Phase distortion detector for detecting phase distortion on a linearly frequency modulated waveform

Claim 2

In a system utilizing a pulsed linearly frequency-dispersed waveform, a phase distortion detector comprising: means for delaying said waveform for a predetermined interval; means for mixing said waveform and said delayed waveform to generate sum and differeNce frequency components thereof; means for extracting the most significant of said difference frequency components; means for detecting the frequency-modulation envelope of said most significant component; and means for integrating said frequency-modulation envelope to produce an error signal proportional to any phase distortion on said linearly frequency-dispersed waveform.

Claim 3

The system in accordance with claim 1 in which a signal phase equalizer is provided, said equalizer comprising: a phase modulator having a signal input into which said linearly frequency-dispersed waveform is coupled; means for applying the modulated output signal of said modulator to said delaying means and said mixing means of said detector; and means for coupling said error signal from the output of said integrating means of said detector to the modulating signal input of said phase modulator, such that substantially all but the second-order phase modulation components are dynamically stripped from said waveform.

Claim 4

The phase distortion detector in accordance with claim 1 in which said delaying means includes means for delaying said waveform for a first interval that is at least one order of magnitude less than the duration of said waveform; and said integrating means is configured to operate on said frequency modulation envelope for a predetermined second interval sufficient to cause said error signal to be proportional to the sum of those phase modulation components of said linearly frequency-dispersed waveform which vary other than as second-order functions of time.

Claim 5

In a system employing pulsed, linearly frequency modulated, sinusoidal signals of predetermined durations, a distortion detector comprising: means for delaying for a first interval a distorted one of said pulsed signals which includes components having frequencies that vary other than linearly with time and relative phase differences that vary other than quadratically with time, said first interval being at least one order of magnitude less than the duration of each of said pulsed signals; an amplitude modulator for mixing said distorted signal and said delayed distorted signal to produce sum and difference frequency components of the mixed signals; a band-pass filter for extracting the principal difference component from said sum and difference components of said mixed signals; a frequency discriminator for detecting the frequency modulation envelope of said principal difference component; and an integrator for integrating said frequency modulation envelope over a second interval equivalent to the duration of said distorted signal and said first interval to produce an error signal consisting essentially of components proportional to those components of said distorted signal which have relative phase differences that vary other than quadratically with time.

Claim 6

In a system employing pulsed, linearly frequency modulated, sinusoidal signals of predetermined durations, a distortion detector comprising: means for delaying for a first interval a distorted one of said pulsed signals which includes components having frequencies that vary other than linearly with time and relative phase differences that vary other than quadratically with time, said first interval being at least one order of magnitude less than the duration of each of said pulsed signals; an amplitude modulator for mixing said distorted signal and said delayed distorted signal to produce sum and difference frequency components of the mixed signals; a band-pass filter for extracting the principal difference component from said sum and difference components of said mixed signals; a frequency discriminator for detecting the frequency modulation envelope of said principal difference component; and an integrator for integrating said frequency modulation envelope over a second interval equivalent to the duration of said distorted signal and said first interval to produce an error signal consisting essentially of components proportional to those components of said distorted signal which have relative phase differences that vary other than quadratically with time.