Quantum Data 881 - Manual (Page 64)

46 Chapter 2 Testing Video Displays
Upon selecting a format, you can modify the format options and settings if necessary. For
instructions on this, see “
Configuring format parameters ” on page 177.
Understanding the format library
The generator has several built-in formats to test a broad range of display types. These
formats are grouped in the following categories:
• Composite television formats
• Component standard definition television formats
• Component high definition television formats
• Computer display formats
• Military and medical display formats
• Miscellaneous formats
Note: A summary of the format naming conventions is provided in this section. For a
detailed description of the naming conventions, see “
Format library ” on page 171.
Composite television formats
Composite television formats are named by the standards defining them. The first three to
five characters of the format name indicate the color coding scheme. The first set of
characters refers to the standard. The next characters are optional and indicate
adjustments to the format. Examples of these formats are:
• NTSC (North American TV)
• PAL (European TV)
• NTSC-J (where J refers to a Japan standard per NTSC without 7.5 IRE setup)
• PAL-N (where N indicates 3.58205625 MHz color sub-carrier)
• PAL# (where # indicates that the sampling rate is reduced to achieve square pixels)
Component standard definition television formats
Component SDTV formats are applicable in the case of RGB and YPbPr. These formats
are named by their vertical resolution, scanning method, and frame rate. The initial
characters indicating the resolution are followed by the scanning method. The two
characters following the scanning method indicate the frame rate. A typical example of a
component standard definition TV video format is:
• 480i2x30 (for a vertical resolution of 480 pixels with interlaced scanning and a 30 Hz
frame refresh rate; 2x indicates that the pixels are double-clocked for DVI compatibility).