Radio age research, manufacturing, communications, broadcasting, television (1941)

color television in our Laborato- ries," said General Sarnoflf. "They have enabled RCA, the creator of all-electronic black-and-white tele- vision, also to create all-electronic color television which has been the dream of radio scientists from the beginning. "The new RCA electronic color television system will be available to the entire radio industry. The development is so important in con- tributing to television leadership for our country that we have de- cided to demonstrate it publicly as apparatus becomes available for each successive step. We begin with the current demonstration in which still pictures are used, but which sufficiently establishes the basic principle; it will be followed by the transmission and reception of color pictures in motion, then outdoor scenes and finally electronic color television on large-size theatre screens." Dr. C. B. Jollifle, Executive Vice President in Charge of the RCA Laboratories Division, declared that this development in television, which establishes an all-electronic system of color transmission and reception, takes the issue of color television out of the range of con- troversy. All-electronic television, he said, is far superior to any me- chanical system of color with its rotating discs and other well-known limitations. "The problem is no longer how to transmit and receive color pictures by an all-electronic method, because the basic principles have now been solved," said Dr. Jolliffe. "The problem that still challenges is how to operate television broadcasting as a steady and regular service to the public on the higher frequen- cies, whether in black-or-white or in color. To open the high-frequency spectrum and to make it commer- cially useful will require propaga- tion studies under broadcasting conditions, development of new cir- cuits, new tubes and new cameras, all of which must be field-tested before commercial standards can be recommended by the industry for approval by the Federal Communi- cations Commission. "Although we have solved the all- electronic color television problem, it will require a number of years to establish color television as a serv- ice to the public," said Dr. Jolliffe. "What we have done today is to demonstrate the realization of the principle of simultaneous electronic color television. The apparatus used in the demonstration is purely e.x- perimental as developed in the Lab- oratories. It is not commercial equipment, but it reveals that the American people will be assured of the finest color tele- vision instruments in the future as they now have in all-electronic black- and - white televi- sion. "Let me empha- size that the most important fact to remember in re- gard to color television is that any commercial system, whether it be mechanical or electronic, depends upon the ultra-high frequency spec- trum in which the necessary band width for color exists. No matter how far the development of the principle and the apparatus has gone forward, there must yet be complete exploration and tests in the field of the behavior and limi- tations of ultra-high frequencies. We expect to complete our develop- ment of electronic color television apparatus before the ultra-high fre- quency spectrum is made ready for its use in a commercial way. "This demonstration, therefore, does not change the time period es- timated by us in December, 1945, that it would require five years to bring a color system to the present position of black-and-white televi- sion. "We will move along rapidly in this development, but no matter how many years pass before the ultra-high frequency spectrum is harnessed for commercial color DRAWING OF RCA ALL-ELECTRONIC COLOR TELEVISION RE- CEIVER SHOWING HOW IMAGES ON THE THREE KIN- ESCOPES OF THE TRINOSCOPE ARE PROJECTED ONTO A MIRROR AND THEN TO THE VIEWING SCREEN WHERE THEY BLEND TO REPRODUCE THE ORIGINAL SCENE IN ITS NATURAL COLOR REAR VIEW OF RCA ALL-ELECTRONIC COLOR TELEVI- SION RECEIVER SHOWING THE TRINOSCOPE, COM- PRISING THREE CATHODE-RAY TUBES WHICH PRO- JECT RED, BLUE AND GREEN IMAGES ON THE MIRROR AND VIEWING SCREEN ABOVE.