Innovative Film Processing Technology by Hitachi
Hitachi has unveiled a film processing technology that the company claims it solves a problem which has challenged television design engineers for 50+ years.
Since the advent of television, there has always been a mismatch between the motion of films seen in a movie theater and the way that same motion appeared on television. Through a new technology called Reel60, Hitachi applies a patented technique that correctly matches the motion of movies. Hitachi says that the technology allows viewers to experience movies at home in the pure and precise way the movie creators intended.
Movies provide the illusion of motion by showing a series of still images over time. In fact, all Hollywood movies flash 24 individual images each second. However, Hollywood?s 24 frames-per-second do not match our television systems, which show 60 frames each second. A conversion technique called "3:2 pulldown correction" is used to make the 24 frames of film fit the television?s faster 60 frames. As this conversion is done, the viewer can often observe a jerky, troublesome visual effect that is called "judder." It appears as if the image is jittery or stuttering and is especially noticeable when the picture pans or makes sweeping, side-to-side movements.
In conventional approaches, 3:2 pulldown correction is done simply by repeating original film frames every 1/8 second. These repeated frames are what cause "judder," the stuttering, jerky movement that can be observed in motion pans. Hitachi's Reel60 technique automatically eliminates the jerky motion. By creating interpolated frames based on the original film images, the Reel60 processing technology smoothes out the movement and correctly matches the original motion. "The result is a smooth motion, whether it?s a passing vehicle or a camera pan from across the screen or side-to-side," says Hitachi.
The Reel60 technology has been applied in three new plasma HDTV flat panel displays Hitachi is introducing today: Hitachi?s new Full HD 1080 50-inch HDTV (model P50V701) and its Director?s Series Full HD 1080 HDTVs in both 50-inch (model P50X901) and 60-inch (model P60X901) screen sizes.
Hitachi also announced four new flat panel LCD displays: 47-inch and 42-inch S-Series and 47-inch and 42-inch V-Series models.
The 60-inch Director?s Series plasma (model P60X901) and 50-inch Director?s Series plasma (model P50X901) will be available in August for a Manufacturers Advertised Price (MAP) of $7,999.95 and $4,299.95, respectively. The 55-inch H-Series (model P55H401) has an MAP of $2,999.95 and the 55-inch T-Series (model P55T501) has an MAP of $3,299.95; both of these new plasma displays are available in September. The 50" S-Series (model P50S601) will be available in July for an MAP of $3,499.95. The 50-inch V-Series (model P50V701) will be available in August for an MAP of $3,999.95.
The LCD displays are all available in September and are priced as follows:
47-inch S-Series (model L47S601): MAP $2,999.95
47-inch V-Series (model L47V651): MAP $3,199.95
42-inch S-Series (model L42S601): MAP $2,299.95
42-inch V-Series (model L42V651): MAP $2,499.95
Movies provide the illusion of motion by showing a series of still images over time. In fact, all Hollywood movies flash 24 individual images each second. However, Hollywood?s 24 frames-per-second do not match our television systems, which show 60 frames each second. A conversion technique called "3:2 pulldown correction" is used to make the 24 frames of film fit the television?s faster 60 frames. As this conversion is done, the viewer can often observe a jerky, troublesome visual effect that is called "judder." It appears as if the image is jittery or stuttering and is especially noticeable when the picture pans or makes sweeping, side-to-side movements.
In conventional approaches, 3:2 pulldown correction is done simply by repeating original film frames every 1/8 second. These repeated frames are what cause "judder," the stuttering, jerky movement that can be observed in motion pans. Hitachi's Reel60 technique automatically eliminates the jerky motion. By creating interpolated frames based on the original film images, the Reel60 processing technology smoothes out the movement and correctly matches the original motion. "The result is a smooth motion, whether it?s a passing vehicle or a camera pan from across the screen or side-to-side," says Hitachi.
The Reel60 technology has been applied in three new plasma HDTV flat panel displays Hitachi is introducing today: Hitachi?s new Full HD 1080 50-inch HDTV (model P50V701) and its Director?s Series Full HD 1080 HDTVs in both 50-inch (model P50X901) and 60-inch (model P60X901) screen sizes.
Hitachi also announced four new flat panel LCD displays: 47-inch and 42-inch S-Series and 47-inch and 42-inch V-Series models.
The 60-inch Director?s Series plasma (model P60X901) and 50-inch Director?s Series plasma (model P50X901) will be available in August for a Manufacturers Advertised Price (MAP) of $7,999.95 and $4,299.95, respectively. The 55-inch H-Series (model P55H401) has an MAP of $2,999.95 and the 55-inch T-Series (model P55T501) has an MAP of $3,299.95; both of these new plasma displays are available in September. The 50" S-Series (model P50S601) will be available in July for an MAP of $3,499.95. The 50-inch V-Series (model P50V701) will be available in August for an MAP of $3,999.95.
The LCD displays are all available in September and are priced as follows:
47-inch S-Series (model L47S601): MAP $2,999.95
47-inch V-Series (model L47V651): MAP $3,199.95
42-inch S-Series (model L42S601): MAP $2,299.95
42-inch V-Series (model L42V651): MAP $2,499.95
