Quadrature voltage controlled oscillators with phase shift detector

• US 20060238259A1
• Filed: 06/22/2006
• Published: 10/26/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 06/10/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Theta IP, LLC
• Original Assignee: Theta Microelectronics, Inc.
• Inventors: Metaxakis, Emmanuel
• Granted Patent: US 7,271,622 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 331/2
• CPC Class Codes: H03B 2201/025 the means being an electronic switch for switching in or out oscillator elements
• CPC Class Codes: H03B 27/00 Generation of oscillations providing a plurality of outputs of the same frequency but differing in phase, other than merely two anti-phase outputs
• CPC Class Codes: H03B 5/1215 the current source or degeneration circuit being in common to both transistors of the pair, e.g. a cross-coupled long-tailed pair
• CPC Class Codes: H03B 5/1231 the amplifier comprising one or more bipolar transistors
• CPC Class Codes: H03B 5/124 the means comprising a voltage dependent capacitance
• CPC Class Codes: H03J 2200/10 Tuning of a resonator by means of digitally controlled capacitor bank
• CPC Class Codes: H03L 7/00 Automatic control of frequency or phase; Synchronisation

Abstract

In wireless application there is made use of a quadrature oscillators that generate signals that are capable of oscillating at quadrature of each other. The quadrature oscillator is comprised of two differential modified Colpitts oscillators. A capacitor bank allows for the selection of a desired frequency from a plurality of discrete possible frequencies. The quadrature oscillator is further coupled with a phase-error detector connected at the point-of-use of the generated ‘I’ and ‘Q’ channels and through the control of current sources provides corrections means to ensure that the phase shift at the point-of-use remains at the desired ninety degrees.

Claims

1-8. -8. (canceled)

9. A phase error detector (PED) for detecting a phase error in a quadrature signal, said PED comprising:

a first analog OR gate having an input for receiving a positive in-phase (‘

I’

) signal and a positive quadrature-phase (‘

Q’

) signal;

a second analog OR gate having an input for receiving a negative ‘

I’

signal and a negative ‘

Q’

signal;

first circuitry for summing the output from said first analog OR gate and said second analog OR gate to generate a first circuitry output;

a third analog OR gate having an input for receiving a positive ‘

I’

signal and a negative ‘

Q’

signal;

a fourth analog OR gate having a first input for receiving a negative ‘

I’

signal and a positive ‘

Q’

signal; and

,

second circuitry for summing the output from said third analog OR gate and said fourth analog OR gate and there from generating a second circuitry output;

whereby the difference between said first circuitry output and said second circuitry output is a signal proportional to a phase error between the ‘

I’

signal and the ‘

Q’

signal of the quadrature signal.

10. The PED of claim 9 wherein said PED further comprises an integrator responsive the difference between said first circuitry output and said second circuitry output.

11. The PED of claim 10 wherein said analog OR gate comprises of a first and a second bipolar transistors, having coupled emitters and coupled collectors, said emitters further being coupled to a constant current source.

12. The PED of claim 9 wherein said PED is implemented in one of the processing technologies of:

bipolar, BiCMOS, CMOS.

13. The PED of claim 9 wherein said positive ‘

I’

signal and said negative ‘

I’

signal are received from a first oscillator and said positive ‘

Q’

signal and said negative ‘

Q’

signal are received from a second oscillator.

14. The PED of claim 13 wherein said positive ‘

I’

signal and said negative ‘

I’

signal of said first oscillator are fed into said second oscillator.

15. The PED of claim 13 wherein said positive ‘

Q’

signal and said negative ‘

Q’

signal of said second oscillator are fed into said first oscillator.

16. The PED of claim 9 wherein said wherein said positive ‘

I’

signal, said negative ‘

I’

signal, said positive ‘

Q’

signal and said negative ‘

Q’

signal, are provided from a quadrature voltage controlled oscillator.

17. A method for detecting a phase error in a quadrature signal comprising:

providing a first analog OR gate with a positive in-phase (‘

I’

) signal and a positive quadrature-phase (‘

Q’

) signal;

providing a second analog OR gate with a negative ‘

I’

signal and a negative ‘

Q’

signal;

summing the output from said first analog OR gate and the output of said second analog OR gate to generate a first circuitry output;

providing a third analog OR gate with a positive ‘

I’

signal and a negative ‘

Q’

signal;

providing a fourth analog OR gate with negative ‘

I’

signal and a positive ‘

Q’

signal;

summing the output from said third analog OR gate and said fourth analog OR gate to generate a second circuitry output; and

,

using the difference between said first circuitry output and said second circuitry output to determine the phase error between the ‘

I’

signal and the ‘

Q’

signal of the quadrature signal.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising:

integrating the difference between said first circuitry output and said second circuitry output over a period of time.