Apparatus for processing a video signal

Abstract: In an apparatus for processing an input video signal that includes a chrominance signal and a luminance signal, where the luminance signal is frequency-modulated and the chrominance signal is subsampled, preferably by field-offset subsampling, the subsampled chrominance signal is frequency-converted (75) to a lower frequency band than the frequency band of the frequency-modulated luminance signal. The frequency-modulated luminance signal and the frequency-converted subsampled chrominance signal are then combined (10) and the resulting combined signal is recorded on a recording medium such as a magnetic tape T. During reproduction of the recorded signal, interpolation (78) among frames is used to reconstruct the chrominance signal. Recording of the frequency-converted subsampled chrominance signal allows for space-efficient recording of the video signal while providing a reproduced chrominance signal that has a relatively wide bandwidth, thereby permitting improved colour reproducibility.

Description: This invention relates to apparatus for processing a video signal. In video tape recorders (VTRs) designed for consumer applications, it is well known to record down-converted chrominance signal components together with frequency-modulated (FM) luminance signals in order to minimize the tape area required for recording, and thereby increase the recording capacity of the tape cassette. According to this known approach, the chrominance signals are converted to a frequency band having a centre frequency of about, for example 700 kHz and a bandwidth of around 400-500 kHz. A VTR of this conventional type is generally indicated by reference numeral 1 in Figure 1. In VTR 1, input video signals SV are supplied to an automatic gain control (AGC) circuit 2, which corrects the signal level of the input video signal SV. The level-corrected signal output by the AGC circuit 2 is provided to a luminance/chrominance signal separating (Y/C) circuit 3 which separates the signal into a luminance signal Y and chrominance signals C. The separated luminance signal Y is frequency-modulated by a luminance signal processing circuit 4 to produce a luminance recording signal YFM. Meanwhile, the chrominance signals C are supplied to an automatic chrominance control (ACC) circuit 6 through a bandpass filter (BPF) 5. The ACC circuit 6 outputs level-corrected chrominance signals C to an emphasis circuit 7, which emphasizes the chrominance signals C and outputs the emphasized chrominance signals to a frequency conversion circuit 8. The conversion circuit 8 down-converts the chrominance signals C to the relatively narrow low frequency band previously described and the down-converted chrominance signals are output through low-pass filter (LPF) 9 to an adder circuit 10. The adder 10 combines the down-converted chrominance signals C with the luminance recording signal YFM and tracking control pilot signals ATF and outputs the combined signal through an amplifier 11 to a magnetic head 12. The magnetic head 12 records the processed video signals according to a well-known format in sequential oblique recording tracks on a magnetic tape T. Turning now to the reproducing circuitry of VTR 1, a magnetic head 13 reproduces a signal that has been recorded on the tape T and the signal output by magnetic head 13 is amplified by an amplifier 14. Frequency-modulated luminance signals YFM present in the amplified signal output by amplifier 14 are demodulated by a luminance signal processing circuit 15. In addition, the output signal of the amplifier 14 is supplied to a low-pass filter 16, which extracts the chrominance signal components therefrom and simultaneously performs a phase correction. The signal output by the LPF 16 is provided to an automatic chrominance control (ACC) circuit 17 for level correction, and the resulting signal is provided to a frequency conversion circuit 18, which re-converts the chrominance signals to their original frequency band, thereby reversing the effect of the frequency conversion 8 of the recording circuitry. The frequency-converted chrominance signals output by the conversion circuit 18 are passed through a band pass filter 19 and a comb filter 20 to a de-emphasis circuit 21, which reverses the processing effected by the emphasis circuit 7 and provides the resulting de-emphasized chrominance signals C to an adder 22 for combination with the demodulated luminance signal Y output by the processing circuit 15. An adder 22 outputs the combined signals as a reproduced video signal SV. Although recording of the down-converted chrominance signals allows for space-efficient recording, the down conversion carries the disadvantage of reducing the bandwidth of the chrominance signals, resulting in significantly greater deterioration of the reproduced chrominance signals components than is suffered by the reproduced luminance signal. The luminance signal has generally been considered to be more important than the chrominance signals in terms of the quality of the reproduced picture. Accordingly, the bandwidth of the luminance signals has been increased in order to improve the picture. However, it is also desired that further improvement in the picture quality be obtained by improving the reproducibility of the chrominance signals. One possible approach for improving the reproducibility of the chrominance signals would be to use a recording carrier frequency that it is a somewhat higher than the conventional 700 kHz. However, changing the carrier frequency would cause incompatibility with conventional VTRs. Moreover, the extent to which the carrier frequency may be raised is limited by the need to avoid overlapping the recording band used for the frequency-modulated luminance signals. Therefore, even if the compatibility problem were disregarded, a significant improvement in the reproducibility of the chrominance signals cannot be achieved using this approach. Another possible approach, in which the carrier frequency is not changed, is directed to the reproducing circuitry. According to this approach, the edges of the reproduced chrominance signals are emphasized. However, this approach brings only a partial improvement in picture quality and does not significantly extend the recording band, while carrying the disadvantage of reducing the signal-to-noise ratio. IEICE Transactions vol E-72, No. 4, 30.4.89, Tokyo JP, pp 324-325 M. Konbayashi and Y. Morioka, "Chrominance Bandwidth Expansion of Colour-under VCR", proposes the use of line offset sampling subsampling for increasing the chrominance bandwidth of a home use colour-under VCR with guard-band recording and field-offset sampling without guard-band recording. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a video signal recording and reproducing apparatus that has a wider chrominance signal bandwidth while maintaining compatibility with conventional VTRs. In accordance with the invention, there is provided a video signal recording and reproducing system, comprising an apparatus for processing an input video signal that includes a chrominance signal and a luminance signal, the apparatus comprising: means for subsampling the chrominance signal; means for frequency modulating the luminance signal; means for frequency converting the subsampled chrominance signal to a lower frequency band than that of the frequency-modulated luminance signal; means for equalizing the chrominance signal; means for combining the frequency-modulated luminance signal and the frequency-converted subsampled chrominance signal to provide a combined signal; and means for recording the combined signal on a recording medium, the system having an overall chrominance frequency response characteristic provided in part by said equalizing means which is a cosine roll-off characteristic. Preferably, the subsampling of the chrominance signal is performed in a 2-field or 4-field cycle with offsets between successive fields. Interpolation among fields is preferably performed during signal reproduction to provide reproduced colour difference signals. The invention also provides, a system for recording and reproducing video signals, including an apparatus for processing an input video signal that includes a chrominance signal and a luminance signal, the apparatus comprising: means for subsampling the chrominance signal; means for frequency modulating the luminance signal; means for frequency converting the subsampled chrominance signal to a lower frequency band than that of the frequency-modulated luminance signal; means for combining the frequency-modulated luminance signal and the frequency-converted subsampled chrominance signal to provide a combined signal; means for recording the combined signal on a recording medium; means for reproducing the recorded frequency converted chrominance signal from the recording medium; and further comprising means for equalizing the chrominance signal so that an overall chrominance frequency response characteristic of the system for recording and reproducing video signals is a cosine roll-off frequency response characteristic. In an apparatus according to this invention, a wider chrominance signal bandwidth is provided than in conventional VTRs, resulting in improved colour reproducibility and picture quality. The invention is described hereinafter, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a block diagram of a conventional video tape recorder; Figure 3 is a block diagram of the recording circuitry of a VTR in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 is a block diagram of the reproducing circuitry of a VTR in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; Figures 4A to 4D schematically illustrate chrominance signal subsampling in the embodiment of Figures 2 and 3; Figure 5 schematically illustrates interpolation of reproduced chrominance signals in the embodiment of Figures 2 and 3; Figure 6 schematically illustrates the effective bandwidth of chrominance signals recorded and reproduced in accordance with the invention; Figure 7 graphically illustrates a frequency response characteristic curve having a cosine roll-off; Figure 8 is a block diagram of reproducing circuitry in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention; Figures 9A and 9B schematically illustrate chrominance signal subsampling used in recording a signal that is reproduced by the embodiment of Figure 8; Figure 10 is a block diagram of a video tape recorder according to still another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 11 is a graph of a conventional frequency band used for chrominance signals; Figure 12 is a graph of a frequency response characteristic curve for a VTR's electromagnetic conversion system; Figure 13 is a graph of a frequency response characteristic curve for a high-pass filter; Figure 14 is a graph of a frequency response characteristic curve for a low-pass filter that is part of a recording circuit; Figure 15 is a graph of a frequency response characteristic curve for a low-pass filter in a reproducing circuit; Figure 16A and 16B are graphs of frequency response characteristic curves for illustrating construction of a filter circuit in accordance with the invention; Figure 17 is a graphical illustration of a frequency response characteristic curve for an entire recording system; Figure 18 is a block diagram of a video tape recorder according to a further embodiment of the present invention; Figure 19 is a graph of a frequency response characteristic curve for a VTR's electromagnetic conversion system to be referred to in explaining "scatter" in the electromagnetic conversion system; Figure 20 is a diagram of a frequency response characteristic curve of a trap filter for trapping audio signals; Figure 21 is a graph of a frequency response characteristic curve that shows an output chrominance signals of the trap circuit referred to in Figure 20; Figure 22 is a graph of frequency response characteristic curves that illustrate scatter in an entire electromagnetic conversion system that includes the trap filter referred to in connection with Figure 20; Figure 23 is a block diagram of a low-pass filter included in the VTR of Figure 18; and Figure 24 is a graph of the amplitude characteristic of chrominance signals after correction by the low-pass filter of Figure 23. An embodiment of the present invention is applied to the 8 mm video format will be described with reference to Figure 2 to 7. The recording circuitry of the embodiment is shown in Figures 2 and the reproducing circuitry in Figure 3. Referring first to Figure 2, the recording circuitry will be described. A composite input video signal to be recorded is provided at an input terminal 31. The signal received at the input terminal 31 is supplied to a luminance/chrominance separating (Y/C) circuit 32. The separated luminance signal Y output by the Y/C circuit 32 is supplied to a luminance record processing circuit 33, which effects recording processing such as frequency modulation and outputs a frequency-modulated luminance signal YFM to a mixer 34. Further, chrominance signals C separated by the Y/C circuit 32 are provided to a chrominance decoder 35, which outputs colour difference signals R-Y and B-Y. The colour difference signals R-Y and B-Y are supplied to an offset subsample circuit 36 which effects offset subsampling in a manner to be described below. The subsampled colour difference signals R-Y' and B-Y' are provided to a chrominance signal record processing circuit 37 which effects recording processing thereon. More specifically, the colour difference signals R-Y' and BY' are encoded to form chrominance signals and are down-converted to a low frequency carrier at, in this embodiment, 743 kHz. The resulting down-converted chrominance signals, designated by the reference character C', are supplied to the mixer 34 through the bandpass filter 38 which eliminates folding noise contained in the chrominance signals C'. The centre frequency of the passband of the BPF 38 is 743 kHz. In addition to the down-converted chrominance signal C' and the frequency-modulated luminance signal YFM, the mixer 34 is also supplied with frequency-modulated audio signals AFM and tracking pilot signals ATF which are obtained at an input terminal 39. By frequency multiplexing, the luminance signals YFM, the chrominance signals C', the audio signals AFM and the tracking pilot signals ATF are all mixed by the mixer 34. The resulting combined signal is supplied by way of a record amplifier 40 and a rotary transformer 41 to a rotary head 42 for recording on the video tape T in a predetermined recording format. The offset subsampling of the chrominance signal by the offset subsample circuit 36 will now be explained with reference to Figures 4A to 4D. In the embodiment of Figures 2 and 3, 4-field per cycle sampling is executed with an offset between fields of 90°. The sampling is performed using a sampling clock set to f sc /4, where f sc is the colour subcarrier, i.e., 3.58 MHz. Thus, f sc /4 = 3.58 + 4 = 895 kHz. The portions of the field that are sampled in accordance with the offset sampling method are shown in Figures 4A to 4D for four sequential fields. Since interlace scanning is used, the spatial positions of the scan lines differ between odd-numbered and evennumbered fields. In the first field, shown in Figure 4A, one in four sampling is performed in every line of the field. In adjacent lines the sampling is offset by 180° per line, in subsequent fields the sampling is offset by 90° per field, and in subsequent frames (each consisting of two fields) the offset is 180° per frame. Accordingly, in the next field, i.e. the second field, which is shown in Figure 4B, the one in four sampling is phase-shifted by 90° with respect to the first field. There is a further 90° phase shift in the third field, as shown in Figure 4C, and still another 90° phase shift in the fourth field (Figure 4D). The next, or fifth, field is sampled in the same manner as the first field shown in Figure 4A. The sampling pattern repeats in cycles of four fields. A signal thinned out by the subsample circuit 36, in accordance with the offset subsampling process just illustrated, is provided through the processing circuit 37 and the bandpass filter 38 to the mixer 34 for recording with the luminance, audio and tracking signals. Reproducing circuitry, which reproduces video signals that were recorded in the manner described with respect to Figure 2, will now be described with referenced to Figure 3. In Figure 3, a rotary head 43 reproduces signals recorded on the tape T and supplies the reproduced signals through a rotary transformer 44 and a reproducing amplifier 45 to a luminance reproducing processing circuit 46. The processing circuit 46 detects frequency-modulated luminance signals YFM contained in the reproduced signal, demodulates the signals, and supplies demodulated luminance signals Y to a mixer 47. In addition, the reproduced signal output by the reproducing amplifier 45 is supplied to bandpass filters 48 and 49 which respectively provide the frequency-modulated audio signal AFM and the tracking pilot signal ATF to output terminals 50 and 51 by passing respective passbands corresponding to those signals. The output signal of the reproducing amplifier 45 is also supplied to a bandpass filter 52, which has a passband with a centre frequency at 743 kHz for extracting the down-converted chrominance signals C'. The output of the bandpass filter 52 is supplied to a chrominance signal reproducing processing circuit 53 for conversion into baseband colour difference signals R-Y' and B-Y'. The resulting frequency-converted colour difference signals R-Y' and B-Y' are supplied to a subsample circuit 54 for sampling at a sampling rate of f sc /4 = 895 kHz. Then, the sampled colour difference signals are supplied to an interpolating circuit 55 which interpolates the signals to provide colour difference signals having a transmission band of f sc /2. An interpolating circuit 55 includes a frame memory and interpolates using four fields of colour difference signals, which may, for example, be the four most recent fields or alternatively may include both prior and subsequent fields. The interpolated colour difference signals are supplied to a chrominance noise reducing (CNR) circuit 56 in which noise elimination is carried out. The resulting signal is then provided to an encoder 57 which outputs chrominance signals modulated with the 3.58 MHz colour subcarrier. These signals are provided to a mixer 47 for mixing with the luminance signals to obtain composite video signals. The composite video signals are then provided at an output terminal 58. Details of the reproduction processing of the chrominance signals will now be discussed with reference to Figures 5 and 6. Figure 5 shows an interpolation pattern used in an interpolating circuit 55. The numerals 1, 2, 3 and 4 which appear in cells of Figure 5 respectively correspond to the first, second, third and fourth fields subsampled by the subsampling method illustrated in Figures 4A to 4D. The respective portions of the four fields are interpolated using the pattern shown in Figure 5 to provide reproduced chrominance signals. The resulting transmission rate of the reproduced chrominance signals is f sc /2 and the bandwidth, as shown in Figure 6, is f' sc + ( f sc /4 ) where f' sc is the 743 kHz low-frequency-conversion carrier. In effect, virtually the entire chrominance signal is reproduced. A comparison of the bandwidth provided in a VTR according to the invention with the bandwidth of the prior art system is provided in Figure 6, in which the curve shown in a solid line represents the prior art frequency band which is determined by filter characteristics of a chrominance signal extraction filter and has a centre frequency at 743 kHz. By contrast, in the frequency band provided according to the present invention, the band is flat up to 1.64 MHz (=f' sc + f sc /4), and is indicated by the rectangle shown in broken lines in Figure 6. The flat frequency band extending up to the subsampling clock frequency can only be achieved if the overall transmission frequency response of the system from tape recording with subsampling through reproduction and interpolation is in the form of a symmetrical cosine roll-off. Such an overall transmission frequency response is graphically illustrated in Figure 7, in which infinite attenuation is developed at f' sc ± 700 kHz. It is to be noted that the effective frequency band provided by the system of the invention is more than twice as large as the prior art band, which was only 400-500 kHz. In other words, a system according to the present invention provides a much better frequency response for chrominance signals with a significant improvement in the reproducibility of colour signals. As the same time, the chrominance signals as actually recorded have the same bandwidth and carrier frequency as those used in the conventional 8 mm system, so that a system according to this invention can easily reproduce signals tape-recorded on a conventional VTR. Further, there is no need to improve the capabilities of such components as the video tape, the recording and reproducing head, and so forth so that compatibility with conventional VTR's is also achieved in terms of components. Moreover, the improvement in the frequency response of the chrominance signal is complete, and not partial, so that the signal-to-noise ratio is not reduced. Another embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to Figures 8, 9A and 9B. Elements of Figure 8 which correspond to those described with reference to Figure 3 are identified by the same reference numerals and will not be described in detail. In the embodiment now being described, a different subsampling method is used than that used in the embodiment of Figures 2 and 3 and illustrated in Figures 4A and 4B. Accordingly, in the present embodiment, the subsample circuit 36 (Figure 2) executes a two-field cycle with an offset between fields of 180°, as shown in Figures 9A and 9B. In other words, the subsampling phase is inverted between odd-numbered fields, shown in Figure 9A, one out of two subsampling is performed in each horizontal line, with no offset between lines of the same field. In the even-numbered fields, as shown in Figure 9B, the phase of the subsampling is inverted with respect to the odd-numbered fields, but again there is no offset between lines in the same field. In this manner, the subsampling is carried out with a 180° offset between fields, thereby making it possible, as will be described later, to substantially eliminate cross-talk between adjacent fields during reproduction. The reproducing circuitry of Figure 8, to the extent that it differs from that shown in Figure 3, will now be described. In the circuitry of Figure 8, the reproduced subsampled chrominance signals output by the chrominance signal reproducing processing circuit 53 are supplied to a line comb filter 59, which removes noise from the signal using line correlation. Then the reproduced chrominance signals output from the filter 59 are provided to the subsample circuit 54 and, as before, subsampled at f sc /4. The subsampled chrominance signals output by the subsample circuit 54 are interpolated in the interpolating circuit 55, noise reduced at the CNR circuit 56 and encoded at the encoder 57 before being supplied to the mixer 47 for combining with the demodulated luminance signal. The interpolation performed by the interpolating circuit 55 in this embodiment utilizes a field memory in which the previous field is stored and samples are taken alternately from the present field and the previous field. In the embodiment shown in Figure 8, recorded cross-talk chrominance signals are eliminated by the comb filter 59 so that the reproduced chrominance signals are not affected by cross-talk. As is known to those skilled in the art, in a conventional consumer VTR the video signals are recorded in inclined tracks on the video tape, with signals for one field occupying each track. Each track is affected by cross-talk from adjacent tracks. Even when so-called azimuth recording is used to minimize cross-talk by recording and reproducing adjacent tracks with respective heads that have mutually different azimuth angles, the reduction in the cross-talk is not particularly effective with respect to the chrominance signals since these are recorded at a relatively low frequency. Therefore, it is known to remove cross-talk chrominance signals by adding a phase-inverted cross-talk signal. By contrast, when, in accordance with the embodiment of this invention described with reference to Figure 8, subsampled chrominance signals are recorded, there is no cross-talk in the chrominance signals from adjacent tracks because chrominance signals are not subsampled in corresponding positions in adjacent tracks (i.e., adjacent fields). Therefore, the conventional cross-talk cancellation cannot be performed properly. Consequently, in this embodiment, the cross-talk signals are removed by the comb filter 59 since the cross-talk provided at any field sampling location is the same, and line correlation is used. It is to be noted that the elimination of cross-talk signals by the comb filter 59 does not affect the frequency response with respect to the extended frequency band provided by the subsampling process. In other words, just as in the former embodiment (shown in Figures 2 and 3), the chrominance signal band extends as shown by the broken line in Figure 6. Another advantage of the embodiment shown in Figure 8, is that a single field memory is used for the interpolating process, since the subsampling phase is inverted between successive fields. Accordingly, less memory capacity is needed for interpolating in this embodiment than in the embodiment of Figure 3. Also, since interpolation is performed using the field memory, follow-up of a moving picture is improved. More specifically, as was shown in Figure 4, with 4-field cycle subsampling, as in the embodiment of Figure 3, a picture that is up to three fields old influences the chrominance signals. However, in the embodiment of Figure 8, only the immediately preceding field influences the chrominance signals. Since changes in colour in the reproduced picture almost completely follow motion in the picture, the so-called "tailing" effect is prevented. In the embodiment as shown in Figure 8, cross-talk is eliminated by the comb filter 59 before interpolation, but as an alternative, the comb filter may be arranged after the interpolating circuit. Thus, in both of the embodiments of the invention described above, offset-subsampled chrominance signals are recorded and the chrominance signals are restored by interpolation during reproduction. As a result, chrominance signals having a frequency band several times wider than in the prior art can be recorded and reproduced, while using the conventional recording frequency band. Also, cross-talk signals can be substantially removed by appropriate selection of the offset cycle used for subsampling during recording. A third embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to Figure 10, in which elements corresponding to those of Figure 1 are identified by the same reference numerals. In Figure 10, reference numeral 61 generally indicates a video tape recorder. In the VTR 61, a subsample circuit 62 and a non-linear emphasis circuit 63 are arrange in place of the emphasis circuit 7 of Figure 1, and chrominance signals C are subsampled by subsample circuit 62 in order to perform band-compression. Then, a non-linear emphasis circuit 63 performs a non-linear emphasis process in order to prevent deterioration of the quality of the reproduced picture. On the other hand, the reproducing circuitry of the VTR 61 has a non-linear de-emphasis circuit 64, a subsample circuit 65 and an interpolating circuit 66 in place of the de-emphasis circuit 21 of Figure 1. It will be appreciated that the non-linear de-emphasis circuit 64, the subsample circuit 65 and the interpolating circuit 66 together reverse the effects of the subsample circuit 62 and the non-linear emphasis circuit 63 and extend the frequency band of the reproduced chrominance signals so that the original chrominance signals are provided. As briefly mentioned before, when a subsampled chrominance signal is recorded and then reproduced in the manner described above, it is necessary that the frequency response characteristic of the entire recording and reproducing system have the form of a cosine roll-off. In particular, in order to have a cosine roll-off frequency response characteristic while maintaining compatibility with the conventional 8 mm format, the characteristic curve, as shown in Figure 7, has a centre frequency of 743 kHz and must exhibit substantially infinite attenuation at ± 700 kHz from the centre frequency. However, in the conventional VTR 1 as shown in Figure 1, the chrominance signal band is restricted in order to prevent interference with the pilot signals that are used for tracking control and the frequency modulated audio signals. Therefore, as shown in Figure 11, a frequency band extending 500 kHz above and below the carrier frequency (3.58 MHz) is actually allocated to the chrominance signals. As a result, if a filter circuit such as that used in the prior art video tape recorder 1 is provided in the VTRs according to the invention, it is difficult to achieve the required cosine roll-off. Moreover, as shown by curve L1 in Figure 12, the frequency response characteristic of the electromagnetic conversion system itself decreases at 6 dB per octave on the low frequency side. It is therefore necessary to correct the frequency response of the electromagnetic conversion system in order to achieve the required cosine roll-off using a conventional filter circuit. For this reason, the VTR 61 of Figure 10 does not include the low-pass filter 9 of the VTR 1 of Figure 1. Instead, a high-pass filter 67 and a low-pass filter 68 are provided in Figure 10 in place of the bandpass filter 5 of VTR 1 (Figure 1). The respective frequency response characteristics of the HPF 67 and the LPF 68 are shown in Figures 13 and 14 and together establish the frequency response characteristic of the recording circuitry of the VTR 61. In addition, in the reproducing circuitry of the VTR 61, a low pass filter 69 that has a characteristic as shown in Figure 15 is provided in place of the low-pass filter 16 of the VTR 1 (Figure 1). In other words. in the conventional VTR 1, the chrominance signals C are separated from the luminance signals Y by using a bandpass filter and the down-converted chrominance signals are output through a low-pass filter that restricts the transmitted frequency band. Also, in the reproducing circuitry of the VTR 1, extraction of the chrominance signals is performed by suppressing signals in bands outside the chrominance signal band. On the other hand, in the VTR 61 of Figure 10, the filter circuits are configured to provide the desired cosine roll-off characteristic in the entire recording and reproducing system. More specifically, in the VTR 61 the desired cosine roll-off on the high frequency side is achieved by taking advantage of the characteristics of the HPF 67 in the recording circuit and the LPF 69 in the reproducing circuit as shown in Figure 16A. The LPF 69 acts to attenuate or "trap" the frequency modulated audio signals recorded with the chrominance signal. On the low frequency side, the desired cosine roll-off is achieved by virtue of the response characteristics of the electromagnetic conversion system and the LPF 68 which is in the recording system (Figure 16B). The cosine roll-off on the high frequency side is not influenced by the electromagnetic conversion system. The frequency response characteristics of the recording system are illustrated in Figure 17 and reflect the characteristics of the filters included in the recording circuitry as previously described. In the VTR 61, the function of the conventional the BPF 5 of Figure 1 is provided through the combined characterises of the HPF 67 and the LPF 68. At the same time, the HPF 67 provides the trapping of the frequency-modulated audio signals that was performed by the LPF 9 of the VTR 1. Further, in the reproducing circuit of the VTR 61, the LPF 69 performs the trapping of frequency-modulated audio signals that was provided by the conventional LPF 16 of the VTR 1. Compatibility with the frequency band of the conventional VTR format can therefore be maintained. Incidentally, in the embodiment of Figure 10, the trap for the tracking pilot signals ATF is omitted. However, testing has shown that tracking can still be performed even by omitting the trap filter, so that the omission of this trap filter does not make the embodiment impractical. It should also be noted that the BPF 19 of Figure 10 is the same as the BPF 19 of Figure 1 and has a broad passband that does not affect the frequency characteristic of the system as a whole. The BPF 19 is arranged so that the group delay characteristic is flat within the passband, as is also the case with the filters 67, 68 and 69. With the recording and reproducing circuitry as described with respect to Figure 10, the filters are arranged to compensate for the frequency characteristic of the electromagnetic conversion system so that the required cosine roll-off is achieved. It is therefore possible to record and reproduce subsampled chrominance signals in order to improve the quality of the picture. Another embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to Figure 18, in which elements corresponding to those of Figure 1 are identified by the same reference numerals. Thus, in Figure 18, a VTR, generally indicated by reference numeral 71 converts chrominance signals C into colour difference signals U and V. More specifically, in the VTR 71, a colour difference signal converting circuit 72 converts the chrominance signal C into colour difference signals U and V and supplies the signals to a subsample circuit 73. Band compression is accomplished in the circuit 73 by offset subsampling as previously described. The subsampled signals output by the subsample circuit 73 are provided via a bandpass filter 74 to a chrominance signal recording processing circuit 75. The processing circuit 75 down-converts the signals and provides the down-converted signals via a low-pass filter 76 to the mixer 10. In this way, the chrominance signals are band-compressed for recording down to the frequency band used in the conventional format. In the reproducing circuit of the VTR 71, reproduced signals S1 provided by the magnetic head 13 are amplified by an amplifier 14. An automatic track following (ATF) circuit 77 detects tracking control pilot signals that are present in the amplified signal provided by the amplifier 14 and generates a tracking error signal on the basis of which tracking control is performed. Reproduced chrominance signals that are also present in the amplified signal provided by the amplifier 14 are extracted by a reproduced chrominance signal processing circuit 79, which receives the signals from amplifier 14 through a, low-pass filter 78. The extracted signals are converted into colour difference signals U and V and then output through a bandpass filter 80 to a subsample circuit 81. At the subsample circuit 81, the colour difference signals U and V are subsampled and the subsampled signals are then interpolated by an interpolating circuit 82 using the preceding or following line colour difference signals U and V, thereby restoring the picture information that was thinned out by the subsample circuit 81. A comb filter 83 receives the signal output by the interpolating circuit 82 and corrects the frequency characteristic of those signals while also suppressing noise components resulting from the use of the field memory in the interpolating circuit 82. Then the signals output by the comb filter 83 are up-converted to the customary carrier frequency by a frequency converting circuit 84. To summarize, in the VTR 71 subsampling is performed after conversion of the chrominance signals C into colour difference signals U and V, and the frequency response characteristic of the system from the subsample circuit 73 to the subsample circuit 81 is arranged to be a cosine roll-off. Accordingly, the frequency response characteristic of the entire recording and reproducing system with respect to chrominance signals C is a cosine roll-off. In particular, the passbands of the low pass filters 76 and 78 are arranged to be wide so as not to affect the frequency response of the recording and reproducing system as a whole with respect to the chrominance signal band. Further, the bandpass filters 74 and 80 are interposed, respectively, between the sampling circuit 73 and the chrominance signal processing circuit 75 and between the reproduced chrominance signal processing circuit 79 and the subsampling circuit 81 and are arranged to correct the frequency response characteristic of the electromagnetic conversion system and provide the required cosine roll-off characteristic for the recording and reproducing system as a whole. With the circuitry of Figure 18, the chrominance signals C are converted into colour difference signals U and V and then band compression is performed and the overall system has a cosine roll-off frequency response characteristic that is achieved by correcting the frequency characteristic of the electromagnetic conversion system. Thus, the chrominance signals C can be recorded with subsampling and then reproduced with an improved picture quality. As noted above, in an embodiment of the present invention, recording and reproducing of band-compressed down-converted chrominance signals is performed with correction of system frequency characteristics in order to compensate for the frequency characteristics of the magnetic head and the magnetic recording medium. The frequency characteristic of the entire system is arranged to be a cosine roll-off characteristic, so that the band-compressed chrominance signals can be properly recorded and reproduced with subsampling, resulting in an improved colour picture. It should be noted, however, that the frequency characteristic of the electromagnetic conversion system varies with different tape transport speeds and different types of magnetic tape. In particular, as shown in Figure 19, the frequency response of the electromagnetic conversion system in general declines at 6 dB per octave on the low frequency side, but this characteristic is subject to variation in the low-frequency band in which the chrominance signals are recorded (i.e. the band around 743 kHz). In the conventional VTR 1 shown in Figure 1, chrominance signals are extracted through a trap filter which suppresses the frequency modulated audio signals, and which has the response characteristic shown in Figure 20. Combining the characteristics of the electromagnetic conversion system shown on Figure 19 and of the trap filter shown on Figure 20 results in the combined frequency characteristic shown in Figure 21. However, since the characteristic shown in Figure 19 is subject to variation with changes in tape transport speed, type of tape, etc., it follows that the overall characteristic shown in Figure 21 also is subject to variation. Variations in the electromagnetic conversion system as found in test measurements are shown in Figure 22, in which curve L11 shows the system characteristic when signals on a metal magnetic tape are reproduced after recording at a standard tape transport speed, curve L12 shows the system characteristic when signals on a metal tape are reproduced after recording at the transport speed for extended recording, and curve L13 shows the characteristic when signals on a standard (i.e., not metal) tape are reproduced after recording at the standard transport speed. It should be noted that still a different characteristic is found (although not shown in Figure 22) when signals on a standard tape are reproduced after recording at the transport speed for extended recording. It can be seen from Figure 22 that the frequency characteristic of the electromagnetic conversion system varies with both tape transport recording speed and type of tape. Further, there is a different characteristic when evaporated metal tape, versus coated metal tape, is used. Moreover, the frequency characteristic is also affected by factors related to the magnetic heads, such as head wear. If the change in the frequency characteristic is as large as about 1 dB, then the Nyquist theorem is not satisfied during subsampling, which results in significant deterioration in quality of the reproduced picture. For this reason, the VTR 71 according to the embodiment shown in Figure 18 includes a low-pass filter 78 which is able to correct variation or "scatter" in the frequency response characteristic of the electromagnetic conversion system. Details of the LPF 78 will be described with reference to Figure 23, in which the amplified signal S1 output by the reproducing amplifier 14 is shown to be simultaneously provided to bandpass filters (BPF) 91 and 92 and to a finite impulse response (FIR) filter 93. The BPF 91 extracts a predetermined pilot signal PI which is one of four kinds of tracking control pilot signals ATF that are present in reproduced signal S1. The BPF 92 separates the 743 kHz carrier signals SC from the reproduced signal S1. The signals PI and SC are respectively provided by the BPF 91 and the BPF 92 to a signal level detection circuit 94, which detects the levels of these signals and outputs a signal reflecting the result of the detection to a coefficient change over circuit 95. On the basis of the signal output from the detection circuit 94, the coefficient change over circuit 95 changes the amplitude of the gain provided by variable gain amplifiers that are part of the LPF 78. As a result, the frequency characteristic of signal SO output by the filter circuit 93 is maintained so as to match the desired frequency characteristic in spite of variations of the characteristic of the electromagnetic conversion system. More specifically, the FIR filter circuit 93 includes five delay circuits D1-D5, connected in series. The output signals of delay circuits D1 and D5 are provided to respective input terminals of an adder circuit 96, which outputs the sum of those signals to a variable amplifier 98. The output signals from the delay circuits D2 and D4 are provided to respective inputs of an adder 97, which outputs the resulting sum to a variable amplifier 99. The output of the delay circuit D3 is provided directly to a variable amplifier 100. The signals respectively received by the amplifiers 98, 99, 100 are weighted by the amplifiers in accordance with signals output by coefficient changeover circuit 95. The signals output by the amplifiers 98, 99 and 100 are provided to respective inputs of an adder 101 which outputs the resulting sum as the output signals SO. The respective weights provided by the amplifiers 98, 99 and 100 are adjusted by the signals output by the coefficient changeover circuit 95 so that a predetermined ratio of the levels of pilot signal PI and carrier signal SC is maintained. In this way, the frequency characteristic of the VTR 71 with respect to chrominance signals is corrected to the characteristic shown in Figure 24. With this correction in the characteristic of the electromagnetic conversion system, the bandpass filters 91 and 92 provide for the frequency characteristic of the recording and reproducing system to be the desired cosine roll-off with respect to chrominance signals. At the same time, the BPF 74 (Figure 18) is arranged to compensate for the frequency characteristic of the frequency characteristic of the electromagnetic conversion system on the low-frequency side and also is arranged in combination with the BPF 80 so that the group delay characteristic becomes flat. Also, in the VTR 71, the LPF 78 corrects for changes in the characteristic of the electromagnetic conversion system on the basis of pilot signal PI and carrier signal SC. In this way, the frequency characteristic with respect to the chrominance signal band can be maintained as the desired cosign roll-off, even when there are variations in the electromagnetic conversion system characteristic due to magnetic head wear or other factors. It thus becomes possible to obtain an improved picture quality while maintaining compatibility with the conventional VTR format. It is to be noted that although the embodiments described above utilize magnetic tape for recording and reproduction, the invention is not so limited, but may also be applied to recording and reproduction using other magnetic recording media. Moreover, although in the embodiment discussed above, scatter for the frequency characteristic of the electromagnetic conversion system was corrected on the basis of the ATF tracking control pilot signal and the subcarrier signal, the invention is not so limited, and, for example, correction of scatter in the electromagnetic conversion system could instead be performed on the basis of separately recorded reference signals that are specifically provided for correction of scatter. Having described specific preferred embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to those precise embodiments, and that various changes and modifications may be effected therein by one skilled in the art without departing from the invention defined in the appended claims.

Claims: A video signal recording and reproducing system, comprising an apparatus for processing an input video signal that includes a chrominance signal and a luminance signal, the apparatus comprising: means (36;62;73) for subsampling the chrominance signal; means (33;4) for frequency modulating the luminance signal; means (37;8;75) for frequency converting the subsampled chrominance signal to a lower frequency band than that of the frequency-modulated luminance signal; means for equalizing the chrominance signal; means (34;10) for combining the frequency-modulated luminance signal and the frequency-converted subsampled chrominance signal to provide a combined signal; and means (40,41,42;11,12) for recording the combined signal on a recording medium, the system having an overall chrominance frequency response characteristic provided in part by said equalizing means which is a cosine roll-off characteristic. A system according to claim 1, further comprising: means (43,44,45;13,14) for reproducing the recorded combined signal from the recording medium; means (52;69;78) for separating the frequency-converted chrominance signal from the reproduced combined signal; converter means (53;18;79) for converting the separated chrominance signal into a colour difference signal; and means (55;66;82) for interpolating the colour difference signal. A system for recording and reproducing video signals, including an apparatus for processing an input video signal that includes a chrominance signal and a luminance signal, the apparatus comprising: means (36;62;73) for subsampling the chrominance signal; means (33;4) for frequency modulating the luminance signal; means (37;8;75) for frequency converting the subsampled chrominance signal to a lower frequency band than that of the frequency-modulated luminance signal; means (47;10) for combining the frequency-modulated luminance signal and the frequency-converted subsampled chrominance signal to provide a combined signal; means (40,41,42;11,12) for recording the combined signal on a recording medium; means (43,44,45;52,53,55) for reproducing the recorded frequency converted chrominance signal from the recording medium; and further comprising means (91,92,93,94,95) for equalizing the chrominance signal so that an overall chrominance frequency response characteristic of the system for recording and reproducing video signals is a cosine roll-off frequency response characteristic. A system according to claim 3, wherein the means for equalizing includes means (91) for detecting a reference signal level reproduced from the recording medium, and means (93,94,95) for equalizing the reproduced chrominance signal on the basis of the detected reference signal level. A system according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the means for reproducing includes: means (43,44,45;13,14) for reproducing the recorded combined signal from the recording medium; means (52;69;78) for separating the frequency-converted chrominance signal from the reproduced combined signal; means (53;18;79) for converting the separated chrominance signal into a colour difference signal; and means (55;69;78) for interpolating the colour difference signal. A system according to claim 5, wherein the means (52) for separating includes: variable low-pass filter means (78) for low-pass filtering the reproduced combined signal in accordance with a variable amplitude characteristic to provide the separated chrominance signal; means (91, 92) for separating at least one reference signal from the reproduced combined signal; means (94) for detecting a level of the separated reference signal and outputting a detecting signal based on the detected level of the separated reference signal; and means (95) for varying the variable amplitude characteristic on the basis of the detection signal so that an overall chrominance frequency response characteristic of the system for recording and reproducing is a cosine roll-off response characteristic. A system according to claim 6, wherein the means (91,92) for separating at least one reference signal includes means for separating a tracking control pilot signal and a carrier signal from the reproduced combined signal; and the means (94) for detecting includes means for detecting respective levels of the separated tracking control pilot signal and the carrier signal. A system according to any preceding claim, wherein said means for subsampling includes means for performing 2-field cycle offset-subsampling on the chrominance signal. A system according to any of claims 1 to 7, wherein said means for subsampling includes means for performing 4-field cycle offset-subsampling on the chrominance signal. A system according to any preceding claim, wherein said means for subsampling includes means for sampling the chrominance signal in accordance with an f sc /4 sampling clock, where f sc is a colour subcarrier frequency. A system according to any preceding claim, wherein the cosine roll-off characteristic is symmetrical.

Inventors: HONDA TAKASHI C O PATENTS DIVI, SATO DAI C O PATENTS DIVISION, HONDA, TAKASHI, SATO, DAI, Honda, Takashi, c/o Patents Division Sony Corp., Sato, Dai, c/o Patents Division Sony Corp.
Applicants: SONY CORP, SONY CORPORATION
Application year: 1992
Main classification: H04N9
IPC codes: H04N9