Specified Stage (e.g., Mixer, Amplifier, Or Demodulator) Patents (Class 455/293)
  • Patent number: 6667723
    Abstract: A system and a method for providing a global positioning system (GPS) enabled antenna system are provided. The GPS enabled antenna may be used, for example, on a wireless communications device such as a wireless handset. The wireless communications device may include a switching module that can selectively switch communications signals between the antenna and one of a plurality of communications band circuits. A respective impedance matching circuit may be provided between the switching module and particular communications band circuitry to match or to tune the antenna to the particular communications band circuitry.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2002
    Date of Patent: December 23, 2003
    Assignee: Kyocera Wireless Corp.
    Inventor: Tim Forrester
  • Publication number: 20030190903
    Abstract: A wireless communication device includes a transceiver front end and at least two receive antennas. Each receive antenna is operationally connected to a receiver front end of the transceiver front end only via a respective low noise amplifier. Receive diversity is provided by providing operating power only to one of the low noise amplifiers, for example, only to the low noise amplifier of the receive antenna that receives the largest portion of the received RF power.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 30, 2003
    Publication date: October 9, 2003
    Applicant: ENVARA LTD.
    Inventor: Raviv Melamed
  • Publication number: 20030181184
    Abstract: A radio receiver portion of a transceiver includes a differential amplifier that is used to provide a fast response. A pair of input MOSFETs of the differential amplifier stage are coupled to an active load. A voltage follower circuit is coupled to each output stage of the two stage differential amplifier to drive a current through a load without reducing the output voltage. The voltage follower stages each include a current mirror that replicates current level defined by an input MOSFET of the voltage follower circuit and, by its configuration, a voltage level produced by the differential amplifier to the input MOSFET of the voltage follower circuit. Accordingly, the differential amplifier stage defines the amplification of the circuit while the voltage follower circuits replicate the amplified output with the ability to drive a load.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 3, 2002
    Publication date: September 25, 2003
    Inventors: Hooman Darabi, Ken Evans
  • Publication number: 20030176178
    Abstract: A wireless communication terminal including a wireless communication unit for receiving and transmitting voice signals between terminals connected through a voice channel and a data channel, a signal input/output unit for inputting and outputting voice signals for voice communication and a mixing unit, interposed between the wireless communication unit and signal input/output unit, for performing mixing operations to create a first mixed signal to be output to said signal input/output unit and second mixed signals each to be transmitted to the corresponding terminal. The wireless communication terminal is preferably used for wireless voice communication performed by three or more terminals without being interposed by a center apparatus (such as a server) or a repeater. Further, signal-receiving/transmitting is set for each wireless communication terminal whereupon convenience can be improved.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 25, 2002
    Publication date: September 18, 2003
    Inventors: Syoichi Urata, Yutaka Aoki, Hiroyuki Kadosono, Shinji Kuriyama, Toshitsugu Kobayashi, Kouji Sakata, Hidefumi Takaoka, Ryoko Tamura, Tadashi Nakano, Masaki Bansho
  • Patent number: 6591093
    Abstract: A mixer circuit (21) includes first (31) and second (32) transconductance amplifiers, a switching circuit (34), and an oscillator processing stage (36). The transconductance amplifiers (31,32) generate differential current signals in response to modulated signals having different carrier frequencies. The oscillator processing stage (36) generates a local oscillator signal from a reference oscillator signal. The switching circuit (34) switches the differential current signals at the frequency of local oscillator signal to generate an intermediate frequency output signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 1999
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2003
    Assignee: Motorola, Inc.
    Inventors: Danielle L. Coffing, Jeffrey C. Durec
  • Publication number: 20030109238
    Abstract: The present invention relates to improvement of even order distortion noise, DC offset, and non-linearity of mixer circuits. According to the present invention, a mixer circuit is provided, which comprises a splitter for splitting an input signal to the first and second signal having phase difference of 180 degree, a local oscillator, first mixer for mixing the first signal with the local oscillation signal, second mixer for mixing the second signal with the local oscillation signal, and subtractor for subtracting the output of the second mixer from the output of the first mixer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 18, 2002
    Publication date: June 12, 2003
    Inventors: Youngjin Kim, Bonkee Kim, Kwyro Lee, Sunguk Kim, Yongseok Kim
  • Publication number: 20030100285
    Abstract: A sensor front end for an electronic radar sensor is disclosed that provides for a lower parts count while providing technical functionality by using multifunction parts, i.e., parts that are used both in transmitting and receiving. The sensor front end includes a continuous wave signal source that functions as a signal source when the front end is transmitting a signal and as a local oscillator when the front end is receiving a signal. The sensor front end also includes a tri-mode mixer that functions as a phase-modulator and transmit switch when the front end is transmitting a signal and as a mixer/down-converter when the front end is receiving a signal. The sensor front end further includes a common aperture antenna that acts as both a transmitting antenna for transmitting a sensor signal and for receiving a reflected signal from a object.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 28, 2001
    Publication date: May 29, 2003
    Applicant: TYCO Electronics Corporation
    Inventor: Kenneth V. Puglia
  • Publication number: 20030100284
    Abstract: The process relates to communication between a mobile receiver fitted with at least two antennas of which one antenna is less sensitive, an internal transmitter and an external transmitter respectively inside and outside a vehicle.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 2, 2002
    Publication date: May 29, 2003
    Applicant: SIEMENS VDO AUTOMOTIVE
    Inventor: Alain Brillon
  • Publication number: 20020177424
    Abstract: A predistortion linearizer has
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 9, 2002
    Publication date: November 28, 2002
    Inventors: Toshimitsu Matsuyoshi, Kaoru Ishida, Seiji Fujiwara
  • Publication number: 20020155822
    Abstract: In a direct-conversion receiving apparatus it is possible to prevent unnecessary emission from an antenna as well as deterioration of the error rate characteristics caused by DC offsets, a power dividing unit 104 divides an RF signal amplified in an RF amplifier 103 into four signals of first through fourth RF signals, phase-shifters 105-107 shift the phases of the second through fourth RF signals by 180°, 90° and 270°, respectively and mixers 108-111 generate first through fourth baseband signals by mixing the first RF signal and second through fourth RF signals after phase-shifting with local signals from a local oscillator 112, respectively.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 25, 2002
    Publication date: October 24, 2002
    Inventor: Yasuhiro Adachi
  • Publication number: 20020127986
    Abstract: A power amplifier system and method for locating carrier frequencies across a frequency band, identifying the modulation format of each carrier, and locating and suppressing undesired intermodulation distortion (IMD) products generated by the power amplifier. The system includes an amplifier for amplifying RF carrier signals in a main signal path, a variable phase shifter and variable attenuator on a feed forward path, and a tunable receiver that digitizes a portion of the frequency band to baseband. The tunable receiver includes a tunable voltage controlled oscillator which provides an oscillating frequency to a mixer and is phase-locked to a highly stable reference oscillator. The mixer downconverts a desired RF based on the oscillating frequency to IF. A filter passes only a selected portion of the IF signals, and the filter has a passband sufficient to discern both narrowband and wideband carriers and their associated IMD products.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 6, 2002
    Publication date: September 12, 2002
    Inventors: Paul E. White, Thomas A. Bachman, Robert W. Kooker, Leonard Sarver, Robert Snyder, Paul Everline
  • Publication number: 20020127990
    Abstract: A method of controlling the amplification of a high-frequency signal, in particular an intermittent signal, in which a radio-frequency signal to be amplified is passed in a control loop to a variable-gain amplifier, the gain being controlled by an amplifier control signal, part of the amplified radio-frequency signal is coupled out via a directional coupler and passed to a power detector, the output voltage of which is passed for difference-forming with a control signal to inputs of a comparator circuit, the output voltage of which, as a gain control signal, is readjusted to increase the power output level, the readjustment continuing until the output voltage of the detector and the voltage of the control signal at the inputs of the comparator circuit compensate for one another.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 13, 2002
    Publication date: September 12, 2002
    Inventor: Jan Bollenbeck
  • Patent number: 6393265
    Abstract: A transformer system comprises a transformer star winding to be coupled to an antenna system, and a transformer delta winding disposed with said transformer star winding. The transformer star winding includes a set of star elements and the transformer delta winding includes a set of delta elements each being substantially perpendicularly disposed with a corresponding star element from the set of star elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 1999
    Date of Patent: May 21, 2002
    Assignee: Smith Technology Development LLC.
    Inventor: Stephen H. Smith
  • Publication number: 20010055958
    Abstract: A microwave oscillator for inducing parallel feedback from collector to base and obtaining a stabilized oscillation output is realized by connecting MSL A with released end to a base terminal of a transistor, connecting MSL B to its collector terminal, and disposing a DR closely to the MSL A and B to couple them electromagnetically. The length between the released end and the position of MSL A which is closest to the center of DR is set to &lgr;g¼ (&lgr;g1 is the guide wavelength in the MSL A), and HIL is merely connected to this position as a bias supply line to the base terminal. This structure does not require the choke circuits which occupied a relatively wide area on the conventional circuit board, and a small and stable microwave oscillator having excellent phase noise characteristics, and a low-noise converter for receiving satellite signal by using the same are realized.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 10, 2001
    Publication date: December 27, 2001
    Inventor: Yukiro Kashima
  • Publication number: 20010034217
    Abstract: A wireless communications device includes an amplifier module configured to amplify a signal. The amplifier module includes a serial arrangement of amplifiers. Each of the amplifiers are designed to operate with increased efficiency for different power level ranges. The amplifiers are connectable via controllable switches. A controller, in communication with the controllable switches, selectively connects the amplifiers to increase the efficiency of the amplifier module.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 29, 1998
    Publication date: October 25, 2001
    Applicant: MOHY, ABDELGANY F.
    Inventors: ARAVIND LOKE, MOHY F. ABDELGANY, JAMES F. KAMKE
  • Patent number: 6212369
    Abstract: The present invention teaches parallel coupling what are herein termed a “switching stage” and a “steering stage,” thereby arranging the mixer and variable gain amplifier circuitry as a single merged circuit. The merged variable gain mixers of the present invention provide mixing and gain functionality utilizing only that power needed for a basic mixer function and only the transconductance of the basic mixer function (thereby eliminating non-linearities introduced by additional transconductance stages of prior art circuitry). Further, in the merged variable gain mixers described herein, no additional headroom is needed other than what is required by the basic mixer function. The present invention contemplates a variety of merged variable gain mixers including AC and DC coupled merged variable gain mixer of both single and double balanced configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 5, 1998
    Date of Patent: April 3, 2001
    Assignee: Maxim Integrated Products, Inc.
    Inventor: Madhu Avasarala
  • Patent number: 6163689
    Abstract: An improved mixing circuit includes a MESFET having an LO signal coupled to its gate through a charging capacitor and an RF signal coupled to its drain through a first bandpass filter. Electrons are pumped onto the charging capacitor to bias the gate of the MESFET. The MESFET drain is coupled to a second bandpass filter which passes a signal at the mixed frequency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 1997
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2000
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Yong Hee Lee
  • Patent number: 6127986
    Abstract: The present invention discloses an integrated dipole antenna and down converter apparatus. The integrated dipole antenna and down converter apparatus includes a dipole antenna for receiving microwave signals therein. The integrated dipole antenna and down converter apparatus further includes a down converter for receiving processed signals of the microwave signals from the dipole antenna for converting the processed signals to signals of lower frequency. The down converter includes main plate for supporting a tunable mechanical filter. The down converter further includes a tunable semi-mechanical filter supported on the plate. The semi-mechanical filter includes an upper circuit assembly and an identically symmetrical lower circuit assembly for canceling electromagnetic waves transmitting in the upper and lower circuit assemblies and the main plate whereby signal filtering efficiency is improved by reducing signal dissipation in the upper and lower circuit assemblies.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 2, 1999
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2000
    Assignee: Transystem, Inc.
    Inventors: Charles Wen, Feng-Jen Wang, Shun-Yu Chien
  • Patent number: 6122497
    Abstract: An RF mixer provides extended dynamic range with reduced noise by utilizing degeneration inductors in the RF input section of a doubly balanced mixer. Degeneration inductors are also utilized in a mixer having a class AB input section. A current mirror in the class AB input section is also inductively degenerated for further noise reduction. The input section is biased by an all-NPN bandgap reference cell which is tightly integrated into the input section so as to reduce the power supply voltage required for the reference cell. The mixer can be optimized for wide input voltage ranges or low distortion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 21, 1997
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2000
    Assignee: Analog Devices, Inc.
    Inventor: Barrie Gilbert
  • Patent number: 6118991
    Abstract: A device having a broadband amplifier circuit is disclosed in which the amplifier circuit includes at least two field effect transistor stages with low transistors arranged as amplifiers and high transistors arranged as load transistors. The device has several stages where the output signal of a given stage other than the first stage is caused to be fed back to its own input through a feedback branch including at least the high transistor of the stage preceding the given stage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 1, 1998
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2000
    Assignee: U.S. Philips Corporation
    Inventors: Patrick Jean, Isabelle Rousseau
  • Patent number: 6094571
    Abstract: A mixer circuit, and an associated method, mixes together differential input signals with differential mixing signals to form differential output signals. The differential output signals are substantially linearly related to the input signals over an entire range of input signal values. The mixer circuit forms, in exemplary implementations, portions of a radio receiver device or a radio transmitter device, such as the radio receiver and transmitter portions of a cellular radio telephone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 2, 1998
    Date of Patent: July 25, 2000
    Assignee: Nokia Mobile Phones Ltd.
    Inventor: John B. Groe
  • Patent number: 6011965
    Abstract: In a receiver, a tunable parallel resonant circuit (PRC2) is coupled to an input (IN) of a transistor circuit (MOIC) via a coupling network (CNW). The coupling network (CNW) lacks a varicap diode but includes a coupling resistor (Rc) in series with a coupling capacitor (Cc).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 29, 1997
    Date of Patent: January 4, 2000
    Assignee: U.S. Philips Corporation
    Inventors: Kui Y. Lim, Sok Y. Lee, Hwee H. Lau
  • Patent number: 5999138
    Abstract: A low power switched diversity antenna system (200) includes two varactor tuned antennas (205, 207), each including an antenna element (505) and a varactor (515). The varactor tuned antennas intercept components of electromagnetic radiation that are substantially orthogonally polarized. One of the varactor tuned antennas is tuned to a desired frequency and the other is detuned, achieving a relative gain of the tuned varactor tuned antenna to the detuned varactor tuned antenna of at least 3 dB at the desired frequency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 1998
    Date of Patent: December 7, 1999
    Inventor: Lorenzo A. Ponce de Leon
  • Patent number: 5822688
    Abstract: In a homodyne receiver for the reception of a carrier frequency signal modulated with a low-frequency signal, the sensitivity of the detection of the low-frequency signal is enhanced by two auxiliary modulations before the conversion into the base band. The auxiliary signal utilized for an auxiliary modulation of the local oscillator signal and the supplemental signal employed for an auxiliary modulation of the carrier frequency signal comprise frequencies that can be technologically governed and with economic outlay and enable the simple decoupling of the low-frequency signal from the supplemental signal and, thus, an enhancement of the sensitivity of the homodyne receiver. The decoupling is particularly achieved by a band-pass filtering after the conversion of the carrier frequency signal into the base band, this band-pass filtering being tuned to a specific frequency relationship of the auxiliary signal and the supplemental signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 1996
    Date of Patent: October 13, 1998
    Assignee: Siemens Aktienesellschaft
    Inventor: Hermann-Josef Eul
  • Patent number: 5812943
    Abstract: The invention provides a wide frequency band high temperature superconductor mixer antenna which allows a superconductor feed line, which exhibits a high resistance loss in a high frequency region, to be used in a low frequency region with a low loss and which is provided with a same structure as a mixer which has a wide band twice or more the frequency of a millimeter or more wave while keeping a characteristic of a high integration array antenna, which makes most of the high integrity of superconductor feed lines. The wide frequency band high temperature superconductor mixer antenna includes one or a plurality of planar structure antenna patterns of the log-periodical type or the log-spiral type and a plurality of oxide superconductor thin film feed line wiring patterns formed on a same face of a main surface of a substrate, a central portion of each of the planar structure antenna patterns being formed from an oxide superconductor thin film on which a non-linear element part is provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 1996
    Date of Patent: September 22, 1998
    Assignees: NEC Corporation, International Superconductivity Technology Center
    Inventors: Katsumi Suzuki, Youichi Enomoto, Shoji Tanaka
  • Patent number: 5768700
    Abstract: A mixer contains a multiplier circuit that includes MOS transistors configured as a Gilbert multiplier cell without gain resistors such that a first and a second node are directly coupled to a folded cascode output stage. The mixer receives a differential radio frequency (RF) signal and a differential local oscillator (LO) signal, and it generates, at the first and second nodes, a differential intermediate frequency (IF) signal. The mixer further includes output and gain/filter stages coupled to the multiplier circuit. The output stage exhibits a low input impedance and a high output impedance, and it generates an output stage differential current approximately equal to the differential current of the IF differential signal. The gain/filter stage both controls conversion gain of the mixer, and it filters the high frequency components generated by said multiplier circuit. A capacitor, implemented as the gain/filter stage, and a folded-cascode circuit for the output stage are disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 1996
    Date of Patent: June 16, 1998
    Assignee: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.
    Inventor: Jaime E. Kardontchik
  • Patent number: 5760645
    Abstract: A demodulator stage for direct demodulation of a phase quadrature modulated signal provides two baseband signals and comprises a matched 900.degree. coupler to which the modulated signal is fed and supplying two phase quadrature modulated signals. Two low-noise amplifiers with identical specifications each receive one of the phase quadrature modulated signals and supply an amplified signal. Two mixers each receive one of the amplified signals and a common local oscillator signal and supply the baseband signals. The 90.degree. coupler, the low-noise amplifiers and the two mixers can be integrated into the same MMIC. One application is to a receiver for frequency evasive phase quadrature modulated signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 1996
    Date of Patent: June 2, 1998
    Assignee: Alcatel Telspace
    Inventors: Michel Comte, Gerard LeClerc
  • Patent number: 5758272
    Abstract: An automatic gain controlling mechanism of radio frequency amplifier for a glass antenna in a car audio system includes a radio frequency amplifier, an FM front end part used as a tuner, an FM detector/multiplexer, a volume controller and a voltage amplifier. The radio frequency amplifier is gain-variable. A microprocessor is connected to a voltage level output terminal of the FM detector/multiplexer at the data input terminal for receiving a voltage level signal detected by the FM detector/multiplexer and determining an intensity of an electric field intensity. The microprocessor is also connected to a gain variable terminal of the RF amplifier at the output terminal for transmitting a gain controlling signal to the RF amplifier. Thus, the increase or decrease of the gain of the radio frequency amplifier is automatically controlled.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 1996
    Date of Patent: May 26, 1998
    Assignee: Kia Motors Corporation
    Inventor: Jong-myeon Hong
  • Patent number: 5737698
    Abstract: An antenna/amplifier includes a waveguide and an amplifier system. The amplifier and signal lines which terminate in orthogonal probes are carried on a common substrate. The orthogonal probes are spaced from a waveguide wall and isolated for good cross polarization by a post which extends from the wall. The probes have probe tips which are spaced from the post by a probe space. Parameters which include the probe space, the impedance of the signal lines and the length of the signal lines can be selected to present an optimum impedance to low-noise amplifiers of the amplifier system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 1996
    Date of Patent: April 7, 1998
    Assignee: California Amplifier Company
    Inventors: Edward E. Gabrelian, Mark Lange
  • Patent number: 5584064
    Abstract: A horizontally polarized wave signal is amplified in low-noise by two first LNAs connected in series to each other. The resulting low-noise amplified signal is entered into a first high electron mobility transistor mixer via a first band-pass filter. The first high electron mobility transistor mixer converts the signal into an intermediate frequency signal based on local power fed from a local oscillator via a Y-type distribution circuit and a first directional filter, and provides the converted signal as an output thereof. Meanwhile, a vertically polarized wave signal is amplified in low-noise by two second LNAs connected in series to each other. The resulting low-noise amplified signal is entered into a second high electron mobility transistor mixer via a second band-pass filter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 1994
    Date of Patent: December 10, 1996
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Makio Nakamura
  • Patent number: 5568206
    Abstract: A device for processing a modulated real analog television signal has a digital preprocessing stage for conditioning a complex digital signal for digital demodulation of a television signal at intermediate frequency. The digital signal preprocessing is carried out such that subsequent demodulation of the video and audio elements can be carried out at a favorable cost. Therefore a fully-digital signal processing for television signals, from the intermediate frequency, with a limited filter cost is possible.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 11, 1995
    Date of Patent: October 22, 1996
    Assignee: ANT Nachrichtentechnik GmbH
    Inventor: Heinz Goeckler
  • Patent number: 5563617
    Abstract: A Doppler microwave sensor for a vehicle alarm employs a mixer stage and a signal-processing stage on a printed circuit board, the printed circuit board having a ground plane containing a slot antenna which is coupled to the mixer stage. The ground plane is electrically connected to an electrically conductive enclosure which is disposed behind the slot antenna and encloses the component parts of the mixer and signal-processing stages. A dielectric lens may be placed over the slot antenna to provide a transmission beam pattern which is configured to the vehicle in which the sensor is to be used. In a preferred embodiment, the mixer stage is based arounda self-oscillating mixer arrangement in which the active element is a bipolar transistor and a single antenna is employed both to transmit the oscillator signal and to receive the Doppler-shifted return signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 1994
    Date of Patent: October 8, 1996
    Assignee: Plessey Semiconductors Limited
    Inventors: Stephen W. Redfern, Paul A. Tyson, Peter P. Blunden
  • Patent number: 5535441
    Abstract: A method and device for canceling frequency offsets in received modulated signals. The frequency offset cancellation device includes a downconverter module, a channel unit and a control module. The downconverter module shifts received signals to a lower frequency. The channel unit searches the shifted received signals and demodulates them, and the control module adjusts the downconverter in accordance with frequency offset information generated by the channel unit, thereby continuously cancelling out any frequency offsets that may have occurred during frequency shifting.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 1994
    Date of Patent: July 9, 1996
    Assignee: Hughes Electronics Corp.
    Inventors: Tom Jackson, Henry Eck, Ray Lowe
  • Patent number: 5523768
    Abstract: An integrated semi-parabolic antenna/down converter MMDS receiving system wherein the support boom of a semi-parabolic antenna contains the down converter electronics. Located at the focal area of the semi-parabolic antenna are a pair of driven feed elements which are directly connected to the printed circuit board carrying the down converter electronics. The down converter is formed in an elongated shape to fit entirely within the formed hollow interior of the support boom. The down converter comprises a first printed circuit board which contains an RF filter located at the input end of the printed circuit board. The input of the RF filter circuit is directly connected to the pair of driven feed elements by soldering the legs of the driven feed elements directly to the input of the RF filter stage on the first printed circuit board. The RF filter is surrounded by an input ground shield which covers the RF filter circuit. The shield is soldered to the top and bottom ground planes of the printed circuit board.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 1993
    Date of Patent: June 4, 1996
    Assignee: Conifer Corporation
    Inventors: Dale L. Hemmie, Douglas Mills
  • Patent number: 5487176
    Abstract: A reception amplifier failure detecting device includes an antenna sharing unit, a reception amplifier, a receiver, an electric field detecting section, a transmitter, a power control section, and a failure detecting section. The antenna sharing unit demultiplexes a transmission signal from a transmission system to an antenna and a reception signal from the antenna to a reception system. The reception amplifier amplifies the reception signal. The receiver receives an output signal from the reception amplifier. The electric field detecting section detects the electric field strength of a signal received by the receiver. The transmitter outputs a transmission signal to the antenna via the antenna sharing unit. The power control section controls the transmission power of the transmitter on the basis of a standard transmission value, and outputs transmission power information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 1994
    Date of Patent: January 23, 1996
    Assignee: NEC Corporation
    Inventor: Yuzo Yoneyama
  • Patent number: 5428830
    Abstract: A concealed antenna system for motor vehicle radios replaces a radio chassis preamplifier with a remote radio frequency amplifier packaged with a filter module adjacent the antenna conductors to reduce the noise floor before transmitting the signal by a highly capacitive cable to the radio chassis. The dynamic range of the antenna system is improved by an automatic gain control feedback signal from the radio chassis to the RF amplifier so that the gain of the amplifier is reduced in the presence of a strong AM signal. Preferably the antenna conductors comprise embedded conductors in an insulating panel of a motor vehicle such as the vehicle rear window, and the AM conductor may be conveniently provided by the heater grid for the window panel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 17, 1993
    Date of Patent: June 27, 1995
    Assignee: Ford Motor Company
    Inventors: Richard D. Zerod, George F. Tannery, IV, Mohamman-Reza S. Movahhed
  • Patent number: 5402138
    Abstract: A dual band MDS/MMDS down converter receiving system wherein the support boom of a semi-parabolic antenna contains the down converter electronics. Located at the focal area of the semi-parabolic antenna are a pair of driven feed elements which are connected to the printed circuit board carrying the dual band down converter electronics. The dual band down converter is formed in an elongated shape to fit entirely within the formed hollow interior of the support boom. The down converter comprises a first printed circuit board which contains a low noise amplifier, two RF filters, and two diplexer filters located at the input end of the printed circuit board. The RF filters are mounted on opposite sides of the printed circuit board. The input is directly connected to the pair of driven feed elements. The RF filters are surrounded by input ground shields.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 27, 1993
    Date of Patent: March 28, 1995
    Assignee: Conifer Corporation
    Inventors: Paul W. Hulett, Dale L. Hemmie, Marc D. Mills
  • Patent number: 5398036
    Abstract: A shortened mast antenna with a compensating circuit between the antenna and a receiver and used in a state shorter than the resonant state of the antenna. The compensating circuit includes an FM compensating circuit made up with passive elements and compensating FM broadcast signals and an AM compensating circuit equipped with active elements which convert a high impedance into a low impedance so that the AM compensating circuit compensates AM broadcast signals. The attachment part of the antenna, to which the compensating circuit is directly connected, has a stray capacitance of 10 PF or less.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 1992
    Date of Patent: March 14, 1995
    Assignee: Harada Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kazuhiko Nakase, Tetsuyoshi Abiko
  • Patent number: 5379455
    Abstract: A distributed antenna system is provided which is formed from a series of modular stages interconnected by cables. Each stage may include an antenna, a filter, a compensating amplifier and preferably elements for impedance matching to connecting cables. Connecting stages also include a coupler for combining the output from the stage antenna with the output from the preceding stage and passing the combined signal to the stage output. Where the stages are part of a transmitting system, the coupler is replaced by or functions as a splitter, an input thereto from, for example, a preceding stage, being applied to the stage antenna and to the stage output.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 1993
    Date of Patent: January 3, 1995
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company
    Inventor: Drew G. Koschek
  • Patent number: 5313220
    Abstract: An integrated semi-parabolic antenna/down converter receiving system wherein the support boom of a semi-parabolic antenna contains the down converter electronics. Located at the focal area of the semi-parabolic antenna are a pair of driven feed elements which are electrically connected to the printed circuit board carrying the down converter electronics. The down converter is formed in an elongated shape to fit entirely within the formed hollow interior of the support boom. The down converter comprises a first printed circuit board which contains a low noise amplifier connected to an RF filter located at the input end of the printed circuit board. The RF filter is surrounded by an input ground shield which covers the RF filter circuit. The shield is soldered to the top and bottom ground planes of the printed circuit board. At the opposite end of the printed circuit board are two output I.F. amplifiers whose outputs are serially connected together.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 27, 1993
    Date of Patent: May 17, 1994
    Assignee: Conifer Corporation
    Inventors: Dale L. Hemmie, Marc D. Mills
  • Patent number: 5276904
    Abstract: A system intended for the simultaneous reception of several TV channels retransmitted by satellites. This system comprises a multi-frequency microwave frequency head, installed in an external unit, whose inputs are connected to the satellite antennas. Wide band demodulation is made possible by a microwave frequency source controlled by a synthesizer. Digital signals transmitted by a link cable ensure programming of the synthesizer and therefore of the selected TV channels. A remodulation in amplitude modulation is performed for supplying signals in the 40-860 MHz band, carried by an existing link cable for terrestrial antennas. The system finds particular application to the simultaneous reception of several TV channels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 1991
    Date of Patent: January 4, 1994
    Assignees: Thomson Composants Microondes, Thomson-LGT Laboratoire General des Telecommunications
    Inventors: Jean-Paul Mutzig, Claude Cluniat, Alain Bert
  • Patent number: 5202699
    Abstract: An integrated semi-parabolic antenna/down converter MMDS receiving system wherein the support boom of a semi-parabolic antenna contains the down converter electronics. Located at the focal area of the semi-parabolic antenna are a pair of driven feed elements which are directly connected to the printed circuit board carrying the down converter electronics. The down converter is formed in an elongated shape to fit entirely within the formed hollow interior of the support boom. The down converter comprises a first printed circuit board which contains an RF filter located at the input end of the printed circuit board. The input of the RF filter circuit is directly connected to the pair of driven feed elements by soldering the legs of the driven feed elements directly to the input of the RF filter stage on the first printed circuit board. The RF filter is surrounded by an input ground shield which covers the RF filter circuit. The shield is soldered to the top and bottom ground planes of the printed circuit board.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 1991
    Date of Patent: April 13, 1993
    Assignee: Confier Corporation
    Inventors: Dale L. Hemmie, Marc D. Mills
  • Patent number: 5151708
    Abstract: An automobile mast antenna used in a state shorter than its resonant state including an FM compensating circuit made only of passive elements and compensating for FM signals and an AM compensating circuit made of active elements that convert high impedance into low impedance and compensating for AM signals. The FM compensating circuit is formed with a primary resonance circuit and a secondary resonance circuit, in which the primary resonance circuit resonates in FM band via impedance of an antenna mast and loading coil which is attached to the antenna mast, and the secondary resonance circuit resonates in FM band via a coil and capacitor. The primary and secondary resonance circuits are coupled by electrostatic capacitance of attachment section of the antenna mast so as to form a double-tuned circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 15, 1990
    Date of Patent: September 29, 1992
    Assignee: Harada Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kazuhiko Nakase, Moriyoshi Kawasaki
  • Patent number: 5072232
    Abstract: The present invention pertains to an end-fed rod antenna which is tuned, e.g., to the VHF range and has additional transmitting and/or receiving antennas for the mm-wave range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 7, 1990
    Date of Patent: December 10, 1991
    Assignee: Telefunken Systemtechnik GmbH
    Inventor: Wolfgang Korner
  • Patent number: 4757277
    Abstract: A compensating amplifier for an automobile antenna which is relatively short and free from interference from high frequency band television signals. The amplifier includes an inductive element in a primary serial tuning circuit of a multiple tuning circuit of an antenna which is connected in parallel to a condenser, and the parallel resonant frequency of a parallel circuit which is formed by the inductive element and the condenser is set at approximately the same resonant frequency as the resonant frequency of the antenna.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 1986
    Date of Patent: July 12, 1988
    Assignee: Harada Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kazuhiko Nakase, Shuki Satoh
  • Patent number: 4623921
    Abstract: A television broadcasting system uses an antenna diplexer to combine signals generated from visual and aural power amplifiers. The diplexer comprises first and second hybrids coupled together by transmission lines which have aural-frequency cavities for reflecting aural energy from an aural input port to an antenna output port of the second hybrid. In the event that the visual power amplifier fails, it is desirable to revert to multiplexed operation, in which the aural power amplifier amplifies a combined visual and aural signal. This mode of operation is accomplished by combining the low-level aural signal with the low-level visual signal, by putting the combined visual-with-aural multiplexed signal through the aural power amplifier, and by simultaneously shorting the transmission lines between the second hybrid and the aural cavities.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 1985
    Date of Patent: November 18, 1986
    Assignee: General Signal Corporation
    Inventors: Anthony N. Schmitz, Joseph J. Matta
  • Patent number: 4573212
    Abstract: An integrated receiver antenna device comprising a pair of antenna elements providing a spiral antenna for receiving radio frequency signals over a broadband of frequencies with an extended high frequency limit and providing high sensitivity over the broadband of frequencies. The elements each have first and second ends and provide a pair of interwound conductive windings with their first ends positioned proximate to each other at the center of the antenna for providing sensitivity at the high frequency limit of received radio frequency signal, while the second ends of the elements are displaced from the first ends and positioned at the periphery of the antenna. A detector mixer unit is connected between and positioned proximate to the first ends of the antenna elements for deriving radio frequency signals received by the antenna elements and receiving an input signal for providing an oscillating signal at the detector mixer unit for producing an output signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 1983
    Date of Patent: February 25, 1986
    Assignee: American Electronic Laboratories, Inc.
    Inventor: Stephen E. Lipsky
  • Patent number: 4554678
    Abstract: A wireless superheterodyne receiver is provided having an antenna for receiving wireless transmissions, a preamplifier having an input connected to the antenna and an output, a crystal filter having an input connected to the output of the preamplifier and an output, a demodulator having an input connected to the output of the filter, the demodulator having a single mixer, an oscillator having a second crystal connected to the single mixer of the demodulator wherein the demodulator supplies at an output a demodulated signal based upon the wireless transmissions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 1982
    Date of Patent: November 19, 1985
    Assignee: Honeywell Inc.
    Inventor: George A. Bowman
  • Patent number: 4554552
    Abstract: A compact antenna feed system for orthogonally polarized RF signals includes a waveguide feed having orthogonally disposed internal ridges, a pair of wave detectors coupled to the waveguide feed to receive orthogonally oriented RF signals, and an amplifier housed as part of the feed system to amplify received RF signals prior to communication of the signals outside the feed system. The system is readily switchable by remote control to receive RF signals in either orientation and angular alignment to the orientation of the incoming signals is easily accomplished.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 1981
    Date of Patent: November 19, 1985
    Assignee: Gamma-f Corporation
    Inventors: James L. Alford, Robert E. Terry
  • Patent number: 4429417
    Abstract: A microwave antenna has associated therewith an integrated amplifier and frequency converter circuit for operating frequencies of from 1 Ghz to 40 Ghz. The circuit may be tuned by variation of a voltage regulated supply which is impressed onto the center conductor of a coaxial output cable. The frequency selective tuning elements are strip lines etched on one side of a double sided printed circuit board. The receiver is designed as an integral part of a quarter spherical reflector which illuminates a resonant cavity in which a stub antenna is mounted. The stub antenna is also directly connected to an input transistor of the amplifier/converter circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 1980
    Date of Patent: January 31, 1984
    Inventor: George M. Yool