Qualcomm Incorporated

Qualcomm Atheros Inc.

Atheros Communications, Inc.

Soner Ozgur

Paul J Husted

Yann Ly-Gagnon

Michael Peter Mack

Srenik Suresh Mehta

David J Weber

Xiaoru Zhang

Brian James Kaczynski

A symbol error detector can be configured to detect symbol errors of a Bluetooth enhanced data rate (EDR) packet without relying solely on a CRC error detection mechanism. After a phase of a current symbol is demodulated to determine a demodulated current symbol, the phase of the demodulated current symbol can be subtracted from the phase of the current symbol prior to demodulation to yield a phase error. The phase error can be compared against a phase error threshold to determine a potential unreliability of the demodulated current symbol. The phase error being greater than the phase error threshold can indicate that the demodulated current symbol may be unreliable. Accordingly, a symbol error notification can be generated to indicate that the demodulated current symbol may be unreliable.

Symbol error detection for bluetooth enhanced data rate packets

A symbol error detector can be configured to detect symbol errors of GFSK modulated portions of a Bluetooth packet without relying solely on a CRC error detection mechanism. The symbol error detector can operate on frequency error signals that are a difference between a frequency associated with a current symbol and predetermined frequency outputs from a bank of filters matched to a frequency response of the Bluetooth receiver for predefined combinations of three consecutive symbols (i.e., an estimated previously decoded symbol, an estimated current symbol, and an estimated subsequent symbol). The frequency error signals can be compared against a threshold and against each other to determine a potential unreliability in decoding the current symbol and to determine whether to generate a symbol error notification. The frequency error signals being within a threshold of each other can indicate potential unreliability in decoding the current symbol.

Symbol error detection for Bluetooth basic data rate packets

Controlling power consumption in a wireless device. The wireless device may include first wireless protocol circuitry. The first wireless protocol circuitry may be configured to receive and process first signals according to a first wireless protocol. The wireless device may include a power controller coupled to the first wireless protocol circuitry. The power controller may be configured to control power consumption of elements of the first wireless protocol circuitry based on a current state. More specifically, in response to the first wireless protocol circuitry being in a listening state, the power controller may be configured to lower power consumption of one or more first elements of the first wireless protocol circuitry. Additionally, in response to the first wireless protocol circuitry being in a receiving state, the power controller may be configured to return power consumption of the one or more first elements to a higher power level.

Power management of wireless protocol circuitry based on current state

A device and method for adjusting transmit power in a wireless communication device. The wireless communication device comprises a transmitter having a power amplifier, wherein the amplifier may introduce distortion into the transmit signal. The method may periodically determine an error vector magnitude (EVM) level in the transmitter of the wireless communication device. The EVM level may be determined based on differences between an ideal transmit signal without amplification, and an actual transmit signal with amplification. The method may then adjust one or more transmit gain settings of at least one gain stage of the wireless device based on the measured EVM level in the transmitter. In one embodiment, as the EVM increases, indicating that more distortion is being introduced, the method may reduce the gain settings of the gain stage(s) to reduce this distortion. If the EVM decreases, the method may increase the gain of the gain stage(s).

Transmit power control utilizing loopback error vector magnitude thresholds

Performing wireless communication using first and second wireless communication protocols. The first and second wireless communication protocols may operate in a common communication medium. The wireless communication may be performed using the protocols over the common communication medium, e.g., in a time sharing fashion. Properties of voice traffic on current frames of the second wireless communication protocol may be measured. The method may further include predicting whether one or more subsequent frames of the second wireless communication protocol will have voice traffic. If the prediction indicates that the one or more subsequent frames of the second wireless communication protocol will not have voice traffic data may be transmitted using the first wireless communication protocol on the common communication medium during a subsequent second wireless communication protocol time slot.

Wireless communication sharing in a common communication medium based on voice traffic prediction

Symbol error detection for bluetooth basic data rate packets

One embodiment of a DPSK receiver includes an ADC, a down-sampler, and a timing tracker. The ADC samples a received DPSK signal providing sub-samples of a digital signal. The timing tracker examines differences between amplitudes of currently selected sub-samples and sub-samples before and after the currently selected sub-samples. The differences may indicate a timing adjustment may be made to the digital signal. The timing tracker may change the timing of the digital signal by modifying the configuration of the down-sampler. Additionally, the timing tracker may also correct phase errors introduced by configuration changes of the down-sampler.

Timing tracker for DPSK receiver

Various techniques for dynamically reducing power usage in a wireless receiver are disclosed. A receiver unit receives a wireless signal over a channel and processes the wireless signal, including dynamically changing one or more of the settings of the receiver unit to control its power usage. These setting are changed in response to one or more power setting values that are generated based on a first set of information that includes state information for the channel. The receiver unit may dynamically change a first setting that causes the bias current applied to an analog-to-digital converter to be changed. The channel state information may include information indicative of a received signal strength indication (RSSI), information indicative of a packet error rate (PER) for packets encoded on the wireless signal, and header error check (HEC) and/or cyclical redundancy check (CRC) errors for data packets encoded on the wireless signal.

Dynamic power reduction in a wireless receiver

Various devices and techniques for testing an analog portion of communication devices are disclosed. Such devices may include a communication unit and an analog test unit. The analog test unit may be configured to test analog portions of the communication unit and communicate information regarding testing to an external test unit. The analog test unit may also be configured to perform an analysis of a test signal that is output by a transmitter portion, looped back to a receiver portion, and subsequently received by the analog test unit. The analog test unit may also be configured to calibrate a DC offset of a receiver chain of the communication unit. The analog test unit may also be configured to perform a nonlinearity test on one or more ADCs and/or DACs of the communication unit.

Communication unit with analog test unit

A transceiver including a transmit modulator and a receiver. The modulator may accept a channel selection input, a first modulation input, a second modulation input, and an amplitude input. During transmit time slots, the modulator may generate a modulated output having a carrier frequency selected by the channel selection input. The carrier frequency may be frequency modulated by the first modulation inputs, phase modulated by the second modulation input, and amplitude modulated by the amplitude input. During receive time slots, the modulator may generate a carrier frequency selected by the channel selection input and offset by the first modulation input. The modulator may alternate between providing modulated transmit signals during transmit time slots and providing a local oscillator for the receiver during receive time slots.

Synthesizer and modulator for a wireless transceiver

A wireless device that can process signals according to multiple wireless protocols simultaneously and without signal loss. The wireless device may comprise an antenna and first and second wireless protocol circuitry. The first wireless protocol circuitry comprises a shared gain element that amplifies signals that are processed by each of the first and second wireless protocol circuitry. Since the third signals are amplified by the shared gain element prior to being split out to the respective protocol circuitry, the first and second portions of the amplified third signals do not have significant signal loss relative to the third signals provided by the antenna. Thus the wireless device can receive and process wireless signals according to both the first and second protocols simultaneously without any significant signal losses due to splitting of the receive signal.

Wireless device using a shared gain stage for simultaneous reception of multiple protocols

An apparatus for processing a Bluetooth signal advantageously mixes down a received RF signal to an IF signal wherein one band-edge of the spectrum of the IF signal may be approximately 0 Hz. In one embodiment, the IF signal may be digitized, decimated and filtered before being processed into a baseband signal. The baseband signal may be processed by a cordic (COordinate Rotation DIgital Computer) processor to transform the baseband signal from rectangular to polar coordinates. A phase signal from the cordic processor may be used to determine transmitted Bluetooth data symbols. The apparatus may advantageously use less area than traditional Bluetooth receivers.

Hybrid zero-IF receiver

Wireless communication sharing in a common communication medium

A method for detecting saturation in a cascaded &#x394;&#x3a3; ADC can include receiving an output of the cascaded &#x394;&#x3a3; ADC, determining a magnitude of the output, and squaring the magnitude. The squared magnitude can be added to a feedback signal, wherein the sum represents a saturation signal. The saturation signal can be filtered and then amplified, wherein the amplified, filtered saturation signal is the feedback signal. The saturation signal can then be compared to a threshold to determine whether the cascaded &#x394;&#x3a3; ADC is in saturation.

Growing community of inventors

Santa Clara, CA, United States of America

Soner Ozgur