Abstract:
The invention discloses a transmitting apparatus. The transmitting apparatus uses the same transmission medium to transmit two signals that are within different frequency ranges at the same time. The transmitting apparatus increases the transmitting paths of the transmission medium so as to enhance the use of the transmission medium and save the production costs.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    (a) Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    The present invention relates to a transmitting apparatus and more particularly to a method and an apparatus that can increase the means of signal transmission in an existing transmitting apparatus. 
         [0003]    (b) Description of the Related Art 
         [0004]    Currently, the data transmission between the host side and the client side of the Ethernet transmitting apparatus utilizes a physical layer circuit to transmit and receive data signals. As the information technologies evolve continuously, not only the types of data and the data volume to be transmitted are increasing more and more but also the nature and the functionalities of the data are changing more and more. Since there is usually only one single signal transmitting path between the physical layer circuits in the prior art, the connection between the host side and the client side will be interrupted when the network is unstable while data signals are transmitted and received through the physical layer circuits. Thus, the user is often unable to accurately transmit necessary information through such a signal transmitting path so that accurate data transmission and control become impossible. Therefore, the user faces inconveniences while using such a signal transmitting path. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    In light of the above-mentioned problems, one object of the invention is to provide a transmitting apparatus that is capable of increasing the signal transmitting path under the premise of not increasing the network line. 
         [0006]    One object of the invention is to provide a transmitting apparatus that the transmitting apparatus may communicate with other transmitting apparatus without using the physical layer circuit. 
         [0007]    One other object of the invention is to provide a transmitting apparatus that can transmit additional signals over the same transmission medium without impacting the existing signal transmission of the physical layer circuit. 
         [0008]    One embodiment of the invention provides a transmitting apparatus comprising a transformer, a transmitting unit, and a control unit. 
         [0009]    The transformer comprises a primary side and a secondary side for performing signal transformation between the signal of the primary side and the signal of the secondary side. The transmitting unit is coupled to the primary side of the transformer for generating a first data signal and transmitting the first data signal to the primary side or receiving the first data signal from the primary side. The first data signal is operated within a first frequency range. The control unit is coupled to the secondary side of the transformer for generating a second data signal and transmitting the second data signal to the secondary side or receiving the second data signal from the secondary side. The second data signal is operated within a second frequency range. The first frequency range is different from the second frequency range whereas the second data signal and the first data signal are transmitted simultaneously via the same transmission medium. 
         [0010]    The transmitting apparatus according to the embodiment of the invention can transmit data signals of different frequencies over the existing transmission medium. The transmission medium not only can facilitate bi-directional communication between the host side and the client side but also can provide another signal transmitting path to have the existing twisted pair cable achieve more functions. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]      FIG. 1A  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention; 
           [0012]      FIG. 1B  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention; 
           [0013]      FIG. 1C  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the signal transmission of the transmitting apparatus shown in  FIG. 1A ; 
           [0014]      FIG. 2A  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention; 
           [0015]      FIG. 2B  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention; 
           [0016]      FIG. 3A  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention; 
           [0017]      FIG. 3B  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention; 
           [0018]      FIG. 4  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention; 
           [0019]      FIG. 5  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention; 
           [0020]      FIG. 6A  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention; 
           [0021]      FIG. 6B  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention; and 
           [0022]      FIG. 7  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0023]      FIG. 1A  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the transmitting apparatus  100  comprises a host side  10 , a client side  11 , and a transmission medium  12 . 
         [0024]    The host side  10  comprises a transformer  101 , a transmitting unit  102 , and a control unit  103 . The transformer  101  comprises one primary side  101   a  and one secondary side  101   b . The transformer  101  is to transform the signal that passes through the primary side  101   a  and to output the transformed signal to the secondary side  101   b.    
         [0025]    The transmitting unit  102  is coupled to the primary side  101   a  of the transformer  101  for transmitting the first data signal S 1  generated by the transmitting unit  102  to the primary side  101   a  of the transformer  101 . In one embodiment, the first data signal S 1  can be a signal compliant with the IEEE 802.3 standards for providing data to the client side  11 . In another embodiment, the first data signal S 1  is operated within a first frequency range F 1  and is substantially a high frequency signal. 
         [0026]    The control unit  103  is coupled to the secondary side  101   b  of the transformer  101  for generating a second data signal S 2  and transmitting the second data signal S 2  to the secondary side  101   b  of the transformer  101 . In one embodiment, the second data signal S 2  can be a control signal for controlling the operation of the client side  11 . The second data signal S 2  is operated within a second frequency range F 2  and is substantially a low frequency signal. What is to be noted is although the control unit  103  or  105  in this embodiment of the invention is coupled to the center tap of the secondary side  101   b  or  104   a  of the transformer  101  or  104 , the method or the position of coupling to the secondary side  101   b  or  104   a  of the transformer  101  or  104  can be changed according to the applications to be developed in the future and the invention is not limited by these examples. 
         [0027]    In one embodiment, the transmitting unit  102  of the transmitting apparatus  100  can be implemented by a physical layer transceiver. It should be noted that the transmitting unit  102  is applicable to a current modulator-demodulator (modem), IP sharing device, router, network card, or the like or to a network transmitting apparatus to be developed in the future. Obviously, the architecture of the physical layer circuit of the transmitting unit  102  of the embodiment of the invention can be designed independently by the R&amp;D personnel or designed together with the control unit  103 . 
         [0028]    In one embodiment, the transmission medium  12  can utilize twisted-paired wires for transmission. For example, the transmission medium  12  can be the popularly existing transmission lines in compliance with the CAT-6, CAT-5e, and CAT-5 standards. Obviously, the applications of the invention are not limited by these examples and the transmission medium  12  can comprise various existing transmission lines or transmission lines to be developed in the future. For example, as shown in  FIG. 1B , the transmission medium is a transmission line in compliance with the CAT-5 standard and comprises four twisted-paired wires where each twisted-paired wire comprises a first transmitting path  12   a  (shown by the dashed lines) and a second transmitting path  12   b . Both of the two transmitting paths  12   a ,  12   b  can receive the first data signal S 1  and the second data signal S 2  and transmit the first data signal S 1  and the second data signal S 2  to the client side  11 . For simplicity, only one twisted-paired wire and its related circuit is shown in  FIG. 1A . 
         [0029]    Please refer to  FIGS. 1A and 1C  simultaneously.  FIG. 1C  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the signal transmission of the transmitting apparatus shown in  FIG. 1A . It should be noted although only the data signals S 1 , S 2  transmitting from the host side  10  to the client side  11  are shown in  FIG. 1C , the client side  11  can also transmit the data signals S 1 , S 2  to the host side  10  correspondingly. 
         [0030]    The first data signal S 1  generated by the transmitting unit  102  can be a differential signal. In one embodiment, the control unit  103  can be a sideband signal driver. The second data signal S 2  generated by the control unit  103  can be a single-ended signal. Besides, the control unit  103  is coupled to the center tap of the secondary side  101   b . When the signal transition is generated by the control unit  103  or when the control unit  102  or the control unit  103  is interfered by the electromagnetic interference (EMI), the interfering noise will be transmitted separately by the first transmitting path  12   a  and the second transmitting path  12   b  of the transmission medium  12 . Since the noise signals on the two transmitting paths are of substantially the same amplitude and substantially the same phase, the noise signals cancel each other out as the signal polarities of the two paths are substantially reverse to each other. Therefore, the second data signal S 2  will not have any influence on the first data signal S 1  transmitted originally by the transmission medium  12  under any circumstances. It should be noted that the second data signal S 2  generated by the control unit  103  can also be a differential signal, in another embodiment. 
         [0031]    Furthermore, the first data signal S 1  is operated within the first frequency range F 1  while the second data signal S 2  is operated within the second frequency range F 2 . In one embodiment, the first frequency range F 1  is within a high frequency range, such as 1 GHz, and the second frequency range is within a frequency range that is far less than the first frequency range F 1 , such as 10 KHz. Therefore, the first data signal S 1  and the second data signal S 2  can be simultaneously carried and transmitted by the transmission medium  12 . For example, in this embodiment, the transmitting unit  102  transmits the first data signal S 1 , a high frequency signal, to the primary side  101   a  of the transformer  101  and, after voltage conversion, the first data signal S 1  is outputted from the secondary side  101   b . Then, the data is transmitted to the client side  11  via the transmission medium  12 . The control unit  103  transmits the second data signal S 2 , a low frequency signal, to the center tap of the secondary side  101   b  of the transformer  101  and then it is transmitted to the client side  11  via the transmission medium  12 . It should be noted since the transformer  101  is an AC coupling device, the low frequency signal inputted to the center tap of the secondary side  101   b  will not be transmitted to the primary side  101   a  of the transformer  101  and thus will not affect the transmitting unit  102  and the network data signal transmitted by the transmitting unit  102 . 
         [0032]    Thus, the control unit  103  can transmit additional signals to the client side along the same path of transmitting the network data signal to accomplish various special functions without additional cabling. Significant cost reduction can be achieved and various additional functions are provided. For example, in the prior art, when the network signal is not stable, the control unit of the transmitting apparatus according to the embodiment of the invention can be utilized to provide the control signal to the control unit of the client side along the same path of the network transmission for communicating and controlling the transmitting unit of the client side. Therefore, the problems in the prior art are solved. 
         [0033]    Furthermore, the client side  11  of the transmitting apparatus  100  according to this embodiment of the invention comprise a transformer  104 , a control unit  105 , and a transmitting unit  106 . The transformer  104  comprises one secondary side  104   a  and one primary side  104   b . The secondary side of the transformer  104  is to transform the signal received from the secondary side  104   a  and output it via the primary side  104   b  or to transform the signal inputted from the primary side  104   b  and output it via the secondary side  104   a . The control unit  105  is coupled to the center tap of the secondary side  104   a  of the transformer  104  for receiving the second data signal S 2 . The transmitting unit  106  is coupled to the primary side  104   b  of the transformer  104  for receiving or generating the first data signal S 1 . In one embodiment, the control unit  105  of the client side  11  can be implemented by a sideband signal receiver. The transmitting unit  106  can comprise physical layer circuits. Furthermore, although the above descriptions are about the host side  10  transmitting signals to the client side  11 , bi-directional communication between the host side  10  and the client side  11  or the client side  11  transmitting signals to the host side  10  can all be performed according to the embodiment of the invention. The control units  103  and  105  can also perform bi-directional communication by utilizing the second data signal S 2  generated by the control unit. 
         [0034]    Furthermore, the second data signal S 2  according to the embodiment of the invention is a signal, either a digital or analogue signal for assisting the communication between the host side  10  and the client side  11 , but is not power and is different from the power supplying technology. 
         [0035]    From the architecture and the signals shown in  FIGS. 1A and 1C , when there are more than two transmitting apparatuses  100 , the same twisted-paired wires can be utilized to transmit signals, that are operated within different frequency ranges, to be transmitted by the transmitting apparatus  100 . For example, when a data signal S 1  (such as: a data signal in compliance with the IEEE 802.3 standard) and a second data signal S 2  (it can be a serial communication signal such as an I2C signal) at the host side  10  need to be transmitted to the client side  11 , the data signal S 1  can be outputted to the primary side  101   a  of the transformer  101  by the transmitting unit  102  of the host side  10  and the second data signal S 2  can be outputted to the secondary side  101   b  of the transformer  101  by the control unit  103  of the host side  10 . Then, the data signal S 1  and the second data signal S 2  can be simultaneously transmitted to the client side  11  via the transmission medium  12  and are separately received by the transmitting unit  106  and the control unit  105  of the client side  11 . Since the operating frequency of the data signal S 1  is about millions of Hertz (Mega Hz) and the operating frequency of the second data signal S 2  is about several thousands of Hertz (KHz), the signals are operated within different frequency ranges. Therefore, the transmitting apparatus  100  according to the embodiment of the invention can transmit two or more signals via a single twisted-paired wire. 
         [0036]      FIG. 2A  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus  200  according to one embodiment of the invention. The transmitting apparatus  200  is designed for open drain bi-directional signal transmission. The control unit  203  of the host side  10  comprises a receiver  203   a , a resistor  203   b , and a transistor  203   c . The control unit  205  of the client side  11  comprises a receiver  205   a , a resistor  205   b , and a transistor  205   c . The resistors  203   b ,  205   b  according to this embodiment of the invention are pull-up resistors. In another embodiment, the resistors  203   b ,  205   b  shown in  FIG. 2B  are pull-down resistors. Obviously, according to the embodiments of the invention, the resistors can be designed by various types of transistors. In addition, the above-mentioned transistors can be implemented by various types of transistors that are currently available or to be developed in the future. 
         [0037]    Please refer to  FIG. 2A . One terminal of the resistor  203   b  of the control unit  203  is coupled to the voltage supply Vdd while the other terminal is coupled to the drain of the transistor  203   c . The source of the transistor  203   c  is coupled to ground and the center tap of the secondary side of the transformer  102 ′, the drain is coupled to the center tap of the secondary side of the transmitting unit  102 , and the gate is to receive a control signal provided by other internal circuitries of the control unit  203 . The receiver  203   a  can be an input/output (I/O) unit where the input terminal is coupled to the center tap of the secondary side of the transformer of the transmitting unit  102  as the receiving end for receiving the data signal S 2  transmitted from the client side  11  to the host side  10 . The output terminal of the receiver  203   a  is to transmit the data signal S 2  to the other internal circuitries of the control unit  203 . 
         [0038]    Detailed descriptions of the operating principle of the transmitting apparatus  200  shown in  FIG. 2A  will be given hereinafter as one example. When the client side  11  is to provide a data signal S 2  to the host side  10  via the center tap of the transformer, the control unit  203  of the host side  10  uses the receiver  203   a  to receive the data signal S 2  via the center tap. The receiver  203   a  then provides the data signal S 2  to the other internal circuitries of the control unit  203  for processing. When the host side  10  needs to control the client side  11  or to communicate with the client side  11 , the other internal circuitries of the control unit  203  of the host side  10  provide a control signal to drive the gate of the transistor  203   c  for controlling the state of conduction of the transistor and generating a data signal S 2  by working with the resistor  203  together. The data signal S 2  is provided through the center tap of the transformer, the transmission medium, and the center tap of the transformer of the client side  11  to the control unit  205  of the client side  11  for achieving the effect of control or communication. 
         [0039]    Further details should be understood by those who are skilled in the art from the figures and the above-mentioned descriptions. The operating principle and the architecture of the client side  11  are the same as the host side. The input terminal of the receiver  205   a  is the input terminal of the client side  11  for receiving the data signal S 2  from the host side  10 . The gate of the transistor  205   c  is the output terminal for the other internal circuitries of the control unit  205  of the client side  11  to provide the data signal S 2  to the host side  10 . According to the architecture of the circuit, both of the host side  10  and the client side  11  can utilize the original network data transmission path to transmit additional signals for bi-directional communication. 
         [0040]    Please refer to  FIG. 3A .  FIG. 3A  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus  300  according to one embodiment of the invention. The transmitting apparatus  300  is an optical coupled one-way differential signal transmitting apparatus. The receiver of the control unit  303  of the host side  10  utilizes a local power supply and outputs two signals with opposite polarities to the secondary sides of the two transmitting units. The control unit  305  of the client side  11  receives the two signals via the transmission medium (two twisted-paired wires) and then outputs them. An optical coupling device is provided in the client side  11  for maintaining good electrical isolation between the host side  10  and the client side  11  when the client side  11  receives the second data signal S 2 . It should be noted that the optical coupling device shown in the figure comprises an infrared LED and an NPN silicon photo sensor. The optical coupling device of the transmitting apparatus according to the embodiment of the invention can be implemented by various types of existing devices or devices to be developed in the future that are capable of providing electrical isolation. On the other hand, one-way single-ended transmission principle can also be utilized for the operation of the transmitting apparatus  300  according to the embodiment of the invention, as shown in  FIG. 3B . A resistor can also be added to the front-end of the optical coupling device to improve the transmission performance. 
         [0041]    Please refer to  FIG. 4 .  FIG. 4  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus  400  according to one embodiment of the invention. The transmitting apparatus  400  is an ADC/DAC one-way signal transmission device. The control unit  403  of the host side  10  is implemented by a digital-to-analog converter while the control unit  405  of the client side  11  is implemented by an analog-to-digital converter. Thus, the transmitting apparatus  400  according to the embodiment of the invention can utilize a single line to transmit multiple-bit data. 
         [0042]    Please refer to  FIG. 5 .  FIG. 5  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus  500  according to one embodiment of the invention. The transmitting apparatus  500  is a one-way signal modulation device. The control unit  503  of the host side  10  can be implemented by a modulator. The modulator can be a frequency modulator, an amplitude modulator, or a phase modulator or the like. The control unit  505  of the client side  11  can be implemented by the corresponding demodulator. The demodulator can be implemented by a frequency demodulator, an amplitude demodulator, or a phase demodulator. 
         [0043]      FIG. 6A  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus  600  according to one embodiment of the invention. The transmitting apparatus  600  is one example of the differential signal one-way transmission. The control unit  603  of the host side  10  and the control unit  605  of the client side  11  each include a receiver. As shown in the figure, the second data signal S 2  being transmitted is a differential signal and is transmitted from the host side  10  to the client side  11  via two sets of twisted-paired wires. In another embodiment, the direction of signal transmission can also be designed to be transmitted from the client side  11  to the host side  10 . 
         [0044]    It should be noted that the transmitting apparatus  600  shown in  FIG. 6B  can also be designed to operate via the single-ended signal one-way transmission approach. The host side and the client side can be common grounded. Those who are skilled in the art should be able to understand its operating method through the above-mentioned descriptions. Thus, further details will not be given herein. 
         [0045]      FIG. 7  shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmitting apparatus  700  according to one embodiment of the invention. The transmitting apparatus  700  utilizes a pass-through signaling design approach. The transmitting apparatus  700  provides a signal conducting path between the host side and the client side that can be used by various circuitries in a variety of possible applications for increasing the circuit functions. 
         [0046]    In conclusion, the transmitting apparatus according to the embodiment of the invention can transmit an additional sideband data signal over the existing transmission medium. The transmission medium not only can facilitate bi-directional communication between the host side and the remote client side but also can provide another signal transmitting path. The existing twisted pair cable can then provide a wide variety of functions. For example, an optical coupling path can be provided to the host side and the client side for transmitting or receiving control signals or transmitting or receiving data. A plurality of control and communication functions can then be achieved.