HIGH-DEFINITION COLOR PICTURE EDITING AND RECORDING SYSTEM

• US 3,617,626 A
• Filed: 05/16/1969
• Issued: 11/02/1971
• Est. Priority Date: 05/16/1969
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Joseph E. Bluth, Leo C. Hanseman
• Original Assignee: Joseph E. Bluth, Leo C. Hanseman
• Inventors: Bluth, Joseph E., Hanseman, Leo C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Fears, Terrell W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pokotilow, Steven B.
• Application Number:
  US04/825,291
• Time in Patent Office: 900 Days
• Field of Search: 178/6.6A,6.7A,5.4CD 179/1.2B
• US Class Current: 386/336
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/90 Tape-like record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/02 Editing, e.g. varying the order of information signals recorded on, or reproduced from, record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/024 on tapes G11B27/028, G11B27/029 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/032 on tapes G11B27/036, G11B27/038 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/843 on film
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/11 Scanning of colour motion picture films, e.g. for telecine
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/79 Processing of colour television signals in connection with recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8715 involving the mixing of the reproduced video signal with a non-recorded signal, e.g. a text signal

Abstract

There is disclosed herein an electronic system for the production of high-definition color motion pictures for theatrical and television use. The system employs digital video techniques wherein electronic analog video color signals are digitized, and the digital signals are stored. A scene may be played back immediately during shooting for monitoring purposes or recorded subsequently on film for facilitating editing. Desired portions, such as frames or scenes, of the stored digital color picture information may be selected and assembled, and operated upon to provide special effects, to achieve suitable editing, the resulting pictures again being recorded digitally. This resulting recording may be reproduced and electronically color corrected and enhanced and then converted back to analog form for ultimate visual presentation. The analog signals may be used to generate a color film, or the digital signals before conversion may be converted to different scan standards for presentation according to various television scan standards.

Claims

1. A system for producing high-definition color motion pictures comprising camera means for separating a polychromatic image into a plurality of discrete color components and for providing respective analog video signals corresponding thereto, conversion means for receiving said analog signals from said camera means, said conversion means including sampling selectively for sampling the analog video signal for each respective color component and converting the same to digital signals representative of the respective analog color signals, digital recorder means for recording the digital signals for each color component from said conversion means and for recording digital frame identification data corresponding to frames of video information, and for recording timing signals, editing means for receiving the digital information recorded by said recorder means, said editing means being selectively operable to reproduce in electrical form signals representative of one or more frames of recorded pictorial information in selectable sequences, master recording means for recording in digital form the pictorial information in the sequences selected by said editing means, and means for reconverting the digital information recorded by said master recording means to respective analog color signals for enabling reproduction thereof for visual presentation,

2. A system as in claim 1 including a pictorial monitoring subsystem for receiving digital signals from said conversion means, said monitoring system including recirculating memory means for receiving said digital signals at one raster scan rate and providing output digital signals at a second raster scan rate, digital-to-analog conversion means for receiving the digital signals at said second scan rate and for converting the same to analog video color signals, and a color display device coupled with said digital-to-analog conversion means for receiving the analog color signals therefrom and providing a color display of the images received by said camera means.

3. A system as in claim 1 wherein said editing means includes effects generator means for changing in a predetermined manner digital signals recorded by said digital recorder means representative of frames of recorded pictorial information.

4. A system as in claim 1 wherein said means for reconverting the digital information includes recirculating memory means, said recirculating memory means having stored therein in digital form at least one frame of pictorial information according to a first aspect ratio, and means coupled With said recirculating memory means for selecting therefrom predetermined picture elements of a frame for providing output digital information representing a frame of pictorial information according to a second aspect ratio.

5. A system as in claim 1 wherein said editing means comprises incremental recorder means for receiving digital signals recorded by said digital recorder means and for selectively providing digital signals representative of desired frames of recorded pictorial information, and assembler means couple with said incremental recorder means, said assembler means being operable to selected from said incremental recorder means said signals representative of desired frames and providing the same to an output in selectable sequences.

6. A system as in claim 5 wherein said editing means comprises program control means coupled with said assembly means for controlling the operation thereof, said program control means selectably supplying to said assembler means program information selected by a film editor for controlling the compilation of frames of recorded pictorial information from said incremental recorder means.

7. A system as in claim 1 wherein said means for reconverting the digital information includes recirculating memory means for receiving said digital information recorded by said master recording means according to a first raster scan rate and for providing output digital information according to a second raster scan rate compatible with television standards, digital-to-analog conversion means coupled with said recirculating memory means for receiving the digital information therefrom and converting the same to analog video color signals, and television encoding means coupled with said digital-to-analog conversion means for receiving and encoding said analog video color signals,

8. A system as in claim 7 wherein said first scan rate is approximately 1575 lines/24 frames per second, and said second scan rate is approximately 525 lines/30 frames per second.

9. A system as in claim 7 wherein said first scan rate is approximately 1575 lines/24 frames per second, and said second scan rate is approximately 625 lines/25 frames per second.

10. A system as in claim 7 wherein said recirculating memory means comprises a pair of recirculating loop memories each having a capacity to store a frame of pictorial information according to a first high-definition scan rate, and means coupled with said recirculating memory means for selecting therefrom predetermined portions of each frame of information to enable conversion to a second raster scan rate.

11. A method of producing high definition color motion pictures comprising separating a polychromatic image into a plurality of discrete color components and generating respective analog video signals corresponding thereto, converting said analog signals to digital form whereby respective digital codes represent respective analog video signals, recording said digital codes in a first sequence, reordering the sequence of said recorded digital codes, and reconverting said reordered digital codes to analog form for enabling reproduction thereof for visual presentation.

12. A method as in claim 11 including changing said digital codes in a predetermined manner to create a special effect upon the ultimate visual presentation of the recorded digital codes.

13. A method as in claim 11 including storing at least a number of digital codes corresponding to a frame of pictorial information as a first number of pictorial lines, and reading out only a portion of said pictorial information by reading out only digital codes representing certain of said lines to convert frames of pictorial information from a first to a second standard.

14. A system for producing high-definition color motion pictures and enabling conversion from on scan rate to another scan rate, comprisIng camera means for picking up live a scene and separating a polychromatic image of the scene into a plurality of discrete color components and for providing respective analog video signals corresponding thereto, conversion means for receiving said analog signals from said camera means, said conversion means including sampling means for sampling the analog video signal for each respective color component and converting the same to digital signals representative of the respective analog color signals, digital recorder means for recording the digital signals for each color component from said conversion means and for recording digital frame identification data corresponding to frames of video information, recirculating memory means for receiving said digital information recorded by said digital recorder means as fields of information according to a first raster scan rate and for providing output digital information as fields according to a second raster scan rate compatible with a television standard, said recirculating memory means including recirculating loop memories for storing successive lines of each field of pictorial information in digital form according to said first scan rate and means to read out only certain lines of the information according to said second scan rate, and means coupled with said recirculating memory means for converting the digital information of said second scan rate therefrom to respective analog color signals for enabling reproduction thereof for visual presentation.

15. A system for producing high-definition color motion pictures and enabling an image aspect ratio change from a first to a second aspect ratio, comprising camera means for picking up live a scene and separating a polychromatic image of the scene into a plurality of discrete color components and for providing respective analog video signals corresponding thereto, conversion means for receiving said analog signals from said camera means, said conversion means including sampling means for sampling the analog video signal for each respective color component and converting the same to digital signals representative of the respective analog color signals, digital recorder means for recording the digital signals for each color component from said conversion means according to a first aspect ratio, recirculating memory means for enabling said video information recorded according to said first aspect ratio to be converted to digital information according to a second aspect ratio, said recirculating memory means having plural memories for storing therein in digital form plural lines comprising fields of pictorial information according to said first aspect ratio, and readout means coupled with said recirculating memory means for selecting therefrom predetermined picture elements of the respective lines of a field of pictorial information for providing output digital information representing a field of pictorial information according to said second aspect ratio, and means coupled with said recirculating memory means for converting for the digital information of said second aspect ratio therefrom to respective analog color signals for enabling reproduction thereof for visual presentation.

16. A system as in claim 15 wherein said second aspect ration is a 1.33 to 1 aspect ratio.

17. A system for producing high-definition color motion pictures and enabling the selective creation of special effects comprising camera means for picking up live a scene and deriving a polychromatic image, and for separating the polychromatic image into a plurality of discrete color components and for providing respective analog video signals corresponding thereto, conversion means for receiving said analog signals from said camera means, said conversion means including sampling means for sampling the analog video signal for each respective color component and converting the same to digital coded signals representative of the respecTive analog color signals, digital recording means for recording the digital signals for each color component from said conversion means for recording digital frame identification data corresponding to frames of video information, editing means for receiving the digital information recorded by said recording means, said editing means including effects generator means for changing in a predetermined manner the coding of at least certain of said digital signals recorded by said digital recording means representative of frames of recorded pictorial information for causing a predetermined change in the ultimate visual presentation thereof, digital recording means for recording in digital form the digital signals from said editing means and means for converting the digital information recorded by said last-named digital recording means to respective analog color signals for enabling reproduction thereof for visual presentation.

18. A system as in claim 17 wherein said conversion means samples a plurality of discrete instantaneous video amplitudes for each of said color signals from said camera means and transforms each sampled amplitude into digital coded information representative of the analog signal, and said effects generator means selectively changes certain of said digital coded information.