PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-9404965-B2
Application Number: US-201314137770-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Radio-frequency test system with tunable test antenna circuitry

Abstract:
A test system is provided for performing radio-frequency tests on an electronic device under test (DUT) having multiple antennas. The test system may include a test unit for generating radio-frequency test signals, a test enclosure, and a test antenna fixture. The test fixture may include tunable antenna circuitry, antenna tuning elements, a test sensor, a microcontroller, a battery, and a solar cell that charges the battery, each of which is mounted on a test fixture within the test enclosure. The test sensor may be used to detect stimuli issued by the DUT. In response to detecting the stimuli, the microcontroller may send control signals to the antenna tuning elements to configure the antenna circuitry in different modes. Each of the different modes may be optimized to test a selected one of the multiple antennas in the DUT when operating using different radio access technologies and at different frequencies.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A method for using a test system to characterize a device under test, wherein the test system includes a sensor, a controller, and tunable test antenna circuitry that includes at least one test antenna coupled to at least one antenna tuning element, the method comprising:
 with the sensor, detecting a stimulus of a given value from the device under test; 
 in response to detecting the stimulus, alerting the controller with the sensor; 
 in response to being alerted, placing the tunable test antenna circuitry in a selected one of a plurality of predetermined states with the controller, wherein the given value of the stimulus indicates which of the plurality of predetermined states to make the selected state; and 
 while the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the selected one of the plurality of predetermined states, transmitting radio-frequency test signals to the device under test using the at least one test antenna, wherein the sensor comprises a sensor selected from the group consisting of: a microphone, a visible light sensor, a motion sensor, and a camera. 
 
     
     
       2. The method defined in  claim 1 , further comprising:
 loading the device under test with a test operating system so that the device under test generates stimuli according to a predetermined test sequence. 
 
     
     
       3. The method defined in  claim 1 , further comprising:
 placing the device under test within a radio-frequency test cell. 
 
     
     
       4. The method defined in  claim 3 , wherein the test system further includes a test host, the method further comprising:
 removing the device under test from the radio-frequency test cell; 
 after the device under test has been removed from the radio-frequency test cell, connecting the device under test to the test host; 
 while the device under test is connected to the test host, retrieving test data from the device under test; and 
 with the test host, determining whether the device under test is a passing device based on the retrieved test data. 
 
     
     
       5. The method defined in  claim 3 , wherein placing the device under test within the radio-frequency test cell comprises placing the device under test within a transverse electromagnetic cell. 
     
     
       6. The method defined in  claim 1 , further comprising:
 placing the tunable test antenna circuitry in a first state that is optimized for testing a first radio access technology with which the device under test is operated; and 
 placing the tunable test antenna circuitry in a second state that is optimized for testing a second radio access technology with which the device under test is operated. 
 
     
     
       7. The method defined in  claim 1 , wherein placing the tunable test antenna circuitry in a selected one of the plurality of predetermined states with the controller comprises using the controller to adjust at least one radio-frequency switch in the tunable test antenna circuitry. 
     
     
       8. The method defined in  claim 7 , wherein placing the tunable test antenna circuitry in a selected one of the plurality of predetermined states with the controller comprises using the controller to adjust at least one phase shift circuit in the tunable test antenna circuitry. 
     
     
       9. The method defined in  claim 1 , wherein the test system includes a microcontroller, a solar cell mounted on a substrate, and a battery mounted on the substrate, and wherein placing the tunable test antenna circuitry in a selected one of the plurality of predetermined states with the controller comprises using the microcontroller to tune the tunable test antenna circuitry, the method further comprising:
 powering the microcontroller with the battery; and 
 charging the battery with the solar cell. 
 
     
     
       10. The method defined in  claim 1 , further comprising:
 with the device under test, receiving the radio-frequency test signals from the at least one test antenna and computing performance metrics that reflect the quality of the received radio-frequency test signals. 
 
     
     
       11. The method defined in  claim 10 , wherein the at least one antenna tuning element comprises a tuning element selected from the group consisting of: a switch and a phase shift circuit. 
     
     
       12. A method for using a test system to characterize a device under test, wherein the test system includes a sensor, a controller, and tunable test antenna circuitry formed separately from the sensor, wherein the sensor comprises a sensor selected from the group consisting of: a microphone, a visible light sensor, a motion sensor, and a camera, the method comprising:
 with the sensor, detecting a stimulus from the device under test; 
 in response to detecting the stimulus, alerting the controller with the sensor; 
 in response to being alerted, placing the tunable test antenna circuitry in a selected one of a plurality of predetermined states with the controller; 
 while the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the selected one of the plurality of predetermined states, transmitting radio-frequency test signals to the device under test using the tunable test antenna circuitry; and 
 with the device under test, receiving the radio-frequency test signals from the at least one test antenna and computing performance metrics that reflect the quality of the received radio-frequency test signals. 
 
     
     
       13. The method defined in  claim 12 , wherein the device under test has first and second opposing ends, the device under test has a first antenna located at the first end, and the device under test has a second antenna located at the second end. 
     
     
       14. The method defined in  claim 13 , wherein transmitting radio-frequency test signals to the device under test while the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the plurality of predetermined states comprises transmitting radio-frequency test signals in a first predetermined state and a second predetermined state, the first antenna is tested when the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the first predetermined state, the second antenna is tested when the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the second predetermined state, and placing the tunable test antenna circuitry in a selected one of a plurality of predetermined states with the controller in response to being alerted comprises switching the tunable test antenna circuitry from the first predetermined state to the second predetermined state in response to being alerted. 
     
     
       15. The method defined in  claim 14 , wherein the radio-frequency test signals are transmitted to the first antenna with a first beam pattern when the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the first predetermined state, the radio-frequency test signals are transmitted to the second antenna with a second beam pattern when the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the second predetermined state, and the first beam pattern is different than the second beam pattern. 
     
     
       16. The method defined in  claim 14 , wherein the tunable test antenna circuitry transmits radio-frequency test signals in a first direction when the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the first predetermined state and the tunable test antenna circuitry transmits radio-frequency test signals in a second direction that is different than the first direction when the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the second predetermined state. 
     
     
       17. The method defined in  claim 14 , wherein only the first antenna is tested when the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the first predetermined state and only the second antenna is tested when the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the second predetermined state. 
     
     
       18. A method for using a test system to characterize a device under test, wherein the test system includes a sensor, a controller, and tunable test antenna circuitry that includes at least one test antenna coupled to at least one antenna tuning element, and the sensor comprises a sensor selected from the group consisting of: a microphone, a visible light sensor, a motion sensor, and a camera, the method comprising:
 loading the device under test with a test operating system so that the device under test generates stimuli according to a predetermined test sequence; 
 placing the device under test within a radio-frequency test cell; 
 while the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in a first predetermined state of a plurality of predetermined states, transmitting radio-frequency test signals to the device under test using the at least one test antenna; 
 with the device under test, receiving the radio-frequency test signals from the at least one test antenna and computing performance metrics that reflect the quality of the received radio-frequency test signals; 
 with the sensor, detecting a stimulus of the predetermined test sequence of stimuli, wherein the stimulus has a given value; 
 in response to detecting the stimulus, placing the tunable test antenna circuitry in a second predetermined state of the plurality of predetermined states with the controller, wherein the given value of the stimulus causes the controller to place the tunable test antenna circuitry in the second predetermined state; 
 while the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the second predetermined state, transmitting additional radio-frequency test signals to the device under test using the at least one test antenna; and 
 with the device under test, receiving the additional radio-frequency test signals from the at least one test antenna and computing additional performance metrics that reflect the quality of the received additional radio-frequency test signals. 
 
     
     
       19. The method defined in  claim 18 , wherein the device under test has first and second opposing ends, the device under test has a first antenna located at the first end, the device under test has a second antenna located at the second end, only the first antenna is tested when the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the first predetermined state, and only the second antenna is tested when the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the second predetermined state. 
     
     
       20. The method defined in  claim 19 , wherein the radio-frequency test signals are transmitted to the first antenna with a first beam pattern when the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the first predetermined state, the radio-frequency test signals are transmitted to the second antenna with a second beam pattern when the tunable test antenna circuitry is placed in the second predetermined state, and the first beam pattern is different than the second beam pattern.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     This relates generally to testing electronic devices and more particularly, to testing electronic devices that include multiple antennas. 
     Electronic devices often incorporate wireless communications circuitry. For example, devices may communicate using the Wi-Fi® (IEEE 802.11) bands at 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz. Wireless communications are also possible in cellular telephone telecommunications bands and other radio-frequency bands. In schemes such as antenna diversity schemes, an electronic device may use an array of multiple antennas to handle wireless communications. 
     When manufacturing such types of multi-antenna wireless devices in large volumes, the performance of the wireless communications circuitry on each device can be evaluated using a radio-frequency test station to ensure that each device satisfies design criteria. A radio-frequency test station typically includes a test host a tester (i.e., a signal generator), and an electromagnetic shielding test enclosure having a test antenna. The signal generator is connected to the test host. Arranged in this way, the test host directs the signal generator to transmit radio-frequency signals via the test antenna in the electromagnetic shielding test enclosure to a corresponding electronic device under test (DUT) during production testing. 
     In conventional radio-frequency test arrangements, a wireless DUT having only one antenna is placed into the electromagnetic shielding test enclosure. The test host directs the signal generator to broadcast downlink test signals to the DUT (i.e., the signal generator radiates test signals to the DUT using the test antenna in the shielding test enclosure). The DUT receives the downlink test signals using its antenna. 
     The DUT may be configured to analyze the received downlink test signals and to determine whether its wireless communications circuitry satisfies performance criteria. For example, the DUT can compute a receive power level based on the received downlink signals. If the receive power level is less than a predetermined threshold, the DUT is marked as a passing DUT. If the receive power level is greater than the predetermined threshold, the DUT is marked as a failing DUT. 
     Testing a multi-antenna device in this way may not be suitable for testing DUTs containing at least first and second antennas and may yield inaccurate results because the conventional test method holds the DUT in a fixed position within the electromagnetic shielding test enclosure. If in the fixed position the placement of the first antenna is closer to the test antenna, measurement results may be skewed towards the first antenna (i.e., test results may be more accurate for the first antenna and less accurate for the second antenna). If in the fixed position the place of the second antenna is closer to the test antenna, measurement results may be skewed towards the second antenna (i.e., test results may be more accurate for the second antenna and less accurate for the first antenna). There are also cases where the at least two antennas are both the same distance from the test antenna but the device&#39;s orientation favors one antenna compared to another due to polarization or the near or far-field pattern of the device. 
     It may therefore be desirable to provide improved ways for testing electronic devices having multiple antennas in a production environment. 
     SUMMARY 
     Methods for using a radio-frequency test system to characterize an electronic device under test (DUT) are provided. The test system may include a test unit that generates radio-frequency signals, a radio-frequency test enclosure, and a test fixture that is mounted within the test enclosure. The test fixture may include tunable test antenna circuitry, a microcontroller, a test sensor, a battery, and a solar cell each of which is mounted on a printed circuit board (PCB). 
     During testing, a DUT may be placed within the test enclosure using a holding structure that positions the DUT in a fixed predetermined location. The DUT may receive the radio-frequency test signals radiated from the tunable test antenna circuitry. The DUT may issue stimuli in accordance with a predetermined test sequence. The test sensor may serve to detect the stimuli generated from the DUT. 
     In response to detecting the presence of a stimulus of a given value, the test sensor may alert the microcontroller. In response to being alerted, the microcontroller may place the tunable test antenna circuitry in a predetermined state that corresponds to the given value of the stimulus. The microcontroller may adjust radio-frequency switches and/or phase shifting circuits in the tunable test antenna circuitry to place the tunable test antenna circuitry in different states. 
     For example, the microcontroller may place the tunable test antenna circuitry in a first state that is optimized to test a first antenna in the DUT when a stimulus of a first value is detected. The microcontroller may also place the tunable test antenna circuitry in a second state that is optimized to test a second antenna in the DUT when a stimulus of a second value is detected. The microcontroller may be powered using the battery. The battery may be charged using the solar cell. 
     Further features of the present invention, its nature and various advantages will be more apparent from the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a diagram of an illustrative electronic device that is provide with multiple antennas in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic diagram of an illustrative electronic device in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  is a diagram of an illustrative test system that includes tunable test antenna circuitry in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 4  is a diagram showing how a microcontroller in the test system of  FIG. 3  can be used to control the tunable test antenna circuitry in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 5  is a diagram of tunable test antenna circuitry implemented using radio-frequency switches in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 6  is a diagram of tunable test antenna circuitry implemented using phase shifters in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 7  is a table showing how the tunable test antenna circuitry of  FIG. 3  can be configured based on audio stimulus in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 8  is a table showing how the tunable test antenna circuitry of  FIG. 3  can be configured based on display color in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 9  is a flow chart of illustrative steps involved in operating a test system of the type shown in  FIG. 3  in accordance with an embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Embodiments of the present invention relate to electronic devices with wireless communications circuitry. It will be recognized by one skilled in the art, that the present exemplary embodiments may be practiced without some or all of these specific details. In other instances, well-known operations have not been described in detail in order not to unnecessarily obscure the present embodiments. The wireless communications circuitry may be used to support wireless communications in multiple wireless communications bands. The wireless communications circuitry may include multiple antennas arranged to implement an antenna diversity system. 
     The antennas can include loop antennas, inverted-F antennas, strip antennas, planar inverted-F antennas, slot antennas, hybrid antennas that include antenna structures of more than one type, or other suitable antennas. Conductive structures for the antennas may be formed from conductive electronic device structures such as conductive housing structures, traces on substrates such as traces on plastic, glass, or ceramic substrates, traces on flexible printed circuit boards (“flex circuits”), traces on rigid printed circuit boards (e.g., fiberglass-filled epoxy boards), sections of patterned metal foil, wires, strips of conductor, other conductive structures, or conductive structures that are formed from a combination of these structures. 
     An illustrative electronic device of the type that may be provided with one or more antennas is shown in  FIG. 1 . Electronic device  10  may be a portable electronic device or other suitable electronic device. For example, electronic device  10  may be a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a somewhat smaller device such as a wrist-watch device, pendant device, headphone device, earpiece device, or other wearable or miniature device, a cellular telephone, a media player, etc. 
     Device  10  may include a housing such as housing  12 . Housing  12 , which may sometimes be referred to as a case, may be formed of plastic, glass, ceramics, fiber composites, metal (e.g., stainless steel, aluminum, etc.), other suitable materials, or a combination of these materials. In some situations, parts of housing  12  may be formed from dielectric or other low-conductivity material. In other situations, housing  12  or at least some of the structures that make up housing  12  may be formed from metal elements. 
     Device  10  may, if desired, have a display such as display  14 . Display  14  may, for example, be a touch screen that incorporates capacitive touch electrodes. Display  14  may include image pixels formed form light-emitting diodes (LEDs), organic LEDs (OLEDs), plasma cells, electronic ink elements, liquid crystal display (LCD) components, or other suitable image pixel structures. A cover glass layer may cover the surface of display  14 . Portions of display  14  such as peripheral regions  201  may be inactive and may be devoid of image pixel structures. Portions of display  14  such as rectangular central portion  20 A (bounded by dashed line  20 ) may correspond to the active part of display  14 . In active display region  20 A, an array of image pixels may be used to display images for a user. 
     The cover glass layer that covers display  14  may have openings such as a circular opening for button  16  and a speaker port opening such as speaker port opening  18  (e.g., for an ear speaker for a user). Device  10  may also have other openings (e.g., openings in display  14  and/or housing  12  for accommodating volume buttons, ringer buttons, sleep buttons, and other buttons, openings for an audio jack, data port connectors, removable media slots, etc.). 
     Housing  12  may include a peripheral conductive member such as a bezel or band of metal that runs around the rectangular outline of display  14  and device  10  (as an example). 
     Antennas may be located along the edges of device  10 , on the rear or front of device  10 , as extending elements or attachable structures, or elsewhere in device  10 . With one suitable arrangement, which is sometimes described herein as an example, device  10  may be provided with one or more antennas at lower end  24  of housing  12  and one or more antennas at upper end  22  of housing  12 . Locating antennas at opposing ends of device  10  (i.e., at the narrower end regions of display  14  and device  10  when device  10  has an elongated rectangular shape of the type shown in  FIG. 1 ) may allow these antennas to be formed at an appropriate distance from ground structures that are associated with the conductive portions of display  14  (e.g., the pixel array and driver circuits in active region  20 A of display  14 ). 
     If desired, a first cellular telephone antenna may be located in region  24  and a second cellular telephone antenna may be located in region  22 . Antenna structures for handling satellite navigation signals such as Global Positioning System signals or wireless local area network signals such as IEEE 802.11 (WiFi®) signals or Bluetooth® signals may also be provided in regions  22  and/or  24  (either as separate additional antennas or as parts of the first and second cellular telephone antennas). 
     In regions  22  and  20 , openings may be formed between conductive housing structures and printed circuit boards and other conductive electrical components that make up device  10 . These openings may be filled with air, plastic, or other dielectrics. Conductive housing structures and other conductive structures may serve as a ground plane for the antennas in device  10 . The openings in regions  20  and  22  may serve as slots in open or closed slot antennas, may serve as a central dielectric region that is surrounded by a conductive path of materials in a loop antenna, may serve as a space that separates an antenna resonating element such as a strip antenna resonating element or an inverted-F antenna resonating element such as an inverted-F antenna resonating element formed from part of a conductive peripheral housing structure in device  10  from the ground plane, or may otherwise serve as part of antenna structures formed in regions  20  and  22 . 
     Antennas may be formed in regions  22  and  24  that are identical (i.e., antennas may be formed in regions  22  and  24  that each cover the same set of cellular telephone bands or other communications bands of interest). Due to layout constraints or other design constraints, it may not be desirable to use identical antennas. Rather, it may be desirable to implement the antennas in regions  22  and  24  using different designs. For example, the first antenna in region  24  may cover all cellular telephone bands of interest (e.g., four or five bands) and the second antenna in region  22  may cover a subset of the four or five bands handled by the first antenna. Arrangements in which the antenna in region  24  handles a subset of the bands handled by the antenna in region  22  (or vice versa) may also be used. 
     In configurations in which the antennas in regions  22  and  24  are not identical, use of one antenna may be favored over the other. For example, it may be preferable to use the antenna in region  24  rather than the antenna in region  22  due to considerations such as superior efficiency, superior band coverage, superior radiation patterns, etc. In configurations such as these in which it is preferably to use the first antenna (e.g., the cellular antenna in region  24 ) over the second antenna (e.g., the cellular antenna in region  22 ), the first antenna may be referred to as the primary antenna for device  10  and the second antenna may be referred to as the secondary antenna for device  10 . Device  10  may attempt to use the primary antenna as much as possible (due to factors such as superior efficiency, band coverage, or radiation pattern), but may switch to using the secondary antenna when operation of the primary antenna is disrupted. Antenna operation can be disrupted when an antenna in device  10  is blocked by an external object such as a user&#39;s hand, when device  10  is placed near objects that interfere with proper antenna operation, or due to other factors (e.g., device orientation relative to its surroundings, etc.). If desired, both the primary and secondary antennas may be used simultaneously (e.g., when receiving signals). This type of arrangement may be used, for example, to improve reception quality by combining signals that have been received using the primary antenna with signals that have been received using the secondary antenna. 
     Antenna diversity systems in which device  10  has a primary antenna and a secondary antenna are sometimes described herein as an example. This is, however, merely illustrative. Device  10  may use an antenna diversity arrangement that is based on three or more antennas, may use antennas that are substantially identical (e.g., in band coverage, in efficiency, etc.), or may use other types of antenna configurations. 
     A schematic diagram of an illustrative configuration that may be used for electronic devices  10  is shown in  FIG. 2 . As shown in  FIG. 2 , electronic device  10  may include control circuitry such as storage and processing circuitry  28 . Storage and processing circuitry  28  may include storage such as hard disk drive storage, nonvolatile memory (e.g., flash memory or other electrically-programmable-read-only memory configured to form a solid state drive), volatile memory (e.g., static or dynamic random-access-memory), etc. Processing circuitry in storage and processing circuitry  28  may be used to control the operation of device  10 . The processing circuitry may be based on one or more microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, baseband processors, power management units, audio codec chips, application specific integrated circuits, etc. 
     Storage and processing circuitry  28  may be used to run software on device  10 , such as internet browsing applications, voice-over-internet-protocol (VOIP) telephone call applications, e-mail applications, media playback applications, operating system functions, etc. To support interactions with external equipment, storage and processing circuitry  28  may be used in implementing communications protocols. Communications protocols that may be implemented using storage and processing circuitry  28  include internet protocols, wireless local area network protocols (e.g., IEEE 802.11 protocols—sometimes referred to as WiFi®), protocols for other short-range wireless communications links such as the Bluetooth® protocol, cellular telephone protocols, satellite navigations system protocols, etc. 
     Input-output circuitry  30  may be used to allow data to be supplied to device  10  and to allow data to be provided from device  10  to external devices. Input-output circuitry  30  may include input-output devices  32  such as buttons  50 , touch screens, joysticks, click wheels, scrolling wheels, touch pads, key pads, keyboards, light-emitting diodes and other status indicators, data ports, etc. Input-output devices  32  in circuitry  30  may also include display  14 , vibrator  42 , speakers such as speaker  46 , light-emitting components such as camera flash  44  (sometimes referred to as a strobe or light-emitting diode), a microphone and other audio components, and other input-output devices. Input-output devices  32  may also include sensors  48 . Sensors  48  may include a microphone, an ambient light sensor, proximity sensor  202 , an accelerometer, compass, gyroscope or other component(s) that serves as a motion sensor, a camera, and/or other image sensor device for capturing image data. 
     During operation, a user can control the operation of device  10  by supplying commands through input-output devices  32  and may receive status information and other output from device  10  using the output resources of input-output devices  32  (e.g., visual information on display  14 , vibrations from vibrator  42 , sound from speaker  46 , flashes of light from flash  44 , etc.). 
     Wireless communications circuitry  34  may include radio-frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry formed from one or more integrated circuits, power amplifier circuitry, low-noise input amplifiers, passive RF components, one or more antennas, filters, duplexers, and other circuitry for handling RF wireless signals. Wireless signals can also be sent using light (e.g., using infrared communications). 
     Wireless communications circuitry  34  may include satellite navigation system receiver circuitry such as Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver circuitry  35  (e.g., for receiving satellite positioning signals at 1575 MHz) or satellite navigation system receiver circuitry associated with other satellite navigation systems. Wireless local area network transceiver circuitry such as transceiver circuitry  36  may handle 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands for WiFi® (IEEE 802.11) communications and may handle the 2.4 GHz Bluetooth® communications band. Circuitry  34  may use cellular telephone transceiver circuitry  38  for handling wireless communications in cellular telephone bands such as bands in frequency ranges of about 700 MHz to about 2700 MHz or bands at higher or lower frequencies. Wireless communications circuitry  34  can include circuitry for other short-range and long-range wireless links if desired. For example, wireless communications circuitry  34  may include wireless circuitry for receiving radio and television signals, paging circuits, etc. Near field communications may also be supported (e.g., at 13.56 MHz). In WiFi® and Bluetooth® links and other short-range wireless links, wireless signals are typically used to convey data over tens or hundreds of feet. In cellular telephone links and other long-range links, wireless signals are typically used to convey data over thousands of feet or miles. 
     Wireless communications circuitry  34  may have antenna structures such as one or more antennas  40 . Antenna structures  40  may be formed using any suitable antenna types (e.g., loop antennas, inverted-F antennas, strip antennas, planar inverted-F antennas, slot antennas, hybrid antennas, etc.). 
     Electronic devices  10  that are manufactured and assembled in a factory generally need to be tested/characterized prior to being shipped out to customers. In accordance with an embodiment, tests can be performed to ensure that the wireless performance of device  10  satisfies design criteria. During testing, many wireless devices (e.g., tens, hundreds, thousands, or more of devices  10 ) may be characterized in a test system such as test system  11  of  FIG. 3 . Electronic devices that are being tested in test system  11  may sometimes be referred to as devices under test (DUTs). Test system  11  may include test accessories, computers, network equipment, tester control boxes, cabling, test enclosures, and other test equipment for generating and receiving radio-frequency test signals and gathering test results. Test system  11  may include multiple test stations, each of which can be used to test any desired number of test stations to achieve desired test throughput. 
     As shown in  FIG. 3 , test system  11  may include a test host such as test host  100 , a tester such as test unit  102 , and a radio-frequency test enclosure such as test enclosure  108 . Test host  100  may, for example, be a personal computer or other types of computing equipment. Test unit  102  may be a signal generator, a spectrum analyzer, a vector network analyzer, and other testers suitable for generating radio-frequency test signals and for performing radio-frequency measurements on signals received from DUT  10 . In other suitable arrangements, test unit  102  may be a radio communications tester of the type that is sometimes referred to as a call box or a base station emulator. Test unit  102  may, for example, be the CMU300 Universal Radio Communication Tester available from Rohde &amp; Schwarz. Test unit  102  may be used to emulate the behavior of a network access point to test the ability of transceiver  36  to support the WiFi® communications protocol, the Bluetooth® communications protocol, or other communications standards. If desired, test unit  102  may be configured to emulate the behavior of a base transceiver station during a telephone call with cellular telephone transceiver circuitry  38 . 
     Test unit  102  may be operated directly or via computer control (e.g., when test unit  102  receives commands from test host  100 ). When operated directly, a user may control test unit  102  by supplying commands directly to the signal generator using the user input interface of test unit  102 . For example, a user may press buttons in a control panel on the signal generator while viewing information that is displayed on a display in test unit  102 . In computer controlled configurations, test host  100  (e.g., software running autonomously or semi-autonomously on the computer) may communicate with test unit  102  by sending and receiving data over a wired path  104  or a wireless path between the computer and the signal generator (as an example). 
     During wireless testing, at least one DUT  10  may be placed on a platform such as DUT holder  112  within test enclosure  108 . Test system  11  may include automatic alignment structures (not shown) for positioning DUT  10  in a predetermined position on DUT holder  112  within enclosure  108 . Positioning each DUT  10  repeatedly in a fixed predetermined location in test enclosure  108  reduces the number of variables that can affect test results gathered from different DUTs. 
     In the example of  FIG. 3 , DUT  10  is electrically disconnected from test host  100  (i.e., DUT  10  is “untethered”). To support this type of untethered arrangement. DUT  10  may be loaded with a test operating system that configures DUT  10  to perform tests according to a predetermined test sequence (e.g., device  10  may be configured in list mode). The test operating system is a simplified operating system that lacks a full Internet Protocol (IP) stack implementation. 
     For example, consider a scenario in which DUT  10  is first placed within enclosure  108 . Upon receiving an initialization signal, DUT  10  may be configured to test a first antenna  40  in DUT  10 . When sufficient data has been gathered from the first antenna, DUT  10  may automatically send control signals to the test equipment and begin testing a second antenna  40  in DUT  10 . Test radio-frequency signals may be conveyed between test unit  102  and DUT  10  over a non-protocol-compliant communications path (e.g., an unauthenticated wireless communications data link). DUT  10  configured in this way may be used to automatically test any suitable number of device antennas  40 . If desired, DUT  10  may also be configured to run a normal user operating system (e.g., an operating system that includes a full Internet Protocol (IP) stack implementation) and may convey with test unit  102  via a protocol-compliant communications link (e.g., an authenticated wireless communications link). 
     Test enclosure  108  may be a shielded enclosure that is used to provide radio-frequency isolation when performing electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) radiated tests without experiencing interference from outside environment. The interior of test enclosure  108  may be lined with radio-frequency absorption material such as rubberized foam configured to minimize reflections of wireless signals. As an example, test enclosure  108  may be a pyramidal-shaped transverse electromagnetic (TEM) cell. It can also be a shielded enclosure containing one or more test antennas, one or more arrays of test antennas, one or more which can be translated or moved with respect to the device. 
     Referring still to  FIG. 3 , test unit  102  may be coupled to test antenna fixture  110  that is mounted within test enclosure  108  via a radio-frequency cable  106  (e.g., a coaxial cable). Test antenna fixture  110  may include a substrate such as printed circuit board (PCB)  120  that is supported within enclosure  108  using an antenna support member  122 . Radio-frequency test cable  106  may be coupled to conductive traces formed on board  120  via radio-frequency connectors  136 . 
     Each of the multiple antennas  40  in DUT  10  may be tested using test system  11 . In the example of  FIG. 3 . DUT  10  has a first antenna A 1  located at one end of the device and a second antenna A 1  located at the other end of the device. Testing both of the device antennas A 1  and A 2  using antenna fixture  110  in a single state may tend to skew results towards either antenna A 1  or antenna A 2  (e.g., test results may be more accurate for antenna A 2  and less accurate for antenna A 1 , or vice versa). 
     Changing the orientation DUT  10  with respect to fixture  110  is one way of reducing this undesired skew (e.g., DUT  10  may be positioned in a first orientation that places antenna A 1  closer to fixture  110  when testing antenna A 1  and may be positioned in a second orientation that places antenna A 2  closer to fixture  110  when testing antenna A 2 ). In certain scenarios, it may not be desirable to move DUT  10  within enclosure  108  at all during testing. In such scenarios, test fixture  110  may be tunable and may be placed in a first state when testing A 1  and may be placed in a second state when testing A 2 . When operated in the first state, fixture  110  may generate a beam pattern  150  that is optimized for testing A 1 . When operating in the second state, fixture  110  may steer the beam to a new direction  152  that is optimized for testing A 2 . Configured in this way, test antenna fixture  110  may be placed in different operating states (or modes) each of which is used to test a respective antenna  40  in device  10 . 
     Fixture  110  may further include tunable test antenna circuitry  130  and associated antenna tuning elements (e.g., antenna tuning elements  132  that are separately coupled to test antenna circuitry  130  and antenna tuning elements  132 ′ that are formed as part of antenna circuitry  130 ), a test sensor such as test sensor  134 , a processing device such as microcontroller  128 , a battery  126 , and a solar cell  124  that are mounted on substrate  120 . Radio-frequency test signals generated using test unit  102  may be transmitted to DUT  10  via cable  106  and test antenna circuitry  130  (see, e.g., arrow  164  in  FIG. 4 ). Similarly, radio-frequency signals transmitted by the antennas of DUT  10  may be received using antenna circuitry  130 . 
     While test unit  102  is generating the RF test signals, DUT  10  may receive the corresponding test signals and compute desired RF performance metrics that reflect the quality of received signals. Examples of signal quality measurements that may be made in DUT  10  include bit error rate measurements, signal-to-noise ratio measurements, measurements on the amount of power associated with incoming wireless signals, channel quality measurements based on received signal strength indicator (RSSI) information (RSSI measurements), channel quality measurements based on received signal code power (RSCP) information (RSCP measurements), channel quality measurements based on signal-to-interference ratio (SINR) and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) information (SINR and SNR measurements), channel quality measurements based on signal quality data such as Ec/Io or Ec/No data (Ec/Io and Ec/No measurements), etc. If desired, one or more test antennas or array of test antennas in test system  11  may be used to gather power measurements, which can be used to determine the total radiated power (TRP) using spatial averaging computations. 
     Microcontroller  128  may have a power supply terminal that receives power supply voltage signals (e.g., positive power supply voltage signals and ground power supply voltage signals) from battery  126  via power supply line  127 . Battery  126  may be charged using solar cell  124 . Solar cell  124  may receive light via an optical tube  142  coupled to an external light source  140  (see,  FIG. 3 ). Light source  140  may periodically generate light to charge solar cell  124 . Charging battery  126  in this way reduces the amount of metal wiring that needs to be routed into test enclosure  108 , which helps to minimize interference with the wireless testing. This example in which light is used charge battery  126  is merely illustrative. If desired, other ways of providing power to microcontroller  128  may be implemented. 
     Test sensor  134  may serve to detect some stimulus generated by DUT  10  (see, e.g., arrow  166  in  FIG. 4 ). As shown in  FIG. 4 , sensor  134  may be a microphone for detecting audio signals emitted from DUT  10 , a light sensor for detecting light emitted from DUT  10  (e.g., a light sensor for monitoring the presence/absence of light, the brightness of the light, the color of the light, the frequency at which light is pulsed, etc.), a motion sensor for detecting any vibrations at DUT  10 , an auxiliary test antenna for receiving wireless test signals at in a predetermined radio-frequency channel, and other types of sensors for receiving other suitable stimuli from DUT  10 . Configured in list mode, DUT  10  may periodically generate a stimulus indicating the start of a new test state. 
     In response to detecting the stimulus from DUT  10 , sensor  134  may send microcontroller  128  an enable signal to alert microcontroller  128  via path  162 . In general, microcontroller  128  may be any general processing device formed using programmable logic devices, application specific standard products (ASSPs), and application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), just to name a few. In response to receiving the enable signal from sensor  134 , microcontroller  128  may send control signals Vc to tunable antenna circuitry  130  via path  160 . Control signals Vc may configure tunable antenna circuitry  130  in a desired state by the adjusting antenna tuning elements (e.g., antenna tuning elements  132  and  132 ′ in  FIG. 3 ). 
     Sensor  134  may send different types of enable signals to microcontroller  128 , which may in turn generate different corresponding control signals Vc. For example, DUT  10  may issue a first stimulus, which would trigger sensor  134  to send microcontroller  128  a first type of enable signal, thereby directing microcontroller  128  to output first control signals Vc that places tunable test antenna structures in a first state optimized to test a selected antenna in DUT  10 . At another time, DUT  10  may issue a second stimulus, which would trigger sensor  134  to send microcontroller  128  a second type of enable signal, thereby directing microcontroller  128  to output second control signals Vc that places tunable test antenna structures in a second state optimized to test another antenna in DUT  10 . 
       FIG. 5  is a diagram showing tunable antenna circuitry  130  implemented using radio-frequency switches. The switches themselves may be considered antenna tuning elements. As shown in  FIG. 5 , antenna circuitry  130  include a first test antenna  210 - 1  that is coupled to a first switch  202 - 1 , a second test antenna  210 - 2  that is coupled to a second switch  202 - 2 , a third test antenna  210 - 3  that is coupled to a third switch  202 - 3 , and a shared switch  200 . Switches  202 - 1 ,  202 - 2 , and  202 - 3  may be single-pole dual-throw radio-frequency switches, whereas switch  200  may be a single-pole triple-throw radio-frequency switch (as an example). Configured in this way, cable  106  may be coupled to a selected one of the three test antennas via switch  200  while the other unselected antennas are coupled to ground  204 . This is merely illustrative and does not serve to limit the scope of the present invention. If desired, circuitry  130  may include any number of test antennas and associated single-pole multi-throw RF switches. 
       FIG. 6  is a diagram showing tunable antenna circuitry  130  implemented using RF switches and phase shift circuits (e.g., circuits for introducing phase delay into signals). As shown in  FIG. 5 , antenna circuitry  130  may include a first antenna  310 - 1  that is coupled to RF switch  302  via phase shifters PS 1  and PS 2 , a second antenna  310 - 2  that is coupled to RF switch  304  via phase shifters PS 4 , PS 5 , and PS 6 , and a shared radio-frequency splitter circuit  300 . Signals routed through cable  106  may be split using circuit  300 , a first portion of which is routed to switch  302  via a first transmit path and a second portion of which is routed to switch  304  via a second transmit path. 
     In this example, switch  302  may be a single-pole triple-throw RF switch, whereas switch  304  may be a single-pole four-throw RF switch. At least one of antennas  310 - 1  and  310 - 2  should be coupled to splitter  300 . In a first mode, antenna  310 - 1  may be coupled to splitter  300  via a selected one of phase shifters PS 1  and PS 2  while antenna  310 - 2  is decoupled from splitter  300  (e.g., while the second transmit path is coupled to ground  306  via switch  304 ). In a second mode, antenna  310 - 2  may be coupled to splitter  300  via a selected one of phase shifters PS 4 , PS 5 , and PS 6  while antenna  310 - 1  is decoupled from splitter  300  (e.g., while the first transmit path is coupled to ground  306  via switch  302 ). In yet another mode, antenna  310 - 1  may be coupled to splitter  300  via a selected one of phase shifters PS 1  and PS 2  while antenna  310 - 2  is coupled to splitter  300  via a selected one of phase shifters PS 4 , PS 5 , and PS 6 . 
     In general, tunable test antenna circuitry  130  may be formed using any number of RF switches, phase shifting circuits, matching circuits, filters, multiplexers, test antennas, and associated antenna tuning elements. Fixture  110  may be configured in a selected one of the different possible modes using appropriate control signals generated by microcontroller  128 . The control signals generated by microcontroller  128  may, for example, adjust the directionality of gain, the magnitude of gain, and the polarization of radio-frequency signals output using the different test antennas. Each of the different modes may be optimized to test a respective antenna in DUT  10 . If desired, fixture  110  may also be configured in different states when testing different wireless communications technologies/protocols or when testing different radio-frequency bands. 
     As described above, DUT  10  may generate stimuli of different values that configure fixture  110  to operate in different corresponding modes.  FIG. 7  shows an example in which DUT  10  generates audio signals according to a predetermined test sequence. As shown in  FIG. 7 , DUT  10  may generate audio signals at frequencies f 1  and f 3  to only activate test antenna TA 1  (while remaining test antennas TA 2  and TA 3  are deactivated). This configuration may correspond to a first state (001) that is optimized for testing a first radio access technology. At another point in time, DUT  10  may generate audio signals at frequencies f 2  and f 4  to only activate test antenna TA 2  (while remaining test antennas TA 1  and TA 3  are deactivated). This configuration may correspond to a second state (010) that is optimized for testing a second radio access technology. At yet another point in time, DUT  10  may generate audio signals at frequencies t 5  and f 9  to only activate test antenna TA 3  (while remaining test antennas TA 1  and TA 2  are deactivated). This configuration may correspond to a third state (011) that is optimized for testing a third radio access technology. If desired, DUT  10  may generate other audio signals for placing fixture  110  in any suitable test state. 
     In another suitable arrangement, DUT  10  may use display  14  ( FIG. 1 ) to output different display color values according to a predetermined test sequence. As shown in  FIG. 8 , DUT  10  may display a red color that results in circuitry  130  to operate using a first phase setting that is optimized for testing a first radio-frequency channel. At another point in time. DUT  10  may display a green color that results in circuitry  130  to operate using a second phase setting that is optimized for testing a second radio-frequency channel. At yet another point in time, DUT  10  may display a blue color that results in circuitry  130  operating using a third phase setting that is optimized for testing a third radio-frequency channel. If desired, DUT  10  may output other display colors for placing circuitry  130  in any suitable test mode. 
     The examples of  FIGS. 7 and 8  in which DUT  10  generates audio and visual stimuli is merely illustrative and does not serve to limit the scope of the present invention. If desired, DUT  10  may issue other stimulus by varying the number/frequency of vibrations using vibrator  42 , the number/frequency of blinks using flash  44 , different types of sounds using speaker  46 , and different types of visual content using display  14  (as examples). Depending on the type of stimulus that DUT  10  issues, an appropriate type of test sensor  134  may be included as part of test fixture  110  to detect that particular type of stimulus. For example, test sensor  134  may be a camera that serves to monitor the display color output by DUT  10  in the example of  FIG. 8 . 
       FIG. 9  is a flow chart of illustrative steps involved in operating a test system of the type described in connection with  FIG. 3 . At step  400 , DUT  10  may be loaded with a test operating system to configured DUT  10  in a list mode. At step  402 , DUT  10  may be placed within test cell  108 . 
     At step  404 , test antenna fixture  110  may transmit RF test signals to DUT  10  using an initial antenna configuration (e.g., DUT  10  may receive initialization signals generated using test unit  102 ). In response to receiving the initialization signals, DUT  10  may issue a stimulus. When test sensor  134  detects the stimulus, fixture  110  may transmit RF test signals to DUT  10  using a new antenna configuration (step  406 ). DUT  10  may serve to gather test data when fixture  110  is operating in different modes by (a) periodically issuing stimulus signals to sensor  134  according to a predetermined test sequence (or list), as indicated by loop  407 . 
     When DUT  10  has looped through the entire test sequence, DUT  10  may issue a stimulus that signals the completion of testing. At this point, DUT  10  may be removed from test cell  108  (step  408 ). DUT  10  may then be connected to test host  100  via a wire to retrieve the test data that is stored on DUT  10 . Test host  100  may then determined whether DUT  10  is a satisfactory DUT or a failing DUT based on the gathered test results. A satisfactory DUT may be packaged and shipped to customers. A failing DUT may be sent for rework or may be scrapped. 
     The foregoing is merely illustrative of the principles of this invention and various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. The foregoing embodiments may be implemented individually or in any combination.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20131220
Publication Date: 20160802
Grant Date: 20160802
Priority Date: 20131220
Inventors: NICKEL JOSHUA G.
TONG ERICA J.
VENKATARAMAN VISHWANATH
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "G01R31/2822", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G01R31/3025", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G01R31/3025", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G01R31/2822", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 53399742