Patent ID: 7126432

Claim:
A multiphase-realigned voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO) circuit, comprising: a plurality of inverting stages coupled together in series into a ring, each of these inverting stages in the ring providing an oscillating voltage signal to the next stage in the ring with a relative phase delay between the stages automatically adjusting itself according to the number of stages in the ring, each inverting stage in the ring responsive to a control voltage input to provide a long-term adjustment of propagation time delay through each inverting stage in the ring and hence adjusting the oscillating frequency of the ring to a target frequency; and an output stage coupled to an output of one of the inverting stages, the output stage configured to provide a VCO clock output; wherein each of the inverting stages in the ring is further coupled to receive in parallel a realignment current impulse, these inverting stages responsive to said realignment current impulse effective to immediately shift the phase of the oscillating voltage signal output from each stage, whereby an overall phase realignment of the VCO clock output is achieved after a relative phase readjustment between the stages.