JP5278516B2 - Transmission / reception device, reception control method, optical transmission module, and electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a transmitter capable of reducing power consumption and a receiver capable of shaping a waveform. <P>SOLUTION: An optical transmitter 1a comprises a waveform deformation circuit 2. The waveform deformation circuit 2 performs such processing that the time required for a two-level signal having a signal of "1" and a signal of "0" to fall is longer than the time required to fall. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2012,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a transmitting device that transmits a signal for performing data communication between a plurality of electronic components, a receiving device that receives the signal, and the like. In particular, the present invention relates to an optical transmission device that converts a signal supplied from one electronic component from an electrical signal to an optical signal and transmits the signal to the outside in an optical communication network, and converts an externally received signal from an optical signal to an electrical signal. The present invention relates to an optical receiver or the like that is converted and supplied to the other electronic component.

  Currently, in electronic devices such as portable telephones and other portable electronic devices (portable devices), data communication mainly using electrical wiring is performed. However, in recent years, in order to more suitably implement data communication in such electronic devices, development of data communication using optical wiring that can be handled in substantially the same manner as the electric wiring, that is, development of an optical communication network has been advanced. Yes.

  In recent years, optical communication networks have been widely applied to optical communication, optical networks, optical interconnections and the like as data communication means capable of high-speed and large-capacity data communication. In this optical communication network, a plurality of electronic components constituting an electronic device are connected by an optical transmission module (optical wiring), and, for example, a signal of 1 GHz is transmitted through the optical transmission module, thereby the electronic components. Data communication between them. The signal for performing this data communication is a binary signal composed of a signal “1” (high level signal) and a signal “0” (low level signal).

  An optical communication network has the following advantages. The first advantage is that it is not necessary to consider optical characteristics and noise resistance in designing electronic equipment. The second advantage is that it is possible to realize an electronic device having tough mechanical characteristics at a coupling portion with an optical waveguide constituting the optical transmission module. The third advantage is that electrical connection (connector connection) between a plurality of electronic components is possible, and the electronic device can be reduced in size and height. To put these advantages in a nutshell, optical communication networks can easily realize large-capacity data communication and can improve the degree of freedom in designing electronic devices that perform large-capacity data communication. There are advantages.

  In this type of optical communication network, data communication is performed using an optical transmission module in the following manner.

  A signal for data communication output from the electronic component on the transmission side is input to the optical transmission device of the optical transmission module as an electrical signal. The optical transmission device converts a signal from an electronic component on the transmission side from an electric signal to an optical signal, and transmits the signal to an optical reception device of an optical transmission module via an optical transmission medium (for example, an optical waveguide). The optical receiver converts the signal received from the optical transmitter from an optical signal to an electrical signal and supplies the signal to an electronic component on the receiving side.

  As can be seen from the above data communication procedure, in the optical communication network, there are a process of processing an electrical signal and a process of processing an optical signal in the process of data communication. In order to easily handle an optical communication network and promote downsizing of electronic equipment that performs data communication through the optical communication network, it is preferable to integrate means for processing electrical signals and means for processing optical signals. It is.

JP 2006-229981 A (released on August 31, 2006)

Hiroto Watanabe, Masayuki Kuwahara, Seiji Sakaguchi, Asaya Yokoyama, Haruo Miyazawa, Nobuyuki Sadakata: “A Study of High Frequency Characteristics of FPC”, Fujikura Technical Report, 110, P19-22, April 2006

  In a transmission apparatus that performs data communication using a binary signal, low power consumption is strongly desired. However, if the level of the binary signal is reduced to reduce power consumption, based on the binary signal, If the total amount of current generated is reduced, there is a possibility that data communication itself using binary signals may not be properly performed. As a result, there is a problem that it is difficult to reduce power consumption in a transmission apparatus that performs data communication using a binary signal.

  Hereinafter, the above problem will be described in detail by taking an optical transmission device of an optical transmission module as an example.

  In order to reduce power consumption in an optical transmission device of an optical transmission module, a current value of a bias current that generates a binary signal “0” is set to a current value as low as possible, preferably a threshold value of a semiconductor laser ( That is, it is required to reduce to a current value in the vicinity of “laser threshold” shown in FIG.

  Here, when the current value of the bias current is reduced to a current value near the threshold value, the current injection amount to the semiconductor laser (light emitting element) per unit time (time corresponding to one pulse of the binary signal). Decrease. As a result, in the semiconductor laser, the transition time from when the binary signal is converted from an electric signal to an optical signal and output by stimulated emission until the electron transitions from the ground state to the excited state becomes longer. on delay "occurs. Note that “Turn on delay” is a phenomenon in which the time for starting the oscillation of the semiconductor laser is delayed. The occurrence of “Turn on delay” increases the jitter of the optical signal output from the semiconductor laser. Here, the jitter is assumed to be a delay of the rising start time of the binary signal caused by “Turn on delay” as indicated by the reference symbol “tod” in FIG. That is, jitter is deterioration in waveform quality of a binary signal in the time axis direction due to “Turn on delay”.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 23, due to the increase in jitter caused by “Turn on delay”, the rising period of the binary signal (reference symbol “Tr (tod)” in FIG. 23) is within the region of the eye mask EM. In the optical transmission device, a bit error occurs. A bit error is a misrecognition of a “1” signal in a binary signal as a “0” signal (or a “0” signal as a “1” signal). In communication including an optical communication network, if a bit error occurs in one or more pulses out of 10 12 pulses, a communication error occurs, so the current value of the bias current is reduced. The bit error problem caused by the problem becomes a serious problem.

  From the above, in the optical transmitter of the optical transmission module, it is necessary to make the current value of the bias current sufficiently higher than the threshold value of the semiconductor laser, so that low current driving is difficult. This causes a problem that it is difficult to reduce power consumption in the optical transmission device of the optical transmission module.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a transmission device, a transmission control method, and the like that can reduce power consumption.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a receiving apparatus capable of shaping a waveform so as to easily receive a signal transmitted by the transmitting apparatus and output it appropriately to the outside with a simple circuit configuration. And providing a reception control method and the like.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the transmission device according to the present invention is a transmission device that transmits a binary signal having a high-level signal and a low-level signal, and the binary signal is required for falling. It is characterized in that the time is longer than the time required for rising.

  The transmission control method according to the present invention is a transmission control method for transmitting a binary signal having a high-level signal and a low-level signal in order to solve the above-described problem. It is characterized in that the time required for falling is transmitted in a waveform longer than the time required for rising.

  According to the above configuration, the time required for the fall of the binary signal is longer than the time required for the rise of the binary signal. As a result, the degree of decrease in the total amount of current generated based on the binary signal per unit time is compared to the case where the time required for falling of the binary signal is the same as the time required for rising. Get smaller. At this time, in order to make the reduction degree of the total amount of the current as small as possible, it is preferable to make the time required for the fall of the binary signal as long as possible. As a result, even if the level of the binary signal is significantly reduced, data transmission using the binary signal can be appropriately performed. Therefore, the transmission device according to the present invention is more than the transmission device according to the related art. Suitable for low current drive.

  Therefore, there is an effect that it is possible to reduce power consumption.

Here, the signal transmitted by the transmission apparatus according to the present invention includes a high-level signal and a low-level signal, and the time required for falling is longer than the time required for rising. The signal has a waveform unique to the transmission apparatus. For the optical signal between the transmitting and receiving devices, the electrical signal output from the receiving device to the external device is converted to a signal that satisfies the eye mask even if the fall time is extended to such an extent that the eye mask is not satisfied. Since it is output later, there is no problem.
Further, the signal transmitted by the transmission apparatus according to the present invention is greatly different in waveform from the signal transmitted by a known transmission apparatus. As a result, the signal transmitted by the transmission apparatus according to the present invention and received by the reception apparatus may become a signal that does not comply with the standard of the signal transmitted from the reception apparatus to the external apparatus. Therefore, when receiving the signal using a known receiving device, the receiving device cannot obtain a signal necessary for data communication from the receiving device to the external device, that is, the quality of the signal is data. There is a risk that the quality required for communication may not be satisfied. Therefore, there is a possibility that a known receiving apparatus cannot appropriately receive a signal transmitted by the transmitting apparatus according to the present invention.

  Therefore, as a receiving device that receives a signal transmitted by the transmitting device according to the present invention and appropriately outputs the signal to the outside, it is necessary to use a receiving device including waveform shaping means for performing waveform shaping.

  Here, conventionally, as a receiving apparatus including the waveform shaping means, for example, a configuration using a memory, a CDR (Clock Data Recovery), a PLL (Phase Locked Loop), or the like can be considered.

  However, since the receiving device according to the above-described conventional technology consumes a large amount of power in the memory, CDR, and PLL, there is a problem that the power consumption on the receiving device side is significantly increased. Since the purpose of realizing the transmission apparatus according to the present invention is to reduce power consumption in the first place, it is not preferable to apply the reception apparatus according to the related art.

  Therefore, as a result of intensive studies in view of the above problems, the present inventors are a receiving device that includes a waveform shaping unit that receives a signal and shapes the waveform of the received signal, and the received signal is A signal having a high level signal and a low level signal, the time required for falling is longer than the time required for rising, and the waveform shaping means determines the level of the received signal and the threshold level. A receiving device characterized by comparing and generating a binary signal having a high level signal and a low level signal based on the comparison result, thereby shaping the waveform of the received signal By applying it, it was found uniquely that power consumption can be reduced, and the present invention has been completed.

  In addition, as a result of intensive studies in view of the above problems, the present inventors are a reception control method by a receiving apparatus that receives a binary signal having a high level signal and a low level signal, The receiving apparatus receives the binary signal in a state where the time required for falling is longer than the time required for rising, compares the level of the received signal with a threshold level, and determines a high level based on the comparison result. By generating a binary signal having a level and a low level, and by applying a reception control method characterized by shaping the waveform of the received signal, it is possible to reduce power consumption. The present invention was originally found and the present invention was completed.

  According to the above configuration, the waveform shaping unit compares the level of the received signal with the threshold level, and generates a binary signal having a high level and a low level based on the comparison result. Therefore, the receiving device according to the present invention can shape the received signal, and thus can appropriately receive the signal output from the transmitting device according to the present invention.

  Further, the receiving device according to the present invention compares the level of the received signal with the threshold level, and generates a binary signal having a high level signal and a low level signal based on the comparison result. Easy shaping process. Therefore, power consumption can be significantly reduced as compared with a conventional configuration using a memory, CDR, PLL, or the like.

  Therefore, there is an effect that the waveform shaping can be performed with a simple circuit configuration so as to easily receive the signal transmitted by the transmitting apparatus and output it appropriately to the outside.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, a transmitting apparatus according to the present invention converts a light signal into an optical signal and transmits the light signal, and supplies the light signal to the light emitting element, thereby transmitting the light from the light emitting element. And a driving unit that outputs the signal and drives the light emitting element, and the electrical signal supplied to the light emitting element by the driving unit includes a high level signal and a low level signal. The value signal is characterized by being a waveform deformation signal having a longer waveform than the time required for the rise. The configuration for generating the waveform deformation signal may be a configuration further comprising waveform deformation means for converting the binary signal into the waveform deformation signal and supplying the waveform deformation signal to the drive means. Comprises waveform modifying means for transforming the binary signal into the waveform deformed signal and supplying it to the light emitting element.

  The receiving apparatus according to the present invention further includes a light receiving element that receives the signal as an optical signal, converts the signal from an optical signal to an electrical signal, and transmits the electrical signal to the waveform shaping unit.

  According to the above configuration, the driving unit of the transmission device according to the present invention supplies a waveform deformation signal having a waveform longer than the time required for rising to the light emitting element as an electric signal, and the light emitting element The waveform deformation signal is converted from an electrical signal to an optical signal and transmitted. Therefore, according to the above configuration, even if the current value of the bias current supplied to the light emitting element is reduced to a current value near the threshold value, the degree of decrease in the amount of current injected into the light emitting element per unit time is It becomes small and generation | occurrence | production of "Turn on delay" can be suppressed. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of bit errors due to an increase in jitter of the optical signal. As a result, the transmission device according to the present invention can be driven with a low current, and thus can reduce power consumption.

  Here, the optical signal output from the transmission apparatus according to the present invention includes a high-level signal and a low-level signal, and a signal that is the basis of the optical signal (for example, an input signal from the outside to the transmission apparatus). Or, compared with the output characteristics of the optical signal provided by the light emitting element (that is, the laser), the waveform unique to the transmitter according to the present invention is characterized in that the time required for falling is longer than the time required for rising. Signal. For the optical signal between the transmitting and receiving devices, the electrical signal output from the receiving device to the external device is converted to a signal that satisfies the eye mask even if the fall time is extended to such an extent that the eye mask is not satisfied. Since it is output later, there is no problem.

  Further, the signal transmitted by the transmission apparatus according to the present invention is greatly different in waveform from the signal transmitted by a known transmission apparatus. As a result, the optical signal transmitted by the transmission apparatus according to the present invention and received by the reception apparatus may become a signal that does not comply with the standard of the signal transmitted from the reception apparatus to the external apparatus. The signal that does not conform to the standard on the receiving device side is, for example, an optical signal in which the above-described eye mask region (the region is determined as the specification of the receiving device) has changed significantly. Therefore, when the optical signal is received using a known receiving device, the receiving device cannot obtain a signal necessary for data communication from the receiving device to the external device, that is, the quality of the signal is low. There is a risk that the quality required for data communication will not be satisfied. Therefore, there is a possibility that the known receiving device cannot appropriately receive the optical signal transmitted by the transmitting device according to the present invention.

  Therefore, as a receiving apparatus that receives an optical signal transmitted by the transmitting apparatus according to the present invention and appropriately outputs it to the outside, it is necessary to use a receiving apparatus that includes waveform shaping means for performing waveform shaping.

  According to the above configuration, in the receiving apparatus according to the present invention, the light receiving element receives the optical signal, converts it into an electrical signal, and transmits it to the waveform shaping means. These configurations are suitable when the transmission device and the reception device according to the present invention perform data communication using an optical signal.

  The transmitting apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that the waveform deformed signal has a shorter period of the high level signal.

  The receiving apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that the shaping is performed by setting the threshold level low.

  According to the above configuration, the waveform deformation signal transmitted by the transmission apparatus according to the present invention has a short high-level signal period. That is, since the waveform deformation signal is in a state where the average level per unit cycle as a binary signal is reduced, power consumption is reduced. And power consumption can be reduced by transmitting the waveform deformation signal in which this power consumption is falling.

  Moreover, according to said structure, the receiver concerning this invention can lengthen the period of a high level signal by setting the level of a threshold value low. Therefore, even when a signal having a reduced average level per unit period is received, the signal can be appropriately received by shaping the signal.

  Here, in order to reshape a signal whose average level per unit period is reduced by the receiving device including the waveform shaping means according to the above-described conventional technique, the signal received by the memory or the like is held, and a CDR, PLL, or the like is used. Therefore, it is necessary to extend the held signal in the time axis direction.

  On the other hand, in the receiving apparatus according to the present invention, a binary signal having a high level signal and a low level signal based on the comparison result by comparing the level of the received signal with the threshold level with the above-described configuration. By generating, the shaping process can be easily performed.

  In the transmitter according to the present invention, the driving means is a circuit including a current mirror circuit, and a power supply voltage is applied to a device in which the light emitting element and a transistor of the current mirror circuit are connected. It is characterized by that.

  According to the above configuration, it is possible to further reduce power consumption by realizing the driving means with a single-stage transistor circuit.

  In the transmitter according to the present invention, it is preferable that the transistor has a threshold value that shortens the period of the high-level signal.

  Thereby, the average level per unit cycle of the signal can be controlled according to the selection of the transistors constituting the current mirror circuit.

  The receiving apparatus according to the present invention includes an analog circuit that handles a received analog signal and a digital circuit that handles a digital signal to be transmitted, and the waveform shaping means includes the analog circuit in the digital circuit. It is characterized in that it is provided in a connection portion connected to a circuit.

  According to the above configuration, when an analog signal received by an analog circuit is processed, it is not necessary to consider waveform distortion in the received signal. Therefore, current consumption can be significantly reduced, and thus power consumption in the analog circuit can be significantly reduced.

  Furthermore, according to the above configuration, since the distortion of the binary signal output from the waveform shaping means is greatly reduced, signal processing by a digital circuit becomes possible. Since the driving voltage of a digital circuit is generally lower than that of an analog circuit, a circuit subsequent to the waveform shaping unit (that is, between the waveform shaping unit and a portion that transmits a binary signal) is a digital circuit. By realizing the above, power consumption can be further reduced.

  In the receiving apparatus according to the present invention, the digital circuit has a higher speed response than the analog circuit.

  According to said structure, the shaping process by the said waveform shaping circuit can be easily performed by driving a digital circuit at high speed. In order to drive the digital circuit at a higher speed than the analog circuit, the line width of the wiring of the digital circuit may be narrower than the line width of the wiring of the analog circuit.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, a receiving apparatus according to the present invention includes an analog circuit that handles a received analog signal and a digital circuit that handles a digital signal to be transmitted. The connection portion connected to the circuit includes waveform shaping means for shaping the waveform of the signal from the analog circuit.

  According to the above configuration, when an analog signal received by an analog circuit is processed, it is not necessary to consider waveform distortion in the received signal. Therefore, current consumption can be significantly reduced, and thus power consumption in the analog circuit can be significantly reduced.

  Further, according to the above configuration, since the distortion of the binary signal output from the waveform shaping unit is greatly reduced, signal processing by a digital circuit is possible. Since the driving voltage of a digital circuit is generally lower than that of an analog circuit, a circuit subsequent to the waveform shaping unit (that is, between the waveform shaping unit and a portion that transmits a binary signal) is a digital circuit. By realizing the above, power consumption can be further reduced.

  Furthermore, according to the above configuration, since it is not necessary to consider waveform distortion in the received signal, even when the analog circuit is driven with a current value lower than the current value that can be stably driven by itself. The waveform can be easily shaped.

  That is, in general, in an analog circuit, a current value that can be driven sufficiently stably is determined. However, in the receiving apparatus according to the present invention, the analog circuit may be driven by a current value that can be driven sufficiently stably by itself. The receiving apparatus according to the present invention is preferably used when it is difficult to drive an analog circuit with a current value that can be driven sufficiently stably by itself.

  The waveform shaping means is preferably one or a plurality of inverters in a digital circuit and one or a plurality of amplifiers in an analog circuit.

  According to said structure, the process by the said waveform shaping means can be easily implemented by one or several simple circuits, such as an inverter and / or an amplifier. When the processing by the waveform shaping means is performed using an amplifier, the signal amplification factor of the amplifier is set sufficiently large. The more inverters and / or amplifiers are provided, the more precisely the above-described processing can be performed. On the other hand, if the number of inverters and / or amplifiers provided is small, naturally, the effect of reducing power consumption is large. That is, the circuit scale of the receiver and the degree of freedom in design can be appropriately set according to the number of inverters, that is, the degree of sophistication of processing of the binary signal.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the transmission / reception apparatus according to the present invention has a high-level signal and a low-level signal, and transmits a binary signal in which the time required for falling is longer than the time required for rising And a receiving device comprising a waveform shaping means for receiving a signal having a high level signal and a low level signal, receiving a signal whose falling time is longer than the rising time, and shaping the waveform of the received signal And the waveform shaping means of the receiving device compares the level of the received signal with a threshold level, and based on the comparison result, outputs a binary signal having a high level signal and a low level signal. By generating, the waveform of the received signal is shaped.

  According to the above configuration, the time required for the fall of the binary signal is longer than the time required for the rise of the binary signal. As a result, the degree of decrease in the total amount of current generated based on the binary signal per unit time is compared to the case where the time required for falling of the binary signal is the same as the time required for rising. Get smaller. At this time, in order to make the reduction degree of the total amount of the current as small as possible, it is preferable to make the time required for the fall of the binary signal as long as possible. As a result, even if the level of the binary signal is significantly reduced, data communication using the binary signal can be appropriately performed. Therefore, the transmission device included in the transmission / reception device according to the present invention is driven at a low current. Is suitable.

  Further, according to the above configuration, the waveform shaping unit compares the level of the received signal with the threshold level, and generates a binary signal having a high level and a low level based on the comparison result. Therefore, the receiving device according to the present invention can shape the received signal, and thus can appropriately receive the signal output from the transmitting device according to the present invention.

  Furthermore, the receiving apparatus according to the present invention compares the level of the received signal with the threshold level, and generates a binary signal having a high level signal and a low level signal based on the comparison result. Easy shaping process. Therefore, power consumption can be significantly reduced as compared with a conventional configuration using a memory, CDR, PLL, or the like.

  Therefore, the power consumption can be reduced, and the waveform can be shaped with a simple circuit configuration and easily to satisfy the signal quality required for data communication.

  Moreover, the optical transmission module according to the present invention may include the transmission device, the reception device, and a transmission medium that transmits the binary signal from the transmission device to the reception device. Further, the optical transmission module may be provided in an electronic device for data communication.

  Thereby, power consumption can be reduced in the entire optical transmission module or electronic device.

  As described above, the transmitting apparatus according to the present invention is a transmitting apparatus that transmits a binary signal having a high level signal and a low level signal, and the binary signal has a time required for falling. The configuration is longer than the time required.

  Therefore, there is an effect that it is possible to reduce power consumption.

  As described above, the receiving apparatus according to the present invention is a receiving apparatus that includes a waveform shaping unit that receives a signal and shapes the waveform of the received signal. The received signal includes a high-level signal and a low-level signal. Signal, and the time required for falling is longer than the time required for rising, and the waveform shaping means compares the level of the received signal with the threshold level, and based on the comparison result, By generating a binary signal having a high level signal and a low level signal, the waveform of the received signal is shaped. The receiving apparatus according to the present invention includes an analog circuit that handles a received analog signal and a digital circuit that handles a digital signal to be transmitted, and the digital circuit is connected to the analog circuit. And a waveform shaping means for shaping the waveform of the signal from the analog circuit.

  Therefore, there is an effect that the waveform shaping can be easily performed with a simple circuit configuration so as to satisfy the signal quality necessary for data communication.

  As described above, the transmission / reception apparatus according to the present invention includes a transmission apparatus that has a high-level signal and a low-level signal, and that transmits a binary signal whose time required for falling is longer than the time required for rising, Receiving a signal having a level signal and a low level signal, receiving a signal longer than the time required for the rising time than the time required for the rising, and shaping the waveform of the received signal; The waveform shaping means of the receiving device compares the level of the received signal with a threshold level, and generates a binary signal having a high level signal and a low level signal based on the comparison result. In this configuration, the waveform of the received signal is shaped.

  Therefore, it is possible to reduce the power consumption, and at the same time, it is possible to easily shape the waveform so as to satisfy the signal quality necessary for data communication with a simple circuit configuration. .

It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is a block diagram which shows the structure of a transmitter. It is a figure which shows the waveform of the binary signal input into the said transmitter. It is a figure which shows the general structure of CR circuit which consists of a capacitor | condenser and resistance. It is a graph which shows the relationship between a bias current and a modulation current, and a binary signal. FIG. 5A is a graph showing the waveform of a binary signal before being input to the waveform deformation circuit according to the present invention, and FIG. 5B is a binary signal output from the waveform deformation circuit. It is a graph which shows the waveform of a signal. FIG. 6A is a diagram illustrating another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 6A is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the transmission device realized on a substrate, and FIG. 6B is a diagram illustrating the transmission device. It is a figure which shows the specific circuit structure of the drive means provided. FIG. 7A is a diagram illustrating another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 7A is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a transmission device realized on a substrate, and FIG. 7B is provided in the transmission device. It is a figure which shows the specific circuit structure of the drive means used. It is a figure which shows another embodiment of this invention, and is a block diagram which shows the structure of a transmitter. FIG. 9A is a diagram showing a circuit configuration example of the duty ratio adjusting means according to the present invention, and FIG. 9B shows the principle of reducing the duty ratio of the binary signal by the duty ratio adjusting means. FIG. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is a block diagram which shows the structure of a receiver. FIG. 11A is a graph showing the waveform of a binary signal before being input to the waveform shaping circuit according to the present invention, and FIG. 11B is a binary value output from the waveform shaping circuit. It is a graph which shows the waveform of a signal. It is a figure which shows another embodiment of this invention, and is a block diagram which shows the structure of a receiver. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the drive current value of an analog circuit, and the drive condition of this analog circuit. It is a figure which shows another embodiment of this invention, and is a block diagram which shows the structure of a receiver. It is a figure which shows another embodiment of this invention, and is a block diagram which shows the structure of a receiver. It is a graph explaining the effect of the transmitter of one Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 17A is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 17A illustrates a case where an optical signal is transmitted to the outside by a transmission device according to the present invention and an external light transmitted from a reception device according to the present invention. FIG. 17B is a diagram illustrating an example in the case of receiving a signal, FIG. 17B is a diagram illustrating a waveform of a binary signal input from the electronic component to the transmission device, and FIG. FIG. 17D is a diagram illustrating a waveform of a binary signal transmitted to the outside by the transmission device, and FIG. 17D is a diagram illustrating another waveform of the binary signal transmitted to the outside by the transmission device, and FIG. ) Is a diagram showing a waveform of a binary signal output from the receiving device, and FIG. 17 (f) is a diagram showing another embodiment of the present invention, and is a block diagram showing a configuration of the transmitting / receiving device. . It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, FIG. 18 (a)-FIG.18 (g) are figures which show schematic structure of the optical transmission module which concerns on this invention. FIG. 19A is a schematic diagram of a mobile phone that performs data communication using the optical transmission module, and FIG. 19B is a perspective view of an internal circuit of the mobile phone that performs data communication using the optical transmission module. FIG. 19C is a schematic diagram of a printer that performs data communication with the optical transmission module. FIG. 19D is a perspective view of an internal circuit of the printer that performs data communication with the optical transmission module. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example which applied the said optical transmission module to the hard disk recording / reproducing apparatus. It is a figure which shows the relationship between the duty ratio of the signal for performing data communication, and the power consumption in the whole electronic device. FIG. 22A is a side view of the optical waveguide, and FIG. 22B is a diagram schematically showing a state of optical transmission in the optical waveguide. It is a figure which shows the concept of Turn on delay.

[Embodiment 1]
A transmission apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a transmission apparatus according to the present embodiment.

  An optical transmission device (transmission device) 1 a shown in FIG. 1 is configured to include a waveform deformation circuit (waveform deformation means) 2, a laser drive circuit (drive means) 3, and a light emitting element 4.

  The optical transmission device 1a shown in FIG. 1, and the optical transmission device 1b (see FIG. 7A) and the optical transmission device 1c (see FIG. 8), which will be described later, are connected to an electronic component (not shown) in the previous stage. A binary signal (signal for performing data communication) having a signal of “1” (high level signal) and a signal of “0” (low level signal) is input from the electronic component.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a waveform of a binary signal input to the transmission apparatus according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, the binary signal is generated by overlapping signals having various frequency components, and includes a high frequency signal component (harmonic).

  The binary signal from the electronic component is input to the waveform deformation circuit 2 of the optical transmission device 1a.

  The waveform modification circuit 2 performs a process of making the time required for the falling of the input binary signal longer than the time required for the rising. Then, the waveform modification circuit 2 compares the binary signal from the electronic component or the output characteristic of the optical signal in the light emitting element 4 with a waveform modification signal in which the time required for falling is longer than the time required for rising, Output to the laser drive circuit 3.

  In the following description, the time required for the rising of the input binary signal is referred to as “Tr”, and the time required for the falling of the input binary signal is referred to as “Tf”. Further, in the following description, the process of making the input binary signal Tf longer than Tr will be referred to as “dulling the waveform” or simply “dulling”, and the state where the process has been performed will be referred to as the “waveform of the waveform”. It is called “blunt” or simply “blunt”.

  The waveform modification circuit 2 can be realized by, for example, a well-known differentiation circuit (a CR circuit including a capacitor C1 and a resistor R1, see FIG. 3), but is not limited thereto. The waveform deformation circuit 2 is not particularly limited as long as the Tf of the binary signal is made longer than Tr.

  The laser drive circuit 3 generates a bias current and a modulation current (drive current) based on the binary signal from the waveform transformation circuit 2, and converts the bias current and the bias current into a bias current and a bias current by a modulation signal from a modulation signal source (not shown). Direct modulation is performed by switching the current with the modulation current superimposed (see “pulse current” in FIG. 4). Then, the laser drive circuit 3 causes the light-emitting element 4 to emit light and output an optical signal in accordance with the signal (electric signal) generated by the direct modulation (see “light output” in FIG. 4), whereby the light-emitting element 4 is driven (see FIG. 4).

  The light emitting element 4 is a semiconductor laser that outputs the optical signal by emitting light according to a signal from the laser driving circuit 3 (that is, converts a binary signal from an electric signal to an optical signal). Is sent to the outside. In addition, as this light emitting element 4, a laser diode etc. are mentioned.

  The light emission type of the light emitting element 4 as a semiconductor laser may be the surface emitting semiconductor laser described above, or a type that emits laser light in parallel to a semiconductor wafer (not shown) (so-called edge emitting type). ).

  Here, the processing of the waveform transformation circuit 2 for the binary signal will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 5A is a graph showing the waveform of the binary signal before being input to the waveform deformation circuit 2. FIG. 5B is a graph showing the waveform of the binary signal output from the waveform deformation circuit 2. 5A and 5B, the vertical axis indicates the level of the binary signal, and the horizontal axis indicates time (between the “1” signal and the “0” signal in the binary signal). . Also, “sig1” in the drawings of this application indicates the level of the binary signal “1”, and “sig0” indicates the level of the binary signal “0”. .

  In the binary signal shown in FIG. 5A, the time required for rising is Tra, the time required for falling is Tfa, and the period of the signal “1” is sig1a. Here, Tra and Tfa are approximately equal times.

  When the binary signal shown in FIG. 5A is input to the waveform modification circuit 2, the waveform modification circuit 2 blunts the waveform of the binary signal. Specifically, a process of increasing Tfa is performed on the binary signal shown in FIG.

  As a result, the binary signal shown in FIG. 5A is transformed into the binary signal shown in FIG. 5B, which is Tfb longer than Tfa by the waveform transformation circuit 2, and is driven by laser. It is output to the circuit 3. The waveform deformation circuit 2 transmits the binary signal shown in FIG. 5B to the outside through the laser drive circuit 3 and the light emitting element 4.

  According to the above configuration, it is possible to expect a reduction in power consumption in the entire transmission apparatus while suppressing the influence of “Turn on delay”.

  The reason is as follows.

  In order to reduce power consumption in the transmission apparatus, the current value of the bias current that generates the binary signal “0” is set to a current value as low as possible, preferably the threshold value of the semiconductor laser (reference numeral in FIG. 16). It is required to reduce to a current value near “laser threshold”).

  Here, when the current value of the bias current is reduced to a current value near the threshold value, the amount of current injected into the semiconductor laser per unit time (time corresponding to one pulse of the binary signal) decreases. As a result, the transition time from when the semiconductor laser converts the binary signal from an electrical signal to an optical signal and outputs it by stimulated emission to when the electrons transition from the ground state to the excited state becomes long. When the transition time becomes long, the jitter (Jitter) of the optical signal output from the semiconductor laser increases, and “Turn on delay” occurs.

  As described above, when the binary signal is blunted, the duty ratio itself increases as compared with the case where the binary signal is not blunted. Therefore, the degree of decrease in the amount of current injection into the semiconductor laser per unit time is as follows. Compared to the case where the binary signal is not blunted. In the present application, “duty ratio” means an average level per unit period of a signal. Therefore, even if the current value of the bias current is reduced to a current value near the threshold value, the influence of “Turn on delay” can be minimized. Therefore, it is possible to expect a reduction in power consumption in the entire transmission apparatus while suppressing the influence of “Turn on delay” (see FIG. 16).

  In the present embodiment, the waveform deformation circuit 2 is provided in the previous stage of the laser drive circuit 3, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the waveform deformation circuit 2 may be provided in the optical transmitter 1 a after the laser drive circuit 3 and before the light emitting element 4.

  In the above case, the binary signal from the electronic component is input to the waveform deformation circuit 2 via the laser drive circuit 3. The waveform deformation circuit 2 performs a process of blunting the waveform of the binary signal, and outputs a binary signal having the blunted waveform to the light emitting element 4. The light emitting element 4 emits light according to the binary signal from the waveform deformation circuit 2 and transmits the optical signal to the outside.

  Here, in an optical communication network, for example, in a transmission apparatus that transmits an optical signal, a binary signal is converted from an electric signal to an optical signal and output, for example, with a surface emitting semiconductor laser (Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Laser: VCSEL). It is necessary to include a laser and a laser driving circuit that receives a binary signal from an electronic component on the transmission side, identifies and modulates the binary signal, and applies the modulated binary signal to the laser. Conventionally, since the laser and the laser drive circuit are provided on different integrated circuit substrates, a wire or a conductive pattern for connecting the integrated circuit substrates is further required.

  An optical communication network handles signals transmitted at high speed. Therefore, on the transmission device side, matching of impedance (meaning a combination of an AC resistance value, a capacitor component, an inductance component, and a resistance component) between each of the integrated circuit boards and the wire or conductor pattern (hereinafter referred to as “the resistance component”) If impedance matching is referred to as “matching”), the signal waveform of the binary signal is greatly distorted.

  Further, on the transmitting apparatus side, in addition to the distortion of the binary signal generated due to the poor matching, the binary signal generated due to the second-order or higher-order intermodulation product generated by the laser There is distortion.

  That is, on the transmission device side, distortion of a signal to be transmitted should be considered. Conventionally, attempts have been made to reduce the signal distortion.

  Examples of techniques for reducing the distortion of the binary signal related to the poor matching include, for example, insertion of an impedance adjustment circuit (see Non-Patent Document 1), wiring distance of the wire or conductor pattern, and / or the laser to be selected. Change, etc.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for reducing distortion of a binary signal generated due to a second-order or higher-order intermodulation product generated by the laser, which is substantially larger than the distortion component. A technique is disclosed in which a predistortion circuit for generating a distortion signal that is equal in magnitude and opposite in sign to the distortion component, that is, generates a distortion signal that cancels the distortion component, is provided in front of the laser.

  However, when a circuit for reducing distortion is inserted on the transmission device side in order to reduce the distortion of the binary signal generated on the transmission device side, there arises a problem that the circuit scale on the transmission device side increases. Generally, power consumption on the transmission device side tends to be larger than power consumption on the reception device side. For this reason, as described above, when the circuit scale increases on the transmission device side, it becomes a major obstacle to reducing the power consumption of the entire electronic device.

  In addition, when the wiring distance of the wire or the conductive pattern and / or the laser to be selected is changed to cope with the distortion of the binary signal related to the matching failure, it is necessary to perform very strict design and manufacture. . Therefore, there arises a problem that the degree of freedom in designing the electronic device is reduced and the manufacturing cost is increased.

  On the other hand, according to the above configuration, the binary signal is supplied to the light emitting element as an electric signal as a waveform deformation signal having a waveform having a time required for rising and a time required for falling different from each other. The signal can be converted into an optical signal and transmitted. In other words, since it is not necessary to reduce the distortion of the binary signal generated on the transmission device side, a circuit for reducing distortion is inserted on the transmission device side, or the wiring distance of the wire or conductor pattern and / or the laser to be selected is changed. Thus, it is not necessary to carry out strict design and manufacture.

Therefore, the circuit scale can be reduced, the degree of freedom in designing the electronic device can be secured, and the increase in manufacturing cost can be suppressed.
[Embodiment 2]
FIG. 6A is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the transmission apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1 realized on a substrate.

  When the above-described optical transmission device 1a is realized on a substrate, the waveform deformation circuit 2 and the laser drive circuit 3 are realized on the same substrate (reference numeral “Driver IC”) as shown in FIG. .

  On the other hand, the light emitting element 4 may be realized on a different substrate (see FIG. 6A, reference numeral “Laser”) from the waveform modification circuit 2 and the laser drive circuit 3, or the waveform modification circuit 2 and the laser. It may be realized on the same substrate as the drive circuit 3.

  Here, specifically, the laser drive circuit 3 is preferably constituted by a circuit shown in FIG.

  FIG. 6B is a diagram illustrating a specific circuit configuration of a driving unit provided in the transmission device. Here, as shown in FIG. 6B, the case where the light emitting element 4, the waveform deformation circuit 2, and the laser drive circuit 3 are realized on different substrates will be described as an example. The configuration of the transmission apparatus according to the embodiment is not limited to this. That is, for example, the light emitting element 4 may be provided on the same substrate as the waveform deforming circuit 2 and the laser driving circuit 3.

  The laser drive circuit 31 shown in FIG. 6B is used as the laser drive circuit 3 of the optical transmission device 1a.

  The laser drive circuit 31 shown in FIG. 6B is configured to include transistors T1 to T4. Here, a case where an NPN bipolar transistor is used as the transistors T1 to T4 will be described.

  The transistor T1 has a base connected to the waveform transformation circuit 2 via a line for supplying a potential (a driving voltage of the laser driving circuit 31 supplied from a power source not shown) to the base of the transistor T1, and an emitter grounded (reference numeral). "GND") and the collector is connected to the emitter of transistor T3 and the emitter of transistor T4. The transistor T2 has a base connected to the waveform transformation circuit 2, an emitter connected to the ground, and a collector connected to the light emitting element 4. The collector of the transistor T3 is connected to the waveform transformation circuit 2, and the collector of the transistor T4 is connected to the light emitting element 4.

  A signal from the waveform transformation circuit 2 is always input to the base of the transistor T2. Thereby, the transistor T2 generates a bias current.

  A signal from the waveform transformation circuit 2 is always input to the base of the transistor T1. Thereby, the transistor T1 generates a modulation current. However, the modulation current is supplied from the collector of the transistor T1 from the switching of the transistor T3 and the transistor T4, that is, from the timing when the transistor T3 and the transistor T4 are turned on to the end of the “1” period of the binary signal. The current flows from the collector of the transistor T4 to the emitter of the transistor T3.

  When the binary signal is “0”, the light emitting element 4 is driven only by the bias current, and therefore does not output a desired output power. On the other hand, when the binary signal is a signal “1”, the light emitting element 4 is driven by a current obtained by superimposing a modulation current on a bias current, and thus outputs a desired output power. By switching between these two cases based on the binary signal (that is, direct modulation), the laser driving circuit 31 causes the light emitting element 4 to emit light according to the binary signal.

  In the present embodiment, the laser drive circuit 31 is configured to include NPN-type bipolar transistors as the transistors T1 to T4, but is not limited thereto. In other words, the laser drive circuit 31 may include a MOS (Metal Oxide Semiconductor) field effect transistor such as a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) as the transistors T1 to T4. In this case, in the configuration in which the laser drive circuit 31 includes NPN bipolar transistors as the transistors T1 to T4, the gate of the MOS field effect transistor is used instead of the base of the NPN bipolar transistor, and the NPN bipolar transistor is used. The source of the MOS field effect transistor may be used in place of the emitter, and the drain of the MOS field effect transistor may be used in place of the collector of the NPN type bipolar transistor.

The power supply voltage from the power supply is structurally determined by the wavelength band to be used and the amount of current. Further, the driving voltage per transistor (that is, the base-emitter voltage in a specific NPN type bipolar transistor or the source-gate voltage in a specific MOS field effect transistor) is the size of the transistors T1 to T4 to be used. Further, it is structurally determined by the manufacturing process of the laser drive circuit 31.
[Embodiment 3]
A transmission apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 7A is a block diagram showing a configuration of the transmission apparatus according to the present embodiment.

  The optical transmission device 1b shown in FIG. 7A is a laser drive in which the waveform deformation circuit 2a is provided in place of the laser drive circuit 3 in place of the waveform deformation circuit 2 in the configuration of the optical transmission device 1a shown in FIG. This is a configuration provided inside the circuit 3a.

  That is, the binary signal from the electronic component is input to the laser drive circuit 3a of the optical transmission device 1b. When the binary signal is input, the laser driving circuit 3 a causes the waveform deformation circuit 2 a to blunt the waveform of the binary signal and outputs the blunted binary signal (waveform deformation signal) to the light emitting element 4. To do. The light emitting element 4 emits light according to the binary signal processed by the waveform deformation circuit 2a, and transmits the optical signal to the outside.

  7A is similar to the optical transmitter 1a shown in FIG. 6A, the waveform deformation circuit 2a and the laser drive circuit 3a are the same substrate (reference numeral “Driver IC”). Realized above. The light emitting element 4 may be realized on a different substrate (see FIG. 7A, reference numeral “Laser”) from the waveform modification circuit 2a and the laser drive circuit 3a, or the waveform modification circuit 2a and the laser. It may be realized on the same substrate as the drive circuit 3a.

  Here, it is preferable that the waveform deformation circuit 2a and the laser drive circuit 3a are specifically configured by the circuit shown in FIG. 7B.

  FIG. 7B is a diagram illustrating a specific circuit configuration of a driving unit provided in the transmission device. Here, as shown in FIG. 7B, the case where the light emitting element 4, the waveform deformation circuit 2a, and the laser driving circuit 3a are realized on different substrates will be described as an example. The configuration of the transmission apparatus according to the embodiment is not limited to this. That is, for example, the light emitting element 4 may be provided on the same substrate as the waveform deforming circuit 2a and the laser driving circuit 3a.

  The laser drive circuit 32 shown in FIG. 7B is used as the laser drive circuit 3a of the optical transmission device 1b.

  The laser drive circuit 32 shown in FIG. 7B is configured to include transistors T5 to T7. Here, as in the case of the transistors T1 to T4 of the laser drive circuit 31 shown in FIG. 6B, a case where NPN bipolar transistors are used as the transistors T5 to T7 will be described.

  Both the emitter E5 of the transistor T5 and the emitter E6 of the transistor T6 are connected to the ground. The base B6 of the transistor T6 is connected to the base B7 of the transistor T7. The transistor T7 has a collector C7 connected to a substrate (Laser) including the light emitting element 4, and an emitter E7 connected to the ground. The transistor T7 forms a current mirror circuit.

  The collector C5 of the transistor T5 is connected to the collector C6 of the transistor T6. A bias current source (not shown) is connected to the collector C6 of the transistor T6, and an original signal of a signal “0” is input from the bias current source. A modulation current source (not shown) is connected to the collector C5 of the transistor T5 and the collector C6 of the transistor T6, and an original signal of a signal “1” is input from the modulation current source.

  7B has a configuration in which the bias current source is connected only to the collector C6 of the transistor T6, the present invention is not limited to this.

  That is, the bias current source may be connected to both the collector C5 of the transistor T5 and the collector C6 of the transistor T6. In this case, the original signal of the “0” signal is input to both the collector C5 of the transistor T5 and the collector C6 of the transistor T6. According to this configuration, even when the binary signal is a “0” signal, the potential of the collector C5 of the transistor T5 can be prevented from being close to the ground level. That is, according to this configuration, the emitter-collector voltage of the transistor T5 is always a voltage value equal to or higher than a predetermined value. Therefore, the current value of the bias current when the current flowing through the collector C5 of the transistor T5 is constant is It is almost constant. This makes it possible to further stabilize the waveform of the binary signal as compared with the case where the bias current source inputs the original signal of the signal “0” only to the collector C5 of the transistor T5.

  When the binary signal is inputted, the original signal of the signal “0” flows continuously from the bias current source to the collector C6 of the transistor T6 (or the collector C5 of the transistor T5, and the laser drive circuit 32). , Flows to the collector C6 of the transistor T6). This signal “0” is multiplied by the transistor T7 and passed through the light emitting element 4.

  The signal from the modulation current source that is the original signal of the binary signal “1” flows to the collector C5 of the transistor T5 when the binary signal is “0”. When the signal is “1”, the signal flows to the transistor T7 via the transistor T6, is multiplied by the transistor T7, and then flows to the light emitting element 4.

  Thereby, the transistor T7 switches between a state in which only the bias current is input to the light emitting element 4 and a state in which the bias current and the modulation current are input to the light emitting element 4. That is, when the binary signal is “0”, the light emitting element 4 is driven only by the bias current, and therefore does not output a desired output power. On the other hand, when the binary signal is a signal “1”, the light emitting element 4 is driven by a current obtained by superimposing a modulation current on a bias current, and thus outputs a desired output power. By switching between these two cases based on the binary signal (that is, direct modulation), the laser driving circuit 32 causes the light emitting element 4 to emit light according to the binary signal.

  Here, the waveform deformation circuit 2a is constituted by the transistor T6 and the transistor T7 among the members constituting the laser drive circuit 32.

  When a binary signal is input, the waveform modification circuit 2a performs the following processing to blunt the waveform of the binary signal, and the blunted binary signal (waveform deformation signal) is converted into a light emitting element. 4 is output. That is, in the transistor T7, as described above, the signal “0” and the signal “1” are respectively multiplied and flown to the light emitting element 4. At this time, there is a parasitic capacitance on the collector C7 side of the transistor T7. Occur. At the rise of the binary signal, a constant current is supplied to the parasitic capacitance, and charges are accumulated in the parasitic capacitance. On the other hand, when the binary signal falls, the charge accumulated in the parasitic capacitance loses its destination and is gradually released to the light emitting element 4. By the above processing, the waveform of the binary signal becomes dull at the falling timing. The light emitting element 4 emits light according to the binary signal output from the waveform deformation circuit 2a, and transmits the optical signal to the outside.

  Even with the above configuration, it is possible to reduce the power consumption of the entire transmission apparatus while suppressing the influence of “Turn on delay”.

  Conventionally, the laser drive circuit is generally realized by a two-stage transistor circuit.

  However, according to the above configuration, a laser drive circuit can be realized by a single-stage transistor circuit.

  Therefore, the optical transmission device 1b according to the present embodiment can reduce power consumption more than the optical transmission device 1a according to the above-described embodiment.

In the present embodiment, the laser driving circuit 32 includes NPN bipolar transistors as the transistors T5 to T7, but is not limited thereto. That is, the laser drive circuit 32 may be configured to include MOS field effect transistors such as CMOS as the transistors T5 to T7. In this case, in the configuration in which the laser drive circuit 32 includes NPN type bipolar transistors as the transistors T5 to T7 described above, the gate of the MOS field effect transistor is used instead of the base of the NPN type bipolar transistor, and the NPN type bipolar transistor is used. The source of the MOS field effect transistor may be used in place of the emitter, and the drain of the MOS field effect transistor may be used in place of the collector of the NPN type bipolar transistor.
[Embodiment 4]
Conventionally, low power consumption has been strongly desired for electronic devices. However, the power consumption of electronic devices is generally the signal duty ratio for data communication (average per unit period in binary signals). Level). For example, referring to FIG. 21 showing the relationship between the duty ratio of a signal for data communication and the power consumption of the entire electronic device, a signal having an average circuit current Ia1 at a duty ratio of 50% is represented by a duty ratio. When the ratio is reduced to 10%, the average circuit current of the signal after the reduction of the duty ratio becomes Ia2 lower than Ia1. That is, the higher the duty ratio of a signal for performing data communication, the higher the average current in the entire electronic device, and the higher the power consumption in the entire electronic device.

  However, in an optical communication network, it is difficult to lower the duty ratio of a signal that passes through a plurality of electronic components that perform data communication. Hereinafter, this reason will be described.

  In the binary signal, “ISI (inter-symbol interference)” occurs when the duty ratio is lowered. “ISI” means a phenomenon in which the level of a binary signal (particularly, the level of a “1” signal) changes due to interference between a “1” signal and a “0” signal. Here, as described above, the signal for performing data communication is a binary signal. Therefore, when the duty ratio of the signal is lowered, “ISI” is generated in the signal. Then, when the “ISI” occurs, the signal has a rise failure and / or a fall failure, whereby the level of the signal falls below a threshold value (the minimum signal level required for data communication) As a result, there arises a problem that data communication may be hindered. For an electrical interface (an electronic component on the receiving side in an electronic device) that constitutes the electronic device, the problem relating to the “ISI” becomes a major problem as the transmission speed in data communication increases.

  For this reason, in an electronic device, the duty ratio of a signal processed by the plurality of electronic components is artificially set to approximately 50% by an encoding technique such as 8B10B or Manchester code. That is, it is difficult to reduce the duty ratio of the signal passing through the plurality of electronic components and reduce the power consumption due to the signal.

  Therefore, as a technique for reducing the power consumption of the entire electronic device, a technique for reducing the duty ratio of a signal passing through the optical transmission module is conceivable. According to this, since the duty ratio of a signal for performing data communication can be lowered in the transmission path of the optical transmission module, the power consumed by the optical transmission module can be reduced. As a result, power consumed by the entire electronic device can be reduced.

  As a configuration for realizing the above technique, a configuration in which the duty ratio of a signal for performing data communication in the optical transmission apparatus is lowered and the duty ratio of the signal in the optical reception apparatus is increased can be considered. As this type of configuration, for example, a signal for data communication is held by a memory or the like, and the held signal is used in the time axis direction by using CDR (Clock Data Recovery), PLL (Phase Locked Loop), or the like. It is possible to use a configuration in which the film is elongated.

  However, in the case of the above configuration, the power consumed by the memory and the CDR or PLL is very large. Therefore, power consumption on the optical receiver side increases, and power consumption on the optical transmission module increases. As a result, there arises a problem that power consumption in the entire electronic device increases.

  The purpose of reducing the duty ratio of the signal passing through the optical transmission module is to reduce the power consumption of the entire electronic device. Therefore, when the above technique is realized, it is required that the duty ratio of the signal passing through the optical transmission module can be reduced with low power consumption. For this reason, it is not preferable to apply the above configuration in order to realize the above technology.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, a transmission apparatus that can reduce the circuit scale, secure the degree of freedom in designing electronic devices, and suppress an increase in manufacturing cost, which has been made in view of the above problems. Will be described. Hereinafter, this transmission apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the transmission apparatus according to the present embodiment.

  The optical transmission device 1c shown in FIG. 8 has a configuration in which the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 is further provided in the subsequent stage of the waveform deformation circuit 2 and the previous stage of the laser driving circuit 3 in the configuration of the optical transmission apparatus 1a shown in FIG.

  The duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 adjusts the duty ratio of the binary signal input to itself. Specifically, the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 performs a process of reducing the duty ratio by shortening the period of the “1” signal of the binary signal.

  FIG. 9A is a diagram showing a circuit configuration example of the duty ratio adjusting means according to the present invention.

  The duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 is, for example, a duty ratio adjustment circuit 5a including a feedback amplifier AMP1 having a feedback function, as shown in FIG.

  FIG. 9B is a diagram showing the principle of reducing the duty ratio of the binary signal by the duty ratio adjusting means.

  As shown in FIG. 9B, the feedback amplifier AMP1 as the duty ratio adjusting circuit 5a offsets the binary signal by a predetermined level (“offset level” shown in FIG. 9B), thereby obtaining the binary value. The duty ratio of the signal can be adjusted. The “offset level” corresponds to the offset voltage according to the present invention. The duty ratio of the binary signal can be controlled by appropriately adjusting the value of “offset level”.

  As is well known, an analog amplifier such as the feedback amplifier AMP1 basically eliminates the “offset level” by AOC (Auto Offset Control) or the like and sets the duty ratio to 50%. However, in this embodiment, it is possible to control the pulse width of the binary signal by appropriately setting one differential voltage in the feedback amplifier AMP1.

  According to said structure, since the duty ratio of a binary signal can be reduced to a desired value, the reduction of the power consumption can be implement | achieved further.

  In this embodiment, a feedback amplifier AMP1 having a feedback function is used as the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5a. However, this shows an example of the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5, and the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 The configuration is not limited to this.

  That is, for example, the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 may be configured to offset a binary signal using a transistor having a threshold value corresponding to the “offset level” (that is, a current value at which the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 conducts itself). . Further, the duty ratio adjusting circuit 5 may be an inverter whose threshold is set to the “offset level”. In other words, the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 controls the DC component in the binary signal based on the “offset level” or threshold value set (or possessed by) itself, thereby the duty ratio of the binary signal. If it is the structure which controls this, it will not specifically limit. In particular, when a transistor is used as the duty ratio adjusting circuit 5, the process of shortening the period of the binary signal “1” can be easily performed.

  In this embodiment, the duty ratio adjusting circuit 5 is provided after the waveform deforming circuit 2 and before the laser driving circuit 3. However, the portion where the duty ratio adjusting circuit 5 is provided is not limited to this. That is, the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 may be provided in the previous stage of the waveform deformation circuit 2, or may be provided in the subsequent stage of the laser driving circuit 3 and the previous stage of the light emitting element 4.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 is provided in the optical transmission device 1a shown in FIG. 1, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 may be provided in the optical transmission device 1b shown in FIG. The configuration in which the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 is provided in the optical transmission device 1b may be a configuration in which the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5 is further provided in the optical transmission device 1b, or an optical transmission without changing the circuit configuration itself. The transistor T7 of the device 1b may have a function of the duty ratio adjustment circuit 5.
[Embodiment 5]
A receiving apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the receiving apparatus according to the present embodiment.

  An optical receiving device (receiving device) 11 a shown in FIG. 10 is configured to include a light receiving element 12 and a waveform shaping circuit (waveform shaping means) 13.

  The optical receiver 11a shown in FIG. 10 and the optical receiver 11b (see FIG. 12), the optical receiver 11c (see FIG. 14), and the optical receiver 11d (see FIG. 15), which will be described later, (Not shown) is connected, and a binary signal (a signal for performing data communication) including a signal of “1” and a signal of “0” is supplied to the electrical interface.

  The light receiving element 12 receives the binary signal as an optical signal, converts the optical signal into an electrical signal, and outputs the electrical signal to the waveform shaping circuit 13. Examples of the element used as the light receiving element 12 include a photodiode, a CCD (Charge Coupled Devices), a CMOS image sensor, and the like.

  The waveform shaping circuit 13 performs the shaping process of the binary signal in which the waveform is distorted and / or blunted by comparing the level of the binary signal from the light receiving element 12 with a predetermined threshold value. At this time, in the shaping process, both Tr and Tf may be set to a time that allows transmission. Further, the waveform shaping circuit 13 may further perform a process of extending the period of the “1” signal of the binary signal.

  In the optical receiver 11a shown in FIG. 10, an inverter I1 is used as the waveform shaping circuit 13. The inverter I1 outputs a signal “1” if the level of the binary signal input to the inverter I1 is a value equal to or higher than the predetermined threshold, and a signal “0” if the level is less than the predetermined threshold. Is a digital amplifying circuit that outputs.

  The inverter I1 can easily perform binary signal shaping processing by sufficiently increasing its own response speed. The degree to which the inverter I1 increases the duty ratio of the binary signal can be easily set by appropriately using an inverter having the predetermined threshold.

  Here, the shaping process of the waveform shaping circuit 13 for the binary signal will be described with reference to FIG. In the shaping process, the process of lengthening the period of the “1” signal of the binary signal may be omitted. Further, the specific processing method of the shaping process is not particularly limited.

  FIG. 11A is a graph showing the waveform of the binary signal before being input to the waveform shaping circuit 13. FIG. 11B is a diagram illustrating the waveform of the binary signal output from the waveform shaping circuit 13. In the graphs of FIGS. 11A and 11B, the vertical axis indicates the level of the binary signal, and the horizontal axis indicates time (the period of the “1” signal and the “0” signal in the binary signal). .

  The binary signal shown in FIG. 11A is dull. In this case, in the binary signal shown in FIG. 11A, the time required for the fall is Tfc, and the period of the signal “1” is sig1c. Tfc is longer than the time Trc required for rising.

  When the binary signal shown in FIG. 11A is input to the waveform shaping circuit 13, the waveform shaping circuit 13 compares the level of the binary signal with the predetermined threshold by the inverter I1, so that Tf is Shape a binary signal that is long.

  As a result, the binary signal shown in FIG. 11A is transformed into the binary signal shown in FIG. 11B by the waveform shaping circuit 13 and outputted to the electrical interface. In the binary signal shown in FIG. 11B, the time Tfd required for the fall is shorter than Tfc and substantially equal to Trc. Further, the binary signal shown in FIG. 11B is sig1d in which the period of the signal “1” is longer than sig1c.

  The binary signal shown in FIG. 11B has a higher duty ratio than the binary signal shown in FIG. Since the waveform shaping circuit 13 supplies the binary signal having a high duty ratio to the electrical interface, no “ISI” is generated in the binary signal in the electrical interface.

The optical receiver 11a is configured to increase the duty ratio of the binary signal by one circuit element (inverter I1). Therefore, the optical receiver 11a holds a signal for performing data communication using a memory or the like, and uses a CDR, a PLL, or the like to extend the held signal in the time axis direction to increase the duty ratio. , Power consumption can be reduced.
[Embodiment 6]
A receiving apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the receiving apparatus according to the present embodiment.

  The optical receiver 11b shown in FIG. 12 has an analog circuit A1 that handles analog signals in the configuration of the optical receiver 11a shown in FIG. The digital circuit D1 to be handled is configured to be provided after the waveform shaping circuit 13 and before the electrical interface. That is, the waveform shaping circuit 13 is provided in the connection part of the digital circuit D1 between the analog circuit A1 and the digital circuit D1. The analog circuit A1 may be configured to include an amplifier (not shown) that amplifies the binary signal from the light receiving element 12. The waveform shaping circuit 13 may be provided as a part of the digital circuit D1 as long as the waveform shaping circuit 13 is provided at the connection portion between the analog circuit A1 and the digital circuit D1.

  Note that the amplification factor of the inverter provided in the waveform shaping circuit according to the present invention varies depending on the size of a transistor (not shown) that is configured by the inverter. Further, the shaping level of the waveform of the signal passing through the inverter changes according to a threshold value of the inverter itself and a circuit (level determining circuit not shown) for adjusting the level of the input signal. That is, the level of the signal after waveform shaping by the inverter is determined by the threshold value of the inverter itself, the amplification factor of the inverter, and the level of the input signal.

  Here, for example, in the receiving apparatus according to the present embodiment, when a capacitor is connected (so-called capacitive coupling) to the boundary between the analog circuit A1 and the digital circuit D1 (that is, the connection portion, for example), the analog circuit A1 is connected to the digital circuit. The direct current level of the signal flowing to the circuit D1 is the ground level. In this case, the level of the signal after waveform shaping by the inverter is determined by the threshold value of the inverter itself and the amplification factor of the inverter. That is, the direct current level of the signal output from the inverter is controlled only according to the characteristics of the inverter. Therefore, in this case, the DC level of the signal output from the inverter can be easily controlled.

  The light receiving element 12 receives a binary signal in which the waveform is distorted and / or blunted as an optical signal, converts the optical signal into an electrical signal, and outputs the electrical signal to the analog circuit A1.

  The analog circuit A1 amplifies the binary signal from the light receiving element 12 (that is, processes the binary signal in an analog manner) and outputs it to the waveform shaping circuit 13.

  The waveform shaping circuit 13 performs the above-described shaping process on the binary signal from the analog circuit A1, and outputs it to the electrical interface via the digital circuit D1.

  Note that the waveform shaping circuit according to the present embodiment uses the waveform shaping circuit 13 having the inverter I1 as in the embodiment shown in FIG. However, the configuration of the waveform shaping circuit according to the present embodiment is not limited to this. For example, a buffer may be used as the waveform shaping circuit, or a comparator may be used. That is, the waveform shaping circuit according to this embodiment has a circuit element that can amplify a digital signal (that is, digitally amplify a binary signal from the analog circuit A1). It is not particularly limited. The same applies to the waveform shaping circuit 13 according to FIG. 10 described above and the waveform shaping circuit 14 according to FIG. 14 described later. That is, each of the waveform shaping circuit 13 and the waveform shaping circuit 14 according to the present invention is not limited to a configuration in which one or a plurality of inverters are provided, and a circuit element capable of amplifying one or a plurality of digital signals is provided. All you need is a configuration.

  According to the above configuration, since the optical receiver 11b outputs a binary signal having a high duty ratio to the electrical interface, no “ISI” is generated in the binary signal in the electrical interface.

  Further, according to the above configuration, the optical receiving device 11b holds a signal for performing data communication using a memory or the like, and expands the held signal in the time axis direction using a CDR, a PLL, etc. The power consumption can be reduced as compared with the configuration in which the power is increased.

  Also, according to the above configuration, when a binary signal is amplified by the amplifier of the analog circuit A1, it is not necessary to consider the distortion of the waveform of the binary signal. Therefore, the current consumption can be significantly reduced, and thus the power consumption in the analog circuit A1 can be greatly reduced.

  Further, according to the above configuration, the waveform shaping circuit 13 shapes the binary signal by the above-described shaping process, but the waveform distortion of the binary signal subjected to the shaping process is greatly reduced. Therefore, signal processing by the digital circuit D1 becomes possible. The digital circuit D1 generally has a lower drive voltage than the analog circuit A1. Therefore, the optical receiver 11b can further reduce the power consumption by realizing the subsequent circuit of the waveform shaping circuit 13 with the digital circuit D1.

  In addition, it is preferable that the digital circuit D1 has a faster response than the analog circuit A1, that is, the digital circuit D1 is driven at a higher speed than the analog circuit A1. In order to drive the digital circuit D1 at a higher speed than the analog circuit A1, the wiring width of the digital circuit D1 may be narrower than the wiring width of the analog circuit A1.

  According to the above configuration, the binary signal shaping processing by the waveform shaping circuit 13 can be easily performed.

  The receiving apparatus according to the present invention includes an analog circuit A1 that receives an analog signal and handles the received signal, and a digital circuit D1 that handles a digital signal to be transmitted to the outside. It is driven with a current value lower than the current value that it can drive stably.

  A specific example will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 13 is a graph showing the relationship between the driving current value of the analog circuit and the driving state of the analog circuit.

  As shown in the graph of FIG. 13, in the analog circuit A1, a current value (current value corresponding to “normal drive” in the graph of FIG. 13) that can be driven sufficiently stably is determined.

However, in the receiving apparatus according to the present invention, the analog circuit A1 is driven with a current value equal to or lower than the “normal driving” (a current value corresponding to “unstable driving” in the graph of FIG. 13). Thereby, own power consumption can be reduced. The receiving apparatus is preferably used for a device in which it is difficult to drive the analog circuit A1 with a current value corresponding to the “normal driving”.
[Embodiment 7]
A receiving apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 14 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the receiving apparatus according to the present embodiment.

  The optical receiver 11c shown in FIG. 14 is configured such that the waveform shaping circuit 14 is provided instead of the waveform shaping circuit 13 in the configuration of the optical receiver 11b shown in FIG.

  The waveform shaping circuit 14 includes a plurality of inverters (inverters I1 to I3).

  That is, the waveform shaping circuit 14 performs the above-described binary signal shaping processing for each of the plurality of inverters.

  Therefore, the optical receiver 11c can perform the shaping process of the binary signal more precisely. Further, the circuit scale and the degree of freedom in design of the optical receiver 11c can be appropriately set according to the number of inverters, that is, the degree of sophistication of the binary signal shaping process.

  In the present embodiment, the waveform shaping circuit 14 includes three inverters I1 to I3, but is not limited thereto. That is, the waveform shaping circuit 14 may be configured to include two inverters, or may be configured to include four or more inverters. The waveform shaping circuit 14 can appropriately control the degree of amplification of the binary signal according to the number of the plurality of inverters.

In the present embodiment, the waveform shaping circuit 14 is configured by an inverter, but is not limited thereto. As described above, if the waveform shaping circuit 14 is configured by a circuit element capable of amplifying a digital signal, There is no limit to the configuration.
[Embodiment 8]
A receiving apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the receiving apparatus according to the present embodiment.

  An optical receiving device 11d shown in FIG. 15 has a configuration in which a waveform shaping circuit 15 is provided instead of the waveform shaping circuit 13 in the configuration of the optical receiving device 11b shown in FIG.

  The waveform shaping circuit 15 includes an amplifier AMP2. The amplifier AMP2 has a sufficiently large signal amplification factor. The waveform shaping circuit 15 may be provided as a part of the analog circuit A1 as long as the waveform shaping circuit 15 is provided at the connection portion between the analog circuit A1 and the digital circuit D1. In this regard, the waveform shaping circuit 15 is different from the waveform shaping circuit 13.

  When a binary signal whose waveform is distorted and / or blunted is input, the amplifier AMP2 amplifies the binary signal to increase the duty ratio of the binary signal. In addition, the amplifier AMP2 performs processing for setting the binary signals Tr and Tf to the same time.

  According to the above configuration, the optical receiver 11d is configured to increase the duty ratio of the binary signal by the amplifier (amplifier AMP2). Therefore, the optical receiving device 11d holds a signal for performing data communication using a memory or the like, and uses a CDR, a PLL, or the like to extend the held signal in the time axis direction to increase the duty ratio. , Power consumption can be reduced.

  In the present embodiment, the configuration in which the waveform shaping circuit 15 includes one amplifier has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the waveform shaping circuit 15 may be configured to include two or more amplifiers having substantially the same properties as the amplifier AMP2. The waveform shaping circuit 15 may further include a circuit element (for example, an inverter I1) that is used in the waveform shaping circuit 13 and can amplify one or a plurality of digital signals. Good.

  Further, in the present embodiment, a configuration including an LIA (Limiting Amplifier) may be used as the amplifier AMP2 of the waveform shaping circuit 15. That is, when a binary signal is input, the waveform shaping circuit 15 causes the LIA to set the binary signal “1” to a predetermined level (“1” of the binary signal suitable for the electrical interface). (A signal level) may be amplified. In addition, when employ | adopting the structure provided with LIA as amplifier AMP2 of the waveform shaping circuit 15, the waveform shaping circuit 15 may be the structure provided with only one LIA, and may be the structure provided with two or more LIA. Good.

Further, the analog circuit A1 may be driven with a current value equal to or less than a current value that can be stably driven.
[Embodiment 9]
A transmitting apparatus and a receiving apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 17A is a diagram illustrating an example of a case where an optical signal is transmitted to the outside by the transmission device according to the present invention, and an external optical signal is received by the reception device according to the present invention. .

  An optical receiver 11 is connected to an optical transmitter 1 shown in FIG. 17A by an optical waveguide (transmission medium) 41.

  The optical transmission device 1 is connected to an electronic component (not shown) in the previous stage, and a binary signal (a signal for performing data communication) including a signal “1” and a signal “0” is transmitted from the electronic component. ) Is entered. The optical receiver 11 is connected to an electrical interface (not shown) at the subsequent stage, and outputs the binary signal to the electrical interface.

  As the optical waveguide 41, for example, those described below can be used. An example of the optical waveguide 41 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 22A shows a side view of the optical waveguide 41. As shown in the figure, the optical waveguide 41 includes a columnar core portion 41α with the optical transmission direction as an axis, and a clad portion 41Β surrounding the core portion 41α. The core portion 41α and the cladding portion 41Β are made of a light-transmitting material, and the refractive index of the core portion 41α is higher than the refractive index of the cladding portion 41 部. Thereby, the optical signal incident on the core part 41α is transmitted in the optical transmission direction by repeating total reflection inside the core part 41α.

  In addition, as a material which comprises the core part 41α and the clad part 41 部, glass or plastic can be used, but in order to construct the optical waveguide 41 having sufficient flexibility, an acrylic or epoxy resin is used. It is preferable to use resin materials such as those based on urethane, urethane, and silicone. Further, the clad portion 41 よ い may be made of a gas such as air. Further, the same effect can be obtained even when the clad portion 41 使用 is used in a liquid atmosphere having a refractive index smaller than that of the core portion 41α.

  Next, the mechanism of optical transmission by the optical waveguide 41 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 22B schematically shows the state of light transmission in the optical waveguide 41. As shown in the figure, the optical waveguide 41 is constituted by a columnar member having flexibility. In addition, a light incident surface 41A is provided at the light incident side end of the optical waveguide 41, and a light output surface 41B is provided at the light output side end.

  The light emitted from the light emitting element 4 is incident on the light incident side end of the optical waveguide 41 from a direction perpendicular to or substantially perpendicular to the optical transmission direction of the optical waveguide 41. The incident light is reflected by the light incident surface 41A and introduced into the optical waveguide 41 to travel through the core portion 41α. The light that travels in the optical waveguide 41 and reaches the light emitting side end is reflected by the light emitting surface 41B and is emitted in a direction that is perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the optical transmission direction of the optical waveguide 41. The The emitted light is applied to the light receiving element 12, and photoelectric conversion is performed in the light receiving element 12.

  According to such a configuration, the light emitting element 4 as a light source can be arranged in a direction perpendicular to or substantially perpendicular to the light transmission direction in the optical waveguide 41. Therefore, for example, when it is necessary to dispose the optical waveguide 41 parallel to the substrate surface, the light emitting device emits light in the normal direction of the substrate surface between the optical waveguide 41 and the substrate surface. 4 should be installed. Such a configuration is easier to mount than a configuration in which, for example, the light emitting element 4 is installed so as to emit light parallel to the substrate surface, and the configuration can be made more compact. This is because the general configuration of the light emitting element 4 is larger in the size in the direction perpendicular to the direction of emitting light than in the direction of emitting light. Furthermore, the present invention can also be applied to a configuration using a light-emitting element for planar mounting in which an electrode and the light-emitting element 4 are in the same plane.

  However, the configuration of the optical waveguide 41 is not limited to the above configuration, and a known optical waveguide can be used.

  The optical transmission device 1 transmits the binary signal to the outside in a state where the binary signal is distorted or dull. In addition, although it is suitable for the optical transmitter 1 to be the structure provided with either of the optical transmitters 1a-1c mentioned above, it is not limited to this. In other words, the optical transmission device 1 can be any transmission device as long as it can transmit the binary signal to the outside in a state where Tr and Tf of the binary signal are different from each other. May be.

  The optical receiver 11 receives a binary signal having a waveform that is distorted and / or blunt from the outside, and performs a process of setting the Tr and Tf of the binary signal to the same time. At this time, in the process in which Tr and Tf are set to the same time, Tr and Tf are aligned with the shorter time. In addition, although it is suitable for the optical receiver 11 to be a structure provided with either of the optical receivers 11a-11d mentioned above, it is not limited to this. That is, the optical receiver 11 receives a binary signal in a state where Tr and Tf are at different times from the outside, and performs processing to set Tr and Tf of the binary signal at the same time. Any receiving device may be used as long as the receiving device can receive the information.

  FIG. 17B is a diagram illustrating a waveform of the binary signal input from the electronic component to the transmission device according to the present invention. FIG. 17C shows the waveform of the binary signal transmitted to the outside by the transmission apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 17D is a diagram showing another waveform of the binary signal transmitted to the outside by the transmission apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 17 (e) is a diagram showing the waveform of the binary signal output from the receiving apparatus according to the present invention.

  A binary signal (see FIG. 17B for the waveform) from the electronic component is input to the optical transmitter 1.

  The optical transmission device 1 transmits the binary signal to the outside through the optical waveguide 41 in a state where the binary signal from the electronic component is distorted (see FIG. 17C for the waveform).

  Note that the distortion of the waveform of the binary signal generated in the optical transmission device 1 may be caused by the structural features of the transmission device according to the present invention, such as the above-described matching failure, or the optical transmission device. 1 may be generated as a result of processing for distorting the waveform of the binary signal.

  Further, the optical transmission device 1 may transmit the binary signal to the outside through the optical waveguide 41 in a state where the binary signal is dull (see FIG. 17D for the waveform). The waveform of the binary signal generated in the optical transmission device 1 may be dull due to the structural features of the transmission device according to the present invention, such as the above-described poor matching, or the optical transmission device. 1 may be generated as a result of performing the process of blunting the waveform of the binary signal.

  In the optical transmission device 1, it is not necessary to reduce the distortion and / or dullness of the waveform of the binary signal. For this reason, it is not necessary to insert a circuit for reducing the distortion and / or dullness in the optical transmission device 1, so that power consumption can be suppressed. Further, in the optical transmission device 1, since it is not necessary to carry out strict design and manufacture, a degree of freedom in design can be ensured and an increase in manufacturing cost can be suppressed.

  The optical receiver 11 receives a binary signal in which distortion and / or blunting has occurred from the outside (that is, the optical waveguide 41). Then, the optical receiver 11 performs processing for the binary signal so that Tr and Tf have the same time (see FIG. 17E for the waveform), and outputs the binary signal to the electrical interface. To do.

  According to the above configuration, the optical receiver 11 holds a signal for performing data communication using a memory or the like, and uses the CDR, PLL, or the like to extend the held signal in the time axis direction to increase the duty ratio. Power consumption can be reduced compared with the structure to make.

  In this embodiment, an optical waveguide is used as a transmission medium, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, in this embodiment, an optical fiber may be used as a transmission medium.

  In this embodiment, the transmission device and the reception device are connected to each other via a transmission medium and transmit a binary signal via the transmission medium. However, the present invention is not limited to this.

  That is, the transmission apparatus according to the present invention may be used as an optical transmission device (an optical transmission module to be described later) including the transmission apparatus (or the transmission apparatus and the transmission medium). The apparatus may be used as an optical receiving device (an optical receiving module described later) including the receiving apparatus (or the receiving apparatus and the optical transmission medium).

Further, as shown in FIG. 17 (f), the transmission device and the reception device according to the present invention have both the optical transmission device 1 and the optical reception device 11, and are used as a transmission / reception device 51 capable of transmitting and receiving binary signals. May be.
[Embodiment 10]
An optical transmission module including the transmission device and / or the reception device according to the present invention described in the above embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  18 (a) to 18 (g) are diagrams showing a schematic configuration of the optical transmission module according to the present invention.

  An optical transmission module 100 a shown in FIG. 18A is configured to include a laser drive circuit 3 and a light emitting element 4 as the optical transmission device 1. Note that the optical transmission module 100a illustrated in FIG. 18A may be an optical transmission module 100b further including a CPU (central processing unit) (see FIG. 18B). The optical transmission module 100b shown in FIG. 18B may be an optical transmission module 100c further including a serializer SER that converts an electrical signal from a parallel signal into a serial signal (see FIG. 18C). The optical transmission module 100c may have a clock embedded function.

  The optical transmission modules 100a to 100c illustrated in FIGS. 18A to 18C may be configured such that a transmission medium (such as an optical waveguide 41 or an optical fiber) is further connected to the optical transmission device 1.

  In the optical transmission modules 100a to 100c, the optical transmission device 1 is preferably configured to include any of the optical transmission devices 1a to 1c described above.

  The optical transmission modules 100a to 100c are optical transmission modules that transmit optical signals to the outside.

  In addition, the optical transmission module 100d illustrated in FIG. 18D includes the light receiving element 12 and the analog circuit A1 as the optical receiving device 11. The analog circuit A1 may include an amplifier (not shown). Note that the optical transmission module 100d illustrated in FIG. 18D may be the optical transmission module 100e further including a CPU (see FIG. 18E). The optical transmission module 100e illustrated in FIG. 18E may be an optical transmission module 100f further including a deserializer DES that converts an electrical signal from a serial signal to a parallel signal (see FIG. 18F). Note that the optical transmission module 100e may have a clock recovery function.

  Note that the optical transmission modules 100d to 100f illustrated in FIGS. 18D to 18F may be configured such that the transmission medium is further connected to the optical receiver 11.

  In the optical transmission modules 100d to 100f, the optical receiver 11 is preferably configured to include any of the optical receivers 11a to 11d described above.

  The optical transmission modules 100d to 100f are optical reception modules that receive optical signals from the outside.

  In the optical receiver module, an LIA and a TIA (Trance Impedance Amplifier) may be separately provided as amplifiers of the analog circuit A1 of the optical receiver 11, or have substantially the same functions as the LIA and TIA. One or a plurality of amplifiers may be provided.

  In the optical receiver module, a CDR may be provided after the amplifier of the optical receiver 11. The optical receiver module may be configured such that a liquid crystal driving circuit or the like is provided after the amplifier of the optical receiver 11.

  Furthermore, the optical transmission module according to the present invention may be an optical transmission module in which the transmission medium is incorporated in the optical transmission device 1 or the optical reception device 11.

  The optical transmission module according to the present invention may be an optical transmission module 100g (see FIG. 18G) in which the optical transmission device 1 and the optical reception device 11 are connected by an optical waveguide 41 (or an optical fiber). Good. In this case, the optical transmission device 1 and the optical reception device 11 can be realized by combining any of the optical transmission devices 1 and any of the optical reception devices 11 described above.

According to said structure, the optical transmission module which can reduce power consumption is realizable.
[Embodiment 11]
Electronic devices including the optical transmission module according to the present invention described in the above embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 19A is a schematic diagram of a mobile phone that performs data communication using the optical transmission module according to the present invention. FIG. 19B is a perspective view of an internal circuit of a mobile phone that performs data communication using the optical transmission module.

  In the mobile phone 130 shown in FIG. 19A, a signal processing circuit board 131 and a liquid crystal driver circuit board 132 including a display unit 133 are connected by an optical transmission module 100. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 19B, the optical transmitter 1 and the signal processing circuit board 131 are connected, the optical receiver 11 and the liquid crystal driver circuit board 132 are connected, and further, optical transmission is performed. In this configuration, the device 1 and the optical receiver 11 are connected by an optical waveguide 41 (or an optical fiber).

  This enables data communication between the signal processing circuit board 131 and the liquid crystal driver circuit board 132 in the mobile phone 130. That is, for example, the information stored on the signal processing circuit board 131 side can be displayed on the display unit 133 provided on the liquid crystal driver circuit board 132 side.

  FIG. 19C is a schematic diagram of a printer that performs data communication using the optical transmission module. FIG. 19D is a perspective view of an internal circuit of a printer that performs data communication using the optical transmission module.

  In the printer 140 shown in FIG. 19C, the printer head 141 and the substrate 143 on the printer main body side are connected by the optical transmission module 100. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 19D, the optical transmitter 1 and the substrate 143 on the printer body side are connected to the optical receiver 11 and the printer head 141, and further, the optical transmitter 1 and the optical receiver are connected. In this configuration, the device 11 is connected to the optical waveguide 41.

  Thus, in the printer 140, data communication between the printer head 141 and the substrate 143 on the printer main body side becomes possible. That is, for example, in FIG. 19C, information about characters and images stored on the substrate 143 side on the printer main body side is transmitted to the printer head 141. Then, the printer head 141 that has received the information reads the characters and images from the information. As a result, the printer head 141 can print the characters and images on the paper 142.

  FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example in which the optical transmission module is applied to a hard disk recording / reproducing apparatus.

  As shown in FIG. 20, the hard disk recording / reproducing device 160 includes a disk (hard disk) 161, a head (read / write head) 162, a substrate introduction unit 163, a drive unit (drive motor) 164, and the optical transmission module 100. Yes.

  The drive unit 164 drives the head 162 along the radial direction of the disk 161. The head 162 reads information recorded on the disk 161 and writes information on the disk 161. The head 162 is connected to the substrate introducing unit 163 via the optical transmission module 100, and propagates information read from the disk 161 to the substrate introducing unit 163 as an optical signal, and is also propagated from the substrate introducing unit 163. In addition, an optical signal of information to be written on the disk 161 is received.

  As described above, by applying the optical transmission module 100 to a drive unit such as the head 162 in the hard disk recording / reproducing apparatus 160, an electronic device capable of high-speed and large-capacity communication can be realized.

  In addition, the optical transmission module according to the present invention is applied to a hinge part of a foldable electronic device such as a foldable PHS (Personal Handy phone System), a foldable PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), and a foldable notebook personal computer. You can also By applying the optical transmission module according to the present invention to these foldable electronic devices, high-speed and large-capacity communication can be realized in a limited space. Therefore, the optical transmission module according to the present invention is particularly suitable for a device that requires high-speed and large-capacity data communication such as a foldable liquid crystal display device and is required to be downsized.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope shown in the claims. That is, embodiments obtained by combining technical means appropriately modified within the scope of the claims are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  The present invention can be suitably used for a transmission device that transmits a signal for performing data communication between a plurality of electronic components, a reception device that receives the signal, and the like.

1, 1a-1c Optical transmitter (transmitter)
2, 2a Waveform deformation circuit (waveform deformation means)
3, 3a, 31, 32 Laser drive circuit (drive means)
4 Light emitting elements
5, 5a Duty ratio adjustment circuit 11, 11a-11d Optical receiver (receiver)
12 Light receiving element
13-15 Waveform shaping circuit (waveform shaping means)
100, 100a-100g
Optical transmission module
130 Mobile phone (electronic equipment)
160 Hard Disk Recording / Reproducing Device (Electronic Equipment)
A1 Analog circuit
AMP1 feedback amplifier
AMP2 amplifier
D1 Digital circuit
I1 to I3 inverter
T1-T7 transistors

Claims (10)

A light emitting element that converts an electric signal into an optical signal and transmits the light signal, and an electric signal generated based on a binary signal having a high-level signal and a low-level signal that is input is supplied to the light-emitting element. Driving means for driving the light emitting element by outputting the light signal from the light emitting element,
Waveform deforming means for deforming and outputting the binary signal into a waveform having a longer time required for falling, and the signal from the waveform deforming means are deformed into a waveform in which the period of the high level signal is shortened. A duty ratio adjusting circuit that outputs to the driving means, and a signal output from the duty ratio adjusting circuit has a lower duty ratio than the binary signal;
A light receiving element that receives the optical signal transmitted from the transmission device, converts the optical signal into an electric signal and outputs the signal, and a waveform shaping unit that shapes the waveform of the electric signal from the light receiving element,
The waveform shaping means compares the electric signal from the light receiving element with the level of the electric signal and a threshold level, and based on the comparison result, the waveform has a reduced time required for falling, and , The signal is shaped and output into a waveform with a long period of high level signal,
The signal output from the waveform shaping means is a receiving device having a higher duty ratio than the electrical signal from the light receiving element;
Equipped with a,
The time required for the fall of the signal output from the waveform deforming means is longer than the time required for the fall of the signal input to the waveform deforming means,
The time required for the fall of the signal output from the waveform shaping means is shorter than the time required for the fall of the signal input to the waveform shaping means,
The transmission / reception apparatus , wherein a period of a high level signal output from the waveform shaping unit is longer than a period of a high level signal input to the waveform shaping unit . A light emitting element that converts an electric signal into an optical signal and transmits the light signal, and an electric signal generated based on a binary signal having a high-level signal and a low-level signal that is input is supplied to the light-emitting element. Driving means for outputting the optical signal from the light emitting element and driving the light emitting element,
The drive means transforms the binary signal into a waveform having a longer falling time and outputs the waveform, and the signal from the waveform transform means has a high signal period shortened. A duty ratio adjustment circuit that supplies the electrical signal obtained by transforming the waveform to the light emitting element, and the signal output from the duty ratio adjustment circuit has a duty ratio that is higher than that of the binary signal. The transmitter being lowered, and
A light receiving element that receives the optical signal transmitted from the transmission device, converts the optical signal into an electric signal and outputs the signal, and a waveform shaping unit that shapes the waveform of the electric signal from the light receiving element,
The waveform shaping means compares the electric signal from the light receiving element with the level of the electric signal and a threshold level, and based on the comparison result, the waveform has a reduced time required for falling, and , The signal is shaped and output into a waveform with a long period of high level signal,
The signal output from the waveform shaping means is a receiving device having a higher duty ratio than the electrical signal from the light receiving element;
Equipped with a,
The time required for the fall of the signal output from the waveform deforming means is longer than the time required for the fall of the signal input to the waveform deforming means,
The time required for the fall of the signal output from the waveform shaping means is shorter than the time required for the fall of the signal input to the waveform shaping means,
The transmission / reception apparatus , wherein a period of a high level signal output from the waveform shaping unit is longer than a period of a high level signal input to the waveform shaping unit . It has an analog circuit that handles received analog signals and a digital circuit that handles digital signals to be transmitted,
The transmission / reception apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the waveform shaping unit is provided in a connection portion connected to the analog circuit in the digital circuit. It has an analog circuit that handles received analog signals and a digital circuit that handles digital signals to be transmitted,
The transmission / reception apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the digital circuit includes the waveform shaping unit that shapes a waveform of a signal from the analog circuit at a connection portion connected to the analog circuit. The transmission / reception apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the waveform shaping means is one or a plurality of inverters. It has an analog circuit that handles received analog signals and a digital circuit that handles digital signals to be transmitted,
3. The transmitting / receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the waveform shaping means is one or a plurality of amplifiers in the analog circuit. A light emitting element that converts an electric signal into an optical signal and transmits the light signal, and an electric signal generated based on a binary signal having a high-level signal and a low-level signal that is input is supplied to the light-emitting element. And a driving unit that outputs the optical signal from the light emitting element and drives the light emitting element,
Waveform deforming means for deforming and outputting the binary signal into a waveform having a longer time required for falling, and the signal from the waveform deforming means are deformed into a waveform in which the period of the high level signal is shortened. A duty ratio adjusting circuit for outputting to the driving means, and the signal output from the duty ratio adjusting circuit is an optical signal transmitted from a transmitting device having a duty ratio lower than that of the binary signal. A light receiving element that receives and converts the optical signal into an electrical signal and outputs the electrical signal;
A waveform shaping means for shaping a waveform of an electric signal from the light receiving element, and a reception control method by a receiving device comprising:
The waveform shaping means compares the electrical signal from the light receiving element with the level of the electrical signal and the threshold level, and has a waveform in which the time required for falling is shortened based on the comparison result. And, by shaping and outputting a waveform with a long period of high level signal,
The duty ratio of the signal output from the waveform shaping means is higher than the electrical signal from the light receiving element ,
The time required for the fall of the signal output from the waveform deforming means is longer than the time required for the fall of the signal input to the waveform deforming means,
The time required for the fall of the signal output from the waveform shaping means is shorter than the time required for the fall of the signal input to the waveform shaping means,
A reception control method characterized in that a period of a high level signal output from the waveform shaping means is longer than a period of a high level signal input to the waveform shaping means. . A light emitting element that converts an electric signal into an optical signal and transmits the light signal, and an electric signal generated based on a binary signal having a high-level signal and a low-level signal that is input is supplied to the light-emitting element. And a driving unit that outputs the optical signal from the light emitting element and drives the light emitting element,
The drive means transforms the binary signal into a waveform having a longer falling time and outputs the waveform, and the signal from the waveform transform means has a high signal period shortened. A duty ratio adjustment circuit that supplies the electrical signal obtained by transforming the waveform to the light emitting element, and the signal output from the duty ratio adjustment circuit has a duty ratio that is higher than that of the binary signal. A light receiving element that receives an optical signal transmitted from a transmitting device that is low, converts the optical signal into an electrical signal, and outputs the electrical signal;
A waveform shaping means for shaping a waveform of an electric signal from the light receiving element, and a reception control method by a receiving device comprising:
The waveform shaping means compares the electrical signal from the light receiving element with the level of the electrical signal and the threshold level, and has a waveform in which the time required for falling is shortened based on the comparison result. And, by shaping and outputting a waveform with a long period of high level signal,
The duty ratio of the signal output from the waveform shaping means is higher than the electrical signal from the light receiving element ,
The time required for the fall of the signal output from the waveform deforming means is longer than the time required for the fall of the signal input to the waveform deforming means,
The time required for the fall of the signal output from the waveform shaping means is shorter than the time required for the fall of the signal input to the waveform shaping means,
A reception control method characterized in that a period of a high level signal output from the waveform shaping means is longer than a period of a high level signal input to the waveform shaping means. . The transmission / reception device according to claim 1 or 2,
An optical transmission module comprising: a transmission medium that transmits the optical signal from the transmission device to the reception device. An electronic device that performs data transmission using the optical transmission module according to claim 9 .

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