Patent · US Expired

Capacitor-based digital-to-analog converter with continuous time output

US6271784A · kind A · utility

30Cited by
5References
36Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateAug 12, 1997
Grant dateAug 7, 2001
Priority date
Expiry dateAug 12, 2017

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH03M1/804
  • WIPO fieldBasic communication processes
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A digital-to-analog converter (DAC) including an array of switched input capacitors which store samples of charge proportional to a digital input signal, and an analog output circuit which integrates the samples of charge to generate an output analog signal that is proportional to said digital input signal. The capacitors store a binary representation of the digital input signal. The output circuit includes a zeroth order sample-and-hold circuit having first and second stages with respective first and second operational amplifiers. The first and second stages are cascaded together during a sample phase so that the analog output signal is stored in a capacitor in a feedback path between the output of the second stage and the input of the first stage, and are disconnected from one another during a hold phase so that the first stage is auto-zeroed and the second stage holds the analog output signal as a continuous time output.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.