Method of automatic alignment of the electron beam direction in a

Abstract

The signal electrode of a television camera tube by first scanning in an odd-numbered picture field is focussed in horizontal scanning pattern and then superimposing thereon in an even-numbered picture field the scanning pattern offset out of interlace and rotated slightly while at the same time the focussing current for the focussing coil of the electron beam is slightly altered for the even-numbered picture field. Charge patterns with charge maxima are thereby produced in the unscanned zones. The actual alignment is determined by the focus pivot point F that lies in a strip of maximum charge values running obliquely across the scanning pattern. Increasing the focussing current produces, simultaneously, rotation to the left and enlargement of the scanning pattern, resulting in a maximum charge value strip running from upper left to lower right (patterns a, c and e). The reduction of the focussing current, on the other hand, produces rotation to the right and reduction of the scanning pattern size, which last is overcompensated by a supplemental vertical deflection magnitude correction to produce the same size pattern as the pattern rotated to the left when the focussing current was stronger. In this last case, the maximum charge strip runs from upper right to lower left and, as in the previous case, passes through the focus pivot point F. From the location of the point F an alignment correction value is produced and stored and used to correct the current in the alignment coils and the procedure is repeated until the desired alignment (pattens e and f) is obtained.