Proportional diversity radio receiver system with dynamic noise-controlled antenna phasers

Claim 1

A multi-tuner, space diversity radio receiver comprising: a first tuner providing a first tuner output signal; a second tuner providing a second tuner output signal; a first antenna providing a first antenna signal; a second antenna providing a second antenna signal; an antenna signal combiner coupled between said antennas and said tuners selectably combining said first and second antenna signals according to a selected one of a plurality of predetermined phase combinations; a first noise detector coupled to said first tuner and producing a first noise level signal in response to a level of noise detected in said first tuner output signal; a second noise detector coupled to said second tuner and producing a second noise level signal in response to a level of noise detected in said second tuner output signal; a tuner signal combiner coupled to said first and second tuners and said first and second noise detectors combining said first and second tuner output signals into a mixed tuner output signal in proportion to said first and second noise level signals, respectively; a noise threshold detector coupled to said first and second noise detectors and generating an excessive noise detection signal if both of said first and second noise level signals are greater than a predetermined threshold; and a controlling coupled to said noise threshold detector and said antenna signal combiner to select a different one of said predetermined phase combinations in response to said excessive noise detection signal.

Claim 7

A method of controlling an antenna signal combiner in a space diversity radio receiver having first and second antennas and first and second tuners, wherein said antenna combiner includes switched weighting and phase delay circuits for selectably combining first and second antenna signals to be applied to said first and second tuners according to a plurality of respective predetermined directional radiation patterns, said method comprising the steps of: measuring first and second noise magnitudes in output signals from said first and second tuners, respectively; proportionally combining said output signals from said first and second tuners in response to said first and second noise magnitudes to provide a mixed tuner output signal for recovering broadcast information; comparing said first and second noise magnitudes to a predetermined noise threshold and generating a detection signal if both of said noise magnitudes are greater than said predetermined noise threshold; and reconfiguring said antenna combiner in response to an initial generation of said detection signal in order to select different respective predetermined directional radiation patterns.

Claim 8

A method of controlling an antenna signal combiner in a space diversity radio receiver having first and second antennas and first and second tuners, wherein said antenna combiner includes switched weighting and phase delay circuits for selectably combining first and second antenna signals to be applied to said first and second tuners according to a plurality of respective predetermined directional radiation patterns, said method comprising the steps of: measuring first and second noise magnitudes in output signals from said first and second tuners, respectively; proportionally combining said output signals from said first and second tuners in response to said first and second noise magnitudes to provide a mixed tuner output signal for recovering broadcast information; comparing said first and second noise magnitudes to a predetermined noise threshold and generating a detection signal if both of said noise magnitudes are greater than said predetermined noise threshold; and reconfiguring said antenna combiner in response to an initial generation of said detection signal in order to select different respective predetermined directional radiation patterns.