Radio today (Jan-Mar 1939)

j&wftfcf Mead m PMts Millions of extra sets to be sold for television, facsimile, frequency modulated broadcasts. Thousands of U-H-F transmitters to provide program service. Radio pianos and industrial controls need radio parts. Never before has the outlook for the radio parts industry been as bright as now. Uses for radio parts have gone far beyond the horizon marked by receivers, for such parts are now being used in television, facsimile, sound systems, electronic musical instruments, industrial control systems, and other radio-tube devices. Then too, there has been established a fair degree of mechanical and electrical standardization, resulting in a better opportunity for economical manufacture. TELEVISION BOOM Television receivers with their some 25 to 30 tubes, are equivalent in the number of parts to a couple of 10-tube broadcast receivers and a cathode-ray oscilloscope. In television sets there are really two complete receivers — one for the video, another for the audio. Then to make the picture tube function there must be sweep circuits, filters for separating synchronizing signals, and a highvoltage power supply. For volume-control manufacturers, television should precipitate a boom, since up to 13 variable controls are used, as compared with a maximum of two in a sound receiver. Likewise tube manufacturers should rejoice, for 25 or more tubes are used. Similar examples can be listed for every other type of parts, but it suffices to say that in a television receiver, each tube requires as many if not more parts than a tube in an ordinary all-wave receiver. Fortunately, for the parts jobbers and servicemen practically all of the parts, except a few of those involved in the cathode-ray circuits and the tuned coils, are the same as those used in every-day radio work. While facsimile at present is being peep-swished on the broadcast band, thus permitting the use of standard receivers with a facsimile attachment, in the future much facsimile will be sent out on the ultrahigh frequencies. The use of these frequencies means that there will be a great demand for ultra-high-frequency receivers to operate the facsimile printers. Considerable numbers of radio parts are used in the facsimile printers, even though they are mainly mechanical in operation. It is likely, however, that many of the "Radio" piano developed by Miessner, using amplifiers and loudspeakers to provide great depth of tone and volume. radio parts manufacturers will supply the mechanical parts for the printers, thus keeping the entire manufacture in the radio trade. ULTRA-HIGH FREQUENCIES Ultra-high-frequency receirers are going to be needed for the reception of frequency modulation transmissions as well as for facsimile. The number of U-H-F sets that will be sold in the next several years is probably in the tens of millions. And it should be remembered that these sales will be in addition to the regular number of sets sold for use on the standard broadcast band. Pocket radios, predicted many months ago by Radio Today have now reached the experimental stage, and it has been proven that they are practical. Extremely small tubes about three-quarters of an inch in diameter have been developed for dry cell operation. Merchandising experts believe that several million of these sets can be sold each year, so that Mr. and Mrs. Public can have radio reception everywhere they go. Since these sets are primarily portables and depend on batteries for operation, they will not be used appreciably at home. Instead the regular power-line operated receiver will be employed. Thus, it should be noted that the pocket radio will be an extra radio — it will not supplant any of the present sets. HEAVY DEMAND ON BATTERIES Since the battery pocket sets must be compact and light, very small batteries will be used. Naturally there will be a constant demand for new batteries as the old ones wear out. With millions of these pocket sets in daily use, battery manufacturers will have a market greatly in excess of that which existed when the hometype battery set was at its height. Dealers and jobbers will have an item that will bring every set owner to their stores at regular and often intervals. To provide program service for facsimile, television, and frequencymodulated sound transmissions is going to requh'e an immense expansion program in the broadcasting industry 20 RADIO TODAY