Mobile terminal test device and mobile terminal test method

Abstract

To provide a mobile terminal test device capable of improving the accuracy of measurement results.SOLUTION: During full spherical scanning of a DUT 100, the output power of the DUT 100 is measured at a reference position, which is a predetermined arbitrary measurement position, every certain time elapses, and when the output power is below a predetermined specified power, the measurement is interrupted, and measurement data from the measurement at the previous reference position onwards is excluded from the measurement value, and a reference position measurement control unit 18c is provided which makes it possible to resume measurement from the excluded measurement position.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a mobile terminal testing device that tests a mobile terminal by exchanging signals while changing the angle of a positioner on which the mobile terminal is installed in an OTA (Over The Air) environment. [Background technology]

[0002] For wireless terminals that transmit and receive wireless signals compatible with IEEE802.11ad and 5G cellular, which use wideband signals in the millimeter wave band and have been developed in recent years, performance tests are conducted on the wireless communication antennas equipped on the wireless terminals to measure the output level and receiving sensitivity of the transmitted radio waves specified for each communication standard and determine whether they meet the specified standards.

[0003] For example, in a performance test using a wireless terminal (hereinafter referred to as a "5G wireless terminal") for the New Radio System (NR) of the fifth generation mobile communication system (hereinafter referred to as "5G") as the device under test (DUT), an OTA test is conducted using an anechoic box (OTA chamber) called a Compact Antenna Test Range (hereinafter referred to as "CATR"), which is not affected by the surrounding radio wave environment.

[0004] One example of a conventional wireless terminal measurement device capable of performing OTA testing is one that rotates the wireless terminal around a reference point within a measurement space such as an anechoic box or anechoic chamber, receives radio waves transmitted from the wireless terminal with a measurement antenna, and determines the radiated power characteristics of the wireless terminal (equivalent isotropic radiated power (EIRP), equivalent isotropic sensitivity (EIS), total radiated power (TRP), etc.) from the received signal.

[0005] Patent Document 1 describes a technique for displaying the progress of measurement at each measurement position when measuring a DUT that is rotated so as to face all directions of a spherical coordinate system in an OTA environment. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 7227198 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] Measurements in an OTA environment often take time, such as spherical coverage measurements, and if the DUT continues to output maximum power and heats up, the DUT may intentionally reduce its output power to protect itself.A similar phenomenon can also occur if the remaining battery power decreases due to a long call connection.

[0008] These phenomena are not the measurement results that are desired to determine the true capabilities of the DUT, so there is a demand to exclude them.

[0009] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a mobile terminal test device that can improve the accuracy of measurement results by excluding measurement data in which the output of the DUT is thought to have decreased. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] The mobile terminal testing device of the present invention includes a positioner (56) provided in an internal space (51) of an anechoic box (50), having an azimuth axis and a roll axis that can be rotated by drive motors (56f, 56g), and rotating an object under test so that the object faces a plurality of preset angle sample points of a spherical coordinate system with the center of the spherical coordinate system as a reference point; a dummy measurement device (20) connected to a test antenna (5) in the internal space; an integrated control device (10) that controls the dummy measurement device to perform a measurement operation at each measurement position corresponding to each of the plurality of angle sample points, the measurement operation transmitting a test signal from the test antenna to the mobile terminal (100) under test, causing the test antenna to receive a signal to be measured transmitted from the mobile terminal that has received the test signal, and measuring a specific measurement item related to the mobile terminal based on the received signal to measure the specific measurement item; and an integrated control device (10) that measures the output power of the mobile terminal at a preset reference position every time a preset specified time has elapsed, and if the measured output power is equal to or less than a preset specified power, interrupts the measurement and returns to the previous reference position. and a Reference position measurement control unit (18c) that excludes measurement data after the measurement at the position from the measurement values ​​and enables measurement to be restarted from the excluded measurement position.

[0011] With this configuration, the output power of the mobile terminal at the reference position is measured every specified time, and if the measured output power is below the specified power, the measurement is interrupted and the measurement data from the previous reference position onwards is excluded from the measured values, allowing the measurement to be resumed from the excluded measurement position.This makes it possible to exclude measurement data that is thought to indicate a decrease in the DUT output, thereby improving the accuracy of the measurement results.

[0012] The mobile terminal testing method of the present invention is a mobile terminal testing method for a mobile terminal testing device including: a positioner (56) provided in an internal space (51) of an anechoic box (50), having an azimuth axis and a roll axis that can be rotated by drive motors (56f, 56g), and rotating a test object so that the test object faces a plurality of preset angle sample points of a spherical coordinate system with the center of the spherical coordinate system as a reference point; a dummy measurement device (20) connected to a test antenna (5) in the internal space; and an integrated control device (10) that controls the dummy measurement device to perform a measurement operation at each measurement position corresponding to each of the plurality of angle sample points, the measurement operation transmitting a test signal from the test antenna to the mobile terminal (100) that is the test object, causing the test antenna to receive a measured signal transmitted from the mobile terminal that has received the test signal, and measuring a specific measurement item related to the mobile terminal based on the received measured signal, the measurement operation being performed at each measurement position corresponding to each of the plurality of angle sample points ... and if the measured output power is equal to or less than a predetermined specified power, interrupting the measurement, excluding the measurement data from the measurement at the previous Reference position and thereafter from the measurement value, and enabling the measurement to be resumed from the excluded measurement position.

[0013] With this configuration, the output power of the mobile terminal at the reference position is measured every specified time, and if the measured output power is below the specified power, the measurement is interrupted and the measurement data from the previous reference position onwards is excluded from the measured values, allowing the measurement to be resumed from the excluded measurement position.This makes it possible to exclude measurement data that is thought to indicate a decrease in the DUT output, thereby improving the accuracy of the measurement results. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] The present invention can provide a mobile terminal test device that can improve the accuracy of measurement results. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the entire measuring device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a measurement device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of an integrated control device and its controlled system elements of a measurement device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of an NR system simulator in a measurement device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 shows a full spherical scan image of a DUT in an OTA chamber of a measurement device according to one embodiment of the present invention, where (a) shows the arrangement of the DUT relative to the center of a spherical coordinate system, and (b) shows the distribution of angle sample points PS in the spherical coordinate system. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the arrangement of the test antenna 5 in the OTA chamber of the measurement device according to one embodiment of the present invention, using the spherical coordinate system (r, θ, φ) shown in FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an image of rotational drive around the azimuth axis and roll axis of a two-axis positioner for full spherical scanning of a DUT in a measurement apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the measurement control operation of the measurement device according to one embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0016] Hereinafter, a measurement device serving as a mobile terminal test device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0017] First, the configuration of a measurement device 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 1 to Fig. 4. The measurement device 1 constitutes a mobile terminal test device of the present invention. The measurement device 1 according to this embodiment has an overall external structure as shown in Fig. 1, and is composed of functional blocks as shown in Fig. 2. Figs. 1 and 2 show the arrangement of each component of an OTA chamber 50 as seen through from the side.

[0018] The measurement device 1 is operated, for example, in a state in which the above-mentioned components are mounted on each rack 90a of a rack structure 90 having the structure shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 1 shows an example in which an integrated control device 10, an NR system simulator 20, and an OTA chamber 50 are mounted on each rack 90a of the rack structure 90.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 2, the measurement device 1 includes an integrated control device 10, an NR system simulator 20, a signal processing unit 23, and an OTA chamber 50.

[0020] These components will be described starting with the OTA chamber 50. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the OTA chamber 50 is configured, for example, by a metal housing main body 52 having a rectangular parallelepiped internal space 51, and the internal space 51 accommodates a DUT 100 having an antenna 110, a test antenna 5, a reflector 7, and a DUT scanning mechanism 56.

[0021] A radio wave absorber 55 is attached to the entire inner surface of the OTA chamber 50, that is, the entire bottom surface 52a, side surfaces 52b, and top surface 52c of the housing main body 52. ​​This strengthens the function of the OTA chamber 50 to restrict the intrusion of radio waves from the outside and the emission of radio waves to the outside of each element (DUT 100, test antenna 5, reflector 7, DUT scanning mechanism 56) arranged in the internal space 51. In this way, the OTA chamber 50 realizes an anechoic type anechoic box having an internal space 51 that is not affected by the surrounding radio wave environment. The anechoic type anechoic box used in this embodiment is, for example, an anechoic type.

[0022] Among the components accommodated in the internal space 51 of the OTA chamber 50, the DUT 100 is a wireless terminal such as a smartphone. Communication standards for the DUT 100 include cellular (LTE, LTE-A, W-CDMA (registered trademark), GSM (registered trademark), CDMA2000, 1xEV-DO, TD-SCDMA, etc.), wireless LAN (IEEE802.11b / g / a / n / ac / ad, etc.), Bluetooth (registered trademark), GNSS (GPS, Galileo, GLONASS, BeiDou, etc.), FM, and digital broadcasting (DVB-H, ISDB-T, etc.). The DUT 100 may also be a wireless terminal that transmits and receives millimeter-wave band wireless signals compatible with IEEE802.11ad, 5G cellular, etc.

[0023] In this embodiment, the antenna 110 of the DUT 100 uses a radio signal in a specified frequency band that complies with, for example, the LTE or 5G NR communication standard. The DUT 100 constitutes a mobile terminal under test in the present invention.

[0024] In the internal space 51 of the OTA chamber 50, the DUT 100 is held by a part of the DUT scanning mechanism 56. The DUT scanning mechanism 56 is provided extending in the vertical direction on the bottom surface 52a of the housing main body 52 in the internal space 51 of the OTA chamber 50. The DUT scanning mechanism 56 holds the DUT 100 for which a performance test is to be performed, and performs a full spherical scan (see FIGS. 5 and 6) of the DUT 100, which will be described later.

[0025] 1, the DUT scanning mechanism 56 has a turntable 56a, a support member 56b, a DUT mounting section 56c, and a drive section 56e. The turntable 56a is made up of a disk-shaped plate member and is configured to rotate around an azimuth axis (a rotation axis in the vertical direction) (see FIGS. 3 and 7). The support member 56b is made up of a columnar member arranged so as to extend vertically on the plate surface of the turntable 56a.

[0026] The DUT placement section 56c is disposed parallel to the turntable 56a near the upper end of the support member 56b, and has a placement tray 56d on which the DUT 100 is placed. The DUT placement section 56c has a configuration (see FIGS. 3 and 7) that allows it to rotate around a roll axis (a horizontal rotation axis).

[0027] As shown in FIG. 3, the drive unit 56e includes a drive motor 56f that rotates the azimuth axis and a drive motor 56g that rotates the roll axis. The drive unit 56e is configured as a two-axis positioner equipped with a mechanism that rotates the azimuth axis and the roll axis around their respective axes using the drive motors 56f and 56g. In this way, the drive unit 56e can rotate the DUT 100 placed on the loading tray 56d along two axes (the azimuth axis and the roll axis) together with the loading tray 56d. Hereinafter, the entire DUT scanning mechanism 56 including the drive unit 56e may be referred to as a two-axis positioner (see FIG. 3).

[0028] The DUT scanning mechanism (two-axis positioner) 56 performs full spherical scanning by sequentially changing the attitude of the DUT 100 so that the antenna 110 faces all directions (a plurality of preset directions) on the surface of the sphere, assuming that the DUT 100 placed (held) on the placement tray 56d is placed at the center O1 of the sphere (see sphere B in FIG. 5). The DUT scanning by the DUT scanning mechanism 56 is controlled by a DUT scanning control unit 16, which will be described later. The DUT scanning mechanism 56 constitutes the positioner of the present invention.

[0029] The test antenna 5 is attached to a required position on the bottom surface 52a of the housing main body 52 of the OTA chamber 50 using an appropriate holder (not shown). The attachment position of the test antenna 5 is such that it can be seen through the reflector 7 via an opening 67a provided in the bottom surface 52a. The test antenna 5 uses a radio signal in the same specified frequency band (NR standard) as the antenna 110 of the DUT 100.

[0030] When performing measurements related to the NR of the DUT 100 in the OTA chamber 50, the test antenna 5 transmits a test signal from the NR system simulator 20 to the DUT 100 and receives a signal under test transmitted from the DUT 100 that has received the test signal. The test antenna 5 is positioned so that its light-receiving surface is at the focal position F of the reflector 7. Note that if the test antenna 5 can be positioned so that its light-receiving surface faces the DUT 100 and can receive light appropriately, the reflector 7 is not necessarily required.

[0031] The reflector 7 is attached to a required position on the side surface 52b of the OTA chamber 50 using a reflector holder 58. The reflector 7 provides a radio wave path that returns the radio signals (test signal and signal under measurement) transmitted and received by the antenna 110 of the DUT 100 to the light-receiving surface of the test antenna 5.

[0032] Next, the configurations of the integrated control device 10 and the NR system simulator 20 will be described. 2, the integrated control device 10 is connected to the NR system simulator 20 via a network 19 such as Ethernet (registered trademark) so that they can communicate with each other. The integrated control device 10 is also connected via the network 19 to controlled elements in the OTA chamber 50, such as the DUT scan control unit 16.

[0033] The integrated control device 10 controls the NR system simulator 20 and the DUT scan control unit 16 in an integrated manner via a network 19, and is configured, for example, by a personal computer (PC). The DUT scan control unit 16 may be provided independently in association with the OTA chamber 50 (see FIG. 2), or may be provided in the integrated control device 10 as shown in FIG. 3. In the following description, the integrated control device 10 will be described as having the configuration shown in FIG. 3.

[0034] 3, the integrated control device 10 has a control unit 11, an operation unit 12, and a display unit 13. The control unit 11 is configured by, for example, a computer device. This computer device has a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11a that performs predetermined information processing to realize the functions of the measurement device 1 and overall control of the NR system simulator 20 and the DUT scan control unit 16, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 11b that stores an OS (Operating System) for starting up the CPU 11a, other programs, and control parameters, etc., a RAM (Random Access Memory) 11c that stores the OS and application execution code and data used by the CPU 11a for operation, an external I / F unit 11d, an input / output port (not shown), etc.

[0035] The external I / F unit 11d is communicably connected to the NR system simulator 20 and the drive unit 56e of the DUT scanning mechanism (two-axis positioner) 56 via a network 19. The input / output port is connected to an operation unit 12 and a display unit 13. The operation unit 12 is a functional unit for inputting various information such as commands, and the display unit 13 is a functional unit for displaying various information such as an input screen for the above various information and measurement results.

[0036] The computer device described above functions as the control unit 11 when the CPU 11a executes a program stored in the ROM 11b using the RAM 11c as a work area. As shown in Fig. 3, the control unit 11 has a call connection control unit 14, a signal transmission / reception control unit 15, a DUT scanning control unit 16, a signal analysis control unit 17, a setting control unit 18a, a rotational speed management control unit 18b, a reference position measurement control unit 18c, and a measurement status display control unit 18h. The call connection control unit 14, the signal transmission / reception control unit 15, the DUT scanning control unit 16, the signal analysis control unit 17, the setting control unit 18a, the rotational speed management control unit 18b, the reference position measurement control unit 18c, and the measurement status display control unit 18h are also realized when the CPU 11a executes a predetermined program stored in the ROM 11b using the work area of ​​the RAM 11c.

[0037] The call connection control unit 14 controls the establishment of a call (a state in which radio signals can be sent and received) between the NR system simulator 20 and the DUT 100 by driving the test antenna 5 via the NR system simulator 20 and the signal processing unit 23 to send and receive control signals (radio signals) between the NR system simulator 20 and the DUT 100.

[0038] The signal transmission / reception control unit 15 monitors user operations on the operation unit 12, and when the user performs a predetermined measurement start operation for measuring the transmission and reception characteristics of the DUT 100, it sends a signal transmission command to the NR system simulator 20 after the call is established by call connection control, controlling the NR system simulator 20 to transmit a test signal via the test antenna 5, and sends a signal reception command to control the NR system simulator 20 to receive the measured signal via the test antenna 5.

[0039] The DUT scanning control section 16 controls the driving of the drive motors 56f and 56g of the DUT scanning mechanism 56, thereby causing full spherical scanning of the DUT 100 placed on the placement tray 56d of the DUT placement section 56c.

[0040] Here, the full spherical scanning of the DUT 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 to 7. Generally, two methods are known for measuring the power of a signal radiated by the DUT 100 (radiated power measurement): measuring the equivalent isotropically radiated power (EIRP) and measuring the total radiated power (TRP). The EIRP is, for example, a power value measured at each measurement point (θ, φ) in the spherical coordinate system (r, θ, φ) shown in FIG. 5(a). In contrast, the TRP is the sum of the EIRP measured in all directions of the spherical coordinate system (r, θ, φ), i.e., at a number of predetermined angular sample points PS (see FIG. 5(b)) on the spherical surface equidistant from the center O1 (hereinafter referred to as the reference point) of the full spherical scanning of the DUT 100.

[0041] Regarding receiver sensitivity measurement, it is known to measure EIS (equivalent isotropic sensitivity). EIS is the receiver sensitivity value measured at each measurement point (θ, φ) in the spherical coordinate system (r, θ, φ) shown in Figure 5(a).

[0042] Full spherical scanning of the DUT 100 refers to a control operation in which the attitude of the DUT 100 placed on the loading tray 56d is sequentially changed, for example, with the center O1 of the sphere B (see Figure 5) as the reference (center), so that the antenna 110 faces all directions on the surface of the sphere B, i.e., the angle sampling point PS.

[0043] In order to measure the EIRP or EIS at each angle sample point PS in accordance with the full spherical scan of the DUT 100, as shown in FIG. 6, a test antenna 5 for receiving a signal radiated by the DUT 100 is placed at the position of a specific angle sample point PS (one point) in the spherical coordinate system (r, θ, φ), as shown in FIG. 6.

[0044] In the full spherical scan, the DUT 100 is driven (scanned) so that the antenna surface of the antenna 110 is sequentially directed toward the light receiving surface of the test antenna 5. This enables the test antenna 5 to transmit and receive signals for TRP measurement between the antenna 110 of the DUT 100 undergoing the full spherical scan. The signals transmitted and received here are a test signal transmitted from the NR system simulator 20 via the test antenna 5 and a signal transmitted from the antenna 110 by the DUT 100 that has received the test signal, which is a signal under test received via the test antenna 5.

[0045] Full spherical scanning of the DUT 100 is achieved by rotationally driving the azimuth axis and the roll axis using drive motors 56f and 56g that constitute the DUT scanning mechanism 56. An image of rotational drive around the azimuth axis and the roll axis of the DUT scanning mechanism (two-axis positioner) 56 involved in full spherical scanning of the DUT 100 in the measurement apparatus 1 is shown in FIG. 7. As shown in FIG. 7, the DUT scanning mechanism 56 of the measurement apparatus 1 according to this embodiment moves the azimuth axis around its center in an angular direction of φ within a range of, for example, 180 degrees, while moving the roll axis around its center in an angular direction of θ within a range of, for example, 360 degrees, thereby enabling full spherical scanning (see FIGS. 5 and 6) in which the DUT 100 rotates in all directions around its center O1.

[0046] In Figure 7, φ0 indicates a unit movement angle within the total movement angle (180 degrees) in the rotation direction of the azimuth axis (angle direction of φ), and θ0 indicates a unit movement angle (hereinafter referred to as step angle) within the total movement angle (360 degrees) in the rotation direction of the roll axis (angle direction of θ). φ0 and θ0 can be selectively set to desired step angles, for example, from among a plurality of different step angle values ​​defined in advance. The set φ0 and θ0 define the angle between adjacent angle sample points PS shown in Figure 5(b), and as a result, define the number of angle sample points PS, i.e., measurement positions.

[0047] In order to realize the control of the full spherical scan of the DUT 100 by the DUT scan control unit 16, for example, a DUT scan control table 16a is prepared in advance in the ROM 11b. The DUT scan control table 16a stores, for example, the coordinates of each angle sample point PS (see FIG. 5(b)) in a spherical coordinate system (see FIG. 5(a)) related to the full spherical scan of the DUT 100, drive data of the drive motors 56f and 56g associated with the coordinates of each angle sample point PS, and control data associating the stop time (measurement time) at each angle sample point PS. If the drive motors 56f and 56g are, for example, stepping motors, the number of drive pulses, for example, is stored as the drive data.

[0048] The ROM 11b also contains a rotation speed management table 16b for managing the rotation speeds of the drive motors 56f and 56g of the DUT scanning mechanism 56. This rotation speed management table 16b manages the rotation speed of the drive motor 56g that rotates the roll axis, more specifically, the rotation speed of the drive motor 56g when the DUT scanning mechanism 56 is rotated for each step angle.

[0049] Here, the step angle, as explained with reference to FIG. 5, represents the angle between adjacent angle sample points PS (see FIG. 5(b)) in a spherical coordinate system (see FIG. 5(a)) associated with full spherical scanning. The angle sample points PS correspond to measurement positions of the DUT 100, and the number of angle sample points PS can be appropriately variably set according to the measurement item, measurement conditions, etc. In other words, the unit step angle defines the angle between adjacent measurement positions and can be varied according to the measurement item, measurement conditions, etc. In the DUT scanning mechanism 56 according to this embodiment, the step angle θ (see FIG. 7) of the roll axis of the drive motor 56g can be selectively set to, for example, 1 degree (deg), 3 degrees, 5 degrees, 7.5 degrees, 10 degrees, 15 degrees, 30 degrees, or 90 degrees.

[0050] Instead of this, instead of the rotation speed management table 16b (first rotation speed management table), a second rotation speed management table may be provided which manages the rotation speed of the drive motor 56f that can minimize the movement time of the DUT scanning mechanism 56 in each step section corresponding to each step angle (corresponding to φ in Figure 7) of the azimuth axis, for example, 5 degrees, 10 degrees, 15 degrees, and 30 degrees.

[0051] Furthermore, instead of the first rotational speed management table and the second rotational speed management table, a third rotational speed management table may be employed that manages the rotational speeds of drive motor 56g and drive motor 56f that can minimize the movement time in each step section of DUT scanning mechanism 56 in response to each step angle θ of the roll axis and each step angle φ of the azimuth axis, respectively.

[0052] The DUT scan control unit 16 loads the DUT scan control table 16a into the working area of ​​the RAM 11c, and drives and controls the drive motors 56f and 56g of the DUT scanning mechanism 56 based on the control data stored in the DUT scan control table 16a. This allows full spherical scanning of the DUT 100 placed on the DUT placement unit 56c. In full spherical scanning, the antenna face of the antenna 110 of the DUT 100 faces each angle sample point PS in the spherical coordinate system, stops for a specified time (the above-mentioned stopping time), and then moves to the next angle sample point PS (scanning of the DUT 100). This operation is performed sequentially for all angle sample points PS.

[0053] In addition, the DUT scanning control unit 16 controls the rotational speed of the drive motor 56g, which is involved in the movement of the DUT scanning mechanism 56 for each step angle θ of the roll axis, using the rotational speed management table 16b under the control of the rotational speed management control unit 18b described later, in accordance with the full spherical scanning of the DUT scanning mechanism 56 using the DUT scanning control table 16a.

[0054] The signal analysis control unit 17 captures the NR-related radio signals received by the test antenna 5 during full spherical scanning of the DUT 100 via the NR system simulator 20 and analyzes (measures) them as signals for specific measurement items.

[0055] The setting control unit 18a is a functional unit that sets various information required for the DUT scan control unit 16 to control the rotation speed of the drive motor 56f using the rotation speed management table 16b. When measuring a specific measurement item, the setting control unit 18a is capable of selectively setting a desired step angle value from among a plurality of different step angles (θ, φ), such as 5 degrees, 10 degrees, 15 degrees, and 30 degrees.

[0056] For example, during TRP measurement, the rotational speed management control unit 18b uses the rotational speed management table 16b to control the rotational speed of the drive motor 56f, which is involved in the movement of the DUT scanning mechanism 56 for each step angle θ of the roll axis, in cooperation with the DUT scanning control unit 16, in accordance with the full spherical scanning of the DUT scanning mechanism 56.

[0057] The reference position measurement control unit 18c measures the output power of the DUT 100 at a reference position, which is a predetermined arbitrary measurement position, every certain time while the DUT 100 is being scanned over the entire sphere, and suspends the measurement if the measured power is below a predetermined specified power. When suspending the measurement, the reference position measurement control unit 18c excludes the measurement data from the measurement at the previous reference position and thereafter from the measurement value, making it possible to resume the measurement from the excluded measurement position.

[0058] For this purpose, the reference position measurement control unit 18c includes a condition setting unit 18d, a reference position measurement unit 18e, a power determination unit 18f, and an interruption processing unit 18g.

[0059] The condition setting unit 18d sets the reference position, the specified time which is the time interval for measurement at the reference position, the specified power, and the like.

[0060] The reference position measurement unit 18e performs measurement at the reference position every time a set specified time elapses.

[0061] The power determining section 18f determines whether the output power of the DUT 100 measured by the reference position measuring section 18e is equal to or less than a specified power.

[0062] When the measurement is to be interrupted based on the judgment result by the power judgment unit 18f, the interruption processing unit 18g performs interruption processing such as interrupting the measurement, excluding the measurement data from the measurement at the previous reference position onwards from the measurement value, and correcting the restart position so that the measurement is resumed from the excluded measurement position.

[0063] The measurement status display control unit 18h causes the display unit 13 to display the progress of the measurement, the state of the measurement, and the like.

[0064] 4, the NR system simulator 20 includes a signal generating unit 21a, a signal measuring unit 21b, a transmitting / receiving unit 21c, a control unit 21d, an operation unit 21e, and a display unit 21f. The NR system simulator 20 constitutes a simulation measurement device of the present invention.

[0065] The signal generating unit 21a generates a signal (baseband signal) that is the source of the test signal. The transmitting / receiving unit 21c generates a test signal corresponding to the frequency of each communication standard from the signal generated by the signal generating unit 21a and sends it to the signal processing unit 23, and also functions as an RF unit that restores a baseband signal from the signal under measurement sent from the signal processing unit 23. The signal measuring unit 21b performs measurement processing of the signal under measurement based on the baseband signal restored by the transmitting / receiving unit 21c.

[0066] The control unit 21d comprehensively controls the functional units, namely, the signal generating unit 21a, the signal measuring unit 21b, the transmitting / receiving unit 21c, the operation unit 21e, and the display unit 21f. The operation unit 21e is a functional unit for inputting various information such as commands, and the display unit 21f is a functional unit for displaying various information such as input screens for various information and measurement results.

[0067] In the measurement device 1 having the above-described configuration, the DUT 100 is placed on the loading tray 56d of the DUT scanning mechanism (two-axis positioner) 56 within the internal space 51 of the OTA chamber 50, and the DUT 100 is moved (rotated) along the loading tray 56d in two axial directions (azimuth axis and roll axis) by a predetermined step angle, thereby making it possible to measure specific measurement items such as EIRP at each measurement position and TRP across all measurement positions.

[0068] The measurement control operation when measuring spherical coverage by the integrated control device 10, which is performed in conjunction with full spherical scanning of the DUT 100 in the OTA chamber 50 of such a measurement device 1, will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

[0069] In step S1, the control unit 11 performs measurement at the set reference position when a measurement start operation is performed by operating the operation unit 12. After executing the process of step S1, the control unit 11 executes the process of step S2.

[0070] In step S2, the control unit 11 changes the position to the next measurement position. After executing the process of step S2, the control unit 11 executes the process of step S3.

[0071] In step S3, the control unit 11 performs measurement at one measurement position. After executing the process of step S3, the control unit 11 executes the process of step S4.

[0072] In step S4, the control unit 11 determines whether a specified time has elapsed since the previous measurement at the reference position.

[0073] If it is determined that the specified time has elapsed, the control unit 11 executes the process of step S5. If it is determined that the specified time has not elapsed, the control unit 11 executes the process of step S8.

[0074] In step S5, the control unit 11 performs measurement at the set reference position. After executing the process of step S5, the control unit 11 executes the process of step S6.

[0075] In step S6, the control unit 11 determines whether the output power of the DUT 100 measured at the reference position is equal to or less than a specified power.

[0076] If it is determined that the output power of the DUT 100 is equal to or less than the specified power, the control unit 11 executes the process of step S7. If it is determined that the output power of the DUT 100 is not equal to or less than the specified power, the control unit 11 executes the process of step S8.

[0077] In step S7, the control unit 11 suspends the measurement and performs suspension processing such as excluding measurement data, correcting the restart position, etc. After executing the processing of step S7, the control unit 11 ends the measurement control operation.

[0078] In step S8, the control unit 11 determines whether or not there is a remaining position that is a measurement position that has not yet been measured.

[0079] If it is determined that there is a remaining position, the control unit 11 executes the process of step S2. If it is determined that there is no remaining position, the control unit 11 ends the measurement control operation.

[0080] In this way, in the above-described embodiment, the output power of DUT100 at the reference position is measured every specified time, and if the measured output power of DUT100 is below the specified power, the measurement is interrupted, and the measurement data from the measurement at the previous reference position onwards is excluded from the measurement values, allowing the measurement to be resumed from the excluded measurement position.

[0081] This allows measurements to be taken at the reference position every specified time, and if the output power of DUT 100 is below the specified power, the measurement is interrupted, and the measurement data from the previous reference position onwards is excluded from the measured values, allowing the measurement to be resumed from the excluded measurement position.This makes it possible to improve the accuracy of the measurement results by excluding measurement data that is thought to indicate that the output power of DUT 100 is below the specified power.

[0082] Furthermore, since the measurement is suspended, the DUT 100 can be charged and the temperature of the DUT 100 can be lowered during that time, thereby improving the test efficiency.

[0083] While an embodiment of the present invention has been disclosed, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that modifications may be made thereto without departing from the scope of the present invention, and it is intended that all such modifications and equivalents be included in the following claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0084] 1. Measuring equipment (mobile terminal test equipment) 5 Test antenna 10 Integrated control device 16 DUT scanning control section 18c Reference position measurement control section 18d Condition setting section 18e Reference position measurement section 18f Power judgment section 18g Interruption processing section 20 NR system simulator (simulated measurement device) 50 OTA chamber (electromagnetic anechoic box) 51 Interior Space 56 DUT scanning mechanism (positioner) 56f, 56g drive motor 100 DUTs (Mobile Terminals)

Claims

1. a positioner (56) provided in the internal space (51) of the anechoic box (50), having an azimuth axis and a roll axis that can be rotated by drive motors (56f, 56g), and rotating the test object so that the test object faces a plurality of preset angular sample points of a spherical coordinate system, with the center of the spherical coordinate system as a reference point; a simulated measurement device (20) connected to a test antenna (5) in the interior space; an integrated control device (10) that controls the simulation measurement device to transmit a test signal from the test antenna to the mobile terminal (100) under test, cause the test antenna to receive a measurement signal transmitted from the mobile terminal that has received the test signal, and measure specific measurement items related to the mobile terminal based on the received measurement signal, at each measurement position corresponding to each of the plurality of angle sample points; and a Reference position measurement control unit (18c) that measures the output power of the mobile terminal at a predetermined Reference position every time a predetermined specified time has elapsed, and if the measured output power is equal to or less than a predetermined specified power, suspends the measurement, excludes measurement data from the measurement at the previous Reference position and thereafter from the measurement values, and makes it possible to resume measurement from the excluded measurement position.

2. a positioner (56) provided in the internal space (51) of the anechoic box (50), having an azimuth axis and a roll axis that can be rotated by drive motors (56f, 56g), and rotating the test object so that the test object faces a plurality of preset angular sample points of a spherical coordinate system, with the center of the spherical coordinate system as a reference point; a simulated measurement device (20) connected to a test antenna (5) in the interior space; and an integrated control device (10) that controls the simulating measurement device to perform a measurement operation at each measurement position corresponding to each of the plurality of angle sampling points, the operation transmitting a test signal from the test antenna to the mobile terminal (100) that is the test subject, causing the test antenna to receive a measurement signal transmitted from the mobile terminal that has received the test signal, and measuring a specific measurement item related to the mobile terminal based on the received measurement signal, measuring the output power of the mobile terminal at a preset reference position every time a preset time period elapses; and if the measured output power is equal to or less than a predetermined specified power, interrupting the measurement, excluding measurement data from the measurement at the previous reference position and thereafter from the measurement value, and enabling the measurement to be resumed from the excluded measurement position.

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