Advice for Updating B.A.T.C Generator

[crustytv]

Hi folks, thanks for letting me join.

My main interest is vintage television restoration, and one of my tools I have is an old B.A.T.C test pattern generator. The device has the ability to select eight test patterns that are stored on EPROMs and accessed via an 8-way selector on the front. Although the device has 8 options, only four EPROMs positions populated, leaving four spare slots.

The EPROMS installed are TMS-2732A, I have a T56 programmer and have managed to read the four installed EPROMS saving them to .BIN files. I also have 4 new 2732A in stock, what I'd like to do is populate these new EPROMS with new test cards and add them to the generator, thus extending it's capability to eight test patterns.

The problem? I have no idea how to go about that, therefore I was hoping someone here at the B.A.T.C might remember this device and help advise me what I need to do. How to encode a JPG or PNG to BIN which can then be written to the new EPROM, installed, and subsequently read and displayed via the test generator.

I believe the device dates from around 1983-ish and logically I would think G4WZ (Ray) would have been the builder.

I've added some photos but could only add 5, so two of the test cards are not shown. The first is the BATC test card, the next two are colour bar and the final one is B&W frequency.

Thank you for taking the time to read this
Chris

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[G8HKN]

Ah yes the Cropready Test Card generator.
Supplied by Worthing Repeater Group in late 70's early 80's.
They also supplied pre programmed Eproms.
I don't think the group is still active.
Try to contact Geoff Mather G8DHE.
He is in the Callbook and QRZ.com and a BATC Member.
Roger G8HKN.

[crustytv]

Ah yes the Cropready Test Card generator.
Supplied by Worthing Repeater Group in late 70's early 80's.

Try to contact Geoff Mather G8DHE.
He is in the Callbook and QRZ.com and a BATC Member.
Roger G8HKN.

Hi Roger,
Thanks for responding. What a small world, I was born and lived in Brighton for 44-years before relocating north, to think this group was just a few short miles from me in Worthing, my grandparents lived there, so was often over that way.

I just looked up Geoff, and he's not been on this forum since Sun Dec 31, 2017 10:43 am I suspect he won't respond to a PM, and I'm not a radio amateur.

[g8dhe]

Well its been a while
Yes details emailed for the Eproms and an editing program as well. The original design for the the TCG was by G3RFL John Hudson, I think it was mentioned in a CQ-TV at one point but will need a search of the archives. edit: ..... Yup CQ-TV 234 has the design.
My earliest files on the PC go back to 1988 but I have a feeling I was using a homebrew computer prior to that and I suspect some other documents never made it across the serial link!

Geoff G8DHE

[crustytv]

Hi Geoff,

Many thanks for all the info and the software you have provided. It has filled in many blanks and I now know what is, and is not, possible. This is more than I could have hoped for, as my generator has a date code of 1983 which is 40-years ago this very year. It was a long shot that anyone would be able to help.

Hopefully it is also good for folk here to know that the Test Card generator is still in use and will be for more years to come. I wonder if any others are still out there, they're vintage items in their own right and part of our analogue TV history.

Many thanks
Chris

[g8dhe]

Indeed these boards seem to go on and on, looks like you have the 8-way board we did and also the Video AGC board far left with the green block on it!

[crustytv]

To provide context to all this, I have a private museum with around 50 vintage colour televisions, ranging from the first generation 1967 colour dual-standards (Baird 700 series, Thorn 2000, DECCA Battersea) all the way up to KT30 & TX100, with everything in between, 697, A823, T20A Thorn 3000,3500, 4000, 8000, 8500, 9000, TX9, TX10, TX100. Plenty of continentals too and a myriad of video from N1500, N1700 all the way up to V2000, VHS and Beta, 70s to mid 80s.

To supply all these TVs when they are repaired with signals, I built an analogue TV network for the museum. Three channels BBC1, BBC2 & ITV, these can be switched to test signals or vintage programme feeds from DVD/VHS period material. For the test signals, I have a Test Card F generator which also produced 15-pages of teletext and a B&W 625-line BBC2 card.

Then I have a BBC C.O.W generator, pattern generator with many cards such as J, PM5544, F, CH4 etc and finally a Teletext module which provide live up-to-date news via a replica Ceefax service, these are using Raspberry Pi. The COW is actually built into a BBC rack module that used to provide tone for open university.

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The DECCA RU.4011 monitors the RF system and allows me to select the channels and display via the SONY PVM and monitor audio via its onboard speaker.

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It's in a temporary wooded rack constructed from what was around, the plan is to get it all nicely housed in a proper unit as and when time permits.

Getting to the point of this post, the B.A.T.C will be joining the rack to provide test signals for a 4th channel, hence wanting to extend its test card range.

Hope that was of some interest.

p.s.

A link to my museum/replica shop can be found here https://www.radios-tv.co.uk/crustytv-vi ... on-museum/

[crustytv]

An update to this, as previously mentioned I had recently bought one of the EPROM programmers the T56 which is the upgrade from the TL866 and as such supports lots more chips and can write at the higher 25V. I recently removed the BATC EPROMS that held the four test cards, read them and importantly backed them up as .BIN files.

This evening, I tried to import the .BIN, but the software expects a .tcp or .tcg file. I then copied the .BIN file renaming the extension to .tcg and hey presto the test card appeared in the software.

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This is all working out rather nicely, one question to those that might know the answer. Why does the software editor palette not support grey? This is the one colour I would dearly have liked. Especially for performing a grey-scale, surely back in the day members must have wanted it too.

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p.s.
Mods/Admin if you feel this thread should be moved to another section other than the wanted, please free to relocate it.

[gm1mfn]

As requested by the OP, this thread has been moved to General ATV Discussion Forum.

[crustytv]

Having problems with this. I've created a test card (see below) but when I blow a new EPROM and install it into the generator, it does not display the test card, just a few fat white bars pulsing on the screen.

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To prove the EPROM burner and the EPROMS I have, I read one of the original installed chips and saved it to a .BIN file. I then took the file and blew a copy EPROM, installed it into the generator, it displayed the contents just fine.

I then thought, OK, maybe there's something I did when creating my test card. So I looked in the folders I was given with the software and found some test cards created by others. I took one of the .tcr files, loaded that into the burn software, it loaded in the data, and then I blew a new chip. It passed OK. I then installed this EPROM in the generator, same scenario, flashing bars.

I then exported the .tcr test card file as a .BIN file, blew another chip, same scenario.

The only conclusion I can come to, perhaps mistakenly, is the Colour Test card software is not producing output that is compatible with the T48 Burner despite it appearing to be.

Anyone have any ideas?

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