I want to create a sawtooth signal generator. I know, how to build op-amp comparator to create a square wave. I also know, how i can get triangular signal by integrating comparator output with op-amp integrator.
What i don't know nor find is how do i get sawtooth signal out of square/triangular wave. Could someone explain this a bit and es
Thank you.
Best Answer
A saw tooth generator circuit can be built using a constant current source to charge a capacitor in a linear ramp. A comparator is then set to monitor the ramp for its upper threshold. At the upper level the comparator then flips state and is used to discharge the capacitor quickly. If the comparator is setup with positive feedback so that it has both an upper and lower threshold then the comparator will flip back when the capacitor has discharged to the lower level. This would allow the cycle to repeat again. This would be a simple way to get a repeating sawtooth ramp. You may want to buffer the ramp with an opamp voltage follower depending on the type of load you want to use.
Note that it is not directly feasible to get a sawtooth waveform at the same frequency from a square wave or triangle wave. At least not without a lot of extra circuitry so it is generally best to generate your saw tooth separate from the square or triangle and then switch to the sawtooth when needed. Now that said it is entirely possible to setup a circuit that can be used to generate the square wave and triangle wave using the same set of comparators if you choose one function at a time.
Edit: Here is a simulation circuit showing how a sawtooth generator circuit could be built. This example with nominal values runs at about 1kHz.