Digital Oscilloscope Parallel Acquisition Signal Post-Processing

Solution Overview

Problem

Digital oscilloscopes face a blind period during signal post-processing, where they cannot acquire new measurements, resulting in missed detection and display of important signal events.

Innovation Solution

Parallelization of acquisition and signal post-processing units in the digital oscilloscope, allowing continuous acquisition without interruption and enabling the detection and display of all signal events by using a buffer with two storage regions for data exchange and implementing signal post-processing during acquisition time ranges.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Device complexity

If sequential processing (acquisition followed by post-processing) is used, then device complexity is reduced, but measurement time increases due to blind periods

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedevice complexityVSAvoidmeasurement time

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The buffer memory is divided into two separate storage regions: a first storage region for acquiring measurement signals and a second storage region for post-processing acquired signals. This segmentation allows parallel operations to occur simultaneously without interference, resolving the contradiction by enabling continuous measurement while maintaining manageable device complexity through structured organization.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent transitions from sequential time-based processing to parallel spatial processing by utilizing two distinct storage regions operating simultaneously. This dimensional change from single-threaded temporal execution to multi-threaded parallel execution eliminates blind periods while keeping the overall system architecture relatively simple.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

2Loss of time

If parallel acquisition and post-processing are implemented, then measurement time is reduced by eliminating blind periods, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemeasurement timeVSAvoiddevice complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of timeVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The buffer memory is divided into two separate storage regions: a first storage region for acquiring measurement signals and a second storage region for post-processing acquired signals. This segmentation allows parallel operations to occur simultaneously without interference, resolving the contradiction by enabling continuous measurement while maintaining manageable device complexity through structured organization.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

A switching unit acts as an intermediary that manages data flow between the two storage regions and processing units. This mediator coordinates the parallel operations, allowing the system to achieve continuous measurement without requiring complex direct interconnections between all components, thus controlling device complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Device complexity

If a single buffer is used for data exchange, then device complexity is minimized, but signal events are missed during post-processing blind periods

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedevice complexityVSAvoidsignal event detection

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The buffer memory is divided into two separate storage regions: a first storage region for acquiring measurement signals and a second storage region for post-processing acquired signals. This segmentation allows parallel operations to occur simultaneously without interference, resolving the contradiction by enabling continuous measurement while maintaining manageable device complexity through structured organization.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The parallel architecture enables continuous acquisition of measurement signals without interruption for post-processing. While one processing unit works on historical data in the second storage region, the other unit continuously acquires new signals in the first storage region, ensuring no signal events are missed and maintaining uninterrupted measurement capability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #20Continuity of useful action

Data Source

PatentUS10281494B2Digital oscilloscope and a method with parallel acquisition and signal post-processing

Publication Date: 2019.05.07 ROHDE & SCHWARZ GMBH & CO KG

AI summary

A method for measuring at least one signal with a digital oscilloscope according to the invention acquires sampled values of the at least one signal in individual time ranges which are each defined in relation to a trigger time of a trigger event, which is detected in the at least one signal in each case by the digital oscilloscope. A post-processing of the sampled values acquired in each case in the individual time ranges then takes place. According to the invention, the acquisition and the post-processing are implemented in parallel.