Automatic gain control in a zero intermediate frequency radio device

Abstract

A zero intermediate frequency radio device has an antenna for receiving a radio frequency signal, and a frequency down converter for down converting the received radio frequency signal to a zero intermediate frequency signal. The radio device further has controllable amplifier stages, controllable AC-coupling stages, controllable filter stages, and a received signal strength indicator. A signal resolving range of the received signal strength indicator is below a high dynamic range of the received radio frequency signal. The radio device further has an automatic gain controller. The automatic gain controller initially sets the gain of the Rx path of the radio device to a maximum of minimum gain, and then waits for DC-offsets in the Rx path to cancel. If, at maximum or minimum gain, a reading of the received signal strength indicator is within a particular range, the automatic gain controller sets the gain to the reading. Then, automatic gain control settles. If this is not the case, the gain of the Rx path is stepwise decreased or increased, while repeating the DC-offset cancellation step of waiting for the DC-offset to cancel, until the reading of the received signal strength indicator falls in the signal resolving range around the then set gain of the Rx path.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.