Radio frequency receiving unit and signal receiving method thereof

Abstract

The invention provides a radio frequency receiving unit and a signal receiving method thereof, and particularly provides a radio frequency receiving unit. The radio frequency receiving unit comprises a plurality of signal processing paths; at least one receiving port, each of the at least one receiving port being configured to be able to receive a full bandwidth signal; the frequency detection unit is configured to detect a frequency band to which a signal received by the at least one receiving port belongs; and a control unit configured to input the received signal to a corresponding signal processing path for processing based on the detected frequency band.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communication technology, and more specifically, to a radio frequency receiving unit and a signal receiving method thereof. Background Art

[0002] In today's world economy, the demand for uploading and downloading multimedia, Internet, small videos, etc. is accelerating, and the uplink and downlink throughput requirements from users and the uplink and downlink throughput requirements for users are surging, while spectrum resources are limited. The increase in throughput requirements for mobile terminal users has led to the need for many carrier aggregation (CA) / Long Term Evolution (LTE) and New Radio (NR) dual-link (EUTRA NR Dual-Connectivity, ENDC) / NR CA combinations by operators in various countries, regions, and regions around the world. For example, the combination of 7CA / 9CA between "low frequency", "medium frequency", and "high frequency" is implemented within limited hardware resources, resulting in complex radio frequency (RF) front-end architecture design.

[0003] The bandwidth of the receive (Rx) low noise amplifier currently integrated in the RF transceiver often only supports a part of the frequency band, such as low frequency (e.g., 700MHz ~ 960MHz) / medium and high frequency (e.g., 1.7GHz ~ 3GHz) / ultra-high frequency (e.g., 3.3GHz ~ 4.2GHz). Each receive port does not achieve full bandwidth coverage from low frequency to ultra-high frequency, and is limited by the number of hardware Rx ports. The front-end design uses more RF devices and switches to achieve more CA / ENDC / NR CA combinations. This approach not only makes the design more complex and difficult, but also fails to maximize the CA / ENDC / NR CA combination. Summary of the invention

[0004] Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a radio frequency (RF) receiving unit and a signal receiving method thereof, which can solve part or all of the above problems.

[0005] According to one aspect of an example embodiment, a radio frequency (RF) receiving unit is provided, the RF receiving unit comprising: a plurality of signal processing paths; at least one receiving port, each of the at least one receiving port being configured to receive a received signal having any frequency within a full bandwidth, wherein the full bandwidth includes a predetermined frequency range; a frequency detection unit configured to detect a frequency band within the full bandwidth to which the received signal belongs; and a control unit configured to control routing of the received signal to a corresponding signal processing path among the plurality of signal processing paths for processing based on the detected frequency band.

[0006] Among the various options:

[0007] The frequency detection unit is configured to indicate the detected frequency band to the control unit.

[0008] The RF receiving unit also includes: a switch module, wherein the control unit is configured to: receive an indication of the detected frequency band from the frequency detection unit; and based on the detected frequency band, control the switch module to switch the received signal to a corresponding signal processing path for processing.

[0009] The RF receiving unit may also include: a low noise amplifier module configured to operate over the full bandwidth, the low noise amplifier module including low noise amplifiers optimized for respective different frequency bands, wherein each of the multiple signal processing paths is provided with a low noise amplifier corresponding to at least one frequency band.

[0010] The control unit may be configured to: based on the detected frequency band, control the received signal to be routed to a signal processing path provided with a low noise amplifier corresponding to the frequency band for processing.

[0011] The radio frequency receiving unit may further include: a peripheral circuit including one or more full bandwidth receiving antennas, wherein each of the at least one receiving port is connected to the one or more full bandwidth receiving antennas to receive the receiving signal.

[0012] According to another aspect of the exemplary embodiment, a signal receiving method is performed by the RF receiving unit outlined above, the method comprising: receiving a receive signal by the at least one receiving port; detecting a frequency band to which the receive signal belongs by the frequency detection unit; and controlling by the control unit to route the receive signal to a corresponding signal processing path for processing based on the detected frequency band.

[0013] The signal receiving method further includes: the frequency detection unit indicating the detected frequency band to the control unit.

[0014] The RF receiving unit also includes: a switch module, wherein the received signal is routed to a corresponding signal processing path for processing based on the detected frequency band, including: receiving an indication of the detected frequency band from the frequency detection unit; and based on the detected frequency band, controlling the switch module to switch the received signal to a signal processing path corresponding to the detected frequency band for processing.

[0015] The RF receiving unit also includes: a low noise amplifier module configured to operate over the full bandwidth, the low noise amplifier module including low noise amplifiers optimized for different frequency bands, wherein each of the multiple signal processing paths is provided with a low noise amplifier corresponding to at least one frequency band.

[0016] The received signal is routed to a corresponding signal processing path for processing based on the detected frequency band, including: based on the detected frequency band, the received signal is routed to a signal processing path provided with a low noise amplifier corresponding to the frequency band for processing.

[0017] The radio frequency receiving unit further comprises: a peripheral circuit comprising: one or more full bandwidth receiving antennas, wherein each of the at least one receiving port is connected to the one or more full bandwidth receiving antennas to receive the receiving signal.

[0018] According to another aspect of an exemplary embodiment, a communication node includes: a radio frequency receiving unit; and a processor coupled to the radio frequency receiving unit and configured to execute the signal receiving method as described above.

[0019] According to another aspect of the exemplary embodiments, there is provided a computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that a computer program is stored thereon, and when the program is executed, the signal receiving method as described above is implemented.

[0020] The technical solution provided according to the embodiments of the present disclosure brings at least the following beneficial effects: each receiving port of the RF receiving unit can realize the reception of full-bandwidth signals, and the selection and configuration of the receiving port are more flexible. Since it is no longer necessary for each receiving port to only receive fixed-band signals, the complexity of the RF front-end design and the path insertion loss are reduced, and the receiving capability of the RF path is improved. In addition, the RF receiving unit can also realize the maximum demand for CA / ENDC / NR CA by different operators in different regions around the world, improve downlink throughput and enhance user experience.

[0021] It is to be understood that the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the present disclosure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] The drawings herein are incorporated into and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the present disclosure, and together with the description are used to explain the principles of the present disclosure, and do not constitute improper limitations on the present disclosure.

[0023] Figure 1 Shown is a schematic block diagram of the interior of a conventional radio frequency transceiver.

[0024] Figure 2 FIG. 4 shows a receiving port input signal of a conventional RF transceiver in a carrier aggregation scenario.

[0025] Figure 3 A conventional receiving scheme for adding peripheral channels and devices is shown.

[0026] Figure 4 A schematic block diagram of the interior of a radio frequency receiving unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0027] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of a single path inside a radio frequency receiving unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0028] Figure 6 Another single-channel schematic diagram inside the radio frequency receiving unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0029] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the internal multi-path of a radio frequency receiving unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0030] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a radio frequency transceiver including peripheral circuits according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0031] Fig. 9 The receiving port input signal of the radio frequency transceiver in the carrier aggregation scenario according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0032] Fig.10 A flow chart of a signal receiving method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0033] Fig.11 A block diagram of a communication node according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0034] In order to enable ordinary persons in the art to better understand the inventive concept and technical solution of the present disclosure, the embodiments of the present disclosure will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0035] It should be noted that the terms "first", "second", etc. in the specification and claims of the present disclosure and the above-mentioned drawings are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the data used in this way can be interchanged where appropriate, so that the embodiments of the present disclosure described herein can be implemented in an order other than those illustrated or described herein. The implementation methods described in the following examples do not represent all implementation methods consistent with the present disclosure. Instead, they are merely examples of devices and methods consistent with some aspects of the present disclosure as detailed in the attached claims.

[0036] It should be noted that the phrase "at least one of the items" in the present disclosure includes three types of parallel situations: "any one of the items", "a combination of any number of the items", and "all of the items". For example, "including at least one of A and B" includes the following three parallel situations: (1) including A; (2) including B; (3) including A and B. Another example is "performing at least one of operation 1 and operation 2" which means the following three parallel situations: (1) performing operation 1; (2) performing operation 2; (3) performing operation 1 and operation 2.

[0037] It will be understood that if an element (e.g., a first element) is referred to as being “combined with another element (e.g., the second element)”, “combined to another element (e.g., the second element)”, “connected with another element (e.g., the second element)”, or “connected to another element (e.g., the second element)” when the terms “operably” or “communicatively” are used or when the terms “operably” or “communicatively” are not used, it means that the element may be directly (e.g., wired) connected to the other element, wirelessly connected to the other element, or connected to the other element via a third element.

[0038] Figure 1 Figure 2 shows a schematic block diagram of a conventional radio frequency transceiver. Figure 1 , the RF transceiver (or the receiver it includes) includes three receiving ports, and also includes a low-frequency low noise amplifier, a medium-high frequency low noise amplifier, and an ultra-high frequency low noise amplifier. The low-frequency low noise amplifier can only support low-frequency bandwidth and can process low-frequency signals. The medium-high frequency low noise amplifier can only support medium-high frequency bandwidth and can process medium-high frequency signals, while the ultra-high frequency low noise amplifier can only support ultra-high frequency bandwidth and can process ultra-high frequency signals. After the three receiving ports of the RF transceiver receive low-frequency signal input, medium-high frequency signal input, and ultra-high frequency signal input respectively, the low-frequency signal is transmitted to the low-frequency low noise amplifier for processing, the medium-high frequency signal is transmitted to the medium-high frequency low noise amplifier for processing, and the ultra-high frequency signal is transmitted to the ultra-high frequency low noise amplifier for processing. The processed signal is sequentially input into the demodulation detection module and the software algorithm module through the subsequent switch module (SW Box) (optional module) to realize the demodulation of the received signal.

[0039] Figure 2 FIG. 4 shows a receiving port input signal of a conventional RF transceiver in a carrier aggregation scenario.

[0040] Reference Figure 2In the carrier aggregation (CA) scenario, for example, in the case of CA: B8-B3-B78 carrier aggregation, the reception signal of the frequency band B8 (960MHz) can only enter from the low-frequency reception port, the reception signal of the frequency band B3 (1800MHz) can only enter from the medium-high frequency reception port, and the reception signal of the frequency band B78 (3300MHz-3800MHz) can only enter from the ultra-high frequency reception port.

[0041] In current RF transceivers (or the RF receivers they include), each receiving port can only receive frequency band signals in a fixed frequency range and cannot achieve full bandwidth coverage from low frequency to ultra-high frequency. In addition, since the frequency band of the receiving port receiving the signal is fixed, the peripheral circuit needs to be designed according to the port rules of the RF transceiver, which increases the complexity of the peripheral circuit and the flexible printed circuit board (PCB) routing is not flexible.

[0042] Figure 3 A conventional receiving scheme for adding peripheral channels and devices is shown.

[0043] Reference Figure 3 In the prior art, a switch module can be added to the periphery of the RF transceiver (or the RF receiver it includes), and after switching to different receiving paths (which may include filtering modules and receiving units) for different frequency bands, the signals of the preset frequency bands are respectively input through the corresponding receiving ports of the RF transceiver. This solution does not change the internal architecture and circuits of the RF transceiver, and each receiving port of the RF transceiver in this solution can only input frequency band signals in a fixed frequency range. In addition, if each frequency band is processed by adding switches, filtering modules and receiving units, it will significantly increase the cost, greatly increase the complexity of the system, lead to an inflexible antenna design, and reduce the RF performance and affect the user experience due to the increase in routing loss of each path.

[0044] In order to solve the above problems, the present disclosure optimizes the internal architecture of the RF transceiver (or RF receiving unit), and integrates a frequency detection module and a switch module to switch to the signal processing path to achieve full-bandwidth reception for each receiving port. The interior of the RF transceiver may refer to the interior of a chip (for example, an RF transceiver chip), and the receiving port may refer to a connection point of the chip, and the peripheral circuit may be a peripheral circuit built around the interior of the RF transceiver, wherein the peripheral circuit may include: a power amplifier (the transmitter part of the transceiver), a filter, and an antenna, etc. Both the internal and peripheral circuits of the RF transceiver can be implemented in the form of a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC). Refer to the attached Figures 4 to 11 The radio frequency receiving unit and the signal receiving method thereof according to the present disclosure are described in detail.

[0045] The radio frequency receiving unit ("receiver") of the present disclosure may be the receiver part of the radio frequency transceiver of the device with communication function, or a part of the device with communication function that independently implements signal reception, which is not limited in the present disclosure. In addition, devices with communication functions may include: mobile terminals (such as smart phones, mobile phones, video phones, etc.), wearable devices (such as smart glasses, head-mounted displays (HMD), electronic clothing, electronic bracelets, electronic necklaces, electronic accessories, electronic tattoos or smart watches, etc.), sensors, mobile medical devices, Internet of Things devices, tablet computers, desktop, laptop, handheld computers, notebook computers, netbooks, personal digital assistants (PDA), augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) and other devices. Devices with communication functions may also include base stations in 5G systems, base stations (BTS) in global mobile communications (GSM) systems or code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, and base stations (NodeB) in wideband CDMA (WCDMA) systems. It can also be an evolved base station (eNB) in an LTE system, an access point (AP), a relay station, a radio network controller (RNC), a base station controller (BSC), a transceiver function (TF), a wireless router, a wireless transceiver, etc., but the present disclosure is not limited to this.

[0046] Figure 4 A schematic block diagram of the interior of a radio frequency receiving unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0047] Reference Figure 4 , the RF receiving unit (i.e., RF receiver) 400 may include: at least one receiving port 410, a frequency detection unit 420, a control unit 430, and a plurality of signal processing paths 440. Each of the at least one receiving port is capable of receiving signals of full bandwidth; the frequency detection unit may detect the frequency band to which the signal received by the at least one receiving port belongs; and the control unit may control the routing ("input") of the received signal to the corresponding signal processing path for processing based on the detected frequency band.

[0048] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the radio frequency receiving unit may include at least one receiving port, and each receiving port may realize the reception of "full bandwidth signals". In this article, "full bandwidth" may include a predetermined frequency range (for example, a modulated carrier for data / control / pilot signal communication), and the radio frequency receiving unit is designed to receive and fully demodulate for the predetermined frequency range to achieve the required communication performance. "Full bandwidth signals" may be received signals with any frequency within the full bandwidth. The frequency range of the full bandwidth may include multiple frequency bands, and the multiple frequency bands include separated, overlapping and / or adjacent frequency bands. As mentioned above, it is necessary to design a radio frequency receiving unit that can receive signals required by operators in different countries and regions around the world. These signals may be in different frequency bands, such as "low frequency band", "medium and high frequency band" and "ultra-high frequency band". Signals of any frequency band within the full bandwidth can enter from the receiving port without entering through a fixed receiving port, and the free configuration of the receiving port is flexibly realized.

[0049] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a frequency detection unit may be connected to each of at least one receiving port, and detect the frequency of a signal received by each receiving port, thereby determining in which frequency band the received signal is located. The frequency detection unit may be designed to detect a signal having expected characteristics in a mobile communication system (such as a system compatible with LTE (4G) or NR (5G) protocols). For example, the frequency detection unit may be configured to determine whether and where there is a pilot signal (or control channel) having a received signal strength (RSSI) higher than a predetermined threshold value over the entire frequency band. In this way, when a mobile terminal or similar device to which the receiving unit belongs is turned on for the first time, the frequency detection unit may detect a base station signal to determine the protocol (e.g., 2G, 3G, 4G, etc.) of a communication signal used in an area. To this end, the frequency detection unit may employ a variety of methods to detect the frequency of a signal. Some example methods may include: (i) a counting method: calculating the frequency of a signal by counting the number of cycles of the signal within a certain period of time; (iii) a phase coordination method: calculating the frequency by comparing the phase shifts of two signals; (iii) a phase shift method: measuring the frequency by changing the phase difference of the signal; and a frequency meter method (iv), measuring the frequency of a signal by a dedicated frequency meter. It is noted that the frequency detection unit may include one or more low noise amplifiers of its own to amplify the input signal to a sufficient level and signal-to-noise ratio level to perform accurate frequency detection. It should be understood that the method of detecting frequency of the above-mentioned frequency detection unit is only an example and the present disclosure is not limited to this.

[0050] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the frequency detection unit may indicate the detected frequency band (provide information about the detected frequency band) to the control unit.

[0051] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the frequency detection unit may be connected to the control unit and indicate to the control unit the frequency band to which the detected received signal belongs. After receiving the indication of the detected frequency band from the frequency detection unit, the control unit may control the routing of the received signal to a corresponding (or different) signal processing path for processing based on the detected frequency band.

[0052] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a plurality of signal processing pathways can process received signals of the same or different frequency bands, and a plurality of signal processing pathways can process received signals covering the full bandwidth. For example, in the case of three signal processing pathways, the three signal processing pathways can respectively process, for example, low-frequency signals, medium-high frequency signals, and ultra-high frequency signals. In the case of five signal processing pathways, there can be two pathways for processing low-frequency signals and medium-high frequency signals, respectively, while another signal processing pathway can process ultra-high frequency signals. In addition, the frequency band range that can be processed by a plurality of signal processing pathways can be specifically specified. For example, the frequency band range that can be processed by signal processing pathway 1 is 2.2GHz-4.0GHz. When the frequency detection unit detects that the frequency of the received signal falls within the frequency band range, the control unit can route the received signal to signal processing pathway 1.

[0053] Here, the number of multiple signal processing paths and the frequency band type and range value of the specific processed signal are only examples, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In addition, the structure of the above-mentioned radio frequency receiving unit is also only an example, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0054] Figure 5 FIG. 4 shows a schematic diagram of a single path inside a radio frequency receiving unit 400a (an example of a radio frequency receiving unit 400 ) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 6 Another single-channel schematic diagram inside the radio frequency receiving unit 400b according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0055] Reference Figure 5 and Figure 6 , the RF receiving units 400a and 400b may include: at least one receiving port 410, a frequency detection unit 420, a control unit 430, a plurality of signal processing paths 440 and a switch module 450. Figure 5 and Figure 6 Only one receiving port is shown in the figure, but the number of ports of the RF receiving unit of the present disclosure can be set to multiple. Figure 5 The three signal processing paths 440 are shown in FIG. 1 and the processed signals are sequentially input to the demodulation detection module 470 and the processor 480 to execute the software algorithm module to realize the demodulation of the received signal. Figure 6 Five signal processing paths are shown in a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC). Figure 5Each signal processing path 440 in can be considered to include a routing path within a switch module 450, one of LNA 461, 462 or 463 of a low noise amplifier (LNA) module 460, a demodulation detection module 470 and a processor 480. Similarly, Figure 6 Each signal processing path 440 in the embodiment can be understood as including a routing path in the switch module 450a, an LNA in the LNA module 660, a demodulation detection module 470 and a processor 480 (both in Figure 6 are not shown).

[0056] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the receiving port is capable of receiving an input signal of full bandwidth, and the frequency detection unit may be connected to the receiving port and detect the frequency of the signal received by the receiving port, thereby determining which frequency band the signal received by the receiving port is in. The frequency detection unit may be connected to the control unit and send the frequency band to which the detected received signal belongs to to the control unit.

[0057] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the RF receiving unit may further include: a switch module, wherein the control unit may receive the detected frequency band sent by the frequency detection unit, and based on the detected frequency band, control the switch module to switch the received signal to a signal processing path corresponding to the frequency band for processing.

[0058] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a switch module can be used to input a received signal into a corresponding signal processing path for processing. The control unit can also be connected to the switch module. After receiving the detected frequency band sent by the frequency detection unit, the control unit can control the switch module to switch the received signal to the signal processing path corresponding to the frequency band. The switch module may include one or more switches. Figure 5 and Figure 6 In the case of a receiving port, the switch module may include, for example, a single-pole multi-throw switch. When the frequency band of the received signal detected by the frequency detection unit is low frequency, the control unit may control the single-pole multi-throw switch of the switch module to be connected to the low-frequency signal processing path, so that the low-frequency signal processing path processes the received signal as a low-frequency signal.

[0059] It will be understood that the structure of the above-mentioned switch module is only an example, and the number of switches and the type of switches are also only examples, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0060] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the RF receiving unit may also include: a full-bandwidth low-noise amplifier module, including low-noise amplifiers of different frequency bands (for example, optimized in respective different frequency bands), wherein each of the multiple signal processing paths is provided with a low-noise amplifier corresponding to at least one frequency band.

[0061] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, each of the multiple signal processing paths may be provided with a low noise amplifier corresponding to at least one frequency band, the low noise amplifiers may be low noise amplifiers of the same or different frequency bands, and all low noise amplifiers constitute a full-bandwidth low noise amplifier module. Each signal processing path is provided with a low noise amplifier corresponding to its processing frequency band. For example, the signal processing path for processing low-frequency receiving signals (Rx_LB) (i.e., the low-frequency signal processing path) may be provided with a low-frequency low noise amplifier, the signal processing path for processing medium- and high-frequency receiving signals (Rx_MHB) (i.e., the medium- and high-frequency signal processing path) may be provided with a medium- and high-frequency low noise amplifier, and the signal processing path for processing ultra-high-frequency receiving signals (Rx_UHB) (i.e., the ultra-high-frequency signal processing path) may be provided with an ultra-high-frequency low noise amplifier. Refer to Figure 5 , Figure 5 It includes three signal processing paths, which are composed of a low-frequency signal processing path including a low-frequency low-noise amplifier, a medium-high frequency signal processing path including a medium-high frequency low-noise amplifier, and an ultra-high frequency signal processing path including an ultra-high frequency low-noise amplifier. The three low-noise amplifiers cover the full bandwidth and form a full-bandwidth low-noise amplifier module, so that the three signal processing paths can process signals covering the full bandwidth. Figure 6 , Figure 6 It includes five signal processing paths, consisting of two low-frequency signal processing paths including low-frequency low-noise amplifiers, two medium- and high-frequency signal processing paths including medium- and high-frequency low-noise amplifiers, and one ultra-high-frequency signal processing path including an ultra-high-frequency low-noise amplifier. The five low-noise amplifiers also cover the full bandwidth, forming a full-bandwidth low-noise amplifier module, so that the five signal processing paths can process signals covering the full bandwidth.

[0062] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the control unit can control the routing of the received signal to a signal processing path provided with a low-noise amplifier corresponding to the frequency band for processing based on the detected frequency band. For example, in response to the detected frequency band being low frequency, the control unit can input the received signal to a low-frequency signal processing path provided with a low-frequency low-noise amplifier for processing; in response to the detected frequency band being medium-high frequency, the control unit can input the received signal to a medium-high frequency signal processing path provided with a medium-high frequency low-noise amplifier for processing; and in response to the detected frequency band being ultra-high frequency, the control unit can input the received signal to an ultra-high frequency signal processing path provided with an ultra-high frequency low-noise amplifier for processing.

[0063] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, after receiving an indication of a frequency band from a frequency detection unit, the control unit may control the switch module to input the received signal into a signal processing path having a low noise amplifier corresponding to the detected frequency band to achieve demodulation of the received signal.

[0064] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of signal processing pathways may not only be signal processing pathways including a low-frequency signal processing pathway, a medium-high frequency signal processing pathway, and an ultra-high frequency signal processing pathway to cover the full bandwidth, but may also be signal processing pathways including a low-frequency signal processing pathway, a medium-frequency signal processing pathway, a high-frequency signal processing pathway, and an ultra-high frequency signal processing pathway, and each frequency band signal processing pathway is provided with a low noise amplifier supporting the corresponding frequency band. Further, the frequency bands may at least partially overlap, for example, the plurality of signal processing pathways may also include a medium-low frequency signal processing pathway, a medium-high frequency signal processing pathway, and an ultra-high frequency signal processing pathway, and are respectively provided with a medium-low frequency low noise amplifier, a medium-high frequency low noise amplifier, and an ultra-high frequency low noise amplifier, wherein the frequency bands of the signals processed by the medium-low frequency signal processing pathway and the medium-high frequency signal processing pathway overlap. When the frequency of the received signal falls into the overlapping frequency band, the control unit may input the received signal into the medium-low frequency signal processing pathway or the medium-high frequency signal processing pathway, and when the frequencies of the plurality of received signals fall into the overlapping frequency band, the control unit may input two different received signals into the medium-low frequency signal processing pathway and the medium-high frequency signal processing pathway, respectively.

[0065] It should be understood that the number of the above-mentioned multiple signal processing paths and the specific frequency band types of the processed signals are only examples, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In addition, the structure of the above-mentioned radio frequency receiving unit is also only an example, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0066] Figure 7 4 is a schematic diagram of the internal multi-path of the RF receiving unit 400c according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0067] The radio frequency receiving unit 400c (RFIC) may include a plurality of receiving ports 410. Figure 7 A radio frequency receiving unit having five receiving ports is shown in . Each of the five radio frequency receiving ports is capable of receiving input of signals with full bandwidth, and the radio frequency receiving unit can support the operation of some or all of the multiple receiving ports. Here, the frequency detection unit 420 can be connected to each receiving port, and can detect the frequency of the signal received by each receiving port to determine the frequency band to which it belongs. The frequency detection unit can feed back the information of the detected frequency band corresponding to the receiving port to the control unit 430 (that is, "indicate the detected frequency band to the control unit"). The control unit that receives the fed-back frequency band information can control the switch module 450b to switch the signal received by the receiving port corresponding to the frequency band to a signal processing path provided with a low-noise amplifier (in the low-noise amplifier module 660) corresponding to the frequency band. In Figure 7 In the embodiment, the switch module may include a multi-pole multi-throw switch, which is correspondingly connected to the five receiving ports, and the switch module is connected to the corresponding signal processing path under the control of the control unit.

[0068] It should be understood that the structure of the above-mentioned switch module is only an example, and the number and type of switches are also only examples, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0069] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the RF receiving unit may further include: a peripheral circuit including one or more full-bandwidth receiving antennas, wherein each of the at least one receiving port is connected to the one or more full-bandwidth receiving antennas to receive full-bandwidth signals.

[0070] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a radio frequency transceiver 800 including a peripheral circuit 801 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0071] Reference Figure 8 The RF transceiver (or RF receiving unit) (RF integrated transceiver RFIC) may include: at least one receiving port, a frequency detection unit, a control unit, a plurality of signal processing paths and a switch module, wherein: Figure 8 The number of receiving ports in the system is three, and each receiving port is capable of receiving full-bandwidth signals. Figure 8 The RF transceiver in the embodiment also includes a peripheral circuit, wherein the peripheral circuit includes one or more full-bandwidth receiving antennas (ANT1-ANT3), wherein each of the full-bandwidth receiving antennas is configured to receive a wireless signal having any frequency within the full bandwidth. Each receiving port inside the RF receiving unit 400a can be connected to one or more full-bandwidth receiving antennas to receive full-bandwidth signals. Figure 8 It is only shown that each receiving port is connected to one full-bandwidth receiving antenna as an example.

[0072] As described above, in the RF receiving unit disclosed in the present invention, each receiving port can receive signals of full bandwidth, and the selection and configuration of the receiving port are more flexible. Since each receiving port is no longer limited to receiving fixed frequency band signals, the complexity of the RF front-end design and the insertion loss of the path are reduced, and the receiving capability of the RF path is improved. In addition, the RF receiving unit disclosed in the present invention can also realize the maximum demand for CA / ENDC / NR CA by different operators in different regions around the world, improve downlink throughput and enhance user experience.

[0073] Fig. 9 The diagram shows a receiving port input signal of a radio frequency transceiver 900 having a peripheral circuit 901 in a carrier aggregation scenario according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0074] In the CA scenario, for example, when frequency bands B8-B3-B78 are aggregated, Fig. 9 Each receiving port of the RF transceiver (or RF receiving unit 400a) can receive a signal input of the frequency band B8 / B3 / B78. Figure 2Compared with the prior art shown in FIG. 1 , the frequency range of the input signal of the receiving port is no longer fixed. Fig. 9 Each receiving port in the PCB can receive full-bandwidth (full-band) signals. Low-frequency, medium-high-frequency, and ultra-high-frequency signals can all enter through the same receiving port. This enables flexible design of peripheral circuits, flexible PCB routing, reduced insertion loss, and improved link performance. In addition, Fig. 9 The RF transceiver can also realize flexible configuration of CA / ENDC combination, for example, CA: B8-B3-B7, frequency bands B8 / B3 / B7 (wherein the frequency band B7 ranges from 2620MHz to 2690MHz) can enter any receiving port of the RF transceiver, and no longer needs to enter through a fixed receiving port, thus realizing flexible free configuration of the port.

[0075] Furthermore, due to the limitation of the number of hardware receive (Rx) ports, many CA scenarios are difficult to implement in the prior art when the frequency band of the receive port is fixed. For example, in a case where the RF transceiver includes four receive ports and only one of them is an intermediate frequency receive port, if there are two intermediate frequency signals in the CA scenario, the CA scenario is difficult to implement. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the input signal frequency band of the receive port is no longer fixed, but is capable of receiving full-bandwidth signals. When the processing capacity of the subsequent signal processing path is sufficient, any two of the four receive ports can be used to receive the intermediate frequency signal, thereby maximizing the realization of various CA scenarios, and improving the downlink throughput and user experience. The sufficient processing capacity of the subsequent signal processing path here means that the subsequent signal processing path includes two or more signal processing paths that can process intermediate frequency signals.

[0076] It should be understood that the CA configuration and the number of receiving ports here are only examples, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0077] In addition, Figure 3Compared with the design scheme of adding a switch module to the periphery of the RF transceiver and switching to different receiving paths (including filtering modules and receiving units) for different frequency bands in the periphery, the embodiment of the present disclosure changes the internal circuit architecture of the RF transceiver (or RF receiving unit) and adds a frequency detection unit. No matter which frequency band of the RF signal of the second generation (2G) / third generation (3G) / fourth generation (4G) / fifth generation (5G) comes in, the frequency detection is first performed by the frequency detection unit to determine which frequency band the signal is in, and then switched to the corresponding low noise amplifier for processing through the control of the control unit. Here, the inside of the RF transceiver can refer to the inside of the chip (for example, the RF transceiver chip), and the receiving port can refer to the connection point of the chip connected to the antenna feeder. The technical solution of the present disclosure has the following advantages: 1) The architecture is simple, only the frequency detection unit is added, etc., which greatly reduces the cost; 2) Each receiving port of the RF transceiver can realize full-bandwidth signal reception; 3) The antenna scheme design is flexible, and some frequency bands can also be realized; 4) The peripheral circuit is simple, thereby reducing the complexity of the peripheral circuit scheme, reducing costs, improving performance, and enhancing user experience.

[0078] Fig.10 A flow chart of a signal receiving method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0079] The signal receiving method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure can be applied to a radio frequency receiving unit, which may include: multiple signal processing paths, at least one receiving port, a frequency detection unit and a control unit, wherein each of the at least one receiving port is capable of receiving full-bandwidth signals.

[0080] In operation S1010 , a signal is received by at least one receiving port.

[0081] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the RF receiving unit may further include: a peripheral circuit including: one or more full-bandwidth receiving antennas, wherein each of the at least one receiving port is connected to the one or more full-bandwidth receiving antennas to receive full-bandwidth signals.

[0082] In operation S1020, a frequency detection unit detects a frequency band to which a received signal belongs.

[0083] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the signal receiving method may further include: the frequency detection unit sending the detected frequency band to the control unit.

[0084] In operation S1030, the control unit inputs the received signal into a corresponding signal processing path for processing based on the detected frequency band.

[0085] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the RF receiving unit may further include: a switch module, wherein the control unit inputs the received signal into a corresponding signal processing path for processing based on the detected frequency band, including: receiving the detected frequency band sent by the frequency detection unit; and based on the detected frequency band, controlling the switch module to switch the received signal to the signal processing path corresponding to the frequency band for processing.

[0086] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the RF receiving unit may further include: a full-bandwidth low-noise amplifier module, including low-noise amplifiers of different frequency bands, wherein each of the multiple signal processing paths may be provided with a low-noise amplifier corresponding to at least one frequency band.

[0087] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the control unit inputs the received signal into the corresponding signal processing path for processing based on the detected frequency band, which may include: based on the detected frequency band, inputting the received signal into the signal processing path provided with a low-noise amplifier corresponding to the frequency band for processing.

[0088] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, based on the detected frequency band, the received signal is input into a signal processing path provided with a low-noise amplifier corresponding to the frequency band for processing, which may include: in response to the detected frequency band being low frequency, the received signal is input into a low-frequency signal processing path provided with a low-frequency low-noise amplifier for processing; in response to the detected frequency band being medium-high frequency, the received signal is input into a medium-high frequency signal processing path provided with a medium-high frequency low-noise amplifier for processing; and in response to the detected frequency band being ultra-high frequency, the received signal is input into an ultra-high frequency signal processing path provided with an ultra-high frequency low-noise amplifier for processing.

[0089] As described above, in the signal receiving method of the present disclosure, each receiving port of the RF receiving unit can receive signals of full bandwidth, and the selection and configuration of the receiving port are more flexible. Since each receiving port is no longer limited to receiving fixed frequency band signals, the design complexity of the RF front end and the insertion loss of the path are reduced, and the receiving capability of the RF path is improved. In addition, the RF receiving unit can also realize the maximum demand for CA / ENDC / NR CA by different operators in different regions around the world, improve downlink throughput and enhance user experience.

[0090] Fig.11 A block diagram of a communication node according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Fig.11, the communication node 1100 may include a radio frequency receiving unit 1110 and a processor 1120, wherein the processor 1120 is coupled to the radio frequency receiving unit 1110 and is configured to perform the signal receiving method according to the present disclosure. The communication node may also be a node including a radio frequency transceiver and a processor, wherein the radio frequency transceiver includes a radio frequency receiving unit (i.e., a radio frequency receiver). According to an embodiment, the communication node may be a terminal, a base station, etc., as long as it is a node with a communication function.

[0091] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a computer-readable storage medium may also be provided, wherein a computer program is stored thereon, and when the program is executed, the signal receiving method according to the present disclosure is implemented. Examples of computer-readable storage media here include: read-only memory (ROM), random access programmable read-only memory (PROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), random access memory (RAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), flash memory, non-volatile memory, CD-ROM, CD-R, CD+R, CD-RW, CD+RW, DVD-ROM, DVD-R, DVD+R, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, DVD-RAM, BD-ROM, BD-R, BD-R LTH, BD-RE, Blu-ray or optical disk storage, hard disk drive (HDD), solid state drive (SSD), card storage (such as, multimedia card, secure digital (SD) card or extreme digital (XD) card), magnetic tape, floppy disk, magneto-optical data storage device, optical data storage device, hard disk, solid state disk and any other device, any other device is configured to store computer programs and any associated data, data files and data structures in a non-transitory manner and provide the computer programs and any associated data, data files and data structures to a processor or computer so that the processor or computer can execute the computer program. The computer program in the above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium can be run in an environment deployed in a computer device such as a terminal, a client, a host, an agent device, a server, etc. In addition, in one example, the computer program and any associated data, data files and data structures are distributed on a networked computer system, so that the computer program and any associated data, data files and data structures are stored, accessed and executed in a distributed manner by one or more processors or computers.

[0092] As described above, the RF receiving unit and signal receiving method disclosed herein can realize the reception of full-bandwidth signals at each receiving port, and the selection and configuration of receiving ports are more flexible. Since each receiving port is no longer limited to receiving fixed-band signals, the design complexity of the RF front-end and the insertion loss of the path are reduced, and the receiving capability of the RF path is improved. In addition, the RF receiving unit and signal receiving method disclosed herein can also realize the maximum demand for CA / ENDC / NR CA by different operators in different regions around the world, improve downlink throughput and enhance user experience.

[0093] Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate other embodiments of the present disclosure after considering the specification and practicing the invention disclosed herein. The present disclosure is intended to cover any variations, uses or adaptations of the present disclosure that follow the general principles of the present disclosure and include common knowledge or customary techniques in the art that are not disclosed in the present disclosure. The embodiments provided in the specification are to be considered as exemplary only, and the true scope and spirit of the present disclosure are indicated by the following claims.

[0094] It should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the exact structures that have been described above and shown in the drawings, and that various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope thereof. The scope of the present disclosure is limited only by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A radio frequency receiving unit, comprising: Multiple signal processing pathways; at least one receive port, each of the at least one receive port being configured to receive a receive signal having any frequency within a full bandwidth, wherein the full bandwidth includes a predetermined frequency range; a frequency detection unit, configured to detect a frequency band within the full bandwidth to which the received signal received by the at least one receiving port belongs; and The control unit is configured to control the received signal to be routed to a corresponding signal processing path among the plurality of signal processing paths for processing based on the detected frequency band.

2. The radio frequency receiving unit according to claim 1, wherein: The frequency detection unit is configured as follows: The detected frequency band is indicated to the control unit.

3. The radio frequency receiving unit according to claim 2, wherein: The radio frequency receiving unit further includes: a switch module, Wherein, the control unit is configured as: receiving an indication of the detected frequency band from the frequency detection unit; and Based on the detected frequency band, the switch module is controlled to switch the received signal to a corresponding signal processing path for processing.

4. The radio frequency receiving unit according to claim 1, wherein: The radio frequency receiving unit further comprises: a low noise amplifier module configured to operate at the full bandwidth, wherein the low noise amplifier module comprises low noise amplifiers optimized for different frequency bands. Each of the plurality of signal processing paths is provided with a low noise amplifier corresponding to at least one frequency band.

5. The radio frequency receiving unit according to claim 4, wherein: The control unit is configured to: Based on the detected frequency band, the received signal is controlled to be routed to a signal processing path provided with a low noise amplifier corresponding to the frequency band for processing.

6. The radio frequency receiving unit according to claim 1, wherein: The radio frequency receiving unit further comprises: a peripheral circuit, including one or more full bandwidth receiving antennas, Each of the at least one receiving port is connected to the one or more full-bandwidth receiving antennas to receive the receiving signal.

7. A signal receiving method, performed by a radio frequency receiving unit, the radio frequency receiving unit comprising: A plurality of signal processing paths, at least one receiving port of each receiving port configured to receive a received signal having any frequency within a full bandwidth, a frequency detection unit and a control unit, wherein the full bandwidth includes a predetermined frequency range, the method comprising: Receiving the receive signal by the at least one receive port; The frequency detection unit detects the frequency band to which the received signal belongs; and The control unit controls the received signal to be routed to a corresponding signal processing path for processing based on the detected frequency band.

8. The signal receiving method according to claim 7, wherein: The method further comprises: The frequency detection unit indicates the detected frequency band to the control unit.

9. A communication node, characterized in that: include: Radio frequency receiving unit; as well as A processor is coupled to the radio frequency receiving unit and is configured to execute the signal receiving method according to any one of claims 7 to 8.

10. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: A computer program is stored thereon, and when the program is executed, the signal receiving method according to any one of claims 7 to 8 is implemented.

Images