US 4,052,798 AGranted

Audio-visual teaching system

AssigneeSony Corporation

InventorsShinji Tomita, Tsunehiro Kashima

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Abstract

A system for selectively supplying information including video information to operators, such as students, at plural stations, the information requiring responses, or answers, and the correctness of each operator's answer being displayed. A television monitor is provided at each station to display video picture information. In reply to a question, which may be displayed or audibly reproduced, a responding device is selectively operated by the operator. The video picture information displayed at each television monitor is stored in a main storage device in the form of video picture signals representing predetermined still video information. Selected ones of the video picture signals are supplied from the main storage device as a function of each response, or answer, by the operators. A buffer store having a plurality of video picture signals storage channels corresponding to the number of stations is coupled to the main storage device to receive the selected video picture signals and to transmit these received signals to particular ones of the stations. A control unit is coupled to the main storage device and to the buffer store for controlling the transmission of selected video picture signals from the main storage device to a particular video picture signal storage channel and for controlling the transmission of video picture signals from the storage channels in the buffer store to selected ones of the stations. In one embodiment, a video display of the correctness of the operator's answer is provided. It is one feature of this system to transmit new video information to each monitor in accordance with the pace, or progress, of each operator.

Claims19

Dependent claims

A system for selectively supplying information requiring independent response to plural stations whereat operators provide said independent responses, said system returning further information to said stations as a function of each response, comprising:

a television monitor at each station for displaying video picture information;
manually operable responding means at each said station for producing said response when operated by said operator;
main storage means for storing a plurality of addressable frames of video picture signal information, each frame representing predetermined still video information;
buffer storage means having a plurality of storage channels corresponding to the number of said stations, each storage channel having a storage capacity to store a frame of video picture signal information;
first switch means intercoupled between said main storage means and said buffer storage means and selectively operable for transferring an addressed frame of video picture signal information to a selected channel in said buffer storage means;
second switch means intercoupled between said buffer storage means and said plurality of stations and selectively operable for transmitting selected frames of video picture signal information from said storage channels in said buffer storage means to corresponding ones of said stations so as to display on the television monitors at said stations still video picture information represented by the respective transmitted frames;
and
control means coupled to said main storage means and to said buffer storage means for controlling said main storage means in accordance with a produced response to address a selected frame of video picture signal information and to transmit the addressed frame to a particular storage channel in said buffer storage means as determined by the selective operation of said first switch means, and for controlling said buffer storage means to transmit the frames of video picture signal information stored in said respective storage channels to selected ones of said stations as determined by the selective operation of said second switch means.

5 more elements

An audio-visual instruction method, comprising the steps of:

displaying one of a plurality of frames of still video pictures to one of plural students;
transmitting audible instructions from a record medium to said student, said instructions including material explanatory of said displayed picture and at least one question requiring a response by said student;
responding to said at least one question by selecting one of plural possible answers;
evaluating said answer to determine its correctness;
transmitting further audible instructions, including additional material explanatory of said displayed picture from said record medium to said student in the event that said answer is not correct;
said further audible instructions including at least one question requiring a response by said student;
transmitting a new set of audible instructions from said record medium to said student in the event that said evaluated answer is correct, said new set of instructions including material explanatory of a new video picture;
reproducing an address pre-recorded on said record medium in association with said new set of audible instructions;
searching through said video store for a frame of video picture signal information identified by said address;
recording said addressed frame of video picture signal information in a particular channel of a buffer storage medium, said particular channel being associated with said one student;
and
displaying the frame of video picture signal information recorded in said particular channel of said buffer storage medium.

9 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.