Patent ID: 7440738

Claim:
A device comprising: an input for receiving an incoming signal with a high dynamic range; a first amplification arrangement for amplifying the incoming signal; a first detector configured to determine the power level of the incoming signal after passing through the first amplification arrangement when the power level of the incoming signal, as received at the input, is within a first resolving power-indicated range in which the detector provides an approximately linearly proportional output with respect to the incoming signal; a second amplification arrangement connected to the first amplification arrangement; an analog-to-digital converter for performing analog-to-digital conversion of a signal derived from an output signal of the second amplification arrangement; a second detector coupled between the second amplification arrangement and the analog-to-digital converter, configured to determine the power level of the incoming signal after further passing the incoming signal through the second amplification arrangement, when the power level of the incoming signal, as received at the input, is within a second resolving power-indicated range in which the detector provides an approximately linearly proportional output with respect to the incoming signal, the second resolving power-indicated range being lower than the first resolving power-indicated range; and, a gain control unit for, in response to the power level of the incoming signal being within one of the first resolving power-indicated range and the second resolving power-indicated range, controlling respective gains of the first and second amplification arrangements based on a determination of the power level by the first or the second detector and in response to the power level of the incoming signal, as received at the input, not being within either of the first resolving power-indicated range and the second resolving power-indicated range, modifying the respective resolving power-indicated range for one of the first detector and the second detector based on respective output states of the first and second detectors.