Recent Technical Developments in the S-VHS VCR for Broadcasting and Professional Applications

Abstract

S-VHS frequency spectrum allocations for luminance and chrominance signals on video recording, resultant performance, and comparison with the U-SP format are reviewed briefly. Technical considerations leading to selection of oxide tape and ferrite heads for S-VHS recording are discussed, and Y/C video signal transmission and its benefits are described. Treated in more detail are some of the innovative video processing techniques recently developed to achieve significant picture performance improvements in professional S-VHS VCRs and peripheral products. These specific techniques include a unique three-line adaptive comb filter to separate luminance and chrominance components from a composite NTSC video signal; a chrominance enhancement technique developed by Faroudja Laboratories and adapted for use with S-VHS, which significantly restores chroma bandwidth lost during record/playback without degradation of signal-to-noise ratio; an adaptive comb filter technique that supplements phase-shift video processing to improve adjacent track chrominance crosstalk cancellation; and a Y/C digital noise-reduction system designed to significantly improve chrominance as well as luminance signal-to-noise ratio.