Method and system for processing GPS and satellite digital radio signals using a shared LNA

• US 20080090514A1
• Filed: 10/12/2006
• Published: 04/17/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Delphi Technologies, Inc. (BorgWarner Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Delphi Technologies, Inc. (BorgWarner Incorporated)
• Inventors: Yegin, Korkut, Bally, Nazar F.
• Granted Patent: US 7,720,434 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/3.02
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/18 Input circuits, e.g. for coupling to an antenna or a transmission line coupling networks between antennas or lines and receivers independent of the nature of the receiver H03H
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 40/90 specially adapted for satellite broadcast receiving
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/51 of receiving stations

Abstract

A system for amplifying GPS and satellite digital radio signals is provided. The system includes a GPS antenna configured to receive signals transmitted by a GPS satellite, and a satellite digital radio antenna configured to receive satellite digital radio signals. The system also includes an amplifier that is electrically coupled to the GPS antenna and satellite antenna. The amplifier is configured to amplify GPS and satellite digital radio signals received by the satellite digital radio antenna and GPS antenna. A method for amplifying GPS and satellite digital radio signals is also provided.

Claims

1. A system for processing GPS and satellite digital radio signals, comprising:

a GPS antenna configured to receive signals transmitted by a GPS satellite;

a satellite digital radio antenna configured to receive satellite digital radio signals; and

an amplifier electrically coupled to said GPS antenna and said satellite digital radio antenna, wherein said amplifier is configured to amplify both GPS signals received by said GPS antenna, and satellite digital radio signals received by said satellite digital radio antenna, and provide an amplified signal as an output comprising both satellite digital radio and GPS signal components.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising satellite digital radio signal blocking circuitry coupled to said GPS antenna and configured to provide GPS signals without satellite digital radio signals to said amplifier.

3. The system of claim 2, further comprising GPS blocking circuitry coupled to said satellite digital radio antenna and configured to provide satellite digital radio signals without GPS signals to said amplifier.

4. The system of claim 1, further comprising satellite digital radio processing circuitry and GPS processing circuitry electrically coupled to said amplifier, wherein said satellite digital radio processing circuitry is configured to process a satellite digital radio component of the output of said amplifier to extract audio data, and wherein said GPS processing circuitry is configured to process a GPS component of the output of said amplifier to extract GPS data.

5. The system of claim 4, further comprising satellite digital radio filtering circuitry electrically coupling the output of said amplifier to said satellite digital radio processing circuitry, wherein said satellite digital radio filtering circuitry is configured to filter signal components other than satellite digital radio components from the output of said amplifier before providing a filtered output via a satellite digital radio filter output to said satellite digital radio processing circuitry.

6. The system of claim 4, further comprising GPS filtering circuitry electrically coupling the output of said amplifier to said GPS processing circuitry, wherein said GPS filtering circuitry is configured to filter signal components other than GPS components from the output of said amplifier before providing a filtered output via a GPS filter output to said GPS processing circuitry.

7. The system of claim 5, further comprising GPS filtering circuitry electrically coupling the output of said amplifier to said GPS processing circuitry, wherein said GPS filtering circuitry is configured to filter signal components other than GPS components from the output of said amplifier before providing a filtered output via a GPS filter output to said GPS processing circuitry.

8. The system of claim 7, further comprising amplification circuitry coupling the filter output of said GPS filter to said GPS processing circuitry, and the filter output of said satellite digital radio filter to said satellite digital radio processing circuitry.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein said amplifier is a low-noise amplifier that is noise matched to GPS signals and satellite digital radio signals.

10. A system for processing GPS and satellite digital radio signals, comprising:

an antenna configured to receive signals transmitted by GPS satellites and satellite digital radio satellites; and

an amplifier electrically coupled to said antenna, wherein said amplifier is configured to amplify both GPS signals and digital satellite radio signals receive by said antenna, and provide an amplified signal as an output comprising both satellite digital radio and GPS signal components.

11. The system of claim 10, further comprising satellite digital radio processing circuitry electrically coupled to said amplifier, wherein said satellite digital radio processing circuitry is configured to process the satellite digital radio component of the output of said amplifier to extract audio data.

12. The system of claim 10, further comprising GPS processing circuitry electrically coupled to said amplifier circuitry, wherein said GPS processing circuitry is configured to process the GPS component of the output of said amplifier to extract GPS data.

13. The system of claim 11, further comprising satellite digital radio filtering circuitry electrically coupling the output of said amplifier to said satellite digital radio processing circuitry, wherein said satellite digital radio filtering circuitry is configured to filter signal components other than satellite digital radio components from the output of said amplifier before providing a filtered output via a satellite digital radio filter output to said satellite digital radio processing circuitry.

14. The system of claim 12, further comprising GPS filtering circuitry electrically coupling the output of said amplifier to said GPS processing circuitry, wherein said GPS filtering circuitry is configured to filter signal components other than GPS components from the output of said amplifier before providing a filtered output via a GPS filter output to said GPS processing circuitry.

15. The system of claim 13, further comprising GPS filtering circuitry electrically coupling the output of said amplifier to said GPS processing circuitry, wherein said GPS filtering circuitry is configured to filter signal components other than GPS components from the output of said amplifier before providing a filtered output via a GPS filter output to said GPS processing circuitry.

16. The system of claim 15, further comprising amplification circuitry coupling the filter output of said GPS filter to said GPS processing circuitry, and the filter output of said satellite digital radio filter to said satellite digital radio processing circuitry.

17. The system of claim 10, wherein said amplifier is a low-noise amplifier that is noise-matched to GPS signals and satellite digital radio signals.

18. A method for processing GPS and satellite digital radio signals, comprising the steps of:

receiving a GPS signal;

receiving a satellite digital satellite radio signal;

providing the GPS signal and satellite digital radio signal to a first amplifier circuit;

amplifying the GPS and satellite digital radio signals in the first amplifier circuit to provide a combined amplified signal;

providing the combined amplified signal to a filter configured to remove components other than GPS components from the signal to provide a filtered GPS signal;

providing the filtered GPS signal to GPS processing circuitry;

providing the combined amplified signal to a filter configured to remove components other than satellite digital radio components from the signal to provide a filtered satellite digital radio signal; and

providing the filtered satellite digital radio signal to satellite digital radio processing circuitry.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising the step of providing the GPS signal to satellite digital radio blocking circuitry to remove satellite digital radio components from the GPS signal before providing the GPS signal to the first amplifier circuit.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising the step of providing the satellite digital radio signal to GPS blocking circuitry to remove GPS components from the satellite digital radio signal before providing the satellite digital radio signal to the first amplifier circuit.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the GPS signal and satellite digital radio signal are received by an antenna.

22. The method of claim 18, wherein the GPS signal and satellite digital radio signal are received by first and second antennas, respectively.

23. The method of claim 20, further including the step of processing the filtered GPS signal GPS processing circuitry to extract GPS data, and processing the filtered satellite digital radio signal in the satellite digital radio processing circuitry to extract audio data.

24. The method of claim 23, further including the step of amplifying at least one of the filtered GPS and satellite digital radio signals prior to providing the signals to processing circuitry.

25. The method of claim 18, wherein the first amplifier circuit is a low-noise amplifier that is noise-matched to GPS signals and satellite digital radio signals.