Digital Feedforward Linear Amplifier for Multicarrier Efficiency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional wireless communication devices face challenges in achieving signal linearity while maintaining efficiency, particularly in combining multiple signals within existing standards like GSM, which often requires expensive components and results in reduced communication time for battery-powered devices and increased power usage for continuous systems.
Innovation Solution
A signal amplification system that combines multiple digital signals into a single analog signal using digital-to-analog conversion, followed by up-conversion and amplification, employing feedforward principles and predistortion techniques to enhance linearity without requiring high-performance components, allowing for efficient amplification while maintaining moderate to low power usage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional amplification systems are used to meet linearity requirements, then linearity is improved, but device cost increases due to expensive components
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive analog linearization components with a digital signal processing approach. Multiple digital signals are combined in the digital domain, converted to analog, and then amplified. This digital-first approach substitutes costly analog precision components with more economical digital processing and moderate-performance analog components, achieving the same linearity improvement at lower cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the signal processing into distinct digital and analog domains. Multiple digital signals are processed separately in the digital domain, then combined and converted to analog. This segmentation allows each stage to be optimized independently, using cost-effective components appropriate for each domain rather than requiring expensive high-performance components throughout the entire system.
2Loss of energy
If power amplifier efficiency is improved, then energy consumption is reduced, but linearity performance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary digital signal processing and predistortion techniques before the signal reaches the power amplifier. By pre-processing the digital signals to compensate for expected nonlinearities and combining them in the digital domain, the system prepares the signal in advance to maintain linearity even when amplified by an efficient but potentially nonlinear power amplifier. This preliminary action allows the use of high-efficiency amplifiers without sacrificing linearity.
Data Source
AI summary
A signal amplification system including a plurality of digital signal inputs coupled to a signal combination devices, wherein each of the plurality of digital signal inputs correspond to a separate digital signal, a signal conversion device coupled to the signal combination device, an up-conversion device coupled to the signal conversion device, and an amplification unit coupled to the up-conversion device. The plurality of signals are combined into a combined digital signal in the signal combination device, the combined digital signal is converted into a combined analog signal in the signal conversion device, the combined analog signal is up-converted into an up-converted analog signal in the up-conversion device, and the up-converted analog signal is amplified into an amplified output in the amplification device. Various systems and methods to combine and amplify digital signals and analog signals.