US 11012252

US Patent 11012252, titled "Active ethernet cable," was issued to Credo Technology Group Ltd on May 18, 2021, from an application filed on August 13, 2019. The inventors are Yattung LAM and Baohua Chen.

Abstract:
The patent discloses architectures and communication methods for mass-manufactured active Ethernet cables designed for robust performance at high per-lane PAM4 symbol rates (up to 56 GBd and beyond). The cable includes electrical conductors connecting first and second connectors. Each connector is adapted to fit into an Ethernet port of a host device to receive an electrical input signal (inbound data stream) and provide an electrical output signal (outbound data stream). Each connector houses a transceiver that performs clock and data recovery (CDR) on the inbound electrical input signal to extract and re-modulate it into an electrical transit signal for transmission over the cable's conductors.

Plain-Language Overview of Independent Claims:

• Independent Claim 1 (Active Ethernet cable): This claim describes an active Ethernet cable with two connectors, each containing a transceiver. These connectors are designed to plug into standard Ethernet ports. Each transceiver takes an incoming electrical signal from a host device, performs clock and data recovery, and then re-modulates this data for transmission through the cable (as a "transit data stream"). Additionally, each transceiver performs clock and data recovery on the "transit data stream" received from the other end of the cable and re-modulates it into an "outbound data stream" to be sent to the host device. A key feature is that the transceivers use fixed, pre-determined (cable-independent) equalization settings for processing the electrical input signals from the host device and for generating the electrical output signals to the host device.

• Independent Claim 6 (Communication method): This claim outlines a communication method performed within such an active Ethernet cable. It involves a first connector receiving an inbound data stream from a first host device, performing clock and data recovery, and re-modulating it for transit within the cable. Similarly, a second connector receives a second inbound data stream from a second host device, performs clock and data recovery, and re-modulates it for transit. The method further specifies that the second transceiver performs clock and data recovery on the first transit data stream to extract it and re-modulates it as an outbound data stream for the second host device. Conversely, the first transceiver performs clock and data recovery on the second transit data stream and re-modulates it as an outbound data stream for the first host device. Similar to Claim 1, the re-modulation of transit data streams into outbound data streams and the initial clock and data recovery on the inbound electrical input signals use fixed, cable-independent equalization parameters.

• Independent Claim 11 (Cable manufacturing method): This claim describes a method for manufacturing the active Ethernet cable. It includes connecting conductor pairs to first and second transceivers to enable the transport of electrical transit signals between them. The method then involves packaging each transceiver into a connector. These connectors are designed to interface with host devices, allowing the transceivers to receive inbound electrical signals from host devices and provide outbound electrical signals to them. The transceivers are specifically configured to perform clock and data recovery on the inbound signals, re-modulating them into transit data streams, and also to perform clock and data recovery on transit signals from the cable, re-modulating them into outbound data streams. Critically, these transceivers are configured to use fixed, cable-independent equalization parameters for clock and data recovery on host-facing electrical input signals and for generating host-facing electrical output signals.

Litigation Information:
While no CAFC 2026 dockets were found specifically, the patent family for US11012252B2 is currently involved in litigation, including multiple PTAB cases and US district court cases filed in 2025.