Patent ID: 7865337

Claim:
An apparatus for reading out an analog sensor output signal, of a sensor, modulated with a fundamental frequency f 0 , the apparatus comprising: a loop filter for filtering the analog sensor output signal that is modulated with the fundamental frequency f 0 and is combined with a feedback signal to provide a filtered analog sensor output signal in which frequency proportions present in a frequency range Î”f with respect to the fundamental frequency f 0 are amplified; a sample-quantizer for sampling and quantizing the filtered analog sensor output signal to provide a time-discrete, quantized sensor output signal; and a feedback circuit for feeding the feedback signal based on the time-discrete, quantized sensor output signal back to the loop filter and for providing a readout signal, wherein the readout signal corresponds to the time-discrete, quantized sensor output signal or a time-discrete, quantized sensor output signal demodulated with respect to the fundamental frequency f 0 .