A multipath diversity spread spectrum communications receiver will enhance system performance over communication channels with distortion caused by multipath and fading effects. The multipath diversity receiver utilizes decision directed coherent integration with post detection correlation techniques for performance enhancement. The receiver also incorporates a fast attack, fast release automatic gain control to process noncontinuous wideband spread spectrum signals which are subject to fading and multipath effects.

Multipath diversity spread spectrum receiver

An AGC circuit designed to have a response-time independent of the absoluteackground input level comprising a variable-gain amplifier, an envelope detector receiving an input from the variable-gain amplifier, a logarithmic amplifier to convert the envelope value to its logarithm, a summer to subtract this envelope from a reference and thus generate an error signal, an integrator to integrate the error signal, and an exponential converter to convert this signal to an exponential and apply it as a control signal to the variable-gain amplifier. Thus, a uniform echo pulse may be presented to a display regardless of the background level.

Log-exponential AGC circuit

An acoustic transducer having a curved surface to match the inner or outer surfaces of a target surface such as a cylindrical borehole tubular is disclosed. A sequence of excitation pulses causes the transducer to launch a series of high-frequency, short duration acoustic energy pulses toward the tubular. The transducer face receives echos reflected from the surface of the tubular, including multiple echo structures indicative of the repeated echoing of the acoustic energy between the inner and outer faces of the tubular. The characteristics of the tubular surfaces, including the location, area and depth of any corrosion pits on the tubular surfaces, are determined from the full echo waveform. A rule-based Expert System analyzes the full waveform of the echo pulses returned from the tubular to determine the most likely characteristics of the surfaces which produced the full echo waveform. More specifically, the Expert System uses expertise about the acoustic properties of the target medium, as well as constraints chosen by an expert, to determine which signal structures are informational and which signal structures are confounding. As the confounding structures are selectively eliminated from consideration, the Expert System draws conclusions about the condition of the target surfaces.

Measurement of corrosion with curved ultrasonic transducer, rule-based processing of full echo waveforms

Periodically, sensed amplitude for the output signal of a voltage-controlled oscillator is compared to a reference and biasing of the voltage-controlled oscillator is correspondingly set, thereby controlling amplitude of the voltage-controlled oscillator output signal. Process and temperature dependencies of the amplitude are eliminated while achieving low phase noise and large signal-to-noise ratio in the output signal, and consequently low phase noise.

Discrete-time amplitude control of voltage-controlled oscillator

In-phase (I) and quadrature (Q) radar return signals are converted to phase to provide phase difference between like range bins of successive pulse repetition intervals (PRI's), the phase differences being reconverted to I and Q format for accumulation across multi-range-bin windows surrounding each range bin to be processed, the normalized range bin accumulations being continuously accumulated in the angle domain, in successive PRI's, to provide clutter phase angle estimates used to rotate incoming target video vectors, a single time, back to the estimated zero-doppler phase of the first PRI of a multi-PRI batch for clutter-elimination filtering. Third-order and fourth-order filtering (utilizing four-PRI and five-PRI batches, respectively), is achieved on a constant one-out-of-four PRI output basis by utilizing the same weighted data for the highest PRI of one fourth-order batch and the lowest PRI of the next higher fourth-order batch, which is rendered possible by the continuous accumulation of estimated phases, over successive PRI's.

Angle/vector processed, phase-accumulated single vector rotation, variable order adaptive MTI processor

An automatic gain control circuit including a wide band digitally controlled amplifier particularly adapted for use with recurring signals. Each of the recurring signals is divided into a large number of discrete time intervals and the gain of the amplifier may be adjusted for each time interval independently of the signal in any other of the time intervals. Transients due to gain modification may be superimposed.

Automatic gain control circuit and method

An airborne early warning moving target indicator radar in which targets in the main beam having reflective characteristics sufficient to override side lobe attenuation are tracked relative to the side lobes and the residual doppler frequency for such targets resulting from side lobe detection calculated. Based on this calculation, the appropriate ones of a bank of doppler filters are inhibited at the appropriate range bin to prevent a false target indication without inhibiting the display of moving targets in the main beam at the same range but having different doppler frequencies. In addition to side lobe blanking, an automatic gain control circuit is provided in which the interpulse period is divided into a large number of equal time intervals on the order of 0.4 microseconds each to thereby separate the return signal from each radar pulse into a large number of range bins. The gain of a wide band return signal amplifier is separately adjusted for each range bin on the basis of the sampled amplitude of the return signal from the preceding radar pulse in the corresponding range bin to thereby provide optimum gain without saturating the return signal processor. A novel amplifier and method of digitally controlling the gain thereof is disclosed as is the superimposition of the gain adjustment transients of each stage of the amplifier.

Jr. Walter H. Chudleigh

Papers

Automatic gain control circuit and method

MTI system and method

Brightness control circuit for television receivers

System for controlling amplitude of an analog signal by use of a digital signal derived from said analog signal