JP2010124299A - Radio communication device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To achieve improvement in performance of an APC, without considerably modifying the configuration of an existent article, by reducing a radio communication device in size, reducing costs and saving power by decreasing the number of A/D converters to be used for the radio communication device. <P>SOLUTION: In a radio communication device, a receiving circuit includes an A/D converter and communication is performed while alternately switching a transmitting operation and a receiving operation. In the radio communication device, at least one of a transmission power detecting signal for accomplishing an auto power control function for transmission power of a transmitting circuit, a temperature detecting signal for a transmission power amplifier and a temperature detecting signal for a transmitting RF section is converted by the data A/D converter via an input/output switching means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a transmission power required for an APC function used as a function for keeping transmission power constant at the time of transmission in a personal wireless communication device such as a wireless LAN (hereinafter referred to as WLAN) or a wide area high speed wireless (hereinafter referred to as WiMax). The present invention relates to a technique for performing detection and temperature detection of a PA unit.

  With the progress of semiconductor processes in recent years, analog + digital IC integration has been promoted by replacing signal processing with digital processing in wireless communication devices.

  Especially for personal communication devices such as WLAN, the miniaturization of the IC itself is remarkable in order to meet the demands for achieving high functionality and miniaturization of the on-board equipment. Since long time operation is required, reduction of power consumption is strongly demanded.

  In addition, with the increase in radio communication devices, there is a growing need for more appropriate control of transmission output with optimal radio wave intensity for radio wave management. In addition, there is an increasing need to appropriately control transmission output in order to perform communication with necessary power.

  In this way, stable communication can be achieved over long distances with low communication power consumption while reducing the radio wave interference of multiple radios and radios with different systems within a narrow band as much as possible. Is becoming necessary.

  The corresponding technology for this purpose has been realized as an APC function. For example, in the case of the prior art document 1, the FM demodulator IC has a second mixer (2nd MIX), an intermediate frequency amplifier (IF AMP), and a detector (DET). The intermediate frequency amplifier (IF AMP ) Outputs an RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) signal, and a control circuit such as a processor at the subsequent stage of the high-frequency circuit block uses this RSSI signal to search for an empty channel and detect out-of-service area, and to output the same RSSI signal. It is directly connected to the control terminal of the automatic gain control transmission power amplifier (AGC PA). When the RSSI signal voltage is low, the base unit or base station is assumed to be far away and the transmission output is increased. When the voltage is high, the base unit or base station is assumed to be close and the transmission output is reduced.

  In recent years, digital processing has been implemented in wireless communication devices, and the APC function has been implemented by digital processing instead of the conventional analog method, and a function for performing higher-level control has been implemented. In this case, the transmission power value, temperature, etc. are detected by a sensor, etc., and data conversion is performed using an A / D (analog / digital) converter based on the output analog signal, and the digital processing unit A configuration for performing a predetermined process is generally used.

Many circuits that realize the above-described RSSI signal processing using an A / D converter are also known. FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of an example of such a circuit. In this circuit, the transmission output from the transmission RF circuit 2 is detected by the power detection circuit 7, and this power detection value is converted by the transmission power A / D circuit 11 and then processed by the digital processing unit 6 to control lines and registers. The amplifier gain of the transmission RF circuit unit 2 is controlled by setting. In this type of APC function, in order to control the transmission output more finely, it is necessary to add a function for simultaneously detecting and correcting a plurality of environmental data, for example, temperature and transmission power. Therefore, in the example of FIG. 4, not only the control based on the transmission output but also the output of the temperature sensor 8 that measures the temperature of the transmission RF circuit unit 2 is converted into the decimal data by the temperature detection A / D conversion circuit of reference numeral 12 and digital processing The unit 6 performs processing using the detected value, and controls the amplifier gain of the transmission RF circuit unit 2 by control lines and register settings.
JP 2000-224105 A

  However, in order to collect data such as transmission power and temperature as in the above exemplary circuit, a large number of A / D converters are required.

  For example, considering the case of digitizing the transmission power auto power control circuit of the current model of wireless communication equipment including an A / D converter in the receiving circuit, a new part such as an A / D converter or It is necessary to add a function, and in order to perform high-performance control, a dedicated A / D converter is required to perform digital processing for other detection data, for example, temperature conversion of an IC or the like. In addition, when applying to a currently used system, it is necessary to review the system configuration itself, and a lot of design man-hours are consumed.

  As described above, new components such as A / D converters and control circuits are required to newly implement functions associated with auto power control operations by digital processing. However, it was difficult to add, and as a result, it was a restraining factor for adding new functions on the current system.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to propose a wireless communication device in which a transmission power auto power control circuit is digitized using a small number of A / D converters. Assuming improvements from the current system, use the A / D converter of the reception RSSI circuit, which is part of the reception function that is not used at the time of transmission, to detect the temperature of the transmission power and PA section. A wireless communication device is also proposed in which external data such as a sensor at the time of transmission is A / D processed and used as data for digital section processing.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the wireless communication device according to the first aspect of the present invention is a wireless communication device that performs communication by alternately switching between a transmission operation and a reception operation, and the reception circuit is used for processing a received signal. The transmission circuit includes a transmission power control circuit for realizing an automatic power control function of transmission power, and a transmission for the transmission power control circuit is performed at the time of transmission operation. Only at least one of the power detection signal, the temperature detection signal of the transmission power amplifier, and the temperature detection signal of the transmission RF unit is input to the input terminal of the data A / D converter instead of the input at the time of reception, and for the data Input / output switching means for connecting the output of the A / D converter to the transmission power control circuit is provided.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the wireless communication device according to the first aspect, the receiving circuit includes a plurality of data A / D converters used for processing received signals, and the input / output The switching means replaces any of the transmission power detection signal, the temperature detection signal of the transmission power amplifier, and the temperature detection signal of the transmission RF unit with the input at the time of reception individually at the input ends of the plurality of data A / D converters. In addition, the output of each data A / D converter is connected to the transmission power control circuit.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the wireless communication device according to the first or second aspect, the reception circuit includes an RSSI circuit for reception function realized by the data A / D converter. To do.

  According to the present invention, as will be described later, a reception data A / D converter that is not used at the time of transmission in a wireless communication device is also used at the time of transmission, and transmission power and other factors can be added without newly adding an A / D converter. The data collection function is realized. Thereby, for example, the area on an integrated circuit such as an LSI can be reduced, and the apparatus can be miniaturized. It also leads to cost reduction and power saving. In particular, when the performance of APC is improved from the current system, there is an advantage that a new function can be added without greatly changing the configuration.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a schematic block diagram of a wireless communication device (apparatus) according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 shows an explanatory diagram of an A / D shared section which is a feature of the present invention.

  In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a reception RF circuit, 2 denotes a transmission RF circuit (including a power amplifier unit: PA), 3 denotes RSSI detection A / D conversion (circuit), and 4 denotes reception DATA-A / D conversion (circuit). Reference numeral 5 denotes a transmission DATA-D / A conversion (circuit), and reference numeral 6 denotes a digital processing unit that performs data processing in common during transmission and reception and also functions as a transmission power control circuit. Reference numeral 7 is a power detection circuit for detecting the transmission output power from the transmission RF circuit 2, 8 is a temperature sensor for measuring the temperature of the transmission RF circuit 2, and 9 is an input / output switching for the A / D converter for received data. A switching unit (switch circuit) as a means, and a reference numeral 10 is an antenna changeover switch for selectively connecting the antenna to either the reception RF circuit 1 or the transmission RF circuit 2.

  The receiving unit in the embodiment employs an I / Q baseband method well known in digital processing wireless communication. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 2, the receiving DATA-A / D conversion (2-4) is prepared for two channels individually for I and Q (may be integrated into an IC).

  The switching unit 9 inputs an output from the reception RF circuit 1 to the input terminal of the reception data A / D converter 4 at the time of reception, and on the other hand, at the time of transmission, the transmission power detection signal and the transmission RF unit are substituted for the input at the time of reception. (Transmission power amplifier unit) 2 input temperature detection signal. Although not necessary and omitted in this embodiment, the function of connecting the output of the data A / D converter 4 to the digital processing unit 6 as a transmission power control circuit depending on the configuration of the subsequent processing unit. Shall be included. Such a switching unit is established as a multiplexer function and is available as an IC, and can also be configured with an electronic element as an appropriate analog switch circuit.

  The feature of the present invention is that the input signal to the receiving DATA-A / D converter 4 is switched by the switching unit 9 at the time of transmission in the block diagram shown in FIG. 1 to perform A / D conversion for power detection and temperature detection. It is used as an A / D conversion for use. That is, one A / D conversion is used in the transmission power auto power control function, and the detected value of the temperature sensor 8 is digitally converted by another A / D conversion. Originally, at the time of transmission, the reception DATA-A / D conversion circuit 4 is in a standby state such as standby for reception, but in this embodiment, A / D conversion for power detection (in FIG. ) Instead of Note that it is also possible to use another remaining RSSI detection A / D conversion (circuit) 4 at the time of transmission.

  In the embodiment apparatus, at the time of reception, the digital processing unit 6 controls the reception RF circuit, the reception DATA-A / D conversion unit, and the like, and the digital signal output from the reception DATA-A / D conversion unit is converted into the digital processing unit 6. Is demodulated to obtain received data.

  On the other hand, at the time of transmission, the digital processing unit 6 performs each control / signal generation necessary for transmission. For example, the antenna changeover switch 10 is controlled so that the transmission signal from the transmission RF circuit 2 is output to the antenna, the transmission frequency and output level parameters necessary for transmission of the transmission RF circuit 2 are set, and the transmission data is digitally transmitted. Modulate.

  In this embodiment, at the time of transmission, the reception RF circuit and the reception DATA-A / D conversion unit that are not used because they are in a standby state such as a standby state are normally used for reception.

  In the present embodiment, at the time of transmission, 2-6 performs power control at the time of transmission in addition to performing each control and signal generation necessary for transmission. For this purpose, a switching unit 9 is provided between the connection of the reception RF circuit 2 and the reception DATA-A / D conversion unit 4, and the power value detected by the power detection circuit unit 7 and the temperature sensor 8 during transmission is received. -A / D converter 4 is configured to convert to digital data.

  In other words, the power and temperature detection values are input to the receiving DATA-A / D conversion unit 4 at the time of transmission by switching the switching unit 9, thereby converting the power and temperature detection values into digital signals, and the digital processing unit 6. Enter. By the way, no special hardware is prepared for switching on the output signal side of the A / D converter during the reception operation and the transmission operation. In practice, a program corresponding to each at the time of transmission / reception is provided. This is realized as the module processing above.

  In the above configuration, in the existing device (current product) as illustrated in FIG. 4, if the performance of APC is to be improved, a new A / D conversion function unit should be newly added and mounted. The transmission power detection signal and the transmission power amplifier temperature detection signal can be collected as data necessary for transmission power control, and the model can be changed at low cost while avoiding an increase in size.

  Various methods for realizing APC have been devised in software and hardware. In the present invention, each data collected as described above is used as an APC parameter. An example of APC control is shown in the flowchart of FIG.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the APC configuration and control as described above are used, and the A / D conversion function for reception is used without newly adding an A / D conversion function unit. Thus, an APC function for collecting and reflecting up to two parameters necessary for power control is realized.

  In the embodiment, since the A / D circuit of a plurality of channels of the reception function circuit (which is integrated into an IC and often in one package) can be used for the transmission auxiliary function, a function for collecting a maximum of two parameter data is provided. This can be realized without newly adding an A / D conversion function unit. In addition, although it was set as the temperature sensor in embodiment, of course, other sensing can also be performed. Thus, the collected data can be used as transmission APC control data in the same manner as described above, and the function of performing APC on the transmission RF circuit (power amplifier unit) can be realized.

  Although the switching unit 9 has been described as a switch in the above description, the present invention only needs to realize a switching function. For example, when the reception RF circuit 1 has a characteristic that the output state becomes a high impedance state due to a standby state or the like during transmission, each output from the sensor or the like is directly received without using the switching unit 9. It becomes possible to connect to the DATA-A / D conversion (circuit) 4. In this case, each output input at the time of transmission needs to be in a high-impedance state at the time of reception, etc. (can be blocked by appropriate means).

  Of course, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment, and can be widely applied to general wireless communication devices incorporating an A / D converter for digitally processing analog data.

It is a schematic block diagram of a wireless communication device according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is explanatory drawing of the A / D shared part which is a part which is the characteristics of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the example of control of APC which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows an example of the known radio | wireless communication apparatus circuit which used the ASI converter and had the RSSI signal processing circuit.

Explanation of symbols

1 Reception RF circuit 2 Transmission RF circuit (including power amplifier part: PA)
3 RSSI detection A / D conversion (circuit)
4 Reception DATA-A / D conversion (circuit)
5 DATA-D / A conversion for transmission (circuit)
6 Digital processing section 7 Power detection circuit 8 Temperature sensor 9 Switching section (input / output switching means)
10 Antenna switch

Claims (3)

In a wireless communication device that performs communication by alternately switching between a transmission operation and a reception operation,
The receiving circuit includes a data A / D converter used for processing the received signal,
The transmission circuit includes a transmission power control circuit for realizing an automatic power control function of transmission power,
At the time of transmission operation, at least one of the transmission power detection signal for the transmission power control circuit, the temperature detection signal of the transmission power amplifier, and the temperature detection signal of the transmission RF unit is used as the input terminal of the data A / D converter. A wireless communication device comprising: input / output switching means for inputting to the transmission power control circuit and inputting the data A / D converter instead of the input at the time of reception. The receiving circuit is configured to include a plurality of the data A / D converters used for processing received signals,
The input / output switching means individually inputs any one of a transmission power detection signal, a transmission power amplifier temperature detection signal, and a transmission RF unit temperature detection signal to the input ends of the plurality of data A / D converters. 2. The wireless communication device according to claim 1, wherein an input of the data A / D converter is connected to the transmission power control circuit while being input instead of the data A / D converter.   The wireless communication device according to claim 1, wherein the reception circuit includes an RSSI circuit for reception function realized by the data A / D converter.

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