Interframe Coding for 4-MHz Color Television Signals

An interframe coding system is described which is capable of transmitting a 4-MHz National Television System Commission (NTSC) color television signal. 6.3 Mbit/s transmission gives acceptable picture quality for video telephone or conference TV use. The NTSC color television signal is converted into a timedivision multiplex (TDM) signal which is composed of time-compressed chrominance and luminance signal in sequence. This signal is encoded using a frame-difference coder of the kind that has been used for black-and-white television signals. A field-repeating technique is introduced into the coder, to prevent a buffer memory from overflowing and to improve picture quality. Statistical investigations show that the presence of the timecompressed chrominance signal gives less than 10 percent increase in the amount of information generated by picture movements; this increase scarcely affects the picture quality.