Radar video recording system

Claim 2

A radar data recording and reproducing system for recording radar data received from a plurality of tracking radars and subsequently replaying said radar data into a display system, said radar data including video signals, trigger synchronizing pulses, elevation angle signals, radar bearing information and time and auxiliary data, comprising: means for combining said video signals, trigger synchronizing pulses, and elevation angle signals into a composite video signal; means for converting said radar bearing and time and auxiliary information signals into a serially multiplexed digital signal; recording means adapted to severally record said composite video signal and said serially multiplexed digital signal simultaneously; first converting means operably connected to said recording means for reconverting said composite video signal into said video signals, trigger synchronizing pulses, and elevation angle signals; and second reconverting means operably connected to said recording means for reconverting said serially multiplexed digital signal into said radar bearing and time and auxiliary information signals.

Claim 3

The radar data recording and reproducing system as specified in claim 1 wherein said combining means comprises: means for conditioning said video signals, said trigger synchronizing pulses and said elevation angle signals into signals compatible with said recording means and said first reconverting means; and means for summing said conditIoned signals producing thereby said composite video signal.

Claim 4

The radar data recording and reproducing system as defined in claim 2 wherein said conditioning means comprises: means for converting said elevation angle signal into an output digital signal; means for encoding said trigger synchronizing pulses; and means for modulating said video signal.

Claim 5

The radar data recording and reproducing system as recited in claim 3 wherein said first reconverting means comprises: means for separating said conditioned video, trigger and elevation signals from said composite video and including; means for detecting said modulated video signal; means for detecting said trigger synchronizing pulses; means for reconstructing the original timing relationship among said trigger synchronizing pulses; and means for converting said digital elevation signal into the originally received analog elevation signal.

Claim 6

The radar data recording and reproducing system as recited in claim 4 wherein said radar bearing signal may be present, at any given time, in the form of either an analog signal or a digital pulse train and wherein said serially, multiplexed digital system converting means comprises: means rendered effective when said radar bearing signal is in the form of a scalar or synchro analog signal for generating an analog signal representing the sine and cosine of radar bearing; means for converting said analog sine and cosine signal into a corresponding parallel digital signal; means rendered effective when said radar bearing signal is in the form of a digital pulse train for converting said digital pulse train into a corresponding parallel digital signal; means responsive to said trigger synchronizing pulses for converting said trigger synchronizing pulses into a corresponding parallel digital signal according to a predetermined timing format; serial formatting means capable of transforming an input parallel digital signal into a serially formatted digital signal according to a predetermined timing format; and OR gating means connecting the input of said serial formatting means selectively to the outputs of said analog sine and cosine converting means and said digital pulse train converting means.

Claim 7

The radar data recording and reproducing system as recited in claim 5 wherein said second reconverting means comprises: decoding means connected to the output of said recording means for converting said serially multiplexed digital signal into radar bearing information signals, trigger information signals and time information signals, all of said signals being in parallel binary form; analog converting means for converting said parallel digital radar bearing information into scalar and synchro analog signals, means for receiving said digital parallel binary information for converting said information into digital pulse trains representing sine and cosine functions of said radar bearing signal; and means for recovering said timing information.

Claim 8

The radar data recording and reproducing system as defined in claim 6 wherein said elevation angle converting means further comprises: means for sampling said analog elevation angle signal at each radar sweep, said sampling being controlled by said trigger synchronizing pulses; and means responsive to said output digital signal and to said sampled analog signal for producing an error signal therefrom, said error signal serving to periodically revise said output digital signal.

Claim 9

The radar data recording and reproducing system as specified in claim 6 and further comprising self-test circuit means operably connected to the output of said decoding means for instantaneously determining the angular value of said radar bearing angle.

Claim 10

The radar data recording and reproducing system as recited in claim 5 wherein said means for generating said sine and cosine equivalents of said scalar or synchro analog signal comprises: sine/cosine converter means for producing analog voltages proportional to the sine and cosine of said synchro or scalar analog signal input; first analog multiplexing means connected so as to receive the cosine equivalent outputs of said sine/cosine converter means; and second analog multiplexing means connected so as to receive the sine equivalent outputs of said sine/cosine converter means and the output of said first analog multiplexing means.

Claim 11

The radar data recording and reproducing system as specified in claim 9 wherein said parallel digital converting means comprises: sample and hold circuit means for sampling a portion of said output of said second analog multiplexing means, said sample and hold circuit means holding the analog voltage level of said output signal of said second analog multiplexing means thereby presenting a constant voltage level for the duration of the multiplexed analog word; and first converting means for converting said multiplexed analog output of said sample and hold circuit means into an equivalent binary number and including; comparator circuit means operably connected to said output of said sample and hold circuit means for comparing the output of said first converting means with said sample and hold circuit output signal; control circuit means wherein said first converting means will initiate said digital conversion as long as said output level of said sample and hold circuit means differs from the output level of said first converting means, and second converting means for converting the binary output of said first converting means into a parallel binary signal.

Claim 12

The radar data recording and reproducing system recited in claim 10 wherein said digital pulse train is comprised of a pulse train representing the sine of said bearing angle, and a pulse train representing the cosine of said bearing angle wherein the number of pulses in each of said digital pulse trains represents the specific sine and cosine numerical value and further wherein said means for converting said digital pulse train comprises: means for counting the number of pulses in each of said sine and cosine pulse trains, said counting means producing thereby a controlled, parallel binary signal output equivalent to said pulse number count; control circuit means for controlling the readout of said counting means, said control circuit means being controlled by said trigger synchronizing pulses; means for converting said controlled, parallel, binary signal output of said counting means into a digital, parallel signal; and timing means for strobing the output of said converting means into said formatting means, said strobing occuring in proper timing relationship with said trigger synchronizing pulses.

Claim 13

The radar data recording and reproducing system as specified in claim 11 wherein said analog converting means comprises: digital-to-analog converting means receiving said digital parallel signal and converting said signal into scalar analog voltages corresponding to the sine and cosine of said bearing angle, said conversion occurring according to a predetermined timing format; and means for converting said digital parallel signal output into synchro analog signals.

Claim 14

The radar data recording and reproducing system as defined in claim 12 wherein said synchro analog voltage converter comprises: means for modulating said sine and cosine signals; said sine and cosine signals having an error therebetween; means for producing a motor drive signal from said error signal; motor means responding to said motor drive signal; and synchro transmitting means operably connected to said motor means for transmitting said synchro signal.

Claim 15

The radar data recording and reproducing system as recited in claim 13 wherein said digital converting means comprises: means for determining from the pulses in said digital pulse train the digital value of said radar bearing signal, Said determination being performed according to a predetermined timing format; and means for converting said determined digital value, said value representing the trigonometric value of said radar bearing data, into angular values of said radar bearing data.