Overlapping Gate Frequency Control for Fast Sampling and Long Measurement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current frequency reference generating devices face challenges in achieving both high accuracy and rapid response, as they require a long gate time for measurement and a short sample time, which limits their ability to track rapidly changing temperature conditions effectively.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of an overlapping gate scheme where the time between terminal ends of each adjacent gate is the sample time, combined with an independent temperature-compensated crystal oscillator, allows for extended gate times while maintaining responsiveness, enabling accurate measurements in variable temperature environments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a long gate time is used for frequency measurement, then measurement accuracy is improved, but the response time to track rapidly changing temperature becomes slower
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the measurement and control process into two independent time domains: a long gate time (e.g., 1 second or longer) for accurate frequency measurements, and a short sample time (e.g., 100 milliseconds or shorter) for tracking temperature changes. This segmentation allows the system to maintain high measurement accuracy while responding rapidly to environmental variations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a look-ahead function that uses the long gate time measurements to predict future frequency drift trends before they fully manifest. By analyzing measurement data in advance and preemptively adjusting compensation parameters, the system can maintain accuracy during rapid temperature transitions without waiting for the full gate time to elapse.
2Speed
If a short sample time is used to track rapidly changing temperature, then response speed is improved, but measurement accuracy deteriorates due to quantization error
Solution Approach 1:
The system separates the measurement function (requiring long gate time for accuracy) from the sampling/control function (requiring short sample time for responsiveness). Multiple short sample intervals are used to track temperature, while a separate long gate time measurement is performed periodically to maintain frequency accuracy, resolving the contradiction between speed and precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary processing layer that accumulates and averages multiple short-sample measurements to generate an effective long-term frequency reference. This intermediary mechanism allows the system to use fast sampling for temperature tracking while reconstructing accurate frequency measurements through statistical processing of the sampled data.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed are control systems, and more specifically control systems which benefit from a long-gate time for measurement and a rapid sample time to enhance responsiveness and methods and systems for utilizing multiple-staggered, overlapping gates where the gate time is an integer multiple of the time between ends of adjacent gates. The system continuously counts at the wavefronts or zero-crossings of a frequency reference signal and temporarily records them in registers and compares the contents of registers separated by a gate time and outputs a sample after every sample time.