JPS59221193A - Device for displaying stationary image by video display unit - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a device for displaying photographs, for example, a device for displaying photographs on a television receiver.

It is now possible to display the photograph on a television receiver by attaching a negative or transparencies to an adapter and then photographing it with a video camera connected to the television receiver or bidet recorder.

The aim of the invention is to provide an inexpensive device for making it possible to display photographs on a television receiver.

The present invention includes means for generating an electrical signal representative of an optical image, a variable passband filter positioned in an optical input path for the electrical signal generating means, and a plurality of filters each obtained from the total optical input by the filter. means for storing a low-band electrical signal component; means for providing a repetitive output of said component from said storage means; An apparatus for displaying still images on a video display device, comprising means for providing a composite video signal for display.

Preferably, the storage means is capable of retaining a low band component consisting of a combination of chrominance and luminance.

In one aspect, the invention comprises: means for generating an electrical signal representative of an optical image; a variable passband filter for positioning within an optical input path for the signal generating means;
2 obtained from the total optical input by 2 to this filter, respectively.
means for storing two low-band electrical signal components; means for providing a repeated output of said two components from said storing means; mixed with other signal components,
To provide an apparatus for displaying still images on a video display device, comprising means for providing a composite video signal for display.

The signal generating means may be any suitable imaging device for generating electrical signals from an optical image, for example a photoconductive image tube, a solid state device or a photomultiplier of a flying spot scan tube.

The storage means holds low band chrominance and luminance components obtained through a red (RED) optical filter in one storage and those obtained through a blue (BLUE) optical filter in another storage, Preferably, the other component derived from the input light (ie the broadband luminance component) is continuously received from the signal generating means.

In this way, according to the present invention, a video signal suitable for display can be obtained with a minimum storage capacity.

Furthermore, when the signal generating means is a camera, 1
In the case of a photomultiplier tube for a flying spot scanning tube, only one photomultiplier tube is required, and a gicchroic mirror for beam splitting is not required.

The filter may be any suitable filter. - By way of example, this filter may consist of a disc having a number of separate parts, each of which is capable of completely transmitting a different part of the light beam, which disc selectively places said part of it into the light path. It is movable within the device to position it. The filter may be made suitable for use on negatives or transparencies or a combination thereof.

In one aspect of the invention, the device of the invention is used in a television receiver, in which case at least some of the functions of said mixing means are obtained by conventional circuitry in the receiver. . Furthermore, the apparatus of the present invention can utilize a synchronization signal from a broadcast signal received by a receiver, and can use a cathode ray tube drive signal for scanning operation. Even better, since the device of the present invention can use the video drive for the receiver's cathode ray tube, the values of the R, G, and B outputs only need to be small. The device of the invention may be incorporated into a conventional television receiver or may be electrically connected to the receiver as a separate device.

In another aspect of the invention, the device of the invention is configured as a complete stand-alone device with a built-in video display device. In that case, a synchronization/loss generator and a scanning signal generator are required.

The device according to the invention may have the function of automatically displaying a series of still images for a predetermined period of time, for example 2 to 5 seconds. A synchronized sound trunk may also be present.

According to other aspects of the invention, the invention provides means for generating an electrical signal representative of an optical image; a variable passband filter for positioning in an optical input path for the signal generating means; a first storage means for storing a plurality of electrical signal components respectively obtained from the optical input;
second storage means for storing some of the electrical signal components obtained by said filter; means for providing a repetitive output of the signal components from said second storage means; Apparatus for displaying still images on a video display device, comprising means for mixing the repetitive output with other signal components obtained directly from said first storage means to provide a composite video signal for display. Provide all.

Preferably, said second storage means, in use, retains at least some of the low-band electrical signal components obtained by said filter, each of which components may consist of a combination of chrominance and luminance. .

The first storage means preferably has a storage capacity large enough to hold information representing a number of still images for display at any one time, and is non-volatile. That is advantageous. Examples of suitable first storage means include audio tape recorders and video tape recorders.

In the first storage means, the signal components are stored in analog format. Alternatively, one or more of the signals may be stored in digital form in this first storage means.

The second storage means has a small storage capacity sufficient to hold information from a single still image for display at any one time. Indeed, this second storage means may be volatile.

The second storage means may therefore consist of one or more solid state electronic devices.

The apparatus of the present invention enables the sequential output of separate electrical signal components from said first storage device 1 and thereby provides the necessary equipment for performing this function (i.e. When the means is a tape recorder, the number of heads (heads) is kept to a minimum. Furthermore, these results can be achieved with minimal storage capacity.

According to this aspect of the invention, the first storage means stores all of the plurality of electrical signal components obtained from each still image;
a second storage means for storing some of the electrical signal components from all of the first storage means; means for providing a repetitive output of the signal components from the second storage means; a video diffuser comprising means for mixing said repetitive output from said second storage means with other signal components obtained directly from said first storage means to provide a composite video signal of /ζ for display; A device is provided for displaying still images on a 0-ray device.

Further in accordance with this aspect of the invention there is provided a reproduction module for use in an apparatus for displaying still images in a video display device, the reproduction module comprising a solid state memory for storing some of the electrical signal components representing the optical image. means for repeatedly outputting the signal components from said solid-state storage means; and means for mixing said solid-state storage means with the remainder of said signal components representing said optical image and inputted directly to said mixing means. , there is provided a reproduction module comprising means for providing a composite video signal for display.

The present invention will be explained in more detail below with reference to the drawings.

The illustrated device connects electrically to a conventional home television receiver so that the receiver can display on its screen a disc-shaped photographic negative developed by Eastman Kodanok. Allows you to display still images
"add-on" unit
). This unit can be used to display a number of negatives in sequence, either by manual or automatic control, and the sequence of the display can be related to the order of the negatives on the disc or to a predetermined arrangement different thereto. . The length of time for displaying each negative may be chosen appropriately, but may be constant for the order of the negatives or may vary according to the particular negative being displayed. This unit can also synchronize and provide some kind of audio accompaniment to the front of the negative. The unit may also be suitably modified to display negatives of types other than the disc types described above, and may also be modified to display any type of transparencies.

More specifically, in the unit shown in FIG. 1, light from a suitable light source 1 is directed by a lens system 2, passes through a filter 3, and is illuminated onto a negative 4 by a 2α videocon image pickup tube. 5. Project the image onto the photosensitive target area No.5. The negative 4 is held in a plastic mount 6 of the Kodanok disk type. Filter 3
are each a different color portion (second color) of the incident light beam.
The filter wheel is rotatably mounted by a drive motor 7 so that each sector of the filter is positioned in the path of the light beam.

The signals received by the image pickup tube 5 are suitably processed (as will be explained in more detail below) and sent to a conventional television receiver 8 for display on its screen. Once the negative 4 has been displayed on the screen of the receiver 8 for a sufficient period of time, the motor 7 rotates the mount 6 until another negative is properly positioned within the light beam for display.

At the beginning of operation of the unit, the filter 3 is in an orientation in which there are sectors in the light beam that transmit only red light. The signal that does not form a red image on the TV screen is passed through filter 3.
This sector is hereinafter referred to as the RED sector. C of the receiver 8 as a scanning signal to the image pickup tube 5.
With the RT Drive (SD)', its image tube scans a complete frame of the red component image to form a suitable electrical signal, which is suitably inverted and amplified by the pick-up head amplifier 9. Ru. This signal is then fed to a video processor 10 where it is given appropriate blanking and clamping and the IMH
It is passed through a low pass filter 11 with a cutoff level of z, and the resulting signal (SR) is related to the red low band chrominance and luminance components of the negative 4. After being processed by the analog-to-digital converter 12,
Signal sR is stored in memory 13. The controller I4 monitors the memory 13 so that it receives the complete frame signal s.
Upon receiving R, the controller 14 emits blue light.
The motor 7 is rotated so that the filter 3 can be rotated at a position where the sector that transmits only the light (light) is positioned in the light beam.
command. Below this sector is BLUE.
Let's call it a sector. After being processed in the same manner as for the red image, the resulting signal (SB) is stored in a separate memory 15 by appropriate actuation of switch 16.

The controller 14 also monitors a memory 15, which memory s
As soon as a complete frame signal of B is received, the motor 7 is commanded to rotate the filter 3 until the transparent sector is positioned in the light beam, thereby causing the image tube 5 to rotate.
A negative 4 broadband luminance image is generated for the negative 4. Considering the film-base material used to add to or enhance optional color balancing (also known as Auto White):
The transparent sectors of film 3 have passband characteristics similar to the response of the human eye, as published by C,1,E. Therefore, when the switch 17 is operated appropriately, a frame signal (S
LUM) is sent to a low pass filter 18. Since this filter 18 has a cutoff level of I MHz, the signal 'SLUM-L' emerging from it
only has the remaining low band luminance components. The signal S LUM representing the complete brightness image is sent to the inverter 20
After being inverted by , it is also sent to another low-pass filter 19 . This filter 19 is higher i.e. 5MHz
, so the signal coming out of it retains its full luminance component. This signal is then sent to the summing amplifier 21 and combined with the signal S LU
ML, resulting in a signal (S)k formed only by the inversion of the highband luminance component, which signal can then be sent to the LUM-H summing amplifiers 22, 23 and 24.

At this time, the memories 13 and 15 are duplicates of the signals SR and sB held therein.
es), these duplicate signals are converted to analog form in converters 25 and 26, and low-pass filters 27 and 28 (with a cut-off level of IMHz) are used to remove all residual sampling components. Passed. These signals are inverted by inverters 29 or 30, respectively, to produce signals SR1 and S
B1 and these signals together with SLUM-L are
The signal 5G (i = all generated) is processed in the trix unit 31 and represents the low band green chrominance and luminance signals. This signal is passed through the inverter 32 and the resulting signal (SG, ) are summed with SLUM-H in a summing amplifier 24 to generate a G signal suitable for use in the receiver 8. SB+ and SB
A similar addition is performed for + in summing amplifiers 22 and 23, resulting in appropriate R and B signals.

By appropriately timing the readout from memory 13 and ]5 and including analog delay 33, signal SLUM-H arrives at each summing amplifier at the same time as the corresponding lowband chrominance and luminance component signals. . The output signals from these summing amplifiers 22, 23 and 24 are G
, R and B component signals which, when sent through encoder 34 to television receiver 8, are sufficient to display a complete frame image of negative 4 on the screen.

During the remaining time of displaying the negative on the screen of the television receiver 8, the filter 3 and the switch 17 are kept in the same position. In this way, each time the image tube scans across the negative 4, another signal SLUM is generated, which signal is processed and summed with the readings from the memory 13 and 15 (as described above). ) to generate a complete frame signal for display on the screen.

If another negative is desired to be displayed, the controller 14 commands the motor 7 to rotate the mount 6 until the desired negative is positioned in the light beam and the filter 3 is returned to its initial operating position. .

Controller 14 then clears memories 13 and 15. The controller 14 can rotate the mount 6 so that the negatives are displayed in the order in which they occur on the mount, or it can cause a different predetermined sequence to occur. The controller 14 can also vary the amount of time the negative is displayed and can also synchronize the display of the negative with the sound trunk.

A synchronization signal (Sp) obtained from a broadcast signal received by the television receiver 8 is used to synchronize the image pickup tube 5 and all other elements of the unit.

If you want to display images of photographic transparencies rather than negatives, inverters 20, 29, 30 and 32 can be
Switches 35, 36, 37 and 38 are operated so as to connect the inverter 40, and switch 39 is operated to connect the inverter 40.

Alternatively, color inversion can be obtained by appropriate selection of color filters.

In a variant, the summing amplifier 24 is omitted and the signal SLUM is used directly as the G component i for the receiver 8. In this case, signal SLUM-H still needs to be generated to be summed with the duplicate signals of SR1 and SB+.

The unit according to the invention is such that, in use, the stores 13 and 15 hold the red low-band component and the blue low-band component, respectively, and the green broadband luminance signal is sent to the filters 18 and 19 without being stored. May be changed. The green broadband luminance signal is used as an approximation of the total luminance component, and the green highband component can be added to the red and blue lowband components (from the storage) to generate the R and B output signals.

rAuto White J by rapidly rotating the filter wheel in one sequence and adjusting the signal level in separate paths respectively when the unit is switched on or at any time during the operation of the unit. Routines can be executed.

The output signals from summing amplifiers 22, 23 and 24 can also be used to make prints from negatives or transparency images, for example by using those signals to modulate a light beam that is scanned across photosensitive paper. can be used.

The unit of the invention can be modified by replacing the arrangement of light source 1, lens system 2 and vidicon tube 5 with a flying spot scanner. FIG. 6 shows only those parts of the unit that are changed by this modification, in which case the remainder of the unit is identical to that shown in FIG.

The high brightness cathode tube 50 is connected to the CRT drive (S) of the receiver 8 to generate a bright spot that scans the entire screen of it.
D) Use k. The light from this scanning point is transmitted to the cathode ray tube 50.
is passed through a filter 3 placed in close proximity to the photomultiplier tube 51 and illuminated on the negative 4 to project a scanned representation of the filtered image onto a photomultiplier tube 51 . The output of this photomultiplier tube 51 is an electrical signal in a form suitable for processing in a video processor (after amplification, if necessary, in an amplifier 9). All operations of the filter 3 and mount 6 and all processing of the electrical signals obtained from the photomultiplier tube 51 are the same as described for the unit of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing another unit according to the present invention. This unit has a filter which generates, in addition to the red and blue image signals in the previously described units, a signal representing a negative clean image for display. Each of these signals is a suitable color difference signal (i.e., R-Y, B-Y switching or (, -Y)
are individually processed in the control and processing unit 6o to obtain the color difference signals, after which the color difference signals are stored in each memory 61, 62 or 63. In order to represent a display on a television screen, these stores provide a repetitive output of these signals, each of which is combined with a full brightness signal Y obtained directly and continuously from the negative. Since the timing of the start point of the storage address counter is adjusted appropriately relative to the TV field synchronization, no delay line is required to compensate for delays through the various filters and digital conversions. Means are also provided for removing the gamma of the imager tube prior to analog-to-digital conversion and for reapplying the RlG and B outputs to a suitable 7'f.

Only one field of each color is kept in memory (
even fields), alternating fields are provided by repeating the first field twice when fetching from their storage.

This provides more than sufficient vertical color resolution compared to using a horizontal L3 MHz bandwidth. After the output of the memory has been processed (i.e., made into a color difference signal), it is suitably added to an appropriately scaled version of the "live" Y signal to generate the low frequency Y data (i.e., 1. (up to 3 MHz) are canceled, leaving the RlG,B output to the display with the low frequency color plus the high frequency (detail) Y signal.

FIG. 5 shows the processing portion of the apparatus 60, i.e. color difference signals R-Y, B- from signals representing selected negative images.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a portion having the function of obtaining Y and G-Yt.

FIG. 6 shows in a block diagram another embodiment of a unit according to the invention, in which two memories 70 and 71 for color difference signals (i.e. R, -Y and B-Y) are shown. A third color difference signal G-Y is obtained from the other two color difference signals.

In order to set this unit to display a negative, the signals representing the red and blue images are input to the respective stores 70 and 71 and summed with the inverse of the luminance signal Y output directly from the image pickup tube. The color difference signals (R-Y or B-Y) obtained as a result are output from the respective storage devices in order to can be placed in

By using color difference signals, intermittent color shift errors can be minimized because variations in the image pickup tube output only cause variations in the displayed image.

The apparatus shown in FIG. 7 consists of four individual elements: a photographic negative scanner A for obtaining an electrical signal from a photographic negative for storage on a videotape cassette; a video tape recorder B; playback monochrome that processes and puts it into a format suitable for display on a television screen.
It has a TV receiver and a TV receiver. It will be clear that it is not necessary that all the elements making up the device be used simultaneously or as a single complete unit. Thus, for example, each person can take a selection of his slides to a store or photo processor to have them transferred in magnetic form to a Videotheque 0 cassette using elements A and Bk of the apparatus described above. In this way, each person does not need to have element A of the device in his or her possession; elements B, C, and D are sufficient to project his or her slides on the television screen.

More specifically, in the device shown in FIG.
Light from a suitable light source 101 is passed through a filter 103 by a lens system 102 and is irradiated onto a negative 104, which is then projected onto a photosensitive tube area of a 3" videocon camera tube 105. - held in a disk-type plastic mount 106 developed by Kodasoku Corporation.The filters 103 are similar to those shown in FIG. A wheel having three sectors transmitting different color portions is rotatably rotated by a drive motor 107 so that each sector of the filter can be positioned in the path of the light beam. The signals received at are suitably processed (as explained in more detail below) and sent to videotape cassette recorder B for storage on the videotape cassette.
Motor 107 rotates mount 106 until the negative is properly positioned within the light beam for display.

At the start of operation of the unit, the filter 103 is oriented such that a sector that transmits only red light is located in the light beam. Since the signal forming the red image on the television screen is obtained from this sector of the filter 103, in the following we will refer to this sector as the RED sector and the resulting signal as the red component signal. do. Using an internally generated scanning signal, the imager tube 105 scans a complete frame of the red component image to form a corresponding electrical signal, which electrical signal is suitably inverted and inverted in the pickup head amplifier 108. amplified. This signal is then provided to video processor 109 where it is provided with appropriate blanking and clamping. At this stage, the vertical blanking period and the audio and control trunks are coded to distinguish between component signals and negatives. After being processed in analog-to-digital converter 110, the signal is sent to recorder B,
There it is recorded on videotape.

Typically, an 8-bit digital signal occupies eight television frames on videotape. Controller 111 monitors this operation and, when recorder B receives a complete frame of the red component signal, controller 1. 11 commands the motor 107. In the following, we will refer to this sector as BLUE (BLUE).
) sector, and the resulting signal is called a blue (
B LUE ) component signal. After processing as for the red image, the signal obtained here is recorded on videotape adjacent to the red component signal.

When recorder B receives a complete frame of blue component signal, motor 107 is commanded by controller 111 to rotate filter 103 until a transparent sector is positioned within the light beam, so that A broadband luminance image of the negative 104 is produced. Taking proper account of the film base material used that adds to or enhances the color clamping (also known as Auto White), the transparent sector of filter 103 is defined by C,1,E. As shown, it has a passband characteristic similar to the response of the human eye. Thus, after this broadband luminance image is processed in the same manner as the red and blue component signals (except that the analog-to-digital converter is bypassed), the resulting signal (SLUM) is transmitted to videotape in analog form. recorded above.

When recorder B receives a complete frame signal of S LUM, it rotates the filter 103 until the red sector is positioned in the light beam, and rotates the filter 103 until the other negative 104' is positioned in the light beam (106'). The controller 111 instructs the motor 107 to rotate. The recording process described above is then repeated so that each of the three component signals for negative 104' is stored separately on videotape. In this way, multiple negative selections can be stored in one videotape cassette.

If it is desired to display the image stored on the tape of the negative 104 in a television receiver, the reference number of that negative is entered into the recorder BK, and this recorder then reads the identification corresponding to the onset of the red component signal for that negative. Search code. Once this position is located, recorder B reproduces the red component signal and this signal is sent to electronic storage 113.

As the end of the red component signal comes out of recorder B, controller 111 identifies that end and operates switch 114, which causes subsequent blue component signals to be sent to a different electronic storage 115. When the edge of the blue component comes out of recorder B and the edge is identified by the controller 111, the controller sends the SLUM output directly to the video matrix unit 117 without further storage. The switch 116 is operated for this purpose. At this stage, the transport of the videotape in recorder B is stopped, but the recorder continues to track its tracking head with the signal S.
The LUM is maintained in a mode where all repeated readings are performed.

Meanwhile, stores 113 and 115 are reading out the duplicates of the red and blue component signals held in their memories, these duplicate signals are converted to analog form in converters 118 and 119, and are then converted to analog form in the matrix. - sent to unit 118 where it is processed together with the SLUM to generate R, G, B signals for display on a television receiver; As a result, the three component signals necessary to form an image of the negative 104 in the television receiver are obtained simultaneously, two of these three component signals being obtained from the electronic storage, and the other one being obtained from the electronic storage.
One is obtained from recordings on videotape.

Similar to the unit in FIG. 4, recorder B and memory 1
1;3.115 (if preferred) need only store one field of each of the three component signals, with alternating fields being provided by repeating the stored signals.

A modified example using a video recorder that does not have a tracking head to enable playback of video frames with the recorder in pause mode:
The signal SLUM may be recorded repeatedly on videotape to provide a continuous output of components whose duration corresponds to the required display time of the image. Pseudo guard bands or additional azimuthal safety protection may be provided to minimize crosstalk.

If it is desired to display images of photographic transparencies rather than negatives, color inversion may be accomplished electronically (eg, by implementing a signal inversion stage) or by appropriate selection of color filters.

Scanner A includes a light source 101, a lens system 102, and a videocon camera tube 10 in the same manner as described in connection with FIG.
This can be modified by replacing the array of 5 with a flying spot scanner.

In another modification, scanner A is replaced by a unit that obtains electrical signals from photographic (or other) prints for storage in recorder B and actual display on a television receiver.

In yet another modification, all signals are placed on videotape in analog form to allow for more efficient storage and faster access times to the information on videotape. be remembered. However, in this case, module C requires analog-to-digital converters for the red and blue signals before they are stored in stores 113 and 115; Expenses will increase.

In one application of the invention, any of the units described above may be used to provide a background image on the screen of a television receiver, in which case the foreground image is determined by other means ( e.g. using a microcomputer). Such a configuration is particularly suited to the television video boom, whether for home or commercial use. For example, any two of the forms described above may be used to provide a static but changeable background, without discontinuities or interruptions when changes occur.
Two similar units can be used.

In this case a microcomputer would be used to generate several superimposed images and optionally to control the unit. Move continuously (
If it is necessary to generate a background (as observed by the human eye), it is necessary to have a sufficient number of units to enable simultaneous processing and sequential display of a large number of images. It will be appreciated that a television videoderm device using one or more units in this manner is substantially cheaper to manufacture than a conventional device with a complete background.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 shows an "add-on" system according to the present invention adapted for use in a conventional home television receiver.
) Schematic diagram of the unit; FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a filter in the unit of FIG. 1; FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a modification example of a part of the unit of FIG. 1; FIGS. 4, 5, and 6. 7 are schematic diagrams showing different embodiments of the unit according to the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a unit according to still another embodiment of the present invention. Patent applicant EMI Limited Agent Patent attorney Toshihito Yamamoto

Claims (1)

Claims: 1. An apparatus for displaying still images in a video display device, comprising: means for generating an electrical signal representative of an optical image; a variable passband filter; means for storing a plurality of low-band electrical signal components respectively obtained from the total optical input by the filter; and means for providing a repetitive output of the electrical signal components from the storage means; means for mixing the repetitive output from the optical input with other signal components obtained from the optical input without being stored to provide a composite video signal for display. 2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the storage means holds a low band component consisting of a combination of chrominance and luminance. 3. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the storage means retains in one storage the low band chrominance and luminance components representing the red components of the image and the storage means retaining in one storage the low band chrominance and luminance components representing the red components of the image. Said device, wherein said device is held in another memory and other components obtained from said input light are continuously received from said electrical signal generating means.