Method and corresponding system for influencing the stereo channel separation of an audiosignal

DETAILED DESCRIPTION A method and a radio receiver according to the present invention have an advantage in that if reception conditions fluctuate greatly or if reception interference events (for example, multipath reception) occur frequently, rapid and frequent alternation between stereophonic and monophonic reproduction, and the negative auditory impression associated therewith, can be suppressed in favor of partially or completely monophonic reproduction.
It is particularly advantageous to embody the characteristic curves for evaluating the field strength signals indicating the received field strength of a radio signal in the form of step functions, since for the situation in which the method or the radio receiver according to the present invention is implemented with digital technology, such functions are particularly easy to implement.
Specifically, in the case of digital signal processing, it is also advantageous to implement a signal indicating the frequency of reception interference events by way of a counter which is incremented when an interference event occurs and decremented when interference is absent, since the clock signal required for this counter can easily be derived, for example, from the system clock, e.
g.
, from the bit clock of the digital signals involved.
Lastly, it is particularly advantageous, in the case of radio receivers for the reception of Radio Data signals which perform automatic alternative frequency tests to optimize reception quality, to hold the channel separation auxiliary signal at its most recent value for the duration of one alternative frequency test, and to change it, if applicable, only after the alternative frequency test; in this fashion, large fluctuations in stereo channel separation during alternative frequency tests can be prevented.