Abstract: A combination VHF and UHF tuner is provided in which a common station selector shaft may be rotated a number of revolutions to cover the seventy stations in the UHF band. The common selector shaft is provided with twenty-four detent positions per revolution and in alternate positions of the shaft the twelve VHF stations in the VHF band are received. As the common selector shaft is rotated through several revolutions the VHF stations are repeatedly received but are interspersed with different individual stations in the UHF band. Accordingly, no matter what UHF station is being received, all of the VHF stations are always within one turn of the common selector shaft. In many mixed UHF-VHF reception areas a single turn of the common selector shaft is sufficient to select all of the UHF stations as well as all of the VHF stations which are broadcasting in that area.

Abstract: A switching arrangement for VHF-UHF tuners is provided wherein changeover from VHF operation to UHF operation is accomplished by employing wiping action stator contacts and with a minimum of connections between the VHF and UHF tuners.

Abstract: An operator-controllable detent mechanism is provided for a combination VHF-UHF television tuner. Separate torsionally-loaded detent springs are provided for two detent wheels which are mounted on the common station selector shaft of the tuner. A manually-operable control member concentric with the selector shaft is employed selectively to remove the torsional load on one detent member or the other so that the common selector shaft may be detented for combined VHF-UHF reception, VHF only reception or UHF only reception.

Abstract: In a VHF tuner a stator bar switching arrangement is provided which is particularly suitable for use in combination VHF-UHF tuners. A movable switching member positioned on the main stator bar of a turret type VHF tuner is moved between fixed contacts on the stator bar by engagement with a projection on each of the tuning sticks of the turret in each VHF channel receiving position of the main selector shaft. Various switching arrangements are provided for VHF-UHF operation.

Abstract: A detent type tuning mechanism for a UHF tuner having a continuously variable tuning shaft includes a detented selector shaft, and a fine tuning mechanism including a rotatable turret having mounted thereon a plurality of cams, each adjustable by a fine tuning shaft when the selector shaft is positioned in a predetermined position. A variable impedance element, operated by the fine tuning mechanism, is provided for fine tuning the tuner independently of the position of the selector shaft and the tuning shaft to permit a precise numerical display of the UHF channel selected in each position of the detented selector shaft.

Abstract: A highly accurate UHF television tuner utilizes an improved housing and an improved mounting system for securing the tuning rotor and stator within the housing. The housing is fabricated from sheet metal that is welded at the corners to provide mechanical rigidity, and soldered at the corners to provide a good electrical contact. A cover is placed over an open end of the housing and soldered at the corners further to increase the mechanical rigidity of the housing. The depth of the housing is increased to reduce the effects of the housing on the tuner elements. An eyelet is mounted in one end of the housing for supporting the rotor shaft, and the stator is mounted by insulating posts that are inserted through sleeves integrally formed in the housing. An improved contact for more effectively grounding the rotor shaft to the housing is provided, and an improved detenting system is provided for the selector shaft to reduce the effects of inertial creep.

Abstract: A digital display indicator for a television tuner utilizes a tape or other record medium having each of the television channel numbers disposed thereon in a seven-segment type font. A mechanism is provided for moving the tape past a display window to simulate a seven-segment digital display. In an alternative embodiment, the channel numbers may be displayed on one or more circular discs.

Abstract: A UHF television tuner utilizes a mechanical fine tuning mechanism that alters the operation frequency of the oscillator of the tuner independently of the position of the main tuning shaft. The mechanical fine tuning mechanism utilizes a tuning slug disposed inside a tunable coil of the oscillator, and a rotary to linear motion translating mechanism is disposed within the fine tuning shaft for converting a rotational motion of the fine tuning shaft to a linear motion of the slug inside the coil.

Abstract: An electrical fine tuning system for a UHF television tuner utilizes a voltage variable capacitor for adjusting the operating frequency of the oscillator. The capacity of the voltage variable capacitor is determined by a potentiometer that is mounted concentrically with the selector shaft and serves as a fine tuning control. An automatic frequency control voltage may be applied to the voltage variable capacitor used for fine tuning or to a second voltage variable capacitor. Circuitry is provided for extending the tuning range of the voltage variable capacitor when a single voltage variable capacitor is used both for fine tuning and automatic frequency control, and an improved mechanical construction is used to couple the voltage variable capacitors to the oscillator.

Abstract: A continuously variable UHF tuner arrangement is provided wherein a single channel selector shaft is provided with a detent position for each of the 70 UHF television stations and a highly accurate detent mechanism is employed to return the channel selector shaft to any one of the detent positions with extreme accuracy. As a result, the tuning elements of the tuner may be accurately aligned to different UHF stations corresponding to said detent positions and a nonambiguous digital dial arrangement may be employed to indicate to the operator exactly which UHF station is being received. Electronic fine tuning is provided to permit the UHF tuner to be fine tuned independently of the position of the selector shaft.

Abstract: A highly accurate UHF television tuner utilizes an improved housing and an improved mounting system for securing the tuning rotor and stator within the housing. The housing is fabricated from sheet metal that is welded at the corners to provide mechanical rigidity, and soldered at the corners to provide a good electrical contact. A cover is placed over an open end of the housing and soldered at the corners further to increase the mechanical rigidity of the housing. The depth of the housing is increased to reduce the effects of the housing on the tuner elements. An eyelet is mounted in one end of the housing for supporting the rotor shaft, and the stator is mounted by insulating posts that are inserted through sleeves integrally formed in the housing. An improved contact for more effectively grounding the rotor shaft to the housing is provided, and an improved detenting system is provided for the selector shaft to reduce the effects of inertial creep.

Abstract: An area-imaging device is scanned by digital logic in an arbitrary manner which dissects and reassembles the scanned image in an arbitrary way, shifting and rearranging the image segments which comprise the image in accordance with a pre-arranged scheme. The area-imaging device preferably includes a two-dimensional array of light-sensing elements upon which an image is projected using conventional optics. Each light-sensing element in the array is individually addressable using a digital x-y-coordinate addressing scheme. Digital logic circuitry generates an arbitrarily complex scanning pattern comprising pairs of x- and y-coordinate values, and these coordinate values are supplied sequentially to the area-imaging device. The video information retrieved from the individual device elements in response to this scanning pattern is assembled time-wise into a video signal suitable for display upon the face of a conventional television display device that is scanned in a conventional way.

Abstract: A detent type tuning mechanism for a UHF tuner having a continuously variable tuning shaft includes a detented selector shaft, a gear train interconnecting the tuner shaft and the selector shaft, and a memory type fine tuning mechanism including a rotatable turret having mounted thereon a plurality of cams each engageable by a fine tuning shaft when the selector shaft is positioned in predetermined ones of the detent positions. Each cam serves as a memory fine tuning system for a predetermined group of adjacent UHF channels. A cam follower interconnects one of the cams and the tuning shaft, and serves to rotate the tuning shaft in response to the rotation of one of the cams by the fine tuning shaft. An indicator dial provides a numerical display of the precise UHF channel selected at each position of the detented selector shaft.

Abstract: A digital soft edge transition system for use in conjunction with a video special effects generator utilizes digital circuitry responsive to a transition signal for switching either a first video input signal or a second video input signal into a composite video output signal. An analog video switch controlled by an analog ramp generator is utilized to provide a gradual transition between the video input signals. The gradient of the transition is determined by the time constant of the charging circuit in the ramp generator which is controlled by a digital border size control circuit. The digital border size control circuit includes circuitry responsive to the distance between the border and the edge of the viewing screen for gradually reducing the width of the border as the transition approaches the edge of the screen to prevent the abrupt disappearance of the border that usually occurs in digital soft edge generators when the transition approaches the edge of the screen.

Abstract: An insulated coupling usable with a television tuner shaft or the like for electrically isolating the tuner shaft from the chassis of the television receiver includes a pair of flanged insulating bushings pressed into axially extending chambers formed in the ends of two coupled sections of the tuner shaft. A knurled pin fabricated from hardened steel or other strong material is pressed into the two bushings to hold the two sections of the shaft together with the two flanges of the bushings abutting to form an insulated section between the two coupled sections of the shaft.

Abstract: A mechanism for driving a television tuner channel indicator located behind a panel and mounted concentrically with a selector shaft and a concentric fine tuning shaft. The driving mechanism includes a two-piece gear housing mounted on the selector shaft for rotation therewith, a driving gear affixed to the fine tuning shaft, a driven gear, and three planetary gears mounted within the housing and engaging the driving and driven gears. The selector shaft passes through the gear housing and engages the coarse tuning mechanism of the tuner. The driven gear engages the fine tuning mechanism of the tuner, and the indicator is attached to the gear housing. The driving mechanism may be provided with apparatus for actuating an AFC defeat switch when the television tuner is being fine tuned or tuned between channels.

Abstract: A continuously variable UHF tuner arrangement is provided wherein a single channel selector shaft is provided with a detent position for each of the seventy UHF television stations and a highly accurate detent mechanism is employed to return the channel selector shaft to any one of said detent positions with extreme accuracy. As a result, the tuning elements of the UHF tuner may be accurately aligned to different UHF stations corresponding to said detent positions and a nonambiguous digital dial arrangement is employed to indicate to the operator exactly which UHF station is being received. A masking member concentric with the selector shaft is provided with a viewing area in which only one member from cooperating tens and units dial members is simultaneously visible.

Abstract: A special effects generator for use in video switching produces a wide variety of rotational wipes, fades, and special effects. The generator functions by mixing together controlled amounts of horizontal and vertical sawtooth waveforms and DC potentials. The resultant signal is then fed into a comparator, and the comparator output is used to control one or more electronic video switches. The special effects are controlled by varying the strengths of the waveforms which are summed through the use of potentiometers or variable resistors. Rotational special effects are achieved through the use of a 360 degree circular potentiometer having multiple taps. Provision is made for multiple image special effects. Also disclosed are circuits for preserving the integrity of the switch output signal during synchronizing intervals and for equalizing the DC levels of all the video signals which are mixed together.

Abstract: A combination UHF and VHF television tuner having a single detented selector shaft for individually selecting each one of the 82 UHF and VHF television channels and a single fine tuning shaft for providing memory fine tuning of channels in both the UHF and VHF bands. A single digital type channel indicator is used for precisely displaying at a single location the channel number of the UHF or VHF channel selected by the common selector shaft. .Iadd.

Abstract: A compact dial indicator arrangement is provided for a UHF tuner of the type having a continuously variable main tuning shaft and a station selector shaft provided with detent means for establishing a separate detent position for each of the 70 television stations in the UHF band. An elongated strip of material bearing numbers corresponding to each one of the 70 UHF television stations is moved past a viewing position at which the selected channel numbers may be viewed by means interconnected with the detented selector shaft so that the number on the elongated strip corresponding to each stop position of the continuously variable main tuning shaft is automatically viewable at the viewing position in response to rotation of the selector shaft to each detented position thereof.