Patent ID: 6865239

Claim:
A communications device for connection to a communication network wherein information units transmitted thereover may be altered by deterministic distortion in a digital portion thereof, the communications device comprising: a receiver operable on a received signal to produce a received sequence corresponding to a symbol sequence of known characteristics transmitted over the communication network; a decision mechanism operable to generate a decision sequence, wherein elements of the decision sequence are separately calculated for each of M timing phases based on elements of the received sequence corresponding to a same timing phase, and wherein M is selected such that the deterministic distortion is guaranteed to be periodic in a period defined by the M timing phases; an adaptive update mechanism operable to update the receiver to reduce error between the decision sequence and the symbol sequence; wherein the receiver includes one or more of an equalizer, an echo canceller, timing recovery structures, and an adaptive filter; wherein the adaptive update mechanism is operable to update one or more of the equalizer, the echo canceller, the timing recovery structures, and the adaptive filter; wherein a training phase includes first and second portions, the communications device further comprising: an initial decision mechanism operable during the first portion to achieve at least gross convergence of the receiver, wherein the decision mechanism is operable thereafter during the second portion; wherein the training phase includes a third portions, the adaptive update mechanisms operable during the second portion; and further comprising a Digital Impairment Learning (DIL) mechanism operable during the third portion, prior operation of the decision and adaptive update mechanisms providing receiver training essentially insensitive to the deterministic distortion, if any, and thereby improving efficacy of the DIL mechanism.