Abstract: An improved video phone transmits a source image over a standard telephone line in conjunction with voice signals. The unique initialization protocol provides a hardware preamble for synchronizing a receiver clock, a software preamble for identifying the video image and disabling the audio, automatic gain control adjustment data and amplitude calibration data. The audio portion is disabled by coupling a capacitor across the telephone to effectively short the telephone. The telephone is placed across a bridge circuit which is provided with switches to balance the bridge in both the telephone and video modes. The transmitted and received signals pass through the same delay equalization circuit, so that half the equalization is done before transmission, with the remaining half being done after reception. Input and output selectors allow the same circuit to be used. The digital signals are level shifted up prior to being converted into analog, and then are shifted down again to reduce the effects of DC offset.

Abstract: The present invention provides a QAM modulation scheme compatible with a single channel demodulator. The inphase (I) channel is provided with luminance information encoded on a series of sine wave symbols. The quadrature (Q) channel is used for color difference values with a sine or cosine symbol being used for each color difference value. Alternate ones of these color difference symbols are inverted so that, on the average, their effect on the I channel zero-crossings simply cancels out. Thus, when sent to a single channel demodulator which expects a black and white picture, the quadrature channel will be filtered out; leaving luminance information which will be decoded as a black and white picture. The color information does not disturb the zero crossings of the luminance signal on an averaged basis, allowing the carrier recovery phase lock loop to maintain synchronization for demodulation purposes.

Abstract: The present invention assigns amplitudes of sine wave cycles in a data packet on I and Q channels of a QAM signal to color, gray or luminance values. Overlapping sine wave cycles on the I and Q channels in the data packet are assigned to the same or neighboring pixels. A synchronizing signal is sent at the beginning of each transmission of a packet. The synchronizing signal is a plurality of cycles at a maximum amplitude on the I and Q channels. The synchronizing signal serves two functions simultaneously. First, it is used to indicate the beginning of a new packet. Second, the phase of the synchronizing signal is used to initialize the demodulator phase detecting circuitry.

Abstract: A video optimized, low cost modulator-demodulator is provided. Each modulating symbol has a one-to-one correspondence with a particular pixel value of brightness. A multiple amplitude two-phase modulation method is used. The black and white values are assigned to the highest amplitude level at opposite phases. As the pixel value becomes less black or white and more gray, it is assigned lower and lower amplitude levels with its phase being determined by whether it is closer to black or to white. Errors in amplitude thus result in a pixel having an adjacent shade of gray, thus minimizing the effect of the error. Errors in phase are less likely at the higher amplitude levels, which would result in an error from black to white or vice versa. The errors in phase are more likely at lower amplitude levels, which would result in changing a mid-gray pixel to another mid-gray value. In one embodiment, each pixel value is digitized and supplied to a ROM along with the digital representation of the carrier signal.

Abstract: The present invention is a conversational freeze-frame video phone which transmits a source image over a standard telephone line in conjunction with audio voice signals. A camera is used to capture an image to be transmitted and the image is mapped onto an image field of 2,000 to 5,000 pixels. The image field is displayed on a display area of approximately one square inch on a display screen. Digitized data representing the pixels is asynchronously transmitted on a modulated signal in a single burst of less than three seconds duration. Corresponding remote images are asynchronously received, demodulated, and displayed. The transmission of the audio signal is interrupted upon the detection of a video image being transmitted.