Patents by Inventor William Y. Li

William Y. Li 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: 9197402
    Abstract: A re-circulating time-to-digital converter (TDC) can include a triggered reference ring oscillator (TRRO) and a delay module. The triggered reference ring oscillator can, when triggered by a reference signal edge, generate a periodic ring oscillator signal with a ring oscillator period that is a selected ratio of a voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO) period. The delay module can store, in a plurality of latches, samples of a VCO signal docked by the periodic ring oscillator signal. Each latch can generate an output of the sample, and each latch output can represent a time difference polarity between VCO signal and TRRO signal. In another example, the re-circulating TDC can include the triggered reference ring oscillator, a digital frequency lock module, and a TDC post-process module. The digital frequency lock module can generate a ring oscillator control signal, which sets the ring oscillator period for the triggered reference ring oscillator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 24, 2015
    Assignee: INTEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hyung Seok Kim, Ashoke Ravi, William Y. Li, Kailash Chandrashekar
  • Publication number: 20140333358
    Abstract: A re-circulating time-to-digital converter (TDC) can include a triggered reference ring oscillator (TRRO) and a delay module. The triggered reference ring oscillator can, when triggered by a reference signal edge, generate a periodic ring oscillator signal with a ring oscillator period that is a selected ratio of a voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO) period. The delay module can store, in a plurality of latches, samples of a VCO signal docked by the periodic ring oscillator signal. Each latch can generate an output of the sample, and each latch output can represent a time difference polarity between VCO signal and TRRO signal. In another example, the re-circulating TDC can include the triggered reference ring oscillator, a digital frequency lock module, and a TDC post-process module. The digital frequency lock module can generate a ring oscillator control signal, which sets the ring oscillator period for the triggered reference ring oscillator.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 10, 2012
    Publication date: November 13, 2014
    Inventors: Hyung Seok Kim, Ashoke Ravi, William Y. Li, Kailash Chandrashekar