Abstract: A low power OFDM signal may be transmitted in an environment where it is subject to interference from other transmissions, e.g. broadcast television services. In a receiver interference is reduced by ignoring information modulating OFDM carriers at the frequencies corresponding to the carriers of the interfering transmissions; adjacent channel interference is reduced by ignoring data on OFDM carriers at the band edges and interference from third order intermodulation products is reduced by the ignoring OFDM carriers affected. Image channel interference is reduced by using an intermediate frequency for a first mixing process in the receiver such that the image channel interference affects OFDM carriers at frequencies which are already being ignored by the receiver. Preferably no data is modulated onto OFDM carriers which are to be ignored by the receiver. Preferably the modulation of the OFDM carriers is arranged so as to produce a real baseband representation of the OFDM signal.

Abstract: A conditional access system for over-air transmission and reception of scrambled television signals improves the reliability of the reception by transmitting a key signal for use in descrambling the television signal in a block of information which is itself encyphered by the key signal. On reception, the receiver after decyphering of the block of information compares the key signal recovered from the block with the key signal provided at the receiver for decyphering the block. Descrambling will only be allowed if comparison shows the two key signals to be the same. The system also provides for information relating to the credit status of each user to be transmitted over-air. In order to ensure rapid operation, the credit status signal is sent repeatedly and a further signal is appended which is used at the receiver to prevent repeated accumulation of credit.

Abstract: A method of encrypting a television signal having in each ruster scan line a digital section of information and chrominance and luminance sections of information comprising cutting either or both of the chrominance and luminance sections and rotating the cut sections within a normal line period. If one of the sections is uncut, it may be translated in time with respect to the line period by having one of the rotated cut sections placed before the uncut section and one placed after the uncut section. The cutting point or points are determined by a pseudo random number generator. Receiving apparatus for receiving such an encrypted signal is also disclosed in which a complementary pseudo random number generator is used responsive to receipt of an encryption key to control addressing of a descrambling store in order to reconstitute the original signal.

Abstract: A pseudo-random binary sequence generator comprises at least one shift register (S, T) arranged in a recirculating loop and having a plurality of logic gates (G) for logically combining the outputs of selected stages of the register to provide a pseudo-random sequence, and a multiplexer (M), having a p data inputs and q address inputs all connected to selected shift register stages, and which selects at any instant one of the p data input bits in accordance with the q-bit address word to provide the generator output. The number s of logic gates is especially high and is related to the total number r of shift register stages (r>p+q) by the expression: 2.sup.s .gtoreq.r.sup.2. Some of the shift register stages of the or each shift register are connected to selected data inputs of the multiplexer and others of the stages of the same shift register are connected to selected address inputs of the multiplexer.

Abstract: A conditional access system for transmitting and receiving scrambled television signals over-air includes means for addressing each of the receiving apparatus with an over-air signal whereby to permit reception and descrambling of the signal. The transmitter is provided with means for assembling a cipher block of information including a first key for use in descrambling the television signal and information relating to a plurality of users, and means for encyphering the cipher block with a second key which is common to the plurality of users. On reception a receiver applies the second, common keys to the received cipher block, recovers the first key for use in descrambling the signal and the information relating to the respective user and descrambles the television signal. Further, it is proposed to transmit a further key in encrypted form and to use the first key to decrypt the further key which is then used to descramble the television signal.

Abstract: A multiplexed analogue component (MAC) television signal is encrypted for transmission and reception by authorized recipients only by dividing the signal into blocks and reordering the blocks prior to transmission. The signal within each block remains in its original order. Preferably, the signal representing one line of video is split into blocks which are reordered within the line time to cause translation or rotation of analogue components. Alternatively a group of lines may be processed as a group to cause reordering of the analogue components between lines. The preferred arrangement does not split the blocks of analogue signals already present in the MAC signal. The receiver is arranged to receive information regarding the encryption technique with the television signal and to reorder the blocks constituting the received signal whereby to reconstruct the original signal.

Abstract: In a television receiver for a transmission system in which the video signal is scrambled to allow only for its authorized reception, a video signal processor (8) is provided in which the scrambled video signal is de-scrambled. A low rate encrypted signal present at an output (11) of a sound/data signal processor (10) is decrypted and employed to periodically set (say once every one or two seconds) a master pseudo ramdom pulse generator (12B) producing an output of pseudo random configuration at the frame rate which is used to periodically set a video slave pseudo random pulse generator (15) to produce an output of pseudo random configuration at line frequency. This is applied to an input S of the processor (8) and forms the scrambling key for the line-by-line de-scrambling of the video signal.

Abstract: Apparatus is disclosed for producing a test signal having a predetermined amount of distortion, including a first pulse generator (11) for producing a plurality of first pulses, a distortion pulse generator (18, 21) for producing a plurality of distortion pulses, and an adder circuit for adding the first and distortion pulses to produce a composite signal having a main portion of amplitude and shape identical to the first pulse and to which is added at least one of the distortion pulses.