Reconfigurable RF receive diplexer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9768838-B2
Application number	US-201514820006-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 6, 2015
Priority date	Apr 8, 2014
Publication date	Sep 19, 2017
Grant date	Sep 19, 2017

Abstract

A reconfigurable RF receive diplexer, which includes a first hybrid RF coupler, a second hybrid RF coupler, and reconfigurable RF filter circuitry, is disclosed. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer receives a first adjunct RF antenna receive signal via a first isolation port to provide a first adjunct RF receive signal via a second main port. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer further receives a first RF transmit signal via a first main port to provide a first RF antenna transmit signal via the first isolation port. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer operates in each of a group of operating modes, such that during a first operating mode, a carrier frequency of the first adjunct RF antenna receive signal is within a first RF communications band; and during a second operating mode, a carrier frequency of the first adjunct RF antenna receive signal is within a second RF communications band.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A reconfigurable RF receive diplexer comprising:
a first hybrid RF coupler having a first main port, a first pair of quadrature ports, and a first isolation port;
a second hybrid RF coupler having a second main port and a second pair of quadrature ports; and
reconfigurable RF filter circuitry coupled between the first pair of quadrature ports and the second pair of quadrature ports, wherein the reconfigurable RF receive diplexer is configured to:
receive a first adjunct RF antenna receive signal via the first isolation port to provide a first adjunct RF receive signal via the second main port;
receive a first RF transmit signal via the first main port to provide a first RF antenna transmit signal via the first isolation port; and
operate in each of a plurality of operating modes, such that during a first operating mode, a carrier frequency of the first adjunct RF antenna receive signal is within a first RF communications band; and during a second operating mode, a carrier frequency of the first adjunct RF antenna receive signal is within a second RF communications band.

2. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 1 further configured to receive a first RF antenna receive signal via the first isolation port to provide a first RF receive signal via the first main port.

3. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 2 wherein the first RF receive signal and the first adjunct RF receive signal are carrier aggregation RF receive signals.

4. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 2 wherein:
the first hybrid RF coupler is further configured to receive the first RF antenna receive signal via the first isolation port, and split and phase-shift the first RF antenna receive signal to provide a first in-phase RF receive signal and a first quadrature-phase RF receive signal to the reconfigurable RF filter circuitry;
the reconfigurable RF filter circuitry is further configured to substantially reflect the first in-phase RF receive signal and the first quadrature-phase RF receive signal to provide a first reflected in-phase RF receive signal and a first reflected quadrature-phase RF receive signal to the first hybrid RF coupler; and
the first hybrid RF coupler is further configured to receive, phase-shift, and combine the first reflected in-phase RF receive signal and the first reflected quadrature-phase RF receive signal to provide the first RF receive signal via the first main port.

5. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 1 wherein:
the first hybrid RF coupler is configured to receive, split, and phase-shift the first RF transmit signal to provide a first in-phase RF transmit signal and a first quadrature-phase RF transmit signal to the reconfigurable RF filter circuitry;
the reconfigurable RF filter circuitry is configured to substantially reflect the first in-phase RF transmit signal and the first quadrature-phase RF transmit signal to provide a first reflected in-phase RF transmit signal and a first reflected quadrature-phase RF transmit signal to the first hybrid RF coupler; and
the first hybrid RF coupler is further configured to receive, phase-shift, and combine the first reflected in-phase RF transmit signal and the first reflected quadrature-phase RF transmit signal to provide the first RF antenna transmit signal via the first isolation port.

6. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 1 further configured to receive the first RF transmit signal and the first adjunct RF antenna receive signal simultaneously.

7. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 1 wherein the reconfigurable RF filter circuitry comprises surface acoustic wave (SAW) RF filter circuitry coupled between the first pair of quadrature ports and the second pair of quadrature ports.

8. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 1 wherein the reconfigurable RF filter circuitry comprises bulk acoustic wave (BAW) RF filter circuitry coupled between the first pair of quadrature ports and the second pair of quadrature ports.

9. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 1 further comprising a variable capacitance circuit configured to provide at least one variable capacitance to the reconfigurable RF filter circuitry wherein filtering characteristics of the reconfigurable RF filter circuitry are based on the at least one variable capacitance, which is based on a function configuration signal.

10. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 1 wherein the first isolation port is coupled to a first RF antenna.

11. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 1 wherein the first isolation port is coupled to a selected one of a first RF antenna and a second RF antenna via RF antenna switching circuitry.

12. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 11 wherein the first main port is coupled to RF multiplexing circuitry via the RF antenna switching circuitry.

13. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 11 wherein a selected another of the first RF antenna and the second RF antenna is coupled to RF multiplexing circuitry via the RF antenna switching circuitry.

14. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 1 wherein:
the reconfigurable RF filter circuitry comprises first RF filter circuitry, second RF filter circuitry, a first group of RF switches, and a second group of RF switches;
the first group of RF switches is coupled between the first RF filter circuitry and the first pair of quadrature ports;
the first group of RF switches is further coupled between the first RF filter circuitry and the second pair of quadrature ports;
the second group of RF switches is coupled between the second RF filter circuitry and the first pair of quadrature ports; and
the second group of RF switches is further coupled between the second RF filter circuitry and the second pair of quadrature ports.

15. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 14 wherein:
during the first operating mode, each of the first group of RF switches is configured to be in a CLOSED state, thereby functionally coupling the first RF filter circuitry between the first pair of quadrature ports and the second pair of quadrature ports;
during the first operating mode, each of the second group of RF switches is configured to be in an OPEN state, thereby functionally isolating the second RF filter circuitry from the first pair of quadrature ports and from the second pair of quadrature ports;
during the second operating mode, each of the first group of RF switches is configured to be in an OPEN state, thereby functionally isolating the first RF filter circuitry from the first pair of quadrature ports and from the second pair of quadrature ports; and
during the second operating mode, each of the second group of RF switches is configured to be in a CLOSED state, thereby functionally coupling the second RF filter circuitry between the first pair of quadrature ports and the second pair of quadrature ports.

16. The reconfigurable RF receive diplexer of claim 1 further comprising a third hybrid RF coupler, wherein:
the reconfigurable RF filter circuitry comprises first RF filter circuitry, second RF filter circuitry, a first group of RF switches, and a second group of RF switches;
the second hybrid RF coupler further has a second isolation port;
the third hybrid RF coupler has a third main port, a third pair of quadrature ports, and a third isolation port;
the first group of RF switches is coupled between the first RF filter circuitry and the second pair of quadrature ports;
the second group of RF switches is coupled between the second RF filter circuitry and

Assignees

• Rf Micro Devices Inc
• Qorvo Us Inc

Inventors

• Khlat Nadim
• Granger-Jones Marcus

Classifications

• H04B7/0837

  using pre-detection combining (H04B7/0868 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H04B1/58

  Hybrid arrangements, i.e. arrangements for transition from single-path two-direction transmission to single-direction transmission on each of two paths or vice versa · CPC title

• H04B7/01 Primary

  Reducing phase shift · CPC title

• H04B1/18

  Input circuits, e.g. for coupling to an antenna or a transmission line (coupling networks between antennas or lines and receivers independent of the nature of the receiver H03H) · CPC title

• H04B1/0057

  using diplexing or multiplexing filters for selecting the desired band · CPC title