Desense with adaptive control

A method and apparatus for reducing degradation in the sensitivity of a receiver in a mobile phone are disclosed. The sensitivity of the receiver in the mobile phone is monitored. When the sensitivity degrades below a predetermined threshold, it is determined which feature of the mobile phone is causing the detected degradation. The operation of the feature is changed to reduce the amount of degradation produced by the feature.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to call quality on a mobile phone and more particularly to a method and apparatus for reducing degradation in the sensitivity of a receiver in a mobile phone caused by features of the mobile phone.

DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART

Over the past 20 years the use of mobile devices such as cell phones, personal digital assistants, digital cameras, digital music players, etc. has skyrocketed. In addition, the functions that each mobile device can perform have increased greatly. The previously separate functions of cell phones, digital cameras, PDAs and digital music players can now be found in a single portable electronic device. Thus, these mobile devices are now a part of many people's daily life.

One problem with all of these features being available on a mobile phone is that these features may interfere with the operation of the mobile phone. For example, features in the mobile phone may cause degradation in the sensitivity of the receiver in the mobile phone, so called desense, when used in combination with a connected call. This can lead to bad call quality and in some cases dropped calls.

Thus, there is a need for a method and apparatus for reducing degradation in the sensitivity of a receiver in a mobile phone by features of the mobile phone.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one embodiment of the invention, a method for reducing degradation in the sensitivity of a receiver in a mobile phone is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of: monitoring the sensitivity of the receiver; detecting when the sensitivity degrades below a predetermined threshold; determining which feature of the mobile phone is causing the detected degradation; changing the operation of the feature to reduce the amount of degradation produced by the feature.

According to another embodiment of the invention an apparatus for reducing degradation in the sensitivity of a receiver in a mobile phone is disclosed. The apparatus comprises: a monitor for monitoring the sensitivity of the receiver; a detector for detecting when the sensitivity degrades below a predetermined threshold; a processor for detecting which feature of the mobile phone is causing the detected degradation wherein said processor changes the operation of the feature to reduce the amount of degradation produced by the feature.

According to another embodiment of the invention a computer readable medium storing code for reducing degradation in the sensitivity of a receiver in a mobile phone is disclosed. The code comprises: code for monitoring the sensitivity of the receiver; code for detecting when the sensitivity degrades below a predetermined threshold; code for determining which feature of the mobile phone is causing the detected degradation; code for changing the operation of the feature to reduce the amount of degradation produced by the feature.

Further embodiments of the invention are defined in the dependent claims.

It is an advantage of embodiments of the invention that the sensitivity degradation of the receiver caused by features of the mobile phone can be reduced or eliminated which results in better call quality and fewer dropped calls.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will now be described in terms of specific, example embodiments. It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the example embodiments disclosed. It should also be understood that throughout this disclosure, where a process or method is shown or described, steps of the method may be performed in any order or simultaneously, unless it is clear from the context that one step depends on another being performed first. Also drawings and embodiments which illustrate the inventive concepts are not mutually exclusive. Rather each example has been tailored to illustrate a specific concept discussed. In some cases, elements shown in a particular drawing coexist with others shown in a different drawing, but only certain elements or steps are shown for clarity. It should also be pointed out that references made throughout this disclosure to figures and descriptions using terms such as top, bottom, left, right, vertical, horizontal, etc., are used merely for convenience, and refer only to the relative position of features as shown from the perspective of the reader.

Embodiments of the invention will be disclosed herein in the context of a specific type of mobile device, a mobile terminal of the cellular telephone type, which includes imaging functions and communication functions. The communication functions and a communication mode of operation are but examples of terminal functions associated with a terminal mode of operation. The concepts of the invention are not limited to the specific embodiments described. In particular, the concepts can be applied regardless of the display technology, keypad technology, or type of housing used. The particular mobile device or terminal involved may be a personal communication system (PCS) terminal which can include data processing, facsimile, and data communication capabilities. As previously mentioned, the mobile device in which the invention is implemented can encompass personal digital assistants, Internet access devices, organizers and computers.

FIG. 1is a functional block diagram of the hardware components of the mobile terminal100which can implement some embodiments of the invention.FIG. 1includes the components which implement the means to carry out at least some of the processes specifically described herein, as well as other functions typically associated with a mobile device of the mobile radio telephone device. Mobile terminal100can include a display102and an input block104. These two blocks in conjunction may be used to implement soft keys, otherwise, the input block104can include traditional buttons using any technology. The input block104may include buttons, soft keys, or touch screen menus. The main processor platform106controls the overall operation of the terminal. This platform includes a processor which controls many of the functions of the phone. This platform can also include computer code in the form of firmware, microcode, software, etc. which uses the processor to execute various functions on the terminal. The mobile terminal100ofFIG. 1also includes a radio block108with a transmitter124and a receiver126which provides an air interface to a wireless communication network in this example. The terminal's antenna system,110, is connected to radio block108. The baseband logic block112provides basic signal processing, for example, synchronization, channel coding, decoding, and burst formatting, as is understood in the art. The audio interface block114handles voice as well as analog to digital processing. It also receives input through a microphone and produces output through a speaker in the case of a mobile terminal device as is illustrated in this example. The baseband block112also performs some of the processing images received through an imaging device, in this example, a camera116.

The camera116may also include a lens cover118. This lens cover has a built-in switch120which reports the status of the lens cover to the main processing platform106. A lens cover of this type typically slides open on molded or metallic tracks, as is known in the art. The processor106can be informed of the status of the lens cover via switch120, and act accordingly. The mobile terminal100also comprises one or more LED's128which may be controlled by the main processor platform106to perform various functions.

The operation of the mobile device will now be described with reference toFIG. 2according to one embodiment of the invention. In step201, the processor106monitors the sensitivity or interference levels of the receiver126. The processor106continues to monitor the sensitivity level of the receiver126until the sensitivity degrades below a predetermined threshold value in step203. When the sensitivity degrades below the predetermined threshold value, the processor106determines which feature of the mobile phone may be causing the sensitivity degradation in step205. According to one embodiment of the invention, the processor106may either arbitrarily or using a prioritized list, momentarily slow or shut down various features of the mobile phone to determine which feature or features is causing the degradation which will be described in more detail below. For example, the processor106changes the operation of the feature to see if the sensitivity degradation improves in step207. If the sensitivity degradation does not improve with the first change in operation, the processor may change the operation of the feature in a different manner. For example, the processor may first slow down or dim a feature and then shut down the operation of the feature completely. In the alternative, the processor may change the operation of a second feature when changing the operation of the first feature does not improve the degradation in step209.

According to one embodiment of the invention, a method for determining which feature of the mobile phone is causing the interference is disclosed with reference toFIG. 3. As mentioned above, the processor106may use a prioritized list of features to determine which features to try first to improve the degradation. Depending on where in the network the mobile phone is operating, the mobile phone will be operating on different frequencies. Different features of the mobile phone will disturb different frequencies. Thus, lists of most likely features of the mobile phone to be causing interference with the call can be calculated and stored in the mobile phone for various frequencies.

According to this embodiment of the invention, the processor106first determines what frequency the receiver126is using for the call in step301. The processor106then selects a stored list of possible features which may be causing the interference for the determined frequency in step303. The processor106then momentarily changes the operation of the first feature in the list to determine if the degradation is improved to an acceptable level in step305. As mentioned above, the processor106may momentarily slow down or shut down the selected feature. If it is determined in step307that the momentary change in operation of the first feature has improved the degradation to an acceptable level, the processor106implements the change in operation until the call is completed or until the receiver126changes frequencies in step309.

If it is determined in step307that the momentary change to the feature did not change the degradation, the processor106may change the operation of the same feature in a more drastic manner, e.g. completely shut down the feature rather than slow down the feature, or select the next feature on the list and momentarily change the operation of that feature. This process continues until the degradation is improved or all of the features on the list have been checked.

The mobile phone may have many features including but not limited to a main display102, a camera116, one or more LED's128, a clock signal to the processor106, an Internet connection. To determine if the sensitivity degradation of the receiver126is coming from the main display102, the processor106may either dim or shut down the main display102to determine if either action causes the degradation of the receiver126to improve. To determine if the frequency of a clock signal to the processor106is causing the sensitivity degradation, the processor106may lower the frequency of the clock signal to determine if this action improves the degradation of the receiver126. To determine if the sensitivity degradation of the receiver126is coming from the LED(s)128on the mobile phone, the processor106may either dim or shut down the LED(s)128to determine if either action causes the degradation of the receiver126to improve. To determine if an Internet connection is causing the sensitivity degradation of the receiver126, the processor106may disconnect the Internet connection to determine if this action improves the degradation of the receiver126.

In another embodiment of the invention according toFIG. 4, a computer-readable medium400is illustrated schematically. The computer-readable medium400has embodied thereon a computer program410for reducing degradation in the sensitivity of a receiver in a mobile phone, for process by a computer413. The computer program comprises a code segment414for monitoring the sensitivity of the receiver; a code segment415for detecting when the sensitivity degrades below a predetermined threshold; a code segment416for determining which feature of the mobile phone is causing the detected degradation; and a code segment417for changing the operation of the feature to reduce the amount of degradation produced by the feature.

The present invention has been described above with reference to specific embodiments. However, other embodiments than the above described are equally possible within the scope of the invention. Different method steps than those described above, performing the method by hardware or software or a combination of hardware and software, may be provided within the scope of the invention. It should be appreciated that the different features and steps of the invention may be combined in other combinations than those described. The scope of the invention is only limited by the appended patent claims.