WO2023206273A1

WO2023206273A1 - Coupler, coupling method and system

Info

Publication number: WO2023206273A1
Application number: PCT/CN2022/090032
Authority: WO
Inventors: 赵鹏超; 杨帆; 张�成
Original assignee: 华为技术有限公司
Priority date: 2022-04-28
Filing date: 2022-04-28
Publication date: 2023-11-02

Abstract

Provided in the present application are a coupler, a coupling method and a system. The coupler comprises a main signal channel and a coupling channel, the main signal channel being used for a signal channel of the coupler, and the coupling channel being used for coupling a signal of the main signal channel. The main signal channel comprises a first port and a second port, and the first port and the second port are respectively used for an input port and an output port of the coupler. The coupling channel comprises a third port, a fourth port and a fifth port. The challenge of different signals in various scenarios can be resolved.

Description

Coupler, coupling method and system

Technical field

The present application relates to communication technology, and in particular, to a coupler, coupling method and system.

Background technique

With the continuous development of technology, various technologies can be applied in different scenarios. For example, in some technical scenarios, the power of the signal needs to be monitored and calibrated, but in other scenarios, a group that can send and receive signals at the same time is required. A common antenna to achieve signal synchronization is a current technical challenge.

Contents of the invention

This application provides a coupler, coupling method and system. To be able to meet the challenges of multiple signals and different scenarios, this application adopts the following technical solutions.

In a first aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a coupler, including:

A main signal channel and a coupling channel, the main signal channel is used for the signal channel of the coupler; the coupling channel is used for coupling the signal of the main signal channel, wherein the main signal channel includes a first port and a first port. Two ports, the first port and the second port are respectively used as the input port and the output port of the coupler; the coupling channel includes a third port, a fourth port and a fifth port.

It should be noted that among these five ports, the main signal channel is used for the signal channel of the coupler, including a first port and a second port, and the first port and the second port are respectively used for all The input port and the output port of the coupler; the coupling channel includes a third port, a fourth port and a fifth port, and the coupling channel is used to couple the signal of the main signal channel so that the signal can be coupled to the The third port or the fourth port is used for sampling. In some scenarios, one or more operations of calibration, monitoring or grounding can be performed on the sampled signal. The fifth port on the coupling channel can be As a connection point, connect the coupler to the external area of the chip where it is located. For example, the connection point can be Ground Signal Ground (GSG), and the coupler can couple its signal to the ground through the fifth port. External output, and then returned to the chip through external transmission to solve the problem of large interference and large signal loss when certain signals are transmitted inside the coupler.

Through the five ports included in the main signal channel and the coupling channel, the coupler can not only transmit signals on the main signal channel, but also use the ports on the coupling channel to respond to different needs in different scenarios and external devices, thereby realizing a variety of Signal the challenges of different scenarios.

For example, when dealing with a scenario that requires business data transmission and a common antenna data transmission requirement, the main signal channel of the coupler can ensure the signal transmission requirements of basic business data, and can be implemented by allocating two ports on the coupling channel. There are one or more requirements for signal calibration, monitoring or grounding during business data transmission, and then through the last port, connected to the outside of the chip where the coupler is located, some of the components received by the coupler are not suitable for transmission within the chip. The signal is output to the outside of the chip through this port, and is transmitted back to the chip after being returned externally. In this way, the challenges of business scenarios and common antenna scenarios can be realized.

Of course, when there are many functional requirements in a scene and the ports are not enough to realize all functions, two functions can also be realized through one port on the coupling channel, that is, an external power splitter is connected to the port to meet the challenges of more demands in different scenarios.

In a possible manner, the coupler further includes: a sixth port, the coupling channel includes a second coupling channel and a third coupling channel, wherein the second coupling channel includes the third port and the The fourth port, the second coupling channel is used to realize the transmission of signals between the third port and the fourth port; the third coupling channel includes the fifth port and the sixth port, The third coupling path is used to realize signal transmission between the fifth port and the sixth port.

The coupling channel of the coupler can also include more coupling paths, and each coupling path can include more ports. On the one hand, such a coupler can meet the needs of more scenarios, thereby realizing the challenges of multiple signals and different scenarios. , On the other hand, the on-chip area occupied by the coupler on the chip can be saved by flexibly adjusting the position of each coupling channel on the main signal channel.

In a possible manner, the coupler further includes: a seventh port and an eighth port, and the coupling channel further includes a fourth coupling path, wherein the fourth coupling path includes the seventh port and the As for the eighth port, the fourth coupling path is used to realize signal transmission between the seventh port and the eighth port.

The coupler of this application can couple signals on the main signal channel through more coupling paths, and can be connected to different couplers through different ports to correspond to more scenarios and realize more functions.

In a possible implementation manner, the first port is an input port for receiving a transmission signal input from the main signal channel, the second port is a through port for outputting the transmission signal, and the The through port is also used to reversely input the reflected signal and the received signal; the third port is the first coupling port, used to sample the transmit signal; the fourth port is the first isolation port, used to for selectively sampling and grounding the reflected signal; or, the third port is the first coupling end, used for sampling the transmission signal, and the fourth port is the second coupling end, The fifth port is used to sample the transmission signal; the fifth port is a second isolation port, used to connect to the outside of the chip and output the signal received by the through port to the outside of the chip.

It should be noted that the five ports of the coupler should include at least one input port for inputting the transmit signal, a through port for outputting the transmit signal, input reflected signal and input received signal, and a second isolation port. The terminal is used to connect to the outside of the chip, and output the signal received by the through terminal to the outside of the chip, and a first coupling terminal to sample the transmitted signal. If the first coupling terminal is connected to an external power divider, all the signals can be sampled at the same time. The above-mentioned emission signals are calibrated and monitored. The other port can be selectively sampled and grounded, such as grounding or monitoring reflected signals according to the needs of the usage scenario. For example, in some scenarios that do not have high monitoring requirements, there is no need to perform reflection signal monitoring. Monitoring, then this port can be grounded. If the monitoring requirements are high, this port should be used as an isolated terminal, recorded as the first isolated terminal, to monitor the reflected signal. The reason why the isolated terminal is used to monitor the reflected signal is Because the isolation end is unidirectional, it prevents reflected signals from returning to the main signal channel and interfering with the transmitted signal.

Furthermore, the coupler is not limited to the above five ports. Ports can be added according to the business requirements of different application scenarios to achieve the integration of more signals or functions.

The sampling of the transmitted signal in the coupler can be applied to scenarios where the transmitted signal needs to be monitored or verified. Similarly, the sampling of the reflected signal can also be used to monitor or verify the reflected signal. The coupler provided by this application is flexible in setting. When used in scenarios with low monitoring requirements, it can be adapted to monitor the transmitted signal sampled by the port and not sample the sampled reflected signal. In this way, it can be used in scenarios with low monitoring requirements. The coupler used in the scenario and the chip integrated with external devices have lower production costs and can effectively control costs under the conditions of realizing the scenario requirements.

At the same time, since the coupler provides a port, that is, the second isolation end is used to connect to the outside of the chip, the signal received by the through port is output outside the chip. After this external output, the signal looped back from outside the chip can be Avoiding problems such as crosstalk caused by transmission within the chip can effectively improve the transmission performance of some signals that are not suitable for transmission within the chip.

In a possible way, the first port is an input port, used to receive the transmission signal input from the main signal channel, the second port is a through port, used to output the transmission signal, and the through port The terminal is also used to reversely input the reflected signal and the received signal; the third port is the first coupling terminal, used to sample the transmit signal, and the fourth port is the first isolation terminal, used to Sampling the reflected signal, the fifth port is a second isolation port, used to connect to the outside of the chip, and output the signal received by the through port to the outside of the chip, and the sixth port is a second coupling port , used for grounding; or, the third port is a first coupling terminal, used for sampling the transmission signal, the fourth port is a second coupling terminal, used for sampling the transmission signal, so The fifth port is a second isolation port, used to connect to the outside of the chip, and output the signal received by the through port to the outside of the chip, and the sixth port is a first isolation port, used to process the reflected signal. sampling.

In addition to the input terminal, the through terminal and the second isolation terminal, the other three ports may be the first coupling terminal, the first isolation terminal and the second coupling terminal respectively, where the first coupling terminal is used to sample the transmit signal. , the sampled signal can be calibrated and monitored, the first isolation terminal is used to sample the reflected signal, and the sampled reflected signal is monitored, and the second coupling terminal can be used for grounding. Of course, in this case, if grounding is not required, the coupler may not need the second coupling end, or it may be reserved as a grounding port in preparation for adding functions later. Alternatively, the first coupling end is used to sample the transmission signal and calibrate the sampled transmission signal, the second coupling end is used to sample the transmission signal and monitor the transmission signal, and the first isolation end is used to The reflected signal is sampled and the reflection is monitored. In this case, the coupler does not have an external power splitter, and each port is connected to an external functional device to implement a function.

In a possible way, the first port is an input port, used to receive the transmission signal input from the main signal channel, the second port is a through port, used to output the transmission signal, and the through port The terminal is also used to reversely input the reflected signal and the received signal; the third port is the first coupling terminal, used to sample the transmit signal, and the fourth port is the first isolation terminal, used to Sampling the reflected signal, the fifth port is a second isolation port, used to connect to the outside of the chip, and output the signal received by the through port to the outside of the chip, and the sixth port is a third coupling port , used for grounding, the seventh port is a second coupling terminal, used for sampling the transmit signal, and the eighth port is a third isolation terminal, used for grounding.

The coupling end and the isolation end perform different processing on the sampled signals according to the needs of different scenarios. You can refer to the above example, or there can be other extensions.

Since the coupler provided by this application can be applied in different scenarios, different coupling coefficients need to be matched in different scenarios. It should be noted that the coupler needs to provide multiple transmit coupling signals and receive coupling signals with different coupling degrees according to scene requirements. The transmit coupling signal is the signal that the transmit signal is coupled to the coupling end, and the receive coupling signal is the received signal that is coupled to the coupling end. Two isolated terminal signals. At the same time, the coupler also needs to have high isolation to ensure that the transmitting coupling signal and the receiving coupling signal do not interfere with each other, and improve the accuracy of calibration, monitoring and signal synchronization. Therefore, the coupler provided by this application is a reconfigurable coupler, which can respond to different scenarios by setting switches, such as a single-chip scenario or a multi-chip array scenario where the external chip is connected. The reconfigurable coupler can adapt to the coupling required by different scenarios through time-sharing switching, that is, switching of the switch closing position, while maintaining the high isolation of the coupler.

Generally, in a coupler with a coupling line, the odd and even mode impedance ratio of the coupling line and the length of the coupling line are the key factors that affect the coupling coefficient. However, if the odd and even mode impedance is changed by adjusting the common mode or differential mode capacitance of the coupling line, the degree of coupling can be achieved. Reconfigurable, it will destroy the matching conditions of the coupling line port, causing the isolation to deteriorate. Therefore, in this application, the coupling coefficient is reconfigurable by changing the coupling line length through switch switching.

In a possible implementation manner, the coupling channel includes a first coupling channel, and the first coupling channel includes a first signal transmission channel and a second signal transmission channel; the first signal transmission channel is used to implement the The transmission of signals between the third port and the fourth port; the second signal transmission path is used to realize the transmission of signals between the third port and the fifth port; the first coupling path includes a A coupling switch, the first coupling switch is used to connect and disconnect the first signal transmission path and the second signal transmission path.

The coupler includes a coupling switch, which can realize switching of different signal transmission path functions by controlling the connection and disconnection of the first signal transmission path and the second signal transmission path. At the same time, it can also be configured according to the coupling coefficient required by different scenarios. The coupling line length of the first signal transmission path and the second signal transmission path enables switching to the signal transmission path in different scenarios to adapt to the matching conditions of the port requirements in the scenario.

It should be noted that the coupler may include multiple coupling switches. Taking a first coupling switch to connect and disconnect the first signal transmission path and the second signal transmission path as an example, if the third port in the coupler is the A coupling end and the fourth port are the first isolation end, and the fifth port is the second isolation end. A switch is provided on the first coupling channel between the first coupling end, the first isolation end and the second isolation end. The switch is closed in the first position, the second signal transmission path is connected, and the first The signal transmission path is disconnected, the first coupling end is connected to the second isolation end, the switch is closed in the second position, the first signal transmission path is connected, the second signal transmission path is disconnected, the first coupling The terminal is connected to the first isolation terminal. Further, if a sixth port is also included, for example, the sixth port is the second coupling end, switches can be set on the paths between the four ports to control the connection and disconnection of more transmission paths. If the coupler uses For more scenarios that require different coupling coefficients, switches should be added according to the scenario requirements. This application uses setting a coupling switch as an example to illustrate how to achieve reconfiguration. Since the coupler has multiple ports to implement multiple functions, the specific setting position of the switch is based on the functional settings required for the coupler's working scenario. Here we only take the business function of monitoring calibration and the common antenna function switching of simultaneous transmission and reception as an example. But this is not a limitation.

In a possible implementation manner, when the first signal transmission path is connected and the second signal transmission path is disconnected, the length of the coupling line of the first signal transmission path corresponds to the first coupling coefficient; the second signal transmission path is disconnected. The signal transmission path is connected. When the first signal transmission path is disconnected, the coupling line length of the second signal transmission path corresponds to the second coupling coefficient. The second signal transmission path is connected, and when the first signal transmission path is disconnected, the coupling line length of the second signal transmission path corresponds to the second coupling coefficient, and the coupling line length of China Unicom corresponds to the external chip for the radar array. The coupling coefficient required by the chip scenario; when the first signal transmission path is connected and the second signal transmission path is disconnected, the coupling line length of the first signal transmission path corresponds to the first coupling coefficient, and the coupling line length of China Unicom corresponds to The external chip has the coupling coefficient required in the radar single-chip scenario. That is, the second signal transmission path is connected, and when the first signal transmission path is disconnected, the coupling line length corresponds to the coupling coefficient required by the common antenna scenario of simultaneous transmission and reception. The first signal transmission path is connected, and the second signal transmission path is connected. When the transmission path is disconnected, the length of China Unicom's coupling line corresponds to the coupling coefficient required by the business scenario.

It should be noted that when the coupling channel includes a second coupling channel and a third coupling channel, the second coupling channel may be on one side of the main signal channel, and the third coupling channel may be on the other side of the main signal channel. . Similarly, when the coupling channel also includes a fourth coupling channel, two of the second coupling channel, the third coupling channel and the fourth coupling channel may be provided on one side of the main signal channel, and the other channel may be provided on the other side of the main signal path.

In this way, the coupler can provide a variety of signal couplings while improving the miniaturization of the coupler, and can maintain high isolation of each coupler. The coupler can be arranged in another way, that is, multiple coupling channels are arranged in parallel. Compared with the traditional "series connection", for example, the second coupling path, the third coupling path and the fourth coupling path are all designed in the main coupling path. The one-side distribution of the signal channel can effectively reduce the vertical area of the coupler and reduce the additional insertion loss of the transmitted signal on the main signal channel. At the same time, each coupler maintains high isolation. It should be noted that the parallel type here also refers to the Multiple ports of the coupler are distributed side by side on both sides of the main signal channel. "Serial connection" means placing all ports in series on one side of the main signal channel.

In a possible implementation manner, the input end is externally connected to a transmitter (TX), the TX is used to transmit the transmission signal to the main signal channel, the through end is connected to an external antenna, and the antenna is The transmit signal is transmitted externally, and the reflected signal of the transmit signal and the external signal received by the antenna are reversely input. The second isolation end is connected to the outside of the chip through the connection point, and the signal received by the antenna is Output to the outside of the chip, and then looped back to the receiver (RX). When the signals in the coupler are all high-frequency signals, the connection point can be a Ground Signal Ground (GSG) connection point. SGS has better transmission performance for high-frequency signals. The signal received by the antenna is Coupled to the GSG, output to the outside of the chip through the GSG, and looped back from the off-chip to the RX on the chip.

Through such a connection, the coupler can transmit the transmit signal on the main service channel and at the same time send the signal in the external space received by the antenna to the RX through the GSG connected to the second isolation end, realizing a common antenna for the transmit signal and the receive signal. , the transmitting signal and the receiving signal can be transmitted at the same time. Since the receiving signal is transmitted from outside the chip, it does not interfere with the transmitting signal.

In a possible implementation manner, the TX, the antenna and the RX are externally connected to a radar single chip or a radar array chip.

In different scenarios, there are different requirements for the functions that the circuit can achieve. For example, in the monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) of millimeter-wave radar, in business scenarios, it is necessary to ensure that each TX and RX are calibrated. For amplitude and phase consistency, for functional safety reasons, the power of the signal also needs to be monitored. In the radar array scenario, a set of common antennas for the transmitting channel and the receiving channel are needed to achieve signal synchronization. This application provides a coupler that can realize channel multiplexing in business scenarios and common antenna scenarios. For example, in other business scenarios, there is no need to calibrate signals or monitor power, but need to implement other functions. Just use this coupler. This can be achieved by adjusting the external output devices at the coupling end and/or isolation end of the coupler accordingly.

A radar array chip is an array of multiple radar chips that work together to achieve high-performance monitoring. In a radar array scenario, the system requires signal synchronization from multiple chips, and a common antenna is a hardware implementation that can achieve this signal synchronization.

The radar does not form an array, that is, the radar single-chip scenario means that a single chip works independently. In some scenarios that do not require high monitoring performance, a single chip can meet the performance requirements, so there is no need for a radar array. In the scenario where the radar is not arrayed, the system does not require signal synchronization. It only needs to monitor and calibrate the signal when transmitting the transmitted signal and a part of the reflected signal on the main signal channel.

Further, if the first coupling end is used to calibrate and monitor the transmission signal, the output of the first coupling end is connected to a power divider, and the output of the power divider is connected to a first power detector (Power Detector). , PD) and a test receiver (Measure Receiver, MRX), the first PD is used to monitor the transmission signal, and the MRX is used to calibrate the transmission signal, wherein the first PD and the MRX The coupling coefficients are the same.

It should be noted that in the single-chip scenario, the TX inputs the transmission signal to the coupler through the input end of the coupler, and the straight-through end of the coupler outputs the transmission signal to the antenna, and the antenna sends the transmission signal out. In this case, the coupling end of the coupler, such as the first coupling end passing through the power divider, can output the transmitting signal as the transmitting coupled signal according to the coupling coefficient, and output the transmitting coupled signal to the first PD and the first PD through the external power divider. MRX monitoring, the first PD realizes the power monitoring of the transmitted signal, and MRX realizes the calibration of the transmitted signal.

It should be pointed out here that the coupling end of the coupler can be one or multiple, which is mainly determined according to the needs of different scenarios. In addition, if the scenario requires the transmit coupling signals to be output separately to implement the power monitoring and calibration of the transmit signal, then the coupler can be connected to the power divider through the first coupling end, and then the transmit coupling signals can be output separately through the power divider. to the first PD and MRX. In this case, the coupling coefficients of the first PD and MRX are equal, or the coupling signal is output to the first PD through the first coupling terminal according to the coupling coefficient, and the coupling signal is output according to the coupling coefficient through the second coupling terminal. Send coupling signal to MRX.

When the TX inputs the transmit signal to the coupler through the input end of the coupler, the through end of the coupler outputs the transmit signal to the antenna, and the transmit signal is sent out by the antenna, the coupler will also receive a small part of the antenna reverse direction. For the input reflected signal, in a scenario where the reflected signal needs to be monitored, the reflected coupling signal of the reflected signal can be output to the second PD according to the coupling coefficient through the first isolation end of the coupler, and the second PD can monitor the reflected signal. . If there is a problem with the antenna, the reflected coupling signal detected by the second PD will be very strong. At this time, based on the abnormal monitoring result that the reflected coupling signal is very strong, it can be determined that there is a problem with the antenna. On the contrary, it can be determined that the antenna is normal.

In the radar array scenario, the TX channel, antenna and RX channel can realize a common antenna through the coupler provided in the embodiment of this application, that is, the TX inputs the transmission signal to the coupler through the input end, and the coupler outputs the transmission signal through the through end. to the antenna, and the antenna transmits signals. At the same time, the antenna receives external signals and reversely inputs them to the coupler. The second isolated end of the coupler passes the received coupled signal obtained according to the received external signal in proportion to the coupling coefficient. GSG is output to the outside of the chip, then looped back outside the chip and input to RX.

Since the coupler has directional transmission characteristics, the TX transmitted signal and the RX received signal will not interfere with each other, that is, a set of TX/RX channel common antennas is realized. Further combination with the algorithm can achieve signal synchronization of multiple radar chips.

The coupler provided by this application can be used as a service channel in a single-chip scenario to realize signal power monitoring and calibration. In the radar array scenario, the TX channel and RX channel share the same antenna to achieve signal synchronization of multiple radar chips. The multiplexing of common antenna channels and service channels is realized, effectively solving the problem of channel waste.

For example, for the above-mentioned reconfigurable coupler, in the radar array scenario, the coupling switch is closed in the first position, the second signal transmission path is connected, and the first signal transmission path is disconnected. At this time, the TX channel output The transmit signal is sent to the input end of the coupler, and the through end outputs the transmit signal to the antenna. At the same time, the antenna receives the external signal, and the reverse input is given to the through end of the coupler. The second isolation end will receive the coupled signal and output it to the outside of the chip through the GSG, and on the chip. The outer loop returns to the RX channel. Since the switch is closed in the first position, the length of the coupling line adapts to the coupling coefficient of the radar array scenario, and the common mode or differential mode capacitance is not adjusted to change the odd and even mode impedance, which will not cause the port matching conditions to change, and can still maintain a high Isolation. The isolation of the coupler in this scenario will affect the accuracy of signal synchronization in the cascade scenario. Therefore, maintaining the isolation ensures the accuracy of signal synchronization in the radar array scenario.

For the single-chip scenario, the switch is closed in the second position, the first signal transmission path is connected, and the second signal transmission path is disconnected. At this time, the TX channel outputs the transmit signal to the coupler input end, and the straight-through end outputs the transmit signal to the antenna, coupling at the same time The terminal outputs the transmit coupling signal to the power divider, and the power divider outputs it to the first PD and MRX. The first isolation terminal outputs the reflected coupling signal to the second PD. The isolation of the coupler in this scenario will affect the accuracy of signal monitoring and calibration in the monolithic scenario. Since the switch is closed in the second position, the length of the coupling line adapts to the coupling coefficient of the monolithic scenario, and the common mode or differential mode capacitance is not adjusted to change the odd and even mode impedance, which will not cause the port matching conditions to change, and high isolation can still be maintained. This ensures the accuracy of signal monitoring and calibration in a single-chip scenario.

For example, for the above-mentioned miniaturized coupler, in the array scenario, the second isolation terminal output receives the coupled signal and realizes TX/RX common antenna through GSG, that is, the signal synchronization of multiple radar chips is realized. In the single-chip scenario, the second coupling terminal outputs the transmission coupling signal to MRX to realize the calibration of the transmission signal; the first coupling terminal outputs the transmission coupling signal to the first PD to realize transmission signal power monitoring; the first isolation terminal outputs the reflection coupling signal To the second PD, the power monitoring of the reflected signal is implemented.

In some examples, the functional requirements of the coupler can be increased or decreased according to different scenarios. The number of couplers connected to the output of the coupler will increase or decrease accordingly. The number of couplers and the "parallel" arrangement The cloth method can also be adjusted accordingly to more flexibly adapt to different scenarios.

Based on the coupler provided above, the coupler provided by the embodiment of the present application can be adapted to a variety of scenarios, and can also achieve the effects of reconfigurable coupling coefficients and occupying a smaller on-chip area for integrating the above coupler chip, and can Match more scene requirements.

In a second aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a coupling method to transmit signals on a main signal channel between a first port and a second port, wherein the main signal channel includes the first port and the second port. Ports, the first port and the second port are respectively used for the input port and the output port of the coupler; the coupling channel coupled to the main signal channel includes a third port, a fourth port and a fifth port. The signal is coupled into the coupling channel.

Based on the structure of the coupler, the signal is transmitted in the main signal channel, and the signal on the main signal channel is coupled to the coupling channel. Different processing is performed corresponding to the different needs of different scenarios, so that the coupler can be applied in different scenarios.

In a possible implementation manner, the coupling channel includes a first coupling channel, the first coupling channel includes a first signal transmission channel and a second signal transmission channel, and the coupling channel is coupled to the main signal channel. The channel includes a third port, a fourth port and a fifth port. Coupling the signal to the coupling channel includes: coupling the signal to the first signal transmission through the third port and the fourth port. transmission in the path; the signal is coupled to the second signal transmission path for transmission through the third port and the fifth port; wherein the first coupling path includes a first coupling switch, and the first coupling switch Used to realize the connection and disconnection of the first signal transmission path and the second signal transmission path.

In a possible implementation manner, the coupling channel further includes a sixth port, the coupling channel includes a second coupling channel and a third coupling channel, and the coupling channel coupled to the main signal channel includes a Coupling the signal to the coupling channel through the third port, the fourth port and the fifth port includes: coupling the signal to the second coupling channel through the third port and the fourth port for transmission. ; The signal is coupled to the third coupling path for transmission through the fifth port and the sixth port; wherein the second coupling path includes the third port and the fourth port, so The third coupling path includes the fifth port and the sixth port.

In a possible implementation manner, the coupling channel further includes a seventh port and an eighth port, the coupling channel further includes a fourth coupling path, and the method further includes: passing the seventh port and the third port The eight ports couple the signal to a fourth coupling path for transmission, wherein the fourth coupling path includes the seventh port and the eighth port.

In a possible implementation manner, transmitting signals on the main signal channel between the first port and the second port includes: receiving a transmission signal input through the main signal channel through an input end, so that the transmission signal It is transmitted to the through port through the main signal channel; the transmit signal is output through the through port, and the reflected signal and the received signal are reversely input, wherein the first port is an input port and the second port is a through end; coupling the signal to the coupling channel through the third port, the fourth port and the fifth port coupled to the coupling channel of the main signal channel includes: pairing the The transmit signal is sampled, the reflected signal is selectively sampled and grounded through the first isolation terminal, and the signal received by the through terminal is output outside the chip through the second isolation terminal, where the third port is a first coupling end, the fourth port is a first isolation end, and the fifth port is a second isolation end; or, the transmit signal is sampled through the first coupling end, and the transmit signal is sampled through the second coupling end. The transmit signal is sampled, and the signal received by the through port is output outside the chip through the second isolation port, where the third port is the first coupling port, and the fourth port is the second coupling port, so The fifth port is the second isolation port.

In a possible implementation manner, transmitting signals on the main signal channel between the first port and the second port includes: receiving a transmission signal input through the main signal channel through an input end, so that the transmission signal It is transmitted to the through port through the main signal channel; the transmit signal is output through the through port, and the reflected signal and the received signal are reversely input, wherein the first port is an input port and the second port is a through end; the signal is coupled to the second coupling path for transmission through the third port and the fourth port; the signal is coupled through the fifth port and the sixth port Transmitting to the third coupling path includes: sampling the transmit signal through the first coupling end, sampling the reflected signal through the first isolation end, and sampling the signal received by the through end through the second isolation end. Output to the outside of the chip and connected to ground through the second coupling terminal, wherein the third port is the first coupling terminal, the fourth port is the first isolation terminal, the fifth port is the second isolation terminal, and the The six ports are the second coupling terminals; or, the transmission signal is sampled through the first coupling terminal, the transmission signal is sampled through the second coupling terminal, and the transmitted signal received by the through terminal is sampled through the second isolation terminal. The signal is output outside the chip, and the reflected signal is sampled through the first isolation terminal, wherein the third port is the first coupling terminal, the fourth port is the second coupling terminal, and the fifth port is The second isolation port, the sixth port is the first isolation port.

In a possible implementation manner, transmitting signals on the main signal channel between the first port and the second port includes: receiving a transmission signal input through the main signal channel through an input end, so that the transmission signal It is transmitted to the through port through the main signal channel; the transmit signal is output through the through port, and the reflected signal and the received signal are reversely input, wherein the first port is an input port and the second port is a through end; the signal is coupled to the second coupling path for transmission through the third port and the fourth port; the signal is coupled through the fifth port and the sixth port to the third coupling path for transmission; coupling the signal to the fourth coupling path for transmission through the seventh port and the eighth port includes: sampling the transmission signal through the first coupling end , the reflected signal is sampled through the first isolation terminal, the signal received by the through terminal is output outside the chip through the second isolation terminal, the transmitted signal is sampled through the second coupling terminal, and the signal is sampled through the third coupling terminal. The coupling end is grounded and grounded through the third isolation end, wherein the third port is the first coupling end, the fourth port is the first isolation end, the fifth port is the second isolation end, and the The sixth port is the third coupling end, the seventh port is the second coupling end, and the eighth port is the third isolation end.

In a third aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a coupling system, including:

The coupler provided in the first aspect; the transmitter TX, connected to the first port of the coupler; the antenna, connected to the second port of the coupler; the first coupler, connected to the third port of the coupler Connection; the second coupler is connected to the fourth port of the coupler; the external connection point is connected to the fifth port of the coupler.

The coupling system is connected to the five ports of the coupler through each device, which enables the coupler to transmit signals on the main signal channel and connect devices in the system through the ports on the coupling channel, corresponding to different needs in different scenarios. The challenge of realizing multiple signals and different scenarios.

In a possible implementation manner, the TX is used to input and transmit signals to the coupler through the input end; the antenna is used to send the transmit signal to an external chip and input the reflected signal into the coupling through the through end. The antenna is also used to receive the signal from the external chip and input the received signal into the coupler through the through port; the external connection point is used to receive the received signal through the second isolation port and connect the received signal to the coupler. The received signal is output outside the chip, so that the received signal returns to the receiver RX, where the first port is an input port, the second port is a through port, and the fifth port is a second Isolated end, the coupler, the antenna, the TX, and the RX are integrated on the chip.

Since in the coupling system, the second isolation end of the coupler can be connected to the outside of the chip, the signal received by the antenna is transmitted back to the RX on the chip through off-chip transmission, effectively avoiding problems such as crosstalk caused by the signal being transmitted inside the chip. , improving the transmission performance of some signals that are not suitable for transmission inside the chip.

In a possible implementation manner, the first coupler is a test receiver MRX for calibrating the transmit signal through a first coupling end, and the second coupler is a first power monitor PD for The emission signal is monitored through the second coupling end, wherein the third port is the first coupling end and the fourth port is the second coupling end; or the first coupler is a power divider, The power splitter is coupled to the first PD and MRX respectively, and is used to calibrate and monitor the transmission signal through the first coupling terminal. The second coupler is a second PD, and is used to calibrate and monitor the transmission signal through the first isolation terminal. The reflected signal is monitored, wherein the third port is a first coupling end, and the fourth port is a first isolation end.

In a possible implementation manner, it also includes: a third coupler connected to the sixth port of the coupler; the first coupler is a test receiver MRX, which transmits the signal through the first coupling end. Calibration is performed. The second coupler is a first power monitor PD, which is used to monitor the transmission signal through a second coupling terminal. The third coupler is a second PD, which monitors all transmission signals through a first isolation terminal. The reflected signal is monitored, the third port is a first coupling end, the fourth port is a second coupling end, and the sixth port is a first isolation end.

The sampling of the transmitted signal in the coupling system can be applied to scenarios where the transmitted signal needs to be monitored or verified. Similarly, the sampling of the reflected signal can also be used to monitor or verify the reflected signal. The coupling system provided by this application can flexibly configure the coupler and provide different devices corresponding to different scenarios to support monitoring, calibration and other needs in different scenarios.

It should be understood that the second to third aspects of the present application are consistent with the technical solution of the first aspect of the present application, and the beneficial effects achieved by each aspect and corresponding feasible implementations are similar, and will not be described again.

Description of the drawings

In order to explain the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application more clearly, the drawings needed to be used in the description of the embodiments of the present application will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present application. , for those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings without exerting creative labor.

Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal device provided by an embodiment of the present application;

Figure 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application;

Figure 3 is a schematic structural diagram of another coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application;

Figure 4 is a schematic structural diagram of another coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application;

Figure 5 is a schematic structural diagram of another coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application;

Figure 6 is a trend chart of the coupling coefficient changing with the length of the coupling line;

Figure 7A is a schematic structural diagram of a high-isolation reconfigurable coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application;

Figure 7B is a schematic structural diagram of another reconfigurable coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application;

Figure 8 is a schematic structural diagram of a miniaturized coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application;

Figure 9 is a schematic structural diagram of another miniaturized coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application;

Figure 10 is a flow chart of a coupling method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

Figure 11 is a schematic structural diagram of a coupling system provided by an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed ways

The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in this application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative efforts fall within the scope of protection of this application.

"First", "second" and similar words mentioned herein do not indicate any order, quantity or importance, but are only used to distinguish different components. Likewise, similar words such as "a" or "one" do not indicate a quantitative limit, but rather indicate the presence of at least one. "Connection" and similar words are not limited to physical or mechanical connections, but can include electrical connections, whether direct or indirect, which is equivalent to connection in a broad sense.

In the embodiments of this application, words such as "exemplary" or "for example" are used to represent examples, illustrations or explanations. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" or "such as" in the embodiments of the present application is not to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments or designs. Rather, use of the words "exemplary" or "such as" is intended to present the concept in a concrete manner. In the description of the embodiments of this application, unless otherwise specified, the meaning of “plurality” refers to two or more. For example, multiple processors refers to two or more processors.

Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal device provided by an embodiment of the present application. The structure of the terminal device can refer to the structure shown in Figure 1.

The terminal device includes at least one processor 211, at least one transceiver 212, and at least one memory 213. The processor 211, the memory 213 and the transceiver 212 are connected. Optionally, the terminal device may also include an output device 214, an input device 215, and one or more antennas 216. The antenna 216 is connected to the transceiver 212, and the output device 214 and the input device 215 are connected to the processor 211. The specific connection method between the antenna 216 and the transceiver 212 will be described in the following embodiments.

The processor 211 may be a baseband processor or a CPU. The baseband processor and the CPU may be integrated together or separated.

The processor 211 can be used to implement various functions for the terminal device, for example, to process communication protocols and communication data, or to control the entire terminal device, execute software programs, and process data of software programs; or to Assist in completing computing processing tasks, such as graphics, image processing or audio processing, etc.; or the processor 211 is used to implement one or more of the above functions.

Output device 214 communicates with processor 211 and can display information in a variety of ways. For example, the output device 214 may be a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), a Light Emitting Diode (LED) display device, a Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) display device, or a projector. wait. Input device 215 communicates with processor 211 and can accept user input in a variety of ways. For example, the input device 215 may be a mouse, a keyboard, a touch screen device, a sensing device, or the like.

In the existing technology, this scenario requires a service channel to transmit signals for monitoring and calibration, and a scenario that requires a common antenna channel that can simultaneously transmit and receive signals to achieve multi-signal synchronization requires one channel to achieve different functions. , there is a problem that the channels required for multiple signals cannot be reused.

The embodiment of the present application provides a coupler provided by the embodiment of the present application. Figure 2 is a schematic structural diagram of the coupler provided by the embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 2, the coupler 10 includes:

Main signal channel and coupling channel, the main signal channel is used for the signal channel of the coupler, and the coupling channel is used for coupling the signal of the main signal channel. The main signal channel includes a first port 101 and a second port 102. The first port 101 and the second port 102 are respectively used as the input port and the output port of the coupler. In this embodiment, the first port 101 is used as the input. The port is recorded as the input port, and the second port 102 is the output port and is recorded as the through port. For example, the coupling channel includes a third port 103, a fourth port 104, and a fifth port 105.

As shown in Figure 2, the coupler 10 has at least five ports. The main signal channel includes a first port 101 and a second port 102, which can ensure the signal transmission requirements of basic business data. There are also two ports for signal sampling respectively. It can realize different functional requirements in different scenarios. In some scenarios, signals can be sampled, such as performing one or two functions of signal calibration, monitoring or grounding on the sampled signal. Of course, one port can realize both functions. It can also be realized through an external power splitter, and there is also a port that can output the received signal through its external external connection point. It should be noted that the first port 101 is an input port, used to input the transmit signal through the main signal channel, the second port 102 is a through port, used to output the transmit signal transmitted through the main signal channel, and the through port 102 is also used for reverse transmission. The reflected signal of the transmitted signal is fed to the input and the received signal is fed to the input. The fifth port 105 is the second isolation terminal, which is used to connect to the outside of the chip and output the signal received by the straight-through terminal out of the chip. For example, in the scenario of high-frequency signal transmission, GSG is preferably the connection point, and the second isolation terminal passes through the GSG Output the signal outside the chip. In this way, when signals are transmitted between the first port 101 and the second port 102, mainly when the first port 101 transmits and transmits signals to the second port 102, the second port 102 will externally receive the signals through the fifth interface 105. The GSG output, because the GSG has one signal terminal and two reference terminals, and it is connected to the isolation port and has unidirectionality, the received signal will be output from the GSG to the outside of the chip and will not be reflected back to the main signal channel. Instead, they are all transmitted outside the chip, so that the received signal will not interfere with the transmission of the transmitted signal. This is equivalent to using the coupler provided in this application. The transmitted signal and the received signal can pass through two channels at the same time, realizing the transmission and reception of the signal. The reception is synchronized, that is, the effect of common antenna is achieved. At the same time, when it is necessary to monitor or calibrate the transmitted signal or the reflected signal reversely input by the second port, this can be achieved through external devices at the third port and the fourth port. Therefore, the coupler provided by this application provides a channel, but can simultaneously multiplex the functions of the common antenna and the function of the service channel.

The third port and the fourth port can be used as different ports to implement different functions according to the needs of coupling signals of the coupling channel. For example, the third port is the first coupling port, which is used to sample the transmit signal according to the scene needs, which is also called coupling. The transmitted signal is calibrated and monitored. The fourth port 104 is the first isolation port, which is used to selectively sample the reflected signal. The sampled signal can be monitored for reflected signal or the reflected signal is grounded; or the third port is the first isolation port. The coupling end is used to sample the transmission signal. The sampled transmission signal is also called the coupled transmission signal to be calibrated according to the scene needs. The fourth port is the second coupling end, which is used to calibrate the sampled transmission signal according to the scene needs. It is also called coupling. The transmitted signal is monitored.

In some examples, the first port 101 is an input port, used to input the transmit signal, so that the transmit signal is transmitted through the main signal channel; the second port 102 is a through port, used to output the transmit signal, input the reflected signal, and input the received signal. ; The third port is the first coupling end 103, marked c1 in Figure 2, used to calibrate and monitor the transmitted signal, and the fourth port is the first isolation end 104, marked i1 in Figure 2, used to monitor the reflected signal. Or used for grounding; the fifth port is the second isolation terminal 105, marked i2 in Figure 2, which is used to connect the signal received by the straight-through terminal to the outside of the chip, and output the signal received by the straight-through terminal out of the chip. Due to most scenarios They are all high-frequency signal transmission scenarios. Therefore, in the embodiment of this application, the connection points connected to the second isolation terminal are all GSG. GSG is usually used as the connection point between the package and the chip to realize the transmission of the chip and external signals. GSG has three pins and is suitable for the transmission of high-frequency signals, because high-frequency signal transmission requires not only the signal S, but also two symmetrical reference grounds G. The received signal passes through the GSG.

When it is necessary to calibrate and monitor the transmitted signal after sampling, and to monitor the reflected signal, Figure 3 is a schematic structural diagram of another coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 3, the coupler 10 includes :

The first port 101 is an input port, used to input the transmit signal so that the transmit signal is transmitted through the main signal channel; the second port 102 is a through port, used to output the transmit signal, input the reflected signal and input the received signal; the third port is The first coupling terminal 103 is marked as c1 and is used to calibrate the transmission signal. The fourth port is the second coupling terminal 106, marked as c2 in Figure 3, and is used to monitor the transmission signal. The fifth port is the second isolation terminal. 105 It is marked as i2 in Figure 3 and is used to output the signal received by the pass-through end through GSG.

It should be noted that the five ports of the coupler should include at least one input port for inputting the transmit signal, a through port for outputting the transmit signal, inputting the reflected signal and inputting the received signal, and a second isolation end for It is used to output the signal received by the straight-through terminal through the GSG and a first coupling terminal. If the first coupling terminal is connected to an external power splitter, the transmitted signal can be calibrated and monitored at the same time. Then the other port can be determined according to the needs of the usage scenario. For grounding or monitoring of reflected signals, for example, in some scenarios where monitoring requirements are not high and there is no need to monitor reflected signals, then this port can be grounded. If monitoring requirements are high, this port It should be used as an isolated end, recorded as the first isolated end, to monitor the reflected signal. The reason why the isolated end is used to monitor the reflected signal is because the isolated end is unidirectional to prevent the reflected signal from returning to the main signal channel and interfering with the transmitted signal. .

Taking a six-port multifunctional coupler as an example, Figure 4 is a schematic structural diagram of another coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 4, the main signal channel includes a first port 101 and a second port 102. The coupling channel includes a second coupling channel and a third coupling channel, wherein the second coupling channel includes a third port 103 and a fourth port 104, and the second coupling channel is used to realize the signal between the third port 103 and the fourth port 104. Transmission; the third coupling channel includes a fifth port 105 and a sixth port 106, and the third coupling channel is used to realize signal transmission between the fifth port and the sixth port.

The first port 101 is an input port, used to receive the transmit signal input from the main signal channel, the second port 102 is a through port, used to output the transmit signal, and the through port is also used to reversely input the reflected signal and input the received signal; The third port 103 is the first coupling port, used to sample the transmitted signal, the fourth port 104 is the first isolation port, used to sample the reflected signal, and the fifth port 105 is the second isolation port, used to The signal received by the through port is coupled to the GSG output. The sixth port 106 is the second coupling port for grounding; or the third port 103 is the first coupling port for sampling the transmitted signal, and the fourth port 104 is the third coupling port. The second coupling end is used to sample the transmitted signal. The fifth port 105 is the second isolation end and is used to couple the signal received by the through end to the GSG output. The sixth port 106 is the first isolation end and is used to detect the reflected signal. Take samples.

For example, as shown in Figure 4, the first port 101 is an input port, used to input the transmit signal to the main signal channel, the second port 102 is a through port, used to output the transmit signal transmitted through the main signal channel, and the pass port 102, also used to reversely input the reflected signal and input the received signal.

The third port is the first coupling end 103, marked c1 in Figure 4, which is used to calibrate and monitor the transmitted signal. The fourth port is the first isolation end 104, marked i1 in Figure 4, which is used to monitor the reflected signal. The sixth port is the second coupling end 106, marked c2 in Figure 4, for grounding; the fifth port is the second isolation end 105, marked i2 in Figure 4.

Or, the third port is the first coupling end, used to calibrate the transmitted signal, the fourth port is the second coupling end, used to monitor the transmitted signal, and the sixth port is the first isolation end, used to monitor the reflected signal. Monitor. In addition to the input end, the through end and the second isolation end, the other three ports can be the first coupling end, the first isolation end and the second coupling end respectively, where the first coupling end is used to calibrate and monitor the transmitted signal. , the first isolation terminal is used to monitor the reflected signal, and the second coupling terminal can be used for grounding. Of course, in this case, if grounding is not required, the second coupling end may not be needed, or it may be reserved as a grounding port in preparation for adding functions later. Alternatively, the first coupling end is used to calibrate the transmitted signal, the second coupling end is used to monitor the transmitted signal, and the first isolation end is used to monitor the reflected signal. In this case, the coupler does not have an external power splitter, and each port is connected to an external functional device to implement a function. Each port is used for coupling or isolation, and will not be illustrated one by one.

Taking an eight-port multifunctional coupler as an example, Figure 5 is a schematic structural diagram of another coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 5, the coupler 10 is based on the coupler 10 provided in Figure 4 , also includes a seventh port 107 and an eighth port 108, the coupling channel also includes a fourth coupling channel, wherein the fourth coupling channel includes a seventh port 107 and an eighth port 108, and the fourth coupling channel is used to implement the seventh port 107 and the eighth port 108 for signal transmission. The first port 101 is an input port, used to receive the transmit signal input from the main signal channel. The second port 102 is a through port, used to output the transmit signal. The through port 102 is also used to reversely input the reflected signal and input the received signal. ; The third port 103 is the first coupling end, used to sample the transmitted signal, the fourth port 104 is the first isolation end, used to sample the reflected signal, and the fifth port 105 is the second isolation end, used to The signal received by the through port is coupled to the GSG output. The sixth port 106 is the third coupling port for grounding. The seventh port 107 is the second coupling port for sampling the transmitted signal. The eighth port 108 is the third isolation port. terminal for grounding.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5 , the first port 101 and the second port 102 are respectively designed at both ends of the main signal channel, where the first port 101 is the input end and the second port 102 is the through end.

The third port 103 is the first coupling end, used to monitor the transmitted signal, the fourth port 104 is the first isolation end, used to monitor the reflected signal, and the fifth port 105 is the second isolation end, used to connect the through The signal received by the terminal is coupled to the GSG output. The sixth port 106 is the third coupling terminal for grounding. The seventh port 107 is the second coupling terminal for calibrating the transmitted signal. The eighth port 108 is the third isolation terminal. , used for grounding.

It should be noted that the ports of the coupler 10 may not be used as coupling ends or isolation ends according to the above examples, and may not be used as the external port functions according to the above examples, such as the sixth port 106 in Figure 5 It can also be the third isolation port, and the eighth port can also be the third coupling port, without any limitation. The three multifunctional couplers provided as examples in Figure 2, Figure 3 and Figure 4 of the embodiment of this application can all meet the requirements of the common antenna scenario through the main signal channel and the second isolation end on the coupling channel. The coupling end and/or isolation end of the channel and coupling channel implement the needs of the business scenario, thereby realizing the channel multiplexing required in different scenarios, and are not limited to the port or connection method in the example.

Further, the input end is externally connected to TX, which is used to transmit the transmission signal to the main signal channel. The input end 101 transmits the transmission signal of TX to the through end through the main signal channel; the through end is connected to an external antenna, and the through end is connected to an external antenna. The antenna is used for external transmission. Send the transmit signal, and reversely input the reflected signal of the transmit signal and the external signal received by the antenna; the second isolation terminal is connected to the outside of the chip through the connection point, and the signal received by the antenna is output outside the chip, and then looped back to RX, that is, the third The second isolation terminal couples the signal received by the antenna to the GSG, and outputs the signal received by the antenna out of the chip through the GSG, and then loops back to RX.

With the continuous development of millimeter wave radar technology, this type of technology has begun to be applied in various scenarios. Millimeter wave radar is the core component for achieving high-precision perception in advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS). It has environmental It has the advantages of strong adaptability, excellent detection performance and moderate cost. In the MMIC of millimeter wave radar, it is necessary to ensure the amplitude and phase consistency of each TX and RX through calibration. For functional safety reasons, the power of the signal also needs to be monitored. In addition, in the radar array scenario, a set of The common antenna of the transmitting channel and the receiving channel achieves signal synchronization. In the existing technology, the simultaneous realization of calibration, monitoring and signal synchronization functions is mainly achieved by setting up a set of TX/RX channel shared antennas in the circuit in addition to the business channel, specifically to achieve signal synchronization in radar array scenarios. In the radar array scenario, a set of common antennas that can transmit and receive signals at the same time is also needed to achieve signal synchronization. A radar array chip is an array of multiple radar chips that work together to achieve high-performance monitoring. In a radar array scenario, the system requires signal synchronization from multiple chips, and a common antenna is a hardware implementation that can achieve this signal synchronization. The radar does not form an array, that is, the radar single-chip scenario means that a single chip works independently. In some scenarios that do not require high monitoring performance, a single chip can meet the performance requirements, so there is no need for a radar array. In the scenario where the radar is not arrayed, the system does not require signal synchronization. It only needs to monitor and calibrate the signal when transmitting the transmitted signal and a part of the reflected signal on the main signal channel.

For example, TX, antenna and RX are externally connected to a radar single chip or radar array chip. In the scenario where a single radar chip works independently, a business channel is needed to transmit signals and perform monitoring and calibration. In the scenario of a radar array, the system requires signal synchronization from multiple chips, so a common antenna channel that can send and receive signals simultaneously is needed to achieve this. Regarding the two different system functional requirements of radar array and single chip, the problem with existing technical solutions is that the common antenna channel cannot be reused with the business channel, resulting in low chip area utilization.

Furthermore, in different scenarios, there are different requirements for the functions that the circuit can implement. For example, in business scenarios, it is necessary to ensure the amplitude and phase consistency of each TX and RX through calibration. For functional safety considerations, the signal also needs to be The power is monitored. In the radar array scenario, a set of common antennas for the transmitting channel and the receiving channel are needed to achieve signal synchronization. This application provides a coupler that can realize channel multiplexing in business scenarios and common antenna scenarios. In other business scenarios, there is no need to calibrate signals or monitor power, but need to implement other functions, and only need to ensure that When there is an isolation end connected to an external GSG, it can be realized by defining the port of this coupler as a coupling end or an isolation end, and adjusting the external output device accordingly to realize the monitoring or calibration business function.

In some examples, the first coupling terminal c1 is used to calibrate and monitor the transmission signal. The output of the first coupling terminal c1 is connected to a power divider. The outputs of the power divider are respectively connected to the first PD and MRX. The first PD is used to monitor the emission. The signal, MRX, is used to calibrate the transmission signal, where the coupling coefficients of the first PD and MRX are the same.

Since the coupler provided by this application can be applied in different scenarios, different coupling coefficients need to be matched in different scenarios. It should be noted that the coupler needs to provide multiple transmit coupling signals and receive coupling signals with different coupling degrees according to scene requirements. The transmit coupling signal is the signal that the transmit signal is coupled to the coupling end, and the receive coupling signal is the received signal that is coupled to the coupling end. Two isolated terminal signals. At the same time, the coupler also needs to have high isolation to ensure that the transmitting coupling signal and the receiving coupling signal do not interfere with each other, and improve the accuracy of calibration, monitoring and signal synchronization. Therefore, the coupler provided by this application is a reconfigurable coupler, which can correspond to different scenarios by setting a coupling switch, such as a single-chip scenario or a multi-chip array scenario where the external chip is connected. The reconfigurable coupler can adapt to the coupling required by different scenarios through time-sharing switching, that is, switching the closed position of the coupling switch, while maintaining the high isolation of the coupler.

Generally, in couplers with coupling lines, the odd and even mode impedance ratio of the coupling line and the length of the coupling line are the key factors that affect the coupling coefficient. Figure 6 is a trend chart of the coupling coefficient changing with the length of the coupling line. Co in the figure is the coupling coefficient, as shown in Figure 6 As shown in the figure, the coupling coefficient changes continuously with the change of frequency. Combining Figure 6 and Formula 1-1, it can be seen that the matching conditions of the coupling line and the port are the key factors that affect the isolation. If the odd-even mode impedance is changed by adjusting the common-mode or differential-mode capacitance of the coupling line, the degree of coupling can be restructured. However, this method of adjusting the common-mode or differential-mode capacitance to change the odd-even mode impedance will also destroy the port of the coupling line. Matching conditions, leading to worsening of isolation. The high-isolation reconfigurable coupler provided by the embodiment of the present application can change the coupling line length through switch switching to achieve reconfiguration of the coupling coefficient. At the same time, since the odd-mode impedance Zoe and the even-mode impedance Zoo of the coupling line do not change, Formula 1- The port matching condition Zo of 1 has also not changed. Therefore, the high isolation of the coupler is maintained while achieving reconfigurable coupling.

The coupling channel in a reconfigurable coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application includes a first coupling channel, and the first coupling channel includes a first signal transmission channel and a second signal transmission channel; the first signal transmission channel is used to implement the third The transmission of signals between the port 103 and the fourth port 104; the second signal transmission path is used to realize the transmission of signals between the third port 103 and the fifth port 105; the first coupling path includes a first coupling switch, and the first coupling switch Used to connect and disconnect the first signal transmission path and the second signal transmission path.

Figure 7A is a schematic structural diagram of a reconfigurable coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 7A, the coupler 10 includes an input terminal 101, a through terminal 102, a first coupling terminal 103, a first isolation terminal 104 and The second isolation terminal 105 and the coupling switch 109. A coupling switch 109 is provided on the transmission path between the first coupling terminal 103, the first isolation terminal 104 and the second isolation terminal 105. The switch is closed in the first position, and the second signal The transmission path is connected, the first signal transmission path is disconnected, marked as 1 in the figure, the first coupling terminal 103 is connected to the second isolation terminal 105, the switch is closed in the second position, the first signal transmission path is connected, and the second signal transmission path Disconnected, marked as 2 in the figure, the first coupling end 103 is connected to the first isolation end 104 . The first port 101 is the input port, the second port 102 is the through port, the third port is the first coupling port 103 , the fourth port is the first isolation port 104 , and the fifth port is the second isolation port 105 .

For example, Figure 7B is a schematic structural diagram of another reconfigurable coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 7B, for a radar array scenario, that is, a TX/RX common antenna scenario that needs to transmit synchronization signals, The coupling switch 109 is closed in the first position, marked as 1 in the figure, the second signal transmission path is connected, and the first signal transmission path is disconnected. At this time, the TX channel outputs the transmission signal to the coupler input terminal 101, and the straight-through terminal 102 outputs the transmission signal. to the antenna. At the same time, the antenna receives external signals and reversely inputs them to the through end 102 of the coupler. The second isolation end 105 outputs the received coupled signal to the outside of the chip through the GSG, and loops back to the RX channel outside the chip. Since the switch is closed in the first position, the length of the coupling line adapts to the coupling coefficient of the radar array scenario, and the common mode or differential mode capacitance is not adjusted to change the odd and even mode impedance, which will not cause the port matching conditions to change, and can still maintain a high Isolation. The isolation of the coupler in this scenario will affect the accuracy of signal synchronization in the cascade scenario. Therefore, maintaining the isolation ensures the accuracy of signal synchronization in the radar array scenario.

For a single-chip scenario, that is, a scenario that does not require synchronization of transmitted signals and is used as a service channel, the coupling switch 109 is closed in the second position, marked 2 in the figure, the first signal transmission path is connected, and the second signal transmission path is disconnected , at this time, the TX channel outputs the transmission signal to the coupler input terminal 101, the straight-through terminal 102 outputs the transmission signal to the antenna, and at the same time, the first coupling terminal 103 outputs the transmission coupling signal to the power divider, and the power divider outputs it to the first PD and MRX. The first isolation terminal 104 outputs the reflected coupling signal to the second PD. The isolation of the coupler in this scenario will affect the accuracy of signal monitoring and calibration in the monolithic scenario. Since the coupling switch is closed in the second position, the length of the coupling line adapts to the coupling coefficient of the single-chip scenario, and the common mode or differential mode capacitance is not adjusted to change the odd and even mode impedance, which will not cause the port matching conditions to change, and can still maintain a high The isolation ensures the accuracy of signal monitoring and calibration in single-chip scenarios. The emission coupling signal, reflection coupling signal and reception coupling signal are all signals obtained according to the coupling coefficient. They have been described in the above example and will not be described again.

In the embodiment of this application, the coupling switch 109 has two closed positions, and the coupling line lengths at different positions are set corresponding to the coupling coefficient requirements of the common antenna scenario and the business scenario respectively. In practice, as the scenarios do not increase, it can also be It is not necessary to add more switch positions to set the coupling coefficients required by different coupling line lengths corresponding to the scenarios required, thereby enabling switching of more scenarios, or to set up several more coupling switches to achieve the requirements for different coupling coefficients required in different scenarios. The examples in this application are used as a limitation. In some instances, if the system only requires transmission signal calibration or transmission signal synchronization, the power splitter can be omitted. Here is an example of a situation where both requirements exist.

It should be noted that the coupler can include a coupling switch. For example, the sixth port is the second coupling end. A switch can be set on the path between the four ports to control the connection and disconnection of more transmission paths. If If the coupler is used in more scenarios that require different coupling coefficients, then switches should be added according to the scenario requirements. This application uses setting a coupling switch as an example to illustrate how to achieve reconfiguration. Since the coupler has multiple ports to implement multiple functions, the specific setting position of the switch is based on the functional settings required for the coupler's working scenario. Here we only take the business function of monitoring calibration and the common antenna function switching of simultaneous transmission and reception as an example. But this is not a limitation.

When the first signal transmission path is connected and the second signal transmission path is disconnected, the length of the coupling line of the first signal transmission path corresponds to the first coupling coefficient; when the second signal transmission path is connected and the first signal transmission path is disconnected, the second signal transmission path is disconnected. The coupling line length of the transmission path corresponds to the second coupling coefficient. The second signal transmission path is connected. When the first signal transmission path is disconnected, the coupling line length of the second signal transmission path corresponds to the second coupling coefficient. The coupling line length of China Unicom corresponds to the coupling coefficient required by the external chip for the radar array chip scenario. ; When the first signal transmission path is connected and the second signal transmission path is disconnected, the coupling line length of the first signal transmission path corresponds to the first coupling coefficient, and the coupling line length of China Unicom corresponds to the coupling coefficient required by the external chip for the radar single-chip scenario. . That is, when the second signal transmission path is connected and the first signal transmission path is disconnected, the coupling line length corresponds to the coupling coefficient required in the common antenna scenario of simultaneous transmission and reception. When the first signal transmission path is connected and the second signal transmission path is disconnected, China Unicom's The length of the coupling line corresponds to the coupling coefficient required by the business scenario.

In the example, the coupling coefficient required for transmit signal and receive signal power monitoring is greater than the coupling coefficient for reflected power monitoring in the business scenario. The first isolation end 104 is on the first signal transmission path, and the second isolation end 105 is on the second signal transmission path. , in practice, the positions of the first isolation terminal 104 and the second isolation terminal 105 can be exchanged according to different coupling coefficient requirements. This is not limited to the examples in this application.

Another way to implement a coupler is to use multiple independent couplers. The key to the design of this method is to achieve multi-signal coupling while improving the miniaturization of the coupler and maintaining high isolation of each coupler.

It should be noted that when the coupling path includes a second coupling path and a third coupling path, the second coupling path may be on one side of the main signal path, and the third coupling path may be on the other side of the main signal path. . Similarly, when the coupling path also includes a fourth coupling path, two of the second coupling path, the third coupling path and the fourth coupling path can be on one side of the main signal path, and the other path can be on the other side. The other side of the main signaling pathway.

The coupler can be arranged in another way, that is, multiple coupling channels are arranged in parallel. Compared with the traditional "series connection", for example, the second coupling channel, the third coupling channel and the fourth coupling channel are all designed in the main coupling channel. The one-side distribution of the signal path can effectively reduce the vertical area of the coupler and reduce the additional insertion loss of the transmitted signal on the main signal path. At the same time, each coupler maintains high isolation. It should be noted that the parallel connection here also refers to the Multiple ports of the coupler are distributed side by side on both sides of the main signal path. "Serial connection" means placing all ports in series on one side of the main signal path.

Figure 8 is a schematic structural diagram of a miniaturized coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 8, the coupler 10 includes an input terminal 101, a through terminal 102, a first isolation terminal 104, and a second isolation terminal 105. The third isolation terminal 106, the first coupling terminal 103, the second coupling terminal 107 and the third coupling terminal 108.

As shown in Figure 8, the output of the first isolation terminal 104 of the coupler is connected to the second PD, the output of the second isolation terminal 105 is connected to GSG, the output of the first coupling terminal 103 is connected to the first PD, and the output of the second coupling terminal 107 is connected to MRX. In the array scenario, the output of the second isolation terminal 105 receives the coupled signal and realizes TX/RX common antenna through GSG, that is, the signal synchronization of multiple radar chips is realized. In the single-chip scenario, the second coupling terminal 107 outputs the transmission coupling signal to MRX to achieve calibration of the transmission signal; the first coupling terminal 103 outputs the transmission coupling signal to the first PD to implement transmission signal power monitoring; the first isolation terminal 104 outputs Reflect the coupling signal to the second PD to realize power monitoring of the reflected signal. The third coupling terminal 108 and the third isolation terminal 106 are both grounded. The two ports may not be set, or the two ports may be reserved for subsequent use of adding a coupler function. It can also be grounded and connected to MRX and GSG respectively according to the grounding requirements of MRX and GSG. In this example, the coupling degree of the TR/RX common antenna is higher than that of signal calibration and monitoring. The coupling line connecting GSG is longer than the coupling connecting PD and MRX. Therefore, the coupler is connected in parallel as shown in Figure 7. "To achieve miniaturization of the coupler, that is, the first isolation terminal 104, the second isolation terminal 105, the first coupling terminal 103 and the second coupling terminal 107 are respectively arranged on both sides of the main signal channel, as shown in Figure 4. In practice, the length of the coupling line changes according to the requirements of the coupling coefficient. The "parallel connection" mode and relative position of each coupler can be adjusted according to the needs. The length and "parallel connection" arrangement of the couplers are not limited to the examples in this application. .

Figure 9 is a schematic structural diagram of another miniaturized coupler provided by an embodiment of the present application. In Figure 9, the PD and MRX for power monitoring and signal calibration are connected to a first coupling end 103 through a power splitter. As shown in Figure 9. In FIG. 9 , the signal coupler 10 includes an input terminal 101 , a through terminal 102 , a first isolation terminal 104 , a second isolation terminal 105 , a first coupling terminal 103 and a second coupling terminal 106 . The output of the first isolation terminal 104 is connected to the second PD, and the reflected coupling signal is output to the second PD. The output of the second isolation terminal 105 is connected to GSG, and the received coupling signal is output to GSG. The output of the first coupling terminal 103 is connected to a power divider. , the transmit coupling signal is output to the power divider, and the output of the power divider is connected to the first PD and MRX respectively. The coupling coefficients of the first PD and MRX are the same, and the power divider outputs the transmit coupling signal obtained according to the coupling coefficient. to 1st PD and MRX. For the coupler 10 shown in Figure 9, the implementation method of signal synchronization in the common antenna scenario and signal monitoring and calibration in the business scenario is as shown in the above example, and will not be described again.

In the examples of Figures 8 and 9, the coupler provides a transmit coupling signal for transmit signal power monitoring, a transmit coupling signal for transmit signal calibration, a receive coupling signal for the TX/RX common antenna, and a reflection coupling The signal is used for reflected power monitoring. In practice, the system's demand for coupled signals will increase or decrease according to different functional requirements. The number of couplers in the solutions shown in Figures 8 and 9 will increase or decrease accordingly. The number of couplers and the "parallel" arrangement are not the same. This application is not limited to the examples.

Figure 10 is a flow chart of a multi-signal coupling method provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 10, the method includes:

S101. Transmit signals on the main signal channel between the first port and the second port.

Exemplarily, the main signal channel includes a first port and a second port, and the first port and the second port are respectively used for the input port and the output port of the coupler; the transmit signal is input through the input port, so that the transmit signal passes through the main signal The channel transmitted to the output port is recorded as the through end; the transmit signal is output through the through end, and the reflected signal and the received signal are input in reverse.

In some examples, transmitting the signal on the main signal channel between the first port and the second port includes: receiving the transmit signal input through the main signal channel through the input end, so that the transmit signal is transmitted to the pass-through end through the main signal channel; The pass-through port outputs the transmit signal, and reversely inputs the reflected signal and the received signal. The first port is the input port and the second port is the pass-through port.

S102. Couple the signal into the coupling channel through the third port, the fourth port and the fifth port included in the coupling channel coupled to the main signal channel.

In some examples, the coupling channel includes a first coupling channel, the first coupling channel includes a first signal transmission channel and a second signal transmission channel, and the coupling channel coupled to the main signal channel includes a third port, a fourth port and The fifth port coupling the signal to the coupling channel includes: coupling the signal to the first signal transmission path for transmission through the third port and the fourth port; coupling the signal to the second signal transmission path through the third port and the fifth port. Transmission; wherein, the first coupling path includes a first coupling switch, and the first coupling switch is used to connect and disconnect the first signal transmission path and the second signal transmission path.

In some examples, the transmitted signal is sampled through the first coupling terminal, the reflected signal is selectively sampled and grounded through the first isolation terminal, and the signal received by the through terminal is output outside the chip through the second isolation terminal, such as, Coupled to the GSG and output outside the chip, the third port is the first coupling end, the fourth port is the first isolation end, and the fifth port is the second isolation end; or, the transmit signal is sampled through the first coupling end, The transmitted signal is sampled through the second coupling end, and the signal received by the through end is coupled to the GSG through the second isolation end and output outside the chip, where the third port is the first coupling end and the fourth port is the second coupling end. The fifth port is the second isolation port.

In some examples, the coupling channel further includes a sixth port, the coupling channel includes a second coupling channel and a third coupling channel, and the coupling channel includes a third port, a fourth port and a fifth port that are coupled to the main signal channel. Coupling the signal to the coupling channel includes: coupling the signal to the second coupling channel for transmission through the third port and the fourth port; coupling the signal to the third coupling channel for transmission through the fifth port and the sixth port; wherein, the second The coupling path includes a third port and a fourth port, and the third coupling path includes a fifth port and a sixth port.

In some examples, the transmitted signal is sampled through the first coupling end, the reflected signal is sampled through the first isolation end, the signal received by the through end is coupled to the GSG through the second isolation end and output to the outside of the chip, and the signal is output outside the chip through the second isolation end. The terminal is connected to the ground, where the third port is the first coupling terminal, the fourth port is the first isolation terminal, the fifth port is the second isolation terminal, and the sixth port is the second coupling terminal; or, the transmitter is transmitted through the first coupling terminal The signal is sampled, the transmitted signal is sampled through the second coupling end, the signal received by the through end is coupled to the GSG through the second isolation end and output outside the chip, and the reflected signal is sampled through the first isolation end, where the third port is the first coupling end, the fourth port is the second coupling end, the fifth port is the second isolation end, and the sixth port is the first isolation end.

In some examples, the coupling channel further includes a seventh port and an eighth port, the coupling channel further includes a fourth coupling path, and the method further includes: coupling the signal to the fourth coupling path through the seventh port and the eighth port for transmission, wherein , the fourth coupling path includes a seventh port and an eighth port.

In some examples, the transmitted signal is sampled through the first coupling end, the reflected signal is sampled through the first isolation end, the signal received by the through end is coupled to the GSG through the second isolation end and output to the outside of the chip, and the signal is output outside the chip through the second isolation end. The terminal samples the transmitted signal, and is grounded through the third coupling terminal and the ground through the third isolation terminal, where the third port is the first coupling terminal, the fourth port is the first isolation terminal, and the fifth port is the second isolation terminal. The sixth port is the third coupling end, the seventh port is the second coupling end, and the eighth port is the third isolation end.

Further, the coupler couples the signal into the second coupling path through the third port and the fourth port, and couples the signal into the third coupling path through the fifth port and the sixth port, wherein the second coupling path and the third coupling path Coupling paths are used to couple signals from the main signal path.

In some examples, the coupler can calibrate and monitor the transmitted signal through the first coupling end, monitor the reflected signal through the first isolation end, and couple the signal received by the through end to the GSG through the second isolation end for output outside the chip. , connected to the ground through the second coupling end, where the third port is the first coupling end, the fourth port is the first isolation end, the fifth port is the second isolation end, and the sixth port is the second coupling end.

The coupler can calibrate the transmit signal through the first coupling end, monitor the transmit signal through the second coupling end, couple the signal received by the through end to the GSG through the second isolation end and output it to the outside of the chip, and output the signal outside the chip through the first isolation end. The reflected signal is monitored, in which the third port is the first coupling end, the fourth port is the second coupling end, the fifth port is the second isolation end, and the sixth port is the first isolation end.

Further, the coupler couples the signal to the fourth coupling path through the seventh port and the eighth port, wherein the fourth coupling path is used to couple the signal of the main signal path.

In some examples, the transmit signal is calibrated through the first coupling end, the reflected signal is monitored through the first isolation end, the signal received by the through end is coupled to the GSG through the second isolation end and output to the outside of the chip, and the signal is output outside the chip through the second isolation end. The terminal monitors the transmitted signal, and is grounded through the third coupling terminal and grounded through the third isolation terminal, where the third port is the first coupling terminal, the fourth port is the first isolation terminal, and the fifth port is the second isolation terminal. The sixth port is the third coupling end, the seventh port is the second coupling end, and the eighth port is the third isolation end.

As mentioned in the above embodiment, in the two scenarios of external radar array and external radar single chip, it can be judged online. If an external radar array is connected, the transmission signal needs to be synchronized. If an external single chip is connected, the transmission signal needs to be synchronized. , then it is determined that the transmission signal does not need to be synchronized. The embodiment of this application only uses radar array and single-chip business scenarios as examples. This method can also be used for multi-signal transmission in other scenarios based on the above example. If an external single-chip coupler is used to output the TX transmission signal to the antenna, the transmission coupling signal can be output to the first PD and MRX respectively, and the reflection coupling signal can be output to the second PD. So that the first PD monitors the transmit signal, the MRX calibration transmit signal, and the second PD monitors the reflected signal, where the transmit coupling signal is obtained from the transmit signal according to the coupling coefficient, and the reflection coupling signal is obtained from the signal reflected by the antenna according to the coupling coefficient. . If an external radar array is connected, the coupler will output the transmit signal to the antenna, and the received coupled signal will be output to RX outside the chip through GSG. Among them, the received coupled signal is obtained according to the coupling coefficient according to the reverse input signal after being received by the antenna.

The coupling method of the coupler provided in this application can be applied to the coupler in the above example with reference to the description in the above example, and will not be described again here.

Figure 10 is a schematic structural diagram of a multi-signal coupling system provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 10, the multi-signal coupling system includes: a coupler 10, a TX 20, an antenna 30, a first coupler 40, a second Coupler 50, external connection point 60 and RX70.

The coupler 10 is the coupler illustrated in the above embodiment.

TX 20 is connected to the first port 101 of the coupler. The first port 101 is the input end and is used to send signals to the coupler input through the input end.

The antenna 30 is connected to the second port 102 of the coupler. The second port 102 is a through port. The antenna is used to send transmit signals to the external chip and input the reflected signals into the coupler through the through port. The antenna is also used to receive signals from the external chip. , input the received signal into the coupler through the through end.

The external connection point 60 is connected to the fifth port of the coupler, and is used to receive the signal received by the antenna 30 through the second isolation terminal and output it to the RX 70.

RX 80 is used to receive the received signal output by the external connection point 60.

For example, in a high-frequency signal transmission scenario, the external connection point 60 can be GSG, and the second isolation terminal outputs the received signal outside the chip through GSG, and then transmits it to the RX 70 on the chip after looping back outside the chip, forming Complete path of received signal.

The first coupler 40 is connected to the third port 103 of the coupler, and the second coupler 50 is connected to the fourth port 104 of the coupler.

The first coupler is the test receiver MRX, which calibrates the transmitted signal through the first coupling terminal. The second coupler is the first power monitor PD, which is used to monitor the transmitted signal through the second coupling terminal, where the third The port is the first coupling end, and the fourth port is the second coupling end.

Or, the first coupler is a power splitter, and the power splitter is coupled to the first PD and MRX respectively, and is used to calibrate and monitor the transmit signal through the first coupling end, and the second coupler is the second PD, and is used to calibrate and monitor the transmit signal through the first coupling end. The isolation end monitors the reflected signal, wherein the third port is the first coupling end, and the fourth port is the first isolation end.

It should be noted that in some scenarios with low monitoring requirements, the system may not have a second PD and does not need to monitor reflected signals. In some scenarios with high monitoring requirements, you can add a port and connect a second PD to monitor the reflected signal output by the coupler.

Further, the system further includes a third coupler, the third port is the first coupling end, the fourth port is the second coupling end, and the sixth port is the first isolation end. The third coupler is connected to the sixth port of the coupler. For example, the first coupler can be MRX, and the transmit signal is calibrated through the first coupling end. The second coupler can be the first power monitor PD, It is used to monitor the transmitted signal through the second coupling end. The third coupler can be a second PD, and monitors the reflected signal through the first isolation end.

In addition, in some examples, the system may also include a power amplifier (Power Amplifier, PA), a low noise amplifier (Low Noise Amplifier, LNA); and a mixer MIXER. PA signal power amplification is usually used for transmitting channels; LNA amplifies signal amplitude while maintaining low noise and is usually used for receiving channels; MIXER realizes frequency shifting of signals through mixing. The multi-signal coupling system provided by the embodiment of the present application includes a coupler that can achieve calibration, monitoring and signal synchronization at the same time. The coupler can be the above-mentioned reconfigurable coupler, or a miniaturized coupler, including the above-mentioned coupler. The multi-signal coupling system has high integration and isolation. It can also realize channel multiplexing in different scenarios, which can reduce channel waste, improve coupling isolation, and reduce on-chip area.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented with electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality using different methods for each specific application, but such implementations should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that for the convenience and simplicity of description, the specific working processes of the systems, devices and units described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be described again here.

In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only illustrative. For example, the division of the units is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or can be integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored, or not implemented. On the other hand, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection between each other shown or discussed may be through some interfaces, and the indirect coupling or communication connection of the devices or units may be in electrical, mechanical or other forms.

Claims

A coupler, characterized by including:

A main signal channel and a coupling channel, the main signal channel being used for the signal channel of the coupler;

The coupling channel is used to couple the signal of the main signal channel, wherein the main signal channel includes a first port and a second port, and the first port and the second port are respectively used for the coupler. Input ports and output ports;

The coupling channel includes a third port, a fourth port and a fifth port.
The coupler according to claim 1, characterized in that:

The coupling channel includes a first coupling channel, and the first coupling channel includes a first signal transmission channel and a second signal transmission channel;

The first signal transmission path is used to realize signal transmission between the third port and the fourth port;

The second signal transmission path is used to realize signal transmission between the third port and the fifth port;

The first coupling path includes a first coupling switch, and the first coupling switch is used to connect and disconnect the first signal transmission path and the second signal transmission path.
The coupler according to claim 1, further comprising: a sixth port,

The coupling channel includes a second coupling channel and a third coupling channel, wherein the second coupling channel includes the third port and the fourth port, and the second coupling channel is used to implement the third port. and the transmission of signals between the fourth port;

The third coupling channel includes the fifth port and the sixth port, and the third coupling channel is used to realize signal transmission between the fifth port and the sixth port.
The coupler according to claim 3, further comprising: a seventh port and an eighth port,

The coupling channel further includes a fourth coupling channel, wherein the fourth coupling channel includes the seventh port and the eighth port, and the fourth coupling channel is used to implement the seventh port and the eighth port. Signal transmission between eight ports.
The coupler according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that:

The first port is an input port, used to receive the transmission signal input from the main signal channel, the second port is a through port, used to output the transmission signal, and the through port is also used for reverse input. Reflected signals and input received signals;

The third port is a first coupling end for sampling the transmitted signal, and the fourth port is a first isolation end for selectively sampling and grounding the reflected signal; or, The third port is the first coupling end, used for sampling the transmission signal, and the fourth port is the second coupling end, used for sampling the transmission signal;

The fifth port is a second isolation port, used to connect to the outside of the chip and output the signal received by the through port to the outside of the chip.
The coupler according to claim 3, characterized in that:

The first port is an input port, used to receive the transmission signal input from the main signal channel, the second port is a through port, used to output the transmission signal, and the through port is also used for reverse input. Reflected signals and input received signals;

The third port is a first coupling port for sampling the transmitted signal, the fourth port is a first isolation port for sampling the reflected signal, and the fifth port is a second The isolation end is used to connect the outside of the chip through the connection point and output the signal received by the through end to the outside of the chip. The sixth port is the second coupling end and is used for grounding;

Or, the third port is a first coupling end for sampling the transmission signal, the fourth port is a second coupling end for sampling the transmission signal, and the fifth port is The second isolation port is used to connect to the outside of the chip through a connection point and output the signal received by the through port to the outside of the chip. The sixth port is a first isolation port and is used to sample the reflected signal.
The coupler according to claim 4, characterized in that:

The first port is an input port, used to receive the transmission signal input from the main signal channel, the second port is a through port, used to output the transmission signal, and the through port is also used for reverse input. Reflected signals and input received signals;

The third port is a first coupling port for sampling the transmitted signal, the fourth port is a first isolation port for sampling the reflected signal, and the fifth port is a second The isolation end is used to connect the outside of the chip through the connection point, and output the signal received by the through end to the outside of the chip. The sixth port is the third coupling end, used for grounding, and the seventh port is the second The coupling terminal is used for sampling the transmission signal, and the eighth port is a third isolation terminal for grounding.
The coupler according to any one of claims 5 to 7, characterized in that:

The input end is externally connected to a transmitter TX. The TX is used to transmit the transmission signal to the main signal channel. The through end is externally connected to an antenna. The antenna is used to transmit the transmission signal externally and transmit the transmission signal to the main signal channel. The reflected signal of the signal and the signal received by the antenna are input in reverse direction. The second isolation end is connected to the outside of the chip through a connection point, and the signal received by the antenna is output outside the chip and then looped back to the receiver RX.
The coupler according to claim 8, characterized in that the TX, the antenna and the RX are externally connected to a radar single chip or a radar array chip.
The coupler according to claim 2, characterized in that:

When the first signal transmission path is connected and the second signal transmission path is disconnected, the coupling line length of the first signal transmission path corresponds to the first coupling coefficient;

When the second signal transmission path is connected and the first signal transmission path is disconnected, the coupling line length of the second signal transmission path corresponds to the second coupling coefficient.
A multifunctional coupling method, characterized by including:

Signals are transmitted on a main signal channel between the first port and the second port, wherein the main signal channel includes the first port and the second port, and the first port and the second port respectively Input and output ports for couplers;

The signal is coupled into the coupling channel through a third port, a fourth port and a fifth port included in the coupling channel coupled to the main signal channel.
The method according to claim 11, characterized in that:

The coupling channel includes a first coupling channel, and the first coupling channel includes a first signal transmission channel and a second signal transmission channel,

Coupling the signal to the coupling channel through the third port, the fourth port and the fifth port included in the coupling channel coupled to the main signal channel includes:

Couple the signal to the first signal transmission path for transmission through the third port and the fourth port;

Couple the signal to the second signal transmission path for transmission through the third port and the fifth port;

Wherein, the first coupling path includes a first coupling switch, and the first coupling switch is used to connect and disconnect the first signal transmission path and the second signal transmission path.
The method of claim 11, wherein the coupling channel further includes a sixth port, and the coupling channel includes a second coupling channel and a third coupling channel,

Coupling the signal to the coupling channel through the third port, the fourth port and the fifth port included in the coupling channel coupled to the main signal channel includes:

Couple the signal to the second coupling path for transmission through the third port and the fourth port;

Couple the signal to the third coupling path for transmission through the fifth port and the sixth port;

Wherein, the second coupling path includes the third port and the fourth port, and the third coupling path includes the fifth port and the sixth port.
The method of claim 13, wherein the coupling channel further includes a seventh port and an eighth port, the coupling channel further includes a fourth coupling path, and the method further includes:

The signal is coupled to a fourth coupling path for transmission through the seventh port and the eighth port, wherein the fourth coupling path includes the seventh port and the eighth port.
The method according to claim 11, characterized in that:

The transmission of signals on the main signal channel between the first port and the second port includes:

The input terminal receives the transmission signal input through the main signal channel, so that the transmission signal is transmitted to the through terminal through the main signal channel;

The transmit signal is output through the through port, and the reflected signal and the received signal are reversely input, wherein the first port is an input port and the second port is a through port;

Coupling the signal to the coupling channel through the third port, the fourth port and the fifth port coupled to the coupling channel of the main signal channel includes:

The transmit signal is sampled through the first coupling end, the reflected signal is selectively sampled and grounded through the first isolation end, and the signal received by the through end is output outside the chip through the second isolation end, where , the third port is the first coupling end, the fourth port is the first isolation end, and the fifth port is the second isolation end;

Or, the transmit signal is sampled through the first coupling end, the transmit signal is sampled through the second coupling end, and the signal received by the through end is output outside the chip through the second isolation end, wherein, The third port is a first coupling end, the fourth port is a second coupling end, and the fifth port is a second isolation end.
The method according to claim 13, characterized in that:

The transmission of signals on the main signal channel between the first port and the second port includes:

The input terminal receives the transmission signal input through the main signal channel, so that the transmission signal is transmitted to the through terminal through the main signal channel;

The transmit signal is output through the through port, and the reflected signal and the received signal are reversely input, wherein the first port is an input port and the second port is a through port;

The signal is coupled to the second coupling path for transmission through the third port and the fourth port; the signal is coupled to the third port through the fifth port and the sixth port. Transmission in the three coupling paths includes:

The transmit signal is sampled through the first coupling terminal, the reflected signal is sampled through the first isolation terminal, the signal received by the through terminal is output outside the chip through the second isolation terminal, and the second coupling terminal is grounded. , wherein the third port is the first coupling end, the fourth port is the first isolation end, the fifth port is the second isolation end, and the sixth port is the second coupling end;

Or, the transmission signal is sampled through the first coupling terminal, the transmission signal is sampled through the second coupling terminal, the signal received by the through terminal is output outside the chip through the second isolation terminal, and the signal received by the through terminal is output outside the chip through the second isolation terminal. An isolation terminal samples the reflected signal, wherein the third port is a first coupling terminal, the fourth port is a second coupling terminal, the fifth port is a second isolation terminal, and the sixth port is a second coupling terminal. The port is the first isolated port.
The method according to claim 14, wherein said transmitting signals on the main signal channel between the first port and the second port includes:

The input terminal receives the transmission signal input through the main signal channel, so that the transmission signal is transmitted to the through terminal through the main signal channel;

The transmit signal is output through the through port, and the reflected signal and the received signal are reversely input, wherein the first port is an input port and the second port is a through port;

The signal is coupled to the second coupling path for transmission through the third port and the fourth port; the signal is coupled to the third port through the fifth port and the sixth port. Transmission in three coupling paths; coupling the signal to the fourth coupling path through the seventh port and the eighth port for transmission includes:

The transmit signal is sampled through the first coupling terminal, the reflected signal is sampled through the first isolation terminal, the signal received by the through terminal is output outside the chip through the second isolation terminal, and the signal received by the through terminal is output outside the chip through the second coupling terminal. The transmit signal is sampled through the third coupling terminal and grounded through the third isolation terminal, wherein the third port is the first coupling terminal and the fourth port is the first isolation terminal. , the fifth port is the second isolation end, the sixth port is the third coupling end, the seventh port is the second coupling end, and the eighth port is the third isolation end.
A coupled system, characterized by including:

The coupler according to any one of claims 1-10;

Transmitter TX, connected to the first port of the coupler;

An antenna, connected to the second port of the coupler;

A first coupler connected to the third port of the coupler;

a second coupler connected to the fourth port of the coupler;

The external connection point is connected to the fifth port of the coupler.
The system according to claim 18, characterized in that:

The TX is used to send signals to the coupler input through the input terminal;

The antenna is used to send the transmit signal to the external chip and input the reflected signal into the coupler through the through end. The antenna is also used to receive the signal from the external chip, and input the received signal into the coupler through the through end. ;

The external connection point is used to receive the received signal through the second isolation terminal and output the received signal outside the chip, so that the received signal returns to the receiver RX, wherein the third One port is an input port, the second port is a through port, the fifth port is a second isolation port, and the coupler, the antenna, the TX, and the RX are integrated on the chip.
The system according to claim 19, characterized in that:

The first coupler is a test receiver MRX, used to calibrate the transmit signal through a first coupling end, and the second coupler is a first power monitor PD, used to calibrate the transmit signal through a second coupling end. The signal is monitored, wherein the third port is the first coupling end, and the fourth port is the second coupling end;

Or, the first coupler is a power splitter, and the power splitter is coupled to the first PD and MRX respectively for calibrating and monitoring the transmission signal through the first coupling end, and the second The coupler is a second PD that monitors the reflected signal through a first isolation end, where the third port is the first coupling end and the fourth port is the first isolation end.
The system of claim 19, further comprising:

A third coupler, connected to the sixth port of the coupler;

The first coupler is a test receiver MRX, used to calibrate the transmit signal through a first coupling end, and the second coupler is a first power monitor PD, used to calibrate the transmit signal through a second coupling end. The signal is monitored, the third coupler is the second PD, the reflected signal is monitored through the first isolation end, the third port is the first coupling end, and the fourth port is the second coupling end, The sixth port is the first isolation port.