Application of spreading codes to signals

1. CDMA communications apparatus for applying one or more code values to an input signal value to produce an output signal value, wherein the code value or values may lie only either on or equidistant from an orthogonal pair of axes defining a two dimensional signal space, the input and output signal values each have components along each axis and the apparatus comprises logic adapted to process the code value or values to produce two multiplier values and a selector value, a multiplier adapted to create two product values by multiplying the multiplier values with respective components of the input signal value, a negator adapted to negate one of the product values to produce a third product value and a selector adapted to select, on the basis of the selector value, two of the three product values to become the components of the output signal value.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein there is a single code value to be applied to the input signal value, the code value is equidistant from, and has components along, the axes and the logic is adapted to pass one of the code value components as the multiplier values and to XOR the code value components to produce the selector value.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein there are first and second code values to be applied to the input signal value, the first code value is equidistant from, and has components along, the axes and the second code value lies on one of said axes and the logic is adapted to XOR a first code value component with the second code value to produce a value for use as both multiplier values and to XOR the first code value components to produce the selector signal.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein there are first, second and third code values to be applied to the input signal value, the first code value is equidistant from, and has components along, the axes, the second and third code values each lie on one of the axes and the logic is adapted to XOR the first code value components with respective ones of the second and third code values to produce the multiplier values and to XOR the first code value components to produce the selector value.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein there are first, second and third code values to be applied to the input signal value, the first and second code values are each equidistant from, and have components along, the axes, the third code value lies on one of the axes and the logic is adapted to combine the components of the first and second code values to produce the selector value and to combine the components of the first and second code values with the third code value to produce a value which is used as both multiplier values.

6. Apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a rotator adapted to rotate the output signal value by 45° about the origin of the phase space axes.

7. A method for applying one or more code values to an input signal value to produce an output signal value in a CDMA communications scheme, wherein the code value or values may lie only either on or equidistant from an orthogonal pair of axes defining a two dimensional signal space, the input and output signal values each have components along each axis and the method comprises processing, via a logic function, the code value or values to produce two multiplier values and a selector value, creating two product values by multiplying the multiplier values using a multiplier with respective components of the input signal value, negating one of the product values to produce a third product value and selecting, on the basis of the selector signal, two of the three product values to become the components of the output signal value.

8. A method according to claim 7 , wherein there is a single code value to be applied to the input signal value, the code value is equidistant from, and has components along, the axes and the processing step comprises passing one of the code value components as the multiplier values and XORing the code value components to produce the selector signal.

9. A method according to claim 7 , wherein there are first and second code values to be applied to the input signal value, the first code value is equidistant from, and has components along, the axes and the second code value lies on one of said axes and the processing step comprises XORing a first code value component with the second code value to produce a value for use as both multiplier values and XORing the first code value components to produce the selector signal.

10. A method according to claim 7 , wherein there are first, second and third code values to be applied to the input signal value, the first code value is equidistant from, and has components along, the axes, the second and third code values each lie on one of the axes and the processing step comprises XORing the first code value components with respective ones of the second and third code values to produce the multiplier values and XORing the first code value components to produce the selector value.

11. A method according to claim 7 , wherein there are first, second and third code values to be applied to the input signal value, the first and second code values are each equidistant from, and have components along, the axes, the third code value lies on one of the axes and the processing step comprises combining the components of the first and second code values to produce the selector value and combining the components of the first and second code values with the third code value to produce a value that is to be used as both multiplier values.

12. A method according to claim 7 , further comprising rotating the output signal by 45° about the origin of the phase space axes.

13. Radio apparatus capable of CDMA communications and comprising the apparatus of claim 1 .

14. A mobile phone of a wireless-communications network using a CDMA communications scheme, the mobile phone comprising the apparatus of claim 1 .