Generation of linear frequency modulation signal with reduced round-off error using pulse-output direct digital synthesis technique

The pulse-output Direct Digital Synthesis (DDS), in which the overflow signal of the phase accumulator is used for the pulse output, can be easily implemented due to its simple hardware architecture and low algorithm complexity. This paper introduces the fundamentals for generating Linear Frequency Modulation (LFM) pulse using pulse-output DDS technique. Error introducing mechanisms that affect the accuracy of signal's duration, initial phase, and frequency are studied. Extensive analysis of round-off error is given. A modified hardware architecture for LFM pulse generation with reduced round-off error is proposed. Experiment results are given, which shows that the proposed generator is promising in applications such as sonar transmitters.