Television signal processing apparatus

• US 5,142,353 A
• Filed: 04/12/1991
• Issued: 08/25/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/1987
• 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: Abe, Yoshio, Inoue, Shuji, Kageyama, Sadashi, Uwabata, Hideyo, Yasumoto, Yoshio
• Primary Examiner(s): Shepperd, John W.
• Application Number:
  US07/685,164
• Time in Patent Office: 501 Days
• Field of Search: 358/12
• US Class Current: 348/554
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 11/30 with transmission of the extra information by means of quadrature modulation

Abstract

A television signal processor which is compatible with the existing television systems and is capable of producing television signals having a larger aspect ratio than the standard aspect ratio has an arrangement such that, at the transmission side, a main signal and a multiplex signal are produced from an electrical signal obtained by receiving an original image through processes such as time-axis compression, time-axis expansion, and chrominance signal processing, and are subjected to non-time-axis multiplexing. The processor has a further arrangement such that, at the reception side, there are provided a circuit for separating the non-time-axis multiplexed signal, a circuit for separating a luminance signal and a chrominance signal, a circuit for demodulating the chrominance signal, a circuit for effecting time-axis compression, a circuit for time-axis expanding the time-axis multiplexed signal, and a circuit for time-axis compressing the non-time-axis multiplexed signal. A receiver provided with this processor may receive images broadcast under the existing television systems without troubles and also may reproduce TV images with a larger aspect ratio than the conventional 4:3 aspect ratio by the application of synchronous detection, time-axis compression, time-axis expansion, etc.

Claims

1. A television signal processing apparatus at the transmission side, comprising:

means for time-axis expanding and chrominance signal processing a first portion of an electric signal obtained by picking up an original image with as aspect ratio larger than the standard one, the first portion corresponding to the standard aspect ratio;

mean for separating a second portion corresponding to the remaining portion of the electric signal into a high frequency component and a low frequency component;

means for time-axis compressing and chrominance signal processing said low frequency component;

means for time-axis expanding and chrominance signal processing said high frequency component;

signal producing means for producing a main signal and a multiplex signal by time-axis multiplexing on a signal corresponding to said first portion and a signal corresponding to said low frequency component; and

non-time-axis multiplexing means for non-time-axis multiplexing said main signal and said multiplex signal;

wherein the signal producing means comprises;

means for time-axis expanding said first portion after chrominance signal processing;

means for splitting said second portion into a high frequency component and a low frequency component;

means for switching said high frequency component to said first portion on the time-axis;

means for time-axis compressing said low frequency component after chrominance signal processing;

means for switching the output of said time-axis expansion means and the output of the time-axis compression means to obtain the main signal; and

means for time-axis expanding the signals corresponding to said high frequency component to obtain the multiplex signal.

2. A television signal processing apparatus adapted to receive a non-time-axis multiplex signal composed of a main signal and a multiplex signal, the main signal being constituted by, among an electric signal obtained by picking up an original picture image with an aspect ratio larger then the standard one and consisting of a first portion corresponding to the standard aspect ratio and a second portion corresponding to the remainder of said electric signal, a low frequency component of the second portion and the first portion, and the multiplex signal being constituted by a high frequency component of the second portion, said apparatus comprising:

non-time-axis multiplex signal separating means for separating the non-time-axis multiplexed signal into the main signal and the multiplex signal; and

signal processing means for time-axis compressing and chrominance signal processing a signal corresponding to the first portion of said main signal, tie-axis expanding a signal corresponding to the low frequency component of the second portion of said main signal, and time-axis compressing and chrominance signal processing said multiplex signal;

wherein the signal processing means comprises;

means for time-axis compressing said main signal, separating a chrominance signal from a luminance signal, and demodulating the chrominance signal;

means for time-axis expanding a signal corresponding to the low frequency component of the second portion of the output signal of said chrominance signal processing means; and

means for separating said multiplex signal into a luminance signal and a chrominance signal, and time-axis compressing the separate signals.

3. A television signal processing apparatus at the reception side adapted to receive a non-time-axis multiplex signal composed of a main signal and a multiplex signal, the main signal being constituted by, among an electric signal obtained by picking up an original picture image with an aspect ratio larger than the standard one and consisting of a first portion corresponding to the standard aspect ratio and a second portion corresponding to the remainder of said electric signal, a low frequency component of the second portion and the first portion, and the multiplex signal being constituted by a high frequency component of the second portion, said apparatus comprising:

non-time-axis multiplex signal separating means for separating the non-time-axis multiplexed signal into the main signal and the multiplex signal; and

signal processing means for time-axis compressing and chrominance signal processing a signal corresponding to the first portion of said main signal, time-axis expanding a signal corresponding to the low frequency component of the second portion of said main signal, and time-axis compressing said multiplex signal and switching it on the time-axis to said main signal.

4. An apparatus as defined in claim 3, wherein the signal processing means comprises:

chrominance signal processing means for separating said main signal into a luminance signal and a chrominance signal, and demodulating the chrominance signal;

means for time-axis compressing a signal corresponding to the first portion of the output signal of said chrominance signal processing means;

means for time-axis expanding a signal corresponding to the low frequency component of the second portion of the output signal of said chrominance signal processing means; and

means for time-axis compressing said multiplex signals and switching it on the time-axis to said main signal.

5. An apparatus as defined in claim 3, wherein the signal processing means comprises:

first time-axis compression means for time-axis compressing said main signal;

second time-axis compression means for time-axis compressing said multiplex signal;

time-axis switching means for time-axis switching outputs of said first and second time-axis compression means;

chrominance signal processing means for separating an output of said time-axis switching means into luminance and chrominance signals, and demodulating the chrominance signal;

means for time-axis expanding a signal corresponding to the low frequency component of the second portion of the output signal of said chrominance signal processing means; and

means for time-axis adjusting a signal corresponding to the multiplex signal of the output signal of said chrominance signal processing means.

8. An apparatus as defined in claim 3, 6 or 7, wherein the non-time-axis multiplex signal separation means comprises:

filter means for eliminating quadrature distortion; and

means for performing synchronous detection by using a carrier which is identical in frequency to and different in phase from a video carrier.

6. A television signal processing apparatus adapted to receive a non-time-axis multiplex signal composed of a main signal and a multiplex signal, the main signal being constituted by, among an electric signal obtained by picking up an original picture image with an aspect ratio larger than the standard one and consisting of a first portion corresponding to the standard aspect ratio and a second portion corresponding to the remainder of said electric signal, a low frequency component of the second portion and the first position, and the multiplex signal being constituted by a high frequency component of the second portion, said apparatus comprising:

non-time-axis multiplex signal separating means for separating the main signal and the multiplex signal from the non-time-axis multiplexed signal;

first time-axis compression means for time-axis compressing a signal corresponding to the first portion of said main signal;

time-axis expanding means for time-axis expanding a signal corresponding to the low frequency component of the second portion of said main signal;

second time-axis compression means for time-axis compressing said multiplex signal;

time-axis switching means for switching on the time-axis an output of the first time-axis compression means and an output of the second time-axis compression means;

first chrominance signal processing means for separating a luminance signal and a chrominance signal from an output of said time-axis switching means, and demodulating the chrominance signal; and

second chrominance signal processing means for separating a luminance signal and a chrominance signal from an output of said time-axis expansion means, and demodulating the chrominance signal.

7. A television signal processing apparatus adapted to receive a non-time-axis multiplex signal composed of a main signal and a multiplex signal, the main signal being constituted by, among an electric signal obtained by picking up an original picture image with an aspect ratio larger than the standard one and consisting of a first portion corresponding to the standard aspect ratio and a second portion corresponding to the remainder of said electric signal, a low frequency component of the second portion and the first portion, and the multiplex signal being constituted by a high frequency component of the second portion, said apparatus comprising:

non-time-axis multiplex signal separation means for separating the main signal and the multiplex signal from the non-time-axis multiplexed signal;

first time-axis compression means for time-axis compressing a signal corresponding to the first portion of said main signal;

second time-axis compression means for time-axis compressing a signal corresponding to the low frequency component of the second portion of said main signal;

third time-axis compression means for time-axis compressing said multiplex signal;

time-axis switching means for switching on the time-axis outputs of said first, second and third time-axis compression means;

chrominance signal processing means for separating a luminance signal and a chrominance signal from an output of said time-axis switching means, and demodulating the chrominance signal; and

for time-axis expanding a signal corresponding to the low frequency component of the second portion of an output of said chrominance signal processing means.