Digital video special effects system

• US 4,533,952 A
• Filed: 10/22/1982
• Issued: 08/06/1985
• Est. Priority Date: 10/22/1982
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Digital Services Corporation
• Original Assignee: Digital Services Corporation
• Inventors: Norman, James W. III
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Tommy P.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Parker, Michael D.
• Application Number:
  US06/436,066
• Time in Patent Office: 1,019 Days
• Field of Search: 358/22, 358/183, 358/160, 382/41, 382/44-47
• US Class Current: 348/580
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/262 Studio circuits, e.g. for mixing, switching-over, change of character of image, other special effects ; Cameras specially adapted for the electronic generation of special effects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/2628 Alteration of picture size, shape, position or orientation, e.g. zooming, rotation, rolling, perspective, translation

Abstract

A video special effects processing system for superimposing a key video picture on a reference video picture. A key video signal which corresponds to the key video picture is stored in digital form in a memory in locations which are addressable by data corresponding to coordinate pairs. In a preferred embodiment, the video data stored in the memory is read out in accordance with a manipulated coordinate pair, thereby achieving a predetermined type of displacement effect on a video screen. The manipulated coordinate pairs are produced in response to the original coordinate pairs which identify the memory addresses and function data provided by a central processing unit (CPU), which processes the data in accordance with a mathematical function which defines the special effect which is desired to be achieved. The original coordinate pair data and the function data are arithmetically manipulated in a hardware-implemented manipulator in accordance with a generalized video effects equation.

Claims

1. In a video processing system of the type wherein video information is stored in a memory having a plurality of storage locations for storing respective predetermined portions of a video signal, each storage location having an associated memory address in the form of a memory address coordinate pair, a memory address coordinate manipulator arrangement comprising:

function register means for receiving function data corresponding to a selected mathematical function representative of a desired displacement of a selected one of the predetermined portions of the video signal with respect to the associated storage location in the memory;

input means for receiving the memory address coordinate pair corresponding to said selected one of the portions of the video signal which is desired to be displaced;

arithmetic means for combining said function data and said memory address coordinate pair corresponding to said selected one of the portions of the video signal in accordance with a predetermined sequence of arithmetic steps for producing a solution to a generalized displacement equation; and

offset register means for receiving offset data corresponding to a desired fixed displacement of said selected one of the predetermined portions of the video signal.

2. The memory address coordinate manipulator arrangement of claim 1 wherein there is further provided offset adder means for adding said offset data to said solution to said generalized displacement equation.

3. The memory address coordinate manipulator arrangement of claim 1 wherein there are further provided:

at least first and second radix point register means for storing said solution to said generalized displacement equation in respective radix formats; and

radix decoder means for selecting one of said first and second radix point register means.

4. The memory address coordinate manipulator arrangement of claim 3 wherein there is further provided switch means having at least first and second inputs connected to respective ones of said first and second radix point register means and a control input connected to said radix decoder means for producing at an output of said switch means said solution to said generalized displacement equation in a radix format selected in response to said radix decoder means.

5. The memory address coordinate manipulator arrangement of claim 1 wherein said arithmetic means comprises:

first multiplication means connected to said function register means and said input means for producing a first product value corresponding to the product of said function data and a first half of said memory address coordinate pair;

second multiplication means for producing a second product value corresponding to the product of said function data and a second half of said memory address coordinate pair;

first adder means for forming a first sum value corresponding to the addition of said first and second product values; and

second adder means for forming a second sum value corresponding to the addition of said first sum value and an offset value.

6. The memory address coordinate manipulator arrangement of claim 5 wherein there are further provided:

positive and negative screen limit input means for receiving positive and negative numerical limit values, respectively; and

comparator means for comparing said second sum value against said positive and negative numerical limit values.

7. A method for producing video special effects, the method having the steps of storing a video signal in a memory wherein portions of the video signal are stored in respective memory locations which are identified with respective addresses in the form of coordinate pairs, and producing coordinate pairs data in a sequential order which corresponds to the order in which the portions of the video signal would be delivered to a video screen to produce an image which corresponds directly to the video signal, the method further comprising the steps of:

generating function data corresponding to a mathematical function which defines a special effect which is desired to be achieved;

arithmetically manipulating said function data and the coordinate pairs data in accordance with a generalized special effect equation to produce manipulated coordinate pair data, said step of arithmetically manipulating including the steps of (a) producing first and second product values corresponding to a multiplication of said function data and first and second halves of the coordinate pairs data, and (b) producing said manipulated coordinate pair data by adding said first and second product values to one another; and

addressing the memory with said manipulated coordinate pair data to produce a manipulated image on the video screen which has been displaced with respect to the image which corresponds directly to the video signal in accordance with said mathematical function.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein said step of arithmetically manipulating comprises the further step of displacing the video special effect on the video screen by adding an offset value to said manipulated coordinate pair data.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein there is provided the further step of storing said manipulated coordinate pair data in a plurality of registers which are adapted for respective sign and radix formats.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein there is further provided the step of selecting one of said registers to provide said manipulated coordinate pairs data in a selected radix format.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein there is provided the further step of comparing the sum of said offset value and said manipulated coordinate pairs data against predetermined positive and negative limits to determine whether the video special effect is presented within a predetermined area on the video screen.

12. In a video processing system of the type wherein video information is stored in a memory having a plurality of storage locations for storing respective predetermined portions of a video signal, each storage location having an associated memory address in the form of a memory address coordinate pair, a memory address coordinate manipulator arrangement comprising:

function register means for receiving function data corresponding to a selected mathematical function representative of a desired displacement of a selected one of the predetermined portions of the video signal with respect to the associated storage location in the memory;

input means for receiving the memory address coordinate pair corresponding to said selected one of the portions of the video signal which is desired to be displaced;

arithmetic means for combining said function data and said memory address coordinate pair corresponding to said selected one of the portions of the video signal in accordance with a predetermined sequence of arithmetic steps for producing a solution to a generalized displacement equation;

first and second radix point register means for storing said solution to said generalized displacement equation in respective radix formats; and

radix decoder means for selecting one of said first and second radix point register means.

13. The memory address coordinate manipulator arrangement of claim 12 wherein there is further provided switch means having at least first and second inputs connected to respective ones of said first and second radix point register means and a control input connected to said radix decoder means for producing at an output of said switch means said solution to said generalized displacement equation in a radix format selected in response to said radix decoder means.

14. In a video processing system of the type wherein video information is stored in a memory having a plurality of storage locations for storing respective predetermined portions of a video signal, each storage location having an associated memory address in the form of a memory address coordinate pair, a memory address coordinate manipulator arrangement comprising:

function register means for receiving function data corresponding to a selected mathematical function representative of a desired displacement of a selected one of the predetermined portions of the video signal with respect to the associated storage location in the memory;

input means for receiving the memory address coordinate pair corresponding to said selected one of the portions of the video signal which is desired to be displaced; and

arithmetic means for combining said function data and said memory address coordinate pair corresponding to said selected one of the portions of the video signal in accordance with a predetermined sequence of arithmetic steps for producing a solution to a generalized displacement equation, said arithmetic means including (a) first multiplication means connected to said function register means and said input means for producing a first product value corresponding to the product of said function data and a first half of said memory address coordinate pair, (b) second multiplication means for producing a second product value corresponding to the product of said function data and a second half of said memory address coordinate pair, (c) first adder means for forming a first sum value corresponding to the addition of said first and second product values, and (d) second adder means for forming a second sum value corresponding to the addition of said first sum value and an offset value.

15. The memory address coordinate manipulator arrangement of claim 14 wherein there are further provided:

positive and negative screen limit input means for receiving positive and negative numerical limit values, respectively; and

comparator means for comparing said second sum value against said positive and negative numerical limit values.

16. A method for producing video special effects, the method having the steps of storing a video signal in a memory wherein portions of the video signal are stored in respective memory locations which are identified with respective addresses in the form of coordinate pairs, and producing coordinate pairs data in a sequential order which corresponds to the order in which the portions of the video signal would be delivered to a video screen to produce an image which corresponds directly to the video signal, the method further comprising the steps of:

generating function data corresponding to a mathematical function which defines a special effect which is desired to be achieved;

arithmetically manipulating said function data and the coordinate pairs data in accordance with a generalized special effect equation to produce manipulated coordinate pair data;

storing said manipulated coordinate pair data in a plurality of registers which are adapted for respective sign and radix formats; and

addressing the memory with said manipulated coordinate pair data to produce a manipulated image on the video screen which has been displaced with respect to the image which corresponds directly to the video signal in accordance with said mathematical function.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein there is further provided the step of selecting one of said registers to provide said manipulated coordinate pairs data in a selected radix format.