Patent GB-1054441-A (GB)
IPC: H04N9/72
Abstract: 1,054,441. Television; gain control; limiters. COMPAGNIE FRANCAISE DE TELEVISION. Jan. 20, 1964 [Jan. 21, 1963; Aug. 6, 1963], No. 2494/64. Headings H3Q, H3W and H4F. In a colour television receiver for a transmission system in which the composite video signal comprises a luminous component together with a sub-carrier frequency-modulated by colour information, loss of colour balance, which arises when the composite signal level is varied, e.g. by adjustment of the contrast control, due to the absence of a compensating change in the level of the output from the frequency discriminators which derive the colour information from the sub-carrier, is prevented by varying the threshold level of the limiters at the input to the discriminators as a function of a reference signal (e.g. the peaks of the synchronizing signals or the amplitude of the sub-carrier) included in the composite video signal. The invention is described in connection with a receiver for the "'Secam " system in which limiters 19, 20 (Fig. 1), feeding respective frequency discriminators 21, 22 supplying colour signals to the picture reproducer 9 and themselves fed via switch 17 and direct and delayed channels 15, 16 with the frequency modulated sub-carrier derived via filter 7 from the detector 5, have their threshold levels varied by control voltages derived in circuit 11 from the AGC system 8, 13, the reference signal in this case being the peaks of the synchronizing signals. Fig. 2 which shows circuit details of the latter includes a valve 35 the grid of which is supplied from the video amplifiers 6 (also Fig. 1) and the anode of which is " pulsed-on " during line fly-back intervals by pulses derived from the synchronizing circuits 10 (also Fig. 1) to produce, in conventional manner, gain-control voltage for the I.F. amplifier 4 (also Fig. 1), such voltage being adjustable by slider 33 (control knob 14 in Fig. 1) operating as a contrast control. Any adjustment of the latter results in a variation of the level of the video signal input to the grid of valve 35 and a control voltage proportional to such variation is derived in the cathode circuit and utilized to vary the threshold level of the limiters comprising diodes 43, 44 and 43<SP>1</SP>, 44<SP>1</SP> (19 and 20 in Fig. 1) in such manner that correct colour balance is maintained by maintaining a fixed relationship (determined by the setting of slider 38 (knob 12 in Fig. 1) between the levels of the luminous signal and the colour signals. When the reference signal comprises the amplitude of the sub-carrier wave itself the limiters 19<SP>1</SP>, 20<SP>1</SP> (Fig 3), each comprise self-biasing arrangements as shown in Fig. 4 in which the threshold levels follow amplitude variations in the sub-carrier input from 50 (equivalent to 15, 16, 17, Fig. 1) resulting from adjustment of the contrast control 55<SP>1</SP> the levels being preset by adjustment of resistors 210 (knob 203, Fig. 3) to produce correct colour balance for a given amplitude of the sub-carrier. The arrangement of the inventions may also be employed in arrangements for " fading-over " between two composite colour signals.