Patents by Inventor Douglas Warren Dean

Douglas Warren Dean has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 10490975
    Abstract: A damping circuit having an input terminal and an output terminal is described. The damping circuit comprises a driver having an input and an output; an RC circuit coupled between the input terminal and the output; and a resistor coupled between the output and the output terminal, wherein the RC circuit delays passing a signal from the output terminal to the input terminal and a low impedance associated with the driver generally reduces ringing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 26, 2019
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventors: Douglas Warren Dean, Craig Matthew Brannon
  • Patent number: 9787057
    Abstract: A damping circuit having an input terminal and an output terminal is described. The damping circuit comprises a driver having an input and an output; an RC circuit coupled between the input terminal and the output; and a resistor coupled between the output and the output terminal, wherein the RC circuit delays passing a signal from the output terminal to the input terminal and a low impedance associated with the driver generally reduces ringing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2017
    Assignee: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Douglas Warren Dean, Craig Matthew Brannon
  • Publication number: 20160013781
    Abstract: A damping circuit having an input terminal and an output terminal is described. The damping circuit comprises a driver having an input and an output; an RC circuit coupled between the input terminal and the output; and a resistor coupled between the output and the output terminal, wherein the RC circuit delays passing a signal from the output terminal to the input terminal and a low impedance associated with the driver generally reduces ringing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 22, 2015
    Publication date: January 14, 2016
    Inventors: Douglas Warren Dean, Craig Matthew Brannon
  • Publication number: 20160013617
    Abstract: A damping circuit having an input terminal and an output terminal is described. The damping circuit comprises a driver having an input and an output; an RC circuit coupled between the input terminal and the output; and a resistor coupled between the output and the output terminal, wherein the RC circuit delays passing a signal from the output terminal to the input terminal and a low impedance associated with the driver generally reduces ringing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 22, 2015
    Publication date: January 14, 2016
    Inventors: Douglas Warren Dean, Craig Matthew Brannon
  • Patent number: 9183873
    Abstract: A damping circuit having an input terminal and an output terminal is described. The damping circuit comprises a driver having an input and an output; an RC circuit coupled between the input terminal and the output; and a resistor coupled between the output and the output terminal, wherein the RC circuit delays passing a signal from the output terminal to the input terminal and a low impedance associated with the driver generally reduces ringing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2011
    Date of Patent: November 10, 2015
    Assignee: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Douglas Warren Dean, Craig Matthew Brannon
  • Patent number: 9001448
    Abstract: Disk drive pre-amplifier output stage circuitry is presented including a high pass input filter for removing DC offsets from differential read data signals and providing an input to AB drivers of the output stage, in which an offset test circuit selectively drives the high pass filter output nodes according to the offset at the filter input to facilitate measurement of the preceding circuit offset at the driver output terminals, and a common mode regulator circuit regulates common mode voltages at the first and second driver output nodes to a predetermined value in read and write modes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2015
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventor: Douglas Warren Dean
  • Patent number: 8841943
    Abstract: Various apparatuses, methods and systems for damping a current driver are disclosed herein. For example, some embodiments provide an apparatus for supplying current, including an output transistor connected between a voltage supply and a current output, and an active clamp connected between the current output and a current sink. The active clamp is adapted to connect the current output to the current sink when a voltage at the current output reaches a predetermined state relative to a voltage at a control input of the output transistor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 27, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 23, 2014
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventors: Shengyuan Li, Douglas Warren Dean, Indumini Ranmuthu
  • Patent number: 8699534
    Abstract: An optical disk drive system associated with a laser diode is described. The optical disk drive system comprises a current generator for receiving input signals; a current switch coupled to receive timing signals; a current driver coupled to receive output signals from the current switch and the current generator, the current driver further comprising a driver with wave shape control selected from the group consisting of a laser diode read driver and a laser diode write driver, wherein the driver with shape control is operative for transmitting at least one output signal that is a scaled version of at least one of the output signals received from the current generator, wherein the current driver is operative for transmitting at least one output signal driving the laser diode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2014
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventors: Douglas Warren Dean, Shengyuan Li, Indumini W. Ranmuthu
  • Publication number: 20140063639
    Abstract: Disk drive pre-amplifier output stage circuitry is presented including a high pass input filter for removing DC offsets from differential read data signals and providing an input to AB drivers of the output stage, in which an offset test circuit selectively drives the high pass filter output nodes according to the offset at the filter input to facilitate measurement of the preceding circuit offset at the driver output terminals, and a common mode regulator circuit regulates common mode voltages at the first and second driver output nodes to a predetermined value in read and write modes.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 30, 2013
    Publication date: March 6, 2014
    Applicant: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventor: Douglas Warren Dean
  • Publication number: 20130329759
    Abstract: An optical disk drive system associated with a laser diode is described. The optical disk drive system comprises a current generator for receiving input signals; a current switch coupled to receive timing signals; a current driver coupled to receive output signals from the current switch and the current generator, the current driver further comprising a driver with wave shape control selected from the group consisting of a laser diode read driver and a laser diode write driver, wherein the driver with shape control is operative for transmitting at least one output signal that is a scaled version of at least one of the output signals received from the current generator, wherein the current driver is operative for transmitting at least one output signal driving the laser diode.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 9, 2013
    Publication date: December 12, 2013
    Applicant: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventors: Douglas Warren Dean, Shengyuan Li, Indumini W. Ranmuthu
  • Patent number: 8537868
    Abstract: An optical disk drive system associated with a laser diode is described. The optical disk drive system comprises a current generator for receiving input signals; a current switch coupled to receive timing signals; a current driver coupled to receive output signals from the current switch and the current generator, the current driver further comprising a driver with wave shape control selected from the group consisting of a laser diode read driver and a laser diode write driver, wherein the driver with shape control is operative for transmitting at least one output signal that is a scaled version of at least one of the output signals received from the current generator, wherein the current driver is operative for transmitting at least one output signal driving the laser diode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2013
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventors: Douglas Warren Dean, Shengyuan Li, Indumini Ranmuthu
  • Publication number: 20130076266
    Abstract: A damping circuit having an input terminal and an output terminal is described. The damping circuit comprises a driver having an input and an output; an RC circuit coupled between the input terminal and the output; and a resistor coupled between the output and the output terminal, wherein the RC circuit delays passing a signal from the output terminal to the input terminal and a low impedance associated with the driver generally reduces ringing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 26, 2011
    Publication date: March 28, 2013
    Applicant: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Douglas Warren Dean, Craig Matthew Brannon
  • Patent number: 8406263
    Abstract: A laser diode read driver includes a first transistor producing a first voltage in response to receiving a first current signal. A transconductor has a first input coupled to receive the first voltage and produces a second current signal in response to differences between signals received on the first input and a second input. A second transistor is coupled to the second input and produces a third current signal in response to receiving the second current signal. A third transistor is coupled to the second transistor and the second input and produces an output current signal in response to receiving the third current signal. The first transistor is scaled to the first transistor by the inverse of a gain factor. First and second resistors are coupled between the first and third transistors and a low voltage supply, and are scaled to each other by the gain factor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2013
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventor: Douglas Warren Dean
  • Publication number: 20130039373
    Abstract: A laser diode read driver includes a first transistor producing a first voltage in response to receiving a first current signal. A transconductor has a first input coupled to receive the first voltage and produces a second current signal in response to differences between signals received on the first input and a second input. A second transistor is coupled to the second input and produces a third current signal in response to receiving the second current signal. A third transistor is coupled to the second transistor and the second input and produces an output current signal in response to receiving the third current signal. The first transistor is scaled to the first transistor by the inverse of a gain factor. First and second resistors are coupled between the first and third transistors and a low voltage supply, and are scaled to each other by the gain factor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 27, 2012
    Publication date: February 14, 2013
    Applicant: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventor: Douglas Warren Dean
  • Patent number: 8325583
    Abstract: An optical disk drive system associated with a laser diode is described. The optical disk drive system comprises a current generator for receiving input signals; a current switch coupled to receive timing signals; a current driver coupled to receive output signals from the current switch and the current generator, the current driver further comprising a driver with wave shape control selected from the group consisting of a laser diode read driver and a laser diode write driver, wherein the driver with shape control is operative for transmitting at least one output signal that is a scaled version of at least one of the output signals received from the current generator, wherein the current driver is operative for transmitting at least one output signal driving the laser diode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 2010
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2012
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventors: Douglas Warren Dean, Shengyuan Li, Indumini W. Ranmuthu
  • Publication number: 20120300606
    Abstract: Various apparatuses, methods and systems for damping a current driver are disclosed herein. For example, some embodiments provide an apparatus for supplying current, including an output transistor connected between a voltage supply and a current output, and an active clamp connected between the current output and a current sink. The active clamp is adapted to connect the current output to the current sink when a voltage at the current output reaches a predetermined state relative to a voltage at a control input of the output transistor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 27, 2011
    Publication date: November 29, 2012
    Inventors: Shengyuan Li, Douglas Warren Dean, Indumini Ranmuthu
  • Publication number: 20120275290
    Abstract: A laser diode write driver is described.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 29, 2011
    Publication date: November 1, 2012
    Inventor: Douglas Warren Dean
  • Patent number: 8300510
    Abstract: A laser diode write driver is described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2012
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventor: Douglas Warren Dean
  • Patent number: 8275012
    Abstract: A first transistor produces a first voltage in response to a first current signal. A first resistor is coupled between the first transistor and a low voltage supply. A transconductor has a first input receiving the first voltage and producing a second current signal in response to differences between signals received on the first input and a second input. A second transistor is coupled to the second input and produces a third current signal in response to the second current signal. A third transistor, coupled to the second transistor and the second input, produces an output current signal in response to the third current signal. The first transistor is scaled to the third transistor by the inverse of a gain factor. A second resistor is coupled between the third transistor and a low voltage supply. The first resistor is scaled to the second resistor by the gain factor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 25, 2012
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventor: Douglas Warren Dean
  • Publication number: 20100315918
    Abstract: An optical disk drive system associated with a laser diode is described. The optical disk drive system comprises a current generator for receiving input signals; a current switch coupled to receive timing signals; a current driver coupled to receive output signals from the current switch and the current generator, the current driver further comprising a driver with wave shape control selected from the group consisting of a laser diode read driver and a laser diode write driver, wherein the driver with shape control is operative for transmitting at least one output signal that is a scaled version of at least one of the output signals received from the current generator, wherein the current driver is operative for transmitting at least one output signal driving the laser diode.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 12, 2010
    Publication date: December 16, 2010
    Inventors: Douglas Warren Dean, Shengyuan Li, Indumini W. Ranmuthu