Error eliminating system for teletext

• US 4,614,971 A
• Filed: 01/05/1983
• Issued: 09/30/1986
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/1983
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Rzeszewski, Theodore S., Maney, George A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Groody, James J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Parker, Michael D.
• Application Number:
  US06/455,658
• Time in Patent Office: 1,364 Days
• Field of Search: 358/147, 358/167, 358/142, 358/146, 358/36, 340/708, 340/798, 340/799
• US Class Current: 348/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/0882 for the transmission of character code signals, e.g. for teletext circuits for the digital non-picture data signal H04N7/035

Abstract

A system is disclosed for eliminating error in teletext signals caused by the presence of noise accompanying the teletext signals. The system includes: (1) a teletext packet buffer which receives the teletext signal and transfers the teletext signals to a teletext decoder in the absence of noise accompanying the teletext signals; (2) a timing circuit which produces timing signals from television synchronous signals; (3) a control circuit which controls the teletext packet buffer in response to the timing signals; and (4) a noise detector which detects whether noise is present in the teletext signal and disables the teletext packet buffer to prevent the transfer of the teletext signal from the teletext packet buffer to the teletext decoder if the teletext signal was received in the presence of noise.

Claims

1. A system for eliminating error in teletext signals caused by the presence of noise accompanying the teletext signals, the teletext signals accompanying television signals which include television video signals and television synchronous signals, the system comprising:

a teletext packet buffer for receiving the teletext signals and outputting received teletext signals;

a timing circuit for producing timing signals from the television synchronous signals;

a control circuit responsive to the timing signals for controlling the teletext packet buffer including causing it to output teletext signals; and

a noise detector coupled to receive the television video signals for detecting the presence of noise in the accompanying teletext signals and for preventing teletext signals which were received by the teletext packet buffer in the presence of noise as detected by the noise detector to be output from the teletext packet buffer.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the teletext packet buffer includes means for storing one or more packets of teletext signals, the control circuit controlling the time that each packet is stored in the teletext packet buffer to cause each packet to be stored in the teletext packet buffer for a predetermined time.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the teletext packet buffer includes a serial-to-parallel converter coupled to receive teletext signals and for converting serial teletext signals into parallel teletext signals, a packet buffer memory coupled to receive parallel teletext signals from the serial-to-parallel converter and store the parallel teletext signals, the control circuit controlling the time that parallel teletext signals are stored in the packet buffer memory and causing the stored parallel teletext signals to be read out from the packet buffer memory after a predetermined time, and a parallel-to-serial converter coupled to receive the parallel teletext signals read from packet buffer memory for converting the parallel teletext signals back into serial teletext signals.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein the noise detector is coupled to the parallel-to-serial converter and prevents it from outputting teletext signals received in the presence of noise.

5. The system of claim 3 wherein the timing circuit includes an intrafield timing circuit coupled to receive the television synchronous signals for detecting lines containing teletext data, and an intraline timing circuit coupled to the intrafield timing circuit for detecting where in a line the teletext data is located and for producing the timing signals to be applied to the control circuit which start, stop and continue the operation of the teletext packet buffer.

6. The system of claim 3 wherein the control circuit includes a serial-parallel-serial conversion controller coupled to receive the timing signals from the timing circuit for producing control signals which are applied to the serial-to-parallel converter and the parallel-to-serial converter, and a buffer memory address controller coupled to the serial-parallel-serial conversion controller for producing control signals which are applied to the packet buffer memory to control storage and read operations of the packet buffer memory.

7. The system of claim 1 including a teletext decoder coupled to the teletext packet buffer to receive teletext signals output therefrom and a television receiver including a display to which the teletext decoder is coupled for displaying teletext data on the display.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the noise detector includes means coupled to receive the television video signals for detecting the presence of one or more signal conditions indicative of the presence of noise accompanying the teletext signals.

9. A system for eliminating error in teletext signals caused by the presence of noise accompanying the teletext signals, the teletext signals accompanying television signals which include television video signals and television synchronous signals, the system comprising:

a teletext packet buffer including a packet buffer memory coupled to receive the teletext signals for storing one or more teletext packets of the teletext signals;

a timing circuit for producing timing signals from the television synchronous signals, the timing signals being used for starting, stopping and continuing the operation of the system;

a control circuit responsive to the timing signals for controlling the teletext packet buffer, the control circuit controlling the time that each teletext packet is stored in the packet buffer memory and causing each teletext packet to be output from the packet buffer memory after a predetermined time; and

a noise detector coupled to receive the television video signals for detecting the presence of noise in the teletext signals and for preventing the teletext packet buffer from outputting after the predetermined time a teletext packet which was received by the teletext packet buffer in the presence of noise as detected by the noise detector.

10. The system of claim 9 including a teletext decoder coupled to the teletext packet buffer to receive teletext signals output therefrom and a television receiver including a display to which the teletext decoder is coupled for displaying teletext data on the display.

11. The system of claim 9 wherein the noise detector includes means coupled to receive the television video signals for detecting the presence of one or more signals conditions indicative of the presence of noise accompanying the teletext signals.

12. A system for eliminating error in teletext signals caused by the presence of noise accompanying the teletext signals, the teletext signals accompanying television signals which include television video signals and television synchronous signals, the system comprising:

a teletext packet buffer for receiving the teletext signals and for outputting the teletext signals;

a timing circuit for producing timing signals from the television synchronous signals;

a control circuit responsive to the timing signals for controlling the teletext packet buffer including causing the teletext packet buffer to output the teletext signals it receives; and

a noise detector responsive to the television video signals for detecting whether noise is present in the television video signals and for preventing the teletext packet buffer from outputting teletext signals from the teletext packet buffer which were received by the teletext packet buffer in the presence of noise, the noise detector including a window comparator responsive to the television video signals for detecting whether the level of the television video signals falls in a predetermined level range and for producing an output signal when the level of the television video signal is outside of the predetermined level range, and a noise history memory coupled to the window comparator for storing the output signal of the window comparator and producing a control signal coupled to the teletext packet buffer to prevent it from outputting teletext signals which were received by the teletext packet buffer at the time that the window comparator produces said output signal.

13. The system of claim 12 including a teletext decoder coupled to the teletext packet buffer to receive teletext signals output therefrom and a television receiver including a display to which the teletext decoder is coupled for displaying teletext data on the display.

14. A system for eliminating error in teletext signals caused by the presence of noise accompanying the teletext signals, comprising:

a timing circuit for producing timing signals from television synchronous signals;

storage means for receiving teletext signals, temporarily storing them and outputting them;

a control circuit which is responsive to the timing signals and coupled to the storage means for controlling the outputting of the teletext signals from the storage means; and

means responsive to the teletext signals for detecting whether noise is present in the teletext signals during the time that the teletext signals are being received by the storage means, the noise detecting means being coupled to the storage means and preventing teletext signals which were received by the storage means in the presence of noise as detected by the noise detecting means from being output from the storage means.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein the noise detector means includes means coupled to receive the teletext signals for detecting the presence of one or more signal conditions indicative of noise accompanying the teletext signals.

16. The system of claim 15 including a teletext decoder coupled to the teletext packet buffer to receive teletext signals output therefrom and a television receiver including a display to which the teletext decoder is coupled for displaying teletext data on the display.

17. A system for eliminating error in teletext signals accompanying television signals caused by the presence of noise accompanying the teletext signals, comprising:

a buffer memory coupled to receive the teletext signals, store them and output them;

a teletext decoder coupled to received teletext signals output by the buffer memory and decode them;

control means including a timing circuit for producing timing signals derived from the television signals and for controlling the buffer memory including causing it to store and output teletext signals; and

a noise detector detector responsive to the teletext signals and controlled by the control means for detecting whether noise is present in the teletext signals and for preventing teletext signals which were received by the buffer memory in the presence of noise as detected by the noise detector from being output from the buffer memory to the teletext decoder.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein the noise detector means includes means coupled to receive the teletext signals for detecting the presence of one or more signal conditions indicative of noise accompanying the teletext signals.

19. A system for elminating error in teletext signals caused by the presence of noise accompanying the teletext signals, the teletext signals accompanying television signals which include television video signals and television synchronous signals, the system comprising:

a teletext packet buffer for receiving the teletext signals and outputting them in the absence of noise accompanying their reception by the teletext packet buffer;

a timing circuit for producing timing signals from the television synchronous signals;

a control circuit responsive to the timing signals for controlling the teletext packet buffer including outputting by the teletext packet buffer of teletext signals; and

a noise detector including a window comparator coupled to receive the television video signals for detecting whether the level of the television video signals falls in a predetermined level range, a one catcher coupled to the window comparator, the window comparator causing the output of the one catcher to change when the level of the television video signals is outside of the predetermined level range, and a noise history memory coupled at its input to the one catcher and at its output to the teletext packet buffer for storing the output of the one catcher and for producing a control signals which is coupled to the teletext packet buffer to prevent it from outputting teletext signals which were received by the teletext packet buffer when the window comparator caused the output of the one catcher to change.