Analog-to-digital converters for LIDAR systems
US10436882B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 17, 2016 |
| Grant date | Oct 8, 2019 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Dec 28, 2037 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH03M1/466
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
Embodiments of the present disclosure propose analog-to-digital conversion (ADC) systems particularly suitable for Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) implementations. An exemplary proposed ADC system is configured to determine whether an absolute value of an analog value is greater than a threshold, and, upon positive determination, assign a predetermined digital value as a digital value corresponding to the analog value, without proceeding with the analog-to-digital conversion of the analog value. Because the ADC system only proceeds with the analog-to-digital conversion, using an ADC, when the input analog value is smaller than the threshold, and otherwise the input analog value is simply assigned some predefined digital value, design complexity and power consumption of the system may be significantly reduced, compared to conventional ADCs used in LIDAR applications.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.