Method for measuring multiple parameters of a signal transmitted by a signal generator

• US 7,564,896 B2
• Filed: 08/12/2005
• Issued: 07/21/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/12/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LitePoint Corporation (Teradyne Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: LitePoint Corporation (Teradyne Incorporated)
• Inventors: Olgaard, Christian
• Primary Examiner(s): Bocure; Tesfaldet
• Application Number:
  US11/161,692
• Publication Number:
  US 20070036208A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,439 Days
• Field of Search: 375/316, 375/377, 375224-228, 375/295, 370/241
• US Class Current: 375/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/21 for calibration; for correcting measurements

Abstract

A method is disclosed for measuring one or more parameters of a signal generated by a signal generator. The method employs capturing and analyzing a train of data packets or other forms of signals from a single transmission to obtain measured values for the one or more parameters. The obtained measured values may be used in valuing a calibration of a signal generator or in verifying the already calibrated values of the signal generator. In accordance with a preferred embodiment, the train of data packets contains packets having different properties.

Claims

1. A method for measuring one or more properties of an output signal generated by a signal generator, comprising:

generating a plurality of signals by the signal generator, wherein at least first and second ones of said plurality of signals have at least one property with mutually distinct values within a calibrated range of the signal generator;

receiving said at least first and second ones of said plurality of signals from the signal generator for analysis;

measuring the value of the at least one property for the received at least first and second ones of said plurality of signals to produce a plurality of measured values; and

comparing values of the calibrated range of the signal generator against the plurality of measured values of the at least one property during one or more subsequent ones of said generating, receiving and measuring.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising mapping the plurality of measured values to the calibrated range.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein said at least first and second ones of said plurality of signals include first and second unequal values of said at least one property respectively.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein said at least one property includes at least one of output power, spectral mask, and signal quality.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein each one of said at least first and second ones of said plurality of generated signals includes a predetermined plurality of data.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein said at least first and second ones of said plurality of generated signals include first and second pluralities of different data respectively.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein said at least first and second ones of said plurality of signals include first and second data packet signals with first and second equal data rates respectively.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

said plurality of signals include a plurality of data packet signals; and

said generating, receiving, and measuring are repeated for each of a plurality of predetermined data rates.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein said at least first and second ones of said plurality of signals include first and second data packet signals with first and second unequal data rates and first and second unequal power levels respectively.

10. The method according to claim 1, further comprising storing the received at least first and second ones of said plurality of signals in memory.

11. The method according to claim 10, further comprising retrieving the stored at least first and second ones of said plurality of signals from the memory.