US 5,329,279 A · Method of transcoding data from a thermometric code, decoder and converter applying this method

Abstract

A method of transcoding digital data which, at the start, appear in the form of a thermometric code, the successive values of which may be represented by a first bit matrix (columns 1 to 8). The method uses an intermediate code defined by a second matrix (low significance), (columns (1), (2), (3) and (4)), and by a third matrix (high significance), (columns 4 and 8), which is extracted from the first matrix. The intermediate code delivers digital words which are shorter than the starting words and permits a later transformation into a binary code (columns [1], [2], [3], [4],) which is very simple. A decoder and a converter using this method is described where the decoder is organized so as to first produce the values of the intermediate code and then, the corresponding values in binary code. The converter employs analog gates with multiple inputs instead of the purely logic input blocks of the decoder.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A method of transcoding data expressed in digital words of like number of bits according to a thermometric type coding, successive values of which can be represented in the form of a first matrix, each row of which is a digital word, the method comprising:

deriving an intermediate coding defined, on the one hand, by a second matrix which is extracted from the first matrix and one dimension of which is a sub-multiple of a dimension of the first matrix, and on the other hand, by a third matrix the columns of which are particular columns of the first matrix, juxtapositioning, row by row, the second and third matrices so as to preserve all of the information present in the thermometric starting code.

A decoder for transcoding data expressed in digital words of identical number of bits according to a thermometric type coding, successive values of which can be represented in the form of a first matrix, each row of which is a digital word, comprising:

a first set of gates associated with a first decoding module, the gates of said first set being distributed into similar groups of gates forming logic blocks having k data inputs with each of which is associated a selection input, the number k being equal to a number of so-called triangular sub-matrices extracted from the first matrix and having one dimension which is a sub-multiple of a dimension of the first matrix, and which are aligned along a same diagonal of the first matrix, a second group of gates with single data input, associated with a second decoding module (high significance), which delivers the high significance bits of the binary output coding and selection signals which are applied to the k selection inputs in order to enable the corresponding data inputs of each of the logic blocks and which are necessary in order to obtain the low significance bits of the binary code at the output of the first decoding module.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Method of transcoding data from a thermometric code, decoder and converter applying this method

Life of this patent

Method of transcoding data from a thermometric code, decoder and converter applying this method

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims20