Abstract: A compact video camera has an image pickup lens system providing a zooming function and a wide angle field of view. The zooming function is performed by a zoom lens, while the wide angle view is achieved via a wide angle converter. The wide angle converter, located closer to the object than the zoom lens, comprises a negative lens, a positive lens, and a reflecting member located between the negative and positive lenses. With the use of the reflecting member, an optical axis of the image pickup lens system extending from the object side to the image side of the camera may be folded. The position at which the optical axis is folded is located closer to the object side than the image side.

Abstract: The television signal recording/reproducing system digitally records and reproduces television signals composed of a luminance signal, a chrominance signal and a resolution compensation signal included in predetermined television scanning lines. The system includes a Y/C separating circuit for separating the luminance signal Y from the chrominance signal C and a decoder for decoding the color signal into color difference signals C.sub.B,C.sub.R. One of the color difference signals C.sub.B,C.sub.R is combined with the resolution compensation signal, and a digital video signal recorder digitally records the combined resolution signal and the color difference signal. In this manner, the resolution compensation signal is accurately recorded.

Abstract: According to the present invention, when image data high-efficiency-coded based on the MPEG standard or the like is clustered at every sector of a predetermined number, a link sector is provided at a connected portion of each cluster and the image data is interleaved and recorded on a mini disc, the image data is recorded on each cluster at the unit of 1GOP. When the mini disc is a preformatted one and a P picture or B picture exists at the starting portion of the cluster, a picture which becomes a predictive standard is encoded as an I picture and recorded on the link sector of the immediately-preceding cluster independently of an original P picture. Upon decoding, when the I picture was not recorded on the link sector of the immediately-preceding cluster, the P picture or the B picture recorded at the starting portion of the cluster is inhibited from substantially being decoded.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for generating image data are provided. A memory and a data processor are coupled with a system bus. In certain embodiments a data expanding apparatus is also coupled to the system bus and compressed data are transferred to the data expanding apparatus via the system bus and decompressed data are transferred therefrom to the memory without passing the compressed data through the data processor. Also in certain embodiments, an image data generation command string is transferred from the memory to an image data generation device via the system bus without passing the image data generation command string through the data processor.

Abstract: A video data recording/reproducing apparatus including an input unit for inputting a number of channels, the number of channels indicating a plurality of channels on which a plurality of series of video data are transmitted, the plurality of series of video data being identical to an original series of data and having a predetermined time difference: a division unit for dividing the digital video data into the same number of blocks of data as the number of the plurality of transmission channels and dividing the blocks of data into a predetermined number of sub-blocks of data; an arrangement conversion unit for converting the arrangement of the sub-blocks of data divided by the division unit into another arrangement of sub-blocks of data in accordance with a predetermined sequence; and a recording unit for recording the converted arrangement of the sub-blocks of data from the arrangement conversion unit and data indicating the number of channels to a recording medium.

Abstract: An optical disk having a diameter less than 140 mm and, a thickness of 1.2 mm.+-.0.1 mm, with a plurality of record tracks having data recorded thereon as embossed pits representing information and exhibiting a track pitch in the range between 0.646 .mu.m and 1.05 .mu.m; with the tracks being divided into a lead-in area, a program area and a lead-out area. The data includes table of contents (TOC) information recorded in a plurality of sectors in at least one TOC track and user information recorded in a plurality of sectors in user tracks; with the TOC information including addresses of start sectors recorded in the user tracks. The data (both user and TOC information) is encoded in a long distance error correction code having at least eight parity symbols, and is run length limited (RLL) modulated.

Abstract: A serial data stream representing an image is divided into a plurality of data streams, which are selectively combined to form collected data streams that are respectively blocked, shuffled, orthogonally transformed, variable length encoded, and buffered to form encoded blocks restricted to a predetermined amount of data. The encoded blocks for each of the collected data streams are selectively combined to form channels of record data which are recorded by respective recording heads on tracks of a recording medium using a track shuffling process.

Abstract: A boosting circuit comprises a power supply terminal, an output terminal a one-way element and a one-way element for charging. The one-way element comprises a plurality of stages connected in series across the power supply terminal and the output terminal in a forward direction going from the power supply terminal to the output terminal, with clock pulses being applied between each of the one-way element stages. The one-way element for charging is connected in parallel with the one-way element in the forward direction. It is therefore possible to provide a boosting circuit with an improved boosting voltage rise characteristic without having to change the size of the circuit elements.

Abstract: In a digital video tape recorder that has rotary magnetic heads for recording digital video information on a magnetic tape in the form of data blocks having a predetermined length, an ID signal is generated for each data block. The ID signal includes a number of data bits which identify the address of the data block, the information contained in the data block, and so forth. For the purpose of generating error code parity symbols, the ID signal is divided into a sequence of four-bit symbols, and at least two parity symbols are generated according to an error correction code for correcting errors in the sequence of four-bit symbols. The ID signal and parity symbols are recorded together on the magnetic tape. In this way, error correction can be performed on the ID signal during reproduction.

Abstract: An active matrix display device comprises a plurality of pixels, a vertical scanning circuit, a horizontal scanning circuit, and a thinning-out circuit. The plurality of pixels are arranged in a matrix on a normal standard screen. The vertical scanning circuit is for sequentially selecting pixels every line. The horizontal scanning circuit is for writing single horizontal period portions of a wide standard image signal for selected lines of pixels. The thinning-out circuit is for controlling timing of the vertical scanning circuit sequential selection and thinning-out a prescribed number of horizontal period portions from a wide standard image signal in such a manner that wide displaying compressed in the longitudinal direction of the screen is carried out. It is therefore possible for a normal standard screen to change over to displaying a wide standard image.

Abstract: A method of and apparatus for reverse playback, slow-reverse playback, and frame-by-frame-reverse playback of a time-division-multiplexed signal is compatible with fixed-rate and variable-rate data compression schemes, including digital video signals encoded according to MPEG systems.

Abstract: A data compression system decorrelates input data into sets of frequency component data. Different sets of frequency component data are entropy encoded using different coding tables matched to the data values characteristic of the sets of frequency component data they are used to compress. Matching the coding tables to the sets of frequency component data improves compression. The order in which the data values from within each set of frequency component data is fed to the entropy encoder is varied to exploit any intra-set correlation.

Abstract: Successive bytes of data are recorded in successive sectors on a disk medium by N recording heads. Successive data units, each formed of multiple bytes, are written sequentially into N memory devices, and those N memory devices are sequentially read to supply a data unit from one memory device to a corresponding recording head, thereby recording a data unit in successive sectors on the disk medium. The same N heads can be used to reproduce the recorded bytes from the disk medium.

Abstract: A video signal processing apparatus and method for converting a frame-unit video signal into a field-unit video signal. The apparatus includes a memory for storing the frame-unit video signal, a control circuit for controlling reading of the stored frame-unit video data from the memory so as to obtain the field-unit video signal having fields which are arranged in a desired order, and a vertical filter which receives the field-unit video signal read from the memory. The vertical filter shifts a centroid of a picture represented by the received video signal in accordance with at least one coefficient which is selectively set based upon the field order. The reading of the video signal may be controlled so as to operate as a delay device thereby eliminating the need for such delay device in the vertical filter. When applied to a digital VTR or the like, the present apparatus prevents line flicker and suppresses plane flicker.

Abstract: In an encoding apparatus having a memory of diminished size for lowering the production cost, the memory stores input video signals made up of plural pictures including intra-pictures (I-pictures) and a scene change detector 101 detects change points of the input video signals. An encoding unit 106 encodes pictures stored in the memory 102 by fixed length encoding for generating a bitstream. A timing control unit 105 determines successive groups of pictures, each including at least an intra-picture, on the basis of the detection by the scene change detector 101, and controls the processing timing of fixed length encoding of each picture in the group of pictures by the encoding unit 106. A rate control unit 107 sets a range from a picture next to an intra-picture to the next intra-picture as a range of the code generation rate in the encoding unit 106.

Abstract: A disk cartridge includes a center plate attached to an inner side of a cartridge casing which rotatably houses a disk utilized as a recording medium. The disk cartridge is mounted so as to be interposed between the inner side of the cartridge casing and a leading end of a spindle shaft of a disk drive for preventing abrasion or damage to the casing. The center plate is formed by cutting processing of a sheet roll of layered plate material. This roll of plate material is formed with a core of paper having an adhesive layer for mounting applied to one side thereof and a super abrasion resistant synthetic resing applied on the other side thereof for contacting the leading edge of the spindle shaft.

Abstract: A method of detecting a motion in image information includes a step of determining differential processing data by way of full search block matching, a step of processing a differential, and a step of generating differential processing data. The step of processing a differential includes a step STg1 for electing a motion vector, a step STg2 for establishing an area according to the selected motion vector, and a step STg3 for effecting full search block matching using the established area. The step of generating differential processing data includes a step STh1 for searching for a reverse region with an obtained motion vector, a step STh2 for calculating addresses of all macroblocks in the reverse region, a step STh3 for registering the differential processing data, a step STh4 for deciding whether one image frame is finished or not, a step STh5 for deciding whether there is a scene change or not, and a step STh6 for deciding whether a processing sequence is finished or not.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for encoding a picture with improved prediction accuracy in predicting the basic quantization step. The apparatus for encoding a picture includes a picture data storage unit, a picture information evaluating unit, an inter-picture correlation detection unit, an orthogonal transform unit for orthogonally transforming the picture data for generating orthogonal transform coefficients, a quantization unit for quantizing the orthogonal transform coefficients produced by the orthogonal transform unit at a pre-set quantization step, an adaptive compression method selection unit and a quantization step control unit. The information quantity is evaluated from stored picture data of plural pictures, and the inter-picture correlation is detected. A picture data compression method is adaptively selected based upon the evaluated value of the information quantity and the inter-picture correlation information.

Abstract: The subtitle data encoding apparatus according to the present invention is used in a video image transmission system. The apparatus creates loading blocks from relative position information by sampling an input bit stream at a frame interval. The loading block corresponds to a pixel data block and contains changeover position information which updates a change position, delays the update operation and sets the length of the delay. The address used to access a color lookup table for displaying subtitle data is changeable at the change position to access different display data stored therein. The pixel data block is encoded from subtitle data and the loading blocks and pixel data blocks are combined for transmission. The changeover position information can also be used to progress a color-wipe operation.

Abstract: An allowable noise level is set for each frequency band of the input digital signal on the basis of the energy level of the respective frequency band and that of another frequency band. The energy level and the allowable noise level are non-linearly related so as to enable high data compression and to provide a satisfactory sound. The signal components of each of the frequency bands are quantized with a number of bits which correspond to the difference between the energy level of each frequency band and the allowable noise level. If the input digital signal is preemphasized, the signal is corrected for preemphasis prior to the setting of the allowable noise level, so that the quantization is performed on a signal which is free from the effects of preemphasis.