Patent ID: 12244546

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS

One or more specific embodiments will be described below. In an effort to provide a concise description of these embodiments, not all features of an actual implementation are described in the specification. It should be appreciated that in the development of any such actual implementation, as in any engineering or design project, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be made to achieve the developers' specific goals, such as compliance with system-related and business-related constraints, which may vary from one implementation to another. Moreover, it should be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time consuming, but would nevertheless be a routine undertaking of design, fabrication, and manufacture for those of ordinary skill having the benefit of this disclosure.

When introducing elements of various embodiments of the present disclosure, the articles “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements. The terms “comprising,” “including,” and “having” are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements other than the listed elements. Additionally, it should be understood that references to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” of the present disclosure are not intended to be interpreted as excluding the existence of additional embodiments that also incorporate the recited features. Use of the term “approximately,” “near,” “about”, and/or “substantially” should be understood to mean including close to a target (e.g., design, value, amount), such as within a margin of any suitable or contemplatable error (e.g., within 0.1% of a target, within 1% of a target, within 5% of a target, within 10% of a target, within 25% of a target, and so on). Also, full-duplexing, as referred to herein, refers to transmitting and receiving wireless signals at the same time and over the same frequency range, as opposed to frequency division duplexing (FDD), where signals are transmitted over a first frequency range and received over a second frequency range different from the first frequency range.

With the foregoing in mind, there are many suitable communication devices that may include and use the transceiver circuitry described herein. Turning first toFIG.1, an electronic device10according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may include, among other things, a processor core complex12including one or more processor(s), memory14, nonvolatile storage16, a display18, input structures22, an input/output (I/O) interface24, a network interface26, and a power source29. The various functional blocks shown inFIG.1may include hardware elements (including circuitry), software elements (including computer code stored on a computer-readable medium) or a combination of both hardware and software elements. It should be noted thatFIG.1is merely one example of a particular implementation and is intended to illustrate the types of components that may be present in electronic device10.

By way of example, the electronic device10may represent a block diagram of the notebook computer depicted inFIG.2, the handheld device depicted inFIG.3, the handheld device depicted inFIG.4, the desktop computer depicted inFIG.5, the wearable electronic device depicted inFIG.6, or similar devices. It should be noted that the processor(s)12and other related items inFIG.1may be generally referred to herein as “data processing circuitry.” Such data processing circuitry may be embodied wholly or in part as software, software, hardware, or any combination thereof. Furthermore, the processor(s)12and other related items inFIG.1may be a single contained processing module or may be incorporated wholly or partially within any of the other elements within the electronic device10.

In the electronic device10ofFIG.1, the processor(s)12may be operably coupled with a memory14and a nonvolatile storage16to perform various algorithms. Such programs or instructions executed by the processor(s)12may be stored in any suitable article of manufacture that includes one or more tangible, computer-readable media. The tangible, computer-readable media may include the memory14and/or the nonvolatile storage16, individually or collectively, to store the instructions or routines. The memory14and the nonvolatile storage16may include any suitable articles of manufacture for storing data and executable instructions, such as random-access memory, read-only memory, rewritable flash memory, hard drives, and optical discs. In addition, programs (e.g., an operating system) encoded on such a computer program product may also include instructions that may be executed by the processor(s)12to enable the electronic device10to provide various functionalities.

In certain embodiments, the display18may be a liquid crystal display (LCD), which may facilitate users to view images generated on the electronic device10. In some embodiments, the display18may include a touch screen, which may facilitate user interaction with a user interface of the electronic device10. Furthermore, it should be appreciated that, in some embodiments, the display18may include one or more light-emitting diode (LED) displays, organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays, active-matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED) displays, or some combination of these and/or other display technologies.

The input structures22of the electronic device10may enable a user to interact with the electronic device10(e.g., pressing a button to increase or decrease a volume level). The I/O interface24may enable electronic device10to interface with various other electronic devices, as may the network interface26. The network interface26may include, for example, one or more interfaces for a personal area network (PAN), such as a BLUETOOTH® network, for a local area network (LAN) or wireless local area network (WLAN), such as an 802.11x WI-FI® network, and/or for a wide area network (WAN), such as a 3rd generation (3G) cellular network, universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), 4th generation (4G) cellular network, long term evolution (LTE®) cellular network, long term evolution license assisted access (LTE-LAA) cellular network, 5th generation (5G) cellular network, and/or New Radio (NR) cellular network. In particular, the network interface26may include, for example, one or more interfaces for using a Release-15 cellular communication standard of the 5G specifications that include the millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency range (e.g., 24.25-300 gigahertz (GHz)). The network interface26of the electronic device10may allow communication over the aforementioned networks (e.g., 5G, Wi-Fi, LTE-LAA, and so forth).

The network interface26may also include one or more interfaces for, for example, broadband fixed wireless access networks (e.g., WIMAX®), mobile broadband Wireless networks (mobile WIMAX®), asynchronous digital subscriber lines (e.g., ADSL, VDSL), digital video broadcasting-terrestrial (DVB-T®) network and its extension DVB Handheld (DVB-H®) network, ultra-wideband (UWB) network, alternating current (AC) power lines, and so forth.

As illustrated, the network interface26may include a transceiver30. In some embodiments, all or portions of the transceiver30may be disposed within the processor core complex12. The transceiver30may support transmission and receipt of various wireless signals via one or more antennas (not shown inFIG.1). In particular, the transceiver30may support simultaneous transmission and receipt of wireless signals at the same frequency or frequency range (e.g., full-duplex operation). As discussed in more detail below, the transceiver30may have a single I/O port for transmission and receipt of wireless signals. In some cases, changing impedance of the one or more antennas may disturb the duplex function and/or degrade isolation between the transmit path and the receive path. To prevent such disruption, an antenna tracker may be used to substantially match an impedance of the one or more antennas.

In particular, the transceiver30may include a duplexer (not shown inFIG.1), such as an electrical balanced duplexer. The duplexer may enable bidirectional communication over a single path while separating signals traveling in each direction from one another. For example, the duplexer may isolate a transmitter of the electronic device10from a received signal and/or isolate a receiver of the electronic device10from a transmission signal (e.g., isolate the transmitter from the receiver, and vice versa). In some embodiments, the duplexer may include a balance-unbalance transformer (e.g., a balun) that performs or facilitates performing the isolation.

In some embodiments, the electronic device10communicates over various wireless networks (e.g., WI-FI®, WIMAX®, mobile WIMAX®, 4G, LTE®, 5G, and so forth) using the transceiver30. The transceiver30may transmit and receive RF signals to support voice and/or data communication in wireless applications such as, for example, PAN networks (e.g., BLUETOOTH®), WLAN networks (e.g., 802.11x WI-FI®), WAN networks (e.g., 3G, 4G, 5G, NR, and LTE® and LTE-LAA cellular networks), WIMAX® networks, mobile WIMAX® networks, ADSL and VDSL networks, DVB-T® and DVB-H® networks, UWB networks, and so forth. The power source29of the electronic device10may include any suitable source of power, such as a rechargeable lithium polymer (Li-poly) battery and/or an alternating current (AC) power converter.

In certain embodiments, the electronic device10may take the form of a computer, a portable electronic device, a wearable electronic device, or other type of electronic device. Such computers may be generally portable (such as laptop, notebook, and tablet computers), or generally used in one place (such as conventional desktop computers, workstations, and/or servers). In certain embodiments, the electronic device10in the form of a computer may be a model of a MacBook®, MacBook® Pro, MacBook Air®, iMac®, Mac® mini, or Mac Pro® available from Apple Inc. of Cupertino, California. By way of example, the electronic device10, taking the form of a notebook computer10A, is illustrated inFIG.2in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. The depicted notebook computer10A may include a housing or enclosure36, a display18, input structures22, and ports of an I/O interface24. In one embodiment, the input structures22(such as a keyboard and/or touchpad) may be used to interact with the computer10A, such as to start, control, or operate a graphical user interface (GUI) and/or applications running on computer10A. For example, a keyboard and/or touchpad may allow a user to navigate a user interface and/or application interface displayed on display18.

FIG.3depicts a front view of a handheld device10B, which represents one embodiment of the electronic device10. The handheld device10B may represent, for example, a portable phone, a media player, a personal data organizer, a handheld game platform, or any combination of such devices. By way of example, the handheld device10B may be a model of an iPod® or iPhone® available from Apple Inc. of Cupertino, California. The handheld device10B may include an enclosure36to protect interior components from physical damage and/or to shield them from electromagnetic interference. The enclosure36may surround the display18. The I/O interfaces24may open through the enclosure36and may include, for example, an I/O port for a hardwired connection for charging and/or content manipulation using a standard connector and protocol, such as the Lightning connector provided by Apple Inc. of Cupertino, California, a universal serial bus (USB), or other similar connector and protocol.

The input structures22, in combination with the display18, may allow a user to control the handheld device10B. For example, the input structures22may activate or deactivate the handheld device10B, navigate the user interface to a home screen, a user-configurable application screen, and/or activate a voice-recognition feature of the handheld device10B. Other input structures22may provide volume control, or may toggle between vibrate and ring modes. The input structures22may also include a microphone that may obtain a user's voice for various voice-related features, and a speaker that may enable audio playback and/or certain phone capabilities. The input structures22may also include a headphone input that may provide a connection to external speakers and/or headphones.

FIG.4depicts a front view of another handheld device10C, which represents another embodiment of the electronic device10. The handheld device10C may represent, for example, a tablet computer, or one of various portable computing devices. By way of example, the handheld device10C may be a tablet-sized embodiment of the electronic device10, which may be, for example, a model of an iPad® available from Apple Inc. of Cupertino, California.

Turning toFIG.5, a computer10D may represent another embodiment of the electronic device10ofFIG.1. The computer10D may be any computer, such as a desktop computer, a server, or a notebook computer, but may also be a standalone media player or video gaming machine. By way of example, the computer10D may be an iMac®, a MacBook®, or another similar device by Apple Inc. of Cupertino, California. It should be noted that the computer10D may also represent a personal computer (PC) by another manufacturer. A similar enclosure36may be provided to protect and enclose internal components of the computer10D, such as the display18. In certain embodiments, a user of the computer10D may interact with the computer10D using various peripheral input structures22, such as the keyboard22A or mouse22B (e.g., input structures22), which may connect to the computer10D.

Similarly,FIG.6depicts a wearable electronic device10E representing another embodiment of the electronic device10ofFIG.1that may operate using the techniques described herein. By way of example, the wearable electronic device10E, which may include a wristband43, may be an Apple Watch® by Apple Inc. of Cupertino, California. However, in other embodiments, the wearable electronic device10E may include any wearable electronic device such as, for example, a wearable exercise monitoring device (e.g., pedometer, accelerometer, heart rate monitor), or other device by another manufacturer. The display18of the wearable electronic device10E may include a touch screen display18(e.g., LCD, LED display, OLED display, active-matrix organic light emitting diode (AMOLED) display, and so forth), as well as input structures22, which may allow users to interact with a user interface of the wearable electronic device10E.

As mentioned above, the transceiver30of the electronic device10may include a transmitter and a receiver that are coupled to an antenna to enable the electronic device10to transmit and receive wireless signals. Certain electronic devices may include isolation circuitry having an electrical balanced duplexer (EBD) that isolates the transmitter from received signals, and the receiver from transmission signals, thus reducing interference when communicating. In such electronic devices, an impedance tuner may be used to match the impedance of the antenna to increase effectiveness of this isolation. However, the available bandwidth for transmitting and receiving signals may be limited by a half-duplex transceiver. As a result, transmission of signals between integrated circuits of the electronic device10and wireless communications with external devices may be slow. Further, separate cables may be needed to transmit and receive signals at the same frequency using a half-duplex transceiver. The additional cable consumes additional space or real estate on the integrated circuit and thus limits a minimum size of the integrated circuit.

Thus, the transceiver30of the electronic device10may be a full-duplex transceiver to double the available bandwidth for transmitting and receiving signals at the same frequency simultaneously.

transmission path for transmission signals sent from the transmitter may branch between the antenna and the impedance tuner. As a result, some of the power used to transmit a transmission signal through the antenna may be lost when the transmission signal branches to the impedance tuner. Similarly, the reception path for received signals received from the antenna may branch between the receiver and the impedance tuner. As a result, some of the power in the received signal received at the receiver may be lost (e.g., insertion loss) when the received signal branches to the impedance tuner.

Embodiments herein provide various apparatuses and techniques to improve available bandwidth for the transmission and received signals while maintaining and/or improving isolation of the transmitter and receiver of the electronic device10. To do so, the embodiments disclosed herein include a full duplex transceiver (e.g., one that enables transmitting and receiving wireless signals at the same time and over the same frequency range) with two circuit paths between one or more antennas and an isolation circuit. A non-reciprocal phase shifter may be disposed on one of the two circuit paths to shift a phase of a signal therethrough such that the signal through the phase shifter can be constructively combined with a signal on the other circuit path. For example, the non-reciprocal phase shifter may shift a phase of a signal by one phase amount (e.g., +90 degrees) when the signal propagates through the non-reciprocal phase shifter in a first direction, and shift a phase of a signal by another phase amount (e.g., −90 degrees) when the signal propagates through the non-reciprocal phase shifter in a second direction, opposite of the first direction. While phases of the signals may be discussed herein with respect to degrees, it should be understood that alternative angular units of measure may be used, such as radians. For example, 90 degrees of phase shift may be equivalent to about 1.5708 radians of phase shift.

In some embodiments, the non-reciprocal phase shifter may be disposed on one of the two circuit paths and shift a phase of a portion of the split signal propagating therethrough. The non-reciprocal phase shifter may improve the isolation of the transmitter and the receiver of the electronic device10(e.g., by ensuring that the signal on its circuit path is in-phase with the signal on the other circuit path).

With the foregoing in mind,FIG.7is an example block diagram of a communication system50of the electronic device ofFIG.1, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The communication system50includes a first integrated circuit (IC)52coupled to a second IC54. The ICs52,54may represent various ICs in electronic device10discussed with respect toFIG.1. One or more antennas79may be coupled to the second IC54to wirelessly transmit and receive signals. As illustrated, the first IC52is an intermediate frequency (IF) transceiver silicon IC and the second IC54is a radio frequency (RF) transceiver silicon IC. In some embodiments, the first IC52may be used to transmit electronic signals (e.g., data) between various ICs in the electronic device10. Additionally or alternatively, the first IC52may include a baseband silicon IC which may manage functions of the second IC54(and other ICs of the electronic device10), such as transmission and receipt of wireless signals via the one or more antennas79. In some embodiments, the second IC54may transmit and receive various wireless signals via the one or more antennas79. The signals transmitted and received by the second IC54may be in a frequency suitable for wireless communication, for example, in the range of 3 kHz-300 GHz.

In the case of a frequency division duplex (FDD) transceiver, where signals are transmitted over a first frequency range and received over a second frequency range, the first IC52may be coupled to the second IC54via a first path56and a second path58. The first path56may be used to transmit signals from the first IC52to the second IC54to be transmitted via one or more antennas79. The second path58may be used to transmit signals received by the one or more antennas79from the second IC54to the first IC52. That is, the paths56,58may be unidirectional. However, the two paths56,58between the ICs52,54may takes up valuable space in the electronic device10or prevent incorporating additional circuitry in the electronic device10.

Embodiments described herein enable removal of one of the paths56,58between the ICs52,54. That is, a single path56may be used to send signals between the first IC52and the second IC54, regardless of a direction of the signal, as transmission and received signals may share the same frequency range. That is, the signals on the single path may include transmission signals to be transmitted via the one or more antennas79and signals received via the one or more antennas79. By reducing a number of paths between the ICs52,54, a size of a footprint of the circuitry of the in the electronic device10may also be reduced, and/or additional circuitry may be incorporated in the electronic device10.

FIG.8is a schematic diagram of example transceiver circuitry70of the electronic device10, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, the example transceiver circuitry70may be disposed in the transceiver30discussed with respect toFIG.1. In other embodiments, the transceiver circuitry70may be disposed in the network interface26and coupled to the transceiver30. With respect toFIG.7, the transceiver circuitry70may be disposed in one or both of the ICs52,54.

As illustrated, the transceiver circuitry70includes isolation circuit76disposed between a transmit (TX) circuit72and a receive (RX) circuit74. The isolation circuit76is coupled to the TX circuit72and is coupled to the RX circuit74. The isolation circuit76may enable transmission signals to pass through to the TX circuit72(e.g., via a transformer effect) and block the transmission signals from passing through to the RX circuit74, while enabling received signals to pass through to the RX circuit74(e.g., via circuit paths) and blocking the received signals from passing through to the TX circuit72.

The first path92and the second path94each couple the isolation circuit76to one or more antennas79via a node77. The first path92may be parallel to and opposite the second path94. The first path92and the second path94may be bidirectional paths along which a signal to be transmitted (e.g., a TX signal) splits and travels from the TX circuit72to the one or more antennas79. Similarly, a signal received via the one or more antennas79(e.g., an RX signal) may split and travel along the first path92and the second path94to the RX circuit74.

In some embodiments, the TX signal from the TX circuit72may be divided by the isolation circuit76. In that case, a first portion of the TX signal may propagate along the first path92and a second portion of the TX signal may propagate along the second path94. The first portion of the signal and the second portion of the signal may be combined at the node77. Similarly, a signal received via the one or more antennas79may be split into a first portion of the RX signal and a second portion of the RX signal. The first portion of the RX signal may propagate along the first path92and the second portion of the RX signal may propagate along the second path94. The first and second portions of the RX signal may be combined at the isolation circuit76and provided to the RX circuit74. It should be noted that splitting the TX signal at the isolation circuit from the TX circuit72or the RX signal at the node77from the one or more antennas79, without combining the split signals back together, may cause an insertion loss equal to about half of a power of the TX signal output from the TX circuit72or about half of a power of the RX signal output from the one or more antennas79, respectively. In some embodiments, the insertion loss may be about 3 decibels (dB).

The isolation circuit76may include a balun (e.g., a transformer balun) that enables TX signals to pass through to the TX circuit72(e.g., via a transformer effect) and blocks the TX signals from passing through to the RX circuit74, while enabling RX signals to pass through to the RX circuit74(e.g., via circuit paths) and blocking the RX signals from passing through to the TX circuit72. In particular, the balun of the isolation circuit76may receive a TX signal from the TX circuit72, and output a first split TX signal on the first path92and a second split TX signal on the second path94, where the first and second split TX signals are out of phase with one another (e.g., by approximately 180 degrees). Each of the split TX signals may have half the power of the original TX signal. The split TX signal from the TX circuit72on the first path92and the second path94may be balanced. Thus, there is no voltage at the input of the RX circuit74, and, accordingly, no voltage from the TX signal leaks into the RX circuit74. Similarly, when an RX signal is received by the one or more antennas79and split at the node77, the split RX signals are in-phase. Thus, there is no differential signal at the isolation circuit76and thus the RX signals do not leak into the TX circuit72. In this manner, the isolation circuit76enables TX signals to pass through to the TX circuit72and block the TX signals from passing through to the RX circuit74, while enabling received signals to pass through to the RX circuit74(e.g., via circuit paths) and blocking the received signals from passing through to the TX circuit72.

Because the split TX signals are out of phase, the disclosed embodiments include phase shifting circuit78that may be disposed along the first path92and/or the second path94. Moreover, the phase shifting circuit78is coupled to the isolation circuit76via the first path92and/or the second signal path94. The phase shifting circuit78is coupled to the one or more antennas79via the first path92and/or the second path94, and the node77. Specifically, the phase shifting circuit78may include one or more phase shifters disposed along the first path92and/or the second path94.

The phase shifting circuit78may shift a phase of a signal along a respective path92,94to substantially correlate or match a phase of a signal along the other path92,94, in either direction (e.g., for both TX and RX signals). For example, because the phase of the first portion of the TX signal on the first path92may be about 180 degrees out of phase compared to the second portion of the TX signal on the second path94, in some embodiments, the phase shifting circuit78may shift a phase of the first portion of the TX signal on the first path92by about 180 degrees. After the phase of the first portion of the TX signal is shifted by the phase shifting circuit78, the phase-shifted first portion and the second portion of the TX signal are substantially in-phase with each other. Thus, the phase shifting circuit78may shift a phase of a signal along the first path92, but not the second path94.

In other embodiments, the phase shifting circuit78may shift a phase of a signal along both the first path92and the second path94. For example, the phase shift of the first signal on the first path92may be opposite the phase shift of the second signal on the second path94. That is, the phase shifting circuit78may shift the phase of the first signal on the first path92by +90 degrees, and shift the phase of the second signal on the second path94by −90 degrees. As another example, if the phase shifting circuit78may shift the phase of the first signal on the first path92by +100 degrees, and shift the phase of the second signal on the second path94by −80 degrees. In any case, the phase shifting circuit78may shift the phase of the first and second signals to enable the split signals to be constructively combined.

Without the phase shifting circuit78, the first signal on the first path92and the second signal on the second path94may be out-of-phase. If the first signal on the first path92and the second signal on the second path94were combined without placing the signals in-phase, an amplitude of the combined signal may be reduced compared to the original signal from the TX circuit72or the one or more antennas79. As such, an insertion loss caused by the isolation circuit76might be amplified without placing the signals in-phase.

Shifting a phase of the first portion of the TX signal on the first path92enables that signal to be combined with a second portion of the TX signal on the second path94. Thus, the two signals along the respective paths92,94can be constructively combined at the node77prior to propagate to the one or more antennas79to recover power lost in the TX signal due to splitting from the isolation circuit76.

As illustrated, the node77is in the form of a “T-line” junction (e.g., three circuit paths joined together at the node77). In additional or alternative embodiments, the node77may include a combiner circuit or device, such as a balun, a Wilkinson power divider, a capacitor, or the like. As such, the phase shifting circuit78may be deactivated for RX signals, and thus be a unidirectional phase shifter. In other embodiments, the node77may cause a phase difference (e.g., approximately a 180 degree phase difference) between the first portion of the RX signal traveling along the first path92and the second portion of the RX signal traveling along the second path94, and, as such, the phase shifting circuit78may be bidirectional and shift a phase of the first portion of the RX signal traveling along the first path92and/or the second portion of the RX signal traveling along the second path94to ensure that the portions of the RX signal are in-phase. In such cases, the node77may include, for example, a balun, which may cause the phase difference between the two portions of the RX signal.

The node77may combine the shifted signals from the phase shifting circuit78and provide the combined signal to the one or more antennas79to be transmitted therefrom. The node77may be any RF combiner circuit, such as a balun, a Wilkinson power divider, a capacitor, a T-line junction, and the like. Depending on the type of combiner circuit used at the node77, the combiner circuit may shift a phase of a portion of a signal received by the one or more antennas79. For example, a signal received at the one or more antennas79may be split into a first portion propagated along the first path92and a second portion propagated along the second path94. However, the combiner circuit at the node77may shift a phase of at least one of the first portion and the second portion. Such is the case if the combiner circuit is implemented as a balun (e.g., a transformer balun). In that case, the phase shifting circuit78may shift a phase of at least one of the first portion and the second portion of the received signal, such that the first portion of the signal is in-phase with the second portion of the signal at the isolation circuit76. To enable the first portion of the signal to be in-phase with the second portion of the signal at the isolation circuit76, the phase shifting circuit78may provide bidirectional phase shifting to shift an RX signal propagating from the one or more antennas79to the isolation circuit76, as well as a TX signal propagating from the isolation circuit76to the one or more antennas79. The first portion and the second portion are then combined at the isolation circuit76and provided to the RX circuit74.

Similarly, the first portion of an RX signal on the first path92may be combined with the second portion of the RX signal on the second path94at the isolation circuit76. The RX signal received at the one or more antennas79may be in single-ended mode. Thus, the first portion of the RX signal on the first path92is in-phase with the second portion of the RX signal on the second path94.

FIG.9Ais a schematic diagram of a receive circuit (e.g., the RX circuit)74of the example transceiver circuitry ofFIG.7, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As illustrated, the RX circuit74may include, for example, a low noise amplifier (LNA)80, filter circuitry81, a demodulator82, and an analog-to-digital converter (ADC)83. One or more signals received by the one or more antennas79may be sent to the RX circuit74via the isolation circuit76. In some embodiments, the RX circuit74may include components in addition to or alternative to the LNA80, filter circuitry81, the demodulator82, and the ADC,83, such as a mixer, a digital down converter, and the like.

The LNA80and filter circuitry81may receive the combined RX signal (e.g., the first and the second portions of the RX signal) received by the one or more antennas79and combined by the isolation circuit76. The LNA80may amplify the combined RX signal to a suitable level for the rest of the circuitry to process.

The filter circuitry81may include one or more types of filters such as bandpass filter, a low pass filter, or a decimation filter, or any combination thereof. The filter circuitry81may remove undesired noise from the RX signal, such as cross-channel interference. The filter circuitry81may also remove additional signals received by the one or more antennas79which are at frequencies other than the desired signal.

The filtered RX signal is sent to the demodulator82. The demodulator82may remove the RF envelope and extract a demodulated signal from the filtered RX signal for processing. The ADC83receives the demodulated analog signal and converts the signal to a digital signal so that it can be further processed by the electronic device10.

FIG.9Bis a schematic diagram of a transmission circuit (e.g., the TX circuit)72, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As illustrated, the TX circuit72may include, for example, filter circuitry85, a power amplifier (PA)86, a modulator87, and a digital-to-analog converter (DAC)88. In some embodiments, the TX circuit72may include components in addition to or alternative to the filter circuitry85, the PA86, the modulator87, and the DAC88such as a digital up converter, etc.

A digital signal containing information to be transmitted via the one or more antennas79is provided to the DAC88. The DAC88converts the digital signal to an analog signal. The modulator87may combine the converted analog signal with a carrier signal to generate a radio wave.

The PA86receives signal the modulated signal from the modulator87. The PA86amplifies the modulated signal to a suitable level to drive transmission of the signal via the one or more antennas79. Similar to the filter circuitry81, the filter circuitry85of the TX circuit72may remove undesirable noise from the amplified signal to be transmitted via the one or more antennas79. In some embodiments, a PA, such as the PA86, may be disposed within the transmitter in addition to or alternative to the PA86in the TX circuit72.

FIG.10Ais a schematic diagram of example transceiver circuitry100of the electronic device ofFIG.1illustrating a path of a transmission (TX) signal, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The example transceiver circuitry100is substantially similar to the schematic diagram of the transceiver circuitry70inFIG.8, with the phase shifting circuitry78including a first phase shifter102on the first path92and a second phase shifter104on the second path94. A TX signal112is depicted as propagating through the transceiver circuitry70along example paths106,108. The isolation circuit76is represented by a balun110. Although not shown, an impedance matching circuit (e.g., an antenna tracker) discussed with respect toFIG.10Cmay be included in the transceiver circuitry100to improve isolation between the RX circuit74and the TX circuit72.

As discussed above, the TX signal112is provided to the balun110by the TX circuit72to be transmitted via the one or more antennas79. In addition to preventing an RX signal from entering the TX circuit72, the balun110also splits the TX signal112into a first portion (+TX)106and a second portion (−TX)108. The first portion (+TX)106propagates along the first path92and the second portion (−TX)108propagates along the second path94.

As discussed above, a phase of the first portion (+TX)106may be out of phase from the second portion (−TX)108due to the balun110. Thus, the phase shifters102,104shift a phase of the respective portions of the TX signal112such that the first portion (+TX)106and the second portion (−TX)108are substantially in-phase at the node77. As discussed above, in some embodiments, one or both phases of the first and second portions106,108may be shifted as long as the phases of the respective portions are substantially in-phase at the node77. Shifting a phase of the one or both of the portions106,108enables the portions106,108to be constructively combined at the node77, thereby reducing or substantially eliminating the insertion loss caused by the isolation circuit.

In some embodiments, the phase shifter102on the first path92may be a non-reciprocal phase shifter, as discussed with respect toFIG.11below. As such, the phase shifter102may be a bidirectional phase shifter and shift a phase of a signal from the isolation circuit76(e.g., the balun110) to the antenna79by a first phase amount and shift a phase of a signal from the antenna79to the isolation circuit76by a second phase amount. In some embodiments, the phase shift by the phase shifter102of a portion of the TX signal from the TX circuit72to the antenna79may be opposite a phase shift by the phase shifter102of a portion of the RX signal from the antenna79to the RX circuit74. For example, as illustrated, the phase shifter102may shift a phase of the TX signal therethrough by −90 degrees while the phase shifter102may shift a phase of the RX signal therethrough by +90 degrees.

The phase shifter104on the second path94may also be a bidirectional phase shifter that is reciprocal, and thus shift a phase of the signal therethrough by the same phase amount regardless of a direction of the signal. For example, the phase shifter104may shift a phase of a signal from the antenna79to the isolation circuit76and from the isolation circuit76to the antenna79by the same amount. In some embodiments, the phase shifter104may shift a signal therethrough by +90 degrees. Thus, the amount of phase shift provided by the phase shifter104may be a fixed amount based on a phase shift caused by the isolation circuit76and/or the combiner circuit at the node77.

In particular, the balun110, in splitting the TX signal112between the first path92and the second path94, shifts a phase of the first portion106of the TX signal112along the first path92by +90 degrees and shifts a phase of the second portion108of the TX signal112by −90 degrees. The non-reciprocal phase shifter102shifts a phase of the first portion106of the TX signal112by −90 degrees, resulting in the first portion106of the TX signal112being shifted by 0 degrees. Thus, the non-reciprocal phase shifter102counteracts the phase shift of the first portion106of the TX signal112caused by the balun110. Similarly, the phase shifter104shifts a phase of the second portion108of the TX signal112by +90 degrees, resulting in the second portion108of the TX signal112being shifted by 0 degrees, thus counteracting the phase shift of the second portion108caused by the balun110. In that case, the shifted first portion106of the TX signal112on the first path92and the shifted second portion108of the TX signal112on the second path94are in-phase (e.g., both being shifted by 0 degrees), and can be constructively combined at the node77and transmitted via the one or more antennas79. In this manner, the phase shifters102,104enable constructive combination of the first portion106of the TX signal112and the second portion108of the TX signal112.

Advantageously, the non-reciprocal phase shifter102may improve the isolation between the TX circuit72and the RX circuit74by accurately balancing the portions106,108of the TX signal112, resulting in zero voltage at the input of the RX circuit74, thus preventing voltage from the TX signal112from leaking to the RX circuit74. Further, the non-reciprocal phase shifter102in combination with the phase shifter104enable the signals on the first path92and the second path94to be constructively combined at the node77and transmitted via the one or more antennas79, thereby reducing or substantially eliminating the insertion loss caused by the isolation circuit76(e.g., the balun110).

FIG.10Bis a schematic diagram of an example transceiver circuitry120of the electronic device10illustrating a path of a received (RX) signal, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The transceiver circuitry120is substantially similar to the schematic diagram of the transceiver circuitry100inFIG.10A. An RX signal126is depicted as propagating through the transceiver circuitry120along example paths122,124. Although not shown, an impedance matching circuit (e.g., an antenna tracker) discussed with respect toFIG.10Cmay be included in the transceiver circuitry120to improve isolation between the RX circuit74and the TX circuit72.

As discussed above, the RX signal126is received via the antenna79and propagates through the transceiver circuitry120via the example paths122,124to the RX circuit74. The RX signal126is split into a first portion122and a second portion124at the node77. The first portion122propagates along the first path92and the second portion124propagates along the second path94. The node77may not cause a phase shift of either the first portion122or the second portion124of the RX signal126. However, the phase shifters102,104shift a phase of a respective portion122,124of the RX signal126, such that the shifted first portion122and the shifted second portion124are in-phase and can be constructively combined by the balun110.

In particular, the first portion122of the RX signal126propagates along the first path92to the phase shifter102and the second portion124of the RX signal126propagates along the second path94to the phase shifter104. The phase shifter104shifts a phase of the first portion122of the RX signal126by +90 degrees. Similarly, the phase shifter102shifts a phase of the second portion124of the RX signal126by +90 degrees. Thus, the shifted first portion122and the shifted second portion124of the RX signal126are in-phase (e.g., a phase of the portions122,124of the RX signal +90 degrees) and can be constructively combined by the balun110. That is, the phase shifters102,104enable the first portion122and the second portion124of the RX signal126to be constructively combined.

FIG.10Cis a schematic diagram of an example transceiver circuitry130of the electronic device ofFIG.1, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The transceiver circuitry130is substantially similar to the schematic diagram of the transceiver circuitry70inFIG.8with a first balun110for the isolation circuitry76and a combiner circuit (e.g., a second balun)132in place of the node77. As depicted, the transceiver circuitry130includes the phase shifters102,104disposed on the first path92. The transceiver circuitry130also includes an impedance matching circuit134coupled to a second balun132at the antenna79.

As discussed above, the first balun110improves isolation between the TX circuit72and the RX circuit74. Similarly, the second balun132may improve isolation between the one or more antennas79and the impedance matching circuit134. The phase shifters102,104are disposed in series on the first path92between the first balun110and the second balun132. Thus, the second phase shifter104shifts a phase of the signal therethrough by +90 degrees, regardless of a direction of the signal. The phase shift of the first phase shifter102may be dependent on the direction of the signal therethrough. For example, the phase shifter102shifts a phase of a signal propagating from the first balun110to the balun132by +90 degrees, while the phase shifter102shifts a phase of a signal propagating from the second balun132to the first balun110by −90 degrees.

Accordingly, a TX signal from the TX circuit may be split by the first balun110into a first portion along the first path92and a second portion along the second path94. The balun causes a phase of the first portion of the TX signal along the first path92to be shifted +90 degrees and a phase of the second portion of the TX signal along the second path94to be shifted −90 degrees. The phase shifter104shifts a phase of the first portion of the TX signal by +90 degrees, generating a shifted first portion of the TX signal with a phase of +180 degrees. The phase shifter102shifts a phase of the first portion of the TX signal by an additional +90 degrees, generating a shifted first portion of the TX portion with a phase of +270 degrees. That is, the shifted first portion of the TX signal output by the phase shifter102is in-phase with the second portion of the TX signal along the second path94, since a phase of −90 degrees and a phase of +270 degrees are equivalent. Thus, the phase shifters102,104enable the shifted first portion and the second portion of the TX signal to be constructively combined by the second balun132and transmitted via the one or more antennas79.

Similarly, the second balun132splits an RX signal received via the one or more antennas79into a first portion along the first path92and a second portion along the second path94. A phase of the first and second portions of the RX signal is not shifted at the second balun132because the portions of the RX signal are not affected by the transformer effect. That is, the phase of the first and second portions of the RX signal are 0 (zero) degrees. The phase shifter102shifts a phase of the first portion of the RX signal by −90 degrees and the phase shifter104shifts a phase of the first portion of the RX signal by +90 degrees, resulting in a phase shift to the first portion of the RX signal of 0 degrees. Thus, the phase shift provided by the phase shifter104counteracts the phase shift provided by the phase shifter102. Accordingly, the first portion of the RX signal along the first path92and the second portion of the RX signal along the second path94are in-phase at the first balun110(e.g., being both shifted by 0 degrees) and are constructively combined thereby. That is, the phase shifters102,104enable the first and second portions of the RX signal to be constructively combined via the first balun110.

The impedance matching circuit134has an adjustable impedance to offset an imbalance between an impedance of the one or more antennas79and an impedance of the isolation circuit76. That is, the impedance matching circuit134may be adjusted to offset a change of an impedance of the one or more antennas79. For example, if the impedance of the one or more antennas79changes, an impedance mismatch condition may occur because the impedance of the one or more antennas79does not match an impedance of the isolation circuit76. An impedance mismatch may reduce effectiveness of the isolation of the TX and RX circuits72,74, resulting in inferior communication quality. In that case, the impedance of the impedance matching circuit134may be adjusted such that the impedance mismatch condition of the one or more antennas79is substantially reduced. That is, the impedance of the impedance matching circuit134is adjusted to balance the impedance of the one or more antennas79.

Advantageously, the phase shifters102,104enable the signals along the first path92and the second path94to be constructively combined. Combining the signals along both paths92,94may recover power lost due to the baluns110,132. Further, the impedance matching circuit134increase or maximizes the isolation between the TX circuit72and the RX circuit74by offsetting an impedance mismatch between the impedance of the one or more antennas79and the impedance of the isolation circuit76.

FIG.11is a schematic diagram of an example non-reciprocal phase shifter102of the transceiver circuitry70ofFIG.8, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The non-reciprocal phase shifter102may be a two-port n-path filter which includes a number (N) of capacitors144and transistors142,146disposed in parallel and a phase shifter152. Although not shown, the non-reciprocal phase shifter102may be coupled to one or more local oscillators to change a frequency of a signal propagating through the non-reciprocal phase shifter102. In operation, the capacitors144may act as low-pass filters which attenuate the signals. The non-reciprocal phase shifter102may shift a phase of a signal from the one or more antennas79to the isolation circuit76by a first phase amount and shift a phase of a signal from the isolation circuit76to the one or more antennas79by a second phase amount different from the first phase amount. For example, as illustrated inFIGS.10A-10C, the non-reciprocal phase shifter102may shift a phase of a signal from the one or more antennas79to the isolation circuit76by +90 degrees and shift a phase of a signal from the isolation circuit76to the one or more antennas79by −90 degrees.

Advantageously, the non-reciprocal phase shifter102may shift a phase of a signal therethrough without causing loss to the signal. Thus, the non-reciprocal phase shifter102enables the first portion of the signal therethrough to be combined with a second portion of the signal propagating along the second path94of the transceiver circuitry70discussed with respect toFIG.8.

FIG.12is a schematic diagram of an example bi-directional phase shifter104of the transceiver circuitry70ofFIG.8, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As illustrated, the bi-directional phase shifter104includes two capacitors162,166disposed in parallel to ground and an inductor164disposed between the capacitors162,166. The bi-directional phase shifter104shifts a phase of a signal therethrough by an amount regardless of a direction of the signal. For example, as illustrated inFIGS.10A-10C, the bi-directional phase shifter104may shift a phase of a signal from the one or more antennas79to the isolation circuit76and from the isolation circuit76to the one or more antennas79by the same amount (e.g., +90 degrees).

Advantageously, if the bi-directional phase shifter104is disposed in parallel with the non-reciprocal phase shifter102, the phase shift by the bi-directional phase shifter104enable the signals on the first path92and the second path94to be constructively combined by shifting the phase of the signal therethrough to be substantially in-phase with the shifted signal from the non-reciprocal phase shifter102. Similarly, if the bi-directional phase shifter104is disposed in series with the non-reciprocal phase shifter102, the phase shift of the bi-directional phase shifter104may increase or decrease the phase shift of the non-reciprocal phase shifter102such that the signals on the first path92and the second path94are substantially in-phase and can be constructively combined.

The specific embodiments described above have been shown by way of example, and it should be understood that these embodiments may be susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms. It should be further understood that the claims are not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed, but rather to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of this disclosure.

The techniques presented and claimed herein are referenced and applied to material objects and concrete examples of a practical nature that demonstrably improve the present technical field and, as such, are not abstract, intangible or purely theoretical. Further, if any claims appended to the end of this specification contain one or more elements designated as “means for [perform]ing [a function] . . . ” or “step for [perform]ing [a function] . . . ”, it is intended that such elements are to be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f). However, for any claims containing elements designated in any other manner, it is intended that such elements are not to be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f).