Patents by Inventor Ralf Hekmann

Ralf Hekmann 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).

  • Publication number: 20220103407
    Abstract: A demodulator for a digital radio receiver comprises a frequency discriminator and a Viterbi decoder. The frequency discriminator receives a series digital signal samples representative of an FSK-modulated signal and performs frequency discrimination on the digital signal samples to generate a series of frequency samples. Each frequency sample represents an instantaneous frequency of the signal in a respective frequency-sample period. There are an integer oversampling factor, N>1, of frequency-sample periods in each symbol period. The Viterbi decoder receives the series of frequency samples, determines branch metrics for each symbol period by determining distances between a vector of N successive frequency samples and each of a plurality of reference waveform vectors, each comprising N elements. It use the branch metrics in a Viterbi process to output demodulated symbol values corresponding to a maximum-likelihood decoding of the FSK-modulated signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 23, 2021
    Publication date: March 31, 2022
    Applicant: Nordic Semiconductor ASA
    Inventors: Philip CORBISHLEY, Sverre WICHLUND, Ralf HEKMANN, Eivind Sjøgren OLSEN
  • Patent number: 8339295
    Abstract: A method and system for managing Digital to Time Conversion (DTC) is provided. The method comprises receiving a first Radio Frequency (RF) signal and a second RF signal. The second RF signal is a phase-shifted first RF signal. The method further comprises converting the first RF signal to a first Intermediate Frequency (IF) signal and the second RF signal to a second IF signal. Further, a time delay between the first IF signal and the second IF signal is estimated based on a time difference measurement technique. The second RF signal is processed based on the estimated time delay to compensate for a delay error associated with the second RF signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2007
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2012
    Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
    Inventors: Geetha B. Nagaraj, Nicholas G. Cafaro, Ralf Hekmann, Robert E. Stengel, Scott Miller
  • Patent number: 8300673
    Abstract: A method, system and apparatus for managing communication in a Public Safety Communication Network (PSCN). The PSCN includes a plurality of Mobile Stations (MSs) (110, 115, 120) and a master controller (105). The method includes initiating a communication between one or more MSs and the master controller using a primary channel (405). The primary channel corresponds to a primary frequency spectrum in the PSCN. The method further includes identifying one or more available channels in one or more of the primary frequency spectrum and a secondary frequency spectrum (410). Each of the primary frequency spectrum and the secondary frequency spectrum include one or more channels. Thereafter, a channel hopping pattern is generated for one or more MSs based on one or more available channels (415). The channel hopping pattern corresponds to a sequence of frequency hops for a MS.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2007
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2012
    Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
    Inventors: Ralf Hekmann, Robert J. Corke, Trefor J. Delve, Daniel G. Prysby, Christopher G. Ware, Michael F. Zeleznik
  • Patent number: 7937101
    Abstract: A wireless communication network is provided in which a plurality of radio devices achieve frequency diversity. By utilizing cognitive capability within the radio devices to iteratively select frequency sets, a lowest cardinality frequency set is generated and used to communicate amongst the plurality of radio devices. Each radio device can have different hardware, as the iterative selection of frequency set can take into account the different hardware capabilities of the radio devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2007
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2011
    Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
    Inventors: Robert J. Corke, Apoorv Chaudhri, Trefor J. Delve, Ralf Hekmann, Daniel G. Prysby, Yadunandana N. Rao, Christopher G. Ware, Michael F. Zeleznik
  • Publication number: 20090054095
    Abstract: A wireless communication network is provided in which a plurality of radio devices achieve frequency diversity. By utilizing cognitive capability within the radio devices to iteratively select frequency sets, a lowest cardinality frequency set is generated and used to communicate amongst the plurality of radio devices. Each radio device can have different hardware, as the iterative selection of frequency set can take into account the different hardware capabilities of the radio devices.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 24, 2007
    Publication date: February 26, 2009
    Applicant: MOTOROLA, INC.
    Inventors: Robert J. Corke, Apoorv Chaudhri, Trefor J. Delve, Ralf Hekmann, Daniel G. Prysby, Yadunandana N. Rao, Christopher G. Ware, Michael F. Zeleznik
  • Publication number: 20090052499
    Abstract: A method, system and apparatus for managing communication in a Public Safety Communication Network (PSCN). The PSCN includes a plurality of Mobile Stations (MSs) (110, 115, 120) and a master controller (105). The method includes initiating a communication between one or more MSs and the master controller using a primary channel (405). The primary channel corresponds to a primary frequency spectrum in the PSCN. The method further includes identifying one or more available channels in one or more of the primary frequency spectrum and a secondary frequency spectrum (410). Each of the primary frequency spectrum and the secondary frequency spectrum include one or more channels. Thereafter, a channel hopping pattern is generated for one or more MSs based on one or more available channels (415). The channel hopping pattern corresponds to a sequence of frequency hops for a MS.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 24, 2007
    Publication date: February 26, 2009
    Applicant: MOTOROLA, INC.
    Inventors: Ralf Hekmann, Robert J. Corke, Trefor J. Delve, Daniel G. Prysby, Christopher G. Ware, Michael F. Zeleznik
  • Publication number: 20090033384
    Abstract: A method and system for managing Digital to Time Conversion (DTC) is provided. The method comprises receiving a first Radio Frequency (RF) signal and a second RF signal. The second RF signal is a phase-shifted first RF signal. The method further comprises converting the first RF signal to a first Intermediate Frequency (IF) signal and the second RF signal to a second IF signal. Further, a time delay between the first IF signal and the second IF signal is estimated based on a time difference measurement technique. The second RF signal is processed based on the estimated time delay to compensate for a delay error associated with the second RF signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 31, 2007
    Publication date: February 5, 2009
    Applicant: MOTOROLA, INC.
    Inventors: Geetha B. Nagaraj, Nicholas G. Cafaro, Ralf Hekmann, Robert E. Stengel, Scott Miller
  • Publication number: 20060156304
    Abstract: A time trigger for instruction execution can be contained within the instruction itself. A time stamp value associated with each of a sequence of instructions, which are written into a FIFO memory (9) by an application specific controller (1), is compared with the output value of a counter (11). When the two values are equal, a comparator 10 sends a command to an instruction decoder (8) to execute the current instruction. The invention has the advantage of a reduced interrupt overhead and his particular application to HiperLAN 2 systems in which it can be incorporated without affecting the protocol handling.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 2, 2003
    Publication date: July 13, 2006
    Inventors: Francois Bourzeix, Ralf Hekmann
  • Patent number: 7042964
    Abstract: A Viterbi decoder includes a number of classical Add-Compare-Select units and a number of further Add-Compare-Select unit having a lower complexity butterfly unit (300) having only two adder means, such that the further Add-Compare-Select unit has a butterfly unit (300) comprising: first adder means (310) for receiving a first path metric and a branch metric and for producing at its output the addition thereof; and second adder means (320) for receiving a second path metric and said branch metric and for producing at its output the addition thereof. First comparator means (330) are coupled to receive the output of the second adder means and coupled to receive the first path metric for comparing therebetween. Second comparator means (340) are coupled to receive the output of the first adder means and coupled to receive the second path metric for comparing therebetween.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2001
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2006
    Assignee: Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventors: Markus Muck, Ralf Hekmann
  • Publication number: 20020126776
    Abstract: A Viterbi decoder including an Add-Select-Compare unit with a new butterfly unit (300) having only two adders (310, 320), compared with a conventional butterfly unit's four adders, for processing a trellis transition having branch metric of zero. The new butterfly unit (300) is thus of reduced complexity (saving 8% of the total Viterbi decoder complexity in a typical example).
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 17, 2001
    Publication date: September 12, 2002
    Inventors: Markus Muck, Ralf Hekmann