detects that the monitor battery voltage supplied from the battery voltage sensor 105 is lower than the constant voltage C, the control unit 103 switches the transmission mode from “normal” to “transmission control mode”. In the transmission mode “transmission control mode”, the transmission data rate is low, but since the current consumption is small, the battery consumption of the battery 106 can be suppressed. Therefore, in the “transmission control mode”, the rate of decrease in the battery voltage is smaller than that in “normal”. Thereby, the battery 106 can be used for a longer time than in the past.

  FIG. 5 shows a graph of an example of changes in the battery voltage of the wireless communication terminal 100. In FIG. 5, in the section T4, the wireless communication terminal 100 operates in the transmission mode “normal” at a high transmission rate, and the battery voltage decreases with the passage of time. When the wireless communication terminal 100 detects that the battery voltage has fallen below the certain voltage C, the wireless communication terminal 100 switches the transmission mode to the “transmission control mode” (section T4 → section T5). In the section T5 operating in the “transmission control mode” at a low transmission speed, the battery voltage of the wireless communication terminal 100 decreases at a gentle slope as compared to the section T4 operating in the transmission mode “normal”. To go.

  Thus, in this embodiment, when the control unit 103 monitors the battery voltage of the battery 106 detected by the battery voltage sensor 105 and detects that the battery voltage has fallen below a certain voltage C, the transmission mode is set to low speed. By switching to the proper transmission control mode, it is possible to suppress the battery consumption of the battery 106 and to obtain an effect that an optimal transmission means can be selected depending on the hardware state.

It is a block diagram of one embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the transmission mode in this invention. It is a flowchart for operation | movement description of one embodiment of this invention. It is a graph which shows an example of transition of terminal temperature. It is a graph which shows an example of a battery voltage transition.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Wireless communication terminal 101 Radio | wireless part 102 Baseband part 103 Control part 104 Temperature sensor 105 Battery voltage sensor 106 Battery

Claims (6)

In a wireless communication terminal that operates in a selected transmission mode among a plurality of transmission modes,
Temperature detecting means for detecting the terminal temperature inside the terminal;
The terminal temperature detected by the temperature detection means is monitored, and when the terminal temperature becomes higher than a first preset temperature, or a preset second preset temperature lower than the first preset temperature. A wireless communication terminal, comprising: a transmission mode switching means for switching from the transmission mode currently operating to another transmission mode when   When the terminal temperature becomes higher than the first set temperature, the transmission mode switching means switches to a transmission mode having a transmission data rate lower than that of the currently operating transmission mode, and the terminal temperature is 2. The wireless communication terminal according to claim 1, wherein when the temperature becomes equal to or lower than a set temperature of 2, the wireless communication terminal is switched to a transmission mode having a transmission data rate faster than the transmission mode in operation at that time. In a wireless communication terminal that uses a battery as a power source and operates in a selected transmission mode among a plurality of transmission modes,
Battery voltage detection means for detecting the battery voltage of the battery;
Transmission mode switching means for monitoring the battery voltage detected by the battery voltage detection means and, when the battery voltage falls below a preset set value, switching from the currently operating transmission mode to another transmission mode; A wireless communication terminal comprising: In the wireless communication terminal capable of switching to the second transmission mode after starting the operation in the first transmission mode having the higher transmission data rate among the first and second transmission modes,
Temperature detecting means for detecting the terminal temperature inside the terminal;
The terminal temperature detected by the temperature detecting means during operation in the first transmission mode is monitored, and when the terminal temperature becomes higher than a preset first set temperature, the second transmission mode is set. Switching, monitoring the terminal temperature detected by the temperature detecting means during the operation in the second transmission mode, and the terminal temperature is lower than the preset second set temperature lower than the first set temperature; And a transmission mode switching means for switching to the first transmission mode. A wireless communication terminal using a battery as a power source and capable of switching to the second transmission mode after starting operation in the first transmission mode having the higher transmission data rate among the first and second transmission modes In
Battery voltage detection means for detecting the battery voltage of the battery;
The battery voltage detected by the battery voltage detection means during operation in the first transmission mode is monitored, and when the battery voltage falls below a preset value, the second transmission mode is changed to the second transmission mode. And a transmission mode switching means for switching to the transmission mode. The first transmission mode is a normal mode in which the number of transmission slots in a unit frame can be multiplexed and the modulation scheme of a transmission signal can be switched. The second transmission mode is a number of transmission slots in a unit frame. 6. The radio communication terminal according to claim 4, wherein the radio communication terminal is a transmission control mode in which multiplexing and switching of a modulation method of a transmission signal are impossible.

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