Selective Antenna Receiver Diversity Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mobile communication devices face challenges in reducing size and weight while maintaining performance and battery life, as additional antennas and receivers increase interference and power consumption.
Innovation Solution
A portable wireless device with a front-end controller that selectively couples a secondary antenna to a secondary receiver and varies its gain based on channel quality indicators, using techniques like GRAKE receivers for diversity combining and power management to optimize performance and conserve energy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multiple antennas and receivers are used to improve reception performance, then interference and multipath fading are reduced, but device size and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple receiver functions into a single shared receiver unit. The system uses a single receiver that can be selectively coupled to different antennas through switching mechanisms, thereby improving reception performance through diversity combining while avoiding the weight penalty of multiple separate receivers.
Solution Approach 2:
The single receiver is designed to serve multiple antennas and perform multiple functions. It can be dynamically configured to receive signals from different antennas and process multiple signal types, making the receiver a universal component that replaces what would traditionally require multiple dedicated receivers.
2Reliability
If multiple antennas and receivers are used to improve reception performance, then interference and multipath fading are reduced, but device size increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple receiver circuits into one shared receiver unit with selective coupling capability. This consolidation significantly reduces the volume occupied by receiver components while maintaining the reception benefits of multiple antennas through time-division or frequency-division multiplexing.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs dynamic switching mechanisms that allow a single receiver to be selectively coupled to different antennas based on signal conditions. This dynamic reconfiguration enables the receiver to adapt to varying reception requirements without requiring permanent physical connections to multiple receivers, thereby reducing overall device volume.
3Reliability
If multiple receivers are used to improve reception, then signal quality is enhanced, but power consumption increases and battery life decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent consolidates multiple receiver functions into a single shared receiver that is selectively activated. By using one receiver to serve multiple antennas through selective coupling, the system achieves diversity combining benefits while consuming power equivalent to operating a single receiver, rather than powering multiple simultaneous receivers.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements periodic or conditional activation of the receiver based on signal quality requirements. The single receiver is selectively coupled to different antennas and activated only when needed for specific signal reception tasks, thereby reducing overall power consumption compared to continuously operating multiple receivers.
4Reliability
If additional circuitry is added to support multiple antennas and receivers, then reception performance improves, but battery capacity requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple receiver circuits into one shared receiver unit, which dramatically reduces the additional circuitry required. The selective coupling mechanism allows a single receiver to handle signals from multiple antennas, reducing the total component count and power consumption, thereby extending battery life without requiring larger battery capacity.
Data Source
AI summary
A wireless communication device includes at least two antennas with at least two corresponding receive chains. Selectively activating and deactivating the receivers as needed for a desired quality of reception controls the performance and power consumption of the wireless communication device. The wireless communication device may operate in a single receiver mode or a dual receiver diversity mode. In the dual receiver diversity mode, the wireless communication device may selectively control the gain of one or more antennas and/or reconfigure one or more receive chains to minimize power consumption while maintaining a desired performance.