The Times from San Mateo, California • Page 61

Saturday, November 8,1949 THE TIMES-WEEKEND To capture high fidelity light images requires higher frequencies than sound or data recording. For example, high fidelity sound is recorded at no' more than 15,000 hz (cycles per second). Early instrumentation recorders up to 100,000 hz, and the most sophisticated instrumentation recorders today using the longitudinal recording method reach 2,000,000 hz. To record high quality color television frequencies of Since frequency response in a magnetic recorder rises as the speed of the tape passing the head increases, early attempts to create a videotape recorder used tape speeds of 100 inches per second or more. This resulted in unstable pictures and a smallamount of program on a reel of In 1956, Ampex introduced the 1 first practical videotape recorder.

To solve the frequency response problem, it employed four recording heads on a metal disc that moves across the tape as the tape passes at a speed of 30 inches per second. With both heads and tape moving, the relative tape-head speed was increased to 500 inches per second making possible high quality television recording. The Ampex VR-1000 took the television industry by storm and made a major contribution to the growth of the industry. Programs could now be broadcast.in one time zone, recorded in another and replayed at the same relative hour with quality undistinguishable from the live broadcast. Stations throughout the world lise Ampex recorders, and a high percentage of all television programming today originates on video tape.

A variation of the Ampex video recorder, employing metal discs instead of tape, makes possible the popular "instant replay" feature of sports telecasts. The Ampex invention of the videotape recorder has been termed one of the most significant technological developments of the period since World War II. Ampex has been the of two Emmys from the Academy of Television Arts, and Sciences, one for the original development of the videotape recorder, and the second-for a high band color videotape recorder. In recent years, smaller videotape recorders FIRST VTR: Television tape recording was demonstrated publicly for the first time with the introduction of the Ampex VR-1000 prototype videotape recorder (above) at the National Association of Broadcasters'convention in April, 1956, in Chicago. Ampex received an "Emmy" award from the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for developing the videotape recorder.

have emerged as important adjuncts-to closed circuit television in education, industry, medicine, government and many other specialized fields for training and communications. Ampex is the lead- ing firm in both broadcasting and closed circuit television recording and today offers thd most complete line of television broadcasting merit available. Scientific Data Ampex Corporation recently placed on the market a new scientific and industrial tape recorder designed to reproduce a wide variety of dafa such as that obtained in environmental test, medical research, petro-chemical analysis and aerospace applications. Up to hours of data may be stored on a single lOVa-inch reel of magnetic tape, then scanned and retrieved in minutes on the PR-500. Video Fingerprints Fingerprint analysts with the.

Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department will retrieve and compare fingerprints by television when the Ampex Videofile information system is installed by the Sheriff's Department in 1970. The system is the key element in ORACLE (Optimum Record Automation for Court and Law Enforcement), a new department program that will speed dramatically the positive identification of arrested.