Shared receiving systems utilizing telephone cables as video drops

A communication system comprising:

• a broadcast system transmitting a plurality of multiplexed channels, each of the multiplexed channels containing a modulated signal carrying a digital transport stream containing digitized information relating to a plurality of programs;
• a shared receiving system comprising:
• 1) a network for distributing the multiplexed channels, and
• 2) a plurality of subscriber processing circuits, each subscriber processing circuit including
• (a) a channel selector for selectively receiving one of the multiplexed channels from the network and outputting a selected modulated signal containing the digital transport stream for the selectively received channel,
• (b) a processor responsive to signals from an upstream control channel for controlling the selective reception by the channel selector, and
• (c) a splitter/combiner receiving and sending telephone signals to and from a telephone network for frequency division multiplexing the selected modulated signal together with downstream telephone signals from the telephone network for transport over a telephone loop and for frequency demultiplexing upstream signals received over the telephone loop to supply upstream telephone signals from the loop to the telephone network and to supply upstream control channel signals from the telephone loop to the processor;
• a plurality of telephone loops, one telephone loop connecting each splitter/combiner to a living unit serviced by the shared receiving system;
• a plurality of network interface devices, each network interface device providing a connection in one of the living units to one of the telephone loops, each network interface device comprising a telephone service splitter/combiner for demultiplexing signals received over the one telephone loop to separate out the selected modulated signal and to supply the downstream telephone signals to a telephone device in the one living unit and for frequency division multiplexing upstream telephone signals from the telephone device in the one living unit together with upstream control channel signals for transport over the one telephone loop;
• a plurality of terminals, wherein at least one terminal connects to each network interface device, each terminal comprising:
• (i) a demodulator for demodulating the selected modulated signal to acquire the digital transport stream therefrom,
• (ii) a digital signal processor for processing a portion of the acquired digital transport stream associated with a selected one of the programs to present information relating to the selected program, and
• (iii) means responsive to user inputs for supplying upstream control signals to a network interface device.

A communication system comprising:

• a headend comprising:
• (1) a source of a first digital multiplexed data stream containing a plurality of packet streams, each packet stream carrying digitized data representing one of a first group of video programs,
• (2) a source of a second digital multiplexed data stream containing a plurality of packet streams, each packet stream carrying digitized data representing one of a second group of video programs,
• (3) a modulation system modulating the first digital multiplexed data stream and the second digital multiplexed data stream into first and second channels, respectively;
• a plurality of wireless transmitters located at respective different sites in a service area, the transmitters simultaneously transmitting a combined wireless signal containing the first and second channels into overlapping portions of the service area;
• and
• a plurality of receiver systems within the service area, at least one of the receiver systems serving a plurality of living units, said at least one of the receiver systems comprising:
• (i) at least two directional receiving antennae, each directional receiving antenna being directed to receive said combined wireless signal from a different one of the transmitters,
• (ii) wireless signal processing circuitry receiving signals from the receiving antennae and in response thereto outputting a single optimized representation of a combined signal containing the first and second channels,
• (iii) a plurality of subscriber processing circuits, each subscriber processing circuit including:
• (a) a channel selector for selectively receiving one of the multiplexed channels from the single optimized representation and outputting a selected modulated signal containing the digital transport stream for the selectively received channel,
• (b) a processor responsive to signals from an upstream control channel for controlling the selective reception by the channel selector, and
• (c) a splitter/combiner receiving and sending telephone signals to and from a telephone network for frequency division multiplexing the selected modulated signal together with downstream telephone signals from the telephone network for transport over a telephone loop and for frequency division demultiplexing upstream signals received over the telephone loop to supply upstream telephone signals from the loop to the telephone network and to supply upstream control channel signals from the telephone loop to the processor;
• (iv) a plurality of telephone loops, one telephone loop connecting each splitter/combiner to a living unit serviced by the shared receiving system;
• (v) a plurality of network interface devices, each network interface device providing a connection in one of the living units to one of the telephone loops, each network interface device comprising a telephone service splitter/combiner for demultiplexing signals received over the one telephone loop to separate out the selected modulated signal and to supply the downstream telephone signals to a telephone device in the one living unit and for frequency division multiplexing upstream telephone signals from the telephone device in the one living unit together with upstream control channel signals for transport over the one telephone loop;
• and
• (vi) a plurality of terminals, wherein at least one terminal connects to each network interface device, each terminal comprising:
• (I) a demodulator for demodulating the selected modulated signal to acquire the digital transport stream therefrom,
• (II) a digital signal processor for processing a portion of the acquired digital transport stream associated with a selected one of the programs to present information relating to the selected program, and
• (III) means responsive to user inputs for supplying upstream control signals to a network interface device.

A method comprising:

• a) simultaneously transmitting from multiple spaced transmitting sites the same signal so that areas of propagation from respective ones of the transmitting sites substantially overlap over each other in at least a major portion of a reception area, said signal transmitted from said transmitting sites including multiplexed channels, each channel containing a modulated signal carrying digitally multiplexed data representing a plurality of programs;
• b) at one receiving site in the major portion of said reception area, directionally receiving a signal from each of the transmitting sites;
• c) from the signals received from the transmitting sites, producing a single optimized representation of said signal including multiplexed channels;
• d) supplying said single optimized representation of said signal including multiplexed channels to a plurality of subscriber processing circuits, and in one of the subscriber processing circuits:
• (a) selectively receiving one of the multiplexed channels and outputting a selected modulated signal containing the digitally multiplexed data for the selectively received channel, and
• (b) a receiving and sending telephone signals to and from a telephone network for frequency division multiplexing the selected modulated signal together with downstream telephone signals from the telephone network for transport over a telephone loop, for supplying upstream telephone signals from the loop to the telephone network and for supplying upstream control channel signals to a processor controlling the selective reception of one of the multiplexed channels;
• e) at a living unit serviced through the telephone loop, demultiplexing signals received over the telephone loop to separate out the selected modulated signal and to supply the downstream telephone signals to a telephone device in the living unit and frequency division multiplexing upstream telephone signals from the telephone device together with upstream control channel signals representing user inputs for transport over the telephone loop;
• f) demodulating the selected modulated signal to capture the digitally multiplexed data therefrom;
• and
• g) processing a portion of the acquired digitally multiplexed data associated with a selected program to present information relating to the selected program.