Abstract: A dual threshold is used in a coherent phase shift keyed demodulator to distinguish situations in which an incoming carrier signal is expected from those open ended conditions when a receiver is active, but when an incoming signal is not imminently expected. The use of a lower threshold permits more rapid detection and demodulation of a valid carrier signal by utilizing a standard which is less strict to determine the presence of a valid carrier signal when an incoming carrier signal is expected.

Abstract: An apparatus and method is disclosed which provides PSK modulation utilizing a single balance mixer. This apparatus allows the selection of any type of PSK modulation for each burst of data transmitted through the apparatus. This apparatus further provides a signal having little or no amplitude modulation and reduces the spectrum occupancy to reduce cross channel interference.

Abstract: An oscillation circuit has a free-running oscillator operating at a predetermined frequency. A signal generator generates a trigger signal in synchronism with an input signal. The trigger signal is supplied to the free-running oscillator to bring the signal level in the oscillator to a reference level. The oscillator keeps its frequency even when there is no input signal, the frequency being approximately equal to an integer multiplied by the frequency of the input signal.

Abstract: An F.M. demodulator of the phase quadrature type is adapted for fail-safe operation and in particular for use in a railway signalling system. A Bessel band-pass filter is chosen for the design basis of the phase delay arm, its characteristics, failure modes and resulting effects are considered and the design adaptations required to avoid the potentially unsafe effects of failures are determined. Due to loss of failure in the unmodified filter design the slope of the phase characteristic can increase effectively broadening the filter bandwidth and reducing attenuation of out-of-band signals which could, as a result, provide a false output. The demodulator may be combined with a fiber-optic link to form part of a complete signaling transmission system.

Abstract: The microwave reception chain according to the invention comprises a direct microwave demodulation device comprising a demodulation circuit associated with an oscillator operating at the microwave carrier frequeny, controllable to coincide in phase with the carrier received. The demodulation circuit comprises a separator coupled to the input for the received signal and connected to two symmetrical mixers which respectively receive the carrier from the oscillator and the same carrier shifted through 90.degree. which are available at the output of a coupler having a phase shift of 90.degree., the outputs of the mixers being connected to low-pass filters restoring the demodulated digital sequences. The reception chain comprises an automatic gain control circuit in the base band and a phase calculator receiving the demodulated digital sequences.

Abstract: Circuitry for decoding differential phase shift keyed signals utilizes a counter, having a capacity selected such that in an integration interval having a duration equivalent to one-half the period of a reconstructed carrier, a full count and resultant rollover identifies a decision threshold for information descriptive of the received signal. At the conclusion of the integration interval, the contents of the counter represent half a full count thereof for no phase error in the reconstructed carrier. Phase error in the carrier is determined during a subsequent interval by counting up of the same counter to achieve a reset condition thereof. The counter is counted up until occurrence of a rollover signal, which signal is used to prevent passage of any further pulses to the counter and to maintain the counter in an all zero state.

Abstract: A resonant-cavity type electronic tube having mechanically-operable tuning vanes associated with its resonant-cavity structure and disposed within an evacuable envelope. A support member is provided within the envelope for adjusting the tuning vanes relative to the resonant-cavity structure, so as to tune the frequency of resonance of the structure step-wise in accordance with a predetermined program. The tuning is carried out with a step motor, having a stator and armature with the envelope having a portion extending between the stator and armature for enclosing the armature within the evacuable space containing the tuning vanes and the resonant cavity structure. The armature is coupled to the tuning vanes for altering the position thereof relative to the resonant-cavity structure in fixed relation to the displacement of the armature relative to the stator. Electrical signals are coupled to the stator for establishing a programmable series of displacements of the armature relative to the stator.

Abstract: The output of a phase comparator in the PLL of the data reproduction unit is filtered to remove low frequency components which may be due to record eccentricity. The filtered output is then rectified and integrated, with the level of the integrated signal determining whether the PLL should be operated in a broad or narrow band state.

Abstract: An electronically tunable solid-state microwave frequency source comprises a transmission-absorption filter incorporated within a magnetic structure. The transmission-absorption filter is employed with a tunable solid-state oscillator and tunable solid-state multiplier to provide a continuously tunable microwave signal source with enhanced spurious signal attenuation over a multiple-octave tuning range. The filter structure comprises a sphere of monocrystalline garnet such as yttrium iron garnet (YIG) and two coupling loops disposed in the field region of an adjustable field DC magnet. The coupling loops are disposed orthogonal to the magnetic field and to each other. In a specific embodiment the first coupling loop is operative to receive at its input the fundamental frequency signal and at its output is grounded, and the second coupling loop is operative to receive a harmonic input signal at its input and to convey a desired output signal at its output.

Abstract: A system for demodulating a received signal containing repetitive blocks of m frequency hopped pulses having a predetermined hopping sequence. "m" is an integer greater than one. The system includes m filters respectively tuned to the frequencies of the predetermined hopping sequence; a network for distributing the received signal to all m filters in parallel; and an integrator for integrating at an integer-multiple of the hop rate the output signals from the filters over an interval corresponding to the block of pulses to determine the time of arrival of the last pulse of each block. The filters are optical RF bandpass filters. The integrator includes a signal accumulator having a series of cells respectively coupled to different filters. Signals are accumulated in the cells from the filters at an integer-multiple of the hop rate and the accumulated signals are shifted serially from cell to cell at the integer-multiple of the hop rate to provide a serial output from an end cell.

Abstract: A hysteresis circuit producing a relatively stable hysteresis output signal, which includes a power source, a reference potential source, a transistor, a constant current source, output means and means for detecting the collector current and for controlling the constant current source. The transistor is connected at its collector to the power source via the constant current source and at its emitter to the reference potential source. The constant current source supplies a constant current switchable between first and second levels. The output means is responsive to the first and second levels of current for deriving a bilevel hysteresis output signal dependent on the first and second levels of current. The detecting and controlling means detects the collector current of the transistor and controls the current source between the first and second levels of current in response to the collector current.

Abstract: A pulse width modulator circuit includes a first comparator comparing an input signal with a sawtooth wave signal, a second comparator comparing a reference voltage with the sawtooth wave signal, an AND circuit receiving the outputs from the first and second comparators, and a reference voltage generator having a series connection of first and second resistors, a reference voltage output terminal being connected to the connection point between the resistors and a capacitor connected in parallel with one of the resistors. It is preferable to connect a switch circuit so that the reference voltage output may be lowered by an electrical switching signal.

Abstract: An oscillator circuit including a Schmidt trigger that receives an input signal and is connected to a compensating circuit to adjust the trigger points of the Schmidt trigger. The ouput of the Schmidt trigger is connected to a push-pull driver which provides the oscillator output. The oscillator output is fed back through an external resistor and capacitor and input of the Schmidt trigger.

Abstract: A pulse corrector provides circuitry for responding to first and second input pulses applied to its first and second inputs to provide first and second output pulses at the first and second outputs respectively such that the first pulse edge occurring at the first output after an interruption of the first input pulses never leads the corresponding first pulse edge occurring at the second output irrespective of the phase relationship between the corresponding first pulse edges occurring at the inputs after the interruption. Circuitry is also provided to ensure that the duration of the pulse produced at the first output and starting with the aforementioned first edge is not substantially less than that of one of the first and second input pulses, thus ensuring that a phase detector connected to the outputs of the pulse corrector is placed in a predetermined neutral state by the aforementioned pulse edges such that both its outputs are activated before reference pulses are again allowed to contact its input.

Abstract: A current to frequency converter comprising a current source, for example a photocell, a voltage to frequency converter, an integrator in the feedback loop of the converter, the current source being connected to the summing junction of the converter and integrator such that the frequency of output pulses from the converter is directly proportional to the magnitude of current injected from the converter to the summing junction, and a controlled circuit for attenuating the current injected from the converter to the summing junction to increase the frequency of output pulses. The controlled attenuating circuit includes a transistor switching arrangement for introducing increased resistance in the path for current injected from the converter to the summing junction in response to the presence of a control signal.

Abstract: An oscillator with inverter and delay stages is coupled between first and second reference terminals. In one aspect a depletion transistor is connected between a power supply terminal and the first reference terminal to provide a reference voltage thereat. In another aspect the delay stages each have a control terminal for controlling the delay thereof. A temperature compensation circuit has a control transistor which provides a voltage to the control terminals of the delay stages which is inversely proportional to the threshold voltage of the control transistor.

Abstract: An FM signal is demodulated by the technique of sequentially sampling the signal and combining the samples to approximate the standard formula for the instantaneous frequency deviation ##EQU1## where the dots indicate the first derivative of the samples. The FM signal is assynchronously sampled at approximately four times the carrier frequency rate. Alternate samples are substantially equivalent to orthogonal components x and y of the FM signal. At least four successive samples are successsively stored so that at least four of the lastmost samples are always available for processing. Particular x samples are summed to create averaged samples x.sub.n and differenced to create approximations of derivatives x.sub.n of the x signal components and particular y samples are similarly summed and differenced to create averaged values y.sub.n and derivatives y.sub.n. These values are used in the equation for F.sub.n. In terms of successive samples, S, the equation for F.sub.n becomesF.sub.n =(S.sub.n-1 S.sub.n+2 -S.

Abstract: An FET oscillator wherein a bias circuit is connected to a drain of a field-effect transistor and a source circuit including a transmission line and a self-bias circuit is connected to a source of the transistor, so that the source is substantially open-circuited at an oscillation frequency and the field-effect transistor operates as a two-terminal (the gate and drain) element exhibiting a negative resistance, and wherein a resonant circuit is connected to the gate of the transistor. With the source circuit connected to the transistor source, the oscillator can have a high unloaded Q-value of Qo and a high externally-loaded Q-value of Q.sub.ext, whereby the oscillation frequency is stable. According to this oscillator, only a single bias circuit for the drain is required without the need of a bias circuit for the gate.

Abstract: A phase-locked voltage controlled oscillator for generating frequency modulated waveforms having a programmable digital RF phase shifter to determine the phase difference between the output signal and a phase corrected reference signal to thereby generate the desired output waveform.

Abstract: An improved adaptive loop filter for modulatable frequency synthesizers containing digital phase comparators is described. The unique adaptive loop filter provides a wide bandwidth during a signal acquisition mode and a narrow bandwidth during a signal tracking mode. The adaptive loop filter includes a current limiter coupled to the error signal from the digital phase comparator for generating a current-limited output signal; a filter coupled by a resistor to the current limiter output signal and including a series-coupled resistor and capacitor for filtering the current limiter output signal to provide a steering line voltage; an amplifier coupled to the junction between the filter resistor and capacitor for generating a feedback signal; a resistor for coupling the feedback signal to the current limiter output signal for substantially reducing the duration of voltage transients; and a reference filter for coupling the steering line voltage to the steering input of a voltage-controlled oscillator.