APPARATUS, SYSTEM, AND METHOD FOR INTEGRATED PHASE SHIFTING AND AMPLITUDE CONTROL OF PHASED ARRAY SIGNALS
First Claim
1. An apparatus to process phased array signals, the apparatus comprising:
- a two-phase local oscillator that generates an in-phase sinusoidal signal of a fixed frequency and a quadrature sinusoidal signal of the fixed frequency having a ninety degree phase shift from the in-phase sinusoidal signal;
a signal generator that receives the in-phase sinusoidal signal and the quadrature sinusoidal signal and generates a controllable sinusoidal signal of the fixed frequency, wherein the controllable sinusoidal signal comprises a shiftable phase; and
a mixer that varies an amplitude and shifts a phase of an input signal by mixing the input signal with the controllable sinusoidal signal to generate an output signal, wherein the input signal and the output signal carry phase and amplitude information required for phased array signal processing.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for phase shifting and amplitude control. A two-phase local oscillator generates an in-phase sinusoidal signal of a fixed frequency and a quadrature sinusoidal signal of the fixed frequency having a ninety degree phase shift from the in-phase sinusoidal signal. A signal generator receives the in-phase sinusoidal signal and the quadrature sinusoidal signal and generates a controllable sinusoidal signal of the fixed frequency. The controllable sinusoidal signal has a variable amplitude and a shiftable phase. A mixer varies the amplitude and shifts the phase of an input signal by mixing the input signal with the controllable sinusoidal signal to generate an output signal. The input signal and the output signal carry phase and amplitude information required for phased array signal processing. Either a receiver or a transmitter may be implemented using the present invention.
-
Citations
20 Claims
-
1. An apparatus to process phased array signals, the apparatus comprising:
-
a two-phase local oscillator that generates an in-phase sinusoidal signal of a fixed frequency and a quadrature sinusoidal signal of the fixed frequency having a ninety degree phase shift from the in-phase sinusoidal signal; a signal generator that receives the in-phase sinusoidal signal and the quadrature sinusoidal signal and generates a controllable sinusoidal signal of the fixed frequency, wherein the controllable sinusoidal signal comprises a shiftable phase; and a mixer that varies an amplitude and shifts a phase of an input signal by mixing the input signal with the controllable sinusoidal signal to generate an output signal, wherein the input signal and the output signal carry phase and amplitude information required for phased array signal processing. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
-
-
13. A system to process phased array signals, the system comprising:
-
a two-phase local oscillator that generates an in-phase sinusoidal signal of a fixed frequency and a quadrature sinusoidal signal of the fixed frequency having a ninety degree phase shift from the in-phase sinusoidal signal; a plurality of signal generators that respectively generate a plurality of controllable sinusoidal signals of the fixed frequency, of a variable amplitude, and of a shiftable phase, from the in-phase sinusoidal signal and the quadrature sinusoidal signal, in response to a plurality of in-phase control voltages and a plurality of quadrature control voltages; a plurality of mixers that respectively vary the amplitude and shift the phase of a plurality of input signals by mixing them with the plurality of controllable sinusoidal signals from the plurality of signal generators to generate a plurality of output signals. a plurality of low noise amplifiers that respectively amplify a plurality of radio frequency signals from a plurality of antennas of a phased array to yield the plurality of input signals; a combiner that combines the plurality of output signals to yield a combined output signal and a copy of the combined output signal; an analog-to-digital converter that converts the copy of the combined output signal to a digital output signal; and a digital signal processor that algorithmically determines and provides the plurality of in-phase control voltages and the plurality of quadrature control voltages to the plurality of signal generators. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
-
-
19. A method for processing phased array signals, the method comprising the steps of:
-
generating an in-phase sinusoidal signal of a fixed frequency and a quadrature sinusoidal signal of the fixed frequency having a ninety degree phase shift from the in-phase sinusoidal signal; amplifying the in-phase sinusoidal signal in response to an in-phase control voltage to yield an in-phase amplified sinusoidal signal; amplifying the quadrature sinusoidal signal in response to a quadrature control voltage to yield a quadrature amplified sinusoidal signal; adding the in-phase amplified sinusoidal signal to the quadrature amplified sinusoidal signal to yield a controllable sinusoidal signal; and mixing an input signal with the controllable sinusoidal signal to generate an output signal having an amplitude modulation and a phase shift with respect to the input signal as dictated by the in-phase control voltage and the quadrature control voltage, wherein the input signal and the output signal carry phase and amplitude information required for phased array signal processing. - View Dependent Claims (20)
-
Specification