System and method for controlling radiation power

Abstract

A system and method for controlling radiation power. In some embodiments, an apparatus comprises: a first radio; a second radio; and one or more processors; and a memory storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause to perform the following: determine that a first transmission of the first radio is transmitted at a first power level greater than zero and less than a first threshold, and in response to determining that a first transmission of the first radio is transmitted at a first power level less than a first threshold, causing the second radio to transmit a second transmission at a second power level, where the second power level is determined based at least in part on the first power level and the first threshold.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 534,522, filed on August 24, 2023, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety as if fully set forth herein. Technical Field

[0003] The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communications. More specifically, the subject matter disclosed herein relates to improvements in controlling radiated power in wireless devices. Background Art

[0004] Wireless devices may emit radiation (eg, radio frequency radiation, such as microwave radiation) that may be absorbed to some extent by the tissue of a user of such a device.

[0005] To address this problem, regulators have set limits on the power that wireless devices can transmit.

[0006] One problem with the above approach is that in a wireless device with multiple radios or multiple antennas, a fixed respective portion of the total power limit may be allocated to each radio or each antenna. For example, when one antenna radiates power at a level that is set based on the assumption that each other antenna is radiating the full amount of power allocated to it, this may result in relatively poor performance even when one or more other antennas are transmitting less than the full amount of power allocated to it. Summary of the invention

[0007] To overcome these problems, systems and methods are described herein for dynamically reallocating power limits among multiple antennas or radios in a wireless device.

[0008] The above-described methods improve upon previous methods because they enable wireless devices to transmit at total power levels that are closer to the power limit, thereby allowing the device to achieve improved performance.

[0009] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a device is provided, comprising: a first radio; a second radio; and one or more processors; and a memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the one or more processors, causes the following operations to be performed: determining that a first transmission of the first radio is transmitted at a first power level greater than zero and less than a first threshold, and in response to determining that the first transmission of the first radio is transmitted at a first power level less than the first threshold, causing the second radio to transmit a second transmission at a second power level, wherein the second power level is determined at least in part based on the first power level and the first threshold.

[0010] In some embodiments, the second power level is less than or equal to the sum of the first threshold and the difference between the first threshold and the first power level.

[0011] In some embodiments, the second power level is less than or equal to a sum of a second threshold and a difference between the first threshold and the first power level, wherein the second threshold is different from the first threshold.

[0012] In some embodiments, the first power level of the first radio is a time average power level of the first radio.

[0013] In some embodiments, the first power level is a delta average power level of the first radio.

[0014] In some embodiments, the first threshold is a set fraction of the compliance power limit.

[0015] In some embodiments, the first radio includes a first transmit antenna and the second radio includes a second transmit antenna co-located with the first transmit antenna.

[0016] In some embodiments, the device further includes a third radio, the third radio including a third transmit antenna, the third transmit antenna not co-located with the second transmit antenna, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the following operations to be performed: determine the second power level based on an amount that does not include the power level of transmissions transmitted by the third transmit antenna.

[0017] In some embodiments, the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the following operations to be performed: determining that a third transmission by the second radio is transmitted at a third power level that is less than a third threshold, and in response to determining that the third transmission by the second radio is transmitted at a third power level that is less than the third threshold, causing the first radio to transmit a fourth transmission at a fourth power level, wherein the fourth power level is determined at least in part based on the third power level and the third threshold.

[0018] In some embodiments, the fourth power level is less than or equal to the sum of the third threshold and a difference between the third threshold and the third power level.

[0019] In some embodiments, the memory further stores instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, result in sending messages to the first processing circuit, each message containing power level information for the first radio.

[0020] In some embodiments, the instructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause execution to periodically send the message with a period of less than 60 seconds.

[0021] In some embodiments, the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause execution of sending messages, each message including power level information of the second radio.

[0022] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a device is provided, comprising: a first radio; a second radio; and one or more first processors; and a memory storing first instructions, which, when executed by the one or more first processors, causes the following operations to be performed: determining that the first radio is not transmitting or that the first radio is transmitting at a first power level close to zero, and in response to the determination, causing the second radio to transmit a second transmission at a second power level within the determined threshold time period, wherein the second power level is determined at least in part based on a first threshold for transmission by the first radio.

[0023] In some embodiments, the second power level is less than or equal to twice the first threshold.

[0024] In some embodiments, the second power level is less than or equal to the sum of a first threshold and a second threshold, wherein the second threshold is different from the first threshold.

[0025] In some embodiments, the first radio includes a first transmit antenna and the second radio includes a second transmit antenna co-located with the first transmit antenna.

[0026] In some embodiments, the device further comprises one or more second processors, wherein the memory further stores second instructions which, when executed by the one or more second processors, cause the following operations to be performed: sending a message to the one or more first processors indicating that the first power level is zero.

[0027] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a device is provided, comprising: a first radio; a second radio; and a component for processing, wherein the component for processing is configured to: determine that a first transmission of the first radio is transmitted at a first power level less than a first threshold, and in response to determining that the first transmission of the first radio is transmitted at a first power level less than the first threshold, cause the second radio to transmit a second transmission at a second power level, wherein the second power level is determined at least in part based on the first power level and the first threshold.

[0028] In some embodiments, the second power level is less than or equal to the sum of the first threshold and the difference between the first threshold and the first power level. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] In the following sections, various aspects of the subject matter disclosed herein will be described with reference to exemplary embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0030] Figure 1A is a block diagram of a user equipment according to an embodiment.

[0031] Figure 1B is a block diagram of a wireless communication system according to an embodiment.

[0032] Figure 2 is a block diagram of a cellular communication system according to an embodiment.

[0033] Figure 3A is a graph of transmit power as a function of time according to an embodiment.

[0034] Figure 3B is a schematic diagram of a method for power allocation according to an embodiment.

[0035] Figure 4A is a graph of requested power as a function of time, according to an embodiment.

[0036] Figure 4B is a graph of requested power as a function of time, according to an embodiment.

[0037] Figure 5A is a graph of specific absorption rate (SAR) versus time according to one embodiment.

[0038] Figure 5B is a graph of SAR as a function of time, according to an embodiment.

[0039] Figure 6 is a block diagram of an electronic device in a network environment according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] In the following detailed description, many specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. However, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the disclosed aspects may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, processes, components, and circuits are not described in detail to avoid obscuring the subject matter disclosed herein.

[0041] References to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" throughout the specification mean that the specific features, structures, or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment disclosed herein. Therefore, the phrases "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment" or "according to an embodiment" (or other phrases with similar meanings) that appear throughout this specification may not necessarily all refer to the same embodiment. In addition, the specific features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. In this regard, as used herein, the word "exemplary" means "used as an example, instance, or illustration". Any embodiment described herein as "exemplary" should not be interpreted as necessarily being preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. In addition, the specific features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. In addition, depending on the context discussed herein, a singular term may include a corresponding plural form, and a plural term may include a corresponding singular form. Similarly, hyphenated terms (e.g., "two-dimensional," "predetermined," "pixel-specific," etc.) may occasionally be used interchangeably with corresponding non-hyphenated versions (e.g., "two-dimensional," "predetermined," "pixel-specific," etc.), and capitalized terms (e.g., "Counter Clock," "Row Select," "PIXOUT," etc.) may be used interchangeably with corresponding non-capitalized versions (e.g., "counter clock," "row select," "pixout," etc.). Such occasional interchangeable usage should not be considered inconsistent with each other.

[0042] In addition, depending on the context of the discussion herein, singular terms may include corresponding plural forms, and plural terms may include corresponding singular forms. It should also be noted that the various drawings (including component drawings) shown and discussed herein are for illustrative purposes only and are not drawn to scale. For example, for clarity, the size of some elements may be enlarged relative to other elements. In addition, if deemed appropriate, reference numerals are repeated in the drawings to indicate corresponding and / or similar elements.

[0043] The terms used herein are only used for the purpose of describing some example embodiments and are not intended to limit the claimed subject matter. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that when used in this specification, the terms "include" and / or "comprise" specify the presence of the features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or parts, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, parts, and / or groups thereof.

[0044] It should be understood that when an element or layer is referred to as being on, "connected to" or "coupled to" another element or layer, it can be directly on, directly connected to or coupled to another element or layer, or there can be intermediate elements or layers. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being "directly on," "directly connected to" or "directly coupled to" another element or layer, there are no intermediate elements or layers. The same reference numerals always refer to the same elements. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more associated listed items.

[0045] As used herein, the terms "first," "second," and the like are used as labels for the nouns that follow them, and do not imply any type of ordering (e.g., spatial, temporal, logical, etc.) unless explicitly defined as such. In addition, the same reference numerals may be used across two or more figures to refer to parts, components, blocks, circuits, units, or modules having the same or similar functions. However, such use is only for simplicity of illustration and ease of discussion; it does not mean that the construction or architectural details of such components or units are the same in all embodiments, or that such commonly referenced parts / modules are the only way to implement some example embodiments disclosed herein.

[0046] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the subject matter belongs. It will be further understood that terms such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art, and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless explicitly so defined herein.

[0047] As used herein, the term "module" refers to any combination of software, firmware, and / or hardware configured to provide the functionality described herein in conjunction with the module. For example, software may be embodied as a software package, code, and / or instruction set or instructions, and the term "hardware" as used in any embodiment described herein may include, for example, components, hardwired circuits, programmable circuits, state machine circuits, and / or firmware storing instructions executed by programmable circuits, either alone or in any combination. Modules may be collectively or individually embodied as circuits forming part of a larger system, such as, but not limited to, an integrated circuit (IC), a system on a chip (SoC), a component, and the like.

[0048] Government regulations may impose limits on the specific absorption rate (SAR) and power density (PD) that may be transmitted by user equipment, such as user equipment (UE) (e.g., a mobile phone). This imposes limits on the transmit power, which is proportional to the SAR and depends on factors such as technology, frequency band, and antenna. For example, regulations may specify that the transmit power from a transmit antenna of a device having a single transmit antenna may not exceed an average value over any time interval of a specified duration that, when multiplied by the conversion factor of the antenna, results in a certain absorbed power per kilogram (kg) exceeding a specified value (e.g., 1.2 watts / kilogram (W / kg)). These limits may prevent a device from reaching its maximum transmit power capability, e.g., if the maximum transmit power in a device in a particular frequency band at a particular antenna is higher than the limit power, the transmission will not reach that maximum power and will always remain at that limit power. As used herein, "transmit power" refers to the power level of a transmitted signal.

[0049] Figure 1A A user device 100, such as a mobile phone, is shown. The user device 100 comprises a plurality of transmit antennas 125, 225, 126, each of which may be connected to a respective radio. Figure 1A As shown, the user equipment 100 may include a non-access point station (non-AP STA) 105 and a user equipment (UE) 205. As used herein, a user equipment is a circuit or device that provides access to a wireless (e.g., 5G cellular) network. In this way, a user device (such as a mobile phone or a laptop computer with the ability to connect to a cellular network) may include UE 205 and other elements. The user equipment 100 may also include one or more additional antennas or radios. For example, the UE 205 (and its radio 215) may use a first radio access technology (RAT) such as long term evolution (LTE), and the third radio 135 in the user equipment 100 may use a second radio access technology such as new radio (NR).

[0050] Figure 1B A wireless communication system is shown, such as a Wi-Fi system that complies with one of the 802.11 standards promulgated by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). Figure 1B In a system of a wireless communication system, data may be exchanged between a non-access point station (non-AP STA) 105 and an access point station (AP STA) 110. The data exchange may occur through wireless transmission by the non-access point station 105 or by the access point station 110. The non-access point station 105 may include a radio 115 and a processing circuit 120. The processing circuit 120 may perform one or more of the methods described herein, for example, sending data through the radio 115.

[0051] Figure 2A system including a UE 205 and a network node gNB 210 in communication with each other is shown. The UE may include a radio 215 and a processing circuit (or means for processing) 220, which may perform various methods disclosed herein. For example, the processing circuit 220 may receive a transmission from the network node (gNB) 210 via the radio 215, and the processing circuit 220 may send a signal to the gNB 210 via the radio 215.

[0052] Regulatory limits on SAR may be specified as limits on the time-averaged transmitted power from co-located antennas, such that, for example, avg The average SAR from the co-located antennas over any time interval (which may be referred to as an averaging interval) is less than a specified level for compliance (referred to herein as SARcomp). Co-located antennas may be antennas that are capable of radiating simultaneously in the direction of a user, e.g., antennas located on the same side of the user equipment 100. Two antennas on opposite sides of the user equipment 100 (e.g., antenna 225 of UE 205 of user equipment 100 and antenna 126 of third radio 135 of user equipment 100) may be considered not co-located because when one such antenna radiates toward the user, the other antenna radiates away from the user.

[0053] When only a single radio is operating in the user equipment 100, the user equipment 100 may Figure 3A The radiation shown is used to achieve regulatory compliance (where regulatory compliance corresponds to a power level “Plimit” corresponding to a regulatory SAR level “SARcomp” (e.g., for a single operating radio, Plimit may be defined as the transmit power level at which the SAR level reaches the regulatory compliance level SARcomp)), where Figure 3A During some time intervals, the power level P exceeds the regulatory limit. max The radio radiates at a power level of 3 dB (or Plimit-3 dB, as shown) during other time intervals. In this mode of operation, the radio transmits at a power level of 3 dB (or Plimit-3 dB, as shown) for a period of time of length T. avg During each time interval of P max , Plimit and T avg The total time that the transmitter radiates at the higher level (Tmax) is determined by the value of . The output power is controlled so as to meet the constraints on the time-averaged transmit power (e.g., by Figure 3A A controller that alternates between two power levels as shown may be referred to as a "time-averaged SAR" (TAS) controller.

[0054] Figure 3B A system and method for dynamically allocating transmit power between three radios (i) a wireless local area network (WLAN) radio, (ii) a long term evolution (LTE) radio, and (iii) a NR (new radio) radio is shown. The total SAR 310 (e.g., 1.2 W / kg) is allocated partially to the WLAN radio and partially to the cellular radio; these portions may be referred to as g / kg, respectively. WLAN and g cellular (where g WLAN +g cellular =1), and the product of the total SAR and these respective parts results in (i) a cellular power allocation 315 and (ii) a WLAN power allocation 320, which is allocated to the WLAN spatial TAS controller 325. Within the cellular power allocation, the power can be further divided into a first part g LTE and the second part g NR (where g LTE +g NR =1) to form an LTE power allocation 330 allocated to the LTE space TAS controller 335 and an NR power allocation 340 allocated to the NR space TAS controller 345.

[0055] Various methods may be employed to dynamically adjust the ratio of the total available power for each radio. For example, in a user device 100 having two radios, each radio may be given a default SAR allocation (and corresponding power allocation), each allocation may be a set portion of a compliant SAR limit (SARcomp). In a first method, referred to herein as a switching ratio, each of the two radios in the user device 100 may be configured to send a message to the other radio when the other radio is turned off (e.g., stops transmitting) and when it starts transmitting. In such an operating mode, the first radio may first start transmitting at the last T when the second radio is turned off. avg Next, the first radio may (e.g., immediately or within a period less than T avg The second radio may start gradually increasing its available SAR level within a time interval of the last T or within a time interval less than a threshold time interval (which may be, for example, 10 seconds, 30 seconds, or 50 seconds), taking into account the first radio transmission history, until it reaches a SAR allocation that is greater than its default allocation by the second radio's default allocation. When the second radio is turned on again, the second radio may start receiving the last T avg The power transmission history of the first radio in the time period. In addition, for the next T avgDuring this period, the two radios will share their power transmission information, where the first radio gradually reduces its allocated SAR level while the second radio gradually increases its allocated SAR level. The T of each radio avg may be different.

[0056] For example, if (i) the second radio has a target SAR of SAR target (which may correspond to the target power P of the second radio target ), (ii) the second radio is turned off at time k (where k < t), and (iii) there are M increments within T avg (the averaging window), then the SAR available to the first radio as a function of time can be calculated as:

[0057]

[0058] And the power available to the first radio can be calculated similarly as:

[0059]

[0060] where SAR(n) is the SAR of the second radio at time n, and P(n) is the power transmitted by the second radio at time n. The value SAR target can be the SAR that the second radio would transmit when both radios are fully operational.

[0061] It should be understood that although the examples and embodiments described throughout the specification refer to multiple antennas using the same SAR level threshold, in some cases, different antennas may correspond to different individual SAR level thresholds based on factors such as hardware components, standardization changes, technology generation, etc.

[0062] When using a switching ratio, the radios may communicate relatively infrequently, only notifying each other when they transition to or from the zero - power state. As a result, when one radio reduces its transmit power without completely turning off, the other radio may not be able to utilize the remaining available power allocation.

[0063] As described herein, a "zero power" state may refer to a state in which a device and / or component is not transmitting or is transmitting at a power level that makes a measurement of the transmitted power level undetectable or has such an insignificant magnitude that the operating state of the device and / or component can be effectively considered to be zero without any effect on other operations. As used herein, the term "near zero" may also be used to describe a transmitted power level that is similarly insignificant and has no effect on other device / component operations, but is still measurable. In a non-controlled illustrative example, a first antenna may transmit a signal measured at a power level of 0.0001 W / kg, but a system including the first antenna may not be required to react to signals with power levels below 0.05 W / kg, thereby making the transmission of the first antenna "near zero."

[0064] In a second approach, referred to herein as periodic proportionality, each radio periodically sends a message containing transmit power information to the other radios. When a first radio sends such a message, the message may inform a second radio of the power that the first radio transmitted during the past averaging interval (which may be referred to as the "time average transmit power" or "time average power level"), or the average power that the first radio transmitted during the most recent time increment (which may be referred to as the "incremental average transmit power" or "incremental average power level"), each time increment being the interval between consecutive reports. When the first radio receives a report from the second radio indicating that the second radio has not used its full allocated SAR (e.g., it has been transmitting at low power for a period of time), the first radio may gradually increase its allocated SAR to use the unused allocation. When periodic proportionality is used, the radios may communicate frequently, for example, at the end of each time increment. Such relatively frequent reporting may come at a cost in terms of overhead, but it may have the advantage that when one radio reduces its transmit power without shutting down completely, the other radio may take advantage of the available power allocation remaining.

[0065] When using a periodic ratio, the first radio may choose (e.g., processing circuitry associated with the first radio may choose) to increase its lower power level by a gradually increasing amount equal to the allocated time-averaged SAR, which will slowly increase the first radio's average SAR level while keeping the overall average SAR below the compliance level. In another embodiment, the first radio may choose to use the sufficient SAR allocation from the second radio to increase the duration of its maximum allowed power level. This may introduce a rapid increase in the first radio's average SAR level, and an overshoot may occur; such an overshoot may absorb an appropriate margin (e.g., 10%) from the target SAR compliance level. This may be performed in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention. Figure 5B, where the total target SAR level is 1.2 W / kg and the total SAR at any antenna is lower than it. In another embodiment, if the second radio is using a lower SAR allocation (where too much SAR is being used by the first radio), the first radio may decide to reduce its transmit power for a period of time until the second radio can obtain its full SAR allocation. A similar approach may also be used in the handover ratio method.

[0066] In some embodiments, when the instantaneous SAR transmitted by the second radio is reduced (e.g., when the second radio is turned off), any instantaneous SAR that the second radio would have used is immediately available to the first radio at that moment (less any margin required to account for imperfect (e.g., delayed) communication between the radios), and the first radio can immediately begin transmitting at an instantaneous SAR equal to its total available instantaneous SAR (e.g., containing the instantaneous SAR that it would have transmitted if the instantaneous SAR of the second radio's transmission had not been reduced), plus any instantaneous SAR that the second radio would have used, less any required margin). For example, if Radio 2 were turned off at time t1, the instantaneous SAR that Radio 2 would have transmitted at time t1 would be available to Radio 1 at time t1, but not before. The time-averaged SAR of the second radio gradually decreases when the second radio is turned off, and its time-averaged SAR gradually increases at the same rate if the first radio immediately takes advantage of the newly available SAR. If the instantaneous SAR that the second radio would have generated if it had not been turned off is time-varying (e.g., occasionally exceeds the maximum allowed time-averaged SAR), then the same time-varying SAR immediately becomes available to the first radio.

[0067] In other embodiments, each radio may send a message with transmit power information to the other radio each time it changes its transmit power level. The above methods are easily generalized to user devices 100 having more than two radios. For example, if the user device has a WLAN radio and two cellular radios (for corresponding RATs), the total power allocated to the cellular radios may be adjusted based on the power transmitted by the WLAN radios. Each method may be generalized (in a method that may be referred to as spatial TAS) to the case where the user device 100 includes non-co-located antennas by ignoring the power transmitted by any non-co-located antenna when determining the power to be transmitted by any antenna. For example, in a user device 100 having a first antenna, a second antenna, and a third antenna, where (i) the first antenna is co-located with the second antenna, (ii) the third antenna is not co-located with the first antenna, and (iii) the third antenna is not co-located with the second antenna, the spatial TAS method may (i) determine the power to be transmitted by the first antenna, taking into account the power radiated by the second antenna, without taking into account the power radiated by the third antenna. And (ii) determine the power to be transmitted by the second antenna taking into account the power radiated by the first antenna, without taking into account the power radiated by the third antenna. As another example, if (i) the first antenna is co-located with the third antenna, (ii) the second antenna is co-located with the third antenna, and (iii) the first antenna is not co-located with the second antenna, the spatial TAS method may (i) determine the power to be transmitted by the first antenna taking into account the power radiated by the third antenna without taking into account the power radiated by the second antenna, (ii) determine the power to be transmitted by the second antenna taking into account the power radiated by the third antenna and without taking into account the power radiated by the first antenna, and (iii) determine the power to be transmitted by the third antenna taking into account the combined effect of the power radiated at both the first antenna and the second antenna. The power control algorithm may be implemented in software executed in corresponding processing circuits in a radio chip, each radio chip being part of a corresponding radio. In some embodiments, several radios may share a radio chip, and the power control algorithm for the radios may be implemented in the shared processing circuits in the radio chip, for example, the shared processing circuits may execute different control software for each radio.

[0068] Figure 4A 4 shows a graph of the requested power level transmitted by the WLAN radio of the user equipment 100 as a function of time. During the low power interval 405, the WLAN radio operates at less than its default allocated Plimit WLAN 4. During the zero power interval 410, the WLAN radio transmits at a power level of 0, and during the zero power interval 410, the WLAN radio transmits at a zero power level (ie, the radio does not transmit). Figure 4BA graph is shown of requested power levels transmitted by the cellular radio(s) of the user equipment 100 as a function of time. During the zero power interval 415, the cellular radio transmits at a zero power level (ie, the radio does not transmit).

[0069] Figure 5A is shown in an embodiment using a switching ratio, when the WLAN radio requests transmit power (eg Figure 4A 4 is a graph of the average SAR of the power transmitted by a cellular radio (assuming its antennas Ant 1 and Ant 2 are decoupled) as a function of time when the WLAN radio is turned off (as shown in FIG. 4 ). During interval 405, when the WLAN radio is transmitting at reduced power, the allocated SAR levels of the two cellular radios are unchanged, in part because they are unaware of the reduction in WLAN transmit power. As a result, the total average power transmitted by the user equipment 100 during this interval is reduced (and the cellular radios do not use the available remaining power (SAR) allocation). However, at the beginning of interval 410, when the WLAN radio is turned off, the WLAN radio sends a message to the cellular radios informing them that the WLAN radio is transitioning to a zero power state. The cellular radios then gradually increase their SAR allocations to utilize the available remaining SAR allocations, and the total average power (SAR) transmitted by the user equipment 100 is the same as when each radio is transmitting at its default allocation.

[0070] Figure 5B is an example of an embodiment using a periodic ratio when a WLAN radio requests transmit power (eg Figure 4A 405, as a function of time). At the beginning of interval 405 when the WLAN radio transmits at a reduced power (and periodically during the interval), the WLAN radio sends a message to the cellular radios informing them of the reduction in the WLAN average transmit power, and (with the corresponding Figure 5A 405 ), the average power (SAR) of both cellular radios increases as the cellular radios utilize the respective available remaining SAR allocations. Similarly, at the beginning of interval 410 during which the WLAN radio is off (and periodically during that interval), the WLAN radio sends a message to the cellular radios informing them that the WLAN radio is not transmitting power. The cellular radios then gradually increase their SAR allocations again to utilize the available remaining SAR allocations, and during both the low power interval 405 and the zero power interval 410, the total average power (SAR) transmitted by the user equipment 100 is the same as when each radio is transmitting at its default allocation.

[0071] Figure 6is a block diagram of an electronic device (such as user device 100) in a network environment 600 according to an embodiment.

[0072] refer to Figure 6 , the electronic device 601 in the network environment 600 may communicate with the electronic device 602 via the first network 698 (e.g., a short-range wireless communication network), or communicate with the electronic device 604 or the server 608 via the second network 699 (e.g., a long-range wireless communication network). The electronic device 601 may communicate with the electronic device 604 via the server 608. The electronic device 601 may include a processor 620, a memory 630, an input device 650, a sound output device 655, a display device 660, an audio module 670, a sensor module 676, an interface 677, a tactile module 679, a camera module 680, a power management module 688, a battery 689, a communication module 690, a user identification module (SIM) card 696, or an antenna module 697. In one embodiment, at least one of the components (e.g., the display device 660 or the camera module 680) may be omitted from the electronic device 601, or one or more other components may be added to the electronic device 601. Some components may be implemented as a single integrated circuit (IC). For example, the sensor module 676 (eg, a fingerprint sensor, an iris sensor, or an illumination sensor) may be embedded in the display device 660 (eg, a display).

[0073] The processor 620 may execute software (eg, program 640 ) to control at least one other component (eg, hardware or software component) of the electronic device 601 coupled to the processor 620 , and may perform various data processing or calculations.

[0074] As at least part of data processing or calculation, the processor 620 may load commands or data received from another component (e.g., the sensor module 676 or the communication module 690) into the volatile memory 632, process the commands or data stored in the volatile memory 632, and store the resulting data in the non-volatile memory 634. The processor 620 may include a main processor 621 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU) or an application processor (AP)) and an auxiliary processor 623 (e.g., a graphics processing unit (GPU), an image signal processor (ISP), a sensor hub processor, or a communication processor (CP)), and the auxiliary processor 623 may operate independently of the main processor 621 or in conjunction with the main processor 621. Additionally or alternatively, the auxiliary processor 623 may be adapted to consume less power than the main processor 621, or to perform a specific function. The auxiliary processor 623 may be implemented to be separate from the main processor 621 or to be a part of the main processor 621.

[0075] The auxiliary processor 623 may replace the main processor 621 when the main processor 621 is in an inactive (e.g., sleeping) state, or control at least some of the functions or states related to at least one of the components of the electronic device 601 (e.g., the display device 660, the sensor module 676, or the communication module 690) together with the main processor 621 when the main processor 621 is in an active state (e.g., executing an application). The auxiliary processor 623 (e.g., an image signal processor or a communication processor) may be implemented as a part of another component (e.g., a camera module 680 or a communication module 690) that is functionally related to the auxiliary processor 623.

[0076] The memory 630 may store various data used by at least one component of the electronic device 601 (e.g., the processor 620 or the sensor module 676). The various data may include, for example, software (e.g., program 640) and input data or output data for commands related thereto. The memory 630 may include a volatile memory 632 or a non-volatile memory 634. The non-volatile memory 634 may include an internal memory 636 and / or an external memory 638.

[0077] The program 640 may be stored as software in the memory 630 , and may include, for example, an operating system (OS) 642 , middleware 644 , or an application 646 .

[0078] The input device 650 may receive a command or data to be used by another component (eg, the processor 620) of the electronic device 601 from outside (eg, a user) of the electronic device 601. The input device 650 may include, for example, a microphone, a mouse, or a keyboard.

[0079] The sound output device 655 can output sound signals to the outside of the electronic device 601. The sound output device 655 may include, for example, a speaker or a receiver. The speaker may be used for general purposes, such as playing multimedia or recording, and the receiver may be used to receive incoming calls. The receiver may be implemented as being separate from the speaker or as part of the speaker.

[0080] The display device 660 can visually provide information to the outside (e.g., user) of the electronic device 601. The display device 660 may include, for example, a display, a hologram device, or a projector, and a control circuit for controlling a corresponding one of the display, the hologram device, and the projector. The display device 660 may include a touch circuit suitable for detecting a touch or a sensor circuit (e.g., a pressure sensor) suitable for measuring the strength of the force caused by the touch.

[0081] The audio module 670 can convert sound into an electrical signal and vice versa. The audio module 670 can obtain sound via the input device 650, or output sound via the sound output device 655 or an earphone of an external electronic device 602 directly (eg, wired) or wirelessly coupled to the electronic device 601.

[0082] The sensor module 676 can detect the operating state (e.g., power or temperature) of the electronic device 601 or the environmental state (e.g., the state of the user) outside the electronic device 601, and then generate an electrical signal or data value corresponding to the detected state. The sensor module 676 may include, for example, a gesture sensor, a gyroscope sensor, an atmospheric pressure sensor, a magnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor, a grip sensor, a proximity sensor, a color sensor, an infrared (IR) sensor, a biometric sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, or an illumination sensor.

[0083] The interface 677 may support one or more designated protocols for the electronic device 601 to be directly (e.g., wired) or wirelessly coupled with the external electronic device 602. The interface 677 may include, for example, a high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI), a universal serial bus (USB) interface, a secure digital (SD) card interface, or an audio interface.

[0084] The connection terminal 678 may include a connector via which the electronic device 601 may be physically connected to the external electronic device 602. The connection terminal 678 may include, for example, an HDMI connector, a USB connector, an SD card connector, or an audio connector (eg, a headphone connector).

[0085] The haptic module 679 may convert the electrical signal into a mechanical stimulus (eg, vibration or movement) or an electrical stimulus that may be recognized by the user via a tactile or kinesthetic sense. The haptic module 679 may include, for example, a motor, a piezoelectric element, or an electrical stimulator.

[0086] The camera module 680 may capture still images or moving images. The camera module 680 may include one or more lenses, an image sensor, an image signal processor, or a flash. The power management module 688 may manage the power supplied to the electronic device 601. The power management module 688 may be implemented as at least a portion of a power management integrated circuit (PMIC), for example.

[0087] The battery 689 may supply power to at least one component of the electronic device 601. The battery 689 may include, for example, a non-rechargeable primary battery, a rechargeable secondary battery, or a fuel cell.

[0088] The communication module 690 may support establishing a direct (e.g., wired) communication channel or a wireless communication channel between the electronic device 601 and an external electronic device (e.g., electronic device 602, electronic device 604, or server 608), and perform communication via the established communication channel. The communication module 690 may include one or more communication processors that may operate independently of the processor 620 (e.g., AP) and support direct (e.g., wired) communication or wireless communication. The communication module 690 may include a wireless communication module 692 (e.g., a cellular communication module, a short-range wireless communication module, or a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) communication module) or a wired communication module 694 (e.g., a local area network (LAN) communication module or a power line communication (PLC) module). A corresponding one of these communication modules can communicate with an external electronic device via a first network 698 (e.g., a short-range communication network such as Bluetooth™, Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) Direct, or Infrared Data Association (IrDA) standards) or a second network 699 (e.g., a long-range communication network such as a cellular network, the Internet, or a computer network (e.g., a LAN or a wide area network (WAN)). These various types of communication modules can be implemented as a single component (e.g., a single IC), or can be implemented as multiple components separated from each other (e.g., multiple ICs). The wireless communication module 692 can use user information (e.g., International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI)) stored in the user identification module 696 to identify and authenticate the electronic device 601 in the communication network (such as the first network 698 or the second network 699).

[0089] The antenna module 697 may transmit a signal or power to or receive a signal or power from the outside of the electronic device 601 (e.g., an external electronic device). The antenna module 697 may include one or more antennas, and thus, at least one antenna suitable for a communication scheme used in a communication network (such as the first network 698 or the second network 699) may be selected, for example, by the communication module 690 (e.g., the wireless communication module 692). Then, a signal or power may be transmitted or received between the communication module 690 and the external electronic device via the selected at least one antenna.

[0090] Commands or data may be transmitted or received between the electronic device 601 and the external electronic device 604 via a server 608 coupled to the second network 699. Each of the electronic devices 602 and 604 may be a device of the same type or a different type as the electronic device 601. All or some of the operations to be performed at the electronic device 601 may be performed at one or more of the external electronic devices 602, 604, or 608. For example, if the electronic device 601 should automatically or in response to a request from a user or another device to perform a function or service, the electronic device 601 may request one or more external electronic devices to perform at least a portion of the function or service, instead of performing the function or service, or in addition to performing the function or service, the electronic device 601 may also request one or more external electronic devices to perform at least a portion of the function or service. The one or more external electronic devices receiving the request may perform at least a portion of the requested function or service, or additional functions or additional services related to the request, and transmit the result of the execution to the electronic device 601. The electronic device 601 may provide the result as at least a part of the reply to the request with or without further processing the result. To this end, for example, cloud computing, distributed computing, or client-server computing technology may be used.

[0091] The embodiments of the subject matter and operations described in this specification may be implemented in digital electronic circuits, or in computer software, firmware or hardware, including the structures disclosed in this specification and their structural equivalents, or a combination of one or more of them. The embodiments of the subject matter described in this specification may be implemented as one or more computer programs, i.e., one or more modules of computer program instructions, which are encoded on a computer storage medium for execution by a data processing device or for controlling the operation of a data processing device. Alternatively or additionally, program instructions may be encoded on an artificially generated propagation signal, such as a machine-generated electrical, optical or electromagnetic signal, which is generated to encode information for transmission to a suitable receiver device for execution by a data processing device. The computer storage medium may be a computer-readable storage device, a computer-readable storage substrate, a random or serial access memory array or device, or a combination thereof, or be included therein. In addition, although a computer storage medium is not a propagation signal, a computer storage medium may be a source or destination of computer program instructions encoded in an artificially generated propagation signal. The computer storage medium may also be, or be included in, one or more separate physical components or media (e.g., multiple CDs, disks, or other storage devices). Additionally, the operations described in this specification may be implemented as operations performed by a data processing apparatus on data stored on one or more computer-readable storage devices or received from other sources.

[0092] Although this specification may contain many specific implementation details, the implementation details should not be interpreted as limiting the scope of any claimed subject matter, but rather as a description of features specific to a particular embodiment. Certain features described in the context of separate embodiments in this specification may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, the various features described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented in multiple embodiments individually or in any suitable sub-combination. In addition, although features may be described above as functioning in certain combinations and even initially claimed as such, one or more features from the claimed combination may be cut out of the combination in some cases, and the claimed combination may be directed to a sub-combination or a variation of the sub-combination.

[0093] Similarly, although operations are depicted in a particular order in the accompanying drawings, this should not be understood as requiring that the operations be performed in the particular order shown or in sequence, or that all of the operations shown be performed, to achieve the desired results. In some cases, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. In addition, the separation of various system components in the above-described embodiments should not be understood as requiring such separation in all embodiments, and it should be understood that the described program components and systems can generally be integrated together in a single software product or packaged into multiple software products.

[0094] Therefore, specific embodiments of the subject matter have been described herein. Other embodiments are also within the scope of the appended claims. In some cases, the actions set forth in the claims can be performed in different orders and still achieve the desired results. In addition, the processes depicted in the accompanying drawings do not necessarily require the specific order or sequential order shown to achieve the desired results. In some embodiments, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous.

[0095] As those skilled in the art will recognize, the innovative concepts described herein can be modified and varied over a wide range of applications. Therefore, the scope of the claimed subject matter should not be limited to any specific exemplary teachings discussed above, but rather is defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A device comprising: First Radio; Second radio; as well as one or more processors; as well as A memory storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the following operations to be performed: determining that a first transmission of the first radio is transmitted at a first power level greater than zero and less than a first threshold, and in response to determining that the first transmission by the first radio was transmitted at a first power level less than the first threshold, causing the second radio to transmit a second transmission at a second power level, The second power level is determined at least in part based on the first power level and the first threshold. 2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second power level is less than or equal to a sum of the first threshold and a difference between the first threshold and the first power level. 3 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second power level is less than or equal to a sum of a second threshold value and a difference between the first threshold value and the first power level, wherein the second threshold value is different from the first threshold value.

4. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The first power level of the first radio is a time average power level of the first radio.

5. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The first power level is a delta average power level of the first radio.

6. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The first threshold is a set fraction of the compliant power limit.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first radio comprises a first transmit antenna and the second radio comprises a second transmit antenna co-located with the first transmit antenna.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, further comprising a third radio, the third radio comprising a third transmit antenna, the third transmit antenna not being co-located with the second transmit antenna, in, The instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the following operations: determining the second power level based on an amount that does not include power levels of transmissions transmitted by the third transmit antenna.

9. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the following operations to be performed: determining that a third transmission by the second radio is transmitted at a third power level less than a third threshold, and In response to determining that the third transmission by the second radio is transmitted at a third power level less than the third threshold, causing the first radio to transmit a fourth transmission at a fourth power level, the fourth power level being determined at least in part based on the third power level and the third threshold.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the fourth power level is less than or equal to a sum of the third threshold value and a difference between the third threshold value and the third power level.

11. The device according to claim 9, wherein: The memory also stores instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, result in sending messages to a first processing circuit, each message containing power level information for the first radio.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause execution to periodically send the message with a period of less than 60 seconds.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause execution of sending messages, each message containing power level information of the second radio.

14. A device comprising: First Radio; Second radio; as well as one or more first processors; as well as A memory storing first instructions that, when executed by the one or more first processors, cause the following operations to be performed: determining that the first radio is not transmitting or that the first radio is transmitting at a first power level approaching zero, and responsive to the determination, causing the second radio to transmit a second transmission at a second power level for the determined threshold time period, Wherein the second power level is determined based at least in part on a first threshold for transmission by the first radio.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the second power level is less than or equal to twice the first threshold.

16. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the second power level is less than or equal to a sum of the first threshold and a second threshold, wherein the second threshold is different from the first threshold.

17. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the first radio comprises a first transmit antenna and the second radio comprises a second transmit antenna co-located with the first transmit antenna.

18. The device of claim 14, further comprising one or more second processors, wherein: The memory also stores second instructions that, when executed by the one or more second processors, result in sending a message to the one or more first processors indicating that the first power level is zero.

19. An apparatus comprising: First Radio; Second radio; as well as Components for processing, The components for processing are configured to: determining that a first transmission of the first radio was transmitted at a first power level less than a first threshold, and in response to determining that the first transmission by the first radio was transmitted at a first power level less than the first threshold, causing the second radio to transmit a second transmission at a second power level, The second power level is determined at least in part based on the first power level and the first threshold.

20. The device according to claim 19, wherein The second power level is less than or equal to a sum of the first threshold and a difference between the first threshold and the first power level.

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