SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR DISCOVERING FREQUENCY RELATED SPURS IN A MULTI-CONVERSION TUNER TECHNICAL FIELD [0002] The invention relates generally to frequency interference calculations and more specifically to determining frequency related spurs in a multi-conversion tuner.

BACKGROUND [0003] In a tuner or frequency converter (such as, for example, a dual- conversion tuner), an incoming signal at frequency is mixed with a signal at frequency fLOl from a local oscillator (LO) to produce a signal at an intermediate frequency fIF. This signal may then mixed with a signal at fiequencyfLO2 from a second local oscillator signal to produce the desired output frequency foUT, in a dual conversion tuner configuration.

This process is illustrated in FIGURE 1A, which is a portion of one example of a tuner showing how thefLO signals (provided by LO 12 and 13) are mixed. Such a tuner is shown in U. S. Patent No. 5,737, 035, issued April 7,1998 hereby incorporated by reference herein.

Typically, but not always, the frequency of first local oscillator, e. g. , LO 12, is greater than that of second local oscillator, e. g. , LO 13. That is, gellerallyfLOl >fLO2. Accordingly, reference shall be made herein to equations in which it is assumed thatfLol >% Lo2 However, it should be appreciated that the formulae herein are applicable to situations in whichfLO2 > fLO1, such as by replacingfLOl withfLo2 and replacingfLO2 withfLoI in situations where fLO2 > fLO1.

[0004] FIGURE 1B shows a simplified diagram of two mixing stages with the filtering omitted. These filters ultimately determine final bandwidth (fBW) of the tuner, but since they do not contribute to the production of LO-related spurs, they are omitted from FIGURE 1B.

[0005] An adverse effect of the dual conversion process is the introduction of LO-related spurs into the tuned signal. These spurs are created by combinations of the harmonics of the LO frequencies used (/Loi and fLO2).

[0006] The frequency of each of the LO-related spurs can be calculated as: fSPUR = n # f1 - m # f2 (1) where 7> and 771 are integer numbers representing, respectively the harmonics of the high and <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> low local oscillator frequencies, andf1 and f2 are the local oscillator frequencies (e. g. , filou andfLO2, respectively where fLOI >fL02). If any spur generated by a given combination of fLOl andfLo2 falls within the output bandwidth (few) of the converter/tuner, that spur can degrade the quality of the output signal. If a spur does exist within the desired output bandwidth, the LO frequencies can be adjusted to different values to avoid the spur falling within the output band. As manufacturing processes produce denser and faster IC's, the number of harmonics (7zMAx) tl1at must be considered continues to increase. Since the number of LO frequency combinations that can possibly create spurs in n harmonics is n2, the amount of resources required to avoid the spurs increases dramatically as technology improves. As an example, at the time the circuit shown in FIGURE 1A was initially produced, the number of harmonics (n) that were typically taken into consideration was 5.

Currently, the number of harmonics typically taken into consideration is on the order of 15.

[0007] One reason why it is important to avoid LO spurious products is that a spur which is generated by multiples offLOl andfLO2 in a double conversion system will often have a power level which is much greater than the actual RF signal. Therefore, if a spur caused by a product offLOI andfLO2 falls in the desired IF output pass band, its amplitude (power level) may be larger than the IF output level of the original desired signal, corrupting the performance of the mixer itself.

[0008] One of the fixes for this problem is that when it is known that a certain spur (such as a spur associated with two times the first LO and three times the second LO) will fall within the output pass band, the LO frequencies can be changed (up or down) a certain amount, which will, in effect, still allow the circuit to tune to the desired output frequency, but the spur will be moved up or down and outside of the output bandwidth of the tuner.

[0009] Accordingly, one method for identifying spurs falling within a particular band, such as the tuner output band, is to look at all the harmonics of the first LO, mixed with all the harmonics of the second LO and, one by one, check off each one.

Thus, if a circuit designer is looking up to the 15tll hannonic of the first LO and the 15tel' harmonic of the second LO, the designer checks one times fLO1 (first harmonic) and one timesfLO2 (first harmonic) to see if there is a spur of concern. If there is no spur of concern, then the designer continues with one timesfLOl (first harmonic) and two timesfLO2 (second harmonic) to see if there is a spur of concern. If not, then the process continues with one time flot (first harmonic) and three timesfLO2 (third hannonic) to see if there is a spur of concern. Once all harmonics offLo2 have been considered, the harmonic of the first LO frequency may be incremented and each harmonic of the second LO frequency again considered. That is, the designer continues with two timesflo, (second harmonic) and one timesfLO2 (first harmonic) to see if there is a spur of concern, and so on. This results in n2 combinations being looked at. This is a time consuming method. Even assuming that the mathematics of how spurs are generated allows for the elimination of quite a few of the coefficients for the first and second LO, the operation remains essentially an n2 operation.

[0010] It should be appreciated that spur identification and avoidance as discussed above is dependent on the circuit that is being used and which spurs might come through the chip more strongly than other spurs. It is also dependent on the input frequency and on all the specific channels that might be on the input frequency. That method is also specific to the first IF frequency and to the output frequency. Thus, for each application of a circuit the chip designer generally must employ a unique program for each channel input lineup in the desired frequency spectrum. This then implies that a different spur avoidance algorithm must be created for every customer application, i. e., each tuner implementation.

BRIEF SUMMARY [0011] The present invention is directed to systems and methods of reducing interference in a circuit resulting from harmonics of oscillator frequencies. In one embodiment, a determination is made as to a band or bands in which harmonics could possibly result in interference and determining which combination of LO frequencies result in harmonics not falling within the determined band or bands. Preferred embodiments leverage the fact that harmonics of a particular frequency are evenly spaced to avoid examining all of the possible harmonics. For example, rather than calculate every harmonic and check that each calculated harmonic does not fall within the determined band or bands, embodiments of the present invention determine the smallest harmonics that are greater than each edge of the determined band or bands. An interfering spur, a difference of the LO harmonics falling within the band or bands, may be determined to exist where the smallest harmonic difference for a particular LO harmonic that is greater than a first edge of a determined band is not equal to the smallest harmonic difference for the particular LO harmonic that is greater than a second edge of the determined band.

[0012] Accordingly, in one embodiment, the number of calculations used to find spurs that may interfere in a dual-conversion tuner is reduced by calculating which spurs are of possible interest for each of the LO harmonics. Usually, the number of possible spurs which could possibly cause interference is reduced to only two for each LO harmonic, so the absolute order of calculations as well as the number of calculations become a number times fa operation instead of a n2 operation.

[0013] In one embodiment, methods of the present invention eliminate several sets of harmonics as producing differences which cannot result in spurs within the band or bands of interest, and thereby results in a further reduced set of calculations. Thus, (assuming 15 harmonics), rather than having to look at 15 times 4 sets of numbers, embodiments of the invention may only look at 5 harmonics and ignore the remaining 10.

For example, by observing the actual value of the calculated numbers, a user or control system may stop the spur analysis without calculating all harmonic product values.

[0014] The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technical advantages of the present invention in order that the detailed description of the invention that follows may be better understood. Additional features and advantages of the invention will be described hereinafter which form the subject of the claims of the invention. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the conception and specific embodiment disclosed may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention. It should also be realized by those skilled in the art that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims. The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the invention, both as to its organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying figures. It is to be expressly understood, however, that each of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration and description only and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0015] For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference is now made to the following descriptions taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which: [0016] FIGURE 1A is a prior art dual conversion tuner ; [0017] FIGURE 1B is a simplified diagram of two mixing stages, with filtering omitted, of a prior art dual conversion tuner; [0018] FIGURE 2 illustrates the bands of frequencies within which extraneous signals such as spurs are not desirable; [0019] FIGURE 3 illustrates where the spurious signals from one LO harmonic lie with respect to the frequency bands shown in FIGURE 2; [0020] FIGURE 4 illustrates how calculated frequencies fall inside or outside the critical bands; [0021] FIGURE 5 shows the results of searching for spurs using prior art methods; [0022] FIGURE 6 shows the results of searching for spurs using concepts of the present invention; [0023] FIGURE 7A shows one embodiment of a method of practicing concepts of the present invention; [0024] FIGURE 7B shows a variation of a method of practicing concepts of the present invention of FIGURE 7A; and [0025] FIGURE 8 shows one embodiment of a system using the concepts of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION [0026] Equation (1) (above) is the starting point for calculation of a spur. As shown, n is a harmonic (1,2, 3, etc.) off, e. g., ffiL01, and m is a harmonic off2, e. g., fL02. The spur equation then is the product of nfL01 minus the product of mol02- [0027] There is a practical limit to how many harmonics (n, m) are capable of causing interference, e. g. , due to the signal level of the spur and/or the frequency of the spur. The number of harmonics which are candidates for producing interfering spurs for any particular tuner circuit depends upon such factors as how fast the process used to fabricate the tuner is and/or how high a frequency the tuner is designed to handle. Faster processes generally suggest larger harmonics should be considered. However, spurs which fall outside the IF output pass band are typically not of concern.

[0028] Different circuits, and different applications, have different pass bands. One such pass band, such as often utilized in television signal processing, is 44MHz. Accordingly, in such circuits there should be some bandwidth around the output center frequency, e. g. , 6MHz around the 44MHz video signal pass band, which should not have spurs. For example, 44 plus 3 megahertz and 44 minus 3 megahertz may define a range which should be free of LO spurs because that is where a demodulator is looking for a clean signal to process and use. Based on this example, a system or system designer looks for integer harmonics of the tuner LO frequencies that will generate spurs in the range of 41MHz to 47MHz, and the image band-41MHz to-47MHz. As discussed, it is current practice to check as many as 15 harmonics, thugs ra and 771 range from 1-15.

[0029] FIGURE 2 illustrates the output band 20 (and its image 21) of a converter/tuner. AnyfspuR that falls within the shaded ranges is of concern and most likely undesirable.

[0030] FIGURE 3 shows a graphical representation of the spurs (spurs 31- 36) that result for a specific harmonic (n) of a first LO frequency (e. g., fii =fLOz) and six harmonics (m = -1, m = -2, m =-3, 771 =-4, m = -5, m =-6) of a second LO frequency (e. g. fi = fLO2). These spurs may be calculated using Equation (1). In the example shown in FIGURE 3, there are no interfering spurs associated with the ntl'hannonic offi (fLOI) when combined with the 6 illustrated harmonics off2 (fLO2). Moreover, it can be seen that many of the spurs are displaced in frequency far enough from the bands of interest (output band 20 and image 21) so as to present no real issue with respect to interference, and therefore needlessly consume computing resources in their calculation.

[0031] The fact that the LO-related spurs are evenly spaced may be used according to the embodiments of the invention to avoid having to examine all of the possible harmonics and their spur. Rather than calculate spurs for every harmonic and then check to be sure that the calculated spur does not fall within the output bandwidth (or its image), it is possible to determine for each/any particular harmonic off, the smallest harmonic off2 that produces a spur greater than each edge of bands 20 and 21, (edges A, B, C, and D). If the smallest harmonic off2 which results in a spur larger than one edge of a band (e. g. , edge C of band 20) is not equal to the smallest harmonic off2 which results in a spur larger than the other edge of the band (e. g. , edge D of band 20), then at least one spur falls between the two band edges, that is, a spur exists in the band.

[0032] The frequencies of the output band edges discussed above may be represented as (where fBW is the bandwidth of the output band): <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> (2)<BR> A =-FOUT-fBW 2 (2) B = -fOUT + fBW / 2 (3) <BR> <BR> <BR> (4)<BR> C = fOUT-fBW / 2 D = fOUT+fBW / 2 [0033] For a given harmonic n off1, the exact multiple off2 that is associated with a spur coinciding with each band edge can be calculated. The multiple that corresponds for point A, for example, can be calculated as (substituting A as defined in equation (2) forfspuR of equation (1) and solving for m) 77lA = (n # f1 + fOUT + (fBW # 2))# f2 (6) Since we are only interested in integer values of iii, we can apply the floor function (Lnz, #) to this value to, determine the smallest integer harmonic off2 that is associated with a spur greater than band edge A. The equations to determine such an integer value for each of the band edges are: <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> mA =#(n # f1 - A)# f2# (7)<BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> mB =#(n # f1 - B)# f2# (8)<BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> B1lc =#(n # f1 - C)# f2# (9)<BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> MD=L =#(n # f1 - D)# f2# (10) The above 4 harmonics off2 may be analyzed according to the present invention to determine if spurs resulting from harmonics off2 and a particular harmonic (n) off, correspond to band 20 or 21. If mA # mB or 711C w 71ID then an LO-related spur falls within the output bandwidth of the tuner.

[0034] Assume by way of example, that mA before applying the floor function computes to be a number, such as 5.3, and mB computes to be another number, such as 5.2, when considering the 2 harmonic off. Taking the floor of 5.3 and 5.2, yields 5 for both mA associated with edge A and ma associated with edge B. Accordingly, analysis of mA and mB provided according to embodiments of the invention may conclude that no spur is present in band 21 associated with the 2'ld harmonic off, in combination with the harmonics off2. This can be seen graphically in FIGURE 4, where the 5tll harmonic of/2 when combined with the 2 harmonic off, produces a spur (spur 45) which is both the smallest harmonic off2 less than A and B and, therefore, does not show up between points A and B. Saying this another way, there was no whole number transition between the spurs associated with the edges of the band, so no spurs will show up between points A and B.

[0035] Another way to look at the spur analysis described above would be to say that the A, B, C and D edge values are known for any particular system. Since back edge frequency A is known, and n (the harmonic off) is fixed for a particular set of spurs, a value of m (the harmonic off2) which would cause a spur to happen at A can be calculated. In this calculation, na need not be a whole number, or an integer number, but rather an exact calculation of what that number is. Equation (6) calculates na for frequency A (for the above example, ni was 5.3). Equation (7) takes the floor of that calculation to arrive at an integer value since a harmonic is present only at integer multiples of a particular frequency (in the example applying the floor function to 5.3 provides 5).

Because there is no transition in the calculated harmonic values for band edge A and band edge B (i. e., mA = mB) there can be no LO-related spur within the band defined by band edge A and band edge B.

[0036] However, in FIGURE 4 by way of example, it can be seen that the spur related to the second harmonic of fl and the third harmonic off2 falls within band 20 of concern. When the equations above are used to calculate the smallest harmonics having spurs greater than the band edges C and D, mC = 3 and mD = 2, indicating a transition in the calculation harmonic values for edge band C and edge band D (i. e. , mC mD). This indicates that a spur exists in band 20, even without calculating the frequency of the spur. Accordingly, it can readily be appreciated that embodiments of the present invention provide an expedient technique for recognizing combinations of LO frequencies having undesired spurs associated therewith.

[0037] Moreover, the floor function used according to preferred embodiments of the invention allows for a fixed point integer operation since it is not important to the spur determination what the fractional part is. Accordingly, the divide according to embodiments of the invention, may be implemented as an integer divide, which is a function that most CPUs provide and therefore is readily implemented. It should be appreciated that, although the example above discussed calculations with respect to a single particular harmonic of the first frequency (fui), embodiments of the present invention perform such calculations for a series of first frequency harmonics. For example, n may be selected to be 1 (lest harmonic offi) and the above calculations and analysis of mA, mB, mcn and mD performed. If the presence of undesired spurs is not identified, 71 may be incremented (such as 2, corresponding to a 2"d harmonic offi) and the above calculation and analysis of mA, ynB, mc, and inD performed, and so on.

[0038] Embodiments of the present invention may further optimize the calculations and analysis performed in determining the presence of spurs. For example, some embodiments of the invention operate to calculate mA and mD to determine if a transition (spur) happens between them as a threshold determination for further analysis of a set of harmonics. If a spur does occur between distal band edges A and D, then the system may proceed to calculate proximal band edges B and C for further analysis. For example, if the transition occurred between proximal edges B and C it could not occur between band edges A and B (band 21) or band edges C and D (band 20). Note that the charts shown in FIGURES 3 and 4 are for discussion purposes only and in reality the distance between A and D is in the order of 70-90 megahertz for a video signal processing system, while the distance between 1 times f2 and 2 times is around 1200 megahertz for such a video signal processing system. Accordingly, the chance of a spur actually falling between A and D is slight (about 7%). Thus, this embodiment can shorten the number of computations (reducing the number of computations by half about 93% of the time) by initially looking at just points A and D.

[0039] It should be appreciated that, although embodiments have been described herein with reference to use of the floor function, it is also possible to use the ceiling function for the same purpose. Such embodiments of the invention calculate the largest harmonic that is less than the band edge using the ceiling function, with the comparisons between the 7NX values remaining as described above.

[0040] By using the concepts taught herein, one need only calculate, at most, four values for each 71 x fl value, regardless of how many harmonics (nMAX) are to be considered. In addition, since the value of n xf increases as 71 increases, if the values of 77 are considered in increasing order, when the calculated value of 77lu, the largest 7nX quantity, equals or exceeds HMAX (7nD # nMAX), then there are no more combinations of n < n/AX and m < MMAX which could produce interfering spurs. It is, thus, not necessary to examine any additional harmonics off.

[0041] As an example of the improved efficiency of this algorithm, consider a tuner with an output frequency of 44MHz, where the local oscillators are tuned to fLO1 = fi = 1289MHz andfLO2 =2 = 1176MHz, and the output bandwidth is 6MHz. Thus, the output frequency of interest is 41MHz to 47MHz. In this example, there is a spur (46MHz) resulting from the tenth harmonic offLOl (10x1289) and the eleventh harmonic offLO2 (l lx1176) that falls within the output bandwidth (10#1289 - 11#1176=-46. 0).

[0042] Existing spur-avoidance routines can require the calculation of all/ possible spur frequencies to compare the value of each spur to the output bandwidth as in equation (11) below. When this equation is true, there is a spur within the output band.

#fOUT - #fSPUR ##fBW/2 (11) Searching n=11, and as many as n=15, hannonics is not uncommon. Accordingly, it can readily be appreciated that analysis using existing spur-avoidance routines can be not only be time consuming but processor intensive.

[0043] FIGURE 5 shows the results of searching for the spur described above, using common methods and checking for n=15 harmonics. When any spur is detected, no further calculation is necessary. This method requires calculating 146 spur frequencies to be compared with the output frequency. Indeed, when no spur is present, the usual situation, it may be necessary to examine all n2 frequencies, which in this case is 225 calculations.

[0044] FIGURE 6 shows the results of determining the smallest harmonics greater than the band edges to detect the spur. Only 38 values are computed in the illustrated example before a spur is detected between mA and mu associated with the 10tl' harmonic offLO1 and the l harmonic offLO2. If there is no spur in the band at all, a maximum of 4 ? ? (where n, is the number of harmonics to be checked) values are calculated.

In this case 60 calculations would be the maximum number. However, since the calculated mx value reflects the number 002 harmonic larger than the band edge and the nix values only increase, for higher vales of n, the scan can be terminated as soon as the value of mD matches or exceeds nMAX, meaning that it will seldom require the calculation of all 60 values.

[0045] Additionally, if the values of and and mD are computed first and mA = nID, then it is not necessary to calculate the 117B and 77lc values (since they must also be the same), which reduces the number of calculations in FIGURE 6 from 38 to 21.

[0046] Additional optimization to the above algorithm may be obtained by determining the first harmonic off1 that can possibly contribute to an interfering spur (nO), allowing any calculations for lower harmonics off, to be eliminated. In implementing embodiments of the invention including such further optimization, local oscillator frequencies xi andf2) are selected such that the difference between the LO frequencies (f1- f2) is greater than the highest frequency in the output band (fOUT + fBW / 2). Stated another way: Since gi > f2, and therefore, n # f1 > n x 2, it follows that equation (12) is also true for all values ofm that are less than or equal to n. Therefore This means that no LO-related spurs will be created in the output bandwidth when 771 #n, or conversely, all spurs will occur when na > ra. The first possible spur cannot occur until (at least) m = n + 1.

[0047] The above knowledge can be combined with the fact that, by definition, all interfering spurs must be larger than band edge A (see FIGURE 3), to determine the lowest harmonic off1 which needs to be examined (no). Combining the equation for the first possible spur (from equation (1) ) and the value of band edge A (equation (2) ) produces the following relationship describing the first harmonic (nO) of interest: Solving this equation for 71 yields the lowest harmonic off1 that can produce spurs : Since only integer harmonics are meaningful and 7 ? iS the minimum harmonic off1 that may produce a spur, the ceiling function (0 l) can be applied to the value of n to determine no : In the example above, where flot = 1289MHz and fLO2 = 1176MHz, the first harmonic of interest is n = 10. When determining the smallest spur larger than each band edge according to embodiments of the present invention and starting with the calculated minimum harmonic off, as determined above, the presence of the interfering spur of the example of FIGURE 6 determined by the two additional calculations, e. g., mA and 777D, it is only necessary to calculate 2 values to detect the existence of the interfering spur.

[0048] Summarizing the above discussion, if the two LO frequencies are farther apart than the output bandwidth, which is nearly always the case, then the only spur which could occur is when n (the multiplier of the L01 harmonic) is a larger number than the L02 harmonic, or where n is greater than ni. This is discussed with respect to equation (12) and equation (13). By accepting that fact and looking back at FIGURES 3 and 4, it can be seen that after frequency A is passed (whatever that frequency is) there cannot be any more spurs resulting in bands 20 and 21 as all the spurs will be larger in frequency than band edge A. Equations (14), (15), and (16) address this fact and allow for the determination of the first harmonic of LO1 that can produce a spur. In all the other cases L01 is small enough such that when even the very first L02 is subtracted, the result will be less than the frequency of band edge A, which is the lowest frequency we are interested in. Taking this all into consideration, equation (16) emerges which produces an initial LO1 harmonic of interest.

[0049] FIGURE 7A shows the steps of a method for determining if particular LO frequencies result in undesired spurs (spurs in an output band) are present according to an embodiment of the present invention. Step 701 determines the band edges for the tuner. It should be appreciated that, in most situations, band edge numbers are constant values that do not change, so they only need to be calculated one time for a particular implementation. Step 702 calculates no, the first/} harmonic of interest, to thereby optimize the number of calculations made in determining the presence of an undesired spur. According to the illustrated embodiment, the harmonic off, for spur analysis (n) is set to the calculated first harmonic of interest (no).

[0050] Step 703 calculates the smallest harmonic off2 that is associated with a spur greater than band edge A (mA) and the smallest harmonic off2 that is associated with a spur greater than band edge D (mD) for the selected value of n. At step 704 a comparison is made with respect to the calculated harmonics to determine if it is possible that a spur is present in the bands of interest. If mA= 7nD then no spur can be present in the bands of interest so processing according to the illustrated embodiment proceeds to step 709. If mA W mD a spur exists between distal band edges A and D and, therefore, may be present in the bands of interest. Accordingly, processing according to the illustrated embodiment proceeds to step 705 for further spur analysis.

[0051] Step 705 calculates the smallest harmonic off2 that is associated with a spur greater than band edge B for the selected value of n. At step 706 a comparison is made with respect to the calculated harmonics to determine if a spur is present in a first band of interest (the band defined by band edge A and band edge B). If nlA + mB then it is determined that an undesirable spur exists and spur determination processing with respect to the pair of LO frequencies (fi andf2) stops. If mA = mg then no spur is present in the first band of interest, but the spur between band edges A and D (as determined at step 704) may be present in a second band of interest (the band defined by band edge C and band edge D). Accordingly, processing according to the illustrated embodiment proceeds to step 707 for further spur analysis.

[0052] Step 707 calculates the smallest harmonic off2 that is associated with a spur greater than band edge C for the selected value of n. At step 708 a comparison is made with respect to the calculated harmonics to determine if a spur is present in the second band of interest. If mc Mc A inD then it is determined that an undesirable spur exists and spur determination processing with respect to the pair of LO frequencies (>i andf2) stops. If mc = MD then no spur is present in the second band of interest and, therefore, the spur between band edges A and D (as determined at step 704) must be out of band between band edges B and C. Accordingly, processing according to the illustrated embodiment proceeds to step 709.

[0053] At step 709 a determination is made as to whether the smallest harmonic off2 that is associated with a spur greater than band edge D (mD) for the selected value of n is greater than or equal to a maximum harmonic (NMAX) off for analysis, e. g., MMAX may be established at 15 for relatively fast tuner circuits. If the smallest harmonic of f2 corresponding to band edge D (mD) for the selected value of n is greater than or equal to the maximum harmonic, then no further spur analysis is performed according to the illustrated embodiment as the pair of LO frequencies (fi andf2) do not have spurs which are present in the bands of interest. If the smallest harmonic off2 corresponding to band edge D (IIID) for the selected value of n is less than the maximum harmonic, then processing proceeds to step 710 for spur analysis with respect to a next harmonic off1 (a next selected value ofn).

[0054] At step 710 the harmonic off1 (n) is incremented. Thereafter, steps 703-710 are repeated with respect to the next set of spurs.

[0055] FIGURE 7B shows a variation to the embodiment of FIGURE 7A in which the number of steps utilized in determining LOs having interfering spurs associated therewith may be reduced. The steps of FIGURE 7B would replace steps 703-710 of FIGURE 7A, providing a determination with respect to SnD reaching a maximum harmonic (NMAX) earlier in the algorithm. Although the steps of FIGURE 7B provide substantially the same calculations and comparisons as those of FIGURE 7A (it being appreciated that features of step 703 in FIGURE 7A are divided among steps 703 a and 703b of FIGURE 7B), calculations and/or comparisons of several steps may be avoided according to the embodiment of FIGURE 7B due to the earlier determination with respect to the maximum harmonic.

[0056] FIGURE 8 shows device 80 in which tuner 81 in conjunction with demodulator 83 uses the concepts taught herein to adjust LO frequencies for selectively tuning signals from a plurality of frequency division channels received via antenna 87 and/or cable system 88, via input 86, for use by using device 82. For example, using device 82 may comprise a television set, personal computer, radio, or other device receiving digital and/or analogue signals via tuner 81 and demodulator 33. Accordingly tuner 81 and demodulator 83 may comprise a system such as a set-top cable box, cable modem, video tuner expansion card, etcetera, or may comprise a portion of using device 82.

[0057] Adjustment of LO frequencies used by tuner 81 may be to select a particular carrier frequency for conversion to a particular output. IF of tuner 81 for further processing of the signal, such as by demodulator 83. This adjustment could be controlled by processor and/or memory on tuner 80 (not shown) or tuner 81 could receive control signals (or receive the actual LO frequencies) from an external source, such as demodulator 83 having contained therein processor 84 and memory 85. Communications can occur, for example, over connection 801 which is typically a wire connection but could be wireless.

[0058] Tuner 81 would typically receive input channels from antenna 87 and/or cable system 88 over input 86. Demodulator 83 would accept the output of tuner 81 (and/or provide input to tuner 81) and would provide signals to using device 82 integral therewith or separate therefrom.

[0059] As a new (different) carrier frequency is selected (a new channel is selected), the LO frequencies of tuner 81 are adjusted to turn to the newly selected carrier frequency. However, these LO frequencies must be carefully chosen to avoid spurious signals appearing in the output IF of tuner 81. This is, although a number of LO frequencies may provide conversion of a signal from a particular RF carrier frequency to a particular IF frequency, many such LO frequency combinations will have spurs associated therewith which also fall within the IF frequency output band. Accordingly, before implementation of a particular LO frequency combination for tuning a desired signal by tuner 81, the LO-related spurs are analyzed for undesired spurs. In device 80 of the illustrated embodiment, selection of LO frequencies and the associated spur analysis is done dynamically, such as at the time of channel selection. Accordingly, the concepts of the present invention are employed to minimize delay in tuning to selected channels.

[0060] One advantage of systems and methods of the present invention is time savings for alignment, when a tuner is used over a wide range of frequencies. In such a situation it is important to find the LO spurs quickly with as few calculations as possible.

In the example of a set top box or a cable box, these calculations are made every time a channel is changed. In such a situation, when the button for a channel change is pushed, the system goes through the software looking for the spurs for that new channel and must calculate what the LOs should be that will tune that channel and yield no spurs on the output. Since the calculations must be the same for all situations (because of certification processes) it is not easy to change calculation procedures. Also, since the same tuner system serves different markets, having different frequencies, it is difficult to change calculation procedures on a market by market basis. The concepts taught herein allow a tuner to be certified once and have that same tuner with any channel lineup. Also, since this procedure could run on an embedded processor, such as processor 84 (FIGURE 8) having limited memory capacity, with limited speed, such as memory 85, it is important to reduce calculations for spurs as discussed herein.

[0061] Moreover, systems and methods of the present invention are also helpful in applications that do a lot of channel changing, for example, sweeping of channels in a cable modem, such as shown in FIGURE 8. When a cable modem starts, it normally sweeps through the channel spectrum to find the signal that it is looking for.

This tuning of the tuner may be done hundreds of times at different frequencies to find the correct channel. Some cable modems actually tune through every MHz looking for more channels which could send information downstream to the cable modem. These modems typically do not know ahead of time what the channel lineup is. When the modem finds a proper channel it uses that channel and obtains information from the head end indicating where each channel resides.

[0062] Note that while the embodiments discuss local oscillator frequencies, the inventive concepts would be applicable to any frequency interference sensitive circuit or system where the harmonics of frequencies could add spurs (or extraneous frequencies) into a circuit at specific frequencies.

[0063] Although the present invention and its advantages have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Moreover, the scope of the present application is not intended to be limited to the particular embodiments of the process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, means, methods and steps described in the specification. As one of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate from the disclosure of the present invention, processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps, presently existing or later to be developed that perform substantially the same function or achieve substantially the same result as the corresponding embodiments described herein may be utilized according to the present invention. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to include within their scope such processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps.