Abstract: An image protection apparatus includes (a) a set-state determining unit that determines a set state regarding a protection function for an image, and (b) a protection process unit that, when the protection function is determined by the set-state determining unit to be in a valid state, selectively performs lossless coding of a specified image region of an input image, thereby to perform a conversion to a state making it difficult to verify an image in a portion corresponding to the specified image region. Thereby, the conversion can be performed to the state making it difficult the image verification by a third person. In addition, when posterior verification of an image is necessary, the image can be played back to an original image.

Abstract: Presence/absence of a movement between a first unit-image that constitutes the entire image representing the whole imaging area and a second unit-image that constitutes the previous entire image and that is located in the same imaging direction as the first unit-image is determined. When a movement exists between the first and second unit-images, imaging operations for the next entire image are performed with the imaging direction fixed to the first unit-image and its surrounding unit-images, and the imaged unit-images are recorded in the recording medium.

Abstract: An image pickup device and a stereoscopic image generation device can obtain video signals necessary for a plurality of signal channels with ease in a simple manner. Video signals of channels that correspond only to light of the first optical image and that of the second optical image can be generated by converging the horizontal component L1 of light of the first optical image from the subject transmitted by means of a horizontal component polarizing filter 3 and polarizing filters HF1, HF3, HF5, . . . to the pixels on the odd first line V1OL1, the even first line V1EL1, the odd second line V1OL2, the even second line V1EL2, . . . of CCD 2 and converging the vertical component L2 of light of the second optical image from the subject by means of a vertical component polarizing filter 4 and polarizing filters HF2, HF4, HF6, . . . to the pixels on the odd first line V2OL1, the even first line V2EL1, the odd second line V2OL2, the even second line V2EL2, . . . , of CCD 2.

Abstract: Drop-outs are detected and compensated for in an apparatus for reproducing video and audio signals that have been recorded as first and second mixed signals in adjacent first and second parallel tracks, respectively, on a magnetic record medium such as a tape and in which each of the mixed signals is comprised of a video signal mixed with at least one frequency modulated audio signal, in the case of monaural, having a respective carrier frequency. The recorded mixed signals are reproduced by two magnetic heads that scan the adjacent first and second tracks to reproduce alternately the mixed signals recorded thereon, and drop-outs are detected in the reproduced signals. The audio signals are separated from the reproduced mixed signals, frequency demodulated and combined to form a substantially continuous or reconstituted demodulated audio signal.

Abstract: For providing high-quality reproduction of audio in a video tape recorder (VTR), the video and audio signals are recorded as first and second mixed signals in successive alternately arranged adjacent first and second parallel record tracks, respectively, extending obliquely on a magnetic record tape, with the first and second mixed signals being comprised of respective carriers of different frequencies which are modulated by an audio signal to constitute respective FM audio signals mixed with a video signal.