Back to results
US 9,800,356 B2Granted
Method and system for assigning antennas in dense array
AssigneeCharter Communications Operating, LLC
InventorsJoseph Thaddeus Lipowski, James Alan Bingham
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method and system optimally selecting antenna elements based on the current availability of antenna elements and the current usage of other antenna elements within a two or three dimensional array. The present system and method pertain to an approach to allow the maximal usage of each antenna element while simultaneously reducing the coupling between antenna elements to improve the signal strength in each antenna element by ensuring that antenna elements in the same incident path are not tuned to the same frequency or physically or electrically near elements tuned to identical or adjacent frequencies.
Claims16
A method of assigning antenna elements of an antenna array, the method comprising:
- providing antenna elements that are tunable to receive a range of frequencies, the range of frequencies including at least one assigned frequency range corresponding to at least one channel for broadcasting content by broadcasting entities;
- deploying the antenna elements in the antenna array in close physical proximity such that adjacent antenna elements would exhibit coupling if tuned to receive a same assigned frequency range;
- providing at least one tuner capable of tuning the antenna elements to receive at least one of the assigned frequency ranges, each of the antenna elements of the antenna array having an assigned tuner;
- providing a controller capable of determining a selected antenna element to receive a requested channel of the at least one channel for broadcasting content by broadcasting entities to minimize coupling with currently tuned antenna elements in the antenna array, the selected antenna element being determined by the controller to be available, capable of receiving the assigned frequency range of the requested channel, and the antenna element of those that are available and capable of receiving the assigned frequency range of the requested channel that is least likely to couple with antenna elements that are currently tuned to receive the assigned frequency range of the requested channel, wherein the antenna element least likely to couple with antenna elements that are currently tuned to receive the assigned frequency range of the requested channel is the antenna element that is determined by the controller to be available, capable of receiving the assigned frequency range of the requested channel, and the furthest distance from the antenna elements that are currently tuned to receive the assigned frequency range of the requested channel, the controller further having a non-volatile memory for storing broadcast content captured by at least one of the antenna elements of the antenna array;
- receiving, by the controller, a user request for content broadcast by broadcasting entities, the request containing information indicative of the requested channel on which the content is broadcast;
- determining, by the controller, the selected antenna element;
- assigning, by the controller, the requested channel of the user request to the selected antenna element of the antenna array;
- and
- sending a signal from the controller to the assigned tuner corresponding to the selected antenna element, the signal causing the assigned tuner to tune the selected antenna to receive the assigned frequency range of the requested channel.
6 more elements
A system for capturing content broadcast by broadcasting entities, the system comprising:
- an array of antenna elements that are tunable to receive a range of frequencies, the range of frequencies including at least one assigned frequency range corresponding to at least one channel for broadcasting content by broadcasting entities, the array of antenna elements deployed in close physical proximity such that adjacent antenna elements would exhibit coupling if tuned to receive a same assigned frequency range;
- at least one tuner capable of tuning the antenna elements to receive at least one of the assigned frequency ranges, each of the antenna elements of the array of antenna elements having an assigned tuner;
- and
- a controller configured to receive a request to capture content broadcast on a requested channel for broadcasting content by a broadcasting entity, determine, based on the requested channel, a selected antenna element, assign the requested channel to the selected antenna element, and send a signal to the assigned tuner corresponding to the selected antenna element, the signal configured to cause the tuner to tune the selected antenna element to receive the assigned frequency range of the requested channel, wherein the content received by the selected antenna is the captured content and the controller is further provided with non-transitory readable memory to at least temporarily store the captured content;
- wherein the controller determines the selected antenna element to minimize coupling by first identifying at least one antenna element that is both available and capable of receiving the assigned frequency range of the requested channel, then selecting the antenna element from the identified antenna elements that is a furthest distance from the antenna elements that are currently tuned to receive the assigned frequency range of the requested channel.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.