Successive ADC Equalization for Pipeline Residual Error Correction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional pipeline analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) suffer from impairments such as settling errors, amplitude offsets, and DC offsets, leading to inaccurate digital signal representation due to imperfections within the ADCs, which cause interference or distortion in the analog residual signals.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of adaptive filter modules within the pipeline ADCs, which adjust phases and amplitudes of other samples to compensate for interference or distortion, using transfer functions to remove impairments and improve signal accuracy, along with a calibration routine to determine optimal coefficients and compensation parameters.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional pipeline ADCs are used without compensation, then the device complexity is low, but the measurement precision deteriorates due to settling errors, amplitude offsets, and DC offsets
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the ADC system into multiple stages, each with its own equalizer module. The pipeline ADC is segmented into successive ADCs where each stage processes a portion of the signal and passes residuals to the next stage. This segmentation allows individual equalizers to compensate for stage-specific impairments without requiring complete system redesign.
Solution Approach 2:
The equalizer modules perform preliminary compensation for settling errors, amplitude offsets, and DC offsets before the signal proceeds to subsequent ADC stages. By addressing impairments early in the conversion process, the system prevents error propagation and maintains higher overall measurement precision without adding complex post-processing requirements.
2Measurement precision
If adaptive filter modules are added to compensate for impairments, then the measurement precision improves, but the device complexity increases due to additional equalizer modules and calibration routines
Solution Approach 1:
Each equalizer module is equipped with its own calibration routine that automatically determines optimal coefficients and compensation parameters. The modules self-adjust to compensate for their specific impairments without requiring external intervention or complex centralized control, thereby improving precision while managing complexity through distributed autonomy.
Solution Approach 2:
The equalizer modules dynamically adjust parameters such as phases and amplitudes based on calibration results and operating conditions. By changing these parameters adaptively rather than using fixed configurations, the system achieves high measurement precision across varying conditions without requiring overly complex hardware structures.
3Reliability
If equalizer modules are implemented in each ADC stage, then the reliability improves by compensating for imperfections, but the ease of manufacture deteriorates due to increased manufacturing precision requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The equalizer modules incorporate feedback mechanisms that use calibration routines to measure actual impairments and adjust compensation parameters accordingly. This feedback approach allows the system to achieve high reliability by compensating for manufacturing variations rather than requiring extremely tight manufacturing tolerances, thereby improving ease of manufacture while maintaining consistent performance.
4Measurement precision
If calibration routines are performed to determine optimal coefficients, then the measurement precision improves, but the productivity decreases due to additional calibration time and processing
Solution Approach 1:
The calibration routine performs compensation parameter determination iteratively, using a sufficient number of samples to achieve the required precision without unnecessarily excessive processing. By calibrating each equalizer module independently and using efficient algorithms, the system achieves accurate compensation with reasonable calibration time, balancing measurement precision with productivity.
Data Source
AI summary
Various pipeline ADCs are disclosed that substantially compensate for interference or distortion that results from imperfections with various ADC modules of the pipeline ADCs. The pipeline ADCs include various ADC stages and various compensation stages that are coupled to the various ADC stages. The various ADC stages convert their corresponding analog inputs from an analog signal domain to a digital signal domain to provide various digital output signals and various analog residual signals to subsequent ADC stages. The various compensation stages compensate for interference or distortion that is impressed onto the various analog residual signals which results from imperfections within previous ADC stages.