Radio Transmission of Photographs

Radio Record, Volume III, Issue 52, 11 July 1930, Page 11

Radio Transmission of Photographs

{[t appears almost certain that within ‘ the next six months it will be a simple matter to transmit an ordinary photograph from Australia to England, and vice versa. Tests for that purpose are now being carried out. Pictures, newspaper cuttings and documents have been sent by wireless from Mngland to America, but the first step in the Australia-England transmissions will probably be to send photographs only, as it is not certain that, at this stage, it will be possible to transmit written documents and suchlike on a commercial basis. Information on this point is now awaited, but Mr. Fisk, managing director of A.W.A., is ‘very hopeful that before long it will be possible to include documentary and other transmissions, as well as photographs, and to make it a commercial proposition for all parties, including the public. There are various methods of transmitting pictures by wireless. All, however, in effect, convert a picture into a series of dots. These dots, for the purpose of long distance transmissions on a big scale, will be tranmitted between Australia and England by beam wireless under the regular service to be in--stalled. A picture is turned into dots by means of a light sensitive cell, known as a photo-electric cell. AS particles of the picture pass the cell, so the.cell responds, according to the light or shades of the picture. The varying dots transmitted over' the: wireless are converted, at the other end, into mechanical action, which causes a travelling light to reassemble the dots as a photograph.