The Rank Organisation Plc

Rank Cintel Limited

Christopher J Waldron

Ronald W Mumford

Raymond Matchell

Jeremy A Rodgers

Michael J Meadows

Several effects are described which are programmable in telecines. Variable aperture correction is described which allows appropriate correction to be applied to different types of film stock. Soft focus and distortion effects are also described. The effects can be selected for whole scenes or for frames or frame portions, to give a range of effects which can be used to improve picture quality or for artistic effect.

Generating picture effects in video signals

The invention concerns a method of deriving a television signal representing picture information on a cinema film, and a telecine apparatus according to such method. A disadvantage of continuous motion telecine equipment of the kind using a single linear array of photo-sensitive devices is that in order to derive the standard number of active (i.e. picture information containing) lines from each film frame the line frequency of scanning the array has to be changed in accordance with the particular film format being handled and the film frame rate. The apparatus of the present specification avoids this by using a rectangular matrix of photo-sensitive devices whose interrogation is controlled by a control unit in such manner that each film frame image focussed on the matrix is scanned along a plurality of rows of the matrix with the interrogation being stepped from one row to the next during the scanning. By selecting the number of rows interrogated and the direction of stepping in accordance with the current film format and frame rate a desired number of active lines can be derived from each film frame without needing to change the line frequency of scanning. Furthermore, by stopping the film with an image of a frame thereof focussed on the matrix a still picture may be produced by cyclically interrogating the matrix row-by-row.

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Harston, United Kingdom

Christopher J Waldron