Space Exploration Technologies Corp.

Broadcom Corporation

Skyworks Solutions, Inc.

Avago Technologies General IP (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.

Other

Intel Corporation

Avago Technologies International Sales Pte. Limited

Icera Canada Ulc

Avago Technologies General IP Pte, Ltd.

Masoud Kahrizi

Bernd Pregardier

Alireza Mehrnia

Alex Ahmad Mirzaei

Dmitriy Rozenblit

David Francois Jacquet

Jaleh Komaili

Bagher Afshar

Ka Shun Carson Pun

Omid Nasiby

Hooman Darabi

Ali Sajjadi

Rajasekhar Pullela

Andras Tantos

John E Vasa

Shahrzad Tadjpour

Mostafa Ghazali

Alireza Tarighat Mehrabani

Marc Gens

Behnam Mohammadi

Paul Lee Pearson

Robert Baummer, Jr

Pascal Triaire

Fabrice Jean André Belvèze

Francois Lucien Emile Icher

Igor Elgorriaga

Jean-Noel Rozec

Mohyee Mikhemar

Morten Damgaard

John Cumming Leete

Amir Hadji-Abdolhamid

Alex Mirzaei

Babak Vakili-Amini

Behzad Nourani

Brima Babatunde Ibrahim

Michael Boers

Tajinder Manku

Tirdad Sowlati

Ahmad Mirzaei

Rami Mehio

Payam Torab Jahromi

Darioush Agahi

Sean Nicolson

Michael Buyanin

Zhimin Zhou

Cobus De Beer

Yongqiang He

In an embodiment, an apparatus includes a first baseband section to receive a calibration signal; a first radio frequency (RF) section configured to generate a RF calibration signal based on modulating the calibration signal. The calibration signal comprises an orthogonal code based signal. The apparatus includes a second RF section to receive the RF calibration signal and generate a received calibration signal based on demodulating the RF calibration signal; a calibration section; a first antenna electrically coupled to the first RF section and configured to transmit the RF calibration signal; and a second antenna electrically coupled to the second RF section and configured to receive the RF calibration signal. The calibration section is configured to determine one or more of gain, baseband delay, or RF delay to calibrate the first RF section; and the second antenna is switchable between receiving the RF calibration signal and transmitting an encoded data signal.

Over-the-air calibration of antenna system

In an embodiment, an apparatus includes one or more timing components configured to generate a reference time signal based on a timing signal and a reference clock signal. The apparatus includes phase lock loop (PLL) configured to generate a synchronized output clock signal based on the reference clock signal and the reference time signal.

Phase lock loop (PLL) synchronization

In an embodiment, an apparatus includes a first digital beamformer (DBF) associated with a first subset of antennas of a phased array antenna, the first DBF including a transmit section associated with transmission of a first signal at a first frequency in a transmit mode and a receive section associated with receiving of a second signal at a second frequency in a receive mode, the second frequency being different from the first frequency. The apparatus includes a second DBF associated with a second subset of antennas of the phased array antenna. The first and second DBFs are configured to receive a local oscillator signal having the first frequency from a common local oscillator in the transmit mode and receive the local oscillator signal having the second frequency from the common local oscillator in the receive mode.

Half duplex mode digital beamforming device

In an embodiment, a device is included in a communications system, the device including a plurality of antenna elements configured in a phased array antenna; a plurality of integrated circuit (IC) chips, wherein each IC chip of the plurality of IC chips is associated with a respective subset of antenna elements of the plurality of antenna elements, and wherein, for each IC chip of the plurality of IC chips, the associated subset of antenna elements is used for transmitting and receiving radio frequency (RF) signals by the IC chip; and a local oscillator configured to generate a common local oscillator signal and provide the common local oscillator signal to each IC chip of the plurality of IC chips.

In an embodiment, a receiver included in a communications system includes a channel extractor configured to segregate a received signal into a plurality of channel signals, wherein the plurality of channel signals includes a plurality of data signals; and a plurality of decoders electrically coupled to the channel extractor and configured to decode each of the plurality of channel signals into a respective plurality of decoded data beam portions.

Channel extraction digital beamforming

In an embodiment, an apparatus includes a digital beamforming section. The digital beamforming section is configured to encode each data beam of a first plurality of data beams of a first channel with a first plurality of respective time delays and phases to generate an encoded first plurality of data beams and encode each data beam of a second plurality of data beams of a second channel with a second plurality of respective time delays and phases to generate an encoded second plurality of data beams. The second plurality of data beams is different from the first plurality of data beams. The apparatus includes a channel combiner, electrically coupled to the digital beamforming section, and configured to generate a combined channel comprising an aggregation of at least a portion of the encoded first plurality of data beams and at least a portion of the encoded second plurality of data beams.

Channel aggregation digital beamforming

In an embodiment, an apparatus includes a transmit section including a first baseband section and a first radio frequency (RF) section, wherein the transmit section is configured to receive a calibration signal, the first RF section is configured to generate a RF calibration signal based on modulating the calibration signal. The calibration signal comprises an orthogonal code based signal; and a receive section configured to receive the RF calibration signal over-the-air, the receive section includes a second RF section and a calibration section, the second RF section is configured to generate a received calibration signal based on the RF calibration signal, the received calibration signal and a reference signal associated with the RF calibration signal comprise inputs to the calibration section and the calibration section is configured to determine one or more of gain, baseband delay, or RF delay compensation values, based on the inputs, to calibrate the transmit section.

In an embodiment, an apparatus includes an integrated circuit (IC) chip configured to receive a timing signal and a reference clock signal. The IC chips is configured to a reference time signal based on the timing signal and the reference clock signal. The IC chip includes a phase lock loop (PLL). The PLL is synchronized based on the reference time signal.

In an embodiment, an apparatus includes a first plurality of digital beamformers associated with a first channel, the first plurality of digital beamformers configured to encode each data beam of a first plurality of data beams of the first channel to generate an encoded first plurality of data beams; a second plurality of digital beamformers associated with a second channel different from the first channel, the second plurality of digital beamformers configured to encode each data beam of a second plurality of data beams of the second channel to generate an encoded second plurality of data beams; and a channel combiner, electrically coupled to the first and second plurality of digital beamformers, and configured to generate a combined channel comprising an aggregation of at least a portion of the encoded first plurality of data beams and at least a portion of the encoded second plurality of data beams.

In an embodiment, an apparatus included in a communications system includes a transmit section including a first baseband section and a first radio frequency (RF) section, wherein the transmit section is configured to receive a calibration signal, the first RF section is configured to generate a RF calibration signal based on the calibration signal, and wherein the calibration signal comprises an orthogonal code based signal; and a receive section configured to receive the RF calibration signal over-the-air, wherein the receive section includes a second RF section and a calibration section, wherein the second RF section is configured to generate a received calibration signal based on the RF calibration signal, and wherein the calibration section is configured to determine one or more of gain, baseband delay, or RF delay compensation values, based on the inputs, to calibrate the transmit section.

In an embodiment, an apparatus includes a first integrated circuit (IC) chip configured to receive a timing signal and a reference clock signal; and a second IC chip configured to receive the timing signal and the reference clock signal. The first and second IC chips are configured to generate respective first and second reference time signals based on the timing signal and the reference clock signal. The first and second IC chips include a respective first phase lock loop (PLL) and second PLL. The first PLL and the second PLL are synchronized to each other based on the first reference time signal and the second reference time signal.

In an embodiment, an apparatus includes a first integrated circuit (IC) chip configured to receive a timing signal and a reference clock signal; a second IC chip configured to receive the timing signal from the first IC chip and the reference clock signal; and a third IC chip configured to receive the timing signal from the second IC chip and the reference clock signal. The second IC chip is electrically coupled between the first and third IC chips. The first, second, and third IC chips include respectively first, second, and third phase lock loop (PLL). The first, second, and third IC chips are configured to generate respective first, second, and third reference time signals based on the timing signal and the reference clock signal. The first, second, and third PLLs are synchronized to each other based on the respective first, second, and third reference time signals.

In an embodiment, a receiver included in a communications system includes a channel extractor configured to segregate a received signal into a plurality of channel signals, wherein the plurality of channel signals includes a plurality of data signals; a plurality of phase shifters electrically coupled to the channel extractor and configured to decode each data signal of the plurality of data signals with a respective phase; and a plurality of time delay filters electrically coupled to the plurality of phase shifters and configured to decode each data signal of the plurality of data signals with a respective time delay, wherein the plurality of time delay filters outputs each subset of the plurality of data signals in a respective channel of the plurality of channels.

In an embodiment, an apparatus includes a first plurality of digital beamformers associated with a first channel; a second plurality of digital beamformers associated with a second channel different from the first channel; a channel combiner, electrically coupled to the first and second plurality of digital beamformers, and configured to generate a combined channel comprising an aggregation of the encoded first plurality of data beams and the encoded second plurality of data beams, wherein the combined channel has a bandwidth that is a function of a bandwidth of one or both of the first or second channel; and a radio frequency (RF) transmission section, electrically coupled to the channel combiner, and configured to generate an output signal to be provided to a transmitting antenna based on the combined channel, wherein the RF transmission section includes a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) and a mixer.

Growing community of inventors

Irvine, CA, United States of America

Masoud Kahrizi