Signal level measuring system for a radio receiver
AssigneeMotorola, Inc.
InventorStephen V. Cahill
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system, and associated method, for measuring a signal level of a signal received by a receiver, such as a radio telephone. The signal received by the receiver is applied to a variable amplifier. The amplification of the variable amplifier is adjusted such that an amplified signal generated therefrom is within the dynamic range of an intermediate frequency circuit. The level of amplification required to position the signal level of the amplified signal within the dynamic range of the intermediate frequency circuit is measured, and the signal level of the signal received by a receiver is calculated.
Claims27
A system for measuring a signal level of a signal received by a receiver, said system comprising:
- means forming amplification circuitry having an adjustable gain coefficient for amplifying the signal receives by the receiver to form thereby an amplified signal having a signal level of a value dependent upon a coefficient value of the gain coefficient;
- means forming signal modification circuitry having a dynamic range for receiving the amplified signal generated by the amplification circuitry and for generating a modified signal when the amplified signal is of a signal level within the dynamic range of the signal modification circuitry;
- means for incrementally increasing the gain coefficient of the amplification circuitry when the signal level of the amplified signal is beyond the dynamic range of the modification circuitry or when the signal level of the modified signal generated by the modification circuitry is of a value less than a predetermined level;
- means for decreasing the gain coefficient of the amplification circuitry once the signal level of the modified signal generated by the modification circuitry is at least as great as the predetermined level;
- and
- means for calculating the signal level of the signal received by the receiver responsive to measurement of the signal level of the modified signal and of the coefficient value of the gain coefficient of the amplification circuitry.
A method for measuring a signal level of a signal received by a receiver, said method comprising the steps of:
- amplifying the signal received by the receiver to form thereby an amplified signal having a signal level of a value dependent upon a coefficient value of a gain coefficent.
- generating a modified signal responsive to the amplified signal when the amplified signal is of a signal level within a dynamic range;
- incrementally increasing the gain coefficient determinative of the value of the amplified signal when the amplified signal is of a signal level beyond the dynamic range or when the signal level of the modified signal is of a value less than a predetermined level;
- decreasing the gain coefficient once the signal level of the modified signal is at least as great as the predetermined level;
- and
- calculating the signal level of the signal received by the receiver responsive to measurement of the signal level of the modified signal and of the coefficient value of the gain coefficient.
In a transceiver having receiver circuitry and transmitter circuitry, the combination with the receiver circuitry of:
- at least one variable amplifier having an adjustable gain coefficient for amplifying a signal received by the receiver circuitry to form thereby an amplified signal having a signal level of a value dependent upon a coefficient value of the gain coefficient;
- intermediate frequency demodulation circuitry having a dynamic range for receiving the amplified signal generated by the at least one variable amplifier and for generating a modified signal when the amplified signal is of a signal level within the dynamic range of the intermediate frequency demodulation circuitry, said modified signal generated thereby being delayed relative to the amplified signal received thereat by a delay period of a predetermined length;
- processor circuitry having an algorithm embodied therein for:
- (1) incrementally increasing the coefficient value of the gain coefficient of the at least one variable amplifier when the signal level of the amplified signal is beyond the dynamic range of the the intermediate frequency demodulation circuitry or is of a value less than a predetermined level;
- (2) decreasing the coefficient value of the gain coefficient of the at least one variable amplifier once the signal level of the modified signal is at least as great as a predetermined level in an amount responsive to the length of the delay period;
- and (3) calculating the signal level of the signal received by the receiver circuitry responsive to measurement of the signal level of the modified signal and of the coefficient value of the gain coefficient of the at least one variable amplifier.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.