JP2013042462A - Wireless communication module - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wireless communication module capable of flexibly minimizing interference with other wireless communication of an apparatus into which the module is built.SOLUTION: A wireless communication module 101 that is built in an apparatus having a wireless communication function comprises a wireless transmission unit 51 which transmits a wireless signal by a first system, a plurality of antenna terminals T1, T2 which connect the wireless transmission unit 51 with the antenna of the apparatus, an antenna setting acquisition unit 53 which acquires antenna setting information indicating an antenna terminal not connected with the wireless transmission unit 51 when wireless transmission by a second system different from the first system is used in the apparatus, and an antenna selection unit 52 which selects an antenna terminal for connection with the wireless transmission unit 51 on the basis of the antenna setting information acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53.

Description

  The present invention relates to a wireless communication module, and more particularly, to a wireless communication module for incorporation into a device capable of providing a wireless communication function.

  Wireless communication services are provided by WiMAX (registered trademark) (for example, see Non-patent Document 1) conforming to the IEEE 802.16 standard, and WiFi (registered trademark) (Wireless Fidelity) (for example, refer to Non-patent document 2) according to the IEEE 802.11 standard. ing.

“Wikipedia”, [online], [Search July 1, 2011], Internet <URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WiMAX> “Wikipedia”, [online], [Search July 1, 2011], Internet <URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wi-Fi>

  In recent years, mobile devices and communication devices such as notebook PCs (personal computers) equipped with both WiMAX modules and WiFi modules have been commercialized. Further, such a device may be equipped with a module for Bluetooth (registered trademark). Since WiMAX has a similar bandwidth to WiFi and Bluetooth, when two or more communication methods are used simultaneously in such a device, radio signal interference between modules becomes a problem.

  There is a limit to disposing the antennas connected to each module due to restrictions on the size of the case. In addition, even when there are an antenna adjacent to an antenna used for another communication method and an antenna relatively distant from each other, a module may be connected to the adjacent antenna depending on the design of the target device.

  Furthermore, in transmission selection diversity using a plurality of antennas, an antenna is selected in view of the reception status (interference). For this reason, the interference cannot be reduced.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a wireless communication module capable of flexibly suppressing interference with other wireless communication in the device according to the device to which the device is incorporated. Is to provide.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, a wireless communication module according to an aspect of the present invention is a wireless communication module for incorporating into a device having a wireless communication function, and wireless transmission for transmitting a wireless signal by the first method. A plurality of antenna terminals for connecting the wireless transmission unit to an antenna provided in the device, and the wireless transmission unit when wireless transmission by a second method different from the first method is used in the device An antenna setting acquisition unit for acquiring antenna setting information indicating an antenna terminal not to perform, and an antenna for selecting the antenna terminal to which the wireless transmission unit is connected based on the antenna setting information acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit A selection unit.

  With such a configuration, when there is an antenna that clearly interferes with other wireless communication due to the design of the device at the installation destination, by setting the wireless communication module side not to use the antenna, the device side Interference can be reliably reduced without changing the design. In addition, compared with a configuration in which an antenna is automatically selected, interference can be reliably reduced according to the design of the installation destination device. Also, when it is assumed that the wireless communication module is incorporated into a plurality of types of devices, it is possible to easily customize the wireless communication module for each installation destination device by selectively fixing the antenna in advance on the wireless communication module side. it can.

  Preferably, the wireless communication module further includes a setting signal receiving unit for receiving a setting signal from the outside of the wireless communication module, and the antenna setting acquisition unit acquires the antenna setting information from the setting signal. .

  With such a configuration, it is possible to flexibly select the antenna to be used according to the design of the device into which the wireless communication module is incorporated without fixing the antenna to be used on the wireless communication module side in advance.

  Preferably, the wireless communication module further includes a storage unit for storing the antenna setting information, and the antenna setting acquisition unit acquires the antenna setting information from the storage unit.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to select an antenna to be used on the wireless communication module side without providing an antenna setting circuit or the like in the device into which the wireless communication module is incorporated.

  Preferably, the first method is a WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) method.

  As described above, the effects of the present invention can be obtained more remarkably by applying to the WiMAX system, which has a radio frequency close to that of the WiFi system, the Bluetooth system, and the like and is likely to cause radio signal interference.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the interference to the other radio | wireless communication in the said apparatus can be flexibly suppressed according to the apparatus of an installation destination.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the radio | wireless communications system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the radio | wireless communication module which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the acquisition form of the antenna setting by the antenna setting acquisition part in the radio | wireless communication module which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the acquisition form of the antenna setting by the antenna setting acquisition part in the radio | wireless communication module which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the acquisition form of the antenna setting by the antenna setting acquisition part in the radio | wireless communication module which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the acquisition form of the antenna setting by the antenna setting acquisition part in the radio | wireless communication module which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of arrangement | positioning of each module and each antenna in the mobile apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of arrangement | positioning of each module and each antenna in the mobile apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the modification of the radio | wireless communication module which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will not be repeated.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a radio communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  With reference to FIG. 1, the wireless communication system 301 includes a mobile device 201, a WiFi end point 202, and a WiMAX base station 203. The mobile device 201 includes a WiMAX module (wireless communication module) 101, a host 111, a WiFi module 112, and antennas 121, 122, and 131. The WiMAX module 101 includes a WiMAX chip 51 and an antenna selection unit 52.

  The mobile device 201 is a notebook PC, for example, and provides a wireless communication function according to the WiMAX method and a wireless communication function according to the WiFi method in the present embodiment.

  The WiMAX module 101 is incorporated in the mobile device 201. The WiMAX module 101 transmits and receives communication data according to the WiMAX system. The WiMAX module 101 is a terminal station in the WiMAX system.

  Here, in WiMAX, a TDD (Time Division Duplex) method is adopted. More specifically, in the WiMAX system, an uplink transmission period for transmitting communication data from the radio terminal apparatus to the radio base station apparatus, and a downlink transmission period for transmitting communication data from the radio base station apparatus to the radio terminal apparatus; Are switched and repeated alternately.

  The WiMAX module 101 operates as a WiMAX terminal station that communicates with the WiMAX base station 203 by transmitting and receiving radio signals to and from the WiMAX base station 203 via the antennas 121 and 122. The WiMAX module 101 and the WiMAX base station 203 constitute a WiMAX system.

  The WiFi module 112 is incorporated in the mobile device 201 in this embodiment. However, the mobile device 201 may be detachably attached via a connection terminal. The WiFi module 112 transmits and receives communication data according to the WiFi scheme. The WiFi module 112 is an access point in the WiFi system. In WiFi, the TDD method is adopted as in WiMAX.

  The WiFi module 112 operates as a WiFi access point that communicates with the WiFi endpoint 202 by transmitting and receiving wireless signals to and from the WiFi endpoint 202 via the antenna 131. The WiFi module 112 and the WiFi end point 202 constitute a WiFi system.

  More specifically, the WiMAX module 101 extracts communication data from the radio signal received from the WiMAX base station 203 and outputs the communication data to the host 111. In addition, the WiMAX module 101 converts communication data received from the host 111 or communication data generated by itself into a radio signal and transmits it to the WiMAX base station 203.

  The WiFi module 112 extracts communication data from the radio signal received from the WiFi end point 202 and outputs the communication data to the host 111. Also, the WiFi module 112 converts communication data received from the host 111 or communication data generated by itself into a wireless signal and transmits the wireless signal to the WiFi endpoint 202.

  The host 111 controls each unit in the mobile device 201 such as the WiMAX module 101 and the WiFi module 112. The host 111 performs various information processing using the communication data received from the WiMAX module 101 and the WiFi module 112, and outputs the communication data generated by the various information processing to the WiMAX module 101 and the WiFi module 112. .

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  Referring to FIG. 2, WiMAX module 101 includes a WiMAX chip (wireless transmission unit) 51, an antenna selection unit 52, an antenna setting acquisition unit 53, and antenna terminals T1 and T2. The antenna selection unit 52 includes switch circuits 61, 62 and 63.

  The antenna terminals T1 and T2 are connected to antennas 121 and 122 included in the mobile device 201, respectively.

  The WiMAX chip 51 is a semiconductor integrated circuit that performs communication processing according to the WiMAX system. The WiMAX chip 51 transmits and receives wireless signals via the antenna terminals T1 and T2.

  The antenna setting acquisition unit 53 acquires antenna setting information indicating an unused antenna among the antennas 121 and 122. In other words, the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 acquires antenna setting information indicating a part of antennas to be used among a plurality of antennas included in the device into which the WiMAX module 101 is incorporated.

  The antenna selection unit 52 selects a part of the plurality of antenna terminals included in the WiMAX module 101 based on the antenna setting information acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, and selects between the selected antenna terminal and the WiMAX chip 51. Allow radio signal propagation. Specifically, the antenna selection unit 52 selects the antenna terminal T1 or T2 based on the antenna setting information acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53. The antenna selection unit 52 connects the selected antenna terminal and the WiMAX chip 51.

  In the antenna selector 52, the switch circuit 62 connects the switch circuit 61 and the antenna terminal T1 or connects the reception terminal RX0 of the WiMAX chip 51 and the antenna terminal T1 based on the control signal received from the WiMAX chip 51. Switch what to do.

  Based on the control signal received from the WiMAX chip 51, the switch circuit 63 switches between connecting the switch circuit 61 and the antenna terminal T2 or connecting the reception terminal RX1 of the WiMAX chip 51 and the antenna terminal T2.

  For example, the WiMAX chip 51 connects the reception terminal RX0 of the WiMAX chip 51 and the antenna terminal T1 by outputting a control signal from the control terminal CNT to the switch circuit 62 in the downlink transmission period, and the switch circuit from the control terminal CNT. By outputting a control signal to 63, the reception terminal RX1 of the WiMAX chip 51 and the antenna terminal T2 are connected.

  Then, the WiMAX chip 51 synthesizes the radio signal received by each antenna based on the radio signal received from the antenna 121 via the antenna terminal T1 and the radio signal received from the antenna 122 via the antenna terminal T2, and / or Alternatively, reception processing such as expanding the reception band by spatially multiplexing radio signals received by each antenna is performed.

  As described above, the configuration in which the switch circuits 62 and 63 are provided can suppress the wraparound of noise in the downlink transmission period from the transmission terminal TX of the WiMAX chip 51 to the reception terminals RX0 and RX1.

  On the other hand, the WiMAX chip 51 outputs a control signal from the control terminal CNT to the switch circuit 62 in the uplink transmission period, thereby connecting the switch circuit 61 and the antenna terminal T1, and controlling the control signal from the control terminal CNT to the switch circuit 63. Is connected to connect the switch circuit 61 and the antenna terminal T2.

  The switch circuit 61 connects the transmission terminal TX and the switch circuit 62 of the WiMAX chip 51 or connects the transmission terminal TX and the switch circuit 63 based on the antenna setting information acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53. Switch what to do. In other words, the switch circuit 61 switches the antenna terminal that is not connected to the transmission terminal TX.

  Then, the WiMAX chip 51 outputs a radio signal from the transmission terminal TX to the antenna terminal T1 or T2 to which the switch circuit 61 is connected via the switch circuit 62 or 63.

  The WiMAX module 101 may have a configuration that does not include the switch circuits 62 and 63 for separating the reception terminals RX0 and RX1 and the transmission terminal TX. In this case, the switch circuit 61, the reception terminal RX0, and the antenna terminal T1 are directly connected, and the switch circuit 61, the reception terminal RX1, and the antenna terminal T2 are directly connected.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an antenna setting acquisition mode by the antenna setting acquisition unit in the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  Referring to FIG. 3, WiMAX module 101 further includes a setting signal receiving unit 54.

  The setting signal receiving unit 54 receives a setting signal from the outside of the WiMAX module 51. The antenna setting acquisition unit 53 acquires antenna setting information from the setting signal received by the setting signal receiving unit 54. Here, the antenna setting information is information indicating an antenna terminal that is not connected to the transmission terminal TX of the WiMAX chip 51 when the wireless transmission by the WiFi method is used in the mobile device 201. When the antenna terminal to which the transmission terminal TX is connected is alternatively selected from two as in the example of FIG. 2, this information also indicates which antenna terminal to connect the transmission terminal TX is.

  More specifically, the host 111 in the mobile device 201 is set for the mobile device 201 to determine whether the WiFi module 112 is incorporated in the mobile device 201 or not to perform wireless communication by the WiFi module 112. Acquire information indicating whether or not. Then, based on this information, the host 111 outputs a setting signal indicating an antenna to be used by the WiMAX module 101 to the WiMAX module 101.

  The setting signal receiving unit 54 in the WiMAX module 101 receives the setting signal from the host 111 and outputs it to the antenna setting acquisition unit 53.

  The antenna setting acquisition unit 53 extracts antenna setting information from the setting signal received from the setting signal receiving unit 54. Then, the antenna selection unit 52 selects a use antenna based on the antenna setting information extracted by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53.

  Specifically, for example, the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 outputs a logic low level signal to the control terminal C0 of the switch circuit 61, and outputs a logic high level signal to the control terminal C1. Thereby, the antenna selection unit 52 connects the transmission terminal TX and the switch circuit 62. As a result, the transmission terminal TX and the antenna terminal T1 are connected. Alternatively, when the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 outputs a logic high level signal to the control terminal C0 of the switch circuit 61 and outputs a logic low level signal to the control terminal C1, the antenna selection unit 52 causes the transmission terminal TX to And the switch circuit 63 are connected. As a result, the transmission terminal TX and the antenna terminal T2 are connected.

  Note that the switch circuit 61 is not limited to a configuration having two control terminals, and may have a configuration having one control terminal or three or more control terminals.

  The host 111 is not limited to the configuration in which the setting signal is output to the WiMAX module 101. For example, the WiFi module 112 that is the interference partner of the WiMAX module 101 directly outputs the setting signal to the WiMAX module 101 without passing through the host 111. It may be a configuration.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of an antenna setting acquisition mode by the antenna setting acquisition unit in the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  Referring to FIG. 4, WiMAX module 101 further includes a setting signal receiving unit 54. The setting signal receiving unit 54 includes setting terminals T3 and T4. The mobile device 201 includes resistors R1 and R2.

  The resistor R1 has a first end connected to a node to which a ground voltage is supplied and a second end connected to the setting terminal T3. The resistor R2 has a first end connected to a node supplied with a voltage of 3.3 V, for example, and a second end connected to the setting terminal T4.

  Accordingly, the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 receives a logic low level signal via the setting terminal T3 and receives a logic high level signal via the setting terminal T4.

  In this case, for example, the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 outputs a logic low level signal to the control terminal C0 of the switch circuit 61 and outputs a logic high level signal to the control terminal C1. Thereby, the antenna selection unit 52 connects the transmission terminal TX and the switch circuit 62.

  The configuration is not limited to using the resistors R1 and R2, but may be a configuration in which logic signals are given to the setting terminals T3 and T4 by a dip switch, for example.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of an antenna setting acquisition form by the antenna setting acquisition unit in the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  Referring to FIG. 5, WiMAX module 101 further includes a storage unit 55. The storage unit 55 is, for example, a flash memory, and stores antenna setting information in a nonvolatile manner.

  The antenna setting acquisition unit 53 reads and acquires the antenna setting information from the storage unit 55. Then, the antenna selection unit 52 selects the antenna to be used based on the antenna setting acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of an antenna setting acquisition mode by the antenna setting acquisition unit in the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  Referring to FIG. 6, WiMAX module 101 further includes a storage unit 55. Storage unit 55 includes resistors R1 and R2.

  The resistor R1 has a first end connected to a node to which a ground voltage is supplied and a second end connected to the antenna setting acquisition unit 53. The resistor R2 has a first end connected to a node supplied with a voltage of 3.3 V, for example, and a second end connected to the antenna setting acquisition unit 53.

  By the resistors R1 and R2, the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 outputs, for example, a logic low level signal to the control terminal C0 of the switch circuit 61 and a logic high level signal to the control terminal C1, thereby transmitting the transmission terminal TX. And the switch circuit 62 are connected.

  The configuration is not limited to using the resistors R1 and R2 as the storage unit 55. For example, a configuration in which a DIP switch is used as the storage unit 55 and each logic signal is given to the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 may be used.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the arrangement of each module and each antenna in the mobile device according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 conceptually shows the arrangement of the notebook PC as the mobile device 201 on the keyboard side.

  With reference to FIG. 7, in the mobile device 201, the WiMAX module 101 and the WiFi module 112 are incorporated, and the antenna 121 for the WiMAX module 101 is disposed in the vicinity of the antenna 131 for the WiFi module 112. Further, the antenna 122 for the WiMAX module 101 is arranged away from the antenna 131 for the WiFi module 112.

  In such a device in which a plurality of wireless communication modules are incorporated, it is ideal to design so that interference between the wireless communication modules is reduced. However, in reality, it is assumed that the antenna is pushed into an empty space in the housing. As shown in the example shown in FIG. 7, there are an antenna 122 that is desirable for transmitting a radio signal from the WiMAX module 101 and an antenna 121 that is not desirable. There is a possibility.

  On the other hand, in the current WiMAX terminal station, there are only two configurations: a configuration in which the transmission port of the radio signal is fixed to a predetermined port, or a configuration in which the transmission port is adaptively determined by transmission selection diversity.

  In the former case, there is a possibility that the transmission port is connected to the antenna serving as the interference source, and as a result, it is necessary to change the hardware design of the device to be incorporated or the WiMAX module.

  In the latter case, for example, the transmission port is determined based on the reception environment of the radio signal, that is, the interfered state, and the interference state is determined. Therefore, the interference may not be reduced.

  On the other hand, the WiMAX module 101 can determine the antenna to be used fixedly and select the antenna to be used fixedly.

  In the example shown in FIG. 7, the antenna 122 is selected as an antenna used by the WiMAX module 101 for wireless transmission when at least the WiFi module 112 is in an ON state (a state in which wireless transmission is possible). Even when the WiFi module 112 is in the OFF state, the WiFi module 101 may wirelessly transmit using the antenna 122, that is, wirelessly transmit without using the antenna 121. Furthermore, the WiMAX module 101 may use the antenna 121 for wireless reception even when the antenna 122 is used for wireless transmission, that is, when the antenna 121 is not used for wireless transmission.

  In the WiMAX module 101, a flexible setting such that an antenna 122 is used in a device on which the WiFi module 112 is mounted and an antenna 121 is used in a device on which the WiFi module 112 is not mounted is possible. Further, when the WiFi module 112 is mounted on the mobile device 201 or there is a possibility that wireless transmission by the WiFi module 112 is performed, such as when the WiFi module 112 is in an ON state, the WiFi module 112 is The WiMAX module 101 does not use the antenna 121 close to the connected antenna 131 for wireless transmission. Therefore, it is possible to reliably reduce interference as compared with a configuration that employs transmission selection diversity. When the WiFi module 112 is not mounted on the mobile device 201 or the wireless communication by the WiFi module 112 is not performed as in the case where the WiFi module 112 is in an OFF state, the WiFi module 101 transmits the antenna for wireless transmission. 121 can be used.

  For example, when the antenna used is set by software as in the example shown in FIG. 3, it is not necessary to match the transmission port of the WiMAX module 101 to the installation destination device from the beginning, and the connection is set later by software. This eliminates the need for hardware customization.

  The antenna setting acquisition unit 53 is not limited to the configuration provided outside the WiMAX chip 51, and may be provided inside the WiMAX chip 51. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 5, the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 and the storage unit 55 can be provided inside the WiMAX chip 51.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a configuration of a modified example of the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention. The contents other than those described below are the same as those of the WiMAX module 101 shown in FIG.

  Referring to FIG. 8, WiMAX module 101 includes a WiMAX chip 71, an antenna selection unit 72, an antenna setting acquisition unit 53, and antenna terminals T1 and T2. The antenna selector 72 includes switch circuits 62, 63, 64, and 65.

  The switch circuit 64 switches whether or not to connect the transmission terminal TX0 of the WiMAX chip 71 and the switch circuit 62 based on the antenna setting information acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53.

  Based on the antenna setting information acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, the switch circuit 65 switches whether to connect the transmission terminal TX1 of the WiMAX chip 71 and the switch circuit 63.

  In the uplink transmission period, when the switch circuit 64 connects the transmission terminal TX0 and the switch circuit 62, the radio signal output from the transmission terminal TX0 is output to the antenna terminal T1. Further, when the switch circuit 65 connects the transmission terminal TX1 and the switch circuit 63 during the uplink transmission period, the radio signal output from the transmission terminal TX1 is output to the antenna terminal T2.

  Here, the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 further acquires antenna setting information indicating an automatic selection operation for switching the antenna to be used.

  When the antenna setting information indicating the automatic selection operation is acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, the antenna selection unit 72 switches the selection of the antenna terminal according to the control of the WiMAX chip 71.

  For example, when the WiFi module 112 is not incorporated in the mobile device 201 or when the WiFi module 112 is in an OFF state, the host 111 outputs a setting signal indicating an automatic selection operation to the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, and the WiFi module When 112 is incorporated in the mobile device 201 or when the WiFi module 112 is in the ON state, the setting signal indicating the antenna to be used by the WiMAX module 101 is output to the antenna setting acquisition unit 53.

  When the antenna setting information indicating the automatic selection operation is acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, the switch circuit 64 connects the transmission terminal TX0 and the switch circuit 62, and the switch circuit 65 includes the transmission terminal TX1 and the switch circuit. 63 is connected.

  When the setting to use the antenna 121 is acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, the switch circuit 64 connects the transmission terminal TX0 and the switch circuit 62, and the switch circuit 65 includes the transmission terminal TX1 and the switch circuit. 63 is disconnected.

  When the setting for using the antenna 122 is acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, the switch circuit 64 disconnects the transmission terminal TX0 and the switch circuit 62, and the switch circuit 65 includes the transmission terminal TX1 and the switch. The circuit 63 is connected.

  For example, when the WiMAX chip 71 transmits the same radio signal to the transmission terminals TX0 and TX1, the WiMAX chip 71 prioritizes the on setting of the switch circuits 64 and 65 by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, and switches one of the antenna 121 and the antenna 122. Choose adaptively. That is, for example, the WiMAX chip 71 uses the antenna corresponding to the one having the better reception quality among the radio signals received from the antenna 121 and the antenna 122 in the downlink transmission period for the transmission of the radio signal in the next uplink transmission period. . Alternatively, the WiMAX chip 71 may select the antenna by averaging and comparing the received radio wave intensities of the antenna 121 and the antenna 122 over a plurality of downlink transmission periods.

  Specifically, when using the antenna 121, the WiMAX chip 71 outputs a radio signal to the transmission terminal TX0 by controlling the switch circuit 64, and controls the switch circuit 65 to The output of the signal to the transmission terminal TX1 is stopped.

  When the antenna 122 is used, the WiMAX chip 71 controls the switch circuit 64 to stop the output of the radio signal to the transmission terminal TX0, and controls the switch circuit 65 to The signal is output to the transmission terminal TX1.

  For example, the WiMAX chip 71 selects both the antenna 121 and the antenna 122 when transmitting radio signals having different phases and the like to the transmission terminals TX0 and TX1. Specifically, the WiMAX chip 71 outputs a radio signal from the transmission terminal TX0 to the switch circuit 64, and outputs a radio signal from the transmission terminal TX1 to the switch circuit 65.

  When the WiFi module 112 is not installed in the mobile device 201, there is no possibility of interference with other wireless communication in the device. In other words, the WiMAX module 101 can select an appropriate antenna according to the communication environment by using a configuration that enables automatic antenna selection.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a configuration of a modification of the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention. The contents other than those described below are the same as those of the WiMAX module 101 shown in FIG.

  Referring to FIG. 9, WiMAX module 101 includes a WiMAX chip 81, an antenna selection unit 82, an antenna setting acquisition unit 53, and antenna terminals T1 and T2. The antenna selector 82 includes switch circuits 62, 63, 64, and 65. The switch circuits 64 and 65 are provided in the WiMAX chip 81.

  The switch circuit 64 switches whether to output the radio signal generated in the WiMAX chip 81 to the transmission terminal TX0 based on the antenna setting information acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53.

  Based on the antenna setting information acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, the switch circuit 65 switches whether to output a radio signal generated in the WiMAX chip 81 to the transmission terminal TX1.

  When the switch circuit 64 outputs a radio signal to the transmission terminal TX0, the radio signal output from the transmission terminal TX0 is output to the antenna terminal T1 via the switch circuit 62. When the switch circuit 65 outputs a radio signal to the transmission terminal TX1, the radio signal output from the transmission terminal TX1 is output to the antenna terminal T2 via the switch circuit 63.

  Here, the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 further acquires antenna setting information indicating an automatic selection operation for switching the antenna to be used.

  When the antenna setting information indicating the automatic selection operation is acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, the antenna selection unit 82 switches the selection of the antenna terminal according to the control of the WiMAX chip 81.

  For example, if the WiFi module 112 is not incorporated in the mobile device 201, the host 111 outputs a setting signal indicating an automatic selection operation to the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, and the WiFi module 112 is incorporated in the mobile device 201. If it is, the setting signal indicating the antenna to be used by the WiMAX module 101 is output to the antenna setting acquisition unit 53.

  When the antenna setting information indicating the automatic selection operation is acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, the switch circuit 64 outputs the radio signal generated in the WiMAX chip 81 to the transmission terminal TX0, and the switch circuit 65 The wireless signal generated in the WiMAX chip 81 is output to the transmission terminal TX1.

  When the setting for using the antenna 121 is acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, the switch circuit 64 outputs the radio signal generated in the WiMAX chip 81 to the transmission terminal TX0, and the switch circuit 65 The output of the radio signal generated in the WiMAX chip 81 to the transmission terminal TX1 is stopped.

  When the setting for using the antenna 122 is acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, the switch circuit 64 stops outputting the radio signal generated in the WiMAX chip 81 to the transmission terminal TX0, and the switch circuit 64 65 outputs the radio signal generated in the WiMAX chip 81 to the transmission terminal TX1.

  For example, when the WiMAX chip 81 transmits the same radio signal to the transmission terminals TX0 and TX1, the WiMAX chip 81 has one of the antenna 121 and the antenna 122 prior to the on setting of the switch circuits 64 and 65 by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53. Choose adaptively. That is, WiMAX chip 81 uses, for example, the antenna corresponding to the one having the better reception quality among the radio signals received from antenna 121 and antenna 122 during the downlink transmission period for the transmission of the radio signal during the next uplink transmission period. .

  Specifically, when the antenna 121 is used, the WiMAX chip 81 connects the transmission terminal TX0 and the switch circuit 62 by controlling the switch circuit 64, and controls the switch circuit 65. The transmission terminal TX0 and the switch circuit 63 are not connected. Alternatively, when using the antenna 121, the WiMAX chip 81 outputs a radio signal to the switch circuit 64 and stops outputting the radio signal to the switch circuit 65.

  When the antenna 122 is used, the WiMAX chip 81 controls the switch circuit 64 to disconnect the transmission terminal TX0 and the switch circuit 62, and controls the switch circuit 65 to transmit. The terminal TX1 and the switch circuit 63 are connected. Alternatively, when using the antenna 121, the WiMAX chip 81 stops outputting the radio signal to the switch circuit 64 and outputs the radio signal to the switch circuit 65.

  For example, the WiMAX chip 81 selects both the antenna 121 and the antenna 122 when transmitting radio signals having different phases and the like to the transmission terminals TX0 and TX1.

  Specifically, the WiMAX chip 81 connects the transmission terminal TX0 and the switch circuit 62 by controlling the switch circuit 64, and controls the transmission circuit TX1 and the switch circuit 63 by controlling the switch circuit 65. Connect. Then, the WiMAX chip 81 outputs a radio signal to the switch circuits 64 and 65.

  When the WiFi module 112 is not installed in the mobile device 201, there is no possibility of interference with other wireless communication in the device. In other words, the WiMAX module 101 can select an appropriate antenna according to the communication environment by using a configuration that enables automatic antenna selection.

  The WiMAX chip 81 is not limited to the configuration in which the switch circuits 64 and 65 are provided in the WiMAX chip 81 as in the WiMAX module 101 illustrated in FIG. 9. For example, instead of switching whether to output a radio signal, the WiMAX chip 81 performs communication. It may be configured to switch whether or not to input the communication data to a D / A converter for converting data into an analog signal.

  By the way, in mobile devices such as notebook PCs equipped with both a WiMAX module and a WiFi module, the radio signal used in WiMAX and WiFi is close in frequency. It becomes a problem. It is important to suppress interference that a wireless communication module of a certain communication system gives to a wireless communication module of another communication system incorporated in the same device.

  Further, as a method of selecting a transmission antenna to be used from among a plurality of transmission antennas, a method of fixing to one antenna in advance and a method of automatically selecting an appropriate antenna can be considered. If it is possible to switch transmission antennas and implement a function of automatically selecting transmission antennas, adaptive antenna selection can be performed. For this reason, it is considered that there was no idea of deliberately fixing the transmission antenna after mounting a configuration capable of switching the transmission antenna. In addition, in the automatic antenna selection, an inappropriate antenna may be erroneously selected depending on the antenna arrangement of an installation destination device.

  On the other hand, in the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention, the WiMAX chip 51 transmits a wireless signal by the WiMAX method. The antenna setting acquisition unit 53 acquires antenna setting information indicating an antenna terminal to which the WiMAX chip 51 is not connected when wireless transmission using a communication method different from the WiMAX method is used in the device. Then, the antenna selection unit 52 selects an antenna terminal to which the WiMAX chip 51 is connected based on the antenna setting information acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53.

  That is, which antenna to use for the wireless communication module can be switched by software setting or hardware setting, and only the antenna whose interference is known to be small due to the design of the installation target device is used. And transmit a radio signal.

  With such a configuration, when there is an antenna that clearly interferes with other wireless communication due to the design of the device at the installation destination, by setting the wireless communication module side not to use the antenna, the device side Interference can be reliably reduced without changing the design. In addition, compared with a configuration in which an antenna is automatically selected, interference can be reliably reduced according to the design of the installation destination device.

  Also, when it is assumed that the wireless communication module is incorporated into a plurality of types of devices, it is possible to easily customize the wireless communication module for each installation destination device by selectively fixing the antenna in advance on the wireless communication module side. it can.

  In the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention, the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 further acquires antenna setting information indicating an automatic selection operation for switching the antenna to be used. Then, when the antenna setting information indicating the automatic selection operation is acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53, the antenna selection unit 72 switches the selection of the antenna terminal according to the control of the WiMAX chip 71.

  With such a configuration, the antenna to be used is fixed according to the usage conditions of the device at the installation destination, for example, whether or not other wireless communication modules such as wireless LAN and Bluetooth are used in combination with the WiMAX module, or the antenna to be used depends on the communication environment. Can be switched automatically. That is, it is possible to appropriately select the antenna to be used in both the device that is better to fix the antenna used and the device that is better not to fix the antenna.

  In the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention, the setting signal receiving unit 54 receives a setting signal from the outside of the WiMAX module 51. And the antenna setting acquisition part 53 acquires antenna setting information from the setting signal which the setting signal receiving part 54 received.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to flexibly select the antenna to be used according to the design of the device into which the wireless communication module is incorporated without fixing the antenna to be used on the wireless communication module side in advance.

  In the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention, the storage unit 55 stores antenna setting information. Then, the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 acquires antenna setting information from the storage unit 55.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to select an antenna to be used on the wireless communication module side without providing an antenna setting circuit or the like in the device into which the wireless communication module is incorporated.

  In the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention, the WiMAX chip 51 transmits and receives wireless signals according to the WiMAX system.

  As described above, the effects of the present invention can be obtained more remarkably by applying to the WiMAX system, which has a radio frequency close to that of the WiFi system, the Bluetooth system, and the like and is likely to cause radio signal interference.

  Note that the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention is configured to reduce the interference by acquiring antenna setting information indicating antennas that are not used in wireless signal transmission and selecting the antennas to be used. However, the present invention is not limited to this. A configuration may be employed in which interference setting is reduced by acquiring antenna setting information indicating an antenna that is not used in reception of a radio signal and selecting an antenna to be used. That is, the antenna setting acquisition unit 53 may be configured to acquire antenna setting information indicating an antenna that is not used for transmission, reception, or transmission / reception of a radio signal among the antennas 121 and 122.

  In the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention, two antennas are selected as selection candidates. However, the present invention is not limited to this. A configuration in which three or more antennas are selected as candidates may be used. In this case, the antenna selection unit 52 selects one or a plurality of antenna terminals among the three or more antenna terminals based on the antenna setting information acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit 53.

  Moreover, although WiMAX was illustrated as a communication system of the radio | wireless communication module which concerns on embodiment of this invention, it is not limited to this. Not only such a communication method but also a wireless communication module corresponding to another communication method such as LTE (Long Term Evolution) may be used.

  Moreover, although the mobile device which concerns on embodiment of this invention illustrated the WiFi module as a wireless communication module corresponding to communication systems other than WiFi, it is not limited to this. The communication method is not limited to this, and any communication method may be used as long as it can be interfered by the wireless signal of the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention, such as Bluetooth.

  In addition, although the mobile device 201 that is a device into which the wireless communication module 101 is incorporated is configured to provide a wireless communication function according to two communication methods, the present invention is not limited to this. The device into which the wireless communication module 101 is incorporated may be configured to provide a wireless communication function according to three or more communication methods, or may be configured to provide only the wireless communication function of the wireless communication module 101. .

  Moreover, although the device to which the wireless communication module according to the embodiment of the present invention is incorporated is a mobile device, the present invention is not limited to this. It may be incorporated in a stationary device such as a device combining a WiFi router and a WiMAX terminal station.

  The above embodiment should be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, rather than the description above, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims.

51, 71, 81 WiMAX chip (wireless transmitter)
52 antenna selection unit 53 antenna setting acquisition unit 54 setting signal reception unit 55 storage unit 61, 62, 63, 64, 65 switch circuit 72 antenna selection unit 82 antenna selection unit 101 WiMAX module (wireless communication module)
111 Host 112 WiFi Module 121, 122, 131 Antenna 201 Mobile Device 202 WiFi Endpoint 203 WiMAX Base Station 301 Wireless Communication System R1, R2 Resistance T1, T2 Antenna Terminal T3, T4 Setting Terminal

Claims (4)

A wireless communication module for incorporation in a device having a wireless communication function,
A wireless transmission unit for transmitting a wireless signal by the first method;
A plurality of antenna terminals for connecting the wireless transmitter to an antenna included in the device;
An antenna setting acquisition unit for acquiring antenna setting information indicating an antenna terminal to which the wireless transmission unit is not connected when wireless transmission by a second method different from the first method is used in the device;
A wireless communication module comprising: an antenna selection unit for selecting the antenna terminal to which the wireless transmission unit is connected based on the antenna setting information acquired by the antenna setting acquisition unit. The wireless communication module further includes:
A setting signal receiving unit for receiving a setting signal from the outside of the wireless communication module;
The wireless communication module according to claim 1, wherein the antenna setting acquisition unit acquires the antenna setting information from the setting signal. The wireless communication module further includes:
A storage unit for storing the antenna setting information;
The wireless communication module according to claim 1, wherein the antenna setting acquisition unit acquires the antenna setting information from the storage unit.   4. The wireless communication module according to claim 1, wherein the first scheme is a WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) scheme. 5.

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