Patent ID: 7624420
Filing Date: 2009-11-24
Classification: H04B,H04N

Abstract:
1. A digital television broadcast signal receiver configured to be connected to a multi-directional antenna having multiple receiving directions in conformity to a standard so as to receive television signals on a channel that are transmitted from a broadcast station by making only one of the multiple receiving directions active, the receiver comprising: a receiving direction control signal output unit for outputting, to the multi-directional antenna, a control signal specifying a receiving direction for reception of a television signal; a tuner configured to be connected to the multi-directional antenna for receiving a television signal; a broadcast signal processing unit for subjecting the television signal received by the tuner to predetermined signal processing; an image signal output unit for outputting the signal processed by the broadcast signal processing unit to a monitor; a memory for temporarily storing the signal processed by the broadcast signal processing unit; a receiving direction determining unit for determining a best receiving direction for each receivable channel based on the signal stored in the memory; a signal level display unit for displaying a received signal strength based on the signal stored in the memory; and a main controller for controlling each component in the digital television broadcast signal receiver, wherein the receiving direction control signal output unit sends the control signal to the multi-directional antenna at predetermined intervals so that the multi-directional antenna is sequentially oriented in the multiple receiving directions; wherein the tuner measures, for each channel, a strength of a television signal received in each of the multiple receiving directions in sequence and stores in the memory, for the each channel, the received signal strength measured in each of the receiving directions, a best receiving direction in which a received signal has maximum strength, and a maximum received signal strength measured in the best receiving direction; wherein the receiving direction control signal output unit outputs a control signal specifying the best receiving direction; and wherein when a TV image degrades during signal reception or interference signals or ghosts appear on a display screen, and in response to a command from a user, the signal level display unit produces a pattern showing the received signal strength measured in each of the receiving directions that is stored in the memory and displays the produced pattern on a television screen, and the multi-directional antenna is reoriented in response to a selection from a user received from a remote controller, wherein the signal level display unit normalizes, with respect to the maximum received signal strength, the received signal strength that is measured in each of the receiving directions and stored in the memory, produces an antenna direction level pattern including a circle graph in which the normalized signal strength associated with a receiving direction number arranged at a circumference of the circle graph for representing each of the receiving directions is shown with an amplitude in a radial direction, and displays the antenna direction level pattern on the television screen, wherein the user selects one of the receiving direction numbers displayed on the television screen using the remote controller as the selection for reorienting the antenna.