Abstract:
An electronic device may include wireless circuitry that is configured to transmit wireless signals during operation. A maximum transmit power level may be established that serves as a cap on how much power is transmitted from the electronic device. Adjustments may be made to the maximum transmit power level in real time based on sensor signals and other information on the operating state of the electronic device. The sensor signals may include motion signals from an accelerometer. The sensor signals may also include ultrasonic sound detected by a microphone. Device orientation data may be used by the device to select whether to measure the ultrasonic sound using a front facing or rear facing microphone. Maximum transmit power level may also be adjusted based on whether or not sound is playing through an ear speaker in the device.
Abstract:
A host device is configured to increase the power output by an internal amplifier of its wireless chipset in response to requests from a remote device. Once the internal amplifier has reached its maximum power, further requests for power increases from the remove device do not similarly lead to automatic power increases being delivered by a external amplifier of the host device. Rather, the host device determines the strength of the link between it and the remote device. If the signal strength is too low, it is an indication that the signal power output by the remote device may not be sufficient to maintain the link and that any further increases in signal power by the host device will have little or no effect on the link. However, if the signal strength from the remote device is sufficient, the host device determines an error rate between it and the remote device. If the error rate is sufficiently low to maintain the link, then the host device will not further increase its signal output power. However, if the error rate is too high, the host device will turn on and/or increase power from its external amplifier to boost the power of its output signal and, thus, improve the error rate between it and the remote device.
Abstract:
Methods and devices for reducing the power consumption and increasing the efficiency of an LTE transmitter of an electronic device are provided. By way of example, a method includes calculating location data related to a region in which the electronic device may operate via the electronic device, determining via the electronic device a region in which the electronic device is currently operating within based on the location data, and adjusting an output transmitting power of the electronic device based at least in part on the region and one or more frequency operating parameters utilized by the electronic device.
Abstract:
In order to establish a connection between electronic devices, after receiving an advertising packet from another electronic device, an electronic device compares a performance metric associated with the communication with the other electronic device with a threshold value. Based on the comparison, the electronic device provides pairing-intent information specifying a pairing intent for the electronic device and the other electronic device for presentation by the other electronic device. Moreover, after receiving additional pairing-intent information specifying the pairing intent from the other electronic device, the electronic device establishes the connection with the other electronic device when the additional pairing-intent information matches the pairing-intent information. For example, the pairing intent may include a gesture and/or a sequence of one or more characters, and the additional pairing-intent information may include: the sequence of one or more characters; accelerometer data corresponding to the gesture; and/or user-interface data corresponding to the gesture.
Abstract:
Electronic devices may be provided that contain wireless communications circuitry. The wireless communications circuitry may include radio-frequency transceiver circuitry and first and second antennas. An electronic device may include a housing. The first antenna may be located at an upper end of the housing and the second antenna may be located at a lower end of the housing. A peripheral conductive member may run around the edges of the housing and may be used in forming the first and second antennas. The radio-frequency transceiver circuitry may have a transmit-receive port and a receive port. Switching circuitry may connect the first antenna to the transmit-receive port and the second antenna to the receiver port or may connect the first antenna to the receive port and the second antenna to the transmit-receive port.
Abstract:
Methods for operating a portable electronic device to conduct mobile payment transactions are provided. The electronic device may include near field communications circuitry having a transmitter, a receiver, and a field detector for detecting a field from a merchant terminal. The receiver is typically idle. The receiver may be activated when the field detector detects that the electronic device is within the field of the merchant terminal. The transmitter may then be used to perform link establishment and data transfer. If the payment transaction fails for any reason, one or more hardware settings on the electronic device may be adjusted to help increase the chance of a successful transaction in a subsequent payment attempt. Another transaction may be attempted when the user moves the device out of the field and back into the field or may be performed automatically as long as the device is still within the field.
Abstract:
Methods and devices are provided for allowing a mobile device (e.g., a key fob or a consumer electronic device, such as a mobile phone, watch, or other wearable device) to interact with a vehicle such that a location of the mobile device can be determined by the vehicle, thereby enabling certain functionality of the vehicle. A device may include both RF antenna(s) and magnetic antenna(s) for determining a location of a mobile device relative to the vehicle. Such a hybrid approach can provide various advantages. Existing magnetic coils on a mobile device (e.g., for charging or communication) may be re-used for distance measurements that are supplemented by the RF measurements. Any device antenna may provide measurements to a machine learning model that determines a region in which the mobile device resides, based on training measurements in the regions.
Abstract:
Wireless communication between two electronic devices may be used to determine a distance between the two devices, even in the presence of an otherwise-disruptive attacker. A wireless receiver system of one device may receive a true wireless ranging signal from a first transmitting device and a false wireless ranging signal from an attacker. The wireless receiver system may correlate the wireless signals with a known preamble sequence and perform channel estimation using the result, obtaining a channel impulse response for the wireless signals. The wireless receiver system may filter the channel impulse response for the plurality of wireless signals by removing at least part of the channel impulse response due to the false wireless ranging signal while not removing at least part of the channel impulse response due to the true wireless ranging signal. The receiver system may perform a wireless ranging operation using the filtered channel impulse response.
Abstract:
Methods and devices useful in performing precise indoor localization and tracking are provided. By way of example, a method includes locating and tracking, via a first wireless electronic device, a plurality of other wireless electronic devices within an indoor environment. Location ambiguity mitigation is performed using characteristics of signals received by a reference node used to generate a radio frequency map of electronic devices.
Abstract:
Embodiments are disclosed for terahertz spectroscopy and imaging in dynamic environments. In an embodiment, a transmitter of an electronic device emits a continuous electromagnetic (EM) wave in the terahertz (THz) frequency band into a dynamic environment that includes a transmission medium that changes over time. A receiver of the electronic device, receives an EM wave reflected off an object in the environment and determines a spectral response of the reflected EM wave. The spectral response includes absorption spectra at a frequency in the THz frequency band that is indicative of a known target transmission medium. The absorption spectra of the target transmission medium and a path length of the reflected EM wave signal are used to obtain the concentration level of the target transmission medium from a reference library of known concentration levels.