Direct current (DC) correction circuit for a time of flight (TOF) photodiode front end

• US 8,530,819 B2
• Filed: 01/25/2011
• Issued: 09/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/27/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intersil Americas LLC (Renesas Electronics Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Intersil Americas LLC (Renesas Electronics Corporation)
• Inventors: Ritter, David W., Golden, Philip, Craddock, Carl Warren, Brehmer, Kevin
• Primary Examiner(s): Ko, Tony
• Application Number:
  US13/013,146
• Publication Number:
  US 20110181254A1
• Time in Patent Office: 959 Days
• Field of Search: 250/214.B, 250/221, 250/214.AL, 250/214.C, 250/214.R, 340/331
• US Class Current: 250/214.A
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 1/46 using a capacitor
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 9/00 Measuring optical phase difference devices or arrangements for controlling the phase of light beams G02F1/01; Determining degree of coherence; Measuring optical wavelength spectrometry G01J3/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/55 Specular reflectivity
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/08 for measuring distance only indirect measurement G01S17/46; active triangulation systems G01S17/48
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/101 Devices sensitive to infrared, visible or ultraviolet radiation

Abstract

A system and method that compensates for the effects of ambient light in a time of flight (TOF) sensor front end is provided. Moreover, a direct current (DC) correction loop is utilized at the front end, which removes a DC component from a current generated by the TOF sensor and accordingly prevents saturating the front end. The DC correction loop attenuates the DC component without adding significant thermal noise at a modulation frequency and provides a corrected signal to the front end circuitry. The corrected signal is processed and utilized to detect a position of an object within the optical field of the sensor.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a driver configured to produce a high frequency (HF) drive signal that can be used to drive a light emitting element with the HF drive signal to thereby cause a HF light signal to be emitted;

an optical sensor configured to produce a sensor signal indicative of light that is incident on the optical sensor,

wherein the sensor signal includes a low frequency (LF) component and a HF component,

wherein the LF component, which includes a direct current (DC) component, is indicative of ambient light that is not of interest, and

wherein the HF component is indicative of reflected light that is of interest;

front end circuitry including one or more amplifiers and/or one or more filters; and

DC correction loop circuitry including a pair of transconductance amplifiers and configured to remove the LF component from the sensor signal, while passing the HF component of the sensor signal to the front end circuitry, to thereby prevent DC saturation of the front end circuitry.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the DC correction loop circuitry comprises:

a first transconductance amplifier (gm1) including a non-inverting (+) input, an inverting input (−

) and an output;

a second transconductance amplifier (gm2) including an input coupled to an output of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) and an output coupled to the non-inverting (+) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1);

a capacitor coupled between the output of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) and the inverting (−

) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1); and

a resistor coupled between the inverting (−

) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) and a reference voltage (Vref);

wherein the non-inverting (+) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) and the output of the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) are coupled to a node that couples a terminal of the optical sensor to the front end circuitry.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein:

the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) comprises a PMOS transistor including a gate, a source and a drain;

the input of the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) comprises the gate of the PMOS transistor; and

the output of the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) comprises the drain of the PMOS transistor.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the DC correction loop circuitry comprises:

a first transconductance amplifier (gm1) including a non-inverting (+) input, an inverting input (−

) and an output;

a second transconductance amplifier (gm2) including an input coupled to an output of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) and an output;

a capacitor coupled between the output of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) and the inverting (−

) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1);

a resistor that couples the output of the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) to the inverting (−

) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1);

wherein the non-inverting (+) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) is coupled to a reference voltage (Vref);

wherein the inverting (−

) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) is coupled by the resistor to a node that couples a terminal of the optical sensor to the front end circuitry; and

wherein the output of the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) is coupled to the node that couples the terminal of the optical sensor to the front end circuitry.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein:

the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) comprises a PMOS transistor including a gate, a source and a drain;

the input of the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) comprises the gate of the PMOS transistor; and

the output of the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) comprises the drain of the PMOS transistor.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein a frequency of the emitted HF light signal and a frequency of the HF component of the sensor signal are within a range of 1 MHz-50 MHz.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the front end circuitry is coupled to a terminal of the optical sensor; and

the DC correction circuitry is coupled to the terminal of the optical sensor that is coupled to the front end circuitry.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the DC correction loop circuitry is connected in parallel with the optical sensor.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the DC correction loop circuitry is configured to emulate an inductor without using an inductor.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the DC correction loop circuitry does not include a switched capacitor circuit.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the DC correction loop circuitry introduces less thermal noise at a frequency of the HF component of the sensor signal than is introduced by the front end circuitry.

12. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

detection circuitry configured to detect a distance, presence and/or motion of an object relative to the optical sensor based on an output of the front end circuitry.

13. A DC correction loop circuit, comprising:

a first transconductance amplifier (gm1) including a non-inverting (+) input, an inverting input (−

) and an output; and

a second transconductance amplifier (gm2) including an input coupled to an output of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) and an output coupled to the non-inverting (+) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1);

a capacitor coupled between the output of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) and the inverting (−

) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1); and

a resistor coupled between the inverting (−

) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) and a reference voltage (Vref).

14. The DC correction loop circuit of claim 13, wherein the non-inverting (+) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) and the output of the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) are coupleable to a node that couples a terminal of an optical sensor to front end circuitry.

15. The DC correction loop circuit of claim 13, wherein when the non-inverting (+) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) and the output of the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) are coupled to a node that couples a terminal of an optical sensor to front end circuitry, the DC correction circuit prevents DC saturation of the front end circuitry.

16. The DC correction loop circuit of claim 13, wherein when the non-inverting (+) input of the first transconductance amplifier (gm1) and the output of the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) are coupled to a node that couples a terminal of an optical sensor to front end circuitry, the DC correction circuit removes a LF component from a sensor signal produced by the optical sensor, while passing a HF component of the sensor signal to the front end circuitry, to thereby prevent DC saturation of the front end circuitry.

17. The DC correction loop circuit of claim 13, wherein the DC correction loop circuit emulates an inductor without including an inductor.

18. The DC correction loop of claim 13, wherein:

the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) comprises a PMOS transistor including a gate, a source and a drain;

the input of the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) comprises the gate of the PMOS transistor; and

the output of the second transconductance amplifier (gm2) comprises the drain of the PMOS transistor.