Device for dispatching video and/or audio signals between several receivers

• US 5,249,043 A
• Filed: 07/24/1991
• Issued: 09/28/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/1990
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Compagnie Generale de Video Technique SAS
• Original Assignee: Compagnie Generale De Videotechnique
• Inventors: Grandmougin, Gerard
• Primary Examiner(s): Eisenzopf, Reinhard J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Charouel, Lisa
• Application Number:
  US07/735,295
• Time in Patent Office: 797 Days
• Field of Search: 358/86, 358/84, 358/93, 358/85, 455/3.1, 455/3.2, 455/3.3, 455/4.1, 455/4.2, 455/6.1, 455/6.2, 455/6.3, 455/12.1, 340/825.24, 359/143, 359/144, 359/148
• US Class Current: 725/78
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 40/90 specially adapted for satellite broadcast receiving
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/104 Switchers or splitters

Abstract

Device for dispatching video and/or audio signals to several receivers. A typical installation has a main television receiver (1), optically coupled to a video recorder (2), and a standard antenna (4) for video and/or audio signal reception. A distributor (5) transmits these signals to the main receiver and to at least one auxiliary television receiver (7), and is coupled to at least one additional source (912) of baseband video and/or audio signals, which is independent of the reception antenna. The device has a dispatcher unit (14) which receives the antenna signals and transmits them to the main receiver directly, or through the video recorder, and receives the baseband video and/or audio signals from the independent source. A bypass unit (15) is mounted on a coaxial connection cable (6) between the antenna and the dispatcher unit in order to both avoid return signal towards the antenna of the signals received from this dispatcher unit, and also to allow their transmission towards the auxiliary receiver through an additional coaxial cable (9). An incoming unit (16) receives signals from the dispatcher unit through the bypass unit and transmits them to the auxiliary receiver.

Claims

1. Device for dispatching signals between several receivers, which is intended to be mounted in an installation comprising a main television receiver (1), a standard antenna (4) for signal reception combined with a distributor (5) for transmitting an antenna signal to the main receiver by way of a coaxial connection cable (6) and towards at least one auxiliary television receiver (7), locally separated from the main receiver, and at least one additional source (12) of baseband signal, which is independent of the reception antenna, a dispatcher unit (14) receiving the antenna signal in order to transmit them to the main receiver as well as the additional baseband signal received from the additional source, a bypass unit (15) mounted on the coaxial connection cable between the antenna and the dispatcher unit in order to avoid the return, towards the antenna reflected signals from the dispatcher unit and, to allow transmission thereof towards the auxiliary receiver through an additional coaxial cable (9) and an incoming unit (16), the latter receiving the reflected signals from the dispatcher unit through the bypass unit in order to transmit them to the auxiliary receiver.

2. Device according to claim 1, characterised in that the additional source is selected from the group consisting of a special antenna for receiving satellite-relay emissions, an optical disc reader, a unit for connecting with or for selecting a cable network, a video camera, and a video recorder.

3. Device according to either of claims 1 or 2, characterised in that the dispatcher unit (14) and the incoming unit (16) comprise respectively a first receiver (36) and a second receiver (37) of infrared waves, able to receive control signals coming from a remote control disposed in the vicinity of the incoming unit in order to control the additional source (12).

4. Device according to any one of claims 1 or 2, characterised in that the dispatcher (14), bypass (15) and incoming (16) units each comprise an input/output switching filter (18, 28, 32) containing a central channel connected, to a high frequency channel (HF) by way of a high-pass filter, and to a low frequency channel (LF) by way of a low-pass filter.

5. Device according to claim 4, characterised in that the dispatcher unit (14) comprises, ahead of the switching filter (18), two switches (23, 24) having at least two positions, one of these switches (23) enabling the main receiver to select, in addition to the antenna signal received from the antenna (4), the baseband signal of the additional source (12), the other switch (24) being provided in order to direct the baseband signal emanating from the additional source towards a processing circuit (27) which frequency-modulates audio signals and adds them to video signals, the added signals being transmitted through the switching filter towards the incoming unit (16), via the bypass unit (15).

6. Device according to claim 4, characterized in that the bypass unit (15) comprises three filters (29, 30, 31), two of which (29, 30) are high-pass filters mounted in parallel and attached to outputs of the distributor (5), towards the main receiver (1) and the auxiliary receiver (7) respectively, these two filters being jointed in series by the low-pass filter (31), so that a frequency-modulated signal returned towards the bypass unit (15) by the dispatcher unit (14) through the coaxial connection cable (6) are not able to reach the distributor, but are diverted towards the incoming unit (16) through the low-pass filter.

7. Device according to claim 4, characterised in that the incoming unit (16) comprises, behind the switching filter (32), a circuit (35) for separating the reflected signal into audio and video signals, and for demodulating the audio signals, an output of which is joined to the auxiliary receiver (7).