RCA Demonstrates 'Next Generation' VideoDisc Player At ITA

RCA Press Release for March 3, 1982

RCA Demonstrates 'Next Generation' VideoDisc Player At ITA

SAN DIEGO, March 3 -- RCA demonstrated today an advanced VideoDisc player that features programmable random access, high-speed visual search, repeat picture and the ability to automatically repeat program segments on the disc.

Termed "a next generation" player that illustrates the advanced capabilities of RCA's "CED" VideoDisc system, the prototype player was shown publicly for the first time in the United States.

"RCA believes that its 'CED' system is now in a leadership position in the worldwide competition for a single video disc standard, " said James M. Alic, RCA Group Vice President, at a meeting of the International Audio/Video Tape & Disc Association (ITA) here.

"The successful production of over 3,000,000 discs and some 200,000 players indicates that the RCA VideoDisc system is a highly manufacturable and consumer-ready system," he said. "The probable adoption of the company's 'CED' system by other firms for non-consumer application is further evidence of the system's potential both in this country and the rest of the world."

The ITA demonstration of the advanced RCA VideoDisc system centered on a developmental model from the company's David Sarnoff Research Center in Princeton, N. J.

Mr. Alic said the model represents "a next generation of the CED video players that can be expected in the marketplace in the relatively near future." The player was previously shown last Fall at an international video conference in France.

"We continue to believe that our introductory players, particularly with the addition of stereo this May, do in fact incorporate the product features necessary to build a mass market. At the same time we recognize that some consumers will express an interest in a deluxe player that offers more features and advanced technical capabilities, " Mr. Alic said.

Dr. Jon K. Clemens, Director of VideoDisc Systems at RCA's Research Laboratories, demonstrated the special features of the advanced RCA VideoDisc player, including the programmable random access capability. Using a remote control unit, he selected program material by either time, band or field, "thus clearly showing the potential of the 'CED' system for educational and industrial applications, " he noted.

Dr. Clemens stressed that the prototype player clearly demonstrated the ability of a "CED" stylus system to randomly access a specific field on the disc as well as to play a single groove repeatedly without damage to the disc. "Having incorporated these capabilities into the basic 'CED' system, it is obvious that there are many new features possible, and here we have demonstrated only a few of them, " Dr. Clemens said.

In his demonstration of the visual search feature with on-screen picture, Dr. Clemens used the prototype system's two search speeds, 16x and 120x. Dr. Clemens also programmed the player to repeat segments of the disc, and demonstrated the repeat picture capability of the player.

He said that in the short term, specially prepared discs can be used to provide the repeat picture feature. "In the long term, a low-cost solid state memory device could be developed to provide repeat picture capability for all standard 'CED' video dlscs, " Dr. Clemens indicated.

The RCA scientist, who is a co-recipient of the international Rhein Prize 1980 for his contributions to the RCA VideoDisc system, said every "CED" video disc contains a code that includes a field number and band identification. In the demonstration, the field number was converted into a time which was displayed on the TV screen. The code was also used in conjunction with a microprocessor to randomly access any segment of the disc.

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