Ultra wideband receiver with high speed noise and interference tracking threshold

• US 5,901,172 A
• Filed: 06/11/1997
• Issued: 05/04/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Zebra Technologies Corporation
• Original Assignee: Multispectral Solutions Incorporated (Zebra Technologies Corporation)
• Inventors: Fontana, Robert J., Larrick, J. Frederick Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Stephen
• Assistant Examiner(s): GLUCK, JEFFREY WILLIAM
• Application Number:
  US08/872,729
• Time in Patent Office: 692 Days
• Field of Search: 375/200, 375/256, 375/316, 375/317, 375/340, 375/345, 329/311, 342/21, 342/89, 342/91-95, 342/165
• US Class Current: 375/130
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/0209 Systems with very large relative bandwidth, i.e. larger than 10 %, e.g. baseband, pulse, carrier-free, ultrawideband
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/292 Extracting wanted echo-signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/7183 Synchronisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/719 Interference-related aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 25/062 Setting decision thresholds using feedforward techniques only

Abstract

An UWB receiver utilizing a microwave tunnel diode as a single pulse detector for short pulse, impulse, baseband or ultra wideband signals. The tunnel diode detector'"'"'s bias point is set at system start-up, through an automatic calibration procedure to its highest sensitivity point relative to the desired bit error rate performance (based upon internal noise only) and remains there during the entire reception process. High noise immunity is achieved through the use of a high speed, adaptive dynamic range extension process using a high speed, Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) voltage variable attenuator (VVA) whose instantaneous attenuation level is determined by a periodic sampling of the ambient noise environment. Microprocessor-controlled detector time-gating is performed to switch the tunnel diode detector to the receiver front end circuitry for reception of an incoming UWB pulse, and alternately to ground through a resistor to discharge stored charge on the tunnel diode detector. In a second embodiment, two tunnel diode detectors are utilized in parallel, one biased for data detection and the other biased for noise detection, such that data detection can be interpreted based on simultaneous comparison to both a data threshold and a noise threshold.

Claims

1. An ultra wideband receiver comprising:

an antenna;

a variable attenuator receiving an output from said antenna;

an ultra wideband detector to detect an ultra wideband signal passed through said variable attenuator; and

a detector gate to switch said ultra wideband detector between a dwell position wherein an ultra wideband signal is applied to said ultra wideband detector, and a termination position wherein an anode of said ultra wideband detector is connected to ground through a resistance, said ultra wideband detector being biased during both said dwell position and said termination position of said detector gate.

2. The ultra wideband receiver according to claim 1, wherein:

said ultra wideband detector is a tunnel diode.

3. An ultra wideband receiver comprising:

an antenna;

a variable attenuator receiving an output from said antenna;

an ultra wideband detector to detect an ultra wideband signal passed through said variable attenuator;

a current controller having both a fixed data threshold output level and a fixed noise threshold output level to bias said ultra wideband detector; and

a processor to process an output of said ultra wideband detector.

4. The ultra wideband receiver according to claim 3, wherein:

said ultra wideband detector is a tunnel diode.

5. An ultra wideband receiver comprising:

an antenna;

a variable attenuator receiving an output from said antenna;

an ultra wideband detector to detect an ultra wideband signal received from an output of said variable attenuator;

a processor to process an output of said ultra wideband detector; and

a calibration switch to switch an input to said variable attenuator from said antenna to an impedance-matched termination terminal.

6. The ultra wideband receiver according to claim 5, wherein:

said ultra wideband detector is a tunnel diode.

7. An ultra wideband receiver comprising:

an antenna;

a variable attenuator receiving an output from said antenna;

an ultra wideband detector to detect an ultra wideband signal passed through said variable attenuator;

a constant current source having at least two output current settings to bias said ultra wideband detector;

a first threshold controller to set said constant current source to a first one of said at least two output current settings; and

a second threshold controller to set said constant current source to a second one of said at least two output current settings.

8. The ultra wideband receiver according to claim 7, further comprising:

a comparator to sense an output of said ultra wideband detector.

9. The ultra wideband receiver according to claim 7, wherein:

said ultra wideband detector is a tunnel diode.

10. A method of detecting an ultra wideband signal with an ultra wideband detector, said method comprising:

determining a first bias to be applied to said ultra wideband detector based on a probability of noise detection of about 50%;

determining a second bias to be applied to said ultra wideband detector based on a probability of noise detection below a predetermined amount set by a desired bit error rate (BER);

alternately switching between said first bias applied to said ultra wideband detector and said second bias applied to said ultra wideband detector; and

adjusting an attenuation level of said ultra wideband signal during a data dwell based on the occurrence of noise detected during at least one noise dwell.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein:

said ultra wideband detector is a tunnel diode.

12. The method according to claim 11, further comprising, after said step of determining said first bias and said second bias:

maintaining said determined first bias and said determined second bias fixed.

13. A method of receiving an ultra wideband signal, comprising:

(i) determining a first bias level of an ultra wideband detector to detect a noise floor with a predetermined probability;

(ii) determining a second bias level of said ultra wideband detector to detect data with a predetermined maximum bit error rate (BER);

(iii) determining an attenuation level of a received ultra wideband signal necessary to maintain said predetermined probability of detection of noise floor by said ultra wideband detector, based on a result of at least two noise dwells with said ultra wideband detector biased at said first bias level;

(iv) adjusting said attenuation level based on a result of step (iii)

(v) performing a data dwell with said ultra wideband detector biased at said second bias level; and

(vi) repeating steps (iii) to (v) until reception of said ultra wideband signal is completed.

14. The method of receiving an ultra wideband signal according to claim 13, wherein:

said ultra wideband detector is a tunnel diode.

15. The method of receiving an ultra wideband signal according to claim 14, further comprising:

time-shifting said data dwell to synchronize an ultra wideband receiver to receive said ultra wideband signal with an ultra wideband signal source.

16. The method of receiving an ultra wideband signal according to claim 14, wherein:

said steps (i) and (ii) are performed only once after power-up of an ultra wideband receiver to receive said ultra wideband signal.

17. An ultra wideband receiver comprising:

an antenna;

a variable attenuator receiving an output from said antenna;

a first ultra wideband detector to detect an ultra wideband signal passed through said variable attenuator;

a second ultra wideband detector to detect noise passed through said variable attenuator; and

a processor to process an output of said first ultra wideband detector and an output of said second ultra wideband detector to interpret said ultra wideband signal.

18. The ultra wideband receiver according to claim 17, wherein:

each of said ultra wideband detectors is a tunnel diode.

19. The ultra wideband receiver according to claim 17, further comprising:

a first latch to latch an output of said first ultra wideband detector; and

a second latch to latch an output of said second ultra wideband detector.

20. An ultra wideband receiver comprising:

an antenna;

a variable attenuator receiving an output from said antenna;

a first ultra wideband detector to detect an ultra wideband signal passed through said variable attenuator;

a second ultra wideband detector to detect noise passed through said variable attenuator;

a first detector gate to switch said first ultra wideband detector between a dwell position wherein an ultra wideband signal is applied to said first ultra wideband detector, and a termination position wherein an anode of said first ultra wideband detector is connected to ground through resistance; and

a second detector gate to switch said second ultra wideband detector between a dwell position wherein said ultra wideband signal is applied to said second ultra wideband detector, and a termination position wherein an anode of said second ultra wideband detector is connected to ground through resistance.

21. The ultra wideband receiver according to claim 20, wherein:

said first ultra wideband detector and said second ultra wideband detector are each a tunnel diode.

22. An ultra wideband receiver comprising:

an antenna;

a variable attenuator receiving an output from said antenna;

a first ultra wideband detector to detect an ultra wideband signal passed through said variable attenuator;

a second ultra wideband detector to detect noise passed through said variable attenuator;

a processor to process an output of said first ultra wideband detector and an output of said second ultra wideband detector; and

a calibration switch to switch an input to said variable attenuator from said antenna to an impedance-matched termination terminal.

23. The ultra wideband receiver according to claim 22, wherein:

said first ultra wideband detector and said second ultra wideband detector are each a tunnel diode.

24. A method of receiving an ultra wideband signal, comprising:

(i) determining a bias level of a first ultra wideband detector to detect a noise floor with a predetermined probability;

(ii) determining a bias level of a second ultra wideband detector to detect data with a predetermined maximum bit error rate (BER);

(iii) determining an attenuation level of a received ultra wideband signal to maintain said predetermined probability of detection of noise by said first ultra wideband detector, based on an output of said first ultra wideband detector and an output of said second ultra wideband detector during at least two dwells;

(iv) adjusting said attenuation level based on a result of step (iii)

(v) performing a data dwell to detect a presence of data in said ultra wideband signal; and

(vi) repeating steps (iii) to (v) until reception of said ultra wideband signal is completed.

25. The method of receiving an ultra wideband signal according to claim 24, wherein:

each of said ultra wideband detectors is a tunnel diode.

26. The method of receiving an ultra wideband signal according to claim 24, further comprising:

time-shifting said data dwell to synchronize an ultra wideband receiver to receive said ultra wideband signal with an ultra wideband signal source.

27. The method of receiving an ultra wideband signal according to claim 24, wherein:

said steps (i) and (ii) are performed only once after power-up of an ultra wideband receiver to receive said ultra wideband signal.