Phase Rotator Control for Low-Complexity Digital Signal Adjustment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Accurate phase and frequency adjustments in digital signal processing are computationally heavy and require significant silicon area and power, particularly in transmitter digital front-ends for functions like frequency correction, mixing, and pre-distortion.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus comprising at least two controllers providing control information for phase or frequency adjustments, a combiner to combine these into combined control information, and a phase rotator using phase rotation to adjust the digital signal's phase and/or frequency based on the combined information, employing techniques like CORDIC algorithms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If accurate phase and frequency adjustments are performed using traditional computational methods, then signal processing accuracy is improved, but computational complexity and resource requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the phase and frequency adjustment function into multiple independent controllers (e.g., frequency correction controller, phase correction controller, AM/PM correction controller) that each provide control information for specific aspects. This segmentation allows parallel processing of different correction functions, reducing overall computational complexity while maintaining accuracy through coordinated control from multiple specialized units.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges multiple control information sources into a single combined control signal through a combiner unit. Instead of processing multiple separate control signals through complex computational operations, the system combines control information from frequency correction, phase correction, and AM/PM correction controllers into unified control data that drives the phase rotator, significantly reducing computational burden while preserving signal processing accuracy.
2Measurement precision
If accurate phase and frequency adjustments are performed using traditional computational methods, then signal processing accuracy is improved, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
By dividing the correction function into separate controllers for frequency, phase, and AM/PM corrections, each controller can be optimized for its specific function with minimal computational requirements. This segmentation avoids the high power consumption of performing all corrections through a single complex computational process, while still achieving accurate signal processing through coordinated control.
Solution Approach 2:
The combiner unit merges control information from multiple low-power controllers into a unified control signal for the phase rotator. This approach consumes less power than traditional methods because it replaces computationally intensive operations with simple control signal combination, maintaining signal processing accuracy while significantly reducing power consumption in the transmitter digital front-end.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple separate controllers provide control information for phase and frequency adjustments, then functional versatility is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The phase rotator serves as a universal component that handles both phase and frequency adjustments based on combined control information from multiple specialized controllers. This multi-functionality allows a single device to perform diverse correction functions (frequency correction, phase correction, AM/PM correction) without requiring separate dedicated hardware for each function, thereby improving versatility while managing device complexity through shared resources.
Solution Approach 2:
The combiner acts as an intermediary that receives control information from multiple specialized controllers and translates it into unified control signals for the phase rotator. This intermediary component coordinates the outputs from frequency correction, phase correction, and AM/PM correction controllers, enabling functional versatility while simplifying the overall device architecture by providing a centralized coordination point that manages the interaction between multiple controllers.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus comprising at least two controllers each providing control information for controlling phase or frequency of a digital signal, a combiner for combining control information from the at least two controllers to combined control information and a phase rotator for adjusting, by using phase rotation, one or more of the phase and the frequency of the digital signal on the basis of the combined control information.