Patent US4178557A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US4178557A
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Linear amplification with nonlinear devices
Assignee: AT&T Inc
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Filing: 1978-12-15
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Granted: 1979-12-11
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Expires: 1998-12-15
Abstract
Abstract The present linear amplifier uses nonlinear components where an input signal with amplitude and phase variations is concurrently applied to a limiter (41) and an envelope detector (42) which provide signals that serve as a carrier signal and a modulating signal, respectively, to a phase modulator comprising two or more linear suppressed-carrier amplitude modulators (50) connected in cascade. The weighted carrier signal and weighted outputs of the even-numbered amplitude modulators (50 2 , 50 4 , . . . ) are added separately from the weighted outputs of the odd-numbered amplitude modulators (50 1 , 50 3 , . . . ) to generate two signals which are combined in a quadrature coupler (56). The two outputs of the quadrature coupler are separately amplified in a pair of amplifiers (60, 61) and combined in a second quadrature coupler (64) to provide a substantially linearly amplified output signal of the input signal.
Inventors
- 👤 Paul S. Henry
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-26 15:03
CPC Classifications
H; H03; H03F; H03F3/00; H03F3/20; H03F3/24; H03F1/00; H03F1/02; H03F1/0205; H03F1/0294; H03F1/32; H03F1/3241; H03F1/3258; H03F3/38
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 6
Claim 1
Independent Claim
306 words
A circuit for linearly amplifying a bandpass input signal having amplitude and phase variations comprising: a component separator comprising means for generating from the input signal a first signal representative of an amplitude limited version of the input signal and a second signal representative of the amplitude envelope of the input signal and a phase modulator connected to said first and second signal generating means, the component separator producing a first and a second output signal which are substantially constant in amplitude; a first and a second amplifier coupled to enable reception and amplification of the first and second output signal, respectively, from the component separator; and a coupler capable of combining the two amplified signals to produce a restructured replica of the bandpass input signal CHARACTERIZED IN THAT the phase modulator comprises a first and second linear suppressed-carrier amplitude modulator with each modulator comprising a first and a second input terminal and an output terminal, the first and second modulators being connected in a cascade arrangement with the output of the first modulator connected to the first input of the second modulator and the first terminal of the first modulator and the second terminals of both modulators being connected to receive the first and second signals, respectively, from said generating means; adding means having input terminals thereof connected to receive the first signal from the generating means and the output from the second linear modulator; a quadrature coupler capable of combining in quadrature the output signals from said adding means and the output from said first linear modulator; and a first and a second weighting means disposed between the outputs of the first and second linear modulator and the inputs to the quadrature coupler and adding means, respectively, each weighting means being capable of introducing a separate predetermined weighting factor to the signal passing therethrough.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
306 words
A circuit for linearly amplifying a bandpass input signal having amplitude and phase variations comprising: a component separator comprising means for generating from the input signal a first signal representative of an amplitude limited version of the input signal and a second signal representative of the amplitude envelope of the input signal and a phase modulator connected to said first and second signal generating means, the component separator producing a first and a second output signal which are substantially constant in amplitude; a first and a second amplifier coupled to enable reception and amplification of the first and second output signal, respectively, from the component separator; and a coupler capable of combining the two amplified signals to produce a restructured replica of the bandpass input signal CHARACTERIZED IN THAT the phase modulator comprises a first and second linear suppressed-carrier amplitude modulator with each modulator comprising a first and a second input terminal and an output terminal, the first and second modulators being connected in a cascade arrangement with the output of the first modulator connected to the first input of the second modulator and the first terminal of the first modulator and the second terminals of both modulators being connected to receive the first and second signals, respectively, from said generating means; adding means having input terminals thereof connected to receive the first signal from the generating means and the output from the second linear modulator; a quadrature coupler capable of combining in quadrature the output signals from said adding means and the output from said first linear modulator; and a first and a second weighting means disposed between the outputs of the first and second linear modulator and the inputs to the quadrature coupler and adding means, respectively, each weighting means being capable of introducing a separate predetermined weighting factor to the signal passing therethrough.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
39 words
The circuit for linearly amplifying a bandpass input signal in accordance with claim 1 CHARACTERIZED IN THAT the coupler capable of combining the two amplified signals comprises a quadrature coupler capable of combining in quadrature the two amplified signals.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
33 words
The circuit for linearly amplifying a bandpass input signal in accordance with claim 1 or 2 CHARACTERIZED IN THAT the first and second amplifiers comprise substantially identical gain characteristics, which may be nonlinear.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
175 words
The circuit for linearly amplifying a bandpass input signal in accordance with claim 1 or 2 CHARACTERIZED IN THAT the phase modulator further comprises a third linear suppressed-carrier amplitude modulator comprising a first and a second input terminal and an output terminal, said third amplitude modulator being connected in cascade with said first and second amplitude modulators with the first input terminal connected to the output terminal of the second amplitude modulator in the cascade and the second input terminal being connected to receive the second signal of said component separator generating means; a third weighting means disposed to introduce a predetermined weighting factor to the output signal from the third amplitude modulator; and a second adding means comprising a plurality of input terminals and an output terminal, said second adding means being disposed to both receive the weighted output signals from the first and the third amplitude modulator at separate input terminals and transmit the added input signals to the quadrature coupler for combining in quadrature with the output of the first adding means.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
74 words
The circuit for linearly amplifying a bandpass input signal in accordance with claim 1 or 2 CHARACTERIZED IN THAT the generating means of the component separator comprises a limiting means capable of generating from the input signal the first signal representative of the amplitude limited version of the input signal; and an envelope detecting means capable of generating from the input signal the second signal representative of the amplitude envelope of the input signal.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US3777275A
Cited
US3927379A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1982-12-10 | 1983-06-11 | 1983-12-11 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1986-12-10 | 1987-06-11 | 1987-12-11 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1990-12-10 | 1991-06-11 | 1991-12-11 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |