Filter device having attenuation poles

The present invention relates to a filter device, in particular, to a filter device having attenuation poles for use in a wireless communication circuit implemented in a mobile body such as a mobile telephone or a portable digital television broadcasting receiver, and a wireless communication device having the filter device.

In recent years, each of the components built in a portable electronic device such as a mobile telephone or a portable digital television broadcasting receiver is required to have a smaller size and a smaller power loss. For example, a filter device for use in a wireless communication circuit implemented in the above-mentioned electronic device is required to have a small size and a small insertion loss. As a filter device intended to meet these requirements, the following Patent Documents 1 and 2 each describe a high frequency filter having attenuation poles.

Patent Document 1: Japanese patent laid-open publication No. JP-1-238321-A. Patent Document 2: Japanese patent laid-open publication No. JP-2003-60408-A.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

For example, in a digital television broadcasting receiver, when an integer multiple frequency, in particular, an odd-number multiple frequency of a local frequency, which is a difference between a central frequency of a desired channel of a desired receiving wave of a digital television broadcasting and an intermediate frequency, overlaps with a frequency used in another system, it is required to greatly attenuate an interference wave that is a signal having the frequency used in another system. In this case, a required attenuation amount is determined based on a desired signal to undesired signal ratio (DU) which depends on a level of the interference wave and the performance of the wireless receiving integrated circuit of the digital television broadcasting receiver.

Currently, a Low-IF method, which enables omission of an intermediate frequency filter, is widely adopted in the digital television broadcasting receivers. The intermediate frequency is often set to several hundreds kHz. Accordingly, in a GHz band in which interference waves are required to be considered, the difference between the central frequency of the desired wave and the local frequency is relatively close to the intermediate frequency having several hundreds kHz.

In this case, assuming that the local frequency is approximately the same as the central frequency of the desired wave, exemplary frequencies at which signals are to be attenuated are calculated as follows. For example, when the desired channels are the channels 30 to 33 of the digital television broadcasting, the central frequencies of the respective desired waves are fallen within a frequency band of 575.14 MHz to 593.14 MHz, and a frequency band including frequencies three times the central frequencies of the desired waves overlaps with a frequency band of 1710 MHz to 1785 MHz corresponding to the uplink of the GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication) 1800 (Band-III). In addition, when the desired channels are the channels 35 to 38 of the digital television broadcasting, the central frequencies of the respective desired waves are fallen within a frequency band of 605.14 MHz to 623.14 MHz, and a frequency band including frequencies three times the central frequencies of the desired waves overlaps with a frequency band of 1805 MHz to 1880 MHz corresponding to the downlink of the GSM 1800 (Band-III). Further, when the desired channel is the channel 40 of the digital television broadcasting, then the central frequency of the desired wave is 635.14 MHz, and a frequency three times the central frequency of the desired wave is fallen within a frequency band of 1893 MHz to 1919 MHz of PHS (Personal Handyphone System) in Japan. When the desired channels are the channels 41 to 44 of the digital television broadcasting, the central frequencies of the respective desired waves are fallen within a frequency band of 641.14 MHz to 659.14 MHz, a frequency band including frequencies three times the central frequencies of the desired waves overlaps with a frequency band of 1920 MHz to 1980 MHz corresponding to the uplink of the UMTS (Universal Mobile Telephone Service) 2.0 GHz (Band-I). Namely, when the desired channels are the channels 30 to 41 of the digital television broadcasting at high frequencies, it is required to greatly attenuate signal components having frequencies fallen within a frequency band of 1.7 GHz to 2 GHz.

On the other hand, in a manner similar to the above-mentioned manner, exemplary frequencies at which signals are to be attenuated are calculated for lower desired channels as follows. When the desired channels are the channels 14 and 15 of the digital television broadcasting, the central frequencies of the desired waves are 479.14 MHz and 485.14 MHz, respectively, and a frequency band including frequencies three times the central frequencies of the desired waves overlaps with a frequency band of 1429 MHz to 1453 MHz corresponding to the uplinks of PDC (Personal Digital Cellular) 1.5 GHz and CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) 1.5 GHz. In addition, when the desired channel is the channel 17 of the digital television broadcasting, the central frequency of the desired wave is 497.14 MHz, and a frequency three times the central frequency of the desired wave is fallen within a frequency band of 1477 MHz to 1501 MHz corresponding to the downlink of the PDC 1.5 GHz and the CDMA 1.5 GHz. Namely, when the desired channels are the channels 14, 15, and 17 of the digital television broadcasting at low frequencies, it is required to attenuate signal components having frequencies fallen within a frequency band of 1.4 GHz to 1.5 GHz.

As described above, the frequency at which signals are to be attenuated and the attenuation amounts of the signals change depending on the desired channels of the digital television broadcasting. However, the filter device having a plurality of attenuation poles according to the prior art had a plurality of variable capacitive elements for changing the attenuation pole frequencies of the attenuation poles according to the desired channels. Therefore, there is such a problem that the filter device has a relatively large size and required a high manufacturing cost.

In addition, generally speaking, in the filter device having a plurality of attenuation poles, one of the attenuation poles is arranged near a pass band thereof. Therefore, the filter device having the attenuation poles according to the prior art has the following problems. The attenuation pole closest to the pass band of the filter device leads to a power loss in the pass band, and the above-mentioned required attenuation amount cannot be obtained in a stop band of the filter device.

A first object of the present invention is to provide a filter device capable of solving the above-mentioned problems, having a smaller size and a lower manufacturing cost than that of the prior art, and capable of simultaneously changing a plurality of attenuation pole frequencies thereof.

Further, a second object of the present invention is to provide a filter device and a wireless communication device having the filter device each capable of solving the above-mentioned problems, and reducing the power loss in the pass band thereof and increasing the attenuation amount in the stop band thereof as compared with that of the prior art.

Means for Solving the Problems

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a filter device having a first terminal and a second terminal. The filter device has a reactance element connected between the first terminal and the second terminal, a first serial resonance circuit, a second serial resonance circuit, and a third capacitor. The first serial resonance circuit is connected between a connection point between the first terminal and one end of the reactance element, and a ground, and the first serial resonance circuit includes a first inductor and at least one first capacitor connected in series via respective connection points. The second serial resonance circuit is connected between a connection point between the second terminal and the other end of the reactance element, and the ground, and the second serial resonance circuit includes a second inductor and at least one second capacitor connected in series via respective connection points. The third capacitor is connected between one of the respective connection points of the first serial resonance circuit and one of the respective connection points of the second serial resonance circuit. One of the first, second, and third capacitors is a variable capacitive element. The variable capacitive element is connected to the first terminal via at least the first capacitor of the first serial resonance circuit, and is connected to the second terminal via at least the second capacitor of the second serial resonance circuit. The filter device has control means for controlling two attenuation pole frequencies of the filter device by changing a capacitance of the variable capacitive element.

In the above-mentioned filter device, the third capacitor is preferably the variable capacitive element, and one end of the variable capacitive element is preferably connected to the first terminal via at least the first capacitor of the first serial resonance circuit, and the other end of the variable capacitive element is connected to the second terminal via at least the second capacitor of the second serial resonance circuit.

In addition, in the above-mentioned filter device, the third capacitor is preferably the variable capacitive element, one end of the variable capacitive element is preferably connected to the first terminal via at least the first capacitor of the first serial resonance circuit, and is grounded via at least the first inductor of the first serial resonance circuit, and the other end of the variable capacitive element is preferably connected to the second terminal via at least the second capacitor of the second serial resonance circuit.

Further, in the above-mentioned filter device, the third capacitor is preferably a serial connection circuit including a fourth capacitor and the variable capacitive element connected in series, one end of the variable capacitive element is preferably connected to the first terminal via at least the first capacitor of the first serial resonance circuit, and is grounded via at least the first inductor of the first serial resonance circuit, and the other end of the variable capacitive element is preferably connected to the second terminal via the fourth capacitor and at least the second capacitor of the second serial resonance circuit.

Still further, in the above-mentioned filter device, the first serial resonance circuit preferably includes a plurality of first capacitors, the plurality of first capacitors preferably includes the variable capacitive element, one end of the variable capacitive element is preferably grounded, and the other end of the variable capacitive element is preferably connected to the first terminal via at least the first capacitor of the first serial resonance circuit, and is connected to the second terminal via the third capacitor and at least the second capacitor of the second serial resonance circuit.

In addition, in the above-mentioned filter device, the other end of the variable capacitive element is preferably further grounded via at least the second inductor of the second serial resonance circuit.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a filter device having a first terminal and a second terminal. The filter device has a reactance element, a first serial resonance circuit, a second serial resonance circuit, a variable capacitor element, and control means. The reactance element is connected between the first terminal and the second terminal. The first serial resonance circuit is connected between a connection point between the first terminal and one end of the reactance element, and a ground, and the first serial resonance circuit includes a first inductor and a first capacitor. The second serial resonance circuit is connected between a connection point between the second terminal and the other end of the reactance element, and the ground, and the second serial resonance circuit includes a second inductor and a second capacitor. The variable capacitor element is connected between a connection point between the first serial resonance circuit and the second serial resonance circuit, and the ground. The control means controls two attenuation pole frequencies of the filter device by changing a capacitance of the variable capacitive element.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a filter device having a first terminal and a second terminal, and the filter device has a predetermined pass band. The filter device has a reactance element, a first serial resonance circuit, and a second serial resonance circuit. The reactance element is connected between the first terminal and the second terminal. The first serial resonance circuit is connected between a connection point between the first terminal and one end of the reactance element, and a ground, the first serial resonance circuit includes a first capacitor having a first capacitance and a first inductor having a first inductance, and the first serial resonance circuit has a first resonance frequency determined based on a product of the first capacitance and the first inductance. The second serial resonance circuit is connected between a connection point between the second terminal and the other end of the reactance element, and the ground, the second serial resonance circuit includes a second capacitor having a second capacitance and a second inductor having a second inductance, and the second serial resonance circuit has a second resonance frequency determined based on a product of the second capacitance and the second inductance. The first and second resonance frequencies are set so that the first resonance frequency is closer to the pass band than the second resonance frequency, and so that a value obtained by dividing the first inductance by the first capacitance is larger than a value obtained by dividing the second inductance by the second capacitance.

In the above-mentioned filter device, at least one of the first capacitor and the second capacitor is preferably a serial connection circuit including a third capacitor and a variable capacitive element connected in series.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wireless communication device having the above-mentioned filter device for filtering a wireless received signal received by an antenna, amplification means for amplifying and outputting the wireless received signal from the filter device, and decoding means for decoding a signal from the amplification means into a baseband signal, and outputting the baseband signal.

Effects of the Invention

According to each of the filter devices according to the first and second aspects of the present invention and the wireless communication device having the filter device, the two attenuation pole frequencies of the filter device are changed by changing the capacitance of the one variable capacitive element. Therefore, the filter device has a smaller size and a lower manufacturing cost, than that of the filter device having the plurality of variable capacitive elements according to the prior art.

In addition, according to the filter device according to the third aspect of the present invention and the wireless communication device having the filter device, one of a first attenuation pole frequency and a second attenuation pole frequency closer to the pass band of the filter device is set to the first resonance frequency, and the other attenuation pole frequency is set to the second resonance frequency. In addition, the value obtained by dividing the first inductance by the first capacitance is larger than the value obtained by dividing the second inductance by the second capacitance. Therefore, as compared with the prior art, power loss in the pass band is smaller and the attenuation amount is larger in the stop band.

FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 1 .

FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram showing a circuit equivalent to the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 1 .

FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing a circuit equivalent to the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 3 .

FIG. 5 is a circuit diagram showing a circuit equivalent to the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 4 .

FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram showing a circuit equivalent to the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 5 .

FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram showing a circuit equivalent to the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 6 .

FIG. 8 is a circuit diagram showing a circuit equivalent to the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 7 .

FIG. 9 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 9 .

FIG. 11 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 11 .

FIG. 13 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 13 .

FIG. 15 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 15 .

FIG. 17 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 17 .

FIG. 19 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 19 .

FIG. 21 is a circuit diagram of a high frequency filter according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 21 , and a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter according to the prior art.

FIG. 23 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of a circuit obtained by eliminating a serial resonance circuit 32 f from the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 21 .

FIG. 24 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of a circuit obtained by eliminating a serial resonance circuit 31 f from the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 21 .

FIG. 25 is a circuit diagram of a high frequency filter according to a ninth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 26 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 25 , and a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter according to the prior art.

FIG. 27 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a tenth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 28 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 27 .

FIG. 29 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to an eleventh embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 30 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 29 .

FIG. 31 is a circuit diagram of a high frequency filter according to a twelfth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 32 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a wireless communication device according to a thirteenth embodiment of the present invention.

1 . . . Controller,

2 , 2 a , 2 b , 2 c , 2 - n , 3 a , 3 b , 3 c , 3 d , 3 - n . . . Inductor,

4 a , 4 b , 4 c , 4 d , 4 - n , 5 a , 5 b , 5 c , 5 d , 9 , 9 a , 9 b , 10 a , 10 b , 11 a , 11 b , 11 c , 60 , 60 a , 61 a , 61 b , 62 a , 62 b . . . Capacitor,

6 , 6 a , 6 b , 6 c , 6 d . . . Varactor diode,

7 , 7 a . . . Resistor,

8 , 8 a , 8 b , 8 c 8 d . . . Choke coil,

31 , 31 a , 31 b , 31 c , 31 d , 31 f , 31 g , 31 - n , 32 , 32 a , 32 b , 32 c , 32 d , 32 e , 32 f , 32 g , 33 , 33 g , 33 f , 34 g . . . Serial resonance circuit,

61 . . . Serial connection circuit,

63 to 69 . . . Reactance element,

72 . . . Filter,

73 . . . Low-noise amplifier,

74 . . . Analog-to-digital converter,

75 . . . Decoding process circuit,

Tc, Tc 1 , Tc 2 , Tc 3 , Tc 4 . . . Control terminal,

Ti . . . Input terminal, and

To . . . Output terminal.

Embodiments according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the attached drawings. Components similar to each other are denoted by the same reference numerals.

Each of high frequency filters according to a first to twelfth embodiments described below is implemented in a digital television broadcasting receiver for receiving digital television broadcasting signals having frequencies fallen within a frequency band of 470 MHz to 770 MHz.

First Embodiment

FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1 , the high frequency filter according to the first embodiment is constituted by including a controller 1 , an inductor 2 connected between an input terminal Ti and an output terminal To, a serial resonance circuit 31 connected between a connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 and a ground, a serial resonance circuit 32 connected between a connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 and the ground, a varactor diode 6 of a variable capacitive element, a resistor 7 , and a choke coil 8 . In this case, the serial resonance circuit 31 is a circuit in which an inductor 3 a , a capacitor 4 a , and a capacitor 5 a are connected in series in this order. One end of the inductor 3 a is connected to the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 , and one end of the capacitor 5 a is grounded. Further, the serial resonance circuit 32 is a circuit in which an inductor 3 b , a capacitor 4 b , and a capacitor 5 b are connected in series in this order. One end of the inductor 3 b is connected to the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 , and one end of the capacitor 5 b is grounded. Further, an anode of the varactor diode 6 is grounded via a connection point between the capacitors 4 a and 5 a and the resistor 7 , and a cathode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to a control terminal Tc via a connection point between the capacitors 4 b and 5 b and a high frequency blocking choke coil 8 .

Referring to FIG. 1 , the controller 1 changes a reverse bias voltage applied to the varactor diode 6 by changing a direct-current (DC) voltage Vc applied to the control terminal Tc via the high frequency blocking choke coil 8 . Thus, the controller 1 simultaneously changes two attenuation pole frequencies of the high frequency filter 2 shown in FIG. 1 by changing a capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 . Concretely speaking, the controller 1 increases the DC voltage Vc to increase the reverse bias voltage applied to the varactor diode 6 so that the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 is reduced. It is to be noted that the capacitor 4 a is a low frequency blocking capacitor provided to prevent a DC component of the DC voltage Vc from leaking to the input terminal Ti, and that the capacitor 4 b is a low frequency blocking capacitor provided to prevent the DC component of the DC voltage Vc from leaking to the output terminal To. In addition, the resistor 7 is provided to ground the anode of the varactor diode 6 in a DC fashion.

Referring to FIGS. 2 to 8 , the operation performed by the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 1 will be described below.

FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram showing a circuit equivalent to the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 1 . The circuit shown in FIG. 3 is equivalent to that shown in FIG. 1 in a high frequency band of the digital television broadcasting signals. The high frequency filter shown in FIG. 3 is constituted by including the inductor 2 connected between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, the serial resonance circuit 31 connected between the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 and the ground, the serial resonance circuit 32 connected between the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 and the ground, and a capacitor 60 . In this case, the capacitor 60 is connected between the connection point between the capacitors 4 a and 5 a , and the connection point between the capacitors 4 b and 5 b.

Next, by equivalently converting the circuit configured by connecting the capacitors 5 a , 60 , and 5 b in a form of π into a circuit configured by connecting capacitors 61 a , 61 b , and 60 a in a form of Y, a circuit equivalent to the circuit shown in FIG. 3 is obtained as shown in FIG. 4 . The high frequency filter shown in FIG. 4 is constituted by including the inductor 2 connected between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, a serial resonance circuit 31 a connected between the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 and the ground, a serial resonance circuit 32 a connected between the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 , and the ground, and the capacitor 60 a connected between a connection point between the serial resonance circuits 31 a and 32 a and the ground. In this case, the serial resonance circuit 31 a is a circuit in which the inductor 3 a , the capacitor 4 a , and the capacitor 61 a are connected in series in this order. One end of the inductor 3 a is connected between the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 . One end of the capacitor 61 a is connected to one end of the capacitor 60 a . Further, the serial resonance circuit 32 a is a circuit in which the inductor 3 b , the capacitor 4 b , and the capacitor 61 b are connected in series in this order. One end of the inductor 3 b is connected between the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 . One end of the capacitor 61 b is connected to one end of the capacitor 60 a.

Referring to FIG. 4 , a capacitance C 0 y of the capacitor 60 a , a capacitance C 1 by of the capacitor 61 a , and a capacitance C 2 by of the capacitor 61 b are represented by the following equations, respectively, using a capacitance C 1 a of the capacitor 4 a , a capacitance C 2 a of the capacitor 4 b , and a capacitance C 0 of the capacitor 60 .

Further, in FIG. 4 , the capacitors 4 a and 61 a connected in series are replaced by one capacitor 62 a , and the capacitors 4 b and 61 b connected in series are replaced by one capacitor 62 b , so as to obtain a circuit equivalent to that shown in FIG. 4 as shown in FIG. 5 . A capacitance C 1 of the capacitor 62 a and a capacitance C 2 of the capacitor 62 b are represented by the following equations, respectively.

In this case, the high frequency circuit shown in FIG. 5 is constituted by including the inductor 2 connected between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, a serial resonance circuit 31 b connected between the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 and the ground, a serial resonance circuit 32 b connected between the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 and the ground, and the capacitor 60 a connected between a connection point between the serial resonance circuits 31 b and 32 b and the ground. In this case, the serial resonance circuit 31 b includes the inductor 3 a and the capacitor 62 a , one end of the inductor 3 a is connected to the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 , and one end of the capacitor 62 a is connected to one end of the capacitor 60 a . Further, the serial resonance circuit 32 b includes the inductor 3 b and the capacitor 62 b , one end of the inductor 3 b is connected to the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 , and one end of the capacitor 62 b is connected to one end of the capacitor 60 a.

In addition, FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram expressing the circuit shown in FIG. 5 using a reactance element 63 having an impedance Z 1 of the serial resonance circuit 31 b , a reactance element 64 having an impedance Z 2 of the serial resonance circuit 32 b , and a reactance element 65 having an impedance Z 3 of the inductor 2 . In this case, the impedances Z 1 , Z 2 , and Z 3 are represented by the following equations, respectively, using an inductance Ls of the inductor 2 , an inductance L 1 of the inductor 3 a , the capacitance C 1 of the capacitor 62 a , an inductance L 2 of the inductor 3 b , the capacitance C 2 of the capacitor 62 b , the capacitance C 0 y of the capacitor 60 a , an angular frequency ω, and an imaginary unit j.

Further, the circuit configured by connecting the reactance elements 63 , 64 , and 65 in a form of π in FIG. 6 is equivalently converted into a circuit configured by connecting reactance elements 66 , 67 , and 68 having impedances Z 1 t , Z 2 t , and Z 3 t , respectively, in a form of Y, so as to obtain a circuit equivalent to that shown in FIG. 6 as shown in FIG. 7 . Referring to FIG. 7 , the reactance elements 66 and 67 are connected in series between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To. In addition, the reactance element 68 is connected between a connection point between the reactance elements 66 and 67 and the capacitor 60 a . In this case, the impedances Z 1 t , Z 2 t , and Z 3 t are represented by the following equations, respectively.

Further, the circuit configured by connecting the reactance element 68 to the capacitor 60 a in series in FIG. 7 is equivalently converted into one reactance element 69 , so as to obtain a circuit equivalent to that shown in FIG. 7 as shown in FIG. 8 . In this case, an impedance Z 4 of the reactance element 69 is represented by the following equation.

In the circuit of FIG. 8 , when the impedance Z 4 is equal to zero, two attenuation poles P 1 and P 2 are formed. Accordingly, attenuation pole frequencies fp 1 and fp 2 (fp 1 <fp 2 ) of the two attenuation poles P 1 and P 2 are represented by the following equations, respectively, using the inductances L 1 , L 2 , and Ls and the capacitances C 1 , C 2 , and C 0 y of the components shown in FIG. 5 .

In this case, the constants A and B are represented by the following equations, respectively.

In this case, the constant D is represented by the following equation.

[Equation 17]

D =( C 0 y+C 2)× C 1× L 1+( C 0 y+C 1)× C 2× L 2+ C 1× C 2× Ls   (17)

The capacitances C 0 y , C 1 , and C 2 are represented by the equations (1), (4), and (5), respectively, using the capacitances C 0 , C 1 a , C 1 b , C 2 a , and C 2 b of the respective capacitors 60 , 4 s , 4 b , 5 a , and 5 b shown in FIG. 3 . Therefore, the attenuation pole frequencies fp 1 and fp 2 of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 3 are represented, respectively, using the capacitances C 0 , C 1 a , C 1 b , C 2 a , and C of the respective capacitors 60 , 4 s , 4 b , 5 a , and 5 b , and the inductances Ls, L 1 , and L 2 of the respective inductors 2 , 3 a , and 3 b shown in FIG. 3 . Accordingly, the attenuation pole frequencies fp 1 and fp 2 of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 3 can be controlled by controlling the element values of the respective components shown in FIG. 3 . The high frequency circuit shown in FIG. 1 is equivalent to the circuit shown in FIG. 3 , and it is configured to control the attenuation pole frequencies fp 1 and fp 2 by replacing the capacitor 60 shown in FIG. 3 by the varactor diode 6 and controlling the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 .

FIG. 2 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 1 . Referring to FIG. 2 , a characteristic 101 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 1 when the inductance Ls of the inductor 2 is set to 18.0 nH, the inductance L 1 of the inductor 3 a is set to 3.0 nH, the capacitances C 1 a and C 1 b of the capacitors 4 a and 5 a are set to 4.2 pF, respectively, the inductance L 2 of the inductor 3 b is set to 13.2 nH, the capacitances C 2 a and C 2 b of the capacitors 4 b and 5 b are set to 4.0 pF, respectively, and the DC voltage Vc is set so as to set the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 to 0.5 pF. In addition, a characteristic 102 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 1 when the DC voltage Vc is set so as to set the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 to 0.1 pF, and the values of the other elements are set to be equal to those for the characteristic 101 .

In the present embodiment and the subsequent embodiments, a resistance value Re of the resistor 7 provided to ground the anode of the varactor diode 6 in a DC fashion is set to be higher than 10 kΩ, and the inductance Lc of the high frequency blocking inductor 8 is set to be higher than 10 μH, in consideration of a frequency band of 470 MHz to 770 MHz for the digital television broadcasting signals inputted to the high frequency filter. Preferably, the resistance value Re and the inductance Lc are set as large as possible so as to reduce the influence of leakage of high frequency signals as much as possible.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 1 is a low-pass filter having the attenuation pole P 1 in a lower frequency region and the attenuation pole P 2 in a higher frequency region. As apparent from FIG. 2 , by reducing the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 , the attenuation pole frequency fp 1 of the attenuation pole P 1 becomes higher and the attenuation pole frequency fp 2 of the attenuation pole P 2 becomes lower.

As described above in detail, the high frequency filter according to the first embodiment can simultaneously change the two attenuation pole frequencies fp 1 and fp 2 by changing the capacitance Cv of one varactor diode 6 . Therefore, as compared with the filter device having a plurality of variable capacitive elements according to the prior art, the high frequency filter according to the first embodiment exhibits such a unique advantageous effect that the high frequency filter smaller in size can be realized and manufacturing cost can be reduced. In addition, as described above, although the frequencies at which signals are to be attenuated are different from each other depending on the desired channels of the digital television broadcasting, the high frequency filter according to the present embodiment can provide a plurality of different pairs of attenuation pole frequencies using one high frequency filter. Therefore, as compared with the high frequency filter according to the prior art in which the attenuation pole frequency thereof cannot be changed, the high frequency filter according to the present embodiment exhibits such a unique advantageous effect that the high frequency filter smaller in size can be realized and manufacturing cost can be reduced by decreasing the number of the serial resonance circuits.

It is to be noted that the inductor 3 a and the capacitor 4 a may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 31 , and that the inductor 3 b and the capacitor 4 b may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 32 . In addition, the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 1 includes the two serial resonance circuits 31 and 32 . However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the high frequency filter may include a plurality of three or more serial resonance circuits (See, for example, a high frequency filter according to a seventh embodiment described below).

Second Embodiment

FIG. 9 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 9 , the high frequency filter according to the second embodiment is constituted by including the controller 1 , the inductor 2 connected between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, the serial resonance circuit 31 connected between the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 and the ground, a serial resonance circuit 32 c connected between the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 and the ground, a capacitor 9 , and the choke coil 8 . In this case, the serial resonance circuit 32 c is a circuit in which the inductor 3 b , the capacitor 4 b , and the varactor diode 6 are connected in series in this order. One end of the inductor 3 b is connected to the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 . Further, the anode of the varactor diode 6 is grounded, and the cathode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the control terminal Tc via the high frequency blocking choke coil 8 . Further, the capacitor 9 is connected between the connection point between capacitors 4 a and 5 a and a connection point between the capacitor 4 b and the varactor diode 6 .

As shown in FIG. 9 , as compared with the high frequency filter according to the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 , the high frequency filter according to the second embodiment is characterized by having the serial resonance circuit 32 c including the capacitor 4 b and the varactor diode 6 instead of the serial resonance circuit 32 . In this case, the anode of the varactor diode 6 is grounded, and the cathode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the input terminal Ti via the capacitor 9 and the capacitor 4 a of the serial resonance circuit 31 and connected to the output terminal To via the capacitor 4 b of the serial resonance circuit 32 c . Therefore, the DC component of the DC voltage Vc does not leak to the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, and the resistor 7 of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 1 can be omitted.

FIG. 10 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 9 . Referring to FIG. 10 , a characteristic 103 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 9 when the inductance Ls of the inductor 2 is set to 18.0 nH, the inductance L 1 of the inductor 3 a is set to 3.0 nH, the capacitances C 1 a and C 1 b of the capacitors 4 a and 5 a are set to 4.2 pF, respectively, the inductance L 2 of the inductor 3 b is set to 13.2 nH, the capacitance C 2 a of the capacitor 4 b is set to 4.0 pF, a capacitance Cby of the capacitor 9 is set to 0.5 pF, and the DC voltage Vc is set so as to set the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 to 4.0 pF. In addition, a characteristic 104 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 9 when the DC voltage Vc is set so as to set the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 to 3.0 pF, and the values of the other elements are set to be equal to those for the characteristic 103 .

As shown in FIG. 10 , the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 9 is a low-pass filter having an attenuation pole P 1 in a lower frequency region and an attenuation pole P 2 in a higher frequency region. As apparent from FIG. 10 , by reducing the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 , an attenuation pole frequency fp 1 of the attenuation pole P 1 becomes higher and an attenuation pole frequency fp 2 of the attenuation pole P 2 becomes higher.

As described above in detail, the high frequency filter according to the second embodiment can simultaneously change the two attenuation pole frequencies fp 1 and fp 2 by changing the capacitance Cv of one varactor diode 6 . Therefore, as compared with the filter device having a plurality of variable capacitive elements according to the prior art, the high frequency filter according to the second embodiment exhibits such a unique advantageous effect that the high frequency filter smaller in size can be realized and manufacturing cost can be reduced. Further, it is possible to omit the resistor 7 as compared with the high frequency filter according to the first embodiment. Therefore, it is possible to further reduce the size of the high frequency filter and the manufacturing cost.

It is to be noted that the inductor 3 a and the capacitor 4 a may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 31 , and that the inductor 3 b and the capacitor 4 b may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 32 c.

Third Embodiment

FIG. 11 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a third embodiment of the present invention, and it shows a circuit equivalent to the circuit shown in FIG. 5 . Referring to FIG. 11 , the high frequency filter according to the third embodiment is constituted by including the controller 1 , the inductor 2 connected between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, a serial resonance circuit 31 c connected between the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 and the ground, a serial resonance circuit 32 d connected between the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 and the ground, the varactor diode 6 connected between a connection point between the serial resonance circuits 31 c and 32 d and the ground, and the choke coil 8 . In this case, the serial resonance circuit 31 c includes the inductor 3 a and a capacitor 10 a , and one end of the inductor 3 a is connected to the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 . Further, the serial resonance circuit 32 d includes the inductor 3 b and a capacitor 10 b , and one end of the inductor 3 b is connected to the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 . Further, the anode of the varactor diode 6 is grounded and the cathode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the control terminal Tc via the connection point between the serial resonance circuits 31 c and 32 d and the choke coil 8 .

Referring to FIG. 11 , the cathode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the input terminal Ti via the capacitor 10 a , and it is connected to the output terminal To via the capacitor 10 b . Therefore, the DC component of the DC voltage Vc does not leak to the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To.

FIG. 12 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 11 . Referring to FIG. 12 , a characteristic 105 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 11 when the inductance Ls of the inductor 2 is set to 18.0 nH, the inductance L 1 of the inductor 3 a is set to 3.0 nH, a capacitance C 1 c of the capacitor 10 a is set to 2.33 pF, the inductance L 2 of the inductor 3 b is set to 13.2 nH, a capacitance C 2 c of the capacitor 10 b is set to 2.22 pF, and the DC voltage Vc is set so as to set the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 to 41.8 pF. In addition, a characteristic 106 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 11 when the DC voltage Vc is set so as to set the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 to 11.8 pF, and the values of the other elements are set to be equal to those for the characteristic 105 .

As shown in FIG. 12 , the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 11 is a low-pass filter having an attenuation pole P 1 in a lower frequency region and an attenuation pole P 2 in a higher frequency region. As apparent from FIG. 12 , by reducing the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 , an attenuation pole frequency fp 1 of the attenuation pole P 1 becomes lower and an attenuation pole frequency fp 2 of the attenuation pole P 2 becomes higher.

As described above in detail, the high frequency filter according to the third embodiment can simultaneously change the two attenuation pole frequencies fp 1 and fp 2 by changing the capacitance Cv of one varactor diode 6 . Therefore, as compared with the filter device having a plurality of variable capacitive elements according to the prior art, the high frequency filter according to the third embodiment exhibits such a unique advantageous effect that the high frequency filter smaller in size can be realized and manufacturing cost can be reduced. In addition, it is possible to decrease the number of capacitors by two and omit the resistor 7 as compared with the high frequency filter according to the first embodiment. Therefore, it is possible to further reduce the size of the high frequency filter and the manufacturing cost.

It is to be noted that the inductor 3 a and the capacitor 10 a may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 31 c , and that the inductor 3 b and the capacitor 10 b may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 32 d.

Fourth Embodiment

FIG. 13 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 13 , the high frequency filter according to the fourth embodiment is constituted by including the controller 1 , the inductor 2 connected between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, a serial resonance circuit 31 d connected between the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 and the ground, the serial resonance circuit 32 connected between the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 and the ground, the varactor diode 6 , and the choke coil 8 . In this case, the serial resonance circuit 31 d includes the capacitor 4 a and the inductor 3 a . In addition, the anode of the varactor diode 6 is grounded via a connection point between the capacitor 4 a and the inductor 3 a , and the inductor 3 a . Further, the cathode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the control terminal Tc via the connection point between the capacitors 4 b and 5 b , and the choke coil 8 .

As shown in FIG. 13 , as compared with the high frequency filter according to the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 , the high frequency filter according to the fourth embodiment is characterized by having the serial resonance circuit 32 d including the capacitor 4 a and the inductor 3 a instead of the serial resonance circuit 32 . In this case, the anode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the input terminal Ti via the capacitor 4 a of the serial resonance circuit 31 d , and it is grounded via the inductor 3 a of the serial resonance circuit 31 d . In addition, the cathode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the output terminal To via the capacitor 4 b of the serial resonance circuit 32 . Therefore, the DC component of the DC voltage Vc does not leak to the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, and it is possible to omit the resistor 7 as compared with the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 1 . frequency fp 1 of the attenuation pole P 1 becomes higher and an attenuation pole frequency fp 2 of the attenuation pole P 2 becomes higher.

As described above in detail, the high frequency filter according to the fourth embodiment can simultaneously change the two attenuation pole frequencies fp 1 and fp 2 by changing the capacitance Cv of one varactor diode 6 . Therefore, as compared with the filter device having a plurality of variable capacitive elements according to the prior art, the high frequency filter according to the fourth embodiment exhibits such a unique advantageous effect that the high frequency filter smaller in size can be realized and manufacturing cost can be reduced. In addition, it is possible to decrease the number of capacitors by one and omit the resistor 7 , as compared with the high frequency filter according to the first embodiment. Therefore, it is possible to further reduce the size of the high frequency filter and the manufacturing cost.

In the serial resonance circuit 32 e , the inductor 3 b and the capacitor 4 b may be replaced by each other and connected.

Fifth Embodiment

FIG. 15 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 15 , the high frequency filter according to the fifth embodiment is constituted by including the controller 1 , the inductor 2 connected between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, the serial resonance circuit 31 d connected between the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 and the ground, the serial resonance circuit 32 c connected between the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 and the ground, the capacitor 9 , and the choke coil 8 . In this case, the capacitor 9 is connected between the connection point between the capacitor 4 a and the inductor 3 a , and the connection point between the capacitor 4 b and the varactor diode 6 .

As shown in FIG. 15 , as compared with the high frequency filter according to the second embodiment shown in FIG. 9 , the high frequency filter according to the fifth embodiment is characterized in that the cathode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the input terminal Ti via the capacitor 4 a of the serial resonance circuit 31 d , it is grounded via the inductor 3 a of the serial resonance circuit 31 d , and it is connected to the output terminal To via the capacitor 4 b of the serial resonance circuit 32 c . Therefore, the DC component of the DC voltage Vc does not leak to the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, and the number of capacitors can be decreased by one, as compared with the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 9 .

FIG. 16 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 15 . Referring to FIG. 16 , a characteristic 109 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 15 when the inductance Ls of the inductor 2 is set to 18.0 nH, the inductance L 1 of the inductor 3 a is set to 13.2 nH, the capacitance C 1 a of the capacitor 4 a is set to 2.0 pF, the inductance L 2 of the inductor 3 b is set to 3.0 nH, the capacitance C 2 a of the capacitor 4 b is set to 4.2 pF, the capacitance Cby of the capacitor 9 is set to 0.5 pF, and the DC voltage Vc is set so as to set the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 to 4.2 pF. Further, a characteristic 110 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 15 when the DC voltage Vc is set so as to set the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 to 1.2 pF, and the values of the other elements are set to be equal to those for the characteristic 109 .

As shown in FIG. 16 , the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 15 is a low-pass filter having an attenuation pole P 1 in a lower frequency region and an attenuation pole P 2 in a higher frequency region. As apparent from FIG. 16 , by reducing the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 , an attenuation pole frequency fp 1 of the attenuation pole P 1 becomes higher and an attenuation pole frequency fp 2 of the attenuation pole P 2 becomes higher.

As described above in detail, the high frequency filter according to the fifth embodiment can simultaneously change the two attenuation pole frequencies fp 1 and fp 2 by changing the capacitance Cv of one varactor diode 6 . Therefore, as compared with the filter device having a plurality of variable capacitive elements according to the prior art, the high frequency filter according to the fifth embodiment exhibits such a unique advantageous effect that the high frequency filter smaller in size can be realized and manufacturing cost can be reduced. Further, it is possible to decrease the number of capacitors by one as compared with the high frequency filter according to the second embodiment. Therefore, it is possible to further reduce the size of the high frequency filter and the manufacturing cost.

It is to be noted that the inductor 3 b and the capacitor 4 b may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 32 c.

Sixth Embodiment

FIG. 17 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 17 , the high frequency filter according to the sixth embodiment is constituted by including the controller 1 , capacitors 11 a , 11 b , and 11 c connected in series between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, the serial resonance circuit 31 d which is connected between a connection point between the capacitors 11 a and 11 b and the ground, and includes the capacitor 4 a and the inductor 3 a , a serial resonance circuit 32 e which is connected between a connection point between the capacitors 11 b and 11 c and the ground, and includes the capacitor 4 b and the inductor 3 b , a serial connection circuit 61 , and a high frequency blocking resistor 7 a . In this case, the serial connection circuit 61 includes the varactor diode 6 and the capacitor 9 , and the serial connection circuit 61 is connected between the connection point between the capacitor 4 a and the inductor 3 a and the connection point between the capacitor 4 b and the inductor 3 b . Further, the resistor 7 a is connected between a connection point between the varactor diode 6 and the capacitor 9 and the control terminal Tc.

Referring to FIG. 17 , the anode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the input terminal Ti via the capacitor 4 a of the serial resonance circuit 31 d , and it is grounded via the inductor 3 a of the serial resonance circuit 31 d . In addition, the cathode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the output terminal To via the capacitor 9 and the capacitor 4 b of the serial resonance circuit 32 e . Therefore, the DC component of the DC voltage Vc does not leak to the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To.

FIG. 18 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 17 . Referring to FIG. 18 , a characteristic 111 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 17 when a capacitance Csa of the capacitor 11 a is set to 5.5 pF, a capacitance Csb of the capacitor 11 b is set to 3.0 pF, a capacitance Csc of the capacitor 11 c is set to 13.0 pF, the inductance L 1 of the inductor 3 a is set to 3.69 nH, the capacitance C 1 a of the capacitor 4 a is set to 9.53 pF, the inductance L 2 of the inductor 3 b is set to 5.78 nH, the capacitance C 2 a of the capacitor 4 b is set to 3.99 pF, the capacitance Cby of the capacitor 9 is set to 0.15 pF, and the DC voltage Vc is set so as to set the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 to 0.3 pF. In addition, a characteristic 112 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 17 when the DC voltage Vc is set so as to set the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 to 0.075 pF, and the values of the other elements are set to be equal to those for the characteristic 111 .

A resistance value Rh of the high frequency blocking resistor 7 a is set to be higher than 10 kΩ in consideration of a frequency band of 470 MHz to 770 MHz for the digital television broadcasting signals inputted to the high frequency filter. Preferably, the resistance value Rh is set as large as possible so as to reduce the influence of leakage of high frequency signals as much as possible.

As shown in FIG. 18 , the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 17 is a high-pass filter having an attenuation pole P 1 in a lower frequency region and an attenuation pole P 2 in a higher frequency region. As apparent from FIG. 18 , by reducing the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 , an attenuation pole frequency fp 1 of the attenuation pole P 1 becomes lower and an attenuation pole frequency fp 2 of the attenuation pole P 2 becomes higher.

As described above in detail, the high frequency filter according to the sixth embodiment can simultaneously change the two attenuation pole frequencies fp 1 and fp 2 by changing the capacitance Cv of one varactor diode 6 . Therefore, as compared with the filter device having a plurality of variable capacitive elements according to the prior art, the high frequency filter according to the sixth embodiment exhibits such a unique advantageous effect that the high frequency filter smaller in size can be realized and manufacturing cost can be reduced.

In addition, in the high frequency filter according to each of the first to fifth embodiments, the low-pass filter is realized by connecting the inductor 2 of a reactance element between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, and the two attenuation pole frequencies fp 1 and fp 2 of the low-pass filter are simultaneously changed by changing the capacitance Cv of one varactor diode 6 . However, the present invention is not limited to this. As described in the sixth embodiment, the high-pass filter can be realized by connecting the capacitors 11 a , 11 b , and 11 c of reactance elements between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, and the two attenuation pole frequencies fp 1 and fp 2 of the high-pass filter can be simultaneously changed by changing the capacitance Cv of one varactor diode 6 .

Seventh Embodiment

FIG. 19 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 19 , the high frequency filter according to the seventh embodiment is constituted by including the controller 1 , inductors 2 and 2 a connected between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, the serial resonance circuit 31 connected between the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 and the ground, the serial resonance circuit 32 connected between a connection point between the other end of the inductor 2 and one end of the inductor 2 a and the ground, a serial resonance circuit 33 connected between a connection point between the other end of the inductor 2 a and the output terminal To and the ground, capacitors 9 a and 9 b , the varactor diode 6 , the resistor 7 , and the choke coil 8 . In this case, the serial resonance circuit 33 is a circuit in which an inductor 3 c , a capacitor 4 c , and a capacitor 5 c are connected in series in this order. One end of the inductor 3 c is connected to the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 a , and one end of the capacitor 5 c is grounded. Further, the capacitor 9 a is connected between the connection point between the capacitors 4 a and 5 a , and the connection point between the capacitors 4 b and 5 b . The capacitor 9 b is connected between the connection point between the capacitors 4 b and 5 b , and a connection point between the capacitors 4 c and 5 c . Further, the anode of the varactor diode 6 is grounded via the connection point between the capacitors 4 a and 5 a , and the resistor 7 . The cathode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the connection point between the capacitors 4 c and 5 c , and it is also connected to the control terminal Tc via the choke coil 8 .

As shown in FIG. 19 , the anode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the input terminal Ti via the capacitor 4 a of the serial resonance circuit 31 , and the cathode of the varactor diode 6 is connected to the output terminal To via the capacitor 4 c of the serial resonance circuit 33 . Therefore, the DC component of the DC voltage Vc does not leak to the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To.

FIG. 20 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 19 . Referring to FIG. 20 , a characteristic 113 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 19 when the inductance Ls of the inductor 2 is set to 8.0 nH, an inductance Lsa of the inductor 2 a is set to 6.0 nH, the inductance L 1 of the inductor 3 a is set to 10.0 nH, the capacitances C 1 a and C 1 b of the capacitors 4 a and 5 a are set to 4.5 pF, respectively, the inductance L 2 of the inductor 3 b is set to 6.0 nH, capacitances C 2 a and C 2 b of the capacitors 4 b and 5 b are set to 4.0 pF, respectively, an inductance L 3 of the inductor 3 c is set to 4.5 nH, capacitances C 3 a and C 3 b of the capacitors 4 c and 5 c are set to 3.5 pF, respectively, a capacitance Cby 1 of the capacitor 9 a is set to 0.5 pF, a capacitance Cby 2 of the capacitor 9 b is set to 1.0 pF, and the DC voltage Vc is set so as to set the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 to 0.5 pF. In addition, a characteristic 114 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 19 when the DC voltage Vc is set so as to set the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 to 0.1 pF, and the values of the other elements are set to be equal to those for the characteristic 113 .

As shown in FIG. 20 , the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 19 is a low-pass filter having an attenuation pole P 1 having a lowest attenuation pole frequency, an attenuation pole P 2 having an intermediate attenuation pole frequency, and an attenuation pole P 3 having a highest attenuation pole frequency. As apparent from FIG. 20 , by reducing the capacitance Cv of the varactor diode 6 , the attenuation pole frequency of the attenuation pole P 1 becomes higher, the attenuation pole frequency of the attenuation pole P 2 becomes higher, and the attenuation pole frequency of the attenuation pole P 3 becomes lower.

As described above in detail, the high frequency filter according to the seventh embodiment can simultaneously change the three attenuation pole frequencies by changing the capacitance Cv of one varactor diode 6 . Therefore, as compared with the filter device having a plurality of variable capacitive elements according to the prior art, the high frequency filter according to the seventh embodiment exhibits such a unique advantageous effect that the high frequency filter smaller in size can be realized and manufacturing cost can be reduced.

It is to be noted that the inductor 3 a and the capacitor 4 a may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 31 , the inductor 3 b and the capacitor 4 b may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 32 , and that the inductor 3 c and the capacitor 4 c may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 33 .

In addition, in FIG. 19 , a high-pass filter can be realized by including capacitors of reactance elements instead of the inductors 2 and 2 a , and three attenuation pole frequencies of the high-pass filter can be simultaneously changed by changing the capacitance Cv of one varactor diode 6 .

Eighth Embodiment

FIG. 21 is a circuit diagram of a high frequency filter according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 21 , the high frequency filter according to the eighth embodiment is constituted by including the inductor 2 connected between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, a serial resonance circuit 31 f connected between the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 and the ground, and a serial resonance circuit 32 f connected between the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 and the ground.

In this case, the serial resonance circuit 31 f includes the capacitor 4 a having the capacitance C 1 a and the inductor 3 a having the inductance L 1 , and one end of the inductor 3 a is connected between the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 . In addition, a resonance frequency fr 1 of the serial resonance circuit 31 f is represented by the following equation.

In addition, the serial resonance circuit 32 f includes the capacitor 4 b having the capacitance C 2 a and the inductor 3 b having the inductance L 2 , and one end of the inductor 3 b is connected between the connection point between the output terminal To and the other end of the inductor 2 . In addition, a resonance frequency fr 2 of the serial resonance circuit 32 f is represented by the following equation.

Each of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 21 and a high frequency filter according to the prior art is employed to pass therethrough the digital television broadcasting signals fallen within the frequency band of 470 MHz to 770 MHz. Further, each of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 21 and the high frequency filter according to the prior art is a low-pass filter for passing therethrough signals having frequencies equal to or lower than 770 MHz by the inductor 2 . Further, the low-pass filter has an attenuation pole having an attenuation pole frequency f 1 which is equal to the resonance frequency fr 1 , and an attenuation pole having an attenuation pole frequency f 2 which is equal to the resonance frequency fr 2 . Out of the two attenuation pole frequencies f 1 and f 2 , the attenuation pole frequency closer to a pass band of the low-pass filter is set to the resonance frequency fr 1 and the other attenuation pole frequency is set to the resonance frequency fr 2 . Concretely speaking, the attenuation pole frequencies f 1 and f 2 satisfy the following equation.

[Equation 20]

f1<f2  (20)

Further, in the high frequency filter according to the present embodiment, the inductances L 1 and L 2 and the capacitances C 1 a and C 2 a are set so as to satisfy the following equation.

FIG. 22 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 21 , and a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter according to the prior art. Referring to FIG. 22 , a characteristic 113 shows the relationship between the frequency and relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 21 when the inductance Ls of the inductor 2 is set to 18.0 nH, the inductance L 1 of the inductor 3 a is set to 13.2 nH, the capacitance C 1 a of the capacitor 4 a is set to 2.0 pF, the inductance L 2 of the inductor 3 b is set to 3.0 nH, and the capacitance C 2 a of the capacitor 4 b is set to 2.1 pF. In the characteristic 113 , the attenuation pole frequency f 1 is set to about 980 MHz and the attenuation pole frequency f 2 is set to about 2000 MHz. In addition, a value of L 1 /C 1 a is set to 6.6, and a value of L 2 /C 2 a is set to 1.43.

In addition, in FIG. 22 , a characteristic 191 shows the relationship between the frequency of the high frequency filter according to the prior art and relative passing electric power when the inductance Ls of the inductor 2 is set to 18.0 nH, the inductance L 1 of the inductor 3 a is set to 8.0 nH, the capacitance C 1 a of the capacitor 4 a is set to 3.3 pF, the inductance L 2 of the inductor 3 b is set to 15.0 nH, and the capacitance C 2 a of the capacitor 4 b is set to 0.42 pF. In the high frequency filter according to the prior art, the inductances L 1 and L 2 and the capacitances C 1 a and C 2 a are set so that attenuation pole frequencies are equal to the attenuation pole frequencies f 1 and f 2 of the high frequency filter according to the present embodiment, respectively, and so as to satisfy the following equation.

In the characteristic 191 shown in FIG. 22 , the value of L 1 /C 1 a is set to 2.42, and the value of L 2 /C 2 a is set to 35.7.

As apparent from FIG. 22 , in the high frequency filter according to the eighth embodiment, a pass band of frequencies equal to or lower than 770 MHz and a stop band of frequencies higher than 770 MHz are formed using the two attenuation poles. In the high frequency filter according to the present embodiment shown in FIG. 21 , the inductances L 1 and L 2 and the capacitances C 1 a and C 2 a are set to satisfy the equations (20) and (21). Therefore, a width of the attenuation pole closer to the pass band of frequencies equal to or lower than 770 MHz is smaller than that of the attenuation pole farther from the pass band. Further, as compared with the high frequency filter according to the prior art, the relative passing electric power is high in the pass band and an attenuation amount is large in the stop band of frequencies higher than 770 MHz.

FIG. 23 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of a circuit obtained by eliminating the serial resonance circuit 32 f from the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 21 . Referring to FIG. 23 , a characteristic 114 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power when the values of the elements of the above-mentioned circuit are set equal to those of the elements set in the characteristic 113 shown in FIG. 22 , respectively. In addition, a characteristic 192 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power when the values of the elements of the circuit are set equal to those of the elements set in the characteristic 191 shown in FIG. 22 , respectively. As apparent from FIG. 23 , the relative passing electric power of the characteristic 114 at the attenuation pole frequency f 1 is higher than that of the characteristic 192 at the attenuation pole frequency f 1 . However, the relative passing electric power of the characteristic 114 at the pass band of frequencies equal to or lower than 770 MHz is larger than that of the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter having the characteristic 192 at the pass band of frequencies equal to or lower than 770 MHz. Namely, the power loss in the pass band of frequencies equal to or lower than 770 MHz of the high frequency filter according to the present embodiment is lower than that of the high frequency filter according to the prior art.

FIG. 24 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of a circuit obtained by eliminating the serial resonance circuit 31 f from the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 21 . Referring to FIG. 24 , a characteristic 115 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power when the values of the elements of the above-mentioned circuit are set equal to those of the elements set in the characteristic 113 shown in FIG. 22 , respectively. In addition, a characteristic 193 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power when the values of the elements of the circuit are set equal to those of the elements set in the characteristic 191 shown in FIG. 22 , respectively. As apparent from FIG. 24 , the relative passing electric power of the characteristic 115 at the attenuation pole frequency f 2 is lower than that of the characteristic 193 at the attenuation pole frequency f 2 . Further, a width of the attenuation pole having the attenuation pole frequency f 2 of the characteristic 115 is larger than that of the attenuation pole having the attenuation pole frequency f 2 of the characteristic 193 . Namely, the attenuation amount in the stop band of frequencies higher than 770 MHz of the high frequency filter according to the present embodiment is larger than that of the high frequency filter according to the prior art. In addition, the characteristics 115 and 193 are almost equal in the relative passing electric power in the pass band of frequencies equal to or lower than 770 MHz.

It is to be noted that the concrete example of the settings of the inductances Ls, L 1 , and L 2 and the capacitances C 1 a and C 2 a are only example, and that the present invention is not limited to this. The inductances Ls, L 1 , and L 2 and the capacitances C 1 a and C 2 a may be set to the values satisfying both of the equations (20) and (21), respectively. As mentioned above, the desired attenuation amount at the frequency at which the signals are to be attenuated changes depending on the desired channels of the digital television broadcasting. Therefore, the inductances Ls, L 1 , and L 2 and the capacitances C 1 a and C 2 a may be set so as to satisfy the equations (20) and (21), and so as to be able to obtain attenuation amounts substantially equal to the desired attenuation amounts near the respective attenuation poles. For example, in FIG. 22 , the inductances Ls, L 1 , and L 2 and the capacitances C 1 a and C 2 a may be set, so that a bandwidth, in which the relative passing electric power equal to or lower than, for example, −30 dB, becomes wider when an attenuation amount equal to or larger than the desired attenuation amount in the vicinity of the attenuation pole having the attenuation pole frequency f 2 is to be obtained. This leads to a reduced power loss in the pass band.

Further, in FIG. 21 , the inductor 3 a and the capacitor 4 a may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 31 f , and the inductor 3 b and the capacitor 4 b may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 32 f.

Ninth Embodiment

FIG. 25 is a circuit diagram of a high frequency filter according to a ninth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 25 , the high frequency filter according to the ninth embodiment is constituted by including the inductors 2 a and 2 connected in series between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, a serial resonance circuit 33 f connected between a connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 a and the ground, a serial resonance circuit 31 f connected between a connection point between the other end of the inductor 2 a and one end of the inductor 2 and the ground, and a serial resonance circuit 32 f connected between a connection point between the other end of the inductor 2 and the output terminal To and the ground. In this case, the serial resonance circuit 33 f includes the capacitor 4 c having the capacitance C 3 a and the inductor 3 c having the inductance L 3 , and one end of the inductor 3 c is connected to the connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 a.

As compared with the high frequency filter according to the eighth embodiment, the high frequency filter according to the ninth embodiment is characterized by further including the inductor 2 a and the serial resonance circuit 33 f . In this case, the inductance L 3 and the capacitance C 3 a are set so that a resonance frequency of the serial resonance circuit 33 f is substantially equal to the resonance frequency fr 1 of the serial resonance circuit 31 f , and so that a value of L 3 /C 3 a is larger than the value of L 2 /C 2 a.

FIG. 26 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 25 , and a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter according to the prior art. Referring to FIG. 26 , a characteristic 116 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 21 when the inductance Ls of the inductor 2 is set to 18.0 nH, an inductance Lsa of the inductor 2 a is set to 1.5 nH, the inductances L 1 and L 3 of the inductors 3 a and 3 c are set to 22.0 nH, respectively, capacitances C 1 a and C 1 c of the capacitors 4 a and 4 c are set to 1.2 pF, respectively, the inductance L 2 of the inductor 3 b is set to 3.0 nH, and the capacitance C 2 a of the capacitor 4 b is set to 2.1 pF. In the characteristic 116 , an attenuation pole frequency f 1 is set to about 980 MHz, and an attenuation pole frequency f 2 is set to about 2000 MHz. Further, each of the value of L 1 /C 1 a and the value of L 3 /C 3 a is set to 18.3, and the value of L 2 /C 2 a is set to 1.43. A characteristic 191 shown in FIG. 26 is similar to the characteristic 191 show in FIG. 22 .

The high frequency filter according to the ninth embodiment further includes the serial resonance circuit 33 f having the resonance frequency equal to the attenuation pole frequency f 1 (See FIG. 22 ), as compared with the high frequency filter according to the eighth embodiment. Therefore, as apparent from FIG. 26 , the attenuation amount at the attenuation pole frequency f 1 of the high frequency filter according to the ninth embodiment is larger than that of the high frequency filter according to the eighth embodiment, and the attenuation amount at the stop band of frequencies higher than 770 MHz is larger than that of the high frequency filter according to the eighth embodiment. In addition, the power loss in the pass band of frequencies equal to or lower than 770 MHz of the high frequency filter according to the ninth embodiment is smaller than that of the prior art.

In the characteristic 116 shown in FIG. 26 , the inductance L 3 and the capacitance C 3 a are set so that the resonance frequency of the serial resonance circuit 33 f is equal to the resonance frequency fr 1 of the serial resonance circuit 31 f . However, the present invention is not limited to this. The inductance L 3 and the capacitance C 3 a may be set so that the resonance frequency of the serial resonance circuit 33 f is substantially equal to the resonance frequency fr 1 of the serial resonance circuit 31 f.

In addition, in FIG. 25 , the inductor 3 a and the capacitor 4 a may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 31 f , and the inductor 3 b and the capacitor 4 b may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 32 f . Further, the inductor 3 c and the capacitor 4 c may be replaced by each other and connected in the serial resonance circuit 33 f.

Tenth Embodiment

FIG. 27 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to a tenth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 27 , the high frequency filter according to the tenth embodiment is constituted by including the controller 1 , inductors 2 a , 2 b , and 2 c connected in series between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, a serial resonance circuit 31 g connected between a connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 a and the ground, a serial resonance circuit 32 g connected between a connection point between the other end of the inductor 2 a and one end of the inductor 2 b and the ground, a serial resonance circuit 33 g connected between a connection point between the other end of the inductor 2 b and one end of the inductor 2 c and the ground, and a serial resonance circuit 34 g connected between a connection point between the other end of the inductor 2 c and the output terminal To and the ground, and high frequency blocking choke coils 8 a , 8 b , 8 c , and 8 d.

In this case, in FIG. 27 , the serial resonance circuit 31 g is a circuit in which the inductor 3 a having the inductance L 1 , the capacitor 4 a having the capacitance C 1 a , and a varactor diode 6 a having a capacitance Cv 1 are connected in series in this order. An anode of the varactor diode 6 a is grounded and a cathode thereof is connected to a control terminal Tc 1 via the choke coil 8 a . A resonance frequency frv 1 of the serial resonance circuit 31 g is an attenuation pole frequency fpv 1 of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 27 , and it is represented by the following equation, using the inductance L 1 and a capacitance C 1 g , which is a combined capacitance of the capacitor 4 a and the varactor diode 6 a .

In this case, the capacitance C 1 g is represented by the following equation.

Further, the serial resonance circuit 32 g is a circuit in which the inductor 3 b having the inductance L 2 , the capacitor 4 b having the capacitance C 2 a , and a varactor diode 6 b having a capacitance Cv 2 are connected in series in this order. An anode of the varactor diode 6 b is grounded while a cathode thereof is connected to a control terminal Tc 2 via the choke coil 8 b . A resonance frequency frv 2 of the serial resonance circuit 32 g is an attenuation pole frequency fpv 2 of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 27 , and it is represented by the following equation, using the inductance L 2 and a capacitance C 2 g , which is a combined capacitance of the capacitor 4 b and the varactor diode 6 b .

In this case, the capacitance C 2 g is represented by the following equation.

Further, the serial resonance circuit 33 g is a circuit in which the inductor 3 c having the inductance L 3 , the capacitor 4 c having the capacitance C 3 a , and a varactor diode 6 c having a capacitance Cv 3 are connected in series in this order. An anode of the varactor diode 6 c is grounded while a cathode thereof is connected to a control terminal Tc 3 via the choke coil 8 c . A resonance frequency frv 3 of the serial resonance circuit 33 g is an attenuation pole frequency fpv 3 of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 27 , and it is represented by the following equation, using the inductance L 3 and a capacitance C 3 g , which is a combined capacitance of the capacitor 4 c and the varactor diode 6 c .

In this case, the capacitance C 3 g is represented by the following equation.

Still further, the serial resonance circuit 34 g is a circuit in which an inductor 3 d having an inductance L 4 , a capacitor 4 d having a capacitance C 4 a , and a varactor diode 6 d having a capacitance Cv 4 are connected in series in this order. An anode of the varactor diode 6 d is grounded while a cathode thereof is connected to a control terminal Tc 4 via the choke coil 8 d . A resonance frequency frv 4 of the serial resonance circuit 34 g is an attenuation pole frequency fpv 4 of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 27 , and it is represented by the following equation, using the inductance L 4 and a capacitance C 4 g , which is a combined capacitance of the capacitor 4 d and the varactor diode 6 d .

In this case, the capacitance C 4 g is represented by the following equation.

In this case, the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 27 is employed to pass therethrough the digital television broadcasting signals fallen within the frequency band of 470 MHz to 770 MHz. In addition, the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 27 is a low-pass filter for passing therethrough signals having frequencies equal to or lower than 770 MHz by the inductors 2 a , 2 b , and 2 c . Further, the low-pass filter has four attenuation poles having the attenuation pole frequencies fpv 1 , fpv 2 , fpv 3 , and fpv 4 , respectively. It is to be noted that, from the attenuation pole closest to the pass band of the low-pass filter toward the attenuation pole having the higher frequency in order, the attenuation pole frequencies of the attenuation poles are set to the frequencies fpv 1 , fpv 2 , fpv 3 , and fpv 4 , respectively. Namely, the attenuation pole frequencies fpv 1 , fpv 2 , fpv 3 , and fpv 4 satisfy the following equation.

[Equation 31]

fpv1<fpv2<fpv3<fpv4  (31)

The controller 1 changes reverse bias voltages applied to the varactor diodes 6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 c by changing DC voltages Vc 1 , Vc 2 , Vc 3 , and Vc 4 applied to the control terminals Tc 11 , Tc 2 , Tc 3 , and Tc 4 , respectively, so as to satisfy the following equation.

Thus, the controller 1 changes the attenuation pole frequencies fpv 1 , fpv 2 , fpv 3 , and fpv 4 of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 27 by changing the capacitances Cv 1 , Cv 2 , Cv 3 , and Cv 4 of the varactor diodes 6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 c , respectively.

It is to be noted that each of the capacitors 4 a , 4 b , 4 c , and 4 d is a low frequency blocking capacitor provided to prevent the DC components of the DC voltages Vc 1 , Vc 2 , Vc 3 , and Vc 4 from leaking to the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To.

FIG. 28 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 27 . Referring to FIG. 28 , a characteristic 117 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 27 when values of respective components of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 27 are set as follows. Namely, an inductance Lsa of the inductor 2 a is set to 10.63 nH, an inductance Lsb of the inductor 2 b is set to 7.03 nH, and an inductance Lsc of the inductor 2 c is set to 9.02 nH. In addition, the inductance L 1 of the inductor 3 a is set to 18.98 nH, the capacitance C 1 a of the capacitor 4 a is set to 3.26 pF, the inductance L 2 of the inductor 3 b is set to 5.59 nH, the capacitance C 2 a of the capacitor 4 b is set to 8.11 pF, the inductance L 3 of the inductor 3 c is set to 3.22 nH, the capacitance C 3 a of the capacitor 4 c is set to 7.32 pF, and the inductance L 4 of the inductor 3 d is set to 1.32 nH, and the capacitance C 4 a of the capacitor 4 d is set to 7.08 pF. In addition, the DC voltages Vc 1 , Vc 2 , Vc 3 , and Vc 4 are set so that the capacitances Cv 1 , Cv 2 , Cv 3 , and Cv 4 of the varactor diodes 6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 d are set to 3.26 pF, 8.11 pF, 7.32 pF, and 7.08 pF, respectively.

As apparent from FIG. 28 , in the high frequency filter according to the tenth embodiment, the pass band of frequencies equal to or lower than 770 MHz and the stop band of frequencies higher than 770 MHz are formed using the four attenuation poles. Further, in the high frequency filter according to the tenth embodiment, the inductances of the inductors L 1 , L 2 , L 3 , and L 4 , the capacitances of the capacitors C 1 a , C 2 a , C 3 a , and C 4 a , and the capacitances of the varactor diodes 6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 d are set so as to satisfy the equations (31) and (32), and a width of the attenuation pole closer to the pass band is set smaller than that of the attenuation pole farther from the pass band. Therefore, as compared with the prior art, the high frequency filter according to the tenth embodiment can obtain a large attenuation amount over a wide frequency band in the stop band without reducing the relative passing electric power in the pass band.

Further, since each of the serial resonance circuits 31 g , 32 g , 33 g , and 34 g includes the inductor, the capacitor, and the varactor diode, the attenuation pole frequencies fpv 1 , fpv 2 , fpv 3 , and fpv 4 of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 27 can be changed, respectively. Therefore, the attenuation pole frequencies fpv 1 , fpv 2 , fpv 3 , and fpv 4 can be changed depending on the desired channels of the digital television broadcasting inputted from the input terminal Ti.

In the present embodiment, the inductances of the inductors 3 a , 3 b , 3 c , and 3 d , the capacitances of the capacitors 4 a , 4 b , 4 c , and 4 d , and the capacitances of the varactor diodes 6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 d are set to satisfy the equations (31) and (32). However, the present invention is not limited to this. In a low-pass filter having a predetermined pass band, when two arbitrary attenuation pole frequencies fcx and fcy satisfy fcx<fcy, an inductance Lx of an inductor and a capacitance Cx of a capacitor each included in a serial resonance circuit having the resonance frequency fcx, and an inductance Ly of an inductor and a capacitance Cy of a capacitor each included in a serial resonance circuit having the resonance frequency fcy may be set to satisfy Lx/Cx>Ly/Cy.

Eleventh Embodiment

FIG. 29 is a circuit diagram of a variable-frequency high frequency filter according to an eleventh embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 29 , as compared with the high frequency filter according to the tenth embodiment shown in FIG. 27 , the high frequency filter according to the eleventh embodiment is characterized by replacing the inductors 2 a , 2 b , and 2 c by the capacitors 11 a , 11 b , and 11 c , respectively.

In this case, the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 29 is a high-pass filter passing therethrough signals having frequencies equal to or higher than 1400 MHz by the capacitors 11 a , 11 b , and 11 c . Further, the high-pass filter has four attenuation poles having attenuation pole frequencies fpv 1 , fpv 2 , fpv 3 , and fpv 4 , respectively. It is to be noted that the attenuation pole frequencies of the attenuation poles are set to the frequencies fpv 1 , fpv 2 , fpv 3 , and fpv 4 , respectively, in an order from the attenuation pole closest to the pass band of the high-pass filter toward the attenuation pole having the lower frequency. Namely, the attenuation pole frequencies fpv 1 , fpv 2 , fpv 3 , and fpv 4 satisfy the following equation.

[Equation 33]

fpv1>fpv2>fpv3>fpv4  (33)

The controller 1 changes the reverse bias voltages applied to the varactor diodes 6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 c by changing the DC voltages Vc 1 , Vc 2 , Vc 3 , and Vc 4 applied to the control terminals Tc 11 , Tc 2 , Tc 3 , and Tc 4 , respectively, so as to satisfy the following equation.

Thus, the controller 1 changes the attenuation pole frequencies fpv 1 , fpv 2 , fpv 3 , and fpv 4 of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 29 by changing the capacitances Cv 1 , Cv 2 , Cv 3 , and Cv 4 of the varactor diodes 6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 c , respectively.

FIG. 30 is a graph showing a relationship between a frequency and a relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 29 . Referring to FIG. 30 , a characteristic 118 shows the relationship between the frequency and the relative passing electric power of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 29 when values of respective components of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 29 are set as follows. Namely, the capacitance Csa of the capacitor 11 a is set to 3.00 pF, the capacitance Csb of the capacitor 11 b is set to 9.00 pF, and the capacitance Csc of the capacitor 11 c is set to 3.00 pF. Further, the inductance L 1 of the inductor 3 a is set to 6.00 nH, the capacitance C 1 a of the capacitor 4 a is set to 1.75 pF, the inductance L 2 of the inductor 3 b is set to 6.50 nH, the capacitance C 2 a of the capacitor 4 b is set to 2.00 pF, the inductance L 3 of the inductor 3 c is set to 4.00 nH, the capacitance C 3 a of the capacitor 4 c is set to 4.50 pF, the inductance L 4 of the inductor 3 d is set to 4.00 nH, and the capacitance C 4 a of the capacitor 4 d is set to 5.00 pF. In addition, the DC voltages Vc 1 , Vc 2 , Vc 3 , and Vc 4 are set so that the capacitances Cv 1 , Cv 2 , Cv 3 , and Cv 4 of the varactor diodes 6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 d are set to 1.75 pF, 2.00 pF, 4.50 pF, and 5.00 pF, respectively.

As apparent from FIG. 30 , in the high frequency filter according to the eleventh embodiment, the stop band of frequencies lower than 1400 MHz is formed using the four attenuation poles. Further, in the high frequency filter according to the eleventh embodiment, the inductances of the inductors L 1 , L 2 , L 3 , and L 4 , the capacitances of the capacitors C 1 a , C 2 a , C 3 a , and C 4 a , and the capacitances of the varactor diodes 6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 d are set to satisfy the equations (33) and (34), and a width of the attenuation pole closer to the pass band is set smaller than that of the attenuation pole farther from the pass band. Therefore, as compared with the prior art, the high frequency filter according to the eleventh embodiment can obtain a large attenuation amount over a wide frequency band in the stop band without reducing the relative passing electric power in the pass band.

Further, since each of the serial resonance circuits 31 g , 32 g , 33 g , and 34 g includes the inductor, the capacitor, and the varactor diode, the attenuation pole frequencies fpv 1 , fpv 2 , fpv 3 , and fpv 4 of the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 29 can be changed, respectively. Therefore, the attenuation pole frequencies fpv 1 , fpv 2 , fpv 3 , and fpv 4 can be changed depending on the desired channels of the digital television broadcasting inputted from the input terminal Ti.

In the present embodiment, the inductances of the inductors 3 a , 3 b , 3 c , and 3 d , the capacitances of the capacitors 4 a , 4 b , 4 c , and 4 d , and the capacitances of the varactor diodes 6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 d are set to satisfy the equations (33) and (34). However, the present invention is not limited to this. In a high-pass filter having a predetermined pass band, when two arbitrary attenuation pole frequencies fcx and fcy satisfy fcx>fcy, an inductance Lx of an inductor and a capacitance Cx of a capacitor each included in a serial resonance circuit having the resonance frequency fcx, and an inductance Ly of an inductor and a capacitance Cy of a capacitor each included in a serial resonance circuit having the resonance frequency fcy may be set to satisfy Lx/Cx>Ly/Cy.

Twelfth Embodiment

FIG. 31 is a circuit diagram of a high frequency filter according to a twelfth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 31 , the high frequency filter according to the twelfth embodiment is constituted by including a plurality of (N−1) inductors 2 - 1 , 2 - 2 , . . . , and 2 -(N−1) connected in series between the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To, a serial resonance circuit 31 - 1 connected between a connection point between the input terminal Ti and one end of the inductor 2 - 1 and the ground, serial resonance circuits 31 - n (n=2, 3, . . . , N−1) each connected between a connection point between one end of the inductor 2 -(n−1) and one end of the inductor 2 - n and the ground, and a serial resonance circuit 31 -N connected between a connection point between the other end of the inductor 2 -(N−1) and the output terminal To and the ground. In this case, each of resonance frequencies frn of the plurality of N serial resonance circuits 31 - n (n=1, 2, . . . , N) is represented by the following equation, using an inductance L-n of the inductor 3 - n and a capacitance C-n of the capacitor 4 - n .

The high frequency filter shown in FIG. 31 is a low-pass filter passing therethrough signals fallen within a predetermined pass band by the plurality of (N−1) inductors 2 - 1 , 2 - 2 , . . . , and 2 -(N−1). Further, the plurality of N resonance frequencies frn are attenuation pole frequencies fn of a plurality of N attenuation poles, respectively, and the pass band and the stop band of the low-pass filter are formed using the attenuation poles. It is to be noted that the attenuation pole frequencies of the attenuation poles are set to frequencies f 1 , f 2 , . . . , and fN, respectively, in an order from the attenuation pole closest to the pass band of the low-pass filter toward the attenuation pole having the higher frequency. Namely, the attenuation pole frequencies f 1 , f 2 , . . . , and fN satisfy the following equation.

[Equation 36]

f1<f2< . . . <fN  (36)

Further, in the high frequency filter according to the present embodiment, inductances L- 1 , L- 2 , . . . , and L-N and capacitances C- 1 , C- 2 , and C-N are set to satisfy the following equation.

According to the high frequency filter according to the twelfth embodiment configured as described above, by setting the inductances L- 1 , L- 2 , . . . , and L-N and capacitances C- 1 , C- 2 , . . . , and C-N so as to satisfy the equations (36) and (37), a width of the attenuation pole closer to the pass band is set to be smaller than that of the attenuation pole farther from the pass band. Therefore, as compared with the prior art, the high frequency filter according to the twelfth embodiment can obtain a large attenuation amount over a wide frequency band in the stop band without reducing relative passing electric power in the pass band.

It is to be noted that, in the high frequency filter shown in FIG. 31 , the inductor 3 - n and the capacitor 4 - n of the serial resonance circuit 31 - n may be replaced by each other and connected.

Further, in FIG. 31 , the inductors 2 - 1 , 2 - 2 , . . . , and 2 - n may be replaced by capacitors, respectively, to configure a high-pass filter for passing therethrough signals fallen within a predetermined pass band.

Thirteenth Embodiment

FIG. 32 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a wireless communication device according to a thirteenth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 32 , the wireless communication device according to the thirteenth embodiment is, for example, a direct sampling digital television broadcasting receiver for receiving the digital television broadcasting signals fallen within the frequency band of 470 MHz to 770 MHz. The digital television broadcasting receiver shown in FIG. 32 has an antenna 71 , a filter 72 for inputting a wireless received signal received by the antenna, passing therethrough signals having frequencies of the desired channels, and attenuating signals having the other frequencies, a low-noise amplifier 73 for amplifying and outputting the signal from the filter 72 , an analog-to-digital converter 74 for converting the signal from the low-noise amplifier 73 into a digital signal to be directly sampled and outputting the digital signal, and a decoding process circuit 75 for decoding the signal from the analog-to-digital converter 74 into a baseband signal and outputting the baseband signal.

In this case, in FIG. 32 , the filter 72 is one of the high frequency filters according to the first to twelfth embodiments stated above. As mentioned above, the frequency at which signals are to be attenuated changes depending on the desired channels of the digital television broadcasting. Therefore, it is preferable to use one of the variable-frequency high frequency filters according to the first to seventh embodiments, tenth, and eleventh embodiments capable of changing the attenuation pole frequencies based on the desired channels.

Referring to FIG. 32 , when the filter device 72 is the filter device according to one of the first to seventh embodiments, it is possible to provide the wireless communication device according to the present embodiment having the filter device smaller in size, lower in manufacturing cost, and capable of changing a plurality of attenuation pole frequencies, than that of the prior art. Further, when the filter device 72 is the filter device according to one of the eighth to twelfth embodiments, it is possible to provide the wireless communication device according to the present embodiment having the filter device lower in power loss in a pass band and larger in an attenuation amount in a stop band, as compared with the prior art.

It is to be noted that the high frequency filter according to each of the above-mentioned embodiments is smaller in size, lower in power loss in the pass band, and larger in the attenuation amount in the stop band, as compared with the prior art. Therefore, the high frequency filter according to each of the above-mentioned embodiments is useful as a filter device or the like for use in a wireless communication circuit implemented in a mobile body such as a mobile telephone, a portable electronic device mounting a wireless LAN (Local Area Network) or a portable digital television broadcasting receiving tuner. Further, the filter device according to the present invention can be applied to a filter device or the like employed in a wireless communication base station device according to specifications thereof.

In each of the above-mentioned embodiments, each of the varactor diodes 6 , 6 a , 6 b , 6 c , and 6 d may be replaced by another variable capacitive element such as a parallel plate capacitor made of a thin film of a ferroelectric material such as barium strontium titanate (Ba x Sr 1-x TiO 3 ) having a capacitance changed by applying a DC bias voltage between both electrodes thereof. Further, when the varactor diode 6 or the like in which no current flows is used as a variable capacitive element, resistors may be used instead of the high frequency blocking choke coil 8 , 8 a , 8 b , 8 c or 8 d in the respective embodiments described above.

Further, the high frequency filter according to each of the above-mentioned embodiments is a reciprocal circuit and the input terminal Ti and the output terminal To may be replaced by each other.

Further, a plurality of three or more attenuation pole frequencies may be controlled by using a plurality of variable-frequency high frequency filters according to each of the first to fifth embodiments.

As described above in detail, according to each of the filter devices according to the first and second aspects of the present invention and the wireless communication device having the filter device, the two attenuation pole frequencies of the filter device are changed by changing the capacitance of the one variable capacitive element. Therefore, the filter device has a smaller size and a lower manufacturing cost, than that of the filter device having the plurality of variable capacitive elements according to the prior art.

In addition, according to the filter device according to the third aspect of the present invention and the wireless communication device having the filter device, one of a first attenuation pole frequency and a second attenuation pole frequency closer to the pass band of the filter device is set to the first resonance frequency, and the other attenuation pole frequency is set to the second resonance frequency. In addition, the value obtained by dividing the first inductance by the first capacitance is larger than the value obtained by dividing the second inductance by the second capacitance. Therefore, as compared with the prior art, the power loss in the pass band is smaller, and the attenuation amount is larger in the stop band.