Superheterodyne receiver frequency tracking circuit

• Main Authors: MALINOWSKI; CHRISTOPHER W, RINDERLE; HEINZ
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 17.05.1983
• Subjects: BASIC ELECTRONIC CIRCUITRY; ELECTRICITY; MEASURING; MEASURING ELECTRIC VARIABLES; MEASURING MAGNETIC VARIABLES; PHYSICS; SELECTING RESONANT CIRCUITS; TESTING; TUNING RESONANT CIRCUITS

In a superheterodyne signal receiver including an input circuit arranged to be tuned to a frequency to be received and including a signal controllable variable reactance element presenting a reactance whose value is adjusted by a tuning signal and determines the frequency to which the input circuit is tuned, and a controllable local oscillator producing an alternating signal to be mixed with a received signal to produce an intermediate frequency received signal, a tracking circuit composed of: a first frequency control circuit including the local oscillator; a second frequency control circuit including a controllable sampling oscillator and a member connected to respond to the frequency of the output from the sampling oscillator to derive a signal related thereto and supplying that signal, as the tuning signal, to the controllable element; and a control signal generating unit generating first and second control signals and connected for supplying the first control signal to the first frequency control circuit for adjusting the frequency of the signal produced by the local oscillator, and for supplying the second control signal to the second frequency control circuit for adjusting the value of the tuning signal to tune the input circuit to a selected frequency, the generating unit maintaining a relationship between the first and second control signals such that the output frequency of the local oscillator is adjusted to the value corresponding to the received signal frequency to which the input circuit is tuned.