Apple-History--Google Patent Search Service finds Woz' 1979 Color Video Patent

Google has a new patent search button and a reasonably nice interface for looking at patents. If you put "apple wozniak" in the search box and click the search button up comes patent number 4136359 entitled "Microcomputer for use with video display" issued January 23, 1979, to Stephen G. (Woz) Wozniak as inventor and Apple Computer, Inc., as the assignee.

Here is the abstract:

A microcomputer including a video generator and timing means which provides color and high resolution graphics on a standard, raster scanned, cathode ray tube is disclosed. A horizontal synchronization counter is synchronized at an odd-submultiple of the color subcarrier reference frequency. A "delayed" count is employed in the horizontal synchronization counter to compensate for color subcarrier phase reversals between lines for the non-interlaced fields. This permits vertically aligned color graphics without substantially altering the standard horizontal synchronization frequency. Video color signals are generated directly from digital signals by employing a recirculating shift register.

The patent application was filed April 11, 1977. [Dana Baggett]