Patents by Inventor Ronald W. Potter

Ronald W. Potter 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: 5473555
    Abstract: A signal processing technique allows accurate interpolation between points of a sampled frequency domain function. A time-based sampling process samples a time waveform of duration T having a sub time interval T'. A signal processor applies a discrete Fourier transform over a time period T to transform the sampled data from the time domain to the frequency domain. The sampled frequency domain data is convolved with one or more convolution kernels to yield a continuous line shape. The result of this convolution permits the spectral composition at arbitrary frequencies to be determined. The disclosed frequency domain interpolation process is characterized by preservation of data in the T' interval of the time domain with an arbitrary but specified degree of accuracy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 4, 1994
    Date of Patent: December 5, 1995
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventor: Ronald W. Potter
  • Patent number: 5420514
    Abstract: The sweep rate limitations that heretofore have constrained the maximum sweep rates of swept analysis instruments are obviated by optimizing filter circuitry and post-processing the IF signal using various techniques to compensate for errors caused by fast sweeping. Some selective windowing is also used to compensate for distortions due to fast sweep rates.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 7, 1994
    Date of Patent: May 30, 1995
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventors: Jay M. Wardle, Ronald W. Potter, John A. Gibbs
  • Patent number: 5300878
    Abstract: The sweep rate limitations that heretofore have constrained the maximum sweep rates of swept analysis instruments are obviated by optimizing filter circuitry and post-processing the IF signal using various techniques to compensate for errors caused by fast sweeping.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 19, 1992
    Date of Patent: April 5, 1994
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventors: Jay M. Wardle, Ronald W. Potter, John A. Gibbs
  • Patent number: 5235534
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for interpolating between data samples (V.sub.S) that preserves the frequency spectrum of a sampled analog signal (V.sub.O) is provided. Data samples (V.sub.S) are interpolated to produce interpolated values (V.sub.IV) that contain frequency domain information that accurately replicates an original frequency spectrum (24) of the analog signal (V.sub.O) is disclosed. A signal processor (10) reads data samples (V.sub.S) which occur at sampling times (t.sub.S) and resample times (t.sub.R) at which the V.sub.S values are interpolated. A set of t.sub.S times are found near each t.sub.R time. A digital FIR filter having a frequency function (H(fT)) and a continuous impulse response function ##EQU1## is embodied in software form within a program that controls the signal processor (10) where T is the width of the filter impulse response. The signal processor (10) convolves an offset continuous impulse response function ##EQU2## with the V.sub.S values. A plurality of convolved values (V.sub.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 1991
    Date of Patent: August 10, 1993
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventor: Ronald W. Potter
  • Patent number: 5168213
    Abstract: The sweep rate limitations that heretofore have constrained the maximum sweep rates of swept analysis instruments (10,38) are obviated by optimizing filter circuitry (24,32,34,46) and post-processing the IF signal using various techniques to compensate for errors caused by fast sweeping.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 9, 1992
    Date of Patent: December 1, 1992
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventors: Jay M. Wardle, Ronald W. Potter, John A. Gibbs
  • Patent number: 5117179
    Abstract: The sweep rate limitations that heretofore have constrained the maximum sweep rates of swept analysis instruments are obviated by optimizing filter circuitry and post-processing the IF signal using various techniques to compensate for errors caused by fast sweeping.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 1990
    Date of Patent: May 26, 1992
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventors: Jay M. Wardle, Ronald W. Potter, John A. Gibbs
  • Patent number: 4912661
    Abstract: A tracking and resampling method for monitoring the performance of a rotating machine (10) is disclosed. One or more measuring devices (13) provide rotating machine performance data to a signal processor (14) that samples the performance data at uniform time increments. A digitized waveform of the sampled performance data is interpolated by an interpolation filter. The sampled performance data is convolved with the impulse response of the interpolation filter to provide a continuous time function waveform depicting the rotating machine performance data. The signal processor (14) resamples the continuous time function waveform at uniform rotating shaft phase angle increments.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 1987
    Date of Patent: March 27, 1990
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventor: Ronald W. Potter
  • Patent number: 4658367
    Abstract: A pole and zero analyzer determines the poles and zeroes of a device for applying a stimulus signal to the device, detecting the stimulus and response signals and computing the auto- and cross spectra. An estimated transfer function is least squares fit to a measured transfer function obtained from the auto- and cross-spectra and the poles and zeroes are obtained as the roots of the estimated transfer function. Inaccuracies due to noise are minimized by subtracting out a noise bias from the squared cross-spectrum obtained during the least squares fit and by orthogonalizing a data matrix used in the determination of the coefficients of the estimated transfer function.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 1984
    Date of Patent: April 14, 1987
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventor: Ronald W. Potter
  • Patent number: 4654808
    Abstract: A pole and zero analyzer determines the poles and zeroes of a device by applying a stimulus signal to the device, detecting the stimulus and response signals and computing the auto- and cross-spectra. An estimated transfer function is least squares fit to a measured transfer function obtained from the auto- and cross-spectra and the poles and zeroes are obtained as the roots of the estimated transfer function. A weighting function may be used to emphasize certain desired regions of the frequencies of interest in the determination of the least squares fit. The orders of the poles and zeroes are modified until an optimum fit is reached.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 1984
    Date of Patent: March 31, 1987
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventors: Ronald W. Potter, James L. Adcock
  • Patent number: 4587477
    Abstract: A binary scaled current source in which a set of binary switches M.sub.1, . . . , M.sub.n controllably switch a current I to a selected one of a set of n outputs. Each switch M.sub.k is controlled by an associated control signal B.sub.k having a duty cycle of 2.sup.k-n-1. At any given time one and only one of the control signals is high so that the current I is diverted to the kth output a fraction 2.sup.k-n-1 of the time. In two particular schemes referred to as the weighted pulse width (WPW) and the weighted repetition rate (WRR) schemes, all of the control signals are periodic with a group pattern repetition period T. In the WPW scheme, B.sub.k has in each period T a single pulse of duration 2.sup.k-n-1 *T. In the WRR scheme, B.sub.k has in each period T2.sup.k-1 pulses each of duration 2.sup.-n *T. The output of each binary switch is typically passed through a low pass filter which conducts substantially only the dc component of the output current from the binary switch to which it is connected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 1984
    Date of Patent: May 6, 1986
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventors: Thomas Hornak, Gary L. Baldwin, Ronald W. Potter
  • Patent number: 4424492
    Abstract: A frequency converter for a complex digital input provides a shift of frequency without the necessity of time-consuming and expensive numerical multiplication. Furthermore, by combining the conversion process with digital filtering, the frequency of the converted output can be halved. The output can be resampled and reapplied to the novel converter for repeated shifts in frequency and reduction of bandwidth in the case of down-conversion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 1982
    Date of Patent: January 3, 1984
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventor: Ronald W. Potter
  • Patent number: 4317092
    Abstract: A recursive digital low-pass filter processes an input signal with essentially unity gain and sharp frequency cutoff without using multipliers to provide an output signal with an information bandwidth substantially one-half that of the input signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 1980
    Date of Patent: February 23, 1982
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventor: Ronald W. Potter