Testing device and method

Details Testing device and method Testing device and method

1999-03-11

2001-02-13

Wong, Don (Department: 2821)

Communications: radio wave antennas

Antennas

Measuring signal energy

C455S067150

Reexamination Certificate

active

06188365

ABSTRACT:

TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to mobile terminals, and in particular to a method and a device for testing the transmitter and receiver part of a mobile terminal.
BACKGROUND
When testing mobile terminals, both the output power and the receiver characteristics must be tested.
The test equipment should be made as small as possible, for ergonomic reasons and to reduce the space needed for test.
The transmitter/receiver tests may be carried out in different ways. One fundamental problem when testing is to shield the test equipment so that no irrelevant signals disturb the tests. Also, the test signals should not disturb other signalling, for example other tests. Therefore, it will not be possible to perform outdoor tests through the air interface. Shielded rooms and cages may be used, but the shielding material that is required on the walls cause power losses and also increases the size of the equipment.
The most commonly used method today is to connect the outlet of the antenna to the measurement equipment through a co-axial cable. This is only possible if the antenna is removable. Also, this method does not test the function of the antenna itself.
SUMMARY
It is an object of the present invention to enable the testing of mobile terminals or other similar equipment without removing the antenna. Other types of equipment may be, for example, radio receivers for pagers or remote control devices comprising radio transmitters, for example, for car alarms,
It is another object of the present invention to enable the testing of mobile terminals via the air interface.
It is yet another object of the invention to achieve a relatively small test equipment for mobile terminals.
This is achieved according to the invention by an apparatus for testing a transmitter and/or receiver of electromagnetic waves, comprising:
a hollow metal body, dimensioned to function as a waveguide for said electromagnetic waves, comprising a hole for receiving a test antenna, a hole for receiving the receiver to be tested,
a test antenna inserted into said hole,
a signal generating device connected to said test antenna.
The cross-section of the hollow metal body is preferably rectangular and the antenna and the test antenna are inserted from the same or opposite sides. The sides of the metal body not comprising said holes are completely solid.
The holes for inserting the test antenna and the antenna to be tested are preferably located at {fraction (
1
/
4
)} of the wavelength away from opposite short sides of the metal body and extend in the longitudinal direction of the metal body.
A method of testing the transmitting and/or receiving function of an antenna is also disclosed, comprising the steps of
inserting the antenna into a hole in the appropriate side of a waveguide,
inserting a test antenna from the same or the opposite side of the waveguide,
transmitting a signal having a well-defined signal strength from the antenna or the test antenna,
registering the signal strength received by the one of the antenna or the test antenna that did not transmit the signal.
The invention offers the following advantages:
It allows the testing of the antenna function while testing the RF transmission function.
The test equipment according to the invention may be made very small.
The shielding properties of the apparatus according to the invention are very good.
Since an air interface is used in the tests, the function of the whole transmission/receiving unit is tested, including the antenna itself.
The test equipment according to the invention is simple and inexpensive to produce compared to prior art.


REFERENCES:
patent: 4962384 (1990-10-01), Walker
patent: 6021315 (2000-02-01), Telewski
Japanese Abstracts of Japan, Abstract of JP 7-267147 A, Oct. 13, 1995.

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