Method and system for extending broadcast coverage on a single frequency network

(19)

(11)

EP 1 041 758 A3

(12)	EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION

(88)	Date of publication A3:
	03.03.2004 Bulletin 2004/10

(43)	Date of publication A2:
	04.10.2000 Bulletin 2000/40

(21)	Application number: 00105296.8

(22)	Date of filing: 14.03.2000

(51)	International Patent Classification (IPC)⁷: H04H 3/00

(84)	Designated Contracting States:
	AT BE CH CY DE DK ES FI FR GB GR IE IT LI LU MC NL PT SE
	Designated Extension States:
	AL LT LV MK RO SI

(30)

Priority:

31.03.1999 US 282652

(71)	Applicant: HARRIS CORPORATION
	Melbourne Florida 32919 (US)

(72)	Inventors:
	Rollins, William Wrentham MA 02093 (US) Kim, Junius Boxoborough, MA 01719 (US)

(74)	Representative: Fleuchaus, Leo, Dipl.-Ing. et al
	Fleuchaus & Gallo Melchiorstrasse 42 81479 München 81479 München (DE)

(54)	Method and system for extending broadcast coverage on a single frequency network

(57) A system for aligning the phase characteristics of N identical digitized audio program signals distributed from a studio to N broadcasting stations via N time division multiplex (TDM) communication signals includes N TDM multiplexers, each of which (i) multiplexes a digitized audio program signal into at least one channel of a TDM communication link established between the studio and one of the N broadcasting stations, and (ii) multiplexes a timing signal into another channel of the TDM communication signal. A TDM de-multiplexer at each of the broadcasting stations extracts the digitized audio program signal and the timing signal from the corresponding TDM communication signal. A timing signal comparator compares the extracted timing signal to a local timing signal that is delayed by a precise and adjustable amount, and produces an offset time corresponding to the comparison result. The delay adjust circuit dynamically adjusts the delay of the TDM signal as a function of the offset time, preferably so as to drive the offset time to substantially zero. The timing signal at the studio and the timing signals at each of the broadcast stations are provided by an existing time distribution network.

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