METHOD FOR PROVIDING A DELAYED SIGNAL AND CONTROLLABLE DELAY CIRCUIT

Abstract: A delay circuit generates an output signal that changes state in adjustably delayed reponse to a state change in an input signal, the delay being adjusted by a control signal. A series of buffers (FDB1,..,FDBn) produces a plurality of delayed signals that change state at different times in response to state changes in the input signal. Amplifiers (A⊘,...,An) amplify the input and each delayed signal to pro­ duce output currents that are summed to provide a load current through load resistors (R1, R2), thereby pro­ viding the output voltage across the load resis­ tors (R1, R2). The gain of each amplifier (A⊘,..., An) is adjusted in accordance with the control signal such that at least one and not more than two of the amplifiers (A⊘,..., An) have non-zero gain. The delay provided by the delay circuit is determined by the relative gains of the amplifiers.

Description: The present invention relates to a method for providing a delayed signal and further relates to delay circuits and particularly to variable delay circuits for high frequency signals. Synchronous logic circuits require that logic signals to which they respond change state at times synchronized to a clock signal. It is sometimes necessary to provide means for adjustably delaying a logic signal prior to transmission to a synchronous logic circuit in order to synchronize that signal with other logic signals produced at locations more remote from the circuit, in order to account for differences in the paths that the signals follow. When a synchronous logic circuit is implemented in an integrated circuit, it is preferable for adjustable delay circuits used therewith to be implemented within the same integrated circuit in order to avoid the cost of additional discrete components. Tapped delay lines have been used to delay logic signals but normally these cannot be implemented within an integrated circuit. A typical delay circuit implemented in integrated circuit form utilizes a cascade of logic gates, each successive gate delaying an input signal by the unit propagation time of a gate. The total delay provided by such a delay circuit is the product of the number of gates in cascade and the unit propagation time. The total delay can then be adjusted by switching logic gates in or out of the cascade. While such delay circuits are capable of adjusting signal delay over a wide range, the delay resolution is limited to the propagation time of one logic gate. State changes in a data signal should occur within a narrow tine window during each period of a synchronizing clock, and therefore such state changes must be synchronized with a resolution that is somewhat finer than the period of the clock. However, in a high speed synchronous logic circuit, the propagation time of logic gates may not be much less than the period of the clock signal controlling the circuit, and therefore delay circuits utilizing logic gate cascades may not be suitable. From US-A-4 675 562 a delay circuit is known which generates a plurality of delayed input signals using a tapped delay line and selects one delayed input signal by way of a multiplexer as an output signal. The delay provided is an incremental delay wherein each increment is predetermined by the available taps of the delay line. To provide delays intermediate of the incremental delays, additional delay circuits are added in series, each additional delay circuit having smaller incremental delays. For an adjustable delay circuit with fine resolution, i.e. small increments of delay, several stages of delay circuits must be provided in series. From US-A-4 434 438 a transversal filter having a tapped delay line is known the output signals of which are controllably amplified and summed to provide a filtered output signal. The transversal filter has a distinct transfer function adapted to reduce amplitude and phase distortions in a television signal. From Patent Abstracts of Japan, Vol. 10, No. 329 (E-452) (2365), 8. November 1986 and JP-A-61 135 217 an incremental delay circuit is known having an input circuit and an output circuit in series with the delay elements each having a variable bias circuit. By controlling the biases, delay values intermediate of the incremental delays may be obtained. It is an object of the invention to provide a method for delaying a signal and a delay circuit allowing adjustment of the delay with fine resolution across a wide delay range. The measurements according to the invention are described in claim 1 directed to a method utilizing a first and at least two additional amplifiers to provide a delayed output signal that changes state in delayed response to an input signal and are further described in claim 3 relating to a delay circuit. In accordance with one aspect of the invention, an adjustable delay circuit includes a first amplifier and a plurality of additional amplifiers, each producing an output current in response to an input voltage, and a plurality of delay buffers, one corresponding to each additional amplifier. The delay buffers are serially coupled with the output of each buffer being provided as input to a next buffer in the series such that a voltage signal applied as input to a first one of the buffers is propagated sequentially through the series of buffers. An input voltage signal to be delayed is applied as the input to the first amplifier and as input to the first buffer of the series. The output of each buffer is also applied as input to the corresponding one of the additional amplifiers. The output currents of the amplifiers are summed to produce a load current directed through resistance to provide a delay circuit output voltage. The output signal produced by each delay buffer changes state in delayed response to a change in state of its input signal, and the buffers provide matching unit delay times between input and output signal state changes. Thus when the input signal to the first buffer of the series of buffers changes state, its output signal changes state one unit delay time following the change in state of its input signal, and the output signal produced by each successive buffer of the series changes state one unit delay time following the change in state of the output of the preceding buffer of the series. Since the output signal of each buffer is supplied as input to a corresponding one of the amplifiers, the output currents produced by the first and each additional amplifier change state at different times. The delay circuit output voltage is proportional to the load current and changes state when the load current rises above or falls below a predetermined level. Each amplifier has a variable gain, and by appropriately adjusting the gain of each amplifier, the delay between a change in state of the delay circuit input signal and the delay circuit output voltage can be adjusted over a wide range with fine resolution. The subject matter of the present invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of this specification. However, both the organization and method of operation, together with further advantages and objects thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following description taken in connection with accompanying drawings wherein like reference characters refer to like elements. In the drawings FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an adjustable delay circuit in accordance with the present invention; FIG. 2 is a graph of magnitudes of various gain control current signals as a function of the magnitude of a delay control signal; FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the gain control circuit of FIG. 1; and FIGS. 4A through 4E and 5A through 5C are timing diagrams illustrating operation of the circuit of FIG. 1 for various delay control signal values. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an adjustable delay circuit in accordance with the present invention for receiving a differential voltage INPUT signal and providing a differential voltage OUTPUT signal, the OUTPUT signal being adjustably delayed with respect to the INPUT signal in accordance with the magnitude of a differential voltage CONTROL signal. The adjustable delay circuit includes a plurality of serially linked fixed delay buffers FDB1 through FDBn and a plurality of variable gain amplifiers A⊘ through An. The INPUT signal is applied as input to the first buffer FDB1 and the output of the kth buffer FDBk is provided as input to the (k+1)th buffer FDBk+1. For example, the output of the buffer FDB2 is provided as input to the buffer FDB3. Each buffer FDB1-FDBn produces a differential voltage output signal in response to a differential voltage input signal, its output signal changing state FD seconds after a change in state of its input signal. Each of the amplifiers A⊘ through An includes an emitter-coupled transistor pair Q1, Q2 for providing a differential output current at their collectors in response to a differential input voltage applied across their bases. The gain (i.e., the ratio of differential output current to differential input voltage) of each amplifier A⊘-An is a function of the magnitude of a current signal GI⊘-GIn, respectively, supplied to the emitters of the transistor Q1 and Q2. The INPUT signal applied as input to buffer FDB1 is also applied as an input to amplifier A⊘, and the outputs of buffers FDB1 through FDBn are supplied as inputs to the amplifiers A1 through An, respectively. For example, the output of the buffer FDB2 is connected across the bases of transistors Q1 and Q2 of the amplifier A2. Each amplifier Ak provides as its output a differential current signal OUTk of magnitude equal to the difference between the magnitude of the collector currents IC1Ak and IC2Ak of the transistors Q1 and Q2, respectively, of the amplifier Ak. For example, the output of amplifier A2 is a differential current signal OUT2 = IC1A2 - IC2A2 , where IC1A2 and IC2A2 are the collector currents of the transistors Q1 and Q2, respectively, of the amplifier A2. The collector of each of transistors Q1 of amplifiers A⊘ through An is connected to a node 16 while the collector of each of transistors Q2 of amplifiers A⊘ through An is connected to a node 18. A resistor R1 couples node 16 to a voltage source VCC while a resistor R2 couples node 18 to the voltage source VCC. The collector currents IC1A⊘ through IC1An combine to form a load current IL1 through resistor R1 while the collector currents IC2A⊘ through IC2An combine to form a load current IL2 through the resistor R2. Thus, amplifiers A⊘ through An together produce a differential load current IL = IL1 - IL2 through resistors R1 and R2, the load current IL being representative of the sum of the amplifier differential output currents OUT⊘ through OUTn. A differential load voltage signal VL across nodes 16 and 18 is directly proportional to the load current IL. An output stage amplifier 12 includes a first transistor Q3, a second transistor Q4, and a pair of matching current sources Ix and Iy. The collectors of transistors Q3 and Q4 are connected to voltage source Vcc while the emitters of transistors Q3 and Q4 are coupled to ground through the current sources Ix and Iy, respectively. The base of the transistor Q3 is connected to node 18 and the base of the transistor Q4 is connected to node 16 such that the voltage of the signal VL between nodes 16 and 18 appears across the emitters of the transistors Q3 and Q4 as the OUTPUT signal of the delay circuit. Portions of the subject matter of the present application are also set forth in a co-pending European patent application number 88 111 127.2 = EP-A-0 302 262 entitled HIGH SPEED, PARTITIONED REDUCED INSTRUCTION SET COMPUTER. A gain control circuit 14 produces the currents GI⊘-GIn which control the gains of amplifiers A⊘-An, respectively, the gain of each amplifier Ak being proportional to the magnitude of its input control current GIk. The sum of currents GI⊘-GIn is equal to a current It produced by a current source 20 and supplied as input to gain control circuit 14. Gain control circuit 14 adjusts the magnitudes of currents GI⊘-GIn in relation to one another in accordance with the differential CONTROL signal applied as input thereto. The CONTROL signal may be produced, for example, by a digital-to-analog converter DAC 22 in response to input data. With reference to FIG. 2, the magnitudes of gain control currents GI⊘-GIn produced by gain control circuit 14 of FIG. 1 are are plotted as functions of the magnitude of the CONTROL voltage input to the gain control circuit. When the CONTOL voltage is at a level Va, the magnitude of GI⊘ is It amps and all other currents GI1-GIn are at ⊘ amps. As the CONTROL voltage is increased to Vb, the magnitude of GI⊘ is decreased to Ib and the magnitude of GI1 is increased to Ic, the sum of Ib and Ic being equal to It. As the CONTROL voltage is further increased to Vc, gain control current GI1 reaches its peak, equal in magnitude to source 20 current, It, current GI⊘ falls to ⊘ magnitude, and all other currents GI1-GIn remain at ⊘ magnitude. When the CONTROL voltage is again increased to Vd, gain control current GI2 raises to It, current GI1 falls to ⊘ magnitude, and all other currents GI⊘, and GI3-GIn stay at ⊘ magnitude. At CONTROL voltage Ve, current GI3 rises to Ia and current G12 falls to Id, where Ia + Id = It. Thus, the current It is provided as at least one of the control currents GI⊘ through GIn or is allocated between at most two adjacent ones of the control currents GI⊘ through GIn. The allocation of the current output of the source 20 of FIG. 1 is controllably apportioned between two adjacent control signals GI⊘ through GIn by fine adjustment of the CONTROL signal. For example, fine adjustment of the CONTROL signal between the voltages Vc and Vd provides controllable allocation of the current It between the currents GI1 and GI2. FIG. 3 illustrates an embodiment of the gain control circuit 14 of FIG. 1. Circuit 14 includes a set of transistors T⊘ through Tn, a set of current sources I⊘ through In, a set of resistors RA1 through RAn, transistors Q5 and Q6, resistors R3 and R4, and a current source 24. Current sources 1⊘-In all produce currents of similar magnitude, and the current output I of the current source 24 is equal to the sum of the current outputs of the current sources I⊘ through In. The collectors of the transistors T⊘ through Tn provide the gain control currents GI⊘ through GIn, respectively. The emitters of the transistors T⊘ through Tn are connected together and coupled to ground through the current source 20. The resistors RA1 through RAn are connected in series forming nodes N⊘ through Nn where node N⊘ is a first end of the series of resistors, node Nn is a second end of the series, and the nodes N1 through Nn-1 constitute points of connection between the resistors RA1 through RAn, respectively, such that node Nk forms the interconnection between resistors RAk and RAk+1. The collector of the transistor Q5 is connected to node N⊘, while the collector of transistor Q6 is connected to node Nn. Each of the current sources I⊘ through In couples a voltage source V to a corresponding one of the nodes N⊘ through Nn, respectively, and each of the transistors T⊘ through Tn has its base connected to a corresponding node N⊘ through Nn. The emitters of transistors Q5 and Q6 are coupled to the current source 24 through the resistors R3 and R4, respectively, and the CONTROL signal is applied across the bases of transistors Q5 and Q6. The current output of each current source Ik is supplied to the corresponding node Nk. From each node Nk the current output of source Ik is directed to the right and/or left through the resistor network and into the collector of Q5 and/or into the collector of Q6. If the CONTROL signal is large and negative, substantially all of the current produced by sources I0-In is supplied to the collector of Q6. Conversely, if the CONTROL signal is large and positive, substantially all of the current produced by sources I0-In is supplied to the collector of Q5. At intermediate CONTROL signal levels, a portion of the total current output of sources I0-In is supplied to the collector of Q5 and another portion of the total current is supplied to the collector of Q6. For each given level of CONTROL signal, the node N0-Nn carrying the smallest amount of current from right to left, or left to right, will have the highest potential, and the node carrying the next smallest amount of current will have the next highest potential. Current sources I0-In and resistors RA1-RAn are sized so that for any given CONTROL signal level, the potential of at least one, and not more than two, of nodes N⊘-Nn is sufficient to turn on the associated transistor T0-Tn. For example, if node N2 has the highest potential and node N1 has the next highest potential, then only transistors T1 and T2 will be on. As the CONTROL signal becomes more negative, more of the current output of source I2 is directed to the right toward the collector of Q6. The potential of node N1 falls, and the potential of node N2 rises. At some point, transistor T1 turns off and transistor T2 conducts all of current It. As the CONTROL signal becomes still more negative, the potential of node N2 begins to fall and the potential of node N3 (not shown) begins to rise. Transistor T3 (not shown) turns on and begins to conduct a portion of It, and transistor T2 conducts less of It. Thus, by adjusting the CONTROL signal level a minimum of one and a maximum of two adjacent transistors T0-Tn will turn on, and by finely adjusting the CONTROL signal, one may control the relative proportion of source current It conveyed by the two transistors T0-Tn that are on. As a result, the circuit of FIG. 3 operates in response to a range of CONTROL signal voltages to produce a range of control currents GI0-GIn in the manner illustrated in FIG. 2. FIGS. 4A through 4E illustrate operation of the delay circuit for the CONTROL signal voltages Va through Ve depicted in FIG. 2. In each case the INPUT signal rises from the first voltage to a second voltage at a time T⊘. FIG. 4A illustrates the relationship between load signal IL and amplifier output currents OUT⊘ through OUTn when the CONTROL signal has magnitude Va of FIG. 2 and the amplifier A⊘ receives all of the current output of current source 20 by way of the gain control current GI⊘. In response to the transition in the INPUT signal at time T⊘, the differential output current OUT⊘ of the amplifier A⊘ makes a transition from a first current IMIN to a second current IMAX beginning at time T⊘. Because the gain control current GI⊘ is at a maximum It amps, the output range IMAX-IMIN represents the maximum output range for the amplifier A⊘. The gain control currents GI1 through GIn are at substantially zero amps, and therefore the outputs OUT1 through OUTn remain substantially at zero volts and contribute nothing toward the signal IL. As a result, the load current IL follows the output current OUT⊘ of the amplifier A⊘ as it swings from IMIN to IMAX. FIG. 4B illustrates relationships between load current signal IL and amplifier output currents OUT⊘ through OUTn when the CONTROL signal has magnitude Vb of FIG. 2 and the amplifiers A⊘ and A1 each receive a portion of the current output of current source 20 by way of the gain control currents GI⊘ and GI1, respectively. In this case, the gain control current GI⊘ is Ib amps and the output range of the amplifier A⊘ is scaled by a factor of Ib/It relative to its maximum output range IMAX-IMIN. Similarly, the gain control current GI1 is Ic amps and the output range of the amplifier A1 is scaled by a factor of Ic/It relative to the range IMAX-IMIN. Beginning at the time T⊘, OUT⊘ makes a transition from magnitude IbMIN to magnitude IbMAX. The transition in the INPUT signal is presented, by way of delay buffer FDB1, to amplifier A1 at a later time T⊘+FD. In response, the output OUT1 of the amplifier A1 makes a transition from a current IcMIN to a current IcMAX beginning at the time T⊘+FD. Because the gain control currents GI2 through GIn are at substantially zero amps, the outputs OUT2 through OUTn remain substantially at zero amps and therefore contribute nothing toward the signal IL. The load current signal IL, being a sum of the outputs OUT⊘ and OUT1, goes from IMIN to IMAX beginning at the time T⊘ and finishing after the time (T⊘+FD). FIG. 4C illustrates relationships between load signal IL and amplifier outputs OUT⊘ through OUTn when the CONTROL signal equals Vc and amplifier A1 receives all of the current output of the current source 20 by way of the gain control current GI1. The transition in the INPUT signal is presented to the amplifier A1 at the time T⊘+FD and causes OUT1 to swing from IMIN to IMAX beginning at the time T⊘+FD. The gain control currents GI⊘ and GI2 through GIn, being substantially zero amps, maintain outputs OUT⊘ and OUT2 through OUTn at zero amps. As a result, the current IL follows OUT1 as it goes from IMIN to IMAX. FIG. 4D depicts relationships between load signal IL and amplifier outputs OUT⊘ through OUTn when the CONTROL signal equals Vd and amplifier A2 receives all of the current It by way of gain control current GI2. The amplifier A2 receives the transition in the input signal at the time T⊘+(2*FD) causing OUT2 to swing from IMIN to IMAX beginning at the time T⊘+(2*FD). The outputs OUT⊘, OUT1, and OUT3 through OUTn are held to zero amps by the ⊘ magnitude gain control currents GI⊘, GI1 and GI3 through GIn. The signal IL then follows the output OUT2 of the amplifier A2 as it goes from IMIN to IMAX. FIG. 4E shows the relationship between load signal IL and amplifier outputs OUT⊘ through OUTn when the CONTROL signal equals Ve and the amplifiers A2 and A3 each receive a portion of the current It by way of the gain control currents GI2 and GI3, respectively. In this case, the gain control current GI2 is Id amps and the output range of the amplifier A2 is scaled by a factor of Id/It relative to the range IMAX-IMIN. Similarly, the gain control current GI3 is Ia amps and the gain of the amplifier A3 is scaled by a factor of Ia/It relative to the range IMAX-IMIN. When the amplifier A2 receives the transition in the INPUT signal at the time T⊘+(2*FD) , OUT2 makes a transition from a current IdMIN to a current IdMAX. Similarly, OUT3 begins its swing from a current IaMIN to a current IaMAX when the transition in the INPUT signal reaches the amplifier A3 at the time T⊘+(3*FD). The ⊘ magnitude gain control currents GI⊘, GI1 and GI4 through GIn hold the outputs OUT⊘, OUT1, and OUT4 through OUTn at zero amps. The load current signal IL, being the sum of the outputs OUT2 and OUT3, goes from IMIN to IMAX beginning at the time T⊘+(2*FD) and finishing after the time T⊘+(3*FD). In comparing the FIGS. 4A through4E it may be appreciated that the load current signal IL is affected by the CONTROL signal. As the CONTROL signal varies from the voltage Va to the voltage Ve, the delay between a transition in the INPUT signal and the beginning of a transition in the load current signal IL increases. In cases where the current It is provided to a single given amplifier, such as in FIGS. 4A, 4C, and 4D, the load current IL sharply rises from IMIN to IMAX beginning at a time corresponding to the time at which the given amplifier receives the transition in the INPUT signal. However, in cases where the current It is allocated between a first given amplifier and an adjacent second given amplifier, such as illustrated in FIGS. 4B and 4E, the manner in which the load current IL increases determined by the relative contributions of the first and second given amplifiers. If the first given amplifier dominates production of the signal IL, as in FIG. 4B, then the signal IL is steep at the beginning of its response and flatter at the end of its response. Conversely, if the second given amplifier dominates production of the signal IL, as in FIG. 4E, then the signal IL is flatter at the beginning of its swing and steeper at the end of its swing. FIGS. 5A through 5C further illustrate the effect of the CONTROL signal on the shape of the load current signal IL where the CONTROL signal varies between the voltages Vc and Vd of FIG. 2. In each case the signal OUT1 begins its response to the INPUT signal transition at the time T⊘+FD and the signal OUT2 begins its response to the INPUT signal transition at the time T⊘+2*FD. FIG. 5A depicts a case where the CONTROL signal is such that 75% of the current It is directed through the amplifier A1 and 25% is directed through the amplifier A2. As a result, the output OUT1 is scaled to 75% of the range IMAX-IMIN and the output OUT2 is scaled to 25% of the range IMAX-IMIN. The load currents signal IL, being the sum of signals OUT1 and OUT2, varies between IMIN and IMAX and, because the amplifier A1 dominates production of IL, the rise of IL is relatively sharp in the beginning of its swing and relatively flatter at the end of its swing. In FIG. 5B the CONTROL signal causes 5Ø% of the current It to be directed through the amplifier A1 and 5⊘% to be directed through the amplifier A2. The outputs OUT1 and OUT2 are then scaled to 50% of the range IMAX-IMIN. Because the amplifiers A1 and A2 contribute equally to the signal IL, the response of IL is relatively uniform. In FIG. 5C the CONTROL signal directs 25% of the current It through the amplifier A1 and 75% through the amplifier A2. As a result, the output OUT1 is scaled to 25% of the range IMAX-IMIN and the output OUT2 is scaled to 75% of the range IMAX-IMIN. Because the amplifier A2 dominates production of the load current signal IL, the response of IL is relatively flat in the beginning and more steep at the end. Variations in load current signal IL between the values IMIN and IMAX produce proportional variations in the differential voltage signal VL between a first voltage VMIN and a second voltage VMAX. The emitter-follower output stage 12 amplifies the signal VL with unity gain to produce the delay circuit OUTPUT voltage signal. Since the value of the CONTROL signal affects the time and shape of the load current signal IL response, the time and shape of the VL and OUTPUT signal responses are similarly affected. A voltage threshold Vth, between VMIN and VMAX, may be taken as a cross-over point at which the OUTPUT signal changes from a first logic state to a second logic state. An external circuit receiving the OUTPUT signal would interpret OUTPUT as, for example, a logic ⊘ level for voltages below the threshold Vth and a logic 1 level for voltages above the threshold Vth. Because the CONTROL signal determines when the OUTPUT signal begins its response and determines whether the OUTPUT signal rises early or rises late in its response to a transition in the INPUT signal, the CONTROL signal magnitude determines when the OUTPUT signal crosses the threshold Vth and, accordingly, when the OUTPUT signal passes from logic ⊘ to logic 1. In the FIGS. 4A-4E and 5A-5C, the curve representing the load current signal IL is also representative of the load voltage signal VL and of the delay circuit OUTPUT voltage, the signals VL and OUTPUT being directly proportional to the signal IL. Thus, the FIGS. 4A-4E and 5A-5C also plot the rise of the OUTPUT signal from VMIN to VMAX as IL rises from IMIN to IMAX in response to a transition in the INPUT signal for various CONTROL signal values and indicate a delay provided between the rising edge of the INPUT signal, at the time T⊘, and the transition of the OUTPUT signal as it rises above the threshold VTH. In FIG. 4A, when the control signal is at Va, the OUTPUT signal rises sharply at the time T⊘ and crosses the voltage VTH at a time T1 to provide a delay of T1-T⊘ seconds between the state transition in the INPUT signal and a corresponding state transition in the OUTPUT signal. Because the INPUT signal is applied directly to the amplifier A1, there being no intervening delay buffer, the delay T1-T⊘ represents the minimum delay provided by the delay circuit. In FIG. 4B, the OUTPUT signal rises to cross the threshold VTH at a time T2, later than the time T1, to provide a delay of T2-T⊘ seconds. In FIG. 4C, the CONTROL voltage Vc causes the OUTPUT signal to cross VTH at a time T3, later than the time T2. In the FIGS 5A, 5B, and 5C, when the CONTROL signal voltage is varied between Vc and Vd, the OUTPUT signal crosses the voltage VTH at successively later times T4, T5, and T6. In FIG. 4D the control voltage Vd causes the OUTPUT signal to cross VTH at a time T7, later than T6. Finally, as illustrated in FIG. 4E, at the CONTROL signal voltage Ve the OUTPUT signal crosses VTH at a time T8, later than T7. At a CONTROL signal voltage wherein all of the current It is provided as the gain control current GIn, the delay between a transition in the INPUT signal and a transition in the OUTPUT signal through VTH is maximized at a time TMAX, the transition in the INPUT signal being delayed by all of the delay buffers FDB1 through FDBn before reaching the amplifier An, the only amplifier then contributing toward production of the load current IL. By fine adjustment of the CONTROL signal, any delay time between the minimum delay of T1-T⊘ and the maximum delay of TMAX-T⊘ is provided by the delay circuit. FIGS. 4A-4E and 5A-5C illustrate circuit behavior when the INPUT signal makes a positive going or rising edge transition. In the case of a negative going or falling edge transition in the INPUT signal, the OUTPUT signal makes a transition from VMAX to VMIN. For a given CONTROL voltage magnitude, the delay between the falling edge of the INPUT signal and a subsequent falling of the OUTPUT signal below the threshold VTH corresponds to the delay time between the rising edge of the INPUT signal and subsequent rise of the OUTPUT signal above the threshold VTH. For example, if the CONTROL signal is such that approximately 75% of the current It of is directed through the amplifier A1 and approximately 25% is directed through the amplifier A2, as is the case of FIG. 5A, then a delay time of T4-T⊘ will transpire between the falling edge of the INPUT signal and the time at which OUTPUT passes from above VTH to below VTH. In reference to FIGS. 1, 4A-4E, and 5A-5C, the IL signal should make a continuously increasing transition between IMIN and IMAX to establish a continuous range of available delay times and to avoid an ambiguous condition where the OUTPUT signal remains for a time at or near the threshold voltage VTH. To insure a continuously increasing transition in the IL signal between IMIN and IMAX, a given amplifier Ak should not complete its response to a state change in its input signal until after amplifier Ak+1 has begun its response to the state change in its input signal. For example, the amplifier A1 should not complete its response before the amplifier A2 begins its response. Otherwise, if the amplifier Ak were to complete its response before the amplifier Ak+1 began its response, the IL signal would follow the output OUTk of amplifier Ak to an intermediate level between IMIN and IMAX and remain at that intermediate level until amplifier Ak+1 began its response. In such case, the OUTPUT signal rises rapidly during the response of the amplifier Ak and during the response of the amplifier Ak+1, but rises very slowly during an intervening period. Further, if the OUTPUT signal is near the threshold VTH during the intervening period, the OUTPUT signal could cross VTH at any time during that period due to noise in the circuit and the "delay time" of the circuit would be unpredictable. Thus, the signal propagation time of the amplifiers A⊘ through An should be greater than FD seconds, the signal propagation time of the fixed delay buffers FDB1 through FDBn, so that each amplifier can begin its response before the preceding amplifier completes its response. As used herein, the "signal propagation time" of a device may be taken as the rise time of the device from 10% of its output to 90% of its output for a given change in input voltage level. While the INPUT signal and OUTPUT signal state changes have been shown as a transition from a first positive voltage to a second positive voltage, it is understood that high and low logic levels represented by such transitions are presented for illustration and are not essential to proper operation of the described circuit. For example, positive to negative and negative to positive transitions may be employed to represent transitions between a first logic level and a second logic level. A circuit interpreting the OUTPUT signal may take a threshold voltage between the positive and negative voltages in order to detect a transition between logic 1 and logic ⊘; there is no requirement that the threshold differential be a positive voltage differential. Thus, it may be seen that by adjusting the CONTROL signal, the time at which the OUTPUT signal chances state (i.e., crosses Vth) in response to a change in state of the INPUT signal at T⊘ can be adjusted to any value between T1 and TMAX. Accordingly, the delay between a change in state of the INPUT and OUTPUT signals can be adjusted with a high degree of resolution limited only by the resolution with which the CONTROL signal may be adjusted. The delay circuit of the present invention requires few passive circuit elements, and may therefore be efficiently incorporated into an integrated circuit without requiring excessive circuit area.

Claims: A method utilizing a first amplifier (A0) and at least two additional (A1-An) amplifiers for providing a delayed output signal that changes state in delayed response to an input signal, the method including the steps of generating a plurality of delayed signals from the input signal, the delayed signals changing state at different incremental times in delayed response to a change in state of the input signal, and of combining the delayed signals and the input signal to produce the delayed output signal, characterized in that the combining step comprises the steps of: amplifying the input signal using the first amplifier to produce a first amplifier output (OUT0); amplifying each delayed signal using the corresponding additional amplifier to produce additional amplifier outputs (OUT1-OUTn); and adjusting the gain of each of the first and additional amplifiers through a range of amplification in response to a control signal, the output signal being combined from only two amplifier outputs (OUT0-OUTn) associated to consecutive incremental times so that the delayed output signal has a range of delays relative to the input signal that includes delays intermediate of said consecutive incremental times. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that the combining step further comprises the step of summing the first and additional amplifier outputs to produce the delayed output signal, at least one and not more than two of the first and additional amplifiers being adjusted for a non-zero gain and all others of the first and additional amplifiers being adjusted for zero gain. A delay circuit for producing an output signal that changes state in delayed response to a change in state of an input signal, the delay circuit having means (FDB1-FDBn) for providing a plurality of delayed signals that change state at differing incremental times in delayed response to a change in state in the input signal, and means for combining the delayed signals and the input signal to produce the output signal, characterized in that the combining means comprises: first amplification means (A0) for receiving the input signal as input and providing a first amplifier output (OUT0); a plurality of additional amplification means (A1-An), each corresponding to a separate one of the delayed signals, each additional amplification means receiving the corresponding delayed signal as input and providing a separate additional amplifier output (OUT1-OUTn); and means (14) for adjusting the gain of each of the first and additional amplification means through a range of amplification in response to a control signal, the output signal being combined from only two amplifier outputs (OUT0-OUTn) associated to consecutive incremental times so that the output signal is delayed from the input signal over a range of delays that includes delays intermediate of said consecutive incremental times. A delay circuit according to claim 3, characterized in that the combining means further comprises means (16, 18) for summing the first and additional amplifier outputs to produce the output signal, and said adjusting means (14) adjust at least one and not more than two of the first and additional amplification means (A0-An) for a non-zero gain and all others of the first and additional amplification means (A0-An) for zero gain. A delay circuit according to claim 3, characterized in that the adjusting means comprises: a first current source (20) for providing a first current (It); and means for selectively dividing the first current in accordance with the control signal to provide a first gain control current (GI0) to control the gain of the first amplification means and a plurality of additional gain control currents (GI1-GIn) to control the gain of the additional amplification means. A delay circuit according to claim 5, characterized in that the dividing means comprises: a plurality of gain control transistors (T0-Tn), each corresponding to a separate one of the first and additional gain control currents and each having a first terminal, a second terminal coupled to the first current source and a third terminal for providing one of the first and additional gain control currents; and means for determining control voltages at the first terminals, the control voltages being adjusted in accordance with the magnitude of the control signal so that at least one and not more than two gain control currents have non-zero magnitudes. A delay circuit according to claim 6, characterized in that the determining means comprises: a plurality of resistors (RA1-RAn) connected in series, each resistor being connected between the first terminals of a corresponding pair of the gain control transistors; a plurality of current sources (I0-In), each connected to the first terminal of a separate one of the gain control transistors; and a control amplifier (Q5, Q6) responsive to the control signal for producing a differential control current applied to opposite ends of the series of resistors so that the control voltages are developed across the resistors in accordance with the magnitude of the control signal.

Inventors: TRAA, EINAR ODDBJORN
Applicants: TEKTRONIX, INC.
Application year: 1988
Main classification: H03K5
IPC codes: H03K17, H03H11, H03K5