PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-8527229-B2
Application Number: US-87220610-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Test systems with multiple antennas for characterizing over-the-air path loss

Abstract:
Calibration equipment for calibrating multiple test stations in a test system is provided. Each test station may include a test unit, a test chamber with multiple antennas, and radio-frequency (RF) cables that connect the test unit to the multiple antennas within the test chamber. Reference devices under test (DUTs) may be used to calibrate the OTA path loss of each test station while switching one of the multiple antennas into use one at a time at desired frequencies. A preferred antenna list indicating the preferred antenna that provides the optimal path loss for each desired frequency may be generated. Once calibrated, the test stations may be used during product testing to test factory DUTs to determine whether a particular production DUT satisfies pass/fail criteria. During product testing, a selected one of the multiple antennas is enabled based on the preferred antenna list to perform desired measurements.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A method for performing wireless testing with a test station during manufacturing, wherein the test station includes a test chamber having a plurality of test chamber antennas, a test unit, and radio-frequency cables that connect the test chamber antennas to the test unit, the method comprising:
 with the test station, testing a device under test by passing radio-frequency signals between a selected one of the test chamber antennas and the device under test while preventing radio-frequency signals from passing between the test chamber antennas other than the selected one of the test chamber antennas and the device under test. 
 
     
     
       2. The method defined in  claim 1 , further comprising:
 with a calibration device under test, calibrating the test station to obtain over-the-air path loss values. 
 
     
     
       3. The method defined in  claim 2 , wherein calibrating the test station to obtain the over-the-air path loss values comprises:
 enabling the test chamber antennas one at a time to compute an over-the-air path loss value associated with each of the test chamber antennas. 
 
     
     
       4. The method defined in  claim 2 , wherein calibrating the test station to obtain the over-the-air path loss values comprises:
 with a test host, directing the calibration device under test to transmit calibration radio-frequency signals to a given one of the test chamber antennas at a request output power level; 
 with the test unit, measuring an output power level while the calibration device under test is transmitting the calibration radio-frequency signals to the given one of the test chamber antennas; and 
 with the test host, computing an over-the-air path loss value associated with the calibration radio-frequency signals passing between the given one of the test chamber antennas and the calibration device under test. 
 
     
     
       5. The method defined in  claim 4 , wherein computing the over-the-air path loss value associated with the calibration radio-frequency signals passing between the given one of the test chamber antennas and the calibration device under test comprises:
 subtracting the requested output power level from the measured output power level. 
 
     
     
       6. The method defined in  claim 2 , wherein the test station is connected to computing equipment and wherein the selected one of the test chamber antennas is a preferred antenna, the method further comprising:
 storing the over-the-air path loss values in a database that is stored on the computing equipment; and 
 with a test host, retrieving the over-the-air path loss values from the database to determine which one of the test chamber antennas is the preferred antenna. 
 
     
     
       7. The method defined in  claim 6 , wherein retrieving the over-the-air path loss values from the database to determine which one of the test chamber antennas is the preferred antenna comprises:
 selecting one of the test chamber antennas that provides the least amount of path loss as the preferred antenna. 
 
     
     
       8. The method defined in  claim 7 , further comprising:
 performing path loss calibration at desired frequencies to obtain a preferred antenna list, wherein the preferred antenna list indicates the preferred antenna for use during product testing for each of the desired frequencies. 
 
     
     
       9. The method defined in  claim 6 , wherein retrieving the over-the-air path loss values from the database to determine which one of the test chamber antennas is the preferred antenna comprises:
 selecting one of the test chamber antennas based on a user-defined criterion. 
 
     
     
       10. The method defined in  claim 1 , wherein the test unit has multiple ports, wherein the selected one of the test chamber antennas is connected to a given one of the multiple ports, and wherein the test chamber antennas other than the selected one of the test chamber antennas are connected to the ports other than the given one of the multiple ports in the test unit, the method further comprising:
 during product testing, allowing the radio-frequency signals to pass through the given one of the multiple ports while preventing the radio-frequency signals from passing through the ports other than the given one of the multiple ports in the test unit. 
 
     
     
       11. The method defined in  claim 1 , wherein the test station further includes a multiplexer circuit, wherein the multiplexer circuit has a given connector that is connected to a port in the test unit, and wherein the multiplexer circuit has additional connectors that are connected to the test chamber antennas, the method further comprising:
 during product testing, connecting the given connector to a selected one of the additional connectors that is connected to the selected one of the test chamber antennas. 
 
     
     
       12. A test system that includes a test station, wherein the test station comprises:
 a test host; 
 a test unit that has multiple ports and that is connected to the test host; and 
 a test chamber having a plurality of antennas, wherein the antennas are connected to the test unit and wherein during product testing, the test host directs the test unit to pass radio-frequency signals through a selected one of the multiple ports in the test unit while preventing radio-frequency signals from passing through the ports other than the selected one of the multiple ports in the test unit. 
 
     
     
       13. The test system defined in  claim 12 , wherein each of the antennas is connected to a corresponding port in the test unit through a respective radio-frequency cable. 
     
     
       14. The test system defined in  claim 12 , wherein the antennas comprise patch antennas. 
     
     
       15. The test system defined in  claim 12 , wherein the test unit comprises a multiport radio-frequency test box. 
     
     
       16. The test system defined in  claim 12 , wherein the test station comprises one of a plurality of test stations, the test system further comprising:
 computing equipment, wherein the test host in each of the plurality of test stations is connected to the computing equipment and wherein data gathered at each test station is sent to a database stored on the computing equipment. 
 
     
     
       17. A test system for making wireless measurements on devices under test, wherein the test system includes a wireless test station and wherein the wireless test station comprises:
 a test unit; 
 a test chamber having a plurality of antennas within the test chamber; 
 at least one antenna with which the wireless measurements on the devices under test are made; and 
 a multiplexer circuit coupled between the test unit and the test chamber. 
 
     
     
       18. The test system defined in  claim 17 , wherein the multiplexer circuit includes a given connector that is connected to a port in the test unit through a given radio-frequency cable and includes additional connectors that are connected to the antennas in the test chamber. 
     
     
       19. The test system defined in  claim 18 , wherein the wireless test station further comprises a test host and wherein the test host configures the multiplexer circuit to connect the given connector to a selected one of the additional connectors during product testing. 
     
     
       20. The test system defined in  claim 19 , wherein the wireless test station comprises one of a plurality of wireless test stations, the test system further comprising:
 computing equipment, wherein the test host in each of the plurality of wireless test stations is connected to the computing equipment and wherein data gathered at each wireless test station is sent to a database stored on the computing equipment. 
 
     
     
       21. The test system defined in  claim 18 , wherein the antennas comprise path antennas. 
     
     
       22. A method of calibrating wireless test equipment that includes a test chamber having a plurality of antennas for wirelessly testing devices under test during manufacturing to determine whether the devices under test are performing satisfactorily, comprising:
 gathering over-the-air path loss measurements for the plurality of antennas at each of a plurality of frequencies by making wireless measurements with the antennas in the test chamber; and 
 determining, for each of the plurality of frequencies, which of the antennas to use in wirelessly testing the devices under test during manufacturing based on the over-the-air path loss measurements. 
 
     
     
       23. The method defined in  claim 22  wherein determining which of the antennas to use comprises:
 determining, for each of the plurality of frequencies, which of the plurality of antennas at that frequency is associated with a minimum amount of over-the-air path loss. 
 
     
     
       24. A method of using wireless test equipment that includes a test chamber having a plurality of antennas to wirelessly test devices under test during manufacturing to determine whether the devices under test are performing satisfactorily, comprising:
 with the wireless test equipment, testing the wireless devices under test at each of a plurality of radio-frequency test frequencies by using, for each of the plurality of radio-frequency test frequencies, a selected one of the plurality of antennas based on a preferred antenna list.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     This relates generally to testing wireless electronic devices, and more particularly, to calibrating test equipment and using the calibrated test equipment to test wireless electronic devices. 
     Wireless electronic devices typically include transceiver circuitry, antenna circuitry, and other radio-frequency circuitry that provides wireless communications capabilities. During testing, wireless electronic devices under test (DUTs) can exhibit different performance levels. For example, each wireless DUT in a group of DUTs can exhibit its own output power level, gain, frequency response, efficiency, linearity, dynamic range, etc. 
     The performance of a wireless DUT can be measured using an over-the-air (OTA) test station. An OTA test station includes a test chamber having a test chamber antenna, a test unit, and a test host. The antenna is connected to the test unit and is used in sending and receiving radio-frequency (RF) signals to and from the test unit. The test host is connected to the test unit and directs the test unit to perform desired operations during testing. 
     During test operations, a wireless DUT is placed into the test chamber and communicates wirelessly with the antenna in the test chamber. Wireless transmissions of this type experience OTA path loss between the DUT antenna and the antenna of the test chamber. 
     An OTA test system typically includes multiple OTA test stations that are used to test multiple wireless DUTs in parallel. Each OTA test station typically includes its own test chamber, test unit, and test host. A production DUT is placed into the test chamber of each test station during product testing. Typical product testing involves measuring the wireless performance of each DUT and applying pass/fail criteria. 
     The radio-frequency path of each test station has its own unique OTA path loss characteristic. These unique path losses should be taken into account for accurate testing. Path loss characterization is sensitive to the location (placement) of the test chamber antenna within the test chamber and varies as a function of operating frequency. As a result, calibrating the path loss of a test station with a single test chamber antenna may provide inaccurate measurements as the placement of the test chamber antenna and testing conditions change over time. 
     It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide improved calibration techniques for calibrating OTA test systems. 
     SUMMARY 
     Test stations having multiple antennas may be calibrated for product testing. A test station may include a test host, a multiport test unit, and a test chamber having multiple test chamber antennas. The test chamber antennas may be connected to corresponding radio-frequency (RF) ports in the test unit through respective RF cables. 
     For example, a first test chamber antenna may be connected to a first RF port in the test unit through a first RF cable, a second test chamber antenna may be connected to a second RF port in the test unit through a second RF cable, a third test chamber antenna may be connected to a third RF port in the test unit through a third RF cable, etc. 
     A calibration device under test (DUT) may be placed into the test chamber to perform path loss calibration. The calibration DUT may be connected to the test host through a control line. During path loss calibration operations, the test host may direct the test unit to transmit and/or receive RF signals to and from the calibration DUT through the test chamber antennas one at a time. The test host may compute path loss values associated with each of the multiple test chamber antennas at desired frequencies. 
     A preferred antenna list may be generated based on the path loss values gathered by the test host during calibration operations. For example, a selected one of the multiple test chamber antennas may be indicated to be a preferred antenna if that antenna provides the least amount of path loss at a particular operating frequency. The preferred antenna list shows the preferred antenna that should be enabled to perform desired measurements during product testing at each desired frequency. 
     The calibrated test chamber may be used to perform product testing. The test host may configure the test unit to send/receive RF signals through the preferred antenna based on the preferred antenna list. The test station may be used to perform desired measurements on production DUTs using the preferred antenna (while disabling the remaining test chamber antennas). 
     In another suitable arrangement, a test station may include a test host, a test unit, a test chamber with multiple test chamber antennas, and a multiplexer circuit. The multiplexer circuit may have a given RF connector that is connected one of the multiple ports of the test unit through a given RF cable. The multiplexer circuit may have additional RF connects that are each connected to a corresponding one of the multiple test chamber antennas through a respective RF cable. The test host may configure the multiplexer circuit to connect the given RF connector to a desired one of the additional RF connectors during calibration and product testing operations. 
     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 wireless device under test with radio-frequency circuitry in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a diagram of illustrative test stations each connected to computing equipment and each including a test chamber, a multiport test unit, and a test host in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a diagram of an illustrative test station that includes a test chamber, a test unit, a test host, and a multiplexer circuit in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a table of illustrative path loss values computed using a calibration device under test at desired frequencies in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is an illustrative graph showing how path loss values may vary as a function of frequency for different test chamber antennas in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 6  is an illustrative preferred antenna list generated using the calibration results of  FIG. 5  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 7  is a flow chart of illustrative steps involved in calibrating a test station and performing product testing operations with the calibrated test station in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Wireless electronic devices include antenna and transceiver circuitry that supports wireless communications. Examples of wireless electronic devices include desktop computers, computer monitors, computer monitors containing embedded computers, wireless computer cards, wireless adapters, televisions, set-top boxes, gaming consoles, routers, or other electronic equipment. Examples of portable wireless electronic devices include laptop computers, tablet computers, handheld computers, cellular telephones, media players, and small devices such as wrist-watch devices, pendant devices, headphone and earpiece devices, and other miniature devices. 
     Devices such as these are often provided with wireless communications capabilities. For example, electronic devices may use long-range wireless communications circuitry such as cellular telephone circuitry to communicate using cellular telephone bands at 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, and 1900 MHz (e.g., the main Global System for Mobile Communications or GSM cellular telephone bands). Long-range wireless communications circuitry may also handle the 2100 MHz band. 
     Electronic devices may use short-range wireless communications links to handle communications with nearby equipment. For example, electronic devices may communicate using the WiFi® (IEEE 802.11) bands at 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz and the Bluetooth® band at 2.4 GHz. It is sometimes desirable to receive satellite navigation system signals such as signals from the Global Positioning System (GPS). Electronic devices may therefore be provided with circuitry for receiving satellite navigation signals such as GPS signals at 1575 MHz. 
     In testing environments, the wireless electronic devices are sometimes referred to as devices under test (DUTs).  FIG. 1  shows an example of a test device such as DUT  10 . DUT  10  may be a portable electronic device, a computer, a multimedia device, or other electronic equipment. DUT  10  may have a device housing such as housing  2  that forms a case for its associated components. 
     DUT  10  may have storage and processing circuitry such as storage and processing circuitry  4 . Storage and processing circuitry  4  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  4  may be used to control the operation of device  10 . This processing circuitry may be based on one or more microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, application specific integrated circuits, etc. 
     Circuitry  4  may interact with a transceiver circuit such as transceiver circuit  6 . Transceiver circuit  6  may include an analog-to-digital converter (ADC), a digital-to-analog converter (DAC), a digital down-converter (DDC), and a digital up-converter (DUC). 
     In a scenario in which DUT  10  is transmitting, circuitry  4  may provide digital data (e.g., baseband signals) to the DUC. The DUC may convert or modulate the baseband digital signals to an intermediate frequency (IF). The IF digital signals may be fed to the DAC to convert the IF digital signals to IF analog signals. The IF analog signals may then be fed to an RF front end such as RF front end  8 . 
     When DUT  10  is receiving wireless signals, RF front end  8  may provide incoming IF analog signals to the ADC. The ADC may convert the incoming IF analog signals to incoming IF digital signals. The incoming IF digital signals may then be fed to the DDC. The DDC may convert the incoming IF digital signals to incoming baseband digital signals. The incoming baseband digital signals may then be provided to circuitry  4  for further processing. Transceiver circuit  6  may either up-convert baseband signals to IF signals or down-convert IF signals to baseband signals. Transceiver block  6  may therefore sometimes be referred to as an IF stage. 
     RF front end  8  may include circuitry that couples transceiver block  6  to one or more antenna such as antenna  9 . RF front end  8  may include circuitry such as matching circuits, band-pass filters, mixers, low noise amplifier circuitry, power amplifier circuitry, etc. Circuitry  4 , transceiver block  6 , RF front end  8 , and antenna  9  may be housed within housing  2 . 
     In the scenario in which DUT  10  is transmitting, RF front end  8  may up-convert the IF analog signals from transceiver block  6  to RF analog signals (e.g., the RF signals typically have higher frequencies than the IF signals). The RF analog signals may be fed to antenna  9  for broadcast. If desired, more than one antenna may be used in DUT  10 . 
     In the scenario in which DUT  10  is receiving wireless signals, antenna  9  may receive incoming RF analog signals from a broadcasting device such as a base transceiver station, network access point, etc. The incoming RF analog signals may be fed to RF front end  8 . RF front end  8  may down-convert the incoming RF analog signals to IF analog signals. The IF analog signals may then be fed to transceiver circuit  6  for further data processing. 
     During product testing, many wireless devices (e.g., hundreds, thousands, or more of DUTs  10 ) may be tested in a test system such as test system  11  of  FIG. 2 . Test system  11  may include tests, test accessories, computers, network equipment, tester control boxes, cabling, test chambers with antennas, and other test equipment for transmitting and receiving radio-frequency test signals and gathering test results. Test system  11  may include multiple test stations such as test stations  13 . There may, for example, be 80 test stations  13  at a given test site. Test system  11  may include any desired number of test stations to achieve desired test throughput. 
     Each test station  13  may include a test chamber such as test chamber  32 , a test unit such as test unit  22 , and a test host such as test host  26  (e.g., a personal computer). Test chambers  32  may be used during product testing to measure the performance of production (factory) DUTs  10 . 
     Each test chamber  32  may have a cubic structure (six planar walls), a rectangular prism-like structure (six rectangular walls), a pyramid structure (four triangular walls with a rectangular base), or other suitable structures. 
     Test chambers  32  may each include multiple antennas such as antennas ANT 1 -ANT 4  mounted inside the chamber (as an example). Antennas ANT 1 -ANT 4  may sometimes be referred to as test chamber antennas or OTA antennas. Antennas ANT 1 -ANT 4  may, for example, be patch antennas, horn antennas, or other types of antennas. Test chamber  32  may therefore be referred to as a multi-antenna test chamber, because test chamber  32  contains more than one antenna. The test chamber antennas (e.g., antennas ANT 1 -ANT 4 ) may be placed at any desired location within test  13  using any suitable orientation. 
     During product testing, DUT  10  may be placed inside test chamber  32  to test for the performance (e.g., the output power level, etc.) of DUT  10  while the test chamber antennas communicate wirelessly with antenna(s)  9  of DUT  10 . 
     Test unit (tester)  22  in each test station  13  may be a radio communications tester of the type that is sometimes referred to as a test box or a radio communications tester. Test unit  22  may be used to perform radio-frequency signaling tests for a variety of different radio-frequency communications bands and channels. 
     Test unit  22  may be a multiport test box (as an example). As shown in  FIG. 2 , test unit  22  may have first, second, third, and fourth ports  25  to which RF cables may be connected. In the example of  FIG. 2 , first RF cable  24 - 1  may be connected between first port  25  and first antenna ANT 1  so that RF signals may be conveyed between test unit  22  and DUT  10  through ANT 1  during a first time period, whereas second RF cable  24 - 2  may be connected between second port  25  and second antenna ANT 2  so that RF signals may be conveyed between test unit  22  and DUT  10  through ANT 2  during a second time period, whereas third RF cable  24 - 3  may be connected between third port  25  and third antenna ANT 3  so that RF signals may be conveyed between test unit  22  and DUT  10  through ANT 3  during a third time period, and whereas fourth RF cable  24 - 4  may be connected between fourth port  25  and fourth antenna ANT 4  so that RF signals may be conveyed between test unit  22  and DUT  10  through ANT 4  during a fourth time period. 
     Test station  13  with test unit  22  connected to antennas ANT 1 -ANT 4  of test chamber  32  using the RF cables (i.e., RF cables  24 - 1 ,  24 - 2 ,  24 - 3 , and  24 - 4 ) in this way may be used to perform OTA testing of wireless electronic devices. For example, a DUT  10  may be placed within test chamber  32  during product testing. In this arrangement, RF signals may be conveyed between transceiver circuitry  6  of DUT  10  and test unit  22  while activating a selected one of antennas ANT 1 -ANT 4 . 
     The arrangement of  FIG. 2  is merely illustrative. If desired, test chamber  32  may have more than four antennas or less than four antennas. If desired, test unit  22  may have more than four RF ports or less than four RF ports. Depending on the number of test chamber antennas placed within test chamber  32 , a corresponding number of RF cables may be used to connect the test chamber antennas to respective ports  25  in test unit  22 . 
     Test unit  22  may be operated directly or via computer control (e.g., when test unit  22  receives commands from test host  26 ). When operated directly, a user may control test unit  22  by supplying commands directly to the test unit using the user input interface of the test unit. For example, a user may press buttons in a control panel  23  on the test unit while viewing information that is displayed on a display  21  in the test unit. In computer controlled configurations, a test host such as computer  26  (e.g., software running autonomously or semi-autonomously on the computer) may communicate with the test unit (e.g., by sending and receiving data over a wired path  27  or a wireless path between the computer and the test unit). 
     Test host  26  may be coupled to DUT  10  through wired path  28  or a wireless path between test host  26  and DUT  10 . Connected in this way, test host  26  may send commands over path  28  to configure DUT  10  to perform desired operations during path loss calibration operations and during product testing. 
     In one suitable arrangement, test host  26  may be connected to a test fixture such as test fixture  42  through path  28  (see, e.g.,  FIG. 2 ). Fixture  42  may have an RF connector such as RF connector  44  mounted on its surface. DUT  10  may have a corresponding RF connector that is used to mate with RF connector  44  during testing. In the mated state, data may be conveyed between test host  26  and DUT  10  over path  28 . 
     Test unit  22  may be used to characterize uplink and downlink behaviors of DUT  10 . During uplink characterization, DUT  10  may send wireless signals through one of the RF cables in the direction of arrow  31 . Test unit  22  may be used to measure an output power level, frequency response, gain, linearity, and other performance parameters of DUT  10  at desired frequencies. 
     During downlink characterization, test unit  22  may be used to send wireless signals through one of the RF cables in the direction of arrow  29 . Measurements such as a receive power level may then be taken at DUT  10 . Test stations  13  may therefore be referred to as bidirectional, because test stations  13  can be used to measure both uplink and downlink characteristics. 
     Each test station  13  should be calibrated prior to testing to ensure that measurements taken across the different test stations are accurate. Sources of offset (error) that may exist from one test station to another include OTA path loss (e.g., path loss associated with the propagation of radio-frequency signals as they propagate through air, path loss associated with the behavior of each of the test chamber antennas during actual wireless transmission, etc.), RF cable path loss (e.g., path loss associated with each RF cable), and variations in each test unit  22  (e.g., process, voltage, and temperature variations that may affect the operation of each tester). 
     Path loss can be defined as the attenuation in power as wireless signals propagate through a particular medium. The OTA path loss and RF cable path loss in each test station  13  are typically unique, because it is challenging to manufacture test components (e.g., the test chamber antennas, RF cables  24 , etc.) that are exactly identical to one another and to configure each test station  13  with an identical spatial arrangement. Path loss may be sensitive to the location of the test chamber antennas and to the placement of DUT  10  within the test chamber. 
     Similarly, the manufacturing of identical test units  22  may be equally if not even more challenging. In addition to manufacturing variations, operational variations such as voltage and temperature variations may cause each test unit  22  to behave differently during actual testing conditions. 
     As a result, it may be necessary to take into account an overall test station path loss (e.g., it is necessary to calibrate the OTA path loss, RF cable path loss, and test unit variations) when calibrating a test station  13 . 
     Uplink and downlink path loss may be approximately equal for wireless devices that support time division duplexing (TDD) protocols such as IEEE 802.11 protocols (sometimes referred to as WiFi® protocols), the Bluetooth® protocol, etc. For example, wireless devices that support time division duplexing protocols may exhibit an uplink path loss of 29 dB and a downlink path loss of 29 dB. For TDD systems, calibration of only one path (i.e., calibration of uplink path loss or downlink path loss) is necessary, because the transmit circuitry and receive circuitry operate at the same frequency. 
     Calibration techniques that take into account the OTA path loss, RF cable path loss, and test unit variations of each test station  13  are desirable. Path loss calibration may be sensitive to the location (placement) of the test chamber antennas within test chamber  32 . The sensitivity of each test chamber antenna may also vary as a function of operating frequency. As a result, a calibration DUT (e.g., a reference DUT that is sampled from a group of production DUTs and that is determined to exhibit performance levels representative of the group of production DUTs) may be used to calibrate test station  13  at desired frequencies. 
     In particular, different path loss values can be computed by performing path loss calibration measurements while enabling the test chamber antennas one at a time at a desired frequency. Path loss values measured using the different antennas may differ from one another, because of the difference in placement and/or orientation of the antennas within test chamber  32 . The antenna that provides the optimal path loss (e.g., the least negative path loss value) may be selected as the preferred antenna for that desired frequency. An antenna that is the selected as the preferred antenna for one particular frequency may not necessarily be selected as the preferred antenna for another frequency, because the performance and location of each test chamber antenna may vary as a function of frequency. A preferred antenna can be determined for each desired frequency using this approach to compile a list of preferred antennas (or a preferred antenna list). 
     During product testing, production DUTs  10  may be tested in test chamber  32  at the desired frequencies. At each desired frequency, a preferred antenna may be selected based on the preferred antenna list to perform desired measurements (e.g., to determine whether a production DUT  10  satisfies pass/fail criteria). Performing product testing in this way reduces measurement sensitivity to the location of the test chamber antennas in test chamber  32  across the desired frequencies and optimizes testing to increase yield. 
     Another suitable arrangement of test station  13  with multiple antennas is shown in  FIG. 3 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , test station  13  may include test host  26 , test unit  22 , test chamber  32 , and a multiplexer circuit such as multiplexer circuit  46 . Multiplexer circuit  46  may have input-output (I/O) connectors such as RF connectors  48 ,  50 - 1 ,  50 - 2 ,  50 - 3 , and  50 - 4 . Multiplexer circuit  46  may have a control input that is connected to test host  26  through line  47 . Test host  26  may send control signals over line  47  to configure multiplexer circuit  46  to electrically connect RF connector  48  to a selected one of RF connectors  50 - 1 ,  50 - 2 ,  50 - 3 , and  50 - 4  (as an example). 
     RF connector  48  of multiplexer circuit  46  may be connected to one of the multiple ports  25  of test unit  22  through RF cable  24 - 0 . For example, RF connector  48  may be connected to second port  25  of test unit  22  (see, e.g.,  FIG. 3 ). First RF cable  24 - 1  may be used to connect antenna ANT 1  to connector  50 - 1  of circuit  46 , whereas second RF cable  24 - 2  may be used to connect antenna ANT 2  to connector  50 - 2  of circuit  46 , whereas third RF cable  24 - 3  may be used to connect antenna ANT 3  to connector  50 - 3  of circuit  46 , and whereas fourth RF cable  24 - 4  may be used to connect antenna ANT 4  to connector  50 - 4  of circuit  46 . Multiplexer circuit  46  may be a bidirectional multiplexing circuit (e.g., RF signals may travel from connector  48  to a selected one of connectors  50 - 1 ,  50 - 2 ,  50 - 3 , and  50 - 4  in the direction of arrow  29  or RF signals may travel from a selected one of connectors  50 - 1 ,  50 - 2 ,  50 - 3 , and  50 - 4  to connector  48  in the direction of arrow  31 ). As a result, test station  13  of  FIG. 3  may be used to perform uplink or downlink path loss measurements (as an example). 
     The test station setup shown in  FIG. 3  is merely illustrative. Other suitable configurations that allow OTA calibration and test measurements with multiple antennas may be used, if desired. 
     Path loss values gathered using a calibration DUT during path loss calibration operations may be recorded in a path loss table such as path loss table  52 , as shown in  FIG. 4 .  FIG. 4  shows path loss values in units of dBm. Power in terms of dBm expresses power relative to 1 mW in units of decibels. Path loss table  52  may store path loss measurement results for multiple test chamber antennas at the desired frequencies. 
     For example, consider a scenario in which test chamber antennas ANT 1 -ANT 4  are used to calibrate test station  13 . During a first time period, the calibration DUT may communicate wirelessly with test unit  22  through antenna ANT 1  at frequency f 1 . A path loss value of −40.5 dBm may be computed during the first time period and may be recorded in path loss table  52 . Antenna ANT 2  may be switched into use to compute a path loss value of −39.8 dBm during a second time period, whereas antenna ANT 3  may be switched into use to compute a path loss value of −39.6 dBm during a third time period, and whereas antenna ANT 4  may be switched into use to compute a path loss value of −41.1 dBm during a fourth time period (at frequency f 1 ). 
     Similarly, path loss values may be computed using antennas ANT 1 -ANT 4  at other desired frequencies (e.g., frequencies f 2 , f 3  . . . ). For example, path loss values of −41.0 dBm, −38.9 dBm, −40.9 dBm, and −40.2 dBm may be computed by performing measurements at frequency f 2  with antennas ANT 1 , ANT 2 , ANT 3 , and ANT 4 , respectively (see, e.g.,  FIG. 4 ). If desired, path loss table  52  may record path loss values for any number of antennas at any desired operating frequencies. 
     A preferred antenna may be chosen for each frequency based on the path loss values recorded in table  52 . In general, it may be desirable to select the test chamber antenna that provides the least amount of path loss (i.e., that provides the least negative path loss value) as the preferred antenna for each frequency. In the example of  FIG. 4 , antenna ANT 3  may be selected as the preferred antenna because ANT 3  provides the least negative path loss value at frequency f 1  (as indicated by highlighted box  54 ), whereas antenna ANT 2  may be selected as the preferred antenna because ANT 2  provides the least negative path loss value at frequency f 2  (as indicated by highlighted box  56 ). If desired, test chamber antennas that provide the most negative path loss values or that provide average (intermediate) path loss values may be selected as the preferred antennas. If desired, test chamber antennas may be selected based on a user-defined criterion (e.g., test chamber antennas that perform satisfactorily may be selected). 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , each test station  13  may be connected to computing equipment  36  through line  38 . Computing equipment  36  may include storage equipment on which a database  40  is stored. Table  52  may be stored in database  40 . 
       FIG. 5  is a graphical representation of the path loss table of the type described in connection with  FIG. 4 . The graph in  FIG. 5  plots path loss as a function of frequency for four different antennas ANT 1 -ANT 4 . As shown in legend  58 , symbol “o” corresponds to path loss data computed while antenna ANT 1  is switched into use (e.g., while antenna ANT 1  is enabled and while ANT 2 -ANT 4  are disabled), symbol “x” corresponds to path loss data computed while ANT 2  is switched into use, symbol “□” corresponds to path loss data computed while ANT 3  is switched into use, and symbol “Δ” corresponds to path loss data computed while ANT 4  is switched into use. Line  60  contains the path loss data points for antenna ANT 1  computed across frequencies f 1 -f 4 , whereas line  62  contains the path loss data points for antenna ANT 2  computed across frequencies f 1 -f 4 , whereas line  64  contains the path loss data points for antenna ANT 3  computed across frequencies f 1 -f 4 , and whereas line  66  contains the path loss data points for antenna ANT 4  computed across frequencies f 1 -f 4  (as examples). 
     As shown in the graph of  FIG. 5 , antenna ANT 2  exhibits the least negative path loss value at frequency f 1 , whereas antenna ANT 1  exhibits the least negative path loss value at frequency f 2 , whereas antenna ANT 4  exhibits the least negative path loss value at frequency f 3 , and whereas antenna ANT 3  exhibits the least negative path loss value at frequency f 4 . It can be observed from  FIG. 5  that a test chamber antenna that provides the optimal path loss value at one frequency may not necessarily provide acceptable path loss values at other frequencies. For example, antenna ANT 2  provides the least negative path loss value at frequency f 1  but provides the most negative path loss value at frequency f 2 . 
       FIG. 6  shows a preferred antenna list such as preferred antenna list  68  that can be generated based on the results of  FIG. 5 . Antenna ANT 2  may be selected as the preferred antenna for frequency f 1 , because ANT 2  exhibits the optimal (e.g., least negative) path loss value at frequency f 1 . Antennas ANT 1  may be selected as the preferred antenna for frequency f 2 , because ANT 1  exhibits the optimal path loss value at frequency f 2 . Antenna ANT 4  may be selected as the preferred antenna for frequency f 3 , because ANT 4  exhibits the optimal path loss value at frequency f 3 . Antenna ANT 3  may be selected as the preferred antenna for frequency f 4 , because ANT 3  exhibits the optimal path loss value at frequency f 4 . Preferred antenna list  68  may contain information showing the preferred antennas that should be used at the desired frequencies during product testing. For example, consider a scenario in which a user of test station  13  wants to test a production DUT at frequency f 3 . In this example, the user should configure test station  13  to perform measurements using ANT 4  (i.e., the preferred antenna according to list  68  of  FIG. 6 ). 
     Preferred list  68  may be stored in database  40  on computing equipment  36  and may be retrieved by test host  26  or a user of test system  11  during product testing. If desired, preferred list  68  may be stored in storage and processing circuitry  4  of production DUT  10 . 
       FIG. 7  shows detailed steps involved in calibrating test station  13  and using test chamber  32  during product testing. At step  70 , test station  13  may be calibrated to obtain a preferred antenna list of the type described in connection with  FIG. 6 . A calibration DUT may be placed into test chamber  32  (step  72 ). The calibration DUT may be tuned to a desired frequency (step  74 ). 
     Test host  26  may configure the calibration DUT to produce RF signals at a requested output power level (step  76 ). For example, test host  26  may direct the calibration DUT to produce RF signals at the maximum output power level by sending commands over line  28 . Test unit  22  may then be used to measure the output power level produced by the calibration DUT (step  78 ). Test host  26  may compute an OTA path loss by subtracting the requested output power level from the measured output power level (step  80 ). OTA path loss values computed using this approach may be stored in table  52  of the type described in connection with  FIG. 4 . 
     Processing may loop back to step  74  if there are additional frequencies to be tested, as indicated by path  82 . If desired, additional calibration DUTs may be used to gather more path loss data points to ensure accuracy of calibration step  70 . At step  83 , preferred antenna list  68  may then be generated based on the results stored in table (e.g., the test chamber antenna that provides the least negative path loss value may be selected as the preferred antenna for each desired frequency). The preferred antenna list may be determined using computing equipment associated with the test system, using computing equipment that communicates with the test system over a communications network, using equipment such as test host  26 , using computing equipment such as a processor in test unit  22 , using computing equipment  36 , or using other computing equipment. 
     At step  84 , calibrated test station  13  may be used to perform product testing. During product testing, a production DUT may be placed into test chamber  32  (step  86 ). The production DUT may be tuned to a desired frequency (step  88 ). Test host  26  may configure test station  13  to switch a preferred antenna into use based on preferred antenna list (step  90 ). 
     For example, consider a scenario in which test station  13  of  FIG. 2  is used to perform product testing. In this example, test host  26  may configure test unit  22  to send and/or receive signals through a selected one of its ports  25  that is associated with the preferred antenna while blocking RF signals from being transmitted and/or received through remaining ports  25 . Consider another scenario in which test station  13  of  FIG. 3  is used to perform product testing. In this example, test host  26  may configure multiplexer circuit  28  to connect RF connector  48  to a selected one of RF connectors  50 - 1 ,  50 - 2 ,  50 - 3 , and  50 - 4  so that RF signals can be conveyed between test unit  22  and the preferred antenna. 
     After the preferred antenna has been switched into use, test station  13  may perform desired measurements on the production DUT (e.g., test station  13  may measure the output power level, gain, frequency response, linearity, dynamic range, and other performance parameters of the production DUT), as shown in step  92 . Processing may loop back to step  88  if there are additional frequencies to be tested, as indicated by path  94  (e.g., a new preferred antenna may be switched into use based on the preferred antenna list when performing product testing at another desired frequency). Pass/fail criteria may be applied to each production DUT to determine whether a production DUT satisfies design criteria based on the measured performance parameters. Processing may loop back to step  96  if there are additional production DUTs to be test, as indicated by path  96 . 
     Calibrating a test station and performing product testing using the calibrated test station in this way may provide reduced sensitivity to antenna placement and reduced sensitivity to frequency variations. 
     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.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20100831
Publication Date: 20130903
Grant Date: 20130903
Priority Date: 20100831
Inventors: CHANG THOMAS W.
BEVELACQUA PETER
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "H04B17/21", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04B17/26", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04B17/12", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G01C19/00", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04B17/16", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04B7/0608", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G01C19/00", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04B7/0608", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04B17/12", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04B17/16", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04B17/21", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04B17/26", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 45698316