US 12,328,261 B2
Transmission apparatus, communications system, and information transmission method with PAM-4 modulation
Satoshi Ota, Kanagawa (JP); and Toshihisa Hyakudai, San Diego, CA (US)
Assigned to Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation, Kanagawa (JP)
Filed by Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation, Kanagawa (JP)
Filed on Jan. 12, 2024, as Appl. No. 18/411,425.
Application 18/411,425 is a continuation of application No. 17/225,506, filed on Apr. 8, 2021, granted, now 11,902,162.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/049,923, filed on Jul. 9, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2024/0146654 A1, May 2, 2024
Int. Cl. H04L 47/10 (2022.01); H04L 45/74 (2022.01); H04L 47/12 (2022.01); H04L 47/26 (2022.01); H04N 7/04 (2006.01); H04N 23/66 (2023.01)
CPC H04L 47/16 (2013.01) [H04L 45/74 (2013.01); H04L 47/12 (2013.01); H04N 7/04 (2013.01); H04N 23/66 (2023.01)] 10 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A transmission apparatus, comprising:
transmission circuitry configured to map input signals to output levels in accordance with a Pulse Amplitude Modulation with Four Levels (PAM-4) modulation technique, the input signals including a first signal set and a second signal set, the output levels including a first output level and a second output level,
wherein the transmission circuitry is configured to map the first signal set to the first output level and to map the second signal set to the second output level,
the first output level and the second output level constitute peak-to-peak values of the output levels,
the transmission circuitry is configured for transmitting data generated by an information source to a transmission path in units of frames including a plurality of blocks,
the transmission circuitry is configured to stop the transmission of data to the transmission path or to transmit toggle data to the transmission path in a first block of the plurality of blocks in a corresponding one of the frames where an amount of data to be transmitted is less than a transmission capacity of the transmission path, the toggle data having a cycle of transition of data that is longer than that of data in a second block of the plurality of blocks.