Patent ID: 6340901
Filing Date: 2002-01-22
Classification: H03K

Abstract:
A system including a circuit on an integrated circuit for use in determining differences in propagation delay using a control processor, the system comprising:a first signal path segment having a first propagation delay; a second signal path segment having a second propagation delay; a first arbiter circuit coupled at a plurality of inputs to one end of the first and to one end of the second signal path segments, the first arbiter circuit including mechanisms configured to determine whether a signal transition arrives first at the one end of the first signal path segment or the one end of the second signal path segment; and a second arbiter circuit coupled at a plurality of inputs to a second end of the first and to a second end of the second signal path segments, the second arbiter circuit including mechanisms configured to determine whether the signal transition arrives first at the one end of the second signal path segment or the one end of the second signal path segment; wherein the determinations from the first and second arbiter circuits are used by the control processor to output a difference in propagation delay between the first and second signal path segments.